Cassius was someone who could endure pain even when holes were carved into his body. He could endure all sort of pain without letting a single groan- and though his body would burn from the pain or sweat from the cold, he was used to feeling the pain that it felt like a second nature to him.
But Arabella's words, soft, almost absent of weight, cut deeper than any blade ever had. Just a few syllables from her lips, and his composure splintered.
It wasn't the kind of pain he could bite down on. It wasn't physical, and that was precisely what made it unbearable. Her voice lodged itself in his ribs, a quiet dagger twisting with every breath. His face, so often unreadable, now twisted with something raw and unfamiliar, anguish that bled from every pore.
The slightest words from Arabella were enough to turn his face into a harrowing ache. It was as if he had just been put to hell and couldn't endure the pain.
