[ She listens quietly. Some of these things she does know-- that he wasn't allowed to go to school, that he was reviled as a monster, that he was always alone-- but they stir an ache in her heart all the same. Zelda grew up lonely herself, kept at a distance from most other children because she was a princess, but what Darin describes sounds far worse. Like complete solitude.

But it also sounds unfathomable. She doesn't think Darin is lying about this, but it's hard to believe none of the children in his hometown ever gave him a chance, that none of the girls his age dared to challenge the idea that he was "cursed." With how attractive and charming he is, Zelda automatically assumed that he had dated and been intimate before. ]

Then I am left to assume that all of the women in Alvale collectively suffer from some sort of... madness, I suppose. [ There's a hint of levity in her tone. ] How else can one explain why none of them have ever seen what I see?

[ It is a rhetorical question and she doesn't give him the chance to try to answer. ]

I wish I had something better than words to explain why I want you in my life. I hate that my care challenges you as much as it does.