The water is warm and soothing as he soaks in it. Sitting on the middle step, Zye keeps his legs drawn up. It allows him to lean forward and have his arms folded across them. The perfect makeshift pillow.
It’s hard not to doze off when he’s so comfortable and tired.
About to fall asleep, he’s jolted awake by Callua entering the room. She lets her feet loudly slap against the floor to grab his attention. He lulls his head to the side to see her come to stand at the side of the pool’s edge.
The robe is gone and replaced by a pair of purple sweatpants and a light pink, thin-strapped top. She places her hands on her hips as she looks down at him. “Hey there, dummy.”
“Mm…hi.”
“Feeling any better?”
“Still tired. Not used to using all that magic.”
“Does that mean you wanna stay in or should we get some rest?”
Zye buries his face against his arms. “Why? Water is better.”
Callua walks around to stand behind him where the water can’t get her. She lifts her leg and reaches out, poking at his back with her toes. “Because I don’t want to get wet again. Or do you not want to hear a secret?”
“Liar. You won’t tell me anything,” he responds while sparing an arm. He flails it back at her to make her stop.
“Why do you say that?”
Yawning, Zye sits up and half-turns. He dips his hands into the water and splashes it up against his chest. “I’ve known you for years and you never told me anything serious about your past. Not even your age! Or well, what your real age is.”
“I was twenty-four when I died.”
Zye slaps one hand through the water. “Hah! I’m older! Wait…I guess…not really?”
Callua squats down with a giggle. “Dummy, come on and get out of the water. Meet me in the room. I brought the Mark in and it’s by the curtain. Oh, and try to wear a shirt for me.”
“Not like I got anything to show off.”
“We can’t all look like Jace,” she replies while standing back up.
“That’s for damn sure. But at least you got— uh…never mind.”
He must be tired if he almost said something like that. Biting it back as hard as he can, he’s grateful that when he looks up, she winks at him.
“I know I’m cute.”
“That’s exactly what I was going to say. Now get out and I’ll change.”
“So shy. Hurry up if you want to know more.”
Zye splashes some water at her as she scurries back. “Ass, you just said you didn’t want to see anything. Out, out, out.”
Callua laughs as she leaves him to it. Something that is still hard to accomplish considering how exhausted he feels. The water may have healed his wounds and given him a small boost, but it hasn’t changed much else. He wants to sleep so bad not amble out of the water.
He hurries as best he can to get dried off and changed into a pair of gray sleeping shorts. All thanks to Jace’s Mark. They billow out down around his knees. A stark contrast to the yellow tank top he tugs on as he’s leaving the room.
A towel remains draped over his shoulders, catching the water from his hair, as he returns to the bedroom. She’s back where he found her. Sitting on the center of the bed, she looks up at him as he comes in.
“I’m surprised he changed things.”
“What, don’t like the hammock?”
“Mm…No. Not really. I’ll stay down here on the ground.”
Zye plops down onto the mattress next to her. As he does, she huffs at him and turns. She snatches the towel off his shoulders. Drying his hair, she mutters under her breath about what an idiot he is.
“So…why do you want to tell me now? Have you told Jace?”
“You have a lot of questions today.”
“Cal.”
“I’ll tell him when you inevitably fall asleep.”
“Will not. I’m not tired.”
Callua holds his head in her hands as she finishes toweling off the dark tresses. “You’re like a kid and I’m telling you a bedtime story. You will.”
Zye takes the towel from her and tosses it toward the door. “Fine. What was your life like?”
“Hm…well…Perfectly normal compared to others I’ve seen. Good parents. No siblings. I excelled at school to study medicine and healing. I even had a boyfriend.”
“Not surprised. I hope he was nice. I’d hate to have to track down his next reincarnation to kick his ass.”
Callua laughs as she scoots back, settling against some of the pillows. “Don’t worry. He was very sweet and funny.”
“That gives me nothing. Cute? Hot? Short or tall?”
She waits for him to turn and give her his attention before she continues. “Shorter. Definitely more boyish charm, but trying to get rid of that vibe with some tattoos and hair dye. He was a musician. He used to tell me how pretty my long hair was. It was the only thing he and my parents agreed on.”
Zye flops down onto his side. He steals a smaller pillow and tucks it under his head. Reaching up, he tugs at where her pant leg bunches up around her bent knee. “Keep going.”
“I guess I was at the end of my rope. I wanted to be with him and he said either I go with him or we’re done. He wouldn’t do long distance. When I told my parents, they went crazy. Worried that I’d ruin my life because of some boy.”
“Did you want to quit learning and go with him?”
“No…no, I didn’t. I knew I’d break up with him. I only wanted to pretend I could commit to his dreams instead. I had already gone over it to death in my head before telling them.”
“I’m sorry, Cal.”
Her hand lands on his head, fingers idly running through the damp strands. “It’s okay. Sometimes you meet the right people at the wrong time. Or maybe he wasn’t the right one at all…I don’t know. I got to meet so many people and be with you and Jace. Ah, there was Shae or Lyra. Xerxes, too. He’s such a sweetheart.”
“I’m glad I met you too. You know…you were someone that really made my shitty life brighter. Even if you call me stupid, stupid.”
Callua giggles and pokes her finger against his forehead. “And I will until you stop being stupid.”
He yawns, unable to hold it back, and clings a bit tighter to the pillow. The last thing he wants to do is prove her right and fall asleep. Seeing this, she continues.
“I didn’t have a lot of friends, actually. My parents were about all I had. Well, his friends were my friends in some way. Not that we were close even then.”
Zye hates to hear it. “People missed out on you then.”
“It is what it is. I’d rather have friends now, anyway.”
“Good cause you can’t get rid of me now. You worked too hard to worm your way into my life.”
She laughs and pats his head. He’s not wrong and they both know it. Yet even still, Zye couldn’t be happier that she reached out. Especially when no one else of decent quality had in a long time. It reminded him of the good he had run away from.
Callua takes a deep breath and moves her hands back to her lap. She squirms a bit as she prepares to continue.
“I ran out of the house in the middle of dinner. I just needed air. I got to the crosswalk and slipped. I wasn’t going to cross the street and the driver probably didn’t see me until they hit me. It was raining so hard. To the point where you could barely hear yourself think.”
Zye shifts and holds his hand out for her. When she takes it, he strokes his thumb against her hand. He gets it. It makes sense why she always disliked the rain. She wouldn’t want to be out in it or anything like that.
The memory of death is still fresh no matter how many eons it’s been. He can understand that much. It’s not easy to overcome let alone push past.
“I’m sorry, that’s pretty bad. I hope you weren’t in any pain.”
“Not at all. It was instant. So…probably not as bad as yours, huh?”
“A Nether trying to kill you is pretty bad,” he replies with a laugh. “I still think yours is sad…needless even. I’m sorry you had to go through that.”
“I’m just glad it didn’t do the full job and you’re here.”
“Same to you.” He waits a beat before asking, “Did you ever go back?”
“I did. Against Charm’s wishes of course. To see how my parents blamed themselves…how everything fell apart… If I hadn’t reacted like that, they’d have still been happy and together.”
Zye looks up at her. It puts so many pieces of her puzzle together. The reasons why she does things and not others make more sense. It only makes him want to protect her more.
“It’s not your fault.”
She laughs softly at that, a bit sad even hollow sounding. “It is, Zye.”
“No, you don’t know that. They could have had problems before that. Maybe that’s why they reacted the way they did. Not that— I mean…shit.”
“Possibly…we didn’t come from a lot of money. Things weren’t always easy. Still…looking back it would have been so easy to avoid.”
“As bad as it sounds, I’m still glad I get to be your friend.”
Callua turns her gaze down at him and he can see the tears glistening in her eyes. She squeezes his hand. “And you know, you’re going to have to be my horror movie buddy now.”
“Please no, I can’t. I will cry.”
“Then I’ll bring tissues. Besides, I’m sure you look cute all teary-eyed.”
“And I hate you again. I’m not cute, I’m tired.”
She laughs and this time it’s real, bright, and full of warmth. It has him smiling and slipping his hand from hers. He’d do anything to keep her laughing. Slowly, he sits up so that they sit beside one another.
“I think you look good with short hair too.”
“Thanks,” she replies with a small flip at the ends of her hair.
Before she can react, he grabs her for a hug. She’s more than happy to allow it even if the words whispered into her ear have her heart shuddering. Zye holds her tight nonetheless, she’s not getting away this time.
“I am sorry. You deserve so much more than just this.”
“Z-Zye, no i-it’s fine.”
He can feel the tremble in her frame. The slightest chance that her wall is coming down.
“I mean it. You’re a strong woman who should get a chance to breathe, too. A chance to cry and rest. I swear if you ever need me, call for me. I’ll always be there for you.
She clings to him, fingers desperately grasping at the back of his shirt. It’s so much easier to talk when they don’t have to look at one another sometimes. It gives her the courage to continue and he’s more than happy to make it so she can.
“Zye…thank you. I didn’t expect that…”
“Well you know, the thoughts kinda spill out sometimes.”
“And I…I’m sorry I wasn’t there for you but I will be from now on.”
“Cal, you—”
At that, he tries to pull away but she won’t let him.
“It hurt so bad to see you get worse. Thinner, paler, and tired. You tried so hard to make it so we didn’t notice, but I did. You looked like you were running out of life. Not even your love for us could keep you together some days.”
“Yeah…that’s why I’d have rather run away. I already know what it’s like to watch that.”
“And I wasn’t there. I was doing this and don’t tell me it’s better I was. It killed me to know you were feeling so bad. Not just dying, we all die, but to be in agony was too much and pretending like you weren’t.”
Finally, Zye pushes her away. He cups her face in his hands as gently as he can. All while tucking some of her hair behind her ears. The second he brushes a thumb over her cheek, he can see the tears swelling back up.
“I might be an idiot and get hurt, but I’ll always come back to you and Jace.”
“You can’t promise that,” she rushes out with her voice cracking.
“I’m not. I’m telling you as long as I have fight in me, I’m coming home. You’re my best friend, Cal. I love you so much. You don’t know how much you inspired me to try to keep living when I was going to probably lay there and let it end me. Just take what I could get— whoever I could get.”
“Zye…”
He tugs her back in so that she can bury her face against his shoulder. The arms she wraps around him are unwilling to let go as she finally crumbles. He can feel the tears dampening his shirt or touching his skin.
Still, he remains. He lets her get it all out as her shoulders heave and tremble. In the middle of it all, he can hear the faintest of a whisper up at him.
“I love you, too.”
________________________
21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7a4C6xDHuc
Leaving the room, Jace is surprised to see Kerse leaning against the wall. She hasn’t left the upstairs hallway, so he can only presume she means to stick around. Jace sweeps his arm back toward the room.
“You can go in if you’d like.”
“No.”
“Then, I’m headed to Noctis if you’d rather.”
“Fine.”
A nod and he makes for the stairs. He’s one step down when she’s behind him. Her voice is quiet yet resounds so loudly in his ears.
“I do think you did the right thing.”
Jace looks down the stairs, unable to turn and meet her eyes. “Everyone keeps saying that…”
“Because it’s the truth. If it had been you lying there, Charm would have done the same.”
“Even if it meant letting the enemy get away?”
“She’d tell you that losing one battle doesn’t mean losing the war. Better to keep your allies up than to lose them because of pride. That’s only if she was the one that had to help you. Otherwise, she’d scorch the ground for how they hurt someone.”
“That’s…nice to know. Thank you, Kerse.”
Kerse shrugs. When she doesn’t respond, Jace finally glances over his shoulder.
“I mean it.”
“I’m sure you do. I’m important to keep around for numbers.”
“You’re more than a number and more than what you’re useful for.”
With him in the way, she can’t run off. She can only scoff and lightly push at his shoulder in hopes of urging him along. “And I know you’ll prove it. So go, we have things to do.”
Jace smiles as he shakes his head. He forgot how easy and hard it is to work with Kerse. Heading down the stairs, there’s a comfort to know that Kerse is following after him. Even as they reach the corridor, she doesn’t leave. She follows him all the way to Noctis.
Unlike usual, he receives a message back to go to Orion’s room instead. He thankfully remembers which hall leads to it. They reach the door and Orion opens it himself, ushering them inside.
Kerse doesn’t make it very far in. She finds the wall next to the door and leans against it with one ankle crossed over the other. Jace moves halfway to the bed where Xerxes is perched on the edge. Beside him is Vespera, standing not sitting.
Jace flicks his gaze over to Orion and the man swiftly answers the unspoken question.
“Ilista is healing at the moment. Seeing as these two saw what happened, I called for them. Celeste is busy at the moment anyway. Is Callua doing alright?”
“She’ll be fine, thankfully. Ayre’s magic potency seems to be thinning. It was still a direct hit. I was able to use some fire to keep it at bay in time to get her to the waters.”
“I’m glad she’ll recover. Unfortunately, it meant you weren’t there.”
Jace nods, prepared to apologize for the misstep, when Vespera speaks up.
“It doesn’t matter. She won’t allow herself to be caught. I’m sure she’d rather die than fail Soren. The important thing is we got out. How is Zye?”
“Callua is seeing to him now. He’ll listen to her.”
“Good. He used a lot of magic after you left.”
“It was a good result even so,” Orion interjects. “We know more about Ayre’s status and capabilities. From what I witnessed, her ice magic is something I think we can easily deal with now. Her actual fighting prowess is another story.”
Jace nods along with the assessment. Even with a minimal amount of fire, he’s sure he could have bested her easily enough. Regardless, he recalls her arm. “She seems to be getting worse. She’ll lose control over it sooner or later if she doesn’t cleanse.”
“And until she does, you’re her elemental counterpart. You’re the one that’s going to have to do most of the work to keep that part at bay.”
“Let me help.”
All of their eyes turn to Kerse. Orion is about to interject when Jace cuts him off.
“She’s right. I could use more raw power to back me up and Kerse is skilled enough to overtake her. Ayre isn’t an easy target. She’s been training for a very long time.”
“I understand that but I don’t want her pushing herself after—”
“I’m not a baby,” states Kerse, “say what you mean.”
“Fine. Your stamina is different than when you were an Infernal. Besides, I don’t want to put you in any danger right from the start.”
“Not good enough. I’ll help Jace.”
“I—”
“Nope, too late.”
“You can’t—”
“I can and did.”
Vespera sighs in an attempt to stop them from continuing this bickering. “Let her help. We can use it. Poison would work well against Ayre, no? The only way she could mitigate it is if she did use her ice to freeze her blood so it didn’t spread.”
Kerse laughs— cold, hard, and short. “She can’t do shit like that. She hates her magic. Made her spar with me once. She only uses it to play dirty. As Hax would say, her application of it is minimal at best. Brute force, no tact.”
Orion covers his mouth to stifle the chuckle that nearly slips out. It does quite a bit to soften his reply. “Fine. Do as you see fit.”
“Regardless, we need to consider a strategy to take care of this next time. In the same breath, she was alone and that was still easier to deal with than a full assault,” suggests Jace. He doesn’t want another incident because they’re not prepared.
“I agree,” replies Orion with a nod. “They’re not taking advantage of working together. Therefore, I would like to take this one piece at a time. A full engagement, however, isn’t out of the question. Especially considering how well Zye held his own today.”
“He has gotten better.”
“So I’ve heard. All three of them told me how he held his form for quite some time considering how he stretched it. If he can manage to throttle his magic properly, he’ll be a force to be reckoned with while using his full power like today.”
“What…?” Jace glances at them each in turn. No one filled him in on that detail. “He did that?”
Kerse speaks up from behind him. “Yeah, looked like he would keel over any second when we got there.”
“Then we’ll work on helping him with that.”
“Ah it’s fine,” she says with a wave of her hand. “Charm wasn’t so hot when she first started either. None of us were.” A chuckle slips from her lips. “She used to look like she’d throw up every time she used that form.”
“That’s true. We worked hard to get to this point.” Orion gestures back toward Vespera and Xerxes. “Is there anything else anyone needs?”
Kerse is the one that moves first. She steps forward and punches the back of Jace’s shoulder. Only hard enough that he can feel the slight dig of her knuckles. “Gonna go train. You coming?”
“I’ll head back with you, but I think I’ll go get some rest.”
Orion walks them toward the door considering Kerse is already opening it. “Please get some rest.”
Jace follows Kerse out of the room with a wave over his shoulder. As they begin their walk back to Solis, she clicks her tongue.
“Tell him to come see me for training. I’ll be in my room by the time he gets his ass moving.”
“I’ll make sure he finds you.”
The remainder of their walk is in silence. They part ways at the stairs with nods to one another. He watches her walk away for a moment before heading up to the second floor. His room is quiet when he enters. Of course, it’s something he expects.
Coming to the door, he peaks in to see Callua propped up against the wall. She’s dozing off while playing with Zye’s hair. Of which, he’s fast asleep with his pillow clutched tight to him and his head pressed against the side of her leg.
He keeps his voice low as he enters. “Hey there.”
“Done for the day?”
“I think so.”
“Then trade me places. For someone that flinches at everything, he sure does cuddle.”
“You can—”
“I’m leaving after we talk. It’s fine. Come on, please? Free me from this prison.”
Jace smiles as he walks over. “Alright, but just this once.”
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