As I write this, I am sick as a dog right now, so I apologize if my author note sounds a bit loopy. I may edit my chapters a bit after I'm done writing, but I never touch the author's note, 'cos it's me directly talking to like… the 10 people who read SW fanfictions lol

So, the timing on this chapter was actually super great. For a while this was going to be a lowkey "my sweet boy Taranys is sick and Baleygr takes care of him" chapter, but then I tweaked the outline a bit and it ended up being something that furthers the plot. Yes, I know, I know, AwesomeTrinket the pantser actually making an outline for her stuff. Shocking. I'm sorta loopy because I had some DayQuil and I've been giggling over things that should not be funny sooooo

TL;DR: it's 1/1/2020 as I write this, I'm coughing to the point of almost puking, am unable to breathe out of my nose, have just taken some DayQuil and probably should be in bed but here I am, writing romance fics

Moment 4
Revealed a Totally Deep, Dark Secret

Taranys wakes up, rolls over and off the bed, and sticks his face in the nearby trash can while trying not to puke.

What the hell happened last night? Taranys can barely even think; much less try to remember why he's on the verge of throwing up and he feels like he's got razor blades slicing around in his skull. As he finally looks up from the comforting darkness of the trash can, Taranys groans and throws a hand up to shield his eyes from the morning light.

Okay, okay, retrace your steps of last night. Let's see, what happened yesterday? Hwa called out sick and Taranys had to fill in her shift. That he manages to remember, what next? Taranys gets off his shift late that night, remembers that Baleygr's working at that bar at Mt. White Ragon, and… that's right around where his memories end; staring at Baleygr's beautiful face.

It's pretty safe for Taranys to assume that he must've gotten drunk at some point.

He gets back up off the floor, tempted to climb back into bed and sleep the whole day away. Something on his nightstand catches his eye, and Taranys turns to see a couple of Advil in a medicine cup and a bottle of water next to it. There's a note next to the cup, but Taranys doesn't read it at first and instead throws the Advil back, chugging down the water from the bottle, and just hopes it would kick in sooner.

As he lies back down and places a hand over his face, a voice drifts out from somewhere in his apartment. Taranys opens one eye, listening in, and eventually it becomes clear to him that the voice is singing. The words are unidentifiable, but the voice is deep and smooth; purring softly to themselves. He sits up, smiling at the sound of it.

And then he remembers he lives alone.

Baleygr looks straight up from the frying pan and nearly bangs his forehead on an open cabinet door when he hears Taranys screaming. There's a couple of seconds of panic as he rushes into the bedroom, forgetting the eggs he'd been making for Taranys for when he got up. The panic quickly dissipates, though, as Baleygr looks over a now-hungover Taranys on the floor and realizes that he looked relatively unharmed; he's just a bit spooked is all.

"That's one way to let me know you're up," Baleygr flashes one of those drop-dead gorgeous grins at Taranys as he scrambles to pick himself off the floor for the second time in five minutes and keep what little of his dignity he may have left.

Taranys's face starts to burn around the cheeks. He racks his brain for something to say, but all that can come out of his mouth is "…Uh."

Baleygr is at his place and he can't remember why. Oh, god, did they…?

"Oh, you're… probably trying to figure out what happened last night," Baleygr says. "You drank a little too much wine and I had to carry you back to your place."

Taranys's brain is clearly foggy and lagging behind as he responds, "…Oh. Sorry you had to."

"Don't be sorry," Baleygr says as he waves it off. "Seriously, it's better than trying to walk home at night while you're nearly blackout."

"So, you…" Taranys presses the heel of his palm against his forehead, trying to ease the throbbing even a little bit. "You- you came to check up on me?"

"Technically, yeah. You asked me to stay the night, so here I am."

Mental note: get drunk more often. At least you'll have Baleygr over more.

"Thanks, Baleygr, really," Taranys means it from the bottom of his heart. "You didn't have to do that."

"Hey, we're friends, we look out for each other," Baleygr says. "Oh, and, you can call me Bay."

That he remembers. "Alright then, Bay."

"I mean it, you know," Baleygr adds in, "I'd bring you back any other time, no questions asked."

The moment is sweet and warm, and Taranys feels like he can bask in Baleygr's kindness forever. Unfortunately, the two of them snap out of it as the fire alarm screeches in the kitchen.

Baleygr gasps, "Damn it! The eggs!"

"The what?" Taranys gets up and rushes after Baleygr into the kitchen. As he steps foot in the kitchen, he immediately starts coughing and has to turn around. Smoke is starting to billow out from the previously forgotten pan while Baleygr curses to himself.

The day drags onwards, the heat of the morning only growing stronger. It's a Sunday now, and the guilds across the continent of Mystica have momentarily ceased fire. The Summoner's taken a moment to start rebuilding their monsters' teams and changing the runes on some of them. The twins, Talia and Sabrina, got benched from their previous spot on the Surveillance Tower. Apparently, the previous gossiping incident was one too many.

Of course, with those two out of the question, the Summoner needed a couple other monsters to fill in their spot in the meantime. And of course, it's just Taranys's luck he was put in that spot with the incredibly cute Baleygr and a killer hangover that is way more painful than it should be. But hey, it's a good way to kill time and let his apartment air out. Even if it didn't turn out as well as Baleygr wanted, Taranys is still touched from the effort.

"Hey, how d'ya feel?" Baleygr leans against the pole of the tower, opening one eye to have a good look at Taranys.

Taranys's response is a groan of pained suffering as the light burns his eyes and only contributes to the worsening hangover-induced headache. That Advil did nothing for the dull throb in the back of his head, apparently.

"Have you ever even had a hangover before?"

The lack of an immediate response leads Baleygr to believe that no, Taranys has not.

"Here," Baleygr hands Taranys a bottle of water. "you need to replenish the fluids you lost. I've had my wilder days in the past; I know how to take care of this kind of thing."

Seeing Baleygr so caring and gentle makes Taranys's heart flutter and he can't help but accept the bottle and start drinking.

"You'll be okay in a bit," Baleygr smiles. "As long as you keep drinking water, it'll go away."

Taranys tips the bottle back down and sighs "I'm never getting drunk again."

Baleygr's mouth curls into a smile as he can't help the laugh that works its way out of his throat. It's brighter than anything else Taranys has seen. "God, you remind me of that time when I was 13, with Katarina. Did you ever hear of that one?"

"No, I can't say I have."

"Alright, story-time, then!" Baleygr claps his hands once, settling in and starting his story. "There was this one time, when Katarina was home alone, she invited me and a couple other friends over to whatever the thirteen year old variant of a party is, yeah?"

"Yeah?"

"Eventually, we found this antique-looking bottle, and Katarina asks me 'Is it whiskey, or perfume?'" Baleygr can barely hold back all the laughter now. "And I snatch the bottle away and drink everything in it. Do you know what I said? 'I think it's whiskey.'"

Taranys can't help it; now he's laughing hard at this story, clutching his stomach with one hand and almost to the point of tears. He manages to compose himself enough to say "Oh, I'm sorry for laughing, Bay –"

"It's fine, it's fine," Baleygr reassures. "We all started laughing at the situation's absurdity a week later. And hey, none of us touched alcohol for about a decade after that. We were all too traumatized."

"Were you all right?"

"I threw up a couple of times, and my head felt like it'd split open the day after, but other than that, none the worse for wear," Baleygr smiles faintly at the memories of that day and continues, "And besides, I wouldn't have changed that day for the world. I actually met Tesarion that day."

"Oh?" The sound of the unfamiliar name dancing across Baleygr's lips makes Taranys perk up in curiosity. The previous pain of his hangover is long forgotten now, and he's instead absorbed in learning whatever he can about this young man's past.

"I never told you about Tesarion?" Baleygr asks, shocked.

Taranys shakes his head. "You didn't, no."

Perhaps Taranys has an ulterior motive that not even he knows, or maybe he's just being friendly. But regardless, Taranys's intrigue in this mystery Tesarion spurs Baleygr on to revealing more about himself. "Tesarion was actually my first love. He was pretty much my first everything, now that I think about it. First kiss, first date I ever went on, the whole shebang."

The range of emotions Taranys feels from how casually Baleygr talks about Tesarion ranges from excitement to disappointment. Baleygr likes guys, too! He's clearly interested in men! Oh, but he talks of Tesarion so fondly; perhaps he's still with him.

Taranys snaps himself back into reality, realizing Baleygr's still going on about Tesarion.

"Eventually, we moved on because of the long-distance problems. Tesarion got signed up to be on the Sky Islands, and we ended up breaking up on good terms," Baleygr shrugs. "I've gotten over it, but it still hurt leaving my first relationship, even though we broke up as friends."

"Oh," Taranys says. "What was he like?"

"He reminds me of you, actually. And I mean that in the best way possible. He was always the rational one in our relationship." Baleygr grins as he thinks about Tesarion. "I liked him a lot. I really did. He was a good man, you know. Kinda wonder what he's been up to lately."

"Yes, he does sound nice," Taranys smiles softly.

"So yeah; that's my deep, dark, secret. I like guys. Sue me." Baleygr looks so damn calm and confident, coming out of the closet so casually like that.

Without even thinking, Taranys blurts out "Oh, so do I!"

Taranys stops once he realized what he said. He's never directly told anyone he was gay (not even that one awkward time with Amelia), but here he was. Maybe Baleygr's confidence is what spurred him on right then and there.

"Ah, that's great!" Baleygr grins. "You single?"

"I am," Taranys nods. "What about you?"

"I dated around a bit after Tesarion, but as of right now, I'm in the same boat."

Oh, he's single! That's wonderful!

"Well, I'm sure you'll find someone eventually." Taranys smiles warmly at him, as if hoping that Baleygr would ask if he could be that someone.

"Yeah, I guess so," He leans back against the pole again and closes his eyes, a smile playing across his lips.