Thank you again for all the lovely reviews. This chapter is closer to being a short interlude than a full chapter, while the chapter that will follow this is over three times as long. The nitpicky part of me absolutely hates how there is nothing neat and tidy about the lengths of the chapters, which I would usually make sure ALL fell between 3000-3500 words each. In a way, this is a kind of learning curve – I'm attempting to learn how to not be quite so anal over the length of the chapters, and simply write them at the length they should be. This chapter's purpose is to really show a slight passing of time and to look at the relationship between Ruwalk and Alfeegi, and while I could have made it longer, it would have been pointless. The next chapter is supposed to be heavy on plot, not this one.
Two themes are covered in this chapter.
Kiss: Candy. Look Over Here.
It was well known that Ruwalk had a sweet tooth. The other man had a thing for all sorts of candies, especially the kind that came from the village just to the north of Draqueen. It wasn't rare for Ruwalk to pop down there once a week or so, bringing back a new stash that he shared warmly with the children and not-so-children who inhabited the castle.
What was less well known was that Alfeegi also had a sweet tooth, although naturally it was a far more refined one. His candy of choice came from the far south, a tacky sweet that could be sucked for hours yet still maintained its flavor. They rarely traded with the village which made the candy, so it was rare for Alfeegi to ever get his hands on them. As luck had it, however, a package had arrived from an old friend that very morning, one who had just happened to be passing through a certain village in the far south, and who also remembered Alfeegi's love for the sweet.
"These really are quite good," Ruwalk remarked as he slipped one of the candies into his mouth, not noticing the way Alfeegi's eyes lingered just briefly on his lips. Alfeegi had invited Ruwalk up to his office the moment the candy had arrived, and the other man was now leaning just slightly against Alfeegi's desk, tasting one of Alfeegi's treasured treats for the first time in over a year. "I'd forgotten just how tasty they were."
On one hand, this was almost torture. Ruwalk was the most attractive person he'd ever met, and he was at his most handsome when smiling and talking about unimportant things such as lollys and sweets. On the other hand, Ruwalk was the most attractive person he'd ever met, and any time spent with his friend had a way of making Alfeegi's day. It wasn't rare for Ruwalk to be up here on not-so-busy days, sometimes Ruwalk would drift up here on his own, but sometimes Alfeegi would find some reason to call him up.
The sweets had served as perfect bait, although they had meant to catch Ruwalk for a different reason than usual.
"Ruwalk, do you think Kai-stern is happy?" Alfeegi pushed the papers he had been working on aside as he glanced up at Ruwalk. Ruwalk, sensing the gravity with which Alfeegi's words had been spoken, became instantly thoughtful, brilliant hair falling across reflective eyes as Ruwalk tilted his head just slightly.
Alfeegi did not think he could possibly love his caring, wonderful friend more than he already did.
"I think that it is sometimes difficult for Kai-stern after he returns from one of his trips," Ruwalk eventually said. "It's different for the rest of us, we rarely seem to get away from the castle, so our relationships are all solid and established. Kai-stern however can sometimes be away from the castle for half the year, and I get the feeling he doesn't always know which role he is supposed to slip into when he returns."
"And then there is the issue of Rath," Alfeegi added, frowning just slightly. "I know Kai-stern acts like he doesn't mind how Rath acts, but …" Alfeegi wasn't sure how to end his line of thought.
"But it must be immensely painful," Ruwalk finished for him. "Kai-stern adores Rath, but each moment he spends with the child must tear at him." He shook his head. "I'm hoping Rath grows out of his resentment sometime soon, as it's destructive not only for Rath, but Kai-stern as well."
Kai-stern didn't have a Ruwalk, Alfeegi realized with sudden clarity as he listened to his friend's musings. Not in the romantic, un-requited love sense – Alfeegi certainly didn't wish that on anybody – but in the best friend, confidant kind of way. Who did Kai-stern talk to when confused or concerned about something? It wasn't rare for Kai-stern to be the first person to help out someone else who was in need, Kai-stern had, after all, been the only one to try and make Alfeegi feel better the night Ruwalk had introduced them all to his new girlfriend. But Alfeegi couldn't recall a time when Kai-stern had needed the same kind of assistance, and he refused to believe that there had never been some such time.
Kai-stern was simply good at hiding it. But Kai-stern shouldn't ever have to hide.
He didn't trust them, and Alfeegi wasn't sure whether he should be feeling hurt or guilty. Right now, it was more a combination of both.
"I just think that Kai-stern needs to be occasionally reminded that we care for him as much as he cares for us," Ruwalk added with a smile, popping another sweet in his mouth, although this time Alfeegi was far too distracted to watch Ruwalk's lips. "I believe that most of the time he knows that, but sometimes he forgets." Alfeegi nodded thoughtfully, drumming his fingers absentmindedly on his desk.
"Kai-stern is heading off to Drapam in a week, isn't he?" Ruwalk nodded. "I have business there I need to attend to also, although I wasn't planning on heading over for another month. It would however be more cost efficient if I went at the same time as Kai-stern, especially as Kai-stern wouldn't dare go over budget right under my nose." That brought a somewhat satisfying smile to Alfeegi's face.
"That sounds like a fabulous idea, Alfeegi!" Anything else Ruwalk was going to add was cut off by a knock on the door, followed by a blond head poking around it. Lathia. Ruwalk's girlfriend.
Suddenly, Alfeegi's heart found itself a new home, lodged somewhere deep in the back of his throat. As Ruwalk bounced over to the door and gave his girlfriend a welcoming kiss, Alfeegi couldn't help but think that a trip away from Draqueen certainly couldn't come at a better time.
He'd make plans in the morning.
Alfeegi wasn't all that sure that Kai-stern would actually enjoy the thought of traveling with him, but Alfeegi knew that the other man would surely understand. Kai-stern had become the one person that Alfeegi could actually talk to about Ruwalk, although it was rare for him to actually do so – there was something rather humiliating about the whole thing, after all. But it had been three months since Kai-stern had dragged him down to the bar in lower Draqueen, and while it was still occasionally uncomfortable to spend any length of time with Kai-stern of all people, Alfeegi was finding that he often quite enjoyed himself, especially as Kai-stern had a wonderful way of distracting Alfeegi when he needed it the most.
He was finding out other things as well, which was what had lead to his conversation with Ruwalk. Not, of course, that Kai-stern ever said anything or ever really hinted, but that was really the problem.
As Lathia leaned in for another kiss, Alfeegi decided that perhaps it would be best if he made his plans for the trip this afternoon, instead.
