-
"I brought you dinner." His voice is very soft, and yet it seems to echo in the deserted library. She can just see him from her armchair, holding an overfilled plate and a glass of strawberry cordial.
Kaddar approaches cautiously, after judging that she isn't very volatile at the moment. Kalasin watches the plate curiously as he sets it down on the desk beside the armchair. "I don't eat that much," she points out. "And that strawberry's going to overbalance and fall into the gravy."
He shrugs. "I wasn't sure. I'll help you finish, if you need me to."
Her first instinct is to retort that she doesn't need anything, but that's before he plucks the strawberry from its precarious position on the fruit salad mountain and offers it to her. It is a lovely strawberry, plump, red, and juicy. Kalasin can usually recognize a peace offering when she sees one, and tonight is no different. "Truce?" Kaddar asks, and she nods back at him, as she accepts the fruit delicately.
"Truce."
They eat in silence, occasionally trading pieces of food or exchanging the cordial glass.
She reaches out and touches his cheek, and he looks up from a slice of mango, startled. For a moment, she doesn't know what to say. "You're trying," she manages, at last.
Kaddar gives her a wry smile. "It's not roses or an ode to your fair brow, but…"
She cuts him off by leaning in and giving him a gentle kiss, and he reaches up to grasp her wrists lightly, through his surprise. "Thank you."
He isn't sure what to say back, but settles with a nod, and she can't help but give him an uncharacteristically shy smile in return.
They leave the library together, in silence.
-
reviews appreciated. -grin-
