“Elksia has been gone a while…” Retvik grunted as he flicked through a large pile of notes. Between his Decayling lessons and his work guarding ungrateful Life Goddesses, Retvik hadn’t really had much time to do any studying on his own. Retvik wasn’t alone in this regard. Most of the Decaylings here were in the same predicament. That was why he was sitting in the observatory with Arkay, avoiding the much busier study hall.
“She probably got lost again…” Arkay muttered back, swapping between reading his own books, rubbing his eyes and yawning.
Retvik tutted. “It is literally one hallway.”
“An easily blocked hallway. And, apparently, young Time Drakes tend to completely lose their sense of direction.”
“Hm…”
Retvik fell silent, then decided to look out the large observatory window. In the reflection, he realised that Arkay was staring at him.
“Is something wrong?”
Arkay sighed, then glanced around the room. When he felt comfortable that the coast was clear, he shifted closer to Retvik, leaning against him.
“Yeah. I want to talk. About you and me.”
Retvik turned around so he could properly face Arkay. “What do you mean?”
“I’ve been having feelings for you. Feelings I thought I buried. I like you, Retvik. I like you a lot. But I don’t know how I feel when it comes to the more… touchy-feely intimate parts of a potential relationship between us…” Arkay frowned. “Plus, I don’t know what’s going on between you and Seimeni.”
“Hmph. Seimeni and I… that is a complicated topic.”
“Are you actually properly dating? Because I can’t tell.”
“No. Not at more.”
Arkay blinked, looking surprised. “Why not? I thought you liked her?”
Retvik grunted, edging closer to Arkay. “Well… I will be honest, the intimacy with her was pleasant. But the whole scenario felt unprofessional. After all, she is our teacher and our superior. And I was never too certain about her history with you.”
“So it’s not official?”
“No. She still asks sometimes, but I am not interested any more.”
“And what about Gath?”
Retvik closed his eyes, grunting. “He has moved on. I have moved on. We have divorced. That is all over now.”
Arkay took a deep breath, feeling a tad more confident. “Are you… interested in me?”
Retvik fell silent, not really sure how to answer. “I… am… somewhat… But… I must be honest, I find you a bit… physically small…”
“What do you mean by that?”
“You are so small. I like you a lot, but you have always been this little Skyavok, and I worry that any intimacy between us would hurt you. Yet I cannot justify asking you to change how you look to make me happy.”
“That… is… totally fair…” Arkay shrugged. “But… I guess… I could make myself a little bigger? There’s a bit of a difference between being half your size and two thirds your size. We can work these things out.”
“Very true. And we do not have to do things… traditionally. If there is one thing I have discovered, becoming a deity, it is that intimacy can be very, very varied and different.”
“If I were to make myself bigger, would you be… willing to try and… have some sort of relationship?”
Retvik shrugged, then nodded, sitting down next to Arkay. “Yes.”
“Really?”
“Of course. Why would I lie to you?”
Arkay smiled hesitantly, leaning against Retvik’s arm. “Yeah, true… But, like, really?”
“Yes, you little silly butt. I would like to have a relationship with you.”
“Yay!”