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Stelle said to herself that this was definitely the last cup of honey brew she was having. She had said the same thing three cups ago, but now she really really meant it. She took a sip, a content smile forming on her lips, it was just as great as the first one.
This wasn’t the first banquet Aglaea hosted since she and Dan Heng had arrived in Amphoreus, but it was the first in which Stelle decided to really enjoy herself, as she knew most of the people well enough and felt a lot more comfortable here now, there was no need to be so guarded. Hence why she was indulging herself with the honey brew. It tasted divine and made her lose some of the fears she didn’t even acknowledge she had. I should have done this sooner.
Another sip, just as good. She knew she was smiling at nothing at this point, but she didn’t care. She was happy. Her new friends were nice -especially that white-haired boy- everything was beautiful -particularly that white-haired boy-, there were lots to learn -about that white-haired boy-, things to see -white-haired boy-, pictures to take -maybe he wants to be my muse?-. She giggled. She really did like Phainon, and wasn’t at all surprised to see how much of her drunk brain was occupied by the thought of him. Her constant smile turned into a full on grin the moment she saw said white-haired boy coming her way.
Phainon wasn’t one for banquets. He liked the respite, a moment to talk to his friends about other things besides the Flame-Chase, but nothing more than that. Until the Trailblazers arrived. Now it was a moment of awe for most of the Chrysos Heirs, to stop and listen to their stories about worlds beyond. Dan Heng would talk about places he couldn’t even begin to picture and Phainon would catch himself watching Stelle while she made faces and nodded along. Sometimes she would catch him staring and smile and he would feel something completely unfamiliar in his chest.
Now Dan Heng was in full story mode but Stelle wasn’t in sight. He scouted the area for his grey-haired partner and found her at the other side of the Heroes Bath, cup in hand, an undeniable drunk smile on her face.
Phainon made his way to her and watched as her eyes shone brighter the moment they were set on him. He brushed it aside as merely coincidence.
“My favorite white-haired boy!” Stelle said, mentally congratulating herself for not slurring any of the words.
“Partner,” he laughed, “just how many cups did you have?”
“Only three. Or eight. I’m not counting.” She looked at him the best she could between droopy eyelids and frowned a bit. “And you didn’t have any.”
“I’ve drank some.”
“Not enough.”
“The right amount.”
“Clearly not. The right amount is when you can be yourself. Look around…” she gestured, cup in hand, trying to encompass everything around them. She stopped to watch the liquid that was sitting in her cup just a moment ago form a perfect arc in the air and then plummet to the ground with a splat. She laughed heartily, then snorted and then laughed even harder. Phainon watched her with bewilderment, amusement and endearment in equal amounts.
“Alright, you need sleep.”
“Oh, you’ll take me to bed, Phainon?” Stelle said, winking. Even through her stupor she noticed how taken aback he was.
“Partner,” he said firmly.
I made him blush, she thought and giggled inwardly.
“Lead the way, then, handsome.”
Phainon just shook his head and started walking the way to her room, expecting her to fall into step by his side. Instead, she hopped ahead and entwined her right arm into his left one, and her right hand grabbed his bicep. She gave it a tentative squeeze and looked at him surreptitiously, but his eyes were set forward, his jaw a bit clenched. From his part, Phainon didn’t know if she was afraid of keeling over or… something else. He pretended to think nothing of her clinging to him like that, but the warmth of her body, of her hand on him, he didn’t think he would be able to forget it any time soon.
The walk was short and fairly silent, only occasionally broken by Stelle’s wild comments, like ‘that flower looks angry’ and ‘do you think that chimera could beat Fat F- I mean, Little Ica, in a fight?’ and the giggling that followed them.
They arrived at her door. Stelle unwillingly let go of his arm and turned to face him.
“You truly are perfect.”
“What?”
“Aglaea said you’re the Chrysos Heir without flaw, and I totally see it. You help everyone. You are caring and protective and helpful and smart… And it doesn’t hurt that you look this good, that your voice is beautiful, and that you smell nice too.”
“Well, hm… Don’t these adjectives all fit you too?”
“You think I smell nice?” She looked up to him through half-lidded eyes.
“Right now you smell of alcohol, but normally… you do.”
“Phai… would you hate me if I did what I want to do right now?”
He felt a pang hearing her use such a charming tone and nickname to address him, but quickly registered her words.
“What could you possibly want to do that would make me hate you? I can’t think of anything.”
“Can I kiss you?”
Phainon froze. What was she saying?
“Partner. You let the honey brew take control. You’ll regret this in the morning,” he scoffed. She obviously doesn’t mean it.
“No. That’s not the honey brew talking. It’s me. If anything, the honey brew is only allowing me to say things I otherwise wouldn’t have the courage. It’s not the alcohol that wants to kiss you, it’s me, Stelle.”
Phainon stared at her for five whole seconds. From Stelle’s perspective, it might as well have been five whole hours. He pondered if she truly would regret it, if she would even remember it in the morning. Could she really want a kiss from him? Maybe he could just… indulge her? And himself in the process?
“Alright,” he said and promptly regretted it. Was it really ok? Wasn’t this just taking advantage of her drunkenness?
She didn’t give him time to take it back, as she took a step forward and tilted her head up. But instead of kissing him, she very softly brushed her nose against his first. Phainon thought this felt much more intimate than it had any right to be.
She then planted a tiny peck on the corner of his lips before gently touching them with her own. He was expecting it to be more extravagant judging from the behavior of other drunk people he had seen, but she was being absolutely delicate and soft, like she had become sober just for this.
She pulled away from him abruptly, just as he was stopping overanalyzing the kiss and starting to enjoy it.
“Good night, Phai, see you in the morning,” she said with a smile while she opened the door and disappeared behind it.
Phainon was left baffled. At her and himself. But there was nothing else to do but to go to bed and hope this wouldn’t change their relationship for the worse, he couldn’t bear the thought. On his way to his own room, Dan Heng found him.
“Phainon, have you seen Stelle?” He seemed worried.
“I just left her in her room.”
“Oh, thank you. I saw she was drinking a bit too much earlier. I was keeping an eye on her, but then I got distracted in the middle of my story and lost sight of her. I was worried she might get into some mischief or get hurt.”
“Well, she did get into mischief and I’m probably the one getting hurt.” He thought.
“She’s fine. Probably already asleep by now,” was what he actually said.
“Thank you again.”
They had already parted ways when Dan Heng called after him.
“Phainon,”
“Yes?”
“I’m sorry if this sounds weird or out of place, but,” Dan Heng seemed hesitant, “give yourself some rest, some time to enjoy this life as well, don’t… just wait for the next one to actually live.”
“Thank you, Dan Heng,” Phainon was surprised to have Dan Heng of all people give him this kind of advice. But from the stories he told, he probably had lived through a lot and seen a lot. He sighed. “I will try,” he said while thinking that he probably couldn’t.
Dan Heng arrived at the door of the room he shared with Stelle and pushed it open only to be met with some resistance. He pushed harder, heard an “ouch” and managed to squeeze himself in through the crack that he managed to open.
“What are you doing on the floor?” He asked while offering his hand for Stelle to stand up.
“I was waiting to see if Phainon would come to the door and I think I fell asleep,” she said, rubbing the back of her neck.
“Go to bed, Stelle, you definitely need sleep.”
She didn’t retort, just took her jacket off and dropped it to the floor on the way to the lounger that served as her bed. She plopped herself down dramatically with a sigh.
Dan Heng followed her, grabbed her jacket from the floor and hung it on a chair. And then grabbed a blanket to cover her with.
“I kissed him,” she said as he was tucking her in.
“What?”
“Phainon. I kissed him. And I want to do it again,” she said in a serious, pensive way.
“Well, good for you. But let’s wait to see if you feel the same way in the morning.”
By the moment he finished his sentence, Stelle already had her eyes closed and had started snoring softly.
Stelle woke the next morning with light shining bright. Then she remembered there was no other way to wake up in Okhema. She was expecting some hangover, but apart from feeling slightly disoriented, she felt the same as usual. This was a testament to either the quality of the alcohol or her great constitution. Probably both. She yawned, stretched and then spotted Dan Heng reading in the corner.
“Good morning,” he said, his eyes never leaving the page.
“Morning,” she answered, getting up, slowly making her way towards him. She picked an apple from a bowl on the table that stood between them. She took a bite, chewed, swallowed. “I still wanna do it.”
Dan Heng finally looked at her.
“Kiss Phainon, I mean.”
He nodded, already knowing what she meant before the clarification.
“Then go for it, I guess,” he said simply.
“I will. He won’t know what hit him,” she said, walking towards the door, grabbing her jacket on the way out.
Mem came yawning and rubbing her eyes.
“What’s going on, who is she fighting with?”
“Fate, you could say.”