As Sebastian came to a stop, Kieran’s words stopped behind his teeth.Up close, he saw a cut through Sebastian’s eyebrow crusted with dried blood, and more of it stuck in his hair.Kieran had assumed the injuries were left over from the attack in the woods, but now that he looked closer, it was clear these had happened within the last few hours.
“Goodness—are you all right?”Kieran asked, rushing up to meet him.His eyes darted over Sebastian’s body, looking for more wounds.The coat and long pants covered most of his skin, but he did seem to be walking with something of a limp.“What happened to you?”
Sebastian swallowed thickly.His lower lip was busted and swollen.“Nothing of import.”
“Nothing of— You look like you’ve been through a meat grinder!”Kieran reached out, unsure of whether a touch would be comforting or unwelcome, and wound up pulling back.“Who did this?Elias?”
At the sound of the man’s name, Sebastian flinched.He quickly recovered.“That’s beside the point.Though it’s safe to say I’m no longer working for him.As such, I came to accept the job, assuming the offer still stands.”
“Job?”Santiago asked, eyebrows nearly at his hairline.He shot a look at Kieran.“Perhaps we should be focusing on getting our new friend a first aid kit and some stitches instead of employment?”
“I offered Sebastian a position on the ship since he’s worked with Elias,” Kieran explained.“I figured we could use all the insider information we can get.That said, I didn’t expect Elias to react to Sebastian’s resignation likethis.”
Sebastian shook his head.“It looks worse than it is.”
“Like hell,” Briar scoffed.“Look, I’ve been in my fair share of fights, and those aren’t light injuries.You must have really pissed someone off.”
Sebastian winced, and his fingers instantly went to his neck, where Kieran could see the slimmest line of purple bruising pokingout from under his collar.Kieran wondered how much worse the injuries were beneath his coat.
“Please,” Sebastian said, seeming to fight to keep his voice even.He was doing a good job of it, but nonetheless, Kieran had to assume he was in a great deal of pain.“I swear I can be useful.I won’t let this get in the way.”
It took Kieran a moment to realize what Sebastian was getting at.Did he really think that Kieran would rescind the offer just because he was injured?
“Oh!Of course you’re still welcome.As long as no one has any objections.”
There was a long pause as the rest of the crew exchanged looks, and Kieran found himself waiting for one of them to chime in.But Briar was silent, and Santiago and Ariel were too busy whispering to each other about how they were going to treat Sebastian’s injuries with the supplies they had on the ship.Delilah, meanwhile, covered her wrinkled nose with her hand.Kieran cocked a brow at her, but she didn’t seem to notice; she was staring at Sebastian as if he’d sprouted a few extra eyes.Kieran made a mental note to ask her about it later.
Finally, it was Briar who piped up: “It’s up to you, Kieran.It’s your Calling.”
Kieran chewed his lower lip.It seemed obvious that Sebastian needed help, but Delilah’s reaction seemed strange—did she know something he didn’t?But then again, nothing about the boy’s words seemed untrue.Technically, it was possible that Elias could have sent him to be a spy.He could have hurt Sebastian intentionally to make his leaving seem more convincing, sure.Butat the same time, Kieran doubted injuries as severe as Sebastian’s were merely intended to be a cover-up.Like Briar had said, they looked like they’d been inflicted by someone who was livid, not calculated.Plus, Sebastian genuinely seemed like he wanted to help them beat Elias and pay Kieran back for saving his life.
And he’s also probably one of the most attractive boys I’ve ever laid eyes on,he thought.Not that that matters, of course.Boyfriend and all.Ex status pending.
He sighed.If this bites me in the ass later, I’ll just have to deal with it then.
“Okay,” Kieran said, nodding.“Consider yourself the newest member of the crew, Sebastian.”
Sebastian let out a breath.“Thank you, Kieran.Truly.Once again, I owe you.”
“Well,” Ariel said, jutting their chin toward the ship, “on that note, let’s get this kid some bandages and this aeroship in the sky.We’ve got a lot of ground to cover.”
Exchanging looks, the crew nodded, then boarded the ship for departure.
Returning to the aeroship after six months away felt a bit like coming home.
As the engine kicked on and the metal wings beat, lifting them into the air, Kieran quickly settled into his old room.Delilah and Briar elected to share Briar’s old one.Sebastian took Delilah’s old room, kitty-corner to Kieran’s.Once Kieran had finishedunpacking his trunk of clothes and other items, he went straight to Sebastian’s door.
After a few knocks, the door opened and Sebastian appeared on the other side.He’d taken off his coat, revealing a crisp white button-down shirt with the top two buttons undone.His face was clean, and the cut by his eyebrow was bandaged.All in all, he looked better physically, though Kieran knew it had to have been traumatizing to take a beating like that.
“Hi,” Kieran said, immediately cursing the way his voice cracked as he said it.He cleared his throat.“Are you feeling better?”
Sebastian nodded.“Do you think you could help me find ice?I want to try to get the swelling down.”
“Sure—I’ll show you the lay of the land.And offer proper introductions to everyone now that you’ve had a chance to get fixed up.”
“I’d appreciate that.Apologies again for all this.”He gestured to his face, cringing.“I didn’t plan on such a dramatic entrance.I assure you it’s not how I typically present myself.”
“Hey—it’s okay.We’ve all had our fair share of cuts and bruises.”Kieran waved his hand dismissively.“Plus, it’s nice that someone else could take a turn at a dramatic entrance.Usually, it’s just me getting made fun of for wearing too many frills.”
