Sebastian reached over and gently guided Kieran’s arm into a slightly different position.His skin was cool.Kieran’s eyes met his for a flashing moment, and he found himself drawn to the parted curve of Sebastian’s pale lips.
Sebastian cleared his throat, stepping away.“You can go ahead and throw now.”
“Oh!Oh, right, of course.”Get it together, Kieran.He tore his eyes away from Sebastian’s lips to look back at the crates.
Just like darts,he reminded himself, trying to let his shoulders relax.Just aim and throw.
Kieran took a breath, narrowed his gaze on his target, and threw the knife.
Much to his shock, after one turn in the air, it smacked directly into the crate and stuck.He gasped, a childlike smile brightening his face.
“Nicely done,” Sebastian said, grabbing Kieran’s shoulder and giving it a little shake.“You’re a natural.”
“Really?”Kieran laughed a little, mostly out of shock at his performance.“I’ve never been a natural at anything.”
“Maybe you just weren’t trying the right things.”Sebastian went to one of the ship’s tables, where he’d laid out four other knives.He brought one to Kieran and said, “Wanna give it another shot?These yellow pine crates are perfect for this sort of thing—soft enough to pierce but not so flimsy they break.”
Kieran took the knife.“You know what kind of wood these are?”
Sebastian’s entire face lit up all at once.His tone was bright, and he spoke faster than Kieran had ever heard him.“Sure.Yellow pine’s the most common in Celdwyn for this sort of thing.Unlike what this ship is made of—that’s mostly teak.Beautiful construction too.Did you know teak has natural chemicals that prevent rot?And it’s the strongest and most durable wood on the planet—it’s fascinating, really.And it’s high in oil…”
All Kieran could do was stare as Sebastian continued.This was the person he’d been so intimidated by at first?Who had seemed so stiff and overly formal?And now he was…waxing poetic about types ofwood?
I can’t believe it,Kieran realized.He’s as weird as I am.
And for whatever reason, something about that made Kieran’s stomach flutter.
“Not to mention, some scientists think the oldest teak tree on the planet is probably six hundred years old.Can you imagine how many generations of people have seen it grow?It’s humbling to consider.”Sebastian paused, just then seeming to notice Kieran’s shell-shocked expression.Sebastian went quiet, sheepishly rubbing the back of his neck.“Oh.My apologies.I tend to get a little…carried away when it comes to wood.”
When it comes to wood!Can he hear himself?Kieran couldn’t hold in a laugh.Oh, this is incredible.
“What?”Sebastian asked.
“Nothing!It’s nothing.It’s just…” Kieran shook his head, still trying and failing not to giggle.“I don’t know.When I first met you, you seemed so…aloof.I guess it’s nice to know you’re as weird as the rest of us.”
“Weird?Wood knowledge isn’tweird;it’s useful.”
“Sure.”Kieran chuckled.“If you’re a beaver, or a particularly ambitious woodpecker.”
Sebastian crossed his arms, incredulous.“If that’s what you think, then I guess I won’t show you any of my whittling projects.”
“Whittling projects?”Kieran repeated, his voice going so high it nearly cracked.He sputtered a laugh.“You’re joking.You whittle?”
“I’m a multifaceted person,” Sebastian said, deadly serious.Afew days ago, Kieran would have been intimidated by the sudden tone shift.Now he realized that it was for comedic effect.
“It all involves knives, though,” Kieran pointed out.“So notthatmultifaceted.”
“You say that now, but I think you’d be quite impressed by my handmade spoons.They’re birch.Do you want to hear my birch facts?”
“Desperately,”Kieran near-cackled.“Talk dirty to me.”
That finally broke Sebastian, and the two dissolved into laughter, Kieran nearly doubling over.As soon as Kieran thought Sebastian was done, he would supply another fact with clinical seriousness—“Did you know you can identify silver birch by their pendulous branches?”—and send Kieran into an entirely new fit of laughter.Soon, Kieran had to sit on the ground, clutching his sides.His stomach hurt from laughing.Sebastian sat beside him, chuckling along in a feedback loop that didn’t seem close to stopping anytime soon.Kieran wiped away tears, trying to catch his breath.
“You,” Kieran said, “are not what I expected, Sebastian Feng.Consider me pleasantly surprised.”
Sebastian just shrugged, his smile almost smug.“I could say the same about you.I…really enjoy your company, Kieran.”
“Likewise.”Kieran bumped his shoulder against Sebastian’s.“Thanks for showing me the knife-throwing tricks.Maybe we can set up a target and have a competition one of these days.If, of course, there’s suitable wood for that on board.”
