Jaeyoung suddenly stopped walking. He turned around with a startled expression.
“Linn’ar?” he asked.
“Yes?”
He paused like he was waiting for me to continue, but he was the one who’d opened up the conversation.
Finally, he stated, “You’re... touching me.”
No, I wasn’t.
Was I?
I raised my hands to prove my innocence. But Jaeyoung raised a brow.
“Not with those,” he said, pointing at his hips.
I glanced down, then saw my unwitting misdeed. Without any conscious action, my tentacles had slipped towards Jaeyoung and gripped his waist.
“Oh! I had no idea,” I admitted.
I removed my tentacles, though my movement was slow and dejected, because I did notwantto remove my tentacles. As soon as I broke our physical connection, my feelers drooped with disappointment.
“It’s all right.” Jaeyoung cleared his throat. “Why are you still here, anyway?”
“I promised to walk you home,” I reminded him.
A strange look washed over his face. I was still no expert on human facial expressions, so I couldn’t parse the complexity. The only physical trait I noticed was the slight darkening of his cheeks. Humans ‘blushed’ when feeling embarrassed, flustered, or aroused.
“Right,” he murmured. “Any particular reason why?”
Always so curious. What a sweetheart.
“Because I want to,” I replied.
He licked his lips and paused for a beat. “I see. Come on, then.”
My feelers lifted joyously into the air. I was glad to be invited.
When we reached his den, Jaeyoung stepped inside. He left the door open for me, so I took the invitation to enter. Scrolls and parchment sprawled across every flat surface. Since becoming the Healer’s assistant, he spent the bulk of his time buried in research. But wouldn’t it be nice if his space wasn’t messy?
“If you’re too busy to organize, may I help?” I offered, pointing to a jumbled mass of parchment.
He pushed my hand out of the way. “No, no. Please don’t touch anything. I know where everything is.”
My skin tingled where he brushed me. “All right,” I said, smiling at the pleasant sensation. “Then I will stand here and wait for your next task.”
“Next task? I don’t need anything from you, Linn—”
He stopped abruptly. I watched his face twist and scrunch as a flurry of thoughts seemed to dance in his mind. As if moving in slow motion, Jaeyoung brought his hand to his chin. His unfocused eyes darted back and forth, chasing invisible ideas.
Not wanting to interrupt him, I tilted my head and watched. Were all humans so expressive when deep in thought? Since Ionly knew three, I couldn’t say for certain, but Jaeyoung was definitely the cutest in my opinion.
“Linn’ar,” he finally said. “Can you explain something to me? What is a filum?”
I was at a loss for how to respond. It was so intrinsic to Maeleons that I struggled to put it into words.
“I’m not sure if I can explain that,” I admitted. “For us, it’s as natural as breathing air.”
