He looks over at me, then Rathyn, and something passes between them. After a moment, he comes over and touches his forehead to Rathyn’s.
“You are needed,” he says in English, probably for my benefit. His gaze flicks at me. “Everest. It’s good to see you again. You look well.”
“I…thank you. You too?” God, I sound like a jackass. Why the hell did my voice squeak like that?
His ears flick in amusement. “You must accompany Cielo back through the portal.”
“I wish to take him,” Rathyn says.
Eissa shakes his head. “I’m afraid that’s not possible. Not today.” I suck in a breath to protest, but Eissa makes unerring eye contact. “I can give you a single moment.”
Before I can protest that I need more than a fucking moment, Eissa says something, and the room clears. It takes at least a minute or two, but it’s not long before it’s just me and Rathyn with Cielo standing beside the portal.
“I want to kiss you,” I tell him.
His eyes flicker down. “I understand. We cannot.”
“I know. But this sucks. I’m scared.”
“Do not be afraid”,he answers. He walks over and cups my cock, which I have a feeling is probably the most non-taboo thing a Vyastil can do with a human. It’s so ass-backwards, but at least he’s touching me in some way.
My dick doesn’t twitch. I’m too scared to get hard and too spent from earlier. But I send him a rush of affection, and his ears flicker back and forth when he receives it.
“My Everest. Please trust me.”
“I do. Come home soon.”
He gives me a gentle squeeze, then steps back and nods to Cielo before turning on his heel and marching out of the room as his claws click on the floor.
I listen to the sound of them growing quieter until they fade into nothing. Cielo looks almost sad as he gestures to the portal, and I step ahead of him, prepared now for the feeling of transporting to another world.
My head still swims a bit as I step into the hallway, and I say nothing at all as I make my way back to our apartment with Cielo at my heels. At least I’m not alone, so that’s something.
But fuck, what if he’s in actual danger? What if something’s gone wrong?
What if someone knows about us?
The door closes, and the moment it does, I turn to Cielo. “Do you know what’s going on?”
He shakes his head, but I can tell he’s not giving me the whole truth. I can’t really grill him on it, though. He won’t be able to speak most of the words, and even though he seems to be picking up sign language pretty quickly, I don’t know more than the alphabet and enough phrases to get me through polite conversation.
Pressing my hands to my eyes, I take a deep breath. “Tell me he’s okay.”
“Okeeeee,” he says with some ease. He steps forward and tilts his head to the side.
“It’s nothing serious, right? Like, he’s not going to battle?”
He shakes his head, which makes me slump forward in relief.
“Can I have a hug?”
“Hhhhuuu…” It’s all he can manage. He makes a questioning noise.
“It’s…comfort. Between friends.”
“Frreennnnnnn.”
“Yeah.” I show him the sign for friend, then I step close, carefully wrapping my arms around his waist. He stiffens, definitely afraid of getting de-limbed by Rathyn, but I don’t let go. “It’s okay. Just put your arms around me. This is what friends do when they need comfort. And I really need comfort right now.”
