Page 3 of To Cuddle A Gremlin

Kazmier: Tell me more.

“Hi there. I was hoping to run into you again,” Isadore said.

Sebastian twitched before freezing in place, and Isadore winced. He hadn’t meant to scare Sebastian, but he didn’t want him to hide away either. Isadore had figured out Sebastian’s schedule and waited outside the library doors for him to leave for the day. Yes, what Isadore was doing was adjacent to stalking, but Isadore had a feeling Sebastian had plans to avoid him.

Sebastian was all awkward limbs and shy smiles. He never looked at the world straight on, always under the cover of a ducked head. Just the other day, Isadore saw for the first time the palest hazel eyes hiding behind Sebastian’s black frames. Isadore had never seen a human with such an unique colour. Only creatures of late fall had shades of brown like Sebastian. What intrigued Isadore the most was Sebastian’s intense focus on what he enjoyed and lack of awareness of the world around him. His innate kindness to others grabbed Isadore’s attention as well.

“You—you came back. Why?” Sebastian gaped at Isadore before clapping a hand over his mouth. “Dear God, I didn’t mean to be so insulting. I am so sorry. Hello.”

“Hello.” Isadore smiled. He itched to stroke the blossoming pink cheeks, but humans didn’t appreciate touches from strangers, so he kept his hands to himself. Ever since coming from the other dimension where the majority of his kind lived, Isadore had been fascinated by this world's societal mores and norms, but learning to abide by them was challenging. “You leftso fast yesterday I didn’t have the opportunity to make sure you were alright.”

“Oh, right. Yeah, I’m fine. Happens all the time. No need to worry about me. It’s all good.” Sebastian waved off Isadore’s concern with a big smile.

Isadore drank in Sebastian’s fine-boned beauty while maintaining distance. He longed to feel the pale skin with the back of his hand. Keeping to himself was a challenge. His people were tactile, and touch was a love language. To not feel Sebastian in some fashion irritated Isadore.

“I know. But I wanted to see for myself. You…didn’t visit the café this afternoon, and I was concerned.” Isadore clenched his fists in his pockets. Why was this place so cold? This interaction wasn’t going as he planned. But the arrested look in Sebastian’s eyes was new and kept Isadore from giving up.

“Oh, thanks. I’m—I’m good. I just—” Sebastian huffed in frustration before taking a deep breath. “I had lunch in the library. Saving money.”

Money was another one of the foreign concepts to this world, but Isadore had discovered humans liked to hoard it. “Yeah, I understand. Food can become pricey if you go every day.”

“Yup, exactly.” Sebastian rocked on his feet, a furrow forming on his brow. He glanced at the ground, the library, and everywhere but Isadore. Sebastian had reached his limit and needed Isadore to give him space. Isadore had managed to talk to Sebastian without him running away, and that right now was enough.

“Since you seem to be okay, I’m gonna go. Nice chatting with you.” Isadore itched to pat Sebastian’s hand or even going so far as to steal a hug for a reminder of this interaction, but Sebastian’s tense bearing warned him off. “See you soon at the café?”

Sebastian nodded and smiled before spinning around and heading in the opposite direction of where he went yesterday. “Fucking hell.”

Isadore jerked his head and blinked. Sebastian’s curse wasn’t anything he expected. The swear was delightful, and Sebastian wasn’t as immune to Isadore’s charms as he thought. But how could Isadore translate that into some sort of affection? Wooing Sebastian required strategy and tactic, something Isadore was too impatient to implement.

In the morning, Isadore sprawled at his usual table in the front corner of the cafe, facing the door. His best friend, Harry, sat with his back to the plate-glass window, eying the deli counter where Isadore’s brother, Tony, was working his type of magic. Isadore kept his eyes on the street, not paying attention to what Harry was rambling on about. Harry liked very specific things in his life: comics, art, and Isadore’s older brother.

“Isadore, are you even listening to me?” Harry snapped his fingers at him. Isadore dragged his eyes away and arched an eyebrow as Harry sliced a piece of chocolate croissant.

“I am.” Isadore rested his chin on his laced fingers and batted his eyes at Harry, whose clothes were tailored and his hair just so. “How do you manage to keep your style so perfect?”

“I use high-end products and baby the crap out of it. Stop pouting. Your Sebastian isn’t coming, but the sweet and adorable Sammi is.” Harry jerked his chin toward the door before fingering his bangs into place. Sammi stepped through the glass door and began unwinding her long scarf from its loops around her neck. The jewel tones of the wool set off the rich brown of her skin. Her braids were coiled into two buns at the top of her shoulders. Isadore had to force himself to sit still and not barrage her with endless questions about Sebastian.

“Do you think I scared him? Is Sammi going to tell me to back off? I knew meeting him twice was a douche move. God. Courting humans is worse than courting gremlins.” Isadore shuddered. Gremlin traditions involved bringing electrical components to a mate’s family as a dowry. But Sebastian was skittish, and trying to remain within his periphery was hard.

“God, Issie, I don’t know. I wasn’t there. You said this wasn’t going to be a dissect-everything-I-did-outside-the-library lunch,” Harry grumbled, his eyes darting toward the kitchen doors.

“And I thought you weren’t going to stare at Tony the whole time either. But I’ll stop, I promise,” Isadore snapped back. He watched as Sammi moved through the lunch line, his eagerness to join her threatening to upset the fragile peace between him and Harry. When did talking about feelings become so contentious between them? They'd never argued about this before. He was an adult with his own hovel and his own hoard. He shouldn’t be behaving like a fledgling. “There’s no point in rehashing what I did. I fucked up.”

“You did. And I wasn’t looking at Tony. I was glancing at the … menu board.” Harry sipped his coffee. Isadore rolled his eyes as Harry’s cheeks pinked up. How Harry could have a crush on Isadore’s brother was something he would never understand. Tony was grumpy, fussy, and hated people fawning over him. Which was a brownie’s worst nightmare. Tony avoided Harry because of his artistic nature and despised Sebastian for his shy persona and inability to meet Tony’s gaze when ordering at the counter. “Tony or Tara added new items.”

“Fine.” Isadore took a bite of his ham sandwich, giving up on teasing Harry. “Do you think I should try again?”

“Are you talking about freaking Sebastian out?” Sammi asked as she appeared at their table. Isadore jumped before smiling at the petite woman.

“Yes, the conversation has become mind-numbingly mundane. Is there any chance we can get these two to stop pussyfooting around each other?” Harry asked, leaning back in his seat. The buttons on his shirt strained against his barrel chest. “Hello, Beautiful Sammi, how are you today?”

Sammi leaned against Harry, giving him a side hug. “Hey there, Handsome Harry. I’m doing fantastic. The sun is shining, the air is fresh, and we have no blights on the horizon.”

Shuddering, Harry shook his head. “Spring can’t get here fast enough.”

“The Winter Solstice has to happen first, Harry,” Isadore chided. This year, the chamber of commerce was working hard with the new residents to create a welcoming season for everyone. Each member of the chamber wanted the past year wiped from their collective memories. The warlock, Darius, and his friends in their fight to save the town from an eldritch demon had done a lot of damage to the community spirit. Isadore had stayed out of the way, not wanting to step on toes or become a target. His kind didn’t do well around demons or magic.

“Which is the perfect segue into getting you and sweet Sebastian together. This type of holiday spirit is his kryptonite. He’s addicted to the lights and the festivities, though you wouldn’t be able to tell.” Sammi returned her attention to Isadore.

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