Page 62 of Potions & Pints
“I’m really glad you’re feeling better,” Tan said. “In fact, I don’t think I’ve ever seen you more lively, and that’s saying a lot.”
Vir laughed. “I hope you’re not complaining?”
“Of course not,” Tan replied with a hint of humor in his words.
Despite his teasing tone though, he was being sincere. He loved Vir’s energy, his love for life, his friendliness, his childlike charm. Seeing him lethargic and slow from the sleeping sickness had been like seeing a light dim.
He was genuinely happy Vir was back to his usual self.
But he wondered about the sleeping sickness and why he never seemed to be affected by it himself. He knew he’d been exposed to it both times he’d stepped foot on Gamlin Ait, not to mention their current visit and yet, he’d never seemed to suffer the way others had.
“I still have no idea how I’ve never caught it,” he mused, half to himself, half to Vir.
The thought of it was a perplexing one and one that nagged at his mind a little. But Vir seemed less worried.
“I guess you’re just better than the rest of us,” the orc said, teasing him back. Tan knocked his shoulder against Vir’s in mock resistance and the two shared a smile.
The rare contact felt good to Tan and although they pulled away again, Tan felt they’d inched slightly closer than they were before. He could almost feel the warmth emanating off Vir’s skin and it stuck in his mind as he spoke again.
“So, then,” asked Tan, a little nervous to ask the question that had been playing in his thoughts since Pili’s inauguration. “Where do you want to go now? Stay here in Gamlin Ait? Go back to the water elves? Go somewhere else entirely?”
His heart raced as he asked the question hoping silently that Vir understood what he really meant, what he’d been wanting to say, in one way or another for months now.
If the orc didn’t understand though, it would be through no fault of his own. In fact, Tan himself had only recently allowed himself to touch the truth of his own mind and heart. He couldn’t very well expect Vir to have gotten there before him. That said, Vir’s cutting remarks on the boat that night so long ago had shown Tan that perhaps the orc knew him better than he knew himself. At least sometimes.
Now though, Tan knew what lay within him and it was equal parts terrifying and exhilarating. His recent dedication to the truth, for better or worse, had finally given him the push to be honest with himself about something he’d known for a long time now. For almost as long as he’d tried to deny it though, he’d felt it.
The question he was really asking Vir was this:where do you want to go and do you want me to be there?The thought of saying that out loud made him nauseous. The thought of Vir planning to go somewhere without him made him feel even worse.
Vir sighed at the question, making Tan hold his breath.
“Honestly, I thought I wanted to go to Sunfall after all the stories you told me,” the orc answered thoughtfully. “It sounds like there are some good people there and since you said you’d like to go back yourself…”
Tan hoped that meant what he wanted it to mean — that his own plans were a factor in Vir’s decision of where to build a life. He heard there was a ‘but’ coming though and sure enough, Vir added another thought.
“But I do like it here,” he said. “And your sister’s here too. That’s important.”
Tan’s heart was practically fluttering out of his chest, so fast was it beating at Vir’s words. There was no mistaking it — Vir felt what he did, that what had been growing between them for months now was not just a friendship but a romance. It made Tan feel like sinking into the sand and running along the beach and floating up into the sky and diving into the sea all at once.
But what he wanted more than any of that was to be right there next to Vir.
“So you like it here?” he asked, his voice straining with the effort of not squealing.
Vir nodded. “I like it here.”
“Even with the giant spiders?” Tan teased.
He teased because he still couldn’t bring himself to say out loud what Vir was practically hand-feeding him. He’d never felt so vulnerable. Probably because he’d never felt this way about anyone before.
“The spiders are not ideal,” Vir admitted, smiling.
He knew, as well as Tan did, that they were talking around their feelings for now and the tension between them grew with each passing moment.
“What would be ideal?” Tan asked softly, looking into Vir’s deep brown eyes.
This time he knew Vir heard the real question behind his words and when a dark green flush reached the orc’s cheeks, his heart somehow beat even faster.
“Wherever you are, that would be ideal,” Vir answered gently, almost shyly. “Unless it’s in prison,” he added, a smile crossing his face.
