Chapter Twelve: Preparations | Part 2
Thirtyx wasn’t remotely in the mood, but he paused his pacing, closed his eyes, and took a deep breath to pretend he was thinking it over. He’d told them how he felt around her—hungry for some cryptic energy source. The feeling drove him batty, like an itch he couldn’t scratch. Whereas typical hunger motivated him to be around deception, this hunger motivated him to be around Seerla. And maybe it felt nice whenever he complied, but that niceness was quickly overrun by more hunger, driving his hands closer to her hands, her face closer to her face, his entire body closer to her body…
The horror must have shown on his face, because both Rhea and Benn burst into laughter. “There it is!” Rhea cried. “Now tell us you don’t have a crush on Seerla.”
“I don’t have a cr— c—”
The laughter redoubled. Thirtyx pressed his abnormally warm face into his hands. “How in the Twins’ name did you know before I did? And how can I make you forget?”
“You don’t need to be embarrassed,” Benn chuckled. “Seerla’s been amazing to you. She’s kind and funny… and she clearly cares about you a lot. You could do far worse.”
“Well why don’t you date her then?” Thirtyx regretted the jab immediately and let out a prolonged moan as he collapsed onto his bed. “I think I was better off not knowing.”
Benn rolled his eyes. “You know Seerla isn’t my type. And we aren’t talking about my crushes. I have the misfortune of only crushing on people who would see me as a prince instead of a person, so I tend to ignore them.”
“Ooh, same!” Rhea chimed in. “Rhiadon, for instance. It’s such a shame he’s a stuck-up idiot.”
Benn snapped his fingers. “Rhiadon—exactly! I spent a while wondering if I could make him less of a stuck-up idiot if I befriended him, but alas, Selkies will be Selkies.”
“I know Grimm is personally against the whole royal consort business, but he’s always said he wouldn’t fault us if we brought it back when we took charge.” Rhea’s eager grin bordered on maniacal. “Wouldn’t Rhiadon make a nice one?”
“As fun as that would be, I see the political advantages of steering clear of consorts. Besides, isn’t Rhiadon comping for business? There’s no way we could pay him enough to hang around the palace as our personal plaything.” Benn shuddered. “See, it sounds so degrading. I couldn’t do it.”
“Well, fine. I could have him to myself, then.”
“Are you two really discussing consorts while my entire sense of self is imploding?” Thirtyx spluttered. “How am I supposed to survive Comps with this annoying thing in my head telling me to make out with my study partner?”
Rhea tilted her head slightly. “Thirtyx… is this the first time you’ve felt this way? And did no one warn you about how crushes feel to Veriths?”
Thirtyx gritted his teeth. “Who exactly would have warned me? Have you forgotten the eight straight weeks we spent in the library during sex ed because they couldn’t find a Verith to teach me, and you two aren’t from this planet?”
“We sort of assumed you found a book or something,” Benn muttered.
“The point is….” Rhea waved her hand as if to dispel the awkwardness. “You’ve finally realized you’re interested in Seerla and, unlike us, you can make all the silly romantic decisions you want without it affecting your image. So—are you going to shoot your shot?”
“Everything affects my image! My reputation is just as fragile as yours!”
“Ehh…” Benn hedged. “Your reputation isn’t fragile if can’t get any worse.”
Before Thirtyx knew what he was doing, he was heaving a pillow at his roommate. Rhea bit the collar of her shirt to keep from cackling as it struck home. “You sort of deserved that, Benn. That wasn’t very nice.”
“He has a point, though,” Thirtyx sighed. “I can’t date without tanking someone’s social standing, so I guess I’ll be alone until the Veriths declare world peace, or something.”
The return of Rhea’s sly grin did little to improve Thirtyx’s mood. “The threat to her image hasn’t kept her away so far. So stop moping and let us teach you how to flirt, since you’re apparently clueless in that department.”
Benn snorted. “Like we’re any better.”
“Speak for yourself. I’ve stolen plenty of covert kisses.”
“By reminding them that you’re the heir to the throne? That will hardly work for Thirtyx.”
“I have other strategies! We can workshop it.”
Calley Jones 