“It's a good view,” Florian said, though it seemed a little underwhelming for the distance that they'd run.
“Look up,” Kade said, his eyes turned toward the sky. Florian followed his gaze, and the dizzying expanse of stars that spread out far above them left him speechless. It almost didn't look real: the sheer number of tiny glowing pinpoints set in the night sky, hinting at the galactic swirls behind them with not a single cloud blocking the view.
“Holy shit,” he finally managed to get out under his breath. “This is—This is—”
“Amazing, isn't it?” Kade whispered next to him. “Best view anywhere in the Winter Court.”
“Are these the same stars as Earth?” Florian asked incredulously, still unable to tear his gaze away from the sky.
“They are,” Kade answered. His voice was low and soft, sending a tremor up Florian's spine. “The Veil is like a mirror of Earth, so the sky is the same, but flipped. But I know you can't get this kind of view of the stars on Earth.” There was a beat of silence, then Kade sighed. “Only a few places you can see it in the Veil, too, though.”
Hardly aware of what he was doing, Florian staggered back, first dropping to his knees then laying down on his back entirely, so the swath of glimmering stars filled his vision.
“This is amazing,” he breathed, shaking his head. “Thank you for showing me.”
Kade didn't reply, but Florian thought he heard him chuckle slightly under his breath. Then there was a rustling of the leaves and earth next to him, and he realized that Kade had come to lay down beside him. Heat burned through his face, but he kept his eyes firmly on the sky, and his embarrassment was quickly forgotten in the cool night air.
Then—Kade's fingers brushed against his, so feather-light that he almost didn't realize it wasn't a tuft of grass or loose earth at first. He nearly yanked his hand away, but something kept him frozen in place. When he glanced over nervously, trying to move only his eyes, he could see Kade looking just as firmly up at the sky; but when he glanced down, their pinkies and ring fingers were brushed up against each other. It looked almost intentional.
Florian's head was swimming—this time with confusion rather than awe.Wasit intentional? He'd been so caught up in making sure Kade had no inkling of his attraction to him, no hint of his crush, that the idea of Kade trying to come on tohimmade it completely impossible for him to formulate any thoughts at all.
Feeling suddenly sweaty, he glanced away and looked back up at the sky. The stars were easier to focus on.
But he left his hand where it was, letting the tiny points of contact between their fingers buzz with electricity and promise.
When they met up again to train the next afternoon, Kade's softness had dissipated once more as he told Florian they would try sparring again today.
“You sure?” Florian asked, frowning. “You were just saying yesterday you thought you jumped the gun.”
“I don't know what that means,” Kade said flatly, his eyebrows raising almost imperceptibly. “But I know what I said. That was yesterday.”
“Jumping the gun? It means to, like… Move too fast, I guess.”
Kade’s expression didn’t change as he simply repeated, “That was yesterday.”
Florian wasn't sure what to make of that, so he silently picked up the wooden practice sword. When he looked back over at Kade, the bigger man had a slight, pleased smile on his face.
“Ready?” he asked, as they slowly circled each other from opposite ends of the courtyard.
“Ready,” Florian answered.
That was all it took for Kade to charge at him, the sword whistling through the air. Florian blocked it just in time, stumbling backwards at the sudden force. Kade was bigger, stronger, faster, and trained in how to actually fight—if their last sparring match had taught him anything, it was that he had to use magic if he wanted any chance of winning.
“Slow down!” he exclaimed, pushing magic through his words. Kade staggered, stumbling as his pace suddenly slowed but his momentum lurched him forward. Florian took the opportunity to strike, swinging his wooden sword up into Kade's shoulder. Kade tried to react, but too slowly—his wooden sword coming up to block after Florian's had already connected. Kade's movements were smooth now, as he adjusted to the magic that Florian had forced upon him, though he still moved in a strange slow motion.
“Good,” Kade said, nodding as he took a slowed step toward Florian, who darted backward out of his reach. “Stay focused, though.”
“I am,” Florian retorted with a frown, moving to strike him again. But Kade must have anticipated the second hit, his sword already moving up to block, catching the edge of Florian's sword to throw it off-course just enough to miss.
“Are you?” he goaded; and before Florian could reply, Kade had lowered his sword to reach one hand for the hem of his shirt, lifting it to his face to dab at his forehead. Florianknewhe was being played—knew it was too cold out, and they hadn't moved enough for the other man to have any perspiration on his face—but he couldn't keep his eyes from lingering on the hard abs and tanned skin that had been revealed.
“Y-You—!” Florian stammered, heat burning through his face with embarrassment, but he couldn't get any other words out. Kade was messing with him. Had he been so obvious? Had he seen all the flustered glances and blushes Florian had tried to hide from him?
“Told you to stay focused,” Kade said, a tiny hint of a smirk on his face, as he let his shirt fall back into place. Before Florian could process the words, Kade was moving again—and fast. The distraction had worked, his magic had lost its hold, and now Kade was too quick for Florian to keep up. The practice sword came whistling through the air toward him. He yelped in pain as it collided with the upper part of his shoulder, sending a resounding crack through the courtyard as it struck the point where the skin was thinnest and the bone most pronounced.
Florian's sword clattered to the ground as he grabbed at his shoulder instinctively and winced at the stinging pain that radiated from his neck to his elbow. He felt more than saw Kade hesitate; but he couldn't focus on him, instead falling back to sit on the ground with a groan.
“Stop,” he hissed through gritted teeth, magic coursing through him. “That really hurt.”
