“Guess I don’t get a say even though it’s my body,” Gramlithyn muttered.
“Nope, you should’ve done it by now. We’ve been friends for, like, six years. You didn’t have tattoos when I met you, which means you’ve added all that ink without acknowledging me.”
“I didn’t realize you guys had known each other that long,” Pyxlevir said. “How did you meet?”
“I found a job at a crappy motel,” Gramlithyn said. “They needed help cleaning the rooms, and they’d let you rent one out pretty cheaply. Dasan was already working there.”
“Yeah, the guy who owned it was nice, but the place was run-down and basically in the middle of nowhere,” Dasan added. “It shut down within a couple of months. Gram and I had already become friends, so we hit the road together and stumbled upon another shitty place to work. We’d save up some cash, do some traveling, then grab another job to fill our pockets again.”
“Until we got overambitious in our desire to travel and asked some shady druid to teleport us to Europe,” Gramlithyn commented. “The druid was working with the fallen knights, and the next thing I know, Drystan and Conley are in my face demanding to know what the fuck I was thinking.”
“Whatwereyou thinking?” Crispin asked.
“I wasn’t. I was running because I was scared,” Gramlithyn said, meeting Pyxlevir’s gaze. “But it turns out I should’ve been an adult and talked to Pyxlevir.”
Pyxlevir was done looking backward. Yes, it had sucked for six years. But the last thing he was willing to do was lose his future to hold on to a grudge. He wanted Gramlithyn as a mate, and as long as they were working together, he was happy to dive eagerly into their matebond with an open heart.
His soul had ached for Gramlithyn, but he hadn’t pursued him. The reason was simple. Pyxlevir had yearned for Gramlithyn to realize that having a mate wasn’t the end of the world. In the deepest part of him, he’d wanted Gramlithynto return ready to start fresh and make something of Fate’s gift to them both. While Pyxlevir didn’t know yet if they’d be successful, he damn well hoped to wear a zebra mating mark on his arm someday.
His overthinking other half had run and left everything behind him. Pyxlevir didn’t have to ask why; he understood the desperation of having a matebond and not knowing if the other person wanted to rail at Fate or celebrate.
“It’s okay,” Pyxlevir assured him. “At least this way you met Dasan.”
“Good point, I’m fucking great,” Dasan enthused, making Pyxlevir chuckle.
“Obviously,” Gramlithyn asked. “In case you haven’t noticed, my first best friend was Pyx. I have unparalleled taste in friends.”
“I like how we’re not important in this equation,” Colburn said to Crispin.
“Nope, just two gargoyle-cougars being used so we can testify that Pyx and Gramlithyn hate one another so they can go down in history as the third known couple to break their matebond,” Crispin replied. “Because that’s been my life’s dream. I can’t wait to go against Fate before I’ve found my own mate. I’m sure she’ll be ecstatic about pairing me. I’ll probably get a chimera who wants to kill me or something in revenge.”
“Wrong, I want to rebuild my friendships with you both too,” Gramlithyn corrected. “But I can’t be greedy, and I have to prioritize. You guys are mad at me, and I deserve it, but I owe it to Pyx to use my energy working on our matebond.”
“Dude, all you have to do to rebuild your matebond is to be nice to Pyx,” Colburn said. “We were pissed that you abandoned us without an explanation. But we get it now. Your matebond was intimidating, or something along those lines. It’s a scary thing being tied to another soul. I don’t know everythingabout your choices, and it’s none of my business. You couldn’t confide in me or Cris because we’re also besties with Pyx. Hopefully, we won’t have to pick sides in the future. But for now, we’re starting fresh and we want to support you both.”
“Thanks, I appreciate it,” Gramlithyn replied. His eyes locked on Pyxlevir yet again. “My goal is to be nice to Pyx.”
“I won’t accept anything less than the nicest version of you,” Pyxlevir teased. He adored the twinkle in Gramlithyn’s pretty brown gaze. They had a long road ahead of them, but Pyxlevir was growing more excited by the minute to explore every aspect of their relationship.
Chapter 21
On Saturday night, Gramlithyn was in a good mood. He’d spent the past few days shopping and sharing meals with his housemates. The mood in the apartment had gone from uneasy to jovial. It brought to mind the many times Gramlithyn had slept over at Pyxlevir’s house, curled up under a blanket at the Hawthorne-Stone mansion, or invited his friends to stay up most of the night at his parents’ home.
Except Gramlithyn was no longer tormented by the knowledge that Pyxlevir was his mate or his fear that the elf would waltz into the sunset with some other shifter on his arm. Gramlithyn still pined for Pyxlevir, and nothing was settled, but at least Pyxlevir understood the motive behind his disappearance.
“How’s your shoulder?” Pyxlevir asked as he walked into the living room in his pajamas. After everyone else had decided to go to bed for the night, Pyxlevir had suggested they watch a movie and opted to change clothes before they started.
“I’m half elf and half zebra; it’s already healed, Pyx.”
Thanks to Pyxlevir’s suggestion, Jeremiah’s quick work at sketching a perfect hummingbird feather, and a cancellation at his favored tattoo studio, Gramlithyn had a fresh tattoo at the top of his right shoulder blade.
Pyxlevir curled up on the sofa cushion next to Gramlithyn and pulled a throw over his lap. “Well, how should I know? It’s not like I have any tattoos.”
“Every Valzadari elf would shun you if their Chieftain’s only son defied tradition by getting inked.”
“I know. I wish my parents would have more kids so I could live a wilder life,” Pyxlevir joked with a bright grin. “You’re a Chieftain’s son; I don’t know why you get to do so much fun stuff.”
“Because my mom is a zebra, and the Verdanyth aren’t as uptight as the Valzadari.”
