Living as a Salted Fish, No Snake on the Marshal's Wrist

Chapter 25: Timing

Jun De quickly passed Taio Ru a change of clothes through the half open door. He'd managed to calm himself down again, but had no confidence in his ability to stay calm if he saw a naked Taio Ru again.

Unfortunately, when Taio Ru walked out of the bathroom in the oversized shirt and loose pants. Jun De nearly had a nosebleed. Without a word he zoomed past Taio Ru directly into the bathroom and doused himself in cold water.

...

"This us so embarrassing. I look like a child wearing his fathers clothes." Taio Ru thought as he crawled under the blankets. He didn't want to be seen.

Poof!

Suddenly Taio Ru transformed back into a cute little snake. "Wait, what happened? Why am I a snake again?" Taio Ru said as he wiggled out from under the blankets and oversized clothes.

He couldn't understand how he managed to transform back into a snake. "Should I change back? No, actually maybe this is better. If I'm a snake I don't have to worry about clothes." Taio Ru decided to stay as he was instead of trying to figure out a way to transform again.

...

Coming out of the bathroom a cold air surrounded Jun De. He'd stood under the cold water until his body nearly turned blue. As he prepared his heart he looked around the room for Taio Ru.

"Where is he?" He thought as he turned around a little panicked. 

"Love?" Jun De called out.

"I'm right here." Taio Ru said shyly from next to the pillow. He had finally started to calm down from being able to transform. However, seeing Jun De walk out from the bathroom, he was reminded of what they'd been doing in bed a few moments prior.

It wasn't that he didn't want to be intimate with Jun De. It was just too much, too quick. He needed time to deal with one thing at a time.

"Love? Why did you change back?" Jun De asked as he sighed in relief. Grateful he didn't have to look at Taio Ru's body.

"I'm not sure. But I think this is better for right now. I mean I don't have any clothes or anything and we're still on the ship. Staying in my human form isn't the most practical thing." Taio Ru said trying not to reveal the real reason.

"There's no rush. We can wait until we reach Capital Star before working on your transformation." Jun De agreed also afraid to expose his true thoughts.

Knock...knock

Hearing a knock at the door, Jun De and Taio Ru let out a sigh of relief. The awkwardness between them was palpable.

Swoosh*

The door opened and lieutenant Laohu was standing there with a big smile on his face. "BUAHAHA! I got call from a buddy of mine who works for Marshal Shizi and apparently the guy is pissed. What did you do to piss him off so much?" Lieutenant Laohu asked curiously.

Jun De ignores the question, turning around and asking Taio Ru on the bed. "Love are you hungry?"

Taio Ru was surprised by the sudden question and couldn't help but stutter, "Ah... oh... yeah a little."

Jun De then looked at lieutenant Laohu. "Oh come on! I just got here." Lieutenant Laohu said pouting. He knew without the Marshal saying anything that he would have to go and make a food run.
"We can go to the cafeteria." Taio Ru said which surprised both lieutenant Laohu and Jun De. Neither of them expected Taio Ru to want to go to the public cafeteria for a meal.

Even Taio Ru was surprised by his own words. The reason he impulsively said them was because he was feeling shy. Remaining in the room alone with Jun De and potentially talking about what happened earlier in bed made him a little anxious.

He needed more time to process things before talking about it. Sometimes you can love someone and be willing to do those things with them. However, timing and atmosphere are also important.

...

Jun De walked over to Taio Ru and held out his palm, so Taio Ru could claim a place on his wrist. However, Taio Ru hesitated.

It was only for a split second, but it was long enough for Jun De to notice.

"Lieutenant Laohu, go get some food and send it over." Jun De said. He knew something wasn't right with Taio Ru and he didn't want to out it off until later.

"Wait! But Taio Ru just said he wanted to eat in the cafeteria." Lieutenant Laohu complained. He wanted to say more, but then went quiet after seeing the look in Jun De's eyes.

"Take your time." Jun De continued.

"Got it." Lieutenant Laohu said before walking out. Taio Ru stared blankly at the leaving Lieutenant not quite sure what had just happened.

"Love, is everything okay?" Jun De suddenly said.

Taio Ru was once again shocked by the sudden change. He didn't know what to say at first and could only look back at Jun De with blank eyes.

Jun De moved over to the table and placed Taio Ru on top. "Taio Ru, love, are you upset with me?" Jun De asked again. This time being even more direct.

"It's not that I'm mad." Taio Ru said avoiding Jun De's eyes. He still didn't know how to bring up what happened.

"Are you upset because of what happened this morning?" Jun De asked. He suspected his aggressive approach earlier in bed might be the cause.

Hearing Jun De's words Taio Ru's expression spoke volumes. Even though Taio Ru was left speechless.

With a guilt ridden face and gentle voice Jun De looked at Taio Ru. "Love, I'm sorry. I lost control of myself. I'm really sorry."

Taio Ru could hear the sincerity and Jun De's apology. His chest felt tight. "I'm really not angry. I... it's was just too sudden. I didn't even know I'd transformed and you were..." Taio Ru started trying to explain himself, but he still didn't know what words to use.

"Love, do you hate me now? Does being with me make you feel uncomfortable? Just tell me and I'll try to fix things. I don't want you to be sad or afraid of me." Jun De said almost begging Taio Ru's forgiveness. He really hated how his inability to control his lust had hurt his love.

"No! It's not like that. I... I don't know how to say it. I love you. I want to be intimate with you. I didn't even really hate  it when we were kissing and stuff. It's just my mind is really confused. I need more time to make sense of everything happening. Not about my feelings for you. I know I love you. I need to sort out everything else first." Taio Ru said in a rush.

"Like the fact I can transform into a human now. That's enough to shock me for days. On top of that, we are about to arrive at Capital Star and there's so much that needs to be figured out. I still haven't gotten over almost being killed. It's just too much to suddenly add "that"... Does that make sense?" Taio Ru tried to explain his eyes spinning as he rambled on.

It was a little jumbled, but Jun De understood the most important point. "Love, I promise I won't touch you until your ready. You have total control from now on. I want a lasting relationship with you, not just one night of succumbing to desire and lust." Jun De said as he solemnly bowed his head.

Watching Jun De respond to his crazy ramblings so seriously and that he understood the point of it, Taio Ru wanted to cry. This man understood him. They'd only known each other for less than a month, yet Jun De understood him better than anyone ever had previously.

"It's really not because I don't love you." Taio Ru restated softly. He wanted Jun De to know he loved him.

"I know. I love you, too." Jun De said with a gently smile.

Taio Ru moved forward and gently kissed Jun De in the cheek with his usual snake lips. "Slow, but not completely stopped." Taio Ru said as he showed a sheepish look.

"Understood." Jun De answered back before giving Taio Ru a gentle kiss on the head like he'd done many times before. The familiar feeling warmed Taio Ru's heart and gave him a sense of security he'd missed previously.

...