Trash of the Count's Family Anthology

Drunk Ramblings

This wasn't what Cale expected to wake up to. Groaning at the red light, he rubbed his eyes. He sat up, squinting at the buzzing sphere on the other side of his room. He watched the magic device shine for a few more minutes before it turned off. Satisfied, he laid back down and covered himself up to his chin under his duvet. Just before his eyes could fully close, the magic communication device was glowing bright red again. 

He sighed, before getting up from his warm bed. Pulling the folded blanket off the mattress, he slowly stepped towards the desk where he let the magic device reside. As he sat down in front of the device, he put the blanket on his lap and slicked his fluffed-up bed hair back. He then picked up sleepy Raon and quietly whispered to him to connect the call; the half-asleep child did so obediently. He then curled up on Cale's lap, snuggling under the blanket and nuzzling his stomach.

"Ah, Cale, I wasn't sure if you'd be awake at this time-"

"What do you need, Your Highness?" The cheerful voice was abruptly cut off by Cale's gruff one who stared Alberu down. He noticed how his room had all his lights on, and that he had definitely been awake all night. His stare hardened. This did not deter his sunny hyung, who just smiled wider and leaned close to the magic device. He interlocked his fingers before resting his head on it, and let out a slight laugh. 

"Did I wake you dongsaeng? Pity." Cale clenched his jaw, before raising an eyebrow. He knew his hyung, and he knew that he wanted something. He ran his tongue over his teeth and leaned back; crossing his arms against his chest. "Anyways, I was wondering if you might want to come over. Have some tea, and maybe we could talk about that pending paperwork-"

"At 2 in the morning?" Cale interrupted again, with a questioning look. His face read, 'the fuck are you on about now?' and he frowned. "Why would I possibly come over to talk about work at 2 in the morning, when I could be sleeping? Elaborate, Your Highness." He said, with an overly sweet smile and a patronising tone.

Slightly ticked off, Alberu's smile grew even wider. "Well. I couldn't sleep, and I did have this bottle, and no one to drink it with." Alberu brought in a wine bottle from outside of Cale's view and teasingly held it close to the magic communcation device before holding it against his cheek. The condensation of the wine wettened his cheek, dripped off the bottle and down his neck as he smirked at the image of Cale surrounded by darkness. He shivered slightly from the cold, but barely noticed as his full attention was on his dongsaeng.

He then watched as Cale's eyes flicked to the bottle, lingering there for a second too long. He then turned back and returned to observe Alberu. After a few seconds, and he was slowly devolving from confident to doubting and awkward. (He was an unpredictable man, Alberu never could be 100% sure with him.) 'Perhaps he doesn't like this type of wine? Does this mean he won't come to the palace?' He slightly flinched as Cale let out another sigh, and got up. He noticed that he held a great and mighty, cute and sleepy dragon in his arms who reached out to hold Cale's fingers. He softened seeing Cale hold the baby dragon so caringly, gently holding the dragon's hand.   

"Fine, be there in 10."

Cale then hung up on him with the forementioned baby dragon hand, smacking it onto the magic device.  

———

Alberu, the chronic overthinker, can say that for once, he hadn't actually thought that far ahead. 

He was just hunched over his desk, writing down his plans for his coronation for the thousandth time, when he saw the stack of paperwork out of the corner of his eye. He looked up at it for a few seconds, feeling slight guilty for future him when his thoughts wandered to Cale. He had wondered if Cale would pick up if he called right now, then suddenly he found himself teasing his hair to look less insomniac in front of the magic device. One thing led to another and now he's bobbing his leg up and down waiting for Cale to show up in his office.