Morana knows she's different from other people in more ways than one. Firstly, she's sixty-seven years old but stopped ageing in her twenties. Weird things have also happened around her right after she's wished for it. But most importantly, no matte...
I felt well rested and ready to wake up, but far too comfortable to want to. I wanted to stay where I was and keep on sleeping for forever. Unfortunately, I also was very hungry and the hunger won.
I opened my eyes, sat up, and yawned and stretched myself. Then I looked around and froze. I wasn't in any place I knew.
Slowly, I remembered what had happened the day before. How exhausted I had been. How I had leaned my head on Alejo while sitting on his couch and then... I must have fallen into a very deep sleep. Deep enough that he had...
I looked around the room more carefully. There was a bookshelf with a bunch of books which didn't look to be anything that could be found in a normal book store. I couldn't read the titles, but they all looked rather old, and I guessed they were books on magic.
On the middle shelf, there were a few bottles of fancy alcohol and a framed photograph of Alejo with a man with a bushy beard and a woman with thick black hair. All three of them smiled widely at me. A painting of just colors melting in and out of each other hung on the wall, as well as what looked to be a college diploma. There was also a full-length mirror and a built-in wardrobe.
I was without a doubt in Alejo's bedroom.
In the mirror, I could see a blush spreading on my cheeks. Had he carried me in here after I had fallen asleep?
I got up, feeling awkward, and made my way to the living room. He sat on the couch there with a book, which he closed the moment I entered.
"You're awake! How do you feel?" he smiled at me.
"Alright," I answered and went over to sit in one of the armchairs. "I... Did you carry me into your bedroom?"
"Yeah," he nodded and rubbed the back of his neck.
"Thank you, I guess. And I'm sorry for falling asleep." I looked away, feeling far too embarrassed to look at him. It really felt awkward knowing he had taken care of me while I had been unconscious. And it felt even more awkward because I couldn't help but wish that next time he carried me, I would be awake and remember it.
"It's no problem. Just glad you're awake. I was starting to worry. You hungry?"
"Starving," I admitted and finally looked back at him. He smiled brightly at me.
"Thought so."
And without another word, he went into the kitchen. I wasn't sure what I should do. If I should follow or wait. But before I decided, he was back out with a bowl.
"Here you go," he said and placed it before me. It was a stew, and it smelled delicious.
"Did you make this? When did you?" I asked and looked at it with wide eyes.
"You've been asleep for quite some time and this is the perfect thing to make and then just leave on the stove on a low heat," he shrugged and then went back to get another plate of food.
I turned to the clock at the wall again, and just like I had been shocked the last time I had looked at it, I was again. It showed three o'clock and by the looks of the light outside, it was three in the afternoon.
"Fuck!" I exclaimed and stood up. Alejo was out in an instance. He held another bowl and some of the stew went over the edge because he moved too fast.
"What is it? Are you hurt?" he asked hurriedly, but I shook my head.
"Work! I have work today!"
"Oh." His facial expressions smoothed out. "I've talked to them and told them you're sick, so don't worry about that. Just sit down and eat. You need food."
I opened my mouth to say something, but there wasn't really anything I could say. I hated the idea of having missed work, but it was so late that even if I rushed there, I would only be able to work the last hour or so of my shift, so there was no point. It was bad though. This was a whole day of work, a whole day of pay lost. I could always try to get an extra shift to make up for it, but it also wasn't like that would matter much. I really needed far too much money if I wanted to stay, and I did. But it... It really didn't feel possible.
"Hey, don't worry about it. If they give you a hard time about it, I'll help you explain it," Alejo said and moved over to where I stood. He put down the bowl and placed a hand on my arm.
If this was how it would be training magic, then I couldn't really do it. I had been out for about twenty hours. That wasn't something which could happen on a regular basis.
With another panic, I realized Leramidon had been alone for over twenty-four hours. I knew he would be fine. His food and water were on a time release, I still felt guilty though.
I also knew that if Alejo had taken me home after it and not let me stay here, then I would be very miserable, but in a very different way at that moment. Then I would be starving but forced to first spend time on making something before I could eat. And considering how I had fallen asleep on the couch, I could have potentially fallen asleep on the floor at home. That would have made waking up even worse and odds were I would have fallen ill, just like Alejo had been worried about the previous day.
"Morana," Alejo said, and I snapped out of my thoughts. He watched me with eyes brimming with worry. "Do you need anything? Is there anything I can do?"
And besides, I wanted to live with him. I wanted to be close to him.
"I... I accept your offer. If you would still be fine with it," I said, and he frowned for a moment before understanding seemed to hit him.
"You want to move in here?" he asked, and a smile was back on his lips.
"Yeah, it honestly makes sense." His reasoning for it really did make sense. What made much less sense was how excited I felt over the prospect.
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