Behind His Weary Eyes (Novella) ✔️

5 ✙ Friction of Desires

Gone or non-existent?

The question tugged at her focus, spiraling her into a monotonous flicking of papers and biting of her lip. She knew the file she needed, yet she continued to go past it then restart. She acted the same way with Ludis last night. While he sauntered along rambling about his day, she tried to put the pieces together.

Asa figured Renvir was a younger male. Younger Celests had a stronger desire to mate than those over two hundred years old. Even if he didn't want to mate with the female selected, he showed care for his offspring.

Next, he had two sets of wings and one set of arms. This distinction usually marked a Refiner, but he didn't appear to be a higher class. Her next assumption was Sharder as that held a conglomeration of Celests exiled from their original caste. The biggest problem with that assumption, however, was Sharders weren't allowed to reproduce.

"Asa, do you have that file yet?" the female said. Her voice sounded sharper than usual. Snapping out of her thoughts, the Wikev looked down at the row. Her mind replayed the name and located it.

"Yes, coming!"

The scaly female exited the room and handed it to the Celest. Her heart skipped a beat. Passing by the front area, her male coworker passed by with Renvir. Asa's gaze followed the two down the hall. She leaned over the counter to verify. They took a left; they went to the hatchery.

"You are quite bold, you know," the azure Celest said, "First flirting with him now ogling him as he passes by."

The Wikev's tail flicked in frustration and rolled her eyes. The Celest probably wanted some drama in her life. The front desk, overall, proved to be a boring division. Not that the other female didn't stir up enough with their, apparently, regular errands.

"I'm not ogling or flirting. I'm searching for answers."

The Eulian female giggled.

"Right, that is what you two were laughing about the other day, answers."

Asa's face flushed a grayish brown. She wished, sometimes, she had the same color scales as Ludis. Then her cheeks would sport a hint of red to signal others to leave her alone. In case, she let out a string of clicks as a warning instead. The Celest stifled her growing, cheeky grin.

"I will spare you some embarrassment," gutsy giggles said, "There is not much to him. He is a lower caste Celest, Fallen, Sharder, whichever."

"But why would the Core Center pay him to breed?"

The Celest's eyes gleamed. Without moving her head, she scanned the area then leaned in.

"There are many theories, but I heard he ran around with other non-Celests so much they gave him a mate to settle him down."

"So, he is younger."

"Young and passionate." The azure female flashed a wink and brought her claws up to her lips.

A warm feeling filled Asa's body. She tensed her fingers on the stone counter. The pounding of her heart matched the gentle hum of the gem in her necklace.

After four years of sharing intimately with another, four months felt like a dry desert. Yet the medic could control herself. No males caught her interest in such a manner, after all. But it didn't mean there were times she wished for some sort of physical connection. Her body reminded her of that desire more often than she liked.

"Now he wastes his time visiting the egg the female bore him. The child is as good as dead once it hatches."

Asa's body's heat ebbed as a constricting confusion replaced it. This time she leaned closer, sliding down from the counter onto the floor in front of her coworker.