"What is that weird-looking, colorful but kinda brown little thing?”
Sean looked between the elf king and the food he placed in puzzlement. His eyes widened, and his jaws dropped open, allowing at least tons of insects to fly in if they were interested. “Huh?”
"What kind of food is this?" Oswin looked at the food in disgust, still making a face as if the content on the plate was something not worthy of his royal sight.
"Has his majesty never had fried rice before?" Sean rolled his eyes and slid down his chair, sitting opposite Oswin.
"Fried...rice?" Oswin’s expression changed. "I’ve somehow heard of rice before. So, you’re saying that thing is edible?”
“If it isn’t, why do you think I offer it to you?”
Oswin narrowed his eyes, looking between the plate and Sean briefly. “Make sense. But this dish looks and sounds foreign."
Sean looked at the baffled king with fascination and surreptitiously shook his head.
If he thinks fried rice is foreign, what'll he think of hamburgers or pizza? He
sighed, suppressing the urge to speak out the thoughts in his head."So, this is it?" Oswin’s question snapped Sean out of his thoughts.
"What do you mean, 'this is it'?" he asked for confirmation, not sure what the elf king meant.
"Only one plate?"
"Yeah, there's only fried rice. How many plates do you want to use?"
"I mean, this is the only thing I'm being served as breakfast?"
"Well, what do you expect?"
"My servants always prepare rows of plates and bowls for my breakfast."
This guy still thinks he's the king? Even with a good sleep last night, it couldn't get him to clear his head? Sean thought to himself, wanting to confront Oswin to stop his blubbering about the royalty. However, he was too tired in the early morning for an argument. Whatever. I'll play along.
"Well, sorry to disappoint you, my king. But I'm poor. I don't have that many dishes to offer." He meant it as sarcasm; however, it confounded him a little when he detected sympathy from Oswin's eyes.
"It's fine. Just this one is enough then," Oswin lowered his eyes at the plate, making Sean even more confused.
What's wrong with this guy? Is another spirit possessing him? Split personalities, maybe? Sean tilted his head to the side in stupefaction, finding this morning was so unlike any other he has had.
It was full of the elements of surprises.
"But first, tell me what you put in this...fried rice dish," commanded Oswin as he looked straight into Sean's eyes, demanding an answer.
Urgh, the king's spirit is back. Inwardly, Sean rolled his eyes at the authoritative aura emitting from Oswin's eyes and voice.
"Nothing much," he shrugged. "Just some rice, eggs, and vegetables. Andー"
"Vegetables?" Oswin cut Sean off.
"Err...Yes. Vegetables. You know, stuff like carrots, peas, and corn. Do all these still sound foreign to you?"
Oswin stared at the dish one more time before picking up the spoon and scooped up the rice into his mouth. Without uttering any word or complaints, one spoon was followed by another; each was bigger and faster than the previous one.
Sean's jaws dropped open once again at the person in front of him who was eating like there was no tomorrow.
For someone who finds my food disgusting, look at how he shoves my rice down his throat, Sean thought to himself.
"Hey, I'm thirsty," said Oswin.
The plate was completely empty and clean as if there was no food on it in the first place. If it wasn’t for the oily stain, it could have been mistaken for a new plate. Shaking his head, Sean got up to get a tray containing a jar of water and two glasses before putting them down on the table between them.
“Here is your water.” He slid the tray to Oswin before picking up the spoon and began eating his breakfast. The rice looked greasier, for it was getting colder. He needed to eat it now. However, before he could even put the food into his mouth, a guttural voice disrupted his action.
"I said I'm thirsty," Oswin repeated.
Sean dropped down the spoon, leaned back on his chair, and crossed his arms across his chest. "If you use your eyes, you'll see water and glasses in front of you." His eyes glared at Oswin.
"I can see the water."
"Oh, yeah. Then what're you waiting for?"
"My servants always pour drinks into my gold goblet and present it to me. What do you expect me to do with that weird-looking, see-through thing?"
Weird-looking? Again? Is there anything in my house that looks normal to you? Sean complained inside his head.
With a big sigh from the bottom of his lungs, he got up and headed to the tray of water, where he began pouring the water into both glasses. "I don't own a gold goblet in this house, so bear with it," He handed one of the glasses towards Oswin. "And this see-through thing is called glass. From now on, if you want to drink water, milk, or any juice, just pour it into this thing. I can’t believe your kingdom doesn’t owe any glasses."
Ignoring Sean’s word, Oswin lifted the glass to his lips and took a sip. A funny expression plastered on his face the moment he tasted the water, making Sean burst out laughing.
"Hey, what's so funny?" he put down the glasses and stared at Sean with a frown.
"Your face. Haha." Sean kept laughing till tears formed in the corners of his eyes. "Why? Don't tell me your kingdom doesn't have water?"
"Nonsense. We do. We have spring water and waterfalls among all other kingdoms. But this one tastes a bit weird."
"Well, what do you expect? This is tap water, not a spring one.”
“Tap water? What’s that?”
“Urgh!” Sean groaned, knowing he just dug his own grave by bringing yet another new vocabulary to the glorious elf king’s ears.
“I’ll explain later. For now, no more questions, please, your majesty. Just concentrate on the weirdness of the water by yourself, if you want. And stop disturbing me while I have my breakfast. I need to hurry and go to work."
Sean headed back to his chair and began gulping down his food in a rush. Surprisingly, Oswin didn't say anything further while Sean was digging in his rice. He kept looking at the mortal before him in silence as if to search for something.
Or rather, to understand something.
The latter was too busy eating that he didn't realize he was being watched with his every move.
<TO BE CONTINUED>
Sean's shadow cast shorter on the pavement when he walked to his workplace, for the sun was up relatively higher than usual. Even before he left home, he knew he was going to be late. However, he didn't want to remind himself of the reason why. If he were to think back, he would lose not only his mood but also his mind.Despite having a giant figure who might have consumed half the space of his shoe-box apartment, it looked no different to him that he was dealing with a three-year-old who knew nothing better to do than ask questions.Seriously, did he live in the cave back then? Did he just come out from a thousand-year meditation? Sean thought to himself.Like his feet
🔞WARNING:🔞Please proceed with caution. You're about to enter the world of adult xD Readers, you've been warned.
🔞WARNING:🔞 Though with not much detail, there'll still be a bit of sexually related description in the content below. Readers who aren't comfortable with such a thing, please consider before proceeding.*******
The clinking sound of the ring against the metal bar, followed by the rustling sound of the fabric echoes near the end corner of a second-clothes shop as Oswin drew the beige curtain closed. Not long after, the same sound reverberated again as he stepped out of the fitting room, dressed in loose black pants that barely reached his ankles and a stoic cactus print woven button-down shirt."The pants are too short. The shirt doesn’t suit you. Next," said Sean.The curtain continually draws open and closed by the same person. In front of the small fitting room, Sean was sitting with his ankle propped on one knee and leaned back on the chair, clearly finding amusement in the busy curtain."Too tight. Another," he commanded when Oswin came out with another set of clothes.
Sean couldn't stop the butterflies in his stomach. Despite being Oswin's personal trainer in waitressing and acknowledging his completion, he couldn't help but worry. Even if he could somehow guarantee Oswin's temper, which he would monitor every minute, he couldn't say the same about the customer's temperament.What if the first customer that walked through the door was a gangster? A mafia? Or, to put it simply, the most aggressive customer on Earth? Would Oswin be able to withstand it? He sighed as millions of worse scenarios were running through his head. All he was praying today was to have everything go smoothly."Sean, what's with the sigh? Worry about your relative?" James came up from behind and put his hand on the younger man's shoulder."Yes, bo
"Excuse me, sir, you'll have to wait in line." said a gentle-face boy, holding a board of customers' waitlist."Why do I have to wait in line? I see that table over there is free anyway," said a guy in a grey T-shirt and light blue jeans. A three-day-old beard and mustache covered his oblong face-shaped, making his dark brown Asian eyes and the whole complexion more intimidating."No, sir. We're cleaning it for the next customer whose name is on the list here," replied the boy while pointing to a clipboard in his hand. "You need to register your name and wait for me to call you when it's your turn. Just like those—"."Oy, so noisy. Why does a waiter here talk so much? Did he not get trained?" said the young guy in a similar facial structure as the one from before, but with a clear and smooth jawl
"I've heard someone is looking for me."A guttural voice reverberated throughout the whole restaurant, rendering everyone speechless. The customers who had always been told that the new waiter was mute were flabbergasted upon hearing this.But the nonplus wasn't solely because Oswin could talk. The majority of it went to the amazement of how one voice could be so charmingly mellifluous.Female customers almost forgot the tension in the air as the appearance of the handsome, blond-haired guy who stepped out from the kitchen to stand next to the trio's table overwhelmed them."Oh, so that's the new chicken," said Eli, looking completely unbothered at the tall figure before his table. "But didn't the owner say you're mute? How come you can talk?"
Seeing Oswin's bloodshot eyes, Sean's fear increased tenfold, for he knew the elf king wasn't the all-talk type. He would surely do what he had said. And that was the least he wanted. To prevent a murder case from happening, Sean grabbed Oswin's wrist tightly, refusing to let go despite the pain in his hand."Let me go, servant. I'll deal with those scums. How dare they hurt you?" Oswin commanded, demanding Sean to let him go, but the latter shook his head vigorously and tightened his grip. Oswin could break free easily, but he didn't do it, for he was afraid the force would hurt the fragile human in front of him."Don't do it, Oswin. I'm okay," Sean said."How come you're okay? Look at your blood. It almost floods the entire room.""What's going on?" James
P.S: Because this is the last chapter, the length is longer than usual.*******"Hey, do you know what happened to the interrogation room's door?" asked a man in a police officer's uniform as he was relieving himself on the wall-mounted urinal."I don't know. The cameras were working normally, but it was turned off at that moment. We couldn't figure out what had happened," answered another police officer.Just then, there was a thud, followed by a bang, and finished by an ouch echoing from one cubicle behind them. The two police officers looked at each other with frowns before zipping up their pants and withdrawing the guns. They nodded and padded toward the noisy booth in alarming modes.
The sun was blazing hot on the outside, dehydrating people that walked on the street, making them imagine seeing steams coming off the cobblestone pavement. Nevertheless, the hotness and steam were literally happening inside a small apartment, for Sean felt like he really saw smoke rising from Oswin's head as he glared at the person in front of him with eyes as sharp as a blade. "You're saying you don't have anything to say?" asked Oswin. Each word was enunciated clearly as if he couldn't believe what he had heard. "Of course. What else do I have to say?" Benji answered fearlessly with a mocking face. It was hard to blame Benji for his sheer dumb courage because he hadn't witnessed the power of the elf king yet. When he was taken out of the hospital, he was unconscious.
"What do you mean?" Anderson widening his eyes in shock. "He said he could. He promised to take my family to Aldous and made us immortal. He already took my sister there." "Sister?" Oswin asked with a frown. The image of the mortal woman he had accidentally killed flashed before his eyes. It couldn't be just a mere coincidence that Anderson and that woman were somewhat familiar. Radiating a golden light from his right hand, Oswin used it to draw a rectangular box in the air, which subsequently projected a picture of someone inside. "Is she the one?" "Yes. That's Elena. King Father already took her to his kingdom and made her immortal. She is now living in luxury with her immortality, isn't she?" asked Anderson with a glint of hope and excitement in his eyes. Sean and
"Now, speak," said Oswin in a threatening voice. His face showed not a single trace of mercy as he glared at the two men kneeling before him. Things weren't sure whether the elf king was too intimidating or the witnesses felt threatened. There were no words spoken in the whole two minutes. And it irritated to the point that his body began glowing off a golden light, causing the kneeling humans before him to tremble in fear. "Why don't you speak? Are you deaf? I order you to speak!" He raised his voice and sat bolt upright on the couch, eyes shooting a deadly glare. "Oswin..." Sean drawled as he came to join his lover on the left side, brushing their shoulders together. "They aren't deaf. They are mute." "Huh?" He turned to look at Sean perplexedly. "Mute? But they ta
The pitch-black darkness behind Sean's eyelids turned grey as the sunlight's reflection through the open glass window shone into the room. He stirred and groaned in his sleep before rolling to the side, throwing his hand over his loved one's broad chest. As the fleshes came into contact, he breathed in the scent he loved so well and chuckled. "Having a beautiful dream?" asked Oswin, craning his neck down to look at the one hugging him. Breathing his favorite scent in heavily that sounded like a sniff, Sean replied, "Yeah. A heavenly dream plus a beautiful reality. Your presence and scent give me a sense of security." "Am I?" "Yes, you are, great-great-whatever-more-great grandfather," giggling Sean, burying his face into the crook of Oswin's neck.
Yesternight past midnight: downtown Oakland's mortuary: "So, that bright light brought me to Earth?" Oswin asked after he finished recalling what happened on his last day at Aldous. Genevie nodded. "Yes. The trial began that day." "That explains how l lose my power. But why did this memory get erased?" "I am not sure, Oswin. Maybe this trial wants you to learn about humanity through love and not fear. If you remember this accident, even though you won't hurt a mortal, it was only because of the elf's weakness. In short, it was more like an obligation. But if you don't remember, every action that you forgive a mortal will be purely based on your heart. I think this must be it." "This could
Aldous: The Day of The Accident It was one foggiest day Aldous had ever seen. Armed with a sword, a bow, and arrows, Oswin rode on the back of his pitched-black horse and ventured alone into the forest, searching for a rare white deer that only showed itself once a millennium. The creature showed itself at the wrong time, arousing curiosity within him. Known for its lightning-fast speed, it took only a few gallops before the elf king and his horse passed all the guards behind. When they reached the forest, the white deer was out of sight, leaving behind only the paw prints. "Where did it go?" He murmured, looking around for the white thing that should be easily spotted from the darkness. Unfortunately, he couldn't.
Yesternight past midnight: downtown Oakland's mortuary: The corpse of the elf king was left inside the morgue's drawer, unattended and naked. As the hour of death was less than twenty-four hours, no one cared to embalm the body, for they believed the freezer alone should be enough to slow down the decaying until the working time tomorrow. The mortuary was old and small except for the dim bulb on the outside hall. The room and the entire building overlapped with the night's darkness that even the security had to use a flashlight to see his way better. "The lighting needed fixing. This building, too. Who knows when this morgue is going to crumble down? It seems older than my ancestor." The security guard murmured as he patrolled the silent hall.
*WARNING*: This chapter contains 18+ scene. ******* "Oswin, don't! NO!!!" Sean screamed at the top of his lungs. His body jolted, making him sit bolt upright on the bed. His eyes were wide open. Beats of sweat condensed on his forehead and occasionally rolled down his cheek, running along his jawline before dropping to the blanket that fell to the lower half of his body. "Sean." Oswin walked out of the living room. He made his way to the bed and sat down next to his lover. His brows furrowed with worry." Wake up. You're having a nightmare." "Oswin?" asked Sean when he opened his eyes. "Are you really Oswin?" With a smile and a gentle gaze, Oswin lifted his hand and used his long-sleeved shirt to dab the sweat away from Sean's fa