Chapter Text
It didn’t start as anything serious, at first. Zach had been trying to explore his surroundings for a few years now, and it was only natural he’d eventually try to experiment doing things with other boys he might have not done if not for the time loop.
Zorian wasn’t the first.
The first time he tried anything, it was with Naim. Zach had greatly improved his combat magic by that time, and had taken an interest in martial arts. Knowing the other boy was enthusiastic about the subject, it was only natural he’d ask him for help in that regard. Everything was good and friendly.
Except when things got out of hand and they ended up making out on a mat during a spar.
Anyway, the point is, Zach was quite open to trying out new things with his male classmates by the time he decided to approach Zorian. At first, he thought his classmate would be rude and antisocial, as he’d always been, and he wasn’t too far from the truth.
It was only when he dedicated more time to Zorian that he realized how kind the other boy actually was. He always helped a little girl with her bicycle in every restart, without fail, and he was never really mean to people around him.
He put up with people who annoyed him, he helped others, he was tolerant (to a certain point). They were little things, but Zach noticed them all, one by one. Zorian liked to spend his time either studying, or in the library, or studying in the library. He never got into a lot of trouble. He helped his older brother (whom Zach thought was a bit of an asshole) with his friend and anti-rash potion (or not potion) problem.
In short, he was a good guy, and Zach had kind of taken a liking to him. A guy that tried to pass off as cool and indifferent but who actually cared and was attentive to other people? Yeah, Zach liked him. It was only natural he’d be interested in trying out things with him.
The first time he tried to court Zorian, it wasn’t really anything special.
“You know, there’s a really nice restaurant not too far from here. Maybe we could go there and get dinner together one day?” he’d told him. In this particular restart, Zach had sought the other boy pretty early on, crashing into him in the library on the second day of the restart.
Zorian was always just a bit more friendly if they started their interactions this way. He’d have an unexpected respect for the other boy just because he’d found him in the library instead of goofing around somewhere else (and also because Zach always made sure to mention how he’d been looking for books on complicated spells and it usually impressed Zorian, although the other boy seemed almost jealous at times of his superior abilities).
After their meeting, Zach had made a point of talking to him at least once a day, and sitting next to him in most classes. Although Zorian was naturally suspicious of his strange behaviour, he seemed to think Zach had become more interested in academic knowledge over the break and wasn’t as opposed to him as he was whenever Zach tried talking to him normally. This had taken Zach more than a few months and bad experiences to achieve.
“Dinner?” Zorian asked, frowning. They were currently in Zorian’s room, studying something Zach hadn’t bothered to pay much attention to. Zorian was looking at him suspiciously. “Why do I feel there’s another motive to it more than just a friendly outing?”
“Gods, you really are dense sometimes,” Zach told him, chuckling. “I’m asking you out on a date, Zorian.”
“A wh- A date?” he asked, stunned. He seemed to consider it for a moment, before he shook his head and glared at Zach, going back to his notebook as he sighed. “That prank was of very poor taste, Zach.”
“I’m serious,” he told him. “Go out with me. Just once. It’s not a prank, Zorian.”
“I- I have to think about it. Give me a few weeks.” Zorian gave up on paying attention to his notes, closing his book and standing up. “Could you leave me alone for a while?”
Zach made a face. “Are you kicking me out of your room?”
“Yes, essentially,” Zorian said hurriedly. “You going or not?”
“I’m leaving, I’m leaving.” Zach stood up, putting his hands up in a placating manner. He sighed internally. Where had he gone wrong? Had he been too direct? He’d have to be more patient in his next try. He could always just take advantage of the time loop and try to steal a few kisses anyway but... That would probably be kind of rude.
Zach walked over to the door which Zorian was holding open for him. He stayed in place for a moment, before looking at Zorian, trying to look as apologizing as possible.
“I’m sorry if I made you uncomfortable. That wasn’t what I was trying to do. We are still friends, right?” Zorian’s face heated up a little, and he avoided Zach’s eyes.
“You didn’t- You didn’t make me uncomfortable. And sure, we can still talk, I guess.” The other boy quickly closed the door behind Zach, leaving him outside.
Well, that hadn’t gone as bad as it could have. Usually, Zach never even got to actually ask him out before Zorian became annoyed with him and either yelled at him that he was just like his brothers (Which Zach considered to be quite offending, thank you very much) or to outright leave him alone. Must be the acting smart thing- Maybe Zorian digged that?
He’d have to explore it more in the future.