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“I should probably get back to translating those books. You coming with?” Evbo stands from the table where he and Seawatt were just sharing dinner and gestures to the makeshift library where they’ve laid out all the books.
“For sure, I’ll meet you there in a minute.” The fighter agrees. Truthfully, he had grown to enjoy his time translating books with Evbo. Even the stupid ones that made no sense.
“Okay!” The god flashes a toothy smile before leaving the room.
Shortly after, Seawatt follows suit. “Hey, which one are we doing today?”
“This one titled ‘The Fall of the Ravens’, it seems to be another dystopian fiction novel.” Evbo held the book up for him to see, the cover showing some birds over a fiery background.
“Looks cool. Let’s get started.” The taller sat down next to him as they began to translate.
Hours later, when the sun had long set and the stars had long since come out to play, Seawatt noticed something through his blurry, sleepy vision.
Evbo’s hands were shaking, and at that, covered in scars. The god had stopped writing for a moment, a look of masked pain in his eyes. Seawatt was almost certain that he knew what had caused it, and he hated the realization so much.
“I’m sorry about that, by the way…” He muttered, gesturing towards the other’s trembling digits.
"For what?" Evbo asks, confused. What’s up with his hands- ohhh. Darn, he thought he’d been hiding it well. Still, he’s left confused. Seawatt didn’t give him the scars.
"For making you get the discs... I didn't realize how much pain I would cause you."
The god stares at him with a confused look, "You didn't make me do anything. You gave me the compass and I followed it. And you just said it yourself, you didn't know it would hurt me so bad."
Seawatt diligently avoids eye contact, "I tricked you... And now you're permanently scarred because of it... You didn't deserve what I did to you, I-I'm so sorry-" Maybe he's delirious from staying up so late, but the thought of Evbo suffering in pain just blocks away from him all at Seawatt's fault makes him want to bawl his eyes out. He takes a deep breath, but stray tears still fall.
"Woah, woah! Calm down, it's not that big of a deal-"
"Don't tell me it's not a big deal!" The taller snaps, "Look at your hands! They're covered in scars, you're shaking, I can tell this still hurts!" He carefully, tenderly, takes Evbo's hands into his own.
"I-I guess, yeah, they hurt, but I manage-"
"I'm sorry, I'm so so sorry-" He's sobbing now. In front of Evbo. The guy he's supposed to be apologizing to. Way to go, Seawatt...
Evbo is so incredibly unsure what to do with himself, "Slow down, I forgive you! It's okay!"
" I'm sorry, I'm sorry- " Seawatt barely even processes what the blond says as he pulls his scarred hands gently towards his face, cradling them close like a treasured object now broken.
"Seawatt!" The god finally gets his attention, "Deep breaths, man!"
The fighter obeys the request, breathing slowly and carefully dropping one of Evbo's hands to run one of his own through his own hair. He diligently keeps the other one in a gentle grasp.
"I forgive you. I can tell you regret what you did, and honestly, I never even held a grudge for it. It's okay." Evbo reassures him.
The tears still come, but they slow over time, and Seawatt can't help but cuddle up next to Evbo for the rest of the night, gently holding his hand.