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This isn’t exactly how the night was supposed to go.
For starters, you weren’t supposed to be paired up with that insufferable tiefling Rolan, but Dammon had relinquished his attendance because he had fallen ill, and there was no way you could travel on your own, so he called upon Rolan’s help.
Secondly, the weather was supposed to be warm. Clear skies and sunlight from this week til next, but halfway on the trek to the blacksmith marketplace Dammon wanted to set up a shop, it poured down with rain.
And lastly, when you asked for your reservation at the inn, you were supposed to get your two separate rooms, but the landlord informed you that there was a leak in the roof and the two rooms had flooded, making the only available room left a full-bed accommodation.
You wish you’d be struck by lightning.
Sharing a room with Rolan would be bad enough, but the fact that there’s only one bed to sleep in turns this day from a four to a zero, and of course you’re not going to tell Rolan to sleep on the floor because that would be rude (no matter how badly you want to be rude), so you’ve both come to the unanimous decision on simply sharing the mattress.
This very well might kill you. Who cares about giant spiders and one-eyed spectators when you’ve got sleeping arrangements with a tiefling you can’t stand?
He’s not a big fan of you either, and that’s probably stirred the pot more than it should’ve, but something about him has always gotten under your skin and vice versa. Safe to say, if Rolan murders you in your sleep, you’d enter the afterlife with complete understanding.
However, you’re not angry right now, you’re uncomfortable. The bed is only wide enough for the two of you, so you’ve already accidentally brushed up against him when adjusting the sheets, and now the two of you are simply laying there with your gaze trained on the ceiling as if you’ve both committed some serious crime.
It’s worse considering that you saw Rolan naked about two minutes ago. Well, not entirely, but you did see him shirtless. Since you’ve travelled on foot, you hadn’t anything to shelter yourself from the rain. You figure Rolan could’ve cast some sort of spell, but he instead argued the entire way to the inn, putting you both into the awkward situation of changing clothes in a small room.
Fortunately, the accommodation comes with a full wardrobe, so after getting Rolan to dry himself since he was adamant to stay as far away from you as much as possible, like being too close to you would flay him alive, you told him to strip down otherwise he would get sick. He was appalled by your suggestion at first, but you don’t back down from things easily and he looked tired already, so he relented, and that’s when you saw him.
Rolan—exposed. It’s not like you’ve never seen a bare chest before, but it’s the first time you’ve seen him shirtless, and you figured that your distaste for him would get in the way of any sort of wandering gaze, but instead it amplified it.
The muscles in his back tensed, giving you the sight of skin you’ve never gazed upon. It probably wasn’t good of you to stare, especially without him knowing, but you couldn’t help yourself from committing his body to memory. All those ridges and lines turned him into something you’ve never seen him as before—a man.
A man with sturdy, handsome features you failed to recognize before, and eyes that feel as if they could melt you down to the floor. Likewise, his gaze flickered over you, and you wonder if he noticed all the things you noticed in him, and if his heart raced just as fast. You had wanted to reach out and feel his skin for yourself…
Remember where you are right now. You don’t need a gorgeous, pliable tiefling in your hands, you need sleep. Go to sleep.
Besides, he annoys you. He always has. You swear that everything he does severely pisses you off. He could blink a millisecond slower than normal and it’d make you want to tear your hair out. So, remember that you’re stuck here with him. You’re not sharing anything.
If it were Dammon, this would be easy (and maybe you would let your eyes wander for him, though you’re not confirming such thoughts.) The two of you would be civilized and probably already asleep by now, but no, since you’ve got Rolan, you’re most likely going to bicker until morning because he’s already huffed over you moving an inch into “his” space.
Sometimes you hate helping people. If you hadn’t suggested setting up Dammon’s shop away from the city, you’d be in your own bed right now, much more at peace.
Instead, you’re here. With this stupid one bed.
But you also won’t let him ruin this night for you, especially when it’s not already going to plan. If you have to suffer through this, he’s going to cooperate otherwise you’re kicking him out of the room and he can sleep in the hallway.
There are plenty of nice things that you’ve already done for him. Aside from making sure he was dry and comfortable before getting into bed, you’ve also laid out his clothes on the footboard, spread out to prevent any wrinkles. If you ruin Rolan’s clothes, he’ll never forgive you. But he doesn’t care about your acts of kindness, clearly, when he hasn’t thanked you for any of it.
You glance over at him beside you and seem to be looking at a corpse. His hands are laid over his chest and he’s about as rigid as a heavy stone, and now you begin to wonder how long it’s been since he’s slept in the same room as someone other than his siblings.
Despite the fact that you were just telling yourself to go to sleep, you don’t want to end the night in awkward silence either.
“Comfortable?” you murmur.
He makes an agitated sound before relenting. “It’s decent.”
“That’s high praise coming from you.”
“And that’s all you’ll hear from me tonight.”
What a stick in the mud. Here you are trying your best not to start a fight, to just get through this night in peace, and he won’t even grant you the privilege of a conversation. No wonder Lia is always arguing with him. He never lets up.
And neither do you.
“You could at least thank me, you know?” you sigh, turning on your side.
He faces you with a sour expression. “I don’t see what I should be thanking you for. All you’ve done is make matters worse.”
“Oh, really? Did I make matters worse when I gave you clean clothes or let you sleep in the bed?”
“That isn’t what I’m referring to,” he huffs.
“Then what is it? Please enlighten me.”
He grumbles with himself for a moment, like another voice is arguing with him in his brain, before he says, “You’re too close.”
Only when he says that do you realise you have gotten closer. While talking, you’ve inched more to his side of the bed, but you sure he’s talking about the closeness in general, so with a sigh, you scoot backwards.
“Better?” you ask.
“Much,” he says. “Goodnight.”
Rolan turns over and takes some of the sheets with him, and as much as you’d like to snag them back, you’re really aiming for that peaceful night you had hoped for, so you let it go.
“Goodnight, Rolan,” you murmur before turning on your side as well.
The room is quiet now save for the rain pelting against the window, which you hope won’t keep you up all night, or that the roof won’t spring another leak and wake you up with a splash, but the tension is still there. Rolan really can’t be civil if his life depends on it.
It’s pointless to try to have a good relationship with him—or want one for that matter—but you suppose you needed this night to tell you exactly how things will never change between you two. You and Rolan are always going to bicker and hate each other, and that’s life.
Time to make your peace with it, and you will do that by finally going to sleep.
It takes a while, but you ebb into that coziness of sleep that promises is just around the corner. You can feel it creeping up, ready to claim you, but instead you feel something that stops sleep right in its tracks.
That’s Rolan’s hand. You feel it shift behind you, and the mattress dips like he’s leaning in your direction. You keep your eyes shut, not ready for another fight if that’s what he’s looking for, but that’s not what you get. You feel as Rolan takes the sheets and lays them further up your body.
Did he just tuck you in? Did he just return the sheets he snagged before? Is he being…kind?
The warmth greets you instantly now that you’re under the covers, and it’s much more comfortable than before, but apparently Rolan can tell you’re awake because he’s chuckling before your eyes blink open at the sound.
“You’re a poor actor,” he says.
“And you’re a contradiction,” you reply, shifting an inch to the side. “You can only be a gentleman when I’m asleep?”
“If you catch a cold, it’ll be my responsibility to look after you, and I don’t want that.”
“Oh, I see. You’re not being kind, you’re being tactical.”
“As always.”
You let out a huff, somewhat humorous to his reply.
“Well, don’t let me keep you awake with mindless conversation,” you say.
Rolan smiles. “Your voice always lulls me to sleep, regardless.”
That was an insult, you know, but the way he says it has more warmth to it than you’re expecting. And that stupid warmth grows in your cheeks.
“Are you…blushing?” Rolan mutters.
Damn it. You forgot that he has an advantage at seeing in the dark, so there’s no hiding the shade that deepens on your cheeks because of what he said.
“No,” you scoff. “It’s just warm because of the covers.”
You immediately turn over and yank the sheets above your head. There is no way that you are going to let Rolan make fun of you for what just happened, and now you’re definitely not going to fall asleep because you’re going to be spending every second wondering why he’s suddenly changed in your view.
This is the last thing you needed tonight. Once again, nothing is going to plan.
Thankfully, Rolan doesn’t poke you for any answers and returns to his side of the bed. Maybe he’ll forget all about this in the morning. But you’re making a decision right here and now that if Dammon needs help with anything in the future that requires an overnight stay, you are saying no.
In the thick of the heavy rain, you hear Rolan say, “You didn’t blush when you were staring at my body before.”
And you shove your leg backwards and kick him out of the bed.