Work Text:
Tai knew it was a bad idea the moment he blinked awake in his bed, the familiar blue wool blanket feeling like sandpaper against his skin. It was already nine in the morning, and he was still busy trying to focus his vision. A deep, unnatural chill had settled in his bones, and his throat felt like he'd swallowed a bucket of coarse, suspicious sand.
He wasn't feeling well.
"Fuck," he croaked to himself in the empty place, his voice a ragged whisper. "Absolutely not."
Across the wide, meticulously organized base, courtesy to his teammates, a clock ticked—composed of redstone, iron, and glowstone. There was also an item frame holding a daisy, flaunting its beauty softly.
It was a Thursday, their duel day. That one duel day of every week arranged by Tai and Rejoice for themselves. Something that Tai would rather choose to swallow fucking poison and face death himself than to miss.
Perhaps it was pettiness that drove him to be the person he was now, or maybe it was the variables that influenced his life. Who knows? Tai knows.
Of course it was pettiness. Why wouldn't it be? Throughout the years he'd known Rejoice, throughout the time he'd spent chasing and being chased, ego and desire had played an important role in their lives. Two distinguishable and interchangeable—at least to them—factors that had managed to shape and hone their souls.
Tai knew his body, he knew it would shut down on itself if he continued to fight it. However, the sole thought of not showing up and leaving Rejoice waiting at their designated spot brought only discomfort to his already uneasy mind.
As much as he enjoyed picturing Rejoice's expression turning grim once he realized Tai dipped him, Tai also knew that it would only bring trouble. He wasn't about to ghost that one person that always brought him consistency in his life. Moreover, he didn't want to give Rejoice the satisfaction of winning just like that.
The world around him tilted slightly the moment he shoved off his blanket and stood. He groaned as he staggered towards one of his enderchests. He pulled out his armour—a complete set of enchanted netherite with white trims made out of quartz, a pattern he chose just because it was similar to the Director's.
Stepping out of his base, he raised a hand to his head in order to block out the harassing sun. It was hot. Painfully, stupidly hot. And he knew it wasn't just because of the weather.
Just a quick duel, probably one of the quickest duels in Strength's history. It would be over before Rejoice could even realize Tai had already won.
He knew it was a lie.
Of course it was a lie.
The Taiga was serene; multiple mixes of tall and small spruce trees covered with frost from the snow before.
Their designated arena was nothing special of sort, let alone designed to be an actual arena. It was just a cleared circle of podzol with a bunch of mossy cobblestone placed together.
Tai still couldn't help but feel bitter about how this place could still be a public area where people could just come and go without consequences when it was literally just him and Rejoice using it.
He had tried persuading and talking to one of the server admins, but those fools only shut him down.
In the end, he only managed to settle a deal for private usage every Thursday (it was actually Rejoice who managed to strike the deal, but Tai would never admit that to himself, nor to anyone else—not that Rejoice even cared about taking the credits for it).
His eyes then found the man leaning against a particular large tree, idly flipping a netherite sword with one hand, a totem tucked safely in his pocket.
The Strength SMP was an anarchy server. Fights were constant and most of the time unavoidable, with random traps covering the majority of spawn—
—Tai found that laughable. Not the fightings, not the traps, but the anarchy part. Despite the admins pushing through the idea of their server being lawless, it sure did contain multiple rules and regulations.
Wasn't an anarchy server supposed to be a free-to-do-whatever-you-want server?
In the end, maybe TBT2 was the only place that had ever achieved, and actually lived by that part.
"If you were going to be late, at least inform me beforehand," Rejoice commented, not looking up from his sword. "I was beginning to think you'd finally developed a sense of self-preservation."
"Had to stop and check for traps." Tai shrugged his shoulders as he quietly evened his breathing. He walked into the clearing, footsteps heavy and light all at the same time.
"We've been doing this for a long, long time. If you're planning to bail, at least think of a better excuse." Rejoice deadpanned as he finally looked up. The moment his eyes locked onto Tai's, a weird feeling instantly bothered him.
Tai pursed his lips, smiling sheepishly.
Rejoice raised a brow. "Did something happen?" The words left his tongue before he could stop himself.
Tai's lips parted, blinking multiple times when he came to a halt. "What?" he asked.
"You look like shit, man."
"Excuse me?" He shook his head as if offended, his tone almost sounding like a shriek.
"I mean, you always look like shit, but there's something—uh... different about you..." Rejoice muttered after pushing himself off from the tree and walking towards Tai.
Tai's brows furrowed, bewildered at the other's words. "I had to be awake last night because my teammates managed to piss off another team."
Rejoice tilted his head sideways, ignoring Tai's poorly constructed excuse. "No, seriously. You're... pale, paler than usual. And is that sweat? In this biome? Does your armour produce that much heat in the middle of a freezing forest?"
Tai pointedly decided to ignore the jab. "I ran here," he lied, pulling his own sword from his inventory. "Are we doing this, or are you going to critique my complexion all day?"
Rejoice's scrutinizing gaze did not leave him, but the man did pop multiple potions before equipping a shield. "Fine," he murmured quietly, almost catching Tai off guard.
They took their positions, ten or so blocks apart. The wind brushed past their figures, rays of sunlight slicing through leaves to touch the ground. Everything around them became muted; their senses only focused on the other.
It was Rejoice who initiated the first attack.
He was faster, was always faster than Tai could ever dream of. He was a whirlwind of chaotic aggression that didn't know when to come to a halt, yet, despite that, it was the very thing that made him a formidable opponent to most. His movements were hurried and unpredictable, always looking like an attack out of brute force, sure. But behind all that, everything would always go according to his way. He was always calculating his own attacks, Tai noticed that about Rejoice.
Fuck.
Rejoice's silhouette danced as the first strike came.
Tai parried the attack, the clang of netherite ringing through the quiet forest. The impact shuddered his arm, making his body ache more than it already was. He gritted his teeth—willing himself to stop the groan that built up in his throat.
"Slow today, Tai?" Rejoice danced back, tauntingly circling Tai. "Forgot to do your daily pathetic self-affirmations? Worrying about something else when I'm the one you're spending your time with?" He swung again.
"Someone's notice-y today," Tai sidestepped, deflecting. The sudden movement cost him another throbbing pain that ran through his head. "Usually you just taunt and stab."
"Usually you give me something worth stabbing." Rejoice pressed forward, not letting up. Their swords locked, and for a moment they were close enough that Tai could see the flecks of gold in Rejoice's otherwise annoyingly sharp eyes. "What's got you so distracted? Those 'enemies' you mentioned occupying your mind?"
Tai couldn't help the raspy laugh that came out his mouth. "Jealous?" He smirked.
"Keep dreaming, dollface." Rejoice disengaged, but his shield stayed up. "If you were so damn busy, then you should've just cancelled," he spat out.
"What's got you so pricky, dude?"
Another clash and another wave of dizziness Tai had to swallow down.
"Awww, the great and mighty Tai worrying about me..." Rejoice leaned in close, eyes filled with amusement. "That's sweet."
Tai shot him a glare and leaned back out of reach.
For a while the fight went just as normal as it could possibly get. Their swords clashed against one another, words after words flying through the air like drones gone awry.
Then it fell apart.
Tai's timing was off, his reactions a half-second too slow. He misjudged a sidestep, and Rejoice's blade grazed his shoulder, shaving off a sliver of health. His vision spun.
He pushed through it anyway, landing a solid hit on Rejoice's ribs that punched a grunt out of him. "See? Plenty of fight left. Maybe get your eyes checked."
But his vision was swimming now, the green of the ferns and brown of the bark bleeding together. His head throbbed, unrelenting. Rejoice feinted left, and Tai fell for it completely, stumbling forward right as the real strike came from the right.
He barely managed to block it, and the force sent him staggering back several steps. His boot caught on nothing but air.
Time slowed as his vision genuinely became a flash of white before stabilizing again.
He was falling, he knew he was falling, but Tai couldn't find the strength in him to stop his fall. The gray patch of sky through the spruce canopy tilted wildly above him. He hit the cold, damp grass from the snow hard enough to knock the air from his lungs.
Before he could even try to get up, the cool edge of a sword was resting at his throat.
Rejoice loomed over him, breathing a little harder than usual. Victory was plain on his face, but something—just something—was cutting through the triumph.
"Yield?" he asked, voice uncharacteristically soft, all the usual cockiness drained out of it.
Tai closed his eyes, humiliation and fever burning through him in equal measure. "I yield." The words tasted bitter, but he still forced them out his mouth.
The sword vanished from his throat. Instead of gloating, Rejoice offered a hand. Tai stared at it, then up at his rival's face, like the man had grown a second head. "Either take the hand or stare at it all day long."
Dumbfounded, Tai could only blink. "What?"
A grin appeared on Rejoice's lips. "Why? My hand too rough for your taste, baby?" He waved his hand in front of Tai's face.
Tai's expression turned sour as if he'd just bitten a lemon. If looks could kill, Tai would've already wiped the entire server off the map with that glare. But it's fine.
Rejoice had taken the liberty of calling him that since their mace incident. Tai was already used to it. Why would Tai not be used to it? Rejoice had already addressed him using that nickname multiple times. Of course he would be used to it…
Right?
Wrong, apparently. It was embarrassing and annoying, and it caught him off guard every single damn time. It made his heart skip in a way that would've been fine in a different context—but the way Rejoice said it, always teasing or something dangerously close to intimate, made it impossible to just shrug off.
Made it impossible for Tai to keep his head and feelings and everything in him in check. Deep down, a part of Tai genuinely craved to hear those words over and over again. Always from Rejoice's mouth and voice.
After a pause, Tai took the offered hand. Rejoice's grip was firm and warm, almost searing against Tai's chilled skin. He hauled him upright with surprising ease, a hand coming up to steady Tai's shoulder when he swayed.
"Should've told me you wanted to get closer." The scowl that overtook Tai's expression was ignored. Rejoice's face was so close and he was so warm. "You're burning up."
"No shit, Sherlock." Maybe he shouldn't have even tried. The moment he pulled away, his head went spinning, stumbling again and forwards straight into Rejoice.
Rejoice caught him without hesitation, arms locking around his shoulders. For one dizzy second, Tai was surrounded by the scent of pine and snow, and underneath it, something more natural—sunflowers, maybe.
"Feisty." Rejoice snorted, though his grip tightened, a hand sliding around Tai's waist, pulling him closer in response. "If you were already sick, then why bother coming? Did you think running a fever would earn you people's sympathy?"
Tai's hand begrudgingly settled at the back of Rejoice's neck and tugged, making Rejoice lean closer. "I basically dragged myself coming here and that's all you're going to say?"
A flash of indignation came across the other man's face before it disappeared just as quickly. "I didn't pop your totem, did I?"
"Can't you even bother asking me if I'm okay?" Tai huffed out, his grip coming looser, the strength in his arm gradually weakening.
"Would you have liked it if I asked you if you were okay?" Rejoice blankly pointed out before his own hand clasped around the one settled at the back of his neck. He gently intertwined their fingers. "Hmmm?"
"...No."
The answer was hesitant, but it was enough to draw a chuckle from the other.
Out of everyone that could ask Tai if he was okay, Rejoice would be one of the select few that he would rather choose to kill himself than to answer properly. The bastard had been too good at acting that Tai could've never predicted that betrayal boiling just underneath the surface.
"Then what is it that you'd like me to do?"
"I don't know..." Tai mumbled, frowning at their suddenly intertwined fingers. "Maybe kill yourself?"
Raising an unimpressed brow, Rejoice scoffed and then said, "Then why'd you still come?"
"Ugh—are you stupid or—"
Tai opened his mouth before shutting it back closed. It wasn't that he was embarrassed to say it, let alone reluctant, just that he wasn't entirely sure whether to answer truthfully or not.
"Thursday," Tai whispered quietly a moment later. He buried his face into Rejoice's shoulder, breathing in more of that sunflower scent. "Didn't wanna miss it." He would never admit it to everyone, much less himself, that he found the scent comforting.
Rejoice stilled for a second. Then he sighed, long and put-upon. "You're so fucking cute and stupid," he said as he brought his and Tai's intertwined hands over his lips, and kissed the back of Tai's knuckles.
Tai instinctively flinched, raising his head and staring wide-eyed at the man, but Rejoice was faster to react, tightening his hold so as not to break their contact.
"The hell?"
"Just trying to comfort you..." Rejoice mumbled as he planted another kiss. His lips were soft and warm, and so was the contact.
Tai's body and mind went completely frozen when the kisses multiplied and suddenly reached his wrist. Rejoice's eyes never left his, that piercing gaze still locked onto his like it would never leave him—and it did. Tai closed his eyes, and he could still imagine those eyes never leaving him.
He gulped and his lips parted on their own when he suddenly felt a wet tongue lick over the side of his wrist.
By now, he wasn't sure if the heat he was feeling was because of his fever, or because of the man just so physically close to him.
"You can barely stand, and I'm not going to let you walk across the server alone." Be it him hallucinating or not, Tai could swear Rejoice's voice turned deliberately lower. "Come to my place?"
That was enough to snap Tai out from his daze, opening his eyes and closing his mouth. "W-what?" he rasped, his throat having gone hoarse.
"Let me take care of you." Another kiss.
"What the fuck are you talking about?"
"I'm not going to let you die in another person's hands, Tai." Rejoice tipped his head lower, setting their still intertwined hands over his chest. "Let alone a fever."
"Are you stupid? I'm not going to die from a fever!" Tai snapped, glaring with as much force as he could manage.
Rejoice just looked at him for a second, then let go entirely. Tai lost his balance immediately and dropped, landing hard on his back. He lay there breathing heavily, eyes hazy and unfocused, pathetic, and he knew it.
"You're cute, but clearly your brain's not firing on all cylinders." Rejoice loomed over him. "You think you'd survive out here alone? You've got a nice bounty on your head—who's to say someone doesn't find you half-dead in the dirt? Your chat's down, too. You can't even call your team."
"And who's to say you wouldn't just kill me yourself?" Tai shot back. It was a low blow. Tai knew that Rejoice could've killed him already, but he didn't.
He closed his eyes, then opened them again; his vision was starting to blur, his whole body running hotter by the minute. He needed to do something. "I have pearls. I can get back to my base."
"Tell you what, genius—pearling while you're sick is basically a death sentence."
"I'll take my chances."
"You're an idiot."
"It's just a fever. It's not going to kill me."
Rejoice sighed and, without waiting for permission, grabbed Tai's hands and hauled him back up, ignoring the yelp and string of curses that followed. He steadied him with an arm around his waist and a hand on his back.
"Pearling sick has consequences. Tried it myself once. Never again." He paused. "Besides, a fever's no joke on this server. It can genuinely kill you."
Tai bit his lip. "...You're being very insistent."
"Only this once." Rejoice's voice had lost its usual edge. "C'mon, be cooperative with me or else I'm gonna do a princess carry right here right now."
The words quickly registered in Tai's head as a threat. Immediately, he opened his mouth to speak. "Yours will be fine... Mine is..." Tai trailed off, unable to describe the state of his own base without sounding worse.
"Well. Looks like we're going with mine." Rejoice grinned down at him, though Tai barely registered it, half out of his senses.
The walk to Rejoice's base blurred into stumbling steps and mumbled protests, cut through with Rejoice's relentless, oddly gentle chatter.
"—and the best part is, I've almost got my whole team convinced. They're so oblivious it's honestly impressive. They only noticed something was off because I let it slip on purpose—"
"Sure." Tai focused on putting one foot in front of the other. Without Rejoice's arm guiding him, he'd have hit the ground twice by now.
"You really can't judge me. You've got your own reputation for being a fraud, you know." A beat. "Oh—we're here."
Rejoice's base was, as advertised, a masterpiece of architectural chaos—okay, nevermind the "architectural" part. It was just straight up chaos, maybe architectural gore if you will. A sprawling, multi-level build that somehow made every mismatched block type work together. Dark oak and quartz framed a grand entrance leading into a hall with a vaulted glass ceiling. One wall held a working aquarium full of tropical fish; another was covered edge to edge in framed maps. A row of sunflowers sat by the window, slowly turning to follow the light.
It was warm, obviously lived in, and undeniably, aggressively yellow.
Perhaps sensing Tai's unwelcome opinion, Rejoice spoke first. "No commentary on the decor. It's a great place with someone who actually enjoys living in it." He steered him toward a plush crimson sofa near the fireplace. "You need help with the armor, or can you manage?"
He set Tai down on the sofa—sinfully soft—and exhaustion crashed over him instantly. He sank into the cushions with a groan. Being led around and cared for like this, by Rejoice of all people, being handled so gently—it felt foreign in a way that made his chest tight.
"I can do it," Tai said, though it came out more hesitant than he meant it to.
It felt like unfamiliar ground. The kind that could either save him or ruin him completely.
He hoped for the former.
Oh, he really hoped for the former.
"Fine. Stay put." Rejoice said it like Tai had any strength left to argue with, then crossed the room to a brewing stand already bubbling on a nearby table. He started pulling ingredients from neatly labeled barrels.
Tai watched through half-lidded eyes, a low current of disbelief running under everything. He watched as Rejoice continued to function.
Still. Whatever this was, Tai knew better than to trust it completely. He and Rejoice had a long history of teaming up only to turn on each other later. It was practically a cycle by now—one neither of them seemed able to break, no matter how hard they tried.
Not that it was some rare condition. Everyone on this server carried their own damage, one way or another. Tai's just ran deeper. He knew it. He was more destructive than most, more reckless, more willing to use people and cut them loose the moment they stopped being useful. A liability, if he was being honest with himself.
But being a liability had never really been the problem. The trick was acting like he was the one pulling the strings—like he always knew more than everyone around him, even when he had no idea what he was doing. Most people on this server were gullible enough that it barely took effort. A convincing lie and a well-timed show of distress usually did the job. No evidence required.
And Rejoice—Rejoice was something else entirely. He was crazy good with PVP, brutal and apathetic. And everything underneath that? A tick that wouldn't let go. A bomb that would either go off and take Tai down with it, or just quietly fail to detonate. Rejoice was, despite his mental stability sometimes flying out the window, frustratingly, downright sinfully hot.
It would be a lie to say that Tai had never fantasized about the man. He had. Not that he'd ever admit that to anyone. Yes, there really were a lot of things he'd rather not admit.
Tai also knew—with total certainty—that Rejoice knew that Tai knew Rejoice wouldn't hesitate to turn on him either, the moment the game stopped being fun.
"What are you making?" Tai asked, breaking the silence, his voice a little raw now.
"Something to take the edge off. Call it a 'Get Well Soon So I Can Beat You Fairly' potion." Rejoice glanced over his shoulder, grin returning. "Relax, I already tested this batch on myself. Worst case, you turn yellow—which, honestly, I'd love to see. It's my favorite color." He shrugged.
Despite himself, Tai let out a weak laugh that immediately turned into a harsh, rattling cough that hurt his ribs. Damn his poor decisions.
Rejoice was at his side in an instant. "Didn't I tell you to stay put?" he said, concern threading through the mock scolding. He guided Tai upright. "You can't be laughing one second and choking the next. I don't need you dying on my couch."
Tai shot him a glare, but before he could fire back, Rejoice had already crossed the room and returned with a steaming bottle, its contents swirling a soft healing pink. "Potion of Healing, decent grade. Takes the edge off the fever, helps with hunger. Gentle pat on the back, not a sucker punch." A faint, almost shy smile touched his mouth. "Stirred in some honey, too."
Tai took the bottle. Their fingers brushed, and something sharp and unmistakable jolted up his arm. His heart picked up pace, and the heat crawling through him had nothing to do with the fever anymore, or so he told himself. "Since when are you a healer?"
"Since a certain pretty head decided to duel me with one foot in the grave." Rejoice perched on the arm of the sofa, close but not quite touching. Tai did his best to ignore the nickname getting thrown around like nothing. As if it never affected him at all. "Drink it. Slowly."
Tai eyed the potion, old suspicion flickering back to life. It looked innocent enough, but with Rejoice, nothing ever really was—the man had a well-earned reputation for messing with people, teammates included.
Rejoice caught the hesitation and rolled his eyes. "I already told you, it helps with the sickness, you paranoid disaster. I'm not wasting good Weakness on someone who's already this pathetic."
He took the bottle back, drank a mouthful himself, and swallowed. No convulsing. No color change. He just wiped his mouth and handed it back. "Baseline grade. Just enough to shut you up. Drink. I need you coherent, not unconscious."
Properly chastened, Tai brought the bottle to his lips. The potion was sweet and warm, spreading a soothing heat through his chest that melted the icy ache in his bones. The pounding in his head dulled to a distant throb, and the sharpest edge of the fever finally dropped away, leaving a heavy, welcome exhaustion in its place.
"Better?" Rejoice asked, a note of poorly hidden pride in his voice.
"A little," Tai admitted.
Rejoice nodded, then pulled a wooden chair over and sat directly across from him. Without warning, he reached for Tai's hands.
"What are you—" Tai tried to pull back, but his movements were too slow to matter.
"Checking you," Rejoice said, calm and matter-of-fact, turning Tai's hands palm-up like he was inspecting a tool. His thumbs pressed gently into the tense muscle of Tai's palms, working each knuckle with a careful, probing pressure. "You forfeited the right to complain the second you decided to duel me knowing full well you weren't fine."
It felt invasive and soothing at once—finding knots of tension Tai hadn't even known he was carrying and working them loose with practiced ease. It looped back around into something that felt strangely intimate. A rival who knew his body's failures that well.
"Sore here?" Rejoice pressed a spot near his wrist, and Tai flinched before forcing himself still.
He didn't answer out loud—a soft, involuntary sigh of relief did that for him.
Tai let his head fall back against the cushions, staring up at the exposed beams while Rejoice's warm, capable hands kept working. Something tight in his chest started to unwind. "Why are you doing this?" he asked, barely above a whisper.
"The potion? I need you at full strength. A hollow win's just a pathetic trophy."
"No." Tai found enough strength to turn his head and meet Rejoice's eyes. "All of it. Not just—not leaving me lying in that arena."
Rejoice's hands went still, thumbs resting lightly over Tai's pulse points, which now felt like they were hammering against his skin. He didn't answer right away, gaze fixed on their joined hands.
"Because," he said finally, quieter than Tai had ever heard him, "it's no fun beating you when you're at less than a hundred percent. Throws off the whole balance." He glanced up, green eyes serious for once. "I play dirty sometimes. You know I do. But with you, it just feels wrong."
A pause. "And maybe I just want to see where this goes. Between us."
The honesty of it—just... all of it... left Tai speechless. It wasn't about the game anymore. It sounded like respect. Hopefully. "Right," he managed, voice thick. "Whatever you say, man."
"Exactly. So—mandatory supervision. My house, my rules." Rejoice gave his hands one last squeeze before standing and clapping, like he could shake off the weight that had settled over the room. "Rule one: you're stuck with my company." Tai's eyes were already fluttering shut, exhaustion dragging him under. "Rule two: you listen to everything I say. Rule three—"
The words blurred together, Rejoice's voice folding into the crackle of the fire, a low, steady sound that pulled Tai under. The warmth of the potion, the memory of hands on his skin, the strange tenderness of the whole afternoon—his mind let go of all of it slowly, into quiet wonder.
The last thing he saw before sleep took him was Rejoice, watching him with an expression Tai had never seen on him before. Something close to fondness. He found himself hoping it would follow him into his dreams.
...and Rejoice's fondness did follow him into his dreams...
The care, the gentleness, the softness, they were all there—
However.
Alongside those...
...Tai felt his breathing growing shallower and shallower every second Rejoice's lips captured his own. His rival's hands were everywhere, on Tai's hips, his waist, his shoulders, his back—just everywhere.
It was dizzying, almost infuriating, but in the best way possible. Rejoice's lips were so soft and so demanding, almost like they wanted to swallow him whole. Every slide of their mouths felt like heaven, a breathless clash of heat and intent that scrambled his thoughts until nothing else existed.
Crazy how a kiss changes a whole person.
Then, Rejoice's warm hand slid down his jawline, tracing the sharp curve with so much tenderness. Rejoice deepened their kiss, causing Tai to let out a moan that would've stupefied him if he were in his right mind.
His hands tangled in Rejoice's hair, gripping tightly to anchor himself against the sudden, overwhelming sensation. A soft groan was lost in the friction of skin meeting skin, urgent and heavy as their hearts beat out a frantic, shared rhythm against their chests.
Tai's heart was combusting and building itself all at the same time. This felt like something he could never forget, something he'll forever—
---
Tai's eyes snapped open, his heart hammering so fast and so loud against his skin. He was breathing erratically and his hands were shaking. He could feel his whole face burning, and he registered a bit later the smell of something savory and the sound of someone humming badly off-key.
But he couldn't focus on those right now.
He just couldn't.
Holy shit.
Holy fucking shit.
No freaking way he just had that kind of dream while inside the other person's house.
No fucking way.
He put a hand over his chest. He was still on the sofa, though someone had shifted him into a more comfortable position, a pillow tucked under his head and a soft, fragrant blanket wrapped snugly around him.
He felt better. Not well—the illness still sat heavy in his lungs, a fuzziness lingering behind his eyes—but the sharpest edges of it were gone. He sat up quickly, the blanket pooling in his lap.
The humming came from the kitchen, a section of the great hall dominated by a brick-fired furnace and a row of smokers. Rejoice stood there, back turned, stirring something in a pot.
"You're alive," he called without looking over. "Was starting to think that 'gentle pat' potion doubled as a knockout punch."
Tai gulped as he stared at the back of Rejoice, willing himself to calm down. "What time is it?" His voice was rough with sleep but clearer than before, albeit there was a hint of hesitation behind his words.
"Late afternoon. You slept through lunch. And you weren't quiet once." Rejoice turned, holding a wooden bowl, and crossed the room to hand it over. "Rabbit stew. My own recipe."
Tai settled himself upright before taking the bowl. The stew was thick—carrots, potatoes, tender chunks of rabbit—and it smelled incredible. "You can cook?" It came out more indignant than he meant.
"I have many hidden talents. Most of them illegal in several server districts." Rejoice looked at him expectantly. "Eat. I didn't spend an hour not burning this just so you could admire it."
Tai took a spoonful. It was perfect, hearty, flavorful, exactly what his worn-out body needed. He couldn't quite stop the small, pleased sound that escaped him...
...that instantly jerked his whole body, the spoon in his hand nearly dropping onto the floor if it weren't for Rejoice catching it.
Fuck.
That sound was so similar to the one—
Rejoice's smile turned smug and unbearably pleased. He dragged the same chair over as before and sat facing him.
Tai ignored him and kept eating, which Rejoice took as an invitation to talk. Tai didn't really care. He just needed to divert his attention somewhere else, preferably to something that wasn't entirely connected to his—
"That fever really did a number on you, by the way. You mumbled all kinds of nonsense—wouldn't even let go of my hand until I calmed you down."
Tai nearly choked. "The fuck?"
The uncomfortable atmosphere shattered, replaced by an even more unbearable one—for Tai, anyway. Rejoice, on the other hand, was clearly enjoying every second of it, unaware of the other factor affecting Tai.
His smugness deepened into pure delight. He leaned forward, chin propped on one hand, eyes glittering with mischief.
"Oh, it was tragic," he sighed, the picture of exaggerated sympathy. "All that tough-guy 'I don't need anyone' energy just melted right off you. Clinging like a baby sloth ripped from its tree. 'Don't go, please, Rejoice,' you kept whispering. Very dramatic. My heart nearly broke."
The absurdity of it left Tai stunned, the bowl in his hand tipping sideways, a chunk of potato threatening to fall. "You're lying."
"Would I lie about your moment of profound vulnerability? Your secret, fever-induced neediness?" Rejoice's grin was a slash of white. "You said our Thursday duels were the only thing keeping you going. That I was the one good, consistent thing in your life. Almost sweet, if not for the pathetic sniffling."
Heat crawled up Tai's neck again, competing with the last of his fever. The worst part was that, besides that crazy part of his dream that woke him up, he did have hazy, dreamlike fragments of it—a crushing chill, and something warm and solid he'd clung to without meaning to. The idea that it had been Rejoice's hand, that he'd actually said those things out loud, was unbearable. Terrifying, even.
But hey, at least those were all the things Rejoice had heard. Not the...
"I was delirious," he forced out, refusing to let his voice crack. He set the bowl down harder than necessary. "Fever dreams don't count."
Rejoice barked out a laugh. "They absolutely count. Those are the most honest ones."
Tai glared harder. "You're enjoying this way too much."
"Am I?" Rejoice leaned back, arms folded behind his head, infuriatingly relaxed. "I just found out my terrifying, prideful rival secretly thinks I'm special. Can you blame me?" He wiggled his eyebrows. "Life-changing information, by the way."
"Don't get ahead of yourself," Tai snapped, the heat in his face refusing to fade. "I was sick. People say weird shit when they're sick."
"Uh-huh. Sure." Rejoice reached over and poked his cheek.
"Ugh. Stop that."
"Umm..." Rejoice started again. "Also..."
Tai felt a shiver run down his spine.
No.
"You were... uhm..."
Shut up.
"Making other sounds..."
Tai, despite hating it, knew what Rejoice was referring to.
Fuck.
It was stupid and hot and nerve-wracking how Rejoice couldn't even say it.
"You were—" Rejoice licked his own lips, and Tai struggled to keep his eyes away. "—very... very vocal..."
Please just shut the fuck up.
Tai scowled and finished his food, doing his best to ignore how his heart nearly stopped over and over again. The room felt smaller now. Warmer. Or maybe that was just his own face, still burning. Rejoice's attention stayed locked on him, making Tai squirm from time to time.
After a moment, Rejoice's voice dropped, quieter now. "You scared me. You know that?"
Tai blinked.
That... caught Tai off guard. Was Rejoice not going to...? Nevertheless, Tai would really prefer the change of topic. "What, that you'd lose me to a fever?"
Rejoice's smile thinned. "Fevers are dangerous here, and instead of being grateful I actually paid attention, you're judging me for it." He tapped his fingers against the armrest. "When you went down out there, I thought you were just being sloppy. Then I noticed you were lagging behind on everything." He exhaled.
The silence that followed felt heavy. Rejoice was looking straight at him, and the weight of it settled somewhere deep in Tai's chest. This wasn't about the duel being unfair anymore. It was about Tai falling. About being seen like that.
It was mortifying—mortifying enough that he genuinely wished a stray assassin would burst through the window right then and there.
He set the empty bowl aside, the clack of it too loud in the quiet room. "Well," he started, voice still hoarse, "I don't exactly plan on dying anytime soon."
A weak attempt to steer them back to familiar ground. But the ground had already shifted. Rejoice looked at him, and the playful glint took its time coming back. There was a seriousness underneath it that made Tai's pulse stutter.
"Your survival instincts could use some work," Rejoice said, though there was no real bite to it. He leaned forward, elbows on his knees. "You could've just told me you were sick. Sent a message. I would've rescheduled."
"I didn't want to," Tai admitted, the truth pulled out of him against his will. He stared down at his own hands, still able to feel the ghost of Rejoice's thumbs pressing into them. "I didn't want to give you the satisfaction of thinking I backed down. Or that I was weak."
Rejoice let out a short, disbelieving breath. "You idiot. Showing up like that—sloppy, half-dead? That's not strength. That's just stupid." He paused, voice dropping again. "Besides, you really are weak."
That made Tai blink again. "You little—way to bring down an already down guy. Fuck."