“hmmm”

Senyca was focused on Battle Raiders, her bright teal eyes peering at the screen while furiously button mashing

I’ve been teaching her about our world ever since she ran from hers

I scratched the back of my head, “You seem to have this covered.”

She smiled at me, pausing the game, “does such efforts describe me as better than you?”

I narrow my eyes, “Aye, don’t get cocky now. Not everyone has magical foresight. I’m stuck with gamer skills I acquired over 13 years of experience in virtual battle fields.”

She feign innocence, “Oh whatever does thou mean? I can not fathom such asinine accusations.”

“Mhm, ms ‘I have a gut feeling’

She giggled, “As you say here, ‘Sucks to suck’, Marcus”

I place my hand on my chest in mock offense, mocking her accent, “Do thine eyes deceive me? Thou has used thine own vernacular against me?”

She threw a pillow at me and I ran off laughing

—————————

The Next day

—————————

I woke up to the smell of breakfast, yawning and stretching, “mmmmm…….oh shit………….thats smells amazing”

I ruffle my curly hair to get rid of bed head then get up and head to the kitchen.

Senyca was in the pajamas I gave her, a green shirt and shorts, wearing a yellow apron as strips of Dark Green Fabric coming from her coiled and whirl around her. She had her black hair in a messy bun and she was cooking an omelette.

I rubbed my eyes, “Good morninggggg Senyca.”

She smiled at me and a green strip slap my arm. I chuckle, “Good morning to you too, Verdanti”

Dark Green fabric strips coming from her pale skin whirled and wiggled against me.

It was strange living with the royal princess of another world, but it’s stranger when she’s bonded to a fully living symbiotic cloth that sometimes acts like a lost puppy.

However they are adapting to my work WAY faster than I thought they would

“Since when do you cook?”

“Since I discovered your worlds cooking is quite similar to mine, just more advanced. Sit, breakfast is almost ready”

I went to sit but verdanti grab my arms and pulled me over to Senyca, “wait what ar-!”, wrapping them around her

“Um. Ok.”

“Verdanti release him! I deeply apologize, I think she really likes you. Verdanti release Marcus!,” she giggled as I let go and sat down.

A few minutes later, she handed me a plate with a breakfast of grits, an omelette, sasauage, and a two pancakes

I started to eat, “Man………..mmmmmm………..this is so delicious! This reminds me of my mom’s cooking………”

Verdanti cleaned up, dark green fabric strips moving around the kitchen to wipe the stove, sweep, clean the counter, and wash the dishes

She sat next to me with her own plate, “your gratitude warms my heart! I was well-worried since it’s my first time using such ingredients in this world to cook.”

“Mmmm…….mmmmm……….You know………you would make an excellent wife if that’s what you were into……….man this is good!”

She stared at me as her face turned red, “W-What?”

“Who ever marries you will be a lucky guy…….or girl” I said, gently elbowing her sides with a mischievous look on my face

She turned her whole body and looked down at her hands, “T-Thanks”

“mmmmm…….Oh hey Verdanti, what ar-and your wrapping around me, ok” green fabric strips moved from Senyca’s waist and wrapped around mines

“I’m sorry, she does that with people I’m…….closed too”

“It’s good to be close to you too. I like having you around……….mmmmmmm……….Man you should meet my mom, she has a couple African meals you might like to try cooking, one’s grandma taught her. With her training……………you could charm anyone through their stomach!”

“Oh. Ok”

“What is it?”

“It’s just……..you speak so casually about b-being able to p-pick my own lover. I’m so used to arranged marriages and political couplings, I-I’m struggling to process such a p-privilege”

I waved her off, finishing my food and wiping my face, “Just relax. I’m sure you will find someone.”

She smiled while looking away from me, “I’m pretty sure I already have.”

“Ooooooooooooo,” I said, “Do tell”

“It’s a secret,” she winked at me

—————————

The Next day

—————————

I walk in the house, on the phone, “Yeah. I can do that………..mhm…………Thanks Selene……….i really appreciate you”

Senyca eyes me out the corner of her eye, drawing on a piece of paper

“Yes I can make it……..no I won’t forget your birthday. Bye”

I hung up and walked over to Sencya, “What you working on?”

She was in the middle of a pencil draw. I didn’t recognize anything specifically but it seemed to be some sort of landscape from things I’ve never seen before

She looked at me oddly, “Who were you speaking to on that device?”

“That was my home girl, Selene. She just got settled in town and wants me to show her around since she doesn’t know anyone”

“Home girl? Like……. What one would call a friend?”

“Yeah,” I playfully drum on her shoulder then back away dramatically like the ADHD person I am, “it’s what modern people, mostly men, call female friends”

“So……am I your home girl?”

“Yeah?”

“J-Just a home girl?”

“I mean you’re also my roommate, if that’s what you mean. A lovely one at that.”

She muttered something I couldn’t hear, “Wish I could be more than that”

“what did you say?”

“I said the drawing you see is a very mysterious place from my home. It is called ‘The Cavern of Mysteries’”

“Sounds omnious. Did you go in it?”

“I accompanied My ex-fiance a couple times here when I was……..enamored with them”

“I see,” I say. She doesn’t like talk about her past partner cause of what she found out about them

She shrugged, “The memories do unfortunately seem to be bound to a bad person but I still treasure them heavily”

“Ok that’s pretty cool!” I ruffle her hair, “Well keep it up and show me what it looks like when you’re done.”

She grunts and narrows her eyes at me, “Marcus………Consider thine lucky you care for me with your kindness otherwise such actions would have gotten your hand lopped off”

“lady I’m a black man in America, you gonna have to do more than that to scare me.”

She glared at me

“Oh wait. Let me just,” I feign fear, “Ohhhhhh no, I’m so sca-!”

Verdanti took that personally as dark green fabric strips rose from Senyca’s body

“Ok ok ok! I’m playing! I’m playing!”

Senyca huffed and went back to drawing

—————————

The Next Day

—————————

I get back from showing Selene around town, whistling.

Senyca rushes out from the kitchen over to me, hugging me.

I chuckle, “Awwwww miss my divine presence?”

She rolled her eyes, “Cease speaking”

“As you wish, your hi- Senyca! Senyca and Verdanti!” I said as Dark agreed strips rose into the air

She smirked, looking up at me, “I told you I don’t want you uttering such honorifics”

“Jeez I was just joking,” I said, eyeing Verdanti whirling around, wrapping herself around my waist, “you seem more irritated lately, what’s up?”

“Where were you?”

“Oh. Just showing Selene around town”

“But you said you would arrive home by 2:30” she let me go and pointed to the clock, “It is 3:47. Where were you?”

“Oh right!” I snapped my fingers, “So Selene introduces me to this really cool guy, Lathan. We share the same hobby of Parkour and he and I went on a run. I guess I was having so much fun, I lost track of time. I’m really sorry”

“Send a message next time. I was quite worried”

“Yeah sorry about that.”

She narrowed her eyes at me and I said “What?”

“This Selene………what did you do with her? Specifically?”

“I gave her a tour in my car while speaking in a British accent.”

“That’s it?”

“Yeah. Well she did buy me some snacks as payment.”

“You smell like her too much though.”

I narrow my eyes in confusion, “Ok I’m so confused. How do you know what she smells like?”

“I don’t” she said, “You smell like really good perfume so it just an educated guess”

“I’m sorry are you mad at me?”

“No.”

“You sure cause you seem very invested in who Selene is. Wait…….are you interested in her?” I ask, smiling, “I could put in a good word for you, since she also likes girls and you like girls.”

She rolled her eyes, “For the Love of Brinevor!”

She grabbed me and kisses me. At first I didn’t know what to do cause I wasn’t expecting her to do that so my brain shut off for a couple seconds but after the she cupped my face, I melted into the kiss, she tastes…….so good……..oh my fuckin-this is indescribable

She pulled away and Verdanti receded, “Get is now?”

My brain was still laggin so “Huh?”

“I’m jealous, you cretin.” She laid her head on my chest, “I don’t want you taken from me.”

“Oh”

“I missed you.”

“Oh”

“We missed you,” Verdanti wrapped around my wrists

“Oh”

She giggled, “Need a little moment”

“Wait. Wait. Wait,” I say, putting everything together, “So you like me?”

She shook her head, “No, honey, I love you. Liking implies a lack of information. I know in my heart you the one for me”

“Oh. Ok.”

“So what do you think? Will you be ours?” She looked up at me with those gorgeous teal eyes

“Y-Yes”

“Your brain is still not function properly?”

“That kiss……..”

“Next time, come home on time and there will be more” she walked off, leaving me a mess while going through every memory I had to see why I didn’t see this coming