Star Trek: Eventide 777 - ╰waterfront

Where was he going? What was he doing? Renakir soon found himself in the Khaa district, a Reman district which meant it was cold and dark-- perfect for him. He wasn't sure why he chose this place out of all places to go, but perhaps a part of him wanted to be around other Remans. Not the sterile 'clean' Reman environment he saw at home. No, the Torre'vnau house was far from what life was actually like. He was sheltered there, the walls of his estate kept all unwanted guests out and there was always food on the table. In fact, that was what his whole life was-- a life of excess, a life without ever knowing what it felt like to be one of the 'have nots'. So Renakir strolled along the waterfront. His fringe covered half of his forehead, enough to conceal his ridges for the most part. His floppy ears were not out of place here, in fact for the first time in what seemed like forever, he saw strangers who *looked like him. Grey skin, deep sunken eyes, black fingernails, and for the most part no hair. This was home, not some fluffy blanket palace hidden away behind the riches of the capital. This was where he could truly be himself.* Was he being spoiled? Maybe, but he could not spend any more time in his house. He could not pretend like nothing was wrong because something was wrong. His father claimed to love and respect Remans, even taking on a multi-vulcanoid polycule with them, yet he wouldn't take him seriously when he told him about Akuvek. Instead of sympathising with his struggles, he scolded him. Told him never to engage with Romulan authorities ever again to protect the family name. Torre'vnau. The name that opened so many doors for him in the new society of Mol'Rihan, but also the name that made him feel like he was living in a prison. (edited)

04:03

Why couldn't his name be anything else-- K'Tann, Allen, anything but Torre'vnau. Then he could go out whenever he wanted, say whatever he wanted to say, fight whomever he wanted to fight. Why did he have to be Solait Torre'vnau. At least here in the Reman district the only thing that turned heads was his full head of hair and that he could deal with. Green trousers, ugly disco ball blazer with a white collared shirt. He was trying not to be perceived today and it seemed to be working. Paired with his dark shades no one would ever recognise the lone son of the mixed house of Torre'vnau. (edited)

No one would, except for one very fun-loving human man who happened to be chilling in one of those lounge chairs that let you lean all the way back, shades on that matched the shades of the two Reman men lying in matching chairs on either side of him. He was sipping on a lovely drink that Chadrix had made earlier, and was very much enjoying lounging because the night previous was absolutely crazy, for a multitude of reasons. After taking another sip, he set his drink down carefully on the sand beside his chair and saw a familiar-looking figure in the distance. He squinted. Was that... Renakir? No, he hadn't told Renakir where Chadrix and Brokuk's beach house was yet. This was a public beach, it was surely just someone else on a daily stroll. As the figure came closer, though, he realized it was Absolutely Renakir, and if it wasn't, it would just be a slightly awkward moment and he'd forget about it within minutes. "Renakir!?" He called out, sitting up in his chair slowwwwly but surely. "Is that you?" The red-headed man waved as if to beckon the other over, because he sure as hell didn't want to get up.

Oh for the love of Tenakruvek, he was out here trying not to be perceived yet-- that energetic human from the station was here too? Instinctually Renakir covered his face with his hands and turned away. No no no, he was not Renakir, he never knew the guy, just don't perceive!! But when the other continued talking the poor Romulan-Reman boy knew he had been found out. His fluffy black hair and sunglasses-- it was hard not to recognise someone like him. When he was sure Allan was not going to be getting up, he took a few steps closer to the row of beach chairs. The engineering ensign had to Reman friends? Interesting. "Hello again. Yes, it is me," He sighed. crossing his arms. He was in his angsty teen phase and definitely had a bit of an edgelord aura.

Oh thank God it was actually Renakir, that would have still been sort of awkward if it wasn't. All three of the men in the chairs were wearing nothing but swim trunks of various floral prints and sunglasses, except for Brokuk, who wore a black t-shirt crop top as well, and Allan adjusted the chair so he could actually sit up properly and talk to his coworker and friend. "What's up, dude? Didn't expect to run into you so coincidentally, but hey! Pleasant surprise. Oh, you know those guys I told you about, with the vacation home?" Yes, Allan had told Renakir about them in the tubes when Renakir had also asked him how he was still alive after sleeping with *one Reman, and Allan had corrected him and said it was actually two.* "This is them!" He gestured to Brokuk, who was on his left. "This is Brokuk, and this," he gestured to Chadrix on his right, who appeared to have spiked blue-green hair, which he had actually had installed as a glue-on wig because he thought it looked fun. And it did! "Is Chadrix!" As they both turned their attention to Renakir, Allan smiled. "And this, of course, is Renakir, he's a friend from work! He usually operates on the turbolifts or the transporter- oh wait, I told you guys about him, he's the guy who didn't believe he was hot."

Brokuk tilted his sunglasses down a bit to get a True Look at Renakir, before putting them back up and shaking his head. "Why didn't you believe it?" He asked plainly.

"Bro, you know you can't just ask people that," Chadrix shook his head, taking a huge sip of his drink.

Allan laughed a little, but looked back at Renakir and scooted his legs up to cross them so that Renakir could sit at the end of the chair, patting it. "Sorry, um- here, you can sit down if you want! Chadrix made drinks, too, if you want one."

Never in his whole life did he ever feel so Romulan. It was as good thing his sunglasses were covering his eyes because man did he feel like just running away and hiding. So these were the two Remans that Allan was 'friends' with, they seemed oddly chill, but then again Remans in general were actually incredibly chill. In both senses of the word. The guy who didn't believe he was hot, oh why did Allan have to use that as his intro. And then Brokuk had the boldness to ask him about it. Renakir did not respond to his question, he was spiraling into self hatred again. Tenakruvek, he should have just stayed in his fancy home. He walked up to where their beach chairs were set up but made no move to sit down. In fact, he was standing a good stabbing distance away, just like a true Romulan. "Sorry, I'm Romulan, no drinks," Renakir waved his hand and shook his head. How very un-Reman like of him, and to think Renakir was here so he could be more Reman. But no he was not enjoying any of this. He just wanted to angst in peace.

"Oh! I mean, Chadrix can make you a version of any drink that's okay and non-alcoholic and all that good stuff, right?" He looked over at Chadrix, who nodded in response. "But regardless, what brings you to the beach? I was gonna visit you tomorrow or something probably, but it's always good to see a friend early!" Or, at least, that's how he thought of it at least.

"No, I mean I will pass. I don't accept drinks from strangers," He was trying to be polite but he sounded more like an asshole. He was in a bad mood and was clearly not taking the usual care into his words. Seeing Allan and his Reman friends-- it made him feel a bit angry with himself. Remans got to live happily in their nice Khaa district. Maybe they had less luxuries than in Ekhaem, but the sense of community was certainly lost in the upper echelons of Romulan society. "I'm... Clearing my head. Do me a favour and don't tell anyone I'm here, okay?" Renakir looked at Allan and then at the two Reman boys. It felt awkward talking to the engineer in front of two strangers. He also didn't want to say something to upset them. Even if he was Reman, he was also half Romulan and the political tension between the two races was not completely over.

"Ohhh, right," Allan said, as if he was remembering something that he definitely did not know previously.

"Valid, dude," Brokuk mumbled, just laying back and looking at the sky, talking about not accepting drinks from strangers but also meant it towards the other not wanting anyone to know he was here.

"Yeah, man! Of course, I don't even know who I'd tell," he laughed, although the one person he might have told would be Eshen, he didn't feel the need to say that. "This is a great place to clear your head, honestly. Do you like the water?"

Those Reman dudes were... Certainly dudes. Renakir did not show any reaction on his face though, he was still in teen angst mode. "I'm from the honourable Torre'vnau family, I am sure someone will be looking for me," Renakir said dryly as he looked away from Allan and his crew. He sounded almost ashamed as he spoke. He wondered if these two Remans even know the Torre'vnau family, they were pretty high profile after all. Not only that but their reputation was not exactly favourable amongst Remans who believed Meruvix had sold out to the Romulans. Well, no matter, Renakir wasn't planning on chatting for a long time, maybe...

Allan wondered what the hell Renakir meant by that, maybe he was a little bit out of it but he had no clue about much right now. "Do... do you need us to hide you, or something? Like - the house is pretty big, I'm sure we could just chill in there if you're trying to hide from your family right now," he said, Brokuk was just chilling while Chadrix had gone inside to make some food.

"Hide--" The word made his floppy ears twitch and he quickly looked around. "Actually.... That wouldn't be a bad idea. I just... Don't want to see my family right now," Renakir felt like some angsty runaway teen-- wait that was exactly what he was doing. Only he was 29, but he had the mental age of a 5 year old at times. If only Allan knew the tantrums he used to throw not too long ago. He was all calm and nice on the Starbase but Renakir had a bit of a tendency to act like a spoiled rich kid at times.

"Yeah, of course dude! C'mon, I'll show you inside-" He slowly and carefully stood up, looking at Brokuk for a moment and determining he was just Chilling and to leave that little punk man be as he gestured for Renakir to follow him inside the vacation home, which had very nice natural vibes, with a very open floorplan. "Do you want to go upstairs where the guest rooms are, or stay in the main room?" He asked, waving at Chadrix again who was cooking what seemed to be some kind of seafood- maybe mollusks of some kind?

After receiving an invitation that sounded like a grand old time with Allan and his two long-time buddies, Dion turned up in the outfit previously described in #╰mol′rihan-national-enquirer-hq smelling like kreyla bread and mocha. He messaged Allan to say he was here, but didn't go inside just yet, taking his shoes and socks off to let the waves lap at his ridged, clawed feet and... Shit, wait, now he couldn't put his shoes back on and he was going to trail sand and salt water into Brokuk and Chadrix's nice beach house.

Allan had stepped out onto the back porch when he'd gotten the message from Dion, but perhaps the door was quiet in the warm breeze, enough for him to sneak behind Dion in the sand behind him. Wearing an open bright aquamarine Hawaiian shirt with pink flowers on it, some white denim shorts and some heart-shaped pink sunglasses on top of his red hair, he almost matched Dion in some sort of coincidental way as he simply came up beside him, sitting down in the sand so he could put his legs in the water and look up at the other. "The water's nice, right?" He asked with a smile, just genuinely glad to see the other here, even if just for a moment.

Dion heard him coming; it was very hard to sneak up on Vulcans with their good hearing. In fact, all Vulcanoids, really. But he didn't acknowledge Allan 'til he said something. "It is nice. Actually, it reminds me a bit of home. England, I mean." Dion's voice was calm. Actually, he felt a bit more Eshen at the moment. And homesick, too, suddenly. Unfortunately, he couldn't fit Earth in his schedule with Mol'Rihan and Bajor. Eshen sat down on the wet sand (oh no, his spotless white jeans!) next to Allan and leaned on his shoulder. "The beaches there are much more cold and pebbly, though. I like your outfit, by the way."

"You're from England? Wow, I never would've known," he said, laughing a little and put an arm around Eshen's shoulder when he leaned on his own. He looked out at the water, it was really calming. "Thanks! Your outfit is pretty good too. It gets cold here as well, but not today," he said, the beach here also reminded him of home, particularly because, "it actually switches it up quite often. Kind of a blend of the two places I grew up in."

Eshen Surak'd away the thought that he'd really like to just casually hold Allan's hand right now because WHERE did that come from, and because it felt like that was a thing you did while watching the sunset and it wasn't late enough in the day yet. Instead, he felt compelled to steal Allan's heart-shaped sunglasses, and so he did. That's what they did, after all - stole one another's stuff. Love language: thievery. "So that's Puerto Rico, and...?"

Allan laughed as Eshen took away his sunglasses, how would he ever match Brokuk and Chadrix in their shades now? "Oh, I see," he said, gently taking one of Eshen's earrings in return because it's not like he could have taken the bracelets without touching the other's hand. He put it in his ear, so that they could be matching of course! "Boston! It's pretty cold up there a lot. I mean, we get summers still, but the weather's kinda similar to England, I think."

"Oh, right! I can hear it in your accent! It's kind of sexy, actually." As if to prove his point, Eshen, if Allan should so consent, made out with him for like, a full minute... or five, then pulled away, stood up and brushed sand off his wet butt, which was a bad idea because now his gloves were sandy. "I would've quite liked to sit there for a while with you, but we shouldn't keep your friends waiting." (edited)

2

Allan, in fact, was about to protest in disbelief that his Boston accent was kind of sexy at all, he always liked the Puerto Rican part of his accent a lot more, but before he could even say anything they were, of course, making out. This was typical behavior for him, really, but something about doing this so calmly by the beach with.. Eshen, especially, compared to the quite... crazy events from the night before. Not that he minded either, but something about this moment was just... different. In such a way that once Eshen had pulled away, he sort of was lost in the sauce, so to say, for a good moment as he took a while to register what the other man had said. "...oh! Yeah, we can... do this anytime, really, um-" He also got up, brushing sand off himself as well before brushing the rest off of Eshen for him as a courtesy, of course. He walked to the porch door, holding it open as he gestured for the other to follow him inside to #┊beach-house , where Brokuk seemed to be playing some version of Rock Band and Chadrix was sitting on the sofa, watching. (edited)

2

Eshen grinned at the sight of Allan getting a little flustered. "You're still cute like that." Then he paused, quickly sent that email he'd been meaning to send to Lalisa, then walked through the door Allan had been holding open like a shorts-wearing gentleman.

2

"You call that cas - Allan, bro, you can't just ..." Brokuk shook his head at what Allan had just said, shades still on as he swam aimlessly around the water with the human man. The three of them were having a chill time as usual, and had finished discussing the whole house ordeal that suited Romulan man had come over about. Then they had discussed Renakir for a moment, and how Chadrix was very glad the other enjoyed his macarons. Now, they were talking about something completely different.

"...I have to agree," Chadrix called over, building a sandcastle on the shore. He was being quite extravagant with it actually, making sure to build all the necessary towers, moats, and even some squares within the complex. A very royal sandcastle indeed. He thought it would be nice to live in one eventually, but he was quite content with the beach house. Despite the offer of the extraordinary amount of money, Brokuk and himself had decided that they preferred living next to the beach. They then figured that if their own beach house would sell for that much money, it would be impossible to buy another beach house of the same quality for the same amount - prices would only increase once theirs had sold. "You make it quite obvious with your eyes, actually."

2

Allan looked Quite Offended, brushing his wet hair out of the way of his eyes. "I don't, because I literally look at all my friends like that. Bro, I look at Chadrix like that. Don't I?"

Brokuk thought for a moment, sitting still in the water to do so. "... you do. But it's different, dude," he said. He wasn't sure how to explain it, though, because he honestly was in the same situation - or had been, with Chadrix for years. The guy he had married for 'business purposes'.

"Yeah, well, you and Chadrix look at each other like that too, you know? But-" Wait, this was not helping his point at all. Those two definitely were in a different situation. Clearly. "Nevermind."

Brokuk rolled his eyes, not that Allan could see that underneath the sunglasses though. "Yeah, nevermind, except we do mind, dude, but - I dunno. As long as it's all good, I guess I don't care. We just don't want to see you getting hurt or anything."

Allan sighed. "I'll be fine, Bro," he said, pushing his hair out of his eyes again. "Do you... do you know where I could get a haircut?"

1

Brokuk tilted his sunglasses down to look at Allan to make absolutely sure the other knew he had a look of judgment on his face. "Dude."

Allan blinked. "What, I don't-"

Chadrix coughed as he was building one of the towers around the castle. "Ahem. Allan, dude, you- we're... we're Reman."

2

Brokuk laughed, splashing Allan with a huge wave of water. "Yeah. What he said. Idiot," he stuck his tongue out though, to make it clear he was joking.

When he realized it, Allan smiled, guilty. "Right, right, sooorry, I just-" he laughed as he got splashed with water, turning away and coughing a bit before playfully splashing Brokuk back. "Forgot, obviously." Thus ensued a water splashing fight, however they made very much sure to avoid Chadrix and his sandcastle, because they cared very much about his art!!

2

1

[D] After leading Allan into the totally awesome 2-person hoverbike he had, he parked it and looked out happily over the area. Yes, this would be perfect. Totally. "Okay, so - Chadrix's already here, so we just have to meet him here, but -" He got off the hoverbike, putting his hands over Allan's blindfold after the other also got off, "I'm going to take off your blindfold now, because we're in public and that would probably be weird to see, but you can't look yet," He said, slipping off the silk band and replacing it with his hands.

"Oookay," Allan laughed, especially as they moved a bit awkwardly across the area, what he could already tell was the sea breeze hitting his hair. "You don't trust me to just keep my eyes closed?" He asked.

"No." Brokuk answered firmly, in part because he could feel Allan's eyes widening beneath his palms as the other strained to see past his hands. "Not yet, at least." They continued their awkward scuffle, eventually crossing over a bridge that stretched across small sand dunes filled with scurrying creatures and long, elegant grasses.

When they stepped off the wooden bridge, Allan immediately recognized he was in sand now. "Okay, so we're... definitely at the beach though? Right?" There weren't many other places they could be, really. Maybe by the river, or a lake, but the smell of the air was definitely oceanwater vibes. He tried to see through Brokuk's fingers, he really did, but it was no use.

"I dunno, bro. Maybe. Up to you," He laughed as he felt Allan's eyelashes flutter like tiny wingbeats against his fingers. "We're almost there, though, actually."

1

Allan sighed as they continued walking. "If you say so." The ocean responded with a roar, though, a wave crashing against the shore. "I can hear that, you know. We're definitely at the ocean."

"Okay, okay, but - open them," He said, finally dropping his hands as he watched Allan.

Allan gasped, and his eyes widened at the sight. "No way," he said, laughing to try and even make this experience seem real in his mind. "It's so... it's so big!?"

1

Brokuk couldn't help but laugh because the words that came from Allan were so simple, and yet so true. "Yeah, I guess that's one way to say it," He said as he watched the wave crash down. From the distance they were at, it seemed almost sort of small, and they felt nothing but a simple mist of the water, but in reality they both knew that this wave was bigger than any that at least Allan had ever seen in his time here. "I saw them getting real big this morning, I thought it might be cool to watch a bit closer. But also-" He turned Allan around, away from the sight of the waves crashing against the shore and towards a small shack near the jungle/forest behind it. A small wooden sign on the shack read 'Dudesek's Surf Shop' in 3 languages: Havrannsu, Rihannsu and Standard. A sign below also said 'AND BAR' as if it were tacked on much later.

At the bar also was Chadrix, shades on as he sat at the counter of the combination shop and bar carrying on conversation with Dudesek, the owner of the shop, before he turned around to see Brokuk and Allan. He waved them both over. "Hey! So, Allan, you remember Dudesek, right?"

"How could I not? Dude, what's up?" He ran towards the counter where Chadrix was sitting and just sat on his lap, because he Could. "You literally look so good, what the fuck?" He had no idea how the Reman man was like, 58 but still looked so amazing. "Oh my God, are we renting boards today? Is that what we're doing?" He turned to look at Brokuk, and then Chadrix, his green eyes lit up with excitement. He really loved being able to surf here, he wasn't amazing at it but had done it often enough in Puerto Rico not to completely fail every time he tried it here.

Brokuk grinned, hand on his hip as he watched them talk, before he walked up to them all. "Actually," he started to say, before Dudesek interrupted.

Wearing a tightly-fitted surf suit, Dudesek grinned, nodding as he swished open a curtain that was behind him and began to pull out a board. It was a deep, rich purple color with black hazy swirls within the paint, and a thin black border around the board in general. If you looked closely, the board said 'Brokuk' in cursive white paint on the tail as well. "Sooo, you boys have got your own customs now," he said, holding the purple board out in front of him, which Brokuk took proudly. He then took out one that looked like Brokuk's, but green, with Chadrix's name on the tail, handing it over to Chadrix. "Annnd then we've got, I think, a free drink coupon? For you?" He laughed, making a Cosmopolitan on the rocks and sliding it towards Allan. "Thank you, though. I do try to keep my face as young and beautiful as I can." He then reached behind the curtain again and pulled out another board, this time in deep red with Allan's name printed on it the tail border. "Oh, and this, I guess, is yours too, brah."

Allan looked on in awe as his two friends got their own custom boards. This was amazing, and he was so happy for them! He smiled at Dudesek as he was passed the drink as well - one of his favorites, really. "Aw, thanks, you are young and beautiful, so it only makes sense you look the pa- part..." He stopped talking as he looked at the third board, which he should have been expecting but for some reason wasn't, and he took it gently into his hands, looking it over as if he was afraid to touch it. As if it wouldn't be in the water and sand a few minutes from now. "Is this really...?"

Dudesek nodded. "All yours. They're the ones who commissioned it for ya," He gestured to Chadrix and Brokuk. "So you've got them to thank as well."

2

Allan didn't really cry much, but he did tear up some at this kind gesture of his friends. Sure, they did nice things for him all the time, but gifting him his own custom surfboard after years of renting them out? And that surfboard just happened to look super cool and match theirs? "Aw, guys, I..." He wrapped his arms around Chadrix, giving him a long kiss and then just held him close for a moment. "Thank you? Like, really, honestly. This means so much, and-" He looked back over at Brokuk, and then at the waves out yonder. "Wait, we're going to be riding those giant-ass waves? You're serious?"

Chadrix laughed, holding Allan back before giving him a kiss on the cheek and picking him up, setting him down on the sand, and nodding. "Well-" He grabbed one of Allan's hands.

"We're sure as hell gonna try, dude!" Brokuk laughed, reaching forward and grabbing Allan's hand to pull him off towards the shore, Chadrix of course helping as they both ran with him.

Dudesek smiled and waved goodbye as the three of them ran off towards the waves, watching as they splashed eachother in the water and simultaneously both conquered and fell into the huge waves, sometimes looking very, very cool and sometimes falling on their asses. But the important part was, in his opinion and most likely theirs, that they were having fun together. For Dudesek, seeing them all - especially Brokuk and Chadrix - having fun was something he held close to his heart, to see the young Remans having fun these days made his heart warm as opposed to the much less warm thoughts of his own youth under much darker conditions. But to see these Remans thriving, and - for all intents and purposes, whether platonic or otherwise - in love, and not worrying for the moment about their wellbeing, or anything at all? It made the old Reman very, very happy to see, and he was grateful to provide some of their joy through his honest craftmanship. (edited)

1

Floating in the water was a lone inner tube with what looked like a patch of kelp sticking out from the top. It floated with the waves, bobbing up and down just moving like a piece of loose kelp in the water. The little inner tube floated close to the little party of Remans, right behind Allan. Under the water a grey blob with very long limbs could be seen just treading water and letting the current take him wherever.

Allan was just laying on his board at this point, but he turned around when he saw the lone inner tube, he leaned down in an attempt to pick up the kelp only for it to feel stuck to something, in which case he let go of it quick. "Uhh... sorry?" He said, looking curiously at the tube, just in case he'd just pulled some kid's hair or something.

As soon as his hair was pulled, Kianarix popped up from the tube, wrapping his arms around the top of it and frowning. "Oww! That's my hair!" He said as he stared at the-- a human? In a Reman district? A Reman vacation district no less. Wasn't it a little cold for him? Kianarix was dressed in a pair of tight swim shorts with sandals strapped to his feet. His grey skin was covered in dark freckles and he had bright blue eyes. Despite the name, he looked nothing like Valleka or any of the other Rylovs. Unlike most Remans he had a rather lanky body type, thin arms and legs and his hair flopped in his face. His face may have looked Reman, but his ears and full head of hair were clearly Romulan. "Hi, what's a human doing here?" He said hesitantly, switching over to speaking Standard as that was what humans spoke, right? Despite appearances, he spoke Standard with no accent, very fluent in fact.

Allan sat back once he realized it was, in fact, a person, and an older one at that. "Sorry, sorry," he said, paddling his surfboard a good distance from the other. "What do you mean, what's a human doing here?" What kind of question was that? Allan didn't even think it was weird to be here, really. He just went here every shore leave!

Kianarix hugged his little inner tube to his body, long grey arms with narrow shoulders. His hair was everywhere too, obscuring his eyes a little. "It hurt, the hair is real," Kianarix felt the need to mention because many Remans did wear wigs but no, this hair was all his and he did not appreciate being grabbed. He had the inner tube, it should have been obvious it wasn't just random kelp. "I mean... I don't see many humans here. Isn't it a little cold for you?" He said, tilting his head ever so slightly with a slight pout on his lips. Kianarix was young for a Vulcanoid and it showed, although in human years he was very much an adult. "I don't mind, it's just I've never met a human before, sorry..."

"I know, I know, I'm sorry," Allan apologized again, he was just so happy and carefree today that he just wasn't thinking critically. Even if it was a wig, it wouldn't have been acceptable to pull at it, since it would definitely still hurt if he had pulled Chadrix's hair, too. "Oh. Uhh, not really, no? It's been pretty warm this week," he looked at the other. He hadn't met a human before... interesting. "I mean, I'm from a very warm place on Earth and a quite cold place, so this place, when it's warmer than usual like it is now, is pretty good for me. I'm in Starfleet, so I've been going here on my summer shore leave every year now for... a while now," he said with a smile, looking at the other's bright blue eyes with his green ones. They really were very pretty, actually... interesting. "Those guys have a beach house I stay at." He pointed back behind him to Chadrix and Brokuk, who were also just chilling on their boards.

Kianarix scratched his head and repositioned himself in his little tube, now he was leaning back with only his legs the water. The cool air felt nice on his grey skin as he bobbed up and down with the waves. This human wasn't too bad, a bit strange to meet in the Reman district but there was no hint in judgment in his voice. In fact, he thought it was cool that more races were visiting the Reman districts, it meant a more united Mol'Rihan. "Starfleet? Oh, interesting. I've been coming here with my umm.. Boyfriend, every summer too, but I've never seen you before," The floppy haired Reman said as he looked off into the distance at the human boy's friends playing. "I'm Kianarix, of the Rylov house, and what's your name?" He asked, wanting to get acquainted with this silly looking human. (edited)

Rylov... the name sounded very familiar really, but Allan had long blocked any details of that spacist lady from his memory. "Yeah, Brokuk and Chadrix are actually tactical officers in Starfleet, we met in the Academy. I'm just an engineer, though, oh! Name's Allan," He smiled. "Usually I'm just hanging around Dudesek's shack or at their beach house, so I guess we might've just not run into each other there," he sat up on his board, crossing his legs as they both just continued to float with the current, "maybe I've seen your boyfriend, though! Maybe I've kissed him, even," he laughed, shaking his head. "Kidding, of course."

Remans in Starfleet, now that was something. Kianarix had never thought about Remans joining such an organisation, but anything was possible in the 25the century. He pulled some long strands of hair from his face along with some stray pieces of kelp that blended in seamlessly with his dark green locks. "No-!" Kianarix furrowed his brows and frowned at the comment, not laughing at all. "My boyfriend's name is... Lun, also of the Rylov house but we're not related. I'm adopted and he is umm... He married someone else who's dead now," He explained as he looked down at his hands that were gripping his lil tube. Long grey fingers and black nails with freckles covering the backs of his hands.

"Lun?" Allan said without thinking, since that was a name he did recognize. So Lun had married into the family, and Kianarix was adopted, and they were boyfriends? Also, 'who's dead now' was quite an odd way of saying 'who died', but... maybe that was a language thing. "We saw him the other day actually. I uh, actually know his grandfather, I think. But he doesn't really know it's his grandfather yet. It's uh, a complicated situation. He's hot, though! A good choice in boyfriend." He smiled. Even though he tried to buy his friend's house, he was just doing his job! And he could still acknowledge that this man had good taste.

"Oh, you know him?" Kianarix's ears twitched when the strange human said the name back to him. He was not expecting this at all, and on top of that this human also knew some details about him? He rubbed some of the salty water from his eyes and tried not to look disappointed, but it was hard for him to hide his emotions, even in front of a stranger "He came by... the other day. I see," Kianarix sighed and let himself sink back down in the tube. "Grandfather.. I don't know much about Lun's family," Nor did he care, but it was curious this boy met Lun's grandfather. As much as he knew Lun's family was all dead-- except for Lalisa. "It sounds... Confusing," He said in response to the whole grandfather thing, just what was this human up to? "He was supposed to meet me here but if he came by the other day then..... I guess not," Yet another time he had been stood up. "He promised we'd get a nice beach house together one day like what your friends have and umm... My sister's is kinda mean so we were gonna move somewhere she couldn't follow us."

"Kinda mean?" He asked, wondering how a sister could be so mean that Kianarix was scared of her fucking -following- them. "Well, he seemed... busy on his job, so I don't think that... necessarily means anything," he said softly, laying down on the board again and leaning his cheek on the board to look over at the other. "If you really need a safe place to stay though, there's plenty of spare rooms at the place they rent out regularly, I'm sure they wouldn't mind helping out someone in need, you know?"

"Yeah she's.... A senator. Valleka," Kianarix told Allan, not that this human would know who she was but he hoped saying her name would be enough of a warning so that Allan could avoid her. Unlike most Romulans, Kianarix was incredibly Reman. He did grow up in a Reman colony after all, he did not have the internalised spacism as some other mixed Romulan-Remans may have. "Yeah umm the thing is, I'm... Unemployed. Lun said he was making a deal with a nice company to buy out this beach front and then they'd let us rent a place," Kianarix explained before dunking his head into the water once and then resurfacing. He had to re-wet his hair and cool his body down, it was warm for a Reman. "I don't know if that's true though, I feel like he just says things to keep me away from him, I know he's embarrassed to be seen with someone like me. I'm just... It's hard to keep a job, I don't have much motivation, I don't like working."

Oh, God. It was like a thousand red flags had appeared in Allan's mind all of a sudden, and his smile went to a frown. "Oh, uh, Valleka... I ... I have the unfortunate pleasure of knowing her, yeah. She was spacist as fuck, and so I refused to give her any Starfleet shorts, it was uh, it's a long story, but yeah, she's pretty rude. Um-" He looked even more disheartened at what else Kianarix said. "I meant for free," he said softly. "But the ... the entire beach front?" He asked, he couldn't imagine that, much less the damage it would cause to the local inhabitants. There was a whole lot of things going on in this conversation now, though. "He offered to buy my friends' house here. They declined."

"Y-You know her too?" Did they have the same circle of acquaintances? Why had they never met? Well, Kianarix was self aware to know that sitting in his bedroom trying to pretend there wasn't intra-family murder happening would definitely give him a skewed outlook on life. He was a frog in a well, his view was only as wide as the view from his bedroom window. "Shorts-- spacism? Umm," The human was speaking way too fast for Kianarix to keep up so he just nodded and smiled nervously. "Oh... I guess then we won't be getting the house then," He sighed and splashed the water a little with his hands. He glanced at Allan briefly, wondering how the other could stay on a board whilst he was here in a tube. Kianarix was not the most confident of swimmers, they had no water on Remus and definitely not on his little colony. "How... How many other people do you know here? You sound like you probably know the whole planet..."

"Yeah, basically I make shorts on the starbase for free for people, she wanted some, but she started being really spacist towards my friend Renakir, it was just a crazy situation. Anyways," he stayed on his board just fine because he had grown up on a small island where he learned to swim pretty young. "I guess not? Like I said, they'd probably let you stay for free a few nights if you need to be safe, but like... maybe you could tell Lun not to try and gentrify a historically Reman beach district? Just a thought." He shrugged. "I honestly don't know a whole lot of other people here, I mean there's a few others I know are visiting here right now but I don't think they live here, really."

"Renakir... Another Reman?" So this was a human that had a lot of Reman friends, interesting. In a very un-romulan way, he was pretty sure he wasn't going to remember the name or the shorts thing either. He was too distraught over the fact that Lun was ignoring him once again and leading him on with a web of lies. "Gentrify... I don't know what that means, but Lun barely listens to me when I ask him to come home. " Kianarix said, the boy spoke fluent Standard, but there were a lot of terms he still didn't know. It was easy to forget he was Reman if one wasn't looking straight at him. "Thanks for the offer but I don't think that would work... Valleka would just find me and make me come back home. She needs me for uh... I'm the only Reman in my family," He said, also unable to find the vocabulary to tell Allan he was just the token Reman.

Allan blinked slowly. "Well, uh, gentrification is like, when someone rich comes to buy a house for a super high price in a neighborhood, and then all the other prices go up and basically all the local residents get priced out of their own homes and towns and such, uh, it's more complex than that but... that's basically what it is," he said, surprised he remembered all that, but to be fair Chadrix had probably said something about it yesterday so it wasn't too far back in his memory. "But hey, what the fuck? That's insane, that spacist b- listen, how will she find you? Is she tracking you?"

Kianarix listened to Allan explain what gentrification was, but he really couldn't understand most of what was said. Truth be told, he was Reman and as such he had never had much formal education. At least he was literate, that was the one thing he was grateful for. "I see.... I don't know what Lun is doing," He replied, thinking it would be best to ask Lun some questions when they met again, whenever that would be. He leaned over the side of his tube, looking at the other man's fancy board. He looked much more ready for some beach fun than Kianarix who just... Coasted through the waves. "I can't run away from home forever. I don't have a job, no money without my name. And if I run away I won't have Lun. He's not the best but there's really nothing else good in my life," He sighed, his expression very similar to Renakir's whenever he felt self loathing. They were not related at all, it was just a coincidence the two Romulan-Reman boys had such similar outlooks on themselves. At least Renakir had more motivation, Kianarix looked exhausted from the burdens of life.

Allan frowned again. This guy really seemed to think he couldn't do much on his own, huh? Well, he didn't need to be on his own, it seemed, he just needed a good support system. "Well," he said, leaning his chin on his arms that were folded on the board as he laid stomach-down on top of it, "you know, if Lun's actually a good boyfriend, he wouldn't tell Valleka where you are either. You know that, right? You can get a job anywhere around here. Even Dudesek's place." Dudesek didn't need an assistant, but it probably wouldn't hurt to have one. Then he could get some more time off, even.

"I'm not too good at jobs. I've tried but I just end up causing more trouble than I'm worth," Kianarix replied as he watched Allan change positions on the board. He gripped the sides of his inner tube and spun around slowly. Probably would be a great gif loop too to that earth tune 'you spin me right roud' or something. "But I will see Lun even less than I already do because we'd have to sneak around. I don't like being treated like some secret," Kianarix said, a bit of whine in his tone too. "I can't run away from home, Allan. I know humans and other people can just.... leave their situation and make a new life for themselves in Starfleet or something but I don't have that sort of motivation. The only thing I'm really good at is umm.. I can read and.. I'm good at maths and counting really high," Indeed, Kianarix did not have that many skills, Even when he was in the Reman colony he mostly did bookkeeping or helped with the day watch. He was half Reman, but he had fully Romulan eyes which made him an excellent choice to stay out in the sun when the others needed specialised eye gear.

"Why would you have to sneak around? In fact, I'm so confused, why does it matter if Valleka knows where you are again?" Allan was starting to get so confused about this whole situation; none of it made much sense to him, how all these people somehow knew eachother and seemed to have the worst relationships with each other. "Counting really high is perfect for being a cashier, though!"

"She's just mean and... I don't really like Romulan politics. I don't understand it at all," Kianarix said as he spun around once more. He stopped when Allan mentioned cashier and frowned. "I tried that.. Didn't work out. I didn't like waking up so early and people were mean to me," He shook his head. "That's kinda the trend with all my jobs... People are mean, I am reminded I can't do anything right, I'm too scared to go back to work... Lun says I'm lazy, I mean... He's right... I'm just kinda dead weight, if I wasn't half Reman I probably would be houseless. But the Rylovs had to do some sort of philanthropy to win their senate seat."

"Yeah, I know, she's a jerk, but like, why does it matter if she knows where you live? Like, you know you don't have to talk to her, right?" He thought for a moment about the job thing. Ah, he didn't like interacting with customers. "What about uh, I think it's called being an accountant? Doing math for a business, you don't have to interact with customers really then," he said. "Some customers are just jerks. Doesn't mean anything about your worth or abilities."

"I don't have to talk to her but she talks to me... I just wanna live somewhere away from her and all of those guys. It would be nice to live in a mixed family but I don't know if any really exist here, the Romulans and Remans are pretty segregated," Kianarix closed his eyes and rested his head on his lil inner tube. He tried to focus on the sounds of the waves beneath them. "I tried that job too. I couldn't wake up early enough, I was always late and I didn't like the uniform. I wanna be comfortable, I don't wanna worry about styling my hair or wearing make up, it's a pain," Kianarix told Allan. He appreciated his human's suggestions, but employment was just not for him. Maybe other people were excited to work and contribute to society but Kianarix just wasn't. "Why do I have to work? What if I just want to stay home and read or play games or make crafts? I don't want a boss or stupid 9-5 whatever people call it, I don't like responsibilities, I could be a good house husband I think..."

"Does she fucking teleport into your house??" Allan asked, staring at the water in disbelief of this entire situation. "I'm sorry, I just - she talks to you, but you can stop her from talking to you, you know that right?" He sighed. "I mean, maybe that job was like that, but other jobs will have less strict rules and hours... you could probably make art as your job, that's pretty much like crafts. Or clean houses in your spare time on your own hour schedule. Whatever," he shifted around on the board so he was looking at the sky. "You just have to find something you enjoy and make whatever out of it."

"She's the head of the house and Romulan... I can't really talk back coz you know, I'm Reman," He said with a simple shrug of his shoulders. Kianarix may have been disinterested in Romulan politics, but he knew exactly where he stood on the hierarchy. He had no family, no house, it was a miracle that the Rylov family even let him join them. Every day he was walking on thin ice surrounded by Romulans who all knew he was there as their token Reman. "I appreciate the kind words, Allan, but... You ride around on the waves on that fancy board of yours," Kianarix said, pointing to the board and then gesturing to Allan. "And me, I just wanna float along," He sat up and wiggled his inner tube. "I do wish Lun would spend more time with me, I think he only hangs around me because if it wasn't for me he'd have no name either. That's kinda how we bonded."

Allan sighed once again. He was really trying not to get frustrated with this guy, and truly, he wasn't really frustrated with him, but with the situation in general, but it was hard. "I mean, if you want to put yourself down into that place and not stand up for yourself, that's your choice," he said. He knew the situation was a bit more complex than that, but in his mind Kianarix still had the choice to not be their Token Reman and actually stand up for himself. "It's a good board," he mumbled, looking over at the inner tube, "it's a good inner tube though, too. I'll let Lun know if he drops by again."

"Maybe another hybrid can do that, but I don't think that's really something for me to do, I'm pretty bad at reading Romulans too," He shrugged once more and lifted his head to look at Allan. It was wild how Kianarix could be dating someone like Lun. He was a sad man throwing himself a pity party all the time and Lun was a confident and sneaky interceptor. In many ways their relationship mirrored Lun's own parents, Sirrai was the doormat Vulcan and Lun's mother was the strong hotheaded Romulan. Fascinating how events played out. "Yeah thanks, and... I'm really sorry about Lun. He is also kinda.... Rude. Actually umm.... Lun isn't going to show up, could I hang around with you and your friends?" Kianarix asked, actually asking for something for once. He was pretty terrible at asking for things and even worse at voicing discomfort when he was being treated badly. However this human was friend and he had other Reman friends, maybe he could try and step outside his tiny bubble for once.

Allan rolled his eyes, but smiled. He really didn't mean any rude intent... he just found the idea a bit ridiculous. "Mm, you can't keep deflecting it, though. Eventually, whatever your situation, you have to learn to love yourself and do what's best for you. That's how ya get what ya want," He shrugged, sitting up on the board again. If Lun was rude, why were they still dating? This was a huge mess, it seemed. Maybe. Who knew. Whatever, though, he was here to have fun. "Of course! Yeah, do you want to try surfing? Don't worry, we can try it little by little if you want." He smiled brightly, starting to paddle to the shore and waving for the other to follow.

"I... I know I just... I don't think I'm the hybrid for that," He said nervously as he held himself up in the tube. "I'd like to try surfing. just a little," Kianarix said with much hesitation as he kicked and paddled his way to shore. [D] The rest of the afternoon was actually quite fun. It was the first time Kianarix made friends on his own! Before all his 'friends' were people he worked with or the one or two family members who bothered to talk to him. This was his first time going out and getting friends! For a hikkikomori like Kianarix this was a big deal and he actually found himself having fun! Allan had some great friends and of course Allan was very patient with him. Kianarix was still not very confident in his abilities, but at least he had nice people around him who were willing to be patient while he tried to learn.

3

1

[D] Last day of shore leave, and Allan had invited Eshen over for some classic barbeque on the beach. Also because his friends had made gifts for the man and wanted to give them in person! So, Allan was just chilling by the water, wearing one of Brokuk's punk rock band crop tops and shorts as he laid there, looking up at the sky, which was just beginning to get dark. A sunset! They had set up a classic firepit by the shore for smores and roasting and such, but Chadrix had also set up a grill for the barbeque.

It had taken Chadrix a while to find some genuine, fresh, sustainably hunted Targ meat for the barbeque but he eventually found it at a local market that Dudesek had clued him into. As he had that on the grill, he had also baked some Yorkshire pudding to go with it - and something in mind for dessert as well! He really enjoyed making food for his friends, and he was glad he was able to do it at least every summer.

Brokuk, meanwhile, had picked up some super cool decorations from Dudesek, and was stringing them up across the porch of the beach house, plenty of cute little lantern lights and stuff like that, but when he actually saw Eshen, he waved with one arm very widely and in turn dropped the entire string of lights, but that was okay, because he could pick them up again! "Hey dude!! So glad you came down here, what's up?"

1

Eshen had eagerly dashed over here once he'd heard there was gonna be meat! Not innuendo, he was just a Klingon stereotype, and if it wasn't replicated, meat that was hunted sustainably was one of his favourite things to eat. When he was younger, he'd genuinely enjoyed hunting with his mother and being taught how to put every bit to use, even the bones. He made lissoirs for leather-tanning, needles for sewing, and, of course, a cool dagger made of a single Dire Targ tooth he killed himself. He wondered if Allan would appreciate seeing that sort of thing. Sometimes Eshen worried it was a bit unpalatable, but Allan hadn't minded trashing a speakeasy with him even if it was holographic. "Hello, Brokuk and Cook Bro!" He said as he arrived, ta'al-ing at them both. He wasn't in anything too complicated today - actually, he was just in the iridescent waterproof leggings he'd worn yesterday and a matching crop top, converse with a vaporwave palm tree on them, a bracelet made of small shells and coral, and opal earrings shaped like shark's teeth. His hair was tied and he wore little makeup, like he sometimes did when going to the gym, but he just did it today because he felt like it. "Did you guys really find Targ just for little ol' me?"

2

Brokuk did a cheesy little ta'al back, almost looking like a fool but he managed to do it successfully AND not drop his string of lights again! "Dude, that's a totally good name! Cook Bro..." He said, laughing as he looked over at said Cook Bro.

"Dude, it so is! I should make a name plate with that on it," Chadrix said, nodding to his question. "Of course we did! Here, it's just about ready - hot, but still ready," he smiled as he put some of the Targ on a plate with some of the Yorkshire pudding beside it, and passed it to Allan.

Allan chuckled as he took the plate and handed it to Eshen. "Sounds just like me," he said with a goofy little wink, before giving him a kiss on the cheek in greeting because that's just what friends do! "Believe me though, Chadrix spent forever finding it, although Dudesek just happened to know a good place for it and just like that, we found good Targ just in time."

He laughed regally behind a glove at Allan's little joke, winked in return, then returned the kiss. Very platonic. Or was it? He'd spent all night when Allan stayed over at Renakir's (after they got up to their usual shenanigans) going in circles about what it all meant, an ultimately fruitless exercise. He'd spent the rest of the time cuddling Allan like he was some sort of clingy young lover. It was kind of embarrassing, actually. "Sounds like you had to really hunt for it," Eshen said, taking the plate, his keen Klingon nose smelling the meat so strongly it felt like he was eating it already. "Seriously, thanks. Of course I love cooking for other people, but I do love it when other people cook for me." He didn't eat immediately, so the food could cool a bit, though he took his gloves off since it was Targ and Klingons often ate with their hands.

And who ate barbeque without their hands, Targ or not? You had to be awfully bougie to, that's for sure. Chadrix laughed at Eshen's joke heartily, it was a very good joke after all. "Of course! It means a lot to us that you're here, so of course we're going to cook for you," he was about to say it was because Eshen meant a lot to Allan, but he figured that was already an obvious fact. They'd talked about it quite a bit before Eshen had gotten here, after all. "If you need anything else at all, just let us know."

It was then that Brokuk finally finished with the lights and ran over, a small box in his palm. "Oh! Dude, dude. I got you - well, I made these, actually, I get bored and work with metal sometimes, it's like working with rocks but like, well. I did that already for... okay, okay. So, dude. First I made you these," he slid the box over to Eshen, although he wasn't sure why he was giving to him now when Eshen was eating barbeque and his hands were messy, but hey. It didn't matter, the rose-shaped grey earrings inside could be cleaned off anyways!

Funnily enough, Eshen was bougie, he was just also Klingon. "Oh? A creative hobby? Brokuk, give me a rest, you're already attractive." Passions were something he admired greatly in other people. Probably why he liked Allan and Nalas so much - they were both quite passionate, about their interests and in general. He took the box with his clean hands, since he hadn't actually started eating yet, and opened it. "Oh! Brokuk, these are beautiful. I'm glad you thought to make them for me." He put one on, then looked at Allan. "Maybe I should put the other one on you, since you'll steal it from me eventually anyway."

"Of course, dude! I love making little pieces like this, it's really fun. Next step of course is making a really cool rock band where I make these for all the band members and am the lead drummer. Chadrix can't do music for shit, though, but like." He smiled warmly in Chadrix's direction, "That's why we're married, of course. Because we kinda just do everything really well together. And, uh, cause it's totally a business thing." Sure.

Allan laughed, looking at Eshen and the earrings and then looking away. "Whaaaat? No, never, I don't... I don't ever steal things from you," he laughed, and thought of a joke he could make, but held against it considering his discussion with Brokuk and Chadrix earlier about everything. "Actually, though, I think you're the one who stole something from me first, so."

Eshen raised a brow at 'totally a business thing', but made no further comment. Sounds like someone was in denial! Couldn't be him. Nope. "I did? Oh, yes, it was a shirt, back during the sleepover, I think." Chronologically that wasn't far back, but it felt like ages ago. Sometimes it felt like he'd known Allan forever. He hooked the meat with a claw. Skewer? No need. His fingers were the skewers. He took a bite and made a small noise of pleasure - delicious! And definitely actual Targ and not some kind of fake. Some places liked to brag that they'd managed to acquire meat of the fearsome Targ, then any Klingon worth their salt could just have a bite and call them out. Never underestimate a Klingon's sense of taste, especially when it came to meat. "Me and Allan are in our own little band, you know. Maybe you could collab with us sometime."

Brokuk's eyes lit up with excitement. "Oh, really?? What's the band called?"

"Yes, you did," It was almost two whole months ago! Allan laughed. Then he thought about Brokuk's question. "Well, uh, we don't actually have a name yet! But we need to soon, if we want to uh, have people listen to the song we wrote at our birthday party. Which, by the way, if you can take the day off, you guys are totally invited to. Our birthdays are somehow only three days apart." (edited)

"Really? Only three days?" Chadrix said as he sat down with three plates in his hands that he carried oh so skillfully, handing them to Allan, then Brokuk, then setting the one down in front of him, eating a piece of the Yorkshire pudding before speaking again. "That's crazy, dude, it's like you're meant for eachother or something," as friends, duh. "Me and Brokuk are like..." He did some quick math in his head, and then gasped. "Bro! Our birthdays are only 69 days apart!!"

2

Eshen laughed, then felt an urge to tell Men that, even though he wouldn't understand the joke at all. "Is one of them on April the 20th at all?" And did they know the human calendar? Well, Allan probably would. Eshen quickly leaned towards Allan and put the earring on him before his hands got too messy, then took the liberty of brushing his hair out of his face. He still needed that haircut. "Let us know if you have any suggestions, by the way. We really need to just... Sit down and brainstorm when we get back, I think."

"Oh my God, yeah, Brokuk's is April 20th... dude..." Allan laughed, leaning forwards to let Eshen put the earring in his ear. "That's crazy, actually. Bro, your birthday is 4/20 in the human calendar. Just so ya know."

"BRO, NO WAY!!" Brokuk shouted, laughing as he had to put his drink down to avoid spilling it everywhere. "No way bro. No way..." He shook his head. "Oh, I'll let you know! Brainstorming is always good, though. That's how I come up with most of my ideas."

"4/20, huh? Interesting." Chadrix said, nodding as he finished his plate and got up to get a small bag of treats, bringing it over to Eshen. "You can have these whenever, I made a lot, but - I thought it would be fun to try and make different kinds of scones."

"Really?" Eshen said. It was hard to tell, but he was actually feeling slightly more subdued than usual, but such a coincidence still surprised him very outwardly. He took the scones from Chadrix. "Thanks, dear, you're a man after my own heart." That was a joke, though he did feel quite the affinity for the man in a hobbyist chef solidarity sort of way. "You really did your research into - what did I call it? Homey English food. I feel a little nostalgic. I don't suppose you made any jam or clotted cream to have with them?"

Chadrix smiled as Eshen complimented him, and maybe the slightest of blushes came to his cheeks. "Yes! And, uh," he didn't look embarrassed, per say, but just a little flushed. "I maybe did put a few jars of jam in there. Let me - or I suppose, Allan since you'll be leaving soon, who will then tell me - how they are, so I can see if the recipe needs refinement." He always wanted to improve!

"Oh! Speaking of leaving soon and brainstorming, we should probably arrange to do that when we're both back, but.." Allan pulled out another small box and slid it across the table. "I technically didn't make these, but I came up with the... concept? So they're still from me, really." Inside were another set of earrings, though this time made from geodes the with jade green gems inside.

YES

(edited)

"Another pair? For me?" He said, in slight disbelief. "This is so - you know, a while before you came on board, and I didn't vary my style as often, I used to have a thing about wearing jade earrings? You must be quite attuned to me indeed!" He'd make a joke about them having mind melded, but that was even more scandalous than hand holding. Would be technically possible, but he wasn't sure it was something he ever wanted to do with anyone since they might feel the same pain he felt all the time but without the tolerance for it. He put one earring on himself, then the other Allan, then looked at him with a warm smile for just slightly too long. "We've ended up quite coordinated, Allan. Who made them?Actually - hey, come here - and you two, too." Then he leaned forward and hugged Allan.

"Yes! For you, silly," Allan smiled, and was honestly very glad that they were at least ~attuned~ or whatever the word was! Allan knew it. Barely. He wondered for a moment just how many words he would learn with Eshen. An infinite amount of words, surely. He laughed when the other earring was put on himself, because of course. "Wonder whose responsibility that is," he smiled warmly back at him, for slightly 'too long', but to hell with the rules, really! And then, of course, hugged him back, and Brokuk and Chadrix of course joined in. [D] And they had a very good group hug! After the group hug, Allan gave them each flower crowns made from beach roses that grew near the house, and then with them all wearing said flower crowns, he asked if they all could watch the sunset together, which they did. Four guys, sitting very close to eachother on the waterfront, watching the sun go down with arms around eachother in pairs because actually... they were gay. Very gay.

1