Coye Vol 2 Ch 12

Coye walked into Suzette’s kitchen for the first time and found that it doubled as a dining room. There was a rectangular wooden table with one chair tucked into each side. On top of the table was such a wide array of breakfast food that Coye was impressed with Suzette for pulling it off on such short notice.

It couldn’t have been longer than twenty minutes since he left, yet Suzette had prepared pancakes, sausage, bacon, scrambled eggs, orange slices, and more. It also came served alongside a piping hot pot of coffee that smelled bitter and wondrous.

Everything looked positively mouth-watering, Coye only now realizing how hungry he was after passing out from all the vigorous sex.

His stomach growled as he pulled out a seat and smiled at Suzette, who was just now untying her white apron and hanging it on a silver hanger on the wall.

“Thank you so much, Suzette... this is all... so nice...” he sighed dreamily.

Coye was feeling a little out of place, having just slept over at his new lover’s house, only for her to go out of her way and grace him with such amazing-looking food. Could life get any better?

“Oh, this? This isn’t anything special,” she smiled and took up the pot of coffee to pour him a full cup. Afterward, she added the sugar she knew he enjoyed, not knowing that a second pair of eyes were watching the white squares dissolve into the black liquid with a vested interest.

Suzette was lying, as this breakfast was rather special indeed. She pulled out all the stops to appeal to him.

She woke up this morning to find many surprises awaiting her, but the biggest surprise of all was that everything that happened with Coye the night before wasn’t a dream and that he still slumbered peacefully beside her.

One good thing happening to her wasn’t enough to overwrite Suzette’s skewed and pessimistic outlook on life. Rather than being happy about what happened, she was more determined than ever to ensure Coye remained interested in her.

Thus, she worked herself up in a panic and summoned all of her culinary skills to prepare a feast fit for the Duke of Arrark himself, maybe even the King of Karnalle. Her endeavors were successful, and Suzette proved singlehandedly to Coye that the power of a housewife is not to be trifled with.

He felt somewhat emotional that she went to such lengths to provide for him, and the smile on his face was proof enough to Suzette that she had done her job. Coye hadn’t even had a bite yet, and he was already grinning ear to ear, unable to hold himself back.

“Darling, are you alright?” Suzette laughed gently and sat down on the seat nearest to him. “You look like you’ve never seen a homecooked meal before.”

‘She’s right, you know. Say something! You’re just doing that creepy stare you do when you get all emotional.’

Coye blushed and regained composure, straightening out and forcing himself to take a bite of toast that had been buttered to perfection. “S-Sorry, I, um... mostly just eat at the Guild. The food’s not bad, but it’s all made fast and cheap, you know? The cooks have to feed a bunch of hungry adventurers...”

Suzette clicked her tongue, “If you were smarter, you would’ve let me start feeding you sooner.”

Lowering his head and scratching behind his ear, he stared into his coffee. “I thought that I’d just be a bother, a-and that you were just trying to be nice to me... I didn’t know you were trying to, um, get my attention...”

Deep inside, the woman was irked to hear this but managed to keep a neutral face. “Is that so?” She masked her inner thoughts with a non-committal statement and a sip of her black coffee, a robust blend imported from the desert Realm of Kissuara.

Coye didn’t need Shayla’s emotional insight to tell him that reminding Suzette of how dense he was as she tried to woo him would only annoy her further. He got that well enough from the cold look in her warm eyes.

“Ahaha... yeah, and even before I became an adventurer, most of my life was spent living in the Bellepar Timberlands, training with my father. He didn’t cook for me, I had to provide for myself... and I’m, ah, not a very good cook...”

The irritation faded out of Suzette’s mind as her doting nature took over. “Surely you can’t be serious. What about your mother? Didn’t she ever cook for you?”

He shook his head. “No, um... all I ever had was my dad.”

Motherly impulses; activated. Suzette felt a warmness in her breast and shortness of breath, her need to dote on this poor boy rising by the second.

Shayla was feeling it, too, and she started to massage his scalp. ‘Poor guy,’ she sighed.

“Oh, Darling... I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to-”

Not understanding why both girls acted so sympathetic and kind, Coye tilted his head. “Oh,” he then realized the likely conclusion that they came to and felt like an idiot. “My mom isn’t dead or anything, um, I just don’t really know what’s going on with her. Never met her.”

Both Suzette and Shayla were relieved if irritated that his phrasing had led them to assume the worst, but having an absent mother was hardly that different from having a dead one. They felt dramatic surges in both of their protective sides as a result.

Shayla wanted to support Coye like a cool older sister harder than ever before, and Suzette obviously became even more maternally inclined when she looked upon this cutie, who was most likely suffering a severe deficiency of love and affection.

“Never? Really?” Suzette asked, disbelief covering her voice.

“Not that I remember. Dad says she stuck around for a few years to make sure I was taken care of, and then she left.”

‘That would definitely explain a thing or two...’ Shayla cupped her chin, playing armchair psychologist. She wondered if Coye’s problems with women stemmed not just from his isolated training but from his lack of a mother figure.

Then again, Shayla had a mother who didn’t contribute positively to her own childhood, so what did she know?

Suzette knew it wasn’t her place to judge a woman she’d never met before, but she couldn’t help feeling resentment on Coye’s behalf over his mother. How could she have ever abandoned this precious child? She bit the distaste down, knowing it was improper and that there were circumstances she wasn’t privy to.

Drinking down more of her coffee to stable her nerves, Suzette bit down some of the ruder things she would’ve liked to say and instead told the boy, “...Well, that’s too bad, Darling. I hope that from now on, you’ll come to see me whenever you’re feeling in need of a little motherly love.”

‘I knew she was kinky, but that sounds like an invitation to call her ‘mommy’ if I’ve ever heard one...’ Shayla smirked.

Coye blushed at the thought of calling Suzette’ mommy,’ but he didn’t recoil at the prospect, either. A part of him had his concerns, though, and after enjoying a sharp-tasting orange slice, he put them out there.

“I feel like if I went to you for that sort of thing, t-then that might make things weirder between us...”

‘Hey, hey! Don’t draw attention to it. You’re just gonna ruin the mood!’ Shayla bopped him on his head, which he ignored.

Suzette’s response was cold but not devoid of emotions. She simply asked, “Are things weird for you, Darling?”

“Ah- no, I... um...”

She reached out and took his hand, holding it tight. “This is all new to me, I’m afraid. If you’re ever uncomfortable with something and I don’t notice, then please, by all means, Darling- tell me.”

Coye could feel the honesty behind her words, and it humbled him and covered his heart with warmth. “I’m sorry... I thought that you might’ve thought this was weird on some level, a-and I was trying to be considerate...”

It was all the older woman could do to hold back an uproarious outburst of laughter. “Weird? For me? I’ve wanted this since the moment I first met you, you silly boy.”

‘Bit creepy, but it’s not like that’s anything new...’

He opened his mouth in wonder, looking innocent as a baby deer gazing on an open field. “Really...?”

Suzette giggled and broke eye contact with him before the cuteness became too much. “Yes, really.”

“Then... what about when I’m not feeling like I need motherly love, but I want to see you anyway? Can I still come over then?”

Shayla and Suzette paused and looked straight at him, taken aback by Coye’s unintentional forwardness.

“...Of course you can, Darling.” Suzette laughed like it was the most obvious answer in the world but fanned herself with her hand to try and cull the tide of her rising blush. This boy was dangerous, she reminded herself.

‘I don’t fucking get it,’ Shayla shook her head out of irritation. ‘Most of the time with girls, you’re a mumbling, stuttering mess, but like... one out of ten times, you come up with the best thing you could say in any given situation. You really gotta tap into this more often, Gods...’

Coye didn’t follow along. He was too happy to be holding hands with Suzette that most of the Pixie’s advice was lost on him. As a simple boy, this was enough for him.

After that, Coye and Suzette enjoyed their breakfast together. He found that he didn’t mind sharing a meal like this.

She even spoiled him a few times, lifting some pancakes to his lips with her fork and even dabbing his chin with a handkerchief whenever he had a stray morsel missed its mark. Although this was embarrassing, it also felt nice to be doted on, so he relished it every time it happened.

When they both finished, Suzette neatly stacked all of the plates and coffee cups and took them to a large bucket of water on her countertop, where she would let them sit and soak.

“That was amazing...” Coye rubbed his satisfied tummy packed with vital adventuring fuel, feeling like he could take on the world. While pancakes weren’t the most nutritious start to the day, the love contained within them made up for that.

“I-I feel like an idiot for not taking you up on this sooner...” he added absentmindedly.

“Good.” Suzette returned harshly, only for him to stare back awkwardly. She then realized her mask dropped and, in a panic, changed topics. “Ah, I’m only teasing, Darling! Anyway, I think you and I have a few things to talk about... most important of which is your condition. How are you feeling? I notice that you didn’t become uncontrollably aroused after I gave you a little tease earlier, and I don’t know whether to be disheartened or relieved about that...”

“Er-” Coye felt like his answer would land him in hot water no matter what he said, but he stumbled his way through it. “Y-You looked really... really good, but I’m not feeling ‘it’ as strongly today...”

“By ‘it,’ you mean the urge to debase yourself like a filthy beast?” Suzette smirked.

“No, t-that’s...!”

She giggled, “You’re so predictable, my Darling. Relax, I’m happy for you... though I suppose this means I don’t have to drag you to a healer after all, doesn’t it?”

“Yeah, and it’s all thanks to you...” he sighed out of contentment, then smiled.

Meanwhile, Shayla kept a pouty ‘hmph’ to herself that she would have loved to express.

“Mm, yes... I suppose I did do most of the work, didn’t I?” Suzette purred.

“T-That’s not what I meant...!” He blushed, fidgeting awkwardly in his seat.

“Now, now... there’s nothing to be embarrassed about, Darling. Thanks to you, I discovered I rather like being in charge.”

‘That’s one way to put it,’ Shayla laughed, remembering just how rough Suzette got with him toward the end.

“Well... that’s good, at least...” Coye looked away, trying to hide his frustration.

“Indeed,” Suzette took his hand stealthily and squeezed it tight, surprising him. “That’s why even if you’re a naughty boy who likes it when women walk all over you, I’ll be more than happy to indulge you.”

His mouth falling slack as he stared straight at her, Coye’s body was beset with sudden chills of excitement. Already he began imagining all sorts of lewd activities that they might get up to in the future, but he was surprised to find his body did not react as violently as it usually did.

Then, Suzette reached down and groped between his legs to confirm it for herself.

‘WHOA there, someone is getting a little handsy!’

Coye jolted out of his seat and covered himself, blushing. “W-W-What are you...!?”

“I wanted to see what would happen if I filled your head with naughty thoughts, Darling. You really are all better, it seems. That, or you’ve managed to gain some proper control over yourself.”

He grumbled and stared at the floor. “I could get harder if I wanted to...”

“Yes, yes, that’s not the point. I’m only saying that the fact that you didn’t get instantly hard the moment I teased and touched you means progress has been made! Really, I’m so relieved...” Suzette smiled whole-heartedly and clutched her heart, sighing.

Coye knew he was being teased, but seeing her feel emotional over his well-being helped him move past it and sit back down, even though he again started pouting.

It didn’t last long, though, as optimism won out.

“I could do without the teasing right now, but... I’m still thankful to you, Suzette. I can’t remember the last time I slept so well, and I can already feel that today is the day... I’m gonna get back to work and start going on more serious adventures again!”

‘Finally!’ Shayla pumped her tiny fists in the air. ‘Adventure and action, here we come!’

Suzette had a more melancholic response to his declaration than expected. “Wonderful, Darling... I’m so happy for you, truly, and yet... part of me is sad that you’re about to go off on your own after everything that happened between us.”

She then sighed a wistful sigh, saying, “Easy come, easy go...”

It had the intended effect, and Coye frowned as he reached out and grabbed Suzette by her hand. “I-I’m not gonna go too far or anything... I usually only ever accept quests in the general area around Cransmere, anyway. As long as you’re ok with me, I’ll be back... I promise I will, I-”

“Mm, you’ve really got to work on knowing when to man up, my sweet little Darling. Don’t give me this ‘as long as you’re ok with me’ nonsense- I’ve already told you that nothing would make me happier than for you to become a bigger part of my life. If you don’t show some spine from time to time, I might become cross with you, Coye.”

His heart beat as she said his name in an accusatory yet teasing tone, but the words sunk in. Suzette was right. He nodded his head and met her piercing gaze.

“...Ok, yeah. No matter what happens, I won’t be gone for long. I’ll come and see you again real soon.”

This perked her right up, shifting the mood considerably. “Excellent. I expect you to pop in at least a few times a week whenever you’re not off questing. Otherwise... I’m afraid this poor old woman will only grow lonelier and lonelier without you by my side...”

‘She sure is good at getting those sympathy points... man, maybe I should take notes...’

Although Suzette meant it as a joke, Coye felt her faux desperation had some truth behind it. He remembered that Shayla advised him against bringing up the subject, but the frequent allusions Suzette made about her loneliness only made him curious.

His eyes turned towards the golden wedding band on her left hand.

“Things must have been so rough for you without your husband...” he thought aloud.

Suzette blinked as if the boy suddenly started speaking Elvish. “Husband?”

Coye stared right back at her for an uncomfortable period until the widow remembered that she was one, her eyes darting to her ring. “Oh, yes, that husband. How silly of me.”

There was another period of eerie silence that sucked the warmth and happiness from the room. Suzette removed the ring and tossed it over her shoulder into a rubbish bin during this silence, not looking away from Coye for even a second.

“Don’t worry about that old thing, Darling!” She laughed inappropriately. “As far as I’m concerned, it never happened!”

“Uh...” There were so many things he wanted to say in response to that, but he knew none of them would do justice to the surreal feeling he felt brewing under the surface.

Coye settled on silence.

‘I... what? No, seriously. What?’ Shayla joined the boy in his confusion, struggling to parse the bizarre lack of emotions from Suzette.

“It never happened,” Suzette reiterated in a more threatening tone that didn’t seem aimed at Coye but rather at herself.

‘Baby, I’m running out of funny ways to ask you if you’re sure about this chick...’ the Pixie shrugged, only half-joking.

Not once had Suzette shown any signs of hostility towards the boy, so Shayla figured she would just have to get used to the woman having these strange outbursts.

“R-Right,” Coye nodded his head complacently until Suzette calmed herself down and forgot she acted out.

Suzette tilted her head, unsure of why the mood had seemingly frozen over between them but had just the idea to pick things up. “Hey, I’ve still got a little bit of time before I really need to get serious about opening up the store, so how about you open up those cards I gave you before you head off to work?”

‘Oh yeah. I almost forgot about those...’

Coye did, too, not that he could be blamed given everything that transpired. He reached into the pocket of his trousers and fished out the two crinkly packages of RealMonster cards from the day before.

“Are you sure? You probably have a lot of shelf-stocking and, um, inventory checking to do...”

“I’m sure. Rather, I’d like to know whether or not you end up enjoying them before you leave.” Like with the special breakfast, Suzette still planned to use every tool she had to keep Coye’s interest.

She would take note if he was receptive to the addictive properties these paper rectangles seemed to possess and act accordingly.

‘Might as well get it over with, yeah. Not like the Guild is going anywhere.’ Shayla agreed though she tried not to sound too interested.

Coye buckled under the peer pressure coming at him from two angles and looked closer at the packages. On each cover was a monster that, although he had never personally encountered one, he recognized it just as any other Karnallian would.

It was none other than a fierce Red Dragon from the Slitherspires, its wings spread wide and its roaring jaws hissing columns of fire from behind dagger-sharp teeth. The package of cards clearly said ‘RealMonsters - Monsters of Karnalle’, so Coye assumed the Dragon was meant to be a representative of sorts out of all the monsters that could be found in the Realm of his birth.

Coye fumbled with the package for a little bit, ultimately turning to Suzette for help. “How do I-”

“Just pull at the crease on the back, Darling,”

“Ah,” he felt stupid but was appreciative that Shayla didn’t feel the need to call him out for being such.

Doing as he was told caused the first package to slide open effortlessly, but what happened next took him and his partner by complete surprise. He imagined that the cards would pour out onto his hand when he tipped it over, but that wasn’t what happened.

Instead, light shone from inside, and the deep pounding of unfamiliar music raged into the world around him. It was a powerful and deep Dwarven chanting. Though he didn’t understand the lyrics, their meaning transcended language.

This melody filled his heart of hearts with the thrill of adventure, the urge to battle against strong foes, and the inexplicable urge to use his hard-earned gold to purchase more Dwarven collectibles.

“What the heck?!” Coye almost jumped out of his seat.

‘Hot damn! Maybe these things aren’t just for kids, after all!’ Shayla watched excitedly, feeling the effects of the music just as strongly as Coye did.

“Just watch,” Suzette grinned knowingly, having already seen this play out with several other adventurers and collectors alike.

A small explosion resulted in nine rectangles of light flying up into the air in front of him from the light spilling out of the packaging. They formed a ring, one rectangle in the middle while the complementary eight orbited around it, creating mystery and intrigue as to what the center card could be.

As Coye’s eyes stared in childlike wonder at the low-level enchantment, the roaring and epic music came to an ambient standstill. The thundering voices of Dwarven Gaming Lords in their halls of shuffled cards and rolling dice sang in muttered, echoing whispers that beckoned the boy to reach out and take his prize.

Coye didn’t know where to start. He was transfixed.

“The one in the middle is rarer,” Suzette advised. “From what I’ve seen, most people save that one for last.”

Grabbing fluffy tufts of Coye’s hair and pulling tight, Shayla urged him, ‘Come on, come on! Grab one already!’

It turned out that Pixies were even more susceptible to the flashy song and dance that the Dwarves put into their packaging, as her excitement raced throughout her.

His self-restraint was already wearing thin, so he needed little encouragement from the Fae to do what she wanted. Coye reached and plucked one of the eight lesser cards from the sky.

Once lodged between his thumb and forefinger, the epic chanting picked up again and crescendoed to new heights. A fresh dopamine rush fulminated through both boy and Pixie as the light rectangle exploded in his hand, replacing itself with a single playing card.

Coye inspected it in greater detail, his heart still thumping even as the music slowed for the second time. Most of the card’s surface was covered up by a large piece of artwork surrounded by a colored border. In the top left corner was the card’s name, in the top right a circle with a single-digit numerical value, and at the bottom third of the card, there was text on top of four boxes that also had different numbers.

Even knowing that this particular set of cards was based on monsters from his Homerealm, Coye was shocked to find that of all cards he could’ve pulled, his first was one that he was all too familiar with.

“No way,” he chuckled. “It’s a Pigman.”

The art depicted a hulking pig-human hybrid that was in the middle of eating a questionable and bloody snack, drool and viscera dripping down from its tusked jowls onto its rotund and bulging belly.

Behind it was the unmistakable backdrop of the Gnarled Woods, which was rendered with such accuracy that just looking at it was enough for Coye to feel a phantom hunger scraping around in his throat.

Coye didn’t understand what any of the numbers meant, but he did approve of the text above them. ‘This card can target allies. When a Monster is defeated by this card, [Devour] it and gain +1 ATK.’

Assuming ‘ATK’ meant ‘attack,’ Coye thought this aptly represented the hungering hircine horrors.

Suzette clasped her hands together and smiled brightly, doing her best to nurture the interest he had. “Well, how about that! Interesting, isn’t it, Darling?”

“Yeah,” he nodded and gulped, already eager to pluck the rest of the levitating cards. “I can kinda see why these are so popular with adventurers, now. It makes me wonder if I’ll see other monsters I know, and when I think about how I might see ones I’ve never even heard of, well, t-that’s kind of exciting, too...”

Shayla wasn’t pleased to see one of her natural predators represented on the playing card, but it didn’t dim her curiosity. ‘I wonder if there are any Fairy or Pixie cards...?’ She wondered.

Coye was interested in finding that out, too, so he stopped holding back and reached for the next card, then the next, and so on. The music swelled with every new Slime, Goblin, or other low-level threat pulled from the seven provinces, each new reveal stringing him along and making him smile.

When all that remained was the central card- the rare one- the rhythm of adventure picked up for one last tremendous fanfare before dying down entirely as it manifested between his fingers.

It was a Salt Golem, a hulking magic construct that patrolled what looked like a faded castle long past the age of its glory. Coye figured this must be the Palace of the Old Salt Lord, the most famous dungeon of the Lillance province.

For whatever reason, this card was shiny, which made up for the fact that Coye was hoping he’d see another monster he recognized.

Just when Coye thought the package of cards had finished with its magic song and dance, it pulled off one last trick. The little scraps of light lingering in the air coalesced into a single point, merging and creating a small, diamond-shaped chip that fell onto the table before him.

“Huh?” Coye picked it up with his free hand and looked to Suzette for guidance.

Suzette was glad she’d read the product manual as she explained, “I’m sure you’re familiar with Chroma Crystals?”

“Yeah, never seen a flat one, though...” Coye knew about the small gems that could change the colors of items, from weapons and armors to everyday things like clothing and or even people’s hair, but he wasn’t sure why he’d ever want to recolor any of the cards he had just acquired.

“It’s genius, really,” Suzette sighed at the fantastic sales gimmick those crafty Dwarves came up with, sounding almost jealous. “Each pack comes with one or two of those little things, and if you use ten of them on a normal card, it will turn nice and shiny just like that rare one.”

‘Damn,’ while not savvy with money, Shayla could appreciate the grift. On top of the collectible nature of the cards themselves, including yet another incentive to buy more packs was crazy smart, in a scummy way. ‘And here I thought I was tricky...’

Coye’s eyes sparkled with innocent possibility, unaware that his psychology was being manipulated. “That’s awesome...! Hey, wait a second, what happens when you try and use them on a rare card that’s already shiny?”

Suzette smirked, ready to reveal the most ingenious part of the whole racket. “They thought of that, too. Using thirty crystals on any rare cards will make the card enchanted, and from then on, that card’s art will move around like it’s alive.”

‘Fucking thirty crystals?! You’d have to buy, uh...’ Shayla paused and tried for a second to perform the math but gave up not long after. ‘Like, a crapload of cards to save up that many chips!’

“That’s so cool!” Coye imagined such an enchantment, the financial reality of what it would take to achieve one soaring over his head like the Red Dragon on the packages.

Suzette urged Coye to continue with his second pack, and he repeated the process all over again. The music returned, as did the light, and most importantly, the adrenaline pumping through his veins with each card he unveiled.

Coye didn’t end up with anything else from the Gnarled Woods in his second pack. That upset him, but it made sense since it was just one out of many of Karnalle’s dangerous locations the card creators could draw inspiration from.

His second rare card was an impressive-looking Echoran Hive Queen, a gigantic bee floating proudly in front of a honeycomb backdrop. Coye wondered what it would be like to fight such a magnificent and frightening thing and found himself glad that Echora was so far away.

After collecting his two Chroma Crystals, Coye was done and felt relatively empty inside as the dopamine faded. As he stared at the space where the floating cards were moments before, Suzette spoke up and leaned closer to him, placing her hand on his thigh under the table.

“Well? What do you think now that you’ve opened a few packs, Darling? Is this a hobby you might be interested in?” She asked, sounding rather desperate.

Shayla picked up that Suzette seemed a little too invested in getting Coye to like these things. Her first suspicion was that Suzette was trying to shake the boy down for gold similar to Dorothy, but that didn’t make sense given everything that had happened.

She was relieved when Suzette proved her wrong, understanding that the woman just wanted more excuses for Coye to visit.

“I might be willing to start selling you packs of cards at just a little bit over the wholesale price if you like them. I wouldn’t mind.” Suzette assured him with a sweet smile.

Coye held on to the eighteen cards and shuffled through them. There were so many monsters, along with a few spells and weapons, each one showcasing amazingly painted art... yet, as much as he enjoyed them, he felt a stinging sensation of doubt coming from the back of his mind.

“Is... um... is this really ok?” He asked, unsure of how he should phrase his concerns.

‘What are you talking about, baby?’ Shayla asked, frowning as a result of feeling his emotions.

“Of course it’s ok,” Suzette laughed, the idea that she wouldn’t want to spoil him downright silly to her. “I buy boxes of them in large quantities, and then I sell them for four gold, so-”

Coye interrupted the economic explanation and shook his head. “No, I mean, um... I’ve never really had a hobby before, so I don’t know what I’m supposed to do with these...”

“What? That’s... no good. What do you usually do for fun, Darling?”

He shrugged, feeling embarrassed that he didn’t really have an answer. “Train? Take care of my gear? Um... oh, I like listening to Bards, if that counts?”

He’d always been like this, and Coye couldn’t even remember what kind of toys he had as a child. So much of his life had been devoted to training that the idea of picking up a new interest and spending money solely for the sake of his own amusement was something he’d never considered before.

Shayla felt no small amount of pity for her partner as she was his opposite, a being who only wanted to have a good time and be entertained. Wanting desperately to comfort him, she was beaten to the punch by Coye’s new, doting mother-figure-slash-sort-of-girlfriend.

“Coye... of course it’s alright for you to have a hobby, you poor thing...” Suzette stood, kneeled before him, and hugged him tight to her chest before leaving the room. “Wait here for just a moment.”

“Ah, no, you don’t have to-” Coye was afraid she would bring him more free packs of cards, but Suzette refused to hear any of his protests on her way out.

‘What did I tell you? Let her spoil you.’ Shayla reminded him.

Coye held back his words, and in just a moment, Suzette returned from her store carrying a few things in her arms that she placed on the table before him. There was a large folder and an envelope to go along with it.

“Um, I didn’t bring any money with me...” he spoke up despite knowing how futile it would be.

Shayla rolled her eyes at him while Suzette merely sighed. “If you hadn’t already guessed, Darling, these are a present.”

“...Yeah, I figured,”

‘Stop sulking and thank the pretty lady for the free shit,’ Shayla pulled at his hair, having none of his shy femboy attitude.

“T-Thank you,” he complied, wincing at the sharp pain surging from his scalp. “What are those?”

“Take a look,” Suzette opened the envelope to reveal many thick paper stacks that each had nine notches for inserting smaller pieces of paper. She flipped open the folder next, and through a clutching mechanism, Suzette rigged things so that the stacks of paper were fixed to the folder. “This is a book for displaying your collection- assuming you want to build one.”

Suzette slid the book towards Coye, who thought about it for a moment and took the folder, hugging it to his chest with a warm grin.

‘Go on, big guy. What are you waiting for?.’

“...Alright, I’ll take it. Thank you so much.” He smiled, only for Suzette to simply shake her head at his attempt to show gratitude.

“You can thank me by filling that book up and enjoying yourself for once, Darling. Life is far too short for...” Suzette stopped and corrected herself. “Well, alright. Maybe that metaphor doesn’t apply to a half-elf like you, but you should still start having more fun with yourself.”

Her words struck a chord in him that, as a rule, he preferred not to dwell on. Coye pushed the thought of his lifespan far back into the depths of his mind, where it hopefully wouldn’t bother him.

In times like this, he forced himself to think positively.

“Sure, I’ll try. After my next adventure, I’ll be sure to come around and buy some more cards...”

Suzette held back her joy from showing, but the desire to celebrate her victory was strong. “See that you do,” she teased before standing up and leaning down to kiss the cute boy nice and deep.

She pulled away before they could get too into it, and Coye smiled up at her once it was done. “Now off with you, Darling. We’ve both got to get back to the daily grind.”

“You’re right,” Coye stood up and nodded, heading out. “I’ll be back!”

“Have a safe trip,” Suzette blew him a kiss, giving him one last excuse to blush before leaving the kitchen.

‘You better be planning to flirt with me enough to make up for all this lovey-dovey bullshit, you know.’ Shayla mumbled on their way out.

“Uh, sure?” Coye wasn’t too sure if she actually meant that or if it was just Shayla teasing him like usual, but too much was on his mind to determine the truth.

So much had happened, and he was still reeling from some of it, but Coye left the Darkwood General Store that morning with three things. He had a new lover, a new hobby, and most importantly of all, renewed vigor. He was filled with lively excitement for whatever came next, not knowing that fate was about to show its hand sooner than he expected.