Edited by: ASaltedFish
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Yang Saem finished his training at the Sentinel Association and went back to his apartment. Some time ago, he moved out of the workers' housing at Ellery's estate and moved to a place closer to the Association. He was on a training contract with the association to increase his chances of getting into the military. He didn't want a back door pass from his friends because he wanted to pass the exam with his own strength.
When he got back to his place, he saw Silv sitting on the sofa, scrolling through the social media app he had on his terminal.
Saem did see Silv's message about coming over after work, so he was not surprised.
"Silv, what do you want to eat? I will make it for you." Saem knew how to cook because he was worried about his little sister's diet. He hoped that the food he made would make her feel better.
Even though he knew how to cook, sometimes, he didn't like to cook for himself. At least he had Silv that he could cook for. Seeing his excited and joyful expression made cooking fun again.
"Hmm, I really like that chicken and broccoli lasagna you made a few months ago! Can you make that for me?"
Saem nodded while making his way to the kitchen. "I can make that right now since I have all the ingredients already."
Saem busied himself in the kitchen while Silv sat nearby, watching him cook and talking about his day. Saem responded from time to time, giving his reaction to some things, while listening to Silv talk most of the time. This didn't deter Silv from talking, something he enjoyed doing.
"You know, I was talking with Ellery, and I heard he and Akimitsu were talking about having a kid. Now that his brother and sister-in-law's kid is 3-years-old, Ellery thought it would be the perfect time to welcome a new addition to their family."
"They want to have a kid so early?" Saem was a bit confused. People with high spiritual energies lived for a long time, so they usually had a kid later rather than early in their life.
Silv nodded. "Yeah, I heard from Ellery that he wanted to have kids young so they could all spend time with each other for many more years to come. They are good financially and feel ready to be parents, so it should be fine. Akimitsu also said it would be fun to travel with the kids when they are a bit older. Seems to me that they got it all planned out."
"I agree. They are adults and know what they want. It's good they are able to come to a mutual decision when it comes to kids. I'm sure they will be good parents." Saem truly felt this way. Ellery and Akimitsu were good people, so the kids they raised would have similar beliefs and values.
"I envy them a bit. I want to find a good partner to be in a relationship with." Silv gave a sigh. He only envied Ellery, but was not jealous of him. He also felt that it was only natural for Ellery to find a suitable partner.
As for him… He liked Saem, but with everything that had happened to him, he didn't know if Saem even had the time or energy to like him! Plus, Saem hadn't shown any signs that he could like him, too. He was a bit scared that Saem would say no, and ruin their friendship…
Saem also thought similarly to Silv. He especially didn't want to destroy the friendship they had. He had lost a lot of people already; he didn't know if he could handle also losing Silv.
"I'm sure you will find that good partner you want." Saem wanted to confess to Silv when he got accepted into the First Fleet. Even if he was a bit scared, he knew that he could not hesitate and needed to push forward.
He wanted to have a stable job so he could support Silv in anything that he wanted to do.
Silv was a bit heartbroken when he heard Saem, but he didn't know if Saem said it because he knew about his feelings or if he was oblivious. But from what he knew about him, he felt it was more the latter than the former.
Still, sometimes he couldn't stop doubting himself. It was like a little demon was sitting on his shoulder, telling him that there was no way Saem could ever like him.
*****
A year later, Saem was standing in the exam room with other participants. Half of the people taking the three-day exam had left after the instructor called their names and told them to step out of the room.
The people left in the room knew that they were picked by the First Fleet, so they stood tall and had a lot of pride.
Saem, who ranked first on the exams, was in the front row, standing near the instructors.
The instructors who looked over the exams stood with their hands behind their backs, waiting for everyone to settle down and get into formation.
"Attention, recruits!" One of the instructors shouted.
All of the recruits got into formation, synchronously tapping their boots together, creating a loud echo throughout the room. It was to let the instructor know that he had their attention.
"I could say congratulations for being accepted into the First Fleet, but this is just the beginning of your journey. After today, you all will be the sword and shield for the Zevaria Empire, protecting our citizens from the Ineks! In three days, you will receive a notice from the logistics group. Until then, spend time with your loved ones and let them know about the next stage in your lives. You are all dismissed, and I will see you in three days!"
All the new members of the First Fleet gave a salute and then exited the testing site. Waiting for them outside of the building were their friends and family, hoping for their good news.
Saem was one of the first people to leave the building because he didn't want to keep Silve and his friends waiting. He didn't have to look very long because Ellery, Juniper, Silve, Liáng Huā and her husband were waiting in a VIP area surrounded by bodyguards. Liáng Huā left her baby with her parents so she could be there for her friend. Akimitsu and Edros were not able to show up, but they had already texted him with congratulations. They were the first to get the news of his success!
Half of the members who didn't make it had already left with their families and friends, so there weren't a lot of people waiting outside.
Silve was the first to see Saem and was jumping up and down, excited because he knew that Saem passed the exams and was an official member of the First Fleet.
"Saem!" Silve rushed over and jumped him into a hug. He was so excited, he forgot where he was and who he was with!
Saem also forgot for a moment that there were other people, hugging Silve tightly to make sure he didn't fall.
"Congratulations, Saem, I knew you could do it!" His arms were resting on his shoulders after their hug.
Saem held him steady by his hips. "Thank you, Silve."
Ellery and Liáng Huā had grins on their faces because they knew what was going on between those two. As for Liáng Huā's husband, he turned a blind eye to the events in front of him because he knew some inside gossip from Liáng Huā, and it was not his place to comment.
The only one who was a bit confused was Juniper, who wasn't good at reading social settings.
"Are you two dating?" Juniper's voice stopped Silve and Saem's excitement. "Have you two finally gotten together and didn't tell us?"
Silve looked over at his friends and then at Saem, who looked a little flustered. He couldn't stop himself from blushing, nor could he get himself to let go.
Ellery coughed to get everyone's attention. "Come, Juniper, my innocent cutie and Liáng Huā, let us go to the corner and let the love birds talk things out."
Juniper wanted to ask, 'So they are not together yet?', but Ellery patted him on the shoulder and brought him away. As for Liáng Huā and her husband, they both winked at Silve and Saem and went to stand with Ellery so they could explain things in more detail to Juniper, who knew they both liked each other but wasn't sure why they were not together yet.
The blush on both their faces could not be controlled, even when their friends left to give them space.
Silve's eyes darted from left to right, trying to ignore the awkwardness, but he still found his voice cracking when he said Saem's name. "So, you like me, Saem?"
Saem nodded. "I do… And you also like me?"
"Yeah… but I really thought you didn't like me."
"Eh? Why?" Saem couldn't understand how Silve could think that.
Silve saw that Saem was a bit clueless, so he explained his point of view. "Well, I thought you wanted some space after everything that's happened with your family. I thought you didn't have the emotional energy to think about liking someone, let alone being with someone. Not only that, but when I talked about finding a good husband, I… I was talking about you, but you were so clueless, you said I would be able to find someone someday!"
Saem could understand how Silve could think about him wanting some space, but he had always liked Silve, ever since they met; but at the beginning, he wasn't a sentinel, so he didn't feel like he was worthy of being by his side. To top it off, he was dealing with the grief of losing his parents and then his sister. He was afraid of losing Silve too, so he thought he could confess when he was strong enough to protect Silve.
As for saying that he would find a good husband, he meant it. Whether it be himself or someone else, it was hard for someone not to like Silve.
Silve was like a ray of sunshine, especially when he smiled. He was always supportive of his friends and family, never wanting them to go hungry or cold. Not only that, he was intelligent, hard-working, and empathetic. To him, Silve would always be perfect. Every day, he found something to like about him, even if it was small.
"I understand where you would think these things and… I'm sorry for not making my feelings and intentions clear." Saem needed to talk a lot, so he cleared his throat to make sure he didn't stumble too much. "I appreciate you giving me space and staying by my side to let me grieve. To be honest, I've liked you since we first met, but I was afraid to lose you as well. In the beginning, I was not a Sentinel, so I wanted to respect your decisions to find a Sentinel man…
"After I became a Sentinel and lost my little sister, the fear I had became stronger. If you weren't with me, maybe you would be safer… But then I realized if I wanted to be with you, I needed to be stronger too, so I decided that when I entered the First Fleet, I would confess my love for you, hoping that we could be together.
"So, Silve Forrest, since we both like each other, can we be in a relationship with the intention of marriage? I promise I will communicate better when it comes to how I am feeling. I promise to protect you and stay by your side for the rest of our lives. If you give me this chance, I will make sure that you will never go cold or hungry. If you don't want to…"
Silve, who listened to every word, felt like he was going to explode with all of his emotions. He was in tears, but he couldn't stop himself from smiling. He also had to cut Saem off because he didn't want him to get sidetracked about sad what-ifs that would never happen.
"I love you, Saem, I love you so much. I want to be with you forever, so yes, I want to be in a relationship with you with the intention of marriage." He nodded profusely while hugging Saem tightly. "There are no what-ifs with us. Let us be with each other every step of the way with no regrets."
The two hugged for quite a long time. The people around them heard their confessions and were happy for them, but did their best to give them some space and spend time with their family members who were able to get into the First Fleet.
As for Juniper, he finally understood what happened after Ellery's and Liáng Huā's meticulous explanations.
"Oh… So they like each other but never confessed. No wonder they looked a little embarrassed when I asked." Juniper felt a bit bad for putting them in that position. They should have been able to confess on their own terms, but he accidentally brought it out at an important occasion. "Should I apologize to them?"
Ellery looked over at Saem and Silve, who were hugging and having a heartfelt conversation, and then shook his head. "No, I think they would thank you after they are done. After all, you gave them the push they needed to become romantic partners."
"Oh, well, as long as I didn't mess things up for them."
"It's alright, Juniper! Look, they are almost done, so they should be coming over soon." Liáng Huā felt this whole thing was a bit amusing, but most importantly, she was happy that all of her friends found people that they loved. If they were happy, she was happy.
True to Ellery's words, Silve and Saem came over and thanked Juniper for giving them the push they needed. This finally made Juniper relieved, and he gave his congratulations once more, but this time, he included a congratulations for the start of their relationship.