"Captain Ezra… are you okay?" Aurien asked, his voice wavering. "Why aren't you saying anything…?"
His eyes widened as realization hit him. "Did you hit your head? Should I call someone?"
Aurien moved closer, crouching fully now, his concern unmistakable.
Ezra noticed it then, distantly, strangely.
Aurien had grown.
Not that he shouldn't have.
They were the same age.
Time did that to people.
But standing this close, it was impossible not to notice.
Broader shoulders.
A steadier presence.
Someone who no longer looked like the fragile prince Ezra remembered.
And then there was the scent.
Aurien smelled… good.
Calming.
Familiar.
Like cedarwood after rain.
Ezra's breath hitched.
Something inside him stirred, pulling, aching in a way that made his thoughts blur. The heat in his body surged, sharp and needy, and his instincts screamed louder than reason.
'I want…' Ezra thought weakly. 'I really want…'
Ezra's body moved.
