Three days had passed since I'd somehow managed to process the fact that my girlfriend wasn't a god, or an eldritch abomination, but something far beyond either.
And now, here I was, crouched in the sand, building a sandcastle like none of that cosmic nonsense had ever happened. Anathasia had wandered off to look for seashells to decorate it with, insisting it needed "proper aesthetic enhancement."
I pressed the final tower into place using the bucket she'd conjured for me, when a faint glimmer of white flickered in the corner of my eye.
Her.
She walked toward me with a small bucket dangling from her hand, casually tucking a strand of her snow-white hair behind her ear before holding her sunhat in place. Her summer dress swayed softly with the breeze, catching the light in a way that made her look almost unreal.
Which... to be fair, she kind of was.
She paused a few steps away, one eyebrow raised.
"What's with that look?"
"What look?" I murmured, glancing at her before going back to decorating the sandcastle.
"That look. Y'know-like you can't believe what you're seeing."
"Ah, that?"
She nodded, then crouched across from me, setting the bucket down and pulling out a shell as she started decorating her side.
"Nothing special," I said. "I guess I was just... proud of myself?"
"Proud?" she echoed.
"Mhm. I mean—look at my first girlfriend, man."
"..."
"What?"
"Please don't say anything cringe," she muttered, her tone flattening as her expression went deadpan.
"What's cringe about saying those eight letters to my girlfriend?"
"It's sappy," she shot back, casually manifesting a small stick from thin air and poking me in the chest with it. "And I like it better when you show it through actions instead of words."
I blinked, her words hitting harder than I expected.
Right... guess I was trying too hard.
"Yeah..." I murmured, gently putting another shell on my side. "I wasn't really acting like myself, huh..."
The world seemed to quiet around us. Just me, her, and the sandcastle between us. And it reminded me, I didn't have to perform or pretend. Not with her. She was here because of who I already was.
"Though," she said suddenly, continuing to decorate her side, "I don't mind hearing them from time to time either."
She paused, lifting her head until her eyes met mine.
"I don't mind both," she added softly, that familiar smile forming. "As long as you don't lose yourself while doing it."
I nodded slowly, a small smile pulling at my lips.
For a moment, the world felt still, quiet, warm, and everything simply felt... right.
The next few days drifted by in a gentle blur after that.
The beach remained calm, Rania dropped by now and then, and each time she did, Anathasia wordlessly sent her somewhere else before she could even speak.
And currently, we were back at the house.
"Hey." Anathasia spoke up, holding a bowl of salad in one hand, the other resting on her hip as she stared at me. I was in the middle of cooking us something for the day.
"Why are there cucumbers here? I thought we agreed to NOT have these in this household."
I stopped and looked over.
"Oh. You're right."
"'Course I am. Why are these even here?"
I shrugged but took the bowl anyway.
"Maybe I mixed it up earlier. My bad. I'll make you another. Maybe wait in the living room while I fix this up?" I reached out and gently patted her head. "'Kay?"
Anathasia sighed, her shoulders drooping as I kept stroking her hair.
"Alright... everyone makes mistakes... so I guess..."
Then she took my wrist and suddenly nibbled on my finger, making me wince.
"...Athy, what exactly are you trying to do here?"
"I'm bored."
"Weren't you on your phone earlier?"
"I need attention."
"..."
I went silent, expression flattening.
"Don't look at me like I'm some troublesome kid, oi," she retorted, still holding onto my wrist.
"...well, at least you're honest about what you want," I muttered, mostly to myself.
Without another word, she leaned forward and pressed her cheek against my chest, arms looping around my waist. She was being all clingy again—needy, really. But I didn't exactly mind.
"You're acting really needy for someone who can apparently delete everything at will..."
"Shut up. Let me have this."
"What about your salad?"
"I can make it myself later," she replied, nuzzling against my chest. "And I was the one who put those cucumbers there earlier."
I paused, raising a brow.
"...Did you want to start an argument or something?"
"No. I wanted an excuse to talk."
"...You could've just said so. Also, that would've started an argument, not a conversation."
I sighed, setting the bowl down on the counter before hugging her back, my hand stroking her hair.
She didn't answer.
She just pressed herself closer to me instead.
And just like that, we ended up cuddling for almost... two hours. Which was pretty common for me at this point.
I kept stroking her hair, even as she clung to me in her sleep.
"She's adorable..." I whispered, poking her cheek gently. She looked... comfortable. Too comfortable, honestly. Was it just because we were dating now, or did she really trust me that much?
Maybe the latter.
It's been almost seven months, August felt like a lifetime ago.
"Seven months..." I murmured. Her breath fanned softly against my chest as she snuggled closer. "Feels like years with how much happened in that time."
I leaned down and pressed a soft kiss to the top of her head.
"Thank you, Anathasia," I whispered. "I love you. No matter what you are."
I pulled back a little, watching her face.
Her cheeks were red, her breathing slower-almost strained.
"...does she have a fever?" I muttered. I pressed my forehead against hers. "Temperature's normal..."
Then-
"...Idiot..."
My breath hitched.
Was she awake?
I looked down. Her eyes were half-lidded, but very much open, and staring straight into mine.
"Ah. How much did you hear?"
"Everything," she muttered, then reached up and pinched my chest.
"You... hopeless romantic." The second whisper was softer, almost swallowed by her breath.
"Was it really that embarrassing...?"
She didn't answer immediately. Her gaze dropped, and instead of pulling away, she shuffled closer, burying her face against my chest, her arms tightening around me.
"It's not that I'm embarrassed..." she murmured, voice barely above a whisper. "I'm just... a bit ecstatic. That's all..."
"...right." I chuckled softly, my hand instinctively sliding behind her head, fingers brushing through her hair.
The hum of the AC filled the quiet that followed. She sank against me little by little, her earlier tension melting away until she was completely relaxed in my arms.
My eyelids grew heavier with each passing minute, whether from exhaustion or the warmth of holding her, I couldn't tell. Eventually, I let myself drift off.
---
When I finally stirred awake, the sun was already dipping below the horizon.
My body felt unusually heavy, until I realized it wasn't me.
It was her.
Anathasia was sleeping right on top of me, limbs draped over mine as if I were her personal body pillow. Her breath brushed softly across my face, her expression calm... vulnerable. A look she rarely ever showed, considering she was usually smug, teasing, or reminding me she could unmake reality whenever she felt like it.
Carefully, I tapped her cheek.
"Athy... wake up, please. I need to make dinner..."
No response.
...I think this already happened once.
She suddenly mumbled something unintelligible, her body shifting as her eyes fluttered open.
"What's up...?"
"It's already five," I murmured, brushing her hair back with my fingers. "We should get up. My grandparents always said sleeping during twilight is taboo, spirits mess with you at that time. So let's move, okay?"
She blinked slowly, then let out a long yawn as she sat up and rubbed her eyes.
"Spirits... right... those don't exist."
But Outer Gods do...?
"Well, maybe. But do you really want to skip dinner?"
"No."
"...that was fast."
She slowly got off me, then sat at the edge of the bed, letting out another long yawn-
then suddenly froze.
"What's the matter?"
She blinked once, then squinted toward the window before brushing it off with a wave of her hand.
"Nothing special. Just a tiny ripple from the higher layers."
"A ripple?"
"Mhm. Don't worry about it. I'll have the others deal with it."
My face shifted into something between flat and mildly judgmental.
"I'm starting to think you're some kind of irresponsible department manager who just dumps their work on coworkers."
She paused, looking down in thought.
"No I'm not."
"No? I bet you let Rania and the other two Outer Gods handle everythi-"
She spun around and clamped a hand over my mouth.
"I don't like hearing the truth. Let's focus on dinner, okay?"
I nodded. She smiled.
The air grew noticeably colder.
She's pissed.
Well... dinner first.