That Sweaty Ximun

AYSU

For several minutes, Aysu and Ximun stood still and did nothing but lock their gazes. While Aysu stared into his eyes which didn’t seem as empty as before, Aysu found that the yearning in her heart had converted to a need to be by his side.

Of course, she neglected that feeling and only observed the state of his body. It seemed he had been training hard and that made her wonder why. Surely, training till the point where his entire body was glistening and wet from sweat had to be because of something.

So, she broke the silence and with aloofness, she asked, “Is there an impending war?”

The sword reached the ground and he looked down at the object as though he wasn’t the one that dropped it. Then, with a certain thickness to his voice, he replied, “If I train only when there is trouble, then I and the entire Kingdom are in trouble.”

“Hmm.”

“Why are you out here?” Their eyes met again. “Where is your rude help, Magnetino?”

“Magenetino is not rude,” Aysu retorted, the speed with which she replied enough to cause him to frown. “If anyone’s rude, it’s you.”

“I am sure you established that already.”

“Well…” She scoffed. “It never hurts to repeat such things.”

Ximun sighed quite loudly. “How about you answer my question? It is concerning that you are here, alone, where anything terrible could happen.”

“Wow. Who knew that you could be concerned about your beloved wife?”

“Aysu, I don’t appreciate that tone,” he seemed to be warning her and Aysu found that audacious. “I have already apologised and I will do it a thousand times over if you want me to. But you told me…” He sighed again. “Aysu, you told me you wish to have nothing to do with me. That hurts me, but okay. Fine, have nothing to do with me. But that doesn’t mean I can’t have something to do with you. So, if I wish to be concerned, allow me. If I want to think about you from time to time, allow me. If… If I think about kissing every inch of your body, let me. Okay?”

The hot spring behind Ximun sizzled while his words thudded Aysu’s heart. And for a second, she almost visibly fluttered. But she didn’t and was able to find the will to counter everything he just said.

“I can allow it. After all, they are thoughts that are in your mind. And I have no control over your mind.” She took a step closer. “I also recall saying that I want to have nothing to do with you and I mean every word in that statement. But despite the harshness of my statement, you have done something that assures me that I wasn’t wrong with my decision.”

“What?” Ximun looked genuinely surprised while he also took a few steps more than she did. “What did I do?”

Aysu scoffed. “Do I have to remind you about the ex-mate you have hidden in your room?”

“Aysu, wait-”

“I understand that it sucks that I won’t be entertaining your carnal needs, but couldn’t you have some shame and do her somewhere else? Or better still, later on, when our honeymoon phase is meant to be over.”

“Aysu-”

“I guess you do hate me as much as I think. If not, you would not be openly housing some woman named Mayana in the palace where I am meant to be your Queen. I would call her a whore, but that name is more fitting for my beloved husband.”

“Aysu, wait a-”

Aysu’s frown deepened and she became engrossed in pouring out her emotions. “You did the same thing barely seconds after we got married on the altar. If that’s how you intend to soil what’s left of the union between us, we should perhaps call things quit. I have no desire to live as a slave to my so-called husband’s desire to stick himself into any woman in the Kingdom.”

“You want to call this marriage off?” Ximun gave up trying to defend himself and became worried about her statement.

Aysu folded her arms. “Do you have a problem with that?”

“Yes. We have our bond and we…we don’t even know if the curse has been broken.”

“Oh yes,” Aysu bitterly responded. “The curse is the reason we are together in the first place. Well, I would rather die from the curse than have you humiliate me day in, day out.”

“Aysu,” his voice was now weirdly calmer and he became a man with similar poise to the Ximun she met for the first time in the forest, “nothing happened between me and Mayana.”

“She is still in your room, Alpha Ximun. Everyone in the palace knows this and by the time they stop hiding their hushed words, your explanations will be nonsense, you will be branded a cheat and I will become a wife and Queen that allows her husband to cheat. Don’t you think that’s enough headlines for the press?”

“Aysu, let’s calm down.”

“Don’t you fucking tell me to calm down,” she warned, her feet now walking backwards. “Let me tell you this and you had better listen.”

“No, Aysu. I want you to listen to me,” he demanded, his feet rushing towards her till his hands captured the curves of her shoulders. He peered into her eyes in a way that woke Alora and stirred the feelings she was trying to kill. Then, he continued, “I am sorry. With everything I am, with everything I have, I am so, so, sorry.” His voice and eyes showed how sorry he was and Aysu was almost moved.

“Ever since we met, I have done nothing but hurt you and for that, I am truly sorry. I won’t try to make excuses, but I can give you assurance.” He exhaled hard, his breath rustling the middle of her hair.

“Before we mated, I truly disliked you, I won’t lie. But I felt that because I thought you were being too hopeful about breaking the curse that has always made me suffer. But after what happened in the meeting room, things changed, and we got to taste freedom. The fact that I can mate without having to worry about a soul-jerking rejection gladdens me so much that I will beg on my knees to be forgiven for the stupidity I have exhibited so far. Aysu, I want to know about you. If we have to start over as strangers who become friends, then lovers, I don’t mind. You are the reason my soul is hopeful again, so I want to experience what it means to be happy with you, Aysu.”

The last line crashed the shield Aysu was trying to build and her lids fluttered furiously while she tried to rebuild the shield to no avail. So, to hide her growing weakness, she closed her eyes and tried to remain stable.

‘Say yes to him,’ Alora urged but Aysu shut her up.

‘You are just horny.’

‘No, I desire a true bond that doesn’t lead to rejections,’ Alora returned, her voice louder. ‘Besides, this relationship started with a rejection, so the worst is basically over.’

‘Not when he is sticking his pee-pee into other women.’

‘At least the pee pee is worthy and enough.’

‘Alora!’

‘Face your sweaty husband, he is waiting for a response.’

‘That sweaty Ximun is your husband too.’

‘I don’t do human bodies Aysu, my business is with his wolf who I hope is as horny and witty as me.’

‘You are unbelievable,’ Aysu concluded and opened her eyes.

Ximun was still waiting for her response. So, she gave it to him.

“Ximun,” the man breathed hard, one would think he was about to get a health test result, “at this point, it is hard for me to trust you and your words. I can’t trust you because I am just getting to know you and what I know so far is that you are a whore that doesn’t know what it means to honour a marriage.”

“That’s me,” Ximun tried to be humorous but the seriousness in his eyes was too intense.

“I stand by my initial decision. I don’t want to have anything to do with you.”

One of his brows cocked. “But?” he asked, expecting something more.

“There’s no but.” And, Aysu dashed his hope. “Why would there be one?”

He struggled to hide his disappointment. “But uh, our union is active?”

“In this strange land, it is all I have.”

“I will try my best not to ruin that,” he assured her.

“Try not to stick your penis into the next random woman. And tell that ex of yours to leave before I take matters into my hands.”

Ximun stepped back and maintained a faint smile on his lips. “I will let her know.”

“Good.” As they shared a look in silence, Aysu started to grow regrets and she wondered if that moment could have happened differently if she had said yes to his offer. That feeling started to abound, but when she recalled the nature of their relationship since they met, she killed the feeling and began to walk away.

Only after three steps, her head swirled, lost her balance and almost kissed the ground if Ximun had not rushed to her.