A/N: Just to let you all know, I got some editors. Say hello to Kuro_Kama and Lille Ally Sato~! They are going to start editing soon. I will let you know with an "Edited by..." at the top of the chapter.
Also, my platonic boyfriend, Nyxx, will be helping them out. I'm quite thankful to them! Now on to the chapter~
Edited by: Kuro and Lille
Before the weekend dinner at Valerie's parent's house, Ian, Calvin, Lucy, and Valerie went out to celebrate.
They wanted to celebrate for a few different reasons. The first one was for a happy coming out; the second was for Lucy getting into Med School as she passed the vigorous exam; the third was for Ian and Calvin officially dating; the last reason was for the release of Calvin's new book, I'd Do Anything for You.
They wanted to have this celebration with just the four of them. It was a special day filled with happiness and joy. They ate at a random fancy Meditarrian-style restaurant and ordered to their heart's content.
"In honor of this special day that we are moving along in our journeys together, let's cheer for more successful things to come our way!" Valerie started off the toast.
"Cheers!" The four tap their glasses of wine together at the center of the table.
In the future, there would be many celebrations like this, just the four of them together.
****
Mrs. and Mr. Dubois, and Mrs. and Mr. Perez were standing excitedly near the entrance of the Dubois house. It was decided that they would eat at the Dubois house because Mrs. Dubois made amazing food.
The parents were neighbors, which was how they got to know one another long ago. Their kids had a lot of playdates due to this. Even though they had high-paying jobs and busy lifestyles (besides Mrs. Dubois), they always made their kids priorities in their life. They also helped each other out. It was why Ian and Valerie grew up in very loving families.
It was the total opposite of Calvin and Lucy. It was funny how opposites attract in this way, but it was also why Ian didn't grow up to be as cold as Damien. Calvin found it interesting how the environment can affect how they were, even with the same soul.
Ian picked up Calvin, and Valerie picked up Lucy. They arrived at the same time. They were all wearing casual clothing, matching with a black and white color scheme. Most would get annoyed that they were matching, but they were best friends at this point, so it was like coming in as a squad more than anything.
When they entered the house, they were greeted by four beautiful people Calvin assumed were Ian and Valerie's parents. They wore expensive brand clothing but somehow seemed comfortable.
"Welcome to our lovely home," Mrs. Dubois said as she hugged and kissed her daughter and Ian's cheeks. She then greeted Calvin and Lucy with a hug as well.
“Thank you for having us.” Lucy and Calvin said, accepting the hug. They weren’t used to this kind of affection from strangers but they knew they had to if they were going to be with Ian and Valerie for many years to come.
Mr. Dubois said as he escorted them all through their home, "My wife cooked us a wonderful dinner, so let's head over to the dining room and get to know one another. We will give you two a tour of our home some other time."
When they got to the dining room, Mrs. Dubois went to the kitchen with Lucy and they started to put all the food on the large circular table. The eight-person table was instantly filled with food. There was French-like cuisine like ratatouille and duck confit. Each person had a glass of wine and a glass of water. In this world, he didn’t know too much about the country where these foods were from, but they seemed similar to the food from another world he had once been to.
Calvin sat to the left of Ian while Mrs. Perez was on Ian's right. Mr. Perez sat next to Mrs. Perez as well as Mr. Perez. Next to Mr. Perez was Mr. Dubois, then Mrs. Dubois, Valerie, and finally Lucy who also sat next to Calvin. Everyone felt it was a lot more intimate sitting in a circle instead of on a rectangle table.
“So, can Ian and Valerie introduce their partners?” Mrs. Perez looked at Ian and Valerie who seemed like they forgot their parents were with them as well.
“Yes, of course. Mom, this is Calvin. Calvin, this is my Mom and my Dad. You can just call them Mom and Dad.” It seemed Ian was more shameless than Damien.
Calvin gave an embarrassed glare at Ian before looking at Ian’s parents bashfully. “Hello, Mom and Dad. It’s a pleasure to meet you.” He wanted to call them Mr. and Mrs. Perez but he felt it would be rude after Ian’s introduction of them.
“Ian has told us a lot about you,” Mr. Perez said as raised his glass for a toast with Calvin, “We heard you are a famous author. He didn’t tell us what book you wrote though. We aren’t too privy with the matters as our careers are quite demanding.” He didn’t seem like he was saying it in a condescending way, he truly didn’t know what book Calvin wrote.
“Oh, I wrote a series called Zeonia. There are also TV shows and movies on this series. It’s my first work and I got really lucky that it was noticed so quickly.” Calvin stayed humble because he didn’t write this book.
“Ah, I have heard of Zeonia! I’ve watched the show a few times and it has an amazing storyline. I watched all 6 seasons.” Mrs. Dubois heard her favorite show and had to jump in.
Mrs. Perez looked at her friend a little exhausted. “Yes, and you somehow dragged me into watching the show with you.” She didn’t have a lot of free time to watch, but somehow, Mrs. Dubois came over every time Mrs. Perez had free time and forced her to watch the show all day.
Valerie gave a cough before the topic derailed, successfully catching everyone’s attention. “I would like to introduce Lucy who is also Calvin’s editor.”
Lucy was a little startled at the sudden introduction but she properly greeted herself. “It’s a pleasure to meet you all, Mr. and Mrs. Perez and Dubois. My name is Lucy and I am not only Calvin’s editor but I am also a medical student hoping to become a doctor in the future.”
“Oh, a doctor? What type of doctor are you trying to be?” The surgeon of the family, Mr. Dubois, looked at his future daughter-in-law, proud, because his own daughter refused to go to medical school and decided to become a lawyer instead… He finally had someone to talk and relate to.
“Oh, I want to be an orthopedic surgeon. I want to specialize in the hip and knee area as that’s the type of surgery my grandma had multiple times already.” She wanted to help people just like her grandma. She was close to her grandma and loved her very much. Unfortunately, she passed away a decade ago.
After the introductions, they ate their food and lots of small talks were being brought up. The table was full of laughter and smiles as they all got to know one another.
When they finished their food, Calvin excused himself from the table and went to the bathroom. Instead of going back to the dining room, he saw a balcony nearby, so he opened the door to get some fresh air. He stood at the railing, taking a deep breath with his eyes closed.
The air was chilly with a slight breeze. It smelled slightly of burnt firewood like he was surrounded by tall trees and grass deep in the countryside.
The stars brightened the night sky as they twinkled around the moon. There was not a single cloud in the sky, so the stars shined in all of its majesties. This scene was very different from the sky in the city where the artificial lights of the night drown the natural light of the stars.
It was beautiful. So beautiful that Calvin couldn't help but be mesmerized.
How long has it been since he was able to relax and take a deep breath? How long has it been since he could admire nature? He missed the times when he was able to be in the moment instead of worrying about his future, worrying about the past that seemed to drag him down.
It's been too long. He stopped counting all the worlds he never got to take in. He stopped trying to breathe for just a bit, but now he could.
He could finally breathe and he wished moments like these would last forever sometimes.
Calvin was able to live his life now that he was out of the Villain System. To find love and to be loved. He may have gone too fast with dating Ian but to him, it felt too long. It felt like he had waited a hundred years to be with his beloved. Obviously, he'd wait millions more, but the wait was lonely. He regretted not accepting God System in the last world, but he knew from now on, he would jump into his lover’s arms, begging to be loved and pampered. He felt like he could grow and heal while being loved. He wanted to keep being with God System. Even if he didn't remember. Even if it seemed like he was a new person every single time. Calvin would know it was him, and he'd fall every single time.
Ian and Damien were kind of similar but different at the same time. That was normal though. The two grew up differently, so it made sense. But deep down, the two were still shameless and possessive. They were also committed and stubborn, but Calvin loved all the sides of his man.
He couldn't help but sigh. Did he fall in love too quickly? Should he have taken his time? But he felt that so many things would've been taken away from him if he did. Like in the last world where he spent the whole time doubting the man when he could have spent it loving him.
Did he love correctly? Was he doing this right? Was he treating God System right? It scared him every day if he somehow turned out like his ex-husband, Derick. It was scary to think about.
He could feel his mind going down a pit. The more he stayed alone, alone with his own thoughts, he felt they would crush him. Grind him to pieces and scatter him in the wind.
Calvin mumbled, "Am I even loving him properly?"
After he said that, he felt a pair of arms hugging him from behind, and a head rested on his right shoulder. Calvin turned a bit to see Ian. He knew it was Ian so he wasn’t scared at the sudden hug.
"Why are you out here all alone?" Ian questioned a little worried that something happened to Calvin in the time his lover was gone. He went looking for Calvin because it had been more than 10 minutes since he left for the bathroom.
"I saw the balcony and couldn't resist getting some fresh air."
"It is really beautiful tonight."
Perfect weather, sky, and temperature. It was no wonder Calvin found himself on the balcony.
"Earlier you asked if you were loving me properly."
Calvin stiffened up. He didn't think he was heard by Ian of all people.
"I'd say, you are loving just fine. You are perfect just the way you are. You could sit there and order me around and I'd still think you are perfect. The only one for me. It's kind of funny. The moment I saw you, I knew I wanted to spend the rest of my life with you. I could feel myself gravitate towards you, wanting more and more of you. I want to have you by my side forever. Never letting you go, clinging on to you like a koala to a tree, and then slapping away all the other koalas that try to climb you."
Koalas actually get aggressive when other koalas get on their tree... What a moment, what a weird metaphor... Calvin sighed. His thinking almost derailed.
"Do you think I am a bad partner? Being so clingy and possessive?"
"No way!" Calvin immediately responded, turning around to look at Ian. He was still in the man’s embrace.
"Exactly. I feel the exact same way as you. No matter how you are or who you will later become, I'd still love you." Ian softly pinched his cheeks, and lovingly kissed him on the forehead.
Feeling that similar cheek pinching that he was so used to in his previous life, Calvin's eyes widened before tears started to form at the corner of his eyes. So even in this world his husband still had a habit of cheek pinching. He even upgraded to that weird hugging where he always hugged him from behind first. Calvin brought Ian into a hug. Tightening his hold, almost as if he was afraid that if he'd let go, Ian would disappear.
The two stayed like that for a while. Comfortable in each other's arms. Happy to be with one another.
And they would live this way for the rest of their years together in this world.
A/N: Thought it was important to talk about how the Host feels about going into a relationship. He has a lot of scars and wounds that need to be healed, but he feels as though he can't heal them on his own. He yearns for love to the point he may be obsessed with it. As the story progresses, I hope to portray the growth of their relationship and love to something that's not so toxic.
Anyway, I really want to thank everyone for all the kind comments. Even if I don't comment on every single one, just know I've read them quite a few times around and it makes me laugh and smile knowing people enjoy my story. Thanks for reading! I will see you all in the next chapter. It's the last one for the arc but there's going to be two extras. I hope you will enjoy those.
Lille: T^T They’re so sweet
