Chapter 275

The rest of the day proceeded like usual, filled with training both magical and physical. An alchemy lesson occupied her evening, and before she knew it, she was winding down for the night.

Maybe it was Elodie’s confrontation, but Zoey’s mind had been sticking on one topic in particular throughout the day. Her relationship with Rosalie and Delta was always on her thoughts, but one specific unresolved aspect had wormed its way to the forefront.

So, when she found Rosalie in her room, post-shower and in her nightclothes, Zoey asked, “Hey, can we talk?”

Rosalie glanced at her, pausing. “That’s an ominous introduction. Not going to ask how my day went? Or the talk with Astrid?”

Zoey blushed. “Sorry. How was your day? And how did it go?”

Amused, Rosalie said, “Too late for that now. What’s bothering you?”

“Nothing. I just ... came to a decision.”

“Now I’m really worried.” Rosalie stood from the lounge chair she’d been reclining in. She didn’t actually seem concerned, but there was a curious look in her eyes, and maybe a hint of consternation.

Seeing that, Zoey stepped forward and grabbed Rosalie’s hands, squeezing them. “Really, nothing bad. But, uh, serious, yeah.” She met those gorgeous ice-blue eyes, and, though she’d always been certain, somehow became more certain after losing herself in them. “You and Delta told me to put off on using Solidify Bond. That because it’s permanent, it shouldn’t be a split-second decision on who to use it on. We haven’t talked about it since. Well, I’ve thought about it, and my mind hasn’t changed.”

“Ah,” Rosalie said. “Right. That. I suppose it has been put off.”

“Does the idea still bother you?”

“It never bothered me.” She hesitated. “Just, permanent is permanent. And you are—impulsive, in some ways. I don’t mean that as an insult.”

“Didn’t take it as one.” A pause, and Zoey joked, “It does feel kind of like proposing, doesn’t it?”

The tips of Rosalie’s ears went red. At that reaction—Zoey also grew flustered. It’d just been a joke.

She cleared her throat. “And, I know, speaking objectively, we haven’t known each other all that long. But I like you, Rosalie. I ... a lot more than like you. That’s gotta be pretty obvious by now.”

A lot more than like you. What a silly way to talk around the topic—what she should actually have said. To be fair, Zoey had wanted to say those three words for a while. She wondered if she should now, even. But Zoey had always been quick to crush on girls, and even quick to enter into relationships, but she had never actually said I love you to any of them. Despite having known Rosalie for less time, her feelings toward her were many times stronger.

They’d been through a lot, to be fair. Tackling a new world and deadly dungeons was fraught with much more conflict than the comparative challenges back home, and challenges were great for bonding. More than that, Rosalie was Rosalie. Of course Zoey had fallen harder for her than anyone in her past life.

But was now the right time to tell her that? Maybe. But, still, she didn’t say those three words. Because it felt fast, objectively speaking? Right? And because she didn’t want to pressure Rosalie into saying them back.

Unsurprisingly, at what Zoey said—whether or not she’d said it for real, it had been implied—the blush on the tips of Rosalie’s ears was joined by ones on her cheeks and face too.

“I see,” Rosalie stammered. “Of course, I also—feel that way.”

Zoey’s beaming response, half at Rosalie’s response and half at how flustered she was, only made Rosalie fidget more.

“But, again, forever is forever,” Rosalie murmured, looking away. “This isn’t something to take lightly.”

“I know. So, we should talk about the worst case scenario, at a minimum.”

Rosalie seemed relieved she wasn’t the one who pointed it out. She had probably been wanting Zoey to, else Zoey misinterpret what Rosalie meant by bringing it up. “It’s unwise to not address every possible avenue,” she said, “regardless of how unlikely—or unwanted—such a future would be.”

“So,” Zoey said. “Should we have a falling out, we need to be okay with Solidify Bond cementing us as wayfaring partners, regardless of whether our personal relationship ... stays the same.”

“Such things have happened before. Romances within a team do go awry—often. More often than not, some would say. Some recover to a professional relationship with minor problems at worst, but some—don’t. What then?”

If she and Rosalie broke up, would they still be able to function as teammates for the sake of saving the world? Because Solidify Bond would force them to. As Rosalie had said: permanent was permanent.

“To be fair,” Zoey said, “any two teammates can have a catastrophic falling out, not just girlfriends. So using that skill is a risk no matter what, no matter who.”

“But romantic falling-outs do tend to be messier,” Rosalie said.

“True, true. Alright, let’s assume the worst case.” And the idea pained her, but this was something that needed to be aired out before they jumped into a life-long skill-locked Bond. “No matter what happens, could we both agree to work professionally? Seeing how the end of the world might be coming, I can answer confidently: Yes. Even if—I messed up somehow, you would still be one of the best teammates and allies I could have. For the sake of everyone, you need the Bond.”

“If you messed up?” Rosalie asked, frowning. “Why phrase it like that?”

Zoey hadn’t realized she had. A bit embarrassed, she said, “Well, come on, there’s zero chance you do something to make me break it off.”

Rosalie’s frown deepened. “I’m human too, Zoey. Both of us are capable of making mistakes.”

Zoey hesitated, then reluctantly inclined her head. “Right.” That seemed to satisfy Rosalie, though in essentially any modeling of this scenario in Zoey’s head, it was definitely Rosalie that broke things off with her, not the other way around. But saying that didn’t seem wise; Rosalie hadn’t seemed to like Zoey’s assumption.

“And you?” Zoey asked, squeezing her hands. “Are you a hundred percent sure we could work together, in the worst case?”

Rosalie made a noise of amusement. “If there’s anything I’m confident of, it’s my ability to put duty first. It’s what I was born and raised for. So yes. A ‘messy break up’ would not stop me from doing what is needed for the sake of my people.”

“So, it sounds like there’s no problem. I can do it, then?”