CHAPTER 26: LIFE, LOVE, AND CHICKENS

The morning comes and light seeps into the room. The magic that allows such a phenomenon is amazing. My eyes slowly pry open and I gradually take account of reality. I feel the stain of sweat on me. There’s a faint soreness in my lower regions. Wrapped in my arm is a pink-haired beauty still sleeping soundly. The sheer negligee she had on the previous night is now left sloppily on the floor.

It really happened, then. I finally did it. I’m no longer a virgin. I’ll live forever with the shame of dying as a virgin, but I jumped over that hurdle in this new life! And with Tiss! My read on our relationship had been both accurate and so far off at the same time. I thought maybe she just pitied me, maybe even was protecting me out of sympathy. At first, I think she hated me. I don’t know how I made her grow to want to be with me this way. But I’m not complaining, really.

I pull the blanket up and cover us both. I feel like I owe it to Tis to allow her some modesty in a vulnerable moment like this. After such passion last night, she deserves some rest. She should be warm and safe from prying eyes.

After all, I remember her moans, her expressions, the feeling of her nails raking across my back. It was obvious that neither of us knew what to do. Yet we somehow figured out how to make that night pleasurable and, at least for me, unforgettable. I want to protect her so much more now. I pull her in tighter under the covers and kiss the top of her head. That elicits a soft moan. Satisfied and happy.

This feels right.

As I let out a sigh of satisfaction, my gaze drifts to the doorway. I see the door open and spy two familiar voyeurs. Elyssia is poking her head through the doorway and watching us, a hand over her mouth to stifle her jeering snickers. Jiji is nestled atop Elyssia’s head and looking right at me. The glare feels angry.

Is it because we disturbed you last night? Or cuz we did... that last night? I understand how that would be uncomfortable for you to see. I apologize Jiji! Just stop looking at me with so much disdain!

As she notices that I’ve spotted her, Elyssia slowly retracts her head from the doorway and closes the door. Now it’s just Tiss and I alone in the room. She’s still asleep, luckily, but I’m wide awake. I can’t really see myself trying to get any more sleep before Tiss wakes up. But I also don’t want to leave her right now. I want to be right here the moment she wakes.

I just lie still for a while. I don’t bother keeping track of time and just rest my eyes without sleeping. It doesn’t feel too much longer when I feel Tiss stirring. She groans a bit as she slowly opens her eyes. The first thing she sees is me looking back at her with a soft smile.

[Wade?] "Good morning."

She doesn’t say anything yet. I can see that she’s still struggling to wake up. Instead of saying, she thumps her head against my chest and rubs her forehead into me.

[Wade?] "I realized that you’re not a morning person."

[Tiss] "...last night."

[Wade?] "What was that?"

It sounds like Tiss said something, but it was muffled against my chest. So she lifts her head and faces me. Then I feel her arms wrap around my chest.

[Tiss] "I’m tired because we were up late last night... Remember?"

I chuckle a bit and then pet Tiss’ head. Last night... That was definitely something worth remembering. I’ll never forget that memory for as long as I live. And my soul can keep moving on, I’ll probably hold this memory through all my next lives.

[Wade?] "Of course I remember."

And so I plant a kiss on her forehead.

[Tiss] "It’s not fair to tease a girl so early in the morning, you know..."

[Wade?] "Oh? I’ll keep that in mind for next time."

Tiss’ face gets red. She caught on to what I mean by ’next time’.

A short while later, Tiss is ready to start her day. She extricates herself from my arms and rises up from the bed. I get a glimpse of her perfect body before she equips an outfit from her Item Box. A simple pair of white shorts and a pink blouse.

A shame I don’t get to see more...

[Tiss] "I need to go freshen up. Don’t stay in bed too long."

With that, she collects her negligee from last night and then leaves the room, closing the door behind her. I climb out of bed and stretch out my tired limbs. As I glance around the room, I notice a particular spot. A mark staining the sheets we had slept on.

So it wasn’t only my first time, then...

I leave the room after a short bit. It doesn’t take me too long to get ready since my only clothing is a pair of pants that Rick gave me. After exiting the room, I go into the living area to find Elyssia sitting in a chair with Jiji on her lap. She’s petting our feathery friend and smiling, giggling about something with Jiji.

[Wade?] "Good morning, Miss Voyeur."

[Elyssia] "Miss Voyeuse."

[Wade?] "Heh?"

Elyssia looks up from petting Jiji and gives me a coy grin. Then, while wagging her finger like a metronome, she repeats herself, counting out the syllable.

[Elyssia] "Vo-yeu-se! A woman voyeur is a voyeuse, my dear Mr. Pervert."

[Wade?] "Well I guess you win this round. Anyways, good morning Jiji."

[Jiji] "Bkaw!"

I take a seat on the loveseat and relax into the soft cushions. Reality is starting to set in a bit as my mind wanders. This is my first day since all that crazy stuff with the STRING THEORIES and that weird labyrinth. 27 years passed by without us and now the world has changed. There’s no obvious direction for me to go. And wherever I go, whatever I do, I should plan to bring Tiss with me.

[Wade?] "Hey, Elyssia..."

My elf friend turns her head to look at me with her typical smile.

[Elyssia] "How can I help you, dearie?"

[Wade?] "Do you have any idea what I should do...? Like, how to move forward?"

[Elyssia] "Oh my, are you trying to tell me that you don’t want to live here forever with two beautiful women?"

[Wade?] "Well that’s...! Actually, yeah. I want... to live a fantastic life. I want to do things and find some sort of purpose."

Elyssia chuckles and then removes Jiji from her lap so she can give me her full attention.

[Elyssia] "Wade, there’s so many things in this world that you can go do. But as far as a purpose... are you so worried that you don’t have one? I think you’re fulfilling your purpose fairly well already."

[Wade?] "How do you mean?"

[Elyssia] "You’ve become someone essential to Tiss. You ground her, protect her, and it’s obvious that you’re growing to love her too. But you’re also a friend to Jiji and I. You’re a friend to your god Harold, too. The relationships we have with others... I think that’s enough of a purpose in life, don’t you?"

[Wade?] "I... can’t argue with that. Then what do you think I should do?"

[Elyssia] "Think about how you want to live your life. And who you want to live that life with."

Just think about it, huh? I can do that much. I just don’t know enough about the world or how life goes for people in this world.

[Tiss] "What are you two talking about?"

Tiss comes into the room. She must be done freshening up. It looks like she took the time to care for her hair and apply some very light makeup. It’s just a few small changes to her appearance, but she looks gorgeous today.

[Elyssia] "Your boyfriend is having troubles with deciding what to do going forward. Got any ideas?"

Heh? Boyfriend? You’re jumping the gun, Elyssia! She and I haven’t even had that conversation yet!

[Tiss] "Oh that’s easy. Chickens."

And you don’t argue with her? Or challenge her giving me that label? The Tiss I know would get red and turn away to act all shy about that! Does that mean... she wants that?

Also... what? Chickens?

[Elyssia] "Chickens? What are you talking about?"

Yeah! What do you mean, Tiss?

[Tiss] "When we were in that labyrinth. Wade mentioned that he want to raise some chickens. I told him that I’d raise them with him."

Oh, she’s right... We did say that. It was a quick part of a conversation we had around when we met Jiji.

[Wade?] "Yeah... But I don’t know the first thing about raising chickens. And I don’t really have an appropriate place to do it."

[Elyssia] "Unfortunately it’s not something you can do here very well."

[Wade?] "So I don’t really have a way to start raising any chickens."

[Tiss] "Well that’s no problem. We just need to get you a home. Then we can start from there."

[Wade?] "Easier said than done?"

I look at the Tiss with a bit of disbelief. Getting a home can’t be so easy. Surely I’d have to have a lot of funds to buy a home that’s already built. And acquiring land to build on can’t be cheap. Wouldn’t I need a title or something for that?

[Elyssia] "Oh, no. That shouldn’t be hard at all. Tiss, you still have your savings, right?

[Tiss] "Every single Lowa."

[Elyssia] "Wade, dearie, I suggest that you and Tiss maybe choose a place to hunt for home. I can take you wherever you need to go, but I can’t stay."

[Wade?] "Hold on!"

I put up my hands in protest and I feel a bit of panic setting in. I’m having trouble processing how this conversation is moving along. Also, I don’t want to take from Tiss’ savings to fund my new life. That just seems exploitative.

[Wade?] "Buying a home can’t be so easy, right? It’s probably a lot of money. I’m not exactly a citizen of any place. I only own a pair of trousers. There’s no way I can just get a home so easy. And I’d feel horrible making Tiss pay for everything."

[Elyssia] "Oh, stop being such a worrywort. Firstly, houses aren’t expensive unless you’re trying to buy a large manor or something. At least not for someone with a noble’s wealth. Secondly, we can get you new clothes."

[Tiss] "And lastly, I’m not just opening my wallet to get you things."

And now Tiss shows her usual self. He cheeks get red and she starts fidgeting with her fingers and looks downward, avoiding my gaze.

[Tiss] "I said that whatever you do, I’m going to go with you. So this is an investment for my own life, too. Our life, even..."

Oh Tiss... You’re too cute when you do that! I can’t help it. You win!

[Wade?] "Okay, Tiss. I understand."

I stand up and walk over to Tiss. I grab her hands in mine.

[Wade?] "Let’s find a house. Let’s set up a coop. Let’s raise some chickens."