Chapter 20: Acting Strange
Chapter 20: Acting strange
But after thinking about it for awhile, he decided to just let her be since their was nothing he could about it right now.
_Maybe she'll get over it by tomorrow morning.._ He thought hopefully.
After a few more moments of walking in silence, they finally arrived at the inn they had been staying in since they arrived in Riverdale town.
The modest building was cozy, with ivy crawling up its stone walls and the warm glow of candlelight spilling out from the windows. As they stepped inside, they were greeted, as always, by Jasmin, the young innkeeper. She was a young girl with chestnut brown hair and a friendly smile that seemed to brighten the entire room.
“Welcome back you two.” Jasmin chirped, her eyes immediately locking onto Gift. As usual, she couldn't help but let her gaze linger on him for a bit longer than necessary. Ever since they first checked in, she had been endlessly curious about the mysterious man who always wore bandages, hiding everything but his striking golden eyes. Tonight was no exception.
“Good to see you, Gift,” she said with a grin. “You’re back earlier than usual.”
Gift gave a polite nod, his eyes glinting in the low light. “Yeah, we didn’t stay out long tonight.”
Jasmin continued to watch him, her curiosity clearly bubbling beneath her pleasant demeanor. She opened her mouth as if to ask the same question she always did, but before she could, Gift who was already expecting this, suddenly had a thought come to his mind, his eyes quickly stole a glance at Sera before an idea came to mind.
“ I'm not really feeling like usual Jasmine so I think I'll head to bed early tonight. Good night...” His voice was kind but distant, and without waiting for her to respond, he turned on his heel and headed toward the staircase that led to their rooms.
Jasmin blinked in surprise, her smile faltering.
_Whats the matter with him today?, Usually, he's more talkative than this_ Jasmine was at a loss, but in the end she decided to attribute it that Gift just like he said wasn't feeling up to it tonight. _Maybe he just overworked himself today?_ She couldn't help but think since on normal occasions he wouldn't mind indulging her curious questions about why he always kept his face hidden. But tonight, he’d been… different.
Sera, who had remained by the door, couldn’t help but smirk to herself. ‘Finally....’ she thought, her jealousy from earlier simmering down just a little. She could still hear her own voice echoing in her mind from earlier that night, when she’d accused him of being “too nice” to other women. And while she’d pretended not to care, seeing him so cold with Jasmin was oddly satisfying.
Jasmin, still confused, turned to Sera with a questioning look. “Did something happen?, He’s not usually so quiet.”
Sera shrugged, feigning ignorance. “No idea, but he did happen to work extra hard at the tavern today. Maybe he’s just tired.” she replied, her voice casual, but inside she was quietly pleased.
“Hmm…..I guess,” Jasmin said, but she didn’t sound convinced. “Well, good night then.” She offered Sera a small smile before returning to her place behind the counter.
With that, Sera followed Gift up the stairs, her footsteps light. When she caught up to him, he was already in front of their room, unlocking the door.
“Not feeling chatty tonight?.” she teased lightly as they stepped inside.
Gift glanced at her, his expression unreadable beneath the bandages. “Didn’t think it was necessary,” he said with a shrug. He took off his shirt before tossing it onto a nearby chair. “She’s always asking the same thing anyway.”
Sera leaned against the wall, arms crossed. “It’s not like you to avoid people. Usually, you’d be charming her with that smile of yours.” her lips curled up in an amusing smile.
Gift paused, raising an eyebrow at her yet a self ridiculing smirk made it's way onto his face beneath his bandaged covering. “After your talk tonight, I wouldn't want my little Sera to get upset again now would i?.” he said jokingly.
Sera who wasn't expecting him to see through her averted her gaze in a flustered manner, suddenly finding the floor very interesting. “ Stop spouting nonsense~” she muttered, but her earlier words about him being too nice to other women still echoed in her mind. Although it wasn't really that hard to see through, She couldn't help but feel a faint warm in her heart when she heard that he did that for her.
Gift’s eyes softened behind his bandages when he saw her expression , He simply chuckled before saying.
" Well I'm off to bed..., can't be late for tomorrow morning or the boss Will get mad again."
" Huh?, So soon?." Sera replied with a hint of surprise.
" Of course, I wouldn't want our dear old jasmine to think I was lying to her now would I?." He snickered before getting into bed without letting her say anything else.
Before Sera knew it, Gift was already lying soundly within his own bed, If she hadn't been speaking to him earlier, she would've really thought he had already fallen asleep.
_He really is serious_ Sera thought before letting out a breath and locking the door behind her, normally they'd have to worry about the inn keeper coming in and seeing Sera in her true form, but thanks to the adjustments Gift made to the door, she didn't have to worry about such so without wasting anytime, Sera turned off her illusion spell before slithering onto her own bed, coiling her body around herself to make due with the human sized bed, although a part of her serpentine half still managed to reach the floor.
"Goodnight..." Sera mumbled and when she didn't see any reaction from Gift, she assumed he had already fallen asleep so she simply rested her head on her pillow before shutting her eyes and waited for her long awaited sleep to envelope her.