Jason noticed two things when he stepped into the control room.

  The first was that he never wanted Phoebe or Cassandra as his personal trainers. Though naturally, he couldn’t deny their results.

  It’d taken him multiple deaths before he’d even gotten close to taking out Humphrey in the mirage chamber, and then even more before he’d been successful.

  However, despite this, Jason felt for Thad, who was getting not one but two earfuls as both women went at him from either side, dissecting his performance with a meticulousness more akin to an autopsy than a post-game review.

  Phoebe even had to be physically stopped by Dustin from having the mirage chamber reset for her and Thad.

  The second thing he noticed was Humphrey, who, having seen him, immediately spun on his heels and left for the dressing room.

  Well… he wasn’t going to stand for that sort of reception.

  Rick had told him, of course, to give Humphrey space. That he would come to him in time, but this was ridiculous. And not just because he’d realized that Humphrey apparently had been upset, for some reason, at the possibility of Thad and him dating.

  Not that Thad would be a terrible date.

  The guy was a knockout like his sister, and he was… ok, that was not the train of thought he should be on. Especially not after he’d just spent half of the duel sorting out the misunderstanding involving him, Thad, and Clive. And if anything, Clive was more his type and… Wait, his type?

  Jason stopped.

  Ok. What in the world was wrong with him? He didn’t have a type… well, he did. But guys were most certainly not it. He just wasn’t used to being around so many attractive men. That was all. There was nothing wrong with acknowledging when a man was handsome, like when… Nope! He was going to deal with that can of personal worms later, alone, where no one could sense his aura.

  For now, he needed to check on his friend. See, that’s all these guys were. His friends! Nothing more!

  With those feelings neatly tucked away, Jason confidently strode through the dressing room doors, right into a very shirtless Humphrey Geller.

  And of course, the gentleman caught him before he fell. Giving Jason a moment to look into Humphrey’s warm eyes. His impressive body pressed against Jason’s much inferior one. His heart fluttered as if he were a maiden on one of his sister’s trashy bodice ripper novels, which he’d most certainly not read. He wanted to scream, but instead he just stared up at Humphrey, whose olive skin was beginning to darken.

  “Umm, Humphrey…”

  “Yes, Jason?”

  “While I don’t mind being held by a spunk like you, do you mind releasing me?”

  “Oh, yes! Yes, of course,” Humphrey said, freeing Jason and taking several steps back, putting his muscles on full display.

  … He could turn around and leave. Abandon greenstone entirely, in fact. No, that would make him a bad friend. And he was a good friend, oh strewth, he was ‘good friending’ himself.

  The historians would be so proud.

  “Jason?”

  “Hmmm?”

  “I’m guessing you busted in here for a reason.”

  “Right! Mate, I know I haven’t seen you in a while, and if you need more time, I get that, but I saw your face at the end there, and I thought I should check in.” Jason rambled, looking anywhere but at Humphrey’s chest, trying to regain his composure. “This is just to say, are you ok, Humphrey?”

  “I’m…well I’m…” Humphrey went to answer, before stopping, an uncertain and uncomfortable expression marring his handsome features. “Shouldn’t you be checking on Mercer now?”

  “Thad’s got enough attention on him, trust me,” Jason said with a laugh. “Besides, we’re friends, why wouldn’t I check on you when I know there's something the matter?”

  “You still wish to be friends, Jason, despite my avoidance?”

  “Of course, I knew you would come to me in your own time, but it looked like you needed a friend now.”

  Humphrey was quiet at this before he rubbed the back of his neck with a sigh.

  “I feel like such a hypocrite. I spent weeks judging you, and then I… He didn’t even resist. He saves my life, then thinks what? That we’re going to fight hundreds of Manticore together?” Humphrey said with a disbelieving laugh as he looked up at the ceiling. “How did I manage to stoop lower than Thadwick Mercer?”

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  “If you didn’t kill him there, you’d both have died in a far worse way. What you did was a mercy.”

  “A mercy? Some things are just right and wrong, Jason. And what I did feels wrong.”

  “You know, I’ve been where you are,” Jason said. “A lot more recently than I’d like. I got so wrapped up in what I thought morality was that I accused a friend of having an immoral perspective, only to be faced with reality.”

  “So, you agree I’m a hypocrite?”

  “I think you didn’t hesitate when confronted with a harsh reality,” Jason said, crossing his arms. “Do you know why your mother lets us spend time together?”

  “She doesn’t decide who my friends are,” Humphrey said, looking towards the control room with a grimace.

  “Of course she does,” Jason said, “Answer the question.”

  “Why should I?” Humphrey asked. “You always answer questions with more questions.”

  “You’ve got me there. Fine, the answer is things are complicated. You want to think there’s a good and a bad path, but it’s not that simple. Strewth, look at Thad, he’s a poster child for taking the wrong path at every turn until recently. Yet now you feel like you’ve dropped to his level, despite a lifetime of proving otherwise,” Jason said, waving towards the control room. “See, that’s what your mother wants you to recognize about the world. Things are more complex than right and wrong, good and evil. She wants you to work with people who challenge that view.”

  “You think she wants me to think like you and Thadwick?”

  “Oh, definitely not,” Jason said, shaking his head. “It’s like forging a sword. A sharp edge takes heat and hammering. She wants your principles to go through the fire so they don’t collapse once you’re in the real world, where she can’t watch over you. You faced a moment like that in the mirage chamber today, and you made a difficult decision. One I’m sure you’ll be forced to make again in the future.”

  “That doesn’t make me feel vindicated in my choice, Jason.”

  “Not every decision you make will be perfect. I mean, you’ve seen mine. Sometimes I do things that are selfish and hurtful. I try to do good, and when I fall short, I try to do better. That’s all I can do, all anyone can do. You’re not a bad person for what you did today, Humphrey. In fact, I think you agonizing over something like this proves your capacity for good.”

  “I traumatized him! How’s that good?!”

  “That wasn’t real, Humphrey. But it could be. The consequences of what we do, as adventurers. The risks we take. Yes, what you did was traumatizing. I did that to Rick’s team myself. But now they’ve a better idea of what could be out there waiting for them, and they’re a little more ready for it than before.”

  “What if they freeze up because they’re afraid of what we did?”

  “If they freeze, they shouldn’t be out there at all,” Jason said. “Isn’t that the whole point of all this training? To make sure we all go out as ready as we can be?”

  “Does it justify what we did? You told me Thadwick was finally on the right path… I tried for years to get him on it. To train with him. To be his friend. What if… what if I’ve just taken him off the path, undid it all? What if I’m the one to blame when he inevitably crashes out again?”

  “Thad’s already told you the answer to that.”

  Humphrey stood there silently for a moment, guilt plain on his face.

  “And what's that?”

  “You didn’t do anything wrong.”

  “I’m not sure that's true.”

  “Trust me, as a person who’s blamed other people for my own crash-outs. I’m starting to realize that it’s hardly ever just one person’s fault. We all make calls on how we handle what life throws at us… regardless of how fair those circumstances are.”

  “… Jason.”

  “I’m fine, no use crying over lost worlds… unspoken words,” Jason said with a small laugh as he tried to cover up the pain of his past life. Of Amy and Kaito, of how he’d left things. He needed to change the topic. “You know, at first I thought you were just avoiding me for what I did in the mirage chamber, but did you really think Thad and I were dating?”

  “Well…I…,” Humphrey trailed off, “I wouldn’t call what I thought you were doing, dating.”

  Oh, not him too!

  “Why would you even think we were anything?”

  “Thadwick has always stolen anyone I was ever interested in. When I heard the rumors, I just assumed you were another one of his conquests.”

  Conquest… Jason felt himself growing flustered as he considered the word's connotation.

  The memory of Cassandra’s whispered words playing across his ear, a story of enemies turned lovers.

  Of Humphrey somehow being jealous of that.

  “Wait, are you saying you’re interested in me?” Jason teased as he shoved those feelings down.

  “You’re interesting, Jason!” Humphrey exclaimed, exasperated, as he looked away. “Why wouldn’t I be?”

  The earnest confession rocked Jason, and he took a reflexive step back, his mind reeling.

  Had he ever been confessed to like this? He’d always been one to pursue, always felt like a consolation prize. A placeholder for someone better. But here stood this gorgeous guy acting as if he were worth fighting over. Wait… Cassandra had been jealous as well.

  Was he worth all this effort? Perhaps he was confused. Humphrey obviously only liked women, right?

  “Well… I… I’m a man, and you're dating Gabrielle… so don’t you just like—”

  “What does your being a man have anything to do with it?”

  “I’m… I’m not actually sure anymore,” Jason said, looking away, a blush creeping across his pale skin. “I don’t think I can accept your feelings, though, Humphrey, you know I’m dating Cassandra. Besides, what about Gabrielle?”

  “What?! That wasn’t a confession of love, Jason.”

  “It wasn’t?!”

  “Just because there’s a possibility doesn’t mean I’d pursue every interest.”

  “I tend to.”

  “Oh yes, and where’s that gotten you?”

  “Into many kitchens, actually,” Jason said with a laugh. “I can’t believe you're rejecting me like this, Geller. My poor maiden’s heart.”

  “Would you rather I hadn’t?”

  “No! That’s not… How is this fair? You’ve got this whole shirtless knight thing going on. What do you expect me to say to those abs?”

  Humphrey glanced down.

  “Oh, I see,” Humphrey smirked. “You’re saying to have an advantage with you, I only need remove a shirt?”

  “That’s not the takeaway to bring from this conversation!” Jason laughed, feeling the tension ease a little. “Also, for your information, you were way off base! Thad and I are merely friends!”

  “Oh, I’ve realized that. He and Davone are obviously together in some capacity, that poor sod,” Humphrey said with a slight shake of his head as he glanced at the door. “You know… I’m sorry for avoiding you for this long, Jason.”

  “You had plenty of reasons to.”

  “Still, it was unfair to you. You’re just so good with words, and I knew I wasn’t ready to take you on where you're strongest,” Humphrey admitted. “Though, nevertheless, I have concerns. Your… Theatrics. That darkness… It comes from somewhere. I think it may warrant a closer look inside yourself to find its origin.”

  “Mate, I think there are loads of things I need to reflect on.”

  , I tried to give him and Phoebe good sibling vibes... at this point, I may be closer to drawing Rick and Phoebe's team earlier than team biscuit.