Chef in the Apocalypse

"Then why don’t you be my man?"

The words were said quietly, however they had a huge impact on the man standing across from their speaker. Jayce who was on the receiving end of the "confession" heard his brain shutdown, seemingly absolving itself of any part in the conversation.

His face was flushed red, reminiscent of a shy teenage girl who had been confronted by the boy that she liked. Jayce gulped, he was unsure of why he was acting this way, especially in front of a harmless woman who only wanted to emotionally connect with him.

Despite having lived for over 28 years when combining his two lives, Jayce could count the amount of female encounters he had on one hand. These instances were purely physical and generally a one time thing with no underlying feelings to accompany them.

So while it could be said that he did have experience with the female sex, it had never been on an emotional level. This would be the first time he was confronted with the unadulterated feelings of a woman, hence why he was currently out of sorts.

Feeling that the silence was stretching out a little too long, he felt compelled to answer. His gaze met Lianna’s who seemed just as embarrassed as himself, before he opened his mouth, "I-Is that what you really want?"

Without hesitation Lianna answered earnestly, "Yes! Ever since you saved me from that Goblin in the streets I’ve felt drawn to you." She paused for a moment, trying to put into words all of the feelings and emotions she had experienced since that time.

She let out a breath to calm herself, before continuing, "It’s almost as if you pulled me from the darkness like a beacon of hope. Sometimes I get the feeling that I shouldn’t be here, or that I don’t belong in this world, yet when I’m around you all of that goes away. You make me feel safe and secure, while also pushing me to be better."

Jayce was taken aback, hearing the long and emotionally charged confession that was laced with sincerity. However there were a few points in there that made him think deeply, mainly the feeling of not belonging in the world.

When the Apocalypse descended in his previous life, Jayce was forced to stay in the streets running away from monsters on the very first night. It was a harrowing experience that he would never forget. The next day he had seen a body in the street, draped in the same green robes that Lianna wore.

Was Lianna’s feeling of not belonging in this world because she had died in his previous life? Jayce wasn’t sure, especially since Colin, who had also died in his previous life, had never mentioned anything similar to him. Yet if being near to him could remove those feelings, then it could also be one of the reasons why the two were so loyal to him.

These thoughts would require more information before Jayce could make a conclusion, therefore he decided to put it to the back of his mind. After all, there was a fragile teenage girl who had just poured her heart out in front of him.

He let out a deep sigh, her words had moved him, even so far as to fill him with a feeling of guilt for some of his actions in the past. He thought back to how crushing his attitude towards her during the Beast Tide would affect her mentally and emotionally, and inwardly chastised himself.

Jayce let out an earnest smile, feeling the awkwardness seep out of him. "How about we make a deal? If you have the same feelings for me by the time we return to Bastion, I’ll make you my woman." He said, gauging her reaction.

Lianna’s eyes widened, it was then that she finally remembered that they were currently in an unknown area after falling through the teleportation array. She had been so caught up in her embarrassment that she hadn’t even considered that they might be lost for good.

She suddenly felt a little downcast, because who knew how long it would be before they would return to Bastion. Without any modern technology like GPS, they would have no idea where they were unless they found other people.

Yet the proposition was definitely better than keeping the same awkward status quo. Therefore she nodded her head and smiled, lighting up her beautiful features even more, "It’s a deal. Just don’t go back on your word Leader."

"Good. My word is my life fair lady, so don’t you worry." Jayce chuckled, feeling as if a weight had been removed from his chest. In reality, the proposition he made was to allow for a few things.

Firstly, he wanted to protect their working relationship as a number one priority. He was worried that if they rushed into a relationship, things could end badly which would greatly hinder his plan to unite humanity and end the Apocalypse.

Secondly, this gave him a window of opportunity to look at Lianna as a woman and explore each other’s feelings while they were alone. After all, wasn’t it usually said that you don’t know a person until you live with them for a while?

Thirdly, it left a way out for Lianna in case she changed her mind. While they had known each other for about 8 months now, the times they had been alone together were few, yet filled with... mishaps.

Jayce was happy with the current arrangement, allowing his previous tunnel vision to subside. Now that he was not caught up in his feelings and an awkward atmosphere, he could think about other things like where in the world were they?

He looked up to the sky through the tall trees and tried to locate the sun. "It looks like the sun has hit its midpoint and is now setting towards the west. It was around 10pm when we went through the teleportation array which means..." Jayce’s face sunk as his mind reached a conclusion.

Seeing his expression, Lianna felt a little worried. "What does it mean?" she asked softly.

"I’m not 100% certain. But I think we’ve been teleported to the North American continent..."