Cedric stared at the ceiling, lost in his train of thoughts, while on the bed with his girlfriends. His expression remained placid, so nobody could tell what he was thinking.
Chrissy saw him in this state and couldn't help but feel a little lost. Throughout their relationship, the number of times she found Cedric being like this could be counted on one hand, and all of those times will be followed by an important decision.
Cedric was so out of it that he didn't even notice Chrissy's subtle movements. He also didn't notice her gently waking up Erica, who was sleeping on the other side of the bed.
Erica was woken up from her peaceful nap and was notified by Chrissy. She frowned and looked at Cedric to see what she meant, then her expression was replaced by subtle solemnity.
She briefly made eye contact with Chrissy; they conversed with gazes before Erica snuggled deeper into Cedric's embrace, which finally shook him out of his daydreaming.
"Oh, you're both awake," he muttered, planting a kiss on their foreheads. "What do you want for breakfast?"
"Omelette and coffee with extra cream, please." Erica sighed blissfully in his arms.
"Ceasar salad and orange juice for me," Chrissy replied.
Cedric chuckled and said, "Alright, coming right up. Why don't you girls take a shower first? I'll wait for you downstairs."
"I don't want to," Chrissy whined, sinking deeper into his warmth. "It's comfy here; let's have breakfast in bed, then go back to sleep."
"That's lazy." Cedric rolled his eyes. He then looked at Erica and asked, "You want that too?"
"Mnnn." Erica nodded, not even bothering to open her eyes.
Cedric shook his head and accepted their request. "Okay, breakfast in bed it is."
He himself didn't bother to get up; he just used his mental power to prepare their meal instead.
Downstairs, you'd see all sorts of kitchen utensils floating around as if they were picked up by invisible hands. The fridge opened, and ingredients were taken out to be prepared according to the recipe. Appliances were turned on and used to prepare their food as well.
After about 15 minutes or so, the door to their bedroom opened and a cart with a freshly prepared breakfast rolled in. The door closed behind it, and the smell of food roused all three of them into wakefulness.
Cedric made the dishes float from the cart to the bed; he also summoned a small table, which he placed on the bed where he could put the dishes.
They then had breakfast while watching the morning broadcast online. The atmosphere was peaceful and domestic. This kind of ordinary peace was something that all three of them cherished and appreciated greatly.
"So, I was thinking that..."
Cedric paused for a good while. The girls didn't interfere with his thoughts and just stayed silent, waiting for his next words.
"I'm thinking that maybe I should go back to the tower?" Cedric wondered out loud.
"I don't know how long I'll take to get there, but I do know that only an hour will pass here." Cedric smiled wryly. "But I'm also a bit...sacred, I suppose?"
"Sacred of long-term seclusions because I know that it will dampen my emotions and change my mentality. Even I, with my current strength, aren't immune to the side-effects of loneliness."
"I say this mostly because I don't do things halfway." Cedric stayed. "If I return there, I won't return unless I complete or fail the second stage of trials. Only an hour will pass here, but for me, it's not the same."
Cedric then looked at them with a sad smile on his face and said,
"I just don't want to return and discover that I don't feel the same towards you two anymore. I don't want to return and suddenly feel like you're my shackles that I need to get rid of for me to be truly free."
"I don't want to forget about all of this, and I don't want loneliness to change me too much."
There's a period of silence in the room after he said all that, only disturbed by the incessant yapping of the newscaster.
"Well, maybe that's one of the challenges you must face aside from the trials too," Erica pointed out. "Like, you know...a test of character or something, I think?"
"Yeah, I think so too," Chrissy chimed in. "If it's not, then you can think of it as one. Anyway, I'm sure you can get through it. You're you, after all. You've created miracles before; something like this might scare you, but it won't defeat you. I'm sure of it."
"Wow, thanks for the vote of confidence. I really needed that." Cedric chuckled.
"You got this." Erica cheered him on. "Your goals are way too grand for something like this to stop you."
"And if it ever comes down to that, just return here before it's too late. If you dare to forget about us, we'll just remind you of the simple fact that you can't live without us anymore," Chrissy confidently stated.
"It's nothing a whole lot vigorous love-making can't fix." She giggled as she snuggled in his embrace.
Erica smacked her arm out of naughtiness, while Cedric just laughed out loud. Stay with us at m.v.l.e.mpyr
Yeah, with them being like this, what was he so worried about?