Chapter 188: 36
"These are very comfortable." Prince Rigel comments mildly as he touches the soft woollen vest that envelops his body. Underneath it was a plain white shirt with the collar decorated with a few funky tie pins like a heart with wings and a pale brown teddy bear head. After greedily touching the soft and fluffy sensation of the vest for the nth time, his brow furrows as he twists his hips and complains, "The skirt, however, is too revealing. Can't it be longer?"
Glancing at the light grey pleated skirt that shook with the vampire's movement and how it barely reached mid-thigh, Jia Hyson merely laughs. "It's not the late 1900s anymore, your Highness; showing off more bare skin is fairly acceptable now. Of course, there are still limits, but miniskirts and baring your stomach are now quite fashionable for women."
"Don't they feel vulnerable?" Prince Rigel muses as he tugs at his skirt uncomfortably. But every time he does it, he still readjusts it back to the original length, disliking the lopsided appearance his tugging had caused. "Baring their stomach? What if a mosquito comes along and stings you there? Or a fly finds the little damp hole on your stomach appealing to try to enter; flies are so disgusting they might have just emerged from the sewers and then lay little white eggs-"
"What the fuck did I just walk into?" A freshly showered Mr Garth says with disgust as he uses his telekinesis to dry his hair with a towel. Wearing simple dark blue lounge pants and a light grey cotton shirt with some popular characters from the newest trendy game Genkai Starpact printed on it, he looked a little out of place from the very feminine vibe of the room.
"It's a legitimate concern!" The prince protests.
"Yeah, yeah, sure, your highness." Mr Garth rolls his eyes before throwing his damp towel at the other, causing Prince Rigel to yowl angrily like a cat that's tail was stepped on.
"You insolent-! You're lucky I hadn't done my makeup yet!"
Jia Hyson chuckles, walking over to the irate prince and picking up the towel for him. However, once he did, he couldn't help but do a double-take before sighing emotionally. "It seems as long as your face is pretty enough, anything looks good ah. Really jealous."
Prince Rigel blinks, and Mr Garth floats over a nearby mirror. Taking a look, Prince Rigel could see that his blond curls had been flattened somewhat under the damp towel and produced an artistically messy hairstyle that unexpectedly suited his outfit quite nicely. Humming with satisfaction at his own appearance, he snaps his fingers at the more muscular vampire smugly. "Not bad, I suppose; now pass me the hairspray."
Both Mr Garth and Jia Hyson exchanged glances before rolling their eyes at the same time. Mr Garth picks up a hairspray bottle with only a moment of thought, long used to knowing which makeup thing was what after spending so much time with Alaric and supporting his crossdressing. Tossing it to Prince Rigel, he then walks over to bend down and kiss Jia Hyson affectionately. "Don't worry, babe, your face is pretty enough for me."
"Such a sweet talker." Jia Hyson murmurs as he kisses back.
Now it was Rigel's turn to roll his eyes while shaking the can of spray. Even though the prince still felt a bit sour, there was not much he could do even if he remembered his true identity now and that he suspected Alaric was not really Alaric.
It was like a pauper finding out he was actually the son of the wealthiest man and his friend was actually the cousin of a wizard. It was pretty world-shaking information to have, but it doesn't change his friend's love of smoked salmon and his preference for tuna. The two things were pretty much unrelated, and there was no reason for his identity shift to affect, or even for him to believe it would affect, his chances with Alaric, who was already clearly already smitten with another vampire.
Since they last had the conversation where Rigel suggested taking a year off, it had been over a week. Jia Hyson and Mr Garth had thought deeply about the suggestion and discussed the matter together seriously for a few days. However, the more they talked, the more excited they became at the idea of travelling together. In the end, they admitted that there was really no reason to not do it. Just like the Eclipse Coven prince had said, at worst, they've just put off the problem temporarily for a year in exchange for a lovely time overseas.
As for Alaric's education well, Jia Hyson felt it was a bit novel to be skipping a year, but in a way, it works out better that way. He'll be further separated from Prince Silas when he comes back, and he might be closer to the main protagonists this way too. As for his grades, Jia Hyson was a little attached to them; he wasn't going to deny it as a child who had grown up in a household with fairly typical Asian parenting in regard to education. But overall, it was only a little uncomfortable to think about and easy to brush off.
Seeing they've come to a decision, both already began planning ways to reasonably be allowed a year off. After all, Mr Garth was one of the pillars of the coven who was both a powerhouse and a vampire helping out with a few cases and missions. Alaric's situation was also not particularly easy either. He was the Rong family's golden child of the current generation, and there were a lot of high hopes for him. Not only did he help with smaller duties and volunteer with patrolling, but he was an exemplary student and role model to all vampires. If he went off all of a sudden to play around overseas, could anyone really accept it so easily?
In theory, it wasn't too difficult to find excuses to travel. But one, a year was still a reasonably long time to leave the coven, and two, it would be strange for both of them to go together. This sort of thing had a lot of considerations. Fortunately, they still had a few months left. While they shouldn't leave it till the last minute, they didn't want to rush it either.
For now, it was best to continue doing what they were doing and consider various ways to sell their shared year-long vacation idea to the coven. Mr Garth knew the coven elders and other adult vampires better, and Jia Hyson as the good child, already had a lot of their favour. However, Mr Garth and Jia Hyson both agreed, for the sake of laying down the foundations, they were both willing to move their relationship slowly into the public eye.
While their age gap was extremely scandalous for humans, for vampires who have already acknowledged Alaric's maturity, it could only be said to be extremely shocking at most, with maybe only ten per cent directed at the difference in their years. And at least sixty percent of the shock would most likely be attributed to the fact two people of such personalities and identities would actually form a serious relationship like this. Thirty per cent would definitely be for Mr Garth's previous identity as Alaric's teacher. After all, there was an understandable stigma there, which was stronger the shorter the time since they had a student and teacher relationship.
As for the fact that they indeed were together for a while during that relationship? Hehe, that wasn't necessary to say ah~
Prince Rigel, as the person behind the suggestion, was, of course, met with much better courtesy. At the very least, there were no more problems of having the prince enter and immediately know the couple had just committed another rechristening of the entire house three times over. Given they all got along unexpectedly very well, the dormitory had been nothing but harmonious.
"Hey, why don't we try some of the more mature clothing?" Prince Rigel asks curiously as he puts down the hairspray and checks a mirror to determine if his hair is satisfactory. "You know, the, uh, how do you people say it now, the chic high fashion?" He tried to be casual about it, but Jia Hyson could quickly tell the other was brimming with suppressed eagerness to try a new look.
Jia Hyson hummed, "It's not impossible; I have a few outfits like that; it's just."
"Just what?"
"We're a bit too short to be well-fitted in a lot of those clothes." Jia Hyson's mouth twitches. They were slim and had compact lithe muscles, but their height wasn't very good, especially for Western standards. The era of this world was still a little behind in a lot of matters, and so the very cool and fashionable high-end clothing was really only made for the tall and skinny models or the tall and big-breasted with skinny waists. The unrealistic beauty standards of the future were being promoted as the norm today, and it made it difficult for people who don't fit into them to find beautiful clothes that fit well enough.
A lot of the Lolita designs Jia Hyson had on hand were imported over, and the layers of fabric can hide a lot, but there were many clothes that would require tailoring to produce the best effect. Which, obviously, is a bit embarrassing. He would go to boutiques to mix and match the clothing to his tastes, but they were mainly along the lines of simple and cute or conservatively elegant.
Because the study room Prince Rigel had claimed originally had a more professional vibe, even with the added decor to make it cozier, the other decided to also wear simple but cool, frameless glasses to match. Prince Rigel was often seen with a sweet smile that was like a pink spring flower blooming, but with the glasses and a stern, concentrated expression, there was a sense of seriousness, and his face was more beautiful than a white winter bud in the snow.
To lean into this, there was a dimmer lighting to suggest Carnation was studying till late, back straight as he filled in his homework and sipped on a hot drink. The steam from the drink gave his already fairy-like face an even more ethereal and soft air under the lamp on the table. There were also a few pictures taken of the crossdressing prince standing to pick one of the books in the study library, taking one out to read, and leaning into one of the other comfier chairs in the room, engrossed in the story.
In contrast, Jia Hyson's room was kept a little messy and chaotic to show a very typical teenager's bedroom. His shots were full of a scum student's aura, constantly doodling on the paper, leaning back on the chair and playing on his phone, and leaning over with a scrunched-up pouting frown as he struggled with the homework given. It was very playful and relatable to many young people.
After the solo shoots, the pair changed into sleepwear to do a sleepover scene. Jia Hyson wore quite a revealing, thin outfit, consisting of a navy blue crop cami top with wavy scallop trim and a little white star print at the left-hand lower corner. To match, there was also white short cotton shorts with a navy blue galaxy print, a little navy ribbon, and the same wavy trim. With such an outfit showing off so much pale skin and Alaric's thin and shapely legs, it immediately made the other two vampires' eyes darken and swallow a little. It can easily be imagined what the response from the less platonic fans would be once they saw this.
Jia Hyson turns in the mirror, strikes a pose and smiles, enjoying what he sees greatly. For a crossdressing outfit, it was actually very difficult to pull off given the little fabric it had for most men, given their naturally broader shoulders and musculature. However, Alaric's body was the slim type that could belong to any classic old BL shou or yaoi manga uke. Thus there was only a slight discordance with dressing up like this that could more or less disappear under the effects of lighting, makeup and strategic posing.
Prince Rigel also had a similar body type. However, taking account of his more conservative nature at heart and his, uh, well, large asset that was a little hard to hide under any tight and thin fabric, Jia Hyson gave the other the boyfriend shirt treatment. Wearing an oversized pale green button-up pyjama shirt with plant patterning, the blonde vampire looks sweet and small, attracting a different but equally fatal appeal.
"Isn't it a bit too big?" Mr Garth frowns as he observes Rigel adjusting the large shirt, which keeps slipping side to side on his shoulders every time he shifts.
Jia Hyson had a complicated expression at the telekinetic vampire's question before glancing at the Eclipse Coven prince's boyfriend shirt outfit, which reached down just past the middle of the other's thigh. "No, it's pretty good."
Prince Rigel nods in agreement, face a little smug as he readjusts his pyjamas for the nth time. "Yes, it's perfectly fine. Covers what needs to be covered." He casually says as he tugs the hem of the shirt pointedly.
Mr Garth's eyes lower, subconsciously attracted by the movement, before they move up to Prince Rigel's grinning face with a bit of shock and disbelief. He felt like he understood but didn't understand. Looking toward his lover in askance, Jia Hyson only helplessly conveys the length of about 8 inches with his hands to the other. Then after some hesitation, he widens the gap between his hands to be a bitter longer after some thought.
Mr Garth: '' Very good, it was bigger than mine.
The older vampire didn't question how the blue-eyed vampire knew this information. After all, they were the same type of person in regards to sexual matters; in fact, Mr Garth could say he was even more casual with it, as sex for him can partially be viewed as simply just another way for him to sleep well. He very much understood that such an act can lead to love, but it certainly isn't the same as it.
Not only that, he himself had agreed to take a break with Alaric just so the younger vampire could meet new people and broaden his horizons. It's normal to drink a little vinegar, but it would be hypocritical and completely unreasonable of him to feel too jealous or disgusted over the fact Alaric had sex with others now. As long as everyone was single or at least in an open relationship, and everything was consensual, then there was no need to feel seriously betrayed over any mentions of the past.
Besides.. Mr Garth's eyes flicker over the hem of Prince Rigel's shirt with faint curiosity and intrigue. It wasn't like he wasn't completely against it if the pair replicated their previous tryst as long as he was there too.
Jia Hyson easily caught the interest in Mr Garth's eye and tilted his head, and touched his chin thoughtfully. Well, it seems they both had the same good taste. He grabbed a wet tissue to wipe the lipstick off his lips, but it couldn't wipe away the faintly wicked smile on his face.
Both lovers look at each other at that moment. Mr Garth raises his eyebrow, and Jia Hyson's smile widens. They didn't need to say anything as a tacit understanding was made.
Prince Rigel, who was completely unaware of all this, suddenly felt a chill down his spine.
...
..
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Little Theatre:
Prince Rigel: This prince is feeling strangely vulnerable right now.
Jia Hyson: Hehe
Mr Garth: Hehe
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