NOVEL NEXT Chapter 62
Aster crouched, scooping Syn onto her back with ease, her arms hooking under his knees as she straightened.
His weight settled against her broad frame, his arms draped loosely over her shoulders, his cheek brushing against her ponytail. Her boots thudded in a steady rhythm as she carried him out of the gym, the bright overhead lights and the stench of sweat and metal fading behind them.
"I still don't believe a spaceship this big has no wheelchairs," Syn muttered, his tone dry, but exhaustion softened the bite.
Aster shifted his weight slightly, her grin audible in her voice. "If you don't believe me, go check for yourself." She paused. Letting the challenge hang between them, knowing full well he couldn't. His ankles still bound him to her care—a fact they both understood too well.
"You know I can't," he shot back, his hazel eyes narrowing as he tilted his head to catch her profile, his tone laced with dry accusation.
"Then you'll just have to believe me," she replied, smugly with a glint of mischief in her teal eyes as she glanced sidelong at him.
Syn's stare sharpened—a silent 'I can see through you' burning behind his gaze—but he said nothing, pressing his lips into a thin line as they passed a group of crewmates in the corridor.
Their eyes flicked toward him—some curious, some amused—and he turned his head away, his cheeks warming as he avoided their scrutiny.
Aster caught it from the corner of her eye, her grin widening as she teased, "It's been a whole month, and you're still shy? I'd bet you'd turn into a tomato if I carried you in my arms instead."
Her laugh rang out, bright and unrestrained, bouncing off the steel walls as she adjusted her grip, her steps unfaltering.
Syn's hand darted up, yanking her ponytail with a quick tug, jerking her head back slightly.
She yelped, a sharp "Hey!" escaping her as she stumbled a step, then steadied herself, her tone shifting to a playful warning.
"Don't do that—or next time, I'm carrying you in my arms, and you'll regret it." Her eyes glinted with mock menace, and Syn released her hair, his glare intensifying as he folded his arms tighter around her shoulders, his silent protest a palpable heat against her back.
"I can feel your gaze burning a hole," she said, her voice lilting with amusement as she rounded a corner, the bathroom's door looming ahead, its steel surface scuffed from years of use.
"At least let me do that," he muttered, his tone dry but edged with a grudging surrender, his breath warm against her neck.
"Hmm, okay," Aster conceded, her grin softening into something gentler. "Guess I do have to give you some freedom." Her words carried a teasing lilt, a nod to the unspoken leash she'd kept him on since his injury.
Syn snorted, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "Wow, you call this freedom? I wonder how it'd be different if you didn't 'give' it to me."
"Oh, that's easy," she shot back, her response instant, her tone bright with mock seriousness. "For starters, I'd lock you in my room and chain you to the bed." She paused, letting the image sink in, her grin widening as she felt him tense against her.
"That's exactly my current situation, nothing worse," he deadpanned, his hazel eyes rolling as he shifted his weight.
"Wait—I'm not done," she interrupted, her laugh bubbling up as she pushed the bathroom door open with her shoulder, the hiss of its mechanism punctuating her words.
"Your mouth'd be shut too—taped up whenever I don't wanna hear 'no' from you." Her voice dropped into a mock growl, and Syn shuddered, a faint ripple running down his spine that she felt through her grip.
Aster's laughter erupted, loud and unrestrained, echoing off the bathroom's tiled walls as she stepped inside, the door sliding shut behind them.
"I actually felt you shiver this time!" she crowed, her teal eyes sparkling with delight as she eased him off her back, setting him gently onto a bench near the showers, his legs stretched out before him.
Syn yanked her ponytail again, a quick, defiant tug that jerked her head back, and she yelped, her laughter cutting off into a sharp, "Hey—stop that!" Her warning returned, firm but laced with amusement, her hands planting on her hips as she loomed over him.
The bathroom's dim light glinted off the tiles, steam curling faintly from the showers as the ship's hum thrummed beneath their feet. Syn's glare held, a mix of irritation and reluctant fondness, his arms crossing over his chest as he leaned back, his sore muscles a dull ache beneath his skin.
Aster's grin didn't waver, her ponytail swaying as she tilted her head, her presence a steady anchor in the cramped space.
She grabbed a towel from the nearby rack and tossed it onto Syn's lap with a flick of her wrist. "Alright, shower time," she said, her tone brisk but laced with familiarity.
Kneeling beside him, she worked efficiently, peeling off his navy pants and briefs with her eyes closed like she promised to him.
Syn exhaled sharply, gripping the towel, but said nothing. Aster stepped back after stripping him bare, and stepped outside the bathroom without turning back to look at Syn.
"Call out to me when you're done," Aster said moments before the door hissed shut behind her.
____
The bathroom hummed with the soft gurgle of water, its tiled walls slick with condensation. Syn perched on a low stool beside the bathtub, his ankles resting gingerly on the floor.
Aster had set him up with a bottle of body wash and a tube of shampoo within arm's reach, the faint scent of citrus and mint curling through the steam.
Syn leaned forward, lathering his arms with slow, deliberate strokes, the warm water from a handheld sprayer sluicing over his skin, washing away the gym's sweat and strain.
All he could think right now was —
Seven to ten days, and he'd be healed, but... Then what?