Welcome to Gaia! ::

Hyas had heard her enter the front door and smiled as she called to him. He gently shut the lid of a small trunk and turned the key in the lock. He placed it back in it's hiding spot under the floorboards. Hyas had been pensive and thoughtful the last few days. He had been thinking about the deal he'd made with Flare, so long ago. He'd stay with her until the time came when he could afford a place of his own. He had enough money now...more than enough actually, he'd been putting off thinking about it for a while. Hyas rather liked staying with Flare, they had a really great friendship and she was easy to live with. Still, she must be wanting to move on with her life. After all they'd never planned this to be a permanent thing, and if she was looking for a mate it wouldn't be easy with another male living with her. He brushed away a small pang of guilt.

The hard fact was, Hyas didn't want to leave. He couldn't put off the conversation forever though, she must be getting suspicious. It was a miracle she'd put up with him practically squatting in her house for as long as he had. They were still kids when the agreement had been made. He wondered guiltily if she'd ever regretted it...he hadn't. He'd grown up in poverty until Flare had come along and in one day offered him a friendship and a home. He really owed her for everything she'd done for him. Maybe...He'd have to ask her. It would be hard but there was no avoiding it any longer.

Hyas left his room, closing the door behind him and casually sauntered towards the kitchen, sniffing the air as the scent of dinner wafted by. "Hi Flare." He leaned against the the door jam watching her about her work. "How was it?" He asked, referring to wherever she'd just been. He assumed the market seeing as she was cooking.

Hyas tossed the apple up in the air and caught it a couple times. Toying with it but not eating it. "Oh, not too bad. Sat around the house mostly...went over my finances." He chewed his lip. "Flare, I think we need to talk." He hated saying it like that but beating around the bush would just be an excuse to ignore the topic again.

Hyas stayed where he was in the doorframe. It wasn't like him to be so bent out of shape. He mentally chided himself for it. It was already putting Flare on guard. "You know when I first moved in? Well we'd agreed that I could stay with you until I'd saved enough to buy a house of my own. I'd help clean and help out in return for the use of the room. Well, Like I said I was going over my finances earlier...and well..." Hyas stopped and took a deep breath before he started to babble. This was ridiculous! He shook his head and brushed his mane back from his face. With sort of a half laugh he took a couple steps forward and sat across from Flare, smiling at his own ineptitude. "I don't know why I'm so tongue tied about this." You Liar. "I've got enough money to purchase my own place. So If you want to stick to our agreement, I can start looking for a place tomorrow. "

Wait...did she want him to stay or go? Hyas was confused. He sat looking at his hands on the table, mouth partway open, waiting for the words to come. His voice seemed caught in his throat though. She said she didn't mind his company..but that didn't mean she wanted here to stay. He didn't mind Chrys's company but he didn't want to live with the man! Brother or not! Maybe Hyas had been reading too deep into their friendship and seeing things that weren't there. His heart hung heavy in his chest.

"Well...It wouldn't be immediate...I'd need time to find a suitable place, then if it needs repairs...that could last a while." He didn't know what he was saying anymore. He couldn't just come out and say he didn't want to move though. It would be incredibly rude given the circumstances.

Hyas propped his elbows on the table resting his forehead in his hands. Why did he even bring it up? He wanted to be sick with how hard this conversation was. He lifted his head, about to accept her offer when she cried out. "Flare!"
He hastily pushed back his chair, the legs scraping loudly across the floor.

Hyas was at her side in an instant, gently pulling her finger from her mouth and inspecting it. "Here..." He held her hand in his while grabbing a damp towel from the sink beside them and dabbed at her cut. When he looked back at her face he saw the tears in her eyes and the words just slipped out.

"I don't want to go."

Hyas blinked in shock. He hadn't heard her right had he? They'd spoken at the same time...Hyas suddenly crushed her to his chest in a tight hug. He laughed with hysterical relief. "Screw awkward! If you don't want me to go then there's no way I'm leaving!"

His face was flushed and he didn't care. It was an all or nothing moment now. "The damned crazy thing is, I didn't want to admit it to myself before but I think I love you!" He relaxed his grip but left his arms around her. There was a giddy light in his eyes as he searched her face for a response to his words.

Hyas pressed into the kiss, happier than any stallion every had the right to be. He laughed again and lifted her, spinning her around. At least he was still mindful of her cut finger. "Flare!" He said her name excitedly just for the sake of it. His eyes widened as a thought occurred to him. He set her back down on the ground and tried to figure out how to express it. "Since I'm not moving out...I've got a lot of money sitting idle..." He was shocked. Not only because of what had just transpired but the realization that he'd gone from street rat sleeping in the glow of a forge to a stallion with a home and a mare who loved him...and an a** load of cash. He'd not really considered the money as his wealth since it had been ear marked for a house. Now he could spend it on anything he wanted! For the life of him he couldn't think of anything else he wanted at this moment though.