File type: Text File (.txt) [Download]
-----------------------------------------
“Allen? Hey, Allen! Are you listening to me?”


        “Huh?” The dark-haired youth looked up, turning his head towards his boyfriend sitting next to him. “Oh, yeah. Sorry, I was just kinda… spacing out, I guess.”


        The green and white scaled dragon frowned, looking down at the human sitting next to him. “I’m worried about you, Allen,” he said, shaking his head. “It seems like every time we try to do something together, you’re always just spacing out like this. Every time I try to talk to you, it seems like you just tune me out. It’s like you don’t even want to be around me anymore.”


        Allen sighed. “You know that’s not true, Simon,” he said. “I’m really sorry. I guess… I’ve just had a lot on my mind lately, that’s all.”


        “But it feels like I’m the only one you’re like this around!” said Simon, growing frustrated. “I mean, you seem perfectly fine when we’re with groups of friends together. You’re always talking, laughing, and having a good time! But every time it’s just the two of us, you just go completely silent and start spacing out! I just don’t get it!” He looked over at Allen and swallowed. “You… you don’t want to break up with me or anything, do you?”


        “What? No, of course not!” said Allen defensively. “I just… well…” He looked away, lowering his head slightly. “...Whenever I’m around you and we’re by ourselves, I just… I don’t feel normal. I feel… scared.”


        “Scared?” asked Simon, frowning. “Why’s that? Why would you feel scared around me?”


        “I don’t know!” cried Allen, raising his head towards Simon again. “I can’t explain it, but there’s something about you that just… intimidates the heck out of me! I don’t know what it is, but… it’s there, and I don’t know how to fix it.”


        “You’re… intimidated by me?” asked Simon, now becoming even more confused. “But… why would you be intimidated by me?” He thought for a moment. “I mean, we’re pretty much equals as far as I’m concerned. We get similar grades, have similar skills, similar jobs… I mean, I guess I do have music and composition going for me, but even that’s really only because-”


        “Look, Simon,” said Allen, interrupting him. “I appreciate you trying to figure this out, I really do. But… I really think this is something I need to work out by myself.” He stood up from the park bench, looking back at his boyfriend. “I’ll talk to you soon, okay? I just need a little bit of time to figure this stuff out.”


        “...Okay,” Simon sighed, watching his boyfriend walking away. As soon as he was gone, Simon turned his head, looking at the other park goers around him. As usual, it mostly consisted of mammals: wolves, foxes, cats, a few rodents, and of course humans. There were a few birds and reptiles around as well, but once again, he saw almost none of his own species: dragons. He knew he was a rare breed; in all his time living here, he’d only ever seen a few dragons in the area, and that was only in passing. It never bothered him that much - he usually took pride in being such a rare species, in fact - but even he had to admit that it did make him feel a bit lonely at times. There were times that he did wish there were other dragons in his age group around town, so that he didn’t always feel so out of place.


        Still, now wasn’t the time to think about that. What possible reason could Allen possibly have for being intimidated by him? Leaning back on the bench, Simon tilted his head towards the sky, trying to wrack his brain for an explanation. It just didn’t make sense - if anything, Simon was the one who should have been intimidated by Allen. Though they’d always had similar interests, Allen was the one who’d always had the drive to turn his interests into productivity. They were both interested in video games, for instance, but Allen was the only one of them who’d ever actually taken his interest to the next level by working on designing his own video games from the ground up. He’d learned proper level design, coding, even designing his own custom sprites and animations, all in the name of pursuing his passion to imitate what he loved. Simon had tried to learn it all as well, in an attempt to follow in Allen’s footsteps, but he’d quickly given up due to his inability to wrap his head around the coding process. Allen had tried to help him, but he’d rejected it - this kind of thing simply wasn’t for him, he’d decided. He simply didn’t have the same kind of passion that Allen did.


        With a sigh, Simon leaned his head back, staring up at the sky. There was one thing that he had over Allen, a skill he’d had for as long as he could remember: namely, his talent for music. Though he’d gotten his start through piano lessons he’d taken as a child, he’d since moved on to using the guitar as his primary instrument, as well as his voice. Most songs he knew he could sing and play from memory, and he’d even written a few of his own songs for him to perform as well. But as far as he was concerned, his interest in music had only recently truly taken off thanks to… well, thanks to Allen. Though he was extremely competent in just about every other aspect of game design, it didn’t take Allen long to realize that he lacked the ear for music to create the soundtracks he decided his games needed. Thus, he turned to Simon for help, leading to Simon learning both composition and production on a much higher level than he had known before. So yes, Simon’s musical skills far outshined Allen’s, but even that was really only because Allen had pushed him into it. So that couldn’t possibly be the reason Allen was intimidated by him… right?


        “Excuse me. Is this seat taken?”


        “Hmm?” Simon jerked his head forward, looking over towards the voice. Standing in front of him was a tall, thin crow, wearing a pair of rectangular sunglasses. “Oh… er, no,” he said, shrinking away from the stranger slightly. “You… you can sit here if you want.”


        The crow smiled. “Thank you,” he said, taking a seat next to Simon. “My name’s Martin, by the way.” He tilted his head towards Simon slightly, frowning. “Are you doing okay? You look a little bit troubled.”


        Simon waved him off. “Just… relationship troubles, that’s all,” he said. “Probably nothing you’d be interested in hearing about?”


        “Relationship troubles?” asked Martin. He grinned. “That sounds quite intriguing, if you ask me. Are you sure you don’t want to talk about it? I’d be more than willing to listen. Perhaps I’d even be able to offer some advice as well.” His grin fell slightly as he noticed the look Simon was giving him. “Er… of course, if you’re not comfortable with sharing…”


        Simon sighed. Well, he figured, it wasn’t like he had anything to lose by talking to this guy. Maybe he’d even be able to help. “Alright,” he said. “So… apparently, my boyfriend has been feeling really intimidated by me lately, and… I can’t seem to figure out why.” He turned away, staring back up at the sky. “I mean, in almost everything I can think of, he’s either my equal or better than I am as far as I’m concerned. He’s the one who’s into pixel art, game design, coding… I can’t do any of that. Sure, I can do music better than he can, but the only reason I really got into that was because he wanted me to help him with the soundtracks for his games, so I feel like I can’t really even take credit for that.”


        Martin nodded. “I see,” he said. “Is it possible that he feels intimidated because you’re the one doing the music stuff instead of him? If he’s a really big perfectionist, he might just feel bad that he needs help with his games and can’t just do everything himself.”


        “Well… I guess that’s possible, yeah,” said Simon. “But I don’t really think that’s likely, since he’s never really been much of a perfectionist as far as I can tell. I mean, I’ve seen him make plenty of mistakes while he was learning game design, but they really didn’t seem to faze him at all. He never seemed to get frustrated… he just kept going at it, which is more than I can say about myself when I tried that stuff.” He shook his head. “See, part of the reason this is so baffling to me is because he’s not even the kind of person to be intimidated by… well, anything really. No matter what hardships he comes across, he never lets them get him down… he just keeps working until he finds a way around them, whether that means getting good at them himself or finding someone else who can help him with them. So the thought that he’d be intimidated by someone like me is just… well, it just makes absolutely no sense as far as I’m concerned.”


        “Hmmm… that is quite the mystery,” said Martin. He reached up with one of his hand-talons to brush one of his feathers out of his eye, then turned towards Simon again. “Let me ask you this: what species is this boyfriend of yours?”


        “What… species?” said Simon, puzzled. “Well, he’s human, but… I don’t know what kind of difference that makes. What does his species have to do with anything?”


        “Human, eh?” said Martin, nodding. “And you don’t think that has anything to do with it? The fact that he’s a human, and you’re a… well, a dragon?”


        Simon frowned. “No, of course not,” he said. “Why would that matter at all? It’s not like that has any bearing on, like… skill or anything, right?”


        “Yes, that’s true,” said Martin with a nod. “But here’s the thing…” He leaned over, placing one of his hand-talons on top of Simon’s hand. “Don’t tell anyone I told you this,” he said. “But I’m, well… something of a historian. And lately I’ve been doing a bit of research into our world’s history, trying to discover how people like us might have lived way back when.”


        “Okay…” said Simon, unsure of where Martin was going with this. “And?”


        “And… well, I’ve made a few discoveries that some people might consider a bit… shocking,” said Martin. “According to the evidence I’ve gathered, the people living in that time period were… a bit different from you and I.” He leaned in closer, his grin growing wider. “You see, back then there weren’t a ton of different species around - at least, not ones that looked and acted like us. In fact, there was only one species that fit into that category; that species being humans.”


        “Humans?” asked Simon. “What do you mean? What about all the other species?”


        “Oh, they still existed - most of them, anyway,” replied Martin. “But they looked and acted far differently than they do today. They weren’t capable of using any kind of technology, thinking complicated thoughts, or even talking - only humans could do all that.”


        “They… weren’t?” asked Simon, confused. “But… how did they survive, then? How could they have communicated with each other? How could they have gotten food and shelter?”


        “They had ways of managing,” said Martin. “But you probably wouldn’t want me to go into detail about it. It gets… kind of graphic, honestly. And anyway, it’s not important. What is important is this.” His grin grew wider still. “Of all of these creatures, there were some that didn’t even exist back then, in any form. They were considered made up - mythical, even. And one of these creatures was considered one of the most powerful creatures of them all, capable of growing to enormous sizes, terrorizing entire civilizations, and bringing ruin to anyone who dared defy them.” He tilted his head, raising an eyebrow at Simon. “And those creatures were, of course, dragons.”


        “...Really?” Simon glanced down at himself, then looked back at Martin. “Whoa. So you’re saying that if I existed back then-”


        “You wouldn’t have been able to exist back then, remember?” said Martin with a chuckle. “Because dragons didn’t exist in the real world - only in the minds of humans. But if they did exist, they would have easily been among the most terrifying creatures around. Quite intimidating for a mere human, wouldn’t you say?”


        “I mean… I guess so, yeah,” said Simon, frowning. “But that still doesn’t make sense. If dragons only existed in the minds of humans back then, how is it that we exist in real life now? How could we have gone from only existing in mythology to existing in the real world?”


        “That… is a very long and complicated story,” replied Martin. “And again, it’s not important.” He sighed. “Look, the point I’m trying to make is that if humanity once had this idea of dragons being ultra-powerful and intimidating, it’s possible that that’s what’s causing your boyfriend to feel intimidated by you. Because the historical power dynamic between your species is so massive, it may have persisted to the point where he feels it even now, despite all the time that’s passed.”


        “So… you’re saying that Allen might be intimidated by me because of the history between our two species?” said Simon. “But… I can’t do anything about that! I mean, its not my fault that I’m a dragon and he’s a human, and neither is it his!” He groaned, burying his head in his hands. “I really want him to be happy in our relationship, but if he’s always going to be intimidated by me just because of what I am… I mean, how am I supposed to fix that? How is anyone supposed to fix that?”


        “Weeeellll…” Simon looked up to see Martin looking down at him, his grin wider than ever. “Believe it or not, I might just be able to help with that. The way I see it, all you need to do to help your boyfriend out is simply… bring him up to your level, so to speak. Now, I just need to figure out what the best way to do that is...” He thought for a moment, then suddenly snapped his fingers. “I got it! You mentioned earlier that you’re a songwriter, right?”


        “Um…” Simon thought for a moment. Had he mentioned that? “I… think I mentioned that I was into music and composing, but I don’t recall saying anything about being a-”


        “No matter! I have the perfect solution!” said Martin, ignoring him. “All you have to do is write your boyfriend a song telling him exactly how you feel about him! Tell him just how much you love him and how much you want your relationship to work! Pour every bit of passion you feel for him into that song, and I guarantee it’ll fix him right up and your relationship will be back to normal in no time at all!”


        “Write… him a song?” asked Simon. He swallowed. What would something like that accomplish, though? Maybe it would let Allen know that he really cared about him and really wanted to make the relationship work, and it would help Allen see though whatever implicit stereotypes he had towards him? He sighed. “Well, it’s worth a try, I guess,” he said. “I mean, it’s not like I had anything important going on tonight…”


        “Excellent!” cried Martin, jumping up from the bench. “Well, I need to be off, but it was great meeting you! Best of luck to both you and your boyfriend!” With that, he quickly spread his massive wings and took off to the sky, leaving Simon on the ground staring up at him. With a sigh, Simon stood up and began his walk back to his house, his mind already trying to decide just how he was going to go about writing this song for Allen.


……………………………………………………………………………………………………………….


        Ding Dong! The sound of the doorbell startled Allen into jumping up off his couch. Wondering who could possibly be visiting him this early in the morning, he slowly got up, making his way towards the door. Opening it up, he frowned upon seeing who was on the other side. “...Simon?” he said. “What are you doing-”


        “Listen, I’m really sorry for coming here unannounced,” the dragon said. “But I have something that I really wanted to show you, okay?”


        “Um, okay…” said Allen. Looking down, he suddenly noticed that Simon was carrying a guitar case in his hand. “What, did you write me a song or something?”


        Simon sighed. “Guilty as charged,” he said. “Look, I know that you said you needed some space from me, and I get that, I really do. But I really want you to know how much I want this relationship to work, so… I spent pretty much all of last night writing this song hoping that you would hear it and know that I’m here for you no matter what. And… maybe that’ll help you stop being so intimidated by me? That’s what I’m hoping for, at least.”


        Lowering his head, Allen sighed. He wasn’t really in the mood for this, but he was still Simon’s boyfriend, and seeing as Simon had apparently worked pretty hard on this… well, it would be pretty rude to not at least hear him out. “Alright,” he said with a nod. “Let’s hear what you’ve got.”


        “Thank you!” said Simon, perking up. “You’ll love it, trust me!” Grinning, he quickly made his way inside the apartment and opened his guitar case. “You ready?” He asked, sitting down in the nearest chair.


“Yeah, sure,” said Allen, sitting down on the couch opposite him. “Go ahead.”


“Alright!” said Simon. Taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes and began strumming on his guitar. The notes filled the air as Allen sat down as well, staring over at his boyfriend. The beginning few notes were fairly simple and easy to follow, which wasn’t surprising to Allen. Simon had always had a thing for simple, easy to grasp music, and while it wasn’t really the kind of music Allen enjoyed listening to, Simon had still written it for him, so he was still going to hear him out. With the opening few notes out of the way, Simon opened his mouth and began to sing:


I’ve always been impressed by you, Loved how your passion made you wild
I’ve loved the magic in your games, Your humor always makes me smile
We’ve been together for so long, I’m always happy when we’re close
The times when you’re around, are the times that I enjoy the most.


Allen chuckled. Simple lyrics as well, straight and to the point. Kinda sappy too. Typical Simon. Still, hearing this kind of high praise from Simon was enough to make him smile, even make his face flush a little as well. It was embarrassing, sure, but it felt good to hear that he meant so much to his boyfriend. With a contented sigh, Allen sat back and continued to listen.


I’ve always been impressed by you, Loved every project that you’ve made
Your dedication to your cause, Your all was always what you gave
You put yourself in everything, Learning how to perfect your skill
And thought I tried to keep up, I could never match your will


As Allen continued to listen, he felt something strange - a sort of tugging on his spine, spreading down to his tailbone. He ignored it, though, trying to keep his focus on Simon’s song. However, that focus caused him to remain oblivious to what was actually happening to him, that being the thick reptilian tail slowly emerging from his behind. Longer and longer the blue-scaled appendage grew, extending and spreading across the floor until it was just as long as Simon’s tail was. Yet Allen took no notice of it, keeping his attention directed towards Simon and his song.


And now, I just want to tell you what you mean to me


Allen leaned back, his fingers quietly drumming against the arm of his chair. As he did, the skin on his fingers slowly began hardening into blue scales, while his fingernails grew out into sharp claws. The blue scales spread further across his hands before moving up his arms, until they were completely covered. Yet once again, Allen completely failed to notice.


I want to lift you up, and fly away with you
I want to help you like you’ve helped me, so that we can both break through
I want to let you see how much we both belong
But I could never be like you for long, so I hope you enjoy this song


Now Allen’s foot was starting to tap against the ground, keeping to the beat of Simon’s song. As it did, more strange changes began occurring to both his feet: they began growing longer, the same blue scales forming on them as the ones on his arms and tail. His toes thickened and merged, going down to three on each foot, while his nails sharpened and grew out into claws just as his fingers had. His feet continued to grow to the point that his footwear could no longer contain them - eventually his shoes and socks burst apart, exposing his scaly toes and claws to the air. Somehow Allen failed to notice this too, even the scales began to travel up his legs, rubbing against the inside of his jeans.


I know you shouldn’t feel so scared
Just cause of some outside differences
If I could I would bridge the gap between us
Make sure our love would never end


Allen’s body was almost completely covered in scales at this point as they made their way up his neck to his head. As they did, his face began to stretch out, growing longer and longer. His teeth multiplied inside his lengthening snout, growing longer and sharper, and his nose shrank down into two simple nostril holes as the scales spread across his face to cover it. His ears grew slightly larger and more pointy as two long white horns curved out of his head, parting his dark hair slightly.


I want you to see me for who I am
Not how your mind seems to picture me
All I want is for us to be together and free


Allen was now fully invested in the song - so much so that he once again didn’t notice the tugging feeling in his back, nor did he notice the sudden pressure in the back of his shirt. In an instant, his shirt burst open, his new blue-scaled wings unfurling themselves and growing out to their full length. As soon as they were done growing, they furled themselves back, resting folded up against Allen’s back. As they did, Allen leaned forward, resting his hand on the back of his now longer chin. He continued watching his boyfriend, listening intently as he neared the end of the song.


        I want to lift you up, and fly away with you
        I want my wings to be yours, I want to show you what I can do
        I want us to fly away, together we’ll both be gone
        And together we’ll find where we both belong, so I hope you enjoy this song.


        As the song ended, Allen signed, smiling with contentment. “That… was a really beautiful song, Simon,” he said. “Thank you so much for writing that for me.”


        “Heh,” said Simon, looking up from his guitar for the first time since beginning the song. “Thanks, Allen. I’m really glad you-” Upon noticing Allen, he stopped short, his eyes widening in surprise. “...What the hell?”


        Allen frowned. “Are you okay?” he asked. “What’s the matter?”


        “I… you…” Simon was so shocked he could barely speak. “You’re a… a…”


        “Look, if you have a problem with me or something, just spit it out, okay?” said Allen, standing up. “I can’t - whoa!” Suddenly thrown off balance, he looked down to see his new digitigrade paws sticking out from the remains of his broken sneakers. “Wait… what?” Noticing his new hands, he brought them up to his face, eyes widening upon seeing the scales and claws. “What?” Hands immediately flying to his pocket, he pulled out his phone and turned on the camera, looking at his face on the screen. “WHAT?!” His jaw dropped as his phone slipped from his hands, crashing to the ground below. He simply stood there, his shock too great to do anything else.


        Simon was the first to recover. “You’re… a dragon,” he said, slowly standing up. “You’re a dragon, just like me.”


        “Yeah, I know I am!” said Allen. “How the hell did this happen? What is going on here? I was human when I got here and now I’m…” He slowly sat back down, shock overtaking him again. “I’m a dragon…”


        Frowning, Simon looked back down at his guitar. “You were human when you got here…” he said, trying to make sense of what had happened. “But while I was playing my song for you, you…” He gasped, looking back up suddenly. “That’s it!”


        Allen perked up. “What? What is it?” he asked.


        “Well, right after we talked yesterday, I met this guy in the park,” replied Simon. “I ended up talking to him about what was going on between us, and he suggested that I write this song for you. Said something about ‘bringing you up to my level’ I think. I thought he just meant giving you a confidence boost through the song, but now… I think this is what he had in mind! He must have caused this somehow!”


        “Um… what?” Allen shook his head, confused. “So you met this guy in the park, talked to him about our issues, and he suggested that you write this song? And you think that through that action, he somehow enchanted the song that you hadn’t even written yet so that it would turn me into a dragon?” His eyes narrowed. “The fact that you maybe shouldn’t be talking about our personal issues with strangers aside, don’t you think that’s a bit of a stretch? Not to mention, oh I don’t know, completely and totally impossible?”


        “Okay, first of all, you turning into a dragon is completely and totally impossible too, but that didn’t stop that from happening,” said Simon. “And second of all, there were other things he mentioned too that make me think he was behind this. Apparently…” he sighed. “Apparently he seemed to think that the reason you were so intimidated by me is because I’m a dragon, and you’re… well, you WERE a human.”


        “Because… what?” Allen shook his head. “What do you mean? How does that make sense?”


        “Well, he was a historian, see,” said Simon. “And apparently a long time ago, humans used to think of dragons as these super powerful, super terrifying creatures because… um…” Simon frowned, trying to recall what exactly Martin had told him. Humans were intimidated by dragons, because… why, exactly? He couldn’t remember… in fact, everything Martin had told him about how the world existed all those years ago was nothing more than a blur to him. He remembered that humans found dragons intimidating, but… that was about it. “...Nevermind. It’s not important,” he said, shaking his head. “The point is, he seemed to think that’s why you found me intimidating.”


        “What, because of our species?” asked Allen. “That’s… really weird. Are you sure he wasn’t just crazy or something? I mean, transformation aside, it really doesn't make sense to me that I’d be intimidated by you just because our species happen to be different.”


        “I mean, yeah, that’s what I thought too at first,” replied Simon. “But… well, you tell me. Do you still feel intimidated by me right now?”


        “Well, I… um…” Allen frowned, taking a step closer to Simon. Oddly, that uncomfortable feeling he got whenever he was around Simon seemed to have vanished. Instead, he felt… lighter, almost. He couldn’t quite describe it, but it felt like a weight had been lifted from his body - like something that had been holding him back had been removed. “Honestly, no,” he said. “I don’t feel intimidated. In fact, I feel…” He smiled. “I feel better than I ever have.”


        “Well then, maybe that guy I met was right,” said Simon, walking closer to Allen. “Maybe it really was our species that caused you to be so intimidated by me. And in that case…” He wrapped his arms around Allen, putting his face right in front of his. “I think we can safely put all of that behind us. What do you say?”


        “I…” Allen chuckled, his cheeks flushing red. “You know, I honestly like that idea a lot.” With that, he leaned forward, his mouth touching Simon’s as the two embraced each other properly for what felt like the first time in forever. After a few seconds, Allen broke away from the kiss, stepping back away from Simon. “But let’s not get too sappy here. I feel like I could use some… getting used to this body. And seeing as you’re so much more experienced with this form-”


        “You don’t have to ask twice!” said Simon, grabbing hold of Allen’s hand. “You know, it’s funny… when I wrote in that song that I wanted to fly away with you, I never thought that I’d ever be able to do it literally!”


        “Well, maybe you were right about that guy you met enchanting the song. Who knows?” Allen shrugged as he led Simon outside. “All I care about now is getting to spend some time with the man I love. The man who will hopefully teach me everything I need to know about this new form - right?”


        “Right!” said Simon. “Now, let’s fly away together for real! Trust me, you’re going to love it!”


………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..


        “I’ve changed my mind.”


        “Huh?” Rob looked up from his book to see his roommate Martin walking in, looking a bit weary. “Changed your mind? About what?”


        “I… have decided that I no longer wish to stick to my original plan,” the crow said, sitting down next to the white wolf. “I want to start helping people again - bringing joy through TF, instead of bringing justice.” He leaned back, putting his hand-talons behind his head. “I don’t know, I met someone who looked like they needed help, so… I decided to help them out with it. And… well, I realized that that’s really what I want to do.” He chuckled. “Besides, it doesn’t seem like there’s really that much demand for people bringing justice to evildoers who use TF anyway. I know I said those people are out there, but I’ve been looking around, and I haven’t really heard anything about anyone like that. So… I just think this is a better path for me, is all.”


        “Okay…” said Rob, frowning. “And… why are you telling me all this?”


        “Because I want you to help me, Rob!” said Martin with a grin. “I want to start doing this more with you, together! The two of us could go out together, find people, find new and inventive ways to improve their lives with TF! We could even start a business together where we do just that! Whether it’s selling products to help them or just activating the transformations ourselves! Does… does that make sense to you?”


        “Um… yeah, it does,” said Rob. “So… you’re just doing the same thing I’m doing now, then.”


        “Er… basically, yes,” said Martin, grinning sheepishly. “I… hope you’re okay with that.”


        “I mean, why wouldn’t I be?” asked Rob. “It doesn’t seem like it’s going to be affecting what I’m doing much. If anything, I might just be getting a little bit more help in my endeavors. Which is good, right? So yeah, I’m fine with it. Just do whatever you want, Martin. Nobody’s going to judge you or anything.”


        “...Yeah, I guess you’re right,” said Martin. “Sorry. I guess I just kinda feel bad about going back on my word like that. But you’re right, I shouldn’t be worrying too much about that kind of thing. Just gotta do what’s best for me, y’know?” He slowly stood up, stretching his arms and legs. “Well, good talk! I’ll be in the other room if you need me. I don’t want to get in the way of… whatever it is you’re doing.” With that, he turned and walked away, leaving Rob by himself. With a shrug, Rob returned to his book, not wanting to linger too much on what his roommate had said. Martin would probably just reiterate it when it became relevant again anyway - that’s just the kind of person he was, after all.