At some point after Koana tended to his wounds the night prior — the two of them sitting there in absolute silence — M’haku must have passed out due to sheer exhaustion. The next thing he remembered was hearing some shuffling around the room, a loud creek from the front door, and perhaps water running? Besides the constant white noise of the ocean, of course. He’ll never tire of that.

He begins to wake up to the sun creeping in through the blinds of the window, which causes him to scrunch his face in irritation and turn his head the opposite direction. How long was he out for? As he tries to move even a little bit, he cries out, the pain feeling like it was shooting through his entire body all the way down to his toes.

*“*Ahh!! Fuck, FUCK. Fucking hells...” He cursed under his breath, grinding his teeth together.

That bastard really did a number on him. Not moving for gods knows how long didn’t help his case either; his body felt incredibly stiff, like he got smacked down by a brick shithouse. One of these days, he’s going right back to Ul’dah and giving that damn miqo’te a piece of his fucking mind.

How long has he been asleep for? Hours? Days? Weeks!? After he finally musters the strength to sit up in bed, he clutches his head with a groan – the headache seemingly still plaguing him. Is he alone? M’haku’s ears perk up a bit to hear his surroundings, glancing around the room to see if a blob of green caught the corner of his eye. To no avail. Koana was here last night, wasn’t he?

“Why in the ‘ells do you care anyway? What is it to you that I’m beaten and broken?”

“Oh, wait. Excuse me— Vow of Reason”

Ah, right. The conversation that ensued after Koana found him lying on the floor completely helpless flooded back to him. He wasn’t the kindest to him, he admits, but to M’haku, he felt as if his biting words were justified – in a sense. Why did Koana keep coming back? Why was he helping him? After they “tango’d” the night before Wuk Lamat’s ascension ceremony, the chemistry between them had changed, and all it left him was more confusion. To no fault of Koana’s.

However, the last time they were “together” was before he set off for Xak Tural. It’s been… weeks, since he’s seen him. That night in particular— losing themselves in each other’s bodies— it was not the same. M’haku was all for what had been going on between them over the course of the last few months, but their last meeting was not two men having fuck-buddy-sex, oh no. They made love that night. It was sensual, tender, slow. Romantic.

Perhaps Koana thought nothing of it, but he did. M’haku noticed. And it terrified him. What terrified him even more, was that he enjoyed it. The two of them had not been intimate with one another since then, but he’d be remiss to deny he didn’t miss the Vow of Reason. He harped on the idea of being in a committed relationship, but it didn’t keep M’haku from stewing in his feelings the entire time he was gone.

M’haku was snapped out of his thoughts, flicking his ears up when he heard a “click” come from the front door, followed by the usual creek it made when it opened. Koana pushed the heavy piece of wood ajar with his back since his hands were full. One hand carried a paper bag with some scribbled writing on it while the other held what appeared to be some sort of drink. After he closed the door with his foot, Koana pivoted to face M’haku and flung his ears up.

“Oh! Y-You're awake. Good...” He walked over to the little table beside the bed and set down the contents, which prompted M’haku to flare his nostrils and sniff at the air curiously. It smelled heavenly. He turned his own ears up as he flitted his eyes up and down Koana’s tired face. “I, um... I thought you’d be hungry, so I went and got you some breakfast,” the flustered scholar adds. “You were asleep for quite a long time...”