Oh My, I Messed Up the Story

Abby had so many things she wanted to ask Blaise now that they were together but she wasn't sure what would or would not be acceptable in front of her sister. He didn't seem like the type who enjoyed talking in front of most and he didn't know Katie very well.

"So," she said awkwardly. "You mentioned going to Stanarussi where you were gone. Did you go anywhere else?"

"Yes, I visited each country on the continent at least once," he said as he diligently worked on coloring in red squares with a marker.

Abby was tempted to laugh at how seriously Blaise was taking his task. It was actually kind of cute. His hair had changed yet again; it was shorter than before but longer than when she met him. Out of all of the haircuts she had seen this one probably suited him best.

He looked less like a member of a boyband and more like a Warrior but it wasn't as severe as a buzzcut. He had gotten a tan while he was away too and it looked good on him. Very good.

Katie butted in, unable to resist her curiosity. "Ooh, I don't know much about the geography there since Annalaias' is only really allies with Shibatsu and Stanarussi doesn't want any diplomatic relations at all. Tell us about them."

Blaise complied with her request, giving more detail than he usually did when he spoke. He talked about various cultural differences, the types of goods bought and sold, and the landscapes he had seen.

Maybe having Katie here wasn't so bad after all. Instead of making things awkward, she helped the conversation keep flowing so Abby was able to get the information she had wanted ever since his return. The library wasn't utilized as much now that people were so busy so there was plenty of time to talk uninterrupted.

After more than forty minutes of Blaise doing most of the talking in response to the women's questions, he finally turned the subject back to her. "Those are my adventures in a nutshell. I want to know what you have been doing here. I heard something about a school, a printing office, and a theater but I want to know everything."

Abby flushed. The way he said it was matter-of-fact but it set her insides on fire. He seemed genuinely interested rather than asking it out of obligation like when people asked you how you were as a greeting and you had to return the question whether you cared about the answer or not.

"The school was intentional but Abby accidentally caused quite the phenomenon around here because I was missing some movies and snacks from back home while pregnant with my daughter," Katie said with a fond smile.

A small cry sounded from a quiet corner of the library and she said "speak of the devil" before excusing herself to go take care of Aza, who had woken up from her nap. Blaise raised an eyebrow as he turned to Abby with questions in his eyes.

She shrugged a bit sheepishly. "…it's true. That's how the theater program started. Katie was a bit overwhelmed by all the work she had to do and homesick. She said she wanted a bag of potato chips and some of our favorite movies from growing up.

"It took a bit of planning but I got the baker to help me with the chips and some of the children in town to help me put on a super lame reenactment of the movies while I narrated and sang some of the theme music. Even Al got involved.

"All I wanted was to cheer Katie up—which I totally did; she was grinning for weeks—but the kids had a lot more fun doing it than I expected and wanted to put the play on again for everyone once the weather was nicer and we had outdoor space. That kickstarted the theater program and the potato chips led to further experimenting and a cookbook…"

Abby went on for a while and Blaise listened intently, stopping every so often to ask thoughtful questions so she knew he was soaking up every word she said. After a while he shook his head in wonder.

"All of this because of catering to an emotional pregnant women. On the journey back I had to deal with Jae's new wife Kirienne and her mood swings but was never able to say a word. He was the one charged with calming her down. You really are quite something, Miss Abby."

"Something good or something bad?" she dared to ask.

Blaise looked up from his work to smile softly at her. "Definitely something good."

That smile warmed her down to her toes and she had to hastily look away before she did something stupid like giggle uncontrollably. His comment shouldn't have been sweet but it was.

Eventually Katie came back and asked if they would keep the library open and keep working because she had to take Adam to the park before he lost his mind. He had been pestering her the entire time she had tried to nurse his sister.

Abby wondered if she was making excuses trying to be a wingwoman or if her son genuinely wanted to go to the park. She could see it going either way.

Regardless, she was grateful for the opportunity to keep talking. This long overdue conversation had gone much better than she could have hoped.contemporary romance

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