"Rain? Hello? Are you in there?"

Shit shit shit, she sounds so nice, I wanna- no no bad thoughts today. It only goes downhill from here if you let the thoughts in. Fuck, but I really want to see her, she's so nice. I can't think like that I barely know her.

"Rain? Hello?"

She smells so good! Fuck. Fine I'll say hi, but I have to calm down. Deep breaths.

I slide out of the bed and to the door once I think I'm calm enough, but as I open the door- there she is, sweet smelling, cute little halfling. I shake myself out of it and muster the courage to say hi.

"Hey. What's up?" Stupid stupid, try harder.

"Nothing much, I just wanted to tell you that you did great at the Ritual and I'm glad you invited me." Her silky voice is so nice- wait! She complemented meeee!

"Rain?"

"Oh, sorry, must still be nervous from the concert, jitters. But thank you." Stupid, try to impress her or something stop fumbling!

"I didn't know you got nervous over performing, you're really good at it. But I thought since were roommates we might as well get to know each other."

"M-mates?" She keeps saying things that my brains skews and twists.

"Yeah we're roommates now so, might as well get to know each other, so... maybe it could be a friendly date."

"I think I'd like that." I couldn't help but grin. She's so pleasant and I don't want her to think I'm weird right? Right, yeah. I'm not a weirdo, and we can be friends.
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While Rain was trying to convince himself that he wasn't weird, everyone else was settling into sleep, except Marian. She was still infatuated with Rain, and her pestering him about the concert was silently killing him inside.

What Marian doesn't know is that all ghouls except for some halflings that repress it, go through a heat cycle once a month. It's a hormonal thing. And Rain is dying under the effects of the rut. His always comes first in comparison to everyone else's, and she happens to be someone he may be crushing on.

Her bugging him turned into her succumbing into a nap on his bed.

"Mari- oh." He turned in his computer chair to face her. She was asleep curled up in the sweater she wore to the concert. Rain scooped her up carefully and slowly, she woke up midway to her room.

"Did I fall asleep?" She asked drowsily.

"Yeah, but that's okay. I heard you barely slept for the past couple years, wandering right? But no ones going to be upset if you sleep in or sleep for a week. You need it." He opened the door and pushed it open with his back.

"You could've put me down you know." Mari said.

"I don't want to." He peered down at her through the mask.

"Well why not?" It was less of a question and more of a tired flirt.

"Y-you uhm, I..."

"No it's fine, it's really gentlemanly of you."

At that, he smiled nervously and put her into her bed and just as he planned, tucked her in.

"Get some rest, you deserve it." He closed her door quietly and slowly like a parent would. And of course, she fell right asleep.
——————————————
I think I woke up around three? But I ate breakfast while watching some silly cartoon for children about a sponge and I tried going about my day, but I kept feeling exhausted. So I went for a nap.

And when I fell asleep, I woke up somewhere dark. I couldn't see anything or anyone but I could hear the snarling of two familiar voices. It was Rain and Swiss. They were arguing. I don't know why, and the lights flickered on. Aether rushed towards them, separating them both. Their words just sound like gibberish and I can't understand what's going on.

"Mari!" I heard Rain's voice closer than he was, and I was awake.

"Mari you were having a nightmare." Rain's hand is holding mine tightly.

"I'm okay, it was just weird." I sat up, exhausted from the dream and the bad sleep.

"Are you sure?" He sounded genuinely scared. I don't know why, it was just a dream.

"Yeah, I'm okay." I pat his hand and offer him a smile. Which he reciprocated gratefully.

"That's great." He shifted his mask slightly to move something underneath while facing away. I have to admit that I'm intrigued to know what he looks like underneath, but their blood contract requires the mask stays on unless they're sleeping, but most of the ghouls just wear them to sleep.

It's an odd habit.

But Rain turns back to me, his mask fixed back into place and a smile underneath it. I couldn't help but yawn again.

"It's only 3:45ish, you can probably get back to sleep in time for Aether's cooking, he's very good at it and he cooks every Saturday." We went to stand up but my hand was clenched around his warm fingers that were slipping away.

"Please stay..." I sounded weak and submissive, I'm not, I don't want to feel that way.

"O-okay, are you sure?" He stammered and returned to the bed fixed to the corner of the wall. I scooted back into the corner and patted the place where I just was for him to lay down.

"Alright." He smiled and got into the bed, I found his waist and pulled him closer, and his arms hesitantly wrapped around my shoulders. He was in his grey pajamas, mixed fabric, but it's incredibly soft of breathable. He smells like an incoming storm and something sweet, something almost floral. It must be his soap.

I nestled into the warmth of his chest without thinking too hard about it, and made sure my horns were not there just in case I shifted in my sleep.

Soon, we drifted into a dream.