"You alright?" I asked Geraldt as we finished. He didn't answer immediately which only made my anxiety worse. Eventually, the silence broke with a loud, dragging sigh as he ran his fingers through his hair.

"Listen, what are we exactly?" He asked, gesturing to the space between us tensely.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, like yeah this might be too quick for a relationship but you kinda can't deny the heat. Y'know?"

"The heat?"

I was faking it. I wanted him to be the first, more than anything. I wanted to hear him say those words and describe it himself. I knew well enough what he meant with 'the heat' but I didn't want it to be my words.

"Nevermind, come on let's get to the pharmacy," he nearly snapped. His voice was gentle, despite the annoyance that burned behind it. He almost forgot that he was injured and hissed slightly as he stepped on his foot. He shifted his weight, turning around.

"Did Tris pack a napkin there in the eclair box?" I saw his hand was steaming, hot coffee spilled over it in his sudden movements. I quickly snatched up the napkin that was, luckily enough, folded in the corner of the box and rushed forward. I dabbed at his hand, trying to ignore the intensity of his gaze when I did so. He was soon dry, and his skin just only slightly red, but that fire that had caused him to snap had faded. He looked, if anything, washed out.

"Come on," he said quietly, almost regretfully. I nodded, accepting his arm over my shoulder as we inched closer to the back door of the restaurant. Tris was there, carrying two plates on a platter and she nodded quickly before running off. It didn't take long before she came back and pulled the door open, inviting us in.

"Sorry, boys, had an order. Now get out of here, it's peak hour."

She shooed us from the busy kitchen out into the coffee shop. I shouldered open the door to make sure that Geraldt didn't get hit by it when he moved. We had to dodge some patrons who barely saw me, and the hulking giant of a glaring man next to me. Still, we got out of the coffee shop and Geraldt let out a relieved sigh.

"Thought we'd never ge' out of that," he sighed, nearly slumping against me before straightening himself. He looked over at me, his brows knitted together as he thought. He apparently didn't find his answer because he looked back out over the street and then pulled me to walk towards the pharmacy. It was a quaint little place with a chalkboard outside that detailed some of the better prices.

'Cold and Flu Bundle
Marnie's Biscuits, 800g
Senior Discount Applicable"

"Their cold and flu bundle doesn't work but if you get a packet of their candied ginger, from Marnie's, you'll be better in two business seconds," Geraldt whispered into my ear as we walked into the pharmacy. A security guard looked over and nodded, Geraldt nodded in turn.

"Mornin' Eddy," he said over his shoulder as we walked down one of the aisles. There were some bottles of things like sweet oil, tiger balm but then I saw the what Geraldt was looking at. He was looking at anti-inflammatory tablets, which had some pain-relief qualities as well. He pulled one box down read through the back. I knew that brand, it was the brand that I used. I looked away almost as quickly as I realized.

"What 'you think of this brand?" He asked thoughtfully.

"Good, I think," I muttered, trying not to look at the box. Was this his way of testing me? What would he do now? Is he suspicious?

I turned back to him, feigning a smile in an attempt to clear up any suspicion. He wasn't even looking at me but was weighing his options.

"Right then, one box of these and cigarettes for Sammy, after that we'll head back."