PalderšØš·(PalletĆRadier )
Post-relationship Palder š
Pallet is having a crisis over what nickname he should call Radier, and Radier is having the time of his life watching him struggle.
Former enemies ā lovers.
I don't have a fixed dynamic for them, but some scenes may read as one-sided depending on interpretation. Please keep that in mind!
(This work is not open to criticism. Please move on if it's not your thing.)
āāāāāāāāāāāāāāāāāāāāāā
āā¦Thatās not fair.ā
Pallet muttered the words under his breath as they lay together, wrapped in a pleasant sense of exhaustion.
Seeing an expression that he showed no one else but me stirred something mischievous inside me. Still, the meaning behind his words caught my attention, so I simply smiled.
āItās not fair that youāre the only one with a nickname.ā
I almost replied, āYou call me by a nickname too, donāt you?ā but that clearly wasnāt what he meant.
My real name isnāt Radier.
Yet almost everyone calls me by my nickname, Radier. Pallet does too. In front of others, and when weāre alone together.
Most people would probably feel annoyed if they were suddenly accused of something they didnāt remember doing.
I knew exactly what he meant.
The bed creaked softly beneath us.
The reaction made my smile widen as I leaned closer.
āPal, what exactly do you mean by ānot fairā?ā
āWhat do you mean, what do Iāā
I deliberately let the sweet-sounding nickname roll off my tongue.
A name I only ever used when we were alone.
Judging by his reaction, it hit its mark.
Tilting my head slightly, I moved even closer.
A special nickname for me.
One that belonged only to him.
Pallet was good with people. He knew how to close the distance between himself and others with ease. Normally, nicknames came naturally to him whenever he grew close to someone.
But for some reason, I was the exception.
He never tried to shorten the distance himself.
Being the earnest person he was, he probably felt guilty about being the only one who didnāt have a special name for me.
Even so, he likely wanted me to be the one to suggest it first, so he could reluctantly agree afterward.
Of course, I had no intention of making things easy for him.
I planned to wait until he finally gave in.
Perhaps realizing I wasnāt going to help, Pallet slowly retreated toward the edge of the bed.
Using a tentacle, I caught his leg and pulled him back beneath me.
āI donāt mind continuing like this.ā
Pinned beneath me, he kept looking away, opening his mouth only to close it again.
The name slipped out in a rough, helpless whisper.
As though he couldnāt hold it back any longer.
āIs that my nickname?ā
āAnd only you get to call me that?ā
In my mind, I repeated it.
The nickname Pallet had chosen for me.
The one that belonged only to him.
Before I realized it, warmth had crept into my face.
When I leaned closer, he didnāt pull away this time.
Instead, he met me halfway.
For a while, neither of us said anything.
Truthfully, I never needed a special nickname.
I would have been fine without one.
Now I found myself wanting to hear it.
Just hearing that single name from him made my chest ache in a way I couldnāt explain.
thereās no way I can go back to being someone whoās never heard you call me that.
