Baz clearly did not think his costume out. While his boxing shorts and bare chest beneath the robe were to impress Peyton, he had forgotten that his friends would also see him like this. The faerie was bobbing along to the music when he spotted Diana out of the corner of his eye. His first thought was to pull the sides of his robe closed and hide his chest. “Well hello, Di. What a shock seeing you here, love,” he said. “Are you having a lovely evening thus far?” 

This was not Basil’s scene in any capacity. Had he done what he truly wanted to do, he would have stayed at home and watched old horror movies. However, he knew Peyton enjoyed these types of things and longed to make the man happy. “Well I’ll be. Don’t you just look like the most dashing man in the Western Hemisphere?” His gaze moved up and down his date’s body as he propped himself up against the wall. “I’m starting to feel as though I’m a bit underdressed,” he quipped, making note of his shirtless costume.

Over time, Baz had become the kind of man he always wanted to be. Cultured, intelligent, and most importantly, respected rather than feared. He was now a man that thrived on being composed and well-spoken, seldom often seeing his old self resurface. Still, there were a few times he was ruled by his emotion rather than reason. Anything to do with Peyton Wolff was one of those times. 

It was halfway through the work day when he had decided to see himself to the university courtyard for a bit of sunshine during his lunch. The last person he had expected to see was his ex. The faerie could feel his heart skip a few beats at the sight of the witch, though he told himself to remain composed. “Professor Wolff,” he said, nodding. A slight smirk tugged at the corner of his lips as he looked back up. “How’re you holding up?” Small talk clearly was not his thing.