Chapter 28 - More Than Just Tea
The little tea salon sat tucked behind a narrow row of florists and silk vendors, its painted windows framed with ivy and lace. The sign above the door read The Wild Garden in soft calligraphy, and from inside came the gentle sound of clinking china, polite laughter, and the warm scent of cinnamon and cream. Alena hesitated just outside the entrance. She had passed this place before but had never gone in. It looked like the kind of café meant for people with sun-kissed smiles and too much free time. The kind of place where you were supposed to laugh with your head tilted back and your hands curled around delicate teacups. The kind of place for people like Neia.
Her crystalink had come through just an hour ago.
Neia: Meeting Tessa and Yvaine for tea. No boys allowed. Come if you want some good gossip and something pink and overpriced.
Alena didn’t know what possessed her to say yes. Maybe it was curiosity. Maybe it was something quieter and more hopeful. All she knew was that her fingers had moved before she could talk herself out of it.
Alena: I’ll come. Where?
Now, standing in front of the painted door, she took a breath and stepped inside. The warmth hit her first. Then the colour. Every table was dressed in pale floral linen, each one with a different mismatched teapot. Shelves of porcelain figurines and dried bouquets lined the walls. The light filtering through the curtains made everything look like the inside of a dream.
Neia spotted her immediately and stood from her seat, waving with both hands. “Alena! Over here!” Tessa and Yvaine turned toward the door. Tessa’s grin widened. “Ooooh, she’s so cute.” Yvaine gave Alena an appraising look and nodded slowly, elegant and intimidating all at once. “Charming,” she said, then motioned toward the seat next to her. “Come. We’ve already ordered a flight of reckless tea decisions.”
Alena laughed, nerves quieting just a little as she made her way to their table. Neia beamed as she pulled out the empty chair. “Girls,” Neia said, “this is Alena. Alena, this is Tessa Kaldrith and Yvaine Durnholde. They’re my main sources of chaos and unsolicited advice.” Tessa gave a dramatic bow from her seat, her dark-blonde hair bouncing slightly as she did. “A pleasure. Finally meeting the mysterious translator-slash-courier.” Yvaine lifted her glass and said nothing at all, which somehow felt like the highest compliment. Alena sat down and smiled politely, still a bit unsure where to place herself among the noise and the perfume and the velvet bows on the chair backs.
Tessa leaned forward at once. “Alright. Enough small talk. Neia. Report.”
Neia blinked. “On what?”
Yvaine arched one perfectly shaped brow. “Dinner with the Sentinel. We walked you to his front gate, remember?”
Neia let out a tiny sound of protest. “You didn’t have to do that.”
“Of course we did,” Tessa said brightly. “We’re the romantic equivalent of enablers.”
“And we want a full debrief,” Yvaine added.
Neia looked at Alena, helpless. “Please tell me you’re not on their side.”
Alena’s cheeks lifted into a quiet smile. “Actually… I overheard you and Devon talking at Inkwyrm. So I might already be invested.”
Neia groaned. “Oh gods.”
Tessa clapped her hands. “We have an audience! Neia, you’re cornered.”
“So,” Neia began, fiddling with the corner of her napkin, “I got there just before sunset. He let me in, all formal and polite, like I was some visiting dignitary instead of the flustered mess I actually was. Then he told me he’d prepped the kitchen and would help me with the actual cooking.”
Alena let out a quiet little “aww” while Tessa’s eyes gleamed.
Neia groaned softly. “So I started cooking. He was standing nearby at first, just handing me ingredients or asking what to do next. And then...”
She trailed off.
Tessa narrowed her eyes. “And then?”
Neia tried to hide her face behind her hands again, but it was far too late. “He moved in closer. Not on purpose, I think. Maybe it was the way the kitchen’s laid out. But at one point I was chopping something and I realized I could feel him. Just... standing right behind me. Close enough that I could feel the heat from him.”
Yvaine’s brows rose slowly. “Well now.”
“And when I reached up to grab the herbs,” Neia mumbled, “he leaned forward at the same time to pass me the pepper, and his arm brushed against mine.”
She looked around at them in helpless defeat. “I forgot how to breathe.”
Tessa squealed. “That’s like, culinary foreplay or something.”
Neia turned pink. “Tessa! Gods, it wasn’t like that!”
Alena giggled. “But you felt something.”
Neia nodded helplessly. “Yes. He’s just so... there. And when he’s near you, you notice.”
Yvaine leaned in with a sly smile. “And then?”
“There was this moment,” she said slowly. “I was stirring the fish and greens, and I asked him to taste it. You know, just to check if it needed more seasoning.”
Tessa raised both brows like she already knew where this was going.
“So he came over,” Neia continued, “stood just behind me. And I mean... just behind me. I turned a little to look at him, and he was right there. His breath, his body. He didn’t move away. And I didn’t either.”
Yvaine rested her chin on her hand, utterly transfixed. “Go on.”
Neia covered her face. “I said ‘say ahh’ as a joke. I was going to hand him the spoon like a normal person.”
“You did not,” Tessa said in delight.
“I was teasing!” Neia groaned. “But then he... he just leaned in and took the bite straight from the spoon. Like, no hesitation. Just—boop—ate it.”
Tessa was shrieking. “That’s so cute though?!”
“I think he was just being confident!” Neia said, flailing slightly. “But then he immediately blushed. Like, ears red. But still totally composed on the outside. He chewed like a normal person, then looked me right in the eye and said, ‘It’s good. Really good.’ Ugh he’s so cute, I can’t.”
Yvaine clutched her teacup. “Neia. My sweet summer bloom. You are done for.”
Neia groaned into her hands again. “You don’t understand. I could feel him behind me. Like a wall. A very attractive, broad-shouldered wall.”
Yvaine gave a knowing look. “And all this happened before dinner?”
Neia nodded. “Yes. And then we ate, had some tea, talked for a bit, and...”
Her voice went quieter. “When I said I was going to head home, he tried to get up to walk me back. But his side started hurting again. From the injury.” The girls leaned in, softer now. “I panicked and told him to lie down. He wouldn’t. So I made him. I healed him right there on the couch, and after... he sorta asked me to stay.”
Silence. Sharp and giddy and stunned. Tessa blinked. “He asked you to stay.”
Neia’s voice was barely above a whisper. “He said, if I wouldn’t let him walk me home, he wanted me to stay the night instead. And then he realized how that sounded and tried to fix it by offering his bed and saying he’d sleep on the couch.”
Yvaine looked mildly outraged. “And you said no?”
Neia waved her hands frantically. “It wasn’t like that!”
Tessa looked personally offended. “Neia. You could’ve wrapped that paladin around your finger.”
“I wasn’t going to sleep in his bed on our first date!”
“Why not?” Yvaine asked. “Well, I suppose even if you stayed in his room, his scent would’ve been on the pillows. You wouldn’t have slept a wink.”
Neia covered her face. “Oh my gods. Stop.”
Alena was giggling now, completely unable to stop herself. Neia peeked through her fingers. “Not you too.”
Alena grinned, eyes sparkling. “Well. Did you want to do it with him, though?”
The entire table gasped in perfect harmony. Tessa nearly spilled her drink. “Alena!”
Alena flushed red and immediately hid behind her teacup. “Hehe! I was joking! I read too many romance novels. It slipped out.”
Yvaine let out a rich laugh. “No regrets. That was perfection.”
Tessa beamed. “I love her.”
“Anyway, I panicked!” Neia cried. “I said no and insisted on going home. So, he walked me back. Which also wasn’t better.”
“Why not?” Alena asked softly.
“Because the whole walk was so quiet, and when we got to my door, I turned around to say thank you and then—”
“Tell me you kissed him,” Tessa begged. “Pleeeease!”
“No! Gods.” Neia squeaked. “I hugged him!”
The girls made a chorus of sighs and groans. Tessa put her face in her hands. “You hugged him? Neia. You innocent little teacup. All you did was hit him with a thank you hug?”
“I was nervous!”
Yvaine shook her head fondly. “You are going to ruin that poor man.”
Neia buried her face in her hands again. And from across the table, Alena just smiled. Because somehow, in this pile of perfume, giggles, and chaotic teasing, she felt… good. Like maybe, just maybe, this was the kind of company she had needed all along.
Neia had barely recovered, cheeks still rosy and voice caught somewhere between a sigh and a squeak, when Tessa leaned forward, eyes sparkling with mischief.
“Alright,” she declared, swirling the last of her rose-petal tea. “That was delicious. Now that we’ve lovingly shredded our favourite druid, I think it’s time we redirect attention to something equally vital.”
Neia raised an eyebrow. “Which is?”
Tessa placed a hand on her chest with mock gravity. “Me, obviously.”
Yvaine sipped her tea, unamused. “Naturally.”
“I’ve been invited to the Endris estate ball next week,” Tessa said, wiggling her brows with glee. “A full moon soirée. Candlelit gardens. Live string quartet. The works.”
Neia perked up. “Ooh, that sounds gorgeous.”
“It is,” Tessa said proudly. “And I already have two gowns on hold. One is soft and tragic, like I might cry at any moment, and the other is sleek and black and backless.”
Alena smiled, clearly amused. “Which are you leaning toward?”
“I’m waiting to see what kind of emotional breakdown I have the morning of,” Tessa said sweetly. “If I cry before breakfast, tragic. If I wake up feeling like an apex predator, dangerous.”
Yvaine raised a brow. “So the usual roulette.”
“I just want one man—one—to look at me from across the ballroom and immediately fall headfirst into emotional devastation,” Tessa sighed, dreamily. “Is that so much to ask?”
“Yes,” Yvaine said flatly.
Neia laughed into her cup. “Whoever that one man is, you’re going to eat that poor man alive.”
“That’s the goal,” Tessa grinned.
Before anyone could top that, Yvaine cleared her throat softly.
“Well, I’m seeing someone,” she said, like it was the most mundane thing in the world.
Three heads turned to her in unison.
Neia blinked. “Wait—what?”
Tessa’s jaw dropped. “Since when? Who? Details. Now.”
Yvaine leaned back slightly, unbothered by the sudden attention. “It’s been a few months. Nothing scandalous. Just… personal.”
Tessa was practically bouncing. “You’ve had a secret boyfriend this whole time? Yvaine, I’m offended on a personal level.”
Neia nodded. “I didn’t even know you were dating anyone.”
“I wasn’t trying to hide him,” Yvaine replied calmly, then paused. “I just didn’t feel the need to parade it.”
Tessa pouted. “We could’ve paraded him for you! With matching banners!”
Yvaine gave a faint smile. “He’s noble-born too, like me. But different. Not the formal, coat-and-cravat type. He hates dinner parties. He’d rather be barefoot in the woods than dressed up for court.”
Neia looked charmed. “Ooh, so he’s the rugged kind?”
“Tall, dark, and devastatingly handsome,” Yvaine said, her voice softening ever so slightly. “He’s got this whole effortless wilderness thing going on. Smells like cedar, always a little unshaven, and has no idea how attractive he is.”
Tessa sighed. “I already love him.”
Alena’s eyes were wide. “What does he do?”
“He works with regional surveys. Terrain mapping and magical leyline alignment. So, he’s outdoors a lot,” Yvaine replied. “He drags me to hidden springs, and I drag him to gallery openings. It works.”
“And?” Tessa prompted, practically vibrating. “Is he good to you?”
Yvaine’s eyes gleamed just a bit. “He’s patient. Knows when to let me talk and when to shut up and listen. And he doesn’t care about names or expectations. Just me.”
The girls collectively melted.
“That’s so romantic,” Alena whispered.
“And,” Yvaine added, reaching for her teacup again, “he’s also very, very good in bed.”
Neia choked on air. Tessa shrieked. Alena slapped her hands over her face.
Yvaine smirked, pleased. “Or wherever it is we’re doing it,” she added smoothly, sipping her tea as if she hadn’t just set the table on fire.
Tessa collapsed into Neia’s shoulder. “This is not fair. I want your life.”
Neia turned bright red. “Oh my gods.”
Alena was giggling into her hands, speechless.
“I don’t even know what to do with that information,” Neia wheezed.
“Treasure it,” Yvaine said with a wink, far too composed for the chaos she’d just unleashed.
The teasing had quieted, but only for a moment. Like lions regrouping. Tessa set down her cup with a suspicious gleam in her eye. “Alright, Alena. You’ve sat there looking all demure and mysterious for too long.”
Alena blinked, the corners of her lips twitching. “I have?”
Yvaine gave a graceful nod. “It’s only fair. We’ve all shared. It’s your turn.”
Neia, eyes sparkling with curiosity, leaned a little closer. “Any crushes?”
Alena hesitated, her hands folding politely in her lap. “I... wouldn’t say that.”
Tessa gasped. “Wouldn’t say that is code for yes.”
“I meant—” Alena fumbled, already flustered. “There might be someone I admire. A little.”
Neia grinned. “And how often do you see this very admirable person?”
Alena cleared her throat. “Now and then. I suppose. Mostly when I stop by for tea or... drop things off.”
Yvaine raised a brow. “So, he works somewhere. A café?”
Tessa gasped again. “Is it someone who makes your tea?”
Alena turned bright pink. “That’s a very specific accusation.”
Neia tilted her head, now fully invested. “Does he know your usual order?”
Alena gave the tiniest nod.
“Oh, you’re done for,” Tessa breathed. “It’s always the ones who remember your order. It’s the little things, isn’t it.”
“He’s just... nice,” Alena said quietly. “Charming. A little quiet, but warm if you know how to listen.”
Yvaine’s smile curved like she already knew. “What else?”
Alena hesitated. “He’s very well-spoken. Polite. The kind of person who always says the exact right thing, and makes you feel like he meant it.”
Tessa leaned in. “Attractive?”
Alena flushed deeper. “Very.”
Neia’s brows lifted. “Tall?”
Alena nodded. “Taller than me. And has tattoos on his forearms. And always his sleeves rolled up...”
Yvaine gasped softly, eyes widening. “Wait.”
Tessa froze. “No.”
Neia turned. “Alena.”
Alena said nothing, but her face said everything.
Neia giggle, “It’s Devon, isn’t it.”
Tessa shrieked. “It’s Devon!”
Alena sank a little in her seat. “No it’s not…”
“Alena,” Neia said gently, “Devon is the only man in Korth who fits that very specific bill. And I don’t know about him being quiet but…”
Alena covered her face with her hands. “Oh I knew I shouldn’t have come today.”
Yvaine was laughing now, low and delighted. “Oh, darling. He is very handsome.”
“Ugh I can’t help it, his looks, the way he talks, his voice,” Alena muttered into her hands. “It’s not even that deep, but it’s got that raspy... ruin-your-day quality.”
Tessa wheezed. “Ruin-your-day quality!”
Neia was laughing too hard to breathe. “I didn’t know you had it this bad.”
“I don’t!” Alena insisted.
“You do,” Yvaine said, with a proud little smile.
As the laughter began to settle and the last of the tea cooled in their cups, Alena glanced around the table with a hesitant smile. “Promise you won’t tell anyone?” she said quietly, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear. “About… all of this. Him.”
Neia reached across the table first, pinky finger raised. “Sworn in sacred sisterhood.” Tessa mirrored the gesture with a grin. “What happens at The Wild Garden stays at The Wild Garden.” Yvaine simply nodded once, solemn and sure. “Your secret is safe with us. And if you ever need to talk, or scream, or dramatically reread his messages out loud, we’ll be here.”
Alena let out a soft laugh, cheeks warm. “Thank you. I… I think this might be the first time I’ve had girl friends like this.” And when they smiled back at her — bright, teasing, gentle — she realized something quiet and certain.
She didn’t feel alone anymore.
