Chapter 37: Ch 37: The Handshake

Ch 37: The Handshake

Orion walked back through the woods, his mind full of the noise and warmth of the training yard. He felt different. Lighter. The quiet of the trees wasn’t lonely anymore; it was peaceful. He reached the edge of the kitchen gardens and followed the path back towards the main house.

As he approached the side entrance, he saw Abel.

Abel was sitting on a low stone wall by the door, his big shoulders slumped slightly. He held his wooden horse loosely in one hand. His face looked pale, and there were faint shadows under his eyes. The treatments always drained him, leaving him quiet and washed-out.

But the moment he saw Orion coming up the path, his whole face changed. The tiredness melted away, replaced by a brilliant, sun-bright smile that made Orion’s heart squeeze.

"Husband!" Abel called out, his voice a little hoarse but full of pure joy. He scrambled to his feet, the horse tucked under his arm.

Orion walked faster, meeting him halfway. "You’re back," he said, reaching out to smooth Abel’s hair, which was mussed from the physician’s instruments. "How was it?"

"Loud," Abel said, leaning into the touch like a cat. "And buzzy. My head feels fuzzy. But I’m okay now." He nuzzled Orion’s palm. "I missed you. Did you get lonely?"

"No," Orion said, and for the first time, it was completely true. "I went for a walk. It was nice."

They stood there for a moment, just smiling at each other. Abel leaned down and kissed Orion’s cheek softly, then the other cheek. A simple, sweet greeting. Orion let him, his hand resting on Abel’s solid forearm.

The sound of boots on gravel made them both look up.

Coming around the corner of the manor were four men. Aster led them, his expression calm and purposeful. Behind him were Kaelen, Loren, and the big one, Jax. They had clearly come looking for Orion. Aster was holding Orion’s wide-brimmed hat.

They must have found it where he’d stumbled in the woods.

The group froze mid-stride when they saw who Orion was with.

All four men stopped as if they’d hit an invisible wall. Their eyes locked onto Abel. The easy camaraderie from the training yard vanished, replaced by a stunned, almost painful stillness. They stared at their former captain, who was now standing there holding a toy horse and smiling dopily at his husband.

Abel blinked at the newcomers. He didn’t look alarmed, just curious. He tilted his head, his golden-brown eyes moving from one familiar-yet-unfamiliar face to another.

He looked at Orion. "Orion? Do you know them?"

His voice was clear, innocent. It held no recognition. Only polite curiosity about strangers who seemed to know his husband.

One of the men behind Aster—Jax—let out a soft, choked sound. It was almost a sob. He whispered a single word, so low it was barely audible.

"Captain..."

Abel didn’t seem to hear it. He smiled his friendly, open smile at the four soldiers. He took a small step forward, releasing Orion’s arm.

"Hi!" Abel said cheerfully. "I’m Abel. I’m Orion’s husband." He stated it as his primary fact, his proudest title. He looked them over, his gaze lingering for a second on Aster’s scarred face, on Kaelen’s sharp eyes, on Loren’s unruly curls, on Jax’s trembling lip.

His brow furrowed slightly, a flicker of something passing behind his eyes—not memory, but a feeling. A sense of... pattern.

He shrugged it off and did what he thought you did when meeting new people. He stuck his right hand out toward Aster, offering a handshake.

"Do I know you?" he asked, genuinely wondering.

The question hung in the air, sharp as a knife.

Orion saw it hit them. Saw Aster’s jaw tighten. Saw Kaelen close his eyes for a brief second. Saw Loren’s usual smirk vanish, replaced by something raw. Saw Jax wipe fiercely at his eye with the back of his wrist.

This was the reality they’d heard about but never faced. Their legendary captain, offering a childlike handshake and asking if they’d met.

Aster was the one who broke the silence. He moved forward, his movements deliberate and steady. He looked Abel right in the eye, not with pity, but with a deep, respectful gravity.

He took Abel’s offered hand.

"I am Aster," he said, his gravelly voice firm. "And I... I am a soldier." He paused, searching for the right words for this strange new world. "And I... I can be your friend."

It was a promise. A vow of loyalty stripped of the past, offered fresh to the man who remained.

Abel’s face lit up. "A friend! Okay!"

But then, as Aster gripped his hand for the shake, something happened. It wasn’t conscious. Abel’s body seemed to move on its own. His grip shifted, his fingers twisting in a specific, complex way. Instead of a simple up-and-down shake, he pulled Aster’s hand in, turned his own fist, and knocked his knuckles gently against Aster’s in a distinctive fist bump.

It was a greeting. A particular greeting.

The reaction was instant.

Kaelen sucked in a sharp breath. Loren actually took a half-step back, his eyes wide. Jax made another choked sound.

Orion stared. He’d never seen Abel do that before.

Aster didn’t pull away. He stood frozen, his hand still in Abel’s grasp, his eyes locked on their joined fists. His weathered face went utterly still, but a storm raged in his brown eyes—shock, hope, a devastating wave of grief.

Abel completed the gesture and let go, smiling happily. "Nice to meet you, Friend-Aster!"

He had no idea what he’d just done.

But the men knew.

One of the knights—it was Jax—turned his head away sharply. His broad shoulders hunched. A single, fat tear escaped and tracked a clean line through the dust on his cheek. He didn’t make a sound, but his entire massive body trembled.

He remembers this.

The unspoken thought screamed in the quiet space between them. He didn’t remember them, but somewhere deep in his broken mind, in his muscle memory, he remembered that. The secret handshake of his unit. The greeting he’d invented for his inner circle.

The silence stretched, thick and heavy.

Abel, oblivious to the emotional earthquake he’d caused, looked past Aster at the others. "Are you friends too?"

Loren was the next to snap out of it. He swiped at his own eyes quickly and forced his trademark grin onto his face, though it wavered at the edges. "Yeah," he said, his voice unusually rough. "Yeah, we’re friends. I’m Loren. This grumpy one is Kaelen. And the big lump trying not to cry is Jax."

Jax turned back, his face a mess of emotion. He nodded vigorously, unable to speak.

Abel beamed. "More friends! Good!" He looked delighted. Then he noticed the hat in Aster’s other hand. "Oh! That’s Orion’s hat! Did you find it?"

Aster finally managed to move again. He handed the hat to Orion, his movements careful. "You dropped it in the wood, my lord."

"Thank you," Orion said quietly, taking it. His heart was pounding.

Abel slipped his hand back into Orion’s, lacing their fingers together. He leaned against him comfortably. "Orion went walking and made friends with my new friends! That’s good. Friends should know each other."

He said it with such simple, flawless logic.

Aster looked from Abel’s contented face to Orion’s. He gave a slow, deep nod. It was an understanding. An acknowledgment. We see him. We see you. We are here.

"We should return to our duties," Aster said, his voice back under control. "It was good to meet you, Lord Abel."

"Bye, Friend-Aster!" Abel waved cheerfully.

The four soldiers bowed their heads—not the formal bow to a superior, but something deeper, more personal. A bow of the heart. Then they turned and walked away, back toward the training yard. Their steps were slower than before. Jax’s shoulders were still shaking. Loren had an arm slung around him.

Orion watched them go until they disappeared around the corner.

He looked up at Abel, who was now examining his wooden horse as if checking it for damage after the treatment.

"Abel," Orion asked softly. "That thing you did with your hand. With Aster. Where did you learn that?"

Abel looked up, puzzled. He glanced at his own fist, flexing it. "I don’t know," he said, shrugging. "It just felt right. Is it a good way to say hello to a friend?"

Orion reached up and touched his husband’s cheek. "Yes," he whispered, his own eyes stinging. "It’s a very good way."

Abel smiled, pleased with himself. He kissed Orion’s forehead. "I’m tired. Can we go inside? I want to lie down with you."

"Of course," Orion said.

He let Abel lead him inside, their hands still clasped. As the heavy door closed behind them, shutting out the afternoon sun, Orion knew nothing was solved. The Duchess still wanted an heir. Ashford was still confined, festering. The future was still a frightening blank.

But they had friends now. Soldiers who remembered the fist bump. Who had turned away to hide their tears.

And a husband whose body, even when his mind forgot, still knew how to greet his brothers-in-arms.