He was anxious. 

He was so unbearably anxious!

It had only been two weeks and things were honestly moving along well, but that didn't help the anxiety he felt not having Ru around him all the time. 

I think I have a problem. 

He knew he had a problem, but he didn't know how to deal with it! Ruru started calling him every other day like clockwork once he realized that he would be called that much if not, but...

Falling backwards onto his bed, Ash groaned as he rubbed his face with his shaking hands. 

I've never been this stressed about another person. Even when I was able to date a tiny bit in high school. 

He rolled onto his side, allowing his hands to fall away as he heaved the most discontent sigh of his life. 

"I just want my Ruru with me..."

A gentle knock on the door startled him a tiny bit, making him hurry back to his feet and answer it. 

"Ah, mum?" 

His mother promptly stepped inside, prompting Ash to nudge the door shut before hurrying to follow after her. They both ended up seated on the edge of his bed with one of his large hands in between her two smaller ones. 

"My sweet Ash, what is going on?" 

He knew that he wouldn't be able to hide things from her for long, but he hadn't really thought up any kind of excuse he could use to lie, either. 

"I don't want lies, Ashy Rune Knight."

Uh oh, full name. 

Looking away for a moment, he did his best to gather his whirling thoughts. 

"I can sense a little bit of it, so I know that it's that sweet young man you were courting while here. I also have heard you talking to him on your phone just about everywhere. Things didn't seem bad..." 

Ash quickly turned back to face her. 

"Everything is going very well!" he nearly shouted, having to catch himself right before he did so. 

His mother was a bit surprised by his enthusiasm, but she took it in stride and nodded after a moment, then smiled gently as she tapped the back of his hand. 

"I'm glad. So, if things are going well, then why is my Ashy so stressed?" she asked, then seemed to notice something and lifted her hand to brush his bangs away from his left eye. 

"Is your dragon restless, sweetheart?" 

That was a big part of it. His dragon hadn't calmed down since Ru had left. The calls definitely helped, but as soon as that voice disappeared from the other end of the line, it started a countdown until his dragon went crazy again. 

Reluctantly, Ash nodded as a frown slid onto his lips. 

"He's so upset. I can't manage to calm him down no matter what I do, and I when I tried to shift and let him fly around outside he immediately headed towards the airport!" 

He couldn't just take a plane naked and they both knew that they wouldn't just let a dragon buy a ticket, either! 

A gentle pat to his hair immediately calmed the fire in his dragon as it reacted to its mother's touch. 

"There there, sweetheart. Don't you worry too much about that. Your father was the same way when courting me. I was a bit startled by his insistence, at first, but when he let out his dragon it all became clear."

Ash quickly nodded as his eye flashed red. 

"Ashy really likes him, and Ru has said that he loves us nearly every single phone call, but Ashy still won't calm down." 

His mother patted his head again, then mussed up his hair a little bit as she smiled up at him. 

"Your dragon wants to be close to the one it likes, we can't fault him for that." 

He knew that, and he honestly felt like he was struggling with being away from Ru, too, but his logical side wasn't letting him just walk away from his current situation. They had planned things, and Ru was currently working long hours to make sure they had enough money. He, too, was working quite a bit, but for the first time in months, he was making stupid mistakes because his dragon wasn't letting him focus. 

Sighing, Ash looked down at his hand still settled in one of his mum's. 

"I would never fault him for that. I would honestly fly to Ru right now if I could..." 

He heard a faint, barely-there chuckle from his mother in response, drawing his attention back up to her face. 

"Then why don't you, sweetheart?"

Ash immediately shook his head as his dragon eagerly tried to get him to agree with his mother. 

"I-I can't just suddenly appear over there out of the blue," he mumbled, hunching his shoulders as he finished speaking in a stressed whisper. 

His mother's hand returned to pat his. 

"Of course you can't, but you can give him a call and ask him if he wouldn't mind a visit sometime soon?"

Ash's face went pale. 

"I-I can't ask such a thing so soon! We've only just met this month, and he's only been gone for two weeks!" he said, his voice shaking with the restraint it took to keep his dragon from breaking free of his human flesh. 

Ashy had absolutely no problem requesting a visit. If he could dial a phone and speak English they would have already been on their way. 

His mother didn't look convinced with his excuse. In fact, she reached over without waiting more than five seconds and lifted his left hand up for both of them to see. 

"Ashy, how much does this ring cost?" she asked, noting the ring Ru had given him before he'd left. 

He knew the answer right away. 

"Likely between three-thousand and four, depending on who is interested," he said without hesitation. 

His mother gave a hum of approval, then raised an eyebrow as she lifted his hand slightly higher. 

"So you're telling me that a man who gave my baby Ashy an three-thousand dollar ring might not be open to having you visit him sooner over later?" she asked, making Ash promptly blush bright red. 

She had a very valid point, but still...

"Ashy, sweetheart, if your dragon wants to see the person it likes, why not just give him a call and ask? The worst he could say is no, right?"

Technically, but...

"But mum, what if he thinks I'm being too clingy?" he asked, finally sounding like the lovesick kid he felt like. 

All he wanted to do was bury himself in the man's arms, in his bed, and on his—"Ashy, if you think that you're being clingy by simply calling him to ask for a visit, then I'm not sure if we have the same definition for that word, because you two were literally inseparable his entire time here, and if you were a young lady I feel I might almost be nervous about the possibility of a little grandson or daughter arriving within the next nine months or so..." 

Thank god we're alone for this conversation. 

"Ash, I know that you're worried about him declining you, but if you let yourself keep stressing, not only will you suffer, but Ashy-dragon will, too. Give your man a call, okay?" she said as she finally got up and ruffled his hair one more time, then pressed a kiss to his forehead before seeing herself out. 

That left Ash sitting there, staring at the outline of his phone in his pant's pocket for who knows how long. He was having a mini existential crisis in his head while trying to fend off his overactive dragon at the same time. 

It was exhausting.

He was just about to take some sleeping medication and try to force himself to pass out when he felt his phone suddenly begin to vibrate in his pocket with the ringtone he'd set for Ru!

Immediately fishing it out with shaking hands, he hurriedly lifted it to his ear, nearly dropping it twice before it got there, then unintentionally, slightly, yelled a bit as he gave a loud, breathless, "h-hi Ruru!" 

The man on the other end of the phone seemed a bit stunned, because he didn't respond for several seconds, making him feel like he might have just messed up before they even got to talk!

"I-I'm sorry for shouting, I-I'm just stressed..." he blurted out, then felt his heart drop into his stomach as he realized his mistake. 

He was just beginning to cry when he finally heard his Ruru's voice on the other end. 

"What's wrong, love? I'm done for the day so we can talk for as long as you'd like." 

He was going to bawl his eyes out simply by hearing the man's voice!

You need to snap out of it. He called you and you're about to cry because you won't even ask him a question!

"I-I'm sorry, I-I don't want to seem clingy. I swear you can say no," he stammered out, trying his best to keep his upset out of his voice... and failing miserably. 

While he was trying to get the rest of his words together Ru spoke up with a pleasant, calm voice. 

"Would you like to come visit me, Ashy? I only have a small apartment and it's pretty warm here, even in winter, and if you don't mind me working and only being home at night..." 

Ash had to force himself not to interrupt him with an immediate yes! and, instead, held his breath for nearly the entire time until Ru finished speaking. 

By that time his nose was running as much as his eyes, making him hurry to the bathroom to wipe at both. 

"P-please, could I? I promise I won't get in the way... I-I'll cook for you, too. Whatever you want," he said, his voice gruff from crying. 

Ru didn't make him wait long for a response. 

"Of course, love. Do you want to do a video call by chance?" 

Ash knew that he looked like a mess, but he refused to lose the chance to see his boyfriend's face. 

"Yes! Yes we can do that," he hurried to say, suddenly eager as his attention switched to the slightly less stressful topic. 

His heart fluttered for a second as Ru disconnected the call, then nearly burst from his chest as the video call request came in. 

He couldn't press the accept button fast enough! 

The moment Ru's face appeared on his phone screen Ash was over the moon with happiness! Then his smile slowly slid from his face as a questioning expression, no doubt, took over. 

Ru smiled and reached up to brush at the dark circles he clearly knew he had beneath his beautiful eyes. 

"Ah, don't mind these. I've been working a lot of overtime and, I guess... I guess it's been a bit hard not being able to sleep next to my dragon," he said, chuckling a little as he lowered his hand, making Ash realize that his baby was in bed, reclining against several pillows.  

"I keep waking up cold, even though I've had the heater running for the past several days." 

My baby... isn't sleeping well? 

Ash got up immediately, leaning his phone on the nightstand so that  Ru could see him easily, then got his ass busy packing. At the same time, he sent a thought to his mom to find him the quickest flight to the city Ru had mentioned he lived in. 

She was move than happy to oblige... and also to remind him to not forget his toothbrush, underwear, or protection. 

He took her words in stride, and did exactly as instructed... even though it was slightly embarrassing. 

"Please fold that, love. It will be all wrinkled by the time you get here if you don't." 

Ash immediately did as his boyfriend requested and folded the item, then continued packing everything as neatly as possible. 

"Can you bring the red shorts you had on that one day?" Ru asked as Ash was going through one of his messy dressers. 

He immediately nodded and somehow found the item wedged in the back of the second drawer. He was about to just toss it into the suitcase, but stopped himself at the last second and folded it neatly, then placed it where it belonged amongst his other clothes. 

"Thank you," Ru said, making Ash quickly look back at him with a big smile on his face. 

They talked about little things here and there as he continued to pack, and eventually all of his stress had been drained away by his love. 

So, when a light knock sounded at his door, Ash quickly hurried over and opened it for his mum. 

"I printed out your ticket for you, sweetheart. I also made you some snacks for the plane," she said as she handed him a small bag. 

Her attention then turned to the phone propped up on the nightstand, and the moment she saw Ru she smiled pleasantly. 

"Hello, young man. How are you doing?" she asked as she settled on Ash's bed and folded her hands in her lap. 

Ru sat up a little straighter and greeted her with a smile and a nod. 

"Very well, ma'am... though I've honestly been missing your son quite a lot," he said, making Ash's face warm with a blush. 

His mum looked back at him with a knowing smile, then returned her attention to Ru. 

"My sweet baby is quite fond of you, too. I'm going to let him have some more time off work to come visit you. I do hope that you'll take good care of him while he's there," she said, a hint of sternness in her words that was just-barely detectable. 

Ru, however, caught onto it immediately and smiled reassuringly. 

"I promise I'll look after him... and I won't let Ashy get into any trouble, either," he said, half joking. 

That little joke, however, seemed to be just what his mother had wanted to hear, because she quickly let out a little giggle. 

"Please do that, please. Ashy is a sweetie but he can get distracted by things quite easily... much like a cat with a mouse, or a beam of light, or a—Okay mum, he'll watch out for Ashy and me. I'm just about done packing so..." Ash said, interrupting her monologue to save himself more embarrassment. 

His mother got the hint and stood up, but she didn't finally walk out the door until she'd pulled him into a suffocating hug and planted a kiss right on his forehead. 

The moment his mum was out of the room Ash wiped at his forehead and glanced sheepishly towards his phone. 

Ru was smiling, a content look on his face that made Ash blush further. 

"Sorry about that, she can get kinda corny sometimes," he mumbled awkwardly. 

Ash expected Ru to laugh a bit, but when the man spoke, he was honestly surprised at what he said. 

"She's very sweet. You're lucky to have her." 

Ash felt his words catch in his throat as he prepared himself to shrug off the man's comment, but then he remembered something. 

He doesn't have his mum anymore. 

Pushing aside his embarrassment, Ash smiled and nodded. 

"I really am, and I'm really glad she already loves you, too." 

Ru reached up and rubbed at the back of his neck a little as a gentle smile took over his lips. 

"I'm really glad that she likes me. We kind of got so into each other so quickly that I was worried she'd tell you to slow down," Ru said, making Ash a tiny bit surprised. 

He remained silent for a few moments as they simply stared at each other, then, quietly replied. 

"I thought that she would tell me to slow down, too, but she actually walked in right before you called and told me to call you and ask if I could come visit."

Ru's smile widened and he gave a quiet chuckle as he leaned back again, getting more comfortable. 

I want to be there, not here. 

His baby needed his warmth and attention...

"What are you thinking about with that look, Ashy?" Ru asked, making Ash quickly look away and continue packing. 

He was just about to respond that he was thinking about absolutely nothing, when his body suddenly grew ten degrees hotter and his skin turned to scales! 

Ashy! Now really isn't the time! he whined internally as his dragon immediately snorted out a puff of smoke as it looked over toward the phone on the nightstand. 

In a blur he was beside it, then within another moment he had the poor device between his too-warm jaws and was carrying it over to the suitcase. 

What are you doing? Put that down before you break it!

Ashy didn't seem bothered and waited until he'd nudged aside some of the clothing Ash had just painstakingly folded before setting the device down with a plop. 

Okay, you got to carry the phone around, now let me have control back so we can go make our plane. 

Unfortunately, Ashy still didn't seem to want to listen. 

"Hello there, sweet Ashy. Are you being a good boy for your daddy?" Ru asked, his voice coming from the phone that had landed face down in the suitcase. 

Ashy quickly zeroed in on the sound and, after a few nudged from his steaming nose, managed to flip the phone over. 

When Ru's face then reappeared, his dragon was beyond overjoyed! It immediately started nuzzling against the touch screen, making the phone beep a few times and nearly scare Ash to death that the call might be disconnected. 

"Aw, you're such a sweetie. I'd love to pet you but your daddy has to get you here, first," Ru said with a hint of laughter to his words. 

Ashy grunted in response, then burped out a little puff of fire before climbing the rest of the way into the suitcase and lying down with a clawed paw on either side of the phone. 

"Ah, you want to ride in the suitcase?" he asked, making Ash want to smack his own face with his palm. 

This dragon of mine...

When Ashy huffed his agreement and hunkered down with his jaw settled against the phone, Ru couldn't help but finally burst into a fit of laughter!

His dragon kicked out a few more clothing items with its back feet before curling its tail inside, too, making Ru laugh even harder. 

He was definitely feeling more than a little bit embarrassed, but the sound of Ru laughing so happily easily overruled his own discomfort.  

He stopped trying to fight Ashy and just let the dragon snuggle with the phone until it finally relinquished its hold over him about twenty minutes later. 

By that time he was nearly going to be late so he had to scramble around the room and pull his clothing back on, then re-stuff his suitcase before hurrying for the door. 

He didn't even realize he'd accidentally packed his phone beneath his clothes until he heard a faint sound coming from the large bag after he'd hugged his mum goodbye. 

Oops...

He quickly pulled it out to hear Ru laughing hysterically, eventually making him join in as he settled himself in the front seat, then slid the phone into a holder on the dashboard before he finally got the car started toward the airport. 

He'd intended to talk to the man the entire way there, but when he noticed Ru cover his mouth for a yawn, he immediately quelled his greedy mind and smiled at the phone after stopping at a red light. 

"Get some rest, love. I'll be there very early tomorrow morning," he said, making Ru sit up and yawn again, then nod. 

"I'll pick you up since I wake up early anyways. Just text me the time of arrival once you get to the airport," he said, making Ash nod right away. 

"Will do. Good night, and I'll see you soon." 

Ru gave him a sleepy smile that made him want to bundle the guy up in his arms forever. 

"See you tomorrow, Ashy. I love you." 

(You guys were supposed to stay separated for longer than a chapter...)