He was running through the forest, the trees looming like the stretched shadow of a manepaw's claws. His breathing was heavy, the air thin, foggy, and humid. Though he swore he had been wearing tall leather boots, he was barefoot. His trousers were caked in dirt from his calves up to his knees. He didn't know where he was, or how he got there.

A buzzing noise flew by, tugging at his hair. He turned on his heel, swinging the net that had appeared in his hands.

Or had he always carried it?

His pondering made him slow. He had missed. The glowing purple creature was already flitting towards the thick canopy, so he set the chase, determined to...

... to do what?

He gasped.

One moment, his mind was blank, the next he remembered it so clearly. Yes, that was it. He had to catch the spirit and sell it for fifty thousand dons. The Scaletail would make him rich, would get him out of this place, would...

"Are you catching hobblers again?" a familiar voice with a strong Porti Janon lilt asked. "Aren't those creatures suffering enough?"

"Ruben?"

Nio squinted as he looked at the sunlight sparkling up ahead. There was a river he hadn't noticed before, lazily meandering, calm and serene. 

His boyfriend climbed onto the small patch of rocky shore; his hair plastered against his forehead. He was bare-chested and dripping wet, wearing nothing but a pair of tight white swimming trunks that left little to the imagination.

Nio shook his head. He couldn't afford to get distracted. "I'm not torturing the hobblers. I just want to catch them," he said.

"Don't you think they deserve to be free?"

"So do we. I don't want to hide anymore. I want to tell the world that I love you."

"You can't. There are rules."

"So? Rules are arbitrary constructions. They can be broken."

The glow hobbler flitted about, from one tree to the next, and then back. Then it stopped, floating right above Nio's head, bobbling up and down, its tentacles sparkling with electricity. Provoking him.

A sly smile tugged at the corners of his mouth. He kept the net still. If he acted now, the spirit would be his. He would be fifty thousand dons closer to Ruben's freedom.

"Leave it," his boyfriend urged. "Join me. The water is lovely."

"I can't swim."

Ruben smiled broadly, his warm brown eyes crinkling at the edges. "The Rainmaster can't swim." He chuckled. "Come here, Ursitoni Alvoni. I'll teach you."

Nio's knees grew weak; his stomach did a flip. Ruben calling him his 'little white-haired sugarpaw' did something to him, something he couldn't ignore. He wanted to be near Ruben, wanted to spend all his time with him, touching and being touched.

Still monitoring the hobbler, he waded through the swamp-like mud, sinking deeper with each step. He soldiered on, despite his energy waning quickly. His heart was pounding throughout his entire body. Ruben was worth every click of pain, every moment of suffering. For Ruben, he would travel to the end of the world; he would shoot the moon from the sky and kill every star if it meant being together for all eternity. Nobody had ever made him feel this way, and nobody ever would.

When he looked up, his boyfriend was still as far from him as before.

"Ruben, what are you doing?" Nio asked. His mind was racing, considering everything from dreampowder poisoning to old, long-forgotten Oan magic.

"I'm not doing anything," he replied. "You're the one running."

Nio quickened his pace. As he stepped out of the mud, he found himself right back where he had started. A swarm of hobblers buzzed around him in concentric circles.

He ducked to avoid their tentacles, then stumbled back into the mud. The sunlight faded. No matter what he tried, and despite how close Ruben appeared, the distance between them remained.

All of a sudden, the forest floor tilted. One moment he was choking, drowning in endless layers of dirt. The next, he was running uphill. And he was getting further away from Ruben.

"What's happening?"

"Don't you understand?" his boyfriend said, all ominous. "You can pursue me all you want, but you'll never catch me. We can never be together—it's either me or you."

"We don't have to choose!" Nio shouted. More softly, he said to himself, "I don't want to choose."

"You must."

Though he was still running, the trees started closing in on him, separating him from Ruben. As much as he tried to fight, stumbling over roots and rocks, thorns cutting into his skin, he couldn't get close.

The world around him darkened; the ground beneath his feet crumbled.

"Ruben!" he yelled.

Darkness engulfed him, clicks from swallowing him whole. He had to find a way out. He had to run faster, harder and...

He shot up with a start. "Ruben."

Panting heavily, he sat up in the bed and wiped his damp eyes. A dream. Nothing but a stupid dream.

Red morning light peeked in from behind closed curtains, kissing Ruben's dishevelled hair. His boyfriend lay on his side, his arms tucked under his pillow. He was mumbling in his sleep, the sounds he was producing more gibberish than actual words.

Overwhelmed, Nio slid back under the covers. Unable to shake off the lingering feelings of unease and intense sadness, he nuzzled against Ruben for comfort. A few clicks later, he felt his boyfriend's arm around him, his hand rubbing circles on his back.

Instantly, Nio relaxed. Gone was the nightmare, a product of worry and excessive thinking; it hadn't been real. He breathed out slowly, his beating heart returning to a normal rhythm. The tension faded. Though he knew he had to part soon, this was where he felt safe. Protected. Loved. 

Outside, the merry spearwings sang their song. He wished he never had to leave.

"You alright?" Ruben asked, his voice low and croaky.

"I am now."

"Good," he said. He yawned. "What's the time?"

"I don't know, but it's morning. I should probably go."

Ruben groaned as he tightened his grip around Nio. "No, stay." He stretched the words.

"I have to. Mister Steinnemann will be wondering where I am." Nio let out a deep sigh. He could delay the inevitable for a bit longer, but he would have to get up eventually. "And you need to get ready too. Your one million fans are already at the gates, waiting to catch a glimpse of their King of Porti Jano."

"I don't want to. It's going to be such a long day."

"Yeah, being as dashing and handsome as you requires a lot of effort." He kissed the freckle on Ruben's collarbone. "Your Majesty."

"You have no idea, my little peasant," Ruben mused, his fingers still lazily stroking Nio's back. "And don't worry about Gunder. If that old Grunnwaldian still doesn't know where you disappear to each night, he's dumber than a bag of rocks."

"Oh, he's aware. By now, I'm convinced he tolerates our relationship as long as it stays out of the media, and as long as I arrive in time for briefings, interviews, or whatever event he has lined up for me and Nina. But, I would rather not remind him of where I sneak off to. I don't want to put the team in jeopardy."

Ruben snorted. "It's SRT's most successful season in the sport. They've never had a driver consistently scoring points, and today, you and Nina are second and third in the standings. Gunder doesn't have a reason to complain."

"You don't know what he's like. He would complain about the sea being salt if that could turn it into clearwater."

"He's not that bad."

"He is. One time, I yanked the door of his caravan shut. I may have slammed it a little. I was upset because of a bad qualifying. He accused me of foksmashing his door.

"Foksmashing?"

Nio lifted his shoulders. "I assume it's a Grunnwaldian thing. The guy is intense."

"And you're nice and easygoing, an absolute delight to everyone working with you," Ruben said in jest.

Nio puffed up his cheeks. He huffed. "As if you're not ruthless if you know you can win."

"Me? Never." Ruben cleared his throat. Then, as his eyes met Nio's, he showed his tongue.

Nio dug his elbow into Ruben's side, which Ruben returned twice as hard. Before Nio could reply with a playful slap, his boyfriend held him in a lock. He grabbed Nio's face and started kissing him, gently yet passionately, releasing his grip but still holding him close.

"Ugh, you're still sticky," Ruben said as he pulled away. He wiped his fingers all over Nio's shirt.

Nio smirked. "I thought you liked sticky."

"I appreciate the cream for protecting your skin, keeping the blisters from your face. But it's like—"

A sudden shriek coming from outside interrupted Ruben. It was a high-pitched sound, like an animal writhing in pain, howling even.

"What's that?" Nio scampered up. He winced as a shiver ran down his spine. 

The scream filled the air with its eerie, unsettling presence. He walked up to the window and peered through the curtains. A shadow was heading towards the copse of featherleaf trees, a bag and a burning torch in hand.

"Ruben?" he asked. His boyfriend, who had assumed a sitting position, was too quiet for his liking. "What's going on?"

"You know, don't you?"

"I have no idea."

"But I thought..." Ruben flinched, shaking his head. "If your team didn't tell you, I can't either."

"Why?"

"I am not allowed to share Malachite secrets with the competition."

Nio scowled, his arms folded against his chest. "What are you hiding?"

Ruben stretched out his hand. He tried to touch Nio, but Nio didn't let him. "Hey, if you were in my shoes, you would say exactly the same, wouldn't you?" he argued.

He was right, but Nio didn't want to admit that. "Maybe," he said. He pulled up his dark-brown needlecord trousers, then buckled his belt and picked up his shirt from the floor.

"I'll tell you when I've won the title," Ruben tried. He paused, hesitating. "I've asked Laurence to give you my seat."

"Why would I want that?"

"my seat is your best shot to win next season. Malachite has won eight times out of ten in the last decade. You would get to take your engineer and any of your mechanics. Money is not an issue for Laurence."

"I won't need a spot at Malachite—we can both win," Nio said. He had it all figured out. "I take victory today, and you become second. Nina and Vitaly take third and fourth position. Or they do worse. I don't care. Then, even if they win and finish second in Djicau, you and I would only need to finish fourth and fifth. We would be equal on points."

"There can only be one winner," Ruben said, not impressed. "You would have four victories against your name. You would automatically win. There is no scenario in which we both can be free."

"So, you're asking me to lose?"

"Of course not." He got up from the bed, approaching Nio but keeping his distance. "I love you every click of every day and even more at night, but not when we're in the car. When I'm driving, it's me against the pack. And I expect nothing less from you. If I win, I want it to be fair and square. Don't hold back."

"I don't intend to," Nio said. "I want to win."

"Good for you. And so do I." Ruben grinned. Teasingly, he added, "I won't make it easy. There's a reason they call me the King of Porti Jano."

"Yeah, because you won four of the last five sprints here. I know my history, Your Majesty," Nio said with a wink. He couldn't stay angry, not for long. Not at Ruben.

"That's right my little peasant. So, see you on the podium?"

Nio nodded. Without another word, he leaned in and pressed his lips against Ruben's, their argument long forgotten.

The kiss was everything a kiss should be, passionate and intense, fuelled by the imminent thrill of chasing each other around the Intralago track. Ruben's hands roamed over Nio's body while Nio was all over Ruben's face, his fingers tangled up in his messy mop of brown hair.

As they finally pulled away, they were breathless. Nio's body buzzed with excitement.

"I love you," he said. His eyes locked on Ruben's.

"I love you too. And I always will, Ursitoni Alvoni."