CHAPTER 373: WIFE MATERIAL

When Lane got back to the apartment, Damien was already home. Busying himself around as always, of course.

"You’re back?" he asked, popping his head out from the bedroom. "Dinner is almost ready, I just need to put the laundry in first."

"Mn, great. When did you come back?"

"Hmm? Around half an hour ago."

Lane lifted his brows, leaning against the door frame as he watched Damien sort the dirty clothes, both his own and Lane’s.

Half an hour ago. Only half an hour, and he had already almost finished making dinner, and was even taking care of the laundry? Right after an undoubtedly busy day at work, which was preceded by a few days spent in a dungeon, defending against the monsters without even proper preparation or equipment...

That was some dedication!

"You’d make a good wife!" Lane chuckled.

It was just a joke. It was supposed to be. But unexpectedly, Damien’s hand froze midair, with a piece of clothing in his hand.

He didn’t look up. He didn’t even turn around, so Lane couldn’t even see his face, as he asked, in his usual serious, calm, and collected voice, "Is that a proposal?"

"...What?" Lane paused, taken aback.

It took a moment for him to register it. He had said that Damien would make a good wife, and Damien asked if it was a proposal. Meaning, if Lane was proposing to take Damien as his wife... Or, well, husband. Same thing.

To be honest, he didn’t really mean anything by it. It was just a humorous remark. Could have been said to anyone. It was just that because he had said it to the man that he was dating, it created an additional layer of meaning that wasn’t initially intended. Lane had never even thought about tying himself to a single person, let alone getting married, but...

Actually, that idea didn’t seem so bad.

Damien was a good cook, and took care of all the chores. Although he gave Lane that long, frowny, reproachful look sometimes, he still always had sweets for him. He also allowed Lane to rest on his lap, even in front of other people. He might have been all stiff and proper, but he was fun and interesting in an unexpected way. And on top of that, he was insanely good in bed, not to mention hot as hell.

Seriously, could it get better than that?

Perhaps it was worth considering... Damien was the type who, if he made the commitment, would be unlikely to ever leave.

Even if he found out about everything Lane had done, and was planning to do.

It could have been a good solution to at least some of his concerns...

’Should I get a ring or something?’ A thought passed through his head.

However, he pushed it aside for now. Yes, that was certainly an idea worth considering, but it wasn’t a decision he should make on a spur of the moment. And even if he was going to propose to Damien, that wasn’t going to happen when they were sorting the laundry (or, well, Damien was). It should be more romantic, during a fancy dinner or something. Not to mention, he didn’t have a ring, or even flowers, at the moment...

Even if it was just a marriage of convenience (?), he should put some effort into the proposal to be presentable. Otherwise, wouldn’t it be unfair to his ’bride’?

So, for now, he just forced a chuckle, as if he took Damien’s words for a joke, and changed the topic.

"Anyway, why are you doing the laundry now? Right after work? Aren’t you tired?"

"No, not really," after a moment of silence, Damien shook his head, also dropping the topic. "I have to do this today, since I might not have time tomorrow."

That made sense. They were supposed to get back to inspecting the Gates located in the Restricted Zone around the Lapis Lake the next day, and who knew how it might go... Except,

"You know that there’s no need for you to do this at all, right? We can just order laundry services," Lane pointed out.

"We have a laundry machine at home."

"So?"

Damien tossed the last few pieces of clothing into the basket, and stood up. "I can do this myself, so why order any services?"

"...So that you wouldn’t have to bother with it?"

"But I don’t see it as a bother."

Lane stared at Damien as if the man had grown a second head.

It wasn’t a bother? Doing chores wasn’t a bother? Wasn’t the very definition of a ’chore’ that it was a tedious task?

And Damien was saying that it wasn’t a bother to him?

The man was weird!

...Of course, Lane didn’t mind. Damien might have been weird, but he was his. Everyone had their little quirks...

And this was completely harmless. Perhaps even helpful in a way, even if unnecessary. Lane already had people to do laundry arranged, it was within the duties of his cleaner... Only that his cleaner was arranged for his own apartment upstairs. The apartment that Lane hardly spent any time in, since he was always at Damien’s place. Of course, he had offered to expand the contract to include Damien’s apartment, but Damien rejected the offer, even though Lane made it clear that he would cover all the costs...

Alas, Lane had called Damien a wife material for a reason. The man’s love language seemed to be taking care of household stuff.

Lane let out a sigh, and went into the bathroom to wash his hands, before wandering around the apartment aimlessly. He should probably go through the reports again, to see if there was anything he might have missed, or to look for any suspicious points about Blanc... But he didn’t want to do this with Damien around. Other than that, he would usually lounge on the couch, watching something or playing games... But Damien had said that dinner would be ready soon, so it seemed pointless to do that now.

As he walked around, not knowing what to do with himself for the few minutes he waited for Damien, he somehow wandered into the kitchen. The pots were all on the stove, and the smell of freshly cooked food was wafting in the air, making Lane droll...

Yeah, Damien was a wife material alright. Even the quick meal he had cooked after work was mouthwatering!

Not wanting to wait any longer than he had to, Lane reached into the cupboard, taking out plates, glasses and cutlery to set the table. It wasn’t something he was used to doing... But setting the table shouldn’t be all that difficult. Since Damien had already taken care of everything else, he might do at least this much to help out!