The boards don't sink

ㅤ In the heat of battle, Chloe again failed to notice how she'd overdone it—the bridge's ropes cracked, and soon, along with splinters from the damaged plank and the hapless pair, they fell. And this time, the second bridge from below didn't save the girl. Because it was that very bridge she'd cut through… The flight to the water wasn't that far. By some miracle, neither the screaming Chloe nor the screaming Moses died, cutting through the seething stream like sharp needles. The current picked up the pair and began to carry them away. Sobered by the cold water, Moses quickly came to his senses. He followed her cries, interrupted by gurgling water, and found Chloe and pulled her closer to the shore. She clung to him so tightly and uncomfortably that he had to stop halfway there. "Easy, easy," Moses said, chuckling slightly, having recovered from the initial shock. "Look, you can stand up now. Come on, calm down. Can't you really swim!?" Chloe's mind, clouded by fear, gradually cleared. But it finally cleared with the words: "Come on, why were you so worried? The boards don't sink!" He burst out laughing at his own grief. Which nearly cost him his head. "Oh. Really?" Chloe said in a deathly indifferent voice, sending shivers down his spine. Especially when he narrowly avoided a sword aimed at his neck. Moses laughed nervously, swallowing back the lump that rose in his throat: the situation didn't bode well, even an idiot like him knew that, even though he didn't understand why he was about to be punished with death. "Uh… Chloe? What's wrong…?" A wild scream echoed through the surrounding area—Moses didn't suffer for long, quickly losing consciousness. Chloe came to, standing over the fallen "enemy".

* * *

Feeling a little guilty for what she'd done, Chloe kept watch at the hospital, checking on Moses. However, she still missed the moment he woke up and stood up. They bumped into each other in the hallway. "Oh, are you feeling better yet?" Moses asked, as if nothing had happened. "I should be asking! How are you feeling?" "Fine. But you shouldn't have hit me so hard…" she sounded offended. Moses genuinely didn't understand why he'd gotten into trouble. "It's your own fault! You shouldn't have picked on me!" Chloe flared up, blushing. "What did I say!?" "You shouldn't say that to girls!" she said in a raised voice, but quickly trailed off and lowered her voice, as if adding to herself: "I already have a complex about my size…" "Are you stupid?" Moses continued digging his own grave. Still, he managed a compliment: "You have the perfect shape and size." "Seriously?" Chloe chuckled nervously. "And this comes from someone who used to lose his mind at the mere sight of Grune?" "You've found someone to compare it to! Grune is a goddess! Literally! Who in their right mind would even think of comparing the divine to the human!? And it's not the size that matters, but the proportions! And you've got them just fine, I assure you!" Moses winked, showing off. "And your clothes accentuate your curves so beautifully, highlighting every dimple. And when your nipples harden in the cold water…" Moses didn't have time to finish, heading back to the hospital bed. Chloe had never blushed so much in her life. Though Moses had managed to boost her self-esteem. Which made her especially embarrassed to look him in the eye. ㅤ