Redsand Canyon I wanna have control

She was nervous; he could tell immediately when he saw her, and it was his fault. He had been catastrophizing as she had put it once before. He had been so angry and so in his head that he hadn't considered how all this might look to her. 

Kallik walked over to her and kissed her cheek, not caring about the imperator and his rules right then. I am sorry I've been weird, Aquene, he told her softly. It is not your fault. the soldier sighed and shook his head, taking a seat in front of her. I talked to the imperator about us, he started. He said we cannot be together in the way we want unless we are married. If we do not want to get married, he said we are to keep from one another's beds. We cannot spend time together without a chaperone. He told me that unless we are married, I have to chose to be a soldier and not let this distract me. Kallik was not surprised by most of this, but he hadn't expected the ultimatum. 

He searched Aquene's face a moment before saying his next words. I wanted more time to get to know more about each other, but I do care about you very much. I will marry you, but it is your choice. He certainly wouldn't force her, though it was exactly what the imperator was doing. They had a 'choice' but it meant they couldn't really be together. 

He watched her, his heart racing and his breath stuck in his lungs. He wasn't expecting a good reaction from her.