Boris turned to the door, his yearning for Dominic disintegrating as he heard knocks again. He tightly gripped the finely sculpted arms of his chair, his anger slowly rising. He was hoping it wasn't who he thought it was because he might just have to get rid of him for real this time.
"Super attendant Boris?" The voice called out. It was Kalmin.
Oh, Boris thought relaxing back into his chair, "yes?" He waited for Kalmin to walk in before looking at him with expectant eyes.
"The 6 o'clock meeting?" Kalmin announced analyzing Boris.
"Ah!" Boris gasped glancing at the clock. It was already 5:50, "I lost track of time. It's about the prince's coronation if he comes back from the war right?"
"Right," Kalmin let out a soft chuckle as he watched Boris nervously react, "Never thought this day would come," Kalmin muttered.
Boris rushed out of the chair, picking up relevant papers and tossing them at Kalmin, "aye, don't be like that, I just lost track of time that's all." He slipped on a royal jacket Dominic had designed for him.
"That's the issue," Kalmin frowned, tapping Boris' shoulder, "you never lose track of time."
Boris flinched, stopping for a moment before running his hand through his hair with an awkward smile. "It's nothing, I can't be perfect all the time."
"That's something you would never say," Kalmin pushed, "is something wrong?"
Boris looked away. He was right wasn't he? As soon as he had walked in, the vibe of the whole room had changed and Boris didn't seem like himself too. The solemn look in his eye as he greeted Kalmin earlier had sent shivers down his spine. Although he didn't know much Boris, his sixth sense was not exclusive to those he knew. There was something pestering him, something so big that his entire personality seemed to have taken a shift. Turning him from the reserved and confident right-hand man of his prince to the nervous stand-in constantly showing traits of depression.
"What's going on?" Kalmin asked, "I know something's wrong so don't even try to tell me otherwise. I don't know what it is but to have you change this much, it's concerning so you have to tell me. You aren't the only one holding the kingdom in place for Dominic so no matter how broad your shoulders are, you can't carry all of the troubles either."
"I-" Boris began, tempted to spill everything to Kalmin, but was it in his place to do so? It was his private life, his issues, a loose end he didn't fully cut off… it was his fault so why should Kalmin how to hold the burden too? "Nothing, is this because I don't smile?"
"What?" Kalmin replied taken aback by his sudden reply.
"Should I start smiling more so you can stop worrying?" Boris muttered looking away from Kalmin, "it's not that concerning, I'm sure I can fix it in time."
Kalmin stared at Boris for a bit analyzing his face.
"Enough of this, we have a meeting to attend!" Boris exclaimed, avoiding Kalmin's eyes, "let's go."
"Hmm," Kalmin replied with a slight nod, stepping aside for Boris to walk ahead of him. He watched Boris' shoulders as he walked past. One could almost see deep imprints on Boris' shoulders, as if a heavy Boulder rests on them, weighing him down. The lingering sadness and depression on his lips as he crafted words to hide his feelings were so visible they were blinding. Kalmin let out a small sigh, 'you liar.'