The Guide is Actually a Body-Switching Esper [BL]-Chapter 67: ...Pending...

TW: *a bit of sexual content*

The weekend passed, and the group once again resumed their training.

But Lane’s application to become a field agent was still pending.

Samantha managed to finally complete the whole warm-up on the obstacle course.

But Lane’s application was still pending.

The group completed the whole Basic Combat Training course.

And Lane’s application was still pending.

Everyone passed the exams, except for Samantha, who was just below the passing grade.

However, Lane’s application was still pending.

Samantha took the makeup exam, this time achieving a passing score.

And yet, Lane’s application was still pending.

He tried contacting the management, asking about his application, but all he was told was that once one of the teams needed an extra Guide, he would be immediately informed.

Which was a complete bullshit. Field teams were always short on Guides, barely meeting the minimum requirement to enter dungeons. They could most certainly use another Guide, even a low-ranking one...

But the application was still pending.

Lane checked the page almost religiously. It was the first thing he did in the morning, and the last before going to sleep. Throughout the day, he constantly refreshed it on his phone, so much so that it pretty much became a habit, he did it without even thinking. But the ’pending’ status was always there, always the same.

With each passing day, Lane was growing more and more frustrated.

What was the point of him joining the Association, if he was going to be stuck in the office? If he couldn’t go on the dungeon inspections, then it would have been better to do literally anything else... His plan with the Fertilizer aside, it was just boring, guiding Espers every day.

So, eventually, he got tired of waiting.

***

Ping!

The elevator stopped on the 5th floor. Lane lifted his eyes from the screen, after refreshing the page one last time, stuffed his phone back in his pocket, and headed to the same private room as usual.

He entered the room, locking the door behind him, and walked over to the couch in big strides. Damien was already there, as always, working on his laptop, waiting for yet another guiding session...

"Team Leader Lennox." Lane slammed his hand on the top of the couch’s back rest, leaning over Damien. "You’re a Team Leader of a field team, right?"

"...Yes, that’s right." Damien looked up from his laptop, his brows furrowed in surprise.

"Say, how many Guides are on your team right now?"

"Three."

"And Espers?"

"Including me, thirteen."

So the team met the minimum requirements. Excluding the one Guide for Damien, they had one Guide per six Espers... Which wasn’t bad, but it was still pretty low, so Lane suggested,

"What do you think about me joining your team?"

It was a bit ridiculous, asking to join Damien’s team, when he previously died just to get away... But Lane was desperate. And, while he was more or less familiar with all the Team Leaders, none of them knew ’Aidan’, so it was only natural to try asking Damien first. And considering how Damien wanted to keep an eye on Lane, he should be the easiest to convince...

It seems Lane was wrong, however, because Damien’s frown only grew deeper. "You... want to join my team?"

"Well..." Lane paused for a moment. Did he want to? Not really. But... "I want to become a field agent. I applied a long time ago, but my application is still pending..."

Damien’s brows twitched. He remained silent for a good while, before finally saying, "I don’t think it would be appropriate for you to join my team, considering our relationship..."

"...Our relationship?"

"We’re a bit too... intimate with each other for you to become my subordinate, I mean."

"Oh, is that so?" Lane couldn’t help but scoff. He reached out, closing Damien’s laptop, and practically tossing it on the table behind him, before leaning even further over Damien. He raised his knee, squeezing it between Damien’s legs. "Are we, though? All we have done so far is just a few kisses, trying to improve the guiding efficiency..."

Under Lane’s intense gaze, a flush slowly rose on Damien’s cheeks. He averted his eyes, as he said, "I just want to take things slow."

"...Take things slow?" Lane’s eyes twitched ominously. His knee moved forward, pressing against Damien’s crotch. "Okay. But, there’s a difference between taking things slow, and not making any progress at all."

There was nothing Damien could say in response. Lane was right - they were stuck in the same spot. Two months had passed since Damien’s guiding sessions with ’Aidan’ had begun, but all they did was kiss. And aside from the first time, Damien never let Lane unbutton more than four top buttons of his shirt. Although their kisses didn’t lack a spark of passion, it was all still fairly innocent...

Lane clicked his tongue, observing Damien with narrowed eyes.

He was frustrated. Way too frustrated to deal with it.

He rubbed Damien’s crotch with his leg, feeling the man’s cock twitch and harden. Damien’s flush deepened, his breathing becoming more uneven and shallow...

"Do you want me? Or not?" Lane captured Damien’s chin with his fingers, forcing the man to turn his way.

Their faces were now only inches apart. Forced to face Lane, Damien furrowed his brows even further, even though it seemed almost impossible at this point... But he still refused to meet Lane’s eyes. He tried adjusting himself in his seat, but with Lane’s knee pressed onto him, it only ended up stimulating him further, a low groan escaping his mouth...

"Well?" Lane urged Damien, running out of patience. Damien’s closeness, his body heat, the hard cock pressing on his leg, and that frowny face... He himself was already on the edge, starting to feel aroused...

Trying to suppress his own emotions, he took a few deep breaths.

"So, how is it? Do you want me or not?" he repeated, once he managed to calm himself down a bit. "If not, just tell me, and I won’t bother you again..."

Damien flinched, briefly glancing at Lane, before looking away.

For a long while, they stayed like that in silence, before Lane finally let out a sigh, pulling back.

Of course, if Damien didn’t want anything more, then that was fine. He had every right to say no.

...But Lane had just as much right not to feel satisfied with it. And if their desires didn’t align, then what was the point of dragging it on? Lane didn’t want to wait forever in vain.

"Sorry. It seems I misunderstood your intentions. I think it’s better to end it here..." He got up from the couch.

Just as he was about to walk away though, Damien grabbed his wrist.

"...That’s not it. I... want more. It’s just that..." Damien paused, hesitating.

"Just what?"

"Well..."

"Look, if you don’t want to hook up with me, then that’s fine, just tell me. I can take it."

"I said that’s not it."

All of a sudden, Lane found himself flipped over, pulled onto the couch, with Damien on top of him.

"I do want more from you. It’s just that..." Damien paused once again, his brows furrowed in contemplation, as he tried to choose his words. "I don’t want to just let you have your way, ’cause I feel like once I do, you soon will be done and gone," he finally admitted honestly.

Lane was so taken aback, that he was rendered speechless.

Damien... was not wrong. That was how Lane usually was, only doing short but intense flings. If Damien was like anyone else Lane had hooked up with, then they probably would have already been over by now...

Looking into Damien’s uneasy eyes, Lane let out a heavy sigh.

He could dismiss all of those concerns. Say a few sweet words, and give reassurance. But... It wasn’t really his style, leading people on. He usually was open about only wanting something casual. And besides, he had already hurt Damien quite a lot, with his deaths and whatnot... If he lied to him now, he might feel bad about it later on, with the tiny bit of conscience he still had.

So, instead he suggested, "Fine, then let’s not go all the way just yet. But..." Lane lifted his hand, slowly sliding his hand down Damien’s chest, until his fingers brushed against the man’s hard cock, pushing on the material of his pants, which restricted it from fully standing up. The corners of Lane’s lips lifted up, as he gave Damien a charming smile.

"I don’t want to be stuck in one place. So, how about I’ll make you feel good today? What do you say?"