Caspian didn’t know when he’d dozed off, but sometime after he’d laid down on his bed, the combination of the emotional exhaustion and the effects of the whiskey overtook him, and he fell asleep with his phone resting limply in his hand on the pillow next to him. He slept for a while until the pulsating sound of his phone’s buzzing drew him back to wakefulness. With a yawn and a weary stretch, he opened his eyes, taking a moment to orient himself. Not long had passed, so he was still tipsy on the liquor in his system, and it took him a few seconds to draw connections between the source of the noise and the reason why the device was going off in the first place.

When it finally struck him that he’d been waiting for Iris to call, he hissed a curse under his breath and sat up quickly, grabbing the phone in the hopes that he hadn’t missed her. Fortunately, the call went through, and he relaxed again when he heard her greet him over the line. He’d been looking forward to talking to her all day, but somehow, hearing her voice was even better than he’d built it up to be in his head. [color=#b97703]“Hey, Iris,”[/color] he said to her in return, his own voice slightly raspy after having just woken up. Clearing his throat to ease it, he smiled to himself when she asked how he was doing and then immediately backpedaled as if she thought he would be offended by her concern.

[color=#b97703]“I’m doing better now,”[/color] he replied in spite of her effort to tell him not to answer the question. [color=#b97703]“It’s good to hear your voice again… Also, one of my guards, Jacob, gave me some bourbon to drink after the funeral. Both are helping.”[/color] He chuckled to himself and laid back down on the bed with his phone still held to his ear. It was the first time he’d ever tried the ‘long distance’ thing with someone, and he could see why most people agreed that it wasn’t sustainable for a long time. Already, he missed having her beside him and wished they could do more than just chat over the phone at night. It was still better than nothing though, so he would just have to be grateful that they could talk at all and keep looking forward to a time when they could be together in person again.

Her flattery of his speech made him feel a twinge of pride. He hadn’t been sure how it had been received by his audience, since he still didn’t see himself as a charismatic leader like his father had been. Knowing that she thought he’d done well gave him some peace of mind. [color=#b97703]“Thanks,”[/color] he said, fixing his eyes on his ceiling to passively study the texture in the paint. [color=#b97703]“I’m glad you think so. You have no idea how terrifying it is to speak in front of the whole country like that… I almost didn’t go through with it, so it’s good to know I wasn’t a total train wreck.”[/color]

With a sigh, he changed the subject, curious to know how she had been since they’d parted that morning. [color=#b97703]“I’m really sorry I ditched you at the hotel, Iris… How have you been doing since I left? Have you had anything to eat since breakfast?”[/color] He paused briefly before adding: [color=#b97703]“And don’t try to lie to me. I’m getting good at spotting your tells.”[/color]