The most important part was that she was happy now.
That's what he wanted to hear and he hoped it was true and not just something that Charlie was saying to make him happy. He wanted to know that she was really and truly happy with her current life. And if there was something that she was lacking, he wanted to know about it. There might not be much he could do about it but he could try. At least he could be the shoulder for her to lean on. Or arm, as it were.
He hated to leave now, to separate the cool touch of her skin from his. It was the most physical contact that they had made so far and the moment was so cozy, he didn't want it to end.
Absence makes the heart grow fonder.
Royce let out a regrettable sigh. All moments had to come to an end eventually and this one was no exception. It had been a moment that he would think over fondly for many days to come. It was bigger than the small moment of glee when he kissed, more significant than the moment where they shared their mutual interest in each other. No, there was something more to this moment than all the other ones. A feeling of ... being closer to Charlie than when he started. There was a hunger growing in him that hadn't been there before. A feeling of desperation for a change in his life.
He suddenly couldn't see a life without her. Even if she never found out about what he was, even if he never had the courage to tell her, and yeah, even if there was no happily ever after, if she ended up with someone else, as long as he was allowed to be in her life, he would be fine with that. He wanted her to be happy.
That was the most important.
"You are so great, y'know that?" The words exploded out of him and maybe he was crossing into her personal space but he just had to lean down and wrap her up in a hug because seriously, she was so damn awesome. Not just for being great to him but to Rosey too. For the second time, he managed to sneak his lips to her cheek and leave a chaste kiss so light, that she might not have known it to be anything more than a brush of his face against hers.
It wasn't just the fact that she was cooking for him (though there might be some truth to that old saying about getting to a guy's heart through his stomach) but more of him just being so grateful so yeah, a kiss was his way of ... rewarding her. He wanted to do more (nest his nose into her neck and just smell everything that was her) but with great restraint, he let her go and stepped away. "Okay, I'm seriously leaving now. Study hard and I'll see you in a few hours at your place." He gave her a short wave good-bye, then left.