Arthur smiled. He was looking forward, out into the dark night as well. “I should teach you to swim. First class has a pool—we can sneak in.”

“Hell no,” Rory said, with feeling. “I stick out bad enough in second. Besides, it’d be a waste of time. You, skintight bathing getup, dripping wet? I’ll be paying attention but I’m not gonna learn anything.”

Arthur snorted. “I am going to teach you at some point,” he said, his tone a little more sober, “because I don’t think I can take thinking you’ve drowned again.”

Rory stilled.

“Earlier this year, I thought you’d fallen in the Hudson River, and then you did fall in the Delaware. And now we’re on a boat, and I’m finding it difficult to forget how close I’ve come to losing you to water.” Arthur cleared his throat. “So. You should let me teach you to swim.”

“Aw geez.” Rory moved an inch closer. “Yeah, okay. I’ll learn. I’ll probably stare at you and get distracted a lot, but I’ll learn, yeah?”

Arthur smiled, small but real and grateful. “Thank you for putting up with me.”

“Putting up with you?” Rory scoffed. “You’ve been putting up with me puking since we got on this boat, staying in the cabin with me when you got better things to do.”

“Everyone gets sick,” Arthur said. “And I assure you, I don’t have anything I’d rather do than be with you.”

Rory bit his lip. It still seemed hard to believe that Arthur was just as into him, but it was impossible to ignore what was staring him in the face. “I can see it now, here on the ship,” he said hesitantly. “You’re so happy to be getting outta New York. You got a lotta pressure on you there.”

Arthur glanced down at him, brow furrowed. “That’s true. I love the city, and I’m sure I always will, but it comes with expectations. What about it?”

“You coulda left and taken the pomander abroad a month ago,” said Rory. “But you were sticking around. For me.”

“You’re worth it,” Arthur said simply.

Rory couldn’t help moving another inch closer at that.

“And what do you think of getting outta New York?” Arthur said, straight faced.

Rory half huffed, half laughed in surprise at Arthur’s imitation of him.

“I’m serious,” Arthur said, grinning. “You’ve only left the state twice and now you’re on the open sea with your whole country behind you. What do you think?”