Writevember day 3: Date

This was not a date, Adelius reminded himself as he donned his usual dark blue suit, adjusting his undershirt and belt to align perfectly with the rest of his accessories. He wanted nothing less than perfection when it came to every aspect of his life, he aimed only for complete certainty in everything.

Which is why he is CERTAIN it was not a date, he’s simply participating in, in his opinion, mundane activities with his childhood friend. Nothing out of the ordinary for the two, as they wandered the cobbled streets almost every day together. Adelius often wondered how Sakari had new stories to tell, or topics to ramble about each day, and although he wouldn’t admit it, he secretly enjoyed listening to Kari’s boatload of information about usually obscure subjects.

So it wasn’t a date. That was certain, clear as day, completely one hundred percent confirmed. Adelius didn’t DO dates, and he certainly harboured no romantic feelings for anyone, In Fact he held a destain for most people he came across. Except Sakari, but that was purely circumstantial. Sakari was something of a friend magnet to even the most stubborn souls, and Adelius was no exception, not that he would admit that.

Adelius wouldn’t admit a lot of things, like the way his heart fluttered when his chocolate eyes met Karis heterochromic blue and pink ones. The way his face felt warm against the icy air when their hands accidentally brushed against each other as they walked. He definitely didn’t think about how soft Kari’s hands were. Definitely. Adelius definitely DIDN'T find it charming when Sakari waved his hands around when he spoke, he only noticed these things because of their years of friendship, and that’s all there was to it.

Adelius ignored the way his usual cynical scowl softened upon seeing Sakari, they were only going to watch the sunset, it was nothing unusual. Yet.. even Adelius could sense the change in atmosphere between them. He elected to ignore it however, because if he acknowledged it he would have to experience genuine connection, and frankly he didn’t feel like doing that.

So, as they walked along the cobbled ground, Adelius realised he had been completely zoned out whilst Kari was rambling about his latest discoveries in the food department. He felt a small pang of guilt in his chest, and opted to participate in the conversation more than usual as a secret apology for his poor listening skills. As the two made their way over to their own, strategically placed, bench. Adelius found himself talking with ease before he knew it, he wasn’t sure why, but Sakari had a way of making conversations easy to follow, and he appreciated it more than even he realised.

“-And THEN I realised I forgot…basically half the ingredients?”

“…You forgot HALF the ingredients?”

“OK OK BUT to be fair to me I forgot to write the recipe down! So I was basically baking blind!”

“I think even a blind person would have baked more successfully than you did. How did you even manage that?”

Sakari let out an embarrassed laugh, he was never known for his incredible cooking skills. Infact Kari was more well known for his lack of such a skill, every time the man tried to bake something it ended with missing ingredients, holes in the wall and burn marks on the floor.To this day Adelius still can’t figure out how the holes happened, but a small smile creeps up his face remembering such an event.

“The eggs just..slipped my mind!”

“…And so did the butter, flour and sugar?”

“Well-…ok yeah maybe they did. BUT it turned out great in the end!”

“Kari. It turned out great because the only thing on the plate was a bar of chocolate.”

“That sounds like a win to me!”

“The win wasn’t the chocolate, it was the fact you didn’t burn half the kitchen.”

Once again, Sakari let out another laugh, this time without shame. Adelius found himself letting out a subtle laugh himself, he hated letting his feelings be known, but Kari made him feel..relaxed. He doesn’t dwell on it.

They settled down on the wooden bench, placed perfectly infront of where the sunsets took place, a stunning mix of intense, fiery colours painted the sky and lit up their village with a soft orange glow. Adelius stole a glance at Sakari, and almost wished he could take a photo at that moment. The amber colours of the sky carved Sakari’s face perfectly, highlighting his soft features and velvety hair. The ablazed sky created an ethereal glow around Sakari that left Adelius speechless, a seldom seen event for the intellect. His face flushed a light shade of pink that he prayed was hidden in the copper sheet of light provided by the sunset, as Sakari turned and met his gaze, rambled words dying on his lips.

They found all conversation they had previously been holding had fizzled out. Their gaze lingered on each other for what felt like an eternity, and secretly, neither of them wanted it to end. Within seconds, both realised that the eye contact had gone on for longer than what was considered ‘normal’, and they both suddenly turned away with flustered faces. Sakari began to fiddle with his hair with one hand while Adelius adjusted his glasses, even though they were perfectly straight.

Adelius could feel his heart hammering in his chest, begging to break through his ribs and set free its bottled emotions. Emotions that Adelius kept tightly wrapped in denial and, even if only a little, shame. He couldn’t allow himself to confront the truth, because if he did, what would follow? He shuddered at the possibilities.

As the two sat there in a slightly tense atmosphere, neither realised how the space between their resting hands grew smaller and smaller with each fidget and flustered shuffle. Their hands soon touched, still resting against the hard wood of the bench. Adelius flinched, and Sakari tensed, yet neither withdrew their hand, if anything their hands inched closer.

Neither said a word as their fingers slowly intertwined, both fearing that any attempt at conversation would kill whatever natural force was bringing their hands together. They couldn’t meet each other's eyes, but their hands remained connected for the entire rest of the subsets radiant show.

Adelius convinced himself that it meant nothing, that the small smirk on his face was in awe of the sunset and nothing more, he simply could not have any feelings towards his best friend. It wasn’t logical.

Sakari’s brain became a tornado of “OHMYGOD”s and “calmdowncalmdowncalmdown”s. Questions flooded his mind, mostly concerning the sweatiness of his hands, but one question remained unsaid between both of them. Both too unsure and confused to confront what was happening between them.

In the end, their hands only broke when they parted to their respective homes, not a single word was spoken, and no eyes met. It was awkward, REALLY awkward, but in a way, it was a GOOD awkward. The kind of awkwardness that left both of them smiling once the doors were closed. Sakari couldn’t wipe the grin off his face for the rest of the night, and although Adelius forced himself to ignore the ghost of a smile on his lips, his heart remained light and pounding for the rest of the evening.