Time - (Identity V-Elisop)

Chapter 24

"Actually, I need to do something, but I'll meet you in your room later," The seer said as he turned away from the embalmer.

"Oh, right okay.." Aesop was a bit confused but didn't question it.

"I'll return in maybe an hour?" Eli said as he slowly walked away, leaving Aesop at his door alone.

It was mid-noon, the embalmer didn't have very much to do, and was just hoping to spend time with his boyfriend, unfortunately he was busy. He eventually decided to go pay a small visit to Vera, since they hadn't hung out in a small while.

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Eli knocked on the door, waiting for a response.

*KNOCK KNOCK*

A familiar person opened the door, but not the person he was expecting.

"Tracy? Where's Naib?" Eli asked as his owl peered into the room.

"Oh, he's in here as well," Tracy turned around before she said something to Naib, "Hey Naib, Eli's at the door," she half-yelled to the mercenary, who was only across the room to her.

"God, can you be any louder?" Eli himself couldn't tell if he was joking around or not.

Tracy picked up her toolbox as she spoke, "Well, I need to get going now as well," she walked past Eli, closing the door behind her but not shutting it completely.

"Can you shut the door please, Eli?" Naib's tone was now more gentle as he looked at the seer.

"Oh yeah, sure," Eli said as he went over to close the door.

Naib sat on the bed behind him, motioning the other to come sit down as well. As he sat down, Eli lowered his blindfold, so that it hung around his neck.

They both knew the oncoming subject, and Naib was the first to speak up about it. "You and Aesop are happy together, right?" he avoided eye contact by looking out the window to his far left.

"I-" Eli thought of how to answer his question but one thing puzzled him, "How did you know we-".

"Eli, by this point everybody knows, did you seriously not notice?" He laughed, now looking at Eli.

"I mean, we are really happy together," Eli explained as he awkwardly fidgeted with his hands, "And I'm glad that he's more relaxed and happier," He smiled at the thought of his boyfriend.

"I just wanted to apologise," The mercenary said in a more quiet, serious tone.

Eli turned back to look at Naib in confusion. "Apologise..? Apologise for what?" He tilted his head to the side slightly.

"I shouldn't really have asked you out when you ended up liking Aesop ," Naib explained as the seer listened closely, "To be fair, I shouldn't have said anything, your fiancee regardless-". Eli cut him off before he finished his sentence.

"Hey, look I already told you, you don't have to worry, I moved on from Gertrude a while ago," Eli said as he rested his hand on Naib's shoulder. He gave a sad smile and let the heavy silence linger in the air, "Can I tell you something..?" He added after a small while had passed. Naib nodded before Eli continued on. "I thought I liked you in that way, for at least a month or two, and when you confessed to me I was going to accept it, I'm the one who should be apologising," he took a deep breath as he leaned back a bit.

"Ah, so you were confused about who you love?" Naib asked with sincerity in his voice. He had on a smile despite how dejected he felt, but he would endure it so long as Eli was happy and content with his life.

"You shouldn't be in a relationship with someone if you don't truly love them, in my opinion" Naib explained to ELi as he put his arm around the seer's shoulder.

"Yeah, I agree," Eli said with a blank expression on his face.

The sun went down for a moment, dimming the room slightly. Eli looked much more tired in the dark, especially with his blindfold off. Naib looked just as bad, intense eyebags and messy hair.

Eli turned his head to face Naib, making direct eye contact with him. He didn't even acknowledge he was moving and leaning in closer until he felt another pair of lips on his own. He felt the other return the kiss naturally, but unlike with Aesop, he didn't close his eyes. He just sat there frozen, giving a kiss to someeone he wasn't supposed to. Naib pulled away after another two seconds, his eyes resembling confusion and concern for the seer. He put his hand on the seer's, letting it rest gently on his wrist.

"That was out of pity, wasn't it..." The mercenary said looking down at the floor.

The seer still didn't move, instead he said something quietly under his breath, "I don't know why I did that..." Naib could barely have heard that. He moved Naib's hand off of his wrist gently before standing up slowly. 

"I'm going to go now... I'm sorry," Eli said as he left the room, his blindfold now back over his eyes, his owl was looking straight ahead, not even turning back once.

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Eli returned back to Aesop's room, knocking before he came in as usual.

"Come in!" Aesop yelled from the other side of the door in his usual happy-but-not-necescarily-showing-it tone.

ELi entered Aesop's room and closed the door behind him, he didn't want others listening on his private conversations afterall. He threw off his blindfold and threw it on the desk, Brooke Rose still on his shoulder. Aesop was sat on his own bed, reading some sort of book.

Eli sat next to Aesop before throwing his arms around his neck. He didn't know how exactly to explain what he wanted to say, but it was that rather than lying to his lover.

"Are you alright?" Aesop asked as he put his book down, folding the page over at the top. ELi put his head in his hands, holding back tears of immense guilt.

"I kissed Naib," He said quietly.