𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗦𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗼𝗳 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗩𝗼𝗶𝗰𝗲 (𝙵𝚞𝚛𝚛𝚢 𝙱𝚡𝙱)

Track 28 | 𝗦𝗲𝗹𝗳𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘀

I tried to pay close attention in order to discern the words coming out of his mouth.

"...I don't have fun... without your love..." Ari muttered melodically. "...Life is too short... but I will live for you..."

I don't know how he hit those high notes with such a faint, whispery voice, let alone in his sleep, but he pulled it off clean. It was a pleasant-sounding tune, one that almost put me back to sleep.

"...You're mmmking off..." Ari continued, although I didn't fully understand. "...but I will live for you, my selfless love..."

That was when he turned onto his back, revealing his face to me as he laid down with his chest pointed towards the ceiling. His eyes were shut and his expression was relaxed, but in his ears, I could see his Bluetooth earbuds. They must've been playing the song he was singing to. 

Very gently, Ari nodded his head to the beat, ditching the lyrics and returning to humming.

He's been awake the whole time, just listening to music. I slowly pulled the edge of the blanket up to my muzzle, hiding half of my face behind it.

Then, his eyelids parted. Frozen in place, I watched as his eyes stared blankly at the ceiling for a good minute before rotating over to me.

Our eyes met and Ari instantly acknowledged my presence, reaching for his ears and removing the small Bluetooth pods, channeling his attention back to reality.

"Oh—you're up," he yawned, taking the chance to reach over the ledge of the bed and grab the earbuds case off the floor, which wasn't far because his mattress was ground level. He popped the earbuds back into the case and sighed, dropping it back onto the ground. 

He then turned onto his left side, resting his head on his arm over the pillows, giving me his full attention. The two of us were facing one another in the bed, head-on. "How'd you sleep?"

"Uh..." I blanked, frozen like a deer caught in headlights or a statue under Medusa's gaze. To be fair, if this were a fairytale, I'd definitely turn to stone under Arizona's ghostly eyes. "...F-Fine."

"Not too bad?" Ari tilted his head, seeking my assurance.

"Y-Yeah, it was—It was great." I scratched my eye with my finger awkwardly, attempting a fractured smile. "Uh... How—How was your sleep?"

"Fine," Ari nodded his head. He was shockingly calm at the moment. My heart was beating out of my goddamn chest, I don't know how he kept it together so well. 

Then again, I'm not the first boy he's woken up to.

He's definitely the first for me, though.

Not just the first boy, he's the first person in general.

"...You alright?" Ari questioned with a slight smirk, his brows furrowing.

I breathed in sharply, my nerves flaring. I gulped down my saliva and nodded nonchalantly, pretending to be just fine. "Um... Yeah. Yeah, I'm okay—"

"Your face is burning up," Ari noted, reaching for my face and touching his paw to my fur tenderly, wiping away the sweat from my forehead. He smiled and bit his bottom lip. "...Are you nervous?"

"...Nervous?" I spoke hesitantly, unable to break eye contact with him. He was hypnotic. 

Ari's fingertips danced against my cheek as his smile grew, finding delight in the smallest of things. I felt my tail begin to wag under the covers in response to the ticklish feeling. My left eye squeezed shut as my neck folded in, touching my chin to my shoulder. My face burned red as I frowned in embarrassment, flustered to be seen this way. I must've looked like a scared, cowardly little kid to him. But, the pure warmth in Ari's eyes allowed me to feel less humiliated.