Moonlight Dance (Brim)

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[ The song above is "Breathe" by The White Birch ]

[ You can find the Tumblr link at the end of the story where it says "External link". ]

Shadows of trees danced in time to the right of two figures, their limbs twisting in the calm breeze that swayed them back and forth as a most well acquitted dance partner. To the left where there would usually be a homely glow of orange lighting, there was no extra lighting to be found. "To make the night more immersive," Brian had answered as he twisted the knob until the lamp turned off with a satisfying 'click'.

And between the mystic forest and a darkened house, there stood two men, holding each other close while off to the side a phone rattled out slow songs for them to sway to. Grass swished and crunched delicately underfoot with each step the two men took as they shuffled slowly back and forth across the little moonlit clearing behind Brian's house.

The hint of teeth peeked out from behind upturned lips, promising a smile that was almost too difficult to restrain by any of the means Brian used to temper it. For a short while he was able to prevent it from getting any wider ( saving him from looking like a love-struck dummy ), but soon his resolve began to dissolve, crumble under the warm gaze he was locked in.

Just staring into Tim's moonlit eyes was like looking into dark mirrors, and it was breathtaking. The way the moonlight hit his face, curved with the strands of his hair, it made him reflect on exactly how lucky he was. His hazel orbs were fixated on him, he could hardly find the willpower in him to tear his eyes away with his mind wandering off into the thoughts that, up until now, he had been certain could only exist in cheesy romance movies. It wouldn't be the first time he'd been proven wrong.

They took another few steps in a half-circle to the right, and Brian let out a breathy chuckle as he saw Tim flashing him an amused smile. So much for real dancing, I guess, he mused, but this is nice. This is good.

The warmth that stirred in his chest made Brian giddy in ways that he didn't want to stop. The calming heat spread through him, soothing the cool bite of his skin that the night breeze left behind when it surrounded them. It was like his heart was made of a million birds, all flocking together, flying high in skies lit up with a saturated sunset of red and pink.

He knew he shouldn't be getting so giddy when he'd known Tim for over ten years, but was there truly any way to avoid it? Just holding Tim like this, hands clasped in each other's grasp, pressed close to each other...it was like he'd dreamed this up somehow, and yet he knew that he could never have dreamed this up. Even as dreamlike as it was, they had their moments. Sometimes they'd slip up; one would move in a way differently from the other, and sometimes one of them would slip up. Instead of being embarrassing, though, it added to the endearment of the situation, and was often met with a quiet chuckle or a laugh, followed by reassuring words of how they weren't much better.

How long had they been dancing now? It had to be at least half an hour-his feet were killing him, and he was dead tired, but he didn't want to stop. Swaying back and forth with an occasional step wasn't that bad, anyway. He wanted to keep going until the music he'd set to play on his phone stopped, until it ran out of battery and both of them were too tired to move much more.

And looking to the side to see Tim once more, head leaned on his shoulder so he could press against his neck, he wished he could frame the content smile that had made its way onto his face. The way his lips curved so gently, the genuine vulnerability that Tim trusted Brian enough to let show. If only he had a camera...if only there was some way to take a mental picture, to save this moment forever, even if they lost all of their memories again.

There was no true way- no speech he could manage to assemble with the mediocre writing skills he'd stored up from the past days in school- that would allow him to express how much he loved him. How much he loved this. But he could try his best.

Breathing out a sigh of contentment, Brian allowed his voice to travel in a whisper, afraid speaking any louder would shatter the moment. "Hey, Tim..?"

The shorter man hummed softly against his neck and shifted his head slightly so he could look at Brian's face without having to pull away. "Yeah?" Sleep was heavy on his eyelids, the soothing atmosphere proving to be tempting for both of them.

The oriole harbored that same smile that made his face hurt, and swallowed before breathing out, "I love you...so, so much...you're so amazing. Remember that, alright?"

Against the skin that wasn't covered by his shirt, he could feel Tim's face growing warm. There was an air of silence between the two for several heartbeats. Then, Tim's voice came, muffled by Brian's neck. "...I love you too, Brian," came the words on a heavily released breath from his lungs, "so much.." He pressed his lips to the side of his neck, a kiss which Brian gladly returned by turning his head and kissing the side of Tim's head.