The Shadow of Eudaimonia

Chapter 24: Free

"Are you my Lazzi?" asked Calvin as soon as he woke up. Lazzi, still half-asleep, lain beside him, managed to wiggle his nose— a sort of answer to Calvin's question. From time to time, Calvin still could visit other realities. Sometimes, he had visited a reality where Lazzi was a girl. And in a more difficult situation, he visited a reality where it's almost completely identical that he discovered the difference much more later. So, it became a habit for Calvin to ask first before starting the day.

The warm and soothing early rays of the sun trickled down on them. "Come on, let's get up." Calvin whispered.

Lazzi groaned. "No, let's just stay here in bed."

Calvin grinned. He stared at Lazzi and just like every morning, he admired how beautiful he looked. Any girl would kill just for this view, he thought. Calvin, timidly placed his calloused hand on Lazzi's soft cheeks. He wasn't sure why but he wanted to feel how warm he was. Lazzi, in response, gently opened his eyes and took a peek at Calvin, before he closed it back and smiled.

"You gonna kiss me or what?" Lazzi asked with his deep morning voice.

Calvin blushed and mercilessly pinched Lazzi on the cheeks. "Hell no! Come on wake up! You're not being a good model to your student."

"No, I don't want to get up." Lazzi stretched out his arms and reached for Calvin's shoulder, hugging him.

"Man, you smell bad!" Calvin pushed Lazzi's beefy arm away. "You need to take a shower!"

"I don't smell that bad!"

"You smell like you live in a used pair of sweaty socks. Come on get up! Take a bath!"

"Maybe you're just smelling yourself?"

Calvin raised his arm and smelled his armpit. He cringed. His nose felt offended with his very own odor. Lazzi saw him and laughed.

"Come on." Lazzi sat up. "Let's take a bath. Together. Before we train."

"Together?"

"Yup. Together."

"Like you and I? Together."

Lazzi scratched his head. "What? There's nothing wrong with that right?"

Calvin scoffed. "Whatever," he responded. But deep down, he was freaking out. He never bathed with someone else before. What got into Lazzi's head, he thought.

After having their modest breakfast of random fruits, Calvin and Lazzi trailed off. Days after they were translocated on the island, they decided to map out the whole area. Just so they can know which place has resources they could use, and which area are to avoid. That's why Calvin was a bit concerned when he realized where Lazzi was leading him. They were going uphill but he could faintly hear the ocean's call for adventure.

"Don't tell me—"

"Yup, we're doing it." Lazzi excitedly gripped Cal's shoulder.

At a distance, he could already see the edge of the island and the sound of waves crashing on jagged rocks came louder. Lazzi was leading him to a cliff.

"You ready?"

Before Calvin could answer, he froze as he saw Lazzi stripped down to nothing, revealing his muscled body that glistened from his very own sweat. It was chiseled to perfection, firm and strong on parts that it should and soft on the others. Cal flicked his eyes away as soon as he saw the light brown hair below Lazzi's belly button that continues beneath his waist.

"Come on? Aren't you going in?" Lazzi asked with a teasing smile.

Calvin intended to answer with words but his jaw had tightened. So instead, he nodded and began to unbutton his own shirt. Midway through, he hesitated. The thought of Lazzi seeing his bare body would make him feel less. Less of a man perhaps. Sure, Lazzi had seen him almost naked before, but not like this. Especially he wouldn't be able to hide how his own body had reacted to the sight of Lazzi's. But all the hesitation faded away when Lazzi playfully ripped his shirt open and threw it away.

"Come on! I won't jump unless you jump."

"What? You scared or something?" he teased while slowly pulling down his underwear, wishing Lazzi wouldn't notice what he was hiding.

"Fear is a feeling unbeknownst to me." Lazzi bragged as he walked backwards. When he reached the edge of the cliff, he backflipped. Calvin's eyes grew wide with shock and he hurried to check if he made it alright. The turquoise waves crashed against the rocky wall beneath. He panicked as he scanned one area to another but there was no Lazzi to be found.

He was about to scream his name when he heard something. "Help! Calvin!"

"Shit Laz!" Calvin did not think twice. He activated his Obelisk and leaped forward. It was only for a brief second that he felt the rush of air until it was quickly replaced by the sensation of cold saltwater. He tried to search for Lazzi underwater. But it didn't take long until he felt his eyes sting like hell and his lungs burning. He was forced to bob his head out of water to breathe. "Laz!" He shouted. Panic and fear consumed him. He was about to dive once again when two muscular arms embraced him from behind. The sudden triumphant chuckle tickled his ears.

"Oh, fuck you Lazzi!" He pushed his arm away and turned to see Lazzi still laughing.

"You were so worried, were you?"

"Fuck you!" he repeated. "I wish you really dro—"

"Hey, hey! Stop! You're Veross, remember. Your wishes can come true."

"Whatever, you fucking big idiot. I fucking hate you!"

"Why do you have such a dirty mouth Cal, here gargle with some seawater!" Lazzi proceeded to splash some cold water at Calvin's face. Calvin closed his eyes and fought back, hammering the water with his fist like a mad man.

"Is that the best you got, you fucking backflipping stripper!" Cal taunted.

Lazzi smirked and pressed his fist together, freezing time. Droplets of water were floating midair and Calvin was frozen, eyes still close and with a giant smile on his face. Lazzi felt something warm and giddy grew inside him seeing him like that. But before he got too caught up, Lazzi swam behind Calvin once again and held his shoulder. When he was ready, he exhaled and let the time flow once again and pulled Calvin underwater. To Calvin, it seemed like Lazzi teleported behind him.

They wrestled down there. Skin against skin. All this felt foreign for the two men. No other eyes were looking nor judging. No other people are expecting them to behave the way they should. No air left in their lungs, they went back up and gasped for air. Calvin and Lazzi held each other's gaze, smiling purely from the joy. They felt free and endless. Until they heard a sound that grounded them back to reality. Three fighter jets zipped over them in the perfectly blue sky. Then another three came and flew towards the same direction.

Calvin looked at Lazzi with a worried look. They were sure those jets were out for Ortus.