Chapter Text
Isak’s head began to throb, and his stomach began to churn as his eyes followed the movement of the ride. Someone bumped into his shoulder, and he turned, his face creased with uncertainty. He came face to face with Jonas, who was staring at him, eyes slightly glazed over because of the weed they had smoked earlier. There was a slight ringing in his ears and his eyes fell to Jonas’ lips, which were moving, but nothing came out of them except the smell of vodka and beer. Isak leaned closer, tilting his head slightly, trying to make out the words. Slowly, the noises of screaming, laughing and loud music came seeping back, as well as Jonas’s voice.
“Isak! Are you okay? You look…strange.” Jonas struggled to find his words, his eyes drooping. Isak’s eyes travelled back to the ferris wheel and he swallowed, nodding after a moment. Jonas, being incredibly high, couldn’t sense Isak’s nervousness and the knowledge of him being afraid of heights slipped from his mind. He turned away from Isak and joined in on the conversation with Mahdi and Magnus, which, would sound undoubtedly bizarre to anyone sober.
“I had a dream about Vilde.” Magnus yelled, wrapping an arm around Mahdi’s shoulders. “She was like, a fucking dominatrix. She even had a whip!” His voice seemed to get louder and some parent behind them gasped, clearly startled, not expecting any sort of vulgar language to be heard here. Isak laughed quietly, because, after all, it is Friday night. How could they not expect to run into at least one group of intoxicated teenagers. The three boys continued their loud conversation, which moved on from kinky Vilde to which girls they would bang, while earning glares from parents around them. Isak faded in and out from reality, blinking out of his trance to shuffle forward in line or to swallow the bitter taste of bile coming up from his gallbladder (haha science) and into his throat. He snapped out of his little bubble a second too late to see Mahdi, Magus and Jonas stumble into a gondola and watched as the door shut behind Jonas, who took a moment to realize who they forgot. He turned around quickly and pressed his face up against the doors, mouth falling open and then yelling something muffled, which sounded like something along the lines of “Holy fucking shit we forgot Isak.” Their cab rocked as the two other boys pushed themselves against the clear window, staring down at Isak as he slowly got further away. Isak stared up at them, his eyes widening when suddenly a sharp elbow jabbed him in the back.
“Ow! Drittsekk.” He mumbled under his breath, and then suddenly was pushed by the crowd behind him into the slowing down pod. His foot caught on the step, and despite being pretty high , he caught himself on the bench. The floor beneath him shifted as another person got into the pod, but he didn’t seem to notice anything because it dawned on him that he would be stuck about 550 feet in the air for about 5, possibly 10 minutes when he heard the doors click shut. Quickly, he shut his eyes, grit his teeth, clenched his fists as he felt his stomach drop to the rumble of the pod which was departing from the loading space. There was silence, and Isak still hadn’t noticed the other person with him, because he was too busy focusing on his breathing.
“Afraid of heights?” A deep, soothing voice interrupted Isak’s techniques. His eyes shot open and he sat up, his fists immediately unclenching.
“What?” He managed to get out, as his eyes locked with the person sitting opposite of him. His eyes sparkled with amusement. Deep blue eyes, that for one moment, Isak got lost in, forgetting his fear. But when he blinked, it came back.
“Afraid of heights?” He repeated, amusement in his voice as well. Isak still didn’t answer, but just continued staring, forgetting that the stranger might becoming uncomfortable. He cleared his throat, and Isak jumped slightly and managed to reply with a yes, before taking a deep breath of air. He ran a hand over his face, rubbing his temples, his veins pounding against his fingertips. He peeked through the space between his fingers to stare at the guy, who was looking out the window, as if he was thinking. His skin looked soft, and was pale, almost like porcelain, with small dots, Isak guessed birthmarks, were scattered across his chin and cheeks. He had full lips, that looked extremely soft, and Isak felt his face heating up because he was staring so much. Isak’s eyes trailed up and down his face, then down to his neck, which was dotted with a few more birthmarks and as pale as his face. He wore a white shirt and a jean jacket, and the collar of his shirt was shifted to exposed more pale, smooth skin. Involuntarily, Isak licked his lips as his collarbone was slightly visible. The guy cleared his throat again, and once again, Isak jumped, his hand dropping from his face to his thigh.
“Shit. Hi, sorry.” Isak squeaked and they made eye contact once again. The guy chuckled, a smile playing on his lips.
“Halla. You looked pretty freaked out down there. You alright?” He asked, crossing one long leg over the other.
“Uh, yeah. I’m good now” Isak hesitated before adding, “…I think.” The guy grinned and stuck out his hand, slightly wiggling his bony fingers. Isak’s face, which had returned to its normal color, heated up again as he reached over and took the strangers hand in his, a small noise of surprise coming from his mouth as that small movement caused the pod to rock slightly.
“I’m Even. You?” Even said, laughing again, and Isak’s face flushed, again, because Even had a stomach wrenching (in a good way) laugh.
“Isak.” He dropped Even’s hand and quickly rubbed his hand against his jeans, because he hadn’t noticed how sweaty and gross his hands got. Less then 5 minutes in this confined space with this gorgeous stranger, (who just happened to be a guy), and his body was reacting they way someone would when their crush of 5 years approached them for the first time.
“Nice to meet you, Isak.” Even didn’t say his name in any particular way, but it still sent shivers down Isak’s spine. Isak shoved his hands into his hoodie pocket and an awkward silence hung between the two of them. He wanted to look out the window to see how much longer he had in this thing, but he knew he would just start hyperventilating, so he kept his eyes glued to his dirty sneakers. He looked back up to Even when he heard him speak up after a minute of quietness.
“So, Isak, why are you alone?” He said his name again, and Isak tensed up, loving the way his voice sounded as it rolled off Even’s tongue.
“Actually, I’m not alone.”
Even’s eyebrows shot up.
“I’m with my friends, but somehow we managed to get separated on this…thing.” Isak gestured to the pod they were in with one hand. Even smiled, his teeth showing and Isak couldn't help but glance down at his mouth, not noticing that he ran his tongue over his bottom lip, but Even certainly did. Even uncrossed his legs and sat forward, elbows resting on his knees. Isak slouched, sliding down and extending his legs, stopping when he felt the tips of his shoes touch Even’s. He didn’t know why he did that, but just having the slightest millimeter of contact, not even skin on skin, caused Isak’s breathing to stop. He didn’t understand why he was going crazy.
“Sucks. I’m with my girlfr-sorry, ex girlfriend, and her friends.” Even quickly corrected himself, his sparkling blue eyes searching Isak’s face for a reaction, as if he intended to say that. The moment Isak heard “girlfriend”, he drew back his legs. Isak’s eyes travelled downwards and he could feel his face warming, and Even’s smirk was so prominent, that Isak could almost hear it. Another moment of silence and then Even speaks up, again.
“What kind of music do you like?” Even ran a hand through his hair, which Isak just noticed, looked very soft and he had the urge to reach over and replace Even’s hand with his.
“Ah, N.W.A. They’re— good.” Isak awkwardly tried looking for a place to put his eyes that wasn’t Even. He settled with the tips of his shoes, which were tapping nervously on the ground.
“Really? Have you heard of Nas?” Even questioned and sat back, extending his legs so his position was almost identical to Isak’s.
“Mhm, Nas?” Isak hesitated, trying to find an answer. He opened his mouth, but closed it, not having any thing to say.
“You’re kidding right? Nas? He’s amazing, you need to listen to him sometime.” Even’s eyebrows shot up and Isak laughed.
“Sure, yeah. Definitely.” Their conversation died down, and for the third time Even broke the silence.
“What are you interested in? Subject wise.” Isak paused, and thought to himself Why is this guy so interested about me?, but when their eyes met, Even looked genuinely interested.
“Science—biology. It’s actually pretty interesting if you actually listen. Err, what about you?”
“Intriguing. But it’s film for me. It’s just so interesting! I aspire to be like Baz Luhrmann. His films are absolutely incredible.” The minute he started talking, Isak could tell it would be hard for him to stop. His face lit up, plump lips spreading into a smile, blue eyes sparkling with admiration, and Isak decided to let him talk about this guy, because Even was so busy spewing love for this director, he didn’t have the focus to realize how Isak’s curious eyes were constantly roaming his face. Isak leaned forward and watched Even explain the meaning and the way the scenes were so beautifully portrayed in Romeo + Juliet. His large hands waved around in the air, voice expressing what he was really feeling. Even got so caught up in talking about Baz, and Isak got so caught up staring at him, that they didn’t notice the ferris wheel came to a stop. They didn’t notice the guy standing below, yelling up at occupied pods about the ferris wheel’s gears had malfunctioned and how they’ll fix it right away. But however, they did notice when Even’s phone rang loudly, bringing the two of them back into reality. Even reached into his pocket and unlocked his phone, brows furrowing when he saw who was calling.
“Hei? Sonja? Why are you calling me?” Even’s eyes seemed to darken and his voice deepened. Isak couldn’t really make out what the person on the phone was saying, but he could tell by her voice, that she was anxious. She was speaking in a shrill voice, frantically spitting out words. Even listened carefully, then his eyes travelled up to Isak’s face. Isak’s eyes narrowed.
“Even? Even!” The girl on the line said. Even licked his lips and then replied.
“Yeah, Sonja. I’m fine, don’t worry. It’s no big deal. We’ll meet up at the car when the ride continues, yeah? Okay, bye.” When the ride continues? What does that mean? Isak thought and then sat up straight when Even slid his phone back into his pocket.
“Is everything alright?” He asked, not knowing why he asked, as Even’s life isn’t his business and they've known each other for 5 minutes. Even hesitated, eyes flickering out the window then back at Isak.
“Ah— yeah. I guess. It’s just—.” He didn’t finish the sentence and just stared at Isak, whose phone chimed loudly. Isak ignored it.
Ding ding.
He still ignored it.
Ding ding.
Even cleared his throat.
“Are you going to check your phone?” Isak didn’t answer, just wondered why Even had stared at him when he was on the phone with that girl, Sonja. Isak nervously chewed on his bottom lip, and looked away from Even, thinking to himself how interesting the window suddenly was. After a moment, he dug his hand into his jeans and drew out his phone. He scrolled through the screen, seeing he had three texts from Jonas.
“Isak. Are you okay?”
Isak wondered why he wouldn’t be okay.
“Did you hear the announcement?”
His forehead creased with confusion. What announcement?
“Text me back. I don't want to come down from this ferris wheel to see you dead because of a heart attack.”
Why the hell would Isak have a heart attack? He entered his passcode and opened messages, typing a reply to Jonas.
“Why would I have a heart attack? The ferris wheel is probably almost done. I’ll be down on ground in about 2 minutes.”
He sent the text and tapped his foot impatiently as the three dots appeared, then disappeared, and then a text popped up.
“2 minutes? More like 20. You really didn’t hear them say the gears stopped working?”
Isak blinked. He re-read the text again. And again. He then looked up at Even, who was staring at him. He blushed, then he paled as he realized that their pod wasn’t moving at all. He scooted over to the edge of the bench he was sitting on and peered out the window, his stomach dropping all the way to his feet.
“Fucking hell.” Isak breathed out, when he realized that their pod was the one at the very top. He gulped down air, his stomach churning. His head started to spin, so he looked away, and right at Even.
“I think I’m going to be sick.” He managed to get out before he passed out cold.
There was a warm hand pressed to Isak’s clammy forehead, and Isak felt safe because of it. There was a slight shuffling sound, and then he felt another hand on his cheek, lightly tapping it. He realized that the person was probably trying to wake him up. After a moment of lying (or sitting, Isak couldn’t really tell the position he was in) down, he let his eyes flutter open, and he audibly gasped as to what he was greeted with. Someone was staring down at him with blue eyes, filled with concern and then the recent moments came coming back to him. It was Even. Extremely attractive random stranger, Even. He could feel hot breath on his cheeks, on his lips and Isak finally came to his senses. This guys face was only a few inches away from his, and if Isak just angled his head up, just a tiny bit, they would kiss. This thought send tingles down Isak’s spine. Even’s eyes broke away from Isak’s and flickered to Isak’s parted lips.
“Hi.” Isak whispered, not really wanting to break the moment, but feeling like something should be said. There was a deep urge inside of him. He wanted to kiss Even, badly. Like, really really badly. Isak continued to stare at Even, who blinked a few times and dropped his hands, one of them brushing his neck, sending shock waves through Isak’s body. Jesus, he was hot. Even stepped back and sat down on the bench opposite of Isak.
“Morning, sleeping beauty.”
“Sleeping? I’m pretty sure I passed out. How long was I out for?” He hoped for at least 15 minutes, so they’d be out of this damn thing in 5, but another part wanted it to only be 2 because he didn’t want to part ways with Even.
Even chuckled, and it made Isak’s head dizzy, but this time, not with fear. He sat up, and rubbed the back of his head, realizing that his hat must’ve fallen off. He looked around for it, and then saw Even holding it in his hands, fingers fidgeting on the back closure. He imagined that the hat was actually Isak’s body. He imagined Even’s long fingers tracing small shapes into his back, curving downward into the dip of his spine. He imagined Even’s other hand gripping tightly on Isak’s waist, fingertips leaving bruises. He imagined those fingers painfully slow, teasing him, as they crawled up his thighs—. Isak snapped out of it. He didn’t even know this damn guy, and he was making him go insane.
“Ah, only about a minute. I caught you in time, so everything is good.”
“Catching me already? Why thank you, my prince. Knight in shining armor” Isak didn’t know where this flirtatious tone came from, but he liked it, as Even’s cheeks turned a light pink. He looked cute. More then cute; devastatingly cute.
“You are very welcome. Would’ve been a shame to have such a pretty person die.” Even winked, and this time it was Isak to blush. This blush traveled down his cheeks, onto his neck and he could feel his upper chest turn warm. He looked down, self conscious because he hated of how much like a tomato he probably looked like. But he didn’t know was that Even was looking at his chest and neck, picturing himself sucking love marks all over him. He didn’t know that Even was picturing himself running his hand up and down Isak’s chest, kissing his neck, smiling at the way Isak squirmed underneath him. He didn’t know that Even was doing his hardest to not push Isak to the ground and touch him in ways that Isak couldn’t even imagine because damn, he looked good. Below them, there was the sound of a megaphone turning on and then someone started talking.
“Uh, hello. We are in the process of fixing the ride, so if you could all stay patient for another 15 minutes, you’ll be down in no time. Thanks.” They could hear the megaphone clatter onto the ground and then the sounds of terrified kids on rollercoasters and cheesy pop music came back.
“15 minutes. What to do in that time?” Even asked, his eyebrows shooting up. Isak was taken aback because everything this guy did was fucking amazing. He was amazing.
“I’m down for anything. Just want it to go by quickly. because this is getting boring.” Even added.
Making out would work, Isak thought to himself. Even made a surprised sound in the back of his throat, not expecting that. Isak looked at him strangely, because he hadn’t said anything.
“Well, if you insist.” Even said.
“What?” Isak looked taken aback.
“You just said that…” Even raised an eyebrow.
“That what?”
“Did you not realize what you just said, Isak?”
“No…”
“You offered to make out with me.”