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As the notes of the piano were played, Eli let the notes flow through him, letting his body relax at the sound. Never before had he pegged himself as a person who could lose himself in listening to music, but it was a different matter when Aesop was playing, a different matter when Aesop was playing for him. Clair de Lune was its name if Eli was recalling Aesop’s words correctly. A piece by Claude DeBussy. A red hue had formed on Aesop’s cheeks as he had told Eli such, his eyes averted away, standing there in silence before going to the piano and sitting down. Eli, having to withhold an adoring laugh at Aesop’s flusteredness--not being unable to withhold a smile--had followed him over, sitting on the bench next to him. His owl, Brooke Rose, sat content on the ledge of one of the windows behind them, watching the two with her one eye.
It was only fitting for Aesop to play this piece at night. Eli couldn’t help but notice the thought put into this: The full moon shining in through the three windows that arched to the ceiling of the room, lighting up the room alone with its silver rays. Clair de Lune. Eli wasn’t entirely cultured in the different languages--he was a mere Seer after all, an oath-breaker at most--but if he was guessing properly, he had to guess it was French for the moon, or perhaps moonlight. It was only fitting for Aesop to have requested him to wear his Lunar Phase outfit. So much thought had been put into this, and Eli couldn’t be happier.
So as the song was brought to life by Aesop’s fingers gliding every so gracefully across the piano, Eli listened wholeheartedly to the piece Aesop--his beloved--had prepared for him. There was no doubt that Aesop probably had struggled a bit with playing this, and there was no doubt that Aesop had practiced time and time again for this moment, just so he wouldn’t screw it up. So much time had probably gone into this, and, knowing the other, Eli would guess Aesop was still nervous to be doing this despite how many times he had practiced. Such was just how Aesop was, and the only thing Eli would change was how much Aesop stressed. He’d rather Aesop be happy, but perhaps, after this was all over and done with, Aesop’s happiness at the end would be worth the stress.
As the final notes were played in that soft hush, Aesop’s foot pressed down on the leftmost pedal, the song came to an end. Aesop’s fingers lingered on those last notes before his gaze turned to Eli and--borrowing Brooke’s vision to see (As he’d rather not be blind in this moment.)--he caught that blush again on his beloved’s face, mixed in with the silver light of the moon and, by the gods, was it beautiful. “...So....” Aesop still was trying to think of words, it seemed, so Eli took the initiative in their conversation, having no qualms in doing such an action.
“You played beautifully, Aesop.” He complimented, reaching out and grasping onto one of Aesop’s hands, lacing those fingers together with a smile. “How long have you been planning this?” There wasn’t any attempt to tease with his compliment, it was a true and genuine question.
“For… quite some time now.” Aesop answered truthfully, a small, flustered smile on his face. “Did you enjoy it?”
“That question shouldn’t even need to be asked, dear.” Giving Aesop’s hand a gentle squeeze, he leaned in, giving Aesop’s lips a short kiss. “I absolutely loved it. You play beautifully, Aesop. Truly.”
That small smile on Aesop’s smile only grew, the other seeming to finally relax under Eli’s words of praise. “I’m glad, then.” Leaning in, Aesop laid his head on top of Eli’s shoulder, eyes closely contently as Eli let go of his hand to wrap his arms around him in a hug. “I just... “ There was a pause, Aesop trying to think of the best words to articulate his feelings--he had thought to think of this beforehand, but he had realized how useless that would’ve been. It would’ve been stupid to give some sort of speech.
Realizing he had gone quiet, Aesop cleared his throat and began to speak once again. “I thought it’d be nice if I were to do something for you. To… To show how much you mean to me.” Ah--did that work well? A simple I love you probably would have worked just fine, but there was more depth to it than a simple I love you. Besides, I love you wasn’t just a saying to be thrown around carelessly--not that Aesop did that, of course. Saying I love you could’ve worked, yes, but it was more thoughtful to express it this way, instead.
“Aesop…” Eli trailed off after saying the other’s name, seemingly at a loss for words for a moment. “I cannot tell you in full how happy this had made me. Your intentions were very clear. Thank you, for doing this for me.”
“Of course.” If the blush on his face hadn’t been prominent before, it surely was right now. Receiving praise from his boyfriend always elicited a reddened face from Aesop, even if it were a light hue or, in this case, a darker hue. “I love you, Eli.” There was the I love you. It--well, it fit the moment.
“I love you as well, Aesop.”
A small hoot came from the owl perched on the window’s edge, prompting a laugh from both of the men. Eli opened his mouth to soothe his poor owl--talking to her was a habit of his, even if others saw her only as an animal and, well, she couldn’t respond--but Aesop seemed to beat him to it.
“We love you too, Brooke. We didn’t forget about you.”
A trill came from the owl, almost as if she was huffing, trying to say You better not have, and Eli--and Eli--he didn’t know whether to laugh at the situation or linger in the utter happiness such a simple interaction brought him. In the end, he chose both, a laugh unable to be withheld, one Aesop join in on.
The two--three if you count Brooke Rose--stayed in the room like that for a while, the sounds of the night leaking in from the cracked open windows as they spoke, the moon only rising higher into the sky. It was a peaceful night, a tranquil night, a happy night, and the both couldn’t have wished for it to have gone any different.