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That day was intense.
Iker had a bad day at work and things aren’t going well as they used to be. Maybe because he was too tired and, deep down there, he wasn’t giving a single fuck anymore.
It was past midnight when he finally went home, exhausted.
He has a small, old apartment, but that’s ok because he lives alone and he doesn’t need too much space anyway. He wishes he could sleep under the shower because the water always blocks the sound outside, making him feel relaxed. He laid in his bed next to the wall and turned off the lights. Everything he could hear in that moment was the rain touching his window, a calm, silently rain. Maybe he should give it all up, maybe he should move, again. He was tired because he moved out some many times… “I’m not the problem. They are.” He murmured silently. He couldn’t understand people anymore, maybe because he’s always seeing the wrong people and it never works. They just leave later… Or maybe he was too lonely.
“Maybe I’m too lonely. Or too old.” His voice came out louder this time, and then he heard a strange noise. Well, it must’ve been that stupid neighbor who’s never respecting the silence-after-10pm rule. Iker rolled his eyes, deciding to ignore him. Well, at least trying to. The other guy started to sing weird songs and making weird noises and what the fuck was that?, Iker almost said in a loud voice. He just wanted to get some sleep, and that guy was ruining it.
It didn’t take too much longer to Iker start feeling useless.
Maybe his neighbor had a better life than his, or he was just too extroverted and happy for no reason. Iker misses those days when he used to feel exactly like his neighbor: happy for no reason. But now he was alone and tired and he didn’t even knew how to start again tomorrow. The emptiness and the darkness were consuming him.
“I wish I couldn’t feel a damn thing.” Finally, he said it, from the bottom of his stomach. It was painful and his eyes were full of tears, making him cover his face with his hands and trying to avoid making noises, but it was too late.
“Are you okay?” A voice said, followed by a knock on the wall.
No, he’s not talking to me... Iker thought for a second, and then he tried to ignore it.
“Yeah, I am talking to you. I can hear you, believe me.”The voice said again.
“Are you… stalking me?” Iker was feeling terrified because he used to talk a lot during his sleep and when he was totally awake. Right now, he was feeling weird.
“This is awkward, but… No. These walls are very thin, so I can hear you when you’re too close. Sorry if I’m bothering you, by the way.”
“Oh. I’m sorry.”
“It’s ok.” The voice sighed. “I want to know if everything’s ok with you.” The gentle voice insisted.
Iker couldn’t understand why the hell that guy was asking him if he was okay, and why the fuck those walls were so thin… Well, people don’t know what privacy is nowadays. He thought for long minutes, and he tried to formulate a good excuse at first, but he thought he could just pretend he fell asleep.
No, he can’t do that.
“Actually, I was fired today.” Iker finally said.
“I’m sorry.” The other guy replied in a sad tone.
“I’ll be fine.”
The silence was loud, and so was the rain. It felt uncomfortable because, for a moment, Iker needed to hear that voice again. He was too anxious and he didn’t used to talk with anyone like that, so… It was something new to him.
“Well...” Iker decided to continue the conversation. “I’ve heard you like to sing sometimes. You’re really loud, uh?”
Silence. Iker started to think he embarrassed the other guy, and, goddamn, that was a stupid thing to say.
“Oh, I’m sorry… I’m not good at singing…” The other guy felt his cheeks burn, and Iker sighed in relief when he heard his voice again.
“No, you can sing wherever you want. Seriously, it distracts me of the constant silence. I like it.”
“Good. I’m sorry, but… Are you still crying?”
“I wasn’t crying, dude.” Iker tried to convince himself he wasn’t crying, but it was too obvious. The other guy laughed, knocking on the wall three times.
“You can’t fool me, but that’s alright. I just want you to know that everything will be fine, tomorrow is a new day and you can start again, you know? Anyway, you should get some sleep now, your voice sounds tired.”
To be honest, Iker didn’t want to sleep anymore. He felt that need for talking to someone who could actually listen to him and say nice things to him, like that guy was doing at that moment, but maybe he was feeling tired and didn’t want to talk anymore, as it was past 1am. Iker sighed.
“Well, ok. Goodnight.” Iker said while closing his eyes and then, he just remembered an important question. “And oh, I almost forgot… What’s your name?”
“Sergio.” He replied quickly. “What’s yours?”
“Iker.”
“Goodnight, Iker.”
Iker murmured a “Night” and soon there was silence everywhere, the rain still touching his window. Iker convinced himself that those minutes talking to Sergio were weird and a little bit awkward because he never saw his face before, he didn’t even knew Sergio was living there because he was too quiet sometimes, especially during the night. It was a weird thing but he was feeling less alone, at least.
Iker woke up early, the sun reflecting its light upon his face.He was happy the rain had taken a break after two weeks. It was Sunday and he decided to go out for a run, he needed to see different things and people. Maybe he could invite Sergio to go with him, but it could be a little bit creepy, he thought.
When he got home, he saw a strange body next to his door. Actually, he thought it was Sergio’s door.
“Sergio?” Iker said in a shy tone, causing the other guy to look directly at him. It could be Sergio, or not.
“Hello, Iker.”
Yes, that guy was definitely Sergio, and he was so good looking and young and had a pretty face and a nice body. His smile was as kind as his voice and he had many tattoos in his arm. Both arms. Sergio was surreal and Iker felt too normal comparing to what Sergio was. He felt nervous for some seconds because Sergio was still smiling at him, and he didn’t know how to deal with that. It’s was unexpected.
“Are you feeling better today?” Sergio broke the silence, observing Iker’s face while he unlocked his door.
“Yeah, I’m… Feeling better right now, to be honest.” Iker smiled back.
Sergio felt the necessity to compliment Iker, but he opted to stay quiet because he could cause the wrong first impression, and though Iker could be older than him, he was pretty interesting.
“So, Iker… what do you do for a living?’’
Sergio was curious too. Iker could confirm that he wasn’t the only one who was curious at all.
“I’m an accountant. Sounds boring, I know, but…”
“If you like it, then it’s not boring.”
Actually, Iker really liked his job. It was a good job, although he was fired the past day. Doesn’t matter, Iker knew he would find a new one soon.
“You know… Feel free to come visit me whenever you want.”
“Oh, sure. I can say the same thing to you.”
Both men couldn’t stop staring at each other and then Iker decided to take some risk. He could felt a knot in his throat and well, it couldn’t be worse than a “No” in response.
“Hm, Sergio? Can I ask you something?”
“Sure.”
“Well, are you too busy? Since I’m in free time today, how about we going out for a coffee?”
Sergio didn’t hesitate; he accepted a few seconds after Iker asked him. Both guys went to a coffee shop and ordered the same black coffee.
That place was calm and pretty clean and beautiful. Sergio used to talk a lot. Iker just gave him laughs and more laughs. He is a funny guy, Iker thought. He is basically a sweetheart, Sergio thought.
“So… What do you do?”
“I’m a party promoter and sometimes I work as a DJ.”
“Oh. That’s why you’re always singing and humming…” Iker smiled gently, turning his eyes to the other side. Sergio had an incredible job and that was cool because that job fits him. Curiosity was killing Iker, he wished he could ask some more questions to Sergio without looking like a weirdo.
“Well, I see you have some tattoos…” Iker directed his eyes to Sergio’s arms, observing every detail of every tattoo.
“Yeah, actually I’m thinking about to get a new one soon.”
“Seriously? Do you know what you want?”
“No, not yet.” Sergio sighed. “I’m thinking about it, because my tattoos have different and special meanings to me.”
“That’s cool.”
“Yeah, it is. Do you have any tattoos, Iker?” Sergio was curious.
“Nah, I don’t. But someday I’ll get some, I just need some courage.”
“You could come with me when I get a new one, if you want.” Sergio laughed, looking at Iker’s clean arms.
Iker insisted on paying Sergio’s coffee, he wanted to be courteous. It wasn’t a problem for him, it was just a coffee.
“I owe you a coffee, then.” Sergio said smiling shyly.
“Don’t worry, it’s just coffee.”
They smiled at each other and then they went to a park, where it was a lovely and calm place.
“Iker, do you like to go to parties? ‘Cause if you’re interested, you could see me playing tonight. It would be fun and nice to see you there.” Sergio asked, curious.
“Hm, I don’t know. I’m not sure.” Iker sighed. “I’m kinda shy. I think I’m too introverted.”
“It’s okay. But... If you change your mind, you know... Just let me know. Give me your phone.”
Sergio saved his phone number on Iker’s list, hoping he could possibly change his mind, giving his phone back seconds after. Iker saw on the screen “Sergio Ramos” and his number. He gave him a warm smile. They spent their last minutes talking about everything, and then they’re started to talk about food.
“Do you like to cook?” Iker asked carefully,because he knew Sergio was always cooking splendidly great smelling food.
Sergio laughed and felt his face burn, “Yes, cooking meals is one of my hobbies, to be honest. I really like it.”
Sergio was basically a perfect person, unimaginable.
Arriving at the building, after taking the elevator, both men were in front of their doors again. They hugged casually and then Iker entered his apartment, letting out a long sigh. That day was being different, and weird. Iker was feeling pretty weird since last night. He spent the rest of his day laying on his bed thinking about the next day, a little bit worried because he should find a new place to work, so he thought about it and started making plans for the next days. He fell asleep minutes later.
It was past 8pm and Iker woke up with his cellphone vibrating.
Curiously, it was Sergio.
“Hey, Iker! Did you already had dinner?” His voice was excited, comforting.
“Hey! No, not yet... Why?”
“Well, I’m not going to work tonight, it’s my day-off. Well, if you want to come over and have dinner with me. . .”
“Of course! I’ll be there in some minutes.”
“See you!”
Iker took a shower feeling a bit nervous; he wasn’t used to have that kind of company and too much attention. It was good, but at the same time, it was something new and confusing. Maybe terrifying. He used his best perfume, and wore his favorite shirt and tie and he also found a bottle of wine on his cupboard. Before knocking on Sergio’s door, Iker started to feel nervous again. “Is this… a date? Of course it’s not. It’s not a date, goddamnit, Iker." He murmured to himself. Sergio hugged Iker again when he opened the door, causing the older to man smile shyly.
“Nice shirt, Iker. You look good.” Sergio stared at Iker from head to toe.
“Oh! I brought a bottle of wine!” Iker said in an excited tone.
“Oh, you want me to owe you a bottle of wine, too?”
“No, no! Just a courtesy.”
Both men shared laughs and bad jokes, they got distracted by their own bad jokes. Sergio tried to teach some cooking tips to Iker, because he asked for some tips, and well, Sergio was the expert chef there, so… They cooked together. Iker had never prepared a dinner like that with another person, and when Sergio noticed he was having trouble while trying to cut some vegetables, he helped him holding his hand and teaching him an easy way to prepare it. The bottle was getting emptier and emptier and, for a moment, they were laughing at each other for no reason. Actually, Iker could confess he was getting a bit drunk, and so was Sergio, but they weren’t drunk enough to forget about everything.
The food tasted freaking good, splendid.
“This means more than the coffee I’ve paid earlier. I’m glad I brought that bottle of wine with me.” Iker said in a low tone.
“Shut up, Iker.”
Sergio laughed, smiling while taking another long sip of his wine.
They spent long minutes talking about the cities they came from, their childhoods, taste in music and their dreams. Iker told Sergio he was going to wake up early to look for a new job next morning. It was already past 12am and Iker decided to go back home.
“Thank you for coming, Iker. Goodnight.”
“Goodnight.”
They hugged each other for long seconds and stared at each other eyes. Iker felt his right cheek being kissed tenderly, a delicate peck.
Past 2am, and Iker couldn’t sleep. He was thinking too much. Thinking about getting a new job, thinking about the past two days. Generally, he used to feel like trash and useless during the night, when he was alone, but that night he was feeling good and energetic. So energetic that he actually couldn’t sleep, he was immersed in his thoughts.
“Are you still awake?” Sergio’s voice awoke Iker from his thoughts.
“Yeah, I am… To be honest, I was almost falling asleep…” Iker replied in a hoarse tone.
“Oh, I’m sorry. I can’t sleep.”
“Oh. Soon you’ll fall asleep unconsciously.”
“Yeah, I hope so.”
“You know, Sergio, I was thinking… Things would’ve been different if you didn’t talk to me that night. Maybe I wouldn’t be here anymore, you know?”
Iker couldn’t see, but Sergio smiled. They chatted until one of them fell asleep, leaving the other talking alone and realizing just minutes later that he was talking to himself. Actually, Sergio fell asleep first. Early in the morning, they met at the hallway, giving shyly smiles at each other.
“Good luck, Iker.”
“Thanks.” Iker’s smile couldn’t get any bigger. “Uh, Sergio?”
“Yes?”
“I don’t want to be nosy but, are you going to have lunch with someone...?”
“Actually I’m not...”
“Would you like to have lunch with me?”
“Yeah, of course! Give me a call or message me when available.” Sergio giggled, showing his white and perfect teeth.
“Alright. See you, then.”
Iker was confident. It was a new day for him; the sun and the wind were perfect, just like his current mood. He was calm. Sergio went to the same park they were the day before, waiting for Iker’s call. He was anxious, too. He thought about Iker possibly getting a new job, and he wished he could get it.
30 minutes had passed when and Sergio got a message from Iker. “I got it!” Sergio sighed in relief; he was nervous, too. While Sergio was waiting for him, Iker was making plans and more plans. He didn’t want to lose Sergio’s company; he couldn’t imagine himself without a friend like him.
The next hours with Sergio were pleasant, funny and they didn’t care about the time.
Iker, nervously, asked Sergio out. Like, dinner with him, a real date.
Sergio accepted.