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It was the third time Alhaitham knocked on the bathroom door. Or maybe fourth? No matter. After all, the dull sound of his knuckles striking the smooth Karmaphala wood sounded exactly the same each time. And just as before, it was met with silence. Though, a silence it was only if you excluded the perpetual sounds of running water and faint footsteps pacing on the tiled floor somewhere in the distance.
Alhaitham sighed and leaned against the nearest chiselled column, watching the sun rays that pooled into the hall through the multicoloured window panels, painting the floor beneath his feet with kaleidoscopic splotches of light.
”Have you drowned in that bathtub yet?“ he raised his voice, hoping the question might somehow break the stronghold that his bathroom had turned into once Kaveh had stepped his foot inside, “What could possibly be taking you so long?”
Lo and behold, after a moment of quiet shuffling, the water stopped, and there eventually came a disgruntled answer.
“Ugh, is it my fault I care for myself and want to look good?” grumbled the senior. His voice was muffled and distorted, a shrill echo bouncing off the bathroom walls, “I’m almost done. The world isn’t going to end if his excellency the Acting Grand Sage waits just a minute longer!”
“It’s been half an hour, Kaveh!” the scribe firmly retorted, crossing his arms over his chest, “If I were you, I’d consider coming up with a heartfelt apology and some clever excuse as to why we’re late again,” he added, already picturing the amused looks Tighnari and Cyno would surely give them once they finally show up at the Tavern.
He could almost hear the forest ranger's sally comments followed by Kaveh's erratic drivel.
The more he thought about it, the more vividly he imagined that perhaps he'd actually muster an ounce of second-hand embarrassment and try to at least quell his roommate in one way or another and forget about the matter but…
No. He would certainly leave it all to Kaveh. It was his fault. Had he not been entrenched in their only lavatory, Alhaitham would've finished getting ready at least an hour ago and left alone without the slightest concern about the clock.
The footsteps grew louder, soon accompanied by a string of incomprehensible curses. The door swung open, snapping the scribe out of his thoughts. His eyes darted towards the entrance, watching as the steam oozed out into the corridor, slowly revealing a slender silhouette.
As the shapes grew sharper, Alhaitham was, at last, met with the image of Kaveh standing in the doorway and glaring at him scathingly. His kooky and rather ridiculous appearance contrasted with what resembled a death wish written all over the scowl spurring on his face.
His fringe was secured with an elastic headband. Though, it was no regular headband, given the cartoonish bunny ears that seemed to have been some sort of decorative detail. A cute yet useful accessory, more so expected to be fit for a teenage schoolgirl rather than one of the most renowned Kshahrewar students.
Other than that, the blond happened to greet his roommate completely nude, save for a cherry-coloured bathrobe, draped over the rifts of his collarbones and carelessly tied around his waist.
"Stop whining and get in if you really need to indulge your voyeuristic fantasies this much!" the architect taunted and grimaced, eyeing the other up, as he smoothed the lapels of his gown and trotted back inside.
The silver-haired soon followed, locking the door. The manner in which he did so was far more gentle than it needed to be, as if a silent pardon for how impetuously they were opened.
He turned around and quickly inspected the room, already aware of the beads of sweat forming on his forehead.
Although the welcome Alhaitham received may have been cold, the bathroom he was relieved to have entered certainly wasn't. The space was scalding and much too humid. The steam still lingered around and condensed on the glossy surface of the large ornate mirror hung above the sink upon clashing with the cooler air that had just escaped from the hall.
The water Kaveh usually bathed in was notoriously hot, but today it must've been practically boiling.
The scribe tried his best to pay it no mind. He sauntered over to the towel rack, carefully placing his feet on whichever bits of cream-coloured tiles were not buried underneath crumpled pieces of Kaveh's attire.
He swiftly blotted the sweat on his face and searched the nearby drawer filled with a diverse range of hair products Kaveh had begged him to order a while ago. Most of them were left either completely unopened or used perhaps once or twice at best.
After a moment of browsing through various tubes and bottles, he finally got hold of his favourite wide-toothed comb. Had it been in its designated place, right next to the top left corner of the drawer, as it normally should, he’d have had much less trouble finding it. But given the overall state of the bathroom, he was glad to have found it at all.
Every part of his morning routine, even something as simple as the act of brushing his hair and watching the bedraggled strands smooth out always brought him a strange yet pleasant sense of calm and satisfaction.
Soon, he was all done, about to close the compartment and head out. Still, he stood there for a moment with a pensive frown creeping onto his face as he examined the drawer more thoroughly.
An utter mess. No wonder he struggled to find his belongings in there. He let out a disappointed scoff.
Eventually, the urge to at least briefly tidy up the contents won. Of course, he was far from happy about it, but this also meant he could place his comb back where it belonged and where he would hopefully see it tomorrow.
Focused on the task at hand, he barely noticed Kaveh bump into his back. It was no surprise the bathroom became significantly more cramped with two of them inside.
The blond huffed in annoyance. He leapt towards the sink and promptly began to rub his left eye with a damp cloth.
Alhaitham turned his head around and glanced at the other, confused.
“What is this?” he asked upon noticing the stacks of brushes, tiny bottles and mysterious compacts of many sizes splayed across the top of the humble vanity unit.
“Make-up. And the mascara I’ve just ruined because of you," Kaveh sighed, gesturing to his face, and turned off the tap, “But it wouldn’t hurt if you used some once in a while, you know?” he followed up with a gentle shrug, which was enough to nearly cause his satin bathrobe to slip down his shoulders.
“If this is your idea of taking a jab at my appearance, then it is extremely poor,” the scribe retaliated, narrowing his eyes, the tone of his voice so characteristically devoid of any emotion.
The blond suddenly spun around and leaned his hips on the edge of the counter top.
“Bah! Do you really think of me so low you assume I could criticise your appearance, let alone imply you're ugly?” he groused, a subtle pout forming on his face.
Before he continued, he seized a medium-sized, round compact setting powder and a large fluffy brush. He opened it and applied some onto the bristles, gently shaking off the excess.
“I just think that you might look fairly well in makeup. That’s all there is to it,” he concluded, and Alhaitham observed as the soft powder-dusted hairs dabbed across Kaveh’s face, finishing with a theatrical kiss right on the tip of his sharp nose.
“ Fairly well? ” the younger repeated, arching one of his brows, to which Kaveh nodded lightly and closed the flat, pearly container with a quiet snap.
“Don’t let it boost your ego, though,” he quickly added, glimpsing at his roommate.
It appeared the remark piqued Alhaitham's interest, or at the very least, made him just a little bit curious. He wasn’t one to ever experiment with such things too much and until now he never really felt the need to, though he would never know what it was like unless he tried it out, right? Besides if he didn’t like it he could just wash it off. Simple as that.
Having walked over to the vanity, he skimmed through Kaveh’s cosmetics assortment. Lustrous palettes and metallic tubes shone in the faint mosaic wallchiere’s light.
He picked up one that captured his attention and began slowly turning it in his fingers. It was coral-tinted lip gloss with particularly intricate packaging, dusted with gold flakes and decorated with a small Padisarah flower-like design on top of its cap.
He couldn’t help but think it was a little extra but nonetheless very much in Kaveh’s style.
He swapped it for another product he found interesting. This time he couldn’t tell what it was. The tube was quite slim and had an eccentric faux leather weave design. He tried unscrewing the cap and immediately cringed. The texture was rough and unpleasant to touch. The sensation alone nearly gave him goosebumps.
Still adamant about learning what exactly was in his hands, he held it between his thumb and index finger, careful not to touch any of the dreadful protrusions of the weave. Inside there was a flimsy wand with a brush-like tip, covered in a brick-red substance.
He lightly tapped the thin brush and smudged the pigment between the fingers of his other hand. And just then he heard an alarmed gasp whose source happened to be no one other but his roommate.
“No! Oh, Archons, no! ” the blonde almost wailed watching his precious Coco eyeliner be abused so viciously. At least in his mind.
“You’re doing it wrong! Give it to me!” he snatched the item right from Alhaitham’s fingers who could only stare at him with a mixture of bafflement and disbelief.
He couldn’t understand why the other would be so protective of it but he didn’t know the tiny bottle and the remains of its content were most likely worth more than whatever penny the architect managed to bring home this month.
Soon enough Kaveh’s expression softened a little. He must’ve noticed the confused look on the scribe's face. He looked down at the eyeliner and smacked his lips, smoothing his thumb over the cap.
“At least let me do it, instead of mangling my makeup products,” he muttered, glancing back at Alhaitham.
He grabbed the chair they normally kept in one of the bathroom corners but rarely used for any of its designated functions. Apparently, now was a good time for a change.
“Here. Sit down.”
Kaveh patted the top of the embroidered upholstery with his hand and after a moment of reflection, Alhaitham eventually obliged. And just after he took his seat, so did the blond. Crawling right onto his lap and resting one of his hands on the scribe’s shoulder without batting an eye.
Alhaitham glared at him with a silent question written all over his face. However, it seemed the architect was so busy preparing the eyeliner he did not even notice.
The younger cleared his throat which, to his fortune, succeeded in momentarily directing Kaveh’s attention towards his person.
“Is straddling your subjects the norm when you do this on someone other than yourself?” he prompted sarcastically, knitting his brows together.
Kaveh only tutted and shook his head with mild contempt, quickly seizing Alhaitham’s chin, which caught the other by surprise and made him tense up immediately.
“Shut up or I’ll poke your eye out,” he warned and before the scribe could even tell the first eye was done, adorned with a subtle though very flattering eyeliner wing.
The blond squinted a little and leaned away to study his masterful work, tiling the man’s head a bit to the side.
“Oh, please, I was kidding! You’re stiff as a stone,” he chuckled, seeing Alhaitham desperately try to avoid meeting his gaze.
It was so rare of him to become so uncharacteristically bashful. It seemed only Kaveh could have such effect on him and though neither ever dwelled on it much, both were well aware.
“Relax. You don’t have to be this awkward while I’m at it,” he dipped the brush into the red substance and cleaned some of it off by smoothing it over the bottle’s rim, “I don’t know, put your hands around my waist or something.”
The suggestion prodded a subtle flush on Alhaitham’s face, which clearly did not help in his situation. But what made it even worse was the fact that Kaveh took note of how flustered it made him nearly right away.
“What? I said waist! It’s for stability, you perv!” huffed the architect, gesturing vaguely with the brush.
“Says you, sitting on top of my lap in nothing but a frilly bathrobe,” countered Alhaitham, “Besides, this ridiculous position was entirely your idea,” he mumbled, pliantly resting his hands on Kaveh’s waist which only earned him the dramatic eye-roll he knew so well.
“Putting all the blame on me, I see? I just thought it would be most practical but what was I even expecting from you?” the blond groaned.
No matter how much Kaveh would like to defend it, that was merely the case. 'Most practical' meant simply trying to avoid having to stand on his toes to reach Alhaitham’s face well enough to do make-up on him. Or alternatively, coaxing Alhaitham to lean down. Both options, however, would be denied by Kaveh's strong sense of pride, point-blank.
“Ugh, just stay still…”
And so he did, watching Kaveh's expression shift with utmost focus. There was something pure yet hypnotising in the way his ruby eyes glistened softly once his hand was resting on Alhaitham's cheek once again.
His palms were pleasantly warm though rougher than they seemed. Not so much from the choice of weapon he was wielding but rather from the extensive construction of all the newer and more elaborate architectural projects and models.
“Aaaand all done!”
With one precise swish, the final look was complete and the joyful spark in Kaveh's eyes grew brighter. He gently turned Alhaitham's head to face the mirror and hummed, beaming with satisfaction unique to an artist that had just completed another masterpiece.
“See? Don't you feel pretty?” he chirped, still holding the now drying brush in one of his hands.
The previous focus was completely replaced with a wide and expecting smile. And a one that just so happened to be especially contagious.
“Fine… I do feel ‘pretty’ ...” the scribe admitted and a corner of his mouth quirked up just barely when his eyes met Kaveh's, at last.
“Wonderful! Because you look pretty!” the blonde exclaimed enthusiastically. He then hopped off Alhaitham’s lap and planted a tender kiss on top of his head.
“Get your ass up! We’re leaving in ten minutes," he informed, picking up some of his clothes off the floor on his way to leave the bathroom.
He stopped right before the door, already resting his hand on the knob and glanced back at his roommate over his shoulder.
“And don’t forget to give me the credit in case anyone asks about the artist.”
“Maybe you should consider changing careers? Seems like the beauty industry could work out better for paying your rent than architecture," replied the scribe, tipping his hand towards the other.
Kaveh only scoffed at the unsolicited piece of advice and waltzed out of the bathroom pointing his middle finger in a silent, clear-cut riposte.
The door closed. Alhaitham chuckled quietly, taking one last look in the mirror with a mild yet very genuine smile.