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“Is everyone clear on what’s going to be on the exam?” Jupiter’s voice echoed through the almost packed classroom, a deafening silence greeting him instead of one of the forty students present in his class.
With a deadpan expression plastered across his face, he continues glaring at the students that’s keeping absolute silence, waiting for someone , anyone , to relieve him of the uneasy awkwardness in the air. Taking a deep breath in a desperate attempt to not lose his temper on a bunch of seventeen year olds, his mouth dropped open once again to try to get the attention of these hyperactive, honestly bat shit crazy teenagers.
“Guys, please, this is really important, seriously.. guys.” Jupiter calls out, yet again met with silence, as the seconds passed by he started feeling frustration build up in his chest. Lifting a hand up to his head, he muttered something inaudible under his breath.
Suddenly, as if someone out there had heard his desperate calls for help, a boisterous voice called out from the back of the class.
“C’mon guys! We can’t leave our favourite teacher waiting on us for an answer!” Earth yelled out, voice a little too loud for comfort.
Ah yes, Earth. He does this every year in a sad attempt to scrape any extra marks he can from sucking up to his teachers as hard as possible. Having done this to every teacher, every year, without fail, honestly Earth had become somewhat of a micro-celebrity amongst the faculty.
.__________________________.
Jupiter wasn’t one to approach the back of the class, unlike many of Earth’s other teachers, so seeing him start briskly walk towards Earth, cautiously balancing on his toes, careful as to not trip over one of the many bags lazily scattered across the classroom floor.
As much as Earth didn’t want to admit it, teachers or any authority figure in general made him nervous, he could feel himself start to panic, anxiety slowly rising in his chest, a million different scenarios running through his mind.
Looking around, till he spotted a certain red headed classmate beside him. Earth, swallowing hard, decided to make a spur of the moment decision, and leaned in closer towards his classmate, just barely falling off the edge of his chair.
“Pssttt, Mars! Why is he coming this way?! Earth asked, as he waved around big obnoxious gestures in the air with the one free hand he had left, the other hand clinging onto his table for dear life. Mars, glanced over at him, set his pen down onto his desk, visibly confused at Earth’s sudden question.
“I’m sorry..what?” Mars asked, shooting Earth an uncertain look, a single brow raised, head slightly tilted to the side. “Sorry I didn’t get tha-”
Mars was suddenly cut off by Jupiter swiftly walking past their desk, causing Earth to jump back, both hands now up in the air, his chair wobbling uncontrollably as a result, tilting from left to right and left again until finally after balancing on that seat for what seemed like and eternity, Earth had fallen off dragging his chair down with him, falling butt first making a loud thud as he hit the ground.
However, in all honesty, Mars felt worse for the chair than he did Earth. Speaking of Earth, he was now fully on the ground, limbs entangled with the plastic seat that laid above him. Although, all things considered, Earth was quite a sight to behold. The sun beamed onto him like he was glowing, the light exposing the stonish blue undertone in his dishevelled hair mixed into a symphony of muted greens and sloppy brown highlights.
Earth was truly Ethereal .
Realising that he had been staring at Earth for the past minute or so, who mind you, was still on the ground. Mars quickly snapped his head to the side trying his absolute best to avert eye contact, feeling his face get warmer and warmer. He swiftly held a hand up to cover himself, heart pounding against his chest. God did he want to disappear right then and there.
Not like that lasted long though, soon enough Mars was back taking short glances at Earth, who would’ve thought that out of everyone it would be him, the immature, egotistical friend that never seemed to stop bothering him.
Taking one last glance at Earth, Mars noticed something, looking past the fact that Earth was currently getting reprimanded by Jupiter, He noticed a peculiar top that Earth was wearing. A smoky blue crew neck sweater loosely fitted on his body all the way down to his hips, with an obnoxious white text with the word ‘pants’ written on the centre, put on display for everyone to see.
Staring at this absolute disaster of a sweater, Mars can’t help but chuckle to himself, Earth was an actual Idiot, but it made him endearing in a way, It was what made him so lovable .
.__________________________.
“ Mars?” Earth called out to him, breaking his train of thought, not that he minded though.
“Huh? Oh! yes sorry I was just..thinking.” Mars choked out, face fully red at this point, he could feel how hot he was getting, anxiety gradually rising the longer Earth continued staring at him.
Earth held onto a hard longing stare, not breaking eye contact for even a second, it felt like he was staring deep into his soul, like he could read Mars’s exact thoughts and feelings, almost as if he felt the same way .
Mars snapped himself back into reality, assuring himself that Earth wouldn’t think about him in that way. They’ve been friends for years now and not once did Mars even fathom the idea that Earth would ever reciprocate. Even so, it didn’t matter to him, he was happy seeing Earth happy and that was all that mattered.
“Y’know, I was just wondering, we should study together. Mr Jupiter is going to actually murder me if I fail…again.” Earth said with a slightly softer tone, much gentler than his usual demeanour. Either way, Mars wasn’t about to give up on an opportunity like this, not that they’ve never spent time together, he and Earth hung out a lot but he had never asked Mars to study before. Usually Earth studied alone or with Luna and Mercury. That is, if he studied at all.
“Sure Earth, right now or..?” Mars inquired, slightly tensing as he asked the question, trying his best to hide the little bit of blush that stained his cheeks.
“Yea, right now! C’mon let’s go, class is over anyways!” Earth yelled out rambunctiously, an excited gleam in his eyes, one that Mars knew all too well but would never get used to.
The way his eyes would light up when he got happy, excited, flustered. It was adorable, not to mention the array colours that spiralled and flowed around his pupil. A mix of greens, blues and browns swirling in the iris of his eyes perfectly matching that of his hair colour. One stare alone could make you confess to any crimes guilty or not, at least that’s how it felt for Mars. Earth was everything, the stars, the galaxy, the whole milky way. And his eyes were the door to that reality.
Pushing aside his thoughts, Mars gave Earth a slight nod. Earth flashed him a huge grin in response before jumping up in excitement, practically bouncing towards the exit of the classroom with Mars in hand, as they made their way outside the classroom.
.__________________________.
“Uhhh.. Earth when you asked if I wanted to study with you I didn’t think you meant, you would come over to MY house.” Mars pointed out with a playful hint to his tone, the shuffle of shoes echoing as the two walked down the hall of the school.
“Welllll, why shouldn’t we go to your house? Got something to hide, Mars?” Earth snapped back teasingly, leaning slightly forward, before straightening up and placing his hands behind his head.
“What? I would never!” Mars replies in an overly dramatic tone, playing along with whatever scenario Earth was trying to nudge him into. The two continue walking down the hallway together in a comfortable silence, before Earth suddenly paused in his tracks,abruptly stopping at the edge of the staircase.
“Earth? This is the way out, did you forget...?” Mars asked, tilting his head to the side as he started to consider the very real possibility that Earth genuinely forgot how to exit the school.
“What No! Of course not, who do you take me for? I just thought of something.” Earth blurted out, slightly hurt that Mars would think that low of him. Mars continued staring at Earth without saying a word, a tired look on his face, turning around before proceeding to walk down the stairs himself.
“Okay, okay! Wait! I was just thinking about how Mr Jupiter would disappear randomly sometimes, it’s like he just disappears from school premises or something.” Earth pondered, hand stroking his chin as if he were in thought. Mars slightly leading, walking down infront of him.
“Mmm well, I’m not sure if it’s related or not but, Venus told me that his guidance counsellor seems pretty close to Mr Jupiter.” Mars added, hand lazily perched on his waist, wondering where Earth was going with his question.
“Yea! Uhhhh.. Mr Satin, was it? Wait no Saturn! Mr Saturn, yeah I’ve seen him around. Really tall, long hair, wears a tan, long wool coat all the time?” Earth clarified, the duo making their way down the staircase and towards the school gates.
“Mhm, I heard that they might be dating, according to Venus he’s seen Mr Jupiter visit him after school.” Mars stated, glancing at Earth, whose jaw is wide open in shock. “Yea.. but they’d make a cute couple! It’s not like our opinion matters, anyways.” Mars shrugs, adding onto his previous statement. Earth was still in complete shock, forgetting teachers had their own personal lives as well. Knowing him, he probably did forget.
.__________________________.
“Alright Earth, let's start studying!” Mars cheers, sounding fully pumped and motivated. A frown spreads across his face as he glances over at a stretching Earth who has no intention of actually studying.
“Earth c’mon! You said we would study.” Mars whines, practically begging Earth to get off his butt and start working, like he promised.
“Mmmm, but your bed is so comfortable! just five more minutes please?” Earth pouts, laying on Mars’s single bed with arms and legs spread out across soft yellow coloured cotton sheets.
Mars stares at Earth fully comfortable on his bed, it was truly a sight to behold. How could he say no to him of all people? He took another breath, figuring out how to say no, but his mind couldn’t form even the simplest words.
It was times like these that felt like Earth knew exactly what he was doing, there was no way someone could be this cute unintentionally. But gods above, what he did know was exactly how to get his way, rejecting Earth’s requests were practically impossible.
Feeling his heart swirl and melt, Mars couldn’t bear the feeling anymore. The way his heart fluttered and how flustered he would get at basically any little thing he did. Unfortunately, Mars knew he had to say no, Sighing, he got off the floor and stood over Earth.
“No, Earth. Here, What if I helped you? If you need anything just ask me and we can figure it out together okay?” Mars says gently. With a soft smile, he holds a hand out towards Earth, offering to pull him up. Earth, on the other hand, gazes up at this absolute angel of a person. Mars really was beautiful both inside and out. Patient and kind no matter how stubborn he was. Earth loved that.
He continues to let himself take in the sight that is Mars. His ceiling light just directly above him, forming an angel like halo on his hair. It looked as if he had a ring over his head. His face was structured so perfectly, every feature, every marking looked so purposeful like it was sculpted by the hands of an artist. He just wanted to hold him and tell him exactly how much he meant to him.
“Earth?” Mars asks, waving his hand to capture his attention. “You okay?”
“HUH?! YES. Yes, I am okay, I am A-okay!” Earth yells out, before immediately slapping a hand over his mouth, shutting himself up. “God, I didn’t mean to yell at you. Okay, yep I’m fine!” Earth assures Mars, and maybe himself, through muffled words from behind his hand.
Earth’s face turns a bright red colour, strikingly contrasting to his fair almost pale complexion. Earth breathes in and takes Mars’s hand, squeezing it slightly. He never realised how soft his hand was.
“Uhh, Earth..? Are you sure you’re-” Mars said before pausing, noticing how deeply Earth was looking into his eyes. Mars’s eyes widened slightly, completely forgetting what they came to do in the first place. His lips slightly parted as he stared back. This time, he wasn’t nervous, flustered yes, very even, but he felt calm. He felt nice and warm, incredibly warm. All he could do was continue staring longingly at Earth, who’s blue hair was slightly dishevelled from lying on Mar’s bed.
Out of nowhere, Mars reaches his hand out to Earth’s head and combs his hair for him, threading his fingers through Earth’s short, messy strands. As if they were made for this exact purpose. His movements halted to a stop when he noticed how red Earth was. Embarrassed, he immediately tenses up and takes a step back, fingers unwinding from Earth’s.
“Why did I do that?” He muttered under his breath, voice trembling. “I am so sorry, I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable.” Mars says, conflicted eyes staring down at the floor of his room. Why did he do that?
A disappointed expression spreads across Earth’s face and for a moment, Mars was worried that he had taken it too far. Suddenly, Earth took Mars’s hand and pulled himself up, pausing to dust himself off.
He lingers still in his spot, still dazed from what just happened before frantically shaking his head. “No, no, Mars! It’s okay really. I.. liked it.” Earth reassures him, wincing at how cheesy he sounded. His heart races when he notices how precious Mars looked. All nervous and flustered, not that he himself wasn’t precious.. ahem.. but Mars was just so charming, he was captivating.
He looked like a piece of art, He was Art .
Seeing the look on Mars’s face, Earth felt the urge to do something, anything. To hold his hand, to pull him in for a hug. All he knew was he wanted Mars. But he calmed himself down, took a deep breath and resisted temptation.
“Let’s start studying, yea?” Earth suggested, surprisingly calm, though he was screaming and cursing himself out on the inside for not doing more, he knew he should’ve just went in for the hug.
“Yeah, let’s do that.” He sweetly smiles back, eyes turning into crescent moons. Earth, again, curses himself out as a result. How stupid he was for not seizing the moment, and it didn’t help that Mars looked so endearing right now.
.__________________________.
“Wait, how am I supposed to do this again? Ugh, I don’t get it! This is boring.” Earth groans out, irritated and tired. Taking his eyes off of his notes to scan through Mars’s room. Movie posters on the wall, a few wooden shelves housing various collectors items. From novelty items like snow globes and rocks to books, a lot of books actually.
“Mars, I’m Home!!” A shrill, muffled voice calls out from downstairs, breaking Earth’s train of thought.
Earth didn’t recall ever meeting anyone in Mars’s family, which was weird considering they’d been friends for years. Furthermore, Mars seemed to flinch immediately the moment he heard the person’s voice, distressfully repeating the word ’no’ to himself over and over again. Suddenly, the door to Mars’s room swung open and a tall figure waltzed in.
“Mars?! Oh I didn’t know you had a guest! Earth it’s lovely to see you again!” This random man?.. women? yelled out.
Honestly, Earth couldn’t tell which gender they were. They had long waist length hair that resembled a brighter version of Mars’s hair colour, bright yellows and reds. They were dressed in a fitted black blouse, belt and long pants. It looked like they had just come back from work.
“I’m sorry who are you-” Before Earth could ask, he was cut off. “Oh, how very rude of me. Please, call me Sol!” They interjected, arms crossed.
Earth turned his attention back to Mars who was sitting at the opposite end of the portable table they had set up, with his face in his hands. Earth could vaguely see the red on his face.
“Well, I'll leave you two to do whatever you were doing! Bye!!” Sol loudly announced before leaving promptly, exuberantly opening the door before slamming it closed, shaking the entire room and scaring the living hell out of the two.
Earth glanced back at Mars, who was still sulking into his hands, and couldn’t help letting out a soft laugh. “I see I’ve met your family now, aren’t we moving fast?” Earth said teasingly, a smug look on his face.
“Shut up!! Ugh, he wasn’t supposed to be home yet..” Mars protested before deflating back to his brood self. He parted his index and middle fingers to take a peak at a broadly grinning Earth.
“Hey Marsss, It’s okay, don’t worry” Earth cooed, the slightest tease in his tone as he dragged his words. “I don’t mind moving faster, I can introduce you to my mom if you’d like.” Earth added on. He couldn’t help it, seeing how red Mars would get whenever he teased him, was a sight he yearned for.
“Kill me now..” Mars mumbled, further burying his face and entangling his bangs into between the crevasse of his fingers.
“Awwww, but Mars! If you die then I’ll be all alone.” Earth replied, fluttering his eyelashes.
Mars lifts his head up from his hands and shoots a glare at Earth. He rests his chin on the hard surface, groaning under his breath. Suddenly, Earth reached forward over the tiny table and held both of Mars’s hands, interlocking their fingers and not letting go. Mars visibly taken aback but didn’t let go of his hands either, red dusting over his ears.
Earth continued on, holding his hand, no sign of stopping anytime soon, leaning forward as much as he could before looking into his eyes.
They were even prettier up close, a kaleidoscope of colours from muted reds to vivid yellows, it felt like he was floating in space with only the stars to guide him, he stayed there for awhile before slightly shuffling in his seat and mustering up the little bit of courage left in him, pushing aside the anxiousness he felt, only focusing on Mars and Mars only.
Earth leaned in slightly closer and whispered softly, just loud enough for Mars to hear,
“You’re Beautiful Mars.”
“What, wait sorry no, What!?” Mars practically yelled at Earth’s face. Feeling every emotion all at once, confusion, happiness, anxiety, Confusion. This whole time he had thought that Earth would never think of him in this way. Much less thought he was beautiful. Did this mean that Earth liked him? He could feel his hands start shaking, he wasn’t scared, definitely not, especially not towards Earth but for some reason he wanted to flee, run away, but also confess to Earth right then and there.
Looking back at Earth, he made his final decision,drawing in one last breath, Mars looked directly at him and before he could stop himself, hearing himself say the dreaded Three words.
“I Love You!” Mars yelled out, before realising that it came out a lot louder than he wanted, immediately regretting everything he had said and done up till this point of his life.
Letting go of Earth’s hand, he covered his face and tried his absolute best to bury himself in the pathetic little blue table they were using to study on. Until out of nowhere, he heard a clamorous Laugh from a similar voice.
“Pft - HAHAHAHHAH” a loud, boisterous sound filling the room, “oh god.. Sorry, sorry I didn’t mean to laugh. It's just that I feel the exact same way. I just can’t believe how stupid I was for not telling you sooner.” Earth remarks before letting go of Mars and swiping away a tear from his eye, because apparently it was that funny to him.
Turning back to Mars, who had an incredibly frustrated look on his face, Earth reached a hand forward to fidget with the collar of the white blouse that Mars was wearing. Seeing him fully lose it as Earth played with his blouse. Mars’s eyes widening, Earth could tell that he wanted to say something but couldn’t, from the way Mars was slightly quavering and how he looked like he was about to faint from how red he was. Earth was enamoured, resisting the urge to just squeeze him, this stupid man had him wrapped around his finger.
“Don’t be mad Mars, I love you too.” Earth added on, smiling contently.
“This whole time. Oh my god, don’t tell me..” Mars states in absolute horror, completely skipping over Earth’s “confession” , “What? That I knew you liked me? Yea you're not exactly good at hiding it.” Earth interjected, a proud almost smug look on his face.
“So my greatest fears were right. Huh, wait but if you knew why didn’t you say anything?” Mars asks, genuinely curious to why Earth hadn’t said anything earlier, it seemed like he liked him so why.
“Ah. I was, um scared.” Earth answered, getting softer and softer throughout the sentence, the last part was practically inaudible.
Mars just stared at Earth completely dumbfounded, this whole time they had been secretly having feelings for each other and only now did they finally talk about it. Taking in a deep, Calming , breath Mars looked back at Earth who was now staring down at the blue table and wearing an almost ashamed expression on his face, which felt very out of character for him. I mean this was Earth he was talking about, throughout their years together Mars had never seen him like this, so Vulnerable and exposed.
Without a second thought Mars stood up and walked over to Earth, before kneeling down right next to him and pulling him in for a hug. It felt surreal, feeling the warmth of Earth’s body against his before tightening and squeezing him even harder, burying his face into his shoulder. Allow himself to really take in the moment, feeling everything the way his heart was thumping in his chest, being able to feel Earth’s own heartbeat, as their pulses intertwined and intermingled, like an instrumental composition, the array sounds blending together to create a perfect symphony.
Not long after, feeling a firm grip on his back, Earth had hugged him back.
Although the moment was short lived it was perfect. Mars was the first to pull back, his hands still on Earth’s shoulders, staring him dead in the eyes and murmuring softly,
“I love you Earth, and I don’t care how long it took for this to happen, all I know is I want to be with you. Forever .” A serious look in his eyes, one that Earth had never seen before.
.__________________________.
“ I am actually going to kill myself right now I swear. How do you do this!” Earth yelled out, clutching onto his head like an absolute madman.
“I don’t know.. I don’t know Earth..” Mars practically sobbed out, the two had been studying for the past few hours only stopping when Sol would occasionally walk in and deliver snacks and beverages.
“I can feel myself start going insane, what is life, what is living, who am I?” Earth asked as he goes into a spiral, lying back onto the hard oak floors, clutching his knees in a fetal position
Mars using the table to slightly push himself upwards to look at Earth that was currently on the floor, “Listen Earth we can do this. All we have is one more chapter, we can’t give up now!”
Earth turned his head to the side to look at Mars and flashing him a deadpan expression, before turning back and cushioning his head with his hands, getting ready to sleep.
Honestly Mars could not be bothered to try and wake Earth up, he knew that he was lucky to even be able to convince Earth to get back to studying after the confession. Nevertheless, that wasn’t going to dampen his spirits to continue studying like he had planned! One more chapter was no big deal.
Exactly five minutes later Mars was fast asleep, having lasted a good few seconds before giving into heavy eyelids and letting his consciousness slip away.
.__________________________.
A glaring light beaming down onto the two sleeping figures, one spiralled out across the ground, the other, hunched over on a small blue table. A few moments later Mars woke up.
“Mhmmm..” Mars grumbles, voice low and raspy. “What..what time is it?” managing to only open one eye slightly, struggling to push himself off the table before giving up and plopping back down, as Mars stayed there stewing in the same spot he had been in for the past eight hours. He felt the heat of his room slowly get to him, the slightly damp clothes clinging to his skin, his own sweat sticking to him like glue, giving his skin an oily glossy complexion, and tha t funky smell in the air.
He felt disgusting.
But alas he knew he had to get up, one question still lingering in the back of his head.
What was he doing before this?
Using all his strength and determination, Mars pushed himself off the ground and stood up, before almost passing out again from standing too fast, his vision blacking out for a moment. Still half asleep, Mars turns for the door and makes his way downstairs, swiping his hand through the hard wooden railing of his staircase, like he did every morning.
Still not entirely sure what it was but he felt like he was forgetting something, something important, but if he forgot it probably didn’t matter anyways. Mars made his way through an extravagantly decorated living room to get to the toilet, Sol has always been one for fancy decorations and near impossible renovations, the whole house was decorated like money was disposable. Except for his room, Mars had to bargain for weeks for Sol to leave his room untouched, leaving Mars to be able to decorate it as he wanted. Though Sol still insisted to at least let him install overpriced Mahogany Shelves, Mars didn’t believe that they were necessary but Sol gets whatever he wants, and that was exactly what had happened.
Opening the door to the bathroom Mars started getting ready by brushing his teeth and he went on to take a shower, and wash his face before he had realised that he had forgotten that Earth was still asleep up in his room, to be completely honest he forgot that Earth came over in the first place. Everything that happened yesterday felt like a blur to him.
“I really feel like I’m- EARTH. I forgot Earth shit.” Mars realised as he was mid face scrub, but of course Earth was his number one priority. Sloppily washing the face scrub off, Mars had bolted upstairs, swinging open his bedroom door to find.
No one.
Earth was gone? Did he leave because he realised Mars wasn’t in the room, feeling an overwhelming panic rise to his chest, pacing around the room for a few seconds, trying to figure out where Earth might’ve gone. The harder he thought the more hazy his memories got, he couldn’t seem to recall anything or any clue to where Earth might’ve gone. Honestly Mars probably would’ve thought that he had dreamt about Earth coming over yesterday if it wasn’t for his stupid “pants” sweater that seemed to have been tossed onto the ground.
“Sol!” Mars called out, he really didn’t like to interact with Sol but this was an emergency, though don’t get him wrong it wasn’t like he hated the guy, Mars just found him overbearing and intense at times.
Getting more and more impatient as Sol hadn’t responded to him, Mars decided to head downstairs himself, practically bolting down the stairs. He was going so fast he was practically matching Mercury’s running speed, and by practically he meant not even close but Mercury was the fastest person he knew so it wasn’t like he stood a chance in the first place.
“Sol have you seen-!” Mars inquired before cutting himself off when he saw a very familiar, blue haired person sitting across the kitchen dining table, but in a form fitting white shirt instead of the dumb sweater.
“I’m sorry, Earth? Is that you?” Mars proclaimed, mouth agape.
“Oh morning Mars, you were still sleeping when I woke up, so Sol offered me breakfast while we waited for you.” Earth said, nonchalantly, following his statement by shoving a face full of pancakes into his mouth.
Mars just stood there, staring at the two, both of them devouring pancakes together like maniacs. That was a sight he never thought he would see, never , not in a million lightyears. But here he stood seeing the person he loved and the person who had practically raised him, consume pancakes together like animals.
“Yep nope. I am leaving.” Mars stated before turning around and heading straight for the door, come to think of it he did actually need to leave soon, that test they were studying so hard for was today.
“Earth, The test, remember!?” Mars shouted from the door of the house, his voice echoing through the walls of the gigantic two story property, somehow against all odds managing to reach Earth’s Ears.
“Oh right! Sorry Sol I have to go now, see you again soon!” Earth says before shoving one last pancake in his mouth and heading towards the exit of the kitchen, “bye!” Earth says through muffled sounds due to the pancake he had so greedily forced into his mouth.
Sol shooting him a slightly creepy smile in response, grinning a little too widely.
Earth having just reached the main door to the house, meeting eyes with a very irritated Mars, who was standing in a similar outfit he had on yesterday but instead of a sweater it was a sweater vest with a similar blouse underneath, except this time it was a cream colour.
“Earth, hurry up we’re going to be late.” Mars folding his arms, leaning against a stone buttress.
“Waitt, I’m trying to put my shoes on!” stumbling over his own feet, taking small hops to the front and back to not lose his balance, hands waving in the air as he struggled to balance on one leg.
“Oh my goodess. Here let me help you, hold still for a sec.” Mars says before crouching down to help Earth put on his shoes, honestly he was absolutely helpless but if helping him wear shoes in the morning meant Mars could spend more time with him, then it was a price he was willing to pay. As he carefully undid Earth’s terrible knot tying, Mars could feel that he was staring, hard, he appreciated that Earth was happy about him tying his shoes but god was he staring daggers at Mars.
After he was done, Mars stood up, wiping the sweat off his forehead “Alright that should work, you ready to go now?”
“Hm-,Yep! Let's go” Earth blurted out, his voice high pitched, it sounded like he was being choked. An obvious red dusting over his face.
“Pft- yea, let’s go.” Mars couldn’t help but softly giggle to himself.
.__________________________.
“Alright class we will be starting the exam in Five minutes,, I hope you all studied.” Jupiter said, staring directly at Earth as he delivered his statement. “Good luck, focus and You may begin.”
The sounds of pages flipping and an array of clicking pens filling the room. Mars had always been one to get nervous during exams, and although he wished he could say he was confident that he would pass this round of tests, in reality he thought of the total opposite. He loved Earth, truly, he adored him. But Earth was never one for academics, Mars had basically accepted a fail the moment he agreed to studying with him.
However glancing back at Earth every few minutes or so felt reassuring, freeing. It felt like all of his worries were gone, as if he were a bird soaring through a deep blue sky. All he needed was knowing that Earth was right beside him, fail or no fail, Mars knew that as long as he had him , everything would work out fine.
Gathering the remaining confidence he had left in him, he was determined to give this paper his best shot. Drawing in a breath he filled out the first question, the sounds of his pen scratching the paper, the air around him slowly thinning as he calmed down, he felt refreshed. Mars was always one for studying, he loved it, maybe it was the ego boost he got from every good grade but knowledge was what kept him going, he loved to learn but he had seemed to have forgotten that feeling for a while now.
He finally felt like himself again, after so long. Filling out questions after questions, his hands slowly started cramping up feeling the twinge of pain, pulsing, every time he wrote, but that didn’t matter the sound of flipping that crisp paper, the satisfying ‘swoosh’ as he completed yet another page was everything to him. And finishing it off with drawing a full stop at the end of every answer made him feel a small boost of happiness and motivation.
Though he wished the same could be said for Earth, even from where he was seated he could feel the sheer panic and confusion emanating from Earth’s desk. Along with Mr Jupiter making rounds around the class to look out for any cheaters, usually taking pit stops at Earth’s table, probably to check his answers and make sure he wasn’t cheating. Still although Mars knew it was a stressful moment for Earth he found it absolutely hilarious. An incredibly tall man such as Mr Jupiter, standing over poor Earth, hearing the occasional sighs from the tired teacher everytime Earth filled out an answer was such a comedic sight.
Though it didn’t last long after a few minutes Mr Jupiter had seemed to have had enough and simply walked away after seeing Earth fill out about three questions. At this point Mars was already done with his paper, rotating his wrist from the pain and massaging his palm, all he could do was wait. Tucking a chunk of hair behind his ear, Mars laid down cushioning his chin with his arms before taking a quick nap.
.__________________________.
Before being abruptly woken up by the sound of Jupiter announcing the end of the examination.
“Time's up! Please put down your pens and pencils.” Jupiter proclaimed to the class, marking the end of the examination.
Slowly making his rounds before stopping at Earth’s table, “Earth. Stop Writing Now.” Jupiter standing in front of Earth’s desk, a stack of papers in hand waiting to collect his paper.
“Nooooo Pleaseeee, Mr Jupiterr.” Earth whined, protesting to Jupiter about his ‘lack of time’ during the test and how it was ‘unfair’. Grabbing onto his test for dear life as Jupiter tried to take it away from him.
“Oh for the love of-” Jupiter said before snatching the paper out of Earth’s hands. “Give me that!” promptly placing Earth’s paper neatly on top of the other tests, looking back at Earth and squinting his eyes, a large frown plastered across his face before angrily storming off to his desk.
Once Jupiter had reached his table, he plopped the papers loudly onto his desk before dismissing his class in an incredibly frustrated tone. Honestly, he was so irritated that it surprised Mars, he had never seen Jupiter so angry before, or at all really.
“Okay class you may leave the classroom. Please exit quietly !” Jupiter made sure to emphasise the last part but it's not like it did anything, the students still pushed and shoved their way out of the tiny room doors as they screamed and yelled, laughter and chattering filling the air.
Leaving only Earth and Mars left in the room, “Soo, how do you think you did Earth?” Mars inquired as he leaned onto Earth’s desk.
“Not good Mars..not good.” Earth muttered before plopping his head onto the hard wooden table, sulking in his chair. Mars, feeling awkward, tried to relieve some tension by patting him on the back, though that didn’t really work, If anything it made things worse.
“Hey, It’s okay, you can try harder next time! right..?” Mars trying to comfort his poor friend that currently looked like a sad pile of doodles on his desk.
Earth only grunting in response, “Hey.. c’mon Earth It’s alright.” Mars was really, really trying to help him feel better, caressing Earth’s head as he continued sulking and feeling sorry for himself. Slowly making his way through his friends tangled hair, fidgeting and combing through strains of blues, greens and browns, now fully sitting on Earth’s table.Thank goddess Jupiter had left the room by then.
Mars reached down to scoop his head up, cupping Earth’s face with his hands.
“Now stop feeling sorry for yourself! We can study again, this time though at your house and without distractions, okay?” Mars said, tone energetic and happy, a contrast to his usual calm demeanour. Pushing himself off the table, Mars held onto Earth’s wrist and off they went strolling out of the classroom. And just like that Earth had felt himself fall for him all over again. Maybe it was the way he always knew exactly what to say, or maybe it was his thoughtfulness and willingness to listen when Earth felt like ranting about a certain topic. All he knew for certain was, Mars could drag him all the way to the edge of the galaxy if he wanted and Earth would happily follow.
.__________________________.
“Wait no I’m scared you read it! Actually no I’ll read it- Ugh! Okay wait.. No-” Earth gripping onto his exam results for dear life, panicking over the potential failed test he was holding in his hands.
“whoaa, calm down Earth, here let’s read it together okay? One…Two…Thre-” Mars said before getting cut off by an incredibly loud, ear piercing scream.
“I passed!! Oh my god. I actually passed!” Earth proclaimed, jumping up and down, paper in hand, drawing all of the Class’s attention to himself.
“I was going to say Three, before I was cut off but that works too.” Mars snapped back, teasingly, arms crossed. Before turning his attention back to the piece of paper in his hands, carefully reading through and scanning for potential mistakes in the marking.
“But I passed too, thankfully.” expression softening, setting his test neatly on Earth’s table before looking back up, focusing back on Earth that was standing in front of him.
Earth made a slightly choked sound in response, before promptly looking around like he was trying to find something.
“Uhh Earth? You okay there?” Mars asked, head slightly tilted to one side, one hand rested comfortably on his waist.
Earth whipping his head back to Mars, a determined gleam in his eyes as he picked up Mars’s hand and quickly dragged him outside the classroom.
“Earth, where are we going?!” Mars exclaimed as he was being pulled somewhere by Earth, almost tripping over his own feet as he struggled to follow along with wherever Earth was dragging him to.
They soon stopped at the school pound, a fairly well maintained garden with lush green trees and a relatively clean stone pound that the students had made and been taking care of for a few years now. But why were they here? The garden was practically deserted since none of the students really cared to visit it unless it was to clean the pond, which they only did once every month or so.
“Uh..Earth why are we here?” Mars looked over at Earth. Realising that he was planning something as he stared at Earth who just looked at him without a word. A soft glow in his eyes, complemented by a gentle, faintly hidden smile.
What was he planning? This seemed all too suspicious to Mars. Earth was acting quiet which meant that something was seriously wrong.
“Mars, I-” Earth said before cutting himself off almost immediately, his eyes slightly squinting, visibly taking in a deep breath before biting his bottom lip. “Mars, I love you. And I want to show you how much you mean to me, but I”
Earth paused, again, before he completed his sentence, as he fidgeted with his fingers, refusing to make eye contact with Mars as he looked off awkwardly to the side.
“Earth, what are you doing? My god, you are actually adorable, why are you so nervous?” Mars interjected, holding in a slight laugh, .
He had never seen Earth so nervous before, even when they confessed he was still laughing and relatively relaxed, well at least more relaxed than he was now. Hell he was still able to tease him like it wasn’t a big deal, so seeing him now, this untouchable, confident, outgoing person become so soft and shy seemed out of place, but Mars didn’t mind, he thought that Earth was cute like this.
“You’re up to something. What is it, don’t worry, whatever it is I am sure I can take it.” A small smile plastered on his face, slightly looking up at Earth as he stood in front of the mostly grey fountain, the sounds of running water filling in the awkward silence.
Suddenly, Mars felt someone pull him into a tight hug, firmly gripping onto his back. Earth had leaned in forward for a hug.
Both of his hands wrapped over Mars’s back, as he buried his face in the nook of his neck. Melting into Mars’s warmth, the air around him growing thicker, this was what love felt like. His heart was racing, thumping loudly in his chest, he was certain even Mars could hear it, not that he cared, if he could Earth would stay in this position for all of eternity, only needing Mars in his life.
Mars had a serene like beauty and presence, calm and peaceful, he reminded him of an Artist’s palette, a mix of beautiful lively colours on a simple wooden surface, swirling together into blends of reds, yellows and oranges, along with every other colour imaginable. So full of potential and life, every stroke being as lovely as the other. Coming together to create an even more exquisite work of art.
Mars was breathtaking.
But as much as he wanted to feel satisfied, Earth felt like this wasn’t enough. No, he needed more, he yearned for more.Separating from the hug, giving Mars some time to process what had just happened.
“Earth? I’m really confused right now, I enjoyed it, don't get me wrong but, I just a little bit-” Mars cuts himself off as Earth had gently lifted his chin slightly, gazing at the slight in front of him, adoration filling his eyes.
Before leaning forward, pressing in until their lips met. Earth savoured every moment, really soaking in the sensations and emotions he felt. Only moving after a few seconds, as he moved his hand up to Mars’s head, brushing through a mix of red and brown hair as Earth pulled him in as close as he could. An intense warmth rushing throughout his cheeks and ears, he felt so giddy when he was with Him as if he were floating in air.
Was this what timelessness felt like?
Though it didn’t last long before they separated for a breath. Mars holding up a hand against his lips. Did they just kiss? It felt like a whirlwind of emotions, He just stared at Earth, waiting for him to say something, anything. His heart was thumping loudly and aggressively in his chest, all he could do was stand there. Though as nervous as he was, it felt right, safe. He had never felt so secure and warm before, but when they kissed it was as if all of his problems went melting away.
Staring up at an equally flustered Earth, he realised that they both felt the exact same way. Earth had his entire hand gripping onto the bottom half of his face, he had never seen him so red before, it was honestly comedic how flushed he was. However Mars had to admit that leading up to the moment, he had thought that Earth was about to deliver him a devastating piece of news, if he had known that all he wanted was a kiss, Mars would’ve kissed him earlier.