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The library was dead quiet; Alhaitham didn't know if it was a blessing or a curse. On the one hand, it meant that he didn't have to make awkward small talk with people as they checked out textbooks, nor did he have to deal with the uneasy staring as he looked up textbooks for frantic students who left their essays to the very last minute. But on the other hand, a quiet library meant a lack of students, which meant that Alhaitham's shift would drag on forever. To Alhaitham, both scenarios were akin to a nightmare; he either had to deal with people or be bored.
Technically, he didn’t need to deal with boredom. If Alhaitham really wanted to, he could complete his assignments during the down time throughout his shift. Alhaitham was one of two people who worked the information desk at his university's library—they wouldn't want to put themselves in a tight spot by firing him. Unfortunately, Alhaitham didn't have anything to complete; all of his assignments were done, as were his weekly readings and quizzes. None of next week's content was available yet either, which meant that Alhaitham had absolutely nothing to do.
Time crawled by. It felt like an eternity had passed, but really, it had only been thirty minutes. Thankfully, a cure for Alhaitham's boredom was coming right his way in the form of his friend, Cyno.
“Hey, Alhaitham,” he said as he wandered up to the information desk. “Is it time for you to book it from work yet?”
“You’ve used that one before,” Alhaitham deadpanned, eyes narrowing slightly. “If you’re going to subject me to puns, at least make sure they’re ones I haven’t heard yet.”
Cyno shrugged his shoulders as he passed over a couple of textbooks and his library card. “Sorry, I guess all my good jokes are on hold.”
Before he could stop himself, Alhaitham chuckled. Unlike their other mutual friends, Alhaitham could appreciate the wordplay behind Cyno's jokes, even if he occasionally thought that they were unbearable to hear. "I'll give it to you. That one wasn't half bad. Also, to answer your earlier question, no, unfortunately, it's not. I still have three hours left of my shift."
“Yikes,” Cyno replied, eyes softening in sympathy. “It’s dead in here; your shift is going to last forever.”
Alhaitham scowled down at the books as he scanned them for Cyno. "I know; it's the worst part about this job. I have nothing to do to alleviate my boredom, either. Or at least I didn't, until now."
“Oh?” Cyno tilted his head slightly to the side as he gratefully retrieved his library card and newly borrowed books from Alhaitham. “Am I your source of entertainment now?”
"Not necessarily, but you can help me out with a problem I've been having. That should help me pass the time," Alhaitham explained. Then, he took a quick, cursory glance around to see if anyone was waiting for his assistance. "I need some advice."
After putting his books away in his bag and then dropping it on the floor beside his feet, Cyno nodded. "Alright, hit me with it. What do you need advice with?"
“I want to ask Kaveh out, but I’m not too sure how to go about it,” Alhaitham admitted. “Subtle hints don’t seem to work…either that or he’s ignoring them on purpose.”
Against his better judgment, Cyno scoffed. "Really? Your roommate? That’s a bit cliche, isn’t it?”
Now, it was Alhaitham's turn to stare at Cyno in disbelief. “What? Are my feelings for Kaveh new information to you?”
"No," Cyno quickly replied. "The opposite, actually. Tighnari and I have a bet about which one of you would admit your feelings to us first. Thanks for the $20, by the way. Well, I think so. Tighnari hasn't brought it up in a while."
Alhaitham rolled his eyes and shook his head. “You’re welcome. In return, you can help me with this problem of mine.”
"It's simple, isn't it?" Cyno leaned forward as he spoke, hands resting on the information desk. "Just take him on a date."
After staring blankly at Cyno for a few moments, Alhaitham sighed. “If there was an award for the most unhelpful friend, you’d win the vote by a landslide,” he hissed out as he pinched the bridge of his nose. “How am I meant to ask him?”
“Just say this: ‘Hey Kaveh, would you like to go on a date with me?’” Cyno replied, an amused smile tugging at his lips. “You said subtle hints weren’t working, right? So just be forward; ask him outright.”
Now that he understood what Cyno meant, Alhaitham fell silent. He took a few minutes to mull it over and then hummed quietly to himself. "Alright, I guess you're right, but…I should probably have something organised, right? Since I'm the one asking Kaveh out?"
Cyno pursed his lips, then nodded. "Yeah, probably. When Tighnari asked me out, he planned an entire date night for the two of us—we went to one of those local game shops and painted miniatures for one of my tabletop games. He obviously isn't as interested in that type of thing as I am, but he wanted to do something that I'd like since he's the one who asked me out."
"Right…so I should take Kaveh on a date that he'd like, then." Alhaitham trailed off as he tried to think of ideas, then sighed deeply. "There's just one issue with that—I do all of Kaveh's hobbies with him already. I go with him to those paint-and-sip things, and we go to museums and galleries every other week. I'll need to think of something else."
"…Are you sure the two of you aren't already dating?" Cyno joked. "Regardless, yeah, okay, that might make things difficult…Kaveh probably won't see one of those things as a date, then."
Silence fell over them as they tried to think of an idea. Fifteen minutes later, Alhaitham was ready to give up, but before he could tell his friend to forget about it, Cyno’s face lit up. “Wait, Alhaitham, I have an idea—take Kaveh to an amusement park. Specifically, go in the afternoon or evening; it will feel more like a date then. Sure, it’s stereotypical and cliche, but it’d be incredibly hard for Kaveh to misread your intentions…and he’d probably enjoy it a lot, too.”
“Hmm…” Alhaitham carefully considered the idea. It would be something that Kaveh would like; his roommate had mentioned before that he had always wanted to go on an amusement park date. Personally, Alhaitham wasn't the biggest fan of amusement parks—they were too noisy. But it would be a fantastic opportunity to show that he does listen to Kaveh every once in a while, and it could set the scene for some romantic moments…
"Yeah, alright; that should work. Thanks, Cyno," Alhaitham said as he crouched down to grab his laptop from his bag. It was still a slow day at work, so he might as well try to book tickets now while it was quiet. "My apologies for keeping you here for so long, by the way. You can go now if you want."
Cyno waved off Alhaitham’s concerns with a smile. “It’s fine, really. This essay won’t take me long to write. Oh, and Alhaitham? If you two end up dating, can you tell me who confessed to who?”
Alhaitham's eyes narrowed in suspicion as they drifted up to meet Cyno's. "…Who did you bet on, and how much?"
“You. I put $30 on it. Don’t let me down!”
***
The rest of Alhaitham’s shift passed by uneventfully; only one other person had come up to the information desk for the remaining part of his shift. Alhaitham was grateful to finally be done with it because it meant that he could finally head back to his apartment. The apartment he shared with Kaveh. A good part of Alhaitham's shift was spent checking their shared calendar to work out a suitable date and then booking the amusement park tickets along with a few other things. Honestly, even though he wasn't quite sure how to bring it up, Alhaitham was looking forward to Kaveh’s reaction when he told him.
Throughout his journey home, thoughts of Kaveh and images of his bright smile occupied Alhaitham’s mind. It was a welcome distraction and kept him busy right up until the moment he unlocked the front door.
As soon as Alhaitham stepped into the apartment and slipped his shoes off, Kaveh called out for him. “Alhaitham? Can you come to the kitchen when you’re ready?”
"One second!" Alhaitham shrugged his jacket off, hung it up on a hook, and then slipped his bag into its space on their hallway shelf. With all his things put away in their rightful places, Alhaitham made his way over to the kitchen, where Kaveh was waiting for him. "Alright, I'm here. Did you need help with something?"
"Not quite," Kaveh replied. Then, he walked over to Alhaitham and playfully turned him around so he had his back to Kaveh. "I have a surprise for you. Close your eyes; I'll tap your shoulder when it's ready."
To say that Alhaitham was curious would be a massive understatement. Still, even though the urge to turn around was strong, Alhaitham ignored it. Instead, he closed his eyes just as Kaveh instructed and waited patiently for the tap on his shoulder.
A few moments later, Kaveh gently tapped his shoulder and called out for Alhaitham. “Okay, you can turn around now.”
Alhaitham winced as he cracked his eyes open; the kitchen light was just a little bit too bright. When he adjusted to the brightness of their kitchen, he slowly turned around to face Kaveh, whose hands were held out in front of him. In Kaveh's hands were two tickets, which he handed over to Alhaitham.
Upon closer inspection of the tickets, surprise washed over Alhaitham—the tickets were for a joint book signing and launch event for one of his favourite authors. Alhaitham tried to get tickets for this event when they were first released but was unsuccessful. To say that he was shocked would be an understatement. "Kaveh…how did you get these?"
Kaveh chucked and then shook his head playfully. “That is for me to know, not you. Anyway, I knew how much you wanted to go…I hope you don’t mind that I got one for myself, too. Maybe we could make a trip out of it? It’s on a Friday night, so we could drive up and spend the weekend there…”
As he listened to Kaveh explain his plans, disbelief started to overtake the pleased yet surprised feeling that Alhaitham initially had. The date listed on the event tickets was the same as the date he'd picked for their amusement park date. What a coincidence…a terrible coincidence. Alhaitham had taken great care when choosing the date; it was the Friday before their mid-semester break 'officially' started, and neither of them would have exams or assignments to worry about. It would be a carefree afternoon—the perfect opportunity to confess his feelings to Kaveh. But now…
“—Alhaitham?” Kaveh called out softly, bringing Alhaitham’s attention back to him. He had a frown on his face, and it only intensified as he stared at his roommate. “Is everything alright? You look like you’ve just had a horrible realisation.”
Almost immediately, Alhaitham scrambled to reassure Kaveh. “No, no, everything’s fine, just…can I have a few minutes? I need to call someone.”
Kaveh didn’t seem convinced, but he reluctantly allowed Alhaitham to dash off to his bedroom. As soon as he was in the privacy of his room, Alhaitham slumped against the door and pulled out his phone. Alhaitham needed advice from Cyno, and he needed it now.
The dial tone rang twice before Cyno, who sounded incredibly annoyed, picked up. "Whatever this is about, better be worth it, Alhaitham. You're interrupting date night."
“Sorry, I’ll make it quick, I promise,” Alhaitham replied, eyes squeezed shut. “I was about to bring up the amusement park to Kaveh—”
Cyno hummed quietly and unintentionally cut Alhaitham off. “Yeah, and? Why haven’t you asked him yet?”
“Kaveh surprised me with tickets for that book signing event I wanted to go to, and he wants to do a weekend trip away from it. The only issue is that it’s on the same day and weekend that I booked for the amusement park,” Alhaitham explained. “I don’t know what to do.”
“Oh.” Cyno paused as he thought it over. Then, half a second later, he voiced his thoughts on the issue. “Reschedule the amusement park date and go with him on that trip. A weekend away? Just the two of you? Alhaitham, you’re smart; please use your brain. This will be a much better opportunity.”
Alhaitham sighed and cracked his eyes open. “Mmm… yeah, I guess you’re right. I’ll see if I can reschedule it.”
“Maybe there will only be one bed,” Cyno joked, trailing off with a light chuckle as he thought about the idea. “Oh, that would be perfect for you then. What a romantic opportunity.”
“Don’t be ridiculous,” Alhaitham immediately rebuked, rolling his eyes. “Alright, thanks. Enjoy date night.”
Without even waiting for a reply, Alhaitham hung up on Cyno. He sighed again, clearly exasperated, then navigated to his email to look for the booking confirmation email he'd received for the amusement park tickets. After carefully reading through it, relief washed over Alhaitham—he could book the amusement park tickets for another date.
Once he’d taken the time to reschedule it for a week later—after carefully checking their shared calendar and praying that nothing else would come up—Alhaitham left his bedroom and headed off to the kitchen. Kaveh was still there, sitting forlornly at the kitchen counter. When he heard the sound of his roommate’s footsteps, Kaveh turned around. As Kaveh stared at Alhaitham and waited for him to draw closer, he nervously chewed his bottom lip.
“Alhaitham—”
“—Kaveh.”
They both stopped, stared awkwardly at each other, and then burst into quiet laughter. Alhaitham stepped forward and didn't stop until he was in front of Kaveh. "Sorry, I sorted things out. First and foremost, I want to say that I really appreciate this surprise, more than I can express with words. I'd love to go with you, weekend trip and all."
Alhaitham's words immediately affected Kaveh's mood. A bright smile broke out on his face, and he leapt up to pull Alhaitham into a hug. "Oh, lovely. It's going to be so much fun. Do you mind if I book the hotel room and other things like that?”
“Hmm? Yeah, sure,” Alhaitham replied, slightly taken aback. He’d originally planned on bringing up the amusement park as soon as he’d given Kaveh his gratitude, but he was reconsidering it now. Kaveh seemed eager, and he didn’t want to dampen that at all. “While you do that, I might go and get takeout for dinner from our favourite place. Do you want your usual?”
As he finally let go of Alhaitham, Kaveh nodded. “Yes, that sounds good. Don’t worry, I won’t book something too extravagant, okay?”
Overwhelming fondness crashed into Alhaitham as he chuckled and shook his head. If he had less restraint, Alhaitham would have confessed his feelings at this very moment. Instead, he held off—the weekend trip would be a good opportunity to tell Kaveh how he felt, and if he didn't get the chance, there would always be the amusement park.
No matter what, Alhaitham was determined to confess to Kaveh; there was no other choice for him.
(Hopefully, Alhaitham hadn’t misread the signs, and the feelings were mutual. This would be incredibly embarrassing and awkward otherwise.)
***
When the weekend of their trip finally rolled around, Alhaitham found himself feeling uncharacteristically nervous. Alhaitham planned on confessing to Kaveh after the book event, and the possibility of it all going wrong had him on edge. If it went badly, they would have an awkward couple of days ahead of them—not just because of the trip itself but also because they were sharing a hotel room. It weighed on Alhaitham's mind for the entire drive, so much so that the drive, which was several hours long, passed quickly. Before he knew it, Alhaitham was pulling into the hotel's parking lot.
The dread that had settled into Alhaitham's stomach intensified as they walked into the hotel lobby, and when Kaveh directed him to sit down while he went to check them in, it only seemed to get worse. For some reason, a little voice at the back of his mind told him that things were only going to get worse before they got better. It seemed a little over dramatic for the situation—it was just a trip, that's all. Sure, Alhaitham was planning on confessing, and it might just ruin their friendship, but that wasn’t going to happen now. They were just checking into the hotel. What was the worst that could happen?
“Okay, so there was a slight problem with our hotel booking,” Kaveh said as he walked over to where Alhaitham was waiting, breaking him out of his reverie.
Immediately, Alhaitham’s stomach sank; if Kaveh was about to say what he thought he was going to say…Alhaitham’s worries were only going to get worse. Despite his inner turmoil, Alhaitham managed to keep his voice level as he replied to Kaveh. “What’s wrong with it?”
“…There’s only one bed.” Then, upon seeing the conflicted expression that crossed Alhaitham’s face, Kaveh scrambled to explain further. “I promise I made a booking for two beds, okay! Apparently, the booking policy states that you're making a 'request' for the bed type, but it's not a guarantee. They're out of the two bed rooms. Um… they did upgrade our room, though, so it's a bigger bed. It shouldn't be as awkward then?"
Alhaitham was going to find a way to wreak havoc on Cyno when they got back. This was his fault; Cyno practically manifested it. Ugh.
“Alright, that’s okay. It should be fine…” Alhaitham trailed off and shook his head before setting off for the elevator in the hotel lobby. “Let’s just head up to the room and put our stuff away.”
Even though he wasn't convinced that things were fine, Kaveh followed Alhaitham. The elevator ride to their room was awkward, and neither one said a word as they walked to the hotel room door. The silence between them wasn't broken until they actually entered the hotel room, either.
“Ah. There’s no couch,” Alhaitham said as he wandered in, eyebrows furrowed slightly. “Well, that complicates things slightly.”
Behind him, Kaveh made a confused sound. He sounded happy, yet bewildered. "What do you mean it complicates things?"
Alhaitham took a moment to ensure that his expression was neutral before turning to face Kaveh so he could explain things. “I was going to sleep on the couch. Clearly, that isn’t going to work; there isn’t a couch.”
“Oh.” A complicated expression crossed Kaveh’s face momentarily; it was a blink and you’d miss it change. “Well…I didn’t realise you wouldn’t be comfortable sharing a bed.”
That wasn’t exactly true—Alhaitham was more than content with it. “No, I don’t mind.” Then, realising how that could come across, he scrambled to try and word things differently. “Wait, hang on. It’s not…it doesn’t bother me, I mean, that was just for your comfort. It’s not like this would be the first time we’ve shared a bed; God knows how many times you’ve accidentally gone into my bed when you were drunk.”
Kaveh hid a short laugh behind his hand and fondly shook his head. “Okay, okay, I get it; you’re fine with sharing a bed with drunk me but not sober me,” he gently teased. “ Well, we have a couple of hours before we need to leave. Do you want to do anything?”
Was running away an option?
Instead of saying that, Alhaitham sighed deeply. “Truthfully, I want to go and have a shower. That was a long car ride; the hot water would help with the muscle soreness, but freshening up also sounds appealing right now.”
***
The book signing event was lovely; it was one of the best events that Alhaitham had ever attended. Being around like-minded individuals was refreshing, so much so that Alhaitham had all but forgotten about his plan to confess to Kaveh, and his nerves had practically dissipated. It wasn't until they had returned to their hotel room and Kaveh had gone to have a shower that Alhaitham's nerves came back. Now that he was left alone, keeping his mind from wandering was hard.
How would Kaveh react to his confession? Would it be jubilation, or would Alhaitham be ruining everything? Honestly, the more he thought about it, the more Alhaitham began to reconsider his plan. It wasn’t just their friendship that was at risk here. The next few days could be awkward, but that wasn’t his only concern. If Alhaitham and Kaveh’s friendship dissolved as a result of his confession, it wouldn't just affect them. Their regular catch-ups with Cyno and Tighnari would be too awkward to navigate, and their current arrangement as roommates would be incredibly uncomfortable for both of them. Maybe Alhaitham should just keep his feelings to himself—
"Alhaitham? Are you even listening?" The sound of Kaveh's voice startled Alhaitham, and he jumped slightly as his head whipped around the room as he tried to figure out where Kaveh was standing. When he found him standing in the bathroom's doorway, Alhaitham was met with Kaveh's concerned face, staring intently at him. "Honestly, are you alright? Ever since we got back to the hotel room, you've been spaced out. Did something happen during the book signing? Did I miss something?"
“No, no, it’s…” Alhaitham trailed off as he gazed at Kaveh. His mind was racing at a mile a minute, but he couldn’t bring himself to explain the source of his inner turmoil. “Actually, it’s nothing, don’t worry.”
Kaveh frowned at Alhaitham as he padded over to the edge of the bed where Alhaitham was sitting. “Yeah, no. Something is clearly bothering you, Alhaitham. You were so content when we were at the event—I think that was the most I’d seen you smile, ever. You were so happy! What happened?”
Ah. Kaveh was too perceptive for his own good. “Nothing specific happened. I just have something weighing on my mind.”
While Alhaitham’s words were honest (but not fully), they were not enough to satisfy Kaveh. “Okay, then what’s weighing on your mind? The whole point of this trip is to enjoy our break and have some fun, right? You can’t do that if you’re worried about something.”
Kaveh was right; it would be hard to enjoy this trip if he was worrying about something. However, it would be equally as difficult if his confession made things awkward between them…
“Alhaitham.” Kaveh’s voice was firm as he sat down beside Alhaitham, but the way he grabbed Alhaitham’s hand was a stark contrast; it was almost startlingly gentle. “Come on, what can’t you tell your closest friend?”
Before he could stop himself, Alhaitham said the first thing that came to mind. “Actually, it’s because you're my closest friend that I feel as though I can't tell you," he blurted out. Immediately, he realised how that would sound to Kaveh—now he had no choice but to confess before Kaveh misunderstood completely. "Before you react to that, let me finish."
“Mmm… alright,” Kaveh replied, voice quiet and gentle. Despite the poor choice of Alhaitham’s words, Kaveh didn’t seem irritated. If anything, he seemed almost…hopeful?
“I’ve been mulling this over for a while. A long while, actually," Alhaitham started, clearly hesitant. "I… I have feelings for you, Kaveh, and I have for a while. Originally, I had planned on taking you out for a date at an amusement park, and it was meant to be today, but then you surprised me with those tickets. That's why I acted so strange at the time. But I thought this trip would be a good opportunity to confess to you, until I realised that it would be very awkward if you didn't feel the same. That's why I've been spacing out so much."
A few silent seconds passed between them before Kaveh chuckled quietly, and confusion prickled under Alhaitham’s skin. Was his confession that laughable?
“Well, that makes the rest of this trip easier, then,” Kaveh muttered before smiling at Alhaitham. “You were worrying for nothing, Alhaitham. Those feelings are mutual.”
Alhaitham wasn’t given a chance to process Kaveh’s words; as soon as they left his mouth, Kaveh reached for Alhaitham and pulled him close so he could kiss him. It started off slow and gentle as they both adjusted to it, but as soon as Kaveh sighed contently against his lips, Alhaitham’s restraint broke. He leaned in just a bit more and reached for the back of Kaveh’s neck to deepen the kiss, kissing Kaveh hungrily until they were both breathless.
Eventually, they had to part for air, albeit reluctantly. Kaveh smiled warmly as he drew away from Alhaitham; his lingering hand gently caressed the side of Alhaitham’s face. “I have a confession to make, by the way.”
“Mmm-hmm.” Alhaitham tilted his head ever so slightly as he stared at the man before him. “Are you about to tell me that you didn’t actually book a room with two beds?”
“Woah, how did you guess?” Kaveh sarcastically replied, smile brightening even more. “Very impressive, Alhaitham.”
Alhaitham simply rolled his eyes and slid his hand up from the back of Kaveh's neck so that he could gently grasp his chin and bring him closer until their foreheads touched. He could feel Kaveh's breath against his face; it was tempting to close the distance and kiss Kaveh again.
Instead, he exercised a great deal of restraint and stopped himself, just so he could continue to tease Kaveh. "Mmm… I'm not sure. Maybe it was the terrible excuse you gave me before we left when you said you couldn't show me the booking email for 'privacy reasons'. Or, perhaps, it was the sheer joy in your voice when you realised that this room didn't have a couch, so we would have to share a bed.”
Kaveh rolled his eyes and tilted his face forward, just a little bit. “Shut up,” he muttered before crashing his lips against Alhaitham’s once more.
Oh. Alhaitham could definitely get used to this. Good thing they had the rest of the weekend to themselves—Alhaitham would have all the time in the world to get used to it, and then some.
(Alhaitham would have to remember to tell Cyno that he’d confessed first—-true to his word, Alhaitham hadn’t let him down. What an easy $30 for Cyno.)
***
Kaveh: I have bad news for you, Tighnari.
Kaveh: You lost your bet with Cyno.
Tighnari: Really, Kaveh? You had one job!
Tighnari: I put in all that work to help you get those tickets for that event from Lisa… I can’t believe I have to give Cyno the $30 now.
Kaveh: Does the fact that I kissed him first mean anything?
Tighnari: …It does, actually.
Tighnari: Thanks, Kaveh. Enjoy the rest of your little romantic trip (and again, you’re welcome)