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“Gambler, what are you doing?”
Ratio stands by the doorstep of the balcony, staring at the man who stands expectantly in the middle of it. It had been heatwave after heatwave in their temporary residence in a planet somewhere in some galaxy, now only becoming cloudier by the hour. The familiar humidity fills the air and signals a foreboding cooler change of weather.
A small breeze sweeps past the blonde, his hair gently swaying. Aventurine turns slightly and sends a smile from where he stood. “Ah, welcome back Ratio. You’re back earlier than you said you would.”
“...Meeting ended early. If anything, the preliminary contents discussed were too little. We’ll be convening again later in a few days.” Ratio explains. “Then, I come back to find you absently staring into the distance. Pray tell gambler, what is it that caught your eye and had you standing in a stupor. You didn’t even seem to notice me opening the door.”
Aventurine sighs and looks up at the sky. “I’m waiting for something. Make yourself busy, I’ll be here for a short while.”
Ratio follows the expectant gaze looking at the clouds. “The rain?”
“It’s not every day I get assigned to a place where rain comes down from the sky. Much less in an element that is safe for people to touch.” Aventurine tells him.
Not a moment too soon the first drop of rain drops onto Aventurine’s cheeks, making him flinch at the contact. It’s a light and misty descent, but there is a smile on the Avgin’s face. He lets out a short breath. Is it of relief? Ratio wonders. He watches on as the man on the balcony closes his eyes and welcomes the rain with open arms.
It slowly becomes a constant downpour, where the rain pooled into puddles across the balcony and streams fall from the rooftop. Birds and creatures alike have hidden themselves amongst their trees. Neighbours close their windows and nearby bystanders on the street below walk a beat faster, covering their heads as they find shelter. The air around them darkens and glooms in the wet atmosphere.
Ratio watches silently at Aventurine, drenched and unbothered in the centre of it all, as if the rain was a summoning and fell as he wished. In a short moment of clarity, time seemed to slow down for Ratio. His warm gaze fixated at the way his partner’s bright blond locks cut through the gray filter of the rain, his bangs sticking to the sides of his face as the raindrops freely flowed down and onto his clothes.
Ratio sighs. He approaches him with an umbrella left at the balcony door. “You’ll catch a cold at this rate if you continue to stand here.” He says, keeping the umbrella close to him and leaving Aventurine in the rain.
Aventurine finally lowers his head and massages the back of his neck. His eyes shining a bright purple and striking blue rims at the professor as if looking deeply into his soul. It has never failed to steal every bit of Ratio’s attention.
“You see, rain rarely falls on Sigonia-IV. But when it did, it was a sign of Mother Goddess Gaiathra Triclops gazing briefly at us and blessing the lands that we walked.” Aventurine tells him, sharing with him a piece of himself. “For us Avgins, the rain is a symbol of luck. It does not mean to disrupt the peace. It accompanies us, protects us and blesses us.” He explains, combing his wet hair away from his face.
A short silence falls between them, as Aventurine contemplates.
“I’m sure something like this is nothing new. Maybe it’s already mentioned in the Sigonia-IV files hidden in your databases. But entertain me with some ignorance, Ratio. I’m feeling a bit chatty today.”
“Very well.”
“How astute. Gentle as always, the way that you are.” He says, accompanied with a sly laugh.
Ratio dismisses him with a shake of his umbrella at him, soliciting a childish giggle from the already drenched man. He could feel himself tremble with the need to spoil him. But alas, his feet are left where he stands, and his hands are stuck to the umbrella. “What importance did rain have for the people on Sigonia-IV?” He asks, short and simple.
Instead, Aventurine falls silent. Ratio does not press him for answers.
The sensation of rain pouring on skin would make any Mundanite perceptible to melancholic contemplation, Ratio understands. He effortlessly observes how the other’s expression relaxes and the way his posture slowly washes away the pretence of his IPC associated identity, leaving only “Kakavasha” standing in his place.
“There isn’t a lot that I can recall now. I’m sure you’ll understand.” Aventurine, no, Kakavasha says truthfully, a slight wisp of something vulnerable heard as he trails into remembering his life on his home planet.
“You see, when we travelled in groups, I would see the adults leave their tents and prepare to hold a festival when the weather becomes as dark as it is now. They would dance as the rain fell. Although, looking back into my memories I think it was actually part of a ritual to thank the Goddess for the rain, but I was too young to learn it. And now I’ll never know.”
“I remember my sister as she pulled me to dance in the rain,” Kakavasha laughs at the memory, “how I slipped and fell forward in the mud. And how I didn’t get angry because the rain was going to wash it all away. That was one of the earliest memories I have. Without the violence and fear, I guess.”
Ratio looked at his eyes, and swore he could see the way it dimmed ever so slightly. He sighs and closes the umbrella, propping it down beside him. His clothes begin to darken as it soaks under the rain.
“Wh– Doctor? What are you doing?”
Ratio sighs and makes himself comfortable on the wet floor and eventually lies flat on his back, facing the sky. He clasps his hands and rests them on his stomach, closing his eyes and resigns to simply feel the sensation of the rain soaking his skin. “Enjoying some rain for myself.” He reasons but he doesn’t need to open his eyes to see his partner splutter in disbelief before laughing loud at the view in front of him.
“I did say to entertain me, but I didn’t expect this!” And another round of laughter echoes from the balcony, spectators be damned.
It doesn’t take long before he joins him on the floor. Aventurine gently kicks the umbrella away and lies next to him. Ratio can tell that he’s lying on his side as the last of laughing fits escapes the smaller man, soft puffs of breath tickling his ears. “You’re killing me, Veritas. No one told you to do that.”
Ratio chuckles, admittedly aware that he’s doing something strange. Smitten, one may say. “And here you are, doing the same thing.” Ratio replies.
“You’re an idiot in the most unexpecting ways.”
Lovable, Ratio can almost feel Aventurine say.
They lie around, words unspoken for a good moment and Ratio is embraced by the sensations. Rationale of thought swept by the drapes of the falling rain. The dismal weather brought by the heatwave is cool to the skin and calming in waves.
The rain is fair and just, treating all in its presence just as equal.
He shivers. With his eyes closed, the sound of rain seems to swallow every one of his senses. As if he was the only one there. A murky feeling emerges.
How much of this has he felt since he was a child?
Aventurine softly yelps, flinching beside Ratio. “Ratio, what are you doing?” He calls out his name by surprise. He rolls over to his side and squeezes the grasp that Ratio had on his hand.
“Doc?”
“...You were just a child.”
“...Veritas.” Aventurine softly calls for his name. “Veritas, you already understand, don’t you? Into each life some rain must fall.”
Ratio hopes that the raindrops can help hide his tears. He slightly flickers his eyes as Aventurine wipes some of the rain from his face with his free hand. His fingers are warm to the touch, gentle as he cradles the frames of his face. Purple and blue fondly watches over the doctor, their hands now interlocked.
“Hm.” Ratio manages to say back. Aventurine smiles tenderly.
Perhaps feeling awkward, Aventurine, as he does, pokes his finger on the other man’s cheek as an attempt to annoy and distract him. Ratio tries to ignore it, furrows his brows and continues to close his eyes, not so subtly flickering his tears away.
“Despite having that build of yours, I feel that you’ll be more perceptive to the cold. Heck, even I will get sick if I’m in the rain for too long.” Aventurine laughs. “Let’s get warmed up, hm? Don’t want you getting sick and missing out on your meetings,” he tells him.
From his voice alone, Ratio can tell that the blond is smiling uncontrollably from ear to ear. Despite that, he will never know how enamoured Aventurine is especially with the pinkish expression on his face.
Ratio clears his throat. “Your concern is misplaced. I suggest you keep it for yourself.”
“I’m not sure if you want to take that chance.” Aventurine teases.
Ratio sneezes on cue. Aventurine laughs.
Aventurine lifts himself off the ground and meets Ratio’s stare before dropping back down and laughing that adoring laugh of his. And to Ratio, it feels like the sun shining through the cracks of the rain.