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Lukey studied the Pangi’s profile, his jaw was clenched and brows furrowed; he seemed to be deep in thought. Well, he would be too if he wasn’t so distracted by his friend.
There was something about the younger man that mesmerized him. Perhaps it was how the lights and shadows played with his features, making his jawline more pronounced or how his dimples were more expressed as the sunlight hit him a certain way. Twice now he had to stop himself from reaching out and rubbing a thumb over the mole just beneath his cheek. In short, Luke could admire him all day as one would do the artwork in the Louvre… he is art.
Or maybe he was just madly in love as those cliche stories go. Lukey let out a light laugh, attracting Pangi’s attention.
“What are you laughing at?” His hazel eyes met the sunlight, immediately making him squint, but Lukey was once again dazzled—it's crazy how perfect the sun turned his eyes into gilded amber. Something he’d never noticed before, but noted down in his mind.
He offered a smile, “Nothing, just thinking how great it would be if you moved here ya know? We could be roommates or if not that, at least we could see each other every day instead of through the phone.”
“I don’t know man… It’ll be weird moving here and starting fresh.” Pangi huffed, stuffing his hands into his pockets. He was wearing the blue flannel Lukey wore out this morning when they had left his flat; throughout the day it had bounced between them and ended up with Pangi.
Blue looked good on him, especially his blue.
They walked in silence passing by an empty road and found themselves in some sort of garden. It had mottled pavement and high walls worn down by erosion and climbing ivy, a sight not really found in public areas. Were they trespassing, probably… not? Lukey hadn’t ever walked to this part of Brighton before, preferring walks on the beach and roads adjacent.
“Well, I’m not going to push you, but a lot of our friends are here so you wouldn’t be alone. I wouldn’t mind sharing my bed with you till you got your own.” Lukey flashed him a teasing smile, the events of this morning still fresh in his memory. “Always fun to wake up to a surprise, right?”
They’d been sharing said bed for about three days now; somehow, they kept gravitating towards each other in the middle of the night. They tactically kept quiet about it, both avoiding the blush that accompanied them in the morning as they untangled their arms and legs. There was definitely a conversation to be had, but Lukey knew when to push and pull.
Like professionals trained in PR, they both danced around the subject when friends came up to tease them or when subtle gazes lingered a little too long. Up until this morning… They got lost in enjoying each other’s presence, shirts off- it was sweltering even in the morning mind you- in Lukey’s bedroom with the windows open and sheets beneath their feet.
In a fit of boredom, Pangi decided to launch a tickle attack on him out of the blue. They both tumbled out of the bed, dragging the thin blanket along till they were both an entangled, giggling mess on the floor.
Pangi hovered over Lukey, holding the older boy’s wrists to either side of his head with a victorious grin, panting between laughs. Lukey was laughing too, painfully aware of their situation- his situation, but trying to brush it off with thoughts of cold water and the ugly smell of the alleyways outside.
Lukey couldn’t help but admire how comfortable they’d gotten with each other. Then, Pangi leaned back-
“AH!” x2
It was now the evening, bordering sunset. They’ve been outside the whole day, a seemingly massive diversion from their little experience in the morning. They had just gotten dinner with some of the Brighton crew before they went on their own and strayed off the main roads.
Lukey couldn’t lie, he didn’t know where they were heading or where they were, he just felt it was right to go here. If you avoid the occasional tombstone and grave markers it was quite a restful area with little to no people; no pun intended. Could there have been better places to take your crush on a walk-and-talk about feelings? Absolutely, the beach was right there. But, he’d promised himself before Pangi came to visit that he’d make it a memorable one regardless of the process.
“It’s not that I don't want to- just, let me think…” The younger boy paused again, his eyes scanning the surroundings and a hand rested beneath his chin, Lukey could almost hear the gears turning.
“Just… it’s a big commitment y’know? And-” he paused slightly, one eyebrow raised in worry and slowly pointed an index finger up in the air. It was a crypt, an undisguised one at that with carved angels on each side of its gates.
“Uh yeah, that’s what you think it is.”
“Sooo, we're in a graveyard? You took me to a graveyard and it's almost dark.” Pangi looked at him, his eyebrows raised in accusation, but it once again reflected the last rays of setting sun making it shine so prettily. “What are we doing here? Is this even allowed?!”
It was hard to keep himself from laughing- probably rude to do that in a graveyard anyway. Lukey’s eyes never strayed away, curved upwards in mirth as he raised both hands in innocence, “It wasn’t on purpose! I swear!”
It would’ve been more believable if his shoulders weren’t shaking up and down in an attempt to stifle his laughter.
“I thought it was a park!” As if fate was playing a prank they then saw a placard on a nearby wall, “St Nicholas Rest Garden”. Mouth slightly agape, Lukey couldn’t even be bothered to defend himself and busted out laughing.
He was swiftly met with a soft punch to his shoulder. “This isn’t funny! C’mon we might be arrested or fined for trespassing.” There was genuine concern in his voice.
“Dude, it’s fine. I mean the gates were open, right, and we passed by people on the way here.”
“Lukey…” Pangi pinched the bridge of his nose and slightly looked up, clearly feigning distress.
“Yes, Pangi?”
“Just let’s go, please?”
“Fiiine.” He wasn’t opposed to leaving considering it was getting dark and the surprise factor was already hit. But, they haven’t even talked yet which would defeat the whole reason they went out to begin with. He watched the other boy bring out a phone and pull up the map app, clearly zooming in and making a pointed effort to show it was indeed a graveyard, before typing in his address.
Eventually, they got to walking, making sure to go down streets with lights and not attempt to go through mysterious passageways lined by trees as they did before.
Lukey let Pangi take the lead, trailing slightly behind to admire the wind blowing his hair and flannel about. It was a beautiful night and the stars haven’t even come out yet.
“About this morning…” Pangi’s voice broke their silent strides. “I- I didn’t mean- didn’t know… you were…”
It was a rare sight to see him stutter, an even rarer sight was to see him blush below the collars of his shirt- not that he’d ever been paying attention before. Usually Pangi carried himself in confidence, taking tit for tat in their banter, making sure he always retaliated or ended things with a laugh. So it was endearing for Lukey to see him trying to avoid eye contact and watching mannerisms unknown to him unfold.
Granted it was dark- multitasking trying to walk, not trip, and admiring his close friend in front of him was quite a task. Yet, he caught on to the slight fidgeting the other did at the hem of the flannel or how he took quick glances from his peripheral as if to check if Lukey ran away.
“I’ve already gotten over it,” Lukey said in a relaxed tone, putting his hands behind his head before flashing him a smile. “It was the morning and well… hard to stay calm when someone hot is pinning down on the carpet half-naked y’know?”
Silence pervaded them again, noticeably this time Pangi made an effort to pull the shirt collars closer to himself.
With lips curved upwards he continued, “And it’s been awhile since I did anything alone; Tertle’s visit, the subathon, and then you came. Which- no harm done by the way, it was good you came. It was getting lonely in there.”
No response, so he continued.
“And I’ll keep saying it, it would be nice if you moved in. Would solve both our issues, since we both have attachment issues right?”
Pangi shook his head, still facing forward, “What about if you wanted to bring someone over?”
“Why would I wanna do that?”
“Well… you said you were lonely and didn’t have time alone…” There was apprehension in his voice, as if tip-toeing on glass shards. Sometimes Lukey wondered which of them was the more confident one, because in times like this he would say himself, to which Pangi’s loud retort would follow after.
“If…” He brought his hands to his pockets and caught up, matching his pace just enough for both of them to feel the warmth emanating from each other’s arms. “...we- uh- you moved in. I don’t think I would need to think about being alone.”
Pangi stopped at the intersection, almost having Lukey collide with him. He looked up before taking a deep breath and spoke with a shaky voice, “It’s gonna rain soon.”
“Yeah.”
“We should probably run home.”
“We could.”
They turned and faced each other, the glow of the streetlamp hovering over their heads as if a spotlight on a stage play- they, the leading actors. Both eyes wandered over the face of the opposite, lingering on small features they both enjoyed of the other. For Lukey, it was Pangi’s eyes and those eyebrows which could tell whatever the younger one was thinking. For Pangi, it was Lukey’s smile and how it indicated that another great idea would find its way out to keep them together.
There wasn’t even a hint of thunder before the rain fell in small batches, filling the air with an earthy coastal scent.
“It’s raining.”
“I think you’d be fine, you have my shirt.”
Hazel eyes questioned brown ones in a silent conversation; questioning, prodding, pushing for an answer. The rain continued to fall, making them both look like sopping wet cats as their hair soaked in the moisture, but gentle smiles formed on their faces.
“You mean it?”
“I’ve always meant it… with you.”
Hands found arms and shoulders to perch on as they stepped closer, feeling the breath of the other.
“Why didn’t you ever say anything?”
Lukey grinned and wiggled his eyebrows as an answer, promptly met by a light kick on the shin. “Fine… I was just worried I’d scare you off. You’re not exactly the confident type when it comes to feelings.”
“So, now we’re just making stuff up, huh?”
“If the shoe fits.”
There they stood under the cover of an umbrella of light as their lips touched; intimate flames surged in between grasping hands and gasps for air. Laugher broke through the downpour, as two souls found themselves entwined in ways beyond the characters they played. A memorable night in which Lukey 3000 and Pangi 100 of a different universe shared their hearts under a sky where the rain replaced the stars.