Chapter Text
Heavy rain pounded down on Alhaitham’s umbrella as his feet sunk into the mud with each step. A flash of lighting filled the sky.
The weather was fitting for this somber night.
A line of yellow police tape marked that Alhaitham and Tighnari were in the right spot. Cyno turned his head as the two men approached, excusing himself from the conversation he was having with a fellow officer before ducking below the tape and stopping in front of them.
The look on Cyno’s face told Alhaitham everything he needed to know. He hadn’t wanted to believe what he heard when he had received the phone call from Cyno nearly half an hour prior.
Alhaitham had been sitting on the couch, deep into a new novel and a cup of tea when he heard the phone ring. Being here now made him wish that he had never picked up. The little food he had eaten today turned in his stomach, threatening to make a reappearance.
“Oh, God.” Tighnari whispered, his free hand going to his mouth while the other shook as he clutched the end of his umbrella.
Alhaitham let out a shaky breath as he looked past Cyno at the group of officers that were surrounding a small area on the shore of the lake.
Cyno moved in front of Alhaitham, blocking his view of the scene. “We received a call from a group of teenagers just before sunset. They were walking along the shore when they spotted…” He swallowed, not wanting to finish. “They spotted a body that had washed up.”
“Fuck,” Alhaitham muttered, fishing the pack of cigarettes from his pocket. He drowned out the rest of Cyno’s words as he pushed a cigarette between his lips. His hand shook as he lit it.
Kaveh, what the fuck happened to you?
They had found a body. They had found Kaveh . After a week of being missing he had turned up. He had turned up dead .
Smoke filled Alhaitham’s lungs as he took a long draw from his cigarette. He watched as Tighnari flung himself at Cyno, wrapping his arms around his boyfriend’s neck. A wrecked sob left his mouth.
Alhaitham exhaled as he turned his head from the couple. He could see more detectives and a forensics team arriving on scene. It left him wondering just how bad of a condition Kaveh was in.
A bad enough condition for him to be dead.
How many days ago was he killed? When was his body dumped in the lake? How did he die? Questions swarmed Alhaitham’s head.
He had seen Kaveh two days before he was reported missing. Alhaitham had thought that Kaveh was just ignoring his texts. It made sense, they were exes and their last conversation hadn’t been the best. He also had thought that maybe he had drank too much and was stuck in his apartment with a hangover, a typical weekend. Alhaitham had probably been the last person Kaveh saw before he was killed. He might have even been killed on his way back from Alhaitham’s apartment.
When Cyno knocked on his door five days ago, he had never expected that he would be hearing that Kaveh had gone missing. Apparently Tighnari had gone to his apartment and there was no answer, so he used the spare key given to him. Kaveh wasn’t there and neither were his phone, wallet, or keys. No calls and texts were going through to him either. His location services were turned off. It was if he had simply dropped off the grid.
Alhaitham had tried not to worry. When Tighnari joined him and Cyno at his apartment, he reassured them that Kaveh had probably just gone to visit his mom and forgot to tell someone. He was forgetful, that was his excuse. But deep down, a fear brewed in Alhaitham who knew something wasn’t right. Kaveh would never just disappear without a good reason.
Now he was dead. He was dead. Kaveh was fucking dead.
A hand on his shoulder snapped him out of his thoughts. Alhaitham whipped his head around to face Cyno. “They’re going to have to take you in for questioning, Alhaitham.”
“Right now?” Alhaitham’s voice was that of a whisper.
Cyno chewed on his bottom lip. “I know now isn’t the best time for you and I’m sure this is all coming as a shock.” Cyno swallowed. “But you were the last one to be seen with him before he disappeared.”
Alhaitham froze, “What?” The cigarette continued to burn between two fingers, smoke slowly winding its way into the night sky. “Do you… Cyno, do you think I did this?”
“No. Gods no, Alhaitham! I’m just doing my job, okay? This is all protocol and I’m in a tight spot right now. All of his friends are going to have to be questioned. Hell, I’m probably going to be questioned too.” Cyno ran a hand through his white hair. “I’m probably going to be kicked off of this case too. I was his friend.”
The word “was” stings Alhaitham. He felt dizzy.
He dropped the cigarette and snuffed it out with the bottom of his shoe. “Okay.”
— — —
Alhaitham stared past the officer in front of him at the blank walls of the interrogation room. A cold cup of black coffee sat in front of him. He wasn’t sure how much time had passed since he got here. The clock in the room wasn’t working, forever stuck at 7:16. All he knew was that the officer was going to keep trying to press him for answers he didn’t have.
He tried to stay calm, he really did. But it was hard when a police officer was staring him down asking the same question three different ways to try to get a different answer out of him. Alhaitham’s answers stayed the same each time. He was adamant that he had nothing to do with Kaveh’s death.
However, the lump he felt in his throat wanted to say otherwise. He shouldn’t have let Kaveh leave his apartment. He should have apologized for arguing, offered him a drink, something to make him stay. Even if he wasn’t the one who actually killed Kaveh, what if he had inadvertently killed him. Maybe if Kaveh had left five minutes later it would have been someone else’s body floating in that lake and he would still be here.
“Like I said the last two times you asked me that same question, I have no idea what happened after Kaveh left my apartment. He didn’t tell me where he was going. He didn’t say goodbye. He left and he was angry.” Alhaitham clenched his jaw. He knew the officer was doing his job, trying to get a rise out of him and have him confess. He wasn’t Kaveh’s murderer though.
But he was sure as hell going to find out who was.
Cyno waited in his car outside of the police station, hands on the wheel, gripping tightly as he was lost in thought. He was good at blocking out his feelings. He saw dead bodies all the time, but none of them had ever been one of his friends. He would grieve silently, he would keep it together until the person who had murdered his friend was locked away forever. Maybe then he would let tears shed.
He had brought Tighnari back to their apartment after dropping off Alhaitham for the interrogation. He had been a wreck when Cyno left him, curled up in bed and sobbing. His heart broke seeing his boyfriend like that. Anyways, both Alhaitham and Tighnari could get their cars from the lake tomorrow, he didn’t want either one driving alone today.
The storm had cleared and the stars were visible in the sky once Cyno finally saw Alhaitham walking towards his car. Alhaitham’s hands were shoved in his pants pockets, he wore a straight face, he looked too relaxed. He opened the passenger door and got in, sighing as he shut the door and buckled his seatbelt.
“How did it go?” Cyno looked over at the other before shifting his car into drive.
“As well as you would expect.” Alhaitham looked out the window, “I’m pretty sure they think that I did this.”
“You’re the most obvious suspect, Alhaitham. Of course they’re going to think you did it when you were the last one to see him. Just don’t take them questioning you so intensely to heart, that’s their job. I’m sure you’ll be called back eventually too. I’m going to be questioned tomorrow and so will Tighnari.” Cyno tapped his fingers on the wheel as he drove. “Are you sure you’ll be alright alone tonight? You can always stay over with me and Nari. We have a guest room.”
Alhaitham was quick to shoot back an answer. “I’ll be fine at home.” He just wanted to nurse himself on a bottle of whiskey until he fell asleep.
The rest of the drive home was silent aside from the radio faintly playing dad rock in the background. Alhaitham thanked Cyno for the ride when he got out of the car. He fished his keys from his jacket pocket and walked into his building, opting for the stairs instead of the elevator to get to his fifth floor apartment. He needed to tire himself out somehow.
When he was finally inside his apartment with the doors locked, that’s when he broke down. The second his eyes fell on the table where he and Kaveh had had their last conversation, something snapped inside of him. Tears streamed down his cheeks and his chest felt tight. He grabbed the bottle of whiskey that had been sitting on the counter in the kitchen and went to the couch.
“Kaveh, fuck. Why did you leave? Why did I let you?” Alhaitham sobbed to himself as he opened the bottle, flicking the cap off. He exhaled shakily as he took a drink. The burn in his throat and his chest warmed him, it hurt so good. “It’s my fault, it’s all my fault!” He yelled into the emptiness of his apartment. It had never felt so empty, even when Kaveh hadn’t been living there the last five months.
— — —
Kaveh was frozen as he stood in the corner of the room by the front door, watching the back of Alhaitham’s head as he drank and cried, talking to himself and unaware Kaveh could hear every word. How badly would it scare Alhaitham if he knew the ghost of his dead ex-boyfriend was watching him right now? He didn’t even know why he was here. He shouldn’t be here.
He was dead, he knew that. He just couldn’t accept it. So, he chose to haunt the life of the one man he had loved until his last breath. Even through their breakup and pointless fight before he died, he always loved Alhaitham. Alhaitham who softened up around him, Alhaitham who would steal all the blankets when they shared a bed, Alhaitham who would bring Kaveh home his favorite soup, Alhaitham who always kissed Kaveh before leaving for work. He couldn’t let go of the man he used to know so well.
It broke his (unbeating) heart to see Alhaitham in this state. He was a wreck because of Kaveh’s stupid decisions that day that had gotten him killed. Of course, he couldn’t remember many details from his death, and he found he couldn’t speak of it out loud. He didn’t even know if Alhaitham would be able to see or hear him. Maybe it was for the best if he didn’t. Maybe Kaveh could just watch him and protect him like a guardian angel.
When Alhaitham had finally lulled himself to sleep with alcohol, Kaveh approached the couch. He dropped down onto his knees, looking at the tear stained face of the other, his hand still clutching the alcohol bottle as he snored. Kaveh sighed and ran a hand down the other’s cheek gently.
If only Alhaitham could know it wasn't his fault.
