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Avoma had been talking about it all week.
Not subtly, either.
“Mate, I swear I’ve actually done it this time.”
Neo didn’t even look up from his phone. “Done what.”
“Pulled someone.”
That got a glance.
Neo raised a brow, pausing just long enough to register the words before returning to his screen. “You say that every two weeks.”
“Yeah, but this time it’s real.”
“Mhmm.”
Avoma scoffed, dragging a hand through his hair and letting out a dramatic huff, leaning back slightly on the couch as if to emphasize his point. “You’re such a hater.”
“I’m realistic.”
---
By the time Friday rolled around, Avoma was pacing around the apartment like he had somewhere to be.
Which—he did.
Avoma was practically bouncing in his seat, trying not to fidget too obviously. His coffee had long since gone cold, forgotten in the swirl of excitement buzzing through him.
He kept glancing at his phone, rereading the last text from her, smiling like an idiot.
"Can’t wait for tonight," it read.
He grinned so wide he thought someone might actually see the cheese radiating off him.
“Mate,” he murmured to himself, leaning back and letting the chair creak, “I actually have rizz.”
He scrolled through his social media, half-checking notifications, half-checking himself in the reflection of the glass across the street.
Every time a message pinged, he checked it immediately, heart hammering like he’d just run up a flight of stairs.
Tonight was a date. And he had a real chance to impress. Not just charm someone online. Not just flirt through screens. This was real.
---
The cafe was dim, cozy, and pulsing with soft jazz under low lights. Avoma led the way, walking with that calm, deliberate confidence that always fooled people into thinking he was fully composed, even when his chest was practically leaping out of his chest.
She met him with a grin that sent a jolt of adrenaline through him.
“You made it,” she said, her tone teasing.
“Yeah,” Avoma breathed, almost forgetting to return her smile, “wouldn’t miss it.”
They ordered drinks, settling into a corner booth. Avoma’s leg brushed hers under the table, and he deliberately didn’t move it.
She laughed softly at his obvious lovesick giddiness.
“You’re… different in person,” she said, leaning forward to rest her elbow on the table. “I mean, I knew you were charming online, but…”
Avoma’s grin widened. “Mate, you haven’t seen anything yet.”
And he proceeded to show her.
They touched casually, elbows brushing, hands grazing when reaching for drinks. Avoma leaned in close to whisper, and she laughed when he murmured something cheeky under his breath.
Every time she giggled, his chest filled with warmth. He was completely, utterly giddy, like a teenager sneaking into his first movie without permission.
---
The date, somehow, went well.
Better than expected.
She was easy to talk to, laughed at his jokes, leaned in just enough to make it obvious she was interested. They ended up sitting closer than necessary, shoulders brushing, hands occasionally touching and not pulling away.
At some point, it turned into one of those overly cheesy conversations that shouldn’t work—but did.
“You’re actually kinda funny,” she said.
“Kinda?” Avoma scoffed. “That’s offensive.”
She smiled. “Don’t push it.”
They both laughed.
Then—
“Let’s go somewhere else,” she said.
Bad idea.
---
A couple drinks at the bar turned into a few more.
Not blackout drunk.
Just enough to blur the edges.
Enough that everything felt warmer, easier, louder—the music thumping lightly under the chatter, the lights softening the world around them.
She leaned into him more openly now, her hand resting on his arm, fingers tracing lazy, teasing patterns that made his chest tighten a little. Avoma didn’t pull away.
If anything, he leaned in too, matching her ease, his shoulder brushing hers as they moved slightly with the rhythm of the room.
“Your place or mine?” she asked, casual—but not really, her tone lingering just enough to let him feel the weight of it.
Avoma blinked once, caught for a fraction of a second.
Then grinned. “Mine.”
---
The walk back was messy.
Not in a bad way.
Just… uncoordinated.
They were laughing too loud, bumping into each other, hands grabbing onto sleeves, wrists, whatever they could reach to steady themselves.
At one point she pulled him by the collar just to kiss him quickly—nothing deep, just enough to make him pause mid-step.
“Wha—” he started, half-laughing.
“Shut up,” she said, smiling.
He didn’t argue.
---
They barely made it through the apartment door before she was pulling him in again.
This time more direct.
Hands on his jacket, pushing him back a step as their lips met properly.
Avoma laughed, breath uneven, hands already finding her waist as they collided again.
It was messy, slightly off, a bit uncoordinated because of the alcohol—but it worked.
Avoma laughed against her mouth, soft and low. “Hang on—”
He leaned back just slightly, breaking the kiss for a breath.
Avoma nudged her toward the bathroom. “Go freshen up, yeah? I’ll wait here.”
She giggled, swaying slightly, and stepped into the bathroom. “Five minutes.”
She disappeared toward the bathroom, giving him a flirtatious look over her shoulder.
The door shut behind her with a soft click.
---
Avoma stood there for a moment.
Blinking.
Processing.
The faint echo of their laughter still hung in the air.
Then he dragged a hand over his face, exhaling a short, almost nervous laugh.
“Mad,” he muttered to himself, shaking his head.
He turned, stepping further into the apartment, adjusting his stance as if to shake off the warmth and chaos of the moment—
—and that’s when he saw someone sitting on the couch.
Avoma froze.
Blinked.
Avoma stood there for a second.
Processing… nothing.
---
Neo was still on the couch.
Same position.
Same silence.
The soft hum of the apartment, faint city noises from outside, nothing moved except the tiny flicker of the overhead light.
---
Avoma turned.
Squinted, brow furrowed for just a second as he tried to place what he was seeing.
Walked over, steps slow, casual, though there was a tension in the way he moved that wasn’t there before.
---
“You’re quick,” he muttered, dropping down beside him. "Could've told me you were done."
Neo blinked slowly. “What?”
Too late.
Avoma slid his arm down Neo’s waist, hand settling on the small of his back, warm and firm, the contact just enough to anchor him.
Then he kissed him.
Hard.
The kiss was sudden, unplanned, and completely consuming, a sharp contrast to the quiet calm that had been in the room seconds before.
It was messy, confused, and completely electric—the kind of kiss that made the world outside disappear, even for a moment.
---
It wasn’t hesitant.
Not even a little.
It was direct. Firm. Like he’d already decided this was exactly what he was supposed to be doing.
Neo froze for half a second.
Then—
“—what the fu—”
The rest got cut off because Avoma kissed him again.
Harder this time.
“—the fuck are you doing?” Neo mumbled against his mouth.
Avoma didn’t even process the voice difference.
Didn’t process anything.
Just leaned back in.
Hands coming up to the side of Neo’s face, thumb brushing his jaw like it was automatic.
Neo made a muffled sound against his mouth.
That should’ve been where it stopped.
It didn’t.
---
Neo shoved at his shoulder.
Weakly.
“Avoma—”
“Mm—”
“You’re—”
Another kiss.
Messy.
Off-angle.
The warmth of Avoma’s lips lingered longer than it should have, brushing against Neo’s in ways that made his chest tighten.
Neo exhaled sharply through his nose.
“Avoma—”
Avoma laughed quietly under his breath, soft and easy, like this was nothing but part of the evening, part of a game he somehow already knew the rules to.
Neo went still again, frozen for a moment, heartbeat racing, mind buzzing.
Then—against his better judgment—kissed back.
Just for a second.
Just to—
He didn’t even know why.
The second stretched impossibly long, yet it ended as abruptly as it had begun, leaving a flicker of heat, a trace of breath, and the faint hum of tension hanging quietly between them.
---
The girl finally emerged, ready to continue her own flirty plans.
She froze.
Her jaw literally dropped.
Avoma and Neo were mid-kiss, hands clutching at each other like this had been going on for hours.
Avoma leaned over the couch, kissing Neo like he’d completely forgotten the world existed. Neo half-twisted under him, hand still gripping his collar, clearly mid-“what is happening” but not actually stopping it.
There was a long silence.
The kind of silence that stretched just long enough for the absurdity of the situation to fully settle in, the hum of the apartment and the faint flicker of the fridge somehow amplifying the quiet.
Then—
“Right.”
Her voice was soft, almost careful, carrying a mixture of realization and irritation, but not quite loud enough to break the lingering tension.
She grabbed her bag from the nearby chair, the strap sliding easily over her shoulder.
Walked straight to the door, each step deliberate, almost like she wanted to make sure the moment landed just right.
Paused for a fraction, hand on the doorknob, a fleeting glance that neither Neo nor Avoma caught.
And then she left.
The sound of the door closing echoed lightly, marking her absence, leaving only Neo and Avoma in the quiet aftermath.
Neither of them noticed.
The room settled back into its usual low hum, but the awkward weight of what had just happened lingered in the atmosphere.
---
It took a solid few more seconds before Neo actually pushed Avoma off properly.
“Okay—no—stop—”
Avoma blinked, pulling back slightly.
“What the—Neo?”
Neo stared at him.
“…You’re an idiot.”
“Wait—”
Avoma frowned.
Looked at him.
Really looked this time.
Then glanced toward the hallway.
Then back at Neo.
“…Hang on.”
Neo squinted. “What.”
Avoma blinked again.
“…Where’s did she—”
Neo stared.
Then slowly turned his head toward the bathroom.
Door open.
Empty.
Then toward the front door.
Also open.
"go.."
A pause.
Then—
Neo started laughing.
Like, full-on laughing.
Head dropping back against the couch.
“You’re actually—oh my god—you’re so stupid.”
Avoma just stood there.
Processing.
“Oh, that’s bad.”
“That’s BAD?” Neo wheezed. “You made out with me instead of your date and THAT’S your takeaway?”
“I thought you were her!”
“How?!”
“I don’t know, it was dark!”
Neo laughed harder. “I’m literally not even the same person.”
“Alright, relax—”
“No, that’s insane.”
Avoma ran a hand through his hair, pacing once. “Okay, yeah, that’s—yeah, that’s not great.”
Neo wiped at his eyes. “Not great, he says.”
---
“…Wait, you kissed back.”
Neo froze.
“…shut up.”
Avoma smirked slightly. “Just sayin’.”
“Shut. Up.”
“You did.”
“Because you didn’t stop!”
“You didn’t either!”
Neo grabbed a pillow and threw it at him.
“Get out of my face.”
Avoma caught it, laughing now too.
“Alright, alright—”
Neo was still grinning despite himself.
“Next time,” he muttered, “at least make sure it’s the right person.”
Avoma tilted his head.
“…Yeah.”
A pause.
Then—
“Wasn’t bad though.”
Neo blinked.
“Avoma.”
“Yeah?”
“Shut up.”
---
(BONUS SCENE!!)
After sobering up a bit, Avoma speaks up again, much to Neo's dismay.
"Soo… uh, you still wanna make out?"
Neo just stares at him with the most deadpan expression.
“No.”