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The sound of the trampoline filled the tent; practicing my acrobatics, even though I was just an assistant, was a daily routine—a necessary training regimen if I were ever to perform like my other, perfect teammates. After a few hours of jumping on the trampoline and swinging on the trapeze in the air, I took a moment to rest, sitting down on one of the seats near the empty audience chairs.
"Bellissimo come sempre... (Beautiful as always…)" A voice startles me. Flo is sitting next to me, clapping softly. I jump when I hear him out of nowhere, but I smile when I see him next to me, holding out a bottle of water for me.
"Thanks, Flo..." I laugh, taking the bottle from his hand, gently brushing his fingers before opening it to quench my thirst, sipping the liquid slowly. "Maybe you'd like to practice with me...?"
"Mi piacerebbe tantissimo... Magari adesso...? Ho un po' di tempo libero... (I'd love to... Maybe right now...? I have some free time...)" Flo seems excited to spend time together, and so am I—I like spending time with Flo; he always cheers me up.
"Do you think you could teach me how to do what you do...? I'm not as flexible as you are... but I'd like to try..." I ask him, really hoping to spend time with him more than anything else.
Flo is silent for a moment, staring at me before nodding and smiling. He stands up and offers me his hand. "Certo... dai... (Sure... come on...)"
I don't hesitate to take his hand and follow him onto the stage. I feel a little nervous, having watched his movements in previous shows; I know just how much he can contort his body. Watching him has always been exciting, mesmerizing in a way, but trying it alongside him is on a whole other level.
I follow his lead, moving my body carefully, doing my best to twist around, and even though I can’t move exactly like Flo, I try anyway, getting scared when I lose my balance, closing my eyes when I think I’m going to hit the ground with a thud—luckily, Flo is faster and catches me.
For a moment, I freeze as I feel his hands on me, helping me stretch while keeping my balance so I don’t fall to the ground. I look at him in silence, without looking away. His touch is always warm and comforting to me, but like this—with our bodies in this position—I can feel him so close that my heart races inside my chest.
“Can I kiss you…?” I murmur without thinking, looking away in embarrassment, feeling my cheeks grow hot. For a second, I think he’s going to pull away, to let go of me, but his grip surprises me as it tightens. “Flo…?”
"Le cose che mi fai... (The things you do to me…)" Flo murmurs in a deep voice before slowly letting me go, letting out a heavy sigh.
I'm about to leave when he catches me off guard, pulling me close against him. I feel his hand slowly slide down my back, holding me tight against him before he covers my eyes with his other hand.
For a moment, I hear nothing but our breathing and the rapid beating of my heart, then I feel him move in front of me, and something brush against my lips. It’s slow, trembling as if holding back, and it takes me a few seconds to recover from the surprise, but I return his kiss gently, savoring the warm sensation of his lips against mine.
We spend a long moment like this, enjoying our time together, before I gently pull away, needing to catch my breath, my eyes still covered.
“That was…” I mutter, trailing off as I catch my breath.
“Perfect…” Flo adds. I laugh softly, moving closer to him, gently touching his hand without letting go.
“Yeah... although...” I smiled, moving even closer to him with my eyes closed, guiding myself by gently touching him, pulling him closer to me, tilting him downward as I tugged at his suit. “Maybe I want to practice a little more...”