Technicolor Daze [Currently Being Edited]

thirty-two.

Saturday, July 19th, 2014

Nervous. Extremely nervous. That's how Noah was feeling at that precise moment. Theo could tell by the speed at which Noah was talking. 

"Should I buy something on the way home to bring over to your parents'? You told me your mom loves wine and they have a nice selection of wines at San Miu, so I could just head there and get something. Or should I buy something else?" 

He had just finished his appointment with his therapist and was almost arriving home when he called Theo. Theo felt a warmth in his heart when he saw his boyfriend worried about meeting his family. It showed him just how much Noah cared about him.

He'd had asked Noah at the beginning of the week if he wanted to have lunch with his family that Saturday. Noah was hesitant at first because he'd never dated anyone seriously and thus never met any of his partners' parents, so he didn't know what to expect. After Theo reassured him that his parents would love him and that they were excited to meet him, he accepted the invitation. His mom was over the moon when Theo told her over the phone.

"Relax, I'm at Park N Shop right now buying some wine. You just have to head home and get ready," Theo was browsing the shelves of the liquor aisle at the supermarket, looking for the bottle he wanted. He knew his mom was a fan of Sauvignon Blanc, so he kept his eyes peeled for that specific bottle.

"Are you sure? I'm standing in front of San Miu and I can buy something..." Noah insisted.

"Noh, don't worry. I'm already sorting out the wine and my mom told us that we don't have to bring anything else. Just take a deep breath, go home and I'll be there soon," Theo said in a reassuring tone of voice.

Theo heard Noah taking a deep breath before saying, "Okay, I'll see you at your place. I should be there in five minutes."

"Found the wine," Theo said as he grabbed the bottle he sought, "Just gotta pay and I'll head home. See you."

"Tschüss," Noah hung up.

Theo was looking through his wallet to check if he had enough money for the wine as he walked towards the cashier. However, as he wasn't paying attention to what was happening around him, he ended up bumping into someone.

"M hou ji si," Theo apologized to the person in Cantonese, but as he looked at the man he'd bumped into, he froze.

"Theo?" In front of him stood a man he hadn't seen in months - Flávio.

"Hey, Flávio," Theo awkwardly said, "Long time no see."

"Yeah..."

A beat of uncomfortable silence.

Both men just looked at each other unsure of what to say. They hadn't seen each other since that shameful night. The night when Theo took his drunken frustrations out on Flávio, treating him like a mere whore. Once his eyes met Flávio's, the feelings of repulsion and regret that he'd buried deep in his heart rose to the surface once again. 

Although Flávio looked apprehensive about engaging in conversation with Theo, he seemed to be doing well.  In fact, Theo had to admit that he still looked amazing. He hadn't lost his exotic boyish charm that he'd found attractive when he first met Flávio and his eyes had recovered the glimmer he had stolen that wretched night. His hair was much shorter than the last time he'd seen him and Theo thought it suited him.  

Seeing as Flávio was still standing in front of him and hadn't turned and walked away, Theo decided to ask a simple, "How've you been?"

"Good. I've been good. And you?" Flávio shifted the weight of his body onto his left foot, looking slightly uncomfortable and almost itching to leave the conversation, but not wanting to be rude. He'd always been too nice for his own good.