We meet again [Elisop]

Chapter 4

After their fortuitous encounter, the two men were not going to stand around in the store like this. Instead, Aesop suggested to his best friend to come to his house to have tea and talk in peace. Fortunately, the gray-eyed young man didn't live that far away, only a few minutes' walk, so they arrived at his house in the blink of an eye. The embalmer was of course the one to lead the way, as this was his home. He passed a silver key in the lock of the door and opened it, inviting his friend the diviner to follow him inside. The warmth of the house, drastically different from the temperature outside, enveloped them immediately when they stepped inside.

The walls were covered with a pure white wallpaper and the floor was made of ebony wood. The decoration was simple and there was nothing unnecessary, a few portraits were hanging on the wall. It was typically the style of the owner of the place, thought the diviner, another smile brightening his face. Aesop indicated to Eli to do as he pleased and to settle down in the living room while waiting for him to prepare the tea. The diviner did as he was instructed and sat down on the sofa. There were really the bare necessities in the room, a table a little further away for dinner with chairs around it, the couch he was on as well as an armchair on the side if someone preferred more privacy, then finally a shelf with a large number of books.

After a few minutes of waiting, the young man with the ashen hair returned with a tray containing a teapot and two teacups. He placed it on the small table in front of the sofa and served each of them a cup before sitting down beside him. The sweet smell of green tea mixed with an ounce of rose petals soothed the minds of both men and seemed perfect to start their conversation. Well, there was so much to talk about that they didn't know where to start, to be honest. Eventually, the soothsayer was the first one to speak and he started talking about the reason of his arrival here, he suspected that the embalmer had questions about this subject since he knew that the latter had a fiancée waiting for him.

"So... She chose her career over your relationship... when you promised to establish your future together...?"

These words uttered by Aesop seemed to have a touch of bitterness. Eli had always said only good things about his beloved but after telling him this, the embalmer could not really see the young woman in a positive light. The seer with the blindfold had gone to this dangerous manor for her and for him and she was just getting rid of all the effort he had put in ? For what, a fortune that would supposedly bring her more happiness than the love of her fiancé, or rather ex-fiancé ? Eli had probably noticed the discontent of his friend because he put a reassuring hand on his which was closed on itself to form a fist in addition to the wrinkle between his eyebrows.

"You don't have to be mad for me... In fact, I don't think I loved her as much as I used to after I came back..."

The seer decreed this while sketching a smile for his friend. He really meant what he said and hoped that he could understand that he had already moved on. Fortunately for him, he could be grateful that he had a best friend like Aesop who knew how to be understanding. Aesop returned his smile, although it couldn't really be seen because of his mask, but the crinkling of his eyes revealed it slightly. Their hands were still intertwined and neither of them seemed to want to remove his. So they stayed that way for the rest of their discussion, exchanging laughter, an occasional tear falling as they remembered the manor. Time flies when you're enjoying the presence of another, and before they knew it, the sun had already disappeared over the horizon. 

Instead of going to the inn, Aesop insisted that Eli stay at his house for the time of his stay. That would avoid him to spend his money too quickly and thus to make savings so this one accepted with joy. The seer could really not have dreamed of a better friend than the frail boy with the gray eyes. Well, he didn't seem to be as fragile as he used to be. Aside from his different attire, he had indeed become more colorful and his body finally looked like that of a young man of his age rather than one who seemed to suffer from malnutrition. He couldn't help but chuckle at the thought and gave the boy a light friendly pat on the shoulder.

Aesop turned abruptly at the touch and despite Eli's blindfold, their eyes had definitely met. The smaller boy's face flushed for some reason. The seer felt his heart clench as he saw him display such an expression. What was it ? Just now, Aesop's face looked so damn adorable that one could faint, or was it Eli's mind playing tricks on him ? Who could feel that way about his best friend after all, unless he had finally gone mad ? It was true that since he had left the countryside, he had not spent his nights peacefully. He swept these thoughts from his head, all this had to be one of the consequences of his lack of sleep. There was no other reason... Maybe.

There was a spare room in the house, so Aesop lent it to his friend the diviner. It was in the same style as the rest of the house, that is to say in black and white tones, a pot of yellow roses placed on the dresser to add a bit of color. He also lent him a change of clothes, as Eli was desperately short of them. Most of the time he wore the same outfit covering most of his body. Even in Oletus, he was rarely seen wearing other attires. For the next day, Aesop decided to take him to the tailor's shop at all costs to fix that. But for the rest of the evening, they shared a meal together as they did at the manor, the embalmer preferring to stay away from the crowd, the two often ate in his room so that he did not feel alone and the latter appreciated this gesture very much. Finally, the two fell asleep each in their room and for the first time in a long time, this night of sleep was going to be one of the best that they had...

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Just wanted to show you Eli Longing Tiger that I just finished after 6 hours-