astray

chapter 3

haruto tied a knot on his left wrist, the new wrapped bandage not stained by any pollen or dust.

until now he has been watchful, either checking from time to time on the boy whether he has woken up or not, or glancing at him from the corner of his eye.

he has been guarding over the bed he laid the boy on before, but the itchiness soon became unbearable, and fearing the inflammation of the cuts he proceeded to put on cleaner gauze dressing.

the moment his vigilance mellowed, a mellifluous voice rang in his ears.

"are you hurt?"

standing by the kitchen counter, he nearly jumped high, his head hitting the ceiling. and, believe it or not, with his impressive height, nothing was impossible.

his eyes, previously drawn onto the meticulous bandaging process, flew to the one sitting upright on the sheets. he could not stutter anything, still gawking, to stunned to speak.

there was a distance between them, yet haruto once again felt enchanted by the other's beauty. completely out of this world. thinking there was nothing that could hypnotize him more, a soft giggle, like birds chirping, escaped the boy's mouth.

"did you hear me?" he asked, a tinge of naiveness and simplicity filthered in his voice, "are you hurt?"

the ivory, index finger raised, pointing at haruto's wounded hands. the black-haired boy felt embarrassed, putting both of his palms behind his back.

remaining silent, he approached the boy. sitting down on the edge of the bed, they gazed at each other.

his irises were brimmed with golden hue, fluid that seemed to be very lazily gliding, locked in the circle basin.

"what's your name?"

was the first sentence haruto addressed to the other, hoping he needn't call him "angel", "fairy" or "deity" inside his mind anymore.

usually, people could answer such simple, introductory question almost immediately. the replay, alas, did not come.

"I thought..." after slight hesitation, the boy looked down, "you would tell me."

silence prevailed again. the house seemed desolate, strange, just like haruto could remember it from the days before he brought a golden boy here.

"you don't know?"

response being only a tiny nod, as if the boy felt ashamed of something that was not his fault at all, rendered haruto to say more. he couldn't stand seeing the other so morose.

"I will name you then."

they locked eyes again. the myriad of spangles now whirling in the boy's eyes, full of hope and anticipation. haruto's lips twitched, his heart's strings much exercised.

"let me call you a dreamy boy."

"dreamy boy?"

"my dreamy boy."

the boy, just given a new name, flashed him a beautiful, amiable smile, which was soon reciprocated.

haruto had countless questions more to ask.

"why were you asleep in the rape seed field?"

the boy did not know.

"do you have any relatives? do you know where you live?"

he did not remember.

"wha-" haruto trailed off the last moment, before the question "what are you?" made it out his lips. it sounded out of place, impolite. "why would you, do you have any ideas, why would you end up on the rapeseed fields?"

his dreamy boy lost his memories, haruto had no doubt about it after this brief, sufficing interrogation. still, he felt a gentle tugging in his chest, watching how the boy put the earnest effort, searching his mind for answers.

"I might have been looking for something."

they had no traces, nothing to act as a guide, no one to lead the way. nevertheless, haruto felt a new wave of energy, as he vowed solemnly to the other to find out his identity and his past.

his dreamy boy at first a bit flabbergasted, now relaxed his muscles and smiled yet again, his eyes winking rapidly, fighting of the tears that suddenly huddled in underneath the eyelashes. the gilt powder, being dependent fully on the owner's movement, now sprinkled from the tips of his eyelashes onto his cheekbones.

haruto, being repeatedly entranced by the dreamy view in front, forgot himself and subconsciously drew closer to his face.

the one to close the distance between their lips, though, was the golden boy.

it was a soft, chaste kiss. too brief to turn into something deeper, too sweet to forget. as they parted, haruto's tongue unconsciously licked his lips, being unaware that residue of gilt powder remained on his mouth.

"thank you."

whilst haruto reminded one of a rose, blushing hard, the other boy's marble skin maintained its inherent hue.

"is-is it how you say thank you in the place you come from?"

his dreamy boy shrugged his arms, indicating that about it he had no information whatsoever.

"probably. I really felt like doing so."

the silence prevailed once again, but this time it was the silence from the voices. as haruto leaned closer, their lips met one more time.

the pleasant warmth spilled in his heart, diffusing into his blood, pure gold now circulating in his veins. 

// ✧ //