Snowdrop [Haikaveh]

December 24th: Morning After

A pounding in Kaveh's head stirs him from his sleep. He takes in his surroundings, disoriented by the strange room he wakes up in. This isn't his bedroom, he realises, panic rising in his chest.

He looks down at his clothes and notices a hoodie that he knows isn't his. It hangs loosely off his frame, his fingers disappearing into the sleeves. Given the cold air in the room, he appreciates the warmth. Apparently, whoever's bed he ended up in doesn't understand the value of heating.

He shuffles out of bed quietly, trying to find more clues as to where he is without alerting anyone else. But how many clues does he really require? The layout of the room is a mirror image to his own, and when he looks outside, he sees a familiar view. This leads to only one logical conclusion.

Somehow, someway, he ended up in Alhaitham's apartment last night.

How? Why? When? The questions race through his mind, but he is unable to recall anything from last night. One thing is certain: he had to have been extremely drunk.

He pushes through the door and into the living area, no longer feeling the need to hide. Alhaitham sits quietly, mug in one hand, newspaper in the other.

"Who still reads physical newspapers?" Kaveh says as he enters the room, announcing his presence.

"Who climbs over a 10th floor balcony in the middle of the night?" Alhaitham retorts, not considering Kaveh worthy of looking up from his paper.

"I'll have you kno-" Kaveh begins, ready to quip back but stops mid sentence, caught off guard by Alhaitham's words, "Wait, I'm sorry, what?"

Alhaitham lowers his paper and looks at Kaveh, his face filled with disbelief.

"You don't remember?"

"I know I got a little tipsy last night, but I'm not sure how I ended up here." Kaveh admits honestly because he didn't. He has an inkling he probably owes Alhaitham an apology, but doesn't act on it.

"You attempted another burglary. However, this time you chose to enter through my balcony." Alhaitham picks up his newspaper again, leaving Kaveh to figure out the details on his own.

"But, our balconies are separated by a barricade. How did I...?" Kaveh pauses to consider it, and hazy memories of the previous night flash through his mind.

"Did I... try to climb over the balcony?" Kaveh asks, his voice hesitant. Alhaitham hums in agreement, still not looking back up. "We're on the tenth floor!" Another hum from the uninterested man on the sofa. "I could have died!" Kaveh hisses, perplexed as to why he isn't getting a stronger reaction from Alhaitham.

"You almost did." Alhaitham finally speaks up, his tone neutral.

"What!?"

"I caught you at the last second. Got a bump on my ass to prove it."

"That's crass."

"That's the problem you see with all of this?" Alhaitham's tone shifts, anger now evident in his voice.

"Well I'm obviously fine, so-"

Alhaitham slams the paper down and stands up, and Kaveh takes a step back, shocked by the sudden change in the man's demeanour. He misinterpreted Alhaitham's casual attitude. What happened is a big deal, and Alhaitham was just trying not to snap at him.

"I'm sorry," Kaveh says quietly, looking down at the ground, "I'm not sure what happened, but I know it couldn't have been good."

"I'm not going to pry, but promise me something," Alhaitham closes the gap and places a hand on Kaveh's cheek. "Just come to me first before you get drunk like that," if Kaveh didn't know better, he'd think Alhaitham was pleading with him.

"I can do that." Kaveh agrees, happy that Alhaitham didn't ask more.