Alhaitham X Kaveh - Love and Logic

4. The Human Element

"What are you doing?"
Ahaitham's voice sounded muffled and distant as Kaveh watched blood drip down his fingers. He could feel his heart racing and he knew he had to get away as soon as possible. He looked at the door when he saw Alhaitham step in front of him. No, please, go away he thought to himself as he felt being pulled towards the couch. Everything was screaming, he couldn't hear a thing he said, but he knew his roommate was angry. Who was he kidding? Alhaitham probably wanted to kill him. He will be kicked out for sure. The words kept rushing through his head, he can't do this again.
"Do what again?"
Alhaitham's voice made him realise he was talking out loud. He watched as Alhaitham kneeled in front of him, putting the first aid box on the floor. He tried to grab Kaveh's hand but the blonde moved it away, mumbling something resembling an apology. Alhaitham rolled his eyes and grabbed it again, gentler this time as Kaveh looked away and bit his lip.
"It's a lamp, you can buy a new one. Stop apologising and let me take care of that wound. Would appreciate it if you waited for your wounds to heal before you break another lamp, " Alhaitham said while cleaning his wound. After examining it closely, he decided against the stitches. The wounds weren't deep, there were just a lot of them. It seems like Kaveh intentionally shattered the glass. Alhaitham looked up at Kaveh, who was still looking away. After taking all the pieces of glass out, he reached for a balm given to them by Tighnari. It would prevent infection as well as speed up the healing process. He glanced at Kaveh again, expecting him to yell as he started to apply the balm. He saw his eyes twitch, but other than that, nothing. When he was finished, he kept holding Kaveh's hand. He understood something else was wrong, but couldn't figure it out yet. He needed information.
He smells nice, Kaveh thought to himself. He would always smell like old books and wood. The fog in his brain started to dissipate as he took a deep breath. After what felt like an eternity he looked down and found Alhaitham staring at him. His emerald green eyes were focused on his red, it felt like tried to look into his heart. Romantic idiot, Kaveh thought to himself as he averted his eyes. He cleared his throat before thanking him: "Um... Thanks. I'll buy you a new lamp next week after ... Um the contracts." He stood up and pulled his hand away. Alhaitham nodded when a suitcase hovered into the room. Mehraks face changed from scared to happy when they saw Kaveh smile at them. The silver-haired man put away the box and told Kaveh they need to leave for the shops before it gets dark. Kaveh nodded and grabbed Mehrak on his way out of the house. Alhaitham was right behind him when he spotted something on the floor. He picked up some of the sand. Now, this is interesting he thought to himself. He locked the door behind him and caught up to Kaveh.

The city was beaming with life. Merchants were shouting their offers while people chatted among themselves. The air was full of smells from delicious meals or sweet alcoholic beverages. Alhaitham preferred death. He looked down at his list, trying to calculate the quickest way to get the shopping done. Before he could do that, Kaveh snatched the list away from him and skimmed through it. From his clearly annoyed expression, he could expect another outburst. Instead, Kaveh took a pen and added a few things, then he grabbed his hand and pulled him into the crowd. He tensed, expecting to bump into people, but to his surprise, Kaveh made sure they slipped through it with little to no physical contact. Alhaitham had no idea Kaveh could move through a crowd without making everyone notice him. They stopped at a small booth. Alhaitham raised his eyebrow in question when an elderly lady popped from under the counter. She seemed to have recognised his roommate as her face lit up at the sight of him. Her warm smile seemed to put Kaveh in a better mood.
"Kaveh, my dear, it's lovely to see you. Have you lost weight my dear?" with her last words she held Kavehs hand and gave him a worried look. Kaveh gave her a reassuring smile and shook his head.
"Of course not. How have you been Madam Terra? It's been too long since I last saw you. Is everything ok on the farm? How is Lily?" Alhaitham watched as Kaveh changed the subject. He worried his weight loss was a result of something more than just some sleepless nights. Before he could get lost in thought Madam Terra responded, her question at the end getting his attention: "Oh Lily is wonderful, you must come to visit sometime. She keeps asking for you. But enough about that. Who is the dashing young man with you today? Is he your...?"
Alhaitham saw Kavehs cheeks, more like his whole face, turn red before he quickly interrupted: "He is my friend. I promised to help him with the shopping."
Madam Terra smiled before turning to Alhaitham: "It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance. I am Terra and you are?"
Alhaitham gave her a nod before replying: "The pleasure is all mine. My name is Alhaitham. Kaveh and I are old friends."
His answer seem to please her as she nodded back and inquired: "It is always lovely meeting Kavehs friends. What can I help you with today?"
Kaveh cleared his throat, his blush slowly fading away as he handed her the list: "Khm, we wrote it all down here."
Madam Terra stifled a chuckle as she went over the list. She nodded as she went over it: "You can buy all of this from me, except for the Sunsiettas. Sadly they have been a bit difficult to acquire in the last few weeks."
Kaveh nodded when he heard Alhaitham ask: "Is there any specific reason?"
Madam Terra shook her head as she answered: "Oh nothing out of the usual dear. Most of the things I sell come from my farm and transporting it to my booth comes with its risks." She lowered her head again, looking at the list. Alhaitham saw his roommate's grip tighten as they listened to the merchant's answer. When he caught the Scribe looking at him, he lowered his head. Is he ashamed Alhaitham thought when Madam Terra called someone? A young boy, maybe ten ran up to them. His hair was full of leaves and he was missing one of his teeth. He smiled up at Kaveh when he recognised him. Does this man know everyone? Madam Terra whispered something to him. He nodded and ran in the direction of the crowd, disappearing as soon as he entered it.
Kaveh stared after him as the merchant began to prepare the items from their list. She was quick for her age, jumping around her booth. She even seemed to have picked a few additional items, but Alhaitham wasn't sure as he didn't see what Kaveh added. Kaveh was still looking at the crowd. He clenched his jaw as the boy returned, carrying a bag of Sunsietas in his arms. He gave them to Kaveh who thanked him and ruffled his already messy hair. The boy laughed and began to talk all over, making little sense. Alhaitham tried to ignore the babbling, feeling dizzy. The noise was slowly making him irritated as he closed his eyes and tried to focus on his breathing. Suddenly he felt something grab and squeeze his shoulder. He opened his eyes to find himself staring at Kaveh. He said something to the little boy who ran away again coming back a few seconds later with a bowl of fresh water and a towel. Kaveh guided him to sit down and put the wet towel against his forehead. It made him feel better, but he felt like something else was wrong. He saw Kaveh try to speak to him, but all he heard was white noise. Then Kaveh began to sign at him. Since when does he know sign language? Alhaitham thought before realising he was signing nonsense. He was intertwining his hands at his knuckles. Machine? What does Mehrak get to do with this? Then he realised he pointed at his ear, clearly frustrated with himself. Ear machine? Alhaitham opened and widened his eyes:" You want my earpieces?"
Kaveh nodded as he took something from one of Mehraks many compartments. Headphones. Huge golden headphones. He slowly nodded and Kaveh took off his earpieces and put his headphones on. It was then that Alhaitham realised why he did it. His earpieces were not working properly. Instead of soundproofing, they were only muffling the sound. He watched as Kaveh opened them and started to curse. From the look, he gave him he presumed it was his fault. Kaveh began to fix them, his face focused. Alhaitham would often forget Kaveh was deemed a genius by his Darshan. He worked as an architect now, but the blonde was not called the Light of Kshahrewar just because of his design skills. He would never admit any of this out loud. Alhaitham predicted he wouldn't hear the end of it then. He realised he could see most of the market from where he was sitting. Most people were arguing for a lower price or bumping into each other. Did Kareh intentionally take him away from the crowd? Why hasn't he shown him Terra's booth before? Another thing Alhaitham could never admit was that Kaveh, obnoxious as he was, made the whole shopping experience easier. He could just turn on his earpieces and let him argue with the merchants. When it wasn't intended for him, he came to enjoy his roommate's passion for fighting with people. Kaveh seemed to be done as he offered his earpieces to him. He switched them and let out a relieved sigh. Sweet silence.
Kaveh watched as Alhaithams face returned to its normal shade of pale. He saw he was about to say something when Madam Terra interrupted them. She gave them their items as she asked, looking at Kaveh: "Is he alright now? I can give you some medicine." Alhaitham shook his head as he answered: "I am ok, madam. Thank you for gathering everything. How much is it?"
Madam Terra told him the price. He count the Mora and gave her some more for her hospitality. Kaveh remembered the first time he made him leave a tip. They argued, Alhaitham not seeing the point in paying more than the price given. Kaveh felt embarrassed, thinking his classmate was insane. He sighed thinking about that night. It seemed so long ago. He saw both Alhaitham and Terra staring at him. He tried to put on a smile before thanking Madam Terra and grabbing two of the bags. Alhaitham stood up and picked up the other two while Mehrak hovered next to him. Their face was angry, but when they turned to him, they changed to happy one. Kaveh kissed Terra's cheek, promising to come to visit more often. As they were walking away Alhaitham saw Terra put her fist in her other hand and lift it, then point at Kaveh. Before he could respond, the woman turned away. He tried to connect the dots but he felt like there were still some holes in his theory. He realised he will need to get more information elsewhere since Kaveh refused to give him an explanation.
Interesting indeed.

Thank you for the kind comments. I hope you enjoyed reading this chapter.
:)