Pretentiously Simple | Kleo ✔️

13 | finally together, a moment at last

when he let me inside, i could see that he was still awake. there was slightly depressing music playing in the background alongside a few cigarettes with a blanket by the sofa. he apologized for the mess, and i simply forgave him. my place wasn't so tidy, either.

leo turned the lights on and led me to the couch, taking the blanket and handing it to me. after putting mia to bed in his room, then grabbing a glass half full of water and bringing it to his lips, we began our conversation.

"do you want anything to drink?" he asked, and i shook my head no. i didn't come for a drink. i came for one thing and one thing only.

"just stay with me, please." i looked at him, swollen eyed and vulnerable. his eyes shifted up and down, studying my features and taking in my presence.

"okay." he responded, not because he felt like there was no other choice, but because the thought of leaving his best friend helpless like that was something he could not live with.

i lended him half of the large blanket and leaned against him in relief. i was so tired, i didn't even realize it until now. my body felt like it had given up, and i knew i wouldn't be able to rise from my spot any time soon.

i closed my eyes, dubiously so, as i was very exhausted i might've fallen asleep. but i wanted to hear his voice, feel his warmth, see his pretty face. fighting back the demons that put me to sleep was a hard task, and the battle between giving in and staying strong felt like a battle i could not win alone.

but then at the randomness of time, i heard his voice that sounded like a whisper to my faded hearing and fatigued mind.

"i'm not seeing her anymore." was what i could make out. it was a whisper above my freshly washed head of hair.

suddenly the weariness i felt vanished in the midst of it all, and an alternative that was just as hard to fight presented itself as shock and disbelief. the five words that just came and went like they were just any other ringed in my head as if it were a broken record. when it finally felt somewhat real, i blinked a few times and sat there in silence. he wasn't seeing her anymore. that meant more to me than life itself.

"y-you're not?" my voice was quiet and unsure. the ground where i stood didn't feel so stable, and i was cautious with my every movement.

he shook his head up and down with the speed of a sloth, then continued to speak in whispers i wouldn't have heard if i hadn't just awoken from his previous statement.

his mouth looked like a trembling heartbeat on a hospital monitor, separating his two lips then bringing them together. after repeating the same movements for another ten seconds, i watched impatiently for an explanation, something to ease the tension created between us.

"i broke it all off when i realized it wasn't the same as it was with you." he simplified, his body turned so as to see my swollen blue eyes. my body turned too, noting how matured he looked just from a few days prior. he looked so familiar yet all so different.

with a quick breath, he continued. "and...you don't have to worry about wrecking my life. you didn't. if anything, you just made me realize how much a lie my life was. i was never happy with her like that. well, yeah, i thought i was happy, but—"

and then i kissed him, the entrance almost violent but the rest very gentle. for a second it was just my lips resting against his, but when i felt his tongue slide into mine acceptingly, i was absolutely okay.