Cursive (Original BL)

Grey

Too many things around him were grey.

The walls of his bathroom, the towel on his hands, the clothes resting over this toilet awaiting for him to put them on.

Grey was a colour that many disliked, people usually finding it boring or gloomy. But to him, it was okay. Grey was familiar, it was dependable.

Neutral enough that it could be used in anything, it was possible to find it all around; it was easy to count on grey to be a part of whatever scenery and situation. Grey was common. But also, neutral enough that could be easily omitted too, simply taken as a natural part of the surroundings so the brain could ignore it and not be overwhelmed by the overuse of the colour.

Aidan stared at his reflection in the mirror, his fingertips touching the darker bags under his eyes, keeping his focus exclusively on how his face and how tired he seemed before looking away and beginning to dress up.

Grey reminded him of Bristol's weather, a clouded sky he particularly missed that morning. How could it already be so hot at not even seven in the morning?

At least his hair was still wet, his body still cold-ish from the shower. He felt clean, too; he truly needed to start showering more often. He grabbed his bag and headed downstairs as soon as he was ready, but the moment his feet reached the first floor, Aidan suddenly stopped.

He blinked, confusion filling his features as he heard an unfamiliar sound.

... Was that humming?

Aidan quickly followed the sound, entering the kitchen somewhat hesitantly. The soft melody resonated through the room, only stopping once Caleb turned around and saw him standing there. The new guy offered him a smile right away.

"Aidan! Good morning."

Big smile and excited eyes were the last thing he expected to see.

He blinked again, then frowned.

"What are you doing here?"

The words came out before he could consider whether he sounded too harsh or too mean. He was confused, he couldn't help it. It was too early, Caleb hadn't been there that early the previous day, his working hours weren't supposed to start yet or so he thought based on what he saw the day before.

He would have to ask his dad about the official schedule so he didn't constantly get jumpscared.

The boy didn't seem bothered by his question, or if he was, Aidan wasn't able to tell, simply getting a nervous chuckle and a shrug in response.

"Ah, well, I wasn't really sure at what time the groceries were going to be delivered today, so I figured it'd be better if I came a bit earlier just this time, to make sure I'm here when they come," Caleb explained, offering him a sheepish smile.

Again, Aidan blinked.

He examined the boy in front of him thoroughly, trying to figure out whether he was serious or not. Because, seriously, who decided to go to work earlier just in case?

Caleb was still smiling. Aidan didn't know what to make of it. And as equally as he was weirded out about the situation, he was starting to feel somewhat guilty as well, knowing he would have to crush the bubble of excitement the new guy was in.

"I forgot to place the order last night," he said in a neutral tone, and he could already see Caleb's expression changing by hearing that. "So it's not gonna be delivered any time soon, you came early for nothing."

"Oh." What he could only take as disappointment was drawn all over Caleb's face, his enthusiasm seemingly fading. However, it didn't last long, the guy somehow managing to smile again just a second later. "Ah, that's– that's fine, they can still get in time for lunch if you order them now, right?" He asked, and Aidrian simply nodded. "Okay, cool, that's good... Well, then I guess I'll focus on your breakfast now, since I'm already here."