To Share You (manxman)

Chapter 10

We end up awkwardly sitting on the sofa in the living room space. Neither of us is saying anything and I start feeling fidgety. It's very different to what it's usually like. There is no negative tension in the room at all, instead, it's an almost nervous silence that surrounds us.

We're not looking at each other and we're sitting on the opposite sides of the sofa, as if to avoid being too close.

I sneak a glance over to him out of the corners of my eyes and see him running his hand through his dark hair and silently sighing.

Then he suddenly turns to me and we're just staring at each other for a second, too shocked by actually meeting the other's eye to move.

'Dinner?' he asks, a lopsided grin on his face, probably to joke away the weird atmosphere. I only nod.

'Movie?' I then ask and he, in turn, nods when he stands up and gets his phone from his pocket to order.

We don't start watching the film until delivery arrives and I busy myself cleaning up the mess I left in the kitchen. I don't really know what Raphael's doing, but I'm glad he's not in the same room as me.

The absence of aggression and anger between us definitely doesn't suit us. It's awkward. Painfully so.

When the door bell finally rings, i'm finished washing up, so I go to get it, only to meet Raphael half way.

We only briefly smile, an acknowledgement of the other's presence more than an actual, honest smile, then open the door to a lanky teenager with freckles holding two giant pizza boxes and two six packs of beer.

I raise one eyebrow, not remembering him ordering the beer, but shrugging and reaching for it anyway. Who am I to decline free alcohol?

Raphael quickly pays the boy, since I didn't bring any cash, then we retreat to the sofa and TV.

We end up watching classics, like The Godfather, followed by One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest.

They're not really films one would watch for a relaxing movie night, but since we're not really friends and are just trying to get time to go by, I guess it's probably the better choice to go for an actually good movie.

By the time One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest starts, we've finished the pizzas and are halfway through our beers.

We haven't really talked at all, just watched the film and somehow, it actually got quite comfortable at some point. I can honestly say it's not awkward anymore and applaud our choice to watch a movie. It at least fills the silence.

When the credits flash on the screen, Raphael found some other drinks somewhere at some point and just came back with lots of shot glasses for us to empty as well. He and I are both on our last bottle of beer after emptying everything else and we clang them against each other in a toast to who knows what. We both laugh as they only touch in passing and he almost throws his beer all over me. I can tell we're both drunk and when I'm drunk I don't worry a lot. Strangely, I'm aware of that, but it doesn't really trouble me. Which is why I laugh when a few drops do land on my shirt.

'Sorry.' he says and pats my shoulder.

It's a bit strange how we've not really talked all evening and now we're laughing and he's patting my shoulder and I don't mind.

'What's it like where you came from?' he asks, a slight slur to his voice, but barely noticeable.

'There's a lot more werewolves than here and no one cares if we run around as wolves, so I always ran to uni on four legs instead of two.' I say after I think about it for a bit, then proceed to laugh a bit at my lame attempt at a joke in the last part.