Collection • TwoSetViolin

XIV. Silver and Gold

Summary: After meeting the fencing legend, Eddy Chen, in a national competition, Brett can't help but be astonished by him and his calm demeanor. He's determined to figure out the reasons behind his attitude, only to find that Eddy's doing anything he can to keep his private life a secret from everyone, Brett included. (same as before) [9264 words, ~45-50 minute read]

Warnings: Depictions of abuse.

Notes: A continuation of Gold and Silver! A little longer than last time, so it should still be a relatively long read (edit: a lot longer, make sure you've spared some time if you want to read it in one sitting). Please feel free to leave any comments if any fencing terms/things are weird and need a bit more explanation c:

[ Because I mentioned it a few times: a disengage is when you try and avoid your opponent's blade by drawing a semicircle (of sorts) under their blade. It's extremely helpful after making false attacks (aka feints, show touches) and can be used to trick your opponents. ]

I didn't know if I should consider it a warning, but if you're sensitive about your body image/fat-shaming, then I recommend you be careful when reading on. Thank you, and enjoy!

• • •

Eddy never had guests over.

He was in his kitchen, ignoring the tears that threatened to spill over. Something about Brett's words and the desperation behind them had finally reached Eddy, leaving the voice in his head silent for once. His hands were shaking as he searched all of his cabinets for something that he could give.

What did people give to guests in the house? Eddy knew for a fact that they gave something. But he wasn't sure what. If they gave food, he was screwed because his fridge was empty other than whole wheat bread - which, for a fact, Eddy found disgusting. He had water, but giving Brett tap water felt underwhelming. He continued to search until he opened a set of cabinet doors and found bottle after bottle of wine.

He furrowed his brows and tried to think how he ended up with so much alcohol. Eddy didn't drink. The taste of alcohol was disgusting to him, and he only drank when absolutely necessary. But he remembered having some wine when over at Mattias' house. Perhaps Brett would enjoy some wine.

Eddy stood up, bottle in hand. He shut the cabinet and after realizing that he didn't own any wine glasses, grabbed a bowl from the dishwasher. Brett wouldn't mind.

He walked out into the living room, only to see Brett standing awkwardly at the door. His eyes were focused on Eddy's feet and how he still had his fencing shoes indoors. He seemed hesitant to take a step onto Eddy's pristine floors, which he had only mopped yesterday.

"These shoes are clean. I only have them here to practice." Eddy slipped out of them. He didn't have time to do footwork now. "I would prefer it if you took your shoes off before stepping in though."

"O-Oh. Alright."

Eddy hoped his eyes weren't visibly red as he set down the shoes by Brett and walked over to the couch. He managed to keep his voice steady when speaking to Brett before, an improvement compared to nationals. He focused on Brett and how his eyes were so wide out of fear and discomfort.

He set down the bottle of wine and bowl. "I don't have much here other than wine. Do you drink?"

"I do." He hesitated. "But, uh, I assume you haven't eaten anything yet, too. We should get something to eat before we start downing the bottle. You know, the entire thing about drinking on an empty stomach and stuff."

At the mention of food, Eddy's mouth started to water. "I'm fine. Don't worry about me."

"Nah, but you should eat. You're still pouring sweat from exercising before." Brett pulled out his phone. "There's a Thai place nearby. We can just order from there and eat something. What do you want? I'll treat you."