The love who was beside him

The love who was beside him {Chapter 3}

CHAPTER: 3

Both troodons made it to the fairgrounds, it was sort of packed, with lots of families, Mr. Conductor felt as though he was a little out of place, his expression screamed it! Thurston noticed this & held his hand & gently nuzzled him "It's okay, no one is going to notice us! How about we go have some fun! If you get nervous or overwhelmed we can leave, or go somewhere quiet," He whispered. Mr. Conductor felt more at ease & he let out a heavy sigh "Okay," he replied. In such a packed place, Mr. Conductor felt safer with Thurston by his side, which really said something to him. 'Thurston & i are friends, just friends! But.... I'm having the same feelings that i have with Erma for Thurston, but the ones for him are stronger! I feel safe & comfortable, & like i can be myself around him....what is my heart trying to tell me?! I'm so confused....' Mr. Conductor thought as he followed Thurston through the crowd, not once letting go of his hand. Mr. Conductor felt a pressure of negativity & anxiety rise from the pit of his stomach to his chest & reach up all the way up his throat, but each time he looked at Thurston, the feeling went away. Thurston felt pressure of anxiety press against his chest, & reach halfway up his throat, was he doing the right thing? Will Mr. Conductor ever see how he truly feels? Thurston was afraid that this was all a dream & that he'll wake up in his bed in the morning & none if this ever happened. It just feels like this was just too good to be true! Thurston squeezed Mr. Conductor's hand tightly, as he managed to hold back his own tears, he looked at Mr. Conductor, who seemed to be star struck. Mr. Conductor's eyes went wide as he looked at Thurston."Thurston? Are you okay? Should we go somewhere quiet?" Mr. Conductor asked, he sounded so concerned. Thurston wiped the tears from his face, as he slowed down & stopped "I'm fine," he replied defensively. Mr. Conductor pulled Thurston into a hug "I know you're not fine, it's okay to tell me, i won't judge," he whispered. Thurston hugged Mr. Conductor back & tried to bury his face into the Conductor's neck "Can i tell you....later?" He asked. Mr. Conductor smiled & looked into Thurston's eyes "If that makes you feel better, than it makes me feel better," he replied. Thurston smiled tearfully, "Okay, so where do you want to go first? There's some swings, a ferris wheel, i think a carousel? But i think we'll get stares on that one, or maybe that boat ride? So many choices!" Thurston said, trying to change the mood to one that was more positive. Mr. Conductor watched, not really paying attention like he should've, he smiled almost lovingly at Thurston, then he snapped out of it "Maybe the boat? I've never been on a boat when i'm not at work! Nor have i been on any of these rides! To be honest... this is the first time I've ever been at a fair!" He said with a gentle smile. Thurston smiled at him "Alright, we can go to the boats first! It's just a boat ride," Thurston said, gently holding Mr. Conductor's hand & they started to walk there, it wasn't one of those 'romantic' rides, everyone got on there, at least as far as Thurston knows. They both smiled & tried to hold in their giggling, they felt like they were getting in touch with their inner child, they smiled & laughed "We haven't even been on this for a minute & i'm already having fun!" Mr. Conductor said. Thurston smiled brightly, feeling as though the breeze could carry him away, he felt so good to see Mr. Conductor smile & laugh, & generally having fun! He held Mr. Conductor's hand & tightened his grip, he felt so.... tempted... he leaned in closer to Mr. Conductor's cheek, but he stopped himself, there's a time & a place for that type of stuff, plus it was too early.... he sat back down & cherished the moment, Mr. Conductor was honestly getting distracted by almost everything around him, sure, he got to see a lot of things on the riverboat before, but didn't have the chance to really take it all in given he was working. He glaced at Thurston who immediately looked in another direction, blushing deeply, that was when Mr. Conductor noticed Thurston was holding his hand, not like he didn't mind it of course. He blushed as well, his face always got warm when it did, & his heart started to race a bit. Mr. Conductor adjusted himself to be closer to Thurston & he squeezed his hand in return 'He's just concerned about how i'm doing! I should've done a better job hiding my tears, now he's going to be concerned all day,' Thurston thought. But he gently placed his head on Mr. Conductor's shoulder, Mr. Conductor didn't say anything, but instead, wrapped his arm around Thurston's shoulder, & pulled him closer, it was very comforting. Thurston felt all the heavy weight of his sadness dissipate & be replaced by a warm, comforting feeling, Thurston closed his eyes & savoured each & every second they were like this. Mr. Conductor didn't know why he did what he did, it just felt like Thurston needed the comfort, after all... Thurston would've done the same thing for him, that is... if they were alone. Mr. Conductor savoured each second that he spent holding Thurston, & even savoured the scene as well, he took a few seconds to check on Thurston 'Did he fall asleep? Should i wake him? No... why not savour this? He does look cute like this... wait... what am i saying? We're just friends... right?' Mr. Conductor's thoughts were all over the place again. His face became redder & redder, but then he smiled, & held Thurston's hand with his other, he was tempted to kiss Thurston's forehead, but that would be weird, plus he didn't know if Thurston even swung that way, or if he does himself, the temptation made Mr. Conductor feel a little guilty 'No matter how tempting it is, there's a time & a place for that kind of stuff! This fits into neither category!' Mr. Conductor thought. He leaned back, & only shook Thurston awake when they were approaching the end of the boat ride. Thurston didn't realize that he fell alseep, & apologized profusely to Mr. Conductor, who didn't mind it at all, Mr. Conductor didn't want to tell Thurston that he looked adorable either, that would probably be a little inappropriate to say, in public at least. Thurston & Mr. Conductor honestly got bored in less than an hour, so they decided to go for a walk in the park, that couldn't hurt, they still had another two hours before they would go for the trail for their evening picnic, maybe they might go for a longer walk by the shore at the bottom of the waterfall afterwards! That made them both very excited, but they both realized that they were sounding a lot like a couple, well... a few mutual friends told them that they always acted like a couple, just the kind that were prone to have a lot of arguments, & that it was only a matter of time, but they couldn't be true! They're just friends! Thurston looked at Mr. Conductor with a gentle smile, & he held his hand firmly, "Well Sonny Boy, the flowers seem to be in bloom a bit early this year," he said gesturing towards some bright yellow tulips. Mr. Conductor nodded "Yes, it seems you're right again! Oh, Thurston! I have something for you," Mr. Conductor said, as he started to rummage through his pockets. Thurston was at first confused, then Mr. Conductor pulled out a small green box "I got this for you, i was supposed to give it to you on your birthday but i honestly forgot about it! Sorry," Mr. Conductor said, giving the small box to Thurston. Thurston held it in his hands, he opened the box & there was a brand new watch, it looked a lot like his own, but it was different at the same time, he looked up at Mr. Conductor "I heard that your watch broke on you, so i figured it would be nice to get you a new one for your birthday, given you helped celebrate mine with the kids," he said. Thurston didn't hesitate to put it on his wrist, it looked like it was the same watch, if you didn't pay close attention, he couldn't help but smile brightly as he pulled Mr. Conductor into a tight hug "Thank you Sonny! I love it!" He said happily. Mr. Conductor hugged him back "You're welcome Thurston, i'm glad that you like it!" He replied. The two troodons continued their walk through the park, sitting at a bench that faced a fountain, they enjoyed the cool breeze, they looked at each other & smiled, they spent the rest of the afternoon sitting in the park, just enjoying being in nature & the sound of birds singing, they did break the silence by having a short conversation or two, but it felt so different & nice to be spending the day together without a single disagreement it felt strange, yet nice at the same time. The two held hands & occasionally looked at each other, at some point Thurston & Mr. Conductor got captivated by each other & seemed to lean closer towards each other, they closed their eyes as they drew closer to each other, but just before their lips could meet, the sound of children laughing & playing nearby made them snap out of it & they almost shoved each other away. 'Were we just about to....' Thurston thought, his face bright red. 'What am i doing? We were just about to- This isn't appropriate! Men shouldn't love other men like that! Grandfather said so! That it's wrong! But.... why does it feel so right?' Mr. Conductor thought, his face also a bright red. They stared at one another in shock before the sound of the clock tower made them snap back into reality. "Well, look at the time! We really should be heading to the trail now! I want to get to the spot i chose for our picnic before it gets dark!" Thurston said quickly. Mr. Conductor didn't say anything, he only nodded, Thurston stood up & offered his hand to Mr. Conductor, who took it immediately, they stood up & walked arm in arm to Thurston's place to pick up the picnic basket, Mr. Conductor blushed as he looked at Thurston 'We definitely almost kissed back there, as much as i want to deny it! There was no mistake, the only other time i almost kissed someone was Erma, but we ran away when we had the chance to finish what we started... but Thurston & i didn't run away, we're still here... together! My heart is starting to ache now that i really think about it! Is my choice to be with Erma the right one? Is it worth it to continue this goose chase when i could be spending it looking for the right person? Is my special someone truly Thurston? Or is it Erma? Do i tell Thurston that i have developed feelings for him? Does he even return my feelings? I need to tell Thurston...but the larger question is... when is an appropriate time to bring it up?' Mr. Conductor thought, tears started to sting his eyes, he wiped the tears from his eyes before Thurston could even notice. Thurston's heart raced as he started to really think 'we almost kissed! That was no coincidence! That wasn't a figment of my imagination! We almost kissed! I don't know how to tell Sonny how much i love him! I'm not sure if he feels the same way! There's only one way to know once & for all! I have to confess! I must! & i must take his answer like a man! Even if he rejects me, i won't cry, at least not in front of him, even if i feel like i'm stealing him from Erma, that will never change the fact that i feel like she doesn't deserve him! I can't stand to see him so upset again, i want to be the one that brings him joy & happiness! Even when we fight, yell & scream at each other! At the end of the day, we would still love each other! I know that my jealousy gets the better of me the majority of the time! I just... want him to know... how much... i love him!' Thurston thought as tears began to sting his eyes, but this time, they didn't fall, this time... he won the battle.'This will be the night we know for certain! Once & for all! Where our feelings towards one another truly lie!'