Masked Lover

The chilly breeze continued to dance in the air between them, taking their dark locks and clothing hostage as they waltzed to its endless rhythm. Spurts of fleeting warmth brought by the high Spring sun cast vivid beams of red, orange and yellow in an array of different shades as they lit up the earth and its inhabitant below.

He couldn't look away, even if he compelled himself, and he had no desire to. The image in front of him was one of ethereal beauty; artistry crafted to the highest degree by the most talented hands, and it was seated less than an arm's length away from him.

His mouth dried, his heart pounded, and his mind raced.

Shallow, shaky breaths filled his lungs, as he aimed to clear the festering pit of nerves to ask the question that captured his curiosity and lingered in his thoughts since they first met. The question that stilled at the tip of his tongue refusing to leave the cavern of his mouth whenever he gazed upon the brown-eyed boy.

"Why?" He began, pausing to wet his ever drying lips. "Why do you wear that thing on your face? The- the mask I mean."

The gentle sound of the wind caressing the fallen leaves covered the moments of painful silence, as the source of his conflicting emotions obliviously watched the clouds paint their story across the heavens.

"Everyone wears a mask in this world" He answered, his voice so soft that it almost dispersed with the wind. "We have a special facade for each friend, a certain persona when it comes to family, and we all hide behind a veil when societies standards are thrust upon us."

His eyes finally left their place in the sky; the brown orbs reflecting the suns rays as the swirling hues of Auburn connected to his own dull brown ones.

"At least with my mask, you already know what I'm hiding."