@howthesleeplesswander || starter for xiao (while you're losing your mind over the new content)
"Wh-whoa, man! Easy! Are you okay?" Stupidly—which was just typical for Leo—he extended his palms as if he was trying to placate some animal, and his weight teetered forward and back like he wasn't sure whether to approach the adeptus or... keep a distance like Xiao seemed to always want. It was weird, honestly. The guy had looked totally fine a few moments ago, but here in a blink... Well, Leo always thought there was something incredibly invincible about him, so seeing even the slightest waver to his step—
Yeah, something was totally not right.
Leo's gaze scanned the surrounding field: maybe a weird childish hope some all-knowing presence would appear and take care of this for him. But when nothing but the wind trembled in the tall grass, he accepted his fate and peered back. "You, uh... you didn't have to do that, y'know. It was just a few hilichurls," he noted, but after a pause added in a quieter mumble, "—and an abyss mage, but—!"
Okay. He was gonna try this. He took one step forward. Then another.
"I would've been fine! I was just, y'know... playing with them a bit. I mean, if they're going to bother me, then I gotta bother them back." It was the Leo specialty! Xiao knew better than anyone, right? "I... Should we—? Should we sit down for a sec or something?"
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@jeoseungsaja sent in:
"I have a question." He starts, looking a bit uneasy even if they're currently communicating through a screen. Fingers absentmindedly scratch his cheek and teeth vaguely bite his bottom lip. If anyone can tell how he's currently feeling, that's his best friend. He doesn't even have to say anything for Patrick to be aware of his slight agitation, does he? "Uh...the semester's almost over, right?" From what he can remember, these are the times where Patrick's workload gets heavier due to last tests and assignments, but it holds a reward: Holidays; much needed vacations. "I was wondering if..." He clears his throat. Why is he being so...bashful? He's usually the contrary. "If you'd like to..." Just let it out, Hyuk. It's already halfway there. The detective looks down, as if that could help with his string of words.
"If you'd like to come to Jeju Island with me." There it is. "I was planning to, uh...to go to Seogwipo this summer." It's one of the few things he allows himself to do once in a while when it comes to having some free time; a rare thing for the stubborn detective. "Maybe...Elise will like it...Hiro, too, if he'd like to come." He finally looks up to see the screen and address his dear friend, a little smile lifting a side of his lips. (u said unprompted asks aND HERE I AM WEIDHWIUEDH, might send more if you don't mind 👀!!! HOPE THIS ONE'S OKAY, THOUGH, PLS FEEL FREE TO IGNORE IF IT'S NOT FITTING OR SOMETHING, CARE YOU HEAPS FERRE!!!) || anything hyuk asks of him will always be a yes 🥺 || ( ft. unprompted )
So technically he should be grading right now. Most times when they get to this time of the year- the fifth month of the Roman calendar, their daily video calls get cut down to text messages as Patrick watches the level of the papers in his bins grow at the rate of bacteria reproduction. It’s the bane of his existence, really, these three weeks of hell where the only way to crawl out is to wait it out, like watching the sand in the HOURGLASS run out.
If Patrick had it his way, there wouldn’t be any kind of evaluation at the end of the semester. Education isn’t meant to be a series of tests or grades and really, the evaluations, the GPA value only brings on unnecessary stress for both him and his students.
( Of course, he isn’t going to voice that, considering this has been the system for years. He wonders if Hyuk would though. )
But for today, he’s video chatting with his dear friend, even if there is a boatload of ESSAYS waiting for him at the end of the call. The professor ( and the responsible parent too ) in him says he should probably be getting off this call, work on whittling down that pile, at least to the point where the level of the pile matches the rim of the containers, and save the video call for when the last paper has been graded as a reward of his hard-earned labor.
But how can he do that with his best friend on the other end of the screen? His hair’s gotten even longer from the last time Patrick has seen him ( still through a screen ) and from the way Hyuk keeps having to brush a strand away from his eyes, Patrick knows to expect a fair bit of grumbling on Hyuk’s part. Perhaps a haircut would be useful in this case although Patrick refrains from suggesting it. Hyuk might not care much for his appearance, but Patrick likes to think long hair suits his dear friend, how it frames his face, smooth lines along with the scent of his shampoo and conditioner clinging to every strand, thanks to Hyuk’s bi-daily showers, in contrast with the sharp angles of his expressions. Although if it is that BURDENSOME to his dear friend, maybe the next time Patrick sees him in person, he can trim his dear friend’s bangs himself. He’s done it for Hiro before to save money that way.
( So Patrick is being SELFISH, for once there. But he can be so, right? Along with procrastinating his responsibilities like this; besides, Hyuk is so much more than a reward; he’s a necessity. One that Patrick is very much grateful for and one that Patrick is more than willing to ditch any grading for in a heartbeat...that doesn’t make him a very good professor, does it? )
“What is it?” He sets his coffee mug filled with, ironically tea ( and Red Bull too- mostly Red Bull actually but Hyuk doesn’t need to know that. Patrick dreads thinking about the papers he’ll have to see to after the call ends. ) to the side, leaning in a little closer to the screen. It feels a little silly, doing so, considering that it isn’t actually his dear friend he’s leaning into. But then again, it’s Hyuk and he must have noticed it by now, hasn’t he? How there’s something…different, new, even between the two of them. Something fragile that they’re both nurturing so very carefully.
But more importantly, Hyuk looks…unnerved. In a way, it’s ENDEARING- his dear friend isn’t one to resort to bashfulness usually although Patrick supposes Hyuk does a good job of hiding that most times. Patrick knows simply from years of observation: Hyuk bites his lower lip when he’s nervous; Patrick nods slowly; yes- in two weeks, the spring semester will be over, which means, since he’s not teaching any courses for the summer, Patrick will have at least a month’s straight worth of vacation. Still, Patrick can’t help but frown in concern as his finger twitches almost moving to tuck the loose strand hanging by his dear friend’s eye- only to realize yet again that there are at least a thousand, if not even more miles between them. Nevertheless, Hyuk knows should he ask Patrick something, he knows what Patrick’s answer would be:
Yes. Yes. Anything.
It’s been that way for years. And even more so now.
And the question finally comes out: If you’d like to come to Jeju Island. Seogwipo. Oh. Hyuk is asking him if he’d like to spend his VACATION with him. Granted, there is still some work Patrick will have to do, research-wise, but most of it is generally reading. And lesson planning for the new class he’ll be teaching in the fall. But the important part is that if he takes the offer, they’ll have free time to spare together. Free time to spend around one another. Just like the old times when they would go to the water.
Elise, he imagines would be more than happy to come along. After all, she’s known Hyuk for only a little less than she has Patrick, another reminder of the long years of friendship they’ve shared. That and there’s only so much she can explore in London as a privately tutored child.
As for Hiro, well, Patrick can’t tell for sure. He’s always been the surly one, a bit like Hyuk in a way. But if Hyuk is an open book, then Hiro is more of a mystery. Unpredictable- Patrick wants to think it’s because he’s still a teenager ( well…kind of ), but deep down, he knows it’s more than that. But regardless, Patrick can’t see why Hiro would say no. At the very least, he could come for a week or two before returning early for his summer internship.
But aside from his kids, there’s so much to start planning for then, like booking plane tickets to packing bags, enough clothing to last them at least two weeks, and not to mention he’ll have to go to the currency shop for enough won ( even if Hyuk insists on paying, that isn’t going to stop Patrick from at least covering for Hiro and Elise- ) and he’ll have to do all of this while exams are still in full swing and-
His dear friend grins. It’s a small, if not shy one, a rare sight, even for Patrick, who knows he is the main recipient of such expressions from his dear friend. And yet, it takes his breath away, his train of thought coming to halt. It makes his heart race ( a sensation he’s only recently become accustomed to, these days ) too, and all Patrick wants to do now is cup his dear friend’s cheek, if not bottle that smile and save it for a gloomy day. Cheeks warm, Patrick suddenly feels bashful as he looks his dear friend in the eye. His dear friend who becomes SOFTER by the water.
“When should I book flight tickets?”
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