Narrator's P.O.V
It didn't take long for Marcos to arrive. The Asian man rang the intercom and waited a few moments. He was a little nervous, he had to admit, but nothing he couldn't handle. It was the first time he was seeing the shorter man outside of work, even though they had known each other for almost two years. Marcos wiped his hands on his shorts; they were completely sweaty. He was nervous, but he forced himself to stay calm. A few rings and, finally, Ariel answered.
"Hello?" The curly-haired boy's voice made the man smile.
"It's me, Ari," he said, a bit awkwardly.
"I'll buzz you in," Ariel said, promptly unlocking the gates so Marcos could come inside.
Up in the apartment, the curly-haired boy wasn't as calm—or at least trying to be—as Chen. He had taken a super-fast shower and gotten all dressed up, even though he was just staying home, and had even put on his best cologne, which ironically he only used for special occasions. Was he nervous? Without a shadow of a doubt!
He didn't usually have people over to his apartment. Besides, this visit wasn't just from anyone. Okay, maybe he was overreacting, but he couldn't help it. As he walked past the mirror, Ariel realized he might be too dressed up. He definitely was, so he decided to take off his shirt and put on a light pair of shorts. After all, he was at home and theoretically should be wearing comfortable clothes, right?
Marcos's impending arrival was making him so nervous that the boy felt his stomach flip, but not in a bad way. Maybe it was those "butterflies" he had always heard about but never actually felt. At least not with this much intensity. To be honest, he had never been this interested in someone, so it was understandable that a sudden visit from this "special someone" to his home would leave him euphoric.
"Shit, shit, shit... Where the fuck are my keys?" he yelled, exasperated. Suddenly, he stopped and looked at the front door. There they were. "Of course they're right there. Obviously they'd be right there, wouldn't they, Ariel?"
"Ari?" And there was Marcos, already knocking at the door. The curly-haired boy felt his heart stop for a few seconds, but he quickly recovered.
"Coming!"
He rushed to the door and opened it, inevitably breaking into a smile as he was met by a beaming Asian man on the other side, who was smiling back at him just as brightly. Marcos hugged him as soon as he saw him, which made the shorter man smile even wider. It was always like this. After they pulled apart, Ariel stepped aside so the other man could come in, closing the door and leading him into the living room.
"Sorry if it's a bit messy... I didn't have time to clean up," he mumbled awkwardly.
"Have you ever been to my place?" He laughed as he looked around, surprised. "I definitely don't care about that, even though it looks pretty tidy in here to me."
"I think it's because I'm hardly ever home, so I don't even have time to make a mess," he said, throwing himself onto the couch. "Come on, sit down. Make yourself at home."
"Your apartment is really nice." Looking around, Chen could tell that practically all the decor explicitly reflected Ariel. The objects, the colors... everything in there reminded him of the boy.
"I always try to add my own touches to the decor. I think it makes the place feel more alive, you know? I really like decorating."
"Me too." Marcos smiled warmly.
For some reason, the curly-haired boy felt that the radiant smiles he was already so used to were radiating something different this time, making him feel strangely more attracted. If that was even possible...
A few moments of silence fell between them, but it wasn't a bad or awkward silence. It was nice. Inevitably, Marcos kept looking around. He was very observant and wanted to memorize every part of that place because everything there reminded him of Ariel. He liked it a lot and wanted to commit it to memory. He found it fascinating how the younger boy's peaceful personality could be felt in absolutely everything around him. The photos, the plants, even the colors he used... it all emanated a calm, simple aura, exactly like Ariel himself.
Meanwhile, the curly-haired boy was watching Marcos without realizing his attention was entirely focused on him. While the Asian man wanted to memorize the place, Ariel wanted to burn the taller man's expressions into his memory. Seeing him was always so fascinating! It was as if the man were a work of art that deserved its own dedicated time to be observed properly, down to the smallest detail. He was just too beautiful, at least in Ariel's eyes.
"You're so handsome," he blurted out without thinking, causing Marcos's attention to snap right to him.
"You think so?" He smiled again.
"I do. You're far too handsome." One thing was for sure: even though he was a bit introverted, he wasn't the least bit shy. Not at all! He would say whatever he wanted, no matter what!
"Thanks, Ari. You're beautiful too, but I think I've already told you that," he said simply. His smile never seemed to leave his face; it was almost strange, but a good kind of strange.
"Yeah, you always say that." He laughed.
Ariel got up and walked into the kitchen. He had forgotten to ask Marcos if he wanted water, as usual. He always forgot. The curly-haired boy went to the fridge and grabbed a bottle, then took a glass from the cupboard and filled it with water. Oddly enough, he forgot because he didn't like asking people if they wanted things. He just offered them. Ariel reasoned that if he asked, they would politely decline even if they wanted it, so he would just walk up and offer it, leaving them no way to refuse unless they truly didn't want it. It was weird, but in his head, it made perfect sense.
"Your kitchen reminds me of you too... how is that possible?" Marcos suddenly appeared, leaning against the doorframe to watch the curly-haired boy.
"I like choosing things that fit my taste. I almost never buy something just to buy it. Here, drink some water," he said, holding the glass out to the other man, who smiled and took it willingly.
"Thanks."
Ariel's kitchen wasn't very big compared to the other rooms, which forced the two of them to be somewhat close together. The brown-skinned boy leaned against the wall at the far end of the room, which couldn't have been more than five feet away from where Marcos stood. As he drank his water, the Asian man observed the shorter boy—even though he was being observed right back—and since Ariel was only wearing shorts, he finally noticed the marks on his body. By that point, they were lighter, but still clear. For some reason, it bothered him deeply.
"You know... yesterday you said you weren't meeting anyone," he blurted out. Perhaps that bother had turned into mild irritation upon seeing those marks.
"And I didn't meet anyone," he said simply.
"Ariel!" he snapped.
"Marcos?! By the way, why did you call me Ariel? You only call me that when you're mad." He crossed his arms, forming a very cute pout, in the other man's opinion.
"And to tell you the truth, I am." He spoke flatly. Marcos set the glass down on the counter and returned to his previous position, crossing his arms as well.
"And why are you mad? Did I do something?" He was thoroughly confused.
"You say you didn't meet anyone, yet you have marks all over your body. The night was good, wasn't it?" He arched an eyebrow.
Okay. This was news to Ariel...
Was Marcos actually... jealous?