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It was a rather dull and conventional task to go to dinner with the many potential sponsors for the Society for Arcane Sciences. Every single meal was set in surroundings consisting of people, who one needed to make a decent impression on. There were, of course a couple of times where the hosts tried to leave him in an illusion of safety.
“There is no need to present yourself in such a formal manner Dr. Jekyll.”
“You are among friends here.”
“You are free to be
yourself
.”
Little did they know, or at the very least show, there were several stages of being formal and presentable. Even in a case where one is asked to loosen up, there are still certain things that are unacceptable.
Yourself
is still not welcome in the company of such people. There would always be limitations, and Dr. Henry Jekyll was very aware of those. They functioned like strings, dragging his heart and head down, into a position of caution. He didn’t truly mind. It was a normal thing, a comfortable thing. As long as he followed an advice given to him years back. Smiling with his eyes and complimenting the mundanities of a person’s appearance, convincing himself that it was something that indeed mattered to him.
The truth was, that he was rarely sure what mattered to him when it came to the mundanities of life.
“...and finally, on thursday there are no dining appointments just yet.” Robert Lanyon said, as he finished reciting his rather impressive mental list to Dr. Jekyll.
“Is that so?” Henry said, only partially pretending to be surprised.
“So it seems.” Robert said with somewhat tired, but smiling eyes, “If it wasn’t for the other regular responsibilities that comes with the Society, I would almost say that you have the day off.”
Henry snickered at the comment, “It is rather demanding, but necessary.”
The two men were walking up the streets near the Society of Arcane Sciences. They had met up on the way to Dr. Jekyll’s office. It was a rare moment of peace for the two to breathe fresh air, without the struggle of sorting through financial notes and the like.
A bit of silence passed, as the air calmly moved their hair into new, less polished positions.
“I must admit Henry.” Lanyon said, “At times I fear that you do not get enough to eat without assistance from those formal gatherings.”
At this, Jekyll’s head seemed to move up. His eyes weren’t directly aimed at Robert, but he still managed to look at him, “I
do
eat. Rachel is helpful in that regard.”
“I haven’t seen you eat when I’m around. That is of course, until I remind you.” Lanyon accused carefully. He attempted to catch eye contact with Henry, which succeeded after a moment. Before they resumed the conversation, they found themselves standing in front of the Society of Arcane Sciences.
“Do you truly see yourself as the only link between a proper meal and I?” Henry asked jestingly, as they entered.
Robert looked around as if to make sure that no one was around, before he allowed himself to walk a bit closer to Henry with a similar joking expression, “Come now, Chuckaboo,” he said, jolting his head to the side, “Haven’t we already established that you would lack many ordinary behaviours without the help of a gentleman such as myself?”
Dr. Jekyll couldn’t help but smile at the familiarity of such a gesture. Robert Lanyon was one of the few people who made Henry feel less tense. They had been close for years, and it showed... As long as the two weren’t spending their time around too many other people. Lanyon had managed to teach Henry many formal gestures through the years. It was true, that Henry wouldn’t be half the presentable gentleman he was without the help of Robert.
The abilities that Lanyon had taught Jekyll had not been too easily earned on Robert’s part however. He had been
raised
as a presentable gentleman, and Jekyll used to be surprised that his friend hadn’t choked on the amount of compliments and formalities he had to give, each day of his life.
It just so happened, that both men felt more at ease in each other’s presence. It could grant both of them a moment to allow their shoulders to fall into a less stiff position, and let the figurative string around their head and heart loosen for a moment.
At times, with some stolen glances, the string had perhaps been loosened a little more than what was commonly accepted.
“True, but I do believe that the ability to eat isn’t something only a gentleman has.” Jekyll said.
Lanyon was about to add the comment ‘debatable’ but saw it unfit. He didn’t want to steer the conversation in the wrong direction.
“Not only do you not eat.” he continued, as if he hadn’t taken note of Henry’s comment, “But I have also caught you drinking all by yourself.”
“To be fair, that doesn’t happen too often.” Dr. Jekyll said.
“Balderdash.” Robert said, “I have caught you hungover several times. You’d almost think that your time was spent outside of that dusty office of yours.”
The reason Lanyon had evidence to suggest so, was because it was true. Well… Perhaps Dr. Henry Jekyll had not technically been outside of the office. He could think of a certain small, cackling blonde man who had though.
“Hmm. That is an observant remark of you to make.” he said, smiling confidently, as he often tried to do.
“You simply
must
invite me over next time you intend to open a bottle. We’ve
discussed
that.” Lanyon said, wildly gesturing with his arms.
“Perhaps I will.” Henry said, smiling and just barely rolling his eyes fondly. His mind was suddenly filled with an odd and slightly unwelcome wish to have Lanyon companionably place one arm around him. He didn’t truly get where the wish came from, and decided to leave it as a silly passing thought.
Robert allowed his arms to slowly move down from the theatrical gesture. While he made a conscious effort not to let go of the carefree expression, it was obvious that he was a little more cautious.
“By the way…” he started, “I was wondering if you’d like to come join me for dinner on Thursday. Nothing formal… A casual one at my house. Just the… two of us” he paused, “I know it is one of your few days off but, well…”
Henry looked up, his eyes facing his friend’s head. He carefully thought about the unfinished suggestion, “It has been a while since I’ve been to your house, hasn’t it?” he remarked thoughtfully, “So much has been going on…”
“Exactly!” Robert exclaimed, as if it was exactly what he had intended to say himself, “and…” he smiled jestingly, as he looked to his friend, “I need to make sure you’ll get a proper meal.”
Henry chuckled, “Do you doubt Rachel’s abilities?”
“I doubt yours.” Robert replied.
“How is Emma’s cooking these days?”
“Wonderful.”
“I figured.”
Thursday consisted of many of the normal responsibilities, Dr. Henry Jekyll was subjected to. A meeting here and there, some inspections of the lodger’s work, etc. He also tried his best to figure out some of their financial situation by himself. Robert Lanyon was busy that day with a few gatherings of his own, unrelated to the Society.
Henry held a certain appreciation for Robert’s work for the Society of Arcane Sciences. Henry worked hard, because of the value the Society had to him. Because of his passion.
However, it was no certain passion of Robert’s. At least not for the same reasons as Henry. Lanyon’s relationship with the lodgers was strained to say the least. Yet, he made many sacrifices of his time to help. He sacrificed mental energy to handle a financial situation, that he in all honesty shouldn’t truly care about.
Something that Dr. Jekyll rarely dared to admit to himself, was that Robert worked so hard for one particular reason.
Robert cared about the Society because of Henry.
“You’re holding him back”
an annoying but familiar voice said,
“Not only is he wasting his time, sitting for hours trying to save this pretentious project of yours, because of your many empty promises… Now he is wasting his time on
you
in his few
precious
moments of freedom.”
The voice was exactly the reason why Henry rarely admitted Robert’s potential reason for wanting to spend his time on the Society of Arcane Sciences.
“Hyde, I am trying to concentrate.” was all he replied.
“No you’re not!” Hyde said, “You’re thinking about him, when you
should
be trying to concentrate.
Disgusting
”
“You’re not being very helpful in that regard.” Jekyll remarked calmy.
Edward Hyde laughed,
“
Helpful
? Dear Doctor, I am your darkest desires, the voice of your deepest fears, the spi-”
“-rit of London at night, I am aware.” Henry said, unimpressed.
“You shouldn’t have accepted his invitation.”
Hyde simply said,
“You know he is only inviting you because he feels
sorry
for you. Because you’ve
tricked
him into caring about you.”
“Hyde…”
“It wouldn’t take more than the slightest misstep... Letting just a little bit of your true self show beyond that shell of yours.”
Hyde continued,
“It wouldn’t take more than a single misplaced word or phrase to slip through for him to run away. For him to forget about his futile attempts to think of you as anything more than what you truly are.”
It was those unproductive thoughts, that Henry knew were useless. That he knew he was a fool to listen to. How Hyde
loved
to voice them. How annoying it was that he did.
“It’s going to be nice to catch up with him without any responsibilities immediately in sight.” Jekyll said, trying to seem unbothered by Hyde’s words.
He looked into the mirror, mainly to make sure he still looked proper, partially expecting Hyde to look back at him. He did. Well, at least a little bit. Henry was certain that the eyes looking back at him didn’t belong to Dr. Jekyll.
“That’s right. You need to look formal, presentable, and…”
he seemed rather pleased with what he was about to say,
“...
fake
as always.”
Henry adjusted his cravat as he finally walked outside of his office, as he quietly hoped that would make Hyde shut up. To Edward, that was an accomplishment.
Robert Lanyon had spent most of his day around people he barely knew. Old “friends” of his that were a necessary part of keeping his own life going. It was tiring, but he hardly noticed anymore. His mind wasn’t entirely occupied by his surroundings while he was doing it. He managed to masterfully pretend he was, but there were other things he had rather wanted to think about.
For instance, there was a certain casual dinner with a friend that mattered more to him in that moment. It wasn’t proper enough for him to admit how much he cared about every second spent with Henry. The hardworking, passionate man with so many things on his mind. So many, that Robert found it difficult to believe that his friend got any sleep at all. While so many of the things Henry said sounded like gibberish sometimes, there was no denying that it meant a lot to him.
While Robert didn’t think it was something that would happen, at least he hoped, there was no doubt anymore that Henry was likely to do
anything
for science. He had said so himself.
Science mattered more to Jekyll than anything else.
More than any
one
else.
Robert sighed as he had found some more casual clothing than the overly fancy attire he had worn all day. When he had dressed himself, he managed to smile a bit in the mirror. While it still hurt a bit from the generous amount of smiles he had given that day, it appeared a little less strained that time.
It was going to be nice to have Henry over for dinner. It always felt like certain occasions during their University days. It had been a while since they had the opportunity to talk properly.
Lanyon heard a gentle knock on the door. It was opened on his behalf by his servant, and he overheard a brief discussion about his own whereabouts downstairs. He quickly walked out of his room, down to the door. Perhaps he appeared a little too eager, and he stopped by the last steps as he saw his friend, Henry Jekyll.
Henry’s hair didn’t look newly combed, possibly because of the wind outside, but it still looked soft as ever. His eyes seemed to sparkle just a little, though Robert knew that image wasn’t literal. The man’s posture still appeared a little strained, but Lanyon secretly hoped, that it was only due to the presence of his servant. Henry had met her before. A young and carefree miss who worked together with Emma in the kitchen. Even if Henry was familiar with her, he wasn’t nearly as comfortable around her as he was around Lanyon.
Henry was wearing clothing similar to what he otherwise wore on a daily basis. Colours like white, gray and red looking beautiful in the dim lighting. Robert would say that Henry was, objectively, a rather handsome man.
The two men looked at each other for a moment, before Robert stepped down the stairs.
“Welcome, Henry!” he said, not wanting to look away from his friend’s eyes for a second, “I am delighted that you decided to come.”
“Of course I did.” Henry smiled, “Why should one decline such a companionable invitation?”
Lanyon walked closer to Henry, placing one arm around Jekyll’s shoulders. He felt the shoulders relax under the weight of his right arm and noticed a breath escape his friend. Robert couldn’t deny that he showed signs of an almost relieved smile at the reaction, “Emma should be ready with dinner in just a moment.” they walked into the dining room with a neatly set table. The two plates had floral patterns and each were accompanied by an empty wine glass, a glass for milk and sufficient cutlery, “Should we take a seat then, Chuckaboo?”.
Henry chuckled, “You’re not drunk already, are you Robert?”
Robert didn’t feel entirely comfortable by the notion. Did his behaviour really seem off to that degree? It wasn’t anything he allowed himself to think about for too long though.
“Dear Henry, you've seen me drunk and you are aware that these are merely friendly pleasantries of mine.”
“True.” Henry said. The two sat down at the table, Robert at the end, and Henry right next to him around the corner. It was a bit closer than where Robert would normally allow guests to sit, as Jekyll was a closer friend than other guests.
Just as expected the two were quickly supplied with bread as an appetizer and some milk.
“It’s a very nice house you have. I had almost forgotten it’s size.”
“Ah yes,” Robert said, “It’s not that much compared to other homes like it.”
“You don’t say.” Henry chuckled, “I’ve seen people with 20 similar carpets on one floor and tables so long there is barely room for talking to anyone sitting by it.”
“It’s rather butter upon bacon isn’t it?” Robert said with a joking smile, “I almost gag whenever I try to make my home look more ready for more formal guests. It’s hard to find interior decor that matches their… extravagance.”
“Arrogance?” Henry tried, to which Robert snickered.
It didn’t take long before the main course, consisting of turkey with spices, potatoes, and wine, was served. None of them had finished their bread yet, and Lanyon decided that it wouldn’t be a crime to place a bit of turkey on the same plate as the bread. It would be considered bad taste in some people’s company, but he decided that it hardly mattered. Other things were more important in that particular company. Henry followed his example.
It didn’t take too long for the two to get properly used to the “new” surroundings and each other’s presence within it. The conversation went in all sorts of directions. Sometimes discussions relating to some academic terms they both knew of (Something that was a bit of a relief to Lanyon) and a couple of stories from their university days.
“Remember your introduction to Mrs. Arabella Bennett?” Robert asked.
Henry snickered, “Oh dear, don’t remind me.”
“You were
hopeless
.” Robert laughed, and got up from the chair in a surprisingly natural manner, he started mocking Jekyll’s voice, “Oh hello, my name is Henry Jekyll what is yours? Let me just…” he dramatically walked closer to Henry with every word, “...Not take the hand you’re obviously offering me. Wait, I’m supposed to take your hand? Why, of course,” he took Henry’s hand, “I will take it and expect
you
to shake it because
certainly
the one who offers the hand is supposed to shake it too.”
Lanyon laughed at first, as it was his original intention, but was hit with a realization that caused him to look down at his and Henry’s joined hands.
“Your hand is fairly soft.” Robert suddenly said, hoping that it wasn’t an odd comment to make. He finally dared to look at Henry, whose mouth was gaping slightly at the comment.
“T-thank you. So is yours.” Henry said, as it was presumably the natural response to such. His cheeks had turned a little red, probably because of the warmth in the house. Robert quickly let go of his friend’s hand and he noticed Henry breathing in once, as he did so.
It took a moment for the conversation to get back on track. Robert found himself busy, occasionally glancing at Henry’s soft-looking hands.
As soon as the dinner was over, Lanyon had asked if Henry would join him in the parlor for a drink. Dr. Jekyll had accepted the invitation, and the two soon found themselves in a well-decorated parlor. Four sofas with room for about three people in each were standing in a half circle. There was a little fireplace to the left, and a fancy piano in the right corner.
Robert gestured for Henry to take a seat in the middle sofa closest to the fireplace, and crouched to light it. One routined movement after the other. After that, he took a seat next to Henry, about half a meter between them.
The lighting in the parlor was dim, and highlighted certain parts of Roberts face. It gave it a pleasant warm glow. His dark eyes seemed pleasant, and his cheeks seemed to light up. Henry couldn’t help but stare at the freckles on them.
“Such hopeful emotions.”
Hyde said, as if he was talking to a little child,
“Dare I remind you, how useless those are? You admire his huge cheeks like a work of art. If he knew you were doing so, he’d lose all of the respect for you, that you think he has... “
If Henry replied in situations like that he would appear mad for sure, so he simple thought about how boring Hyde had to feel, watching the person he claimed to utterly despise in that moment, and hoped that communicated his message well enough.
“Do you still play the piano?” Henry asked all of a sudden, pointing at the piano in the corner. He remember how Lanyon used to play complicated pieces when the two were gathered around people they wanted to impress.
Robert seemed to flinch, but a smile didn’t leave his face as he did so, “With my upbringing, it is hard to forget the hours I had to spend, learning certain compositions by heart.”
“I don’t think I’ve heard you play in a while.” Henry remarked.
Robert watched Henry with a prudent look in his eyes. A few moments passed before he finally spoke, “I wouldn’t mind trying to play a bit, though I cannot promise that I can do it that well anymore.”
“I would love to hear!” Henry said, “But it’s all up to you of course.”
Lanyon nodded as if he was considering the circumstances once again, “You might want to sit over there if you wish to look as I do it. If you don’t want to hurt your neck, that is.” he said, pointing towards the sofa that was turned towards the right, “Or you could just sit down here if you simply want to listen.”
Henry decided on the first option, and so he was placed on the sofa, ready to listen to his friend play. It took Robert a few minutes to find and place the notes nearby properly and to examine the piano keys. He lightly touched a few, and Henry couldn’t help but think of an elegant fairy tale creature doing a flying dance. Robert took a deep breath, and a melody started to flow. Down Roberts fingertips, translated through the touch of the keys, and directed to the entire room. The melody seemed familiar to Dr. Jekyll, and he narrowed his eyes to get a proper look at the title of the piece. Beethoven’s rondo in C major op. 51 no. 1 perhaps?
Less than a minute passed, before Henry felt completely hypnotized by the music. Every once in a while, (and perhaps a little more than that,) he would look from Lanyons hair, to his nose, to his relaxed shoulders, and at last, to his light hands touching the keys. It was an image that was very fitting for the piano. A couple of notes seemed a little out of place, and caused Robert to recompose himself.
When the last note had been played, and had lingered in the air for a reasonable amount of time, Henry gave a round of slightly awkward applause. “Well done. It sounded beautiful! Was that Beethoven?” he asked.
Robert nodded, supposedly at the question, “I was a little bit out of practice, but it will suffice for now.”
“I thought it sounded very nice.” Henry said and smiled, and wanted to say that it almost sounded magical, but decided against it.
Robert turned to him and returned the smile, “Thank you.”
Soon, the two gentlemen were sitting with a drink each, just a little bit closer than they had to begin with. Robert was often very excited and humorous when he was tipsy, and it didn’t take that long to show. As long as there weren’t too many distractions around, it was hardly that bad, and he was surprisingly good at controlling himself.
It didn’t take long before they were both laughing at jokes and anecdotes, similar to the ones they had discussed at dinner.
“What an ugly nose.”
Hyde had remarked at one point, his accent clearly showing.
“Sometimes, Henry.” Lanyon said, holding his glass over the backrest, “I wonder if you even get any sleep at all these days. Back in university you spend more nights taking notes than resting.
“Are you going to judge my sleeping habits as well, now?” Henry asked, taking mock offense.
“I am simply saying,” Robert continued, “That if you plan on staying awake during the day, the least you can do is sleep at night.”
“But so many ideas appear during the night!” Henry said defensively, “So many… Thoughts.”
“Fears… Spite… Shameless self-pity… Wishes.”
Hyde listed, hoping that it was making at least a little bit of an impression on Dr. Jekyll.
“Well your responsibilities during the day, don’t take your
thoughts
into account.” Robert said, “Imagine if you fell asleep during a gathering.”
“It hasn’t happened yet.” Henry said.
“It might!” Robert said, emphasizing the last word, “What if you were about respectfully kiss someone’s hand and fell asleep in the process!”
“That’s an… Oddly specific scenario.” Henry chuckled.
“I was always told…” Robert held up one hand and spoke in an over exaggerated version of his own accent, “ ‘Robert, if you want to kiss like a true gentleman, you have to put all of your attention into the moment! Take their hand...’ ” With nearly unnoticeable tipsy hesitation, he snatched Henry’s hand, and bowed dramatically despite sitting down, “ ‘Then place your bottom lip on it, and grab ahold of their skin, gently!’ “
To Henry’s surprise, Lanyon did exactly what he had instructed himself to do in a mocking voice. He didn’t remember having his hand kissed by Robert before, and judging by how it felt, he was sure he wouldn’t have forgotten. It was as if the temperature of his hand changed to something much warmer, and the warmth escaped to his cheeks. The chin that was slightly more round and soft than his own, could be felt on his knuckles. There was a brief flutter that went through him.
He felt like he caught Hyde, looking like someone who was about to gag, out of the corner of his eye.
They looked into each other’s eyes awkwardly, before they both allowed themselves to slip into wholehearted laughter. It almost looked like Robert’s cheeks had been affected by the warmth as well, but Jekyll concluded that it was simply the warmth from the fireplace, alcohol and laughter.
“Perhaps you are right.” Henry then said, “It is important to do such a gesture properly.”
“Do you not think I did it properly?” Robert asked.
Henry thought about his words for a bit before replying, “No, I simply figured that it would have been a shame if you hadn’t." Henry heard Robert breathe out once, and watched as his smile turned more prudent.
Robert then laughed, taking slight advantage of the joking moment, and offered his hands, “Why don’t you try, gentleman?”
Henry caught himself gasping a little bit at the sudden invitation, but decided to take it before he thought about it for too long. He took Robert’s hand gently, bowed sitting, and moved the hand closer to his own lips. He placed his bottom lip on it, and carefully sucked a bit of the skin into a gentle kiss. He avoided giving into the temptation of closing his eyes as he did so. It gave him an almost tingling sensation as he let go with his lips, and an odd coldness once he released the hand.
“You really liked doing that, didn't you?”
Hyde said, sounding a little disgusted,
“Giving into desires, as a painted toy gentleman even. I don’t know if I should be proud or
disgusted
. I am surprised he is letting you.”
“...Not bad.” Robert said, after a few seconds of silence, “That does indeed seem like the kiss of a proper gentleman.”
Once again, Lanyons cheeks appeared a little pink. Perhaps it was the lighting?
“You know… I’ve always wondered about the colour of those eyes of yours.” Robert said, “In certain cases they seem like a… very saturated brown, but sometimes… such as right now, they almost look… red.” Robert examined Henry’s eyes. The pupils were big in the dim lighting.
“Are you sure you haven’t had one too many?” Henry remarked with a humorous smile.
“Are you sure
you
haven’t?” Robert said, Gesturing to Henry’s empty glass.
Henry looked at the glass Lanyon gestured to, “Perhaps.”
The two gentlemen had been chatting for hours. They hadn’t been drinking as much as they had sometimes when they were younger, but it was clear that their mentality had changed through the night. Both of their cheeks flushed just a little, but perhaps that wasn’t due to the alcohol alone. The laughter and the warmth of the room could cause such a reaction as well. Robert hoped that his blushing wasn’t showing too much. He had a habit of blushing slightly easier in Henry’s presence for some reason. Probably due to the closeness of their friendship. That was at least what he told himself when he was awake. He was leaning against Jekyll, and the two’s faces were dangerously close to each other. Robert tried not to think about it too much.
“Though I am sure there is something different about those eyes.” he commented once again, “On occasion they almost seem to… Sparkle.”
Henry chuckled and gave one of his particularly cute smiles, with his eyes nearly closing, “Alright then, now I
know
you’ve had one too many.”
“Don’t say that! Don’t you ever feel it when light beams from your eyes?” Robert asked.
“I think that’s just the reflection of light.” Henry said.
“Yes, I
know
that, but it seems so… Different with you for some reason.” Robert hoped, that saying such didn’t come off as too much. It was just a fact was it not? It
did
seem different when it came to Henry.
“Using that logic, your eyes sparkle too!” Henry said.
“Certainly not as much as yours?” Robert asked.
“I am sure they do!” Henry insisted. Lanyon looked into Jekyll’s eyes for a while longer, as if he was looking for a way to test his hypothesis. As Henry looked back, Robert figured that his friend was trying to do something similar.
Robert found Henry’s hand while he was busy looking into the brown (red?) eyes. None of them removed their hand as they touched one another. Robert felt a warm feeling in his gut, that he was sure didn’t come from the alcohol. It always happened. He always felt it. He rarely felt such a warmth around anyone… A fluttery, unwelcome, yet thrilling feeling. They were alone. Happy. He swallowed something in his throat.
Robert used his other arm to take a final sip from his own glass. There wasn’t anything left in it after he had done so, so he placed it on the coffee table. For a moment, he looked away from Henry’s eyes, and felt a stiffness from his friend that could almost be confused as disappointment.
Maybe it
was
disappointment.
Instead of shaking the preposterous thought off his mind, he let it stay in the air. He let it repeat itself a million times… wanted to taste it… a sweet, bitter… perfect taste. He looked at Henry once again, and let his eyes drop to look at his friend’s lips.
He wasn’t sure if it was just the alcohol talking, but certainly his friend had just done the same thing?
Preposterous... Unlikely... Impossible…
Robert allowed himself to hold on to the back of Henry’s head. He scratched it a bit, like a gentle massage, just to test his limits. He dared to move just a centimeter closer. His friend didn't look frightened. Perhaps for a moment, but it was quickly replaced with sparkling eyes.
Impossible. Sparkle. Perfect. Impossibly sparkly. Impossibly perfect. Impossibly perfectly sparkly.
Henry Jekyll was all of those things and more. It wasn’t the first time he admitted that to himself.
Just a bit closer… The lips were nearly lightly touching. Henry had grabbed onto the back of Robert’s head as well. Lanyon could feel his friend stroking it.
Then they touched.
The lips touched.
Both of them at the same time. It had been a common decision. It had to have been a common decision. Otherwise there’d be a feeling of hesitation somewhere in the soft touch. Their eyes were closed. Robert could nearly taste Henry’s lips. He could feel every sensation, and wanted all of them to become even clearer to him. For them to go on forever
Tingling, fluttery and sparkly as ever. He felt like he could fly ten meters up into the air, as long as Henry stayed with him just like that.
Kissing like a true gentleman, but with something else underneath. Something truthful and honest. Something that not even Robert had seen. Something no one could see with their eyes.
Something Robert got to feel just a little bit of right then.
Robert unwillingly let go. He needed to look into Henry’s eyes. He needed to make sure that such a preposterous and impossibly perfect thing was happening. Henry had gasped once they let go, and Robert had caught himself doing the same thing.
None of them said a word.
Then he felt Henry pulling him closer. As if he was desperate to try again. Robert was
certainly
desperate to try again.
He couldn’t help but feel like it was a once in a lifetime opportunity.
Their lips met again. Welcome once more. New and perfect again. Robert felt Henry’s soft hair, even if he found it hard to focus on it with the soft kiss serving as a distraction. It was like removing every weight of responsibility on his shoulders. Every single feeling of doubt disappearing... Just for a brief moment.
Robert let go once again. At least he assumed he was the one to let go, even if he wasn’t particularly eager to.
“Henry.” he said, like a sigh.
“Robert.” Henry said, equally speechless.
Robert didn’t remember much of what happened that night. He remembered that Henry fell asleep on the sofa, right next to him. He remembered planting a gentle kiss on Henry’s forehead while his eyes were closed and his breathing peaceful.
Robert had also briefly pondered how far one could go and still get away with calling a gesture friendly.
Surely kissing your friends wasn’t
completely
unheard of. It happened behind closed doors perhaps, but he wouldn’t think himself mad.
Right then and there, he could give in to the luxury of not having to think about it.
He had replayed the kiss many times in his head, until his head didn’t allow him to repeat anymore thoughts that night.
Henry woke up, leaning against the shoulder of his friend Robert Lanyon.
He was feeling rather sluggish, possibly because of the alcohol, but as he caught a glimpse of the time, he knew it wasn’t the time to fall asleep once again.
He repeated last night in his head. He didn’t remember
all
of it, but a certain memory was clear. No matter how clear the memory felt, he couldn’t help but think of it as an impossible dream.
“You acted a little too eager, didn’t you?”
Hyde said, his voice nearly sheepish. It almost felt like Hyde wasn’t entirely past watching the experience himself,
“I am sure he saw through just a little bit of you. I am certain he noticed how desperate you were. He will never look at you the same way again.”
Henry thought about it. The kiss. Beautiful. Perfect. Fluttery. A nice… Friendly kiss. It was possible to kiss one's friends like that wasn’t it? He could have sworn that he had heard of similar cases, without it being completely terrible and unheard of. Yes. A kiss of friendship. That was what it had been. A delightful, perfect and beautiful kiss of friendship.
He hoped that Robert didn’t think of him as too eager, as Hyde had pointed out.
As if on cue, Henry noticed Robert’s eyes opening. He appeared nearly just as sluggish, but there was something… content about his face, that Henry wasn’t entirely used to seeing. He noticed Robert looking at the clock, and then looking at Henry. He groaned, “I suppose it is about time we get up.”
“I… I suppose.” Henry said.
He noticed a small chuckle from Robert, “You know, it is nice to know that you actually slept last night."
Henry was feeling too tired to reply to that with any friendly banter, so he simply allowed the words to stay where they were. As he felt Robert hesitantly move away from him, he quickly spoke, “Robert?”
Lanyon turned to Jekyll, with a thoughtful expression, “Yes?”
Henry pondered the words for a moment, “I am so… incredibly happy that you’re my friend.”
Robert smiled sincerely, “I am so incredibly happy you’re my friend too, Henry.