🌺𝔸 𝕤𝕚𝕝𝕖𝕟𝕥 𝕣𝕖𝕢𝕦𝕖𝕤𝕥🌺
Part 9
Note: Bonding moments and forgotten memories.
A little tired I vacuumed the floor. Today I have resolved to clean the entire apartment. I'm even almost done with it, so my apartment is very small anyway. A little bit I regretted getting up early. I could have slept in.
But since Venti is visiting me today, I wanted to keep the apartment clean. We planned to go out a little today. And that is a little trip to the museum. It is a bit far away, but still worth it. He told me that this museum is very important to him. The special thing about it is that it rarely opened and that you could interpret. We were lucky to get a reservation.
Finally, I put away all the cleaning supplies and got ready. I looked for cozy and warm clothes for this time of year. Summer took its leave and now we welcome autumn. However, it is rather chilly at night. Sometimes we experienced very cold nights. Now and then the temperature was pleasant. Apparently, summer wants to say goodbye as slowly as possible.
I applied some more cream to my face after putting the tweezers down on my dressing table. One last time I looked at my face in the mirror to make sure that nothing was missing. But I noticed that I looked a little different lately. Maybe my complexion has changed because of the cream? Ah, never mind.
After grabbing my coat and bag, I made my way to the bus stop. Venti is in the station, since he has got an appointment. And since we have to go to the station anyway, we'll meet there.
I called him to let him know I was on my way. He still seemed concerned about me.
"No, really. I'm fine again..." I sighed and got on the bus.
"But (Name)! Weren't you in a lot of pain?" Whined Venti. "Maybe you should rest some more?"
"I know you mean well. But..uh. You know it comes and goes. Besides..I wasn't myself."
"If you're tired, you'll let me know, okay?"
"Alright. Whatever gets you to sleep at night. I'll be there in about twenty minutes."
He can be really sweet sometimes.
I got off the bus to walk into the train station. I could see Venti from a distance. His pigtails always catch my eye. He waved at me when he saw me. A bit shy, I waved back and crossed the crosswalk. Immediately he held out his hand to me. But before that, we hugged.
Holding hands, we walked up the stairs and waited for the train.
"What kind of job did you have today? Hopefully not in a bar..." Sometimes you can't tell he's drunk. Now that's what I call talent.
"A very nice job. I performed at a kindergarten. They had an event today." Venti smiled at me. "But I rarely get an opportunity like that."
"That must have been nice to have." We then boarded our train. But suddenly it became crowded, so we were standing close to each other in a corner. I wondered if we were going to get out again. I felt two slender arms around me.
"Huh? What are you doing?"
"You don't like a crowded place, do you? So I'm protecting you." He said in a soft voice. I raised an eyebrow.
"Is that an excuse to hug me for a long time in public?"
"Uhh..no..?" I didn't think that was bad. So I let him have his fun.
Wr still had to take a bus after the little train ride. And yes, we still made it out of the crowd just fine. I then looked at the window. The sky was slowly turning orange.
"I guess it's getting dark faster." Said Venti, also looking at the window. "Then you'll get tired even earlier." But that's the way this time of year is. Still, I find this time of year especially beautiful. Especially when I get to spend it with him. It's just very cozy with him.
"Is it close?" We walked through the leaves falling on the sidewalk. "Yeah, we just have to walk a few more minutes. (Name), have you been here before?" I shook my head at his question as an answer.
"Well, you'll know it now."
Sure enough, after a few minutes we arrived at the museum. However, I noticed that there were very few people here. Is this street not quite so well known after all?
We went to the reception and were allowed to leave our valuables. A few people were just leaving the museum. I looked around again as Venti took out the tickets.
It was already very lightly lit in the entrance. On display was a huge staircase leading up to a paddock with a view of the sky. There were other entrances and a restroom. But a souvenir store was not to be seen here. Normally, that's how I know it.
Do you come here often?" I asked quietly and went down the stairs with him. Apparently his favorite section led downstairs. We were in a square room with another entrance.
"Rather rarely. But I thought you might like it?" I looked at a broken bow hanging on the wall. There must have been an attempt to restore the weapon. I read the description.
"Bow found below ground. Owner not found nearby..." But that was all I understood from the text.
I then looked at Venti. "A bow, huh...? Must be very old then."
"A very long time ago."
When I looked to the other side, there was a strange mask in a display case. It was quite small and slightly crumbled.
"Do you think people wore it?" He asked me suddenly.
"I think children...?" I don't think it could fit an adult. There was another mask with red markings. I hoped they were markings...
I looked for a description. But this mask also seemed to be here without a detailed explanation. It only said that..no human DNA could be detected, which I found very creepy.
In other display cases there were books that looked almost burned and some that looked well preserved. However, I thought it was a shame that you couldn't leaf through them. They looked very interesting. But I could not decipher the writing.
When I looked at Venti, he seemed to still have his eyes on the open page. It almost looked like he was actually reading the pages at the moment.
As we walked along, there were books and instruments in one corner. But this room was only very slightly lit.
"This flute is very beautiful." I commented. It was white with a feather as a pendant on it. But from the middle, the flute had a lot of rust on it.
"They say that this flute made even the most restless beings sleep. Fascinating, isn't it?"
"Yes, I think so, too. But is that based on a legend or truth?" I asked, always looking at the flute.
It took Venti a while to give me an answer. "Who knows..?" Somehow I had a feeling he would rather give me a different answer.
There were more instruments to see.
"Don't you have a lyre too?" Venti and I walked past this instrument. "Yup. But mine is much nicer than this broken thing." I rolled my eyes with a smile, "Of course."
In another room there was a chance to sit down. One was surrounded by a great many paintings. But unfortunately, most of them were not exactly identifiable. Nevertheless, they looked beautiful in my eyes. Especially the painting of a snowy mountain. It should have been a very dangerous place. But the artist remained unknown.
We sat down and looked at the painting of a person with very large wings. However, we did not exactly recognize the person depicted. It seemed to have no clothes on, but had pitch black hair. This one was sitting on a cliff with white flowers. I think they are Cecilia's.
"Tell me Venti, why does this section of the museum mean so much to you?" I asked quietly, yet a hint of curiosity.
"Did you notice that most of the objects were illegible or the owners unknown?"
"I noticed that...why do you ask?"
He didn't take his eyes off the painting. And I couldn't take my eyes off him. At this angle and this close, you could see how long his eyelashes were, which were half closed, how rosy his cheeks and his lips, which were now forming into a gentle smile. It made my heart beat faster.
Venti looked different somehow at that moment. I don't know how to describe it..but more grown up? More powerful? Maybe it was the calm but sad aura he exuded.
"I think it's nice to cherish things. All these objects belonged to people with a past. And the paintings...these tell a story. What's special about this museum is that it's inexplicable. You can dream for a long time what might be behind it." "A story...?" I muttered, looking down at my hands. "Hmm... then I'll make it easier for you: if you find a doll in an abandoned room, doesn't it make you sad? Maybe you have pictures in your head of how a child played with it. You reminiscene.“
So that's what he means... "I think I understand what you're getting at now."
Now that he says it, you actually feel a lot here. Especially because there were no detailed explanations of the items we found.
The masks were creepy to me.
The books made me curious.
The paintings strangely nostalgic.
But what made me sad was a small fluffy stuffed animal. The child left without being able to take it with him.
"I guess you can reflect a lot of feelings here. It makes you feel alive." I said. I found that particularly interesting.
"Exactly! I think so, too. That's one of the reasons I like museums." Venti seemed delighted.
We walked around some more until we found it was about time to go. I wanted to go to the ladies room before we headed back home.
Venti went back to the reception already.
As I walked past a room with books, I was startled. Right at that moment, a young man, not much taller than me was about to walk out.
"Sorry..go ahead." I said quietly and stepped back a bit so he could pass through. The young man just stared at me with his lifeless eyes. Neither did he say anything.
Then he went on his way. A little puzzled, I walked on. Okay, now that was weird.
Somehow..he reminded me of a doll. He didn't blink at all and had a pretty face.
When I turned around for a moment, he was suddenly gone. This only confused me more. Gone that quickly? It wasn't 5 seconds when he just passed me by-
Ah, never mind.
In front of the tap, I washed my hands and dabbed my eyes with a cold and wet cloth. Maybe this will make me a little more awake...
After this whole day I was getting tired. I couldn't wait to get back home and lie in bed.
Then we put on our jackets and went outside again. The sky was already dark, although it was not very late.
On the bus, I looked at Venti, who was drawing something on the foggy window with his fingertip. I bent forward and watched.
It was a heart. Then he turned silently to me. Apparently he only now noticed that I was watching.
He grinned and winked at me once.
I bit my lips together slightly to stifle a smile and looked down at my thighs.
Meanwhile, he then watched as the drawn heart disappeared. After that, he didn't draw anything and was quiet for the rest of the ride.
When we arrived at my apartment, we first prepared a warm drink. It might take a while to cool down a bit, so I showed Venti the new bed. Of course I thought of a second, but also narrower mattress. If I increase the size of the bed, it will fit like a glove. I was able to save on space thanks to the drawers.
"That looks beautiful. It matches your room!" He then looked at the sheets that were laid out ready. I had to make the bed again. Because I wasn't going to be able to do that today. Before that, we changed into more comfortable clothes. I had on some undershirt and wide pajama pants.
He voluntarily covered the blanket and pillow and I took over the mattresses. I stroked the mattress to smooth out the wrinkles a bit. After that, I put all the pillows down neatly.
"And now: test out the new bed!"
Huh?
I turned to face him and widened my eyes afterwards. Venti held the blanket behind him with his arms outstretched and ran towards me.
I immediately backed away. "W..wait!"
WHACK
The bed squeaked loudly as he landed with his knees and I fell backwards as he dropped on top of me now giggling. In his leap he dropped the blanket on top of us.
I lay sprawled on the bed while I looked up at the ceiling, completely done. It was obvious that he would do that!
With a cheeky grin, he looked down at me.
"So, Venti? Is the bed any good?"
"Yup, it's sturdy. Very convenient!" Whatever he could mean by that.
Probably something like playing bouncy castle.
It's Venti, after all.
"I'm glad to hear that. But hop on the bed like that one more time and you'll eventually catapult me away..." I laughed lightly.
"I would never do that on purpose." He then stroked my cheek lightly and I smiled shyly at him. His eyes were really quite mesmerizing. I could look at them all day....
As if under a spell, I placed my hands on his soft cheeks and gently pulled him down to me. Our noses almost touched. We giggled once, a little hesitant to let our lips touch each other. Maybe it was the shyness I was radiating.
Eventually Venti took the lead and gave me a little kiss. The second he placed on my neck. I felt a slight goose bump at this. We changed our position. Now he was lying a little on top of me. Good thing he wasn't very heavy at all.
He then placed his head on my left chest. It tickled a little when he breathed. I stroked my fingers through his hair.
"You seem to like physical contact..." That wasn't really anything new.
"I just like it with you. But, especially here." He snuggled up some more on my chest. My cheeks heated up. Of course...of all places..h-how shameless-
"Because your heartbeat calms me." He added in a whisper.
Oh.
"Isn't it beating a little faster now...?" I asked him unsettled. I felt a tiny bit excited.
"Not yet..." Venti looked at me with a grin. It was a teasing one, though.
"N-not yet?" Is he up to something? I held a breath as he placed small kisses on my cleavage.
"I want to play some more~" He whispered with a smile.
I held onto the bed sheets that I had just smoothed out so nicely after all and tried not to laugh but at the same time I didn‘t want to let out strange noises. It felt weird. But not uncomfortable.
"Veenti...!" I whined.
Still, I managed to escape from his grip and pressed my face to the pillow. But he did not give up. After all, my back was still slightly exposed.
I learned that I was very sensitive at the upper back and put one hand in front of my lips.
At some point, he suddenly stopped and gently let himself fall on top of me. Confused, I tried to look at him.
"But now I am exhausted..ehe. Good night..." Ahem.
I raised an eyebrow, shook my head and pointed at the bed sheet.
Now I watched Venti smooth out the sheet while I drank the still warm tea in a controlling manner. Serves him right. The word “Guilty“ was written large on his forehead.
Finally the bed was tidy again and we went to my little balcony. We talked about the little trip to the museum. I had some idea why the section we were in was very special. It was not only because of the nameless owners and unknown as well as inexplicable descriptions.
Because when Venti asked me if the items looked familiar, I was suddenly unsure.
I thought of the half-finished painting depicting a tree. I am sure that I must have seen it once.
But I denied him the answer. It might seem strange. After all, there are many trees in this area.
I didn't know why, but apparently this answer pained him. I'm sure I could see it in his eyes. Despite his smile.
And maybe I regretted it.
Masterlist
Part 10
