"Chan, I need you to look at me." Said male keeps his eyes shut , lips pressed in a thin, quivering line with his hands pressed tightly over his ears. Howl is crouched before the boy in the dim candle light. Their shadows flicker and dance across the room, painted over the white washed walls.
The wizard had lit every candle he could find within Chan’s apartment once the lights gave out. It had caused quite a scare for the other, who’d been studying in an anxious matter for finals. Howl was there simply to keep the other company (besides, he cooks good food). The two are now huddled between the couch and coffee table of Chan’s living room, bathing in the kindling light.
With careful fingers, Howl wraps his hands over Chan’s, catching his attention. Howl relaxes his rigid shoulders with a soft smile, lowering Chan’s hands from his head. “See, love? That’s much better.”
upcoming finals, preparations for his final year of college, his recently acquired second part-time job—chan had been on edge the entire week. the unexpected thunderstorm and the even less expected power outage had been more than enough to have him plummet into the depths of panic. luckily, however, howl had been quick to find ways to make chan’s small apartment as bright as possible, before chan could enter into the worst throes of an anxiety attack. it was only due to howl's quick actions that he was able to calm down after his initial panic, and for this he was grateful to the other male beyond words he would ever say out loud.
not trusting his voice to be steady, he nodded slightly in response to howl's soothing tone, body still shaking and expression still panic-stricken. he stayed silent and counted his heartbeats, to calm himself further, until he could no longer hear the thrumming in his ears. “th-thanks,” he muttered cautiously, almost as if he was afraid to break the silence. keeping his head down to avoid eye contact, he wiped away tears that he didn't want to admit were his. he looked up when he believed the other male was no longer looking at him, only to have his eyes meet with howl’s. it took only a split second for chan to look down again.
"Your eyes are even prettier when they're not filled with tears."
chan’s body froze as his mind raced and his heart stirred at the other’s unexpected words. if he had heard the supposed compliment in any normal circumstance, he would have rolled his eyes and scoffed, or he would have ignored the words completely. however in his vulnerable state, with emotions running high, he was unsure of how to react. he looked back up at the other male’s face, examining his expression for any hint of sarcasm or pity, but doing so proved nearly impossible in the dim light of the candles.
letting his gaze drop back down, he shook his head slightly. “i don’t know what you mean by that but—” he stopped when he realized he didn’t know how he planned to finish his sentence. instead, he paused and rephrased his words into not-quite-a-question. “what do you mean by that.”
