Enjolras has half a mind to make a joke –––– ‘it’s only a flesh wound’ –––– but he knows it’ll be lost on Elya; it’ll only be a relic from another time. Indeed, it’s inconsequential & shouldn’t even leave a scar if they wrap & disinfect it properly. His tunic is partially undone, allowing Elya a closer look, & it’s not lost on Enjolras how close they are. He can feel the king’s breath on his skin, the heat radiating from his body, see every strand of hair on his head. Enjolras wonders, briefly, if Elyakim can also feel his heartbeat’s quickening pace, betraying him.
He doesn’t know how this happened. Any of it. Obvious mysteries aside (like how he’d even wound up here), he doesn’t know when or how Elya snuck up on him the way he has, & Enjolras is afraid of misstepping. He’s a stranger here, after all, & Elyakim is royalty. He’s a king. There must be a thousand & one people better suited for him than Enjolras, than a man whose main calling in life is proverbially setting to fire all the poisonous things around him & watching them burn to the ground.
& yet –––– a selfish part of Enjolras wants to covet these moments anyway. Because when in the past has he ever had the opportunity, the freedom, to truly be selfish?
He shifts a bit when Elyakim adjusts the bandages, sits a little more upright to give him better leverage. & then –– ! He feels it before he thinks to look down & see it: lips on his collarbone, a quick kiss to his skin, & then the moment is over before Enjolras can even think to breathe.
Elya’s words take longer than necessary to register. ❝ Evasion. Right. I’ll keep that in mind. ❞ But he doesn’t move to get up just yet. ‘Be selfish,’ his mind whispers, & he yields, shifting & leaning forward a bit, a mimicry of their time sparring the other day when Enjolras had first thought he’d overstepped. His eyes flick first to Elya’s lips, then his eyes –––– his own brown ones are worried & questioning. ❝ Tell me I’ve misread this situation & I’ll stop, otherwise ... ❞ He trails off, letting the thought conclude itself.
@tzedakahrule | cont.
