Jupiter looked to the arm that hers was looped around. His baggy sleeves hid his thin body just like his scowl disguised his fragile heart. The Commander rubbed her thumb along his arm. Words held less meaning than actions; she hoped hers would bring him solace. Cyrus bowed his head with a sigh of contentment. His eyes met hers and she gave him a gentle smile. There was so much more to him than he let the world know; Jupiter wanted nothing more than to share it with him. “Out of all the cosmos,” she asked quietly, “is there a place where you take your greatest pleasure?”
Cyrus stared at her for a long minute before replying, his expression curious. “The beaches,” he replied easily. “I try to avoid them, but only because I do enjoy them so much.” He looked ahead of him, his eyes unfocused. Jupiter smiled inwardly as Cyrus continued to speak, his explanation turning from a simple statement into a re-imagining of the memory. Through his words, she was taken to the sunny seashore of Sunyshore: she could feel the warm rays soak into her skin like lotion, she could smell the crisp salt of the ocean. The waves rushed towards the beach hungrily, their crests swallowing the sand with a gentle whoarsh.
And there he was by the shore, barely older than eleven. Cyrus stood with his ankles sunk in the mud and faced the ocean; it was not hard for the Commander to compare the child to the man she knew. He was so stiff, so tense, so still, that the young boy of his past was now nothing more than a stranger. If she knew him less, Jupiter would never have considered them the same person. Once he was finished talking, Cyrus’s gaze drifted back to hers.
If Jupiter had had any doubts as to his feelings for her, they were quickly driven away. In his eyes she saw an emotion that she knew he did not think about, and one that would cause him the most distress. Fondness was not something to be taken lightly, especially by a man such as he. Cyrus’ eyes widened only just before he turned his head away. Jupiter smiled inwardly; did he think that she could not see, that she did not feel the emotion that was in his look? Determined to keep himself in check, Cyrus’ arm flexed subconsciously, and once more Jupiter was brought close to him. “Beaches don’t feel part of the human world and our mass of motion,” he mumbled, his voice nearly drowned out by the waves.
Warning bells once again rang shrilly through her mind; Jupiter did her best to rid them form her head. She could not go further down this topic. If she did, she knew Cyrus would be quick to silence himself, to withdraw back into his fortress and his solitude. The stars shone brightly down upon them now; how had the time passed so quickly?
A breeze blew through her bangs again, and, using her left hand to smooth them out, the Commander thought of the best way to ease the mood. Glancing at Cyrus from the corner of her eye, she saw the determination to keep himself from retaining the fondness he’d looked at her at in his features. Of course, she thought to herself. His grandfather. For it was he who Cyrus always mentioned, and it was he that Cyrus expressed himself most about. The question rolled naturally off her lips. “What do you consider your favorite childhood memory?” Jupiter asked softly.
Broken from his thoughts, Cyrus turned to meet her gaze. He studied her for a brief moment, and she could see him swallow painfully. He turned away with a sigh, but not before his arm tightened around hers. He nearly smiled when she rubbed his arm again.
“My favorite memory…?” the Galactic Boss began, pondering the question. He looked away from her again, touching the hand on his arm absently with his own. “Of course it has to do with my grandfather. In an attempt to remove me from the reach of my parents and the crowded, constant lighting of the city, he brought me out and away into a more wild area of Sinnoh where, for the night, we set up camp. It was my first time going and though I preferred the structure and order of the indoors I was excited for a private moment—and the surprise he had stated he had in store for me.”
Cyrus paused then, shifting slightly and glancing down at the hand that held hers. Jupiter rubbed her thumb along his, silently urging him to continue. “When we got there, he set up a telescope. I knew he didn’t have one—he had rented it just for tonight. We didn’t sleep, though we had brought bags and a tent. I spent the whole of the night wide-awake with my curiosity and wonder running rampant. My parents were furious because I was so tired when I got home. But not even that couldn’t stop me from feeling… radiant. I had the best night I could have asked for. It’s something I will not forget.”
So the memory that Cyrus loved the most was one shared by his grandfather. Just as when he retold the memory of his time at the beach, so too did Jupiter imagine herself in the remembrance. For Cyrus to share the universe with the one person who brought the stars to him was indeed a memory that should not be forgotten. In was incredibly special, his opening up to her. Jupiter stopped walking and pulled away from Cyrus in order to get a good look at him. ”Your grandfather sounds like a very kind man; it’s obvious he means a lot to you,” she said, squeezing his arms warmly. “Thank you for sharing that precious memory with me.”
"Of course… You’re—you’re welcome." He shuffled his feet awkwardly, unable to look her in the eyes. Jupiter smiled again; she could not have asked him for anything else. She looped her arm through his once more and together they continued walking through the now star-lit path in the park. The Commander did not mind the silence that fell between them; there was a certain tranquility that Jupiter would enjoy it while it lasted despite her wandering mind.
She knew him. She knew him now more than she had before—and certainly more than anyone else. Several questions buzzed through her mind, though none of them were appropriate for the moment. What had been his dreams? Was space and its infinite universes his only means of escape? Cyrus had been alone—and had felt alone—well into his adult life. His dreams for Galactic… the desire for a ‘new world without strife’… His childhood, his parents, were the beacon that he strove to distance himself from. If there was a world without strife, there would be no wars, no pointless fighting over petty desires.
A child would not have to be punished by unforgiving parents.
It was in this realization that Jupiter felt very close to Cyrus. It was easy to see now, easy to understand. She had always known there was something held back in how he interacted with the world. For a man who believed the world to be suffering so much that he wishes for a new world without such misery was a man who suffered. Cyrus’ stern look of a frown and furrowed brows led his subordinates and the world to believe he was a man without emotion. The Commander knew all of this was a lie: his eyes more than revealed his pain. The bright lights of the city were now upon them, and soon they would have to part. Jupiter did not wish to break away from him so soon; when she slowed her walk to nothing more than a crawl, he kept the pace.
Despite their time to part arriving swiftly, Jupiter continued to reflect on the man she loved. He was not a man without emotion—Cyrus was emotion. He felt so much that he despised them, despised how he felt, despised how they made him feel about himself. It was impossible for Jupiter to not understand; his emotions were so strong that he struggled to keep them under wraps. ‘Mind over matter.’ The old idiom was repeated through the generations, but it did not hold as true as when Cyrus performed.
When they reached their ultimate destination, the two reluctantly stopped. This was where they would leave each other. If the moment was broken now, surely when they saw each other next things would be as if their date never happened. Removing her arm from Cyrus’, Jupiter turned to face him, resolve settling deep within her heart. If circumstances were to change, she would have to make a stand. She was a woman who knew what she wanted—she was a woman who made things happen.
So when they looked into each other’s eyes, with her tilting her head just slightly, the Commander smiled a fond smile, the corners of her lips raising to show the whites of her teeth. Though it was dark, the lamps illuminated his thin, but very beautiful, face. Her heart accelerated, and Jupiter felt a strong desire to kiss him in that moment. Here goes. She took a step closer to him, her hands reaching to grasp his. Jupiter took another small step towards him, her chest barely brushing against his, and gently squeezing the clammy hands within her own. When Cyrus did not move away from her touch, Jupiter lifted herself on her toes to bring her face nearer to his.
His eyes were blue, but were touched with enough grey to form a mixture as calming as his presence. Jupiter’s eyes trailed down to his thin lips, imagining how they must taste, and how they would feel against hers. Would they be a good match? Returning her eyes to Cyrus’, she took a good look at the man just before her. A light flush of color spread across his cheeks at her touch. That subtle pinkening could have been a starburst in her eyes; the world had never seen anything as spectacular as his blush. They were close, closer than they had ever had before. Had she shifted her weight to her other leg, their knees would touch.
Cyrus blinked once, slowly, his mouth a questioning ‘o’. Jupiter could feel how tense he was; was he confused by her forwardness? But with the way she could feel his heart beating rapidly just as hers seemed to burst from her chest, she figured now was as good as any. Her cheeks a rosy pink, the Commander gazed at Cyrus, silently asking for permission.
She was not sure if creating a new world without strife would rid him of his suffering, but she hoped that just her being there was good enough for him.
As she leaned in, she moved her hands from his and moved the to the crooks of his elbows. She heard Cyrus’ sharp intake of breath once their noses touched, and she could feel his rapid heartbeat so close to her own as their chests met. After a moment’s hesitation, Jupiter closed her eyes and brought her lips to his. They were dry, although not unwilling, she knew that he had not been expecting this—Cyrus was a statue. Five seconds had not yet passed and already she pulled away a breath’s distance.
But something commanded her to move forward; this could not be their first kiss.
Jupiter brought her painted lips to his again, her hands embracing his arms as she moved closer. She pressed a little more firmly, and Cyrus’ muscles relaxed, but not in a way she was expecting. He moved under her touch, uttering with surprise in the process. Immediately she broke the kiss, her eyes snapping open. What have I done?
The Commander sank back to her feet, her thoughts wild. What have I done? repeated through her mind. This was Cyrus, her boss, the man who held all of her respect. She was now fully apart from Cyrus, but her hands lingered on his arms; should she remove them, it would be the end. But there was no need to touch him now; this she knew, was merely selfishness of a greedy heart. Who was she to force her affections on another, especially the delicate Cyrus?
"Forgive me," she whispered, turning her eyes away from him. She had tried, and she had failed—she should have known that, despite the circumstances, Cyrus was in no way in want of her advances. "I acted out of li—" Jupiter’s hands slowly slid from his, her touch lingering.
"…It—It’s okay," came the soft reply. His fingers curled around hers just before they lost contact.
What? She looked towards Cyrus in disbelief: his countenance was that of tenderness. Once their eyes met, a blush erupted across his cheeks and he diverted his eyes; though he did not retain eye contact, he was still looking at her. Jupiter’s face broke out into an unrestrained smile, affection flooding through her body like a river.
"Oh, Cyrus," she murmured, holding his hands close to her heart. She had never imagined their relationship turning out like this, despite her strong feelings for him. To have him so close to her on a romantic night, to be able to kiss him, to hold him, and have everything as okay… Jupiter could not have wished for a more perfect evening.
His eyes reverted back to hers only just, and it was in that moment that Jupiter took her chance. Removing her hands from his and instead cradling his head in them, she pressed herself against him with more passion than anyone in Galactic had ever seen from her. She titled her head so that their lips met, and, in this heat-of-the-moment kiss, their meeting was uneven. Cyrus’ breathing hitched and his lips parted further: Jupiter kissed so that his top lip was stuck between hers. She ran the tip of her tongue along the edge of his lip before deepening the kiss further. When he sighed, she did as well, grasping his arm in one hand and pressing her hips against his. This time their knees did touch, but Jupiter wasn’t complaining.
"Though I dearly wish this date would not end," she breathed, ending the intimate gesture but still remaining very close to him, "I’m afraid I must turn in." Jupiter smiled warmly and pressed her forehead to his, her thumb stroking his cheek. Was it possible for him to become even more red? "I enjoyed tonight, Cyrus."
And with that said, she removed herself from him, her fingertips trailing his neck and his collarbone as she did. “I… enjoyed myself, too…?” he repeated stupidly, his mouth gaping. Jupiter smiled the amused smile she always gave him; he was so adorable when his naivete showed. Perhaps that played a reason for why she liked him so much. Cyrus was as much of a man as Byron or the silly Crasher Wake.
He was just as human as everyone else.
Gazing at him with love in her eyes, the Commander blew a kiss before turning on her heel and walking towards the hotel she’d rented specifically for the night, knowing that Cyrus would not be following. There was a time and place for everything, but that was not now. She smiled broadly when she’d passed through the solid oak doors. Oh, Cyrus…