A night sitting in a haze

Theresia and I had been working tirelessly on the cleanup of the play. It had taken too many liberties within its creative, and had wholly been a hassle in that regard.

“We’re almost done with it, aren’t we?” Theresia let out a sigh. “I’m too exhausted to move another muscle.”

“I suppose I’ll have to carry you then.” I joked in response.

“Truly?”

My tongue had been jesting, but I wondered then if my heart would have been happy to hold her in my arms.

“If that is something you want, then I’ll always be ready to support your legs when they no longer work for you.” I smiled softly.

Her face held a gentle blush as she looked up towards me.

“If we’re done cleaning up, then perhaps we should celebrate?” I pondered. “The storage closet I sleep in is set perfectly for such an occasion.”

“I’ve no desire to stay here in this heat any longer...” Theresia shook her head. “Although, if you’re welcoming to the idea, my house has more than enough room.”

Walking through the gentle streets of Aethine, I glanced at the hand that she kept tucked at her side. I couldn’t help myself but fall into fantasy within that moment.

I wanted to feel the soft lines upon her palms once again.

We came to the door that had been wedged tightly within the pipework of a building. It was as if it stood a maze, perfectly protected from peering eyes by its simple enigma of fashion. To Theresia, it was not such an art piece. To her it was simply home.

I left my shoes in the entryway, stepping gently into the quiet of her home. I wondered then if the silence within the room was deafening to her alone. In that moment, I came to understand her peace amidst the hum of machinery.

The loneliness of her home was terrifying.

Standing within Theresia’s room, I felt my lungs lose their capacity to breath in an instant. I did not know where such an anxiety was summoned from. I could only blame it on matters of the heart.

While I had lost control of my breathlessness, the aching feeling of my heart had intensified. Despite that, my fear of confronting those emotions had vanished.

In the face of my emotions, I was a lion.

In the face of my heart, I was not scared.

In the face of Theresia, I was a heart of gold.

Suddenly, Theresia emerged through the door, holding gently two bottles that had long glossed over. Thick within their fog, she had produced liquor that reminded me faintly of a task bound to my time. It was that which had been monopolised by the Strousse family.

I held a glass within my hand. It had been crystalline, as if standing a jewel upon my softened fingertips. The exterior had been shined to an extent where a simple touch left my prints upon the glass.

Strousse liquor tended to be wholly sweet. Against my tongue, it was chilled. I had not considered for a moment that within the technologically-advanced city of Aethine, there would have been a way to create cool amidst the heat.

I sat atop the silken sheets of Theresia’s bed, facing her as we conversed and drank.

Being drunk within Crelle was a feeling unlike that upon Earth. I had never been the heaviest drinker, nor one that could hold liquor in general. A simple emptied bottle sat cold against my leg. It had only taken a few glasses of the sweetened drink to set me apart from a sound mind.

The feeling itself was incredibly different.

My face felt hot. My fingertips would tingle upon touching anything, even gently. My endless thoughts had silenced completely. I was alone with Theresia within the quiet.

My mind felt wholly hazy, both from the liquor, and simply from sitting before a woman my heart yearned to hold close. I wanted her heavied hand atop my head. I wanted her softened fingers to run lightly through my hair. I wanted more and I wanted all of her.

I had been sitting directly in front of Theresia, yet I felt so far from her.

There was a constant smile that had been plastered upon my face, one sitting wholly unmovable. Theresia too had held a loving gaze, although it was one unrecognisable to me within a drunken haze.

She reached out her hand suddenly, touching gently upon my cheek with a quieted smile.

“I love you, Agreste.” She spoke softly and suddenly.

My heartbeat which I had felt apparent stopped within that moment, and I wasn’t sure what I had heard had been correct. I had long wondered whether I had been allowed to feel that which I had felt. In that moment however, I had wholly resigned myself to my own heart, and so I moved forward regardless.

Steeling my hazy will, I parted my lips as if to speak.

“I’m in love with you Theresia.” I spoke in return suddenly. “I- imagine... I imagine I have been for a while...”

I had been trying desperately not to trip over my own drunken words. Whether it was simply slurred, or if I was nervous, was something I was unable to tell. I spoke slowly and cautiously, fearful that my speaking would be misinterpreted.

Within that moment however, the words I put effort into were heard clearly.

Theresia too held surprise upon her expression, but it quickly became carved away. She held a simple smile upon her face, one that spoke of the euphoria of her heart.

“Then...”

Theresia leaned in towards me, and without warning in a quiet moment, placed her gentle lips upon mine.

Her lips were sweet as the liquor that had been drank, yet gentle despite its grace. Her skin upon my hand had been lined by the ache of my heart, softened like velvet and touched gently by the warm sun.

Then did my heart feel rest from its angst. Against her touch did I feel as if my day had been fulfilled. I had no mind to work harder. I only wanted to sink further into her atmosphere.Pulling away, I saw clearly her flushed face. It was an enigma in its meaning, for it could have been the liquor, or her embarrassed demeanor that washed it crimson-red. Too then did I know that my expression held the same in parallel.

But then I had resigned myself to live without apprehension of fear.

I rested my head upon Theresia’s chest, my eyes shut softly as I basked within the warmth of her softened embrace. With quiet hands, she ran her fingers through my hair. Quickly ruffled within peace, I did not mind.

Messy hair was fine when it was done by her hands alone.

She had left my head a mess in too many ways.