every chapter up to 16 is pre written (as in: written way before the wrist stuff) do not come after me
TWELVE
Starstruck
Stupid alarms, Elias thought as he repeatedly tapped the "stop" button, burying his face into his pillow. That shrill sound never failed to get on his nerves as soon as he woke up.
He wasn't sure why he had it on for his days off, until he remembered the last time he had kept his alarm off during the night. He had ruined his sleeping schedule in a day. Elias groaned and pushed himself into a sitting position, blinking slowly to adjust to the light streaming into his dark room.
Eventually, he rolled out of bed, lazily pulling a shirt over his upper half. He walked out into the living room, then stopped at the sight of a pair of feet hanging off the edge of the couch. He had completely forgotten Roman stayed the night.
Elias slid up behind the sofa and peeked over the top. Roman was knocked out, on his side and facing the back of the couch. The blanket covered half his face, hair a tousled mess atop his head, strands sticking out everywhere from tossing and turning during the night.
Elias smiled to himself. There was something endearing about the sight of people first thing in the morning or as they slept.
Did that sound creepy? He hoped not. He didn't think of that as weird.
Roman looked at ease when he slept. Usually, when Elias saw him, there was always some type of tension in his features, whether that was a clenched jaw, a frown, or the furrowing of his eyebrows. He never appeared to be fully calm, but he did in that moment. He looked the most peaceful Elias had ever seen him.
It was a nice look on him.
Elias left him alone and wandered into the kitchen, starting up some coffee even though he didn't drink it every morning. Roman did, however, and Elias was lucky to have the creamer that was similar to the flavor Roman always got.
He looked through the fridge for things to make. He remembered Gale's favorite creation on their menu; she called it the "Hangover Breakfast," and it was pretty popular among those who were fresh out of a night of drinking. Gale had never gotten complaints, and Elias had made it a few times, enough to know what exactly to do.
Roman was bound to have a hangover. Hopefully he wouldn't mind.
Elias had just placed the last of the ingredients on the counter when he heard rustling, followed by the groaning sound everyone made as they did a well-needed stretch. He stepped into the living room, leaning against the threshold as he watched Roman sit up, looking foggy.
"Good morning," Elias greeted. Roman looked his way, blinking tiredly, his hair all over the place and one side of his cheek significantly more red than the other.
"Oh. Good mor â ow," he hissed, hunching over and pressing the heel of his hand against his forehead. Elias frowned and walked over, sitting down on the spot his legs no longer took up.
"Headache?" Elias questioned. Roman nodded with a pained look on his face.
Elias pressed the back of his hand against Roman's forehead, the heat hitting his knuckles immediately. "You know what I always do for Mars when she has bad headaches?" Elias asked, tilting his head to the side and letting his hand drop.
Roman frowned. "What?"
"Turn around." Roman gave him a wary look, but did as he said, making a sound of surprise when Elias grabbed his shoulders and carefully laid him down so that his head was in Elias' lap. "Tell me if you don't like it, okay?"
"O-Okay..."
Elias slid his fingers through Roman's hair, massaging circles in the areas below his temples and above his cheekbones. When Roman didn't complain, Elias moved to the sides of his forehead, then slid back around to rub the base of his neck.
"Mars hates swallowing pills," Elias murmured. "So, I always do something like this if she's in pain. Is it helping?"
"Mm."
Elias laughed; it wasn't a perfect answer, but it was a positive one. "Maybe I should quit and make this my job," he joked softly. He slid his fingers underneath Roman's chin and gently lifted his head, kneading against his jaw and the underside of it. "What do you think?"
"I think..." Roman trailed off, releasing a content sigh. "...You are very good with your hands."
Elias' lips twitched. "Oh, am I?"
"Mhm."
"Good to know."
It took a couple moments, but soon enough the flush on the right side of his cheek joined the left. Elias grinned. He leaned down and whispered, "Did you realize how what you said sounded?"
"Shut up."
Elias chuckled, moving his hands back to the bottom of Roman's neck. "There's a lot of knots down here," he commented, pressing down, earning a hiss from Roman. "Are you stressed? Do you get like this because of your job?"
"Yeah, probably..."
"Hm." Elias must've pressed down too hard on the knot, because Roman suddenly gasped and arched off his lap, chanting a multitude of different variations of "ow, shit, fuck." Elias dropped his hands into his lap, amused as Roman lightly rubbed the spot.
"Sorry," Elias said, giving him an apologetic look when he turned to face him.
Roman shook his head. "It's okay. Also, uh..."
Elias sent him a curious glance. "What is it?"
"I know this is random. Completely unrelated, but, um..." Roman bit at his bottom lip, hesitant. Elias waited patiently. "You â yesterday you said you knew... I was uncomfortable? With you touching me?"
"Yeah," Elias replied. "Aren't you? You kept flinching."
"N-No, no... I don't mind it," Roman admitted quietly. "I just â get surprised easily, I guess. I would tell you if I didn't, uh, like it."
"Oh, okay."
"Mhm."
"So, can I fix your hair?"
Roman startled, reaching up to pat his hair down. Elias grinned, moving his hands so he could swipe the out of place strands back into place. "Much better," he said when he finished. "Your hair is soft."
"Oh, thank you."
"I know you're talking normally," Elias commented all of a sudden, "but knowing you don't think of me as an uncomfortable stranger is nice."
Roman laughed a little. The sound was pretty. He was pretty. Yet still masculine. Elias wondered if people perceived him the same way. If they did, then maybe he wouldn't mind being called "pretty" all that much.
"Well, uh, you're very easy to talk to."
"I am?"
"Yeah. And you just... You're very comforting, if that makes sense. Warm."
Elias' brows lifted slightly. "I think that's the best compliment I've ever gotten."
"You deserve more of them."
Elias' lips parted as he tried to find the words to say. But he couldn't think of anything. He hadn't heard words like that from anyone in years â too many years. That he deserved compliments, good things. And it came from Roman, of all people â someone he had only known for about two months.
He wasn't sure he ever heard that from his own parents.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to make it awkward."
"You didn't," Elias responded without an ounce of hesitation. "I just don't know how to respond. You're so kind to me. You don't even know me as well as you probably should by now."
"That's okay. I don't want to force anything out of you."
Elias sighed quietly, unable to let his smile drop. It was like he was always smiling around him. "Do you need to be at work or anywhere anytime soon?"
"Oh, no, not really. I go in at noon."
Elias checked the time. There were five hours until then.
"Would you like to stay here until then?" Elias inquired, silently hoping he would say yes. He wanted the company. And he'd already planned on making a breakfast for two.
Roman nodded. "I'd love to."
"Good. Come on," Elias coaxed, getting up from the couch. "I'm already making breakfast. Do you need any painkillers?"
"I'll take them when I eat."
"Smart."
Elias did most of the talking, like he always did with him. Roman mainly listened, and whenever Elias would cast him a look as he spoke, he was watching him every time. Like he was hanging off every single word that left his mouth.
Like he actually found him interesting.
Roman was very, very different from all the people Elias had the pleasure and displeasure of meeting. It was a good different, without a doubt.
It was the kind of different that he wouldn't mind letting inside his routine days. If that was even possible for him.
Elias dropped two pills into Roman's palm after he set the food down. Roman stared for a few moments, looking troubled. Elias nudged his leg underneath the table.
"It looks really good," Roman mumbled. "And smells good. But when I look at it, my stomach is like, churning."
"That's what you get for drinking."
"I know."
"You don't have to eat all of it," Elias stated, leaning his cheek against his hand.
Roman frowned at him. "But then I'd be wasting it."
"No food goes to waste in this house," Elias mused. "Mars will definitely finish what you don't."
"Why do you have a solution for everything?"
Elias shrugged. "Must be a parent thing. I don't know."
Roman shoved a forkful of scrambled egg into his mouth, looking around the kitchen. He asked about some pictures, and Elias gave him explanations and stories behind each one. He didn't even seem to be asking out of politeness â he really seemed curious about what he saw. How was he not bored? Not a single story was interesting enough to keep asking for more of them.
They talked a lot for the next few hours. Elias taught him more sign language between their conversations, and he was slowly figuring out that when it came to socializing, Roman didn't wear him out like other people did.
Maybe it was because they were both introverts. Or maybe they just simply understood. Either way, Elias knew that he could talk to him for hours longer if he had the opportunity.
He got a text from Mars at one point. She was telling him she wanted to go home around two, and that she had only felt anxious once or twice. It had him recalling what Mars had said to him in the grocery store.
Do you do sleepovers? It's a friend thing, you should do it. He huffed out a quiet laugh, waving Roman off when he gave him a questioning look. You're not too old.
He guessed she was right.