Chapter 40: The Date (3)
The play ended an hour after their conversation. Adrien found himself clapping along with the others to express the enjoyment he had felt while watching the play.
He stood up when he saw Mikyle beginning to rise from his seat. He found his back stiff and did a small stretch to help loosen it. It sucked that the play was three hours long, but it really was entertaining to watch, Adrien thought to himself.
He felt himself tense when Mikyle placed a hand on his back. The hand slid lower, a trail of fire erupting from where skin and clothes made contact, until it stopped at the dip in his lower back.
"We can head back to the Academy if you’re too tired to continue with today’s plans," Mikyle spoke in his ear.
Head back? Why do I get the feeling I’ll be eaten alive if we head back now? Adrien shook his head. "I’m fine. I’ll feel better after walking around a bit."
Mikyle slowly removed his hand and leaned away. "That’s good to hear. Let me know when you become too tired." Adrien narrowed his eyes, not trusting the way he was smiling. Mikyle chuckled as he held out his hand. "Let’s go, Kitten?"
Adrien’s face flushed at hearing the endearing term that Mikyle has been calling him by. He wasn’t embarrassed by the name but by the way he had received it. And even though he had heard it before, it hadn’t been enough for him to grow used to being called by that.
They were almost out of the theater when Mikyle stopped suddenly. He was looking in the direction of the commoner’s exit with his brows furrowed together.
Adrien noticed his behavior but didn’t see anything out of the ordinary with the crowd. "Is everything alright?"
Mikyle continued looking for a second longer before turning to look back at Adrien with his normal, carefree expression back in place. "Yes. I just saw someone that I wasn’t expecting to see."
Who could that– Adrien paused in his thought as a small line of text from the books suddenly came to mind. He glanced back at the line of commoners but didn’t see any familiar faces. According to the books, the Queen Reagent and Lianna would sneak out to watch plays. Does that mean one or the both of them are here?
Adrien pursed his lips. He wanted to ask Mikyle which one it was, but this wasn’t something that Adrien Mallorne would know about.
The two of them made their way down the streets. Mikyle acted as a tour guide when he realized that Adrien didn’t know a whole lot about the city outside of one boutique, a couple of restaurants, and the bookstore.
Mikyle took him into a couple of stores and by the time they reached the restaurant for dinner, Adrien had a bag full of paint supplies, a pair of blue cufflinks with a golden sun insignia, and a pair of leather shoes that were similar to the ones that Mikyle were currently wearing.
"Please, no more shopping," Adrien groaned. Even though he hadn’t been the one to carry the bags, he still felt utterly drained.
"Fine, no more shopping. Although, I had originally planned for us to go to the bookstore for some light reading after eating."
"We can still go to the bookstore, just no where else."
They were currently tucked away at a private table in a chic and glitzy restaurant that had two floors. Their bags were seated on the floor on one side of the table. Freshly prepared food that was still steaming sat on the beige-clothed table in front of them.
Adrien briefly wondered about why they had such a light colored table cloth draping the tables. Weren’t they worried about the food spilling? Or did they replace the table clothes after the table’s previous diners left?
"Your mind seems to be drifting," Mikyle chuckled.
"I’m just not used to this." He gestured toward the bags with his hands. Doing all this shopping in one day was exhausting. Not to mention that they had also watched a play which ran longer than some of the movies back in his old world.
"Shall I have the shop owners come to us next time?" Mikyle asked, and Adrien had no clue if he was joking or being serious.
Is this how rich kids live? Though I guess Mikyle would be considered an elite. . .since he was a prince and everything?
". . .Can we just not talk about shopping anymore?"
"Haha!" Mikyle burst out into full laughter, making his handsome face light up with a joyous light that made him look even more charming and carefree. "We can do that," he relented easily, a smile on his face as he looked at Adrien.
Adrien looked down and started shoveling food into his mouth, unable to handle how hard his heart was beating under Mikyle’s gaze.
After they finished eating, they headed to the closest bookstore where they browsed through the selections. It was quiet and uneventful, and Adrien enjoyed it a lot.
. . . .
"Thank you. . .for today." Adrien felt awkward as he clumsily thanked Mikyle for showing him a good time on their date. Are you even supposed to thank someone for taking you out on a date?
They were currently standing inside Adrien’s room in the boys’ dormitory back at campus. Mikyle had followed him inside his room to place the paper shopping bags on the table.
Mikyle chuckled, his deep voice sending shivers down Adrien’s spine. His piercing red gaze was focused on him, making Adrien’s mouth go dry.
"If you really want to thank me then shouldn’t you keep your promise from earlier?" Mikyle’s voice sounded playful, and his knuckles lightly rapped against the table.
"Promise?" Adrien wracked his brain as he tried to remember what promise he might have made. His face turned red and he found himself taking an involuntary step back when he remembered the conversation they had that morning. "I don’t think that was actually a promise?"
"Why do you sound so unsure?" Mikyle retracted his hand from the table. He then took a slow, deliberate step toward Adrien. "You don’t want to?" His deep voice dripped with playfulness, and his red eyes glowed with humor.
Did Adrien actually want to kiss Mikyle? Yes, yes he did. But was he afraid of this unfamiliar heat that lingered between them? Yes, yes he was.
Adrien clenched his fists at his side, his nails dug into the smooth flesh of his palm. His blue gaze never left Mikyle’s probing, amused-filled gaze. "I do. I’m just unsure about what this is between us," he answered truthfully.
"Are you afraid that what you are feeling isn’t stemming from your own emotions?"
Adrien sucked in a breath at Mikyle’s surprising words. It was a thought that Adrien had never even considered.
Could this thing be inflicting false emotions onto me? No. Adrien immediately shot down the thought. I’m pretty sure I like Mikyle of my own violation, even if it took such a short amount of time to feel this way. I do think that this strange pulling force between us is increasing the attraction I feel towards Mikyle, but I believe this attraction was already there.
Adrien’s eyes cleared as he came to a conclusion from his inner thoughts that Mikyle’s question had brought forth. "The thought never crossed my mind. I believe I would have felt this way no matter what, it may have just taken me longer to realize it."
Mikyle closed the distance between them. His taller form now towered over Adrien’s much smaller frame. "I agree," Mikyle’s voice was low and deep.
Before Adrien had a chance to process anything, Mikyle’s firm yet callused hand gently cupped the bottom of Adrien’s chin. He slowly lowered his head, coming to a stop just a hair’s breath away from Adrien’s moist lips, which he had involuntary licked just moments prior. "Tell me when to stop," was the only warning he had before Mikyle captured his lips with his own.
A tingling heat that was both soft and unfamiliar wrapped around him as Mikyle moved his lips against Adrien’s. Adrien found his eyes fluttering close and his mouth opening slightly at the achingly soft yet gentle caress that was Mikyle’s kiss.
Before Adrien could react by kissing him back or wrapping his arms around Mikyle’s neck, Mikyle pulled away. "I know I asked you to tell me when to stop, but I’m afraid I will not be able to if we continue."