"Wakey wakey!"

Zayd opened his eyes to Lewis, seated on the floor, right in front of him, holding a cup of coffee right at his face. Lewis was smiling mischievously at him.

"One coffee for Zayd Khalid, extra hot!" Lewis laughed.

Lewis moved the mug even closer to Zayd's face until it touched his nose. It was hot.

Zayd felt awake as the hot ceramic pressed to his skin.

He backed away, but not too far; his head hit the backrest.

"Well, good morning to you, too, Lewie!" Zayd remarked sarcastically.

He got up and took the mug from Lewis, the other guy just smiling ear to ear.

"You never run out of tricks, do you?" he smirked as he took a sip of the coffee.

"You know me too damn well, Zee. You should already know the answer to that," Lewis answered, eyebrows raised.

Zayd noticed that Lewis was extra cheerful this morning, very far from how he looked when Hervy walked out yesterday.

"Looks like someone woke up on the right side of the bed," he asked.

"How was it?" "Did you find Hervy?" he added.

Lewis's face lit up at the very mention of Hervy's name.

"I sure did! And he invited me over to his house," Lewis answered ardently.

"That poor guy had quite a past. I don't want to pity him really, but every time I remember his story, I can't help but feel sorry for him," Lewis added.

Zayd felt relieved. For a moment, he thought something had happened between the two when he mentioned he went to Hervy's house.

"So... did you tell him about how you felt?" he asked, afraid of what the answer might be.

"Well, yeah," Lewis answered briefly. He was smiling, eyes fixated at nothing as if spaced out.

"... and?" Zayd asked, breaking Lewis's daydreaming.

He was curious to know more about what happened. Also, he wanted to know if the other guy felt the same towards his Lewie.

"And nothing!" Lewis answered right away.

Zayd scratched his head.

"What do you mean nothing?" Zayd asked, perplexed.

"Well, I just told him that I liked him—end of the story. I don't care if he likes me back or not. Besides, I should not be asking him questions. He's still recovering from a broken heart," Lewis answered again, a little annoyed.

Unbelievable.

This guy's unbelievable.

Zayd couldn't find the words to describe Lewis.

He can't tell whether this guy is overly sympathetic or just plain stupid. Had it been him in Lewis's position, he would have gone in and demanded an answer from Hervy.

Wow, Zayd, you're a fine one to talk to, considering that you've been hiding all your feelings from Lewis.

Zayd was so in his thoughts he didn't hear Lewis talking to him.

Lewis had to snap his finger in front of his face.

"Hey!" Lewis said.

"Honestly, I think you're still asleep," he added.

"Sorry, you were saying?" Zayd answered, finally back to his senses.

Lewis hissed as he rolled his eyes. The very Lewis thing to do.

"I was asking what made you decide to sleep here on the couch," Lewis said.

"You were all curled up like a cat, just looking at you earlier made my body hurt," he added, laughing.

"I was just so tired. Traveling by plane is so exhausting, just in case you forgot," Zayd answered.

"Oh yeah, I forgot about that part," Lewis chuckled.

"Now that you mentioned it, you will be here until when again? I thought you were kidding when you said you'd stay here for good," he added.

Zayd smiled.

"I'm planning on staying here for good, Lewie," he said, this time he's serious.

He put the mug down on the table and took Lewis's hands.

He pressed them.

Firmly.

"I like you, Lewie," Zayd added.

***

Lewis did not know how to react.

"I like you, Lewie."

He wanted to make sure he was hearing this correctly.

"I like you, Lewie."

He wanted to make sure his ears were not betraying him.

"I like you, Lewie."

The words echoed in his mind three times as if mocking him, testing the distant feeling he once had for the guy in front of him. The feeling he long-buried along with accepting the fact that Zayd will never come back.

"What do you mean?" Lewis finally managed to open his mouth.

He didn't get to say another word. 

Zayd, holding his hands, suddenly leaned in closer to him. In fact, too close that he can feel Zayd's breath against his face.

Zayd rested his forehead against Lewis's, and their noses touched. Zayd stared at him in a way that he thought he could melt anytime. He felt his cheeks getting warm as he just stared back at Zayd's beautiful brown eyes.

Just when Lewis thought it was the end of it, Zayd suddenly yanked his body even closer to him and covered his mouth with his in a hungry kiss. Lewis responded almost immediately, much to his surprise. His mouth was so warm, the caress of his lips softer than Lewis could have imagined.

Their lips parted after a few minutes. Zayd hugged Lewis tightly as he kissed his forehead before he pulled away.

Zayd smiled at him. "That's what I meant when I said I like you.".

Lewis was still shocked. He's speechless.

He did not know how to respond. Questions started to fill his mind as he tried to understand what had just happened. He can't even hear Zayd anymore. All he hears is his heart beating very loud.

He can still feel the sensation of Zayd's lips touching his.

Lewis gently touched his lips.

"Did you just kiss me?" Lewis said very softly, trying to confirm the obvious. Zayd nodded. "I sure did."

***

Zayd is trying to keep a straight face, but his heart is pounding like crazy deep inside.

He didn't know what got into him; he did not plan on kissing Lewis at all, at least not this morning. He wanted to tell Lewis what he meant when he said he liked him, but his feelings got the best of him.

Now he's trying to keep calm to talk to Lewis properly. If this keeps up, he's sure his voice is going to crack.

"I like you, Lewis," he started.

"And this is something that I've kept secret for quite some time now." He could see Lewis's expression change.

"You see, I've liked you since we were younger. I was just not sure if what I was feeling was right or wrong. All I know is that I wanted to see you, wanted to be with you." 

"Always.", he continued.

Their eyes met again, but Lewis avoided his gaze and looked down this time. Zayd went ahead and continued talking.

"I always looked forward to the times you stayed at our house."

"I planned on telling you about how I felt the night before our departure. I intentionally sang your favorite song - Look After You - as a way of confessing to you."

He started singing a line from the song's chorus.

Oooh...oooh, be my baby.  I'll look after you.

Lewis lifted his head when he heard the song, his eyes meeting Zayd's eyes again.

"I didn't realize how painful it would be to be far from you until the day of our departure. I was hoping you'd come back in the morning and see us off at the airport," Zayd continued.

"I am very sorry I left you here, Lewie, I really am," his voice was shaking.

Zayd looked down. He didn't want Lewis to see him crying.

He took something from his pocket and handed it over to Lewis.

"I could never get you out of my head since then. I kept the picture we had together, brought it everywhere with me. I swore to this picture I'd come back. That I'll look for you, and I'll tell you everything I didn't say."

"And so here I am. "

"I've been looking for you, and now that I found you, I don't care if this might sound stupid, but yeah, I guess before anyone else... I think..."

"I think I have loved you first."

***

Hervy could hear the loud noise of vehicles from the nearby streets. He tried to reach out for a pillow or a blanket to cover his face, but for some reason, he couldn't grasp them.

Hervy slowly opened his eyes; the light was a little blinding. It took him more than a minute to realize he was not in his bedroom.

To his right side is the small table with his notebook on top. He almost forgot that he decided to sleep on the couch last night. He was still holding the picture of him and Nyle.

He got up and sat down, resting his back against the backrest of his couch. He checked if his phone was in his pocket. Lucky for him, it was there.

He checked the time.

He was surprised. It was 9 AM. He can't remember the last time he woke up at precisely 9 AM.

Hervy's noticed that his body clock has been slowly normalizing for the past few weeks. And now that he thought of it, it has been weeks since he last drank booze. And he's surprised he didn't feel the need to.

Also, he's been able to get his thing back slowly; writing is no longer as difficult as it was before. Words start to flow right out of him, which he eventually turns into something like a four-line poem.

He took his notebook from the table and turned to a blank page. He started writing.

Every night I wake up, wash my face

It gets me thinking, where did it go, where were all those days?

Living each moment at a very slow pace

Moving lazily, like a hare in The Race

Everything happens for a reason, dear that is life

No matter how hard or how unfair it may be,

Remember the time you thought you never could survive?

You did, and you can do it again.

"Ah, that is much better," Hervy smiled, feeling accomplished. He closed the notebook, put it back on the table. He stretched his hands lazily before standing up. He went straight to the kitchen and started preparing breakfast.

"Good morning, Hervy," he told himself.

***

Lewis took the picture from Zayd. It was their high school graduation picture.

He tried to fight his tears as he replayed everything Zayd just said in his mind.

The first thing that came out of his mouth was, "Why now?"

He didn't realize Zayd was crying until the poor guy looked at him, eyes red from crying.

"What happened to 'If you don't ask, the only answer you'll ever know is NO. If you don't start moving, you'll never know how far you'll go?” Lewis added.

Zayd wiped his tears off and faced him.

"I didn't always have that approach, Lewie. I only realized it when I left that I should have told you everything," he answered.

Lewis felt a sudden pang of regret.

Zayd felt the same towards him all this time, they both liked each other, but none dared to say what they wanted to say.

He took a deep breath and gave the picture back to Zayd.

He got up and turned around. He didn't want Zayd to see his face.

Now that he knows Zayd's feelings for him, he's not sure he can look him straight in the eyes again.

"You know Zee, the younger Lewis wished he could have used the same courage you have right now," he said softly.

"I didn't have the nerve to tell someone that he meant the world to me back then. I was lost in my fantasy that this person would never leave me. I thought we'd be better off as friends." "Best friends, to be exact," he said slowly.

"What do you mean?" Zayd asked.

Lewis turned around and faced Zayd again. He took a deep breath before he looked Zayd in the eyes.

"Zee, I once felt the same towards you."