escordvi | [closed] 🌱🏛️ quiz, vol. 01

Mmm...?

[Kaveh is truly out of it, not entirely asleep but body too relaxed for him to really rouse himself to much more than summoning out Mehrak, who chirps inquisitively. At least she'll be able to carry Kaveh's things out, if nothing else.

the staff themselves don't get closer but do comment they have some things the handsome young couple might want!]

[...yeah, Alhaitham had more or less expected that. Kaveh winds himself up tight, but that only means he's pretty much nothing more than a puddle when he finally gets the chance to wind down fully.

Alhaitham huffs but doesn't say anything more, only giving Kaveh's hips a squeeze before he lets go and pulls back, doing a good job of ignoring any and all comments from the crowd as he turns his attention to getting Kaveh dressed back up. At least that part is easy enough, since Kaveh didn't actually take off his clothes from his body, so pulling them back up is a simple enough task.

Still, with Kaveh the way he is, it does mean that Alhaitham doesn't quite manage to straighten his clothes back up wholly, but what he does manage to do is enough to make it work until they are back in the privacy of their house.

Once he's satisfied he commands Mehrak to pick up the rest of their items, then shifts to scoop up Kaveh into his arms without missing a beat, the action prompting another round of 'awwwws' going through the crowd. Look at how attentive and caring he is to his partner! some of them sigh out wistfully. Another remarks about how Alhaitham could take care her instead of the pretty boy in his arms, which promptly gets ignored by the man himself as he commands Mehrak to follow him as he starts making his way out of the establishment.

As he walks some of the more bold and daring seamstresses flit over to follow both around and behind, still attempting to get some form of business somehow even if Alhaitham is not interested in them specifically. But once again Alhaitham simply ignores them all in favor of looking over the man in his arms, making sure to continue holding him close all the way until they are able to finally exit and leave the whole place behind.

After all the time they've spent today investigating and then confronting their target for the goods it means that the sun is already on its way to set, casting their surroundings in tones of warm oranges and reds and yellows. Alhaitham watches the way the golden light of the setting sun gleams off Kaveh's hair and makes it shine even more than usual, the sight of it reminding him of spun gold.]

Kaveh. [He murmurs out his senior's name, voice quiet between the sound of the sea and the waves and the wind blowing in the distance.] ...I don't think I'll be able to carry you back the entire way.

Mnnrgh...

[Kaveh does whine, half dozed on Alhaitham, but turned to bring his hand up, where the ring of returning is. It's set to a plaza not too far from there home, and apparently he's decided to just use that instead of dealing with a boat ride back.

Which does mean he's chosen to stay like this while they are teleported near a cafe, but he'll wake up more soon, we promise.]

[Alhaitham actually did not anticipate Kaveh moving to use his ring of returning, but it does save them the hassle of having to take a boat back, which is something he can't exactly complain about given his continued issues with sea travel.

Still, given how he'd only had a second to prepare between realizing what Kaveh had been about to do before it actually happening, nobody can blame Alhaitham for stumbling a little at the disorientation that the abrupt teleportation ensues. It's not exactly his first rodeo with such modes of travel, but even after all this time it doesn't really get any easier to handle.

But for better or worse Alhaitham manages to catch himself before he does lose balance completely, though he does stagger for a second before managing to get his balance. He straightens back up as soon as that passes, Mehrak reappearing with a cheerful beep, their items floating alongside them with the toolbox's help. He casts a quick glance at their surroundings just to be certain that they have teleported back to the right place, which seems to be the case. They might have done this a few times already in the past but it still never hurts to be certain.

Alhaitham glances back down to Kaveh in his arms once more, huffing slightly at the way his senior is protesting even without words. Difficult as always, yet Alhaitham has never truly minded, in spite of it all.]

...could've warned me at least. [He says it anyway, mostly for the sake of voicing it out loud, but in spite of those words Alhaitham only gives himself a second to readjust his hold on Kaveh after his earlier stumble, making sure that his senior is firm and comfortable in his arms once more before he turns and makes his way back in the direction of their house.]

[The stumble does actually wake kaveh up enough that he's becoming aware of his situation, and he's rapidly starting to turn red, but it's far too late now to leap away and protect his dignity, so he simply huffs, turning his face away to pretend he's still mostly asleep. Of course, this won't work when they get to the house--Alhaitham's hands are full. Someone has to unlock the door.

So, deeply mortified, Kaveh finally stirs, trying to get his feet on the ground and dig his key out from his pocket.] What, did you want to find a ferry back?

[If Alhaitham has taken note of the fact that Kaveh rousing from his doze then he makes no mention of it, seemingly fine with the idea of carrying his senior all the way back to their house, where he does finally have to put him down since its not like he can grab his keys while both of his hands and arms are wholly occupied.

At least Kaveh is awake enough by then, and as he finds his feet back onto the ground Alhaitham huffs lightly at the given remark.] I did not say I was against it.

[Being teleported back, that is. As mentioned earlier he very much can't complain since being on a boat is still not great for him in general, so he does appreciate it.

Anyway, now with his hands free of one blonde architect Alhaitham quickly gets his keys out from his belt pouch and goes to open the door without any more delays, stepping in first once its open.]

You just wanted to complain, is that it?

[Kaveh huffs a bit, but since Alhaitham beat him to the door, he'll just simply follow inside.]

Go wash your face off. I'll start dinner. And yes, your request is noted and accepted, I already bought the groceries for it.

[He is so lucky he's cute.]

[Alhaitham's only response to all of that is a simple hum, even if a part of him is looking forward to dinner now that Kaveh said that his request for tonight's food is on the menu. It's been a while since he's had his favorite dish... one of the downsides of being in this place is very much the lack of the required ingredients, but that's not exactly a new problem for as long as one travels outside of Sumeru.

Either way, the thought of it is enough to whet his appetite, so its more than enough motivation for him to resist the urge to break out into one of their usual bickering and instead make his way over to the bathroom in order to wash up as told to do so.]

[The real problem had been finding a good substitute for the harra fruit spices. It's difficult for Kaveh to extensively test, given his sensitivity, but after four months he's pretty sure he can do this. And so, he sets about putting together this absolutely ridiculous stew pizza that Alhaitham prefers, humming faintly to himself in the kitchen.

Mehrak, for her part, has produced a...beautifully wrapped package to set on the coffee table? From the size and shape it's clearly a book in there, but one must wonder what...]

[Alhaitham takes his time with washing up in the bathroom, knowing how long the dish usually takes to make—but also because he is a little reluctant in removing the make up that Kaveh has done for him, even if the process itself wasn't strictly voluntary. For the many faults that his senior has he possesses just as many virtues, and his eye for beauty and detail is very much in the latter.

...still, even after having said that, it is still in the end a bit too ostentatious for his tastes, and after looking at it for a few more minutes in the mirror Alhaitham decides he's had enough of it for the day and proceeds to wash it all up.

Once he's done lollygagging Alhaitham is fairly fast and economical with washing up, so it doesn't take too long overall for him to be done, and once he's settled with the laundry that comes from his shower Alhaitham ventures back out towards the kitchen where he can already smell the tell tale aroma of his favorite dish. Of course, its not exactly the same given Kaveh having had to use alternatives for what is not available here, but its close enough and Alhaitham can already feel his stomach getting ready for it.

—before that, though, Alhaitham does spot the package that Mehrak has left on the coffee table (mostly due to the beep that the toolbox lets out to get his attention), so he wanders over to there instead and picks it up, blinking as he examines the wrapped gift in curiosity. Is this meant to be his birthday present? He can only assume so, judging by the wrapping and the fact that Mehrak called for him over here in the first place. A little strange, since its not as if Kaveh has been especially shy in giving him something when he feels like doing so, but Alhaitham isn't going to complain. If anything this will just be another thing he can use to tease his senior about.

Without thinking twice about it Alhaitham settles himself down on the divan and goes to open up the gift without any more preamble. Judging by the shape and feel he can surmise it to be a book, which does make him wonder exactly what kind of book Kaveh might have found to gift it to him—

...

...

...oh.]

Alhaitham? What, are you going to eat out here--ah.

[Kaveh had emerged with plates of the sabz meat pie in hand, but stopped, seeing that Mehrak had already handed over the gift. Cheeky little thing. In truth...

In truth, he'd only seen that particular book a few times, one of the few that Alhaitham was truly meticulous about keeping put away properly, downright protective of it's very specific place on the shelves. And Kaveh had never read past the inscription on the first page. But he knows, without having looked, what this book must mean to the man.

It's lonely, isn't it? To celebrate a birthday so far from everything you're comfortable and familiar with. For Alhaitham, who is a creature of habit and routine...

Kaveh couldn't think of anything better.]

...It is the right one, isn't it? I wasn't sure how specific anything fished out of the rifts could be.

[Alhaitham doesn't know how long, exactly, he spends doing nothing but looking down at the book in his hands, fingers tracing over the pattern that adorns the hardbound cover which he has long since memorized like the back of his hand. How could he not, given what this book means to him? Of the weight and value it holds in his hands?

He'd tried to not think about it much ever since realizing that he was going to be here for the long term, taking his solace in the fact that it would at least be safe in its spot back in Sumeru, for the only worse thing than knowing it is somewhere inaccessible is having it here only for it to end up destroyed. That would be the far crueler fate, in his opinion.

So he'd been just fine with the idea of leaving things as they are, to be alright with what he has already been given and not ask for more. But despite having told himself all of that there is no denying the deluge of emotions that'd rolled through him the moment he realized just what exactly Kaveh had gotten for him.

(He doesn't even have to doubt it. There could be nobody else who would have done this, but Kaveh.)

It is only when Kaveh steps out of the kitchen, calling for him does Alhaitham finally come out of his unintentional reverie, and even when he turns his gaze away from the book in his hand to his senior Alhaitham can still feel the weight of it like a clear, unmistakable presence that he cannot deny.]

It is. [He doesn't need to check the inside to know, not with how intimately he knows this particular book and all of its details after the many years he has it.] ...when did you get it?

[He must have been planning this for a while, seeing as how Kaveh had even taken the time to wrap it up so nicely. And sure it might not take very long to fish objects out of the rifts... but its always hard to be certain, and he's certain that Kaveh would've accounted for that.]

A couple weeks ago. It took them a little while to find it...I had to describe it just by the cover and weight.

[He walks over to set Alhaitham's lunch down on the table, and then his own, before taking a seat on the couch next to him.]

I, ah...I didn't open it to do it for the pages. But I put a hydrophobic coating on the cover, to keep it safe. It's not as good as going back home, but...

[Kaveh shrugs a little, trying not to babble. It's not like he could do any investigations for Alhaitham--they're far away, and if Alhaitham himself hasn't investigated his parent's death, then likely he doesn't want those answers--nor would Kaveh be able to turn them up himself if Alhaitham tried and failed.

But this book and the meaning it carries...Alhaitham isn't the only one who can make gestures so quiet they shout.]

You always reread it on the 11th, don't you? So no need to miss this one.

[Alhaitham is quiet as Kaveh walks over to the divan, as he sets down their food meant for the dining table and sits next to him instead, his warmth and presence just as heavy and poignant as the weight of the book in his hand. Alhaitham returns his gaze to said book as Kaveh continues to explain what he's done, one hand running over the cover again.

It's hard to describe the pressure that mounts itself behind his eyes or the knot that forms in his throat as he gets to feel for himself the thoughtfulness behind Kaveh's actions. His kindness that has always been so freely given to everyone despite all that has happened to him. Despite all that has happened between them. Even if he'd been the one who decided to reach out first, ultimately it'd been Kaveh own decision to accept his hand and allow himself to be pulled up to shore instead of letting himself drown.

Kaveh is here, despite everything. He is here too, despite everything. They are both here, with everything else around them, in this place. He has always been content to simply have whatever he can have, never seeking to think or ask for more, but it never fails to strike him just how much 'more' has always felt to him, when it comes in the least expected manner.

He thinks of the note he'd found the other day, trapped in a bottle, its words smeared and smudged but no less recognizable enough for him.

("I pray to the heavens for courage and wisdom, for I do not think I'll be given a third chance if I squander this one.")

They have both been trying, ever since the events of the Interdarshan Competition—that much he can recognize. But what exactly they are building between themselves there, and where it will lead them—that he does not know, for they can never be how they were before, when they were young and brash and thought the world could fit in their hands if they simply tried hard enough. They are different now, in that and in so many other ways, and yet at the same time...]

Mmn. [A hum, one almost inaudible if it were not for the quiet that surrounds them. Alhaitham runs a finger over one of the curves on the front cover, thinking again of the time he has already been here so far, and of how much more time he will continue to be here in the foreseeable future. Him... as well as Kaveh, in this place where they can simply be themselves, with none of the trappings that the public has imposed upon them.

It takes a second more, but eventually Alhaitham moves to open up the book right then and there, doing so while completely aware of the fact that Kaveh is right next to him and is able to read the contents of the book himself if he so wishes to. It's... the least he can do, for the thoughtfulness that has been shown.]

...Are you sure?

[It's not like Kaveh hasn't always been curious. Alhaitham's grandmother was a legend among the Kshahrewar, and many of her works were still circulated as textbooks even today. He knew the woman by reputation only, though he'd always wondered, questions about her, and his mother, that he'd been too scared to ask Zaha Hadi.

He knows how different reputation and reality can be. The only real truth Kaveh knows about this woman is that Alhaitham loves her with his entire being, even now, over a decade since her passing, and that she must have loved Alhaitham so fiercely in turn, that he was allowed to grow into a sapling version of the man he'd become.

Kaveh has known her works, but he's never known this one. To be allowed to see it...feels like opening a door in a temple, to be allowed to see something sacred.]

[Alhaitham doesn't say anything in response beyond a hum, not so much because there is nothing to say to Kaveh but rather because there is no words that exists that can adequately sum up all the things that he wants to say. Despite all the languages he has learned and is fluent in—or perhaps it is because of that—Alhaitham knows better than most the limitations that it imposes, for all that it tries to break through those same limitations. But at the end of the day language is a human thing and thus bound by the limits of what humans can manage, for better or worse.

So he says nothing and simply stays where he is, eyes glued to his lap as his hands cradle his grandmother's parting gift to him with a gentleness he has not placed upon anything else. The cover is open, revealing the first page and the inscription upon it that Alhaitham has committed to memory from the day he'd first read it: May my child Alhaitham lead a peaceful life.

With one hand holding down the other side of the book he slides a finger underneath that first page, ready to flip it over and read it through, just as he does every time this day comes around each year. He continues to say nothing, but he waits, patient and quiet to allow Kaveh the choice to either take his leave or stay on the couch with him.

Just like last time, on that night when they met again in the Tavern, Alhaitham leaves the option open for Kaveh to choose for himself. It is his senior who must make the final decision for himself, be it acceptance or denial.]

[It's an easier decision than it had been that night, and one that fills his fragile heart with something as terrifying as hope, but Kaveh does scoot closer so he can lean over to read the pages, pressed hip to hip and thigh to thigh with Alhaitham.

He doesn't say anything either, just silently watching in expectation. Truth was, they used to read together like this all the time. And whatever else Kaveh has planned for this day and that evening, the best gift he can give now is to not let his racing mind disrupt this moment.]

[It takes a while, but eventually Kaveh makes his choice, doing so in the form of scooting closer so that they're pressed close to each other in a way so like what they used to in the past, where everything between them felt so freely shared with no expectations or questions. There might have been an arrogance in those assumptions back then, but now...

Alhaitham still says nothing, but takes a moment to adjust himself so that Kaveh has an easier time reading the book alongside him, and once they're both settled goes on to flip over the first page to start reading through the contents held within.

The first few pages themselves hold a penned letter from his grandmother, written while she'd still been able to but clearly aware of her approaching mortality. She talks of the fond memories that she has of Alhaitham in the time she'd been able to raise him and the gift of his intelligence and uniqueness, and how despite their short time together she'd still nonetheless felt blessed enough to have what she did, especially in her last decade where she'd been able to see him grow up and sprout under her case. But most important of all is perhaps how she hopes he will grow up well and be able to live the life that he chooses, and how she hopes it will be one that ultimately makes him happy above all else.

Alhaitham maintains his silence as he lingers on those last few lines, fingers tracing over the loops in her handwriting and of her signature underneath. The pressure in his eyes and in his throat comes back in spades, and when he sucks in a breath there is a quiet hitch that might've otherwise gone unnoticed by anyone else who isn't Kaveh.]

[Of course he hears that hitch. He almost wants to cry himself, reading such a sweet message. He's never seen Alhaitham visibly cry when he reads this, but then again, in the situation they're in...

Forget Kaveh's trepidation and cowardice, just for this moment. Could he even say he had the right to be Alhaitham's friend again, if he did not reach out now?

So without saying anything, he gently takes one of Alhaitham's hands off the book, settingly it down in his on their thighs, and replaces it with his other hand, holding up the cover of the book closer to him.

In this way, he hopes Alhaitham will understand. The things he is feeling can flow freely. There is no one else here but Kaveh to see, after all.]

[It says something about Alhaitham's current state that he doesn't even try to fight or stop Kaveh from what he is doing. If anything he curls his fingers around Kaveh's in the brief time where his senior is holding his hand, eyes remaining glued to the book even as he sees Kaveh's hand replacing over where his one had been, holding it up the cover just in case he has to close the book back up for a reason neither of them speak about but know all too well.

Its rare that Alhaitham is able to sense this overwhelming urge to simply just—feel. He's always been good at keeping his emotions in check for the most part, never truly seeing a need to express much when he isn't required to. But in moments like these, where words can only fall apart in the face of something that no language is able to express, the only thing he can do is to let it all run through him in the one way he knows how.

Alhaitham takes one more shuddering breath, followed by a second, and then he glances away, pulling his other hand away from the book as he rubs at his eyes, feeling the way his gloves have become soaked with moisture that can only come from one place, and how it doesn't seem to cease no matter how much he continues to try and staunch the flow.]

Oh...

[Kaveh breathes out a little, and quickly closes the book once he realizes what's happening, protecting it from any moisture. And then, he gently sets it aside and reaches out, pulling Alhaitham down against his shoulder. The hug is awkward from this angle, but even so...

How many times had he done this for his mother? Truly, he'd lose count. But this grief is clean, the rinsing of an old wound, an ache that doesn't sour or fester--Kaveh knows very well how different Alhaitham's grief is from his own.

Even this clean grief deserves comfort, no matter the circumstances.]

It's okay.

[He doesn't elaborate. Does he need to? He is here, and for now, all their complications can wait.]

[Just as how he doesn't stop Kaveh earlier he also doesn't resist when Kaveh pulls him in down to his shoulder. Alhaitham doesn't stop himself from the way he twists around when that happens, turning enough in order to properly press his face into the curve of Kaveh's shoulder and let his shirt soak up the tears that flow freely from his eyes, the hand between their thighs inching up just enough for him to hold onto one of the tassels of his sash.

It's okay, Kaveh tells him—and in many ways this is, perhaps, the first time anyone has actually told him that at all. It's not that he has never known this, for his grandmother has made sure to teach him as much as the inevitable drew closer and closer upon her. She was the one who told him how it was okay to cry, and it was okay to be sad, and how, at the end of it all, he would be okay, too.

But even then being told those things when she was still alive is very different from having to experience it after she passed, and no matter how prepared Alhaitham had been for it to happen no amount of preparation could have ever readied him for the silence that would greet him after her passing, how the once quiet warmth would turn into cold silence that echoed louder than anything else he'd have ever known.

(It would not be long after that when he enrolled into the Akademiya properly this time, and though living in the dorms was frustrating and difficult it was still ultimately better than the silence he would only learn how to live with much later down the line.)

For a long time now he'd simply accepted that as nothing more part and parcel of the life that he leads now, the comfortable life that he has chosen as per his grandmother's wishes, yet once again just like how he'd unexpectedly received this book, hearing those two words after everything makes it feel like they are filling in something that he never knew was lacking until this very moment.

Its hard to say how long Alhaitham stays like this, eyes squeezed shut while his breathing stutters, his shoulders shaking in a way that he hasn't done in a very long time, but unlike all the previous times he is, for once, not alone. And perhaps that is more than enough.]

[Kaveh doesn't say anything, all this while, simply letting Alhaitham sink into his feelings, running a hand from his hair down his back, like he used to do for his mother, like his father did for him when he was so small and so upset about the world being too large and scary. He doesn't rightly know how long Alhaitham has lived alone with his grief--his grandmother already gone and buried when they met--but he does know that the man shouldn't have to be alone with it again.

Quietly, at the bottom of his heart, Kaveh promises himself Alhaitham won't be. Not anymore. Maybe he's a coward, and maybe he doesn't have the right, after leaving him alone so long, but...

But Alhaitham let him see this. Let him touch on that old wound. That has to mean something, right?]

...the food's cold.

[Its the first thing that Alhaitam says after a fair amount of time must have passed, with Alhaitham hiding his face in Kaveh's shoulder and Kaveh wordlessly holding him close all this time, his hand gently stroking his head and down his back in a gesture he hasn't felt for a long, long time.

He hadn't remembered until now, how a simple act such as this can make him feel so much all at once. Part of him had forgotten, in the intervening years between their fallout to their reunion, and even after that. Not that the act of forgetting had been by any means completely intentional, at least for the most part—there simply hadn't been anyone else who could have ever been the same as Kaveh had been for him, and so he hadn't bothered. Who else, if not Kaveh?

So despite the words and the clear understanding that he probably has no reason to remain like this Alhaitham continues to do so anyway, for he has never been selfless by any means. He knows he wants this, for as long as Kaveh is willing to give it to him, and so he will hold onto it for as long as he is allowed to do so.]

We can heat it back up, if you're hungry yet.

[it hasn't escaped Kaveh's notice that Alhaitham hasn't made any move to change his position. He can't quite fathom what it must be, but he knows better than to try and directly question Alhaitham about his emotions, either--one would have better luck running headlong into a brick wall.

So he passes the proverbial ball back into Alhaitham's court. It's a day about him, and while Alhaitham always does whatever the hell he wants and sets his boundaries like an iron wall, today kaveh won't fight him on it, either.]

[closed] 🌱🏛️ quiz, vol. 01

hunka hunka burnin' love

burnin' a hole where I lay

I don't actually know most elvis songs oop--

its ok i actually had to google lololol

we're great at this

shhhh we are the best

winning at gay

completely winning

just like alhaitham

winning in life... winning in not-boyfriend... winning on his birthday...

winning in dead parents--

both of them are winning with that lbr

hey one of Kaveh's is still alive so Alhaitham wins!

u_u they're still both alone... but they have each other...

they'll always have each other...

lies down in a puddle of emotions

weh

wehhhhhh

ueehhhhh

T_T they love each other so much... but they don't know...........

they'll learn....they'll learn soon....

soon................. soon

Sooner than they know...

they'll never see it coming

violin chords

always back to the dramatic music with them

because they're extra and gay

very extra and very gay 🏳️‍🌈

just winning the gay competition

they're so real for that... heavy traces of homosexuality indeed

their strange friendship....

obviously they're just best friends amirite

the very best of friends...

only real homies break up and then get back together and sleep together under the pretense of rent

oh my god they were roommates