Name: Waiting
Rated: G
Author: flawlessbeauti Me
Word count: 810
Disclaimer: I own the plot, and while I only hinted at who the characters are, rest assured I don't own them either.
Warnings: Slash, slight angst, slight fluff
A/N: Prompt 55
It was autumn, the leaves a rainbow of colors and a chilly wind blowing across the sky. Clouds hung as if made from clay, dark against the lighter blue sky which peeked through the cracks. Oh yes, I remembered that day quite clearly. Two weeks after I had confessed my love, two weeks of the excruciating pain of unknowing, we had met. 'I'm not sure what to say about this.' He had said under the red and gold tree that decorated the park. 'I need to think about this, you understand?' I had understood; of course he had. 'However long you need.' That had been my naïve reply. 'Give me three months. Three months should be long enough for my decision. We can meet back here. Three months.' With that he had turned and walked away, hands in is pockets as I stared after him.
Three months later I had been in the same spot, as soon as the park had opened. I sat under the tree, my pad in hand, and wrote about the people passing me as I waited. It was much colder then, with a soft frost on the ground. The trees were stripped bare; snow fell in handfuls from the cloudy sky. Before too long I was chilled enough to want to leave. But I stayed until the sun had long vanished beneath the hills. Only then, when it was past midnight and the day had fled like a thief, had I left. I suffered for my devotion with a rough bout of pneumonia for the next month. It was during that time I decided I would go back, in three months time.
It had been six months since that fateful day when he had requested a mere three. I was back under the tree, a blanket beneath me and an umbrella above. Not many people were out on this day, so I sat in the cold rain and waited. I reminisced as I waited, and almost before I knew it the sun had sat on yet another day of disappointment. Yet it was as if a curse had been set in motion, for even as I left I knew within three months I would return yet again. I was correct.
July was a hot month, and the park was full of people laughing and running around. Kids ran to and fro under the fountain which bubbled before me, laughing as the cold water cooled their sweating bodies. The Festival had landed on this day, and I watched as countless balloons soured to the heavens above. The smell of candy apples mingled with everything else, and that night a brilliant show of fireworks lit up the sky. As I left after the crowds of people, my only regret was being too distracted to truly enjoy myself.
I did not sit down, when I returned on the three month mark. I wasn't planning on staying long at all this time. I took a deep breath, leaning against the scratchy bark of the tree, now losing leaves as it had done a year ago. I started with that thought. Had it really and truly been a year since he had requested that time? Had I honestly waited and hoped for a year? It hardly seemed like that long, yet at the same time it felt an eternity. I sighed and let my head drop back, slowly sliding down the tree until I was seated. I pulled my coat closer to my body, seeking heat I knew I would not find. I sighed again, a weary and defeated sigh. I remembered that day quite clearly, and every three month mark after that one as well.
"It took me a while longer then I had originally asked for." I open my eyes slowly and tilt my head; eyes squinted against the sun and staring at the man before me. "May I?" he inquires, tilting his head to the place beside me. I nod and he sits, and finally I get my first look at him in almost a year. He sighs and rakes a hand through his black hair. We sit in silence, watching as people oblivious to our coursing emotions walk on. "I came every three months." He says finally, and I turn to look at him. "I didn't believe you were serious, but I came anyway. I wasn't expecting you to be there, but I stayed even when you left. The next three months I came too, again surprised you were there. By this time I believed you, but I didn't believe you could care for me. I seem to have issues with that." He pauses again and sighs, his green eyes finally sweeping to meet my grey ones. "But I kinda realized if you cared enough to keep coming even after a year, you could probably deal with that." His eyes leave mine to gaze at the ground. "I know it's too late to say this, but I thought you should know I love you too." He stands up, but I grab his hand, forcing him back down. "So where do we go from here?" I question him, not relinquishing my grip. He smiles, relief coursing through his eyes. "Wherever you want, Dray."