It wasn't dawn yet. The day was resting on the wings of that magical hour when light and shadow mingled to produce fascinating forms.
Alexander was standing by the window of his bedroom. It was chilly outside but he barely felt it. The cool morning air touched his bare skin here and there. He was staring into the dark horizon…reliving those moments.
It had been a magical night.
They had stood facing each other on either side of the bed. Neither dared to move..afraid to break the moment.
All of a sudden something happened and a dam broke inside Alexander.
Phai smiled.
It was the same smile that had been Alexander's refuge for so long. The corner of the cyan eyes crinkled and the ruby lips bent into a crooked smile…just like they always did.
Alexander had walked over the bed and closed the distance between them.
It was his Phai. There was nothing to be ashamed of.
Remembering that moment…..the golden man sighed.
Closing his eyes he touched his eyelids and dragged his hands down to his lips…..down to his throat….down to his chest…and down.
His skin was painted with the touches of his Phai. He didn't want to lose them.
Phai had touched him..and there were no words in the meagre vocabulary of this wretched world to describe how he felt. He felt alive.
He had been touched where no one could touch him…..in the deepest corner of his mind and body. He had been kissed where no one had kissed him before.
Phai had played him like a lyre the entire night…and he was still in the throes of the music.
They had started with a little kiss. Lips had touched hesitantly and inexperienced hands had fumbled all over their bodies. Warm breath had ghosted all over his bare skin and someone close to his ears had whispered "You are beautiful Alex!"
Alexander knew how to fight. He knew how to argue and how to go on in life. But those loving words had broken him up into little pieces of him and rebuilt him again. He had responded by touching the beautiful person with feverish hands.
Every scar..every raised flesh..every mark… and every wound scattered over his skin had come to life at that moment. He had seen his Phai with new eyes.
Brown hair cascading down the firm shoulders….a pair of eyes that didn't belong to this world…and lips that made the goddesses jealous. His best friend. His mate. His lover.
His Phai.
A little sound shattered his reverie. Alexander looked at the bed to find his Phai leaning against the headboard. His body bare to his waist. A thin sheet lay bunched over his lap.
The sight made the golden man blush….again. As if guessing his state of mind..the brunette extended his hands towards him in a silent gesture to bring him nearer.
Alexander closed the space between them and laid down beside his Phai…head on his brunette's lap. He could feel the soothing touch coursing through his hair.
Suddenly Hephaistion looked closely at Alexander's face and broke into a beautiful smile.
"What happened Phai?" asked a perplexed Alexander.
The cyan eyed man shook his head fondly. Bringing his lips closer to Alexander's ears..he whispered, "You have got kohl all over your face Alex!" He went on to remove the marks when his lover caught his hands between his own.
"It's mine Phai…" Alexander whispered back, "Don't ."
It was his first time.
He could happily die even if it was his only time.
He closed his eyes again.
He wanted to live again.