Friday nights are kind of our nights.

Hugo and I quickly took the habit of spending those evenings together. It was the only evening Hugo allowed himself not to work and rest a little. Plus, Ernest was once every two weeks at his other dad's place and Amanda was always out with her friends… Let's say the coast was clear. If you see what I mean…

But, school was a lot to deal with for Hugo these days… Ever since the beginning of flu season, there have been a lot of absentees. He had to put in a lot of extra work. He took a whole week of extra hours only to grade his colleague's tests… and they were late. He became a substitute for a few classes, so he needed to prepare new lessons that would match what his colleagues have been previously doing.

I offered my help more than once, but except for some fact-checking and researching, I wasn't able to do much for him. I was a bit worried Hugo was working way too much…

I can see he is becoming increasingly more exhausted week after week. He's more stressed and nervous… I can tell it's draining him…

So, that night, I wanted everything to be perfect for him. I prepared all in advance, but kept it chill: homemade pizza rolls, some cheese, his favorite bottle of wine, and a prerecorded episode of MLW Fusion. I know he missed the special episode aired earlier this month.

I even asked Ernest if he would consider spending the night at Damien's with Lucien. A perfect deal for the both of us, since they already had it in mind. A deal with the devil if you want my opinion since I had to promise not revealing his math test until Sunday. And to save him some pizza rolls.

I also asked Mat if he could make me a custom blend of tea for Hugo. Something relaxing. As I am not a tea drinker, I have no idea if it's good, but I trust Mat, and I do admit, it smells amazing.

Overall, a perfect evening in perspective. Nothing could go wrong.

When Hugo came back home, he was so tired. His shoulders were tense. The light in his eyes wasn't glowing as brightly as usual… I greeted him with a long kiss. He untied his hair and took off his blazer, hung it dry. The rain was raging out outside. I took off his bow tie. I love his bow tie, I'm always asking if I can help him put it on and off. That seems to amuse him. I gently ran my lips along his neck.

My little attentions seemed to have softened his mood. He was over the moon. Delight and peace erased his frustration and nervousness, but not the dark circles logged under his eyes.

We feasted like kings on our pizza rolls. Ernest is lucky I put his away already, or else they'd be gone. Hugo told me all about his day. I'm glad I got to meet one of his class earlier this year, it allowed me to keep up with him. I can't believe that this Collin prick keeps on acting up. The entire class pretty much hates him for it now. We thought he would have calmed down by now… At least the class doesn't back him up anymore. Hugo tried many things with him to have to behave during class, but today's attempt was a debacle… It was upsetting. I didn't know how to help… I tried to comfort him. This issue was starting to bring his motivation down.

I'm sure he will find something. Hugo is a good teacher, he doesn't simply give his lesson and calls it a day. He really tries to help each student, finds things that work for them, doesn't let them fall behind. I witnessed that many times when Amanda had trouble on her final year. It would be easy for him to do like his colleagues and simply give up on Collin… But he keeps trying. I admire him for that.

We settled down on the couch, Hugo took off his glasses and rested his head on my chest. He wrapped his arms around me. I think he knows how much I love when he does this. It makes me feel special in some way. I was running my fingers through his hair. Hoping to soothe him. I saw him squinting suspiciously at me before asking:

"Are you… braiding my hair right now?

- Oh no, I wouldn't dare… only creating knots."

He repressed a little chortle, amused. "My pleasure" I whispered. He snuggled up closer to me. He took my hand in his and started rubbing his thumb on the back of my hand. Tenderly.

I must say, we really nailed the ambiance tonight: on one hand, you have the fancy wine, tea, little lavender perfumed candles; and on the other hand you had the epic screams of the frenzy wrestling competition. Nailed it.

I noticed after a while, he had trouble keeping his eyes open. He was so tensed when came home, I'm glad he seemed to let go. The care that hung around him through the week seemed to have vanished. He looked so peaceful, with a faint little smile, hidden under his mustache. His glasses had left small marks above his nose.

I was not exactly paying much attention to the fight on TV… I should, he would probably ask me the outcome when he wakes up. I would much rather watch him slowly drifting into sleep. His breathing seemed to slow down.

Hugo doesn't snore. No, he doesn't, but, he does sometimes, tend to wheeze just a tiny bit. It's barely noticeable. It's often when he's deeply asleep. His closed eyes were moving softly, I hope his dream was as soft as it seemed from my perspective. I tenderly slid my hand down his shirt to nuzzle his neck.

Outside, the storm had started to quiet down.

The front door abruptly opened itself in a clash. Hugo woke up in a jolt. I held him closer as a reflex. We looked at each other in confusion.

Ernest emerged from the hallway and peeked his head through the living room. He was dripping on the floor, the poor kid was soaked to the bone. He was panting heavily, as if he had been running for a long time. He made us his angry grin, you know, the face he does when he's outraged. To the point you would be scared he'd bite you if he could. Shoulders tensed up to his ears, with his hands buried deep in his pockets, his eyes darted from me to Hugo back and forth.