"Another fight?" Lazy words sprawled across the otherwise vacant air.
The adolescent boy sitting under the young maple tree tilted his head to the side in a half shrug. Hazel eyes peered through chestnut hair at the clouds gathering on the horizon, promising late autumn showers. The ginger-haired boy took a seat near his friend, leaning against the trunk of the tree.
"I like the colour of the leaves," Konrad replied, tone conveying nothing save comfort.
"You think too much…" Yozak started, undertones shifting into a serious register.
"They remind me of something." A hint of a smile coloured Konrad's voice.
"…without saying half of what you're entitled to," an edge to the words.
Bright, hazel eyes finally turned to meet the calculating gaze of crystal eyes. "Your hair." Yozak frowned slightly. Eager hands reached out to ruffle ginger locks.
"Ch," Yozak pushed Konrad's hands away with an arm before he fixed his friend with an irritated glare. "I'm serious. Don't change the subject."
The light dimmed in Konrad's eyes as the smile slowly drained from his face. "I'm not changing the subject. I'd just rather not answer." There was something about fall which suited Konrad. The cool air and colourful leaves bordering somewhere between the sunlit days of summer and snow-filled nights of winter. The opposite of spring, and yet still prosperous in fruit and harvest.
"Just because I'm entitled to say something doesn't mean I'm required to want to," the chestnut-haired boy continued in a voice which sounded of rain – a careful balance which knew the subtle comfort in the prosperity of temporary pain.
"Still, the kid can cross lines farther than he should." Yozak replied, attempting to let the conversation slowly recede while still making his point heard. "And you just let him."
"Wolfram's young." Konrad glanced thoughtfully at the approaching grey clouds before returning to Yozak's face. "There's something else behind his words. And if that's how he needs to say it, then it's better to let him express whatever it is." Konrad's mouth curved into an uneven smile a bit too mature for Yozak's liking.
"You suck," the ginger-haired boy replied with a mischievous grin slowly growing on his own face.
Konrad laughed voicelessly. "As an older brother?"
"As a person," matter of fact, and yet somehow teasing.
Lunging from his position, Yozak grabbed Konrad's arms attempting to wrestle his friend to the ground. The distant light rekindled in hazel eyes as Konrad paused for a moment before fighting back. Before either of them had gotten very far, a few drops of rain began to fall without the warning of thunder. All wrestling slowly came to a halt.
Hazel eyes glanced quickly through the maple branches at the clouds while crystal eyes refused to look away. "Maybe we should head… back…" Konrad's voice trailed off when he turned his gaze back to his friend.
It hadn't been the first time Konrad had found his face far too close to his friend's, his will far too reluctant to turn away. All he could do is stare at the lazy grin plastered across Yozak's features for fear of shifting his gaze towards the crystal eyes. Hesitation to recognize the shift of emotions hidden within their depths.
"No strings attached." Konrad's breath caught somewhere in his throat at Yozak's hoarsely uttered words.
A flash of ginger hair and Konrad was no longer focusing on sight. It had been Yozak who had closed the distance between the two of them. Of course it would have been Yozak. Something about personal space and the necessity to ask before acting. Something about the fear of losing more than was gained. Konrad would have never broached the distance alone.
Now, with soft, warm lips covering his own, the chestnut haired boy could not conjure up a single reason why personal space had mattered so much in the beginning. All he knew was that there was something pure which fluttered in his chest, and no amount of difficult diplomatic maneuvering was about to take that away – strings be damned.
Yozak pulled back slowly, looking straight into honey-brown eyes and noting the slightly furrowed brow. Serious lines had been crossed, and Konrad could sometimes be an all too serious guy. When his friend made no further move, Yozak leaned back slightly trying to replace the distance between them he had stolen.
Yozak barely had time to recognize the determined flash in Konrad's eyes and the sturdy hand on the back of his neck before he was pulled in for another kiss. Something in him hummed with glee as he accepted the offer too tempting to refuse.
All hell broke loose with the soft rumble of thunder and the sudden increase of rain. Konrad pulled away first, finally looking into pale blue eyes. Communicating without words, a childish smile slowly spread across the chestnut-haired adolescent's face. Yozak thought that smile suited Konrad much better. Carefully committing the image to memory, Yozak joined Konrad, scrambling to their feet and sprinting towards the castle. Laughter mingled with the sound and feel of raindrops, accented by the cool wind threatening a cold front.
They finally paused to catch their breath just inside the doorway of the castle, dripping wet and chilled from the autumn air. Goddamn spring and screw those who spun fairy tales of fated love which always blossomed in that forsaken season. Konrad preferred the absence of a label, the lack of rules. He wished for no warm days or unnaturally colourful flowers. This, though uncharted territory, was much more believable. Sure, there were strings attached; there always were in any relationship. But the fact that his friend had noted the absence of them indicated to Konrad that Yozak wouldn't be pulling them.
Hazel eyes surreptitiously glanced at the figure next to him, caught by a crystal stare. Konrad's heart skipped a beat, and a small tinge of red settled on his cheeks.
Yozak approached his friend again with a determined air. The ginger-haired adolescent's lips inches away from Konrad's paused. Nervous laughter escaped Konrad's mouth an instant before Yozak claimed it again. Yozak tilted his head, searching for a better angle while Konrad's eyes gradually slid closed. Slightly losing his balance, the chestnut-haired adolescent stumbled back against the wall, Yozak following.
Lips parted for a moment. A breath, before returning.
Muffled, Konrad's voice made some sort of appreciative sound as the boy wrapped his arms around Yozak. Moments, which Yozak didn't even bother counting, passed.
The sound of an indignant snort echoed from behind Yozak. Konrad pushed Yozak away just enough to break the kiss, a distressed look planted firmly upon his features. Crystal eyes turned to catch a flash of royal blue and sunlit gold followed by a fleeing flurry of footsteps. Wolfram.
Shit.
Yozak turned his gaze back to his friend, a carefully crafted mask now in place where the distressed expression had once been. The ginger-haired adolescent searched for any indication of what his friend was thinking. Konrad was processing – an easily influenced process. Which also made it extremely dangerous to interfere.
Konrad turned his gaze to the stone floor, his thoughts inward. There were always strings attached to relationships. Suddenly, autumn seemed to be sliding all too fast into winter. Approval wasn't necessarily something Konrad actively sought out; however, he had enough of disapproval recently and would rather the opinions lie dormant and unspoken.
Brown eyes glanced tentatively into pale blue ones. Managing a ghost of a smile, although slightly bitter, Konrad replied to Yozak's unspoken question. "Sorry."
Slowly dropping an arm so that his friend could escape to his room if so desired, Yozak sighed in thought. Sorry about my brother; sorry I'm this way; sorry for everything. Konrad's apologies were always multi-layered and all encompassing. In a true martyr fashion. But Konrad was only a half-martyr. Partly because Yozak sometimes pulled him down from it, and partly because Konrad half-hated that aspect of himself.
Turning away, the chestnut-haired adolescent took the exit given by his friend, but not before tugging on the tail of Yozak's shirt gently. Yozak accepted the wordless invitation and followed Konrad as he rounded a corner and started down one of the stone halls. Silence settled between the two much like dust. Not quite comfortable but somewhat unavoidable. Somewhere beyond the windows, the steady pattern of rain continued in harmony with the echoing footsteps inside the castle walls.
Suddenly, the sound of one pair of footsteps dissipated. Yozak followed suit, looking back at his friend.
Konrad had stopped, feet planted firmly, shoulders stiff, and eyes obscured by hair which could probably use a trim. The muscles in his jaw shifted in the dim light, clenching and unclenching slowly. His breath was all too even, and Yozak could literally count the seconds until…
"What the hell am I supposed to do?" A flash of movement, and Konrad's eyes were suddenly visible and filled with built up frustration. Most anyone else would have assumed the yelling was directed at them. Although they would have a good reason to think so, Yozak couldn't refrain from noting mentally something about assumptions and making an ass out of someone.
The words quickly snapped into place for Konrad. Almost too quickly. "If I care about what he says, I'll just end up making him feel guilty and I'll feel miserable over something which isn't really worth it. Who gives a damn about the differences? I'm sick of listening to that. And if I brush off what he says and pick up whatever pieces are left, I make him feel ignored and insignificant." And then they were gone, the words to express his thoughts. All he was left with was a lost look in his eyes and a sympathetic expression from his Yozak.
Yozak held out a hand, catching Konrad's half-hearted punch. "Fucking brat…" Konrad's voice trembled, a weak accusation with undertones of guilt. Anyone whoever thought Konrad incapable or unwilling to curse obviously did not know much.
Slightly squeezing his friend's hand, Yozak replied softly, "You love him too much."
Leaning into a strong shoulder. "Or not enough." After a pause, Konrad added as an afterthought, "I have a headache."
Yozak brought his left hand up to rest on Konrad's neck. "Isn't it always the way?"
A barely audible laugh. "You suck."
"As a person?" Yozak inquired with a grin.
"Just 'cause." Konrad smiled, somewhere between mature and childish.