Diluted bleach water splashed around in a medium sized sink behind the bar. Vlad hurriedly scrubbed the short, whiskey glasses. Emil's steel grip twisted out the excess bleach water from the cleaning rag before it slapped against the sticky bar countertop. Water droplets spread out in different directions and soon they were wiped away.

Glancing over his shoulder as he polished the wine glasses, Vlad let his stare linger on Emil's perky backside. His eyes traced the sweat beaded muscles that flexed with each rigid motion against the surface, leaving behind a crooked trail of moisture and cleanliness.

"Was that your boyfriend?" His lip curled and crimson orbs distinguished a hint of bewilderment across the person in question.

Is he talking about Lukas? His widened eyes blinked rapidly at Vlad before hesitating to respond with a sputtered "wh-what?"

"Heh," his eyes narrowed mischievously as he placed down the last wine glass to the side, "don't act so innocent. I saw how he was treating you."

Moving to the right, Emil scoffed while creating a defensive distance between them.

"I don't know who you're talking about, okay?" He walked over to grab the broom and dustpan. Huffing softly, he resumed his sweeping, and it's none of your concern.

"Ah?" Vlad smirked as he yanked the dish rack occupied with used draft beer glasses out from its shelf adjacent to the empty ice container, "You're not denying it."

Attempting to ignore Vlad's existence for the moment, his ears perked at what he heard tumble out of that smug mouth.

"Besides," his shoulders bounced, "I never took you for someone who liked a rich boy loudmouth." His eyes broadened at Emil's reaction.

The broom nearly escaped his hands as a dust tsunami surrounded his knees. Nearly losing his head as he pivoted on the heels, his soft lavender eyes narrowed dangerously.

"Oooh, tough guy!" Vlad's taunting tone danced with the small fang glistening under the dim light above.

Seriously?! What is wrong with this idiot?

Frustrated sweeps and clashing collisions against the bar made Vlad's heart fluttered. He was finally getting under Emil's skin and loving every second of it.

"Oh, chill out, Emil. I'm just teasing you…" His voice trailed off as his footsteps hastened over towards the sweeping Icelander. He helped him with fixing the barstools that were shoved haphazardly to the side.

Emil collected the debris and litter into the dustpan and emptied it out in an overflowing trash bin. "Look, I don't care. Let's just hurry before Lars-"

"How much longer?" He crossed his arms against his robust chest, "unlike you two, I have a life."

Well, speak of the devil.

Lars stood adjacent to the bar with two stacks of cash in both hands with a sticky note on them. Presumably their names.

"We just finished, boss." Vlad tied a knot in the trash bag and yanked the bag from the gray trash can, "I gotta take this out back."

Emil ripped a handful of skinny, red straws and forced as many as possible into the four containers that were halfway full.

"I'm done now." Emil's voice was polite. He accepted the money that he had made in credit card tips. Saturday nights were absolute hell for him, however, the money was worth it. Definitely worth it.

Lars bid both of them a stern farewell after locking the door behind him.

The moment Emil claimed a seat on the subway, he sighed out and allowed his mind to wander as his feet relaxed. There were other sleepy people dozing off and a drunk couple making out a couple of meters away from him.

Disgusting.

Vigorously shaking his head, he managed to rouse himself from falling into a deep slumber.

I gotta stay awake. Stay awake, stay awake, stay- Stay. The. Fuck. "Awake," he grumbled as he fought to stand up as soon as his stop was announced over the intercom.

By the time Emil unlocked the front door and cracked it open with caution, he heard thunderous snores instantly.

That was not Lukas.

"I'm hoooome!" Emil sang unpleasantly at the top of his lungs and slammed the front door behind him, shaking up the rustic artwork nailed to the wall.

Kicking off his worn thin shoes, he flinched at the sound of an inebriated choking noise from the sofa.

Gross. Why did Lukas have to bring him back here?

"Shut up, I'm tryna sleep!" He barked out in clear displeasure, "and turn off the damn lights- my head's hurtin'!"

"Where's Lukas?" Emil demanded in a hurry; he didn't give a damn about Mathias's easement.

Sure, he gave him a huge tip tonight, but that still didn't mean they were buddies all of a sudden.

"Lukas?" Mathias yawned out and laid his forearm over his eyes to block out the intrusive illumination, "he's probably awake now ...like me."

Did you touch him? That was the nagging small voice banging against his skull. What if something happened between them while they were drunk? What if they kissed? I trust Lukas…

Emil huffed out and walked over to the bathroom without gifting Mathias any more of his precious energy.

"Turn off the light, Emil! Ya little shit!" was all he heard as he stripped down to his birthday suit to shower away all of the filth, sweat, and grime of his work shift.

...I just don't trust Mathias.

Lukas had just started to enter his dreamland; engrossed and relishing the vivid actions of his subconsciousness state. Well, that is until he was rudely awoken by Mathias and Emil shouting in the living room. To top it off, the roaring of shower water running adjacent to his bedroom did not help him drift back asleep.

Struggling to obtain ten more minutes of rest, he groaned out from his hammering headache once the shower ceased its sound. He reluctantly sat up, feeling lightheaded as his insides turned. He was struggling to keep whatever was left in his stomach down.

When they returned to the apartment, Lukas barely made it to the toilet.

Mathias was no help at all. His dumbass self went straight to the kitchen and ate the leftovers that were saved for Emil.

There were two hesitant knocks against the bedroom door.

"Lukas? Uhm, are you awake?" It was Emil's voice.

"Yes?" He croaked out from where he sat up on his spacious bed, holding his stomach. Sliding off and placing his feet firmly against his bedside rug, he licked his chapped lips as he crossed the floor to open his door. He stepped out and shut the door behind him gracefully.

"Are you... okay? I… I'm sorry if I woke you up." Emil's flushed cheeks went unnoticed in the dim lit area. His heartbeat sped up at the pair of sleepy indigo eyes staring back at him. They were standing so close. Too close. Emil stepped backwards with a trembling, chilled water bottle in his right hand.

"Oh, I'm fine and don't worry, Emil." His eyes surveyed the object in Emil's quivering hand.

"Here," he handed Lukas the water and bit his bottom lip with avoidant eyes.

He seized hold of the water bottle, wincing at the drastic contrast in temperature and let his fingertips brush lightly over his roommate's fingers.

"Thank y-"

An obnoxious, wretched sound hurled itself from the living room as the light switch was smacked off. Darkness shrouded the entire apartment and Emil stood there anxiously.

Lukas reached out to grab Emil's hand, but regretfully stopped himself when he noticed Emil hastily spun away to whisper a "goodnight".

Confident knocks sounded off behind the securely locked door before Lukas's peaceful voice broke through the barrier between them.

"Emil, I made breakfast. Join me?"

"Y-Yeah, one minute." He crossed the room to search through his disorganized closet.

His favorite boy pablo pastel blue, indie band t-shirt was yanked down over his head, concealing his torso. His legs were hugged in a pair of dark, forest green, jersey knit pants. Finger combing his bedhead in vain, he swiftly opened his door.

Stepping backwards, he was not expecting his roommate to actually crawl out of his cave. He pursued his lips, twisted around from Emil's downcast eyes, and led him into the kitchen.

"Sorry about last night…" The clang of the bowl and spoon followed Emil's apology. The periwinkle speckled bowl was filled with steaming porridge. A sprinkle of cinnamon and a pinch of dried cranberries decorated it beautifully.

"I should apologize for…" Lukas trailed off, considering his choice of words, "Mathias. He gets out of control sometimes." He collected his breakfast and claimed the spot across Emil. Their eyes met at the same time and glanced down at their meals in unison.

Emil scooped a favorable sized portion of his porridge, slid his eyes closed, and hummed in delight. As soon as he opened them, he caught Lukas staring intently at him; awestruck and a fleeting cockiness gracing his fine features.

"O-Oh sorry. It's so…" His shaky voice dissipated in contrast to burning cheeks that he couldn't hide.

Refusing to look up, he missed the smile that tugged on Lukas's lips before a spoon full of porridge disappeared between his lips.

A peaceful quietness descended over them as they enjoyed the flavorful breakfast together.

"There's a nice park in town that I think you'd like," Lukas mentioned aloud after scraping the rest of the porridge from the bottom of his bowl. He stood up abruptly, pushing the last spoonful of his meal past his lips and placed the bowl under the faucet in the sink.

Sanitizing the kitchen stove and counters, he hummed to himself an unfamiliar tune as a jumbled mess of thoughts marched through his mind.

Should I invite him to a picnic? Maybe we can go to a coffee shop, he shook his head and placed the other cooking utensils in the sink to soak. No, I just told him about that park. We could go fishing- there's a lake there.

Lukas hummed to himself and sighed out at his unorganized, internal planning. This is weird. I've never had any difficulties with deciding before. Emil, what've ya done to me?

"Thank you for the breakfast, Lukas." Light violet orbs strayed to the side before meeting up with a mesmerizing pair of indigo hues.

"You're welcome, " he took the bowl from Emil's hands, "I'm glad you enjoy my cooking."

There was a pause of awkward stillness when Emil attempted to assist Lukas. There wasn't much to do once the bubbles formed in the sink and the clanging of glasses broke the tension.

"A park?"

Lukas bobbed his head, storing two spoons in a dish drying rack cup. "Yes, it's beautiful, quiet, and not many people know about it."

"...Kinda like you?" Emil slapped a hand over his mouth, but the words already left his mouth. Stop flirting! He's your roommate. It will be awkward if he doesn't feel the same way and-

Arching both of his blonde brows, his eyes widened as he stepped backwards to create a distance between them.

"Are you… flirting with me?"

"Wha- Wait, uhm, no…Th-That's weird- wait, I meant... Why would I do that? You're my roommate."

The corners of Lukas's mouth tugged downwards at the feigned laughs chucking themselves from Emil's mouth. He stretched his arm across his chest, eyes flickering away from him.

"Oh, yeah," his voice was distant when his arms fell to his sides. "That would be weird, huh?"

Fuck, fuck, I messed up... again! His eyes screwed tightly when Lukas brushed it off and straightened out a hand towel nearby.

Say something to him! Emil chomped down on the inside of his cheek anxiously and waited until Lukas departed from the small kitchen. Sighing heavily, he looked up in agony at his mistake with spread fingers that clenched into shaky fists by his sides.

He heard Lukas's bedroom door close with a click and heaved another sigh before stiffly seeking refuge in his own room.

Why was Lukas so upset with me telling him what was obvious?

Flopping down onto his bed, he squinted his eyes at the ceiling and hummed regretfully.

"Wait a minute…" He whispered to himself; his mind slowly registered what just happened.

Lukas asked if I was flirting… and yes- I was. Then, he asked me if I just flirted with him… he looked surprised.

"Was he surprised in a good way or a bad way? And even then…" he mumbled to himself before returning back to his internal monologue.

He looked upset when I denied it. So, what does all of this mean? He's so hard to figure out!

"Ugh, fuck. Today already sucks," Emil bemoaned a great regret and cocooned in his soft, navy blue comforter, "and it just started."

Yawning and stretching his legs, he curled back into himself and slid his glistening eyes shut.

Inside of Lukas's room, he mulled over what transpired between them. It was the second occurrence since they started to finally break ice and get along after a few months of living together.

He's so hot and cold. An exhale of disbelief slipped past his lips like an unexpectedly gust of wind through a flowery valley.

Why is he sweet to me and then frantic?

He shook his head with a bitter expression. It's almost as if he is sending me mixed messages… mixed signals of how he feels.

"Whatever… I need to distract myself," he mumbled to himself and swiped his fully charged phone from the bedside table.

His eyes scanned over his playlist and he turned up the volume to drown out all of his thoughts about the situation.

"No," he paused the music after the second songs started to play, "I need to talk to him."

Sitting up and focusing intently on his closed bedroom door, he nibbled on his bottom lip at his bold decision. "I need to clear things up. I want to figure him out." If he doesn't want to make a move, then it's up to me.

Gathering every ounce of confidence that he managed to acquire after his pep talk, he went straight to Emil's bedroom door and knocked repeatedly until he heard Emil respond with a muffled "yes?".

"Let's go get some fresh air."

Wisps of October gusts blew through their hair and the fallen leaves blanketed the dead grass beneath their shoes. The serene look on Lukas's face sent a loving shiver through Emil's body. He lowered his lids as they walked mindlessly in the direction of a quaint coffee shop across the street from the sparsely populated park.

They must not get much business. Emil thought to himself, not paying attention to anyone else. It was void of customers, except for a familiar face behind the counter.

"Welcome to Cool Beans- hey, I know you!" The light, wavy haired brunette behind the counter exclaimed with a friendly chuckle and wave of his hand. He treated Emil like his best friend; he was his regular at Bahama Mama's.

Yes, Emil knew all about his personal issues from his life struggles to the toxic relationship he was trapped in for nearly half a decade to some family issues.

Lukas felt a pang of jealousy in that sudden moment when the Luxembourger rounded the counter to give Emil an uninvited hug.

Who's this guy? Lukas's hardened stare went unnoticed by the two embracing. It wasn't very often that he felt this type of emotion. He always was certain to forbid it from plaguing him.

To his internal relief, Emil did not return the same affection; he pushed the other away with an uneased shudder of rejection.

Puffing out his chest, Lukas narrowed his eyes suspiciously at the gregarious worker. The temptation of wrapping his arms around Emil's waist was undeniably challenging for him to resist.

"Stop it," Emil reprimanded quietly yet firmly, "...not here. Shouldn't you be a little more professional?"

Ignoring Emil's sarcastic remark, his eyes illuminated at the sight of Lukas's poker face behind them.

"And who is this, Emil?"

"Lukas. My, uh..."

My boyfriend. He wanted more than anything to claim him as such, but instead scratched the back of his head when he introduced him as:

"My roommate."

"Lukas?" He smirked at the said blonde and planted a hand on his hip; a hint of mischievousness crossing his face, "I know someone who is interested in you."

"Huh?" Both Emil and Lukas reacted simultaneously and then stared at Luca in bewilderment.

He chuckled at their twin reactions and shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly, despite the enthusiasm in his words.

"My brother likes you. He's too shy to say anything, but he's a great guy."

Emil glared at him before staring down at the floor in displeasure.

Who is his brother? I thought they were having family issues?

"I'm flattered," he turned away to look off into the distance and then returned his eyes to Luca over his shoulder, "but I'm not interested."

"Oh, please! He's a great guy. He owns his own business and he's a gentleman. I mean- oops!"

He facepalmed at his assuming nature, "Are you even into guys?"

Now, things were getting uncomfortable. Very uncomfortable and the atmosphere started to drop in temperature.

Sighing out, he straightened his posture and muttered, "I'm not really in the mood for coffee now."

He was in a depressingly irritated mood. It wasn't like Emil had never seen him in his mood before; it was usually hidden. Although, he saw it from afar.

He chewed the inside of his cheek and fisted his hands at his sides. He knew for a fact that Lukas was a coffee addict.

There was no way that he would allow Luca to disrespect him like that and ruin their... their date?

Emil shook his head at the wishful thought and cleared his throat.

He fumbled with his wallet from his back pocket as Luca returned behind the counter.

"We'll just get two regular coffees, please." Luca nodded as he punched in the orders and accepted the cash before preparing the hot beverages.

"Emil," Lukas rubbed his arm and stood there feeling guilty at how he behaved, "you didn't have to do that for me."

Flushed cheeks were hidden away from the pair of indigo eyes as he grabbed the two coffees from the counter. Luca raised an eyebrow at Emil's reaction- he had never seen him react that way before to anyone.

"See you later, Emil. And Lukas- just consider it!" Luca's voice reached their ears before the door shut behind them.

Emil felt sick to his stomach, despite the ideal weather embracing them. Who was Luca talking about?

"I'm sorry," Emil apologized the moment they crossed the street leading to the park. Lukas shook his head, nursing the coffee in his hands and scoffed lightly when his steps faltered before the edge of the grass.

"Why? You did nothing wrong." It was true, though. Emil wasn't at fault for anything- no, it was his so-called friend who was out of line.

"Luca…" Emil trailed off then cleared his throat, "Luca has a lot of issues going on in his life."

Don't we all? Lukas looked down as his feet drove forward to slap against the wooden bridge near the river.

"And," Emil sighed out when they approached a towering willow tree, "he's not the best person to, uh, well... take advice from."

Lukas mirrored Emil's body that carefully settled on the grass.

"Nobody's perfect. Sometimes we tend to put people on a pedestal right from the start and," his eyes connected with a pair of lavender and then snapped downwards as he sipped on his coffee, "we tend to forget that they are human- just like us."

Sipping cautiously on his coffee cup, he mulled over Lukas's words. He avoided looking up at his crush and cradled the cup in his hands. His racing thoughts jumped through hoops, struggling to connect the dots.

"I don't like him, if that's what you're getting at!"

Chucking under his breath at Emil's reaction, Lukas plucked a few shards of grass by his sides. "Never assumed ya did."

"Well," Emil shook his head and stood up as he said, "I'm, uh, I don't know… he's just... not someone you want to be around."

Silence.

"Emil," Lukas rose up abruptly, "I know a secret spot in this park that you might like."

He finished the coffee and tossed it in the nearby trash can. Emil hastily gulped down his coffee, making his eyes tear up at the hot liquid pooling in his stomach. He coughed, effectively grabbing Lukas's undivided attention. After understanding what just happened, Lukas slowed down his pace and laughed at his flustered Emil.

"Copycat," he teased as they walked over to an area shaded by a gigantic oak tree and settled down.

"As if!" Emil laughed, feeling slightly offended since it was not a complete lie.

Lukas loosely crossed his legs and scooted closer to Emil, who leaned his back against the tree's trunk with criss crossed legs. He couldn't look at Lukas, despite his urges to press himself against his beloved's arm.

A mysteriously cozy ambience encompassed their bodies. Light inhales and exhales mingled with the distant caws of the birds flying by. The faint fragrance of Lukas's sandalwood cologne and sweat infiltrated Emil's nostrils as he pretended to stretch and scoot closer to his object of affection.

Then, he was struck with uncertainty and tumbled back to Earth. Oh my god, I need to back off.

He held his breath and retreated back to create enough a respectable, plantonic distance. Lukas, much to his chagrin, witnessed it and looked sullen.

Every time he seems to want to get close, he keeps pulling away. Lukas tugged on a few shards of grass near the tree's thick roots and fidgeted with them as he stole a fleeting glance at Emil. His fingers struggled to tie the grass shards together, but they broke every time he pulled it into a knot.

"Lukas?"

He glanced over to his roommate and sent him a questioning look.

"What is it?" He inched closer to let their kneecaps touch.

"If you could ask me one question, and… and I had to answer truthfully," Emil gulped at the contact, "what would you ask me?"

Lukas straightened up as the torn grass plummeted from his pinched fingers onto his lap. He relaxed into himself, tilted his head back, hunched forward, and turned to face Emil completely.

There were so many obvious questions that he could ask. He pressed his spread out fingers together at their tips and formed a triangle to consider this loaded question.

Do you like me? Lukas immediately stiffened up at what he wanted so desperately to vocalize and looked away; extremely fearful of the answer he might hear if he did.

"Let me think," Lukas squinted his eyes into the distance to buy more time to carefully choose his words.

Emil didn't mind waiting; frightful and fidgeting next to the one he fantasized being this close to in his journal.

"How was your life in your old town?"

"It was..." Emil's voice was barely audible as a gust of wind pushed him to answer the question, "very bad."

Lukas raised an eyebrow before they knitted together sympathetically. Maybe that is why he is the way he is.

Lukas couldn't stop himself from prying more into Emil's life. He truly wanted to know more about him beyond the surface.

"Can I…" Emil's voice pulled Lukas back to reality, "can I ask you something?"

Lukas nodded at Emil's flushed face and stared at him. The next words that trickled out of Emil's mouth surprised him. The shapes and lines of his plush lips, his English words with Icelandic intonations, the stammering, and the worry etched on his face.

"Are you and, uh, Mathias…uhm, y'know, like... I-I dunno." He hesitated, searching Lukas's face briefly before averting his eyes downwards, "I'm sorry, that was a stupid..."

Lukas raised his eyebrows, catching onto what Emil was casting into the water.

Ah, I see now. That makes sense. "He's just my friend. We've been friends since middle school," Lukas explained, rubbing the back on his head and chuckled softly at Emil's assumption.

Coughing uncomfortably at asking the question he had kept inside since he met Mathias, he lifted himself shakily to his feet. His heart was racing at the newfound information.

"I think we should go home. It's getting late now," Lukas voiced what Emil was thinking as he mirrored his actions.

"Yeah…" His voice was as distant as the moon from the Earth. He felt a pang of regret; something fizzing inside, teeming and threatening to explode into a burst of colorful emotions.

I think I just messed up again. He probably thinks that I'm… I dunno, I honestly don't even know.