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unpredictable-probabilities · 2 years ago

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Granting Favors 13 - An Honest Shot

Summary:

Amidst rising tensions among the VDC group, Jamil has decided to take a real shot at Azul. Unknown to him, Azul is also planning to make a move, enlisting the help of an unlikely friend.

Word Count: 5,521

— —

Azul somehow felt lighter as he made his way back to Octavinelle. He and Jamil had talked about possible ideas for their project and scheduled when they could meet up to work on it, then the breaktime ended and Jamil had to get back to rehearsals. So Azul had decided to get back to work himself and calculate Mostro Lounge's profits considering their early closing time. Fortunately, Floyd didn't force him to stay at the Pomefiore ballroom.

The atmosphere was perfectly comfortable while he talked with Jamil about their schedules, despite the fact that Jamil had acknowledged that they almost kissed at the masquerade ball. Azul hadn't been able to respond to it; he was afraid of saying the wrong thing so he just redirected the conversation to their project. At the very least, he had managed to secure a lunch with Jamil tomorrow.

But what next? Was he expected to do something now that their almost-kiss had been acknowledged? Was there even anything that he wanted to do?

Azul sighed. For the first time since he had enrolled in NRC, he was at a loss about what his next step should be. It might be an option to just let whatever dynamic he had with Jamil to develop naturally, they didn't have to talk about the masquerade again, and whatever happens, happens.

But he was never one to leave anything to chance. He even practiced for hours on how to throw dice in a certain way to get the numbers he wanted; Idia had called him insane but now he was able to beat most of the Board Game Club members in any game involving dice.

He couldn't just do nothing about this new development with Jamil. Inaction could be just as bad as making a wrong decision, and he certainly didn't want to mess up so badly that he would end up losing Jamil from his life. He had to make a plan.

However, he had no idea where to start. He couldn't ask Jade or Floyd for help like he often did for his other plans. As much as he hated to admit it, this was a problem that required knowledge on how to deal with emotions, and he'd be hard-pressed to find anyone in this place who had any significant amount of emotional intelligence, himself and the twins included.

It was something that he never thought he would have to tackle, because what good were emotions when it came to business? Unexpectedly, he now had to make a plan where he had to untangle and articulate his emotions, and nobody in NRC was well-versed enough about such things to be helpful.

He stopped in his tracks as realization dawned on him.

Nobody in NRC...

He took out his phone and typed in a quick text.

I may be in need of your assistance. Call me as soon as you are able.

* * *

Jamil double-checked his stuff to make sure he didn't forget anything before leaving the ballroom.

"I still can’t do it," Kalim's voice complained from across the room.

"You'll get there, Kalim!" Epel said. "You just gotta shift your weight properly, like this."

"Jamil? Can you help us with this one?" Deuce called him over hesitantly.

Jamil took his backpack and walked over to them. "What is it?"

Kalim averted his eyes, shifting on his feet. Jamil had been hoping to avoid this; his dynamic with Kalim had been awkward ever since his Overblot, and it only seemed to get worse when VDC rehearsals started.

Jamil knew that Kalim wanted to make amends, but years of pent-up resentment couldn’t be fixed by a handful of half-baked attempts at conversation. Aside from handing Kalim packed lunches, they barely interacted these days.

"Kalim's feet keep getting tangled on the turns," Epel scratched his head.

"We've been trying to teach him the steps on the second verse, but I guess we're not very good teachers," Deuce said.

"Show me the move," Jamil told them.

They sidestepped and slid diagonally backwards, then stepped to the left before crossing their ankles and turning counterclockwise, but Kalim tripped over his own feet and bumped hard into Epel. Luckily Deuce caught them both before they could topple over.

Jamil sighed. Vil would be livid if that happened in rehearsal.

"The problem is you're going overboard," he told Kalim. "Enthusiasm is all well and good in a dance performance, but you have to have enough precision. Don't lean too hard on the turns, and be aware of the distance between the other dancers."

He spent 10 minutes helping Epel and Deuce teach Kalim how to look less like a bumbling duckling and more like a proper dancer belonging in Vil's team. They practiced the turns with just Jamil's counting, then they tried it with music, and then they sang while doing the entire routine to make sure that Kalim could transition smoothly between the steps before and after the turns.

"That's much better!" Epel grinned at Kalim after they finished the entire song.

"Thanks a lot for the help, Jamil!" Deuce wiped the sweat from his forehead with the back of his hand.

"Yeah, thanks, Jamil," Kalim said with a small smile. “Are you gonna head back to Ramshackle now? We could go together.”

Here it was again. It seemed like somehow Kalim thought that if they spent enough time together, things were gonna get back to normal.

“Sure,” Jamil said indifferently. To Kalim’s credit, he actually got all his things quickly so Jamil didn’t have to wait for long.

“I see that you and Azul are becoming friends now,” Kalim started a conversation again on their way to Ramshackle. “It’s nice of him to visit us during practice.”

“He said Floyd dragged him there to keep him from overworking,” Jamil said evasively.

He wasn’t exactly sure what he and Azul were; ‘friends’ didn’t seem like a strong enough term. Whatever the correct term was, he wasn’t in the mood to discuss it with Kalim.

“That’s surprisingly considerate of Floyd,” Kalim laughed. “Azul needs to take more breaks. Ooh, why don’t you invite him over to Ramshackle sometime?”

“I did,” Jamil’s mouth almost turned up in a smile. “We’re partnered up for a project in Defensive Magic, and we’ll be working on it in Ramshackle from time to time.”

“Oh that’s great!” Kalim beamed. “I’d say let’s have a small party but Vil won’t allow it. Maybe we can all just play videogames or something if we’re not too busy with rehearsals. Ace and Deuce know several good ones.”

“Yeah, maybe.” Jamil realized that he didn’t know whether Azul liked videogames, but he was curious to find out.

Kalim didn’t say anything else, and they spent the rest of the walk in relatively comfortable silence.

* * *

Azul had thrown himself into the work of calculating Mostro Lounge's profits that he had almost forgotten he had asked to be called until his phone rang and he saw the name on the screen.

"Hello," he answered and leaned back in his seat.

He chose to do his work in his bedroom today, knowing that his phone might ring at any moment. This was a conversation he wanted to have in private, and there were too many students at the dorm's lounge.

"Azul," Rielle said on the other line. "I was admittedly surprised when I read your message. What's wrong?"

"Before anything else, I would like to hear your solemn promise that you would not breathe a word of this conversation to anyone else." It wasn't nearly as secure as a signed contract, but it would have to do.

"Of course," Rielle said sincerely. "Not a word."

Azul took a moment before he continued. He had prepared the words, but they were still difficult to say. "After much deliberation, it appears that I do... have feelings for Jamil."

Rielle audibly gasped. "That's wonderful to hear! You finally admitted it to yourself!"

Azul shifted in his seat. "Is it really alright to discuss this with you? I wasn't sure if it would be rude or insensitive given that..."

"It’s perfectly alright!" Rielle assured him. "Like I said, whatever admiration I have for you is not nearly as strong as how you and Jamil feel about each other. I have made my peace with that after our previous conversation.”

"How could you say that so casually?" Azul sighed. "I suppose that is why I need your help. You're far more comfortable about these sentimental things than anyone else here."

Rielle chuckled. "I shall do what I can. What do you need help with?"

Azul twirled his pen between his fingers. "Hypothetically, if Jamil does feel the same way about me... What would be the right thing to do?"

"Oh, well, that depends on what you want to achieve," Rielle replied. "What's your goal?"

Azul thought about it. What did he want out of all this? "I don't want to drive him away. I want things to relatively stay the way they are, but I'm not quite certain about what I have to do to ensure it."

"Hmm," Rielle hummed thoughtfully. "Have you considered just telling him how you feel?"

"That's a terrible idea," Azul immediately said. "He might feel backed into a corner if I did that, I don't want him to think that I'm expecting him to reciprocate."

"Doesn't he already reciprocate?" Rielle asked pointedly. "Haven't you noticed anything that might hint at how he feels about you? You don't need to tell me, just be aware of it for yourself."

Azul's mind went back to the masquerade, Jamil's hand on the back of his neck, Jamil leaning in for a kiss...

"Regardless," Azul said forcefully to fling the memory away. "I don't want to scare him off. I need an approach that is not so direct, yet at the same time won't make him think that I dislike him in any way."

"You can always just show him."

Azul furrowed his eyebrows. "What do you mean?"

"If you aren’t comfortable in verbalizing your sentiments, just show them," Rielle clarified. "If you want to spend time with him, then go ahead and do so."

"That's it?" Azul asked doubtfully; it seemed too simple.

Rielle laughed good-naturedly. "This isn't some business strategy that needs an entire folder's worth of planning, Azul. If he does things for you that make you happy, try doing the same for him. To let him know that you don't dislike him."

Things that Jamil did that made him happy... Immediately Jamil's unexpected honesty came to mind, though the idea of reciprocating that same blatant honesty daunted him.

"Alright, I shall keep that in mind." Azul sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. Suddenly it didn't seem so simple. "I do appreciate the advice. I know that my message came out of nowhere."

"See? Expressing your feelings isn't that hard, right?" Rielle said playfully. "But really, it's not a problem at all. Feel free to message whenever you wish to talk about it again."

With how unfamiliar this new territory is, Azul was almost certain that he would need more help in the future. He would have to start figuring out how to repay such a favor.

"Thank you, Rielle. I owe you one."

“Anytime.”

He ended the call and went back to work.

* * *

Jamil sighed as he stared at the flavorless chicken and rice that he had just unpacked on the cafeteria table. Following Vil's diet plan was especially difficult since he had grown up eating food with a lot of spices. He never thought he'd miss cooking his own food so much.

"Hello," Azul slid into the seat across from him with a plate of chicken cacciatore from the buffet.

"Wow, you're really gonna flaunt that here?" Jamil said, nodding at Azul's plate.

Azul noticed Jamil's comparatively bland lunch and chuckled. "Should I leave, then?"

Jamil rolled his eyes. "Just finish that obscenely flavorful chicken before I eat it myself."

"Are you really not allowed to eat anything apart from what Vil provides?"

"Mostly. It's part of the training," Jamil said. "If we wanna eat something else, he has to approve of it first."

"Ah, well, to take your mind off it, I have an idea for our project for Defensive Magic," Azul said as he took a bite of his food.

"Oh, what is it?" Jamil started to eat as well.

"Since the instructions are to create an item that would make a person impervious to danger for any given duration, I thought we could make a shield of some sort," Azul said. "A small handheld device that would turn into a shield at the press of a button. The item itself would be magic, so it's usable even for mages who are conserving their powers, or people who don't have magic at all."

"Okay. But...?" Jamil noticed that Azul didn't look too satisfied with his own idea.

Azul sighed. "But it's lacking something. Originality would account for 35% of our grade; any fool could make a shield. How can we make ours more innovative?"

Jamil thought for a second. "We can make the shield like a bubble, so the person is protected on all sides, even from the ground."

Azul's eyes lit up and he got a small notebook from his pocket. "Yes, we could do that. And the bubble could float away up to a certain distance to carry the person farther from danger." He scribbled in his notebook.

"I'll look up potions that we can use as fuel for something that floats," Jamil said.

"And I'll see if I can borrow some tools from Idia at the Board Game Club meeting later." Azul closed his notebook and pocketed it again.

"Yeah," Jamil agreed. It might be a little challenging to pull off but he was looking forward to working on it. "Let's schedule when we could start."

He took out his phone and checked the file of Azul's calendar; then frowned when he saw today's date.

"It says here that right now you're supposed to be printing out flyers for the Lounge's booth," Jamil said. "Did you forget...?" It wasn't like Azul at all to forget his schedules.

Azul's fork stopped midway to his mouth; he looked surprised for a split second before he blinked it away. He set his fork back down on his plate and cleared his throat. "I moved the printing to tomorrow, I must have forgotten to update the calendar. I shall do so now."

Azul took out his phone and started typing.

"Why did you move it?' Jamil asked.

"So we could have lunch together," Azul replied while still looking down at his phone.

Jamil's eyebrows rose in surprise, and he saw the online calendar update on his own phone screen; it now said LUNCH for this time.

"But... why would you do that?" Jamil frowned. "You even skip meals sometimes just to keep working. And now you adjusted your work schedule for lunch?"

Azul pocketed his phone again. "You invited me to lunch, I accepted. It isn't really a puzzle, Jamil."

But I invited you to lunch because I wanna spend more time with you, Jamil thought, remembering Rook's advice. I don't know what your reason is for adjusting--

Suddenly he remembered what Azul had asked him three nights ago in his dimly lit bedroom.

"Couldn't we have done the things we did for the same reasons?"

His face warmed, and he almost brought up their project again just to have something else to talk about, but he reminded himself that he was taking a real shot at Azul now, and he couldn't keep running away.

He made himself look at Azul and smiled playfully. "Oh, you really prioritized spending time with me instead of working?"

Azul looked taken aback, and a shade of red colored his face.

Great Seven, if Azul would react like that every time, then Jamil might make more of those remarks.

Azul recovered and turned up the corner of his lips. "So what if I am? Is that a problem, Viper?"

Jamil chuckled nervously, caught off-guard by Azul's gaze. "Not at all, Ashengrotto."

* * *

Azul took a seat in the Board Game Club classroom and sent a text before starting on his tasks.

Hello, Yuu. Would it be alright if I were to pay a visit to Ramshackle after your dinner tonight? Jamil and I need to work on a project together. He would be asking Vil for permission as well.

A small crate dropped on the table in front of him with a loud clatter.

Idia sat across from him and started tinkering with a small tablet and screwdriver that he got from the crate.

"Shouldn't you be preparing for your presentation?" Azul asked.

"Nah, I got that covered." Idia removed the backing of the tablet and laid it facedown on the table.

Azul raised an eyebrow. "Scouts from different universities would be watching, right? I would have thought that you'd be spending more time working on it."

"It doesn't matter," Idia grumbled, using tweezers to insert various chips in the back of the tablet. "I'll just have to reject any offers from those scouts anyway."

Azul wondered if that meant that Idia had already been accepted into a university and didn't want any other offers. It was possible, considering that Idia was practically a genius with technomancy.

Before he could ask, his phone lit up with a message from Yuu.

Hi Azul! Ofc u can come over later, I brought it up to Vil too, and he's cool with it. I'd invite u to dinner but it's all diet foods in Ramshackle these days haha. You're welcome to come over anytime! <3

Azul put his phone down and turned to Idia. "Could I take a look at the box of spare parts that we won't be using for the booth? Jamil and I are working on a project for Defensive Magic and some of our tools here might be useful."

"You're working with Jamil again?" Idia sounded surprised. "Back then you guys only worked together in Alchemy. But now he's taught you flying lessons and you're paired up for another class again."

"So?" Azul didn't understand what the big deal was.

"So," Idia emphasized as he attached the back of the tablet again. "What's going on with you two?"

"What?" Azul heard the defensiveness in his voice. "What do you mean?"

"Come on. Back then you were complaining that he never wanted to work with you, and now you're working together for three classes," Idia pointed out.

"I wasn't complaining," Azul said, regretting his casual remarks to Idia back then about Jamil.

"Oh!" Idia seemed to remember something. "And he has your phone number! Two years of being in a club together and even I don't have that."

"Did you ever need it?"

"But Jamil needs it?" Idia shot back.

Azul glared at him. "Just because we're working together more often now doesn't necessarily indicate anything in particular."

Idia wasn't really wrong; Azul's recent interactions with Jamil indicated something indeed, but it was all so new that he didn't want anyone else meddling and possibly ruining it.

"You're saying nothing's changed between you two?" Idia asked skeptically.

"Of course," Azul blatantly lied.

"Hmm," Idia hummed as he took out a pair of VR goggles from the crate. "So if Jamil dates someone else, you'll be okay with it?"

Azul couldn't stop the scowl that formed on his face at the very thought of it.

"Hah! I knew it," Idia snickered. "If otome games have taught me anything, it’s that jealousy is such a tell-tale sign of developing feelings. You got it bad, dude."

"Just focus on those goggles," Azul snapped at him, feeling his face warm.

Whether or not he did have it bad was none of Idia's business.

* * *

"Good evening, Prefect," Azul smiled, greeting Yuu with the endearment that most of the students use to refer to them.

"Hey Azul! Come in," Yuu stepped aside and opened the door of Ramshackle wider. "You're in a good mood."

"Ah, I'm simply looking forward to bringing life to our project idea," Azul said as he stepped through the doorway.

"You can use that table over there," Yuu pointed to a rectangular table near the wall with a few chairs surrounding it. "I'll let Jamil know you're here."

Azul walked over to the table and took a seat, taking out his notes and the small bag of tools he had borrowed from Idia.

Vil appeared from the dining room, and Azul prepared to justify his presence, but Vil's attention was on the First Years that had followed him to the lounge area.

"It has been more than a week into rehearsals and your movements are still substandard," Vil scolded his resident. "You do remember that it is Neige LeBlanche that we are trying to defeat?"

"I remember," Epel said meekly, standing between Ace and Deuce.

"Then why be so lackluster in your performance?"

Vil's tone was severe, sharper than Azul had heard him speak before. He wondered if something else was bothering the Pomefiore Prefect; even though he was known to be competitive, it was unlike him to behave so inelegantly over a desire to win.

"Epel's doing his best, we all are," Deuce said defensively.

"And the VDC is still weeks away," Ace added. "We have a lot more time to improve."

"Your best had better improve drastically in the next few days," Vil glowered at them. "Neige has been performing ever since we were children, and mere weeks are barely enough time for you spudlings to catch up."

"Why are you so hung up on this Neige guy, anyway?" Ace complained. "What'd he do to you?"

Vil's expression darkened, and for a moment Azul was afraid that he had walked straight into a crossfire, but footsteps swiftly came down the stairs and in an instant Rook was beside Vil.

"My dear Vil, I think it's time for their nightly skincare routine, yes?" Rook said gently. "And you need to rest as well, especially given how hard you've worked today."

Vil momentarily closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "Fine. But tomorrow I expect significant improvement on everyone's progress. Including you, Rook."

He turned away from them and stormed up the stairs, not sparing Azul a glance.

"Monsieur de l'Effort !" Rook greeted him pleasantly. "Welcome to our humble abode."

"Oh hey, Azul," Ace said wearily, slumping down on the couch. "Yeah, welcome to Ramshackle. Where after dinner we get scolding for dessert."

"Why don't we watch a movie after we do the skincare routine?" Deuce tried to sound upbeat. "It's still pretty early, we can watch a short one before bedtime."

There was half-hearted agreement from Ace and Epel, then they all went up to their rooms.

Jamil came down the stairs shortly after Rook had also excused himself. "Hey. Just finished the skincare thing that Vil told us to do. I hope you didn't wait too long."

"Not at all, I just arrived," Azul replied as Jamil took a seat across from him.

"I could hear Vil being angry all the way upstairs," Jamil said. "He's been like that lately."

"Yes, that was rather odd," Azul furrowed his eyebrows. "I don't think I've seen him with such a temper before."

"The VDC is really stressing him out." Jamil opened his notebook and pointed to a page. "Anyway, I compiled a list of potions that we can use. Let's look through them and see what would be most practical."

They worked at it for a while, narrowing down Jamil's list to three potions that would be the easiest to brew and the least time-consuming. The movie that the First Years were watching was a little loud at first, but Jamil asked them to turn the volume down, and it was easier to concentrate on their work.

After almost an hour of assessing which tools they had available and sketching ideas, they had made what was essentially a rough blueprint of their project. Both of them were visibly tired, and Jamil offered to make tea so they could take a short break.

Azul busied himself with compiling the sketches they made while Jamil was in the kitchen. Their designs looked better than he would have expected for first drafts, and he started to feel a little more hopeful for their project.

"Hi, Azul!"

He looked up from the table to see Kalim smiling at him, carrying small bottles in his hands.

"I left some of my skincare stuff in the living room," he explained, placing the bottles down on the table. "Usually Jamil reminds me of these things but... we don't really talk much these days."

Azul noticed that Kalim's smile fell a little, and he remembered weeks ago how Kalim insisted that Jamil was his friend even after they were flung across the desert. It wasn't surprising that their dynamic would be strained recently, and he wondered how Jamil felt about it.

"Anyway, I'm glad that you and Jamil are good friends now," Kalim said genuinely. "How is he doing?"

"He seems to be doing fine, though we don't really talk about much aside from school projects and occasionally the VDC." And their Overblots, but Azul decided not to bring that up. "How about you? Ramshackle must be quite the adjustment from your usual amenities."

"Yeah, it was a little hard at first to get used to the creaky floorboards and the showers that randomly stop working, but I think I'm pretty well-adjusted now!"

Jamil appeared carrying two teacups; he set them down on the table and turned to Kalim with a frown. "Do you need something?"

"Oh, no, I was just talking to Azul. But I was heading to my room already." Kalim picked up his bottles. "Good night, you guys!"

Azul took a sip of his tea and waited for Kalim's footsteps to recede before looking cautiously at Jamil seated across from him.

"I take it that you're still not on good terms with Kalim?"

Jamil tensed up, and Azul could tell that it was something he didn't want to talk about. "We're on good enough terms that I still make sure he doesn't get killed, and he lessens my workload by taking care of himself more. Why, you think I should be friends with him after everything?"

Jamil's voice was laced with resentment, and Azul considered just letting it go, but he remembered that he should be reciprocating the honesty that Jamil was giving him. Besides, it might add more to Jamil's distress if the subject kept being swept under the rug.

"If it would make you feel better," Azul replied.

"What?" Jamil frowned.

Azul pursed his lips and took a breath, choosing his words carefully. "Harboring negative feelings towards Kalim is clearly making you unhappy. Perhaps a more amiable relationship with him would be preferable for you, instead of his presence ruining your mood every time he enters the room."

"I can handle it," Jamil reflexively said, his jaw still tense.

"Jamil..." Azul glanced over at the First Years to be sure that all of them were still focused on the movie, then he looked back at Jamil. "Suppressing these resentments was a significant factor in our Overblots."

The scowl on Jamil's face turned into an expression of surprise and realization, and it gave Azul the bit of courage he needed to continue being honest.

"I'm worried about you," he said quietly, willing himself to not avert his eyes.

Jamil's face turned red, and he looked down at his notebook. "I wouldn't even know how to begin being friends with him."

"You managed it with me," Azul tried for a smile. "Back then you barely tolerated my presence, and now you've made me tea that I assume isn't poisoned."

That got a small chuckle out of Jamil and he lifted his eyes again. "If I wanted to poison you, you'd be dead by now."

"Is this really the time for flirting?" Azul feigned a scolding tone. "We're working on a project."

Jamil's face became a brighter red, and he placed a well-aimed kick to Azul's shin under the table.

"Ow!" Azul flinched, more in surprise than pain.

The movie's background music grew loud, and the First Years were reacting even louder to what seemed like a high-speed chase. Jamil's attempts to call their attention went unheeded.

Jamil shook his head in resignation. "You wanna just go to my room? It's much quieter there."

"YEAH! TAKE THAT!" Ace jumped up on the couch and pointed to the TV screen.

"Alright," Azul nodded, gathering their things while Jamil got a small tray to carry their teacups with.

* * *

The desk in Jamil's room was too small, so they worked on his bed, their designs scattered while they attempted to pick apart each one and decide on what features to keep or modify. They emptied their teacups and managed a decent amount of work for thirty more minutes before they couldn't hold back their yawns anymore.

Azul leaned back on the pillow against the headboard, taking off his glasses and massaging the spot between his eyebrows. His coat had been beside him on the bed, but at some point it had slid off to the floor; he didn't seem to notice.

Jamil's sleepy mind recalled a conversation he had with Kalim back at his dorm room in Scarabia, when Kalim mistook his Mostro Lounge uniform for Azul's clothes.

"Why would Azul's clothes be on my bedroom floor?"

"Um," Kalim blushed. "Well..."

"Kalim," Jamil said with a warning edge to his voice. "What are you implying?"

"Nothing!" Kalim's voice rose in pitch.

Jamil rubbed his eyes and shook his head lightly. Tiredness really made his mind wander sometimes. "Should we call it a night?"

"We've almost figured out the final design," Azul said with his eyes closed, still leaning against the pillow. "I'll just rest my eyes for a few minutes, and let's see if we can make a final sketch."

Jamil opened his mouth to agree but a yawn came out instead. A day of rigorous rehearsals followed by a night of brainstorming was taking a lot out of him. And Azul definitely looked like he needed to rest, too.

"Just twenty more minutes of working for tonight?" he asked Azul. "It's almost 10 PM, anyway, and I can't afford to look sleep-deprived again in front of Vil tomorrow."

Only Azul's even breathing answered him, his chest slowly rising and falling, one hand loosely holding his glasses beside him.

Jamil smiled in amusement. Despite Azul’s insistence on continuing their sketches, he got knocked out first.

He tidied up their things, and neatly placed all of Azul's stuff back in his bag. He carefully took Azul's glasses from his hand and put them on the nightstand.

A resting Azul was such a rare thing that Jamil decided not to wake him up; surely Vil and Yuu wouldn't mind if he stayed over for the night.

He stood awkwardly in the middle of the room, wondering if he should lie down beside Azul on the bed or get the extra mattress in the closet and sleep on the floor. It seemed a little weird to sleep on the floor in his own room, and he and Azul had already shared a bed once, anyway. Though that time they had fallen asleep by accident.

A spider decided for him. When he saw the tiny black thing casually crawling across the floor, he immediately climbed in next to Azul and pulled the blanket over his legs. There was no way he was sleeping on the floor where any amount of bugs could crawl all over him.

He turned to his right side, facing away from Azul, and turned off the lamp on the nightstand.

* * *

Jamil could see the daylight through his closed eyelids, but he didn't want to fully wake up just yet, so he burrowed his face deeper into the pillow that he was hugging. His alarm hadn't sounded yet, and he was hoping that there was still time to get some more sleep.

He sighed contentedly, breathing in a comforting scent that he couldn't quite place.

Then his mind started to recognize it, and all of a sudden he was wide awake, extremely aware of his surroundings despite keeping his eyes closed. He was frozen, not daring to even breathe.

It wasn't a pillow he was hugging.

It was Azul.

He was spooning Azul and he had his face nuzzled in Azul's hair.

Azul was still sleeping, and Jamil was terrified that if he moved in any way, Azul would wake up and he would have a hell of an explaining to do.

His face was burning, and his heart was hammering so wildly in his chest that he was afraid Azul might feel it and get woken up.

What the hell was he supposed to do now?

— —

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