Until the Stars Fade Away [MxM - SaifahZon] [COMPLETED]

Night 7

SAIFAH WAS NOT A PERSON WHO HATED MANY THINGS, but making conscious decisions was one of them. Whenever there was more at stake than his own content, whenever he could not simply go with the flow, and other people were concerned as well, he only hated the process more.

Today, he felt intimidated by it to a ridiculous extent.

The shelf in front of him dazzled with its variety of options, a rich kaleidoscope of colours and flavours. There were well-known brands at the top, cheaper at the bottom, paprika on the left, seaweed on the right, prawn, cheese, salty, onion...The bags of chips multiplied in front of his eyes, giving him a headache.

With a small grunt, he took a step back and crossed his arms. Overchoice was a real thing, and since it was not just for him and Zon, such a trivial matter like choosing snacks turned into an actual nightmare. He peeked at the wine in the basket and sighed. How come, one choice made the next one only harder? Usually, he would have gone for chilli paprika, but did paprika match the wine?

What if someone brought some too?

What if others did not like spicy flavours?

And what if Zon's friends ended up hating him, and he'd become like a third wheel to the group with whom he was supposed to spend a whole evening?

He froze. Wow. That was not something he had expected. Dumbfounded with the core of his problem, he now wished to go back in time, clone himself and wait for that exact day in the future, only to smack himself in the head as hard as possible. Of course, he was anxious about it! It was normal. He might have known Zon pretty well now and had been friends with Tutor and Fighter for years, but it did not guarantee that he would easily fit in their group dynamics!

What a stupid problem, he thought and gave up on over-analyzing flavours. Listening to some inside jokes he would never understand was not his favourite activity, and the mere thought of being set aside made his stomach churn. That was true. But the fact was, people were going to eat whatever there was, anyway, and no matter the choice, it would not change whether or not he would blend in.

A quick glance into his wallet made the decision even easier. When he opened it, there was only a single note with the king's portrait mocking him for spending so much time in the store aisle. He scooped up two bags from the bottom shelf and turned his steps to the register. Fighter would have to suck it up.

The bottles clinked with each step as he marched down the corridor of Zon's condominium. His mind was constantly buzzing with unwanted thoughts, and the chinking in the plastic bag only added to his dread over the state of the snacks. How come had he never been this stressed before? It made little sense. He stopped in front of the black door and took a deep breath. He was not going to let this irrational fear destroy his evening.

He knocked. This time, the door swung open in a flash, not even giving him the chance to feel the shadow of worry whether or not Zon was there.

"Why didn't you use the key?" he heard as soon as their eyes met, and a smile blossomed on his face. What was he so worried about again?

"I wasn't sure if the guys were already here," he said, putting the bags down. "It'd be weird to see me opening the locks like at my own house, don't you think?"

Ignoring Zon's half-sneer, he leaned down to place a light peck on his lips and purred a husky, "Hi," letting his gaze wander. His eyes slid along the edge of Zon's clean-shaven jaw, glided down the soft skin of his firm neck, bounced from the dip of the clavicle and trailed all the way through the chest, right to—

Blue shorts? He frowned. "Zon, you're not by any chance thinking of going in this, are you?"

Zon shot his gaze down. "Hey, I was about to change when you knocked!"