𝐌𝐀𝐍𝐈𝐀! 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐠 𝐫𝐨𝐲𝐚𝐥𝐬

ꜱᴇᴠᴇɴ

Silent Gestures Speak The Loudest Words

Saturdays down at Rosknopp were always a little crazy; all the mothers came down with children of a morning for their morning coffees, and then there were the hurried business men who were working overtime and just wished to get back to their families.

Wilhelm had been coming in just after the morning rush of late, but he wasn't surprised to walk into the almost full café. Almost all the tables were taken up by couples of friends or loved ones, so Wilhelm made a beeline for the counter, where Evangeline and Aurelia worked busily. Aurelia greeted him kindly, but as he watched her work he realised she kept glancing behind him, towards the front of the shop.

Cautiously, Wilhelm turned to scan the tables of seated customers, though his question of who Aurelia kept glancing towards was answered rather quickly. His eyes were drawn immediately to Simon, situated by the window in one of the red retro booths, his hands around a mug of steaming liquid. A pang of sadness flooded Wilhelm's heart as he laid eyes on the familiar purple jumper, the memories returning suddenly and without warning.

Wilhelm took a breath, trying to keep his emotions and thoughts under control. Turning back to face the counter, he lent over it to catch Aurelia's attention, who had since paused working for a few moments. "What is he doing here?" Wilhelm hissed, as Aurelia tackled her hair into a half decent braid which snaked down her back.

"I'm sorry?" Aurelia asked, narrowing her eyes as she tried to focus her concentration on her hair. It was a bad decision on her part to wear it down that day, having just washed it. It was frizzy as all hell, and looked as if her head was on fire.

"Simon," Wilhelm clarified, still speaking in his hushed tone, "Why is he here?" Aurelia shrugged, and Wilhelm's shoulders dropped. She definitely had something to do with this, he knew. He had learnt that Aurelia was the kind of person who liked to fix people; the endless conversations about how he feels about the whole Simon situation and how he intended to make himself feel better about it was a clear indication of that.

Aurelia glanced in the boy's direction casually, as if she hadn't already been doing it all morning. "We welcome everyone in here, Wille, you know that," Aurelia answered, "I couldn't just not serve him. Besides, I didn't know who he was until you pointed him out". She was lying through her teeth, even Evangeline knew, with her humorous expression which she failed to hide.

Wilhelm sighed, turning away from the two girls to catch a glance at Simon again. He kept his head down for the most part, just sitting quietly by the window as he watched passersby. Wilhelm was unsure if Simon knew he was also in the café. "Are you going to order, or just sit here glowering that your ex is sitting across the room?" Aurelia asked, as she tapped the screen to get rid of the completed orders.

"I'll have my regular," Wilhelm said, "Please". Aurelia nodded knowingly as she started on his order. Wilhelm took a seat on one of the black bar stools which were tucked neatly under the counter, Evangeline paused in front of him.

"You could just talk to him," She suggested, "I mean, what's the harm? Everything is already screwed up, isn't it?" Wilhelm bit his lip, wanting to look back at Simon to see if he was looking at him, but decided against it.

He picked at his fingernails anxiously, "I think I screwed up too badly to be able to fix it," He admitted, Evangeline appearing sympathetic. "I don't even know what I would say to him, or if he wants to hear what I have to say. I just...I don't know," He trailed off. The whole situation was messing with his head, and he had found avoiding the topic, though painful, was appearing to be the easiest option, as opposed to dealing with the situation head on.

Evangeline said nothing in reply, sensing that Wilhelm didn't want advice and just wanted to vent for a moment. As she disappeared into the back room, Aurelia popped up in front of him, his drink in hand. "Do you think I can screw it up anymore?" He asked in a small voice, taking the drink gratefully from Aurelia.

She thought the question over for a moment, her eyes flicking over to where Simon sat alone. "I think that nothing bad ever comes from trying," She answered. Wilhelm nodded as she moved off, before plucking up the courage and began off in the direction where Simon sat.

Wilhelm's anxiety was through the roof, but he forced his feet to keep moving as he approached Simon. He sat quietly, Simon did, by the window. The sun casted shadows against his face, his hair catching the light in little rays of light brown. Heart pounding in his chest, Wilhelm forced his thoughts from his mouth, the words coming out soft and almost scared.

"Is this seat taken?"

Simon turned away from the window. The booth was almost a complete circle, with only the front part being open. Simon had his back against the tall windows, with the back of the booth resting against the exposed brick feature wall.

Simon nodded silently, and Wilhelm offered a small smile. He placed his drink down shakily, siding into the booth so he sat opposite Simon. Wilhelm was unsure where to look; he wanted to capture Simon in this moment, in the sunlight, his features beautifully highlighted, his eyes sparkling. But, he didn't want to appear strange or awkward, so his eyes flickered around the surrounding areas - his drink, his hands, the world outside the window behind Simon's head.

In the end, his eyes landed on his hands, as he picked at his fingernails in an anxious matter beneath the table. Simon, who had been looking down at his own drink, flicked his eyes upwards without moving his head, to see Wilhelm fidgeting.

Though they're time together had been short, Simon knew Wilhelm's anxious gestures. Without even thinking about what had happened at the end of term, nor the video or the comments online, Simon outstretched his hands out the table, offering to take Wilhelm's into his own.

Looking from his own hands to Simon, Wilhelm was unsure what to do. He desperately wanted to take Simon's hand, to be able to touch him once more, even if it might be for the last time. But he was unsure what would come after this; were they okay? Surely not - Wilhelm had completely thrown Simon under the bus with the video, an action he deeply regretted.

As if she could hear his thoughts, Aurelia appeared by the next time, gathering the dishes of the departing friends. As she spoke with them softly, her eyes turned towards Wilhelm. She raised her eyebrows in a quick fashion, and it was all the encouragement he needed.

Reaching his hands to Simon's, a small smile spread across Wilhelm's face. Simon's hands were warm, and soft, as they had always been. His fingers brushed against Simon's jumper, the familiar memories of that night washing over him again.

This time, he didn't ignore them.

They sat in silence, their fingers interlaced over the table. Customers came and went around them, the sun disappearing beneath the clouds every now and again. It was during these moments that Wilhelm realised that it was going to be okay. 

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(1270 words)