My Evergreen Love

Take me Home

For that moment I felt contempt for myself for the first time in a long while. There is some sort of magnetic attraction I have for this man but I've barely even met him. In my head, I grappled with the urge to talk with him. What would I even say? Yeah maybe I should start small, I just need to try and not make a clown of myself. I hope I don't come off as creepy or anything but maybe I'm just overthinking this.

Eventually finishing his song, he did perform another song or two but after packing up that's when I began to get nervous. Just stay cool, first impressions are just a first start, nothing to freak out over. He walked off and I noticed him coming around towards me, his sleeves were rolled up, and seemed more or less awkward himself. Sadly I got distracted by how hot he looked but I pushed those thoughts back into the gutter with all my might. "Hey, nice to see you're still around, stranger."

I don't know why but when he spoke to me it felt like my soul began to separate from my body and ascend to the sky. My face felt so warm, this is the worst time for me to get all hot and bothered. Out of body, my mind was screaming at me to say something, anything, I can't make it this damn obvious I'm into him. "Oh, heh, yeah I am. Great performance, by the way, it was nice." Alright, let's pray that I don't fumble anymore because I don't think my heart could handle it if I did. Luckily he seemed to ignore how all over the place I was acting and continued to talk to me normally. "Well I'm glad you liked it, my name is Simon by the way. Simon Petrikov but yeah don't worry about the other bit too much I suppose."

Rubbing the nape of his neck bashfully, I took my cue to continue with introducing myself. "My name is just __, happy to meet you, Simon." He smiled when I took out my hand for him to shake and his soft firm grip.

"You know, I don't think I've ever seen you before, have you been around just recently?" Simon took a seat next to me and set his keyboard down against the bar. His eyes seemed very fixated on me and I couldn't help but feel a bit special. "Oh well I've been in OOO in a small village but this is the first time I've ever left home on my own."

The man nodded and seemed to start messing with the hem of his shirt a bit until speaking again with a more solemn expression. " I only ask because seeing your face felt so unreal it feels comforting to know that there are those similar to you after a while. You're not human technically but even then, if I hadn't known any better I would have been a bit speechless."

With a heavy sigh, I slowly met his arm and patted him in an attempt to comfort the man. "I'm glad I could meet you, Simon." My touch seemed to have helped a bit when I saw just the tiniest smile. "Oh thank you, it's alright don't mind me, just poopy old man babbles," I smirked up at him and playfully bonked him at this statement. "Pfffft please you're not that old!"

"Try a little over a thousand." Simon blushed a bit and let out a laugh but seemed to be completely serious. How the hell could this guy be over a thousand years old? "Nooo, I refuse to believe that dude, are you playing with me?" He nodded and quickly took my drink out of nowhere just to take a sip of it as well. "Nice drink friend"

We talked for another hour before I realized through my drunken brain cells that it was getting kind of late. "Welp I guess I have to get going." My words slurred with every sentence, my balance is so janky it feels like I'll topple over any second now. After leaving the bar, Simon decided to make sure I got to my inn room safely considering how much the alcohol affected me. The only trouble we ran into was walking up some stairs but he didn't seem to mind helping me. Getting into bed, I slowly began nodding off with the sensation of getting a few head pats right before drifting away.

During our entire time together he never seemed to get annoyed or frustrated by my presence. My family seems to always want to stay clear of me so I expect others to feel the same way. Everything we talked about felt like equal engagement on both our parts.

Slowly opening my eyes, the bright rays of sun peeked through the curtain causing me to squint for a few moments. Morning already arrived and my sleepy eyes shifted around trying to stay open. That is when I noticed a note laying by the nightstand written with a kind of messy handwriting.

***

I took you home just to make sure you kept safe because of how much you drank last night. Don't worry I asked the innkeeper to make sure your door was locked after I left too! If you wanna text me again to hang out or talk, this is my number. :) - Simon Petrikov

xxx-xxx-xxxx

***

With a smile, I got up and decided to get ready for the day, maybe some exploring outside the kingdom? I'll have to check my map but whatever I choose should be epic. Besides, if I'm not satisfied I have the new option of talking to Simon. When I think of him I can't help but feel all warm inside, like a grade school crush. It's kind of silly but I feel like I could talk to him for hours and never get bored.

I didn't pack much besides some trail mix, water, and my map just in case I get lost or something. On my walk outside the kingdom, I decided that checking out some more of the forest would be fun. Even though I've been there already, it still felt like there was much more to see if I stuck around.

The path I found was nice but I eventually got curious and decided to just go in aimlessly. Adventuring is all about trying new things so what could go wrong with this completely rational decision. Rubbing my eyes, I take a moment to rest by a tree, the ground is soft and the fog around me smelled nice.

...Fog?

Yawning every five seconds immediately made me realize that something was not right in the forest. Only to make my concern worsen, I hear faint footsteps getting closer and closer.