Wing of a Butterfly

Chapter 19

Macau kicked off the blanket and then stretched on the bed before sliding a little lower on the mattress and pulling up his knees. He put his hands behind his head for a set of half sit-ups just to become a little more awake. He laid on the sheets for a minute after he finished, enjoying as his body slowly cooled while he glanced around the room, watching as the first rays of the rising sun glanced off the cream walls, painting them almost orange. It was interesting to see that even though the room only had sparse decorations, how homely and warm it felt with its earthy tones. Macau noticed that it was the style of the whole penthouse and wondered if it was something that Kim preferred or his interior decorator decided for him.

Macau smiled at the idea of Kim walking around a furniture store and grimacing at the pieces on display or spending days before his laptop arranging everything for his rooms. He shook his head and rolled out of the bed, turning side to side to loosen up his back before padding to the bathroom door and silently opening it. He turned on the lights then glanced at the door on the other end, not surprised that it was shut as Porchay wasn't an early bird, especially on weekends when he didn't have to be woken by his alarm for school and could finally sleep in a little.

Macau washed his face and his neck, drying it with the soft fresh towel on the rack, chasing some of the droplets that escaped him and started to glide down his chest. He leaned against the sink and swiped around his mouth, grinning when he couldn't see any stubble as he found the process of shaving generally annoying.

He washed his teeth then used the toilet before washing his hands again and exiting the bathroom toward the corridor and going into the kitchen, a little surprised that it wasn't empty. Kim was leaning against the counter nursing a coffee, looking barely awake as he looked at a tablet, his eyes unfocused. He lifted his head as Macau walked in and raised his brow at the other man's half-naked state.

"It's just a body." Macau rolled his eyes as he came closer. "Mr. Birdnest."

The younger one reached out and tousled Kim's hair like he used to do with Chay. He froze when his cousin's eyes widened from his gesture, both of them motionless for a moment. Macau hastily pulled away his hand and walked around to the other side of the counter.

"Sorry," said Macau as he took out some eggs from the fridge just to keep his hands busy.

"It's alright, I was just surprised." Kim slowly put down his cup, his eyes on the other's back. "But I understand why Chay is so flustered around you all the time."

Macau grimaced, his expression growing serious as he put a pan on the counter and turned around, leaning on the counter behind him and looking at his cousin. It seemed like they were having this conversation after all.

"It's not like I'm teasing him intentionally," Macau started to say, putting his palms on the edge of the granite top to stop himself from crossing his arms. He didn't want to look defensive. "I just forget sometimes how people are about this whole thing."

"What thing?" Kim straightened up, all of his attention on the other man.

"Flirting, teasing, sex..." Macau shrugged a little.

Kim lifted his brow in surprise, his eyes widening again as he thought about what the man was trying to say. Macau saw how his expression slowly changed to acceptance filled with slight curiosity and readied himself for the questions that were sure to follow. He didn't talk about this with anyone before but after yesterday, when the man let them into his secret room without hesitation, he felt more ready to open himself up too.

"You have no interest in it?" asked Kim slowly, then made a crude movement with his hand. "Not even...?"

"I do it when I feel like it. Sometimes even..." Macau lifted his hand and pushed his index and middle finger together making a beckoning motion to which Kim made a strange face. "Yeah... I just don't understand why everyone is so stuck on this thing. Sure it feels nice, but in a way that finally being able to properly breathe through your nose after a cold feels nice."