Aura // h.s.

0: Halcyon

"This unrequited love. To me it's nothing but a one-man cult and cyanide in my Styrofoam cup. I could never make him love me."

- Frank Ocean, Bad Religion

0: HALCYON

When Harry was thirteen, he realized that he was in love with his best friend. He had known the boy since they were five; he moved into Harry's neighbourhood on a hot summer's day. Harry showed up on his new neighbour's doorstep, an apple pie in one hand and his mother clutching his shoulder. A blonde boy, Harry's age, opened the door, beaming with crooked teeth and holding a truck in his right hand. The mothers got acquainted as the boys themselves immediately rushed to the blonde's backyard. A filled sandbox was already situated in his yard despite the fact that the family had just moved in, but the thought didn't worry either of them. Colourful toys, buckets and shovels, dug into the sand in which the boys jumped onto. They threw the substance around playfully but carelessly, unaware of the consequences that might occur if one of them got it in their eyes. The children stopped their actions for a moment just to grin at each other.

"I'm Harry!" The green eyed boy exclaimed, giggling uncontrollably for no particular reason. Unfortunately, Harry's laugh was contagious and the other boy had no choice but to giggle along with him.

"I'm Alex!"

Alex. Alex was Harry's new friend and they both couldn't have been happier.

The following weeks turned into months and then turned into years. The boys grew to be best friends who loved to explore. They loved to run around the forest behind Harry's house despite the fact that their mothers told them not to. They loved to play pirate and create 'old' maps that would lead them to buried treasure (the treasure being candy bars they stole from the kitchen). They loved to climb trees and sit on the branches together just admiring the chirps of the birds and the breeze of the wind.  They often got lost in the forests that they would trek into, but they both loved the thrill and excitement of being adrift from society. They'd feel like explorers, finding new land and discovering different things. It took days to convince their mothers, but with a lot of begging, the women finally gave in and let their boys (who seemed to enjoy each other's company a little too much, they noticed) camp out in the woods. That night, they had laid down on the ground, admiring the bright twinkling stars that contrasted with the dark canvas called night.

Alex had grinned and pulled an object from his pocket. "Here. I made something for you." 

"You made this?" Harry had asked with wide green eyes and a slack jaw; he was in awe. It was merely a necklace with a piece of metal shaped into an 'H' but to the brown haired boy, it was everything. It solidified their relationship.

"Well, my dad helped, but I mostly did everything. Do you like it?" The blonde boy asked with a hopeful look in his eyes. A pout began to form on his face when Harry remained silent and expressionless for more than ten seconds, just staring at the shiny chain.

"I love it. Thank you, Alex." Harry finally spoke and looked up, emerald green and ocean blue eyes clashing. 

Alex shrugged, cheeks tinting red. "It's nothing."

A few seconds passed before he spoke again, pulling another object out of his pocket. "Oh! I have one too. Mine's an 'A' though. For Alex." He giggled, handing the metal over to a cheery Harry so that he could put it on him. 

The cold article on Alex's skin made him shiver, but so did Harry's lingering fingertips as he clasped the ends. 

"Best friends forever?" Harry had asked Alex out of the blue.