Balance of the Skies (bxb)

CHAPTER 20

A couple of days passed and Lorien heard nothing from Koray. In order to avoid possible awkward situations or misunderstandings, the raven-haired boy turned down all invitations from Wilford or Melia to join their group during free periods. Instead, he opted to stay in his room and practise using his skills as Melia had shown him. Somehow, he did not feel cold anymore and thought that perhaps, he did not need to wear the pendant all the time.

Meanwhile, Melia had patched things up with Ty, but still refused to go out on a date with him, insisting they go out with their group of friends instead. She had also bluntly told Ty that he could feel free to date others if he wanted to – something that did not go down well with him. Melia was pleasantly surprised when Ty told her he would be willing to wait until she was ready to take their budding relationship a step further.

Lorien had not spoken to anyone about what went on between him and Koray on the evening of the exhibition. He was too embarrassed to talk to Melia about his feelings. He had not mentioned anything to Wilford either, especially since his roommate was dating Koray's sister. Lorien did not know whether Koray thought what happened was worth mentioning to anyone. Still, Lorien could not deny the fact that he could not stop thinking about the silver-haired boy. He still could not understand how at first, he wanted to run as far away from him as possible. He was so shocked the first time he laid eyes on him and realised he was the boy in his dream – the one in the moon-framed mirror.

Such thoughts crossed his mind at least once a day, and Koray was yet again the focus of Lorien's concentration this particular afternoon as he was alone in the art room working on a piece using pencils and ink. The scene was a night one with a crescent moon showering silver beams onto an empty beach. The sea had an eerie shimmer to it, that Lorien was trying hard to capture. He was critically eyeing his work-in-progress, when his phone dinged, indicating that he had received a text message.

Seeing that 'x' made Lorien's heart flutter but he remembered Drey's advice. He should not rush into anything but use his head as well as his heart. He started putting away his pencils and other tools and placed the unfinished work in his locker.

Trying to keep his heart beats in check, he went down the flights of stairs to the exhibition hall. His smile grew wider when he saw that Koray was already by the door.

"Hi there," he said a little shyly as soon as he reached the other boy. The first thing that Koray did was pull him nearer and give him a soft kiss on his cheek, a gesture that had Lorien blushing profusely.

"Hey", the silver-haired boy answered in his soothing, melodic voice. "So, I know I have not been in touch like I said I would, but..." he grinned as he unlocked the hall's door, "I'm about to show you why. You, Sir, have the honour to be the first to visit Koray Lun's annual sculpture exhibition this year." He bowed theatrically as he allowed Lorien to enter before him. On entering, Lorien's eyes grew wider, his lips formed a silent 'o' and his heart doubled in pace. The hall was transformed into an enchanted woodland with fresh plants and flowers, small trees and shrubs everywhere. Fairy lights adorned the whole place and soft classical music was playing. And everywhere he set his eyes, he could see sculptures of different sizes, of varying materials, yet each one a masterpiece.

"Come, I'll show you around," Koray took his left hand in his right one as he guided him down the hall, stopping by each piece so that he could animatedly tell him the story behind each creation. Lorien just loved watching the soft expression on Koray's face, loved how his grey eyes shone and how his voice rose and fell in waves that Lorien just wanted to ride on. And the longer they were together, holding hands, the harder and deeper Lorien felt himself falling.

"Wow, Koray, just... just wow. You are so talented." He finally found his voice. "I know you probably hear this a lot."

"Thanks," Koray was beaming. "So, do you have a favourite?"

"Hmm, tough, but I think that one over there," Lorien pointed at a small sculpture of a girl holding a basket of flowers. "The story behind it was so touching."

"So, my Lorien is a romantic I see," Koray grinned as he pulled him closer and kissed his head. Lorien's legs almost buckled. Did Koray just call him 'his'?

Then Lorien asked, "Which one is your favourite?"

"Ah, my favourite is still a work-in-progress," Koray chuckled. "It's the piece I'll be entering for the end of year competition." Seeing Lorien's puzzled face, he continued, "Don't worry, you'll hear all about it soon enough. All students have to participate."

"Hey, is this okay for you?" Koray suddenly asked indicating their hands joined together. "If you don't feel comfortable -"

"It's fine, really. I – I like this."

"Good, coz we're going to have company really soon, and I sort of wanted to ask you something before they get here," the young sculptor said softly.

"They?" Lorien asked. "But no matter, you can ask. What is it?"

"Well, I was hoping we could spend more time together now that all this is done," he waved his hand around. "And I was hoping I could tell my sister that, you know, we are together?"

Lorien felt like he was floating. His heart was racing at a thousand beats per second and a million butterflies were swarming around his stomach. His head felt light and he could not help but smile wider, happier.

"I would like that... to... to spend time with you."

Just then, Koray's grip on his hand tightened as he felt himself being turned with an arm around his waist. Those mesmerising grey eyes were looking into his dark ones intently as Koray pulled him even closer. Lorien closed his eyes as Koray's lips touched his and this time, he kissed back. Lorien was lost, falling deeper and deeper yet soaring higher and higher as his own lips latched onto Koray's full bottom one. The sensation was incredible as the familiar calming scent of morning dew, strawberries and cinnamon swallowed him whole. He tentatively brushed his tongue over that luscious lip, feeling a jolt of electricity course through him as Koray's grip around his waist tightened. Then both boys moved back slightly and broke the kiss, with Lorien opening his eyes to drown into Koray's stare.

"You're an extraordinary kisser Lorien," Koray said huskily, to which the dark-haired boy's cheeks turned crimson. "Also cute when you blush," Koray winked at him.

"Koray, are you in there?" At the sound of Auryn's voice, Lorien was about to step away, however Koray held his hand firmly. Auryn appeared at the door with Wilford, Melia, Ty and Rylan right behind her.

"Hey, man," Ty spoke first, eyeing both boys. The group drew nearer, but no one commented on how close the two young men were. Auryn was curiously smiling, while Melia looked mildly surprised. Before anyone could utter another word, Koray spoke.

"So guys, I wanted to tell you that Lorien and I are together so please welcome him to the group."

Melia was the first to run to Lorien, engulfing him into a hug. "So you kept this from me?" she whispered, backing away before Lorien had the chance to reply. Although she was smiling, her eyes had a worried look, or was it just Lorien's imagination? Wilford was next to approach him, patting him on the back with a wide grin on his face.

"Welcome to our crazy group Lorien," Auryn hugged him tightly, "and please take care of my brother. He may seem like he's made of granite, but he has a very kind, soft heart inside there, somewhere."

Rylan shook his hand silently. From the few instances they had met, Lorien judged him as a man of few words. He hardly knew what his voice sounded like. He then looked up at Ty who was glaring at him, and he could not help but notice that Melia was trying to push him subtly towards Lorien.

"Ty, we're good, right?" Koray asked, still not letting go of Lorien's hand. The tall boy grunted a response, shoving his hands in his pockets. He glared once more at Lorien before looking down at his feet.

"So guys, shall I show you around?" Koray asked enthusiastically.