Comfort (Dream X GeorgeNotFound)

Night Market

They walked along the cobbled path of the night market, wind chimes hung up on the wooden roofing of the stalls dangling with every passing breeze.

George looked over to see Clay glancing at various wares and products laid out on the counters. He looked content, like he knew exactly what was going on and what he was supposed to do - the polar opposite of George. He wondered if Clay knew what was going on inside his head at the moment, or if his lie had successfully masked his true feelings.

A decent sized crowd of people were gathered around a stall lit up in flashing fairy lights, cheering at something. Upon closer inspection, George discovered it was a classic arcade shooting game with its own spin on it.

Clay seemed to notice the curiosity light up George's eyes, since he walked them over to the shooting range.

Ridiculously large cowboy hats adorned in swirly colorful patterns lined the wall behind the vendor. The game itself looked pretty simple, with a handful of targets and a plastic toy gun.

"Oh, I could totally get you one of those." Clay tore his eyes from the display to look over at George. "My dad used to have one of those in his garage, I'm basically a pro at it."

A particularly obnoxious hat caught George's eye, with little shapes embroidered on it in colorful string. The flaps were huge, and were most definitely not made for practical use.

"Hell yeah, I want one of those!" George was genuinely excited for the first time that night.

He would've gone for the traditional prize of huge bears that they give out at the arcades, but he deemed the hats to be a more memorable item. They seemed handmade, which made them way more valuable and George - a little skeptical of the owner's ability to give them out for winning a seemingly simple shooting game.

Once it was Clay's turn in the queue, he examined the gun held out to him by the vendor carefully, testing the weight in his hands.

George watched him hoist it over his shoulder in a fluid movement and immediately wipe a target out. It seemed that he'd really had a lot of practice in his childhood, and his muscle memory wasn't failing him.

Another target down, then another. The spectators watched in awe, with a whistle or a cheer every time he scored.

It would've been intimidating to George - how his fingers deftly moved across the trigger and aimed so accurately with unfiltered focus in his eyes, if it wasn't so hot. Tempting, but to do what, he wasn't exactly sure yet.

Once all the targets were down, the hat was passed out to them as a cheer erupted from the crowd. The hat was even bigger up close, the shiny colorful embroidery glistening under the fairy lights.

Clay immediately placed it on top of George's head with a delighted smile. "It's cute. You're like a little yeehaw version of Georgie"

"This is so bizzarre. Who gives out hats at a shooting range, anyway?"

"I mean, it's not like it's a regular festival or something." He smiled, adjusting the flaps. "Everything here is handmade and organic. It makes sense."

George held out a hand, which Clay immediately accepted, wrapping his fingers around it. The warm touch sent electricity prickling down his skin as always - no matter how many times they'd held hands, George still felt touch starved and longed for more.

They moved onto the next stall that caught their eye selling fresh produce. Various grains were bundled up in colorful cloths, cakes and loaves were laid out in woven baskets and strings of dried up fruit were hanging from the roof.

The vendor turned his attention to them, flashing a polite smile. "What can I help you with, gentlemen?"

George kept poring over the delicate cakes while Clay talked to the man. "I'll take a bag of those kernels and a loaf."

A few handfuls of bright orange popcorn kernels were stuffed into a paper bag alongside with a soft loaf of bread gently wrapped in cloth. Clay paid for the goods, thanking the vendor and turning to thread his fingers back between George's.

The warm golden glow from the lamps and string lights were dancing across Clay's face, his eyes glinting with something else besides the reflection of the shining market.

George tore his eyes from him to observe the bustle of the part of the city's night life that he'd never experienced. Sure, he might have been a veteran in the other branches of nightly activities, but something as innocent and peaceful as a walk through some stalls hand in hand with Clay did wonders for his mentality.

He'd forgotten all about the memories plaguing his thoughts up until now. However, recalling them now, when he felt the warmth of fingers gently wrapped around his, he was invincible to the troubles. He squeezed a little tighter momentarily, running his thumb over the length of Clay's hand with a contented sigh.

He allowed himself to lose train of thought as they walked along the cobbled path, soaking up the sights. It was only when Clay stopped at another stall that George realized they'd been walking for quite some time - the sky was pitch black now, with an occasional twinkling star here and there.

Upon picking up a variety of fruits in a netted bag, they resumed walking. George wasn't sure if he was imagining it, but as time passed, he could swear Clay inched closer. Their shoulders brushed against each other every once in a while, but neither of them acknowledged it in fear it'd become awkward.

It was strange to George, how they were still acting like they were at the first date stage even after having sex. Not to mention, a lot of feelings and chemistry leading up to that point.

The newness felt exciting, but there were times when George just wished to be held in bed in the mornings, hang out in the living room watching movies, and repeat what they did when they came home from the airport.

He didn't know how to initiate that conversation, but the spark was definitely there. He could see it in the way Clay touched him and looked at him with seemingly unassuming eyes. The passion burning behind the cover was obvious, no matter how big the attempt to hide it was.

Even now, as Clay turned his head to peer at George, there was something in there besides just a simple look. Difficult to pinpoint exactly what, but George just knew.

He just had to test the theory.