Teran sat in his art studio, his focus buried deep in the painting he was working on. His face was smudged with all colours of paint, and so were his clothes. He had been eating, sleeping, and working here for almost three weeks now nonstop. It was like he was possessed. He looked intently at the large art piece he'd been working on for the past few weeks, as he made the last finishing touches.
After the encounter with Rawanak, the only place Teran could bury himself completely was his art studio. It had always been a safe haven for him where he released any darkness he felt or whenever he wanted to escape from reality. This time was no different, except he had never obsessed like this over any art he was working. He was always intense while painting, but this came from a much deeper and maybe darker place.
The past few weeks were the hardest on him, at some point, he could barely sleep and just woke up in the middle of the night, muttering Rawanak's name. His head hurt a lot, and he cried so much from the turmoil he was feeling, and when crying didn't work, he eventually came to continue his painting, releasing a little of the pent-up emotions he felt.
He had gotten so much better, but he couldn't help but recall how at some point throughout his time away from the world, he had gone to look for Rawanak. Not once. He had even lost count of how many times, but in every instance when he got close to his hotel or when he stepped out of his house, he came back to as if out of a trance and would head back home to his art studio.
Teran sighed in relief as he leaned further back to admire his art piece. This was probably one of his best works yet. He thought to himself as the corner of his lips lifted up a little, managing a smile, the first one in a long time. The details on the painting awed even him, the way the waves of the sea violently crashed on the waters, and somehow glimmered just a little in the dark night that shot lightning bolts in the sky. He had managed to capture the most beautiful-looking but eerie storm at sea.
He had not taken a shower for some days so the first thing he noticed was the mess he was and headed straight to his room where he took a hot and long shower that cleared off all the paint on his body and if he was bold enough to say, the heavy energy in him also washed off, leaving not just his body but his mind clear too. As he emerged from the bathroom, he saw his phone light up on the bed, and he remembered he had not even looked at it during that whole period.
He sat down on the bed, a towel wrapped around his waist, and water still dripping on the gray sheets that had not been slept in for weeks. He looked at his phone and saw notifications from Michael, who had been trying to reach him for the past few weeks to no avail. He chuckled every once and then as he scrolled down to the many texts and memes the guy had sent him until he reached the final photo that caught his attention.
Michael and Rawanak faced each other, laughing at what seemed like an ongoing party that Michael had invited him to as per the prior text above the image. It was at one of his clubs, and Teran didn't know why, but he decided to go, right there and then. He dressed up in a black shirt that wasn't fully buttoned, revealing his well-sculpted chest and a matching pair of black pants. His now dried dark hair was ruffled a little, making the already sexy wolf cut look cooler. He was back to his usual self, he could feel it in him. He told himself that he was just going to meet his best friend, who was probably worried about him.
The black BMW pulled over at the entrance of the grandiose club, and Teran got off, handing his keys over to the valet parking attendant. He walked in with a confident stride that attracted attention from the girls gathered at the entrance. Rawanak, who sat at the far end drinking his whiskey, could already sniff him, and he turned his head back to see Teran, who was now being approached by Michael.
The atmosphere around him was different from when he saw him last. He looked sharper, more confident, and my, he looked hot. Rawanak thought as he tried to shift his gaze off of him, before Teran could notice. Teran knew Rawanak had been looking at him, and he couldn't help but form a smile on his face as he listened to Michael's complaints about why he had gone missing for weeks.
"You know, I almost called the police. I thought maybe you were kidnapped." "Or dead somewhere in a ditch." Michael continued ranting. "Hey, relax, I'm here now and not dead...in a ditch." Teran chuckled heartily at his best friend, who genuinely seemed worried at the time. He had even come to his place a few times and saw the dim light in his art studio, but went away when Teran refused to open the door. But that was the only assurance he needed to know that at least he was safe. He was happy to have his friend back.
Rawanak silently walked over to where Michael and Teran were, two drinks in hand. He stopped right between them and handed Teran one glass while looking him straight in the eye. The man really did manage to get his spark back, he smiled a little to himself with a kind of relief. It had taken so much from Rawanak to stay away from the guy because he knew getting close would only heighten the effects of his song, but now looking at him, he realised how much he had missed him. He also felt a little sorry, but he tried not to let that show for now.
"Where's mine?" Michael pouted at Rawanak, who now only broke his gaze from Teran.
Teran handed Michael the drink Rawanak gave him and left the two of them there, a little shocked. "Did he just walk off on us?" Michael said, looking at Rawanak, who seemed a little hurt at Teran's behaviour. He knew it was because of him, so he downed the glass he now held and took Michael's too from his hand and emptied it too, putting it back on his palms. "Rude." Michael held the empty glass as he watched Rawanak too, walk away from him towards the bar.
Did he expect Teran to hug him in joy or something? He wondered to himself as he sat at the crowded bar, trying to drink away the ache that filled his chest. He had hurt him, almost driven him to madness, and now he was sulking because he was ignored? Rawanak scoffed at his own expectations. People tried to come up to him to flirt or have conversations, but he immediately sent them away until he was worn out. All he wanted was to wallow in self-pity alone.
He didn't know how much he'd drunk and for how long, but when he tried to get up from his seat, he immediately toppled over, barely regaining his balance. He had a high tolerance for alcohol since his body was stronger, but with such emotions building up in him, he was a bit vulnerable, so he got drunk way more easily.
He barely managed to make his way to the exit, and when he immediately got out he inhaled the night air deeply as if to sober himself up. He sat down on the steps just outside the club, pulling out his phone to call a cab that would take him to the hotel. "Hey, handsome." A man from the club, who was one of the people who had approached Rawanak when he was drinking, hovered over him.
"Are you waiting for a cab? I can take you home." The man said, still standing alongside the Rawanak. Rawanak looked up at him and tried to get up, but he toppled over, luckily, he was held by the man next to him, preventing him from hitting the floor. "Home? Yes...home. I want to go home." Rawanak tried to form words in his mouth. The home Rawanak was referring to though wasn't the penthouse, it was his actual home, Thalassa.
The stranger still held onto Rawanak, afraid he might fall over, and started directing him to his car, which now waited for them upfront. Rawanak, who was now seated in the back seat of the brown SUV, barely awake, heard a scuffle outside before a person dragged him out of the vehicle aggressively. He held his wrist tightly, and he couldn't even understand what was happening. Next thing he knew, he was seated on the passenger seat of a different vehicle, all belted up, and that's when he turned to see the person he least expected. "Teran?" He mumbled in surprise.
Teran had been watching Rawanak the entire night as he drank himself away. That image of him made him a little happy, and he wasn't afraid to admit it. He felt like he deserved a little joy after all he'd been through. It was when he saw Rawanak walk out of the club with a man following him closely behind, unbeknownst to him, that worried Teran a little, so he followed them shortly after, to make sure the blue-haired guy was okay. When he saw them walk into the car, Teran got so angry at the sight and rushed to punch the guy so hard that he fell over.
"Are you taking me home?" Rawanak asked lazily, still drunk. "Yes, do you want to go someplace else?" Teran said, before continuing, "That's why you got into a car with a complete stranger?" Teran asked the guy, who now looked at him with a puzzled look on his face. He was probably clueless about what he was saying, so he just decided to drive silently towards the hotel where the guy stayed. "You swim, you don't drive there," Rawanak said before leaning his forehead on the window. Teran laughed at this man who wasn't making any sense while he drove off into the night.
