Stepan surely did not expect such bold confrontation from the other boy. Yet he is extremely eager to entertain him. He acknowledges the differences. From the way he talks to the way he walks and even the way that his eyes dismissing everyone around him, he is very far apart from Kliment. This boy is savage. It sparks an itch in Stepan. An itch that can't be scratched. At least, not just yet.

It's the law of attraction. Bad attracts bad. Stepan can't deny the appearance of Kirill in his life makes his heart pound like crazy, makes him feel clueless for the first time, and makes him feel that it was all worth it. “You have dimple on both cheeks,” he suddenly commented. Kirill turns to look at him, perplexed by the sudden mention of such boring fact. They had both taken down their masks at this time. It was just the two of them by the bridge. “Kliment only has dimple on his right cheek,” Stepan added. As if to acknowledge that fact, Kirill forms a dimpled smile at him playfully. Damn, Stepan cursed to himself. ‘I’d just pin you here by the bridge and fuck you if you do that one more time’, Stepan conjured an indecent thought in his head. First time. This is the first time he feels strongly attracted to someone in such a short time yet also intimidated. Kirill is nothing like Kliment. He was never sexually attracted to Kliment but Kliment’s twin brother is on another level.

Kirill looks down, admiring the water flowing freely beneath them. The bridge was painted in red. He can almost imagine how contrast it would be during winter with white snow covering the red bridge, he can almost imagine the coldness. Kliment went missing on a winter night. So, he can also almost imagine the dimness from the street lights. But there are no strong emotions about the place. Kirill can ‘feel’ things. Whatever that is related to Kliment, he can ‘feel’ it. Not here. This bridge is not the place where it happened. He is sure of it. But on the other hand, he can definitely ‘feel’ strong emotions when it comes to Stepan. Ever since their prior handshake, it was like he was electrocuted with an intense emotion. He knew it then that for Kliment, Stepan is of importance. And he is curious to know. What is Stepan to Kliment, then?

“So, what did you guys talk about before you part ways?” Kirill started to ask.

“Boring things. Forgettable things,” Stepan answered nonchalantly. He doesn’t seem to be avoiding the subject nor was he taking it seriously as well. “Oh! We were supposed to go out of town that weekend so we talked about that too,” Stepan suddenly added.

The statement sparks curiosity in Kirill. “Out of town? Where were you planning on going?”

Stepan smiles to himself without looking at Kirill. He doesn’t even try to hide the slyness shown in his eyes as he answers; “We always went there once in a while.” He then turns to look at Kirill with his eyes slightly narrowed, eyeing him from top to bottom. “It’s no fun if I just directly tell you about it,” he spoke. His eyes stop to linger at Kirill’s body which immediately causes Kirill to feel very uncomfortable. “How about you also joining us this weekend?” He asked.

Kirill tries hard to not show how nervous he suddenly gets. What the hell? Anyone can tell that that look Stepan is wearing is called ‘lust’. ‘The nerve of this guy. I’m gonna bury him!’ Kirill cursed in his head while secretly gritted his teeth. On the outside, though, he just asked calmly; “By ‘us’, you mean…?”

“The three idiots from before,” Stepan answered nonchalantly again. This time his eyes no longer wander somewhere inappropriate. He was looking right into Kirill’s eyes with a knowing smile. The mole under his left eye causes Kirill to momentarily becomes stupefied. It is called beauty mark for a reason after all.

‘He knows’, Kirill suddenly thought, completely aware of the situation. ‘He knows that I am uncomfortable. He knows that I know he is lusting over me.’ “Oh…,” Kirill replied. ‘What do you want from me, Stepan?’ He wonders to himself. In that few seconds, being a straightforward asshole as himself, he wanted to directly asks him. But for the first time, he feels afraid of the answer he might hear. So, he refrained himself. “I’ll think about it,” he said instead.

They both appear to be calm on the outside. They both were not trying too hard to hide themselves. They both were reading each other’s thoughts at ease, only because they both allowed it to happen. There’s a thin line of invisible thread in between them that both pull them apart yet pull them close together. They both can’t deny the law of attraction. Bad always attracts bad.

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Next update: 2022/01/25

*Author’s Note: You must be curious about this regular ‘place’ Stepan was talking about, right? Trust me, it’s nothing good. -K