Faces by A. M. Rose

Author:A. M. Rose [Rose, A. M.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: anonymous
Published: 2021-11-10T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 13

Dorian

Trying to be friends with someone you wanted to kiss and hold was a torture Dorian hadn’t experienced before in quite this way. He knew what it was like to face disappointment, to want uselessly and feel lonely. His gift had always been an obstacle that brought others happiness and him pain, both in professional and personal settings.

This situation was completely foreign, however.

Hayden hadn’t rejected him. Hadn’t been settling for him or with him because he was the famed Artist. Hadn’t been biding his time with him to get Dorian to draw his soulmate without paying for it. Hayden felt for him. How big or small that extended Dorian wasn’t sure. And now he wouldn’t have the chance to explore.

Dorian had never met a single person who didn’t want to know their soulmate. Some weren’t ready for that commitment yet, and some were scared of what it meant, but deep down, they all wanted to know. Dorian wanted to know.

But Hayden was adamant in his refusal, and any hopes Dorian had about their blossoming relationship going further got crushed under that iron resolve before it had a chance to grow. Dorian didn’t want Hayden gone from his life, however. To be without his voice and steady presence, his kindness and warmth… no, no. It wasn’t worth thinking about.

Dorian wanted him in any small dose he could get him.

And so they were friends. It felt stilted in a way Dorian hadn’t realized it could be, even when they first met as strangers.

Dorian was trying desperately to find some equilibrium. Maybe one day he’d wake up and Hayden wouldn’t be the first thing that crossed his mind. It might be a while, though. A week might have been wishful thinking.

They kept it strictly to messaging at first, everything too raw to even consider meeting the other face to face. But eventually, the distance seemed like too much, and Dorian caught himself wanting to invite Hayden places like before, even if it was just coffee or a walk around the chilly streets.

He caved in the middle of the second week. And then again on that weekend. Dorian was unable to put the distance he probably should have between them, and Hayden always answered yes to every invitation. Dorian didn’t want to read into it.

It was simple things at first, short visits. A coffee here or there to catch up. Dorian felt like he was walking through landmines blind, pun intended. Mentions of his job created tension in the air; any whisper of touch between them felt like an ache of unfulfilled promises. But Dorian couldn’t stay away. He was a glutton for punishment.

They were hanging around Dorian’s apartment, the drizzling rain outside making venturing out unappealing. Having Hayden in his personal space was always a vulnerable experience, and the anxiety was compounded now with everything else going on between them.

Dorian constantly reminded his aching heart it was just a phase that would pass. Hayden would eventually settle into the friend box he’d forcefully pushed him into, and all that overspill would get mopped up by time and good sense.

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