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Description
Monsoon has visited your little hometown. It hardly ever rains back in your place. A few drizzles here and there. But when it does, it pours like it has been keeping all the water it collected just to shower it atop your heads.
You sat in the middle of class, worry etched in your face. You didn't mind the rain. But you lived alone in a crummy apartment where it leaks from time to time. You were supposed to move out last week, but something came up and the money that was supposed to be for down payment for the new apartment won't be sent to you by your overseas parents till the week after the next.
"A little dazed, are we?" A cold voice that sent chills down your spine whispered beside you.
You whipped your head to the side and found a pair of violet eyes that stare back at your (e/c) ones. You tried your best not to scowl at the man. It was none other than Emil Steilsson, one of the smartest people in the class. He tends to be aloof to most of your classmates. But to you, he was bitter, enough to be called mean. You were at the top of your class, and he didn't like that. So he gets his revenge by picking on you whenever he gets the chance to.
You sighed. It was like this every day. Yet, you felt something, off about him today. But it was none of your business anyway, so you shrugged it off. You didn't want to let him add to your worries, so you just ignored him and continued to stare outside. He noticed this. Emil didn't like to be ignored. But today, he had a lot on his mind, and he didn't have the proper mind setting to insult you further. Just like you, he shrugged it off and waited for classes to finish.
Classes ended fairly quickly. You saw most of the students shuffle to fix their things, struggle with their umbrellas, and gossip. The usual. But there was something gnawing in the back of your brain that was telling you that something was off. You were too worried for your apartment to deal with the thought. You rushed down your school corridor, only to pause at the front of the door where a lot of people were crowding.
"Shoot. I forgot my umbrella." You heard a familiar voice said. You turned to your right and found none other than Emil. You smirked.
"Well, well, well. Scared of a little rain, are we? And here I thought you were a man." You said triumphantly. You did a mini victory dance in your head but it was quickly shot down when you saw the mixed emotions in his once tranquil – confident at most – violet eyes. He was never this vulnerable. Not to you or anyone that you know of. Something must be really off. But before you could retract what you said, he quickly rushed through the rain, leaving you speechless and filled with guilt.
You reached home, drenched. You too forgot your umbrella. You quickly flicked on the warm orange light that illuminated the room and gaped at the ceiling. You sighed in relief when you reached your apartment dry. You stripped your clothes, leaving you only in your underwear, and sprinted to the bathroom with the wet articles of clothing in hand.
The shower was warm and it was soothing. But you did it as quickly as you could because your apartment was still worrying the lump out of you. You went out of the shower with boy shorts and an oversized T-shirt of the Chicago Bulls. You sighed in relief. The rain had not yet made its way to your inner sanctum. Deciding that you needed to relax a little, you went to your iPod and started playing tunes. You then took a seat by your window to watch outside while you dried your (h/c) hair.
The outside world was a little dull for your liking. You had expected a lot of people shuffling, bumping each other because each one is too preoccupied to find shade. But the streets were empty. Apparently, most have either anticipated the rain, or that they refused to go out to greet tears from the heavens face to face.
You were about to retreat to the kitchen to get some hot cocoa, but then something caught your eye. It was a guy running towards a nearby payphone. For some reason, you were drawn to the man. He seemed to be fumbling over the payphone, not even bothering to close the door. He was soaking wet. Immediately, recognition kicked in.
"Emil?"
The memory of those words you said to him earlier had flooded your senses and a pang of guilt resonated in your psyche. What was wrong with him? It wasn't your business, but you wanted to help the guy, even though he sort of made your life a little tougher to live in. But it didn't mean that he was a bad person. And it didn't mean that you were going to leave him in the rain alone.
You sighed. You got up from your spot and grabbed the nearest big black umbrella you could find. You picked up your apartment keys from your key bowl and headed out.
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Emil wasn't having the best day. In fact, he was even begging the heavens to give him anything, as long as it was decent. He'd been thinking about a lot of things, and when he thought things won't go worse, it rains. It never rains here. It showers, yes. Slight drizzles, yes. But no rain. Not this hard anyway.
He didn't even pack his umbrella like he usually does. Maybe his distraught has sunken that low?
Now he was standing at a payphone for God knows how long. He was shivering from running through the rain and he didn't bother to close the payphone door. He was trying to dial a specific number, but every time it rings twice the caller picks up and slams it back down again. He cursed. And he was out of change too.
It was raining harder now, and he's stuck inside a payphone with little to no money. He didn't even have spare money for fare. He spent it all on calling.
"Need a hand?" Someone suddenly said. He whipped his drenched silver-white locks to the side, splattering the stranger with droplets of cold water. It was you, one of the main subjects of his distraught. A blush momentarily creeps to his cheeks, before the cool temperature of his body masks it. Emil couldn't help but to stare at your (e/c) eyes, how it automatically brings him to ease.
"Emil?" You cooed again, waving a hand in front of his face. It snapped him back to reality.
"What are you doing here, ________________?" He asked, trying to sound annoyed, but the chattering of his teeth had made him sound like he wanted you to help him.
"Giving you a lift… sort of." You smiled sheepishly.
"Then why do you only have one umbrella?" He pointed out; his cold aloof composure stared to creep in, which in a way relieved him. He didn't want to act like a complete fool in front of you.
"O-oh! Holy crap I totally forgot to bring a second one! Uh… uh… wait here. Imma run for another one. Or… uhm, take this instead! I live nearby anyway!" You said frantically. You totally forgot about bringing a second umbrella because you were concentrating on getting to him asap.
You were mumbling to yourself, and he watched you with amusement. With one swift movement, he grabbed the umbrella, thankful that you took one that was big enough for the both of you, and pulled you close. He tried his best to not blush at the close proximity you two had. You on the other hand were caught off-guard; you stopped mumbling and you were standing there with cheeks brighter than your friend Antonio's tomatoes.
"You live nearby, right?" Emil suddenly said. You nodded your head.
"Well, what are we waiting for, then? Take me there."
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________
You reluctantly opened your apartment. You knew Emil and his family were loaded, and showing your apartment to him would be the butt of his jokes on you sooner or later – at least after he's all dried up and doesn't need you anymore.
"Uh, so… this is my place." You said after swinging the door open and ushering him in. You were relieved that the ceiling has not given up on you yet. You glanced back to Emil, thinking of offering him a seat, but then you saw him immediately stripping his clothes. It made you blush like crazy, but luckily he didn't take notice.
"I-I'll get you s-some cl-clothes!" You announced, quickly sprinting to your room. You got a spare shirt and big shorts. You sprinted to the other side of your room to grab a fresh towel before heading out again.
You stopped short. You couldn't help but stare. He was pale-maybe paler from the cold. He wasn't ripped, but he was lean – and very attractive, you added. If he wasn't always so mean to you, you might have actually developed a crush on him.
"What are you standing there for?" He spat. Emil didn't mean it to go out like that. It was a result of trying to be less harsh on you, but then he retaliates with more venom than usual. He could see you frown in displeasure, and a slight pang of regret crept up his chest.
"The bathroom is at the end of the hallway to your left." You instructed before disappearing into the kitchen. Emil must have been messed up more than he thought. He just hoped you didn't hear him sigh before heading to the bathroom.
You huffed. After all that, you thought that he was starting to go easy on you. But then he had to go ruin the mood. Heh, you even thought that you might actually harbor feelings for that man? No. He'd be all over you if you did, and you won't let that happen.
Still, you now find yourself whipping up a batch of hot chocolate for you and Emil. Before today's events, you were no less than rivals at each other's throats. And after all of this, you knew it will go back to normal, as if nothing had ever happened. Yet in a heartbeat, you knew you'd do it again, especially if it was him.
You got some whole milk in the fridge and poured some to simmer. You gingerly took a semi-sweet chocolate bar, broke half and chopped one into fine pieces, repeating the same process on some milk chocolate. You took a little time on this because you wanted it to be extra fine – thus, making it melt a little faster. You placed the chocolate in the milk, along with a pinch of salt, and whisked it with more milk. You added cinnamon before proceeding to mix it some more. Afterwards, you put it in a porcelain kettle, prepared some mugs for the both of you, got a plate of licorice, and went to go back to your living room.

You were surprised to see that he was already out of the shower – seated on your couch, already drying his hair. You chuckled a little when you saw that he wasn't able to get to some parts of his hair.
"Let me get that for you." You said. You had meant to be friendly. Emil was glad his head was down. He didn't want you to see the pink tint that had momentarily graced his cheeks.
"Uh… sure." He didn't know why he was letting you dry his hair. He heard you set down a tray 'Hot chocolate? She has some licorice too…'. His body went a little stiff when you grabbed his towel from behind the couch.
"So…" You started. He grunted to let you know he was listening, at the same time ushering you to continue.
"You okay?" You asked cautiously. It wasn't any of your business. But truth be told, you were sort of worried for the guy. And hell, you won't admit it, even to yourself. At first he was silent, so you took that as a 'Stay out of my business gesture'. But the slow, almost reluctant, nod had made you smile a little. Maybe he was warming up to you after all?
"Um, are you sure?"
"Yeah…" He breathed out. You could sense that he was unsure of himself.
There was a small pause before you got the courage to fire up the conversation again.
"Emil?"
"Yes?"
"What are you doing in here, anyway?"
"I-uh… had… unfinished business to attend to…" He answered sometime after a brief silence. This gave you a little bit more confidence talking to him. And you wanted to keep the ball rolling, so trying to dry his hair would seem less awkward.
"Oh? And that is?"
"I…I broke up with someone near the vicinity. I was trying to call home for a ride but then no one would pick up and I ran out of money." He said, almost embarrassed.
That came as a shock. Him dating someone? The thought of Emil actually liking someone gave you the shivers. Still, deep inside was… relief?
"It's a good thing I found you, then?" You said, a smile plastered to your face.
"Ah-uh…" He said.
"Why did you break up with her?" You asked, hoping that you weren't pushing things too far.
"I'm in love with someone else." That relief you felt earlier sunk deep in your heart.
After a while, you had managed to dry the rest of his wet hair. Afterwards, you handed him back the towel and plopped down next to him.
"I hope your boyfriend doesn't mind me borrowing his clothes." Emil said, hinting that there was slight displeasure in his voice.
You chuckled, handing him a cup of hot chocolate and pushing the plate of licorice towards his direction.
"Boyfriend? Ha. I wish. You're lucky I just like big clothes that happened to fit you." You said; a smile graced your face.
Time passed. You had managed to make Emil participate in the conversation. He even invited you over to his house the day after. The hot chocolate was gone and you discovered that he was licorice was his favorite treat.
"Holy crap. Is that the time?" You said, glancing at the watch that read 9:45 pm.
"Lucky it's a Saturday tomorrow." Emil said, nibbling on a piece of licorice.
"Yeah. Will your parents worry about you?"
"Nah. My parents are overseas. I live with my 4 brothers. I'm sure Lukas won't mind my absence." He said calmly.
"Oh… okay. So, I guess it's time for bed. You can take mine. I sleep in the couch." You said. You already prepared your bed, just in case he didn't have the chance to leave your apartment in time.
"No."
"What? I figured you'd be sleepy by now! Go to bed!" You joked.
"No."
"Okay, now you're just being stubb-" You got cut off by him.
"I will not allow you to sleep in the couch."
"Eh?" You were wide-eyed. Who would have thought that he would be such a gentleman?
"I need someone to keep me warm at night, so you'll come with me."
"What? So I'm you human blanket? I have blankets in there you know."
But before you could protest, he was already carrying you like a sack of rice slung to his shoulders.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Daylight came. The sun was shining though the curtains of your room. He'd expect Mr. Puffin to be beside him, so he snuggled deeper into the covers. A mad blush overpowered his face when he saw that he was beside you. His arm was wrapped tight around your waist and you were resting your head on the crook of his neck.
A soft smile graced his face. He kissed your forehead lovingly. Maybe he'll tell you he loves you someday.
Minutes pass and you opened your eyes cracked open to the sunlight. You felt unusually warm. You whipped your head to the side, hoping you'd find that puffin stuff toy you always sleep with but found another person beside you.
You gasped. You tried to get away, but his arm around your waist tightened, as if saying 'you're not going anywhere'. You could already imagine Emil saying that with a smug look on his face.
You smiled. There was that feeling again. Was it relief? Calmness? No, it was much more deeper. But sleep lulled you again, and you found yourself snuggling deeper into the hug.

This wasn't so bad after all.