[attr="class","uriah"]yeah, uriah will probably figure it out. mars' smile only reassures him, as it usually does.

"so no flowers. got it."

he chuckles, feeling tension slowly starting to lift off his shoulders. maybe the dinner will even be fun; actually, it most likely will be, knowing them.

nodding, he extends over the bottle, refilling the glass once more.

"cian...pretty boy? likes to run? i'll beat him up just say the word."

[attr="class","noodles"]xarxyXUL

621

Martín del Mar

[attr="class","uriah"]take it slow.

man, both of them know uriah's not good at doing that. still, for the sake of whatever he wants to happen between him and sol, he'll have to be.

"understand each other, huh? yeah i think i can do that."

or at the very least, he'll try, and that's enough.

with his problems talked about, uriah turns his attention to mars and his, because that's what good friends do, and also because he genuinely cares.

"so what's on your mind, man? why are you feeling down?"

[attr="class","noodles"]EG0iN6dz

651

Martín del Mar

[attr="class","uriah"]of course he doesn't have a plan; when does he ever?

hearing how mars isn't doing too well either pains him, but honestly, he's selfish enough to focus on his own feelings instead. they're overwhelming him; eating him from the inside out.

"right, so, she'll take me to wherever, we're gonna sit down and eat, and then after..."

after?

"i dunno. should i confess? would that make things even weirder? should i hold her hand again? should we go for drinks?"

his head finds both his hands as he does the :notlikethis: emote.

[attr="class","noodles"]T2S0tzbZ

720

Martín del Mar

[attr="class","uriah"]"possibly..."

honestly, uriah has no idea what a captain does beyond what he's seen so far. it's possible, very likely, that she's genuinely busy. fuck; why does mars have to make good points? he's too good at everything.

"dunno...probably go on the dinner she owes me and see what happens."

maybe hold her hand again...

refill. shot.

finally, he turns to mars and notices.

"what about you? you doing alright, man?"

[attr="class","noodles"]dmjoebro

729

Martín del Mar

[attr="class","uriah"]"yeah but it seems like she wants us to be nothing more than...whatever we are."

the bottle's tipped, refilling both of their glasses as he continues to speak.

"she's always too busy for dinner or anything really."

a part of him wonders if the owed dinner will even happen. man, that'd suck.

he downs the next shot without hesitation, then groans as he runs his hand through his hair.

"fuck, mars. i...i really like her."

[attr="class","noodles"]f_dZnsXy

778

Martín del Mar

[attr="class","uriah"]an attention-starved little dog, sure, but at least he's cute.

"oh fuck off mars not everyone can be like you."

memories of their days in school flutter back to him, unwarranted, and he quickly shoves them aside because all they make him feel is lonely. how could he ever compete with mars? he never could.

"we slept together the other week after getting wasted and things haven't really been the same since. she owes me dinner...but i don't know if anything will even happen."

he sighs, downing the rest of his sake.

"i was trying to ask her out again just now but she said she had plans."

[attr="class","noodles"]peZjki3A

819

Martín del Mar

[attr="class","uriah"]"yeah...her name's sol, and no i didn't go in on purpose, i swear."

it definitely was a weird coincidence. it was like the universe was trying to tell them something...

too bad uriah doesn't believe in that, and he's pretty sure she doesn't either.

with a sigh, he sips, then shakes his head.

"she actually didn't mind that much after i apologized. we even uh...held hands at the end."

[attr="class","noodles"]3gLlDlsc

867

Martín del Mar

[attr="class","uriah"]"yeah man i got lost and just wandered into her room."

uriah's already getting a bottle and two glasses for them when mars tells him to. he nods, offering a faint smirk as he approaches the water.

"i'll uh stay out here for a bit. i was just in the water for a while."

he starts pouring sake into two glasses before offering one to mars. he moves to sit on the edge of the water, letting his legs sink in.

"...my captain's here as well. that's who i was with."

[attr="class","noodles"]aWADCnLx

897

Martín del Mar

[attr="class","uriah"]it hurt more than he expected, though he has no one else to blame but himself.

with a defeated sigh, he pushes through the correct door this time, and after a small detour, finally joins his friend in one of the hot springs.

"yo. sorry i'm late i got stuck in another room."

[attr="class","noodles"]xEPVxvaA

928

Martín del Mar

[attr="class","uriah"]things could've ended very differently for both of them, so he can't be too mad about the door breaking on him in this instance. imagine if he had been locked in with someone else...that would've been even more awkward.

he stops outside the changing rooms, looking at sol.

"oh. yeah, guess i should."

throwing a quick glance over his shoulder, he quickly wonders how Martín del Mar is doing. but very quickly, his attention returns.

and foolishly, he asks:

"what are you doing later this evening?"

[attr="class","noodles"]@sol

[attr="class","uriah"]inevitably, over the course of however long he holds her hand for, his mind drifts to the possibilities, to the day and night they spent together, and just how much he wants to spend more time with her. he still has his owed dinner, but what happens after that? what if they never become anything more than people who work together?

the sound of someone struggling to open the door pulls him out of his thoughts, and sadly, out of the moment.

his hand drifts back to his side, cold.

"right. yeah."

he steps out of the pool as well, mindful of his gaze as he steps over to the side to retrieve his wet towel. he wraps it around his body, not particularly minding the feeling.

eventually, the door opens.

"sorry! that was my bad. i'll pay for the damages."

[attr="class","noodles"]@sol

[attr="class","uriah"]how she rolls her eyes has never bothered him; if anything, he finds it cute, and the sight of it has him chuckling. his smile only grows at her acceptance, as dumb as it might be to stay in the heat.

"five more minutes."

five more minutes until he has to let go and inevitably return to just being...whatever they are.

it's five minutes he'll cherish.

and so, with a content sigh, he closes his eyes once again, relishing the warmth he feels not from the water but from her. his thumb continues to draw circles.

he doesn't count this time.

[attr="class","noodles"]@sol

[attr="class","uriah"]it isn't until she points it out that he realizes just how hot he feels. it's definitely uncomfortable, though it's eased by the comfort that comes from holding her hand.

so he chuckles, nodding as he looks at her.

"yeah...i don't want to stop holding your hand, though."

he draws circles against her skin, seemingly unaffected by the water.

"just a little more?"

[attr="class","noodles"]@sol