[Jaykobell]

As he arrived at the small port town, his heart started to race a little bit. They had been meeting each other for a little bit now... but every time, he still felt a little nervous. It was quite unusual for him to be in such good terms with a fellow immortal. Then again, his meeting with that said immortal had been quite unusual as well.

He had a good idea of where to find the one he was meeting here, and indeed, it didn't take long to find him. They had agreed to meet at a specific landmark in this little town, one that overlooked the beach and the vast ocean beyond.

He saw him there, leaning against a pole. He had thought the uncertainty and the shyness towards all this would have decreased with time. It had gotten better, but he was still a little unsure about what all of this... meant.

Regardless, he really did always enjoy meeting up with that genie. He stopped a few steps short from the immortal, and he coughed quietly. "Hello, Izra," he greeted with a happy, but still timid, smile.

[zapdragon555]

It wasn't commonplace, this sort of thing, for Izra. He'd had his physical and emotional ties to humans throughout his life, yes, but long term arrangements that spanned this many months were... well, absolutely incredible in a way. It was a thing to look forward to, a thing in the back of his mind and bottom of his heart.

Astrophel was immortal, like Izra often was--but today he walked again as a human, the loose flip flops on his feet already dusted with sand as he peered out at the horizon line. It was getting chilly under the shade if the dock he'd told Astrophel to meet him under, a cool breeze sending goosebumps racing across his bare arms.

At the appearance of the other's aura, Izra's eyes refocused, and he turned a little too quickly to face the other as he approached. "Hey, man," he murmured, with perhaps a bit too much warmth in his voice. He pushed off the pole and moved closer, reaching out on impulse to brush his hand against the immortal's shoulder in warning before moving in for a quick embrace.

"Missed you! How've you been?" he asked, knowing such a question might be odd for an immortal to receive, but it was force of habit. A lot happened to humans--to immortals, maybe not as much.

[Jaykobell]

Even though they had been meeting for months now — and despite having known this from the very beginning — Astrophel was always surprised by Izra's friendliness. The fact he didn't overthink his feelings all the time. At least, such was Astrophel's idea of him.

He returned the hug a little awkwardly, as usual. Showing this sort of affection in public was still new to him. Most immortals weren't this affectionate, and even though Astrophel wanted to be more forward, it had been drilled into him that he ought not to be.

He chuckled at Izra's greeting. "It hasn't been that long," he mumbled for an answer with a sheepish smile. "But I do always enjoy seeing you again." He rubbed the back of his neck. "I've been... much of the same," he replied to the last question, but not without a little bit of... hesitation? "And so have you, I'd say?" he added, teasing just a little bit.

[zapdragon555]

Izra let out a small laugh, lightly rubbing Astrophel's upper back playfully before detaching from the hug and perking up. "Feels long. Time passes slower down here on earth," he joked, rubbing at his arms a bit now that the breeze was picking up again. His expression softened as Astrophel spoke, his heart fluttering slightly in his chest.

That was the other problem. These meetings were... friendly. Of course their first meeting had been... overly friendly, for lack of a more accurate term. Izra still blushed to think about it, sometimes. Subsequent meetings had been quite a bit more tame, and genuinely friendly, in the actual definition of the word. But Izra's heart still thumped like a trapped bird in his chest every time he came into close proximity of the other immortal or, hell, even thought about him.

So it was quite a problem, especially when Izra was half certain that Astrophel could hear his rabbit-foot pulse. "You callin' me boring?" he joked, an obvious humor in his voice as he playfully nudged Astrophel and stepped into the sunlight. It shimmered on his white hair, tied back behind his head in a ponytail. "But no, you caught me. Some same-old. I like this town a lot--decided to spend awhile in it and wanted to share this cute spot I found with you. Thought you'd like it, it's uh... it's a little bit of a walk, if you're up for it."

[Jaykobell]

Well, that was a fair point. Astrophel himself spent more time on this earth than anywhere else. Time did seem to pass and work differently in this mortal coil.

His little thought was interrupted when Izra spoke again and nudged him just a bit. He was surprised just a little bit, but it soon gave way to a happy smile. "No, you..." He stopped himself. Even if what he had intended to say wasn't anything bad, he felt it might be... a little too daring.

So he quickly tried to keep up with the conversation, hoping Izra hadn't caught that. "Oh, I do like this little town too," he agreed. "It has a lot of nice spots." Having lived this long, he had seen a lot of places in his time. Not that he knew every nook and cranny of every single place, though.

And it was touching, really, that Izra had thought of him. To share things with one another like this... Yes, it was what friends did. "I'd be happy to go on a walk..." Again, more words would have been added to that sentence, but he kept them for himself.

[zapdragon555]

Izra's expression pulled into a genuinely happy smile, at that. He had heard, yes, but he didn't want to tease him too terribly. Even if curiosity ate at him. Maybe he'd ask on their walk.

"It does! I take stuff pretty slow sometimes, but I try to get as much time in as possible while I'm, eh... corporeal," he chuckled, poking himself in the stomach to illustrate his fleshy quality. "Being cooped up in the lamp sucks. So I'm pretty much always on the move, even to small places like this. It's... not normal that I stay in one town for so long. This one just... kind of speaks to me, for some reason."

He was quiet for a moment, then waved away his own words with a sheepish laugh. "Listen to me, yakking on. C'mon! It's up the beach, that-a-way," he gestured forward and waved for Astrophel to follow. "Also... what was that about me?" he asked after a moment, flashing a teasing smile at the other. "Or did you decide I was boring after all? I understand... it's the undeniable, tragic truth that this absolute dreamboat of a genie is just a little too dull." He gestured two thumbs up at himself, grinning humorously.

[Jaykobell]

When Izra brought up his corporeal state, Astrophel's expression changed for a moment. His understanding was that Izra truly enjoyed being a human, and being free of the control his lamp had on him. Astrophel, as an immortal who wasn't bound to anything, couldn't even begin to understand the sort of life Izra lived outside of this slice of life as a human. Wasn't it... sad?

But he pushed the thoughts away. He focused on being here, right now, with Izra, and going on this little walk together. He smiled again when Izra pointed out how much he'd been talking. As far as Astrophel was concerned, he could talk as much and as long as he wanted...

"What?" he said when Izra asked about what Astrophel had been about to say earlier. Oh, so the other had heard. To make things even worse, Izra's complimenting of himself through humor just made Astrophel feel even more awkward. Especially considering he didn't quite know what a "dreamboat" was supposed to be. "N-no, that's not what I..." Even though he knew Izra was just teasing, he was embarrassed. He hadn't been about to say anything bad, just... "I wouldn't..."

He was looking away, as he fiddled with his hands. Again, this genie was making him lose his composure. No matter how much control Astrophel had, Izra always found a way to shatter the illusion; to yank it away from Astrophel's hands. "I was saying..." If he ought to say it to someone, it might as well be Izra, he figured. "I was just going to say..." He kept his attention focused on the scenery beside them; or in other words, he kept his eyes as far away from Izra's as possible. This was hard enough without eye contact.

"I was going to say that... you're never boring," he finally mumbled, although perhaps a little too quietly, and a little too awkwardly. He almost hoped Izra had heard this time, just so he wouldn't have to say it again.

[zapdragon555]

The teasing tilt to Izra's grin faded slightly to a softer expression, as he watched Astrophel struggle with words. Ah, a little too much... he knew it had been, the moment it had left his mouth. The genie smiled again, softer this time, and was about to interrupt the other to tell him it was fine, he didn't have to tell him.

But then he came through, and Izra's smile dropped, his expression softly startled. He felt a warmth swirl in his chest, and he flushed a visible shade of pink at the immortal's words. "Thank you," he murmured, unable to keep the wobbly smile off his face. He shook free of the awkward moment, and lightly nudged Astrophel's arm with his own. "Y'know what else isn't boring, though, this place--I'll come clean, it's an ice cream stand. But the stuff they sell here is wild--flavors I haven't really seen anywhere else. They have this one that's coconut and... blue? Does blue have a flavor? And they shape it into a shark with this mould..."

As he continued to chatter, hoping to cover up his flustered expression, the ice cream stand in question drew near. Izra noticed it, and pointed a finger towards it, grinning. "That's the place! When's the last time you've had ice cream, anyway? Do..." He suddenly paused, realizing something. "Do you like ice cream?" he asked, a nervous note in his laugh.

[Jaykobell]

Astrophel wasn't sure what he had been expecting. Maybe a reprimand, or maybe an upset reaction. He should have known things wouldn't go as expected, since Izra was involved. Things were better than whatever morose expectations Astrophel usually had.

And for a moment, it almost seemed like it was Izra who was shy. And, his face... Astrophel charted it to a trick of the light. He knew humans did this when they were embarrassed, or when they were...

But it didn't last long, though, as the genie started rambling away again. The light shove snapped Astrophel out of his timid stupor as well; or at least, for the most part. And how easily the genie could talk, about anything; Astrophel couldn't help but to smile and giggle a little. "A shark?" That sounded far from boring, indeed.

He found it interesting when Izra nervously asked if Astrophel even liked ice cream. He blinked at Izra's question, and laughed. "I do like it," he assured Izra. "I haven't had it often. The last time was..." He paused as he tried to think of an estimate. "Well, I guess it really was a long time ago..." he admitted. "But I remember liking it."

[zapdragon555]

"Yeah, a shark! It's crazy stuff, man. Artists, these guys are..." Izra trailed off, and his face melted with relief into a loose smile. "Ah, good, you're a keeper then." It was a joke, and phrased like one, but it made Izra flush a soft pink anyhow. "Long time, huh? Welcome back to paradise, then," he elbowed Astrophel gently, his fingers longing to reach for hand. But that first time had been... special. Different. Now, he wasn't entirely sure how to act.

Not that any onlookers would really bat an eye, in this modern age. But he didn't want to press too far. Astrophel was delicate, in his composure at least. And sometimes, that was fun to press. But not in public, not here. Izra wanted Astrophel to want to be here.

To want to be with him.

Ignoring that soft pang in his chest, Izra lightly pulled the cuff of Astrophel's sleeve instead, leading him over to the ice cream stand. "Wanna split something? Or would you rather get your own? Their portions are pretty big," he chuckled. "But I won't judge."

[Jaykobell]

He heard Izra talk for a bit, but the truth was, Astrophel didn't hear much of it. No, instead, his mind clung to a very specific set of words Izra had said.

"Ah, good, you're a keeper then."

Now, inexperienced as he was, Astrophel wasn't that ignorant. He had heard this before, and he knew what it meant. And that... that pink color on Izra's face—

It was for real? He hadn't just imagined it earlier?

He was a little unresponsive as Izra nudged him and dragged him along. He couldn't deny that this genie had certainly done something to him. Never before had an immortal left this kind of impression on him. Never before had an immortal even wanted to be this close to him, to share a sort of close friendship with him. Those immortals he knew... They frowned at those who were too emotional. They frowned at those who couldn't distance their feelings. To let feelings rule them, to welcome those feelings; it was getting too close to humanity. They were higher beings, or so they said. Nothing like the feeble mortals that depended on them to grant wishes and keep things in balance.

He had never enjoyed the company of other immortals. Even when he tried to interact with them, his level of "humanity" always made them look at him with disdain.

Izra was so different. Almost like a safe space; the first immortal he had ever meant who seemed to be in love with the "humanity" so many immortals had learned to hate. The first immortal who wasn't afraid of his feelings.

The first immortal to...

To enjoy his company. To have wanted to share something with him, to think of him...

His mind went off the edge, and externally, it left Astrophel staring out into space, daydreaming. He was looking away in the distance, his expression unreadable. And thanks to that internal monologue, he didn't hear Izra's questions, leaving the genie without an answer.

[zapdragon555]

Izra felt Astrophel slow, and even nearly stop in his following. His fingers twitched on the other man's sleeve, and he paused on his way to the stand to look back at the immortal behind him. His eyes looked focused on something invisible, and Izra's brows tilted with quiet concern. Not breaking the contact, he instead shifted his grip to gently close around Astrophel's wrist, feeling the pulse jump beneath his touch.

"Hey," he called out softly, stepping closer to examine the other. He looked Astrophel up and down, then stepped close enough to close the gap between their shoulders. He didn't say anything for some time, just looked off in the direction Astrophel was looking. It was nice to just... slow down. Even though Izra knew his clock was ticking, that soon he'd have to return to the lamp and wait for another chance to escape, another human to pick him up and use his magic... it was nice to spend a silent moment with Astrophel.

Izra broke eye contact with the ocean, and flicked his gaze up to the immortal's profile. Silently, he craned his neck to press a simple, soft kiss to Astrophel's cheek.

His heartbeat slammed inside of his ribcage. How could something so simple rush his blood so? He cleared his throat, heart lodged in it, and mumbled something about going to get ice cream for the both of them, though his legs didn't seem to want to move. He just kind of leaned away, his face a brilliant shade of scarlet, half hugging himself with one arm while his other still hung onto Astrophel's wrist.

[Jaykobell]

Izra's first attempt to snap Astrophel out of it didn't work. His staring continued, although he did realize, to a certain extent, that Izra was still here, moving around. He felt the light hold on his wrist, but it was all distant. Like things happening outside the reality he was experiencing. Being stuck in his own mind, it wasn't surprising that the outside found it difficult to break through.

It wasn't until Izra tried again that Astrophel finally snapped out of it. He felt Izra so close to him, and he felt those lips kissing him just so softly, a weight just strong enough to bring him back. He jumped, and he felt his heart quicken. And then it was a sickening feeling, his heart dropping to the pits of his stomach. This small delight on his cheek, sending warmth through his body, even though... Even though it shouldn't. But he couldn't help loving it, and he couldn't help his own face changing colors, and he couldn't help it when his hand slowly reached up to touch where Izra had kissed him...

Did... did Izra know? No, did he remember? Did he remember Astrophel admitting that he enjoyed kissing, in all its forms? Was that why? Was it something else? Surely, the other didn't remember.

"I..." He took a deep breath, his heart pulsing so loudly in his ears that it managed to drown out his thoughts, for the most part. He had no control over himself whatsoever, and that just wasn't a good thing. He owed it to Izra to be here, in the moment. "I'm sorry," he apologized after a hot second — both a literal and figurative statement, it seemed.

"U-um... Do you... do you want me to pay?" Right, they were getting ice cream. And Astrophel owed it to Izra to be good company.

[zapdragon555]

The reaction that his simple kiss produced startled Izra, but his eyes softened affectionately at the flush that spread over the immortal's face. "Didn't mean to startle you," he murmured, effectively pulled back into the moment. No longer did he want to retreat--not with Astrophel looking at him like that.

At the apology, however, Izra's brows raised slightly, and he shook his head. "Nah man, it's totally fine. I just... wan't to make sure you were alright. And you looked nice, looking out at the ocean like that," he added with a small smile. It wasn't a lie. But whether Izra had been spurred by his own selfish desire to be close, to tie Astrophel down to this mortal coil just a little while longer, or not, he did not want to dwell upon it.

"You have money?" he added with a chuckle, sliding his fingers down and lacing them with the other. He kept his grip loose--it was impulsive, but gentle, and Izra felt like his heart was trying to escape his body. He was old. He should be used to this. He'd known hundreds of humans over his lifetime, had warmed their beds at night, had offered gentle conversation and loving words. His heart should be tired, or at least content. But no, it was hurriedly trying to get out of his chest to scamper around Astrophel's legs like an excited puppy, and there was nothing Izra could do about it. "I'll let you pay, if immortals carry that kind of thing. But I got a part time job cooking eggs at this diner in the early mornings, so I have a little cash."

I like you. I like you, and I want those words to mean more than they sound like they mean in my head. Izra's grip tightened ever so slightly, and he gently pulled the other towards the ice cream stand. A little shared food would help distract him, perhaps. Perhaps...

[Jaykobell]

"Startled" was truly an appropriate word to describe Astrophel's reaction. And he felt bad for it; for causing Izra concern, when the genie had been so kind as to invite Astrophel here, just to share something with him. The least he could do was pay attention.

Which was difficult when Izra did such a thing as holding his hand, their fingers intertwining gently together. Izra did this with such ease. How Astrophel wished he could do the same. How he wished he could enjoy this gentle hold, this moment, without some voice in the back of his head trying to convince him that he was...

He tried to take a few deep breaths. Why this time? They had met before, since that time; since their first encounter. The other times had been just fine; just friendly meetings, two friends spending time together, learning more about each other, a little bit at a time.

What was so different this time?

"Well, I... I-if you'd rather pay," Astrophel mumbled awkwardly, unsure what else to say, his mind too chaotic to overthink and to filter his answers. "I've worked in my... in my lifetime..." He enjoyed this earth, this mortal coil. And in order to live here comfortably, he needed money. But he knew humans sometimes expressed friendship by paying for one another, so if Izra insisted...

Maybe he just needed to sit down and think. Maybe he just needed to put his thoughts together. Maybe he would do that as they ate the ice cream. Maybe focusing on eating, and not talking, would help.

[Hunt Complete]