The silence still isn't broken when Adelaide calls up to them that dinner is finished. Isra looks at the clock beside Corwyn's bed. He didn't realize that much time has passed. The two had been sitting together for a little over an hour in complete silence.

There's a part of Isra that feels comforted by Corwyn's silent company, but another part of him is anxious since he doesn't know what's going through Corwyn's head.

The two are now sitting at the dining table with Corwyn's parents. Isra and Corwyn sit across from each other, Corwyn's father to Isra's left, his mother to the right.

"So, Isra," he looks up at Corwyn's father, "how did you and my son meet?"

Isra glances at Corwyn before looking back at the man. "We just bumped into each other one day. Our friendship sort of clicked, I suppose."

"And you didn't think it was important to tell my son that you were a walking health risk? Adelaide speaks up.

"Mom!" This is what Corwyn was expecting. He knew he shouldn't have assumed that his mother would just accept Isra with open arms.

"It's fine." Isra calms Corwyn down. He knows that his mother is only trying to look out for him. "I didn't think my health was so low. Corwyn knows everything now, though." Isra makes eye contact with him when saying this.

"And you don't think this information is important to us?"

Isra looks back to Adelaide. "No, I don't. It's personal."

She only hums at that, looking down at her plate as she cuts up her chicken. "Just let us know if we should be expecting a funeral."

Her tone is nonchalant, and Isra wonders for a moment if she's always like this before he looks back at his meal. "No, I don't think I'll be leaving anytime soon."

Corwyn's face brightens up at this statement, and he blushes when Isra's eyes glance up at him. The rest of the meal is finished with a calm, quiet atmosphere, the clink of silverware accompanying them.

"So, what do you want to do now?"

Isra and Corwyn left the house after dinner so that they wouldn't be cooped up in Corwyn's bedroom. Although the sky is beginning to grow dark, it's still quite warm out, and so the two boys walk in the middle of the street, no cars in sight.

Isra was staring at Corwyn, although now Corwyn is looking back as Isra didn't respond.

"Isra?"

He just couldn't help it. Corwyn must be the most beautiful person he has ever seen. He doesn't understand why anyone would want to avoid such a beautiful soul because of a mark on his face.

Isra brings his hand up to it, caressing Corwyn's face. Corwyn looks down, slightly moving away from Isra's touch.

Corwyn can't help it. He's been ridiculed for it his entire life, everyone avoiding him because of it. The birthmark takes up almost half of his face, the dark pink stain stark against his pale skin. People would tell him as a child that he was cursed.

"You're beautiful." Corwyn's eyes begin to water and he shakes his head. Isra's hands are on both his cheeks now, and Corwyn sees the sincerity on Isra's face through blurry tears. "You're so beautiful."

"Stop it," Corwyn mumbles, his voice shaky, trying to avoid eye contact."

Isra wraps his hands around Corwyn, hugging him to his chest. "You're beautiful and quirky and weird and funny and brilliant and so, so amazing," Isra whispers all of these words to Corwyn, holding him securely. "I think I'm in love with you."

Isra hasn't thought about it long. It didn't take him very long to realize. Corwyn is on his mind every hour of the day, and the boy has brought him more joy than he ever thought he would feel again. He doesn't know how to explain it, but he is irrevocably in love with Corwyn Jones.

Corwyn's body freezes at Isra's words while his mind goes into overdrive. Isra is in love with him? A million questions go through his mind at once. Is he in love with Isra? What does this mean for their friendship? What will his parents think? Is he gay?

Isra notices Corwyn's hesitation, and although he his chest aches from this, he moves it to the back of his mind. He won't abandon Corwyn because of his own selfish feelings.

Corwyn backs from Isra's chest slightly. "Isra... I don't know what to say..."

"It's fine." Isra strokes his hand along Corwyn's back to calm him. "I would never force my feelings onto you."

Corwyn frowns at these words, although he's not sure why. Isra's backing away barely registers in his mind as he questions why he's so upset by Isra's words. Isn't that what he wanted to hear?

"I have an idea of something we can do."

Corwyn blinks at the change of topic but decides it's better anyway. "What is it?"

"I can show you my hometown. Well, not really my hometown, but it's where I've been living for the past couple of centuries before I met you."

It clicks in Corwyn's mind at that moment that he really doesn't know Isra at all. There's so much he needs to learn. He's about to agree to the trip when he realizes something. "Wait, how did you plan on getting us there?"

Corwyn doesn't know much about Isra, but he knows that he didn't come from around here.

"I'll just teleport us there."

"Are you sure you should be doing that? I don't know how your whole body thing works, but you were nearly dead yesterday."

Isra understands Corwyn's concerns, and he normally wouldn't think about suggesting this, but he wants to distract Corwyn, plus, he has an idea.

"I normally shouldn't be teleporting, you're right," Corwyn opens his mouth to cut him off but Isra continues, "but, I think if you pray to me for our safety everything will be fine."

"That simple?"

"Yes. Prayers work a little strangely. If you make a prayer, I can choose to grant it or not. I think as long as you pray that both of us will be fine for the duration of our trip, it should work out okay."

"I'm not sure if I like the odds you're putting on this."

Isra chuckles. He knows that his logic may sound a little confusing, but he's pretty sure it will work. Then again, he's never tried it, but he would never do anything if he thought there was a large chance of it harming Corwyn.

"Do you trust me?" Isra holds out his hand, and Corwyn looks at it carefully.

He nods. "I trust you." Corwyn places his hand in Isra's, who immediately pulls him close.

Isra places his lips by Corwyn's ear and whispers, "Pray that everything will be okay. Pray that I will have the strength to succeed. Pray for whatever you feel is right."

Corwyn shivers at the words, closing his eyes gently. He doesn't know how to pray, doesn't know if there's a right way to do it. But he thinks about the warmth he feels when he's in Isra's arms, and he thinks about the buzz he feels under his skin when they make contact, his blood pulsing in his veins. He thinks about how he would do anything to never lose that; lose him.

"You can open your eyes now."

Corwyn does this, and he lifts his head from where it was laying on Isra's chest, only to gasp at his surroundings.

Isra had teleported them into an alleyway, so as not to be seen by humans, but even this amazes Corwyn. Everything seems to be made from brick or stone, and there are a couple of balconies jutting out from the buildings, clotheslines hanging between them. The sky above them is a pale blue, and Corwyn immediately is running out of Isra's arms and to the main street.

Corwyn wants to work out where they are, able to narrow it down slightly from the fact that it's earlier in the day. The street is busy, many people walking down as well as riding motorbikes, completely oblivious to the boys. From here Corwyn can see that there are many colors adorning the buildings in the street, as well as murals and other kinds of art.

Isra watches from a few feet away with a small smile on his face. Isra is glad that he is able to share this place with Corwyn. It isn't his true home, but it's home enough.

Seeing Corwyn's reaction to how the city looks causes Isra to reconsider his own. Maybe the changes over the years weren't so bad after all.

Corwyn turns to Isra with a grin. "Are we in Igrec?"

Isra's eyes widen slightly, he doesn't know how Corwyn guessed so easily. What he doesn't know is that Corwyn has wanted to visit this country for years, and so he knows nearly everything about it. It's only a matter of time until he guesses what city they're in.

"Yes, we are."

Isra walks up to Corwyn and Corwyn grabs his hand. "Show me around."

Isra doesn't know if Corwyn is doing it on purpose, but he smiles and grabs Corwyn's hand back. "Let's go."

Corwyn and Isra spent hours touring the entirety of the town, which Corwyn was able to guess the town in a few minutes. Isra has never enjoyed being here more than this day, and it's all because of Corwyn.

It's evening now, and the two are beginning to approach a fountain.

"I love this," Corwyn whispers.

"You do?"

Isra is shocked when Corwyn nods his head yes. He thought that this would be his least favorite part, and so he was reluctant to end their day here, but a part of him wanted to show it to Corwyn. It's the part of his old life, and so that Corwyn loves it warms his heart.

Corwyn loves the entire town, but his favorite part about this country is that they keep much of their history alive. The fountain is quite unassuming at first glance, but he sees the ornate detailing, and especially the symbol that's present through it all. In the tiling in the water, in the carvings.

He walks over to the plaque that is stood in front of the fountain. It reads:

"This fountain is dated back as far as three centuries, however, it may be older than that. It was thought to be a worshipping ground for the Gods. Gifts may have been left here, and it may have been grounds for prayer."

Corwyn looks at Isra and sees that he has a faraway look on his face. He walks in front of him, looking up. "Isra." Isra blinks and looks down. Coy, Corwyn asks, "Do you want to toss in a coin and see if the Gods will grant us a wish?"

Isra smiles sadly, he had been thinking of all of his brothers and sisters, wonder where they were. If they're even still alive. He notices Corwyn's attempt to distract him from his thoughts and allows it. He digs a coin out of his pocket, one he's never spent since it's no longer valued as currency, and hands it to Corwyn.

Corwyn turns the coin over in his hand. "If I make a wish into this fountain will you hear it?"

Isra chuckles and shakes his head. "It would typically go to Amani. She would fulfill wishes if she saw fit. Unless you specifically projected it to me."

"Do you..." Corwyn bites his lip. "Do you think that they're all still alive?"

Isra sighs. He thinks about it all the time, and sometimes he isn't sure of the answer. "I like to think they are. I mean, I'm still alive."

There's a beat of silence before Corwyn perks up. "Do you have another coin?" Isra nods and digs it out and places his palm out so Corwyn can take it. Corwyn curls Isra's hands shut around the coin. "I think you need to make your own wish. Who knows, maybe it'll come true."

Isra releases a breath, grateful that Corwyn exists, and that Isra was blessed to ever meet him. The two boys turn to the fountain, and after a pause, flip their coins into the fountain.

"What did you wish for?" Isra asks.

Corwyn gives a sheepish look, avoiding eye contact. "That your wish would come true."

Two thoughts go through Isra's mind at that moment. One is that he didn't think it was possible, but he has fallen even more in love with the boy standing in front of him. Two is that he had to kiss him.

He pulls Corwyn to him and does just that.

It takes Corwyn's mind a few moments to catch up with his body, and so he soon relaxes against Isra, twisting his shirt in his grip. Corwyn moves his lips against Isra's, no urgency behind the kiss, just feeling each other. Corwyn realizes at this moment that maybe he loves Isra back.

All too soon the boy separate and Corwyn opens his eyes slowly, not realizing they've shut. He sees Isra in front of him, and a giddy smile places itself on his face. He giggles, biting his lip. "Hi."

Isra chuckles. "Hello."

From an outside perspective, the two boys look slightly absurd. Isra has to stoop down to Corwyn's height, while Corwyn himself is on his tippy toes. The two are lost in their own world, and that's perfectly okay.

This story is just having a habit of having long chapters... this chapter was only a hundred words over the limit though *cries*