Again, that same feeling Nytin had gotten at the lake resurfaced. His heart began to beat faster, and his palms felt sweaty. He shuffled his feet and let out a nervous chuckle. She thinks I’m cute? He couldn’t help feeling embarrassed; it felt as if his tongue were tied, and he could only manage to speak a few words, “Y-You’re right…uhm…th-thank you.”

He stiffened up as she sat beside him. “So, what did I miss in the movie?”

Nytin quickly made an excuse, “Actually, we were going to rewind it when you returned. We were so absorbed in the conversation that none of us paid attention.”

Avery just smiled and leaned back against the couch, “Sounds like a plan. I kinda like this movie anyway.”

Amirah had begun rewinding the movie and giggled, “I can’t believe you never heard of this movie until now…I swear we watched it when we were younger.”

“Well, I barely watch movies as it is, so I might have been doing something else while you all watched the movie.”

“That's true…well, anyway, let's continue!” Amirah pressed play on the movie and cuddled up to Blaire once more, smiling as her girlfriend wrapped her arm around her.

As the movie continued, Nytin continued explaining it softly to Avery, who followed along quietly, asking questions and trying to piece it together in her head; however, Nytin noticed that she’d gone quiet even while he’d been explaining anything new after some time had passed.

Nytin’s gaze shifted from the television to Avery, who was nodding off to sleep, her plate tilting out of her hands. Concerned she was going to drop it, Nytin gently took it away. “Tired?” he asked softly so as not to bring attention to her.

Avery was a little surprised, “Oh…um…a little.” She whispered back. She hadn’t been this active in a long while, and it was beginning to take its toll on her body. Her eyelids felt heavy, and she could feel a familiar but unwelcoming soreness developing in her legs. Most of all, her appetite had vanished the moment she’d taken the first bite of her dessert, and she couldn't bring herself to eat much more before exhaustion slammed into her full force.

Amirah heard their conversation and looked over, “You okay, Avery?”

She nodded and tried to speak, but was interrupted by a large yawn. “Mm…Yeah...” She paused to stifle yet another yawn, “Goodness…I'm okay, just tired…” She giggled.

Amirah grinned at Blaire before looking back at her best friend, “Do you wanna have a sleepover?”

At first, Avery was taken aback. “Oh…um…” She briefly looked up at Nytin, who had returned to watching the movie, “Sure! We can make breakfast if we wake up in time.”

Her words caught Blaire’s attention, “Can you guys make French toast?”

“French toast sounds good…” 

All three women had looked up at Nytin, who had spoken up. 

Amirah couldn’t help but smile a little wider, trying to seem welcoming, “You can stay too, Nytin, but we only have two rooms unless you're alright sleeping on the couch or sharing a room…But I kinda feel bad for not having somewhere more comfortable…you're so tall, the couch might be a little uncomfortable for you…”

Nytin's face turned red at what she was trying to hint at, “Oh…um…” his eyes flicked between Avery and Amirah. He didn’t want to reject Amirah, but he didn't want to make Avery uncomfortable.

He hadn’t expected Avery to speak up, “Well…I don't mind sharing…you can sleep in the guest room with me, um…I-if you want, of course.”

“...” Nytin could hardly believe Avery was comfortable sharing a bed with him. He stared at her with his mouth slightly agape for a few seconds before snapping out of it, “I-I don’t mind at all…”

Amirah clapped her hands together. “Then that's settled! We can have a big breakfast in the morning and then figure everything else out from there.”

The other three agreed and went back to watching the movie. However, about ten minutes passed, and Avery began falling asleep once again. Nytin noticed and nudged her slightly to get her attention.

Avery looked up in confusion, “Yes?”

Nytin hummed, opening his cloak with his free arm, “Would you like to use me as a pillow?” 

Avery hesitated briefly; she wanted to take a nap but didn't want to ruin the night by causing everyone to stop the movie and head to bed, and Nytins’ offer tempted her more and more by the second. It’ll only be for a second…

“Sure…” She slowly leaned against him, careful not to put all her weight against Nytin so as not to make him uncomfortable. She felt him shift, and her face turned red as she expected him to wrap her arms around him, but he instead put his arm on the back of the couch, watching the movie. Avery felt a twinge of disappointment, but it didn't last long as Nytin lowered his hand to her shoulder, holding her closer, helping her feel much more at ease, and before she knew it, she’d fallen asleep, curling into Nytin further to be more comfortable.

The other three only noticed Avery was asleep when the movie ended. Nytin had looked over since she’d been quiet for quite some time. His cheeks turned red upon seeing just how comfortable she’d gotten. He used his free hand to brush her hair out of her face, exposing her soft, delicate features. He couldn’t help but smile as her brows furrowed slightly, and she buried her face further into Nytin’s side, smiling when she was comfortable again.

She’s so beautiful…

He looked up and cleared his throat to get Amirah and Blaire's attention. "Would you mind if I took her to the spare room?” 

Amirah looked over from her phone, “Oh, she fell asleep? It's the first door to the left.”

Nytin carefully slipped away, supporting Avery's head and shoulders before picking her up from under her legs. Avery didn’t seem disturbed in the slightest and only seemed bothered when he laid her down on the bed. Nytin put the blanket over her torso, moving her hair to the side again, and watched her chest rise and fall slowly under the blanket, her breathing was quiet and she remained still, he couldn’t help but smile, how someone managed to look so graceful while they slept was a mystery to him, but it made him all the more drawn to her.

“Sleep well, Starshine…” He quietly moved away, closed the door, and walked towards the living room. However, the two women staring up at him eagerly made him stop in his tracks.

He slowly looked behind himself and then back at Amirah and Blaire. The two women stared at him in a way that made him very anxious. He felt as if they were plotting something or about to tell him something he wasn’t supposed to know. “Why are you staring at me like that?”

Amirah motioned for Nytin to sit down, and when he did, she began speaking, “So…now that Avery is asleep, are you going to be more honest with us?”

The couple watched as Nytin’s face slowly changed color. Amirah’s question had broken his stoic attitude, and now he was flustered and embarrassed. He could only stammer his answer, “W-what do you mean? About what?”

Amirah knew that Nytin understood what she’d meant, but he was avoiding it, so she decided to say it bluntly so he couldn’t make up any excuses: “Y’know…having a crush on Avery?”

She watched as Nytin’s eyes flickered around, unable to meet her own, “I-I'm too old to have a…a crush.”

“Crush…feelings…having an interest in her, it's all the same thing, really.” She was attempting to pass it off as something small, simple, to make it seem as if it wasn't a big deal.

Nytin began bouncing his leg, “No, it isn't…not when you word it in such a manner…”

Amirah quickly noticed that he was beginning to avoid answering rather than outright denying that he had feelings. “Then I'll put it differently—but you have to be truthful.” She moved slightly closer to him. “Does she make your stomach feel funny?”

“Well-”

“Don't lie.”

He couldn't believe how quickly she'd caught him, “...occasionally…”

“Does she make your heart race?”

“Yes, but-”

Amirah quickly interrupted him to catch him off guard. “Isn't she pretty?”

Nytin hesitated briefly; he didn't want to lie about something like this. “She’s beautiful.” He couldn’t help but smile slightly as he imagined her face once again.

“Do you wish you’d left her sleeping against your shoulder?”

The two women watched as his jade eyes widened, and he appeared as if he didn't want to answer for a moment, “Well…” He couldn’t wrap his mind around how much Amirah knew, even before asking him, “A-are you using some sort of magic?”

Amirah couldn't help but laugh, “No? You’re so obvious. You go from stoic to puppy-eyed around her, but there's no reason to be embarrassed; it's normal.”

Nytin rubbed the back of his neck as silence filled the room, Amirah and Blaire exchanged glances, and looked back over when he spoke again.

“I…may- I…” He tried to find the words for what he was trying to say, yet hardly understood how he felt, “I am quite fond of her, how sweet she is, her beauty and her kindness…I can’t explain it, but she's special.” He paused as he said that, looking up at Amirah and Blaire, “Which is why this must stay between us, away from her and my friendship.”

Blaire finally spoke up, crossing her arms. " That's fine, but what if she feels the same?” Her bluntness caught Amirah off guard. “You two would be together forever… know…she’d be all yours.”

Nytin’s jade eyes widened slightly, “But… that's…” He seemed to be giving it thought, and a vision had begun to form in his mind. Getting to hold Avery and be with her whenever he wanted. Every day would be happier than the last, forever, as he would be hers and…

“She’d be mine?”

A new yet familiar feeling returned to his stomach as his heart began to race; it was hard to deny, and almost harder to ignore. At that moment, Nytin realized he wanted more…a lot more…and a new burning desire soon arose deep within his heart and soul.

He covered his face and looked away from the two women, “Alright…” He slowly slid his hand down, “I will admit…that maybe…” He couldn’t believe what he was about to say, much less admit to Amirah and Blaire. “I…do have feelings for Avery,” he took a deep breath, trying to calm his nerves, “But I can't tell her.”

Blaire’s lips curled into a smile. “Why not?”

Nytin kept his gaze fixed on the ground for a few seconds, trying to decide what he wanted to say, and finally looked up, “I…It’s just that I don’t think she’d like me as…a-as a…”

“Boyfriend?”

Nytin’s voice was small. “Yes, that.”

Amirah felt a bit of guilt well up inside her, but tried to comfort him. “Well, I mean, she is very fond of you; I think you should give it a chance.”

“I…” He shut his eyes tightly for a moment before looking at Amirah, “Avery is so stunning, and remarkable… I don’t think she’d want…me…” Nytin seemed to have hurt his own feelings; he felt defeated, “Not when she could have someone so much better, I don’t even know if she’s interested in a relationship, much less with me.”

Blaire looked over at Amirah. They both felt guilty now; this was probably the reason he had denied having feelings in the first place, and now they’d pushed it much too far. However, Blaire seemed to have an idea.

“Alright, look, man, Avery is totally down for dating…she’s just scared.”

“Scared?”

“She hasn’t even had her first kiss yet; she’s scared of getting too attached or moving too far into a relationship.” Blaire nudged Amirah for support, who quickly joined in.

“Avery told me she doesn’t think she deserves to get close to people because she doesn’t want to hurt them or get hurt, it's because…well…” She trailed off, but Nytin finished her sentence.

“Her illness?”

The two women nodded, and Blaire continued, “Yes, she’s been hurt before, but that doesn’t mean she doesn’t deserve to be happy, and I’ll be honest, you make her pretty happy.” She couldn’t help but laugh a little. " I'm surprised you haven’t gotten the hint, at least a little. Even if she doesn’t have a crush on you yet, she likes you a lot…why don’t you just…try? We can help you out!” 

Nytin’s brows furrowed as he processed what Blaire said. He knew that he and Avery had bonded rapidly in their short time together, and Nytin had become more drawn to her in every way he could imagine. He wanted to give her everything she deserved, protect her, and embrace her, but he couldn’t do that while only being her friend, and he couldn’t stand the idea of another man taking her away from him.

He took a deep breath and his gaze moved from the floor to Blaire, “...I’ll…think about it.”

Amirah and Blaire looked at one another and smiled, giving each other a high five.

What have I gotten myself into…?