Ari woke up to a pair of gray eyes staring at him from afar. Kaval came close and bent down toward his face which made Ari turn on his side away from him. Still, Kaval tried to get Ari to look at him by going to his other side, but Ari only turned on his other side and closed his eyes. Ari drew his lips into a frown and sighed. Why was Kaval being such a pest as soon as he woke up?

"I am not mad at you... Kaval. Sometimes, I would like some space to myself, is all," Ari mumbled with sleep still heavy in his voice. Soft lips pressed onto his cheek which made Ari's cheeks redden.

"Then shall I lay here with you?"

Ari rose quickly and looked at Kaval, blushing. "That is the exact opposite of what I want from you, Kaval."

"Or is it that... you rather it be with someone else instead? Someone with darker, longer hair than I and eyes that rival the beauty of the moon," Kaval teased causing Ari to push Kaval's face moving closer to his.

"If you know then why do you continue to bring it up?"

"Because it is cute. I wonder how long you will be at this until you grow tired of it."

Ari bowed his head and nodded. "I suppose you were right. I suppose everyone was right. The way I have been looking at things-- no, going about it was childish and in vain.

"Mmm... " Kaval tapped his finger mindlessly on his chin.

"He has his reasons to dislike me or put me at a distance. It finally gives me the clarity that I needed for why he acted the way he did towards me for so long and why Cyrus kept trying to keep me away from him. I am a little upset." Ari bit his lip. "I am more than a little upset... but I..."

"Still love him?"

"I still want to speak with him... and hear more."

"What is left for him to tell? He was using you and then somewhere down the line lost sight of it and became smitten with you. The end. What more would you like to know?"

Ari ignored him and walked out the door. It was night out and the stars shined brightly up above. Just how long did he sleep? There was a chill in the air he hadn't felt before. He knew he needed blood if he was affected by the temperatures outside. Ari licked his lips causing the cold to creep up on them. His breath made soft clouds that quickly disappeared as he continued forming new ones.

Just as he thought, Auovin did not move from his spot near the tree where Ari had first seen him. Ari grew closer and realized he was staring at the stars. It made Ari look up, causing him to stumble over a tree root. He fell into the massive garden of pink flowers. Petals flew up and covered some of his face. There was no way Auovin did not hear that which made Ari squeeze his eyes shut. Why could he not do a thing properly whenever it came to Auovin? He was never so clumsy and so absent-minded when it came to other things.

Ari opened his eyes and saw a pair of yellow ones staring right back into his. He was far too embarrassed to care about Auovin's closeness. Slowly, Ari covered his eyes with his forearm, but Auovin took it away and gave him a small smile which sent a warm feeling to his chest.

"I suppose Cyrus would say this is uncute of you... but I find it quite appealing."

Auovin continued to gaze into his eyes. Ari's heart pounded in his chest waiting for that timely kiss or whisper near his ear. However, nothing came. Auovin just looked at Ari which unnerved him. Was he seeing his father or was he seeing him? Ari swallowed dryly at the bitter thought.

"I am not him," Ari uttered.

"I know this."

"Even if you wish it or pretend like I am him, I am not."

"I do not wish it nor could I pretend because of these eyes... " Auovin caressed his cheek. "They are not his. They belong to a Great instead."

Ari heard the distaste of it in his voice which made Ari grow considerably self-conscious once again. Still, Ari managed to look into his eyes and found nothing but warmth in them. Did he dislike him or did he like him? Ari could not tell. His mouth said one thing but his eyes said another. It was confusing. There was one way he could find out, though. One way he could find out everything.

Aouvin leaned closer for a kiss but Ari pressed a finger to Auovin's lips keeping him at bay for the moment.

"I remind you of him. I know I do. Do not lie. It is much too late to worry about my feelings if you ever did. You already hurt them."

Auovin pursed his lips and moved from over Ari.

"Was that your plan all along? To use me to your benefit? He had hurt you and so now you hurt me, is that it? If that is so, you are cruel. Too cruel," Ari murmured. "You know I... "

Ari covered his eyes again.

"You may not want to hear such words coming from my lips, do you? There is no point in me saying it because you already know. You knew for all this time and you... " Ari wanted to cry at that moment, but he held it together and sat up.

"I never even met the man and still I must shoulder his sins."

"Yes, it was like that. I will not lie to you. I never have before," Auovin said, unapologetic.

"Is that suppose to make me feel better? You have not lied. That is true, but you have not really been honest. You kept things from me."

"And would me saying all of this to you then change anything now?"

Ari bit down on his lip hard at the question. Auovin only pressed his thumb onto Ari's chin, untucking his lip.

"It would not change a thing. It was only a matter of how and when... I do not expect for you to forgive me."

"It is not as if you want me to."

"I do not."

The pink flowers surrounding Ari took his eyes away from the pair of yellow ones staring intently back at him. Auovin was nothing but stubborn. He was not being honest with himself like with most other things. What did Ari expect? Still, as much as Ari wanted to wipe his hands clean with him, he could not.

"If you like me then say you like me and if you do not, then say it. Do not make things so complicated. For once, be honest with yourself... with me."

"Honest?" Auovin said as if he was hearing that word for the first time.

"Yes, honest--."

"You do not read between the lines very well, do you?"

Auovin bent down and kissed Ari's lips, silencing him. Ari tasted the pomegrante fresh on his tongue. It was a bittersweet taste, leaving Ari wanting more, but Ari resisted the temptation. He did not run his fingers through Auovin's hair or caress his check to angle himself better. Even still, Ari's mind was quickly going blank the further Auovin pressed onto him. Auovin's hair dangled near his face, tickling his cheek. His heated breath filled Ari's mind with steamy thoughts.

Unlike before, they were not so rough nor gentle. They were somewhere in between which Ari liked very much. He could not help himself for much longer. Ari cracked his eyes, seeing honeyed slit eyes gazing back at him. Heat travelled from his cheeks down to the very tip of his toes. Auovin was nothing but gorgeous, an illustrious temptation. That much was certain.

Auovin separated his lips from Ari's with a small smile lingering on his. Ari was flustered and angry with himself that he could become so unravelled by a simple kiss from him. It made everything he said prior to that kiss meaningless, almost.

"Seems as though I am not the only one being dishonest."

"Hypocrite," Ari whispered under his breath. He was flushed red and his heart hammered out of his chest. He could hardly muster out any words without showing how much Auovin affected him.

"Only a fool would grow to love someone like you, and I suppose... I am that fool," Auovin murmured as he took Ari's hand and pressed it to his chest. It was beating fast much like his own. "As well as one other."

Ari's eyes widened.

"Now that you have me, what will you do with me, Little Ari?"

"I... " Ari became tongue-tied.

"Wrap me around your little finger? Devour me whole?"

"I do not... "

"I would be too much to swallow," Auovin whispered near his ear, "but you can try."

Even though Auovin's words spoke of a different meaning, Ari knew what they truly meant. Ari could read between the lines quite well, but feelings and emotions were harder to figure out. He wanted Auovin to say it, and now that he had, Ari promised himself he would not ever take it for granted. It took Ari so much time for him to pry away Auovin's feelings he has, for months, been trying to understand.

"I will not hurt you."

"You say such words with this face... It makes it even harder to believe."

"I will not."

Auovin smiled and cupped Ari's face into his hands. "It is not a matter of if... Just a matter of when."

"After all this time loving you one-sidedly you think I would do something like that?" There it was again. There was something Auovin was not telling him.

Auovin ran his fingers through his hair and pressed his forehead onto Ari's after a moment. "No... I do not think you would, but you will."

Ari grabbed the top of his shirt as he tried to move from over him and pulled him back into himself. As soon as Auovin's eyes met with his once more, Ari felt a burning sensation churning in the pit of his stomach. Auovin sank back onto him, keeping one arm above Ari's head and another by Ari's cheek, thumbing his lip.

"Here I had every intention of letting you go, untouched. If you keep doing this, I may be the one that swallows you whole." Auovin twirled a piece of Ari's hair in between his fingers as he said that.

His breath blew on his lips causing Ari to lick them. He had to fight off the urge to kiss him. Despite what everyone else thought, Ari was not a slave to his emotions. He had self-discipline.

"Look how your pet is waiting for you patiently by the doorstep."

"Pet? He is not my pet."

"Whatever you would like to call it."

"He is not an it. He is a friend and he cares for me."

"Ari... You must understand by now the only good intentions demons have is for themselves."

Ari looked at Kaval waiting impatiently by the door. Kaval did not like Auovin one bit and the same went for Auovin. There was some deep-set hatred between them that words could never erase, Ari knew.

"I do not think that is true."

Auovin's gaze lingered on Ari.

"Your intentions for me may have been bad, in the beginning, but I know you would never intentionally hurt me. Nor would you Cyrus. You cannot fool me with your words any longer, Auovin. As best as you try and hide it, I know you are not this terrible, wicked thing. You are someone that has been hurt and does not want to be hurt again. And you built these... barricades around you so impregnable everyone around you seems to think the worse of you. And you know I know this, so you try and push me away. But here I am, and here you are."

Ari tried to touch his face but Auovin got from over him fully.

"You say you do not want to be forgiven, but that is false," Ari mumbled. "You are selfish for shouldering a burden that is doing nothing but breaking you into pieces by the weight and pain it carries."

"You are naive and thoroughly misguided if you believe I am nothing but goodness buried under pain. Do not bother to try and find me again. You may not like what you find."

"Hypocrite."

Auovin gave Ari one last look and, in a blink of an eye, he was gone. He disappeared with the fog coming down from the mountains, surrounding the lake and soon the greenery around it.

Ari clutched the flowers growing around him in his hands and threw them back on the ground. He did not like what he was saying, so he leaves? What a childish way of going about things. As much as he tried, Ari could not pick up his scent. Ari did not think he could go far, but there were things Ari still did not know about.

When he turned to look at Kaval, Kaval only gave him a soft smile and beckoned him closer. Ari ignored him and continued to sit on the grass trying to digest every word said between Auovin and him. Ari took another look at Kaval not trying to show his uneasiness, but there was an air surrounding him that was stifling.

"It is time now that I show you what you really are."

"Liar," Ari murmured under his breath which only caused Kaval's smile to worsen.

"I suppose I am."