Coffee and Bliss novel Chapter 19

Tristan punched the door of the cubicle mercilessly. He was too devastated by himself. He let his rudeness control him earlier while talking to Harris. All he wanted yesterday was to settle things with the pale man. But things got uncontrolled when he saw the article. All the words he wanted to say to the pale man vanished. He let him slip away when in fact, he had all the time earlier to confess and turned things right. He was really stupid!

The loud bang of the opening door made him stop. Roy and Regan entered with a shocked face when they looked at his bruised hands. He looked away and leaned his forehead to the door. He was too tired for what had just happened. He couldn’t think of anything, all he wanted was to escape by hurting himself. It feels right. Feeling the pain. 

“Shia! What the hell has happened? We saw your guy running off the university.” Regan began to ask.

'He ran off?'

“Maybe Tristan was mad at him. Who wouldn’t? Instead of fixing the issue, that guy just made everything more complicated. We all know that Tristan is straighter than a pole,” Roy said to his boyfriend while shaking his head.

He crossed his hands on his chest and tapped his foot on the floor. 'Made everything more complicated? Straight?' 

Then something lit on his mind. That’s it! That made everything clear for him, for Harris’ question and every action the pale man towards him. He was asking him what he was to clear out things between them. The sexual tension, the unexplainable feelings, the flirty looks to each other.

He smacked his head for being really stupid. 

“Don’t worry, Ai. That guy cleared everything after. He was smart, I guess, to clear it with classy remarks. He nailed it,” Regan said. Both of his friends tossed their hands.

“D-Do you still have the article, no—I mean what he said about it?” He asked. Regan shoved him his cellphone.

His hands were shaking, he was too scared for what he was about to read.

'First, the little girl is Tristan’s niece. Second, yes, we’re living together because I am his dorm mate. Third, to answer the question if we are together, my answer is maybe. There are many things we really need to clear out first but what I am sure is that we have something special. I hope you will stop now invading our privacy.'

The cellphone almost slipped out of his hands. He couldn’t move his body, he was trembling. 

“I’m a dumb ass for saying what happened last night was just a mistake!” He cursed himself. He was too shocked and didn’t know what to say in front of the pale man so he just said it without thinking. He answered him wrong! 

“Fuck! How can I solve this?” He groaned, ruffling his hair with annoyance. 

“Simple. Just prove that the last statement of him wasn’t right. He already solved the issue. Just make it more—”

“I promise that I will not make him cry anymore. For sure, that stubborn pale man was indeed crying right now. Shit!” 

He didn’t mind what Regan was saying. All he cared about was Harris. His Harris. His pale man.

“What? Are you kidding us? You’re about to lose your reputation!”

“I don’t care. Harris is more than my popularity. Believe me or not, I've fallen for a guy, and that is him. He makes my heart flutter, he makes me think that life is more precious than it was. He makes me believe not to miss the chance and grab it while it’s there. And that’s what I am going to do. I will not miss the chance anymore of having him,” He said, with a determined voice. 

“Pray for my soul, boys!”

He smirked while patting his friends’ shoulders. 'Yeah pray for me because I know this is going to be hard. Harris is hard-headed.' He walked out of the cubicle and left his shocked friends.

***

Tristan tried to call Harris’ cell phone but it was out of reach. He looked for him in their class but his friends told him that he cut his class.

'Where the fuck are you?'

Then it hit him. Harris really loved his personal space. He wanted to be alone all the time he was feeling unhappy or confused. Meaning, he locked up himself again. He was half-sure that he was in their dorm.

He quickly made his way to the dorm. There was no evidence of having someone there. He looked everywhere and still not got a glimpse of the pale man. His only option now is his room. He made a quiet walk. The room was not locked. 

“Harris?” He asked in a whisper tone. He couldn’t see anything at first as the room just had a little glimpse of light coming from the lampshade. He walked inside, still whispering for his name. 

He almost squealed like a woman when he tripped on something. He realized it was a container of food. He searched for the switch and when it turned on, he saw a bloody and disgusting sight of the pale man’s room. Foods were all over the floor. Harris was laying on the floor with his eyes closed. He tapped his legs using his own feet but Harris didn’t flinch even a little. 

He kneeled near the pale man’s head. He brushed his hair. Then it crashed his heart when he saw Harris’ face. There were dried tears on his cheeks. 'Deja vu' He leaned forward, using his thumb, he wiped those tears. He was cursing himself silently because he already broke his promise not to make him cry or sad.

Unaware of what he was doing, he leaned to the pale man’s face. His hands consciously caressing the soft and pale cheeks. Suddenly, he felt something inside his chest, it was thumping fast like it was about to explode. 

“Sorry for hurting you. I’m sorry.”

The urge of kissing the man under him made his heart beat fast. Without a second thought, he pressed his lips on him. It felt so soft like cotton, sweet as candy. It was just a peck but he couldn't control himself. He was too engrossed in kissing him. His lips move gently, not wanting to wake him up. He was addicted to his lips. He wants to devour it like there was no tomorrow. 

He gulped loudly when he saw the piercing eyes looking straight at him. His lips stopped moving, his eyes were fixed on Harris' eyes. It lasted for a minute. Harris pushed him hard and his ass met the hard floor. His hands were on the floor behind supporting him. 

Harris’ lips were swollen, and were wide open, even his eyes. “What the fuck are you doing?” He asked with a hoarse voice. 

He couldn’t find any words to answer. 

“You’re kissing me.” It was a half-statement and half-question. Harris touched his lips with his forefinger. 

“Umh. Am I?” His voice stuttered. 

“You don’t know what you are doing? You are just fucking kissing me while I am asleep. It’s sexual harassment!” Harris blurted out. 

Harris was about to stand up but he was way faster than him. He knocked down the pale man on the floor, hovering over him. Their chests were touching and he almost felt the same rhythm of the pale man’s heartbeat. His hand slowly pinning Harris’ hand over his head. 

“You’re not trying to rape me, aren’t you?” Harris asked. 

He noticed Harris’ tired face. His eyes were not as bright as the sun anymore, they were filled with many emotions that he couldn't figure out. 

He sighed. 'What the fuck I am doing?'

He loosened his grip. But his right hand caressed the cheeks of the pale man. Gently massaging it like it was a baby’s face.