Simon continued to keep his eyes trained on the other man, strangely satisfied by how shy he seemed all of a sudden. “My reply last night,” he started carefully, “I don’t quite remember. I think I shrugged awkwardly? My reply now… well, you were drunk, you hardly knew what you were saying. I’m not entirely sure I believed you anyways.”
Kaye nodded slowly, part of him wanting to tell Simon that…he really did mean that, even if he was drunk. Most of his truths usually came out through alcohol. Though, Simon would probably shrug him off, or either be disgusted.
"I'm sorry about that. I didn't m-" He started cautiously, rubbing the back of his neck nervously. "I didn't mean to put you in an awkward situation," Kaye finished, not sure of what to say next. He suddenly hoped that Simon could come up with something before they both didn't know what to say.
(Merry Christmas if you celebrate!)
Simon gave him an eloquent shrug in response. “Don’t worry about it, we all say stupid things when we’re drunk. And to be fair, I asked at a time that you weren’t entirely in control of your mind, so that was wrong on my part.”
(Thank you! And merry christmas to you too)
Kaye nodded, his confident personality dimming next to Simon, something that the blonde haired man seemed to affect whenever he got near him. Though, part of him was okay with that. "Uh, so…" He trailed off as he ran a hand through his messy hair, unsure of what to say next without messing up. Maybe Simon didn't want to talk to him after all.
:D
Simon rubbed at the nape of his neck, wincing when he hit a tender bruise. Kaye seemed to be…. flustered, almost, his flirty demeanour melting away by the second. Unsure why he was playing along, Simon flashed a somewhat tentative grin, setting his glass down on the bar top. “So, do you come here every night?”
(When should the person from Simon’s past make an appearance?)
(probably whenever you'd like them too.)
"Not every night, though every once in a while. I mostly come here to see Ashley," Kaye answered with a small shrug, only glancing towards Simon every once in a while, though his gaze caught on the grin the other man had. Were they…smiling? That was an odd sight on Simon, but Kaye had to admit that he liked it.
(Maybe in a few posts?)
Simon suddenly realized that he was smiling, and dropped it, but it was too late. For a moment, Kaye had seen him with his guard down— that was bad. Still, he attempted to recover. “Are you and Ashley…” he spread his fingers. “Together?”
"Together? No," Kaye answered with a small laugh, his expression almost disbelief. He had liked Ashley at some point, since the other boy had helped him with so many things, though he realized that they would be better off as friends. "What would someone like him, do with someone like me," he added with a small shake of his head as he took a sip of his drink, realizing the words had left his mouth before he could stop them. Even if they were mumbled, Simon could probably still here it at this proximity.
Simon tilted his head, perplexed by this answer. “What do you mean by that?” he asked, oddly sympathetic for the other man. He thinks he’s not good enough? He thinks that he’s not enough?
Kaye released a small sigh when Simon asked him the question, a bit startled by how much softer the other man's tone seemed to be, though he didn't let it show on his face. "He– he's Ashley, and I'm just the…train-wreck with bruises on their face," he muttered, not wanting to say it too loud. He had never enjoyed talking about his emotions…it made him uncomfortable.
Simon offered another shrug, which seemed to be half his vocabulary at this point. “Everyone’s a train wreck on the inside. And even so, that doesn’t mean you don’t deserve him or whatever other bullshit you think.” His words came out harsher than he’d intended, and be rushed to soften his words. “I mean— you know what I mean, right?”
"It's fine," Kaye rushed to answer, wishing that he hadn't told Simon too much. He always had an impulse to say too much, and that always came out even more when he had too much to drink. "I don't like him anyway. He's just a friend," he added with a small shake of his head.
Simon sighed. The last thing he’d expected to be doing tonight was pep talk the cute guy who’d let him stay over at night. “If you say so..” he replied, raising his glass to his lips again.
"Well, what about you? Who's caught your eye so far?" Kaye asked, raising a teasing brow as he motioned around the room. Now that the conversation wasn't surrounding him, he seemed to regain his joking personality quickly.
Simon was definitely not going to admit that his eye had, in fact, been drawn to Kaye— hell, he wasn’t even admitting it to himself. He raised his own brow in response to the other man’s, faking a convincing smirk. “No one… yet. Maybe there’s someone you could recommend?”
"Well, what's your type? Brunette or blond, brown eyes or blue," Kaye listed as he glanced around the room, part of him satisfied that Simon hadn't been attracted to anyone yet, though he didn't exactly understand why he felt that way. There were plenty of cute guys here, many of which that would easily be attracted to Simon.
Simon turned the question over in his mind, tapping his fingers against the top of the bar. “I’ve always liked brown eyes….” he replied, biting his lip in thought. “Hazel eyes are nice, I guess. Hair doesn’t really matter to me… I generally care more about the personality.” He hesitated, unsure why he was telling Kaye this. “Someone who won’t mind how…. cautious I am. Someone understanding..”
Kaye hummed in thought as he looked around the bar, glancing over the bar tenders for a few moments as well. He knew many of them, so that might be a good start. "Understanding…right," he repeated in thought, his eyes finally settling on another blonde haired boy who appeared to have darker eyes. He couldn't remember their name…though he thought it was along the lines of Finn, or Finley. "They're rather nice. Tough at times, though they're sweet." Kaye continued to look around the bar, looking for any other options.
Simon followed Kaye’s gaze to a cute boy with messy blond hair and dark eyes. “Hm, he’s attractive enough, I guess. What’s his name?” he inquired with a tiny smile. “Do you know him?”
"Finley, and yeah, he's a friend of mine," Kaye answered with a small shrug as he glanced over towards Simon. "And attractive enough? You're going to be more difficult than I thought," he teased with a bright grin, as he looked around the bar once again.
Simon flushed ever so slightly, leaning his elbows against the bar. “What can I say? After so long being single, I’ve got high standards.” He was 90% sure that the alcohol was getting to his head, but a small part of him thought that might just have been Kaye’s unintentional charm. “What about you? Got a type?”
"I like people with interesting features. Scars, hair colors of every type, even mismatched eyes," Kaye hummed, a small, crooked grin crossing his face as he took a sip from his drink. He had pretty much just called Simon out for his eye color, though he wanted to see how the boy would react.
A flicker of astonished disbelief crossed Simon’s features as he took in Kaye’s meaning. Was he….. flirting? With him? He blinked, barely managing to raise his eyebrow. “Mismatched eyes, hm?”
"Yeah, they're cute," Kaye added with a small hum, his smile turning into more of a faint smirk at Simon's almost shocked expression. Flirting came rather easily to him, and he especially liked doing it to Simon and gauging their reaction.
And suddenly, it was Simon who felt flustered and shy. “Is there something you’re trying to say?” he asked carefully, giving a suave tone a go. He failed, coming off as more nervous than confident and flirty.
"I don't know…is there something you think I'm trying to say?" Kaye asked, his tone almost innocent as he raised a brow at Simon. He leaned forward on his elbows, seemingly satisfied with the fact that he wasn't the nervous one anymore. Though, seeming Simon flustered was not a sight he was used to. "Or, is there something you want to say?"
There was a man flirting with him. Flirting. With him. Simon flinched back involuntarily, scrambling to get a hold on himself. “Did someone put you up to this?” he asked disbelievingly, hating the way his heart rate seemed to speed up.
Kaye's brows drew together as he saw Simon flinch back, confused by the sudden movement. "Put me up to what?" He asked, concern and confusion evident in his voice as he watched the other men. Did Simon think that someone was setting him up somehow…?
“Never mind…” Simon sighed, averting his eyes. He’d gone and messed things up… again. As usual. He inhaled gently, letting his eyes travel from person to person in the bar, until— he froze. That’s not possible..
Kaye nodded slowly and went to open his mouth to say it was alright, though he noticed Simon's sudden alert and followed their gaze. He turned around hesitantly and glanced around, not able to quite make out who was in the bar since the lights were dimmed down. Instead of speaking up, he watched Simon's face for a reaction…to see if it was either good or bad.