Shy

Shy
Evans walked quietly out of his room, he pushed his head out and seeing no one watching him, he smiled proudly and walked towards the stairs but as he looked down, his eyes widened in shock seeing the man sitting comfortably on the couch reading the recent newspaper.

“Why—Darn it!” He cursed and immediately ran back to his room but made sure the man downstairs wouldn’t hear his footsteps.

His hands were placed on his hips as he gritted his teeth in anxiousness while pacing around his room.

“Why is Nathan still home? This is past the time he goes to the office, so why is he here?!” he muttered in confusion.

Evans and Nathan had been in the Cold War for the past three days but it was more accurate to say Evans had been avoiding Nathan.

He was still angry with Nathan and doesn’t want to see him so he came up with the plan of staying in his room until Nathan left for office before he goes out and then he comes back early before Nathan comes back from work, but now, it’s seems Nathan wouldn’t be going to work and Evans had a test to take.

He raised his wrist to check the time and was shocked to see he only had an hour left. 

His eyes turned red as panic set in, then as if he had made a big decision, his body became taunt and his eyes flashed with determination, he walked out of his room like he was going to fight a war.

Meanwhile, Nathan read the newly brought newspaper and drank his morning coffee without any plan of going out today.

Today was the weekend and he had had a long day at work throughout the week, then he decided to rest for the weekend, but the truth was—he was baiting a young fellow.

The thought made him curl the corner of his lips as his eyes flashed with amusement.

Suddenly he heard the urgent sound of footsteps and without looking up, Nathan knew the one coming down was Evans and from the sound of his footsteps, it was so clear he was trying to run away without talking to him as usual. 

Hearing the sound of the younger man rushing out, Nathan’s eyes flashed and he suddenly stood up, then with his long legs he blocked his way to the door.

“Eat breakfast before you leave,” Nathan said without hesitation, his voice low and calm like they hadn’t fought. 

Evan’s eyes widened when he heard his words, but instead of feeling grateful or loved, he felt more anger towards Nathan.

He had always known Nathan had a nonchalant attitude but it still annoys him. The way he acted like nothing had happened between them pissed him off even more, but thinking of his test, he decided not to argue with him.

“Move.” 

Nathan frowned as he looked at Evans whose head was lowered. It irritates him that he couldn’t read through him or see his expression. 

“What’s wrong with you? You’ve been hiding away from me for days.” His eyes turned worried as he touched the forehead of Evans, “Are you sick?” He asked gently.

Evans was stunned when he felt the warm palm on his forehead, he raised his head and met the worried gaze of Nathan then found himself speechless.

The rage he had been feeling turned to nothing and the only thing he could see or think of was the worries he saw in the eyes of Nathan.

He swallowed hard and muttered a soft, “No.” 

“Then… What’s wrong? Are you still angry about what happened the night before?” 

Evans opened his mouth to say something but closed it back, his fists at his sides clenched and unclenched and his face twitched as he didn’t know what to say. 

Should he tell Nathan he was right? Or scream and scold him for using a dirty trick on him, but..

“No. I was busy, just like now, I have an important test today and I’ve been preparing for it as the professor told us it will surely add up to our score.” 

What Evans said was half true but that wouldn’t have stopped him from talking or seeing Nathan. He could have screamed and scolded him but the gentleness in the eyes and voice of Nathan warmed his heart.

Nathan smiled gently then pat his head with gentleness, “Seems you won’t be able to eat breakfast at home.” he said with a sigh of regret, then curled the corner of his lips again, “Come back early, I would be home for today. We can go out for dinner.” He concluded  and looked at Evans like he was waiting for his response.

The look of anticipation on the always calm face of Nathan snapped Evans out of his daze. He gulped and felt his legs go weak but he made sure to stand steadily.

His heart throbbed heavily and his breathing came out fast. He knew if he continued to look at Nathan, he might begin to have delusions he shouldn’t have so he shifted his gaze.

He lowered his eyes, then nodded, “Okay!” 



Immediately Evans walked out of the door, he rushed into the elevator then collapsed on the ground, his face was as red as an apple and his ears were even more obvious.

If he could not temper his emotions, he would have been screaming excitedly.

He covered his face with his palms and chuckled.

“You bastard!” He muttered but his eyes were filled with shyness, but immediately the elevator clicked and he walked out, he returned to the serious and polite student. 

Meanwhile, Nathan wasn’t any better. He stood with his hands in his pockets as he fixed his gaze on the door like he could still see Evans, and only after a while did he snap back to his senses.

His lips curled up in a little smile, “He’s only a young man…” He muttered then shook his head as he walked back to the couch to continue reading the newspaper but only he knew if his mind was on it.

It was afternoon when Evans walked out of the lecture room, he walked steadily but also at a fast pace, and if he had wings, he would fly home. 

Just as he stopped a taxi and entered, his phone rang and without checking the name of the caller, he picked it up but the moment he heard the voice on the other side, his mood dropped lower.

“Mum..”He whispered. 

“You don’t know how to call or come home to check on your mother? Why are you so heartless like I didn’t give birth to you?” 

Evans closed his eyes and leaned back on the seat of the moving car while looking out of the window. He didn’t need to respond and he didn’t feel any pain as he was used to her acting this way. 

Only after she had nagged for a while did he interrupt, “Mother..” he pinched the middle of his brows, then continued, “You called for something?” 

Mrs Hart stopped her nagging as she remembered she had truly called for something. 

She palmed her forehead in frustration, “you’re always annoying me everytime I talk to you. Look now, I forgot I called you for an important reason.” She said then rolled her eyes in annoyance.

“Oh…” Evans responded without another word then waited for her to say whatever she had to say

“I wanted to tell you, we have been able to contact your brother and guess what?!” she asked, but didn’t wait for him to respond as she announced in excitement…

“…Your brother will be back in a few days!”