After a tiring session of football practice with a majority of the time spent with me doing absolutely nothing whilst Alexander repeatedly attempted to murder me with a football, we decided to call it a day - however Alex wasn't entirely ready to head back home just yet and that's how we ended up laying on the grass beside each other with earphones plugged into our ears as we listened to Alex's playlist. 

After a few minutes had passed with us sharing a moment of comfortable silence while staring up at the stars, Alex pointed up at the sky, "If you connect those five stars together, it kind of ends up looking like a heart."

I glanced over to where he was pointing and realized that he was right, and attempted to sound all philosophical myself by pointing to another constellation of stars, "If you connect those eight stars together, it ends up looking like a sausage."

"What the fuck?" he responded with a slight chuckle. What followed was another minute or two of complete silence, the music eventually stopped playing as well and the only sounds that remained were the faint sounds of crickets in the bushes nearby and the sound of our heavy breathing from such a tiring session of practice. 

All of a sudden, he pulled the bud of his earphone out of his ear and turned to face me, "I think I'm ready to tell you what's the deal with my mom. Can I?"

I chewed onto my lower lip for a moment before tilting my head a little so our eyes could meet, "Are you entirely sure that you're ready?"

"Yes so please shut up and listen," he said with a soft chuckle. "It's not as bad as you think it is. She isn't abusive - she's just losing her touch with reality, I guess? I mean - ever since her and my dad got a divorce, she's started drinking non-stop. It didn't bother me in the beginning, but now she stays late at night drinking her feelings away and doesn't get back home till four in the morning and it worries me, you know?"

"Have you tried talking to her about it?" I questioned in a soft voice, rolling over onto my side so I could get a better look at him. He pursed his lips momentarily before nodding, "Yeah. It didn't really do her case any justice. That's why I'm staying at my aunt's place right now."

We sat in silence for another minute or two before he extended his arm out and began twirling a strand of my hair around his finger. I glanced over at him in curiosity and stayed still, captivated as he tucked the stray strand behind my ear with a small grin. 

Then, he propped himself up on his elbow and tilted his head at me with a fond expression on his face, "I don't think I've ever trusted anyone as much as I trust you, Kairo."

I felt my heart jump at that and I couldn't help the smile that found its way onto my face, "I could say the same. I've known Ethan for way longer than I've known you and I still trust you more, I don't know if that's a good or a bad thing."

He stayed silent with his lower lip caught between his teeth as if he were thinking about something - and then the most unexpected thing happened. 

He moved his hand over to the nape of my neck and pulled me just an inch closer before his gaze traveled down to my lips before he whispered in a low voice, "I'm sorry for what I'm about to do, Kairo."

My breath hitched in my throat and I found myself unable to move. I couldn't find the strength in me to push him away or to tell him to stop - because if I said I didn't want it, I'd be lying to myself. Even if I did manage to tell him to stop, my actions would be contradicting my words because I'd been the first among the both of us to begin leaning in gradually - and as I did so, I felt my heart begin to perform flips. I placed one of my hands onto his shoulder and shut my eyes in anticipation of what was to come.

And then it happened.

Our lips finally made contact. At that moment, nothing else mattered. The sound of the crickets in the background eventually faded away and the only sound that now remained was the sound of our shaky breaths entwining in the humid air surrounding us. He tilted his head ever so slightly to deepen the kiss and I found myself losing what little self-control I had left. 

He pulled back a few seconds after in a state of panic, "Kairo, are you sure you-" 

I didn't let him finish his sentence. I took a hold of the material of his shirt and pulled him back into the kiss and I could instantly feel him smiling into the kiss. 

I wished that that moment would never come to an end.