Chapter 2: |Beginnings| Chapter 2

When Avery awoke, he was surprised to say the least, to see Nytin still sitting in the same spot, unlike all the other times where he'd leave a little after Avery fell asleep. Avery assumed this was always right before he woke up, because he still felt as if someone was sitting nearby, but when he would go to look, Nytin would be gone. He sat up and stretched, flopping back on the grass after cracking his back, he hummed softly and turned to look at Nytin who spoke first without even turning around.

“Finally awake? You were out for a good two hours or so..usually you…er..nevermind.” He didn't finish their sentence, instead picking up a small rock and skipping it across the lake, watching it bounce along the water before sinking. Avery didn't respond for a moment and sighed, rubbing his head appearing troubled by this factor for just a moment before he sheepishly laughed scratching the back of his head. 

“Really?...Maybe I should start setting timers…were you waiting for me to wake up?" 

Nytin nodded, "Uh..yeah..I was wondering if we could..get the apple s-strudels now..I mean today…if..you're..uh..okay with it."

Avery noticed that their pronunciation of the word was better now, and the truth in that factor was that Nytin had practiced saying it for a good while, just to ask this question without sounding like a fool. Nytin skipped another stone in the water as he spoke, a little embarrassed. Avery hadn't answered yet, and was secretly getting closer to Nytin, this was the first time Nytin had asked for something from Avery, so naturally he was a little curious about Nytin's request. 

"You want them today? Isn't that a lot of sugar?" Avery asked while inching closer to Nytin, who pulled his hood down even more, and didn't answer much to Avery's amusement, he stifled a laugh and sighed as if he were giving in, "Well..if you insist, I suppose…we can go today.". Nytin seemed to perk up at this and unexpectedly turned around to face Avery who had sat down right next to them, Nytin looked away quickly and hastily stood up, holding their hand out to help Avery up, averting any eye contact, even if Avery couldn't see his face.

“W-well then let's go, before it gets too late.” Nytin said softly, embarrassed due to his childish behavior that arose just from hearing Avery agree to get dessert.

Avery laughed a little and took his hand standing up, “Okay, lets go.” He said with a smile, deciding to spare Nytin any extra embarrassment by explaining that it was only around nine in the morning, and that the bakery wouldn't be closed for a long while, “The bakery is pretty close by, so we can just walk there.”

Nytin nodded before realizing that Avery couldn't see that range of motion, he cleared his throat before answering properly, "That sounds good, let's get going then." He said softly, beginning to follow Avery as he led the way back to the main path of the park.

 The two were silent as they walked, although Nytin was watching Avery like a hawk, knowing that Avery was visually impaired made him anxious about Avery tripping and falling, he picked up his own pace to walk right beside Avery just in case he needed to catch him.

 The two safely made it back onto the park grounds and Avery decided to strike up a conversation, "So what made you want apple strudels now?" It was a simple question, but Nytin found himself unable to answer it properly.

"...I dunno..I just..got in the mood I guess?" He answered with a shrug, "I guess.. talking about it made me want it more." 

“Hmm..Y'know if we hung out more often we could get more desserts, sometimes I can't bring anything new..because they're only available in the later afternoon.” Avery said powering on his phone, he searched up the menu of the bakery and held it up to Nytin who was immediately curious and looked down at the menu, reading the list of all the desserts available. He wanted to try all of the desserts listed, especially the ones he couldn't pronounce.

"I dunno what some of that stuff is but…I wanna try it.."

"We can try it tomorrow if you want?" Avery offered and Nytin quickly agreed. 

 The two walked a little more, chatting about desserts and what not, until they arrived at the bakery. It was on the corner of the street they were on, surrounded by many other shops that sold a range of items from vintage wares to a simple cup of coffee. The bakery had large windows that had the morning display of breads and a few desserts Including Nytins favorite tarts. Nytin held the door open for Avery and they both walked in, the smell of all the freshly baked items practically made Nytin drool, he managed to maintain his composure and follow closely behind Avery as he greeted the cashier. 

"Hey Avery! Back again so soon?" The woman at the register asked, then she noticed Nytin standing behind Avery and smiled, "I see you've brought company this time."

Avery nodded, "Nice to see you Kelly, this is my new friend, y'know..the one who I met at the park?" He motioned to Nytin who simply waved while looking away awkwardly, Kelly seemed to understand who exactly Nytin was and waved back with an understanding smile, knowing he was very shy from what Avery told her.

"I see..it's nice to finally meet you, Avery already said it but my name is Kelly." She moved her attention back to Avery, "So what can I get you two? Want a paper menu or do you already know what you need." 

Avery shook his head with a smile, "Nah.. I already know..could we get five apple strudels?" Nytin perked up at that, they had thought they were only going to get one, but it seems Avery had other plans, he moved closer to Avery, clearly excited about getting to eat more than one strudel. 

"Sure thing!" Kelly walked over to one of the warm display cases, she quickly packed them up some of the strudels, and she decided to add in a little extra, putting in two of the tarts Avery ordered most. "Here, the tarts are on the house." She said with a smile putting the box into Avery's hands, who thanked her and paid, "Have a nice day to the both of you, hope you enjoy." She said waving goodbye, and both Avery and Nytin waved back and walked out of the bakery.

Nytin had his eye on the small box Avery was carrying, he didn't want to bother Avery by asking to have one immediately, but Avery seemed to notice them staring at the box anyway. Avery smiled a little, he moved the box towards Nytin and opened it, Nytin hesitated and looked at Avery as if asking for permission to take one..even though Avery still couldn't see his face.

"You can take some..they are for you after all." Avery said reassuringly, Nytin happily grabbed one of the apple strudels and bit into it, it was still warm and the gooey center was full of flavor, Nytin couldn't help but smile while they ate it.

"It's really good, better than what I imagined it would be." Nytin said softly, "Thank you Starshine." 

"I'm glad you like it, do you want to go sit down and eat them?" Avery asked, "Or we could keep walking..have you been around here before?" 

Nytin thought about it, never having taken the time to actually enjoy any scenery in the city before, and with Avery there, and apple strudels at his side it seemed that it would be rather enjoyable to take a stroll around the city. 

"We can keep walking, it's pretty nice to take in all the scenery." Nytin answered whilst finishing off his apple strudel, wiping the crumbs off their clothes and face, a little embarrassed that he ate it so sloppily.

"I know a place to walk around, It feels really nice to sit down or walk through." Avery said with a smile, he reached into the box and handed Nytin another apple strudel which he took gratefully, "There's not a lot of people around there either, so it'll be nice and quiet." 

Nytin took notice that Avery often knew the perfect times and places to go, specifically to avoid people, and be alone. He didn't mind this, but found it rather intriguing, he simply hummed in agreement since his mouth was full of apple filling and followed closely behind Avery as he led the way to the area he had mentioned, there were so many things about Avery that interested Nytin, how he spoke about things, how he explained them, how he behaved, it was an all new look on life for Nytin, who hadn't realized how simply losing one of your five senses, in Avery's case, his sight, could change one's entire perception of the world.

After a few moments Nytin suddenly blurted out a question, "How bad is your eyesight?" He paused after saying those words, quickly backtracking, "I-I mean..sorry..I.." He stammered, struggling to find the correct words, realizing how insensitive thay question may have come across as. 

Avery simply smiled, "You're fine..It's actually pretty bad, I could use a cane or a dog but I memorized all these paths, and I know braille so I'm okay for the most part." He said and then he began explaining, "It's hard to explain, but I can see, I can see that you're wearing a black…hoodie..or a cloak..and the other people around us…even if they look like..blobs?" He paused trying to find the words but figured that was the best way he was going to explain it for now.

Nytin listened attentively, chewing on his strudel, while Avery continued explaining, while grabbing a strudel of his own, "I can see things when they're super close to me though..my eyes can focus better but I'm not sure how long that'll last." He waved his hand dismissively at that last comment and continued speaking, "It strains my eyes and gives me headaches, so I just try and find ways around it..though if I wanted to know what you looked like exactly…I'd practically have to touch noses with you." 

Nytin felt a bit odd, he knew what Avery looked like, he knew about his eye condition, and his name, but all Avery knew about Nytin was that he was…Nytin? He pursed his lips,  humming in acknowledgement to show he was still listening, but was also thinking to himself, he moved closer to Avery who seemed to remember something else to say.

"I can like..see pictures, so I usually take a lot of pictures even if they come out a little weird sometimes, but it's better than nothing..it's the only reason I know what my friends look like." He said while making a right turn and Nytin was so distracted, he almost kept walking straight ahead, he quickly caught back up to Avery, his mind buzzing, he didn't know why he didn't expect Avery to have other friends, which he quickly realized was a very idiotic thought to have in the first place. He pushed down those feelings swiftly and decided to ask another question.

"So that means you don't know what I look like?" He asked inching closer to Avery.

Avery hummed, closing his eyes and then nodded, "For the most part..yeah.."

"Would you.. want to see what I look like?"

Avery blinked in surprise, he did actually want to see what Nytin looked like, and had forgotten to ask like he had planned before. He didn't even realize they had made it to their destination until he heard the crash of waves against the concrete boardwalk, "Uh..that'd actually be pretty nice, it makes me feel more comfortable to know what someone looks like."

Nytin smiled and moved closer to Avery, overall he was much taller than him. The top of Avery's head just barely met Nytins shoulders, and for some reason Avery had only noticed just now, he snickered a little and put his hand on Nytin's shoulder, pretending that he was trying to reach up higher, and going on the tips of his toes. 

"You have to get lower..you're too tall for me to see." He said, "I'll have to stand on a stool just to get all the way up there."

Nytin blinked, appearing as if he forgot their height differed by quite a few inches, he got a small laugh out of that, "Wait a second..maybe this will help." 

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He reached up and gently grabbed Avery's free hand, leading him to a bench and sitting down, so they were on fair grounds, he let go of Avery and moved his hands up towards the hood he always kept on, he hesitated before pulling it down revealing his jet-black hair, Avery couldn't see exactly how it looked, but it was definitely messy due to the hood being on and pulled on so much, "Better?" He asked.

Avery sat down next to him, putting the box he was carrying down and nodded with a grateful smile, "Yeah..this is way easier.." he said and then looked up at Nytin more, "So can I…look closer now? Or..is it okay..for me to.. I mean.." He wanted to make sure Nytin was fine with him getting so close.

Nytin smiled with a chuckle, "Of course it's okay Starshine, I wouldn't have offered if it wasn't." He grabbed Avery's hands and put them on his face, "All you have to do is get as close as you need to.."

Avery hesitated before moving closer, almost touching noses with Nytin, Avery's golden eyes meeting Nytins jade ones. Avery realized  as Nytins face came into focus how handsome Nytin actually was, everything was piecing itself together in his head, how his voice fit his face, his height, he was processing Nytin as a whole in his brain, he moved his hands a little to feel Nytins face a little more, squishing his cheeks, which made Nytin laugh a little, though his laughs stopped when Avery moved his hands up to feel Nytins hair, which was unbelievably soft and full. 

"Have you ever thought about modeling? You're so handsome, and your hair is so nice." Avery said fiddling with it a little more before realizing he may be overstepping some boundaries, and backed off, "Ah. Sorry. I usually feel things a lot and..well.." He stuttered while he spoke, afraid he may have made Nytin uncomfortable, after all their situation was unusual to say the least, and Avery felt like he may have pushed it a bit too far with feeling around Nytins face and head. 

Nytin laughed a little more and grabbed Avery's hands putting them back on his head, leaning down a bit more, "Starshine, I told you it's fine.." He said with a smile, he wasn't uncomfortable with the situation at all, rather he was enjoying it quite a bit, "..but modeling? I.. don't think that would suit me very well, I wouldn't have the time to do much, much less go to our spot every week." 

Avery ran his fingers through Nytins hair a little more, "Well if you put it like that..I guess it's fine, I'd miss sharing desserts with you." He said and then thought about it, "What do you work as? If you don't mind me asking."

Nytin raised his head and thought about it for a moment, "It's the most soul sucking job one could ever have, take a guess, you have..ehh..three tries." 

"Are you…a teacher..?" Avery figured teachers were probably overworked, having to deal with so many children at once.

Nytin made a buzzer noise, crossing his arms into an 'X', "Nope. Try again."

Avery hummed, wracking his brain for jobs that could fall under that category, "Do you..work at a bank?" 

Nytin made the noise again, crossing his arms even more dramatically by raising his arms above his head, "Wrong again! One more guess."

Avery crossed his arms, and Nytin could practically see the smoke rise as the gears churned inside his head, finally he answered, "You take phone calls for customer service!" He said it with so much confidence that Nytin felt bad for what was to come.

Nytin made the loud buzzing noise one final time, and then proceeded to pretend to play the trombone, "Womp, Womp, Wawawa.." He said and ended up laughing, with Avery joining in. Nytin calmed himself and spoke, "Nah..I work in a corporate office and fill out forms all day, pretty boring stuff." He said pulling his hood back on, "Pay is pretty sh-..crappy too, but it's enough."

Avery was disappointed that he didn't get it right, and shuffled his feet on the ground, "I really thought you took calls..my friend takes them and she's always..always angry about the customers." He smiled a little, thinking about all those times his friend had called him to vent about a customer that asked her something outrageous or idiotic, things along those lines.

Nytin stared at Averys face, and couldn't help but smile to himself, "I..couldn't do that, I've been told I can't control my temper sometimes, it's better for me to just fill out forms, I'd probably end up getting fired for cursing out a customer or something." He heard Avery laugh a little, and felt a little proud of himself, and with that they both stopped talking, embracing the tranquility of the area around them.

The sound of the ocean waves crashing against the rocks filled the silence so it wasnt unbearably quiet. Avery closed his eyes and enjoyed the breeze that came through, although it was already cold, and it just made it colder, it felt nice. Though it reminded him of the treats that were slowly getting colder, and he picked up the box and opened it, there were still two tarts, and two strudels left, he grabbed one and moved it towards Nytin.

"Would you like another apple stru-" 

"Yes." Nytin immediately responded, grabbing it and taking a bite, "Vees arh..sho..ghud." he said with his mouth full, he truly did enjoy desserts, and seemed to have a black hole of a stomach when it came to them.

Avery couldn't help but laugh lightly, grabbing one for himself and biting into it, though he swallowed before talking, "I agree, I think that bakery is the best one in town, they're super underrated." He said, but he prefered it that way, it was like a hidden gem that he discovered and had almost all to himself that he got to share with people he was close with.

Nytin had turned to look at Avery with a look of surprise, "Underrated? No way. This is so good, how do people not line up at the door, pleading for apple s-strudels?" He stuttered at the last part, trying to make sure he didn't say it wrong, but it was clear he was in utter disbelief that was for sure. 

Avery simply shrugged, "I think.. because of where it is, people just keep walking. I almost did too..but I ran into their open door since it was completely clear.." he laughed sheepishly, remembering that day and how comedic it was, his nose had started bleeding and the owner had given him an entire cake to take home as an apology for not having some kind of indication that the door was open, he even got Avery's contact information and reached out to him the next day to ask if he was alright, and..for feedback on the cake.

Nytin imagined the scene and snickered, getting a small shove on the arm from Avery, "Hey! You're okay now right? Let me laugh a little." He said, still snickering to himself.

Avery wanted to laugh too, because truly it was a funny situation, but instead he quickly finished off his strudel and stood up taking the box with him, "I guess.. you don't want these then." He said, turning his nose up into the air, sticking his tongue out playfully.

Nytin immediately stopped laughing and stood up, "Woah, woah..too far. I won't laugh anymore, just hand over the box..and we can call it a fair trade?" He still had his strudel in his hand, and he still wanted the tart, he'd be heartbroken if Avery took both of them for himself.

Avery looked as if he were thinking about it, he couldn't see Nytins face but could tell he seemed desperate, he snickered and handed him the box, "Okay but..I hope you didn't think I was actually serious." 

Nytin took it quickly and paused at Averys words, "..What? Really? Oh cmon!" He whined, "That's so unfair, I can't believe I fell for that.." He sighed, plopping back down on the bench, Avery shortly joined him after, still giggling to himself.

"I wish I got to see your face, I didn't think you'd take me seriously." He said leaning back on the bench, "I will admit..running into the glass was really funny..I just wanted to mess with you a little.."

Nytin was in disbelief, he never took Avery for a prankster, he couldn't help but find himself wanting to know more about Avery. He sighed and moved his hand up rubbing Averys hair, "Uncalled for..I should eat your tart to teach you a lesson, but since I'm so nice..I'll consider sparing you." 

Avery scoffed playfully, reaching into the box and grabbing one of the tarts, he went to bring it to his lips but Nytin quickly swooped in and bit into it, and took it right from Avery's grasp. 

He held it in his mouth in triumph, "I shed..I'd conshider ith." He mumbled, grabbing the tart from his mouth and swallowing, but he failed to notice Avery had already grabbed the second one and was already eating it.

"Too slow." Avery said happily. The two stared at eachother for a moment before laughing, two grown adults fighting like children over dessert was one of the silliest things they could have ever done, and they did, and they enjoyed it. Avery was laughing so hard and trying to hold it back that his face turned red, tears threatening to roll down his face. 

Nytin was laughing hard too, and was trying to catch his breath, coughing from how hard he laughed. He looked over at Avery and saw him trying to do the same, and couldn't help but stare for a moment. How long had it been since he last sat down and laughed like this with someone? He smiled and looked down at the tart in his hand, he wanted to stay this happy forever, he looked over at Avery and smiled as he looked back.

"Thank you Starshine." He said taking the last bite of his tart, "I haven't had that good of a laugh in a long while."

Avery wiped away the tears in his eyes that had formed from laughing so hard, and at Nytins words he smiled, "Me either, so.. thank you too."

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