On the way back to the hotel, while Noah listened to Blackie's retelling of what he managed to pick up with his surveillance (nothing which was of particular interest), Levi kept heatedly staring at Noah's hand that was dangling within arm's reach. White flawless skin, long slender fingers. So enticing in its elegance.
The urge to grab it nearly overwhelmed Levi. Several times he had reached to intertwine their fingers together; however, every time, he would stop himself at the last step.
Would it be too much for his thin-skinned baby to hold hands in public?
All of the times he had taken liberties with his darling up to now had been in private. The closest they came to a public setting was hugging in the dark and nearly empty cinema. And even then, his baby still felt shy to death. So how would his easily embarrassed baby be able to bear the full extent of Levi's insatiable greed?
This play-pretend could only carry him so far. He needed to take it step-by-step, just like he had been doing up to now. Constantly edging closer while simultaneously giving his precious darling time to adjust to their intimacy.
They had already made great progress today. It should be enough.
But it wasn't.
No matter how Levi rationalized it, his hand unbearably itched to hold that smaller hand in his.
It… it was just holding hands… maybe his baby wouldn't mind it? How would he know if he didn't try?
Even if he got rejected and scolded by his darling for it, he probably wouldn't lose any affection points, right?
And with that last thought, Levi finally shook away his hesitation and went for it.
Noah's bickering with Blackie got suddenly interrupted when he felt something warm yet slightly rough covering his palm. Before he could respond, foreign fingers drilled their way in between his fingers, capturing his hand.
Noah glanced towards Levi, but the other pretended not to have seen his raised eyebrow and stared straight ahead with a strange mix of serious concentration and nonchalance. As if he was trying to convey 'I am a serious person doing serious things' at the same time as 'Move along. Nothing of note is happening over here.' He looked as if it definitely wasn't him who grabbed Noah's hand. The act was so convincing that if it were not for the compelling evidence witnessed first-hand, even Noah would have believed it!
'Pretend! Just you keep pretending!' Noah's mouth twitched several times. 'Who can't pretend? Hmph! If you can pretend it wasn't you who wanted to hold hands, then I can pretend that my hand isn't being held!'
And just like that, Noah decided to completely ignore this person's little moves. Besides, having his hand held by this person, though a bit embarrassing, wasn't uncomfortable. On the contrary, their two hands fitted nicely together. The novel sensation left Noah's heart feeling strangely at peace.
Hmph. Forget it. This was his soon-to-be husband. Let alone just innocently holding hands – it would be within his husbandly rights even if he wanted to hug and kiss. Compared to the shameful alternative, Noah was more than happy to just hold hands.
And besides, it's not like he, Noah, hadn't held hands before. In fact, he might as well be a professional hand holder! He held hands with his little brothers and sisters in the orphanage every time they crossed the street for 20 years! (｡•̀ᴗ-)✧
So what if this time around the other person wasn't little but was even taller than him? Levi might be big now, but he was still a child at heart! o(￣▽￣)ｄ
The visually impactful comparison of this sturdy and tall man with one of his delicate and small siblings made Noah's eyes curve in amusement. 'Yep. A big man-child.' Noah bit his lips to prevent a chuckle from escaping him. 'Better hold his hand; otherwise, he might get lost.'
The two walked in complete silence all the way. Throughout, Levi kept sneakily peeking at his darling, but besides a very soft pink tinge to his baby's cheeks, there was no other reaction.
'So… that's a tacit approval? Right?' ╰(*°▽°*)╯
The heart within Levi's chest swelled up. He really underestimated his baby's courage, needlessly worrying himself over nothing. If his shy baby could muster up the courage to confess his love like he did a couple of minutes prior, then he certainly dared to hold hands in public!
The last stretch of the race was ahead of him; he, Astar Levi, should just push onwards bravely until the finish line! Even if he ended up swerving off course a bit, or even tripping over a rock, after his baby's anger cooled, he'd be back in the race in the same position as before. So what was he wasting time and brain cells worrying over?
He, Astar Levi, would just act how he pleased from now on. His baby had a perfectly functioning pair of arms and legs and an eloquent and lovely pink tongue to boot. If his baby disliked it, he could just push him away or say no.
And that's how the two arrived at the large conference room, hand-in-hand.
As soon as they entered, all eyes turned to face them. Fynn's disinterested gaze grazed over them briefly without even so much as taking a second glance at their intertwined hands. He simply greeted them nonchalantly and returned to the light screens in front of him, trying to pull up some footage. His colleagues weren't familiar with Noah and Levi, and due to the duo's intimidating identities, they didn't dare stare at them for long.
Levi's and Noah's remaining bodyguards, which hadn't been among the few bodyguards they had taken to the cinema, politely greeted them and then continued standing around with serious expressions.
Trey's facial expression was rather stiff, his eyes betraying his complicated mood. However, he, too, did his best to follow their suit and pretend like he couldn't see anything. In the end, his secret crush had only recently come to being, so while his heart did hurt for its abrupt bad ending, his feelings hadn't had the time to truly turn into something deep. After a few months of melancholy, he'd get over this short and bittersweet unrequited love.
In the end, in the huge conference room filled with people, it was only several of Levi's colleagues, aka the invitees of his bachelor party, that couldn't read the mood. They did a double-take at the sight of the duo, then wolf-whistled, looking at Levi as if he was a sly dawg who snatched a fair maiden from her home to do unspeakable things to her.
Seeing the vulgar looks they were throwing their way, blood rushed into Noah's cheeks, and he attempted to shake off Levi's hand. Unexpectedly, Levi obediently let go of his hand and made to sit in the seat opposite of Fynn.
Noah was pleasantly surprised at his considerate behavior and moved to sit next to him.
However, he had rejoiced too early.
Before his hand could even touch the chair, a strong arm wrapped around his waist and pulled him onto Levi's lap.
Duh. Of course Levi had to let go of his darling's lovely little hand. How else could he pull out the chair and pull the other to sit on top of him?
Finding himself, once again, wrapped in a familiar embrace, Noah abruptly froze. He wanted to struggle out and sit by himself, but he didn't wish to embarrass Levi in front of his friends. Thus he sat there internally conflicted yet externally unmoving. His cheeks continued to turn redder until he could hold it in no longer. Sure, he couldn't embarrass Levi, but he couldn't stand feeling the embarrassment himself either! Thus, he had to at least let everyone know that the two of them were about to be married and weren't doing anything shameful! (っ °Д °;)っ
But this kind of topic… ai, it was so embarrassing to bring up! Noah cleared his throat awkwardly and looked around at every face, hoping someone would ask them what was going on and why they were acting so intimate.
Only then did he realize the strangeness in the room. With the exception of Fynn's colleagues that had never met the two before, the remaining people all looked as if there was nothing unusual going on.
Baby Noah, ( ꒪Д꒪) 'What the…?? What's with this reaction? Why isn't anyone asking anything?? Are you all blind?!'
Two big men acting so lovey-dovey, yet no one said a thing!!!