Zee had barely slept, he spent all night replaying the evening he had spent with Saint. He kicked himself for not asking for his number so he could talk with him more.
Saint hadn't fared much better, the wine had made him sleepy but his dreams were filled with a deep voice and strong hands roaming over his body.
When they arrived at the studio they both looked a little tired to say the least.
Saint had done these kinds of workshops before so he basically knew what to expect but he had never done a workshop with someone he was attracted to like this.
Something that had kept Zee up last night was wondering what this workshop would be like. He assumed it would be getting to know Saint better but he also hoped it would involve holding hands and getting used to touching each other.
Zee arrived first and grabbed 2 bottles of water before saying hello to the acting coach and director. Saint entered a couple of minutes later and said hello to the crew. Zee walked over and handed Saint a bottle of water. "Morning! How did you sleep?" Zee asked.
Saint decided honesty was probably not the best idea in this situation so he politely replied "I slept well thank you. What about you?" Zee answered pretty honestly "My brain was working over time wondering what today was going to be like. I've never done a workshop like this before..."
Saint smiled and did his best to reassure Zee "It's not that bad, don't worry. I promise I won't do anything you're not comfortable with ok?" Zee was struck with how kind Saint was. He was probably a little nervous himself but he was still trying to make Zee feel better. "I know I'm in safe hands with you." He said.
Saint's smile grew wider and felt a little shy so he gently punched Zee on the shoulder. "Of course I'll look out for you bro!" Saint couldn't believe he had called Zee bro. Before he had the chance to beat himself up more the coach called them over to begin working.
They started with some warm up exercises like standing a foot a part and staring into each others eyes. It was harder than Zee had anticipated and he ended up turning away and grinning quite a few times.
Even though Saint was feeling shy he still managed to get through it with only a few small hiccups. Then they moved on to touching. Saint had been looking forward to this. He was dying to know what Zee's face felt like and what it would be like to hold his hand.
The coach told them to sit facing each other and mirror each others actions starting with Zee. Zee was nervous but excited, this was a the perfect opportunity to touch Saint. He put both hands up and Saint imitated him putting their palms together. Zee didn't even realise he'd licked his lips until Saint repeated the action. He move his left hand and cupped Saint's cheek, marvelling at how soft it was. Saint touched his cheek in response and Zee wantes to turn his head and kiss those fingers but the coach had decided it was time for Zee to mirror Saint so he never got the chance.
Saint was relieved it was his turn to be copied, he decided to avoid touching Zee too much because it was addictive. The more he touched the more he wanted to touch. Instead of his hands, Saint moved his face toward Zee and waited for him to imitate him. They were only a few centimetres apart and all Saint could think was how easy it would be to lean in a little more and kiss Zee. He put his hand to his mouth to stop himself and Zee copied. Saint kissed his palm then turned it to Zee. Zee didn't see Saint his his palm but he mimicked the actions and touched their hands together.
The coach was please with how in sync they were and asked how they would feel about moving on to more contact as Tutor and Fighter, like hugging. Saint agreed immediately but Zee was a little shy at first, it would be weird to hug anyone while people were watching and he said so out loud.
Saint put himself between the coach and Zee. He looked Zee in the eyes and said "Trust me ok? Just close your eyes and focus on me. Pretend it's just us, we're just a couple who love each other and want to hold each other. Can you do that?" Zee was hypnotized by Saint's voice "I'll try..." he said. Saint moved forward slowly closing the distance between them. He put out his arms and left Zee to make the final step and begin the hug.
Zee's heart was thumping partially from nerves and partially from excitement. He stepped into Saint's arms and wrapped his own around Saint's waist. He put his head on Saint's shoulder and inhaled. He loved how clean and fresh Saint smelled.
Saint felt Zee relaxing in his arms and leant his head so it was resting on top of Zee's. They both forgot they were supposed to be working because they were enjoying the contact so much.
When the coach said "Wow, guys you've done amazing!" they both jumped a little and separated quickly. Zee could feel his cheeks burn so he walked away to get a him and Saint a drink of water.
When he returned the coach was leaving the room. "Sorry Saint, I only went to get a drink of water. Is everything ok?" He asked handing Saint his bottle. "Yeah, everything is fine, she just said she would let is have the room for 5 minutes as a sort of break. She wanted us to try hugging again, with no one around..." Saint felt strange having to say this to Zee but it was for work so he had pushed his own feelings of shyness away and continued "I know it must be weird for you to have to hug a guy so maybe if you pretend I'm a girl for now until you can get into your character a bit more?"
Zee couldn't have Saint thinking that so he interrupted "No! I liked hugging you! I don't need to pretend anything! It was just weird having someone watching that's all." Well that was more honest than he had intended
Saint felt stunned by Zee's comments, he liked hugging Saint? Saint was overjoyed to hear that. "Well, I like hugging you too... I just thought it might not feel that way for you..." Saint felt shy but he knew he had be as honest as Zee had been if things were going to go smoothly between them.
Zee tried not to let it shoe how happy he was in case he scared Saint off. "Ok, cool, so... We're both ok with hugging. So want to try again before coach comes back or not, I mean either is fine with me..." Zee was praying Saint would say yes.
"Sure!" Saint replied. Wow he sounded so eager even to himself. "I mean we'll have to be doing a lot more than hugging soon so best to practice while we can..." Saint had been looking at the ground so when he looked up and saw Zee smiling he was relieved. "Come on then Saint. Hug me!" Zee said.
Ok so Zee's crush was probably getting a little out of control but he couldn't find it in himself to care. Saint took the bottles from Zee and placed them on the floor. "Let's do this!" He said then grabbed Zee into a tight hug. Zee hugged back wishing this was real and not just for the roles they were going to be playing but for now he decided to take everything he could get when it came to Saint.
Just as Saint was wondering how long he would get to hold Zee like this he heard the door open and their coach cleared her throat. He sighed sadly as Zee released him. "So things are going well I see?" Joked the coach.
"I'll show you how good things are going..." said Zee and hugged Saint again before placing a kiss on his head. Saint decided he needed to thank what ever deities that had given him this role with Zee because he couldn't remember a time when he had felt happier.