There was a name and a face that he knew. What he did not know was whose name and face. He had asked The Analyst many times. It was just as clueless as him.
The bell rung, school was over for the day. Horatio leaned forward in his seat, laying his head on his desk and closing his eyes; He had someone h was waiting for. He heard his classmates begin to leave one by one. Several minutes passed, they were late, the one he was waiting for. He didn't mind. If anything he was glad he had been given this duty once again.
"Hey, Horatio." Nora Gasal walked into his classroom just as the last few students were leaving. He knew her voice well, identifying her before lifting his head. He rubbed his eyes, trying to get them to focus. When they finally did he waved her over with a smile. She pulled a chair close, sitting next to him.
"You wanna talk?" He asked, not stating why. He wanted to be cautious, he did not want to lose her favour as he had done before. Though he couldn't quite remember how.
"Can I ask you something?" Nora said, skipping pleasantries.
'Not a good sign.' He thought but quickly dismissed. He remembered their legacy, their long-standing friendship and deep-seated trust, the kind you would hate to break and understood there was no need for pleasantries. He dropped his guard.
"Anything," He said, then thought for a moment, realising something. 'You look troubled, is anything the matter?' He wanted to say, but the words didn't quite form. "We should tell each other everything." He said instead.
Nora looked off, towards the chalkboard, something flashed in her eyes, a memory of some sort. Horatio couldn't quite catch it. She smiled. "Thank you, that means a lot." She took a breath, leaving a lingering moment of silence that continued even after she began talking again. "I've been caught in a sticky situation and I need your help specifically." She said. Horatio took her words in a no-room-for-discussion type of way.
He nodded, gesturing for her to continue, she smiled again.
"The problem is with another boy, Jason from 2C." She said.
"Ah I know him, an OK guy, what could he have done?"
Nora didn't answer immediately. Instead, she gave Horatio a stone-faced look, as though he gave an unsatisfactory answer. She shook her head slightly when it seemed as though he did not notice and carried on. "It's good that you're acquainted, that would make my-"
"Oh no, we're not acquainted, I've just seen him around, he's reasonably popular so I picked up his name a while ago." Horatio clarified.
"I...see." The silence left behind from before deepened, like a yawning chasm. It was impossible to miss but miss it Horatio did. He cocked his head questioningly, giving Nora a quizzical gaze, Nora looked away.
"Jason asked me out." She said suddenly almost under her breath. If not for The Analyst Horatio would have missed it.
"He did? Fantastic." Horatio beamed. Nora's chair clattered to the ground, his eyes followed her up only to meet her's angrily glaring back.
"Fantastic? Fantastic. I tell you some popular blondie asked me out and your response is fantastic? Unbelievable."
Horatio was stunned for a few seconds, he had not been expecting that reaction. He reflected quickly on recent events. Nora had stated this was a problem, she had already implied that she had thought of a way to solve this. She did not need his support, she needed his help and his cluelessness had gotten the better of him.
Nora picked up her bag, she was turning to leave. He had to do something, anything just to get a second, no third chance. He was a screw-up and he needed her, he needed her.
Horatio reached out quickly, grabbing hold of Nora's hand. She shot back to him, eyes screaming betrayal. He had to get her to calm down, take a seat, he couldn't just apologize like this even if he needed to. He started ruffling through his mind looking for solutions to this impossible puzzle.
"Let, go of me!" Nora swung her hand. Horatio let her shake him off, only to grab hold of her other hand. She stopped for a moment staring into his eyes; hers looked red, an angry red. 'Strange' He thought, he could have sworn they were green.
"Nora-" Horatio started his sentence only to be hit with an overwhelming sense of vertigo. He fell on his hands and knees, sweat already beginning to form on his forehead.
"Oh my, Horatio!" He heard Nora's voice, her tender calming voice, the one he was used to, the one he grew up with. He felt her hands on him, trying to right him. He was dazed, things moved like a rewinding tape, incoherent forms took him up onto his feet. He felt nauseous, he felt more movement and felt himself sit down before a desk. He lay his head on it, trying his best not to groan from the dissonance in his mind.
"Horatio drink this." He heard her voice again, a bottle was right into his hands, at least it felt like a bottle. He felt through the plastic a cool liquid. "The cap is off." She said again. He felt her hand on his wrist guiding the bottle to his mouth. It was water, it splashed into his mouth and down his throat.
"This should make you feel better." She said. She was right; within moments his mind had centred with only a slight headache. He looked at Nora. Her eyes were jade, green. Did he hallucinate the colour before? He asked for some verification from The Analyst, the entire sequence was marked as an anomaly. He sighed.
"I'm sorry about that, and about what I said before; I should have realised you didn't share his feelings, I should have asked you how I could help. Instead, I acted stupidly, I really am sorry." He said.
Nora said nothing, giving him a smile and a single thumb up. Her other hand moved smoothly to where Horatio's was on the desk. She laid her's over his, almost covering his.
'His hands aren't much bigger than mine.' Nora noted with a smile.
'Nora still carries a grudge from that time, she said she forgave me but it seems like she still bears some resentment.' Horatio thought solemnly.
"Okay, so if I'm not mistaken, the reason you're against blowing Jason off is that you think he'll be ridiculed if you do so," Horatio said after a few moments of listening, he wanted to know everything so that he did not make a silly mistake once again.
"I don't think, I know." Nora corrected. "And I already have someone in mind so yeah."
"Ooh, and who's the lucky guy?"
"Can't tell you, let's just call him Prince Charming."
"Alright, alright. Your empathy for his feelings prevents you from rejecting him, the fact that he garners some attention would cause this to affect his image; after all, it's you we're talking about. And on top of that, you fear
you may acquire a negative reputation for it too. I understand" Horatio noted.
"Yes."
"If that's the case then we'll have to be a bit crafty with our approach, something that wouldn't give Jason negative stigma or cause you to lose social status, although I care little about social status."
"You're strange Horatio so you don't count." Nora jabbed. "But I do already have a plan."
Horatio raised an eyebrow approvingly, "I'm all ears."
Nora turned shifty, "Well it's a bit cowardly..." she spoke coyly, as though she was embarrassed "The plan is...you...becoming...my boyfriend."
Horatio stared blankly, her words bouncing off him like rubber. "What?"
Nora wrung her hands, fiddling with her fingers "There will be no need to turn him down if I'm taken, so you just have to pretend to be my boyfriend and go with me to meet him. He'll understand and won't be made fun of,
and people won't hate me for rejecting him."
"You're right," Horatio mused "This plan is cowardly. I refuse to take part in it." He declared.
"What!?"
Horatio sighed. In all the years he had known Nora he had built a high standing mental image of her, this plan would knock that image down a few notches. Now was not the time to worry about how his words might impact her, no it was exactly the time. He never thought her to be the kind to run from her problems and he made that heard.
"I know it's not right to lie," She admitted, "but I have no choice."
Horatio shook his head, "I still won't do it, I'd feel too bad for Jason." He spoke again a few moments later. "Nothing will change that, you'll need another plan."
"Please?"
He shook his head.
"C'mon I'll do anything."
Horatio remained adamant. It was true that they both owed each other uncountable favours, that they had built an incredible rapport of trust they both believed they could rely on, that Nora had forgiven him only recently with no strings attached, that Nora had...
"Ok fine! I'll do it, but only because I owe you one!" Horatio said frustratedly. Nora smiled.
"Thank you." She said, hugging him suddenly.
He cleared his throat loudly, "I wasn't finished. This is a tall order," He said, "So I expect a favour from you in return."
"Alright I'll delete those pictures of you sleeping," Nora said defeatedly.
"What I want is- Wait, pictures?"
"You were saying something?"
"Oh yeah, I would like this to benefit both of us, as such I would like a date with you in exchange," Horatio said stiffly.
"A date? Are you sure?" She asked. Horatio nodded.
"This Saturday, if you're free. It should serve to give us both some experience such that you wouldn't need to resort to such underhanded tactics if such a situation turns up again, and I would learn more about women." He said, sounding a bit too much like The Analyst.
"Okay." Nora agreed with a strange hint of relief and lack of questioning. "Now for your end of the deal."
"Wait we're doing this today?" Horatio was surprised.
"Yes, I had agreed on meeting him today, now let's hold hands."
Horatio walked Nora home afterwards, they chatted regularly along the way, just like they always had.
"Goodbye Mr.Incredible, my boyfriend." Nora waved at Horatio from her doorstep.
Horatio blushed, he had forgotten about that. "G-goodbye, Nora." He replied weakly, squirming.
"What was that? I didn't quite get you."
"Goodbye, I've got to go." He said, walking away quickly. Nora gave him a sly smile behind his back.
"Prince Charming looks cute when He's embarrassed." She grinned.
The week ambled on by, rosy days passing quickly with nothing of note happening in them. There were no rifts and Horatio was getting antsy. "Its as if they've vanished from existence, not single one around town." He had complained on Friday night.
Remembering he had a date with Nora the next day only flared up his nerves all the more. Still, time continued its march and before they knew it, the morning had come.
Horatio shivered under a cold shower. He looked lazily through his bathroom window to the setting moon. It should be just hitting four o'clock. He had gone for a jog earlier than usual to make time so he could prepare for what was to come during the day and also to help calm him down.
"You're just going out with Nora, nothing big." He said to himself, splashing cold water onto his face. He felt strange, as though the friendly comfort of their relationship has changed a bit. He shook his head.
"You're just being silly, Nora already told you she had someone she liked, why are you acting as though this date means something?" He asked himself, then he asked The Analyst.
"Answer: You believe Nora has feelings for you, this is a completely unfounded belief that can only serve to destroy your relationship." It answered.
Horatio sighed. "Brutally accurate as always."
"I guess you're right, there's no need for me to panic. We're just going as friends." He stepped out of the shower, looking himself in the mirror. He smiled at himself and began towelling himself off.
"Come on, I don't have time for this." He groaned as Sylvia ran a brush through his hair.
"If you think I'm going to let you two lovebirds go on a date with your hair looking like a house mop then you're dead wrong." She said sharply. She had been excitedly waiting for this day since Horatio let it slip one evening during dinner. "Now sit down, I'm going to give you some light make-up."
"Oh no." Horatio groaned.
It was now ten in the morning, the Sun was brightly overhead with the sky bearing little clouds. Horatio brushed himself off, taking a moment to reconsider his clothing. He laughed lightly, realising that he had no chance of
going inside to change without getting caught by Sylvia.
"It's not too much." He said. He wore a black-and-white striped tee and a dark-blue pair of loose jeans complemented with white sneakers. He covered his hair with a baseball cap a very dark shade of green. He had
rejected the pair of shades Sylvia said she had specifically bought for this day but were in truth a gift from a co-worker she was trying to guilt-trip him into wearing.
He pulled out his phone, shooting a quick text at Nora.
'I'm coming over.' He hit 'send'.
'Ok, I was waiting for you.' The reply came instantly.
'Sorry I lost track of time.' He typed and realised despite Sylvia's meddling he was not late. He hit delete a few times and typed another message. 'I'll be there soon' He hit 'send'.
Now 'soon' was an understatement, for when two houses are almost side-by-side, moving from one of them to the other is only a matter of a light walk. So walk he did, Knocking on Nora's door thirty seconds later.
The door swung open. "Hey." Nora greeted with a casual wave of her hand.
"H-hey." Horatio stammered. He was taken aback by Nora's look, it was unlike anything he knew her for. "You're, looking pretty good." He mumbled, unable to properly look at her.
Nora blushed. She wore a black tube top with very skinny jeans, colourful stilettos and was sporting an array of bedazzling jewellery. Her brown hair had been fluffed so that its usual bell shape had become irregular, giving
her a stylish look.
"Still sticking with the regular I see." She said back. Horatio laughed, he was not one for fashion, and his sister wasn't either, at least she still had an eye for good looking things and failed to make his hideous. If he was
being honest with himself he was quite fashion-blind but could still see Nora had spared no expense in making herself look as pretty as possible for today, he even noticed some make-up on her face.
"It's my first time trying something like this, I'm not sure if it suits me." She admitted.
Horatio looked up at her, giving her a quick once over. "If I was to judge, I'd say it suits you pretty well, heck I'd be surprised if it didn't."
"Ok Casanova, spare the compliments for later so you don't run out." Nora joked, Horatio laughed with her.
"As though I could ever run out of compliments for you." He said suavely, reaching out his hand. Nora took it, heading out of her house. "Well if I'm being honest you do look a bit uncomfortable in that, you sure you don't
want to change?"
"I thought you said I looked good?"
"And you do, I'm just thinking about your comfort." He replied.
"Well it is a bit uncomfortable but it's nothing I can't handle, as long as I can be eye candy for you." She told him.
Horatio chuckled, "And you say I'm going all out with my words."
They took the bus to the city mall where they had agreed their date would take place. Nora kept close hold of Horatio as they moved from the bus stop into the shopping centre, resting some of her weight on him.
"You good?" Horatio asked, concerned.
"I might need to sit down for a bit," Nora replied. Horatio supported her to a bench.
"You might have been right." She said with a sheepish laugh.
"Right about what?"
"This," She gestured at herself, "It's really, really uncomfortable. I might have to go home and change." She said sadly. "I'm sorry for ruining our date."
Horatio looked at Nora. She had only decided to do this because of him. He couldn't have her feeling bad, he had to do something. He looked around then smacked himself for being so silly. They were in a large mall, a place
where people buy things.
"You don't need to do that." He said meaningfully. Nora looked up at him.
"Huh?"
Horatio reached into his pants pocket and pulled out his wallet. "You could-"
"No." Nora said sharply. "I'm not going to inconvenience you further."
"Inconvenience? It's no big-"
"I'm not going to." She cut him off again. "I know you're going to say it's yours, that you're trying to apologise and pay me back for fargiving you." Nora stood shakily on her stilettos. "I don't need it. Not to brag but my family
is much more well-to-do than yours. If anyone is going to pay for my bad decisions it should be me." Nora said sharply.
Horatio sat in silence, but he understood her. She meant no ill will and neither did he. She was right, doing this would only show he still thought of her as a child, that his mental image of her hadn't changed since they were
kids playing in the swing set at the park, where she relied on him for everything. He shook his head, clearing the nostalgia lest he gets sucked into another memory.
"I'm sorry. I got a little carried away there." He laughed, rubbing his nape. "Alright, I'll wait for you right here." He smiled.
Nora shook her head. "You're coming too. You need to learn something about looking good, and also to prevent me from making the same mistake again." She smiled at him.
"Alright." He smiled back, "but you better treat me."
The sun was now at the apex of its arc. They both exited the store. Gone were the tower heels, now replaced with black name-brand sneakers. The revealing top had been exchanged with a green polo shirt. She had
changed out of her jeans into a much more comfortable looking pair of khaki trousers. Over her shoulder was a brown bag in which her previous clothes were harboured.
"That looks much more comfortable," Horatio said, satisfied. Nora gave him a sheepish grin.
"And it barely cost me too." She said, slipping her hand into Horatio's. "You
didn't get anything." She noted disapprovingly.
"Didn't need to, you should know I'm not one for fashion." He replied. Nora gave him a patronising shake if the head.
"We don't have time to waste then." she pulled closer to Horatio, interlocking their arms and setting his shoulder into her chest.
Horatio looked away, but Nora could still see the scarlet blush formed on his face.
"O-okay. I'll lead the way." He stammered.
Horatio took Nora to a little coffee shop tucked away in a corner of the mall.
"Ooh, what's this?" Nora asked, looking into a menu.
"Hmm, let me see..." Horatio leaned over the table, peering at Nora's menu. "A couples parfait?" He asked curiously.
"You want to order a couple's parfait?" Horatio heard a male's voice off to the side. He noticed a waiter moving away behind the counter. He wanted to stop him but the man was already too far.
Moments later a mountain of cream and sugar was placed before Horatio and Nora.
"A couple's parfait. On the house." Horatio heard the recently familiar voice again. The man winked, heading again behind the counter.
Horatio looked back at Nora who was also watching the strange waiter.
"I guess it's already here, and it's free. There isn't any reason for us to not eat it." Nora said. Horatio agreed. He picked up his spoon. He smirked, thinking about the strange wingman.
"I wonder what he must think of us." He ratio whispered to Nora.
"What do you mean?"
"Huh? Look at this, he must think were some awkward couple on our first date so he needed to do something to spice up the mood." He said mockingly.
"I don't understand, is that not what we are?" Nora said stone-faced.
"You've got some on your face." The parfait was almost gone now, Nora was pointing at Horatio. She stretched her hand, reaching for his face. Horatio closed his eyes.
"Surprise." He heard her say and felt a wet warmth on his cheek. His eyes fluttered open, finding Nora moving back to her seat.
"W-what did you do?" He reached for his cheek, realising Nora had just kissed him there.
Nora did not reply, only giving him a coy smile. He blushed.
"Next stop: The Movies," Horatio revealed after desert, leaving the shop. He trailed his hand behind him, expecting Nora to grab hold on to it as she usually did. She did not.
"Nora?" He turned around but she was not there.
"Nora? Nora where are you?" He looked back in the shop, there were only a few customers but Nora was nowhere to be found. He stepped back outside, his eyes darting side to side frantically.
"Scan the-" Horatio stopped mid-command. Relief washed torrentially over him as he saw the familiar brown hairdo in an arcade. She was crouched before a prize machine. He sighed, moving over to her.
"Want one?" Nora nodded energetically. A coin slotted into the machine and it whirred to life. His hands moved skillfully and a plush was soon in the prize bin. He reached into it, taking it out and handing it over to Nora.
"Thank you." She said excitedly.
"Who are you?" Horatio's voice came from behind Nora, it was cautionary, clearly showing distrust. The man before Nora looked behind her to Horatio and gave him a grin.
Horatio stared him down. Nora had received a gift from a shady looking person. He couldn't be careless and let her get hurt especially when they were on a date. The person was a heavily built man who looked to be in his
twenties. He had dark red hair, its uniformity showed it was natural. Horatio could make out well-hidden scars on his face, and a few on his hands.
The man wore a black shirt that bore a gaudy flame design and a pair of plain denim jeans. He had a single stud earring and spiked bracelets.
The man smiled at Horatio. It looked pleasant on the surface but showed a threat within. He had perfect white teeth, clearly not some hobo.
"A kind stranger." He said. His voice boomed like thunder over a mountain but also carried a quiet calm, like a tea leaf still on a lake. Horatio did not like it. The man's strangeness was unnerving.
"Are you alright Nora." Horatio turned his attention away, anything to take him from that strangeness.
"Yeah, why? Do you know him?" She asked. She looked clueless.
"No, I don't know him." He said while flashing a smile. He turned back to the man. "And I would like to keep it that way." He continued.
The man did not take this comment in stride. Horatio noticed anger flash over him quickly, almost imperceptibly. He tensed.
The man let out a cooling breath. "Allow me to ask, Horatio Peppingar, why do you fear what you are, what you were made to do?" He asked.
"What?" Horacio winced, feeling his fist clench against his will. Was he angry? No, scared. The man's strange calmness unnerved him, his statement was much weirder than the fact he knew his name.
"When will you break out of your reverie, your excessive slumber to realise what you truly are?" He asked again, coming closer.
Horatio moved quickly, putting himself between him and Nora. "Who are you and how do you know my name?" He asked, adrenaline pouring into his bloodstream.
"My physical identity is unimportant, it is what the void blesses us with that truly matters." The man spoke, his voice was much more antagonising now. Horatio shuddered.
His body flared into alertness. "Stay back, don't you dare try anything." He did not know why his body reacted that way. He knew nothing about what he was talking about, he sounded like a crazed drunken man, yet his
words carried an imperceptible weight.
The next voice that spoke up was Nora's. "How do you know about the Void?" She asked, moving away from behind Horatio.
"Don't you dare try anything to her!" Horatio spoke next.
The man paid no heed to Horatio's threats. "So this is the one my sister spoke about, so small so insecure..." He levelled his eyes with Nora's peering deep into them, as though confirming something, he gave them a good
look then turned back to Horatio. "Have you ever heard the tale of the prodigal son?" The man asked
"What? Look I don't want to-"
The man's voice cut through Horatio's, the thunder it bore carried the conversation."We are willing to take you back lost child, no, they are. I am a lost child myself, running from my father's men. I won't be accepted but you
would. Go, find that mansion in the woods and."
"Shut up," Nora said. Her anger was easily noticeable. "Shut up! You have no right to try and rip apart everything I've done. Several years I've tried, don't you dare say another word, I promise you you'll regret it!" Her voice
was shaky with anger, pure unfiltered rage, like a child who was being forced to share their favourite toy.
"Red, like a Toldaap's." He said softly. His voice had changed again, like a stone deep beneath the waves.
"That name again. You're one of them, aren't you? One of those vile creatures. I should have never let you speak, I should have turned you away the second I saw you." Nora's voice was deflating, flattening, Horatio could
hear the defeat in it.
"Don't shoot the messenger." He said walking past Horatio. "And I do have a message, I trust you'd let me deliver it?" He spoke to Nora. She waved him on, Horatio could hear her sob.
He stopped by Horatio slipping a piece of paper into his pocket. "If at any time, you need my help out there, don't hesitate to call. There are things only I can show you." He said quietly then left.
With the man gone the atmosphere returned to normal. Horatio let his breath out, dropping to the floor before the machine. He breathed heavily. He chest pounded like crazy.
"Horatio. Who was that man and how did he know your name?" Nora asked. He expected her to be angry but her tone was soft, almost scared.
"I don't know Nora, I have no idea." He answered, upset he couldn't calm her fears. "Did, you know him?"
Nora shook her head, "It's like meeting the reaper, you know what it means but not who it is." She said calmly. Horatio had no energy to question her. He didn't want to. He wanted things to calm down.
They took a thirty-minute break to calm down. Resting back at the coffee shop they spoke about how scary the situation was, making light of it to try and get their nerves under control. Their jokes didn't fly far, only serving
to reinforce their fears.
"Well I was saying, we have to see a movie before we leave. It's not a proper date without that." Horatio said finally. Nora agreed without much enthusiasm.
"I was waiting for you to bring that up. Coincidentally I have the perfect movie I mind." She said.
"Oh do tell."
A few minutes later they had bought their tickets and were on their way to the screening. As expected of a character like Nora, she had decided on a basic romantic comedy, a staple for a couple's day out.
Horatio was worried though. He knew he had no reason to be, after all, they were just friends and Nora already had someone she liked. But a fugitive thought kept nagging at him, one that worried him. 'What if the events of
today changed her outlook on that?'
"That couldn't be" He reassured himself, noting that many-a-time that had spent moments together that rivalled the intimacy of their 'date'.
'But' He thought and quickly shut down the thought. It was of the man, of the amount of fear that gripped them both.
"The suspension bridge effect, where a dangerous situation could bring people together." The Analyst stated. Horatio sighed, thinking it was right.
"What are you standing around for? The movie's about to start." Nora called to Horatio, breaking him from his thoughts.
He had been standing there all spaced out. He gave her an apologetic laugh and began after her, into the movie hall.
"You need to pull yourself together." He told himself.
"Would you like the release of sedative hormones?" A voice within spoke.
"No." He shook his head slightly. Nora was leading him towards the back rows, he followed gingerly. "I shouldn't need to drug myself just to behave respectably. Especially not with Nora." He patted his cheeks and ended the
discussion before it could bring up a logical argument.
"I like having such a grand view, makes me feel like a monarch," Nora explained, slipping into a seat in the farthest row. Horatio didn't mind, he had no problems with his vision.
"I don't think someone like you needs much to feel like a monarch." Horatio mused, sitting next to her. Looking around, the rather was nearly empty. Horatio tried to not take it as a bad omen of the movie's quality.
"What was that supposed to mean?" Nora gave him a look.
The lights dimmed.
"Shh, the movie's starting." Horatio sunk deeper into his chair. he reached for some popcorn to help steady his thoughts. "We didn't get popcorn," he said defeatedly.
Nora turned to him with a confused expression "I don't like popcorn. You never said anything about it either."
"Well, the thing is..." Horatio trailed off. Was it because of the lighting or the atmosphere he could not tell, but he felt his heart skip a beat noticing how close Nora was. "N-nevermind." He turned away and tried to focus on
the movie.
The movie was perfect. Not for it's acting or plot, those were terrible; but it was for the terrible nature of the movie that Horatio managed to stay focused. He subconsciously picked apart every part of it, enough to keep his
mind away from the fact Nora had his hand in hers and she had begun leaning on him.
Soon enough the end credits rolled by and Horatio had nothing else to dissect, bringing him crashing back into reality, a reality where Nora Gasal was leaning on his shoulder.
"N-Nora" His voice quivered slightly.
"Yeah." Her voice was seductive, strangely so. 'No', Horatio couldn't think that way, she was not the kind of person he could think of that way.
"The movie's over, we should go." He said clearly, letting his mind go to rest.
"I wanna stay like this for a bit longer."
Horatio felt a shiver, he tried to say something but no words came out. Why was she acting like this? Was it intentional? No, it couldn't be, he had to stop thinking if her in such a way. He had to get her off him, if only for a
second, then he could think, clear his mind.
"Yeah, but they're going to clean up soon. We could go to your place." He suggested, any moment apart was crucial now. He had no experience on a date, his perspective was just skewed.
"Oh, ok." Horatio felt her weight come off him and she stood up. "Mph!" she moaned loudly, stretching with her hands up together.
Horatio blushed. 'This is normal, there's no need to get defensive about it' He thought solely to calm himself down, just enough so he did not pass out from the one-sided and unnecessary build-up.
They caught another bus home, in just twenty minutes they were at Nora's home.
'Shit. I haven't calmed down at all.' Horatio thought. His mind was still muddled, the fact that Nora insisted on leaning on him during the bus ride.
Nora went on ahead, unlocking the door. she turned back to Horatio. "Remember when I said no boys allowed? Well, now you're an exception, my boyfriend." She said with a sly smile. Horatio looked away, too embarrassed
to make eye contact.
"T-thank you for having me." He said timidly, walking inside.
The house was just as he remembered it, all the overly stylish furniture and artwork still in their old places. It felt alien and yet familiar too. Until he remembered he was in there with Nora, his girlfriend. He took a seat on one
of the lounge chairs and took out his phone.
"I'm going to make some tea, want some?" Nora asked calmly.
"I would love, some, yeah...love." He said with an uneasy laugh. Nora giggled "Ok".
Horatio sat quietly, looking up breathing routines to force himself to calm down. Nothing worked. The entire space smelled like Nora, it was intoxicating.
"I can't do this." he spoke to The Analyst "Gove me those-"
"Give you what?" Nora asked, moving in with a tray.
"N-nothing. I was just talking to myself." He said. Nora gave him a look full of disbelief.
"You know, you've been acting strangely for a while now," she said sternly. I hope you're not having any weird thoughts.
"Weird thoughts? No never, I'm just not feeling well, you see I stayed up late yesterday so I'm a bit tired and-." He trailed off, he wanted to bring up the man but this was not the time, as much as he wanted to keep himself
under control he didn't want that conversation to come up..
"Yes, understandable," Nora said simply, setting the tray on the centre table. "Hold on a sec, I think I might have left the kettle on." She said, leaving the room.
Horatio picked up his cup. He inhaled the tea, focusing on the aroma. It was relaxing, perfect for this. 'Just a little more and I'll-'
"On second thought I wouldn't mind if you had weird thoughts." Horatio heard a voice from behind him. He felt arms rest on his shoulder and a soft sensation on the back of his head. He jumped a little but managed to keep
composure.
"Nora?"
"That's me." Her voice was playful, coy even. The weight left and Nora slipped beside him. She made to lean on his shoulder but missed on purpose, laying on his lap.
Horatio made to speak but decided not to. He had nothing to say, he just looked into her jade eyes, mesmerised.
"I loved how you were today, cool caring and kind. Best of all; cute." She gave him a sly smile, he felt himself melt under her gaze.
"Nora."
"I liked how you looked at me, even more than you did before but even less, as though you were scared to look." She continued. Horatio should have known she noticed yet he did not. He could not say a word.
"You know a lot Horatio, much more than anyone I can think of. So how is it, that you know so little about yourself?"
Horatio felt as though he had been slapped. He had heard this before, all of this, someone had said this to him, not with those same words but that was what he was told.
"I need you to help me, Horatio, help me understand something, something about me and you both."
Horatio gulped. "What is it?"
"Why is it that we're both so scared to admit when we're in love?" She asked.
Horatio heard her words, everything she said, it hit him like a bullet yet everything continued as it had. She looked at him expecting an answer but he had none. Time did not feel strange, his senses were still nominal,
nothing was out of the ordinary. That was when it hit him. He did not understand. He did not understand it at all. He believed it to be strange, alien and dangerous, the entity called love. Yet it was here and it was normal. He
felt tight in his chest and he did not want to look away from those jade eyes.
"it's because we don't understand it. We set it on such a high pedestal and hate to think it can come to simple people like us." He smiled, he was unsure why he was smiling, he felt sorrow, pain beyond reckoning, yet he
smiled as though a great weight had come off him.
Nora was stunned, "I, see...hey Horatio, I have something I need to tell you."
"What is it?"
Nora reached us a hand, caressing his cheek, a finger danced there, lingering. It slipped and slid to his lips. "You're Prince Charming"
Horatio knew what was going to happen. This was the catalyst for a sequence of events that will forever change their relationship. He could stop her now, or never again. He let her continue.
She moved up, he moved down, their eyes locked.
Their lips met, a tender sensation. Soft, like white noise. There was no slowed time or thunder striking, everything was as a gentle breeze.
Nora pulled from him, sitting up to kiss him again. She laid her weight on him, forcing him flat on the couch.
Horatio felt her hand under his shirt, felt her kiss rise in intensity, felt her passion. He kissed back, held her back, showed his passion. His mind flashed crimson.
Horatio pulled back, feeling stunned. "Being a virgin means your soul is unbound and free." He heard a voice, a faraway memory, something unimportant. But it lingered, a ghost of a forgotten past, clinging to relevancy.
"What's wrong." Nora looked concerned, she had every right to be. Horatio looked to be in pain, hand on his head with a terrible wince.
He knew this voice, the person it came from, just like he knew the words Nora spoke.
"Nora' wait...I...I don't think we should do this." He said, his voice painted with anguish.
Nora sighed, her fist clenched on his wrist. "I knew this would happen sooner or later." Horatio was confused, 'Why was she saying this?'
"You love her don't you." Nora said, "You love Margulis."