*
The two men stood in a bedroom. The furniture was much darker. Black furniture but with dark blue decorations. The bedsheets were navy blue, and so were the curtains and the pillows. Everything made of cloth was navy blue, including the cushion of the chair tucked beneath the desk at the corner of the room. The bedside drawer too was black. Even the AC at the corner of the room was black. The only other colours on it were the glowing red numbers "18" showing how cool the AC was blowing.
"Here, you can have one of the guest rooms. And don't worry. I cleaned it myself, so it's been checked." Anton said. "Every room here has its own theme. I picked this one for you because I think it really suits your personality. Don't you think so?"
Anton gave Xander a smile again. Xander said nothing. He simply went around the room, taking everything in.
"Alright I'll leave you to it." Anton spoke. "Feel free to explore the room and make yourself at home. Just remember to take your shoes off before getting in bed. I'll go get you a change of clothes." He nodded at Xander then turned around and left the room, closing the door behind him.
Xander stared at the door Anton had just left for a while before proceeding to take off his shoes, like Anton asked.
He sighed, rubbed the spot between his brows, waiting for Anton to come back.
He laid back on the bed awhile, simply staring to making a face while asking,gbht the ceiling to pass the time. He was just on the verge of falling asleep there and then, when Anton came back, holding a bundle of folded clothes.
"I couldn't particularly find anything that could fit you in my own closet, but I found a pair of clothes a friend had bought for me sometime ago. They never fit me, but I'm thinking you could wear them." He held out the clothes to Xander.
Xander unfolded them to see a black plain t-shirt and a pair of black loose jeans. Xander could see why the clothes never fit Anton. The clothes were too big for his frame. Even though he wasn't too skinny, he wasn't as big as Xander was and that was that. The clothes were more likely to fit Xander than they ever would Anton.
Jeans were quite uncomfortable but at least it was something to wear and much more comfortable than slacks to sleep in.
Xander looked up at Anton and nodded. Anton smiled, glad he was satisfied with the clothes and had no complaints.
"Alright, sleep well." Anton turned around and left just as he came, shutting the door gently behind him.
Xander began unbuttoning his shirt, then taking it off, taking special care not to wrinkle it.
He hung it on the desk chair and pulled on the black shirt Anton gave him.
He took off his slacks, placing them on the chair too and wore the jeans he had received. He took off his watch and placed it on the desk, then slipped into bed, covering himself with the duvet, staring at the ceiling for barely five minutes before his eyes drooped and he drifted.
He was really sleepy.
*
Anton sat reading a book with a black cover (but no title written on the cover or even the spine) in the room from earlier. The look on his face was indifferent, neither showing boredom nor interest in the book. The wine glasses remained beside him but it seemed he had finished the wine in the bottle. The last of it sat in the wine glass closest to him. It was barely even a quarter of the glass.
A petite woman dressed quite casually, walked up to Anton. She bowed and straightened up before speaking. "Sir, about the man you told me was sleeping upstairs..."
Anton put his book down on his lap and looked at her. His expression was still indifferent. "Did you disturb him?"
"No. Not at all sir, I didn't. I just wanted to ask a question." She rushed to explain.
Anton smiled at her. "Yes?"
"Would he be joining you for dinner, sir?" She asked politely.
Anton tilted his head left, looking at the doorway she came from. "Actually, I don't know. But, just in case, make an extra portion and set an extra plate on the table for him. I should be down for dinner in 10 minutes. When you're done, you may leave. I'll take care of the rest myself."
"Yes sir. Thank you, sir." The woman bowed and left.
Anton picked his book up again, staring at the pages indifferently again before dropping it on the table, finishing the wine in the glass and standing up. His suit was not on the back of the chair like before.
*
Back at the room Xander slept in.
Anton opened the door of the room, rather quietly, walking up to the bed to see how deeply Xander slept. Xander's face however was pulled into a frown and his head turned towards his left where Anton stood by his bed.
Anton leaned over examining his expression for some time, then sat beside him on the bed, using his left middle finger to rub the space between Xander's brows that were formed into a deep frown, smoothing it out till the frown disappeared.
He pushed back the baby hairs at the edge of Xander's hairline gently watching as Xander's expression calmed and became rather peaceful.
He sighed as quietly as he could. "I knew you weren't sleeping well." He whispered. "Thankfully you came here."
He continued his motions for a while before leaning beside Xander's right ear. "It's ok. Take all the time you need. When you're done, come down for dinner."
He straightened up and gently rubbed the knuckle on his finger on Xander's head, then smiled to himself. "I'll come check on you in a while." He whispered again, just not into Xander's ear like before.
He stood up and left the room, closing the door gently behind him like before.
In the room, Xander, rolled over to his left, moving closer to the edge, unconsciously. He breathed in deeply trying to inhale what was left of the calming scent that seemed to be beside him only a moment ago, mumbling "Mn".
*
Anton was seated at the head of a dining table. A few porcelain dishes of food lay in front of him. A plate, some cutlery and a water glass was set in front of him and another on his left. He poured himself a glass of water, raising the glass to his lips, when Xander walked in, folding the sleeves of his shirt perfectly, revealing his tan forearms.
He didn't look like he'd just woken up. He he was all dressed up in his own clothes and his gold watch sat on his wrist as well, he looked the same way he looked when he first arrived with the exception that his hair was tousled as though he'd run his hands through it again and again, he wore his button up and slacks again,
"Please tell me you haven't been waiting for me." He told Anton.
"Au Contraire, actually." Anton informed him. "Would you be joining me for dinner?"
Xander sat on Anton's left, turning to look at Anton.
"Do I have a choice? You did wait after all." Xander asked, raising his left brow.
A/N: Reminder that the scene changes every time "*" comes up.