The silence between Hirvan and Fu Yan was thick with tension, the kind that made every second feel like an eternity.
They had been sitting across from each other, but now they were both too mortified to even exchange a glance. Hirvan kept his eye firmly glued to the floor. He could feel his heart pounding in his chest, the heat rising in his cheeks as if he were still standing by the poolside, with his shameful reaction that had brought them to this awkwardness.
Hirvan usually so confidant and self-assured, was now a bundle of nerves. His sexuality was no secret, and though he was comfortable with who he was, the situation with Fu Yan had thrown him off balance. The way Fu Yan looked at him was all too much. He wished the ground would open up beneath him so he could disappear, and escape from the overwhelming embarrassment that now suffocated him.
