Gawin stood behind the curtain, one hand resting on the cold window frame.

Joss was still there.
No hood, no umbrella.
His shirt clung to his body, soaked through. His hair dripped rain, plastered to his forehead.

Gawin glanced at the clock. 9:07 PM.
He hadn't left.

Inside, something trembled.
Because Gawin knew - Joss was never the patient type. He never liked waiting.
But this time, he didn't storm in.
He didn't bang on the door.
He didn't shout Gawin's name like before.

He just stood there.

Waiting.

Memories flooded back like a rewound reel
Their fights.
The times Joss had pushed him into bed instead of offering an apology.
The times sex became the only way they knew how to speak.
But now - for the first time - he wasn't doing anything.

Just waiting.

Gawin's hand trembled.
He pulled the curtain aside.

Joss looked up.
Their eyes met through the blurred curtain of rain.

He didn't smile.
He didn't wave.
There was no sign of pleading or force.

Just a quiet question behind those eyes:
Have I changed enough… for you to come back?

Gawin turned away.
Heart pounding.
He couldn’t bear that gaze a second longer.

Ten minutes passed.
Still no knock.
No call.
No desperate insistence.

Gawin grabbed his coat.
Stepped into the hallway.
The elevator was in use.

He's still there.

He ran down the stairs - legs moved by something deeper than will.

At the lobby door, rain still poured.
Joss sat hunched on a stone bench, head in his hands.

He looked up at the sound of footsteps.

Neither spoke.

Gawin stepped closer. His voice was hoarse, nearly a whisper:
"Were you really planning to stay out here all night?"

Joss let out a broken laugh - low and rough:
"If you hadn't come down… yeah. I was."

Gawin lowered his head.
Rain soaked his hair, ran down his cheeks.

Joss took off his coat, draped it over Gawin's shoulders.

They stood close in the rain.
No touching.
No urgency.
No desire.
Just… presence.

"I'm sorry," Joss said softly.
"For trying to hold you the wrong way. I'll learn. If you'll let me.
This time… not in bed. But beside you. One day at a time."

Gawin bit his lip. "I'm not sure I'm ready."

"I'm not sure I deserve it either.
But I know… if I don't try, I'll lose you."

A cold gust blew past.
Gawin shivered.

Joss reached out. "Let's go. I'll cook something warm. I won't touch you. Just sit next to you. I promise."

Gawin nodded. Slowly.

One nod - soft, uncertain - was enough to make Joss's heart explode.

They stepped out of the rain together.
No promises.
No guarantees.

But for the first time,
they stepped away from the distance
and toward the same direction.

@NopByy Vietnam