Nikolas, for some reason, felt a frown tug at his lips when the song came to an end. He found himself wanting to sing some more with this mystery man, so he searched for a song. Angel by Theory Of A Deadman popped up into his head, and he bit his lip in consideration. There was a chance his neighbor didn't know it, but it was worth a shot. He took a steadying breath, then hummed to himself and tapped out the beat before opening his mouth and singing, a little more confidence in his voice than before.
At first, Atlas was unfamiliar with the melody, but as it progressed it came to him. He smiled, it used to be his jam several years before. At that time he had learned all of the lyrics and it all flooded back. He joined the man across the wall, his voice as strong as ever.
Nikolas's smile grew as he sang, happy he had chosen one that his neighbor knew. The slight moment of silence was to be expected—it took a bit for people to catch onto some songs—but he was happy when he heard the voice resurfacing and blending with his once again. I could get used to this, he thought.
Atlas couldn't stop the smile on his face, he was enjoying this too much. His shower water started cooling down, which meant he would have to finish it up soon since the water heater couldn't keep up with him. He sighed but continued to sing. He hesitantly finished the shower, not stopping the singing at all. He ended up standing in the bathroom, a towel wrapped around him until the song was over.
Nikolas's shower water was running cold as well. The song was almost done, thankfully, and he had already finished with his shower. He shut off the water, and now he could hear the voice of his neighbor much more clearly now that both showers were turned off. It made him slightly nervous—he sounds like a professional—but he kept it up until the song faded to an end.
Once the song ended, Atlas smiled and sighed almost disappointed that they were done. That had been super fun honestly. He was tempted to go next door and talk to the guy who sang with him. He dried himself off and changed into some pajamas, flopping back onto his bed.
Nikolas wet his lips and bit them to suppress his smile as he dried himself off and changed into some sweatpants. That had been really fun, more fun than he had thought it would be. He wasn't used to singing, especially with other people, but he had enjoyed that little duet he and his neighbor just had. Should I go over and say hi? Just as the thought crossed his mind, Nikolas shook it off and headed into his bedroom, falling into the nest of pillows Tessa had created when she was here.
Atlas sighed and rolled over to pick up his phone. He mindlessly scrolled through his social media, more thinking about his shower singing partner. He had convinced himself that he had to talk to his neighbor. He checked the time, glad it wasn't an ungodly hour yet, so he decided to make himself leave the safety of his bedroom. He sat up with a sigh and put on some shoes. His PJs were mostly like casual comfy clothing so he just left his apartment how he was. Some sort of band tee-shirt and sweat pants, his wet hair flat on his head. He got to the door and took a breath before knocking on the door.
Nikolas didn't bother with socks or a shirt as he hummed in question at the knock on his door, sliding off the bed to answer it. Then his eyes widened as he thought about who it was, fingers hovering over the doorknob. Holy shit, is it him? He retracted his hand to run both through his black and silver hair, the top of the barbell tongue ring tapping against the roof of his mouth in slight nerves. It was better when they didn't know who the other was, but now they'd meet and Nikolas was strangely nervous. He let out a breath, then put on an unruffled face as he opened the door and leaned against the doorframe, silver eyes instantly sliding up and down the visitor's body. "Hey," he greeted once he met the other man's eyes.
Atlas smiled and kept eye contact, noticing Nikolas' silver eyes. "Hello. Um, I'm your next-door neighbor and, I know this is strange to ask, but you just took a shower, right?" He asked nervously. It was indeed a strange thing to ask, but he had to know. He ran his fingers through his recently dyed lilac-colored hair then to his neck to nervously scratch it.
Nikolas tipped his head to the side, though his small smile was friendly as he said, "Oh, yeah. Sorry if I inserted myself into a private concert of yours." His gaze darted up to the lilac color of the man's hair, attention drawn to it as his neighbor ran his fingers through it. It was different, for sure, but he strangely liked the color. Different from his silver hair with his black roots, but then again, Nikolas wasn't one for much color.
"No no, don't be sorry, it was really fun actually," Admitted Atlas with an almost shy smile, "It would be fun together face to face some time, maybe? It would be nice to sing with someone for once instead of being stuck in a recording room for hours on end." Why was he so shy? This isn't normal for him, he;s usually very social and confident talking to others.
Nikolas smiled as well, though he wasn't as shy as his neighbor seemed to be. "I'm no professional, but I'd be happy to do it again sometime, face to face." His eyes flashed slightly in realization, and he reached up to lightly tap his neck in time with his pulse. "I'm Nikolas, by the way. Ficher." He tipped his head to the side questioningly, waiting for his neighbor's name.
"Oh, I'm Atlas Fox, nice to meet you, Nikolas!" He replied with a smile. He held out his hand to shake Nikolas'. His eyes were full of excitement, finally able to spend his time with another musical person outside of his team.
Nikolas chuckled at Atlas' enthusiasm, taking his offered hand and shaking it. "Nice to meet you, too." He opened his mouth, then closed it again as he thought over his next words. "I wouldn't want to disturb you, so would you happen to know of a studio of sorts where I could play the drums?"
Atlas retracted his hand once they were done. "Uhm, well the place that I record my music at has other studio room for various things." He explained. He felt around in his pockets and found the business card that they gave him in the beginning. "Here's their card." He held it out for Nikolas. He hadn't felt like explaining it.
"Hm. I might check it out." Nikolas accepted the card and briefly looked over it, then tucked it into his sweatpants pockets. His expression morphed into something like amusement as he looked up and down, examining the man before him again. He had to admit, he wasn't bad looking, and the lilac hair was starting to grow on him even more.
"Er, do you want my number? So that we can talk about singing together or the studio or something?" Atlas asked almost shyly. He smiled at the man in front of him, putting his hand in his pocket to grab his phone.
Nikolas tried not to feel happy when Atlas offered to give him his number. It's just for singing and the studio, dude. He's not into you. Even still, Nikolas nodded and smiled, pushing off of the doorframe. "Yeah! Just give me a minute to find my phone. I can give you mine as well." He offered a two-finger salute with a lopsided smile, then slipped away to find his phone.
(Heyy, sorry I've been gone so long. I had an unexpected hiatus, but I'll, hopefully, be back for a while.)
Atlas smiled as he watched the man go get his phone. He couldn't stop smiling, he was just in such a good mood. He was excited to talk more with Nikolas and hang out more. But he couldn't shake the slight attraction to him.
((It's okay! Life happens))
Nikolas muttered to himself as he searched for his phone, cursing himself for being too distracted by the man at his door to even remember where he put his phone. Atlas was definitely cute. Nikolas bit his lip as he smiled to himself. He was incredibly happy that he had moved into this apartment. He got a cute neighbor that sang, and with the thin walls, they could easily duet.
"Ah ha," he murmured with a grin, snatching his phone and going back to the door. "Sorry, I forgot where I put it. Here ya go." Nikolas handed Atlas his phone after unlocking it.
(Oh thank you!!)
"Ah, I totally get that," Atlas said, the smile still on his face. He took the phone and handed Nikolas his. After typing in his number, he may have put a small heart next to his name. Once it was all done, he turned of Nikolas' phone and waited for the other to finish.
He was definitely glad this guy was his neighbor instead of another middle-aged man that still didn't have their life pulled together. He hadn't actually had a decent neighbor since he moved into the apartment. It was perfect, a cute, musically talented, and chill guy his age.
Nikolas took Atlas' phone and went to the contacts to put in his number. Instead of his name, he put in 'sexy neighbor' just to mess with Atlas a little bit. It was too tempting. He bit his lip as he smiled, turning off Atlas' phone and handing it back to him. "All set," he said.
Atlas snapped out of his little daydream with a silly little smile. "Thanks! Here's your's." He said as he took his back, pocketing it immediately. "See you later?" He asked, the smile still on his lips.
Nikolas took back his phone and pocketed it as well, then crossed his arms loosely over his bare chest and leaned against the doorframe. "You bet," he said with a nod and friendly smile. The flirting could come later. Perhaps starting with text…
