Néci laughed, "I am lucky I get to be so excited." At some points of his life, his energy was all that he had. If he can use it to make Jayme smile the way he was right now, then that would make him even more happy.
The instructions were all jumbled up in his head. Wherever Jayme pointed, he stared at it, labeled it in German, then did the same with the next. When he looked up at the cabinet, he whispered brushes in German. Put the brushes in the cabinet but wash them first, and make sure everything else goes in their corresponding place.
"Okay, I can do it, Jayme." Néci hummed to himself while going over the instructions. He made sure that everything was cleaned up and looked nice before everything was put away, but he did leave the paint on the palette. Honestly, he spent a few seconds debating on cleaning it off. Still, if Jayme told him to, he would gladly do it in a heartbeat.
He took the watercolors and made sure the case and everything was clean, then shut it and put it in the shelf it belonged to. He left the palette with the same paints still on it, covering it with a towel before putting it in a different shelf.
He looked over to Néci once he was done and smiled. “Good work, partner.” He went over to him and tentatively took his hand.
“I think that’s everything. You’re free to go home for the day. But, ah… I will see you this evening, yes?” He looked up at him.
"You too, partner." The corners of his lips lifted into a soft smile. Néci tried to open them again but was stopped when he felt Jayme taking his hand. They barely parted when his widened eyes looked down. The way his partner delicately held it made his heart all warm and fuzzy.
He pouted. It was hard for him to believe that they were already done. With previous jobs, sometimes he would not be done till sunset or even later. He didn't want to go. No not yet. A small crease formed between his brows. When Jayme looked up at him, all signs of this pouting was gone. Before saying a word, he eagerly nodded his head. "Oh yes, I will come fetch for you at six forty-five if that is alright with you, Jayme."
Jayme let out a small sigh of relief when he saw that holding his hand did not have regrettable results. The sigh turned into a chuckle when he noticed Néci’s wide eyes and warm expression. Although he was a little sad that Néci was leaving, he was more struck by the fact that he was so calm in this moment. Yes, Néci was leaving, but he would be back, and they would have a grand time. Or at least, he hoped.
“Six forty-five works just fine for me, thank you.” He smiled softly. “You’re quite the gentleman, Néci. I’ll see you then.” He led him to the door.
Néci gently swung their hands. Jayme's was slightly softer compared to his calloused hand, but he loved the contrast of the two. He loved holding onto the artist's hand. If only he didn't have to part from him so soon. Of course there was dinner yet he had little hopes they would be able to do something like this unless they were in private where no one could see them or no one would care. Options for such a thing are already limited as it is. It's frivolous, but he doesn't mind the risk.
When they reached the door, he took Jayme's hand up to his lips and kissed the top of it before letting go. "Thank you, Jayme," He beamed. Néci opened the door and had one foot out the door when he looked over his shoulder. "See you at six forty-five then. I am looking forward to it." And with that, Néci closed the door behind him. Before he could stop himself, he began walking down the street, making his way down to the street corner.
He couldn’t help but smile at their swinging hands. He definitely hoped there would be more of this in the near future. His eagerness for it heightened as Néci kissed his hand. His cheeks flushed with surprise and giddiness. His brain couldn’t process it for a moment.
“Oh— yes, I… uh, I… of course—” Jayme stuttered as his partner opened the door. He shook his head and waved to him. “Me too!”
Once the door was closed, he let out a sigh, covering his face with his hands and shaking his head. “God help me.”
Néci almost skipped down the street, but instead he smiled all the way back to his apartment. His heart felt fluffy and giddy with glee. The last time he ever felt like was this was when he left mainland Europe to go home; although this time was much different. To say he walked out of a place with a job and date was something that never happened to him. Of only he could tell others though. Zente and Estelle and his other siblings would be very proud of him for getting the job. Mother too. He himself was also proud.
Waiting for six forty-five felt like an eternity. The more he looked at his watch, the slower time got. Somehow he thought time would go quicker if he took a nap but he had to pick up his nieces from school at 4. Him and Estelle talked over tea about how their day went and his new job while the girls were playing in the other room. Eventually he went to join them before returning to his apartment to get ready.
Getting ready was a lot harder than he anticipated. Over and over again did he try something on, remove it, put something else on only to go back to the previous shirt or jacket or pants. By the grace of God, Néci was able to gather his thoughts and decided to go with what he was already wearing today. It was good enough to begin with, but he did stop to fix his hair on the way out.
It was six forty-four by the time he was at Jayme's door. He stared at his watch while his foot tapped against the ground. The second it hit forty-five, his hand immediately reached to knock on the door.
When Jayme turned around and uncovered his face, he found Artemisia sitting at the base of the stairs, her green eyes fixed on him. He sighed like a guilty man, as if the cat had passed judgement onto him. But she merely mewed pleadingly, likely asking for her own meal now.
He went over to the cat and pet her head, and thankfully, she leaned into his hand purred. Jayme smiled softly. “Well Arty, look at that. Never expected to go out for a date in the near future.” He moved to scratch her chin, which she also accepted. “Do I deserve this? Do I deserve him?”
Artemisia just stared, moving away from his hand and pawing at it. The only thing she seemed to be judging him for was delaying her lunch.
“Alright, alright. Patience, you ravenous beast.” He moved back and started up the stairs. The cat licked her muzzle and followed him eagerly.
Other than feeding the beast, Jayme did not know what to do with himself until six forty-five. As Artemisia happily ate, he wandered about the kitchen and ended up glancing at the ice chest. When he opened it, he was reminded of the limited amount of lemonade that remained inside. Why not go ahead and get more?
After getting himself ready, he made his way to the general store and got more lemonade bottles. After placing them in the ice chest, he looked at the clock and was somewhat disappointed that not as much time had passed as he thought. He sighed, and was about to head to his room when he heard the phone ring. Confused, he made his way to the sitting room and took the phone to answer.
“Yes, Jayme Ashton speaking.”
His mouth hung slightly agape as he listened to the speaker on the other end.
“Oh! Wonderful, I’m… I’m pleased to know you’re interested.” He kept holding the phone as he moved to grab a piece of paper and a pen. “Miss Gelding, right? Okay. I can see you this weekend, is that alright?” He scribbled on the paper. “Late morning on Saturday, eleven o’clock perhaps? …Eleven thirty is fine, of course.” After asking a few more questions and scribbling a bit more on the paper, he said his goodbyes and hung up. He sat in the chair and let out a breath, finding himself rather excited.
Unlike Néci, Jayme was able to take a nap to pass by the day. Once he woke up, he checked the time, then rushed to get ready. His excitement came back, though for different reasons and with a touch of anxiety. At some point he realized he had no idea what to do. What does one wear to a date? He rather liked what he had on, but was it appropriate for the occasion? Looking down at himself, he sighed and decided to put on a nicer shirt, at the very least. His hair was messy from the nap, so he combed it down carefully. Even then, the soft curls of red hair showed through.
When he heard the knock, he scrambled and quickly went to answer the door. “H— hello.” He cleared his throat, eyes focusing on the man before him. God, how did he survive the past few hours without seeing Néci? He seemed to glow, his eyes shining down at him.
Waiting outside the door felt like an eternity. Néci kept rocking back and forth on his heels with his hands inside his pockets. Did he looked anxious? Tired? He stopped moving and stood straight while his shoulders back. Then he kept his arms at his side, but he couldn't resist at least fidget with his hands. Taking a few deep breaths did help calm his nerves for a couple seconds.
It was a miracle that he could stand still. The sight of the door opening was enough to keep him on the edge, but seeing Jayme almost knocked him over. He was sure his knees were going to buckle or maybe he could've fallen backwards. Néci could have sworn his heart stopped. Everything in the world must have stopped in that moment.
God, what had he done to be lead to Jayme? Was it possible for an artist to look more handsome than his art? It was impossible for him to look away, to peel his eyes off of this man. His face was becoming rosy.
"Hi…" In an attempt to play it cool, he gave Jayme one his charming grins. "You look just as amazing as I last saw you. Should we go?"
They seemed to mirror each other for a moment, Jayme getting caught up in Néci’s beauty as much as Néci was with Jayme’s. Images too shameful to describe rose in his mind, and his cheeks became flushed as well. Doubts from earlier came back. Did he deserve this? He wanted it so badly, but was that a good thing?
The flash of grin almost blinded him, yet he stepped closer. Jayme laughed, a little nervously. “Thank you? You… you look amazing as well. I’m ready to go, yes. By the way—” he brought out a sketchbook and held it up. “I was thinking of taking this with me, if that’s alright?”
Usually when he went out for extended periods, he would bring a sketchbook or something he could draw with. It helped with boredom and practicing his craft. He had no idea what to expect with a date, but it felt weird to him to leave without a sketchbook.
