Side Story Preview (Ari) (Patreon)

She was beautiful.

The first time he had that thought, he was taken aback. He'd never really thought that about another person before.

He knew, objectively, when someone was attractive.

Van was objectively attractive. Caleb also was attractive. It wasn't as if Ari didn't have eyes. He could compare features for symmetry or appeal. But Morgan was the first person he knew where a slightly wistful thought about her beauty lodged in his mind and wouldn't leave.

Eyes that reminded him of the Infinity Sea…

A smile that was somehow unlike other smiles. It wasn't just an expression - it felt…somehow warm. And that made no sense because logically speaking, smiles were actually just facial expressions.

It was their third week of training when he realised his gaze would follow her even when the two of them weren't interacting. All the time. Even when he wasn't trying to do it.

He would pull his eyes from her only to find them tracing her familiar form seconds later.

It bothered him.

He didn't know why he couldn't look away.

She was attractive, yes. And pleasant to talk to. She was a team mate. But she was, in many ways, also unremarkable - even in that regard. He knew plenty of people that were attractive and pleasant enough to talk to. Who were intelligent and amiable.

So why was it that she captured his attention this way?

Why…did he want to spend more time with her?

The more he puzzled over it, the more he found himself caught in an endless web of thinking about her, then thinking about why he was thinking about her.

The circular logic was maddening.

Caleb was the first to notice he was distracted. Because of course he did.

He only asked about it once, eyebrows shooting up when Ari answered in a tone that was far more curt than he intended. Anyone else might not have paid attention to it. But Caleb did.

And Ari did.

Caleb didn't ask again. Not for a few days.

It was, in fact, Ari who brought it up to him instead.

After the devastating mistake he'd made teleporting himself straight to Morgan's shower during a moment of what could only be described as a daydream. A pleasant one.

She had kissed him. Or, well, they had kissed. He had…kissed her.

It was such a strange sensation. Lips against lips. The way it affected him was absolutely beyond his ability to understand. He'd fled because he couldn't quite manage to comprehend what had happened or why. But then found himself in his flat, back to the wall, two fingers pressed to his lips as he recounted the sensation. Every part of it.

Her breath, her hair, the soft curves of he body pressed against him. His eyes fluttered shut as he sank into replaying that moment and the unfamiliar and alarming warmth it stirred in his stomach. Then she crystallised in his mind and before he realised it, she was there in front of him. It was so abrupt, so startling, that he got an unfortunate and very long look at her before he came to his senses.

His mind completely blanked at the sight of her in front of him. Soft curves dripping enticingly with warm water. A soap bubble balanced precariously on her collar bone and captivating him when it slid downward to trace a delicate path of her skin.

And then his eyes met hers - that beautiful stormy blue. The shock hit him like a bucket of icy water. Ari fled for the second time, mortified and agonising over the image of her that was burned into his mind.

Avoiding her was childish.

Asking Caleb for a volitant match to clear his head was equally childish. But it seemed to work for Caleb. For the first time in his life Ari found himself wondering if a concussion would be preferable to remembering what happened.

At the end of their match, he was still wondering it as he laid on the floor of the court staring up at the ceiling, having lost miserably.

As expected.

Caleb helped him up with a sympathetic smile and asked if he was finally willing to talk.

He was.

Because it was either talk or get 'his ass handed to him' again, to use Caleb's words.

Caleb was…one of the first people his own age that Ari had ever met. That was already years ago but it didn't change that they had known each other a long time and that, at Endgame, there was no one who knew him as well as Caleb. So as Ari haltingly found the words to explain his dilemma, he wasn't surprised Caleb merely leaned against the wall, arms folded across his chest, listening. He didn't interrupt or even ask questions.

Ari liked that about talking to him about difficult things. Caleb always gave him time to find the words to explain himself. And when he was finished and looking up at Caleb with helpless frustration, Caleb just smiled slightly, flopped down next to him and put a hand on his shoulder.

"You have to talk to her. Just like you did to me. That's all."

Of course, Ari had known that already. But in his mind it seemed like an insurmountable wall.  When Caleb said it, it suddenly seemed so simple and obvious. And Ari was grateful that was all he'd said. Until, of course, Caleb had to open his mouth again.

"If it doesn't go well, I'll kick your ass in here as many times as it takes to make you feel better, so don't worry about it."

Ari sighed. The usual smile came to his lips, this time accompanied by a rare, quiet laugh. "I appreciate the offer but I'll do my best to ensure it goes well."