A Night To Remember

Aiden would share his thoughts with unfiltered honesty. The announcements had flushed heat into Lorenzo’s ears and cheeks, washing away the last bits of his irritation over some fantasized girlfriend. His heart leapt in anticipation, straightening his posture, and lingered as a warm smile. All while the two took off and walked back toward the telescope. On the way, the Scottish autumn wind slowly embraced their forms. Like a general conscripted by the weather, it seemed to command the warmth from the air, driving the cold forward and forcing it mercilessly into the hidden folds of their clothes. With victory in mind, the goal clearly was taking their body heat hostage.
In this war of natural forces, anything was seemingly permitted, because even beneath his collarbone, a draft slid across his skin. Startled by the ambush, the young Ravenclaw held his breath. Keeping outward posture, he tried to endure it silently. In contrast, his fingers dug a little deeper into Aiden’s still-warm sleeve, until the texture threatened to imprint itself into the fingers. Clinging this way only to the farthers corner of the hem, the young Italian briefly pinned his hopes on Aiden not noticing this newly found tension. Fixing his gaze on their destination did little to bury the loss of comfort.
Apparently beneath joyful anticipation—eternal rest could still not be found. Given that he raised his eyes and caught on, that the girl with the enchanting dress had already laid her hand upon the telescope. Additionally the other first-year had joined the older Ravenclaw, making himself comfortable as well.

It wasn’t the company itself that troubled Lorenzo, but the looming prospect of standing beside them, trembling and impolite, in the minutes to come. He pressed a fingernail almost imperceptibly deeper into the soft weave of Aiden’s sleeve. As they neared within the next few seconds, his smile ebbed away. The blue eyes darted sideways, seeking in vain for not Aiden’s but the gifted coat. He had already noticed earlier that the boy hadn’t brought it, yet for once it was worth checking twice. Somewhere, the last remnants of childish naivety had hidden themselves among his dark hair, urging him still to believe in miracles. Nonetheless only a few steps were needed to join in on the gathering.
Lorenzo turned his attention to the metallic instrument of astronomical star sighting. In the reflection of the sky’s dark blue, there still was no solution to his dilemma. At least in the moment of staring at the reflection, he successfully banished the tingling cold from his lips and cheeks.
The sleeve however, was kept between index and thumb, because by now, Lorenzo clung to it as though it were part of his own body. That it actually belonged to Aiden was a fact hiding itself from the cold’s commanding general. Another draft—barely perceptible—swept gently over the balcony. Lorenzo drew a deep breath and tried to relax against it. Then came the saving question, drifting down to him from above “Still not freezing?”—it was Aiden.
The familiar voice arrived, as in Diagon Alley, disguised as a white knight. Lorenzo wanted to act with control, to move slowly and gracefully, as if it was stitched into his veins and carved into his bones. Instead, he turned his head too quickly, a strand of dark hair slipping onto his face, as if to announce its presence. The tips tried to poke into his eye.

“I’ve drastically changed my mind on that,” Lorenzo confessed, disguising the truth only by keeping his voice low enough not to share it with everyone gathered at the telescope.

With the blue eyes lifted to Aiden, the stars lingered at the edge of his vision. He couldn’t yet make out any motions—only Aiden’s green eyes. In the dim light they seemed darker than usual, and the change sent a small tremor through Lorenzo’s chest. It wasn't fair changing an established color. Slowly a faint frown appeared on his voice. As though displeasure has been summoned Lorenzo finally released the sleeve.

Was it the cold wind that made him ask if Lorenzo was freezing? No, it was mostly due to the almost vise-like grip he had on Aiden’s own sweater that, to a point, got too restrictive in his own movements to ignore. When Aiden mentioned it, Lorenzo admitted, between the lines, his poor choice of clothing and, almost reluctantly, released the sleeve. It hadn’t bothered him that much, but it would be difficult to star-gaze if they were practically holding hands. He wasn’t held by fingers anymore, just by Lorenzo’s intense gaze, dark blue eyes unreadable. Though with everything that had been going on the last couple of months– with the boy stealing his clothes, Aiden suspected he was trying to psyche him into giving him this sweater too.

Contemplating whether it was worth it, but since he ultimately already had come to terms with offering his sweater, and accepting… kind of, that he wouldn’t see smoke of it anytime soon, he caved. With a sigh, Aiden reached for the hem and pulled it off over his head, in one fluid motion. Beneath the navy knit, a fitted black merino-wool turtleneck hugged him snugly, one of his finer pieces. Lorenzo could only dream of that one, but the navy sweater was a plain Primark purchase, easily replaceable if this one were to mysteriously ‘disappear’ after tonight.

“Here,” he said almost defeated, albeit with a hint of a smile, stretched the fabric slightly and pulled the dark knit over Lorenzos head and shoulders. When the precious head popped back up from beneath the neckline, hair all ruffled, the sight did little to keep a pearly grin off Aiden's face. Based on previous experience, he would without a doubt eagerly take it off his hands. “You can keep this one.” It was inevitable anyway; Aiden confirming it, knowing Lorenzo would try to keep it regardless of what he told him, was just courtesy. Compared to him, Aiden had actually come prepared by wearing more than one layer of clothing.

Aiden glanced at Damien when he announced that the meteor shower was apparently about to start any minute now, urging them to be alive to see it. The Hufflepuff girl stepped away from the telescope, and since no one else immediately stepped up, Aiden claimed his spot next. He adjusted the telescope to fit his height better, and then carefully placed one eye against the metal. He saw stars, loads of them. The moon was also enormous through this view, and bright, but no meteor shower yet. Granted, watching through a limited view was probably not the best way to see the shower. He waited a little while longer, bent over the telescope just long enough to make his back ache just a bit, just in case something extraordinary were to flash before his eyes. His expectations weren’t high to begin with, but just to say that he technically gave it a fair chance before he gave up.

“No meteor shower yet…” he told the void, not knowing who was paying attention, still with his eye pressed to the telescope. It didn't feel fair that he'd be the first to see it when he wasn't even here for the show. “But Orion is clear tonight.” His voice was almost mechanical, like he was talking about the weather forecast. At least they were lucky with the weather tonight. He adjusted the view a bit to the right. “There’s also Pegasus,” he added, softer this time. Of course, the constellation was no way resembling a horse, but his passion for the animals clearly preceded just the barn. Enough that he somehow recognized it. Impressive really, considering his lacking interest in astronomy. Feeling satisfied enough with his underwhelming finds, Aiden peeled himself away from the telescope to return to Lorenzos’ side and to watch the sky from a broader perspective.