Stay Over (Started December 8th 2024)

Eclipse sighed to himself as he thought about what to do. His best friend’s birthday was nearly over and all Eclipse had done was briefly talk to and hang out with him, his friend group and family, but other than that, this month was sort of boring.
...It felt like he'd wasted such a special day doing nothing important or productive like he wanted and planned to do. He couldn’t even celebrate with Neru because his birthday gift was a trip with his parents and his twin, Silas.

Eclipse eventually got up from bed as he thought about at least one thing he could do before the day was over, but... nothing came to mind. He felt irrationally frustrated, he knew it wasn't even a big deal in the grand scheme of things. He’d always celebrated tons of things with the twins, at least a little bit before they had to leave and celebrate with family. Birthdays, anniversaries, holidays, the list goes on and on.
Though, the daze Eclipse was in came to an end when he heard someone at the front door — He didn't recall planning to see anyone. He opened the door to his room, walking downstairs to see who was outside.

"...Hello?" He hesitantly called out as he approached the door with a cautious tone. His hand rested on the doorknob, but it didn't move, not until he heard the person on the other side of the door answer, "Eclipse?" The person’s voice was familiar to Eclipse almost instantly. He opened the door immediately, a bit surprised, confused, but albeit happy. "It’s just you..." He said, clearly relieved to see his best friend as he moved out of the way, letting Neru walk into his home.

As he closed and locked the door behind the both of them, he tilted his head as he spoke, the surprise he felt still taking time to pass. "I thought you were going on vacation.. why are you back here?" His tone was quiet from the disbelief. "We had to head back from the airport because my Dad forgot to get his passport," Neru answered, "They're gonna take a while to get back, and they're probably gonna have to reschedule the trip, so..." He shrugged, "I wanted to see you, but you don't sound too happy about it." He spoke teasingly as he hugged Eclipse.

"No! No, I just..." Eclipse shook his head as he attempted to correct himself, "You usually call before coming over, I got kinda nervous because I didn't invite anyone over today..." He responded as he returned the hug, quietly purring as he buried his face into Neru's shoulder. "I didn't mean it like that... Sorry..." He murmured, his tone not nearly as confident as it usually was.
Neru paused for a moment, a slight bit confused and concerned. "Are... you alright?" He asked, the teasing tone starting to drop from his voice. "I just wanted to surprise you, I didn't think it'd freak you out like that..." His hand ran up and down Eclipse's back in an attempt to comfort him, "But, hey, I know you didn't mean to sound rude, so don't worry, okay?"

He shook his head again. "No, I'm not freaking out," Eclipse assured, his voice muffled slightly from hiding his face, "I just really missed you when you said you were going on a trip for your birthday..." He trailed off, his words becoming more clear and shaky as he lifted his head from Neru's shoulder. Eclipse seemed to calm down a bit when he looked at Neru’s worried expression. "I'm glad you're here." His arms loosened from Neru as he ended the hug and walked over to the kitchen. "Did you want anything?" He asked as he gestured to the fridge with a glance.


"..." Neru went quiet for a moment to think about what he wanted. "Milk is fine." He responded, “Did you do anything while I was gone?" He questioned as he sat down on the couch in the living room.
"Not really, I guess." Eclipse answered bland and shortly before he grabbed two glasses, the sound of the sink turning on being the only thing that filled the silence while he washed the glasses out. He placed them on the kitchen counter before pouring the two of them a drink, only putting sugar in Neru’s glass just as he usually liked. Even if he said he was fine, it's clear by the look on his face that something was bothering him. 

He looked over his shoulder at Eclipse, a bit confused at such a short reply, "...Really?" Neru asked after he was handed his glass. "I thought you and the others would've found something to do..." His tone was quiet as he thought out loud to himself before taking a sip of his drink, only to place it on the table afterwards. “...But, nothing, like, at all?”

Eclipse stayed silent for ages ...or at least that's what it felt like to Neru. However, he finally replied after taking a minute to think, "I haven't... done anything special for your birthday and it's making me feel weird." He continued, "Of course, it’s your day, and I really shouldn’t make it about myself when you’re not spending your special day with me... I just wanted to do something special before you had to go and I... didn’t have the chance to go through with doing so, haha.." His tone had a hint of disappointment as he looked at his glass, running his finger against the rim as he mumbled.

They both sat together in silence while Neru tried to think of something to say. "I..." He started, a bit hesitantly, "I'm... not good with this kinda thing." He softly admitted.

"It's.. fine, I–" Eclipse began before being cut off by Neru, "But, not everything has to be amazing, or... even meaningful to me." He glanced at Eclipse after taking another sip, "You keep focusing on making things meaningful to the point you've ruined the fun of just experiencing stuff and enjoying life," There was a pause before he finally said: "I don’t need you to do something special for me on my birthday, or any day that’s celebrating me for something, because having you around makes it special enough."

Neither of them really said anything.

The two of them sort of... stared at each other in silence before Eclipse could be heard stifling a laugh.

"You're actually... so corny..." Eclipse snickered as he tried to be serious.
Neru paused, looking a bit surprised at Eclipse actually laughing at him. "I– Sorry... I thought..." He murmured with something almost like embarrassment in his tone.

"No, no—" Eclipse immediately corrected himself, a bit surprised by the reaction Neru gave. "You're right, I shouldn't be like that." He said, smiling, "I'm glad I got to talk to you. You might not think so, but when I really need someone to talk to, you’re the first person I think of. You’re kind of good at it, at least for such a snobby person." He teased.

Neru scoffed before looking at Eclipse and laughing as well. "Snobby?" He repeated after him. "You should speak for yourself.." He whispered, resting his hand over Eclipse's, but it felt... different. They both looked at each other for a moment, but they both clearly brushed off the feeling. "I'm not nearly as much as you." Eclipse said, a bit softer. "...I'm not complaining, though. I like that about you." He said, his tone a bit hard to decipher.

"Don't say it like that." Neru said, leaning onto him as he mumbled. "I mean, you shouldn't be complaining, anyway." He whispered, "Anyone would be honored to have me around, and I think you like me too much to admit it." The arrogance in Neru’s tone was obvious, and unsurprising, but the last part of the sentence still managed to make Eclipse’s heart pause for a moment.
"I..." Eclipse quietly stuttered, unaware of what to reply with. "...Shut up." Eclipse mumbled, somewhat flustered. They both continued teasing each other for a couple minutes or so, but it's clear it wasn't as friendly as it usually was — not in a mean way, but it felt less... platonic.

However, they both seemed to ignore the feeling as time continued to pass, the sun outside starting to set signaling the day was starting to end. When they finally realized how late it was getting, Neru suddenly went off topic, "It's getting pretty late." He observed as he glanced out the window. Neru pulled out his phone, it was safe to assume he was about to text his parents he'd be home soon, but out of what felt like fear of Neru leaving, Eclipse mumbled quietly: "...We could hang out... if you wanted."

Neru looked up from his phone with a calm and collected expression, but to Eclipse, it was clear he was happy about the idea."Well, yeah... Maybe?" He answered, putting his phone on the coffee table as he turned his attention to Eclipse. Eclipse's hands continued to fidget with his glass. A part of him was kind of scared he’d say no for some reason, honestly, so when Neru agreed, Eclipse sighed out of relief.