#t:os

while still a bit sheepish over the scene you’d accidentally caused, you break into a small smile as well. “i’m fine, sorry ‘bout that—you?”

“all good,” he responds, yet no longer sounding entirely here, not entirely present. it doesn’t go unnoticed by you, the way his eye darts down to your lips, shamelessly lingering there for a little longer than you expected before locking with your own eyes again. 

you’ve thought about it before, how beautiful his eye is. a strange plum-like shade of purple, sometimes sparkling with his on-brand mischief, sometimes sparkling a tender gleam like no other. you know for a fact that sometimes it doesn’t sparkle at all, void of his otherwise caring nature and replaced by a ruthless tint you’re thankful you’ve never been on the wrong end to witness yourself. 

you also know for a fact that you don’t have to worry about ever ending up on that wrong end either. not with someone who looks at you like that, as if you put all the stars in the sky, or as if you’re some holy being and him the preacher.

at times like that, you’re struck by just how much affection you can feel from even a single glance of his.

and yet, you just can’t help but feel—

“curious?”

you blink. once, twice, before a silly ‘huh’ escapes you. it brings out a chuckle from suo, and he reaches for the hand you hadn’t even noticed was ghosting the skin beneath his eye patch. embarrassed and even somewhat guilty, you make an attempt to retreat—you fail, surprised as he gently holds it in his own, letting your fingertips stay over his skin. “you’re staring, y/n.”

“i-i’m sorry, i didn’t mean to, i just—” you stumble on your words, just to avoid his gaze as you give in, “... yes. a little… maybe.”

suo chuckles again. his grip on your waist loosens, palm finding its way to stroke the top of your hand. “it’s okay. you can take a look if you want.”

faster than you’re proud of, you turn to face him again, “wait, really?” with confidence and ease, he nods and with the release of your hand, you permit your fingers to graze his face.

yes, you may be obsessed with his eye, but you’d be a liar to say you’re not curious about what’s behind the eye patch. you’ve yet to ask about its cause, but what is behind the eye patch? it’s a question you catch yourself thinking about every now and then, although refrain from actually expressing; he never mentions it himself, and it makes you think that, perhaps, it’s business you shouldn’t be meddling in really yet.

now, here he is, giving you the permission to, quote, unquote, take a look, without you even bringing it up. it’s more intimate than you would have ever imagined.

the silence rising isn’t empty. it’s full of so many things — comfort, trust, a precious knowledge that this is a moment that only belongs to you and him — and you become distracted by the feeling of being in love, palm briefly caressing his cheek.

then you meet suo’s other eye.

the one he actually lets the world see, the one he sees at you with, full of all that affection. it stays locked with your own, calmly observing your every move, reaction, twitch of a muscle, interested in how far your curiosity will take you. you blink again. once, twice, sigh.

the deep sigh of a defeat whose origin you can’t properly place your finger on. you sit back on your knees and let both of your hands fall to your lap. suo doesn’t look the slightest bit surprised by your surrender, as if you’re acting according to threads on his fingers. his smile widens though, and you start to think that this is just him being mischievous again.

“don’t offer me to look if you already know i won’t,” you groan but can’t hold back a smile of your own when he laughs.

“sorry, i just wanted to see how far you would go,” he admits, shamelessly. “although you can look if you want to.”

you stand up on your feet, brushing off invisible dust before offering a hand to help him up, retorting as you do, “this isn’t a matter about whether i want to or not. if you don’t want me to see, i don’t want to see either.”