He was fascinating, Daniel was. Liam was now used to the silence that met his mind whenever he set his attention upon the dread-headed eighteen-year-old, but he hadn’t quite adjusted to the feeling it left with him. It was a nostalgia of a sort, a feeling that reminded him of his earlier life, back before he even knew he was Maeroksigne, back before he had heard the first voice, back before his entire life had changed. Maybe it was innocence, interacting with someone on such a simple level. He hadn’t interacted with anyone, not even other Maeroksigne, on such basic terms since he was nine. It was a challenge, trying to figure out what was really behind Daniel’s words, whether he was teasing or serious, only being friendly or if he was aiming for a little bit more. Whenever Liam had been unsure in the past, he could focus on what he was hearing in those voices that weren’t quite his own, or concentrate on those feelings that were mixing with his own, to let him in on what was really happening in the mind of the person he was talking with.

But it wasn’t like that with Daniel, and in a way it was a relief. A breath of fresh air. In a world of constant voices, constant noise, Daniel provided a silence and peace of mind that Liam hadn’t known he needed.

It was comforting, a comfort Liam wasn’t sure he had ever felt before. One he didn’t want to let go of, not yet, not anytime soon. And that realization was only emphasized when Daniel pushed back his chair and gathered his books a half hour or so later, trampling Liam’s tranquil serenity with the screech of his chair legs scooting back against the floor. His chest tightened as he silently watched the boy tug the jagged zipper up to the top of his bag.

“My shift’s about to start,” Daniel explained simply, catching Liam’s eye with a halfhearted smile.

A tinge of discomfort ran through Liam’s body. “Oh.” His lips turned with a frown.

“I’ll see you later.”

The discomfort grew. “Yeah, later.”

But later wasn’t defined; later wasn’t a time set in stone, and it frightened Liam how much that fact shook his comfort and left him feeling anything but calm. “Hey, Daniel?”

His bag slung over his shoulder, the teenager turned at Liam’s voice, glancing back at him with a curious brow, and was that a look of hope in his eyes? He thumbed the strap of his backpack, meeting Liam with an expectant gaze.

“Um, are you,” Liam stammered across his words and considered backing out for a moment. But as soon as he looked back and met Daniel’s eyes, that silence took over his mind, that ineffable tranquility eased back over his entire body, relaxing his every nerve, and he knew he couldn’t. He cleared his throat and held Daniel’s emerald eyes. “Are you busy later? Tonight, I mean?”

A smile twitched to life across the boy’s lips. “My shift goes until seven-thirty. Why?”

Liam felt his shoulders relax, the discomfort gradually draining itself from his limbs. “I have tickets to this show tonight, downtown, and Jez was supposed to go with me, but she backed out last night,” he explained, a bit too eagerly, his words jumbling together a bit. But from the way the smile transformed Daniel’s entire face, it was clear the boy had understood him. “So, I thought maybe you’d like to go? I’ve heard the show’s supposed to be good, some musical about these kids and… Okay, so I don’t really know, I’m not much of a fan of musicals. Jezzy wanted to see it, but now she’s cancelled for some dinner with the in-laws, and all I know is that there will be singing and dancing.”

“Like a musical,” Daniel reiterated with a quiet laugh, nodding and readjusting the pack upon his shoulder. “But sure, it sounds fun. I’d like that.”

“Great.” Liam’s lips broke apart to reveal his teeth in a genuine smile, one that wasn’t hidden by the need to duck his head and avert his eyes to distract from the blush on his cheeks. Because this time, he wasn’t blushing. He was only smiling, a happy, thrilled smile, one he wasn’t sure his muscles had felt in a long while. The action felt foreign.

“Danny, are you out there?”

Daniel whipped his head in the direction of the call but turned back toward Liam with an anxious look conquering his features. “Shit, I should get going, but, um.” He nibbled upon his lower lip, eyes shifting about. “Should I meet you somewhere tonight, then?”

“I can swing by here, about a quarter to eight?” Liam offered.

“Works for me,” Daniel said, already backing away. The smile seemed permanently plastered across his lips. “I’ll see you tonight, then.”

“Tonight,” Liam confirmed with a nod and sent the boy a light wave before he had the chance to disappear behind the curtain and into the back of the coffee shop. The young man still seated at the table released a sigh of nerves, but he was surprised to find he wasn’t all that nervous. It was a sigh of relief, of content. He was content. He was comfortable.

He was happy.

And as the silence he was growing more and more accustomed to slowly dissipated and the low murmurs of the other morning customers of the shop began to take its place, Liam was still embraced by a tranquil serenity that he couldn’t seem to shake. And he didn’t want to.