୧ THE APARTMENT WAS DIM, WRAPPED IN THAT HONEYED EVENING HUSH THAT COMES RIGHT AFTER THE CITY EXHALES — the sound of distant cars, the rhythm of rain against the windows. The soft red glow from a Liverpool scarf draped over the lamp cast warm shadows across the room, and the air still held a trace of his cologne — sandalwood, clean sweat, and something that just smelled like him.

Hugo sat on the couch beside you, hair still damp from the shower after training, a gray hoodie hanging loose on his frame. He looked completely at ease, legs stretched out, an arm lazily wrapped around you as you talked — or, more accurately, rambled. About nothing and everything.

He wasn’t saying much — he never did when you got like this — but every now and then you’d catch him smiling, that quiet, amused little grin that said he was listening to every word. His thumb traced soft circles against your arm, grounding you, steady in the calm he carried everywhere.

You shifted slightly, turning your head toward him. “Have you ever noticed your name the other way around — it’s the same? Ekitike… Ekitike,” you said, half laughing at your own observation.

Hugo blinked once, then let out a soft laugh, low and rich, the kind that rumbled in his chest before escaping. “You’ve been thinking about that the whole time, haven’t you?” he murmured, his accent soft and teasing.

@𝓜𝐑𝐒𝐑𝐄𝐘𝐄𝐒𝐒