Almost Tasted

EPISODE 5 – “Almost Tasted”

Elias hadn’t meant to end up in Enzo’s lap.

He really hadn’t.

But somehow, after a half hour of sitting too close on the couch, talking about everything and nothing while pretending the air between them wasn’t thick with something more… it just happened.

One second, Elias shifted to get comfortable. The next, Enzo had tugged him gently, effortlessly, into his lap—like it was the most natural thing in the world.

“Comfy?” Enzo asked, voice low, his arms casually resting around Elias’s waist.

Elias could barely breathe.

“Y-You can’t just—” he tried, but his voice was already trembling.

“Can’t just what?” Enzo murmured, face so close Elias could feel the heat of his breath. “Touch you? Hold you? Look at you like this?”

His hand brushed up Elias’s side—slow, deliberate, not rough, but firm. Elias shivered under his touch.

“You’re teasing again,” Elias whispered, trying to sound firm. It came out soft. Weak.

“I know,” Enzo said, a smirk tugging at his lips. “You like it.”

Elias couldn’t lie. Not with Enzo's hand splayed across his lower back, keeping him close. Not with the way those green eyes pinned him down without even trying.

Enzo’s hand moved—up, brushing a lock of hair behind Elias’s ear, fingers lingering against his cheek. “What if I kissed you now?”

Elias froze. His heart thundered. “I… I don’t know.”

Enzo tilted his head, lips just a breath away. “Want to find out?”

It would’ve been so easy.

Elias could feel it—the warmth of Enzo’s mouth, the gentle graze of his thumb across his bottom lip. His eyes fluttered half-shut.

This was it.

Their first kiss.

Finally.

And then… Enzo stopped.

The heat in his eyes dimmed, but not the desire. He sighed, lips brushing Elias’s cheek instead—so soft, so warm, and yet not the kiss Elias wanted.

“Not yet,” Enzo whispered, pulling back slightly.

Elias blinked, confused. “Why?”

“You’re not ready,” Enzo said simply. “And I want our first time to be real… not rushed. Not just because I can.”

Elias’s cheeks burned. His heart ached. But somehow, the fact that Enzo had pulled back made him fall even deeper.

“You’re evil,” Elias muttered.

Enzo smiled. “Only a little.”

They stayed like that, tangled together, the almost-kiss lingering like smoke between them.

And though nothing happened that night… it still felt like everything changed.

He pulled back, but his eyes promised: next time, I won’t.

Elias didn’t know where to put his hands—so they just hovered, gripping the soft fabric of Enzo’s shirt like it might ground him. His breath caught when Enzo’s fingers skimmed the curve of his hip, not going further, just… resting there, like he was memorizing the shape of him.

“Do I scare you?” Enzo asked suddenly, voice quieter now, almost hesitant.

Elias blinked. “No,” he said, truthfully. “You just… make me feel too much.”

Enzo chuckled, low and warm. “Good. I want you to feel me, even when I’m not touching you.”

The words echoed through Elias’s chest like a spark.

Every part of him buzzed with awareness—of the weight of Enzo’s stare, the warmth of his body, the things they almost did.

His lips parted to speak, but nothing came out. He was too full of him. Of want.

And yet, Enzo still didn’t move.

He only smiled.

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