Escalator

It was Sunday, the holy day. The day when we do nothing, but enjoy our own laziness. And that was their plan. It was a rainy day, so they went to the mall. Basically they wanted to walk around... Maybe they could even have a piece of cake... The only certainty they had was this: they wanted to be boyfriends. He was so confident as he looked at his boyfriend. It was that kind of confidence only someone who knows how much love there is in a relationship can have. His boyfriend was beautiful, indeed. But it was more than this. They were connected by the touch of their skin. Their warm hands fitted perfectly. It was love. As simple and as complicated as only love can be.

His boyfriend wanted to eat some cake. How about chocolate? He chose a large piece and had it "to go". They went to the mall's central square and sat near the garden. His boyfriend opened the package and took the piece of cake with his bare hands. With a smile on his lips, he offered the piece to him. Of course he accepted it. He ate and... And it was tasty. But it was also sweet. Too sweet. Now, he needed some water.

They stood up and kept walking around. The mall wasn't that interesting now. Same windows, same brands, same people. And suddenly they caught themselves standing in front of an escalator. He wanted to go up. So his boyfriend said: "No problem, I will go with you". But the problem was that he wanted to go alone. He needed that. He needed some alone time. His boyfriend asked why. Why couldn't they be together? Didn't he love him? But he didn't know the answer. Indeed, all they had was sweet. But too sweet. He needed some time alone. 

So the boyfriend understood: "You go, my love. Go wherever you want. I will wait here, ok? Come back and I will wait for you".

So, he gathered all his courage and started walking. He looked back and smiled at his boyfriend, who was standing there, waiting for him, carrying a sad smile on his face. So he stepped forward and started going up. But then he changed his mind. Was this what he really wanted? And quickly he started running back. Running out the escalator back to his boyfriend's arms.

His boyfriend was happy with that and hugged him and kissed him. "Do you want me to join you now?" he said, hopefully.

But no. He still wanted to go alone. As he told that to his boyfriend, he broke his hearth a little bit more. He apologized, but that was the truth and there was no choice. This time he went to the escalator again, with a little bit more confidence. He was still afraid, but he didn't look back. Again, feeling weird, he starting going up. He managed to get half way up the stairs. But his fear was stronger. Again, he went down, landing on his boyfriend's arms. It was so good to be there... To know that his safe spot was still there. His boyfriend hugged him strongly, almost in tears. So he grabbed his hand, firmly, and said:

"Let's go somewhere else, sweetie. I am tired of waiting here and I want to see more of the first floor. With you. The two of us together."

This time he didn't say anything. He smiled and finally understood everything. He gave his boyfriend a long sad kiss. And walked away in the direction of the escalator. During this trip he was looking back at his boyfriend all the time, but he went all the way. His boyfriend looked sad, of course, as he disappeared of his sight. 
He arrived on the new floor, alone. And it was exactly the same as the floor beneath his feet. Same windows, same brands, same people. With one difference: now he was alone. His boyfriend wasn't there anymore. He understood, then, how he would miss him. He rushed back downstairs, hoping to find his boyfriend waiting for him! But it was too late... When he finally arrived there, he couldn't find him anymore. And it was all the same: same windows, same brands, same people. Only now there was no boyfriend.