Ewon

Ewon leaned over the railing on the top floor. His lungs did not thank him. He panted and struggled to cool down. Sweat had beaded on his brow, and he was fairly certain that he had to look firetruck red.

Great. Now what? I though I could do it without falling to pieces, but I'm a wreck.

He could only think to remain where he was while his lungs settled down. Eventually, the burning passed, and although his thighs and knees felt weak, he kept going. He pushed through the door leading out into the hall and almost ran headfirst into a young man on his way past.

"Oh, ! I'm so sorry." Ewon dodged to the side, narrowly avoiding swinging the door straight in the stranger's face "I didn't know you were there. I didn't mean to hit you with a door."

"I know you didn't. You're fine. It's probably my fault for walking so close to the door, anyway." the stranger grinned a square smile, and Ewon's heart melted. He hadn't just hit a stranger with the door to the stairs, he'd hit one of the most gorgeous men he'd ever seen. 

Brown hair. Dark eyes. A sharp jaw. Fit shoulders. Muscular arms. And his thighs? Ewons gaze dipped downward, and his cheeks burned.

Oh, , are those thighs amazing...I bet his must look fantastic, too.

Ewon bit the inside of his lip to reel his thoughts back in. Yes, he'd run face to face with an attractive stranger, and yes, he was on a gay cruise, but he was sweaty, and likely very red, and also obscenely tired. His judgment wasn't likely the best. Trying something would be stupid. 

But not trying something might be stupid, too. I like him.

"You're sure you're okay?" Ewon asked. He offered the stranger a smile "Typical me, when I felt resistance, I pushed harder."

"It takes more than a door to the face to keep me down." was the reply. The stranger's smile grew, then faltered "Well, actually, it doesn't take much more. I took the elevator up so I could find the Eastern Deck, but there were so many guys that I couldn't even make out the signs on the walls. I was looking for something along this hallway to figure out the best way to get there."

"Oh!" Ewon couldn't help but brighten "Well, I'm heading to the Eastern Deck. We could try to find it together."

"I wouldn't mind the help." the stranger admitted. He held out his hand "I'm Taehyung, by the way. It's nice to meet you." 

"Ewon." Ewon shook his hand "And, likewise. I take it it's your first time on a cruise?"

"Yup."

"Me too."

"Then I guess we'll have the pleasure of figuring it out together." Taehyung grinned, flashing Ewon a row of pearly white teeth inside a square smile "You want to be study buddies? I could use an accountability partner to make sure I learn how to properly deploy a lifeboat. The ocean freaks me out."

"Then why are you on a cruise?" Ewon asked. It seemed a strange statement to make on a huge boat destined for the middle of the ocean.

Taehyung snorted "You're not going to believe it, but I won a trip for two to this thing off a giveaway on the internet. I was renewing a  subscription-"

"Oh my god." Ewon said with a laugh "You know it's going to be a good story when it starts with 'I was renewing a  subscription'."

"Don't judge!" Taehyung shot back, grinning. He leaned against the wall, and Ewon followed suit "Because in the end, it worked out for me. I got an email saying that I'd won a trip to this gay cruise, and I thought for sure that it was a scam. I reported the email to the phishing department of the site, and they replied back telling me that it was legitimate...that I'd been randomly selected as a winner for renewing my subscription as part of a contest I didn't even know was going on."

"Did you go out and buy a lottery ticket after that?" Ewon asked, grinning. A part of him was sad that Taehyung had won a trip for two. It meant that he was likely here with someone - a boyfriend, or a husband. That seemed to be the way life went these days.

"I did actually. And I lost, I'll have you know. I'm not walking around on the cruise that I won with the millions that I won on the same day in my pocket." Taehyung's grin grew "But, you know, I think it's fine that way. I need to stay humble. Winning a cruise out of nowhere might go to my head, if I let it."

"It would be tragic." Ewon agreed. He had no idea what the rest of Taehyung's story was, or what his station was in life, but he was already attracted to him. Their chemistry was magical, and he'd barely just met the man "If you have any tips on how to randomly fall into luck like that, I'd love to hear them."

Taehyung shrugged casually, but the way his lips curled at the corners revealed his delight "Nah. I mean, if you want, you can follow me around for a little and see it happen first hand...but I'm not sure it's something I can teach. It's just something that happens."

"Just my luck." 

Taehyung wagged a finger at him "And that's where you're falling short. Believe in the luck - or if you're like me, don't believe in it at all. Don't even think about it. Then you'll get the results you're looking for."

Even if he was attached, Taehyung was entertaining. If nothing else, Ewon thought they could be friends. He nodded down the hall. The directions on the wall pointed the way to the Eastern Deck "You ready to get going? We're probably going to miss the first five minutes of the demonstration. I spent what feels like forty hours climbing stairs."

"That would explain why you came out of the door labeled STAIRS." Tyler reasoned "Why would you do that? It's so far."

"The elevator was too crowded."

"So, you're shy." Taehyung started to walk in the direction Ewon had pointed, but Ewon saw him glancing his way out of the corner of his eye "Why did you come on this cruise, then? I'm afraid of water, and it seems like you're spooked by crowds."

"I decided that it might be fun to break out of my comfort zone and do something I wouldn't normally do." they walked at a leisurely pace. They were already late, anyway. What was a few extra minutes? "I come from a small town, and when you live somewhere so tiny, everybody knows everybody else's business. It makes me nervous about pursuing anything with a guy for fear that news might start to spread around town, or that someone might see us. I know that there are some people who'd accept me no problem, but there are enough people there who don't approve of anything same-, that it would complicate my life...so I figured I'd catch a flight and come out somewhere no one would know my face or my name."

"Somewhere you know that everyone else is gay." Taehyung nodded "I think I understand. It's a reasonable, but expensive way to go about things."

"I can't afford to move to the city, and I'm not going to be coming out in my small town anytime soon." Ewon reasoned "So, I'm going to be alone for a while. I figured that even though it costs money, this would be a good way of letting myself indulge."

"Hey, we can't use money when we're dead." Taehyung shrugged "You don't have to convince me that it's a good idea. If I were in your shoes, I'd probably have done it myself."

"It's complicated." Ewon didn't mind talking about it, though. He found conversation with Taehyung refreshing. As they walked down the hall, Ewon spotted some activity up ahead. It looked like the Eastern Deck wasn't far "I think everyone has their own , and we all manage it differently. This is how I'm dealing with mine. I'm hoping that being here is going to help me get over my hangups, and that when I get back to town I'll be able to be my own, independent person, unafraid of the consequences of who I love. You know?"

"Yeah." there was a hint of a smile on Taehyung's lips "I think I do." 

They entered the chaos that was the Eastern Deck. Ewon fell into place beside Taehyung. There were ongoing demonstrations, the voice of the presenter booming through the deck's speaker system. Ewon did his best to watch, but he had to admit that every now and then, his gaze shifted to Taehyung. He wasn't sure if Taehyung was involved with anyone, but until he had confirmation, he figured it didn't hurt to look. Looking hurt no one. Touching, on the other hand, was off the table.

"Are you getting any of this?" Taehyung asked, leaning in.

"Only bits and pieces. It's very crowded."

"I think that if we need to abandon ship, we should find someone who's closer to the front so they can save our sorry, late asses."

Ewon held back a laugh "Sounds like a good plan."

"And if we need a plan B, we can find a door or something, like they did in Titanic."

"You think that'd work in real life?"

"I don't know. I know that it's hotly debated, but I think there's still a lot of doubt." Taehyung shrugged "But it's worth a shot, right? Bam. Survival plan laid out."

Ewon arched a brow "I'm going to keep listening to the safety demonstration, anyway. I can piece together what we missed. I think that's the best bet." 

"If you insist." Taehyung said with a laugh "You know that means that I'm going to be glued to you if this boat goes down, since you'll have an idea of what's going on."

A guilty pang of desire woke Ewon's "Is that so?"

"Mmhm."

"If you're going to do that, you're going to need to follow me around."

"That's what I was planning on. I'll start subtle, crossing you in the halls, trailing you at a distance, observing your patterns, but then, I'll amp it up a little bit. You'll start seeing me in random places more often. You'll start to wonder what I'm doing. Then, when you least expect it, wham! I'm glued to your side, depending on you to keep my sorry safe." 

"Or you could just ask me out for dinner." Ewon shrugged casually, but on the inside, his heart was racing "You don't even have to pay for it, unless you want to get me some drinks. Everything is included during our stay."

"You know what?" Ewon braced himself for rejection, but it never came "That's a great idea. I wonder why I didn't think of it before. Do you want to go out to dinner with me tonight? I know there's a drag show happening in the dining hall at some point. I don't know if that interests you at all, but we could go, if you wanted." 

"So that second spot you won...?"

"I came alone, and there's no one waiting for me at home." Taehyung winked "You don't have to feel bad. I'm no one's man but my own."

"Then I'd love to go to dinner with you." Ewon thought his heart might burst. On the inside, he was beaming and overly excited. He shouldn't have felt this good to have been asked on a date on a gay cruise, but he couldn't help himself. Taehyung was wonderful "What time should we meet up at?"

"Seven?"

"Seven is perfect." the safety demonstration had lost its appeal. Ewon looked at Taehyung, and Taehyung alone "I'll see you then."