Chapter 10

3rd person pov:

The days had become a soft blur of routines and quiet moments. Gemini had settled into a rhythm with Fourth, one that didn't require much effort or words, but it was enough. It was more than enough, in fact, because the longer he stayed, the more he couldn't ignore the strange, growing sense of familiarity he felt whenever he was near Fourth.

It was subtle at first—little things that made Gemini pause. The way Fourth would laugh, that quiet, almost shy chuckle that felt like a ghost of something he had heard before. The way he tilted his head when he was curious, his eyes narrowing just slightly, as if searching for something just beyond reach. It was in the way he moved, the quiet way he carried himself, like he belonged to this space in a way that made everything else feel secondary.

And then there was the way he looked at Gemini. It wasn't anything overt—just a brief glance, a soft look from beneath long lashes—but it left a weight in Gemini's chest that he couldn't explain. It was too familiar. Too... right. As though he had seen those eyes before, as though they had shared a space long ago, long before the two of them had ever met in this life.

Gemini stood in the kitchen, watching Fourth from across the room. Fourth was reading something on his laptop, his posture relaxed, but there was an unease about him—something that still clung to the edges of his being. Gemini couldn't shake the feeling that there was more beneath the surface, but Fourth didn't talk much about himself, and Gemini didn't press. He had learned, over the last week, that Fourth was the kind of person who held his thoughts quietly, letting them fester beneath the surface until they could no longer be ignored.

As the day went on, the feeling continued to linger in the back of Gemini's mind. He couldn't place it, couldn't shake it. Something about Fourth, something about the way he looked at him, felt... almost like déjà vu. It wasn't just the present connection between them. It was something deeper. Something buried far in the back of his mind.

Gemini shook his head, trying to focus on the task at hand. But his mind kept drifting. He found himself thinking about the little boy from his memories—the one whose face was always just out of reach. The one who had a butterfly-shaped birthmark on his waist, a boy he had searched for for years, someone he had thought about since childhood. The one he had never been able to forget.

Nong Si.

The name echoed in his mind like a song that had been sung too many times. He had searched for that boy for so long, even though he had no real idea of where to look, what to search for, or even how to recognize him. He only knew what he remembered—his name, and the shape of the birthmark on his waist. And the feelings he had harbored for so long. The warmth. The safety. The comfort of a time when life had been simpler, before everything had become clouded with unanswered questions.

And then there was Fourth.

The more time Gemini spent with him, the more impossible it became to ignore the unsettling sense of familiarity. The way Fourth's laugh made something inside him tighten, the way his soft voice reminded Gemini of something, someone, he couldn't quite place.

He could no longer deny it. There was something about Fourth that felt like the same person from his memories, the one he had dreamed about for so long. Could it be possible? Could Fourth—this young man with his gentle smile and quiet demeanor—be the same boy he had once known? The boy with the butterfly-shaped birthmark? Gemini didn't want to believe it, didn't want to let himself entertain the thought, but it was impossible to ignore the pull, the undeniable connection that seemed to grow stronger each day.

Gemini leaned against the counter, his hand gripping the edge as he watched Fourth from across the room. He was so absorbed in his work that he didn't notice the way Gemini was looking at him—didn't notice the way Gemini's thoughts were racing, trying to make sense of everything that was happening.

It was maddening.

Gemini finally pushed himself off the counter and walked over to Fourth, who didn't even look up from his laptop. There was a quiet stillness in the air, one that felt both comforting and suffocating at the same time.

"Fourth," Gemini said, his voice quieter than usual. "Can I ask you something?"

Fourth looked up, his gaze meeting Gemini's. The soft vulnerability in his eyes made Gemini's heart twist. He could feel the weight of the question forming on the tip of his tongue, but for a moment, it stuck in his throat.

"Yeah, sure," Fourth said, his voice light, though his brow furrowed slightly, sensing the shift in the air.

Gemini hesitated, searching for the right words. "Do you... do you ever get the feeling that something is familiar, but you don't know why?"

Fourth's eyes lingered on him for a moment, as though considering the question carefully. There was something in the way he looked at Gemini—something guarded, yet open, as though he, too, felt the weight of an unspoken connection between them.

"Sometimes," Fourth said quietly. "Like when I'm with you. It feels... it feels like I've known you longer than just this week." He paused, then added, almost as if testing the waters, "But I can't explain it."

Gemini's heart skipped in his chest. The words Fourth had just spoken were like a slap to his senses, stirring up a whirlwind of feelings he couldn't control. He didn't know how to respond. Didn't know what to say to ease the growing ache in his chest.

"I think... I think I feel the same way," Gemini admitted, his voice low and shaky. "Like I've known you forever, in another life, maybe. But it's just a feeling. I can't explain it either."

Fourth looked at him, his gaze shifting, something flickering in his eyes. There was a quiet understanding between them, a shared sense of confusion, of longing, but also something deeper, something that couldn't be put into words.

For a long moment, the two of them stood in silence, the weight of their unspoken thoughts hanging in the air like a thread connecting them, fragile yet undeniable. Gemini wanted to ask more. Wanted to push further, to understand why Fourth felt so familiar, but something in the air stopped him. Something held him back.

Instead, he simply nodded, offering Fourth a small smile. "Maybe we'll figure it out," he said softly.

Fourth returned the smile, though his eyes were still clouded with the same uncertainty. "Maybe," he said, the word lingering between them like a promise yet to be fulfilled.

As Gemini walked away, he couldn't shake the feeling that he was standing on the edge of something important, something he had been searching for his entire life. The memory, that familiar, lingering feeling, was closer now than ever before. And maybe—just maybe—it had been standing right in front of him all along.

(A.N: Life is not filled with rainbows and cupcakes so prepare yourself for the next chapter😀)