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Emil was unbelievably excited. He was going to be one of the first people ever to participate in The Extreme Challenge. It had been advertised well so, despite being its inaugural year, there were quite a lot of challengers – some he recognized from other events.
But, even though his head was buzzing and his heart was pounding with excitement, he still felt like something was off. Perhaps it was the fact that Michele had been avoiding his gaze all morning. Well, not all morning…
They’d woken up in a naked tangle of limbs. And, after they got the feeling back in their arms, Michele had cradled Emil's face, gently pressing their lips together in a chaste kiss. They were both sore and tired after their first night together, but Emil wouldn’t have traded the ache in his muscles for anything in the world. It was a reminder, just like the scratches on his back or the bite marks on his shoulder – all mementos from their first time.
He couldn’t wait until he could wake up like that every morning. It wouldn’t be too much longer, he hoped. Not if everything went according to plan. But he’d have to wait just a bit. He wanted everything to be perfect, after all.
Emil was still staring off into space, a goofy smile on his lips, when the bus came to a sudden halt, nearly throwing him into the aisle. He blinked and turned to make sure Michele was okay.
“Mickey, are you-”
“I’m fine!” he said, a little too loudly, and then whipped his head away to stare out the window.
Yes, something was definitely off.
Soon, they arrived at their destination. The bus slowed this time before coming to a complete stop. All of the guests disembarked, some challengers, some sightseers, and a few supporters like Michele.
As it turned out, because Michele had never gone hang-gliding before, he was not allowed to join the challenge, but he was still able to ‘tag along’ and would even get to ride in the lift up to the cliff where they’d be launching.
Suddenly, it hit him. Maybe that was why Michele seemed upset. Because he was only able to come as a spectator. That made sense. He had probably gotten his hopes up. Emil had talked it up a great deal, after all. Hang-gliding was one of his most favorite hobbies.
“Hey, Mickey,” he began, catching his boyfriend’s attention. “I know how you feel.”
“What?” Michele looked taken aback.
“I mean, I understand why you’ve been...” Emil cut himself off. He didn’t want to say that the other was being more moody than usual. So, he tried a different tactic. “I get it.” He put a hand on the other’s shoulder and gave it a reassuring squeeze.
“You…do?” His boyfriend looked surprised and a little…anxious, maybe? It was hard to tell. Maybe it was disappointment shining in those gorgeous violet eyes of his. And so, it was at that moment that Emil vowed that he would sign Michele up for lessons. He’d be right there with him every step of the way until he was ready to soar.
“Of course.” Emil leaned forward and touched their foreheads together – nothing too intimate in front of a group of strangers – even though he wanted to kiss those smooth, warm lips. “I promise I’ll take care of it later.”
“Take…care of it?” Michele blinked up at him.
Emil was about to mention the hang-gliding classes, but he didn’t get a chance, as it was their turn to climb into the lift. It was large enough for four and the other two engaged them in small talk about the upcoming events. Thankfully, they spoke English. But even though it was one of their shared languages, Michele didn’t join in on the conversation. He just looked out the window, a small frown on his lips. Emil would definitely have to sign him up for lessons as soon as they finished for the day.
The event staff was completely prepared, even going as far as bringing up each of the challengers equipment so they wouldn’t have to lug it around or worry about fitting it into the small gondolas.
Emil suited up and made sure to do all of his safety checks while he waited for his turn. Symmetry was good, the ropes were fine, nothing was twisted. He’d been doing this since his father deemed him old enough – which was still a few years before his mother would have let him, she reminded them every time they went out – so he knew what he was doing.
But every time he glanced over at Michele, he got distracted. He remembered the way his boyfriend’s skin felt against his, hot and damp with sweat. And the way his brows knit together, white teeth coming out to bite down on a plump, kiss-bruised lower lip. Michele was facing away, the soft, olive skin of his nape clearly visible and Emil suddenly had a strong urge to press his lips against it.
“Nekola?” someone called, derailing his train of thought.
“Yes?” He squeaked and then cleared his throat. “Yes?”
“You’re on deck, son,” the event coordinator said, glancing at her clipboard before moving on to the next person.
Okay. Next up. Next up. He finished up his safety check, going over everything one last time. The hang strap and carabineer were all set and he knew his parachute was ready to go – in case of an emergency. His knee pads were straight and all that was left was to put on his helmet. But he couldn’t find it.
“Where did I leave my-”
“Looking for this?” Michele asked, suddenly standing right in front of him.
“Oh, Mickey! You startled me.” Emil put a hand over his heart, surprised that he hadn’t noticed him walking over, especially with how he’d been staring at him only moments earlier. He took the offered helmet and moved to place it on his head, but Michele was quicker, helping to adjust it before snapping the buckle under his chin.
“There.” Michele smiled, giving his beard a little tug. “All set.”
He was acting like himself again. Maybe Emil had been reading too much into things. He was probably just tired and sore from the night before…and earlier that morning. Anyone would be a little cranky.
“I know we don’t do too much in public, but,” Emil swallowed, almost losing his nerve. “Do you think I could get a good luck kiss?” Honestly, he expected a ‘no,’ but Michele didn’t answer right away. And, after a moment of studying their shoes, he looked back up at Emil.
“Actually, there’s something I’d like to ask you first.”
Emil raised his brows, but he nodded, though he couldn’t imagine what it could be.
Michele took a deep breath and then locked eyes with him, sending a little jolt of something akin to pleasure up Emil’s spine. “Emil,” he began. “Vezeš si mě?”
Will you take me? Where? On the hang-glider? That wasn’t safe. Not with his current gear. Maybe he’d misunderstood him. But Michele repeated himself before he could ask.
“Vezeš si mě?” he implored, violet eyes searching Emil’s. But still, he didn’t know how to respond. So, he opened his mouth and asked.
“Uh…where?”
Michele let his shoulders sag. He’d spent most of the plane ride memorizing that line and yet…Emil didn’t seem to understand. Had he said something wrong? Pronounced something incorrectly? He didn’t get a chance to amend it because the coordinator called for Emil to grab his glider and go.
“I’m up.” Emil smiled and reached a hand out to cup Michele’s cheek. “I’m really glad that you’re trying to learn Czech,” he added, a fond smile on his lips and his blue eyes soft. “I’ll teach you more when we go to lunch after, okay?” He leaned in and gave him a quick peck on the lips. “For luck,” he whispered with a wink before making his way to the cliff’s edge.
No. Michele couldn’t let him go yet. If he waited until after he was done, he’d surely lose his nerve. He planned on asking him before and he was going to do it.
He quickly pulled out his phone and opened his browser, clicking on his bookmarks to find the phrase he’d studied for hours. As soon as he read it, he realized his mistake. He’d said the word wrong!
Michele glanced up just as Emil was readying to launch. He’d just taken a step forward when Michele shouted the words he’d meant to say.
“Emil! Vezmeš si mě?!”
His boyfriend stopped mid-step, bouncing on one leg to keep his balance as the sail pitched forward. He turned wide eyes on Michele, his face bright pink.
“What?” he asked, voice an octave too high.
Michele squared his shoulders and walked over, his hand unconsciously reaching into his pocket to finger the soft velvet of the little black box hidden away there. He bit his lower lip as he approached him.
“Emil.” He dropped down to one knee and pulled out the box. “Vezmeš si mě?” When he didn’t get an answer right away, he tried it in English. “Will you marry me?”
“I…I understood…I just…” Emil hobbled forward, his gear making it awkward for him to walk. “Do you really…I mean…you want to…with me…?”
“Yes I really want to with you,” Michele replied with a teasing lilt, feeling calmer than he had all day. Hell, he couldn’t even look Emil in the eye all morning, he’d been so nervous.
“Then…in that case…YES!!” Emil shouted, falling to his knees and nearly hitting Michele in the head with point on the front of his glider. “Hold on, let me just-” he wriggled out of his harness and threw his gear down. “There.” And then he pulled Michele into one of his famous bone-crushing hugs.
“Dio, I’m glad you agreed.” Michele sighed and opened the box before slipping the ring onto Emil’s finger. “I don’t know what I’d do if you said ‘no’.”
Emil chuckled. “Like I would.” Then he placed a hand on either side of Michele’s head and pulled him in for another kiss. Not a peck like before, but a long, lingering, slow kiss that made his toes curl and his lips tingle and caused heat to pool in his belly.
“Emil…” he panted when they broke for air. Suddenly, the crowd around them erupted in cheers and congratulations, including a shout from the challenger who’d just launched off of the edge of the cliff. They looked around and blushed before turning back to face each other again.
“Looks like I missed my turn,” Emil said, though the wide smile on his face led Michele to believe it didn’t bother him in the least.
“I’ll make it up to you later,” he promised, twirling a finger in the longest section of his boyfriend’s beard. “But first, you’d better get back in line.”
“Yeah.” But Emil didn’t let go of him, he just moved to hold Michele’s hands in his. “I promise I’ll give you your ring the next time we get together.”
“You don’t have to, Emil. Just because I-”
“No,” Emil cut him off, but then looked away sheepishly. “You see, the ring I have for you was my grandfather’s and it’s currently at the shop being resized, so I wasn’t able to bring it with mmmph-” Emil’s eyes nearly bugged out as Michele launched himself at him, knocking him over and onto the sail of his glider. “Mickey!”
“Ti amo, Emil.” He brushed their lips together, completely ignoring the hooping and whistles from the crowd around them.
Emil pushed himself up onto his elbows and kissed back before whispering. “Já tě tak miluju, Mickey.”
They stayed like that for quite some time. And, needless to say, Emil ended up launching last.