Adjustments
Eli sat in his dingy apartment, sweat dripping down his brow. It was stiflingly humid, and no breeze flew in to cool Eli, despite the temptation offered by an open window. He actually panted as he swirled paints about his canvas. It was almost two weeks into September and it still felt like July, even if the leaves were falling around the tiny and quiet town of Cavalier. Eli dropped his brush back onto his pallet as he heard someone knock at the door. He slipped off his stool and stepped over to the door. He opened it up to see Soren standing at the threshold, his arm perpetually reaching back to scratch the back of his head. Eli stood on tip-toes to kiss him. "You're home early. How was work? Sorry about the door. I really need to get another key." "Don't worry about it. It's no big deal," said a smiling Soren as Eli led him into the tiny apartment. "Work was ok. It was boring actually. Nothing needed fixing, so all the people at IT just sort of sat around. Harold just sent us home." Soren dropped his backpack hesitantly on the couch, and then weaved his way through the cluttered living area to the kitchen. "I'm actually kinda hungry. Do you mind if I cook dinner early?""I didn't eat much for lunch. Go for it." Eli picked up the backpack and put it in the room they most recently started to share. It had been two weeks but Soren still didn't feel at home here. It was like they were meeting each other for the first time at school. But it really wasn't that far of a step from crashing at Eli's apartment every other night to living there full time. The only difference now was that Soren wasn't paying rent for that town home. It was true that Eli's little place was smaller and a bit more pricey, but Soren's house was... sketchy, and that was putting it lightly. Eli didn't blame Soren for not wanting to sleep there whenever he could. It shouldn't take much longer for him to adjust. Eli returned to the living area and looked around, enjoying what he saw. The tiny apartment only had three rooms: the bedroom, the minute bathroom, and the living area. The living area itself was split between the kitchen area, the space that hosted the musty, ancient couch and staticy TV, and the so-called studio, which dominated most of it. But the minimalistic furnishings weren't what made him happy. It was the fact that Soren was in the kitchen, busy with a homemade mac n cheese recipe, and also that his studio was filled with completed paintings, ready for his third auction. Eli was ahead of schedule on preparing for his third auction, and his name had been flying around and into a lot of important ears as of late. He was optimistic, but cautiously so. The second auction had been even better than the first, but both Eli and Soren had agreed that it would be best to see if Eli could keep this successful streak going before making any big purchases. He had broken down and bought one big thing. He really needed a new bed. His old one was creaky and hard, and it really was too short for two foxes taller than six feet to be sharing. Dinner was ready exceptionally fast, and Eli sat down to eat, anticipating whatever culinary miracles Soren had whipped up today. The salty-savory flavors of five cheeses, bacon, and some leftover meatballs were divine. Eli couldn't get over how good a cook Soren was. It felt bizarre to be eating such good food consistently. Not too long ago he had been living off of hot pockets, and he even managed to burn those half the time. Eli had gained at least five pounds since he started dating Soren, but then again, that was probably a good thing. A few months ago, if someone had looked at him, they would have been able to see his ribs clearly through his fur. "So nothing else happened at work," asked Eli as he finished a mouthful of delicious pasta. "You just sat around all day?" Soren smiled. "No actually, I forgot to show you." He quickly trotted off to their bedroom and came back with his backpack. "I got these at the lab." Soren reached in and pulled out a dozen plexiglass boxes and put them on the tiny table in stacks of three. "What are these," asked Eli as he picked one up and delicately turned it in his hand.Soren smiled even wider. "You can vacuum seal these boxes." Soren waited a beat as Eli's face lit up with comprehension. "You can store the leaves in here without having to laminate them." Eli clapped his hands. "This is fantastic! Now I can showcase them in their original shape!" Soren reached in deeper in pulled out some velvet pads and tiny pins. "You don't mind poking a hole in them? Otherwise they'll fly around the box when I vacuum seal the box."Eli nodded excitedly. "Thanks, Soren. I've got some that you could take in tomorrow. Is that ok?" "Yeah," said Soren. "Harold gave me the OK. Vacuum cases like these are hardly high profile or dangerous. Do you mind if I practice for a bit after we clean up?"Eli got up and kissed Soren on the cheek. "Of course. You know I love it when you play for me." The two foxes worked quickly through the dishes. Eli went back to his final painting and Soren pulled the old maple violin gingerly out of its case. Eli closed his eyes for a moment and bobbed his head to the music as Soren began to accompany a song from the Legend of Zelda soundtracks. Soren's timing was flawless and his notes blended into the recording so that it felt like the whole orchestra was playing with Soren in their cluttered apartment. Some days Soren was so funny about music. He just played along with songs rather than trying to alter or rearrange them. Some songs, according to Soren, were just perfect, and attempting to alter them was "blasphemy." For an atheist, Soren could get so spiritual about music. Eli returned to his final painting. He looked down at the leaf he was using as a reference. It was green and brown, curled and wavy as it dried, and littered with minute holes. Looking down from above, Eli tried to turn the leaf into a rolling, hilly landscape. He spent about thirty minutes playing with his paints, but he took the canvas off with a grumble. This one wasn't right. Eli worked for more than an hour on the next one. But it still wasn't right. He swore audibly as Soren finished his piece. Soren got up and turn off the music. He walked over to Eli and hugged him from behind. "What's up, sweetie?"Eli growled, partially in frustration and partially in pleasure. They were both such cuddle whores, but his irritation with the painting was all consuming. "I can't get the perspective right. And please don't tell me it's good. It's completely awful." Soren gave a light squeeze. "It does look good," said Soren, but he raised his voice and spoke quickly to cut Eli off. "But I know that this isn't what you are looking for. I can tell it's a leaf. But save those canvases. You could re-purpose them. You use green a lot." Eli nodded. "Thanks, Soren. I've been working on this one all day." he gestured to five different canvases laid on the reject pile. "I finished my other stuff but this one keeps hanging me up." Soren examined the leaf. "Could you try adjusting your perspective?" Eli shook his head. "I've been doing that all day. This one seems the most promising." Soren nodded, "Hrmm... have you tried using more than one leaf?" Eli lit up. "No. But that's so obvious!" Soren went to the card table that housed all the unused leaves that Eli gathered from around Cavalier. Snooping around the pile, he picked out a few and also retrieved a few of the tiny pins he bought to secure the leaves. He passed Eli a round and slender red-purple leaf, two leaves of differing shades of orange, and a tall, wide yellow leaf. Pinning the new leaves together, he lined it up with a brown peak of the rolling leaf Eli was trying to paint. Adjusting the lineup and playing with the perspective, Soren arranged the leaves vertically to make a brilliant leaf sunset. Eli clapped his hands. "This almost works... I just need to find the right colors!" He dashed back to the little card table, looking for leaves that would match his needs. He frantically sifted through the leaves, searching for the leaf that would complete the set. "No... I don't think it is here..." He checked his watch. "We've got about an hour of light left... Can you help me find some more?" Soren nodded. "What are you looking for?" "I need a leaf that is partially dried. It needs to cleanly transition from dead brown to orange.""Let's go then," said Soren eagerly. He fished two flashlights out of the junk drawer as well as some baggies. The two dashed outside. There was a park nearby, and there were plenty of leaves. Splitting off from each other, they began to scour the ground, looking for that perfect leaf. Eli seemed to be finding nothing but reds and yellows. Eli bagged a few of the ones he found for later, but his priority was to find that perfect leaf that could get him the color transition he was looking for. The sun was now below the horizon, and soon the light would be gone completely. Soren came back to Eli every few minutes, handfuls of leaves in his hands, but neither of them could find the right one. Their crappy old flashlights weren't doing them any good, and after half an hour of stumbling around in the almost-darkness, Eli gave up.
"Let's just go, Soren," said Eli, a frown of irritation on his face. "I'll just have to look while you're at work tomorrow." "Alright," said Soren. He offered his hand to Eli. "Do you wanna take the long way home?" "I don't see why not," said Eli, unable to resist a smile. The two dawdled their way home, walking around the exterior of the park. The two turned a corner on the path that led towards the tiny playground and was also the best route back to their apartment. "I'm just frustrated right now. I have a vision in my head, but it'll just have to sit pretty until I get the things I need. I hope I don't lose it."
Soren actually smiled a bit. "I found something that might make you feel better." Soren pointed towards a pile of leaves. But it wasn't an ordinary pile of leaves. It was a massive pile, the result of who knows how many kids piling leaves as high as they could reach. But the pile was immaculate, sitting in a perfect heap, as though the children had built the masterpiece but were called home before they could destroy it themselves. The pile sat there; an aura of unfulfilled sadness permeated the park. "Race you," said Eli. The two sprinted down the path, running full pelt towards the monstrous pile, two flashes of color in the darkened park. Eli got there first, leaping into the air and turning so that he would land in the pile back first. There was a rustley crash as leaves cascaded around him. Soren wasn't far behind. Soren jumped high and landed on top of his boyfriend with a light thump. The two clutched each other, giggling like little kids.Eli gave a little growl as he felt Soren's lips brush against his neck, again and again. Both gave a sigh as Soren continued, kissing his way up to Eli's slim muzzle. Soren kissed him, once, twice, and- "Soren, stop," said Eli, abruptly breaking away.Soren looked confused. "What's wrong?' Eli sat up, frantically patting down Soren's shirt. "I just saw it! The perfect one! It fell down your collar." Eli ran his hands around Soren's torso, taking great care not to pat too hard in case he crushed the leaf. "Dammit, I can't find it." Without warning, Eli pulled open the button down shirt Soren was wearing. He ran his hands across Soren's body, probing for a stem that may have gotten tangled in the silver fur. "Oh," growled Soren, a teasing tone to his voice, "at least take me out to dinner first." Eli ignored the jibe and continued to search Soren. "Found it," he cried in delight. "It's beautiful." Eli held the flashlight to his prize to show Soren. The color transition was flawless. "Thanks for the help, sweetie." He kissed Soren on the muzzle. Soren got up and began to button his shirt up again. "Well let's not fool around here. Let's get home so you can finish." Soren offered a hand to Eli, and he took it. "Did I ever tell you you're the best boyfriend ever," asked Eli as he pulled Soren into a one-armed hug and kissed his cheek."I think you just did," said Soren, his blush visible even by the inconsistent light of their flashlights. "Thank you, Eli. You're too nice to me."
Eli grabbed Soren's hand and began to lead them back home. "No, I'm just being honest."