''The Prince of My Heart,,
The fading sunlight of the setting sun cast a captivating beauty over the golden blanket of sand stretching in every direction across the desert. The distant dunes were bathed in the evening's golden rays, while gentle gusts of wind carried grains of sand from one place to another.
As Ramish and Richer approached their car, walking side by side, the manager looked at Richer in astonishment and exclaimed,
"Sir! What have you done to yourself?"
By then, Ramish had come closer as well. Looking at the state of both men, the manager could no longer hold back his laughter.
"You two look just like children who have just climbed out of a sand bath!"
Richer immediately turned toward Ramish and pointed at him.
"This is all the result of Ramish's mischief."
With a mischievous smile, Ramish moved closer to Richer and said in a low voice,
"But whatever happened, you certainly enjoyed yourself, didn't you? Both the bike ride and all that playing around."
Richer looked into his eyes for a moment, as though searching for an argument to deny it. But then he changed the subject.
"Anyway, forget all that. What are we going to do about these clothes? We didn't bring anything to change into."
Noticing their concern, the driver immediately offered a solution.
"Sir, there's no need to worry. There are a few shops nearby where you can buy traditional Arabic clothing. There are washrooms there as well, so you can freshen up and change your clothes."
Richer nodded in relief.
"Alright, then. Let's go."
He started toward the shops, and Ramish immediately followed.
A short while later, they stopped in front of a shop. After looking through the different outfits, Richer chose a traditional Arabic suit for himself. Then he turned toward Ramish.
"Choose a suit for yourself too."
Ramish replied casually,
"I'll wear the same kind of suit as you."
Richer looked at him. A faint smile appeared on his face, but instead of saying anything, he asked the shopkeeper for two outfits in the same style.
Taking their clothes with them, the two headed toward the washrooms.
When they emerged a little while later, refreshed and changed, their appearance had transformed noticeably. Their sand-covered clothes and messy hair had been replaced by clean, traditional Arabic attire and neatly arranged hair.
Ramish looked at Richer, and his gaze lingered on him for a few moments.
In his white Arabic outfit, Richer looked even more captivating than before.
Smiling, Ramish said,
"Richer, you look just like an Arab from here. This outfit suits you beautifully."
Then, with a slightly playful expression, he asked,
"And how do I look?"
Richer gave him a quick once-over.
"You look good."
Ramish widened his eyes in exaggerated surprise.
"That's it? I went to all the trouble of dressing like you, and all I get from you is 'you look good'?"
Richer burst out laughing.
"Then what am I supposed to say?"
Ramish leaned closer and replied with a smile,
"You should say that I look no less handsome than an Arab prince."
Richer laughed and shook his head.
"You really never miss an opportunity to praise yourself, do you?"
"I can praise myself just fine, but hearing it from you is something else entirely."
Richer's smile widened at his reply.
When they returned to the car, the manager complimented them as soon as he saw them.
"Sir, you both genuinely look like Arab princes!"
The two smiled.
Ramish glanced at Richer and said,
"I don't know about myself, but one thing I do know is that Richer is the prince of my heart."
For a moment, surprise crossed Richer's face. Then an involuntary smile spread across his lips. He lowered his gaze, as though searching for words to respond to Ramish's spontaneous declaration of affection, but no answer came to mind.
The manager took out his phone to capture the moment.
"Sir, if neither of you minds, may I take a few pictures of you?"
Richer handed him his phone.
"Of course."
The manager motioned for them to stand together. Ramish and Richer took their places side by side, their shoulders brushing against each other for a few moments. The manager took several pictures and then returned the phone to Richer.
Richer looked through the photographs on the screen. In one of them, Ramish was smiling at him while he himself was looking directly at the camera.
His gaze lingered on that particular picture for a moment before he locked his phone.
The manager turned toward the driver and asked,
"Shall we resume our journey, then?"
"Certainly, sir."
The driver began releasing some air from the vehicle's tires to improve its grip on the soft desert dunes. He then instructed everyone to get inside and hold firmly onto the sturdy bars attached to the vehicle.
Ramish and Richer sat together in the back seat.
The vehicle set off again and soon began moving deeper into the desert. Far ahead, the sun was slowly sinking beneath the horizon. Its golden rays scattered across the towering dunes, as though nature had adorned the desert with gold during the final moments of the evening.
Ramish looked at Richer and said,
"Move a little closer to me. We'll reach the deeper part of the desert in just a few minutes. Once we get there, the vehicle will speed over the dunes."
Holding firmly onto one of the bars, Richer replied,
"I'm fine. Worry about yourself. I'll hold on tightly."
Ramish listened and smiled quietly.
He knew Richer could take care of himself, but his heart still wished that Richer would move a little closer.
Only a few moments later, the vehicle entered the deeper desert.
The driver increased the speed, and the vehicle began racing over the uneven dunes. Sometimes it climbed a towering slope before plunging rapidly downward; at other times, it suddenly tilted to one side. With every jolt, the passengers were thrown slightly out of their seats.
As the vehicle descended from a high dune, Ramish and Richer collided with each other.
Ramish immediately turned toward him.
"Richer! Are you alright?"
Steadying himself, Richer replied,
"Yes, I'm fine. Don't worry."
But the very next moment, the vehicle bounced over another dune, causing Ramish to slide closer to Richer. He grabbed the sturdy bar with one hand and braced himself against the seat in front with the other, trying to maintain his balance while making sure Richer remained safe.
Richer looked at him and said with a faint smile,
"I told you, I'm fine. Take care of yourself."
Instead of answering, Ramish looked into his eyes for a few moments.
The light inside the vehicle was dim. Outside, the setting sun's final rays occasionally brushed their faces, while the towering dunes sometimes blocked the light passing between them.
With every jolt of the vehicle, their shoulders bumped against each other. Sometimes Richer's face came close to Ramish's; at other moments, Ramish found himself moving even nearer to Richer as he tried to steady himself.
Yet amid all this, a strange sense of peace was settling inside Richer's heart.
In Ramish's closeness, he felt a sense of protection that he still could not quite put into words.
Ramish asked softly,
"Richer, aren't you scared?"
Richer looked into his eyes. For a moment, a tenderness appeared in his gaze that his words could never fully express.
"No. What is there to be afraid of?"
He replied.
But perhaps there was another sentence in his heart, one he did not want to say aloud.
When you're with me, what do I have to be afraid of, Ramish?
Perhaps this was one of the quiet effects of love: in a world where people are constantly trying to protect themselves, the presence of one particular person can teach them how to feel unafraid.
Richer still did not know whether the peace taking root inside him was love, a sense of belonging, or simply the effect of being close to Ramish.
But one thing was certain. Amid the towering and uneven dunes of the desert, where the vehicle lost and regained its balance with every passing moment, Richer was experiencing something unfamiliar for the first time: the feeling of being truly safe with someone.
And Ramish…
He could see the unspoken emotions hidden in Richer's eyes, but he made no attempt to put them into words.
Because some feelings need time to settle in the heart before they can be given a name.
Perhaps something similar was taking shape in Richer's heart, too.
A feeling whose destination was still unclear, yet toward which they were both slowly moving.