||Discontinued|| Starlights (REWRITE)

Chapter 5

Warnings: mentioned homophobia, implied abuse
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In hindsight, the idea of taking a dip in the pool was not a good one. One moment, he was in the bathroom, where he wished he had brought a warmer shirt, rather than his cherished flannel. But now, here he was just moments later trying not to stare at Schlatt, who was also just in his boxers.

Dammit, why did everything suddenly have to be so difficult? Wilbur never cared about how Schlatt held himself until he realized he liked Schlatt, so why was it now so hard to look away?

Schlatt, undeterred by the chill, gestured for Wilbur to jump in the water.

Frustration welled up within Wilbur, initially overshadowing Schlatt's gesture as he grappled with newfound emotions. Wilbur hesitated, a touch of resignation evident in his tone as he replied, "I'm starting to regret this," his breath crystallizing in the cold air. His white T-shirt's collar went up to his nose as he exhaled, attempting to trap any remaining warmth.

"C'mon, get in, it was your idea." He stares at Wilbur for a second before rolling his eyes and laughing. Teasingly, Schlatt nudged Wilbur and quipped, "Scared of a little cold?"

Wilbur retorts, "Dude, we're gonna get hypothermia," but before he can finish, a forceful shove from the other sends him plunging into the frigid water.

Panic surges through him as the icy waves envelop him, and he instantly regrets speaking up. He clamps a hand over his mouth to stifle a yelp, muttering through gritted teeth, "I- I fuckin' hate you," he directed at Schlatt.

Schlatt's response was an unapologetic smirk. "Love you too, Soot," he quipped before he jumped into the water with a loud whoop, causing water to splash Wilbur's head.

The water was warmer than the air around them, which would have been surprising other than the fact that Schlatt's pool had a heater in the shallow end of the pool.

Desperate for warmth, Wilbur swims towards the shallow end, hoping to find the heater switch. He feels a faint sense of relief as the water already feels warmer. "Oh, thank Prime you turned it on already," he says with gratitude.

Schlatt smirked, clearly amused. "Yeah, yeah, I'm not that much of a dickhead," he retorted playfully. "I turned it on while you were banging on my door.

Wilbur chuckles, "Oh, so that's why I was waiting for hours."

Schlatt rolled his eyes, unable to repress a smile. "Dude, it was literally like three minutes."

"Three minutes my ass," Wilbur punched Schlatt in the arm, just as he had upon his arrival.

"We playing punch buggy now?"

"No, you're just a prick," Wilbur reclined on the bottom step of the pool, crouching until only his head was out of the water.

"Uh-huh, If I'm such a 'prick' you can just leave my house now, you stupid bri'ish fucker,"

As the afternoon wore on, the playful banter continued, Wilbur would say something, and Schlatt would have a snarky retort, but it was in good fun, and something about it made Wilbur's heart soar.

Schlatt's pool was better than most private pools he'd been to. It has a diving board and a small slide that are at the deep end, a water heater at the shallow end, and the pool itself was probably about half the size of their local pool, which was pretty damn big.

"You know, Schlatt, I never understood why you have such a massive pool."

"Eh, my parents bought it with the house, it's not like they ever use it though,"