pool ; joshler [✔️]

[26]

there's a flashback in this chapter and it's indicated by italics!! so don't be confused or surprised when you see them :))

tyler looked beside him and was met with the endearing sight of a sleeping brendon. his unkempt hair was sticking out every which way and his mouth was slightly parted, releasing light puffs of air. tyler smiled at the sight but climbed out from under the covers, careful not to wake brendon up.

he tiptoed down his stairs and pulled his phone out to text melanie.

tyler: we need to talk. it's super urgent and can't wait so meet me at marina's in ten minutes

melanie: assuming that i can't say no, i'll be there

tyler grabbed his car keys and left the house, very quietly shutting the door behind him. the ride to the ice cream shop was very quick and tyler was there before melanie, giving him a bit of time to discuss the problem at hand with someone who knew less about the situation and was less likely to be biased.

"tyler! i'm so happy to see you here, where's that cutie that you brought with you last time?" she asked, leaving her spot behind the counter so she could give him a hug.

"i actually have to get your advice about something regarding him." tyler sighed as he dreaded the moment that he would have to put his emotions into words. they barely made any sense in his mind and he couldn't imagine how it would sound as he said them out loud.

"oh, honey, do tell." marina said in a calming voice and led him to a booth in the back corner. she could sense his stress and she knew that tyler never dealt with things well when it came to boy troubles.

"i'm so stuck, marina. i'm such a horrible person but i can't control how i feel." he wiped at his eyes, trying to stop the tears that began to gather on his waterline. "it's happening again, but this time i'm the one doing the damage."

marina didn't respond to that because there was simply nothing to be said. she just engulfed him in a hug and sang quiet songs into his ear, the whole situation being eerily similar to one they had been in a few years prior.

tyler was eighteen at the time, he had just recently moved into the area and the closest thing he had to a friend was marina. he would go to her shop every day and the two grew extremely close in a matter of weeks.

tyler had met a guy while grocery shopping one day and he fell head over heels for him. his name was jesse and he was all tyler talked about. it was the first time tyler had his feelings reciprocated. jesse made him feel special, like he was truly something extraordinary, and tyler loved it. tyler was oblivious to the fact that him and jesse weren't anything official, he figured that jesse was his boyfriend because of the way he treated him, but that was nowhere near the truth.

over time jesse became distant, showing less affection towards tyler and spending less time with the boy. tyler didn't think much of it, because people get busy and have other obligations, so he assumed it was that. but one rainy day, a little less than a month after they started talking, jesse showed up at tyler's house, face masked with guilt and a hint of sorrow. the words he said tore into tyler like a child at christmas, ripping open the thin wall that held back his sanity and letting it flow freely. those words felt like strong hands wrapping around his neck, cutting off his flow of oxygen, leaving him light headed.