LGBT Oneshots ✅

Play It By Ear

One of your characters does not, cannot, or will not speak. Why not? Only you as the writer knows.

It started off as a joke.

Alex was on the right side of the field, checking his phone because no one had hit a ball anywhere near him for the past ten minutes, which was why he wasn't at all concerned when he heard them shout a warning of 'head's up'. Maybe it was a risk to take but none of them were any good at rounders and the only left handed batter, Callum, was on the fielding team so the likelihood of it coming towards him was pretty low.

He was right, too, the ball dropping somewhere on the other side of the field.

And, usually, Alex would be an active player, keen to give anything a try but he'd stayed up till three that morning partying with the guys and he wasn't up for chasing after a ball. So, when they were forced to end the game ten minutes later because it started raining, he wasn't too put out about it.

"Hey," one of the guys from Old Terrace came up to him, clapping a hand on his arm, "that was a good game, it's so impressive how you play despite your impairment."

Alex looked at him, trying to figure that comment out but it was wet and they all wanted to get back inside so he shrugged it off while they gathered up the bats and equipment. By the time they'd got it all out of the rain, the guy was gone.

"Hey," he said, catching Callum as they went up to their flat, "do you think I have an impairment?"

"Yeah," he said, not even having to think about it.

"You're an ass."

Callum grinned, "You love it. Why'd you ask, though?"

"One of the guys from the other block said that I'd played well, given my impairment. That's weird, right? I swear it's the first time I met him."

"I don't know, maybe he saw you while you were drunk because, seriously, you were a mess Wednesday night."

They'd only been at uni for two weeks but Alex had been keen to take advantage of the Freshers' feeling, going out almost every night, so it wasn't too unlikely that he might've crossed paths with the guy before. He'd met a lot of people and forgotten a fair number of them, too, as was the nature of Freshers'.

"I wouldn't worry about it," Callum said, draping an arm around his shoulder, "you're probably not going to talk to him again once we get into the full swing of things. Come on, let's shower and then go to the predrinks at H block."

"Is that where they're happening?"

"Yeah, there and at E. We'll see which one's cooler and then go to that."

"Sounds like a plan."

They wound up at H because it was someone's birthday there and they weren't going to turn down the offer of free cake and balloons if they could get it. Alex was on his second slice of a chocolate log when Scotty found them, coming over with a few cans of the horrific-tasting cider he liked.

"Hey, guys," he drawled, snagging a chair and moving it over to sit next to them, "can I get in on this card game?"

"Sure," Callum split his hand, because he was losing and desperately needed the help, "we're playing Irish Snap."

"Doubles?"

"Of course."

"I feel like I've played more card games in the past two weeks than I have in my entire life," Alex said.

"That's what university's about, drinking and card games. And, you know, the occasional game of rounders when it's sunny enough on the green."

"Oh, speaking of rounders," Callum said, taking a pull of his beer, "do you think Alex fields like he has an impairment?"