Intrigue

Chapter 11

Chapter 11 - Malcolm's POV

By the time Wednesday rolled around, I was a ball of anxiety. I spent the two days leading up to it thinking, wondering, overthinking, about everything. I needed to ask Sean what was really going on between us, if he was interested in pursuing anything more than a fling with me. And then by the time I saw him face to face on Wednesday, I'd lost my nerve, and decided not to ask him. I didn't want to scare him off.

I parked in front of his apartment building and pressed the doorbell. He beeped me in and I walked up the flight of stairs. It was chillier today, so I'd worn my military jacket on top of a long sleeved shirt and dark trousers. I also had a light, cotton beanie on, my hair emerging from underneath it.

He opened the door and gave me the usual once-over. His eyes widened. "You look... hot," were his first words. I tried not to smile.

"I try," I answered, looking back at him. His hair looked longer, pulled away from his face as if he were one of those Brazilian footballers who used a hairband on their hair. He was wearing a hoodie underneath his classic denim jacket and black jeans, with white Nike high tops. It was rare for me to see him look this casual. It suited him.

"You succeed," Sean said with a raised eyebrow. His arm extended toward me and he pulled me to him, first in a hug and then in a brief kiss. My anxiety immediately melted away, at least for that moment.

He looked at his watch with a frown. I looked back at him, noticing that he hadn't bothered to close the door. Strange. "What's up?" I asked.

"I'm hungry and I don't want to waste my outfit, especially since you didn't return my compliment," he said. "Do you want to go grab a bite from somewhere?"

My heart plummeted in my chest. Was he asking me out on a second date or was I looking too much into it? Did he just want food? I kept a straight face as I answered. "You always look great, it's a given," I said. "And yeah... we could... grab food." I stuttered.

"Great. Bike or car?" he asked me.

I shrugged. "Depends on what you feel like doing, whether you want to sit down at a restaurant or grab a takeaway and eat in the car or bring it back here." I didn't mind driving, not with Sean.

His eyes lit up. "You'd let me eat in your car?" he asked.

"I'd let you do anything in my car," I said with a chuckle, before realising what I'd uttered and turning red in the face. Whoops.

Sean maintained eye contact. "Interesting," he replied. He felt his pocket for his keys and phone, and started walking out of the door. I followed behind him, shutting the door behind me. "Thank you for this. I didn't feel like cooking or ordering in, and it was an excuse to go out," he admitted, turning to me before going down the stairs.

"It's okay. Are you alright?" I glanced at him in concern. He looked a bit agitated.

"Yeah. Slightly pissed off, to be honest. Jimmy told the whole block I'm gay." He stopped at the entrance of the building, meeting my eyes. His neighbour, who'd seen us the other night. My heart sank.

"That sucks, I'm sorry," I answered. I wanted to reach out to him, but I resisted. I didn't want any more displays of affection for the whole block to see - evidently he was upset and didn't want his neighbours to think he was gay, since you know, he wasn't, not really. It was something which bothered me at times, but ultimately didn't change the way I felt about him.

"It's not your fault," Sean said, opening the front door. He stopped in front of my car and turned to me. "I just hate being labelled, you know?"

I knew. I stopped in front of him, not saying anything. It was slightly offensive, coming from him, considering that he'd hit on me first. He grabbed my waist and pulled me to him. "Hey," he said. His right hand moved to my chin to make me look at him. "Hey," he repeated. My eyes met his. "I'm sorry. I somehow always end up saying the wrong thing. You're amazing."