Aaron T x Aaron Z| Oneshots

The Boy Next Door (part 3)

Word Count: 1,669

Aaron T's POV

He awoke late the next morning. His alarm buzzed for half an hour before his mother came bursting into his bedroom. As soon as she threw open his door, he nearly levitated out of bed.

"Aaron!" His mother yelled. He stumbled around his room with a groan, searching for a pair of clean jeans and a t-shirt that didn't stink. She watched him with furrowed brows and her hands on her hips.

"What's going on?" She asked him. "You never wake up late."

Aaron threw his comforter onto his bed and struggled to righten his pillows.

"Nothing," Aaron replied. His eyes avoided his mother's even when she stood across him to help dress his bed.

He felt his cheeks heat as he recalled the previous night. His eyes still burned from staring at his laptop for hours until he could see the sun. He'd been messaging Aaron Z the entire night. It felt like he'd been speaking to him in person. With every message he sent, he could hear Z speak the words he typed.

"What are you smiling about?" His mother asked him, drawing him out of his thoughts. He nearly jumped at her words.

"Nothing!" He said quickly. His mother flashed him a suspicious look.

"Fine, don't tell me," she said. Only then did he realize that his mother was smirking. He couldn't contain the burst of nerves in his gut. Did she know what he did? Did she know who he was talking to? Did she know how he felt about him?

His mother drove him to school since he was so late. It didn't even matter that he went to his classes- all he could think about was his new friend. He wanted to know more about Aaron. He started calling him Z when it felt weird to say his own name when messaging him.

What was Z like at school? What was his favourite place to go to back in his hometown? How long was he going to stay?

He had questions that he only wanted to find the answers to when he could finally speak to Z in person. Throughout the school day, he worked up a plan to speak to Z in person. Even after school at tutoring, he imagined how he would go up to Z's front door and knock on it. Would he be home? Would he turn down seeing him or would he invite him in?

And then it was 4:00 and he was free. Aaron T practically ran home. As he approached his street, he slowed his pace and tried to calm his buzzing nerves. He felt jittery all over. Thinking of Z sent a rush of happiness and excitement throughout his body. He could already imagine his face as he looked down at him. T could imagine Z saying, "Oh?" when he saw him behind his front door.

He planned to first go home and drop off his bag, but it quickly changed when he saw his tall neighbor out on the street. He dribbled a basketball between his legs as he approached the net at the base of his driveway. A car passed and he moved out of the way before shooting.

T watched the ball sail through the air and hit the backboard before falling through the dirty white net. Z pursed his lips and retrieved the ball before shooting again.

T approached him. Suddenly, all of his excitement was gone and only nerves remained. He felt his hands and fingers shake. He tripped as he approached his friend. He didn't notice.

His steps were timid as he found his way to the base of Z's driveway next to the net. Z turned and shot at it, but for a brief moment, their eyes locked.

Aaron T felt his heart skip a beat. He raised his hand to wave but immediately pulled back with a yelp as the basketball Aaron once held crashed into his head.