𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐘 𝐃𝐎𝐍'𝐓 𝐊𝐍𝐎𝐖 𝐀𝐁𝐎𝐔𝐓 𝐔𝐒|𝐎𝐔𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐁𝐀𝐍𝐊𝐒

𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐟𝐨𝐮𝐫

"Jaxon, hello? Earth to Jaxon!" Pope exclaimed, waving a hand in front of Jaxon's face in order to grab his attention. The Ellis boys eyes shot open in a matter of seconds, the nap he was attempting to take flying out the window. Lately his insomnia had been getting worse and worse, especially after finding out that Popes friends had tried to involve him in some sort of treasure hunt. He had tried asking his boyfriend about it numerous of times, only for him to be met with fearful glances and stammered responses. Jaxon didn't understand why, for never in their relationship had they ever kept any sort of secrets from one another. Jaxon stared at his boyfriend with a small frown, running a hand over his face in order to prevent the clear exhalation he felt from being on full display. Pope frowned as well, reaching a hand out to caress Jaxon's cheek, an action that had always calmed home down in the past.

Jaxon was glad that it was a Saturday, for that meant his parents were away at the country club which left him and Pope plenty of time to hang out with one another before pretending that they hadn't ever interacted a single day in their lives. The thought caused for Jaxon to clench his jaw, the heart swarming deep inside of him at the fact that he had to hide away how he truly felt in fear of getting judged and ridiculed over something he couldn't even control.

"Just thinking about how handsome you look in that shirt," Jaxon teased, pinching Popes cheek gently. "Which just so happens to be mine by the way."

"It's not yours," Pope argued with a nervous laugh. "What makes you possibly think it could be yours? It isn't yours. I'll have you know that—"

"You're rambling, baby," Jaxon giggled softly, pressing a quick kiss to Popes lips before falling back on his bed. "The shirt looks cute on you, by the way. You can keep it if you want."

"I wish I could, but I can't," Pope sighed, removing to shirt from his body which revealed his toned and muscular chest that caused for Jaxon to almost salivate at the sight. "I think my friends are starting to catch on. They mentioned me smiling a lot whenever you're around."

"What can I say? I'm a pretty handsome guy if I do say so myself."

"Yeah, Jax, you're really handsome," Pope flicked Jaxon's forehead earning a playful eye roll. "I'm being serious though. What if—what if we're doing all of this for nothing and people already know about us?"

Jaxon sat up on his bed at this, gently grabbing Popes jaw so they were able to make eye contact. He would be lying if he said the thought didn't keep him up at night (well, anything was able to keep him up at night, but that was completely beside the point). The point is, he wasn't going to let a simple fear ruin his entire summer with his boyfriend, especially given the fact he was finally beginning to feel more comfortable with himself. "Pope, baby, nobody knows about us. And if they did, trust me, they wouldn't hesitate to spread it all over the island. People are fucking gossips, it's so annoying."

"Really annoying," Pope agreed with a small laugh, cuddling into Jaxon's chest and taking a bite from a leftover muffin that sat on his nightstand. "I forgot how good of a baker you were, holy shit."

"Yeah, wanted to woo your friends somehow. Which reminds me—"

"I'm not telling you about the treasure hunt. There isn't even a treasure hunt to begin with! You just have a really bad hearing problem!"

"I don't have a hearing problem!" Jaxon whined, throwing his arms up in the air as if he was a small child who had been told no one too many times. "I know there's something going on. And if you don't tell me.....if you don't tell me then I'll just tickle you!"

"Tickle me? You can't even—" Pope yelped once Jaxon collapsed on top of him, beginning to tickle his sides. "Oh, you asshole! Jax, get off me! Get off!"