What Remains (BoyxBoy)

Chapter 29

The sound of the loud eruptions of the firework along the chants of everyone on the beach filled the air, though Carter perceived very little of it. His eyes were closed as he felt Josh's lips on his own, but the panic hadn't left his mind.

When Josh pulled away, he opened his eyes again and looked up at the blond, with the sight of the colorful firework right behind him. The way he looked at him did something to him. His playful eyes were filled with compassion and love. That look made Carter's heart melt and he would have kissed him again if they weren't out in public. And as soon as that realization hit him, Carter turned to the rest of his friend and he could feel worry rising up when they all looked at him and Josh.

Though to his surprise, they didn't look angry or disgusted at all. Christ already knew, of course, but he wasn't sure about Paxton and Melanie. He had figured Chris had most likely told Melanie about their relationship beforehand, but had yet to see how she would react to actually seeing him and Josh together.

Carter's eyes went to meet with Paxton's and he could tell that the shock was most definitely in his eyes.

"...What the hell was that?!" he said eventually.

Carter started to feel uneasy within his lower stomach again and his eyes flickered to Josh, before going back to Paxton.

"Pax," Josh said, looking over at him. "Carter and I are dating."

This was the first time Josh has said out loud that he was dating Carter, and it gave him that same feeling he got when josh looked at him after they had kissed.

Carter cleared his throat and looked at his friend. "We're gay, Pax," he added, a little hesitatingly.

Paxton still looked confused, his eyes averting from Carter's and his eyebrows furrowed. "So it wasn't a dream...?" He looked back up at Carter and Josh. "You two really kissed at the Christmas dance? I thought I had dreamed it."

It was a little hard to understand Paxton through the fireworks, but it was understandable enough for Carter.

"No, you didn't dream that," he said. He tried to read Paxton's expression, wondering what was going through his head right now. Sometimes, Paxton could be so unpredictable that it was almost nerve-racking. Especially when it came to serious subjects like these.

Paxton raised his eyebrows and looked rather bewildered. He parted his lips but didn't say anything. Or he did, but Carter couldn't understand him through the firework.

"It doesn't matter, though, does it?" Chris then spoke, who had his arm around Melanie. "It doesn't change who they are."

Paxton gave a glance at Chris and shook his head. "What? No... no, it doesn't change anything, of course. It's just.... I'm really surprised. I mean, how long has this been going on? Why didn't you tell us sooner?" he asked, turning back to Carter and Josh. "If this is the reason why the two of you have been acting so strange lately, it does explain a lot."

Josh chewed the inside of his cheek Carter could tell that he was a little lost for words as well. "We wanted to tell you guys," he said, "but didn't know how you'd react. How anyone would react."

"Dude, seriously? What kind of assholes do you take us for?" Paxton said. "I mean, sure, it's a bit of a shock, but it's not like we'd beat you guys up for it. And sure, it would take some time to get used to... this, but if you just give us that time then there's nothing to worry about, right?"

Paxton's response had Carter smile and he gave a glance at Melanie, who seemed to be in agreement with Paxton. Though seeing as she wasn't shocked at all, Carter knew that Chris most likely already told her.