Tyler was in a wheelchair.
He had been for most of his life, he always would be.
His legs would always be flaccid, he would always be weak.
Most people just saw the wheelchair.
Josh was not most people.
•••
Josh woke up late, unfortunately for Tyler. He'd been carried straight to bed last night and his chair was across the room.
Tyler smelled breakfast, probably Josh's mom's doing. He was hungry.
The high level of his injury made it extremely hard to sit up, so he tugged at the sheets and tossed and turned a bit until he was upright. The movement woke Josh.
"Morning." His voice was thick with sleep.
He automatically put a hand on Tyler's back to help him sit
"G'morning." Tyler smiled, kissing him softly.
"Oh, shit." Josh noticed that he'd forgotten to put the chair by the bed. "How long have you been up?"
"An hour, maybe." Tyler blushed.
"I'm so sorry, babe." He sat up quickly, the bed shaking and causing Tyler to fall to the side with an aggravated sigh.
"I'm sorry, honey." He apologized, sitting Tyler back up. "I'm really on fire this morning."
"Keep up the good work." Tyler teased.
"Hush." He pulled Tyler closer.
Tyler had a T1 complete spinal cord injury. What that meant was, everything below his armpits didn't have feeling. He couldn't move anything below that point. He had enough control to breathe and use his arms and some chest muscles, but that was about it.
"I smell food. You hungry?" The pink haired boy asked.
Tyler nodded. "Mhm."
He couldn't feel Josh's strong arms wrap themselves under his legs and torso. He wished he could.
He leaned into the older's chest smiling slightly when he was set down in the chair. "Thanks."
"It's no problem." They exchanged a light kiss.
It was snowing outside. So beautiful.
The hallways of Josh's house were narrow and hard for Tyler to maneuver in. He did his best but still needed Josh's help every now and then.
Josh's family had only met Tyler a few times though he and Josh had been dating for almost a year.
They were still wary of his disability, though he assured them to steps, well, stairs that led up to their porch were no problem and that he didn't need help.
The long pajama pants he'd stolen from Josh pooled on the footrest and the baggy shirt draped onto his lap. Josh was dressed no better. He was shirtless and was wearing only sweatpants with holes in them.
"Joshua Dun, how are you not cold?" She said in an accusing tone, clicking her tongue at the lack of clothing.
"I dunno." He spoke while moving a chair for Tyler.
The smaller quietly thanked him.
"It's fine, Ty." He held the soft but calloused hand under the table.
He could tell Josh's hand was on his thigh, though he couldn't feel it.
He could tell his slouched posture was off putting to Josh's mom.
He knew she didn't understand why Josh loved him. He himself didn't know why Josh loved him.
Josh was done soon and Tyler was full though he hardly ate anything.
They went to go get dressed.
"Wanna work on that song?" Josh's pink hair tousled by the shirt he put on.
"Sure." Tyler gave a small grunt as he tried to pull himself onto the bed that was too high up.
He almost fell out of his chair, but Josh caught him. He sat Tyler against the headboard of the bed.
"I love you."
"I love you too, honey." Josh buttoned his pants.
Tyler forced his legs through the pants and sighed, pulling them up over his thin frame. He didn't eat much, couldn't exercise much. That left him underweight.
Pulling on a graphic t-shirt, he sat there limply in the middle of the bed. He couldn't get back into his chair from here.
Josh tugged him to the edge of the bed, easing him back down into the seat.
An innocent kiss turned into two and four and soon Josh was sitting on Tyler's lap, running his hands up the boy's shirt and kissing him heatedly. The younger boy's lips kissed his neck and it drove Josh crazy. He softly raked his fingers over Tyler's upper shoulder blades and was just about to pull him back onto the bed when the door opened.
Tyler yelped and Josh groaned.
"Mom!"
"Oh, uh, I'm...I'm sorry, I didn't know you did stuff...like that..." She took in the image.
Her seventeen year old son sitting on the lap of his paralyzed boyfriend, about to possibly have sex with him. At ten in the morning.
Tyler looked mortified. She'd caught them in the act.
"I'll leave." The door shut.
The mood was lost.
"Sorry, babe." Josh just sat still on his lap now.
"It's fine." He looked away. "I was having trouble getting it going anyway, so."
"Aw, Tyler. I'm so sorry. You should've said something." Josh played with his hair.
"Yeah, but with my injury it only works once in a blue moon. I didn't want to disappoint you." He gave a sad smile.
"You'll never disappoint me, okay? Now put on your jacket, we'll go out to the studio and work on the song."
"Okay." Tyler nodded.
•••
The snow crunched under Josh's feet and Tyler's wheels. It was cold. The small ramp Josh had built over the step into the studio creaked, but didn't break. He switched on the heater.
The studio was ultimately a garage that he cleaned out and stocked with old synthesizers and recording equipment.
Josh got behind the drum set and did a few rudiments while Tyler locked his wheels behind the keyboard. A microphone was to his right, a mix board to his left.
"Alright, ready?" He popped his knuckles.
"Yeah. Let's do it."
Tyler played a tempo with a single key.
"I can't take them on my own, my own." He started.
Josh played a light beat.
"Oh, I'm not the one you know, you know." Tyler's voice was amplified by the amp in the corner and he carried on singing and playing the keyboard.
Josh smiled from behind his instrument, watching the smile on his boyfriend's face.
