teeth ↣ joshler ✓

20. Help

Josh walked into his math class, smiling when he saw Tyler already sitting in his usual seat. He was typing something on his phone and Josh noticed his leg bouncing irritably.

Josh went over, setting his bag down. "Hey. You okay?"

Tyler looked up and gave him a deer in the headlights sort of look. He relaxed when he realized it was just Josh. "Hey. Yeah."

"You look a little freaked," Josh noted as he sat down. "Anything you wanna talk about?" He wasn't going to push Tyler but he wanted his boyfriend to trust him. He wanted them to be able to trust each other.

Tyler let out a sigh and set his phone down. "My mind's just a little focused on something. Sorry."

"Don't apologize," Josh assured. "Just wanted to make sure you're alright."

Tyler smiled at him. "Thanks."

The bell rang then and Mrs. Black walked in. "Morning, class."

They chorused their responses but all Josh could focus on was Tyler drumming his fingers against the desk in a anxious way. His leg was still bouncing too.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Josh asked.

Tyler pursed his lips and nodded. "Yeah."

Josh thought of something. "Give me your hand."

Tyler gave him a look. "What? Why?"

"Just give it to me. Under the desk."

Josh saw his hand and grasped it, holding it tightly. Tighter than he would have.

He noticed Tyler's leg stop bouncing and he had to use his other hand to work on the notes Mrs. Black was passing out.

"Does this help?" Josh asked sincerely. "If not I can let go but physical touch may give you something else to focus on."

Tyler let out a relieved sigh. "Yeah. It helps," he smiled. "Thanks."

"Of course."

They kept their hands clasped together while Mrs. Black went through the notes. She would glance up at Tyler with a worried expression every few minutes. She obviously knew something Josh didn't. It was Jenna's mom and Tyler and Jenna were best friends.

Once she passed out the homework, she stopped at their pair of desks. She noticed Tyler's and Josh's hands clasped together under the desk but didn't say anything. "Are you okay?" She asked him quietly.

He nodded, but it was clear something was bothering him. Josh wished he could help more. He didn't want Tyler to be bothered by whatever was causing it to happen. He had only been with Tyler a handful of days but he's cared for him for awhile and didn't want him to hurt.

"Yeah," Tyler swallowed. "I'll be okay. I sat in here with Jenna this morning. I should be good until I get home."

She nodded as if she understood what he meant. "Okay. You let me know if you need anything. I can close my classroom for lunch if you need me to."

He smiled gratefully. "I'm okay. Thanks though, Mrs. Black."

The mentioned looked at Tyler sadly. "Don't thank me. I know how hard things can get."

She went back over to her desk and Josh just squeezed Tyler's hand once more in support. He felt Tyler squeeze back so he glanced up and Tyler was looking at him in adoration. "I'm still really glad we're together," he spoke quietly. "I feel like I don't deserve you. I feel like I'm not good enough."

"You not a bad person, Ty. I hope you know that. No matter what's bothering you, it still makes you a good person."

Tyler swallowed and Josh could tell he was blinking back tears. "I don't think you understand how badly I needed to hear that," he laughed out, Josh knee it was mainly to avoid crying.