➤ ➤ ➤
"Yo, you were taking forever in the bathroom," Torrence smacked me hard on the shoulder as he and Levi sat beside me, far up in the gymnasium's bleachers. He slid in close and muttered, "Were you smoking pot again? Without me?"
"—Nah, chill!" I almost leaped, shoving him out of my personal bubble.
"Damn, alright," Torrence raised his paws in the air, backing off. I could feel my face burn red, thinking back to what actually happened in the bathroom. I turned my head away, careful not to out myself.
In fact, that blush grew even redder the moment I noticed the others enter the gymnasium. "Oh, God," I muttered to myself as I watched Eden, Rian, Harley, and Ari, all migrate away from the influx of students pouring into the gym and meander towards us. Each of them seemed to be collectively participating in a lively, chatty discussion. Our gym period had just begun, so they were all coming in from their last classes.
"Hey, hotties," Harley called out to the three of us, gaining our attention. He dashed forward as the others behind him took their time. "I swear, you guys get sexier every day," he hassled, walking along the row seat behind us and delivering a vigorous noogie to Torrence's head.
"Yo, back the fuck up, I swear to God, Harley," Torrence pushed Harley off as the others climbed the bleachers and sat in the row aisle ahead of us.
"Where's the PE teacher?" Eden questioned, looking around.
"What? It's not my fault you fine, dashing men are so fuckable," Harley continued to tease, scooting up to Levi with his legs first. He wrapped his arms around the fox, leaning in close to his ear. "Especially you, cutie."
"I don't think she's in today, so free period, I guess," I answered Eden's question. Levi squirmed in Harley's arms, his hot red face not much different from mine a few seconds ago.
"Can you not flirt with my brother in front of me? Jesus Christ..." Torrence groaned, looking away from the PDA-obsessed couple, turning his annoyed gaze to me. I just shrugged, offering him some transparency. "Well, now that we're all here, I've actually got something to sa—"
"—WAIT! Look alive, soldier!" Harley then leaped off of Levi and grabbed Torrence by the sides of his head, pointing it up and in a specific direction, redirecting his line of sight.
"What the fuck, Harley—?!" growled Torrence.
"In the distance there, I detect danger!" With a fake voice mocking that of a sea captain, Harley stuck a finger out in the same direction he pointed Torrence's head. "It is young Fiona Matthews! Talking with a boy! The precious booty is being stolen right out of your grasp!"
Fiona was, indeed, talking to someone, far on the other side of the lengthy gymnasium. Ari looked up at me, giving me a sidelong glance, a smirk on his face. I returned it, discreetly and out of sight of the others.
"Wha—?" Torrence stammered, suddenly apprehensive.
"No time for dilly-dallying, lad!" Harley grabbed Torrence by the shoulders and stood, pulling him up to his feet. Rian squinted his eyes, trying to see the image clearly. "Don't let your masculinity be threatened! Go on, win her back!"
"She's talking to a girl, Harley," Rian monotoned.
"Perhaps she swings both ways! You mustn't lose sight of the trophy! Go on, boy! Claim that pussy!" Harley then kicked Torrence in the butt, forcing him to stumble forward.
"AH! Easy!" Torrence yelped, regaining his balance.
"Ow, fuck!" Rian gasped after the Shiba accidentally stepped on his paw while trying to steady his feet on the bleacher rows.
"Jesus, Harley," Eden face-palmed, disapprovingly. "Cut it out."
Ari and I still had our eyes locked onto one another as we giggled silently. Eden gave us both subtle passing glances, yet no expression was shown, making it hard to discern whether she was onto us or not.
"I'm just trying to save this man's dignity!" Harley retaliated, motioning towards the flustered Torrence. "Before his lady falls into the trap of the lesbian agenda!"
"'The lesbian agenda'?" Eden's brows furrowed captiously. Torrence turned back around and faced the two canines brawling, rolling his eyes.
"Yes, we must save the good people of this world from the satanic corruption that is homosexuality!"
"Guys, actually, I have news—" Torrence attempted to break through the madness.
"What if I'm a lesbian?" Eden mocked louder.
"You shan't!" Harley squealed. "Corruption!"
"Yeah, well, what if I really like pussy?"
"Guys, seriously—" Torrence spoke a little louder, catching not just my attention, but Ari's and Rian's as well.
"To hell with you, heathen!" Harley touched his fingers together, forming a cross and shoving it in Eden's face.
"I probably get more pussy than you do, WHORE!" Eden rose to her feet, jabbing a hard, accusing finger at Harley's snout.
"Bitch, I'M FUCKING GAY!" Harley shouted, his voice louder than hers.
The gymnasium was now quieter as people began to stare. Even Fiona looked on in confusion. Levi's panicked eyes darted back and forth between Harley and Eden. It was hard to tell now whether they were being serious or just play-fighting.
Ari looked up at me with widened eyes that spoke: 'What the hell is going on?' I just shook my head, suppressing a laugh.
"AHA! CORRUPTION!" Eden screamed. "MAN-SLUT! MAN-SLUT!"
"LICK MY CLIT, CUNT!" Harley shouted.
"SUCK MY FAT FUCKING COCK!"
"AYO, ASSHOLES! QUIT DICK-RIDING EACH OTHER AND SHUT THE FUCK UP!" Torrence roared, making the entire gymnasium shut up like a clam.
"HEY!" The substitute teacher in the corner yelled, his commanding voice echoing throughout the entire school.
➤ ➤ ➤
The seven of us sat, lined up, against the tiled walls in the hallway outside of the gymnasium. Harley and Eden were a hysterical, laughing mess by the time we were all kicked out, now being forced to sit here and wait out the rest of the period under the watchful eye of the substitute teacher. Apart from the two crackheads, the rest of us were pretty annoyed.
"Nice going, guys," Torrence grumbled, glaring at Eden and Harley, who were collapsed against one another, tirelessly out of breath.
I locked eyes with Ari, who sat next to me on the floor at the end of the line, the two of us exchanging looks of amusement. The others couldn't really see what we were doing.
"This isn't going on our school record, right?" Levi questioned anxiously.
"Nah, it's just a minor inconvenience, a sub can't do shit," Rian whispered, eyeing the substitute down the hall, standing in the doorway with one foot in the hallway and one foot in the gym. He had to keep an eye on both us and the students.
"Even if it did, you didn't do anything, so don't worry, Lev," Torrence reassured his little brother.
"If this is what high school is like for you guys, I must've missed out on a lot," Ari whispered into my ear, making me smile.
"Can I share my news now?" Torrence impatiently requested. We all nodded and lazily mumbled our approval. "Thank you. Jesus."
I felt Ari rest his head on my shoulder. I tried not to make a big deal about it, but inside, I could feel my heart begin to scream. I could barely sit still because of it.
Torrence pulled out his phone, searching for something that must've been important. Eden picked her head up from Harley's back, curious.
"This guy, Jared, from another band in Jersey City—he reached out to me and invited our band to play at their DIY rock concert that they're setting up next week. They're inviting all these bands located around New Jersey," Torrence informed us, reading the information off of his phone.
"Wait, he reached out to you? Not me, the manager?" Levi reached for Torrence's phone, sounding almost offended.
"He DM'd me through our Instagram, not your email," Torrence explained, "but, that's not the point. Are we doing this, or what?"
Rian immediately spoke up: "Yo, wait, you can't just spring that on us and expect us to decide immediately, let us discuss it for a—"
"—I think we should do it!" Harley cut in.
"You're not even in the band anymore, dickhead," Eden smacked his head over her shoulder, eliciting a sharp 'ow!' from him.
"Well, I mean, why not, right?" Torrence shrugged as Levi stared at the invitation on his phone. "Why wouldn't we?"
"It's next Friday, a day before my birthday," Levi whined. "I thought we were going to have a sleepover!"
"Wait, we were going to have a sleepover?" I spoke up, a little behind. Ari lifted his head, also confused.
"We can play the show and then have the sleepover, Lev," Torrence reasoned. "We have the entire weekend to celebrate your birthday."
"Wait, you're turning eighteen, again, right?" Ari asked Levi, who nodded innocently.
"I think we should do it," Eden added her own input, shrugging. "We need to get noticed by more people, right? Before we release the EP? This could help. Torrence, where's the show?"
"It's in this old art museum in Jersey City," he answered, "the dude's grandfather owns it so he's letting him use it for a DIY."
"Oh God, can you imagine people moshing around all that expensive shit?" Harley laughed, finding the idea almost enticing. "What if someone destroys a piece of art or something?"
"I'm sure they'll clear out a space," Torrence responded. "They're setting up a stage and providing mics and everything, we just have to bring our own equipment and amps and shit."
"But what about the sleepover..?" Levi shyly questioned.
"I must've missed something, I don't remember us talking about a sleepover," I spoke up.
"Look, Levi, we'll go to the DIY, we'll play our set—which is, like, only six songs, that's the limit they're giving us—and when we're done, we'll go home and have your sleepover, okay?" Torrence compromised.
"Where are we having the sleepover?" Eden proposed a new topic of discussion.
"Rian's, obviously," Torrence stated, confidently. Rian's apartment was always the spot we'd hit up and hang out at—
"Actually, next week, no, you can't," Rian threw a wrench in the works, making us all stare at him, flabbergasted. "That stupid neighbor keeps pressing the landlord. I'm one complaint away from being kicked out, so you guys can't stay over at night anymore, at least for a few weeks. I can't have y'all being all loud and shit like some people have demonstrated today."
"Where are we gonna rehearse for the DIY?" Torrence fretted.
"Where are we gonna have the sleepover..?" Levi doubled-down.
"We can still rehearse during the day, just when my neighbor is out. But if she heard us at night, I'd probably get evicted, so no sleepover there."
"Can't we have it at your guys' house?" I leaned forward, asking Levi and Torrence, who were at the other end of the line. "I know your parents are extremely against sleepovers, but can't they make an exception for Levi's birthday? Just once?"
"Nah, they're strict as hell, there's no way," Torrence shook his head. Levi stared at the floor, disheartened.
"Same goes for my mom," Eden raised her paw. "She was already iffy about Ari sleeping over one time, I don't think she can handle five other guys staying the night as well."
I felt Ari shift uncomfortably beside me. I glanced over at him, noticing extreme levels of disturbance in his facial expression. Something about whatever Eden had said had indirectly triggered him somehow, but in an instant, his face returned to normal once he noticed me staring at him.
"I don't live at home anymore," Harley gave his excuse. "The college dorms are limited to only four tenants. I don't have the money for an apartment."
"I live in a foster home," Ari shrugged. We all stared at him, expecting him to elaborate. "...You don't wanna spend the night at a foster home. Trust me."
"...Harvey?" Levi's head poked up from the group with the slightest ounce of hope. The others turned their heads to me.
To be honest, I'm not crazy about people sleeping over at my house, but I didn't really have a valid reason to object and Levi was giving me these really large puppy dog eyes, so, truthfully, how could I say no?
"...Alright, my house it is," I sacrificed, giving the discussion a mostly satisfying conclusion. The others nodded their heads and sighed out of relief.
"Okay then, DIY show and then birthday sleepover, next Friday," Torrence stated definitively, taking his phone back from Levi, presumably texting the Jared guy about our confirmation of attendance. I looked back at Ari, who grinned and nodded affirmatively.
That was when I suddenly felt Levi's arms around me, hugging me dearly.
"Thank you," he expressed quietly, almost crying into my shoulder.
➤ ➤ ➤
"You know, I haven't actually been to your house yet," Ari realized, shoving his arms through the sleeves of his baggy, oversized brown flannel that he'd just retrieved from his locker. The final bell of the day had rung and all the students were gunning for the exit. I stood, mesmerized, leaning up against the neighboring locker, observing all of Ari's tiny little actions and subtle quirks with careful attention.
The Aussie dog stared into the small, circular mirror glued to the locker door and began to swiftly touch up his appearance. He combed his paw through the fluffy strands of his silky, calico hair, the unbuttoned sleeve of his flannel slinking down his arm in the process. The thing was so light it could've been a kimono.
"You heard?" Ari spoke again, his reflection in the mirror eyeing me as he threw on his backpack. "Harvey?"
"—Sorry," I shook out of my trance as Ari slammed his locker door shut. He turned in my direction and took a step closer, raising an eyebrow at me. "Yeah, you haven't."
"Well... I'd like to see where I'll be spending the night next Friday," he chuckled, leaning up against the closed locker door, mirroring me. "...Can I come over?"
"...Right now?" I felt my heart skip a beat. Shit, when was the last time I cleaned my room? Or fuckin' aired it out? Did I ever do the laundry or is it still all over the floor? "...You don't have work?"
"I'm off today," Ari shrugged, smiling until he noticed my hesitant expression. "...But, we don't have to if you don't want to."
He's never been over to my house. Would he even like it? Would he like my room? It's nowhere near as cool as his... What would we even do? Why am I freaking out about this?
"N-No, it's okay, we can go to my house," I nodded and crossed my arms, attempting a confident stance, but Ari's x-ray vision scanned me like a lie detector. "...Um, what would you want to do?"
Oh, God...
Moments later, the two of us pulled up on our bikes outside of my brownstone. Without giving Ari a second to breathe, I instantly hopped off my bike, which fell onto the patio, and raced up the steps, reaching the front door. My paws began to tremble slightly as I searched my backpack for the house keys.
"Hey, you okay?" Ari checked in, still busy climbing off his own bike. He grabbed the handlebars and walked the vehicle onto the sidewalk, chaining it to my fence.
"Y-Yeah, I'm—I'm all good," I stumbled, "I'm—It's probably not clean, so I'm just gonna make sure, before you come in—Shit." The keys accidentally slipped out of my sweaty palms and hit the floor. I frantically bent down and swiped them back up.
"Harvey, you know I don't care, right?" Ari reassured, his voice suddenly closer than I thought. I jumped up and spun around, pressing my back to the front door.
"Yes, yeah, I know, I'm—" I blurted out randomly, backing away from Ari who stood unexpectedly close. "I dunno why I'm overreacting, I-I—I don't know, it feels like a big deal, you coming over for the first time—"
"Hey, calm down," Ari chuckled coolly, his paw gently grazing my arm. "It's not like I'm meeting your parents."
"She—Yeah, haha, no, she, um—my mom—she isn't back until later. But, my sister might be home, though, I'm not sure—"
Amid my stammering, Ari gradually rested his hands on my tensed-up shoulders and lowered them with ease. My voice slowly faded as my nerves settled, courtesy of his fond touch.
"...Harvey?" Ari looked into my eyes warmly, giving me a reality check.
"...Right, sorry," I exhaled slowly, regaining my posture.
I stared down at the house keys in my hand and turned back around, shoving the right key inside the lock. After taking another deep breath, I turned the knob and opened the door. I shuffled in first, Ari following in my footsteps.
Once inside, I hastily booked it to the stairwell as Ari shut the front door behind him. Contrasting my hurried pace, Ari's feet slowed to a halt. He began to take a gander at the entire first floor of the house. His boots squeaked against the polished wooden floor as he spun around, admiring the main hall, the dining room, and the kitchen across from it.
"Let me just make sure my room is clean," I excused without hesitation, leaving him to his own devices as I ascended the staircase, making a beeline for the entrance to my bedroom.
Shutting the door behind me, my fevered eyes surveyed the scene, detecting several misdemeanors. In a flash, I dashed around the room and tidied up as best as I could; throwing wrappers and empty cans of soda into the trash, shoving neglected plates and cups into the closet, and tossing dirty clothes and underwear into the hamper in the corner, which I also hid by throwing a coat over it. I grabbed my can of spray deodorant from the shelf and just went ham, spritzing and infecting the air with its pine-smelling droplets as if it were a bottle of Febreze.
That was when the door opened. Startled, the deodorant can fell out of my hand, making a sharp, clanging sound once it hit the floor. Ari stood in the doorway, oddly delighted by my cleanliness rampage.
"H-Hey," I awkwardly greeted, straightening my back and clasping my paws together. I, not-so-discreetly, kicked the can of deodorant under my bed.
Ari bit his lip, smiled with intrigue, and stepped foot inside the room, taking in the view. His eyes lit up with subtle fascination as they glossed over the walls, adorned by all my favorite band posters, movie posters, guitar store posters, framed images of me and my friends, etcetera, etcetera.
"...You've got a pretty nice place here, Northwest," he nodded, liking what he saw.
"Really? You think so?" I placed my hands on my hips and stepped back, allowing him to explore more of the room so that I could catch my breath outside of his glance.
Ari took one step at a time, admiring the simplicity—as well as the chaos—of my everyday living quarters. He abruptly stopped in his tracks, something catching his eye. He approached the sleek black Fender Stratocaster displayed on the wall, showing off my signature instrument. Next to it was a polaroid image, hanging from a pushpin.
"...Is that your dad?" Ari questioned, getting a closer look at the polaroid. It was an image of me and my father, taken by my sister.
"...Yeah, that's him."
To this day, I still remember the moment that photo was taken. Dad was encouraging fourteen-year-old me to take a sip of his beer, and in the image, you could see me gagging from the overbearing taste as my Dad celebrated, pounding his fists into the air.
I wish he could see me now. I've grown to like the taste so much that I can down two of them in under half an hour now.
"You look like him." Ari glanced back at me, and then back to the polaroid. "It's almost identical."
"Yeah, it's like we're related or something," I laughed, almost a little too desperately. Having him in my room was a lot more nerve-wracking than I'd initially imagined. You're always so comfortable with a messy bedroom until a crush comes over.
He scoffed and looked away, turning his attention over to my bed.
"Wow, a bed with an actual bedframe." He walked over to it and sat on the edge.
"Crazy, right?" I teased as he grazed his paw over the blanketed surface, feeling the massive Harvey-sized pit in the mattress. It had been carved out by the imprint of my body after years of sleeping on that same cushion.
"Oh my god," Ari gasped, focusing on the window by the bedframe. He leaned his body at such an angle that he could clearly see what was directly outside. "You have a fire escape?!"
"Y-Yeah! I don't have to risk my life every time I want to get into my bedroom!" I teased as Ari began to unlace his boots, popping them off his feet so that he could climb across the mattress. He pressed his paws up against the glass and stared at the structure with awe.
"May I?" His paws hovered over the window sill with eagerness. I motioned for him to go ahead. With my permission, he reached for the window and pulled it open, poking his head out and staring up at the large, metal fire escape attached to the backside of my house. "Harvey, this is so cool!"
"Thank you," I sighed out of relief, a weight being lifted from my shoulders. Thankfully, the bedroom was a hit. Ari brought his head back inside and looked at me, a bright smile on his face.
I don't know what it was, but something about the sight of Arizona sitting there, in my bed, smiling happily at me, made me feel strangely close to him. Like he's always been a part of this house; a piece that's always been missing, finally fitting back into place.
"...I'm glad you like it," I mumbled under my breath, approaching the bed and sitting on the edge of it. "...I don't know why I was afraid you wouldn't."
"Oh, come on." Ari shut the window to keep the cold air from coming inside and scooted across the mattress, joining me by the ledge. He nudged his shoulder against mine, in a way, encouraging me to have better self-confidence. "I love your room. And your house."
"You haven't even seen the rest of it?"
"You've barely seen the rest of my house!" Ari then caught himself: "My foster home, I mean."
The way he refused to call his house a home was slightly offputting, but not unreasonable.
It began to grow quiet again between us, but the frenetic energy hadn't gone away. Ari and I just stared into one another's eyes, forgetting everything that came to mind. We've shared glances like this many times over today, but without Harley or Eden screaming in the background, this one felt different. It was more private. More intimate.
Ari then chose to lie down on his back, snuggling into the blankets. "Your bed is so comfy," he breathed, getting more and more comfortable.
I chuckled and joined him, laying down right beside the canine. The two of us stared at the beige ceiling above us, noticing the glare projected onto it from the windows. It was clear that, from the ruminating silence, there was no one else in the house besides us. Birds chirped outside, leaves rustled, and the quiet room stood still and unaltered. It felt like, any second now, the roof would fly off and send us soaring into outer space.
I could feel the mattress shake slightly as Ari adjusted his position, laying down on his side, his body facing mine. Noticing his movement, I did the same, the two of us now face-to-face with one another in the bed.
"Hey," Ari whispered. Hearing his deep, raspy voice at such a tight distance sent shivers down my spine.
"Hi," I responded, holding back the urge to laugh.
"...What do you want to do?" Ari murmured, biting his lip again and scanning me up and down. He touched his fingers to my chest, having them slowly crawl up my neck like a spider, seducing me with his provocative touch.
My face began to steam up again. My clothes suddenly felt tighter than they did a second ago. Did my pants miraculously grow a size smaller?
"Anything in mind?" Ari asked, moving his paw to my whiskers, playing with them tenderly.
"Uhm..." I tried to speak but ended up speechless. Ari leaned in a little closer, waiting for my response.
Fuck, what's wrong with me..?
He's flirting, he's flirting on purpose. How do I reciprocate that? Do I kiss him? Do I touch him?
God, the way he's staring at me...
He's letting ME decide, fuck!
I liked it better when HE called the shots! I have no idea how to do anything remotely romantic!
"I..." My voice began to shake a little. I gulped down a large heap of saliva. I could feel the pores surrounding my face break out in a nervous sweat. "Uh..."
God, oh, God... Don't think, Harvey, just do!
I opened my mouth and said the first thing that came to mind:
"...You wanna learn some more ASL?"
Fucking idiot.
Ari just stared at me, unmoving.
His smile faded a little, but after a second, it immediately came back when he started to giggle. My brows furrowed contemptuously, watching as Ari backed away and rested with his body facing the ceiling again. He sighed and shook his head.
"What a romantic suggestion on our first date, Harvey."
"Wait, first date?" I suddenly spiraled, sitting up instantly. "This is our first date? We—We never talked about—"
"—No, no, I'm joking, Harv, I'm..." Ari sat up and grabbed my shoulders, having to calm me down once more. "...I'm joking."
"Oh..." I nodded, a little dazed. "Sorry, I..."
"...It's okay," Ari assured, but he didn't seem as confident in his words as he did before. "We can have another lesson."
My eyebrows twisted with guilt. "Are you sure..?"
Ari sighed. "Yes, Harvey. I'm sure."