Almost every day after school, Espresso took the bus with Madeleine to his house. He loved his house so much more than his own. Every time he stepped into his house, he felt so relieved to be greeted by no TVs at full volume or drunk parents on the couch. It was the best.
And Madeleine's mom was so nice too. She was kind and caring and let Espresso stay over whenever.
Espresso sat at Madeleine's desk, organizing a bunch of papers for the presentation. Today was Friday, and it was deep in the evening. The sun had begun to set and was casting a beautiful red glow into the room. Espresso smiled. "I can't believe we've made this much progress," He said.
"I know, right? We're just amazing like that." Madeleine grinned, doing a goofy little hair flip as Espresso laughed. Madeleine glanced at the time before looking back at Espresso. "Do you want to take a little break?"
Espresso nodded. "I do need to get home soon, though," He said as he stood up, stretching. "My parents won't be too happy if I stay out late."
Madeleine stepped over to his bed, lying down on it. Espresso sat next to him.
"So," Madeleine said. "Your face looks like it's healing."
Espresso reached up to touch his face. It was still cut slightly from his father, but the cuts and bruises were healing, thankfully. "Yeah," He mumbled.
Madeleine thought for a moment. "That's so terrible people would hurt you."
Espresso looked at him, blushing. It sounded like Madeleine really cared about him.
"I don't get why anyone would hurt you. You're kind... And really smart! And it's all because people think we're dating." Madeleine shook his head. "That's so stupid..."
Espresso nodded. "I agree," He said, leaning back on Madeleine's bed. "It is stupid." He hesitated for a moment before sighing. "I hate the rumors. I'm so worried my parents will find out."
"My mom knows," Madeleine said. "I told her."
"You told your mom?!" Espresso gasped. "And she's not mad?"
"Of course she's not mad." Madeleine sat up, looking at Espresso. He tilted his head slightly. "Why would she be mad? They're just rumors. I told her we weren't actually dating."
Silence filled the room as Espresso processed those words. "...My parents would kill me if they found out," Espresso said as he tensed up a little. He didn't want to think about what would happen if Mother and Father found out about the rumors. "They wouldn't believe me if I said they were just rumors."
"Are your parents homophobic?"
Espresso nodded. "Yeah," He whispered. "Especially my father. I remember one time he threatened to throw me out if I ever turned out gay."
Madeleine's eyes widened. "That's terrible! Your father sounds scary."
Espresso looked at him, regretting having brought up his father. He knew Madeleine would be worried now. "H-He's a little scary," Espresso mumbled. "But it's okay. He just... Mean sometimes. Only sometimes, though!" He reassured him. His breathing got faster as he tried to shut himself up. He was making this whole thing worse.
Madeleine stared at him as he noticed how scared he was getting as he talked about his father. "What else does your father do?"
"Nothing," Espresso quickly said, looking down at the floor. "Nothing. He's... He's just a little strict, that's all." Tears stung the backs of his eyes as he tried to calm his breathing.
Madeleine stayed silent.
"I-I should probably get home." Espresso stood up, putting the papers back in his backpack with a shaky hand. "My... My p-parents wouldn't like it if I stayed out too late." He tensed up. "I shouldn't have said that." He thought. "I shouldn't have mentioned my parents again."
"Wait!" Madeleine reached for him as he stood up. Their eyes met. Espresso looked terrified. Madeleine stood there, confused. "Do... Do your parents hurt you..?" He whispered with fear in his voice.
"No," Espresso insisted. "They're just strict." He picked up his backpack and started to walk out of his bedroom.
"Please, wait, Espresso!" Madeleine grabbed him by his wrist to stop him from leaving. "Just stay a little longer, okay?" Madeleine was really worried about him. Ever since they met, Espresso always got a little nervous when his parents were brought up. If his parents did hurt him, Madeleine didn't want Espresso near them.
Espresso hesitated before slowly nodding. It was obvious he didn't want to go back to his parents either. He took him back to his bed where he sat Espresso next to him.
Espresso fidgeted with his fingers. "They don't hurt me," He said again. "They're just strict. Nothing more." He didn't want him to know his parents hurt him. Madeleine would probably hate him if he knew.
Madeleine nodded, saying nothing.
An awkward silence filled the room as the two sat together. After a while, Espresso leaned his head against Madeleine's shoulder. He looked down at him to see his eyes beginning to close. Madeleine smiled. "Are you tired?"
Espresso yawned before nodding.
Madeleine pulled a blanket over them, holding Espresso close. He leaned against him as well, and his eyes began to close too. He let sleep overtake him.
—
Espresso shifted in the bed slightly. He was very comfortable, more comfortable than normal. He felt warmer and safer like someone was wrapping his arms around him and loving him.
He smiled. Perhaps he was still dreaming.
His eyes opened to see Madeleine, asleep and hugging him tightly. Espresso gasped as he tried to push him away, but Madeleine was holding him too tight. A blush spread across his face. "Damn it, Madeleine..." He mumbled to himself. It felt nice to be in his arms.
Espresso reached for his phone, checking the time. It was 6:30 on a Saturday, so luckily he didn't have school today. He sighed as he set his phone back down. He couldn't believe he had just slept over at Madeleine's house without telling his parents. They would be really, really mad.
As much as he knew he needed to get out of Madeleine's house and back to his parents as soon as possible, being wrapped in Madeleine's arms felt so comforting. After a quick moment of hesitation, Espresso slowly cuddled closer to his warm body. He honestly couldn't remember the last time someone had hugged him, besides Latte. It felt good.
He buried his head in his chest, smiling as he blushed. He looked up at Madeleine's face. Madeleine looked so beautiful while he slept. Espresso felt his heart flutter as he stared at his face. Madeleine was so perfect. He looked so peaceful and stunning. And he smelled amazing.
After a few minutes of staying in Madeleine's warm embrace, the looming fear of staying too long from his parents got too much to handle, and he slowly pushed his arms off him, trying not to wake him up.
He grabbed his phone and backpack and walked down the hall and towards the front door. He started to unlock it but Madeleine's mother stepped out of the kitchen. "Oh, Espresso! I didn't know you were still here, I thought you went home last night." She smiled at him as she took a sip of coffee.
Espresso looked back at her. "Yeah, sorry, I accidentally fell asleep."
"Don't be sorry!" She smiled. "There's no need to be sorry, dear. Do you need me to drive you home? I'm more than happy to."
"No, that's alright," He said.
Madeleine's mother nodded again before setting her coffee down and walking him out the door. "Well then, have an amazing day, darling. Come over whenever you want, okay?"
Espresso stepped outside into the dark morning. "I will. And thank you, ma'am." He waved before walking down the street and back towards his house. He started to tremble as he got near his house. He knew his parents would be furious with him for sleeping over at someone's house without their permission. Espresso hoped Father wouldn't hit him again.
Espresso used the key in his backpack to open the door and he stepped inside. He was immediately hit with the terribly familiar and unwelcoming smell of cigarettes and beer. Coming from Madeleine's house which always smelled so clean, to smelling the smoke and alcohol was torture.
He sucked it up and stepped inside, gently closing the door. He turned to the couch to see his mother waking up. She turned to look who came in. "It's about time," She grumbled as she sat up, yawning loudly and rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. "Where the hell have you been?" She stood up and crossed her arms as she stared at him.
"I was at Madeleine's house working on the history project for school and we both fell asleep," He said. "I'm really sorry. I didn't mean to fall asleep." He shifted his weight as he anxiously waited for her response.
Mother rolled her eyes. "You forgot. Of course you did."
"I'm sorry-" He started to say, but his mother cut him off.
"I don't know what's gotten into you lately. You're getting into fights and you're falling asleep at your friends' house... Would you like to explain what all that's about?"
He shrugged his shoulders.
"And I've noticed your grades have been dropping."
"I've just been a little distracted," Espresso mumbled.
"Oh, yeah?" She stepped up to him, towering over him. Espresso tensed up. "Distracted by what?"
Espresso bit the inside of his mouth as he avoided eye contact. He knew the real answer. He was distracted by Madeleine. Madeleine was all he could think about. All he looked forward to at school was his history class so he could talk and work with Madeleine the whole class period. He spaced out in his other classes more and didn't try as hard. All he cared about was seeing Madeleine.
A quick slap across his face snapped him out of his trance. "Answer me!" Mother yelled.
Espresso gasped as he held a hand up to where she slapped him. It stung. He couldn't tell her Madeleine was distracting him, she'd forbid them from seeing each other again, saying it was "just to protect his future."
His mother grew very annoyed and mad at how he was ignoring her. She gripped him by his shoulders and shook his body back and forth. "Don't you dare ignore me!! Why are you so distracted lately?!"
He winced as she shook him. As she let go, he stumbled a bit before regaining his balance and looking up at her. "I... I don't know."
She groaned, shoving him backward. "It's too early in the morning to deal with this shit," She sighed as she stepped into the kitchen, leaning against the counter.
Espresso nodded, beginning to walk up the stairs.
"And don't walk so loud, you'll wake your sister."
He rolled his eyes and stepped into their room. Latte was already awake and reading on her bunk. She looked down at him. "There you are! Where were you? Mother and Father were furious." She put her book down and leaned over the bed railing to look down at him.
Espresso sighed as he sat on his bunk. "I was at Madeleine's house. We both accidentally fell asleep." He rested his head in his hands. "Mother yelled at me."
"I heard." Latte stared down at him. She smiled as he said he slept over at Madeleine's house.
"...What?" He noticed her staring.
"Well? What did you guys do while you were at his house?"
Espresso blushed. "We just worked on the school project," He said. "Why? What did you think we did?"
"Oh, I don't know. Kissed?"
His eyes widened as he blushed more. "Shut up! No, we didn't... Kiss..." He lowered his voice as he said the last word.
She nodded. "Uh huh," She said, "I'm just saying, there's a bit of tension between you two. It's painfully obvious."
Espresso didn't say anything.
"You get really flustered when he's around." She smirked. "I can tell."
Espresso sighed before laying back in his bed. "I'll admit I think I have... A little tiny crush on him." He muttered. "But it's not that big of a deal."
"Are you kidding?? Of course, it's a big deal!" She sat up so quickly that she almost fell off the top bunk of the bed. "My baby brother has his very first crush!" She climbed down and sat next to him.
"Shut up! You're so loud, if Mother hears you, she'll kill me," He said. "And I'm not your baby brother. Just... Shut up," He said, crossing his arms.
"I still think it's a big deal. Your first friend and crush." She smiled. "I think you should tell him."
Espresso shook his head. "No way. He'd hate me."
"What? He won't hate you!"
He sighed. He didn't want to talk about this anymore. "And it's not just that," Espresso said, looking back at her as he tried to change the subject. "I just... I don't know. It feels like Mother and Father are finding more excuses to yell at me more often. I just don't want to be around them, that's all."
Latte nodded slowly. "That makes sense. I'm sorry, Espresso," She sighed as she bit the inside of her mouth. "I'm sorry they yell at you and hit you. It's not fair, and I wish I could help more."
Silence filled the room as Espresso tried to find the right words to say. He knew Latte was trying to help, even if she wasn't really helping that much. "You help just by being on my side and supporting me," He said. "So, thank you for not hating me like Mother and Father do."
"I could never hate you," She whispered, a frown appearing on her face. "Never. I'll always be your sister and love you."
Before either of them could say anything else, Espresso's phone buzzed and a text from Madeleine lit up on the screen. Espresso flushed and immediately tried to hide it, but Latte saw anyway.
"Oooh, did you get a text from your boyfriend?~" She teased as she scooted closer to see what the text said, but Espresso kept the screen covered as he tried to see what Madeleine said without Latte seeing.
"I'm sure it's nothing, don't worry about it!" He said. "And don't say that, he's not my boyfriend." He read the text.
She paused for a moment. "Well? What does it say?"
He blushed again. "Nothing!" His eyes widened as he read the text. Madeleine had asked him if he wanted to get milkshakes with him sometime.
Latte slowly peaked at the message, her smile growing. "Aww! He wants to take you on a date to get some milkshakes! How sweet is that?"
He shoved her away. "Shut up..." He mumbled as he covered his burning face with his hands. "It's not a date. And I don't even know if I'll say yes."