-"A-And he is giving him private piano lessons?"
-"Yeah, something like that..."
-"Like, frequently?"
-"I wouldn't really know..."
-"Has he asked about me?"
-"I've only seen him once..."
Grace hadn't ever seemed this anxious about something before. Or rather, someone. But Connor assumed it was to be expected of her now that she had crossed paths with a friend from her past (Connor was certain there was more to it but he didn't ask):
Saturday arrived with more haste than any other day of the week thus far, and that meant that Troye's promise to have Connor over at his place to show him how to play video games was now due.
Connor hadn't thought about it all week. Or at least, that's what he had made himself belief. But now it was all different. But, as soon as Saturday came, the phone of Grace's house rang, and it was Troye, asking if Connor could go spend the day. Grace thought the detail was charming and gladly accepted before even consulting Connor. Still the same klutz as always.
They were now driving to the blue house, and halfway there Connor made the mistake of telling her that Chester was the new music teacher at Yule High, and that as of that week he was now tutoring Troye in piano and composing lessons.
Truth be told, the second Chester agreed to tutor Troye, Connor had a nudging feeling he'd never hear the end of it. To Grace, Troye was Connor's friend, and this made an obvious connection. Grace was his foster mother after all, and despite what it may or may not mean, she was still a person of her own, and she hadn't been with anyone in a really long time. At least that's what it seemed. Connor wasn't even sure if she had any friends, other of course than Principal Hart, whom she used to have phone conversations with all time. She would often talk for hours on the house phone, particularly at nights. Connor ever wondered why Principal Hart didn't take her out or something, but he eventually came to notice that some of Grace's favorite phrases to say on the phone were 'I'm too tired' and 'there's a lot of stuff I need to get for the office'. Which meant of course that she was doing her best to avoid having a social life. Having so many sweat pants had to be a sign of that, too.
But even knowing that, Connor couldn't help but respect the woman more and more. Up to the point that he even wondered if there was anything he could do to help her leave her shell.
-"He hasn't called you yet?"—Connor asked, actually surprised that was the case—"From the looks of it, I was guessing he would right away..."
-"Oh, he must be busy, being a new teacher and all."—Grace said, while driving—"Even Mamrie says she's hardly seen him, and he works for her!"
-"Principal Hart? She knows him, too?"
-"Of course! The three of us were all in the same High School clique. Most of our friends left town after they were done, though. People who can, usually don't stick around... Mamrie was different. She always loved it here. And she had always wanted to help others, and that's why she became a teacher. We all had our dreams. And Chester, well... It's... it's just so strange... Seeing him, after so many years..."
Connor didn't ask why, but he didn't have to, as he knew she was bound to keep talking.
-"I knew him since we've been little, and we used to date, back in high school."—she said—"I'd go to see his band play..."
-"He was in a band?"—Connor asked, estranged.
-"Yes, yes he was! Just like your friend Troye and your other friends! Yeah, and I always told him how I wanted to be a journalist, and he always said how he wanted to be a rock star... but those two dreams never went hand in hand."
Grace smirked to herself and giggled at the memories she probably was very fond of. Connor on the other hand took mental note of all the similarities he was just now coming to learn between Grace and Chester's story and one he was writing on his own with a certain Blue person.
-"Anyhow, when it came to universities, I decided I'd go to Berkeley, in California. It was a big deal but my grandparents had given me the money so that I could go there. You know, to do my studying. I had everything planned out, from where to stay, and where to work at first and whom to meet... And he went to chase his dream to New York... Yeah, and that's when we called it quits."
Grace made a brief pause let out a melancholic sigh, as if remembering old mistakes from a past life.
-"... In Berkeley, I met Hank. He went there, too. And we fell in love. Or else, that's what we thought..."
Grace pulled over, stopping right in front of the blue house. Connor looked at it from inside the car, his vision focused on the pretty colors of the walls, and on the mysterious white draped window on the top left corner. Out of all the rooms, that was the only one with white curtains. It stood out too much. It made him wonder about what might be inside.
As he turned around to tell Grace goodbye, she squeezed his check gently with a sad smile on her face.
-"... Don't call quits on the good things, Connor."—she said to him—"If it's worth it, fight for it. Listen to this old hag and take that into memory."
-"... Okay."—Connor said—"I will."
Connor opened the car's door, ready to get down. But before he did, he remained seated for a second, and then turned around and gave Grace a kiss on the cheek goodbye.
-"I'll call later."—he said, and then left the car and headed to Troye's front door, knowing that Grace was watching him as he walked that way with a hint of sweetness in her smile.
Funny, how something so trivial can make such a change between two people. To Connor, Grace was a strong woman who had given him and Alexis opportunities like nobody else had before, one of the strongest he had come around so far, worthy of his respect and gratefulness. But so far Connor hadn't asked himself what Grace saw him as. And if he had, he would've seen that to her, her was a young man with a tragic past and a brilliant future; one who deserved the chance to make the best of life just like any other one, and someone whom day after day, moved closer to her heart.
Funny, how people tend to overlook the tiny things.
Connor stood in front of Troye's door and rang the doorbell. It didn't take long for Troye to answer, opening the door and greeting Connor with a wide smile.
-"'Sup, mate?"—Troye asked, mimicking Joe's manner of speech.
-"Don't ever do that again."—Connor said, shaking his head in disapproval.
The green eyed boy turned around and waved Grace goodbye before entering the house and Troye closing the door behind him, and only then was it that Connor noticed Troye's getup. Until then, every time Connor had met Troye, the Australian had either been all dressed up for good impressions or in his pajamas. Which is he found it funny when Troye received him in nothing but an oversized white t-shirt a black sweatpants. He was sporting terrible bed hair, and judging from the look on his eyes, yet un-showered. But still, Connor didn't think about a second to complain.
-"Sorry if I look a tad sloppy..."—Troye said, scratching the back of his head—"I'll go change into some other clothes..."
-"Why?"—Connor asked indistinctively—"I don't mind. It's your house anyway."
-"You sure?"
-"Why are you worried about that? It's not like I'm anybody you need to impress..."
Connor smirked telling that to Troye, and then added with a sly whisper.
-"I've seen you with a less... proper outfit."
Judging from Troye's cheeks flushing red, and him checking left and right if there was anyone that could have listened, Connor gathered he had taken him by surprise.
-"W-We should go over to the TV room!"—Troye said, walking towards the stairs and gesturing Connor to follow him—"I have to beat your ass in Video Games."
-"That's not too fair."—Connor said shaking his head slightly and following his friend—"You know I've never played Cool of Demons."
-"Call of Duty!"
-"That thing."
-"No buts! I promised I'd show you how, so today you're learning!"
Connor followed Troye upstairs, looking around carefully, and failing to notice if anyone else was at the house. So they really were alone, or so it seemed. Little by little, he thought about what he and Red had discussed, and how it seemed to be going according to plan.
-"My parents are out with friends, and so is Tyde."—Troye commented—"They even left us money to order pizza!"
-"That's cool."—Connor said, smiling to himself, though he secretly wondered why Troye hadn't mentioned what his sister was doing—"... So, what's up with Lia?"
-"Huh? Oh. She's supposed to be visiting relatives today or something—I'm just glad that she's leaving me alone for a weekend..."
Connor raised his eyebrows in surprise, but made no comment. This was the first time Troye complained out loud about his girlfriend, and he was pretty sure it hadn't been on purpose. It was better not to mention it.
The second floor of the house had a large hallway with several doors, and to its direct right there was door that led into a large hall with a gigantic couch and TV, which was placed in a large wooden entertainment station, alongside some picture frames and sculptured. On the very top, there was a Menorah. There was also a colorful oval-shaped carpet on the floor, and a single large window that Connor recognized as one of the ones that was the furthest from the room with the white drapes. This one, like every other window besides that room, had blue
Below the TV there was a device that Connor learnt was a Play Station Four. It was the first time in his life he had laid his eyes on the machine. Well, at least in the flesh. His previous foster parents never bought him or any of the other kids any sort of toys, and video games were the most expensive amongst them. That was one of the main reasons why he never really went about caring them in the first place. Even as a little kid, when he still lived in Minnesota, he was never too fond of his sibling's video game consoles. He was more the type to go out and play in the park, with the other children.
Of course, that kid had been gone for a very long time.
-"Ok! Here goes nothing...!"—Troye said, plunging himself over the big couch and crossing his legs—"Come on, make yourself comfortable. And you can leave your sweat shirt anywhere, it usually gets warm up in here."
Connor obeyed, sitting right to Troye, as the latter turned on the TV and it went directly into the video game. The screen lit up with a green color, with the title of the game followed by the word "Ghosts" displayed on it. Probably the subtitle of the game or something. Connor couldn't pretend to care any less if he wanted to. Instead, he was pondering in his head what was he going to do, and if he was even going to do it. Surprisingly, checking his phone he came across a text from one particular Red. He had told her about that day, and the two of them had been talking about what might have happen because of it. Ever since their "lesson", it had been the elephant in the room.
"How is it going, Green? Already there yet?", read the message. Connor typed back quickly, careful not to make Troye suspicious.
"Yeah I'm here. I'll tell you how it goes.", he said, and sent the message to Alexa. Within second she had already sent a couple of kiss and wink emojis, effectively making Connor feel a bit dizzy.
-"Ok, so I'm gonna see if Joe, Caspar and Oli are already here, first..."
-"W-What?"—Connor asked, turning to Troye—"A-Are they are coming too...?"
Connor must have looked quite freaked out, because Troye looked at him positively weirded out.
-"No! No, they're just going online, you know? To play...?"
Connor felt really stupid.
-"Oh."—he said, nodding his head slowly—"I... I knew that..."
-"... Wait..."—Troye said, turning to his friend—"You were serious. You really have never even touched a video game before, have you?"
-"Well... no, I never have. You thought I was kidding?"
-"Well, yeah!"
-"Huh!? Why? Is it so hard to believe that some of us just haven't ever had the chance to play one before, or...?"
-"No, no! Not that! Not at all!"
-"Then what?"
-"Eh... well, how to put this...?"
Troye was scratching the back of his head again. Connor realized this was more of a nervous habit after seeing his cheeks going red again. Mental note to keep in mind about Troye Mellet.
-"... Well, to be honest... I thought you had said that... because... eh..."
-"... Because...?"—Connor dragged the question, actually clueless on to where Troye was getting at.
-"... You know what? It doesn't matter!"—Troye said, finally, and then handed Connor a black controller, which the green eyed boy took with hesitance—"Forget about the others! There's a lot that you must learn today, so we better get started!"
-"... Do I have any choice?"
-"No!"
-"Let it begin, then..."
---
God Almighty knows Connor wasn't the tiniest bit excited about trying this whole video game thing, but He is witness that such thought had a three-hundred and sixty degree turn after spending over three hours playing, having pizza, and then playing some more.
Troye had taught Connor how to play most of the game he owned. They started by Call of Duty, whose name Connor finally came to learn, and then followed by some other ones that Troye said everyone knew how to play; a soccer game named PES (Connor wasn't sure what it stood for), a bounty hunter game called Uncharted or something of the sort, and even a horror game called The Evil Within. There were also some car racing games, but Connor didn't really enjoy them that much, and Troye didn't insist with them. The one that was an utter success though, was Battlefield. It was a war game like the first one they played, but it had a different layout and Connor found it more entertaining than the rest. And surprisingly enough, that was the one in which Connor turned out to be the best at, even beating Troye a couple of times.
They had also played with Troye's dog, Jagga. She was a medium-sized, cute looking black dog with the tiniest legs and the funniest walk. They had to take her out to the park because apparently if they didn't she'd go crazy, despite having an entire garden to herself back at the blue house. Troye said his parents always let her into the house all the time, but sometimes she doesn't feel quite like it and rather stays in the backyard. To each their own, Connor guessed.
Anyhow, Connor and Troye ended up in Troye's kitchen having some more of the pepperoni pizza they had ordered, talking about how much fun they had. Connor especially.
-"To be honest I always thought they were so stupid!"—the green eyed boy said, stuffing a slice into his mouth and chewing as he spoke—"But damn, it's so fucking cool! And kicking your ass on it was so much fun, too!"
-"Hey, hey, slow down there!"—Troye said, chuckling—"You know I was going easy on you, don't you?"
-"No you weren't! I'm just better than you!"
-"Well, I was never too good at that game to begin with... and I was just trying to teach you, you know."—Troye said rolling his eyes, already regretting showing Connor that particular game.
-"Yeah! You wish! I destroyed you!"
-"Huh... that's just... beginner's luck..."
Troye grunted, feeling a bit bitter from losing against Connor. When he got bitter, he did a particular face for which he turned his head to the left slightly, and avoided Connor's eyes. Connor thought it looked silly, like a pouting kid.
-"You're just a sore loser, mate."—Connor mimicked Joe's accent, making Troye shudder.
-"Geez, it does sound horrible when someone else says it..."
Connor scoffed at Troye's comment, and the latter did the same. After a minute, Troye stood up from the kitchen's table and went towards the counter.
-"I'm gonna get some water, I'm thirsty..."
Troye was turning away from Connor, and it was the perfect chance so that he could check in with Red. He picked up his phone and opened the chat he had with her. Sure enough, she had been texting him, asking him how things went. He sent her a message with haste, telling her that they were done playing video games, and that they were still alone in Troye's house.
"I think I'm going for it.", Connor texted, "Wish me luck."
Before he put away the phone, though, Red sent another text, one that Connor didn't understand.
"Don't", it read, "Don't make a move. Tell him you're leaving."
Connor frowned, replying to the message. Troye was still pouring water into his glass.
"What? Why?"
"Just trust me", Red had replied, "Pretend you're leaving, and go to the front door. It'll go from there. Just don't make the first move."
Connor sighed heavily, texting her back an ok and putting away his phone. Despite how much Red probably knew about this sort of stuff, he wasn't sure if he could pull it off the way she did. She had managed to sleep with him, after all, using her own tricks. Perhaps Connor was too critical of himself, or underestimated his own ability; but he wasn't sure if it was going to work the same way with Troye as it had been with him.
-"Say, do you want anything else?"—Troye asked, still on the counter—"I think we've got pancakes or something, I can heat them up. I don't know why I'm so hungry..."
-"N-No, I'm fine."—Connor said, resolved to go through with this—"In fact, I better get going."
-"What?"—Troye turned around immediately, facing Connor, with a look of slight shock in his eyes—"You... you have to go?"
-"Yeah... I have to get back to Grace's."—Connor said, standing up from the table, and getting his sweat shirt back on and even zipping it up—"But this was fun! You did a great job; definitely sold these games to me."
-"Y-Yeah... they... I mean... I told you you'd like them... I'll... I'll walk you to the door..."
If Troye was trying not to look disappointed, he was failing miserably.
The two friends walked all the way to Troye's door, Connor all dressed up and Troye still in his white t-shirt, black sweats and barefoot. As they said their goodbyes, and Troye opened the door for Connor, the green eyed boy kept thinking and thinking that whatever Red's intention had been with this, it hadn't worked, and that now he was leaving the house.
All until Troye spoke up when Connor was halfway through outside.
-"Wait!"
Connor stopped on his tracks, sighing with his eyes closed and giving thanks in his mind that Red's plan, whatever it had been, seemed to have work.
Slowly, he turned around to face Troye, entering back into the house.
-"... Do you... do you really have to go? I was hoping..."—Troye asked, under his breath, and lowering his gaze a little—"... I was hoping you would like to hang out a bit longer."
Connor fought hard to keep his smirk from showing, and at the same time, felt a stirring sensation down in his pants. Red had instructed him to play along, which meant that he had to act like he actually had to leave. But it was too tempting not to tease the Australian in the process.
-"Well, I had promised I'd be back early... you know."—Connor said, as Troye slowly closed the door bit by bit—"Besides, I've been here nearly all afternoon, you surely are sick of me already..."
-"No, no I'm not sick of you... I thought we were... having fun..."
Oh, this was a lot more fun to Connor than video games.
-"Well, we had fun!"—Connor reassured—"But we've played all your video games already, what else could we do...?"
-"I-I don't know..."—Troye stammered, going a bit nervous.
Connor realized then what Red had meant by the first move, and if stuff went as he expected, he was getting there just like what she had intended.
-"Well, don't worry Troye, we can hang out other days."—Connor said, trying his best to be nonchalant—"And next time we can actually tell the rest of the guys to come over, too. Oh, and Lilly, I bet she'd have fun as well. Well, I better go—"
Connor had already turned towards the door to leave, but was stopped by Troye's right hand, which was suddenly on his hip.
Now Connor was sure that he was hard.
-"Are you sure... that you don't want to stay a bit longer...?"—Troye asked, and as he did, his hand traveled down further and further, cupping Connor's crotch, and giving it a slight squeeze.
Connor let out a tiny whimper, and turned his head slightly towards Troye's.
-"... I guess I could hang out for a little longer."
Connor took Troye's left hand, the one that was on the doorknob, and closed the door himself instead. Troye had already removed his hand from Connor, and his cheeks were bright red, clearly surprised on his own acting. Connor walked a bit closer to him, cornering him against the wall of the hallway. He placed his hand on the same spot Troye had placed his, teasing him a bit at first, and looking him directly in the eyes. And then, he put it inside Troye's sweatpants, coming to the surprise he wasn't wearing any underwear below them, instead coming in direct contact with his already erect dick.
-"... You sure are happy down here, aren't ya?"—Connor teased.
-"N-Not so fast..."—Troye smirked, as Connor slowly jerked him off—"You're gonna make me cum right here..."
-"Then I guess we better make ourselves comfortable, huh?"
Troye didn't seem to understand what Connor meant, but it wasn't necessary, as Connor gave Troye one tight squeeze, and then removed his hand from Troye's pants, leaving him standing there breathless. Connor then turned and headed in the direction of Troye's bedroom, as if nothing had happened. Troye glared at him from the spot he stood at.
-"... You little shit."—Connor heard Troye mutter—"What was that?"
-"Just come over here, it's better this way."—Connor teased—"Or are you gonna finish on your own?"
Troye didn't respond, instead he followed Connor, and the two headed downstairs to the bedroom. There wasn't an inflatable couch like there had been last time, and Troye's bed wasn't even made yet. The lights were off, and the fan was turning, but neither of them cared. Troye closed the door behind him and locked it before travelling downstairs.
The following routine was unsurprising to the two of them, like they were both expecting it sooner or later. Within seconds Troye was already fully naked and sporting his hard-on, as he was only wearing a t-shirt and pants, and Connor had already lost his sweat shirt, t-shirt and pants, having only his underwear left on. Troye walked towards Connor hastily, placing his hands around Connor's waistband, but Connor hold them still, stopping him from removing his boxers.
-"Woah, woah, there. Why the hurry?"—Connor asked.
-"Dude, you don't get it."—Troye said, shaking his head—"My parents may be here any time now."
-"Are they? Then, let's not waste any time!"—Connor whispered, grabbing Troye's dick with his two hands, the way Red had taught him how—"But let's do this the right way ok? Fair is fair, after all"
Troye nodded, realizing what Connor meant, and then walked towards the bed, crawling on top of it on all fours and heading towards the headset, sitting with his back against it, the same way he had done last time.
-"Ok, then..."—Troye said, patting on the spot next to him as he slowly jerked himself off with his right hand—"Come on over..."
Connor shook his head slightly.
-"I thought we'd try something... different, this time."—Connor said.
-"What do you mean?"
-"Don't worry about it... just... scoot closer..."
Troye would have hesitated, but he was so lost in the moment that it would have been impossible for anything to made him change his mind. He quietly obeyed, getting more on the center of the bed and scooting closer to the middle. Connor, meanwhile, removed his boxers exposing his just as hard cock, and then got on the bed, facing Troye, and getting close enough to him for their legs to touch.
-"Place you legs over mine."—Connor commanded, as the other boy obeyed, placing his legs on top of Connor's so that the two of them would be sitting face to face with their crotched just inches away from touching—"Now, you do me and I do you, but like this it's gonna be easier, 'cause I'll be able to use my right hand this time..."
All of this, Connor said while Troye was still pleasuring himself, slightly increasing in speed continuously.
-"Ok..."—Troye said, short of breath.
Thereupon, Connor reached out first and grabbed Troye, whom had to remove his hand, and then placed it on Connor the same way he had done before.
Like this, the two of them started jacking one another, with nothing but the sound of their panting and the ever-increasing sensation of heat warming up the room, even with the fan still on and working on top of them.
Connor hadn't forgotten how it felt to have Troye in his hand, how odd in comparison to having himself. He hadn't forgotten, and being honest, he had missed it. There was something about that, about doing what he did with Troye that drove him insane like nothing else could. The friction, the slippery liquid that leaked from Troye's tip, the smell the emanated from the two of them. It was unlike anything else to him. Being with Red paled in comparison. In fact, being with anybody else like he had been plenty of times before failed to make him feel the ecstasy he felt here, with Troye, in the blue house under the roof of his underground dormitory.
And to Troye, this was also something he couldn't resist. He couldn't help but want to hold Connor's thicker and longer dick and pumping it hastily, with a hint of slight despair. His skinny arms of flesh and bone shook on their entirety when he masturbated Connor, but he didn't care. For once all he could focus on was right in front of him.
This went on for a few minutes. Neither of them were looking at the other in the eye; they were too taken in their acting to care. Connor felt the rushing sensation, and he knew he was getting closer to cumming. But before he did, he wanted to try something first. Something Red had told him not to yet, but still, he felt like he needed to. Troye had initiated this time, anyway, so that had to mean something, right? If anything, it meant that he wanted to try stuff the same way Connor did, and that could only be a green light for Connor's motives.
Red had said that he should only go for what he knew the two of them wanted, though. So he had to make sure first.
-"... Wait, Troye."
Connor stopped jerking Troye, and the latter stopped doing Connor after a bit, as well. He still wouldn't look at Connor's eyes, his sight focused only on his work. Connor, however, had other plans in mind. But he had gotten Troye into that position already, which was already halfway there. Gulping down saliva, he spoke up.
-"... Come closer."
Still panting, Troye pushed himself closer through the mattress towards Connor.
-"Closer... closer..."
Connor kept instructing Troye to lean in forward, up to the point that they were practically on each other. Or, to be more specific, their cocks were. Troye's thighs were right over Connor's, and he was using both his hands to lean on and avoid falling back, so he didn't do anything else. But he had an idea of what Connor intended, and did nothing to stop him.
Connor reached out his right hand, putting all his weight on his left arm so that he would still be sitting up, and grabbed Troye's dick. He masturbated him a little bit, making Troye close his eyes and exhale deeply. After teasing him so, he went on ahead and grabbed his own dick with the thumb of that very same hand, and like that, he pressed both his and Troye's together. After letting almost passing out from the sensation, he started pumping both of them at the same time, together.
Now, this was something else entirely. It was one thing having Troye to jerk him off, but to actually jerk off the both of them at the same time with one hand felt much, much more pleasurable and thrilling. Troye's cock was hot, and throbbing, and leaking so much pre-cum that it made it easy to slide the two of them together. Connor's felt his own penis going up and down much more easily and the pleasure that came from it was almost incomparable to anything else he had felt before.
However, it did prove to be tiring, and Connor's arm was already growing weary when Troye spoke up.
-"L-Let m-me."—he stammered—"I-I have... bigger hands..."
Without further warning, Troye grabbed himself and Connor, the latter removing his hand, and pumped furiously. Connor could feel himself getting close, and his hips were already moving up and down to the rhythm of Troye's movements.
Then, he raised his gaze, and caught Troye looking right at him. And neither looked away.
Troye was right; his hand was bigger than Connor's, just enough so that it was easier for him to have a grip of the two o them at the same time, unlike before, allowing him to go on and on and on, getting Connor each time closer to edging. And the green eyed boy liked it. He liked it so, so much, and didn't want it to end for a single second. Between every gasp for air and every whimper of emotion, he kept desiring the heat emanating from Troye, and dreading the fore coming moment when it would be over.
Connor was the first to give in, and second after him, Troye followed. Needless to say, they made quite the mess. However, it wasn't a problem, because Troye quickly got a set of paper towels and baby wipes from under his bed, and started cleaning up what they had caused, as Connor caught his breath, lying on his back over the edge of Troye's bed. But even so, Connor was Connor, and a sarcastic remark was due.
-"Somebody was prepared..."—he said, as his friend finished with the cleaning and was already getting back into his sweatpants—"One would say you'd know this was happening..."
-"Hehe... well, after the last time... can you blame me?"—Troye asked, not caring much about Connor's teasing, and instead throwing him over some clothes—"There, you should get back into your clothes. My family may be home any minute now."
Connor couldn't help but laugh at Troye's demeanor, but even so he obliged, getting his boxers on first (not before previously having wiped off the remains around his crotch) and then in his jeans. However, he remained shirtless and laid on Troye's unmade bed, still recovering from their session. His body was covered in sweat, and putting the rest of his clothes on right then wouldn't have been the brightest idea. Troye was already done cleaning up, so he sat down on the floor next to his bed, with his back against it. Connor's head was close to his, and the two just remained in silence for a bit, taking in what they had done. Again. And realizing, each in their own heads, that this was bound to repeat itself. They hadn't talked about it, not properly. After the time at the tent, Troye had requested Connor to meet him after his swimming class in school to discuss it, but they ended up having a flashy conversation during lunch and left it there. Maybe that had been a mistake.
Connor didn't know if he wanted to talk about what this was, because God knows he had no idea what to call it himself. But what he did have clear was that no matter what it was or what to call it, he didn't want it to stop.
After the prolonged silence, it was Troye who cleared his throat to speak up. He turned his head to the left so that Connor could at least see one of his eyes. He wanted to have at least somewhat of a proper conversation.
-"... Alright, I think it's safe to say this is something we enjoy."—Troye stated as a matter of fact.
-"Oh really? And I was here worrying you hadn't liked it."—Connor commented sarcastically, with a scoff to top the cake.
-"I have to ask... have you ever done... this? Before?"—Troye muttered, sounding a bit scared.
-"Hmm... you have to be more specific, you know."
-"I mean... masturbating with another guy."—Troye clarified—"Because I haven't."
-"... Well I haven't either."—Connor said truthfully—"You're the first one I've ever done this with."
-"Because it's not like we're having... you know..."
-"Sex?"
-"No way! I mean, that's different from this... right?"
Connor was about to reply with a direct yes, but he stopped to actually ask himself that.
Was it really that different?
They were two people in their most intimate, exchanging body heat and giving one another pleasure. Isn't that what sex is about? Then, if not, what would it be?
Connor thought to himself that sex meant penetration, and that was something they clearly hadn't even come across. And that was the safe flag, at least for the moment.
-"No it's not sex, dude, don't worry."—Connor reassured, believing the words himself—"We're just... helping each other out."
-"Helping each other out..."—Troye repeated—"Yeah... I guess you could say that..."
-"... Unless, you want us to stop."
Connor didn't know why he had asked that question, but he regretted it the second after he did. How could he ask that? From the look on Troye's face, his friend was doing himself that same question. Connor didn't have anything to ruin, but what about Lia? What would Troye do if something like this came across to her? Connor didn't have to speak up her name to know that her name had popped up in Troye's mind.
But Connor is not mind reader, and whatever it was that Troye came across after listening to his question, he never learned. Instead he learned Troye's following words of reassurance.
-"... No I don't want us to stop."—he said—"I like it. It's different from what I have with..."
He choked up trying to say out the name, so he just went on without it.
-"The thing is, nobody can know."—Troye said—"That we help each other, I mean."
-"... That's a given."—Connor said, brooding a bit without realizing it.
A loud noise was heard upstairs, something like a machine of some sort getting closer, and several thumping sound that came from somewhere outside the house. Troye smiled to himself.
-"Those are my folks."—he then turned to face Connor—"Are you staying for dinner?"
-"... No I think I have to go."—Connor said, meaning it this time.
-"You sure? I think mum is making mac and cheese tonight. I can show you how I eat it; it's much better my way."
-"Nah, I think I'll pass."—Connor said, as he stood up and put on the rest of his clothes on—"I better go after saying hello to your parents. We should play video games more often, though."
Connor had added that last part suggestively, and Troye started laughing.
-"What's so funny?"
-"It's just that"—Troye said between laughs—", remember how before I said I thought you lied about never playing video games before?"
-"Oh, right."—Connor said, remembering—"Why was that again?"
-"Well, what I didn't say was that"—Troye's voice became a soft whisper—"I thought you had lied just to have an excuse to come see me."
At that thought, Connor felt his chest thumping, and his palms going sweaty again. He kept his cool, though, and added his own remark.
-"And here I was, thinking that inviting me for video games was just your excuse for having me over."
When Connor got back to Grace's house, he found Mikey and Alexis having dinner, and Grace talking like crazy on the phone with the widest and stupidest look of happiness he had ever seen on her.
-"What's with her?"—Connor asked, joining the kids on the table—"She looks awfully happy."
-"She's on the phone with Principal Hart."—Alexis said, with a sly smirk on her lips—"They've been talking for hours."
-"Really?"—Connor asked, raising an eyebrow and eyeing Grace from afar—"I wonder about what."
-"Oh, she's telling her about another call she had today."—Mikey said, wiggling his eyebrows.
-"There was another call?"—Connor asked again—"From whom?"
-"Oh, you know... just her old friend from High School, uncle Chester, apparently."—Mikey said with a grin—"And from the way she talked about him, she must be reaaaaaally happy he's back in town."
---
A/N
*IS SEIZING BECAUSE WE'RE PAST 5K WTF YOU GUYS ARE AMAZING*
--Coffee