Scott and Nel were now sitting beside each other on the couch, Nel occasionally pointing to a tattoo for Scott to explain.
She was still against the idea of letting Mitch do this to himself, but that was just her opinion. And she saw no problem with Scott having them.
Mitch had been doing dishes, allowing him to have time to gather his thoughts.
Mike walked into the room a few minutes later, leaning his back on the kitchen counter. "Well... I'm glad I got to meet him. Now that he's such a big part of your life."
Mitch couldn't tell if he was being sarcastic or not, so he just raised an eyebrow. "Okay..."
"He seems... Nice enough. Glad he's willing to protect you, and stand up for you and all that... Wish he wouldn't have disfigured his skin so much, but. That's just my opinion, I guess."
"Yeah, well. That's his decision to make. Not yours."
"I understand that."
Mitch glanced over at him, before returning back to the dishes. "Mother seems to like him."
"Of course she does."
"What's that supposed to--?"
Scott suddenly walked into the kitchen, placing a hand on Mitch's lower back as he stood beside him. "Can I help you finish up, babe?"
Mitch just shrugged, slightly uncomfortable under his father's eyes. "I'm almost done. Besides, you're the guest. You're not supposed to do dishes."
"But I'd feel like a better guest if I helped out a little."
Mitch just shook his head, and the gestured at the left side of the sink. "If you want, you can put those in the dishwasher."
Scott didn't hesitate in doing so, though he met Mike's eyes for a second as he pressed a quick kiss to Mitch's cheek.
Mike scoffed and walked out of the room swiftly, going to find his wife presumably.
The moment he was out of the room, Mitch turned to smack Scott once on the ass. "What did I say about that? Don't kiss me in front of them."
Scott flinched a little, not expecting Mitch to spank him in his kitchen. Scott just grinned at him, and leaned down to kiss him again.
Mitch leaned away. "No. Stop that." Scott didn't stop, so Mitch put a hand out on his chest. "Scott, I'm serious."
Scott froze, but stayed frozen with his lips puckered out and eyes closed.
Mitch stared at him for a moment, and then giggled. "What if I just leave you here like that? How embarrassing."
Scott peeked one eye open. "Wouldn't be the first time."
Mitch scoffed. "As if!"
Scott just closed his eyes and waited, one of his hands still on Mitch's lower back.
Mitch finally rolled his eyes, and stood up on his tip toes to kiss him once.
Scott held him around the waist with both arms, keeping him there now that Mitch had fallen into his trap.
Mitch tried to push him away, but ended up laughing as Scott pressed kisses to the side of his face when Mitch tried to get out of his grip. "Scottie, stop. Stop!" And then he laughed again.
Scott continued kissing his cheek and then his jaw, before trailing down his neck. "Make me."
Mitch couldn't stop laughing, shoving Scott's chest as hard as he could. "This isn't fair! You work out like a hundred times a week!"
"That's not my problem." Scott mumbled, holding him even tighter. "I just want to love you, Mitch. Why won't you let me?"
Mitch squealed, feeling Scott's body press completely to his own. He felt tears gathering in the corners of his eyes as he laughed. "Scott, please! I can't breathe--" He interrupted himself with a laugh.
Scott chuckled a little, and then let up, releasing his grip just a bit. "Kiss me, and I'll back off."
Mitch reached up, placing both hands on Scott's face to kiss him once. "Now let me go, you beast."
"That didn't count. Kiss me like a man."
Mitch giggled, and then leaned up to try again, this time sliding one hand underneath Scott's shirt onto his stomach. Mitch deepened the kiss, waiting for Scott's mouth to open a little before he attempted to slip his tongue-- And then he stopped abruptly and shoved Scott's shoulders away. "Oh my gosh! You almost got me."
Scott just grinned at him. "I'll have to try harder next time."
"I wish you wouldn't."
Scott leaned toward him, but not to kiss him this time. "Game on."
*
Nel walked Scott to the door, glancing behind herself to see where Mike was before she spoke to him. "Listen... I have a few things I'd like to say to you. Is that okay?"
Scott nodded quickly, tilting his head a little at her. "Is something wrong?" He looked back inside the house. "Is Mitch..?"
"No, it's nothing about Mitch. Can we go outside?"
Scott stepped out onto the porch, holding a hand out to help Nel step down too.
She did so, and then closed the door behind her. "You're very kind, Scott. I admire that about you."
"Thank you. Oh, um... Ma'am? I promised Mitch I wouldn't leave him alone with his dad... He's afraid of what he's gonna say."
Nel frowned. "I understand that... He and Mitch always have different opinions. Hang on." She opened the door and peeked her head inside. "Kissyboy, come here, honey."
Mitch took a few seconds to appear in the doorway, but when he saw Scott he stepped down to the porch quickly. "What's up?"
Scott held his hand out for him, and then tucked Mitch under his arm. "Hi, baby."
Mitch blushed a little when he did that, especially when he saw the grin on Nel's face. "Hi... Um. What are you guys doing out here?"
Nel just smiled. "I wanted to talk to him for a second. But he was worried about leaving you inside by yourself. I promise I'll talk to your father about accepting Scott. I know how much he means to you."
"Thank you, Mother. That would mean a lot to me."
Nel turned to Scott then. "Anyhow, I just wanted to talk to you, um... I know Michael is hard to break. But regardless of him, I think you and Mitch are wonderful for each other. Mitch has truly shown an improvement in his mental health since you've come around."
"I'm glad to hear that, Ma'am." Scott responded, looking down at Mitch with a grin.
"I was also wondering. I've seen your truck outside our house in the morning... Have you been driving him to school?"
"Yes, Ma'am. I just--"
Mitch interrupted him, too overwhelmed with guilt to be quiet. "I'm so sorry, Mother. I didn't mean to lie to you. I just knew how upset Father would be, and I was scared..."
Nel waved a hand at him. "No, I understand. I was just asking, because... I want to be sure I know where my son is. I also wanted to tell you that there's nothing wrong with your relationship at all. Mitch's grades haven't dropped at all, and in the long run that's all Mike really cares about here. So... It's not a problem at all."
Scott just nodded. "I'm aware. Mitchie is a very intelligent person. And he would never let me get in the way of that."
"My final point, Scott... I didn't really want Mitch to be here for this... But I just wanted to reassure you, that... The sexual stuff, it's all healthy. And it's normal. And... Mitch is old enough to make his own decisions, I agree with you about that. As long as you're being safe, I have no problem with any of it."
Mitch blushed a little, leaning a little closer to Scott. "Mother, please... That's so embarrassing."
Scott shook his head once. "No it isn't, Mitchie. If we're brave enough to do it, we have to be brave enough to talk about it. And I appreciate that, Mrs. Grassi. Thank you for saying all of those things."
Nel smiled at him and nodded a few times. "It was a pleasure to meet you, Scott."
Mitch turned to Scott suddenly. "While I have your attention, will you go with me tomorrow to Kirstie's play? She's been begging me to go all month, and I'd really like you to come with me."
Scott sighed. "Oh nice. You ask me in front of your mother, so I can't say no."
"It's a strategy."
Scott reached down to grab his car keys out of his pocket. "Fine. I'll go. Do you want to go to dinner beforehand?" He spoke a little quieter, wanting to keep it between himself and Mitch. "I wouldn't want you to be hungry... Plays tend to run a little long. What time is it at?"
"Seven, I think? Should go until nine or ten. They run late on Fridays since there's no school the next day."
"Then we should definitely eat. I can take you somewhere after school. Maybe we could get coffee too? If there's extra time we can hang out at my house." He looked to Mrs. Grassi. "If that's okay. We could come here instead, if that's better..."
She just smiled. "You go ahead and do whatever you'd like. Just as long as he's happy."
"That's always the goal."
*