max's POV (spicin' it up a little)
"that's why you can't just stick your hands in the oven." i finish explaining, smiling at the look of complete amazement on el's face.
she stands from where she was leaning against the counter, a curious look on her face.
"but, how do i get the cookies out?" she crouches down so she can look through the glass door of the oven.
the oven is hot, very hot, which is something el doesn't seem to understand. no matter how many times we all try to explain to her, she doesn't seem to get it.
"with oven mitts. i'll get them out when the cookies are finished."
she looks up at me, "oven mitts?"
i laugh before grabbing the oven mitts to show to el. i hold them up and then demonstrate by putting them on.
"when i have them on, my hands are protected from heat."
"so, you can touch hot things?"
"right."
"may i have them?"
i nod and hand them both to el. she puts them on her hands before standing up and grabbing my shoulders.
"ahhh, no pain. they work." she giggles.
i roll my eyes at her cheesiness and pull her into a hug.
"el, can i say something?" i whisper, still holding onto her.
"mhm. anything."
i close my eyes and say, "i'm really sorry for letting all those boys kiss me earlier. it felt gross."
she pulls away.
"don't be sorry, love. it didn't mean anything." she presses a kiss to my cheek, making me blush.
i better thank my lucky stars for her.
"what did i ever do to deserve you?" i put my hand on her soft cheek.
"there's nothing you can say or do to deserve me, maxy. everything that makes you you is the reason i'm in love with you. it can never be changed and my love can never be lost." she leans forward to press her lips to mine.
instinctively, my eyes close and my hands move to her waist.
"it's such a beautiful thing to be in love." i comment as we part.
"i can agree with that." she rests her forehead on mine.
"speaking of love, we'd better go check on the boys."
"do you think mike did it?"
"did what?"
"told will."
"i doubt it. as much as i love mike, he's kind of a chicken."
el giggles as the timer goes off.
"we will check on the boys as soon as we take those cookies out."
el nods and walks to turn the timer off.
i slip the oven mitts on, open the oven, and remove the cookies. this is el's first attempt at making cookies, so my expectations aren't very high, but i will be a supportive girlfriend nonetheless.
she squeals as i place them on the cooling rack, "we need to wait at least 5 minutes before we can eat any."
she frowns, crossing her arms dramatically.
"by the time we get back, the cookies will be ready to eat. let's go!"
i lead el up the stairs and back to mike's room. i put my ear to the door and hear music. i can't quite make out the song, but i vaguely hear jean simmons, so i know it must be kiss.
"can we go in?" el asks, putting her ear to the door as well.
"i think so, but we should-" el opens the door before i can finish.
i'm the first to see what's happening in the room. i quickly cover el's eyes.
"HOLY FUCK I TOLD YOU WE SHOULD HAVE KNOCKED FIRST!!"
i am met with a half naked will being devoured by a hot and bothered mike. this is so totally not what i expected to see.
mike jumps off of him, quicker than i've ever seen mike do anything.
he mumbles a quick greeting, face bright red. then, he grabs something off of the floor and chucks it at his cassette player.
el tugs on my fingers and pulls them away from her eyes, "why should we have knocked? what's going on?"
mike and will stare between el and i like deer caught in the headlights. what the hell was going on in here?
i look over to el and she looks upset, and i'm unsure why. i grab her hand, out of sight of the boys, and she explains, "d-did we interrupt something?"
i can't help but smile at how sweet and innocent el is. she is genuinely concerned that we ruined a moment for the boys.
will smiles, too. probably for the same reason. he then says, "it's okay. you didn't interrupt anything."
immediately, i look at mike. i know will saying it was nothing breaks his little heart. even if will didn't mean it like that, mike is so fragile. of course he's going to take it personally.
"are you sure?" i ask, trying to get will to clarify what exactly he meant for mike's sake. come on will, say it wasn't nothing.
"yeah, no. it was nothing." mike says and he sounds so sad. i can practically see his heart broken into a million little pieces. poor baby.
then, will looks at mike with wide eyes, realizing his error. noticing how sad he made him.
el grabs my hand and we share a quick glance before she nods at me. all they need is a little push.
"well if it was nothing-" she begins.
"no. it wasn't nothing." we got him.
"what?" mike asks, and we all look at will, trying to predict his next move.
the two share this look, this look of 'im so in love with you'. it almost made me feel warm inside.
then, he said it.
"mike, will you be my boyfriend?"
fuck. shit.
this is going way better than planned
"yes."
"awe, byler forever!" el exclaims, putting her hands in the air in an excited fashion.
i join in, chanting "byler" while el and i walk over to will and mike and share a group hug.
"you guys are okay with it?" will questions.
i look at him, "william, i'm gay."
he blushes, a small smile playing at his lips, "me too."
"i'm bisexual!" mike announces proudly, followed by el who nods and says, "i like them all. pansexual."
we all start laughing, the air in the room feeling very light. it's good to be like this with them. they're both finally happy.
el and i watch as will puts his head on mike's shoulder, leaning his entire body against him. mike visibly relaxes into the position, releasing his shoulders and letting his own head rest on top of will's. we both smile.
"us too." i say, breaking the silence that had grown.
"what?" mike questions, a goofy smile on his face, will's head still on his shoulder.
"el and i are dating. 3 weeks tomorrow." i explain, grabbing el's hand and lacing together our fingers.
"wait, really?" will picks up his head and glances at our hands before looking between the two of us.
el giggles, "really. and now we can go on double dates!"
"uh, i'm pretty sure we've been going on double dates for like 4 months without actually calling them dates." i comment.
the boys burst into fits of laughter, will falling into mike's lap and mike falling back against the pillow.
"it's funny because it's so true. how were we all so clueless?"
"personally, i thought the idea of you have feelings for me was completely ridiculous. i mean, why would someone like you ever want someone like me?" will asks sadly, still laying in mike's lap.
"someone like you?" mike questions, sitting up, gazing down at will.
el and i both watch eagerly. this is like a damn movie.
"you know what i mean, mike."
mike shakes his head, "no, tell me. what do you mean 'someone like you'?"
"like, a freak." will's voice is barely a whisper.
no, poor will.
"hey," mike puts his hand on will's cheek, "you're not a freak." he brushes a stand of hair behind the smaller boy's ear lovingly.
"no, i am a freak. i've always questioned why you'd ever want to be friends with me. why you chose me that day on the swings. why me?" will places his hand over mike's, which is still placed on his cheek.
"come here." mike instructs. will sits up and faces mike.
"will, there was something about you that day. something that drew me near you. like the universe was telling me, 'here, this one'. it wasn't long until i fell in love with you. your kind heart, your gentle voice, your warm eyes, your beautiful smile, everything about you makes me question how i could go on without it. i knew from the minute you said you would be my friend that i never wanted to lose you."
will still isn't smiling, how could he not be smiling?
"i just, i feel like you're too good for me. like i'm going to wake up any minute and this will all be over." he avoids mike's eyes.
mike reaches out a hand towards will, to place on his cheek again.
"hey, never say that. i'm not too good for you. i was made for loving you, remember?" that's the song that was playing when we walked in.
mike leans forward to press a kiss to will's forehead, obviously nervous to do so in front of an audience.
i feel like el and i should leave them alone, this feels like an intimate moment.
"el and i made cookies. we're going to plate them and bring them up. we'll be back in a minute." i announce, standing from the bed. mike nods to us before looking back at will.
el follows me out of the room and we walk down the stairs in silence until el says, "i never knew that will was so sad."
"me either."
we spend a moment staring at each other, collectively deciding what to do to help or if we should let mike handle it.
"let mike." el says, placing a hand on my shoulder. "will needs him."
i nod in agreement before turning back to the cookies, which should definitely be cool by now.
i pick one up to inspect its temperature, still warm but definitely edible.
i hand one over to el and she takes a bite, i do the same.
"wow these are really good!" i exclaim, thoroughly surprised.
she smiles and blushes and it takes everything in me not to shower her with kisses. she's so cute.
"i have nothing to compare it to, but i think it's good, as well!" el smiles, finishing it up. she takes the opportunity to kiss my nose.
"he he." she laughs mischievously, walking over to put to rest of the batch on a plate.
i have a feeling there is now chocolate on my nose.
after she plates the cookies and we pour milk for all 4 of us and also figure out how the hell we are going to carry it all upstairs, we begin to carefully make our way back to mike's room.
el uses her powers to open the door since we don't have any extra hands.
we find will asleep, cuddled up to mike's chest and mike looking down fondly with his arms around the sleeping boy.
"have a hand to eat a cookie?" i whisper, placing his milk and a cookie next to the bed.
he smiles, "i always have a hand to eat a cookie." he gently removes one arm from around will and picks it up along with his glass of milk.
he eats his cookie quietly and finishes up his milk. it's gone in about a minute and a half.
"is he okay?" el questions, taking another cookie from the plate.
"i'm not sure. after you left he said he was tired and wanted to sleep."
"if he fell asleep that fast, he must've been tired. will is a bit of an insomniac." el comments, sipping her milk.
"no blanket?" i notice, sipping my own glass.
"no, he wouldn't let me."
weird.
"he must like it cold." i comment, shrugging my shoulders, finishing my milk and taking another cookie.
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Hi friends!
I hope you guys liked the bit of Elmax here. Happy Pride Month! June is my favorite month! Life is really scary right now, I hope everyone is staying safe. I want to take a moment to remind everyone that without protesters, supporters, and strong controversial voices, pride month would not exist. It is really important to use our voices and fight for a change. Sign petitions, go to protests (if that's possible for you), support black owned businesses, do what you can. Everyone's voice matters. We can make a difference.
Lots of love,
Sava