Sweaters & Cigarettes (21 page)

"Did you have fun?" he
asks, and Theo nods, snapping his seatbelt into place.

"Yeah," he says,
unnecessarily fiddling with his jacket for a moment, before looking up at his
dad. "It was good."

Eric doesn't say anything. Instead,
he just looks at Theo, for several moments, as though wanting to say something,
kind of like Amy did, when she dropped Theo off. But he doesn't say anything,
and instead, he simply turns his gaze straight ahead, as he puts the car into
gear and drives off.

♦

Theo meant it when he talked to Cassie, about Michael and
Hannah, and the whole mess that has suddenly appeared. He meant it, and
although it has been a while, now, since they stopped talking to him, it still
makes him kind of sad. Sure, he's got Cassie, now, and Max, and they're
honestly better and more supportive relationships than he has ever really had.

But Michael was the closest thing
he had to a best friend for a pretty long time. He helped pull him up from the
very depths of insecurity, and if nothing else, Theo isn't sure he even would
have dared to even
speak
to Max, without that. He owes Michael a lot,
and it makes him sad that they're not friends, anymore.

It's with that thought that Theo is
stunned, to say the least, when Michael suddenly approaches him one day, at
school.

Classes have just ended for the
day, and Theo makes his way out of the classroom, heading for his locker. He
only makes it halfway, though, before he feels someone tap him on the shoulder,
and he turns around. Michael looks oddly uncomfortable, and Theo resists the
urge to just stare at him, in surprise.

"Hey," Michael says,
putting his hands in his pockets, and Theo just keeps staring at him. He
glances around them automatically; part of him wonders if Hannah is anywhere
nearby, seeing this. He hitches his shoulder bag up a big.

"Hey," he replies, and
for a second, Michael just nods absently. Then, he clears his throat a bit,
glancing away.

"So listen," he says,
voice a bit low. "I, uh..."

He looks around, before looking
back at Theo, and cocking his head, and Theo goes with him as he makes his way
to a more secluded part of the hallway.

"I'm sorry," Michael
finally says, after several moments of hesitant silence. "I
just―"

He sighs, looking away again.

"I'm sorry about Luc," he
says, looking at Theo. "He shouldn't have done that. He was way out of
line."

Theo straightens up a little bit.
He hasn't really thought about Luc in the past few days, actually. Not with
everything else going on.

"I mean, when he punched that
guy―"

"Max," Theo interjects,
somewhat stiffly, and Michael looks at him for a moment.

"Max," he repeats.
"Right."

He looks down.

"I didn't say anything to
him," he says. "I didn't blame you, or anything, barely even
mentioned you. He just heard about the whole rumor-thing, and I mentioned how
you and me were...
whatever
, around the same time. He just jumped to
conclusions."

Theo assumes that
whatever
means
fighting
, or
not friends.
Maybe even
one party ignoring the
other for no valid reason.
He doesn't mention it, though.

Michael looks up at Theo. His dark
eyes look oddly sad, even a little bit ashamed, and it's a look Theo isn't used
to seeing on his face. With his handsome features, dark hair and rather
impressive physique, it just looks weirdly wrong to see him with any other
expression than complete and utter confidence.

"You know how Luc gets,"
Michael says sadly, almost pleading. "I know that doesn't make it okay,
but―"

"No, it doesn't." Theo is
almost surprised at his blunt reply. He would be, if he hadn't gotten used to
actually speaking up, recently.

Michael, however, looks blatantly
surprised, and actually blinks in confused shock, for a moment. Theo can't
really tell if that's a good or a bad reaction. And honestly, he finds that he
doesn't really care.

"Yeah," Michael finally
says. "It doesn't."

He clears his throat.

"And the rumors weren't even
that big a deal," he says, half-shrugging. "Just something about me
being bad in bed, or some shit. Got blown way out of proportion."

Theo can't help but chuckle a little
at that, and Michael quirks a small smile, seemingly relieved.

"You sure it's not true?"
Theo asks, eyebrows raised, and Michael gives him an exaggerated look of smug
confidence.

"Please," he says.
"Who do you think you're talking to?"

Theo cocks his head, a small smile
on his face.

"Right," he says. "I
almost forgot."

Michael's smile widens a bit, and
for a moment, Theo feels just a little bit lighter. It's nice to actually talk
to Michael again, even though he feels like they probably won't really be able
to go back to the same friendship they had before. Somehow, Theo feels like he
has outgrown it, like he won't be able to take the same, submissive place in
it, anymore. Which is a good thing. Most definitely.

Michael sighs and looks over at the
clock on the wall.

"Listen, man," he says,
turning back to Theo, "I gotta go."

Theo nods.

"Yeah, I've―" he
says, sighing with slight irritation ."I've got detention."

Michael presses his lips together,
a look of sympathy on his face, and a small trace of the apology he gave a few
moments ago, knowing his brother is the reason for Theo's detention.

"That sucks," he says,
and Theo half-shrugs.

"It's only today left,"
he says. "So, it's not that bad."

Michael nods.

"Well, good luck with
that," he says, and Theo smiles dryly. "I'll see you around."

"Yeah."

Michael claps his hand on Theo's
shoulder, before leaving, and Theo just stands there for a moment. He exhales
slowly. He definitely feels lighter than before. It feels good.

Detention is just as boring as ever.

It's Friday by now, and Theo can't
quite believe that he has put up with several days of this, already. It's just
him and a few other students, none of whom he knows, and after what feels like
forever, they're finally released, Theo gathering up his things and heading for
the door.

Straight home.
He can practically hear his father's reminder from
this morning, ringing in his head, and he puts on his jacket as he steps
outside. The small group of students who shared his plight in detention mill
past him, hurrying down the steps of the school entrance, and Theo shoves his
hands in his pockets, eyes cast downward.

It's the sudden whiff of cigarette
smoke that makes him look up.

"Took you long enough."
Theo feels his heart leap, even before he turns to his right, and sees none
other than Max, sitting on top of the small stone wall, next to the school
steps. His legs are crossed and folded underneath him, a lit cigarette in his
hand, and he tilts his head as Theo spots him.

"Well, sorry about that,"
Theo says dryly, and Max smiles. "You know, it's kinda creepy, you lurking
in the shadows, like that."

The words aren't entirely
unfounded; it's already dark outside, and Max's black outfit makes him nearly
invisible against the backdrop of bushes.

"I'm not lurking," Max
says, grinding out his cigarette against the stone surface, beside him.

"No?" Theo asks, and he
can't help but smile slightly.

"No," Max confirms,
getting up from where he sits and placing himself at full height, right in
front of Theo. "It's called being stealthy."

Theo raises his eyebrows, amusedly.

"Stealthy?"

"Yeah," Max says, moving
closer and slipping his hands around Theo's waist. "Like a ninja."

Theo laughs.

"Fair enough," he says,
placing his hands on Max's hips, automatically pulling him closer, so that
their faces are only inches apart. "Or a vampire."

Max makes a face.

"Vampire is too obvious,"
he says. "Not to mention overused."

He smiles mischievously, leaning in
closer.

"And besides," he says,
voice slightly lower. "If I wanted to bite you, I wouldn't have to lurk in
the shadows to do it, anyway."

He moves in and places a soft kiss
against Theo's throat, just below his jaw, and Theo automatically sucks in a
sharp breath.

"I thought you said you were
stealthy," he says, voice lowered to match Max's. "Not lurking."

Max practically purrs against his
skin.

"Same difference."

Theo huffs out a small chuckle, but
then Max nips at neck ever so softly, and he actually closes his eyes for a
moment.

"Okay," he says
breathlessly, surprised at his lack of voice-control; it's amazing what Max's
touch does to him. "Maybe not the right place for this."

Max groans and pulls away.

"Well, can you blame me?"
he says, moving one hand up to pull his fingers through Theo's hair. "I
feel like I haven't seen you in ages."

He kisses him then, softly, slowly.

"It's been ages," he
says, voice low and hoarse, making Theo shiver. "And let's just say that
thinking about you in the shower doesn't quite cut it, anymore."

Theo closes his eyes again, firming
his grip on Max's hips. It's weird how he used to get so extremely
uncomfortable when Max said stuff like that, back when they had just started
seeing each other. Sure, he still gets pretty uncomfortable, but the way Max's
words would turn him on something fierce, even back then, has since kind of
become the dominant sensation, and instead of making him blush and fumble and
look away, it makes his entire body heat up.

Theo swallows.

"You can't just say stuff like
that," he murmurs against Max's mouth, and he hears Max hum in thought.

"Why not?" he says.
"Because it makes you uncomfortable?"

"Because it turns me on."

Max actually pauses a little bit
then, even pulls away the slightest inch, and Theo opens his eyes, suddenly afraid
he's said something too weird. But then, Max smiles wickedly.

"Well, fuck," he says,
his voice low. "Now I really wanna bite you."

He kisses him again, slowly.

"Or, you know," he
breathes. "Whatever you want."

Theo takes a deep breath.

"Now's really not the
time," he says, trying to will himself to pull away from those wonderful
lips, with that hard, metal piercing.

"I really don't care,"
Max murmurs back, kissing him deeper, and Theo loses his breath for a second.
And then he gets it back.

"No," he says, pulling
away and shaking his head. "Probably not the best idea."

He can't help but glance up at the
school, which is virtually empty now, but still. Max follows his gaze, and
sighs.

"Damn it, you're right,"
he says. Then he turns back to Theo and gives him a quick kiss. "I hate it
when you're right."

Theo smiles.

"No, you don't."

And Max smiles back.

"Whatever."

They don't talk more for a few
moments. Instead, they just kiss, slowly, keeping it rather chaste and not
using any tongue, because Theo honestly feels like he would tackle Max to the
ground and mount him, if they did. Which, in itself, is a rather unfamiliar
sensation, and one he still hasn't quite gotten used to, yet.

Max has a point, though. It has
been ages, and Max isn't the only one who's had to get some kind of tension
relief in the shower, every now and then.

"We should go somewhere,"
Max suddenly says, breaking the kiss, and Theo opens his eyes.

"What?" he says, and Max
pulls away a bit, just enough for them to be able to look at each other
properly.

"We should go somewhere,"
he repeats. "Get out of here."

Theo just looks at him.

"Where?"

Max shrugs.

"Anywhere," he says.
"Just you and me."

Theo considers that for a moment.

"What, are you serious?"
he asks, slightly disbelieving, and Max smirks.

"Dead serious," he says,
and Theo just blinks at him.

"What, we're just gonna run
off together into the sunset?" he asks dryly, a tiny smile on his face,
and Max chuckles, leaning in and  placing a quick kiss on his lips.

"That's one way of putting
it," he says. "But I was thinking on a more temporary basis. And
probably not as ambitious."

Theo narrows his eyes at him,
undeniably getting pulled into Max's enthusiasm.