Past Present Future [BL - SaifahZon]

Chapter 11

p a s t

"Ha, got one!" Zon waved at his friends and sat at one of the few empty tables in the packed McDonalds. He couldn't believe how many people got the same idea at the same time, when he looked at the crowded restaurant.

Or maybe he could. After all it was Friday afternoon right after classes.

Saifah placed his tray down and slid on the seat next to Zon with a big smile. "Finally, the weekend!" he exclaimed and stretched his long limbs.

One arm almost knocked out Zon's head, if he hadn't ducked in time. 'Idiot!' he wanted to shout, laughing, but the happy sound stuck in his throat as he noticed Saifah's hand on his chair. With a sudden shiver he glanced over at Tutor, to check if their friend had noticed anything. Luckily, he was too deep into his own notes to do that.

For now.

Zon nudged his boyfriend under the table and shot him a meaningful look, which Saifah understood without words. With a roll of his eyes, he took his arm back and started to eat.

"I can't believe you two already missed some classes," started Tutor, peeking at them over his papers. "Literally, the school year has just started."

Zon groaned. "Can we not? We're here to have fun, not to kill it with school talk."

Tutor looked around the McDonald and arched an eyebrow. "Fun? Okay," he mocked. "As you wish. Although I really don't get it. Sure, Sai's smart enough to be late or even ditch sometime, but you, Zon?

"If I wanted to be lectured, I would ask my parents."

"But I mean it. You used to have such good grades and now you barely focus on anything. Soon there will be exams, and—"

Zon stopped listening and hung his head. His cheeks were flushed hot, ears burning. Tutor had a point and he knew that; he did have problems lately and had no idea what was wrong either. Was it because all he could think of was Saifah? Their time after classes, all alone? Was it because he was finally in a relationship and it was distracting him all the time? Or maybe he was just too stupid for university? After all, he never was the smartest. All his grades were just decent; just enough to pass, mediocre at best. He loved to read and he swallowed every book he saw, but he never felt the same passion about textbooks or learning. He was just an average guy; average in every subject, average in every aspect; grades, looks, everything...

Suddenly a warm hand brushed his tight and squeezed in a silent support.

"You're so lucky, Tor," said Saifah loudly. A bit too loudly, even. "Man, you have your own place! Like what the hell! Everyone dreams about it, and I bet you of all people, you don't even use it properly. You could throw a big party every weekend, invite whomever you want for a whole night and what? You don't do any of that!"

Zon raised his eyes and noticed Saifah subtly checking up on him; his hazel eyes warm with love and worry. A small lump Zon had in his throat started to melt. "Yeah, imagine him inviting a girl to his place. He would freak out," he added timidly.

"I know you two think of me as some uptight asshole, but I'm not as innocent as you think." Tutor's words were followed by the high-pitched whistle Saifah did to tease him, but Zon knew it was still part of reversing the focus from his grades. "Besides," added Tutor, "you're gonna have your own place too, am I right?"

"Well, yeah. My pops promised me that after the semester ends. If I get good grades, lol."

"Wait, he did?" Zon looked at his boyfriend surprised. Why had he never heard about it?

"Yeah." Saifah sent him a cheeky smile and stole a french fry from his tray, but Zon kept blinking, chills of change crawling over his skin. Why did he feel so frightened? A new place wasn't bad news. Actually, it was great news. They would finally have a place to chill without anyone interrupting them, without fear of anyone walking in.