Sweet Little Birds (BxB Romance, Completed)

Chapter 14: Pancakes, Waffles, and French Toast

6.59 pm.

Two knocks on the door.

Robin's heart nearly jolted out of his body. Even though he'd been expecting the knocks, to actually hear them was different. So much more tangible and scary. But also so damn exciting. There was no turning back now. It was time to soar on unproven wings toward freedom.

A sprint toward the door. A breath to calm nerves. A nervous flick of stray hairs. Then his hand moved toward the handle, which creaked slightly as he pushed it down.

Time to fly.

Blonde hair. Green eyes. A smile that could light up the darkest corners of space. The crutches were probably there but Robin didn't notice them anymore.

"Hi, Robby," Tyler said. "Sorry that I'm early, it was my aunt's fault."

"Well, I wasn't going to sit in the car and wait for you to think it was a good time to go inside."

Startled, Robin looked over to the side of Tyler. He hadn't realized there was someone else there. He only had eyes for Tyler.

The voice belonged to a woman who held a stack of pizza boxes. A floral dress flowed around her ankles and her hair was cut in a practical short hairstyle.

"Aunt Donna is just helping me carry the pizza boxes," Tyler explained quickly. "She's leaving now..." He glared at the woman beside him.

Immediately, Robin cursed himself for not checking with Tyler if he needed help carrying the pizzas when they texted before. Of course, that was a task that was difficult on crutches.

Aunt Donna smiled at her sullen nephew. "Let me at least say hi, Tyler," she said and nudged his shoulder. Tyler kept glaring, seemingly embarrassed that she wouldn't just leave, while Robin couldn't help but wish his mom embarrassed him in such delightful ways in front of his friends instead of just throwing spiteful looks at anyone who came close.

"Hi, I'm Donna," she said and reached out her hand toward Robin.

"I'm Robin." Robin took the warm hand in his. "Should I take those?" He pointed at the pizza boxes. There appeared to be four of them. Tyler probably planned to eat at least three of them.

"Alright, I'm leaving now, sweetheart." Donna gave Tyler an affectionate kiss on the cheek. He immediately wiped it away, looking like he wanted to sink through the floor. "Just call me if you want a ride home."

The notion of Tyler maybe not wanting a ride home made Robin's cheeks burn bright red.

"Just go," Tyler growled, seemingly just as mortified as Robin. "I'll see you later."

With a light tousle of her nephew's curls, Donna finally left.

Robin and Tyler were left all alone. They had the whole night to watch movies, eat snacks, and... who knew what else would happen? The possibilities whirled through Robin's head, each one more overwhelming than the other.

"Are you not going to invite me in, Robby?" Tyler asked, a nonchalant smile on his lips. But his flickering eyes gave away that the nonchalance was just a cover. Perhaps the whirling possibilities were just as overwhelming to Tyler as they were to Robin.

"Of course..." Robin stepped out of the way to put the pizza boxes on the kitchen counter. "Come on in."

Tyler entered the apartment and Robin quickly jumped behind him to close the door.

A click confirmed that the door was locked behind them. A light trickle of rain smattered against the windows. A cloud of nervous energy filled the room.