Wrightworth Oneshots

Sick Day (2)

Miles wiped his mouth with a napkin.
"Mmh, you could cook for me more often," he said, only half-joking.

"That good?" Phoenix chuckled.
"I'm glad you liked it. It's an old family recipe and, to be completely honest, the only dish I'm really good at cooking." He scratched the back of his neck and grinned sheepishly.

Miles laughed, which immediately made his head throb again.
"Ouch."
He pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Headache?"
Phoenix got up and picked up their empty plates.

"Yes," Miles replied. "I guess I should avoid laughing."

"And they say laughter is the best medicine," Phoenix sighed. "It's okay, I'll clean up," he reassured him.

Miles nodded gratefully and went back to the living room, sinking into the soft cushions of his sofa and wrapping himself in his blanket again.

Another hug would have been great right now.
His heartbeat quickened just thinking about it. How they had stood in the kitchen like it was their own little world, all wrapped up in each other. How they had reluctantly pried apart so they could finish cooking and fill their grumbling stomachs. How they had shared the meal in comfortable silence.
Miles sighed.
Why had he even hugged Phoenix? To comfort him? Or to comfort himself? Maybe a bit of both.
Not that it mattered; after all, a hug was just a hug. Nothing about a simple hug inherently implied anything other than friendship.
But then why was his heart pounding so hard and so fast? Why did that simple hug make him feel this way?

His thoughts were interrupted by Phoenix sitting down next to him.
"Should we turn on the TV?" He reached for the remote. "Or is that a bad idea because of your headache?"

So considerate, Miles thought.
What a sweetheart he is.

Miles yawned.
"Hmm, maybe you could watch something that won't make me laugh, and I'll just close my eyes and listen."

"Okay, nature documentary it is," Phoenix replied. He picked the first one that Netflix recommended to him and scooted a bit closer to Miles.

Stifling another yawn, Miles closed his eyes. Phoenix was sitting very close now, and it wasn't long until Miles rested his head on his shoulder. He'd felt nervous about physical contact at first, always scared to cross a line, but now snuggling up to Phoenix felt like the most normal thing ever.

As he listened to the narrator's pleasant voice and tried not to drift off again so he could savor this moment, it dawned on him.
The issue wasn't what the hug had or hadn't implied. It was what Miles had wanted it to mean. It was the fact that he wasn't as scared to cross that line anymore because somewhere between the hug and the snuggling, he might have already crossed it. Or maybe he was about to.

Miles unwrapped one side of his blanket burrito and put his arm with the blanket around Phoenix.
Without missing a beat, Phoenix grabbed the corner of the blanket, which was still attached to Miles' hand, and pulled the blanket tighter around his shoulders. Then, he put his other arm around Miles and pulled him a bit closer, closing the gap that Miles' arm had left between them.
Phoenix did not remove his hand from Miles' on his shoulder. Carefully, slowly, almost hesitantly, he slipped his fingers between Miles'.

Miles couldn't put a finger on when he had gone from holding on to a childhood crush to falling in love. Today, at some point between breakfast and lunch? Last week, when he'd bought ice cream for Trucy and she'd told him he was her third dad now? A year ago, when he'd helped Phoenix study for his bar exam, making countless cups of tea to fuel his all-nighters? Even earlier than that?
Maybe it had been a slow transition, but at what point had he crossed that line? And why did he only realize it now?
In any case, it was too late now. He knew he was way past the point of no return.

Usually, something like this would have bothered him endlessly. But right now, right here in Phoenix's arms, snuggled up against him on the sofa, listening to his steady breathing, he felt that it was okay. He felt safe.

But what now? Say something? Make a move, even? Or wait for things to take their natural course?
Miles could feel that Phoenix was comfortable at this stage. Whatever this was. But he didn't know his feelings for him. He didn't know his intentions. He didn't know if Phoenix wanted to take their relationship any further than this.

Suddenly, he remembered something he had barely registered and almost forgotten. Phoenix's fingers brushing his face as he fell asleep.
And then, in the kitchen, Phoenix had joked about asking him out.
But that didn't mean anything, did it?

For heaven's sake, he's holding my hand! Why am I still questioning this??

Miles internally rolled his eyes at himself for overcomplicating things in his head once again.

Without wasting another thought, he turned his head in order to bring his lips closer to Phoenix's ear.
"So, Phoenix," he murmured. "When are you going to ask me out, then?"