Stuck in the Middle (An Eddievr, Mully, and Juicy Fanfic)

Chapter 5: Feelings Change

Eddie's POV
Juicy had been acting weird towards me these past few days. Yet, no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't understand what was going through his head. It was almost like he was a stranger to me, like the years that I had known him went straight down the drain.

"Hey, Gaege?" I reached out my arm, only to pull it away as he walked by me. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine."

"Are you sure? You seem..."

"Tired? Heartbroken? In case you didn't know, Eddie, but I just got out of a breakup."

I pressed my lips into a line as he sighed, turning back around when he saw my hurt expression.

"I'm sorry..." Juicy muttered, but I shook my head. "No, I shouldn't have pushed you when you were upset," I answered quietly, averting my eyes to the ground. He didn't say another word, only opened a cabinet with a frown.

"Um, you know those are the cups, right?" I chuckled, leaning against the counter as I watched him. "Unless you were planning on eating those instead?"

"Well, it would be nice if you could tell me where the cereal is." Juicy rolled his eyes with a slight shake of his head. He peered into a white coffee mug before looking back at me. "I don't live here, okay? Don't judge me."

I shook my head with a laugh, walking over to him to help him. I reached over his head, forcing him to step back into the counter. I suddenly realized how close I was to him, and my cheeks turned a shade of pink. He looked up at me with a surprised expression, feeling the heat radiate off my body. It was almost as if we were stuck in a single moment of time, waiting... for something to happen. Something I couldn't embrace.

Before he could say anything, I quickly stepped away, pointing towards the food cabinet. "Ahem, well there you go," I cleared my throat, pulling at my collar, "Bowls are on the bottom."

I quickly turned before he could suspect something was wrong. I sat on the living room couch, my back turned to him as I heard the cereal being poured into a bowl. I tried to shake off the nervous feeling forming in my chest that made my head spin.

Just two years before, we were wanting to separate from each other. I had promised myself that I would leave things in the past. I was with Mully now. I wasn't going to do anything that could hurt him.

Because I love him... right?

No. I do love him.

I glanced over my shoulder at Gaege, however, quickly whipping my head back around when he glanced up. I had forgotten what it was like to be so close to those hazel eyes. To kiss those lips. It was a feeling that had been reawakened within me that I wasn't too happy to remember.

"Eddie, be honest with me," I suddenly heard Gaege say behind me. I slowly turned around, pretending like nothing was happening as I said, "Be honest about what?"

He swirled the cereal around and around with a silver spoon, not looking up at my eyes directly. A frown was forming on his face, which wasn't a good sign that this was going to be a nice conversation.

"Is everything okay?" I asked again, hoping to get a better reaction this time. His hazel eyes flickered up to me, leaning forward on the counter.
"No, actually. It's not," He answered with an expression I couldn't read. "Are we going to talk about the elephant in the room or not?"

"An elephant?" I raised an eyebrow, "Stop using these english metaphors on me dawg. I'm fucking mexican not a mind reader."

Gaege sighed, pressing a hand to his temples. "I'm talking about our previous relationship, Eddie. And don't act like you forgot because I know you didn't."

I froze, hoping he wouldn't have said that. I crossed my arms, keeping my shoulders up. "You're the one who kept calling me after the breakup," I countered. "After you broke up with me."

"Don't start with that shit again! I left because you never cared about me!"

"And? You were the one who never wanted to talk to me! It's exactly what you're doing now!"

"Oh, so you want me to talk to you now?"
He stood abruptly, angrily stomping his way towards me. "I tried to talk to you, Eddie," He glared, jabbing a finger into my chest. "You were never there to listen."

I crossed my arms, taking a step towards him. I clenched my hands into a fist as the familiar flicker of anger burst in my chest. "Maybe it was because you didn't love me anymore."

"I do!" He suddenly shouted, staring face to face at me before stopping. His bottom lip trembled before he swallowed.

"I- I mean... I did," Gaege shook his head with a frustrated sigh. "Fuck, you're always messing me up."

The same warm feeling began to form in my chest again, and I couldn't understand why or where it was coming from. Even though he shouted at me angrily, the pain in his eyes was unmistakingly hard to miss.

I looked away from him, still not taking a step back despite how close he was. I could feel the tension rolling off him as he crossed his arms.

"I'm sorry," I then said quietly, noticing his eyes trail back up to my face. "I never meant to hurt you, Gaege."

Gaege studied my face for a few seconds, licking his lips slightly. I couldn't help but lean forward a little, suddenly remembering the moments we had before while we were dating that were like this.

"Eddie..." Gaege whispered under his breath. His eyes flickered down to my lips before meeting my gaze. He was extremely handsome, with his locks of brown hair in a mess. For a moment, the only sound I could hear was my heart pounding loudly in my ears. I found myself wondering if Gaege could hear it too. 

"Wait, Gaege, I..."

I was about to take a step back before suddenly feeling his lips press against mine. I stood in shock, not being able to move away no matter how hard I tried. He was kissing me, right there, in my living room. Just like before, how he used to take me into his apartment, kiss me, take off my clothes and...

The kiss was over before I could react, and Gaege gasped, putting his hands over his mouth. "I'm so sorry!" He quickly stepped away, hurrying back to the kitchen before I could speak. "You know, what? Forget it! Forget I even said anything!"

I was still standing in the same spot, dumbfounded and confused by the butterflies in my stomach. His face flushed a dark shade of red when I approached him, backing him up into the counter again. "Eddie, I said to-"He began to say before I silenced him.

His lips moved against mine eagerly, making my heart race and soar with the anticipation of him. He pulled my body flush against his as I ran my hands up his waist, dipping my tongue into his mouth.

I pulled away quickly however, guilt over taking me entirely. "No, this is wrong," I told him, shaking my head. "Fuck, we shouldn't be doing this."

He avoided my eyes, allowing me to step away from him. He walked past, quietly answering, "You're right. Forget this even happened. It's better for the both of us."

He sat down on the living room couch like nothing happened, but I retreated to my office before my overwhelming emotions could bury me alive.

My heart was racing, more than it ever had in the past year. My gaze landed on the picture of Mully and I at the beach, kissing as the sun set behind us. I was happy then.

Before Gaege decided to kiss me, that is.