affection

twenty two

sunday

the sun lifts over the horizon, shining brightly through the window and onto the face on a sleeping boy. his eye's flutter open at the sudden light, forcing him to lift a soft palm to his face, though the sun still seeped through the cracks between his fingers.

he flops onto his left side, lips turning ever so slightly upward as he observes the still figure beside him. he wonders for a moment how he got so lucky, but a quiet knock on their hotel room door snaps him from his thoughts.

elliot slumps over briefly, before stretching tired legs over the side of the bed, getting tangled for just a second in the bright white sheets. the room is silent apart from the pats of his feet with every step,.

"good morning, is kai still sleeping?" linda asks. somehow, at eight o'clock in the morning, she is as lively looking as ever. light blush decorates her cheeks, and heavy mascara coats her lashes.

"yeah," elliot exhales, taking a quick look back to see his boyfriend sprawled out on the bed. "i'll wake him later."

the woman laughs, "oh, don't worry. do you want to come and get breakfast with us downstairs? you can take a plate for him too."

"uh, yeah.. sure." the boy nods after momentarily scratching his head, fingers almost getting tangled in the knots.

the pair stroll downstairs in silence, it's not awkward though. when they arrive at the table, kai's brother, noah is there. his hair is dishevelled, but he still looks great. elliot can't help staring as he takes a seat, picking out all of his features to compare them with his boyfriend's. they do look very similar, but noah is paler; with tired eyes, elliot supposes from his 'great-paying career.'

linda disappears to grab some plates of food to bring back, as she told him minutes ago. now is when the silence becomes awkward, as he's sitting with a stranger he's heard practically nothing about. after what feels like forever, she comes back with a few plates and a bright smile.

"here, this one's for kai, i made it up with his favourites so he can't complain." she chuckles, it sounds fake and elliot wonders if it has anything to do with noah sitting here.

as she sets the plate down, elliot frowns. kai doesn't like half of the things on this plate, how could she not know? as he's pondering, he hears a loud, high-pitched laugh from the table behind him. he turns around and spots layla, with the same plate of food. although, it seems she's actually enjoying hers.

"and i got you a pancake, let me know if it's enough for you, hon."

elliot smiles, turning back around to take the plate, "thanks."

a few people walk past, congratulating noah before finding their own tables. he barely looks up, just muttering words of thankfulness before shoving a forkful of food in his mouth. the time ticks slow, elliot is only halfway finished with his pancake before linda jumps up, claiming she was finished.

he watches her leave with eric and layla, she still had half her plate left.

"so," noah finally speaks, "you're elliot."

"yeah, um, congrats on... not being single." he jokes, hoping to break the ice.

the older boy lets out a dry laugh, "thanks. so are you like, kai's best friend...or?"

elliot chokes, and splutters out a nervous, "uhh, i guess, yeah." he figures kai can tell him the truth if he wants to,

noah nods, "seems you know him better than i do."

"is that surprising?" he bites his tongue, feeling betrayed by how quickly those words escaped his lips. he didn't mean to say that, he silently hopes the boy missed the tone of his voice and how harsh it all sounded.

"ouch." apparently, he didn't miss it.

elliot's cheeks grow beet-red. "um, sorry. i didn't mean-"

he's interrupted by a loud chuckle, a lot deeper than noah's talking voice. "i know what you meant. don't worry."

he puts his fork down, taking a rest from pushing the remaining bites of his pancake around his plate. he begins picking at the table instead, still feeling awkward and not knowing what to say next.

"look, don't take this the wrong way, but you have no idea what it was like growing up with kai. i once had everything laid out for me when i started high-school. i was popular, i had all the girls, i was smart and had great things going for me." noah says between bites of food, "but when people found out i had this...freak little brother who caused trouble and wouldn't speak, i lost everything."

"kids are mean," elliot frowns, "but not just to you. think about how he felt."

"yeah, i did." now it's noah's turn to put his fork down, "five years too late. i was pretty harsh on him, i'll admit that. but i had a right to be angry after i thought my whole life was ruined. that's the reason i left with our dad, he said i could get it all back if i started over - and i did."

elliot blinks for the first time in minutes, his eyes glossy from staring at the design on the tablecloth. "you made that kid felt like he had nothing. just so you could chase everything?"

the older shrugs, "i wanted to stay, at first. i was getting into fights every day to protect him."

"so what changed? why'd you stop?"

"it isn't obvious?" noah's voice was growing louder, "our dad finally got through to me. after all my fights, after hurting so many kids, i was starting to fail every class i had, my scholarships were falling through and i was being labelled a troublemaker with nothing going for him. i finally started listening to our dad. put yourself in my shoes."

"put yourself in his." elliot exhales, before standing up and walking back to his room after grabbing his plate.

the reader beeps as he holds the key card against it, he enters into cool air from the noisy air-con above. his boyfriend is still sprawled out on the bed, so he puts the plate on the side and joins him under warm covers.

...
wc: 910
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