Mystery of Love

20

Before long, summer vacation quickly came and went - just like the relationship between Theo and Kaleb.

It was tragic and bitter, but above all - was not the ending they had both anticipated.

When they had gone back to school, Theo looked forward to the stories everyone else had to share about the trip.

In particular, he couldn't wait to see Kaleb's face and hear his familiar voice again.

During band practice, he told him about June's obsession with him. He intentionally used the exact words she used such as "his cute face" and "want to cuddle him so badly".

Theo could tell he enjoyed the attention he was receiving from others, especially when they complimented him. There were times Kaleb sounded like he was showing off about his physical skills, be it in basketball, volleyball or running - with the intention of seeking praises from his audience. 

There was never a complete understanding of why he acted that way. More than compliments, he appeared just as pleased when anyone developed a yearning for him. He did it despite possessing zero sexual interest towards them.

Perhaps it was his charisma and bold display of self-esteem that also made Theo fall head over heels for him. His deep, masculine voice was the first trait about him that caught the attention of Theo - followed by his small yet well-defined body.

His chest and abdominal muscles were especially attractive - a perfect complement to the perfect proportions of his arms and legs.

Theo saw it for himself during one of the physical education lessons. They were in different classes, but used the same venue which was the running track - big enough to occupy multiple classes.

Even if he tried, he couldn't beat Kaleb at running. Kaleb's small and streamlined body shape made it effortless for him to overtake anyone - often emerging as one of the top few in a race.

He naturally approached the broken chairs under the staircase and sat beside Theo, whilst appreciating the privacy they had.

He was perspiring profusely, sweat rolling down his cheeks and dripping off his chin.

His mouth was wide open as he gasped hungrily for air. The muscles on his neck contracting and releasing with every breath.

His face was flushed with redness and the colour of his lips a bright red. He then lifted the bottom of his shirt up to wipe the sweat off his face. It was such a marvelous sight.

Theo couldn't help but stare in awe at such a beautiful display of a human. The pheromones emitted from Kaleb's sweat filled the air.

He wanted to devour all of him right there and then. With much resistance withholding, he held out his hand with the intention of cupping Kaleb's face but instead, used his index finger to flick off the hanging drop of sweat on his chin. 

"Sorry, I tend to sweat a lot," was the only response he received from Kaleb. A part of him knew that Kaleb enjoyed seeing him struggle in that familiar state of orgasm while he desperately tried to suppress that feeling.

That was exactly the problem in their relationship: one that is built on lust and not deep, personal connections. In fact, their shallow conversations never truly amounted to anything and Theo had begun to doubt that they could ever sustain in the long run.

𝘏𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘧𝘶𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘭𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦? 𝘍𝘰𝘳 𝘢 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘵-𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘮 𝘧𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘢𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘢 𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘨-𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘮, 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘵𝘩𝘺 𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘱? Theo found himself asking those questions over and over in his head.

𝘉𝘦𝘴𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘴, 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘣𝘦 𝘥𝘦𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘣𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘵𝘦? Apparently, it was an intense feeling of deep affection.

He was sure he possessed that with Kaleb, and Kaleb had reciprocated that feeling back.

He knew it the first time Kaleb ever demonstrated yearning and jealousy for him. It was a rare occurrence as Kaleb seldom expressed his emotions, especially when it came to a romantic relationship. 

During lunch break, Theo had been sitting on a swing facing Finn, who was merely another male friend. Kaleb and his group of friends had happened to walk past them.

He waved and greeted from a distance, breaking the conversation between Theo and Finn. The attention turned to Kaleb as he so desired.

Theo awkwardly waved back. He knew Kaleb wouldn't have called him out that way if he hadn't been jealous in the slightest.

Often with Kaleb, it felt like they communicated in an almost telepathic way. Nothing had to be said, yet everything was understood.

Their conversations were random and seldom touched on deep topics. 𝘉𝘶𝘵 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘢𝘭𝘬 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘺𝘸𝘢𝘺?

At such a young age, none of his peers could confidently say that they were matured enough to know how to love someone.

The prefrontal cortex, the part of the human brain responsible for decision-making, is only fully developed around age 25.

That means teenagers tend to process information more using the amygdala, the part of the brain responsible for processing emotions.

It would explain the way he fell in love with Jovan and Kaleb, the jealousy he felt towards Jovan, the fear of committing himself fully into a relationship and the impending despair he felt when his relationship fell apart. 

Even if they didn't make deep conversations the same way mature adults do, what he knew in his relationship with Kaleb was that they were both madly in love with one another at a point and it felt real, that was all that mattered. Not the crowd cheering at Kaleb's basketball skills nor the numerous compliments he received, but when he closed his eyes, all he could picture was Kaleb's face and his dilated pupils staring right at him. 𝘈𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘭𝘭, 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘪𝘵 𝘴𝘰 𝘸𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘦𝘢𝘤𝘩 𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳?