The Tutor

You said I could stay here...

A few days later, Jacob was just at home, chilling with Keegan and playing some games with him. After joining him on the bus all the time, he and the ginger became friends too. Jacob befriends everyone he comes in contact with.

It was late at night, and the two boys were laughing as they played some Minecraft.
"Keegan! You don't mine diamonds with a stone pickaxe!"
"Why not?! It's slower, but it shouldn't have made the diamonds disappear; that's not how things work!"
Jacob laughs and shakes his head. "This is a game; it doesn't follow real-world logic! That's just how it i-"

The doorbell rings.

Jacob stops, looking at the clock for a second. "It's 10 at night..." Before he can see who's at the door, he watches as his mother comes out of the kitchen to check the door. She stands on her tippy toes to be able to look out the peephole in the door. It is late at night, she doesn't want to risk opening the door to a stranger. "Jacob... It's Sam-" She warns the boys before opening the door.

Jacob is up on his feet immediately, running over to see what's wrong.

It is indeed Sam. The kid stands outside the door, hugging himself for warmth as he shivers, his phone flashlight on and lighting up the ground beneath him. He is soaking wet from the rainstorm outside. The poor kid looks like a lost puppy.
Of course, Jacob's mother lets him inside immediately, not caring about the water getting on the floor. "What's wrong? Are you okay? Here, let me go make you some hot cocoa to warm up. Jacob will get you a towel and a warm blanket." She informs before running off to the kitchen again to make the promised hot chocolate. She would rather have Jacob take care of getting the kid a blanket rather than dealing with cooking, even if it's a simple thing to cook.

Before Jacob does anything, he pulls Sam into a hug, ignoring the fact that it's getting him soaked in rainwater too. "Sam... Are you okay? Oh, I'm so sorry you're going through this..."
Sam doesn't move from his spot one step inside the house, shivering violently, not wanting to make more of a mess. "I... You said I could stay here..."
"Yes, you can stay here. That's perfectly fine." He takes Sam's hand and pulls him over to the couch. "You stay right here; I'll be right back-"

Now Jacob runs off, too, searching for some things for Sam. He comes back about a minute later with two towels and a blanket. He lays one of the towels out on the couch next to Keegan so Sam can sit down without ruining the couch. Then he gives the other towel to Sam. "How long were you out there for?"

Sam sits down shakily, turning the flashlight off on his phone. "I don't know... I just ran here..." He takes the other towel from Jacob and tries to dry himself off. He also removes his glasses to get the water out of there so he can see more clearly. "M-Mom was yelling at Dad, and... I just... You said to come here if I was scared." He tries to dry off his hair.

Soon enough, Jacob's mother comes back out, holding a nice steaming mug of hot cocoa. She offers it to Sam, who quickly takes it and takes a big sip. It does seem to help him stop shivering as much. "You can stay with us tonight if you need."
"Yeah, you can stay in my bed with me."
His mother looks at Jacob with a questioning glance. "Jacob..." To her, that's like a straight boy offering a girl to sleep in the same bed with him. Not a good idea.

Jacob's cheeks turn a bit red. "No, no, no, that's what he prefers!"
His mother sighs and looks back down at Sam. "Is it? Would you prefer your own room, a separate bed but in Jacob's room, or to be with Jacob?"
"With Jacob. D-Do you have any nightlights?"
"No... But we can keep the door open and keep the hallway light on. That way, it's not too bright in the bedroom, but it also isn't dark. How's that sound~?"
Sam nods in agreement, taking another sip of the hot chocolate.

Meanwhile, Keegan has just been sitting here like, 'wtf is going on-.' He finally speaks up now that it seems things are settling down. "Um... What about me? Also, why did wolf boy come HERE for help?"
"What did you just call him?" Jacob looks at Keegan disapprovingly.
"... Wolf boy. That's... That's what everyone else calls him."
"His name is Sam. He's my friend."
"Sorry..."
"I... Maybe you can still stay in my room with me?" He looks up at his mother.

"Just this once. Normally, you're not allowed to have two boys in your room at once, but these are special circumstances. He was planning on sleeping on a separate mattress anyway. You wouldn't be a good host if you kicked him out."
"Right." He sits down next to Sam, gently putting an arm around him. "Well... I think Sam could use a distraction. Sammy, do you like Minecraft?"
The blonde leans into Jacob's hold, slowly continuing to sip from the hot chocolate mug, mostly warmed up and calm by now. "I don't like playing, but I can watch."
"Perfect~!" The older boy looks up at his mother again, smiling a little. "I think we can take it from here. Thank you."

"You boys better be in bed before 11. Oh, and Sam, honey, are you allergic to blueberries?"
The blonde shakes his head.
"Good. We're having blueberry pancakes in the morning." She gets up and leaves the three by themselves.

Keegan picks up his controller again, looking at the other two. "How did you two become friends?"
Jacob smiles a little. "He's the reason we're friends~ I needed a tutor. So, after school, some days, I would go to his place for tutoring sessions. Which is also why I met you on the bus~"
"Oh. That's cool~ But... Isn't he younger than you?"
The brunette chuckles softly and nods. "Yes. But he is quite smart, don't underestimate this little guy~ He's very cute too."

The tips of Sam's ears turn a little red. "I'm not cute..."
Jacob ruffles his hair playfully, getting the younger boy to giggle a little and try to bat his hand away. "See? Adorable~ Once I met him, even though he comes off as blunt, I knew he was a keeper."

Keegan nods, though he is a little confused. "I haven't seen guys call each other cute before... Is that normal?"
The brunette's cheeks turn red again as he shakes his head. "No, I... I'm a little different. But what's wrong with being different? And why can't guys compliment each other? We deserve to feel good about ourselves too."
The redhead thinks about that for a few moments, trying to make sense of that. "Do you... Do you think that I'm cute?"
"Yes! I think your freckles are cute~"
"Oh..." Keegan says a little sheepishly. "Thank you..."

"Now, c'mon, let's play some more Minecraft. We have a house to finish!" Jacob smiles and picks up his controller with his free hand.

Sam was quiet during that entire little conversation, but now he puts his hot chocolate mug down and looks up at Jacob. "Are you gay?" He doesn't mean that as an insult; he is genuinely curious. The way Jacob describes himself fits some definitions he's seen in a few places. He didn't fully understand what it meant, but Jacob seemed to fit it.
That makes Jacob's entire face turn scarlet red as he smiles nervously, unsure if this will scare Sam away. "... Yes... Are you?"
"I don't think so. That's interesting, though." He goes back to leaning against Jacob a little. Yes, he just confirmed that Jacob likes guys, but no, it did not cross his mind that Jacob likes him in particular.

The brunette is not going to complain. He's glad that even though Sam has figured out what he is, the kid isn't judgemental of him or anything. He doesn't think Sam's opinion of his changed even the slightest. Because to Sam, he's still just Jacob. His friend. Someone he can trust. And that doesn't change.

So, Keegan and Jacob return to playing Minecraft, with Sam just watching. Eventually, Sam ends up falling asleep, curled up against Jacob as the two boys are still in the middle of gaming. They don't even notice until it's time for bed, and they have to get up; that's when Jacob realizes the blonde is peacefully asleep. Unfortunately, he doesn't think he has the strength to carry the kid, and he doesn't want to leave Sam out here alone. So, he has to gently shakes his shoulder to get his attention.

The blonde whines a little, snuggling into Jacob a little more. "It's still dark out..."
"I know... But we're going to bed. Do you want to come with us?"
Sam whines again, but he does sit up, rubbing his eyes tiredly. "Fine..." He holds his hand out, expecting Jacob to take it.
The brunette smiles and gets up, taking Sam's hand to pull him up as well. "C'mon, my room is this way." He gestures for Keegan to follow before gently guiding Sam with him toward his room. Once there, Sam lies down on the bed, curling up again as he tries to go back to sleep.

Keegan smiles a little as he watches Jacob get into bed too. "He really trusts you." He sits down on the mattress on the floor. It's a nice mattress, so it's not a downgrade from the bed or anything. Jacob's bed just is a little small.
"Yes, he does..." Jacob gently pulls the blanket up around himself and Sam. "Sorry for the weird night; this isn't a normal occurrence~"
"That's okay. It was interesting! And it's not really your fault." He gets comfortable on the mattress. "Goodnight."
"Goodnight."