You All Over Me [BxB]

Thirty-Five

The day after their thesis defense, Theodore's parents asked him to come home. Jacob also decided to visit his parents after months of being away, although, in his words, he only wanted to grab a few of his stuff and see his mother.

Although keen to hear more, Theodore restrained himself.

There was an unspoken tension whenever Dr. Emmanuel came up, and he feared being complicit to what had caused their rift.

Theodore wasn't naive. Jacob resented him, at least in part, for his good relationship with Dr. Emmanuel. Still, Theodore hated thinking that the doctor favored him over Jacob. That couldn't be true. They saw each other twice or thrice a year, and he just happened to be a people-pleaser who knew how to get into the adults' good graces.

He never meant to hurt anyone.

Especially not Jacob.

Anyway, Theodore didn't want to trigger any confrontations. Their relationship was in a good place, and he didn't want to jeopardize it.

Jacob could take his time. When he was ready, Theodore would be there for him.

"Yes, yes, I'm tidying up," Theodore replied, dusting his shelves with his phone on speaker. "How about you? How are you doing?"

"I'm doing alright. Staying holed up in my room, too. It's been quite some time... so it feels a bit strange."

"Don't stay cooped up. And you should visit more often."

Jacob couldn't help but chuckle. "You sound just like my mom."

"Just... if you stay at the unit, you'll be reminded of our workload. At home, there's homemade food instead of takeouts."

"That's fine. I won't be having takeouts soon..."

"So that's why you wanted to live with me?"

Theodore could hear Jacob's usual smirk. "It's a perk, but of course not. I can list a lot of other reasons..."

Theodore blushed, clearing his throat. "Consider it."

"Yeah, yeah. But I'll head back to the unit next week."

"For the pool."

"Yes."

Theodore brushed the dirt off his window sill and gazed outside wistfully. The playground was visible from where he stood, freshly restored by homeowners' association, the sets either repainted or replaced. Yet, he could still picture it as it used to be. Back when he was a kid, and when he and Stella spent their afternoons there.

Jacob's voice pulled him back. "Any plans today?"

"Dad wants me to go with him to the firm."

"Oh? What for?"

"I'm not sure. How about you?"

"I'm thinking of watching some TV shows, maybe catching up on sleep—anything that doesn't require too much brainpower."

Just as Theodore opened his mouth to reply, his mom's voice echoed from downstairs. "Theo! We're leaving!"

"I have to go, Jake," Theodore said, putting away his cleaning cloth. "Hopefully I won't have to use my brain, either. I don't want to remind my parents that I'm on a break."

Jacob chortled across the line. "It's not convincing when you're the one saying it."

"Hey, I like rest, too. I'm not a robot."

"I know. I'm messing around. Alright, Theo, I'll let you go now. Have fun."

"Thanks—"

"I love you."