Sweet Boy (rarl)

Vol. 17 | Sleepover

Carl stared up at his ceiling. His room was entirely dark, save for a street light trying its best to shine in through his closed curtains. He had been awake for an hour and a half by now, his mind wandering. Rick and Lori had left him home alone to visit a friend in a neighboring state, and he always found it difficult to sleep when no one else was in the house. He had thought over his upcoming school projects that were due soon, but that, of course, became rather boring. That's when he began thinking about his future - specifically with his boyfriend.

He had already worked out a whole timeline of when they would get engaged, married, buy a house, have their first baby, and even when they would get a pet. He was beyond excited for their future. The two hadn't been dating long, but they were both all in. Head over heels in love like most high school kids during their first relationship, Carl couldn't seem to stop thinking about Ron even if he wanted to.

He picked up his phone and started to read his text messages with Ron. The smile on his face wasn't voluntary as he read through all of the "I love you baby" and "you're my angel " type texts. Ron's little pet names for him always made him happy, although his favorite was definitely when he would call him his baby boy. "My baby boy" Carl smiled as he thought about Ron's voice saying those words.

If there were a finite amount of heart shaped emoticons in the world, then Carl and Ron had already used far more than their fair share. There was never more than one individual text that got by without the next containing a heart. Carl still remembered that first heart Ron had sent him. He remembered the way his heart started racing and his stomach filled with butterflies.

This physical reaction was nowhere near as extreme as the symptoms that took over his body after their first kiss, however. The racing heart was a thousand times more intense, his palms grew sweaty, his stomach felt as if he had just gone on the climax of a roller coaster, a burning heat took over his face, and his mouth salivated while he tasted Ron's lips for the first time. His first kiss with Ron was also just that - his first kiss. This only amplified his feelings.

Unable to talk himself out of calling, the phone rang two and half times before a familiar, tired, and deep voice spoke.

"Hello?" Ron asked, obviously half asleep.
"Hi. Did I wake you up?" Carl replied.
"Umm... maybe. I'm not sure. Why are you awake? Is everything ok? Do you need help?" He said softly.
Carl's heart just melted. He was truly the sweetest boy on earth.
"Yeah. Well.. kinda. It's not... nothing is wrong. I'm safe and healthy or whatever. I.. can I be honest?" Carl whispered the last words.

"Baby, of course. You can tell me anything. I'm always here for you. For anything." He answered softly. Carl didn't know it was possible for his heart to melt anymore than it already had, but there it went.
"So.. my parents are gone, and I know it's stupid, but I don't really like being home alone." He said gently. "Can we have a sleepover?!" Ron asked excitedly. "A sleepover? Yeah. You're going to come here and we're going to sleep." He replied. "No, no, no. That's not how a sleepover goes. We have to stay up all night, watch like twenty movies, and eat all the candy in your house." He declared, clearly exiting about the prospect of having this sleepover with Carl.
"If you think that's what's going to happen. Just get over here." Carl said, still feeling a bit scared about being alone.

-

Carl stood by the front door, anticipating his boyfriend's arrival. A knock on the door signaled his arrival. Still a bit paranoid, Carl checked the peephole just to be sure it was Ron. Once he saw the boy outside, he unlocked the door and let him in.

"Hey." Ron said with a smile, a bag over his shoulder. "Hi." Carl replied, going in for a kiss. The two kissed for a moment before Carl spoke again. "What did you bring?" He laughed, placing his hand on the bag. "It's a sleepover. I brought my sleepover stuff." Ron declared. His explanation wasn't really much of an explanation. "Um.. ok. What does sleepover stuff entail exactly?" He asked. "Toothbrush. Clothes. Sleepover stuff." He explained.