Always opposites.

PHASE 1, CHAPTER 2.

 Lox is sprawled out on Mari's dark, brown leather couch in Mari's messy apartment. Lox's eyes were closed, his dark shaggy hair falling over his closed eyes. He looked so fragile and vulnerable asleep, more than he already was awake, surprisingly.
Mari opens the door and walks into the apartment, relieved his parents aren't home, not like they ever really are, to be fair. It's been a few hours since the incident where Mari met Lox, and he couldn't help but smirk at the sight of Lox asleep on his couch, at least someone was getting some rest, unlike Mari; exhausted.
That was soon to change though, as Mari walks over and lightly nudges Lox. If Mari isn't getting rest, neither is Lox.
Lox slowly stirs awake, his short eyelashes fluttering open, the shadows that previously casted on his face lifting. "Mh..Mares..?" He mutters groggily.
Mari chuckles softly at his groggy response, finding it a little endearing. "Yeah, it's me, kid," He replies, his tone soft. "You were asleep on my couch."
"Obviously.." He mutters, "It's uncomfortable.."
Mari rolls his eyes at Lox's complaint about the couch being uncomfortable, "What you're gonna whine and complain about everything now?" He asks jokingly, "You're the one who wanted to crash at my place, you get the couch to sleep on. No way in hell you even dare thinking I'm gonna even consider letting you share my bed with me." He says, yet his voice lacks any real hostility.
"Mh-..s-..sorry.." He mutters, still half-asleep as he sits up.
"Don't apologize, kid." He says, his tone still soft as he quickly switches up, "I'm just teasing you..you're lucky I even let you crash here in the first place though, quit complaining."
Mari crosses his arms across his chest, "Ya know, most people would be saying 'thank you' right now for letting them sleep on my couch. Instead of complaining about how 'uncomfortable' it is, like some people." He teases.
"O-oh yeah..th...thanks.." Lox says, slurring out his words. He seemed pretty deprived of sleep, despite the fact he was asleep for a few hours. Damn, was the couch really that uncomfortable?

"Much better," Mari says, smirking. "Was that so hard? A simple 'thank you' can go a long way, kiddo."
"Mh..stop calling me that..we're the same age." He mutters, his footsteps quiet and slow as he drags himself over to Mari. He seemed bolder when he was tired, could actually somewhat stand up for himself..barely.
"What, you don't like being called 'kid'?" Mari asks, his tone slightly mocking. "What do you want me to call you then, 'little lamb'? You're frailer than me, you're more sensitive than me, you look like you could be squashed like a bug if I wanted to. I'm gonna call you whatever I want, kid."
Lox huffs, rubbing his eyes. "Mh..I hate you," he mutters, his voice quiet and words lousy.
"Oh, I know you don't hate me," Mari teases, his tone playful as Lox muses him with his pouting, "You're just pissy because ya don't like being called 'kid'. But I'm gonna keep doin' it, just to piss you off a little more."
Lox can hardly register Mari's words, so he dismisses them, nodding and sleepily agreeing, "Mhhmmmm.." He says, before he rests his forehead on Mari's shoulder, his skin meeting the soft texture of Mari's black jacket. "I'm tired..your couch sucks..respectfully.."
Mari shrinks back and freezes up at the sudden physical contact, unsure of what to do. His heart rate picks up, and he swallows, scanning Lox's body, the proximity making him anxiety-driven. After a few moments, Mari slightly regains his composure, he lifts his hand, and it turns towards a few directions–looking like a robot malfunctioning– before he hesitantly moves his hand towards Lox's waist, he pauses for a slight moment, before letting his hand come in physical contact with Lox's shirt, letting his hand rest on Lox's waist.
He swallows, before finally looking back up at Lox's head, sparing his gaze from his hand that currently remains on Lox's waist. He subconsciously fidgets with the fabric of Lox's shirt, twisting it slightly.
He puts his tough, aloof facade back up before saying, "Well, I'm sorry my couch sucks," he responds, doing his best to keep his vocals stable, "But you're staying on it, whether you like it or not. You're the one who wanted to crash here, remember?"
Mari stands there for a moment, enduring the feeling of Lox's head resting on his shoulder, his shaggy, fluffy hair brushing against Mari's neck slightly. A part of Mari was annoyed and..confused, by Lox's clinginess, but a tad part of him kind of..liked it? Oddly enough..
"You're seriously tired, huh..?" He murmurs, his tone a little softer and shyer than before.
Luckily enough, Lox was too tired to detect any change in Mari's demeanor, so he just nodded, his movements slow and tired.
Mari swallowed, suddenly conflicted. Physical touch messes up Mari's thoughts. "I-..Alright-..fine.." Mari mutters, giving in even though he just refused, Lox's proximity was convincing him otherwise. "If you're really that..tired, you can sleep on my bed tonight instead of the couch. But just tonight, got it..? You're not making this a regular thing, I don't want you getting too comfortable with my..generosity." Mari says, almost regretting his change of heart instantly. He doesn't know why he did or said that, he just did it impulsively. He doesn't even understand why he lets Lox out of all people be this close to him, he hates physical touch. So much.
"Mh..really..?" Lox mutters, slight disbelief somewhat able to be found in his voice.
Mari nods still holding onto Lox. "Yeah, really. You can sleep in my bed tonight if you're really that tired of the couch. As long as you understand that this isn't going to be a regular thing," he says, his tone skeptical yet soft and stern. "This is a one-time exception, got that..kid?" He muttered, doing his best to mask any hint of doubt in his tone.
"Oh..gooood.." Lox mutters, his words slurred and faulty. "Yeaah..thanks Maress.."
Mares swallows, that dumb nickname wasn't helping. God, why was this scrawny kid getting to him so much? He wishes he just jumped him when he had the chance..yet again..he probably still wouldn't have.
"Yeah..whatever..I'm only doing this because you're so damn pathetic when you're tired, scrap.." Mari mutters, lying. It wasn't because of that, it was because Lox was so close to Mari that it was making him feel sympathy..or affection, or..something that Mari shouldn't feel.
Mari pauses, coming into question with what he should do next. Should he back away? Just lead Lox to his room like this? No..it'd be awkward.
Mari decides to back away from Lox, then lightly grab his wrist, his grip not tight, at all, really.
"Cmon.." he mutters, their footsteps muffled by the carpet below them as Mari leads Lox down a hallway, to a worn out, fairly dirty white door on the right, as soon as he opens the door, the scent of weed reeks out, filling Mari's and Lox's nose.
Mari doesn't notice it, as he's used to it. It was normal to him. Lox, on the other hand, takes a few sniffs, taking in the smell around him. He didn't say anything, though. He just went over to Mari's bed in the far left corner of Mari's room. The bed makes a small thump as Lox practically collapses on it, it's somewhat stiff, but much more comfortable than the couch.
Mari watches, a glint of amusement in his eyes as he notes Lox making himself comfortable in Mari's bed, completely oblivious, or just simply ignoring the mess of clothes piled up, notebooks and random scraps of trash scattered around, and a few bongs every now and there.
Mari walks over to the bed, the blanket moving as Mari uncovers more of the bed, sitting down on it, next to Lox, his back against the headboard. He chuckles at Lox's ignorance.
"Ain't even gonna comment on the state of my room, hm?" He asks, his tone laced with humor. "Most people would have at least some sort of reaction, but not you, no, you just jump right into my bed and make yourself at home."
"..mhm.." Lox mutters, "Your name suits you.."
Mari laughs, "My name suits me? What's that 'sposed to mean?"
"Marijuana..and you smoke a lot of it.." Lox mutters. "..and you're calm, like how it makes people.."
"Yeah..I guess that's true. Well, if my name suits me..that's a hell of a compliment, being compared to weed..I'm a little flattered." Mari jokes, "You gotta be careful with those words, Lox." He says, reaching over and ruffling Lox's hair teasingly. "You're gonna make me think you like me or somethin', if you keep sayin' things like that."
Lox shifts slightly under Mari's touch, softening slightly. He sits up, his eyes heavy-lidded and hair messy. "Mh...s-shut up..I don't.." he mutters softly.
Mari notices how Lox's face reddens at Mari's words and touch, "Oh, you don't huh?" he responds teasingly. "Then why are you getting all shy on me, kid?"
"Mh..I like my hair being played with." Lox silently admits.
Mari takes note, "Hm, so a little hair touch and you go all soft..softer than you already are, I mean.." he pauses, "nice to know."
Mari smirks, getting an idea. "Yknow, I didn't know someone so weak could get even weaker than already..it's kinda pathetic." He mocks jokingly.
"Shut up.." Lox only mutters, he yawns sleepily, before leaning on Mari's shoulder, his body pressed against his.
Mari's breath falters for a slight moment, getting goosebumps. He hesitates, unsure of what to do, before he decides to move his left arm around Lox's shoulders. It's what anyone would do, right?
Mari swallows, Lox's silence giving him time to think and go over what information he's gained. So Lox trusts people easily–a little too easily, gets beat up a lot, looks away whenever he's lying, and goes soft when his hair gets played with..hm. This scrawny kid was interesting, to say the least.
Mari can't help but feel a small sense of protection and affection for Lox as he thinks about him more, as Lox leans on him.
"You're like a magnet.." Mari mutters, pulling him closer slightly. He didn't get why Lox was so clingy.
"..Good..?" Lox murmurs sleepily.
"Yeah..it's good." He replies, his tone somewhat fond. "You're real clingy when you're tired, you know that? You're like a magnet, and I'm like metal..you're some annoying piece of iron that won't go away..keep stickin' to me even though we just met.."
Mari pauses, debating if he should say something that can be seen as vulnerable, or just let it go. "..You're lucky I don't mind." he mutters quietly, hesitantly pulling Lox closer to him.
"..You like Madagascar?" Mari asks.
"..Surfs up." Lox states.
"Really? That stupid movie? Madagascar's better." Mari argues, even though he did like Surfs up, it was just that he liked Madagascar more.
"No, it's not.." Lox mutters.
"..Whatever, we're watching Madagascar." Mari decides stubbornly, reaching over for the remote, before his phone buzzes, causing Mari to pick up his phone instead of the remote. He's getting a Facetime group call, it's from his group.
"..What?" Mari answers, his camera turned off.
"Mariii, there he is!" Mac exclaims through the phone.
"Alright Mari, I doubt you really let the kid go to your place with no injuries. Show him."
Mari huffs, "Oh c'mon, he's just a scrawny guy. You really think I'm that merciless? Rude." He says jokingly.
"I still can't believe you let him off just like that, now Gabe's being a whiny bitch." Puck rolls his eyes.
"Oh cmon, there was no reason to beat him up in the first place. It'd be unfair and hardly any fun, I mean, what fight would he have put up anyways?" Mari says, defending Lox, making up believable excuses instead of telling the real reason why.
"Oh quit defending him, Mari. It's like you've gone soft or something." Sebastian rolls his eyes.
"Oh give him a break! He's got a point." Clay argues.
"Yeah, he's got a point." Kurt agrees, like he always does.
"Oh, can you all shut up? I don't give a damn about what any of you think." Mari ripostes, " He's unharmed, and there's no reason that I should've harmed him, either.." He pauses, thinking, "And I ain't gone soft, so shut your trap, Sebastian." Mari says, irritation in his tone.
"Well, let's prove that. Camera on, Mari. Let's see if that scrap's with you." Puck says, hostility in his voice.
Mari huffs, before hesitantly turning his camera on, showing Lox, his eyes closed as he rests on Mari's shoulder. "The kid hasn't laid off me since I've gotten home, he's clingy as hell. Annoying, to say the least–"
"Wait," Clay interrupts, "He's leaning on you? As in physical contact, touching, leaning, on you?"
Mari turns his camera back off, "..Yeah. He is, so?" he murmurs defensively.
"But you never let anyone touch you." Kurt points out.
"You have gone soft! Well if he can touch you, can I?" Mac teases jokingly.
"In your dreams, Mac." Mari huffs sternly, rolling his eyes.
"Yknow, you two look like a pair of fags, I'll tell ya." Puck huffs harshly.
"Why such a downer, Puck? So what if they look like fags. Be nice, man." Clay tells Puck.
".....Yeah, yeah, whatever." Puck mutters, Clay temporarily preventing Puck's harsh comments, for some reason, Clay was the only one who could somewhat control Puck and his anger.
"He looks peaceful." Clay observes, "I ain't ever seen you so toned down, Mari. If that was any of us you'd freak, yknow."
"Oh hush up.." Mari mutters, blushing slightly, embarrassed.
"It's true though," Kurt adds.
"What makes him so special, hm, Mari? You in love with him? Ooo" Mac taunts jokingly, he loves pissing everyone off. He found it humorous.
"He ain't special– aight? He just won't get offa' me, this kid is clingy. He's like a damn magnet, it's annoying." Mari says, as if he's not contributing to it in at least the slightest.
Clay smirks, having a feeling he knows there's more to it than just that. "Mhm, whatever ya say, Mari. But we all know there's something about that kid that interests you."
"Yeah. You're all up here acting like a– acting..corny." Puck stifles an insult. "Ain't like you, ain't like you at all..." He mutters, before saying, "Hey– uh, Clay..wanna go rollerskating soon?"
"Hey, what about us?" Mari accuses, jokingly.
"Oh shut up, I owe Clay a favor..the rest of ya guys can suck it up." Puck scoffs, waiting for Clay's response.
"Yeah, that sounds nice. I'm gonna go get ready, aight? Just uhh, pick me up, will ya?"
Puck nods, "Yeah, sure., I don't mind. I'll go get ready, too." He says, before both of them hang up.
"..Yeah, I'll leave too. I gotta deal with this..kid." Mari mutters, hanging up before anyone can say anything more, and setting down his phone on the dresser, glancing down at Lox affectionately for a moment.
"..Odd kid..I don't get you." He mutters softly and quietly, "Or get what makes you so special."

In the morning, the blankets and sheets shift as Lox moves to sit up, rubbing his eyes with his hand tiredly. He looks around for a moment, seemingly confused, before he finally remembers. He's in Mari's room, this stranger's house. Lox looks down at Mari, peacefully asleep next to him. He doesn't seem so scary once he's all asleep and vulnerable like this, it's like another side of him..like some kid buried deep down, alive most when he's asleep.
Lox glances over to Mari's worn-out, chipped, dark brown wooden dresser to the right side of the bed, closer to the door than the bed. He swallows, rehydrating his mouth and throat as he looks over at the necklaces on Mari's dresser, reminded of how he took them off Mari sometime in the middle of the night, afraid Mari would get strangled by them or something like that.
There was a shark tooth–fake, maybe, a beaded necklace with muted nature tones, and a brown string.
He pauses for a few moments, actually able to take in his surroundings now that he isn't as affected by his sleepiness. Mari's room is messy, to say the least. There are clothes scattered everywhere, along with various wrappers and empty bottles, either soda or alcohol. There's one or two bongs, maybe a little more, and it reeked of weed. At least there wasn't any mold or old, rotten food lying around.
Lox doesn't feel disgusted, he just feels sympathy. There's more to Mari than just some harsh, rough, aloof asshole. There's much more hidden under his exterior, and Lox wants to learn what. Mari's still a kid, deep down. Just like the rest of the people in his grade, no matter how 'mature' they act. Deep down they're scared and have no idea what they're doing. And Lox pities those kids. And Lox pities Mari, except the pity came from an area of genuineity, instead of simple, instinctive human sympathy and remorse.
Lox glances down at Mari once more, his gaze softening. He eventually shuffles, getting off the bed, and doing his best not to wake Mari.
He stretches as soon after his feet hit the soft carpet, yawning. He swallows, observing the room around him. He might as well thank Mari for a few things, right?
Lox's gaze traced the wrappers, crumpled up pieces of paper, where to start, where to start...
Eventually, his gaze landed on an alcohol bottle. It was glass, so if it broke it would be the most struggle to clean up. He decided that's where he would start, removing the most riskiest things first, to the least harmful ones.
He searched for a plastic bag, there oughta be one around here somewhere. Bingo.
Lox's feet move under him, pattering softly against the carpet as he avoids Mari's clothes while also trying to not wake him. He kneels down, his hand greeted by the cool plastic as his grip tightens around the handle of the plastic bag, he stands up, holding it.
Lox walks over to a pile of trash, picking up multiple bottles; varying between glass and plastic. He drops them in the bag gently, doing his best not to make too much rustling with it.
He does this a decent amount of times, picking up various wrappers, bottles, crumpled-up papers, broken pencils, dead batteries, and some other pieces of trash. He avoids touching any of Mari's clothes.
Eventually, after a slight while of moving around, he sets the bag aside somewhere, near the door so Mari knows to trash it once he sees it. Lox yawns, already slightly drained, getting goosebumps. It's cold. Real cold. He turns his head, looking towards the closet. Mari wouldn't mind, right? And even if he did...it's fine.
Lox hesitantly walks over to the closet and opens the door quietly. He stumbles upon a small section of Mari's jackets, he goes through them, eyeing each one of them with curiosity and interest. Eventually, he decides on a black one, with a neon-ish green M on the front, along with a bunch of other random gray and green details scattered around, making it look all the cooler, to Lox, at least.
Lox grabs it, closing the closet door as he backs up from it, slipping his arms through the holes. It was a big fit on him, to say the least. But yet again, most people's clothes are a big fit on him, probably bigger. Lox was a scrawny, skinny kid. At least he was the same height as Mari, that helped.
He decides not to zip up the jacket, as it'd just look stupid on him. He yawns, realizing how much exhaustion cleaning Mari's room brought upon him, considering he was already tired. It drained the liveliness out of him, and there was already little to begin with. Lox had gotten little sleep throughout the night, sleeping in bits and portions, waking up between sections just to make sure he still had his limbs and features. He was on guard practically the whole night, scared about if this and that happened.
He blinks drowsily, knowing it's best if he just goes back to sleep, even if it's only for a few slight minutes or five hours. He needs it, nonetheless. He carries himself back over to Mari's bed–Mari still somehow resting, and lousily gets back on it, the bed dipping in response, Lox returns to his original spot, the one he was in before he woke up. The bed rustles slightly as he turns over, facing Mari. He scans his face, taking in his current look of innocence and vulnerability. He doubted anyone got to see him like this often, if at all.