All Our Sensitivity

chapter twenty-five - teen dream

Finals came and went without much excitement. Nate was more than glad to be done with a couple of his classes, but sad to leave others. He had grown quite fond of a couple professors, but he ultimately had to say goodbye. The actual projects and tests he took were not the worst they could be. There were a couple late nights where Theodore stopped by offering some treats to motivate Nate. These treats included food, drinks, and kisses. Obviously, Nate's parents didn't know about the kisses aspect of the gifts, but they were Nate's personal favorite.

Between the time spent at school and at home, Nate and Theodore didn't have much one-on-one time. When they had hung out together it was always at Nate's house. There, the twins would interrupt constantly despite the boys' efforts of closing the door. While it was annoying, Theodore never minded, and the two young adults and two kids spent a good amount of time together watching movies and going to the park. There was something about Theodore spending time with Nate's siblings and Nate's sibling loving it that warmed the blind man's heart.

When he had officially gone on break, his parents congratulated him with a lovely home-cooked meal and $50. Nate and his friends all celebrated by getting tipsy and watching 4 Nick Cage movies in one day. Theodore couldn't join because of a family dinner, and as weird as it felt, Nate was glad. He didn't know how much longer he could spend being with Theodore without actually being able to touch him. Once they had moved past the point of being just friends, it was excruciating to go back.

They finally got alone time at Theodore's house, and Nate couldn't have been happier. Nate didn't know why Theodore had invited him over; he was only given information on the fact that there was a surprise waiting for him. They kissed as soon as they were inside the home, and it felt just as good as it had been every time. Theodore grabbed Nate's waist and tingles shot throughout his entire side. Nate brushed his hand over Theodore's hair that had recently been buzzed shorter after months of growing it out. Nate had grown fairly comfortable with not wearing his shades anymore while being around the other man, which made for uninterrupted kissing.

"Okay, sit here," Theodore instructed as he gently pushed Nate's shoulder to the bed.

It wasn't even a full minute that Nate had been there and his face already hurt from grinning. He tapped his crossed knee in anticipation.

Suddenly, he felt the paper and heard the crinkle of a bag being put on his lap. He grabbed it gingerly with his fingers and traced the sides until he reached the opening. "You didn't have to get me a gift."

"Shut up and open it," Theodore sighed dramatically.

Nate laughed at Theodore's bluntness and pulled out the tissue paper. He reached inside and pulled out two hard plastic cases—immediately recognizing them as CDs. His smile grew tenfold.

"It's the new Sufjan Stevens album and Teen Dream," Theodore said—acknowledging one of Nate's favorite Beach House albums. "I kind of snooped through your collection while I was at your house to make sure I didn't get you any duplicates."

While they were simple gifts, they meant the world to Nate. He cherished his CD collection more than anything, even though it was quite small. He had stopped collecting CDs for a while because Chloe thought the hobby was weird and dorky. But here Theodore was—not only encouraging it, but actively fueling it.

"Thank you so much, Theo," Nate said. 'Theo' had become a more regular thing as the days progressed.

"No need to thank me. Thank yourself for kicking ass in school. You're so smart it's kind of ridiculous."

Nate rolled his eyes. He reached his hand out—expecting Theodore's body to be somewhere in that general area. It wasn't, but Theodore pretended as if Nate hadn't grasped at air as he slid into Nate's arm, letting the boy pull him in for a hug. Nate's head landed on Theodore's stomach due to the dynamic of the blind man sitting and the sighted man standing. Theodore ruffled Nate's hair as they embraced.