Double Dare

3

Benji struts down the hallway, hips switching suggestively in his pencil thin jeans, catching the eye of anyone and everyone in the vicinity. He winks at a freshman who dares stare too long, receiving a furious blush in response.

Grinning, he continues on his way to the lunchroom, a pep in his step. He's trying to get there fast enough to rig the seating in a way that would force Danny to sit somewhere close to him. In Benji's mind, it's a foolproof plan.

However, stumbling into the room, a pout crosses his face. Nearly shoulder to shoulder, Danny stares up at Beau while he explains something; Benji's always envied that, how good Beau is at explaining things.

Danny glances up, then quickly away when Benji approaches, face flushing red as he stutters out a question. Benji begins to wonder if Danny being flustered is a good thing, plopping himself down in the seat next to him.

"...So, I sort them and eat them in that order. Understand?" Beau looks up at Danny hesitantly from his small parade of fruit snacks. He's used to providing explanation for his habits, but he's feeling particularly self conscious this time through.

Danny nods enthusiastically, much to Beau's relief. "Yeah, I got it. It's like... Like they're all gonna die, but you wanna kill off the different species equally. Right?"

Beau nods as though he's got an idea; his brother interrupts him before he gets too excited. "I take it we're going over the colored snack process? Sort, order, consume?"

Danny nods. "Y-yeah I was just asking about it." He asks if he can eat the next fruit snack in line, and Beau nods. When he reaches for it, however, a girl thunders over to sit in his lap.

"Hi, Danny! I've been looking everywhere for you. How's school going?" She pokes Danny's cheek while she talks, and Beau looks away so his frustration won't show.

"Ah, Lola. Um." A rather startled Danny glances around the table. "These are Benji and Beau. Guys, this is Lola."

The girl waves with her fingers, and Benji waves back, smiling. Beau only grunts, as he does whenever something makes him mildly uncomfortable. His twin hides a grin.

Then, almost too quickly for anyone to register, Lola coos, "Ooh, fruit snacks," and selects one from the center of the line. Before she can be stopped, she's eaten it.

Benji glowers at the table, feeling Beau tense up. It'd been an honest mistake; anyone could have made it. But, Benji was overcome with the urge to curse at Lola.

"B-Beau?" Danny gently skims his fingers over Beau's sleeve. "You okay?"

Beau takes a shaky breath, stands so quickly that his chair almost flips over, and rushes out of the lunchroom. Danny starts to get up, but Benji claps his hand on his shoulder, trying not to look too worried. "No, you stay here, sweets. He wouldn't want you seeing him like this." He looks away, puts his smirk back in place. "I'll catch you later."

Danny watches him jog after his brother, more confused than he'd been before. He sighs and picks at his food, while Lola chatters on about things he doesn't care about.

The line of fruit snacks sits untouched.

***

Beau crouches on the floor of a bathroom stall, the walls feeling too close, room too cold. Fists in his hair, he repeats, "Everything will be alright," softly under his breath. But, it isn't working as well as it usually does. Shadows form in the fluorescent lights and crawl towards him, wrapping around his throat.

Frustrated tears spring to his eyes, because it's been so long since he's had an incident at school, and he was doing so well. That's what his mother would say, with that slightly disappointed, shiny look in her eyes.

Beau suddenly feels so incredibly germy. He grabs with shaking hands for his bag, realizes that he left it in the lunchroom. For a brief moment, he considers going to get it, but he'd rather die than let Danny see him like this. So, he shakes on the floor in a little ball until Benji arrives.

"Beau?" His voice echoes through the little room, bouncing off of walls. "You in here?" Beau can practically hear the little crease between his brows, and it makes him want to cry in relief.

He tries to respond, but it only comes out in a loud sob. Benji's feet scuffle along the floor, resting in front of the last stall. His hands, through the crack at the bottom, offer an unopened package of travel Kleenex, and a container of Wet-Ones. "You alright?"

Beau takes one, then the other, shoving the Kleenex into his pocket and using the wipes to clean his hands aggressively. "Um." He tries to clear the tremble from his voice. "Is it bad if I say not really?"

Benji sighs. "Can I come in?"

"Y-yeah. Just, ah, don't touch me." Beau unlocks the door, wipes at his fingertips. "Sorry," he whispers.

"That's okay." The two of them stand side by side, as always, in silence. "Do you want me to tell Mrs. Hanner that you'll be late?"

"Please."

"Okay. And, Danny's worried about you." Benji glances at the side of Beau's face, watching for a reaction. "Wouldn't stop asking about you during lunch."

Beau shakes his head, grimacing at the linoleum tiles. "I didn't mean to make him worry... Damn. I'm so sorry. Can you, uh, tell him not to? Worry, I mean."

Benji laughs despite the tension, and Beau's shoulders tense. "You can't just command people not to worry, B. That's not how it works. But, I can try." Beau nods, and Benji continues. "Want me to call Mom?"

Beau hides his face behind his hands, then rasps, "Yes. Please."

"Okay. No problem, little bro." Benji turns to exit the stall, glances over his shoulder. "Hey." Beau peeks up at him, and Benji offers a warm smile. "It's okay. Don't beat yourself up over this. No one thinks you're crazy or anything, I promise. Everyone slips up sometimes."

Beau nods, looking at his shoes. "Yeah. Um, thanks."

Benji only nods, leaving the room. Beau takes a shallow breath, folding a tissue into a small square, and tries to prepare himself to reenter the outside world.

A/N: Hey!

Sorry it's been a while aha I've been a little busy. I hope you liked this chapter? To be honest, I didn't really want to write it because it's sort of odd emotionally, but here it is.

Vote/ comment if you like!

xx