Tinder Boy » [cake] √

0.7

So they hung out a week and a half later, they'd texted a fair bit during the week, but Luke had still been nervous when Calum had brought up hanging out. He knew his feelings (whatever they may be) weren't going to have gone away in that short period, and feelings generally lead to making stupid comments and doing stupid things. 

They'd decided to meet at the Tempe train station and take a bus from there further into the suburb, Calum claiming he knew the best OP shop hidden somewhere in the suburb. They'd sat on the bus together for forty minutes or so making idle chit-chat about work and university and how dreadful the weather had been of late. Luke didn't know how to joke with Calum without seeming like he was trying to flirt, maybe Luke was a bit of a flirt? Maybe he didn't know how to flirt? Fuck. 

"So who would you say your oldest friend is? Tell me about them," Calum said finally as they entered the large thrift storefront doors. 

Luke looked around quickly noticing the massive size of the store almost like a warehouse... but flatter? And somehow very stuffy considering its size. "Uh, Michael, I guess. He's kind of an idiot, he plays video games and watches weird anime, and he was the first person I came out to, he's like a brother to me, ya know? Where's this coming from? No offence it's just random and yet very specific," 

Calum was already rifling through a rack, not looking up to respond to Luke, "Well, honestly? I knew it was going to be kind of awkward so I may have looked up some conversation starters," the other boy chuckled if he hadn't had his head shoved down looking through the rack Luke might have seen the blush on his cheeks. 

"Alright, who's your oldest friend then?"

"Umm, I haven't known him for like a really long time but he's definitely my best friend, Ashton, he's just a chill dude, normally he and I come here actually," 

Luke turned his back on the other boy after spotting a particularly dreadful button up, "he's not going to be annoyed with me, is he? Michael knows an Ashton actually," 

"He's always annoyed about something, I doubt you'll make the list though, What's his last name?" Calum was looking through clothes piled on a table when Luke triumphantly turned back around holding the shirt against himself, "that's awful, you have to get it," 

"It's too short for me, I thought it'd look good on you though," he offered the shirt to the shorter boy with a smile, "Iriwn was his last name I think," Luke added before breaking eye contact and moving to search through another rack. 

"I doubt it's a coincidence, I think our friends know each other," Luke's mind was swimming if it was the same Ashton, he was very gay and out and proud, and Luke was jealous. Ashton was good looking, and he was friends with Michael, so he had to have some redeeming qualities because Michael wasn't in the business of hanging around with pieces of shit. "Luke, Luke! I said they must know each other," 

He finally looked up, "Oh yeah sorry, I just completely spaced I'm sorry. If he's the same guy I've met your best friend before then, briefly," 

"Funny you'd think in a city this big you'd be able to get away from people,"

"Apparently not, I ran into Michael by accident in the western suburbs, we were like over an hour train ride from either of our places,"

"Okay... So pink or polka dots?" Calum asked holding up two different shirts. 

"They both look good; you'll have to try them on,"

Calum simply nodded tossing the shirts over his shoulder with the other one Luke had found, and headed off in the direction of the change rooms. Luke stood awkwardly watching him leave for a moment trying to figure out if he was supposed to follow to give his opinion or if Calum would think it was weird finding Luke waiting outside his change room.

The shorter boy stopped, "you coming?" he asked over his shoulder, Luke just nodded a little too vigorously. 

So he waited outside the dingy dressing room trying to find something to keep him occupied, he didn't want to look weird. So he was investigating the hat rack where he found a black cap with 'I love my 1999 Toyota Corolla' and an atrocious scarf that was covered in sesame street characters.

"Okay here's the pink one," Luke had the hat on and the scarf in hand when he turned to face Calum who took his breath away in the well fitted pink button up. Calum chuckled when he saw Luke; Luke blushed thinking it was because the māori boy had seen his jaw hit the floor at the sight of him. "Jeez that hat's pretty specific, you've gotta get it. Then get a 1999 Toyota Corolla to match it," 

Luke laughed, "alright then you have to get that shirt," 

Calum looked down at his chest and pinched the fabric between his fingers, which pulled the fabric across his stomach tighter, and Luke's eyes wandered looking at the space as if he had x-ray vision. Alas he did not, "It's more Ash's colour; I might get it for him,"

Luke's eyes snapped back up a heat prickling the skin on his face, "It looks really nice with your skin tone,"

"Thanks, I might get it then, I'm going to go and try the other one on," the little smile on Calum's face when he'd said that reassured Luke that he must be doing something right.

They continued in this fashion for the rest of the afternoon; the more comfortable they got with each other, the more ambitious their outfit choices until Calum was filming Luke as he strutted around in a wedding dress. 

"Absolutely stunning,"

"Thank you, dear, daddy said he doesn't care about the price, whatever I want I get," Luke announced in a false southern accent as he twirled. 

A grin split across the other boys face as he watched through his phone screen, he knew that whether they stayed friends or not this was a nice memory he wanted to keep, as well as the absurd comment that for some reason despite its goofy nature Calum had already stored into his wank bank.

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Dedicated to Evelins24