Connor and Lucas were back at the hotel, about to go to their rooms at 12:00 until Lucas', he assumed, dad stepped in. His dad was very unlike Lucas, he had a bald head and was incredibly out of shape. However, he still shared the same softness in Lucas' face.
Unlike Holly, his dad didn't rush in for a hug, but instead, stood at the doorway until Lucas was ready to notice him. It took a few second for it to happen, then, a spring in his step, he walked over to him.
"Hey dad!" Lucas called. His dad wrapped him around into a headlock, rubbing his fist on his forehead playfully and Lucas let out a cheesy smile once again, pushing the man off and scrambling until he was free.
"How did the game go?" His accent was very thickly American.
"We won!" Lucas was still bouncing with joy, probably generating enough heat to warm up the entire hotel. His dad ruffled Lucas' hair.
"And who's your friend?"
Almost distracted by Lucas, Connor perked up by the sudden question, feeling as if he was an invisible figure beside him the whole conversation. So this was what meeting the parents felt like.
"I'm Connor, sir." Was it the lack of hair that made Connor pick up the sudden formalities despite the extremely intimate family bonding that he witnessed? Connor instantly felt flushed, hiding his mouth behind his hands.
"Just call me Paul." He jokingly held out his hand for a handshake and when Connor went it reach for it, he pulled back and teased him. Lucas was a lot nicer when they met. Although, he doubted that Paul was trying to be intentionally stimulus or rude, it was just a thing dads were supposed to do, Connor supposed.
Lucas looked almost embarrassed, but kept a somewhat open ended composure, for both his dad and Connor's sake.
"Do you kids want to grab some dinner?" He asked, completely ignoring the fact Lucas was slightly sweaty.
"It's, like, three in the afternoon, Dad."
Connor wanted to lay back, frustrated with his internal distractions. He was feeling blue, like oceans that flooded the emptiness with some sort of suffocating incapability. This blue fire was scalding and flickered through his fingertips during the winter chill, but it was slightly unpleasant. Bitter. It tasted bitter on the tip of his tongue and he couldn't find the words to describe why he felt a certain way. Trying to describe it felt even more fatiguing. At the same time, he desperately wanted to go out for 'dinner' with Lucas and his dad. It wasn't like he felt an obligation to do it as if it were homework due the next day, but the idea of having a family bonding moment was very appealing. Now, instead of blue representing sadness, it was the colour of Lucas' blue eyes.
"I'll pass, me and Connor have stuff to do," Lucas whined, pulling Connor into his hotel room and shutting the door behind them. Shocked, Connor went red. Lucas sat down on the bed, unshaped by the event. Connor, however, was a mess. He sat cross legged on the floor, letting the previous bitter taste turn sweet.
"What about your dad?" Connor asked, almost wishing Lucas hadn't said anything. Connor's dad, Leon, was similar to Paul in some ways. They both came across like sappy parents with a hint of unreliability. However, he trusted that Paul cared about Lucas deeply.
Connor faced Lucas once again, seeing his heavenly features that tore dramatically through his heart. From his perfectly defined jaw, to his messy hair, everything was gorgeous.
"He'll be fine." A moment of silence was broken by his soft voice, then once more did Lucas speak, "What about you? Aren't your parents in the hotel with you?"
Had he not said that, Connor wouldn't have felt the flavoursome regret in his throat. It harboured the same feeling as the few seconds before crying that tug at your heart. He felt wrapped up in Lucas' words, hopelessly.
"Yeah..."
"Then how about I sleep in there with you?"
"There's..." Connor let his words drift off for a second, "there's only one bed."
Lucas looked confused, as if the fact there was only one bed was a problem. To him, it probably didn't have the same feeling as it did for Connor, who, at this rate, was not going to live until the end of the week because of Lucas' sudden advances. But, it hurt. He definitely didn't feel the same way as Connor and nothing could change that.
"We can always top and tail," he shrugged, aware that there was some boundaries. But the audacity of this boy was unimaginable. He crawled to the end of the bed, body spread out and his hair wild, and looked Connor in the face. They were only a few centimetres apart, his eyes like jewels.
"Do you really want to?" Connor whispered. It felt as if their conversation was a secret and their friendship was even more of a secret.
"I don't want you to be lonely."
If Connor had a penny for every time he wanted to give Lucas a kiss, he'd have enough money to just bribe Lucas to go out with him. It was sweet of him to think of Connor first, but he knew there was nothing else behind those words. No dirty intentions, just a plain and friendly gesture.
Connor couldn't think of anything to say, so panicking, he moved backwards, almost bumping into the wall.
"You're sweaty so, go take a shower!" Connor blurted out, like a dumbass. Lucas showed him an unapologetic grin before going to the bathroom. By now, Connor's head was overheating, so he sat on the bed, ready to fall asleep as his hot breath disturbed him. The will to stay awake was weak and it took a moment of silence to shut the whole world out.
He didn't dream this time.
Instead, he slept only lightly, awakened at the sound of the bathroom door unlocking. Lucas wasn't wearing a shirt but instead has his towel around his neck casually. Connor was sure he was so sleepy that he was still asleep. Lucas was expertly chiseled on his top half, putting Connor's body to shame. Must've been the football, he thought, turning to his side and trying to fall asleep again. But the view he had witnessed woke him up fully. He didn't dare turn to face Lucas again.
Luckily, he had the initiative to put on a white shirt along with his patterned boxers. Connor turned around after him getting changed, giving a sigh of relief, despite the awkward silence.
It was approaching 4:00 at that point and Connor wasn't particularly hungry, but Lucas looked ravenous, almost about to resort to cannibalism.
"Can we grab a bite to eat?" Lucas finally asked. It seemed that he was always the one to break the silence. The freezing silence that lingered, making Connor even more away of how uncomfortable he felt, wanting to find himself on Lucas' skin. But each second could tick away carelessly, losing opportunities that merged with alternate realities. There was one where Connor couldn't have run away from home and there'd be another where he was actually attracted to women instead. Nonetheless, the silence was always aborted by the pleasantness of Lucas' voice; it was something Connor was thankful for.
"Just the two of us?" Connor remained defensive with his shy voice. But, he still remained somewhat confident with his words. Much to his dismay, Lucas didn't seem to care or notice whatsoever.
"We should probably just stay inside..." Lucas walked to the window, hidden behind ugly burgundy curtains that draped over them ever so stubbornly. As he looked outside, the heaviness of the curtain was almost distracting. It was,pressed against his back and refused to let go. Lucas decided it was for the better if he didn't look out there.
Connor still looked on, timidly.
"We could order some food and watch a film next door."
Lucas rushed over, squashing Connor's cheeks together, making his lips pout. His hands were neither hit nor cold but, like the heavy curtains, Connor felt an obligation to let himself be commanded by the stubborn yet rough hands of Lucas Welwyn.
"You're a genius, Connor!"
One could only dream, Connor though as the grip was loosened on his face. He wasn't a genius, it only seemed that way from him due to being an absolute idiot. But that dorky attitude of his became more of a blessing than a curse.
"What movie do you want to watch and, I guess, what kinda food do you want to order?"
It suddenly came to Connor that he walked straight into the habit of taking responsibility and letting others chose lest his quick thinking become obnoxious and ruin everyone's day. If Lucas, on the other hand, had asked him to pick a film, he would pick something sappy. It reminded him of his sister in a way, just lest obnoxiously loud. However, Lucas was not his sister and there was no doubt that Lucas would pick anything other than an action film. It just seemed like the type of films he'd enjoy.
"I like romantic comedies." Connor had realise he was wrong once again, but before he even got the chance to wallow in self pity, Lucas continued, "And you could never go wrong with pizza!"
So they did just that. A blanket made of love rest over the two of them as they watched the film. The pizza was finished by the end of it and Connor was too distracted by Lucas' warm smile and laugh during some of the horrific CGI scenes. It was something so rare and wonderful as if his sister was there.
