"It sounds annoyingly complicated." Minho commented that cold afternoon.
Gally gave the track star his most deadened expression.
Thomas found himself in one of the most awkward situations of his life. What was meant to be a quick lunch with his boyfriends turned into a gathering of friends.
Teresa and Aris sat idly near the end of the table, sharing a large pile of onion rings while Rachel and Sonya giggled among themselves over a joke Thomas missed. Alby had joined them soon after, Harriet on his heels and now Gally, who had sat down on their table without permission. It irked Minho, but after Gally's talk the other day, Thomas would've felt rude sending the boy away.
Somehow, within the twenty minutes it took for them to settle down, the topic of their sex lives reared its ugly head. Thomas resisted the urge to bury his face behind his food, his cheeks hot like fire and as red as apples.
"There's nothing complicated 'bout it, just pure laziness." Gally continued with a heavy eye roll. "Aftercare is one of the most important things in an S and M relationship. What better way to show your partner you care than by helping clean up the mess you made?"
"Yeah, yeah," Minho drawled. "We get it, guru. We've been keeping up with it. Calm your klunk behind."
Gally screwed up his freckled face in disgust. "I'm not jokin' Minho. Thomas could've gotten seriously injured 'cuz you shanks don't shuckin' know how to care for him. And you!" He whirled on Newt with a pointed finger, surprising the blond from his reverie. "What the hell were you thinkin' leaving Minho in charge of klunk like this? The slinthead doesn't know head or tails 'bout shit like this. I'm really disappointed. You should know better."
Newt struggled for words, rattled by the unexpected confrontation while Minho bristled at Gally's accusations.
Thomas laughed. "Wow Gally, I didn't know you cared so much."
"You guys think I'm playing around, but shit like this is serious. This isn't a phase, this is a lifestyle. I couldn't let you shanks go on like a bunch of morons, hurting each other and ruining something good." He dug into his pineapple cup, fishing out the pieces aggressively. "Listen, if you're interested, I've got a lot of books on the subject and a website that'll help. I can give it to you shanks if it means you'll be safe in your hanky panky."
Harriet suddenly laughed. "Hanky panky? Good God Gally!"
He blushed. "Shut up!"
The group divulged into nonsensical chatter after that. Thomas stubbornly tried to maintain his nonchalance in the face of the girls' teasing. Minho took great pleasure in humiliating the boy further, still irritated with Gally's earlier outburst.
Thomas hung back, watching them all. Something pleasantly warm filled his chest, chasing out the bitter air of a cold winter afternoon and pulled a smile onto his chapped, dry lips.
He was really going to miss these guys during winter break.
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