Serendipitous (Gawsten)

60. Spacious

"Baby," Geoff ran his hand along the inside of Awsten's thigh as an attempt to get the younger boy's attention. "Sweetheart, we're here."

"Hmm?" Awsten's voice broke slightly as he groaned, opening his eyes slowly as he heard the gentle hum of the engine stop and the squeaky hand break click back into its place. Awsten wasn't asleep by any means, he'd already slept enough for one day in his opinion, he was just drifting off into his own headspace while he wallowed in appreciation for how perfectly everything seemed to be playing out.

When he looked in front of him, it took his eyes a moment to adjust. It was still fairly dark outside, the sun only starting to rise from behind the mountains, but regardless of that, Awsten could still see well enough, and it was beautiful.

The car was parked at the top of a short slope, it wasn't very steep either. The slope was covered in grass and pebbles that led down to a wide river, the current looked surprisingly calm and although it was hard to tell from where Awsten was sitting, it didn't look all that deep at the edges, although the water was very dark towards the middle. The banks of the river were lined with pebbles and mud but there was something so authentic about it that just pieced it all together like some sort of abstract artwork.

"Is it even legal for us to be here?"

"Is that all you have to say?" Geoff laughed a little, he didn't sound offended though, which Awsten was glad. The boy didn't even know what to say. It was finally settling in that they had just run away together. Away from his dad. Together. Away from their problems, together. "I mean... probably not. It's private property but nobody owns it anymore. The worst anyone will ask us to do is leave, trust me. Plus, nobody even comes out here to do that so I wouldn't worry about it."

"It's perfect." Awsten opened the passenger side door and pulled himself out of the car, the cold morning air immediately making contact with his exposed skin, he didn't mind though, it was refreshing. He immediately noticed the sound of the river, it sounded more violent then he looked, the contrast was attractive to him. He also noticed how the air smelled like spring, which was his favourite time of year, despite it only nearing winter. "How long will we be up here? What if we miss Christmas?"

"Not to ruin any hopes that you had in mind but I highly doubt we'll stay that long. We're going to run out of money before then. We will just have to figure something else out before that happens, don't worry. I wont let you go home if it isn't safe."

"It's never going to be safe." Awsten sighed as he thought about that, Geoff getting out of the car as well, walking around to Awsten, softly kissing him on the cheek.

"I said we'll figure it out." Geoff squinted and rubbed his eyes, clearly trying to stifle a yawn. Awsten could tell that he was absolutely exhausted, no matter how hard the older boy was trying to hide it and stay awake.

"Geoff, get some sleep. Seriously." Geoff shook his head and was about to protest although Awsten quickly cut in, he was going to get his way. "Don't say no. I want fucking cuddles and as my boyfriend you are required to give them to me."

He quickly grabbed onto the older boy's wrist and attempted to drag him to the backseats of the car, letting go of the boy's wrist so that he could open the door and climb in, pulling the lever so that he could fold down one of the seats and climb over and into the back of Geoff's car. It wasn't exactly spacious, but it was definitely the best they were going to get; at least Geoff's car had this and they weren't stuck sleeping across the backseats.

"Get in." Awsten leaned over and yanked on Geoff's arm, causing him to stumble slightly before steadying himself and climbing in, over the folded down seat to be with Awsten. The younger boy flicked the lever again and pulled the seat up so they had something to lean against while they cuddled, hopefully Geoff could get some sleep as well; partially because Awsten cared about him, and partially because he adored nighttime walks and he wanted Geoff to go with him later. "Cuddle with me."

"Holy fuck," Geoff laughed as he tried to sit comfortably against the backs of the seats since his legs were too long for him to completely lie down. "You're so stubborn."

Awsten frowned and sighed with impatience, resting his head on Geoff's stomach and wrapping the older boy's arm around himself when he realised that he wasn't going to do it himself. "Not stubborn. Needy. They're different things. You should feel honoured that I actually want you near me."

"Oh, believe me. I do," Geoff smiled as he mocked the boy, repositioning his arm so that it was resting comfortably around the smaller boy's waist, squeezing him gently. His other hand was tangled in Awsten's blonde hair, he noticed how much regrowth was coming through. He wondered what Awsten would look like with his natural hair colour.

They were comfortable. Awsten was satisfied as well, his head still resting on Geoff's stomach while the older boy had his arms wrapped around him, it was so soft. It was pink. His favourite colour. He wondered what it looked like.

They lay there together and wondered about all of the thoughts passing through their brains, tiring them both out. Awsten heard Geoff's breathing slow down, he'd fallen asleep.

Regardless of how much sleep Awsten had already managed to get, slowly but surely, so did he.