jumpscare ✓

👻 : THIRTY FOUR!

AS EVERYONE ELSE IS DISPERSING FROM THE STADIUM, cheering and smiling over the previous hour and a half, Tyler is looping around to run across the now-empty pit. He's never been so happy as he slightly bruises his ribs climbing over an amp, watching the shadow of Michael as he watches back.

"God, that was amazing!" Tyler is laughing as Michael pulls him closer into his body, laughing into his neck and kissing him lightly. "I knew your voice live was literally amazing, but I don't think I was prepared enough for any of it."

Michael is smiling so much it hurts - it isn't really a secret that he loves any sort of praise, especially since he always sees people talking about the other three and how talented they are. Even on the off chance it does

"You'll make him cry, calm down!" Luke is laughing from behind the two of them, and Michael just blushes even deeper before standing back up. "Michael's a delicate flower."

"I'll throw you off a bridge." He mumbles, eyes lighting up again as he sees Sierra walk in as well, clearly trying to creep up on Luke somehow. "Oh, uh, me and Tyler are going to go play Pokémon!"

Ashton simply raises an eyebrow at the two of them, still trying to clear up the debris left over from their show and Luke's water bottle, which seems to have evaporated from existence. "Crazy what the kids are calling sex these days."

Michael simply stands there with his mouth open in shock, before magically producing the water bottle Ashton has been looking for and aiming it at his head. He only just dodges the projectile, standing up after the attack to see Tyler and Michael running backstage and laughing to themselves. "I hate both of them."

"You're not special." Calum mumbles, watching them leave.

— 👻 —

Michael pulls Tyler down onto the bed as soon as they get in their room, fingers already in his hair. He's so, so wrapped up in this man, already so addicted to his presence.

It doesn't feel like he's only known Tyler for a few months. It doesn't feel like they met via horror movies and Twitter DMs. Michael legitimately can't imagine his life without him, and while that scares him a little, it's a good thing.

He could still be alone, recovering from one of the most emotionally draining events and relationships of his life, still in the closet and alone in how he feels. Unable to talk to Luke (for fear of reminding him of his own problems) or Ashton (for fear of triggering something bad in his mentality) or Calum (for fear of reminding him that he's alone - Michael knows he wishes he wasn't).

But he isn't.

And so Michael smiles against his boyfriend's mouth, thinking about all of this. Tyler obviously notices, and kisses him deeper. And finally, he can say that he's genuinely, truly happy.