The Lies That We Tell

𝐬𝐞𝐱 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐟𝐨𝐨𝐝

Theo had been strange lately. Quentin had noticed these small changes in his behavior. For example, he avoided Quentin a lot and that meant that he couldn't even look him in the eyes or be in the same room if he wasn't forced to be.

Then again, he was the same as everyone else. The golden boy had been alone a lot and it went as far as eating alone in the cafeteria and giving one-word-answers to his friends if he wasn't ignoring them.

Also, he had been doing pretty badly at basketball practice lately, at least that's what the rumors said.

Quentin could have done the same and frankly, Theo deserved that. It could have been so easy to ignore him for the rest of his life and only talk with him when he had no other choice. Yes, that sounded like a good plan with no drama.

Then why on earth did Quentin ask him out for a dinner? Sure, he felt bad for the boy who looked like a depressed puppy. Sure, he had been thinking that it might have something to do with the fact that they kissed, or more like made out, two weeks ago. But that didn't answer his question.

Why did he ask him out for dinner? One that he promised to cook in his house? And why, god, why did Theo said yes? Was this a date? All he wanted was to help Theo to relax and now he was the one stressing out.

"Okay. Don't panic, don't panic," Quentin repeated to himself while trying to stop food from turning into flames that could possibly burn the whole apartment down.

It was Thursday afternoon and he had just gotten back home from school, feeling hungry for not eating much after breakfast.

He was a very average cook. The only one who usually cooked for the family was his mother and sometimes his father helped or cooked alone but that was mostly when his mother wasn't home for dinner time, which didn't happen often.

After a few minutes of running around like a headless chicken, he finally got the situation under control and luckily the food hadn't gone bad. Yet. He made sure that everything was alright and clear and that there weren't any of his siblings' dolls on the floor.

With nothing else to do, he sat down in the living room's couch and waited for Theo to come. Now he had somehow managed to make a dinner that might be good enough to offer to his date with the help of his mother.

She made everything easier by forcing his entire family to go somewhere for the evening. They would come back by eight because tomorrow was still a school day and the twins had to go sleep earlier than others. He had about four and a half hours which should be more than enough.

He waited. And waited. And waited. And waited until it was clear that Theo was late if he was even coming. Okay, twenty minutes wasn't that much and maybe he was only stuck in the traffic or something very reasonable but he was still annoyed.

The least Theo could do was call if he wasn't able to come or would be late so the dinner wouldn't be cold. His dinner that he put so much effort into. Dammit, if he wasn't coming he would eat all of it by himself. And maybe even some dessert.

Suddenly the doorbell rang and he left out the breath he didn't know he was holding. He really came. And Quentin couldn't help but smile as he opened the door that revealed his date dressed in different clothes that he wore at school.

Black, clean jeans and a light blue dress shirt didn't sound much but it showed that he thought about their date so much that he decided to change clothes for that. The thought warmed Quentin's heart more than it should.

"Sorry that I'm late. Ooh, it smells good in here," was the first thing that Theo said as he walked in the house while looking around the rooms.

His home was quite big which was needed when there lived seven people in it. The kitchen, his parents and the twins' bedrooms, bathroom and living room were all downstairs while his, Daniel and Sebastian's bedrooms were upstairs with another bathroom. One wasn't enough to even for three people in a hurry and trying to get seven people to use one was impossible.

They used to have one dog too, Dalmatian named Lucky, but he passed away six years ago. Daniel and Sebastian had asked for another dog or even cat and he also wouldn't mind having a new animal in the house because Lucky was with them for a long time and he loved the dog very much.

Theo was still looking around and now he was in the living room staring at the photographs. Their family took a lot of pictures and if they weren't put into one of many photo albums, they were on the walls so that everyone could see them.

There were the best pictures, like the day when the whole family went to Disney World, when his father won the awards for his books and the school's play where Sebastian played the role of the main character. Of course, there were some not-so-good pictures like the one where Quentin was dressed on Halloween as a clown with a sad look on his face.

He certainly didn't like that one very much but his mother thought he was adorable. And when his mother said something, no one else's opinion mattered.

"Want to eat now when the food's still warm?" he asked and smiled when Theo nodded. They both took food before sitting down in the kitchen.

"Sorry again that I made you wait," Theo said, looking very nervous, but still didn't bother explaining why he was so late.

"It's okay."

"So, have you always lived here?" Theo asked after a few a minute of eating in comfortable silence.

"In New York, yes. In this house, no. We lived near Central Park when I was younger but after my parents found out that Mom was pregnant with Danny, my first brother, we had to move to the bigger house. We have lived here for ten years," he explained before he took another bite of chicken which was quite good even made by him.

It was silent for a while but before Quentin could figure out what he wanted to ask first, Theo had another question. "Isaac mentioned that you have a famous step Dad. Can I ask what happened to your real dad?"

Quentin had assumed that they would have awkward small talk about favorite movies and colors and weather before jumping to the personal questions but oh well, who was he to deny Theo from wanting to know more about him? They were on a date after all.

"He got shot in a robbery and died when I was two. I don't really remember much about him, maybe that's why it's not that painful to talk about. My Mom had told me things about him and showed me pictures but... I was so young," he said, not being able to stop talking now that he had started.

"And Chris? I mean, he's been in my life for thirteen years so I don't see him as a celebrity who has won many awards. He's the one who taught me everything, he's the one who I want to make proud. He's my Dad," he continued before stopping as he suddenly got emotional. "Sorry if I talk too much."

"I asked, don't worry," the brown-haired boy said and smiled. That was how the dinner went, talking and laughing together with no uncomfortable pauses. Quentin could easily say that it was one of the best dates he ever had, not that he had gone to many.

In the end, they were standing close to each other and Theo started to lean closer and Quentin knew what was happening. He was waiting for something, maybe a sign to tell him that he should or shouldn't do it.

Still, it felt like kissing him would be a mistake and because of that, he moved away from the other boy. Feeling overwhelmed by his thoughts and the sudden events, he missed what his date had said. Theo didn't either notice that or simply didn't care as he continued talking.

"I don't know if there's some other guy or are you just scared of something but don't feel bad. I will see you at the school tomorrow, alright."

He was already walking towards the door when Quentin finally acted. He took a step closer, then another one and another one until he was almost touching him. Theo stood still as if waiting for him to do something, not wanting to be rejected again.

Without a word, Quentin placed his lips to his, then stopped moving to wait for the response. When he got it, he started to kiss him more hungrily like a starving man who got to eat for the first time in years.

Yes, this was what he needed. This was what they both needed. A few seconds later, he stepped away, looked at him the eyes and saw the same lust and determination in his eyes that he felt and took his hands, walking to his bedroom.