Fever Dreams

Chapter 12: The Good Life

~Ethan~

Silas and I sat in a booth at the coffee shop. I was drinking my black coffee and he was sipping his caramel-frappa-whatever. Then, a small box slid in front of me on the table. I glanced at Silas, who smiled. Not fair. I was going to surprise him first. I said just that, and he chuckled.

"Give me yours, then," he said. "We'll open them together on three."

I nodded and reached under the booth to get the medium-sized box I'd hidden there the night before. The owner allowed it, being my cousin and all. And if he hadn't, I would've blackmailed him with the footage of him as a toddler performing Jackson 5 songs in his underwear. My aunt gave it to me "just in case." She's a good woman.

"Actually, I want you to open yours first, so I can see your face," I said.

Silas smiled, and leaned in to kiss me. He untied the ribbon that I'd practically killed myself trying to wrap around that box. Fucking Christmas movies make it look so easy.

He gasped upon opening the box. "Holy shit! It's the shirt!"

Picking it up, it unfurled before him, exposing the design. It was black, with a large rainbow lollipop dead-center and a ribbon wrapped around it that read "It ain't gonna lick itself."

"I saw you looking at it a week ago," I explained. "You went nuts for it."

He nuzzled my neck. "It's perfect. You're perfect."

"But that's not all."

I reached inside my jacket, pulling out a bracelet. It was made of a few thin chains braided together, linked with a silver plate that had "Ethan + Silas" engraved on it. Slipping it on his wrist, Silas gazed at it in wonder.

"It's so beautiful," he whispered. "This must have cost a fortune."

"Don't worry about it," I smiled. "My aunt is a jeweler. She made it for me and gave me a huge discount."

"I love it. Hey, open mine now!"

I chuckled, and opened the box, revealing a pair of tickets. I squinted to read what they were for.

"OH MY GOD!" I squeaked. "What the-- How did-- You--!"

He hopped onto my lap. "Surprise!"

"How in the hell did you get Cage The Elephant tickets?" I asked.

"I stood in line for like half a day," he said smugly. "I know they're your favorite band. The concert's in three days."

"Silas, you're literally an angel."

~Silas~

"Silas, you're literally an angel," Ethan whispered, leaning up to mold his lips with mine.

Bringing my hand up, I traced along his jaw with my fingers. His tongue forced its way past my lips, and I groaned, feeling his erection press against the back of my thigh. I felt his fingertips graze my lower back and waist.

"Do we really need to go to school?" Ethan asked me, breath dancing at my throat. "We could go to my house. Dad's at work. We'd be all alone."

Fuck. His breath is hot against my skin and his fingers are setting fires wherever they touch. He's doing it on purpose; he knows I can't say no to him like this. But why would I say no?