Meant To Be (An Antoine Griezmann Fanfiction) [BoyxBoy]

Intimate Strangers

Chapter Twenty-Six

Caleb didn't leave Antoine's side until he woke up a couple of minutes later. Antoine seemed pretty disoriented when he opened his eyes and saw Caleb kneeling next to him. He just remembered watching the sports channel and then somebody pressing a cloth against his mouth and nose. Gabriel was sitting in the armchair in front of the modular sofa Antoine had been resting before. Antoine frowned as he couldn't recognize the face of the man in front of him, he felt like he already knew him, but he wasn't sure from where.

"Who are you?" Antoine muttered as he sat down trying to gain strength.

"Don't you remember me?" Gabriel snarled.

"I think I've seen you somewhere" Antoine squinted his eyes. "But I can't remember where."

"Oh, I'll refresh your memory" Gabriel said excitedly. "I was there the night you went clubbing with my boyfriend."

"That's not true" Caleb intervened. "We were not together anymore."

"Is he the prick that shouted out loud I was in the club?" Antoine asked directing the question to Caleb.

"Yes, I am" Gabriel laughed. "Nice to meet you."

"You're disgusting" Antoine sneered.

"No, you are disgusting" Gabriel fired back. "Stealing other people's boyfriends and getting away with it. That's wrong, Antoine."

"Didn't you hear him?" Antoine raised his eyebrow and placed his hand on Caleb's shoulder. "You weren't together anymore."

"But we broke up because of you!" Gabriel exclaimed frustratedly. "I'm not gonna let him go without a fight."

"So, you want a fight?" Antoine snarled as he rolled up the sleeves of his sweater. "I'll fight you, I still have some unfinished business with you."

"You think you can beat me? Bring it" Gabriel snapped as he stood up.

"Nobody is fighting in my house!" Caleb exclaimed seriously.

"Alright then, let's just talk like civilized people" Gabriel scoffed as he sat down in the armchair.

"We don't have anything to talk about" Antoine snapped.

"Just let him, okay?" Caleb asked Antoine softly, Antoine nodded.

"I want Caleb back" Gabriel stated as if Caleb was a property or a dog. "As simple as that."

"What?" Caleb wheezed.

"That was for Antoine" Gabriel snapped.

"Too bad, he's with me now" Antoine sneered and kissed Caleb in the forehead making Gabriel upset.

"If you're so in love" Gabriel mocked. "Tell me what's his favorite food."

"Am" Antoine trailed. "Mexican food?"

"Wrong, Italian" Gabriel laughed. "What's his favorite season?"

"Er... winter?" Antoine replied insecurely.

"Wrong again! Summer" Gabriel laughed harder.

"This is not a pop quiz about me" Caleb intervened, Gabriel shook his head.

"See" Gabriel turned his head to Caleb. "He doesn't know everything about you, but I do!"

"But I choose to be with him" Caleb said, Antoine remained silent. "I love him."

"You think you love him" Gabriel said with a knot in his neck. "But after the illusion ends and you get bored, you will be very sorry."

Gabriel stormed out of Caleb's apartment leaving a bruise in their relationship. Antoine sat down in the sofa and thought in what Gabriel said, he hated him but Antoine couldn't deny that he didn't know anything about Caleb. It had been a year since they knew each other, and he didn't even know where Caleb was from. Antoine felt as his eyes had been opened, their relationship had been relying on affection and sexual intercourse, but other than that, they barely had time to talk and get to know each other. Antoine suddenly realized that if he didn't do anything about it, that «relationship» could be over before it even truly started.

"Can you believe that?" Caleb said outraged after he closed and locked the door.

"He was right" Antoine muttered for the first time since Gabriel left. "We don't know anything about each other."

"That's not true" Caleb tried to reassure Antoine. "We are just taking our time."

"I mean, lucky us we know each other names!" Antoine exclaimed desperately.

"Don't be so dramatic, Antoine" Caleb said as he sat down next to him.

"Okay, tell me what you know about me" Antoine said. "Where am I from?"

"France" Gabriel shrugged.

"Where in France?" Antoine crossed his arms.

"Am..." Caleb trailed. "Paris?"

"That's my point!" Antoine exclaimed frustratedly. "We can't have a relationship that relies on just sex."

"At least it's very good sex" Caleb smiled innocently, Antoine rolled his eyes.

"I want us to be one of those couples that finish each other's sentences, that will grow old together and have a family" Antoine said. "I don't even know if you want to have kids!"

"Okay" Caleb scoffed. "Why don't we start from the beginning? I'm from Calabasas in California."

"Are you American?" Antoine asked surprisedly. "I thought you were from Madrid."

"We definitely need this talk" Caleb wheezed. "So, if you're not from Paris then where are you from?"

"I'm from Mâcon" Antoine said proudly. "It's a small city known for its good wine."

"Sounds nice, maybe we could go there sometime" Caleb beamed.

"Absolutely" Antoine smiled. "We could go this summer, now that I know that it's your favorite season."

"Sounds like a plan" Caleb replied excitedly. "Talking about seasons, what's your favorite?"

"Now that I think about it, I have never actually had like a favorite season" Antoine said. "I mean, I love basketball season, but I don't think that counts."

"Are you into basketball?" Caleb asked interested.

"I love basketball!" Antoine exclaimed happily. "If I had been bigger than 5'7 I would've probably chosen basketball over soccer."

"I didn't know that at all" Caleb replied surprised.

"I usually spend a couple of months in the states watching the LA Lakers; I love the NBL" Antoine's eyes shone brightly. "The only way I can play basketball professionally is on my PlayStation though."

Caleb laughed. "I'm sure you would've been a real MVP."

"Are you into basketball too?" Antoine asked surprised.

"Not really" Caleb shrugged. "I grew up within a very sporty environment, so I got to learn everything about sports."

"That must have been so cool" Antoine replied eagerly.

"I didn't care too much about it, but it was useful" Caleb said. "My sports knowledge helped me to hide the fact I was gay."

"How long have you been out of the closet?" Antoine asked intrigued.

"Not much, just a couple of years now" Caleb recalled.

"I thought you've been out pretty much all of your life" Antoine said as he stood up and went to the kitchen.

"Nope" Caleb shook his head.

"Have you come out to your family already?" Antoine asked before drinking a glass of water.

Caleb looked down. "Yeah" he muttered.

Antoine realized Caleb's expression had changed. "You want to talk about it?"

"Not sober" Caleb wheezed.

"T.G.I.F." Antoine beamed. "I'll open a bottle."

Antoine grabbed a bottle of white wine from Caleb's wine cellar and sat down on the floor, placing the bottle of wine on the coffee table. He poured two glasses of wine and handed one to Caleb, he gave it a sip but he couldn't start talking. Antoine wanted to know everything about Caleb, but, by the look of it, it seemed like he had touched a very hurtful memory. Caleb drank the whole glass of wine before he started talking: he remembered the scenario with bitterness and fear, but what he had learnt out of it was that when you survive a storm, the rain doesn't even bother...