Closet Case

Chapter Six: Stargazing

Nico woke up first that morning, yawning softly. He looked up at Reed, who was still fast asleep, and smiled. He hugged him a bit closer, glad to have his best friend there. He didn't like sleeping alone, if that wasn't already apparent. It just made him feel lonely. He couldn't just go sleep in his mom's room anymore, either! She said he was too big for that now.

Ugh! Always too big for everything. He couldn't even hold hands with his best friend in public without getting weird looks anymore. He sighed softly, waiting for Reed to wake up. He knew he was probably tired, so he didn't want to interrupt whatever dream he was having. 

Thankfully, Reed's eyes blinked open after a minute. He looked at Nico drowsily and smiled softly. 

"Hi."

"Morning!" Nico smiled, looking up at his friend. He got snuggled into his arms a bit more, happy to be with him.

"What time is it?" Reed asked before yawning. Nico felt him nuzzle into the top of his head. He glanced over at his alarm clock, then frowned. 

"It's like, one or something." He huffed, looking over at his friend. His eyes then wandered to the window, which he forgot to close before. "I've got an idea." 

"Oh?" Reed rose an eyebrow at him then turned his head to the window. "What is it?"

"Come on!" Nico hopped up from the bed, pulling Reed with him. He led them to the back of the house, quietly opening the sliding door to get into the backyard. There he led his friend up the ladder on the back of the house and onto the roof. 

Reed sat down, grinning. "I haven't been up here in awhile," he said as he crossed his legs and patted his lap. Was that an invitation?

"Me either," Nico giggled, crawling up the ladder and over to Reed. He snuggled into his lap, leaning back into him. Reed's arms wrapped around his waist and there was a head on his shoulder. This was nice... He missed the moments like this. High school took up a lot of their time, but since it was summer, they had as much time as they needed! 

Reed was being suspiciously quiet. Usually when he was quiet for long periods, he made a bunch of faces and shifted as if he was talking aloud, but now he was just… silent. Lazy and mostly unmoving. Was this a good thing or a bad thing?

"Hey Nico?" Reed whispered suddenly. "When we graduate, we're gonna live together, right?"

"Of course! We can split rent and spend all of our time together!" Nico smiled, glancing back at Reed over his shoulder. Did he not want to live together? Was he worrying about if they didn't get to live together? Oh no, what if they went to different colleges!

Reed smiled softly at him. "Good. I'd love to be able to come home to you every day." He nuzzled Nico's cheek.

"Me too! I'd be able to show you how to make the best cookies! My mom has the most amazing recipes." He grinned, looking up at the stars. The good thing about living further away from town was that they could see the most stars. On a night like this, with a clear sky, it was the perfect time to stargaze! 

Reed chuckled and Nico could feel it in his chest. "I'm a terrible baker… How about you bake for us and I stick to the cooking?"

"That sounds great. I have no clue how to cook," Nico giggled. He looked back at Reed, smiling. "We won't have to drive anywhere to see each other, either."

"It's settled then." Reed smiled back at him then looked up at the sky again. "Should've brought a blanket to lay on."

"Yeah. Oh well, I've got you," Nico giggled. He turned around so he could hug Reed, laying his head on his shoulder. He smelled great, which was probably a bit of a weird thought...