tinder // jachary au

fourteen

hey girlypops!!!

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jack didn't know what to do. it was a few days after the whole studio accident. jack so badly wanted to ask zach out on another date.

he had been respectful of the boy's boundries. he knew what he should or shouldn't do.

or so he thought.

they were hanging out at zach's house. jack had a free day and zach didn't have to work that night. he did have school work to do so that's what he was doing. jack was just there to keep the younger boy company.

the younger boy furrowed his brows as he took a break from typing the essay. he had a brace on his wrist now making it uncomfortable to type. he lifted it up and tried itching underneath it.

jack looked up from his phone and smiled at zach. "you okay over there?"

"yeah it's itchy." zach pouted and jack immediately thought that it was the cutest thing ever.

"just take it off, scratch the itch, and then put it back on." jack sat up straight, scooting closer to zach.

zach did as jack had suggested. he carefully took the brace off and scratched his arm before putting it back on and covering it back up with his long sleeved shirt. zach stood up and stretched his arms over his head, letting out a groan.

jack's eyes wandered to the patch of skin that was showing from the boy's shirt lifting up. he saw the scars littering the boy's stomach and that only made him wonder what the rest of him looked like. it made him sick to his stomach if he was being honest.

jack looked away before zach could catch him.

zach fixed his shirt and looked at jack. "want to go get lunch?"

"oh um sure." jack forced a smile and looked up at the boy.

zach furrowed his eyebrows. "what's wrong? i've seen you smile before and that's not what it looks like."

jack didn't know what to say. "oh- um- i don't know."

zach frowned. he wasn't angry. "you saw them didn't you?"

jack didn't know what the boy was referring to until zach set a hand on his stomach. jack swallowed and nodded. "yeah. i wasn't going to say anything."

"it's okay. they're starting to fade now. do you want to see?" zach's voice was soft. the younger boy reached out and gently cupped jack's face, caressing his cheekbone.

"i don't want to make you uncomfortable." jack's eyes held worry in them.

"you won't. surprisingly it's the emotional stuff that bothers me more. the stuff you can't see bothers me the most. the scars mean so little when compared to that stuff." zach offered him a smile. he was being honest though. he could look at the scars and not feel as ashamed as he used to. he was working on it. ava was helping him.

"only if you're sure." jack stood up and gave zach a comforting smile.

"i'm sure. i trust you." zach took a small step back.

jack's heart fluttered at that. it made him so ridiculously happy to know that zach trusted him. zach pulled his shirt over his head and held it in his hand. he looked away from jack, waiting for his reaction. jack gasped as he looked at zach. pale white lines covered his stomach and chest. they weren't that noticeable compared to the ones on his back.

"can i?" jack cautiously held a hand out. zach nodded. jack ran his fingers down zach's torso his hand lingering on the boy's hip. he moved to look at zach's back. zach shuddered as jack's fingers gently moved down his back. jack honestly had no words. "can i hug you?"

"why do you keep asking?" zach turned to face jack.

"i don't know." jack shrugged before zach pulled him in for a hug, wrapping his arms around his waist. jack wrapped his arms around zach's shoulders.

"lunch?" zach looked up at jack.

"of course." jack hesitated. "wait can i ask you something?"

"sure." zach pulled away and put his shirt back on, then fixed his hair. he smiled at jack.

"will you- i don't know if it's too soon but we went on one date and we've known each other for almost a month but will you go out with me? like be my boyfriend?" jack was nervous. he was mostly expecting zach to turn him down but he had a sliver of hope.

zach was conflicted. what he felt when he was around jack was different from an of his other relationships. he felt safe around jack. he had never felt that with his previous relationship. zach would be lying if he said he didn't like jack a lot.

zach swallowed the fear and anxiety.

"i would love to."

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799 words.