Funny How Love Is (Maylor AU)

Chapter 30

Once the unwanted visitor was out of sight, the curly-haired man let out a breath of relief and the blonde scampered out of his hiding spot to join Brian's side.

"You're the best, Bri," he whispered, startling the professor and attracting his widened gaze. However, he didn't maintain his frightened stare for long before his eyes wandered down to his arm where Roger's hands had fallen, wrapped around his bicep and holding the two of them close. The blonde noticed this and plucked his hands away from the professor, tucking them underneath his arms and stammering, "I-I'm sorry. I don't know why he came inside in the first place; I tell him every day to wait outside for me and he usually does."

"He seemed to know about us, Rog," Brian murmured in response, already playing the scene that happened only moments ago over again in his head, "You haven't told him anything, have you?"

The music instructor scoffed. "Of course not! I'm not stupid, Brian." The professor only stared at his colleague in response, making him feel like he needed to disclose more, as if the man he had grown attracted to didn't believe him. "Brian, I've been here all day. There's no way I could've possibly told him! And besides, why on earth would I tell him about us? Do you know how ridiculous that sounds? Especially coming from someone with a master's degree?" The unintentionally demeaning questions brought a frown to the curly-haired man's face as the blonde continued to ramble, "I mean, it's not like we're anything other than two professors at a university who just so happen to get along very well. There's nothing wrong with that, is there?"

Brian's eyebrows popped upward, crinkling his forehead as he mumbled, "Well, we did just—"

"You know, why don't we finish this conversation elsewhere?" Roger interrupted him, his anxiety starting to externalize itself as he wondered how long it would take for his boyfriend to realize that Brian had sent him on a wild goose chase with no end. "Perhaps your place?"

"My place?" the professor repeated, his cheeks instantly turning a bright shade of red at the thought of bringing the man he'd slowly become infatuated with to his home.

At school, there were standards that had to be kept, reminding Brian of where he was and who he was. At home, though, there was nothing stopping the two of them from reliving that amazing moment again, and again, and again—no students to disrupt them, no colleagues to scorn them, and most importantly, no Chrissie.

Putting him and Roger in the situation he had was an impulse decision on Brian's part. He'd let his thoughts and emotions get the best of him, making him forget about all the odds that were stacked against him and his sudden and confusing desires. He wasn't thinking when he burst into the blonde's classroom, or when he asked the music instructor to kiss him, and he most certainly wasn't thinking when he rushed him and kissed him again.

It wasn't until Chrissie crossed his mind that the reality of the situation came back to him, along with all the consequences and repercussions that were to ensue if someone were to find out about them—in any capacity. Although Brian did enjoy Roger's company—once he got past the complicated and mixed feelings having him around elicited—he was unsure about how much he was willing to lose to have the blonde be a part of his life.

It seemed impossible for Brian to behave around Roger like he did his other colleagues, and that was because he wasn't like the rest of them. The blonde seemed to make sure of that with his persistence in getting to know the professor more personally, asking questions no other professor would've dared to ask. Perhaps it was because the word "professional" had been omitted from Roger's vocabulary, but regardless, there was something different about the dynamic the two had seemed to take on; a dynamic even Brian and Chrissie hadn't established.

Brian knew that the territory he and Roger were slowly creeping into was a dangerous one, but it didn't stop him from wanting to see where it would take them. He just needed some more time to figure things out; to find a balance between letting Roger in and maintaining his appearance in the public eye, and he knew if he were to invite him into his home, his sanctuary, it would only make things worse.

"You know, I-I really don't think my house is the best place for us to go to do that," the professor stuttered nervously, "Isn't there somewhere else we can go? Somewhere more...public?"

"Don't tell me you're afraid to show me your home, Professor May," the blonde teased him, placing his hands on his hips—one of which he popped out to the side—and smirking.

Brian shook his head, chuckling, "No, it's not that. It's just—"

"It's just what? Have you not put your laundry away? Are there dishes still in the sink? Or is it that you've left out some food that's gone terribly bad and you haven't gotten around to getting rid of it? Because I've seen much worse, Brian, I can assure you."

An aggravated sigh slipped past the professor's lips. "No, Roger, it's not—"

The music instructor gasped dramatically, bringing a hand to his chest. "Is it because you're ashamed to introduce me to your cats?"

Brian scoffed at the blonde's guess. "Roger, that's hardly the point. And besides, I don't have any cats."

"Then what is it, Brian? We don't have much time, you know. The more time we spend here discussing your anxieties about bringing me to your home, the closer we are to Tim coming back and beating the shit out of both of us. So, I need to go somewhere where he can't find me, and what better place than—"

"Fine!" the professor snapped, realizing there was no convincing Roger of changing the destination he had in mind for the two of them. "Fine, we can go to my house. Just stop acting weird about it, okay?"

"I'm not the one acting weird about it. You are," the blonde retorted cheekily as they started down the hallway, Brian closing his classroom door behind them.

He rolled his eyes at the music instructor's remark but refrained from verbally responding, knowing that whatever he had to say would only encourage the blonde further. The pair broke outside and started towards the faculty car park, passing the car that Tim had driven to the school and was still parked outside, engine running. Roger didn't even seem to care, not letting the sight diminish his heightened mood. In fact, it made the grin on his face grow even more.

Brian took note of this and wondered what thoughts were filling his mind. "What are you thinking about?" he inquired almost unconsciously.

Roger glanced up to meet his curious gaze, replying slyly, "Oh, nothing. Just how awful your house must be for you to not want me to see it so badly."

"Oh, shut up!" the professor said with a laugh, punching the blonde playfully in the arm and causing him to stumble away from his side. The distance between them didn't last very long at all, Roger almost instantly returning to Brian's side and clinging to his arm for support.

Their laughter died down as they became aware of the position they found themselves in again, the blonde's eyes traveling down the professor's arm this time to the burn mark on his jacket. He quickly retracted his hands and shoved his hands into his own coat pockets, stating bluntly, "Oh wow, he really did put his cigarette out on your jacket."

"It's fine," Brian muttered, crossing his arms to hide the circle of ash on his sleeve, "It's not a big deal. It's just a coat."

"Well it's my favorite coat of yours, and I won't let Tim ruin it," the blonde argued, matching his colleague's stance as they continued their walk to Brian's car. "Lucky for you, I'm a pro at getting cigarette stains out of clothes." The professor couldn't hold back the small grin that appeared on his face, thinking about how crazy it was that he'd let someone like Roger into his life, let alone into his heart.

What would his parents think of him now?