Funny How Love Is (Maylor AU)

Chapter 55

"Freddie?" the professor murmured, shocked to see the dark-haired man standing in the center of the hall, hands on his hips and a devious grin stretching across his face. "What are you doing here?"

"Oh, you know, darling. 'Just looking for somewhere I can buy a pack of cigs," he answered, shortening the distance between him and Brian and crossing his arms over his chest. "I smoked my last one on my way here, and Roger desperately needs one, so if you could direct me in the right way, I'd greatly appreciate it, and so would he."

Brian shook his head in disbelief, knowing he shouldn't have expected anything more or less from the man. "This...This is a university, Fred. We don't...It's not..." He tutted, finding himself at a loss for words. "What are you doing here?" he finally repeated his initial question, the fact that Freddie was standing before him still boggling his mind.

"Well, after you so rudely left my house on Friday..." his eyes narrowed in petty resentment, "...I kept thinking about what you said to me, about Roger, and so I tried ringing him up, but he wouldn't answer my calls. I even went over to his flat to see if he was just ignoring me, but when I broke in, neither he nor Tim were there. It was oddly bizarre."

The professor's eyebrows knitted together. "Wait, did you just say—"

"Don't worry, Brian," Freddie replied haughtily, sensing the professor's concern, "I used the key I had copied to get in. Geez, it's not like I broke any windows or locks." He rolled his eyes in contempt, disregarding the embarrassed shade of red that crept up in Brian's cheeks. "Anyways, that's beside the point. You wanted to know what I'm doing here, yes?"

"Well, y-yeah," he stammered, uncomfortably folding his arms over his chest and eyeing the custodian's closet behind him.

He imagined Chrissie in there, waiting impatiently for him and sitting on the custodian's desk with one leg crossed over the other, her foot bopping to a nonexistent beat as she perused through the clutter that she'd pushed aside to make room for herself. He wanted to believe that the ironed button-down she wore had been discarded on the floor, accompanied by the lacy pair of underwear she'd slipped out from underneath her pencil skirt to make things easier, but that just wasn't the kind of girl Brian knew her to be. However, with no secrets between them anymore, he wondered if maybe she was, and if so, would she show that side of her to him, or would she maintain the prim and proper facade she'd always presented herself with?

"Brian!" Freddie's voice rang in his ear, once again startling him. "My goodness, talking to you is like talking to Roger. You're not even listening to me!"

"I-I'm sorry, Fred," the professor apologized, tugging at his collar and admitting, "I'm just a little distracted today."

The dark-haired man laughed, amused by Brian's flustered state of mind. "No shit."

Brian gulped, the hallway suddenly growing hellishly warm, and choked out, "Look, um, I'd love to stay and chat, but maybe another time? I'm kind of running late for a, erm, meeting."

"A meeting, you say?" Freddie repeated incredulously, a smirk crawling on his lips, "That's what you two are calling it now?" Another chuckle slipped past his lips. "How grand."

The professor's face burned in embarrassment as he realized Freddie thought the reason he was down there was because of Roger. Although that may have been his purpose this morning—with the intention of coming back down later—it seemed like a distant memory now. That was before Chrissie rekindled the spark he thought he'd lost for her, and before Ray's blatant threat that he tried to play off as fooling around. As worried as he was for Roger, he had other things to worry about now.

So, going along with Freddie's assumption in hopes of using it to his advantage to get the dark-haired man away for a little bit, Brian replied, "Yeah, you know, it's just...it's easier for us to see each other that way."

"Well maybe before you two start going at it, you could tell him what you told me," he suggested rather seriously, placing a hand on the taller man's shoulder and giving him a subtle shake, "He could, um, really use it right now."

Brian bit his lip, the guilt of the situation he was desperately trying to rid his mind of—at least until he and Chrissie were done with whatever was destined to happen behind that closed door—keeping him in place and compelling him to ask, his voice just above a whisper, "Tim couldn't have done that to him, could he?"

Freddie's eyebrows joined together. "Wait, you already saw him?"

"Yeah, I-I tried talking to him this morning, but—"

The click of an opening door stole the professor's voice, the two men looking to their right to see Chrissie's head peek out from the janitor's closet, her body tucked away in the small room. Her eyes first fell upon Brian, glowing with lust and frustration that he hadn't joined her yet. However, those feelings were quickly replaced with terror and embarrassment as her attention shifted to Freddie, who looked at her with a growing smirk. The headmistress gasped and slammed the door shut, the sound of her scrambling to get her clothes back on filling the gap in the two unlikely acquaintances'—perhaps even friends'—conversation.

"Oh, I see what's going on here, you sly dog," Freddie's cheekily remarked, disturbing the silence that had fallen over them and attracting Brian's shameful gaze, "You're not down here for Roger, are you?"

The professor's cheeks burned hotter than they ever had before. "I-I swear I was going to later," he frantically defended himself, though his weak attempt fell short in serving its purpose, "I just...we...it's been so long, and she was all—"

The dark-haired man chuckled, shaking his head. "You don't need to explain anything to me, darling. I totally—"

For the second time, Chrissie interrupted their chat, this time emerging from the custodian's room fully dressed, though the top buttons of her shirt were purposely undone—just enough to catch Brian's eyes but not enough to violate dress code. She rested her hands on her hips and said in mock apology, "I'm sorry you two had to see me like that. I'd spilled some coffee on my shirt and..." Her voice trailed off as she realized the two men before her weren't convinced, her excuse being met with pure indifference. She nervously cleared her throat and gestured towards Freddie, looking at Brian and asking, "Who's this?"