Two Boys Learning

11. Sleep Talking

"Hey, Will! Wait up!"

Will sighed and turned around, his towel slung low around his hips. Ash hurried towards him, grinning and running a hand through his dark hair, sending water droplets everywhere.

"What," Will demanded flatly.

"Nothing," Ash said happily, catching up with him and walking alongside him as they headed back up to their room. "I just wanted to walk with you."

Will snorted. "Why?"

Ash twisted his mouth to the side, and Will recognized it as his thinking face.

How can he be so perfect without even trying?

Riley had been that way, too.

Will realized he'd been staring at Ash as they walked and quickly looked away, clearing his throat. Ash glanced up at him, and as they turned another corner Ash's fingers brushed against Will's."

Will looked down sharply to find Ash's cheeks a flaming red, but the smaller boy didn't look up at him, instead talking about how a random kid had splashed him in the face when they'd been swimming and if Will had seen his epic cannonball.

"I did," Will said quietly, grabbing Ash's hand and lacing his fingers with his.

Ash looked up in surprise, and it was Will's turn not to make eye contact. Frick frick frick frick frick frick frick frick frick DON'T LOOK DOWN WILL DON'T DO IT

He glanced down.

Ash was looking down at their interlaced fingers, looking vaguely surprised. Slowly, he lifted his gaze that was so blue and so perfect and so--

Will redirected his thoughts and quickly looked down the hallway. Their room was in sight, adn Will released a breath he didn't realize he had been holding.

"Will?"

Will swallowed and closed his eyes. "Hmm."

"Why are you blushing?"

"Why are you?"

"I don't know."

Will knew perfectly well why he himself was blushing, but it didn't make any sense for Ash to be as well. But the small boy's cheeks were a bright cherry red, and Will squeezed Ash's hand slightly.

Ash squeezed back, and then they reached their room and let go of each other.

~ ~ ~

"What do you usually do to get ready for bed?"

The question seemed to come out of nowhere, and Will looked up from where he was sitting cross-legged on his bed, scrolling through Instagram.

"What?"

"I don't really do anything except brush my teeth and get in bed," Ash said absently, raking his fingers through his hair and scrolling through something on his own phone. "But it used to be different when my mom was alive. I can't really remember what she did, but..." He looked up from his phone. "You live with your parents, right? What's it like?"

Will blinked. "Um. Okay, first off, I lived with my dad until this summer, adn he wasn't exactly what you'd call a parent. He was more of a drunk addict who threw things at me and hit me whenever I got home too late or did something I wasn't supposed to do. Then he ran over my boyfriend, and he said it was an accident, but I know it wasn't." Will took a shaking breath. he hadn't meant to let that all spill out, but--

Ash blinked. "Boyfriend?"

Will froze. "Wh-what?"

"You said...your dad ran over your boyfriend."