Belladonic Haze

14

The year had finally began, their classes had started and most of the students weren't very stoked for the beginning of a new year. They fancied being in the warmth of their home/apartment rather than being in a class full of students listening to an elderly experienced teacher talking something that they wouldn't even remember after their exams.

He was continuously zoning out, not one bit interested in what the professor was saying about the Shakespearean era and all the dramatic that were present then. Also, Rami and him basically had almost all the classes together so he could just get the notes from the shorter.

The only thing going through his minds were the brief encounter he had with the blond on the first day of college. It had been a week since the beginning but Joe couldn't wrap his head around what Ben had said, or rather hesitantly murmured.

--

He was kind of ecstatic for the first day and kind of hated it. Sure it was the first of a new year which would bring some exciting things together but other part fo him wanted to bury itself in a blanket and not have any social interactions with anyone, except his three friends. He was ambivert and mostly all the time, his extroverted self took over but right in that moment, he wanted to stay alone, his mind not being able to thing straight.

As he was lost in the thoughts of having a hot chocolate and being buried in a blanket, his mouth slightly salivating, and his eyes not leaving the floor his feet were padding on, he crashed into someone, someone with a quite muscular build.

"Joe." It was Ben. It was Ben. Abort. Abort. Get away from him as quickly as possible.

He looked up at the blond in his eyes and lost all the words. It had been a long time since he looked into those emerald orbs and he didn't want to look away but when a concerned look over came Ben's face, Jeo was snapped back to reality. He gave the taller a quick tight lipped smile and turned around, his feet moving in the direction opposite to his initial plan. Right now he didn't care.

He heard footsteps following him but he didn't dare look back, he couldn't face Ben. Not when all he wanted to do was push Ben against a wall and kiss the hell out of him, tell him how he was missed and how Joe needed to just embrace him for the love of God.

His feet took him some place that had not been visited in a while. The silent hallway that Ben and Joe always met at. He stood there, right in the middle and finally turned around to face Ben. He could see Ben's face lighting up, his green eyes shining with hope and his lips spreading in a wide grin, hopeful.

Joe had guided him to the only place where they were physically and/or intimate. Maybe that was sign that Joe wanted Ben just as much as Ben wanted Joe.

Ben's smile fell when he saw Joe's demeanor. His hands were folded over his chest, his head slightly tilted to the side, his hips crooked out to a extend and his eyebrows raised up in a stance where he was waiting for Ben to say what he wanted to say. Ben took slow hesitant steps towards afraid that he would snap him if he said something wrong.

"I'm waiting." Joe said in a slightly smaller voice, unconfident. It didn't fit his demeanor whatsoever. Joe didn't know where the sudden burst of confidence had come from but he loved it. Except his voice gave it all away. Yes, he was a tad bit nervous and a tad bit excited.

"Joe, I. . . I did."

"What?" He asked cautiously, afraid to know where this was heading too.

"Y'know." Ben said and paused for a couple of seconds making Joe impatient.

"Spit it out. We have class to attend and I don't want to miss the first lecture on the first day."

"I-I meant it, when I. . . When I was drunk. That night."

"Which night? I have no clue."

"I meant it when I, asked. . .you out." Ben said in a small voice, his head dropping low and his eyes meeting the floor. His breathing was slightly uneven, from the nervousness and the excitement. He had finally asked Joe!

"Okay." Joe said, physically unfazed by the words but his brain[Brian. If you know, what I mean J.] freaking out. His mind and body had no clue how to react so they both teamed up and came up with an amazing response, a cold, dishearted 'okay'. Nice!

He walked away without any other words.

--

When Joe thought back to their little conversation, he was mad but also flustered. He was happy but also hesitant.

He was mad cause he should've been happy and hugged Ben and told him that he would go on a date but he didn't. He was flustered because, oh well. Ben asked him out. He was happy for the same and he was hesitant because Ben sounded a bit unsure of when he spoke those words. He sounded nervous, sure. But there was also a sense or underlying hesitancy.

Joe truly didn't know if Ben was really hesitant of if it was his own mind making up things to cope with the happiness it was feeling.

When the bell brought him back to reality, he sighed. Tired from thinking so much deeply about a trivial matter.

"Hello, Mr. Dreamboy. Where've you been?" It was Rami. He hands clasped around Joe's forearm and pulled him to the cafe they usually go to.

And surprisingly when they reached there, it was almost empty, except for two familiar faces who called them over. Gwil and Ben.
Ben wasn't surrounded by people the way he had been when had returned from Britain i.e. on the first day. During the holidays, he had also given all the finals he had missed so he was continuing the college.

Well, good for him, Joe thought as he walked behind Rami to where the both of them were sitting. Welp, aside from the awkward silence, he got a free pastry, thanks to Ben because he was trying to get Joe's attention and he would give Ben attention cause who would in their right minds deny free food?