Repeat Until You Love Me - DreamNotFound

~9~

George leaped into his friend's arms for the hundredth time. Though he'd visited Clay many times, strangely, seeing him never got old. His heart always had the same jump, as if he was seeing Clay's smile for the first time.

He couldn't help but think that as much as he denied it, there might be a particular reason for his heart's behavior around Clay. It was unlikely that what he was feeling was simply excitement from visiting him, as he'd seen him so many times.

The only explanation George could think of was that he liked Clay, but there was no way that was the case. They were just friends, nothing more. There were no feelings. Absolutely not.

George listened to Clay talk about nothing on the way home. He'd heard these things many times, but he was still content to listen to the taller boy speak for hours.

But that didn't mean anything. He didn't like Clay. Definitely not.

——

"Come on, George, you're so slow," Clay teased, skating out of George's reach.

"This isn't fair! Your legs are longer than mine!" George protested, still in pursuit of Clay. The taller boy had snuck up behind George as they were skating and swiped his phone, prompting a chase between them.

Finally, George managed to grab the sleeve of Clay's hoodie. He let out a triumphant laugh and pulled himself around so he and Clay were facing each other, trying to grab the phone. Clay smirked and held the phone above his head, using his height to his advantage.

George reached up, straining to reach the phone. It didn't do any good, considering there was a significant height difference between the two, especially since George couldn't safely stand on his toes while wearing the skates.

Clay smirked again and George pouted before grabbing Clay's hoodie and suddenly pulling downward, allowing George to snatch the phone out of his hand. Due to the sudden tug, Clay lost his balance completely and collapsed, bringing George down with him.

The two fell on the ground, both laughing hysterically. "You're- you're such an idiot, George," Clay said between wheezes.

It wasn't until they stopped laughing and moved to get up that they realized just how close they were. Their faces were inches apart. George's eyes flickered down to Clay's lips. It wouldn't take much to connect them.

After a minute of staring, George cleared his throat.

Clay chuckled awkwardly. "Sorry," he said, climbing off George and reaching a hand out to help the other boy stand. Once both of them were off the ground, Clay returned to skating, pretending like nothing had happened.

Watching Clay skate around, face illuminated in the moonlight, George finally admitted it.

He was in love.

——

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