A Touch of Courage (Troyler AU)

Chapter 9: Counting Happiness Part 2

I sometimes feel not the influence of a passion or affection during a whole week - and so long this sometimes continues, I begin to suspect myself, and the genuineness of my feelings at other times - thinking them a few barren tragedy tears

- John Keats

As usual, Troye arrived early to his math class, taking his time to adjust the straps of his bag against the back of his chair before sitting down.  He looked down at the desk quietly and waited for others to arrive.  It didn't take long.  He heard footsteps and glanced up, his anticipation fading abruptly when he saw Crabbe and Goyle saunter in, pausing to give him a malevolent glare before walking to their seats.

Troye dropped his eyes and kept them down, curling his fingers when he noticed them quiver slightly and struggling to recapture his previous mood.  A pair of familiar legs slid into the seat next to him and when he looked up, he was greeted by dancing blue eyes and a smiling face.

"Morning, Troye." Tyler said with a grin. 

Troye held his gaze and felt his lingering queasiness disperse, unable to dwell on thoughts of Crabbe and Goyle when there was something so much better to dwell on.  Troye smiled back.  It was hard not to when Tyler grinned at him like that.

"Morning, Ty."  He paused before asking hesitantly, "Um...how was your week?"

Tyler blinked at him in surprise before his face filled with warmth.  "Fantastic, thanks for asking.  Hey Troye," Tyler leaned in, beckoning Troye to shift closer.  Troye hesitated for barely half a second before leaning in until they was only a hand span of distance between them.  He felt his heart speed up slightly but Tyler started speaking again and he didn't have a chance to focus on it. 

"You'll never guess who was caught sneaking out of the girl's dormitory yesterday," Tyler whispered conspiratorially, as if they had secret conversations in class all the time...which they did now that he thought about it.  Tyler's words ran through his head belatedly and he looked at Tyler in alarm.  Caspar? Well that would explain why he'd been up so early yesterday. 

Troye glanced up at Tyler and tried to ignore how close they were, which became more difficult when Tyler leaned in even closer.  Tyler glanced around and Troye used the moment of inattentiveness to take a quick breath.  He gazed at Tyler through long, black eyelashes, starting when Tyler switched his gaze back to look at him. 

"Tate!  I just heard from Caspar that he might be suspended."  Tyler spoke gleefully but Troye only nodded distractedly, trying to decide if he had imagined seeing the flecks of green in Tyler's eyes.  No, they were definitely there, although the ratio of blue to green seemed slightly higher today. 

Troye was slowly drawn out of his reverie by the extended silence, focusing to find Tyler staring at him with a faint smile etched on his lips.  "Are we done talking now?" Tyler asked lightly.

They locked gazes and Troye felt himself go warm with embarrassment, realizing he hadn't really heard what Tyler had said for the last...how long had he been staring?  Troye licked his lips and drew himself back into the moment firmly.

"N-No.  Sorry, I was distracted."

Tyler's eyebrows shifted up in mild surprise and Troye felt like slapping himself.  Tyler started to say something, but stopped when Mr. Parker began the lesson. Tyler pulled his gaze away from Troye's slowly, although he glanced back with a bemused smile before turning away completely.

Troye pulled a sliver of his bottom lip into his mouth, biting down and releasing it with a slow breath and turning to face the front.  As Mr. Parker talked, Troye let his mind wander, replaying the conversation they'd just had and frowning at the implications.  Tate being suspended...that would certainly explain why he wasn't in class today, but how had Caspar known Tate was in the girl's dorm?