Sequins and Somersaults: A Conan Gray Fic

Bathroom Secrets

"Conan, where are we going?" I ask as Conan pulls me through the gymnasium. While I'm slightly concerned about what he could possibly have to tell me, I can't pull my mind away from the fact that his hand is on mine.

Conan ducks into the lady's bathroom, pulling me into a stall and locking it behind him. My palms get sweaty as we stand face-to-face in the small space.

Dropping my hand, Conan leans closer to me. I feel his breath on my face, breathe in the faint smell of mayo. "There's a reason that I've been afraid of getting close to you, Raven." Conan pulls away slightly, his breath no longer heating my face. Our legs are practically overlapping in the small area; lifting one of his legs, he drops it into the toilet, creating more space. What a gentleman.

I look back to his face. "What is it?" Now I'm really getting nervous. Why did he have to bring me somewhere so private?

"Well, if we are friends now then we might still be friends in the summer. When it's hot, and there's pools and pool parties. And that is bad. That is very bad." Conan's eyes dart back and forth and he speaks quickly. I begin to wonder if he is having a stroke.

"Conan, you aren't making any sense. What do you mean? Why can't we be friends in the summer?"

Conan slams his head full-force into the stall door. He pulls back and looks me in the eyes. "I think...I think it's better if I show you."

I nod and pretend to understand what he is saying. Slowly, he reaches his slender fingers to the top of his leotard. He pulls one side down, then the other. My breath catches in my throat and I pull away a little. Conan's shoulders are completely exposed. He takes a breath and pulls the leotard to right above his belly button and looks at me expectantly. Turning his head away dramatically, he says, "I understand if you don't want anything to do with me. I'm a monster."

At first, my eyes are so caught on his shoulders and collarbone that I don't notice anything out of the usual. However, as my eyes move down his body, I notice two thin, stringy things coming from his nipples. I lean in closer to get a better look, all of my shyness disappearing at this new mystery.

"Is that...spaghetti?" I reach up and touch one of the noodles that is attached to his nipple.

He closes his eyes. "Yes. It started growing there about two years ago when I went through my pasta phase. All I ate everyday was pasta, and before I knew it I was becoming pasta."

"Well, Conan, why don't you just cut it off? If you hate it so much, you won't be losing anything by cutting it off."

"You think I haven't tried that? Every time I try to cut off these motherfritching spaghetti nips, they grow right back!" Conan reaches up and rips one of the spaghetti noodles from his nipple. Almost immediately, a new noodle begins growing in its place. He shoves it in his mouth angrily, hardly chewing before he swallows.

I can tell that he is upset. Sweat lines his brow and he is aggressively blinking back tears. Clearly, he's been hurt when it comes to his spaghetti nips. I won't be another person to hurt him.

"Well, it's okay. It's just spaghetti. I like spaghetti." I try to sound kind, but my voice is shaky.

"Yeah, but spaghetti is best when it has sauce. My freaking nipples cannot even produce sauce. Only noodles. And I've tried a thousand time to get even a single string of cheese to come out of my nips. Nothing." He throws his hands up in defeat, grabbing a noodle from his left nipple and slurping.

"I personally like my spaghetti plain. Sauce stains my mouth and cheese makes me gassy." I feel my face heat up at my accidental confession. I'm not great at talking when I'm nervous. "Besides, I think your nipples are kind of...cool."

Conan looks at me, still slurping his nipple noodle. "Really? You're the only one."

"What do you mean?"

He takes a deep breath. "A year ago, I had a friend in the winter. We hung out like crazy, and by the time summer came around, we were inseparable. Well, she invited me to her house to swim. I thought I could trust her, so I took off my shirt and dived in. She saw my nips and immediately kicked me out, and we never talked again. The only other person who knows is my best friend, Ashley. If it weren't for her, I probably would've burnt my nipples off already." He finishes, sliding down the side of the stall and onto the dirty bathroom floor (one of his feet still in the toilet). I sit down across from him.

"Your friend sounds like a jerk. I'm not like her, though." I make eye contact with him and smile. "I'm not going anywhere, whether you like it or not. I like you, spaghetti nips and all. Plus, if we ever ended up homeless, we could survive for years off of your nipples." I giggle and Conan does too.

"Thanks, Raven." He stands back up and pulls his leotard over his shoulders. "I'm glad you know now." I expect a hug or something, but instead he just pulls his foot out of the toilet and kicks the stall door down. I follow him out of the bathroom, watching as he heads towards the exit.

Glancing over his shoulder, he yells, "Class dismissed."