Max (Mace) and e l -illcallubymine

[[deleted user]]

God, and once he heard Theo’s nickname for him? He was blushing like crazy and tightened his hold around him before worry took over as he made sure Theo wasn’t bothered by him. The boy had every right to be, at least. He felt for him having to deal without how drunk he got sometimes, Theo wad the only person Oliver’s could worry about in this states, or most cases, really.He cared about him more than he cared for himself quite often.
His hands traced designs onto Theo’s side as they embraced before finally pulling away to fully look up at him. He wasn’t the touchiest of people, but when he was drunk? Yep. And with Theo? Even more so.
Theo’s words made him smile as if he had won the lottery when he was called his princess. “I won’t. Not anymore,” he insisted, sounding almost silly to say in his slurring. He shook his head adamantly to prove his point before linking their hands. At this point, his well-being was wonderful if his best friend was beside him. He was sure that him and Alex probably just had a crazy makeout session, just as Theo had basically said, so he was willing to stay at this house long as theo wanted.

((i like that! that sounds perfect, oh my goodness))

[Max]

((Thanks!))

Theo was an only child, the type of boy who had never had the experience of having a sibling. He had never had anyone to really protect him, or to protect anyone else. So instead he protected Oliver. Theo knew that it was useless to try and protect his friend from the cruel world. There was too much horrible to protect anyone from all of it, and anyways Oliver was already out there in the real world. Starry nights on Oliver's roof had showed Theo that his best friend had just as many problems as he did, if not more. But despite all that, Theo still wanted to protect Oliver from the world, so he automatically kept close to his friend, one arm around his shoulder in a casual but fiercely protective manner.

He shuddered slightly under Oliver's soft touch as he drew little swirls on his shoulder with his hands. It wasn't like Theo was ticklish or anything (actually, he was, but that's besides the point) what made him shiver like that was just the pure gentleness in Oliver's touch. Like Theo was made of glass, and Olly was afraid of breaking him. Even when he was drunk, Oliver was still careful around Theo, and that made Theo feel like the luckiest person on earth.
"Alright, Princess. No more." He said softly, glancing at his watch. It was late and Theo had gotten what he had come for, so he was ready to leave whenever Oliver was.
"Just tell me when you want to go okay?" He called as he let go of his friend for a moment to grab a cup and poured himself some water. He paused suspiciously as he looked at the clear liquid before gulping it down. He didn't want to by mistake be drinking something he didn't want to, but it was just water and after Alex, Theo was parched.

[[deleted user]]

Oliver was there for Theo because he couldn’t be there for anyone else. Theo needed to be kept safe from the brutal world he already knew about. He was too good for this horrible yet beautiful world to Oliver, and he could never shake that from his mind since knowing him. Each conversation, each touch, each glance in the other direction. It was often for him.

“No more, my Prince,” he repeated back with a giggle, looking around the room in near amusement. Everyone was here for different reasons, and he was such a small part of it all. Both physically and mentally. He was only one of the 11 voices laughing and talking over eachother as they attempted to play stupid party games, only one of dozens of reckless kids in this household, one of billions in the world. Maybe it was the blunt he rolled talking, but it often got to his mind even when sober. Maybe it made him more than important, or maybe it made him useless, he didn’t know.

“Okay. We can go-we can leave whenever you want, The,” he insisted, wrapping his arms around his neck for a second and displaying his blissful smile to him. His hands dropped and he jumped a second after Rory tapped his shoulder. She brushed down his arm before taking his hand.
“You’re not leaving, are you?” she asked, looking up to meet his eyes. Before he could reply, or even process the question really, she pressed her lips to Oliver’s. While many people, including Rory, were known for their sloppy drunk kissing at parties, Oliver never seemed to be bothered by the alcohol. Rory would sometimes joke and say the beers never got to his lips, because he was still damn good at that.
He briefly returned the kiss before breaking it off and waving a hand, looking back to Theo expectantly. Eyes wide and innocent, biting his lip to suppress his growing smile. He wanted what Theo wanted in that moment, now that he had caught his attention. The boy was the only person able to break him out of the shell that he grew into at this dumb parties.

[Max]

Theo didn't believe Oliver for one second about not drinking anymore since his friend was giggling like a little kid as he made that promise. Just like Theo loved Oliver's smile, he also loved his giggle. It was the cutest sound the world had ever had the fortune of knowing. It was the sound of someone who was completely happy. He knew that Oliver was only really happy when he was drunk, because that way he could forget everything, and maybe that was why Theo put up with his drinking. Theo knew it was the only way he could ever see Oliver without a glimmer of worry in his eyes.

He was about to pull Olly towards the door, when his girlfriend came bounding up like some excited puppy, or at least that's how Theo saw her. He rolled his eyes and looked away as Rory enveloped his best friend into a sloppy drunk kiss. Theo did not like PDA, at all. He was all for making out, in the privacy of a closet or a bedroom. Other than that though, he didn't want to have to watch anyone stick their tongues into each other's mouths.
"As a matter a fact, I think we were about to leave Olly?" He said softly once he had pulled away. Of course, if Oliver wanted to stay, there was nothing Theo could do but wait since he didn't trust Rory to get his best friend home safely.

[[deleted user]]

If it weren’t for Rory clutching onto his arm like she was olanout to fall to the ground, which wasn’t unlikely, Oliver probably would have already left with his best friend beside him. But the girl had kissed his temple and then affectionately stroked his cheek, cutting a short glance in Theo’s direction. Many people knew of his sexuality, and though he knew they were best friends, he found his presence threatening in a way, especially with his hands on him. She had tried explaining it to Oliver once, and that was one of the times Oliver got so frustrated while being around her that he simply left. Theo meant more than anything to him. The boy was one of the people he loved most. He was a purpose for doing and not doing in his mind.

Oliver sheepishly smiled when he pulled away, taking a step closer to Theo’s sweet touch as he swung his and Rory’s arms between them. “Yeah, we were about to leave. I’m sorry,” he stumbled over his words a bit, adding the last part in when he saw the look on her face. A prominent scowl spread over her reddened lips, looking to the two of them without words. Oliver squeezed her hand assuringly before letting go, feeling bad then. Alcohol was supposed to keep him happy, not subject him to these emotions.
“I’ll call you?” he said hopefully, looking to her blue eyes. A simple nod a stumble away back to the ridiculous game was his response.
Oliver shook his head a bit, as if he could shake away his frustration as he wrapped both arms around Theo’s bicep, trying his best not to stumble as they made it to the door of the house.

[Max]

It was a wonder that Rory didn't hate Theo more than she did actually. Most people would have questioned his hanging around Oliver so much due to his sexuality. There were so many people who somehow were stupid enough to think that since Theo was gay, it wasn't possible for him to just be friends with Oliver. Of course that was a completely delusional way of thinking, because obviously he could still be friends with guys. Rory might think of Theo as someone who could steal Olly away from her, but Theo had no interest in doing so. Again, there could have been a world where he loved Oliver romantically. It wasn't hard for Theo to imagine that world. But the reality was that Oliver wasn't interested in him, so Theo was happy to just leave that as it was, and Rory didn't have to worry about anything.

He had to resist another eye roll when Olly promised to call her when he got home. Theo had expressed to his friend multiple times that he spent way too much time on the phone with his girlfriend. Seriously, every time Theo came over, Oliver always happened to be on the phone with Rory. She didn't look happy about it, but eventually she turned away and staggered off, probably not the answer Oliver had been looking for, but she hadn't started screaming, so Theo was content with it.
"Alright, let's get you out of here." He muttered softly as Oliver wrapped his hands around his upper arm. It took them a while to get out of the house since Olly was stumbling all over the place, but eventually they got out onto the sidewalk. Putting one hand securely around Oliver's waist, Theo began to slowly walk down the street, making sure that his best friend could keep up with him. This was a pretty normal routine for them by now and Theo was used to walking slowly so any drunk could keep up with him.
"Did you have fun?" He asked eventually. It wasn't always guaranteed that Oliver would answer since it depended on how drunk he was, but Theo liked to ask anyways.

[[deleted user]]

“Let’s get out of here,” he repeated. And thank God they did: Oliver didn’t think he wanted to leave with Theo more until they had finally left, the warm and humid night welcoming them like an old friend. It had felt like days since he wasn’t in that crowded party, bursting his eardrums as if he didn’t need them in his future that he was nearly clueless abou. His heart painfully squeezed in his chest- but it was a good feeling- when he felt Theo’s arm around his waist, he always did. It was one of his favorite feelings, just an extra reassurance and praise that Theo was there and he was close and that he wanted the closeness just as much as he did. Oliver typically wasn’t touchy with everyone ever since he was a squirrelly kid with his parents, but he had grown to love Theo’s touch more than anything.

The following question from Theo made him smile a bit, looking down at the pavement ahead of them while walking. His best friend always asked him, as if he were a sweet mother asking about his school day. “It was good,” he answered with a shrug, though that wasn’t the complete truth. After a moment of leaving it at that, he shook his head stubbornly, as if someone tried to correct him. That someone was himself. “Rory was a bit of an ass, I wish I was drunker for that.” He laughed softly and turned to look at him.
“You had fun with Alex,” he told him, more matter of fact lt than a question. It was clear that Theo had a good time, he usually did. Especially with Alex.
Eventually, and he didn’t know why, his mind couldn’t take enough of Theo’s intoxicating touch. His arms slid off of his bicep, but only for the sake of wrapping his arms lovingly around his neck, dragging his feet as they walked. Olly’s eyes were on Theo’s.

[Max]

A breeze had begun to sweep through the streets, sending the occasional piece of trash skittering down the sidewalk and the trees blew softly above their head, sending down leaves and twigs before they were whisked away by the wind. These were the nights that Theo lived for. When it was just him and his best friend, and nothing else mattered. It always reminded him of the night in the rain. The first night the he and Oliver had met. It had just been them and the chilly rain and the clouds. Now they had gone through walks in ever season together. Walked in the muggy heat of summer, the warm rain of spring and the cool showers of the fall. They had even trudged through snow banks after some wickedly interesting alcohol-induced snowball fights that had left them with numb feet and frost bitten cheeks. But tonight was particularly nice, warm but still cool enough to be comfortable.

"Hate to tell you this Princess, but you can't always be drunk to make her seem nicer than she is." He replied after a moment with a smirk. He really just wanted Olly to be happy, and while Rory did make him happy sometimes, he still felt like she wasn't the right girl for Olly. At the mention of Alex, Theo grinned and gave Oliver a knowing look. His best friend had gone through many nights of Theo mooning over Alex in 9th grade. Now that they were older, Theo was no longer hopelessly in love with the older boy, but still enjoyed his company, or rather his lips but whatever.
"Yeah, 'course I did. He can french kiss like no one else in the world." Theo said with a sly smile.

Theo stopped after a moment when Oliver wrapped his arms around Theo's neck. It was actually quite hard to walk when you have a drunk person hanging around your neck, it's pretty much a dead weight. He was used to Olly getting a little bit clingy when he was drunk but this was new.
"Are you okay?" He asked with a frown of concern.

[[deleted user]]

Theo stopped in his gentle steps after Oliver repositioned his arms, causing the boy to look at the taller with concern while still inside his happy daze. He was sure he had done something wrong to upset him, and always wanted nothing over. He never intended to hurt him, he had no reason to.

The words that followed sent Oliver into a flustered state, nodding and shaking his curls out of his face as the wind blew. “I’m okay,” he told him, and a sheepish smile that tugged on his lips said even more than those two words. “Sorry.” And if he wasn’t already a bit red from the alcohol, he was now blushing at their closeness as he held onto the other, afraid to let go and lose sight of him. As if that ever happened on these perfect walks.
Oliver looked around them for a moment, and they were in heir happy bubble. Where they couldn’t be bothered by anybody or anything as they walked together, no matter the weather and no matter the conditions that brought them into it. Nothing bad tended to happen in the space that set them apart from the rest of the world. The happy bubble was made that night in the rain, and he didn’t know where he would be if he had lost it that same night.
“Are you okay?” he asked after, looking up to Theo with his affectionate eyes that trusted the boy beyond words. Hell, Oliver had no clue was either of them were thinking right now.

[Max]

Theo looked down at Oliver with a raised eyebrow. His best friend looked awfully good at the moment. Just the way the wind whispered through the air and mussed his hair up. And how his dark brown eyes looked up at him with such innocence and affection, as though he had not a care in the world, it was beautiful. Theo had always known that Olly was handsome. He had registered that fact and then blatantly ignored it because Oliver was his best friend and only that. He tried to convince him that over and over again as Olly stared up at him adoringly. It was getting very hard, very quickly to not think that maybe in this moment Oliver could be more than a friend. More than a friend, and much more than someone like Alex was.

"Am I okay? I'm not the drunk one right?" He joked, trying to ease some of the... whatever the feeling was that was forming between them. He didn't want to mess this up by saying something or doing something wrong. Anyways, Olly had a girlfriend and he would never infringe on their relationship.
"You have to stop saying sorry too, let's just get you home." Theo sighed out eventually. He didn't know what was going on in Olly's head right now and he wasn't sure if he wanted to.

[[deleted user]]

Thick dark curls cascaded over eachother on the top of Theo’s head, complimenting his angular brows and soft cheek bones and everything. They even brushed along the back of his hand a bit, which made him smile a bit. And the small smile that was absentmindedly on his face was perfect, his smiles always were. The ones where he’s thinking, or curious, or beaming with excitement. every one of them. He had never once doubted the beauty that was his best friend. He had however doubted any pics of affection towards him that was platonic. Otherwise would messi up the entire system. It would ruin his reputation, which he didn’t know why he still cared about, his girlfriend, friends, parents . It would be like an ‘i told you so’ to whoever insisted that it was impossible to be friends with the gay boy without being with him romantically. But Theo always was more than a friend in this first place, though might not this way. His drunk mind didn’t mind letting in these thoughts, especially in this moment. In their perfect happy bubble.

Oliver was snapped out of his thoughts by watching Theo’s mouth move. He laughed quietly at what he said, understanding it a bit. He couldn’t help the apologies, they just happened. He supposed it was just a habit from a kid, but it had yet to leave him. His mind was buzzing with so many thoughts but none he could say aloud. He wasn’t sure if that was because the thoughts weren’t tangible enough, he was too drunk, or saying them aloud made them more real. Maybe all of them.

“Home,” he repeated softly, nodding his head on assurance. But he had forgotten to move his feet because he was now lost in these thoughts that a sober him would quickly shoo away. But before he knew it, he had shifted a bit closer, and his hands carefully slid up from his neck and to the apples of his cheeks. He didn’t know what he was thinking; a part of him was screaming to stop before he ruined something. But Theo’s lips were near his own and speaking his usual gentle words and nearly everything else in his mind encouraged him to tilt his head closer
And their lips brushed.
Hesitant, feathery, barely meeting, but it had happened. And after a moment of his navigation, he softly pressed his lips to Theo’s upper lip.

((tell me if it’s too soon, I can totally edit it))

[Max]

Theo didn't understand what was happening. Maybe he could have realized what was happening if it hadn't been Oliver. But it was Oliver, so Theo was purely confused. After all, Olly was straight and had a girlfriend, why in the world would he want to kiss Theo? So instead of doing what he might have naturally done, Theo didn't move away from Oliver but instead stood there like some stone statue, watching his best friend with wide eyes. He had to tilt his head down ever so slightly to meet Olly's eyes, and god were those eyes beautiful. Theo had always been jealous of Oliver's eyes. There was something totally hypnotizing about them. They were dark and wide and you could practically fall right into them if you weren't careful. In this moment, Theo decided that he could spend the rest of his life just looking at Olly and he would be happy.

Oliver looked to relaxed, so dazed and quiet like he often was on the walks home from parties. Theo had gotten used to it, but today it felt different. Today it felt different because Theo's heart was thumping wildly in his chest and he felt the exact opposite of what Oliver looked like. Theo didn't move as Oliver brushed his hands over his cheeks, but his breath caught in his throat at how close they were. A part of him wondered if he really wanted this. Had he always wanted this? Did he like his best friend? What the hell was happening? All these thoughts ran through his head in the same moment but his body refused to move away to give him some time to think about all of them.

"Yeah, ho..." Theo was cut off by the lightest brush of Oliver's lips against his. Again, it was the feeling as though he were made of glass, as though he might break any moment and right here, maybe he would. He took a sharp breath and then suddenly they were kissing. Not just a slight brush of skin against skin, but actually kissing. Theo knew that he should stop. He knew that Olly was drunk as hell and that he needed to stop this right now, but he couldn't. Instead he foolishly leaned in and kissing his best friend back with just as much hesitation and gentleness. It was the sweetest kiss he had ever had. He subconsciously wrapped his arms around Oliver's waist, pulling him closer. And then it really was just them. Just them kissing with the breeze and the trees and the night.

[[deleted user]]

A shiver sprinted up Oliver’s back and his breath hitched as he felt Theo return it, pull him closer as his mind forgot any previous doubt because he couldn’t think anymore when his lips were on his. It was gentle, tentative. Oliver didn’t know what to think, quite frankly. He felt as if his heart was thudding out of his chest and if he were to come any closer, Theo would be able to notice, and the anxiety that managed to show in the perfect moment that was happening would ruin it. But he ignored this worry, moved past the idea that ithis all may be wrong, a mistake. And maybe it was meaningless, but it damn well felt like something to him the moment their lips touched, hands roamed, bodies leaned closer. He smiled on his lips, and barely pulled away to suck in a small breath before pressing them back to Theo’s again, as if he were sealing something that wasn’t yet finished. And he didn’t want to end because he feared popping what was their happy bubble and always had been; something so delicate and personal because it was theirs and theirs only.

It was bound to happen eventually when their careful lips finally parted and Oliver looked back up at Theo, eyes holding more than a happy, drunken gaze in that moment. They were still less than an inch away, noses touching, lips able to brush again if one of them simply closed the gap as they shared shaky breath.
“Sorry,” Oliver murmured, a sheepish, dimpled smile stumbling onto his face as he glanced down in near embarrassment. He still remembered Theo telling him to stop apologizing, but it felt most justified then more than ever.He didn’t know what Theo was thinking, or even what he was thinking, but he was happy.

[Max]

((Ha. And they were kissing... woah))

Theo didn't fully understand what was happening here. He felt like his brain was overheating and now it had short circuited and he couldn't think properly. A part of his mind kept repeating "he's your best friend. Best friend." but somehow that part of his brain wasn't responding to that. He knew that this was weird but he didn't want it to stop. So he just ignored the part of his brain that was shouting at him and he just kissed Oliver back. Nothing in the world had ever felt better than Olly's lips on his. He could practically hear angels singing as their lips connected again after a brief pause. Theo took a small breath between the kisses and smiled softly against Oliver's lips.
"Oliver..." He began to say but quickly gave up and continued to kiss his best friend. The thing that broke him out of his spell was Oliver's apology. It was such an Oliver thing to that he had to stop. This was wrong. All of this was wrong. Olly was his best friend and this was going to ruin it.

He pulled away suddenly, disregarding the fact That Oliver still wasn't too steady on his feet. He couldn't believe he had just done that.
"Oh god." He muttered, eyes wide as he stared at the ground, at his hands, at a tree, anywhere but Oliver.
"Ohgodohgodohgod... Olly I need to get you home. Let's just go home. " He said, his throat suddenly feeling dry.

[[deleted user]]

((lol xD))

Oliver didn’t know what he himself was thinking, never mind trying to guess how Theo felt. Had he wanted it? Could he be mad at him? Surprised? Oliver felt happy about his decision, but the uncertainty kicked in the moment words left theo’s mouth. He watched as the boy scrambled away from him as if he had done something terrible, and he knew he had in that moment. His eyes widened with worry and his eyebrows furrowed, hesitantly taking a shaky step towards him before taking two back. It was wrong, a mistake; something ruined. He really had done something terrible.

“Fuck, Im sorry,” he stammered, and almost reached a hand towards him again to comfort him, but he retreated, scared of scaring Theo. He hadn’t meant to upset him, he had never seen him freak out like it. His own cheeks were flushed red and the guilt came rushing to his head; he had popped their happy bubble, he realized. Theo was looking away anyways. “Theo, fuck, I don’t.. shit. I’m sorry,” he slurred, running his hands through his hair as he tried to comprehend the situation that he got them into. He looked down at the ground, both to focus his unsteady footing and to look away from Theo, who didn’t seem to want eyes on him.
“Home,” he repeated softly, trying his best to sober up mentally as he nodded adamantly. His sense of direction was disoriented and he wished he didn’t drink to disappear for this reason now that he had gotten himself into this mess. He took a few steps forward, trying to settle himself and make things normal again as he continued to walk in the direction of home.

[Max]

This was not how life was supposed to work. He was supposed to have a best friend, and a boyfriend and they were not supposed to be the same thing. He wasn't supposed to kiss his best friend. But somehow they had ended up kissing anyways. It wasn't like Theo to freak like this as much as he was but he couldn't seem to stop the panic that welled up in his chest like some unbidden monster. Oliver was the best thing in his life. He was panicking because he was quite possibly ruining that best thing in his entire life. He ran a hand through his already messy hair, a nervous habit that he had picked up over the years. When Oliver took a step forward, Theo automatically stepped backwards. Oliver was drunk and Theo didn't really trust his judgement at the moment.

"Oliver. I..." He finally looked up at Oliver and gave him a long quiet look. His wide dark brown eyes meeting Oliver's for a long second before he looked away with a frown. He didn't know what to say to his friend anymore. Theo had never been at a loss for words before. He had never had to speak when he was around Oliver, since they could happily sit in silence but when he did want to talk he was never lost for words. But now he had nothing to say, but instead he just pinched his lips together and shook his head.
"You know what, never mind. Let's just go." He shoved his hands into his pockets and ducked his head slightly, walking quickly down the street, only stopping once and a while to let Olly keep up with him. Suddenly the night didn't seem so welcoming. The walks home that he had come to love and hope for didn't seem to nice anymore. The breeze felt more predatory than beautiful and the darkness seemed to close in on them, making Theo feel trapped and unsure of himself. Usually the night was his favorite, the stars and the crisp air but now it was all ruined.

[[deleted user]]

Oliver stopped in his steps and looked up hopefully when Theo spoke again, when his loss of guidance was already augmenting him while he walked. He had hoped for an assurance, that what he did shouldn’t be something to worry about. But he knew it was. He knew what he had just done had potentially ruined anything and everything between them because he decided to say ‘fuck it’ for one moment and go off his guard. But now he was losing his best friend with each step they took. He looked to Theo obediently, trying to do everything he could right so he wouldn’t mess things up more than they already were. But all he received was a disapproving shake of his head and a continuation of their trip home.
“I’m sorry,” he murmured again, and he could’ve sworn he heard his own voice break from how quiet it was. He forced his head away and looked down to his dragging feet for the rest of the walk, afraid to ever lt a hand on him again, afraid to hurt him again like he already seemed to have done. Let’s just go. The night that surrounded him wasn’t thefamiliar tranquility and blissfulness. It was threatening, trespassing, and unforgiving.

His house couldn’t have arrived any sooner. As the run-down small house came into view, asigh of relief escaped his mouth. He wasn’t supposed to feel this way,especially towards his best friend, but now it was all crashing down at him while completely unstable and drunk. His heart hurt and his eyes stung and his entire body felt warm and as if it were shutting down and not just because of the alcohol. When they stopped in front of the house, rather than having a night talk on his roof or spending the night or even just help him inside, Oliver turned to look at the boy. Hesitated to move towards him to even bump his shoulder playfully. Instead he took a few weary steps back until he felt like there was enough unfamiliar space between them to talk.
“I’ll see you,” he muttered softly, and in that moment he knew more than ever that he had broken something between them and that things wouldn’t be the same again.

[Max]

Theo just shook his head again when Oliver apologized. He didn't know if Olly had any reason to say sorry anyways. Theo knew better than anyone that his best friend always did stupid things when he was drunk. A lot of those stupid things involved physically stupid things like jumping into pools or trying to slide down staircase banister while being extremely drunk. To say the least, it had not ended up well, not for Olly and not for the staircase. He was also used to over-affectionate Oliver, the one that hugged everyone and kissed strangers on the cheeks but this was different. No matter how drunk his friend was, he always knew who Theo was and while he did get a bit touchy with Theo, he had never tried to kiss him. Plus, Theo had never seen Olly kiss another boy before even when he had had way too many shots for a normal human being to drink.

"Um, yeah... see you." He said softly, clearing his throat ever slightly. He paused, wanting to say something. He wanted to make this better, to tell Oliver that it didn't matter. But that would be lying, and Theo hated lying, especially to Olly. So he couldn't make it better. Instead he just nodded slightly towards the door as a reminder that Olly should go inside.
"So, yeah, bye." He added awkwardly before walking off quickly, not daring to look back to see if Olly had gone inside.

((After your post, do we want to skip to the next morning when Olly doesn't remember it and they get suuuppper awkward?))

[[deleted user]]

((sure, that works great c: ))

Oliver wasn’t sure what he was possibly looking for. An assurance wasn’t likely after the strong reaction he had managed to pull. He wished that he were sober for it all, so he could replay in his head as it was. Had he always wanted something like that? Did Theo return it? He knew the answers right now, but they felt so out-of-place in his mind that he knew it was too much for himself to comprehend right now. Olly simply watched, snapped from his thoughts when his best friend nodded in a direction. She turned around to see the side door to his house, and he realized the boy was signaling him to leave, for better or worse.
“Bye.” His voice broke again as it reached his throat, nodding in understanding. This wouldn’t be one of their nights of talking together under the stars, or walking around the neighborhood until everything was off their minds. And frankly, he wasn’t too sure if those were achievable again after what he had done.

A shaky stumble was Oliver’s first step to the door, and it didn’t seem to get any better from there. He walked up to his door step by himself, something that had grown to be so uncommon since they had become the closest of friends. His hands fumbled with the door handle, something Theo often did for him, and it ultimately led to him turning back around. He didn’t know what he was hoping for, possibly just a small reassuring smile from the one boy that made him happiest. But the sight made his heart collapse into a pit in his chest he had yet to know existed until then. Turned away, blurry, barely in his sight. After a minute or two of confusion, he managed to push the door open and force himself inside without sparing another glance that would ultimately hurt him more.

It was too late for his mother to be awake luckily, though his father had been making appearances at the house recently and he needed to be careful. He took cautious steps through the household that never felt too much like his home and his mind resorted to just crashing on the ratty couch. He made his way to the living room and grabbed the throw blanket before sitting on the old thing, trying to familiarize himself in the darkness of the household. He sat there and thought for what felt like hours until his body couldn’t go without sleep any longer. He woke up only a few hours later in the early morning.

[Max]

Theo woke up the next morning in a tangle of blankets and clothing. He had been to exhausted the night before to change out of his clothing and he still had one shoe on from the night before while the other one was kicked haphazardly across the room. For a brief moment, Theo just lounged around in bed, his mind still fuzzy and slow with sleep. He was in that beautiful state of in-between. When you're not quite awake, but you're not sleeping anymore either. It was Theo's favorite state to be in considering the fact that he didn't really think about anything when he was in his in-between. He didn't have to think about the day before, or the day to come or the fact that he had to get up soon. Instead he just curled up into his pillow and basked in the warm sunlight that was seeping through his curtains. Moments in-between could only last for so long though and Theo knew he had to get up eventually. His alarm clock was beeping in his ear and eventually he slammed his hand over to stop it and sat up.

The moment Theo was out of bed, he remembered what had happened the night before. Immediately he flopped back down on his bed, burying his face in the covers. He didn't want to have to face Oliver. He didn't know what he was going to say, or if he should even say anything. Honestly, he was pretty sure Olly might not even remember it at all. Theo wasn't sure if that was good news or bad. He could hear his mother downstairs getting ready to leave the house. She used to come upstairs and wake him up when he was younger, but now he hardly ever saw her before she went off to work.

Dragging himself out of bed, Theo made his way to the bathroom. he dragged a hand through his hair, which didn't change how terrible it looked, and quickly brushed his teeth. There was a bottle of Tylenol in the mirrored cupboard and he dry swallowed two in order to stop the headache that was beginning to pound in his head. His only thought that was if he had just a normal headache, Olly must have a terribly hangover. At that thought, he immediately pocketed the Tylenol since he usually ended up giving a few to a green looking Oliver. It was just a natural thing for him, part of his routine with his best friend. Only after he went downstairs did he realize that their routine would probably be very messed up now. His only hope was that Olly might not remember it.

His mom had already left and Theo grabbed a piece of toast from what she had left over on the counter, swung on his back and made his way out the door, pausing only to lock the door. He was already a good 15 minutes late and he probably wasn't going to make it to school in time. Usually he walked a few blocks and met Oliver at the corner so they could walk the rest of the way together, but this time he just trudged past the street. If Olly wanted to catch up to him, he could.

[[deleted user]]

The sunlight in the room was what caused Oliver to stir. His eyelids eventually parted to greet the warm sunny morning shining in through the window, but it immediately prompted an intense pain surging through his head and his eyes to immediately squeeze shut as he groaned and turned to face the couch. He cursed softly to himself and felt the words ping extra points to his headache. The boy was a mess: bedhead, eyebags, and still in the exact same clothes from last night with an old blanket bunched up at his torso. He stayed there like a little kid pouting in his room: eyes clenched shut and staying in his place as he tried to ignore the hangover until he had to face it as he did every time he went to these stupid parties, especially on the weekdays.

“Ten minutes, get fucking going!” A scratchy voice from upstairs shouted, and she was pissed. A late night’s work at the casino and a hungover son nearly every week tended to do that to Oliver’s mother. Oliver flinched at the sharpness of the sound reverberating in his ears, and groaned.
“Jesus, I am,” he grumbled, his voice screaming in his head. Their relationship had never been good together and it certainly wasn’t good now more than ever. With his father and her job and school and his reputation... it never worked out. There was never something particularly healthy about the household, and yet everything managed to work out under their roof.

Oliver rolled out of bed, his limbs aching with exhaustion and his stomach threatening to turn on him at any given moment, But he tried his best to move past it as he made his way to the bathroom with a change of clothes. He showered, changed, and brushed his teeth before he was out the door, only coughing up phlegm once beforehand. Making it out the door seemed impossible with the already shining day that told Oliver that he would be late to class today.

A painful walk and he was at their corner. His and Theo’s. Despite living somewhat far away and being a couple minute detour, they still walked together. He always walked with Theo in the mornings, he was his best friend. Besides, he didn’t have the time and patience for any of his other friends so early in the morning, especially in the state he was in, so it was puzzling to see the boy’s absence without a text to his phone. It just wasn’t something that happened with them. Maybe that was the second sign that the day wasn’t going to be the best. But a block later, he spotted the taller boy in front of him when he alerted his eyes from his feet to avoid the sunlight as much as possible.
“Theo?” he called out quietly, and even then did it pound in his head dreadful seconds. It was loud enough to hear, though, and he was too confused and tired to pull any reasoning for his already-walking besides running late.

[Max]

The sun was already beating down on the streets, warming up the concrete and the asphalt. It wasn't a nice kind of heat. It was the humid, sticky heat that makes your shirt stick to your skin and your hair plaster to the back of your head. Theo usually didn't mind the heat since he ran sort of cold and what most people thought was hot was fine for him, but even this heat was getting to be a bit too much for him. The breeze from last night had all but disappeared, leaving the air still and muggy. The disgustingly hot temperature did nothing to improve Theo's mood or his headache. Even with the Tylenol, his head pounded angrily with every step. Sometimes that would happen to theo after parties. The loud music and the shouting wouldn't affect him the night of, but he'd wake up with a wicked headache.

Most of Oliver's friends knew that he walked to school with Theo. So one of them came over looking for him.
"Hey construction boot boy, where's Oliver? I have some wicked pictures of him from last night." Construction boot boy was a nickname Theo had picked up because he always wore Doc martins. Theo wasn't sure if the nickname was supposed to be annoying or something, but he didn't really mind it, but today he was not in the mood. He figured it was pretty obvious that Oliver wasn't with him, so what did this guy think? That he was hiding Olly in his pocket? Instead of answering, he just glared at the other guy and shrugged.
"Sorry dude, just asking." The other boy responded with an eye roll before walking off. Just as he left, Theo heard the familiar steps of Oliver behind him.

Theo sort of wanted to just keep waking but be couldn't hide from this forever, it was time to face the fireworks.
"Hi Oliver." He said in a dull tone, stopping so his friend could catch up. He automatically pulled the Tylenol out of his pocket and passes it to Oliver. He might not know how to feel about his friend right now, but he did know that he didn't want him to suffer.
"So uh, last night was fun..." He said cautiously. He wanted to figure out how much Olly remembered.

[[deleted user]]

At first, there was suspicion that something was wrong when his best friend and walking buddy didn’t turn around or stop in his tracks, as it was definitely loud enough to hear. Was he being ignored? But his worries were choked back down the moment he met Theo’s eyes as one of his other buddies, Ben, was just walking away from him. Did he mess with him at all? He could help but worry over Theo some all the time, he was his best friend, but decided not to pry for now. For now was when he focused on his pounding hea he and his aching body that made him feel like he should never drink again for days on end. He knew he’d be back on it in a couple days time, though. He always did; he would always head out to some party and get stupidly drunk with his friends all over again. Theo seemed to be the only person able to ground him from the unreality he surrounded himself in at parties.

“Hey,” he said quietly once he approached his best friend, grimacing a bit only because of the bright sun shining behind Theo and the massive hangover. School was certainly not the best place to treat the effects of the previous night. He was still confused as to the walking scenario, but settled on the reasoning being that they were simply late. “Sorry for sleeping in. It seems you did the same?” Oliver watched as Theo fumbled around in his pocket before pulling out some Tylenol, offering it to him. He smiled fondly at the sight and took it, opening the bottle and taking two. A sprite and some sleep were the only other things he could resort to now for the day.
“Thanks,” he said, glancing up to meet his eyes for a moment. He was beyond grateful for his best friend. It was almost a routine of Theo’s to bring a bottle of pain-relieving meds, and though it was a small thing, it never went unnoticed.

“Guess it was. I was probably being a total ass yesterday, yeah?” He ran his hands through his mussed hair lazily as he chuckled. Some of the things he managed to do on those nights were outright ridiculous, and made him question quite a lot whenever Theo told him of his shenanigans while drunk.

[Max]

Okay, this was going alright, Oliver didn't look any different than he usually did when he woke up the day after a party. As usual he was squinting and he looked a little bit green around the gills, but that was just part of the routine of Oliver-day-after-parties and Theo was used to it. Theo had always just told Olly to bring sunglasses but as usual, his friend had obviously forgotten them so he was trying to avoid that sun like it might just burn him into tiny crisps.
"Yeah, woke up with a headache." Theo muttered. He wanted things to be normal, he wanted to pretend like nothing had happened. It didn't look like Olly remembered anything from last night, often he didn't at all. So, maybe things could be normal again. Maybe Theo could just try and forget about it and everything would be okay again. But he knew that wasn't really possible. That he couldn't get rid of the feeling of Oliver's lips on his and the breeze and the night sky, and the feelings that had welled up in side of him. The feelings that he didn't know what to do about.

But, he pretended anyways, and offered Olly a small smile.
"I dunno, you played truth or dare but I didn't see much of it. I was too busy with Alex." He admitted. This was what normal after party conversations were supposed to be. Theo talking about Alex, and Oliver trying his best to graft together all his blacked out memories of the night before.
"Did you finish that english project?" He asked suddenly. Another one of Theo's roles as Olly's best friend was to make sure he handed things in on time even if he was crazy hungover.

[[deleted user]]

Oliver frowned when he heard if his headache, always managing to feel sympathetic towards his best friend. “I’m sorry, I feel,” he said with a small smile, eyes crinkling to avoid the sun. He knew that they were probably red and being from the previous night, purple discoloration underneath from exhaustion, and the sun definitely wasn’t doing him any good. He knew he needed to get himself a pair of sunglasses at some point, but he was forgetful as always. They began to walk alongside eachother as they made their way to first period.
“Sounds like you,” he decided to tease upon hearing about Alex, bumping his shoulder playfully as they walked. It was a common occurrence for Theo and Alex to get together at those parties, starting as Theo’s massive crush and turning into a little fooling around over time, nothing serious. He tried to recall anything that happened yesterday, but it just felt like a scrap of time thrown away by him. A blessing and a curse, not remembering the worst while also not rnemembering the best. Though grateful for not getting the worst of symptoms, such as vomiting with a drop of alcohol, Olly always wished his memory were better when he got wasted at those parties. Bits and pieces were the best of his ability after his usual amount of drinks. He remembered getting upset over Rory at some point, and drinks with Cody, but not too much else, unfortunately.

His head turned back up to meet Theo’s eyes when he spoke, eyebrows drawing close before shaking his head. It was an almost finished project, but not finished nonetheless. He could’ve had it done yesterday, but he figured otherwise would be more fun, and it was from what he remembered.
“Fuck I didn’t,” he grumbled, pressing the heel of his hand to his head for a moment.“I’ll finish it in study hall, I guess.”

[Max]

"Yeah, my headache must feel like nothing compared to what you're feeling though." Theo joked, trying to sound as casual as he could. He was trying his hardest to sound like he was comfortable with this. Like nothing had changed. But everyone knew that Theo hated lying, so he wasn't doing too well with it. He wasn't lying when he said that though, Oliver looked horrible. Well, at least as horrible as Olly could ever look which really wasn't that bad. That wasn't true in everyone's case though, and as they reached the school Theo could easily spot a few kids who had been at the party last night. They were easy to spot since most of them were either tossing back coffee and hiding behind hoods or sunglasses, while others were simply sitting around looking miserable.
"Yeah, he's talented I tell you." Theo said with a slight chuckle. As if called by their conversation, Alex suddenly walked past them, talking animatedly with another boy. He didn't even glance at Theo, which Theo wasn't complaining about. At least he could always count on Alex for the no strings attached nights. The day after a party, Alex always acted as though nothing had happened, which Theo appreciated. He didn't like people who kissed and told, it was stupid. He moved away slightly though when Oliver bumped shoulders with him. Just slightly, but still moved away none the less.

"You better finish it." He said playfully, glaring at Oliver. Neither of the boys were particularly school oriented, but Theo made sure they both kept their grades up. After all, he wanted to graduate and get away. Far away where there were no people, just him and maybe some mountains. That was his dream, it always had been.
"Girlfriend spotted. You got into a fight with her since she didn't want you to leave." He informed Oliver before shoving his hands into pockets and looked back at the ground.

[[deleted user]]

((hi, i totally thought i gave you a personal heads up earlier. im i sorry!! im still interested in our adorable boys if you are, but my busy summer just took a huge toll on a lot of my rps, and lack of inspo became apparent after a few days, too. im working hard on catching up on all of mine for the next few days while im on vacation c: ))

[Max]

((It's totally fine! Life comes first (it tends not to be as simple as RP worlds are) hope everything is okay!))

[[deleted user]]

((thank you for being so patient!))

“I will, I will,” he replied with just as much tease in his voice, rolling his eyes playfully. Not that either of them were too interested regarding school, but Oliver managed to keep his grades at mostly B’s, occasionally Cs and grateful As. Getting through high school was a goal of his, respite the fun he had been having with it ever since his freshman year. Soon he could be out of the ridiculous hellhole and move past it, not that he had a set plan or anything. Hell, he didn’t even think he had a chance with college at this point. He had yet to take college visits or even look into the prices. But high school kept him sane just advise it drove him off the edge. He figured he would get the english project finished in study hall, though, which was reasonable. He was good a ton pulling assignments together at the last minute.

When he heard Theo speak up again, he snapped out of his thoughts and glanced to him before looking back up and searching the halls for the girl mentioned. Yards away was his girlfriend in leggings and a hoodie. Her hair was up in a messy bun and her eyes were bloodshot and she wasn’t wearing makeup. He thought she looked lovely regardless, but that wasn’t often a brief argument they would have with eachother. As they approached eachother, Theo’s words sunk in and he tried to mentally prep himself.

“Hey,” he said quietly, offering a gentle smile to her as he held out his hand for her. But all he received was a scowl that one would typically think was a hyperbole from a cartoon with fire shooting from their ears, but it was simply just Rory.
“Hi,” she started after a huff of breath, an almost humorous sight f it weren’t for the fact that Olly knew she was actually angry. “Feel better? You must’ve crashed before you could call me.”
“Yeah, um, I did actually. Sorry.” He hadn’t remembered most of yesterday, besides the essentials. Theo sneaking off with Alex, attempting to mix drinks, the messy crowded house... But he must’ve fallen asleep before that.
“Yeah.” She rolled her eyes and then cut a quick glance to Theo before back to Oliver. “Are you gonna me to German?”
Oliver nearly felt as if he were attacked when he saw the sharp glance to his best friend, it was like a threat, almost.
“Yeah, let’s go,” he mumbled, quickening his pace again in the hallway. It was a short walk to her classroom, and then Theo and him had the hallways to themselves as they walked through the school to their class.

[Max]

For once in his life, Theo was actually happy to see Rory. She disliked him, and he hated her, but it wasn't unusual for Theo to hate people. Some people were nice enough to give others the benefit of the doubt, innocent until proven guilty. Theo was not one of those people. He hated people first, and in the rare case that he enjoyed their presence he began to hate them just a little less. That was the case with Oliver. He had hated him in the beginning, but as they had gotten closer, Theo's hatred had fizzled away only to be replaced with a fierce loyalty that he had never felt for anyone but Oliver.

But, despite how much Theo hated Rory it was normal. Her and Olly arguing was normal. It was just his very very straight friend and his girlfriend being in their normal happy relationship. It was so much more normal that his best friend kissing him last night. At the moment, Theo needed some normal. So when Rory shot him an angry look. Theo even managed a little bit of a smile. That was, until her look changed to something even angrier, and after that he rolled his eyes at her and dropped a little bit behind so Olly could spend some quality time with his girlfriend. That was good since it gave Theo some time to think about last night. He had been too tired last night to think about it clearly.

Theo needed to think about this logically, so he started with what he knew. He knew that his best friend had kissed him, he knew that he had felt something besides confusion when he did, and he also knew that his best friend had a girlfriend. He mulled over those facts over and over again but it didn't help clear his mind at all. This problem could not be fixed logically, it was purely emotional and Theo hated the emotional things in life.

Finally they were on their own after they dropped Rory off at her class and Theo slowly quickened his pace to walk beside his friend. Usually even quieter Theo had a lot to chat about with his friend after a party, but today he was quiet and sullen, eyes trained on the ground in front of him.
"So, you two made up?" He finally asked after letting out a long breath.

[[deleted user]]

Oliver shot an apologetic glance to Theo when he obviously stepped back for Rory to fill his place beside him in the hallway. He didn’t want that, he liked the comfort and warmth of Theo, from their honest conversations to even simply the physical brush of their shoulders as they walked together. But his girlfriend was adamant on her placement, keeping her hands to herself at first as they turned the corner to the foreign language hall. He absolutely hated that it was this way sometimes, but he figured that was just how it is and he’s had to deal with it. Nobody else could relate; their friendship was so strong and well-known that no one else would and could understand.

A minute passed before Rory decided to finally open her mouth to unleash her grudge, her speech starting from not calling to not caring to hating. Oliver shook his head at everything she assumed, not even realizing when their hands weren’t entwined again so he couldn’t use them to express as he spoke to her. He spat out apologies like it was his job, not wanting her to believe what her mind had turned to all because of his mere ignorance of not calling like he said he would.
“I know, I’m sorry. I was so drunk, I shouldn’t have even gotten myself in that situation. Im not just saying that to make you happy or some shit. I’m sorry, Rory. I am,” he assured, rubbing the back of his hand his his thumb as she glared to him. But as the words began to simmer and their conversation cooled down, things felt relatively normal again. He brought a hand up to her chin and tilted her head, enveloping her in a sweet goodbye peck on the lips before she fled, their hands retreating to their backpack straps as she walked through the door and Oliver regained his noble place at Theo’s side.
“I’ll see you,” he called to her with a small smile, turning to look back to his best friend after another minute. He felt relieved to be with him. “I guess,” he said after an exasperated sigh, flitting his dark eyes to Theo’s before looking to everyone as they tiredly shuffled down the halls.
“We always do, don’t we?” Oliver never knew how he felt about that: the fact that they always managed to make up. A part of him was happy that they were able to get eachother through their angry predicaments, but at the same time, should they even be having predicaments in the first place? Nevermind how common they were, anyway. He always looked over them, because he loved his girlfriend. Just occasionally the thought of them being friends would creep into his mind.

[Max]

Theo had been hoping that everything would be normal when Rory left, since her coming had seemed so normal, but it wasn't. He felt enormously uncomfortable walking next to Olly and he moved slightly sideways so that there was a good meter between them. Usually Theo liked physical contact with his best friend. Even the slightest brush of shoulders always seemed to calm him down when he was stressing out about homework or something.
"Yeah, you always do... are..." He paused uncomfortably and swallowed thickly, looking away from Oliver. He had never questioned his best friend before about his girlfriend. He knew that Rory could be a bit of an asshole, but he had always known without doubt that Oliver would never leave her. He knew that he loved her, so he while he didn't like Rory, he had never questioned Olly's choice of dating her. But after last night, he couldn't help but wonder about it. Sure, people did stupid things when they were drunk, but sometimes it was out of another cause. Being drunk often meant people didn't have control of their inner emotions, the ones even they didn't know about. So, Theo couldn't help but wonder if maybe Olly had something hidden deep inside that had been shown that night in the dark.
"Olly..." He tried against before abruptly stopping and licking his lips ever so slightly as he tried to get the worlds out.
"Are you sure... you like Rory?" He finally got out. In the moment, Oliver might not realize how important that question was to Theo. For teenagers, while the question was a bit out of the blue, it wasn't totally weird and Oliver might just think that Theo was curious. But this was more than just innocent curiosity.

As they walked down the hall, Theo waiting impatiently for Olly's response but he did so without ever looking at his friend. He shouldn't have asked, or at least he should have asked more subtly. He was regretting his decision greatly and a huge part of him suddenly became terrified of losing his friend. He couldn't lose Oliver, anyone else sure but no Oliver, not the one person he trusted and loved more than anything in the world.

[[deleted user]]

Oliver could tell something was wrong the longer they were around eachother as they walked down the hall. Typically they couldn’t shut up to eachother, from small things to what truly mattered. But there was a silence he had never had with Theo, his best friend, not even when they had yet to grow closer. The change was even physically evident in Olly’s eyes, unless he was overthinking and worrying about it all: There was a viable space between them, almost enough for another student to cut by to hurry to their class. And he wanted to outfront ask what was the matter, but he tried to dismiss it because it felt so peculiar to step into the new silence that sat between them. Maybe he was overthinking the pause in Theo’s words, or the distance between them and just blame it on the fact that he was hungover, as majority of the junior and senior class were, anyway.

Which was why Theo’s voice caught him so off guard when he asked him a question. Olly’s head snapped up from his feet when he heard him, obedient and curious. He never dismissed his best friend, even if they were angry eachother. ANd the question didn’t really clear thing s up for him, but simply led to a quirk of his eyebrow. Why was he so curious all of the sudden, after the many weeks of dating at this point? He looked back ahead of him as the classroom came to view at the end of the hall.
“Yes,” he told him simply, biting down on his lip after he answered the question that had him so unprepared. He had nearly stopped in his steps as his stride slowed while he tried to compose a response that was honest, no matter why Theo wanted to know.
“I like her. Just never expected the kisses and the handholding out of it. I guess the girlfriend and boyfriend term transitioned in my mind without me even realizing,” he tried to explain, wanting it to sound better. He was pretty certain as to how he felt towards Rory, but now that he had tried to say it aloud, it was weird.
“Does that make sense?” He looked hopefully up at Theo, eager to hear some assurance amongst this. Amongst this... whatever was happening between them right now.

[Max]

Theo didn't see the quirk of the eyebrow, because he was too busily focusing on the tip of his heavy boots. Oliver had actually bought him those Doc Martins since Theo's old ones were ruined when he had gotten caught in a snow storm and stepped in a huge puddle of slush and rain. It had been the first birthday he had spent with Olly and he hadn't really been expecting his friend to get him anything. No one gave gifts anymore in his family and he didn't really have any other friends to share his birthday with. So, when Oliver had pulled out a box with gift wrapping (and probably more tape than actual paper) all Theo had done was give him a puzzled look before opening it. Theo remembered the exact feeling he had felt when he had seen what was in the box. He had mentioned to Olly that he had ruined his shoes almost 3 months ago and somehow Oliver had still remembered. No one had ever done anything like that for him before. That memory made him want to stop looking at his shoes and in vain he raised his head away to stare down the hall resolutely. It didn't help him forget that memory though, no matter how hard he tried.

Theo's heart gave a little bit of a lurch at how speedily Oliver answered his question. He hadn't realized that some part of him had maybe been hoping that Oliver didn't like Rory. He cursed himself inwardly for even thinking something like that. Of course he wasn't disappointed, no he was happy. He was happy that his friend was happy with his happy girlfriend and they were all happy. But that didn't change the gaping hole that seemed to loom between them. He listened to Olly stumble through his feelings, steady and sure of himself. By the end of it though, Theo didn't understand it though. Well, maybe he did a little bit but he could hardly listen anymore because he was so distracted. He so wanted to just step into that forbidden space he had created and pull Oliver into a hug and just tell him what had happened. But he knew that he couldn't, that telling the truth was going to hurt him too much. So he just let out a long breath instead.
"I guess." He replied shortly as they stepped into the classroom. Right away he slid into his seat and rested his head in his arms, closing his eyes against the bright and confusing world.

[[deleted user]]

Oliver endlessly continued to replay his answer in his head, maybe more than he should’ve. His explanation could’ve backed him up whether he said that he did or didn’t but like his girlfriend. He thought he did, but the explanation he provided could say otherwise, too. Maybe that was a good thing, but at the same time it brought so much uncertainty into his fatigued mind that he wasn’t too sure at this point how to manage it. Did he pick the right answer, if there even was one? Was Theo upset at him for what he said? His best friends short reply only egged onto this as they reached their classroom. Oliver waited for Theo to head in first before following behind, shuffling into his seat in the middle of the classroom. Right next to Theo’s seat, of course.

He bit down hard on his lip as Theo hid his head in his arms, secluding himself. And maybe it wasn’t just his usual self and Oliver chiming in with his worry, but the feeling
“Are you okay?” he asked softly, biting back on giving him a snarky comment about him possibly having a hangover like the rest of them. No, he was genuinely worried for his best friend, and though he knew the boy wasn’t typically exhausted and cranky at this time, this was far from that. He just needed to hear something, whether that be an assurance or a confirmation. Because Oliver was growing fearful that he wasn’t, and that he was unable to be there for him any sooner.

[Max]

A few other kids began to float into the classroom, coming in twos and threes of chatting groups. Even in just this class it was easy to see that at least half of them were hungover. Theo was always surprised at how big the parties he and Oliver went to always ended up being. He always knew they were big, but never really realized how big until the aftermath of it the next day. Around them people slumped into chairs, looking around balefully from under shaded sunglasses or around huge coffees. Others simply slid into their seats and like Theo hid their faces in their hands to try and stop the sunlight from filtering into their sensitive eyes. Theo watched all of this through one open eye until he heard Oliver ask him a question.

He looked up, startled for a moment and he had to think back furiously to remember what Olly had just asked him. Of course, it was the classic "are you okay?" And Theo honestly couldn't answer that question. Was he okay? No, yes, maybe, he wasn't sure. Could Oliver do anything to make him feel better? Absolutely not. That was the one thing Theo knew. Oliver couldn't make him feel better. That was the scary thing about this situation. Oliver had always been there for him. Had always listened to Theo complain and rant about how much life sucked, or how much people did. Theo had always told Olly everything, because he knew that Olly would care. But this time his problem was the very person he wanted to talk to.
"I'm just so fucking tired of taking care of you." He suddenly burst out, raising his head to glare at Oliver. He didn't actually mean any of that. He loved Oliver too much to ever get tired of taking care of him. But he didn't know how to deal with what he was feeling, so he dealt with it through anger.

[Max]

((I'm thinking that he will continually do little angry outbursts like that until he finally breaks down and has a huge rant about every little thing about Olly that bothers him (like not really, but he's just so angry) which of course ends with the admitting of the kiss))

[[deleted user]]

((that would be so great, i like it))

Something hopeful came out of seeing Theo’s face again, despite the confusing amount of expression shown. At first he considered it to be anger, but he saw fear too, maybe. And hurt? Oliver wished he was sure of it all, wished that the alcohol wasn’t in his system and affecting his body more than any other hangover he had, more than ever.
But the words he received were nothing he could even prepare himself for, and his eyes absentmindedly widened despite his dire attempt to keep a straight face to show that he wasn’t affected by it. It certainly had. The few words had stung; it made his jaw lock in place and his limbs feel colder and his throat feel clogged by his heart. It was like he was frozen What had encouraged him to say that? Surely the two were honest with eachother, but his mind dismissed that from being the truth sometimes when it came up. Even Theo would assure him that things weren’t that way when Olly suspected it to be, but now it was the exact person who had once told him that, telling him otherwise. It shouldn’t have struck him by surprise or hurt him this badly when he realzied Theo’s sharp words. Then why do you? he wanted to ask.
“I know you are. And I’m sorry,” he finally told him in near defeat, ducking his head away because he wasn’t worthy of Theo’s gaze. And he did know it, or at least he thought that on many occasions. He didn’t deserve to be taken care of, nevermind by someone as amazing as Theo.

And just like that, class had started as if it were any other day. From the hungovers to the stuckups to the sleepers and the skippers... it was so identical to the previous days. Except Oliver was chewing on his lip and fidgeting with his hands under the desk as he repeated the situation again and again, trying to understand it as it was. And he couldn’t. The forty minutes of him with his thoughts in silence couldn’t have gone any faster.

[Max]

((Alright! Also... I finished The Catcher in the Rye. I have never read a book like that in my entire life!))

The second Theo said those words he immediately regretted them. Sure, he sometimes got a bit irritated about having to deal with drunk Oliver sometimes but it wasn't too bad. He and Olly were hardly a good fit anyways when it came to being friends. The party animal and the loner, it didn't exactly fit. But that was exactly what Theo loved so much about his best friend, they didn't fit and yet somehow they worked like puzzle pieces. So, while he didn't appreciate Olly's drinking habits, he also was used to dealing with and he liked knowing that he could handle the worst of his best friend. In return, Oliver dealt with his moody swings, sarcasm, general hatred of the entire world and himself along with plenty unpleasant quirks that came with being friends with Theo. When you compared all of that to Oliver's one unfortunate need to party, Theo definitely felt like he had the better deal. But he knew that he couldn't take back what he had said. Oliver would forgive him, Theo knew he would, but that didn't mean he would forget about it. Noticing how his best friend ducked his head nervously Theo let out a shaky sigh and shook his head angrily.
"No, i'm sorry Olly I should be the one apologizing. I'm so sorry, i'm just really tired..." He murmured and every part of him meant it.

Theo wanted to show Olly that he really was sorry and yet he still couldn't quite get the soft pressure of Olly's lips on his out of his head. Or the little flutter in his chest when it had happened. That was what scared him the most, what he had felt deep inside when he knew that he shouldn't feel anything like that for his best friend. Sitting through class was an extremely uncomfortable hour and 15 minutes. Theo spent most of the class with his head in his hands and only lifted his head a few times. Once to answer a question that had been pointedly asked to him as he slumped down in his desk. Once to gulp down another Aspirin for his headache and finally to excuse himself to go the washroom. Their teacher, Ms. Aposalove didn't look like she wanted to let him go since he wasn't exactly being a star student by any means, but the desperate look on Theo's face was enough to convince her.

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Oliver only shook his head as he began to hear Theo’s words, dismissing his apology for the time being. He didn’t need to hear it because it was only true and that was okay. He didn’t need to apologize for that exact reason: it was alright. It always was because it was Theo. His attention tried to avert to the teacher in front of the room, but that soon failed as he zoned out and found himself only able to concentrate on his dulling headache whilst trying to block out any thoughts before they blew out of proportion. As the class passed dreadfully and slowly, Oliver managed to make himself appear smaller so he wasn’t called on, completely undisturbed from the rest of the world for now. He didn’t give a shit about the class anyway, and as long as he was passing and getting by, he didn’t mind what went on in the class.

When class was dismissed, Oliver stood from his seat and slung his backpack over his shoulder, eager to leave the place at this point. He managed to catch Theo just as he was leaving the restroom, and a sigh of both relief and frustration, he couldn’t tell, escaped his mouth as he approached him. Their classes split from this point until sixth period, their lunch, but Olly still liked walking the extra minute to his best friend’s classroom before they parted ways until then. He quickened his pace simply for the sake of walking beside him, and looked over to him as he looked straight ahead. He bit his lip and smiled a little before asking him, “You feeling any better?”, regarding their headaches. He knew his had gotten exponentially better, but it was still a dull pain in his head that refused to go away. For now, he was trying to ignore Theo’s brief outburst because it had upset him and he didn’t want to be upset because of his best friend.

[[deleted user]]

((oh my goodness, im so beyond happy you read it! seriously, you don’t even know. what did you think?

im halfway through the outsiders, and ill hopefully be finished by this weekend!))

[Max]

((I'm going to be honesty here, it wasn't my favorite. I don't know why, but it just wasn't. On the flip side though, his writing was probably one of the most amazing works of writing ever. It was so... individualistic? I can't really explain))

Theo spent the remained of class with his back pressed against one of the stall doors staring blankly at the graffiti covered wall opposite to him. His headache was worse than before despite the amounts of Asprin he had gulped down and he couldn't help but wonder if this was what hangover felt like. He knew that Olly usually got a hangover after parties but they usually seemed to wear off by the afternoon while Theo's showed no sign of stopping any time soon. It wasn't unusual for Theo to get headaches like this. When he was stressed out or over-tired he often got pounding headaches although this one was worse than most. He was half planning to just stay in the washroom for the next little while so that he wouldn't have to see Oliver before his next class but was forced to reconsider after a few boys decided to make the bathroom headquarters for their weed consumption. Unfortunately, that meant Theo was right in time to meet Olly to go to his next class. Pull it the fuck together Theo He thought to himself angry before taking a deep breath and stepping outside. Right on cue, Oliver's footsteps came up from behind him and soon his best friends familiar face popped into his view.

"Ugh, not really." Theo muttered, pressing the palm of his hand to his forehead.
"And I mean, you do this stuff all the time." This was said in a lighter tone as he tried his best to mend what he had said earlier. But even he knew that no amount of jokes could change what he had said or what Oliver had done last night.

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Oliver wrapped his arms around his torso and looked over expectantly to Theo, looking at his best friend rather than the boy who was angry at him. He offered a smile to him a smile to greet him as they fell in step with eachother in the direction of Theo’s second period.
“Yeah, guess so,” he replied with a shrug, the quirk of a smile tugging at his lips as he lightened the conversation. He could tell that both of them were mentally dying with these headaches, though for different reason. He knew for a fact that Theo’s wasn’t a hangover, but maybe it felt just as bad, if not worse.
“It looks like your head is pounding,” he observed simply, and he knew that it was true by how he pressed his hand to his temple and when he furrowed his brows abs he grimaced

Oliver walked through uncomfortable silence between them as they passed the many other students in the hall with similar symptoms. Typically he could gladly relish in not talking with zttheo and simply enjoy husband presence, if that made any sense, but that was different from what this was.
“Listen, I’m,” he stopped himself, wanting to try and say the words right so he wouldn’t upset Theo any further. “Sorry for being a fucking mess yesterday. I know you hate it, so thank you for dealing with me.” He chewed on his lip and looked down at his shoes, picking his feet up from the ground upon realizing they were dragging on the dirty school hallways. He felt bad, he felt terrible, but he also figured moving past it wasn’t best. So he left it at that. He tried to revert to his usual self who had a hangover the day after the party and talked to his best friend until he felt better.

[Max]

Theo loved that Olly was making such an effort to talk to him again. Most people would have backed off by now, leaving Theo alone with his thoughts. Of course Oliver knew better than anyone that leaving Theo alone to think was probably one of the most dangerous things in the world. There wasn't much worse the boy could do than just think, because his thoughts were more twisted than even his best friend knew. So, Theo was extremely grateful that even though Oliver didn't know why Theo was so angry at him, he was still trying to help as much as he could. Despite how uncomfortable he was around Oliver now he still felt a surge of warm love for his friend.
"Pounding? Pounding is an understatement. It feels more like i'm being trampled like a bunch of teenagers when a new Sephora opens." He groaned, squeezing his eyes shut tightly for a moment before opening them again.

The uncomfortable silence grew between them until what Theo had been expecting from Oliver finally came. Every time Olly apologized now, Theo couldn't help but feel unbelievably guilty. He shouldn't have gotten so angry at Olly and now his best friend was acting like it was his fault. He wanted to tell him that it wasn't his fault, tell him why he was acting so weird, but that meant telling him about the kiss, and Theo couldn't do that. Theo hated keeping secrets though and this one was eating him up from the inside out. He never could keep things from Olly for long and he knew that this secret was going to come out eventually, it was only a matter of when.
"No, Olly... it's really not your fault. I don't hate it so much, it's sort of nice knowing that I get to take you home every night." Theo admitted softly before cursing in his mind. Had that sounded romantic? He hadn't meant it in a romantic sense? He and Oliver had always been sort of okay with slightly romantic comments with each other but that was only because they were such good friends that it didn't matter. But now Theo was over thinking every little thing he said.

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“You know that from personal experience?” he teased quietly, and for a moment things felt okay again. A major difference between the two best friends was that Oliver preferred to forget the miserable world around them while Theo always seemed to face it head on. He always admired that about him, how honest and direct he appeared to be while Olly would rather be ignorant. Nobody would expect a friendship out of the two, bring it different groups and their personalities so different, and yet it had happened. Oliver was grateful it had, too.

Theo’s words made him smile softly and he wished he could just forget about what he had said previously that got him so worked up. He wished it didn’t upset him, but it had. The entire school was just exhausted, that was all. He cut a short glance to him before looking back to the hallway ahead of them, able to see Theo’s classroom.
“You just don’t deserve dealing with me, especially when I’m like that,” he explained simply with a small shrug, trying to play it off as nothing in hopes of forgetting when Theo snapped at him. He understood why. If only he knew just how fucked he was yesterday, so he could be more specific, so he could apologize for everything’s and anything he truly had done wrong. But for now, this had to do.
“So thank you for doing so anyway,” he concluded, quickling returning to worrying his lip until it was nearly red raw. He stopped at the door to his classroom and turned to him, managing a small smile to his best friend.

[Max]

"No see, that's why i'm gay Olly. So I don't have to deal with Sephora" Theo replied dryly, trying to get back into the mood of joking around with his best friend. But even mentioning his sexuality now felt weird. Not that Olly would understand or even remember why it was a touchy subject, but now for Theo it was. He just didn't understand why Oliver would do something like that, or if Olly wasn't straight, why he wouldn't have told Theo. It didn't really even cross his mind that possibly Olly was just confused. From age 11 Theo had known that he was homosexual, no question about it. So he didn't really understand the whole idea of not quite knowing. Theo didn't like not knowing things either, one of the reasons he hated getting drunk, which was the exact opposite of Olly.

Theo stopped by the door of his classroom and leaned against the wall as he listened to his best friend.
"No, no Olly, I only said that because my head hurt so much. I didn't mean it, I like taking care of you..." That was true and not true at the same time. Taking care of Olly gave him a sort of sense of purpose. It was nice to know that someone needed him, one person in the 7 billion people in the world.
"Really, seriously Olly stop biting your lip." He knew that was a habit of Oliver's when he was upset and it always eneded up with bleeding lips, which just wasn't nice in general.
"Look I have to go. Finish that project okay?" He smiled gently at Olly before slipping into the classroom just as the bell rang.

[[deleted user]]

Oliver laughed at one of the many snarky comments he always enjoyed hearing from his best friend. Theo was sure he was gay by the time the two met, and it was clear, too. Despite the occasional obnoxious comments from students claiming they were hopelessly in love, Oliver never gave a second thought to Theo’s sexuality, nor his own, even. He wasn’t beyond grateful to have the boy as his closest friend, and had no plans to change that. The guys and girls in his group at school we’re different; they weren’t the type of people to spill secrets with, to complain about life, to tell of his home life to. Theo was, and that’s what made him different.

His persistence certainly made Oliver feel better as Theo tried talking him down, watching as he leaned back nearby the doorway to his classroom, and for a moment Oliver looked taller, which always seemed to knock some pride into him. Their height was often a playful argument they exchanged. He hadn’t but even realized the lip-biting until Theo pointed it out as he always did, and he obediently released his lip from between his teeth, a small flush on his face for doing such a thing.
“WIll do,” he said with a confirming nod regarding the project. He would get it finished up in study hall so he would get a decent grade on the big assignment. Upon seeing Theo smile to him, a smile of his own fumbled onto his face happily.
“I’ll see you.” And with that, Theo dissapeared into his classroom and Oliver’s started on his walk to his class down the hall, just as the bell rang. He felt better about the topic, but his mind refused to let go of it, and he felt bad for that reason. However, he fought that feeling and pushed forward until he slipped into his own classroom.

((do you want cut to them hanging out some other day? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ ))

[Max]

((Sure, maybe Oliver comes over to Theo's house or something?))

[[deleted user]]

((sure, that works. could you start? they could just be working on homework together, or sit out on his roof maybe, idk.))

[Max]

((Okay))

"Oliver, could you just sit for a second and focus? We haven't even got the first page done." Theo was flopped down on his bed, spread out so that his limbs were flung haphazardly across the covers and hanging off the bed. His room was almost completely made up of shades with only a few spots of colour here and there. Currently the most colourful part of the room were the textbooks that were spread about the floor. Theo and Olly had always done their homework together, although Theo often did it just to make sure that Oliver did his. Currently, his friend was doing everything but his homework. Theo looked up pleadingly at him, trying to get his best friend to sit down long enough to just finish their homework.

"Okay, name how the laws of attraction impact the this equation." He waved a sheet of paper in front of Oliver's face before lying back down on his bed. He wasn't really in the mood to do his homework, but he wanted to finish it so that they could do something else. Over the past few days he had gotten more comfortable with Olly again although he was still a little on edge about things sometimes. Luckily he hadn't blown up again like he had in the class.