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after being home-schooled his whole life, tyler’s first day of high school was terrifying. he had no idea what to wear, what to bring, how to act or how to make friends. the only thing he knew was basketball, so that’s exactly where he went first. he found the school gym fairly easily, but spent a few minutes looking like an idiot trying to push open a door that wouldn’t budge. he could feel the eyes of some people walking past burning the back of his head, so he finally stopped. just as he tugged his timetable back out from his backpack he heard footsteps approaching. when he looked up he stilled, eyes widening slightly.
the prettiest boy tyler ever seen was smiling kindly at him. the boy's smile faltered, and tyler watched as he bent over and picked up a piece of paper. when he thrust the paper out towards tyler he blushed.
“you, uh, dropped this.” the boy smiled again, eyes squinting slightly. tyler grasped the paper with a trembling hand, and smiled back tentatively.
“thanks.”
“you can’t enter the gym this way, they blocked it off years ago. i can show you where the door is,” the boy offered. tyler blushed, embarrassed, but the boy wasn’t making fun of him. he followed him around the side of the building.
“i’m josh,” he introduced, “what’s your name?”
---
tyler and josh became best friends, and in the summer before their senior year they became more than just that. they spent even more time together, and grew closer. physical boundaries didn’t exist anymore, and they could be found cuddled on the couch or in one of their bedrooms whenever they were together. one day as tyler was driving home from josh’s place he felt his phone buzz in his pocket. he fished it out at a red light and glanced at it quickly - and his whole body froze.
josh: i think i like you
a grin broke out on his face as he read the message over and over again. a car beeped behind him and he snapped out of the trance, but the smile didn’t leave. not for days.
the night before school was starting again, they scrambled to the top of an abandoned building with a box of taco bell. before tyler could even get halfway through his burrito, josh was kissing him. it wasn’t tyler’s first kiss, but it was the first time he ever really kissed back. he’d fallen for josh, three years ago when he’d met him outside the gym. he’d been waiting for this moment, and he felt on top of the world.
tyler loved josh more than anyone, and the most amazing thing was that josh loved him back. he would text him good morning every day, would take him on dates after school, would leave dumb sticky notes in his locker and cheer him up when he felt down. they celebrated an anniversary each month, roses and all. they were smitten.
on one of tyler’s particularly bad days, he didn’t know what else to do. josh was at work, but he answered the call anyway. all tyler could do was cry, and that was enough for josh to leave in the middle of his shift, knowing it would probably get him fired. he didn’t care - tyler needed him. the realisation that josh had quit his job just to spend time with him warmed tyler’s heart despite the pain he was feeling, and that’s when he knew he never wanted to let josh go.
---
tyler never told his family that he and josh were more than friends. there was only a select few people who knew, a handful of friends and josh’s siblings. even after they moved in together after high school he didn’t tell anyone, too afraid of how they might react. this caused tyler to have more bad days, which got worse when he dropped out of college. he was in a crisis, and didn’t know what he was doing with his life. the only solid thing he had was josh, who supported him through everything, and gave him the space to figure himself out.
things improved when tyler found chris and nick and started a band. he had discovered a new purpose, and committed himself fully to making music. the band started gaining a following after the release of their first album. this should have been a great thing for tyler, but it led him to make the biggest mistake of his life.
he let the shame overcome him. he’d been dating someone for 3 years, and he still hadn’t told his parents. how was that fair on josh? if he couldn’t tell his family or his bandmates there was no way he could tell the fans of the band, a group of complete strangers. he was too afraid of their reaction - and he had worked so hard, he was finally playing shows consistently and seeing people show up. he couldn’t let it go. he was a coward, so he let josh go instead.
“i think we should just be friends.”
the heartbreak on josh’s face haunted him for weeks after. he felt empty. he knew it was a terrible decision, but he did it anyway, and now he had to live with the consequences.
---
they moved into seperate apartments, and tried to move on. tyler continued to think about him every moment of every day, but tried to distract himself with the music. he wrote songs and played shows with the band, and josh started playing drums for another band. tyler was happy for him, but a part of him had hoped that they would be playing together one day, not apart. they still talked, but rarely saw each other without other people around.
tyler’s whole world changed when not only nick decided to leave the band, but chris too. everything he had created, this precious foundation to grow on, was destroyed. he was back to square one, and this time he was completely alone. he locked himself away for days, ignoring calls from everyone. he tried to write, but it was too hard with no hope for ever playing the songs live.
josh heard about the split a week later, and immediately rang tyler. when it went to voicemail, he made a quick decision and drove to tyler’s place. when nobody answered the door he entered anyway, finding it unlocked. he discovered tyler in a dim bedroom, curled up in bed.
“tyler?” he called softly, and the figure stirred. he stared up at josh wide-eyed, red ringed and teary. josh pulled the huddled ball of tyler into his arms and quieted his cries. somehow, after everything tyler had put them through, he still appeared as his one shining light through the darkness.
---
josh decided to quit his job for tyler once again. they agreed to rehearse together - to see if they could make this thing work.
the energy was electric. tyler felt something completely new, performing with josh by his side, and it felt so right. his hope was renewed, and he felt even more motivated than before.
and when he slid onto josh’s lap behind the drum kit and kissed him, he felt right back at home. josh kissed him back just as enthusiastically, and his eyes twinkled when they parted.
“what happened to being just friends?”
tyler cupped his boy’s face.
“it was all pretend.”
---
tyler and josh didn’t just make it work, they created something bigger and more important than they had ever envisioned.
now they stand in front of thousands on a festival stage. they have dozens of crew members helping to create the perfect atmosphere, they have their friend mark putting together videos that millions see, and more importantly they have their friends and family watching them. supporting them, not just as a band, but a couple too.
“i don’t know if you heard,” tyler says into the microphone, sitting down behind his well-loved piano, “josh and i got married last year.”
the crowd screams, and a rush of rainbow flags are waved in the air in response. tyler grins and locks eyes with his husband seated behind his drum kit. he sees adoration and it fills him with warmth. he reflects for a moment how they almost didn’t make it to this point. he still doesn’t know why josh never gave up on him, but he is endlessly grateful that he didn’t. he’s been working hard on a way to prove how much he loves him.
“here is the first performance of our new song…”
he waits for the excited screams to ring out once more, and leans towards the mic to yell in perfect sync with his husband behind his own imaginary mic.
“an-nyŏng-ha-se-yo!”