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Ethan was sitting on his chair in front of the computer in Marks office, which has been turned on for way too long for his liking. Committing to the decision of going back to editing his own videos maybe made him love his own videos more, but on the downside, it was really exhausting. Sometimes he had the problem of not being able to relax properly after editing for hours. His mind just wouldn’t let him stop thinking about work.
After letting out a deep sigh, he got up and walked out of the room, towards his bag. Mark had offered Ethan to let him use the computer in his office since Ethan’s stopped working for no reason at all. He first declined the offer saying something along the lines of “I just have to save up some money and I will be able to buy a new one in no time!”. Mark wasn’t having any of it and practically forced Ethan to accept the offer. Mark was just too kind to him.
Ethan reached into a little side pocket and pulled out two pre-rolled joints, leaving one remaining inside his bag. A small smile crept its way on the face of the brown-haired boy. He gave a reassuring glance towards Marks bedroom. He was probably already asleep, or at least Ethan hoped so. While walking towards the door, Ethan pulled out his blue lighter and tested if there was still enough liquid left. He was so focused on the little flame, that he didn’t notice the squeaking dog toy right in front of him. A high-pitched noise interrupted the calming quietness of the house.
Spencer was immediately under the impression that it was playtime now and jumped up from his sleeping place to run towards his owner.
“shhh not now Spencer, go back to bed” Ethan tried to whisper while giving his dog an apologizing pet on the head.
He opened the front door and quickly slipped through the not even halfway opened entrance, so Spencer won’t be able to follow him. As he was closing the door behind him, he could hear paws walking away, presumably walking back to his dog bed.
Ethan looked up in the night sky, he wasn’t wearing a jacket so it was a bit chilly outside. Excitement bubbled inside his chest as he finally lit up the joint. Looking at the burning paper in his hands made him relax already, it was really memorizing to watch. He brought the burning bag up to his mouth and took a small drag. Instantly the familiar taste made itself noticeable. He lifts his head and holds in the smoke for a bit. Some escapes when he slightly opens his mouth, drifting up lazily through the air from his mouth towards the night sky.
Sitting down on the stairs wasn’t the best idea. They were cold but would warm up eventually.
Some time passes, and Ethan can feel himself getting calmer and calmer slipping into a much more positive and peaceful headspace. That was exactly what he needed.
Due to the feeling of being inside his own little world, he didn’t hear the door behind him being opened. “Ethan? Is everything alright?”Someone asked. It was a deep voice, which felt smooth like honey. If he could, he would like to listen to it 24/7. “Earth to Ethan, are you okay?” a hand made its way to his shoulder. “I’m..” Ethan’s eyes wide in shock. He stood up and spun around, realizing that it was Mark who was talking to him. He quickly hid his joint, or at least what was left of it, behind his back. “oh! Yeah… Yes, I’m doing great!”. Mark gave him a puzzled look, scanning Ethan's face. “Wait, are you fucking high?” Mark asked, his voice getting a bit louder. The boy with the red eyes let out a childish giggle while pressing one of his fingers on Marks Lips. “shhh, Maybe I am,” he answers in a hushed voice, tension leaving his body, going back into a relaxed position.
Marks eyes went big, looking at the person in front of him in pure shock.”Are you insane? That’s extremely dangerous!”. The younger one tilted his head like a confused puppy, holding up the joint to his own lips again, just to take a big hit. He inhaled as much as he could while smiling at his friend’s horrified face.
“There is nothing risky about unwinding with a bit of weed. It’s legal after all, maybe you should give it a try.” He said while blowing out a light cloud of white smoke that instantly dissolved in the fresh air.
Mark looks like as if he is considering it for a split second, but the decision was made a lot easier when a newly lit up joint was being held to his lips. He hesitantly took a hit, trying to mirror Ethan’s actions. It was very easy to notice that the brown-eyed man has never smoked any kind of drugs before, he directly started to cough.
“Looks like we have to work on that.”
Mark wasn’t sure how they ended up on the couch, sharing the joint. They have been passing it back and forth for quite some time now.
Ethan taught him how to inhale without getting into a coughing fit, and now he is actually enjoying the sensation of his mind getting more and more cloudy. He was currently laughing at something stupid his friend said, liking the feeling of not having to care and just enjoying the moment.
“No Mark you have to listen,” Ethan said between giggles, his eyes watery from all the laughing. “You know..” he takes a deep breath and tries to speak without laughing, “You could throw a rock into a lake and be the last person to ever to touch that rock until the end of time-”. Mark bursts out laughing, hearing his friend join in shortly after.
Chica lets out a huff, clearly begging for attention while slowly standing up and trotting towards the couch for some quality snuggles. She lays down on Mark’s Lap and closes her eyes again, satisfied with the newfound warmth.
“That’s not fair, I need affection too” Ethan exclaimed jokingly while throwing the roach away. He can pick that up tomorrow. Mark can’t stop himself from smiling. He always thought that the younger one was cute, but who didn’t?
“Well, why don’t you join us? Let’s have a cuddle puddle.” Ethan’s foggy state didn’t allow him to say no to the offer, even though his sober self wouldn’t have said no either.
He made his way towards the other end of the couch and sat down beside his friend, slowly leaning against him, hiding his face in the other man’s crook of the neck. “Should we put on a movie?” Mark asked, while slowly running his fingers through his friend’s short brown hair. “sure, but nothing too challenging, I’m way too tired to concentrate” came a mumbled answer. Mark turned on the TV and skipped through the seemingly never-ending selection of Netflix movies until he came across Deadpool. They both have seen it countless times already, but one more time wouldn’t hurt.
Ethan closed his eyes, not paying the slightest bit of attention to the movie. All he could focus on was the gentle hand buried in his hair, treating him as if he was fragile. He missed the feeling of having someone to love, to share soft kisses or just to cuddle with. “Do you think Ryan Reynol-” Mark stopped mid-sentence when he felt Ethan’s breath against his neck, placing a faint kiss on the exposed skin.
“ Sorry, I just had to.” said the boy in defense, while slowly lifting his head to look into the eyes of the person in front of him. It suddenly felt like time was frozen.
Mark slowly leans forward to hesitantly press a kiss to Ethan’s forehead, testing if his friend was okay with this kind of affection. When he saw Ethan simile, he didn’t shy away and began to kiss gently across the smaller one’s cheek, pausing when he heard a soft giggle. He shared a quick smile before continuing down, finally reaching the slightly chapped lips. Mark slowly locked his lips with the brown-eyed man, who immediately started to kiss him back. They lazily moved their lips against each other until Ethan breaks the kiss, due to the lack of oxygen.
“ I really liked that,” he said quietly.
“yeah me too, but you look like as if you’re about to fall asleep while speaking.” Mark gins. “would you like to sleep here tonight? We could cuddle in bed.”
Ethan’s eyes lit up as he practically jumps up, startling Chica as he does so. She grumpily jumps off the couch clearly noticing the boys change of plans. “Alright then,” Mark said, turning off the long-forgotten Movie. They both made their way towards the bedroom.
After Ethan borrowed some of Marks clothes. They both lied down on the huge bed cuddled together as if they were an old married couple and have done this many times before.
Their breathing started syncing. It was calming, watching the other’s chest and shoulders rise and fall with each breath.
Mark broke the silence: “If smoking with you ends up like this every time, we have to do it more often”. Ethan grinned, taking the slightly bigger hand into his own.
“Yeah, I agree.”