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Newt took a deep breath before he turned his key and unlocked the door. He’d been having some trouble being in his apartment lately. The biggest reason for that was probably his best friend and flatmate, Thomas. The weather was getting warmer and Thomas was lounging around the house in shorts, sometimes even without a shirt. It was like he didn’t know Newt was extremely gay.
Which he did, of course, because back in high school, Thomas was the first person Newt came out to. He still remembered how anxious and nervous he’d been to tell his best friend, but all Thomas had said was ‘cool’, accompanied by a smile. That moment had been a stepping stone for Newt’s coming out to other people, Thomas gave him the courage to show himself to others.
It had always been like that. Ever since Newt could remember, Thomas had been by his side, supporting him in everything. What he had done to deserve having the high-energy and, admittedly, adorable boy in his life, Newt didn’t know.
Now, however, Thomas was getting on his nerves. As Newt entered the living room, he was met with Alby and Thomas on the couch, playing Call of Duty. It looked like a heavy battle, but Thomas somehow found the time to beam up at Newt as he walked in.
“Hey!”
Newt did his best not to ogle his best friend’s muscles, which were very much out in the open seeing as he wasn’t wearing a shirt, again, but it was hard.
“Hi Tommy. Alby.”
Newt decided he would have to exit this situation in order to be able to breathe, so he took out his reading for the next day. Classes seemed to be getting harder and harder now that the semester was coming to an end, and Newt swore he’d never had to work this hard for passing grades.
He eventually settled at the dining table, textbooks spread out around him, and Thomas and Alby’s voices in the background.
~
Later that evening, Thomas called to Newt from his room. Newt walked in and, thankful Thomas was now wearing a shirt, immediately sprawled out on Thomas’s bed.
“It’s too hot to move,” he said, sighing.
Thomas, who was seated at his desk, hummed in agreement. He seemed very focused on the screen of his laptop, stirring up Newt’s curiosity. He sat up and looked over Thomas’s shoulder.
“Tommy?”
“Yeah?”
“Why are you looking at scented candles?”
Thomas sighed. “I called you in here, because I need help.”
Newt flopped back onto his stomach and rested his chin on his folded arms. “Continue.”
“All right, so.. I..” Thomas paused, before saying: “promise you won’t laugh.”
“Promise,” Newt said, an amused smile already on his face.
“Okay, so, a few weeks ago, I was really struggling to focus while studying. So one night, when you were gone, I went to your room. I always seem to be able to focus more easily there. I soon found out that that may have had more to do with your strict presence than your room itself...” Thomas said, Newt nodding along and smiling.
“But then I found one of your scented candles and, I don’t know, the smell seemed to help. Since then I’ve kind of been stealing scented candles from people in order to be able to study, and I need your help buying replacements.”
Newt couldn’t help it. He burst into laughter.
“You said you wouldn’t laugh!” Thomas pouted.
“Sorry Tommy, but it’s funny. You’re the candle bandit!” Newt said between laughs.
He noticed the look on Thomas’s face, however, and schooled his expression as best he could. “It’s okay, Tommy, I’ll help you,” he said.
He helped Thomas choose the perfect set of candles. He also promised to back him up if Alby or Frypan got mad. The boys should have known what they were getting into when they moved in.
Newt spent the rest of the night in Thomas’s room, slowly cooling off and lounging around talking to Thomas. At one point, Newt was propped up against the headboard, with Thomas lying on the bed on his stomach, looking up at him. Thomas was prompting hypothetical scenarios for Newt to think his way out of. After thinking for a moment, Thomas asked: “what would you do if... you were living in a post-apocalyptic world or something, and you were trapped?”
“Trapped, like, in a small space?”
“No, trapped, like, in a maze,” Thomas said.
Newt frowned. He shuddered at the idea, not sure why it bothered him so much.
“I don’t know, I guess I’d try anything to get out. But if that didn’t work... I don’t know what I’d do.”
“I’d find a way out. Whatever it’d take,” Thomas said, a determined look on his face, familiar to Newt from their many adventures. These ‘adventures’ were basically instances of them getting into trouble, or them missing trouble by a hair’s breadth. Newt smiled at the familiar expression.
“I bet we could do it. Together,” he said, looking at Thomas.
~
It was a few days later and Newt was on campus with Alby, Frypan, and Thomas. The sun was shining and the four of them had headed out to the grassy lot on campus to, as Thomas put it, ‘soak up those beams’.
However, Thomas was notoriously unable to sit still for a long period of time, so he was already up and walking around as Newt, Alby, and Frypan sat on the ground. Newt watched his best friend wander from one group of people to another. It always seemed as if Thomas knew everyone on campus.
Thomas was standing by a tree and the sunlight filtered through the leaves, falling on his face. Newt’s breath hitched and he picked up his camera almost automatically. He took the picture, right when Thomas was smiling at something someone said, the sunlight making his eyes glow.
Newt smiled at the outcome and then heard someone clear their throat. He looked up to see Alby giving him a knowing look. Newt furrowed his brows, about to speak when Thomas reached them once more.
Thomas threw himself down on the ground beside Newt, leaning on his shoulder in mock-fatigue.
“Why did you let me go talk to everyone in the whole entire world? I’m exhausted now, that girl wouldn’t stop talking.”
“Really Tommy? ‘Let you’? Like anyone could have stopped you,” Newt said.
“Yeah it’s not like you are capable of sitting still after all,” Alby added.
“Woah you guys are teaming up on me, huh? I see how it is. I’ll just ‘sit still’ here then, shall I?” Thomas said indignantly.
Thomas’s fingertips on Newt’s shoulder tightened and then slid off, leaving a trail of fire on his skin.
~
Later that night Frypan served the boys yet another amazing dinner, making Thomas remark that ‘this is why we keep you around’ which in turn made Newt kick him under the table. Thomas pouted at him, and Newt felt his cheeks heat up at the sight. What had gotten in to him?
Newt and Thomas ended up watching a movie together. They were alone in the apartment after Alby and Frypan had headed out, or, as Newt thought of it, abandoned him.
“Come on, it just doesn’t make sense! Why would he do that? Like, I respect the sentiment, but at least wait a minute if you’re going to regret it mid-shove!”
Newt laughed at Thomas’s weird logic.
“Yeah Tommy, I’m sure he was thinking completely logically at that moment, it’s not like he was in a stressful situation or anything,” he said.
Thomas leaned in closer, his breath tickling Newt’s ear as he whispered, “you’d better not do that to me, Newt.”
Newt suppressed a shiver and turned to Thomas smiling, “no promises, Tommy.”
Thomas’s face lit up with mischief and before Newt could react, he’d hit him in the face with a pillow.
“Seriously? Are you five years old?”
“Mentally? Yes.”
Newt laughed and launched his own attack, pummeling Thomas with a pillow. He’d expected the brunet to yell for mercy, but sadly he’d underestimated him. Thomas grabbed Newt’s pillow and yanked it from his grip, throwing it away from the couch. He then took his own pillow and jumped on top of Newt, straddling him to hit his face repeatedly.
Newt let out a yell. “All right, mercy! Mercy!”
Thomas pulled away, showing his brown eyes shining with joy, his face too close for Newt’s comfort as he was still pinning him down. A victorious grin spread over Thomas’s face. “I win!”
“All right, you win, now get off me,” Newt grumbled.
As soon as they’d returned to their original position next to each other on the couch, Newt was relieved, but he also sort of missed Thomas’s touch. He shook his head to clear away the strange thought. “So.. another movie?”
Thomas shrugged in agreement and settled back into the couch, thankfully not noticing the red cheeks Newt was sporting.
~
They were halfway into their second movie of the night when Newt noticed that Thomas hadn’t said anything for a while. That was very unusual for Thomas so when Newt looked over, it was no surprise that Thomas’s eyes were fluttering shut. Newt smiled at his best friend’s sleepy face, wondering if Thomas knew how cute he looked like this.
That was when Thomas’s head landed on Newt’s shoulder. Newt froze slightly, then relaxed into the touch. They’d been this close many times before, it was sort of hard to avoid with so many years of friendship, but Newt somehow still wasn’t used to it. It only got worse when Thomas threw an arm over Newt’s stomach and snuggled closer to him.
As the credits rolled on the screen, Newt’s mind was racing. Thomas had been tucked into Newt’s side for the entire second half of the movie. Thomas looked so peaceful, that Newt really didn’t have the heart to wake him up. At the same time, however, Newt’s heart was pounding and the closeness was making him very nervous. He tried to slowly disentangle himself from his best friend, but apparently he was moving too quickly because Thomas’s brows scrunched up and his eyes blinked open. He looked at Newt, taking a moment to focus on his face, and then smiled.
Newt felt like a deer caught in headlights. All he could think about was how close Thomas was. All he’d have to do was lean in... He just stared back at Thomas, heart still pounding furiously.
“Hey,” Thomas said, after clearing his throat.
“Hi. You fell asleep.”
Thomas laughed a little. “I noticed. Sorry, Newt, guess I was very tired. Anyway, I’m going to bed now. Night.”
The brunet stood up, still bleary-eyed, and waved at Newt before disappearing towards his room.
Newt stayed still for a few minutes, trying to calm himself down, and then went to his own room.
As he collapsed into bed, all that was going through his head was ‘I think I’m falling in love with him’.
~
This was rapidly becoming a problem. Newt was definitely falling in love with his best friend. He couldn’t breathe properly when Thomas was around, he wasn’t able to focus on his classes, and he spent all of his free time thinking about the brunet. In order to stop this from ruining their friendship, he was avoiding Thomas.
Newt guessed his friends had noticed, because he and Thomas had previously been attached at the hip. But constantly being around Thomas was painful. Being so close to this amazing thing but never being able to fully have it drove Newt crazy.
He was studying in the library, when Sonya came up to him, two coffee cups in her hands. His sister had always been a whirlwind of a person and today was no exception. She sat down next to him in a rush, pulling off her coat, saying hello, and putting a coffee in front of him all at the same time.
“Okay, so what is going on? You haven’t been at the café in a long time, and I know it’s not because you’ve stopped drinking coffee,” she gestured to him already sipping his coffee, proving her point.
“And worse than that, you haven’t been at hang-outs lately. You’ve missed so much drama, and you haven’t even met Aris yet.”
“I have met him, actually.”
“All right, fine, but you haven’t gotten to know him.”
“Well-“
“Stop avoiding my questions, what is going on?”
The determined look on her face convinced Newt that Sonya wasn’t going to give up. He sighed, shrugging slightly.
“I don’t know, I mean... I’ve been having trouble being around Tommy.”
Newt was sure he’d never seen Sonya look as confused as she did now.
“You mean your best friend? The most important person in your life, your partner in crime, your..” she trailed off at Newt’s glare.
“Would you listen? I’ve been having... feelings, and I just need to get over them, okay?”
Sonya’s initial smile changed into a frown. “What? Why? Do something-“
“Son, he’s not gay. And even if he was, he would never like me in that way.”
Newt chose to ignore his sister’s eye-roll.
“Now stop, I’ll come over to your place if you want to hang out, but I’m done talking about this. I’ll get over it.”
Sonya mimed her lips being sealed, threw away the key and pulled her brother up with her, smiling.
~
Sonya shared her apartment with Jo, who was in the living room watching Netflix when the siblings walked in.
“Hey Jo, look who I found,” Sonya said smiling.
Jo looked up, her eyes widening immediately after she spotted Newt.
“Newt! Oh my god, I haven’t seen you in way too long!”
She jumped up to run over to Newt, then wrapped him in a hug. He smiled at her, he had missed his friends more than he’d realized.
“Hi Jo. You’re right, I’m sorry. I guess I was just getting a little sick of Minho,” Newt said.
Jo laughed, knowing he would never actually say that about her boyfriend. “Aren’t we all,” she said with a smile.
She pulled him to the couch, immediately asking all about his life and his classes. Newt felt himself relax at the normalcy as he told her and Sonya all about his latest photography assignment.
Hanging out with the girls was great. Newt felt like himself for the first time in a while and he enjoyed the easy banter and good conversation. He promised to stay for dinner, the thought that he’d like to stay as long as possible crossing his mind.
As Sonya put a mug of Newt’s favourite tea in front of him, earning a grateful smile, Jo slapped herself on the forehead.
“I completely forgot! I told Minho he could come over tonight. But I can cancel if you want, Newt,” she said.
“No that’s okay, don’t cancel on my account. You know I like Minho.”
As long as it’s not Thomas, Newt thought, running a hand through his hair.
Minho arrived not much later. The impatience of his knock made Newt roll his eyes. Minho entered the apartment, smiling at Jo, and placed a gentle kiss on her lips.
“Hey.”
“Hi Min, how was training?” The adoring look immediately covering Jo’s face made Newt smile. Those two were sweet, even if he as a perpetual single person hated their clingy behaviour sometimes.
“Fine. Tom boy was very distraught, though..”
The statement made Newt’s stomach turn. That was when Minho noticed him.
“Hey Newt! How are you?”
“Hi Minho. I’m good.”
As the girls and Minho started talking about their plans for the summer, Newt’s thoughts wandered to Thomas once again. He hoped he was okay. He wanted to keep his distance, but what if Thomas needed him? He’d be there. He shook off those thoughts when Jo asked him about his summer.
“I’m going back home to England, same as Sonya.”
Jo immediately pouted, she never liked the group splitting up.
“I’m going to miss you both so much,” she said sadly.
Newt saw Minho’s hand rubbing soothing circles on her back, the silent support making Newt mourn his own loneliness even more.
“Me too. But maybe you can come visit?”
“Maybe...” Jo’s frown didn’t smooth. Newt knew she didn’t have a lot of money to spend on plane tickets, but he found himself hoping she’d visit anyway.
He hadn’t fully grasped the length of the summer yet, and he already knew how much he’d miss his friends. Thomas most of all... Newt had gone to high school in the United States, which was where he became best friends with Thomas. But every summer, he would go back home to England and he’d miss Thomas terribly. Newt scolded himself, it seemed as if all he could think about was Thomas these days.
Newt determinedly ignored Thomas’s existence for the rest of the night. He put himself to work, cooking for his friends and his sister. He ate dinner with them, laughing at Minho’s stupid jokes and admiring the girls’ eyes shining in the soft candle light. He’d forgotten his camera, but this was a moment he’d have wanted to capture. However, maybe the fact that he couldn’t, made it even more precious.
After dinner, when Newt was forced to stop helping with the clean-up, he sat down on the couch, chatting with Minho. That was when Minho breached the subject of Thomas once again.
“Hey Newt, I know you haven’t been hanging out with him as much lately, but Thomas seemed really stressed today. He kept messing up. I asked him what was wrong but he wouldn’t tell me. All he said was that it was about you.”
Minho looked concerned, which told Newt that this was serious. He frowned, resolving to talk to Thomas tomorrow.
“I’ll talk to him.”
The girls came back into the room then, laughing about something, and Newt was amazed at how quickly Minho’s expression changed. Jo joined them on the couch, Sonya claiming the arm chair. They suggested playing a game and the following hours were filled with frustration and competitive cursing, but also with fun.
When Newt and Minho left the apartment, it was nearing one o’clock in the morning, but seeing as it was a Friday, it didn’t matter. Newt hugged Sonya tightly, whispering into her ear: “thank you.” He waved his goodbye quickly, turning around when he noticed Jo’s arms circling Minho’s neck, pulling him closer.
~
Newt stumbled into the flat, brows furrowing at his unstable state. He hadn’t drunk that much, had he?
He entered the living room to find the lights still on, surprisingly. Thomas was laying on the couch on his stomach, typing on his phone. He looked up when Newt walked in and his expression immediately changed.
This was a look Newt had almost never seen on Thomas’s face. He looked... angry.
“Where were you? Why didn’t you answer your phone?” Thomas asked, getting up from the couch and walking towards Newt.
Newt laughed nervously. “What are you, my father? I was at Sonya and Jo’s.”
“You could’ve told me.”
“Jeez, Tommy, calm down.”
“No! What is going on with you lately? I’ve hardly seen you and when I do, you disappear almost immediately... I-“ Thomas’s features changed. He looked miserable. “Did I do something? I just don’t understand-“
“No, Tommy, you didn’t do anything,” Newt said, wanting more than anything to wipe the sad look off Thomas’s face.
“Then why? Why do you not like me anymore?” Thomas’s voice sounded broken.
“Not like you? How could I not like you? Tommy you’re so good and I- I’m not-“
“Is that what this is about? Your insecurities? I’ve told you a thousand times that you’re the best person I’ve ever known, Newt. You’re so kind to everyone, you’re extremely passionate about your interests, like photography, and, and it’s as if you shine, like the sun,” Thomas rambled.
“Tommy..” Newt heard his own voice wobble. Thomas didn’t understand, didn’t get that Newt wanted him in a whole other way, wanted to be with him, share his life.
A tear escaped from Thomas’s eye as he waited for Newt to get his thoughts in order. Newt stepped closer without thinking and he reached up to softly wipe the tear away with his thumb.
“Tommy,” Newt took a deep breath to steady himself, “it’s not that, I just... I can’t be around you as much as before-“
“Why! I don’t understand what I’ve done, just, just tell me!” Thomas yelled.
Newt felt like he was in the eye of a hurricane. He couldn’t hold it back anymore.
“I- I love you, Tommy!” He blurted out.
Thomas’s face was the epitome of shock. Newt felt a tear of his own slip down his cheek as he turned around and walked away from the boy he loved. His heart was breaking with every step, soon there wouldn’t be anything left.
Then Newt felt a hand on his wrist, spinning him around and pulling him into Thomas. Thomas crashed his lips to Newt’s hungrily, making him gasp in surprise. Thomas’s arms moved to wrap around Newt’s neck, pulling him closer. Newt recovered from his shock and kissed Thomas back enthousiastically. They ended up against a wall, Thomas pushing Newt into the wall, pressing ever closer.
They broke apart for air not long after that, Newt’s eyes wide and his cheeks burning.
“What- you- are you-“
Thomas laughed at Newt’s speechlessness, a breathless laugh accompanied by sparkling eyes.
“I love you, Newt,” he said softly.
The wave of feeling hit him out of nowhere. Newt closed his eyes, enjoying the feeling of Thomas’s confession washing over him. A smile spread on his face and Newt was sure he’d never stop smiling for the rest of his life.
“Why did you let me believe you were straight all this time, you idiot?”
“I mean, it’s not like I’m obligated to tell you I’m bi. Also, it’s not like you would have made a move then either.”
Newt frowned and opened his mouth to protest, but was cut off by Thomas’s lips pressing on his again. He immediately lost his train of thought and melted into the kiss. Thomas’s tongue ran over Newt’s bottom lip, demanding entrance, and Newt granted it without hesitation.
They explored each other’s mouths, fighting for domination while continuously pressing closer to each other. Newt’s hands were in Thomas’s hair, fingers running through the strands tenderly. He couldn’t believe this was actually real, but the feeling of Thomas biting his lower lip assured him it was.
Newt pulled away in need of air and pulled Thomas into a hug, needing the brunet closer. He pushed his face into Thomas’s neck, feeling the other boy press a kiss to the side of his head.
“I can’t believe how much time we’ve wasted,” Thomas said laughing.
“We are bloody idiots.” Newt pulled away to smile at Thomas, admiring his features in the dark.
“You’re telling me. This is all I’ll be doing from now on,” Thomas said, pressing a kiss to Newt’s lips, then trailing more kisses over his jaw down to his neck.
“Don’t make promises you can’t keep, Tommy.”
Newt barely had time to register how easily they’d transferred to this new dynamic before Thomas’s lips were back on his own.
~
It was the last week before summer officially began, but most students were already free.
The group was hanging out at the lake near their campus. ‘Near’ meaning two hours away. Newt was laying on his back, his head in Thomas’s lap. Thomas’s fingers were running through his blond hair and Newt closed his eyes with contentment. He still wasn’t wholly used to thinking of Thomas as his boyfriend, but being with the brunet like this came as easily as breathing.
Newt looked up at Thomas, smiling at him as Thomas talked to Minho about the next year. Thomas noticed him looking and locked eyes with him, throwing a smile back as Minho got up to swim. Newt reached for Thomas’s other hand, intertwining their fingers and squeezing.
“How are you? I thought you might be sleeping for a second there,” Thomas said.
“Hmm. I’m good, just relaxing,” Newt said softly.
“You want to go for a swim in a bit?” Thomas asked, excitedly looking towards the water where their friends were swimming and fooling around, pushing each other over and play-fighting.
“Sure, Tommy, you want to go now? I’ve been chaining you to one spot for too long, I know you can’t handle that at all-“
He was cut off by Thomas smacking his head softly, shaking his head at him.
“We’ll go in a minute.”
“Ouch, Tommy, that hurt!”
Thomas rolled his eyes. “Sure it did.”
Newt cursed his inability to keep a straight face around Thomas and smiled as he looked towards his friends in the water.
Alby and Frypan were trying to dunk each other, jumping around and splashing water everywhere. Aris, Sonya, and Ben were swimming as far out as they could and racing each other back, dunking whoever lost into the water. Harriet and Winston were floating together to the side, watching the others run and swim, splashing water into people’s faces occasionally but mostly laughing at everyone who got dunked. Jo was on Minho’s back, her arms around his neck, laughing at Alby and Frypan. She whispered something into Minho’s ear and he charged the two boys, knocking both of them over. Everyone laughed at that, including Newt and Thomas. Newt saw Jo pressing a quick kiss to the back of Minho’s neck before hopping off his back. Both of them ran away from Alby and Frypan, who were seeking revenge.
“Looks like it’s time for us to intervene,” Newt remarked, looking up at Thomas. The boys smirked at each other and jumped up, running into the water. As they joined the others, a full-on water battle commenced. Soon, everyone was soaked and laughing. Newt smiled as Thomas shook out his hair next to him, spraying water everywhere.
This day was a perfect addition to Newt’s mental photograph collection.