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==
Everyone seemed to have similar opinions on how Mondays felt; Gus could see it as he walked down the hall to his locker. Everyone he passed seemed equally tired, stressed, and annoyed. Nobody wanted to be in school on a Monday morning; although there were a few exceptions, a few students who enjoyed mornings, Gus couldn't always say he was one of them. He too was tired, and wasn't paying much attention to his surroundings, almost tripping on something before catching himself on a (now very grouchy) locker. He regained his balance and shifted over to his own locker, gently scratching the bottom so that it would open and placing the textbook he'd been holding onto inside. He exhaled as it closed; he couldn't say he didn't feel a little stressed today. Something was tugging at his mind; a constant, never-ending guilt-ridden train of thought.
The previous day, he had been dragged out with his father to work; while he usually didn't mind this, with it being rare for his dad to even have free time for Gus at all, he already had plans for the day. Every Saturday, or Sunday, depending on when they were both free, he and Mattholomule would meet at the looking glass graveyard. Gus hadn't been free on Saturday, spending the day with Luz and Willow, so it was instead planned for a Sunday that week; only for Perry Porter to announce to a sleepy Gus on Sunday morning, 'Son! Did you forget about the race today? We're the announcers!'.
Gus had known about this long before the day arrived and had completely forgot, and so all he did was blame himself for not showing up.
He shook the thoughts off and tried to ignore his feelings; he'd deal with those later. He was headed to meet up with his friends, and he didn't want to disappoint them-
Disappoint. Like he'd done yesterday.
Oh come on.
He didn't realise he'd have to face his troubles head-on, quite literally, as he walked straight into another student and fell to the ground with a thud.
He looked up instantly, stuttering an apology before going completely silent.
It was Mattholomule.
"Watch where you're going- oh. It's just you, Augustus."
The small witchling scowled and avoided making eye contact, crossing his arms. "So, are you gonna tell me what your deal was yesterday?"
Gus swallowed, getting to his feet and fiddling with his uniform sleeve nervously.
"Mattholomule… I'm really, really sorry. My dad dragged me into working with him and… I couldn't say no to him." Gus awkwardly shifted his feet around. "I already knew and completely forgot about it, that's on me. I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner." Gus frowned and continued to fiddle with his sleeve, something he realised he seemed to be doing a lot around Mattholomule as of late.
"You could've at least told me before you left for that stupid race! I was waiting at that graveyard for hours, hoping you'd show up!"
Gus stared at him. Hours? Hoping?
"Mattholomule… I couldn't do anything in time! It was already too late- I'm really really sorry I-"
"Look, it's fine." Mattholomule snapped at him, leaning on a nearby wall. "I'm used to being let down, don't make some big thing out of it."
That only hurt Gus more to hear.
He always knew Mattholomule was hiding his feelings; it was rare he would open up, and when he did he'd quickly try to cover it up with a joke or change the subject. He had been getting there though, slowly; Mattholomule seemed more confident in opening up to Gus than anyone else, so there must have been something slowly getting better between them.
"You really shouldn't be used to feeling like that. That's not fair." Gus frowned and stepped closer. "I really am sorry for leaving you like that. I wanna make it up to you." Mattholomule slowly lifted his gaze to look at Gus, listening fully now. "How about after school today we go somewhere- somewhere different. Have a little fun?"
"Like what?" He seemed interested, that was a start.
"Uhh… That's the best part, it's a surprise!"
Mattholomule's scowl softened and a small laugh escaped his mouth, which curled up into a slight smirk. "You have no idea, do you?"
"Hey! Yes I do!"
"Just decide on something good, squirt. I'll see you later." He pushed himself off of the wall and took a step, being stopped by Gus' hand on his shoulder.
"Wait… Are you okay?"
The concerned face staring at Mattholomule made him feel lighter, whether it was in a good or bad way, he wasn't sure of.
He never understood why Gus seemed to care so much for his wellbeing these past few weeks since the incident with the Glandus kids and the Galderstones. Since they'd become… Friends? He still wasn't sure of that, either. He couldn't describe what he felt around Gus, and he'd never really had friends before.
Maybe they were friends, or maybe they were something else. Whatever that something was, Mattholomule was determined to figure it out. All he could really know for sure at the moment was that he liked finally having someone like Gus around. Which made him feel okay.
"Yeah, sorry." He shook his head and looked at Gus. "I'm okay, I was just a little annoyed at you. I couldn't really stay mad this time though… So, you're good, as long as you don't disappoint me later." He smirked a little and ruffled Gus' hair before heading off, away from the witchling. "Seeya, twerp."
Gus smiled a little to himself. Maybe this day could work out after all.
==
It had been twenty minutes since school had ended for the day, and Mattholomule still hadn't shown up. Gus sighed, sitting on the steps as he thought through a list of fears for what had happened; maybe Mattholomule had wanted to teach him a lesson, and so hadn't shown up. Maybe he'd been held back. Maybe he'd gotten stuck in detention again. He could have died!
…No. That's a little dramatic. Probably.
Something in his gut fought against the worries on his mind, telling him to stay put because the witch would surely get here soon.
Eventually, the silence of the school grounds were replaced by the distant call of Gus' name. He got to his feet and turned, looking up to the top of the stairs at the door into the building. Mattholomule was stood there, slowly making his way down as he breathed heavily. Had he ran there? Why was he so late?
"Mattholomule… Why are-"
"I was held back at the end of class!" The other boy stumbled to a stop and pushed some loose strands of hair to the side, out of his eyes. "I'm sorry. I wasn't paying attention in class and I left you behind… And I couldn't tell you!"
"See?! That's how I felt yesterday." Gus folded his arms and stuck his tongue out. Mattholomule sighed, rolling his eyes.
"Fine, you win. Are we gonna go already?" He playfully swatted the fellow witchling, earning a giggle in return.
"Yeah, come on Matt."
"...What?"
"Oh! It's um, a nickname… Like how people call me Gus?"
"I see." If Gus had paid more attention, he could've sworn Mattholomule had turned red and smiled at the new nickname.
==
As time passed on, the two witchlings eventually reached town; it was a little less bustling than usual, since the after-school rush had already passed. It wasn't exactly the quietest, miles quieter than it would've been a while ago. It was sort of a blessing that Mattholomule had been a little late; no crowds to push through.
Gus paused as they reached a street filled with market stalls and filled shop windows, still wondering, even now, what he could do here. He still hadn't decided what to do, he just thought town would be a good place to start. He eyed each window, questioning which shop to enter.
"Well?" He was gently shoved by Mattholomule and pulled out of his thoughts. "Where are we going?"
"Uhhh…" Gus looked around, thinking quickly. He soon spotted a quiet-looking cafe, and got an idea. It was perfect.
"What if we… Went in there?" He pointed at the small shop. "We can grab two drinks, maybe a bite to eat- then after that we'll go for a walk?"
At first, Mattholomule had looked mildly annoyed, seeming to know that Gus had picked the place out on a whim. But his expression softened when Gus finished speaking, his cheeks seeming to have slightly more colour than usual.
"Sure, why not. I'm kinda hungry anyway."
==
As the two witches entered the cafe, a wave of warm air and delicious smells hit them in the face like a brick wall. The strong scent of coffee with a sweet side of cake, quiet chatter from the few occupied tables, and distant music coming from somewhere in the room. The cafe was dimly lit, overhead lights and candles casting an orange glow on everything and making the cafe feel all the more comfortable.
The two boys found themselves a table, sitting opposite sides to one another, and took in the surroundings.
"This is so nice! Maybe we could come here more often." Gus grinned at the boy occupying the seat opposite him. "As long as the food's really good, of course."
Matt nodded slowly, his eyes elsewhere in the room.
"Uhh… yeah, sure. That might actually be pretty cool." He had a small smile on his face; so he was enjoying this. Thank the titan.
Gus took the menu from the centre of the table and looked through it, deciding on a drink and a baked treat before passing it over to Mattholomule, who was quicker about choosing and placed the menu back down.
"I'll go order for us." He got to his feet, surprising Gus.
"What? You don't have to do that!"
"Oh, no, it's the least I can do, Augustus." He smirked at him, before sauntering off to the counter to order.
That's probably not a good sign.
Gus tried to ignore the thought, since Mattholomule had been oddly nicer and quieter than usual, for the past hour. He didn't want to ruin this evening thinking about what could go wrong, when it was already going so well.
A few minutes passed, and Mattholomule returned with two drinks; they'd have to wait for the food to arrive. He placed one cup in front of Gus before sitting down with his own, leaning an arm on the table.
"Enjoy! I heard this place makes great hot chocolate." He sipped his drink and sighed, seeming much more relaxed than before and yet still oddly smug. Gus took a look at his own drink and raised it to his lips, taking a small sip…
And immediately regretting it.
His face scrunched back at the awful, bitter taste the moment it had hit his tongue; Matt had ordered him a black coffee!
Matt burst out laughing the moment it happened, finding it hard to speak through.
"YOUR FACE! YOU SHOULD SEE! YOUR FACE!!"
The witchling glared at him. He'd expected this, yet still hoped that maybe it wouldn't happen.
He'd been an idiot.
He pushed the drink aside and groaned.
"Fine, you win, whatever, shut up already."
Mattholomule's chuckling and giggles eventually died down. He looked up at Gus and pulled another smug grin.
"Awww, did Gussy want something a little sweeeteeerrrr?"
Gus visibly flushed at the nickname and glared, rolling his eyes.
"You're so annoying."
"I know." He laughed again, before holding out his drink. Gus raised an eyebrow, not understanding for a moment. "Go on, take it. I got this one for you, really, I was just messing around."
Gus took the cup from him and kept staring, confused.
"...You like black coffee?"
"Oh, yeah. I'm much cooler than you think." He took the cup and gulped some down, immediately pulling a slightly disgusted face and trying to hide it, biting his lip. "S-See? Delicious."
"You look like you're trying not to vomit it back up." Gus giggled, letting this be his turn to smirk.
"No I'm not! Shut up!"
Gus let out another giggle, shaking his head. Mattholomule felt a smile creep onto his face and his cheeks warm up. He's so cute.
He went a darker shade of red as he realised what he'd just thought, quickly covering it up by drinking the horrid coffee that was starting to make him feel sick… Unless that was something different giving him butterflies. He wanted to ignore it. This was fine. He was fine.
Mattholomule finished the drink and threw the cup back to the table, trying to pretend he enjoyed it; Gus saw through it pretty easily. He could see Matt looked mildly uncomfortable, almost sick… And it was a little worrying to him.
"Matt?"
Mattholomule was startled at the nickname, completely forgetting it was even a thing. He mentally told his face to knock it off, and cleared his throat.
"Uh, yeah?"
"Are you… Okay? You don't look so good."
Matt swallowed and opened his mouth to speak, but he didn't know what to say. He stuttered a little, looking back at Gus.
"Yeah, I'm great. Just feeling… Tired."
Gus frowned, playing with his sleeve again. "Is that why you were held back? Were you super tired in class or something?"
"Uhh, yeah." He was lying. The reason he hadn't paid attention in class was simply because he'd spent his day thinking about other things, and had spent most of his classes consumed by thoughts. Most of those thoughts were about Gus, and they confused him to no end.
"Did you get enough sleep?"
"I mean…" Mattholomule paused, scratching the back of his neck. "I guess not, not really." This was true. Matt had never really found sleeping an easy thing to do, especially in more recent years. "But look, it doesn't matter. We can talk about that some other time, our food's about to arrive."
Before Gus could protest, two plates were placed down before them both; they thanked the waiter and started to eat.
It was mostly silent, then. They were both too busy eating, and thinking. Gus wanted to know more about Mattholomule; he always seemed to be hiding something more behind his smug façade, and the witchling wanted to know what that was. Mattholomule, on the other hand, couldn't stop thinking about Gus; he still didn't understand how he felt towards him. Were they still enemies? Were they friends? Or were they something more complicated than that? He couldn't tell; he'd have to keep hanging out with him until something clicked into place. This evening had already done so much of that, and he wasn't certain if it was real or if he'd been dreaming. It seemed too perfect.
Mattholomule glanced up at Gus as he ate, and watched for a moment; why was he drawn to him like this? Surely he didn't have a crush, right? He'd been blushing like mad this whole… Date? Was it a date?!
He'd never really been interested in girls, he knew that for sure. But he'd never had a real, genuine crush like this before- if it was a crush of course. Matt didn't want to call it that, because every time he said that in his mind, he'd feel butterflies in his stomach and his face grow warmer. He didn't want to admit that he was crushing on Gus, so he'd push it to the back of his head.
He didn't realise he was staring until a voice pulled him out of his thoughts.
"Mattholomule? Uhh…"
Matt shook his head quickly and laughed, going red again.
"Sorry! I uh, spaced out a little there. I'm fine!" He went back to eating, staring at the food and nothing else. For Titan's sake.
Gus continued to eat as Matt did, feeling strange. Something about him was off today. Had something happened at home? He seemed nervous, something Mattholomule didn't often show or at least would try not to show it. He was hiding something, and Gus knew it. He wanted the boy to open up.
As Gus finished up his food, sipping some of his drink to wash it down, he looked at the witch across the table from him and exhaled through his nose. Mattholomule seemed to notice and slowly lifted his head.
"Augustus? Is something wrong?"
His face was filled with genuine concern, worry, the jerk act seeming to just… Drop, in that moment.
"No, it's just… I don't know. I've been thinking a lot about some things, that's all."
Matt let out a small laugh and nodded. "Yeah, me too, honestly."
Gus tapped his finger on the table. "When you're finished with that… Do you wanna go for a walk? I would stay longer but… I think I need some air, and it looks like you do too."
Mattholomule frowned a little. "Yeah, sure, I'm almost done… Do you feel sick?"
"What? Oh, no no, I'm okay. Don't worry about it."
"Worry? I'm not worried!" He finished his food off quickly before continuing. "I just don't want you hurling all over me."
"I… nevermind." Gus got to his feet, finishing the last of his drink and turning to pay for the food. Mattholomule started towards the door and waited for the taller teen, his mind more full of thoughts than ever. The sudden change in attitude worried him. Had Gus noticed something was off with him?
==
Gus led the other witch down the street and to a clearing; there was a hill here, with a winding great tree having orange leaves glowing gold in the sunset. The hill was overlooking a valley, empty of most life and boiling rivers leaking in from the sea. It was quiet here, and they were alone; the perfect place to talk.
Gus lead the way up to the top, sitting down on the grass and waiting for Mattholomule to follow suit.
As Matt sat down, he looked out at the sun, soon to be setting. It was certainly a nice hill to watch the sunset from- perfect, even. He looked to Gus, his face illuminated in orange and pink by the sunlight. Gus exhaled and looked at him, catching him a little off guard. He looked… Tired. Annoyed, maybe.
"Do you still hate me?"
"What?!" Mattholomule's reply was instant, his eyes widening. "Why in the titan's name would I hate you?!" He cleared his throat. "I guess it's fair you'd think that, after how I treated you before- but I never really hated you! What makes you think I don't like you?"
"You're always a jerk. You've been distant all day, and you looked uncomfortable for most of the time at the cafe. I thought maybe it was my fault…"
"No, never!" Mattholomule shifted closer. "I'm… sorry for always treating you so horribly. I know my teasing can be a little much sometimes… I don't mean anything bad by it, I promise." He placed a hand on Gus' shoulder. "I don't hate you, Augustus."
The two stared at each other for a few moments. As soon as both parties realised they'd been staring for longer than they'd like, they both turned their heads away and Matt removed his hand from the shoulder, their faces turning dark red as they did so.
They both felt it in their stomach now; the strange feeling they'd get around one another. It was starting to become more obvious to them both.
"...What about you? Do you… Hate me?" Mattholomule choked it out, the words he didn't really want to say. "After all I did, I wouldn't be-"
"No, no! I uh… Think we're friends. Right?"
Mattholomule stared at him again.
"Yeah… Did you think we weren't...?"
"I mean… You're the one who said you didn't know. So… Neither did I. I wanted to call us friends, but… I don't know. Whenever I mention friendship around you, you seem tense, so I didn't really want to say anything." Gus fidgeted with his uniform again. Mattholomule frowned, looking at the ground.
"I said that because I didn't know what real friends are. I wasn't sure if we were friends, or of I'd even want to be." He let out a small laugh. "I've only ever been someone's stooge, or… Completely alone."
Gus turned to him, looking devastated.
"What? So… You've never had friends?"
"I guess not." Mattholomule faked a laugh to himself. "Makes sense though. I am a loser after all. I act like a jerk so nobody hurts me, and yet I still feel… Like I don't mean anything."
"Mattholomule…"
"But…!" He turned to face Gus again. "But with you, I-"
He was thrown off as he felt a warm force envelop around him; two arms wrapped around his waist and a head on his shoulder.
A hug. From Augustus.
He didn't know how to react, he'd never… Had this before. He stayed frozen.
…Then he did something he felt stupid for at first.
He gasped and buried his head into the other witchling's shoulder, wrapping his arms around his waist, holding him tightly and not wanting to let go. A few small sobs escaped his throat, that he'd tried his hardest to hold in.
Gus couldn't believe what was happening. Mattholomule was not only clinging to him for dear life, but he was crying.
"Mattholomule! What's wrong? Why are you crying…?"
Mattholomule didn't answer, he couldn't answer, and in fact seemed to only sob louder. He could only choke back sobs as he tried, and failed, to hide the fact he was even crying at all.
Gus sighed and rubbed his back gently, comforting him. "Alright, it's okay. Let it out. I'm not gonna judge you for crying… It's okay. I promise. We can talk when you feel a little calmer, yeah…?"
A small whine of a 'mhm' escaped the smaller witch's mouth, and he let his tears out a little more.
Gus felt… Better, at that. He wasn't happy that Matt was crying, but at the same time, it seemed like he'd been keeping this in for a long time.
Once it had been quieter for a while, besides the scattered sniffs, Mattholomule finally spoke, stuttering slightly as he did so.
"Th-Thank you." He reluctantly shifted himself and backed up, out of the hug. Gus frowned as he noticed Matt's face. He was a mess.
"Oh, Matt… What's wrong?" He spoke softly, not wanting to scare him. This was the first time Gus was seeing what he could only assume was the real Mattholomule, that'd been hiding behind a mask for all too long.
"I… I don't know." He laughed, throwing Gus off a little for a moment. "I just… The hug… This is so stupid."
"It's not, I promise. Tell me."
Mattholomule swallowed, hoping his already red face would hide the blush growing on his face at just how… Sensitive this all was. How Gus was just letting him be open, and wasn't mocking him. It felt… Weird. In a good way.
"I don't really… Get much affection. At all. The past few weeks have been pretty hard on me, and uhh…" He paused to breathe. "I've been holding things in for a while. Barely sleeping at night, just… Thinking. And then you came along and somehow it all got… Worse."
"What…?" Gus frowned. Had he caused all of this hurt?
"Wait- No, not like that!" He defensively shook his head and held his hands up. "I've just been scared since you've been around, since you asked if we were friends. Scared I'd mess up, that you'd hate me, and I would end up back at square one, and alone, like I was at Glandus." He shook his head again. "That's dumb, right? To be scared of something like that."
"No, it's completely valid. You don't wanna ruin the chances you've got now… I get that, really. I've been there."
Mattholomule nodded slowly. "Y-Yeah." He pulled his knees to his chest and hugged them. "I think the hug completely broke me. Made me feel… Accepted? Cared for? I don't know. It's so dumb." He laughed again, quietly breaking into more sobs.
Gus shuffled over to sit beside him and slowly wrapped one arm around him.
"It's not dumb, stop saying that! It's… It's okay, Matty."
Matt froze for a moment at the name. Had he really just said that? He turned to look at him, making direct eye contact.
Gus furrowed his brows. "Wait, Can I not use that? I'm sorry, I-"
"No! No no, I… Really like that, actually. It sounds good, from you." He let a small, soft and genuine smile grace his lips. Along with it came a blush; then he noticed Gus had the exact same expression on his face, right down to the blush. "...Thank you. For being here." Mattholomule averted his eyes as he felt he probably shouldn't be staring.
"Anytime."
A few minutes passed in comfortable silence, the two boys staring at the orange skies as the sun started to dip below the horizon. It felt perfect.
Mattholomule knew there was something else on his mind, but how to go about it, he didn't know. It could ruin everything… Or make it much better. It was at least worth a shot.
"Gus?"
Gus' eyes widened as he heard it; it came as a shock to him that Matt was using his nickname. He'd never done that before, or if he had, he'd certainly not heard it from his mouth.
"Yeah?"
"I think…" He swallowed, his nerves rising up from his stomach. Come on, you have to do this. "I think I like you."
"Oh. I see." Came the response. Then silence for a moment.
"I get it, you don't feel the same. Sorry, I made it all weird, I didn-"
Gus snorted a little, covering his face. Mattholomule raised an eyebrow and stared at him, confused.
"Why are you laughing??"
"I just think it's funny… That you think I don't like you back." Gus uncovered his face, cheeks tinted red.
Mattholomule stared, frozen, unable to do anything else.
"You mean you… Do you like me too? Since when?!"
"Oh, a while, honestly… I always felt there was something more to you, that you weren't really a jerk after all, and… Today you finally proved that I wasn't falsely hoping. The real you… I wanna see more of it."
"You want me to cry again?!" Matt snapped, shocked.
"What- No!" Gus cracked up. "I just mean I wanna see your sensitive side more! The kind side- it's sweet!"
Matt elbowed him gently in the ribs with a laugh. "Sure, alright. I think you just think I look good, not any of that mushy stuff. I don't blame you, I am pretty good looking!"
"Maybe it's that too, whatever." Gus gently shoved him back, the two starting a bit of a playfight before falling on the grass in laughter, then staring up at the sky.
It had been a beautiful day.
"We should probably head home soon." Gus turned his head to Mattholomule, who frowned a little in response.
"Oh… Yeah."
"Hey, we can see each other again tomorrow. We could text-"
"Oh! Great idea!"
"Not at three in the morning, please?"
Mattholomule sighed. "Fineee." He got to his feet brushing himself off and offering a hand down to Gus. He took the hand and let himself be pulled up, the two sharing another blushy look before falling into laughter again.
Mattholomule still had one last thing on his mind that he had to do.
"Heheh, hey uh… Gus?"
"What's up?"
Mattholomule stared. "Uhh… The sky? What does this have to do with-" Gus cut him off with a laugh.
"No! It's a human expression! It means I wanna know what's going on."
"Ohh- sure, well…" He cleared his throat. "I was wondering, if maybe… You'd wanna go out with me?" He felt so shaky, so nervous, and so scared- despite knowing Gus liked him mutually, he was still uncertain of how this could go. He couldn't help the nerves.
Gus let out a gasp, covering his mouth with his hand.
"You mean it? You want to?"
"Of course I do, or I wouldn't have asked- stop looking at me like that!!" Matt laughed and gently pushed Gus away, his face as red as a tomato.
"Why? What's wrong with my face?" Gus pulled the cutest expression he could muster.
"It's adorable… HEY! You're doing this on purpose! Just say yes already!!"
The witchling giggled and gave him a hug.
"Yeah. Of course I want to."
"...I'm gonna have to get used to this hugging stuff aren't I?" He chuckled and wrapped his arm around Gus. "I think I like it."
==
Once the two had reached the bottom of the hillside, they needed to part ways. They both felt a twinge of guilt for leaving; but it was okay. Tomorrow was another day.
Matt wrapped his arms around Gus in one last hug before they left, catching him a little off guard since it was the first he'd initiated.
"See ya tomorrow, twerp. Don't tell anyone about… The uh, breakdown."
"Ooh yeah, wouldn't want Hexside knowing you're a little softie, huh?" Gus chuckled a little. "Don't worry, I won't tell anyone."
Mattholomule pulled out of the hug and sighed. "Thanks for everything today."
"My pleasure, Matty." Gus bowed to him, the two of them unable to contain their snorts and giggles, eventually both bursting into laughter.
Once they'd calmed down, they knew it was time to part.
"See you tomorrow, jerk."
"Yeah- I'll text you when I'm home, loser."
The two were quiet for a moment, not knowing what to do; neither of them wanted to leave, although they had to. Mattholomule took a breath and stood on his tiptoes, quickly giving Gus a small kiss on the cheek, before panicking and starting to run.
"Haha yeah gotta go right now bye-bye Gussie!!" He covered his face in embarrassment.
Gus stared as the boy's figure got smaller and eventually completely disappeared into the distance, his face entirely red now.
"...Bye, Matty."