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“Jealous of a book, Porter?” Matt asks.
“No,” Gus says, indignant, but it’s clear from Matt’s arched eyebrow and smug smirk that he doesn’t believe him.
“Good,” he says anyway, and casually pops the lime back in his mouth, returning his attention to the book in his lap. He swings his legs, pointedly ignoring him.
Gus bites the inside of his cheek.
He loves a book as much as the next 16-year-old prodigy, but he was confident he was more interesting than whatever Matt was reading.
And he would prove it.
Gus subtly leans in, sliding his hand across the tabletop and closer to Matt's thigh. He spreads his fingers so his pinky just barely brushes the seam of Matt’s jeans. He knows Matt’s aware of this from the way he goes perfectly still. He doesn’t look up from his book, but it’s clear he stopped reading from the way his mouth stops working at the lime between his teeth. He’s holding his breath, waiting to see what Gus will do next.
Gus’ heart skips a beat, because even he doesn’t know.
Unthinkingly, his other hand reaches up and grips the lime in Matt’s mouth between three fingers, his fingertips brushing his lips. His heart goes from a standstill to a full sprint, but it's like everything else slows down. In the same instant Matt turns to face him, eyes wide. When he stares at him like that, Gus can see how bright his irises are—they’re not as dark as they seem at a glance.
Matt swallows whatever sound of surprise he made, freezing as Gus gently pulls the lime from his mouth, causing a few droplets to fly through the air between them. Gus blinks as one lands on his chin.
Matt’s mouth is hanging open, just inches away now, the smell of citrus cloying the air between them.
Gus leans in the rest of the way and kisses that dumb look off his face.
Matt freezes like a statue, but that doesn’t stop Gus from humming at the sour bite of lime juice on his lips, or from marveling at how soft Matt's lips feel pressed to his own. The surge of emotion in his chest seems wild enough to kill him, but all things considered, there were worse ways to go.
When he finally pulls back, he watches Matt’s eyes flutter open. He gulps in a breath like he only just remembered how to breathe. His jaw is hanging even lower now, dilated pupils taking him in.
“Oh,” he squeaks.
“Oh?” Gus echoes, feeling his own face splitting with a grin.
“Yeah,” comes the eloquent answer. Matt’s eyes flick tellingly to his lips and then he's kissing him, hard enough that Gus rocks back from the inertia. He wraps his arms around Matt’s shoulders—the lime lost somewhere in the process—steadying himself and making it easier to deepen the kiss, still sour and sweet.
He completely forgets they’re in public, or at least, he doesn’t care until a sound startles them apart.
It’s Steve at the threshold, a coffee cup in each hand. He pauses, eyes sliding from one culprit to the other, noting the space between them and their wide-eyed gaze.
“I’m… just gonna leave this here,” he says slowly, and turns to set the coffees down on a low bookshelf. “I’ll be back in five.” And he leaves the way he came, the door swinging shut behind him.
The silence stretches for all of three seconds before Gus devolves into giggles, taking the tension with him. Matt follows suit, even if he buries his face in his hands.
When his laughter runs its course, Gus asks Matt, more seriously, “Really, though. Was that okay?”
“Dude, what part of me kissing you back wasn’t clear?” Matt asks, spreading his fingers to peek through them.
“I dunno.” Gus shrugs, feeling his face warm. “I just thought… maybe I should’ve asked first.” He had meant to. If he hadn’t gotten tunnel vision.
Matt’s hands fall from his face. “No, that was…” He’s flush to the tips of his ears now, fumbling for the words. “It was… nice,” is what he settles on.
Gus leans in, bumping their shoulders together. “Yeah.” His heart rate is still up. He licks his lips, catching the lingering acidity. “Whenever I taste lime now, I’m gonna think of you.” His smile widens. It’s supposed to be a joke, but he knows it’s true.
“That’s gay,” Matt says automatically, but the way his shoulders hitch, Gus knows they’re in agreement.
Gus nods solemnly. “Guess limes are gay now.” He elbows him, grinning. “Get it? It’s funny ‘cause they’re frui—”
“Shut up.”