Work Text:
Michael sat under the cover of a tree, shielding himself from the onslaught of a thunderstorm that he had gotten himself caught in, his clothes getting damp from the wet moss and dirt he had made himself comfortable on top of. He sat next to unkempt graves, admiring the marble statues and mausoleums in the small cemetery, a fenced in plot of land that was poorly taken care of; overrun with vines and weeds that engulfed the large structures above the coffins of the non-recently deceased. He flicked his lighter, one without a child safety bar; it made it much easier to light, although it nearly peeled his skin off from the amount of times the raw metal rolled itself against his thumb on a daily basis.
He held a hand around the flame, shielding it from the rain and wind of his surroundings and lighting the cigarette that hung loosely from his lips. He sat his lighter down on top of the bag he took with him, leaning against the trunk of the large live oak he had settled himself beneath- one with long, draping vines and moss; almost as if it was it's own ecosystem behind the curtain of foliage it created. Right as he had gotten cozy, his phone buzzed from underneath him. He groaned, pulling it out of his pocket and glancing at the somewhat scratched and blurry screen. It read:
"Pete: 'hey where are you right now i need to not be at home"
He pulled his phone out of his pocket fully, hunching over the dim screen and rapidly typing.
"i'm at the cemetery. are you alright?"
He impatiently stared at the typing bubbles that disappeared and reappeared until a response popped up.
"im fine i guess i just wanted to see you"
"well, i'm at my normal spot. you're welcome to come."
"ill see you in five"
He pocketed his phone again, taking a drag from his cigarette and ashing it onto the toe of his boots, of which were scarred with years worth of burn marks from this habit he had picked up. He bounced his leg anxiously, his eyes darting around the cemetery for what felt like forever until a familiar face rounded the corner. Michael sat up a little bit, taking one last drag from his cigarette and putting it out on the damp vegetation beneath him.
"Hi." Pete plopped himself down beside Michael, tilting his head towards the other with an almost exhausted expression on his face, closing his eyes with a small smile. "Hey, Michael." The taller boy pulled his own knees to his chest, resting his head on top of his ratted jeans. He studied the other boy's expression, trying to get inside his head and find out what emotion he was displaying at the moment. "Are you alright?"
Pete opened his eyes and nodded gently, yawning. "Yeah, I'm okay, I guess. I'm just tired. And my parents were being weird again. Arguing about something fucking stupid. I just wanted to get out of there for a little bit and clear my head."
Michael nodded understandingly, his own expression staying stoic and quiet- as it always was. He wasn't one for showing emotion through his physical actions or facial expressions.
The two had been best friends since kindergarten, now having seen each other age quietly and far too rapidly until now, both of them now in their junior year. Michael was a year older, but it wasn't uncommon for two ages to reside in the same grade level. If Pete were being honest, he wouldn't know what to do with himself if Michael graduated without him.
Despite, in recent years, maybe starting in their early sophomore year, the two had become increasingly infatuated with each other. Not as if they hadn't been close in the years prior, they had; they'd been very close, but this was different. Pete had found himself longing for Michael's presence at times he hadn't before; and though he wouldn't admit it without being forced to, Michael had done the same. They had both found themselves pining for the other in the solitude of their bedrooms, wondering if the other was thinking about them too. The two boys were both far too reserved and secretive to ever ask the other this question, though they would be pleased with the answer they recieved if one of them had been confident enough to bring it up.
They both had a mutual understanding that there was something more than mere friendship here. But neither of the pair were gutsy enough to initiate that conversation- at least not yet; so they stayed awkwardly close to each other with the knowledge that there was more to their relationship than they were letting on to others. They had no physical relations quite yet, but it's again something attributed to the introverted nature of the two boys. They had both found themselves imagining how it would go if they did; hyping themselves up to just make that move, but to no avail. What Pete didn't know about today, though, was prior to their meetup, Michael had spilled all of his feelings out to Henrietta while they laid on her bedroom floor, gushing and pining about the other boy, words and emotions spilling out like a waterfall out of his mouth. She pushed him to do something- not specifically to confess to the younger boy, but to make at least some sort of move. Henrietta had never seen him so infatuated with anyone at all, and she wondered if she had ever seen him have feelings for anybody in the first place. This being said, she immediately pushed for him to just do something about it. This was a once in a lifetime experience- Michael? Talking about his feelings? She needed to see a development, and she knew he did too. He had grown tired of waiting for something to happen, and had come to the realization that it wasn't going to happen on it's own. He had to do something about it, and considering Pete's sudden appearance in his solitary time at the cemetery, he supposed today was as good as any other to do so.
Michael pondered how to go about this, leaving Pete sitting next to him quietly for far longer than he had originally intended.
"You're quiet today." Michael pulled himself out of his head, jumping at the sudden interruption of his stream of thoughts.
"Sorry. I've just been thinking." He muttered quietly, in an almost embarrassed tone, something out of character for him.
This caused Pete to contemplate what was truly going through his mind at that moment, but he decided not to pry into it, simply nodding in acknowledgment and turning his attention away from the somewhat tense interaction. Michael dug through his front pocket, pulling out a somewhat crumpled pack of Camel Crush cigarettes and two out, handing one to the other boy.
Bringing the cigarette to his lips, Michael squeezed the thin filter to pop the ball of menthol residing inside of it. Pete would never admit it verbally, on account of his fear of being considered too much of a pussy or something similar, but menthol cigarettes were the only kind he truly enjoyed smoking. Michael had caught onto this long ago, and in a quiet display of affection, had started buying only menthol cigarettes.
Michael brought a lighter to the end of the cigarette that was pressed into his own lips, another bad habit the boys shared, chewing on the filter of their smokes. He held a hand around the flame until it lit and shoved the lighter back into his pocket, gazing at the cloudy sky while Pete lit his own. They sat quietly for a moment, comfortable in simply the presence of the other. The rain had slowed itself down, calming to only a slight drizzle that lightly dripped on the leaves, creating a white noise that relaxed the tension between the two boys. The anxiety driven bubbles around the pair had been popped by the nicotine entering their lungs and the sound of the wildlife exiting their hiding spots after the storm, leaving an empty space that Michael had decided now needed to be filled with quiet conversations.
Michael had pondered during their silence, stuck in his head again, and his heart beat out of his chest. He wondered if Pete could hear the rhythm of his heart pounding in the near silence of the cemetery. He knew something needed to be said. He ashed his cigarette, leaning back against the tree and relaxing himself, trying to reassure himself that everything was okay.
He opened his mouth to speak, but the words got caught in his throat. He cleared it with a small cough into his arm before looking back up at the dark grey sky. His lips parted once again and he forced the words up his throat from his chest, a feeling similar to that of being sick and forcing yourself to vomit, but it was words that spilled out of his mouth instead. He thought that the anxiety of something being forced out of your throat remained the same in the two circumstances.
"..Hey."
Christ. That's all he could say? He saw that as somewhat pathetic, internally cursing himself for not starting off with something bolder.
Pete looked up at him from his comfortable 'seat' next to him, an expression of light amusement on his face. "Um. Hey."
Well, shit. What was he supposed to say now? He pondered how to continue the conversation for a moment, his eyes never leaving the rapid movement of the clouds overhead. His voice softly spoke once again.
"..I have.. sort of a sudden question for you."
He hoped that Pete wouldn't think that he was going to ask him out right here, right now. They had some clearing up to do before that happened. Pete just looked at him attentively with wide eyes and parted his lips slightly, as if to say something.
"Um. Yeah, go for it."
Michael rubbed his face, preparing himself to vomit the words out again. The anxious feeling of inevitability rose in his chest again. But just like the situation he compared it to, once you just pulled it out of your chest, you felt content and you no longer felt sick. He looked forward to that part of this conversation.
"..Are we like.. more than friends?" He paused, realizing how bold that sounded. He wanted bold, but not this bold. He clarified himself. "I mean, we're like.. really close. More than friends close. But we've never.. done anything. We just have this weird tension when it's just us two. I can't tell if it's the same with you."
Pete simply kept that same flushed, wide eyed expression as if he'd been waiting his whole life for the other boy to ask him this. Michael didn't see this, though, his gaze fixated somewhere else to avoid having to make eye contact.
"Um." Pete began.
"I think.. we do have something. I'm just scared I'm gonna fuck up, maybe. I dunno." He pressed his lips together, picking at the moss beneath him now. "I think you're pretty."
Michael felt his heart beat faster again, and wondered for the second time if it was loud enough for Pete to hear it. He wanted bold, right? This was bold. He would be bold.
He turned towards Pete, placing a hand on one side of his cheek and pressing their lips together. It was gentle, lovingly soft, but there was a part of it that was desperate, as if this is what he needed. As if he couldn't have waited any longer to feel this.
Pete was taken by surprise, but relaxed himself after a moment and let himself kiss back. His movements were desperate and loving, his hands wandering around to Michael's waist. The older boy hadn't expected it to last this long, he expected only a small, gentle kiss, but he would be lying if he said he wasn't more than okay with this, too.
Michael's hands wandered as Pete deepened the kiss, one arm resting around his waist, and now that the younger boy had turned the rest of his body to face Michael, his other hand pulled his thigh up, resting on the underside. After what felt like far too short of a time frame, he let go to breathe. They looked at each other, their faces flushed and their lips wet with the contact, panting in silence and catching their breath. Pete, nearly hyperventilating, breathed in, and every time he did, he breathed in the warm air that Michael released. He felt like he was one with the other, stealing his breath from him.
Michael just smiled, a rare sight from him, and pulled Pete close to him in a tight hold, pressing a kiss to his forehead. The shorter boy smiled too, pressing his face into Michael's chest, inhaling the scent of incense and tobacco that always comforted him.
"Um." Michael's voice was soft and rough, breathlessly whispering to the other.
"I think I'm in love with you, by the way." What a bombshell. But Pete took it well; better than Michael could ever expect.
"I know I'm in love with you."
Michael felt the nausea in his stomach wash away. He felt the feeling of release he'd been looking for.
And now, the dark clouds above the two have parted, the rain has stopped, and Michael believes that it may never come back again.