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It was small, the dorm, but comfortable. Cozy. The smell is home-y in a way, reeks of teenage boys but without an ounce of unpleasantness. Because it’s overshadowed by Grunk’s scent which was something Isaac could never get enough of.
His eyes flit over to the posters, lands on his One Piece flag. It stings to see it hung up on a wall he couldn’t recall from memory, stings even more to have Grunk invite him in and still have them stand so far apart, for whatever reason.
“My friends might come around so don’t get all… you know.” Isaac’s focus latches onto Grunk, whole body spinning to face him.
“What the hell does that mean?”
Grunk sighs, “I mean, like, you’re just visiting for a couple hours. We’re not doing anything.”
Isaac rolls his eyes, feeling a spike of anger creep into him. But he soothes it back down, ignores the ache in his chest as Grunk sits down on his bed and stares at nothing. Not Isaac, that’s for certain.
“Are you serious about that?”
“Yes! I have a girlfriend, Isaac.” And he winces at that. Feels the familiar churning of his stomach and, he doesn’t mean to, grimaces. No one needs to remind him of what has been gnawing at him for the past few months since Grunk started college.
He joins them on their bed and leaves no room for comfort either way. Hand finds the tinier hand and gently lays a finger over it. Grunk doesn’t budge, head facing towards the wall, but it gives Isaac more resolve to tease and try to break away at their little shell they’ve built up. It was annoying as much as it was adorable, at least for him. To be in this weird position with a friend who not so long ago would have been begging for the slightest touch.
“Stop it.” Grunk warns through gritted teeth, but Isaac does not listen and attempts to interlock their fingers. It startles a gasp out of Grunk, poor Grunk who does not realize how obsessed this man was with him.
“I’ve missed you. Is that okay to say?”
Grunk doesn’t respond. Leaves Isaac in a constant state of wondering, assuming he would take the hint. But he just has to push further.
His hand squeezes Grunk’s, and Grunk just lets him. Sits there, head low and unsure while the older’s thumb rubs at their knuckles, like he was trying to console them after all this time had passed.
The door’s knob suddenly sounds throughout the room and Grunk is quick on his feet, snapping away from Isaac to see whoever it was.
It was probably a girl, Grunk had greeted her with a hug and maybe a kiss on her cheek. Isaac’s attention was still on the boy, eyes raking over the short curls that bounced on his shoulder as he moved his head. Looks around for his nape, exposed just a bit by his knitted sweater’s wide neck line. Isaac felt short of breath, then, as Grunk scratched the back of his head. More skin to gawk at, much more than he’s seen in a while. And he takes advantage of every second.
“Oh, Isaac, he’s my, um- my online friend.” The sound of his name takes him out of his daze and he’s trying with everything in him not to scowl at how nonchalant Grunk was acting. Wants to just go up to the kid and start an argument.
Instead he sucks it up and waits for the person at the door to leave, that is until he watches them walk inside, holding Grunk’s hand.
His eye twitches at the scene, anger and humiliation brewing inside him until he can’t bear it anymore.
“Is he gonna be here for a while?” Isaac catches the girl whispering in Grunk’s ear. It’s faint but he can tell when he’s not wanted, and it gives him all the more reason to just get up and storm out, leaving Grunk and his brand new life with them. But he doesn’t even have the chance to move before Grunk takes his hand away from her grasp, not harsh but still a surprising move.
“Yeah, this is kind of the only chance we get right now. Can you come back later?” And Isaac’s heart swells, practically beats out of his chest as the words leave them and the look of understanding but irritation is plastered on the girl’s face. She leaves quite abruptly, and it takes all of Isaac’s breath away witnessing it.
“That wasn’t your–”
“It doesn’t matter, you’re only gonna be here for an hour or something.” Grunk shuts the door and pulls something out of his pocket, turns to the door and Isaac hears some clicking before it dawns on him that he’s locked them inside. Just the two of them.
It’s sudden and gives Isaac major whiplash but it’s hard to give a shit when Grunk comes back to him and, hesitantly, lays him down on the bed. Hovers over him, legs on either side of Isaac’s small waist which they trail over with their fingers. The touch is so subtle and it hardly means anything, really, but Isaac soaks it in. Lets it impact him more than it should.
“We can kiss. That’s it.” Grunk breathes out a little shaky, gaze suddenly locked with the man’s underneath them when not even a few seconds ago they were using any excuse to avoid even looking at him. Isaac swears under his breath, finds himself lost in the boy’s greyish eyes.
“So, it’s just invite your dad to school day now?”
“I’m- I’m not calling you ‘dad’, that’s weird.” Isaac frowns. “You know ‘daddy’ doesn’t do it for me.”
“There’s something wrong with you.” Grunk groans out in annoyance but he lets up, finally, and kisses Isaac. Hoping it would shut him up, most likely, though that doesn’t bother him. Isaac merely lifts his hand up to rest at Grunk’s neck as their lips dance so tenderly. Isaac finds he might be able to get used to the smell of the dorm.