Date: Fri, 3 Oct 2008 22:49:41 -0700 (PDT) From: T Storm Subject: No More Loneliness, Chapter 13 Disclaimer: This is a slow love story and not a fast fuck one. If this isn't to your liking, please don't bother reading. This story contains sexual acts between consenting adult males. If it offends you, then X out. Any comments or questions, email me and I'll try to respond promptly. Author's Note: Sorry for the huge delay in posting. Been busy lately. I haven't written the conclusion yet, but I do believe in finishing a story no matter what. Maybe I'll be inspired in the upcoming weeks for a good conclusion. Until then here's the latest update. Also, a huge thanks to Allen for emailing me and informing me that this story isn't *that* disgustingly sappy and sweet. CHAPTER 13 "Valentine's cookies!" I exclaimed excitedly as Kyle showed up with a container of heart shaped sugar cookies with red frosting. I licked my lips and rubbed my hands as I eagerly reached for one. "Don't I get a kiss first?" he asked snatching the container away. I grinned and reached up on my tip toes and kissed him briefly, rubbing my nose against his. I giggled. "I love you," I sighed. "Because I bake so much?" "Yes." He laughed and walked to my kitchen. "I'll get the milk," I said eagerly. "God, Kyle, you are so amazing." "You are too cute," he chuckled. "I love it when you say that," he said softly and I turned to him, catching his eyes on me. "Well, I love saying it," I murmured moving closer, to which he enveloped me in his arms. "I'll never stop saying it." "Good," he whispered, his lips meeting mine. I smiled before returning the kiss, my tongue slipping easily into his mouth. His mouth was so warm and so sweet tasting as we leisurely rolled our tongues together, massaging, licking, sucking, our lips becoming raw. Our breathing grew ragged and my fingers clutched his hair tightly. He grunted and pulled back. "Hair puller," he breathed. "Kind of ironic, considering you hate anyone touching your hair." "Shut up, I'm trying to kiss you," I said pulling his head forward once again, planting my lips firmly on top of his. Kyle rubbed my back and when we finally broke apart, we were both breathing hard, resting our foreheads together. I took his hand and nudged him into a chair. Then I plopped onto his lap. He smiled when I grabbed the container of cookie and grabbed one. Taking a huge bite, I offered the cookie to him, which he also bit into. We smile at one another and made googly eyes. Yeah, Valentine's Day was a cheesy day, but I didn't care, as long as I had someone to love. Which I finally did. "What do you feel like doing tonight?" he asked. "Stay here all night?" I suggested. "Really?" he grinned. I nudged him playfully. "Gutter brains." "Can't blame a guy for trying," he shrugged. "You really want to stay in? I don't mind. We could, uh, rest in bed," I said trailing a finger down his chest. He grabbed my hand and kissed my palm gently. "I was kidding. We can go out and do the fun stuff later," he raised his brows up and down. I laughed and kissed his nose. "I love how you compromise." "I love compromising with you," he said nuzzling my neck. "What would we do tonight? Outside of the house, I mean?" I asked. "Usual. Dinner, movie? Coffee? Not much in our boring little towns," Kyle said squeezing me in his arms. "I know. We need to move," I said hugging his neck. Kyle snorted. "Where?" "I don't know. I thought it'd be cool to live in another country," I stated. "Maybe England? London, specifically. Canada? Montreal. Or Paris. Ooh, crepes! But I'd butcher the language and they'd throw stones at me, probably. Germany? Blonds? Blue eyes." "Since when do you like blonds?" Kyle asked looking at me. I shrugged. "Never had a specific preference. I just wanted someone to connect with, regardless of what they looked like. But I don't know- blonds could be fun. The natural ones." "Yeah, no way a blond is getting their hands on you," he said running his hands lightly down my sides. I squealed and bucked in his lap. "Tickle, tickle!" "Stop!" I shrieked. "Eat another cookie," Kyle said stuffing a cookie into my mouth. I narrowed my eyes at him and bit into it. "I wonder what Corey and Jackson are doing," I said with my mouth full. Kyle smiled as he brushed crumbs off his shirt. "Besides the obvious?" "Besides the obvious," I smirked. "Corey probably will do something fancy. Rich boy," Kyle muttered. "Well, lucky for you that you got a low-maintenance dude, and Corey got a high maintenance dude. And don't call me high maintenance because of my hair!" I mocked scolded, pointing a finger in his face. Kyle laughed loudly. "I admit, you do appreciate the little things and that's my type of guy. I couldn't stand someone as demanding and bossy as Jackson. I definitely got the better end of the deal." "Aw, you sweet talker," I joked. "I don't blame Corey for wanting to please Jackson. He's that type of person, so charismatic and fun, that you want to do things for him," I explained. "I'm that way and so are a lot of other people with him. It's just something about him, you know?" "I guess," Kyle shrugged. "He's nice and funny sometimes, but also hard to take." "That's Jackson in a nutshell," I said. "Corey actually told me what he was doing, although not in details. A nice dinner. And some sort of expensive gift. He and I are really different," Kyle went on. "We're like twins who are identical, but with different personalities. But like you said, we got matched with the right guys. I bring you cookies, chocolates, and flowers and you're happy as a log." "I'd think Jackson would appreciate that also," I mused. "He does think what you do for me is sweet, but then again, he gets bored a lot faster, and well, he needs something to catch his attention." "Anyway," I shook my head. "Enough about them! About us." "Yeah?" Kyle asked with a smile. "Want to have a little kid day?" I asked with a big grin. "What do you have in mind?" he asked. "Don't laugh," I warned. "Uh-oh," he said with a smile. I laughed. "Want to go to Chucky Cheese?" His eyes widened. "What?" "It would be fun! Play some games, pizza, junk food. Then go home and get busy!" I exclaimed rolling my hips towards him. "Rolling under the sheets," I winked. Kyle laughed. "Oh yeah, you are easy to please." "What? That doesn't sound fun? It's pizza!" He pinched my nose and I tried to pull away but he tugged me forward. "You're so cute. Yes, let's do that." "Really?" "Yeah, most people are going to do romantic things and it might be empty. And I always love regressing. We can have a lot of fun and then have some serious alone time tonight," he said kissing my nose. "It sounds perfect and something you and I would do." "Definitely. That's the mood of our dates. Laid back, low key, and super duper fun!" I cheered. He nudged me off his nap. "Let's go. The sooner we have fun, the sooner we can have some private, one on one, fun," he said mischievously, pulling me towards the door. "Wait!" I ran back and grabbed a cookie, paused, then grabbed two more. "For the road," I shrugged when I saw him shaking his head in amusement at me. I took his hand. "Let's go have fun and celebrate Valentine's Day. Love you." "Love you more." ********* "My ass is sore," I said squirming in my seat. Jackson snorted and nearly choked on his soda. He wiped his nose and mouth and looked at me. "What?" "What, yours isn't?" I asked. He winked. "If mine is sore, so is Corey's." "Enough," I said. "You started it," Jackson shot back. He eyed me. "How was your V-Day?" "It was fun. We went to Chucky Cheese." His eyes widened. "Chucky Cheese? Seriously? Pizza and air hockey?" "Yeah!" I practically yelled. "Mad fun!" He rolled his eyes. "We had a really good time, although I ate a lot, so my stomach hurt. But we worked it off at night. After being such little kids, we were suddenly extremely horny, so we went at it three times. I was knocked out after that and crashed through my first class this morning." Jackson laughed. "Right on, man. What a way to end the evening." "What was your night like?" I asked. "Peter Lugers for dinner. He got me an iPhone. Went back to his place, did our business," Jackson said nonchalantly, but the goofy smile betrayed his giddiness. Jackson was always trying to play it cool. "An iPhone? Really?" "I never said I wanted it," he said defensively. "I gawked at a commercial and he got it for me. What can I do about it?" "I'm sure you tried to turn down the gift," I rolled my eyes. "Are you crazy? I always wanted one of those, but you know I can't afford one, nor can my family," he said loudly. "I'm damn lucky to land a loaded boyfriend and whom I actually love. It's better than putting out for some old fucker with a shriveled up dick, or a sugar momma with sagging tits down to her knee caps." I made a face at his choice of words. "Gross." "You're telling me. Thank God for Corey," he said. "I do feel bad when he spends so much money and I clearly can't give it back, but he's really generous and never holds it over me. You know, some rich people try to control you or belittle you with their money, but Corey is genuine, so I don't feel bad. You know, I have to work for my money because of the tight budget in my household, and I can't stand rich boys, but Corey is different," Jackson went on in a dreamy tone. "Look at the dork in love." "Shut your hole," Jackson said swatting my arm as a slight blush tinted his dark features. "Totally. My ass is so sore it will need at least three days of rest," I said with a straight face. "I need to moisturize it; it's chapped or something. It's itching." Jackson spewed his soda over the table. I grinned. ********** "Bye Professor Taggart," a girl with long blond hair giggled on her way out. She winked as she flipped her hair. "Have a good day!" Girls. He smiled, waving in a friendly manner. I smothered a grin, thinking that poor girl was barking up the wrong tree. He caught my eye and smiled. "Noticed that, huh?" he asked. "Well, she was blatant," I smirked. "I get that all the time." "You poor thing," I mocked. "Yeah, it's a tough life I lead," he laughed. "How was your weekend?" he asked. "Good." "Any fun Valentine's Day plans?" he asked. "This is my first one I spent alone in a long while." "Oh, I had a good time. We went to Chucky Cheese," I grinned. "Really?" "Hell yeah," I said. "I wanted pizza and childish games." "I thought no girl would ever put up with that. Then again, what do I know about girls? I've been gay for as long as I can remember," Prof. Taggart joked. I contemplated if I should tell him I was gay; it wasn't a big deal, he was gay too. But it was weird inserting it into the conversation. "Well, my boyfriend enjoyed it," I smiled. Ok, it wasn't that hard to work my gayness into the conversation. Professor Taggart's eyebrows shot up. "Really?" he sounded surprised. "For some reason, I didn't get that vibe from you. Or any." I grinned. "My best friend used to joke that he was afraid I was asexual or something, so I can understand how it might be hard to figure me out. I sort of stick to myself. Or I pitied myself or whatever, until Kyle came along." "I guess Kyle is your partner?" I nodded enthusiastically at the word partner. "Celebrated our one year last month. It was wonderful," I said thinking back to the hot tub and the hot sex and the champagne. Oh and the strawberries. "Sounds nice," Professor Taggart said in a faraway tone. "I miss that feeling. Being in love." "Maybe you'll have it again," I said softly. "I swear, it gets harder to meet guys or people as you get older," he said a bit sadly. "In college, it seems so easy." "Not really," I argued. "I didn't make too many friends in college, but that's because I'm very quiet. I had my best friend from childhood and a few guys I met through a gay support group. Kyle was a total fluke. It was my birthday weekend and my best friend and I were having a joint party- our birthdays are a week apart," I explained. Professor Taggart looked at me in amusement. "Anyway, I got so bored with the party because they were all Jackson's friends. Jackson's my best friend. And I left the party, driving to the nearest bar, and got smashed. Apparently I met some guy and went for a walk with him, and then couldn't get home myself, so he took me to his house. He was a complete gentleman. I officially met him the next morning, and that's when he asked me out," I finished. He laughed. "Wow! That was quite a story." "It's all true. It was weird how we met, but Kyle and I just clicked. It was just there, that spark, you know?" I asked. "I haven't been on a date in the longest time," Professor Taggart sighed. "I'm not a fan of clubbing and I don't know where to meet quality men." I pondered over it. "Me neither. Ever tried online dating? And stating you want a relationship only? You might get a lot of shit, but maybe somewhere in between you'll find someone great. I mean, you'll never know unless you put yourself out there." "True," he nodded. He smiled. "Thanks for the pep talk Mason. I'm your professor and you're advising me!" I laughed. "Hey, I'm young, not stupid. I'm wise beyond my years." "Thanks," he sighed. "I appreciate it. Hey, want to get coffee sometime? Give me more of your words of wisdom." I grinned. "I'd love to! Do I get writing tips as well?" "Sure, but not that you need it," he smiled. "You're a remarkably good writer." I blushed slightly and looked down. "Um, thanks." "You should explore writing. Do you have a genuine interest in it?" he asked curiously. "Not really," I said honestly. "I'm a future engineer, remember? Numbers and codes," I smiled. "What a shame. You really do have some sort of gift," he said, as if disappointed. I shrugged. "Sorry." He smiled. "It's ok. I'm just a sucker for writers or trying to nurture writers." He shrugged helplessly. "It's just how I am." "You're a cool guy, don't change," I said smiling. "As pushy and dorky as you may be." "Ooh, tough words," he mocked. "Just remember who grades your paper," he said menacingly, baring his teeth in a comical manner. I burst out laughing. "Man, you can't even threaten!" Professor Taggart sighed and hung his head. "I'm hopeless." "Sad state of affairs," I said in a mock grave tone, shaking my head. "I know, I know." Professor Taggart was going to be a great friend. ********** "How `bout that guy?" I asked, discreetly nodding my head in the direction of a cute guy who had just purchased his latte and was grabbing some napkins. He was tall and thin, wearing nice dark jeans, and a tight black sweater that looked good on his lean, thin frame. Average height, he had the attractive appearance of a guy who worked out, but was also intelligent, with his wavy hair and trendy glasses. After lecture, Professor wished me a good day, and on a whim, I asked if he wanted to join me for coffee. The weather was remarkably warm that time of year in early March. It wasn't hot or anything, but the wind was calm, it was sunny, and the air smelled fresh. It was my favorite type of weather. I was in dire need of a huge iced coffee drink. I wanted some good company and some good conversation. Professor Taggart readily agreed. "First things first- no more Professor Taggart outside of class. It's Matt," he said. I laughed. "Fair enough. You call me Mr. Lee outside of class." He chuckled. "Oh yeah? Is that how we're doing it now?" I shrugged. "Nah, Mace sounds better. Let's go with Mace." "I agree. Mace is a cool nickname. I just get Matt," he said sipping his tea. "Well, if it were up to me, I'd just be Mason. My best friend started the trend of Mace and it's stuck with me for so long. Only my family sticks with Mason," I explained. "Besides, Mace does sound cooler, like edgy, although I'm hardly edgy or dangerous," I said pointing at myself. "I'm a typical Asian guy, with spiky hair." "Asian guys are super cute," Matt winked. "You're like a gay man's fantasy." I laughed loudly. "Umm, some guys like really buff muscular dudes. My boyfriend is buff, but not gross bodybuilder type. But since he likes me back, I guess the whole pale, hairless, youthful look is attractive." "Definitely. So smooth, so delicate, just beautiful," Matt sighed. "So if you don't mind me asking, why did you and your ex break up?" I asked hesitantly, not wanting to intrude in his personal life. But I felt fairly comfortable with him and had a feeling he wouldn't mind my curious questioning. "Oh, we were together for such a long time, and we just grew apart," Matt sighed. "It does happen, and although I knew it, I wasn't admitting it to myself. We had a huge fight, and I was really upset about it. Like, he seemed so ok with it. Like, I know he was sad, but he was so accepting. He realized that we were growing apart and I wasn't who I was back then, but for me," he sighed heavily once again, "I was still holding on to the past, loving him in the past, you know?" I smiled. "Yeah, I can understand." "It's just that, well, I thought it was going to be forever. I really, really did. Actually, I'm still not completely over it. Have you ever had complete faith in something, and when it let you down, you just seemed to lose everything?" he asked, hurt apparent in his green eyes. I didn't know what to say and I just looked at him. "We were together for twelve years." I whistled. "Wow, that's a long time. How old are you?" I blurted out curiously. "Oh sorry, the questions just seem to fly out of my mouth." "It's ok," he said with a small smile. "We met in college. When I was 20. He was 22. That makes me 32." I nodded. "When did you two break up?" I asked softly. "Oh god," he whispered. "Over a year. A year and a half, soon. A month and seven days to be precise." I raised my brow. "I know you're not over him," I said gently. "but counting the days and remembering every detail, it doesn't exactly help you." "I know, I know, but I can't get him out of my head." "You just need to go out and do different things," I urged. "Force yourself and over time you wouldn't have to keep forcing yourself, you know? Take on a new sport, meet new friends, try that online dating?" "I can't." "You're a whiner," I snorted. "Just do it!" "I just feel so alone," Matt finally whispered. "Do you have any friends to go out with?" I ventured. "The thing is, our friends are all mutual and I kind of dropped them because it became too painful to hear about his life. He's dating someone new," Matt said sadly. "My parents live in another country, moving there for their retirement. We're on good terms, but with work, I can't take off for too long, unless I wait for vacation breaks. I have no siblings. I'm all alone." "You're not all alone. You have me," I said sincerely. "I'm your friend." He didn't say anything. "Matt." He looked up. "Really, I'm your friend. We should meet for coffee more often. And start doing other things, like checking out Jackson's capoeira practices. Or eat at funky restaurants," I said excitedly. Matt laughed. "You're too funny. What's capoeira?" "It's Jackson's one true love," I rolled my eyes. "He's the president this year and he oversees everything, so he's super busy. But it's a Brazilian martial arts and it's a lot of break dancing used to fight. Kind of fun. I get free access to everything since I know high people," I grinned. "Ooh, lucky you," he joked. "Seriously Matt, let's hang out more. Everyone needs a friend," I said seriously. "Loneliness is a terrible thing. It's a sad thing. It can ruin you. Don't let it. Let's hang out and have fun," I put my hand on his arm. Looking at my arm, he slowly traveled up to my face. Staring into my eyes, he nodded. "Ok. Thanks Mace, thanks." "Anytime," I smiled sipping the remainder of my coffee quickly. Then I flinched. "What's wrong?" Matt asked with alarm. "Brain freeze!" Matt began laughing loudly, snorting. "It's not funny!" "Alter your definition of funny!" he shot back, crowing. I frowned and rubbed my forehead. "Dick," I whispered. "I still grade your papers," he laughed, tears forming. "Mr. Dick," I corrected. "I have manners," I pointed out, sticking my tongue out at him. He laughed further. ********** "You know, hanging out with you, we really don't do anything, but it's really fun anyway," Matt mused as he walked beside me while, munching on a donut from the large supermarket. Technically, we really weren't doing anything but walking in the large shopping mall complex center. You know, the center with a bunch of stores all together? Well, this particular one was great, with a large, newly renovated grocery store, a pizza joint, a Best Buy, some little shops like a card store, a Staples, a liquor store, a Starbucks, and a Boston Market. There were also some Chinese restaurants and buffets. Literally, it was the perfect place. First, I hit up the grocery store and picked up some fruit, chips, soda, and mini bagels on sale. I loved making peanut butter bagel sandwiches for school and eating on the go. Then Matt got the munchies, so he bought a donut and now we were walking around, trying to figure out what do. In the meantime we just talked leisurely. "So is this what you normally do when you hangout?" he asked curiously. "Is that a nice way of asking if I'm always this lame?" I joked. "No!" he exclaimed. "Chill man, I was just joking," I grinned. "But honestly, yeah, I am a bit boring. Jackson gets annoyed with me sometimes because I'm like a wet blanket when it comes to parties. For our joint 21st I was a bit grumpy, but in my defense, it was all his friends! Sometimes he's so bossy and just doesn't listen to what I want." "Which is?" "A nice quiet dinner with my good friends," I said simply. "I'm a simple guy. I was never in that frat party, booze scene. I rarely drink and the only time I got shit faced was for my birthday celebration. Anyway, nowadays, my dates with Kyle are laid back, quiet, boring if you will," I admitted. "But that's what works for us. Kyle's just like me, so we fit together." "What do you do?" he asked curiously. "A lot of the times, Kyle cooks for me and I have dinner at his house. He's an amazing cook which is why I would never ever leave him," I laughed. "Or we have movie marathons at my house and buy a bunch of snacks, since I can't cook for my life. For Valentine's Day we went to Chucky Cheese instead of a fancy restaurant and gifts. We'd rather just spend time together, you know? That's more important." "That's good," Matt agreed. "You two are connected and stay connected. A lot of dates have no meaning. Like hitting up a movie, you never really get to talk, so what's the freaking point?" "Exactly," I said. I tugged on his sleeve. "Let's check out the liquor store." "I thought you didn't drink?" "Doesn't mean I can't look. And besides, I'm interested in making mixed drinks," I said. "They taste good." "I love the girly drinks. The fruity ones," he grinned impishly. "I'm so gay." I laughed loudly. "Nothing wrong with that. It takes a real man to admit something like that." "Thanks!" Entering the liquor store, we started perusing the aisles. "What should I get?" I wondered aloud, looking at all the colorful bottles but not knowing what the hell they were or how they tasted. I scratched my head. "Clueless?" Mark asked innocently. "Shut up," I said. "Yeah, a raging drunk who knows their liquor. Super cool!" I mocked. He laughed. "Ooh, Smirnoff!" I said looking at the six pack case. "These are really good. The Mojitos and Apple ones are pretty good," I said eyeing them. "Those are weak," he said. "Whatever," I said pouting. "I'll take them. It's good enough for me. I'm not good at holding my liquor." I picked up a case in each hand. "No kidding?" Matt asked in fake surprise. "I will choose to ignore that comment," I said striding ahead with my head held high. He laughed behind me. "Ooh, mini vodka bottles," I said excitedly at the register. "Look, in different flavors," I pointed out to Matt. "Oh, they're so cute," I squealed quietly to myself, so as to not look like a total ass in front of the kids manning the registers. "You're something else," Matt muttered smiling to himself. I added them to my pile. "They're too cute not to buy," I whispered to Matt as I handed over my ID and credit card. He snorted behind his hand but I was too busy paying for my purchase to do anything about it. "You're not planning on drinking all of this tonight are you?" the guy asked as he placed my alcohol in a plastic bag. I laughed. "No, no. I'll, um, space it out." "He's lying. He's gonna go home and have a pity party," Matt said poking his head from behind me. "I smell an alkie," the guy quipped. "I am not," I said. "Don't listen to him; he's an ass," I explained indicating Matt. "Thanks," I smiled grabbing my stuff. Matt laughed. "What's next?" "Hungry?" I asked. "Want to grab a bite? We have the options of pizza or Chinese food or even chicken with fixings." "Fixings?" "Mashed potatoes, mac and cheese, the yummy classics," I explained. "Tough choice," Matt nodded. "What you feeling?" "A combination of all of them!" I cried out. "Umm." "Let's go with pizza. They also have other food there, like pastas and chicken and salads and subs. So I can get a lot. Oh by the way, you don't know me that well, but I eat a lot and it's scary," I warned. He laughed. "I can take it." "Good," I said switching directions for the pizza place. "I'm starving. Let's bounce." ********** Jackson carefully threw the ball at Eric, who angled his glove to catch it. He hopped and grinned when he just barely caught it. I smiled and held up my glove waiting for Eric to throw it back to me. I watched as his entire body shifted to throw it and it didn't get much of an arc, but I lunged to catch it. "Yay!" Eric cheered and I laughed. "So how was your week?" Jackson asked as I passed him the ball. "I haven't seen you in so long and we need to catch up." "Afraid that my Dad might have gotten some new furniture?" I snickered. "And you're afraid we're miles apart in terms of communication." "Shut your hole! Don't mock me!" he said. "I like to be updated with your life. Got a problem with that?" he demanded. "Now," he paused dramatically. "Did your Dad really get new furniture? What kind? What color? Where in the house?" I giggled. "No." I aimed the ball carefully at Eric. "I hung out with my professor last night." "Huh?" Jackson wasn't looking at Eric and he jumped when he felt the ball hit his foot. "Eric!" "Sorry!" he chirped. Jackson picked up the ball and looked at me. "Time out Eric, ok?" Eric pouted. "Why?" he whined. "Go get a popsicle, Eric," Jackson ordered. That cheered the child up. Throwing his glove to the ground, he started running into the house. "Why were you hanging with your professor?" he asked. "He's a really nice guy and we got to talking about writing and relationships and he was really lonely. So I said we should hang out." "How old is he?" "34." Jackson whistled. "We're just friends." "Yeah, but most students don't hang out with their professors," he pointed out. "What does Kyle think about this?" "I'm allowed to have friends," I said feeling annoyed. "We weren't doing anything." "Is he straight?" I paused. "He's gay. That's how we got to talking, about his ex and how he's not over him." "Ooh, a guy on the rebound. Not cool. He will so be hitting on you, man. End this shit now," Jackson advised. I shook my head. "No way, he's a good friend. Everyone needs a friend." "You're too into helping people. This could backfire once he starts putting the moves on you. He's lonely, you two have fun together and click, he'll start liking you. It's only natural." "I told him I have a serious boyfriend," I said. "That's good," Jackson admitted, "But he won't see it that way. He'll like you and think you two are meant for each other. You and Kyle have a great thing going and you shouldn't let anything jeopardize it." "Matt won't. He's really nice." "Don't say I didn't warn you," Jackson said looking worried and bothered. "I wouldn't be comfortable with Corey being friends with his older professor. Is he good looking?" "Yeah, he's attractive." "Bad sign. Only be friends with toads." "Jackson!" "I'm serious! Good-looking people can rarely have a platonic relationship." "You don't know what you're talking about; if there are no feelings there, then it doesn't matter how good-looking both people are," I argued. "Like I don't have the hots for Corey and Kyle doesn't worry about me and you." "That's different," Jackson said. "You and me, we're like brothers, so that'd be plain disgusting. And we're very different people. And Corey, well, you love Kyle, so why would you ever go after Corey?" "Exactly." "No, not exactly," Jackson said sighing. "With you and your teacher man, you're fair game. You haven't had a long history with one another where you're purely platonic friends or whatever. It would be pretty easy for him to like you, I'm guessing. Being alone and needing a connection, as soon as he finds a connection with you, he'll start wanting to be with you. Even if you don't reciprocate-" "I won't! I love Kyle," I insisted. "Ok, even when you don't reciprocate," he went on. "It will create waves for you and Kyle and I don't want that to happen. You and him, jeez, you two are sickeningly cute together and perfect for one another and I think it's meant to last. I just don't want any extra shit or drama." "I appreciate you looking out for me, but I'm fine really. I can handle myself. I'm not always a big baby," I said. "I didn't say you were," Jackson said, "But you're so innocent and genuine and you know, it works against you in some situations." "I'll handle it," I stated confidently. "Fair enough," Jackson said. "Eric! Come back and play with us!" "Yay!" Eric cheered running back out with two popsicles in his mouth. When one fell out of his mouth, he looked at the grass. "Oh no." Then the other ice pop fell out. "Oh poop!"