Jack slid into the driver's seat, slinging his shoulder bag into the passenger's side of the car. He was glad his shift was over. It was 10 pm and he was ready to head home and get some sleep. Working retail could be fun sometimes, but as much as Jack loved meeting new people, today just seemed to be extra taxing. A lot of crazy and rude people seemed to be out and about today. He'd had a lady bitch him out for a product not being on sale, which wasn't in his control, and then he had some creepy man hit on him and try to ask him out to dinner. The man had to have been in his late fifties or early sixties. When Jack told him no, the man became irate. He began shouting a slew of slurs and insults until Jack's manager told the man to vacate the premises.
Pulling out of the parking lot of the business, the Irishman paid no mind to the car coming up behind him. That was, until Jack was two miles down the road and the car remained a fairly close distance to his tailgate, turning onto the same road as Jack. Not only was the green haired man creeped out, but he was getting a little pissed off and close to break-checking the son of a bitch behind him. As he turned onto the street he lived on, the other car followed. Jack slowed down, trying to come up with a plan so that the vehicle behind him wouldn't know which house was his. The last thing he needed was some psycho stalker following him home. He could stop at his neighbor's house, maybe the man would still be awake. But he had never spoken to his neighbor in the entire year he had lived next door. He had often watched as the man would leave or come home, finding him particularly attractive. He was maybe a few inches taller than Jack, his body was toned and fit, he had a small amount of facial hair dusting his jawline, he appeared to be partially Asian and his hair was black with the top dyed a bright red, much like Jack's own green hair. For a year, Jack had admired the man from the comfort of his own home, but he had never found an excuse to introduce himself.
As he came closer to his neighbor's home, he found the redhead to have his front door propped open, and he was sitting on the porch while his golden retriever roamed the front yard. The stalker was still riding his bumper and, in a panic, Jack peeled into his neighbor's driveway. He quickly hopped out of the vehicle and began a fast paced walk down the sidewalk to the porch, his neighbor watching him nervously. But before he opened his mouth to speak, he turned his head slightly to the road, seeing the car that had been following Jack come to almost a complete stop in front of his house. Jack shot the redhead a panicked look and the man nodded toward his front door. Jack was so grateful that they seemed to be able to communicate without words. As he met him on the porch, he gave him a small smile and uttered a quiet, "Thank you."
"So glad you made it home, babe." The readhead spoke loudly and clearly so that the stalker would hear, then gave Jack a small wink. "Chica, come on, get inside." He said, ushering his dog into the house behind Jack. The Irishman felt a small chill run through him at the term "babe" and at hearing how deep his neighbor's voice really was. The two watched from the doorway as the offending vehicled peeled away from the curb and sped down the street. "You okay, Jack? Come on in. I wouldn't go home just yet, that dude might turn back around." Jack's draw almost dropped. His neighbor knew his name?
"Okay. That sounds like a good idea. Um...no offense or anything, but how do you know my name? I mean, I've never really introduced myself." Jack chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck and adjusting his glasses as they slid down his nose.
"Uh, I've heard some of the neighbors talk about you. 'That sweet Irish boy, Jack.'" The man mocked an old lady's voice and Jack laughed. "I'm Mark, by the way." He said, reaching out to shake hands with the green haired boy.
"I guess it's nice to finally meet you, then." Jack said, chuckling nervously. Mark laughed, his eyes almost closing as the corners crinkled up. Damn, he's cute. Jack thought, while returning a smile that he was sure was ten miles wide.
"Um, you can sit down if you want. I'm not gonna make you stand around." Mark said, gesturing toward the black leather couch that sat in the middle of the room. As Jack finally looked up his heart stilled at the sight. This house was gorgeous, and Mark was clearly rich. His living room was large, with a huge flat screen tv on the wall in front of the couch and a large, glass coffee table sitting in front of the couch. There was a shelf to the right, filled with action figures and collectibles. They appeared to be from various video games. Jack gawked as he took in the multiple gaming consoles placed by the tv in the front of the room.
"Holy shit, I'm so jealous." Jack chuckled, pointing first to the tv, then to the shelf.
"You into games, too, huh?" Mark smirked, quirking an eyebrow. Jack nodded vigorously. "Then you're gonna love this." Mark said, giving a toothy, mischievous grin and leading Jack passed the shelf and down a hall on the right. Two rooms down, he opened a door and pushed Jack inside. Jack felt himself fall short of breath. The room was clearly an office space for gaming. He had a large pc setup, a glowing blue tower with dual monitors and a glowing keyboard to match the tower. He had an expensive mic set up with a glimmering silver pop filter sitting next to the left monitor. To the right of the desk, he had a ring light set up with a small camera centered on the stand. The walls were covered with blue and black foam padding to cancel out noise. His chair was slim with a blue and black pattern and extra padding for the neck and lower back. The back wall was littered with shelves containing geeky merchandise ranging from books, comics, action figures and plushy dolls. Jack pouted and looked up at Mark, who was staring at him grinning the entire time.
"I will trade you lives." Jack muttered, his cheeks heating up as he locked eyes with the Korean. Mark gave a hearty chuckle.
"You can come hang out and game anytime you want, man." He offered, and Jack could feel his heart beat faster. Now, there was an idea. Spending time with Mark and gaming with him. He felt his face grow even hotter. Suddenly the awkward bashfullness crashed away as the silence was broken by Chica barking from the living room. They both rushed in to find her propped against the window, staring out to the road. When they looked, they were met with nothing but the darkened street, illuminated only by one street light. Jack felt a sickening twist in his stomach, the reality of tonight's events coming back to him. Mark seemed to pick up on his distress and placed a hand on his shoulder. "You don't have head home tonight if you don't want to. You can sleep here, I have a guest room." He offered. Jack felt a small weight lift from his body.
"Thank you. I don't wanna be any trouble, but I am still really freaked out." Jack admitted, brushing his green hair off his forehead. Mark nodded in agreement.
"I would be, too. You're no trouble, Jackaboy. Can I ask exactly what happened, though?" Mark asked, cocking his head to the side and furrowing his brow. Jack couldn't help but give a small smile, in recieving a cute nickname and in Mark's concern. He was amazed at how comfortable Mark made him feel.
"I got off work and that guy followed me all the way from the parking lot. I think it was a customer I pissed off earlier." The Irishman admitted, looking shamefully at the floor.
"How'd you piss him off?" The taller man inquired.
"He was creeping on me and asked me out and I shot him down. So he started calling me a 'fag' and a 'queer' and said I was 'probably a slut, anyway.' My manager had to tell him to leave and threatened to call the police. In retrospect, I really wish he would have." Jack said, giving a sad laugh at the end. Mark frowned. "The dude was like more than twice my age." He grumbled.
"How old are you, anyway. Just wondering..." Mark smirked.
"Um...26." Jack answered, blushing.
"Oh, no way. I'm 27. That's actually pretty awesome." The redhead laughed, sitting down on the couch. Jack couldn't help but laugh, too. Mark's smile was contagious. It was pretty cool that his neighbor, whom he was crushing on big time, was around the same age. And was a gamer, too.
Holy shit, this has to be a dream. Jack internalized, sitting next to him.
"So...are you gay?" Mark asked, looking at Jack skeptically. Jack's face caught fire.
Oh, shit. He's gotta be straight. And he'll probably freak out if I tell him I'm into guys. Jack was having a mental breakdown.
"Not that there's anything wrong if you are! I'm actually bi so I have no room to judge! I just realized how awkward of a question that was, holy shit, I'm sorry!" Mark rambled, rubbing the back of his neck anxiously. Jack through his head back laughing, partially in relief and partially in adoration of how cute Mark seemed to get when he got flustered.
"I'm bi, too." Jack finally answered, trying to cease his laughter. "It was kind of a random question." He finished, knowing his face had to be fire engine red.
"Yeah. I'm sorry. I can be really stupid, sometimes."
"Sometimes?" Jack mocked. Mark laughed and punched him in the shoulder while pouting.
"Shut up, you don't even know me well enough to call me dumb, yet!" He yelled, crossing his arms like a child, his cheeks dusted in pink. They both broke out into a fit of laughter again. "I just figured you were due to the fact that the only counter arguement you had for turning that guy down was the age difference." Mark said, giving once last chuckle.
"Oh." Jack said, realizing just how unintentially transparent he had been. "Yeah. Well, I'm not looking for a sugar daddy at the moment." He joked. Mark's laughter filled the room once more.
"Damn. You know I could have been your sugar daddy. I am technically older." Mark stated, chuckling and grinning mischievously at Jack. Jack knew the man was joking but it still made his heart race and his cheeks burn.
"Yeh're not old enough, sorry, Maerk." Jack smirked, refusing to meet the other's eyes.
"Maerk? Holy shit, my name sounds awesome in your accent." Mark muttered, wide eyed. Jack almost choked. "Sorry! Goddammit, that was awkward again! Not that I'm fantasizing about you screaming my name or anything! Or...shit. I'm gonna shut up, now. Don't acknowledge me, I'm not here." Mark rambled, sliding down into the couch and covering his face with a pillow. Jack, laughing, stared in awe at the adorable nerd next to him.
"Well, I mean, I am sleeping here tonight so who knows what might happen." Jack said suggestively, elbowing Mark.
"Oh, God. You want me that bad already?" Mark chortled. Jack's whole body turned red.
"You're the one who wants to hear me screaming your name!" The Irishman countered.
"Oh, yeah. With that sexy Irish accent of yours! It gets me all hot and bothered." Mark roused, leaning toward Jack and dropping his voice to a low and sultry tone.
"Oh, God." Jack mumbled, muffling his voice with his hands as he covered his face. "Stop." He tittered. This man is gonna cause me to spontaniously combust from embarassment.