As the traffic light turned green Eli Goldsworthy hit the gas pedal of his father's black truck. It has been 5 months since he crashed Morty and his parents still wouldn't let him get his own car. So for the time being he was stuck with occasionally being able to use his father's car and riding the bus.
Eli pulled on the collar of his blue polo and sighed. Truthfully, he missed his red one. He liked the color better on him. This god awful blue did nothing for him. He couldn't wait to get home and change into his favorite black and white stripped shirt. Eli turned the corner and continued to drive until he heard the person in the passenger seat yell "Stop!"
Eli jumped and pulled the truck to the side of the road and slammed on the brakes. "What? Are you okay? Wh-What happened, Wes?" Eli stuttered.
"Nothing, nothing." The younger boy said. He pointed to the side of him through the window. "The new pet shop finally opened up." Wesley smiled at him as Eli leaned back into his seat. Eli ran his fingers through his hair and let out a breath. The way the Wesley yelled had him thinking that something had happened to his boyfriend. But as usual nothing was wrong at all.
"So?" Eli said. "It's a pet store. Big deal…" He didn't know why Wesley wanted him to stop to a pet store.
"Well….can we go in. Maybe look around for a little bit?" Wesley asked nervously. He bit his lip and played with the button on his red Degrassi polo.
Eli let out a small laugh and put the truck back into drive; he looked back over to Wesley and smirked. "Do you really want to go in?"
Wesley nodded and smiled. "I just really like animals." He squeaked. Eli and he had been together for a two months to the date. Their whole relationship started when Wesley found Eli crying in the middle of the old abandoned church. Wesley had been out searching for water samples for his experiment when he stumbled across Eli. He looked hurt and lost so Wesley sat down next to him and put his hand on Eli's shoulder. "Whatever is bothering you…it will get better, in time." He said to him. That day was the start of their friendship. A friendship that worked its way into something more.
Eli drove forward and then turned left into the parking lot of the pet store. There were four other cars in the parking lot so Eli pulled up front and parked in an empty spot. He pulled the keys out of the ignition and opened his door. Jumping out of the truck, Eli stumbled when his feet hit the ground. During the summer he screwed up his leg and had to go back to his brace and cane. From the other side of the truck Wesley gave him a concerned looked. He shut his door and walked around to Eli's side.
"You okay? I mean you just stopped using your cane. Let's try not to mess your leg up again." Wesley joked but at the same time held a serious expression.
"I'm fine, Wes. It just hurts a little. But I'll survive." Eli stretched his leg forward and scrunched his nose. Pain shot up his leg but he refused to let it get to him. Eli let out a large breath that he didn't know he was keeping in and put his foot back down and stood up straight. He held out his hand in Wesley's direction and quirked his head to the side slightly. Wesley placed his hand on Eli and intertwined their fingers..
The two walked towards the medium sized brick building that had a bright green neon sign that read "The Pet Place."
Eli scoffed and let go of Wesley's hand so that he could opened up the door for him. "How creative." He whispered sarcastically as the two entered the pet shop. They were greeted by an older lady who gave the two a small smile.
The pet shop had cages lined up around the sides of the wall. Animals varying from turtles to guinea pigs played in the many cages and aquariums.
Wesley slipped from Eli's side and rushed down one of the aisles towards the cages in the back. Eli playfully rolled his eyes and slowly walked after Wesley. He dug his hands into the pockets of his school pants and looked at the bags of dog food and dog leashes that were hanging on the shelves. When he finally caught up to Wesley he found his looking into a cage and sticking his finger through the small space between the cage railings.
"I wouldn't do that Wes. Hamster's tend to bite." Eli said reading the above the cage that read hamsters.
"Hamsters only bite if they feel threaten." Wesley said matter of factly.
Eli smirked. "Oh and when did you become the hamster expert, Mr. Betenkamp?" He crossed his arms and leaned against the side of the rack that was behind him. He watched as a smile formed on Wesley's face when a hamster began to rub up against his finger.
". I read a lot you know? And I just happen to pick up a book on how to properly take care of your pet hamster." Wesley said nonchalantly.
"Pet hamster?...I'm beginning to feel as thought this pet store trip is a trap of some sort." Eli said. Wesley turned around and playfully gasped.
"I have no idea what you are talking about. I just like hamsters." Wesley shrugged and turned back around. "But they do make great pets. Easy to take care of and they sleep during the day so you don't have to worry about it being lonely while you're away at school. Figuratively speaking of course."
Eli pushed himself off of rack and walked forward. He leaned down next to Wesley and smirked. "Is it just me, or are you hinting that you want a pet hamster?" He asked.
Wesley nodded. "I want a pet hamster." He said with a small laugh.
Eli stood up and reached back into his back pocket to make sure he had his wallet. When he felt that square object and clapped his hands together. "Well it looks like we're adopting a hamster Wes." He gave his boyfriend a smile before calling over an assistant to take out the hamster.
Once they were in the truck Eli buckled his seat belt and put the key in the ignition he turned and waited for Wesley to buckle himself up. Wesley placed the box that the store keeper placed his hamster in on his lap and pulled the buckle across his body. When it clicked, Eli pulled out of the parking lot. "So what are you going to name him?" He asked.
"I think I want to name him Copernicus. You know the Renaissance astronomer who was the first person to formulate a comprehensive heliocentric cosmology which displaced the Earth from the center of the universe?" Wesley said as he opened the top of the box and ran his finger down the hamster's back.
"I know who Copernicus is, Wes." Eli laughed and reached over to pet the furry animal. "I think he looks like a Copernicus."
Eli stopped the truck when he saw the exterior of Wesley's house. He put it into park and turned his boy slightly. He picked up the black cage that he and Wesley bought for the hamster as well as Wesley's back pack. He slipped his arm through it and jumped out of the truck. Wesley was already standing in front of hid door, fishing through his pockets, trying to find his keys when Eli walked up next to him. He placed the cage on the ground and stood up.
"You got it from here? I need to head home before Bullfrog is late for work." Eli explained. Wesley unlocked the door and smiled at him.
"I think I got it from here, thank you again Eli. You're…you're great." He reached for his hand and gave it a small squeeze. Eli smiled back and leaned forward. He kissed his Wesley's forehead gently and then let go of his hand.
Eli walked down Wesley's drive way and hopped back into his car. He looked back at Wesley's front door, to catch one last glance at him. Wesley waved at him from the steps and Eli waved back as he backed up out of the drive way. For the first time in a long time Eli felt…content.