Ok, so funny story - this has been in the making for about a year now? It started off as a braceface!Logan fic, an idea a friend of mine had on Tumblr, and over this past year it's kind of morphed into being an adorable fort fic? I don't really know. But I hope you enjoy it, and comments would be much appreciated :)
Logan Mitchell wasn't a social guy.
It might seem like he was when he was with his three best friends, but actually, Logan hated calling attention to himself. He hated the feeling he got when everyone was looking at him, especially in class when he had to do a presentation. Even though he knew all the material, he still stumbled over his words and lost his train of thought, and by the end of it, half the class was always snickering quietly behind their hands and Logan was this close to crying.
That was why, when he wasn't with his friends or at hockey practice or at school, he was usually in his room doing homework or reading. He felt more comfortable around numbers and facts that he could memorize; they didn't give you atomic wedgies or push you into the girls' bathroom or trip you on your way down the steps. They were solid, and they never changed, and that was why he loved them so much.
But he also loved his books. Logan had been an avid reader since an early age, always begging for a story before bedtime when he was younger and going to the library after school whenever he could to devour anything he could get his hands on. His favorites were fantasy novels, and lucky for him his father had volume after volume of them in his library. On rainy days when Kendall wasn't begging him to go over to his house to keep him company, Logan loved nothing more than pushing the two big stuffed chairs together in the living room, draping a couple of sheets over them, and hiding away for a few hours with a stack of books, his miniature flashlight, a tall glass of milk, and a couple of sandwiches. Call it childish, but he felt most comfortable getting lost in the fictional worlds of The Shire and Hogwarts and Terabithia instead of trying to muck his way through the real one.
Narnia was where Logan found himself one rainy Saturday afternoon in October after his parents left for work and his brother, who was home on break for college, had gone to an art show three hours away. He was nice and snug and comfy under the blankets, curled into the corner of one of the chairs with flashlight in hand and nibbling at a sandwich. His phone was at his side on silent just in case his parents called to tell him they had to work later than expected or Kendall called to see what he was doing. And even though Logan's reading time was very important to him, he knew he'd stop in a heartbeat if a call or text from Kendall came through.
To put it simply, Logan was in love with the boy, head over heels, and had been for quite some time now. They had known each other for about seven years, ever since Logan and his family moved here to chilly Minnesota from Texas. Kendall had been the first kid he had met on the block a few days later when some bullies at the bus stop had tried to take his lunch money his first day of kindergarten, and since then, they (and Carlos and James) had been an inseparable group. Logan had always felt a closer connection to Kendall than the other two, but he had just attributed it to Kendall's natural need to want to protect everyone, especially Logan, who always seemed to need protecting 99% of the time anyways.
Sure, he loved James and Carlos like his own brothers. His friends and their families were more of a family to him than his own half the time, and he appreciated that. But there was just something about the blonde boy that made him feel extra safe and loved and important, and it had taken him five years to realize that the feelings he had for Kendall were more than just feelings for a best friend, and what Kendall had known the minute he laid eyes on him at six – that they were meant for each other.
Logan smiled softly, shutting his book and thinking of his blonde Adonis. It had only been a few weeks since Kendall had asked him to be his boyfriend, cornering him as he came out of their Algebra class and pulling him into the second floor boys bathroom that no one used and kissing him softly on the lips. A plethora of words and emotions and thoughts had passed between them in those few seconds, things Logan had never dared voice aloud to anyone, especially not Kendall, but he hadn't judged him, and that just made Logan love him even more.
The farthest they had gotten up to this point was small kisses here and there, and sometimes they cuddled, but it was perfectly fine with him. Sure, someday he wanted to have sex with Kendall, but he was still a little nervous about the whole process. Logan knew what went where and he also knew that it hurt, and for someone who had a low tolerance for pain, he was a bit apprehensive, even though he knew the pain would eventually fade into pleasure. Still, it was nice that Kendall cared enough not to push him to do anything he didn't want to do, and he respected his wish to not act too cuddly in public. Logan was fine with Mrs. Knight knowing because she was like a mom to him (she had helped him come to terms with his sexuality just a few months ago, and she had known Kendall had been gay since at least the eighth grade), and he was fine with James and Carlos knowing because they were his best friends, and he was even ok with Katie knowing, since she knew everything already, but he wasn't ok with his parents finding out. They weren't as accepting as Kendall's mom, and the less they knew about their relationship, the better.
An unexpected clap of thunder made Logan jump, bringing him out of his thoughts and back to the real world. He sat up and poked his head out from the blankets to look out the window. The rain was pounding down now, and the clouds were an ugly dark color. Lightning flashed every so often, accompanied by another rumble of thunder, and he shuddered, hiding beneath his cocoon of covers once again. Thunderstorms were not on his list of favorite things in the world.
Logan grabbed his flashlight from where it lay and turned it back on, grabbing his book and flipping to the page he had abandoned, hoping that the words would lull him into comfort. Only a few seconds in, however, another rumble of thunder made him drop the book, and he whimpered. "Stupid storm." Usually he could logically talk himself out of being afraid, but now that he was home alone Logan knew that wouldn't work.
Scrambling off of the chair, Logan grabbed his empty glass and padded into the kitchen, turning on every lamp he could to make everything seem less dark and scary, mentally running through song lyrics in his head to try and distract himself as he opened the fridge. The milk carton was almost empty when he picked it up so he just drank the last of it straight from the carton and tossed it in the trash, grabbing a soda from the back and making his way to the pantry for something to snack on. Logan knew there wouldn't be much that he could eat anyways; since getting his braces six weeks ago he had come to learn quite fast that anything sticky or gummy or small got stuck in them, which was quite annoying to say the least. He hated his braces with a burning passion, not only because they made eating difficult but also because they made his mouth hurt. Kendall said they made him look adorable, but Logan was pretty sure he was just telling him that to make him feel better.
After rooting around for a few minutes he finally grabbed a pop tart and his soda and went back into the living room, staring anxiously out the window, his fort and books long forgotten. "Lightning is an atmospheric discharge of electricity accompanied by thunder," he whispered to himself as he sat down on the couch farthest away from the window. "Each bolt can contain up to one billion volts of electricity, and…" He felt his heart jump as another clap sounded, and seconds later he was jolted up off the couch by furious pounding on the door.
"Logan, are you home? Let me in, it's pouring out…"
Kendall? What was he doing here? With a frown he rushed to the door and hurriedly opened it, ushering in his dripping wet and freezing cold boyfriend. "Kendall, what are you even doing outside?"
"What, no kiss hello?" Typical Kendall.
Logan gave him a look. "It isn't safe to be outside during a thunderstorm, Kendall. And you're all wet so you're probably going to get a cold…" He peeled Kendall's wet jacket away from his body and grimaced when it dripped all over the carpet. "Don't move," he told him as he set off towards the downstairs bathroom. "I'm getting you a towel so you can dry off and then if you want you can borrow some sweats and a shirt while I put yours in the dryer. The last thing you need is pneumonia."
A soft response was all he heard and Logan shook his head as he turned on the light in the bathroom and hung Kendall's coat up to dry over the shower rod. He loved his boyfriend but sometimes his ideas weren't the brightest, and if he ended up getting sick it was his own fault.
He grabbed a fluffy towel from underneath the sink and draped it over his shoulder as he made his way back to the foyer, frowning a little when his boyfriend was nowhere in sight. Where could he have gone? No sounds were coming from the kitchen, Kendall's second favorite place in the house because of the food, and he would have heard him stomp up the steps…
"What's this?" His voice floated to Logan suddenly and he stopped in his tracks as he realized where it was coming from. The living room.
"Oh no," he moaned, and broke into a half-sprint. "Kendall? Kendall what are you doing?"
Alas, what he had hoped wouldn't occur was, and he sighed when he walked through the doorway. Kendall stood by his fort of blankets and pillows with an amused look on his face, peeking in and smiling wide. He was still soaking wet, but he didn't seem bothered by it. "A fort?" he asked.
"…you weren't supposed to see it."
"Why?"
"Because. It's stupid." Logan felt his cheeks heat up as Kendall walked over and took his hands in his. "I think it's adorable," he murmured, kissing his forehead. Logan blushed even more.
"I was going to take it down later," he told him. "I was just reading while everyone was gone. I wouldn't have put it up if I knew you were going to come over."
"Well come on, then."
"Come on what?"
"Let's read together." Kendall broke the hold of their hands and moved towards the chairs, lifting one of the blankets out of the way so he could settle himself. Once done, he poked his head out and looked at his boyfriend pointedly. "Are you coming?"
With a roll of his eyes Logan walked over and climbed back inside his cocoon, pulling the cover back where it was, shrouding them in darkness. They had to fumble around a bit so that they could both fit comfortably, and Logan had to search the cushion for his flashlight, but soon it was found and the small light was safe in Logan's hand and they were settled nicely against each other.
"So, what're you reading?" Kendall asked, leaning back and pulling Logan closer to him. Logan blushed. He still wasn't used to the simple but meaningful ways Kendall showed his affection, but he loved how they gave him butterflies every single time. "Um. The Magician's Nephew."
"You've read that like ten times already."
"I know. But I like it."
"I know you do." He smiled at his little genius, taking the small flashlight from his hand. "You wanna read to me?"
"What? No. I don't read aloud well Kendall - "
"Please?" Even in the semi-darkness Logan knew he was making that face, the one with the pouty lip and the sad eyes, and not even he could resist that. "Ok," he said. "But you promise not to laugh?"
"Logie. I would never laugh at you." A strong arm went around his shoulders so he could fit into the crook of Kendall's arm and warm lips pressed against the side of his head. "Now c'mon. If you've read this thing ten times it must be good, and I wanna hear it."
Logan nodded once and settled back against the warmth of Kendall's body, flipping to the first page and taking a deep breath. "This is a story about something that happened long ago when your grandfather was a child. It is a very important story because it shows how all the comings and goings between our own world and the land of Narnia first began…"