Hmm, kinda shorter than I intended. I don't think I quite captured the emotions like I wanted to. But I tried, so sue me.

On second thought, don't sue me. Because I'm not claiming to own it.

They say love is an act of the will. Well, whoever 'they' was, Speedy thought they could go fuck themselves. They had obviously never been in love. If he could will his love towards whoever he wanted, he probably wouldn't be as angry as he was right now. Or maybe he wasn't angry so much as he was frustrated. At himself, at Aqualad, at whoever the fuck that guy was that Aqualad had gone out with.

It might not have been so bad if he still thought Aqualad was straight. At least then, he could blame his lack of a second x-chromosome for his failure, but as it was he had no excuse. When he'd admitted how he felt about Aqualad, he'd assumed the Atlantean's stammering of incomprehensible words were because he was straight. But if Aqualad were straight, then what the fuck was he doing on a date with some guy? The realization that Aqualad liked guys was extremely upsetting to Speedy. To him, it meant he could have had him if he'd been good enough. Or fast enough. Just how long had Aqualad been going out with this guy?

Speedy's thoughts were disrupted by the jingle of keys in a lock. When Aqualad stepped through the door, Speedy was already walking away. No use staying there and probably saying something stupid. But then Aqualad called him back. "Hey, um could we talk for a moment?"

Speedy almost said no out of spite, but immediately realized how immature that was. He chose instead to respond with, "Hm?"

Aqualad seemed anxious, awkward, unsure of what to say. "Look, Speedy, I'm sorry for not telling you. About being gay, about Jake. I wasn't sure how to tell you that I was into guys, but I'd never thought about you like that."

"So you and this Jake guy are dating, I guess. Are you exclusive?"

Aqualad shook his head and Speedy smiled. "Date me then." Before Aqualad could protest, Speedy jumped in again, "You said you weren't exclusive, so you're free to date. And I know you said you'd never thought of me like that. So start. If you do, who knows, you might be able to feel something more for me. Just give me a chance."

"Roy, I can't. It's not – simple like that."

Without warning, Speedy stepped up to Aqualad. Right as Aqualad realized that he could feel Speedy's breath on his lips, he soon felt Speedy's lips on them too. Speedy started out softly and began to press harder as he gained confidence that Aqualad wouldn't push him away. When he pulled away, he looked at Aqualad expectantly. "Tell me, without lying, that you didn't like that."

Aqualad looked down, "Roy, I'm sorry. I'm not saying I didn't like it. It's just – I shouldn't have let it happen. I tried to tell you, but me and Jake – we're not exclusive, not yet, but I'd like us to be. I like him a lot. I'm so sorry, really I am."

Speedy looked crushed, and Aqualad really did feel horrible. "Oh," Speedy choked out, unable to pass the wave of jealousy that took hold ahold of him. "If, um if things don't work out, well, I'll be here, ya know?" Much as it pained him, Speedy wished him good luck and made his exit. There was nothing left to do but hope that one day, maybe, he'd get his chance. And in the meantime, regret like hell he hadn't been the one to hook Garth.

Let me know what you think, if you wish. Hope you liked.