Alright kiddies

Alright kiddies! Prepare to read the final chapter!! :O

I hope you all enjoy it!!

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Chapter Seven: The Beginning

Colin stretched his arms above his hand, his eyes squeezing shut as the ending credits rolled down the screen.

Tory scooped up the remote and hit "Stop", while tossing a glance at the clock in the kitchen.

9:58pm. Not bad.

He reluctantly got up from the plush couch, already missing Colin's warmth.

The ruddy-haired boy stifled a yawn as he flicked off the television, the room suddenly becoming rather dark with the exception of the dim light over the stove in the adjacent room.

Tory cursed under his breath and fumbled with the floor lamp by the couch. He thought he heard Colin swallow an amused chuckle behind him. Flustered, Tory finally managed to find the switch underneath the shade and dull light filled the room.

Tory straightened and tossed a weary glance at his amused friend before making his way down the hall to his room. Colin followed, his cat-like grace silencing his movements.

Tory pushed open his door and made a beeline for his dresser.

"So I guess you need something to sleep in huh?" Tory tossed some rogue locks out of his face as he rummaged through his top drawer.

"Yeah, that might be nice," Colin replied, his cool voice devoid of sarcasm.

Amidst the heap of poorly folded clothes, Tory's eyes locked onto a pair of flannel blue and black plaid pajama pants. A smile touched his lips as he seized them, along with a tee shirt the exact shade of Colin's eyes.

"These good?" Tory held them up for Colin to examine. He shrugged and nodded, gratitude softening his features. A shiver bolted down Tory's spine as those tender eyes remained fixed on him. A tiny flame of hope sparked to life deep within his heart.

Tory tossed the clothes to Colin who caught them with ease.

"Sure, no problem," Tory said shyly. "You can change in bathroom. It's right across the hall. Oh and there's a spare toothbrush in the top drawer. The toothpaste should be out too. I'll change in here so if my door is closed then just give me a minute." Colin smiled his thanks, once again sending a shudder raking through Tory's body, and left for the bathroom.

Tory slipped the door shut and rested his back against it, his eyes slipping shut.

'God. It's like the more I look for them, the more little signs I see that maybe… maybe Colin feels the same way I do.' A full body shiver shook him as he thought of being more than just a friend to Colin, an intense desire flaring to life. Tory grimaced, reality quickly squelching the surge of hope, and opened his eyes a fraction. 'Then again, I guess it could all be in my imagination. It's not like he's done anything crazy weird or obvious. Well, except for the fork thing. But who knows? Maybe that's just how they do things at his house.' A long low sigh escaped from his lips. 'I don't want to jump to conclusions. I don't want to ruin what I have with him.' His mouth settled into a frown, his shoulders slumping as he came to his conclusion. 'Even if that means we can only be friends.'

After a brief moment more, he dragged himself away from the door and pulled on a pair of solid gray pajama bottoms and a maroon tee shirt.

There was a quiet knock on the door as Tory shoveled his dirty clothes into the hamper.

"Come in," Tory called mildly.

The latch clicked and Colin slipped in. Tory's heart did a summersault in his throat as he gazed upon the adorable sight of Colin clad in his clothes. His shirt fit Colin very well and showed off his lean figure with just the right amount of laxity. The pants were a little baggy but somehow added to the charm of the look. Before Tory could suppress it, a grin splayed across his face.

"Do they fit okay?" To Tory's amusement, a tinge of pink touched Colin's cheeks and he shrugged.

"They fit fine," as an after thought Colin added, "Thanks."

"Good, I'm glad," Tory paused and glanced at his bunk bed. He flicked his head in that direction and asked, "Would the top bunk be okay with you? I don't mind taking it if you'd rather have the bottom though." Colin looked up at the top bunk and shook his head indifferently.

"I don't mind the top bunk at all." Tory smiled and nodded.

"Well just make yourself at home then. I'm going to go brush my teeth. I'll be back in a minute or two."

Tory had a hard time taking his eyes off of Colin as he exited the room. Tory knew he'd cherish those clothes until the day he died. Colin was actually going to sleep in them and everything!

Tory knew he must be in Paradise as the flame of hope swelled a fraction larger.

He entered the bathroom and noticed the toothbrush Colin must have used sitting in the cup with his toothbrush. His heart fluttered. It felt so good to have someone in his life. Tory's eyes dimmed. Even if it is one-sided.

An involuntary sigh pressed from his lips once more before he shoved the toothpaste-laden brush into his mouth.

But oh well. It was worth it to have Colin as part of his life. It was worth all of these feelings to go unrequited if only to have this one night with Colin solidified eternally within his memories.

Tory made a mental note to record all of the details of this night at the earliest opportune moment. He didn't want to forget a single thing.

Finishing up, he swished and spit into the sink, wiping his mouth on a nearby hand towel.

Before leaving, he ran a hand through his red unruly locks, doing his best to make himself look decent.

Switching off the light, he padded his way back to his room, swinging the door shut behind him.

Colin was sitting cross-legged on the top bunk, looking down at something in his lap.

Tory cocked his head in curiosity.

"Hey, what's up?" Tory asked, approaching the bunk bed.

Colin met Tory's eyes and held up a yellow notebook.

"You have some notebooks up here," he paused and a twinkle of mischief twitched his mouth up in a smirk. "Don't worry, none of them were open."

Tory flushed and skittered up the ladder to sit beside Colin, bringing his legs into an Indian style. Colin closed the thin yellow notebook and handed Tory a small stack of colorful, flimsy notebooks.

As Tory took them from Colin, he realized just how close Colin was to him. There had to have been less than three feet of vertical space between the mattress and the ceiling. Their legs were pressed up against one another, warmth seeping from one body to the other.

Both teens were sitting slightly hunched and very close together.

Tory gulped and brought his attention back to the journals.

"Oh! These are my old journals from elementary school. My mom probably threw them up here when she was vacuuming my room last week," Tory flipped one of the books open, his eyes shimmering fondly as he examined the contents.

Colin gave him a quizzical look. "What kind of journaling could you do in elementary school?"

"They were these little mandatory booklet assignments you had to do everyday before class started. It's actually where a lot of my passion for writing came from," Tory gestured to a page sporting a messy crayon drawing of a fire truck. "You had to write a few sentences about some topic, like what you wanted to be when you grew up, and then draw a picture here," he pointed to the truck.

A genuine smile caressed Colin's mouth. Tory swallowed hard to keep from staring at his lips.

"You wanted to be a fireman when you grew up?"

Tory chuckled, somewhat embarrassed.

"Yeah well, it seemed cool at the time."

"That's cute," Colin laughed, a smooth pleasant sound.

A fierce blush flared up to set his cheeks ablaze. Bliss whirled up from his heart and flooded his body.

Tory laughed timidly and glanced up at Colin.

"T-thanks," Tory murmured. All at one, Tory realized how very close Colin's face was to his. How endless his deep stormy eyes were. Eyes focused entirely on him.

Tory's hands began to chill, butterflies the size of dragons suddenly raging around in his stomach. And yet Tory couldn't pull his eyes away. He wanted to lose himself in those fathomless eyes.

Tory could swear Colin's face was approaching almost intangibly closer. The mere thought both excited and terrified him. His heart was beating so fast, he thought it might give out at any second.

Colin's lips were mere inches away from his and seemingly getting closer with each passing moment. How could this be? Was his mind just playing tricks on him?

Tory realized with a sudden burst of urgency that he wanted to kiss Colin. His fingers tingled as he held himself back. He knew he wanted this more than anything in the world, but what would Colin think? Tory couldn't bear the thought of losing his friendship. A pang of sadness wrenched his heart stings and just as Tory was about to look away, all time stopped.

The scant few inches between their faces closed as Colin's warm, silky lips pressed gently against his. The kiss lasted for less than a few seconds but to Tory, it might as well have been an eternity. In those few seconds, Tory picked up on the faint, musty scent of crisp fallen leaves and a cool winter breeze. Colin smelled of autumn. And Tory loved it.

The kiss broke just as quickly as it came. Tory didn't even have a chance to respond.

Tory's head swam with bliss. His soul soared as he realized Colin felt the same way. He had kissed him! He had actually kissed him. Tory felt like he was going to faint. He had never been so happy in his entire life.

Colin shifted beside him, pulling back the blankets and adjusting the pillows. He had his back to Tory.

Sensing something was wrong, he opened his mouth to ask what was wrong.

"Thanks for showing me your journals. I'm getting kind of tired. Is it okay if I get to sleep?" Colin's tone was neutral. He avoided eye contact. All of the happiness in Tory ebbed away, confusion laying in its wake.

"Oh, uh y-yeah. Sure," Tory said, his voice laced with concern. He grabbed the notebooks and tossed them to the floor near his closet. His heart ached as he climbed down the ladder to get into his bed.

Shaking a bit, he slipped underneath the cool comforter. His throat constricted and tears pricked the corners of his eyes. What just happened?

'I feel like I've lost his friendship when I didn't even do anything. He's the one who kissed me!' A silent tear of frustration and pain rolled down the side of his temple.

He fought back the urge to cry and wiped away the rest of the unshed tears with a corner of his blanket. He forced himself to take steady, quiet breaths to clear his face and thoughts.

Tory wanted nothing more than to fly up those steps and take Colin into his arms. What the heck happened? Did he do something to offend Colin?

Why would Colin bother kissing him if he didn't mean anything by it?

Or maybe Colin regretted kissing him.

Tory's heart broke at that thought.

He wanted to talk to Colin. To straighten everything out with him.

None of this made any sense.

Tory's eyes were locked onto the underside of Colin's bunk.

There had to be a reason and Tory had to know.

With his heart pounding furiously in his chest, he gathered his courage.

"Colin..?" Tory asked feebly. "You awake?" he asked, this time a little stronger.

Half a minute passed without a response. Tory's heart sank as each second seemed to grow longer than the last.

"Yeah?" asked Colin's soft, clear voice.

Tory bit his bottom lip lightly, organizing his thoughts and fighting to keep his voice steady.

"…What did that mean?" The question came out more desperate and broken than he would have liked.

There were several moments of agonizing silence.

Then to Tory's relief and horror, Colin shifted and began to climb down the ladder. Tory sat up, dabbing at his eyes again to soak up any excess moisture.

Colin hoisted himself onto Tory's bed, sitting only about a foot away.

They both sat there for a long few moments, adjusting to one another's shadow-clad forms. Neither wanted to break the silence.

Wordlessly, Colin reached out with a soft pale hand and delicately dragged his fingertips down Tory's cheek. Tory's bottom lip trembled at his touch, turning his face into Colin's hand.

"I guess it means that I like you." Colin spoke tenderly, his voice barely above a whisper, and withdrew his hand from Tory's cheek.

Tory's watery eyes widened, his weary heart once again exploding with unparalleled joy. He couldn't keep a smile from spreading across his lips.

"I like you too Colin." Obvious relief washed over Colin's features, happiness lighting up his eyes.

Tory's bright green eyes dimmed and a sliver of sadness seeped into his features as he gazed at his friend.

"So then why did you dismiss me like that after you…?" he trailed off, a wrenching pain suppressing his elation.

The mirth faded from Colin's face. Shame and regret swirled within those dark gray depths.

"I guess a part of me was… concerned that you felt differently. I'm sorry. I couldn't stop myself," Colin's mouth was pulled into a deep frown. Realization dawned on Tory. Colin had been afraid he would reject him. Something like relief crashed through Tory and he nodded empathetically at Colin.

"I understand," Colin's features relaxed and he nodded in gratitude.

"I.. I really like you Colin," Tory continued. His friend's shadow-framed face brightened back into a small smile. "But I was too afraid to act on my feelings for you. I didn't know if you felt the same way," Tory paused, happiness washing over him. "I was so happy when you… did that." Tory concluded with a shy smile, a rosy blush staining his freckled cheeks.

Colin smiled at him then, his eyes smoldering and surging with euphoria.

Tory shuddered at the intense gaze, need blossoming within him.

"Can we…?" Tory murmured, his emerald eyes wrought with subdued desire.

A huge smirk blazed across Colin's mouth as he wordlessly closed the distance between them.

END

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Okay! It's done. :D

I do, however, have an epilogue for you guys as an extra bonus.

Thank you for reading and please review!