Sometimes when everything is going well, it's hard to push it to a point where it could be better if there's a risk of it all crumbling to the ground.

That was exactly the predicament that Tristan found himself in. He and Miles were hands down the best they'd ever been for the longest time. Which was why he didn't want to jinx it by having the Define The Relationship conversation. It was clear that Miles was someone who had trouble being alone, but did spending an excessive amount of time together and occasionally holding hands automatically mean that they were boyfriends again?

It's not as if the opportunity to talk never came up. The pair were practically inseparable. Tristan deleted his Teendr app and the revolving door of casual hook-ups was shut tight without a second thought. He was grateful to see that Miles no longer had the tendency to flirt with anything that moved, and from what it looked like, he only had eyes for him. They chatted for hours over coffee at the Dot, and Tristan was even helping Miles catch up with all of his favourite rom-coms, which was why they were currently kicking back in the Hollingsworth living room.

"So you'll never guess what our English class is going to transform into next week," said Miles as he popped in the Blu-ray.

"We're going to do a reenactment of 'A Midsummers Night Dream'!? You know that I would kill the role of Puck."

"Nope," replied Miles with a laugh. "It's a 'Family Studies' unit. Apparently the school board had been putting pressure on Mr. Mayor to make this mandatory for all the juniors."

"Oh?"

"But my mom said it was actually a way to have the students think twice before having sex. Or at least remember to use protection. You know, after the whole student council pregnancy scandal from last year?"

Tristan nodded casually. He didn't want Miles to know how closely he followed the Eclare vs Clew baby drama since the former was his OTP and he was a lot more invested than he should have been. The stakes were especially high since he was betting against Zoƫ, who was sure that her old flame was the Baby Daddy.

"I don't know the details, but it's probably going to be as lame as one of those 90s or 2000s teen shows plot lines where we have to take care of a marked egg and try not to break it. It'll be a breeze. So, uh, do you wanna pair up that?" Miles asked.

Tristan didn't have to think twice.

"Sure."

"You know, I once teased my mom about how I could get pregnant after we all caught Frankie and Winston in a compromising position."

"What?"

"Oh yeah, it was hilarious! I even stuffed a teddy bear under my shirt and everything! So I guess I'm the one who's giving birth."

"God, Miles," sighed Tristan with an exasperated eye roll. "Your family is so weird."

The two of them laughed and Miles returned to the couch. But instead of sitting right next to Tristan, he opted to lie down on his side and nestle his head on the other boy's lap. Miles then looped his arm around Tristans thigh and snuggled in closer.

Tristan bit the inside of his mouth to prevent himself from letting out an audible reaction. Why did everything have to feel so confusing? Well, it didn't have to be but there was no way he could gather up the courage to have the relationship conversation. Maybe it was time for things to change. He barely paid attention to the movie since he was too preoccupied with his thoughts and was too wound up with worry about what he wanted to say. Before he knew it, the credits were rolling and he decided that he psyched himself out enough and it was now or never.

"Last spring I walked away from you. I felt that you were using me because you were still in love with Maya. I predicted that you would end up alone, and from what you told me in the pool house, I wasn't far off. We both had time to grow up since we've been apart. And even after all of this time, I still have feelings for you. I'm pretty sure you feel the same way but I don't know if we're actually officially in a relationship or if we're still in the 'talking' phase. What I do know is that I think you're pretty amazing too. And I want you in my life. I want you as my partner and I'm not just talking about school assignments. For as long as I could remember, I wanted an epic romance. And I think I found it with you. What I'm trying to ask is, are you my boyfriend?"

Miles responded with a light snore and Tristan realized that he dozed off. He let out a sigh and incidentally rose the sleepyhead from his slumber.

"Hmmm, sorry Tris, did you say something? I didn't mean to pass out. It's from all of the cramming for my makeup biology exam. I bombed the last one because I was high, but Mr. Bane is giving me a second chance."

"Nah, it's all right. Keep napping if you want."

He couldn't help but smile endearingly at the boy, and Miles grinned back at him while scooping up Tristan's hand and hugging it close before falling back to sleep. He wasn't sure if he was disappointed or relieved.

But this was unfortunately a far cry for the re-birth of their relationship that he was hoping for.