I was pretty glad that today was Friday, the last day of the week. After the bell rings I'll have a full 54 hours to do whatever I wanted, and I had plenty that I wanted to do. Apart from constantly worrying about Mom, sorting out the Mello issue, -which I didn't even know if there was anything to sort out, just a lack of information- I had the weekend to simply settle down to play video games. For as long as I wanted. unless of course Mello were to stay the night...anyways.
Mom will be getting the results of CAT scan today. So when I go to the hospital today, I'll get to see the results as well. I was anxious about that; sick to my stomach really. I hated that feeling and I couldn't get rid of it, and I hated school for making me stay here while my Mother was in a critical condition. Really, what if it is as bad as my worst nightmares? But I guess Dad would have called me if it was anywhere as bad as that. Anyway, that isn't the point. The point is, schools should be considerate enough to give the grieving members of a family a day or ten off. Ultimately, I can only try to not worry (and fail).
And about Mello, our relationship is just a teensy bit odd; I mean we have known each other for a week now and all we have really done is fight, play games, kiss (like twice, and they didn't even get steamy), give each other nicknames, and have a few civil conversations. I wanted to get to know Mello better, there was that.
I realized in all of the things that had been happening around us this week we never even exchanged each other's phone numbers. I'm not surprised considering the recent situation, but that meant that to see Mello I would have to go to his house and face his parents. Which may not be bad, but I feel like they are going to be -if only a little- hostile towards me.
As soon as school is out I was going to go visit my Mother, then I'll go and see Mello. I kind of wanted to go on a date with him. I mean I could at least try to have fun even though my Mom is in the hospital; in fact, she'd want that. So it just depends on if Mello wants to go out with me. Even if we ended up just going to my house, having some pizza and watching movies, it would be nice; we don't really even need to go out (wow, I'm such a low maintenance boyfriend. How am I not trending in the dating scene? I would date me). Just spending time with him would be nice.
It still felt kind of weird to call myself gay. I mean, I had never even been interested in girls before and I am not necessarily attracted to guys, I am just attracted to Mello. Just the chocolate-craving, leather-wearing, blond, snarky, and sometimes distant Mello. I didn't really care all that much about labelling myself; I knew I liked Mello more than I have ever liked anybody else, so to me that just means I like Mello, I guess I could be considered gay, but then I am only gay for Mello. So what does that mean? Maybe I'm demisexual, I don't know.
I don't really understand it. I just know Mello is the only person that I have ever felt comfortable with; attracted to, connected to, drawn to. Just him. So it didn't really matter what I was, what we are doesn't need a label.
That school day I spent trying to hurry out of there as soon as the final bell rang; and once it did, I got out of there like a bat out of hell, without a backward glance (Beyond wasn't in my Social class, which was the last period for the day), because I was going to go to the hospital right after school. I had driven my Dad's truck here, it would save time, instead of walking all of the way home and then driving.
I exited the school building and briskly walked across the school parking lot, dodging all of the other students on my way. I passed a cheerful group of girls as I approached the truck and unlocked the door, getting in. I was too focused on buckling in and turning on the car (like I turn on everyone around me. Just kidding) that I didn't notice the amused figure in my back seat until he spoke up, and by then I was just pulling out of the parking lot.
"Hello, Matt."
I jumped in my seat and hit the brakes hard, grinding to a sudden halt. Thankfully, it wasn't that hard to execute without crashing the car into something; and more importantly, I didn't shriek like a banshee. I had a string suspicion that I knew who the mystery hitchhiker was, and my guess was confirmed when I saw Mello smirking at me, draped over the backseat of the truck with a chocolate bar in his hand. He looked like he owned the truck and I was his chauffeur or something. And the worst part was, he looked good when he did that, like he was the regal king of some land, whose royal sceptre was a chocolate bar. Damnit!
I stared at him in brief shock before yelling, "What the hell, Mello?! Are you trying to get me to crash?!"
Though, I guess now I don't need to worry about having a face-off with his parents. The perks of nearly crashing and dying because of my boyfriend, I guess.
He chuckled, frustrating me even more with how he was clearly amused at my reaction. How did he even get in here? I remember clearly that I'd locked the car.
"No, that was totally your fault," He stated blandly.
How?
I glared at him.
"How did you even get in here?" I asked him, after my heartrate finally got back to normal, and resumed my drive out of the parking lot.
I saw him lean forward in the rear view mirror so he was a little closer to me as he lightly whispered, "I picked the lock."
"Okay," I trailed off. I was almost not surprised that he managed doing that. And holy damn, the way he said that was HOT.
"You're going to see your Mom right?" He asked me, changing the topic. And, ah, that sobered me up quick enough.
"Yeah," I responded glancing back at him as I drove onto the highway, "Do you plan on coming with me?"
"If you don't mind,"
"Cool..." I was a little unsure about that, but I didn't mind all that much and then I changed the subject to something I was wondering about.
"Do you, uh, maybe want to hang out? Today, I mean. Maybe get pizza and some movies at my place?" I asked him, feeling my face heat up as I asked.
He had an unreadable expression for a second before he responded, "Yeah, we can do that."
"What is it?" I questioned him, wondering what that expression was all about.
"Well, it's just that I expected you to ask me to go with you to a restaurant; but this is fine."
"Did you want to go to one? We can." I told him, a little flustered now.
"No, its fine, I would prefer something a little less busy anyways."
Then why did he even bother saying that in the first place?
"You sure?" I pressed. It sure pales in comparison to Mello's expectation of a good restaurant, damnit. Why wasn't I more romantic?
"Yep, pizza and movies sounds like a great plan." He assured me with a warm smile.
Did I mention how extremely attractive I find Mello to be when he shows his soft side?
I smiled back. "Good," I said as I pulled into the hospital parking lot.
I turned off the engine and hopped out of the truck, followed by Mello who jumped up through my seat and out my door, pecking me on the cheek as he landed on the pavement. I blushed lightly, and briefly wondered why he exited the truck through my door; but pushed the thought aside and instead gestured for him to follow me.
"So, how did it go with your parents?" I asked him, as we walked through the hospital parking lot.
He looked a little irritated when he responded, "They didn't bother me once I went to my bedroom, but they did freeze all my credit cards."
"Oh."
That was pretty rude of his parents after all; despite the fact that he did run away, it was their fault that he ran away in the first place. I thought to myself as a steady silence fell upon us and we entered the hospital, but it was not awkward, Filled with a few questions maybe, but it was fine.
We checked ourselves in and were told to sit in the waiting area until the doctor could come and get us. The waiting area actually looked pretty normal, now that I could view it a little more optimistically, blue chairs, a TV, magazines, a few puzzles and card games (huh, maybe I was too quick to judge hospital decor the other day. Well, I can be excused, so it's fine). Mello and I sat down beside each other as we waited. After a few seconds Mello spoke up, breaking the silence that had fallen on us.
"So, are we still...going to move in together?" He asked me, unsurely. I was surprised by the question considering we had already established this.
"Of course, I told you we would." I told him.
He shifted in his seat. "You hardly know me, I just don't get why you would do that, let alone want to," He mumbled.
I stayed silent for a minute, not sure what to tell him. We'd gone over this briefly before but I didn't exactly give him a clear answer, partly because I needed more time to sift through the onslaught of unidentifiable emotions coursing through me then. Clearly, I needed to tell him something, as he was giving me a look of pure uncertainty and curiosity.
"Um..." I wasn't really sure how to say this without sounding like a naive idiot, "I don't really know why, but I just feel like I have known you for all of my life. Like, I could trust you with my life, instinctually."
Mello looked confused, almost borderline irritated, and slightly embarrassed as well. "That's stupid." He told me flatly.
"What?" I said dumbly, as I stared at him.
"You're talking about this like it's some lame love-at-first sight thing that those stupid fairytales glorify so much. Well, newsflash; they don't exist. I like you, more than any other person I have ever met; but you are still kind of stupid, Matt."
Well, thanks for your input, Mello. I love you too.
"You're probably right, but that is still how I feel," I told him. Really, that is how I felt, like this was some fairytale, I guess I was just naive underneath all my initial cynicism.
He sighed and hung his head a little.
"You really are like a puppy," He said, shaking his head exasperatedly.
I grinned at the description of me he seemed to like. "Thank you, I guess."
"That's not supposed to be a compliment, you know,"
Why, though? Puppies are probably the best things that ever happened to mankind.
"Mail Jeevas?" A voice spoke from behind me just as I was about to speak again, and I turned around to see Dr. Froch. I was relieved to see that he didn't seem like he came bearing bad news, and responded with a hello as I stood up with Mello following right behind me.
"Is he with you?" He asked me, gesturing to Mello.
"Yes; this is Mello," I told him, a little impatient to hear what he had to say about my Mother.
"Alright, your Father is currently with your Mother; she just woke up a little bit ago, so you can see her in a second here. I am happy to inform you that she will be fine, we can remove the tumor in a few days and she will probably be on her feet in no time at all. It looks like the tumor was healing itself but her body couldn't handle it and she had passed out because of that, but overall, with time she will be perfectly fine."
I beamed at the news. She was going to be perfectly fine, my worst fears wouldn't come true for some time still. A weight was lifted off of my chest at this news.
"How long till she can come home?" I questioned him after a few seconds.
"Maybe three weeks," He informed me.
I smiled a little wider and turned around, grabbed Mello's face, and planted a kiss on his lips without thinking. I felt him tense up in surprise but he quickly softened and kissed me back. I could feel the doc's disapproving glare from behind me, reminding me that most people are against gay people and I pulled back regretfully landing a last peck on Mello's lips before I turned back to Dr. Froch.
"Can we see her now?" I questioned him.
"Of course, come this way." He said and turned around partially, waiting for us to follow.
I grabbed Mello's hand and led him down the hall as we followed the doctor. But I did notice and definitely didn't like how the doctor kept glancing at us repeatedly, as if we were some patients that needed to be treated. Mello noticed his glances too; I could feel him tense up every time the doctor passed us a not-as-discreet-as-he'd-like-to-think look, and I felt just a little bit of anger bubbling up in my stomach (despite the fact that I felt like hugging everyone because Mom was alright!).
I knew that some people disliked homosexuals, but it was unfair. Just because two people of the same gender felt that way about each other, people thought they were strange? I mean I never thought that much about it, but I never scorned homosexual couples or treated them like aliens not like this doctor was doing. Plus, this is the 21st century, for god's sake! I guess this is how Mello's parents treat him, to an extent anyway. I kind of expected them to be a lot more accepting than they are, but I guess an opinion is hard to change.
We arrived at the door to Mom's soon-not-her hospital room and the doctor gave a brief knock on the door as he waited for an answer. Once he heard a "Come in!", he pulled open the door and gestured for us to enter. Mello lightly let go of my hand but I held it firmly, earning a questioning look from him that said 'they're okay with it?'.
I shook my head.
"They might as well know now," I whispered as we slid inside the dimly lit room, still holding each other's hands.
The first thing that I noticed once we entered was Mom's eyes zeroing in on us holding each other's hands. For a second I thought she might have disapproved our being together, but then the corners of her lips turned up into a small smile and she nodded at us, both as a greeting and sign of understanding. I could tell she was surprised by my choice, but she would accept it.
Despite the fact that I was over the moon that Mom essentially said she's get my back on this, I felt a little upset by how tired she looked. I know that the CAT scans can be pretty bad and take a lot out of some people, but it was still upsetting seeing her in this condition.
It was when I caught sight of my Father looking at us that my stomach sank. I knew we would have some more trouble with him, but his expression was filled with clear disapproval as he looked back and forth between me and Mello, immediately figuring out what was happening.
"Honey..." My Mother murmured to my Father, not wanting him to make a scene, as he surely would.
"Matt?" He questioned me, seriously.
I stiffened but tried to keep my composure under his stare and sat down beside Mom's bed, on the opposite side that my Father was on, with Mello following suit and sitting beside me.
"I assume this is just a phase?" He asked me.
Seriously, Dad? A phase?
Please.
"No, it's not," I told him honestly, hoping that he would either leave it or accept it.
"Nonsense." He stated.
"Honey, its Matt's choice who he wants to be with. I know it's a little upsetting but just accept it," I did appreciate the efforts Mom took to get Dad on board, but I knew it would take a little more than that.
"No, I won't accept it. My son won't be gay." He sounded firm and unyielding, but I could tell that he was at a bit of a loss for words. He didn't know how to handle this and I almost regretted coming in here with Mello, but I was fairly sure this would work itself out eventually. If anything this would have had to happen later.
"Mr. Jeevas," Mello spoke up from beside me, surprising both me and my father. "I know you don't want a gay son, it is the worst fear for most parents. But just accept him for who he is. I know better than anybody what it is like to have a parent who is ashamed of their child, so please don't put Matt through that." His voice was softer than normal -Or what seemed to be his normal around most people.
I just stared at Mello in surprise, I didn't expect him in the least to say that, or even speak up. But he did, in that moment I wanted to grab him and cover him in kisses (a feeling I've never had before) but I knew that that would only cause trouble. But still, he told my parents and me how he felt about his parents. Maybe not in so many words, but it was something I never ever expected him to do. My Father looked unsure now, I knew that he was disappointed about my being gay, what parent wouldn't? But I only wanted him to at least accept us.
"Matt..." He trailed off.
"Matt, I am fine with your decision. Just so you know, I will support you both no matter what." Mom spoke up with a smile.
Wow, I kind of expected her to take some more time to approve of this. God, thank you for returning Mom to me and Dad safely.
I smiled back at her gratefully. "Thank you."
I then looked over at my Dad, who seemed conflicted; and I could only try guessing what he was thinking, until he spoke up again.
"Matt, I don't like this, but I won't make a big deal out of it. Just don't do anything...weird around me, okay?" He sounded confused as hell. Well, it's understandable, I guess.
"Hopefully this is really just a phase." He added under his breath.
Yeah, sorry Dad, but that's not happening.
Mello looked a little angry at that. That was without doubt something his own parents had told him in the past (and probably even now). But I only nodded gratefully at my Father and gave Mello's hand a light squeeze, knowing that this wouldn't quite be the end of it.
"Good," Mom said, grasping Dad's hand.
"Did the doctor tell you the news?" She asked me with a relieved expression on her face.
I nodded. "Yeah, it's great, really great!" I said with a smile.
Mom smiled back and closed her eyes with a sigh, "It is," she said tiredly.
"Come on Matt, let's let your Mother rest; she needs it." Dad said, almost dejectedly and then stood up and kissed her on her forehead after he collected his things.
"Okay, are you coming home?" I questioned my Father, seeing his bag with a few clothes and his daily things as I stood up as well.
"No, I am staying in a hotel just down the road in case I need to get here quickly," He explained. "Besides, I uh, I am sure you and Mello want to spend some time alone." He added a little bitterly, causing me to feel a little bit annoyed at his primitive attitude towards us, but I guess it could have been worse; at least he was being relatively pleasant about it.
"Okay," I responded "Goodbye Mom, I'll come by tomorrow." I said as I exited the room.
"Goodbye, Matt," she responded softly, and I closed the door when Mello left the room and I was sure she had nothing else to say. A few seconds after I closed the door, Dad found Dr. Froch and was talking to him about something, I couldn't hear from where I was, though I didn't much care anyways.
"Thank you for speaking up for me," I told Mello without looking at him, honestly glad that he did that.
"You're welcome," He trailed off and I turned to look at him, sensing that something was wrong. He looked distant, I didn't blame him considering what just happened, I knew he might have a hard time with that, considering his own history his own parents, even though I only knew vague details I understood. But I still asked him why he looked upset.
"What's wrong? Do you want to talk about it?"
He shrugged, "This was just too similar to when I came out to my parents," He spoke nonchalantly, trying not to make a big deal about it; but I knew better.
"Hey," I said.
He gave me a questioning look.
"Don't worry about it, yeah? It can't be helped. Now let's go to my place and order some pizza." I suggested, trying to cheer him up.
He smiled, accepting the offer. "Let's do it."
I smiled back at him and then we drove back home. Mello and I didn't say much during the short drive and soon we were parked in the driveway to my house. I unbuckled and got out of the truck followed my Mello who exited through my door again for a reason I couldn't comprehend, and I just had to stop and ask; it just seemed too odd.
"Why do you do that?"
He gave me a questioning look, urging me to clarify.
"Exit the truck through my door instead of yours, I mean." I explained.
"Oh." He looked like he was considering whether he should tell me, until he decided to speak.
"Well?"
"Back in my hometown, my friend Jure's truck was pretty beat up and only the door at the driver's side worked, so it's just kind of a habit," He told me with a smile, though it seemed like something was bothering him as he said that. But I brushed that off almost as soon as I noticed it and nodded, recalling when I looked up his Facebook page and saw the only person on his friends list besides his parents was a boy named Jure. I briefly wondered if they were together or anything, or actually just friends. I would have to ask him sometime, but not now, I decided.
"In Slovenia." I said, not as a question but a statement.
"Yeah, how'd you know that?" He questioned me, only slightly curious.
"Facebook," I shrugged nonchalantly.
"You looked me up?" He asked me, clearly wondering why I would have done that.
"Yeah, when I was looking for you. I needed a lead to where you were. That was how I knew to look in the market," I explained for him.
"Oh, gotcha." He responded, seeming to piece together the rest, including how I knew about his admiration of chocolate.
"Come on, let's go inside and order pizza!" I grabbed his hand, dragging him into the house. To my surprise he didn't protest my dragging him, I at least expected an "I can walk myself, you know," but he didn't say anything. Once the door was closed behind us, I kicked off my shoes and entered the kitchen with Mello just a little behind me and sat down on the chair beside the kitchen phone.
"What kind of pizza do you want?" I asked him as I held up the receiver.
He shrugged "I don't really have a preference."
What?! He doesn't have a-...y'know what? I'm just going to look right past this.
"How about a vegetable and a chicken, then?" I asked as I dialed up the number for a pizza delivery service.
"Sounds good to me." He responded and leaned on the desk a little as the phone rang, it barely rang twice before it was picked up and a cheery female voice on the other end answered; "Amane's pizza delivery, Linda speaking, how may I help you?"
"Hi, I would like to order a medium vegetable pizza and a medium chicken pizza,"
"Alright! If that is all, please give me your address and they should be delivered in about 15 minutes," 'Linda' spoke in a friendly manner.
"That's all," I assured her "My address is 1310, Bird street, Robin Drive."
"Thank you and have a good night!" With that the phone clicked off and I placed it back on the register.
"15 minutes," I told him as I stood up "Lets go pick a movie until they arrive. What would you like to watch?"
"Anything, as long as it's not some cheesy romance," he drawled and followed me into the living room where I opened up a large cupboard that held; on one half, my games, and on the other whatever movies my family had. I sifted through some movies until I found one that would probably suit Mello and handed it to him. "What about this one?"
He took it and read the cover for a few seconds, and reading the label before looking back at me. "The LABB murder cases?" He questioned.
"Yeah, have you seen it?" I asked him.
"No, but it looks a little cheesy, detective movies usually are."
I laughed, having forgotten what he seemed to want to be a detective himself. "I promise it is good, better than most movies like this anyway."
"I will try it, then," He agreed, handing me the case.
"Great," I said as I started up the movie and fast forwarded through all of the credits until the movie was at the beginning and then paused it, leaving the screen at the first scene of an old church. I wanted to wait until we got the pizza to start the movie.
I stood up from my place in front of the TV to look at Mello, who was lounging on the couch in his usual position. "Do you want something to drink?" I asked him.
"Maybe just a cup of water," He said dismissively, shrugging his shoulders.
I nodded and went into the kitchen, pouring him a glass of iced water and grabbed myself a crystal Pepsi before heading back into the living room. I was about to sit down on the couch beside Mello when the doorbell rang. Pizza's here! I set my soda down on the coffee table before I headed over to the front door to get our pizza, experiencing a light déjà vu moment from I first met Mello's parents.
I opened the door to find a short, brown haired girl with blue eyes. She was dressed in the pizzeria's customary clothing and held a white paper bag that also had the pizza shop's logo on it.
"Hello, here's your pizza. That'll be 35 dollars." She spoke cheerfully, handing me the bag.
"Thanks." I responded and took it, shuffling through my jeans pocket I pulled out two twenty dollar bills and handed them to her. "Keep the change," I told her with mild friendliness and a bland smile so she didn't get the wrong idea, and I closed the door after a few quick 'goodbyes'.
I made the quick trip into the living room again and plopped down beside Mello, setting the pizzas on the table.
"Here we go," I said as I made quick work of opening both boxes and setting them so they could easily be reached.
I handed Mello a slice of chicken pizza before I pressed play on the TV remote, and leaned back with my own slice; shuffling around a little on the couch to get comfortable, and when I did I settled with one of my knee's against my chest, the other laying on the coffee table and my body leaning partially on Mello, he didn't mind and accommodated me by resting an arm around my shoulder.
The movie started out with the first scene of Michael sitting in an almost church-like building writing in a journal, he spoke about how he was with a strain of detectives, and one of the top detectives who died a few years ago told him this story. The scene shifted to a bigger city scene and Naomi just getting resigned from the FBI for not being able to shoot a child who was an associate of a Mafia syndicate.
The movie went on and Mello and I didn't talk much, instead we were munching on pizza and holding each other. During the more relaxing parts Mello would play with my hair a little, which felt really nice, and whenever a more complicated scene would appear he would watch it with interest. I figured he found it to be pretty good considering he didn't find anything to criticize about it, like I had expected he would.
By the time the credits rolled down the screen half of each box of pizza was gone and both of our drinks were empty.
"That was actually way better than I'd expected," He admitted as I paused the movie, not caring to watch the credits.
"So I proved you wrong?" I teased, a smile appearing on my face.
"Yes, you did," He said and placed a small kiss on my lips that I returned easily, relishing in the warmth of his body. I chuckled against his lips a little and slipped my arms around his neck, pressing my lips against his again, but this time with a little more force.
I pulled back after a few seconds "You know, I don't think most people make out after watching a horror movie." I chuckled.
"Oh, shut up, the genre doesn't matter when I feel like kissing you" He laughed, and pushed me down on the couch, earning an embarrassingly girly squeak from me before he pressed his lips against mine again and ran his hands down my waist until they rested on my hips, straddling me to the couch. "Besides, we aren't most people anyway." Me spoke slyly.
My breathing increased under his weight as my face flushed with warmth and I ran my hands through his hair, enjoying the silky feeling of his blond tresses. I felt him nibble my lower lip lightly and I automatically opened my mouth in response, letting him kiss me even deeper.
We continued like this for awhile, breaking apart when we needed to take a breath, but each time we did when we went back we pressed our bodies closer to each other, leaving no room in between us. I didn't want to ever let him go, the feeling of his hands on my skin, his lips against mine, it felt so amazing. We were in sync with each other, every movement easily predicted between us, to the point that we could tell what the other would do before we even thought to do it.
But I knew we wouldn't be able to stop if we continued any longer, so eventually I slowed down our pace and pulled back with a last light kiss against his lips, pulling us both up to a sitting position with my hands around his waist. "We should stop before..." I tried to speak, but I still didn't have control over my breathing, but Mello understood what I meant and nodded, placing one last kiss on my lips, before pulling back and resting his head above mine.
"I think I like you more than I let on." He sighed against my forehead where his head was resting.
I felt myself smile as he reached a hand up to play with my hair. "I think I feel the same way." I responded honestly, and closed my eyes while letting out a relaxed breath.