"Dad?"
Dylan entered the living room, a tea towel slung over one shoulder. "Yes, my boy?"
Lofty lay sideways, slouching slightly as he supported his boyfriend's frame beneath his own. "Is it okay for Max to stay the night?" Came the timid reply as Lofty gestured to where his boyfriend lay dozing softly against his shoulder.
"It appears he already is" Dylan chuckled, "Wake him gently and you can go get some stuff for him from his yeah?"
"Thank you Dad!"
"No problem… Just make sure he's got a toothbrush will you?"
"Of course" Lofty grinned back at his Dad, who left with a smile and a nod.
Lofty turned his head slightly to where Max slept, dipping it forward slightly and brushing Max's soft straight fringe from his head. He pushed a gentle kiss to his forehead.
Max mumbled in his sleep, before coming to realise his surroundings and blinking himself awake; stretching and clicking his back, he leant across to where Lofty was sprawled, brushing their foreheads like they had as children.
"Happy thoughts" He whispered, meeting his boyfriend's eyes with his own, returning the smile Lofty gave him.
"Happy thoughts" Lofty replied, taking Max's hands and using them to pull himself up. "Urghhh" he laughed as they both sat and the noise made Max curl up, his body shaking.
"So… Get my stuff?"
"You were listening?" Lofty laughed, playing fake-indignated.
"Nope, just doing" Max chuckled back as they stood, "Is it definitely okay for me to stay over?"
"Only if you remember Luke" Lofty replied, taking Max's hand and pulling a beanie over his boyfriend's eyes with the other.
"I won't forget!" Max pushed the beanie back up his head, still grinning as he leant in to kiss Lofty.
"Oi!" Dylan started from the kitchen, making the boys jump, "You didn't tell me you two were an item…"
"Oh" Lofty's face fell, "Is Max still allowed to stay?"
"Ben… Do you honestly think that I, of all people, would say no?"
"Uh…"
"Ben, I have a husband, of course Max can stay!" Dylan turned slightly to face Max, "Max – you can stay"
"So you don't mind?" Lofty questioned once more, as David wandered through into the hallway where they all stood.
"N-"
"Oh my god… Are you two?" David gestured towards the boys' hands as he interrupted, before clapping his hands over his mouth and grinning. "Aww you two are so good together!"
"Thanks Dads" Lofty smiled, squeezing Max's hand gently as he blushed.
"Shall we go?" Max offered.
Lofty nodded and grabbed his keys off the hook with his other hand, before they turned to leave.
"What time are you going to be back?" Dylan asked, shaking his head fondly at his overexcited husband.
"Um… half an hour?"
"Okay, we can set up the sofa bed" Dylan replied, smiling as the two boys left, closing the door behind themselves with a wave.
Once they were both stood in the early evening sun, Max turned to face Lofty, gently taking his face in his hands and tilting it slightly, reading his expression carefully, before leaning in. Lofty nodded his head forwards slightly and their lips met for the first time in months; Lofty tried to stop the tears as it finally hit him that Max, his boyfriend Max, was finally back here.
"Hey, it's okay" Max whispered, pulling away and gently wiping at the tears on Lofty's face, "I promise I'm not gonna let anyone take you away again"
Lofty nodded at him, sniffing gently, and Max took his hand in his, stroking his thumb gently.
"I promise I won't leave again" Lofty replied, leaning into Max's arms and staying for a few seconds, before pulling away.
"Mine?"
"Yeah"
They continued the rest of the way to Max's, hand in hand and completely absorbed in one another as the temperature dropped slowly and the sun sank into the horizon, forming a pool of pink heat that dipped beneath the hills and housetops.
They walked in silence mostly, appreciating the evening and savouring the feeling of being together, but when they reached Max's house, Lofty stopped and spoke.
"I-I've missed you Maxie" His voice cracked, and there was a short silence before Max replied.
"I've missed you too Loft"
As they approached the boat, the two boys could feel the excitement of the approaching sleepover overcoming them as though they were ten year olds again, anticipating pillow fights at Max's house – except this time would be different; they were going to be sleeping where Lofty lived.
Max had known about Lofty's childhood from a young age when Lofty first broke it to him, age eleven. He'd always supported his boyfriend of seven years, and had tried to protect him where possible by means of offering for him to sleep over most weekends, and their spending the days together whenever possible – he'd even attended after school English classes to help keep Lofty's parents at bay.
Now though, they forgot the past for the evening, and Lofty could feel the weight of his childhood gradually beginning to lift. He was safe now; he had Dylan and David and most of all, Max to keep him safe and Julia and Alex were gone forever.
As realisation struck, Lofty bathed in the feeling of safety, and it was increased as the front door of the boat came into view.
"I'm so excited!" He admitted, turning to Max a little.
"Me too!" Max returned his grin and squeezed his boyfriend's hand, his rucksack hanging off the opposite shoulder jauntily, reflecting who he was completely.
They walked with matching springs in their steps the rest of the way across the harbour to the boat, not dissimilar to their younger self's skipping happily across the playground at school.
As Max followed Lofty through the door back onto the boat, he nearly bumped into his boyfriend's back Lofty stopped so suddenly.
"Christ Lo-" Max cut himself off when he saw what, or rather who, Lofty was staring at.
Alongside Dylan and David, Seb stood, but he wasn't wearing his ordinary scrubs or hoodie and cut-off shorts. Lofty stepped to one side, allowing Max to enter the boat fully, as opposed to the one-foot-in-the-door-one-foot out pose he currently held.
"Ben, Seb has something he'd like to discuss with you" Dylan announced, his breaking the silence prompting the two boys to close their mouths and Lofty shuffled a little, waiting for Max to close the door.
Seb stepped forward, his dress swishing slightly as he did so and Lofty smiled at him.
"Why didn't you just say?" The teenager was beaming at Seb now.
"I didn't know that you wouldn't judge me" Seb whispered in response, directing his gaze to the floor as he followed the two boys through to the living room and took a seat on the sofa opposite them.
"What would you like me to call you to start?" Lofty asked, dipping his own head and lifting it a little to meet Seb's gaze.
"I like Bella, and she-her pronouns" She spoke as though admitting something shameful, and Lofty smiled at her again in attempt to encourage her.
"Okay" Lofty replied, "What did you want to say?"
"Sorry" She muttered, "In theater I said some lousy things, and before that too, but I was trying to protect myself from how I feel, though that really isn't an excuse an-"
"Well 've had worse" Lofty held a pillow to his chest, a habit he hadn't dropped from before having had top-surgery. Max pulled it away and into his own arms.
"If there's anyone to ask for advice, it's Lofty" Max told him, "He's been through it all with transphobia and dysphoria and-"
"He's right" Lofty interrupted, not wanting to be reminded of all the bad times, "And I know it's nice to have a friend to help pull you through, though medical help is probably necessary depending on what you want"
"I-I know… It was a long shot I'm sorry…" Bella stood to leave and made it to the living room door, before Lofty stuck his hand out in front of her and stood.
"I want to help you" He told her gently, "Be my friend?"
"Okay" She whispered.
"D'you want to stay for a bit?" He asked.
"How can you forgive me so easily?" She asked, anguished, "I said horrible things, I refused to treat you and now you're going to let me stay?"
"I'm not letting you, I'm asking you" Lofty replied, "There's no letting; what you did is easily forgivable, I'm just grateful you came clean about it – that shows you're a good person"
Bella only nodded, so close to the verge of tears that speaking would betray her.
"Stay?" Max spoke, "Lofty promised we can watch Bambi…"
"If it's definitely okay…"
"Of course it is!" Lofty grinned, "You're a friend now!"
Dylan, David, Lofty and Max all stood at the entrance of the boat, waving goodbye to Bella who was leaving now at 8pm after having stayed to watch a film with the four of them, and then later for general conversation with Dylan and David.
"I had no idea…" David mused to himself, before turning to Dylan.
"No, me neither" The other man agreed.
"Wanna go watch another movie?" Lofty asked Max, wrapping his arms around his waist from behind and smiling into the back of his neck.
"Sure" Max's smile reflected Lofty's own beam perfectly.