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 Posted: Thu May 19, 2022 9:16 am
Chad had Elliot’s full attention, and he mimicked his whispering. “What? You don’t like your name? We can come up with a nickname if you want. I guess Ch and Ad maybe aren’t the best options. My parents call me El sometimes. Or Elly, I know you’ll hear them say it before too long, so don’t be surprised. I don’t have any siblings or anything, it’s just us three. But my friends call me El.”
Briefly, he wondered if the color in Chad’s cheeks was because he was nervous or embarrassed or upset or too hot–but the air conditioning was in.
And then–oh!
He leaned in a little closer. “You can call me El. And I can call you a nickname if you like that more than Chad.”
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Posted: Thu May 19, 2022 9:47 am
Oh, Elly was a cute nickname, too. And that was probably because it was perfect for Elliot. He was so sweet and caring that of course a name like Elliot would be an excellent choice.
“I don’t know. I’ve never felt like my name suited me,” he admitted. His cheeks were still warm, embarrassed that he was being picky over something like his name. It was the only one he got, so he figured he should try to live with it. At least until he was eighteen when he could maybe change it, but he didn’t know to what.
Or, if he was being brutally honest, if he would even make it to eighteen.
The thought had him shifting nervously in his seat, and he squeezed Elliot’s hand a little tighter, and maybe leaned closer as well, so their shoulders were against each other.
“You can call me whatever you like. It’s not so bad hearing my name from you,” he whispered still, even as he kept his eyes down out of shame.
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Posted: Thu May 19, 2022 10:18 am
Elliot leaned into Chad when their shoulders brushed and smiled at him in the way that was so easy to do. “Well, I’m not so good with coming up with names or nicknames, but I’ll keep an open mind. If you don’t like your name, I could always call you ‘Buddy’. Hey, Pal. Nice to see you, Sport. I’m just kidding, I can’t think of anything aside from those, anyway. But if you don’t like your name, we’ll come up with a good nickname or something.”
He could see that Chad was nervous, or uncomfortable, or something. He couldn't quite place whatever emotion was on his face, but he wasn’t going to push him for answers–especially not while they were in the car with his father.
They’d have time to talk. Or not talk!
Whatever, as long as Chad knew that he could if he wanted to, and as long as he knew that Elliot wanted to listen, and didn’t think that anything he had to say was silly or unimportant.
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Posted: Thu May 19, 2022 10:24 am
Chad couldn’t stop the giggles from bubbling up when Elliot suggested some nicknames. Even when he was feeling sorry for himself and potentially making things awkward, Elliot was still making things comfortable for him.
“I’m not good with coming up with names or nicknames, either,” he sighed, but was still smiling despite the heat in his face. If he’d been able to think of any other name, he would have been introducing himself as that and not… Chad.
There was more he could have said, of course. But not in the car. And not when he was so tempted to just tilt his head and rest it against Elliot’s.
Was that weird? He felt so comfortable with Elliot, but he didn’t want to push his luck.
“Thank you, though. For helping me come up with something. Even if we can’t figure one out, I appreciate the thought.” Better than just laughing at him, which he knew Elliot wouldn’t do.
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Posted: Thu May 19, 2022 10:34 am
Chad laughed and Elliot felt his face heat up. He squeezed his hand a little more instinctively.
“I like the way you laugh, it’s really sweet. And contagious,” Elliot said, because he really couldn’t help it. When Chad was happy, he felt happy. He was whispering, but it wasn’t like Asher couldn’t hear from the front seat. He didn’t comment, just smiled a bit and shook his head as he pulled into their driveway.
Elliot looked like he was ready to jump out of the car but he waited patiently for his father to park. They had a lot planned and he was pretty sure they weren’t going to be able to cram it all into one visit.
But, there would be more. Lots more, hopefully.
He didn’t know how much was smothering and how much was just being a good friend. He’d already told his fathers that Chad was a little shy, and that he’d gotten hurt so had some bruising and instructed them to act cool.
So far, Asher was doing a good job.
He hadn’t messed anything up. Yet.
As soon as the car was turned off, Elliot loosened his hand from Chad’s, but only to unbuckle. He opened the door to the car and stepped out, but offered his hand to Chad to help him out.
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Posted: Thu May 19, 2022 10:53 am
Only Elliot would ever say such sweet things about him. His laugh, his smile, even his hair. Chad felt flustered in a way that wasn’t bad, but he didn’t know what to do about it. He already missed Elliot’s hand as he pulled it away when they were finally able to get out of the car.
Oh, were they at Elliot’s house already? He hadn’t noticed. Chad was too busy thinking about how his heart was doing strange little flutters every time Elliot smiled at him. Or looked at him in general.
He quickly grabbed his bags so he could follow Elliot out of the car --
But since he was offering, of course Chad was going to take hold of his hand.
Oh, but maybe he should let go once they were out of the car so it wouldn’t be weird. And oh, he should probably take a look at where they were so he could make sure he recognized the house without the treasure chest mailbox.
“Your house is really cute,” he gasped softly, and then smiled sheepishly at Elliot. “No stairs is good.” Elliot had already mentioned that a few times. He was still sore, but his aches and pains were easy to forget when he was with Elliot.
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Posted: Thu May 19, 2022 11:00 am
“Thank you, I think my parents have very good taste. There’s a little garden in the backyard, too. We have wind chimes and some stained glass. I just think it’s pretty, I’ll show you.”
Elliot helped pull Chad out of the car, and then grabbed one of his bags so he wasn’t carrying so much. “The inside’s cute, too. Well, kind of. It’s half and half, but it’s all good.”
“Which half is the cute half?” Asher asked; he’d grabbed his backpack from the front seat and his lunch box and started off towards the front door so he could unlock it for them.
“Oh, that’s not fair,” Elliot answered, and while he wasn’t holding his hand he hooked his arm through Chad’s so he could escort him to the house. “It’s a little mis-matched. He likes gargoyles and monsters, but my other dad likes, you know, pirate ships and seashells. So they kinda don’t always go together. The garden gnome is scary, don’t look at it.”
Elliot stopped so they could look at it.
It was less than half a foot tall and looked like a little, round, silver monster. It had big, glass eyes, and a round face. And, a mouth full of sharp teeth. It looked more like some lost little forest monster than it did a gnome, but it was almost cute. If you didn’t stare for too long.
It was hidden behind the bushes, so you had to know where to look to see it.
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Posted: Thu May 19, 2022 11:11 am
It was surprisingly difficult for Chad to decide if he liked holding Elliot’s hand more, or if he liked linking arms with him. He was definitely closer with their arms linked, but he was also worried that he might trip Elliot up if he shuffled his feet too much. He would just have to step carefully and make sure Elliot didn’t get hurt because of him.
Which was difficult because he was also very interested in everything, including the scary garden gnome that Elliot said not to look at, but of course they had to.
Chad giggled in amusement, already excited about seeing the inside of this apparently mis-matched house. And excited for the windchimes and the garden. And anything to do with Elliot.
“What about your stuff? Are there decorations of things you like?” he wondered, giving the sharp toothed gnome a little wave as they went to the door.
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Posted: Thu May 19, 2022 11:22 am
Asher caught the little wave, and the way Elliot seemed confused but also waved back at the thing before he led Chad inside. He was smiling to himself as he opened the door and held it for them.
“Yeah, I like stars and space and things. I like what my parents have too, though. Here, we have to take off our shoes. Well, no. We don’t have to. Dad, I’m going to do the floors after Chad leaves, is that okay?”
“That sounds good to me, thank you.”
Elliot nodded and gently tugged Chad into the entry room. The first room they entered was the living room, and the house had a cozy feel to it. The front room had a couch, a table, and a few bookshelves; a television was to their left as they entered, and the two lamps in the room lit it up bright enough to see everything. Gargoyles lined the top of the bookcase, but the walls were lined with paintings of the beaches. The colors were neutral and blue, and there seemed to be some compromise between ‘nautical’ and ‘monstrous’ because they had quite a few little decorations that looked like sea monsters.
Asher dropped his keys into a metal tray designed to look like twisting tentacles, but someone had glued googly-eyes onto the side so if it could had been scary, it had long ago lost its edge.
“If we head straight, we get to the kitchen and dining room,” he explained; the space was fairly open so it was easy to see the dining room from where they’d entered. The decorations were similar there, except there were a few more sea creatures adorning the walls.
In every room, there were pictures of the three of them.
It was neat, except for the paperwork scattered across the tables, but Asher started organizing these a bit so the boys would have some space to do whatever they wanted.
“You two get settled in, I’ll let you know when it’s time to help with dinner, okay?”
“Okay, thank you,” Elliot said, eager to continue with the tour.
“If we go right,” he paused and nodded down the hallway, “It’s the bathroom, and then my parents room at the end and on the right, and my room on the left. I’ll show you there in a minute. The kitchen’s here, and then the door through the kitchen takes us to the garage. That’s mostly just storage and like, the washing machine. We should start there. No, wait. Do you want to borrow some clothes to wear while we wash everything?”
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Posted: Thu May 19, 2022 11:46 am
Chad hoped it wasn’t too much trouble that he was still wearing his shoes. He felt bad that Elliot was going to clean the floors after he left. Maybe he could convince Elliot that he could help him clean up.
He stared in awe at everything in the house that he could catch a glimpse of. He thought it was charming, how there were so many different things, and yet they all lived in the same space. There was definitely a lot of personality there, and Chad smiled to himself as he thought about how happy Elliot must be with his parents.
“Oh,” Chad paused from looking at the googly-eyed tentacle tray-- and then the paintings-- and then the pictures of their family. “If… you don’t mind, please?” he asked shyly, feeling awkward for having to be offered clean clothes. He felt so gross all the time from his clothes that it was difficult to resist being able to get them all cleaned.
He already felt more comfortable there than he ever had at his own house, and he couldn’t tell if it was because of the atmosphere or the people in general. When Elliot’s dad went to the kitchen, he couldn’t help but glance over his shoulder, wanting to get another quick look at him. So far both of Elliot’s dads had been nice and welcoming. They were definitely where Elliot got his warmth from.
“I’m sorry you’re having to do chores instead of playing or hanging out, or… whatever it is you do. But… I really do appreciate this. Thank you, Elliot.”
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Posted: Thu May 19, 2022 12:13 pm
Elliot just smiled. “I do the floors twice a week, anyway. It was going to be today or tomorrow, so it’s no trouble. Do you want a shower, too? I can make us a snack while you’re doing that. If you want! Sometimes after school I like a shower, just to calm down. It’s something my dad–Oliver–does, he says when he has too much going on at once he needs to just go take a shower to clear his head. It helps if you’re getting ready to study. I mean, I think!”
He led him down the hallway and towards his room first so he could grab a change of clothes. On the way, they passed a gargoyle statue that had been decorated with a pirate hat and eyepatch.
Elliot’s room was already open so it was easy to see in; he had a desk to the immediate left of his room, and the bed was against the back wall. To the right, a few bookcases and his closet. The ground was tile, like the rest of the house, but he had a large rug to cover his floor. There were a few trophies on his bookcase, but they’d all been shoved together to make more space for his books. His bedding was black, but he had a few pillows and stuffed animals on it–most notably a big, soft looking octopus and an equally large, galaxy print whale. Next to them, a very round, very stuffed little gargoyle, and bat with a similar print as the whale.
He had pictures of space on his walls, some scientific, some a little more artistic, and a few stylized suns and moons and stars. It wasn’t completely put together, but he seemed happy–and had plenty of free space on his walls.
And, he had absolutely no shame about any of it and proudly introduced Chad to his room. “I’ll grab the clothes, but you can look around, I don’t mind.”
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Posted: Thu May 19, 2022 12:32 pm
Chad couldn’t help but pause at the suggestion of a shower. It was probably pretty obvious that he didn’t often get the chance, whether because he didn’t feel safe enough to do so, or because he was being kept away from it for various reasons. He didn’t like trying to wash his hair in the sink at school, but it was better than nothing.
And after being in the hospital, he’d had even less of a chance to jump into a shower.
It was horrifically embarrassing, so after chewing nervously on his lip, he nodded.
“Please? I won’t take long.” He didn’t want to waste the time he had with Elliot, after all.
Elliot’s room was… well, Chad hadn’t known what to expect from it. He guessed there would be some sports stuff, so the trophies weren’t surprising, but the giant pillows made him smile. The gargoyle even more so. The pictures on the walls drew his attention as well.
“I like your room. It’s very nice. Very you,” Chad decided as he bounced a little on the tips of his toes while Elliot got out some clothes for him.
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Posted: Thu May 19, 2022 12:42 pm
“Is it?” Elliot asked, but he laughed and dropped his bags by his bed. “I mean, I like it. I feel like most of my friends might tease me for it, but I don’t really care. It makes me happy to go to sleep and wake up here.”
He moved around his room and gathered a full, clean outfit. “You can leave your bags here, we’ll get them all when you’re done in the shower. And you can take as long as you want, and use anything in there. A hot shower improves your blood circulation, and that’s really helpful when you’re going to study something. We’ve got a lot to go over today, so it’ll help make sure you’re at your best. And if you’re still sore, the hot water always feels nice. I mean, it does for me. You can leave your stuff here, it’ll all be safe.”
He carried the clothes with him back to the bathroom and grabbed a clean towel on the way. “To get the water running, you just have to twist the dial. The left makes it hotter, the right makes it colder, and when you want to turn it off you just twist it back to the middle. Don’t rush! Take your time, honest. It’ll feel good on those muscles, you just had a long day at school. And when you’re done, just bring your clothes to the kitchen and I’ll help you get the washer going. Sound good? I know I’m talking a lot, you can tell me if it’s too much.”
He smiled, because Chad really just made him smile, and he wanted to reassure him that everything was okay and he only had to do what he wanted to do.
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Posted: Thu May 19, 2022 12:53 pm
“It’s very you,” Chad definitively decided with a smile back at Elliot, and then another glance around the room, trying to soak in everything. He wanted to know what Elliot liked and what he kept on display. Not to be weird! He just wanted to know more about him.
“I’m sorry your friends might tease you for it. I don’t see anything I would want to tease you about. You can tell a lot about a person by looking at what they surround themselves with. You value learning, and you’ve got the heart of an explorer. Obviously very determined and strong-willed. But not afraid to show emotion or empathy. You don’t take yourself too seriously,” he hummed thoughtfully as he looked around before turning to follow Elliot out of his room and to the bathroom. Then, when his eyes landed on Elliot again, he couldn’t help the flush on his cheeks.
“I mean… I knew all of that already… But if I was meeting you for the first time, that’s what I would guess,” he mumbled sheepishly as he took the clothes and towel with a murmured thanks and small smile.
“You can talk as much or as little as you want, El. You have a very nice voice.” He’d said it before and he would say it again.
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Posted: Thu May 19, 2022 1:07 pm
Chad said such nice things. He could think it all he wanted, but he didn’t know if he was ever going to get used to it. There was a candidness to how he spoke–it wasn’t just lip service, or Chad trying to trick him into being his friend. He sounded like he meant every kind word, and that just made Elliot want to work harder to be everything Chad thought he was.
So, when he smiled, it reached his eyes again. “You’re really sweet, Chad. I mean, Pal.”
He had butterflies in his stomach again. Not unpleasant! But he felt so warm and happy about all of this.
“Go on, get your shower. I’m going to go get our snack ready. You can just make yourself at home. Even if we don’t get through everything we talked about today, we’ll get through some of it, and you can come back again tomorrow if you want. Whenever you want.”
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