it's one of their usual nights at home after school. maybe they're smoking, talking, laughing — the usual. they are relaxed and happy, and there's nothing to worry about yet. they are lying on the floor, close to each other. maybe there's some soft, quiet music playing.
for a moment the laughter and the conversation die down, and they’re left a little bit speechless, looking at each other from so close you can see every wrinkle, every separate eyelash, every little speck in the other’s iris. and Niall's breath catches all of a sudden. there's this buzzing all over his body, and he wants to hide, but Ruben is watching him, and his eyes are so soft, the softest they've ever been, and a little bit sad, so Niall fights the urge to look away.
and somehow Ruben is even closer now. Niall can feel his breath. it's that familiar grassy smell of weed, and something that’s just so Ruben, that everything inside Niall tightens. it's one of those rare moments when Ruben is out of jokes and out of things to say.
"Bambi," he says "I'm gonna do something" and Niall is lost, he couldn't possibly mean...
but Ruben is already there, kissing him so softly, so unlike himself in a way. he’s all force and reckless desicions and unpredictability, but here he's so careful, so gentle, like he’s asking.
and Niall answers. he answers like it's the most important question he'll ever be asked in his whole life.
