TAKE ME TO CHURCH

not a rough night—-   a long night.    it shows.    but he’s sated enough that he won’t be bothered by that smug smirk waiting expectantly.    ❛   —— fine.   ❜    replies blandly.   finally looks at him,    raising an eyebrow.    unflinching.    ❛   i fucked her again this morning.   ❜  

he shouldn’t turn this into a thing. sneaking in through their window when there’s a perfectly good front door he can just let himself in through. ( not like he’s a stranger to window creeping, but it’s the thought that counts. ) just like before, he makes himself comfortable. only this time, he’s laying on scottie’s bed. props himself up on her pillows, folds his hands over his stomach and deliberately stretches his leg in order to nudge silas’ hip.

a few more blinks,      and he’s gathered his wits enough to realize the guy’s stuffed his arms with the rest of the bags and already stood up.     what the hell?     ( and why isn’t he feeling so anxious anymore?     it’s a very distinct absence,     even if it’s one he’s okay with feeling.     replaced by something else instead;    something that lives in the stranger’s smirk. )       ❛ yeah,  good call. ❜      he shakes his head then,     managing to stand as well—almost dropping another bag on the floor in the process when he nearly loses his balance—only to surreptitiously dump the bags onto one of the shelves.      shamelessly pushing them back a little so they’re messily tucked away,     before grabbing the bag of cheetos he came here for from the shelf above.  

           ❛ — you want a bag, too?     y’know– since you so kindly helped me pick up all six of those bags. ❜      a change of attitude    ( he can’t begin to explain why. )     it seems——     even if he offers it a little sarcastically to poke fun at his own slip-up.       ❛ — and it’s buy one get one free anyway,  so. ❜

“  i think i’ll pass.  ”    shoots him down instantly. just turns away and tucks his hands back into his pockets before he’s back to making his way towards the back. to rows and rows of ice cold beverages that he’ll entertain buying more than just one of. the only glimmer of hope that priest does give though, is the pause in his step. his half turn and light shrug of his shoulders.    “  i’m not here for a bite to eat. thanks though.  ”    a boldfaced lie. has him skipping over his original intention of letting their spark of conversation before, fizzle out.

❛ oh,   you’re so—– ❜

         whatever snappy retort he wanted to take out on the stranger—he was having a bad day, okay?—melts right off his tongue.   something easing from his shoulders,   uncoiling from his chest.      ❛ —-kind? ❜       he finishes only as an afterthought.  blinking dumbly,  suspicion slipping from his gaze as it traces the other,  now crouched down next to him.   paused with bags of chips grasped in his hands;  as if he’d forgotten what he was doing,  and why he’d been so contentious.     ( right about the time he’d touched him.  but stiles never makes that connection— not with his attention suddenly, inexplicably captured. )                

“   kind, huh? you don’t say?   ”      his smirk is telling, just the same as the devilish glimmer in his eyes; all at the expense of the other boy’s chagrin. because there is no one on this planet that would relish in making a spectacle out of themselves. drawing in unwanted attention over such a simple mistake. priest could even go as far as to count it as borderline serendipitous — now he had his target. excitable and hormonal high school teenagers? they made quick and easy meals. ( just one touch already told priest all that he needed to know. gave him a taste to now realize that he was starving. )

❛ really?  i couldn’t tell. ❜       he doesn’t know how he managed to knock his things,  well– everywhere.    but he did.   and now he’s crouching down to pick it all up,     but not without adding:   ❛ —–any other enlightening observations you wanna let me in on? ❜