#inkey

He scrolls through his phone, trying not to look at the small sliver of skin that peaks out from under the edge of Lukey’s sweater when he stretches his arms. His student is about the same height as himself, and handsome as well. Far more than he’s used to seeing in his speedrunning circles. He had met Lukey in person for the first time at his front door and had to fight for his life to keep himself from blushing. It was worse when Lukey was practicing, their legs pressed together under the desk. Each time Lukey glanced over at him, eagerly seeking his approval with those brown bambi eyes, it nearly knocked him out of his chair. 

Infume can see why Lukey is known for doing yaoi in his content. He’s easy to feel flustered around him. His laugh is contagious, and his accent gives this impression that he’s so much more formal and proper than he is. But he’s not proper at all. Infume had done his research. The clips, nearly all of them with Pangi, had shown a playful and mischievous side to him that he rarely let slip in their practices. But once he had learned how to spot it he began to learn to recognize the signs. There’s this subtle way that Lukey flirts. It’s mostly in the eyes, so much more obvious in person than over their streams. He’ll make eye contact then drop his gaze, then meet your eyes again from under his lashes. If Lukey could put that effort into speed running he’d probably sweep the tournament. 

Infume can’t even confirm if Lukey is doing it on purpose or not. Mostly, he thinks, it’s just that Lukey exists in his own aura of confidence that’s so incredibly charming and intimidating at the same time. When Infume first walked in the door Lukey had thrown his arms around him, pulling him into a hug, immediately surrounding him with the scent of his soap and the salty ocean smell that permeated everything in Brighton. He’s not proud to say that he had a small moment of internal panic. Lukey is a force of nature. It hadn’t occurred to him that he would be put so off his usual stoic nature from being in his presence. Yet here he is. Fighting to keep himself focused on speedrunning. 

“Toby hasn’t messaged me back about dinner yet.” Lukey comments casually. He looks up from his phone, which he’s barely paying attention to, far too wrapped up in analyzing his student to care. 

“We should probably take a break anyway. You’ve been really tense and nervous.” He points out, trying to be clinical about it. “We need to find a way for you to unwind a bit.” 

Something sparkles in Lukey’s dark eyes, and he immediately regrets his words, realizing too late that they could imply something far different than what he intended. 

“Hey I’m not the only one a bit on edge, mister.” He hasn’t gotten the full roster of Lukey voices over their streams, but he’d watched enough of his content to be familiar with them. This is one of the flirty ones, he thinks. He’ll have to watch his step until they can safely make their way to dinner. 

“What?” It takes him a split second to realize what Lukey is hinting at. “Oh, no! I’m totally fine.”

He can tell that his student doesn’t believe him. “I’ve seen how you react when I leave our calls.” Lukey smiles sadly, and Infume's heart sinks. The last thing he wants to do is make Lukey sad. He’s been working so hard, dedicating an incredible amount of time to improve. Even if winning is a long shot, and even if he gets frustrated with his mistakes, Lukey will go down as one of his favorite students. 

“Thats just a stream bit. You don’t need to worry it’s not you. I let myself get too anxious about your mistakes. It’s not your fault.” He tries to explain. “I don’t want you to think this is something that you need to worry about.”