#introvertfics

Two very men sat in the same room.

The first man sat on the edge of his mahogany desk, one palm planted firmly on top of the wooden top and the other holding a granny-smith apple, partially reflecting the tubular fluorescent bulbs above. He seemed to be made of all sharp points and pricks, from the neatly pressed folds of his black suit with gold and amber accents, to the angles formed by his bent knees as his legs hung over the edge of the desk and his jaw that was free from even the slightest trace of facial hair. Even his chocolate-coloured curls, which logically would feel like regular soft hair upon being touched, appeared to be sharp and pointy in the room’s odd lighting. He had a completely neutral expression, his crimsoned lips set in a straight line and his eyebrows remaining in a standard position. However, the chestnut orbs that were his eyes had an expression of contempt and hatred as he squinted at the other man sitting before him.

The second man in question was sitting straight up in the firm plastic chair, his thighs pressed firmly together as his toes pointed towards the first man, and his hands strategically folded in his lap to hide the slight pudge of his stomach that was distorting the fabric of his clothing. Contrary to the appearance of the first man, he seemed to be made up of soft curves and bends, from his unnaturally wide and feminine hips and thighs that strained the seams of his too-small trainee’s uniform, to the barely noticable baby fat that lingered on his face and stomach. He as well was trying his best to maintain a neutral expression, but he was not even close to successful- his teeth nervously tugging at his plump bottom lip, and his sapphire eyes wide open and darting around the room anxiously, mostly focusing on the angled man who sat before him.

After a few moments in which neither of the two men spoke, the silence only being broken by the hum of lightbulbs above and the barely audible honking of the cars on the London streets far below, the first man spoke, his voice filled with audible annoyance towards the second. “Lester.”

“Yes, sir?” The second man asked in a quiet voice as he attempted to sit up even straighter in his chair, resisting the urge to adjust the single strand of raven-black hair that had fallen out of his quiff and in front of his left eye.

“Phillip Michael Lester. Do you know why you’re sitting here in my office?” The first man asked, crossing one leg over the other as he adjusted the gold-plated name tag on his desk. Daniel James Howell. Supervising Secret Agent.

“No, sir.” Phil shook his head, speaking in a slightly louder voice in an attempt to convince himself that he was confident and unafraid. In reality, however, he was deathly afraid of the man before him. Daniel Howell was one of the highest ranked agents in the London Private Investigation Committee, only a few spots beneath the President of the Committee himself. He was best known throughout the L.P.I.C for two things- the first thing was his incredible mission skills, both his physical ability as well as his mental capacity. The second thing was his extremely limited yet utterly terrifying range of emotions. Daniel seemed to constantly have a deadpan expression; however, whenever he spoke, his voice was unmistakably laced with annoyance, scorn, or outrage, or perhaps a combination of the three. All agents who were lower ranked than him were as respectful as humanly possible in order to hide their fear and terror. The most notable feature of Daniel’s besides his mission skills and personality was the fact that he never hired any trainees to go on missions with him. Most supervising agents served as instructors for the trainees and lower agents, taking them on missions and instructing them further than basic training could. However, Dan had never supervised any trainees in his life despite what his title implied, and nobody seemed to know why, apart from the fact that most trainees were too scared to look him in the face, never mind spend an entire mission with him.

Rather than continuing to talk, Daniel got off of his desk and began walking in wide, lazy circles around Phil’s chair, tossing the apple up in the air and catching it in the process. Every so often, he would raise the apple up to his mouth as if to take a bite, opening his lips just the slightest bit as he made contact with Phil, but seemingly changing his mind last second as he tossed the apple into the air once more. After five or six laps around Phil’s chair, Daniel began speaking in the same contempt-filled voice as before, crossing his arms behind his back while holding the apple tightly in his fist. “Tell me, Lester, what have you done in the establishment so far besides beginner’s training? And do not say eating and sleeping,” he added just as Phil opened his mouth.

How did he know I would say that? Phil wondered, his mouth closing then opening again as he attempted to speak for a second time. However, he was unable to find any words, since 95% of his time was spent training, the other 5% devoted to basic human functions as well as resting between training periods. “I… I’m not sure how to answer that question, sir.”

“Exactly. And to be quite honest, I’m not surprised one bit.” Daniel sat down on the edge of his desk once more, crossing his legs at the ankles and finally taking a bite of his apple. He downed the bite in two seconds, not even smudging his red lipstick in the process before placing the apple down on the corner of the desk and crossing his arms over his chest. “I don’t find it very stunning that no other agents have selected you for missions yet… according to your files, you are one of the worst performing trainees we’ve had in the past five years.”

Phil nodded slowly, looking down at his folded hands in his lap. This wasn’t a surprise to him either- he was quite possibly the most unathletic, clumsy, overly apologetic person he knew, and he hated it. It was well-known that he would apologize whenever he hit someone during his self-defense training, and he would curl into a ball on the floor and beg for his life whenever somebody approached him with the intent of returning the gesture. He was constantly breaking equipment by dropping it or tripping over it, often injuring himself in the process, and would get winded from running any distances over ten feet. His ridiculous six-foot-two height and the lingering baby fat on most parts of his body didn’t help anything either, and simply contributed to his unathleticism.

“Out of shape… clumsy… overapolagetic…” Daniel murmured, seemingly reading his mind as he took another bite of his apple. “I can’t help but feel a bit sorry for you… but mostly, I’m disappointed. I’d expect more from someone who’s done nothing but training for two years.” He considered the apple in his hand for a few seconds before placing it back on his desk and picking up a pastel yellow cube of sticky notes. “It’s rather pathetic, actually.” Without warning, he threw the sticky note cube at Phil with all the strength in his arm. Instinctively, Phil let out a high-pitched squeal as he covered his face with his arms and tucked his knees up to his chest in an attempt to shield himself from the incoming projectile. Only after the note cube had harmlessly bounced off the top of his head and landed with a dull thud on the hardwood floor did he realize that Daniel had most likely wanted him to throw the cube back at him, or at least catch it, rather than react as he just had.

“Pathetic,” Daniel repeated, walking around behind Phil’s chair and picking up the note cube, throwing it up in the air as he had done just minutes earlier with the apple. Putting the cube back on his desk, he picked up the apple once more and began eating it. This time, a substantial bit of time went by without either of them speaking, Daniel’s quiet chewing noises filling the room. Phil had grown so on-edge at this point that he was worried the superior male sitting before him could see his heart throbbing in his chest. His folded hands were trembling with his built-up anxiety, his sweaty hair falling out of the regulation quiff and into the former emo fringe he had possessed until just a few months ago. He’s probably brought me here to kick me out… he’s just building up to it, just teasing me beforehand…

“Like I said, I feel sorry for you.” Daniel chucked the apple core across the room, where it landed with a clang in the trash can by the door. “However, contrary to what you’re probably thinking, you are not being dismissed from the Agency. Yet.” As he got up and began to walk in circles around Phil’s chair again, he occasionally intentionally kicked the metal leg of the chair, letting out a dry chuckle whenever Phil jumped from the sudden noise and movement. “I have a proposition for you, Lester. Let’s say, hypothetically, I had a mission coming up in one week in Tokyo, Japan. A rather small mission, actually- it’d only take a couple of weeks to complete on my own. If I was to bring you on this mission, with the promise of some sort of… reward… if you were able to help me complete it… would you be interested?”

“A… a mission, sir?” Phil asked quietly, finally managing to muster up enough courage to look up at Daniel’s face.

“Yes, a mission. If you were to not be a complete nuisance and failure to me during it, I would ask your trainers to permanently recruit you as my agent-in-training.” Daniel nodded, pausing and turning to face Phil, standing right in front of his chair. “However, before you tell me whether or not you’re interested, let me tell you one very important thing.” Practically slamming his hands on Phil’s shoulders, Daniel leaned close to his face, close enough that Phil could count the barely noticeable freckles scattered across his face. “Although this mission is small, it is of the utmost importance to me. And I am only taking you with me on it because I feel sorry for you. I have no desire to be around you if I don’t have to, and if you cause me to fail this mission, I can reassure you that there will be severe consequences.” He tightened his grip on Phil’s shoulders, which was extraordinarily painful as his slender yet strong fingers dug into his flesh through his shirt. “I’m simply giving you this opportunity because I’d rather not have the Agency’s reputation ruined by one pesky trainee. I’m utterly disgraced by your lack of skill and improvement, and I’m taking it upon me to do everything in my power to change you completely. Do you understand, Lester?”

“Y-yes, sir… I understand, sir…” Phil nodded slowly, his hands latching onto his inner thighs and squeezing them tightly to ground himself- having Daniel leaning this close to his face was sending his anxiety through the roof, his breath coming in quick little gasps and his frame trembling more than before. Please get away, please get away…

As if he was reading Phil’s thoughts, Daniel finally straightened up after a few more seconds of looking into Phil’s eyes with a deadpan expression, walking around behind his desk and sitting down in his worn office chair, his plump crimson lips curved into a frown as he held out an envelope to Phil between two fingers. “Here. This contains your mission description and what you need to pack. All of your questions will have their answers in here. Now, please report back to your dorm room.”

“...yes, sir. I will…” Nodding frantically, Phil scrambled to his feet, almost tripping over his boots in the process and provoking a barely audible snicker from Daniel. Blushing furiously and covering the lower half of his face with the collar of his shirt, he stumbled forward and took the envelope before making a hasty retreat from the office, closing the door as quietly as he could before letting out a sigh that was almost a sob, holding the envelope to his chest as he looked down at the floor. Rather than feeling an ounce of excitement about his first mission as an unofficial agent-in-training, Phil felt only dread and possibly terror at the possibility of screwing up an important mission with the Daniel Howell. If he messed this up, he was absolutely dreading what would happen to him next. Daniel’s words rang in his head- he really was pathetic, and he was never going to be a real agent if he didn’t perform perfectly on this mission with him. Shaking his head weakly, Phil felt like screaming in frustration as he slowly straightened up as best he could and made his way down the hall towards his dorm room. If I don’t improve… he’ll absolutely obliterate me. And there’ll be nothing I can do to stop him.

He only knew him as the boy with the orange scarf.

Every morning and every afternoon, Josh watched as a boy around his age rode his bike past his house. He was always wearing a sunset-orange knitted scarf, wrapped twice around his neck with the ends trailing behind him. Occasionally, if it was especially cold, he would wear mittens and a beanie in the same color, but he always wore the scarf. The color of the scarf paired beautifully with his tanned skin and fluffy brown hair, and gave him a slight appearance of being the personification of the autumn season. Josh knew nothing about the boy, not even his name- but he was completely and hopelessly in love with him. His friend Jenna, thought he was completely insane, and made a point to tell him this every time the boy passed by his house.

“You’re doing it again…” Jenna sighed, twisting a strand of hair around her finger as she tucked one of her legs underneath her.

“Doing what?” Josh asked, turning away from his bedroom window.

“You know what I’m talking about. That boy…” Jenna pointed at the the boy’s figure moving across the sidewalk. “You need to give it up… you don’t even know his name, for god’s sake.”

“I do know his name! I mean… I will as soon as I can ask him…” Josh mumbled, lowering his head and causing a lock of freshly dyed crimson hair to fall in front of his face. “I want to just go up to him and talk to him, but I just can’t!”

“Of course you can talk to him… just walk up to him while he’s going by and ask him what his name is or something…” Jenna shrugged.

“But I can’t, Jenna! Every time I even try to talk to him, it’s like I can’t speak around him! But he’s just so cute and he seems so nice and I just-” Josh cut himself off with a groan of frustration. “I just want to be able to act normal around him, y’know?”

“Look, Josh… I kind of feel sorry for you.” Jenna put her hand on Josh’s shoulder. “Tell you what… if you go up to that boy the next time he comes by and get his number, I’ll help you out. I’ll tell you how to function like a normal human being around him, got it?”

“I can’t just walk up to him and talk to him! He probably doesn’t even know who I am!” Josh sputtered.

“I bet he’s seen you staring at him a bunch of times, so he probably knows your face at least.” Jenna shrugged. “If you want me to help you, you’ve got to put a bit of effort in.”

That was how Josh found himself lying on his back on his front lawn, music blasting through his earbuds as he glanced down the sidewalk every couple of minutes, on the lookout for the boy with the orange scarf. But soon, his hopes began fading- it was almost 7pm, and the boy usually had already passed at that time. Sighing, he stood up and stood on the sidewalk, looking up at the sky. The sun was beginning to set, red and yellow streaks spread across the horizon like strokes from a paintbrush across the sky-coloured canvas. This is pointless, Josh… he’s not coming by. You were stupid to think you could even talk to him like a normal person anyways...

There was a sudden squeal of tires from behind him, promptly followed by the crunch of plastic and something wet hitting his back. Josh flinched and turned around, instantly freezing when he saw the boy in the orange scarf behind him. He had a look of horror on his face and his limbs were shaking, one hand attempting to hold his bright yellow bike still as he sat on it and the other hand holding an empty Starbucks cup without a lid. There was what appeared to be the remains of a caramel latte dripping down the side of the cup, and Josh assumed the rest of it was what had splashed on his back.

“I… I’m so sorry!” the boy blurted, tears spilling from from his eyes and dripping down his cheeks. “I didn’t mean to, I was trying to stop ‘cause you were in the way and I couldn’t stop in time, I’m sorry-”

“Hey, hey, it’s okay…” Josh put his hands on the boy’s shoulders, crouching down to his level- the boy was at least six inches shorter than him. “It’s okay, it was an accident… you didn’t mean to…”

“I know, but I got it all over your shirt-”

“It’s okay, honestly. I’m not upset…” Josh shook his head.

“I could wash your shirt if you wanted to…” the boy suggested, rubbing his eyes with the heel of his hand.

“No, it’s fine, you don’t have to…” Josh reassured him. “It’s fine, it wasn’t your fault.”

“At least let me do something to make it up to you…” the boy mumbled, looking down at the ground and tightly gripping the strap of the ukulele case hanging on his right shoulder. “At least let me come inside and find some way to make up for it…”

“You can come in, but you don’t have to make up for anything…” Josh smiled at him. “...what’s your name, anyways?” “Tyler Joseph…” the boy said quietly.

“I like that name…” Josh nodded. “It suits you…”

“Thank you…” Tyler smiled for the first time since they had started talking, playing with the edge of his scarf. “What’s yours?”

“Josh Dun.” Josh replied with a little grin.

“That’s a really pretty name…” Tyler said quietly.

“Thanks… you wanna leave your bike in the garage and come inside?” Josh asked.

“Sure…” Hopping off the bike, Tyler pulled it up the driveway towards the open garage door, dragging it by the handlebars. Josh trailed after him, chuckling quietly to himself as his fluffy hair bounced a little bit with every step. As Tyler leaned his bike against a wall of the garage, Josh opened the door leading into the house, noticing Jenna sitting on the couch with a giant bowl of popcorn on her lap.

“Well? Did you get his number?” Jenna asked, raising an eyebrow when she saw Josh.

“Nope. Come on in, Tyler…” Josh smirked at Jenna’s shocked expression when Tyler stepped into the house, playing with his scarf and looking around the living room. He turned back to Tyler, walking backwards so he could keep looking at his fascinated, adorable face. “I’m gonna go change my shirt, do you wanna wait down here or…”

“Just let me clean your shirt, please…” Tyler insisted. “It was my fault it got ruined in the first place…”

Josh let out a little sigh. It wasn’t Tyler’s fault, not at all, but it didn’t seem like he was going to forget about it anytime soon. “You don’t have to, but okay…”

“Thank you…” Tyler smiled, trailing after Josh to the laundry room. He hopped on top of the dryer, swinging his legs. “Do you want me to cover my eyes, or…”

“No, it’s okay.” Josh pulled the latte-covered shirt over his head, dumping it on the floor and grabbing a folded clean shirt off the washing machine. He couldn’t help but notice that Tyler had been staring at him for a few quick moments, but quickly turned away and pretended to be interested in something on the floor. As Josh pulled the new shirt over his head, Tyler clambered off the washing machine and picked up the shirt, bringing it over to the sink in the corner. As he walked over to him, he heard Tyler say, “I really like that tattoos on your chest…”

“Oh, thank you!” Josh grinned. “I got those a few months ago… and I got this one on my arm about a week ago.” He gestured towards his arm, which had a beautiful detailed design of a tree.

Tyler let out a little amazed gasp, his fingers gently brushing over the ink on Josh’s arm. “It’s beautiful…” He smiled, tracing the outline of the tree with one finger.

“Thanks…” Josh’s eyes flitted towards up towards Tyler’s face. He seemed completely fascinated with his arm, blinking slowly as he gently touched the tattooed skin. “My parents weren’t thrilled when I blew my birthday money on them, but whatever…”

“You didn’t blow it… if it makes you happy, you should do it!” Tyler chirped. “Plus, they look gorgeous on you…” He flipped the end of the orange scarf over his shoulder, putting his hands in the pockets of his black skinny jeans as the smile slowly faded from his face. “I got distracted, sorry… I should probably clean your shirt now…”

“You know what, it’s fine.” Josh shook his head. “I’ll take care of it later…”

“Are you sure? I don’t want to make you go out of your way when I could just get it done…” Tyler sighed.

“I’m positive, Tyler. You want to go meet my friend Jenna?” Josh asked, quickly changing the subject.

“...sure.” Tyler nodded and followed Josh back into the living room, trailing after him and looking a lot like a lost dog. “Is she nice?” “I guess you could say that,” Josh shrugged with a chuckle. “Hey, Jenna! I want you to meet Tyler…”

“You really went above and beyond, wow…” Jenna mumbled, her eyes widening slightly as she caught sight of Tyler.

“What does she mean, Josh?” Tyler asked quietly, grabbing onto Josh’s elbow and standing partially behind him.

Josh couldn’t help but let out a barely audible “aww” at Tyler’s actions, getting enough courage to reach down and ruffle his hair. “It’s an inside joke… anyways, this is Jenna.”

“Hey.” Jenna grinned. “Your name’s Tyler, right?”

“Yeah…” Tyler let out a nervous chuckle. “Hello…”

“Cool name. You play ukulele?” Jenna asked, gesturing towards the ukulele case still hanging from Tyler’s shoulder.

“Oh, um, a little bit. I’m not very good at it, though… and I’m not comfortable playing in front of other people yet…” Tyler stuttered, his head shaking involuntarily in what seemed like some sort of nervous tic.

“Hey, that’s fine… you don’t have to if you don’t want to,” Josh reassured him, putting a hand on his shoulder. “I bet you sound beautiful, though.” “Um, thank you…” Tyler squeaked, tugging the edge of the scarf over the lower half of his face in an attempt to hide the violent red blush on his cheeks.

“No problem… you wanna watch some Netflix or something?” Josh asked.

“Sure… can we watch Supernatural?” Tyler asked quietly.

“Dude, I love that show!” Josh grinned.

“Me too!” Tyler exclaimed, breaking into a wide smile. “We already have something in common…”

“Already?”

“Well, yeah… you probably wanna be friends with me; that’s why you brought me inside, right?” Tyler asked. “Unless you’re planning to murder me or something…” “What? No!” Josh shook his head, letting out a little chuckle. “Don’t worry, I’m not going to murder you.”

“That’s good.” Tyler plopped down at the end of the couch, leaving room for Josh in the middle.

“I wouldn’t murder you. You’re too nice to kill,” Josh said jokingly, feeling a bit upset at Tyler using the word “friend.” As he sat down on the center on the couch, he felt Tyler rest his head on his shoulder and cuddle up to him. With a little smile, Josh put an arm around his waist and hugged him close, feeling a rush of relief when Tyler didn’t pull away. He gazed fondly down at him, twisting his fingers into the material of his scarf. You are lovely.

Part 1

The sounds of chatter and laughter filled the crowded Starbucks, the sight of people enjoying their drinks and talking amicably with each other putting a smile on Tyler Joseph’s face. His break had just begun, so he was able to finally take a rest from the afternoon drink rush, sitting perched on one of the high-top chairs pushed near a table next to one of the wide glass windows illuminating the entire coffee shop. He didn’t particularly like coffee himself, despite liking making it and serving it for other people, so his fingers were gripping a cup of ice water, the slight condensation on the foam cup soaking through the sleeves of his navy blue sweater.

Tyler let out a little sigh, lowering his gaze back to the contents of the cup. He loved his job, and he put all of his passion and effort into it. It was, quite honestly, the only source of happiness in his life. He had been forced to leave home at the age of 18 by his violent and overbearing parents, who quite frankly wanted nothing to do with him and wanted him out of the house as soon as possible. After graduating high school and just barely managing to make it into a decent college, he had been forced to juggle multiple classes with his job as a Starbucks barista, which thankfully paid a somewhat decent wage. Due to his constantly busy schedule, he had virtually no time for anything other than school and work, leaving him feeling virtually no passion for anything other than making coffee. It was a rather depressing lifestyle, considering he was actually revolted by the sight of coffee and only enjoyed serving it for others, but it gave him a slight bit of satisfaction about his life. Biting his lip as he recalled the events of his sorry life so far, he crossed one leg underneath himself and lowered his head slightly.

The quiet scrape of a chair against the tiles suddenly alerted him to his surroundings. His head snapping up, his eyes fell on a man with fluffy crimson-coloured hair pulling the other seat out and sitting down. His eyes were a stunning shade of brown, his arms covered with multicolored tattoos and a black tank top hugging his upper half. Unable to find his words for a second, he lowered his gaze back down to the tabletop, blinking quickly and nervously swinging his free leg back and forth.

“Hey there…” the man sitting across from him said softly.

“Hm?” Tyler lifted his head, his fingers digging slightly into the styrofoam coffee cup and causing several barely visible indents in the material. What on earth did this intimidating stranger want with him? “Hello…” he said in a barely audible whisper, moving his foot around in slow circles- one of the exercises he found calmed him down in stressful situations. Three circles clockwise, four circles counterclockwise. Three circles clockwise, four circles clockwise…

“You work here?” The man asked, putting his steaming hot latte cup down on the table, far too close to the edge for Tyler’s liking.

“How did you guess?” Tyler managed to stutter out, lowering his hands and gripping them in fists in his lap.

“Your apron,” the man replied, gesturing towards the forest-green apron emblazoned with the white Starbucks logo loosely hanging off Tyler’s frame.

“Oh…” His face heating up with an unhidable blush of embarrassment, Tyler let out a tiny chuckle in an attempt to appear unphased. “Yep, I do. Love it here.” he nodded, pushing a few wayward strands of fluffy brown hair out of his face as he tried to appear even the slightest bit confident.

“That’s good that you like your job…” The man let out a little chuckle, stretching one hand across the table. “The name’s Josh. You’ve got a name too, I’m guessing?” “Yes, ah… Tyler. That’s my name,” Tyler let out a giggle, finding his voice after a short pause. He reached across the table and shook Josh’s hand, not that surprised at how strong his grip was.

“Nice laugh…” Josh chuckled, his eyes traveling slowly over Tyler’s body and taking in every detail. Tyler felt as though he was being scanned by an x-ray machine of some sort, the man before him memorizing every detail of his appearance and personality with his gaze. “Everything about you is pretty nice, actually…”

“Oh, I… I don’t like guys, I’m sorry…” Tyler stuttered out with a little shake of his head.

“You sure? I’m pretty sure a few hours with me might change your mind,” Josh chuckled with a wink that sent uncomfortable shivers up Tyler’s spine.

“I’m very sure.” Tyler nodded, taking a gulp of his water and finishing apart from the partially melted ice cubes that remained at the bottom. “I’m flattered, and I’m sure you’re a really nice person, but I’m not like that. I’m honestly not interested in any sort of relationship at this point, period, never mind one with the same gender…”

“Oh come on… you can’t tell me you haven’t been at least a little bit interested in me. I saw you staring at me when I sat down,” Josh smiled, his eyes darting from Tyler’s eyes down to his slightly visible collarbone and back up again. “You looked like you were just…”

“I was staring because I was confused,” Tyler interrupted, crossing his arms. “Because I didn’t know you and I was wondering why you just sat down near me for no reason. And it’s actually really rude of you to just assume what I was thinking, especially regarding something as sensitive and personal as that,” he continued, frowning and looking down at the tabletop.

“You don’t have to make such a big deal about it, bunny,” Josh replied half-mockingly, one hand traveling under the table and touching upon Tyler’s knee. “All I’m saying is-”

“Leave me alone!” Tyler promptly pulled back and clambered out of the chair to the floor, every inch of his body trembling with suppressed rage and fear as he dug his fingers into his upper arms. “Don’t touch me, and don’t call me bunny.” He spat the last word out as though it was a vile curse, walking as fast as he could away from the table and calling over his shoulder as he headed back towards the counter. “And don’t even think about talking to me again!”

“...you okay, Ty?” asked one of Tyler’s coworkers, Jenna, as Tyler swooped back behind the counter and slammed his hands down so hard several people looked over. “Do you want me to talk to that guy and ask him to leave, or…”

“It’s fine. Just don’t let him come near me. He’s a fucking creep,” Tyler hissed, glaring at Josh and crossing his arms. He let out a little sigh and checked his phone- his break was almost over, and he wasted almost all of it dealing with Josh. Biting his bottom lip hard enough to draw a bit of blood, Tyler turned and faced one of the trays of pastries, breathing heavily and managing to calm himself down eventually. His gaze fell on the slowly growing line of people, taking one more breath and managing to put on a smile as he walked over to resume his shift.

It had begun to rain when Tyler left Starbucks at around six in the afternoon- round, fat drops that fell from the sky and plunked loudly on his black umbrella. Shivering slightly in the late autumn air, Tyler set off down the sidewalk, intent on getting home before the rain got any worse. The soaked multi colored fall leaves stuck to the bottoms of his sneakers as he walked down the deserted sidewalk, and the harsh wind blew his fluffy hair in all directions. Sighing, Tyler kept his eyes on the sidewalk, since looking straight into the wind was stinging his eyes.

A tap on his shoulder stopped Tyler in his tracks as he turned around. A man about the same height as him, dressed in mostly black and wearing a top hat that should have given him a comical appearance but instead somehow made him look elegant and civilized, stood beside him, the shadow from his hat covering most of his face apart from his nose and mouth. He had one hand in his pocket and the other outstretched in front of him, holding a gold pocket watch with a crack in the glass clock face.

“Excuse me…” the man began in a smoky voice. “Could you possibly tell me what time it is? I’m afraid my watch is broken,” he chuckled, gesturing to the broken pocket watch in his hand.

“Oh, it’s…” Tyler pulled his phone out of his pocket and squinted at the time. “6:14 pm, exactly.”

“Oh, dear.” The man frowned. “I’m going to miss my bus now… and I don’t have a way to contact anyone to pick me up. Oh well.” He shrugged, a smile almost instantly appearing on his face. “I’ll simply have to keep walking.”

“It’s raining so much, though… and you don’t have an umbrella.” Tyler bit his lip. “Are you sure you don’t want me to call an Uber for you or something? I’ll pay for it…”

“That’s not necessary, trust me. It’s only about a twenty minute walk to where I live. My apartment is right near the park,” the man replied.

“Oh, my college is right around there too!” Tyler smiled. This man seemed rather interesting and friendly, and a definite improvement from Josh. “If you want, we could walk there together… I have an umbrella, so you won’t get as wet.”

“Thank you very much.” the man nodded, his brown eyes sparkling in the barest hint of light from the streetlight. “I’ll have to repay you somehow, though.”

“You don’t have to, honestly,” Tyler insisted. “I’m just helping you out, you don’t have to do anything in return.”

“But I feel like I should, though. You’re taking time out of your day to walk me to my apartment, after all. I just need to repay you…” the man repeated.

“I mean… if you want to, but it’s honestly not necessary,” Tyler giggled.

The man nodded slowly, a wide smile overtaking his features. “I think I’ll repay you by taking that wallet and jacket off your hands,” he said in a sotto voice.

Tyler frowned at the sudden, threatening change in the man’s words and tone. Before he could ask what he meant or attempt to run away, the man had violently grabbed him and tugged him into a nearby alley, one hand clamped firmly over his mouth and the other slicing at the zipper of his raincoat with a pocket knife that had seemingly materialized out of nowhere. Letting out a muffled yell of protest, Tyler desperately tried to force the man away from him, simultaneously trying to hold onto his jacket that was being ripped away from him. Within seconds, however, the man had ripped the jacket- somehow still in one piece- off his skinny frame and had plunged his hand into his pocket, grabbing his wallet. As soon as he had pulled out the wallet and stuffed it into his own pocket, the man punched Tyler hard in the stomach, knocking the breath out of him and causing tears to well in his eyes out of pain. He sank down to his knees and landed on his side in a mud puddle, unable to even get a scream or yell of help out as the man darted out of the alley.

A split second later, however, there were a few grunts of pain and the clink of metal hitting the ground from around the corner where the man had disappeared. Confused, Tyler attempted to get to his feet to see what was happening, but had to stop and lie back down due to the lingering pain in his stomach. Whimpering with pain as tears dripped down his cheeks and onto the filthy ground of the alley, his eyes widened with utter shock as Josh stepped into the alley holding the jacket and wallet, scratches and cuts covering his arms and parts of his face. Upon seeing Tyler, he immediately darted over to him, dropping to his knees and speaking in a panicked voice. “Oh my god, Tyler, are you okay? What did he do to you? D-do you need to go to the hospital, did he…”

“He punched me in the stomach…” Tyler whispered, rubbing his eyes with the heel of his hand. “It hurts so much, holy shit…”

“Hey, it’s gonna be okay, Tyler, you’re gonna be okay…” Josh said in a soothing voice, reaching down and running his fingers through Tyler’s hair in a relaxing gesture. “There’s a first aid kit in my car right down the street… I’m gonna run and get it and I’ll be right back, okay? I promise.”

Tyler nodded and watched as Josh got to his feet and ran out of the alley, still crying quietly. Sure enough, in only a minute or so Josh was back, a wave of relief rushing over him when he knew Josh hadn’t abandoned him. “Please hurry, Josh, it hurts…” “Shh, shh, shh, it’s okay, I’ve got you, you’re gonna be okay. I’m gonna need to look at your stomach to see how badly he hit you, okay?” Josh said gently. “I have to lift your shirt up, okay? I’m not gonna try anything, I’m just gonna check out how badly you’re hurt.”

Tyler nodded, pulling up the edge of his sweater and the white shirt underneath with a little bit of effort. He closed his eyes, exhaling softly and preparing for pain as Josh’s hands ghosted over his belly. However, he noticed that Josh was being extremely gentle with him- so gentle, in fact, that it almost seemed like just being touched by him was helping him to feel better.

Within a few minutes, Josh pulled away, wiping his forehead with his arm and managing a little smile. “Okay… you’ll probably have a bruise for a few days, but it’s not anything serious. Your clothes are soaked, though,” he murmured, gesturing towards the mud puddle that Tyler was still lying in.

“Oh… I’ll be fine.” Tyler mumbled, pulling himself out of the mud puddle and managing to get to his feet.

“You’re already shivering…” Josh frowned, reaching forward and putting a hand on Tyler’s shaking shoulder. “I have an extra jacket in my car… you can wear it, and I could drive you home if you want…”

“Thank you… thank you so much…” Tyler smiled, feeling tears of gratitude welling in his eyes,

“You’re welcome, b….” Josh trailed off, stopping himself from saying the word “bunny” and instead finishing the sentence with “...Tyler.” He sighed and shook his head. “Sorry.”

“It’s okay, honestly,” Tyler insisted through chattering teeth, rubbing the goosebumps rising on the back of his neck.

“God, you’re shaking… come on, come with me…” Gently looping one arm around Tyler’s shoulders, hugging his trembling form close in an attempt to keep him warm, Josh led him out of the alley and down the street towards the only car on the street, which Tyler presumed was his. As soon as they got into the car, Tyler scrambled into the front seat, tucking his knees up to his chin and shivering violently. He felt Josh draping the jacket over his shoulders and he quickly tugged it on, seeing that it was much too big on him- the sleeves of the camouflage jacket covered his hands, and the fabric hung loosely on his body. Zipping the jacket up to his neck, Tyler closed his eyes, covering the lower half of his face with one of the too-long sleeves, feeling a bit better.

“You feel alright now?” Josh asked as he sat in the driver’s seat and turned the ignition.

“Yes… thank you.” Tyler smiled, poking his hand out of the oversized sleeves.

“You’re welcome,” Josh smiled, pushing a few strands of crimson hair out of his eyes. “What’s your address?”

“My dorm’s at the college right near the park,” Tyler replied with a little nod. “Actually, wait, hold on…”

“Is something wrong?” Josh asked quietly with a frown.

“That guy who tried to steal my stuff… should we go to the police station and tell them what happened?” Tyler asked.

“Ah, shit, you’re right… I didn’t even think about that, I’m such a dumbass…” Josh let out a dry chuckle. “We should probably stop there first.” His eyes drifted towards Tyler as he put one hand on his shoulder. “You’re going to be okay, right?”

“I will. I’ll be fine,” Tyler replied with a little nod. Josh appeared to have completely changed from a few hours ago. Rather than shamelessly flirting with him and harassing him, he was being the kindest person in the world, making sure he was a hundred percent okay. Judging from how sincere he seemed in his words, and how he had been close to tears when he found Tyler lying on the ground, it seemed as though the flirtatious personality from before was but a farce. For the first time since they had met, Tyler felt something different towards Josh- not disgust, not embarrassment, but something genuinely positive and happy that he couldn’t quite describe. He wrapped his arms around himself, nuzzling deep into the warmth of the jacket as Josh began driving.

After filing the police report and driving back to the college, Josh insisted on going as far as to get a visitor’s pass from the front office, just so he could walk Tyler to his dorm and make sure he was completely okay before he left. Tyler couldn’t help but notice the strange looks he got from a few people as they walked down the hallway to their dorm- not only did Josh appear to be at least two or three years older than him, but he stood out greatly with his vibrantly colored hair and tattoos. Not to mention Josh hadn’t removed his arm from around his shoulders since they stepped out of the car, the simple action causing Tyler’s cheeks to heat up and turn a vibrant pink.

When the two of them reached Tyler’s door room, which was completely plain compared to the other doors in the hallway, Tyler fumbled in his wallet for the key to his room. As he unlocked the door, he heard Josh mumble something. “Hm?”

“I guess I have to go now…” Josh repeated with a little laugh.

“Yeah…” Tyler nodded and turned around, shrugging the jacket off his shoulders and handing it back to Josh. As he returned the jacket, he felt Josh press something into the pad of his hand, closing his fingers around it. “What are you…”

“Just hang onto it, please.” Josh insisted with a smile.

“...okay.” Tyler nodded with a shrug. “Hey, um, before you go… I just wanna say that I’m sorry.”

“What for?”

“I was wrong about you… you’re actually a really, really, really nice guy, Josh. I shouldn’t have judged you based on my first impression,” Tyler murmured.

“Tyler, you don’t have to apologize, honestly…” Josh frowned and shook his head. “I shouldn’t have acted that way back there… I should have just left you alone, I shouldn’t have made you uncomfortable like that…” He reached forward and pulled Tyler into a gentle hug, letting out a little sigh that tickled the baby-fine hairs on the back of his neck. “I’m so sorry…”

“I forgive you, Josh, it’s okay,” Tyler insisted, rubbing a hand up and down Josh’s back in a calming gesture.

“You sure?” Josh asked as he pulled away.

“One hundred percent sure.” Tyler nodded with a wide smile, pushing a few strands of hair out of his face.

Josh nodded, shrugging the camouflage jacket back on his shoulders. “Okay… I should probably get going now…”

“I guess…” Tyler let out a little sigh. “I’ll text you later…”

“But you never asked for my number?”

“I have a feeling you wrote it on whatever you put in my hand,” Tyler giggled. He opened his palm and glanced down- sure enough, on the slightly wrinkled Starbucks on his hand was written a phone number, in purple Sharpie.

“Well, look at that… you were right.” Josh let out a chuckle.

Tyler nodded with a wide grin, leaning against the doorframe. “So yeah, I guess I will text you later.”

Josh smiled, reaching out and gently ruffling Tyler’s hair before turning on his heel. “Stay safe, Ty.” And with his words of parting he set off down the hall, soon disappearing through the doorway to the elevator. Tyler watched him go down the hall all the way before turning and closing the door, his heart absolutely soaring in his chest and pounding so hard it threatened to burst right through his shirt.

I think I found someone who made me happy.

Part 2

One Month Later

“I think they’re scared of you…” Tyler whispered with a chuckle, gesturing towards a group of students from his college sitting at an outdoor cafe as they walked down the sidewalk together. The students appeared to be confused and intimidated by the sight of Tyler holding onto the sleeve of Josh, who was at least two or three inches taller than him.

“Maybe…” Josh let out a little chuckle and shrugged. “What movie do you wanna watch when we get back to your dorm?”

“It doesn’t matter, you can pick.” Tyler smiled, resting his forehead against Josh’s arm and hugging it.

“What are you doing?” Josh asked with a laugh, reaching down and playfully ruffling Tyler’s hair.

“I don’t know…” Tyler murmured against Josh’s arm. Ever since the two had met a month ago, they had grown closer than Tyler had expected. They spent almost every single weekend together at Josh’s house, usually watching Disney movies while his dog Jim sat on top of them trying to eat the popcorn. Tyler had also managed to determine within three days that Josh gave the best hugs in the world, since he received one approximately every twenty minutes when they were together. Even though he had doubted himself and denied it at first, Tyler found himself slowly falling completely and hopelessly in love with him.

Josh didn’t seem to return his feelings, however. Ever since Tyler had blatantly told him again and again in Starbucks when they first met that he didn’t like guys, he hadn’t tried to make any sort of romantic gesture towards him, other than the constant hugging. He hadn’t given him any more pet names, he hadn’t tried to kiss him or tell him anything affectionate, he hadn’t called any of their outings or get-togethers a date, even though that was pretty much what they were. Tyler had tried showing Josh how he felt, dropping as many hints as possible, eventually going so far as to give him the ridiculous childlike nickname of Jishwa, but nothing worked. Josh had even passed the nickname off as a friendly gesture, murmuring something about how silly Tyler was as he ruffled his hair and pulled him into his arms.

Tyler felt a little pang of heartbreak as he recalled the memory, biting his bottom lip and clinging tighter to Josh’s arm. He felt tears of frustration beginning to well in his eyes and quickly tried to blink them away. Keeping his grip on Josh’s arm, he turned his head away so he wouldn’t get tears on Josh’s hoodie, breathing heavily and shaking his head back and forth. The emotions he had been keeping to himself for the past month were beginning to push their way forward, and he couldn’t hide it anymore.

“Tyler?” Josh frowned, gently shaking Tyler’s shoulder. He turned and bent down to Tyler’s level, pushing his hair out of his face. “Hey… are you crying? What’s wrong?”

Tyler shook his head, stepping backwards away from Josh until his back bumped against the outside wall of the bookstore they were walking by, shaking his head involuntarily and his hands clutched in tight fists and drawn up to his chest. “Don’t…” he whispered, unsure of what he was saying as tears blurred his vision and his limbs began to shake. He felt his knees buckle beneath him as he sank to the ground, dropping his head into his hands as he started sobbing and curling his body in on himself. He felt Josh’s hands on his shoulders but ignored him, pathetic whines and sobs that bordered on screams ripping their way from his throat despite his knowledge that people walking by were staring and watching.

“Ty, please, I need you to listen to me… you’ve gotta take deep breaths and calm yourself down, okay?” Josh’s words managed to push their way through the thick fog of his hysteria. “Put your hand on my chest and copy how I’m breathing…” Despite his panic, Tyler put his hand on Josh’s chest, keeping his head lowered as he tried desperately to match the rate of the rise and fall of his chest.

Then suddenly Josh’s hands were violently ripped from his shoulders, causing him to almost topple over. Tyler lifted his head and gasped when he saw the same man who had attacked him just a month ago, pinning Josh to the ground and punching him again and again. Josh was trying desperately to push the man off of him while trying to shield his chest and face, but to no avail.

Letting out a scream of protest, Tyler scrambled to his feet, tears still blurring his vision as he rushed towards Josh and the man fighting on the ground. Without thinking, he began slamming his fists as hard as he could against the man’s back, trying to do whatever he could to force him away. However, this proved to be ineffective, as the man was able to simply swat Tyler away like he was a bug on his shoulder. Tyler tumbled to the ground and quickly got back up again, trying to hit every inch of the man that he could. This time, rather than simply pushing him away, the man took his attention off of Josh and grabbed Tyler by the neck, slamming him the ground so hard he saw stars before beginning to tighten his grip. Gasping for breath but finding nothing, Tyler desperately struggled against his firm grip, his fingers scrabbling at the man’s hands and his lungs already aching from the lack of oxygen.

A split second later, Tyler felt the man’s hands being torn away from his neck, the nails digging slightly into his flesh as they left and leaving scratches along his skin. Letting out a tiny yelp of pain and gasping in air, Tyler stayed still on the ground, still shaking from the intensity of having his air taken away. He saw that the man was being pinned to the ground by someone who appeared to be a police officer, a rush of relief rushing though his body.

Suddenly, Tyler felt Josh picking him up and pulling him into a tight hug, squeezing him like a stuffed animal. “Oh my god, Tyler, oh my god… please tell me you’re alright, please, talk to me…”

“J-Jishwa! I’m fine, I’m okay,” Tyler insisted, his eyes widening as he saw tears trailing down Josh’s face. “Please don’t cry… it’s okay, I’m not hurt…” He reached up and began rubbing the tears away with the pad of his thumb, his heart breaking when he saw the open cuts and bruises that had already appeared on Josh’s face and neck.

“I thought I was gonna lose you…” Josh whispered, tangling his fingers in Tyler’s fluffy hair and blinking slowly as he gazed into his eyes. “I couldn’t let that happen to you, I just couldn’t… I thought you were gonna die…”

“Oh god, Josh… it’s okay, Jishwa, I’m not dead…” Looping his arms around Josh’s neck, Tyler pulled him into a hug, holding him close and letting the taller man cry quietly into his shoulder. He could see several other police officers approaching, and he could hear the faint siren of an ambulance approaching, and held on tight to his friend, whispering softly into his ear. “It’s okay, Josh, I’m alive… I’m not gonna leave you…”

|-/

The two were allowed to leave the hospital after only a few hours, since neither of them had any injuries apart from minor cuts and bruises. The police told them the man went by the name Brendon and had several major felonies, including robbery and breaking and entering. After they left the hospital and got back to Josh’s house, Tyler noticed that the red haired man was still extremely quiet. Josh was curled up on the end of the couch with his hands stuffed in the pockets of his hoodie with his head lowered and his his hair hanging in his face.

“Josh… Josh, please talk to me…” Tyler whispered, climbing onto the couch near Josh. He curled up and nuzzled against Josh’s side, resting his head against his back and slipping his arms around his waist. “I hate seeing you this upset… please tell me what’s wrong, Jishwa…”

With a quiet sigh, Josh replied, “I’m sorry… I was just so worried when that guy attacked you, I was worried he was gonna hurt you or kill you… I don’t know what I would do without you, Ty.” He turned over so that he was facing Tyler, touching his temple and trailing his hand down to his chin. “I couldn’t go on without you… you just mean so, so, much to me…”

“Josh? What… are you trying to say?” Tyler asked softly, his fingers reaching out and settling on Josh’s shoulders as a heavy blush began settling over his face.

“I guess what I’m trying to say is… I love you.” Josh dropped his head, biting his bottom lip and squeezing his eyes shut. “I tried to deny it for so long, because you said you didn’t like guys and that you weren’t interested, and I didn’t wanna push you into anything… but I just love you so much, Ty, I’m sorry…”

“Josh, you don’t have to apologize, honestly…” Tyler reached up and gently lifted up Josh’s head, frowning when he saw the taller male beginning to cry again. “Hey, hey, it’s alright, please don’t cry…”

“But I know you don’t feel the same way and I know you’re mad at me now and you’re gonna leave and never talk to me again…” Josh blurted, shaking his head quickly.

“Joshie… Josh, I’m not mad at you, I’m not gonna leave,” Tyler whispered. “And I do feel the same way, honestly.”

“Tyler, you don’t have to say that. I know you’re just trying to make me feel better.” Josh shook his head again.

“I’m not just saying it, Josh, I mean it. I really do…” Tyler inisted, nodding slowly. “I really do love you, I want you to believe me…”

“Prove it.” Josh lowered his head, biting his bottom lip and rubbing his eyes with the heel of his hand. “Prove to me in some way that you actually love me, and maybe you’ll believe me.”

Tyler hesitated for a few moments, his gaze rapidly shifting from Josh’s eyes to his lips and back up again. Taking a deep breath and working up as much courage as he could, he stood up on his knees, grabbing Josh’s shoulders and leaning up to kiss him. The kiss lasted for only a few moments and was much too hesitant for Tyler’s liking- his lips just barely brushed against Josh’s before he pulled away involuntarily- but it seemed to prove his point to Josh. As soon as Tyler pulled away, he saw that Josh’s eyes had widened, his mouth open in a huge smile.

“...does that prove it to you?” Tyler asked hesitantly, settling back down on the couch.

Instead of giving a verbal response, Josh practically tackled Tyler flat on his back, tangling his fingers in his hair and kissing him again and again. Tyler let out a startled squeak, managing to realize what was happening and fell back into the kiss, wrapping his arms around Josh’s neck and pulling him closer. When the two broke apart after several long moments, both of them were visibly flushed and breathing heavily.

“That proves it,” Josh murmured with a wide smile.

“I love you so much, Jishwa…” Tyler smiled back, lacing his fingers in Josh’s scarlet hair.

“I love you too, Ty…” Josh smiled, dropping his head onto Tyler’s chest and curling up in a little ball. To anyone else, it might have been a peculiar sight; the significantly larger and older man nuzzled up to him like a cat. But it was absolutely perfect for the two of them. Tyler smiled and wrapped his arms around Josh, hugging him tightly and running one hand through his fluffy hair. Josh let out a soft giggle as Tyler’s fingers tickled his head, letting his eyes fall closed gradually.

“Are you gonna fall asleep?” Tyler asked softly.

“Maybe…”

“Joshie, it’s only three in the afternoon…” Tyler giggled. “What about that movie we were gonna watch?”

“Oh yeah.” Josh chuckled and smiled. “I forgot…”

“We could just stay like this if you want…” Tyler suggested.

“That sounds just as good.” Josh replied, wrapping his arms around Tyler and relaxing against him completely. Resting his chin on top of Josh’s head, Tyler kept the taller man close to him protectively, even though the two were perfectly safe alone in the room. His lips silently formed the words “I love you” over and over again as he gazed down at Josh, feeling an overwhelming rush of affection for him in that moment.

I found someone who made me happy.