Stiles wasn’t good with pity. Not accepting nor giving. He nods back at Blaine but doesn’t comment. Clearly there was enough on the guy’s shoulders without Stiles trying to analyze him, even if he does notice the little changes in his face that follow. “No problem, dude. Could use a break myself anyway.” From plenty of things, but if anyone needed to get into their troubles tonight it was probably Blaine, should he want to.
With that, Stiles begins to lead the way across the parking lot. “So… I promise we’re not going anywhere weird, first of all, it’s just a little ways out and kind of hard to get to in the Jeep so the trip is already kind of time consuming. That being said, I usually clear my head on an empty stomach and grab something on the way back but if you want we can get some fries or whatever before we get too far. Have some snacks for the road.”
Tangling his fingers into the straps of his bag, he hefted it up over his shoulder and held it against the curve of his clavicle. Another nod. “I’m still grateful for you offering. Could have just told me you were busy. The thanks still stand. You deserve it,” his voice lifted and his smile was a whole lot less fake when he was trying to prove a point. Anywhere they went would be more than okay with him. As long as the lights of the town were at their backs and he could breathe.
His free hand found it’s way into the pocket of his old, but favorite zip-up hoodie. He didn’t care that his hair was still damp from the showers and whatever product wasn’t doing the greatest job of holding it back. Taking any more time to make sure it was perfect wasn’t a priority. Curiouser and curiouser, Blaine cocked his head to the side. “Sounds great,” he held up a finger from his bag strap, “I’d take weird if it was anyway. Weird sounds interesting considering not much around here can be classified as weird. Unless you’re up on the mountain looking for UFOs.. Or Sasquatch?” He mused with another light smile. “Nah. I’m good. Got some water in my bag and we can always eat on the way back.”
blaine was a strange case, that much hunter could tell. he wasn’t like any of the rest of the kids at mckinley. the people he’d grown to see as semi-friends with more pawn like personality traits. he was somehow more seemingly compliant & worthy of respect. this could really go two ways. he had such a sad song kind of look. as if he could hit the emotional key that triggered your tears with his expression alone. it was both impressive &pathetic. “ well not to call you biased or insinuate that my opinion should be your new truth, but dalton just doesn’t seem to be worth all the bells & whistles. coming from money myself i’d also considered the school. only my parents thought a well rounded school would suit a man better. understand ? it’s just, a little too clean cut for my taste. with my military background i don’t much care for keeping up fake appearances. i care about the work. frankly i don’t think dalton, or more specifically the warblers once you left have EARNED their status. maybe if i’d met a few less pretentious students or saw more real initiative & drive in anyone other than their once golden star who now attends mckinley, i’d have a different opinion. that’s all i meant by the obvious. & i hope there’s no hard feelings. ”
Blaine was busy trying to figure Hunter out as he listened to the other drive another dig into the guts of his beloved former school. Generally speaking, Blaine wasn’t one to stick around to listen to or tolerate conversational digs at the place that saved him when he needed to belong somewhere more than he ever had. Much to his new teammates insinuations of questionable loyalties and whether once a Warbler, always a Warbler rang true or not, Dalton was a place he cherished. Everything from the four walls that surrounded the place to the students, his brothers, he left behind to come here. Curiosity and politeness kept him in place, not wanting to shun their conversation to tatters because he knew what transferring to schools mid-term felt like. And how lonely it could be until you found out where you belonged. “Hard feelings,” hazel eyes glistened and his smile was wide in spite of what was said, “No. No, of course not. But? The Warblers earned every bit of status they have. They were who they are before me. I didn’t make them better. They made me better and I guess it just showed in ways that might come off as otherwise.” Olive skin began to become tinted pinkish around his cheeks and the bridge of his nose. “Thank you for saying so but, I promise, you got the wrong idea. I’m sorry you did. But! At least you’re here. Which is a pretty good place to be, too. What do you think so far?”
“ dalton academy ? is that right ? ” it didn’t take an expert to see the hint of distaste in hunter’s tone. & coated with disrespect, the message is clear as day. i don’t approve. & for what reason ? there were many. only they were all too personal to share with some prep school down-grader. the way he sees it, it’s as if hunter & his brother had a long lost middle ground they’d never heard of. living in both worlds. sounded like a nightmare. “ mind if i ask why you’d leave a place like that ? other than the obvious. ” snobby rich kids, stricter rules, boring lifestyle, you could take your pick of what he meant.
Confusion crept across Blaine’s features. Lips formed around a few unspoken words as he swallowed his initial questions. First, why was he curious? Second, why did he not seem to care for the place? It was easy to tell Hunter had some sort of distaste for Dalton as soon as he said the word. Blaine was more than curious. He only had to figure out how to ask without sounding like he was judging the guy for it. Hunter, in the few short days that Blaine has known him, doesn’t seem like the type of person to handle being judged well. Or Blaine could be off. Hunter just screamed it in how he carried himself. That’s all. Another blink of surprise and he smiled warmly. “You can ask me anything you want. About Dalton. Or why I left. There’s someone here that makes my days better. I didn’t want to waste the time we have before he graduates in Westerville.” He didn’t notice that he broke eye contact to answer. Or how his voice quited. It was all right again a second later. “Can I ask what you mean by the obvious? Dalton’s amazing. I’d still be there if it weren’t–if things were different.”
❝ WHAT ? OH GOD DUDE , I’M NOT GAY ! ❞ a pause , tongue wetting lips as brows nestled . ❝ i mean , like you’re cool and all . and i like how your hair does that little SWOOP THING . and you smell good too , that’s nice — WAIT , AM I GAY ? ❞ head shakes , gaze shifting back up to meet the others . ❝ what was the question ?❞
Blaine tried not to show how poor Sam had him feeling a whole heap of pity for the struggle he went through in a matter of seconds. Pity and..let’s not smile too wide. Cause on the other hand? Sam’s reaction was so comical about the entire situation that stemmed from a simple question that Blaine had actually meant something totally not this. A brow arched when Sam rounded everything off with that question. Humor danced in his eyes as he reached over and gave the blond’s arm a pat. “Um. Wow. Sam. The question was..” He bit his lip then tucked his chin towards his collar moving to hold up the cookies he pulled off the Lima Bean’s counter. “Do you want rainbowsor vanilla? Like..” One was a sugar cookie coated in multi-colored sprinkles while the other had smooth, white icing over chocolate. “Rainbows,” that cookie jiggled followed by the other. “Or..vanilla? But, I mean. We can work through that conversation after coffee if you really want.” Then, the back of his wrist was pressed to his lips, cookie dangling as he muffled a chuckle against his sleeve, eyes glistening in amusement as he stared up at him.
Although Cooper liked to tease Blaine, which he did pretty often, he also liked seeing his brother’s sense of innocence, with the amount of time they spent apart, Cooper often forgot that technically Blaine was still a kid, and was certainly entitled to act like one every once in a while. So when Blaine sat up right, hair tussled slightly, with a few leaves stuck here and there for decoration, he couldn’t help the smile that pulled at his lips. Yeah, tease all he liked, but Cooper was happiest when he got to see Blaine happy.
His eyebrows shot up as Blaine tumbled back into the pile of leaves with a thud, craning his neck to take a better look, Cooper let out a sigh of relief as Blaine’s hand suddenly emerged from the leaves, and a fond laugh fell from his lips. Placing his hands on his hips, he rolled his eyes and stepped forward, peering down at his brother in amusement. “You didn’t need my help getting down there,” he grinned, shaking his head playfully as he leaned over to take a closer look at Blaine, mostly because he knew that if Blaine had somehow injured himself on Cooper’s watch, then it would definitely be his fault, and he hadn’t come all this way for that. “Fine…” Cooper said with an overly exasperated sigh, as he reached out and clasped his hand firmly around Blaine’s, “Up you get…”
Blaine couldn’t help himself. He grinned from ear to ear and waited for the sound of Cooper’s steps drawing near. Soon as his brother was within reaching distance, he lifted one hand and shook a leaf out from underneath the cuff of his black coat. Then, fingertips that jutted out from where his gloves ended halfway up his knuckles wriggled for the elder Anderson to take. Underneath the cover of the leaves he let himself sink into, his heels found a solid push against the dirt, grass and bed of what leaves he didn’t kick out of the way. He waited. Round, expectant eyes stared up at his brother. Their fingers laced together. His hand close enough to the ground that Cooper would’ve had to lean just a little. Which was all he needed.
His warning in the form of a toothy laugh came a split second too late. Light, carefree and so much outside of himself that it even broke into a completely unrestrained cackle. Something he’d always found himself always just a little bit apprehensive about truly letting go in Cooper’s presence. Always afraid that if he did? When Cooper left? He’d be left picking up the pieces of putting too much hope that they could be like they were years ago. After he stopped being so annoying and Cooper started to realize how much he meant to Blaine. He let himself steal that feeling all over again. Lived and breathed in it and with a sharp inhale, he used Cooper’s hand giving it a pull before his free hand grabbed his brother’s forearm and all his strength suddenly tugged Cooper right down into the pile not giving a damn if he ruined all his work if it meant Cooper was on the ground with him. Peals of laughter, scattered leaves and legs going all over. Best way to say hello ever, yeah? Much better than ‘let’s get coffee’!
Goosebumps sent pinpricks of raised olive skin spreading up his neck and down over his collar bone. A pleasant chill ran down his spine in spite of the blanket covering them. Chuckling quietly, he hummed and scooted in. Blaine’s arms held him close, toes wriggling now that their legs were entwined. Hazel eyes, full of adoration and a sparkle of sheer contentment, read back and forth across the other’s. “Mm. So are you. Not letting you up any time soon. This is your only warning.”
There was no one home to see him go to town on the pile of leaves he managed to rake up only fifteen minutes prior. Oh, sure. He stood there debating if he was going to do the thing or not while he finished what was left of his warm, spiced apple cider. Maybe that was what pushed him over the edge and he entered why not territory. Sugar rush much? Freeing both hands by setting the Dalton emblemed thermos down on a wrought iron bench in the yard, the youngest Anderson tossed one glance over his shoulder. Seeing no one? His hands hit the ground on the very edge of the pile and a handstand later, his feet stayed in the air for a shift of weight from one hand to the next that brought him right over the heap of red, yellow, brown and orange.
Gravity took care of the rest as he let himself fall into the smell of fall and the soft but crunchy bed of leaves sending them into the air, off to his sides, swallowing him up as he sank. Bright cackles rolled out of him as he laid there laughing, kicking his feet to make the smell even more of a delicacy to savor. It wasn’t until he heard someone clear their throat that he bolted into a sitting upright position, round eyes stared at Cooper on the patio. He let Squirt slide.. “I…am one with the leaves,” but he blinked a second later and let himself fall backwards with a crackling thud. A gloved hand rose up, fingers stretched towards Cooper and grabbed at the air. “Fine! We’ll go get coffee. Help me up?” Grab, grab, wriggle..devious smile hidden from view thanks to an arch of his neck. Go on. Help him up, Cooper.
“Really? You’re the first person that’s said that. Thank you, Elle.” Blaine hooked his thumbs under the hem of his sweater pulling it out a bit so he could stare down the length of his torso at the intricate pattern the yarn made. “Someone tried to tell me I look like the stuck up jock who’s secretly hiding a dozen rich family problems that turned him into a douche in a John Hughes movie.” Oddly specific insults were Santana’s soup du jour and it was his day to be first on the receiving end. “You have no idea how awkward I’ve felt since.” Yeah, he was a little self conscious since. Which really sucked because he was out of time to go change and had to rush out the door.
Blaine regretted his answer the second he gave it. Why did he promise he’d be honest? More important? Why did he keep the promise he made considering he would be well within his karmic rights to ignore the true reply and graze over into more platonic-friendly territory? If for no other reason than to save face and the inevitable awkwardness that was bound to follow his truthful reply? Because it was Sam that asked him. That’s why. And breaking a promise to Sam ranked right above breaking the neck of a My Pretty Pony and sending her to the glue factory to cover up your crime.
“Um. Okay. Wow. First! Let’s leave that term on youtube or in the locker room at 24 Hour Fitness. I love you, but no. And second? You’re a great guy and you’re attractive. I think you’re peoplebait. Anyone with a sliver of taste would have a crush on you, Sam. I think it’s pretty much written in the universe. Please forget that I said anything. Why do you make it so hard to, you know, avoid potentially stomach twisting honesty? It’s not fair and,” he smiled jokingly as his eyes lit up and he turned a few shades redder, “I’d like to know who to send my complaint to.”
( sms >> unknown ) It’s not like being an eccentric, lonely old guy who collects cats and smells funny is the WORST thing a guy can be. ( sms >> unknown ) Also, don’t freak out but I think you might have the wrong number ?? ( sms >> unknown ) If it’s any consolation, I’m sure you’re definitely date material. Whoever Trent’s trying to get you to text seems like a lucky guy.
( mssg » wrong # | sent ) Oh no. ( mssg » wrong # | sent ) Um. Hey. Hi. ( mssg » wrong # | sent ) I’m sorry. Is this Eric? ( mssg » wrong # | sent ) Before you answer that? It was sweet of you to try to make me feel better about the crazy old cat guy comment. Unfortunately, Trent is probably right but I’m not going to let him get away with saying it outloud. Anyone who thinks I might be date material after that certainly deserves a huge thanks.
pianokeysandbowties 