“Ahhh, what are you doing!” Leo snapped in surprise as Max gently brushed something no one else in his life outside himself had touched. Leo felt his skin growing hot. It was so embarrassing. So many people were staring, and he had made an error. He was now being pat down like some criminal in an airport, in the middle of the cafeteria, in public.

Max pulled his hand out, reached into the other one, and checked Leo’s other pocket.

His hands are gentle for someone angry… I have never had any guy so close before, this is so awkward, but he smells nice, I guess. His hair is kinda long…

“Stop… Not there!” Leo said, shocked and just a smidgen too loud. He turned bright red as curious eyes that had fallen back to work and eating stopped what they were doing to look back up so they could witness the juicy spectacle.

The spectacle was Max pinning Leo against the wall, Max’s hands in his pockets. Because the bright red that flushed his face and the look of shock pretty much said everything it needed to.

He had talked too loud and startled the surrounding people and Max, who, when Leo had accidentally cried out, pulled his hand free.

Max blinked, and Leo could almost see his mind turning as he tried to figure out a way to leave without people watching. Leo gulped. He wasn’t exactly sure how Max could. Time pressed on, people stared, snickering or chuckling. He realized just how close he was to him.

He willed himself to stop thinking about how close Max was to his space. It felt good though when Max brushed his thigh. He had never had someone brush his thigh, but the effect was decent. Leo realized his mind was only making matters worse. His train of thought was leading him into a very precarious situation, and he felt a rush of endorphins under the stress.

Now is definitely not the time for this, Leo! Everyone is watching! Everyone! You know how bad you are with outside attention… Leo looked around, his anxiety rising slightly.

I need to die! Leo thought.

God, what is wrong with you, Leo? What is wrong with you? You are more stressed about the people staring than getting touched on your… And it’s your fault because you ordered him to do it!

Leo looked into Max’s eyes, panic and anxiety coursing through his veins. His brain was alerting him wildly. It felt like he would die of a heart attack from embarrassment if the seconds didn’t start passing faster again.

Max, who seemed to have calmed after a single moment of panic, looked to have decided to glare dangerously at anyone who dared to be watching or laughing at them instead of eating or working.

While most people were usually afraid of him and his friends, he hung out with Sam, Myles, Jae, and River since they were seniors and typically not very approachable. His three friends laughed in the background, enjoying themselves at the expense of the other two. The atmosphere seemed relaxed.

Leo watched Max’s glaring and tried not to seem so amused by his discomfort.

Am I a bad person for feeling a bit relieved? He seems uncomfortable now too. Maybe…

Max’s anger and no-nonsense attitude seemed to do the trick, and the onlookers calmed down, going back to whatever they were doing without another noticeable glance at the two boys.

Leo realized that with all the staring and attention Max had given to quiet the room, Max still hadn’t tried to let go of the wall or walk away. He blinked before turning his head to look at Max’s hand on the wall. A light heat stirred in the pit of his stomach, burning lower inside him the more he stared. He looked back up at Max’s face.

Max’s face was thoroughly flushed, and Leo knew his own face mirrored the sentiment. He could feel the heat his body emitted into his ears, which had turned bright red too.

Leo felt Max’s throat move as he swallowed, a tiny shift that should not have meant anything. Except it did. His jaw was tight, his eyes flickering with something Leo could not place. Realization? Nerves? Whatever it was, Max was not nearly as calm as he pretended.

Max cleared his throat, the sound rough but quiet, and Leo’s heart jumped. It was absurd, but even that tiny sound seemed too close, pressing against his skin along with Max’s arm on the wall.

Do not look at him. Just don’t. No looking.

Leo looked.

Max’s face hovered near his, close enough that Leo could see the faintest flush high on his cheekbones. One deep breath and their noses might bump. Heat crept up Leo’s neck as the air stuck in his throat.

“Is it in your bag?” Max asked finally, his voice low.

Leo blinked, his brain stalling for a full second before the words made sense. “No. I really don’t have it,” he said, his voice cracking, weirdly breathless. Perfect. Just perfect.

Max’s brows lifted slightly, his eyes locked on him like he was trying to solve some impossible puzzle. The longer he stared, the tighter Leo’s stomach twisted.

“Why would I want to take your keys, Max?” Leo demanded, louder this time. “We have not even talked, I haven’t even been near you apart from the freshman games today. There were a hundred people in the gym who could have taken your keys, or maybe you dropped them.”

Max did not answer right away. He just watched him, eyes flickering back and forth as if he was searching about inside them for something else entirely.

Guilt?

“I didn’t drop them,” Max said after a moment. “It wasn’t anyone else, it can only have been….”

Great. He does not believe me. Fantastic. Does he think I make a habit of stealing things between my panic attacks.

Finally, Max spoke again after a silence that seemed far too long. “Maybe you need to come over to my house, for some reason?” he intoned.

Leo’s head snapped up, disbelief flooding hot across his face.

Max coughed and looked away like he regretted even saying it, but it was too late. The words hung there, ridiculous and insulting at the same time.

Was Max serious? Did he actually think Leo was lurking around campus, waiting for an invitation to his precious house? Why?

Leo’s pulse hammered as Max shifted his weight, his hand still braced near Leo’s shoulder. The heat of it bled through the air between them, making Leo acutely aware of how close they stood.

Close enough that if anyone walked by right now, it would look like…

No. Do not finish that thought.

Leo’s ears burned as Max’s words sank in, the meaning coming to fruition.

He blinked at him. “Really?”
Everything always came back to Caspian.