Max lay back on his bed in his dorm room, staring at the ceiling. His red stress ball bounced in his hand as if it were keeping rhythm with the erratic thump of his own heartbeat. He had come straight back here after lunch, desperate to escape the cafeteria, the gym, the sun, and, most of all, Leo.

He squeezed the ball and watched it fly up and fall, he bit down on his tongue in an attempt to suppress the stress, and his thoughts that were certainly mixed. The motion was soothing, but it didn’t erase the memory, didn’t quiet the storm. His brain was on a loop stuck thinking about it. About… About Leo.

He was dense he knew that, but eventually even he had realized the energy between the two of them had gone strange at some point. The tension switching to something much more bizarre. Something very different. What was that? Anger, annoyance. Shame at being caught red-handed?

Max swallowed hard. It’s weird… he thought. No, it’s intriguing… fascinating. He cleared his throat, trying to compose himself, but it didn’t work. Not really.

his overactive brain gnawed at him to solve. So now was the perfect time to throw and catch it while he got lost in thought.

About the key, of course… Not that guy or that book in his bag that belonged to him.

He had lost his only house key.

‘Sure, he could always get another one.’ But it annoyed him that he lost this one. The key was a fancy thing his mom had gotten specially engraved and plated for him. And she had made some big fuss about it having to be unique to him because she had gotten it.

She had given it to him so that once he was in college if they were away on some trip, he could still get home whenever he wanted to. ‘But now it was gone, and he really didn’t want to have that conversation with her when she returned from her trip.’

He sighed. He really was the worst at keeping his things. But the guys cleaning up after the afternoon games said the key had been on the bench where he had left his things. And the only other people who had used that bench outside of his friends and himself had been Leo and his friends. He had already asked around his group, which left only one conclusion. Leo had come and sat down, and then it had just vanished.

So… Didn’t it make sense he took it? Even if that was such a random thing to do.

TA flash of red creeping up Leo’s cheeks broke through his thoughts and those big golden-brown doe-like eyes and how they had blinked out from under long downward-turned lashes turned his brain from the very mundane thoughts back to a direction they had never veered before. Max felt his chest tighten, his stomach flip, and everything layer with that strange heat curling through his body.

The bright red of Leo’s pouty bottom lip.

Max tried to ignore the deeply shaken feeling that seemed to have permeated his body flustered didn’t even cover it.

That curl that fell over his eyes. I stared. I shouldn’t have stared… I couldn’t help it.

Max groaned softly into his pillow, gripping the ball so tightly he could almost feel the tension burning through his fingertips. I almost said the worst thing. Almost? I did say the wrong thing. Even worse I.Max paused, feeling ashamed he had ever had such a dirty thought.

Your brother is a thief, not above stealing from pregnant women and old retirees. Why would you be any better? Why did I even think that way? Why did my brain go there? God, I hate myself right now.

He rolled onto his side, staring at the hardwood floor where his bag still lay. The book was still there. The one with that guy’s name on it. Max felt a pang of shame for even thinking about it. For even thinking about him.

I should apologized I was way out of line about everything.If I was told to justify my actions I don’t think I would be able to. What would Mum say if she heard? I know she would tell me to let it go, that we all make mistakes, heck she even forgave Caspian, just cause he knows Jae. She is too forgiving. He didn’t deserve forgiveness, Ugh, do I though? Cause I am starting to feel like I don’t deserve it either, I was so rude to Leo just cause of his last name. Like he could have stolen it! He gives off the sense of such a sheltered, fragile, innocent person. Someone, an old lady, would trust her entire fortune and all twenty of her cats that she treats like actual children, too. Yet, I had the nerve to be like, hey you, yeah you, you’re the thief. I am an idiot.

Why does it matter what he thinks?

So what!

We don’t know each other.

“Ughhh!!” He sighed, his frustration bursting into the stiff air around him. He slapped his hand atop his covers beating the duvet down. Just as he did his phone that was laying right next to his hand buzzed.

Jae’s name popped up on screen. Max groaned, already knowing that the call would be all heckling. He hesitated before answering it.

“I heard you were an absolute dick to Caspian’s bro,” Jae’s voice came through before he could even say hello. Jae’s voice brimmed, laughing before he even finished his sentence.

“Oh, you heard already, did you? I didn’t think it would be all across the campus already.” Max muttered, sarcastically.

“Around campus, bro, no,. It’s not just around campus. I’d be surprised if someone on the moon hasn’t heard about it,” Jae said, cackling.

“OMG, whatever. Bye,” Max said, hanging up before he could argue further.