Waking up, he rubbed the sleep from his deep blue eyes as he took in the sight of his room before him. His wallpaper was forest green with little luminescent star stickers stuck on his walls and ceiling.

When people came over, he told them he’d put them up as a child and never removed them, but in reality he’d put them up a year ago and he just liked them. Only his closest friends, even within his friendship group, knew him well enough to be let in on that little secret.

He had one secret however, that he wasn’t quite willing to share yet…or rather, it was two secrets which coincided with each other. The first one, was about a recurring dream he kept having. The second, was that he was gay.

The boy wasn’t ashamed of his sexuality, but he was afraid that the respect and love he had as the captain of the football team would turn to hostility and hate.

He wasn’t quite ready to reveal to everyone that he liked boys, but he felt the increasing need to come out, the longer he kept it hidden. Especially since this school year had started. He’d randomly started having dreams where he was kissing some boy, and he had no idea who this boy was.

But, he’d seen a boy with similar features as the dream boy, and he wasn’t entirely sure how to feel about that. They’d made eye contact twice; the poor kid probably thought he was a random creepy guy.

“Am I a random creepy guy?” He asked into the abyss of his room, placing a muscular arm over his eyes.

“Oh well, it’s not like I’ll ever see him again…shame though,” he chuckled to himself, whipping the duvet cover back. “He was really cute.”

Hopping in the shower, he turned around, catching his eyes in the mirror. He’d always been complimented on them, and yeah, they were kinda nice - a deep blue most people were intrigued by. However, there was one unforgettable pair of eyes stuck on his mind.

The eyes belonging to the boy from the dream.

He hadn’t seen the face of the boy, just his hair the colour of a sunset, and his eyes, like two dying fires. Whenever he and this boy kissed, it was like electricity and scorching yet comforting rays of sunlight were sent through his veins.

The boy had kissed before, and he was pretty sure that’s not how kisses normally felt.

However, he had to remind himself that that wasn’t real. “It was a dream, you idiot,” he groaned, covering his eyes in an attempt to dispel the images and feelings. It’s safe to say, it had absolutely no effect.

Hastily drying himself with a towel, the boy picked out a fairly nondescript outfit - it’s not like he’d be seeing dream boy or his lookalike anytime soon. “Fuck offf,” he groaned to his own thoughts. “I have football today, so I’ll be changing anyway. That’s the reason I’m dressing boringly.”

Rolling his eyes at himself, he hurried down the stairs, placed a kiss on his mum’s cheek, and rushed out the door. The longer he was alone, the more likely he was to think about kissing red-haired boys. Although he definitely liked that thought, he had slightly more pressing things to deal with.

Like grades.

And Riya, who was still feeling guilty about her friend. “Speak of the devil,” he whispered to no one in particular, as he saw a familiar bus pull up outside the gates. His friend got off first, as she had the entire time last year, and he was about to go over to her when he saw her grab someone and drag him around the side of the gate.

He was worried for Riya, she’d had a serious expression on her face, and the guy she’d looked pissed at was buff, and definitely didn’t seem like the type to have qualms hitting a girl for no apparent reason.

Hesitantly, he followed them. He didn’t want to snoop on Riya’s business, but if she got hurt that’d be worse. At least this way, if it came to a fight, he could probably take the guy. As he neared where Riya had dragged the guy, he stopped just around the corner to listen.

Ah shit, I’m totally eavesdropping. Just as he was about to grab Riya and chivy her to their next class, Riya spoke, slowly and calmly. “I swear to god I will fucking kill you if you hurt him ever again.”

To be completely honest, he was shocked. He’d never heard his friend sound so…threatening. He felt a little afraid, and the comment wasn’t even directed at him. “Yeah, I fuckin know, ok? So back off. I already have Ceyden on my case.”

Riya clicked her tongue. “What? Did you think you’d get away with it?”

“I have before.”

The boy tensed up as he heard a sound he was 99% certain was someone’s nose breaking. “Ahh, shit Riya?! What the fuck!”

She scoffed as she said “yeah and you didn’t think it hurt when you broke his leg? And yes, you got away with it before, because he refused to let anyone know what was happening. Unfortunately for you, Ceyden worked it out, and he’s not going to let you hurt his little brother ever again.”

He tensed, flattening himself further against the wall. It seemed like whoever the guy was, hurt Riya’s friend, but he had no idea who this Ceyden guy was, or really what they were talking about. And hang on, did Riya just break his nose?! He thought, mentally reminding himself to never get on Riya’s bad side.

Glancing at the time on his phone, the boy realised he only had a matter of minutes before his first class, and it was one he shared with Riya. Taking a deep breath, he popped round the corner of the wall, waving at Riya.

“Oh hey! Thought I heard your voice. Come on, we only have like two minutes before class starts.” It wasn’t technically a lie, he had heard her, so hopefully she’d just come with him. Finally though, he had a chance to take in the scene.

The guy’s nose was a little wonky, and bloodied. Riya’s knuckles were also bloodied, but she looked entirely calm. Smiling back up at her, she got the message and hurried along after him.