“You’ll what?” Mr. Hemlock’s gaze moved from Tal to Nik and then back to him. He was speechless. Tal couldn’t blame him. “We’re having a sleepover.” Nik repeated himself while throwing his arm around Tal’s shoulders and pulling him close. He was grinning widely at Tal and for a second he forgot that this was all an act and smiled back. “A sleepover.” He repeated Nik’s words and gulped. “Is that okay, Mr. Hemlock?”
Tal had tried to warn Nik that this would be a stupid idea and that neither Mr. Hemlock nor Mr. Moreno were likely to agree to letting him leave their watch after having vanished for an hour. But reasoning with Nik was like reasoning with flat earthers. You could have the most solid proof and they’d just shake their head at you.
Mr. Moreno nudged the director and spoke to him in a quiet voice. “Should we… give them the Talk?” “The… Talk?” Mr. Hemlock echoed in confusion before realisation hit him and his head snapped to the side. He stared at his old friend in shock. “The Talk?” “Yes.” Mr. Moreno said carefully. “The Talk.” Their gazes turned back towards Nik and Tal. He had a bad feeling about whatever this talk would be about. “Of course, I hadn’t noticed.” “That’s what you got me for.” Mr. Moreno touched Mr. Hemlock’s shoulder, as if wanting to give him support. Now, Tal was actually afraid of ‘the Talk’.
“Taliesin Thornwell, Nikandros Bennet, you both are well above age and almost adults now. I believe in our youthful years we tend to consider ourselves invincible sometimes, we care too much and yet too little at the same time.” Nik and Tal shared a confused glance. It was more philosophical than they’d expected. “I suppose, you don’t have to be afraid of unwanted pregnancies.” Mr. Hemlock was visually sweating and struggling to speak while Mr. Moreno pressed his shoulder in a comforting gesture. “STDs, however, are real and dangerous. If you… always, you should always use protection in any case.”
Tal’s head was turning red in embarrassment and Nik next to him had completely frozen. He wasn’t moving at all, only his eye was growing wider the more Mr. Hemlock talked. This must have been the most embarrassing thing in Tal’s life. His quasi dad giving him and his crush the sex talk even though they weren’t together. He was sure that Nik would hate him after this. He would keep his promise about protecting Tal and then leave to be as far away from him as possible.
“Exactly,” Mr. Moreno continued, ignoring the obvious discomfort that this topic has brought into the room. Tal desperately shook his head. He hoped the coach would understand his sign and stop this but instead he examined both the boys carefully before his eyes settled on Nik. “Nikandros, you should know that pain is temporary. And so is fun. You’re still young and energetic but your body can get quite exhausted so you need to take care of it to prevent getting sick. Ah and of course, the-“ “Paul!”
Mr. Hemlock turned to the coach and shook his head. “That is enough I think.” “It is never enough, preparation is important and-“ “You’re being too open.” “You’re being too closed.” “We don’t even know which one-“ “We’re not in a relationship.” It was Nik’s voice that interrupted the bickering Academy staff and caught their attention. Tal had never been more thankful for such an outright rejection by his crush.
“But, uhm, thanks for your concern. Taliesin can count himself lucky for having such great dads. We’ll get going then.” That was the genius move that saved them. Both Mr. Hemlock and Mr. Moreno shut up at once, their bodies still with shock. Nik must have noticed the chemistry between them too. While he and Tal made their way through the dining room to leave he could see the men staring blankly at each other. He wondered if they would have an honest talk about their feelings or brush it off as a funny joke. He hoped it was the first. They deserved to be happy.
Nik clasped Tal’s hand and dragged him outside. He was pushing Tal to hurry, completely forgetting about his injury until Tal suddenly tripped and winced. He let go of Nik’s hand and wrapped it around his ankle while taking a deep breath. “I can’t go that fast.” He mumbled and bit down on his lip. Nik didn’t say anything. Instead, he moved in front of Tal and knelt. There was an awkward moment of silence between them until he realised that Nik wouldn’t invite him for a piggy-back ride. He hesitated before climbing onto his back. The butterflies in his stomach were going crazy as he felt Nik’s warm body against his own. “Don’t let go.” He whispered and Tal didn’t have to be told twice. He nodded with a violent blush spreading on his cheeks and held tightly onto Nik.
Comments (0)
See all