After spending three nights together and with Jeff having to leave suddenly, Asher found himself feeling like his apartment was empty, even though he was used to living alone. It was the weekend, and though he could have quickly made plans with friends to change the scene, he ultimately decided to take inspiration from the other man.

He knew Amanda wasn’t planning to go home for the weekend, so he decided to take advantage of it. Fortunately, their mom lived only an hour and a half away, so it was just a matter of taking a bus and arriving at her apartment before lunch. It wasn’t the same place where Asher had grown up, but it was still home.

“Something is different,” were the words his mom greeted him with when he unlocked the door and found her in the kitchen. She wasn’t alone, as her sister was, as usual, with her. The radio played in the kitchen, blasting music almost as loudly as Asher did with his friends, while they prepared lunch together.

“You’re right,” Aunt Debby immediately agreed, and both women surrounded him before he could even say anything.

Debby, his mom’s younger sister, the exact stereotype of a single, eccentric aunt who always had a glass of wine in her hand, reached out and even took Asher’s chin between her fingers to get a better look at him.

“What happened?”

In his safe space, Asher didn’t hesitate to confide. “I think I fell in love.”

From the dramatic gasp both women made, he knew what would come next. Quickly, they steered him toward the table where both had glasses of wine ready, and while his mom sat across from him, Debby didn’t hesitate to pour another glass for him as well.

“Tell us everything,” his mom said, after her sister finally sat down.

“I just met him,” was the first thing he told them.

Neither of them batted an eye at his use of a male pronoun. Instead, they nodded eagerly, expecting more details.

“He’s a friend of Simon’s. We were at Simon’s so he could introduce us to his new friends, and I guess I noticed him then, but I just thought he was hot. I mean… he’s really hot.”

“Show us.”

He pulled his phone from his pocket and in a second found Jeff’s profile, since while at Simon’s he had exchanged Facebook with him, and while the blond was at his place, he had gotten his Instagram.

“Damn, he’s hot,” Debby agreed the moment he turned the phone around.

Asher’s mom took the phone from his hands to look at more pictures, but from the way she nodded approvingly, it was clear that she also found him suitable for her son.

“Don’t let him slip away,” she said after a moment, returning the phone to him.

“Where is he now? Why didn’t you bring him to introduce him?” Debby asked eagerly.

“Debbs is right. Where is he?”

Both of them leaned on the table with their elbows, and though they managed to hold their wine glasses, neither actually took a sip as they waited for his answer.

“I said I’m in love, not that we’re together,” Asher reminded them.

“But you want to be together,” his mom said, knowing him best.

“You saw him, of course I do,” he assured her immediately.

“So what’s the problem?”

“I met him four days ago,” he clarified, so they would know when the meeting at Simon’s actually happened.

“Then you’re already four days late,” Aunt Debbs said without any mercy.

“Love at first sight exists,” her sister added quickly.

Asher took a sip of wine, trying not to let their words influence him, though it was difficult. They were exactly what he wanted to hear, confirming that he wasn’t crazy for feeling that Jeff might be the one for him. And if his eccentric relatives agreed, it would hurt even more if that feeling turned out to be wrong.

“I don’t know what to do,” he admitted. “The last three nights we’ve been together constantly. I mean, we were at school, but he always came over to spend the night. Today he had to go home, and he hasn’t contacted me yet.” Anxiety began creeping into his voice.

“Maybe he’s waiting for you to reach out first,” Debby suggested.

“And what am I supposed to say?”

“There’s no way you don’t know what to say,” his mom said, her tone clearly showing her doubt. Then she gasped dramatically. “You really don’t know.” She turned to her sister. “Our boy is seriously in love.”

If anyone didn’t know where Asher got his personality from, a trip to their home would make it obvious. His mom had been a single parent for years, and the only one helping her raise him was Debby. That’s why Asher never hesitated to confide in both of them or ask for their advice.

“You have to hint at it somehow,” Debby jumped into planning first.

“How?”

“Change the emoji in your chat,” his aunt suggested.

“That’s a good idea,” his mom agreed immediately. “Put a heart.”

Asher opened the chat with the guy who had completely messed with his head in such a short time, and looking at the few messages they had exchanged, he wasn’t sure it was a good idea. 

The first message had been from Asher, sending his address. Then came Jeff’s message saying he would come over three days ago, followed by Asher’s brief confirmation that he would wait. That was it. After that, they had just arranged sleepovers in person, so there was no further reason to message.

“Change it,” his mom encouraged, seeing him hesitate.

The brunette’s trademark — well-known to everyone — was his spontaneity and his inability to say no to crazy ideas. Yet, now that it came down to such a small thing, he found it impossible to be carefree.

“If he likes you, he likes you as you are,” were his mom’s words, which finally convinced him to go along with the plan and do what they told him. Jeff hadn’t protested any of the things he suggested so far, so that had to mean something, right?

“He sent a heart.” 

He dramatically dropped the phone onto the table, and it made a solid thud as it fell from a short height.

While he leaned back from the screen, the women across from him did the exact opposite, leaning in to see it with their own eyes.

As soon as Asher changed the emoji in their chat, Jeff immediately took advantage of it. It could have been a mistake, but the brunet believed it wasn’t, and he replied in kind. Now he had two big red hearts under three ordinary messages.

“He’s typing something,” Debby pointed out, though all three of them could see it since their eyes never left the screen.

What they didn’t know was that just a few kilometers away, a similar situation was unfolding, and while Asher was being grilled by the two most important women in his life, at Jeff’s house it was his moms doing the same.

“You’re wearing your favorite T-shirt, the perfume Mama gave you for Christmas, and you’re whistling. What’s his name?” were the words his Mom greeted him with when he came home. Well… first she said hello and showed him what she needed help with, but after a few minutes her attention shifted elsewhere and the broken router was completely forgotten.

“Mom,” he tried, though he knew it was futile.

“Darcy, baby! Come downstairs! Our son wants to tell us something!” she tilted her head slightly back toward the stairs to the second floor and shouted.

A few seconds later, footsteps could be heard, and Jeff knew there was no avoiding this conversation.

“What happened?” his Mama asked the moment she walked through the door.

“I met someone,” he admitted, knowing they would find out anyway.

“What’s his name?” it was his Mom who managed to ask first.

“Asher.” Then he frowned for a moment, realizing he didn’t remember his last name, although he had seen it on social media. With how many messages they had exchanged, it wasn’t surprising that he hadn’t focused on the name but rather on when he would see him again, though.

“Are you dating?”

“No.” He was surprised at how dejected his voice sounded as he said it. But before his moms could ask more questions, he gave them answers himself. “We literally just met four days ago.”

“So, love at first sight?”

Jeff wanted to protest, but when he pictured the attractive brunette in his mind — with his darker skin, cheerful eyes, and the gentle dimples that appeared whenever his mischievous smile showed — he couldn’t suppress the warm feeling spreading through his chest.

“Maybe.”

“Did you tell him?” his Mom asked, clearly not seeing it as a crazy question.

“I can’t confess my feelings after four days,” he protested immediately.

“But you’d like to.” Her smile made it clear she was enjoying the interrogation.

“Did you at least kiss him?”

He cleared his throat instead of answering, unsure what words to use to reveal that he had done more than that. Judging by their expressions, though, the two of them figured it out on their own.

“I slept at his place the last few nights,” he admitted, and they looked excited for more information.

“And today?” his Mama asked. “Are you going back there?”

“If I knew you had plans with him, I wouldn’t bother you,” added his Mom.

“We don’t have any plans,” he said. They really didn’t. While a few days ago Asher had invited him over, the next day Jeff had messaged to see if he could come again, and the day after that, they agreed in bed that morning that Jeff would come back after school. But today, there were no such arrangements.

“Then make some,” his Mom said without mercy.

“I slept at his place for three nights; what if he wants a break from me?” Jeff asked.

Never in his life had he been so captivated by someone as he was by Asher. He couldn’t think about anything else but the 20-year-old half-Latino guy who had boldly kissed him after he admitted he had never done it before with someone of the same gender.

“Did he say anything that would suggest he wants a break from you?” his Mama asked.

Jeff’s mind automatically drifted to that lazy morning in bed and the kiss Asher had given him before he had to leave. He even followed him to the door and lingered there until Jeff disappeared down the stairs, out of sight.

“I guess not.”

“So what are you waiting for?” she asked another question.

“Won’t it sound too desperate?”

His worries melted away the moment his phone vibrated in his pocket, and a notification popped up showing that Asher Campos had changed the emoji in their chat.

A smile immediately spread across Jeff’s face as he ignored the curious glances from his moms, opening their conversation and seeing that instead of the thumbs-up, there was now a bright red heart.

Jeff hesitated for a second before pressing down on it, watching it grow to its maximum size, and then released it, sending it off.

“That’s so cute.”

The two women leaned in, one from each side, to get a better view, and together they watched the three dots on the screen as Asher typed. Well… Jeff thought he was typing a message — until, instead of text, a matching red heart popped up.

“Invite him over,” Mom encouraged him.

“Good idea,” her wife immediately agreed. “You’ve been at his place for three days; now it’s your turn to invite him.”

Jeff decided to follow their advice and, just like Asher had done a few days ago, typed his address into a message and sent it. He then added: “I’ll be home in three hours.”

He watched the three dots on the screen anxiously until they changed to: “Should I pack pajamas?”

“Flirt back, flirt back!” his Mom shook his shoulder, as if encouraging him to reply faster.

“Okay, okay!”

The first thing that came to mind wasn't exactly something he could type in front of his moms. So, instead of admitting that he’d much rather see Asher in his bed naked, he replied: “Pack enough for a few days.”

“That doesn’t sound like I’m inviting him to move in, right?” he asked his moms, even though it was too late — the message was already sent.

“You’re asking the wrong people,” his Mom pointed out, while his Mama reassured him: “It’s fine, honey. It sounded sweet.”

“Can’t wait,” came the reply a few seconds later. In that moment, the worry on Jeff’s face was replaced by that same gentle smile he’d been wearing these past days in the presence of the brunette.

“Our son has a boyfriend!”

It wasn’t entirely true, but he didn’t dare correct them. Especially since he could easily imagine calling Asher that. Of course, not right away, as he didn’t want to scare him off. The guy had already experienced so many “firsts” with another man in just a few days, and Jeff didn’t want to push him into something he wasn’t ready for.

Well… as it turned out, a few days later, Jeff discovered that Asher was more than ready. And while it was spontaneous — true to Asher's nature — they were officially a couple.