Trophy Eyes.

Saturday comes a lot faster than Joe would’ve liked.

He’s sat at the table in the sitting room, his thoughts soundtracked by May and Jack arguing in the background.

He’s almost relieved when the doorbell rings and he jumps from the table to get it. He knows it’s Alex, yet it’s a relief all the same.

He answers the door and looks shiftily at the younger boy standing upon his doorstep. He’s wearing the same clothes he had on during school on Friday; a v-neck tee that opens too deep, paired with filthy skinny jeans and a gray beanie.

“Tell me you’re not high, or drunk, or anything.” Joe begs, silently praying that Alex genuinely isn’t “Mom will kill me if you are.”

“I’m not.” Alex replies quickly, shifting on his feet “Can’t you tell?”

Joe mumbles something to himself as he opens the door wide and lets Alex in.

“Maybel Barakat! Give me the dang remote and I’ll leave you alone!” Jack shouts across the sitting room at his sister. Joe shakes his head as he wanders into the room, Alex tailing him like a puppy.

There’s a sickening smashing noise as May smacks Jack hard over the head with the remote.

“Ow!” Jack exclaims, slapping May violently on the arm. Joe sighs and marches over to them, ripping the remote from May’s extended hand and holding it high in the air.

“Children!” He shouts, making Jack and May look up with almost identical brown eyes. He glares at them and gestures towards the door “You can go out now, if you want to.”

“Finally!” Jack says victoriously, jumping up from the couch and pushing past Alex to the door.

Alex looks the younger boy up and down as he leaves, his eyes lingering on the younger boy’s stick-thin frame a little longer than Joe likes. He bats Alex around the arm and glares at him.

“Quit eyeballing my baby brother.”

Alex stares at his feet uncomfortably before looking up and watching May as she flounces past them. She laughs at Joe’s desperate ‘please don’t leave me’ expression as she leaves.

By now, Jack is well on his way to Andrew’s place. When he gets there, they’re going to go pick up Aled from his hotel and then go watch a movie or play video games, or something.

Within five minutes, he’s almost breaking down Andrew’s door. Jack loves the fact he lives so close to his best friend, and can therefore show up to irritate him whenever he feels like it.

Andrew answers the door, tired gray eyes surveying the boy before him. He barely has time to put shoes on before Jack hauls him out of the door and on to the street.

It never struck Andrew as being weird that he has a gay guy as a best friend. Everyone always asks him the same things when they find out that Jack swings that way: ‘What if he’s crushing on you?’ Andrew always responds with a shrug; if Jack was crushing on him, he wouldn’t know what to do. But it hasn’t happened in the ten years they’ve known each other, so Andrew’s pretty sure he’s safe. And besides, Andrew loves girls too much.

“So you left Joe with Alex? That’s a low blow, man.” Andrew says, shaking his head. Jack shrugs, laughing.

“They’re big boys, I’m sure they can handle it.”

“What about May?”

“She ran for it too. I think she’s meeting Cassadee or someone.”

Andrew laughs, and the conversation lapses into idiotic teenage boy speak. Before they know it, they’re at Aled’s hotel.

“What room did he say he was in?” Jack asks Andrew, hoping the elder can actually remember. Andrew’s smile drops and he curses under his breath.

“No idea.”

In the end, they resort to asking the bored receptionist at the desk, who provides them with number 387. They career up the stairs and practically break down Aled’s door.

The Welsh boy answers the door to them with the left side of his hair straight, the right side still with bouncing curls.

“Inopportune arrival time yay!” Jack exclaims, pushing past Aled and throwing himself down onto the unmade bed. Aled and Andrew follow him, and Aled finishes off straightening his hair.

They’ve returned to Andrew’s home within fifteen minutes - Aled equipped with a camera, to ‘document his trip’, apparently - and they’re all slumped on the couch watching a rerun of 90210. Sensing Jack’s boredom - May probably made him sit through this stupid show the first time it aired - Andrew suggests a game.

“Let’s play ‘I have never!’” Andrew says gleefully, Aled snapping a photo as he shouts at an unimpressed Jack.

“Let’s not.” The dark haired boy replies swiftly, shooting him down.

“You’re no fun.” Andrew huffs, folding his arms and sulking. Aled snaps another photo.

“Oh just play the bloody game, Jack.” Aled sighs “It’ll keep the baby quiet.”

“I resent that!” Andrew shouts over Jack’s annoyed sigh of ‘Fine!’

*

“I have never been caught getting off by my mom!” Andrew says, raising his hand in a somewhat victorious fashion. Jack follows suit and raises his hand. Aled looks at them both shiftily, doesn’t raise his hand and bursts out laughing.

“I hate you two sometimes.” Aled laughs as Andrew realizes what the Welsh boy has just admitted to. He too bursts out laughing.

“Do tell.” Jack says between giggles.

“I can one-up being caught getting off.” Aled says quietly, biting his lip.

Jack and Andrew’s eyes widen and their mouths hang open. Aled laughs.

“What? He was cute.”

Andrew bursts out in laughter again, Jack sniggering incredulously.

“Dirty little Welshie.” Andrew howls, receiving a well-deserved cushion thrown to the head.

“Shut up! It wasn’t like we were doing it or anything! Just, y’know, fooling around?” Aled retorts, face burning as he tries to defend himself.

“You’re still a dirty little Welshie.” Andrew repeats. Aled sighs and buries his face in his hands.

Jack interjects Andrew’s giggling.

“I have never dry-humped an unwilling piece of furniture.”

*

“I have never deliberately kissed a member of the same sex.” Andrews says, sticking his hand in the air. Aled sighs lazily from his splayed position on the couch.

“Yours are boring.” He announces, playing with his belt buckle.

Jack looks at them both and half raises his hand. Aled looks at him, shocked.

“You’ve never kissed anyone?”

Jack shakes his head gently.

“Huh.” Aled makes a little noise in the back of his throat and moves over so he’s hanging off the couch in Jack’s direction.

“C’mere.” He says, gesturing for Jack to move over. The American does as he’s told and with a very obvious sense of purpose, he kisses Aled. Aled smiles lightly, hands trailing to the back of his neck and fingers twisting in the short hairs there.

Jack Barakat just got his first kiss.

*

“For the love of God, Gaskarth!” Joe frowns, lacing his fingers in his short hair “Do you actually pay any attention in Spanish class?”

Alex shook his head, staring blankly down at the open textbooks on the floor of Joe’s room. Joe groans, glaring at the younger boy. He’s spent the better part of an hour trying to teach Alex everything he knows.

Alex looks up at him, closing the text book. He knows now that the assignment is a speaking one, and that they have to interview each other in Spanish. They have a month to prepare before they have to hand in all their planning work and perform it for the class.

“How do you say ‘your brother’s cute’ in Spanish?” Alex asks.

“Let’s see…” Joe thinks, not registering what Alex just said “I’m pretty sure it’s ‘Tu hermano es lindo’ but I’m not positive.”

“Thanks.” Alex grins.

“Wait, what?” Joe shouts, finally realizing what Alex said “Stay the fuck away from Jack!”