Symphony of Sound.

“I’m going in for the early Grade Five exam.” Alex announces as he takes the seat opposite Jack at their regular lunch table. The younger boy nods stiffly in response, barely looking up from his food.

“I’m doing the exam in two weeks.”

Jack’s head snaps up, because seriously? Not a good idea. Not a good idea at all.

“Are you... Are you sure that’s a good idea?” Jack says, looking up at him and raising an eyebrow.

“Mr. Smith seemed to think I could do it.” The older boy snaps, grip tightening on the fork in his hand.

“I’m not saying you can’t do it, I’m just saying you might be pushing it to do it in two weeks.”

Alex flicks his eyes over at the younger boy and glares at him, the table falling into a stony silence.

Evan and Zack enter the lunch hall at that moment, and upon seeing the two of them glaring at each other, decide it’s a very bad idea to go and sit with them.

They sit across the room, not within hearing distance, but within range to still see what’s going on.

“So, what’s going on with you and Rian?” Evan says, ripping open the plastic packaging from around a pastry product labelled ‘Mostly Apple Pie.’

They know by now, having spent far too much time in this cafeteria, that there is, in reality, very little apple actually in the pie. After years of arduous research, they’ve come to the conclusion that it is, in fact, just mixed fruit stewed for too long and then mashed to the consistency of baby food. But, it tastes surprisingly good, so they deal with it.

“I don’t know, to be completely honest.” Zack says, shrugging. He’d told Evan about the ‘incident’ when they were watching the movie, but nothing’s really come of that.

“You should really talk to him, Zack.”

“See, I’m not going to bother.” Zack says, taking another small bite of food. “Because, if you think about it, life is like a cup of tea. You can either sip the tea and be happy or it’ll spill in your lap and burn your crotch.”

Evan raises an eyebrow at his metaphor and Zack laughs, shaking his head a little.

“What I mean is that I’m fine with spending like bits of time with Rian, rather than having him all to myself because then I’ll probably get sick of him quicker than I’d like to.”

Evan rolls his eyes, still not fully understanding the older boy and his metaphorical ways.

“But surely you’d rather be with him all the time?”

“Maybe. I don’t really know, to be honest with you. I wish he had even just a little more time for me, though. I’m supposed to be his best friend, after all.” Zack says with a resigned sigh.

Evan ruffles his hair and sighs, somewhat distressed by the older boy’s apathy about the whole situation.

“Shouldn’t you be, I don’t know, more concerned by this? Surely it’s upsetting you more than you’re letting on.”

“You know it is.” Zack says, almost choking on his words.

“I’m doing the exam, whether you think it’s a good idea or not.” Alex snaps suddenly, rising to his feet and ignoring the grating, scraping noise the chair makes as he drags it across the stone flooring.

He stalks away, out of the cafeteria and up to his dorm to collect his things for his afternoon lessons and his double bass study period.

He and Jack pointedly don’t talk for the rest of the day, right up until Alex comes back from his double bass period and Jack practically throws himself at the older boy, mumbling something about ‘I’m sorry’ and ‘I’m such an ass’ and ‘it’s your decision after all.’

“It’s cool,” Alex replies, hugging the darker haired boy back and pressing his face against his hair.

Zack and Paul watch with thinly veiled amusement from about three feet away, where they’re pretending to pay attention to whatever’s playing on the TV –Zack thinks it’s Degrassi, since Greta was the last person seen with the remote.

“Do you think they realize that they’re so made for each other that it actually hurts?” Paul hisses quietly, covering his mouth with his hand as he leans in to Zack’s ear.

Zack almost giggles, but shakes his head and sobers up when the two of them turn to look at them.

“Now, unless I’m much mistaken, you owe me some exam help.”

It’s two weeks later when Alex is shipped off to downtown Augusta with Miss Clarke to take his exam.

By this point, Jack has received his Grade Six certificate for passing with a distinction, just like Alex told him he would.

Alex spends his car journey staring out of the window and getting lost in his thoughts, eyes wandering over the bland scenery that lies before him.

He finds himself thinking, deciphering, picking apart his and Jack’s friendship.

It’s weird, he decides, how well it works, considering how they live across the country from each other, in different states and different time zones. But, honestly, he’s glad he came to Shakespeare School when he did, otherwise he would’ve never found him.

He remembers arriving on his first day with his mother and his brother, and not wanting to leave them to go inside this big, scary old school full of pupils and teachers he doesn’t know, whilst wearing an uncomfortable uniform and freezing to death.

But then, when he’d been swearing at his door (which, apparently, had recently had its plaque changed so it read A. Gaskarth) and struggling with a vast collection of bags and useless crap that his mother had insisted on packing, a tall, skinny, human sized ball of energy came bounding towards him with fluffy hair and huge, dark brown eyes.

“Hi, new boy! I’m Jack!”

And that was how it had started.

Alex had thought he was weird, annoying and the worst person to spend time with ever, until he was forced to hang out with him, Rian and Zack.

He fell in with them quickly after that, finding that their personalities worked that well together that he couldn’t just run away and leave them.

And over the years, he guesses he’s kind of had moments where he’s found Jack attractive, or cute, or found himself thinking that he’d quite like to make a habit of falling asleep next to him.

Wait, what?

He shakes his head, blinks a little, trying to clear all thoughts like that from his head.

Think of cute things. Things that make you happy. Puppies. Songs. Hanging out with family. Baby cousins. Jack... Okay, seriously, brain? What the fuck?

He frowns out of the window at a few passing buildings and innocent pedestrians who have done nothing wrong. He runs his slim fingers through his knotted, dirty brown with hints of blonde hair, and closes his eyes.

He wakes about five minutes later to Miss Clarke elbowing him and repeating, ‘Alex, for God’s sakes, wake up!’

He grumbles, blinks sleepily and she fixes him with a glare.

“We’re here. And just so you know, you snore like a trooper.”

“Would you please quit sulking?” Zack sighs overdramatically as Jack lets out a long, drawn out sigh from the seat opposite. “It’s not like he’s dead. He’ll be back before you know it.”

“But it’s boring without him!” Jack groans petulantly, rolling his shoulders and pouting.

“Oh thanks, so you don’t appreciate our company? Come on, Zee, let’s leave the baby to mope about his precious little Alex.” Rian says, stifling a laugh around halfway through his sentence.

“Guys!” Jack whines, dragging out the word far longer than the other two boys ever thought possible. “Don’t leave me, I’ll die without human contact!”

“I’m sure you’ll survive for a few hours.” Zack says with an amused smirk, shepherding Rian out of the door and closing it loudly after them.

Jack stares at the door, lower lip jutted out into an impressive pout, as if that will make the two older boys come back.

Oddly enough, it doesn’t work.

He’s practically pining by the time Alex finally gets back from Augusta, so much so that he goes running over at him with great force.

Alex makes an ‘ooft’ noise quietly, trying to force the younger boy’s arms from around him.

“Jack, get off me. I’m tired, I’ve had a long day. I need sleep.”

Jack’s eyes widen, almost vulnerable, and Zack yells across the room, “For Christ’s sakes, Alex, talk to him before I kill one or both of you. All he’s done all day is complain about how much he’s fuckin’ missed you.”

Alex’s hard expression softens, and he tugs Jack into the hug he had previously failed to reciprocate. Jack smiles then, properly, for the first time all day.

“Do you want a hand?” Jack asks, not even waiting for a response before picking up Alex’s bag of sheet music from the floor by his feet.

“Thanks, Jay.” Alex says with a small, tired smile, and by the time they reach his dorm, he collapses onto his bed and snuggles down against the pillows.

Jack smiles fondly at the older boy and lies down beside him, and Alex almost instinctively curls his hands around the younger boy’s waist, smiling in his half asleep state.

He waits, waits until he’s certain that Jack is most definitely asleep –which is only around twenty minutes later (apparently a day of whinging really takes it out of someone)- until he speaks.

“Hey, Jack.” He starts, smiling as he speaks and laughing gently as the younger boy snuffles against his sweater. “You’re adorable. And yeah, you can’t hear me really, but whatever.”

Alex smiles, kind of proud of himself that he got this far when the younger is sleeping.

Now to try it when he's awake.

Without even thinking, Alex leans forward a little, presses a light, innocent kiss to Jack's forehead before closing his eyes and attempting sleep.