Gotta Fix My Cup of Caffeine

It was a particularly cold, windy day. The chilly November air whipped harshly against the people of Baltimore, who, as a result, were all red-nosed with flushed cheeks and stinging ears and fingers, if they hadn't covered themselves up properly. Everyone walked around clinging desperately to their hats and jackets, whilst trying to find a sheltering, warm place to hide out as the wind kept showing off its brutal forces.

Needless to say, the town’s various coffee shops were stuffed. So stuffed that there were barely any places for the baristas to walk, or for people to sit. And this is how Alex, along with his friends and fellow college students; Rian, Matt and Zack, found themselves on a wicked journey, roaming one of the more deserted parts of town in the hope of finding an available booth. Or just an available shop, really.

«Man, I kinda hate Mr. Garder right now,» Rian stated with a groan.

«It’s not his fault that his lesson was scheduled this late, though,» Matt replied with a light shrug.

«Yeah, I get that, but did he have to keep us back for so damn long?»

Alex rolled his eyes at that. Although his friend got the best grades of the bunch, he never seemed to pay attention in class, and always relied on his friends and some crash-courses online in order to keep up.

«Well, Rian, if you’d only paid a bit more attention to what he said, he wouldn’t have had to repeat, like, half the lesson just so you’d understand the assessment.»

«Shut up, Gaskarth»

«Why should I, Dawson?» Alex mimicked, feeling half annoyed, half playful. Though the annoyance probably had to do with the shitty weather, so Rian couldn’t really be blamed for that. Not that much, at least. «Can’t handle the truth?»

«You can really be an ass sometimes, Alex, you know that?» Rian sighed and shook his head. He was only half-way joking.

«Hey, firstly; My ass is gre-»

«Guys!» Zack, who had kept out of the conversation until then, interrupted, pointing down the street. «I think that coffee shop has an available booth!»

Zack was usually the one to notice these kinds of things, as Rian and Alex were usually busy with their playful quarreling, and Matt was usually busy shifting his gaze back and forth between them, coming with a few inputs every now and then.

«Zack Merrick, I could kiss y-»

«Please don’t.»

Alex clasped his hand onto his chest, making a pained expression, before breaking the act and going back to his normal self, huffing from the cold. «Whatever. Let’s get inside.»

It was a small, cozy coffee shop, with warmly coloured interior and brick-clad walls. It was dimly lit by a warm, soothing light, making the room seemingly glow, in great contrast to the horridly cold outside.

The group hoisted their heavy bags into the booth, and went to order their respective drinks. The barista was a tall, gangly young man, probably at their own age, with spiky, dark brown hair that had a blond patch, making his hair somewhat resemble a skunk. Alex let his eyes linger at the man as they queued up to get their drinks.

While the others ordered, Alex had ended up zoning completely out, seemingly staring into nothing. In reality, though, he had been busy checking out the barista, who, Alex concluded, was straight up gorgeous. His limbs were what some would call ‘freakisly long and thin’, but Alex just thought he totally made it work - from what he could see of the apron-clad body, anyway. Alex could, however, definitely see the other man’s face clearly, and he was glad he could, really. He had deep, dark-brown eyes, accompanied with bushy, dark eyebrows. It gave him a look that could be described as both fierce and puppy-like. His nose-mouth ratio was slightly off, but when he smiled, Alex noted as the barista grinned to one of his co-workers, it totally made up for it.

As Alex stood there, he began pondering whether there was a way could flirt very subtly with the other man. Just to drop a little, vague hint that he was interested. He figured that there were three factors that should be taken into account; a) it had to be done so smoothly that his friends wouldn’t notice (something that could be a challenge, considering they stood about a meter away from him), b) it had to be done in such a manner that he wouldn’t creep the other male out (with Alex’s luck, the guy was probably some defensive homophobe), and - the most vital factor - c) Alex couldn’t flirt for shit.

Of course, the easiest approach would be to just, in simple terms; «give no fucks» about what other people thought. And, yes, Alex was relatively confident about his sexuality - although he had never dated a guy, nor told his friends about him being gay - but that didn’t mean he was ready to out himself. Especially not in such a public place.

He was shaken out of his very deep thoughts - and quite obvious stare - as Rian elbowed him harshly in the ribs.

«Ow! What the h-»

«It’s your time to order, man.»

«Oh. Right.»

Rubbing his ribs where he’d been elbowed, Alex tread forward to order, a slight blush apparent - and thoughts about flirting long gone - while he silently prayed that he had not stared too obviously at the hot barista.

«I’ll have a regular black, please», he said, trying not to make eye contact with the barista, whose name tag read Jack. Jack. It suited him.

«Which size?» Jack said in a soft, yet quite tired voice that sent slight shivers down Alex’s spine. His immediate thought was that he should get a grip, because seriously, the man just talked. Not even in a dirty way. He then looked around nervously, hoping his slight, but embarrassing, shivers had gone by unnoticed. He was not ready to have this talk with his friends, just yet.

«Medium,» Alex said, stepping away so Matt, who stood behind him, could order.
From his new spot he got even better view in behind the counter, and therefore he couldn’t really be blamed when he couldn’t help but glance over at Jack as he made him his coffee. When he caught himself staring again, he quickly averted his gaze over to Matt, who had his order taken by a shaggy brunet. Relieved that his friend had not seen his staring, he switched back to looking at Jack again, only to be met by a pair of big, dark brown eyes staring at him.

He flinched at the sudden eye contact, taking a step back for good measure, before looking back up. Jack had his eyebrows raised, probably wondering why he had flinched as much as he did. Alex smiled somewhat sheepishly back at him.

«Here,» Jack said as he handed over Alex’s coffee, «have a good day.» He smiled as he said so. His smile positively made Alex’s legs turn to jelly for a few moments, and his hand was shaking a bit as he accepted the cup. Seriously, get a fucking grip, Gaskarth. What are you, fourteen?

«Thanks, will do,» Alex replied before walking off, immediately feeling like an idiot. ’Will do’. Who the fuck says ‘will do’ when someone tells you to have a good day. Of all the things he could’ve said; ‘You too’, for instance, as one usually does - he had to say ‘will do’. He shook his head at his own stupidness as he headed over to their booth. He slipped in into the open slot next to Zack, which meant he would be facing the counter and a certain barista. He was not sure how he felt about that.

Apparently, he’d made a pretty bad choice, as he constantly found himself zoning out, look fixed in the direction of the counter, causing his friends - mostly Rian - to nudge him harshly, wave their arms in front of his face, and ask him what the fuck he was looking at and/or thinking about.

---

Over the course of the next couple of weeks, the coffee shop had eventually become Alex’s new favourite place of hanging out, and he would often go there after his college classes to sit down and work on his assessments. Unfortunately, Jack’s working schedule seemed to be either during his lessons, or late at night, as Alex’s study sessions at the shop never seemed to interfere with Jack’s shifts.

Alex had, however, made friends with one of Jack’s co-workers - the shaggy one who Alex somehow recalled had taken Matt’s order the first time they’d been there - whose shifts tended to be around the time when Alex usually dropped by.

«Hey Alex, the usual?» The bearded barista called out at him once he entered the shop after college on a late November afternoon.

«Make it a double, Jon,» Alex sighed as he slumped down in his usual booth closest to the counter. He sunk back into the soft, padded seat and sighed, once again. The smell of freshly brewed coffee would usually cheer him up, but he was currently in such a bad mood that even puppies would fail to cheer him up. He groaned again - this time, however, it was because his inner monologue sounded like a whiny bitch.

A few minutes later, Jon handed him his coffee, along with a sympathetic smile.
«Tough day?» Jon asked in his deep, friendly voice. Jon’s voice could in fact be described as so deep and smooth that he could’ve released a pretty decent soul album. Apart from the fact that Jon never would have done such a thing - he was more of an indie, retro-ish guy.

«A bit. I’ve got a huge History assignment due to tomorrow, and I have barely even begun.» He was so often late out with working on his assignments that it could be defined as a trait of character. Jon, of course, with Alex constantly studying (and occasionally freaking out) in the shop, knew this.

«By ‘barely even begun’ I assume you mean ‘haven’t begun at all’?» Jon chuckled. Alex bit his lip and nodded, scratching his neck shyly as he looked down at the table beneath him.

«Well, I guess you’re gonna need the caffeine, then. This one’s on the house,» Jon said sympathetically as he walked back to behind the counter, adjusting his apron.

«Thanks, dude.»

«You’re welcome. I’ve been to college, man, I’ve felt your pain.»

Not surprisingly, Alex was not even remotely close to finished when Jon’s shift was over at eight o’clock. Jon was bound to wait in the shop until another employee arrived to take over, and whomever said employee might be, they were quite late. At about ten past eight, the bell by the door chimed, signaling the arrival of the barista who would take the next shift.

«Jack Barakat, always right on time.»

Jack? Wasn’t that-? Alex looked up, and yes, the very handsome barista from a few weeks earlier, also known as Jack, was indeed standing in the threshold. He seemed to be quite a bit out of breath, and leaned into the doorframe as he caught it again.

«Yeah,» he panted, «sorry. I missed the bus and-»

Jon laughed. «It’s fine, man, we only have one customer, who just so happens to be a, dare I say, friend of mine.» With that, Jack suddenly grew aware of Alex’s presence.

«Hey, I think I’ve seen you in here before!» Jack said as he approached the table. Alex tried his very best not to blush. Hopefully Jack didn’t remember the specific situation. Jack stretched his hand out for Alex to shake.

«Jack Barakat at your service.»

«Yeah, I know. I mean, I’ve seen your name tag, so uhm,» Alex stuttered out awkwardly, «I, eh, Alex, Alex Gaskarth» Wow, Alex. Way to fucking go. Way to look like a complete idiot.

Jack just laughed good-naturedly at him, giving his hand an extra squeeze. Meanwhile, Jon got up from where he was seated.

«Well, I better get going, then. Good luck with the assignment, Alex; try not to die. See you later, guys.»

Jack and Alex both said their goodbyes and waved him off, before Jack turned to Alex.
«So, what was that about an assignment?» He asked.

«Well, I’m in college, and I have a huge History assignment due to tomorrow, and, well, I’m pretty fucking screwed, to be honest,» Alex sighed.

«Oh, I feel you, good luck, dude,» Jack said sympathetically, giving Alex a comforting pat on the shoulder, then walking over to behind the counter. Alex gently touched his shoulder where Jack had touched him, before shaking his head at his own hopelessness and getting back to work.

About an hour, and about 700 words about Nikita Khrushchev and his impact on Soviet during the cold war, later, Jack slumped down opposite of him.

«Okay, you’re the only customer here, so I might as well try and help you to get this shit done, huh?»

«Thanks, but unless you have any extended knowledge about ‘the rise and fall of communism’ or ‘Soviet leadership throughout the 20th century’ in general, I doubt there’s much you can do to help, really,» Alex sighed, rubbing his temples, «but thanks for the offer, though.»

«Dude, I don’t think I have any knowledge about that shit, period,» Jack said, tone half joking, half apologetic. Alex raised an eyebrow.

«Well, I mean, I’ve heard of, like, Stalin, obviously,» he said hurriedly, and unless Alex’s eyes betrayed him, there was a slight blush over his cheeks, «but I don’t think I can tell you anything you don’t know»

And so, Alex kept on with writing his assignment, while Jack supplied him with coffee whenever it was needed. When he was quite accurately 1182 words into the assignment - but yet nowhere near finished, considering he was still almost 4000 words short - he heard a loud exchange of voices, which caused him to snap out of his Gorbachev-fueled trance. Of course, there had been customers by while he sat there, but something told him that this wasn't a random person dropping by to get their daily coffee-fix. He looked up to see Jack casually leaning over the counter, talking to a tan male - seemingly of latino descent, who was, surprisingly, even taller than Jack. And even louder, as well. The two of them apparently noticed Alex looking at them, because they both turned around to face him.

«Gabe, this is Alex, a friend of Jon,» Jack said, gesturing towards Alex (although that was hardly necessary, as they were the only three in the shop). Alex waved a bit awkwardly. Gabe took a few steps forward, and grabbed Alex’s hand to shake it.

«Encantado. I’m Gabe Saporta,» he introduced, «Jack’s roommate.»

«Nice to meet you, too. I’m Alex Gaskarth,» Alex replied with a smile, «Jack’s customer.» Gabe laughed fondly at that.

The three of them chatted for a while - or, well, it was mostly Jack explaining that Gabe and him weren’t actual college roommates, as Jack was a freshman and Gabe was a senior. Apparently they’d met through some mutual friends a couple of years ago, and when they both needed a roommate, they’d teamed up. Alex was surprised at how naturally the conversation flowed, and the fact that he managed to converse with Jack for an extended period of time without making an utter fool out of himself. When the conversation eventually was long gone over to something about a girl Alex didn’t know, he took the liberty to glance over at his watch.

«Fuck!» Gabe and Jack looked at him, eyebrows raised at his sudden outburst. «The assignment!» Jack ooohed as he caught up with the situation.

«Assignment?» Gabe asked. Alex was too busy freaking out, so Jack gave him a quick run-through of the current situation. «Jack, ¡eres estúpido! I’m a fucking History major! You should’ve called me!» Jack banged his head lightly against the wall at his own stupidity. Alex kind of wanted to do the same, but the relief got the better of him.

And that was how the three of them found themselves in Gabe and Jack’s apartment a little over an hour later, when Jack was done with his shift. Gabe and Alex talked about something that had to do with capitalism and communism, and loads of other isms Jack had very limited knowledge about, so the youngest of the bunch settled for just watching the other two. He noted how hard Alex kept biting on his lip, and kind of felt like he should offer him a plaster or a lip balm or something to eat, or just... something. He eventually figured he might as well just leave the older boy alone to his feverish typing - the poor boy was probably about to implode out of stress - and went to make some mac and cheese for the three of them. He’d never thought he would be the one to cook the dinner in a household, but that’s life for ya, Jack concluded.

After Gabe announced that he was going to take a shower, Jack called in to Alex in the living room. «Alex, d’you want mac and cheese?»

Alex typed out what must have been the rest of a sentence, before answering, «Thanks for the offer, but no thanks, I just really have to focus on this paper.»

Jack sighed. Gabe did this, too, when he had an important paper to finish. He would never have time for anything. Not even eating - and eating was usually a fundamental aspect of the Latin-American's life. Jack grabbed two bowls, and made his way into the living room. He slumped down in the couch next to the still furiously typing Alex, and held the bowl out in front of the other man’s computer.

Alex huffed. «Jack, I sai-»

«I know,» Jack cut him off, «but, really, you should eat some. You need the energy, and a ten minute break can’t hurt that much?» That was what he usually said to convince Gabe.

Alex just kept typing, but Jack didn’t budge, and still held the bowl between Alex and his computer. He let his eyes wander between Alex's face - he was still biting his lip, Jack noted - and the screen, which inherited lots of fancy words that he could faintly recognise from his History classes in high school. Just as Jack was having some mildly uncomfortable flashbacks concerning Mrs. Henbergs stinky breath and equally rotten personality, Alex finally sighed and stopped typing, putting the computer down and muttering, «Fine»

Jack beamed at him as he grabbed the bowl. Alex returned the smile and thanked him. Jack draped his arm onto the back of the sofa, behind Alex's shoulders. «So, Alex,» he said through a mouthful, «want to tell me a bit about yourself while we eat? I barely even know you.»

«But you still grace me with this holy mac and cheese?» Alex said, and lifted up a sticky spoonful. Truth be told, it actually wasn't half bad, Alex thought.

Jack just laughed at his remark. «What can I say, I’m just that kind.»

Alex shrugged. «Yeah, okay, well,» he begun, not really sure of what to say, «So; I'm a sophomore in college, and I major in Lit, don't really know what to do after college, eh... I play guitar and sing a bit... I'm not amazing at it, but I've been told I'm decent.» Alex then hesitated for a while. «I guess that's it,» he concluded.

Jack nodded. «So, apart from freaking the fuck out over assignments the day before they're due, and playing music, what do you like to do?»

«Well, as a Lit major, I have to read quite a lot - which I enjoy, mostly. Apart from that, though, I tend to just hang out with a few friends, and maybe watch some movies or whatever,» Alex said with a shrug.

«No crazy-ass partying?»

Alex laughed. «Not really, no. I think I left that behind when I graduated from high school,» he said, «What about you? Tell me a bit about the great Jack Barakat,» Alex prompted, and smirked as he watched Jack's thoughtful expression. It's really not that easy to come up with something interesting to tell about yourself like that, is it now?

«Okay, uh, I'm a freshman, and my major is still undecided, because I'm indecisive and stupid, and.. yeah. I love music, and I can play guitar, too - though not really well. I obviously have to go to work, which takes up some time, but when I'm free I usually just hang out with Gabe and his friends, really. And, as you've experienced, I make a mean mac and cheese,» he said after some thinking.

«How about crazy-ass partying? You strike me as a bit of, uh, a party person,» Alex said, articulating with his hands as he said so.

Jack laughed. «I was probably the wildest party-goer in all of Maryland back in high school,» he admitted half-jokingly, «but I've actually calmed a bit now. I - believe it or not, and you wouldn't if you knew me better - want to focus a bit on my studies. Back in high school I couldn't possibly have cared less, but now...» He trailed off, trying to find the best words to express himself with. «I guess I just want to prove that I can do it. That I can actually be a good student, you know?»

Alex nodded. He understood. «Yeah,» he said, «I get what you mean. That was my way of seeing things, too, when I was in high school- well, it still is, really. Especially so I can show my parents that I'm capable of it. Graduating, I mean.»

Jack nodded eagerly. «My parents didn't even think I'd graduate from high school, so I guess this is like a big 'fuck you' to them-» Alex laughed at that. «- and my siblings have always excelled in something, so, I kind of want to show them that I'm not just some useless child, y'know?»

«Yeah, I get it. My parents and I, we- well, we aren't on the best terms, and we haven't been for a while. And, they... uh, well, let's just say they don't think a lot of me, and if it hadn't been for my scholarship, I wouldn't even have been here. So, that, proving them wrong, is what keeps me going, really. That's part of the reason why I stress so much about assignments - I just want to get good grades.»

Things were getting personal, Jack thought. His eyes flickered to Alex's bowl of mac and cheese, which had been left untouched for a while. He should remind Alex to get back to his paper, but Jack was far too curious, and the older was far to interesting.
«But,» Jack voiced, «why - if you don't mind me asking - are you on bad terms with your parents? If you got here on a scholarship, you must be pretty smart and hard working, and though you said you partied in high school, you don't seem like the type to get their girlfriend knocked up, either.»

Alex was surprised with himself, but no, he didn't mind Jack asking. He'd only known Jack for a day, hell, not even that, and maybe that's why he felt okay with sharing this with him - he didn't risk losing anything. If he told Rian or Zack, for example, both of whom he'd known since high school, he risked losing his best friends. If he told Matt, he risked getting on awkward terms with not only his friend, but also his roommate. Jack, however, was practically a complete stranger. A hot stranger, who Alex may or may not have an increasing crush on, but a stranger nonetheless. That being said, Alex did have a lump in his throat, and his heart rate quickened with nervousness.

«Well,» he begun, taking a heavy breath, «what you said is right... Especially about me not getting my girlfriend knocked up. I- I think that's the problem, actually.» He laughed nervously. Jack looked beyond confused. «At least some of it. I, uh, I c-came out to my parents in the end of senior year, and, uh, they weren't h-happy about it, to put it nicely.» He looked nervously over at Jack.

«I’m so sorry, Alex, really. It sucks that you have to go through shit like that,» Jack said sympathetically. The relief flooded though Alex, and he could feel a major weight being lifted off of his shoulders. And Jack had truly looked so genuinely sorry when he spoke that it almost gave Alex chest pains.

Alex sniffed and blinked his eyes, trying to hold back tears. The topic brought back some unpleasant memories. Jack wrapped his arms around him and pulled him into a hug. The angle was a bit awkward, but it was still a good hug. It felt safe.
«This is only my second time coming out, you know?» He muttered.

Jack pulled back, so that he could see the other man's face better. «Really?» Alex nodded. «So none of your friends know?» Alex shook his head. «I feel honoured, then.» Alex smiled at him, and it was such a warm, sweet smile that Jack could almost could feel his heart start melting.

«Hey, Jack?» Alex asked. Jack hummed in response. «Thanks.»

«For what?»

«For the mac and cheese,» Alex deadpanned, rolling his eyes, «what do you think, idiot?»

Jack laughed, and glanced down at his clock. «Shit!» He exlaimed, «it's getting late! I have an early class tomorrow, so I should go to bed, and you-» he poked Alex's chest, «should work on your paper.»

Alex got a mortified look on his face and muttered a swear under his breath.

Someone chuckled from the doorway. «Lost track of time?» Gabe asked in an amused tone. Alex nodded with a frown on his face.
«Yeah,» Jack said as he stood up from the sofa and grabbed his empty bowl. «We talked while we ate, and forgot a bit about the whole assignment-situation. But - I don't know if you heard - I'll go to bed now. Bueno nachos.»

Gabe laughed - he seemed to do that a lot. «Actually,» he corrected in an amused voice, «it's 'buenos noches’. Although I've gotta admit ’bueno nachos’ sounds way cooler. I'll totally try and get people to say it the next time I'm in Uruguay... Maybe.» He shook his head, as to shake thoughts away. «Well, duerme bien, amigo,» he said, before ruffling Jack's hair.

«Goodnight, Jack!» Alex called out from where he was bent over his laptop.

Jack yelled a goodnight back from the kitchen, where he'd gone to put away his bowl. As he passed the living room he felt like he should say something, but he didn't. He just smiled fondly to himself, and went to bed.

When Jack woke up the following day, he was the only one awake. Both Gabe and Alex were fast asleep - Alex on the sofa, and Gabe on the carpet on the floor. If a person who didn't know what they'd been up to last night had walked in, said person would probably think the two of them had gotten majorly wasted the night in prior. Jack smiled at the view - what was up with all the smiling? He'd smiled an unusual lot yesterday, as well - and stuffed his books into his worn out rucksack. He glanced over at Alex and bit his lip, before shuffling though his rucksack to find a pen.

-

The first few seconds after Alex woke up, he felt a bit disoriented, until he remembered what had happened last night. Gabe and him had been sitting up until the early hours of the morning. They would have called it quits earlier, but then they realized that hey, the fucking Russian communist revolution of 1917 is kind of a vital part of both 'the rise and fall of communism' and motherfucking 'Soviet leadership throughout the 20th century’, and Alex had to rewrite an annoyingly huge chunk of his assignment to fit it in.

It wasn't until after he had stretched that he realized that a) Gabe was lying face-down on the carpet below him, and b) he had something on his forehead. He got a short war flashback to when he would wake up after a wild party in high school - the situation was oddly similar. He discovered that the thing on his forehead was a neon green post-it note, written on in a messy handwriting that might as well have belonged to a child, which read:

realized that you might want to see me outside of work :) you know where i live, but if i'm not at home or you're too lazy too come:

Below, a series of almost unreadable numbers were written down. Alex's stomach did somersaults, and he couldn't help the grin that made its way onto his face. In that moment he was kind of glad that Gabe was asleep with his face down into the fluffy carpet.

Alex still hadn't put Jack's number to use when he walked back to his and Matt's room on campus a few hours later that day - he would have gone home sooner, so Matt wouldn't be so lonely, but Gabe had insisted that Alex stayed for breakfast. Gabe was a very enthusiastic and welcoming host, Alex had found out. Alex opened the door to their room, and found not only Matt, but also Zack, Rian, and his girlfriend, Cassadee, cramped into the not-so-spacious room.

«Hi, guys,» he greeted as he squeezed down next to Matt in his bed - Rian and Cassadee had taken up the other one, and Zack occupied most of the floor space. They all greeted him in return.

«Where were you last night?» Matt asked worriedly.

«At Jack and Gabe’s,» he said, and stretched his hands out above his head sleepily. He really hadn’t gotten a lot of sleep last night, even if Jack and Gabe’s sofa was surprisingly comfortable.

«Who?» Rian asked, confused, exchanging a look with Zack. «I don't think I know any Jacks nor any Gabes.»

Alex sighed. This was going to be a long story to tell, wasn’t it? «You guys remember that day a few weeks ago when we went to that coffee shop?» Matt, Zack and Rian all nodded. Cassadee still looked confused, but said nothing about it. «Remember the guy who took our orders? Tall guy with big nose and skunk hair?»

The men all made faces of concentration, but they eventually nodded.

«That's Jack.»

«And you were at his place, because...?» Zack prompted curiously.

Alex retold the story as quickly as he could. Matt nodded along easily, but Rian just furrowed his eyebrows. Zack seemed to be stuck in the middle somewhere.

«So, let me get this straight,» Rian said with a skeptical look on his face, «you go home to a couple of total strangers, without telling us, and spend the night with them?» He seemed to be in utter disbelief. This was typical Rian. He was always extremely overprotective over his friends, especially Alex (Rian trusted Matt’s judgement more than Alex’s, and Zack had muscles to back him up in worst case scenarios, something which Alex severely lacked).

Alex snorted. «It sounds bad when you put it that way, but-»

«It is bad! Those guys could've been dangerous!»

«They're not, though! If you'd actually met them, you'd see that they are the friendliest-»

«But what if they weren’t,» Rian interrupted. Alex huffed. Maybe he should just call Jack, so Rian could see that Jack was a nice guy. That actually sounded like a good idea.

«You know what? I'll call Jack, so you can talk to him yourself,» he said, as he fished his phone out of his pocket.

«You have his number?» Rian asked incredulously.

"Of course I do, we're friends," Alex said as if it was the most obvious thing ever. Which it was, really. Rian just huffed. Matt, Zack and Cassadee all exchanged a collective slightly confused, slightly uncomfortable look.

«Hello?» Jack's voice sounded on the phone, which Alex had put on speaker. Alex felt like an idiot, but he felt the corners of his lips twitch at the sound of his voice.
«Hey, Jack, it's me, Alex-»
«So you got my note!» Alex smiled at the memory. Matt shot him a calculating look.
«Yes, how could I not, you stuck it on my forehead,» Alex said with a laugh.
«Where else should I have put it? On your dick?» Rian snorted loudly at that. Alex rolled his eyes fondly.
«You're on speaker, by the way.»
«Oh.» He sounded a bit embarrased. «Why am I on speaker?»
«That's why I called, actually. My friend, Rian, is a bit worried that you and Gabe are some creeps-slash-kidnappers-slash-rapists, so this is your opportunity to defend yourself.»

Jack laughed really loudly in the other end. His laughter made him seem kind of like a maniac, which wasn't really helping his case. Matt raised his eyebrows. Rian furrowed his even further. Zack bit down on his nail - it was kind of hard to tell whether he was paying attention or not. Alex and Cassadee both just smiled. After a few deep breaths, Jack managed to pull himself together.

«Okay, okay. My dearest Rian,» he begun in a serious voice, «and anyone else who might listen. My roommate and I are not creeps, kidnappers, rapists, and certainly not axe-murderers. We have done no harm to your friend.» His voice was grave serious. «Unless he got food poisoned by the mac and cheese I made, » he added on, «in which case, I'm equally as fucked, 'cause I ate way more than him.» Everyone in the room laughed, even Rian, although his laughter came out more as a snort than a laugh.
«And how do we know you're telling the truth?»Rian half-yelled, but his tone was far less accusing, and way more playful than it had been before.
«I swear on my ass!» Jack said solemnly. Alex snorted and shook his head. He may not have known the other for long, but that just sounded so much like something Jack would say, so Alex was not surprised. «And if you'd seen it, you'd know that my ass is so great that I can't not tell the truth.»

Jack - and by extension, Gabe - was officially accepted after that.

Although Jack and him had kept on talking and texting for the remainder of the day, Alex decided he would visit him at work the following day. Jack hadn't told him when his shifts were yet, so Alex assumed that someone else would be working, and that he would have to wait for a while for Jack to come. But, surprisingly enough, Jack was in fact the one standing behind the counter when Alex came in. Jack's face lit up, and Alex convinced the butterflies in his stomach that Jack was so bored that he was happy to just see someone, not necessarily Alex in particular.

Alex didn't even have to order, because Jack immediately begun making him his usual coffee. Alex leant against the counter and tried not to stare at Jack's ass and legs, which were brought out by the extra tight jeans he was wearing. He felt a bit like some sort of creep, but, like Jack himself had said on the phone the day before, it was a great ass, so Alex couldn't really be blamed. He managed to avert his gaze just before Jack turned back to him and handed him the cup.

«So,» Jack said as Alex begun to take out his wallet, «do Rian and the others trust me now? And if you're going to pay, just forget about it - this one's on the house.»

«No, no, no, no, I'll pay,» he insisted, and held out a bill for Jack to take. «As far as I've seen you don't have that many customers, either.» He instantly regretted saying it. That was a rude thing to say.

Jack didn't seem fazed, though, he just smiled and pushed Alex's hand away - Alex had to try desperately to control his shivers at the touch. Seriously, Alex, what's the matter with you?! - and said, «No, I insist, it's on me. I mean, the house. It's on the house.» The older didn’t fail to catch the blush that crept over the barista’s cheeks. Alex retreated his hand in defeat.

«So yeah, what about Rian?» Jack asked as Alex took an a-little-too-big sip of his coffee. He burnt his tongue, and waved his arms around. Jack stifled a laugh.

«Oh, yeah,» Alex said, when his tongue was somewhat usable again, «he loves you, man.»

Jack cocked an eyebrow. «Really?»

Alex nodded. «Mhm, he thinks you're funny. He said it'd be good for me to hang out with you... whatever he meant by that.»

Jack looked surprised. «Wow, seriously?» Alex just nodded again. «And I think he meant you're not funny enough, and should hang out with me, so you can become as funny as me,» he sniggered.

«Would you mind me hanging out with you more?» Alex asked, simpering.

«No,» Jack said with a smile, «I’d like that.» As if that wasn't enough to make Alex become all warm and fluttery, he also sent him another smile that was even brighter. Alex managed to smile back, and for a second, the two of them just smiled at each other. Then the doorbell chimed as a new customer arrived.

---

«Hey, sorry I’m late!» Alex entered the shop and went straight up to the counter. Jack couldn’t help but smile at the other man’s messy, wet hair and red nose and cheeks.

«You can’t be late for something that isn’t even planned.»

Alex scoffed half-heartedly. «You know what I mean.»

Jack did know what Alex meant. Ever since they’d vowed to spend more time together, they had - oddly enough; completely unintentionally - found themselves in a certain routine. Alex would always come straight to the coffee shop from his classes, where he would work with school work and drink coffee until Jack’s shift was over, after which they would proceed to go to Jack and Gabe’s place, where would Alex usually stay ‘till around midnight or spend the night. It was certainly a nice routine, even if it meant that Alex would spend far less time in his own dorm.

«I got my History paper back today,» Alex said, changing the subject, «I got an A.»

Jack grinned. «Dude, that’s awesome!» He exclaimed. «I knew you could do it!»

«I think I owe it mostly to Gabe, though. Without his help I would’ve been so fucked.»

They’d been talking for a little while, mainly about Alex’s paper, but also just filling each other in on everything that had happened during the day, when Alex felt a hand clamp down on his shoulder. Alex jumped, choking on his still incredibly hot coffee that he had barely dared taking a sip of just then.

He turned around, half annoyed and half confused. «What the fu-» Oh. «You fucking dick, Rian!»

Rian damn near doubled over in laughter. He gasped out something about how Alex should have «seen your fucking face, bro» in between his fits of laughter. Alex rolled his eyes.

«What are you doing here, man?» As far as Alex knew, Rian hadn’t revisited the shop since the very first time Alex was there himself.

«I was looking for you, actually.»

«How’d you know I’d be here?»

Rian snorted at that. «Dude,» he said with feeling, «I’m pretty sure you’ve spent more time in this coffee shop than in your own fucking dorm lately.»

Alex couldn’t help but feel a bit bad. Rian was right. Fortunately for Alex conscience, Matt wasn’t the kind of roommate who would just mope around in the dorm alone. «It’s not my fault Jack and mine’s schedules are badly coordinated,» he mumbled.

Rian rolled his eyes. «Whatever, man,» he sighed fondly. «Anyway, so Zack and Matt wanted to ask me if you wanted to go to the movies today? They’re showing the new Pirates of the Caribbean movie.»

And, of course, Alex wanted to join his best friends. But, he also wanted to hang out with Jack. As usual. Then he remembered how much he’d neglected his friends in Jack’s favour recently, and felt like a major dickhead for even considering declining.
«Sure,» he agreed, sending Jack an apologetic look.

«Great,» Rian beamed, showing off his unbelievably white, straight rows of pearls. «Let’s get going, then, yeah?»

Alex nodded, before hurrying over to Jack to hug him goodbye. It was when he inhaled the other male’s scent and felt Jack press his lips lightly (and probably completely platonically) against his jaw, that he started to regret accepting offer. Almost.

---

«Come in,» sounded from the other side of the door. Alex stepped into the apartment he'd grown to feel really at home in over the course of the last month or so. Jack, who sat propped up on the end of the couch, sent him a warm grin. This was enough to make a warm feeling spread vigorously inside of Alex, who walked over and sat down on the couch.

«I bought Chinese food,» Alex said, shaking the bag a bit for emphasis, «but I didn't know if Gabe would be here or not, so I might've bought a bit too much, if it's just the two of us.»

«No, he's out with William, Suarez and Nate, they're going to some club or whatever,» Jack said as he inspected the food closer. «You're okay with that, right?» He asked, looking up at Alex, «being just the two of us, I mean.»

Alex laughed and ruffled Jack's hair. «Of course! That just makes it more intimate.» Jack raised an eyebrow. Shit, why did you say that? «I mean, not that kind of intimate! I wouldn't do tha- Not that there's anything about you that I wouldn't- You're very ho- I mean, not, just...» Alex spluttered out, before he blushed furiously and hid his face in one of the pillows.

Jack laughed loudly at the older man. «‘I’m very ho-’ what?» He asked amusedly while he cocked an eyebrow.

Alex just blushed even more at that, which again caused Jack to laugh even harder.

«No, but seriously, what am I?» Jack urged Alex on.

«You're very holy in India, now shut the fuck up, and let's eat.»

-

Soon enough they were both comfortably full, and as Alex had predicted, about 1/3 of the food was left untouched. Jack sent Alex into the kitchen with their food before he plopped down on the floor in front of the TV to put on a movie. When Alex re-entered the living room, popcorn bowl in one hand and chocolate in the other, he snorted loudly at Jack's movie choice.

«Brokeback Mountain? Seriously? Is it because I'm gay?»

Jack laughed loudly, tipping his head back as he did so, before saying that they could see another movie if Alex wanted to.

«Nah, it's fine,» he dismissed, putting the popcorn and chocolate on the table. «Although,» he added as he sat down on the sofa, «I’m way too single, way too gay, and way to easily affected by movies to watch this.»

This caused Jack to laugh once again, before starting the movie and settling back in the sofa. For the first ten minutes or so, Alex caught Jack sneaking glancing over at him, but he decided to shrug it off. Then, Jack suddenly leaned forward and hooked his arm around Alex's waist, and pulled him closer to him.

«This okay?» Jack asked, suddenly self conscious.

Alex hummed in confirmation, and cuddled even closer up to Jack. Why Jack wanted to cuddle him, was beyond Alex, but he was certainly not gonna complain.

-

«We should do this more often,» Alex said, his head resting on Jack’s chest. The movie was over, and Alex’s tear-eyed, emotional state was just starting to subside. At first, he’d tried to put on a tough act in front of Jack, but when the younger male had cuddled even closer to him as the tears were threatening to spill, he figured out that he might as well just let it go. And when he saw that Jack was getting glossy-eyed as well, that helped his self-consciousness a bit, too.

«Do what? Watch sad, gay movies, cuddle or cry?» Jack asked asked amusedly. He subconsciously begun tracing his fingers in circles on Alex’s back.

Alex chortled. «Don’t the three go hand in hand?»

Jack let out a hearty laugh. «I guess.»

Rather than actually specifying what he had meant, though, Alex ended up just staring at Jack - in an as non-creepy way as possible - and smiling.

Jack raised his eyebrows in an inaudible ‘what’. Alex just shrugged coyly.

Just then, the front door opened to reveal a rather intoxicated, though, somehow, still perfectly physically functioning Gabe Saporta. «¿Qué pasa, enamorados?» He pretty much yelled as he entered the apartment, neon sunglasses on and hat askew. Jack cocked an eyebrow. «Forgot my toothbrush, y Jack, sabes how important higiene de la boca is to me,» Gabe elaborated as he went into another room - presumably the bathroom.

Alex sent Jack a quizzical look. They could still hear Gabe rambling on, and when he reentered into their view, he was still speaking rapidly and enthusiastically in almost exclusively Spanish. They just watched him in silence as he rummaged through some papers on the kitchen table - God knows what he looked for - while still talking at a hurried pace, gesturing wildly with his hands now and then.

They caught an, «hasta mañana, amigos» as he made his way to the door, and then he was gone, as quickly as he came.

«Does he always do that?» Alex asked after a moment of silence. «Speak Spanish when he’s drunk?»

Jack laughed. «He speaks a lot of Spanish all the time, really, but it gets ten times worse when he’s drunk. Which makes our communication a bit harder. And, you know the whole thing about how important mouth hygiene is to him?» Alex nodded. «Well, he doesn’t really care that much about it when he’s sober, but when he’s drunk it’s like an... obsession.»

«No matter how many times I hang out with that guy, he never stops fascinating me, really.»
«Well, that’s good, ‘cause you will probably hang out with him a lot more from now on.»
Alex frowned. What had he meant by that, he wondered. He didn’t ask, though, this was Jack Barakat, after all. Since when had that guy been normal, anyway? Instead, he just laid his head back onto Jack’s chest, only to instantly have an arm wrapped around him. And this, Alex thought, feeling all fuzzy inside, this was what it felt like when your crush increases at a rapid pace. He didn’t know whether that was a good thing or not, but in that moment he couldn’t care less - he had Jack’s arms wrapped around him, after all.

---

Alex was sat reading Henry IV, Part 1 absentmindedly when Matt burst through the door into their shared room. Alex was undeniably quite relieved - as much as he loved literature, including Shakespeare, he could testify to the fact that your brain goes into an almost numb state after you've read 16th century English for so long.

He looked up from the book and sent Matt a smile. Matt just stared at him in surprise. Alex furrowed his eyebrows at that.

Then Matt snorted. «Long time, no see,» he said with a small smile.

«I guess,» Alex said and smiled back somewhat guiltily, as he realised that yeah, it had been a while since the two of them last spoke. «I’m sorry for not being around much lately, I've just been spending a lot of time with Jack.»

«So, you two have really hit it off, then?» Matt questioned lightly. Although he missed seeing his friend around, he was happy that he'd found someone he clicked with. Because although Alex usually made fast friends with everyone, he rarely truly clicked with people. Alex smiled and nodded, before picking up his book again.

«Um, Alex?» Matt said, about two scenes into the play later. Alex hummed in confirmation as he looked up from the book. «Can I ask you something?»

«Yeah, of course,» Alex said with a shrug.

«It's- You don't have to answer if you don't want to,» he said, sounding almost a bit nervous. Alex nodded. It couldn't be that bad, could it?

«Is there,» he begun awkwardly, «eh, is there something between you and Jack?»

Whatever Alex had expected, this was not it. His eyebrows shot up, and his eyes widened. «Eh, w-wha-what do you... what do you m-mean by that?» He spluttered.

Matt shifted awkwardly around where he was sat on his bed. «Are you guys, like... more than friends?»

Alex couldn't help but blush. «N-no, we're not?» Alex said, although it sounded more like a question than a statement. «What... what makes you think...?» He managed to stutter out.

This time, Matt was the one blushing. He begun fiddling with the hem of his shirt. «No, it's just... you guys spend so much time together, and you spend the time at their place a lot, and... you just seem so happy when you talk about him, and... yeah...»

Alex considered telling Matt, right there and then. He considered just telling him about him being gay, and how, apart from his parents, Jack was the only one who knew. He considered telling him how he'd had a massive crush on Jack since the first time he saw him, and how that crush was increasing every time they hung out, but that he was too scared to ask him out.

But he didn't. He just shrugged, and was about to start reading again, when Matt distracted him from his studies once again.

«Just, you know you can tell me, right? I'm not saying you're lying, but... If something does happen between you, or whatever, then just remember that you can talk to me, alright?» Matt’s face was friendly and his voice was soft, and Alex might maybe want to tell him, but no, this wasn’t the right time.

So Alex just smiled and nodded. "Thanks, man. But seriously, there's nothing between us," he said, trying not to reveal the sadness in his voice, "and I'm pretty sure there will never be, either." As much as it stung in Alex's chest, it was the truth. Even if he did grow the balls to act upon his crush in one way or another, he would surely just get rejected. Hell, he didn't even know if Jack even liked guys.

---

It was when Rian had walked in on Alex jerking off the following week - Alex, who wasn't even religious, thanked everything holy that Rian hadn't heard him moan the name of a certain person - that Rian had decided that Alex needed a girlfriend.

"Her name is Mel, she's a friend of Cass, and I think you'll really like her," Rian said proudly, as he showed Alex a picture of a girl with short, brown hair, hazel eyes and freckles. Although she was cute, Alex begged to differ. "She's really nice, has decent music taste, and minors in Lit," he added excitedly, "You're meeting her at the coffee shop at five."

Alex sighed. Was there really a point in going on some awkward date with some girl who would have no chance with him whatsoever? Maybe it was time for him to do that dreaded thing he'd tried to avoid for so long. When he told Jack, Jack was completely cool with it, and why would Rian react any different? Rian was a nice guy. And, as far as Alex could remember, Rian had never had a problem with gay people before. "Rian, I, eh, I don't really think I can go on the date with her," he admitted. He could feel his stomach vacuum itself.

Rian furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. "Why not? Isn't sh-"

"No, it's just..." He took a deep breath and bit his lip nervously. He felt like he was going to throw up, an his heart beat quicker than usual. It was now or never, wasn't it? "I-I'm gay."

The look on Rian's face was one of complete shock. "You are... gay?"
Alex nodded, awaiting his reaction.

Rian suddenly got a skeptical look on his face. "You know, if you don't feel like dating, you could've just told me that, you don't have to prete-"

"I am not pretending! I'm 100% honest!" Alex said, feeling his throat close up. He felt his eyes getting slightly blank and wet. This was hard enough without Rian doubting him. «I really am gay.»

Rian immediately got a really guilty, regretful look on his face, and pulled him in for a hug. "Shit, I'm sorry, Alex."

Alex hugged him back, and let out a deep breath. A hug was a good sign, wasn't it? "It's okay, I understand. I'd probably have doubted you, too," he muttered into Rian’s shoulder. He said it mostly to make Rian feel less horrible, but it wasn't completely untrue, either.

Rian pulled away and sent him a smile. Alex could feel the weight being lifted off of his shoulder. "So, how long have you known?"

"Since freshman year," Alex said, biting his lip.

"Since fre- Alexander William Gaskarth, have you known you're gay for a whole fucking year without telling me?" Rian said incredulously.

Alex coughed slightly and ducked his head down. Well... «I meant freshman year... of high school."

Rian looked as if he was about to pass out. "What?! Since- That's, like, five years! Why didn't you, you know, fucking... tell us?!" He yelled. He didn't seem angry, just completely, utterly shocked. Which was understandable, considering how long they had known each other, after all.

«Well, I was just... afraid. Things didn't turn out too good when I told my parents, and... I didn't want to risk losing you, too, y’know?»

«If you hadn’t just given us all such a compliment, I would’ve commented on how offending it is that you really think we’d leave you because you like dudes,» Rian said, and his expression was serious, but there was an undertone in his voice that told Alex that he wasn’t really mad. «Matt and Zack, do they know?»

«I think Matt has had some... suspicions, but Zack’s clueless as far as I know.»

«Do you, do you wanna tell them now and get it ove-» He cut himself off at Alex’s nod, and pulled out his phone and started typing. «Anyone else you wanna tell while you’re at it? Cass? Jack? Gabe? Jon?»

«Cass and Jack, for now.» Rian just nodded as he sent the text.

-

«Okay, so... why are we here?» Zack asked curiously. The entire gang was gathered, or rather stuffed, in Rian’s dorm. Rian sent Alex a questioning should-we-just-get-to-it look. Alex nodded.

«Alex has something he wants to talk to you about,» Rian announced.

Zack furrowed his eyebrows at this, apparently confused about what the hell Alex would possibly want to talk to them about that was so important that he had gathered them all. Matt’s face got very suspicious, and Alex internally groaned, because he could only imagine the self-righteous smirk on his face after Alex had said what he was about to say. Alex glanced over at Cassadee, who just looked genuinely worried on her friend’s behalf. Finally, his eyes swept over to Jack, who had his eyebrows raised in a half-knowing, half-questioning manner. Alex nodded his head in the slightest. Jack smiled warmly back.

«So, uh, well...,» he begun professionally. This was his fourth time doing this, but he didn’t feel any less nervous for that reason. He tried stuttering out the beginning of a sentence. Keyword: tried. His eyes met Jack’s. Jack’s face was as warm and caring as ever, and his lips mouthed something along the lines of ‘you can do it’. Hell yeah, he could. He’d already done it, for fuck’s sake.

«I, uh, there’s really no...,» he begun again. He kept his eyes trained on Jack’s encouraging face, before looking down at his hands. «I-I don’t kn-know how to say this, but, but, but basically; I, uh, I’m gay.»

The dorm was silent for maybe ten seconds - although for Alex it felt like ten hours. Then he heard a snort courtesy of Matt, followed by an, «I fucking knew it.»

That seemed to snap everyone (bar Rian and Jack, who were probably just silent to be polite) out of their trance. A pair of arms - Cassadee’s, most likely - wrapped tightly around him. He had to pull away as he started running out of breath, only to hear Rian say, «So do you know how long that fucking idiot kept silent about it? Since fucking freshman year. Of high school!» as Matt gave him a hug and a pat on the back.

Zack then threw himself at him. «This,» he said as he hugged him, «is for coming out-» Zack twisted them around so that Alex’s head was trapped under his arm «-and this,» he said, giving him a noogie, «this is for not telling us sooner, dickhead.»

Alex laughed, and barely even had the time to swat after Zack and call him a douche, before a pair of arms and a scent that Alex instantly recognised enveloped him from behind. Jack spun him around so they were facing each other, and pulled him close up against his chest. Alex buried his face in the slightly taller man’s neck. He heard Jack whispering, «I’m so proud of you. I knew you could do it.» Alex just squeezed him even harder. They stood there hugging for a bit longer until he heard someone cleared their throat. They both pulled apart quickly at that. Alex looked down, hopelessly trying to fight the blush.

Matt quirked an eyebrow at them, but Alex just shook his head slightly, before saying, «Jack has known about it for a while. He’s been my... mentor, I guess? Well, he’s helped me out a lot, and without him there is no way I’d have managed to tell you this today.» Jack ducked his head coyly.

«Good job, Barakat,» Rian said fondly, before turning to Alex. «When’d you tell him?»

«Like - hm, a few months ago?»

«It was the first time we hung out,» Jack supplied.

Alex nodded. «Yeah, in mid-November sometime. I think. I don’t remember the date, but it was definitely on a Thursd-»

«Wait, you told him the first time you met?» Matt asked in something that sounded like disbelief. «Are you sure you told the truth earlier?»

Alex took a deep breath and sighed annoyedly. «Yes. I’m sure.»

«Because if you weren’t, it’s o-»

«I’m not dating Jack, okay?! I never have, and I never will!» Alex half-shouted. The room silenced, but Alex couldn’t focus on anything but Jack’s face. It faltered. He looked hurt. One might even say crestfallen. It only lasted for a second, but Alex was positive that it was real. And he wished he could go back in time and stop himself from saying it. But he couldn’t. He wanted to tell Jack everything right there and then. But he didn’t.

«O-Okay. I’m sorr-» Matt begun.

«Don’t be,» Alex said. It wasn’t Matt’s fault. It was no-one but his own. He still kept his eyes on Jack, but Jack didn’t meet his eyes. He just stood there, so abnormally silent. And abnormally lacking in the smile-department. It didn’t look right. It didn’t look right for the rest of the time Jack spent there. It didn’t look right, even when he excused himself for having to go to a class. It just didn’t.

---

Over the next few days, Jack kept avoiding Alex. He didn’t initiate - nor respond to - any contact whatsoever. The only way Alex could see his crush was at Jack’s work, and even then, he was distant. Alex had tried to convince himself that the reason for this was that he was busy; the coffee shop had been uncharacteristically crowded with customers the first few days of the current situation, and schoolwork was always something that had to be done, although Alex knew it usually fell lower on the skunk haired boy’s priority list. But when Jack continued being ‘busy’ even when the shop was damn near empty, that was when Alex realised that he’d screwed up more than he initially thought.

Alex sat in his usual spot, sipping some extra dark coffee as he scribbled on a tiny notepad. It contained various similes and phrases, words and sentences. In other words; it contained his thoughts. All of which were centered around a certain person.

Alex felt a hand on his shoulder. He immediately closed the notepad and turned around, only to see Jon standing there, a cup of coffee in his hand. Alex sent him a tired smile and mumbled a greeting.

«Are you okay, man? You look a bit... sad,» Jon asked worriedly.

«I am,» Alex confirmed.

«Oh,» Jon said, «Care to tell why? I’m a good listener, and as you can see,» he gestured to the nearly empty shop, «I’m not really busy, at the moment.»

Alex huffed. «I don’t really wanna talk about it,» he admitted, «but basically, I had a fight with someone I really like. Well, not really a fight. I was just being insensitive, hurtful and stupid, and... yeah... Now they’re avoiding me, understandably enough.»

Jon gave him a calculating look. «Talk to him.»

«How did you know it was a ‘hi-»

«It’s Jack, isn’t it?» Jon asked in a tone that sounded almost sympathetic. He must’ve seen Alex confused look, because he elaborated, «Come on, don’t think I haven’t seen the two of you on your little coffee dates,» with a laugh.

«They’re not d-»

«Sure, they’re not,» Jon chortled playfully. He then saw the other’s distraught face, and gave him a comforting pat on the shoulder. «I’m just kidding,» he said apologetically, «I hope things work out between you two, though. You’d make a cute couple.»

The bell over the door chimed, and Jon went to serve the customer, leaving Alex alone with his coffee - and his thoughts - once again.

It was actually really nice, sitting there in the rather deserted shop, scribbling down his thoughts and sipping his expresso peacefully. But - as there always is - there was a disturbance in the peacefulness. A disturbance that kept taking over his mind, his writing, hell, his entire being. Jack.

At first he considered leaving the shop behind. It held too many memories with Jack, so of course, thinking about him was inevitable. But then he realised; why flea away from his problems? Although he hated making assumptions, there was no denying that the possibility of Jack liking him had... increased. Surely, if he hadn’t, this wouldn’t have been a problem? Well, maybe. But it seemed far more plausible than it had just a mere week ago. So maybe, just maybe, he should try to turn this situation around? Tell Jack that the whole situation was really not much more than a misunderst- plingplingpling!

Alex instinctively looked up towards the entrance; and as if on fucking cue, Jack was walking through it. Alex instantly noted how he wearing a beanie; he only ever wore beanies when he couldn’t be bothered with his hair, in other words, when he was feeling down.

«Hey, Jo-» he begun, immediately freezing when he spotted Alex. He then hurried into the small break room behind the counter. Alex sighed to himself and slurped some of his coffee. A few minutes or so later, Jon went in where Jack had gone, only to reappear with his apron swapped for a bag. He was followed by Jack, who now was wearing his apron, matched with a tired look.

Alex decided to wait for awhile before trying to interact, and spent said time finishing his coffee and studying the few customers who arrived every once in a while. Once his coffee cup was empty, he decided that he had a valid reason to go to talk to Jack.

Jack was sitting on a small chair behind the counter, looking deep in thought, eyes trained to the ground. Alex cleared his throat, making the younger man snap his head up, only to sigh when he saw who his customer was.

«What do you want?» Jack asked, voice stripped bare of any emotion, bar a little bit of bitterness.

«A coffee.»

Jack scoffed and rolled his eyes. «No shit,» he muttered, «but which kind of coffee?»

«You know what I take, Jack.»

«And how do I know you’ll have the same now?» Jack challenged.

Alex scoffed. «Fine,» he said, «I’ll have an espresso, then.»

Alex watched in silence as Jack made his coffee. About half a minute later, Jack was back, handing Alex the cup. «Anything else?» The barista asked.

«A talk,» Alex begun, «would be nice.»

Jack sat back on the chair. «I’m listening.»

«Jack, do you like me?» Alex asked. Jack’s eyes widened, but he didn’t answer. «Because, if you do, I take back what I said. Because, well... I really like you.»

Jack frowned in confusion, before he got a bitter look on his face. «Look, Alex, you don’t have to pretend to like me just because of what you said.»

«I don’t!» Alex exclaimed. What was it with people not believing him when he tried telling them something important? «Jack, I have had this hopeless crush on you since the first time we met, and the only reason I said what I said is because I was convinced you didn’t like me back, and that thought... well, I guess it just... frustrated me.» Alex looked Jack right in the eyes, trying to convey through his look that he was, in fact, honest.

Jack was now standing up, walking over to Alex. «You mean that?» He asked, voice far lower and softer than it had been a mere minute ago.

«Of course I do,» Alex whispered back.

Jack took Alex’s cheek in his hand. «Good,» he said, «because I really like you, too.»

And then Jack leant in, and suddenly his lips were on Alex’s. Alex momentarily forgot how to function, because Jack Barakat was kissing him. As soon as he regained control over himself, he - obviously - started kissing back. He felt Jack smile into the kiss, which was gentle and soft. And this time, there was no disturbances. This time, there was no customers walking in, or any drunken Gabe looking for his toothbrush. There was no insecure thoughts about whether they could cuddle closer or not. There was no snickering Matt or Rian clearing his throat. It was just the two of them, alone in the coffee shop, enjoying each other’s company and the taste of coffee. Just how it was meant to be.