Ocean Avenue

DAY FOUR

Alex woke up in a surprisingly rested state the next morning. Being the teenage boy that he was, it was a rare occurrence, so Alex took a moment to appreciate it before he hopped out of bed. There was something more to the spark in his step than just a good sleep, though. He was excited, and although nothing big was going to happen, it did still feel important to him. Alex was ready to spend another day with his new friends, and was curious about what the next twenty four hours would bring him. He was invited to Jack’s house today, and something else inside of him was a little bit nervous as to how everything would play out. Alex just wanted to be a good guest, and he was always careful when he went to new places, just in case he misstepped any boundaries. He spent the morning chatting with his parents and generally relaxing with them. It was nice to finally see them for more than just the morning or night.

A couple hours after Alex had woken up, gotten ready, and eaten a few meals, Max texted him Jack’s address. Alex took a second to think about why Jack couldn’t have just texted him himself, before he shrugged and set off on the short distance to meet up with his friends.

To Alex’s surprise, Zack answered his hesitant knock on the door.

“Hey,” Zack grinned, eyebrows raised at the sight of Alex, “Everyone’s in the basement, I just came up to get more snacks.”

“Cool,” Alex nodded, taking a quick peek at Zack’s feet before deciding to take off his own shoes. He followed Zack inside, taking note of how Jack had a pretty simple house. He quite liked it, it fit back into the laid back California life style that he had been introduced into all too well. Zack led him into a room where he finally saw Jack, Rian, and Matt lounging on the couches, while cups, bottles, and bowls of chips and other snacks were scattered around them. A movie was playing on the TV, but nobody seemed to be watching it. Alex didn't recognize it. “Drinking already?” Alex asked, smiling at the group.

“Yep!” Rian proclaimed, and Jack and Matt just laughed in response.

“Join us,” Matt said, patting the seat next to him. He then nodded at the table, signalling for Alex to get himself a drink. He had done so a couple times at home, but he rarely drank, because it was a social thing. He barely went to parties with alcohol where people hung out with people they didn't know, and he didn't have close friends to just chill and drink with like these guys did. Alex just poured himself a glass of whatever, and nobody flinched, so it seemed fine to him.

As time passed, the boys lost track of both time and their drinks, and they were most definitely drunk by eight o’clock. Somewhere in the process, Alex wondered if Jack’s parents were home, but quickly realized that no kid would get smashed with their friends while their parents were around, not even if they had the coolest parents ever. He wondered what Jack’s parents were like. Were the super cool? Were they super sophisticated? Alex couldn't tell, and the house didn't give away any signs, as it was quite monotone in looks. Maybe they were boring. Alex decided to ask.

“Where're your parents, dude?” Alex asked, and Jack shrugged.

“I think they went out for dinner, or somethin’.” He smiled lazily, “Why?”

“Just wondering,” Alex mumbled, taking note of how nobody else was paying attention to them. Jack seemed focused on their conversation, though, so Alex continued. “What are they like?”

“They're fine,” Jack hummed, “Chill, but still good parents. I have no complaints,”

“Sounds good,” Alex nodded, continuing when Jack nodded at him in reply, “Mine, too.”

“Good,” Jack yawned, “I’m going to go upstairs for a second. I don't know where my phone charger is.”

“Okay,” Alex said, as Jack got up and left. When he noticed everyone else still focused on whatever they were talking about, he decided to follow Jack. He climbed the stairs quietly, peeking his head into a couple rooms, until he finally spotted Jack. He was sitting on his bed, surrounded by a semi-messy room, complete with the occasional thing hung here and stuff dumped there. Jack seemed like the kind of person who had more important things to put his time into than his room. It was kind of nice. “Hey.”

“Hm?” Jack looked up. “Oh, hi.”

“Did you find it?” Alex asked, walking inside slowly. Jack shook his head, and Alex took a seat next to him. “Where haven't you looked?” He asked, feeling awfully close to Jack when the dark haired boy replied.

“I really don't know,” Jack shrugged, “I think I just wanted to come up here.”

“I can leave,” Alex offered, and Jack’s face contorted into some form of worry. Alex felt him put his hand on his leg.

“No, I kind of want to…” Jack tried, looking at Alex and trailing off when he noticed Alex looking at his own lips. Alex took the plunge, pressing his lips to Jack’s softly and quickly, since Jack was taking so long. He giggled as he pulled back, and Jack looked kind of shocked. Alex didn't have any time to be worried himself, though, as Jack pulled him back in, his other hand going behind Alex’s neck to hold him in place. They didn't exactly make out, it was more just small kisses and a lot of laughing, with the occasional bit of tongue. It was messy, which was another reason that had Alex laughing.

“What is this,” Alex breathed, smiling at Jack for a moment as they separated. “What are we doing?” Jack kissed him again.

“Who knows,” he answered, “But it's nice.” Alex nodded. He moved closer to Jack, half on and half off of his lap as they kissed again. He liked being higher up, it gave him more control over what was going on, and it was fun.

Nearby, Rian was unknowingly making his way up the stairs. He had noticed the absence of Jack and Alex lasting quite a while, and decided to go check on them. Jack could pretty stupid when he was drunk, and he had no idea how Alex acted. Matt and Zack were just chilling down stairs, and Rian shook his head with a smile as he realized he was definitely being the parent of the group that day. When he reached the top of the stairs, he made a beeline for Jack’s room. Not thinking anything different or unusual would greet him on the other side of the door, he casually walked in. He was met with Alex’s back facing him, and it was quite obvious what he and Jack were doing. In his own daze, he didn't know what to say or do. This side of him definitely agreed with his sober side, since reasonable Rian would definitely have thought it was none of his business, as well. As he backed away from the door, he couldn't help but to be a small bit shocked. They barely showed any signs of liking each other, so it was kind of surprising. Then again, Jack didn't really only kiss people when he liked them. He didn't know what was going on at all, and this was another reason for Rian to keep quiet about it. Making his way downstairs, he felt a whole lot heavier than he had on the way up. Maybe it was what he had seen, or maybe he was getting a little bit tired. Whatever it was, he decided he would wait and see if either Jack, Alex, or both of his friends talked to him, instead of asking them about what he had seen.

The boys made a smart decision to stop drinking later in the night, so when Alex arrived home, his parents weren't suspicious of anything. He ended up walking a bit of the way with Rian, and they didn't talk much. Rian asked him how he was enjoying his trip so far, and Alex let him know that it was turning out to be pretty great. It was kind of hard for Alex to come home and avoid his parents, though, after they wanted to know about his day. His exhaustion also made this pretty difficult, too. He just didn't want them to think his new friends were bad news.

“Did you have a nice day with your friends?” Alex’s dad asked.

“Yeah,” he answered, thinking about it to himself. It definitely had been fun, but he couldn't help but to be uneasy about what he had done with Jack. He wondered if Jack was thinking about it, too. He really didn't remember either of their intentions, even if there were any. It was extremely tiring to think about it at all, actually, so Alex made the decision to go to bed, bidding his mom and dad goodnight.