“Done.” Theo grinned.
Standing up, they grabbed their towels, bags, and trash, and made their way to the train station with disheveled heads and patchy, reddened skin.
The evening was quite chill. They ate like pigs while watchingThe Crow, only to end up sprawled on the floor, cackling as they showed each other black humor memes that should make them question their own sanity. When Noah was with these two, time never passed, but also moved way too fast. They never gotbored, spending hours and hours talking, joking, and laughing until their stomachs hurt. Yet, every minute with them felt like a second.
“I’m gonna miss you so fucking much,” Noah said out loud, easing out of his laughter as tears brimmed his eyes.
“No, dude. Don’t do that.” Theo slapped his chest with the back of his hand. “If you cry, I cry. So, stop it.” He rolled over, crushing Noah’s body with his as he laid on top of him and pinched his side. “Babies are not allowed in here.”
“I’m not crying!”
“Group hug!” Val shouted as he stood up and let himself fall over them.
“Fu-uck!” Noah protested between laughs, a stray tear rolling down his cheek. “Get off me!” He tried slapping either of them, but his arms were trapped.
“No fucking way!”
“Yo, Val!” Theo called out. “Careful with that knee. I still wanna have kids.”
“If you ever do, they’ll be little demons in disguise.”
“I wish I could tell you to fuck off, but if they end up being like me, they sure will set the world on fire.”
The three of them laughed. Noah could barely breathe, but the sliver of pain felt so good for once in his life, he wouldn’t change it for anything. The way his concerns disappeared when he was with Val and Theo was like nothing he’d ever known. They were chaotic bliss. His rock. His calm in the storm.
Unfortunately, when Noah was alone, the noise in his head turned up again.
It was almost two in the morning when they went to sleep, leaving him with his thoughts in the dark and an unanswered text.
Days passed on the calendar, and nothing. Not a fucking word from Kaj.
Determined to ask why he hadn’t replied to his last text, even to cut his losses if necessary, as he walked to the train station after his Friday shift, Noah dialed Kaj’s number. It was late, but he was such a night owl, Noah was sure he would still be awake.
One. Two. Three. Four. Five.
“Hey, you...” His voice was deeper than normal, hoarse with a note of exhaustion.
“Don’t‘hey, you’me. If you’re still alive, you could have texted back or something.”
“Been in a lousy mood for a few days,” Kaj slurred. “I’ll make it up to you soon enough, yeah?”
“You don’t need to.” Noah’s steps sounded as angry as his tone.
“Don’t be like that. You know I love that tight ass of yours. You’re my favorite toy.”
“Yeah. And that’s all I’ll ever be. A hole to keep your dick warm.”
A slurping sound resonated on the other end of the call. “Mmm... Kaj. You taste so good.”
Noah froze in the middle of the street as jealousy swam to the surface.
Was that—a woman’s voice?
“We’ll talk another time,” Kaj rasped.
The line cut.
Bile crept up Noah’s throat and his brain synapses collapsed.
