Hold Me

I am in an extremely generous mood and therefore I decided to update again. The readers should be grateful!!! Actually, it's mostly because for some strange twist of fate I actually have nothing to do tonight other than study... and I have no motivations to study. Therefore, I'm updating! ^^ Enjoy!

epica: how's this? another update on the same day! I can take a hint ^^ And I'm glad you like Eric!
me: I'm glad you're enjoying the story, here's more! and thanks for the review!
jono: don't tell Evan he's cross-dressing... he'll get mad at you! ^^ And I'm glad it made you laugh!
Kaay-chan: I'm glad you like the story so far and thank you for the review! *bows*
kikaria: Here you are! I updated soon! ^^ Enjoy!

“Come on now, let’s play nice!” Eric whined, grabbing Evan’s arm who roughly jerked it away.

“Why should I?” Evan demanded. “All you’ve done since we met is tease me!” he scowled, blushing.

“Yes, and that’s my fault. You’re personality is a bit too much like Asterik’s, and I couldn’t help myself. I’m sorry,” Eric said, and Evan stared. Eric apologizing was the last thing that Evan had expected, and he wasn’t quite sure how to react. “So, I take it we can start over?” Eric prompted. Evan scowled, but nodded and Eric grinned back at him. “Great! Now let’s hurry up and get you out of those girl’s clothes!” Eric declared, dragging Evan along who had no choice to follow.

A shadowy figure moved out from an alleyway nearby and watched them go. He hadn’t heard a word that they had said, but had seen enough of their actions to guess at how close they were. “Damn you, Eric!” the figure growled before stalking off. Confrontation and revenge would have to wait until next time. He still had some loose ends to tie up.
All in all, their shopping trip was a success and, by some miracle, Evan wasn’t angry at Eric when they got back to Alex’s house. “What do you think? Do you think Alex will like it?” Evan asked, studying himself in the new outfit Eric had bought him. He had already promised to pay Eric back, despite Eric’s protests, so he was determined to have no guilty feelings.

“I think you look fabulous,” Eric said, suppressing his laughter. Evan was acting as childish as ever, eager to please.

“I’m not sure if I should appreciate such a comment from a gay person,” Evan grumbled, but didn’t stop admiring himself.

“Hey now, that’s offensive,” Eric teased back.

“You don’t look offended,” Evan replied with a snort, finally turning away from the mirror.

“I’m an easy-going person,” Eric replied with a shrug.

“Yes, that seems to be your only redeeming quality,” Evan shot back.

“Now that was uncalled for!” Eric growled tackling Evan who gave out a shout, struggling out from under him and running straight into the couch. He hissed in pain, but blinked when he suddenly found himself held in someone’s arms. The fact that he could clearly see an embarrassed-looking Eric meant it wasn’t him. Cautiously, Evan looked up into Alex’s face.

“You were supposed to watch him and keep him from getting hurt, not cause it!” Alex growled, part of a longer tirade that Evan had missed. Eric looked sheepish and didn’t respond to Alex’s lecture.

“Alex! Y-You’re home!” Evan suddenly exclaimed, having finally registered his predicament. Great, so much for an impressive welcome home. He had spent all of that time pruning and looking ridiculous in front of the mirror for nothing.

“Yes, and just in time too,” Alex said, shooting a glare at Eric.

“You have rotten timing, you know that?” Eric shot back, returning Alex’s glare.

“It wasn’t Eric’s fault! We were just messing around,” Evan said, at last, pushing away from Alex’s embrace. Alex looked startled, but forced himself to relax.

“You’re not children,” Alex muttered.

“The kid is,” Eric replied with a smirk.

“I am not!”

“See? What did I tell you?”

“I see you two get along splendidly,” Alex replied with a smile and a shake of his head.

“Of course! I get along with everyone,” Eric said at the same time Evan said “We do not!” With this, Alex started laughing and Eric soon joined him. Evan merely scowled, knowing that their laughter was at his expense.

“So, what did you do all day?” Alex asked at last.

“Just look at the kid and see,” Eric replied with a smirk. Alex blinked in surprise and did as he was told. Evan did not expect a dark blush to be Alex’s reaction to his new outfit, but for some reason he was pleased by it. Although that was ridiculous.

“Evan... You, uh... look great,” Alex mumbled, eyes roving over Evan in a way that was making the boy uncomfortable.

“Thanks. Eric helped me pick it out,” Evan replied, smiling.

“I should have known it was your tastes,” Alex shot Eric a glare.

“Hey! I thought that I was doing you a favor. And it isn’t all my taste. The kid tossed back a couple that were all my taste,” Eric responded.

“I’ll grant Eric points that he didn’t suggest anything pink,” Evan replied, smirking at Eric.

“Of course not! Blue suits you much better than pink. If you wore pink you’d look like a girl again,” Eric responded with a girl and Evan colored hotly.

“Hold on, you said ‘again’?” Alex prompted, and Evan looked mortified before glaring at Eric.

“Ah, sorry Alex, but my lips are sealed with that one,” Eric responded with a wink. “And now that the kitty’s master is home, I believe I’ll take my leave,” Eric said with a bow, before turning and exiting the house.

“Well? What did you think of Eric? He’s quite a character, isn’t he?” Alex said, laughing uneasily.

“You two are completely unsuited for each other,” Evan growled, and Alex blushed, not sure in what way Evan meant.

“I... see...” Alex mumbled, not sure what else to say.

“He’s obviously just a leech on you!” Evan declared and Alex relaxed.

“That may be so, but he’s a good friend when you have problems. He can take your mind off of anything, couldn’t you tell?” Alex asked and Evan started. He hadn’t given a single thought, besides the time Eric mentioned Alex buying him clothes, to the trouble he was causing Alex and thoughts of running away again.

“Yeah... I suppose you’re right,” Evan mumbled, looking surprised.

“So you see? He does have his uses,” Alex replied with a laugh. “Now then, with all you’ve been doing today you must be starving. How about I make us some dinner?” Alex suggested, and Evan brightened immediately.

“Yes please!” he exclaimed, looking so eager it caused Alex to laugh.

“All right then, just be patient for a little while longer,” Alex said, before heading back into the kitchen.

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“That was delicious!” Evan declared, once they had finished.
Alex blushed and smiled, “Thanks, I’m glad you liked it.”

“What about your sister?” Evan asked, a little nervous.

“She called to say that she was going out to eat and drink with a couple of her co-workers, so she probably won’t be home until late. I made some for her, just in case, which can keep in the oven. But we don’t have to worry about her,” Alex said, smiling at Evan.

“Sorry... She just makes me nervous,” Evan replied.

“I understand, and I apologize for my sister,” Alex responded.

“There’s no reason for you to apologize! She... has a point,” Evan said at last. “It probably would be better if I left,” Evan murmured, not noticing Alex’s crestfallen look.

“If you really want to leave so badly, I won’t try to stop you. But only if you can prove to me that you have a safe place to go to. I’m not going to let you go out there just to wander on the streets and almost die on somebody else’s doorstep,” Alex stated, standing up and clearing the dishes from the counter. Evan looked startled and watched Alex as he moved about. Evan wasn’t sure if he’d ever had anybody care for him the way Alex did. Well, maybe Sarah, but that was a long time ago. He blushed and looked away, the more he got to know Alex, the less he wanted to leave. He wasn’t sure what these feelings were, but he wanted to stay by Alex’s side. “Tomorrow, I don’t have any classes, so Eric and I were planning on taking you to the nearby high school to see what we needed to do to get you back into school,” Alex said, after a long silence.

“I already told you, it’s unnecessary. I’ll simply get a part-time job. You’re already paying for food, you don’t have to give me an education either. There are plenty of places around here that’ll hire a kid with only a middle school diploma,” Evan stated.

“Regardless, the work is better and safer if you’ve at least gone to high school. If you don’t, you’ll limit yourself. You’re a much better person than the options you’ve been given have allowed you to be. I simply want to ensure that you have the chance to reach your full potential,” Alex said with a smile.

“You sound like Sa.... Like a mother,” Evan stated, catching himself before he said such a painful name. Alex blushed and scowled at Evan, and Evan unbelievably found himself thinking that such an expression was cute on Alex and couldn’t hold in a laugh.

“I’m glad you find it amusing,” Alex pouted. Being compared to a mother was not what Alex had been hoping for. Although what he truly was hoping for was probably asking for too much. Alex and Evan managed to hold a normal conversation, discussing books and TV shows. Evan didn’t know much about movies and television, which didn’t surprise Alex, however the older boy was surprised at all of the books Evan had read. They also seemed to have similar tastes in books, although Evan hadn’t read many recent titles.

“I prefer the old classics,” Evan replied with a shrug. Eventually, they returned to the living room and Alex turned on the TV. They sat next to each other, occasionally chatting over meaningless things, but for the most part just relaxing in each other’s presence. Later that night, Alex heard the door open and looked up to see his sister walk in.

“Your dinner’s in the oven,” he told her. She turned to look at them, frowning the entire time.

“It seems your cat has grown fond of you,” she said coldly, turning away and heading towards the stove which was out of sight. Alex glanced down and found Evan asleep, curled up beside him. In his sleep he really did look like a cat and Alex smiled before reaching down and stroking Evan’s hair.

“You should have told me you were tired,” he whispered. He carefully shifted away, making sure not to wake Evan. When able to, he stood and picked up Evan in his arms, cradling the smaller boy close against his body. “I suppose you can take my bed for the night,” Alex decided, carrying the boy to his room. He lay the boy down on the bed and meticulously tucked him in, making sure that he didn’t stir, before climbing in next to him. To his surprise, Evan gravitated towards him and snuggled close. Alex smiled and gently draped his arms around Evan before lying his head down on the pillow and allowing himself to join Evan in dreams.