Home for the Summer (BOYXBOY)

26 | 4 Months and 21 Days

The bed was empty when I woke up the next morning. I knew Nico spending hours at the gym every day shouldn't bother me but, after what he told me last night, I sort of assumed it wasn't quite as healthy as I thought. And, maybe a part of me looked forward to waking up beside him, only to have it ruined every time. Today, there was no note left on the TV. His side of the bed was still wrinkled up and the clock read 10:03 AM. I sat up and blinked into the light of morning.

"Oh, hey," a voice whispered. I glanced to the bathroom door where Nico stood, toothbrush in hand. "Sorry, did I wake you?"

I shook my head before squinting at him. "Did you... Not go to the gym?"

"Uh, yeah," he shrugged, placing the toothbrush on a counter. "I thought I'd skip it today." I smiled and glanced towards Benji, who was still fast asleep and facing the window.

"What caused the change of heart?"

"Well," he grinned, leaning over to the bed. "I guess I didn't really feel like leaving so early this morning."

"And why's that?"

He dipped down so that we were mere centimeters apart. "I think you know why, Ollie." Nico pressed his thumb against the bottom of my chin, kissing me quickly before standing up. "It was worth it," he smiled. "You look nice in the mornings."

Our lips met again, my hand dropping down to pull the collar of his shirt closer. I still couldn't quite believe that this was actually happening. I had spent the summer watching Nico like a film and now, I was kissing him in a hotel room.

"What are we doing today?" he asked, letting our lips separate.

"Uh," I looked away as blush began to spread across my face. "Maybe that Smorgasburg place Izzy mentioned? The big food market."

Nico twitched for a moment before smiling. "Yeah, totally. That sounds really fun."

Benji twisted to face us in his bed, stretching and sitting up. "Morning."

"Did you just wake up at the mention of food?"

He grinned and leaned back against an arm. "Maybe."

"Oh my god."

"You're back from the gym awfully early, Nicolas."

"Ah, I skipped it this morning."

"Hm," Benji replied simply. "Can we go to breakfast, then?"

"Yeah, yeah. I'll text the girls," I said, grabbing my phone as Nico returned to the bathroom.

***

Benji watched me eat from across the table, which was expected, because I was literally falling asleep at the cafe booth. After three solid nights of 4 hours of rest, my body was taking a toll. Nico would occasionally tap my hand or shake my shoulder to jolt me awake, but everyone else began to notice after a bit.

"Apollo? You okay?" Izzy asked from behind her muffin.

"Just tired," I groaned. "I have trouble sleeping away from home, so I haven't been getting much rest."

Rowan gave me a small smile and nodded to my latte. "Drink your coffee, then. Maybe that'll wake you up."

I propped my head against my palm as I drank and managed not to stare at Nicolas for the entire breakfast. There was nothing I wanted more than to shoo everyone else out of the cafe so I could get a chance to talk about last night with him, but it seemed like the next time we might have a moment alone would be when we returned home. Terrific.