The Bandana Code (Jalex)

Magenta: Armpit

Alex lay on his bed absentmindedly fingering the freshly formed scar just above his hip.

It was an unseasonably hot day, and he was really feeling the effects. Their air conditioning was broken so he was laid on the bed wearing nothing but his boxers with several fans pointed directly at him. The artificial breeze was warmer than he'd like but the repair guy wasn't coming until Wednesday, so it was the best he was going to get.

He sighed with content as his fingers ran over the letters. JB. Jack had carved his initials into his hip and Alex loved it.

He still couldn't believe he'd done it; it had been such a shock when he'd been changing the dressing the morning after and saw the fresh wound. They hadn't spoken about it and Alex hadn't been able to gauge how Jack felt about it but if he was honest, he absolutely adored it. It certainly hadn't helped with his not so little crush.

There was a knock at the door and Alex grudgingly got to his feet. He could already feel beads of sweat starting to form as he reached the hallway. He pulled the door open and was especially surprised to find a sweaty Jack stood there.

"Please tell me you guys have your air-con on." He groaned, pushing past Alex into the apartment. "It's broken." Alex sighed, closing the door as Jack groaned in dismay.

Jack followed him back through to the bedroom and began stripping off as Alex collapsed back on the bed. He soon joined him as Alex released a heavy sigh.

"Urgh, it's so hot," Alex whined, stretching himself out further to try and get as much of his body in the fan's air stream. Jack hummed in response, trying to get as comfortable as he could.

He watched as Alex absentmindedly ran his fingers over his hip scar and barely managed to hide his blush. He still wasn't fully comfortable with his realisation just yet and he was always incredibly conscious of his actions giving him away.

It was moments like this when he wondered if maybe Alex felt the same way. He obviously wasn't bothered about what Jack'd done. If anything, he seemed to like it.

He looked away, staring at the ceiling as he chewed his bottom lip. He couldn't let himself think like that. If he was wrong and then made things weird by acting upon his feelings, then he'd never forgive himself. Alex was his best friend, and he didn't know what he'd do without him.

He took a deep breath, frowning slightly as his nose twitched. He sniffed a little at the deep musky scent invading his nose. It was good, really good.

He inhaled deeper as he tried to place it. It had a natural, earthy quality amongst the deep musky tones, and it was also kind of... spicy? It was altogether foreign yet familiar at the same time. Where the hell is that coming from?

"Can you smell that?" He asked, breaking the companionable silence. Alex frowned, head falling to the side in a half-assed attempt to look at him. "What?" He looked slightly confused by the slightly random question.

"Can't you smell that?" He asked, sniffing harder as he sat up, trying to locate the source. His dick twitched in his boxers as he inhaled deeper and fucking hell that was embarrassing.