The Graduation

Chapter 6- Close Call

28th of May, 2023

11:53 am

"Kaiden you home? Kaiden?" No response came and Declan glanced around the apartment before going back out through the door and leading Bear in by the hand.

"So this is your place. It's nice, it's nice." Bear smiled, looking around dramatically at the plain apartment. Decan rolled his eyes, and pulled Bear closer, clasping his other hand and gave him a gentle kiss. Bear, who'd been there several times before, walked over the fridge and pulled out a bottle of water for himself, and a can of coke which he threw at Declan. Bear then grabbed a bag of chips from the cupboard and headed into Declan's room, flopping down on the bed. He touched the panel on the wall and up popped the hologram of a movie. Declan settled next to him and they lay together watching some cringy romcom.

As he lay there, Declan thought of nothing but Bear's warm side resting in his and his gentle fingers stroking his boyfriend's arm. He was perfectly content as he lay watching the protagonist realise his love for the sweet women who he had just left. The music was romantic and dramatic as it built to the climatic kiss scene. He leant down and pressed his lips to Bear's head, pulling him closer to curl his arms around his .

Bear's mind, on the other hand, was busy. As he lay there, his mind was on his future. His job was going well, though he had a current project that he hadn't quite finished yet, and his friends were all well on their way to successful futures. But he really wanted to announce his relationship with Declan to the world. Declan had been trying to convince Bear to announce their relationship for months now, but Bear still hadn't come out to his family. He knew that they'd still love him, plus he had a suspicion that Gammy already knew as she was constantly asking the boys to do chores for her together, and conveniently leaving the room whenever they were talking, but it was a big step.

Bear couldn't help feeling worried about telling his friends, even if they could all tell that he and Declan were secretly together. They were always supportive, but sometimes he felt their reactions were too big and made him feel a bit uncomfortable. Plus, there were a few pretty big gossips amongst the group, so he knew that the moment he told anyone, everyone would know, and as much as he was at peace with his sexuality, he knew there were still some close minded people out there.

His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of a key turning in the door and the happy chatter and laughter of Kaiden and Alex. This caused him and Declan to panic, launching themselves to their feet, and hurriedly turned off the screen. Declan gestured towards the balcony that juttered out the back of the apartment, and he and Bear slipped out just as Kaiden called out Declan's name and opened the door to his room. Bear peered around the wall and through the window into Declan's room. He saw the back of Kaiden's head as he began to leave and whispered to Declan, "I think he's leaving." Kaiden, apparently hearing the quiet mutter, turned back with a confused expression. Bear pressed his back to the wall, heart hammering. With a quizzical expression, Declan looked at Bear and went to talk but Bear's cool hand pressed itself over his mouth, suppressing the words. Turning to peer back inside, all Bear saw was an empty room so he shimmied in the window with the taller boy close behind.

Bear slipped off the bed and peaked a head out of the doorway. Kaiden and Alex were sitting in the living room, with the TV switched on and cups of coffee in their hands. Declan was climbing through the window behind him and fell clumsily partway off the bed with his head landing on the ground with a thud. Bear quickly shut the door with a snap, knowing that Kaiden and Alex had heard the commotion. "What are you doing? They heard you!" Declan's lopsided grin faded and he flipped himself right side up. Hearing one of the others stand up from the couch and call out "who's there" the brown-haired boy slipped into the cupboard, finding himself amongst Declan's jumpers and pressed his face against the small slit in the doors to watch.