perf*ct (boy × boy) ✔

twenty-two: ask him out

solar clarke's pov:

Before we moved to Frostford, I was somewhat popular in my school. I was on the baseball team and I hung out with my teammates, who the girls admired and the boys looked up to. But being popular in my old school couldn't have been more different than it was in Frostford High. 

We weren't worshipped like gods and there was no enormous gap between the popular and the nobodies. I guess that's the reason why I didn't pay much attention to it back then. I just went to school, practiced my baseball skills and hung out with my friends. 

Of course the admiring looks were a plus and it even helped me to get some attention from good-looking guys. Though I was never a hookup kind of guy and there definitely weren't any jock orgies where I come from. Well, at least no one told me, if there were. I don't know if that's a good or a bad thing.

Anyway, that's off the point. Kind of.

Being popular had its downsides even in my old school. It took me two and a half years to find out my friends were nothing more than a bunch of assholes. Turned out that behind my back they were bullies who took it out on the nobodies, especially on the quiet nerdy guys. When I confronted my friends, well, let's just say it didn't end well. 

For example, all that time they had been completely fine with me being gay, but I started getting snarky remarks about it as soon as I told them bullies were pathetic waste of space. The remarks weren't even good, so I learned that my friends weren't just a bunch of assholes but idiots as well.

I don't regret confronting them. Of course it helped that I knew we were moving in just a couple of months or so, so I only needed to hang on till then — and try not to beat up too many of my asshole friends in the meantime. And no, don't get me wrong, it wasn't like I was bullied. It was more like I had poked a wasp nest and had to deal with a few stings by its disturbed inhabitants.

Either way, I didn't actually mind moving away. In Frostford I had Kieran and I was quick to make new friends. I just wasn't that big of a fan of Frostford High, not until I met Nathan.

°°°°

I was in class, minding my own business, when somebody threw a wrinkled ball of paper right to my temple. I turned my head so fast it was a miracle my neck didn't break and scowled at Johnny, who smiled at me apologetically from his desk.

I straightened the paper and inside of it was a text: "Wanna go grab a burger after school? Yes □ No □" Instead of scribbling my answer on the paper, I picked up my phone and started typing. 

Solar: Why don't you just text me like a normal person?

Johnny: Where's the fun in that? 

Johnny: So, you're coming or not?

Solar: Yup, I'm in.

Call me weird or whatever you want, but I'm not actually big on fast food. I mean, I won't die if I have a burger or pizza once or twice a year, but I don't exactly crave either of those. I like fries though, and that's what I was having on our burger date after school. 

Kieran, Johnny and I went to this small diner near our school. I had walked past the building a couple of times, but never really paid much attention to it. It wasn't some super fancy vintage American diner, but already almost all its tables were occupied.. by students from Frostford High. The booths by the windows were all taken, so we took possession of a table near the counter.

I ordered the fries and a chocolate milkshake, while Kieran and Johnny were having burgers. My gaze wandered on the mint green walls that time had turned yellow-ish, the small paintings and the windowed facade before I started eyeing the other customers without much real interest.

"Isn't that your Sky?" It was a question that caught my attention. I glanced around with new interest, but I couldn't see him at any of the tables. When Kieran noticed my puzzled expression, he tilted his head towards the counter. 

My heart skipped a beat the same second my gaze landed on a familiar pair of eyes. He was looking straight back at me and I swear my heart had some sort of a glitch when his face lit up with genuine joy of seeing me. Although he only smiled at me briefly before he turned to take an order from a customer.

"I can't believe I'm even asking this." I began, not taking my eyes off Nathan. "But what's this Sky thing all about?"

"He's the sky to your sun, obviously." Johnny winked exaggeratedly, taking a noisy slurp from his soda. I shot him an annoyed glance and sighed, after which Johnny hurried to explain: "You're Solar, so you're the sun and he has sky blue eyes so he's the sky, so you two just go together."

When I sighed again, Kieran and Johnny changed puzzled looks. They had been grinning like idiots only seconds ago, but gradually their expressions turned to worry. Maybe they thought I was going to snap at them, after all I was known for my quick temper.

"I know this is just a joke to you, but I'm serious. I might actually like him. So don't scare him off, okay?" I glared at my friends, more desperate than angry.

"But he's Nicholas' brother." Johnny gave me a puzzled glance, like he was still unsure if I was kidding or not. I shrugged and leaned back on my seat. 

"Yeah, what about Nicholas?" Kieran joined the conversation.

"I don't know, I guess I'll just have to figure it out." I glanced at Nathan, who had been looking at me behind the counter and quickly turned away once he had been caught doing so. 

"So you are serious? And this isn't just one of your crushes?" Johnny continued. He did have a point there, because I had my history of crushing hard one second and moving on the other. It was something I tended to do every time I saw a good-looking guy. 

"No, it's really not." I was still staring at Nathan, who was trying to take an order from some kid and blushed deep red once he noticed my eyes on him. The poor guy was really struggling to get his work done, thanks to me. 

"What are you waiting for then?" Kieran nudged my shoulder. "Don't just stare, go ask him out." 

"But what if he doesn't like me that way?" I hesitated. What if he turned me down and I managed to ruin our friendship in the process? 

"Just go. Right now." Kieran demanded. "If you don't go now, you'll never do it. And if you don't go for it, you'll never get what you want."

Just one more nudge and I was on my feet. My heart was pounding like crazy when I started heading towards the counter and I couldn't look away when Nathan turned to look at me. He smiled shyly, and I was dead.

How could someone be so adorable?