Delicate

Chapter Seventeen

Milan was over the moon.

When he woke up the next morning, he had to pinch himself to make sure that Leo kissing him wasn't a dream. But when he saw the message he had from the older boy— it made everything real.

To : Milan | From : Leo

Goodmorning. Can't wait to see you.

Milan grinned. He never knew a simple good morning message would be enough to make him smile at his phone like a lovesick idiot. Leo had sent the message just five minutes prior, so Milan immediately texted back.

To : Leo | From : Milan

good morning!! see you in like an hour

Milan went on about his morning ritual after that. He didn't notice that Leo had replied to his message until he was in kitchen, having his breakfast.

To : Milan | From : Leo

How about I pick you up and we drive to school together? Be there in thirty.

Milan's eyes widened as he looked at the time stamp. Leo had sent it twenty minutes ago, which meant he'd be coming over in ten. Milan quickly started swallowing his breakfast, not even tasting it. This caused his mom to give him a look of suspicion, which Milan ignored.

"I'm leaving," Milan stated as he picked up his bag.

"Did the bus timings change?" Milan's mom asked.

"No, a friend of mine is picking me up," Milan answered, trying his best to sound casual.

"Oh. A friend? Or a friend?" She questioned again.

"Just a friend," Milan muttered.

"Have I met him?"

"No."

"Is he a new boyfriend?" She asked, "I was talking to Evan's mom recently. She said she misses you both, that you were both so good together. You didn't even tell me why you both broke up. Maybe you should talk to him again and—"

"I'm not talking to Evan ever again," Milan cut her off. He sighed, already irritated by her meddling, "I'm getting late. Bye."

Milan was fuming by the time he walked out of his house. His mom had mentioned it several times since his break up with Evan. She talked about what a sweet boy he was, and how he was a good influence on Milan and what not. Milan had tried to tell her what happened, but she never cared.

Sure, she was best friends with Evan's mom, and had known him since he was a baby. But that doesn't excuse her taking Milan's ex's side without listening to his side of the story.

Milan walked down the driveway, just in time for Leo to pull up in front of his house. Milan got in the car, and the older boy immediately noticed that something wasn't right.

"Is everything okay?" Leo asked, looking concerned.

"It's fine," Milan mumbled as he put on his seatbelt.

"The fact that you buckled yourself in and didn't use it as an excuse for me to get close to you means that something clearly isn't fine," Leo stated.

"Wait— you knew!?" Milan exclaimed, making Leo shrug.

"It's a little tight but it's not that bad. It was kind of obvious," Leo replied.

"Why didn't you say anything before?" Milan asked.

"Because maybe... Maybe I like being close to you just as much as you do," Leo answered.

Milan was at a loss for words as his cheeks flushed red. This seemed to happen quite often when he was with Leo. As he stared at the boy in the driver's seat, everything that happened in the morning was already forgotten.