"Hey, do you want to go to Zenix's party tonight?"
Zane looked up from his book, at the black haired male sitting next to him. He raised an eyebrow at him, tilting his head slightly. He knew Gene very well, not as well as Zenix or Sasha did, but he knew him well. The only reason Zane was even a Shadow Knight was because he could have easily blackmailed him or damaged his reputation, and because he constantly pestered him to join. Even then, Gene would have never offered Zane a ride anywhere, let alone even let him go to a party that they went to.
Gene said it had something to do with Zane being the "innocent" Shadow Knight.
"Sasha is over there." Zane said, looking back down at his book.
"I'm talking to you, Zane." Gene responded, typing something on his phone. "Let's go to the party together."
"I.... um...." He stammered, trying to think of something to say. "Wouldn't that be, I don't know.... weird..?"
"Not at all! Why would it be?" He asked, giving him a sideways glance.
"I-I don't know...." He stuttered, looking down with an embarrassed blush. "I-I don't go to these parties ever, so t-to show up unexpectedly and be with you..."
"What? Afraid someone will think we're dating?" He questioned, giving him a smirk.
"A-A little...." He sighed, folding down a corner of the page and closing the book. "It's bad enough that I'm in your gang--"
"Excuse me?" Gene demanded, a hint of anger in his voice. "You're the one that wanted to be in this gang. If you don't wanna be in this group anymore, I will happily kick you out."
"N-No! It's not anything like that!!" Zane squeaked, holding his book up in defense. "I-It's just that my older brother.... he's literally the definition of 'overprotective big brother'...."
"I know. That bruise is still on my stomach from when he found out I let you in." He groaned, rolling his eyes. "Anyway, I thought it would be nice if the two of us went together. You know, to actually get to know you without any of your brothers around."
"I guess...." He trailed off, pulling his mask up higher to hide his blush.
"But you do want to go, right?" He asked, giving him another sideways glance.
"Yeah...." He sighed, nodding. "If I told my mom about the party, she'd have me grounded for a month and, hopefully this is an exaggeration, hire a group of bodyguards to keep watch over me."
"I'll come pick you up at five, okay?" He said, getting up. "Try to eat something beforehand."
"O-Okay...." He nodded, blushing a bit more.
~~~~
"Is Garroth home?"
Zane looked over his shoulder at the older male, who was holding an unopened bag of Doritos he had gotten from the kitchen. Zane looked back at his mirror, pulling the shirt over his head and pulling it down.
"No, he's at Laurance's place tonight." Zane answered, running his hands through his bangs. "My parents are at work, as usual, and Vylad is at Aphmau's place, learning to make salsa, and then he's staying the night with Travis."
"Good, because I've been wanting to do this for a while now..." Gene trailed off, approaching Zane.
His rough hands were placed on Zane's waist, turning him around so they were facing each other. He leaned in very slowly, hooking his thumb inside of Zane's mask and pulling it down. Before Zane could react, his lips met Gene's in a kiss. It was a soft kiss, like Gene was acting as though Zane's lips were made of glass, and the contact would shatter them.
"What.... what?" Zane asked quietly, after they pulled apart from each other.
"Hm?" Gene hummed, raising an eyebrow. "Is something wrong?"
"I-It's just.... you've always been so cold and mean to me, trying as best as you could to be distant...." He sighed, blushing out of embarrassment. "I-I've always imagined doing that with you, but I never thought that I actually would...."
"I'm cold and distant because I don't want to force you to date me." He yawned, lifting Zane's chin up, keeping a firm hold on it. "If I'm being honest here, I've had dreams of doing much more than just kissing you~."
"S-Stop! You're gonna make me embarrassed!" He whined, squeaking as Gene played with his hair. "B-But.... do you mean like.... watching movies and going on dates...?"
"This is why I call you the innocent Shadow Knight." He chuckled, shaking his head. "That's part of it though."
"Why do you love me...?" He asked, a doubtful look on his face. "There's nothing to love about me..."
"Zane, there are so many things a person could love about you." He stated, picking him up bridal style. "You're different than other people, let's put it that way."
"Is it a good different?" He asked nervously, smiling.
"Of course it is." He nodded, giving him a kiss on the forehead. "But, Zane, will you.... will you be my boyfriend?"
"Oh my Irene, Gene.... what about Garroth?" He gasped, looking up at him.
"What about him?" He questioned, raising an eyebrow as he layed down on the bed with him.
"He's so overprotective of me.... aren't you afraid of what he'll do?" He asked, cuddling up to him.
"Me, afraid of Garroth? Never." He chuckled, rubbing Zane's back. "He's got nothing to worry about. I'll treat you the way you want to be treated."
"What about Zenix's party?" Zane asked, remembering their plans for the night.
"I already told him that we wouldn't show up." He yawned, giving him a small stroke on the head. "That kinda bummed the others out. They wanted to see me kiss you."
"T-They did?" He smiled, propping himself up on his elbows.
"Yeah they did." He sighed, smirking at him. "Come here, darling.."
Zane leaned in, kissing Gene again. He wrapped his arms around Gene's neck, with the older male placing his hands on Zane's waist. Zane blushed a little as Gene's tongue forced a way through Zane's lips, making a small squeaking sound.
"I love you, Zane." Gene said, after they pulled away.
"I love you too, Gene..." Zane whispered, resting on top of him.
