All Brand New {BoyxBoy}

All Brand New {6}

"Smile!"

"No."

"Come on, please, just for the photo?" Elliot pouts.

"What's the point of smiling for a photo if it's not even real?" I ask, refusing to look up from my book.

"Ugh, fine." The camera clicks and the flash flares. Elliot is waving the polaroid trying to make it develop faster. "You suck, by the way."

I look up from the pages of my book with a straight face. "If I recall correctly," I clear my throat, preparing it for a higher pitch. "I'll suck your dick for a pancake," I mock. "So if anyone sucks, it's you." Elliot's face turns crimson, not just his cheeks, but his whole face. I nearly burst out laughing but choose to keep my face composed as I give my attention back to my book.

I hear snickering coming from the living room behind us. I'm sitting awkwardly in one of the dining chairs, facing away from the other room. It's comfortable enough though, so I stay.

"Fuck off, Red," Elliot says. I hear him walk out of the dining room and towards where Red is lounging on the couch.

A couple days have passed since I got the book my mom sent me. I'm close to finishing it and am dreading the ending for two reasons. One, I know how it ends. Two, I don't have another book to read afterwards. I think of asking Arran to drive me to a bookstore but the second problem I have is that I lack money. Everything I need is provided at Athenside and I hadn't the foresight to save anything extra. My mistake.

"Give that back, it's mine!" I hear Elliot yell from the other room. I close my book, folding the corner of the page to keep my place. It seems I won't be getting any peace down here so I leave the book on the wooden table and get up from the dining chair, stretching out my muscles. I would have stayed in my room to read except I'd been hiding in there a bit too much lately and I'm trying to make the effort to get to know the others. Even if that just means reading down here instead of upstairs. "I'll duck tape your balls together if you don't give it back. I need it for the wall!"

Red holds the photo Elliot had taken above his head, out of Elliot's reach. The blond does everything he can to reach it, including jumping from the couch but Red just moves it out of the way.

I stand between the two and look up at Red, taking his attention away from Elliot. His warm brown eyes look into mine curiously. I lean closer towards him. His eyes dart from my eyes to my lips and for just a moment, he lets his guard down and I pull away. Red's arm drops enough for Elliot to grab the photo and run.

My plan is poorly thought through, not that I even had one to begin with. Elliot calls out a thank you from the stairs, escaping with ease. I am not so lucky. Red doesn't let me go. His hands hold me in place at my sides and follow the stretch of my shirt to my hips. He holds me tightly enough I think I might bruise.

"That was rude, Ven. Teasing gets boys like you into all sorts of trouble." He smirks down at me, then lets me go like I am nothing more than a toy he's finished playing with. My cheeks redden and I'm not sure how to feel.

Many of the boys I'm becoming familiar with are out today and the house feels vaguely empty. With Elliot's betrayal and a lack of traffic flow through the shared spaces I'm left vulnerable and alone with the tall, dark-haired boy. He steps closer to me again, making no effort to catch me as I fall back against the couch. He's fucking messing with me.

Red leans down, lips brushing against my ear as whispers, "Do it again and I won't walk away." My heart thuds hard against my chest, threatening to lurch from my ribs.

To burst my bubble, a familiar click startles me from the stairs and the following flash blinds me. My traitor hops up from the steps with his camera eagerly waiting for the picture to print.