totally not a revelation I made about a girl in the ensemble for Little Shop
"You and Tyler would look so cute together."
Josh was currently lying across the couch in the drama room, playing games on his phone while waiting to be called to rehearse for their school's production of Spring Awakening. It was way after school, past 9 o'clock on a Thursday night, and he was too tired to be functioning correctly. He glanced up from his phone, seeing his friend Debby staring at him with wide eyes.
"What?" Josh asked, not sure if he heard her correctly.
"You and Tyler would look cute together," she repeated, leaning her head against her boyfriend's shoulder. "You know, as a couple."
He laughed, looking up at Tyler, who was playing a game of hangman on the wall with a group of the other actors in the musical. Tyler was smiling ear to ear, eyes squinting as he did so, his hair wild from the various quick costume changes they had to do over the rehearsal.
"Nah," Josh said, although he couldn't help smiling to himself. "Just because we're both bi and platonic husbands doesn't mean we'd be a cute couple. Plus, I'm a senior and he's a sophomore. I'm leaving for college in like, three months. That'd be weird."
Debby's boyfriend James blew raspberries at Josh, snuggling into Debby. "You guys would look so fucking good, though," he said.
"Shut up, you straighties."
Tyler looked over at Josh and yelled, "Hey, babe, come and play UNO with us!"
Josh slipped his phone in his back pocket and joined the group on the floor surrounding Patrick, who was dealing the cards out. Tyler tangled his legs with Josh, leaning on him.
"No cheating," Josh teased, nudging him away when he saw Tyler poking his head over his shoulder to look at his cards.
Tyler pouted, fluttering his eyelashes. "Don't be that way, Moritz. I'm just looking at you and your beautiful face."
"Mhm." Josh nudged him away, but more playful. "I'm sure you are."
The game started, and halfway through, Tyler's phone buzzed. He checked it, smiling to himself when he did so. Josh glanced over, curious but not wanting to be too nosy.
"Is it your girl?" He asked teasingly, forcing a smile.
Tyler's face went bright red. "Maybe."
"What'd she say?"
"Jenna's coming to see the show Saturday night," he said, unable to contain his excitement. "I'm going to see her at the Starbucks she works at before the show, though."
Josh's stomach twisted, and he felt empty when Tyler detangled his legs, texting Jenna back. "You need to ask her out, dude."
"Dude, no," Tyler said, blushing even darker.
When Josh looked over at Debby, shaking his head, she just raised an eyebrow and made a heart with her hands. He stuck his tongue out at her.
—
Later that night, Josh was trying to fall asleep, but he couldn't stop thinking about what Debby said. Him and Tyler, a couple.
They wouldn't be good together. Sure, Tyler was cute and kind and energetic and passionate about theater, not to mention touchy and awkward and confident and just overall an angel in the flesh, but that didn't mean he'd date someone like Josh.
Except when Josh closed his eyes, all he saw was Tyler's smile, and Tyler kissing him in the dark, his body lying on top of Josh's on that drama room couch, warm and safe and heavenly.
Josh's eyes shot open and he sat up in a start, hot and sweating. "Oh, fuck."
