𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫

2

The two boys jokingly fought in the locker room trying to see who could win, of course the end result was the usual, the two boys out of breath and gasping for air. Cody liked the way Jamie sounded when he gasped it seemed desperate, raspy, Cody wanted to be the one to make him make those sounds. The blonde didn't even realize he had zoned out until Jamie was there waving a hand in his face rapidly.

"Yoooo, you were totally just spacing. What were you thinkin about?" he asked finally.

"Nothing much just about some girl." 

Cody realized his answer was dumb when Jamie's eyes lit up with mischief and he raised an eyebrow. You see most boys don't talk about this sort of stuff together, it just isn't how they work but for Cody and Jamie this is how it has always worked.

"Oh shut up, you're being weird." Cody groaned as he removed his practice jersey to throw his shirt back on.

"Well, go on, who is this girl. She has to be more than just some girl if you're paying attention to her." Jamie insisted following suite and stripping.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Well, ever since we were young you never really had crushes bro. Like you're very picky and your choices are questionable." Jamie said with a laugh.

Cody rolled his eyes, "Funny, considering one of them has been you for so long." He thought to himself.

"I dunno man, honestly I don't even like her that much she just gives me the feels." He said instead.

Jamie chuckled knowing he wasn't going to get anymore out of his friend and pulled the wonderful blue sweater out of his locker. It caught Cody's eyes immediately. It was something about the way that it hung just low enough that you could see the scar on Jamie's left collar bone from a biking accident that made it very attractive. Or maybe it was the way it went with his skin tone, it almost seemed to make the freckles on his cheeks stand out more. Whatever it was the sweater was amazing.

"What about you J, you picking up any hot chicks?" 

"Not really, I'm laying low, it's sophomore year the only thing I'm looking for is a 4.0 GPA and hopefully the eyes of some scouts."

"A-FUCKING-MEN!" Cody said loudly shoving Jamie lightly.

The two boys laughed as they left the locker room. They did that a lot when they were around each other, laugh that is. Something about the two together felt right, Cody thought what they had was great but the thoughts about Jamie only got worse as they spent more time together. Cody looked over at Jamie as he got in the car and as usual he grabbed the keys with his left hand and tried to put them into the wrong side of the car. Then he covered it by shaking the keys around before finding the right hole. Jamie had done this since he got his license in freshman year. Cody always noticed that Jamie put on his seat belt before starting the car too, he would leave the key in the hole, buckle up, and then start the car.

It was such a careful process.

xxx

Jamie dropped Cody off and the two promised that they would meet tomorrow morning before school. Cody felt the joy of being around Jamie wear off as he unlocked the front door of his house.

"I'm home!" he shouted and as per usual there was no response.

Cody laughed very quietly to himself, you could have mistaken it for the shuffling of feet if you were even listening close enough to hear it. His small house was perfect for the stereotypical dysfunctional family, drunk dad, cheating mom, and lonely little sister to flourish. He hated being home with every bone in his body but still didn't have the guts to run away.

As he walked into the kitchen and set his bag down he noticed his dad asleep on the couch and decided to wake him.

"Pops, pops wake up you know mom'll flip out if she sees you like this again." Cody said gently shaking his father.

His dad let out indistinguishable sounds that may have been a sentence if he wasn't so drunk. After a minute or so of shaking him, his eyes opened slowly, they were bloodshot and looked like they would drip blood if he cried. Cody stifled a gasp, he hated seeing his dad like this.

"Son? What do you want?" his dad seemed to pronounce each syllable carefully as if trying to convince Cody that he wasn't drunk, it didn't work obviously.

"Well, I want you to sober up so that I don't have to be the man of the house but that won't happen so I would like you to go lay in bed to fall asleep rather than out here so I can save my sister from having to listen to you and mom argue. okay? It's the least you can do considering everything." Cody said all of his words gently, hoping it would make his dad listen.

His dad looked him in the eyes, and Cody could have sworn his dilated pupils were screaming I'm sorry that I am a horrible father, but it was never said out loud. Instead his dad stood up somewhat wobbly and made his way to his bedroom. Cody sighed, he didn't know the last time he had actually had an interaction with his father when he wasn't drunk. 

His little sister Thalia came out of her room looking confused but her big blue eyes brightened when she saw Cody. She ran up to him and gave him a tight hug saying how much she missed him. Cody laughed lightly and ruffled her short hair, a 5th grader had cut his 3rd grade sister's hair with scissors and now her once long beautiful chestnut hair -she got from her mother- was now hanging loosely in short uneven clumps. Cody had told her the day that it happened that she looked pretty as usual and that mom would surely take her to get it cut. 

Well, his mother did promise she would and hadn't been home in a week. Cody made a mental note to take her to get it professionally fixed tomorrow. 

xxx

"Where's mom?" Thalia asked quietly as she messed around with the macaroni Cody had made them for dinner.

"She's out on a trip for work hun, don't worry she'll be home soon," Cody felt bad lying to her and wish he believed himself.

"Now, don't play with your mac n cheese, it'll get cold." he said with a smile.