Stay Inside (by my Side) : Gream/DreamNotFound

10. Finally, Outside Air

Clay led the way through a series of twists and turns in the musty basement, eventually arriving at a door that read 'garage.' He and George walked through several rows of cars before Clay pressed a button on his fob. A satisfying honk echoed in the parking lot and George turned in the direction of the sound. Clay's car stood parked against a post. It was a mid-2000's convertible, polished and vibrant.

"Oh, damn," George said, eyes widening in surprise.

"Have you ever ridden in a topless car?" Clay asked, already halfway in the driver's seat.

"Never," George said. Unfortunately, the weather outside was cloudy and drizzling with rain, which meant the roof of the car had to remain on.

The two had finally emerged from the apartment in order to head out for some mandatory grocery shopping, as most of the snacks and ingredients in the apartment had already run dry.

George settled into the leather interior, taking in the scent of peppermint car freshener. He glanced over at Clay, watching him turn on the engine and run his hands along the steering wheel.

"Been a while since I've been behind the wheel," Clay said, not noticing George's intent gaze.

"I hope you still remember how to drive," George chuckled.

Clay put the car in reverse and turned to look at George, his grin illuminated by the dim atmosphere.

"If we die, we'll die together," he said.

The joke made George's brain cease to function for half a second, but he ignored it. The way Clay looked so mature behind the wheel really didn't help. Sure, George knew his friend was mature, but it never really registered since he's only seen this man playing minecraft for hours on end.

George turned away and directed his attention to the roads outside as the car rolled out of the garage. Rain pattered softly across the windows and made the streets slick with reflection. They drove quietly, Clay sitting focused and content while George kept switching between looking longingly out the window to observing Clay's profile.

They arrived at a small grocery store, eyeing the small line that hugged the side of the building. There were around 3 people waiting to enter, but by the time Clay and George parked and exited the vehicle, the queue had diminished.

They walked into the store and saw half-empty shelves lining its interior. Deciding to split up, Clay headed towards the produce while George explored the snack isle.

There were three whole rows filled with millions of different cookies and chips, and George could almost feel his eyes split into different directions to register the vast amount of junk being sold in the vicinity. He decided on a few packs of nachos and chocolate-dipped pretzels before heading into the bakery isle.

He wandered aimlessly for a while, keeping his distance from other shoppers and peering at the various buns and rolls lining the shelves. George shifted the products in his arms, regretting not grabbing a basket.

As he wandered the perimeter of the store, he started searching for Clay through the isles. He had everything he needed, so it was almost time to check out.

As he rounded a corner, he spied the American briskly flipping through the frozen isle. Clay pulled out a frozen pizza and stowed it under his arm, balancing a mix of other groceries.

As if on cue, the blond turned to his left and saw George at the end of the isle. Clay grinned widely and began walking towards him.

The way Clay smiled at him made George's entire body weak, and he gripped the food in his hands tighter to avoid dropping it all over the floor.

"Hey," Clay said once he was within range, "I just need one more thing."

"Yeah, sure," George said breathlessly.

They made a few more rounds as Clay plucked various items from their shelves. The stacks they both carried got higher and higher, and once the boxes hit George's chin, they realized it was time to leave.

The total came to $86.42, a decent amount for the ungodly mound of groceries unloaded on the conveyor. By the time the boys left the store, the sky had cleared up, and they scuttled across the parking lot carrying 4 bags each.

"Crap," Clay stopped suddenly, "I can't believe I forgot bread."

George turned to look at him and then past him, to where a long line had formed across the side of the building.

"It's definitely not worth it to go back for it."

Clay turned around as well and sighed.

"We can just bake some," Clay said, lighting up again.

"Bake our own bread?" George dropped the grocery bags into Clay's open trunk.

"Sure," Clay responded, placing his own bags in, "that's what everyone's been doing in quarantine!"

"...Baking their own bread?" George questioned again, failing to understand why anyone would suddenly have the urge to become a baker.

Clay leaned on the open trunk, rearranging the groceries.

"If you don't want to help, you're more than welcome to go do whatever it is you do all day," he said, peering up at George with a smile, "but you're not getting a single slice."

"I'll help," George sputtered, crossing his arms and avoiding Clay's eye contact, "not like I have much to do anyway."

The slow teasing in Clay's tone was very different from the usually perky way he talked, and it caught George a little off guard. Clay sure was aggressively flirty that day.

Clay huffed and shut the trunk, but not before giving George a sly wink.

If Clay hadn't started walking to the driver seat immediately after, he would have definitely seen George's face turn redder than the tomatoes they just bought. George cursed under his breath and rubbed his cold hands across his skin in hopes to clear out the heat. When he hopped into the car, he sat mostly motionless, not daring to even breathe in Clay's direction. He rolled the window down, letting wind whip his face as the car flew down the street.

It wasn't even that bad, he realized. These feelings were unwelcome but they still felt... warm. The butterflies in George's gut reminded him of his childhood, and the way his chest ached slightly in Clay's presence sent a warm sensation through his nerves.

George glanced at Clay, happy to even be in the same country as him.

He felt a smile creep up his lips as Clay started absentmindedly bobbing his head to a song. The radio was on but barely audible over the hum of the car. George leaned over and turned it up a bit, causing Clay to vibe a tiny bit harder. George sank down in the seat, enjoying the tune and gazing out the window at the world zooming by.

Somewhere, at the very back of his mind, an inner voice whispered.

I wish the lockdown didn't end.

==========================

[a/n: the next chapter will be significantly longer because there's like 3 different scenes I want to fit in, so get excited for that because there will definitely be something to look forward to 👀]