strange to hear «dps//anderperry»

x

"Hey Todd," Neil said from his desk, pausing briefly as if contemplating the gravity of his next word, "darling."
Upon hearing the nickname, Todd's heart jumped into his throat and he immediately sat upright at his desk. The idea of Neil feeling the same as him, although true, was an idea that felt so foreign to him. It seemed like it was too good to be true; he pined after Neil for months and he so easily became his. His Neil... His heart warmed at the thought and he pressed his lips together to smother a goofy grin as he walked to Neil's desk and rested his chin atop his head.
"How do you do this?" Neil asked softly, pointing to a chemistry equation.
Todd answered quickly, pointing to each letter as he explained.
"Oh," Neil said curtly, "that was stupid of me. Thank you, dear."
Todd smiled, pressing his lips to the top of Neil's head. His chest swelled with the sound of the endearing nickname. He wanted to urge Neil to speak again in hopes of hearing it once more but Todd knew that one word would lead to hundreds and both of them were falling behind on their assignments. He retreated to his desk to finish the last of his Latin homework that he had toiled away on for...
He glanced at his wristwatch.
Nearly three hours now.

Fortunately, Todd managed to wrap up within 10 minutes and immediately after closing his textbook, he moved to sit at the foot of Neil's bed with his back pressed against the wall. Neil did not break concentration to look at Todd. His eyebrows remained furrowed beneath his glasses and he mouthed words to himself, thudding the eraser of his pencil against the paper that he worked on.
Todd did not know that it was possible for someone to look so beautiful while being so unaware of it. There was no part of Neil that was trying to look good- not in the slightest- his hair was pushed back and untidy, his shirt remained partially unbuttoned and his collar folded. Still, he looked prettier than anything Todd had ever seen. No sunset or fresh snowfall or foggy rain could ever top the unrefined beauty of Neil Perry.
"You alright?" Neil's Chemistry Trance was finally broken.
"Y-yeah," Todd nodded, adjusting his posture as heat rushed to his cheeks, "Sorry. I was spacing out."
"Don't apologize."
Todd leaned over and scanned his page.
"You almost done?"
"Yeeee-ah," Neil said hesitantly, "if not, I'll just copy from Meeks."
A smile spanned Todd's face and he held his arms out as an invitation for Neil. The other boy wasted no time curling up on Todd's lap, tucking his nose into the crook of his neck and exhaling a breath that tickled the fuzzy hairs that sprouted on Todd's chest. He closed his eyes, bathing in the feeling of Neil's body pressed against his; his eyelashes fluttering against the sensitive skin on his neck, the gentle rise and fall of his chest, the slight tap of his fingertips against Todd's sweater-clad bicep. With every miniscule movement, Todd loved Neil just a little more. At this rate, he'd be absolutely head over heels by the time they fell asleep. Perhaps he already was.
Todd hugged Neil closer to him as if his fingers clinging to the fabric of Neil's shirt was the only thing keeping the boy from plummeting to his death. He waited for Neil to laugh and tell him, You don't have to hold on so tight- I'm not going anywhere! But he only moved closer, reaching up to press a kiss to the space in between Todd's eyes. Upon pulling away he blinked slowly, holding Todd's face in his hands. He caressed his cheek with his thumb, smiling softly.
"So pretty," Neil murmured.
Todd shook his head, leaning his face into Neil's palm.
"Yes..."
Todd kissed the heel of Neil's hand, holding his wrist and closing his eyes to savor the warmth that radiated from his hands.
"Oh, Todd." Neil's voice was hushed, as if an audience surrounded them and this message wasn't to be heard by anybody but Todd. "I have loved you for so long."
"Really?" The blond faced Neil again.
"Yes! God, yes," He scoffed, "ever since the first night you spent here I knew I loved you."
"Seriously?"
"I just couldn't admit it," He added, so quietly that Todd wasn't sure if he was supposed to hear.
"Me too."
"I never would've known. You're so closed off, I'd've had no idea."
"Well I thought I was just being an idiot about the whole thing."
"What'd you mean?" Neil furrowed his brows.
"I couldn't ever tell if you were being nice or flirting," Todd laughed.
Neil laughed, "You never gave me much to work with!"
"I was nervous!"
"That day on the pier?" Neil inquired.
"What about it?" Todd knew exactly what Neil was referring to.
"Were you upset because of me?"
Todd hesitated.
"Yeah."
"Oh!" Neil pulled Todd into a hug, grasping at the back of his sweater like he was about to lose him.
They stayed like that for a few moments before Neil shifted so they faced each other yet again. Todd's heart skipped a beat when his eyes caught Neil's.
"There's still a meeting tonight?" Todd asked.
Neil nodded, "I'd rather stay here with you though."
Todd smiled bashfully before peppering kisses on Neil's face, earning a giggle from his boyfriend. Neil pulled away and began to gather his things into his bag, leaving Todd with a cold loneliness that was formerly occupied by their closeness. He stood up and kissed Neil's shoulder once more, desperate for a physical connection to him; it was magnetic.

-

Charlie brought two girls to the meeting, which baffled the rest of the boys and forced Neil to prove just how talented of an actor he really was. Todd made it a habit to underreact to most things as to not draw any excess attention to himself. In the beginning of the meeting, Charlie drew a shape onto either of his cheeks with lipstick that he snagged from one of the girls and proudly dubbed himself 'Nuwanda'. The boys laughed at him and he looked disheartened for a split second before his flamboyant speech continued without missing a beat. Todd enjoyed the show that Charlie put on, but the only thing he could focus on was the closeness he shared with Neil and the way that he looked to Todd to make sure that he was laughing and how he'd nudge him to make sure he was paying attention. Luckily for the pair, everyone else was too distracted by the women in the room to notice their fingers intertwined on their laps. Despite the frigid air around them, Todd felt warm for the first time in years.