That idiot lingered by the door after class every day during the week. And every day, Brody had to wait until the moment he was distracted by someone else to sneak past him like a fool. Today that's not the case. The moment his lecture ends, he runs out the door.
Guess he finally gave up, thinks Brody as he makes his way into the library and sits down in his claimed spot by the window between two impeccably quiet rows of books. Good.
The silence of the space with the occasional giggle or shuffling of bodies helps his concentration. Nowhere else on campus has this kind of serenity.
Just as he opens a book to review his notes, the silence is broken by the sound of squeaky wheels being pushed around the room. He sighs but ignores it. The noise doesn't go away. Instead, it seems to be getting closer. He taps his pencil against the desk as every ounce of calm leaves his body. It's fine. Ignore it. Concentrate.
Squee, squee, squee, squee...it stops for a moment before starting up again even faster. Squeak-squeak-squeak-squeak-squeak!
Who on EARTH is making that miserable racket? He buries his face in his hands.
Finally, it stops. Once his breathing is under control, he removes his hands from his face. Where did that wall come from? A chalkboard. A huge slate chalkboard is now blocking his view from the rest of the library. Who the hell pushed a chalkboard all the way back here and decided to park it right in my view? He goes back to his studies, cursing his bad luck and timing.
After a moment, slender legs and the university's modest pleated cheer skirt fill his periphery and he smiles, his mood suddenly lifted. Finally. Now this is a distraction he can handle. He raises his head to see which of his juniors worked up the courage to approach him and almost chokes on his own tongue. "You-!"
"I always knew I'd wear it better than the girls," Kaius says with a flourish, tossing the hood from his head and shaking in a promiscuous way.
Brody points in horror. "You!" His outburst echoes off the blackboard, and Kaius throws a finger over his lips to shush him.
Quieter now as he tries mumbling past the boy's finger "You-" What are words? He can't remember how to use them! But...is this guy crazy?!
Rubbing his finger along Brody's bottom lip, Kaius leans in closer to argue, "You never came and found me. I've been waiting for days. You forfeit your move; it's my turn."
In his surprise and panic, Brody pushes his chair from the desk, ready to launch himself off it and run. But the blackboard acts as a wall not only for others but for him, preventing his escape. He's cornered. He realizes this too late, and Kaius practically mounts him with his hands on either side of the wooden chair and his ridiculous skirt draping over them both. His lips attack with all the ferocity of a wild animal.
Brody's eyes are wide open when he hears girls just feet from where he sits, chatting and laughing but not stopping to peek behind the black slate board that is his current and only lifeline.
He sees their pant legs and skirt edges flutter by as his heart skips beats at the thrill of not being found out. Even thinking about his own legs visible from the other side with this boy's knee slid in between them, his skirt riding up his front, he can't help but admire the boy's audacity. Skipping? His heart's pounding and not the only thing pulsing with heat. He's never met anyone with more nerve.
This man is a terror.
With an actual pop, Kaius releases him. "And?" He searches Brody's face for his reaction.
"I've had better," Brody lies breathlessly.
His eyebrow raises along with the edge of his mouth as his eyes travel down Brody's face. He leans in to challenge that claim, and Brody leans in willingly to accept before realizing Kaius is smiling down at his reaction without actually initiating any kiss. Then, after smirking for a moment, he backs up in triumph.
How dare he!
It's bad enough Brody let him kiss him in the first place. But now Kaius will think he wants him to!
"Hm." Kai licks his own lips. Then, with a flutter of his fingers, he's gone, leaving both Brody and his stupid chalkboard behind.
After he leaves, Brody just sits there, stunned. That...was the most arousing thing he's ever experienced. He feels numb. Numb? No way. He wants to...get back to his dorm. He has to. He won't let this feeling slip away.
________________
"You coming to the party tomorrow night?" the girls ask as they gather around his lunch table.
Brody perks up at the idea. "Where?"
"Same place it was supposed to be last week before the rain washed it out." He had forgotten. An unexpected storm over the weekend had completely dampened their kickoff to the new semester. His peers are eager to gather. His confidence returns as he makes plans with his friends in the dining hall. This is exactly what he needs. A distraction. A distraction from—
At that exact moment, a figure prances into the dining hall. He's wearing shorts despite the coolness of the day along with...something else?
"Oh, hell no."
Brody's friends pause their laughter to glance in the direction he's looking. They gather just in time to see Kaius find him in the crowd and point, sauntering his way.
Brody refuses to be the object of embarrassment for the second time and so chooses to push his food aside and rush toward the kid instead, saving him the trip.
"Bonne journ---" Kai's words are cut off as Brody grabs his arm and drags him away from the dining hall's observant eyes. Only after he is sure they are out of sight does he turn to face his stalker.
"Are those fishnets? Are you insane!? Did you find those in your mother's lingerie drawer?"
"If you want lingerie, I've got way better than this," he emphasizes.
"Why are you following me?" demands Brody. "Unlike you, I'm not looking to have attention on me every moment of the day. But you're doing a hell of a job of that for me."
"I think you're underestimating your ability to stand out in a crowd without any help from me."
"What does that mean?"
"You have no idea, do you?" Kaius straightens his jacket with a chuckle as he prepares for his speech. "I'm not following you, I'm chasing you. Because it seems like you want to be caught."
Brody has no words. Yes, he does. "You really are a stalker." That'll teach him.
"Maybe. I hated you, ya know that? You're exactly the kind of person I stay away from, for your sake, not mine. But something happened over summer semester—something I missed out on because I wasn't here to watch. You're a completely different person because of it. You kinda...broke. It's no fun hating something that's broken. You're still going through the motions, coming to class, turning in work, so nobody else noticed. Not even your friends. But I did. Once I realized it, I couldn't stop looking. So I can't help but wonder...bad breakup?"
Brody stares at the boy, wide-eyed. Who the hell did he think he was watching him like that? They're barely two weeks into the semester, too! Broken. A bad breakup. Ha.
"We weren't going out in the first place!" he snaps.
Kaius smirks. He was right. He asked him about a breakup and his ex-girlfriend didn't even come to his mind. This is so amusing.
"Ah. But it did have to do with a heartbreak. So I'm mostly right."
"You don't know anything about me."
"That's what I'm telling you. I do."
"Not because you've bothered to get to know me. You're acting like a creep." He brings his face closer to the boy's to finish, "and I can't stand creeps."
Kaius shrugs. "Fair enough." As though this kid would ever realistically allow anyone to get to know him. "Come over." He grabs Brody's belt loop and tugs him closer.
"Why? To be the helpless victim of your terrible kissing?" He slaps his hand away.
"And here I thought you wanted to study. Come over," he demands again.
Brody knows he has two options at this point: say no or say nothing. The problem is, there's just no way he can say no. He doesn't want to. That fact boils his blood, but also...
Before he knows it, Kaius is dragging him toward the dormitories. His palms grow sweaty as they enter the halls and pass door after door filled with students, roommates...witnesses. Finally, he stops them in front of one.
"Mm. This one," he says, pointing a thumb. He twists the knob lightly then bursts in with epic nonchalance, looking around with a whistle and peeking around beds and study desks.
Was he always this weird? Kai's dorm is empty at the moment. How did he manage that?
Kaius turns to face him, glancing toward the closest bed. Brody stands his ground. What happens next is exactly what he wants—and what he tells himself he doesn't.
It's not that Brody has never been kissed before. But he has never been kissed like this before. With girls, he always took the initiative. It's just how it was. He preferred it that way. And kissing Shane was more of an experience than anything else. It had a clear beginning, middle, and end. He would never admit it out loud, but Shane's kisses always made him feel like an ice cream cone—tasted at its tip then slowly and thoroughly enjoyed, growing deeper and hungrier with each pass. He was always left sweetly satisfied by the end.
What Kai did before in the library? He took a taste, sure, then dumped off the top part and went straight for the bottom of the cone. Just like he's doing now. He's everywhere. His tongue, his hands, his hips. He's already making a mess. Brody can't do anything but sit there and take it as his limbs slowly find their strength.
This isn't even a kiss, he thinks as Kaius's hand pulls around the back of his neck while it leans back limply with an open invitation to the inside of his mouth. It's disgusting. And...so hot. He doesn't want it to end. He wants to feel him inside him even more.
Only when Kaius has had his fill can Brody reciprocate. And by that point, he's so desperate for Kai to go further, he clings to his shirt. He wants him to touch him more. He wants him to taste him more.
But without warning, Kai's force turns to sweetness as he pecks his lips once, twice, slides his tongue gently across their top. And they are at the tip of the ice cream once more. Where did that come from? He could start all over again from the top, but the boy pulls back slightly to look Brody in the eye.
"You're something, you know that? Are you enjoying this as much as I am?" Kaius mumbles while reaching inside his back pocket.
"Like I said before, you're nothing special." Why was he lying? But...how far would Kai go just to prove him wrong? He's interested in finding out.
Kaius pauses and pushes himself up with narrowed eyes. "Ya know, I'm starting to think you're not being honest. It sounds like you're still hung up on someone. I don't mind being the rebound to that, but at some point, you're gonna have to stop comparing me to him." He leans closer to continue where he left off.
That does it. Brody stares him straight in the eyes as he shoves him off. "You think you just know everything there is to know about me, don't you? I'm not hung up on another guy. What do you have to say to that?"
Kaius planks his arms above his head.
"You're lying," he says, lifting an exposed shoulder as if it's obvious. His shirt slides further down his arm as he moves.
"I'm not," Brody growls, pushing his chest. It doesn't budge. "I have a girlfriend."
"You did," Kaius emphasizes, "for almost two years. She broke up with you last week. I keep on top of the gossip of this place. You know how I like being on top of things." He lowers his head once more.
"I have a new girlfriend!" Brodys uses all the leverage he can spare to slap his arm away, ignoring the boy's third and final opening.
With a sigh, Kaius sits up on the bed and withdraws his arms. But instead of arguing further, he just...looks at him. Brody has never seen him look so candid. He's not putting on a show, not smiling coyly, just looking in his eyes as another human being. And for once, he can finally look at Kai's face properly. Why did he have to be so damn perfect?
Had he gone too far? How did this guy of all people make that annoying question tear at his mind? He then realizes it's because he is looking at him properly. Direct and unguarded eyes open straight down to his soul, propping its doors open and observing like they can see everything it has to offer.
Shane had those same eyes. He hated it when he would look at him like that. And it's no different with Kai. Why do they have to be so similar? Do either of them know they're doing it? How humiliating and addictively hypnotic it is at the same time? Like something wild taking the time to observe you.
Brody can't stand the feeling of someone observing him like that—scrutinizing him—of truly seeking to understand him. Because there is no way they could like what they see.
Say it.
'You're not worth the effort.' 'You're a pain in the ass.' 'That's the last straw, don't talk to me again.'
"I apologize, then."
Is that it? No snarky comment? He wasn't gonna just force himself on him? Kaius rises from the bed and walks out the door.
Why did he leave? This is his dorm room!