5' 8"-5' 9"
Noah felt so overwhelmed with emotions that he couldn't and didn't want to handle them any longer. As soon as he got home, Morgan immediately texted Andrea, 'Now Ethan and I are together! We're a real couple! Like the actual couple that... Well, you know!' The message ended in the same list of unread ones, but Noah didn't feel confused about it for a bit. His next victim was Scott. He, on the other hand, reacted just as Morgan wanted him to react. No longer than a minute later, his friend called him back to scream into his phone, "No cap?! Are you serious?! No way!" Their conversation lasted for longer than an hour. Scott was sincerely happy for Morgan to finally have a relationship; however, he couldn't help but be worried a little.
"You will tell me everything if Thomson does something inadequate, won't you?" Noah just laughed back, still drunk from all the emotions. It was indeed possible that he saw the world through the rose-colored glasses at the moment, but he trusted Thomson entirely, so this hypothetical uncertainty coming from Thomson was just a joke for Morgan.
Noah didn't feel that Scott's happiness was enough, so, later at night, he decided to share his feelings with Nicole. 'Congratulations! You deserve it!' he got an answer half an hour later, when Noah was getting ready to go to bed. 'By the way, I went to the library, as I promised. Unfortunately, it didn't work out. Nobody knows anything, nobody saw anyone.):' Nicole's words made Noah come down to earth. It was refreshing not to think about all the mayhem for at least a couple of hours. And how bad it felt to come back to it again. 'That's okay, Nicole! Thanks for your help anyways!' he texted back.
Nicole's reminder sobered Noah up only partly. He just couldn't feel down in the dumps. How could he possibly feel unhappy if his boyfriend was Ethan freaking Thomson? There was no way he could be upset!
Before going to bed, Noah texted Ethan a goodnight message. The answer appeared just a few seconds later, which made Morgan scream happily in the pillow. Fluffy gave his owner a side eye. Peanut tucked his face into Noah's armpit and started snoring quietly. Morgan hugged his duvet, thinking it was Ethan. That was how he fell asleep in these hot cuddles.
Noah couldn't remember the last time he woke up in such a good mood. He wanted to share his happiness with the whole world. Thankfully, his mother called in the morning, so she was the one to accept The Nuclear Explosion of a Happily in Love Noah Morgan. She didn't even have a chance to ask her usual question about 'that boy', because Noah showered her with the information about their relationship first.
"We're dating, we're dating, we're dating!" Morgan was jumping in front of his laptop like a kid who had been told that he was going to Disney World this weekend. His mom squealed happily, so both Peanut and Fluffy jumped on their feet and started running around the apartment anxiously.
"I'll tell your father tonight! He's going to be so happy!" the woman assured. "Now I'm even more curious to see what he looks like! Show me some pictures!"
Noah stopped jumping and even frowned a little. He didn't have any pictures of Ethan, apart from those that were uploaded by someone in the anonymous chat. It was pointless to send them to his mom, at least because they were far from good quality. Besides, half of Ethan's face was always covered by a mask. How was he supposed to explain that to his mother? He didn't want to lie. Or tell the truth, either.
"I'll send them to you some time soon," Noah promised, not having an idea how long this 'some time' would take. Should he ask Ethan's permission to take a picture of him? Or maybe he should show his mom one of his sketches? A neutral one. The majority of his sketches Morgan wouldn't even show Ethan. Especially Ethan! Jesus Christ, if he saw them, he would think that Noah was a pervert! Which wasn't true at all! He just liked drawing these kinds of... scenes. He didn't say he wanted to be a part of them. And even if he would, then what?! He can dream about anything he can imagine! It doesn't mean that Noah's a pervert! Probably.
Noah gave his cats a double amount of kisses before he left, since he felt the urge to show affection to everyone around him. Did Ethan feel the same way? Was it also a bittersweet feeling for him? Did he want to see Noah as much as Morgan wanted to see Thomson? If yes, then Noah could hope to meet him over the lunch break or after the classes.
Inspired by the opportunity to see his boyfriend (Boyfriend!!!) Noah ran outside the apartment, came downstairs, and froze at the front door. Thomson was standing near his car, taking some pictures of the street.
"G-good morning," Noah mumbled, feeling suddenly embarrassed.
'Is he really my boyfriend? He is my boyfriend. Oh my God, he's now my BOYFRIEND!'
"Good morning," Ethan answered, still looking at his phone. He looked like he was waiting for something for a couple of seconds, then he took a picture and showed Noah his screen. "What do you think?"
Thomson captured a flying pigeon with a camera, which was crossing a rising sunbeam. It almost felt that the bird was some alien creature that came to this routine world because of the background. It looked awesome.
"It's wonderful," Noah said out loud. Ethan's eyes looked like he was smiling. "Ugh, well… What are you doing here?" Morgan asked after being quiet for a moment.
"I'm waiting for you."
"Don't tell me you never left home and spent the whole night here," Noah joked awkwardly. Ethan did park the car in the same spot as the night before. His clothes changed partly, though. His black hoodie was now a dark-red one. It was the only change in his outfit. The same black jeans. The same fingerless gloves and the mask. The same lug sole boots. Thomson paid far less attention to the clothes than Noah. No, Noah wasn't into fashion and could easily wear the same outfit for several days, but why would he need to do that if he had the whole wardrobe full of clothes? Andrea called Morgan a dress-conscious person. Though, instead of shopping in the real stores, he preferred online shopping.
"Of course I did," Ethan smirked, deciding to play along. "I was staring at your windows, not getting a wink of sleep.
"You should've come upstairs. It's better to spend a night of no sleep in bed," Noah laughed. After noticing Ethan's eyebrow flew up, Morgan understood that he had said something wrong. Then Noah understood the way it sounded, which made his face turn scarlet red.
"That's not what I meant!" he screamed.
"Sure, sure," Ethan said, opening the passenger door and gesturing to Morgan to get in the car. "It was definitely some Freudian slip."
"You just have a dirty mind!" Noah grunted, getting comfortable in the passenger seat.
"That's also true," Thomson chuckled, closing the door. He went around the car and got into the driver's seat. Ethan looked absolutely calm, on the contrary from Noah, who was on pinpoints.
"A-a-and, by the way! We're dating now! I'm your boyfriend," boyfriend!!! "Which means I can..." Noah stuttered, trying to find the right words.
"Have a dirty talk?" Ethan hinted.
"I didn't mean anything dirty!"
"You could, though," Thomson noticed, smiling with his eyes. "A coffee?" Ethan handed Noah a cup.
"Thanks," Morgan mumbled and automatically took a sip, suffering from embarrassment. Thomson took his mask down for a moment, took a sip of his coffee, then he placed the cup into the holder and started the car. Noah looked at Ethan's coffee, and a bad thought crossed his mind.
"Is it a regular coffee or a salted one?" he asked carefully.
"Salted."
"May I have a sip?"
Ethan looked at Noah heavily. Morgan could almost physically feel the uprising pressure. Ethan wanted to say 'yes'. However, his whole body wanted Thomson to say 'no'. These conflicting feelings were easily recognizable in every move he made.
"You didn't like it last time. What's the point of trying it once again?" Ethan asked irritatedly.
"I've never said I didn't like it. I just said that it tasted a bit strange," Morgan didn't want to give up easily. "I need several tastings to develop the attitude towards this kind of coffee!"
"You have a sweet tooth. That's all."
"I never sprinkle my meat with sugar, though," Noah answered back.
"I've already taken a sip."
"I'm not fussy about germs."
Ethan frowned as if he was trying to solve a difficult math problem.
"Maybe you're fussy about germs, huh?" Morgan suggested, acting like he had no idea about the real reason for Ethan's confusion.
"No, I'm not."
"So, I may try it, right?" Noah grabbed his cup and moved it towards his face, hesitant to touch the plastic lid without getting permission first. Ethan drummed his fingers nervously on the steering wheel. Was Noah too fast? What if he created a challenge Thomson wasn't ready for now? Morgan had to freeze for almost a solid minute until he heard the answer.
"Fine," Ethan answered, almost whispering.
"Cool! Thank you!" Noah immediately took a sip of salted coffee, held it for a couple of seconds in his mouth and then swallowed it. "Hm…"
It seemed like Ethan stopped breathing, staring at the street in front of him, like he was waiting for the world to collapse.
"It's still a bit strange, but it's quite unusual," Noah finally said. After thinking a bit, he took another sip to get a better taste and then another one again.
"Are you going to finish my coffee now?" Ethan asked with clear relief in his voice.
"Oh, I'm sorry! I just can't tell whether I like it or not," Noah admitted. "Though it did bring up the taste of coffee," he shared his thoughts, giving Ethan his cup back. Thomson hypnotized it for a couple of seconds and then took a sip after Noah had just done it.
"Now it has a sweet aftertaste because of you," he complained.
"You shared your coffee, so I'm sharing mine with you."
Ethan tried to make himself look unhappy, but it didn't work out well. Noah could see that Thomson was on the verge of smiling.
"By the way, I have some good news," Ethan said after they left the parking lot. "Duncan found out about the owner of the anonymous chat. Does the name Chad Foster ring a bell to you?"
Noah shook his head.
"I've never heard of him."
"We're going to stop by today then," Ethan announced.
"What?" Morgan flinched. "For what?"
"To have a chat. Why would I ask Duncan for any of that then?" Ethan noticed. That was true, though Noah felt anxious for some reason. He didn't want to see his bully. He didn't want to know why he was doing it. Noah just wanted rumors to end.
"What will we tell him?'
"We'll tell him that if he doesn't delete this stupid chat, we'll turn his life into hell."
"Do you think he'll buy this blind threat?"
"Who said it's a blind threat?"
Morgan felt goosebumps on his back.
"We're not going to do anything illegal," he articulated.
"There's no such law where you can't find a loophole," Ethan smirked. "I'm telling you that like a future lawyer. Don't worry, I'm not going to make any mistakes."
"I hope so," Noah nodded, looking at Ethan. The way he persuaded Thomson felt too easy. Yes, it was way too easy. He didn't even try to convince him that Chad deserved a punishment. Morgan could suggest that Thomson was trying to be nicer because of their new status; however, however... There was no chance Ethan could become nicer in any circumstances.
"Something's wrong, isn't it?" Morgan asked carefully. Ethan shook his head a little.
"As you can see, I presented you this new information quite matter-of-factly, with no tantara or anything," he said. "I think we found the guy too easily. I doubt that the guy, who can hide money in the library books, didn't think through the possibility of being busted in that pathetic chat. Besides, in order to bully a person for such a long period of time, you need a motive. This random Chad doesn't fit in my portrait of a person we've been looking for."
'Because you're sure it's supposed to be someone from my close circle, aren't you?!'
"We have to check, though. Duncan gave me Foster's schedule. He studies engineering."
"So he usually hangs around in another part of the campus, right?"
"Exactly."
That was another mismatch.
"He has a gap at 3pm today. We should find him right after the class," Ethan said.
"But what are we going to do if it's not him?" Noah sighed. Thomson chuckled.
"We're going to continue searching."
5' 3"
Ethan had insomnia that night. At first, he couldn't fall asleep because of the emotional excitement Thomson felt after talking with Morgan for an hour. They were holding hands the entire time. This nice feeling immediately dragged the desire for more. That desire conflicted with the psychological condition Ethan had, and it was driving him crazy. Was it possible to want something and be afraid of it at the same time? Wasn't it dumb? Thomson's imagination continued showing him pictures that made Ethan feel hot from time to time.
Excitement decreased by midnight. The usual anxiety took place instead. Now Ethan wasn't worried about his life, as it usually was, but about the life of Noah.
What if Thomson was right when he had been trying to avoid people before? What if he really had some disease? What if he was already immune but still contagious? What if doctors didn't notice something?! What if Noah was now lying in the middle of his apartment, covered by some weird rash, choking on the verge of fainting?!
Critical thinking was trying to hint that Ethan was delusional. Only those thoughts helped him not to make stupid mistakes. When it had happened for the first time, Thomson barely persuaded himself not to call Morgan at 2 am. Noah was probably asleep. Waking him up wasn't a good thing. When it had happened for the second time, Ethan stared at his phone screen at 5am. Since he could only dream about falling asleep, Thomson had a cup of coffee, spent an hour on a treadmill and took a shower. Then he blinked and turned out to be at Morgan's house. The fear had been torturing him for the whole night, but it slowly faded by the morning and changed into a bearable anxiety. His watch showed 8 o'clock in the morning, and it was pointless to hope that Morgan could go out that early. Ethan sat in his car for some time. Ethan went for a little walk along the street. Ethan stopped by the local cafe and got two coffees for him and Noah. Ethan got back to the car. Ethan put some salt in his coffee. After looking at Morgan's windows for another time, he noticed Noah's top of the head messing around, like he was jumping on one place.
'What's he doing there?! Should I check on him?'
Ethan shook his head, getting rid of these thoughts. He didn't want to annoy Noah. The fact that Thomson was already waiting outside of his house early in the morning was enough. This persistence could be too much for Morgan.
What if he gets tired of Ethan? What if he decides that Thomson isn't the best candidate to build a relationship with? To Ethan's mind, he was a terrible candidate.
After Thomson understood that he had been overthinking again, he took his phone out and started taking pictures of the street in the morning sunshine. The majority of photos seemed pathetic to Ethan. And only the last one seemed to be worth something.
It was either the morning sunlight, or Ethan's lack of sleep, or the change in their relationship status with Morgan, but Noah looked even more handsome than he usually did.
Light-gray skinny jeans brought out his lean legs. A white t-shirt together with a black kimono shirt (God, how many of them did Morgan have?) stood in contrast with each other. The embroidered silver koi fish swimming on the black fabric were sparkling in the sunshine. Morgan's happy eyes were the final touch of the fit. Ethan didn't have to worry that he might've annoyed Noah by his presence. The guy was truly happy to see him.
"Let's have a deal to behave appropriately," Noah asked when they arrived at the university parking lot. He was worried that Ethan could do something with his possible bully. He had a right to worry. If Foster was indeed responsible, then Thomson wouldn't be gentle with him.
"Let's have a better deal. You will behave appropriately as you usually do, and I'm going to behave according to the situation as I usually do. Let's play a good cop and a bad cop, shall we?"
"No, that's not going to work," Noah disagreed. "You can't just attack the random person. It can be dangerous, Ethan."
"I doubt some pathetic engineering boy can actually do something to me."
"How do you know he's pathetic? What if he's a six-and-a-half-foot tall gym boy?!"
"It's his loss then. It's dangerous when your enemy can grab your balls faster than you can reach them," Thomson laughed.
"Ethan, I'm serious," Noah frowned.
"Hm-m-m-m…" Thomson parked the car quickly and stopped the engine. "So, you want me to be nice?"
"Exactly."
"What will I get as a reward?"
"What would you want?"
It seemed that they had already had this type of conversation before. Morgan was so chill about these questions because he probably thought that, considering Ethan's issues, Thomson wouldn't let himself wish for something that Noah couldn't do or felt it would be too provocative for him. Morgan probably had his reasons to tell that physical contact wasn't that important for him for several times at least. That was some sort of announcement! Ethan was on the verge of saying that he was in desperate need of physical contact. He needed it like air. Especially after years of loneliness. And he would be way more persistent if he didn't have to overthink things so much.
On the other hand, Noah was giving mixed messages. He was telling one thing, but then he was doing the other. For instance, his wish to try out Thomson's coffee. Ethan was about to have a stroke when he saw Morgan's lips touch his coffee cup. However, this emotional disaster ended as fast as it appeared. Was it because Noah didn't actually die after the sip he took? Or because he didn't complain about the taste? He didn't tell Thomson that the cup had a weird smell, did he? It was still shocking, but Ethan accepted it way faster than when Noah tried touching his hand.
You didn't have to be a psychology expert to understand why Noah was doing all of that. Morgan was forcing events boldly. He insisted that he didn't need physical touch, yet he was trying to do everything possible to make Ethan get comfortable with him and let himself come out of shell around Noah.
However, Ethan didn't need to come out of shell.
"So I can ask for anything?"
"Within reasonable limits. If you, for example, tell me to do a split, I won't be able to do that, obviously."
"So your limits are equal to your physical abilities?"
"Exactly."
Ethan was on the verge of rolling his eyes at this naivety. These limits seemed way too weak to count them as a protection.
"Then how about jerking off in front of me?" Noah wasn't the only person who could force the events.
Morgan, who was, unluckily for him, trying to finish his coffee at that moment, choked. He needed time to clear his throat. Ethan was patiently waiting for the answer.
"It isn't funny," Noah mumbled, his neck scarlet red.
"Why do you think that half of my phrases are jokes? Do I look like a clown to you?" Thomson asked.
"Oh, no! No! Of course, not!" Noah panicked. "You just say those things sometimes…"
"What things?"
"Insane things."
"Make up your mind already. Am I a clown or a mentally ill person?"
"Neither!"
Ethan continued staring at Noah.
"Let's summarize. I'm neither a clown nor a mentally ill person. Which means that my words are neither a joke nor delirious nonsense. Right?"
"R-right," Noah affirmed.
"So?"
"So what?"
"So will you do it for me?"
It seemed that all the blood surged to Morgan's face.
"So you're not jok–" Noah swallowed the last word because he knew he was making the same mistake again. "W-why do you need it?"
"What do you mean? What if it turns me on?"
"If?"
"I can't give a one-hundred percent guarantee. I've never done it personally. Especially with someone I have feelings for. Anyway, you're right; there's no need to be doubtful. It will turn me on."
"It won't," Noah mumbled, grabbing his seatbelt like it could save him from continuing this conversation.
"Why do you think so?"
"It-won't-look-attractive," Noah rattled almost noncommittally.
"Says who?"
"Loot at me!" Morgan made a helpless gesture. Ethan, who had already been looking at him, didn't see the problem. "I'm not a porn star! I will look disgusting to an onlooker!"
"How do you know? Do you prefer beating the meat in front of the mirror?" Ethan continued showering him with innocent questions.
"Jesus, of course, not! I've never done anything like this before!"
"Would you like to, though?" Ethan felt he was the Serpent.
"No way!"
"Why not?"
"I've told you already—
"So if you were sure that it looked sexy to an onlooker, you would do it both in front of me and in front of the mirror?" Ethan was trying to test the water to see the boundaries.
Noah frowned and sat quietly.
"Did I propose it too soon? Should I've waited for a couple more weeks?"
Morgan looked at him with a scorching glance. Then his voice suddenly became lower, which happened every time he was angry.
"I'll do it if you kiss me on the lips," he said.
Ethan froze unconsciously.
"That was a low blow," he grunted.
"Yes, that's my thing," Noah said, unfastening his seatbelt.
"Yet you try to act like an innocent angel," Ethan said through his teeth while thinking how else he could get what he wanted. Noah should've said 'no'. He had to say 'no'! Then Thomson would've forgotten about this idea and never thought about it again, like it was a bad dream. But Noah didn't say 'no'. He set his conditions. It was his condition against Ethan's condition. Morgan should've studied law. Considering how well he navigated around these traps, he would've looked stunning in court.
Noah got out of the car and leaned to the open window to fuel the flame called Ethan Thomson.
"It's all in your hands, babe," Noah winked and headed towards the campus.
"Don't forget about Foster! Meet me here at half past two," Ethan called after him and noticed his voice shaking. Noah waved his hand without turning around, leaving Thomson in mixed feelings.
It wasn't Ethan who was the Serpent!
It definitely wasn't him!