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“Will you call the cops if I eat these?” Jackson teased, grabbing a bag of Doritos off the shelf.

The boys were now wandering around the store aimlessly, Mark following Jackson’s lead.

“Don’t you think if I had a phone to call the cops I would at least call someone to get us out of here?” Mark answered sarcastically.

“I’ll take that as a no.” Jackson happily shot back, tearing open the plastic bag with a quick pop. He immediately popped a few chips into his mouth and chomped away.

Mark sighed and tried to hold back a smile. Jackson was such a dork.

“You have to promise to pay for those though, deal?” He compromised. “Even though we’re trapped here, I can’t have you eating everything in the store Jacks.”

“Whoa, now we’re on nickname basis?” Jackson laughed back, lightly on his orange chip-dusted thumb.

Mark almost choked. He had called Jackson “Jacks” before to his girlfriends, when he would obsess to them about how perfect he was. It was at the point where it wasn’t even a big deal, it was just what Mark called him, forgetting that in real life, Jackson and him weren’t exactly “friends.”

“Isn’t that what everybody calls you?” Mark asked with a shaky voice, walking quickly to the next aisle, scared that Jackson would think he was a creep.

Jackson followed closely, a small smile curved on his face as he ate.

“No. Only my mom calls me that.” Jackson finally said, making Mark feel even weirder.

“Fine. I won’t call you that.” Mark conceded, still avoiding eye contact with Jackson.

“Hey now, I didn’t say I hated it.” Jackson said quickly, shuffling over until he was standing next to Mark. They both stopped.

“Besides, it’s a cool nickname. Almost sounds like “jacked,” which is exactly what I am.” Jackson lifted his arm and flexed so hard his entire body started to shake and his face turned a shade of pink.

Mark couldn’t hold in his laughter any longer, his smile exploded with a hearty laugh, which he had to immediately cover with his hand to get it under control.

“What?!” Jackson shouted with a giggle, “I’ve been working out okay. Pure steel.” He said proudly about his arm, smirking at Mark as he said it.

Mark wouldn’t admit it, but Jackson was right. As dorky and goofy as he was, there was no denying that the boy oozed .

His muscles had grown so much over the summer. He had always been very active and in shape, but the last few months proved to be somewhat of a transformation for Jackson.

He went from looking boy to now looking like a man. 

Mark couldn’t keep his eyes off of Jackson’s arms, his round and tough shoulders, and his meaty thighs which looked like they would feel so soft, yet so hard.

“Yeah yeah, you’re a real Iron Man.” Mark scoffed and sat down in the middle of the aisle, leaning his back against the cereal boxes that were stacked on the shelves around them.

“I prefer Hulk, okay.” Jackson joined him, sitting next to the boy. “Who’s your favorite super hero?”

Mark hadn’t ever thought about it. He wasn’t exactly the comic book type. But there was something about Spiderman that he always enjoyed. The playful and acrobatic style really appealed to Mark.

“Spiderman.” Mark said with a confident grin.

“Ah yes, Peter Parker. Classic.” Jackson said, stuffing another chip into his mouth.

Mark felt tense sitting there with Jackson. It wasn’t that he was scared of Jackson or anything, more that he was nervous about saying or doing the wrong thing. He let the silence linger until it felt too awkward to handle.

“W-what do…” Mark stuttered when he finally spoke. Jackson’s face perked up, he stared at Mark with a questioning gaze.

Mark’s twister of a brain failed him over and over as he tried desperately to find something to say back. Every time he felt confident, Jackson would his lip or shift his head, his gaze intensifying on Mark’s, and every single time, Mark forgot what he was about to say.

“Are you okay?” Jackson asked finally, placing a hand against Mark’s shoulder. His grasp was firm but friendly, making Mark even more of a wreck.

“Yeah yeah, just wondering when we will get outta here.” Mark spit out the first non-weird thing he could think of.

All seemed okay until Jackson looked away, releasing his grip from Mark’s shoulder.

“Wanna get rid of me that quickly, eh?” He said with a fake smile, one that seemed a bit too somber.

Mark felt his nerves spike up again, realizing how he must’ve sounded to Jackson.

“No. It’s got nothing to do with you, believe me. I love hanging out with you, I mean, I am not happy we’re in this situation, but I am glad that it’s with you, and I don’t want you to think I don’t like spending time with you because-“ Mark’s mouth trailed away until he wasn’t even sure what point he was trying to make anymore.

“Okay okay, don’t hurt yourself.” Jackson said cheerfully. “You’re not a bad after-hours-locked-in-the-grocery-store-buddy either, you’re really cool.”

Mark felt what he knew were butterflies, swirling around in the pit of his stomach, listening to Jackson say that. He felt lame, because it was such a small gesture, but it was the first time Jackson had ever said anything like that to him.

“How about we play a game?” Jackson’s question interrupted Mark’s private thoughts.

“Sure. What game?” Mark said, unsure what he was agreeing to.

“21 Questions?” Jackson said with a devilish grin. “I wanna start.”

Before Mark could answer, Jackson was already shimmying his body so that he was sitting cross legged in front of Mark, who was also sitting the same way.

“Did you date anybody from our High School?” Jackson said, still crunching away at the chips.

Mark looked down shyly, “Wow, going for the kill already I see.”

“I’m curious. That’s all. I didn’t see you with anyone.” He pried.

Mark cleared his throat, then looked back up. “I dated a couple people, it was never anything serious though. We dated for a month and broke up. You know how high school is.”

“Anyone I know?” Jackson stared.

“Jessica J, on the cheerleading squad.” Mark said, “Also Tiffany H from band class.”

“Okay I don’t know the second one but I do know the first, she’s pretty.” Jackson said with a satisfied nod. “Did you guys do anything together?”

Mark’s eyebrows furrowed. “Isn’t that two questions? That’s not how this works.”

Jackson smiled cheekily, knowing he was caught trying to cheat. “Fine, fire away.”

Mark paused for a second while he thought of what to ask Jackson. He already knew the boy’s favorite color, his sports team, his circle of friends, his parents (to some degree), and his favorite movies, books, and music thanks to Facebook.

“Do you have any pets?” Mark asked dumbfounded, trying to remain innocent. He already knew Jackson had a small black Chihuahua named Roo that he adored, but he wanted to play it cool for now.

“I have one pet. A dog, named Roo. He’s a Chihuahua, and he’s the cutest thing on this planet.” Jackson answered swiftly, just as Mark expected.

“Did you go all the way with either of those girls?” Jackson asked just as quickly.

Mark sneered at Jackson’s happy face. “Why does it matter?”

Jackson giggled, “It doesn’t matter. But that’s the game, so answer.”

Mark sighed, “Yeah I did. With Jessica, not with Tiffany though. We only dated for a couple weeks before she broke up with me.”

“See that wasn’t hard.” Jackson said, happy with Mark’s answer.

“What about you, did you date anyone from our High School?” This was one thing that Mark was legitimately curious about. As much as he knew about Jackson, and as much as he’d seen Jackson around the school back then, he had never seen Jackson with any girls, or guys for that matter.

Sure, girls were always flocking to him and whispering as he walked by, but Jackson was never the type to pay them any mind.

Even Mark had dated a couple girls. Sure, he didn’t end up sticking with it as he discovered more and more about himself and his uality, but he was open to the experiences. It made Mark wonder if Jackson had even dated anyone, at all.

“Nope.” Jackson said back plainly.

“What do you mean ‘nope?’” Mark shot back.

“I haven’t dated anyone before.” He clarified.

“I see..” Mark couldn’t tell if he was being serious or not, but nothing that he knew about Jackson would suggest that he’s lying.

Mark already knew his next question, so he let Jackson go again.

“Favorite flavor of chips?” Jackson hummed, shaking the Dorito bag lightly.

“Salt and Vinegar.” Mark answered quickly. “Who’s your celebrity crush?”

Mark wasn’t looking to find out if Jackson liked Kim Kardashian or Paris Hilton, but if he would answer a female or a male. That was the real question Mark was intending to have answered. It was quite smart, he thought.

“Hmmmm” Jackson pursed his lips, deep in thought. “There’s a lot.”

“Top three then.” Mark said in anticipation.

Jackson was now looking directly into Mark’s eyes. His goofy look was gone, and his chip bag was folded at his side. Mark swallowed deeply at the new atmosphere as Jackson stared him down.

“It used to be Scarlet Johansson when I was younger.” Jackson said with a somewhat serious tone, looking away for a second. “But these days, I think that guy from One Direction is pretty hot, Zayn.”

Jackson’s eyes flashed back at Mark’s, almost as if he was waiting for Mark’s reaction.

Mark didn’t expect that, at all. This changed everything.

“Don’t laugh, alright. I don’t listen to One Direction at all, I just started getting into Zayn now that he’s solo. I like his style, alright.” Jackson began defending himself.

“I’m not laughing” Mark hesitated, “He’s a good looking guy…”

Mark was virtually stunned; he had anticipated everything up until this point. Every hour that went by he felt as though he was learning more about Jackson, and he loved every moment of it.

But this wasn’t something he could make up in his wildest dreams. He had spent nights alone in his room, lying in bed, day dreaming about Jackson sometimes. But there was always that sad truth that even if the stars aligned, Jackson was just another straight boy, and it could never happen between the two of them.

But now, sitting cross legged in front of Jackson, so close that their kneecaps are nearly brushing, Mark was beginning to realize that the sliver of a chance that he had pretty much accepted was never going to happen in this lifetime could now be a possibility.

That faint glimmer of a chance was more than Mark had ever expected, and it sent goosebumps up his forearms, stirring the pesky butterflies in his stomach again.

Mark knew he had cornered Jackson into a question that more or less asked him if he was straight or gay, but he didn’t expect it to be that easy without blatantly asking him that question.

“Who are yours?” Jackson quipped, resting his chin on his arm that propped his head up.

“My what?” Mark asked blankly, his mind still wandering.

“You know, your celebrity crush.” Jackson asked softly.

The entire mood had changed for Mark in the span of a few minutes. If everything up to this point was a soft and whimsical dream, then this moment on was a vivid and clear reality. Even Jackson’s body language was different, he seemed more vulnerable. Mark shivered slightly again before answering.

He wrestled with whether or not to tell Jackson that he had a crush on a boy or a girl, or to tell him that he had a crush on a celeb at all. He could very well just say “nobody,” which honestly would be the truth, because the object of his affection was sitting half a foot away, and was in no way a celebrity, except to maybe himself.

Mark had to think decisively, and calculated. This was a choice that would shape the mood from there on out. He knew that he needed to use the answer to send Jackson a message, but he wasn’t sure just yet if Jackson was ready to hear the whole truth.

“C’mon, no chickening out.” Jackson ushered, patting Mark’s leg impatiently.

“I do have a crush, a big one actually.” Mark’s voice was shaky, his lips nearly quivering.

“Oh oh! Can I guess?!” Jackson’s head perked up, “Which movies are they in, give me a hint or two.”

Mark took a breath, “They aren’t a celebrity.”

“Oh. Darn. Okay, well just tell me then, I probably don’t know her anyway.”

“It’s not-“ Mark spit out between his breaths. He wasn’t so sure about this decision anymore. “It’s not a girl either.” He wished he could rewind time.

“What do you mean?” Jackson’s curiosity was starting to sound more like confusion the more Mark spoke.

Mark closed his eyes, braced himself mentally; his fingers were white and cold with nerves.

When he opened his eyes again he met Jackson’s gaze once more. Jackson’s eyes were deep and brown, full of golden flakes that caught the dull light every once and a while, making him glow warmly. Mark knew he couldn’t keep it in anymore.

“It’s you, Jacks.” He whispered. “My crush… It’s you.”