Mark

After we finished eating, we thanked the owner for always taking such good care of us, and Jackson ended up paying for our meal, despite my protests. We walked outside and headed back to the apartment. It was quite chilly now, and since I was only wearing a thin t-shirt, I quickly folded my arms together, and rubbed my hands against my bare upper arms, attempting to feel a bit warmer. “Are you cold?” Jackson asked, noticing me shivering a little. “Yeah, just a bit” I replied, giving him a small smile. “I’m fine though,” I quickly added, not wanting him to worry about me. 

Jackson stopped in his tracks, and seemed to be thinking for a second. Then a mischievous smile started to slowly appear on his face. He looked at me with that smile; his eyes had a little twinkle in them. "Wait right here, okay?” he said. I gave him a questioning look, and he added, “Don’t move or I’ll have to kill you”, looking at me very seriously for a second. I knew he was kidding though, so I just smiled in reply, nodding obediently. God, he could be such a drama queen sometimes. I loved it though. “Be right back,” he said, smiling again, and quickly ran to one of the shops that was near to the chicken place. 

I had no idea what he was up to, but I stayed in the same place waiting for him, just like he told me to. Even though it was a bit too cold, I still enjoyed the weather now. It was the type of weather that was kind of in between hot and sunny, and cold and rainy weather. The type of weather where the season would start changing, where the last rays of sunshine would warmly say their goodbyes, and where the world would change into the most beautiful shades of orange, red, yellow, and brown. 

The air smelled nice, not only of fried chicken from the restaurant, but also of something else I couldn’t quite put my finger on. But it smelled like the way the colours of the trees were changing. It also smelled of sunshine and rain that had just fallen from the brightly coloured sky. I knew it didn’t make any sense, but it was one of my favourite smells in the world. Taking in all these surroundings, I sort of questioned why I did what I did today. I was grateful to be here in this moment, and I briefly shut my eyes, taking a deep breath and filling my lungs with this happy feeling. 

Not very long after he had left, Jackson returned, with a shopping bag in his hand. He looked very proud of whatever he did, and handed me the bag when he reached me. “Wear this,” he said, smiling widely. I reached my hand inside the bag and pulled out a sweater. It was a pastel pink, a cartoon unicorn with huge blue eyes printed on the front, with a brightly coloured rainbow behind it. Possibly the ugliest sweater I had ever laid my eyes on. I put it on anyways, because I was cold. It was surprisingly soft. I thanked Jackson for buying it, and he said, “You’re welcome” very deliberately, knowing very well how ugly it was. I didn’t know it then, but it became my favourite sweater. 

Jackson

I wasn’t too sure, because it was already kind of dark outside, but I thought I saw Mark blush a little when I gave him the sweater. I knew he probably agreed with me that it was ugly as hell, but that was exactly why I bought it for him. Not only to punish him for the fact that he hadn’t brought one with him, knowing it would get colder in the evening, but also just to a bit and hopefully cheer him up a little. 

After walking a few metres in direction of our apartment, he apparently couldn’t keep it in anymore. “It’s just so ugly!” he laughed, pulling his sweater down a bit so I could clearly see the print. “I know” I replied, probably looking really smug but not caring. “Don’t you think the pony is kinda cute though?” I asked him. “Pony??” he sounded offended. “It’s clearly a unicorn” he added, pointing out the rainbow. “Unicorn??” I replied, mockingly mimicking his tone earlier. “Do you see a ing horn on his head?” Mark stopped in his tracks, taking a closer look down at his new sweater. I stopped too. “Damn, you’re right” he said after a few seconds. He started walking again, and I followed him.

“Why the rainbow then?” he asked after a while, sounding genuinely confused. “He’s a fabulous gay pony” I simply replied. I looked at Mark, expecting him to laugh, but he just said “Oh, okay” and continued walking with his gaze fixed on the pavement. I wondered if I did something wrong. Maybe he was just tired. I decided on the second option, not wanting to cause more trouble for him where there probably wasn’t anything wrong. 

I suddenly felt a small finger touch my bare upper arm. I stopped to look at Mark. “Aren’t you cold?” he asked, still holding his delicate finger on my arm. I felt like his big adorable eyes would kill me. “Nah, I’m fine” I replied, giving him a small smile. I was a little bit cold though. But his wellbeing was more important to me. “Then what’s this?” He asked, lightly his fingers over my skin, pointing out the goosebumps. I quickly shrugged his touch off of me, trying to hold in my giggles because it tickled. “Shut up” I said, smiling at him. 

Mark

We continued walking towards the apartment again, and I contemplated all the ways I could somehow make Jackson feel a bit warmer. My thoughts quickly went to wanting to hold his hand again, but I shut it out just as fast. It wouldn’t help anyway. I then thought of me grabbing his wrist, turning him around towards me, and placing my other hand on the back of his neck, pulling him closer to me and pressing my lips onto his. I felt my neck and cheeks heating up, and prayed Jackson wouldn’t notice me blushing furiously. Luckily, he didn’t. 

I had never so vividly imagined myself kissing him, and never had I ever wanted to do it so much. I would never actually do it, of course. Honestly, why was I like this? Sure, Jackson was hot as , but in no way did I have a chance with him. He was straight anyway. But still, my feelings for him were only getting worse, and I just couldn’t stop myself. Especially after today, I felt my crush developing into something more, something I hadn’t felt before.