Hamburger

💙Hamburger🩷

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Synopsis: Liam and Henry decide to ditch school together, and as a result, Drew and Jake decide to have their own little day together. But things don’t quite go as planned.

A/N: I currently do not have access to my drawing tablet, so I might be posting more fic-related content. For anyone invested in these, I’ve been uploading them in a certain order to try and keep a certain timeline going, but this may be subject to change as I write more. For now though, all of these fics take place during Sophomore year, prior to Zoey and Drew going out. I’m trying to remain as canon-compliant as possible, but some ideas may become outdated once S2 comes out. (Also yes this Drake fic is called Hamburger my best friend named it.)

Contains minor swearing.

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Drew closed his locker, letting out a slow breath as he rested his hand on the metal door.

Him and Jake would be going out today, just the two of them. Henry and Liam both claimed to be ‘sick’, but considering what they were posting on Instagram, it was obvious they ditched school together. Leaving just Jake available to hang out.

God, even the idea of being alone with Jake made Drew’s heart flutter. He didn’t know why, nor did he care to find out. The feeling was nice, and that’s all that mattered.

Drew turned to lean against the locker, pulling out his phone to see what new shenanigans Liam and Henry were up to.

“Whatcha lookin at?” Drew startled at the sudden voice, glancing up to see Jake with his arm against his locker, leaning over to see what Drew was looking at.

“Liam’s Instagram.” Jake leaned a bit closer.

“Ooh, what’re they up to now?” Drew tilted his phone towards Jake, showing him a photo of Liam standing behind a gate that clearly said ‘DO NOT ENTER’. Jake let out a small laugh, and Drew did his best to hide a smile.

“You gonna bail them out if they get arrested?” The blonde asked, turning to unlock his locker.

“Hell no. If they can get themselves in jail, they can get themselves out.”

“Heh, that’s fair.” Jake said, tossing his books into his locker before closing it. “Well, I’m ready when you are.” Drew gave a small nod of acknowledgement, and the two left for the school’s exit.

“So… what’s the plan?” Jake asked.

“That shitty burger place, then…” Drew thought for a moment. “I don’t know, whatever you wanna do after.” Jake glanced up a bit, holding his arms behind his head.

“I know there's a park a couple blocks down. We can go chill there.”

“Why not?”

“We going back to your place after?” Jake asked, turning to look at him. Drew thought for a moment before shrugging.

“Whatever you want to do,” He answered.

“Cool.”

*+*+*

The first stop was that shitty burger place. The food there was dirt cheap, and… well, really shitty. Hence the nickname. Drew didn’t know why he and his friends went there after school so often. He could easily afford much nicer places for them. But all three of them seemed to like the food, so…

Jake chose a booth close to the window, sliding himself into the seat. Drew sat across from him, directing his attention towards the window as the two waited for their food to arrive. The two talked for a bit, and Jake took a quick photo of the two of them flipping off the camera to send to Henry and Liam. The two got their food not long after, and the quality was just as horrible as Drew remembered it being. But, Jake seemed to be perfectly content, and as long as he was happy, Drew was as well.

The two talked while they ate, and the topic seemed to shift about every minute or so, when Jake would get distracted, or go on a tangent about something, only to lead into another.

Their conversations were about simple things. About meaningless things. About things both Drew and Jake would probably forget about by tomorrow. Even when the two left the restaurant, their conversations continued, and even if Drew failed to remember what they discussed, he knew he wouldn’t be forgetting the feeling of that day anytime soon. The warmth in his chest. The way his cheeks seemed to hurt from constant smiles and laughs. The way Jake looked, drenched in the dappled sunlight filtering through the clouds. The glimmer in his eyes, the brightness of his smile…

And even as the clouds began to cover more of the sun, Jake’s light never faded. Drew felt himself drawn to it, following him blindly to wherever he desired, listening to his voice ramble endlessly.

If the sun was somehow a person, Drew was certain it would be Jake. Someone so bright Drew wasn’t even sure he deserved to stand beside.

And a part of him was almost glad Henry and Liam had decided to leave Drew and Jake out of their plan to ditch school. Drew wouldn’t want to trade this day for anything. Everything was perfect…

Until Drew felt a few drops of water land on his head, snapping him out of whatever spell Jake had him under.

He glanced up, realizing how dark the sky had gotten, and watched as a few more drops fell from the sky. It had started raining.

And Drew didn’t know where the hell they were.

“You’ve got to be kidding me.” Drew mumbled to himself.

“Crap…” Drew heard Jake whisper. The blonde turned towards him. “You uh… didn’t happen to bring a-”

“No? You think I check the weather forecast?” Drew interrupted, pulling the hood of his sweater over his head. Jake sighed, shrugging off his jacket as the rain began to pick up a bit. He held it over his head, extending one arm towards Drew and motioning with his head for him to come closer. With a slight blush, Drew took a step towards him, taking shelter under the blue leather jacket. It didn’t cover either of them by much, but it was better than nothing.

“The park’s not much farther. We can probably take shelter there,” Drew gave a small nod, following Jake down the sidewalk and praying he knew where they were going. Jake had gotten them lost on numerous occasions, and Drew didn’t want this to be another. Especially with the temperature dropping and the rain picking up.

Not to mention how dumb they must’ve looked. But thankfully, Drew didn’t notice anyone outside at the moment.

Eventually, Drew caught sight of the park Jake was talking about, and Jake’s eyes seemed to light up at the sight.

“We’re here, let’s go!” Before Drew could respond, Jake took off towards the playground, and Drew nearly slipped trying to keep up with him. The two ran through the wet sand, and Jake eventually stopped when they reached a small blue tunnel underneath a platform for children to play on. Jake pulled the both of them inside, and considering this playground was intended for children, it was… a tight fit. The two were pressed close together, with their knees brought to their chests just to fit inside.

“This is the dumbest thing I think we’ve ever done,” Drew commented.

“Nothing compared to what Henry and I did last week,” Drew opened his mouth to argue, but decided against it, and watched as Jake pulled his jacket back on. Lucky him. His jacket was still mostly dry on the inside thanks to the leather it was made with, unlike Drew’s hoodie, which had gotten soaked from the rain. The fabric clung to his body, heavy and uncomfortable, but the idea of taking it off in weather like this wasn’t pleasant either. Ultimately, Drew chose to deal with it.

“I’m gonna call my mom. I’ll see if she can pick us up from here.” Jake said, pulling out his phone from his back pocket. He dialed her number, pressed the phone against his ear, and after a few rings, she picked up.

“Hey, mom,” Jake started. “You uh… you busy right now?” Jake fell silent for a moment, and Drew assumed his mom was talking. Jake let out a small laugh before he spoke again.

“…Yeah, actually. Could you-” Jake paused.

“Yeah, yeah, I know, I know-” He paused again, then sighed.

“You were right.” He said, his voice flat.

…

“We’re at the park right now,”

…

“Yeah, that one,”

…

“Okay, thanks mom.”

…

“Yeah, we’re fine,”

…

“Okay, love you… Bye.”

Drew tried to remember the last time he’d told his own parents that…

“She’ll be here in 15 minutes,” Jake stated, placing his phone back into his pocket. Drew gave a small nod, bringing his hands up to his mouth and blowing into them to try and warm them.

15 minutes… stuck in a tunnel… with Jake. How delightful.

“You cold?” Jake suddenly asked, and it finally occurred to Drew that he was shivering. He shrugged, wrapping his arms around himself to try and hide it a little. Jake removed one sleeve of his jacket, extending it towards him. Drew looked at it, then Jake.

“H-huh-?!” Drew’s face flushed when he realized what Jake was offering.

“What? We’re both freezing, and my mom’s not gonna be here for a while.” Drew paused.

“Are you sure about this?” He asked, his voice growing quiet.

“Why not?” Jake answered. He sounded so casual about it, and Drew wished he could feel the same.

Why was his heart racing so fast? They were best friends, this shouldn’t be that big of a deal.

Drew swallowed, scooting himself closer and laying against Jake’s chest. Jake’s arm, meanwhile, wrapped around Drew’s shoulders, draping the jacket over his back.

…It was suddenly a lot warmer now.

But… It felt really nice.

Letting out a quiet breath, Drew allowed himself to relax, resting his head against Jake’s shoulder and wrapping his arms around the blonde’s torso, holding onto his shirt.

And despite the both of them being soaked from the rain, Drew couldn’t remember the last time he’d felt so comfortable.

Being with Jake like this… it felt… safe.

And Drew found himself closing his eyes.

He could feel Jake let out a small hum.

“Feeling any better?” He asked. Drew opened his eyes, giving a small, tired nod. Jake laughed.

“Hey, you know what this reminds me of?” He asked, and the way he dragged out his words sounded way too familiar. Slowly, Drew lifted his head.

“I swear, if you bring up the-”

“That time you got sick, and you kept clinging onto me like-” Drew shoved his side with his elbow.

“Shut up! I didn’t know what I was doing!” Drew exclaimed, only to be met with Jake’s laughter once more.

“Come on- just admit it! You love me!” Drew flushed.

“I fucking hate you,” He snapped, covering his mouth with the back of his hand.

“Love you too, Drewy-bear!” Jake said with a wink. And for a moment, Drew almost forgot what planet he was on. Why did Jake do this to him? How did Jake do this to him?

…And why did he never want him to stop?

Drew was brought back to reality when he heard Jake’s phone ding, and the blonde pulled it out of his pocket, checking the notification.

“Oh, she’s here,” He said, before shoving it back in his pocket and crawling over Drew to escape the tunnel. He stood up, holding out his hand to Drew. Drew accepted it, glancing up towards the road to see a familiar car parked by the sidewalk. Drew followed Jake towards it, and he could faintly see Jake’s little brother, Milo, sitting in the front seat. His eyes were glued to his GachaSwitch.

Jake opened the door for the both of them, and Drew entered the car. He tried to take up as little of the seat as possible, knowing his clothes were soaked.

“Heya!” Jake said as he followed Drew into the car, sitting down beside him.

“Bet you regret not listening to me this morning, huh?” Jake’s mom asked him, and Jake sighed as he shut the car door.

“I know, I know,” Jake said. “But it really didn’t look that cloudy this morning!” Jake’s mom shifted the car into drive, pulling away from the curb.

“Better to be prepared than not,” She lectured. “You boys aren’t feeling sick, are you?” She asked, her voice growing concerned.

“We’re fine, just cold.” Jake said. His mom nodded, turning up the heater a bit.

“You want me to drop you off at your place, Drew?” She asked. Drew glanced up at Jake.

“You could stay the night too, if you want.” Jake offered. Drew thought for a moment.

“Shouldn’t you be asking me, first?” Jake’s mom asked.

“Ah, yeah, right. Uh… could he? If he wanted to?” Jake asked. His mom rolled her eyes, a small smile appearing on her face.

“Yes, he can.” Jake smiled before turning back to Drew, awaiting his answer.

“Great! So? Do you want to?” The blonde asked. Drew gave a small nod, and Jake’s enthusiasm towards his answer gave Drew that same warm feeling he always managed to find with Jake. But as Drew glanced back towards Jake’s mom, he began to wonder something.

On the few occasions that Drew would stay at Jake’s house, Jake’s mom would always requested his parents approval. And considering how little contact he had with them, he’d often lie to her, saying they agreed when he hadn’t even asked. But… this time, she didn’t asked him anything. Had Jake told her about his parents or something?

…He didn’t let himself dwell on it. All that mattered was the fact he got to spend the night with Jake.

He turned his attention to his phone, checking Henry and Liam’s instagram to see if anything new was posted. And after realizing Jake was glancing over at him, he leaned a bit closer, sharing his screen.

Between the slight rumble of the car, the warmth of the heater, the quiet buzz of the radio, and the comfort of being by Jake’s side, Drew found himself growing rather drowsy, until he could barely keep his eyes open anymore. At some point, Drew had stopped scrolling, and his phone fell into his lap. A moment later, he blinked, and the world slipped into darkness.

*+*+*

“...rew…”

“Drew, wake up.”

Drew blinked, recognizing the sound of Jake’s voice. Glancing around, he realized he was still in the car. Did he fall asleep?

“We’re here.” Jake whispered, and as Drew glanced up to look at him, it suddenly occurred to him that he was leaning against the blonde’s shoulder. Quickly, he sat up.

“J-Jake! Shit, when did I-“

“About five minutes ago? Maybe?” Drew swallowed.

“Why didn’t you wake me up?” Jake rolled his eyes.

“You stay up ‘til two in the morning on the regular. You probably needed that nap.” Drew frowned, but said nothing else as Jake opened the door for him and led him inside the house. Jake’s mom was standing in the doorway, whereas Milo was nowhere to be seen. Once the two had entered, Jake closed and locked the door, then kneeled down to take off his shoes.

“I’m gonna finish making dinner,” Jake’s mom said. “Both of you better take a shower. I don’t need either of you getting sick.” Jake gave a nod, and his mom left for the kitchen.

“You wanna shower first?” He asked, setting his shoes aside.

“Sure,” Drew replied, doing the same. Jake gave a nod in response.

“I’ll go get you some spare clothes,” With another quick nod, Drew made his way to the guest bathroom. He’d grown far too familiar with Jake’s house, knowing it about as well as he knew his own. He opened the door to the bathroom and flicked on the light before shutting the door behind him. Finally, he could take off his hoodie. It had dried a bit thanks to the heater, but it was still uncomfortable to wear, and Drew was glad to be rid of it. As he turned on the shower to get the water warm, Jake entered the bathroom, bringing with him some spare clothes and an extra towel. He left as quickly as he came, and Drew locked the door before taking off the rest of his clothes. He tried to keep his shower quick, knowing Jake had to use it as well, but with how cold his body was, and how warm the water was by comparison, it was a bit of a challenge to find the will to leave. But eventually, he finished bathing himself, and threw on the spare clothes Jake had brought him. He left shortly after that, the towel still in his arms as he called for Jake to let him know it was his turn to wash up. Jake had whisked past him faster than he expected, closing the door rather quickly. Rolling his eyes, Drew made his way to Jake’s bedroom, sitting himself down on the bed as he dried off his hair. Pulling the towel away from himself, Drew glanced down at what he was wearing.

The clothes Jake had given him were nothing special. An old, long-sleeved shirt and cropped sweatpants. They weren’t too fancy, nor all that soft. They were simple, and obviously cheap.

But somehow… they still felt special. And Drew felt especially comfortable wearing them. Even compared to his own clothes.

He’d borrowed Jake’s clothes countless times before, yet the feeling never seemed to fade, and Drew hoped it never would. It was a wonderful feeling.

Drew was snapped out of his thoughts when he heard the door open, and he glanced up to see Jake standing in the doorway, dressed in a tank top and deep blue sweatpants. He had the towel draped across his shoulders, and his hair was still dripping wet.

God, why did he still look so beautiful?

“Dinner’s ready!” Jake announced, and Drew stood up from the bed, following him to the kitchen.

*+*+*

Dinner was nothing special. Just some pasta and store-bought bread rolls, but it still tasted amazing. Jake and Milo bickered most of the evening, and it was honestly amusing how often Jake would argue with someone about 4 years younger than him. It was even more amusing how often he’d lose.

Jake’s house was nowhere near as quiet as his. It was lively, yet comforting at the same time. Drew would never admit it, but he much preferred being at Jake’s house than his own, even if there wasn’t much to do.

Because Jake’s house felt like a home, and Drew’s just felt… lonely.

*+*+*

Once everyone had finished eating, Jake was put in charge of dishes. Drew helped load them into the dishwasher while Jake washed them, and between the two of them, they were able to get them accomplished rather quickly. Afterwards, the two made their way upstairs, laying down on Jake’s bed beside one another. Jake rested his arms underneath his head, letting out a sigh.

“Today was fun,” He said, glancing over at Drew. Drew turned to face him.

“Yeah.”

“We should do this more often, just the two of us,” Jake suggested, and Drew felt his face warm at the idea. “Make Henry and Liam jealous.” He added with a wink.

“They’ll probably think we’re gay.” Drew joked, rolling his eyes as he recalled how often Henry and Liam referred to them as ‘boyfriends’. Jake let out a small laugh.

“If anyone’s gay in this friend group, it’s those two. I mean, they’ve literally kissed before.” The magenta-haired man chuckled.

“I guess so,”

“I really do want to do this more though, don’t you?” Jake asked, rolling over to face him. Their eyes met, and it took a moment for Drew to respond.

“Yeah, I do.” He said. Jake smiled at him.

“Awesome,” He said. “Any ideas for our next adventures? Preferably on a less rainy day?” Drew shrugged, shifting himself underneath the blankets.

Jake stared up at the fan, seemingly deep in thought for a moment, only to let out a yawn.

“I’ll leave that up to future us, then.” Jake decided, getting under the covers as well. Drew watched as he did so, and found himself staring while the blonde’s gaze was away.

“...Jake..?” Jake glanced over at him.

“What’s up?” Drew thought for a moment. He didn’t know why he was about to say this, but…

“I’m… still cold.”

Drew’s heart was pounding. Would Jake even understand what he meant by that?

Jake sat up.

“Oh! Sorry about that. Lemme grab you a spare blanket!” Before Drew could say anything else, Jake had gotten up and left the room. Drew let out a small groan, rolling onto his back.

Dumbass. That wasn’t at all what he meant.

He didn’t want a blanket… he wanted Jake…

And even though Jake hadn’t understood what Drew was implying, the magenta-haired man couldn’t help but feel embarrassed at himself. Why did he even say that in the first place? Why did he want to-

No, no he wasn’t going to question it. It was normal for friends to want… to…

Drew sat up when he heard the door open again, and Jake returned with a soft, peach-colored blanket folded in his arms. He made his way to Drew’s side, carefully draping the blanket over him before climbing back into bed.

“That better?”

“Yeah, thanks.” Drew responded half-heartedly, however, Jake was as oblivious as ever.

“No problem.” The blonde let out another yawn as he settled himself back into bed, covering himself with the blankets.

“I think I’m gonna head to bed.” He said. Drew gave a small nod in response. “‘Night, Drew. See you in the morning.”

“‘Night,” Drew said, before rolling over, facing his back to Jake. Drew wished he could fall asleep as well, but he couldn’t prevent the questions from arising.

Why had he wanted Jake to hug him again? Why did he want to be in Jake’s arms so badly? Why did it feel like more than just a want? Why did it feel like a need? A desperation?

Why did the idea of being alone with Jake make his heart race? Why did he like being at his house? In his clothes? In his bed? Why did-

Drew paused.

…

…And he considered a possibility he hadn’t yet thought of…

…But he hated it.

He didn’t want to admit it. It was disgusting to even consider.

So instead, Drew kept telling himself that…

Jake was just a really good friend.

A friend Drew didn’t deserve…

More Drew Headcanons!

(Because he’s my favorite.)

🖤The softest hair out of the Jomies, loves having it played with but would rather die than admit it. (The Jomies also like playing with Drew's hair, they’re just are too coward to say anything.)

🖤Has one of those 80 step skincare routines.

🖤Likes watching terrible movies just to insult them.

🖤Fiddles with his bangs a lot and tends to blow them out of his face.

🖤Bites his pencil when he's focused.

🖤Lives off energy drinks because he’s always up late on his PC.

🖤Touch starved, but is only fine with certain people touching him. (cough Jake cough.)

🖤His parents were usually always busy, so he was essentially left to raise himself. As a result, he’s attention-starved, and desperately craves validation.

🖤Extremely lonely, and hates being reminded of it.

🖤Always finds subtle ways to initiate contact with Jake. (Wraps his arm around him, brushes his hand against Jake’s during class, etc.)

🖤Extremely protective of those he cares about.

🖤Internalized homophobia.

🖤Love language is gift giving.

🖤Had past relationships before Zoey, but these only lasted like a week or two, so he's still relatively inexperienced when it comes to dating.

🖤Prefers the softer side of love, such as cuddles and hand-holding.

🖤Genuinely believes love and affection can be bought through material possessions.

🖤Zoey was the one to ask him out first. He didn’t feel much in terms of romantic attraction at the time, but accepted both for status, and out of desire to feel wanted by someone.

🖤Genuinely cared about Zoey, but was never sure if it was romantically or platonically. Regardless, he went out with her, and treated her like a princess.

🖤Would play on his PC while his girlfriend was over.

🖤Secretly likes being little spoon.

🖤Has underlying feelings for Jake that he does not let himself address or process.

🖤Abandonment issues.

🖤When he hugs someone, he digs his nails into their back because he's desperate for them to stay.

🖤Undiagnosed depression

(I can’t wait to watch half of these become outdated with the release of S2.)

TMF Headcanons!

(Because they’re a precious little found family and I love that for them.)

🩵Hailey spends several hours scrolling through Pinterest.

💜Zander has a massive black cat plushie hidden away in his room.

🧡Luke has about 200 hours in Animal Crossing, and is emotionally attached to all his villagers.

🩷Milly shops at Hot Topic.

💙Sean tends to keep his headphones on during class, and only catches about half of what the teacher says.

🩵Hailey had a horse girl phase, while Zander’s always been terrified of horses.

💜Zander braided Hailey’s hair a lot when they were younger.

🧡Luke has an entire photo album full of pipctures he took of Zander.

🩷Milly had a dragon phase.

💙Sean’s considered the father of the group, as well as the group therapist.

🩵Hailey and Milly paint each other’s nails.

💜Zander has a habit of stealing the bathroom for hours on end just to make sure he looks his best. He’s very particular about his appearance, especially about his hair.

🧡Luke’s hair is usually pretty messy, but it’s always in an aesthetic way. None of the other club members know how he does it.

🩷Milly refuses to wear skirts.

💙Sean has a terrible sleep schedule due to balancing work, school, and club activities. His parents constantly arguing doesn’t help much either, which leads to him passing out sometimes during club meetings. Usually, the group tends to let him rest.

🩵Hailey loves blueberry lemonade.

💜Zander drinks grape juice out of wine glasses to feel sophisticated.

🧡Luke has a stash of grape juice at his house specifically for Zander.

🩷Milly’s really good at Hip-Hop styled dance. She’s tried to get Sean to do TikTok dances with her, and it usually never works out too well, considering Sean has two left feet.

💙Sean really good at both cooking and cleaning. (He’d make an amazing housewife.)

🩵Hailey’s a Swiftie, and has learned many of her songs on guitar.

💜Zander steals Luke’s clothes all the time, and Luke loves seeing Zander wear them.

🧡Luke and Zander have matching bracelets they made together.

🩷Milly listens to death metal.

💙Sean often takes walks late at night, putting his headphones on full volume and allowing himself to daydream.

🩵Hailey hasn’t seen nor read Heartstopper, yet knows several quotes from the series purely from how much Zander says them.

💜When Heartstopper came out on Netflix, Zander and Luke watched it together, and they both cried.

🧡Luke will listen to Zander ramble on and on about his interests, because he likes listening to Zander’s voice, and he likes learning about Zander’s interests so they have something to talk about.

🩷Milly’s love language is giving surprise hugs.

💙Sean’s love language is sharing his music playlists, and creating playlists for others.

🩵Hailey and Zander both drink tea a lot. Hailey tends to put sugar and cream in hers, whereas Zander drinks his without.

💜Zander can walk better in heels than Hailey can.

🧡Every year for the holidays, the Music Club plays Secret Santa. Luke was the one who started the tradition.

🩷Milly has no problem picking up bugs, and as a result, she’s usually the one to deal with them whenever they get inside the club room. (Zander’s also terrified of bugs, and Milly has chased him around while holding one multiple times.)

💙Sean gives the best hugs.

🩵Hailey and Zander host sleepovers a lot.

💜Zander has RBF.

🧡Luke tends to suppress his own feelings in favor of focusing on Zander’s.

🩷Milly’s always getting herself into dangerous situations on accident, and there have been numerous times Sean’s carried her under his arm after she tries doing something stupid.

💙Despite being the group’s therapist, Sean doesn’t like talking about his own problems in fear he’d be seen as a burden. He’s opened up to Milly a bit, but not much.

💜School (But Fun!)💙

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Synopsis: Drew invites Jake over to study, but the two get a bit sidetracked.

A/N: This one is probably a little more OOC than usual, but it was fun to write so… yeah.

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Drew flicked on the light of his kitchen, motioning for Jake to follow him. He led the two to the counter, and sat down on a nearby stool, shifting his bag onto his lap. He had invited Jake over that afternoon after discovering the alarming lack of progress the blonde made on his algebra study guide, which was due tomorrow. Drew hoped he would be able to help Jake finish it tonight, so his grade wouldn’t drop down.

…It definitely wasn’t an excuse to just… hang out with Jake alone again.

Drew was quick to chase those thoughts away, pulling out a black folder and pencil before setting his bag on the floor. He opened his folder, pulling out his study guide, then turned to Jake, who had sat down beside him. It appeared as though he’d done the same. Drew glanced over Jake’s paper, seeing the blonde hadn’t even written his name yet.

Jake flipped through the pages of the packet, skimming the questions.

“It’s fifty questions…” He whined, before setting his head down on the counter, letting out a muffled groan.

“That’s why we had two days to do this.” Drew said, picking up his pencil and flipping to the question he’d left off on.

“Why can’t I just copy off you when you’re done?” Jake asked, tilting his head to look at him.

“If I have to suffer through this, so do you. Besides, you're not gonna learn anything by copying me.” Drew paused. “And I think our teacher’s starting to get suspicious with how similar our answers have been recently.” He added, a bit quieter than before.

Drew rarely let anyone copy off his papers, but Jake was… always an exception.

Jake stared up at him with pleading eyes, and Drew could feel his face warm slightly, but forced himself to look away, and after a moment, Jake sighed, sitting himself up and reaching for his pencil.

“Just ask me if you need help.” Drew said. “I’m not giving you the answers, but I’ll walk you through it.” Jake nodded.

“Thanks,” Drew smiled before directing his attention to his paper, quickly getting to work.

The first few minutes of studying went rather well. Jake only needed help with a few problems, and Drew was able to breeze through the remainder his own packet with ease. But the longer the two sat there, the more Drew caught Jake zoning out. Something he did often. When Jake would start scribbling on the corners of the page, or when he tilted his head to the side to stare at… basically nothing, Drew knew he’d gotten distracted. Luckily, Drew was able to snap him out of it rather easily, simply by tapping his pencil against Jake’s paper to help him refocus.

As the two continued to study, Drew soon reached a problem that genuinely had him confused. He thought he just had to plug the numbers into the formula, but the answer his calculator read was completely different from the answers provided on the text. So, Drew reread the problem, and set his pencil down to refer back to his notes. He sifted through papers until he eventually found what he needed, and fiddled with his bangs as he read through them.

Ah, so that’s what he did.

Drew set the papers down, blowing his bangs out of his face as he lifted his pencil again, scribbling down the new equation, which gave him what he hoped was the right answer. But he didn’t feel like double-checking to be certain.

So instead, he moved on to the next problem, reading the question carefully. He bit down on his pencil subconsciously, a habit he was always in denial of despite his friends commenting on it on multiple occasions.

“Psst…”

Jake’s whisper snapped Drew out of his thoughts, and he glanced over to see Jake leaned across the counter, his phone pointed directly at him.

“Heya pretty boy, you come here often?” Drew paused for a moment, moving the pencil away from his mouth.

…Pretty boy?

Almost immediately, Drew felt his face turn red, which earned him a small laugh from Jake. A sound Drew was barely able to register.

Did… did Jake really just call him that? Did he mean that? Did Jake think he was-

“Are you recording me right now?” Drew suddenly asked, hoping he didn’t sound as flustered as he most likely appeared. Jake hummed.

“Maybe…” He admitted. “And I might’ve just gotten the pencil thing on camera, too.”

“The pencil-” Drew paused, suddenly realizing what Jake meant.

Shit… Jake had proof of that now.

“Give me that-!” Drew yelled, jumping from his seat to try and take the phone. However, Jake seemed to be expecting that, quickly standing up from his chair and holding his phone high above his head. Drew tried to reach for it, but was suddenly reminded of their height difference.

And Drew found himself violently tempted to kick him in the-

Jake took off running in the opposite direction, and Drew let out a gasp of surprise before taking off after him.

“Give it to me!” Drew shouted, chasing Jake into the living room. Jake burst out laughing, still keeping the phone as far away as possible.

“You’ll have to catch me first!” He teased, a mischievous grin plastered on his face. Drew huffed. So this was a challenge, huh? Well, who was Drew to turn down that?

Drew continued to chase Jake around the house, coming close to him a few times, but always just out of reach. And a small part of him genuinely began to enjoy this little game Jake had begun, eventually laughing along with him. Drew wasn’t exactly sure how long they were running around for, but eventually, Drew managed to corner Jake in the hallway. Without thinking, Drew grabbed Jake’s wrists and pinned him against the wall.

“Got you…” Drew whispered between breaths, a small smirk tugging at his lips. Jake huffed out a laugh, seemingly still out of breath from their game.

And… Drew couldn’t help but to admire the way Jake looked like this…

“Fine, fine, I… I admit defeat…” Jake managed, chest still heaving. “Mind letting… go of me now?” He asked, and Drew hesitated for a moment before releasing his grip. He could feel his face warm suddenly, his actions finally catching up to him.

Did that… really just happen?

“Heh… you got pretty into that…” Jake commented. “But, since you were able to catch me, the phone is yours, your majesty…” Drew swallowed as he took the phone from him, turning it on to find Jake had locked it. “Too bad you don’t know my-“

Drew entered Jake's password, immediately opening to his camera roll. Jake stared at him, mouth agape.

“How did you-“

“You already gave me your password, dumbass.” Drew stated, leaning against the wall as he opened the video.

“I did?” Jake thought for a moment. “That was like, three months ago!” Drew shrugged in response, watching how the camera zoomed in and out on his face randomly.

Drew cringed slightly when he noticed how red his face had gotten after Jake’s… comment. God, it was so obvious he-

“Are you gonna delete it?” Jake suddenly asked, and the video cut off. Drew thought for a bit, before reluctantly handing the phone back to him, video untouched.

“As long as you don’t show anyone this…” He mumbled.

“Wait, really?!” Jake said, perking up a bit. Drew gave a curt nod, unsure of why he was even doing this. Jake could very easily post this somewhere and completely embarrass-

“Yes! Thank you! This’ll be our little secret!” Jake smiled at him, and his light was almost blinding.

…Drew realized why he let Jake keep the video.

The magenta-haired man tilted his head away, crossing his arms and trying to hide his blushing face.

“Yeah, sure. We should probably get back to the kitchen. We got… pretty sidetracked.” Before Jake could say anything, Drew left the hallway and made his way back to the kitchen, sitting down on a stool and turning back to his work as if that whole event had never occurred.

But even as Drew tried to continue, his mind wouldn’t stop thinking about it. He couldn’t stop thinking about the way Jake looked pinned against the wall. He couldn’t stop thinking about Jake’s voice, and the comments he made.

…And he couldn’t stop thinking about how easy it would’ve been to kiss him. And how badly he wanted to kiss him…

No, no no! He couldn’t be thinking like this.

He wasn’t supposed to like Jake. He didn’t like Jake. He was just… confused.

That had to be it. Because if it wasn’t… it-

Drew was snapped out of his thoughts when he noticed Jake’s head against the counter, brown eyes staring at him.

“What?” Drew asked.

“You can’t concentrate either, can you?” Jake guessed, and Drew sighed, setting down his pencil.

“No,” He admitted. Jake sat back up, stretching his arms behind his head.

“Maybe studying wasn’t meant to be today.” He commented, and Drew glanced over his paper.

“You’re only on question fifteen,” He pointed out. Jake shrugged.

“That’s like… halfway done. I think it’s time for a break.” Drew frowned, seeing the error in Jake’s math almost immediately. No wonder he was failing algebra.

“Didn’t we just take a break?” Drew asked. Jake shook his head.

“That wasn’t a break, it was a distraction,” He clarified. “A break is…” He thought for a minute. “You ordering us food from somewhere.” Drew rolled his eyes, pulling out his phone from his back pocket.

“Can’t believe you're making me buy you food.” Drew mumbled sarcastically.

“You want me to photosynthesize or something?” Jake asked.

“Yes.” Drew answered, and Jake shook his head, glancing over at the window.

“Afraid I can’t, Drew. The sun’s already down,”

“Is it?” Drew lifted his head, glancing over to see the sun setting in the distance. “Huh…”

“Time flies, I guess.” Jake said, and Drew gave a nod before returning his attention to his phone.

“I guess so. Anyways, what do you want?” Jake thought for a bit before answering.

“I dunno.”

How helpful.

“Well, what sounds good?”

“Anything, really.”

Again, very helpful.

“God, you’re worse than Henry.” Drew grumbled. “I’m just gonna list you some stuff, okay?” Jake nodded, and Drew went down the list of places in the area that delivered. It was quickly made apparent that Jake was a total liar. Apparently ‘anything’ wasn’t being served at the first five places Drew listed, but eventually, Drew was able to find somewhere they were both content with. After a few minutes, Drew had placed their orders.

“There, you’re welcome.”

“Thanks, Drew! I’ll pay you back tomorrow when-”

“You don’t have to pay me back, Jake. I tell you this all the time.”

“Well, yeah, but I don’t just wanna assume you’re gonna pay for me. That feels… I don’t know.” Drew shrugged.

“It’s not a big deal. I have the money, so why shouldn’t I?” Jake fell silent for a moment.

“You’re sure it’s cool?” He asked, and Drew gave a nod in response. “…Thanks, Drew.”

The room fell silent for a moment.

“Well, our breaks over now.”

“What?!” Jake cried. “That was like, ten minutes!”

“And you still have thirty-five questions left.” Jake slammed his head on the counter, letting out a groan.

“I hate high school.” He mumbled.

“We can take a break once the food gets here. But until then, you need to focus. Jake whined as he lifted his head from the desk, picking up his pencil with a frown across his face.

“Here, I’ll help you with this one.” Drew said, leaning closer to look over Jake’s paper before walking him through the problem.

*+*+*

About half an hour later, Drew had almost finished his study guide. Jake was about halfway done with his, but was able to remain focused for the majority of the period.

Eventually, their food arrived, and the second Jake heard the doorbell ring, he seemed to completely forget about the packet's existence. He ran to the door to grab their food, and insisted they eat in the living room so they could watch TV together. Drew eventually agreed, and allowed Jake to show him a new series he’d been talking about for weeks. The two settled themselves on the couch to eat, and within one episode, Drew was absolutely hooked. The two finished their meals after two episodes, but due to how short the episodes were, Jake was able to talk Drew into watching a third, and then a fourth, and then…

What were they doing again?

…It probably wasn’t important.

When the credits rolled for… whatever episode they were on, Drew turned to Jake to see if he wanted to do another, only to find him dozing off on the couch. Drew sighed, pausing the TV before laying down beside him, staring at him while he slept.

He looked so peaceful…

Drew reached a hand out to him, but decided against it, instead bringing it up to his mouth as he stifled a yawn.

…A nap sounded nice right now…

Drew pulled the throw blanket from the back of the couch and draped it over his legs, turning on his side to be a bit more comfortable. And slowly, Drew closed his eyes, drifting off into a light sleep.

*+*+*

Drew woke up to the sound of Jake’s ringtone, and slowly, he sat up. Was someone trying to call him or-

Wait…

Drew glanced down, and realized that when he’d fallen asleep… he’d fallen against Jake’s chest.

He quickly pushed himself off of Jake just as he awoke. The blonde seemed confused for a moment, glancing around for his phone before grabbing it and seeing who was calling. Immediately, his eyes widened.

“Shit…” He whispered to himself, before answering the call and placing the phone to his ear.

“H-Hey mo-” Immediately, Drew could hear Jake’s mom yelling on the other end, but he couldn’t quite make out what she was saying.

“I’m sorry, I fell asleep-“

…

“Uh… we uh… finished.”

…

“You’re here?!” Jake shot up. “Crap! I’m on my way!” Jake turned to leave, then paused, turning back around to face Drew.

“I gotta go, my mom’s here.

Before Drew could even respond, Jake practically tackled him in a hug, only to pull away just a second later.

“Thanks for having me over. I’ll see you tomorrow!” And with that, Jake ran out of the living room to grab his bag and shoes, leaving a flustered Drew alone on the couch.

*+*+*

Later that night, after Drew had gotten ready for bed, he finally remembered what he and Jake had set out to do in the first place, and he made his way back downstairs to finish up the last few questions on his paper.

And it just so happened that Jake har left his paper behind after his mom came to pick him up.

It didn't take Drew long to finish up his packet, and soon directed his attention to Jake’s half-completed packet.

…

Despite his better judgment, Drew pulled out a spare sheet of paper from his backpack, and copied the remaining answers onto it. He then put the papers together, and returned it to his algebra folder. He’d return Jake’s paper, along with the remaining answers, tomorrow.

He really needed to stop doing that…

C A T

Drew smiles🩷

Okay now notice how a majority of these come from either looking at or being with Jake-