There's an ongoing game on the basketball court. Quinn is playing with his friends, dribbling, throwing, catching and blocking. It was noisy, the boys laughed, yelled and made sharp sounds on the clay floor with their sneakers as they ran around. Cody was sitting on the stairs by the gates, watching Quinn with a smile on his face. It felt like de Ja Vu. It had been two months since he'd started living with Quinn's family. His skin looked richer, his eyes looked brighter, and he'd put on some weight thanks to Quinn's mother's cooking.

Also, keeping up with Quinn meant exercising a lot. The boy walked around a fair amount, and he was prone to breaking out into runs, leaving Cody and to run after him.

"Be careful! If the ball hits Cody, Quinn will have our heads!" Hozier yelled when the basketball bounced off the metal netting that surrounded the court.

The other boys chuckled at that as the game paused for a moment. Quinn had come out to his friends slowly—one by one, and to everyone at once when he had forgotten it was supposed to be private. He had jumped Cody, pressing a kiss to the boy's lips in front of everyone, and had only pulled away when Karl had coughed. It had been a little difficult to explain, but his friends didn't seem too fazed. Some of them even mentioned guessing the situation months ago.

Hozier walked over to where the ball had rolled before throwing it back into the court and starting the game again. Cody smiled when he spotted Quinn looking his way. The taller boy was in shorts that rode a bit up his toned thighs, and the tank top he was wearing was drenched in sweat. Quinn smiled back at Cody, waving before he got yelled at by Karl to pay attention.

Cody watched them continue the game, and when they were done and left the basketball court, Quinn walked up to him. The taller boy's forehead was dripping with sweat, and his wavy hair was a mess that stuck to his forehead and neck. Most people wouldn't have let Quinn touch them with a ten-foot pole in his state, but Cody just laughed, hugging him briefly before taking his hand.

The two started to walk home together, leaving before the others. The afternoon was long today—it was six, but the sun was persistent with its rays of yellow light. Summer days were like that with its long days and short nights.

The sound of their feet crunching the sand with the bottom of their shoes was the only sound for miles. Quinn squeezed Cody's hand, looking over the boy as he thought of what to say. "Are you following Janet to work tomorrow?" he asked.

"Yes," Cody said with a smile as he looked at Quinn from the side of his eyes. He noticed that the boy was frowning a bit, making Cody's eyes go wide with concern.

"What's wrong?" Cody asked, moving closer to Quinn so that their sides were brushing as they walled.

"Nah, ignore me," Quinn sighed, forcing himself to smile. "I just liked you coming over to the mechanic's shop, that's all." The taller boy brushed back his hair with his free hand as Cody giggled, rolling his eyes. Quinn liked him being close, and that was one of the reasons Cody followed him to the basketball court even though he never joined to play.

Quinn had started working as an apprentice at a mechanics shop, and Janet had recommended Cody to her boss when she had figured out the boy was a fast learner. They had bonded when Janet had cut Cody's mess of a hair, and Cody had offered to do hers in return. Cody would start at the salon tomorrow. Cody spent most of his time messing with Janet, and Quinn's mother's hair, so there wouldn't be a difference if he helped in the hairdressing salon Janet worked at and got paid for it.

"Should we get drinks? We should get drinks," Quinn said when the two got closer to the local convenience store. He tugged Cody's had, making the boy laugh as he followed him along.

There was a nostalgia that came with walking into the run-down shack with Quinn. They had their proper first conversation on its staircase, they had bought their first pack of condoms here together, and they had kissed on the stairs at the back for the first time. Cody remembered feeling that Quinn wasn't so scary for the first time when Quinn offered to buy him snacks.

They both walked up the stair and went in, and after a while, they both came out with bottles of soft drinks. They didn't linger behind like they used to and continued to head home.

Quinn took out the bottle cap with his teeth before spitting it out in the distance. "After we've saved up enough, we can get a small place together. What do you think?" he asked, taking a swing of his soft drink.

Cody smiled. "I'd like that." He liked living with Quinn's family, but it also meant being quiet when they did things together or planning intimate moments around his parents and sister's schedule. He liked the idea of just being with Quinn a lot. To be quite honest, anywhere with Quinn was home to Cody.

Quinn mirrored the smile. "Great, I want to be the one taking care of you for a change. Mum does that a lot, but I'm the one dating you."

Cody laughed as he rolled his eyes at his boyfriend. "Don't be ridiculous. Are you jealous of your mum?"

Quinn pouted. "Yes, sort of?" His words made Cody's face warm up.

Gosh, he's too honest! Cody thought, trying to stop his heart from breaking out of his ribcage.

"Alright, I'll start calling you by your mum's name, so you won't get jealous anymore, how's that?" Cody asked, playing off his flustered self with a joke. Quinn laughed, and so did Cody. The walk became silent again until Cody spoke up.

"I want to take care of you too," Cody said under his breath, squeezing Quinn's hand. The taller boy heard him, and a grin got plastered on his face.

The two boys continued their way home, talking as their faces mirrored expressions of love, happiness, and gratitude. This was the happiest Cody had ever been. Sharing himself with someone was something he hadn't thought would be possible in a million years, and he was glad Quinn had reached out to him when he'd seemed invisible behind the gates.

THE END