Chapter 17 Chapter Seventeen
Omniscient Narrative
It’s past midnight and the moonlight seeped softly through the half-open blinds, casting gentle stripes of silver across Demi’s very clean room.
The air was thick with unspoken words, lingering awkwardness, and the faint scent of Demi’s usual room smell and also confusion that laid thick between them.
Demi laid on his side of the bed, staring at the ceiling, eyes wide open, while Alex was beside him, trying to find a comfortable position but failing miserably as he laid on his side.
His body was tensed as he laid there, he could feel the heat from Alex’s body and it made his insides turn.
It had started as a normal night-well, as normal as it could be.
So how it escalated that quickly was unknown to both of them.
Both boys laid there wishing they could turn back time.
To not only hours before, but days before, the night of the incident.
Neither of them has actually spoken about that night directly, but yet the weight of that one night hung between them like an unspoken promise or a curse.
And neither of the boys was sure which.
If only Alex hadn’t made that joke.
Demi was lost in thoughts, then all of a sudden he heard Alex’s voice.
“You know,” Alex had said, voice muffled by the darkness causing the brown skin male to look at him, “with the way we’re laid out on the bed both shirtless, restless and wide awake, I’d say we just had another accidental one-night stand.” The white male said before letting out a laugh.
Demi’s heart had stopped for a moment. The air around him grew thick, suddenly heavy with a mixture of shock, embarrassment, and something else.
Something too complicated to name right then. He had looked over at Alex, eyes wide, face flushed with a mixture of amusement and regret.
‘Is this nigga for real?’ The brown skin boy mentally thought.
“Seriously, Alex?” Demi had whispered, voice trembling. “That’s not funny.” He could swear his heart is about to burst out of his chest any second from now.
But Alex, ever the joker, had only grinned sheepishly, shrugging. “Come on, lighten up Demi. You know I’m joking. Besides, it’s not like we haven’t... you know.” He made hand gestures causing Demi to groan and turn to the other side.
“You’re an idiot” he muttered trying to force himself to sleep.
.
.
.
A few minutes has passed and neither of them are still asleep.
Demi shifted, pulling his blanket tighter around himself, trying to create some boundary, some semblance of comfort.
But the bed was too small, the space too tight with the weight of unspoken feelings, especially with Alex making yet another uncomfortable joke.
“Can we just forget about that night?” Demi finally whispered, voice shaky, breaking the silence that had stretched for what felt like hours.
Alex hesitated, then nodded slowly. “Yeah. Yeah, I guess. And I’m sorry about the joke. I didn’t mean to make things more weird.”
“Too late,” Demi muttered, turning onto his side to face the wall. “You already made it weird.” He sighed
Which caused Alex to frown, he didn’t like seeing Demi sad.
Another pause. The only sound was the air conditioner in the room.
“I didn’t mean to bring it up,” Alex admitted softly. “I was just trying to be lighten the mood. It already happened Demi, things have been awkward between us for no reason. So I’m sorry I’m trying to not only forget that night but I’m also trying to get us back to how we were.” Alex finished talking, letting out a deep breath he didn’t know he was holding.
Demi didn’t respond immediately. His mind was a whirlwind of conflicting emotions, anger, embarrassment, confusion, and a strange undercurrent of something else.
He felt vulnerable, exposed, like a part of him had been laid bare to his best friend, especially in a way best friends shouldn’t be.
“I just—” Demi started, voice trembling, “I just wish you hadn’t said anything. It’s complicated enough without adding more stupid jokes, I really want us to forget that night.”
Alex’s breathing hitched. “I know. I’m sorry again, Demi. I really am. I didn’t mean to mess things up more.”
The silence stretched again, thick and heavy.
Demi wondered if Alex was feeling the same storm of emotions he was.
Maybe they both were.
Maybe they both knew that the night had changed something between them, even if neither wanted to admit it aloud.
“Do you think we’ll ever forget?” Demi whispered after a while, voice barely audible.
Alex hesitated before answering. “I don’t know. But maybe… maybe we can just pretend it didn’t happen. Act like it’s nothing. Like it’s just a mistake we can move past.”
Demi turned onto his back, staring at the ceiling. “That’s easier said than done.”
“I know,” Alex murmured. “But we have to try. For both our sakes.”
The room fell into a heavy silence once more. Demi closed his eyes, trying to will himself to sleep, but exhaustion was elusive.
His mind kept drifting back to that night, the kiss, the trembling touch, the way everything felt so wrong but also so right in that fleeting moment.
He wondered if Alex felt the same.
“Hey,” Alex’s voice broke through the quiet, softer now, more genuine. “I don’t want to lose what we have. Whatever this is- friendship, whatever- I don’t want to screw it up over one stupid night.”
Demi sighed, feeling a tiny flicker of relief. “Me neither.”
“Can I ask you something?” Alex said after a pause.
“Anything,” Demi responded, voice cautious.
“Do you… do you regret it?”
Demi hesitated. The question hung in the air, heavy and dangerous.
He has thought about the night, multiple times, and he was always left with confusion, the feelings he couldn’t quite understand, the way his heart had raced and then sank.
Especially when he thought about Alex or when he was near the other male.
“No,” he admitted softly. “But I wish it hadn’t happened. I wish we could just forget it all.”
Alex nodded, a ghost of a smile on his lips. “Yeah. Me too.”
Another silence settled between them.
Well until Alex spoke again
“Demi?” He whispered to his friend, now staring right into the boys’s brown eyes.
“Yeah?” Demi whispered back, his eyes moving from Alex’s eyes to his lips and then back to his eyes.
“Can I kiss you?” Alex asked him.