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He still remembered exactly how they had first met. It had been his second day at kindergarten, his first day alone with all the other children. Max had been desperate and scared. He should have been playing with the others? With strangers? Never!

The only children he'd ever interacted with up until then were his two cousins. But even when they'd visited, he'd spent the entire time with his cousin, who was four years older than him, and not with the twins, who were the same age. And anyway, why should crawling around on the floor with little metal cars be fun?

Max had decided it best to just sit under the art table and wait for his mom to pick him up. If necessary, he would spend the next few years like that until he started school, he thought, and laid his head on his knees.

However, an older boy had thwarted his plans when he suddenly crawled under the table.

“Hey, this is my place,” the boy had said, sitting cross-legged directly in front of him.

“Should I go?” was Max’s question, immediately shocked that he had done something wrong.

“No,” was all the other man had said, leaning next to him against the wall where the table was pushed.

They had spent the entire day there in silence under the table, except when they were called for lunch. The teachers had tried from time to time to get them to play, but at some point one of them had said that it made no sense if the "new" boy was already just like Lucien. Apparently, this Lucien had been the older boy.

They spent every day like this for about a week until they eventually started talking.

“Why are you hiding?” Lucien suddenly asked at some point.

"Because I don't like playing with cars, and when I go outside, I have to play with the others," Max had explained, and Lucien had to smile a little because the smaller boy next to him had spoken so easily, while the other "newcomers" had always spoken incredibly slowly, constantly misspoken, or even stuttered. Max had been smart, in his eyes.

"We could go outside and do something different," Lucien had suggested, and because he hadn't laughed at him or talked too much in the last few days, Max had been okay with going outside. So Lucien had taken his hand and walked with him into the garden. The teachers had been happy that the two of them seemed to have returned to normal, and a wonderful friendship had begun between Max and Lucien.

By now, they had left kindergarten and elementary school. Max was thirteen and Lucien was fifteen. The younger one was in his second year of junior high, while the older one had just left and moved on to senior high school. Because Max had skipped a grade, he was only two years younger than Lucien and had spent at least one year with him at junior high, but now he was alone again.

Their friendship had survived all the problems, differences, and complications. They had remained friends, even though Lucien hadn't wanted to talk to anyone after his mother's divorce, even though Max was more than obviously the smarter of the two and couldn't hide it, even though Lucien had realized some time ago that he was gay.

The latter had been very surprising to the younger man. Not because he was surprised that Lucien was gay, but because he was surprised that it should have surprised him.

When he was eight and Lucien was eleven, they had slept in Lucien's treehouse, as they often did in the summer. While they read comics and philosophized about TV series, everything had been normal. But when they turned out the lights and snuggled up close together in a couple of blankets, Lucien said he felt strange.

“Why is that?” Max had asked, not reacting at all to Lucien pulling him closer and now snuggled up to him like a cuddly toy.

"I don't know. My dad says it means I'm growing up, because I think about things like that," Lucien whispered.

“What are you thinking about?”

"I want to know how to kiss," Lucien had quietly replied, terribly embarrassed to admit such a thing. He had always felt that he was the one who was supposed to protect the other, Max, and help and look after him. It had felt strange for him to admit that he didn't know such a thing yet.

“You could kiss Lisa, she always tells me how great she is at you,” Max suggested.

“May I kiss you?” Lucien had asked, unsure why he would rather kiss a boy than Lisa.

For Max, this question hadn't been relevant at all. If Lucien wanted to kiss him, then that was fine, he'd thought. So he'd nodded, and his older friend had gently pressed his lips to the younger one's. They'd both been a bit clumsy as they'd tried to French kiss, but after a while, they'd both started to enjoy it.

After that experience, they kissed repeatedly until Max turned eleven. Because they enjoyed it, because it felt good. However, Lucien had eventually realized that he would have liked to... touch Max. Of course, they had touched each other now and then, stroked each other's backs, or something similar. But Lucien had noticed that he would have liked to do the things they had explained to him in sex education class with Max.

Well, at least the things he could have done with him. The whole thing had scared him so much that he'd stopped kissing. Since then, they only kissed occasionally, quite harmlessly, without tongue. Nevertheless, after a while, he admitted to himself that he was gay. Lucien simply found boys much more interesting, and all the feelings he should have had with girls, he only had with the boys at his school.

Over the years, Max had become more like a brother to him, and he had learned to distinguish that from his feelings for other boys. That's why it was okay to tell Max about it.

However, as already mentioned, it hadn't surprised them at all. Max had known that Lucien preferred kissing boys; after all, he had preferred kissing him to Lisa. But Lucien's confession had made him think about whether that meant he was gay. For him, kissing Lucien had always been much more fun than the girls who kept saying he was their boyfriend until they were tired of it.

It had been more pleasant when Lucien kissed him because he had been so dominant, because he had taken the lead, and he liked it better that way. With girls, he always had to take the lead, but in reality, he liked it much better when someone else held him and showed him how to do something. Then that would have meant that he was gay, just like Lucien. And Lucien had come to him especially to tell him that, so Max had had to do that too. Lucien had just smiled, kissed him on the lips, and told him it was great, but they still couldn't just kiss like that.

Max hadn't really understood it at the time, but then Lucien had shown him that he wasn't in love with him, just as Lucien wasn't in love with him. And it had sounded so great, like it must be to kiss someone you're in love with, that Max had agreed not to miss kissing Lucien.

Unfortunately, he just couldn't find anyone he could fall in love with. He'd known all the boys at school for so long, and they all seemed to only be attracted to girls or not interested in such things at all. But Lucien suddenly seemed to be meeting a lot of other, really grown-up people at high school, and he felt terrible. Why didn't he grow up so quickly? Why did he have to deal with the weird boys at school who had absolutely nothing in common with him?

Lucien now knew so many cool boys. Lucien was now allowed to show everyone that he liked boys. He, Max, had to keep it to himself. The boys at his school only laughed at gays, but the boys at Lucien's school were okay with gays. Besides, there were suddenly other gay boys at this school. Max had never seen another gay boy besides Lucien.

Even though Max didn't know it, Lucien felt the same way. He had experimented with Max, but otherwise, he'd never really been around other boys. However, his new school opened up completely new possibilities for him! There were other boys he could fall in love with, with whom he could at least talk, who shared his interests. The years of junior high and elementary school were quickly forgotten.

Then there was Johnny . Johnny was in the same year as him, and Johnny was incredibly cool! He wasn't one of the really cool kids, but Lucien didn't like them at all. Johnny was a quiet boy; he liked music and skateboarding. He also liked painting and drawing, and he babysat his neighbor's daughter three times a week. Lucien thought Johnny was incredibly great. Especially since Johnny asked him out.

They'd gone out for pizza together and then sat in the park talking until late at night. Lucien had thought it was all totally romantic, and he'd even walked Johnny home because he believed he should be a gentleman and he also wanted to spend as much time with Johnny as possible. He'd actually wanted to kiss Johnny on his doorstep, but his parents had stormed out and grounded him because it was already 12:30 and they were supposed to be back by 10.

Lucien had also been grounded, and so he couldn't do anything with Johnny for three whole weeks. There were only two days left, but he also felt that was enough. His friends weren't allowed to visit him at home either; only Max was allowed to come over because his dad had given up trying to keep them apart. No matter how many times he'd grounded his son, he'd always broken it to see Max. So, now, house arrest meant no TV, but seeing Max instead.

For him, it made the whole situation more pleasant. It felt great to spend more time with Lucien again. So he came to see him every day after school. After all, they both needed someone to talk to, and it was wonderful for him to have someone again.

“You won’t believe what happened!” Lucien shouted as he opened the door, grinning from ear to ear.

“What?” Max asked immediately, interested, and followed his friend, who was three years older than him, upstairs to his room.

"Alex came to my locker in the hallway today while I was getting my books," Lucien said excitedly. Max already knew who this Alex was. From many stories, he had learned that Alex was Johnny's best friend and also very popular at school.

"He said he wasn't supposed to tell me, but Johnny asked him to invite me to his birthday party! And he said he would have invited me anyway because he likes me!" Lucien exclaimed, beaming as he sat down on the bed next to Max.

"Wow! That's great!" he exclaimed, genuinely delighted, and rushed to hug his friend. Lucien immediately wrapped his arms around him and hugged the younger boy tightly.

“And when is the party?” Max asked after they had loosened their embrace a little, but were still lying close together.

"Saturday next week, actually he wanted to celebrate this Saturday, but Johnny is still grounded, his parents won't make an exception and Alex doesn't want to celebrate without Johnny," grinned Lucien.

"Well, I'll keep my fingers crossed that you'll have a lot of fun," Max replied, immediately imagining Johnny and Lucien hanging out together the entire evening, even though he didn't know Johnny and didn't know what he looked like. Lucien had described him often enough.

“Nuh-uh,” said the older man, grinning even wider as Max looked up at him questioningly.

" We 're going to have fun, little one," he corrected, straining his facial muscles further when he saw his best friend's confused expression. Oh, how he had been looking forward to this moment!

"I obviously told Johnny enough about you that he asked Alex to tell me I was welcome to bring you," he explained, unable to suppress his laughter as Max looked at him with oversized eyes.

He couldn't be serious! Max was completely perplexed. Lucien wanted to take him to a party at someone's high school! He was only thirteen! Alex was celebrating his fifteenth birthday, and he was only thirteen! The party would be full of people like him, or even like Lucien, who would be turning sixteen this year. Lucien couldn't really be serious, could he? He didn't belong there at all.

"You don't need to worry. Johnny or Alex aren't that different, and neither are the others. You're way too advanced for your age, and personally, I don't think there's much difference between you and the people from my school. Except that you probably have more on your mind than all of them combined," Lucien tried to reassure him a little, hugging him.

He had, of course, noticed how much it bothered his best friend that Lucien was meeting so many new people while Max continued to have to deal with the idiots at school. Besides, he firmly believed that Max was much better off with people his own age. Perhaps it was his fault that Max had never been around people his own age because of him, but Lucien believed that Max was simply naturally more advanced, probably due to his disturbingly high intelligence.

"But... I'll just disturb you and Johnny, and I don't know anyone besides you," Max objected, a little uncertain, looking up at his friend with a serious expression. He was pleased that Lucien wanted him to be there for this celebration, but he didn't want Lucien to convince himself that it was better not to have him at such events.

Surely he would just be a nuisance or make Lucien look ridiculous because he had no idea how to behave.

"Oh, I think everyone else will like you, the girls anyway, and then the boys will like you too," Lucien said confidently, stroking his shoulder. With a sigh, he snuggled up to his older friend, savoring this moment of closeness even more when Lucien wrapped both arms around him again and hugged him. The whole thing was like a silent agreement that Max had given up and would come along.

When the time came, however, he naturally regretted having given in. He and Lucien were getting ready for the party together. Max had, of course, asked him beforehand what he should wear, but Lucien had just laughed and told him that it didn't matter at all and that he had never seen him in clothes that didn't suit him. Max was, of course, pleased with the compliment, but his decision about what to wear hadn't been any easier. In the end, he had simply opted for the dark blue jeans he had bought with Lucien in town and a short-sleeved black shirt. Both were relatively tight-fitting, but he felt ridiculous in baggy clothes.

Lucien looked good, as always. He wore a black sleeveless shirt and red and black pants. Still, Lucien thought Max made a much better impression. He fit in perfectly with his new group of friends; Alex could have worn those clothes, too, even though he would have certainly looked less attractive. Even though his face might still have been that of a thirteen-year-old, everything else about Max was anything but childlike in Lucien's eyes.

"My dad is driving us over to Alex's because he's been convinced that having to take the bus with sleeping bags is stupid," Lucien explained as he packed his clothes for the next day into a backpack. This was more news Max had only learned the day before. Johnny, Lucien, and himself would be staying at Alex's. Johnny because he was Alex's best friend, Lucien because he was Johnny's almost-friend, and Max because he was Lucien's best friend.

Max wasn't quite sure what to make of it. What if this Alex didn't like him at all? Then he'd feel terrible the whole time, because Lucien would surely be busy with Johnny. But maybe it was a good thing; maybe he got along well with him and was just happy that he didn't have to go home yet?

“Can we?” Lucien smiled and Max took a deep breath before nodding with a brave smile.

"Don't worry so much! Come here," said Lucien, putting his backpack back on the bed. Smiling, he stepped in front of Max and wrapped his arms around him tightly. He was actually quite pleased that Max was coming along. This was, after all, his first high school party, and it was nice to know his best and closest friend was there. Encouragingly, he pressed his lips to Max's forehead, then gently stroked his cheek and smiled at him until Max returned his smile in a sincere, unforced way.

Not long later, they arrived in front of an ordinary single-family home and were getting their things out of Lucien's dad's car trunk. It was just after 6:30 p.m., so they were already a few minutes late, but tardiness ran in Lucien's family; Max was more than used to it. This time, he was actually quite happy about it; the thought of meeting all these people in person, whom he'd previously only known through Lucien's raves, still didn't really sit right with him.

"I'll pick you up again tomorrow morning at eleven, okay? Have fun and don't overdo it," Lucien's father called, briefly putting his arm around both boys' shoulders and giving them a hug. Max knew that Lucien's dad saw him as a second son and was grateful for making sure he wasn't completely alone with his son after the divorce. He liked it, and at that moment, it helped him look at the whole thing more positively.

As they stood in front of the door and Lucien rang the bell, Max noticed the smile on Lucien's lips for the first time. He'd seen him smile in all sorts of ways: tortured, forced, ironic, cynical, arrogant, happy, even sad. But this smile was completely new to him. Lucien had a loving expression on his face, but at the same time, he also seemed nervous. Clearly, he was truly in love with Johnny, Max thought.

"Hey, hey!" a brown-haired, relatively thin, medium-sized boy greeted them a little later. Lucien grinned at him and shook his outstretched hand.
"This is Max. Max, this is Alex," he introduced them, placing a hand between Max's shoulder blades to pull him closer. Alex looked at him a little scrutinizingly, but then smiled and held out a hand. Max took it, a little uncertainly.

"Johnny's already here. You can drop off your things in my room. Just up the stairs and into the last room in the hallway. I still have to prepare something," Alex explained, letting them in. They both slipped off their shoes, Max staggering a little, still holding his sleeping bag and backpack. Lucien immediately took the sleeping bag from him and placed a hand on his back to help him steady himself. Neither of them saw Alex watching these familiar, caring gestures and smiling silently.

He liked Lucien. At first, he hadn't been sure what to make of Johnny's homosexuality. After all, he was his best friend. He hadn't been afraid that Johnny would get too close to him; rather, he'd worried that Johnny wouldn't need him anymore once he had a boyfriend. He wouldn't have had to be afraid with a girlfriend, but boys could be both Johnny's friend and his buddy at the same time. However, Lucien had put him at ease. Johnny was so desperately in love!

There wasn't a day that went by when he didn't visit Alex or call him because he needed to communicate. Since falling in love with Lucien, Johnny and Alex had become much more intimate again, had regained more trust in each other, and it was incredible for Alex to see how shy and insecure Johnny suddenly became every time he was in Lucien's presence. The two of them were incredibly well-matched. Alex was fascinated that Johnny had spoken so enthusiastically about Max. He himself had been surprised that Lucien, of all people, had a best friend who was only thirteen, but now it suddenly seemed so natural.

It suited Lucien that his closest confidant was someone he could look after and protect a little. The idea that he would take on this protective role for Johnny as well amused and pleased Alex. After all, Johnny had always been looking for someone he could allow to protect him. And this Max looked damn cute, even he, Alex, could say that, even though he wasn't really gay.

The smitten smile on Lucien's face grew stronger with every step, and he was very aware of it. He was so excited to see Johnny. Besides, they hadn't seen each other outside of school since their first date, and he was really hoping he could spend some time alone with him. He was so looking forward to maybe kissing Johnny that very evening. For weeks, almost months, he'd been fantasizing about what it would feel like; he really couldn't wait any longer.

Upstairs in the hallway, they quickly found Alex's room, and after a quiet knock, they entered one after the other. They immediately spotted Johnny lying on Alex's bed, leafing through a magazine. He immediately looked up and sat up, that same overwhelmed smile on his lips.

"Hey guys!" he greeted them, while Max and Lucien put their things down. Johnny stood up, and he and Lucien hugged each other for a moment, their cheeks flushed, which made Max grin broadly. He thought it was incredibly sweet how these two boys interacted. He liked seeing his Lucien so shy, yet also so madly in love.

"Max, Johnny. Johnny, Max," he introduced them, pointing at each of them in turn. Max gave him a quick smile, and Johnny returned the smile. With each passing moment, a little of the tension fell away from Max. He liked the two boys; they were nice and seemed so normal, not as loud as the boys at his school, and didn't have to start talking right away.

"Next time, I'll invite everyone half an hour earlier. Why does everyone always have to be late?" Alex broke the silence in the room, throwing himself onto his bed with a theatrical sigh. Max chuckled quietly because Alex's whining sounded too funny. However, he immediately blushed in embarrassment when both Alex and Johnny gave him an "Oh my God, how sweet!" look.

"No more giggling tonight!" he told himself, lowering his head slightly so the other three boys couldn't see his red cheeks. Normally, he could control himself better, but it was unusual for a boy to let out a loud sigh or openly complain. The boys at his school thought they were far too cool for that.

"What are you planning for tonight?" Lucien asked after Alex told them they could sit down and he sat down next to Johnny on the sofa and Max on the floor.

"Denise is bringing a horror film, and these kinds of parties always work best when you put on some music and let everyone do what they want," Alex explained with a shrug. The whole thing about the film put Max at ease. He liked horror films, and watching films and drinking didn't mix in his opinion, and he had been afraid of that. He was thirteen, and he didn't want to accidentally end up at a party where the revelers were stealing alcohol from their parents. He wouldn't have suspected Lucien of something like that, but at least he didn't know anyone else. But now he was reassured; it all sounded more like a normal birthday party, and he felt a little more part of it.

"At least, if anyone else shows up here besides you three," Alex added, laughing, and the rest of the boys grinned. Lucien couldn't stop grinning anyway. He was sitting next to Johnny! So close... He wished he could take his hand. He'd had to hold back the whole time at school because it would have been taboo for him there, and Johnny certainly wouldn't have liked it either, but this was something completely different. However, he lacked a little courage to do something like that. Maybe later in the evening. Maybe when more people were around. For now, just sitting next to him was enough. So close...

Johnny felt the same way. He was overjoyed. Max was an incredibly cute boy; you could tell he was younger than her, but there was something adult about his personality that he couldn't even detect in Alex, Lucien, or even himself. He could understand why Lucien liked him so much, and he was sure they could definitely do a lot more together: Alex, Lucien, Max, and himself. Lucien had told him that Max didn't have a problem with liking boys, and Johnny had looked at him with wide eyes when he told him that Max himself wasn't particularly into girls.

After all, Max was only thirteen! But now that he could see him for himself, it seemed oddly fitting that this boy already knew what he wanted. Johnny could already see that they would become friends, and it pleased him. It paved his way to Lucien. Just the thought sent a warm shiver through his body. The prospect of being with Lucien still paralyzed him and made him smile in disbelief every time. He actually could hardly believe it, even though he'd had enough time to accept it.

Asking Lucien out on a date had been the hardest thing he'd ever done in his life. But he'd spent far too long raving to Alex about how great he thought he was, how wonderful Lucien was. Alex had realized at some point that he was seriously in love, so he'd thought he should talk to Lucien so that he'd either be happy or it wouldn't hurt so much if he turned him down. So he'd gathered up all his courage and gone up to him during a lunch break and asked him if he wanted to do something together sometime, maybe go out for pizza or see a movie at the cinema.

He hadn't known if he should have made it so obvious that this wasn't just a simple meeting, but a proper date. Ultimately, he'd figured he'd only have to overcome his fears once, and perhaps embarrass himself. However, he'd been anything but embarrassing, because Lucien had immediately started beaming and, with a happy, albeit surprised, grin, had agreed and asked when he was available. Their date had been great, and in a way, they both knew this was like their second date, their next chance to be alone together.

When the doorbell rang a little later, they all jumped, lost in thought about each other. Alex immediately jumped up to open the door, and somehow Max felt like it was the right thing to do. Even though he didn't really know Alex yet and was uneasy around strangers, he felt it was better to leave Johnny and Lucien alone for a while. So he exchanged a quick glance with Alex, who immediately understood his question.

"I'm going downstairs so I can meet the rest of the group right away," he explained in his usual confident tone, and Johnny immediately believed him. Only Lucien immediately noticed what Max was planning and gave him a helpless look. Of course, he was looking forward to being alone with Johnny, but he was also scared. He'd never had a real boyfriend before; heavens, he hadn't even kissed anyone except Max and a few girls! How was he supposed to behave?

Max, however, ignored the pleading in Lucien's eyes, knowing he would be grateful in the end. He and Alex left the room, closed the door, and then went downstairs.

"I think it'll take some of the stress out of them not having to wait the whole evening to be alone together," Alex said on the way, grinning at Max, who returned the favor. Alex seemed really nice, and the evening actually seemed to be turning out better than he had expected. On top of that, Johnny seemed very likeable to him. He'd always been a little worried that Lucien would one day have a boyfriend and that they would drift apart because his boyfriend wouldn't like him. But Johnny didn't seem like the kind of person who would do something like that; his whole demeanor toward Lucien seemed more like he wanted to give him everything and not force him to do anything.

"Hi guys," Alex greeted the two girls who were standing at the door and had rung the bell. They greeted him back, their eyes immediately wandering to Max.

“Who do we have here?” one of them asked, smiling at him, a little bit like that smile typical of younger people, but also a little bit like that “flirty” smile that Max knew all too well from girls.

"I'm Max, a friend of Lucien's," he introduced himself, giving both girls the smile his best friend always said could break any heart. Lucien said it was good to be popular with girls because boys were more likely to notice you and show more interest. And since Lucien was currently sitting upstairs with an almost-boyfriend, there must be something to his methods. In any case, the two girls responded to his smile.

"Nice to meet you! I'm Denise and this is Claire," said the girl who had spoken to him earlier, and he shook hands with them both briefly, continuing to smile. They treated him normally, and he was happy about it, so it was obvious that he didn't really belong there, at least in terms of age. But the two of them didn't exactly look 15 either.

“Are there anyone else here besides us?” Claire asked as the four of them walked into Alex’s living room and sat down on the couch and armchairs.

"Yes, Johnny and Lucien are upstairs," Alex replied neutrally, but the two girls began to laugh quietly and exchanged meaningful glances. Apparently, everyone already knew that Johnny and Lucien were looking for a more intimate relationship.

"Just between you and me, boys? Those two are incredibly cute!" Denise blurted out, looking at the two boys challengingly, as if she had only said that to find out their opinion.

"Yes, they are," Max confirmed with a shy smile, happy that for the first time he was in the company of several people who didn't mind a boy liking other boys. He had to agree with Lucien that his new circle of friends was a really good fit for both of them.

While the living room gradually filled up downstairs, Lucien and Johnny were still sitting in Alex's room. They were now sitting on his bed instead of the small sofa, as Johnny had shown Lucien something in the magazine he'd left on the bed earlier. They were both a little nervous, constantly wondering how best to approach each other. Of course, each knew the other liked them, but—oh, there were so many explanations for why one could be rejected, and so they continued to torture themselves.

"How... How many people did Alex actually invite?" Lucien asked quietly after a while, looking at his almost-friend.

"I think he invited about fifteen people, so we'll probably be thirteen or fourteen after this," Johnny replied, smiling slightly as his counterpart nodded. They both knew they just wanted to talk to lighten the mood a bit.

"We should get back to the others, shouldn't we?" Johnny said a little later, and Lucien nodded, looking down at the floor in a slightly disappointed, guilty manner. He messed up. Johnny was getting impatient and didn't want to be alone with him anymore. He already had such a wonderful opportunity with Johnny, and he still managed to make everything go wrong. Why was he so insecure?

They both got up from the bed and started downstairs, but before they reached the landing, Johnny gently stopped him. Lucien looked at him questioningly, but his almost-friend had shyly lowered his gaze, slowly raising his head as he tentatively slid his fingers between Lucien's. Unsure if his gesture was okay, Johnny looked up at Lucien. A relieved smile immediately spread across his lips as he met a happy expression and felt his hand gently squeezed.

As they entered the living room, twenty eyes immediately turned on them, and the ten owners began to grin, one after the other, causing the two boys to blush brightly. They held each other's hands tightly and sat down in the last available seats next to Max on one of the sofas. The eight guests greeted them, and after a few moments, the group of teenagers returned their attention to their conversation. Only Max and Alex continued to look at the two boys, and Max had to smile when he saw Lucien tentatively scoot closer to Johnny, still holding his hand.

"Are you coming into the kitchen? Johnny and I were just getting some chips and stuff, and I think I'd better not disturb him now so he can help me carry them," Alex laughed softly, and Max immediately nodded with a smile. He followed his new friend into the kitchen. There, they both grabbed as many bags and boxes as they could carry and dropped everything onto the coffee table in the living room. According to Alex, all the guests except for two of the boys were now there; after all, it was already after seven o'clock. So far, Max had liked everyone he'd met, even if he felt a little uncomfortable with Denise putting her hand on his knee, forearm, or even thigh whenever she talked to him.

"Will you go open it quickly?" Alex interrupted his thoughts as they had just entered the kitchen for the second time and the doorbell rang. Since Alex was busy emptying the kitchen cupboards, Max nodded and made his way, a little uncertainly, to the front door.

"Hello," he greeted the two boys before he'd even properly opened the door, and then looked into two grinning faces. He stepped aside to let them in, feeling as if he were reacting in slow motion. Couldn't Alex have somehow told him or hinted that "Simon and Joe" weren't just any boys? He didn't yet know which of them was which, but this boy with the cute freckles, auburn hair, and black clothes was stunningly handsome!

“May I ask who you are?” he asked as he took off his Chuck Taylors and Max closed the front door.

"My... My name is Max, I'm a friend of Lucien's," he explained nervously, trying to stop staring at the boy's body. He was new to this, but it was hard to tear his eyes away. His cheeks grew hotter the longer he looked at the boy's backside .

"Ah, that's you, he already told me about you," the boy grinned as he stood up and held out a hand. "I'm Simon!"

"H-Hi," Max said idiotically, and the next moment he felt like kicking himself. He had already greeted him long ago!

"Even if you don't notice me, I'm Joe," the second boy suddenly interrupted his thoughts, and Max's cheeks grew even hotter. He laughed, but Max was still incredibly embarrassed. This had never happened to him before! Why was he so focused on this Simon? It was terribly rude to just ignore someone like that; that wasn't like him at all!

"Hopefully Alex hasn't forgotten the most important thing again and hasn't gotten any food!" Joe immediately lightened the mood and made both Simon and Max laugh. He made his way into the living room, and Simon watched him go, shaking his head. Then he turned back to Max and gave him a quick smile before placing a hand on his back, allowing him to enter the living room first.

Max didn't know what was happening to him. This brief touch felt incredibly strange. Lucien really did constantly put a hand on his back to signal something, but he never reacted like that, even though he never felt warm shivers run down his spine. He didn't know this Simon at all, so it was totally strange that he reacted like that, that he had touched him completely harmlessly.

With a silent, confused sigh, he headed into the kitchen to help Alex. Alex was busy putting frozen pizza in the oven, and Max silently helped him tear open the packages and fill the trays. He was quite glad he hadn't had to stay in the living room. After all, he hadn't been able to talk to anyone except Lucien and Alex, and Lucien was busy with better things than him.

"Are you okay? You look like you saw a ghost," Alex interrupted his thoughts, looking at him with a hint of concern. The older of the two had noticed that Max looked thoughtful; he seemed a little paler than before, and his brow was furrowed.

"Yeah, sure, everything's fine," Max smiled, but Alex didn't really believe him. He'd heard Simon and Joe greeted loudly, so Max hadn't done anything but let them in. But what about that could suddenly plunge him into such a preoccupation? He barely knew him, but for some reason, he took him more seriously than many of his peers, and besides, he felt that same feeling Lucien had once mentioned about Max. He couldn't help but worry about him and want to protect him.

Once their dinner was in the oven and the kitchen clock was set to the correct time, the two of them went to join the others in the living room. It was getting a little cramped, which gave Lucien a wonderful excuse. With a grin, he gestured for Johnny to stand up, then slid over to the armrest and pulled Johnny into the seat between his legs. The sofa was unusually deep, so they both had plenty of room, and even though Johnny blushed a little when the others grinned at them, they both enjoyed the closeness it created. He tentatively leaned a little against Lucien's chest.

Max sat down somewhat hesitantly in the newly created seat, which was next to Simon, who had previously been sitting next to Lucien. He was afraid that he would continue to react strangely to him like he had at the front door. He still found it hard to believe he'd been so rude as to simply ignore Joe. This Simon really had a strange effect on him and his behavior, but he had to admit that the tingling sensation on his skin, sitting so close to him, felt pretty good.