forum “I swear I’m not in love with you, I just can’t afford a two-bedroom apartment.” // oxo // CLOSED

Started April 08, 2020 by @PaperHats business

tune

"Awesome," Alex chuckled at Chris's high spirits. "Not to brag, but I played the kazoo in fourth grade."

Chris let out a fake gasp, putting a hand over his heart. “No way.”
“That is pure—“ he lifted his hand, kissing his fingertips, “—talent.”
He brought his hand back down, shoving it in his pocket and stifling a slight laugh.

Alex blushed, laughing quietly. "Yeah… Uh, hey, how late are you working tonight? My shift goes a big late."

“Like… nine? I think?” he mumbled, raising an eyebrow. “I start at seven, though. Only a couple hours I’m playing so it’s not that bad.”
He fixed his suit jacket, buttoning the front slightly and slipping in his colorful tie. The blue in the pattern brought out his eyes, and complemented his skin perfectly. Or at least, that’s what his dad had told him when they picked it out.
He glanced down to his watch, then back up again at the street. Couple more blocks and they’d be there, he guessed.

As the boy adjusted his suit, Alex reddened and stared at the sidewalk. Cutie. "Uh, cool. I work til ten, so… Um, I'll just knock and you can let me back in? Into the apartment?"

“You have a key,” Chris said stiffly. “I did give you the key, right? Gosh did I leave it on the table…”
He mumbled to himself, irritatedly looking down.

"Uh, I can check later," Alex responded, sensing that Chris was angry. "If all else fails, you'll have to stick around a bit until my shift is over!"

“Yeah— wouldn’t be that bad. If anything, I’d just keep playing ‘til someone kicked me out,” Chris replied, glancing from Alex to the surrounding buildings. The sun‘s descent shone brightly on the glass panels, giving the area a soft, warm, orange reflection.
“And if not, I’ll just let you in— I didn’t mean it to sound like an inconvenience, I just thought I gave you a key,” he continued. “Don’t worry about it.”

Alex laughed. "Nah, it' all good, man. We'll cross that bridge when we come to it." The boys arrived outside Maple's, the parking lot crowded.

“Looks like you’ll be busy this shift,” Chris said light-heartedly, although he wasn’t too keen on the idea of having a large audience. Despite his confident demeanor, he had just the smallest bit of stage fright.
He pushed the door open, allowing Alex to enter before him. Chris followed close behind, stepping into the dim light of the restaurant.

Alex sighed, grumbling, "yeah, I guess so. At least I'll have your music to keep me calm." A boy in the same waiter uniform caught Alex's eye, and the two immediately embraced. "Wyatt!! Where you been?"

"Hawaii! How are you?" Wyatt responded, hugging Alex again.

"Awesome! This is Chris, my new roommate."

Chris’s eyes wandered the place, looking for the piano. His eyes rested on a small baby grand pushed over into a corner. The room was… small, but that mean the acoustics would be better. For him, at least.
His eyes wandered back to Alex when the boy mentioned his name, and he held out a hand for Wyatt.
“Hey, nice to meet you,” he said with a friendly smile.

Wyatt shook the boy's hand. "Chris, this is possibly the coolest guy I've ever met," Alex gushed. "You'll love him. And he's bi too!"
Wyatt laughed. "Let's get to work, Alex."
Alex nodded. "I'll see you around, Chris!"

Chris raised an eyebrow, but his smile stayed. Wyatt did seem pretty cool, and if he was anything like Alex, Chris didn’t see any reason why the two wouldn’t get along.
He gave a small wave as the two walked off.
“See ya,” he replied, turning to find whoever might be in charge. As he continued toward the piano, he saw a man standing before it.
“Chris,” he said, shaking the boy’s hand. “Nice to see you again.”
“You too, sir,” Chris replied.
“Well, go ahead— take a seat,” the man ushered. “Thanks for coming and playing for us. See you at nine, yeah?”
“Alright, sir. Thank you,” Chris said, watching as the man walked off.
Slowly, the boy began fiddling with the keys. It was surely a new piano— with its glossy black exterior and shimmering ivory keys. It was a delight to play, and Chris had barely even done so.
With a crescendo, Chris drew his hand down the keys, then softly shifted into the main melody. It sounded exactly like a slowed down, classical version of Open Arms by Journey. Of course, Chris would be the one to play some classic rock song at a professional venue, but it sounded good, so no one complained.

Alex froze at the sound of Chris's music. It was different now that he knew the boy– The music was louder, stronger. He turned to Wyatt. "Isn't he good? Now, where should I start?" Within a matter of minutes, he was bringing drinks to a table of teenagers and their parents.

Chris continued playing, but within a couple minutes he was just caught up in the music. Even he was swaying, closing his eyes for intervals when the song swelled, and hearing the words to the chorus in his own mind. He resisted the urge to sing it— Journey being one of his favorite bands. He figured he’d just jam to it when he got back— assuming Alex wouldn’t mind.
But all that thought evaded him, as he was caught in his own little musical world.

As Alex passed by the piano, Wyatt pulled him into a playful waltz-inspired spin. Smiling at Chris, he continued waiting his tables.

Chris smiled up at the other boys as they passed, his eyes from the keys and his hands seeming to have minds of their own. They might as well have, as they ended a song with a single powerful chord. A few tables let out half-hearted applause, but Chris wasn’t there for recognition. He was there to have fun. At least by his standards.
As the small claps faded, he pushed into another melody, smiling down at the keys. Anyone could tell he was enjoying himself.

Alex set a meal on a table and turned, leaning onto the piano. "Soundin' good, Chris. What's up next?"

Chris glanced up to the boy, back down to the keys, then back up.
“Why thank you,” he said humbly, smiling. “And I was just gonna mess around with a few songs I learned recently. But— got any requests?”

Alex smiled, thinking. and running a hand through his hair mindlessly. "Do you know The Scientist? By Coldplay?"

“Do I know The Scientist…,” Chris mumbled mockingly. “Of course I do! Coldplay’s amazing. Viva La Vida? Yellow? I know ‘em all.”
Drifting into a new song, he switched it up, beginning to play the first chords of The Scientist. He gave Alex a wink.
“I mean… not to be cocky, or anything.”

Alex blushed, sure that Chris would notice. "I'll be listening. I'm gonna go wait a few more tables. Keep playin', Piano Man." With that, he was gone.

Chris gave another smile. He was a kid that would always follow rules, so when Alex told him to keep playing, he’d do so happily. And he did.
He continued to play a bunch of Coldplay songs, spanning across all of their albums. Maybe because he actually enjoyed it, or maybe because it reminded him of Alex.

Alex danced his way through the restaurant, nodding along to the familiar songs and always shooting Chris a grin when he passed. The rest of his shift went surprisingly fast, and after one more hug from Wyatt, he was ready to go home. "Hey, Chris? We can go! Or, you know, um, stay… If you wanted… But it's up to you?"