A Deeper Connection

                                    

                                          
"...Why did you get kicked out?"
As the sniffling Noah asked him this question, Alejandro raised his eyebrows. He felt his heart sink softly as the thought came back to mind. It was quite a random thing to bring up, but he understood why. Maybe the bookworm was curious about him, after they had just shared that overly intimate moment. Maybe this meant he did have a chance after all.
"Well... it's a long story." Alejandro sighed out, looking down at his shoes. He always did that when he was nervous, it was just a habit. He found himself doing it a lot more when he was away from his father, due to the fact he would always be reprimanded for "acting like a wimp."
Noah nodded, raising one eyebrow. He seemed quite interested as Al avoided eye contact. With the newfound feelings he had for the thinner boy, Alejandro would have expected him to be more open and trusting. And yet, the dread of having to let his guard down was still tormenting. 
"I think I'd like to know, as long as your comfortable with sharing. I definitely wouldn't just be kicked out for no reason, but you know. I don't know your family. So are they crazy or did something really bad happen?" Noah teased, a smirk decorating his red stained face. "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to."
"Don't worry, I'm fine with saying it. I'm just trying to find the right words." Alejandro mumbled, looking back up at the writer beside him. The spanish boy ran a hand through his own hair, thinking to himself. "I've never really opened up to somebody about my parents before, and it's just a bit of struggle. I was raised around toxic masculinity, so I don't know... I find it hard to open up."
"That's okay." Noah responded, his gaze softening. He was quite sweet after you cut through that sour, dismissive layer. Alejandro missed this part of him, the part only he was shown. Sometimes it made him wonder why that was, but he just brushed it off for now. He had more important matters to deal with. "You've been cooking dinner a lot recently. How about we go out and talk about it? On me."
"That sounds nice, yeah. But let me pay." Alejandro smiled at this idea. He had always felt guilty when somebody paid for him.
"No, please, I insist. You always cook for me after I put up with you, and now that you've comforted me, it's my treat. We can go somewhere really nice, and talk about everything if your up to it." Noah offered, and it made Al's stomach flutter as he did this. This could be an opportunity. 
"Alright. Just this once."
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The first couple of minutes of the car ride was a very comfortable silence. Now that Noah had calmed down from his panic attack, he had time to think about Alejandro. Staring out the window, his mind drifted as Al drove.
It was still a surprise to the bookworm that Al had taken the panic attack so well. Yes, he knew that Alejandro had changed, and that he wasn't the cold, manipulative eel he remembered so well. But the fact was still not engraved in his brain, and his distrust was still present. But, much to Noah's dislike, it was also fading quickly. As Alejandro let down his guard, so did he. And this scared him.
Meanwhile, as Alejandro focused on the road, he could only think about the boy beside him. His gaze drifted over slowly to the brown eyed boy, who was staring out the window in a dream. He felt very happy that he was going out for dinner. This couldn't be a date at all, but it most definitely was, he thought, slightly proud for having achieved this. Even if it was just a friendly hangout, Alejandro knew he could take it anyway he wanted.
"So... do you know any places for dinner around here?" Al asked softly, having Noah turn around and think to himself. "I'm new to the area, still."
"Yeah, there's actually this really nice restaurant closer in the city. It's pretty casual, so nothing fancy, but it had the best food. I go there sometimes with Owen." As Noah mentioned the bigger man's name, Al raised an eyebrow in surprise.