(no subject)

[littleorphanalien]

He ends up giving Caleb a few days so he can calm down or decompress or stop freaking out. Basically, whatever he might need to not freak out the first moment that Michael reaches out. He really doesn't use his phone that often, unless it's Alex, but he still sends a text to him that reads: it's guerin, from the store. you wanna go grab a drink?

He leaves it open, too, because it's not that he wants to encourage underage drinking, but at the same time, he also started real young and there's something to be said about responsible use, as far as he's concerned. Besides, the way he'd been acting with his hand and his worry about Adam, he thinks he could use it.

Putting the phone aside, he gets back to work on the next car in the auto shop, putting the offer out of mind in the event the answer isn't what he wants (which would be a very clear ghosting, he's pretty sure).

Comments

[greatamazingfeelingsboy]

Caleb's in class when his phone buzzes in his pocket. He looks around, but everyone is either focused on their reading, bored out of their minds, or drawing pictures in their notebooks. Even the teacher is grading some papers with a pretty clear hangover. There's no bathroom pass here, which is so weird to him, but he excuses himself so he can go out in the hall and check his phone.

He has no one, really, in the city who would be texting him, and as he pulls his phone out, he feels a sharp, hopeful bubble in his throat that maybe it's Adam.

It's not. That bubble sinks back down, and takes his heart with it, when he reads the message.

Guerin. The guy from the grocery store. Caleb swallows a new lump of nerves and glances up and down the hallway to make sure he isn't about to get busted. But it's empty, so he swallows again and types a return message.

In school. Not old enough to drink anyway?

This is fucking weird, right?

[littleorphanalien]

Michael's in the middle of rotating tires when he hears his phone ping, wiping his hands off on his sides before he leans up to get it. He snorts at both the 'in school', but also the second.

coffee works, he texts back, even though he hadn't meant coffee. He thinks he's trying to push him off, but Michael's the king of pushing people away, which only makes him more stubborn in this case to want to make sure it doesn't have to happen.

He waves at a few of the mechanics as he settles into Alex's chair at the front desk, kicking his feet up to type one more reply.

but if you do wanna drink, there's beer here at the shop

[greatamazingfeelingsboy]

Coffee could work, but Caleb is really feeling the need for some herbal tea. Shit. His flask is back home, in Boston. He's gonna have to try to buy a new one. He disappears into the school bathroom to buy himself some more time as he debates how to answer. Without Michael nearby to feel his feelings, Caleb can only guess at what this is about. He debates for a few minutes more, then sighs and texts back finally.

I have a free period next. I can leave early I guess. What shop?

God, he's gonna regret this, isn't he?

[littleorphanalien]

Michael reaches for his flask of acetone and knocks some of it back before pushing it back in Alex's top drawer, fiddling with some of the invoices before he glances back.

west garage. auto shop

He can't help his amused smirk at the 'I guess' to leaving early. He remembers that time, and being the kind of kid who'd loved school. Sometimes, he still thinks about going back, but then, what's an alien genius going to do with what's essentially a community college? Nothing good, he figures.

[greatamazingfeelingsboy]

Forty-five minutes later, Caleb is standing outside the auto shop in question, wearing a jacket against the chill, his backpack still slung over one shoulder. He can feel Michael inside, his emotions standing apart from the other guys working there, and he allows himself a moment to adjust to the shape and color of Michael's feelings again. This time, maybe he won't totally freak out at the first sign of... well, literally anything.

He approaches the door that leads into the shop and as soon as he opens it, he's hit with all sorts of smells: tires, oil, dirt and dust, and that specific smell of 'male' that he recognizes from the locker rooms after a game. Not the dirty, BO smell, but just the smell of a lot of dudes who spend a lot of time in one area.

It makes him miss the team.

He doesn't have to look around to find Michael — he knows exactly where he is — but he still takes in the shop itself. A car is up on one of the lifts, and Caleb knows absolutely nothing about cars, so he has no idea what they're doing to it, but one of the tires is off, anyway. He's still looking when he turns to walk towards Michael, towards where he can feel him sitting, and tears his eyes away from the shop to watch his feet, instead.

He stops at the desk and finally glances up at him.

"Um, hey," he says.

[littleorphanalien]

He'd been sixteen when he first began to tinker with cars, which is how he repaired the truck he'd been living in back then. After the full ride to UNM had fallen apart, it had become his default. Here, though, it's almost therapeutic.

When his hand cramps, he uses his powers, and it's a small shop, so he's often the only one in here. In fact, Michael waves to the last mechanic leaving that isn't him before he greets Caleb. "Hey, kid," he greets, and wheels over as he finishes the invoice, pushing to his feet to get back to the car on the lift.

He looks nervous, but not like he's about to instantly bolt. "I mean, you're not hyperventilating," he quips. "So I'm taking that as a success."

[greatamazingfeelingsboy]

Caleb winces a little, but there's a wan smile on his face. "Um, yeah, sorry," he offers with a little shrug. "That... happens sometimes? But. I'm good right now." Michael feels better than he had the last time they'd met, and Caleb realizes it's because of the car. Maybe not, like, that specific car, but the job, anyway. In the same way that music makes Adam feel stronger and safer, cars make Michael feel better. It's kind of a relief, actually.

"I guess you wanted to talk about something?" he asks, not because his empathy is telling him that Michael is inquisitive, but because people don't text other people offering a drink unless they want to talk about something, right?

[littleorphanalien]

Michael raises his brows as he ducks under the lift. He's got it high enough that he doesn't need to get on the creeper to have this conversation, which is good. "I mean, don't get me wrong, I had my share of anger issues as a kid and you didn't wanna be around when those happened." He grabs a wrench and points at him with it. "I was also mute for like, two years, so you know. You deal how you can."

Caleb's the first person here that he's told that, and he knows it might sound casual, but he gets the feeling that he and Caleb are a lot alike.

"Did you want the coffee or the beer?" he asks, because he never got an answer on that. "And yeah, I wanted to see if you were okay. I mean, I know I used to have women bolt from me like that after a bad night in bed," he jokes, "but not usually people I meet in the supermarket."

[greatamazingfeelingsboy]

There's, like, so much to talk about there, but Caleb gets stuck on one thing. This guy is bisexual?

That's, like, the dumbest thing to even get stuck on. Michael'd just told him some pretty heavy shit, and there's no way that him being bi is supposed to be anywhere near that, but that's still where his brain goes.

"No, I'm good," he says. "Wait, you're bi?"

[littleorphanalien]

Michael gives him a disbelieving stare, and can't help laughing. "Wait," he laughs, because of all the things that he's been told, that's what he's landing on? "Seriously? That's the only thing that you wanna focus on?" He laughs and ducks under the car to tighten up the tire that he's installing.

"Yeah, I'm bisexual. I'm not a big believer in a singular binary," he says dismissively. "You, too? Or is it just this Adam guy of yours?"

[greatamazingfeelingsboy]

Caleb grins, his face heating a little. But it feels good. Michael's amusement is red-tinted just like everything else, but it buoys Caleb up, fills his ribs and sends him soaring.

"Um, I don't— I don't know, really," he admits, still smiling. "It, with Adam, it's just. He fits, and we're... I love him."

[littleorphanalien]

Michael melts a little for the comment, because he's heard it before. He leans out, hand on the car. "Sometimes, the pieces want to be together," he says, filled with a warmth as he thinks about his ship, of him and Alex, and of how things go together.

"It's not a bad thing, you know? If it's just him, not all guys, or not girls at all," Michael advises. "What's Adam like?" Maybe he can work back around to 'green' and why Adam had freaked out, but he's going to ease into it.

[greatamazingfeelingsboy]

Caleb feels warm and fluttery, but he knows it's not aimed at him, the way Caitlin's had been. It's not the same feeling at all. Michael is warm and melty and happy alongside Caleb, for Caleb. Not because of feelings he has for him. It makes it easier to talk about Adam.

"He's so smart, y'know?" he offers, "and he's got these crazy curls, and these freckles. He's kind of like a nerdy goth kid? I used to think he was wicked emo, but he... He's just got a lot going on inside his head. He—" He reaches into his jacket pocket, then sort of sags. This is the wrong jacket. "He made me these mixtapes, sorta, and I'd keep the playlist just to look at it and, and think about him."

He looks down, blushing a little.

"He just feels good. I feel good when I'm around him."

[littleorphanalien]

Michael lets out a wry scoff, thinking about how Alex had been. "Yeah, I got a thing for the nerdy goth kid too," he guarantees, thinking about Alex's nose piercing. He's glad he's kept the ear piercing and he loves the tattoo that Alex has, especially since it convinced him to get one too.

He lets his eyes slide over Caleb, finishing up with the car so he can pay more attention to him as he brings it down off the lift.

"My boyfriend's a musician and I get the music thing. Before my hand, it was the only thing that could calm me down, that chaos in my head. Now, it's when I get busy, or Alex," he admits, because Alex definitely calms him the way that music used to.

[greatamazingfeelingsboy]

Caleb nods, completely understanding. "Yeah, that's— that's what music does for Adam, too. And... kinda me, I guess? He calls it my football brain." He grins with a little shrug. It's much easier to talk to Michael like this, finding common ground in their boyfriends and other similar interests. They're both happy, and it's boosting Caleb's attitude, and he sort of wants to run around the shop whooping like a little kid.

He doesn't, but. He wants to.

"I played for my school, but. I missed tryouts here, and I guess they don't transfer that sorta thing over like they do credits." He makes a little face and shrugs. Right now, it doesn't bother him.

[littleorphanalien]

"Football player, huh?" He doesn't sound bitter, not completely, but there's a part of him that thinks about Valenti and can't help that good ol' bitterness, seeing as it's something that he hasn't been able to shake. Still, Caleb doesn't seem like that, so it's more that Michael sees himself in him.

"I mean, you could probably get in next season or quarter or whatever you guys call it," he says, and locking the lift. "Your Adam sounds a hell of a lot like my Alex," he admits, and reaches over to get his phone, finding the pictures he took of Alex when he was a teenager, of his piercings and all. "See? Turned us seventeen."

[greatamazingfeelingsboy]

There it is. Just like Adam, Michael's got a beef against jocks, for one reason or another. It'd taken Caleb weeks to chip away at Adam's mistrust, to subtly convince him that he hadn't been pulling some complicated prank.

But it'd been worth it, in the end.

He doesn't take it personally, but it still sort of stings.

The picture, and the remark, makes him smile. Fuck, he misses Adam. He misses him so much. He takes a breath and tries to focus on what he's seeing, what he's hearing.

"This place... changes your age?" he asks, slowly, as he tries to wrap his head around it.

[littleorphanalien]

"I hear it changes age, sex, you name it," he lists, with a shrug like he's used to weird shit. Then again, he is an alien, so weird is pretty much the name of the game for him. "But yeah, we were seventeen. Which is when he and I were happy without any of the bullshit hanging over our heads, so we got back together."

And this time, it looks like they're staying that way.

"You ever fix cars?" he asks, putting the phone down. "Any interest?" Because he's got a filter change left, but if Caleb doesn't want to, he'll put it off and get them something to drink.

[greatamazingfeelingsboy]

"Huh?" That's a gear shift for him, and Caleb struggles to keep up. He's still floating on the love Michael feels for Alex.

Cars, right.

"Oh, um. I've never, it never came up. My dad's a writer, so Mom brings in all the money, and we never did the car-fixing bonding thing. I wouldn't even know where to begin."

It's not a no, but he looks caught off guard by the idea.

[littleorphanalien]

"I gotta do the cabin filter on the Jeep over there," he says, grabbing the keys for it behind the desk, nodding for Caleb to join him. "I could show you how," he offers, and maybe it's because he likes rambling and talking to people as he works, that's why he's offering.

Or maybe he just wants Caleb comfortable because Michael still has a question that he's been trying to get back to.

"There's coffee and tea and water in the break area, but if you want to crack that beer while we work, it's in the desk," he offers.

[greatamazingfeelingsboy]

"Oh, nah, I'm good for now," he assures, following him over to the Jeep. He sets his bag down and sheds his jacket. It's warm enough in here that he doesn't need it, so he drapes it on top of his bag. "I might grab some tea in a couple minutes, though." He's actually kind of curious, and at first he doesn't notice Michael's prickling ants crawling on his arms. For now, he's just interested in learning about what the hell a cabin filter is.

[littleorphanalien]

Michael ducks into the car to get the hood up, popping it and getting it comfortably locked before grabbing the filter that he needed. "Tea, huh?" He can't help snorting, seeing as when he'd been that age, he'd been drinking acetone straight, and seeing as that's the alien equivalent of morphine, he's pretty sure that he'd been a little edgier than that.

"But sure, tea," he allows, and gestures for Caleb to follow him. "This one's pretty easy. You take one out, pop the new one in, but the best part is seeing how awful people let their cars get," he shares, and digs it out to show the pet hair, the dirt, and all the assorted crap. "Think about breathing that gunk in. Pretty gross, huh?" he asks, even if he's gleeful.

[greatamazingfeelingsboy]

Caleb can tell Michael isn't judging him harshly for choosing tea over beer, so he doesn't get defensive about it. Michael's confused, maybe, but not maliciously judgmental. He listens to the explanation, and when he sees the filter, he laughs.

"Ew, what the fuck!" he says, laughing. It reminds him of a window fan that's built up dust and hair over time, or a dryer lint trap.

What? He did his own laundry, sometimes.

"Do you, like, replace it, or just clean it off?" he asks.

[littleorphanalien]

Michael glances at him and he can't help feeling weirdly proud and kind of amused. He's not exactly the kind of guy who's soft, but he's associating so much with Caleb that to see him entertained like this...well, it's good. It's almost therapeutic (even if he suspects his therapist is going to give him a Look when he shares this next session).

"Full replace," he says, gesturing to it. "You can chuck that one out completely," he promises, and unwraps the new one. "We're gonna plug the new one in."

[greatamazingfeelingsboy]

Caleb nods and looks for the trash can so he can toss it away. He wipes his hand on his pants, even though he didn't get too dirty. He peers into the car to see where new filter gets plugged into. It puts him much closer to Michael, and he feels a soft orange wrap around him.

It's not the traffic cone orange of concern, or the sunset orange of pity. It's Michael's red and Caleb's yellow, blending together the exact same way that he and Adam do. He feels calmer than he has in days, and it's because of this, he realizes. Because of this soft, comfortable orange that feels like... family.

He's staring at Michael. He knows he is, and he must have been for awhile. When he realizes, he blushes and clears his throat, looking away.