colt dropping by unannounced to rylandâs classroom in the middle of a lesson, pulling him in by his tie into a kiss, and walking out without another wordâŠ
itâs a very normal, very calm day at work when ryland suddenly gets interrupted mid-sentence by someone casually barging into his classroom.
it takes less than a second for rylandâs brain to register the âsomeoneâ as colt.
which is very confusing, considering last ryland checked, he was halfway across the continent and extremely busy.
the students watch in intrigued and confused silence as colt saunters in, hands in the pockets of his jacket.
ryland feels pretty much the same, though heâs probably the only one whoâs annoyed and exasperated. what could colt possibly be doing here?
and also, just when did he get back?
colt steps up in front of him and flashes a boyish smirk, all charm and nonchalance. ryland doesnât buy it for a second.
he does his best to communicate his what the hell are you doing here thoughts with his eyes alone.
of course, colt doesnât respond. because why would he.
instead, he grips rylandâs tie and tugs him in the remaining distance between them.
rylandâs eyes go wide when their lips meet, a split second in which he processes whatâs happening. then they flutter helplessly shut.
a completely involuntary response; just his bodyâs natural and uncontrollable reaction to colt kissing him. his shoulders sag too.
thereâs a healing split on his brotherâs bottom lip, warmer than the surrounding skin. ryland lets out a stilted mmh sound when it slots against his own.
the kiss lasts for what is probably just a little over two seconds. then coltâs pulling away, straightening rylandâs tie, and grinning when their eyes meet.
he doesnât say a single thing. no explanation, no greeting.
he simply turns and leaves without another word, head raised high. both ryland and half the students watch him go, all equally stunned. the other half are staring at him.
ryland feels like his brain is buffering. thereâs a looming sense of dread approaching like a storm cloud on the horizon even as the sensations linger on his tingling lips.
the click of the door shutting seems to echo in the loaded silence following coltâs abrupt departure. thirty pairs of eyes settle on him.
the silence lasts for all of five seconds before chaos erupts. voices clamor, excited and bewildered and shocked.
ryland is bombarded with about fifteen different variations of âwas that your boyfriend?!â questions.
âwhy did he look like you?â
âi didnât know you were married!â
âof course the science teacher is the gay one. why am i surprised.â
âyou canât say that!â
currently, ryland is just doing his best not to let the blazing heat currently burning his face off show. heat from both embarrassment and rising anger.
heâs going to KILL colt for this.
heâs happy coltâs back, he always is, he just wishes colt texted like a normal person to tell him that instead of not only rudely interrupting his teaching but also kissing him in front of a bunch of thirteen year olds who stick to gossip like superglue and refuse to let anything go.
rylandâs already feeling the oncoming headache that this will cause. he hopes to god this doesnât become the talk of the staff room. rumors and whispers among students, he can handle.
the worst part is, colt knew EXACTLY what he was doing. of course he did. in fact, heâs probably laughing about it right now, wherever he decided to wander off to.
heâs lucky ryland loves him so much; maybe his life will be spared. but that doesnât mean heâll get away with pulling this stunt. he probably knows that, too.
now this lesson is forever derailed. great.
with a heaved, exhausted sigh, ryland puts his hands on his hips and says, âyes, that was my boyfriend. no, i will not answer any other questions about it. weâre resuming the lesson.â
he says as much, but he knows itâs a lost cause.
âmr. grace, why did he look exactly like you?â
âthat⊠is a very personal question you do not need to know the answer to.â ryland turns around to face the whiteboard to various groans of disappointment.
as much as he loves his students, he is not about to discuss his love life with them.
especially not considering the nature of his and coltâs relationship.
ryland sighs again, quiet but heavy. thereâs frantic whispered murmurs rippling among the students at his back.
coltâs just opened a can of worms thatâll never be able to be closed again.
ryland sincerely hopes heâs happy.