Mister oblivious
More fluff time, I don't know. Just a little something with these two cuties who have finally decided to sit with me in their normal setting.
Lachlan belongs to the incredible @kc-and-co
When Lachlan said he couldn’t remember the exact moment he fell for Jonathan he definitely wasn’t lying. It was true, there were multiple events that led up to that point, all which were carefully locked inside his mind despite other details being hazy or blurring out of focus.
Ever since meeting him back in year one, he knew right off the bat that Jonathan was a good guy. There was always something about people honestly smiling and offering their help without asking anything in return that drew people in, Lachlan included.
It was later that he understood how people could fall for their best friend. While at the beginning it was unthinkable or better yet it didn’t cross his mind, seeing Jonathan navigate through multiple school years while he had a front row seat, gradually made him see things differently.
It started small, almost imperceivable.
Lachlan had always been the more popular one, the one girls gravitated towards, especially since he started playing Quidditch. He was a natural at flirting, bright eyes and a wide smile managing to make anyone weak in the knees. On the other side of the spectrum was Jonathan, awkward, stumbling over his words and blushing if he actually took a fancy to someone. At the beginning it was almost painful to watch.
But then something shifted in his friend, somewhere around year five when Jonathan started being more free, more himself. He stumbled less when interacting with people and it was then when Lachlan noticed that the more he was uninterested and himself, the more people liked him. Because he was a natural. A very open person and a good friend.
And people often mistook his friendly nature as a sign of flirting. He saw Jonathan trying to explain something about a course to one of the girls in class, the latter paying no mind to what Jonathan was writing down, instead just looking at him with a dreamy look about her.
And if Lachlan was being honest, there was something about Jonathan putting his mind and imagination to the test when explaining difficult subjects. He became serious, which was a look not many got to see since he was generally smiling. He was thoughtful and had patience, praises by the dozen when the person he was tutoring got it right. A hand casually placed on the other person’s back or shoulder and Lachlan understood then that if Jonathan was ever to stop overthinking everything and just rely on instinct alone, more people would gravitate to him, not just for his friendship but for more.
But he wasn’t bad looking either, quite the opposite and while boys weren’t used to complimenting each other that often, Lachlan made sure to tell Jonathan at least once. Once was enough right? But he did notice how his friend grew into his tall frame, no longer the lean lanky kid he once knew as he hit his teenage years. And if he searched deeper in his mind he could recall he always liked Jonathan’s long dark lashes. The girls would kill to have such lashes, he even heard them say it.
He witnessed his best friend become more comfortable around people, dating more, less overthinking but whenever they did talk about their respective dates or girlfriends, Jonathan played it off as something casual. He would say stuff along the lines of girls not really being interested in him like that or he wasn’t interested in them like that but still agreed to go out for a butterbeer as to not hurt their feelings. He much rather enjoyed spending time with his small group of friends, taking advantage of every possible event in order to unwind.
And Lachlan knew he did it because when summer rolled around he would be back home, helping his parents at the orphanage and his summers were more about work than actually taking time off and enjoying it. He was never the type to come back and recall going somewhere to an amusement park or travelling. And Lachlan knew that despite not complaining, Jonathan always kept quiet or diverted the questions when asked about his summer.
When alone he would always go through a list he had carefully stored in his mind, list with plans and activities he wanted to do once school was over and he was an adult capable of making his own decisions and not relying on his parents. But Lachlan didn’t think too much of it then, it appeared that school would never end, years as if purposely slow in order to shield and protect their most precious years.
But when year six came around, the idea of not having too much time left at school began to dawn on both of them. Things started moving at a faster pace, talk about the future and what it would hold, them needing to start to at least think about a career, one for which neither of them was prepared. Because they weren’t, far from it. They still had so many things to do, so much trouble and shenanigans to follow through before it all ended and they had to say goodbye.
The idea didn’t truly sink in until the last year when there was a clear shift in dynamic, far more pronounced in Jonathan. It was as if he started regressing in a sense, had trouble maintaining eye contact from time to time but once more, he didn’t worry for the good times managed to outweigh the awkward ones. However Lachlan didn’t witness it when he was with a girl, or another girl, none of them apparently being able to keep a girlfriend for more than a month, if that.
Lachlan figured he was to blame, that his inability to remember certain things properly was a setback from the very beginning, Jonathan always assuring him it wasn’t the case. And it was something he said to him that stuck. If he could have long lasting friendships, he will also be able to have a long lasting relationship with someone. Because at the end of the day, it just took the right person to make it happen. And he believed him.
But when the girl he was supposed to have a date with didn’t show up, it wasn’t that he really believed she would be the one, but it still hurt. For a while. All it took was Jonathan’s smile to bring him back up to the surface, the idea of a date with him making him curious. But he accepted. And he knew Jonathan would do anything to ensure the date happened and he would not forget.
But the moment they set a date and time, it was as if it was engraved in his brain. He was certain he could not forget it even if he tried. It was different with him, always, he even was the one who’s name he got right and remembered from the very beginning, while with others he still botched their names from time to time even after being in the same class with them for seven years.
And then it started cementing, the small idea, the possibility that Jonathan’s date idea was actually a date. But it couldn’t have been right? Because if it was then it meant he missed some obvious signs along the way.
But when Jonathan kissed him and did in fact admit he had a crush on him since year five, things came into perspective.
While he had thought that Jonathan was mostly oblivious to the art of flirting and getting a hint, it looked like he was just as oblivious. He sensed a change in him but chucked it as something else entirely. But there were indeed signs. A lingering touch, longer than usual. The closeness making Jonathan look away or blush. A hug that lasted a few seconds more, Jonathan as if melting in his arms before he came to. How he was there for him even if he had plans.
And he promised himself to pay more attention.
Even years into the relationship, he knew how to read Jonathan. And it still made him smile to know he was still somewhat, more or less, still oblivious when someone flirted with him.
After witnessing an exchange with one of his customers, Lachlan sat on the edge of Jonathan’s desk “She likes you.”
Jonathan’s eyes widened “What? No, she’s just friendly.”
Laughing, he shook his head “Believe me, it’s more.”
“But she knows I’m married. To a man. So…” he gestured to him as if it was the most obvious thing.
“Maybe she thinks she can convert you to the other side.”
Jonathan sat back in his chair, looking up at Lachlan “I may be bisexual, but at this point I think everyone knows I’m gay for you.” Lachlan laughing “No one can convert me. I’m so into you that I’m oblivious to the rest that are interested in me.”
“That makes two of us.”