Just Like In Elementary School
Author: MLP Amber Pairing: Raychael Rating: PG-13 (only in the last paragraph) Word Count: 1,000
Ray often thought back to his first kiss. It was a simple little peck. Something that adults would aw and coo at. But to Ray, that was a huge moment in his life.
It was a strange experience. He had been on the playground during lunch. He was in the 2nd grade. He and his friends were all running around on the play set. Off to the side, there were girls in cute little sundresses trying to see who could swing the highest. To the right, there were the older boys, playing basketball. Ray refused to step near that section of the play yard. They always seemed to act so aggresively towards each other, yet they claimed to be friends. How could someone be so cruel to someone they liked?
No, instead of playing basketball, or trying to swing higher than the other students, Ray and his small group of friends played tag around the huge plastic playset. On this particular day, Michael was the chaser. "I have an idea guys!" Geoff, the 'group leader' spoke while they all walked down the hallway, towards the doors that would lead outside. "How's about the tagger has to kiss the person he wants to tag." The other few agreed, only because Geoff was older than they were. He was in 3rd grade, rather than first. It was an odd concept, Ray will now admit, but it didn't seem horrible back in the day.
Once they all reached the door, they ran in different directions, but all ultimately heading towards the same place. "Michael's it!" Geoff screamed, running the farthest, as well as the faster. Geoff was almost never tagger, unless he was called out first, or he was too busy paying attention to someone else that was talking to him to notice the other tagger was behind him.
Ray zig zagged his way around the plastic piece. He loved and hated this game. The horror of being attacked from any angle, then having to do the same to another player. He was one of the faster few, but he was still tagged often.
"Run, Ray! He's coming around!" Gavin yelled out, laughing as he rounded the left side. Ray followed his lead, breaking apart from the other boy when he spotted Michael zooming in from the same direction that Gavin had.
"I'm gonna get you, Ray!" Michael hollered as he sped after him. Ray was giggling, scared and excited all at once. He could feel his feet starting to slow down. He had been running away from the play set for what seemed to be forever. His legs were getting tired and he was running out of breath.
Once the boy came to a complete stop, he felt Michael slap the back of his shoulder just a few moments later. "You're...It." The curly haired boy spoke between breaths.
"No he isn't! Not yet, at least!" The two, still attempting to drink in oxygen, heared Geoff yelling after them. Ray hadn't seen him since they left the building. He was probably hiding in a different area that was supposed to be off limits. "Do you not remember the kissing rule?" Ray felt as if his heart completely stopped. He wasn't one to admit things about feeling aloud, especially not to his guy friends, but deep down inside, he had some feelings for Michael. He was the cutest person in school, the funniest, and the sweetest. He was always able to make Ray chuckle, even on bad days where he just wanted to go home and cry. And on those days, Michael was always the first to ask his friend what was wrong and give him hugs and cookies.
Geoff pushed Michael forward, making the two boys come face to face. Ray crossed his hands behind his back, looking down. He was nervous, of course. He had never kissed anyone before, and when he had a small school-boy crush on this particular friend, he wasn't exactly sure how he should have felt.
The next time Ray tilted his head up was when Michael put his finger under the other boy's chin. 'Wow, he has nice eyes.' was the first thing that came to Ray's mind before he saw the other boy lean in. It wasn't anything like the movies. There was no opened mouths, no fireworks, nothing special. But to Ray, this was the best thing in the world. His cheeks grew a bright red and his stomach tied in knots.
As if on queue, when the two boys broke apart, the bell signalling that lunch was over rang. Geoff, as well as all the other students, ran towards the building. All but Michael and Ray. Ray was still just standing in the middle of the field, some ways away from the doors he needed to be at. Michael was just standing, too. He looked confused and unsure. Not knowing what to say, Ray just stuck his hand out for Michael to grab, which was quickly filled with the hand of the other.
For the rest of that school year, Michael and Ray played kiss tag. Never with anyone but each other, though. Then, whenever recess ended, the two would interlock their hands and walk each other to the class. There were a few times when the boys would get in trouble for PDA, but they had no clue what that meant. All they knew was that they liked the feeling of touching the other in the simplest ways.
"Ray, get the fuck up! We're gonna be late for class." Ray blinked his eyes a few times, realizing he had just slept an entire period. When he looked up from under his tired lids, he saw Michael standing above him, hand outstretched. "Come on, asshole." The one standing teased, smile on his lips. Ray threw his bag over his shoulder, taking Michael's hand in his own. It was just like elementary school all over again, even if it was ten years later.