Work Text:
A kiss. It was the usual gesture before Chuck left for work. Would Taylor return one? Most of the time, no. He didn’t have the chance to even react before his roommate ran out the front door. He was okay with that.
Taylor thought that Chuck just gave him kisses, or hugs, or sometimes acted a little… Inappropriate, just because he was a flirt. Again, he was okay with that.
Sometimes.
Other times, he’d stay awake at night with Chuck lying next to him, snoring loudly, thinking that this fling was mutual on both sides. His heart broke at the thought, but his mind tried to bury the worry.
When he’d wake up looking dead, Chuck’s eyes would look deeply into Taylor’s with concern. He’d ask if he’d slept, or if he was sick. Taylor would put on a small smile, telling his roommate everything was fine. It wasn’t.
When Chuck ran out the door after giving Taylor a small peck on the cheek, Taylor’s mind buzzed with thoughts. Was it just a fling? Did it really mean anything?
“I can’t keep doing this to myself…” Taylor whispered to himself. Today, he'd confess his attraction toward Chuck.
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He didn’t end up telling Chuck. He kept telling himself he would, but when Chuck came home stressed and tired, he couldn’t get himself to drop that on him (at that moment).
One night, though, Taylor was playing one of his video games when Chuck came home. He glanced at Chuck, who was putting his stuff down, and came to plop down on the couch.
“How was work?” Taylor paused his game. Now is the right time.
Chuck sighed, “It was all right. Not bad, though, just felt long. At least there weren’t any Karens today…” Chuck laughed softly at his sentence, "What game are you playing?”
Caught off guard by the question, which was totally going against his mental script, he looked at Chuck, “Some new game… Yeah… Uh, anyway, I have to tell you something.”
The dirty blonde quickly turned his head to fully face Taylor, “What’s up?”
Take a deep breath, Taylor. Just tell him that you like him and don’t want this to just be a fling anymore.
“I think we need to take a break from each other for a bit.”
What the fuck? That’s not what you wanted to say at all!
“W-what? Taylor, is it something I did-”
Taylor slammed his controller down and shut off the television. “Nope! I just need to leave this room… Since I have nowhere else to go… Yep! Bye!” Before he could mutter a response out of Chuck, he quickly went to his room, where he then threw himself on his bed. Fuck.
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Okay, so maybe he actually meant telling Chuck that they needed a break from each other. His heart was aching at the thought of just being a fling to Chuck. He couldn’t do it anymore. Not when he thought of Chuck endlessly. Taylor would imagine them holding hands and going on dates… Not just “being available,” as he put it.
Whenever he would step out of his bedroom, Chuck would just stare at him before opening his mouth to say something. He couldn’t. Taylor would quickly hide back in his room. Did he feel bad? Yes, one hundred percent, but he couldn’t keep playing this game. He wanted the whole ordeal to have feelings, not just relief.
He went to work that day, with Chuck trying to come by and talk with him, only for Taylor to (thankfully) be on break.
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Chuck has felt like shit for the past week. He’d try to talk to Taylor, but whenever he tried, his roommate ran away! He thought he had a chance with Taylor, but he was second-guessing.
He’d had feelings for Taylor for the longest time, and he thought they were finally getting closer to becoming a thing. By preparing speeches and practicing gestures, he was ready to confess his feelings, but of course, the universe had to be against him.
He was sitting on the couch, pondering what to do. Suddenly, he heard keys jingle. It was Taylor walking in.
Chuck abruptly stood up and walked up to his roommate, “Taylor, we need to talk.”
Taylor stood there staring at the dirty blonde, “Uh, I’m okay-”
“Please. This is urgent.” Chuck pleaded.
With a nervous smile, Taylor nodded. They both walked to the couch, and Chuck took a deep breath. “I know you said we needed a break from each other, but I can’t do this anymore. Why… Why did you suggest that? I need to know if I did something to make you uncomfortable.”
Taylor glanced around nervously, “Uh, I- Honestly, I think I need to be honest.” He paused before continuing, “It wasn’t entirely you, but… I can’t keep pretending to like being a fling. Truth to be told, I like you, and I wanted us to both be on the same page, you know? I didn’t know how else to say it at that moment, but I can see now it was a bad idea. I’m sorry, Chuck.”
The dirty blonde froze for a moment, staring at Taylor before he started smiling, which turned to laughing, “Oh my God! Dude, you should’ve just said so!” He wrapped his arms around the dark-haired man, “I like you, too!”
“What?” He still returned the hug.
“Yeah! I thought that you knew that I liked you and you liked me! I didn’t know you thought I was just using you. I’m sorry…” He laughed sheepishly. Chuck let go of his roommate, “So… What now?”
Taylor stood up and leaned closer to the blonde and kissed him on the cheek, “I gotta wake up early tomorrow. G’night.”
As Taylor ran to his room, Chuck touched the spot where his roommate kissed him.
Taylor was finally able to return the kiss.