Chapter Text
Fleeting glances were all that John ever allowed himself. Dave wouldn't notice them. He was positive that he wouldn't. Though, even with small looks, he noticed things about him. Little things from being around him so much. He noticed the flat planes of his face, the curve of his jaw, and how his lips framed his mouth just so slightly with the right amount of thick and thin. His light blond hair fell into his eyes sometimes he always tucked it behind his right ear. Always the right. John saw how his lips quivered as small smiles leaked across his expression. Sometimes his eyes would peak over his shades, but John always acted like he hadn't seen a thing. His irises were such a brilliant hue of red; he wasn't about to mess up the opportunity of seeing them.
But, he was obviously diving into the deep end of the general like/dislike pool. The "like" end was becoming deeper and deeper as he thought more about him. By the time the winter rolled around that year, he knew he was way in over his head. Obviously. Who couldn't resist the Dave Strider? He would go on to say that he was perfect, but he didn't want to brag about his possible boyfriend best friend. No, bragging didn't seem right. To put it simply, Dave was perfection in John's eyes. Absolute perfection.
It was only then that he noticed something he hadn't before. As Dave wasn't looking, probably dozing off on the couch beside him, he was watching his expressions. They'd been playing video games together that day; well night, considering the time was 6:00 in the morning and the sun was coming up. It didn't surprise him that Dave was falling asleep. Being up all night did that to you. He was fairly tired himself, but that was really besides the point. His thoughts weren't coming normally. They were kind of muddled from lack of sleep, but he was awake enough to notice things.
In his examination of his face, he noticed something along Dave's cheeks, something that he figured would never show up on the blond's face. There, along his cheekbones, was a light dusting of freckles. Yes, freckles. It was as if someone sprinkled that one spice... ginger(!) along his cheeks. They were very pale, but they were definitely freckles. He probably did something to cover them up, he decided. The smaller male scooted closer to his companion. This called for a closer examination, he thought to himself as he leaned up. Dave barely twitched in his slumber, a low whine leaving his lips in the shift in position. Stifling a chuckle, John leaned up and brushed his fingers across his cheek. He pulled his hand back, and low and behold, nothing. Dave's freckles were real and uncovered.
He felt... special... for knowing this little bit of information about him. Dave never let anyone get close to him after his older brother left so many years ago. John was literally the only person that had been around him for longer than an hour. Not even his sister, Rose, was around him. Then again, she lived with her mom in the city. Being that close to him, it made him feel special to Dave. Yes, he agreed with himself, he was certainly going into the deep end of liking him. He was swan diving into it and he couldn't think of anything but sinking to the bottom and falling headlong in love with him. Cliché as it sounded, he really didn't mind the prospect. Nope, he didn't care at all, he decided as he curled into the warmth of his best friend beside. He loved him.
--
He woke up around noon, he guessed. The sun wasn't just peeking into the window now, it was intruding into the house; breaking through the windows and stealing any take that night had gripped in its embrace. A soft groan came from above him and John shuddered and quickly shut his eyes. He wanted to retaliate against the idea of waking up. He was still tired and whatever he was up against was warm.
"Eggs, why are you cuddlin' me?" came a heavily accented voice from above him. John's eyes snapped open on hearing the voice. Shit! He'd fell asleep on Dave! He jolted upright, a very faint blush creeping up his neck and onto his cheeks.
"Oh! Hey, Dave! Sorry, I must have dozed off," he responded and rubbed the side of his neck. How could he have been so stupid? He should have fell asleep on the floor or something! Dumb decisions, Egbert, he groaned internally. Well, he was good at looking indifferent towards this kind of thing, so what did it matter? Dave wouldn't notice.
An eyebrow raised over Dave's shades and his lips pulled into a flat line. John was internally freaking out, but relaxed ever so slightly as his companion's demeanor loosened, lips twitching in amusement.
"Yeah... Uh.. Mornin'. You feelin' okay, dude?" he inquired, a playful chuckling dancing over his words.
"Oh.. Yeah, yeah," John mumbled in response and gave a small sheepish laugh. It was good that he didn't think anything of it. Well, he didn't seem to by the way he laughed. He seemed amused more than anything. Good, he didn't need him knowing he did it on purpose. Better to play up the oblivious act today, he decided. No way in hell was he going to do anything stupid. Well... that was until he re-noticed Dave's freckles again. Oh, boy, here we go.