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"Why are you so nice to me?"
Piper half-turned away from the windowsill to look at Tyler, the watery orange glow of the fading day obscuring half of his features. "Nice to you," he inquired with a raised brow.
"Yeah," the curly-haired boy replied in his usual chirpy manner, flashing a grin.
"What do you mean?" He rose gingerly, bowing his head slightly as he moved across the room, so as not to hit his head on the sloped ceiling. 'One more growth spurt and I'll have to crawl around in here,' Piper thought as he sat on the edge of the bed. "It's not like your friends are mean to you."
There was McQuaid, always helping Tyler with his reading and homework; and Luke, ever coming up with some implausibly zany scheme that, if not successful, was at least entertaining.
Even Oliver, whom Piper did not like at all. He was not a good influence on Tyler---maybe where confidence was concerned he could pass, though Oliver's confidence tended more to base pretentiousness.
'Besides, it's weird the way he clings to him.'
Tyler's brows rose as he hastened to recover himself, "I mean---yeah, yeah," he squeaked, as his voice broke in several places. "No, uh. . .you're right," he relented, his entire demeanor diminishing as he bowed his head and placed his elbows on his knees.
"Tyler?" Piper nudged Tyler's knee with his own---not a hard feat in the close quarters of the latter's attic bedroom---giving him a small smile as he furrowed his brows when he looked up.
Tyler raised his head. "It's just. . ." He felt a smile of his own pushing at the corners of his mouth ". . .sometimes, I think they forget. . ."
The other boy raised his brows and Tyler looked away; 'Shouldn't've said anything,' Tyler thought with a grimace.
He nudged Tyler's knee again. "Forget?"
"That I'm their friend," he let out in a rush of breath, shoulders rising and falling in a shrug.
"Oh." Piper swayed backward slightly as he processed this. "Tyler, that's not---"
"True?" Tyler swung to face him, his face incredulous. "That's not true? Come on, Piper."
Then he was up. A slight breeze washing over Piper from the force of his movement.
"Luke's so far up his own ass about the movie and. . ." He began pacing, his shadow sweeping over Piper every time he passed the window. ". . .and Kate."
His companion watched him warily.
"Then there's McQuaid!" Tyler turned forcefully to face Piper and stopped. "Who even knows what his fucking deal is," he exclaimed, throwing his hands into the air.
He immediately pulled his arms back down with a small exclamation, examining his right hand as he sucked air in through his teeth. He dusted off his knuckles and sucked on his forefinger. Piper looked on, pinching his lips to keep from laughing, but couldn't help a quivering smile as he held out his hand, indicating that Tyler should come to him.
He sat down beside Piper with a sigh. "But he's never got any time anymore." Piper made a sound of assent as he took Tyler's right hand and looked it over. His knuckles were bruising slightly---'Must've hit a beam.'--- and there was a small scratch on his forefinger that must have bled a little, if the redness crusting into the knuckle was any indication, but all in all he was ok.
"And Emaline. . .," Tyler began and hesitated. Piper looked up, meeting his eyes. He didn't finish, lips quirking backward.
"She doesn't like him," he said with a sad smile, picking up on the other's train of thought.
Tyler dipped his head, as if ashamed to have even alluded to the thought. He deflated, throwing himself down on his back. Piper fell back onto the bed alongside him.
"And you," Tyler said, folding his hands over his stomach. "You just. . ." He stopped, as if choosing his words carefully and exhaled. "It's like you're everywhere at once, y'know?" His fingers beat a staccato on his abdomen, a nervous habit.
"You're there for everyone." Tyler turned to face him. "Solving their problems."
Piper turned as well. "Keeping Luke from climbing the walls," he added with a grin.
Tyler let out a small laugh. "You. . ." He seemed to be struggling. "You're just. . .so---" He cut off, scrunching up his face. Tyler squeezed his eyes shut and muttered to himself.
Piper looked at him worriedly. "I'm so. . .," he prodded, trying to defuse the situation.
Tyler looked at him, brought his hands to his face, balled his fists and pressed them to his eyes, then flipped back onto his back and groaned. All in one fluid motion.
Piper fought the urge to pinch the bridge of his nose. 'Fucking Oliver and his theatrics.' But his thoughts were interrupted as Tyler turned to face him once again and lurched forward, pressing their lips together.
After a minute or so, Tyler pulled away. Scrunching up his face as he tried to finish his earlier statement. "You're so. . .so. . .mag. . .so mag---" He stopped, breathed and sounded it out. "Mag-ni-fi-cent!"
Tyler chuckled, congratulating himself on remembering and using the word right. 'Maybe McQuaid's making headway after all,' he thought, mentally patting himself on the back.
That is, until he saw Piper's face, staring at him wide-eyed in the diminishing afternoon light.
He immediately realized the magnitude of what he'd just done.
"I'm so sorry! I didn't mean---! I mean---! Sorry!" Tyler's words tumbled over each other as he shot out of the bed, hitting the wall opposite.
Piper shook himself out his stupor, sitting up and throwing his arms out in a wide gesture. "No. No, Tyler, it's ok! It's fine! You---you're fine!"
Tyler shook his head furiously, shrinking against the wall. "No, I, I shouldn't have---I'm sorry---I---"
"Tyler," he interrupted. The other boy stilled, mouth flapping soundlessly. Piper tried to make his voice---and expression, assuming he could even be seen anymore, given the only light was that of the meager rising glow of the streetlights so far below them---as earnest and open as possible.
Piper reached forward slowly, palm out. "It's ok," he urged him, smiling worriedly as he continued to hold his hand out to open air. The seconds stretched on, the silence encapsulating the room and making it seem a thousand times bigger.
The space expanding between them, Piper was fixing to get up and find Tyler when there was rustling in front of him. Shuffling forward on his knees, Tyler grasped Pauper's offering, lacing their fingers together. He looked up, unsure, so Pauper gave his hand a squeeze to calm him. He exhaled quietly.
"It's ok."