Chapter Text
Matteo was so ready for the uninterrupted 5-hour nap he had ahead of him. He’d planned everything to the T. He had his neck pillow, his eye mask, and some noise-canceling headphones thanks to the amazing Amira. It was almost time for take-off, almost time for him to get himself as comfortable as possible and just sleep. Everything was working out for him, too.
So far, he had the window seat (thanks to Amira again) and everyone that had boarded the plane so far had walked right past him, leaving the 2 seats next to him empty. If it kept up like this, his nap would be that much better. He wouldn’t have to worry about disturbing the people behind him with reclining his seat, and he wouldn’t have to worry about a stiff back. It was totally possible for him to fit his entire body on these 3 seats. He would make it possible, anyway. If there was one thing Matteo was good at, it was falling asleep anywhere.
But then he showed up.
Matteo hadn’t minded at first. He was handsome and seemed quiet enough, so he was sure they would get along fine. But then the announcements started and Matteo noticed a few things he didn’t before. First off, the boy was pale. It was obvious now when Matteo got a better look at him.
He wasn’t planning on paying him any attention beyond the little nod of greeting he did when he sat down in the aisle seat, but suddenly the boy was crowding him and his pale face was turning a very alarming shade of green.
“Hi,” the boy said and it sounded like he struggled to get that one word out. “My name is David, what’s your name?”
Matteo stared at him, dumbfounded. What the hell was this?
When the boy realized that Matteo wasn’t going to answer, he kept going, stopping only to grip the handles tightly which made Matteo very very nervous. “I’m flying to visit my family, where are you going? You look like you’re about my age—” David paused and swallowed loudly and Matteo would’ve felt sorry for him if fear wasn’t clouding his mind. Was he really about to get vomited on right now?
“You look like you’re about my age,” David kept on, “are you? I’m 19.”
Matteo stared at him for a second longer, wondering if he should ask the flight attendant for a bag or a change of seats. Was it possible for him to get a first-class seat at this point? His life could be in danger, right? He was in danger with the possibility of someone throwing up on him, right? Surely that would count as something.
He looked away, searching for a flight attendant that wasn’t the one upfront giving instructions on how to properly strap yourself in and what to do if the plane was going down. This particular topic, it seemed, caused the handsome pale boy more stress.
He looked at Matteo with pleading eyes, his grip on the chair tightening even more. When the plane finally started moving, the boy yelped and suddenly his hand was gripping Matteo’s wrist and Matteo asked the dumbest question he had ever asked ever in his life. “Are you afraid of flying?”
“No,” David said, giving him a sheepish grin. “What makes you think that?”
It was a poor attempt at a joke, but Matteo laughed just to ease his mind. If him breathing through his nose counted as a laugh, anyway. “You should probably buckle up.” Matteo suggested, trying to be casual. “Since we’re like 5 seconds away from take off.”
The grin fell from David’s face and his hand left Matteo’s wrist as he quickly buckled himself up.
Matteo watched as he struggled, but he did nothing to help. He didn’t want anything to do with this boy. He just wanted to nap! He had it all set up and ready to go! He couldn’t spend the next 5 hours distracting this terrified person. He would not spend the next 5 hours distracting him. Who cares how handsome he was?
When the plane finally took off, Matteo found himself holding the boy's hand. He hadn’t volunteered his hands, not at all. Instead, the boy had reached over and grabbed onto it himself. He didn’t give Matteo a choice of anything. One second his hands were free and then suddenly, one of his hands was hurting from how tightly David was holding it. He wanted to protest, he really did, but when he looked over at the boy, he saw how tightly he had his eyes shut and he sighed.
Once it had all cooled down and David’s grip had loosened, Matteo gave his hand one soft squeeze to get his attention. “I’m Matteo.” He said when handsome David was looking at him again, “Also 19. Please don’t throw up on me.”
David laughed, a strained and relieved laugh, but a laugh nonetheless. “I’ll do my best,” He said, and finally some color appeared on his cheeks.