"You’re awake."

Opening his eyes to unfamiliar blankets already felt strange enough.

The mattress was different too. Firmer than what he was used to. The room quieter.

Most noticeable of all, though, was the scent surrounding him.

Clean fabric. Faint soap. Something colder underneath it all that smelled distinctly like Myles.

"Uh..." Blake rubbed at his eyes slowly, his voice still rough with sleep. "Seems early. What time is it?"

As his brain gradually caught up, he finally realized something else.

His head was resting directly on Myles’ thighs.

Blake froze.

For a full two seconds, he simply stared upward blankly, still too half-asleep for panic to properly kick in.

Then it hit him all at once.

He jerked slightly, trying to sit upright immediately.

Before he could move far, a hand slid behind the back of his head.

Myles calmly pushed him back down.

"Sleep more," he said quietly. "It’s six in the morning."

Blake stiffened instantly against him.

This was definitely not helping, like at all. His head was literally on Myles’ lap, and somehow he was acting like this was the most normal situation in the world.

Blake stared upward in horrified silence while his sleepy brain struggled desperately to process reality.

There was absolutely no way he could fall asleep again like this, right?

"Why are you even awake this early?" Blake finally asked after clearing his throat awkwardly. "It’s Saturday."

Myles tapped lightly against the top of Blake’s head with two fingers.

"I’m a morning person."

’I guess I can believe that...’

Blake sighed softly, then yawned, then froze again.

"Wait."

His brows furrowed slowly.

"How did I even end up like this?"

His voice had already gotten all groggy again somehow, feeling sleepy despite the situation.

Why was his brain getting sleepy again while laying there? That definitely should not have been happening.

"You move a lot while sleeping."

"Oh."

Blake frowned sleepily while trying to reconstruct the night. He vaguely remembered turning over several times.

Without thinking much about it, he lifted one hand and lightly palmed at the fabric near Myles’ thighs.

Because what if he drooled in his sleep or something equally horrifying?

"Myles?"

"Mhm?"

"Did I drool on you?"

"Blake."

"...Yeah?"

"Sleep."

Only then did Blake realize his hand was maybe touching a bit too much.

’Oh...’

Awkwardly, Blake pulled his hand back toward himself and shut his eyes again immediately, pretending none of that had happened.

’God, this is embarrassing.’

And yet... the feeling of Myles’ hand moving slowly through his hair made his chest flutter slightly.

No wonder he was getting sleepy again.

His body practically melted against the warmth beneath him before he could stop it.

Just for a little longer, he thought vaguely.

Then he fell asleep again.

***

The second time Blake woke up, the warmth was gone.

He blinked slowly at the ceiling before sitting up with a stretch, rubbing at his neck.

The bed beside him was empty, and now sunlight was slipping through the curtains properly.

Blake yawned again, then paused.

Something smelled really good.

Still half-awake, he pushed himself out of bed and wandered toward the kitchen, dragging his feet slightly against the floor.

The closer he got, the stronger the smell became.

Eggs and toast, along with something buttery.

Blake rubbed one eye while entering the kitchen quietly.

Myles stood by the stove with his back turned, cooking.

Grinning tiredly, Blake walked up behind him as silently as possible before suddenly grabbing both his shoulders.

"Boo!"

Nothing happened, but it wasn’t as if Blake found that unexpected.

Myles simply turned his head slightly toward him.

"Do you want juice?"

Blake immediately felt awkward.

’Why did this feel so domestic?’

Like they’d done this for years already.

Blake scratched awkwardly at the back of his head. "I’m pretty sure you don’t even have juice. I checked your fridge yesterday."

Myles stared down at him quietly.

Blake raised an eyebrow. ’Why is he looking at me like that...’

"I have oranges."

"Ah?"

"I can squeeze them."

"No, no, there’s no need for that, don’t worry."

Myles turned back toward the counter without answering, which meant he was doing it anyway.

Blake sighed quietly to himself before peeking toward the stove instead.

Eggs sizzling lightly in the pan. Toast already stacked neatly nearby.

Honestly, everything looked ridiculously good.

And unfairly aesthetic somehow.

How did even breakfast look intimidating when Myles made it?

Blake eventually sat down at the table, chin resting lazily against his palm.

"You should’ve woken me up," he complained lightly. "I could’ve helped."

"It doesn’t matter."

A plate was placed carefully in front of him, then a glass of freshly squeezed orange juice.

Blake looked up automatically.

"Thanks."

He looked up, smiling without thinking much about it.

Myles paused, then stared again.

"What is it? Earlier too, you stared."

Blake tilted his head in confusion just as Myles reached over calmly and tugged Blake’s shirt back up onto his shoulder where it had slipped down.

Oh, right... the oversized sleep shirt.

Blake suddenly remembered how loose it was on him.

And how long it had apparently been hanging off his shoulder already.

"Thanks," he repeated awkwardly this time.

Myles sat down across from him as though nothing happened.

Blake quickly focused on eating instead.

The eggs were soft and fluffy. The toast perfectly crisp.

Honestly offensive.

’How is he so good at everything? Ugh!’

Silence settled again, though not uncomfortable.

Blake drank some juice before speaking up again.

"So, what should we do today?"

"You can decide."

Blake leaned back slightly in thought.

Well, that was difficult.

They’d already gone to an amusement park before.

Movies apparently led directly to psychological warfare.

And Blake honestly didn’t know much about romance beyond things he’d seen in dramas and films.

Most date ideas also required money, which he definitely did not have much of.

His gaze drifted toward the massive windows nearby.

From this high up, the city stretched endlessly below them.

Buildings layered beneath soft morning sunlight. Streets already filling slowly with movement.

Maybe malls or crowded places weren’t the best option.

Honestly, it was already a miracle Myles enjoyed the amusement park as much as he did.

Ding!

Blake froze.

[ Mission: Be carried by Myles Cortez ]

[ Time limit: 1 day ]

[ Reward: 50 coins ]

[ Penalty: forced distance ]

Blake stared blankly out the window while internally reading the mission with increasing disbelief.

’Seriously? What is this, did Spoon read a bad teenage fiction?’

It was already shameless before, but now it truly wasn’t getting any better, really.

Still, mountains suddenly came to mind. Since city life wasn’t in Myles’ interest, then something a bit more natural could make things funnier.

’Would’ve preferred the beach, but it’s pretty far from here...’

Blake sighed quietly before turning back toward Myles casually.

"Would going to the mountains sound good?"

"Yeah. We should buy groceries first before going."

Blake laughed softly. "Look at you being practical."

Inside, though, Blake was panicking slightly.

How exactly was he supposed to get carried by Myles naturally?

’Should I just ask? Nah, that wouldn’t even work, right...’

Blake immediately shoved that thought away before his dignity suffered further damage.

Either way, mountains definitely gave him opportunities for that to happen, at least more than sitting indoors.

By the time breakfast ended, Blake headed toward the bathroom to change back into yesterday’s clothes.

Thankfully he’d worn a short-sleeved shirt underneath his hoodie.

Otherwise he genuinely would’ve died from the heat later.

As he got out of the bathroom, he saw Myles already dressed.

Light black long sleeves.

Grey pants.

A single, clean outfit.

Myles glanced toward him before casually reaching out to fix a particularly messy section of Blake’s hair.

"Don’t forget anything."

Blake instinctively held up his backpack. "Everything’s in here, don’t worry."

Then, grinning, he lifted his wrist too.

The watch Myles had given him rested there comfortably.

"See? I’ve got everything."

Myles hummed quietly while putting on his shoes.

A few minutes later, they finally left the apartment complex together.

Morning air greeted them immediately outside. It was cooler than expected despite the sunlight.

Blake stretched his arms slightly while walking beside Myles.

"So where do you usually buy food?"

"There’s a store nearby."

Well, the grocery store Myles goes to daily looked surprisingly normal both from the inside and outside.

’Why was I even expecting something weird...’

Honestly, seeing Myles push a shopping basket around almost short-circuited Blake’s brain again.

Because why did normal activities feel bizarrely intimate around him?

They picked simple foods for lunch.

Sandwich ingredients, fruit, bottled drinks, packaged snacks easy to carry around...

Blake mostly tossed random things into the basket while Myles occasionally removed objectively terrible choices.

"You do not need this much sugar."

"What? Why not. I want it!"

"No."

Eventually they reached the counter.

Blake was still holding a pack of chips while Myles unloaded items calmly onto the conveyor belt.

Then Blake looked up, and paused.

The cashier was staring directly at him.

Bright ginger hair and sharp blue eyes.

The kind of face that looked permanently snappy even while expressionless.

But the way he looked at him felt strangely intense, like he was trying to understand something...

Blake blinked once, confused.

The cashier’s gaze flicked briefly toward Myles.

Then back to Blake again.

And somehow, the atmosphere suddenly felt a little strange.