Horseshoes and Hand Grenades

The first day back to school was like a punch in the face to Alex. Over the last few weeks, he had completely forgotten what actually doing work was like, and it was a shock to have to get back into it so fast. Luckily, he had completed quite a few tests right before the winter break had started, so his workload was not too heavy right away. As a result, Jack was able to convince Alex to hang out with him after school that Monday, since he was free, too. Soccer was over, and because of that, Jack had a lot more time on his hands. Time he would obviously be putting into his friends and his boyfriend.

"It's funny," Jack considered, as he and Alex sat leaning against each other on Alex's couch, barely watching the T.V., "Zack could totally get with whoever he wanted to, but he hasn't really ever seemed all that interested in girls."

"Why're you bringing this up?" Alex yawned, slipping out of Jack's hold and standing up. "I'm hungry. Come,"

Following Alex, Jack shrugged. "I don't know. He's just been acting a little different, I guess. Been asking questions and stuff, seeming more interested in dating and what not."

"Really," Alex hummed, "And let me guess, you think this has to do with-"

"Marissa," Jack smiled, "Totally. What do you know?"

"Well, she's talked about him a couple times. I think she seemed pretty interested, too." Alex explained, raising an eyebrow when Jack's smile only widened. "What're you thinking?"

"I'm thinking," Jack said, walking forward and wrapping his arms around Alex's waist, "We need to go on a date, and so do they."

"Like, a double date?" Alex asked, and Jack nodded. "That's a good idea, except don't they have to be dating already to go on a date with us?"

"Hey," Jack chuckled, "There's no rules to these things. We can do whatever we want."

"Then what're we gonna do?" Alex yawned, leaning against Jack's chest.

"How about a nap, first?" Jack voiced, leaning down to kiss Alex's forehead when he mumbled affirmatively in reply. "Let's go upstairs."

Two hours later, Alex woke up alone in his bed, his eyes bleary and his head still very much asleep. Wondering what Jack had gotten up to, he made his way out of his room, and downstairs to where he heard voices in the kitchen.

"Hey," Jack nodded at his boyfriend, and Alex took a moment to smile at how comfortable the older boy had become in his home. There he was, sitting at the kitchen table and eating dinner with Alex's mother.

"Help yourself, Alex," Mrs. Gaskarth said, gesturing toward the stove. "We didn't want to wake you."

Isobel was just about eating when Alex came down stairs, so she cleaned up her plate and exited the room as Alex sat down to eat, leaving the two boys alone.

"So, what're we gonna do about Zack and Marissa?" Alex looked up at Jack expectantly.

"I'm still liking the double date idea," Jack said, "It could work. We could pick a day that Sam, Natasha, and Rian can't go, so it just seems like we're hanging out."

"And what if we end up just hanging out?" Alex thought out loud, "Then what's the point of that? They hang out together quite a bit, anyway."

"We can prevent that," Jack winked at Alex, "By doing things to make it seem less casual."

"We're not kissing in front of our friends," Alex shook his head, "No. That's weird."

"I don't mean just that," Jack explained seriously. "It can be a real date for us, too."

"You're sweet," Alex said sarcastically, a smile on his face as he picked up his and Jack's dishes and brought them to the sink. Coming up behind where the darker haired boy was seated and wrapping his arms loosely around his neck, he added, "I guess that could work, though." This was punctuated with a kiss to Jack's cheek.

"Do you think Friday will work?" Jack asked, standing up and following Alex back up to his bedroom. "Rian has a date with this girl he met recently. I don't know her name, and I'm pretty sure he doesn't like her enough to actually start dating her, but it means he's busy."

"I'll ask Sam and Natasha what they're doing," Alex said, grabbing his phone before hopping onto his bed. Jack laughed as he sat down next to the blond, and Alex looked up at him curiously.

"I just think it's funny how we have to do it this way," Jack explained, "Because we both know our plans would be exposed in mere seconds if we actually told them the truth."

Alex giggled in response, before stating, "Okay. Sam has a family birthday party, and Natasha has one of her math thingies. This is perfect."

"Almost," Jack nodded, "Text Marissa now, and I'll text Zack."

After another nap due to their shove back into reality, Alex and Jack awoke to texts from their friends, both stating that they were available on Friday night. They spent the rest of their evening making plans, before Jack finally had to go home.

Friday could not have came fast enough, and Jack and Alex we're delighted to finally have some taste of the break they had just finished. Since they decided they were going to go bowling, the couple thought it would be a good idea to part ways and help their friends pick their outfits. Bowling was a pretty casual thing, but Alex had told Jack it would be slightly more date-like if they all dressed up just the slightest bit. Jack kissed Alex goodbye outside of their school, before they each headed home to get changed. Alex then went to Marissa's, and Jack, to Zack's.

"I feel overdressed," Marissa said, while Alex and her waved goodbye to her mother before she drove away.

"Oh, please," Alex rolled his eyes, "It's just a skirt. People wear them all the time. You look cute,"

"Thanks," Marissa sighed, "I guess I'm just overthinking it. It's hard, sometimes, when all of your friends look so good."

"What do you mean?" Alex laughed, "You look great, Mariss,"

"I don't know," Marissa shrugged, leaning against the wall of the building next to Alex as they waited, "Sam, Natasha, and you, you're all so tall and skinny, and I'm just me. It sucks sometimes."

"Oh, hush," Alex frowned, "You're lovely, and you're not being fair to yourself at all."

"Thanks, Alex," Marissa said again quietly, and Alex leaned over to give her a hug, just as Jack and Zack were walking up to them.

"There's my baby," Jack grinned, sweeping Alex into a hug, before leaning down to kiss him on the lips.

"Hi, love," Alex laughed in reply.

"Let's go inside," Jack said to the group, taking Alex's hand and opening the doors to the building.

"They're cute," Zack mumbled, as he and Marissa followed their friends.

"Yeah," Marissa nodded, not noticing the way Alex looked back just in time to notice Zack holding the door open for her. It was certainly a start.

Once the game was set up, each person began to take their turn to bowl. Alex was having so much fun competing with his friends, that he almost forgot the entire point of their little outing, until Jack came up behind him while he was talking his turn. Ignoring what he was supposed to be doing, Alex leaned back into Jack.

"This is going well," Jack hummed, pressing a kiss to Alex's cheek. Alex nodded, before standing up straight again and taking his turn. They returned to their table hand in hand, and as Marissa went up to take her turn, Jack motioned for Zack to follow her. His friend gave him a worried look in return, but stood up anyway and followed the girl to the lane. Of course, Marissa bowled a spare, and no help from Zack was needed. They did high five, though, which Alex and Jack smiled about from afar.

Later on, while Zack and Jack were getting food, Marissa had a chance to talk to Alex.

"Why're you and Jack acting so coupley?" She asked, wondering what was taking so long with the food. Little did she know, Zack was asking Jack the same thing. "You guys rarely ever do this sort of stuff. It's almost like you're on a d- Oh my god, Alex."

Shrugging, Alex grinned. "You caught us."

"I can't believe you! If I want to go out on a date with someone, I'll do it myself!" Marissa groaned, slumping back in her chair. Jack and Zack came back right after that, and Alex waited until Zack went back to fill his drink, along with Marissa, before telling Jack what Marissa had just said.

"She knows," Alex nodded in the direction of his friend, and Jack hummed in agreement.

"Zack figured it out, too," he said, "But as long as they don't know that they both know, I think this will work out."

"Even if they do," Alex smiled at the couple, who were helping each other with their drinks, "I don't really think it matters."

Notes

hey! i have some bad news... lately i'm not really feeling this story??? or writing in general??? even uploading is tough :^( i've been getting such a lack of response and i know the story isn't really that interesting rn, but i swear the next chapter is a big one. regardless, i'm still having trouble with where i'm at now (chapter 48) and i need to start thinking about where this story is really going. what do you guys think i should do? if i don't decide soon, i might take a break to work on ocean avenue if i feel like it, or maybe even a new series based off of panic!'s new album, if i feel up to that. i absolutely hate when writers just disappear, and although i don't really have much of a following, i promise i'll work hard for you guys. 911police/police911 is not here to disappoint :^)

thanks to Alex_thelion99 for commenting! ily all