Bitter Tears - Complete (11 Parts)

[Scion]

Bitter Tears

Same as always, ignore the pic if you don't like it! Sorry.

Decided to go back to m/m, even though it's less popular, because, well, I thought of this story...and had to write it.

Part One:

ONE YEAR AGO

^*^*^

Simon felt the mattress shift as his bed-partner slunk sneakily to his feet, trying to make his escape without being noticed.

Opening his eyes, Simon peered over at the clock on the nightstand. 12:11 AM. He sighed. Sixth months they’d been together, and yet not once had they ever spent the night in each other’s company.

“Going somewhere, Nic?” he asked resignedly.

All movement ceased, and then Nico Coletti’s honey velvet voice rose up from the darkness. “Yeah, I have to get back and feed Kix. He’s probably slowly dying of starvation right now as we speak.”

Kix was Nico’s dog, an elderly German Sheppard with almost no teeth left. “I thought your mom fed her,” Simon said, knowing she did.

“What? No.” He finished donning his clothes, then stuffed his feet into his sneakers. “I feed her. From day one, Mom made that clear. Either I fed, watered, and walked her--the dog, not my mom--or she was gone--again, the dog, not my mom.”

Simon closed his eyes, not wanting to see the broad expanse of Nico’s beautiful shoulders, or the chocolatey silk of his hair. “Stay,” he said softly, swallowing his pride.

Nico paused in the process of adjusting his belt. His shoulders drooped almost imperceptibly. “I can’t,” he said. “Kix.”

“Right,” Simon said. How could I have forgotten your made up excuse?

Coming to a decision, Simon stated flatly, “If you walk out that door, Nic, we’re done.”

Again, Nico paused, this time in the doorway. One hand came up to rub his face, the other clenching into a fist at his side. “Then I guess we’re done,” he bit out, and then he was gone.

------

PRESENT DAY

^*^*^

“No. Absolutely not, Tash. I’m not--NOT--giving that--that…” Simon stopped talking long enough to take in a steadying breath. He loved his sister, he truly did, but this…this was too much. “I’m not giving Nicholas Coletti a ride. He can damn well take a cab--or walk, for that matter.”

On the other end of the phone, Tasha made an impatient squeak of disapproval. “He won’t take a taxi, Simon, as you well know. And it’s way too far to walk. Besides, is giving him a ride to the airport really gonna kill you? I mean…it’s not like it’s that far!”

“The answer is still no.”

“I’M GETTING MARRIED!” she screeched, nearly deafening him. Adding a thread of calm to her voice, she said, “I’m getting married, Simon, and all I ask is that you give my friend a ride to the airport so he can attend my wedding. Is that really too much?”

“Yes.”

“Simon!”

“What?”

“SIMON!”

“OKAY!” he gritted, hating his sister for putting him in a position like this. He hadn’t seen Nico since they’d split, and he liked it that way. “I’ll give him a ride, but that’s it! I mean it, Tash! No rides back or to hotels or whatever!”

“Fine,” she agreed irritably. “You’re such an ass, Simon. I mean, you’re acting like I’m asking you to give a ride to a freaking serial killer!”

“I’d rather have the serial killer!” he retorted.

The only reply he got was the droning dial tone. She’d hung up on him.

“Ungrateful little twit,” Simon grumbled, slamming the phone down. He sunk his head into his hands, cursing Nico Coletti to hell.

------

At 3:00 PM the next afternoon, Simon pulled his car up to Nico’s dorm, his stomach tied in knots of nervous anticipation. A teeny, tiny part of him was thrilled at this chance to see Nico again, but the rest of him was pissed off and resentful of his sister for having put him in this enormously awkward situation.

The dorm door opened, and out stepped Nico in all his gorgeous glory, his dark hair a little longer, his shoulders a little broader, and his muscles distinctly more noticeable beneath the thin fabric of his black t-shirt. His eyes were big and brown, and--as Simon knew from past experience--flecked with gold. His face was chiseled to absolute magnificence, the small crescent-moon scar beside his right eye the only thing marring the perfection.

Simon waited, gaze plastered upon the boy…until he realized nothing was happening, and he beeped the horn.

Nico squinted through the window, but didn’t move, glancing almost warily around him as if expecting to ambushed.

Vaguely annoyed, Simon rolled down the window. “You getting in, or just standing there?”

Nico’s tense features relaxed, and he strode for the car, tossing his duffle into the back before climbing in beside Simon.

Clearing his throat uncomfortably, Simon drove out of the parking lot, pulling out onto the main road. The silence stretched on for five minutes before he could no longer bear it.

“You know Remi? The groom?” Simon asked for the sake of something to say.

“Nah,” Nico replied in that honey velvet voice of his. “You?”

“Met him a few times. He always seemed nice enough.”

Nico gave a sniff that sounded like the glug of water trapped in a drain, and Simon cringed, watching in horror from the corner of his eye as Nico rubbed his reddened nose and muffled a moist cough in his fist.

Simon’s horror increased tenfold when Nico removed a wad of tissues from his jeans pocket and cupped the wad over his nose and mouth, his breath dipping up and down in hiccupping bursts. When he sneezed, his entire upper body snapped forward with the force of it. “HihnGTshah!” A long, soggy snuffle, and then thrice more into the tissues. “UhrIDShhiew! ITSchIEEW! SHIEEEW!” He gave a gushing blow into the sopping clump of paper, which he then shoved back into his pocket as Simon imagined a sprinkler of germs spraying across the dashboard.

On another sniffle, Nico commented, “I sdeezed.”

“I noticed.” Simon cringed inwardly. “Are you sick?” Please say no, please say no, PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE, say no!

“Yup. Itd’s pretty ndasty, too. I feel ligke there’s sobe kide of bmucus factory going od id by dose--either thadt or sobe kide of budslide…bmucus-slide?”

At that image, Simon threw up a little in his mouth, then was forced to swallow the yuck as Nico continued mercilessly.

“Idt’s ub id by head, too, ligke the little globs of bmucus are trying to conquer dew terridtory, you kdow? ‘Cause by dose just isd’t edough. I bead, bmadn, I cad lidterally feel the phlegmb buildig ub by the segcod. It’s--”

“Thank you, but that’s quite enough,” Simon cut in through clenched teeth. “I think I get the picture.”

“Oh. Ogkay.” The disappointment in Nico’s voice actually made Simon feel guilty, which was ridiculous!

“Let’s just talk about something else, all right? You’re kind of wigging me out with all that talk of…the m-word.”

Nico nodded thoughtfully. “Whadt should we talgk aboudt?”

Simon fought back a smile with effort and said, “I don’t know. Anything.”

“Adythinkg? Does thad idclude by bmucus?” Nico asked almost hopefully.

“No,” Simon said quickly, taking a sharp right on Colonial Street. “Anything but that.”

Nico hummed under his breath, lips twitching. It was so fun to tease Simon, especially when Simon seemed to take everything he said seriously. He may have had trouble understanding right from wrong, but he had no trouble determining exactly what to say to get under Simon’s skin.

“How aboudt by throadt? Could we talgk aboudt thadt?” he asked with faux-seriousness. “Idt’s killidg be!”

Watching Simon’s jaw flex, Nico relaxed back into his seat, feeling safe for the first time since Simon had banished him from his life.

-------

Hmmm. Okay so far?

[sillystarsmoons]

Scion - It's good! I love the cold talk too. I can't wait to see where this goes and I can't wait for the next chapter.

[Ciuty80]

Bitter Tears

“Yup. Itd’s pretty ndasty, too. I feel ligke there’s sobe kide of bmucus factory going od id by dose--either thadt or sobe kide of budslide…bmucus-slide?”

At that image, Simon threw up a little in his mouth, then was forced to swallow the yuck as Nico continued mercilessly.

“Idt’s ub id by head, too, ligke the little globs of bmucus are trying to conquer dew terridtory, you kdow? ‘Cause by dose just isd’t edough. I bead, bmadn, I cad lidterally feel the phlegmb buildig ub by the segcod. It’s--”

“Thank you, but that’s quite enough,” Simon cut in through clenched teeth. “I think I get the picture.”

ohhh god i laughed so hard!!!

beautiful sneezes like always

and of course it´s okay!!!

hey writemaniac, you are freakly insane with your fast writing!!!!! (sure all meant positive )

please more

[Anonymouse]

Poor Simon, stuck in such an awkward situation. Cute sneezes so far! I love the way you write, can't wait to see more.

[elements]

I LOVE THIS!!!! Can't wait for more

[Butch]

Scion - HAHAHA! I love this already! Update soon!

[snuffle-bunny]

Ooh, yes, more please!

[Zane]

I love m/m fics! thanks so much for writing this! it sounds really good so far! I'm looking forward to more.

[ichixshiro14]

I love m/m fics! thanks so much for writing this! it sounds really good so far! I'm looking forward to more.

Agreed!

I love how rapidly you're cranking out fics! You're like an awesome writing factory, how do you come up with it all?! Ah, creativity...I miss thee Thanks for sharing, I love it thus far!

[Scion]

sillystarsmoons: Oh yay!! I'm reallly glad you like it so far! Thank you!!

Ciuty80: Thank you! Hopefully it's not weird if I think that part's really funny, too. And you like this sneeze, yay! Yep, I know! I'm way too obsessed with writing! But it makes me happy, so I guess it's okay!

AnonyMouse: Oh, thank you so much! And yes, I'm the queen of putting my characters in awkward situations.

elements: That makes me so happy! Thank you so much!

Mims: Haha, I'm glad! Thank you! And you know I will!

snufflebunny: Hehe, glad you like! Thanks for commenting.

Zane: Yeah, m/m fics are my favorite to right, I have to admit! Plus, I prefer writing about guys because it makes me think harder lol. And thank you! Glad you like it so far!

ichixshiro14: Seriously, I've had SO many story ideas for so long, that I've been sort of storing them up so now I have a million of them I want to write. So so so happy you love it so far! Makes my life.

Thanks for all the love, you guys! You're amazing!

Part Two:

Waiting in line at the security checkpoint, Simon could feel great puffs of Nico’s breath feathering across the back of his neck. The guy was standing practically on top of him, which Simon found quite unnecessary, especially since Nico kept releasing loud, germ-trajectory coughs and sloppy snuffles.

Skin crawling, Simon stepped away from Nico, sighing in relief as he escaped immediate danger. Seconds later, Nico was back, breathing down his neck again, completely oblivious to Simon’s discomfort.

“There’s such a thing as personal space,” Simon grated, trying to sound civil.

Nico blinked at him a little sleepily. “Whadt?”

“Personal. Space,” Simon repeated slowly. “Meaning you don’t have to stand in the exact block of space that I’m standing in. You can stand in your own block.”

Nico’s brows lifted. “Hbb. Thadt’s idterestdidg. Which block of space should I stad id, thed?”

At that, Simon dropped his head into his hands, and Nico smothered a laugh; Simon thought him a complete idiot, so Nico didn’t feel too bad turning his supposed idiocy against an unsuspecting Simon.

Okay, so when he’d been standing next to Simon, it hadn’t exactly been to annoy him. He just never understood things like “personal space.” What was the point? How much space was necessary and why? He understood why someone wouldn’t want to be up close and personal with someone they hated, but…wait, maybe Simon did hate him. Shit. He did. Simon hated him.

The gnawing ache started up in his abdomen again, biting deep and making him grimace in pain.

Simon removed his head from his hands, purposefully ignoring Nico as the line moved up. Maybe if he didn’t look at the guy, he’d be able to forget he was even there.

“HuhITzshuu!”

Or not.

“Hey, Sibod?”

He didn’t turn around. “What?”

“D’you have ady tdissues?

Simon shivered. Without the tissues to catch most of the germs, they’d simply float freely into the air. “No, but I’m sure there’s a shop that’ll have some once we get through this damn line.”

“Budt, I deed--heehh--themb dow!” In his peripheral vision, Simon saw Nico tuck his face into his elbow as a ruby red flush crowded his cheeks. “HehISHIHH!” He lowered his arm, sniffing in a long, sucking, nasally pull.

Simon unclenched his teeth to say, “Bless you,” in the stiffest, most unconvincing manner possible. Why oh why did Nico have to be sick? It was bad enough having to face him, let alone the sick, germ-spreading version of him! Dammit, if he got sick, Tasha was going to pay big time, wedding or no wedding!

When he received no ‘thank you’ from the other boy, his mouth tightened; how could he have forgotten how abominably rude Nico was?

They made it through the check point without incident, then took their seats at the correct gate after stopping to buy four small tissue packets for Nico.

As Nico gurgle-honked his nose without abandon, the woman sitting on his right shot him a dirty, disgusted look. Simon couldn’t blame her, and yet her disgust irked him. Sure, he was a little…uncomfortable…with Nico’s obvious lack of health, but that didn’t mean anyone else could be!

“Hey, Nic.” Simon tapped his shoulder.

“Yup?” Nico turned puffy eyes on him, and Simon winced.

“Come sit over here, okay?” He patted the vacant seat to his left.

“Sure thidg.” Nico switched chairs while coughing openly, allowing Simon to picture perfectly the cloud of evil swarming the air, ready to attack him.

“Cover you mouth,” Simon instructed grumpily.

Nico looked at him in confusion. “Sorry. Did I do sobethig wrodg?”

Oh, God, Simon thought. Not the big, sad puppy eyes! That is so unfair! “No, just try to cover your mouth when you cough. It’s polite.”

Nico tilted his head to the side as if Simon were some new species of alien he didn’t understand. “Ogkay.”

Simon nodded, then stared ahead of him, his entire frame stiff as a board. He felt Nico’s eyes on him, and it unnerved him, made him self-conscious. “Staring is impolite as well.”

“Idt is?” Nico sounded incredulous. “Why?”

Shrugging, Simon replied, “It makes people uncomfortable?”

Nico’s lips kicked up at the corner. “Ab I bagking you udcobfortable?”

“Yes.” A single bullet of sweat trailed down his back. “As a matter of fact, you’re making me feel as if I’m under a microscope.”

Nico gave him a ‘you’re crazy’ look, but finally stopped staring--in favor of muffling a round of the wettest sneeze Simon had ever heard into a poor, defenseless tissue, his upper body curling forward with each blast.

“HihISHIEEW! ETSCHuhh! Huhh…ehhhih’IkSHishhah!” After tucking the abused tissue into his pocket, he swung his long legs up onto the seat to his left, his sneakers mere centimeters from the young man sitting one seat over.

The man glanced down at Nico’s feet, his lips curling in distaste. He then turned to his girlfriend/fiancée/wife and whispered something into her ear. The woman giggled, peering over at Nico and mouthing, “Don’t be mean, Eugene! He’s probably a little slow up here”--she made a swirling motion with one finger at her temple--“you know…not all there!”

Oh, hell no, Simon thought angrily. Someone named ‘Eugene’ was not making fun of Nico. Nope. It just wasn’t happening. He glanced at Nico, who had his head tipped back and his eyes closed, unaware, and felt fury flare up inside him until he could no longer hold his tongue.

“Hey, Nic?” He lightly touched the boy’s shoulder. “Let’s move somewhere else. Something over here smells like fish and armpit stew.” He directed a meaningful glance between Eugene and Mrs. Eugene, who blushed scarlet and looked down at her feet while Eugene merely glared.

“Whadt?” Nico yawned, levering open his bleary eyes. “You’re goidg fishidg for armbpitds with your udcle Stdew?”

Simon closed his eyes. So much for that brilliant plan. “Yeah. That’s right, Nic. Come on, stand up.”

Nico gave him a funny look, but did as he was told, following Simon to an empty row of seats.

“There. Now you can lie down without kicking anyone in the face,” Simon said meaningfully, though the allusion was lost on Nico, who was already lying down again, eyes closed, pink nose quivering.

Simon made sure to put an empty seat between himself and the germ-machine, feeling guilty and relieved at the same time.

“Heh…hehhh…”

Simon cringed, eyes squished shut.

“Ehhh…Hih!…hhhuh…”

He peeked open one eye, saw the desperation crease Nic’s face, saw the rapid flaring of red nostrils and the slow parting of pillowy lips…crammed himself as far away as he possibly could within the confines of his seat.

“HahETHHshhu!” A swift bob of the dark head, and then another, as a shower of clear fluid misted the air. “HisSHHiuuew!”

A small bottle of hand sanitizer appeared in Simon’s palm, and he applied the gel liberally to his hands, knowing he was being ridiculous and not caring.

When they called for people to start boarding, Nico stood and stretched like a cat, smirking down at Simon, who stood as well.

“I’m gonna run to the bathroom,” Simon announced. “I guess I’ll see you when we land.”

For the briefest of instants, hurt flashed in Nico’s eyes, but he nodded. “Sure thidg. Ubb…” He looked away, opened his mouth, shut it again.

Simon frowned in concern. Nico was never at a loss for words. “What is it?” he asked gently.

Nico shook it off, shrugging casually. “Nah, idt’s dothidg. You have fud washidg your hads. Try dot to rip off ady skgin.”

Simon felt warmth flood his cheeks. “Goodbye, Nico.”

“Latder, Sibod.”

-------

“16 F,” Simon muttered, scanning the numbered rows until he got to sixteen, where he stopped and turned and…”Oh, shit.”

Sitting in the seat directly beside 16 F was none other than Nicholas Coletti, wad of messy tissues already in hand, his dazed expression screaming ‘I’M ABOUT TO SNEEZE AND SPREAD MY DISEASE!’

Those dark, coppery eyes fixed on him, and Simon swore he saw the brown lighten to a soft shade of caramel, but it had to be his imagination; things like eye colors changing only ever happened in books. This wasn’t a book. It was his life. And his life sucked.

“Nico,” he said frostily.

“Sibod,” the boy replied, voice as warm as freshly brewed cider.

-------

:heart: More tomorrow!

[cupkake]

This is a GREAT start and I can't wait to see where this one goes

I like Simon's (seemingly) germophobia haha ; makes it more entertaining

[cupkake]

Okayy so I just realized I posted that ^^, without knowing you posted your second part whoops.

Anywayyy I love the way Nico teases Simon, its so cute, the way Simon gets all jealous is adorable too

And the little 'Eugene ' bit actually had me laughing,

I love that you went back to m/m haha, I must admit; I love me some slash

Well good job on the part, and keep it coming

[Natto]

Okay, I'm absolutely adoring this. The dialog is hilarious, Simon is adorably upset about Nico's behavior, and your description of Nico's illness is just...just perfect. It's so wet and disgusting and GREAT. I love it. If Simon doesn't catch this cold I am going to cry.

[sillystarsmoons]

I agree the way you write Nico's illness, oh my. I can't wait to see what happens next.

[Ciuty80]

somehow i like the fact that simon is so pissed off of the germ maschine he needs to take care of

it´s funny to read and the sneezes are wonderful!

and i like nicos congested voice, he is lovely

nicos action are sometimes unpolite but maybe he doesn´t know better

keep it up, i love to read even more

[Quite Contrary]

Haha this is great! Nico is just...adorable. Can't wait to read the next part!

[Aprilcot]

AWWWWWWWWWW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Does he by any chance have one of the many types of Autism?

I think I like that!

I've always been... slightly... um... unsure, beacuse I've never had the chance to converse with an Autistic person...

I think it should be made curriculum in schools, to know the side effects, and how to, it feels wrong to say treat them, but I hope you get my drift, and I'm sorry if I'm offending anyone, but I LOVE THIS STORY ALREADY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I Love how he's using his apparent 'idiocy' as a weapon!

I take it that if he is autistic, it's because of that that they never had a night together? I believe that is one of the side effects... inability to show emotions such as love, and the need to stick to a routine...

ANYWAY! I LOVE IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I CAN'T WAIT TO SEE SOME MORE DIALOGUE BETWEEN THESE TWO!!!!!

IT IS BRILLIANT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Poor baby!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

He thinks everyone hates him!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I DON'T!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

PLEASE CONTINUE WITH THIS SOON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I CAN'T WAIT TO SEE WHAT HAPPENS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I wonder if they'll get a room together...

[Zane]

This is sooooooooo good! your stories are addicting! I love them! thanks again for writing this! hope there's more! I don't know yet which character I love more right now, lol Simon or Nico but I think I'm wavering towards Nico. hmmmmmmm but if Simon catches the cold who knows? lol

[Scion]

cupkake: Ooo, I forgot how much your comments killed me! In a good way! If that is even possible! I LOVE you for telling which aspects you like best. Seriously, best thing ever. You rock. I love the Eugene part, too hehehe. The name Eugene always makes me snicker. And me TOO. M/m is my favorite to write. THANK YOU!

Natto: Ohh, how happy you make me! That you think the dialogue is funny is just gahhhhhhh!! More happiness! And yes, I'm trying realllly hard to make Nico's cold extra gross! Thank you!

sillystarsmoons: Haha, thank you! It's kinda scarily fun writing a cold that's so...yeah!

Ciuty80: Thank you!!! Your comment made me sooo happy and smiley! :bounce:And you're right, Nico doesn't know better! But he'll learn with Simon there to teach him.

Quite Contrary: Thank you! :D I love Nico; he really is adorable! And glad you like it!

Aprilcot: Okay, so I can TOTALLY see why you might think that, but he actually doesn't have Autism. There is definitely something wrong with him that...can make things confusing for him. See, even SIMON thinks its something like that...he definitely thinks Nico is 'challenged' I guess, but...he isn't. There's another explanation that NO ONE in the world would ever guess, lol! Nico knows Simon thinks he's kinda 'slow,' too, which makes me sad. Anyway, GLAD YOU LOVE IT!!! Thank you! And I know, I realllly wanna hug Nico....this seems to be a recurring theme for my characters! They all needs hugs! As for them getting a room together...muahahahahaha! Simon's gonna be:

Zane: Aww, thank you thank you thank you! I'm SO happy you feel that way! I'm firmly on Nico in terms of favorites, but that's not to say I don't want to huggle Simon as well. Especially, like you said, if he gets sick muahahaa!

God. You guys are incredible and bring joy to my life. Corny, but true.

Part Three:

Stiffly, every muscle tensed, Simon inched past Nico to his window seat and sat down, trying not to breathe, his mouth clamped firmly shut. “Out of all the seats on the whole plane, I get the one next to you,” he grumbled, not meaning for Nico to hear him.

Unfortunately, Nico did, and this time the hurt in his eyes lasted a bit longer before melting away. “You really do hadte be, dodn’t you?” he asked huskily, swiping a finger back and forth under his dripping nose.

Immediately, Simon felt guilty as well as nauseous--the first because of Nico’s softly spoken words, the second because of Nico’s leaking orifices. He scooted closer to the window, saying, “No, Nic, I don’t hate you, okay? I’d just rather not be attacked by whatever monster’s currently working you over.”

Nico furrowed his brow. “Huh?”

Simon sighed. “I don’t want to catch your cold,” he clarified.

“Oh!” Nico brightened. “Thed why did’dt you jusdt say so!? Thadt’s todtally cool. I get thadt you’re afraid of gerbs ad stduff. I probise dot dto get you sigck.” Upon making this vow, he gasped and was unable to catch the body-bucking, demon-rain sprouting sneeze that exploded from him in a bacterial rush. “HurrIPHShoo!”

As Simon sat frozen in a state of terrified alarm, Nico fumbled in his pocket for a tissue, managing to free one just in time to imprison his second offering. “HehHisshiah!”

Simon waited out the usual liquid shnorking from Nico, then made himself say, “Bless you. Do you think this is going to go on for much longer?”

“Yup. Ligke I said, Sibod. Bmucus. You ever read ‘Idt Cabe frob Bedeath the Sindk?’”

“No,” Simon said warily.

“Well, the mbodstder uder the kitched sidk is id by dose. Sobeode could wridte a book: ‘Idside Nicgo’s Dose.’”

Rubbing his palms together, Simon suppressed a shudder. “That’s…very nice. But like I said before, I prefer we not discuss the m-word if at all possible.”

“Oh. Righdt. Waidt, which emb-word? Bmucus or mbodstder?”

“Preferably both, but if I had to pick one, I’d go with the one that ends in ‘s.’”

Nodding, Nico agreed, “Sure thidg.“ A slushy cough, free and open and sharing the unwell.

“Nico,” Simon bit out through his grinding teeth. “What did I say about covering your mouth?”

Staring at him, Nico nodded. “Sorry. Forgodt.” He pawed at the empty air, then wiped his hands on his shirt. “There. Dothidg dto worry aboudt.”

Simon gawped openly at him, forgetting his resolution to keep his mouth shut for the entire plane-ride. “You can’t possibly think--”

“Sorry,” said the middle-aged man settling in the aisle seat next to Nico. “Didn’t mean to interrupt anything.”

“That’s okay,” Simon said--then he got a good look at Nico’s face and his heart dropped into his stomach.

The boy had gone eerily white, the black pupils dominating his eyes as he stared openly at the man beside him. He looked…horror-struck.

Trying to determine what was wrong, Simon studied the man in question, took in his clipped silver-gray hair and his perfectly shaven, classically handsome features, his expensive, well-tailored suit and his large brown briefcase. Seemed perfectly ordinary to Simon.

Nico, though, still looked frozen in fear, sweat starting to dabble his knitted brow and upper lip.

Thoroughly concerned, Simon leaned in and snapped his fingers in front of the boy’s colorless face. “Hey. Nico? You alive in there?”

Slowly, mechanically, Nico turned to him, and--even more slowly--lifted his hand and clamped it like a vice around Simon’s. “M--m-make him g-go aw-way,” he stammered, teeth clattering noisily. A fine line of clear fluid dripped from his left nostril.

Simon sent the businessman an apologetic look and a helpless shrug, feeling more uncomfortable than he had in his whole life.

Thankfully, the man gave an understanding smile and a nod. “I’ll see if I can switch seats with someone, all right?”

“Thank you,” Simon mouthed, grateful.

With another nod, the man got up and vanished down the aisle, taking his briefcase with him.

Nico’s grip on Simon’s hand lessened as he breathed out in relief, and he gave a slurping sniff. As the color gradually returned to his drawn face, he whispered guiltily, “Thadt was wrodg, wasd’t id?”

Simon knew he should say that, yes, that had been very wrong, and people didn’t treat other people that way…but he just couldn’t, because Nico was giving him those damned puppy-eyes again. “No, Nic. It wasn’t wrong. You’re fine.”

“Ogkay,“ he croaked. With a shnxuuunngthh! Nico drew his hand back and composed himself, gathering up a nest of tissues in his lap for future use.

Looking down at his left hand in dismay, Simon flipped open his hand sanitizer and globbed some onto the hand, rubbing it in feverishly. He tried to imagine it killing the germs he knew had invaded his skin, hoping the power of belief would spare him from Death by Cold.

A few seconds later, a girl of about eighteen or nineteen took the aisle seat. She had the biggest, brightest smile Simon had ever seen, along with the whitest teeth, the bluest eyes, and the blackest hair. Everything about her was extreme from her bright red lips to her deep purple eye-shadow.

“Hi!” she enthused, shining that grin of hers down upon them. “My dad asked me to switch seats with him. He’s going to give some speech somewhere, but brought me along since my boyfriend, Keane, lives in Boston, and well, that’s where we’re going!”

“Thadt bmadn was your dad?” Nico asked.

“I’m Simon,” Simon said pointedly, giving Nico The Eye. “And this is Nico, my sister Tasha’s friend. Tash is getting married.” He didn’t see the hurt in Nico’s eyes, for they were shielded by shadowy lashes.

“Oh, cool!” the girl explained, then pressed her hand to her mouth. “Oh, I’m sorry! I didn’t even introduce myself. I’m Brenna!”

“Nice to meet you,” Simon said politely, keenly aware of Nico’s labored breaths and gulping sniffles.

“Mbbbhuhh…HeejISHHtt!” Way, way too late, the tissue came up and cradled the inflamed nose. Hunched over, Nico started to blow his nose--then was cut off by another snotty sneeze. “HuhUNGtchieeah!” In his hand, the tissue sagged wearily, soaked through and dribbling with the m-word.

As Simon worked his mind trying to calculate how much sanitizer he could use without running out before the flight was over, Brenna put on her mother-hen feathers, fussing and flapping all over Nico.

“Awwww, bless you! Are you sick? You look sick! Your nose is all red and your eyes are kinda red, too! Are you okay?”

Frowning in confusion, Nico blinked at her. “Yup.”

Simon, strangely pleased by the fact that Nico reserved most of his babbling for him, held back a smile even as he shifted farther away from the living, breathing germ.

“Do you wadt to talgk aboudt by bmucus?” Nico asked her severely, and Simon’s eyes nearly popped out and rolled away.

But Brenna merely laughed, patting Nico on the arm and saying, “Sure. If you like.”

As Nico started in about the armies of mucus marching through his sinuses, Simon brooded. If Nico had to talk about the m-word, he could damn well do it with Simon, and not some stranger!

Nico willed his lips not to curve as he saw the sullen pout come over Simon’s face, knowing his plan had worked. Brenna sent him a knowing wink and waggled her brows.

Leaning in close on the pretence of secrecy, Nico loudly whispered, “Budt Sibod doesd’t ligke dto talgk aboudt id. Id wiggs hib oudt, abbarendtly, so you should’dt medtiod id dto hib.”

Brenna nodded sagely and mimed sealing her lips. “I understand. I won’t say a word. Cross my heart.”

Simon wanted to ask Nico to blow his nose, because his congested voice was giving him the willies, but the idea of Nico actually honking out all that evil made him shiver. Turns out his indecision didn’t matter, because a second later…

“Hnd’ChzKTCHiuu!” One burbling inhale, a flash of white as the tissue was thrust hastily into action, and… “Ngg’TCHethunk! Ahh…” Nico’s entire body shook in a spasmodic jerk and he used the tissue to squeeze his nose, eliciting a slurred, burbling gush.

“Bless you,” Brenna offered sweetly, peering at him in concern as he stuffed the murdered tissue into his death-trap of a pocket.

Don’t breathe don’t breath don’t breathe, Simon mentally chanted as his lungs seized, begging to be used. His eyelids were beginning to ache from being held so tightly closed.

There was a pressure against his shoulder, warm and heavy. He poked open one eye…gulped as he saw that the weight belonged to Nico’s head…felt his throat start to close in response. His hands fisted on his knees as he hissed, “Nico? Remember what I said about personal space?”

Nico’s sole response was the watery, sawing slurp of a snore.

Asleep.

Simon groaned aloud. Someone please save me!

-------

Back tomorrow.

[ID2006]

This is hilarious and awesome. I can't wait to read more.

[queenie]

Who was that guy? Why did Nico need him gone? Also, why is Nico acting like a retarded child? No wonder Mrs. Eugene thought he was messed up. He is acting the fool.

[Scion]

Who was that guy? Why did Nico need him gone? Also, why is Nico acting like a retarded child? No wonder Mrs. Eugene thought he was messed up. He is acting the fool.

He's not acting like a "retarded child" as you say. He has reasons for the way he acts and doesn't know he's doing anything wrong.

[Quite Contrary]

Aww...I wanna know what's wrong with Nico! And if someone did something to him...I'm gonna beat them up! Brenna sounds like fun, I like her already. I hope I'm supposed to haha

[Sawyer]

I LIKE THIS SO MUCH. The classic germophobe sitting next to someone with a bad cold on an airplane scenario! This is so funny and cute! And. And I love Brenna! I really want to see more of her. When she was first doting on Nico ("Are you sick? You look sick") and everything... aww! That was adorable. I want her there more. And how Nico was just like "Yup". Oh my god. This is so adorable. I can't wait for Nico and Simon to get together~ Ahh! You're so good at writing! Moremoremoremoremore!

[Aprilcot]

AWWW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

HE FELL ASLEEP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

HE'S SOOO SWEEET!!!!!!!!!!!!

I WANNA KNOW HIS PAST!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

At first when you said, 'he's not autistic' I thought, 'HOW CAN HE NOT BE AUTISTIC???!!!@ But I suppose an Autistic person doesn't realise they are winding people up...

I WANNA KNOW HIS PAST!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hmmm.... Personal space issue.... You've set me a challenge now! I need more of this story before I can see if my ideas are correct!

I'm sure you're leaving clues somewhere!

I'LL FIND THEM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I LOVE THIS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

'The living, breathing germ' LOL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

These comments that run through Simon's mind are FANTASTIC!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I LOVE IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I think that EVERYBODY wants to hug your characters!

THEY JUST NEED TO BE HUGGED!!!!!

By the way, last time I forgot to say that I LOVE M/M SO KEEP POSTING IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I LITTERALLY DID A DANCE WHEN I SAW IT WAS M/M!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

THINK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

CAN'T WAIT FOR THE NEXT PART!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!