Lights Out

[lalaland~]

Setting: Kingston University in England, autumn

This isn’t just a fetish fic. I wanted this to read like a traditional fanfiction (except obviously these are my OCs).  I wanted you all, the readers, to really understand the characters and feel FEELS when you read this.  I want you to scream internally when I cut a chapter off, because you need to know what happens next.  So yes, of course, there will be sneezing, but there will also be lots of plot and lots of things that have nothing to do with sneezing.  If that’s not what you want to read right now, I completely understand.  I, too, enjoy ‘pointless smut’, but I’m telling you right here in this paragraph that’s not what this is.

I wrote this with the ‘adult’ parts clearly marked (by making the words red in my document) so that I could easily locate them and omit them to create a clean version.  So this story will be posted in the regular board and the adult only board, with slightly different content. 

One more thing.  Sickness/colds/contagion/stuffy noses are my main kinks (in terms of fantasy- irl I’m so germaphobic the irony is comical) so that’s what I’m most comfortable writing.  But I do want to try writing allergy parts.  So far all the random chapters I’ve written (that are in no order whatsoever) are all plot or sick/cold –based so maybe I’ll elect to make a separate post for the people who prefer allergies so they don’t have to sift through a bunch of stuff that isn’t their thing? maybe? (like just put the allergy chapter separate and also put it in the main one/this one and have the separate one link to this one if folks want to know my characters better…but the story starts off with colds so blah idk I’ll figure it out) Anyway, let me know your thoughts on this if you have any.  These OCs are my head-children. I love them. Please treat them better than I will.

I appreciate your time, thank you.

Lights Out

Chapter 1

Jacob took a deep breath of crisp autumn air in an attempt to calm his nerves.  He turned the key and gently opened the door to his new home for the next year- a small flat in Kingston upon Thames, England, sharing with a flatmate he’d never met, in this country he’d only just set foot in an hour ago.  The flat was well-furnished and appeared unoccupied at the moment.   His mother guided him to the couch where he sat while she stepped out to retrieve his luggage.  She brought the bags inside and sat in the seat next to him. The two held a brief conversation in French before she kissed his cheeks and tearfully made her exit.  After a few moments of quiet, a door toward the rear of the flat opened suddenly, startling Jacob.

“Oh. Hello! You must be my new flatmate.  I’m Matthew, nice to meet you” the man spoke with a Manchester accent and a slight tinge of congestion.  He was dressed in casual clothes with a hoodie, holding a mug.   Jake stood facing the direction of the voice and smiled nervously.

“Nice to meet you as well, I’m Jake,” he spoke politely and softly.  Matthew blushed a bit, stepping closer to get a better view of the attractive man with the equally attractive French accent.  He may have a thing for that, just maybe.

Matthew tried to hide his excitement from bubbling over into his voice, “You have an accent; where are you from?” He hoped the younger man had not noticed the flush that crept on his cheeks.

“Québec,” Jake answered simply, his expression unchanging from a pleasant, polite smile.

“Where is that?”  “Canada.”

“Oooh nice.” He sniffled, “I don’t know a thing about Canada. Um-“ he noticed something troubling, “is that…a dog?”  A large black dog lay at Jake’s feet, taking a nap.

“Oh, Noir.  He’s my guide dog…I’m blind,” Jake explained, then added, concerned, “That’s okay right? You’re not allergic or anything?”

Matthew laughed nervously, “well a little, I mean it’s not a big deal, I’ll be fine as long as I don’t pet him, maybe I’ll take medicine, it’s fine, I promise, it’s fine, don’t worry,” he rambled, not wanting to upset the boy.  Then he paused and peered into Jake’s eyes curiously, as if he were searching for something, and even waved his hand in front of the boy’s face a bit experimentally, “Blind? Like, you can’t see anything?”

“That’s what blind means…” Jake trailed off and felt sick to his stomach.  He felt for sure his chances at making his first potential friend in this new country were just crushed.  Maybe this would be just like back home, after all.  No one knew how to act around him and everyone secretly thought him to be a burden, at least, according to Jake’s interpretation of the past year. 

Before he could sink any further into his negative thoughts, Matthew interrupted, “Well I’ve never met a blind person before but I’ll do my best to help with anything if you need it!” He grabbed Jake’s hand and pulled him away from the couch.  “I’ll give you a tour of the flat! I’ll describe everything for you okay?” 

His response was the opposite of what Jake expected.  His emotions swelled in his chest and tears formed in the corners of his eyes.

“What’s wrong?” Matthew worried. Jake shook his head.

“Nothing, nothing,” Jake wiped the tears away with his free hand, trying to hide them, and afterwards added quietly, “I’m happy.”

 “Hold on” Matthew set the mug on a nearby stool, still holding on to Jake’s hand with the other and quickly brought his free arm up to his face as he drew in a sharp breath. “hh-hiiih-hhhh-uhh-KISHHH’www!” he sniffled wetly. “Sorry, I think I’b getti’g sick.”

“À vos souhaits, bless you.”  At this, Matthew’s heart skipped a beat and his face flushed, quite glad no one could see. 

“This French angel is going to give me a heart attack and I’m going to die happy,” the Englishman thought to himself.  He sniffled again, dismayed at his runny nose.  He let go of the blind man’s hand. “Stay here I’ll sniff be right back.”

“O..kay?” Jake decided to occupy this break by running his hands over his immediate surroundings, exploring a bit, not really staying in place as instructed.

Matthew slipped into the shared bathroom and shut the door for privacy.  He took this opportunity to blow his nose several times, until his voice sounded normal again.

He re-entered the main room of the flat to find Jake feeling along the countertops of the kitchen.  “I thought I told you to stay put,” he teased.

“I haven’t run into anything yet,” Jake seemed more relaxed than before.

“Yet,” Matthew emphasized, taking Jake by the hand.  The British man gestured to their left, “This is the sink. And over there are all the cabinets. And-“ Jake cut him off.

“Hold on, stop. I have no idea what you mean by “this” and “over there”.  I can’t see where you’re pointing.”  Matthew felt like a fool.

He reprimanded himself, “Right job Matt, just point at things for the blind person. Brilliant start.” He cleared his throat, “Ahem, three steps forward and to your right is the sink.  There is one tap and turning it to the left will give you hot water.” He paused, asking with uncertainty, “Is that better?”

“Actually, much better!” Jake was touching all the things as Matthew described them.  They continued through the whole kitchen this way until everything had been described. 

“Oh, right. I was going to start tea. Hold on,” the Brit dashed to where he’d left his cup earlier, retrieving it.  “Would you like some?” he offered as he returned.

“No, thank you.”

The Brit mock-balked, “Who says no to tea?” but laughed showing he was just teasing.  He grabbed the electric kettle and filled it in the sink, closing his eyes wondering what it would be like to be blind.  He quickly opened them for fear of overfilling the kettle but was spot-on with his timing.  “Two seconds in and I’ve already relied on my sight…”

Meanwhile, the younger man found a stool next to the opposite counter and sat, getting out his phone.  He swiped and waved his finger above the icons as VoiceOver read them. 

Matthew was fascinated by this, “Wow! I didn’t know blind people could use phones! Can you text? How do you do that?”

“Um, yeah…I can text…” Jake said, clearly feeling awkward about the situation.  Matt bounded over and peered nosily over his shoulder.  Jake politely demonstrated to him how he could text since Matt’s curiosity wasn’t intentionally rude (and the Brit clearly wasn’t going to leave him alone until he was satisfied). 

“Bloody brilliant!” he exclaimed with glee, “Oh, here add my number!” 

 

-------Author’s Notes: VoiceOver is a screen reader program available on Apple products.

Normally blind people know their own homes well enough they do not need their guide dog’s help.  When at home, assume the guide dog is not wearing the harness and is “off-duty”.  Also, when going out, they may choose to use only a cane or hold on to a sighted person.  Just something to keep in the back of your mind as I may will incorporate these aspects later and I don’t want to confuse anyone.

“À vos souhaits” is the formal version.  À tes souhaits is more informal. Just putting this here. Not for no reason.

There is a tiny adult bit in Ch. 1 available only in the 18+ board, sorry kids.

Feedback is always appreciated >.<

[lalaland~]

Jacob/Jake Bouchard – 18/19, originally from Val-David, Québec, Canada. Birthday is November 3 (Scorpio). Has a tall frame and deep tan skin, with curly brunette hair and sapphire-blue eyes.  Speaks Canadian French/English with a French accent. Most distinguishing characteristic is that he is blind.

Personality – quiet, used to be more social but now feels like he creates “awkwardness” when people don’t know how to react to his disability.  Uses humour to cope, though often delivers jokes in a way that causes people think he is being serious.  Moody and a bit impulsive, usually in negative ways.

Matthew/Matt Robinson– 20, originally from Manchester, England.  Birthday is July 25 (Leo). Tall and lanky, has dark hair, pale skin, and jade-green eyes.  Comes from a wealthy family of doctors but prefers to study art- He is quite passionate about art and very skilled.  His parents support him unconditionally.  He has attended the school for a year prior to Jake’s arrival, so this is his 2^nd year.  Definitely has a French kink- there is no maybe.  Slightly allergic to dogs and prone to overworking himself for his art.

Personality – very outgoing, loves to talk to everyone he meets.  Prone to nervous rambling and probably the most impulsive person you could ever meet.  Very generous and caring, will always help anyone even if they are a complete stranger.

Noir – Jake’s guide dog; means “black” in French. Only listens to French commands. Very lazy when not working.  Unbothered by everything.

 

 

 

Chapter 2

The next morning, Jake woke up early to his alarm, eager to venture around today, since he hadn’t really been outside of the flat much yet. He was in a cheerful mood this morning, though he was a ‘morning person’, so this was usually the case.  He dressed in casual street clothes and stepped out of his room into the main area of the flat, which had a very open layout.  The main area/living room was toward the front, which included a couch, a few small tables, a chair, and a television.  The kitchen was behind it, sort of separated from the rest of the space by the counters.  The rooms were to the left of the kitchen/living room, with a shared bathroom between.  The lavatory was located by the front door.  He felt confident he knew the layout well enough now and wouldn’t have to ask for help much. 

He hadn’t bought any food yet so he pondered venturing into the nearby shops (despite having no idea where anything was).  As he turned around back toward his room to grab his things, he heard a sniffle behind him, in the kitchen.

He spun back around, “bon matin! Ah, sorry I mean good morning!  You’re awake early.” he corrected himself, remembering where he was.

Despite feeling not-so-great, the younger boy’s sunny disposition warmed him, “good b’mordig,” he sounded very stuffy, “I could’t sleeb,” he yawned, “you cad just use French if you want. It sounds so buch bet’er thad English.”

“But, would you know what I was saying?”

“D’no. Bud id would soud dice.” He was smiling warmly, not that Jake could tell.

“I can barely understand you…” Jake commented, referencing the congestion.

“So, sorry. Baybe if I blow by dose id would helb.  Do you b’mind?”

Jake paused, deciphering the words, “um…I guess not…” he trailed off awkwardly.  This whole conversation was just adding to the idea that Matthew was a very strange person.  Despite all this he still wanted to become friends.  Maybe. That nose blow was making him reconsider.

Matt did sound a bit better though, still a touch stuffy. 

Jake took this opportunity to ask a question, “Do you happen to know where the closest food store is?”

“Like Waitrose?” the Brit tried to clarify his question but Jake just stared back blankly, with no sign of recognition on his face.  He tried again, “like a supermarket?”

“Yeah, anything is fine.” 

“Well the closest is probably Sainsbury’s.  They have the big orange letters.  First, go out to Uxbridge Road, then turn right at the café with weird anime drawings on the windows, then it will be straight down, you’ll see it at the end, can’t miss it.”

“That was….incredibly visual…” Jake had tried to think of a nicer way to point that out but gave up, “Maybe just come with me?”  He thought about how helpful it would be having a sighted person there to read labels for him.

“You’re right, I’m so sorry. I have lots of learning to do but I promise I’ll get better at this.  I’ll get dressed, it won’t take long.”

“It’s okay,” Jake offered, thinking to himself, “At least he’s trying. That’s a step up from many people…”

Jake went back to his room to retrieve his cane, phone, wallet, and key, then slipped his shoes on at the front door and waited for Matt. “He’s kind of weird but I guess he’s not so bad.”

I made the tinest edit to chapter 2 b/c I misunderstood the use of the word "bathroom" in the UK  It has no effect on the story whatsoever I just wanted to inform readers that I've updated my use of the word to be more correct to the setting.

------Author’s Notes: Re: use of the word bathroom- meaning only the bath/shower.  The lavatory (what I’d call a washroom) has the sink and toilet. This separate setup is apparently the norm in England ? It confused me because I’m used to homes having all 3 in the same room and calling it a bathroom, then the public ones (that don’t have baths) are called washrooms.

 

Chapter 3

The street was quiet at this time of day so the only noises were the sounds of leaves rustling, the tapping of Jake’s cane, and…sniffling.  By the time they reached the café ‘with the weird anime drawings in the windows’, as Matt had described it, Jake was getting quite irritated at the constant sniffling. 

He decided to finally comment, “Did you bring any tissues?”

“Yes, do you need one?” the pale boy misinterpreted.

“I meant for you. You’re sniffling the whole way.”

“Oh, sniff, is it bothering you?”

“No,” Jake lied.

“You’re lying, I can tell, you’re making a face.”  He called him out and then wiped at his nose with a tissue.

Silence permeated again for a few blocks, except for the tap, tap, tap of the cane on the pavement.

“I get the feeling you don’t like me very much,” Matt broke the silence, sounding a bit sad, but trying to hide it.

“What? That’s not true.” This time Jake looked and sounded very sincere.

Matthew gave a small smile (which of course Jake couldn’t see) as they kept walking.  Jake made a mental note to try being less blunt with him, or nicer, or something, he wasn’t sure what gave the man that impression, honestly.

Finally they reached the store and Matt handed Jake a small shopping basket.  Jake set it on the floor, folded his cane and slid it through the handles, then picked up the basket again.  With his other hand he gently grabbed onto the older man’s arm. 

“Is this fine?”

“More than fine! I’d never object to an attractive guy holding on to me…even if it’s just out of necessity,” he kept these thoughts hidden and simply nodded, then, realizing that action was pointless, corrected himself, “Yes. Absolutely. Anytime.”  Jake found the response a bit odd but dismissed it, as everything the man seemed to say was ‘a bit odd’.

Jake paused, thinking of how to ask for help without seeming too awkward, “um, do you mind helping me find things? Since you can see them…”

“One moment-“ Matthew said breathlessly.  He turned to the side and muffled a sneeze into his elbow, “KISHHH’www! Excuse me, sniffle.”

“À vos souhaits,” Jake replied automatically.  Matt wanted to sneeze more just so he would get to hear that again.

“How do you say ‘thank you’ in French?”

“Merci.”

“Marzi…Messy-“ Matt attempted.

“Merci,” Jake repeated.

“meh-,” a pause, “HEK’SHHww!” this one caught him off-guard so he didn’t quite cover in time.  Jake cringed as he felt a light misting. “ugh, excuse be.” The Brit pulled out a tissue hastily and stifled a sneeze into it, “K’sshheh!”

“Are you okay?” as usual, Jake had a very calm voice, despite the tone of concern.  Now that he thought about it, Jake did have a very soothing voice.  His cadence was smooth and dreamy, in English and French.  And that gorgeous French accent struck his ears in such a way that made his heart go wild…

“Matthieu?”  A tan hand was waving in front of his face and he realised embarrassedly that he’d been daydreaming.

“I’B ALRIGHD!” He spoke a bit too loudly without meaning to, startling the blind man, who let go of his arm. He repeated, in a normal volume, “I’b alright. Jusd d’not feeli’g by besd,” he sniffled thickly.

“We can go back home if you need,” Jake offered.

Matthew blew into a tissue and Jake cringed, and tried to morph it into a different expression to disguise his disgust.  It’s so much easier if people just can’t see your face.  Regardless, Matthew didn’t seem to notice.  He shook his head (great lot that did) and added, “You haven’t even shopped yet. Don’t you need food?”

As if answering the question, the younger man’s ‘stomach’ made a growling noise, reminding him he hadn’t eaten yet.

“C’mon then,” Matt grabbed his hand so they were holding hands, guiding him toward the closest aisle.  He found all the items for Jake, with a few moments of confusion as a few of the items were not commonly available in the UK.  In this timespan, he sneezed a few times into his free arm, each time reflexively squeezing the blind man’s hand tightly with the release.  He was glad Jake let him do this. He quite enjoyed holding his hand.  It made shopping feel like a date, though he had no idea how Jake felt about it.  He probably just thought of it as a normal helpful gesture. (this is true)  Jake’s hand seemed very cold compared to his own usually warm hands but that made them fit well together.  “Kind of like our personalities,” he chuckled out loud at his thought, earning a confused glance from Jake.

“Oh, I should grab a box of tissues while I’m here, sniffle,” he remembered.

“Good idea, just lead me there. I’m done anyway.”  Matthew actually grabbed 4 boxes of tissues and balanced them perilously under one arm as they walked to the cash.  The cashier eyed the two curiously but made no comment.

Matthew dumped the boxes on the counter, as there was no delicate way to do that, and they clattered chaotically.

Jake tightened his grip on his hand, “What was that noise?”

The Brit half-laughed, “All of my boxes of tissues.”  Jake tried to feel where the countertop was using the basket but Matthew helped him place it before he could really struggle. Jake let go of his hand and pulled his wallet out of his pocket, opening it.  Matthew reached over and calmly shut it.

“I’ve got it.”  He winked (which Jake couldn’t see) and Jake still held his shut wallet in both hands, a confused look on his face. Matt re-worded, “I’ll pay for it. No worries. You don’t have to pay me back either.”

“Are you sure?” he was still hesitant to accept the offer.

“I’ve never been so sure of anything before.” He sang badly, before switching back to his normal voice, “Oh, by the way, here’s your cane.” He handed it to the blind boy after retrieving it from the basket. 

“Merci beaucoup, Matthieu,” he said, smiling warmly, taking the cane and unfolding it.  Matthew shut his eyes and tried to etch the image of that smile into his brain.

“He’s a complete fruit loop but a good guy,” Jake thought.

The walk back was mostly uneventful, despite the occasional-okay more than occasional, more like frequent-sneezes from the sick Brit.  At one point a sneeze almost caused the man to trip over himself.

As they neared the flat, Jake stopped walking suddenly and spun around to face the other man (who had been walking behind him, trying not to sneeze on him).

“You’ve sneezed 27 times from the store to this point,” he stated.  The way he talked sometimes, it was hard to tell what emotions were behind the words.  Matthew couldn’t tell if he was angry or worried or intrigued.

“You coundded*?”  (*counted)

“I-uh-well-“ his composure dropped but was quickly picked back up, “I mean it this time- Are you okay? You sound like you’re dying,” with a hint of concern dropped in at the end in both his face and expression.

“sniffle, I’ll be fide. We’re close dow adyway,” he reassured him, sounding a bit tired.

“Do you need me to carry you?” he smirked slightly, teasing him.

“Wha-d’no! thad’s ridiculous!”  He laughed, which turned into coughing.  After he finished, he cleared his throat, but sounded worse for wear, “fide. Bromise.”

They walked the remaining short distance home in silence.

 

 

 

------Author’s Note: Italics are usually thoughts, not said out loud. (except “sniff” is a sound effect)

I’m not British so correct me if I’m wrong but I believe Waitrose is a very pricey grocery store (so of course Matt would think of that first as he probably shops there himself).  I also apologize in-advance for all the mistakes about British speaking patterns I’m inevitably going to make.

Matthieu is the French spelling of Matthew.  

Edited May 14, 2017 by lalaland~
Matthew used to be blond when I was starting this piece but I changed it and accidentally left one mention of that in

[missfemmefatale]

I really like this story. Matthew is super cute, well they both are! 

[Alabaster]

I like it!
 

[Ti🌸]

Wow. I am REALLY looking forward to reading what's to come. Personally I've never met anyone who is blind, and I can imagine resulting awkward situations for both parties. I guess I'll learn a bit more about that while reading. I'm really excited to see how this story unfolds. I can tell that this is quality writing, and my interests aline with yours quite nicely.

I can promise you I will be stalking your thread for updates. Thank you for sharing!

[M214186]

Looking forward to the next part. 

[KD02]

This is really good! I can't wait for the next part!!!

(btw your correct in saying Waitrose is a more expensive shop than others)

[lalaland~]

23 hours ago, D.VA said:

I really like this story. Matthew is super cute, well they both are! 

(´• ω •`) ♡ Thank you! 

22 hours ago, Alabaster said:

I like it!
 

( ´ ∀ `) I'm happy!

21 hours ago, Tippy said:

Wow. I am REALLY looking forward to reading what's to come. Personally I've never met anyone who is blind, and I can imagine resulting awkward situations for both parties. I guess I'll learn a bit more about that while reading. I'm really excited to see how this story unfolds. I can tell that this is quality writing, and my interests aline with yours quite nicely.

I can promise you I will be stalking your thread for updates. Thank you for sharing!

(≧◡≦) ♡ omg thank you so much for the compliments! I'll update soon, I'm working on the next parts currently.

7 hours ago, M214186 said:

Looking forward to the next part. 

(*^^*) Thank you!

1 hour ago, KD02 said:

This is really good! I can't wait for the next part!!!

(btw your correct in saying Waitrose is a more expensive shop than others)

( ´ ▽ ` ) Ahhhhh thank you! (also thank you)

 

Wow so much feedback in less than 24 hours I'm STUNNED! Thank you all so much♡. Just wanted to let you all know I've been working on the next parts and they're almost done there's just some tiny things I'm not satisfied with.  I'm trying very hard to make Jake seem likeable too bc I mean...Matthew is easy, he's like a cinnamon roll...and Jake is more like a sinnamon roll (/laugh).

[lalaland~]

Chapter 4

Matthew opened his eyes and groaned. “3:00 AM” the clock on his bedside table read in bright, glowing numbers.  He sat up, grabbing a handful of tissues and pressed them to his nose, blowing forcefully several times.  This did little to fix the stuffiness in his head and nose.  He swallowed painfully, noting how sore his throat had become.  “need tea…” he trudged to the living room like a zombie.  He fumbled around for the lights and finally found it with a click. 

“God!” Matthew’s startled voice cracked, “Jake whad are you doig id the dark?”

Jake was sitting in a chair in the corner of the living room reading a book.  The book appeared blank, though, upon further inspection, there were raised dots all over the pages.

“It’s always dark,” He shrugged.

“You dearly gabe be a heardt attack!  Adyway, who reads id the dark?  Thad’s god do be like a blide suber power.” he continued in a gravelly voice, and then broke into a fit of coughing.

Jake frowned, “You sound terrible.  I’m not even sure what you said…”

The sick man blew his nose, making a gurgling sound, which Jake winced at from across the room.

“Ugh, jusdt dying dod’t bind be.”  He blew his nose again with the already soaked tissue. “sniff, better…” he still sounded a tiny bit stuffy and his voice cracked here and there.  “Why are you up, anyway? it’s 3 AM.”

“Wait-really?”  Jake had lost track of time reading, “It doesn’t feel like 3AM, maybe it’s jetlag.”

“hmmmm, maybe.  How long of a flight wa- was-” The humming had caused a tickle to blossom in the back of his nose, which he struggled to reign in. 

“À vos souhaits,” Jake picked up on the breathy gasps in his breath and preemptively blessed him.

“KISHHH’ah! KISHHH’ah!” two identical, wet sneezes erupted from the man, misting the air despite his attempt to cover, “ugh, excuse be. SNFF, SNFF” The congestion in his voice returning in full.

Jake sighed, shutting his book and taking it with him as he walked toward the bedrooms, “I’m going to bed. I should at least try to create a normal sleep pattern.  Feel better,” he wished to the other, before going into his room. 

Matthew noticed he’d felt around a bit for the door.  “He probably doesn’t quite have the layout memorised yet. Is it bad I thought it was cute?”

[lalaland~]

Chapter 5

Jake fell asleep around 5 AM.  He occupied the previous two hours by typing a letter to a friend back home.  Sometimes he would keyboard mash in irritation so that the program calling out the letters that were typed would talk over a disgusting sounding nose-blow.  He knew the keyboard well enough that feature wasn’t really necessary but he was glad it existed in those moments.

Jake opened his sleepy eyes at around 1 in the afternoon- he blamed jetlag.   “I really need to fix my sleeping schedule,” he thought to himself, as he got ready to shower.  He knocked on the bathroom door (it’s connected to both rooms), and, hearing no reply, went in.  He made sure to carefully feel where everything was before even attempting to turn the water on.  Using a strange shower was never a fun experience, but eventually he’d be used to this one, at least. 

The warm water felt nice and relaxing as it cascaded down his body.

Jake sniffled as the steam from the shower tickled his nose.  That seemed to ward it off, so he shrugged it off.  A few minutes later the tickle returned in full force, causing his breath to hitch.  He scrubbed at his nose with his knuckle, but the tickle persisted.  “hh-“ he froze in pre-sneeze expression- eyes shut, mouth opened slightly.  After a moment the tickle faded and he sighed, letting out the breath he was holding.  His nose ran slightly on one side and he sniffled reflexively to control it.  “That was weird.”  He reached for the bottle of shampoo.  “pp’SCHew!” the soft sneeze surprised him, causing him to drop the bottle and resulting in a loud banging-clattering sound.  He furiously wiped at his nose, simultaneously tactile-searching for the bottle he dropped.

“Is he alright in there?” Matthew wondered after hearing a loud banging noise.

Jake finished his shower without further incident and dried himself off.  He was rather sniffly but he tried not to think about it. 

Clean and dressed, he made his way to the kitchen to get some food.  He kept having to sniffle as he made himself a sandwich (hoping the things he picked were what he thought they were…he hadn’t thought about how confusing that might be until too late). 

“I’ve never seen anyone use mint sauce on a sandwich before.” A British voice commented, making Jake jump.

“Was he watching me the whole time?” 

“Sorry, didn’t mean to scare you.”

“Ah, I didn’t know you were there,” he said, recovering, trying not to sniffle anymore.

“Clearly,” Matt rolled his eyes.

“Um…what’s mint sauce anyway?”

“Do you mean that wasn’t on purpose? Er- what did you mean to grab? I’ll help you.”  The sighted man offered.

“Thanks,” Jake mumbled, thoroughly embarrassed and wanting to crawl in a hole.  He sniffled without thinking.

“Here,” Matt placed a clean tissue into Jake’s hand.  He closed his hand around it, and upon figuring out what it was, blushed enough that it peeked through his tan.

“Thank you, I don’t need this though,” he said, pocketing it anyway.

“Are you sure?  You’re all sniffly.”

“sniff, I’m not. …….”

“Your face is red too.  Are you sick?  Oh no, did you catch my cold?”  He looked crestfallen.

“absolument pas!*” (*absolutely not) the stubborn boy swatted away Matt’s hand as he tried to touch his forehead.

“No need to be mean…” he pouted, sniffling himself, still suffering from his cold, “You don’t have to swear at me in French.”

“I wasn’t swearing, it just means ‘absolutely not’.”

“Oh.” “….”  He directed his sightless eyes toward the floor.

“So the sandwich then?”  Matthew changed the subject and started helping him make a proper sandwich, with sight this time.

 Jake tried to discretely wiggle his nose to abate a small tickle.  When that didn’t work he pinched his nose tightly while Matt wasn’t looking.  “nxt!” a barely audible stifled sneeze managed to escape the older man’s notice.  He sniffled, trying to be as discreet as possible. 

“It won’t help much if I label them, will it?”  Matt referred to the food item packages.

Jake tried his best to hold back another sneeze, giving his voice a very awkward cadence, “ahh-I can label theh-heh-hem in in breh-heh-haille.”

Matthew decided to see how far he could push this, “Brilliant!  How do you label things in braille?”

“Is he doing this on purpose?” “I huh-have a a-!-“ he reached his limit as he pitched forward, his hands tented over his nose, “t’SCHew! eSSHHhew! hhpp’schew!”

“Bless you~” Matthew said with a sing-song tone.

“ugh, sniff, ‘scuse b’me,” he said with a slight tinge of congestion.

He handed an entire tissue box to the scowling, sniffly young man, “Use it wisely, O, Sick One,” he said, trying to sound mysterious.

“I’mb dnot sick,” he mumbled congestedly as he took his sandwich and the box with him back to his room, sniffling.

Once he reached the safety of his room Jake crumpled down into his desk chair, pulling a tissue from the fresh box and pressing it to his nose, which made a wet, crinkling sound as he did so.  He blew his nose and left the soaked tissue on the desk, too unbothered to remember where he put his trash bin.

“ugh, I’b so sick.” He said to his dog, who was laying on the floor.  He stared at the sandwich, not even feeling hungry or wanting to eat it right now.  He left it on his desk and took the box of tissues with him into bed. 

------Author’s Notes: There is a tiny adult bit in Ch. 5 available only in the 18+ board.

This is one of my fav chapters >w>

[IveGotRedHair]

Love it! Fabulous characters, looking forward to the next part ?

[KD02]

Really enjoying this!! Can't wait for more 

[M214186]

Great few chapters. 

[lalaland~]

On 23/04/2017 at 3:39 PM, IveGotRedHair said:

Love it! Fabulous characters, looking forward to the next part ?

 

On 23/04/2017 at 5:52 PM, KD02 said:

Really enjoying this!! Can't wait for more 

 

21 hours ago, M214186 said:

Great few chapters. 

 

Thank you guys  I'm glad you're enjoying it so far and I'm glad you like my OCs (it was scary posting this at first- I'm sure anyone with OCs can understand why!) It truly means a lot to me to see your kind words~

I really enjoy writing this story. I'm honestly having so much fun! A huge part of what makes it fun is knowing other people are reading it and enjoying it too, so thank you all. I really would not have the motivation I've had without all the kind feedback.

CONFESSION TIME. I got a bit carried away and have almost 20 chapters complete (don't look at me like that) when I should be studying for finals (you know how it is, plus I don't feel well so making my muses suffer with me >>> studying).  I think I'll post them one at a time, waiting a specific number of days in between. Honestly this will be harder for me than for you guys because I'm so excited to share this but I don't want to overwhelm people at the same time.  I still like to hear from you all- that 30 seconds it takes to write a kind comment makes my whole day when I see it..and my next day too, heck.

I just....really love Matt and Jake and the other character you'll meet soon >u> I'm glad you love them too!

I'll post chapter 6 tomorrow.

[lalaland~]

Content Warning: this chapter is a bit more serious, with some darker themes including mental illness

Chapter 6

Jake sneezed himself awake only a few hours later.  He couldn’t find the box of tissues, guessing that he must have knocked it off the bed while he was sleeping.  His nose was completely stuffed up, his head pounded, and he felt like garbage.  What he wanted to do most was go back to sleep but he knew he had to find the tissues first- he already felt more sneezes coming.  He crawled around on the floor desperately trying to locate that box, before giving up and muffling three shuddery sneezes into his sleeve, “mm’schhue!, nnx’shew! Hhh’kshhhh!”  He felt like curling in a ball on the floor and giving up.  His head was spinning from the congestion and his nose was dripping onto the floor.  Overwhelmed by everything, he broke down sobbing.

“I can’t do this. Why did I think I could do this?”

Matthew was in the living room watching television and listening for more sneezes, but what he heard instead was concerning.

There came a rap on the door, followed by, “Jake?”

He was too far into a mental breakdown to stop now and simply continued to sob as he tucked his legs into his body, wrapping his arms around his folded legs and burying his face into his knees, muffling the sound a bit.

At no reply, Matt elected to open the door anyway and come inside.  His heart melted at the sight and he crouched next to the shaking figure, gently rubbing his back, trying to calm him.  He remembered from their conversations the day before that Jake was a couple years younger than him and had never been abroad before, not even for a holiday.  “It’s probably really scary being all on your own suddenly, in a new place, and then getting sick first thing doesn’t help matters…”

He stayed in that position, quietly sniffling and continuing to rub circles into the younger man’s back for a while until he seemed to calm down.

“Sorry for getting you ill…” he whispered, “I never intended it, but I still feel guilty.”

Jake wiped at his eyes to get the last remaining tears off, then put his hands back hugging his legs, sitting in uncomfortable silence.

Matt handed him the box of tissues, which was laying on the floor in the complete opposite direction of where Jake had been searching (not that Matt knew).

“You found it…” he said under his breath.

“Things are easier to find when you can see them,” Matt offered, despite feeling like maybe he hadn’t meant to hear the comment.  Jake stared wordlessly at the box in his hands for a moment, then, without moving his gaze, replied, “…..thanks,” in a very subdued voice.

“I think he’s warming up to me,” Matt thought positively.

The two sat in silence while Jake wiped off his face and discreetly blew his nose, and Matt tried to think of something inspirational to say.

“This is really awkward.” Jake stated the obvious.

“Oh. Sorry. Should I leave?”

“No. …Unless you want to.”

“I’ll stay then.”

“…”

Matt looked around.  The most striking thing about the room was the fact that absolutely nothing was decorated.  The walls were bare, as was the desk (minus a laptop, and an untouched sandwich) and floor.  It looked like a solitary confinement room, to Matt.  “Of course it makes sense, I mean, why would a blind person bother to decorate, that’s just silly. ….” But it still was a very unnerving sight to Matthew, who was used to having art pieces and sculptures on every surface.  He shook the eerie feeling off, thinking maybe he’d help him decorate…after they both got over this cold.

Matthew scrubbed at his nose, trying to quell a blooming tickle, “augh, I’m still not done with this bloody cold.”

Jake gave a small laugh (- the first time he’d actually heard him laugh?), “I like when you say ‘bloody’. It’s weird.  It suits you.”

“I’m not sure if that’s a compliment or just mean…” He objected, “Excuse you, it’s not weird!  And what does that even mean? If anything, you’re the one who’s…who-“

Jake’s mysterious smile disappeared as mild confusion washed over his face instead.

“HEK’SHHww! Ugh excuse mbe, sniffle.”

“À vos sou- hhh’SSHhuue!”

“Bless-“ but Jake hadn’t finished.

“hhppp’shew! Huh-hah-hhssHEW! sniiiff, …souhaits,” he finished his own interrupted sentence, then added a tired, “sorry.”

Matt bit down on his lip hard, turning it white, then exhaled slowly.  His curiosity pushed him to ask, “Do you always sneeze in threes?”

Jake was busy sniffling into a tissue, “yeah, usually, I guess,” he replied in his usual, calm tone of voice.  When the tissue became too wet to use anymore he tossed it behind him, toward the window, and it happened to hit the trash bin, making a slight thud sound then landed on the floor nearby.  He grinned, “I found my trash can!”

Matthew couldn’t help but laugh, which made Jake laugh too.  They both felt more at ease after laughing together. 

“Can I call this ‘hashtag-blind-people-problems’?” he poked fun at himself and double tapped a hashtag symbol with his fingers for Matt to see.

“I’ll help you clean up this ‘hashtag-blind-people-problem’ by actually putting them in the rubbish bin for you, how’s that?” the Britt offered, as he picked up all the used tissues from the floor.

“Gross,” He sniffled, “I’m sick and you’re just going to touch them with your bare hands?”

He couldn’t tell if he was being serious.  He ventured anyway, “I’d even do it if I wasn’t the one who got you sick in the first place.”

Jake made a face, “Ew, really?  I was joking before but that was unexpected.”

Matthew tried to save face, “I can just wash my hands after, it’s not like I’m licking them!”

Jake stifled a laugh, “What?? You’re so weird who would even think of doing that?” he stifled some more laughs, trying to stop laughing.  He wiped his nose, sniffling, “I feel really crappy and sick but you managed to cheer me up.”

Matt felt touched.  “Want to come watch a film with me in the living room?  We can be sick and miserable together.”  He offered.

“Well, I’m not sure how I’m going to accomplish the watching part, but, sure.  Let’s go be miserable,” he said oddly cheerfully.

------Author’s Notes: There is a tiny adult bit (1 sentence) in Ch. 6 available only in the 18+ board.

People that have been blind their whole lives usually do not do visual gestures for the sighted people around them, but people who became blind later do (they probably a) understand what they look like from memories & b. understand how visual that people tend to be).  Though, this isn’t a firm rule, obviously every blind person is different.

Edited April 26, 2017 by lalaland~
added a note at the bottom

[M214186]

So great, glad to know so many chapters are waiting to be read.....

[lalaland~]

sorry I didn't mean to wait so long

 

Chapter 7

Matthew put on a film and within 10 minutes the blind man was asleep.  They started out sitting next to each other but as Jake drifted off, his muscles relaxed until he was leaned against the older man with his head resting on Matthew’s shoulder, completely asleep.  Matthew didn’t dare move- he even stifled sneezes to keep from ruining the moment.  In his peripheral vision he could see the younger man’s pink-tipped nose twitch.  Jake mumbled something unintelligible and buried his face in Matthew’s shoulder and neck, appearing to still be fast asleep.  Matt’s heart sung, wondering if it were even possible for Jake to be cuter.

“shue!” a soft sneeze was muffled into his shoulder and sleepy sapphire eyes fluttered open, then shut again as he brought a hand up to half-stifle the next two sneezes, “ngx’shhhu! nxx’sheh!”  Still half-asleep, and clearly not aware he was leaning on Matthew (and had sneezed all over his shoulder), he sat up, sniffling into his sleeve.

A kind, warm voice blessed him.

Jake froze upon hearing the voice and slowly brought his hand up until it touched Matthew’s arm, confirming he was indeed right next to him.  He jerked it back, as if he had touched something hot, slapping it over his mouth in shock.

“ohmygod I’m so so sorry! Did I just sneeze on you? I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to!”  Jake’s normally calm voice was filled with panic.  At a loss for how to hide the mortification on his face he simply covered his entire face with his hands and turned him face away, mumbling something about being gross.

Matthew hadn’t actually minded one bit- in fact, he’d secretly enjoyed every second.  He laughed at how silly Jake looked doing that and gently tilted the boy back closer by his shoulders.

“It’s fine, don’t worry about it.  C’mon now, why are you hiding your face?”

“So you can’t see.” He said quietly.

“Well you look ridiculous.  It’s really fine.  It’s my fault you’re sick anyway,” he reassured him.

Jake finally removed his hands and nervously tangled them together in his lap and sighed, “I can’t believe I fell asleep on you, too.  I’m so sorry.”  His face burned with embarrassment over the whole situation.

“I don’t mind, really, it’s fine!”  He really wanted to just cuddle the boy- he looked so upset though, he probably wouldn’t reciprocate those feelings at this time.  “I suppose this is what I get for falling in love-at-first-sight with someone who doesn’t have sight, sigh.”

A sudden crack of thunder shook the flat and rain began pounding furiously at the roof.  Both men jumped at the sound. 

“I like the rain but I’m really not a fan of thunder,” Jake commented, “it always catches me off-guard.”

Lightning danced in the sky, illuminating the window. 

“I don’t like it either, but lightning is quite lovely to watch.” 

Jake frowned, making a noncommittal noise as he appeared deep in thought.

“Lightning is like these zig-zags of light that form across the sky toward the ground,” he tried describing the visual for Jake.

Jake seemed annoyed, maybe even sad?  It was hard to make out his expression.  “I know. I’ve seen lightning before,” he said curtly.  “I don’t remember what some things look like but I’ll never forget lightning…”

“So he hasn’t been blind his whole life, I guess.  I shouldn’t pry into it, probably,” he thought, noting that Jake definitely looked more sad than annoyed as he sat there staring off into space.  It seemed like a tired kind of sadness, the kind you just didn’t have the energy for. 

Before he could ponder this any further, the British man’s breath hitched and he quickly plucked a tissue from the box.

“No! Don’t sneeze- it’ll make me have to sneeze too,” the other man pleaded, wrapping a blanket over his own shoulders.

“hh’KIISHHH!”  too late. “sniff, excuse me!” he said bashfully.

“ugh,” Jake whined, “now my nose tickles. I told you!”  Matt handed him a tissue so he wouldn’t have to search for one.  Jake kept rubbing at his nose as if he were trying to wiggle a sneeze out of it.  He took a deep breath- then sighed.  “It’s gone….wait, no, just stuck.”

Matt offered advice- well, really, he just wanted the sneezes to come out, but also be helpful, to a lesser extent- “if you rub your nose like this it’ll get them un-stuck,” he demonstrated on his own nose, which caused him to sneeze again.

“One: I don’t know what you were doing; I can’t see.  Two: I- I-“ he trailed off with a familiar sneezy look on his face, “Pp’schew! hhhh-heh’SHUE! Hh’shu! Ugh, désolé.” He wiped at his nose with the damp tissue, “Dwo: I hade* dhis cold.” (*hate) He sniffled thickly. 

About as thickly as Matthew swallowed just then. 

The British man excused himself, “I’ll be right back.”

“What was that about?” Jake wondered, “is he mad at me?”

“I have to think of a reason to have gone off in another room-“ he spied a blanket and snatched it up as he returned to Jake, feigning innocence.

“Here!” he announced, draping the blanket on the other man, lying, explaining, “You looked cold, so I got you another blanket.”

Jake seemed rather nonplussed at this gesture, “Thanks, but I’m fine.  I’m really not cold at all.”  He gently un-draped it from himself and set it beside him on the couch.

A particularly loud clap of thunder rattled the flat and the power cut off.

“oh god oh god.” Matt sounded panicked. 

“Hmm? The TV shut off, did the power go out?”  Jake spoke with a calm casualty.

“Jake I’m scared,” he whimpered.

“Why are you scared?” he asked, confused at the older man’s complete change in demeanor.

“I can’t see!”

A pause, “….. Me either!” the blind man replied with over-enthusiasm.  You could almost hear the sarcastic smile.

Both men started laughing, unable to keep a straight face anymore.

“Alright, Alright, I walked into that one, but I’m still scared. I don’t like the dark.” 

Then he hugged onto Jake, who objected, “What are you doing?”

Matthew whispered, “I heard a noise.  At the back of the flat.  What is it?” the scared Brit still clung to Jake despite his protests.

“Probably a murderer,” Jake mused.

“Why would you say that?” Matt squeaked in terror.

“Matthieu, relax.  No murderer is coming anywhere near us.  Not with this stupid sneezy cold.”  At that he sniffled. “uhm…by that I meant let go ‘cause I have to snee- snee-huhhh issshhue! Hhh-pp’SSHEW! Hah-ah- ESShew!”  Matthew could feel each sneeze wrack his body, as he was basically hanging onto the man like a koala.  “Désolé, sorry, sniff, I tried to tell you, sniff.”  He suddenly sounded much more tired than before, like even sniffling had become an exhausting task.

Suddenly, the lights flickered back on and all the electronics hummed back to life.  Matthew released his prisoner-of-sorts from his grasp, sighing in relief, “The lights are back on.”

“Lucky you,” Jake commented dryly, probably still irritated about Matt’s earlier careless remarks.

“Can you really not tell at all if the lights are on or off?” he asked a valid question.

“No.  There’s no difference,” the blind man replied, shaking his head, not even being sarcastic this time.

“So you said you’d seen lightning, correct?” 

Jake wasn’t sure what he was getting at, “yeah, why?”

Matthew continued, “So at some point you weren’t blind.”

Jake was studying him carefully, “…yeah.”

“Is going blind scary, like when the power cuts out?”

Jake softened his look; he hadn’t expected something thoughtful to come from that line of questioning.  “Yeah,” he gave a sad smile, “it’s kind of like that, but it’s even more terrifying because you know the lights will never turn on again,” he paused, “I’m used to it now, though.”

They said nothing for a few minutes while the blu-ray menu played in the background.

 

-----Author’s Notes: désolé means ‘sorry’ in French.  Jake tends to use French for speaking habits that are more automatic, such as apologizing and blessing sneezes.

There is a tiny adult bit in Ch. 7 available only in the 18+ board.  You’ll probably guess where it was because the story doesn’t quite flow smoothly in that spot of the clean version, but I tried to make it work.

Oh, yeah, this is where the title comes from.

[Kaze Wo Hiku]

These two are adorable, very cute story. Sucker for guys with accents

[M214186]

Enjoying the story

[KD02]

Yes! Please continue 

[lalaland~]

On 4/26/2017 at 5:38 AM, M214186 said:

So great, glad to know so many chapters are waiting to be read.....

 

10 hours ago, M214186 said:

Enjoying the story

o(>ω<)o   I'm so glad you're enjoying it! Thank you!

 

7 hours ago, KD02 said:

Yes! Please continue 

＼(≧▽≦)／  your wish is granted (hehe)

On 4/28/2017 at 7:15 PM, Kaze wo Hiku said:

These two are adorable, very cute story. Sucker for guys with accents

٩(◕‿◕｡)۶  I can't stop smiling thank you <3

[lalaland~]

Chapter 8

The next morning, Matthew was in the kitchen putting on some tea.  He glanced up just in time to hear Jake fall off the couch and mumble, “Tabarnak! What the hell?” to himself.

“Good morning!”  He wished from the kitchen.  Jake used the couch to pull himself up and he brushed himself off. 

“I forgot I was on the couch…” he explained, a tad embarrassed.

“Are you feeling better?” the older man inquired.

He paused a moment to think, sniffling, “hmm, not really.”

“I don’t feel much better myself,” Matthew confessed, “Right now I’m mostly hungry though.  You’re probably hungry, too, I know for a fact you didn’t eat yesterday.”

“hmm, I guess,” he commented vaguely, sniffling again.

“I can cook up some breakfast if you’d like?”  Matthew offered.

“It’s okay, you don’t have to do all that for me!” 

“Well…what if I wanted to?”  The Brit said bashfully.

“Er, then that’s fine, I guess,” Jake added, “I’m not very good at cooking.  I never was, even before I was blind, but now it’s even harder.”

“If it makes you feel better, I didn’t know how to cook before last year.  Kent- my old flatmate- taught me everything I know.”  Matthew explained.

“hhh-SSHue!  Ih-ISSSHew!  hessshhHEW!” Jake sneezed in response, “désolé, sniff, sniff.”

“Bless you.  Well I don’t have to worry about getting you sick with contaminated breakfast,” he joked.

“I haven’d been sick ind so lo’g  I forgod how buch it sucks.”  Jake said, sniffling into a tissue.

“I can’t say the same; my immune system isn’t the worst but it’s not great either,” Matthew lamented.

“I feel disgusdi’g ad I hade how by voice souds ride dow.”

“You’re not disgusting,” Matt said frankly, “not at all!”

Jake simply frowned.

“hah- KISHHHuu!”  Matthew bent over with the force of his sneeze, “wow, excuse me!  I’ve been waiting for that sneeze ever since you sneezed- the power of suggestion, I suppose.”

“À tes souhaits, Matthieu.”

 

------Author’s Notes: Tabarnak literally means “Tabernacle”.  In Quebec, many swears are religious words (sacres).  The sacres are typically interchangeable and don’t really have their own specific meaning but can be used for all kinds of swears/profanity.  Québécois slang at its finest.

“À vos souhaits” is the formal version.  À tes souhaits is more informal.

I'm making up for the long wait by posting this small chapter so quickly.  This wraps up the introductory section!

[M214186]

Great job. 

[supernaturalfragalistic]

PLEASE CONTINUE! I love them!!!

[lalaland~]

On 4/30/2017 at 9:27 AM, M214186 said:

Great job. 

<3 <3

On 4/30/2017 at 0:08 PM, supernaturalfragalistic said:

PLEASE CONTINUE! I love them!!!

<3 <3

I can't even describe how happy this makes me feel, thank you!!