airplanes(Thiam)

chapter 39: Monday Mantras

"Stop it." Theo hummed, not even bothering to open his eyes. 

"Stop what? I'm not doing anything." Liam said, running his eyes over Theo's face again like he hadn't spent the past hour memorizing it while Theo lounged in the backseat trying to sleep. The chimera's eyelids fluttered as if he were rolling his eyes behind them.

"You're being weird." 

"I'm not doing anything." Liam repeated.

"You're staring." 

"No, I'm not." Liam said. Theo cracked an eye open, artfully catching Liam's gaze in a judgmental look before he could turn away. "You have cotton candy on your cheek." Liam lied.

"No, I don't." Theo said easily. "Why are you staring?"

"I'm no-" Theo's eyebrows crept up. "I'm just thinking." Liam grumbled.  

"And that requires you to stare at me?"

"Shut up." Liam huffed, finally turning away from Theo, he let his seat drop back, shifting onto his side so he was facing away from Theo and willing himself to just sleep. He listened to Theo as he shifted then suddenly his head was being shoved forwards, hard enough he almost headbutted the door.

"What the hell are you-" Liam hissed turning around only to see Theo dropping his leg back to the seat. "-Did you just kick me in the head?" 

"I nudged you." Theo scoffed. "Why are you being weird?"

"I'm not being weird."

"You've been weird since we left the fair." Theo said. Liam let out his own scoff. Of course he was being weird. He realized he loved the idiot who apparently thought it was good decorum to kick Liam in the back of the head when he wasn't paying him enough attention. And not even in a cool way. It wasn't like they'd been fighting the bad guys and Theo had almost died, or anything that should inspire feelings and revelations. No, it had been thanks to Theo strapping a teddy in shotgun solely for the purpose of being a mildly annoying little shit.

Liam was undone by a freaking teddy and road safety. 

"You're staring again." Theo said, knocking Liam out of his thought.

"I told you I'm just thinking." Liam grumbled.

"About what?" Theo asked, looking a mix of curious and concerned that left Liam's insides flipping happily. He pictured it, for a moment, about answering 'about how I love you' and then Theo screaming in disgust and throwing Liam out of the car and speeding away from the little freak who fell in love thanks to being mocked for his not even that short height. Or, he'd just look at Liam, one of those eyebrows raising 'You're a moron' looks that he did before the road trip, before he found Liam's acts of stupidity endearing.  Or even worse, what if he didn't run, or look at Liam like he was insane, what if he just laughed, cruel and mocking and-

"Nothing." Liam croaked pushing himself up. "I have to go."

"You have to go?"

"I have to talk to Mason."

"Liam?" Before Theo could even finish speaking Liam was out of the car. Sprinting across the field they'd parked in like he was running away from the monster in a horror movie not his thoroughly confused boyfriend. 

By the time Liam finally came to a stop he was panting, he'd passed through the fields, and the road across from it, a gas station and a small park before he finally decided he was far enough away to make the call without Theo being able to listen in. Dragging his phone out of his pocket Liam flopped back against a tree, eyes flickering to the small park he'd passed as he listened to the howling dial tone.