There will probably be some *ahem* sexual content, definitely not going to be any graphic smut at all, but there will be some content along those lines that might not be up anyone's interest. Any chapters with that will be marked by a [17+] in the title.

So you've been warned.
**warning also added in the 'before you begin' chapter :)

CHAPTER SEVEN: SMOKE

I've yet to see any problem, however complicated, which when you looked at it the right way didn't become still more complicated.
-Poul Anderson

Over the Easter weekend when the boys were sent home from Saint Agnes- -none of them were given much warning because the school decided at the last minute that all the classrooms and the church could use a good cleaning- -and Tobias, simply, had a very bad time.

Thankfully, his parents agreed to drop him off at five in the morning, which was the earliest time Saint Agnes let it's students come back into the dorm even if they missed curfew and had to stay outside for the night.

Which is definitely not something a drunk Felix and Tobias did before.

Felix was the next boy who came back and went straight to his room to get a few more minutes of sleep, not even aware his best friend was already there as Tobias stayed out on the patio the whole time.

It was when Oliver and Jason, who were the only boys who managed to meet each other at the weekend and drove back together, got to the dorm that they noticed something was wrong.

Oliver, of course, found Tobias's things in their room the second he got there and didn't even bother to unpack before finding him.

The first thing Oliver noticed about his best friend was that he was smoking, the second was that Tobias looked... well, he looked like he hasn't had a good night's sleep for three days.

Or a shower for that matter.

They all know not to judge at this point, or press for answers before Tobias can clean himself up.

Being the only boy who doesn't do sports or have a medical condition, Oliver just climbs up on the wooden patio fence and holds his hand out, asking for the cigarette.

There's few times that Oliver has smoked, all because of Tobias, but he's always willing to share with Tobias when he doesn't want to be alone -in pain, or place.

With a scoff the delinquent flicks the ash to the ground and turns the cigarette over, making it safe for Oliver to grab.

If Oliver couldn't be with Tobias in a good mood, if the other boy saw no light at the end of the tunnel and didn't take happy ending seriously as he often does, the smaller boy is determined to make it work through all the bad moods, through all the tough, annoying, angry shit his delinquent has to go through.

Having woken up and finally pulled out of bed, Felix went to the kitchen to try and sucker a nun into giving him a sweet snack while Jason goes to find anyone else that's not the sleepy redhead -only to freeze in the patio's glass doorway, surprised at the smoke passing between Oliver's lips and the angry way his best friend's brown eyes are glaring at Oliver himself.

This wasn't a bickering glare, this was a glare because Oliver was the only person around and the only one that Tobias can always fight with and never have any consequences.

He wasn't in a good mood, and surprisingly, acting like he was in a worse mood towards the boy he loved helped.

None of which that certain boy took personally either.

"You know that can kill you," Jason chides, trying not to sound very serious. "Don't you?"

Oliver shrugs, eyes dropping straight to the ground. He never liked being criticized much anyway. "That's the point, isn't it?" 

"I don't think either of us care." The delinquent adds, voice sore and gruff as if he had been yelling.

And knowing his family, he had.

Felix makes a noise of agreement, mouth full of raw cookie dough and not knowing what the fuck was going on, only knowing the tension in the room. "Damn straight we don't."

Jason only sighs and moves to leave against the railing as well, elbows sliding against the wood as Felix sits against the glass panel -trying to be out of the way of smoke that would most likely end with him getting a migraine.

Still, despite the risk, he stays.

-&-

The next day, even after getting himself clean and taking a shower to smell a bit less like smoke, Tobias Prince is still on edge.

An example of this is when Sister Margaret, their strict yet kind English teacher, is asked by Tobias if he can go to the bathroom and replying with, "I don't know, can you?" 

Oliver briefly wonder if he's fallen into old self-harming habits, before telling himself not to worry about that when the anger and rage and self destructiveness was still rampant in his best friend's brown eyes.

He hasn't fallen off the wagon yet, but he was pissed off and hurt enough to do it.

Evidence of that is when he replies to the humorous questioned with a sneered out "I don't know, do you want me to piss on your desk?" in the nun's direction.

Immediately jumping up before she could say or do anything, as half the class goes dead silent and the other half starts to holler. He was thankful that Jason wasn't in the class with them, because he'd surely get his ass handed to him then.

"Can I please take him back to the dorm?" Oliver asks in a rush, hands tugging on the bag of Tobias's shirt to try and get him to stand. "He's not feeling well ma'am."

Almost affronted, but accepting, Sister Margaret nods. "Clearly. And you may, please make sure that he... feels better, before our next class."

"Yes ma'am." He replies meekly, tugging more on the edge of the other boy's school jacket. It takes several tries for him to get up, and when he does Tobias clearly isn't happy about being booted out of class.

Not willingly at least.

Grabbing onto Oliver's arm tightly, the delinquent practically drags the fumbling boy back to their dorm, and the moment that their door shuts, he pins his best friend to it.

"You had no right to do that." Tobias snarls.

"Yeah?" Responding with a challenge, because that's what Oliver knew he wanted right now, his head tilts up defiantly. "Bite me."

A hand comes up to grip onto Oliver's chin like a vice and the other comes up to meticulously remove his tie torturously slow, and Oliver himself seems to realize his mistake when he realizes that now the devastated look has traded out for one of hunger when his shirt collar is pulled down across his shoulder. 

And then, to his chagrin, Tobias does bite him and he does it hard.

Teeth dig into the sensitive above his collarbone, mouth warm against his skin and for a single moment it feels like pleasure but then the pain kicks in and it makes Oliver give out a strangled gasp. His feet kick out helplessly, and with a single hand Tobias pins their hips together so he stops moving.

It was only seconds but it felt like forever before Tobias moved, and Oliver was sure that he could have drawn blood if it went on any longer.

Almost apologetically, the delinquent kisses the bite mark twice before licking over it and moving up his neck, placing kiss after kiss, and licking at the junction makes the other boy melt into his touch.

Then he finds a sensitive spot at the base of his neck, right at his pulse point.

And then? The asshole bites him.

It's not as hard this time, it doesn't make Oliver squirm in panic any or try to swat him away- -not that he exactly tried to stop him the first time either- -and after he pulls away, Tobias simply kisses him.

And his kisses hard enough to forget what anger and smoke taste like when mixed together, because all his senses scream Oliver and nothing more.

Tobias gets lost in that feeling, and that?

That's his salvation.