Chapter Text
Throughout the years, Guy and Maz's friendship got stronger. They were always there for eachother. Along the way, however, things went askew.
Maz realized he would look at Guy for too long to be considered normal. He would wake up from domestic dreams with his best friend as a co-star. When he read romance novels, he would imagine having something like that with Guy.
If he thought long and hard, he could remember the exact moments when feelings like this flourished.
-
1. Eleven and Twelve
Wrapping paper was strewn across the living room. Mr. and Mrs. Hamdon sat together on the plush couch, sipping hot chocolate. Kelly was sitting in a corner reading through the instructions of the chemistry set she was given. Maz and Guy sat around the christmas tree, its soft lights glowing on their excited faces.
Maz never really celebrated a holiday like Christmas, considering his father was constantly wasting their money on alcohol; a fact his mother would mutter bitterly about. This year, however, the Hamdons invited him over. He figured he would just be there to entertain Guy and his short attention span, but they suprised him with a stack of gifts.
He almost started crying when he opened them. Every single gift was something he told Guy about. He got a nerf gun, comic books, action figures, and a shiny skateboard. Guy received a matching one.
"Oh my god, dude," Guy yelled, while gripping Maz's arm. "We have skateboards! I'm gonna learn all the cool tricks!"
Maz grinned at him, pausing in his movements of organizing his gifts. "What tricks have you heard of?"
Guy blinked at him, his face going blank. Kelly let out a short laugh. "You want to be a skateboarder and you don’t know any tricks?"
"Everyone starts somewhere, dear," Mrs. Hamdon cut in.
"Your mother is right," Mr. Hamdon said. "Don't look so down Guy, we'll get you a book all about tricks."
Guy's excitement started showing again and he bounded up, running to his dad and hugging him tight.
"Thanks, Dad! I'm gonna practice right now!" Guy exclaimed, running off to his room.
Maz turned to Mrs. Hamdon, wanting permission to follow Guy. "Are we allowed to go outside, Mrs. Hamdon?"
She let out a soft chuckle. "Of course, sweetheart. Make sure you two put on your coats."
The boy raced to Guy and Kelly's shared room, Guy passing him on his way in.
Maz stopped and grabbed his shirt, effectively pulling him to a stop. He raised one of his eyebrows and regarded Guy's outfit.
He wore his red firetruck pajamas and a sheepish expression. Guy then leaped into action, hurriedly pulling on shoes and socks. Maz followed suit.
Guy jumped up, grabbed their skateboards, and raced out with a, "Last one out is a rotten egg!"
"That's no fair," Maz yelled, grabbing their jackets and running after him.
They burst out of the apartment, raced down the stairs, and faced the street. They exchanged a look. Guy's energy started simmer down.
"Where do we start?" Maz asked.
Guy hummed thoughtfully, his face scrunching up. "First we need to learn how to ride without falling. It can't be that hard."
Guy dropped both skateboards on the ground, placing one to the side. He put one foot on the board in the road, hesitantly grabbing Maz's bicep. He put his other foot on the board and bit his lip.
"Now you gotta push me."
Maz laughed and asked, "Aren't you supposed to be able to ride by yourself?"
"This is how you start! Just push me," Guy huffed.
Maz placed his hands on Guy's forearms and started slowly walking. Guy gasped and gripped Maz harder, his lips pulling into a grin.
Maz strolled down the road, progressively getting faster. Guy laughed, his giggles spilling out like sweet nectar. Maz looked at him, admiration in his eyes. He glanced back at the road and his eyes widened.
A large pot hole had Maz stopping suddenly, causing Guy to lose his footing on the board. Maz gripped his arms tighter, hoping to stop him from falling.
Guy stumbled onto the concrete and let out a short scream.
"Sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry!" Maz swiftly apologized.
"It's alright, I'm fine." Guy said, letting go of his death grip on Maz's arms.
He let out a sigh of relief, and let go of Guy's arms as well. Guy's eyes flickered between the board and the pothole, mild annoyance appearing.
As quick as the anger appeared, it left, his eyebrows unfurrowing and lips pulling out of their pout. Giddy excitement tugged on his face and he turned to Maz.
"I almost just had my first wipeout!"
"That's a good thing?" Maz teased, lightly shoving Guy's shoulder.
"Of course it is! The best wipeouts come from the best tricks!"
"That was a pretty bad trick then."
Guy let out a laugh that was so loud it could echo, despite Maz's joke being kind of loserish.
"The joke wasn't that funny," Maz giggled.
"I know, I know," Guy laughed. "I'm just so excited! We're gonna be skateboard pros!"
Guy lightly shook Maz's arm with both hands, leaning into his space. He then leaned back and looked at Maz, his large smile making his bright green eyes crinkle. His already rosy cheeks grew stronger in color and the light shimmered on his face.
Maz smiled widely back at him, his heart starting to beat fast.
"Yeah, we are."
But skateboarding wasn't what Maz was smiling about. This laugh was different than Guy's normal laugh. He 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 liked this laugh.