Page 104 of Stop and Seek
Why?
What was the point?
It seemed so silly.
But maybe he had things he wasn’t comfortable sharing with Noah yet. Like the scar Noah felt on his chest a couple nights ago.
Noah changed back into his still-damp clothes in the living room—the joggers didn’t look like something Theo would’ve bought, but the band tee? Same one that Noah saw him wearing Saturday.
This was coming back to the hotel with him.
Theo didn’t say a whole hell of a lot when he returned, still wearing long sleeves in the summer. He grabbed the pizza from the door, chucked it on top of the Chinese boxes and ripped the crust off. Chewed cheese and pepperoni, flicking through the movies streaming at record pace.
“You like horror, right?” Noah asked.
“Slashers. The more gore, the better.”
“You wanna put one on?”
Theo glanced over. He pulled the blanket over his lap.
“Seriously?” he asked after a second.
Noah picked up the crust. “I used to watch ‘em all the time with Kyran and Benji.”
Back in high school. Before the Benji-Kyran unit started acting the way they did.
The grin breaking over Theo’s face made part of Noah go mushy and soft.
“I thought you’d be grossed out,” Theo said, shoving the rest of the pizza into his mouth. “There’s this one I’ve beendyingto watch.”
Twenty minutes in and Noah waspretty surethe movie had zero plot—he couldn’t even remember the killer’s name.
Theo had his legs pulled up, blanket tangled around his waist. Hand curled against his mouth. His fingers kept rolling against his bottom teeth.
Noah didn’t even pretend to watch the movie. The screen flashing red and pink over Theo’s cheekbones and glasses?That’swhat Noah couldn’t stop watching. Every time the killer appeared, every time the knife lifted, every time the screaming turned to gurgling—Theo’s expression changed. His shoulders lifted. His breath caught.
“You like thehardcore, hardcore shit,” Noah said eventually.
Theo didn’t look away from the screen. “Yeah,” he murmured. “I’m here for the kills.”
That’s what Kyran had said too, when Benji would flinch into his shoulder and tell him it was too gory.
But this wasn’t the same.
The way Theo said it wasn’t casual. He wasn’t cringing or laughing at the ridiculous prosthetics. He wasn’t reacting like someone used to fake blood.
He was acting like someonehungry.
Noah didn’t miss the way Theo’s eyes stayed too long on the slashed-open throat, the spilled guts on tile, the twitch of limbs when the camera lingered. He wasn’t just here forthe kills. He was practicallydrooling. Like he could taste it on the back of his tongue.
Noah’s smile softened.
God, he was cute. So fucking weird and dark and still trying to act like he wasn't the greatest thing to ever exist.
Noah wanted to crawl into him and see whatactuallywent through his head.
But instead, he just scooted closer, put his arm over Theo’s shoulders.
