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It was late in the evening and the three friends — Fanboy, Kyle, and Chum Chum — were lounging on the couch, too comfortable to even think of moving. They had spent the last several hours marathoning cheesy old horror movies and were currently watching some grainy black-and-white film called “Dracula, Blood from Beyond the Grave”. They’d had fun joking about the corny special effects and bad acting in the first few movies and Kyle was quick to point out any inaccuracies regarding magical lore or mythical beasts, but it was nearly 3am now and it was getting harder for the boys to keep their eyes open.
Kyle was resting his head on his hand against the far right side of the couch and Chum Chum was nibbling away at a bucket of popcorn that the other two had forgotten about on the opposite side. Fanboy was sprawled out in the middle with his long legs hanging over the armrest on Chum Chum’s side and his back leaning up against Kyle’s shoulder. The three of them mindlessly watched the screen, silently enjoying each other’s company.
It wasn’t long until Fanboy’s eyelids began to feel heavy. He gave a few limp nods before he let his head fall gently into Kyle’s lap, snoring slightly.
Kyle’s head shot up from his hand and he froze. His wide eyes darted between the drowsy Fanboy, now snuggled against his legs, and Chum Chum, who had idly noticed his pal’s predicament.
“He- he fell asleep,” Kyle whispered to Chum Chum.
“Mm-hm.”
Kyle blinked, “On. On my lap.”
Chum Chum smiled at the bewildered wizard, “Yeah, it happens.”
“Chum Chum, what do I do. I’m scared to move.”
Chum Chum chuckled quietly, “Just let him rest, he’s had a long day. He’ll probably wake up when the movie’s over anyway.”
The two Fanboy-bound boys went back to watching the movie, but Kyle could no longer keep his focus tied to the screen.
Fanboy looked... so peaceful. He was quiet, calm, and serene. A stark contrast to his usual behavior. Kyle rarely saw Fanboy’s face without its trademark wild eyes and mile-wide smile. And he had to admit, when he wasn’t running around, being loud, and causing mischief, Fanboy was... rather handsome.
Kyle blushed ever so slightly at that realization.
Chum Chum, who in all honesty had lost interest in the movie some time ago and had been entertaining himself with how high of a popcorn stack he could balance on Fanboy’s leg, glanced over at Kyle. He recognized that look of thought-consuming awe in Kyle’s eyes. It wasn’t the first time he had seen him look at Fanboy that way. And Chum Chum knew that he himself had looked at Fanboy in that same way many, many times. Maybe he just had that effect on people. Or maybe he just had that effect on them.
“Is he always this... hauntingly beautiful...?” Kyle asked more to himself than anyone else.
Chum Chum gazed lovingly at his lifelong companion. “Yeah,” he uttered under his breath, “but don’t tell him I said that.”
He gave Kyle a small, but genuine, smile.
And Kyle returned it wholeheartedly.
Fanboy muttered something about Minecraft in his sleep and shifted his body so that his head was now facing Kyle’s stomach. He lazily wrapped his arms around Kyle’s torso and squeezed his face into his knitted sweater.
Kyle’s entire body stiffened and he was sure his face went beet-red.
Chum Chum giggled, fondly remembering all the times Fanboy had used his own squishy body as a human pillow. He was quite the snugglebug when he was sleepy enough.
“You can hug him back, y’know.” Chum Chum brushed the popcorn off Fanboy’s legs before embracing them with his whole body, “He won’t bite.”
Fanboy didn’t seem to react to Chum Chum’s movements, so Kyle figured it would be safe for him to get a bit more comfortable.
He let out a breath that he hadn’t realized he’d been holding in and released the tension from his shoulders. Kyle allowed himself to rest one hand against Fanboy’s back and the other where he imagined the boy’s hair would be.
It would have been a dream come true for him to run his fingers through whatever was beneath that cowl, but the warm and surprisingly soft satin elastic felt heavenly enough to his touch.
Still, he wondered...
“Chum Chum, have you ever seen Fanboy without his cowl?”
Chum Chum raised his head from its spot on Fanboy’s legs. He thought for a moment, “Yeah, a few times. He does take it off to shower and somebody’s gotta give him a haircut now and then.”
Kyle raised an eyebrow, “You cut his hair?”
“Yeah! He’s still convinced that the barber is some kinda evil supervillain in disguise. Which, to be fair, would be a pretty good way for a villain to find out a superhero’s secret identity.”
They both knew it sounded ridiculous, but, to be honest, they wouldn’t be surprised if it turned out to be true.
Kyle looked back down at Fanboy and slowly stroked the top of his head. He bit his lip before asking his next question.
“What- what color is it?” It was a perfectly normal inquiry, he had no reason to feel this nervous, “Fanboy’s hair, I mean.”
If Chum Chum gave Kyle a slightly sly, knowing look, you could be sure that Kyle was already ignoring him.
“Hmmm... it’s kinda... dirty blonde, I guess? Probably closer to light brown. I haven’t cut it in a while, so it’s pretty shaggy right now, too,”
Chum Chum turned his head back to the TV and grinned, “and it’s really cute.”
Kyle could feel his cheeks burning again.
That particular mental image was sure to stay with him for some time. Possibly until he saw the real thing, if ever.
Kyle suddenly felt a surge of jealousy towards Chum Chum for being the only person he knew of to have such coveted knowledge. Coveted? Really? Was it that important to him now? He tucked those questions away for him to overthink later.
Chum Chum broke the silence to whisper one last thing to the wizard, “Oh, and don’t tell him I said that either. I don’t think you’re supposed to know, yet.”
“I won’t,” Kyle confirmed before looking back towards the movie that had to have been almost over by now.
It didn’t take long for him to get distracted by the costumed teen dreaming away in his lap.
Kyle smoothed the palm of his hand over Fanboy’s fabric headpiece. He tried to feel the concealed hair underneath it as he let his thoughts toy with the idea of a maskless Fanboy. Oh, how he yearned for-
Wait.
‘Yet’?
‘Yet’???
Was Fanboy planning to reveal his secret identity to him? Did Chum Chum know? Or was he just toying with Kyle’s poor little heart again.
The three of them had been friends for a very long time and had known each other for even longer. If Fanboy was going to trust anyone other than Chum Chum with his true appearance, Kyle supposed it would make sense to choose him. It wasn’t like he would really do anything with that knowledge, but it was important to Fanboy and that was all that mattered.
It warmed Kyle’s heart to know that he was close enough to someone for them to even consider sharing something so special with him, especially when that someone was Fanboy. Maybe one day Fanboy might even tell Kyle his real name! (Kyle could only assume that “Fanboy” was not a legally registered name in any country.) But he preferred to focus on one daydream at a time.
Kyle closed his eyes and hummed softly to himself. He felt more relaxed than he had been in a long time. He continued to pet Fanboy’s head with his right hand and gently hugged his body closer to him with his left. Kyle could feel Fanboy’s chest move with each slow breath. He focused on that breath. Reminding himself that this was real, really happening, and not just a blissful dream.
Kyle felt himself becoming more and more lackadaisical by the second. He hadn’t planned on falling asleep with Fanboy curled up in his arms, but now that he was here, he couldn’t think of a single reason why he should ever have to move again.
And then, of course, the movie ended. And as the ambient sounds of the film began to fade, like clockwork, Fanboy’s eyes fluttered open.
“Wh- huh? Whappuned??” Fanboy slurred out, a bit dazed from just waking up.
Kyle smiled adoringly down at Fanboy, “You fell asleep, ninny. Missed half the movie.”
“Oh sorry, I didn’t mean to fall asleep on-“
As he tried to sit up, Fanboy noticed that Kyle still had an arm around his back. And a hand stroking his head. “...you...”
They both realized the situation was a bit more intimate than they were ready to admit they liked and immediately pulled out of the tender embrace. The absence of the other left each boy feeling cold.
Chum Chum was having a field day watching all these repressed emotions.
After a brief awkward pause, Fanboy hopped up from the couch and stretched his arms over his head.
“Sooo, Kyle, are you staying the night?”
Kyle tapped his chin and contemplated the question, until a loud clap of thunder startled him out of his thoughts and sealed the deal.
“You know what? I think I will,” he answered, still a bit shaken from the sound.
“Yay!! Sleepover!!!!” Fanboy and Chum Chum cheered in unison.
“I’ll get some pillows and blankets and you can sleep on the couch, Kyle!” Fanboy said and ran off to get the bedding.
Kyle snapped his fingers and instantly changed into his pajamas as the other boys prepared his makeshift bed. After the other two had finished washing up, Kyle brushed the popcorn that he really shouldn’t have been eating out of his braces and went to bed.
As he snuggled up under the blankets, the ceaseless pounding of the rain would not leave his mind. He hugged his teddy bear closer, but not even his beloved Admiral Fluffington could drown out the sound of the storm echoing against the water tower roof.
Kyle tried to think happy thoughts to distract himself, but to no avail. He remembered how calm he had felt with Fanboy just a few minutes earlier.
Then he had an idea...
But no nerve to execute it.
*KA-THOOM*
Suddenly, he found the nerve!
Clutching his teddy bear to his chest, Kyle got up from the couch and, as quietly as he could, snuck up the stairs and over to Fanboy’s bed.
The two heroes-in-training were already fast asleep. Kyle gazed at Fanboy for a moment, noticing that he still looked just as handsome when he was sleeping as he remembered.
Then he jabbed a finger in his face.
Fanboy squinted his eyes open and blinked.
“Wh- Kyle..? What’re you-“
“Scooch over.”
Fanboy raised a tired eyebrow, but didn’t ask any questions.
“M’kay.”
Kyle laid down under the warm covers and at once began to feel more comfortable.
“Mm g’night, Kyle,” Fanboy murmured.
“Goodnight, Fanboy,” Kyle replied, but the taller boy was already out like a light and snoring softly.
Kyle smiled and closed his eyes as well, focusing on his hero’s slow breathing and no longer the rain.
Just before Kyle could slip blissfully into unconsciousness, he felt Fanboy shift his body next to him. Much like before, the boy muttered something in his sleep, turned over, and wrapped an arm around Kyle, pulling him into a hug.
Kyle’s heart skipped a beat and without hesitation, he returned the embrace.
The wizard couldn’t help but smile as he snuggled impossibly close to his Fanboy.
“Nothing on Earth could be better than this,” he thought to himself.
Then he thought again.
“Well, actually...”
Without much thought at all, he slipped a hand under the back of the sleeping boy’s cowl.
A rush of adrenaline flowed through his body as his fingertips met the soft, matted locks of hair for the first time.
Fanboy’s breath stayed steady, so Kyle crept his hand up ever-so-carefully until his palm was flush with the back of his head.
Kyle relaxed his mind and massaged his fingers through the sea of pure choppy, unkempt happiness until he fell asleep.