Alex and Felix (LGBT) ?

Part 12

Alex couldn't help but smile. "Yeah."

He hadn't talked to Marcus about it yet but, if Alex said he wanted to try a relationship, then Marcus would, too. He wouldn't have let Alex kiss him otherwise. But Alex was the one who was hesitating, now it was morning and he was sober, and hearing Scotty enthuse about it made him more sure of it. So he let Marcus know and, a half hour later, Marcus was there at the block door, smartly dressed as ever with a sweet smile to match.

"Hi." He said softly. "I wasn't sure when you'd wake up."

He laughed, because he got that. "Yeah, Scotty and I didn't do much today. Come on up, he'll be happy to see you."

"Alright then."

Alex felt there ought to be something different about hanging out with Marcus now they were boyfriends but, honestly, there wasn't any big change. There was no nervous giddiness he'd had with Dana, but he wasn't a college kid in his first relationship anymore, and he found he liked this more. Marcus radiated a sure sort of confidence, and he never made him feel like he was doing the wrong thing, and Alex was done feeling insecure about himself. This was nice.

Scotty, to his credit, wasn't an ass about it. Given how much shit Alex and Ellie had given him in the first few months of uni when he was hooking up, it was incredibly mature of him not to. Mostly, though, Alex thought he was still too tired and sick to give them any grief.

A fact Scotty proved the next day, when it was the weekend and everyone was free to grab dinner.

"Hey, Alex," he said, tone deceptively light, "you like fish, don't you?"

On their own, there was nothing particularly alarming about the question but Alex could hear something off in Scotty's voice and he answered tentatively. "Yes?"

"Marcus ordered the fish."

Marcus, far too sweet to suspect anything amiss, looked down at his food and then asked him. "Alex, do you want some fish?"

And, screw it, Alex said yes.

He'd gone for a burger, as per, since they were celebrating their results and he'd eat what he wanted. It meant he hadn't needed to grab any cutlery from the container at the end of the table and, while he didn't mind eating his burger with his hands, he couldn't do that with fish. Scotty knew that which was why he was presently looking far too pleased as he twirled spaghetti around his fork.

"Here." Marcus said, offering a piece of his meal to Alex.

Alex took it delicately between his teeth, letting it roll on his tongue. He couldn't fully taste it, not with the way Marcus' eyes looked at him, but he thought belatedly that it must be good. Anything Marcus chose to eat would be good. But, right now and right here, it was a headier experience than any food ever would be.

The rest of the meal passed without incident. There was a free cheesecake on the house, a promotion the restaurant was running for the results weekend, and Scotty looked far too happy when it was brought out to them. He worked out why when his plate arrived, complete with little hearts drawn in strawberry syrup.

Scotty laughed.

"How did you even convince them to do that?" Ellie asked.

He grinned, dimples flashing. "It's called asking. You'd be surprised how often it works."

Alex dug into his cake and had to grudgingly admit that the syrup added something to it. Scotty said it was the first flutterings of love in an adolescent heart. Alex kicked him.

Later, after they'd paid for their food and wrapped up in coats and scarfs to go outside, Ellie and Imogen cornered him. They used some excuse of having to get something from the shop, insisting the three of them go on their own when the guys offered, and then he was stuck with them.

"So, what are we getting from the shop?"

Imogen rolled her eyes. "We're not going to the shop."

"Actually," Ellie said, "I could do with some fresh fruit if we're in the area."

Which led to them traipsing around in the supermarket at nine at night. Alex hadn't gone shopping that late before, with their halls so far from the shops, so it was a little weird to see it so empty with crates in the aisles and empty shelves in abundance. It also meant there was a privacy for a conversation he'd been putting off the whole day.

"Why was Scotty acting so weird today?" Imogen demanded.

Alex pretended to be really interested in a pack of apples. "I don't know. Isn't that something you should be asking Scotty and not me?"

"She's asking because he was acting weird towards you." Ellie said, less blunt and more reasonable. "It's not in him to be mean but, if he's making you uncomfortable, you can tell us and I'll talk to him."

A part of him hesitated. Imogen was there and, while she'd called him a couple when she first met him and Felix, she didn't know for certain that he was bisexual and he'd gotten so used to not telling people that it was difficult to stop that. But he knew Imogen, and he liked her, and he thought he could trust. God knew Ellie would give him hell if he kept a secret from her.

"He's not making me uncomfortable but thanks." It was telling how much she cared that that was her thought. "He's actually just ribbing my because I've got a boyfriend now."

If Ellie had been holding anything, he thought she would've dropped it. As it was, she stared at him with wide eyes and her mouth open in shock. It was funny, and he thought he should drop bombshells like this more often if it got that reaction.

"Oh my God!" Imogen broke the silence, screaming. "I totally knew you and Felix were a thing."

That, in turn, had Ellie reacting and she nodded sagely. "Yeah. I wondered when we'd talk about this."

He looked between the two of them in confusion. "What? No, I meant Marcus."

Which had them stumped all over again.

This time, he laughed.

He refused to have a conversation about this in the supermarket's fruit aisle, though, and he shook his head every time they asked. Besides, they already knew as much as he did, so new in this relationship.

It wasn't until he was walking up the path to their halls with Ellie, Imogen having left to go to her own flat, that Ellie brought it up.

"I'm happy you're dating Marcus. He seems like a nice guy."

"That seems to be the general consensus." He said, but he was honestly glad his best friend approved of him, too.

"And you told Imogen you were dating a boy."

"Yeah, that wasn't part of the plan," he admitted, "but I can trust her with it."

"So," Ellie began, "that begs the question:  does Felix know?"

Felix didn't.

"You should tell him." Ellie said. "You can trust him with it, too."

And Alex knew he could. But he also knew that his relationship with Marcus was just beginning and he didn't want too many people to know about it while they worked out what they were like as a couple. So far, everyone had been approving but he didn't anyone to put doubts in his head or tell him what his first relationship with a guy should be like. Felix, for all he loved him, would undoubtedly have opinions and he couldn't be influenced by him right now.

"I'll tell him soon." Alex said.

Ellie hummed, not convinced.