Chapter Text
Ed Teach didn’t see any of this coming.
He hadn’t put much thought into tagging along with some of his older friends to Senior Skip Day; it seemed like it’d be better than going and staring at the teacher for three of his classes. School is such a bore anyway, every period taking about a bazillion years to finish.
And he loves a good amusement park ride. Loves the rush and freedom, even if it’s temporary. He’ll take any break from the grind of school and work. It doesn’t matter if he gets dinged for the absence; he hasn’t missed so much that he risks getting suspended, and his grades are good enough that losing a few participation points is no big deal.
But he sure didn’t expect to come home from Cedar Point with a date to prom. Especially not with Stede Bonnet.
In hindsight, it’s odd they never talked before, since they’re both from Aotearoa. But Stede was always either scurrying around like a freaked-out rabbit expecting to get eaten, or he was off in another world and didn’t seem aware of his surroundings at all. But Stede was cute, with his messy blond hair and his attempts to wear cool clothes that never looked quite right and his genuine smile whenever he noticed Ed looking at him.
And…it was weird, but…Stede makes him feel…he’s not even sure what it is. Safe? Is that it? “Safe” is not a way Ed gets to feel, ever. Not as a little kid, with his dick of a dad on the brink of one of his rages at any moment. Not now, with the minefield of walking around his high school as the outsider he is. Brown, poor, not straight, from the other side of the world. So many strikes against him. So many reasons he doesn’t fit in.
But Stede was unexpectedly willing to buck expectations for him. Ed only asked if Stede meant to take him to prom as a date instead of a friend on a whim. He didn’t think Stede would actually be bold enough to make it a date. But that kid? Clearly a little unhinged, and Ed likes it.
So Ed thinks about him all weekend: what it felt like to hold his hand when Stede was scared. The friendly sparkle in his eyes when they talked and joked. The stunned look on his face when Ed gave him a quick kiss on the cheek before they went their separate ways. All of it felt…well…good. Gives him all kinds of squirmy, warm gooeyness inside when he thinks about it.
Yeah, he likes Stede.
And when Monday comes, and Ed walks through the door for English class and sees Stede at his usual desk, watching the door, and his face lights up when Ed comes in—like he’s the tooth fairy or some shit—damn, it feels good. Great, even. Ed grins back at him and takes his usual seat. If he shows off a little more than usual, volunteering his interpretations of the Emily Dickinson poems they read for homework, well—that’s just because poetry is easy-peasy, puddin’ and fuckin’ pie. Not trying to impress anybody or anything.
After class, they meet up in the hallway; they don’t have a ton of time before they have to get to their next classes, but they have a couple minutes to catch up. “Hey,” Stede says, with another brilliant smile. It’s like actual sunshine; that warm and bright. Ed feels it sinking in all the way to his bones.
He smiles back. Ed’s not used to feeling this much, let alone letting it show, but with Stede, he can’t help it. “Hey.”
“So…you wanna come over to my house sometime?” Stede asks, jumping right to what he was apparently waiting to say. “Watch some music videos, like we talked about?”
Oof. Now things’ll get a little complicated. “Sure,” Ed replies. “But…here’s the thing.” It’s hard to be the one to throw cold water on Stede’s plan, but he has to: “I work every day after school.”
“Oh,” Stede says, crestfallen.
Ugh. Ed hates seeing him look so sad. He quickly runs through the options in his mind. “But!” he adds, hurriedly. “I can probably trade a shift, yeah? Try to free up an afternoon later this week.”
Stede’s expression perks right back up again at this news. “Awesome. If you can work it out, I can tell my parents you’re coming over to do homework. I mean, I guess we could do homework. But not just that.”
“Yeah.” Ed smiles; Stede’s excitement about this plan is so very sweet. “I’ll let you know.” Stede’s giving him a look, now, like he’d hug him or kiss him right there in the hallway if he could.
Ed’s really trying not to get carried away or fall too fast, but Stede’s so disarming that it’s a struggle. So Ed gives him a few pats on the shoulder before they go their separate ways. Nothing that would seem out-of-the-ordinary between friends, but something that means more to the two of them than anyone else knows.
Fuck. Ed’s got to be careful. These are already way too many feelings to be having. Stede’s a boy, and he’s a senior, and he’s rich; there’s so many reasons this might blow up in his face.
But there’s no denying that Ed’s already getting sucked into Stede’s whirlpool. How much he can keep his head above water remains to be seen.