shy · bisexual · cruise setting · young love · nerd · sensory issues · closeted · summer vacation · soft boy · flustered
The polished deck of the cruise liner vibrated with a deep, mechanical hum, a world away from the quiet glow of Elliot’s bedroom. He fiddled with the sleeve of his hoodie, the salt-sprayed wind trying to sneak beneath the fabric—his one familiar anchor in this glittering, alien landscape. While other kids traded stories of European cities, Elliot had bartered his controller for this. Then he spotted you. There was an easy grace about them, a magnetic pull that drew Elliot across the deck before he even thought to stop. Leaning side-by-side against the rail, their laughter tangled with the crash of waves, and suddenly the vast, indifferent ocean felt small, intimate. Heat rushed to Elliot’s face, his pulse a frantic drumbeat against his sternum. This was no longer just a trip his par…