Matt knows Foggy is coming closer in the school library while he's listening to his screenreader read him arguments about the latest Lincoln-Douglas topic, but he still startles when Foggy knocks on the table like he's knocking on a door. “Hey,” says Foggy when Matt takes an earbud out and tilts his head. “Do you mind if I sit down? I won't talk or interrupt you, I just figured it was kind of silly that we're both in the library and not sitting together.”
“I didn't realize you have study hall this period.”
“Normally I stay in the classroom, but it's loud in there today and I'm doing my weekly research on possible International Extemp topics.”
“You've been doing a lot of speech this year.”
“Yeah, Owlsley thinks I'm good at it.” Cloth rustling. A shrug, probably. “It's cool, though, more people here are into Lincoln-Douglas than Public Forum, so I'm fine with that.”
“I'm doing research for Lincoln-Douglas right now,” Matt offers. “So we'll both be working on speech and debate.”
“Cool.” Foggy's chair scrapes against the carpet when he moves it. “Let me know if you want to talk out an argument. I work better in teams, but that doesn't mean I can't kick your ass.”
Matt is very aware. All he does is nod, though, and put his earbud back in.
Foggy doesn't seem inclined to silence, in general. No one on speech and debate really is, but whenever Matt happens to notice him he's always talking to someone new, with a joke or a story or something else to say, though he doesn't think Foggy is very close with anyone either. Now, though, he's surprised at how easily Foggy settles into silence. He taps his pen on the table sometimes while he thinks, and hums under his breath at intervals, but he doesn't talk.
Matt does, when the period is halfway finished and Foggy has moved from clicking around the internet to taking down notes, pen scratching against paper. “Finding anything useful?”
“Huh? Oh. Yeah, a few things. You?”
“A few. We shouldn't in the library, but I might take you up on your offer to debate later. You're the only person in this school who's beat me. It would help.”
Foggy laughs a little, nervous and awkward. “Call it luck. But sure, yeah, absolutely. I work a lot after school when I don't have debate, family business and all, but we can meet up. I think my sister's got the shop tomorrow afternoon.”
It's another day of this, but Foggy hasn't pressed him to hold hands or kiss or go on dates. Matt's willing to wait a little longer, to see if Foggy keeps not pressing and it can turn into a friendship instead of anything else. He thinks they could get along, maybe, even if Foggy isn't much like Karen or Claire. “I'll check in with Karen and my foster parents, but I should be free, as long as you don't mind.”
“Why would I mind? If you're worried about exploiting me for reasons of speech and debate, I'll make you give me an extemp topic and make up a speech in five minutes or less. Or pull you into doing a Forum at a meet with me sometime this year. Not that I'm assuming anything.”
Matt doesn't tell him to assume, but he does smile. “It will be like an extra team meeting—I'll be surprised if they don't ask you to be a captain next year. You can get used to it.”
“And you can stop fishing for compliments. Co-captains, obviously.” Matt wasn't fishing, but it's nice to hear that, like it's a foregone conclusion, Matt being put in charge. “Do you want to meet up somewhere neutral tomorrow? You can come to mine if you don't mind siblings and nosy parents, but I should warn you I've mentioned you.” Foggy's face heats up. “I was kind of excited when I got that note.”
Of course he was. “My apartment should be empty except for maybe Karen, and she'll leave us alone if we ask her to, or help out. She critiques my arguments sometimes.”
“Well, she's welcome.” Now he sounds disappointed, and Matt can't blame him, when he must be confused that Matt asked him out and isn't making excuses to spend time alone together. He really wishes he knew what the note said. “And if you're sure I'm not imposing. I could bring cookies again.”
“You don't need to. Doris and Ben will be happy I'm having a friend over, they won't object if you eat some of our snacks.”
“Okay. Your place tomorrow, then? I can find you after school and you can walk me home?”
“Sure.”
Foggy doesn't seem to have a response to that, because after a few seconds later he starts scribbling in his notebook again. Matt goes back to his screenreader, though he's out of useful ideas for his current argument and he should probably switch over to math homework.
After a few minutes, Foggy's foot taps against his under the table and then stays there, just gentle pressure that Matt can't ignore.
“I'll see you tomorrow,” Foggy says right before the bell rings for the end of the period, and Matt nods and makes sure to linger packing his bag even though it will make him late to class so he doesn't have to think of anything else to say.
*
Foggy is in the middle of a story about a debate he got into in history class and how ever since he's been creepingly terrified that James Wesley is going to kill him in his sleep for winning it so thoroughly when there's a knock on Matt's bedroom door.
“Come in,” Matt calls when Foggy stops immediately short. He knows Karen is somewhere around, but he hasn't done a very good job of paying attention to who's in the building, let alone the apartment, this afternoon.
When the door swings open, he can already tell it's Ben, the smell of his deodorant and the way his clothes always smell after a day at the paper. “Afternoon, Matt. Thought I'd come in and say hello, and Karen said you had company.”
“Hi.” Foggy stands up. “Foggy Nelson, sir.”
“I remember you, I think Karen introduced us once.” Ben says that with just enough emphasis that Matt can't help wincing, and Foggy's heart does something erratic and intimidated, though Matt knows Ben isn't very imposing. “Pleasure to meet you again, though. Are you staying for dinner?”
“No, no, my mom would kill me for imposing. Is it that late already?”
“We eat late, but you might want to call your mother if you don't. It's almost six.”
“Shit,” says Foggy, and then “Sorry” to both of them, probably for swearing, while he fumbles in his pocket for something. His phone, Matt can hear him unlocking it a second later. “I really overstayed my welcome, Matt, you should have stopped me, I'm pretty sure I've just been doing a monologue for the last half an hour.”
“I don't mind.” And he doesn't. Foggy went over his arguments with him and gave an extemporaneous speech from Matt's prompt about the leaked SHIELD files (“Too easy,” Foggy said when Matt gave him the topic, “it's old news and I read all the files I could last summer break,” and then he'd spoken for twice as long as necessary with half the prep time and kept Matt interested the whole time) and then they've been talking, not as much of a monologue as Foggy thinks. “I'm sorry I kept you away from home, though.”
“No worries, totally my fault. And dad texted half an hour ago, apparently I missed that. But yeah, I should go. Thanks for the reminder, Mr. Urich.”
“Of course.” Ben sounds amused. “You're welcome to come for dinner sometime, if you'd like, as long as there's warning.”
“Right, yeah.” Foggy is collecting his backpack and his debate binder, which he took out to take notes in for next week's meeting, putting them away and finding his shoes, in a hurry all of a sudden. Matt stands up, since he should see his guest out. “Again, sorry.”
“I'm glad Matt has someone over. I just wanted to know if you were staying for dinner, since he should have warned me about that.” Ben is still trying to sound stern, but amusement is winning out, Matt can hear it. He's not sure that's much better, but it's easier on Foggy, anyway.
“Another time,” says Matt. “We honestly just lost track of time.”
“I'm sure you did.”
“Oh, Jesus,” says Foggy. “No, no, we weren't—um.”
“Please don't defend my virtue,” Matt says, because Ben is muffling a smile with his hand now, and Foggy is warmer every second, blushing so much that he must be turning visibly red. “Do you need anything before you go, Foggy? Or will I see you at school?”
“I'm good. You'll see me at school. Uh.” A swish of Foggy's hair. He had it up with an elastic band when they started for the afternoon, but it's down now. He's probably looking at Ben, figuring out how to say goodbye to Matt with him standing there. “Thanks for having me over.”
Ben coughs, and even Foggy must know it's covering up a laugh. “Anytime, Foggy. Next time, have Matt tell us in advance and you can stay.”
“Right.” A nervous laugh.
Matt reaches out and sidesteps until he finds Foggy's elbow. “Come on. I'll walk you out.”
“Night, Foggy. Come help me with setting the table when you're done, Matt, Doris will be home in twenty minutes and I'm making spaghetti.”
“Of course. Thanks, Ben.” Ben moves away, toward the kitchen, and Matt walks Foggy the few steps tot he door, somewhere between leading him and letting Foggy lead him. “Thanks for coming. And helping,” he says when they reach the door. He thinks, if he concentrates, he can hear Doris coming down the block. He'd like to say goodbye before she comes.
“No problem, man. I'm still working on talking you into doing Public Forum with me. I'm pretty sure we'd be an unbeatable team.”
Matt can't help smiling. “We might be. I'll think about it.”
“Hey, great.” Foggy sounds startled, but happy too, less nervous than he's been since Ben knocked on Matt's door. “So, I'll see you at school?”
“See you at school.” Foggy has his hand on the doorknob, but he isn't turning it, just standing there with his heartbeat speeding up. Matt's kicks up too, more with nerves than with anticipation. Is Foggy expecting a kiss? Something else?
After a second, Foggy just reaches out with his free hand and claps Matt gently on the shoulder, squeezing for a second before letting go. “See you at school,” he says again, and lets himself out.
Matt waits at the door for a few seconds, long enough to be sure that Doris is the one coming down the sidewalk and to hear Foggy's quiet “Shit” from the street, and then goes to help Ben in the kitchen.
Ben only waits until Matt has forks in his hands before he says anything. “Nice boy, Foggy Nelson. Is Karen okay with it?”
“Yes. She was the one who ended it with him, I think, and she's been supportive.” She left them alone after she got home, and at one point had a whispered conversation with Claire about how she thinks it started, which Claire at least tried to avoid. “I was the one who asked him out.”
“I didn't know you were interested. But I'm glad you gave it a shot. Behind you with the pot of water.” Matt obligingly freezes, and then continues to the cabinet for plates when Ben turns the stove on. “If it's going to be serious enough for him to spend time here, it should be serious enough for him to come for dinner.”
Matt can hear Doris's key in the lock. He knows Ben will tell her all about it, but he'd like to not be still having the conversation when she comes in. “Right. I don't think it's very serious, we were just talking about speech and debate all afternoon, but I'll invite him soon if we stay together.”
“Of course.” Ben sounds amused again, and Doris is inside, taking her coat and shoes off, putting on her slippers. Matt puts the plates down on the table to start putting them at everyone's places. “And Matt—next time your boyfriend spends the afternoon, door stays open.”
Doris comes into the kitchen just in time to ask why Matt dropped a fork on the floor.
[fill] Matched Your Own Beat (3/?)
“I didn't realize you have study hall this period.”
“Normally I stay in the classroom, but it's loud in there today and I'm doing my weekly research on possible International Extemp topics.”
“You've been doing a lot of speech this year.”
“Yeah, Owlsley thinks I'm good at it.” Cloth rustling. A shrug, probably. “It's cool, though, more people here are into Lincoln-Douglas than Public Forum, so I'm fine with that.”
“I'm doing research for Lincoln-Douglas right now,” Matt offers. “So we'll both be working on speech and debate.”
“Cool.” Foggy's chair scrapes against the carpet when he moves it. “Let me know if you want to talk out an argument. I work better in teams, but that doesn't mean I can't kick your ass.”
Matt is very aware. All he does is nod, though, and put his earbud back in.
Foggy doesn't seem inclined to silence, in general. No one on speech and debate really is, but whenever Matt happens to notice him he's always talking to someone new, with a joke or a story or something else to say, though he doesn't think Foggy is very close with anyone either. Now, though, he's surprised at how easily Foggy settles into silence. He taps his pen on the table sometimes while he thinks, and hums under his breath at intervals, but he doesn't talk.
Matt does, when the period is halfway finished and Foggy has moved from clicking around the internet to taking down notes, pen scratching against paper. “Finding anything useful?”
“Huh? Oh. Yeah, a few things. You?”
“A few. We shouldn't in the library, but I might take you up on your offer to debate later. You're the only person in this school who's beat me. It would help.”
Foggy laughs a little, nervous and awkward. “Call it luck. But sure, yeah, absolutely. I work a lot after school when I don't have debate, family business and all, but we can meet up. I think my sister's got the shop tomorrow afternoon.”
It's another day of this, but Foggy hasn't pressed him to hold hands or kiss or go on dates. Matt's willing to wait a little longer, to see if Foggy keeps not pressing and it can turn into a friendship instead of anything else. He thinks they could get along, maybe, even if Foggy isn't much like Karen or Claire. “I'll check in with Karen and my foster parents, but I should be free, as long as you don't mind.”
“Why would I mind? If you're worried about exploiting me for reasons of speech and debate, I'll make you give me an extemp topic and make up a speech in five minutes or less. Or pull you into doing a Forum at a meet with me sometime this year. Not that I'm assuming anything.”
Matt doesn't tell him to assume, but he does smile. “It will be like an extra team meeting—I'll be surprised if they don't ask you to be a captain next year. You can get used to it.”
“And you can stop fishing for compliments. Co-captains, obviously.” Matt wasn't fishing, but it's nice to hear that, like it's a foregone conclusion, Matt being put in charge. “Do you want to meet up somewhere neutral tomorrow? You can come to mine if you don't mind siblings and nosy parents, but I should warn you I've mentioned you.” Foggy's face heats up. “I was kind of excited when I got that note.”
Of course he was. “My apartment should be empty except for maybe Karen, and she'll leave us alone if we ask her to, or help out. She critiques my arguments sometimes.”
“Well, she's welcome.” Now he sounds disappointed, and Matt can't blame him, when he must be confused that Matt asked him out and isn't making excuses to spend time alone together. He really wishes he knew what the note said. “And if you're sure I'm not imposing. I could bring cookies again.”
“You don't need to. Doris and Ben will be happy I'm having a friend over, they won't object if you eat some of our snacks.”
“Okay. Your place tomorrow, then? I can find you after school and you can walk me home?”
“Sure.”
Foggy doesn't seem to have a response to that, because after a few seconds later he starts scribbling in his notebook again. Matt goes back to his screenreader, though he's out of useful ideas for his current argument and he should probably switch over to math homework.
After a few minutes, Foggy's foot taps against his under the table and then stays there, just gentle pressure that Matt can't ignore.
“I'll see you tomorrow,” Foggy says right before the bell rings for the end of the period, and Matt nods and makes sure to linger packing his bag even though it will make him late to class so he doesn't have to think of anything else to say.
Foggy is in the middle of a story about a debate he got into in history class and how ever since he's been creepingly terrified that James Wesley is going to kill him in his sleep for winning it so thoroughly when there's a knock on Matt's bedroom door.
“Come in,” Matt calls when Foggy stops immediately short. He knows Karen is somewhere around, but he hasn't done a very good job of paying attention to who's in the building, let alone the apartment, this afternoon.
When the door swings open, he can already tell it's Ben, the smell of his deodorant and the way his clothes always smell after a day at the paper. “Afternoon, Matt. Thought I'd come in and say hello, and Karen said you had company.”
“Hi.” Foggy stands up. “Foggy Nelson, sir.”
“I remember you, I think Karen introduced us once.” Ben says that with just enough emphasis that Matt can't help wincing, and Foggy's heart does something erratic and intimidated, though Matt knows Ben isn't very imposing. “Pleasure to meet you again, though. Are you staying for dinner?”
“No, no, my mom would kill me for imposing. Is it that late already?”
“We eat late, but you might want to call your mother if you don't. It's almost six.”
“Shit,” says Foggy, and then “Sorry” to both of them, probably for swearing, while he fumbles in his pocket for something. His phone, Matt can hear him unlocking it a second later. “I really overstayed my welcome, Matt, you should have stopped me, I'm pretty sure I've just been doing a monologue for the last half an hour.”
“I don't mind.” And he doesn't. Foggy went over his arguments with him and gave an extemporaneous speech from Matt's prompt about the leaked SHIELD files (“Too easy,” Foggy said when Matt gave him the topic, “it's old news and I read all the files I could last summer break,” and then he'd spoken for twice as long as necessary with half the prep time and kept Matt interested the whole time) and then they've been talking, not as much of a monologue as Foggy thinks. “I'm sorry I kept you away from home, though.”
“No worries, totally my fault. And dad texted half an hour ago, apparently I missed that. But yeah, I should go. Thanks for the reminder, Mr. Urich.”
“Of course.” Ben sounds amused. “You're welcome to come for dinner sometime, if you'd like, as long as there's warning.”
“Right, yeah.” Foggy is collecting his backpack and his debate binder, which he took out to take notes in for next week's meeting, putting them away and finding his shoes, in a hurry all of a sudden. Matt stands up, since he should see his guest out. “Again, sorry.”
“I'm glad Matt has someone over. I just wanted to know if you were staying for dinner, since he should have warned me about that.” Ben is still trying to sound stern, but amusement is winning out, Matt can hear it. He's not sure that's much better, but it's easier on Foggy, anyway.
“Another time,” says Matt. “We honestly just lost track of time.”
“I'm sure you did.”
“Oh, Jesus,” says Foggy. “No, no, we weren't—um.”
“Please don't defend my virtue,” Matt says, because Ben is muffling a smile with his hand now, and Foggy is warmer every second, blushing so much that he must be turning visibly red. “Do you need anything before you go, Foggy? Or will I see you at school?”
“I'm good. You'll see me at school. Uh.” A swish of Foggy's hair. He had it up with an elastic band when they started for the afternoon, but it's down now. He's probably looking at Ben, figuring out how to say goodbye to Matt with him standing there. “Thanks for having me over.”
Ben coughs, and even Foggy must know it's covering up a laugh. “Anytime, Foggy. Next time, have Matt tell us in advance and you can stay.”
“Right.” A nervous laugh.
Matt reaches out and sidesteps until he finds Foggy's elbow. “Come on. I'll walk you out.”
“Night, Foggy. Come help me with setting the table when you're done, Matt, Doris will be home in twenty minutes and I'm making spaghetti.”
“Of course. Thanks, Ben.” Ben moves away, toward the kitchen, and Matt walks Foggy the few steps tot he door, somewhere between leading him and letting Foggy lead him. “Thanks for coming. And helping,” he says when they reach the door. He thinks, if he concentrates, he can hear Doris coming down the block. He'd like to say goodbye before she comes.
“No problem, man. I'm still working on talking you into doing Public Forum with me. I'm pretty sure we'd be an unbeatable team.”
Matt can't help smiling. “We might be. I'll think about it.”
“Hey, great.” Foggy sounds startled, but happy too, less nervous than he's been since Ben knocked on Matt's door. “So, I'll see you at school?”
“See you at school.” Foggy has his hand on the doorknob, but he isn't turning it, just standing there with his heartbeat speeding up. Matt's kicks up too, more with nerves than with anticipation. Is Foggy expecting a kiss? Something else?
After a second, Foggy just reaches out with his free hand and claps Matt gently on the shoulder, squeezing for a second before letting go. “See you at school,” he says again, and lets himself out.
Matt waits at the door for a few seconds, long enough to be sure that Doris is the one coming down the sidewalk and to hear Foggy's quiet “Shit” from the street, and then goes to help Ben in the kitchen.
Ben only waits until Matt has forks in his hands before he says anything. “Nice boy, Foggy Nelson. Is Karen okay with it?”
“Yes. She was the one who ended it with him, I think, and she's been supportive.” She left them alone after she got home, and at one point had a whispered conversation with Claire about how she thinks it started, which Claire at least tried to avoid. “I was the one who asked him out.”
“I didn't know you were interested. But I'm glad you gave it a shot. Behind you with the pot of water.” Matt obligingly freezes, and then continues to the cabinet for plates when Ben turns the stove on. “If it's going to be serious enough for him to spend time here, it should be serious enough for him to come for dinner.”
Matt can hear Doris's key in the lock. He knows Ben will tell her all about it, but he'd like to not be still having the conversation when she comes in. “Right. I don't think it's very serious, we were just talking about speech and debate all afternoon, but I'll invite him soon if we stay together.”
“Of course.” Ben sounds amused again, and Doris is inside, taking her coat and shoes off, putting on her slippers. Matt puts the plates down on the table to start putting them at everyone's places. “And Matt—next time your boyfriend spends the afternoon, door stays open.”
Doris comes into the kitchen just in time to ask why Matt dropped a fork on the floor.