Work Text:
The moon hung high, illuminating the wooded area around Stanley. He sat upon a crumbling wall of foundation, the remnants of a old house deep within the woods. He had stumbled upon it one day with Xeno when they were scouting out a clearing to use for a test, it looked like it wasn’t visited frequently by anyone.
They considered it a good place to hide out, a secret base in a way. It was the one place where they could get away from prying eyes. This would be the perfect place for what he was planning to do tonight.
He pulled a box and lighter out of his pocket, looking down at the two items in his hand. Stanley had pocketed this box of cigarettes earlier in the day from a gas station, he had taken advantage of how crowded it was after school. The cashier was none the wiser as Stanley left the store, he had previous experience from shoplifting materials Xeno wasn’t able to get himself.
The lighter was one he had simply taken from the junk drawer in his house, there were plenty laying all around. Probably was his mother’s, she definitely wouldn’t notice it missing.
Stanley took a cigarette out and then shoved the box back into his pocket. He held the cigarette in his hand as he looked at it, hesitant to continue.
He tried to recall how he had seen others smoke. Multiple different people came to mind, it wasn’t uncommon to see people smoking on the sidewalk outside of businesses. He recalled the motions they had gone through, trying to mimic them himself.
Stanley brought the cigarette to his mouth, letting it rest loosely between his lips. He flicked the lighter on and stared at the flame as the breeze caused it to faintly waver.
Bringing the flame up, he lit the cigarette and then put the lighter into his other pocket. The pungent taste hit first as the smoke began to run over his tongue. It wasn’t terrible.
He breathed in deeply as he held the cigarette, his lungs felt like they were burning but the breath felt deeper. A wave of light-headedness washed over Stanley as he reached the end of his inhale, he quickly moved the cigarette away as he stifled a cough that puffed out smoke.
It felt like his throat was burning as he took in breaths of clean air, the cigarette in his fingers still smoldering. Despite the discomfort, he felt his body begin to relax as his head cleared. Stanley brought the cigarette back to his lips and took another deep breath, the burn igniting in his lungs once again.
The smoke tasted just as it smelled, bringing a feeling of nostalgia from the familarity. It reminded Stanley of his mother when she would come home late at night after a shift, her hugs were always laced with the scent of cigarette smoke. It used to bother him but eventually the smell started bringing him comfort instead.
This wasn’t half bad.
His head felt like it was in the clouds, there was nothing that could bother him. Stanley looked up at the stars, feeling his mind get lost in the bright constellations.
He took another drag of the cigarette, letting his thoughts empty as he enjoyed the moment.
A rustle in the bushes.
Stanley whipped his head around, quickly stubbing the half finished cigarette onto the foundation. A familiar face emerged from the brush, holding a flashlight in one hand and a bag in the other.
Xeno.
“I thought you’d be here. You didn’t respond to any of my messages.” Xeno huffed as he climbed up onto the wall, scooting himself to be next to Stanley.
Mischief glittered in the dark eyes looking at him, the breeze seemingly carrying away any remaining smell from the cigarette. Stanley shifted nervously, turning his head away from the other teen in hopes that his breath wouldn’t reveal what he had just done.
“Yeah, just needed some time to myself.” He was still light-headed, his eyes glancing down to the squished cigarette.
He subtly brushed the remnants away with his hand, watching it drop into some ferns below. Xeno’s hand slinked forward and gently gripped Stanley’s chin, pulling his face around so their eyes could meet.
“I hope you don’t mind the intrusion then,” His eyes flickered down to Stanley’s lips and then back up to continue the previous eye contact, “I’m having difficulty working out an issue with stabilization on the new rocket model, I need someone to help me work through it. Are you up to the task?”
Stanley’s head felt like it was stuffed with cotton, his mind had stopped processing what the other teen had said after the first sentence. He absentmindedly nodded his head, his hand drifting up to grip the other’s shoulder as they leaned in to close the space between them.
This kiss felt different. Stanley felt like he was hyper aware of every sensation. The feeling of his lips touching Xeno’s, his hand gripping the other’s shirt, the breeze causing Xeno’s hair to brush his face. It felt magical for the total of three seconds it lasted before Xeno abruptly pulled away with a loud gag.
His face scrunched up as he brought his hand up to his mouth, trying to stave off another gag.
“Eugh, were you smoking?” He glared at Stanley accusatorily, “I thought that the smell was remnants from your mother, not your own doing. Have you already forgotten about all I’ve told you about the negative reprucussions from smoking? How toxic it is?”
“Yeah, I know.” Stanley let out a short laugh, “I wanted to know what it was like. It’s not bad.”
“Not bad? No, it actually is incredibly bad.” Disgruntled, Xeno reached his hand over to root around for the other teen’s pockets, eventually finding the lighter in the nearest one. Stanley felt his face flush at the sudden contact, his hands twitching but making no effort to stop him.
Xeno pulled the lighter out and then reached over to rummage through Stanley’s other pocket to take the box. He pulled away, squinting angrily at the two items.
Without saying anything further, Xeno sighed and shoved them into his bag. Stanley felt himself deflate, the previous light-headedness already fading away.
“Now, I did actually need assistance. You see, I found that this part…”