The boyfriend

The hallway outside the office at Scott Valley Junior High smelled faintly like cleaning spray and old paperwork.

Jacoby Morrison sat in a chair near the principal’s desk, pale and holding his stomach.

This was the worst decision of his life.

All because he thought eating half the menu at Taco Bell was a good idea.

The school secretary looked over her glasses.

“You don’t look well, Jacoby.”

Jacoby slowly raised a hand.

“I feel like I’m going to throw up,” he said weakly.

Which… was not entirely a lie.

His stomach was still doing aggressive gymnastics.

The principal sighed and picked up the phone.

“Alright. Let’s call home.”

Jacoby leaned back in the chair dramatically.

His brain replayed the last 24 hours:

• Taco Bell feast

• Bathroom disaster

• Accidentally filming Mrs. Murphy and the janitor

• Viral TikTok starting to explode

He groaned.

“All because my dumb feminine ass wanted tacos.”

The secretary tried very hard not to laugh.

A few minutes later the phone call ended.

“Your ride is coming,” the principal said.

Jacoby nodded weakly.

⸻

Later That Day

Jacoby was finally home.

He lay on his bed staring at the ceiling like a soldier recovering from battle.

His phone buzzed nonstop.

Notifications.

Messages.

Comments.

The TikTok video had completely exploded.

Thousands of views.

People in the comments were losing their minds.

Some comments read:

“BRO WHAT DID I JUST WATCH”

“WHY IS YOUR SCHOOL LIKE A NETFLIX SHOW”

“THE CAPTION IS SENDING ME 😭”

Jacoby stared at the numbers.

“…oh no.”

He threw the phone onto the bed.

“Tomorrow is going to be awful.”

⸻

The Next Day

Morning arrived.

Jacoby walked toward school slowly, backpack slung over one shoulder.

He looked exhausted.

And slightly traumatized.

Also—

“…my ass still burns,” he muttered to himself.

The Taco Bell had not forgiven him.

He stepped through the doors of Scott Valley Junior High and headed toward his classroom.

Students whispered in the hallway.

Some glanced at him.

Some snickered.

Word about the viral video had already started spreading.

Jacoby sighed.

“Great.”

He stepped into the classroom for third period English with Mrs. Murphy.

The moment he entered—

Carter noticed him.

“HEY!”

The entire class turned.

Carter grinned like he had just discovered a new hobby.

“Well well well,” he said loudly. “Bathroom reporter is back.”

Hunter laughed.

“Bro exposed the whole school.”

Several students snickered.

Jacoby rolled his eyes.

“It’s called journalism.”

More laughter followed.

Jacoby ignored them and walked toward his desk.

His stomach still felt weird.

His legs still hurt.

And emotionally he was done with the week.

He dropped his backpack beside the desk and sat down.

“…please let today be normal.”

A voice next to him spoke.

“Jacoby?”

Jacoby froze.

He slowly turned his head.

Sitting in the desk beside him was a boy he hadn’t noticed before.

Dark hair.

Calm expression.

And a very familiar face.

Jacoby blinked.

Once.

Twice.

His brain lagged for a second.

Then realization hit him like a truck.

“…Matthew?”

Matthew smiled softly.

“Hi.”

Jacoby stared at him in complete shock.

This was Matthew.

His boyfriend.

The one he hadn’t seen in person for months.

The one he had been texting constantly before getting grounded from his phone.

The one who had just suddenly appeared in his classroom.

Jacoby’s brain short-circuited.

“You’re—”

He pointed dramatically.

“—HERE?”

Matthew nodded.

“I transferred yesterday.”

Jacoby’s jaw dropped.

“You moved here?!”

Matthew shrugged casually.

“Yeah. My family moved to California two days ago.”

Jacoby grabbed his head.

“WHAT?!”

Several students turned to stare.

Carter raised an eyebrow.

“…wait.”

He looked between them.

“You know him?”

Matthew turned calmly toward Carter.

His expression changed slightly.

“Yes.”

He looked back at Jacoby and smiled again.

“I know him very well.”

Jacoby’s face turned bright red.

His brain was still catching up to reality.

His boyfriend had just casually appeared at school.

Right next to him.

Without warning.

Jacoby slowly leaned closer and whispered.

“…why didn’t you tell me?”

Matthew chuckled quietly.

“You were grounded from your phone.”

Jacoby froze again.

“…oh yeah.”

He slowly slumped forward onto his desk.

“This week has been a nightmare.”

Matthew patted his shoulder.

“It’s okay.”

He leaned closer and whispered softly.

“I’m here now.”

Jacoby peeked up from his desk.

For the first time in a long while—

He smiled.

Unfortunately…

Carter was still staring at them from across the room.

And he did not look happy.

Which meant things were about to get a lot more chaotic.

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