"As you can see, I am not dead."

Hello my good people.

Obviously this is a reupload for anyone who recognizes this title or the corresponding chapters. The original story (it's now taken down) was uploaded to this cite two years ago as a spar of the moment thing back when my username was bye felicia (it should be changed, but it it's not then oh well). But I've recently decided that I want to reconstruct most of the works I've done to make them sound better, and so I'm happier with the content I create.

If anyone's wondering what's going on with Elastic Heart, yes that is also under construction, but the content for that is a lot heavier and requires a lot of my time and effort so be patient with me.

So this is going to be a collection of related one-shots, which means although each upload will be about something different, it all takes place in the same universe and on the same timeline with a very slight plot (if you squint). My initial idea behind this collection was to create a set of short stories that all coexist with each other since I rarely see that, so hopefully whoever reads this likes it as much as me.

All major characters have been aged to 16 because it's easier to write for them when they're all the same age. Also I haven't watched this show in years so many details will either be super off or improvised.

Alright everyone. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own MBAV

Chapter 1: Truth Serum

"Benny! What the hell were you thinking?!"

"Well it seemed like a good idea yesterday!"

Okay. Let's recap.

We all know Benny is basically a Doctor Strange 2.0, right? And we all know Benny has epic magical abilities that no one else (except for maybe his grandma) has, right? Right. Cool. That being said, Grandma Weir forbade him from using his powers, abilities and magical knowledge for foolish endeavors because we all know Benny can't be trusted with any of that yet. "You're not trained enough, nor are you responsible enough to handle your powers properly." Grandma Weir always repeats this same line every time Benny tries to plead his case on why he's totally responsible enough to take his powers and run like Dumbledore. I mean, how is it fair that he was blessed with powers and has the potential to do things past human comprehension, but he's not allowed to even explore his abilities outside of his basement?

It's straight up blasphemy.

Anyway, let's get into exactly how everything went from totally awesome, to complete doodoo in the blink of a second.

Benny would like to say he knows a thing or two about potions (he actually knows very little about it, but don't burst his bubble); i.e., he knows what they do, how to make them, what the ingredients are for, etc. He's had some practice in potion making (thanks to Grandma Weir) and feels confident enough in his skills to produce a potion unsupervised.

So, what better way to prove his Potion Mastery than by testing them on his very suspicious English teacher who displays a rather uncanny resemblance to the god of the Underworld Hades? And what better way to expose "Mr. Heda" of being a diabolical evil mastermind who's come to wreak havoc on Whitechapel than with magic, stealth, vigilance, and hardcore sex appeal?

All things Benny definitely has. And yes, the sex appeal part was necessary.

His theory is solid! He knows it! It can not be a coincidence how much the teacher likes the color blue, hates Hercules, and quotes Greek mythology on a daily basis. He even sounds like James Woods, voice actor of Hades from the 1997 Hercules movie.

Coincidence? Benny thinks not!

Benny pitched the theory to Ethan but being the annoyingly smart voice of reason in their friendship, he saw Benny's theory as just another excuse to break Grandma Weir's rules and make potions he's not supposed to make. "If you think I'm going to encourage you to create a problem out of nothing just so you can mix chemicals and call yourself a scientist, you've got another thing coming." Ethan had said when Benny pitched his ideas to him.

The nerve…

Astonished by Ethan and his use of reasoning against Benny's brilliantly farfetched theory, Benny focused on formulating a plan with Rory and only Rory. The blond had completely bought into Benny's crazy ideas without any questions or concerns, and was completely on board with whatever poorly thought out plan Benny had constructed. He didn't bother telling Sarah or Erica because if Ethan saw through Benny's bullshit, then Lord knows what those girls would say! Well, Erica wouldn't care. But still!

So, here's the breakdown of the plan.

Benny's grandma is out of town this weekend. After many hours (days actually) of begging, she agreed to let Benny stay home by himself so long as Ethan's parents occasionally checked in on him, and he abided by her rules (be home before 8 pm, no using the emergency credit card to buy video games, no parties, and absolutely no alcohol). All Benny must do for the next three days is make sure the house doesn't collapse in on itself, right? Right. And while she's gone, Benny has the perfect opportunity to go into Grandma Weir's secret stash of potions ingredients, create a truth serum (which he's never actually made before but there's always a first time for everything), and then on Monday morning, while Rory distracts Mr. Heda, Benny will sneak in and pour some of the serum into the cup of coffee the teacher has every day on his desk.

Pretty simple, right? It's fool-proof! Solid! No cracks, bumps, or chances at failure!

Except Benny's never considered one small, minute detail: what if someone else drinks the serum instead?

Well, that's exactly what happened.

Ethan, unbeknownst to anything going on, came by unannounced (as he usual does) while Benny was just finishing up the serum. He didn't even bother to ring the bell. He just walked right through the door as if it's his house. This is something they normally do, so Ethan naturally thought nothing of it. But of course, he came in right when Benny was doing the thing Ethan told him would be dumb to do. Benny knew Ethan wouldn't have kind things to say about Benny's obviously well thought out plan to expose Mr. Heda. That's why in a burst of panic, Benny quickly poured the serum into an empty water bottle (in hindsight that was a really bad idea on account of the serum being clear. Much like water) and handed it to Rory so he could hide it somewhere (another bad idea because this is Rory we're talking about).

What are the odds that Rory would hide the serum in the refrigerator in Benny's kitchen?

And what are the odds that Ethan would go into that same refrigerator moments later looking for water, and drink the serum thinking it's water?

Apparently, the odds are not in Benny's favor. Just imagine the complete horror Benny felt when he came upstairs to see Ethan taking a huge gulp of the serum, only to scrunch up his face afterwards once he realized it was far from water. "What the heck is this? Did you put tequila in here or something?"

Benny quickly ran over to Ethan and grabbed the bottle. "Where did you get this?" He exclaimed, earning a puzzled look from Ethan. He specifically told Rory to hide it somewhere no one would find it. And yet somehow, Ethan Morgan had it in his hands. And was drinking from.

"Umm, in the fridge where water usually is…"

Of course.

Benny mentally face-palmed himself. That stupid vampire, he thought aggressively (if that's even a thing). Of course Rory would mess up something as simple as hiding a bottle. Out of every place he could have possibly hid it, why the hell would he put it in the fridge? Just, why? He should have known that Rory wouldn't be able to handle a huge responsibility like that. It's what he gets for trusting Rory with the task of hiding a truth serum.

But keep this in mind: Benny has never created something as powerful as a truth serum before. Brewing a truth serum is far more advanced than his level of training, so he could have done it completely wrong. Plus, even the slightest of mistakes can make the truth serum ineffective. So, Benny's not even sure if what he made will work or not. In fact, for all he knows he could have just made a useless drink filled with ingredients that are probably not good for digestion.

Only one way to find out.

"Hey Ethan," Benny started innocently, "remember that girl you said you made out with at camp that one year?" Make-out girl was a story Ethan retold time after time after time about a beautiful brunette he met at camp once who was completely all over him and kissed him one night after hours. Benny knew it was made up though. There was no mystery girl that Ethan made out with behind the huge oak tree near the pond at around midnight when everyone else was asleep. He made it up to seem cooler for whatever reason. And Benny knows it's fake because Benny went to that same exact camp. They shared a cabin for crying out loud! The only thing Ethan made out with was his pillow! But no matter how many times he was called out on it, Ethan never admitted to the story being a fib.

But if the truth serum works, he'll be squealing like a pig.

Benny didn't have to wait too long for Ethan's answer. "That story was never true." Ethan said calmly as he opened the fridge for some actual water, not realizing what he's saying. "I made that story up because—" and in an instant, Ethan slammed the fridge shut and clamped a hand over his mouth, eyes wide in shock after his words caught up to him. He turned to look at Benny for an explanation, knowing all too well that he had something to do with his sudden confession.

Benny just sheepishly smiled as he attempted to back away.

"Benny what did you do?" Ethan glowered, the anger and annoyance visible on his face.

Benny let out a nervous laugh. "Well, uhh at least we know the truth serum works!"

So now, thirty minutes later, we're in the present.

After very aggressively and effectively cursing both Benny and Rory out in both English and French (which Ethan rarely speaks), Ethan called Sarah who called Erica, and now the whole gang is gathered in Benny's basement looking like a cheerful bunch.

You don't believe that either, right? Yeah, things aren't looking too pretty.

"So, let me get this straight." Erica drawls from her perch atop a couple crates, using a bookshelf as a very uncomfortable backrest. "You thought that your crappy, depressing, incompetent, dork of a teacher was Hades, god of the underworld. And you proceeded to create a truth serum so you could somehow drug him into a confession." Her tone is condescending. She doesn't even try to hide her lack of interest. Normally she wouldn't even be here entertaining the nonsense, especially on a weekend. But she's been bored all day, so why not enjoy the free source of entertainment.

Benny looks at Rory meekly. Now that he hears it coming from someone else, he can see how outlandish it all sounds. "Yeah pretty much.

Erica shrugs. "Ehh. Not your dumbest moment. Solid six out of ten if you ask me."

"Hey, thanks!" Rory cheerily pipes in, earning an eyeroll from Erica and a glare from Benny.

Benny sighs as he looks to Ethan who's sitting on an old couch probably planning Benny's death. "How you holding up, E?"

"Well let's see," Ethan looks up at Benny and oh if looks could kill, "I just drank some truth serum because my idiot best friends decided now was the right time to become Severus Snape, and now I have no filter and I can potentially be a danger to myself and all of you. How do you think I'm holding up?!"

"Maybe a solid nine out of ten." Rory doesn't have enough time to duck before Benny's hand connects with the back of his head.

Ethan looks just about ready to explode. "I swear, if you weren't a vampire I would…, I would…" Ethan's face scrunches up like he's struggling to say what he wants to say and is trying to stop himself form saying something he doesn't mean… or rather does mean but doesn't want to actually say. "I would do nothing because I'm not a violent person and I'll probably forgive you really soon." He lets it all out in one breath and pants.

Erica snorts. Rory smiles brightly. Benny gives Ethan an apologetic look which he returns with a glower. "Fix this!" he seethes.

"Honestly what were you two thinking?!" Sarah roars, causing Benny to wince and take a few steps away from her. "Do you have any idea what you two could have done? Or were you too wrapped up in your stupid schemes to realize how completely insane and dangerous this is?! You could have killed Ethan! Or turned him into… I don't know. A snake, or something!"

"Sounds like a typically Tuesday to me." Erica shrugs. "Can't say I'm flabbergasted. These three bird-brained idiots do all kinds of half planned shit, I'm surprised they haven't set themselves on fire yet. This actually pales in comparison to the other senseless things they've done."

"Uhh, it's actually Saturday." Rory pipes in, earning equal dirty looks from everyone in the room (does he take the cue to shut his mouth? No). "Blondes." He snorts as he elbows Benny. "Am I right?"

"I will literally rip out your tongue." Erica deadpans. Rory visibly shrinks in on himself.

Sarah sighs exasperatedly. She loves Ethan, Benny, and Rory, and will go to the ends of the Earth for them. But honestly why is it that they can't be left alone for five minutes without them doing something irresponsible? Why are they always getting themselves into some extravagant mess that needed her assistance in fixing? She would like to enjoy one Saturday without receiving the SOS text, or the panicked call.

"Alright," she says as she pinches the bridge of her nose. "I don't care how you do it, but you're going to fix this and you're going to fix this now." She points a finger at Benny similar to how a mother points a finger at a disobedient child. "Or I'm going to call Grandma Weir and tell her all about your crazy Hades exposé operation."

Benny gasps. "You wouldn't! If grandma finds out about this she'll never leave me alone for the weekend again! Hell, she won't even let me use magic again!"

Sarah crosses her arms. "Not my problem. Nobody told you to do this in the first place. Either find a solution or suffer the consequences."

Benny grumbles something under his breath about insufferable vampires and their bossiness, to which Sarah angrily hisses at him, causing him to jump into Rory's arms while screaming.

Ethan would laugh if it weren't for how upset he is.

"Guys," Ethan starts, panic in his voice, "what if we can't fix this? What if there's no cure and I'm stuck telling the truth and only the truth forever?"

"Hey, come on E." Benny says reassuringly. "Just relax. We're going to figure it out."

The look Ethan gives Benny makes him eat his words.

"Relax?!" Ethan yells, standing up causing Benny to shrink. "How am I supposed to relax when I don't have a filter anymore and anything I say can put us in a hellhole?! Did you forget that three of our friends are vampires?!" He gestures to Sarah, Erica, and Rory. "What's gonna happen if I accidently spill the beans on what they really are?"

Benny runs his hands through his hair in frustration. How did this end so badly? "Alright, alright. Listen, we're going to fix this, okay? Maybe if we all look through some of the books my grandma has down here we'll figure something out."

"Um, no, you're going to look through the books." Ethan shoves one of Grandma Weir's spell books into his chest. "I'm the victim here so what I'm going to do is go upstairs and…" come on, come on, think of something to say! Ethan pleads with his mouth to say anything but what it wants to say. He begs his mind to come up with something less humiliating than what he's really thinking. But alas, the truth serum has won the battle because he hears himself say, "And try not to cry because I'm actually really scared right now." Fucking hell…

Erica snorts again. "Ooh, I'm scared now."

Grumbling, Ethan stomps all the way up the stairs and slams the door behind him, the sound echoing throughout the basement.

Benny looks around at his friends with sorrowful eyes. To say he regrets everything is an understatement. The last thing he wanted to do was hurt anyone, let alone his best friend even if it was just an accident. And now Ethan's mad at him. And Ethan rarely gets mad. Benny wishes he never came up with the stupid plan or theory to begin with.

"Will you guys please help me?" He asks his friends with a small voice.

Sarah drops her angered demeanor at Benny's downfallen one. Maybe they're being a little too hard on him. He didn't mean to hurt Ethan. Was he using his head? No. But at least his intentions weren't bad. Mostly. "Yes of course." Benny smiles at her. "But only because nobody want's Ethan to walk around as an open book. The faster we come up with an antidote, the better."

And with that, they begin the tedious job of flipping through every spell book, potions book, and magical theory book they could find. They sat in the quiet of the basement (even Rory was quiet) flipping through pages and pages of magic books to no avail. Even Erica alternated between reading and scrolling through her Instagram. They spend a little over an hour thoroughly searching but coming up with nothing.

"This book doesn't even make sense." Rory says some point. "Half of it is in Latin, and the other half is in some kind of weird English. How are we supposed to find a cure if I can't even understand what the freaking book says?!"

"I'm pretty sure you can't understand a Dr. Seuss book." Erica doesn't look up from the book she's skimming through.

"Hey, Green Eggs and Ham is one of my favorite novels!"

Yup. A superb weekend.

In all honesty, Benny can't seem to concentrate too well. His mind keeps drifting off to the boy sitting somewhere upstairs probably fuming at Benny right now. He's never seen Ethan this mad before, especially at him. And Benny isn't the easiest friend to deal with he knows that for sure. He's always been the annoying kid that Ethan's had to deal with since they were kids. This is the first time Benny has done something so bad that he's afraid of losing his friendship with the smaller boy.

That's one of the things Benny values most in his life. His friendship with Ethan. More than video games, comics, spells, and magic. More than anything else he can think of. He'd give all of that up if it meant keeping Ethan in his life and keeping him happy. He hates himself for nearly spoiling something he holds so close to his heart, all for some stupid scheme he didn't fully think through. He just really hopes he didn't screw things up too bad, and that Ethan will find it in himself to forgive him.

He wonders if his hidden feelings for the raven-haired boy has anything to do with his sadness. Yes, okay, he admits it. He's had this stubborn crush on his best friend for as long as he can remember. Okay it's more than a crush. He's pretty sure he's in love with Ethan even though he's afraid to admit it to himself. It's not easy to admit that you love your best friend in more than a platonic way, especially if said best friend happens to be the same gender as you and extremely straight.

Benny hasn't had the courage to tell anyone about his feelings. How do you just casually bring up that you might be gay, and that you also feel like melting every time your best friend smiles your way? He's doesn't even know whether he's gay or not, or how to label himself yet. The only thing he knows for certain is that what he feels for Ethan he's never felt for anyone else before. And he's felt this way for a very long time. And it kills him to see Ethan ogle at Sarah and other girls all the time because he wishes it was him Ethan was ogling at. Regardless, Benny wants his best friend to be happy, even if it means keeping his feelings to himself until the day he dies.

"I've got it!"

Benny nearly falls of the table he's sitting on at the sudden outburst. He looks at a triumphant Sarah. "I've found an antidote!"

Benny, Rory, and Erica surround her as she reads the ingredients for the antidote. It looks simple enough to make except for the fact that they don't have one ingredient: goose beaks.

"Wait." Benny narrows his eyes at the fine print under the potion instructions. "What's that?"

Sarah reads, "An alternative antidote to the Truth Serum is for the recipient to disclose his or her deepest kept secret to at least one other person."

"So why don't we just make Ethan tell us his deepest secret and then boom, he's cured?" Rory asks.

Benny shakes his head. "Easier said than done. Ethan's tight lipped when it comes to secrets. If he has one he won't want to tell anyone, especially if it's an embarrassing secret."

"Well, you're his best friend Benny." Sarah points out. "He tells you everything. Maybe you can try getting it out of him. I'm sure he'll tell you if he knew it'll cure him."

Benny considers this. He trusts Ethan with his life, and vice versa. If Ethan were to tell anyone about some huge secret of his, he would tell Benny. He's sure of it. "Okay. I'll go find him and try to persuade him."

Sarah closes the book. "And I'm going to try and find some goose beaks just in case we need it." The two begin heading up stairs when—

"Wait!" Erica's shrill voice stops them in their tracks. "You're going to leave me alone with him?!" She jabs a thumb at Rory who's more than pleased to be left alone with the blonde. He's so giddy he's almost drooling.

"It's only for a few minutes." Sarah promises. "I'll be back soon. Just… try not to rip his head off."

Rory wiggles his eyebrows at Erica who groans in disgust before flopping backwards on the couch.

Benny doesn't wait to hear Sarah's response to her blonde best friend. He wastes no time bounding the stairs two at a time to find Ethan. He's not surprised to find the smaller boy in Benny's room playing Mortal Kombat 11. He doesn't look up or acknowledge Benny when he walks in (Benny's not sure if it's because he's engrossed in the game or because Ethan's deliberately ignoring Benny).

Benny closes the door behind him. "H-hey Ethan."

"Hey," Ethan mumbles, his eyes never leaving the game.

"I have good news." Benny tries, but Ethan still doesn't look at him. "We've figured out how to counteract the truth serum."

"And…?" He's eyes are still fixated on the game.

Ethan has never given Benny the cold shoulder this badly before. Why is this making him so upset? "Well, there are two options. We can either make you another potion that will act as an antidote. Sarah just went out to find the missing ingredient."

"What's the second option?" Ethan's voice remains flat.

"If you tell someone your biggest secret, it will also counteract the effects of the serum."

That must have did the trick or flipped some switch in the teen. Ethan nearly drops the game controller at Benny's words. He fumbles with the controller and hits pause. "I have to do what?" He finally looks at Benny.

"Tell someone your biggest secret to deactivate the serum."

"Are-are you sure that's the only way?"

Benny is surprised at the level of anxiety in Ethan's voice. "It's the fastest way. Sarah went out to get an ingredient for the potion, but she might not be able to find it. And even if she does, it could take a while to make it. But if you just say your biggest secret, then it will all be over in a snap." He snaps his fingers for emphasis.

He doesn't understand though. He knew Ethan wouldn't be happy about disclosing his secret to anyone, but he didn't expect for him to react like this. Ethan has become somewhat of a nervous wreck, shifting uncomfortably in his seat, getting red in the face, and breathing heavily.

"S-so who am I, uhh, who am I supposed to tell the secret to?" he sputters.

Benny gestures to himself with furrowed eyebrows. "Me. Duh. I'm your best friend. You can trust me with anything."

Ethan gives the green-eyed boy a very unconvincing smile. "Thanks Benny but I-I think I'll just wait for the potion."

"What? Why?" Benny takes a step toward Ethan and he responds by moving over on the bed. "Ethan it would be so much easier and faster if you just spill the beans. I promise I won't judge you on it even if it's embarrassing."

"I, um," Ethan gulps. "I-I know you won't judge me but, uhh, seriously it's okay. Really. I can wait a little longer to be cured. I, uh, I don't think it's a good idea for secrets to come out." Please leave it alone! Please leave it alone!

"But why?" Benny asks, but regrets it right after when he sees the struggle on Ethan's face and remembers that the teen is currently an open book and has no control over what he says.

Ethan bites his bottom lip in an attempt to keep his mouth shut. But he feels the words pushing hard to spill and his willpower decreasing. Finally, he blurts, "I like someone, but I don't want to tell you or anyone who it is!"

Benny rolls his eyes. "Ethan I already know you like Sarah—"

"It's not Sarah!"

Benny stares at his best friend. Not Sarah? Since their freshman year, Ethan's had a huge crush (slight obsession) over the vampire. And who could blame him? Sarah's beautiful. She has guys tripping over their toes for her everywhere she goes. And she inevitably had the same effect on Ethan. Or so Benny thought.

"But," Benny starts, "but I thought you liked—"

"Sarah was just a cover up!" Ethan's mouth is moving and his eyes grow wide in horror as more of what he wants to avoid saying spills out. "I never liked her. She was always a cover up for the person I really like because—" Ethan rubs his face in frustration. "Please don't make me say anything else."

"Wait," Benny starts, trying his best to wrap his head around what Ethan's saying. "But why couldn't you tell me about who this person is? I mean, I'm supposed to be your best friend. Why would you lie to me about this out of all people?" Benny's not sure whether he's upset because Ethan lied to him, or because Ethan likes yet another person that's not Benny. Either way his chest feels tighter than it should.

Ethan shakes his head rigorously. He moves again on the bed, away from Benny. "I'm sorry Benny but I really couldn't tell you. You wouldn't understand—"

"Why wouldn't I understand?" Benny exclaims, making Ethan jump. He feels like he's overreacting, but he's finding it hard to cover up the hurt he's feeling. "Seriously Ethan? After all these years of being best friends and you don't trust me with something like this? Are you kidding me?"

Ethan moves over on the bed until his back hits the headboard. "Benny, I-I do trust you. But, but I couldn't—"

"But you obviously don't if you can't even tell me who it is now to break the stupid truth serum!"

"Benny," Ethan pleads, sweat building on his forehead. "Benny please! I-i-it's just a really complicated situation…"

"What, too complicated for your idiot best friend to understand?" Benny's mouth is vomiting words faster than he can think of them.

Ethan shakes his head. "No! That's not what it is Benny! I just…" he falters.

Benny crosses his arms. "So then why can't you tell me who your crush is on?"

Tears well up in Ethan's brown eyes. "Because I'm scared." His voice cracks.

If Benny wasn't confused before, the fear behind Ethan's eyes definitely has him confused now. "Scared of what E?" Ethan just closes his eyes and shakes his head. Benny tries not to be frustrated anymore because of the sadness written all over Ethan's face.

"That you'll hate me," Ethan squeezes his eyes shut as a tear rolls down his cheek, "because… because it's you."

Ethan says it so softly that Benny almost misses it. But he drops his arms as his heart skips about 5 beats. He resists the urge to slap his face to make sure he's not stuck in a dream.

"Fuck." Ethan breathes in frustration. There's a long pause before he continues as tears fall from his eyes. "M-my biggest secret is th-that I have feelings for—" he sucks in a breath but it sounds more like a sob, "for you. I-I have feelings for you. And I've had them since… I don't know. Since f-forever I guess. B-but I didn't want to tell you because there's just no possible way you'd like me back since, y'know, you're straight and everything, and I've just always felt so s-stupid because out of all people I had to fall for, it had to be my best friend. A-and I've just been s-scared that if I said anything I'd freak you out and l-lose you, and I-I don't want to lose you because you're my best friend and the most important person in my life, and now you probably hate me—"

"Ethan, no. Stop." Benny snaps out of his stupor and sits on the bed next to Ethan who looks at him throw teary brown eyes. "I don't hate you, okay?"

"You don't?" Ethan sniffs.

Benny shakes his head. "I could never hate you. No matter what happens in life I'll never hate you, and I'll never leave you. You're just as important to me as I am to you."

"B-b-but," Ethan's bottom lip continues to tremble, "you don't think it's weird? That I'm your best friend, and I'm a guy, and I like you?"

Benny chuckles nervously. "I guess it would be pretty hypocritical of me if I did." The words leave his mouth without much of a second thought. Benny looks down at his lap as his cheeks turn a bright scarlet. For some reason he's afraid of how Ethan will react to his confession even though he's the one who confessed first. After a few seconds, Benny finally looks up to meet Ethan's wide, red rimmed eyes. How are they still so beautiful?

"What?" Now Ethan feels like slapping himself because there's no way Benny just said what he thinks he just said.

"I, um," Benny clears his throat as his voice cracks, "I also really, really like my best friend." Benny moves his hand to where Ethan's is resting on the bed. He grabs it gently. "But I've been keeping it to myself because I was afraid of scaring him away. And I also didn't want to lose him, because having him in my life gives me something to look forward to every day. And I also thought he was very straight." Benny smirks at Ethan.

Ethan chuckles, a sound Benny has always cherished. "You, you really mean it?"

Benny nods. "Every word."

Ethan smiles, his tear stained cheeks sporting a pink tinge to match Benny's. They both alternate between looking at each other and look at their laps. Benny's hand still grasps the back of Ethan's as the silence drags on. There's so much more to be said, be neither boy knows where to start.

Finally, Ethan speaks. "I've always imagined what I'd do or say if I ever found out you felt the same way, but my mind is drawing a blank now."

"Does that mean I make you speechless?" Benny teases.

Ethan laughs. "Don't ruin it."

"Sorry."

"So," Ethan bites on his bottom lip, "what happens now?" They obviously can't just go back to being platonic best friends. Not after all these confessions. At least, Ethan doesn't want to go back to that. But how does this whole thing work? How do they transition to being more than friends?

Benny seems to answer all of this with one simple question. "Can… can I kiss you?"

It's only now that Ethan notices Benny's been glancing at his lips. Ethan's been doing it too subconsciously. His heart does a whole backflip at the question. He's only ever dreamed of what it would be like to have Benny's lips connect with his own. Now that the opportunity has shown itself, Ethan has no idea what to do or how to handle it.

He decides to simply nod because he can't trust his voice just yet.

Benny shifts closer to Ethan, his heart pounding against his ribcage. Their eyes never leave each other's gaze, green against brown. They're both in each other's space now, mere inches apart. They've been this close before, closer in fact. But it's different now that they know what they know. It's different now that there's a chance things between them can be more than what it's been. It's different now that they've been given the opportunity to explore what can happen if they decide to take that next step.

Benny knows it's different when he slowly cups Ethan's cheeks and sparks travel from his fingertips all the way to his elbows. Ethan knows it's different when a soft sigh escapes his lips as Benny wipes away the last of his tears with his thumbs. The touch is so warm, so tender. He can't believe he's been starved of it for so long.

Finally, Benny leans forward and presses his lips against Ethan's.

And they both can't believe they've been starved of this for so long.

The kiss is soft at first. Just a safe, simple touch of lips against lips, neither boy knowing if or how to take it up a notch. Both far too afraid to do so. And who can blame them? They're two highly inexperienced boys (who up until now were platonic friends) kissing for the first time after confessing they like each other. Not to mention this is both of their first kisses (sans a small peck on the lips Benny shared with one of the girls in his preschool class). So it's perfectly normal for them to feel just the slightest bit awkward at the feeling of a new pair of lips against their own.

They pull apart after a few seconds, a light tingle left behind on both their lips. Their hearts flutter as they blink their eyes open and brown meets green again. And for some reason, staring into those eyes has a different effect on Benny than it did just a few seconds ago. Staring into them fills him with an intense feeling of desire, and leaves him feeling like he wants those eyes to consume him completely, like a fire whose purpose isn't to burn but to quench a deep and everlasting thirst.

It's all of this, plus the mirrored expression Ethan is giving him, that guides Benny in his next moves. His hand cups the back of Ethan's neck and he brings Ethan's face to his own, capturing his lips again. Ethan quickly melts into the kiss as Benny deepens it, doing his best to communicate everything he's ever felt for Ethan with just his lips. Ethan seems to understand, or maybe they're both in golden euphoria, or maybe Benny's just a damn good kisser, because Ethan responds eagerly, drinking up Benny's fire as fast as Benny drinks up his. Ethan's arms snake around Benny's waist and pull him closer so that they're chest to chest. Benny lightly sucks on Ethan's bottom lip and the sound that creeps out of Ethan's throat does many things to Benny that he's never felt or experienced before, and it both delights and scares him because it makes him want to deepen the kiss more so he can hear Ethan make the sound again and he wants to be closer to Ethan and feel closer to Ethan and he just can't get over the feeling of wanting more.

And it's the cheesiest thing in the world to say, but the entire experience feels like thousands of fireworks being set off all around them, their pretty colors falling all over Ethan and Benny. The euphoria buzzes around them, and it's the most intoxicating feeling either boy has ever experienced. It's so much better than either of them could have imagined or dreamed of. The sensation of Ethan's lips sends tingles down Benny's spin into the tips of his toes. Benny can kiss him for the rest of his life if he has to because kissing Ethan is like kissing something sweet and delicate, but at the same time firm and full. It's like kissing red velvet. It feels like how red velvet feels, taste like how red velvet tastes.

Reality pokes itself at Benny and Ethan's happy little bubble when Benny's phone rings and vibrates from his back pocket. He reluctantly pulls apart from Ethan, both of them breathing heavily after the incredible experience they just had. Benny fishes his phone from his pocket with all intentions of sending the call straight to voicemail, but the name on the caller I.D. puts a break in his plans.

It's Sarah.

The whole day comes back to him in a rush. The truth serum. Ethan drinking it. Yelling and cursing and an angered Ethan. Trying to find a solution. Sarah going out for goose beaks for the antidote, which was the entire reason Benny was here in the first place.

Benny answers. "H-hello."

"Hey. Any luck on getting Ethan to tell you whatever secret he has?" She asks. "The place Grandma Weir usually gets her ingredients from is out of stock for the next week, and they want to know if I should rush order a batch."

"Uhh hang on." Benny pulls the phone away from his ear and mutes it. "Quick! Ethan lie about something!"

Ethan, who's still panting past his reddened lips, furrows his eyebrows in confusion. "Okay. I made out with a girl one year behind the big oak tree at camp—" Ethan stops mid-sentence as his jaw drops. He just lied. He just lied without difficulty.

It worked. The truth serums effects were broken. Ethan is cured.

"Thank god." Benny sighs with relief before unmuting Sarah. "We're all good here Sarah. Ethan's been cured. You can come back now."

"Alright. I'm on my way."

Benny hangs up the phone. "I can't even begin to tell you how happy I am this entire truth serum thing is over."

Ethan snorts. "Says the guy who made it and drugged me in the first."

"Hey! It's not my fault Rory hid it in the fridge. Of all please, the fucking fridge."

"Who's the one that told him to hide it in the first place?"

Benny falters. "You got me there, E." They laugh, the atmosphere so much lighter than it was when Benny first entered the room. "You wanna head back downstairs?"

Ethan eyes Benny rather suggestively (when the hell did he learn to do that?!) before shaking his head. "Not really."

"Yeah, me either." Benny sighs. "But I kind of left Erica and Rory alone in the basement so…"

"You left Rory and Erica alone? In a confined room?" Ethan gasps. "Have you lost your mind?"

"In my defense, desperate times called for desperate measures. Unless you wanted to confess your undying love for me to Rory of all people." Ethan shoves him as Benny laughs at his own joke. Ethan can't help but chuckle as well because he's right. The last person Ethan would ever want to have this talk with is Rory.

Benny presses his lips against Ethan's one last time, both boys smiling into the kiss. They pull apart after a few seconds and finally leave the room. They make their way back to the basement, and soon after Sarah comes back to find Benny and Ethan floating on some type of high. She doesn't question it or what they discussed. She's just happy that they can move on from that portion, as are the rest of them.

So yeah, the day started out pretty bad. Started out pretty ugly to be exact. But somehow, it turned around for Ethan and Benny, and now they're finally getting the chance to be happy with each other.

And right now, that's more than enough for them.

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-THEBLACKAGENDA