A New Ind of Love

Okay guys, for those of you who are new to my stories you should know this was the VERY first story I ever wrote and posted, so it's very...undeveloped.

My writing has greatly improved so if you want to know what I'm really capable of, check out any of my other stories. This one is a fan favorite though so I know I had to post it.

If you already know my writing, you know I'm better than this and I don't have to tell you anything ;)

Enjoy

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A lone figure rises in a graveyard. Taking a moment to look around, he sets off in the direction of the gates. Passing through them just as the clock's final chime marks Midnight. The smell of sulfur follows him, dissipating in the cool night air behind his flowing jacket.

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"Steven Bernard! You get down here this instant!" Martha called from the kitchen. Steve gave a heavy sigh, taking one last look in the mirror. He stood 5' 11" with light brown hair and emerald green eyes. He had manage to keep all the muscle he worked hard on over summer. Working at the outdoor adventure camp was a very demanding job.

He had been held back a year, and was now 19. Starting his senior year of high school made him think about what he was going to do after it. Was he going to go to college?

'I can't worry about that now,' he chided himself. 'I'll cross that bridge when I come to it.' He grabbed his backpack from the floor where it had sat all summer and rushed downstairs.

"You're going to be late." His mother wrapped a muffin in a paper towel before handing it to him and giving him a kiss on the cheek, rushing him off to meet the bus. He made it just in time and climbed on. He quickly sat down next to Francis.

"Hey where you been all summer?" Francis asked him, grabbing the muffin and taking a bite.

"Working. Which is more than you can say. I've saved up a ton," Steve said before snatching back the muffin and eating the half his friend hadn't already stolen.

"As far as I'm concerned summer is for sleeping, eating, and hot girls," Francis smirked. "But of course you wouldn't know about that."

Steve punched him in the arm. Francis was one of his few friends who were ok with him being gay. He had come out two years ago and had lost a couple of friends, but the ones who were most important to him stayed. Which he was thankful for.

"You meet someone over break?" Steve questioned as he finished his breakfast.

"Yeah, her name's Madeleine. She's John's cousin," Francis said with a glazed over look in his eye.

"Madeleine, huh? How long have you two been a thing?" Steve said, slightly wincing at the name of one of his old friends. John and Steve used to be friends. But when he came out John wanted nothing to do with him. Even went out of his way to cause him trouble. They had gotten into several fights. Steve had almost been expelled.

"Two and a half months," Francis smiled proudly, as he and Steve stood to get off the bus.

"Wow man, I'm proud of you... I'm pretty sure that's a new record for you!" Steve nudged Francis' arm. Francis had a long reputation of only having one night stands with a girl.

"Yeah, me too! I just hope I can keep it going. Her family is like mega-Catholic. Won't put out at all." Francis said with a sad look on his face.

"Just hang in there man. You'll make it," Steve punched his friends shoulder as they stepped off the bus.

~~~

"Welcome back everyone. As all of you know, I'm Mr. Townsen. Most of you had me last year. And probably the year before that. And the year before that. So you all know what I expect of my students. Don't disappoint me. However, we do have a new student, class this is...." Mr. Townsen held a small slip of paper in his hands and struggled over the name.

There was a small boy with dark black hair and brilliant blue eyes standing next to him. He looked thin and almost frail. But his face held a certain strength to it. He was dressed in mostly black except for a few blue patterns across his shirt. He wore a long jacket that was tight on his chest but then flared out so it was long on the back and sides. It reminded Steve a lot of Neo's coat in The Matrix.

" I'm sorry, how do you pronounce your name?" Mr. Townsen asked the boy. The boy turned and looked at Mr. Townsen. His ice blue eyes gave him a very intense gaze.

"Just call me... Stoph," the boy said with a small smile on his face.

"Stoph... well, welcome to the class. Have a seat," Mr. Townsen pointed to an empty seat next to Steve.

He soon began with a long list of rules and class guidelines. Everyone slowly began to zone out and Steve saw a couple of people pull out their phones and begin to text or play games. Some began talking to each other or pass notes. He turned in his seat so he was facing Stoph.

"Hey, I'm Steve," he addressed the smaller boy.

"Stoph... as you heard," he spoke with what Steve thought sounded like an old English accent.

"Nice to meet you. So, where you from?" Steve asked, wanting to know more about the boy.

"Hell... ummm... Hell, Michigan. Weird name for a town, a I know," Stoph answered.

"Ah man, that's so cool. Awesome name for a place. So why did you move to boring ole Sunnyslope, Washington. Now that's a shitty name for a town if you ask me," Steve laughed.

"Work. My... uh... Dad's work," Stoph said.

"Ah I see. What's he do?" Steve asked. He thought he saw Stoph wince. 'Am I being too nosy?' he thought to himself.

"Uh he's a... lawyer. His firm closed down and he got a good job offer here... so... here I am," Stoph seemed to be fumbling with his replies.

"Cool. My dad used to be a warehouse worker. But after I came out a couple of years ago people started giving him shit at work. So instead of putting up with it, he left and started his own business," Steve said, searching Stoph's face for any hint of anger or disgust. He saw none on the boys smooth face.

"Your gay, huh? Me too. Not a lot of people know though. Its not that I haven't come out, its just that there was never really anyone to tell. If that makes sense," Stoph added.

"Yeah... I know what you mean. So 'Stoph', huh... no offense, but that's a really weird name," Steve laughed.

"Yeah, its a nickname. That's what I've always been called," Stoph replied.

"Cool," Steve said.

They continued to talk for most of that class and the class after. Steve had found out that Stoph loved music. And reading older books. He played guitar and a few other instruments. And he was usually home alone since his dad always worked late and his mother had died when he was born.

Steve loved the gaze that Stoph would give people. Not like he was glaring at them or staring. Just the way he looked at people. Almost never blinking and his eyes always wide open. Steve knew he was feeling something for the younger guy and was hoping stoph felt the same way.

On his way to lunch, he stopped in the bathroom to look at himself in the mirror, before sitting at his usual table with Francis.

"Hey," Francis said as Steve sat down.

"Hey. So you seen the new guy?" Steve asked. It was rare they got a new student in Sunnyslope so he knew if Francis had seen him he would know him.

"Yeah that weird goth guy? He's freaky," Francis said over a bite of his sandwich.

"Really? He's kind of cute," Steve said staring off into space thinking of Stoph's ice blue eyes.

"Ooooh... no. Not again. Remember, you made me promise I wouldn't let you get into another relationship with a straight guy. Not after Peter," Francis said, poking Steve in the chest hoping the pain would refresh his memory.

"Ouch! And I know. Stoph isn't straight though, so ha... I win," Steve smirked, rubbing the spot on his chest Francis had jabbed with his finger.

"Stoph? His name is Stoph? That only proves my theory the guy is fuckin' weird, Ven." Francis used the nickname Steve had gotten in the first grade when Francis couldn't pronounce the STE of his name.

"It's a nickname. Jeez, you can't blame the guy for having a weird name," Steve rolled his eyes and took a bite of his pizza.

"Ugh, fine just don't come crying to me when he sucks the soul out of your body or something," Francis said taking another bite of sandwich. Steve laughed at the clump of tuna on Francis' lip.

"Dude... you're a pig," Steve said and threw a chip at him. They were about to get into a full on food fight when a small but firm voice interrupted.

"Mind if I join you?" Stoph said from behind them. Steve turned suddenly on the bench, face lighting up seeing the smaller boy.

"Hey! Sure Stoph, here," Steve scooted closer towards Francis to make room for Stoph to his left.

"Thanks," Stoph said before sitting down and looking over at Francis.

"Speak of the devil," Francis muttered in Steve's ear before receiving a hard elbow to the ribs. He let out a satisfying 'oof' before he quickly recovered.

"Hey. You're in my English Lit class right?" Stoph asked Francis.

"Yeah. Francis," Francis introduced himself after catching Steve's threatening glare.

"Stoph," he replied with a nod of his head.

"Yeah Ven's been talking bout you," Francis smiled at the blushed look that came across Steve's face.

"'Ven' huh?" Stoph looked at Steve who was quickly turning red.

"Yeah what makes you think you're the only one with a nickname," Steve smiled. And was overjoyed when Stoph smiled back at him before taking a bite of his pizza. Steve caught a slight twitch of Stoph's eye and his grimace before swallowing the food.

"Cafeteria food isn't the best. I seem to be the only one who likes it," Steve laughed.

"Yeah, but you would eat a bike chain if it got too close... so that's not saying much," Francis smiled, and Steve shoved him enough to drop his bag of chips.

"Aw," Francis said, mourning over the loss of his snack. Steve rolled his eyes and turned towards Stoph.

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It was about a week after they met that Steve decided he would finally make a move. It always seemed to him like Stoph was flirting with him. It was the end of the day when Steve finally found him. Stoph was in the halls setting up his locker with his books, schedule, and everything else he would need for the rest of the year. The school was almost empty, everyone eager to get home.

"Hey Stoph," Steve smiled and walked toward the boy.

"Hey," Stoph returned the smile. Steve noticed his smile never really reached his eyes. Like he always had the icy gaze that not even his smile could touch.

"So I was thinking, if you wanted to we could hang out or something. My place or yours... I don't care. I mean if you want to. We don't have to. Or we don't even have to go home yet. There's a park nearby or we could go get something to eat. And I'm babbling. I'm going to shut up now," Steve laughed and rubbed the back of his neck looking down at his shoes. He hadn't asked someone out since peter.

"I would love to. I don't care where we go. My Dad won't be home til early in the morning most likely." Stoph smiled as he pushed the last book onto the top shelf of his locker.

"Cool that works. Lets go to your place then," Steve replied.

"Here's my address. I need to run around for a bit. So come by at like 5 or so. Alright?" Stoph asked handing him a piece of paper he had just written down his address on.

"Sure. See you later," Steve said and took off towards home. Where he showered and changed just to make sure if anything did happen he was nice and squeaky clean.

Steve pulled up at Stoph's in his dad's car. He found out that it was only a couple of minutes away from his own house. He parked and walked up the driveway to the front door. He knocked and waited a moment before the door opened and Stoph stood In the doorway.

He was wearing different clothes than earlier that day and his hair looked like it was almost dry. He had on a short sleeve black shirt, which showed tattoos on his arms, and tight black jeans. His hair was brushed down his forehead reaching almost past his eyebrows. His eyes the icy blue Steve had grown to love.

"Hey, come on in," he turned around and headed up the stairs. Steve stepped in and shut the door behind him. He took a quick look around. The living room off to his right and a dining room to his left which attached to a small kitchen. All furnished with modern appliances and furniture. However he saw no personal touches.

No pictures or paintings. No items lying around the house. The furniture looked like it was almost never used.

He walked up the steps to the second floor where there was a long hallway. With two doors on the right, two on the left, and one at the end of the hall. The one at the end of the hall was open and music drifted out of it. Steve walked towards that one and found Stoph sitting at a computer.

Stoph turned and smiled at him. "Hey sit down," he nodded towards the bed and Steve had a seat. They spent the next hour or so talking about everything from their teachers to movies until they reached the subject of music.

"So what is this?" Steve asked.

"Its the Trans-Siberian Orchestra. They mix rock music with classical. Christmas music too. That's what they're famous for. But this is my favorite," Stoph explained.

"Cool. So you're really alone here most of the time?" Steve asked flipping through a stack of CDs, which were on the bed when he came in.

"Yeah, my dad works late so its just me," Stoph answered, throwing his arms up and looking down at himself.

"That's kind of cool I guess. Always have your privacy right?" Steve asked.

"Yeah... I like it."

"Hey, I wanna apologize for the nervousness earlier when I asked you if you wanted to hang out," Steve laughed

"Its fine, I thought it was cute," Stoph smiled.

"Yeah, well, I haven't really asked anyone out since my last boyfriend. Peter," Steve got a sad look in his eyes.

"Uh-oh. I sense a story here," Stoph got up and sat down on the bed next to Steven.

"Not much of a story if you ask me. I was happy with him. I thought I loved him. I thought we were gonna be forever you know? Well, he had other ideas and thought I would be cool with him seeing other guys. I caught him cheating on me. And instead of apologizing or anything, all he did was invite me to join them." Steve glared at a spot on the floor until Stoph thought he was gonna burn a hole in his carpet.

"Ouch," Stoph winced.

"Yeah. Well, he was an asshole... so forget him," Steve smiled and looked up at Stoph.

"I've only been with one guy, too. We never really went any farther than kissing though. His name was Faust," Stoph said, although there was no remorse in his eyes as Steve expected. Instead there was almost a humorous twinkle.

"You Michigan boys have some weird ass names," Steve laughed. Stoph smiled.

"Yeah well, my Dad and his dad never really got along so I swear they didn't do it on purpose," Stoph laughed.

"If you don't mind me asking... what happened to you two?" Steve asked.

"He had to leave. He made a deal with someone and when they finished their part of the deal he had to hold up his end," Stoph said.

"That sucks," Steve said simply. Suddenly entranced by Stophs soft looking lips.

"Yeah. But now I have you, so I won't be so alone anymore will I?" Stoph said and turned to face Steve.

"Yeah," Steve mumbled as he got closer to Stoph. Their lips met and Steve gasped with the electricity between them. He licked softly at Stoph's lower lip, and with a moan the boy opened to allow Steve's tongue entry.

Steve pushed him back on the bed and began exploring Stoph's mouth with his tongue. He put his hands on the smaller boys hips and Stoph wrapped his tattoo clad arms around Steve's' waist and pulled him closer. Steve covered the smaller body with his own and felt his hard-on rub against Stoph's thigh.

He nudged his leg between Stoph's and felt his hard on. He felt smaller than Steve but still average sized. Stoph moaned into Steve's mouth and ran his hand up Steve's back into his hair where he got a grip in his head and pulled him harder into his mouth. After awhile they finally pulled apart to breath.

"Holy hell," Steve sighed as Stoph nuzzled his neck. Stoph giggled quietly.

"What?" Steve asked confused.

"Nothing. You're a good kisser," Stoph replied shyly. That was the first time Steve didn't see the cool confident gaze in place.

"You too," Steve smiled and leaned in for another kiss.

"So... you've never... you know..." Steve trailed off hoping Stoph would understand what he was getting at.

"Slept with anyone? No," Stoph said blushing.

"Pete and I did. A couple of times but it was never very satisfying to be honest," Steve smiled. Stoph smiled back. But then a dark shadow came over his face. He sat up suddenly and forced Steve off him. Steve looked at him confused. But all Stoph did was fix his hair and straighten out his shirt before standing.

"What's wrong? Did I upset you? I didn't mean to. I'm sorry," Steve said, hoping Stoph would sit down on the bed again.

"Its not you. Its me. You don't know me. And you shouldn't know me. I'm... just not a nice guy," Stoph confessed and looked down. Steve stood and put his hands on Stoph's cheeks.

"Don't give me that bullshit 'its not you its me' line. Maybe I don't know you... but I want to. What I've seen so far is that you're a nice guy. Just give me a chance, please," Steve nearly got on his knees and begged. He would have if that was what his boy wanted. 'My boy?' he thought to himself. 'When did he become my boy? Hmm... I like it,' he thought before almost shaking his head to bring himself back to what was going on.

"You don't want me. There are parts about me that I would never be able to tell you. Secrets that I could never share. You don't want that," Stoph said with a sad look in his eyes.

"Would you ever cheat on me?" Steve asked calmly.

"What? No, never," Stoph looked at him like he was crazy.

"Then I don't care. I like you a lot, Stoph. And I've been getting the vibe that you like me too. Is that right?" Steve asked him. Stoph said nothing, only nodded his head mutely.

"Then lets go for it. We can at least try can't we?" Steve asked looking down into the pools of ice cold water, and at Stoph's light pink lips that were a little swollen from their kisses.

"I- I don't know. I need to think about it," Stoph said and looked down at the floor again

Steve sighed heavily. He was impatient and he wanted his boy now. But if time was what he wanted then he would give him all the time in the world.

"OK. Just let me know when you decide, mkay? I'll be waiting," Steve added before he picked up his jacket and left the house, leaving Stoph deeply worried and confused alone in his room.