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Neither of them know how they got here. Jade knows that he had laughed at something Trey had said and Trey knows that for some reason he now has his hand on Jade’s jaw. He also knows the coldness of Jade’s gloved hand against his wrist, tensed and prepared to forcibly remove Trey’s touch at any given moment. Any time now. Any… Suppose it isn’t happening, at least not now.
“What do you think you’re doing?” he asks, voice of its usual disarming sweetness. The glint of sharp teeth past those lips (is he wearing lip balm?) is just as enthralling as the first time he saw them. That’s what he was doing, Trey remembers now. He had been wanting to get a better look at Jade’s teeth. In fact, he had been yearning for a look at the other’s teeth since the day they met. Guess his heart won out over his mind because here he was with Jade Leech’s face held firmly in his palm. He hadn’t thought about it all, except that he did. Trey tries to push his nightly thoughts out of his daytime thoughts. This is not the time.
“You… uh,” come on brain, kick in!
“I?” Jade raises one of those perfectly shaped brows.
“Do you think… Can I examine your teeth?” phenomenal, just start blurting things out. Trey feels like dropping out right now and hiding under the bakery counter for the rest of his life. Maybe not all of his life. Maybe only six or seven years, by then he’ll have grown enough facial hair to be unrecognizable. He’ll change his name to Tristopher to keep his initials and-
“You want to examine my teeth?”
“Examine, yeah,” Trey revels in the way the other’s eyes almost unnoticeably widen. He noticed. He’d be kicking himself in the ass if he didn’t notice.
“And what brought about this need to… examine?” Jade’s grip on his wrist lightens, now just a gentle hold.
“Oh, it’s just a hobby.”
“I see.”
…
..
.
Forget dropping out, Trey’s going to drop off the roof. Seven, this is so embarrassing and awkward. Out of all the things he could’ve done to embarrass himself this one has to be the icing on the cake. He wouldn’t be surprised if Jade shoved him off right now and left. To his surprise Jade doesn’t. Instead a gloved hand drops off his wrist and falls neatly into its own lap. “How do you want me then?”
How…? Oh, Trey can feel his poor brain frying itself as they speak. “Uh… You can just open your mouth.”
Trey honest to goodness feels his entire heart stutter when Jade opens up for him, albeit a bit shyly. “Does this suffice?”
Maybe he can push his luck. “A little wider.”
If Trey had felt his heart stutter, this time he’s feeling his entire cardiovascular system come to a standing halt. Wth shaky hands he leans over in his chair to get in Jade’s space. “Good,” Trey mutters unconsciously, only being made aware of it after seeing the ever so faint blush dusting the tips of Jade’s ears. His trembling hands have calmed down a bit, but not entirely, as he brings it up to Jade’s face. His thumb rests gently on the other’s bottom lip asking for a second wave of permission. Jade all but opens his mouth wider.
Trey slips his fingers into that dangerous cavern eagerly. He runs an index finger over the tops from the canines to the molars. Could they even be called canines here? Do merfolk have a more aquatic name for them? Fishnines? It doesn’t roll off the tongue as nicely.
Trey takes his time poking and prodding at each tooth. He hadn’t even noticed that he’d stood up and had since been leaning over him until Jade put his hands on the baker’s hips and pushed him back down into his own seat. “Oh sorry. Was I too much?” Any other words Trey might have had died instantly on his tongue as Jade pushes his own chair in and instead chooses to seat himself on Trey’s lap, facing him and straddling his thighs.
“Not at all. But I do think this new position may be more cost effective for you,” any prior shyness was gone, replaced with the sharp coy attitude Trey was used to. Alright then. Two can play at this game. Trey reaches around Jade with the hand that hadn’t been in his mouth to put his palm on the small of his back and drag him in even closer.
“I think here’s the best angle,” Trey grins to match Jade’s sly smile before his probing fingers return to his mouth. He does his best to ignore how correct it feels to have Jade’s arms draped over his shoulders in a loose hold.
“I’m surprised you haven’t bitten me.”
Jade only smiled with his eyes, teasingly, as if to say would you like me to? And maybe he would. Maybe he would like to be bitten by such neat, well-kept, sharp- oh. He’s bleeding. Looks like he pressed the pad of his finger down too hard against one of the points. Trey hadn’t thought he was applying that much pressure at all. Were they truly that sharp? Considering who’s mouth this is, the answer is more than likely yes. Trey would’ve just removed his hand from Jade’s mouth if he hadn’t felt a long tongue slither around the bleeding digit. Somewhere in the back of his stunned mind he remembers Crewel going on about mermaid saliva and its healing properties. By the time he pulls his fingers free to inspect, sure enough the cut was gone. There was nothing left in its wake but a little reddish line reminiscent of a light scrape.
Jade must have heard the “Wow,” muttered underneath Trey’s breath because he chuckles before opening his mouth for him once again. This time Trey gently depresses his tongue. He must have drunk the wrong tea this morning because he can swear he sees the glimmer of more teeth in the back of Jade’s throat. Jade must have noticed this too as his eyes gleam mischievously before- oh fuck!
A second set of teeth spring out and would’ve sliced Trey’s fingers clean off if he hadn’t pulled back in time. “What-” Trey stutters, heart racing.
The second jaw recinds before Jade speaks, all smiles. “That would be my pharyngeal jaw. They’re unique to moray eels as far as I’m aware. What’s wrong? I thought you had been looking to get bitten?”
Bastard.
“Are they sharper?”
“Yes. It’s in good health to file them even sharper.”
“I want to look again.”
“How bold,” he snickers before opening up. Trey watches near hypnotized as the second set make themselves known again. This time he is especially careful with running his fingertips over the serrated points. These ones really are needle sharp and he would rather not tear his entire finger open. Maybe Jade would heal it again but it’s decidedly not worth the risk. Admittedly he’s having a lovely time just tracing, and tracing, and tracing, and-
“You guys are fucking weird.”
“Hello, Floyd.”
Uh.
“Hey.” Because what else are you supposed to say to the brother of the man in your lap who’s been letting you indulgently inspect his teeth for nearly forty minutes. Whatever exchange the two have goes entirely lost on Trey as he tries to cope with the heat rushing to his face. Seven, he must look like his housewarden.
He feels the weight leave his lap and looks up dumbly to Jade standing beside him. “Unfortunately I’ll have to cut our time short. I must attend to an arising issue with one of the Lounge’s new staff. I did value my time with you. We will be sure to pick up where we left off.” and after pressing a chaste kiss to the corner of Trey’s lips, he’s off. It’s quiet in the greenhouse now, almost as if Trey had been by his lonesome the whole time but he knows better. He also knows that he’ll be sending the Heartslabyul students to bed early today.