11 Years Later

"Pepi! Hey, Pepi, over here!"

Pepito glanced up at the call, smiling as he caught sight of his one and only friend, Todd Casil. Not that Pepito ever called him that. As far as the Antichrist was concerned, Todd would always be Amigo or Squee.

Wandering over to where the other boy was sitting with his lunch, Pepito dropped into the seat across the table and immediately set about making faces at the mysterious goo the cafeteria lady insisted was food.

"Glaring at it won't make it go away Pepi." Squee joked, taking a bite of his own mystery lunch and swallowing happily, giggling slightly at the disgusted look on his friend's face.

"Maybe eating it will get rid of it now Amigo, but it also makes it come back later." Pepito sighed, before getting up and dumping his lunch in a nearby trashcan.

Squee rolled his eyes before digging into his bag and tossing a package to Pepito. At the questioning look, the brown-eyed boy swallowed his food and pointed at the return address.

"Survival kit from your mom. I picked it up when I went to get a new notebook."

Pepito practically squealed in delight as he hurriedly tore open the box. His mother made the best cookies.

Finally reaching his chocolaty goal, Pepito took a big bite and groaned happily. No matter how mad his father might be about his choices in life, his mother never stopped showing her approval in the form of the best baked goods in Earth, Heaven, or Hell.

The two sat in silence for a while, each enjoying their "food" until the bell rang, signaling the start of their next class. Todd swiped a few of the cookies, jamming them into his bag along with the already half-full notebook he had gotten earlier, before the two set off at a sprint across the campus towards Advanced Latin.

That Night

Pepito loved Fridays. On Friday night, no matter what homework they had, Todd put it off till later and the two watched a movie marathon, squashed against each other on Pepito's bed in order to be able to watch on the tiny screen TV.

Well, Squee watched anyway. Pepito mostly watched Squee, enjoying the emotions that flitted so freely across his face. The full body contact was a nice bonus too.

Tonight's feature was some chick flick that Pepito had given up on halfway through the opening credits. Todd seemed to be enjoying it though, and that was all that mattered to the other boy anyway.

When the movie ended, Pepito waited for the smaller boy to get up and either move back to his bed to sleep or put in another movie. When neither occurred, he looked closer, eyes crinkling in adoration when he realized that his Amigo had fallen asleep on him, face buried in Pepito's neck.

Wrapping his arms around the sleeping boy, Pepito gave into an urge that had been plaguing him for a while and pressed a kiss onto shaggy brown hair.

"Te amo, mi corazón."

Meanwhile, unbeknownst to Pepito, a pair of very awake brown eyes blinked in surprise. Pepito loved him? Like a friend, right? He couldn't mean that he LOVED him. Could he?

The Next Day

Pepito groaned as he was dragged back into the land of consciousness, wishing he could have stayed asleep for just a little bit longer. He had been having such a nice dream too.

A sudden shifting on his chest brought Pepito fully awake, and he tensed for a minute before relaxing and smiling at the still-sleeping form of his best friend. So it hadn't been a dream after all.

Bringing a hand up to stroke the other boy's hair, Pepito simply savored the moment, the feel of his best friend's body pressed against his. No matter what happened, this morning would stay with him forever.

Todd awoke more slowly, his initial response one of pleasure at the pleasant feel of body heat and gentle fingers in his hair. However, as his brain caught up with the rest of him, and he realized what exactly these things meant, Todd bolted upright, one of his trademark "Squeeee"s leaving his lips.

Pepito grinned up at the blushing boy above him, ignoring the part of him that wanted to pull his friend back down and kiss him senseless.

"Morning Amigo. Sleep well?" He asked, laughing a little as Squee's blush worsened, before the other boy quickly climbed off him to stand beside the bed.

"M..morning" Todd squeeked out before diving for the kitchen to start breakfast. When in doubt, cook. It had never failed him before.

Pepito let the other boy make his escape, deciding to tease his Amigo later, after a shower and some breakfast.

By the time Pepito was done showering, Todd already had a large plate of pancakes on the table and was busying himself with another batch.

Plunking down at the table, Pepito poured half the bottle of syrup over his pancakes and began to eat, wondering what had the smaller boy upset enough to be cooking this much.

Finally deciding that it was going to take a bit of a push to find out, Pepito swallowed his last bite, then got up and tapped his friend on the shoulder, causing the other boy to jump and almost knock the pan off the stove.

"Is something wrong Amigo?" Pepito asked gently, leading Squee away from the hot pan before any more mishaps could occur.

Squee hung his head for a second, seeming to fight with himself over what to say, before he took a deep breath, fixed his eyes firmly on the worn linoleum floor, and asked in a quiet voice, "Did you mean it Pepi?"

"Mean what Amigo?" Pepito asked, getting a sinking feeling in his stomach. Could Todd have heard him last night?

"…Well, er, when you, that is…" Todd stumbled over his answer, still refusing to look the other boy in the eyes.

Pepito slid a finger under his friend's chin and tilted his head up so Todd had nowhere to look but his face.

"Mean what Amigo?" He asked again quietly, fingers keeping the smaller boy's face tilted towards him.

Todd sighed, then seemed to pull himself together. Looking straight at Pepito, he replied, "Did you mean it last night when you…when you said you loved me?"

Now it was Pepito's turn to shuffle nervously. But Squee had been honest with him. The least he could do was return the favor.

"Si, mi amigo. I meant it." Pepito whispered, fear tying his stomach into knots when his friend's eyes watered.

Letting go of Squee's chin, Pepito wrapped his arms around the other boy, pulling him into a tight hug and stroking his hair.

"Shhh, it's alright Amigo. You don't have to say it back. It's ok. I understand." Pepito crooned softly, holding the shaking boy as close to his chest as possible.

Pushing back from the tight embrace, Todd smiled up into bi-colored eyes. "Why wouldn't I say it back?" He asked gently.

At Pepito's shocked look, Todd decided it was all or nothing time. Reaching up quickly, he wound his arms around the taller boy's neck and pulled him down for a kiss.

At the first soft press of lips, Pepito's confidence came roaring back, and he quickly dominated the kiss, stroking the other boy's lips with his tongue in a request for entry, then plundering Todd's mouth when the request was granted.

When the two finally broke apart for air, Pepito grinned down at his friend-turned-boyfriend, watching the all too familiar blush spread across the other's face.

Burying his red face in Pepito's chest, Todd took a moment, sent up a silent wish that he hadn't forgotten his middle school Spanish class and raised his eyes to the bi-colored ones above him before saying, "Te amo demasiado, Pepito, te amo demasiado."

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And there it is. Hopefully the connection between this and Doubt isn't to fuzzy. If anyone has questions, I'd be happy to explain.

Pepito and Squee and Pepito's parents belong to the Almighty Vasquez, who is not me :(