Tick-tock, Tick-tock, Tick-tock
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“Yeah both of us are clicking closer to our end buddy clock.”
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Eros lay sprawled out on top of his bed staring at his wall clock super suit still on; he hadn’t even cared to remove his helmet.
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Batman’s FACE was the only thing he saw when he closed his eyes. It didn't help that as soon as the Caped Crusader decided to unmask, Eros’ HUD ID’d him as Bruce Wayne…
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He turned on his tv begging for some kind of distraction. He was not disappointed.
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In bold font on the screen read:
GCPD EATING CROW AS CRANE’S FOUND DEAD
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“Well, shit. I never got a tooth from him.”
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He groaned and slowly lifted himself off of his bed. Taking his helmet off and charging it, pulling the rest of his suit off in the process.
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Well life don’t pause just cause you had a bad day, still gotta keep appointments I made…
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After a relaxing shower, Eros finally headed off to sleep all before starting another day of heroing
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—————
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While fighting villains was more glamorous(and certainly got more views), Eros enjoyed the days where he got to interact with the local community.
He had already changed about 16 lightbulbs, about to be 17.
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“Alrighty-O, this is be the last one Mr. Swiftner.”
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A SSSSKRIIIIIIIRTT drew his attention away and next thing he knew he was on the ground- Shoulder to Grill with a car and Mr. Swiftner had been pushed outta the way from the car's path. His voice was the first to cut through.
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“Oi! LoveBug! Yous, yous saved my life!”
What started as anger had soon turned into shock and fear.
“Are you okay in there!? Tell me you are!”
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“Yup! I’m Dandy! You okay?”
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“Fit as a fiddle!”
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“Good! Keep clear while I get the car off of me!”
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He had already contacted emergency personnel and they were soon on scene to finish up.
Oh course the media were there too. And wanted a statement…
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“LoveBug here! Honestly, I’m just happy I was here and that everyone involved is going to be alright. Weather conditions can make driving more hazardous than it already is.”
“You know LoveBug, viewers often ask us what’s it like being a hero?”
“You don’t have to fight villains or stop cars in their tracks to be a hero. Just give a helping hand when you can and you’re already there in my book.”
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With those words and promises from Mr. Swiftner that any sandwiches LoveBug orders from his shop were on the house for life, he headed out towards his own place.
—————
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Something, nay, someone caught his attention. It seemed his heroing wasn’t over for the day.
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“Sir, I’m going to have to be plain with you; put the guns down.”
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Eros stood in front of Condiment King, hands on his hips. The man answered by firing said handmade gun at the hero.
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Eros groaned as a glob of peanut butter hit him in the chest.
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“DUDE? We have talked about this! People have food allergies!”
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He ripped the guns out of Mayo’s hands, much to the man’s displeasure.
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“Hey! I worked hard on those!”
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“And you’ll work harder to get it back from GCPD!”
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After snapping the barrel of the guns over his knee, he tossed them to the ground.
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“You are in a really bad mood today LoveBug!”
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“I am. So don’t test me Mayo.”
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He, of course, tried to run for it. After groaning, LoveBug easily caught him.
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The would-be-villain was soon on the ground and in handcuffs. LoveBug contacted GCPD to come pick the other man up and waited with him for the time being.
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“Mayo, what’s your deal? Why are you trying so hard to be a villain?”
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“It’s what I was born to do!”
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Eros rolled his eyes. Mitchell was smart enough to not have to turn to a life like this. What was the appeal?
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“Okay. It’s your passion; I can understand that, I think.”
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“Exactly. But you were really short tempered today. What’s up with that?”
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The hero paused. It couldn’t hurt to open up a bit.
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“I’m probably just getting a bit burnt out of crime fighting. Like honestly, the City wears you down. I’m trying to make the city less fucked but guys like you just still go out and try to hurt others. What’s the deal with that? You’re smart enough to not need to do that, you know Mitchell.”
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He was quiet. Did Eros hit a nerve?
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“Well, it sounds like you should just let me go then!”
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Eros scoffed. “Not happening.”
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“Well it was worth a shot, I guess…”
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LoveBug patted his shoulder and pulled him up as a GCPD patrol car pulled up.
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After sending Condiment King to storage, Eros headed home for the night.
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Eros sat on his couch, he really wasn’t tired yet… He thought back to his chat, someone had recommended a club in Gotham. It had been a bit since he just had a night off.
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He grabbed his leather jacket and headed out. Who knows, maybe he’d come home with someone tonight…
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—————
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Lights flashed in beat with music with a strong enough bass Eros could feel it just as strong as his heartbeat.
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With a drink in his hand, and coupius glow stick necklaces around his neck, Eros stood off to the side of the club, chatting with a cute thing.
He wasn’t someone Eros would normally flirt with but hey when in Rome.
His lips were sweet and so were his words. It was nice for someone to say such lovely things about him.
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He almost didn’t notice his phone ringing. The thought crossed his mind to just not answer until he saw Jason’s face pop across the screen.
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His new friend didn’t enjoy him stepping away, not that he cared.
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“Hey Jason. What’s up?”
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“Are you busy?”
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“No.”
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“That offer to get a drink still open?”
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“Yes. I’ll be right over.”
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Eros hung up and headed to Jason’s apartment.
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—————
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He fidgeted with his hair as he rode the subway.
Why was he nervous? He knew the answer to that. He liked Jason, like like liked. Picking up the pack of beer he had bought on the way, he got off the train.
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He knocked on the door after a final check of his hair. Jason opened it with a smile.
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“Hey Eros. Come on in.”
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“Thanks for having me. I brought some beer.”
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Jason nodded and put it on the counter. Eros grabbed one, despite not actually liking beer and took off his jacket. It was warm in this building, or was it just him?
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The two men sat on the couch barely not touching. Eros felt electric, Jason knew what he had meant by drinks right? Of course he did. Jason was by no means stupid. The question was did Eros want to be a replacement for Crane? Did Jason see him like that? Did Eros care? He was getting what he wanted.
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“So uh how did…”
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Eros was cut off by Jason’s lips on his. The blond man pulled back whispering to Eros, his breath warm on his neck.
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“Do whatever you want to me, Eros. I want you.”
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Eros nodded, speechless but for his unsteady breath as Jason slowly left a trail of kisses down his neck.
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He knew Jason was experienced but still it was a welcome surprise to just how experienced.
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Eros averted his eyes, face flush under the gaze of the other man.
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“Eros? Are you alright?”
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Jason’s tone was soft as he stroked the other’s cheek, eyes filled with concern.
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He willed his voice to not break or shudder as he replied.
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“Yeah. Just nervous I guess.”
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With a smile, Jason took Eros’ hands in his own.
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“We can stop if you need to.”
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“No!” Eros exclaimed rather loudly before quickly adding, “I- I mean, no, I want to keep going.”
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With a nod, Jason continued his soft assault on Eros’ skin earning a moan for his hard work.
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After stripping his shirt off, Eros stood and pulled Jason up. He mustered his best smirk and spoke:
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“Let’s move this somewhere with a bit more room, yeah?”
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—————
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“Thanks for the good time, Eros.”
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Eros moved off the other man, still catching his breath as Jason continued to talk headed towards the bathroom. “It was refreshing to not have to die to get laid for once in a while.”
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Eros looked at him quizzically before said man disappeared into the other room.
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Who was he having sex with that would kill him?
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He snapped back to reality as the shower turned on. Eros stretched and stood, redressing himself and reorganizing Jason’s room a bit.
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This had certainly been a fun night, and had more than gotten his mind off the security risk of knowing just who Batman was under his cowl; however, all good things had to end.
Eros knocked on the door, calling out to Jason before leaving.
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“Hey I’m heading out man; don’t worry I’ll lock up when I leave.”
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He didn’t wait for a reply before doing exactly as he said.
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—————
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Eros absentmindedly headed back to his own apartment across the city. He paused once inside, he never turned that fan off. The air got way too stagnant otherwise.
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Just who was in here?
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He didn’t wait long when Batman stepped out from the hallway.
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“You’re back late Eros.”
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“What in the hell are you doing in my house Batman!?”
Eros’ tone was sharp enough to cut and his eyes were the same as the hero spoke.
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“We need to talk about what you know.”
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Eros let out the breath he was holding and motioned for Batman to sit down.
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“Well since you clearly aren’t satisfied with what I already told you, let’s talk. You want a drink or something?”
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“No.”
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Eros shook his head grabbing a water bottle from its case and flinched as he saw Batman’s face once again.
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“Sheesh.. Well get talking, I guess.”
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Eros sat down and opened his water as the older hero spoke.
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“Clearly your streams aren’t making much cash flow…”
“I make plenty, asshole!”
Eros interjected with a scowl before Bruce continued,
“…which is why I’m going to be giving you a monthly stipend to keep quiet.”
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The air was quiet as Bruce waited for Eros to respond.
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“Are you… you’re seriously trying to give me hush money.”
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“I wouldn’t use those terms-”
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“Look, I already told you don’t worry about it. I’m not going to tell people. You don’t have to pay me off.”
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“Just look at it as an investment. Use it for new housing or improving your suit.. or not at all if you’d rather. Regardless, it would put my mind at ease.”
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Eros groaned. Clearly this guy just wasn’t getting it. Of course the rich guy wants to buy his silence…
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“Fine. If it’ll get you to leave me alone about this. I wanted one other thing though.”
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Bruce’s smile turned back to a frown as he waited for Eros to continue.
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“I want a list of people who know.”
“I suppose that’s fair… I can agree to these terms.”
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Bruce stood up, pulled something from his utility belt and handed it to Eros.
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“I trust this will be enough?”
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It was 2 things of 100 dollar bills. Just how much money was Bruce paying him?
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“Uhhh…”
“It’s ten thousand dollars. Did you want more?”
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Stupid fucking rich boy…
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“No. Just give me the list of names Bruce.”
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He nodded and dropped the money next to Eros. The list made sense but the last name was the one that stumped him.
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“…and Jason Wilson knows as well. The blond one.”
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Jason knew? That was a surprise. Eros looked back at Bruce to see him putting his cowl back on.
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“Oh and feel free to come to the manor now that you know.”
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Eros nodded absentmindedly while Batman left from the fire escape.
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—————
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He had found it hard to sleep after his day yesterday. Eventually he got a knock on his door. Answering it, he found Jason.
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The man’s blond hair still looked good under the poor lighting of the building.
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“Hey morning Eros. You forgot this at my place yesterday.”
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He handed him his cell phone which had a few messages from Jason and a missed call from the same man.
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“Oh thanks. Did you want to come in? It’s a bit of a mess.”
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“Yeah.”
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Jason stepped inside the apartment and Eros put his phone back into his pocket.
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“Eros, you didn’t have to leave last night. You could’ve stayed.”
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“It’s a good thing I didn’t. Bruce Wayne paid me a visit last night.”
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Jason’s eyes widened a bit before he spoke, clearly choosing his words with care.
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“Bruce Wayne? Are you sure? You were drinking last night.”
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“I know you know.”
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“Oh. That makes things easier.”
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Eros nodded while leaning against a wall.
“So… I could’ve stayed huh?”
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“Yes. The offer’s still open if you want to next time too.”
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“Okay. But Jason I got something to get off my chest.”
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Jason paused listening to Eros, though he detected a bit of fear in his eyes.
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“I don’t want to just be a phone call and a good time; if we keep doing this, I want us to be together.”
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“Are you saying you want me to be your boyfriend?”
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“Yeah. I guess I am.”
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