A/N: Hello, followers, friends, and fools, it's your favo

"Logan! So nice to see you here, but I'm sorry to say, I don't think we sell children's sizes." Gia said, a fake smile on her lips after she'd painted over all the disgust in her expression. Oliver glanced to her, then to Logan, a question.

"I was just saying hi to Oliver." He said, clutching his arm and Oliver smile a bit, politely.

"I didn't know you two knew eachother..did you turn him gay too?" She asked and Logan took a breath while Oliver's brow furrowed. "Or are your parents paying him to hang out with you."

"No- they're not, actually." Oliver said, abandoning any attempt at a smile altogether, crossing his arms. "And it's pretty unprofessional bringing your own personal vendettas and prejudices into work, I'm sure Marty would love to hear that you're bullying customers because they're gay." Oliver said and Gia's smile dropped. "I'll be back in twenty." He said coldly before he took Logan's hand, walking out of the store and to the art shop next door.

Logan stayed quiet, but a small, almost shy, smile tugged at his lips as Oliver walked out with him and through the rush of mall-goers into the much calmer shop. He liked the art store mostly because it was so soothing with the smell of acrylic paint and the abundance of supplies, but it also never had a big crowd, which was nice for Logan, who didn't like crowds at all, Needless to say, raves and frat parties were his worst nightmare.

"Thank you..for saying all that, she gets on my nerves." Logan said quietly once they were safely hidden away behind one of the shelves of sketchbooks away from the tasmanian devil in a mini skirt.

"Don't apologize, I couldn't just let someone get off saying something like that about you." Oliver said and Logan's smile grew just a bit. "How do you two know each other anyways?"

"I met her at Sy's New Year's party, she's his family friend or something, but she found out I have two dads and went on this long spiel about the gay agenda and asked if I'd have rather grown up with my mom around so I'd have a woman in my life and how the hell was I supposed to answer that?" He asked exasperatedly, flipping through a sketchbook to feel the pages.

"People like that are just out for a reaction, she wants to see you get mad or upset or hurt. I have no idea how you keep your cool around people like that." Internalizing it usually does the trick.

"I'm just a pacifist I guess." Logan said with a shrug and a little smile, picking out a sketchbook and some pens, throwing a handheld pencil sharpener into the basket, and Oliver glanced at it, his jaw tightening as he looked at Logan.

"I thought your dads stopped letting you get those." He said, referring to the pencil sharpener and Logan gave a small smile.

"Oli, I'm better than I was, I'm way past all that. I mean, come on, it's a pencil sharpener, I'm just getting it because the electric one is broken and I need a stand-in until I can find a new one." LiarLiar.

"As long as you're okay." Oliver said, taking a pack of sharpie markers off the shelf, checking the price, and then throwing them in the basket.

"I am."

---

Logan took Oliver's hand when he tugged him out of the art shop but didn't let go as they walked through the mall. It was normal for friends to hold hands..wasn't it? Logan pushed the thought aside, reminding himself that he wasn't ready to date again and he'd hurt Sy and technically Oliver would just be a rebound if he did that and he didn't want Oliver to be a rebound.

"Have you applied to any colleges yet?" Oliver asked and Logan shrugged.

"I mean, I wanna go to Pratt, it's not far so I could stay close to home, and it's not like funds are a problem really, but I've got no chance, and the thing is, if I don't get into some art school, there won't be any reason to put off getting into the family business, but I'm just not going to be ready to take it right after graduation, so I..I don't know.."

"Then just try. Apply, and if they reject you, at least you've got the family business as a parachute."

"Where are you applying?" Logan asked.

"Well, if I get a scholarship, maybe I can get into Lakeview Community College." He said jokingly and then sighed softly.

"But if you could go anywhere, where would you go?"

"Well, I want to stay here, so probably Lakeview University, it's like ten minutes away, and Pratt is what? Like twenty? We wouldn't even have to stop hanging out." Oliver said. "It's got a good photography course, and photography is what I want to do, so yeah, LU." Oliver said and Logan nodded a little, a part of him wondering if he'd even make it to college.

"Ooh, scented candles!" Logan said excitedly, walking into a candle shop to look around and Oliver just followed with a little grin on his face.

"Some things never change, huh?"

"My love of candles probably won't, I mean, who could not love candles."

"Probably people with sensitive noses." Oliver said and Logan looked at him.

"Have you had a secret hate for scented candles this whole time and not told me or something?"

"Nono, it's just Judas doesn't like peppermint, or lavender, or most fragranced soaps, so also no candles." Oliver said with a little smile and a shrug.

"Ah, okay, that's acceptable."

"What, would me not liking candles be unacceptable?" Oliver asked with a raised eyebrow and Logan giggled.

"Of course it would, and then I'd have to turn you in to the candle police."

"Oooh no, the candle police, what are they gonna do?"

"Turn you into a candle, duh." Logan said and Oliver chuckled.

"Right, because that was so obvious."

"It was, it is just your lack of liking for candles."

"How dare you accuse me of disliking candles." Oliver said and Logan giggled.

"Ooh, smell this one." Logan said and Oliver leaned down a bit to take the candle from Logan's hand, sniffing it.

"Wow, okay, that is actually really nice.." He looked at the label. "Cabin breeze, huh? You want me to buy it for you?" He asked with a little grin and Logan smiled, shaking his head.

"No, it's okay, I have my own money."

"So do I."

"But you have bills to pay and-" He started but Oliver was already walking up to the front and Logan figured if he really wanted to buy it, there was no stopping him.

"I have extra." Oliver said and Logan crossed his arms, though only hesitating a second before taking the now paid for candle.

"Thank you." Logan said, giving Oliver a smile.

"No problem. I think we have time for one more store before we head back to the outlet. You wanna go to Wired?"

"Positively." Logan said, giggling a little as he walked to the geek shop with Oliver. Logan could spend hours walking around Wired..well, maybe not hours, but definitely an hour, and he wasn't really a spender, but it was just the type of store where you can't help but want to buy everything.

They walked through the mall toward the shop they were looking for, talking about useless things and laughing over inside jokes. Logan wouldn't even mind if Oliver didn't like him back, he liked being his friend the most, it was just sometimes that he looked at Oliver's lips and couldn't help but think about kissing him or when Oliver smirked at him or did that thing where he cocked an eyebrow and Logan's lungs all but crumpled up with ache. But if Oliver didn't like him like that, he didn't want to give up the subtle smiles in the middle of class or Oliver holding his hand and hugging him when he was breaking down, he didn't want to give up Oliver just because of his feelings for him.

"Oh, hey, is that build-a-bear workshop? My mom used to take me there as a kid." Oliver said and Logan smiled, looking to the store and nodding.

"Yeah, my dads took me there a couple times." Logan said. "I miss that, but I already have an embarrassing amount of stuffed animals." Logan said with a smile and Oliver shrugged.

"I didn't see and stuffed animals last time I was there." He said and Logan nodded.

"I keep them in the closet, I guess at some point I started feeling like I was too old for them but I felt bad about giving them up so I kept them around and hid them instead of keeping them on my bed.

"There's nothing embarrassing about having stuffed animals, you're only sixteen anyways, you're basically still a kid."

"You're only a year older."

"Bear, you missed the entire point." Oliver said with a chuckle and Logan laughed quietly.

"I know I know, but either way, I like them staying in the closet, maybe one day I will take them out and have them scattered around the room, but for the time being, they are staying put." Logan said and Oliver shrugged a bit.

"Alright, whatever makes you happy." Oliver said, walking into Wired and strolling around through the isles with Logan.

"Oh hey, I forgot they had cool keychains here." Logan said, walking over to the display and Oliver nodded.

"I actually have one for my keys." Oliver said and Logan looked at him as Oliver took out his car keys, displaying the tiny Nintendo Gameboy charm.

"That's so cute! Oh my god, remember that summer we traded my Gameboy back and forth?"

"Oh absolutely, I had it every Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, and Sunday. Actually, I think it's my turn for it tomorrow." He said and Logan giggled.

"Check it, they've got vinyls now." Oliver said, walking over to the setup of records.

"Who would want season one of The Office on record?"

"Only the most basic of geeks." Oliver said, nudging Logan's shoulder and the boy laughed quietly.

"We should get back, you're shift is starting again soon.." Logan said and Oliver nodded, walking towards the exit.

"You know, when I signed up for the outlet, I really thought I'd hate working there, but besides the girls who try to give me their numbers and, ya know, Gia, it's not so bad, I'm getting paid to put shirts on shelves and sit behind a cash register zoning out." Oliver said and Logan smiled, nodding.

"Yeah, I'm actually pretty excited to start working at the art shop, I mean, I know there's this whole thing with people thinking rich don't know how to do anything for themselves, but I wanna have some job experience even if I do have the business, I still want to know how to work for myself and make my own money, maybe just so I know I can do something without the help of my dads. I mean, I love them, but I feel like I lean on them too much." Logan said and Oliver nodded.

"That's good, you have good work ethic, I'm sure you'll do amazing." Oliver said with a little smile. "And maybe sometimes we can take our breaks at the same time, it'll be nice to have someone I know to hang out with, usually I just sit and read over my break." Oliver said and Logan smiled.

"Oh, also, there's this thing tonight, at the coffee shop, Ivy said it's like an open mic for music or poetry or whatever, you should come." Logan said and Oliver thought for a moment before nodding. "It's at 8, so..whatever, but I'm probably going." Logan said.

"Oliver, your break is up." Gia said from the door and Oliver nodded.

"I'll seeya, Logan, probably tonight." Oliver said and Logan nodded, smiling as he waved a bit and walked off.

"Seeya."