Shelter by Ashley John

in Havenmoore but for some reason, they both needed to be.
    “Thank you,” Elias mumbled, “for not writing me off.”
    “There’s still life in you. Damn, you’re younger than me. I’m thirty before the year’s out and I’m living in my parents’ guest room.”
    They laughed for a couple of seconds until their chests slowed down. Elias found his eyes darting down to Caden’s lips again. They looked so moist and inviting. I can’t remember ever actually kissing a guy . It was as if that urge took over him. When he found his head slowly leaning in, eyes wide and staring into Caden’s, he wanted to stop but he couldn’t.
    To his surprise, Caden didn’t pull away. He didn’t lean in, he just stared at Elias, as though he was trying to understand what was happening. Stop it, Elias! The sound of the front door slamming made Elias pull back. Jumping off the bed, Caden headed for the door.
    “Mom, is that you?” Caden called down, a shake in his voice.
    “It’s just me,” she called up, “come down. I’ve picked up some lunch.”
    “I’ll be right down.”
    Caden closed the door carefully, turning back to Elias. He looked like he was about to launch into an apology but Elias was the one who’d tried to kiss him. Could he try and laugh it off? He had been so close to his lips.
    “I should go,” Elias headed straight for the door, “I shouldn’t have bothered you.”
    Pushing past Caden, he ran down the staircase, taking them two at a time. He saw Caden’s mom out of the corner of his eyes but he didn’t hang around to explain anything. Before Caden could chase after him, Elias started to run back across town.
    You’re such an idiot!
     
    ***
     
    Did he just try to kiss me? Caden shook his head as he ran his fingers over his face. He couldn’t have, could he ? Was it Caden’s imagination that Elias had started leaning in slowly towards his lips? If it was, why did he run away?
    “Caden, what’s going on?” his mom called up.
    “Give me a second,” he snapped harsher thanhe had intended.
    Caden wanted to head out to follow Elias but he knew he would probably be across town already. Should he go to Elias’ apartment to talk about it? Would that make things even more awkward? What if Caden had imagined it?
    “Was that who I think?” his mom said casually as she opened up the pizza box on the table, “I got Hawaiian, your favorite.”
    “Thanks, Mom,” Caden picked up a slice and dropped it on the plate in front of him but he didn’t start eating.
    “So,” she sat down next to him, “did I just see Elias running out of our house or do I need to get my head tested?”
    “Yeah, he just -,” Caden couldn’t even finish the lie convincingly.
    Picking up a slice, his mom chewed on the end, not taking her eyes away from Caden. He knew exactly what she was thinking and she was probably right. He wanted to try and diffuse the situation but his mind was racing. Did we almost kiss?
    “You know you shouldn’t give your home address to the people you work with,” she said, “you’re there to support them to move on with their lives.”
    “I know, I know,” he snapped out of it, “he needed support. He almost relapsed. I wasn’t thinking.”
    “Did you help him?”
    “I don’t know,” Caden mumbled.
    Was he really helping Elias, or was he just making things worse? He wasn’t equipped to deal with his problems, just like he wasn’t equipped to deal with Frank’s problems. Some courses and a couple of days shadowing his mom weren’t enough. He didn’t have the knowledge his mother had. She had spent her life helping people and she knew exactly what they needed. Caden on the other hand, had always been too worried about upsetting or offending people. He had always tiptoed cautiously, trying to be people’s friends. That’s why Finn walked all over me.
    “It takes time,” she patted his hand, “you’ll get the hang of this.”
    “How do you know when you’re over stepping the