"It looks like they're talking about us..."
"I promise they're not talking about us."

A prefect example of 'is that your bodyguard?' 'no, it's my boyfriend'.
Matteo went through phases of 'I'm not gay', to 'oh shit I think I'm gay', to 'yeah I'm definitely gay' in a matter of years, and once he came to terms with it, he was still an anxious mess. He still isn't completely out about it, and he's constantly paranoid about people finding out- even when walking in public with his boyfriend. He will get incredibly defensive of both himself and Ellis if he thinks others are making comments, and is ALWAYS on edge and grumpy because of it.
Ellis is helping a bit, and usually calms Matteo down when he freaks out like that. If anything, Matteo secretly looks up to his boyfriend because of how proud he is of his own identity, and he tried his best to be proud of himself.
He gets there eventually, but it takes time. 💙