Finally (Chapter Two)
The tour ended almost two weeks ago but David feels like he hasn’t had a chance to breathe at all. Between singing at football games, Ford day, photoshoots, not to mention finishing the record his mind has gone in ten directions at once. As he settles into his first class seat, he realizes how much he’s looking forward to just sitting on a plane doing nothing. And that’s pretty bad when you think about it.
His phone beeps just as he’s about to turn it off and he flips it open quickly, checking his text. He smiles when he sees Andy’s message. ‘See you in 4 hrs. Sure you don’t need a ride?’ The flight attendant is eyeballing him so he punches the buttons quickly. ‘Studio sending a car. Meet you at your apt.’ He sends his message and presses the off button while flashing a grin at the attendant. Leaning his head back and closing his eyes, he lets his mind wander. And, as it inevitably does, it wanders to Andy.
Andy has always consumed a large part of David’s thoughts, but even more so since Idol began. He never really thought about how any of this would affect their friendship; he figured he’d be back home before the top 24 anyway. And now he’s the Idol and he’s busier than ever. Funny how things turned out. The benefit of having close friends is exactly that. They’re close. The furthest thing from “yes-men”, David knows his friends will tell him if he starts acting like an asshole. God knows Andy would be first in line.
David smiles to himself when he thinks of how the rest of the gang thought Andy was his boyfriend. What a bunch of lunatics. He thought Carly’s water was going to come out her nose when she overheard him tell Michael that he’d be staying with Andy until he found a place of his own in LA. If they only knew how many times they’d spent the night together they’d probably go apeshit, even though it was always completely innocent.
If he’s being truthful, he’d have to say most of his best memories involved Andy in one way or another. And some of his worst ones, too.
He remembers the first time Adam relapsed. God, he was so sick and David felt so fucking helpless. David had been at the hospital for two days without sleep when Andy walked into the waiting room. He’s rubbed his eyes because surely he was seeing things but no, he wasn’t. Andy pulled David up out of his chair, drug him downstairs to his car, and drove him straight to his hotel. He’d been too tired to put up a fight as he’d let Andy strip off his shirt and jeans, ordering him into bed. “Your sorry ass isn’t going to be any good for him if you don’t rest.” David had rolled onto his side facing the wall and finally cried the tears he hadn’t allowed himself to shed at the hospital. Andy had climbed into bed behind him and slung an arm around his waist, not saying a word.
Things have rarely been awkward between them but they’ve had their moments. Once, on stage, Andy had stepped away from the mic to come up behind David, wrapping an arm around his neck. That in itself wasn’t unusual. But suddenly he’s in the middle of his solo and Andy’s breath is hot against his skin. He feels movement behind him and he assumes Andy is stepping back, so he steps back, too. But Andy didn’t go anywhere and suddenly David feels lips pressed against the back of his neck. His fingers skip across the strings as he misses his notes and the girls in the front row cheer. In an instant the moment is over and Andy’s back front and center, singing his heart out. “Make me fall for you…”
Or there’s the time they brought two girls back to David’s apartment after a show. It wasn’t a regular occurrence, but it happened occasionally. Usually one of them would take the bedroom and the other the living room. By the time they’d convinced the girls to come back with them Neal had gotten there first and was passed out cold on the couch. David shrugged and nodded towards the bedroom. All four of them tumbled to the bed in a drunken heap; the girls giggling as clothes were discarded onto the floor. They hadn’t turned on a light but the streetlight was right outside the damn window and you had no problem seeing every little detail. He and Andy were both on their backs with their respective girls on top and suddenly David caught himself staring at Andy’s girl instead of his own; his gaze traveling down her body to watch Andy’s cock disappearing inside of her. He forced himself to look away because it had to be the alcohol making his attention wander but in an instant his attention was caught again. Frustrated, David hooked an arm around his girl’s waist, flipping her over. Surely this would work better if he’s on top. But then there’s a new distraction because from this angle he can see Andy’s face and suddenly he’s looking at that instead of the girl he’s pounding into the mattress. And the worst part of it is Andy’s watching him, too, with such a confused expression that David knew it probably mirrored his own. David flipped again and his girl is back on top and he’s determined to keep his eyes closed and just fucking get off already before opening them again. But then there’s shifting beside of him and something nudged his shoulder. He opened his eyes automatically and saw Andy had flipped his girl too. Her blonde hair was streaming across the pillow right beside his head, tickling his ear. David didn’t look at her. Nor did he look at the brunette on top of him. He only saw Andy watching him intently and he swore he wanted to close his eyes again but something wouldn’t let him. And that’s how he saw Andy’s face when he came. And that’s how he knows what Andy’s ‘O’ face looks like, too. And the next day when they were sober and the girls were gone they laughed and agree never to speak of it again and next time they’d shove Neal into the bathtub.
Then there was the time Andy kissed him. Damn, that was weird. The band had gathered at David’s apartment attempting to create a new song but soon they were all too drunk to write. Which should have meant they were too drunk to play darts because alcohol and sharp metal points should never mix but the dartboard was new and they couldn’t resist. David remembers Andy throwing three darts in a row straight into his wall, missing the board completely, and turning to him saying “There goes your security deposit.”
The contest had been Neal’s idea. Loser has to do whatever the winner says. Andy had been the only one to accept the challenge; David and the other guys weren’t so far gone that they couldn’t recognize their lack of hand to eye coordination. Ten minutes later and David is doubled over with laughter, holding his stomach as he stares at the wall. Two of Andy’s darts are stuck in the sheetrock and the third is on the floor because the damn thing didn’t even stick anywhere. Neal did manage to hit the target twice, and even though they’re nowhere near the bull’s-eye it’s still good enough for victory.
Neal’s yelling; jumping up on the couch for an impromptu air guitar performance before pointing his finger at Andy. “You. You are gonna do something fucked up.”
Andy rolls his eyes. “Whatever dude. Let’s get this shit over with. Am I gonna have to lap the parking lot naked again? It’s fucking cold out there.”
Neal’s practically wheezing as he throws up his hands and it’s almost hard to understand his words. “No. No parking lot. Something. Funnier. David. Kiss. Kiss him.”
David’s mouth dropped open as the other guys laugh even harder. “Wait a minute Neal. Why the hell are you dragging me into your fucked up game?”
Neal won’t stop laughing. “Because it’s funny. You two are best friends. That makes it funny.”
Andy shoots Neal a look. “Oh yeah. That makes it a damned riot all right. Come here, David. Let’s get this over with.”
David backs against the side of the chair as Andy advances on him. “Wait. I didn’t agree to this.” He looks over at Neal. “Pick something else, shithead.”
By now Neal is holding his side and speaking in breathless hiccups. “He kisses you or he goes outside naked. In 30 degree weather. I’ll make it your choice.”
Andy’s voice cuts through his brain. “Don’t make me go outside, man. Just let me kiss you. Please.”
David turns back toward Andy and as soon as he sees those brown puppy dog eyes he knows he’s going to agree. “Whatever. You’ll owe me.”
Suddenly Andy’s right in front of him, grabbing the front of his shirt and closing the distance between them. David shuts his eyes because there’s no way in hell he wants to actually watch this but then Andy’s mouth is on his and he thinks maybe he should have kept his eyes open just to be better prepared. He knew it was coming, but the shock of the actual kiss made him want to take a step back but that’s impossible because the damn chair is digging into his lower back and Andy won’t give him any fucking space. The edge of his consciousness registers the guys yelling and laughing but his main focus is on Andy’s tongue and the fact it’s somehow managed to slip past his lips and invade his mouth. He kisses back without even thinking about what he’s doing and somehow he hears Neal’s voice loud and clear. “Bite him, Andy!”
David swears he feels Andy smile against his mouth and then he’s bringing his teeth together, clamping down on David’s bottom lip, grinding and tugging. He can’t hold back a gasp because he actually likes that kind of thing a lot and he wonders if Andy remembers that he actually told him about it during one of their late night discussions. Before he can process this any further Andy is stepping back, rubbing the back of his hand across his mouth and suddenly they’re all laughing like hyenas. And David spends the rest of the night running his tongue across the inside of his lower lip, swearing to himself that he can feel a mark.
The memory of the kiss brings another memory to the forefront; this time not one of his favorites. Three weeks later and the guys are over again and this time they’re somewhat sober and the song is almost complete. Neal and Andy disappeared into the kitchen for beer and haven’t returned so David volunteers to see what the hell the holdup is about. He rounds the corner silently, planning on scaring the shit out of them, but instead he’s confronted with something he never imagined he’d see. Andy has Neal pushed up against the counter, licking a slow line across his mouth. He watches Andy’s tongue circle Neal’s piercing once, twice. David clears his throat and continues on his way to the fridge. “Don’t mind me. Just getting beer.” He grabs three bottles and turns to leave, watching out of the corner of his eye. He sees Andy take a step back but Neal grabs his hips, hauling him back and hissing “Do it again, Andy.” But Andy pulls away laughing, saying, “You’ve had enough, dude.”
Later that week David and Andy are alone in the apartment and David can’t help but mention it. “What was up with you and Neal in the kitchen? I know he’s been known to play for both teams but I didn’t know you were into it, too.”
Andy laughed. “He said the kiss I gave you looked hot and he wanted one for himself. So I did it. I’ve never ‘played for the other team’ as you so eloquently put it. Your kiss was the first time I’d ever kissed a guy.”
David can’t help himself. “So. Did you like it?”
“Your kiss or Neal’s?”
David wanted to say ‘mine’ but that sounded fucking pathetic even to his ears. “Neal’s.”
“It wasn’t bad. I’d call it an experiment. Besides, David. Haven’t you ever wondered what it would be like to kiss another guy? Even just for a minute?”
He can’t blurt out his first thought, which is ‘I’ve wondered about kissing you’, because it’s only partly true. He’d never thought of such things until three weeks ago and now he can’t stop thinking about it. So he settles for the safe answer. “Maybe.” Then something hits him hard in the gut, something he hadn’t really thought of before, and yeah it bothers him. It bothers him that Andy was drunk off his ass when they kissed on a dare yet almost sober when he kissed Neal on his own free will. And what does that say? And then Andy’s talking again. “Yours was better anyway.”
David laughs because it’s the easiest thing to do. “I am prettier than Neal.”
“Yeah and your lips are more like a girl’s.”
He throws a guitar pick at Andy’s head. “Fucker.”
That conversation is all David thought about after Andy went home. He liked mine more.
The wheels hit the runway, jolting David back to the present. He stands and grabs his bag from the overhead compartment, punching the button to turn on his phone. Immediately, he’s alerted to a text message waiting in his in-box. He grins as he reads Andy’s words. 'Hurry up.'