Stepping Out with You
Title: Stepping Out with You
Author: shoebox_addict
Fandom: RPF Pundits
Pairing/characters: Jon/Stephen
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: Any similarity between the fictional version of the person portrayed here and the actual persons is purely coincidental. This is a work of fiction. This is not an attempt to defame the character of said person on the basis of libel, as the work is FICTIONAL (and NOT an intently false statement created with the express purpose of misleading others about the actual character of said person).
Any mention of 'The Daily Show', 'The Colbert Report', 'Viacom', any associated entities, or any copyrighted material pertaining therein is reasonably protected by the Fair Use Rule of the United States Copyright Act of 1976 and is not intended to infringe upon any copyrighted material.
Prompt: Jon Stewart/Stephen Colbert, doing simple things in public after coming out.
Summary: Now that they’ve come out to their classmates, Stephen wants to take the reluctant Jon out and show him off.
Warnings: (if any) gay slurs, swearing, schmaltz
Author's Notes: High School AU; this was written for queer_fest & is cross-posted to fakenews-fanfic.
Stepping Out with You
Jon Stewart was not the most adept person when it came to romance and relationships. Stephen had been the one to ask him out via a note passed to him by Paul Dinello in fifth period English. Jon’s immediate response had been for his mind to begin racing with worry and anxiety about being in a relationship. Then he’d looked over the head of the kid sitting next to him and caught sight of Stephen’s shy smile. That sealed the deal and they’d gone on their first date that evening.
“Do you want to be my boyfriend?” Stephen had asked after they’d had their first kiss.
“Of course,” Jon had replied, because who turned down an offer like that? Stephen was one of the most handsome boys in school and Jon was just glad that he happened to be gay much less interested in Jon.
“I really like you,” Stephen had said, running his fingertips gently down the fabric of Jon’s old t-shirt.
“Really?” said Jon. “‘Cause, well...have you gotten a good look at me?”
Stephen simply stared at him, dumbstruck. “Is that a joke? Jon...you’re hot.”
“Ha ha, is that a joke?” retorted Jon. But when Stephen leaned forward and gave Jon his first kiss that involved something more than lips, he knew Stephen wasn’t kidding. At that moment, Jon resolved to do whatever it took to make Stephen happy because Stephen had done the same for him, even if it had been unknowingly.
When it had come time to come out, that was completely Stephen’s decision too. He gave Jon a long speech about how they had to live their lives authentically and come out of the closet. Jon didn’t realize this was something they needed to do. No one had given him a checklist for this kind of thing, so he decided to follow Stephen’s lead. Stephen at least made it seem that he was an expert at this kind of thing.
In each class they shared, Stephen made sure to get there extra early and engage in person in conversation -- a conversation that always ended the same.
“Right...so that’s where you’re planning on going to college? That sounds great. I’m not really sure yet, you know? It depends on where Jon goes, I guess. We’re gay, by the way, me and him. Both of us. Gay.”
Jon spent the first ten minutes of each class wishing fervently to be smaller than he already was.
Even though it was slightly embarrassing to have your sexuality broadcast to every member of his class (and possibly the school, he didn’t know how fast word -- or Stephen -- traveled), Jon found it hard to care when he was alone with Stephen. Jon didn’t fixate on any of the specifics, he only cared about the way Stephen looked at him and made him feel.
One hot September evening at the start of their senior year, Jon was lying next to Stephen in the grass of his backyard not thinking about anything but the boy whose sweaty arm was pressed against his own. Stephen, it seemed, had many other things on his mind at that moment.
“Hey, Jon?” he said. “Now that we’ve come out...don’t you think we should be, you know, doing things where people can see us?”
Jon’s eyebrows wrinkled together almost of their own accord and he pushed himself up on his elbows. “Is that a thing?”
Stephen turned his head to look at Jon. “What do you mean?”
“I mean...we came out. Do we really have to do more?”
“Well, I want people to know you’re my boyfriend.”
“So, is this the next step?”
“There are no steps when it comes to love, Jon.”
Jon was pretty sure there were because it was times like these when he felt Stephen had been given a brochure that he wasn’t sharing with Jon. But Stephen had used the word love and now Jon just wanted to kiss his boyfriend in the privacy of his backyard. So he did.
“But,” said Stephen, when they pulled apart. “Don’t you want people to see us being all relationshippy in public? I mean, we spend an awful lot of time in your backyard.”
“It’s nice and quiet back here,” said Jon, kissing Stephen again. “And no one bothers us.”
“You’re not ashamed of me?”
Jon pulled back and stared incredulously at Stephen. “You’ve got to be kidding.”
“Well, I can’t think why else you wouldn’t want to go out more.”
“Stephen. Seriously. You are fucking gorgeous, okay? Why would I spend so much time with you if I didn’t love you and think you were breathtaking?”
Stephen blushed slightly, just across his nose. “Breathtaking...wow.”
“Yeah. And I mean that,” said Jon.
“Then why don’t you want to go out more?”
Jon sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. “It honestly never occurred to me, Stephen. I just want to be with you, I don’t really worry about other people.”
“That’s sweet,” said Stephen. “But...and this comes from a real place of love, I promise...I kind of want to show you off.”
Jon giggled softly. “I’m your trophy boyfriend?”
“No, it’s not like that,” said Stephen, swatting Jon’s arm playfully. “I just...heterosexual couples are everywhere you look, you know? I just feel like we should be out there representing our side.”
“Oh...there are no sides,” said Jon, his shoulders slumping in defeat as he realized where the conversation was headed.
“I know, I know that,” said Stephen. “I don’t know...is it wrong to want to be out in a store kissing you? Or telling someone at a restaurant that we’re together?”
Jon looked Stephen and saw the sincerity in his eyes. If it had been anyone else, Jon would have thought he was being used to make someone else jealous or as part of some game. But this was Stephen and he was looking at Jon with those puppy dog eyes of his, just asking for one simple thing. How could Jon refuse when Stephen had chosen him and was such a loving boyfriend?
“Is this really what you want?” he said, squeezing Stephen’s hand.
“Yes,” said Stephen. “I just want everyone to know how happy we are. I just want everyone to see that you’re my boyfriend.”
A slow smile crept onto Jon’s face as he leaned in for a goodnight kiss. He realized he’d have to start gearing himself up for Public Displays of Affection, but he didn’t think that would be too difficult.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
The honk of a car horn brought Jon out of the pages of his political science book and back into reality. He looked up to find Stephen’s beige Pinto parked in front of the school’s front steps. Stephen had one arm leaning out the open window and the other perched at the top of the steering wheel. Jon giggled to himself at how silly Stephen looked while also being completely irresistible. He stuffed his books back into his backpack and jogged down the steps to meet Stephen.
“‘Scuse me, do you need a ride?” said Stephen, letting a hint of his Southern drawl creep into the question.
“I do, but I really shouldn’t take rides from strangers.”
“You shouldn’t get handjobs from strangers either, so I guess we should go back and erase what happened last night.”
Had Jon been drinking something, it would now be dripping from Stephen’s glasses. As it was, he let out a very undignified squeak and straightened his t-shirt.
“Hop in,” said Stephen, still cool as a cucumber.
Jon shoved his backpack through the narrow space between the car’s door frame and the back window that wouldn’t open all the way. Then he wrenched open the passenger door, winced at the creak, and was barely buckled in before Stephen took off.
“Want to stop somewhere and get something?”
Jon did a double-take in Stephen’s direction. “That was the vaguest thing I’ve ever heard anyone say.”
Stephen snorted. “Yes or no?”
Jon did a mental check of the money nestled in his pocket. “Sure, why not?”
Fifteen minutes later, Stephen was pulling haphazardly into a parking spot at their favorite coffee shop. When he stepped out of the car, Stephen was there ready to take his hand. Jon’s instant response was to flinch away because this was something they did in private. But Stephen was gazing at him -- literally gazing -- and he was so lost in those eyes that it could have been a form of hypnosis. Jon took Stephen’s hand and they walked into the shop that way.
No heads turned, no eyes fixated curiously or judgementally on them. Everyone simply went about their business and Jon wondered if Stephen would be disappointed. When he turned to look, Stephen had his head held high as though he was expecting criticism. They stepped up to the counter and placed their order.
“And, um, I want to buy my boyfriend’s coffee,” said Stephen, adding this quick addendum with a grin on his face.
The cashier didn’t skip a beat. She simply punched a few buttons on her register to combine the order and held out her hand.
“Five fifty,” she said in a bored tone.
Stephen gave her the money, collected his change, and then moved to the side to wait for their order. Jon followed him, slightly confused.
“No one cares,” he whispered as Stephen slid his fingers between Jon’s once more.
“I know, but wasn’t that awesome?” said Stephen, grinning manically. “It was just fun to say the word boyfriend out loud.”
It was then that Jon realized this wasn’t about pushing the envelope, this wasn’t about testing people’s sensibilities. This was simply about Stephen taking their relationship public and doing normal relationship things with Jon. Jon had been skeptical of that explanation, but it seemed that Stephen was very serious about it.
“I love you,” he said, reaching up to kiss Stephen’s cheek softly.
“I love you, too,” said Stephen, slightly surprised. He stooped to kiss Jon on the lips and by the time their coffee arrived, the two were engaged in a fierce tickle fight. In the middle of a coffee shop. Jon had never felt more exhilarated.
~~~~~~~~~~~
At the end of the summer season, when the leaves began to change and the nights became cooler, Susie McFarland passed around invitations to her equinox party.
“Should have just called it her I-have-another-outfit-and-boyfriend-to-show-off party,” said Jon, tossing aside the leaf-shaped piece of cardstock. Then he noticed the dumbstruck expression on Stephen’s face. “What’s wrong?”
“I...kind of wanted to go to this party with you,” he said. The way he looked, Jon half-expected his bottom lip to start trembling. Instead, Stephen simply stared down at the speckled linoleum of room 234.
“Really? Even with Susie and all of her stupid friends there?”
“I can get Amy and Paul to come too. And Rachel and Keith already said they’re going to be there ironically. Something about a sociology project about high schoolers.”
“So, we’ll be test subjects?”
“No, we’ll just be observed. And anyway...this is another good opportunity to be together in public. God, that was so fun at the thrift store the other day.”
Jon rubbed at his eyes, trying to block out the surge of memories from the Salvation Army store. In every row of clothing, Stephen chose one piece to hold up to Jon’s body and ask a fellow thrifter whether or not it looked good on his boyfriend. Jon had enjoyed the blissful glow of joy on Stephen’s face for the first five or so times, but it was crowded at the Salvation Army that afternoon. His enjoyment began to plummet after the thirteenth row of merchandise.
“To be honest...you went a little overboard there.”
“I am genuinely sorry for that,” said Stephen, biting his lip. “I was just so excited to say it. I mean, I could have stopped after a few, but it was just too much fun. Thanks for putting up with me. I love you.”
Jon looked up as Stephen began to stroke his forearm gently with his fingernails and found himself drowning in those eyes. He sighed, “I love you too.”
“Now, what do you say -- party or no party?”
After about thirty seconds of hesitation in the face of Stephen’s bursting-to-the-brim expression, Jon rolled his eyes for good measure and said, “Yes, let’s go.”
As expected, the party was a tawdry affair full of half-dressed classmates that Jon didn’t care a whit about. Lucky for him, he was holding the hand of his favorite guy on the face of the earth. Susie, being one of the affluent teenagers Jon abhorred, held her party at the boardwalk in Asbury Park. If Jon was being honest with himself, his outlook on the party had shifted a bit when he learned it was taking place where The Boss got his start.
“Excited?” said Stephen, squeezing Jon’s fingers.
“It’s not like we’re going to run into him or anything,” said Jon, glancing behind them for good measure.
“No, but you’re walking on hallowed ground!”
“You could say that,” said Jon, allowing himself a grin when Stephen kissed his cheek.
“Enjoy yourself,” said Stephen, slightly stern. “Stop thinking about the yuppie kid’s money that got you here and just take in that view!”
Stephen stopped at the railing along the boardwalk and leaned against it, staring out at the pinks and oranges of the sunset. Jon stopped next to him and bumped his shoulder with his own. Stephen turned to smile at him and let his hand settle on Jon’s jaw. Jon, remembering Stephen’s desire to do things in public, leaned into his boyfriend’s touch and let everything around them dissolve. Even the sunset faded into the background when Stephen leaned forward and kissed him softly.
“I love you,” he whispered against Stephen’s lips before kissing him again, more deeply this time.
When they pulled apart for air, Stephen nuzzled his nose against Jon’s and rested his forehead against Jon’s. He sighed, warm breath wafting over Jon’s cheek.
“I love you too,” he said. “And this could not be more perfect, I hope you know that.”
Jon snaked his arm around Stephen’s waist and pulled his body closer. In response, Stephen shifted just a tad and Jon found himself pressed against the wooden railing of the boardwalk.
“Someone knows how to take charge,” he remarked, fingers tickling the back of Stephen’s neck.
“I use my size to my advantage,” quipped Stephen.
“I hope that only refers to your height,” said Jon, nipping at Stephen’s jaw lightly.
“We’ll soon find out, won’t we?”
Stephen’s fingers hooked into the waistband of Jon’s jeans and for one terrifying and exciting moment, he thought they were about to have sex in broad daylight on the boardwalk where Bruce Springsteen had first played his music. The whole thing was very arousing, to be frank. But then Stephen’s fingers reassigned themselves to Jon’s hip bones and traveled up his sides, tracing those far-too-visible ribs.
Just as Stephen caught Jon’s bottom lip between his teeth, a perky squeak invaded their world.
“Hey! Are you two, like, gay?”
Stephen growled in an almost imperceptible register and Jon held back giggles. Stephen turned his head only, unwilling to give this girl his full attention. It was Susie, the party’s host, and she had the expression of someone who was shocked, disappointed, and delighted all at once for some odd reason.
“Yes,” said Jon, not even bothering to disguise the sarcasm. “We’re, like, gay.”
“Well, we’re gay. Not like gay,” said Stephen and Jon had never wanted to kiss him more.
“Bummer,” said Susie, crossing her arms over her chest. When Stephen cocked that magical eyebrow of his, she waved her hands at them. “No, no, I don’t mean like that. I was...I was going to ask you to prom. That’s the only reason I invited you.”
Jon cleared his throat loudly because it was becoming very difficult to not giggle at the antics playing out in front of him and the expressions crossing Stephen’s face as developments continued.
“Really?” he said, eyebrow still rigidly aloft. “I’m...sorry?”
“No, that’s fine!” said Susie. “You two are adorable.”
Stephen chuckled, eyebrow returning to its natural position. “Oh. Well, thanks.”
With that, Susie skipped off to join some of her similarly dressed friends and Jon and Stephen were left in confusion.
“That was...odd,” said Jon.
“Yes it was,” said Stephen. “But we made out in public.”
Jon was unable to stop the blush that bloomed on his cheeks. “I guess we did.”
“Would you like to make out with me in public some other time?”
“I think I can clear some room in my schedule.”
That time, it turned out, came later that evening around the bonfire started by the preppy kids on the beach. Amy and Paul followed suit, unwilling to be outdone. Keith and Rachel took notes together. Though, it could be argued that Rachel did most of the scribbling and Keith studied the boys’ form more closely.
~~~~~~~~~~~
Stephen suppressed another shiver, the cold seeping in through his jeans from the stone steps of the high school. Snow was threatening to fall from those dark, angry clouds above them and Jon was just going about his history homework for second period. Stephen took a moment and simply marveled at how that icy wind didn’t even phase his boyfriend.
“Can’t we just abscond to South Carolina for the winter? No one would miss us,” he said.
“I think Ms. Walker would miss us,” said Jon, chewing on the cap of his pen as he frowned at his homework. “We have a test in two days.”
“Yeah, and I know absolutely nothing about quadrilaterals and rhombuses...wouldn’t it be rhombi?”
“I don’t know,” said Jon, only half-listening to his boyfriend.
“My mom would take us in, no problem,” he continued. “We’d be refugees on the run from geometry. But it wouldn’t matter because the days would be warm and the lemonade would just keep flowing. And before you knew it, it’d be nightfall and we’d sit at the edge of the pond with our feet in the water...”
Stephen trailed off and punctuated his reverie with a wistful sigh. Jon stopped scribbling notes about the French Revolution and stared up at his boyfriend.
“Why’d you move here?”
“Work for my mom.”
“Oh, right,” said Jon. “We can go back in the summer, though.”
“Our last summer together,” said Stephen, the melancholy in his voice palpable.
“That’s such a lie,” said Jon, shaking his head. “You and I have so many more summers together I can’t even count them. I mean, we sent out our college applications almost identically --”
“--With the exception of two --”
“William & Mary and Northwestern, I know,” said Jon.
“And you just know those two are going to be the ones that accept us and give us the best scholarships and then that means four years apart, Jon. Four years.”
Jon put his hand on Stephen’s knee and squeezed gently. “Even if that does happen, we’ll stay in touch. Always. Okay? Besides, it’s not even Christmas, so cool your jets.”
Stephen snorted and leaned down to kiss Jon. As they pulled apart, Jon heard catcalls coming from the parking lot. He didn’t want to believe it was happening to them. After three years of being together, no one had given them any trouble. This must be some snot-nosed freshman who was coming to the school with annoyingly bigoted views. Stephen appeared not to have heard the shouted word because he leaned down and kissed Jon again, more deeply this time. The shouts just got louder and closer.
“Is that...is that for us?” said Stephen when he pulled back from Jon. Jon’s heart broke at the expression on Stephen’s face -- a mixture of surprise and fright.
“I think so, just don’t acknowledge it,” said Jon, trying to reassure him without attracting more attention.
The two boys kept close together, as still as possible, just willing the bully to grow bored and find something else to do. He didn’t, though -- they never do -- and he just continued to get closer and closer. Jon steeled himself and tried to silently tell Stephen that he would take care of it and everything would be fine.
“Hey! Homos! Didn’t you hear me? I wanna give you a present...up the ass! Just how you like it!”
Jon took a deep breath and patted Stephen’s cheek, just wishing that horrible expression would leave his boyfriend’s face. He cleared his throat and stood up to face the ignorant mouth-breather who was yelling at them. To his surprise, he recognized the kid. His name was Brian and he was on the freshman soccer team. Jon sometimes saw him when he was practicing for varsity.
“Is that what you really want to do?” he said, looking the guy straight in the eyes.
Brian shrugged and looked uncomfortable for a moment. “Well, no. But I know that’s what you like!”
“Why are you doing this? I mean, do you see how stupid and ridiculous you’re being?”
“Do you see how ridiculous and stupid you’re being?” Brian retorted. “Two guys making out...you’re better than this, Stewart. I’ve seen you on the soccer field, you’re a badass. I mean, I’d expect it from this theatre pansy, but not you.”
In a flash, wherein Jon wasn’t even quite sure of what his body was doing, he had Brian pinned up against one of the support beams that held the canopy over the school’s front steps. Brian looked scared shitless for a split second, so Jon considered his mission accomplished.
“What the fuck do you think you’re talking about?” he growled, fingers digging into the other boy’s shoulders. “How dare you say something like that about Stephen?”
“What? Are you gonna kiss me now?” said Brian. Jon wanted to smack that stupid expression right off his face.
“Like I’d want to,” said Jon. “Your prejudice would probably rub off on me.”
“Jon, leave him,” said Stephen, somewhere far off in the distance. His voice cut through the rage that was streaming into Jon’s brain and he calmed down just a bit.
“You gonna listen to your boyfriend?” said Brian. The way he said that word could not have been more different from the way Stephen said it if they’d been speaking in different languages.
“Yes,” replied Jon. “I am going to listen to him. You know why? Because he’s a much more sensible and forgiving person than I am. If it was up to me, you’d be in big trouble.”
Brian did his best to look unfazed, but that was pretty difficult to do when you were being stared down by one of the best kickers on the varsity soccer time, and you had seen this guy kick a lot of balls, and you were worried for the safety of your own. Jon gave him the fiercest look he could muster and then let him go. Brian made a good show of walking away slowly, but when he stepped off the last step, he broke into a mad dash.
“My hero!” said Stephen. He latched onto Jon’s waist from behind and kissed his cheek.
Jon smiled and shook his head. “I don’t want assholes talking about you like that. That’s bullshit.”
Jon turned around to find Stephen positively beaming at him. He usually smiled fondly at him, but this smile was akin to a floodlight.
“Seriously, you’re awesome,” he said. “But thanks for not beating him up. You don’t want to get expelled over some douchebag. Not so soon before graduation. I want to graduate at the same time as you.”
Jon nodded. “Thanks for stopping me before I beat him into a pulp.”
“The mere fact that you were willing to beat him into a pulp is enough for me,” said Stephen. “You don’t need to stoop to violence just for me.”
“I’d do just about anything for you,” said Jon. “I want you to know that.”
“You don’t think I already know? You stood in the Salvation Army with me and let me declare to every single customer that we were boyfriend and boyfriend. I’d say that’s a pretty good indicator of something special.”
“Something that can even outlast a long distance relationship caused by college,” said Jon.
Stephen pointed his finger at Jon and winked. “Way to callback, mister. You know something?”
“What’s that?” said Jon.
“I love you.”
Jon felt the customary bloom of happiness and surprise that he usually felt when Stephen said those words and leaned forward to kiss him softly. “I love you, too.”
“You know, we might run into more douchebags like that kid,” said Stephen. “Are you prepared for that?”
“Of course,” said Jon. “With you, I’m prepared for anything. And you can’t always hold me back with threats of expulsion.”
Stephen sighed heavily. “No, they’ll just turn into threats of jail time.”
“Eh, you’d bail me out.”
“Every time.”
“And then you’d declare to the warden that we’re in a very happy homosexual relationship.”
Stephen let out a loud laugh and planted a kiss on Jon’s cheek. “You know I will.”
-fin-
Author: shoebox_addict
Fandom: RPF Pundits
Pairing/characters: Jon/Stephen
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: Any similarity between the fictional version of the person portrayed here and the actual persons is purely coincidental. This is a work of fiction. This is not an attempt to defame the character of said person on the basis of libel, as the work is FICTIONAL (and NOT an intently false statement created with the express purpose of misleading others about the actual character of said person).
Any mention of 'The Daily Show', 'The Colbert Report', 'Viacom', any associated entities, or any copyrighted material pertaining therein is reasonably protected by the Fair Use Rule of the United States Copyright Act of 1976 and is not intended to infringe upon any copyrighted material.
Prompt: Jon Stewart/Stephen Colbert, doing simple things in public after coming out.
Summary: Now that they’ve come out to their classmates, Stephen wants to take the reluctant Jon out and show him off.
Warnings: (if any) gay slurs, swearing, schmaltz
Author's Notes: High School AU; this was written for queer_fest & is cross-posted to fakenews-fanfic.
Stepping Out with You
Jon Stewart was not the most adept person when it came to romance and relationships. Stephen had been the one to ask him out via a note passed to him by Paul Dinello in fifth period English. Jon’s immediate response had been for his mind to begin racing with worry and anxiety about being in a relationship. Then he’d looked over the head of the kid sitting next to him and caught sight of Stephen’s shy smile. That sealed the deal and they’d gone on their first date that evening.
“Do you want to be my boyfriend?” Stephen had asked after they’d had their first kiss.
“Of course,” Jon had replied, because who turned down an offer like that? Stephen was one of the most handsome boys in school and Jon was just glad that he happened to be gay much less interested in Jon.
“I really like you,” Stephen had said, running his fingertips gently down the fabric of Jon’s old t-shirt.
“Really?” said Jon. “‘Cause, well...have you gotten a good look at me?”
Stephen simply stared at him, dumbstruck. “Is that a joke? Jon...you’re hot.”
“Ha ha, is that a joke?” retorted Jon. But when Stephen leaned forward and gave Jon his first kiss that involved something more than lips, he knew Stephen wasn’t kidding. At that moment, Jon resolved to do whatever it took to make Stephen happy because Stephen had done the same for him, even if it had been unknowingly.
When it had come time to come out, that was completely Stephen’s decision too. He gave Jon a long speech about how they had to live their lives authentically and come out of the closet. Jon didn’t realize this was something they needed to do. No one had given him a checklist for this kind of thing, so he decided to follow Stephen’s lead. Stephen at least made it seem that he was an expert at this kind of thing.
In each class they shared, Stephen made sure to get there extra early and engage in person in conversation -- a conversation that always ended the same.
“Right...so that’s where you’re planning on going to college? That sounds great. I’m not really sure yet, you know? It depends on where Jon goes, I guess. We’re gay, by the way, me and him. Both of us. Gay.”
Jon spent the first ten minutes of each class wishing fervently to be smaller than he already was.
Even though it was slightly embarrassing to have your sexuality broadcast to every member of his class (and possibly the school, he didn’t know how fast word -- or Stephen -- traveled), Jon found it hard to care when he was alone with Stephen. Jon didn’t fixate on any of the specifics, he only cared about the way Stephen looked at him and made him feel.
One hot September evening at the start of their senior year, Jon was lying next to Stephen in the grass of his backyard not thinking about anything but the boy whose sweaty arm was pressed against his own. Stephen, it seemed, had many other things on his mind at that moment.
“Hey, Jon?” he said. “Now that we’ve come out...don’t you think we should be, you know, doing things where people can see us?”
Jon’s eyebrows wrinkled together almost of their own accord and he pushed himself up on his elbows. “Is that a thing?”
Stephen turned his head to look at Jon. “What do you mean?”
“I mean...we came out. Do we really have to do more?”
“Well, I want people to know you’re my boyfriend.”
“So, is this the next step?”
“There are no steps when it comes to love, Jon.”
Jon was pretty sure there were because it was times like these when he felt Stephen had been given a brochure that he wasn’t sharing with Jon. But Stephen had used the word love and now Jon just wanted to kiss his boyfriend in the privacy of his backyard. So he did.
“But,” said Stephen, when they pulled apart. “Don’t you want people to see us being all relationshippy in public? I mean, we spend an awful lot of time in your backyard.”
“It’s nice and quiet back here,” said Jon, kissing Stephen again. “And no one bothers us.”
“You’re not ashamed of me?”
Jon pulled back and stared incredulously at Stephen. “You’ve got to be kidding.”
“Well, I can’t think why else you wouldn’t want to go out more.”
“Stephen. Seriously. You are fucking gorgeous, okay? Why would I spend so much time with you if I didn’t love you and think you were breathtaking?”
Stephen blushed slightly, just across his nose. “Breathtaking...wow.”
“Yeah. And I mean that,” said Jon.
“Then why don’t you want to go out more?”
Jon sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. “It honestly never occurred to me, Stephen. I just want to be with you, I don’t really worry about other people.”
“That’s sweet,” said Stephen. “But...and this comes from a real place of love, I promise...I kind of want to show you off.”
Jon giggled softly. “I’m your trophy boyfriend?”
“No, it’s not like that,” said Stephen, swatting Jon’s arm playfully. “I just...heterosexual couples are everywhere you look, you know? I just feel like we should be out there representing our side.”
“Oh...there are no sides,” said Jon, his shoulders slumping in defeat as he realized where the conversation was headed.
“I know, I know that,” said Stephen. “I don’t know...is it wrong to want to be out in a store kissing you? Or telling someone at a restaurant that we’re together?”
Jon looked Stephen and saw the sincerity in his eyes. If it had been anyone else, Jon would have thought he was being used to make someone else jealous or as part of some game. But this was Stephen and he was looking at Jon with those puppy dog eyes of his, just asking for one simple thing. How could Jon refuse when Stephen had chosen him and was such a loving boyfriend?
“Is this really what you want?” he said, squeezing Stephen’s hand.
“Yes,” said Stephen. “I just want everyone to know how happy we are. I just want everyone to see that you’re my boyfriend.”
A slow smile crept onto Jon’s face as he leaned in for a goodnight kiss. He realized he’d have to start gearing himself up for Public Displays of Affection, but he didn’t think that would be too difficult.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
The honk of a car horn brought Jon out of the pages of his political science book and back into reality. He looked up to find Stephen’s beige Pinto parked in front of the school’s front steps. Stephen had one arm leaning out the open window and the other perched at the top of the steering wheel. Jon giggled to himself at how silly Stephen looked while also being completely irresistible. He stuffed his books back into his backpack and jogged down the steps to meet Stephen.
“‘Scuse me, do you need a ride?” said Stephen, letting a hint of his Southern drawl creep into the question.
“I do, but I really shouldn’t take rides from strangers.”
“You shouldn’t get handjobs from strangers either, so I guess we should go back and erase what happened last night.”
Had Jon been drinking something, it would now be dripping from Stephen’s glasses. As it was, he let out a very undignified squeak and straightened his t-shirt.
“Hop in,” said Stephen, still cool as a cucumber.
Jon shoved his backpack through the narrow space between the car’s door frame and the back window that wouldn’t open all the way. Then he wrenched open the passenger door, winced at the creak, and was barely buckled in before Stephen took off.
“Want to stop somewhere and get something?”
Jon did a double-take in Stephen’s direction. “That was the vaguest thing I’ve ever heard anyone say.”
Stephen snorted. “Yes or no?”
Jon did a mental check of the money nestled in his pocket. “Sure, why not?”
Fifteen minutes later, Stephen was pulling haphazardly into a parking spot at their favorite coffee shop. When he stepped out of the car, Stephen was there ready to take his hand. Jon’s instant response was to flinch away because this was something they did in private. But Stephen was gazing at him -- literally gazing -- and he was so lost in those eyes that it could have been a form of hypnosis. Jon took Stephen’s hand and they walked into the shop that way.
No heads turned, no eyes fixated curiously or judgementally on them. Everyone simply went about their business and Jon wondered if Stephen would be disappointed. When he turned to look, Stephen had his head held high as though he was expecting criticism. They stepped up to the counter and placed their order.
“And, um, I want to buy my boyfriend’s coffee,” said Stephen, adding this quick addendum with a grin on his face.
The cashier didn’t skip a beat. She simply punched a few buttons on her register to combine the order and held out her hand.
“Five fifty,” she said in a bored tone.
Stephen gave her the money, collected his change, and then moved to the side to wait for their order. Jon followed him, slightly confused.
“No one cares,” he whispered as Stephen slid his fingers between Jon’s once more.
“I know, but wasn’t that awesome?” said Stephen, grinning manically. “It was just fun to say the word boyfriend out loud.”
It was then that Jon realized this wasn’t about pushing the envelope, this wasn’t about testing people’s sensibilities. This was simply about Stephen taking their relationship public and doing normal relationship things with Jon. Jon had been skeptical of that explanation, but it seemed that Stephen was very serious about it.
“I love you,” he said, reaching up to kiss Stephen’s cheek softly.
“I love you, too,” said Stephen, slightly surprised. He stooped to kiss Jon on the lips and by the time their coffee arrived, the two were engaged in a fierce tickle fight. In the middle of a coffee shop. Jon had never felt more exhilarated.
~~~~~~~~~~~
At the end of the summer season, when the leaves began to change and the nights became cooler, Susie McFarland passed around invitations to her equinox party.
“Should have just called it her I-have-another-outfit-and-boyfriend-to-show-off party,” said Jon, tossing aside the leaf-shaped piece of cardstock. Then he noticed the dumbstruck expression on Stephen’s face. “What’s wrong?”
“I...kind of wanted to go to this party with you,” he said. The way he looked, Jon half-expected his bottom lip to start trembling. Instead, Stephen simply stared down at the speckled linoleum of room 234.
“Really? Even with Susie and all of her stupid friends there?”
“I can get Amy and Paul to come too. And Rachel and Keith already said they’re going to be there ironically. Something about a sociology project about high schoolers.”
“So, we’ll be test subjects?”
“No, we’ll just be observed. And anyway...this is another good opportunity to be together in public. God, that was so fun at the thrift store the other day.”
Jon rubbed at his eyes, trying to block out the surge of memories from the Salvation Army store. In every row of clothing, Stephen chose one piece to hold up to Jon’s body and ask a fellow thrifter whether or not it looked good on his boyfriend. Jon had enjoyed the blissful glow of joy on Stephen’s face for the first five or so times, but it was crowded at the Salvation Army that afternoon. His enjoyment began to plummet after the thirteenth row of merchandise.
“To be honest...you went a little overboard there.”
“I am genuinely sorry for that,” said Stephen, biting his lip. “I was just so excited to say it. I mean, I could have stopped after a few, but it was just too much fun. Thanks for putting up with me. I love you.”
Jon looked up as Stephen began to stroke his forearm gently with his fingernails and found himself drowning in those eyes. He sighed, “I love you too.”
“Now, what do you say -- party or no party?”
After about thirty seconds of hesitation in the face of Stephen’s bursting-to-the-brim expression, Jon rolled his eyes for good measure and said, “Yes, let’s go.”
As expected, the party was a tawdry affair full of half-dressed classmates that Jon didn’t care a whit about. Lucky for him, he was holding the hand of his favorite guy on the face of the earth. Susie, being one of the affluent teenagers Jon abhorred, held her party at the boardwalk in Asbury Park. If Jon was being honest with himself, his outlook on the party had shifted a bit when he learned it was taking place where The Boss got his start.
“Excited?” said Stephen, squeezing Jon’s fingers.
“It’s not like we’re going to run into him or anything,” said Jon, glancing behind them for good measure.
“No, but you’re walking on hallowed ground!”
“You could say that,” said Jon, allowing himself a grin when Stephen kissed his cheek.
“Enjoy yourself,” said Stephen, slightly stern. “Stop thinking about the yuppie kid’s money that got you here and just take in that view!”
Stephen stopped at the railing along the boardwalk and leaned against it, staring out at the pinks and oranges of the sunset. Jon stopped next to him and bumped his shoulder with his own. Stephen turned to smile at him and let his hand settle on Jon’s jaw. Jon, remembering Stephen’s desire to do things in public, leaned into his boyfriend’s touch and let everything around them dissolve. Even the sunset faded into the background when Stephen leaned forward and kissed him softly.
“I love you,” he whispered against Stephen’s lips before kissing him again, more deeply this time.
When they pulled apart for air, Stephen nuzzled his nose against Jon’s and rested his forehead against Jon’s. He sighed, warm breath wafting over Jon’s cheek.
“I love you too,” he said. “And this could not be more perfect, I hope you know that.”
Jon snaked his arm around Stephen’s waist and pulled his body closer. In response, Stephen shifted just a tad and Jon found himself pressed against the wooden railing of the boardwalk.
“Someone knows how to take charge,” he remarked, fingers tickling the back of Stephen’s neck.
“I use my size to my advantage,” quipped Stephen.
“I hope that only refers to your height,” said Jon, nipping at Stephen’s jaw lightly.
“We’ll soon find out, won’t we?”
Stephen’s fingers hooked into the waistband of Jon’s jeans and for one terrifying and exciting moment, he thought they were about to have sex in broad daylight on the boardwalk where Bruce Springsteen had first played his music. The whole thing was very arousing, to be frank. But then Stephen’s fingers reassigned themselves to Jon’s hip bones and traveled up his sides, tracing those far-too-visible ribs.
Just as Stephen caught Jon’s bottom lip between his teeth, a perky squeak invaded their world.
“Hey! Are you two, like, gay?”
Stephen growled in an almost imperceptible register and Jon held back giggles. Stephen turned his head only, unwilling to give this girl his full attention. It was Susie, the party’s host, and she had the expression of someone who was shocked, disappointed, and delighted all at once for some odd reason.
“Yes,” said Jon, not even bothering to disguise the sarcasm. “We’re, like, gay.”
“Well, we’re gay. Not like gay,” said Stephen and Jon had never wanted to kiss him more.
“Bummer,” said Susie, crossing her arms over her chest. When Stephen cocked that magical eyebrow of his, she waved her hands at them. “No, no, I don’t mean like that. I was...I was going to ask you to prom. That’s the only reason I invited you.”
Jon cleared his throat loudly because it was becoming very difficult to not giggle at the antics playing out in front of him and the expressions crossing Stephen’s face as developments continued.
“Really?” he said, eyebrow still rigidly aloft. “I’m...sorry?”
“No, that’s fine!” said Susie. “You two are adorable.”
Stephen chuckled, eyebrow returning to its natural position. “Oh. Well, thanks.”
With that, Susie skipped off to join some of her similarly dressed friends and Jon and Stephen were left in confusion.
“That was...odd,” said Jon.
“Yes it was,” said Stephen. “But we made out in public.”
Jon was unable to stop the blush that bloomed on his cheeks. “I guess we did.”
“Would you like to make out with me in public some other time?”
“I think I can clear some room in my schedule.”
That time, it turned out, came later that evening around the bonfire started by the preppy kids on the beach. Amy and Paul followed suit, unwilling to be outdone. Keith and Rachel took notes together. Though, it could be argued that Rachel did most of the scribbling and Keith studied the boys’ form more closely.
~~~~~~~~~~~
Stephen suppressed another shiver, the cold seeping in through his jeans from the stone steps of the high school. Snow was threatening to fall from those dark, angry clouds above them and Jon was just going about his history homework for second period. Stephen took a moment and simply marveled at how that icy wind didn’t even phase his boyfriend.
“Can’t we just abscond to South Carolina for the winter? No one would miss us,” he said.
“I think Ms. Walker would miss us,” said Jon, chewing on the cap of his pen as he frowned at his homework. “We have a test in two days.”
“Yeah, and I know absolutely nothing about quadrilaterals and rhombuses...wouldn’t it be rhombi?”
“I don’t know,” said Jon, only half-listening to his boyfriend.
“My mom would take us in, no problem,” he continued. “We’d be refugees on the run from geometry. But it wouldn’t matter because the days would be warm and the lemonade would just keep flowing. And before you knew it, it’d be nightfall and we’d sit at the edge of the pond with our feet in the water...”
Stephen trailed off and punctuated his reverie with a wistful sigh. Jon stopped scribbling notes about the French Revolution and stared up at his boyfriend.
“Why’d you move here?”
“Work for my mom.”
“Oh, right,” said Jon. “We can go back in the summer, though.”
“Our last summer together,” said Stephen, the melancholy in his voice palpable.
“That’s such a lie,” said Jon, shaking his head. “You and I have so many more summers together I can’t even count them. I mean, we sent out our college applications almost identically --”
“--With the exception of two --”
“William & Mary and Northwestern, I know,” said Jon.
“And you just know those two are going to be the ones that accept us and give us the best scholarships and then that means four years apart, Jon. Four years.”
Jon put his hand on Stephen’s knee and squeezed gently. “Even if that does happen, we’ll stay in touch. Always. Okay? Besides, it’s not even Christmas, so cool your jets.”
Stephen snorted and leaned down to kiss Jon. As they pulled apart, Jon heard catcalls coming from the parking lot. He didn’t want to believe it was happening to them. After three years of being together, no one had given them any trouble. This must be some snot-nosed freshman who was coming to the school with annoyingly bigoted views. Stephen appeared not to have heard the shouted word because he leaned down and kissed Jon again, more deeply this time. The shouts just got louder and closer.
“Is that...is that for us?” said Stephen when he pulled back from Jon. Jon’s heart broke at the expression on Stephen’s face -- a mixture of surprise and fright.
“I think so, just don’t acknowledge it,” said Jon, trying to reassure him without attracting more attention.
The two boys kept close together, as still as possible, just willing the bully to grow bored and find something else to do. He didn’t, though -- they never do -- and he just continued to get closer and closer. Jon steeled himself and tried to silently tell Stephen that he would take care of it and everything would be fine.
“Hey! Homos! Didn’t you hear me? I wanna give you a present...up the ass! Just how you like it!”
Jon took a deep breath and patted Stephen’s cheek, just wishing that horrible expression would leave his boyfriend’s face. He cleared his throat and stood up to face the ignorant mouth-breather who was yelling at them. To his surprise, he recognized the kid. His name was Brian and he was on the freshman soccer team. Jon sometimes saw him when he was practicing for varsity.
“Is that what you really want to do?” he said, looking the guy straight in the eyes.
Brian shrugged and looked uncomfortable for a moment. “Well, no. But I know that’s what you like!”
“Why are you doing this? I mean, do you see how stupid and ridiculous you’re being?”
“Do you see how ridiculous and stupid you’re being?” Brian retorted. “Two guys making out...you’re better than this, Stewart. I’ve seen you on the soccer field, you’re a badass. I mean, I’d expect it from this theatre pansy, but not you.”
In a flash, wherein Jon wasn’t even quite sure of what his body was doing, he had Brian pinned up against one of the support beams that held the canopy over the school’s front steps. Brian looked scared shitless for a split second, so Jon considered his mission accomplished.
“What the fuck do you think you’re talking about?” he growled, fingers digging into the other boy’s shoulders. “How dare you say something like that about Stephen?”
“What? Are you gonna kiss me now?” said Brian. Jon wanted to smack that stupid expression right off his face.
“Like I’d want to,” said Jon. “Your prejudice would probably rub off on me.”
“Jon, leave him,” said Stephen, somewhere far off in the distance. His voice cut through the rage that was streaming into Jon’s brain and he calmed down just a bit.
“You gonna listen to your boyfriend?” said Brian. The way he said that word could not have been more different from the way Stephen said it if they’d been speaking in different languages.
“Yes,” replied Jon. “I am going to listen to him. You know why? Because he’s a much more sensible and forgiving person than I am. If it was up to me, you’d be in big trouble.”
Brian did his best to look unfazed, but that was pretty difficult to do when you were being stared down by one of the best kickers on the varsity soccer time, and you had seen this guy kick a lot of balls, and you were worried for the safety of your own. Jon gave him the fiercest look he could muster and then let him go. Brian made a good show of walking away slowly, but when he stepped off the last step, he broke into a mad dash.
“My hero!” said Stephen. He latched onto Jon’s waist from behind and kissed his cheek.
Jon smiled and shook his head. “I don’t want assholes talking about you like that. That’s bullshit.”
Jon turned around to find Stephen positively beaming at him. He usually smiled fondly at him, but this smile was akin to a floodlight.
“Seriously, you’re awesome,” he said. “But thanks for not beating him up. You don’t want to get expelled over some douchebag. Not so soon before graduation. I want to graduate at the same time as you.”
Jon nodded. “Thanks for stopping me before I beat him into a pulp.”
“The mere fact that you were willing to beat him into a pulp is enough for me,” said Stephen. “You don’t need to stoop to violence just for me.”
“I’d do just about anything for you,” said Jon. “I want you to know that.”
“You don’t think I already know? You stood in the Salvation Army with me and let me declare to every single customer that we were boyfriend and boyfriend. I’d say that’s a pretty good indicator of something special.”
“Something that can even outlast a long distance relationship caused by college,” said Jon.
Stephen pointed his finger at Jon and winked. “Way to callback, mister. You know something?”
“What’s that?” said Jon.
“I love you.”
Jon felt the customary bloom of happiness and surprise that he usually felt when Stephen said those words and leaned forward to kiss him softly. “I love you, too.”
“You know, we might run into more douchebags like that kid,” said Stephen. “Are you prepared for that?”
“Of course,” said Jon. “With you, I’m prepared for anything. And you can’t always hold me back with threats of expulsion.”
Stephen sighed heavily. “No, they’ll just turn into threats of jail time.”
“Eh, you’d bail me out.”
“Every time.”
“And then you’d declare to the warden that we’re in a very happy homosexual relationship.”
Stephen let out a loud laugh and planted a kiss on Jon’s cheek. “You know I will.”
-fin-