A Little Foolishness and a Lot of Curiousity 1/8
Master Post
Chapter one
Kris Allen dropped his bags on the floor next to the bed farthest from the window. He had no idea who his roommate was this year. All he'd been told was that it was another senior and he was transferring from another private school. He hated getting new roommates, but the only way around it would've been to room with Daniel and neither he nor his brother wanted that. He hesitated before beginning to unpack his stuff. He knew he should at least offer to let his new roommate choose which bed he wanted. After all, he had to live with this guy for the next ten months, starting out being selfish wouldn't accomplish anything but ensure a miserable year for both of them. He really hated being near the window though so he decided he was just going to start putting his things away and hope the guy didn't care.
He spent the next hour pulling things from his suitcases and putting everything in its place. His desk was soon littered with notebooks, folders, and pens. The drawers of the small dresser on his side of the room were filled with underwear, socks, and t-shirts, and everything else was lying on his bed to be hung up. He'd just put the last of his shirts on hangers and was going to start moving stuff to the closet when the door swung open and someone- he assumed his new roommate- stumbled through the door, trying to pull several suitcases and a couple of bags with him.
Sighing, Kris dropped the pile of pants he was holding and went over to relieve the guy of some of his bags. "Need some help?"
"Thanks!"
Kris grabbed two of the suitcases and deposited them on the other bed, then turned to grab more from where the new guy had left them sitting on the floor, just inside the door. When they'd finished carrying everything into the room, Kris pushed the door closed.
"I'm Kris Allen," he said, holding out a hand.
"Adam Lambert." The new guy reached out and took the offered hand, smiling. "I guess we're roommates this year."
"Yeah." Kris smiled and gestured toward the bed, now piled with bags. "You really brought a lot of clothes for someone in a school with uniforms."
"Uniforms are only required during classes, right? I like to have options the rest of the time. And it's not all clothes. There are shoes and makeup and hair…What?"
"Makeup?" Kris asked, for the first time really looking at Adam. His hair was dyed black and was in some sort of spiky style that looked cool on him but would end up making Kris look like he'd simply forgotten to brush his hair that morning. Adam also was, indeed, wearing makeup, Kris realized. Not a lot, or not a lot that Kris could tell anyway but there was definitely black eyeliner outlining his eyes. Not a look Kris remembered ever seeing at school before.
"Is that a problem?" Adam asked, eyes narrowing. Kris didn't seem like the overly judgmental type, but he wouldn't be the first person to have a problem with Adam's appearance. He and his parents had researched the school carefully before registering him and his brother, Neil. There had already been bad experiences with various schools being too conservative causing Adam to suffer too much to learn anything of value other than the world could be a truly bigoted place.
"Not for me," Kris assured him. "I'm not really sure what the school policy is, though."
"They don't have one," Adam said, grinning. "I checked through the code of conduct and all of the school paperwork we were sent when I enrolled. There is absolutely no mention of cosmetics at all."
Kris returned the smile. He wasn't sure how well Adam's look was going to go over, but he wasn't surprised there were no rules regarding makeup at a private, all boys' school. Classes on Monday should be interesting. "You don't mind taking that bed, right?"
Adam shrugged. "Window's fine with me, if you don’t mind me taking up most of the bathroom counter with my stuff."
"Just leave me room for a toothbrush," Kris told him and returned to putting his stuff away. He liked to get that out of the way as quickly as possible. It was also why he chose to come in on Saturday morning instead of Sunday night like most of the other students. He could get his stuff sorted out and have time to relax before classes started. Adam quickly began unpacking his things, as well. Kris finished first and offered to help so Adam took his bathroom supplies into the attached bath and started unpacking those while Kris continued to move things to the closet.
"Hey, when we're done here, any chance I can get you to show me around before dinner?" Adam asked, poking his head out of the bathroom door.
"Sure." Kris agreed. "Do you have your schedule already? I have to go pick mine up."
"Nope, I need mine as well. Probably a good place to start, then."
~~**~~
Adam and Kris walked down the hall toward the last of the classrooms on his schedule. As it turned out, they had a lot of the same classes this semester, which definitely pleased Adam. This was the third school he'd been in since starting high school, and at least knowing someone the first day would make things a little more comfortable. They'd spent the last hour walking around the school with Kris pointing out his classes, and other important rooms such as the band room, the gym, cafeteria and auditorium, the last at Adam's request.
Adam liked Kris. He'd admit he'd been concerned when he found out he had to have a roommate because no private rooms were available. He hated assuming the worst of everyone, but it seemed he was right more often than not. Most boys saw his clothes, the makeup and the hair, found out he sang and liked theatre, and disliked him immediately. Assumed he was gay. Not that they were wrong about that part, but he much preferred being judged on his personality, not his appearance or sexual orientation. Kris seemed to be one of the special few who hadn't batted an eye at any of it. Well, not the part about his sexual orientation since he hadn't told him he was gay, yet. Adam wasn't ashamed of it, and didn't want to hide it, but he wanted to take the time to get to know Kris, and for Kris to get to know him as well. He wouldn’t lie, though. If the subject of dating or girls came up, he'd be honest about it. He just wasn't going to bring it up himself, not yet.
Kris looked at his watch and sighed. "We have time to make it to dinner or to pick up textbooks. Which do you prefer?"
"Can we get the books tomorrow, or does it have to be tonight?" Adam asked.
"The bookstore is open tomorrow; that's when most of the students arrive, anyway," Kris assured him. "So dinner, then?"
Adam agreed, and they turned down a hallway that would lead them back to the cafeteria.
They quickly filled their plates and sat at one of the many empty tables. Only about fifteen or so other students had even come in today, so they had plenty of space and privacy to continue to talk. They'd been chatting since they started their tour of the school and that they had quite a bit in common. Both had younger brothers who were also starting here this year. They both liked music and sang and, although Adam didn't play an instrument, Kris played both piano and guitar. Kris had learned that Adam loved theatre and wanted to try out for the school play this year. As they ate and talked, Kris found that he really liked Adam. As much as they were different, they were also very alike, but they had this connection that just seemed to click the second they met.
"So," Adam said as they headed back to their room after dinner, "What are the rules about leaving campus?"
"Depends," Kris said. "Since school hasn't officially started yet, we can do what we want as long as we're back by midnight. Starting Monday, it depends on whether your parents signed the papers saying you can leave or not."
"I'm sure they did." Adam said. "So assuming they did, where can we go?"
"There's a small town about a half mile down the road," Kris said, pushing their door open, walking in and kicking off his shoes as he flopped back on his bed. "It's really the only place that you can make it to and back by curfew."
"Which is?" Adam prompted, following him in and copying Kris' actions at his own bed.
"Ten, Sunday through Thursday, midnight on Friday and Saturday," Kris answered, rolling onto his side to look at Adam. "Unless your grades drop below a C, then they revoke the privilege."
"I can manage that," Adam said, turning on his side and facing Kris. "So, after we get our books tomorrow, care to show me around this town?"
Kris propped himself up on his elbow and grinned. "Sure, not like there's homework or anything yet. But fair warning, town is boring. It's just less boring than campus."
"I’m sure nothing will be boring with you around, Kris," Adam said, grinning at him.
"Well as much as I want to live up to that statement," Kris responded. "I’m exhausted, so I'm going to turn in early."
"Not a bad idea. Do you want the bathroom first?"
"I'm going to guess I’m faster than you, so yeah." Kris answered, rolling off the bed and grabbing sleep pants from his dresser. "Be right back."
Adam watched the door close behind him, and lay back with a sigh. This year may not be nearly as bad as he thought it would be. He was going to have to pull out all of his acting skills to deal with the fact that Kris was really cute and totally his type because Kris had a girlfriend. Kris had mentioned earlier that he had been dating this girl in his hometown in Arkansas for the last two years. That obviously made Kris completely off limits.
Kris shut the bathroom door and stared at himself in the mirror for several seconds. He was glad they had put Adam in his room, despite all the misgivings earlier about a new roommate. He liked Adam, a lot, despite all their differences. It was good. He could talk to Adam so easily, even more easily than he could talk to Cale and Charles and he'd known them forever. Everything was just so comfortable.
~~**~~
"Okay, so you were right," Adam admitted, digging the heel of his boot into the dirt under it as he swung lightly on the swing next to Kris. "Town is boring."
"I did warn you," Kris said, grinning at him. "But by next weekend you'll be looking forward to coming down here and at least being away from school for a while."
They'd walked through town, because Kris hadn't lied about it being a small town, and he had pointed out the few places that were interesting. It had only taken a few hours and they'd reached the park at the far side. They'd decided to stay and relax for a while before heading back to school. The park was deserted anyway so they wouldn't be in the way of any kids wanting to play.
Kris was, for the first time ever, happy with his roommate. Not that he'd ever really had a problem with the others, but he'd never really considered any of them friends either. It had only been a day and he was already seeing Adam as a friend. Adam was so different from anyone he'd known before. The dyed hair, the makeup, even his clothes were a little more…flashy, than Kris was used to. Not bad flashy just he seemed to like rhinestones and glitter and leather. Although Adam assured him those were only for when he was planning on 'having fun', not every day. And today he'd worn jeans and a t-shirt, like Kris except for the hour or so spent in the bathroom on hair and makeup because he insisted he was not going to be seen outside their room without covering all the freckles he could.
Kris thought the freckles were cute. Where did that thought come from? When did he start thinking about another guy's looks as being 'cute'? For that matter, when did he start thinking about another guy's looks at all? And why wasn't he more freaked out about the thought?
"Kris?" Adam's voice pulled him from his thoughts. "Kris!"
Adam frowned and waved his hand in front of Kris' face. This wasn't the first time today he'd completely checked out on him like this. Adam would so like to know what was in Kris' head when he did that. It was cute though, if a little alarming. He liked Kris, a lot. Kris was cute and funny and they really connected. He knew last night that he and Kris could be really good friends. But today, he found himself quickly developing a crush on his roommate. Of course, that was a bad thing because Kris was straight and had a girlfriend. Although, he'd also implied they weren't very serious, just that everyone sort of expected it because they'd known each other forever. But still, Adam didn’t like crushing on straight boys. It was pointless. He also knew he was horrible at hiding it when he liked someone, which meant he would probably need to come clean with Kris sooner than he planned and just hope for the best.
"Sorry," Kris said, "day dreaming."
"Just wondering if you wanted to head back to school or just grab dinner here," Adam asked, stepping away from Kris. "There is a place to eat here, right?"
"We can eat here," Kris agreed. "There's a diner down the street."
~~**~~
Adam walked out of the bathroom and saw Kris on the bed, guitar on his lap, strumming and singing quietly to himself. He looked up and stopped when he saw Adam in the doorway. "Don't stop because of me," Adam said. "You sounded good."
"Thanks, but it's late anyway," Kris said, and pulled the case up to the bed to put the guitar away. He hadn't really been paying much attention to what he was doing; sometimes he'd play and sing just so he could think. Today though, his thoughts kept going places he wasn't totally comfortable or happy with. Thoughts like how cute he thought Adam's freckles were, or how impressed he was that Adam seemed so unaffected by the strange looks the people in town had given him as they walked by today. "But now you've heard me sing, so you have to sing for me one day."
"Any time," Adam agreed. He sat on the edge of his own bed and watched Kris putting the guitar away. When it was packed away, Kris excused himself so he could shower and Adam grabbed his cell phone from the bedside table and dialed quickly. "Dani?"
"Adam?" the voice at the other end asked. "I didn't think you'd be calling so soon. Is the new roommate horrible?"
Adam sighed. "Not at all, that's sort of the problem."
"His not being a jerk is a problem?"
"He's cute, Dani," Adam said, lying back on his bed. "Really cute. And funny and totally hasn't freaked out over the makeup or my clothes or anything about me."
"And that's a problem because..?"
"Because I like him."
"Oh," Dani said, realization dawning slowly. "Does he know?"
"That I'm gay?" Adam asked. "No."
"You need to tell him," she said matter-of-factly.
"But what if he hates me for it?" Adam asked. "I realize he's probably straight and the most I can have is friendship but I don't want to lose that."
"What good is a friend you can't be honest with?"
"I know," he agreed, "But isn't this kind of soon?"
"I'm not saying to tell him you think he's cute, but if he's as wonderful as you say he is then it won't matter and you know it."
The bathroom door swung open and Adam said, "Danielle, I've gotta go. I'll talk to you later."
"Oh," Kris said, hesitating in the doorway when he heard Adam's quick good bye. "I can leave you alone if you want. I didn't mean to interrupt."
"It's okay, we were done," Adam said, putting his phone back on the table. "I just needed a reality check."
"Girlfriends can be good for that," Kris agreed.
Adam pulled himself to a sitting position and sighed. Well, Kris had unwittingly supplied the opening to the conversation he had been trying avoid tonight. "Yeah, Dani's not my girlfriend."
"Oh, okay," Kris said. He frowned at the look on Adam's face. "Is everything okay?"
"Yeah, it's just…there's something I need to tell you," Adam said. "I just, I probably should've told you sooner but I didn't want…I wanted you to get to know me first. Not judge me because of it."
Kris frowned again. What could Adam possibly have to tell him that he would even think could change his view of him? Adam seemed like a wonderful guy and he really couldn't imagine anything that could make him think otherwise. And Kris was choosing to ignore the sense of relief he felt at learning that the girl on the phone was not Adam's girlfriend. "Okay, but I really don't think…"
"I'm gay."
Kris stopped talking and stared at Adam for several seconds. He hadn't been expecting that, but it certainly didn't change his opinion of Adam at all. Well, it did seem to give him an odd sense of relief but again he was going to choose not to think about that tonight. "Oh," he finally said, not sure what else to say.
"Damn it!" Adam got up and started pacing the room. "I knew Dani was wrong. I shouldn’t have said anything yet. Are you going to ask for a new roommate?"
"What?" Kris said, the last question snapping him out of his thoughts. "Why?"
Adam turned to face him and saw the baffled look on his face. "You aren't creeped out by this?"
"Should I be?" Kris asked. "I mean, you're gay, it doesn't really affect me, right? We're friends."
"Right," Adam agreed hesitantly. He really hated lying to someone he already considered a friend. But at the same time, Kris being okay with his being gay and Kris being okay with Adam crushing on him were two very different things. He'd have to wait. Maybe the crush would go away. Right now it was easy; Kris was the only one he knew here and he looked a little like Brad. And he missed Brad, a lot. This would just blow over once they both got busy with classes and friends and stuff. "Friends."
Chapter 2