Long way from Conway (29/?)
Many thanks to the amazing groffiction for this beautiful banner!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
A/N: Well, regardless of the disappointing loss my Gators put on last night, I happened to finish this =) So, I hope you enjoy this!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The gentle morning light lit Adam's bedroom in a nice and calm halo of warmth and peace. His tousled black hair was slightly in his face and his blue eyes were still sleepy from the previous night he had spent loving Kris.
Kris.
Where was he?
For a moment, Adam was afraid, frantically looking at his now empty bed and searching the bathroom. Then, on the mirror above his sink, Adam noticed a yellow paper taped on tightly. Curious, Adam looked at it for a moment and then ripped it off of the glass to read it.
Adam,
My Dad called me and said I had to be home, so....I am. Again, I'm so sorry he's being a you know what about this week and all that, but I just want you to know that he has allowed me to go to school after my Mom nearly attacked him for me not going. So, I guess I'll see you Monday morning, bright and early! Save a seat for me, angel.
Love and all that mush that we said to each other last night,
Kris xoxoxoxoxoxo
P.S. Tell Brad that I'll call him tonight. Thanks :)
Why the hell does Kris want me to tell Brad that? Adam thought as he put the note down beside him. And what the heck does Kris's Dad exactly think he's going to pull off by doing this? Adam never really understood why Kris's father did the hings he did, but one thing sure was clear-he seemed to be able to always find a way to keep them away from each other.
At least I get to see him at school. Adam thought to himself, thinking only about the good things in this like he always did in any situation. He yawned deeply and looked at himself in the mirror. He looked hot.
Suddenly, his cell rang, and Adam quickly picked it up in hopes it would be Kris.
"Hello?" he said in a cheery voice.
"Where the hell is your dude?" Brad's annoyed voice screeched through the speaker. "He was supposed to help me with my video, Lambert!"
Oh great, it's an angry Brad. "He's stuck with his family for like, this whole week, minus school."
"WHAT?" Brad yelled, his voice clearly sky-rocketing up two octaves. "I neeeeeeed him, Adam! My dancers are here and I have all the equipment he told me to get, but I have no clue what to do! I need him desperately, Lambert! You get his skinny ass over here PRONTO!"
Adam rolled his eyes and leaned against the mirror in boredom. "Brad, I can't. Get someone else."
"Fine.........you get over here, then."
"Oh hell no," Adam immediately said with a scared chuckle, "I know nothing about that stuff. Remember when I tried to fix your laptop and it burst into flames?"
Brad laughed at the memory of having to call the fire department because Adam had set the laptop and part of his room on fire. "Okay, you've got me there. Do you at least know anyone that does, though?"
"I think Gabby knows a bit. Call her and see," Adam suggested to Brad, praying that Kris would somehow call and save him from the conversation.
"Fine. Hey, want to come with me to the new dance club they just finished about a block from school tonight?"
Adam seriously considered this. Starr Inc., the dance club, had been rated as a fantastic dance club for teens. It was for kids 13 to 18, and to get in you had to be a member of their club and have a card that they mailed directly to you. It was very exclusive, and luckily, Adam had gotten Kris and him a card a few days before and had received it the night before, so he had no reason really to say no. He didn't have Kris to be with, Neil surely wasn't going to want to play, and no one really was free that weekend. Why turn down a night of fun for a night of boring?"
"Sure Brad, but no crazy outfits, okay? Last thing I'd need is to be made into a freak at a club full of other teens."
Brad scoffed at Adam. "Oh babe, you fret way too much. You're gorgeous. Besides, no amount of people who think you're weird could ever change you, right?"
Words of wisdom by Brad Bell. "No Brad," Adam admitted.
"Then why the hell should you care what I wear? Oh, I got to go. My dancers need food because they seem to be fatties. Lucky me, picking the fatty group." Adam shook his head in amusement. He's such a drama queen. "Well, see ya' tonight, my dear! Lurv you!"
"Lurv you too, Bradly."
"Bye!!!!!!!!"
"Bye," Adam murmured as he shut his cell phone and roamed his mind for ideas of things to do until the club that night. The TV had barely anything on, and considering Kris's love of movies, he'd just about seen every movie he owned twice or more times. He then thought about how he was going to have a song prepared for music that Wednesday. Reaching into his backpack, Adam fished out a pencil and his writing pad and sat it down on his bed, plopping on it too right after it hit the soft navy-blue comforter. Letting his worries and fears just disappear from his mind, Adam focused on into last night and the conversations, having his pencil write whatever came to him.
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"What do you want to call our kids when we're older?"
"For a guy I have no clue.....for a girl......I've always liked the name Jessica. I don't know why, but I do. Plus, it sounds good with my last name....so....yeah."
Kris smiled, scooting over a bit closer to Adam with a knowing smile. "I'm glad you have a girl name, because I didn't. I actually have a boy name."
"And that is..?" Adam said with a sweet smirk on his shiny lips.
"Ryan. My best friend in kindergarten was named Ryan, and he was pretty awesome. He always saved me seats on the bus, shared his lunch with me, played on the playground with me......." Adam smiled brightly with his bright white teeth. He could tell Kris was fumbling for his words, and even though it wasn't all that fun for Kris to go through in his mind, Adam really was finding it cute and simply sweet to watch. Just something about it made his mind force him to smile.
"I like the name Ryan," he continued for Kris, watching as Kris cuddled up next to him and kissed his arm with many loving pecks. His heart fluttered, and inside, he wondered if Kris could tell his feelings at that moment about their conversation.
"I'm glad you do, because I have no clue about any others," Kris chuckled out, his small and skinny body now fitting right next to Adam perfectly.
Adam sighed. "If only we weren't 16."
"Hey Adam," Kris quizzed, causing Adam to turn his head to face him, "if we weren't 16.....would you have asked me to marry you?"
He could only imagine what Kris had to summon up from his courage to even be able to agree with his mind to ask that risky-beyond-belief question of him, let alone say it without a hint of worry. Adam buried his head a bit more into his pillow, seeing how Kris's eyes were getting a bit more worried as the incredibly long silence passed between them. Finally, Adam found the thoughts to respond.
"Kris.....you know I love you, right?" Kris nodded, his eyes still begging for an answer.
"You also know that I would do anything for you, no matter what the cost?" Again, he nodded, fear starting to creep in slowly as more time ticked away in sheer silence.
"Well...." Adam gave a very angry sigh and sat upright, alerting Kris greatly. He seemed very furious with himself all of a sudden. "I have no clue, okay Kris? Marriage is a huge thing! I know we've been through heaven and hell so far, but if this was a normal relationship between two adults? I have no clue what I'd do because I haven't been in that position ever in my life! I just....I have no clue....Kris, you have to believe I would if I felt ready but....I have no clue and-"
Silencing him instantly, Kris yanked Adam by his collar towards him and planted his lips right on his, slowly feeling Adam's body start to relax once more from it's worry. When he knew Adam was okay, Kris ended the kiss and looked into his baby blues.
"I understand, sweetie," he said calmly, "and I'm kind of sorry I asked. I...I shouldn't have disrespected your feelings so insensitively like that."
"You don't have to apologize to me, Kris. It's a very reasonable question that....I just don't think I should answer. I just don't feel good about answering that." Kris noticed Adam blush slightly, and it all came to him.
He was uncomfortable about talking about marriage. And about commitment.
Oh boy.
"Adam" he said soothingly, "you don't have to be afraid of something like that. Marriage is a perfectly normal thing to think about."
Kris saw him shy away, resting his head now on his pillow in an almost fetal position. He then began to hear Adam begin to sob, his figure slightly shaking as he tried to stop the tears.
"Sweetie......are you okay?"
"My parents are divorced, Kris."
It hit him like a giant tsunami. How can that be possible? They're living together.....they sleep in the same bed.....they never are angry with each other...
"It happened when I was pretty young," Adam began, his voice wavering a bit. "Neil was probably 2 or 3. I woke up one night and they were fighting pretty loud. My Dad stormed out of the house, and my Mom was laying on the couch just crying. Neil came to my room and just kept asking me if she was okay. Finally, I was convinced by him to go up to her and see if she was indeed okay. I went to her and....she looked up at me with her pretty brown eyes and just brought me into her arms. Kris.....my parents didn't talk for the longest time. Just recently a few years ago, my parents agreed to be together so that we would be able to go through our teenage years with a father figure I was bitter for quite some time, man. I remember just thinking to myself how horrible it must have been for my Mom to go through dealing with us without someone to help her. I...I even vowed to myself never to get married once, but I took that away pretty soon when I caught sight of a cute boy in 5th grade. Regardless....I've never really was comfortable with this whole marriage thing. I still am not, even with all the love you give me throughout a week. That....that's kind of why I can't tell you if I would've married you. You happy?"
Kris was dead silent. He couldn't believe all that. Especially after Adam had given him the ring that he had on his right hand at that moment. It must have taken up all his courage to do that.
"Adam, I.....I don't know what to say. I-I....I.....oh hell, come here so I can hug you."
And he took that offer quickly, embracing Kris with his tears trailing down his reddened face. It didn't take long for him to calm down, though, the presence of Kris soothing his fears with the warmth of his hug. Soon enough, the sobs turned into slow and loving kisses between the two, and the night went on in peace with the two feeling that much more close to each other.
They knew their secrets and demons. They knew them well now, too. But luckily, their love seemed to always bring them through the trying times when they appeared.
What a night.
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How the simplest of conversations ever happened to turn into a moment like that was beyond Adam's wildest thoughts at the moment. Somehow, it did, though, and he oh-so-wished that he could have something like that right then and there in the lonely and quiet bedroom of his. The pencil in his hand suddenly jumped into writing mode with a jolt, his hand almost flying off the page, and a song was born on the paper.
A song that was about and for his love.
And it all came from the heart.
It's perfect.
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"Kris, you and me need a talk," Neil Allen said as he walked into Kris's bedroom quietly, his face very serious as Kris took a seat in front of him. He could tell his son was worried, and he didn't like it. "We need to talk about your relationship with Adam."
Kris let out a deep groan, earning a frown from his father immediately. "Please don't scold me for liking him, because I do and nothing will change that, no matter how much you keep him from me. I'll jump out the window if need be, Dad."
"No," Neil said a bit on edge, "I'm not going to be like that. Not today. Your Mom wanted us to have a talk, actually, so that's why I'm here. Oh, and remind me to super glue your window's shut." Kris smiled. He had to admit that was kind of funny and oh-so-typical of a father.
"I know that you two are already....active together at a young age and that you two love each other very much already, but your mother and I are concerned about a few things. Son," Neil said with a sigh, "we don't want you to give up on collage or any life experiences you may not have by spending too much of your time with him and encircling your life around his every move. I have a feeling that, even though it's not either of you guy's faults, you two seem to be surrounding your lives with being with each other too much. I mean, you didn't want to spend your sweet sixteen with us. Your family, Kris! Like it or not, we still own you, and we have the right to spend as much time with you as we possibly can. You're lucky we even let you not sleep at our house all the time! I don't want you to forget who you are and what you want to accomplish, Kris. I really, truly don't. You understand what I'm trying to say?"
Much to his dislike, Kris did. He knew what his Dad was getting at, and he had no way to blame his dislike of Adam and him together on this. Kris was considering skipping collage to go be famous with Adam-who was bound to get signed by somebody someday-and live in paradise a married man all by the age of 18. It was a feat he knew probably wouldn't happen, but he did know that collage would be a huge blockade in the scheme of things.
And it was all going to be because of his love for Adam.
He was willing to give up collage and a big career in something that would get him much praise for a long while for his own 15 minutes with the man of his dreams before he even had a chance to see what could be in store for himself there. And the worst part was that Adam was going to, also. He could at least major in music or something in collage! But then the whole trying to go to the same collages would get in the way and they could be sent across the country impossibly far from each other.
I can't win, can I?
"Yes.....Dad? I've thought about this before. Heck, I talked about this with Adam even. He really wants to be a rock star, and I think he has a great chance Dad, I really do. He also wants me to be famous, too. He sees potential in me and really brings it out in me. I know that yif we both found a really good label, we could do it. I'm not saying I want to give up collage, because I know how important it is and how helpful it could be, but I do want to give this a chance." Kris looked at his father's face and soon noticed how he couldn't look him in the eye. Kris then sighed and turned his Dad's face to look directly at him. "Do you believe in me, Dad? Do you seriously think we have a chance?"
Neil took a deep breath and then finally nodded. Satisfied, Kris smiled and hugged his father tight, cuddling into his embrace just like he used to when he was younger.
Neil believed in him.
"I love you, Dad, and I promise I won't screw myself up. You raised me better than that, Dad."
"I love you too, son." As he watched Kris walk towards the door, something in Neil got to him, and it forced him to do something incredibly nice for his son.
"Hey Kris?" He called out, making Kris stop at the doorway.
"Yeah Dad?"
"You can go see Adam if you want."
He watched with a smile as his son's eyes lit up and smiled brightly back at him excitedly. It looked like he'd just made his day.
"Be back before dinner, though!" Neil called out after his son who was sprinting down the hall to leave.
"Will do!" Kris yelled giddily right before the sound of the front door slamming sounded, telling Neil he was gone. Neil sighed and got up off Kris's bed and walked out with a small but apparent smile on his strong face.
Daniel better never become gay.
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Kris couldn't help but feel joyous as he drove to Adam's house down the street. His father had given him some weird sort of confidence that was so radiant in his actions, and he was loving it. I just added to his adrenaline rush he had already from the thought of getting to surprise Adam. Finally, he reached Adam's house, happily hopping out of the car and running up to the door at top speed to hit the doorbell.
"Coming!" was all he heard as he waited, and luckily, it was from Adam, telling him that he'd be answering the door. Thank God. After a minute, the time came. Adam unlocked the door and opened, getting only a second to realize who was at the door.
Why?
Because Kris pounced on him, taking him into a huge hug and kissing him passionately before Adam could even register what was going on. Finally, after what seemed like forever to Adam, Kris pulled away and giggled at Adam's shocked face.
"You...but I....you said...!"
"Surprise!"