Shameless Self Promotion
We are all prone to it....but I'm ready to shout to the freakin world about this. If you want to skip the words below, skim right ahead to the "Things to like about Eddie list"
I know I'm not even done writing the darn thing let alone editing, but seriously. I NEED to share this with the world!!!!!! This story is the reason why I started watching Glee/shipping Klaine. I was writing a scene oddly close to some of the goings on of NBK when that episode was on some rerun marathon thingy before the superbowl episode...and I seriously fell in love. But anyway here is some info on the story:
Eddie Taylor tried dating girls. Ok...A girl...but it didn't take him long to realize he'd rather be kissing her cousin, Joey Zavarello. When he confesses he's gay, he suddenly finds him face to face with the boy he has a crush on. What do you know? Joey's gay too. But enter the problem: Joey's the quarterback on the football team, has uber religious parents, and is utterly TERRIFED of coming out, despite having had two relationships with guys already.
I don't wanna give too much more away...BE WARNED: ANYONE WHO STEALS WILL PAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
But I sorta need to know if there is interest.
Things to like about Eddie:
- he's more obsessed with fashion than Kurt Hummel
- he smells like black raspberry vanilla lotion
- he drives a Camaro
- his bedroom is purple
- he's got two credit cards
- hes's "prettier, better dressed, and he doesn't have the personality of a sour cucumber"
- he's in love
And now....because I want people to see if they like it, I beg of you to please check out this little sample:
After they got out of town, driving on the winding and sparsely populated roads, Eddie shrugged off his hood and unbuckled his seatbelt. He scooted to the middle of the bench seat and rested his head on Joey’s shoulder.
“We’re almost there,” Joey said. Eddie just nodded and let his eyes drift closed. The radio played softly, some classic rock station that Joey liked, and he listened as Joey hummed along, slightly out of tune. Eddie was lulled to sleep by the soft sounds and the warm radiating from Joey’s shoulder, and by the time they got to the lake house, Joey had to shake him lightly to wake him up.
“I don’t wanna go today,” Eddie mumbled, screwing his eyes shut as he clutched the sleeve of Joey’s jacket.
“Come on, sleepy, we’re here now.” Joey extracted his arm from Eddie’s grip and shook him slightly. His eyelids opened slowly, blue-green eyes clouded with sleepiness as he looked up at him.
“I’m tired,” Eddie whined.
“Did you sleep last night?” Joey asked, his brow furrowed with concern for the smaller boy. Eddie shook his head and Joey felt his heart sink.
“Couldn’t sleep,” Eddie said.
“Neither could I,” Joey said. He reached out and rested his arm on Eddie’s shoulder, his hand wrapped around the back of his neck while his fingers toyed with the brown hair at the nape of his neck.
“Let’s go inside now,” Eddie said, perking up at the feel of Joey’s fingers dancing across the pale skin on the back of his neck. Joey extracted his hand and they both got out of the car.
Eddie’s eyes drifted closed as he breathed in the crisp air. It was quiet except for the gentle breeze rustling the yellow and orange leaves that covered the grass. It smelled like water and trees, and the breeze tickled the skin of his cheeks.
Joey’s hand slid into his, their fingers twining together. He tugged him towards the house, and Eddie followed obediently. They hurried over and Joey let go of Eddie’s hand long enough to kneel down and push his arm into a bush beside the door. Folding his arms in front of him and raising an amused eyebrow, Eddie watched as Joey bit his lip and dug around in the bush before standing up with a plastic rock. He turned it over to reveal a small compartment that held a key.
“Really original,” Eddie said, amused as Joey unlocked the door and held it open for him.
“Just remember where it is in case you ever wanna come up here,” Joey said.
“Like…by myself?” Both eyebrows were raised now as he moved from the inside of the door to the living room.
“If you never need to just get away, you’re always welcome here,” Joey told him. He closed the door and looked around the room before settling his gaze on Eddie, who took slow steps over to the window in the living room that looked out at the lake. The water was calm, as it normally was, rippling gently on the sand that was just ten feet from the house.
“Have you ever had problems with flooding?” Eddie asked.
“Not that I know of. This is the lake at its highest. In the summer it’s out a few more feet,” Joey said. He shrugged off his letterman jacket and dropped it on a chair. Slowly so as not to startle him, Joey went up behind Eddie and wrapped his arms around him. At first, Eddie tensed, then he leaned back against Joey’s chest.
“I love this house,” Eddie said.
Joey smiled and pressed his cheek to the side of Eddie’s head, breathing the sweet berry scent of his shampoo. He loved the house too, but he loved being there alone with Eddie even more. He dipped his head down and pressed a gentle kiss to the soft, sensitive skin below Eddie’s ear. The smaller boy quivered, relaxing in Joey’s arms until he was the only thing holding him up.
“Joey, we should just talk,” Eddie said, his voice high pitched and breathless.
“About what?” Joey rested his hands on top of Eddie’s, twining their fingers.
“About us. I don’t…I’ve never…”
“Am I moving too fast for you?” Joey was about to step back when Eddie tightened his fingers so Joey couldn’t pull away.
“No! I mean, it’s perfect. And the other day, in my room, that was perfect. I just…after that I realized that I don’t know what to do and I don’t know about you and…”
“Relax,” Joey said. He loved the feeling of Eddie’s hair against his cheek. It was soft and gentle and he loved the way it had looked the other day when it was all tousled and free of product. Being seven inches taller than Eddie, he stood at the perfect angle to feel the glossy brown strands brushing against his cheek and chin like silk.
“Come sit on the couch with me,” Joey suggested. Eddie nodded and allowed Joey to extract his arms. Joey crossed the living room and sat on the far end of the brown leather couch. It creaked as he settled down, and when he looked up, Eddie hadn’t left his spot by the window. He was still standing there, looking small with his arms wrapped around his middle like he was hugging himself.
“The lake is so damn beautiful,” Eddie said. He finally turned around and locked eyes with Joey, and Joey didn’t miss how his eyes were darker than usually, the light making them look black. His stride was short as he went over to the couch and sat gingerly on the edge of the seat on the opposite end as Joey. He crossed his legs and perched his folded hands atop his knee. He looked over at Joey, his expression guarded and hesitant.
“What do you want?” Joey asked, studying his boyfriend from across the three feet that separated them. He wore one of his more obvious outfits, with a pair of skin tight black jeans under blue and black sweater that stopped mid-thigh and a blue scarf wrapped around his neck.
“What do you mean?” Eddie’s cheeks flushed when his voice cracked nervously.
“In a relationship. What is your perfect balance of romantic and emotional?” Joey wanted to reach across the couch and take Eddie’s perfect, pale hand in his, but the other boy looked so nervous.
“I want to be completely honest with the person I’m with, be it you or someone else, and I want him to be honest with me. And he has to like all of me, not just how cute I am.” Eddie’s back was straight, and he was tense, but he had this look on his face that radiated confidence. He knew exactly what he wanted, and Joey could see that clearly now. “I want him to come out of the closet. He doesn’t have to be out when I meet him, but I want him to be out by the time he proposes to me because I will want to get married. He’ll also have to figure how to get us married. I don’t want to waste my time with someone who isn’t willing to make a commitment to a life with me.”
Joey nodded, even though Eddie wasn’t looking directly at him. He hadn’t thought that far forward in the future. All he knew was that now Eddie was important to him. The thought of being committed to the fragile boy in front of him almost frightened him.
“And because I value honesty, I’ll have to be blunt. I’m terrified of anything more than kissing. I know last week in my room…it was a little awkward because I was...early, but I don’t wanna lie and tell you I didn’t like it. It’s just that I was scared and vulnerable and it was a distraction. I’m really just ok with the kissing, making out, whatever you want to call it. I don’t think I could ever get tired of that.
“In a relationship, I’d have to say that whoever I’m with would have to be ok with just doing that for a long time. I want to really know I can trust the person. Then maybe we could fool around a little, shower together, whatever suits his fancy. But I’m a virgin, and I plan to stay a virgin until someone slips a ring on my finger and wants to spend his life with me. That’s what I want.”
When he finished, he turned his head ever so slightly to gage Joey’s reaction. Joey’s dark eyebrows were drawn together and his eyes were wide. He looked sick and it worried Eddie at first. Then he snapped his open mouth shut and visibly swallowed, then unconsciously twisted the black courage band on his wrist before he spoke.
“I think that’s a good thing to want,” Joey said, trying to keep his voice calm.
“What do you want?” Eddie asked. He finally relaxed in the seat, the brown leather groaning under the shifting of his weight as he leaned back. He slid his folded hands from his knee to rest in his lap.
“I want…” Joey wanted to say that he wanted Eddie, because he did. He wanted Eddie to be by his side for the rest of his life, but if he also feared if he said that, he might be chasing Eddie away. “I want to play college ball, and then I hope to get drafted into the NFL. If that happens, I want someone who trusts me enough to let me go to do that, because whoever I’m with will have to understand that I won’t even be looking at anyone else when I’m away.”
Joey watched Eddie’s lips quirk upwards a little as he imagined them being together long enough to get to be that person waiting for Joey to come home.
“I don’t need marriage or commitment, I just need someone to love me. And as for the romance part, I’m pretty open there. I would like to take it slow with someone. The two guys I’ve been with were older than me, and they pushed me to do things I wasn’t ready for and I regret it. Really, I just need someone to always be there, no matter what,” Joey said.
The corners of Eddie’s lips were turned upward ever so slightly as he hesitantly reached out a hand. Joey grasped it, feeling close to Eddie on a level he’d never been with anyone before.
“I could love you,” Eddie said. “If you wanted.”
Joey squeezed his small, soft hand. He scooted closer on the couch, reaching out and putting his other hand on Eddie’s knee.
“I’d like that very much,” Joey said. He leaned forward slowly. It was too slow for Eddie, who reached his hand up and curled it around the back of Joey’s neck, pulling him down and kissing him.
They spent the rest of the day together in the lake house, half of it downstairs alternating between kissing and talking, then the other half watching Eddie’s favorite Disney movies on the old TV upstairs. It was five hours completely void of overprotective mothers, annoying sisters, bullies that took pleasure in pain, and blogs flooded with hateful comments.
At the end of the day, all of this made it very hard for them to leave.
If you like this, you can follow me on tumblr thats sorta about this story and sorta about Klaine stuffs: taylarellolove.tumblr.com