clueless
Title: clueless
Pairing: Adam/Kris, Darren Criss/Kris, Darren Criss/Chris Colfer
Word Count: 5,635
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Kris and Darren are stupid and date each other when the ones they want have been right there all along.
Author's Note: This is for shatteredmemrys for the charity drive. Somehow this turned into American Idol meets Glee in the Queer as Folk world. (I don't know why I had it take place there, it just does.) And, as always, thank you to inbetweencabs for being my fairy beta mother.
Nobody ever watches him. He’s just a man on a stool with his guitar and a sparkling backdrop behind him and there is always the clatter of voices and drinks being poured that drown out the soft voice and the acoustic guitar. But Kris is always there to listen.
It’s been two weeks and every night after work, Kris finds himself at this table, nursing a cold beer and watching this man with the soft curls. It’s not a karaoke bar or an open mic: there is just a stage for the occasional drag show or fundraiser that they host here at Woody’s. Kris doesn’t even know if the man’s singing for anyone other than himself. He sits there with his eyes closed, almost whispering the lyrics while his fingers gently brush against the strings of his guitar. It’s like he’s in another world.
They’ve never spoken. Each night Kris gathers up the courage to go up to him once he’s done playing, but the man always walks off stage and leaves without stopping for a drink. Tonight, Kris expects the same thing. He’s been here for about forty minutes, which means he’s going to have to leave soon and Kris is going to have to wait until tomorrow to see him again.
Kris watches him as he finally stands and puts the guitar in its case, quickly patting his pockets for something, maybe a cell phone or his keys. Kris stares at the small drips of water collecting on the bottle of beer in his hand so he won’t be caught staring.
“I’m pretty sure you’re my only fan.”
Kris looks up at the voice, meeting huge eyes that Kris can’t even pinpoint the color of. There is a playful smile on the guy’s lips, his eyebrows raised as he waits for Kris’s response.
“I…I,” Kris stammers, suddenly feeling stupid. Of course he would notice Kris here; he hasn’t been exactly subtle, sitting at the table closest to the stage every night. “You’re, uh… good?”
The guy laughs. “You don’t sound too sure about that,” he says, sitting down in the chair opposite of Kris. “I’m Darren, by the way.”
“No… you’re, like, awesome. I just didn’t know that you noticed that I was noticing yo-oh god.” Kris can feel the blush on his cheeks, and it only worsens with Darren’s laughter. “I’m Kris.”
Darren has stopped laughing but there is still a huge grin on his face, his eyes twinkling. “It’s very nice to meet you, Kris.”
There’s a silence that stretches for a few moments between them and they share it with similar smiles on their faces. Kris has wanted to talk to Darren ever since he saw him for the first time on that small stage, but he never planned out what he would say when the moment finally came.
Darren’s eyes drift down to the beer in Kris’s hand. “How about I get you another one of those and we can talk?”
Kris nods a little too eagerly. “That’d be great.”
-
Kris is clutching his stomach, his cheeks aching from laughing so much. Darren is sitting right next to him now, their knees touching. He hasn’t had this much fun just talking to a guy he just met in a long time. Usually when he meets a boy out, talking is the last thing on their agenda.
But Darren is awesome. Even more so now when he’s sitting right next to Kris than when he’s on stage performing. He talks a lot, but Kris doesn’t mind. His stories are fun and he tells them with wide eyes and flailing hands. Darren tells him about growing up in San Francisco, which Kris is completely jealous of because he grew up in a small town in Arkansas.
“But how did you end up in Pittsburgh?” Kris asks, saying it like it left a bad taste on his tongue.
Darren opens his mouth and closes it slowly, looking down at his hands. “My ex,” he says. “I was nineteen and like stupid in love. I thought we’d move here together, get a shitty apartment, and just be together, you know?”
Kris puts his hand on Darren’s knee. “What happened?”
“We did get the apartment and it was nice for a while, but then we just… drifted apart. I couldn’t find a job and he was sick of supporting me because all I did was go out and party. He was a few years older than me so our priorities were a bit different.”
Kris frowns. “That must suck.”
Darren sighs and shrugs a shoulder. “It did but what we had was beautiful while it lasted,” he replies with a sort of sad smile. It doesn’t last and he perks up instantly. “But no more ex-boyfriend talk. That’s supposed to wait until the third date at least.”
Kris’s stomach does a surprised little dance. “If I knew this was a date, I would’ve dressed up.”
Darren reaches up to toy with the collar of Kris’s shirt. “Oh no, I love the plaid. It’s very sexy,” he grins, and then gestures to himself because he, too, is wearing plaid. “Obviously.”
Kris smiles and takes Darren’s hand when it falls into his lap. “I would love to take you out tomorrow night,” Darren continues. “I can pick you up and we could go to the diner, maybe?”
Kris knows he looks like a grinning fool right now but he totally didn’t plan on bagging a date with this dude when he walked into the bar a few hours ago. He takes a deep breath to calm the butterflies in his belly.
“That would be amazing. Um, let me get your number and I’ll text you my address,” he says, pulling out his phone. When he turns on the screen, there are two texts and a missed call from his roommate Adam.
bitch it’s movie night. where are you?
if you are ditching me it better be because you’re getting laid
Kris looks at the time. It’s almost two in the morning and he was supposed to be back an hour ago. He quickly sends Adam a response.
I got tied up (not literally) but I’ll be home soon
“Sorry,” Kris says. “It’s my roommate. We have a movie night every Friday and I forgot. He’s freaking out at me via text message and the voicemail is probably bitchy too.”
Darren laughs. “I apologize for holding you up.”
“It’s fine,” Kris says, clicking the ‘add contact’ button on his phone. “You can repay me tomorrow night when you buy me dinner.”
“Can’t wait.”
-
Adam pounces on him as soon as he steps through the door, stealing the grocery bag and taking out the pint of Ben & Jerry’s.
“What could’ve been possibly more important than watching Going the Distance with me?” he asks, bounding into the kitchen for two spoons. “I was about to send out a search party on your ass.”
Kris rolls his eyes and plops on the couch. “I stopped by Woody’s.”
“Again?” Adam yells from their tiny kitchen, making way too much noise rummaging around.
Kris sinks into the couch a little. This is what he gets for telling his roommate every detail of his life. It ends with shameless teasing. Adam finally joins him on the couch, snuggling as close as he can without being in Kris’s lap, and hands him a spoon.
“Did you stalk that guy again?” Adam asks, his eyes now transfixed on the television and slowly losing interest in the conversation.
Kris fidgets with his spoon nervously. There’s no reason to be nervous because they both hook up with guys all the time, but they never date any of them. Ever since the incident-and by incident, Kris means when they got really drunk and fucked until the sun came up… and then did it again the next weekend-Kris thinks that maybe there is something more between them.
“He asked me out, actually.”
Adam freezes, the spoon sticking out of his mouth as he turns to Kris. “Like on a date?” he asks with his mouth full of ice cream.
“Yeah,” Kris replies, dipping his spoon in the carton to avoid Adam’s gaze. “He’s taking me to the diner tomorrow night.”
Adam finally smiles but Kris can’t tell if it’s genuine. He leans over to press a cold kiss to Kris’s cheek, letting go with a loud smack. “I’m happy for you, baby,” he says. “Finally your stalking skills paid off.”
“Shut up,” Kris blushes and leans even more into Adam’s side.
They watch the rest of the movie in silence.
-
“Unbutton it more.”
Kris stares at his reflection. He thinks he’s showing enough chest as it is, but Adam is sitting on the counter giving him that ‘don’t be such a prude’ look. Kris figures that one more won’t hurt. His hair is sticking up in awkward spots and just won’t go down no matter how much he tries to flatten it. (Adam chased him around with a can of hairspray but only managed to get it in his eye.)
“Where are you guys going?” Adam asks.
“I’m pretty sure just dinner. Maybe we’ll hang out after or something.”
Adam pokes Kris’s shoulder with his toe and there is a smirk on his lips. “Do you need me to clean the apartment in case you wanna, you know, hang out here?”
Kris tries not to fumble. When Adam mentions sex, even if it is sex with someone else, Kris can’t help but think of when they slept together. It makes him feel a slow burn in his chest and he can’t meet Adam’s eyes because then it’s like he’ll know what Kris is thinking about. He doesn’t even think Adam still thinks about it.
“We’re not going to come back here,” Kris says. “Darren doesn’t seem like the type to put out on the first date.”
“He’s a guy and you’re hot. Of course he’ll put out.”
Kris rolls his eyes. “Fine, if I end up bringing him back here, we’ll put a sock on the door.”
Adam hops off the counter and slips right in front of Kris. His hands mess around with the collar of his shirt, his fingers occasionally brushing against Kris’s neck. Adam smiles when he’s finally done primping him, leans down, and kisses Kris soft on the lips, just like he always does.
“Have fun, baby.”
-
“My brother didn’t talk to me for a year after I came out.”
They’ve been exchanging coming out stories on their way to the diner. The conversation is easy, just as it was the night before, and it is already one of the best dates Kris has ever been on. Darren holds doors open for him and even picked a tiny purple flower that they passed along the way.
“Wow,” Darren says, and he looks sad for Kris. “That must’ve been difficult. I can’t even imagine not talking to my brother for more than a week. Is that why you moved out here?”
Kris toys with the stem of the flower with his sweaty fingers. “Sorta,” he says. “I’m good with my family now but I was just so sick of that town. I packed my bags and got on a bus to come here.” As depressing as that time was, he smiles at the memory. “I slept on the streets for three days until this crazy kid came up to me and brought me back to his apartment to feed me and so I could use his shower. Now it’s four years later and we’re still roommates.”
Darren smiles warmly, like the way you do at the happy ending to any story. “That’s good that he found you. I’d hate to know where you’d end up if he didn’t.”
He jams his fingers in his pockets and peers over at Darren, for the first time realizing that Darren is just a bit taller than he is. “I wouldn’t be here with you,” Kris says softly, changing the mood of the conversation.
Darren’s eyebrows go up a little like he’s surprised, but a good surprise like someone gave him roses. His voice lowers in a way that makes Kris think about what he’d be like in bed.
“And that would be a shame.”
-
It takes Kris fourteen minutes into when their date officially begins to realize that this will never work out.
Darren is hot. So, so, so hot. He’s got eyes that Kris wants to fall into and never get out of. Kris has never seen him naked but he can tell by the muscle in his arms that he would look ridiculously good. They could have sex. Lots and lots of sex, but that’s all it ever could be. (Not that that would be a bad thing. Kris has had his fair share of fuck buddies.)
But besides the fact that Kris wants to fuck him silly, he feels like he’s on a date with himself. They like the same stupid movies, have the same taste in music and clothing, and they are both on the shorter-than-normal-people side. His wardrobe would double and he’d never have to sit through stupid romantic comedies, but Kris has always wanted something different than this.
But sitting across the table from a cute guy is never a hardship, so Kris thinks he can wait it out to see if he’s wrong.
“So sorry the food took so long,” Chris, their waiter, says as he places their burgers down on the table. “Lana the waitress-who used to be Larry the waiter-came down with a sudden case of something I’ve never heard of and left me to fend for myself. My feet are so sore that I’m going to need a crow bar to get them off later.”
Darren scoots over in his side of the booth and gently grabs Chris’s wrist, pulling him down to sit. “Take a break for a minute,” he says, pushing his plate closer to Chris. “They’ll live a few more minutes without their food.”
Chris’s entire body sighs and he looks over at Kris apologetically. “I don’t want to impose on your date.”
Darren rolls his eyes. “You’re not imposing. It’s the last thing I can do after everything you’ve done for me.”
“You two know each other?” Kris asks. Of course everyone in this city knows each other, but he didn’t know that they know know each other.
He watches as Darren and Chris share a smile. “Chris is kind of like your friend that picked you up off the street.”
Chris’s smile fades. “Should I be offended by this comparison?”
Darren laughs. “Not at all,” he tells Chris, and then turns back to Kris. “He was the first gay guy I met here after my boyfriend bailed on me. I never got a chance to explore Liberty Avenue before, so Chris showed me around.”
“Ah, yes,” Chris says, a dramatic wistful look on his face, “all of the wonders of gay Pittsburgh.”
Darren bumps Chris with his shoulder. “Shut up. You know I never would’ve found my way without you.
Chris ducks his head a little, his hand going up to toy with his ear. Kris thinks he sees a blush on his cheeks.
“I must be getting back to work now,” Chris says, pushing himself up with an exaggerated groan. “I’ll be back to check up on you guys in a bit. Enjoy your date.”
Darren watches as Chris disappears behind Kris, and he’s pretty sure that Darren’s eyes are dancing.
-
It ends up being one of the best dates Kris has ever been on, but only because the first date nerves wore off when it stopped feeling like a date. It is somewhere between their conversation about their hatred towards malls and college football when Kris realizes that he found a new best friend instead of a boyfriend.
“This was fun,” Darren says with crinkles in the corners of his eyes because they haven’t stopped laughing all evening.
Kris leans his back against the door of his apartment, not sure of what to do. He hasn’t been on a date for so long that he has forgotten the proper etiquette for inviting a boy inside. Usually when he’s at his apartment door with a boy, he’s fumbling with his keys while they fumble with his pants. This is different.
“Yeah, it was,” is all Kris says as he waits for Darren to make a move.
It’s after several long awkward moments when Darren finally does. He steps forward and crowds Kris up against the door, his eyes questioning if this is okay. Kris notes how long Darren’s eyelashes are before he feels the soft lips against his own. It’s quick and nice and Kris wouldn’t mind doing it again. It’s just that he didn’t see any fireworks or feel any butterflies.
Darren smiles when he pulls away, his eyes darting down to Kris’s lips before stepping back.
“I’ll call you,” Darren says.
Kris feels a jab of disappointment because he’s still up for having sex with Darren, but he takes that as a sign that he isn’t getting any but his hand tonight.
“Goodnight, Darren,” he whispers, watching him disappear down the hallway.
-
Ever since they started rooming together, Adam has made a habit of flicking Kris’s lights on right before he falls asleep and crawling into bed with him. It’s annoying and intrusive because Adam has caught him jerking off more than once, but he can’t help but leave his door cracked open each night, an invitation to let Adam in.
He can hear the click of the switch and the darkness behind his eyelids gets a little bit lighter. The bed sinks down next to him and then there is warmth all along his side. Kris can hear Adam’s mind reeling and desperately waiting to hear the details of his evening.
“It was fun,” Kris says, cutting to the chase. “Darren took me out to dinner and then we walked around and talked for a while. He’s a cool dude.” He finally opens his eyes and lets his head fall to the side to look at Adam. “I think you’d like him.”
“So, I’m guessing he’ll be around for a while?”
Kris sighs and looks up at the ceiling. “Maybe,” he says. “Not as my boyfriend, though. He’s so sweet and polite. He makes me laugh and we have all of the same interests. It just wasn’t there. It felt like I was on a date with myself.”
“That doesn’t sound too bad,” Adam teases, poking him in the shoulder. “You’re totally hot.”
Kris grins a little too hard and he thinks he might feel some of those butterflies that were missing when Darren kissed him.
“I would fuck him, though.”
Adam makes a face. “You top?”
Kris sits up a little and looks down at Adam, seriously offended. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
Adam chuckles and pulls Kris back down on the bed and he rolls so they are facing each other, noses almost touching. “You bottom for me, so I just assumed…”
Oh. They’re talking about this.
Kris tries to keep the mood light in case Adam’s heart doesn’t feel like it’s about to explode like his does. They have never brought this up. They get drunk, have amazing sex, and Adam is gone before Kris wakes up in the morning. That’s just how things are with them.
“I like it both ways, thank you very much.”
He swears Adam’s eyes get darker.
“I’ll have to remember that.”
-
Kris sits a few booths away from the one he and Darren were at the night before. Chris places two menus in front of him because he knows that every Sunday Kris and Adam meet for brunch during Adam’s break. And every Sunday, Adam is late.
“Coffee and orange juice?” Chris asks while and writes it down in the pad before Kris has the chance to say yes. The pen clicks and Kris expects him to go get his drink order, but instead Chris stands there at the end of the booth, chewing on his lip and staring everywhere but at Kris.
“So how was your date with Darren?”
Kris blinks a few times and opens his mouth once but nothing comes out at first. Chris isn’t asking as in oh, give me the juicy gossip like everyone else he knows, he looks genuinely curious and a little nervous.
“It was good,” Kris says. “He’s an awesome guy.”
Chris smiles, his fingers fidgeting with the notepad. “Yeah… yeah, he is,” he says. “Um… I’ll just go get your coffee.”
If they were better friends, Kris would’ve asked him what’s wrong, but their relationship stops at what Kris’s Sunday drink order is. He doesn’t let himself think about it for too long because it’s probably nothing. Just a friend looking out for another friend.
“I didn’t expect to find you here.”
And there is Darren, staring down at Kris with those big soft eyes and a smile. His hair isn’t styled like it was last night so his curls are a mess on his head and he’s wearing glasses. It almost makes Kris wish he took him home last night.
“Well, look who it is,” Kris says. “Chris and I were just talking about you.”
Darren looks over his shoulder at Chris, whose eyes flick up to meet his, like he could feel him staring. There is a coy smile on his lips before he goes back to taking an order.
Darren presses his palms against the table and leans his body towards Kris. “And what did you have to say about me?”
“That you’re a cheap date and a horrible kisser,” Kris says, a smirk on his lips. “You can sit down, you know. It’s creeping me out with you hovering over me like that.”
Darren laughs and takes the seat across from Kris. “That’s a lie. I’m a magnificent kisser,” he says. “I have three guys in this diner who can back me up on that.”
Kris wonders if Chris is one of them.
“Why are you here, anyway?” Darren changes the subject before Kris has the chance to respond. “Are you stalking me?”
Kris snorts. “Yeah and I followed you home and stood outside your window to watch you sleep last night.”
“How very Edward Cullen of you.”
Kris opens his mouth to make fun of the Twilight reference, but then a whole lotta Adam falls into the booth next to him, burying his cold face in Kris’s neck.
“I hate my life.”
Kris frowns and pets his hair, forgetting that Darren’s sitting just a couple of feet away. Adam mumbles against Kris’s neck so Kris can only vaguely decipher what he’s saying. Something about the new chick from work.
Adam then sits up, his hair sticking up funny in the front. “Now they’re making me take her shift so I can’t stay.”
Kris reaches up to fix Adam’s hair because he would be murdered if he let Adam leave the diner with it like that. “At least order something so you can eat on the way.”
Adam smiles and leans in to kiss him. “Yes, mother,” he says as he pulls back, bringing his hand up to wipe the lip gloss from Kris’s lower lip.
Suddenly, reality comes crashing down and Kris remembers that Darren is right there watching. Not that there is anything to feel bad about. Adam is a cuddly fuck and uses Kris like a body pillow, even in public. Yeah they kiss, but if he does actually continue dating Darren, he can’t be expected to stop cuddling and kissing Adam.
The occasional drunk sex might have to stop, though.
“Um, this is Darren.”
Adam looks surprised to see another person in the booth with them. There is a moment of hesitation before he smiles, one hand coming to rest on Kris’s lower back.
“I’m Adam.”
Darren smiles. “I know. Kris told me so much about you.”
He feels Adam’s fingers on his back wiggle. “Like how I found him on the side of the road like a cute puppy and took him in?”
Kris’s face flushes and he begins pushing Adam out of the booth. “Okay, time for you to go to work.”
Adam laughs as he stumbles to his feet. Kris watches him as he makes his way over to the counter to give Chris his order to go.
Darren is staring at him with a smile that is kind of creeping Kris out.
“You’re in love with him.”
Kris chokes on air. “Excuse me?”
Darren is fucking gleaming, like he just discovered a pot of gold or something. Kris thinks he might he high.
“You are in love with him, dude,” Darren says, still with a big ass smile on his face. This is not the kind of conversation Kris expected to have with him. “Last night, I figured you had a little crush or thought he was cute or something because you wouldn’t shut up about him. I was almost a little jealous.”
“But-”
“Please tell me you’re not that clueless and haven’t figured it out yet.”
Kris panics a little because this whole little thing he has with Adam is supposed to be in his head. Nobody else is supposed to know about it. He glances over to where Adam is leaning over the counter, one of his long legs crossed over the other and a bit of skin revealed where his shirt creeps up. Kris’s mouth waters a bit because he knows what that skin tastes like and smells like and how it feels beneath his fingers.
“Okay, so maybe I have a crush.”
Darren rolls his eyes. “You love him.”
Kris suddenly realizes who he is having this conversation with. “Wait a minute. We’re supposed to be like dating or whatever. Why are you telling me who I’m in love with?”
“We both know this wouldn’t have worked out,” Darren says, way too nonchalant about the situation. “We’re meant to be friends, not boyfriends.”
Kris sends up a silent prayer because he wasn’t looking forward to being the one saying this. It’s nice that they’re on the same page.
Adam comes over with his takeout box and brushes a goodbye kiss on Kris’s forehead. “I won’t be home in time for dinner. Save me some food.” He gives Darren a wave and leaves the diner, the little bell ringing as it closes.
Darren raises an eyebrow, like his point was just made.
Maybe it was.
-
“What about you?” Kris asks once they’ve left the diner. He leans against the doorframe as Darren stands in front of him. “Chris was sending out some pretty big ‘I want you’ vibes.”
Kris is pretty sure the shocked look on Darren’s face mirrors the one Kris made earlier.
“No way,” Darren replies, very unconvincingly. “Chris and I are just friends. He’s…”
They are more similar than Kris could’ve imagined.
“You really think so?”
Kris reaches out to cup Darren’s shoulder. “I think we’re a couple of idiots.”
Darren nods. “Yeah we are.”
They’re silent for a few moments, and then Darren is looking up at him through his eyelashes. “Are we sure this wouldn’t work out between us?” he asks. “You’re pretty hot.”
Kris bites his lip for a moment as he considers it and then he thinks, what the hell, and goes for it. He brings his hands up to Darren’s face and pulls him down for a kiss. His fingers trail into those curls and he tugs at them a bit. Whether they are going to work or not, he’s been dying to do that since he first saw Darren.
They pull away and Kris licks his lips.
He felt nothing.
-
Kris has been reading the same page for an hour. Adam’s going to be home any minute and Kris wants to talk about whatever this is going on between them. All day his stomach has been in knots and he ended up lying in the middle of the living room floor, smoking weed for two hours to calm his nerves. It didn’t do anything but dry out his mouth and make him raid the fridge.
He hears the front door close and a few thumps against the wall before his bedroom door flies open. Adam crawls on his bed and smacks the book from Kris’s hand and plops his foot on his lap, wriggling his black painted toenails.
“Massage my feet.”
Kris sighs and sinks into his pillow, pulling Adam’s foot even further into his lap. It must be love, if he’s willing to do this. Adam lies back with his arms spread out and his head almost falling off the foot of the bed. Every time Kris puts pressure against the arch of Adam’s foot, he makes these little noises.
“How was work?” Kris asks, kneading Adam’s foot with his thumbs.
Adam brings his hand up to his face and shakes his head. “I don’t want to talk about work,” he says. He arches his back and moans when Kris touches a spot on his foot. “Don’t stop. That feels so good.”
Kris is so turned on he can’t even breathe.
“Darren is cute,” Adam says, his head tilted awkwardly so he can look at Kris. “How was your lunch date?”
Kris drops Adam’s foot and picks up the other to massage, focusing solely on that instead of looking at Adam. “It wasn’t a date,” Kris tells him. “We decided not to see each other anymore.”
“You broke it off with him?” Adam asks. “How’d that go?”
“He broke it off with me, actually. After you left, he said something pretty surprising. I’ve been thinking about it all day.”
Adam wiggles his foot. “What did he say?”
“That I’m in love with you.”
Adam sits up quickly, his foot still in Kris’s lap. Kris’s thumb is stroking the soft skin of Adam’s ankle now instead of massaging his foot. He’s trying to figure out what Adam’s face says, whether this is okay or not.
“And what did you say?”
Kris pushes Adam’s foot out of his lap and reaches for his hand instead. He takes a while to answer because he doesn’t know what to say. His fingers trace along the ridges of Adam’s fingers, and when he looks up, Adam is staring at their hands.
“I looked at him like he was crazy,” Kris says. “I told myself that you’re my best friend and we’re not supposed to love each other,” he takes a deep breath, “but I do.”
“As a friend,” Adam says, and it sounds a lot like a question.
Kris shakes his head. “No,” he says with confidence. “I just love you.”
Adam’s eyes are still on their hands, following the movements of Kris’s finger. He’s not saying anything and Kris feels like throwing up. Adam is never at a loss for words. He always tells Kris what he’s feeling without holding anything back.
“Adam…”
That makes Adam finally look up. His eyes are wide and cautious, like he’s afraid to let himself fall. “If we do this… if I tell you I love you and we really do this, then we have to make it work,” Adam takes a breath. “Losing you isn’t an option for me.”
Kris’s brain short circuited at tell you I love you. He smiles.
“You love me?”
Adam ducks his head and Kris is pretty sure he’s blushing. With his new role of Adam Lambert’s boyfriend, he plans on making that happen as often as possible.
When Adam looks up again, his eyes travel to Kris’s lips. Kris feels a burn coil in his belly at the intensity of Adam’s eyes. He can’t believe he never realized it before.
“C’mere,” Adam says, pulling on Kris’s shirt to bring him closer.
Kris crawls on his knees until he’s right up against Adam. His fingers bury themselves in Adam’s hair as he tilts his head up, bringing their mouths together for a kiss. It’s slow and soft, and when they break apart, they let their noses kiss.
“So, this is it,” Adam whispers.
Kris grins, kissing him again.
“Yeah, this is it.”
-
The next day, they don’t leave the house until four in the afternoon. They haven’t stopped touching and kissing and fucking since they started last night, but eventually their hunger couldn’t be ignored.
They both slide into the same side of the booth and Adam tucks Kris under his arm. “I think you’re supposed to sit on the other side of the table.” Not that Kris minds the closeness. He loves the closeness.
Adam smiles and leans close so their mouths nearly touch. “And miss the chance to show off my new boyfriend?”
Kris touches his lips to Adam’s in a soft kiss. Boyfriend.
He snuggles more into Adam’s side and grabs the menu but his brain doesn’t take anything in. His head feels hazy, like the buzz he gets after a few drinks. It’s incredible.
“Kris,” Adam says, tapping his shoulder excitedly.
He turns to where Adam is looking and there is Darren, leaning over the counter, whispering something in Chris’s ear. Kris watches as Chris’s cheeks turn pink and he ducks his head to hide his grin. Between them on the counter, they are holding hands.
“Looks like someone else finally got his head out of his ass last night.”
Kris glares at Adam and brings his hand up to kiss the back of his fingers. When he looks back up, Darren is staring at the two of them, smiling.
They give each other a thumbs up.
Pairing: Adam/Kris, Darren Criss/Kris, Darren Criss/Chris Colfer
Word Count: 5,635
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Kris and Darren are stupid and date each other when the ones they want have been right there all along.
Author's Note: This is for shatteredmemrys for the charity drive. Somehow this turned into American Idol meets Glee in the Queer as Folk world. (I don't know why I had it take place there, it just does.) And, as always, thank you to inbetweencabs for being my fairy beta mother.
Nobody ever watches him. He’s just a man on a stool with his guitar and a sparkling backdrop behind him and there is always the clatter of voices and drinks being poured that drown out the soft voice and the acoustic guitar. But Kris is always there to listen.
It’s been two weeks and every night after work, Kris finds himself at this table, nursing a cold beer and watching this man with the soft curls. It’s not a karaoke bar or an open mic: there is just a stage for the occasional drag show or fundraiser that they host here at Woody’s. Kris doesn’t even know if the man’s singing for anyone other than himself. He sits there with his eyes closed, almost whispering the lyrics while his fingers gently brush against the strings of his guitar. It’s like he’s in another world.
They’ve never spoken. Each night Kris gathers up the courage to go up to him once he’s done playing, but the man always walks off stage and leaves without stopping for a drink. Tonight, Kris expects the same thing. He’s been here for about forty minutes, which means he’s going to have to leave soon and Kris is going to have to wait until tomorrow to see him again.
Kris watches him as he finally stands and puts the guitar in its case, quickly patting his pockets for something, maybe a cell phone or his keys. Kris stares at the small drips of water collecting on the bottle of beer in his hand so he won’t be caught staring.
“I’m pretty sure you’re my only fan.”
Kris looks up at the voice, meeting huge eyes that Kris can’t even pinpoint the color of. There is a playful smile on the guy’s lips, his eyebrows raised as he waits for Kris’s response.
“I…I,” Kris stammers, suddenly feeling stupid. Of course he would notice Kris here; he hasn’t been exactly subtle, sitting at the table closest to the stage every night. “You’re, uh… good?”
The guy laughs. “You don’t sound too sure about that,” he says, sitting down in the chair opposite of Kris. “I’m Darren, by the way.”
“No… you’re, like, awesome. I just didn’t know that you noticed that I was noticing yo-oh god.” Kris can feel the blush on his cheeks, and it only worsens with Darren’s laughter. “I’m Kris.”
Darren has stopped laughing but there is still a huge grin on his face, his eyes twinkling. “It’s very nice to meet you, Kris.”
There’s a silence that stretches for a few moments between them and they share it with similar smiles on their faces. Kris has wanted to talk to Darren ever since he saw him for the first time on that small stage, but he never planned out what he would say when the moment finally came.
Darren’s eyes drift down to the beer in Kris’s hand. “How about I get you another one of those and we can talk?”
Kris nods a little too eagerly. “That’d be great.”
-
Kris is clutching his stomach, his cheeks aching from laughing so much. Darren is sitting right next to him now, their knees touching. He hasn’t had this much fun just talking to a guy he just met in a long time. Usually when he meets a boy out, talking is the last thing on their agenda.
But Darren is awesome. Even more so now when he’s sitting right next to Kris than when he’s on stage performing. He talks a lot, but Kris doesn’t mind. His stories are fun and he tells them with wide eyes and flailing hands. Darren tells him about growing up in San Francisco, which Kris is completely jealous of because he grew up in a small town in Arkansas.
“But how did you end up in Pittsburgh?” Kris asks, saying it like it left a bad taste on his tongue.
Darren opens his mouth and closes it slowly, looking down at his hands. “My ex,” he says. “I was nineteen and like stupid in love. I thought we’d move here together, get a shitty apartment, and just be together, you know?”
Kris puts his hand on Darren’s knee. “What happened?”
“We did get the apartment and it was nice for a while, but then we just… drifted apart. I couldn’t find a job and he was sick of supporting me because all I did was go out and party. He was a few years older than me so our priorities were a bit different.”
Kris frowns. “That must suck.”
Darren sighs and shrugs a shoulder. “It did but what we had was beautiful while it lasted,” he replies with a sort of sad smile. It doesn’t last and he perks up instantly. “But no more ex-boyfriend talk. That’s supposed to wait until the third date at least.”
Kris’s stomach does a surprised little dance. “If I knew this was a date, I would’ve dressed up.”
Darren reaches up to toy with the collar of Kris’s shirt. “Oh no, I love the plaid. It’s very sexy,” he grins, and then gestures to himself because he, too, is wearing plaid. “Obviously.”
Kris smiles and takes Darren’s hand when it falls into his lap. “I would love to take you out tomorrow night,” Darren continues. “I can pick you up and we could go to the diner, maybe?”
Kris knows he looks like a grinning fool right now but he totally didn’t plan on bagging a date with this dude when he walked into the bar a few hours ago. He takes a deep breath to calm the butterflies in his belly.
“That would be amazing. Um, let me get your number and I’ll text you my address,” he says, pulling out his phone. When he turns on the screen, there are two texts and a missed call from his roommate Adam.
bitch it’s movie night. where are you?
if you are ditching me it better be because you’re getting laid
Kris looks at the time. It’s almost two in the morning and he was supposed to be back an hour ago. He quickly sends Adam a response.
I got tied up (not literally) but I’ll be home soon
“Sorry,” Kris says. “It’s my roommate. We have a movie night every Friday and I forgot. He’s freaking out at me via text message and the voicemail is probably bitchy too.”
Darren laughs. “I apologize for holding you up.”
“It’s fine,” Kris says, clicking the ‘add contact’ button on his phone. “You can repay me tomorrow night when you buy me dinner.”
“Can’t wait.”
-
Adam pounces on him as soon as he steps through the door, stealing the grocery bag and taking out the pint of Ben & Jerry’s.
“What could’ve been possibly more important than watching Going the Distance with me?” he asks, bounding into the kitchen for two spoons. “I was about to send out a search party on your ass.”
Kris rolls his eyes and plops on the couch. “I stopped by Woody’s.”
“Again?” Adam yells from their tiny kitchen, making way too much noise rummaging around.
Kris sinks into the couch a little. This is what he gets for telling his roommate every detail of his life. It ends with shameless teasing. Adam finally joins him on the couch, snuggling as close as he can without being in Kris’s lap, and hands him a spoon.
“Did you stalk that guy again?” Adam asks, his eyes now transfixed on the television and slowly losing interest in the conversation.
Kris fidgets with his spoon nervously. There’s no reason to be nervous because they both hook up with guys all the time, but they never date any of them. Ever since the incident-and by incident, Kris means when they got really drunk and fucked until the sun came up… and then did it again the next weekend-Kris thinks that maybe there is something more between them.
“He asked me out, actually.”
Adam freezes, the spoon sticking out of his mouth as he turns to Kris. “Like on a date?” he asks with his mouth full of ice cream.
“Yeah,” Kris replies, dipping his spoon in the carton to avoid Adam’s gaze. “He’s taking me to the diner tomorrow night.”
Adam finally smiles but Kris can’t tell if it’s genuine. He leans over to press a cold kiss to Kris’s cheek, letting go with a loud smack. “I’m happy for you, baby,” he says. “Finally your stalking skills paid off.”
“Shut up,” Kris blushes and leans even more into Adam’s side.
They watch the rest of the movie in silence.
-
“Unbutton it more.”
Kris stares at his reflection. He thinks he’s showing enough chest as it is, but Adam is sitting on the counter giving him that ‘don’t be such a prude’ look. Kris figures that one more won’t hurt. His hair is sticking up in awkward spots and just won’t go down no matter how much he tries to flatten it. (Adam chased him around with a can of hairspray but only managed to get it in his eye.)
“Where are you guys going?” Adam asks.
“I’m pretty sure just dinner. Maybe we’ll hang out after or something.”
Adam pokes Kris’s shoulder with his toe and there is a smirk on his lips. “Do you need me to clean the apartment in case you wanna, you know, hang out here?”
Kris tries not to fumble. When Adam mentions sex, even if it is sex with someone else, Kris can’t help but think of when they slept together. It makes him feel a slow burn in his chest and he can’t meet Adam’s eyes because then it’s like he’ll know what Kris is thinking about. He doesn’t even think Adam still thinks about it.
“We’re not going to come back here,” Kris says. “Darren doesn’t seem like the type to put out on the first date.”
“He’s a guy and you’re hot. Of course he’ll put out.”
Kris rolls his eyes. “Fine, if I end up bringing him back here, we’ll put a sock on the door.”
Adam hops off the counter and slips right in front of Kris. His hands mess around with the collar of his shirt, his fingers occasionally brushing against Kris’s neck. Adam smiles when he’s finally done primping him, leans down, and kisses Kris soft on the lips, just like he always does.
“Have fun, baby.”
-
“My brother didn’t talk to me for a year after I came out.”
They’ve been exchanging coming out stories on their way to the diner. The conversation is easy, just as it was the night before, and it is already one of the best dates Kris has ever been on. Darren holds doors open for him and even picked a tiny purple flower that they passed along the way.
“Wow,” Darren says, and he looks sad for Kris. “That must’ve been difficult. I can’t even imagine not talking to my brother for more than a week. Is that why you moved out here?”
Kris toys with the stem of the flower with his sweaty fingers. “Sorta,” he says. “I’m good with my family now but I was just so sick of that town. I packed my bags and got on a bus to come here.” As depressing as that time was, he smiles at the memory. “I slept on the streets for three days until this crazy kid came up to me and brought me back to his apartment to feed me and so I could use his shower. Now it’s four years later and we’re still roommates.”
Darren smiles warmly, like the way you do at the happy ending to any story. “That’s good that he found you. I’d hate to know where you’d end up if he didn’t.”
He jams his fingers in his pockets and peers over at Darren, for the first time realizing that Darren is just a bit taller than he is. “I wouldn’t be here with you,” Kris says softly, changing the mood of the conversation.
Darren’s eyebrows go up a little like he’s surprised, but a good surprise like someone gave him roses. His voice lowers in a way that makes Kris think about what he’d be like in bed.
“And that would be a shame.”
-
It takes Kris fourteen minutes into when their date officially begins to realize that this will never work out.
Darren is hot. So, so, so hot. He’s got eyes that Kris wants to fall into and never get out of. Kris has never seen him naked but he can tell by the muscle in his arms that he would look ridiculously good. They could have sex. Lots and lots of sex, but that’s all it ever could be. (Not that that would be a bad thing. Kris has had his fair share of fuck buddies.)
But besides the fact that Kris wants to fuck him silly, he feels like he’s on a date with himself. They like the same stupid movies, have the same taste in music and clothing, and they are both on the shorter-than-normal-people side. His wardrobe would double and he’d never have to sit through stupid romantic comedies, but Kris has always wanted something different than this.
But sitting across the table from a cute guy is never a hardship, so Kris thinks he can wait it out to see if he’s wrong.
“So sorry the food took so long,” Chris, their waiter, says as he places their burgers down on the table. “Lana the waitress-who used to be Larry the waiter-came down with a sudden case of something I’ve never heard of and left me to fend for myself. My feet are so sore that I’m going to need a crow bar to get them off later.”
Darren scoots over in his side of the booth and gently grabs Chris’s wrist, pulling him down to sit. “Take a break for a minute,” he says, pushing his plate closer to Chris. “They’ll live a few more minutes without their food.”
Chris’s entire body sighs and he looks over at Kris apologetically. “I don’t want to impose on your date.”
Darren rolls his eyes. “You’re not imposing. It’s the last thing I can do after everything you’ve done for me.”
“You two know each other?” Kris asks. Of course everyone in this city knows each other, but he didn’t know that they know know each other.
He watches as Darren and Chris share a smile. “Chris is kind of like your friend that picked you up off the street.”
Chris’s smile fades. “Should I be offended by this comparison?”
Darren laughs. “Not at all,” he tells Chris, and then turns back to Kris. “He was the first gay guy I met here after my boyfriend bailed on me. I never got a chance to explore Liberty Avenue before, so Chris showed me around.”
“Ah, yes,” Chris says, a dramatic wistful look on his face, “all of the wonders of gay Pittsburgh.”
Darren bumps Chris with his shoulder. “Shut up. You know I never would’ve found my way without you.
Chris ducks his head a little, his hand going up to toy with his ear. Kris thinks he sees a blush on his cheeks.
“I must be getting back to work now,” Chris says, pushing himself up with an exaggerated groan. “I’ll be back to check up on you guys in a bit. Enjoy your date.”
Darren watches as Chris disappears behind Kris, and he’s pretty sure that Darren’s eyes are dancing.
-
It ends up being one of the best dates Kris has ever been on, but only because the first date nerves wore off when it stopped feeling like a date. It is somewhere between their conversation about their hatred towards malls and college football when Kris realizes that he found a new best friend instead of a boyfriend.
“This was fun,” Darren says with crinkles in the corners of his eyes because they haven’t stopped laughing all evening.
Kris leans his back against the door of his apartment, not sure of what to do. He hasn’t been on a date for so long that he has forgotten the proper etiquette for inviting a boy inside. Usually when he’s at his apartment door with a boy, he’s fumbling with his keys while they fumble with his pants. This is different.
“Yeah, it was,” is all Kris says as he waits for Darren to make a move.
It’s after several long awkward moments when Darren finally does. He steps forward and crowds Kris up against the door, his eyes questioning if this is okay. Kris notes how long Darren’s eyelashes are before he feels the soft lips against his own. It’s quick and nice and Kris wouldn’t mind doing it again. It’s just that he didn’t see any fireworks or feel any butterflies.
Darren smiles when he pulls away, his eyes darting down to Kris’s lips before stepping back.
“I’ll call you,” Darren says.
Kris feels a jab of disappointment because he’s still up for having sex with Darren, but he takes that as a sign that he isn’t getting any but his hand tonight.
“Goodnight, Darren,” he whispers, watching him disappear down the hallway.
-
Ever since they started rooming together, Adam has made a habit of flicking Kris’s lights on right before he falls asleep and crawling into bed with him. It’s annoying and intrusive because Adam has caught him jerking off more than once, but he can’t help but leave his door cracked open each night, an invitation to let Adam in.
He can hear the click of the switch and the darkness behind his eyelids gets a little bit lighter. The bed sinks down next to him and then there is warmth all along his side. Kris can hear Adam’s mind reeling and desperately waiting to hear the details of his evening.
“It was fun,” Kris says, cutting to the chase. “Darren took me out to dinner and then we walked around and talked for a while. He’s a cool dude.” He finally opens his eyes and lets his head fall to the side to look at Adam. “I think you’d like him.”
“So, I’m guessing he’ll be around for a while?”
Kris sighs and looks up at the ceiling. “Maybe,” he says. “Not as my boyfriend, though. He’s so sweet and polite. He makes me laugh and we have all of the same interests. It just wasn’t there. It felt like I was on a date with myself.”
“That doesn’t sound too bad,” Adam teases, poking him in the shoulder. “You’re totally hot.”
Kris grins a little too hard and he thinks he might feel some of those butterflies that were missing when Darren kissed him.
“I would fuck him, though.”
Adam makes a face. “You top?”
Kris sits up a little and looks down at Adam, seriously offended. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
Adam chuckles and pulls Kris back down on the bed and he rolls so they are facing each other, noses almost touching. “You bottom for me, so I just assumed…”
Oh. They’re talking about this.
Kris tries to keep the mood light in case Adam’s heart doesn’t feel like it’s about to explode like his does. They have never brought this up. They get drunk, have amazing sex, and Adam is gone before Kris wakes up in the morning. That’s just how things are with them.
“I like it both ways, thank you very much.”
He swears Adam’s eyes get darker.
“I’ll have to remember that.”
-
Kris sits a few booths away from the one he and Darren were at the night before. Chris places two menus in front of him because he knows that every Sunday Kris and Adam meet for brunch during Adam’s break. And every Sunday, Adam is late.
“Coffee and orange juice?” Chris asks while and writes it down in the pad before Kris has the chance to say yes. The pen clicks and Kris expects him to go get his drink order, but instead Chris stands there at the end of the booth, chewing on his lip and staring everywhere but at Kris.
“So how was your date with Darren?”
Kris blinks a few times and opens his mouth once but nothing comes out at first. Chris isn’t asking as in oh, give me the juicy gossip like everyone else he knows, he looks genuinely curious and a little nervous.
“It was good,” Kris says. “He’s an awesome guy.”
Chris smiles, his fingers fidgeting with the notepad. “Yeah… yeah, he is,” he says. “Um… I’ll just go get your coffee.”
If they were better friends, Kris would’ve asked him what’s wrong, but their relationship stops at what Kris’s Sunday drink order is. He doesn’t let himself think about it for too long because it’s probably nothing. Just a friend looking out for another friend.
“I didn’t expect to find you here.”
And there is Darren, staring down at Kris with those big soft eyes and a smile. His hair isn’t styled like it was last night so his curls are a mess on his head and he’s wearing glasses. It almost makes Kris wish he took him home last night.
“Well, look who it is,” Kris says. “Chris and I were just talking about you.”
Darren looks over his shoulder at Chris, whose eyes flick up to meet his, like he could feel him staring. There is a coy smile on his lips before he goes back to taking an order.
Darren presses his palms against the table and leans his body towards Kris. “And what did you have to say about me?”
“That you’re a cheap date and a horrible kisser,” Kris says, a smirk on his lips. “You can sit down, you know. It’s creeping me out with you hovering over me like that.”
Darren laughs and takes the seat across from Kris. “That’s a lie. I’m a magnificent kisser,” he says. “I have three guys in this diner who can back me up on that.”
Kris wonders if Chris is one of them.
“Why are you here, anyway?” Darren changes the subject before Kris has the chance to respond. “Are you stalking me?”
Kris snorts. “Yeah and I followed you home and stood outside your window to watch you sleep last night.”
“How very Edward Cullen of you.”
Kris opens his mouth to make fun of the Twilight reference, but then a whole lotta Adam falls into the booth next to him, burying his cold face in Kris’s neck.
“I hate my life.”
Kris frowns and pets his hair, forgetting that Darren’s sitting just a couple of feet away. Adam mumbles against Kris’s neck so Kris can only vaguely decipher what he’s saying. Something about the new chick from work.
Adam then sits up, his hair sticking up funny in the front. “Now they’re making me take her shift so I can’t stay.”
Kris reaches up to fix Adam’s hair because he would be murdered if he let Adam leave the diner with it like that. “At least order something so you can eat on the way.”
Adam smiles and leans in to kiss him. “Yes, mother,” he says as he pulls back, bringing his hand up to wipe the lip gloss from Kris’s lower lip.
Suddenly, reality comes crashing down and Kris remembers that Darren is right there watching. Not that there is anything to feel bad about. Adam is a cuddly fuck and uses Kris like a body pillow, even in public. Yeah they kiss, but if he does actually continue dating Darren, he can’t be expected to stop cuddling and kissing Adam.
The occasional drunk sex might have to stop, though.
“Um, this is Darren.”
Adam looks surprised to see another person in the booth with them. There is a moment of hesitation before he smiles, one hand coming to rest on Kris’s lower back.
“I’m Adam.”
Darren smiles. “I know. Kris told me so much about you.”
He feels Adam’s fingers on his back wiggle. “Like how I found him on the side of the road like a cute puppy and took him in?”
Kris’s face flushes and he begins pushing Adam out of the booth. “Okay, time for you to go to work.”
Adam laughs as he stumbles to his feet. Kris watches him as he makes his way over to the counter to give Chris his order to go.
Darren is staring at him with a smile that is kind of creeping Kris out.
“You’re in love with him.”
Kris chokes on air. “Excuse me?”
Darren is fucking gleaming, like he just discovered a pot of gold or something. Kris thinks he might he high.
“You are in love with him, dude,” Darren says, still with a big ass smile on his face. This is not the kind of conversation Kris expected to have with him. “Last night, I figured you had a little crush or thought he was cute or something because you wouldn’t shut up about him. I was almost a little jealous.”
“But-”
“Please tell me you’re not that clueless and haven’t figured it out yet.”
Kris panics a little because this whole little thing he has with Adam is supposed to be in his head. Nobody else is supposed to know about it. He glances over to where Adam is leaning over the counter, one of his long legs crossed over the other and a bit of skin revealed where his shirt creeps up. Kris’s mouth waters a bit because he knows what that skin tastes like and smells like and how it feels beneath his fingers.
“Okay, so maybe I have a crush.”
Darren rolls his eyes. “You love him.”
Kris suddenly realizes who he is having this conversation with. “Wait a minute. We’re supposed to be like dating or whatever. Why are you telling me who I’m in love with?”
“We both know this wouldn’t have worked out,” Darren says, way too nonchalant about the situation. “We’re meant to be friends, not boyfriends.”
Kris sends up a silent prayer because he wasn’t looking forward to being the one saying this. It’s nice that they’re on the same page.
Adam comes over with his takeout box and brushes a goodbye kiss on Kris’s forehead. “I won’t be home in time for dinner. Save me some food.” He gives Darren a wave and leaves the diner, the little bell ringing as it closes.
Darren raises an eyebrow, like his point was just made.
Maybe it was.
-
“What about you?” Kris asks once they’ve left the diner. He leans against the doorframe as Darren stands in front of him. “Chris was sending out some pretty big ‘I want you’ vibes.”
Kris is pretty sure the shocked look on Darren’s face mirrors the one Kris made earlier.
“No way,” Darren replies, very unconvincingly. “Chris and I are just friends. He’s…”
They are more similar than Kris could’ve imagined.
“You really think so?”
Kris reaches out to cup Darren’s shoulder. “I think we’re a couple of idiots.”
Darren nods. “Yeah we are.”
They’re silent for a few moments, and then Darren is looking up at him through his eyelashes. “Are we sure this wouldn’t work out between us?” he asks. “You’re pretty hot.”
Kris bites his lip for a moment as he considers it and then he thinks, what the hell, and goes for it. He brings his hands up to Darren’s face and pulls him down for a kiss. His fingers trail into those curls and he tugs at them a bit. Whether they are going to work or not, he’s been dying to do that since he first saw Darren.
They pull away and Kris licks his lips.
He felt nothing.
-
Kris has been reading the same page for an hour. Adam’s going to be home any minute and Kris wants to talk about whatever this is going on between them. All day his stomach has been in knots and he ended up lying in the middle of the living room floor, smoking weed for two hours to calm his nerves. It didn’t do anything but dry out his mouth and make him raid the fridge.
He hears the front door close and a few thumps against the wall before his bedroom door flies open. Adam crawls on his bed and smacks the book from Kris’s hand and plops his foot on his lap, wriggling his black painted toenails.
“Massage my feet.”
Kris sighs and sinks into his pillow, pulling Adam’s foot even further into his lap. It must be love, if he’s willing to do this. Adam lies back with his arms spread out and his head almost falling off the foot of the bed. Every time Kris puts pressure against the arch of Adam’s foot, he makes these little noises.
“How was work?” Kris asks, kneading Adam’s foot with his thumbs.
Adam brings his hand up to his face and shakes his head. “I don’t want to talk about work,” he says. He arches his back and moans when Kris touches a spot on his foot. “Don’t stop. That feels so good.”
Kris is so turned on he can’t even breathe.
“Darren is cute,” Adam says, his head tilted awkwardly so he can look at Kris. “How was your lunch date?”
Kris drops Adam’s foot and picks up the other to massage, focusing solely on that instead of looking at Adam. “It wasn’t a date,” Kris tells him. “We decided not to see each other anymore.”
“You broke it off with him?” Adam asks. “How’d that go?”
“He broke it off with me, actually. After you left, he said something pretty surprising. I’ve been thinking about it all day.”
Adam wiggles his foot. “What did he say?”
“That I’m in love with you.”
Adam sits up quickly, his foot still in Kris’s lap. Kris’s thumb is stroking the soft skin of Adam’s ankle now instead of massaging his foot. He’s trying to figure out what Adam’s face says, whether this is okay or not.
“And what did you say?”
Kris pushes Adam’s foot out of his lap and reaches for his hand instead. He takes a while to answer because he doesn’t know what to say. His fingers trace along the ridges of Adam’s fingers, and when he looks up, Adam is staring at their hands.
“I looked at him like he was crazy,” Kris says. “I told myself that you’re my best friend and we’re not supposed to love each other,” he takes a deep breath, “but I do.”
“As a friend,” Adam says, and it sounds a lot like a question.
Kris shakes his head. “No,” he says with confidence. “I just love you.”
Adam’s eyes are still on their hands, following the movements of Kris’s finger. He’s not saying anything and Kris feels like throwing up. Adam is never at a loss for words. He always tells Kris what he’s feeling without holding anything back.
“Adam…”
That makes Adam finally look up. His eyes are wide and cautious, like he’s afraid to let himself fall. “If we do this… if I tell you I love you and we really do this, then we have to make it work,” Adam takes a breath. “Losing you isn’t an option for me.”
Kris’s brain short circuited at tell you I love you. He smiles.
“You love me?”
Adam ducks his head and Kris is pretty sure he’s blushing. With his new role of Adam Lambert’s boyfriend, he plans on making that happen as often as possible.
When Adam looks up again, his eyes travel to Kris’s lips. Kris feels a burn coil in his belly at the intensity of Adam’s eyes. He can’t believe he never realized it before.
“C’mere,” Adam says, pulling on Kris’s shirt to bring him closer.
Kris crawls on his knees until he’s right up against Adam. His fingers bury themselves in Adam’s hair as he tilts his head up, bringing their mouths together for a kiss. It’s slow and soft, and when they break apart, they let their noses kiss.
“So, this is it,” Adam whispers.
Kris grins, kissing him again.
“Yeah, this is it.”
-
The next day, they don’t leave the house until four in the afternoon. They haven’t stopped touching and kissing and fucking since they started last night, but eventually their hunger couldn’t be ignored.
They both slide into the same side of the booth and Adam tucks Kris under his arm. “I think you’re supposed to sit on the other side of the table.” Not that Kris minds the closeness. He loves the closeness.
Adam smiles and leans close so their mouths nearly touch. “And miss the chance to show off my new boyfriend?”
Kris touches his lips to Adam’s in a soft kiss. Boyfriend.
He snuggles more into Adam’s side and grabs the menu but his brain doesn’t take anything in. His head feels hazy, like the buzz he gets after a few drinks. It’s incredible.
“Kris,” Adam says, tapping his shoulder excitedly.
He turns to where Adam is looking and there is Darren, leaning over the counter, whispering something in Chris’s ear. Kris watches as Chris’s cheeks turn pink and he ducks his head to hide his grin. Between them on the counter, they are holding hands.
“Looks like someone else finally got his head out of his ass last night.”
Kris glares at Adam and brings his hand up to kiss the back of his fingers. When he looks back up, Darren is staring at the two of them, smiling.
They give each other a thumbs up.