Butane in My Veins
Title: Butane in My Veins
Author: i_refuse_to
Rating: PG (well PG-13 for language, I guess)
Summary: Inspired by cutoutawindow ’s prompt. “They're about to graduate and Kris has never been kissed. He feels like a complete loser. Adam decides to help him out.” The title is because I have Beck stuck in my head even though I don’t think I used the word loser once in this fic. Go figure.
Kris was fully aware that he wasn’t the coolest guy in the world. His mother referred to him as “our late bloomer” which made Kris feel a lot like a flat-chested girl. He’d been under five feet tall until he was 15, not hitting a growth spurt until late his sophomore year. By then, he’d been firmly stamped with “Friend Only” by every girl he knew. To make matters worse, Cale, his best friend since they were in diapers, had recently hooked up with Katy O’Connell, the girl Kris had been worshiping from afar for years. Cale was head over heels for her, though, and she’d never looked twice at Kris. So Kris was left to suffer through his senior year alone without even a first kiss to his name.
He’d joined the theater club in the fall mainly because his dad told him that if he didn’t get out of the house once in a while, he was going to make him get a job. Kris liked music and could play a couple instruments so he figured he could help out with the orchestra at least. What he’d not factored into the equation was Adam Lambert. Adam had transferred in at the beginning of their junior year. He’d quickly established himself as the leader of the “outcasts” and helped start the theater club. Kris’s friends, who tended to be mainly jocks, muttered under their breath about that “freak from California,” but Kris had found Adam to be pretty impressive. Being yourself and not being ashamed of it was hard enough in high school. Being Adam Lambert had to be nearly impossible.
Adam had burst into the washed out hallways of Mills High School like a breath of fresh air. He wore makeup and was constantly picking the dark polish from his nails. His black hair was liberally streaked with bright blues and greens. He wore these bizarre little motorcycle gloves for seemingly no reason and was always dressed like he was going to a rock concert. The most intriguing part about him to Kris was that he was always smiling. Adam was the friendliest, most outgoing person he’d ever seen. Kris was practically his polar opposite. He never even spoke to anyone unless they approached him first, which was exactly what Adam had done.
Adam had found Kris sitting in the corner of the rehearsal room trying to blend in with the wall. It was the third theater club meeting he’d attended and he’d still not said a word to anyone.
“Hey,” Adam had said. “Are you actually joining or is this some kind of strange experiment?”
“I uhh well,” Kris had stuttered, his face on fire with embarrassment.
Adam raised an eyebrow. “Nicely said. Get over here, Tiny. We have a job for you.”
While Kris had scowled at the nickname, he’d privately been pleased to have gotten Adam’s attention so easily. He wasn’t sure what that said about him.
Kris and Adam spent a lot of time together during their final year of high school. It turned out that Kris was very good at rearranging songs to suit the individual singing them and staging performances. Adam had managed to get him up on stage in a couple of small roles, but Kris had balked at the thought of singing alone in front of an audience. Despite Adam’s reassurances that he was “amazing”, there was no way Kris was brave enough to perform in front of anyone but him. Until the Senior Showcase, that is. Senior Showcase was a talent show of sorts for every graduating student, and Kris had been dreading it since freshmen year.
“Everyone has to do something, Kris. It’s a requirement for graduation. So either you get up there and play the viola - which, let’s face it, is about as nerdy as you can get- or you get out your guitar and sing a song like you were fucking meant to do.”
Kris had shaken his head. “No, Adam. No way. I can’t.”
Adam had grabbed Kris by the shoulders and stared directly into his eyes. “You have to. For the past four years, you’ve been hiding. Everyone thinks you’re just some shy little mama’s boy. They dismiss you, Kris. They have no idea who you really are. Show them.”
Kris’s first instinct was to refuse him again, but then he actually thought about what Adam had said. People did overlook him. Even Cale had pretty much forgotten about him in the past few months. Maybe he was a little tired of being dismissed. “I don’t know, Adam.”
Adam had grinned. He knew he’d won. “You’re going to be so awesome, Kris!” He ran his eyes over Kris’s baggy jeans and t-shirt. “As soon as we get you a makeover.”
The night of the Senior Showcase approached more quickly than Kris thought possible. Before he knew it, he was standing backstage; clutching his guitar like it was a life preserver. Kris was squirming in his new much tighter pants and snug black shirt. He didn’t know why he let Adam talk him into these things. Speaking of Adam, he and his friend Alisan had just finished their performance to a standing ovation. Kris hadn’t even been able to enjoy it as he was pretty sure he was going to vomit. Adam was smiling from ear to ear as he ran towards him, glitter raining from his hair.
“You ready?”
“No,” Kris gasped. “I can’t do this, Adam. I’m not this guy. I’m not you. I go to school and blend in. I go to church and blend in. I don’t do anything interesting. I don’t even get noticed by people. I-I haven’t even kissed anyone in my whole life.” Kris may have been having a slight panic attack.
Adam’s smile disappeared, and he leaned into Kris’s personal space. “I notice you.” Without warning, he touched his lips to Kris’s mouth, just for a split second.
It was barely more than a peck but Kris felt it in every inch of his body. He reared back in shock. “What did you do that for?”
Adam shrugged. “You can do anything, Kris. You can be anything.” He smirked, though it lacked his normal confidence. “And so can I.”
“Oh,” Kris said. “Oh.” He took a step towards Adam. “You didn’t even give me any warning. I wasn’t ready!”
Adam laughed. “What would you have done if you were ready? Punched me? I like my nose as it is.”
Unthinkingly, Kris raised his hand and ran a fingertip from Adam’s forehead to the tip of his nose. “Yeah? Me too.”
Adam’s eyes were huge, and his mouth had fallen open as if he was going to say something, but nothing came out.
“Well, you can be at a loss for words. I never thought I’d see the day,” Kris teased, his hand still resting on Adam’s face.
“Kris Allen! You’re up next!”
The call from Mrs. Price startled both of them. Before Kris could lose his nerve, he swooped in and planted his lips on Adam’s. Adam apparently didn’t need a warning. His mouth opened immediately under Kris’s, and Adam’s hands clutched at his back and hair. Adam’s lips were soft and Kris wanted to learn everything about them. He nearly flinched when he felt Adam’s tongue brush his but he quickly decided Adam’s tongue was his new favorite thing. This may be Kris’s first kiss, but Adam definitely knew what he was doing, and Kris was glad for that. This was the best moment of his life.
“Mr. Allen! We need you now.”
Kris reluctantly pulled back, resting his forehead against Adam’s. “I gotta go sing.”
“Yeah,” Adam smiled. “You do that. You’ll be great, you know.”
Kris kissed him again. “You know what? I just might be.”
You know me. I love feedback.
Author: i_refuse_to
Rating: PG (well PG-13 for language, I guess)
Summary: Inspired by cutoutawindow ’s prompt. “They're about to graduate and Kris has never been kissed. He feels like a complete loser. Adam decides to help him out.” The title is because I have Beck stuck in my head even though I don’t think I used the word loser once in this fic. Go figure.
Kris was fully aware that he wasn’t the coolest guy in the world. His mother referred to him as “our late bloomer” which made Kris feel a lot like a flat-chested girl. He’d been under five feet tall until he was 15, not hitting a growth spurt until late his sophomore year. By then, he’d been firmly stamped with “Friend Only” by every girl he knew. To make matters worse, Cale, his best friend since they were in diapers, had recently hooked up with Katy O’Connell, the girl Kris had been worshiping from afar for years. Cale was head over heels for her, though, and she’d never looked twice at Kris. So Kris was left to suffer through his senior year alone without even a first kiss to his name.
He’d joined the theater club in the fall mainly because his dad told him that if he didn’t get out of the house once in a while, he was going to make him get a job. Kris liked music and could play a couple instruments so he figured he could help out with the orchestra at least. What he’d not factored into the equation was Adam Lambert. Adam had transferred in at the beginning of their junior year. He’d quickly established himself as the leader of the “outcasts” and helped start the theater club. Kris’s friends, who tended to be mainly jocks, muttered under their breath about that “freak from California,” but Kris had found Adam to be pretty impressive. Being yourself and not being ashamed of it was hard enough in high school. Being Adam Lambert had to be nearly impossible.
Adam had burst into the washed out hallways of Mills High School like a breath of fresh air. He wore makeup and was constantly picking the dark polish from his nails. His black hair was liberally streaked with bright blues and greens. He wore these bizarre little motorcycle gloves for seemingly no reason and was always dressed like he was going to a rock concert. The most intriguing part about him to Kris was that he was always smiling. Adam was the friendliest, most outgoing person he’d ever seen. Kris was practically his polar opposite. He never even spoke to anyone unless they approached him first, which was exactly what Adam had done.
Adam had found Kris sitting in the corner of the rehearsal room trying to blend in with the wall. It was the third theater club meeting he’d attended and he’d still not said a word to anyone.
“Hey,” Adam had said. “Are you actually joining or is this some kind of strange experiment?”
“I uhh well,” Kris had stuttered, his face on fire with embarrassment.
Adam raised an eyebrow. “Nicely said. Get over here, Tiny. We have a job for you.”
While Kris had scowled at the nickname, he’d privately been pleased to have gotten Adam’s attention so easily. He wasn’t sure what that said about him.
Kris and Adam spent a lot of time together during their final year of high school. It turned out that Kris was very good at rearranging songs to suit the individual singing them and staging performances. Adam had managed to get him up on stage in a couple of small roles, but Kris had balked at the thought of singing alone in front of an audience. Despite Adam’s reassurances that he was “amazing”, there was no way Kris was brave enough to perform in front of anyone but him. Until the Senior Showcase, that is. Senior Showcase was a talent show of sorts for every graduating student, and Kris had been dreading it since freshmen year.
“Everyone has to do something, Kris. It’s a requirement for graduation. So either you get up there and play the viola - which, let’s face it, is about as nerdy as you can get- or you get out your guitar and sing a song like you were fucking meant to do.”
Kris had shaken his head. “No, Adam. No way. I can’t.”
Adam had grabbed Kris by the shoulders and stared directly into his eyes. “You have to. For the past four years, you’ve been hiding. Everyone thinks you’re just some shy little mama’s boy. They dismiss you, Kris. They have no idea who you really are. Show them.”
Kris’s first instinct was to refuse him again, but then he actually thought about what Adam had said. People did overlook him. Even Cale had pretty much forgotten about him in the past few months. Maybe he was a little tired of being dismissed. “I don’t know, Adam.”
Adam had grinned. He knew he’d won. “You’re going to be so awesome, Kris!” He ran his eyes over Kris’s baggy jeans and t-shirt. “As soon as we get you a makeover.”
The night of the Senior Showcase approached more quickly than Kris thought possible. Before he knew it, he was standing backstage; clutching his guitar like it was a life preserver. Kris was squirming in his new much tighter pants and snug black shirt. He didn’t know why he let Adam talk him into these things. Speaking of Adam, he and his friend Alisan had just finished their performance to a standing ovation. Kris hadn’t even been able to enjoy it as he was pretty sure he was going to vomit. Adam was smiling from ear to ear as he ran towards him, glitter raining from his hair.
“You ready?”
“No,” Kris gasped. “I can’t do this, Adam. I’m not this guy. I’m not you. I go to school and blend in. I go to church and blend in. I don’t do anything interesting. I don’t even get noticed by people. I-I haven’t even kissed anyone in my whole life.” Kris may have been having a slight panic attack.
Adam’s smile disappeared, and he leaned into Kris’s personal space. “I notice you.” Without warning, he touched his lips to Kris’s mouth, just for a split second.
It was barely more than a peck but Kris felt it in every inch of his body. He reared back in shock. “What did you do that for?”
Adam shrugged. “You can do anything, Kris. You can be anything.” He smirked, though it lacked his normal confidence. “And so can I.”
“Oh,” Kris said. “Oh.” He took a step towards Adam. “You didn’t even give me any warning. I wasn’t ready!”
Adam laughed. “What would you have done if you were ready? Punched me? I like my nose as it is.”
Unthinkingly, Kris raised his hand and ran a fingertip from Adam’s forehead to the tip of his nose. “Yeah? Me too.”
Adam’s eyes were huge, and his mouth had fallen open as if he was going to say something, but nothing came out.
“Well, you can be at a loss for words. I never thought I’d see the day,” Kris teased, his hand still resting on Adam’s face.
“Kris Allen! You’re up next!”
The call from Mrs. Price startled both of them. Before Kris could lose his nerve, he swooped in and planted his lips on Adam’s. Adam apparently didn’t need a warning. His mouth opened immediately under Kris’s, and Adam’s hands clutched at his back and hair. Adam’s lips were soft and Kris wanted to learn everything about them. He nearly flinched when he felt Adam’s tongue brush his but he quickly decided Adam’s tongue was his new favorite thing. This may be Kris’s first kiss, but Adam definitely knew what he was doing, and Kris was glad for that. This was the best moment of his life.
“Mr. Allen! We need you now.”
Kris reluctantly pulled back, resting his forehead against Adam’s. “I gotta go sing.”
“Yeah,” Adam smiled. “You do that. You’ll be great, you know.”
Kris kissed him again. “You know what? I just might be.”
You know me. I love feedback.