Incidents Part 1
Fandom: Smosh
Pairing: Ian/Anthony
Rating: NC-17 (Mild prescription drug abuse, language, sexual situations)
Genre: Romance
Summary: A series of incidents leads to a romantic entanglement between the two YouTube stars, but is one committed enough to the relationship like the other, or will they ultimately have to learn to live without these new feelings?
Incidents
"Ah crap," Ian complained. "My phone's about to die and I can't find my car charger," he said looking around the seat.
"It's cool man, we'll just film lunchtime with my…" he paused for dramatic effect, "brand new camera!" He held it up with a huge grin on his face.
"Okay!"
Ian grasped the camera from Anthony's right hand. "Alright. Uh, how do you turn it on?"
"That's what she said, and I don't know. It's brand new. I haven't even messed with it yet."
"Oh," Ian said, feeling dumb. He flicked the power button.
"You got a memory card for it?"
"It should be in there," Anthony replied not taking his eyes off the road. "Hurry so we can film, dude."
"Okay, I think I got it." Ian pressed the record button and held the camera to his face.
"Hey everyone, it's Lunchtime with Smossssssh!" Ian said in a deep dramatic voice that made Anthony chuckle.
"So Anthony, where are we going to eat today?"
"Um, it's a secret," he smiled, turning to the camera for a split second.
"Is it really a secret, or do you just not have a clue?"
"Actually, it's American food again," he said as they pulled up to a red light.
"Yeah, sorry we're kind of boring with our choices in case you haven't noticed," Ian apologized to the device he was holding.
A while of filming and pointing out the many obscurities their neighborhood had to offer later, they made it to the drive-thru.
"Sittin' in the drive-thru! Sittin' in the drive-thru," Anthony excitedly sang while waving his arm.
Ian already knew what Anthony was ordering since he got the same thing every time they were there.
"So what do you think I should get," Anthony asked Ian, almost as a joke.
"Oh man Anthony, I really think you should get the number 14, 'cause you know you've always wanted all that bacon and cheese in a deep fried fajita!"
Anthony looked baffled for a second. "Why would they even put something like that on the menu? Who would order that?!"
"Me," Ian quickly replied. "And then my heart explodes." He grabbed his chest, pretending to have a heart attack and collapsed back onto his seat.
"You'd probably need your stomach pumped too," Anthony added.
The girl in the drive through took their order and after getting their food they began to drive back.
"Yay, we got our food!" Anthony cheered with burgeoning excitement as they pulled into the garage. Anthony suddenly turned to Ian.
"Ian, you have to listen to me very carefully. Whatever you do, don't look next to the wheelchair." He said in an overly serious tone.
"Why, what's ove-GRRR! BARBER SHOP POLE!" Ian growled, throwing his arms in the air. Anthony laughed and grabbed the food.
"You got the drinks?" He asked Ian.
"Yep!" He replied cheerfully, getting out of the car.
"Hello monkey carcass!" he greeted a pile of tan fur as he walked by.
"Mankey!" Anthony corrected from up ahead. Ian giggled and walked inside after him with the drinks in hand. He had to stop filming for a moment so he could have free hands to carry the drinks.
They set the food and beverages down and sat at the table, Anthony eagerly opening his sandwich wrapper. With free hands, Ian was able to film again.
"Oh man, they put tomatoes on here even after I said no tomatoes, gross!" Anthony whined.
"You have ketchup on there, though. It's pretty much the same thing, only runnier," Ian said.
"No! It's not the same, Ian! Look it's all mushy and gross," he said, holding up the red, translucent slice for the camera.
"It looks kind of like your face."
Suddenly a smirk quickly spread across Anthony's face and he flung the tomato onto Ian's unwrapped food.
"Eww, now I can't eat my burger 'cause it's covered in all your tomato cooties!"
"My cooties have extra protein," Anthony grinned.
Ian shrugged, picked up the slice, and put it inside his burger.
"Okay that was kind of gross, dude," Anthony said, while picking up his sandwich. Ian just smiled.
"First bite!" Anthony sunk his teeth into the sandwich and he suddenly stopped and started grunting and convulsing.
"Uh oh," Ian panicked slightly.
"Uwaaargh! Foodgasm." Anthony groaned, contorting himself in the chair.
"Dude, that was one intense foodgasm," Ian said, slightly impressed.
"Do you think a man ever died from a foodgasm before?" He asked.
Anthony thought or a moment. "Yes. I knew someone who did."
"Oh really?" Ian raised his eyebrow. "Who was it?"
Anthony took another bite and said with a mouth full of food, "Phteeve."
"Ah, yes," Ian replied with mock astonishment. "I remember that." Anthony gave him a puffy-cheeked grin and swallowed.
"So, I'm gonna set this down so I can eat," Ian said, setting the camera down.
"Oh wait!" he suddenly remembered picking it back up. "Film my first bite, Anthony!" Ian held the camera out to Anthony who accepted it.
"Okay Ian, first bite!"
Ian eagerly attacked his burger and a pickle flew out from the bottom.
"Not bad. Oh, wait. Urg!"
"Do you feel a foodgasm coming on?"
Ian nodded, faking a strained look on his face.
"Ah. Ahh! Oh yeaaaah. That was a good one," he sighed, slumping back into the chair.
"That was sexy," Anthony replied in a casual voice, eating a couple of French fries.
"Yeah, I know you're jealous," Ian grinned smugly, holding a triumphant pose.
Anthony looked into the camera and shook his head. Ian burst into a fit of contagious laughter that caused Anthony to laugh.
"Okay, okay. Seriously though, I'm gonna finish my food now," Anthony said once his laughter subsided.
"If people really knew it took us this long to eat one meal, and we just posted the whole thing without editing," Ian began, "they'd probably start tuning out after the first 3 minutes."
"With the kinds of mail and comments we get, I bet there are people who would watch the entire thing," Anthony replied back, taking a drink.
"Yeah, you're probably right. Oh, hey! Anthony," Ian cried out abruptly. "I think it's time for something."
Anthony pretended to glare at him then his face grew into a maniacal smile.
"Finding Twitter questions! Finding Twitter questions!"
Anthony pulled out his phone and logged onto Twitter, scrolling through questions.
"Nnnnope. Nah. Nu-uh." He scrolled through hundreds of questions, most of them not really worth his time.
"I bet I can finish my burger before you find a good question," Ian challenged.
"I just found a good one," Anthony said looking up at Ian, who just put the last bite in his mouth.
"I win," Ian exclaimed, still chewing.
"Nuh-uh, you still need to swallow."
"That's what I said to your mom last night. OH! Ian the master of comebacks!"
Anthony just scoffed lightly. "Anyways, it says 'Anthony, can you and Ian show us how you dance to dubstep?'"
Ian suddenly stood up with a look that said he meant serious business. "Lay me a beat."
Anthony started mouthing dubstep sounds and saying "wub, wub wub, wirrrrrrrr!"
Ian started breakdancing and humping the floor until Anthony couldn't hold out his laughter anymore.
"Dude, all your dances involve some form of humping!" He snickered.
"That's 'cause I'm so damn good at it," Ian smirked while pounding the floor with his torso.
Anthony couldn't wipe the huge grin on his face off as he watched Ian.
"Okay, here's how it's really done," he said, lightly shoving Ian aside and handing him the camera.
Anthony started dancing really well, but quickly stopped when Ian started "singing."
"What the hell is that, man?! You sound like a lawnmower fighting Justin Beiber!"
"But I thought that's what dubstep was!"
Anthony laughed and flipped his hair to the side. "Alright, next question." He pulled out his phone again.
"My dancing was still better," Ian sang under his breath, just loud enough for Anthony to hear.
Anthony rolled his eyes and continued looking through his phone.
"Anthony, Eat the rest of Ian's food!"
Anthony looked at Ian's fries and back at Ian who had a horrified look on his face.
He made a mad dash toward Ian's fries and Ian screamed "NO!!!" and tried to grab them but Anthony got to them first and took off into his room. Ian chased after him and tried to tackle him.
"They're mine! Give 'em back!"
"Hey dummy, you forgot the camera!" Anthony laughed as he tried to put fries in his mouth while Ian grabbed his arms from behind.
"I don't care, I want my food!" Ian cried out. French fries were flying all over the place while the two struggled for the remaining ones in Anthony's hands.
"D-dammit Ian, get off me!" Anthony chortled with a mouth full of fries.
"Not until I get my fries back!" Ian exclaimed, latched on to Anthony's back.
"I just put the last ones in my mouth, do you still want them?" Anthony muffled back.
"I'll put my tongue on your mouth if I have to!" Ian yelled out, turning him around to face him. They looked at each other for a moment, Ian realizing what he just said and Anthony staring back at Ian.
Anthony swallowed.
"Um... what?"
Ian looked at Anthony's eyes, inches away from his face then turned away, flustered.
"I- uh, nevermind," he muttered, his face flushed. He realized his arms were still around Anthony with Anthony's on his and tried to let go.
But Anthony kept holding on, not letting him go.
Ian looked back at Anthony and saw his eyes studying his reaction.
Ian's heart started pounding, and his face flushed even more.
What is he doing?
"A-Anthony…?" Ian barely managed to breathe out.
"I…" Anthony suddenly realized what he was doing was making Ian feel uncomfortable and felt his cheeks turn red.
"…Sorry," he quickly said, moving away from Ian. He walked out the room leaving a very confused and befuddled Ian standing alone.
Ian looked down at the spot Anthony stood, his heart still pounding. He felt strange.
He stood there for a long time wondering what happened then slowly walked out of Anthony's room. Anthony was sitting at the table staring blankly at the wall. He looked back at Ian when he walked in.
"Hey."
"Hey."
Ian sat across from him, looking somewhere else. Neither of them spoke for a while.
"You can have the rest of my fries, if you want," Anthony said quietly.
"No, it's okay," Ian faintly replied.
More silence.
"I guess we should finish the video," Anthony finally said.
"Yeah, okay," Ian quickly agreed, picking up the camera. He held it up to Anthony and pressed record, clearing his throat.
"So Anthony, now that our food's done, how would you rate this meal," Ian asked in a much calmer voice than the other lunchtime videos.
Anthony could tell he was trying, so he tried going along with it too.
"I think this meal deserves… 8 flying tomatoes out of 11!" He smiled.
"Well, that's all the time we have for this week, so we'll see you next time!" Ian said into the camera.
He aimed it at Anthony, who said "Bye," then turned it to himself and said "Bye…Bitch."
~
Ian was sitting at his computer uploading last week's episode of Lunchtime with Smosh onto YouTube.
He still couldn't get his mind off of what happened that afternoon.
The incident replayed over and over in his head.
Why did Anthony look at him like that? Why didn't he let go? Does Anthony think of him as more than just a friend? So many questions raced through his mind. He clicked out of YouTube and decided to go edit today's video. Normally he would just upload the video from his iPhone onto the computer and edit it himself, but his iPhone had died so they shot with Anthony's camera.
Which was in his room.
Dammit, he didn't want to see Anthony so soon, especially after that! Frustrated, he ran a hand through his bowl-like hair, trying to think of a plan but sighed loudly when nothing came to mind. He walked to the doorframe of his room and stared across the hall at Anthony's room, hoping an idea would hit him. Just as he was lost in thought, Anthony stepped out holding a set of keys and their eyes briefly met for a split second before he turned away.
"Oh, uh, I'm going to the post office," he mumbled awkwardly, averting his eyes. "See ya."
He raced pass Ian and he heard the door shut to the garage.
Ian stood there and blinked.
"That was easy," he mumbled with relief. "I'll just walk in, get it, and walk out." Seemed simple enough.
He waited until he heard Anthony start his car and leave before putting his plan to action.
Even though he knew Anthony was gone he still quietly crept over to his room and stopped at the door. Sure, he's been in it hundreds of times before, but it seemed kind of… strange to go into Anthony's room when he wasn't there. He mustered up all his courage and stepped inside. He didn't see the camera right away at first, but he noticed Anthony left his computer on. Then he saw the camera right next to the keyboard.
"Good," he said under his breath as he walked over and picked it up. Then something caught his eye on the computer screen and he glanced up.
A file folder icon simply called "Ian."
What?
He looked again.
He really shouldn't click it.
He knew he shouldn't.
But his curiosity was starting to get the better of him.
Ian's hand slowly drifted over the mouse and he scooted the cursor over the icon. His finger hovered over the left mouse button.
God Dammit, I'm gonna regret this.
He clicked open the folder.
Images of Ian filled the screen, which didn't surprise him, considering the folder name. He discovered an array of random pictures, mainly from Smosh videos, nothing really too scandalous. There were some photos from various times they've taken pictures together and ones Anthony took of him at various times. He didn't bother scrolling down any further.
Ian began to wonder why he got so worked up over clicking it, and started feeling guilty for invading Anthony's privacy.
What the firetruck am I doing? Going through Anthony's computer without his permission? Just what exactly was I hoping to find?
Ian felt a little ashamed and relieved that he didn't find anything too weird in the folder, but then there was this tiny, almost unnoticeable part of him that was slightly disappointed. Disappointed at what exactly, he couldn't even begin to explain.
He clicked out of the folder and took the camera to his room.
After a while of editing the video he heard Anthony come home. Ian stopped and listened to every little noise, from the door opening, keys jingling and being thrown onto the counter, to Anthony letting out a sigh as he walked past Ian's room and shut the door to his room.
Ian looked back at his computer screen, only now realizing it was stopped at a frame of Anthony, more specifically, the frame where he said Ian's foodgasm was "sexy." Ian wasn't sure if he had actually meant it, or if he was just fucking with him.
A thought suddenly struck him.
That's it! This whole thing's a joke, isn't it? Anthony's just fucking with him. It totally makes sense now.
He laughed out loud to no one at the revelation.
Anthony wasn't trying anything! It's not his usual way of kidding around, but that had to have been it. Pretty soon, this whole thing will blow over, they'll be back to normal and they'll keep being the same old Smosh they used to be. Anthony's definitely not gay.
Ian chuckled a little for even thinking of such a ridiculous concept and started editing the video again. He was glad to have been able to reach some kind of explanation.
In fact, Ian was so confident that was the reason, that he got up and began making his way to Anthony's room just to let him know how good the joke was.
He knocked on the door and with a wide smile called out "Hey, Anthony!"
His knock was met with silence.
All of a sudden he heard the sound of footsteps and the door slowly opened with Anthony partially filling its presence. Anthony didn't say a word; he only looked at Ian with an almost dark expression.
"Hey man, I just wanted to say that you got me pretty good back there. You totally had me going for a while!" Ian laughed a bit, but Anthony's face didn't change.
"What?" Anthony asked sharply.
"Y-you know, how you were pretending you wanted to... uh, kiss me?" Ian mumbled the last two words slightly, and a little more nervously.
Anthony stared at him for a long time. Ian's confidence was diminishing fast and getting replaced with apprehension. He slowly and awkwardly started stumbling backward to his room.
"Yeah, so um, haha, like I was saying, th-that was pretty good," he forcibly smiled.
"Soooo… we're cool now, right?"
Ian realized Anthony's face resembled that exact moment when he was clutching him earlier and his heart began to beat faster.
Suddenly Anthony's face broke into a smile and he laughed. "Yeah dude, we're totally cool. No worries." He patted Ian on the back and laughed again.
Ian's doubtful face slowly drifted into an uncertain smile and he let out a weak laugh.
"So, we working on the script for tomorrow later?" Anthony asked.
"Oh, uh yeah!" Ian nodded, still shaken.
"Awesome. Lemme know when you wanna get started, dude."
"Yeah, totally!"
Anthony disappeared back into his room leaving Ian standing alone once again. As he walked back to his room though, Ian felt strangely hollow.
So Anthony doesn't like me.
It was all a big misunderstanding.
I should be relieved, but why do I feel so dejected?
~
Anthony looked around his computer and noticed something was different.
Or rather, some things.
~
It was late in the afternoon and Anthony and Ian had just finished helping their film crew pack up for the day. The new video was definitely sure to be a hit once they edit and add the special effects to it. Ian was pretty proud of it.
He was even happier, however, that he and Anthony were able to get along the same way, just like he predicted they would. He did notice though that Anthony kept looking at him more than usual, almost like he wanted to say something, but whenever Ian asked him what was up, his reply was usually "nothing, I'm just tired."
They finished saying goodbye to their crew and retired to their home. Both were exhausted.
"Man, what a long fucking day," Anthony exhaustively sighed, slumping onto the couch. Ian fell next to him with a groan.
"Fuuuck. I think I popped my back out of place or something with that climbing stunt," he groaned with a hand behind him. "I'm gonna be so sore tomorrow morning!"
Anthony turned to him, concerned.
"How bad does it hurt?"
"Ugh. Pretty bad. Especially like, right here," Ian complained, pointing just below his upper left shoulder. "I took some pain killers, but they're not gonna kick in for a while." He slumped forward, with his elbows on his knees and closed his eyes.
Ian stayed like that for a few minutes until he suddenly felt something warm and gentle grasp his shoulders which made his eyes fly open.
Anthony was massaging him.
"Dude, what the frick are you doing?!" Ian blurted out, startled.
"What? You said your shoulder hurts, so I'm helping you," Anthony reasoned back.
"But it's… I…!" Before Ian could continue, Anthony interjected.
"Don't be a douche, man. It's just a goddamn massage, Jesus."
He shifted awkwardly on the couch. "Well, okay. Thanks," Ian said, finally giving in. He moved to face away from Anthony so he could have more room to start.
"Sorry," Ian mumbled.
"For what?" Anthony asked.
"For being so damn jumpy."
"It's cool, dude. I'm sorry too. I probably should have asked first."
Anthony began running his hands over Ian's back, causing his muscles to ease up, and his pain to slowly diminish. Ian closed his eyes. They both were silent on the couch for a long while as Anthony worked, with only the sound of their breathing present.
"Wow, you have a lot of built-up tension here," Anthony pointed out after a while, focusing on an area in the middle of Ian's back. He started pressing harder at a knot he found causing Ian to groan.
"Sorry, did that hurt?" Anthony asked with slight worry.
"No," Ian said, shaking his head, "it's just that… that spot's been bothering me for years."
Anthony continued focusing on that spot while Ian held steady breaths.
"Hey Ian," Anthony said.
"Yeah," Ian breathed back.
Anthony hesitated.
"Um, did you go in my room?" Anthony obviously knew he did since Ian uploaded the Lunchtime video.
Ian was barely focusing on what Anthony was saying, too relaxed and too caught up in the tension release.
"Uh-huh, camera," he answered, his eyes still shut.
"Oh, okay."
Anthony kept going.
"Did you do anything else besides get the camera?" he asked a little more cautiously.
"Yeah. Saw folder. With me," he answered between breaths, not really paying attention.
"Can you go a little lower?"
"Yeah, sure," Anthony replied, slightly shakily. He moved his hands lower.
"What exactly did you take for the pain?" Anthony asked changing the subject.
"Oxycontin." Ian replied.
Anthony's eyebrow went up in surprise. "Dude, that shit's really strong."
"Yeaaah," Ian moaned, slightly out of it.
"Fuck, you're high," Anthony pointed out.
"Fuck yeah, I'm high!" Ian repeated and giggled.
Anthony wasn't really sure how to react so he went back to talking about the other day.
"So… about that folder…" he began in a leveled tone, "You didn't look through the whole thing did you?"
At this point the pain killer was really kicking in.
"Uhh-what? Fuck, I dunno. Maybe. I dunno. No." Ian replied with a dopey grin. "God dammit, Anthony, you're so fucking… good at this."
"Thanks, I guess?" Anthony said with uncertainty.
Before Anthony could probe even further, Ian slumped forward out of Anthony's reach.
"Feel… dizzy. Tired," he mumbled into the couch pillow.
"Hey, maybe you should lie down in bed," Anthony recommended.
Ian flipped over to him with half lidded blue eyes and smiled.
"Okay, Ant. Could you… can you help me up?"
"Sure." Anthony got up and leaned towards Ian's outstretched arms and pulled him up from the seat. The two stumbled slightly but Anthony regained balance. Ian's arms were completely wrapped around Anthony and vice versa.
"Okay," Anthony mumbled under his breath. He tried to take a step, but just as he did Ian went limp and Anthony had to pull all his weight up before he hit the coffee table.
"What the hell, man?!" Anthony exclaimed.
Ian started giggling as he was pulled up to Anthony's eye level.
"Don't do that," Anthony said sternly, but with an edge of softness. The bright blue eyes just stared into his own brown ones causing Ian to smile an impossibly wide grin.
"I like your eyes," Ian happily murmured, completely transfixed. He started playing with Anthony's hair.
Anthony started blushing.
"Ian, quit it," he hissed.
"Quit what?" Ian asked innocently.
"Being all… weird!" he replied crossly.
"fine," Ian replied with a note of dejection and turned away from him.
"Ian…" he sighed, frustrated.
"What?"
"Don't be like that, dude."
"Like what?"
Anthony sighed.
"Okay, look, I'm sorry, man. Let me just help you get to your room, alright?"
"Well…"
"Come on," Anthony pleaded.
"I guess."
They somehow managed to make it to Ian's room after a few minutes of stumbling and Anthony helped him into his bed after he kicked off his shoes.
"Anthony?" Ian asked, looking up at the taller boy leaning over him.
"What's up?"
Ian turned away.
"I thought you liked me," he mumbled shyly.
Anthony was slightly confused.
"I do like you, you're my best friend, dude," He answered back, pulling the covers over him.
"No," Ian whined with a hint of frustration. "I mean…"
He trailed off.
Anthony suddenly felt his heart pounding.
"The other day… I thought that you…" He looked back up at Anthony.
"That look you had on your face…"
Anthony's eyes looked at the pillow instead of Ian, unable to reply.
"I…" Anthony finally choked out after a moment. "I… think you should go to sleep."
He waited for a response.
"Okay," Ian finally agreed. Anthony watched as he shut his eyes and drifted off to sleep.
He stayed by his side for a while longer until Ian began snoring softly.
He sighed heavily and left.
~
"Ian?"
Anthony knocked on the door again.
"Ian, come on man, we gotta get ready to go. We have that flight to New York to catch tonight."
Anthony heard a yawn and some blankets rustling.
"M'hm," his ears barely managed to pick up through the door.
Anthony continued munching on a blueberry pop-tart as he left to go finish packing.
Ian rolled onto his back and glanced at the clock.
12:47pm
Gotta pack. Gotta edit. So much to do.
He sat up, stretched out his arms, and yawned again. It was one of the best night sleeps he's had in a long time, and he had to admit he felt so much better than he thought he would. The only thing that bothered him was that he didn't remember going to bed last night.
To be honest, he couldn't remember much of anything that happened, at least after Anthony gave him a shoulder rub.
He paused, trying to put the pieces back together in his mind but he could only remember vague dream-like images.
He remembered being really, really happy.
And feeling really, really good.
A look of dread suddenly fell over his face.
They didn't… do anything, did they…?
A bead of sweat started forming on his fringed forehead. He was pretty doped up from pain killers, probably because he took more than the recommended dosage. He worriedly ran a hand through his hair and a sudden image of him hanging onto Anthony while twirling his hair between his fingers flashed in his mind.
"Oh, fuck, fuck, fuck," he mumbled.
He hit on Anthony. His video partner. His best friend.
Dammit, Anthony's probably gonna be weirded out just by the sight of him now. He had a sickening feeling in the pit of his stomach.
Wait, how did he end up in his room, with the lights off, the door closed, and under the blankets of his bed?
He could vaguely picture Anthony carrying him here, but he didn't remember anything else.
Did Anthony try to do- No. Before he finished the thought he stopped himself. Anthony would never do anything knowing he was stoned on meds… would he?
Of course not! First of all, Anthony's not the kind of person who would ever do that. He's a genuinely nice, caring, kind-hearted person. And second, he's not into dudes!
Ian's already established this.
And he knows he's not into dudes either.
It had to have been the meds making him act that way, because there's no way he would ever act that way sober in front of Anthony.
Ian was startled out of his thoughts by Anthony's voice at the door.
"Hurry up, dude! You still have to help me edit the video!"
"Video? Oh yeah, the video! Okay, I'll be out there in a few minutes!"
He was so enveloped in his thoughts that he forgot about packing for the conference in New York and editing. He hurriedly threw everything he needed to take onto the bed, pulled his duffel bag out of his closet and shoved enough for a weekend trip inside. He then changed into a fresh set of clothes and walked out into the living room were Anthony was on the main computer.
The second he saw Anthony though, he felt a swirling mixture of emotions flood through him ranging from guilt, embarrassment, nervousness, with that feeling in the pit of his stomach slowly building back up. Anthony was still looking at the monitor until he heard Ian walk in.
"Hey man, sleep well?"
Ian averted his gaze.
"Uh, yeah. Pretty good," he answered, trying to be as calm as possible.
He's acting like nothing happened at all. Maybe nothing did happen and it's all in my head.
"You wanna come check out what I've done so far?"
Ian walked numbly to the computer where Anthony was editing and looked over his shoulder. Anthony pressed play with a wide grin on his face.
They watched as the footage they shot the day before played out on the screen. Anthony started snickering.
"Oh my god, dude. Check this out." The scene was of Ian climbing a building dressed in a sexy black skintight suit and red wig while yelling "Save me Katniss, I mean, Hawkeye!" and dramatically jumping off out of the view of the camera.
Anthony laughed even harder and even Ian got a slight smirk from it, temporarily forgetting his worries.
"Man, this is gonna be fucking awesome!" Anthony grinned after his laughter had died down.
"Totally," Ian agreed. "That's the damn scene that nearly fucking killed me, and totally fucked with my back," he laughed, but his smile quickly vanished when he was reminded of last night.
"Oh yeah, I've been meaning to ask you, how's your back doing?" Anthony asked, turning to meet his eyes.
"Uh, it's actually a lot better now…" he answered in a small voice. He realized how close his face was to Anthony's and jerked up when he felt his heart begin to race.
"Uh, hey, good job on the editing," He quickly said. "I'm, uh, gonna go finish packing and stuff and I'll help you with the video when I'm done." He smiled awkwardly and disappeared to his room.
"Fuck," he murmured under his breath as his back pressed against the door. "What the frick is wrong with me? Seriously, what the fucking frick?!"
He tried to compose himself as much as possible and went back out of his room only to find Anthony standing right in front of him. He wore a worried expression.
"Are you okay?"
Ian swallowed nervously. "Y-yeah, never better." He forced a smiled.
"Ian," Anthony sighed, putting a hand on his hip and the other to the side of his head. "Are you worried about what happened last night?"
Ian looked down at his feet and nodded.
"Anthony, I can't really remember what happened last night, but I know I made a total idiot out of myself in front of you. I mean more than normal," he chuckled slightly but went back to being serious. "Y-you can ignore everything I said to you last night. You don't have to pretend to be okay with how I acted…" He trailed off, not knowing how to continue or meet his eyes.
Anthony looked at him.
Ian glanced up and saw it.
The same look that swirled around Anthony, like an enigmatic aura with an allure that wouldn't let Ian's eyes pull away even if he wanted to.
"So you're saying I should ignore that you said you liked my eyes, then," he gravelly murmured, moving closer.
"N-no, I mean…" he trailed off.
"Then what...?"
Their faces were inches apart. Ian felt light-headed and unable to move as the deep pools of Anthony's eyes forcefully held him down against the door with their mesmerizing enticement.
Ian's heart was pounding like crazy and there was no hiding how flush his face had gotten at this point.
A tiny voice screamed at him to push Anthony away, to yell what the hell are you doing, but something inside him made him move closer, close enough to where his stealthily breathing lips felt the hot exhale of the man in front of him.
"A-Anthony," he breathed, barely an audible whisper.
"I think I…"
"Don't think."
Their lips grazed each other slightly, like bright crimson on a brush testing a new canvas. Ian's eyes closed as he allowed his lips to fall on his friend's with a mix of hesitation and callous naiveté. The feel of Anthony's lips against his was comforting, so soft and warm.
The kiss only lasted a few seconds, but it seemed to go on for ages. They pulled away and each studied the other's face.
"I… wanted to do that last night," Anthony admitted softly, with a trace of guilt. "I'm sorry…"
"I think… I did too," Ian truthfully confessed, more to himself than Anthony.
"Really?" Anthony looked back up at him.
Ian nodded and pulled him into another kiss, this time with more inwardness and passion, catching Anthony by surprise. Anthony began licking his bottom lip, asking for entrance and their tongues met with eager willfulness, the taste of blueberries lingering on Anthony's tongue. Ian ran a hand over Anthony's back and the other through his hair. Anthony moaned against his lips and pulled him even closer, their bodies pressed against the door. He broke away from the kiss panting with a dark, almost carnal, look in his eyes.
Ian had never seen Anthony like this. It was both terrifying and irresistible.
"Anthony…" Ian's sentence was cut off as Anthony started licking and nipping at the stubble on his neck before breathing hotly into his ear.
"God dammit Ian, why are you making me want you so fucking bad?" His tongue traced the outside of his ear and slid back to his neck, sucking until little red traces appeared on his skin. He desperately began moving his hands over his chest, drifting down until they slid up his shirt over his bare skin causing Ian to tremble with anticipation.
"Anthony," Ian whispered in a pleading voice, "Can you let me…" He had his hand over the doorknob and the taller boy nodded and allowed him to open the door to his bedroom. They fell back on the messy bed against the blankets and pillows and Anthony started to climb on top him, kissing him deeply. Somewhere along the line, Anthony had slipped his hands under Ian's shirt, removing it and placing soft pecks over his chest. Their intertwined legs moved against each other, and having Anthony pressed against Ian's torso, moving in small, rhythmic thrusts was driving Ian's mind into a wild frenzy.
He couldn't tell if it was the forbidden aspect of the situation that was making it more of a turn on, but then he couldn't remember ever being this passionate with any of his past girlfriends. There was just something about the look in his eyes that made him want Anthony. No, crave him, and only now he understood that.
Before he knew it, Anthony had his shirt off and started working his way down to the zipper of Ian's pants, stopping right above it to breathe hotly on him. He looked up at Ian, his chocolate brown eyes asking for permission to continue. Ian placed a hand over his Anthony's soft hair and stroked lightly, acknowledging his plea. Anthony unbuckled the belt and unbuttoned the top button, then with his teeth unzipped his pants and hurled them to the ground.
He stopped right above Ian's throbbing erection, held back by just a thin layer of fabric.
"I-uh…"
Ian looked back at him. "What's wrong?"
"I've never done this before…" he said with a nervous laugh. "Been with a guy, I mean."
"I haven't either," Ian said shakily, sensing the apprehension in his voice. "It's really… different, I know. I, um, think we're both kinda … learning how to handle this together…" Ian looked down. "But if you don't want to do this…"
"No! I do if you do!" Anthony quickly interjected. "This… is okay with you, right? I mean, I don't want it to be weird later…"
There was so much uncertanty in the air but eagerness to go on quickly began taking over.
"Anthony…" Ian went down to him and kissed him and pulled less than an inch away. "This is okay," he gently whispered. "A little... weird, but okay." Anthony smiled and returned back down to slide off Ian's boxers. He placed a hand over the partially-erect cock, causing Ian to gasp and started moving it up and down slowly at first, then picking up speed. Ian went from petting the top of his head to clutching Anthony's hair in a tight squeeze as he panted. Anthony without any warning teasingly licked the tip of his cock before taking in the whole thing, making Ian groam in pleasure.
"Anthony, I… oh fuck…" Ian gasped as the sensation coursed throughout his whole body. His tongue slid around the sides and top, while his hand caressed his balls. "Don't stop… fuck, I think… I'm gonna," Ian hurriedly breathed. He threw his head back and yelled his name out as the hot, milky liquid covered Anthony's bare chest and dripped back onto his own stomach. Anthony slid out his imprisoning pants as fast as he possibly could, covered his hand in the sticky substance and started pumping his own erection at a fast pace.
"Wait," Ian quickly pled. He reached over and placed his hand over Anthony's cock.
"I wanna do it," he whispered seductively. Anthony removed his hand, allowing his friend to get a slick grip of his yearning cock. They sat in front of each other, Ian's legs around Anthony as he began pleasuring him with fast strokes, his palm circling over the tip after every vertical stroke. Anthony couldn't handle it anymore and smashed his mouth against Ian's in a desperately heavy kiss. He stifled a moan against Ian's mouth and broke the kiss, causing Ian to whimper.
"Ian I-I'm cumming…" Anthony cried out, and came all over Ian's hand and in between their glistened bodies. Anthony collapsed on top of Ian causing him to fall back on the pillows, both were gasping with perspiration covering every part of their bodies. They stayed like that for a few more minutes waiting for their heart rates to calm down before kissing each other again softly and rolling off.
They lay together just listening to each other breath for a long time until Anthony finally spoke.
"Hey."
"Yeah?"
"..."
"Did you finish packing yet?"
"Yeah, I've been done for a while."
Anthony shot him a smirk.
"So were you actually gonna pack when you left the computer earlier?"
Ian looked over at him and grinned.
"I was done before that."
"You douchebag," Anthony teased, smiling back.
"I know, I know."
Anthony laughed. They stayed silent for a little while longer.
"Hey Anthony," Ian asked in a more serious tone.
"Hmm?"
Ian was a little hesitant. "Can we still be best friends after this?"
Anthony thought for a moment. "I think so. If anything, this makes our friendship… stronger, I guess."
"Heh. But best friends don't usually fuck each other," Ian laughed lightly.
"True," Anthony agreed. "But I think we're close enough to be able to go beyond the normalities of the average friendship like this, if that makes any sense."
"Yeah, I think I understand." He paused. "Does that make us… friends with benefits?" He winced slightly as the words left his mouth.
"Uh, well I really don't know…" Anthony trailed off.
They stayed quiet for a while longer.
"You wanna go finish the video," Anthony said. "After a shower, of course."
"Yeah, sure."
They looked at each other one last time before getting up and Ian laughed an infectious laugh, causing Anthony to as well.
"What?"
"Nothing, I guess I'm feelin' kinda firetruckin' giddy!" Ian giggled.
Anthony threw a pillow at his face.
"Ow, hey!" Ian cried out, "You bastard!" and threw the pillow back at him.
"Missed me!" he teased, running off.
"Hey, get back here!"
Pairing: Ian/Anthony
Rating: NC-17 (Mild prescription drug abuse, language, sexual situations)
Genre: Romance
Summary: A series of incidents leads to a romantic entanglement between the two YouTube stars, but is one committed enough to the relationship like the other, or will they ultimately have to learn to live without these new feelings?
Incidents
"Ah crap," Ian complained. "My phone's about to die and I can't find my car charger," he said looking around the seat.
"It's cool man, we'll just film lunchtime with my…" he paused for dramatic effect, "brand new camera!" He held it up with a huge grin on his face.
"Okay!"
Ian grasped the camera from Anthony's right hand. "Alright. Uh, how do you turn it on?"
"That's what she said, and I don't know. It's brand new. I haven't even messed with it yet."
"Oh," Ian said, feeling dumb. He flicked the power button.
"You got a memory card for it?"
"It should be in there," Anthony replied not taking his eyes off the road. "Hurry so we can film, dude."
"Okay, I think I got it." Ian pressed the record button and held the camera to his face.
"Hey everyone, it's Lunchtime with Smossssssh!" Ian said in a deep dramatic voice that made Anthony chuckle.
"So Anthony, where are we going to eat today?"
"Um, it's a secret," he smiled, turning to the camera for a split second.
"Is it really a secret, or do you just not have a clue?"
"Actually, it's American food again," he said as they pulled up to a red light.
"Yeah, sorry we're kind of boring with our choices in case you haven't noticed," Ian apologized to the device he was holding.
A while of filming and pointing out the many obscurities their neighborhood had to offer later, they made it to the drive-thru.
"Sittin' in the drive-thru! Sittin' in the drive-thru," Anthony excitedly sang while waving his arm.
Ian already knew what Anthony was ordering since he got the same thing every time they were there.
"So what do you think I should get," Anthony asked Ian, almost as a joke.
"Oh man Anthony, I really think you should get the number 14, 'cause you know you've always wanted all that bacon and cheese in a deep fried fajita!"
Anthony looked baffled for a second. "Why would they even put something like that on the menu? Who would order that?!"
"Me," Ian quickly replied. "And then my heart explodes." He grabbed his chest, pretending to have a heart attack and collapsed back onto his seat.
"You'd probably need your stomach pumped too," Anthony added.
The girl in the drive through took their order and after getting their food they began to drive back.
"Yay, we got our food!" Anthony cheered with burgeoning excitement as they pulled into the garage. Anthony suddenly turned to Ian.
"Ian, you have to listen to me very carefully. Whatever you do, don't look next to the wheelchair." He said in an overly serious tone.
"Why, what's ove-GRRR! BARBER SHOP POLE!" Ian growled, throwing his arms in the air. Anthony laughed and grabbed the food.
"You got the drinks?" He asked Ian.
"Yep!" He replied cheerfully, getting out of the car.
"Hello monkey carcass!" he greeted a pile of tan fur as he walked by.
"Mankey!" Anthony corrected from up ahead. Ian giggled and walked inside after him with the drinks in hand. He had to stop filming for a moment so he could have free hands to carry the drinks.
They set the food and beverages down and sat at the table, Anthony eagerly opening his sandwich wrapper. With free hands, Ian was able to film again.
"Oh man, they put tomatoes on here even after I said no tomatoes, gross!" Anthony whined.
"You have ketchup on there, though. It's pretty much the same thing, only runnier," Ian said.
"No! It's not the same, Ian! Look it's all mushy and gross," he said, holding up the red, translucent slice for the camera.
"It looks kind of like your face."
Suddenly a smirk quickly spread across Anthony's face and he flung the tomato onto Ian's unwrapped food.
"Eww, now I can't eat my burger 'cause it's covered in all your tomato cooties!"
"My cooties have extra protein," Anthony grinned.
Ian shrugged, picked up the slice, and put it inside his burger.
"Okay that was kind of gross, dude," Anthony said, while picking up his sandwich. Ian just smiled.
"First bite!" Anthony sunk his teeth into the sandwich and he suddenly stopped and started grunting and convulsing.
"Uh oh," Ian panicked slightly.
"Uwaaargh! Foodgasm." Anthony groaned, contorting himself in the chair.
"Dude, that was one intense foodgasm," Ian said, slightly impressed.
"Do you think a man ever died from a foodgasm before?" He asked.
Anthony thought or a moment. "Yes. I knew someone who did."
"Oh really?" Ian raised his eyebrow. "Who was it?"
Anthony took another bite and said with a mouth full of food, "Phteeve."
"Ah, yes," Ian replied with mock astonishment. "I remember that." Anthony gave him a puffy-cheeked grin and swallowed.
"So, I'm gonna set this down so I can eat," Ian said, setting the camera down.
"Oh wait!" he suddenly remembered picking it back up. "Film my first bite, Anthony!" Ian held the camera out to Anthony who accepted it.
"Okay Ian, first bite!"
Ian eagerly attacked his burger and a pickle flew out from the bottom.
"Not bad. Oh, wait. Urg!"
"Do you feel a foodgasm coming on?"
Ian nodded, faking a strained look on his face.
"Ah. Ahh! Oh yeaaaah. That was a good one," he sighed, slumping back into the chair.
"That was sexy," Anthony replied in a casual voice, eating a couple of French fries.
"Yeah, I know you're jealous," Ian grinned smugly, holding a triumphant pose.
Anthony looked into the camera and shook his head. Ian burst into a fit of contagious laughter that caused Anthony to laugh.
"Okay, okay. Seriously though, I'm gonna finish my food now," Anthony said once his laughter subsided.
"If people really knew it took us this long to eat one meal, and we just posted the whole thing without editing," Ian began, "they'd probably start tuning out after the first 3 minutes."
"With the kinds of mail and comments we get, I bet there are people who would watch the entire thing," Anthony replied back, taking a drink.
"Yeah, you're probably right. Oh, hey! Anthony," Ian cried out abruptly. "I think it's time for something."
Anthony pretended to glare at him then his face grew into a maniacal smile.
"Finding Twitter questions! Finding Twitter questions!"
Anthony pulled out his phone and logged onto Twitter, scrolling through questions.
"Nnnnope. Nah. Nu-uh." He scrolled through hundreds of questions, most of them not really worth his time.
"I bet I can finish my burger before you find a good question," Ian challenged.
"I just found a good one," Anthony said looking up at Ian, who just put the last bite in his mouth.
"I win," Ian exclaimed, still chewing.
"Nuh-uh, you still need to swallow."
"That's what I said to your mom last night. OH! Ian the master of comebacks!"
Anthony just scoffed lightly. "Anyways, it says 'Anthony, can you and Ian show us how you dance to dubstep?'"
Ian suddenly stood up with a look that said he meant serious business. "Lay me a beat."
Anthony started mouthing dubstep sounds and saying "wub, wub wub, wirrrrrrrr!"
Ian started breakdancing and humping the floor until Anthony couldn't hold out his laughter anymore.
"Dude, all your dances involve some form of humping!" He snickered.
"That's 'cause I'm so damn good at it," Ian smirked while pounding the floor with his torso.
Anthony couldn't wipe the huge grin on his face off as he watched Ian.
"Okay, here's how it's really done," he said, lightly shoving Ian aside and handing him the camera.
Anthony started dancing really well, but quickly stopped when Ian started "singing."
"What the hell is that, man?! You sound like a lawnmower fighting Justin Beiber!"
"But I thought that's what dubstep was!"
Anthony laughed and flipped his hair to the side. "Alright, next question." He pulled out his phone again.
"My dancing was still better," Ian sang under his breath, just loud enough for Anthony to hear.
Anthony rolled his eyes and continued looking through his phone.
"Anthony, Eat the rest of Ian's food!"
Anthony looked at Ian's fries and back at Ian who had a horrified look on his face.
He made a mad dash toward Ian's fries and Ian screamed "NO!!!" and tried to grab them but Anthony got to them first and took off into his room. Ian chased after him and tried to tackle him.
"They're mine! Give 'em back!"
"Hey dummy, you forgot the camera!" Anthony laughed as he tried to put fries in his mouth while Ian grabbed his arms from behind.
"I don't care, I want my food!" Ian cried out. French fries were flying all over the place while the two struggled for the remaining ones in Anthony's hands.
"D-dammit Ian, get off me!" Anthony chortled with a mouth full of fries.
"Not until I get my fries back!" Ian exclaimed, latched on to Anthony's back.
"I just put the last ones in my mouth, do you still want them?" Anthony muffled back.
"I'll put my tongue on your mouth if I have to!" Ian yelled out, turning him around to face him. They looked at each other for a moment, Ian realizing what he just said and Anthony staring back at Ian.
Anthony swallowed.
"Um... what?"
Ian looked at Anthony's eyes, inches away from his face then turned away, flustered.
"I- uh, nevermind," he muttered, his face flushed. He realized his arms were still around Anthony with Anthony's on his and tried to let go.
But Anthony kept holding on, not letting him go.
Ian looked back at Anthony and saw his eyes studying his reaction.
Ian's heart started pounding, and his face flushed even more.
What is he doing?
"A-Anthony…?" Ian barely managed to breathe out.
"I…" Anthony suddenly realized what he was doing was making Ian feel uncomfortable and felt his cheeks turn red.
"…Sorry," he quickly said, moving away from Ian. He walked out the room leaving a very confused and befuddled Ian standing alone.
Ian looked down at the spot Anthony stood, his heart still pounding. He felt strange.
He stood there for a long time wondering what happened then slowly walked out of Anthony's room. Anthony was sitting at the table staring blankly at the wall. He looked back at Ian when he walked in.
"Hey."
"Hey."
Ian sat across from him, looking somewhere else. Neither of them spoke for a while.
"You can have the rest of my fries, if you want," Anthony said quietly.
"No, it's okay," Ian faintly replied.
More silence.
"I guess we should finish the video," Anthony finally said.
"Yeah, okay," Ian quickly agreed, picking up the camera. He held it up to Anthony and pressed record, clearing his throat.
"So Anthony, now that our food's done, how would you rate this meal," Ian asked in a much calmer voice than the other lunchtime videos.
Anthony could tell he was trying, so he tried going along with it too.
"I think this meal deserves… 8 flying tomatoes out of 11!" He smiled.
"Well, that's all the time we have for this week, so we'll see you next time!" Ian said into the camera.
He aimed it at Anthony, who said "Bye," then turned it to himself and said "Bye…Bitch."
~
Ian was sitting at his computer uploading last week's episode of Lunchtime with Smosh onto YouTube.
He still couldn't get his mind off of what happened that afternoon.
The incident replayed over and over in his head.
Why did Anthony look at him like that? Why didn't he let go? Does Anthony think of him as more than just a friend? So many questions raced through his mind. He clicked out of YouTube and decided to go edit today's video. Normally he would just upload the video from his iPhone onto the computer and edit it himself, but his iPhone had died so they shot with Anthony's camera.
Which was in his room.
Dammit, he didn't want to see Anthony so soon, especially after that! Frustrated, he ran a hand through his bowl-like hair, trying to think of a plan but sighed loudly when nothing came to mind. He walked to the doorframe of his room and stared across the hall at Anthony's room, hoping an idea would hit him. Just as he was lost in thought, Anthony stepped out holding a set of keys and their eyes briefly met for a split second before he turned away.
"Oh, uh, I'm going to the post office," he mumbled awkwardly, averting his eyes. "See ya."
He raced pass Ian and he heard the door shut to the garage.
Ian stood there and blinked.
"That was easy," he mumbled with relief. "I'll just walk in, get it, and walk out." Seemed simple enough.
He waited until he heard Anthony start his car and leave before putting his plan to action.
Even though he knew Anthony was gone he still quietly crept over to his room and stopped at the door. Sure, he's been in it hundreds of times before, but it seemed kind of… strange to go into Anthony's room when he wasn't there. He mustered up all his courage and stepped inside. He didn't see the camera right away at first, but he noticed Anthony left his computer on. Then he saw the camera right next to the keyboard.
"Good," he said under his breath as he walked over and picked it up. Then something caught his eye on the computer screen and he glanced up.
A file folder icon simply called "Ian."
What?
He looked again.
He really shouldn't click it.
He knew he shouldn't.
But his curiosity was starting to get the better of him.
Ian's hand slowly drifted over the mouse and he scooted the cursor over the icon. His finger hovered over the left mouse button.
God Dammit, I'm gonna regret this.
He clicked open the folder.
Images of Ian filled the screen, which didn't surprise him, considering the folder name. He discovered an array of random pictures, mainly from Smosh videos, nothing really too scandalous. There were some photos from various times they've taken pictures together and ones Anthony took of him at various times. He didn't bother scrolling down any further.
Ian began to wonder why he got so worked up over clicking it, and started feeling guilty for invading Anthony's privacy.
What the firetruck am I doing? Going through Anthony's computer without his permission? Just what exactly was I hoping to find?
Ian felt a little ashamed and relieved that he didn't find anything too weird in the folder, but then there was this tiny, almost unnoticeable part of him that was slightly disappointed. Disappointed at what exactly, he couldn't even begin to explain.
He clicked out of the folder and took the camera to his room.
After a while of editing the video he heard Anthony come home. Ian stopped and listened to every little noise, from the door opening, keys jingling and being thrown onto the counter, to Anthony letting out a sigh as he walked past Ian's room and shut the door to his room.
Ian looked back at his computer screen, only now realizing it was stopped at a frame of Anthony, more specifically, the frame where he said Ian's foodgasm was "sexy." Ian wasn't sure if he had actually meant it, or if he was just fucking with him.
A thought suddenly struck him.
That's it! This whole thing's a joke, isn't it? Anthony's just fucking with him. It totally makes sense now.
He laughed out loud to no one at the revelation.
Anthony wasn't trying anything! It's not his usual way of kidding around, but that had to have been it. Pretty soon, this whole thing will blow over, they'll be back to normal and they'll keep being the same old Smosh they used to be. Anthony's definitely not gay.
Ian chuckled a little for even thinking of such a ridiculous concept and started editing the video again. He was glad to have been able to reach some kind of explanation.
In fact, Ian was so confident that was the reason, that he got up and began making his way to Anthony's room just to let him know how good the joke was.
He knocked on the door and with a wide smile called out "Hey, Anthony!"
His knock was met with silence.
All of a sudden he heard the sound of footsteps and the door slowly opened with Anthony partially filling its presence. Anthony didn't say a word; he only looked at Ian with an almost dark expression.
"Hey man, I just wanted to say that you got me pretty good back there. You totally had me going for a while!" Ian laughed a bit, but Anthony's face didn't change.
"What?" Anthony asked sharply.
"Y-you know, how you were pretending you wanted to... uh, kiss me?" Ian mumbled the last two words slightly, and a little more nervously.
Anthony stared at him for a long time. Ian's confidence was diminishing fast and getting replaced with apprehension. He slowly and awkwardly started stumbling backward to his room.
"Yeah, so um, haha, like I was saying, th-that was pretty good," he forcibly smiled.
"Soooo… we're cool now, right?"
Ian realized Anthony's face resembled that exact moment when he was clutching him earlier and his heart began to beat faster.
Suddenly Anthony's face broke into a smile and he laughed. "Yeah dude, we're totally cool. No worries." He patted Ian on the back and laughed again.
Ian's doubtful face slowly drifted into an uncertain smile and he let out a weak laugh.
"So, we working on the script for tomorrow later?" Anthony asked.
"Oh, uh yeah!" Ian nodded, still shaken.
"Awesome. Lemme know when you wanna get started, dude."
"Yeah, totally!"
Anthony disappeared back into his room leaving Ian standing alone once again. As he walked back to his room though, Ian felt strangely hollow.
So Anthony doesn't like me.
It was all a big misunderstanding.
I should be relieved, but why do I feel so dejected?
~
Anthony looked around his computer and noticed something was different.
Or rather, some things.
~
It was late in the afternoon and Anthony and Ian had just finished helping their film crew pack up for the day. The new video was definitely sure to be a hit once they edit and add the special effects to it. Ian was pretty proud of it.
He was even happier, however, that he and Anthony were able to get along the same way, just like he predicted they would. He did notice though that Anthony kept looking at him more than usual, almost like he wanted to say something, but whenever Ian asked him what was up, his reply was usually "nothing, I'm just tired."
They finished saying goodbye to their crew and retired to their home. Both were exhausted.
"Man, what a long fucking day," Anthony exhaustively sighed, slumping onto the couch. Ian fell next to him with a groan.
"Fuuuck. I think I popped my back out of place or something with that climbing stunt," he groaned with a hand behind him. "I'm gonna be so sore tomorrow morning!"
Anthony turned to him, concerned.
"How bad does it hurt?"
"Ugh. Pretty bad. Especially like, right here," Ian complained, pointing just below his upper left shoulder. "I took some pain killers, but they're not gonna kick in for a while." He slumped forward, with his elbows on his knees and closed his eyes.
Ian stayed like that for a few minutes until he suddenly felt something warm and gentle grasp his shoulders which made his eyes fly open.
Anthony was massaging him.
"Dude, what the frick are you doing?!" Ian blurted out, startled.
"What? You said your shoulder hurts, so I'm helping you," Anthony reasoned back.
"But it's… I…!" Before Ian could continue, Anthony interjected.
"Don't be a douche, man. It's just a goddamn massage, Jesus."
He shifted awkwardly on the couch. "Well, okay. Thanks," Ian said, finally giving in. He moved to face away from Anthony so he could have more room to start.
"Sorry," Ian mumbled.
"For what?" Anthony asked.
"For being so damn jumpy."
"It's cool, dude. I'm sorry too. I probably should have asked first."
Anthony began running his hands over Ian's back, causing his muscles to ease up, and his pain to slowly diminish. Ian closed his eyes. They both were silent on the couch for a long while as Anthony worked, with only the sound of their breathing present.
"Wow, you have a lot of built-up tension here," Anthony pointed out after a while, focusing on an area in the middle of Ian's back. He started pressing harder at a knot he found causing Ian to groan.
"Sorry, did that hurt?" Anthony asked with slight worry.
"No," Ian said, shaking his head, "it's just that… that spot's been bothering me for years."
Anthony continued focusing on that spot while Ian held steady breaths.
"Hey Ian," Anthony said.
"Yeah," Ian breathed back.
Anthony hesitated.
"Um, did you go in my room?" Anthony obviously knew he did since Ian uploaded the Lunchtime video.
Ian was barely focusing on what Anthony was saying, too relaxed and too caught up in the tension release.
"Uh-huh, camera," he answered, his eyes still shut.
"Oh, okay."
Anthony kept going.
"Did you do anything else besides get the camera?" he asked a little more cautiously.
"Yeah. Saw folder. With me," he answered between breaths, not really paying attention.
"Can you go a little lower?"
"Yeah, sure," Anthony replied, slightly shakily. He moved his hands lower.
"What exactly did you take for the pain?" Anthony asked changing the subject.
"Oxycontin." Ian replied.
Anthony's eyebrow went up in surprise. "Dude, that shit's really strong."
"Yeaaah," Ian moaned, slightly out of it.
"Fuck, you're high," Anthony pointed out.
"Fuck yeah, I'm high!" Ian repeated and giggled.
Anthony wasn't really sure how to react so he went back to talking about the other day.
"So… about that folder…" he began in a leveled tone, "You didn't look through the whole thing did you?"
At this point the pain killer was really kicking in.
"Uhh-what? Fuck, I dunno. Maybe. I dunno. No." Ian replied with a dopey grin. "God dammit, Anthony, you're so fucking… good at this."
"Thanks, I guess?" Anthony said with uncertainty.
Before Anthony could probe even further, Ian slumped forward out of Anthony's reach.
"Feel… dizzy. Tired," he mumbled into the couch pillow.
"Hey, maybe you should lie down in bed," Anthony recommended.
Ian flipped over to him with half lidded blue eyes and smiled.
"Okay, Ant. Could you… can you help me up?"
"Sure." Anthony got up and leaned towards Ian's outstretched arms and pulled him up from the seat. The two stumbled slightly but Anthony regained balance. Ian's arms were completely wrapped around Anthony and vice versa.
"Okay," Anthony mumbled under his breath. He tried to take a step, but just as he did Ian went limp and Anthony had to pull all his weight up before he hit the coffee table.
"What the hell, man?!" Anthony exclaimed.
Ian started giggling as he was pulled up to Anthony's eye level.
"Don't do that," Anthony said sternly, but with an edge of softness. The bright blue eyes just stared into his own brown ones causing Ian to smile an impossibly wide grin.
"I like your eyes," Ian happily murmured, completely transfixed. He started playing with Anthony's hair.
Anthony started blushing.
"Ian, quit it," he hissed.
"Quit what?" Ian asked innocently.
"Being all… weird!" he replied crossly.
"fine," Ian replied with a note of dejection and turned away from him.
"Ian…" he sighed, frustrated.
"What?"
"Don't be like that, dude."
"Like what?"
Anthony sighed.
"Okay, look, I'm sorry, man. Let me just help you get to your room, alright?"
"Well…"
"Come on," Anthony pleaded.
"I guess."
They somehow managed to make it to Ian's room after a few minutes of stumbling and Anthony helped him into his bed after he kicked off his shoes.
"Anthony?" Ian asked, looking up at the taller boy leaning over him.
"What's up?"
Ian turned away.
"I thought you liked me," he mumbled shyly.
Anthony was slightly confused.
"I do like you, you're my best friend, dude," He answered back, pulling the covers over him.
"No," Ian whined with a hint of frustration. "I mean…"
He trailed off.
Anthony suddenly felt his heart pounding.
"The other day… I thought that you…" He looked back up at Anthony.
"That look you had on your face…"
Anthony's eyes looked at the pillow instead of Ian, unable to reply.
"I…" Anthony finally choked out after a moment. "I… think you should go to sleep."
He waited for a response.
"Okay," Ian finally agreed. Anthony watched as he shut his eyes and drifted off to sleep.
He stayed by his side for a while longer until Ian began snoring softly.
He sighed heavily and left.
~
"Ian?"
Anthony knocked on the door again.
"Ian, come on man, we gotta get ready to go. We have that flight to New York to catch tonight."
Anthony heard a yawn and some blankets rustling.
"M'hm," his ears barely managed to pick up through the door.
Anthony continued munching on a blueberry pop-tart as he left to go finish packing.
Ian rolled onto his back and glanced at the clock.
12:47pm
Gotta pack. Gotta edit. So much to do.
He sat up, stretched out his arms, and yawned again. It was one of the best night sleeps he's had in a long time, and he had to admit he felt so much better than he thought he would. The only thing that bothered him was that he didn't remember going to bed last night.
To be honest, he couldn't remember much of anything that happened, at least after Anthony gave him a shoulder rub.
He paused, trying to put the pieces back together in his mind but he could only remember vague dream-like images.
He remembered being really, really happy.
And feeling really, really good.
A look of dread suddenly fell over his face.
They didn't… do anything, did they…?
A bead of sweat started forming on his fringed forehead. He was pretty doped up from pain killers, probably because he took more than the recommended dosage. He worriedly ran a hand through his hair and a sudden image of him hanging onto Anthony while twirling his hair between his fingers flashed in his mind.
"Oh, fuck, fuck, fuck," he mumbled.
He hit on Anthony. His video partner. His best friend.
Dammit, Anthony's probably gonna be weirded out just by the sight of him now. He had a sickening feeling in the pit of his stomach.
Wait, how did he end up in his room, with the lights off, the door closed, and under the blankets of his bed?
He could vaguely picture Anthony carrying him here, but he didn't remember anything else.
Did Anthony try to do- No. Before he finished the thought he stopped himself. Anthony would never do anything knowing he was stoned on meds… would he?
Of course not! First of all, Anthony's not the kind of person who would ever do that. He's a genuinely nice, caring, kind-hearted person. And second, he's not into dudes!
Ian's already established this.
And he knows he's not into dudes either.
It had to have been the meds making him act that way, because there's no way he would ever act that way sober in front of Anthony.
Ian was startled out of his thoughts by Anthony's voice at the door.
"Hurry up, dude! You still have to help me edit the video!"
"Video? Oh yeah, the video! Okay, I'll be out there in a few minutes!"
He was so enveloped in his thoughts that he forgot about packing for the conference in New York and editing. He hurriedly threw everything he needed to take onto the bed, pulled his duffel bag out of his closet and shoved enough for a weekend trip inside. He then changed into a fresh set of clothes and walked out into the living room were Anthony was on the main computer.
The second he saw Anthony though, he felt a swirling mixture of emotions flood through him ranging from guilt, embarrassment, nervousness, with that feeling in the pit of his stomach slowly building back up. Anthony was still looking at the monitor until he heard Ian walk in.
"Hey man, sleep well?"
Ian averted his gaze.
"Uh, yeah. Pretty good," he answered, trying to be as calm as possible.
He's acting like nothing happened at all. Maybe nothing did happen and it's all in my head.
"You wanna come check out what I've done so far?"
Ian walked numbly to the computer where Anthony was editing and looked over his shoulder. Anthony pressed play with a wide grin on his face.
They watched as the footage they shot the day before played out on the screen. Anthony started snickering.
"Oh my god, dude. Check this out." The scene was of Ian climbing a building dressed in a sexy black skintight suit and red wig while yelling "Save me Katniss, I mean, Hawkeye!" and dramatically jumping off out of the view of the camera.
Anthony laughed even harder and even Ian got a slight smirk from it, temporarily forgetting his worries.
"Man, this is gonna be fucking awesome!" Anthony grinned after his laughter had died down.
"Totally," Ian agreed. "That's the damn scene that nearly fucking killed me, and totally fucked with my back," he laughed, but his smile quickly vanished when he was reminded of last night.
"Oh yeah, I've been meaning to ask you, how's your back doing?" Anthony asked, turning to meet his eyes.
"Uh, it's actually a lot better now…" he answered in a small voice. He realized how close his face was to Anthony's and jerked up when he felt his heart begin to race.
"Uh, hey, good job on the editing," He quickly said. "I'm, uh, gonna go finish packing and stuff and I'll help you with the video when I'm done." He smiled awkwardly and disappeared to his room.
"Fuck," he murmured under his breath as his back pressed against the door. "What the frick is wrong with me? Seriously, what the fucking frick?!"
He tried to compose himself as much as possible and went back out of his room only to find Anthony standing right in front of him. He wore a worried expression.
"Are you okay?"
Ian swallowed nervously. "Y-yeah, never better." He forced a smiled.
"Ian," Anthony sighed, putting a hand on his hip and the other to the side of his head. "Are you worried about what happened last night?"
Ian looked down at his feet and nodded.
"Anthony, I can't really remember what happened last night, but I know I made a total idiot out of myself in front of you. I mean more than normal," he chuckled slightly but went back to being serious. "Y-you can ignore everything I said to you last night. You don't have to pretend to be okay with how I acted…" He trailed off, not knowing how to continue or meet his eyes.
Anthony looked at him.
Ian glanced up and saw it.
The same look that swirled around Anthony, like an enigmatic aura with an allure that wouldn't let Ian's eyes pull away even if he wanted to.
"So you're saying I should ignore that you said you liked my eyes, then," he gravelly murmured, moving closer.
"N-no, I mean…" he trailed off.
"Then what...?"
Their faces were inches apart. Ian felt light-headed and unable to move as the deep pools of Anthony's eyes forcefully held him down against the door with their mesmerizing enticement.
Ian's heart was pounding like crazy and there was no hiding how flush his face had gotten at this point.
A tiny voice screamed at him to push Anthony away, to yell what the hell are you doing, but something inside him made him move closer, close enough to where his stealthily breathing lips felt the hot exhale of the man in front of him.
"A-Anthony," he breathed, barely an audible whisper.
"I think I…"
"Don't think."
Their lips grazed each other slightly, like bright crimson on a brush testing a new canvas. Ian's eyes closed as he allowed his lips to fall on his friend's with a mix of hesitation and callous naiveté. The feel of Anthony's lips against his was comforting, so soft and warm.
The kiss only lasted a few seconds, but it seemed to go on for ages. They pulled away and each studied the other's face.
"I… wanted to do that last night," Anthony admitted softly, with a trace of guilt. "I'm sorry…"
"I think… I did too," Ian truthfully confessed, more to himself than Anthony.
"Really?" Anthony looked back up at him.
Ian nodded and pulled him into another kiss, this time with more inwardness and passion, catching Anthony by surprise. Anthony began licking his bottom lip, asking for entrance and their tongues met with eager willfulness, the taste of blueberries lingering on Anthony's tongue. Ian ran a hand over Anthony's back and the other through his hair. Anthony moaned against his lips and pulled him even closer, their bodies pressed against the door. He broke away from the kiss panting with a dark, almost carnal, look in his eyes.
Ian had never seen Anthony like this. It was both terrifying and irresistible.
"Anthony…" Ian's sentence was cut off as Anthony started licking and nipping at the stubble on his neck before breathing hotly into his ear.
"God dammit Ian, why are you making me want you so fucking bad?" His tongue traced the outside of his ear and slid back to his neck, sucking until little red traces appeared on his skin. He desperately began moving his hands over his chest, drifting down until they slid up his shirt over his bare skin causing Ian to tremble with anticipation.
"Anthony," Ian whispered in a pleading voice, "Can you let me…" He had his hand over the doorknob and the taller boy nodded and allowed him to open the door to his bedroom. They fell back on the messy bed against the blankets and pillows and Anthony started to climb on top him, kissing him deeply. Somewhere along the line, Anthony had slipped his hands under Ian's shirt, removing it and placing soft pecks over his chest. Their intertwined legs moved against each other, and having Anthony pressed against Ian's torso, moving in small, rhythmic thrusts was driving Ian's mind into a wild frenzy.
He couldn't tell if it was the forbidden aspect of the situation that was making it more of a turn on, but then he couldn't remember ever being this passionate with any of his past girlfriends. There was just something about the look in his eyes that made him want Anthony. No, crave him, and only now he understood that.
Before he knew it, Anthony had his shirt off and started working his way down to the zipper of Ian's pants, stopping right above it to breathe hotly on him. He looked up at Ian, his chocolate brown eyes asking for permission to continue. Ian placed a hand over his Anthony's soft hair and stroked lightly, acknowledging his plea. Anthony unbuckled the belt and unbuttoned the top button, then with his teeth unzipped his pants and hurled them to the ground.
He stopped right above Ian's throbbing erection, held back by just a thin layer of fabric.
"I-uh…"
Ian looked back at him. "What's wrong?"
"I've never done this before…" he said with a nervous laugh. "Been with a guy, I mean."
"I haven't either," Ian said shakily, sensing the apprehension in his voice. "It's really… different, I know. I, um, think we're both kinda … learning how to handle this together…" Ian looked down. "But if you don't want to do this…"
"No! I do if you do!" Anthony quickly interjected. "This… is okay with you, right? I mean, I don't want it to be weird later…"
There was so much uncertanty in the air but eagerness to go on quickly began taking over.
"Anthony…" Ian went down to him and kissed him and pulled less than an inch away. "This is okay," he gently whispered. "A little... weird, but okay." Anthony smiled and returned back down to slide off Ian's boxers. He placed a hand over the partially-erect cock, causing Ian to gasp and started moving it up and down slowly at first, then picking up speed. Ian went from petting the top of his head to clutching Anthony's hair in a tight squeeze as he panted. Anthony without any warning teasingly licked the tip of his cock before taking in the whole thing, making Ian groam in pleasure.
"Anthony, I… oh fuck…" Ian gasped as the sensation coursed throughout his whole body. His tongue slid around the sides and top, while his hand caressed his balls. "Don't stop… fuck, I think… I'm gonna," Ian hurriedly breathed. He threw his head back and yelled his name out as the hot, milky liquid covered Anthony's bare chest and dripped back onto his own stomach. Anthony slid out his imprisoning pants as fast as he possibly could, covered his hand in the sticky substance and started pumping his own erection at a fast pace.
"Wait," Ian quickly pled. He reached over and placed his hand over Anthony's cock.
"I wanna do it," he whispered seductively. Anthony removed his hand, allowing his friend to get a slick grip of his yearning cock. They sat in front of each other, Ian's legs around Anthony as he began pleasuring him with fast strokes, his palm circling over the tip after every vertical stroke. Anthony couldn't handle it anymore and smashed his mouth against Ian's in a desperately heavy kiss. He stifled a moan against Ian's mouth and broke the kiss, causing Ian to whimper.
"Ian I-I'm cumming…" Anthony cried out, and came all over Ian's hand and in between their glistened bodies. Anthony collapsed on top of Ian causing him to fall back on the pillows, both were gasping with perspiration covering every part of their bodies. They stayed like that for a few more minutes waiting for their heart rates to calm down before kissing each other again softly and rolling off.
They lay together just listening to each other breath for a long time until Anthony finally spoke.
"Hey."
"Yeah?"
"..."
"Did you finish packing yet?"
"Yeah, I've been done for a while."
Anthony shot him a smirk.
"So were you actually gonna pack when you left the computer earlier?"
Ian looked over at him and grinned.
"I was done before that."
"You douchebag," Anthony teased, smiling back.
"I know, I know."
Anthony laughed. They stayed silent for a little while longer.
"Hey Anthony," Ian asked in a more serious tone.
"Hmm?"
Ian was a little hesitant. "Can we still be best friends after this?"
Anthony thought for a moment. "I think so. If anything, this makes our friendship… stronger, I guess."
"Heh. But best friends don't usually fuck each other," Ian laughed lightly.
"True," Anthony agreed. "But I think we're close enough to be able to go beyond the normalities of the average friendship like this, if that makes any sense."
"Yeah, I think I understand." He paused. "Does that make us… friends with benefits?" He winced slightly as the words left his mouth.
"Uh, well I really don't know…" Anthony trailed off.
They stayed quiet for a while longer.
"You wanna go finish the video," Anthony said. "After a shower, of course."
"Yeah, sure."
They looked at each other one last time before getting up and Ian laughed an infectious laugh, causing Anthony to as well.
"What?"
"Nothing, I guess I'm feelin' kinda firetruckin' giddy!" Ian giggled.
Anthony threw a pillow at his face.
"Ow, hey!" Ian cried out, "You bastard!" and threw the pillow back at him.
"Missed me!" he teased, running off.
"Hey, get back here!"