Fic: If Democracy Collapses Tomorrow, It’s All Darren’s Fault {RPF}
Title: If Democracy Collapses Tomorrow, It’s All Darren’s Fault
Pairing: Darren/Chris RPF
Rating: NC-17
Word Count: 5,025
Summary: Darren and Chris go vote together, and then go back to Darren’s place and get cleaned up and vote some more (what, I still find this joke funny, sorry). Banter and nakedness and not as cracky as it sounds, I swear.
Notes: So, my Blaine writing was broken and I needed to fix it for BlaineExchange, but the only other fic I read other than Klaine is CrissColfer RPF. Therefore, I wrote RPF (which, incidentally, did not fix my Blaine, but the two-point-five margaritas I had Friday night did). Don’t make me paranoid and don’t send this outside the fandom because in real life, I could care less who these two date (but they make for some great fic, which is totally made up, in case you didn’t get the memo). Originally started for the CrissColfer 1SM and you can read the PG-13 version there if you’re more into that (it’s the same thing as everything before the break here). Alright, I’m going back to my little corner of the internet to wear my perv BTW t-shirt proudly. Enjoy.
"I can't believe you've never voted before!" Darren bounces in his seat as he heads towards the library. They'd just finished a fifteen hour overnight shoot, and Chris should probably be more tired at six-fifty am, but he's not. Which is why he got talked into voting and breakfast before returning home. When Darren first asked, he almost wished he had carpooled with Ashley, but Darren's so damn excited about it.
"Yeah, well, I'm a young'un, remember? The first election I could vote in was when Glee was starting up and I didn't request an absentee ballot in time. You're just lucky we're in the same polling district or I wouldn't be voting in this one either." Chris looks out the window as they slow for traffic, always amazed at how many people are up and moving so early. "I'm surprised we are, our places aren't even that close and mine is way nicer than yours." He turns his head to smirk at Darren so he knows he's just teasing. As if they could ever have a serious moment anyways.
"Hey now, I'm living in a place now where all the appliances work. I've made it big, baby." He waves his hands as he speaks and Chris thinks about telling him to keep his eyes on the road and his hands on the wheel but as if Darren can read his mind, he grips the wheel and faces forward.
The sun is up in full force now, beating in through the window as opposed to it just rising when they left the lot. It's a little warm in Darren's car, but instead of asking him to adjust the air, he slips off his cardigan and tosses it in his bag, The white v-neck underneath is technically an undershirt, but it's just Darren, and last he checked the diner by his house was far from fancy. "You know you're not doing such a good job at this Rock the Vote thing? I'm going into this willfully unprepared. I don't even know what we're voting for. I don't go into things unprepared, D Criss."
"I'll have you know I have a sample ballot filled out in my back seat under my mail for you to look at, thank you very much." Chris turns in his seat and finds the folded papers under stacks of bills and advertisements, and turns back around to open them up. "I'm going to take a gander and say our political views are similar, so if you're not sure you can always go with what I picked."
"How do you know I'm not one of those gay Republicans, Darren?" Chris deadpans and he can see Darren start to panic a bit.
"Oh. Well, that's cool. Um. Maybe you should vote for the opposite of everyone I picked then because -"
"Darren, I'm kidding." Darren glances at him and laughs. "You really don't mind if I use a cheat sheet?"
"Nah, it's your first time! Your first time should be easy and fun so you come back a second time." What an interesting choice of words, Chris thinks, and he turns to Darren, who's shaking his head and muttering under his breath and loosening the collar on his button down. Chris just raises an eyebrow and turns his attention back to the sample ballot, trying not to think of that story Darren told that night at Naya's where he turned a blatant come on from an 'eighteen and legal' girl to a five minute speech about voting.
Thankfully, they're almost there, so the remaining silence isn't at all awkward. Darren parks in the back, under a large shade tree, instead of parking up front in the sun with everyone else. Chris doesn't think they'll be there long enough to warrant the need for shade, but he's not going to argue. "So, do they use those electronic forms here, or do I still have to be worried about that hanging chad nonsense?" Chris asks instead as they walk up to the library entrance.
Darren laughs again, kind of nervously, and replies, "Yeah, they use the electronic ones here, the old ones were kind of a bitch, you had to make sure your stylus punched the hole just right ..." He trails off as he drops his wallet and Chris isn't quite sure how Darren got from bouncy and excited to flustered, but there they are.
It's not that crowded. After looking through the sample ballot, Chris still couldn't tell anyone what he's voting for, but he and Darren stand in the A-C line to get checked in. Darren lets him go first and when the little old volunteer gives him his ballot, he turns to Darren and whispers, "Wish me luck!"
He shamelessly copies all of Darren's choices from the sample ballot, and when he turns to back out of the tiny polling booth, Darren is behind him, glancing up to meet his eye and looking like he was caught doing something he wasn't supposed to be. They wordlessly switch places and Chris goes in to turn in his ballot, tucking the sample one under his arm and walking out into the hall to wait for Darren and affix his 'Just Voted!' sticker to his shirt, noticing it might be a little tighter and a little more transparent than he remembered.
Darren appears soon after, his sticker attached at the corner to his finger where the volunteer stuck it, looking like he's not sure what to do with it. "Oh, here," Chris says, taking the sticker and pressing it over Darren's chest, his fingers lingering a little too long, causing Darren to breathe in sharply. He pulls his hand back quickly and turns on his heel, walking to the car and hoping Darren is following him.
By the time he's almost to the car, Darren catches up, seemingly back to normal. "So, all in all? Not painful, sorta fun, you'll come back for more?"
Chris turns and braces himself on the passenger side door. "You've been talking about something other than voting for the last twenty minutes, haven't you?" Damn, he hadn't meant for his voice to sound that broken, but it causes Darren to react, grabbing his hips and pulling him close.
"Oh god, yes," Darren replies, practically growling and nuzzling into his neck. "I have no idea who or what I just voted for. If democracy collapses tomorrow, it'll be all my fault."
Chris is about to joke back, but his hands are on Darren's arms, and Darren is pulling him closer, leaning in to kiss him hot and wet and a little bit dirty, not at all the way Blaine kisses Kurt, as if he needed Chris to know this was Darren kissing him. It feels amazing, and Chris is so glad he didn't carpool with Ashley, but as secluded as they are in the back under the shade tree, this is still a library, and this could get them in so much trouble. "Darren - we can't - here," Chris blurts out, his voice broken again, and he's not quite sure how Darren can do that to him, but he does, and then they're both in the car catching their breath.
"Chris, I'm sor-" Darren starts, but Chris cuts him off.
"Darren, just drive." Darren looks at him, soft and confused, but starts the car and pulls out onto the road.
"Where am I going?" he finally asks, Chris still breathing heavy.
"Your place is closer than mine."
---
Darren glances over at Chris, who's smiling a little, and biting his lip, and staring out the window. His hair is still sticking straight up from all of the hairspray the makeup team used, and Darren wants to run his hands through it like crazy, but he'd also like to make it to his house without killing them, so he tries to focus on driving. It's just that Chris's shirt is kind of wrinkled now from where Darren twisted his hands in it and it's riding up on the side and pulling tighter across his chest and damnit, why does he live so far away from the library?
"You keep looking at me," Chris says, breaking the silence. The way he says it, kind of curious, makes Darren want to tell him everything, that he's always thought Chris was an attractive guy, but you know, boundaries, and the whole time they practiced that kissing scene, he didn't allow himself to leave Blaine's headspace, because that would have meant so much trouble. That when he saw the stupid Born This Way clip days later on his laptop, he'd never been so disappointed about not being included in a scene, because Chris' hair was mussed and his shirt was tight like today, proclaiming he liked boys, and wasn't that the point? Because Darren doesn't like boys, he likes girls, but he's never wanted someone as bad as he wants Chris in his life and he has no clue what he's doing.
"I do," is what manages to slip out, followed by, "I have no clue what I'm doing." Which doesn't make much sense without the whole preamble, but Chris just laughs loudly at him.
"Like I do?" he responds, and touché.
He pulls onto his street and they must have missed the work and school rush, because it's dead, and Darren's never been so thankful. Though, he's not entirely thankful for the long walk from his carport to the front door at the moment. When he picked the place, he thought the sunken stone paved carport was charming, and so what if he had to walk up a hill to his front door because the previous owners hadn’t put in a downstairs door? It would be easy enough to put in later, he was assured, and it’s not like he’s ever low on energy. Halfway there, Darren realizes it would have been much more enjoyable to follow Chris up the hill. Payback from when he stared at Chris' ass in the voting booth, he guesses.
Flustered at the idea of Chris probably staring at his ass this whole time, he drops his keys outside the door. Both of them bend down to pick them up and almost bang heads in the process. Chris gets to them first, and hands them to Darren. "I've never seen you like this."
"I've never felt like this," Darren replies, slipping the key in the lock and opening the door. He holds the door open for Chris and realizes that's not at all what he wants to convey. "Actually, that's not very true at all. I feel like this all the time, there's just this nagging little creature in the back of my head yelling at me about professionalism. It must have crawled out my ear and scampered away at some point. That part is new."
Darren turns to face him. Chris tilts his head and opens his mouth like he's about to say something, but shuts it instead. "I'm sorry, did I just freak you out?"
Chris shakes his head slowly. "No, I'm just trying to wrap my mind around the fact that you feel this way all the time." Darren looks at him and realizes that he’s replaying previous interactions between them in his head, trying to figure out how long all of this has really been going on. Darren just lets him, because really, who could blame him.
Finally, Chris breaks the silence with, “Your piano came,” and he realizes Chris hasn’t been back here since the day Darren closed on the house, the day Chris and half the cast insisted on coming by with pizza and wine even though there was nothing in the house but those god-awful curtains and the giant potted tree by the front door, remnants the previous owners left behind. Lea had asked him if he’d ordered any furniture, and he replied that he hadn’t, but he’d ordered a piano. Everyone laughed, good-naturedly with Darren laughing along, but he’d met Chris’s eyes and knew that he understood.
“I have furniture now too,” Darren says, gesturing to the living room where there’s an actual couch, one that doesn’t fold out into a bed. “We could sit and talk. Or not talk. Or. Just.” Darren sighs. “I’m sorry. My words are failing me today.”
“That’s the second most unlikely thing that I thought would ever come out of your mouth.” From the look Chris gives him, Darren doesn’t have to guess at the first. Instead of walking to the couch, Chris sits down on the piano bench and looks at Darren expectantly. Darren slides in next to him and Chris starts playing, something Darren doesn’t recognize, something short and light. He watches Chris’s hands fly over the keys and when he stops, asks him what it was.
“It was the first full song my piano teacher taught me. I can’t even remember the title, something about a mouse or a birch tree, or whatever they make up for kids to learn. Anyways, whenever I sit down to a new piano, it’s the first thing I play, kind of for good luck. Now your piano has been christened by me,’ Chris says, looking at Darren and laughing a little. “I’m sorry, saying that out loud sounds really stupid.”
“Dude, you could recite the entire Twilight series from memory and not sound as stupid as I sound today,” Darren jokes, nudging Chris with his shoulder. “I’ll have you know my piano is insanely proud to be christened by you. I think it likes you more than me.”
Chris sighs and nods approvingly. “I understand completely, it must be tough living with you and getting used all the time. What do you play on it, actual music? The poor thing probably thought it was just going to sit in your foyer and look pretty, not get played.”
Chris turns and smiles at Darren, waiting for Darren to continue their banter, but Darren just stares at him silently and returns the smile. Chris looks away and self-consciously runs a hand through his hair. "You do have running water, right? I know you said the appliances work, but still. If we're going to hang out or whatever -" he pauses and flutters a hand and he's blushing, and that's starting to get to Darren, "- I might need to borrow your shower. My hair is driving me insane."
Darren twists on the piano stool to face Chris. "It's driving me insane too," he says, voice low, hand reaching up to cup Chris's face.
"Oh really?" Chris replies, his voice wavering a little. "Because I was just sitting here waiting for you to make a Mean Girls joke."
"If I run my fingers through it will I learn all your secrets?" His hand snakes around to the back of Chris's head, and he can see why it's driving him insane. With Chris in Kurt hair and Darren in Blaine hair, they probably have enough product to tame the population of Lima.
"I'm pretty sure that's not how it works," Chris says, closing his eyes and leaning into Darren's hand and looking a bit confused. "Not that it matters, I'd tell you anyways."
That's all the invitation Darren needs before leaning in and kissing Chris again. Chris grabs the front of his shirt and pulls him closer, which angles Darren's head differently and allows Chris to deepen the kiss. Chris is practically in his lap on the piano bench which is way too small for their shenanigans and he attempts to run his fingers through Darren's own hair helmet.
"You might need a shower too," Chris whispers, breathy in Darren's ear and Darren holds back a groan while Chris takes the opportunity to tease his earlobe with his tongue.
"Is that an invitation?" Darren asks, a little belatedly, because Chris is working his way down Darren's neck with his mouth, and it's fairly distracting, to put it mildly.
Chris just hums an affirmation and keeps going, lingering a bit just under his collarbone, which will surely leave a mark, but Darren can’t seem to worry about that because all he can think about is moving somewhere else where they have more stability so he can return the favor. He tries to shift them, which offsets the balance and almost sends both of them toppling to the hardwood floor.
“I think the piano’s had enough of us,” Darren says, grabbing onto Chris’s arm so he doesn’t fall.
“You should show me where your shower is. I’m pretty sure that wasn’t part of the original tour.” Chris braces himself on Darren’s knees and gets up off the bench.
“No, probably not.” He stares at Chris for a moment, trying to figure out how to tell Chris he didn’t just trip and knock his head and fall into a lust filled coma, that he likes Chris as a person, which Chris probably already knows but -
“Darren,” Chris says surely, entirely more sure than Darren feels. “It’s okay. I get you. I’m pretty sure we’re on the same page here.” Chris runs his thumb over Darren’s cheek, stubble already forming since he hasn’t shaved since yesterday, and yeah. Yeah, okay, fair enough. Darren gets up and kisses Chris, just once, softer and slower than earlier, before leading him up the stairs to his bathroom.
Darren grabs some towels from the linen closet before turning on the shower. The house has old plumbing and it takes a few minutes for the water to warm up, but on the upside, the water stays warm practically forever. Darren turns to joke with Chris about it, but Chris doesn’t let him, pulling him in by his shirt again for another kiss before starting to unbutton it. Darren runs his hands under Chris’s tee and pulls it off once Chris is done with his unbuttoning. He shrugs his own shirt to the floor and presses Chris up against the wall, kissing at his chest the way he had wanted to downstairs.
“Darren,” Chris breathes as Darren’s mouth finds a particularly sensitive spot on his neck, “I promise, you can do whatever you want to me, just let me wash my hair.”
Darren grins against his skin. “So demanding,” he murmurs, fumbling with the button on Chris’s jeans before pushing them down his hips. Darren backs up so Chris can step out of the jeans, and Chris uses that opportunity to walk over and check the water temperature. It must be warm enough, because Chris quickly slips out of his boxer briefs and jumps in, Darren not getting more than a glimpse before he does. Darren strips out of his own jeans and boxers as fast as he can before following.
Chris is already working shampoo into his hair when Darren enters the shower, in addition to being naked and hard, which kind of blows Darren’s mind. Chris uses an elbow to nudge Darren under the spray of the shower head. “You should wash your hair too.”
"Yes, sir," Darren says with a wink before wetting his hair. "You're kind of bossy when you're naked."
"Judging from your reactions, I wouldn't be all that surprised if you liked it," Chris replies with a smirk, making them switch places so he can wash the shampoo out of his hair and apply conditioner. Darren does like it - it's unexpected, sort of - but not really.
"What if I said I did?" Darren asks, grabbing at Chris's hips, his hands still soapy from the shampoo.
Chris just bats at Darren's hands and switches them again. "Conditioner first."
Darren hastily washes out the shampoo and starts to work the conditioner in. "I'm supposed to leave it in for three minutes though, are you really going to make wait three more minutes?"
Darren pouts a little and Chris traces a finger around the spot on Darren's chest where he was sucking before, already turning red and purple. Darren's breath hitches and Chris says quietly, "I'd never done that before. I'm not as clueless as I tend to let on - but still, that seems silly, right? Such a simple thing. I wasn't really thinking though, I hope you don't mind."
Darren inches towards Chris, out of the spray so his conditioner can set. "I so do not mind," Darren replies, a little too enthusiastically, and Chris laughs.
"So, three minutes, huh? I guess I have some time to do whatever I want to you." Chris doesn't waste any time, backing Darren up against the tile and kissing him.
Their hips slot together just right and they still for a moment, Chris breathing in sharply and Darren letting a low moan escape his lips. The water and their damp skin is providing just the right amount of friction, and Darren can't help himself. "Fuck, Chris."
Chris shudders at his words and Darren files that away for later. Chris sticks his hand in the spray of the water to wet it and reaches between them, biting his lip before he grips Darren's cock, his eyes wide and staring straight at Darren when he does it. Even though he starts out slow, Darren's been hard since they got to the library and he knows he won't last long.
"Seriously, fuck, Chris," he repeats before wrapping his hand around the back of Chris's neck and puling him in for a kiss, sloppy and open mouthed. Chris's hair is slick under Darren's fingers and Chris's cock is hard against his thigh and Chris's fist is warm and wet, just like his mouth, which Darren is making broken, muffled noises against. Darren breaks away long enough to mumble, "God, Chris, just like that, it feels amazing. You're amazing."
"Yeah?" Chris asks, soft and breathy in Darren's ear, and damn, Chris is a quick learner. He twists his hand right under the head of Darren's cock, and whispers again, "Tell me more."
Darren stops himself from saying fuck, Chris a third time, but just barely, because Chris whispering in his ear is turning him on way more than it should. So he tells Chris exactly that, and Chris just chuckles softly and nips at his earlobe before saying, "I'll have to keep that in mind for next time," and twisting his hand again. That's what finally does it, as if his subconscious stops holding out now that there's promise of a next time. Darren comes hard and fast over Chris's hand, and Chris strokes him through it, backing off when his hips pull back from the overstimulation.
Chris kisses him once hard on the mouth before pushing himself off the wall (and Darren) and rinsing his hand in the steady stream of water still coming from the shower head. "I think that took longer than three minutes. I hope your hair enjoyed the deep moisture treatment."
"Not much longer, and I'm certain all of me enjoyed it," Darren says, still trying to catch his breath, noticing Chris is just watching him come down patiently, even though he's still hard as ever, and damn, Darren can't wait to take care of that. "How are you still so calm?"
"I'm just used to having an insane amount of self control," Chris replies brokenly. "It's waning fast, so rinse that conditioner out and get back here."
"As you can see, I have very little self control," Darren says, stepping into the water, amazed that the it's still warm.
"Thank god for that," Chris says under his breath, and Darren isn't quite sure he washed all of the conditioner out, but he doesn't really care and presses Chris backwards this time.
Darren runs his hands down Chris's sides and up his chest, roaming everywhere now that Chris has invited him to touch. Chris wasn't kidding about his self control waning, because it's not long before Chris says pleadingly, "Darren, please."
Darren drops to his knees then, shushing Chris's protests about the hard tile floor. He kisses down Chris's stomach to his hipbones, and kisses a mark just above his left one, figuring it's inconspicuous enough to not be found by the wardrobe department (because seriously, some of the shirts they've been putting Chris in since Kurt returned to McKinley are showing a lot more skin than usual). Chris's cock starts twitching involuntarily and Darren figures he's been enough of a tease, and sinks his mouth over the head of it while holding Chris's hips still.
"Holy shit, Darren," Chris exclaims, and Darren looks up through his eyelashes to see Chris watching him. Chris reaches behind him on the wall for something to hold onto, but there's nothing but tile, so Darren reaches up to take it with his free hand and threads their fingers together, squeezing a little. Darren sinks lower, swirling his tongue, and Chris is just a constant stream of gasps and moans.
Chris lets go of Darren's hand and curls it in his hair, still slippery from the water and conditioner remnants. He doesn't push or pull, just rests it there, and Darren can feel his cock trying to get hard again just from the random touch. Darren moves his free hand to Chris's lower back, just before the swell of his ass starts, and pulls Chris towards him slightly in time with his bobbing. Chris groans loudly at the movement and tugs on Darren's hair a little. "Darren - c'mere - I'm -" Chris tries to say, and Darren just pulls him closer, his lips and tongue working faster, and he looks up just as Chris starts to come, causing him to cough a little, but he sees Chris's orgasm face so it was definitely worth it.
"Oh, fuck, Darren," Chris says when he finally makes his way back up, kissing Chris hard, Chris gasping when he tastes himself. Darren's doesn't think he's ever heard Chris say fuck before but it'll be his goal to make it happen as much as possible now.
Chris glances at him, totally blissed out and Darren can't help but smile that he's to thank for that. "I'm fairly certain my self control is now shot."
Darren leans in and kisses the corner of Chris's mouth. "I'm sorry for being a horrible influence. Except, not really sorry."
They both quickly shower, passing the bar of soap between them before drying off and collapsing on Darren's bed, exhausted. Chris meets Darren's eye at one point and has a look on his face that says he doesn't quite believe what just happened. "Come here," Darren says lazily, pulling Chris close and nuzzling into his chest. They lay there together silently, Darren even dozing at some point, only snapping out of it when Chris's stomach growls loudly.
Darren laughs into Chris's chest. "I guess I still owe you breakfast, huh?"
"Good thing the diner serves breakfast all day," Chris teases, even though it isn't all that late yet.
They move slowly, collecting their clothes and putting them back on. "I don't know if I can in good conscience let you outside in that shirt again. I won't be held responsible for my actions if I do."
"So shirtless is a better option then? I know the diner is pretty liberal with their rules, but they might draw the line there."
"Dude, I have like, nine million tee shirts, most of them not see through. You can borrow one of them." Darren grins and walks over to Chris, picking up the white v-neck before he can get to it.
"I think you just want to see me in your clothes," Chris replies.
"Maybe," Darren says, pulling Chris in at the waist for a quick kiss. "It's a little of both, actually. Depending on what you choose, I might be less responsible for my actions than if you just wore your shirt."
Chris places his hand on Darren's chest, fingers splayed. "I trust you to pick a good one then."
---
Chris has the news on, but isn't paying attention. He's laying on his couch, still in his borrowed Darren tee. Ashely has finally stopped the barrage of texts, Chris realizing at the diner that he'd ignored her all morning. The diner was surprisingly normal, despite Darren randomly staring at Chris for wearing one of his Freelance Whales tees under his cardigan. Chris would laugh and blush, but other than that, it was as nothing had changed between them, though everything had changed between them.
He'd mentioned Ashley's unanswered texts (which continued into the morning before she finally said she was taking a nap and demanded an update upon her awakening), and Darren asked if he was going to tell her. Chris had asked if he cared and Darren just shrugged and said, "I trust your judgement. I don't care if you tell no one or everyone. Well, not like everyone everyone, because Ryan might kill us, but you know."
Darren had dropped Chris off at his place afterwards, and he'd texted Ashely before taking his own nap and waking up in the afternoon, groggy from his messed up schedule. They had an early call tomorrow though, so he'd stayed up so he could attempt to get decent sleep that night. He should probably figure out dinner too.
His phone buzzes with a new text and he's sure it's Ashley with a new question to ask about his morning, but it's Darren.
I've decided I'm only voting with you from now on ;) - DC
Chris just grins stupidly and texts back They just said on the news that the polls don't close until seven in case you wanted to get some more voting in today.
The reply comes only a minute later - be there in twenty.
Pairing: Darren/Chris RPF
Rating: NC-17
Word Count: 5,025
Summary: Darren and Chris go vote together, and then go back to Darren’s place and get cleaned up and vote some more (what, I still find this joke funny, sorry). Banter and nakedness and not as cracky as it sounds, I swear.
Notes: So, my Blaine writing was broken and I needed to fix it for BlaineExchange, but the only other fic I read other than Klaine is CrissColfer RPF. Therefore, I wrote RPF (which, incidentally, did not fix my Blaine, but the two-point-five margaritas I had Friday night did). Don’t make me paranoid and don’t send this outside the fandom because in real life, I could care less who these two date (but they make for some great fic, which is totally made up, in case you didn’t get the memo). Originally started for the CrissColfer 1SM and you can read the PG-13 version there if you’re more into that (it’s the same thing as everything before the break here). Alright, I’m going back to my little corner of the internet to wear my perv BTW t-shirt proudly. Enjoy.
"I can't believe you've never voted before!" Darren bounces in his seat as he heads towards the library. They'd just finished a fifteen hour overnight shoot, and Chris should probably be more tired at six-fifty am, but he's not. Which is why he got talked into voting and breakfast before returning home. When Darren first asked, he almost wished he had carpooled with Ashley, but Darren's so damn excited about it.
"Yeah, well, I'm a young'un, remember? The first election I could vote in was when Glee was starting up and I didn't request an absentee ballot in time. You're just lucky we're in the same polling district or I wouldn't be voting in this one either." Chris looks out the window as they slow for traffic, always amazed at how many people are up and moving so early. "I'm surprised we are, our places aren't even that close and mine is way nicer than yours." He turns his head to smirk at Darren so he knows he's just teasing. As if they could ever have a serious moment anyways.
"Hey now, I'm living in a place now where all the appliances work. I've made it big, baby." He waves his hands as he speaks and Chris thinks about telling him to keep his eyes on the road and his hands on the wheel but as if Darren can read his mind, he grips the wheel and faces forward.
The sun is up in full force now, beating in through the window as opposed to it just rising when they left the lot. It's a little warm in Darren's car, but instead of asking him to adjust the air, he slips off his cardigan and tosses it in his bag, The white v-neck underneath is technically an undershirt, but it's just Darren, and last he checked the diner by his house was far from fancy. "You know you're not doing such a good job at this Rock the Vote thing? I'm going into this willfully unprepared. I don't even know what we're voting for. I don't go into things unprepared, D Criss."
"I'll have you know I have a sample ballot filled out in my back seat under my mail for you to look at, thank you very much." Chris turns in his seat and finds the folded papers under stacks of bills and advertisements, and turns back around to open them up. "I'm going to take a gander and say our political views are similar, so if you're not sure you can always go with what I picked."
"How do you know I'm not one of those gay Republicans, Darren?" Chris deadpans and he can see Darren start to panic a bit.
"Oh. Well, that's cool. Um. Maybe you should vote for the opposite of everyone I picked then because -"
"Darren, I'm kidding." Darren glances at him and laughs. "You really don't mind if I use a cheat sheet?"
"Nah, it's your first time! Your first time should be easy and fun so you come back a second time." What an interesting choice of words, Chris thinks, and he turns to Darren, who's shaking his head and muttering under his breath and loosening the collar on his button down. Chris just raises an eyebrow and turns his attention back to the sample ballot, trying not to think of that story Darren told that night at Naya's where he turned a blatant come on from an 'eighteen and legal' girl to a five minute speech about voting.
Thankfully, they're almost there, so the remaining silence isn't at all awkward. Darren parks in the back, under a large shade tree, instead of parking up front in the sun with everyone else. Chris doesn't think they'll be there long enough to warrant the need for shade, but he's not going to argue. "So, do they use those electronic forms here, or do I still have to be worried about that hanging chad nonsense?" Chris asks instead as they walk up to the library entrance.
Darren laughs again, kind of nervously, and replies, "Yeah, they use the electronic ones here, the old ones were kind of a bitch, you had to make sure your stylus punched the hole just right ..." He trails off as he drops his wallet and Chris isn't quite sure how Darren got from bouncy and excited to flustered, but there they are.
It's not that crowded. After looking through the sample ballot, Chris still couldn't tell anyone what he's voting for, but he and Darren stand in the A-C line to get checked in. Darren lets him go first and when the little old volunteer gives him his ballot, he turns to Darren and whispers, "Wish me luck!"
He shamelessly copies all of Darren's choices from the sample ballot, and when he turns to back out of the tiny polling booth, Darren is behind him, glancing up to meet his eye and looking like he was caught doing something he wasn't supposed to be. They wordlessly switch places and Chris goes in to turn in his ballot, tucking the sample one under his arm and walking out into the hall to wait for Darren and affix his 'Just Voted!' sticker to his shirt, noticing it might be a little tighter and a little more transparent than he remembered.
Darren appears soon after, his sticker attached at the corner to his finger where the volunteer stuck it, looking like he's not sure what to do with it. "Oh, here," Chris says, taking the sticker and pressing it over Darren's chest, his fingers lingering a little too long, causing Darren to breathe in sharply. He pulls his hand back quickly and turns on his heel, walking to the car and hoping Darren is following him.
By the time he's almost to the car, Darren catches up, seemingly back to normal. "So, all in all? Not painful, sorta fun, you'll come back for more?"
Chris turns and braces himself on the passenger side door. "You've been talking about something other than voting for the last twenty minutes, haven't you?" Damn, he hadn't meant for his voice to sound that broken, but it causes Darren to react, grabbing his hips and pulling him close.
"Oh god, yes," Darren replies, practically growling and nuzzling into his neck. "I have no idea who or what I just voted for. If democracy collapses tomorrow, it'll be all my fault."
Chris is about to joke back, but his hands are on Darren's arms, and Darren is pulling him closer, leaning in to kiss him hot and wet and a little bit dirty, not at all the way Blaine kisses Kurt, as if he needed Chris to know this was Darren kissing him. It feels amazing, and Chris is so glad he didn't carpool with Ashley, but as secluded as they are in the back under the shade tree, this is still a library, and this could get them in so much trouble. "Darren - we can't - here," Chris blurts out, his voice broken again, and he's not quite sure how Darren can do that to him, but he does, and then they're both in the car catching their breath.
"Chris, I'm sor-" Darren starts, but Chris cuts him off.
"Darren, just drive." Darren looks at him, soft and confused, but starts the car and pulls out onto the road.
"Where am I going?" he finally asks, Chris still breathing heavy.
"Your place is closer than mine."
---
Darren glances over at Chris, who's smiling a little, and biting his lip, and staring out the window. His hair is still sticking straight up from all of the hairspray the makeup team used, and Darren wants to run his hands through it like crazy, but he'd also like to make it to his house without killing them, so he tries to focus on driving. It's just that Chris's shirt is kind of wrinkled now from where Darren twisted his hands in it and it's riding up on the side and pulling tighter across his chest and damnit, why does he live so far away from the library?
"You keep looking at me," Chris says, breaking the silence. The way he says it, kind of curious, makes Darren want to tell him everything, that he's always thought Chris was an attractive guy, but you know, boundaries, and the whole time they practiced that kissing scene, he didn't allow himself to leave Blaine's headspace, because that would have meant so much trouble. That when he saw the stupid Born This Way clip days later on his laptop, he'd never been so disappointed about not being included in a scene, because Chris' hair was mussed and his shirt was tight like today, proclaiming he liked boys, and wasn't that the point? Because Darren doesn't like boys, he likes girls, but he's never wanted someone as bad as he wants Chris in his life and he has no clue what he's doing.
"I do," is what manages to slip out, followed by, "I have no clue what I'm doing." Which doesn't make much sense without the whole preamble, but Chris just laughs loudly at him.
"Like I do?" he responds, and touché.
He pulls onto his street and they must have missed the work and school rush, because it's dead, and Darren's never been so thankful. Though, he's not entirely thankful for the long walk from his carport to the front door at the moment. When he picked the place, he thought the sunken stone paved carport was charming, and so what if he had to walk up a hill to his front door because the previous owners hadn’t put in a downstairs door? It would be easy enough to put in later, he was assured, and it’s not like he’s ever low on energy. Halfway there, Darren realizes it would have been much more enjoyable to follow Chris up the hill. Payback from when he stared at Chris' ass in the voting booth, he guesses.
Flustered at the idea of Chris probably staring at his ass this whole time, he drops his keys outside the door. Both of them bend down to pick them up and almost bang heads in the process. Chris gets to them first, and hands them to Darren. "I've never seen you like this."
"I've never felt like this," Darren replies, slipping the key in the lock and opening the door. He holds the door open for Chris and realizes that's not at all what he wants to convey. "Actually, that's not very true at all. I feel like this all the time, there's just this nagging little creature in the back of my head yelling at me about professionalism. It must have crawled out my ear and scampered away at some point. That part is new."
Darren turns to face him. Chris tilts his head and opens his mouth like he's about to say something, but shuts it instead. "I'm sorry, did I just freak you out?"
Chris shakes his head slowly. "No, I'm just trying to wrap my mind around the fact that you feel this way all the time." Darren looks at him and realizes that he’s replaying previous interactions between them in his head, trying to figure out how long all of this has really been going on. Darren just lets him, because really, who could blame him.
Finally, Chris breaks the silence with, “Your piano came,” and he realizes Chris hasn’t been back here since the day Darren closed on the house, the day Chris and half the cast insisted on coming by with pizza and wine even though there was nothing in the house but those god-awful curtains and the giant potted tree by the front door, remnants the previous owners left behind. Lea had asked him if he’d ordered any furniture, and he replied that he hadn’t, but he’d ordered a piano. Everyone laughed, good-naturedly with Darren laughing along, but he’d met Chris’s eyes and knew that he understood.
“I have furniture now too,” Darren says, gesturing to the living room where there’s an actual couch, one that doesn’t fold out into a bed. “We could sit and talk. Or not talk. Or. Just.” Darren sighs. “I’m sorry. My words are failing me today.”
“That’s the second most unlikely thing that I thought would ever come out of your mouth.” From the look Chris gives him, Darren doesn’t have to guess at the first. Instead of walking to the couch, Chris sits down on the piano bench and looks at Darren expectantly. Darren slides in next to him and Chris starts playing, something Darren doesn’t recognize, something short and light. He watches Chris’s hands fly over the keys and when he stops, asks him what it was.
“It was the first full song my piano teacher taught me. I can’t even remember the title, something about a mouse or a birch tree, or whatever they make up for kids to learn. Anyways, whenever I sit down to a new piano, it’s the first thing I play, kind of for good luck. Now your piano has been christened by me,’ Chris says, looking at Darren and laughing a little. “I’m sorry, saying that out loud sounds really stupid.”
“Dude, you could recite the entire Twilight series from memory and not sound as stupid as I sound today,” Darren jokes, nudging Chris with his shoulder. “I’ll have you know my piano is insanely proud to be christened by you. I think it likes you more than me.”
Chris sighs and nods approvingly. “I understand completely, it must be tough living with you and getting used all the time. What do you play on it, actual music? The poor thing probably thought it was just going to sit in your foyer and look pretty, not get played.”
Chris turns and smiles at Darren, waiting for Darren to continue their banter, but Darren just stares at him silently and returns the smile. Chris looks away and self-consciously runs a hand through his hair. "You do have running water, right? I know you said the appliances work, but still. If we're going to hang out or whatever -" he pauses and flutters a hand and he's blushing, and that's starting to get to Darren, "- I might need to borrow your shower. My hair is driving me insane."
Darren twists on the piano stool to face Chris. "It's driving me insane too," he says, voice low, hand reaching up to cup Chris's face.
"Oh really?" Chris replies, his voice wavering a little. "Because I was just sitting here waiting for you to make a Mean Girls joke."
"If I run my fingers through it will I learn all your secrets?" His hand snakes around to the back of Chris's head, and he can see why it's driving him insane. With Chris in Kurt hair and Darren in Blaine hair, they probably have enough product to tame the population of Lima.
"I'm pretty sure that's not how it works," Chris says, closing his eyes and leaning into Darren's hand and looking a bit confused. "Not that it matters, I'd tell you anyways."
That's all the invitation Darren needs before leaning in and kissing Chris again. Chris grabs the front of his shirt and pulls him closer, which angles Darren's head differently and allows Chris to deepen the kiss. Chris is practically in his lap on the piano bench which is way too small for their shenanigans and he attempts to run his fingers through Darren's own hair helmet.
"You might need a shower too," Chris whispers, breathy in Darren's ear and Darren holds back a groan while Chris takes the opportunity to tease his earlobe with his tongue.
"Is that an invitation?" Darren asks, a little belatedly, because Chris is working his way down Darren's neck with his mouth, and it's fairly distracting, to put it mildly.
Chris just hums an affirmation and keeps going, lingering a bit just under his collarbone, which will surely leave a mark, but Darren can’t seem to worry about that because all he can think about is moving somewhere else where they have more stability so he can return the favor. He tries to shift them, which offsets the balance and almost sends both of them toppling to the hardwood floor.
“I think the piano’s had enough of us,” Darren says, grabbing onto Chris’s arm so he doesn’t fall.
“You should show me where your shower is. I’m pretty sure that wasn’t part of the original tour.” Chris braces himself on Darren’s knees and gets up off the bench.
“No, probably not.” He stares at Chris for a moment, trying to figure out how to tell Chris he didn’t just trip and knock his head and fall into a lust filled coma, that he likes Chris as a person, which Chris probably already knows but -
“Darren,” Chris says surely, entirely more sure than Darren feels. “It’s okay. I get you. I’m pretty sure we’re on the same page here.” Chris runs his thumb over Darren’s cheek, stubble already forming since he hasn’t shaved since yesterday, and yeah. Yeah, okay, fair enough. Darren gets up and kisses Chris, just once, softer and slower than earlier, before leading him up the stairs to his bathroom.
Darren grabs some towels from the linen closet before turning on the shower. The house has old plumbing and it takes a few minutes for the water to warm up, but on the upside, the water stays warm practically forever. Darren turns to joke with Chris about it, but Chris doesn’t let him, pulling him in by his shirt again for another kiss before starting to unbutton it. Darren runs his hands under Chris’s tee and pulls it off once Chris is done with his unbuttoning. He shrugs his own shirt to the floor and presses Chris up against the wall, kissing at his chest the way he had wanted to downstairs.
“Darren,” Chris breathes as Darren’s mouth finds a particularly sensitive spot on his neck, “I promise, you can do whatever you want to me, just let me wash my hair.”
Darren grins against his skin. “So demanding,” he murmurs, fumbling with the button on Chris’s jeans before pushing them down his hips. Darren backs up so Chris can step out of the jeans, and Chris uses that opportunity to walk over and check the water temperature. It must be warm enough, because Chris quickly slips out of his boxer briefs and jumps in, Darren not getting more than a glimpse before he does. Darren strips out of his own jeans and boxers as fast as he can before following.
Chris is already working shampoo into his hair when Darren enters the shower, in addition to being naked and hard, which kind of blows Darren’s mind. Chris uses an elbow to nudge Darren under the spray of the shower head. “You should wash your hair too.”
"Yes, sir," Darren says with a wink before wetting his hair. "You're kind of bossy when you're naked."
"Judging from your reactions, I wouldn't be all that surprised if you liked it," Chris replies with a smirk, making them switch places so he can wash the shampoo out of his hair and apply conditioner. Darren does like it - it's unexpected, sort of - but not really.
"What if I said I did?" Darren asks, grabbing at Chris's hips, his hands still soapy from the shampoo.
Chris just bats at Darren's hands and switches them again. "Conditioner first."
Darren hastily washes out the shampoo and starts to work the conditioner in. "I'm supposed to leave it in for three minutes though, are you really going to make wait three more minutes?"
Darren pouts a little and Chris traces a finger around the spot on Darren's chest where he was sucking before, already turning red and purple. Darren's breath hitches and Chris says quietly, "I'd never done that before. I'm not as clueless as I tend to let on - but still, that seems silly, right? Such a simple thing. I wasn't really thinking though, I hope you don't mind."
Darren inches towards Chris, out of the spray so his conditioner can set. "I so do not mind," Darren replies, a little too enthusiastically, and Chris laughs.
"So, three minutes, huh? I guess I have some time to do whatever I want to you." Chris doesn't waste any time, backing Darren up against the tile and kissing him.
Their hips slot together just right and they still for a moment, Chris breathing in sharply and Darren letting a low moan escape his lips. The water and their damp skin is providing just the right amount of friction, and Darren can't help himself. "Fuck, Chris."
Chris shudders at his words and Darren files that away for later. Chris sticks his hand in the spray of the water to wet it and reaches between them, biting his lip before he grips Darren's cock, his eyes wide and staring straight at Darren when he does it. Even though he starts out slow, Darren's been hard since they got to the library and he knows he won't last long.
"Seriously, fuck, Chris," he repeats before wrapping his hand around the back of Chris's neck and puling him in for a kiss, sloppy and open mouthed. Chris's hair is slick under Darren's fingers and Chris's cock is hard against his thigh and Chris's fist is warm and wet, just like his mouth, which Darren is making broken, muffled noises against. Darren breaks away long enough to mumble, "God, Chris, just like that, it feels amazing. You're amazing."
"Yeah?" Chris asks, soft and breathy in Darren's ear, and damn, Chris is a quick learner. He twists his hand right under the head of Darren's cock, and whispers again, "Tell me more."
Darren stops himself from saying fuck, Chris a third time, but just barely, because Chris whispering in his ear is turning him on way more than it should. So he tells Chris exactly that, and Chris just chuckles softly and nips at his earlobe before saying, "I'll have to keep that in mind for next time," and twisting his hand again. That's what finally does it, as if his subconscious stops holding out now that there's promise of a next time. Darren comes hard and fast over Chris's hand, and Chris strokes him through it, backing off when his hips pull back from the overstimulation.
Chris kisses him once hard on the mouth before pushing himself off the wall (and Darren) and rinsing his hand in the steady stream of water still coming from the shower head. "I think that took longer than three minutes. I hope your hair enjoyed the deep moisture treatment."
"Not much longer, and I'm certain all of me enjoyed it," Darren says, still trying to catch his breath, noticing Chris is just watching him come down patiently, even though he's still hard as ever, and damn, Darren can't wait to take care of that. "How are you still so calm?"
"I'm just used to having an insane amount of self control," Chris replies brokenly. "It's waning fast, so rinse that conditioner out and get back here."
"As you can see, I have very little self control," Darren says, stepping into the water, amazed that the it's still warm.
"Thank god for that," Chris says under his breath, and Darren isn't quite sure he washed all of the conditioner out, but he doesn't really care and presses Chris backwards this time.
Darren runs his hands down Chris's sides and up his chest, roaming everywhere now that Chris has invited him to touch. Chris wasn't kidding about his self control waning, because it's not long before Chris says pleadingly, "Darren, please."
Darren drops to his knees then, shushing Chris's protests about the hard tile floor. He kisses down Chris's stomach to his hipbones, and kisses a mark just above his left one, figuring it's inconspicuous enough to not be found by the wardrobe department (because seriously, some of the shirts they've been putting Chris in since Kurt returned to McKinley are showing a lot more skin than usual). Chris's cock starts twitching involuntarily and Darren figures he's been enough of a tease, and sinks his mouth over the head of it while holding Chris's hips still.
"Holy shit, Darren," Chris exclaims, and Darren looks up through his eyelashes to see Chris watching him. Chris reaches behind him on the wall for something to hold onto, but there's nothing but tile, so Darren reaches up to take it with his free hand and threads their fingers together, squeezing a little. Darren sinks lower, swirling his tongue, and Chris is just a constant stream of gasps and moans.
Chris lets go of Darren's hand and curls it in his hair, still slippery from the water and conditioner remnants. He doesn't push or pull, just rests it there, and Darren can feel his cock trying to get hard again just from the random touch. Darren moves his free hand to Chris's lower back, just before the swell of his ass starts, and pulls Chris towards him slightly in time with his bobbing. Chris groans loudly at the movement and tugs on Darren's hair a little. "Darren - c'mere - I'm -" Chris tries to say, and Darren just pulls him closer, his lips and tongue working faster, and he looks up just as Chris starts to come, causing him to cough a little, but he sees Chris's orgasm face so it was definitely worth it.
"Oh, fuck, Darren," Chris says when he finally makes his way back up, kissing Chris hard, Chris gasping when he tastes himself. Darren's doesn't think he's ever heard Chris say fuck before but it'll be his goal to make it happen as much as possible now.
Chris glances at him, totally blissed out and Darren can't help but smile that he's to thank for that. "I'm fairly certain my self control is now shot."
Darren leans in and kisses the corner of Chris's mouth. "I'm sorry for being a horrible influence. Except, not really sorry."
They both quickly shower, passing the bar of soap between them before drying off and collapsing on Darren's bed, exhausted. Chris meets Darren's eye at one point and has a look on his face that says he doesn't quite believe what just happened. "Come here," Darren says lazily, pulling Chris close and nuzzling into his chest. They lay there together silently, Darren even dozing at some point, only snapping out of it when Chris's stomach growls loudly.
Darren laughs into Chris's chest. "I guess I still owe you breakfast, huh?"
"Good thing the diner serves breakfast all day," Chris teases, even though it isn't all that late yet.
They move slowly, collecting their clothes and putting them back on. "I don't know if I can in good conscience let you outside in that shirt again. I won't be held responsible for my actions if I do."
"So shirtless is a better option then? I know the diner is pretty liberal with their rules, but they might draw the line there."
"Dude, I have like, nine million tee shirts, most of them not see through. You can borrow one of them." Darren grins and walks over to Chris, picking up the white v-neck before he can get to it.
"I think you just want to see me in your clothes," Chris replies.
"Maybe," Darren says, pulling Chris in at the waist for a quick kiss. "It's a little of both, actually. Depending on what you choose, I might be less responsible for my actions than if you just wore your shirt."
Chris places his hand on Darren's chest, fingers splayed. "I trust you to pick a good one then."
---
Chris has the news on, but isn't paying attention. He's laying on his couch, still in his borrowed Darren tee. Ashely has finally stopped the barrage of texts, Chris realizing at the diner that he'd ignored her all morning. The diner was surprisingly normal, despite Darren randomly staring at Chris for wearing one of his Freelance Whales tees under his cardigan. Chris would laugh and blush, but other than that, it was as nothing had changed between them, though everything had changed between them.
He'd mentioned Ashley's unanswered texts (which continued into the morning before she finally said she was taking a nap and demanded an update upon her awakening), and Darren asked if he was going to tell her. Chris had asked if he cared and Darren just shrugged and said, "I trust your judgement. I don't care if you tell no one or everyone. Well, not like everyone everyone, because Ryan might kill us, but you know."
Darren had dropped Chris off at his place afterwards, and he'd texted Ashely before taking his own nap and waking up in the afternoon, groggy from his messed up schedule. They had an early call tomorrow though, so he'd stayed up so he could attempt to get decent sleep that night. He should probably figure out dinner too.
His phone buzzes with a new text and he's sure it's Ashley with a new question to ask about his morning, but it's Darren.
I've decided I'm only voting with you from now on ;) - DC
Chris just grins stupidly and texts back They just said on the news that the polls don't close until seven in case you wanted to get some more voting in today.
The reply comes only a minute later - be there in twenty.