Letterboys: After
Aaaaand this is my entry for the It's Gonna Be May Challenge. Written as a sequel of sorts to this. Thanks to phaballa and randomling for the beta, and to several others for looking it over. :)
After
Letterboys (AJ/JC)
979 words
AJ was tempted to just prop the door open with a fire extinguisher, but the venue manager had given him a lecture earlier in the day on health and safety, and if he caught him doing that AJ was sure to get a earful, headliner or not. So he pulled a clean wifebeater on, snagged his blazer off the chair, and walked out of the dressing room into the cold of the night. At least the fans hadn't found their way to the stage door yet.
He'd gone through one and a half cigarettes before the door creaked open behind him, and he heard the rhythmic clack of boot heels ringing out sharply in the night. AJ turned his head to the side, breathing in deeply and letting the smoke out in one long exhale. The boots finally came to stand beside him, close enough that AJ could feel body heat radiating through his blazer.
"I fucked up our song tonight," he said abruptly.
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw JC smile. "Sounded alright to me," he said, in a voice that went through him like a clear, cool breeze.
AJ shook his head, shivering slightly. "Uh uh. I screwed up the bridge right before the last two choruses, and you know it." He tapped the excess ash off his cigarette before taking another drag off it. "It's probably a good thing that no one knows the studio version well enough to know how much I fucked up."
He felt an arm slowly work its way under his blazer, warm fingertips brushing past the strip of skin on his lower back that his wifebeater didn't quite cover. JC waited for AJ to finish with his cigarette before he moved closer, ducking his head to mouth at the stubble on AJ's jaw. "You did good," he murmured, his voice suddenly gaining heat, "I'm so proud of you."
AJ flushed, and crushed what was left of his cigarette under his shoe. "Wasn't as good as LA," he admitted.
"The vibe of the crowd was different, cat. It always is." JC tightened his arm around AJ's waist. "Did you see how many people were singing along? I couldn't see much in the wings, but man, the little that I did was truly awesome. Brian even texted me in the middle saying you made him cry."
"Really?" AJ blinked in surprise.
"Why would I lie to you?" JC's lips were on his neck now, his tongue tracing languid patterns into the skin. "He also told me that it was Nick throwing the ice from the balcony."
"I knew it," AJ said with a laugh, tilting his head to let JC have easier access to his throat. "That fucker. Did you catch him mooning me at the end?"
JC let out a warm puff of laughter against his neck. "That was way more of Nick than I ever wanted to see."
"Hey, you're not the one that has to share a bus with him," AJ joked, letting out a laugh. He slid an arm around JC's waist, too, and they stood like that for a while, JC dropping kisses along his hairline while AJ was deep in thought.
"Stop dissecting your own show," JC finally said, bumping his hip against AJ's.
AJ snorted with laughter. "You've got to be kidding me. Should I remind you what you were like after your first show?"
"That was my first show, this was your third."
AJ stuck his tongue out. "Technicality, man. This was the first show that meant something, and I screwed up our song."
"But you didn't screw up the rest." JC pulled AJ impossibly closer, repositioning himself until they were facing each other, hands settling on AJ's hips. "Hey, look at me. Stop picking things apart. It was a fucking good show and you know it, so don't focus on the bad."
AJ hated how he felt like his ten year old self after his first major audition, not sure if a roomful of people had liked what he had to offer. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes, and he saw the crowd before him again, girls he'd seen in the front row of the Backstreet Boys show the night before that were in the front row for his show as well, the group of straight guys in the middle that were grooving along pretending not to like his music, and the girls that nodded their heads to the beat and actually listened.
AJ took another breath, and then he could hear the crowd roaring, just for him. He saw his brothers up in the balcony, dancing along like idiots and thoroughly enjoying themselves, and then he turned to the side and saw JC standing there, mouthing along to the words of the song. And he remembered how in that one moment he felt pure joy and pride well up in his chest, until he thought his heart was going to burst.
It had all been fucking worth it.
And then JC kissed him, and AJ felt all doubt leak out of him, choosing to focus instead on JC's impossibly soft lips, how JC's tongue felt darting in and out of his mouth. AJ heard a small, desperate sound escape his own throat. It had been way too long since he'd last seen JC.
They were both breathless by the time they ended the kiss, arms wrapped tightly around each other and oblivious to the unusually cold May night. JC nipped lightly at AJ's lips as he caught his breath, his voice a low murmur against AJ's skin.
"Love you," JC said softly, and AJ felt something else entirely well up in his chest, warmth spreading through his body.
There would always be other shows, but right now JC was here, and that was really all he needed.
After
Letterboys (AJ/JC)
979 words
AJ was tempted to just prop the door open with a fire extinguisher, but the venue manager had given him a lecture earlier in the day on health and safety, and if he caught him doing that AJ was sure to get a earful, headliner or not. So he pulled a clean wifebeater on, snagged his blazer off the chair, and walked out of the dressing room into the cold of the night. At least the fans hadn't found their way to the stage door yet.
He'd gone through one and a half cigarettes before the door creaked open behind him, and he heard the rhythmic clack of boot heels ringing out sharply in the night. AJ turned his head to the side, breathing in deeply and letting the smoke out in one long exhale. The boots finally came to stand beside him, close enough that AJ could feel body heat radiating through his blazer.
"I fucked up our song tonight," he said abruptly.
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw JC smile. "Sounded alright to me," he said, in a voice that went through him like a clear, cool breeze.
AJ shook his head, shivering slightly. "Uh uh. I screwed up the bridge right before the last two choruses, and you know it." He tapped the excess ash off his cigarette before taking another drag off it. "It's probably a good thing that no one knows the studio version well enough to know how much I fucked up."
He felt an arm slowly work its way under his blazer, warm fingertips brushing past the strip of skin on his lower back that his wifebeater didn't quite cover. JC waited for AJ to finish with his cigarette before he moved closer, ducking his head to mouth at the stubble on AJ's jaw. "You did good," he murmured, his voice suddenly gaining heat, "I'm so proud of you."
AJ flushed, and crushed what was left of his cigarette under his shoe. "Wasn't as good as LA," he admitted.
"The vibe of the crowd was different, cat. It always is." JC tightened his arm around AJ's waist. "Did you see how many people were singing along? I couldn't see much in the wings, but man, the little that I did was truly awesome. Brian even texted me in the middle saying you made him cry."
"Really?" AJ blinked in surprise.
"Why would I lie to you?" JC's lips were on his neck now, his tongue tracing languid patterns into the skin. "He also told me that it was Nick throwing the ice from the balcony."
"I knew it," AJ said with a laugh, tilting his head to let JC have easier access to his throat. "That fucker. Did you catch him mooning me at the end?"
JC let out a warm puff of laughter against his neck. "That was way more of Nick than I ever wanted to see."
"Hey, you're not the one that has to share a bus with him," AJ joked, letting out a laugh. He slid an arm around JC's waist, too, and they stood like that for a while, JC dropping kisses along his hairline while AJ was deep in thought.
"Stop dissecting your own show," JC finally said, bumping his hip against AJ's.
AJ snorted with laughter. "You've got to be kidding me. Should I remind you what you were like after your first show?"
"That was my first show, this was your third."
AJ stuck his tongue out. "Technicality, man. This was the first show that meant something, and I screwed up our song."
"But you didn't screw up the rest." JC pulled AJ impossibly closer, repositioning himself until they were facing each other, hands settling on AJ's hips. "Hey, look at me. Stop picking things apart. It was a fucking good show and you know it, so don't focus on the bad."
AJ hated how he felt like his ten year old self after his first major audition, not sure if a roomful of people had liked what he had to offer. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes, and he saw the crowd before him again, girls he'd seen in the front row of the Backstreet Boys show the night before that were in the front row for his show as well, the group of straight guys in the middle that were grooving along pretending not to like his music, and the girls that nodded their heads to the beat and actually listened.
AJ took another breath, and then he could hear the crowd roaring, just for him. He saw his brothers up in the balcony, dancing along like idiots and thoroughly enjoying themselves, and then he turned to the side and saw JC standing there, mouthing along to the words of the song. And he remembered how in that one moment he felt pure joy and pride well up in his chest, until he thought his heart was going to burst.
It had all been fucking worth it.
And then JC kissed him, and AJ felt all doubt leak out of him, choosing to focus instead on JC's impossibly soft lips, how JC's tongue felt darting in and out of his mouth. AJ heard a small, desperate sound escape his own throat. It had been way too long since he'd last seen JC.
They were both breathless by the time they ended the kiss, arms wrapped tightly around each other and oblivious to the unusually cold May night. JC nipped lightly at AJ's lips as he caught his breath, his voice a low murmur against AJ's skin.
"Love you," JC said softly, and AJ felt something else entirely well up in his chest, warmth spreading through his body.
There would always be other shows, but right now JC was here, and that was really all he needed.