Learning Curve (9/9)
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The night out with Saul and Henry was fun. Saul was quieter than usual, more subdued, but Scotty figured that must be because he was about to give up his retiree lifestyle and go back to the daily grind. But he and Henry more than made up for it. Scotty was pretty sure (he couldn’t be certain anymore, but he was pretty sure) they had a bottle of wine each. At least.
Scotty looked over at Saul and Henry and smiled. “You guys are really, really nice,” he said. “Thanks for this.”
Saul smiled into his glass as he took a sip. “We’ll see if you thank us in the morning.”
Henry laughed - a little too loudly, Scotty assumed, based on Saul’s amused headshake - and drained his own glass.
“It already is the morning, Sauly,” Henry said.
Scotty looked back at him quickly, losing his balance slightly as he whipped his head around. “It is?” he asked, pulling out his phone and blinking in surprise at the clock. It was past midnight.
“I have to call Kevin,” he announced.
“No one was answering their phones, remember?” Saul asked.
“So I’ll leave him a message,” Scotty said in determination. He stared at his phone for a second, trying to remember which button he had to press to get Kevin’s speed-dial. Then he snorted. One, of course. He held it down, and then moved the phone up to his ear. Looking at Saul, he said defiantly, “Connecting to ‘Kevin.’”
Saul shook his head again.
He was right, though. All Scotty got was several rings followed by voicemail. He grinned stupidly as he heard Kevin’s voice telling him to leave a message. The phone beeped, and Scotty leaned forward, resting his arm on the table and shifting slightly in his seat as he began to talk.
“Hi, hon. It’s our anniversary. A whole year, can you believe it?” Scotty sighed. “You’re in Mexico, and I’m here at a bar with Saul and Henry.”
“Hi Kevin!” Henry yelled. People at nearby tables turned to look, and Saul’s shoulders shook as he laughed, one hand covering his face.
Scotty dropped his voice low, hoping Kevin would still be able to hear it over the sounds of the bar. “Just so you know, I’m gonna make you pay for leaving me alone. First,” Scotty stopped to think, tracing one finger through the condensation on his glass. “First, I’m gonna drag my tongue everywhere on your body. Everywhere. I might even use my teeth, if you beg. And I’m gonna suck you just long enough to where you can’t actually speak anymore, but I won’t let you come. Then I’m going to turn you over and just...just pound into you until we’re both completely spent.” Scotty smiled, brushing his pinky against his lower lip before softly biting the nail. “And then, we’re just gonna start all over again, and take it slow. I wanna feel your hands on me, Kevin. All over me, making me come again and again.” Scotty paused, clearing his throat. In a normal tone of voice, he added, “Love you. Come home soon.”
He hung up the phone and looked up. Both Saul and Henry were staring at him, mouths slightly open.
“What?”
Henry turned to Saul. “Time to go home?”
“Yep.”
But first, they brought Scotty home, almost carrying him into the bedroom as the alcohol caught up to him fast. Seeing as how he was almost as drunk as Scotty, Henry stumbled slightly as he tried to put Scotty down. They both fell onto the bed, and Scotty started to laugh.
“I like you, Henry, but Kevin would kill me.”
Henry started laughing as well.
“OK,” Saul said from the doorway. “Come on now.”
Scotty propped himself up on his elbows and grinned at Saul. Then he looked over at Henry and said, “Although what he doesn’t know won’t hurt him, right? We have been trying to decide if this apartment is big enough for group sex.”
Henry rolled over, resting on one elbow. “What is Saul doing right now?” he asked quietly.
Scotty glanced over and looked back at Henry with a smirk. “He kind of looks like Kevin does when he doesn’t know if I’m joking.”
“I know you’re joking,” Saul said. He paused, then added, “Aren’t you?”
“Maybe,” Scotty replied, looking over at Saul again and somehow maintaining a straight face for several seconds. Then he grinned, “Go home already, would you? Someone deserves to have sex tonight.”
Henry laughed as he sat up again, climbing off the bed. “Sleep on your side in case you puke,” he said, patting Scotty’s calf.
Scotty grimaced. “Thanks for that, Uncle Henry.”
Saul shook his head. “Offers of a threesome to Uncle Henry in less than five minutes.”
“You snooze, you lose,” Scotty muttered as he very cautiously repositioned himself on the bed.
“Come on, old man,” Henry said as he walked up to Saul in the doorway. “I’ll show you experience beats youth any day.”
Scotty smiled as he snuck one arm underneath his pillow. “You guys give me hope for the future,” he said.
Saul smiled at him.
“You and Viagra,” Scotty clarified.
Saul tossed Scotty his jacket; it landed on his head, covering his face. Scotty broke down into laughter.
***
Scotty moaned in pain at the shrill ring of his phone. He stuck one hand out from under the sheets, fumbling around as he tried to find his cell on the nightstand. At the third ring, he finally grabbed it, bringing it back underneath the covers to his ear.
“Yeah,” he muttered.
“Good morning, darling,” Kevin said in an overly-cheerful tone. “Happy anniversary! How are you?”
Scotty merely grunted, and Kevin chuckled.
“Sounds like you had a fun time last night.”
Scotty squeezed his eyes shut just a little tighter, trying to remember. “Did I call you?”
“Mm-hmm,” Kevin said.
Scotty paused for a moment. “Huh.”
“I’ll play you the voicemail tonight.”
“Tonight?”
“We’re coming home.”
“With Tommy?”
“No, I’ll explain everything. Meet me at the airport?”
“Yeah.”
“The flight number - should I call you back with the information after your shower and coffee?”
Scotty thought for a moment. “Yeah.”
***
Later that day, Scotty was leaning against the wall opposite the airport security gate. He had his sunglasses on, even inside, even though he was starting to feel better. He spotted Justin first as they walked out of the gate. Justin waved before reaching for Rebecca’s hand, lifting it to show Scotty...something on her finger. Scotty shook his head quickly and walked over to them.
“What’s this?” he asked.
“It’s a bent nail,” Justin said.
“It’s an engagement ring,” Rebecca interjected.
“Wow. Congratulations.”
“Thanks! Oh, and happy anniversary,” Justin said.
“How’d everything go?”
Justin shrugged. “We’ll see.”
Scotty nodded. Before he could respond, however, the other Walkers finally caught up to them. Scotty was soon overwhelmed by multiple greetings and anniversary wishes, a hug from Nora and a pat on his arm from Sarah. And then there was Kevin, smiling at him as he gave him a quick kiss.
“Grab your bag and let’s go,” Scotty said underneath the din.
Kevin stared at him, confused. He picked up the bag at his feet and followed Scotty out of the airport. “Where are we going?”
Scotty only smiled enigmatically until they reached the car. After depositing Kevin’s suitcase into the trunk next to his own bag, they climbed into the front. Scotty handed Kevin a brochure as he started the car.
“What’s this?”
Scotty twisted to the side, a hand on the back of Kevin’s seat as he reversed. “Small little hotel in Monterey County. It’s a drive, I know, but...”
“It looks gorgeous.”
Scotty smiled. “Sometime after I joined the living today, I checked in with both our bosses and told them not to expect us for a few days. Well, I was nicer to my boss than that. Not to yours, though.”
Kevin laughed as he put the brochure on the console and then adjusted his sunglasses before tilting his seat back to enjoy the ride.
***
Despite Scotty’s promising “threats” from the previous night, they were both too exhausted to do anything particularly...athletic by the time they arrived at the hotel. Instead, they merely undressed, climbed into bed, and slowly moved against each other. With small moans, they kissed deeply, stroked their hands over each other’s bodies, discovered each other yet again.
Scotty finally pulled back, leaving one hand on Kevin’s face. He traced his finger along Kevin’s cheek, dragging it slowly down, half-laughing and half-moaning when Kevin turned quickly to capture it in his mouth. Kevin opened his eyes, smiling even as he sucked softly on the finger.
“Let me go get the...” Scotty trailed off, pulling his hand away as he rolled slightly away from Kevin.
Kevin grabbed his bicep. “Wait,” he said. Then he swallowed thickly. “Just...just the lube.”
Scotty stared back at him. “What are you saying?”
Kevin took a deep breath. “I’m saying we’ve been married for a year. We’re faithful to each other, and we’ve both been tested.”
Scotty felt his heart start to pound. He couldn’t tell if he was more aroused or more - inexplicably - terrified than he’d ever been. “Are you sure? It just seems...I’ve never...”
“Me neither. I’ve never felt comfortable enough with anyone. Or secure enough in the relationship, until you,” Kevin said. He smiled and barely shrugged. “If we don’t like it, we go back. Won’t hurt to try.”
And so they did. Scotty climbed out of the bed, grabbing the small tube from his suitcase. He returned to Kevin, and they fumbled in their movements, laughing in embarrassment, as awkward as if it were their first time together. When Scotty entered Kevin, it felt entirely familiar and entirely strange. They moved slowly at first, getting comfortable with the changed sensations. As their passion grew, their uncertainty faded. Kevin gasped in Scotty’s ear, and Scotty moved one hand to Kevin’s neck, his pulse pounding underneath Scotty’s warm fingers. He moved his other hand between them, finding Kevin’s erection and stroking it in a counter-rhythm to his thrusts.
“I love you,” Kevin panted, barely audible.
Scotty pressed into Kevin one more time, moaning as he released. Moments later, Kevin followed him, spilling over his fist. Scotty fell back onto the bed, breathing heavily. Kevin collapsed onto Scotty’s chest with a long, low groan.
“Wow,” Scotty murmured after a few moments. “How come we never did that before?”
Kevin rolled slowly off Scotty, laughing breathlessly. He brought one hand to rest on his forehead. “Don’t know.”
Repositioning himself, Scotty wrapped an arm around Kevin, his eyes closed as his mind and body drifted in pleasure.
“You think we made a baby?” he asked with a teasing smile.
When there was no responding laughter from Kevin, Scotty opened his eyes. Kevin was looking back at him, suddenly more vulnerable than Scotty had ever seen him.
“Kevin?”
“Maybe we should.”
Scotty’s breath caught, and he felt his heart stop beating for a fraction of a second.
“What?”
***
Marriage, Scotty had learned, was about love, of course. But it was also about compromise. About trust. About letting down the last of your defenses. About finding stolen moments of happiness in between crises and careers. About family. About forcing yourself to be the better man and apologizing. About accepting apologies in return. About sacrifice and reward. About comfortable, comforting silences and about the sound of laughter in a dark bedroom in the dead of night. About going to sleep and waking up in the arms of the only person you ever wanted to be with.
That night he learned marriage was also about the future, about hope, about plans and dreams. About taking a chance on something bigger than the two of you. About facing fears. Maybe just a little bit about giving in. About making each other happy, any way you could.
He didn’t know what was ahead for them. The growing excitement in Kevin’s eyes as they talked didn’t quite mesh with the panic coursing through his own body. They survived a year, but Scotty had to wonder if the next few months would teach him that he hadn’t really learned that much about marriage after all.
The End
(To be continued, after the end of season 4!)
A/N: Kevin and Scotty would like to remind everyone to always practice safe, responsible sex, whatever that means for your personal circumstances! ;)
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The night out with Saul and Henry was fun. Saul was quieter than usual, more subdued, but Scotty figured that must be because he was about to give up his retiree lifestyle and go back to the daily grind. But he and Henry more than made up for it. Scotty was pretty sure (he couldn’t be certain anymore, but he was pretty sure) they had a bottle of wine each. At least.
Scotty looked over at Saul and Henry and smiled. “You guys are really, really nice,” he said. “Thanks for this.”
Saul smiled into his glass as he took a sip. “We’ll see if you thank us in the morning.”
Henry laughed - a little too loudly, Scotty assumed, based on Saul’s amused headshake - and drained his own glass.
“It already is the morning, Sauly,” Henry said.
Scotty looked back at him quickly, losing his balance slightly as he whipped his head around. “It is?” he asked, pulling out his phone and blinking in surprise at the clock. It was past midnight.
“I have to call Kevin,” he announced.
“No one was answering their phones, remember?” Saul asked.
“So I’ll leave him a message,” Scotty said in determination. He stared at his phone for a second, trying to remember which button he had to press to get Kevin’s speed-dial. Then he snorted. One, of course. He held it down, and then moved the phone up to his ear. Looking at Saul, he said defiantly, “Connecting to ‘Kevin.’”
Saul shook his head again.
He was right, though. All Scotty got was several rings followed by voicemail. He grinned stupidly as he heard Kevin’s voice telling him to leave a message. The phone beeped, and Scotty leaned forward, resting his arm on the table and shifting slightly in his seat as he began to talk.
“Hi, hon. It’s our anniversary. A whole year, can you believe it?” Scotty sighed. “You’re in Mexico, and I’m here at a bar with Saul and Henry.”
“Hi Kevin!” Henry yelled. People at nearby tables turned to look, and Saul’s shoulders shook as he laughed, one hand covering his face.
Scotty dropped his voice low, hoping Kevin would still be able to hear it over the sounds of the bar. “Just so you know, I’m gonna make you pay for leaving me alone. First,” Scotty stopped to think, tracing one finger through the condensation on his glass. “First, I’m gonna drag my tongue everywhere on your body. Everywhere. I might even use my teeth, if you beg. And I’m gonna suck you just long enough to where you can’t actually speak anymore, but I won’t let you come. Then I’m going to turn you over and just...just pound into you until we’re both completely spent.” Scotty smiled, brushing his pinky against his lower lip before softly biting the nail. “And then, we’re just gonna start all over again, and take it slow. I wanna feel your hands on me, Kevin. All over me, making me come again and again.” Scotty paused, clearing his throat. In a normal tone of voice, he added, “Love you. Come home soon.”
He hung up the phone and looked up. Both Saul and Henry were staring at him, mouths slightly open.
“What?”
Henry turned to Saul. “Time to go home?”
“Yep.”
But first, they brought Scotty home, almost carrying him into the bedroom as the alcohol caught up to him fast. Seeing as how he was almost as drunk as Scotty, Henry stumbled slightly as he tried to put Scotty down. They both fell onto the bed, and Scotty started to laugh.
“I like you, Henry, but Kevin would kill me.”
Henry started laughing as well.
“OK,” Saul said from the doorway. “Come on now.”
Scotty propped himself up on his elbows and grinned at Saul. Then he looked over at Henry and said, “Although what he doesn’t know won’t hurt him, right? We have been trying to decide if this apartment is big enough for group sex.”
Henry rolled over, resting on one elbow. “What is Saul doing right now?” he asked quietly.
Scotty glanced over and looked back at Henry with a smirk. “He kind of looks like Kevin does when he doesn’t know if I’m joking.”
“I know you’re joking,” Saul said. He paused, then added, “Aren’t you?”
“Maybe,” Scotty replied, looking over at Saul again and somehow maintaining a straight face for several seconds. Then he grinned, “Go home already, would you? Someone deserves to have sex tonight.”
Henry laughed as he sat up again, climbing off the bed. “Sleep on your side in case you puke,” he said, patting Scotty’s calf.
Scotty grimaced. “Thanks for that, Uncle Henry.”
Saul shook his head. “Offers of a threesome to Uncle Henry in less than five minutes.”
“You snooze, you lose,” Scotty muttered as he very cautiously repositioned himself on the bed.
“Come on, old man,” Henry said as he walked up to Saul in the doorway. “I’ll show you experience beats youth any day.”
Scotty smiled as he snuck one arm underneath his pillow. “You guys give me hope for the future,” he said.
Saul smiled at him.
“You and Viagra,” Scotty clarified.
Saul tossed Scotty his jacket; it landed on his head, covering his face. Scotty broke down into laughter.
***
Scotty moaned in pain at the shrill ring of his phone. He stuck one hand out from under the sheets, fumbling around as he tried to find his cell on the nightstand. At the third ring, he finally grabbed it, bringing it back underneath the covers to his ear.
“Yeah,” he muttered.
“Good morning, darling,” Kevin said in an overly-cheerful tone. “Happy anniversary! How are you?”
Scotty merely grunted, and Kevin chuckled.
“Sounds like you had a fun time last night.”
Scotty squeezed his eyes shut just a little tighter, trying to remember. “Did I call you?”
“Mm-hmm,” Kevin said.
Scotty paused for a moment. “Huh.”
“I’ll play you the voicemail tonight.”
“Tonight?”
“We’re coming home.”
“With Tommy?”
“No, I’ll explain everything. Meet me at the airport?”
“Yeah.”
“The flight number - should I call you back with the information after your shower and coffee?”
Scotty thought for a moment. “Yeah.”
***
Later that day, Scotty was leaning against the wall opposite the airport security gate. He had his sunglasses on, even inside, even though he was starting to feel better. He spotted Justin first as they walked out of the gate. Justin waved before reaching for Rebecca’s hand, lifting it to show Scotty...something on her finger. Scotty shook his head quickly and walked over to them.
“What’s this?” he asked.
“It’s a bent nail,” Justin said.
“It’s an engagement ring,” Rebecca interjected.
“Wow. Congratulations.”
“Thanks! Oh, and happy anniversary,” Justin said.
“How’d everything go?”
Justin shrugged. “We’ll see.”
Scotty nodded. Before he could respond, however, the other Walkers finally caught up to them. Scotty was soon overwhelmed by multiple greetings and anniversary wishes, a hug from Nora and a pat on his arm from Sarah. And then there was Kevin, smiling at him as he gave him a quick kiss.
“Grab your bag and let’s go,” Scotty said underneath the din.
Kevin stared at him, confused. He picked up the bag at his feet and followed Scotty out of the airport. “Where are we going?”
Scotty only smiled enigmatically until they reached the car. After depositing Kevin’s suitcase into the trunk next to his own bag, they climbed into the front. Scotty handed Kevin a brochure as he started the car.
“What’s this?”
Scotty twisted to the side, a hand on the back of Kevin’s seat as he reversed. “Small little hotel in Monterey County. It’s a drive, I know, but...”
“It looks gorgeous.”
Scotty smiled. “Sometime after I joined the living today, I checked in with both our bosses and told them not to expect us for a few days. Well, I was nicer to my boss than that. Not to yours, though.”
Kevin laughed as he put the brochure on the console and then adjusted his sunglasses before tilting his seat back to enjoy the ride.
***
Despite Scotty’s promising “threats” from the previous night, they were both too exhausted to do anything particularly...athletic by the time they arrived at the hotel. Instead, they merely undressed, climbed into bed, and slowly moved against each other. With small moans, they kissed deeply, stroked their hands over each other’s bodies, discovered each other yet again.
Scotty finally pulled back, leaving one hand on Kevin’s face. He traced his finger along Kevin’s cheek, dragging it slowly down, half-laughing and half-moaning when Kevin turned quickly to capture it in his mouth. Kevin opened his eyes, smiling even as he sucked softly on the finger.
“Let me go get the...” Scotty trailed off, pulling his hand away as he rolled slightly away from Kevin.
Kevin grabbed his bicep. “Wait,” he said. Then he swallowed thickly. “Just...just the lube.”
Scotty stared back at him. “What are you saying?”
Kevin took a deep breath. “I’m saying we’ve been married for a year. We’re faithful to each other, and we’ve both been tested.”
Scotty felt his heart start to pound. He couldn’t tell if he was more aroused or more - inexplicably - terrified than he’d ever been. “Are you sure? It just seems...I’ve never...”
“Me neither. I’ve never felt comfortable enough with anyone. Or secure enough in the relationship, until you,” Kevin said. He smiled and barely shrugged. “If we don’t like it, we go back. Won’t hurt to try.”
And so they did. Scotty climbed out of the bed, grabbing the small tube from his suitcase. He returned to Kevin, and they fumbled in their movements, laughing in embarrassment, as awkward as if it were their first time together. When Scotty entered Kevin, it felt entirely familiar and entirely strange. They moved slowly at first, getting comfortable with the changed sensations. As their passion grew, their uncertainty faded. Kevin gasped in Scotty’s ear, and Scotty moved one hand to Kevin’s neck, his pulse pounding underneath Scotty’s warm fingers. He moved his other hand between them, finding Kevin’s erection and stroking it in a counter-rhythm to his thrusts.
“I love you,” Kevin panted, barely audible.
Scotty pressed into Kevin one more time, moaning as he released. Moments later, Kevin followed him, spilling over his fist. Scotty fell back onto the bed, breathing heavily. Kevin collapsed onto Scotty’s chest with a long, low groan.
“Wow,” Scotty murmured after a few moments. “How come we never did that before?”
Kevin rolled slowly off Scotty, laughing breathlessly. He brought one hand to rest on his forehead. “Don’t know.”
Repositioning himself, Scotty wrapped an arm around Kevin, his eyes closed as his mind and body drifted in pleasure.
“You think we made a baby?” he asked with a teasing smile.
When there was no responding laughter from Kevin, Scotty opened his eyes. Kevin was looking back at him, suddenly more vulnerable than Scotty had ever seen him.
“Kevin?”
“Maybe we should.”
Scotty’s breath caught, and he felt his heart stop beating for a fraction of a second.
“What?”
***
Marriage, Scotty had learned, was about love, of course. But it was also about compromise. About trust. About letting down the last of your defenses. About finding stolen moments of happiness in between crises and careers. About family. About forcing yourself to be the better man and apologizing. About accepting apologies in return. About sacrifice and reward. About comfortable, comforting silences and about the sound of laughter in a dark bedroom in the dead of night. About going to sleep and waking up in the arms of the only person you ever wanted to be with.
That night he learned marriage was also about the future, about hope, about plans and dreams. About taking a chance on something bigger than the two of you. About facing fears. Maybe just a little bit about giving in. About making each other happy, any way you could.
He didn’t know what was ahead for them. The growing excitement in Kevin’s eyes as they talked didn’t quite mesh with the panic coursing through his own body. They survived a year, but Scotty had to wonder if the next few months would teach him that he hadn’t really learned that much about marriage after all.
The End
(To be continued, after the end of season 4!)
A/N: Kevin and Scotty would like to remind everyone to always practice safe, responsible sex, whatever that means for your personal circumstances! ;)
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