Chasing ~ Part I
~ PART II ~ MASTER POST ~ ART ~
~
When Adam had told his annoying but incredibly efficient assistant, Aimee, to book him a flight to anywhere for a little peace and quiet, he didn’t imagine that “anywhere” would be Florence of all places. He had pictured palm trees, huts and deserted beaches, not a city that attracted millions of tourists; being surrounded by people was exactly what he was trying to escape in the first place. He wasn’t sure if he could handle screaming fans and annoying tourists right now. But as long as he could get away from all the hassle in less than 24 hours, he wasn’t going to complain about anything. Except maybe about the lack of space in his luggage for his hair products and, despite what Aimee claimed, he did need his hair products with him. All of them.
Not having his return flight booked gave him an odd sense of freedom, the freedom he had missed so much during the last couple of months. There was no deadline for him to be done relaxing and that was exactly what he needed.
~
Aimee had told him that the night life in Florence was something else entirely, and definitely worth checking out, as it differed from the one he was used to back in Los Angeles. Aimee really needn’t worry about that though, as it was the first thing he had planned on doing as soon as he arrived in Florence safely. On his second evening he was already on his way to hit the bars for the second time during his stay. The jet lag was killing him, but he was determined not to let it stop him.
The night was warm, the air not boiling hot anymore like it had been during the hottest hours of the day, during siesta, but it was enough to keep Adam warm without his jacket on.
Wandering around the town and trying to find new clubs to explore, Adam arrived to the corner of some huge, ancient looking building that was without a doubt, a tourist attraction during the day.
This was the spot where he performed, Adam later found out, almost every night around ten. Had Adam known what kind of an adventure he was about to get sucked in, he probably would have turned on his heels and walked away from the guy, finding company elsewhere. But at the time, Adam was clueless. He was completely clueless of the power the guy possessed, the power to utterly turn one’s life in another direction. Most importantly, he was clueless about him. The man that was going to change his life.
Kris Allen was a simple kind of guy. Some would say deciding to move from his little hometown in Arkansas to a country like Italy was nothing but simple, but he had never seen it that way. As a student who studied art history, moving to Florence, a city full of magnificent art and architecture, was really the only option. It was simply the right thing to do.
He lived a simple kind of life, too. He woke up early every morning, bought freshly baked bread from the bakery around the corner for his breakfast and headed to the campus. He studied, he ate lunch, he studied some more and took the bus back to the centre of the city to get ready for his daily performance outside Galleria degli Uffizi.
Kris was an easygoing guy, who had no problem making new friends, with both other foreign students and locals. With people who didn’t judge him for his simplicity. They appreciated him for his intelligence, he hoped, and his personality, not for what he was wearing, what his political and religious views were or for whom he loved or did not love. He was free to be whoever he wanted.
Maybe it was the sound of music being played or perhaps the sound of a crowd cheering or just the atmosphere of something exciting happening that drew Adam closer to the mob. At first he couldn’t see who it was, this mysterious entertainer that made his crowd go wild in the Florentine night, but he could, however, hear the reason why the people around him were so ecstatic. It was not only for the skill with which he played his acoustic guitar, but for the soft, beautiful voice he had, that gathered such a crowd, people forming a vague circle on the street, leaving an empty space like a dance floor, inside it.
Adam weaved through the obstructing bodies, trying to avoid knocking down too many people on his way, until finally, he could see the reason for the enthusiasm that was radiating from the crowd.
There was a small, and he really was rather tiny, guy moving around opposite to Adam. He just gaped at the performer for a long while, taking in the scene before him. The guy’s movements were something Adam would’ve described as adorable, but there was more to him than the cute kicking of his feet.
He was good-looking, surely, but also pretty in a way that was rare for men. Adam knew the type of man he always fell for. It was always the pretty type. But the prettiness of this guy was something he had never seen before in anyone else. It was an honest look, special. His eyes were stunning, brown ones and as he sang, they fluttered and closed, like Adam imagined they would when he was in great pleasure. His lips looked soft and rich, both in colour and in shape, like they were longing to be kissed. His hair was short, the cut quite ordinary, but suiting for him.
There was something adorable, yet also something very gracious about him, about his face and how he was built, even about the way he stood while his long fingers stroked the guitar’s strings gently. There was something about that voice and that face that intrigued Adam like nothing else.
He couldn’t even describe the way this man sang, not in a way that would give him the praise that he deserved; it had Adam mesmerized.
Adam soon found himself in the group of people that was clapping their hands enthusiastically to the music, singing along to the covers of the familiar songs. It was hard not to, the guy was obviously talented, his takes on the songs he sang so original and creative that they had Adam grinning from ear to ear at some points, raising his eyebrows at others. He had to give the guy credit, his performance neared perfection.
The amount of people on the corner of the gallery and the piazza was increasing and Adam looked around to watch the crowd bursting into song by the time the chorus of Let It Be started again, some of the younger members of the audience swaying in time with the music, some of the older ones slow dancing on their own spots. It was impossible to resist breaking into smile at the sight.
By the time the mysterious singer started singing Mrs. Robinson there were couples full-on dancing on the makeshift dance floor, encouraged by the enthusiastic clapping and the occasional whistling from the crowd.
Adam could feel his eyes widening as the guy thanked his audience at great length, welcoming them to come and listen to him again the next day, shocked by the words flavoured with a distinct Southern accent. The guy was American. Slowly he walked towards the performer, Kris, as he had introduced himself into the microphone earlier, watching him as he talked to some of the locals. He crouched next to the guitar case on the ground, eyeing the good amount of money on the bottom and adding his own share to it. The CDs resting against the brink of the case caught his eye and he picked one up, turning it over to see the back. It was an independent record, that much was clear, and full of tracks he was sure he had never heard of.
Examining the back of the album, Adam listened to the guy talking to some British, by the sound of their accents, tourists and after a short moment, to a local group of girls in animated Italian that he spoke well, but from what Adam could hear, not perfectly.
He looked up, swearing he could feel someone watching him, right into Kris’ brown eyes and quickly stood up straight. Startled, he asked the price of the album and, barely hearing the singer’s reply as he was too distracted by the small smile playing on his lips, found the correct amount of money and placed it into Kris’ warm hand. His legs were barely listening to what his mind was telling them, turning around slowly and walking away from Kris, the cute Southern guy, who talked nearly perfect Italian. To his own puzzlement, Adam was feeling dizzy, in a strange way he hadn’t experienced in a long, long time.
Finding company for the night was far too easy for him that day, getting the image of that crooked smile and those warm, brown eyes, on the other hand, nearly impossible.
~
Kris wouldn’t say that his life was boring. Maybe he didn’t have too much going on at the time, after all, it was summer and he had the same time off of work as the kids did, but he wouldn’t go as far as to say that his whole life was boring. Except, he couldn’t be more bored. While his friends were travelling and spending time at the beach, he was stuck in one place, spending his summer doing practically nothing. He studied some books, did some research and wrote a few papers, but it was really way too warm to be able to properly concentrate on his studies.
He spent his days mostly walking around the city, which he never grew tired of doing, watching people, the beautiful locals as well as the clueless tourists, reading and eating grapes. It was really fine with him; he was fine with being alone. He wasn’t one of those people who needed people around him at all times. He barely even thought about how his friends were having a good time while he was wandering alone in the record stores of Florence. Really, he was fine.
Adam didn’t have the slightest idea what you were supposed to do as a tourist in Florence. While he did have his guide book with him, he didn’t really feel like going to all the attractions like any other average tourist. Of course, shopping was on the very short to-do-list and once he’d find the shops, he would be good to go. The problem was, he wasn’t sure where he was supposed to look for the said stores.
He started walking down a street that looked rather promising, the mass of people indicating that there had to be at least something interesting somewhere near. Seeing what looked like a bookstore of significant size, he crossed the street carelessly, causing a little chaos while he was at it, making bus drivers honk and shout out from their windows in angry Italian accompanied with a few international hand signs, the messages of which were not lost on him.
Compared to the hotness of the outside world, the air in the store felt cool and refreshing. After a few minutes of looking around it became clear to Adam that he would not find anything to read from the store, as every book they sold was in Italian, but he didn’t mind just wandering around for a while. Kris’ album, which he had put into his laptop the first thing that morning, was playing on his iPod as he found his way upstairs. It was better than he’d expected it to be; the songs were catchy and although the lyrics could’ve been better with a little extra work, they were still pretty damn good. He couldn’t really even complain about the quality of the sound, it was almost at professional level.
As he reached the top of the stairs, Adam looked around and grinned. The music section of the store was impressive and there would be no language barrier to stop him here. Excited as a child in a toy store, he bounced over to the first shelves, examining their content thoroughly, before noticing that he was not alone in the second floor, like he had first thought. As he turned slightly to see the person who had just witnessed his slightly embarrassing burst of enthusiasm, Adam saw the tiny singer from the previous night standing not too far from him, looking curiously at his direction.
Kris, Adam reminded himself of the man’s name again, turned back to the stack of CDs he was going through, but Adam didn’t miss the hint of a smile on his lips. Taking a deep, silent breath, he turned on his heels and walked towards the man slowly until he was next to him, leaving a little space between their hips as he faced the shelves instead of Kris’ side. After a few moments of silence, Kris turned his body slightly so he could see Adam’s face and let out a quiet “hi.”
“Hey,” Adam whispered back, clearing his throat and turning to face the tiny musician. “So… You come here often?” He flashed Kris his most charming smile. Kris was silent for a few seconds before bursting into laughter. By the sound of his laugh, it seemed like Kris was genuinely amused by his cliché of a pick-up line.
“I do, actually. They have the best selection of second hand albums in town.” Kris was still grinning as he said it, shaking his head a little before continuing. “Didn’t I… uhm... I think I saw you last night. At the art museum, Uffizi? I was performing there around ten, eleven.” Kris looked a little shy, shuffling his flip-flop wearing feet, a little awkward, worrying his bottom lip with his teeth, and a whole lot adorable, a sheepish expression taking over his face as he rubbed his neck with his hand. Adam hadn’t expected Kris to notice him last night, in fact, he had been kind of hoping he hadn’t. Lurking around and escaping like he was a thief at the scene of the crime wasn’t exactly the first impression Adam wanted to make.
“I was, yeah. I can’t believe you noticed me there.” Adam wasn’t used to sounding this unassuming and shy. Kris was doing something very odd to him, and he had yet to decide if that was a good or a bad thing.
“Oh, please, how could I not?” Kris replied immediately, his cheeks reddening a bit as he realised what had come out of his mouth. “I mean, you’re not exactly the type of person to be in my regular crowd.”
“Yeah, I guess not, since I’m actually not a teenage girl.”
“The teenagers do love me.” Kris said with a laugh. The short silence that followed wasn’t exactly an uncomfortable one, but Adam was still eager to break it as he wanted to get to know this man before him a little better.
“This is a little straightforward, but are you free now? We could go get a coffee or something.” Adam watched Kris look at him from under his lashes, not a hint of uneasiness on his kind face before Kris answered.
“Yeah, I think I’d like that. Just… I have to pay for these first.” Kris chuckled as he gestured towards the pile of used CDs he had gathered.
As they walked towards the checkout, Adam realised that Kris didn’t even know his name yet. For a second he pondered if giving his last name would be a mistake, if Kris would recognise it (and him) and get awkward, like people so often did, but dismissed his thoughts as Kris, apparently having the same realisation as he had, extended his hand and, unnecessarily, introduced himself as Kris Allen. It was only fair.
“Adam Lambert.” Kris repeated it as if he was tasting the name in his mouth before nodding his approval as they reached the checkout desk.
“If you just go and order a coffee, you’re going to get American coffee. You’re in Italy, there’s no need to drink the same crap they make back home. What you should order is an espresso. Or a caffè macchiato if you’d rather drink your coffee with milk.” Kris had amazing amount of knowledge when it came to coffee. Adam just found it incredibly endearing and amusing, if a little geeky. He also learned that when Kris really got going, he was as talkative as Adam himself. From what he could tell though, it wasn’t going to be a problem, for Kris seemed to have some kind of way to sense when to stop, a skill Adam himself lacked.
Kris had gone on and on about coffee for a good while now, Adam’s confession of not knowing what to get from the café they’d pick for their date fuelling him. Adam didn’t mind as he found it rather entertaining.
“What if I want a cappuccino, though?” Adam interrupted quietly as Kris took a breather after giving him a speech about coffee beans.
“Huh?” Kris turned swiftly to look at him before his mind had time to process Adam’s words. “Oh. So you do know how to order coffee around here. Cappuccino would be totally acceptable, I guess.” Kris offered to order the cappuccinos and cornettos and once his order was ready, he faced Adam once again.
“Did you know that you’re only supposed to drink cappuccino in the morning, though? They do serve it later in the day as well, but drinking it after lunch time is frowned upon.”
No, Adam didn’t know.
“Well, aren’t you the rebel, then.”
Kris’ beaming face made his gut do a little dance.
Kris turned out to be the perfect guy. In addition to being an amazing musician, extremely cute and excruciatingly hot with his toned body, gorgeous brown eyes and a smile that turned heads, he was funny and, despite some of his geeky qualities that were really rather charming, an interesting and wonderful person. Adam learned that he was an art student, this being his fifth year living in Florence, and that he taught arts at a school for American kids during the school year. He learned that Kris had spent his first year in Italy learning the language, working various jobs and having a good time with his friends, travelling around the country.
Kris told him about how he had only started playing in the streets as a dare almost two years ago. He told Adam about how he had enjoyed it so much he’d had to come back the next night and how slowly, but steadily he had started to gather bigger and bigger crowds, how good it felt. Kris’ voice was quiet as he told Adam about his irrational dreams of some day being discovered and having the chance to do what he loved the most for a living. Adam was barely able to stop himself from squirming in his seat at the confession.
It wasn’t like he didn’t want to tell Kris everything about his career, because he did. But the fear of scaring Kris away with the truth about his crazy, complicated life was winning over the need to share everything with him, the need to be completely honest. But leaving out a few details about his life wasn’t lying, was it? Kris had a curious expression on his face when Adam told him about working in the industry, but Adam’s own expression must have stopped him from asking any further questions. Adam didn’t think Kris would be the kind of guy who would take advantage of other people’s careers, but he couldn’t be too careful. He’d tell him eventually, if the need be.
Kris had a remarkable collection of the most adorable expressions. He had the tiniest smile on his face as Adam told him about his childhood and when he laughed his whole face seemed to crinkle up. Adam started to look forward to those unexpected moments that would have Kris throwing his head back, laughing so hard that soon he was wiping his eyes. It was an honest laugh and it sounded beautiful. Adam was rather sure that Kris didn’t even realise himself that he made the stupidest faces at times, but Adam found them charming, which in itself should have had the alarm bells in his head ringing. Stupid didn't usually equal charming in his mind.
But the best one by far was the one that took over Kris’ face as Adam confessed he had yet to go and see the tourist attractions. It was a hilarious mixture of shock, disapproval and confusion. After staring at each other for a moment, stunned on Kris’s part, amused on Adam’s, Kris grabbed Adam’s hand and started walking him towards wherever regular tourists spent their vacations in Florence.
Adam soon found out that the usual, boring tourist stuff wasn’t all that boring when done with Kristopher Allen. Kris had more information about his city than all the guidebooks combined and he had a way to make the facts actually interesting.
The best way to start exploring Florence was apparently to go see a huge ass church. Or Duomo Santa Maria del Fiore like Kris called it. It was beautiful, unnecessarily big and a little plain, but somehow at the same time quite remarkable. But what was even better than the dome itself was the way Kris talked about it. There was an odd sense of admiration and respect in Kris voice. He spoke of the architecture and the few pieces of art in the same tone Adam talked about music. The look on his face was soft and loving, peaceful.
The muscles of their necks ached after a good while of staring at the fresco in the dome.
Kris looked genuinely apologetic and reluctant as he told Adam that he would have to go and run some errands that he couldn’t possibly postpone. Before they went their own ways, Kris invited Adam to listen to his gig again, emphasizing that Adam didn’t have to come, but if he wanted to, Kris wouldn’t mind, before grabbing Adam’s phone and saving his phone number in the contacts.
After being so comfortable and confident for the whole afternoon, Kris started having that shy, unsure look on his face again once it was time for them to say their goodbyes. He smiled a little as he said: “Just give me a call, I’d be more than happy to be your guide for another day.”
Adam leaned in and pecked Kris’ cheek quickly, chastely, making the younger man flush helplessly, before telling him that he would definitely call.
The battle between going and not going went on and on in Adam’s mind for the rest of the evening. There was no denying that he didn’t want to go and see Kris again. But he had already spent the whole day with the guy, talking, laughing and having fun, and he needed a little time to process everything.
He opted to stay in that night, picking up a couple of slices of pizza from the pizzeria nearby for dinner and watching dubbed episodes of American TV shows from the large television in his hotel room. He barely gave the tiny Southern guy any thought. Really.
Kris had got to stop waking up so early every day. He couldn’t help it, even during his time off. Now he could only curse his habits, since being up early meant having to wait longer for possible contact from Adam. He had sworn that he wouldn’t send Adam a text before noon, because who knew how long the man normally slept, or how long he had stayed up, for that matter. Kris had tried to look for Adam in the crowd the night before, but there was no sight of him and even if he had been watching, he never came to speak to Kris. He tried not to read too much into it. After all, they had only just met and Adam had already been there the day before. So what if he had kissed Kris on the cheek, he probably did that with all his friends. There was no need to assume that all of it was more than it really was.
After hours of trying to distract himself with laundry, cleaning and practising new covers for his gigs, he felt his phone vibrating in his pocket.
I’m takin u shoppin 2day ;) Kris read from the screen. He chuckled, taking a deep breath before typing in his reply.
Oh really? Shouldn’t it go the other way around? Placing the phone on the sink, Kris emptied the washing machine once again, beaming despite himself. Adam took his time replying, but when the reply finally came, the buzzing sound coming from the phone startled Kris, making him jump a little, flailing his hands.
No way am I gonna let u shop 4 me. No offense. :p Kris laughed out loud and slipped into the shower.
Turned out that it really was Adam taking Kris shopping and not the other way around. Kris only showed him where to find the stores and then found himself being dragged by the hand to the general direction of where he had been pointing only a few seconds earlier.
“Is there anything in your closet that isn’t plaid?” Adam teased him as they stepped inside the third shop of the day.
“Yes. My jeans. But only because they don't make jeans in plaid.” Kris answered, making Adam laugh. The way he tilted his head back was absolutely gorgeous and made Kris want to run his tongue over the veins on his neck. Shaking his head, Kris took his eyes off of Adam’s neck and looked around the store.
Apparently shopping for tiny Southern boys was Adam’s idea of a good time. Kris had never realised what kind of a serious business buying clothes could be. There were colours and fabrics and accessories to consider and apparently buying a pile of plain, white t-shirts just wasn’t acceptable.
“I’m not saying that you can’t buy yourself white t-shirts. It’s just… you could mix it up a bit. Go crazy and buy a t-shirt with some kind of a print in it.” Adam showed him a green t-shirt with a lightning bolt printed on it. Kris didn’t mind the teasing tone of his voice, it made him feel at ease. If it weren’t for the bantering, he would've probably concentrated on thinking how divinely hot and beautiful this man asking his shoe size was. No good could ever come out of that.
“You really like shopping, don’t you?” Kris sighed as they sat down to have lunch after an exhausting round of running from shop to shop, only getting a wide grin from Adam as a response. The amount of bags they were already carrying was alarming. He really couldn’t even afford all the things he had somehow ended up purchasing under Adam’s watchful eye. Adam, on the other hand, didn’t seem to have any problem using his credit cards to buy more stuff than he could possibly need. He must be good at whatever it is he does, Kris thought. And he must be paid pretty damn well, too.
Kris was curious about what it was that Adam actually did. He had dropped the subject out of politeness, but that didn’t mean he didn’t want to know. He was dying to know. There really wasn’t any ulterior motive behind it, either. Kris was sure that there were people out there who would jump up and down in pure joy if the opportunity to use someone else’s career to get ahead presented itself, but he was rather sure that if Adam had so much as offered Kris a chance to do something like that, he would’ve blushed and declined. Taking advantage like that just wasn’t for him.
The only reason he wanted Adam to spill some details was just so he could talk about it with him. Maybe get a few tips, perhaps a couple of dos and don’ts of the business, but that was all. Instead of voicing his thoughts, though, Kris pushed them somewhere safe in the back of his mind and leaned forward to discuss the menu with Adam.
Convincing Adam to order wine for them in Italian wasn’t hard. He refused to order the meals that, according to him, had names too complicated for his mouth. Kris repeated the words Adam was supposed to say a couple of times, Adam mimicking the pronunciation to the best of his abilities. He was sure he’d sound ridiculous saying it and told as much to Kris.
“But it’s the thought that counts. It makes all the difference in the world that you are at least trying and coming out of your comfort zone. You’ll see.” Kris assured him with a smile and as their waiter came around, Adam repeated the words “mezzo litro vino rosso della casa” to him. Kris was right, the waiter’s broad smile was genuinely delighted and made any possible embarrassment on Adam’s side totally worth it. The complimenting “perfetto” he got as a response was more than enough to put a matching, wide smile to Adam’s face.
They didn’t mean to spend another day together, but somehow their post-lunch shopping round stretched into a pre-dinner shopping round, after which they once again found themselves sitting on the opposite sides of a small table, both of them making easy conversation and having a hard time taking their eyes off of the other.
Adam knew he probably shouldn’t feel so at ease with Kris, after knowing each other only for two days, for fuck’s sake. But the thing was, he couldn’t remember the last time he had met someone like this, someone who made him feel like he felt around Kris, confident, beautiful, and horny. Kris was hot, that much was clear. But it was the combination of that and Kris having the personality that he did that turned Adam on like nothing else. It was overwhelming and too soon and too much and too everything and yet he craved more; More conversation, more laughing, more geeky facts about coffee, more shopping tiny clothes for this miniature man and just more Kris. A hell of a lot more, if it was up to Adam.
~
“Are you gonna invite me back up to your place?” Adam asked, smiling lazily. The smile on Kris' face was so wide that Adam was afraid his facial muscles would start hurting soon, but he couldn’t really complain, for it made Kris look beautiful, more so than he would probably ever understand himself. All he wanted was to reach his hand to touch the wrinkles that the smile created around Kris’ eyes, but he kept his hands to himself.
The steady shake of head Kris offered him as a reply didn’t match the killer smile on his face. There was still a chance, a tiny glitter of hope.
“Why not?” Adam watched Kris’ wide smile change into something much more mysterious, but it was still there, now more of a smirk than anything else.
“Maybe I want you to chase me for a little while longer.” Kris said slowly, his voice low and his lips barely moving, and every lingering word was emphasised by a small step forward until Kris was standing right before Adam, too close for comfort, as Adam was wearing a very tight pair of jeans that wouldn’t leave much to imagination if Kris decided to stand there for even a little while longer.
Adam could feel the warm breath on his mouth and the soft lips ghosting on his, touching ever so slightly as Kris’ mouth formed the words to wish him goodnight. Adam could see the flash of that mysterious smile again just before the short man turned to walk up the steps leading to his apartment building.
Kris looked at the tall man from over his shoulder and Adam was sure had it been any other guy looking at him like that, he’d suppressed the dreamy smile and placed it with something much sexier, much more seductive, but, for the first time in his life, he didn’t feel the need to hide his imperfections.
Adam laughed, incredulous and amused. No one, no one, had ever made Adam Lambert chase them. No-one had ever made him feel as hungry as he was now.
~
Kris needed time to think.
This thing they were doing, whatever it was (as they had merely shopped and eaten and done touristy things together), was completely crazy. Adam was in Florence for a relaxing vacation, this much Kris knew even if they hadn’t discussed the details of why Adam had come or how long he was planning on staying. Adam hadn’t come to Italy to stay and Kris wasn’t in a hurry to move back to the States permanently, either. That equation only resulted in them spending a couple of, no doubt extraordinary, weeks together.
Kris wasn’t sure if that would be something he was interested in.
Adam was gorgeous. He was absolutely gorgeous and totally out of Kris’ league and Kris had a hard time seeing them working on any level in any other scenario than the one they were in right now. Maybe Kris was enough to keep him satisfied, to fill some kind of void inside of Adam with his music and his easy humour here in Florence where there wasn’t really anything else on offer. But what would happen if they were to try this thing of theirs somewhere out of Florence? What if somehow this became something serious and beautiful? What if Adam took him to Los Angeles only to realize that there was no way he would ever fit in his life? Kris couldn’t see Adam in a world full of small, plaid wearing men. He saw Adam in a world full of beautiful people with tattoos and dyed hair and glitter. And somehow that world only included people who were over six feet tall.
Kris was determined to not let himself get any deeper into this situation than he already was. So what if Adam had the most delicious looking lips he had ever seen, they were full and had freckles on them, and hair that was just begging Kris to pull on it so the pale skin of Adam’s throat would be revealed. He would get over him eventually and forget about all those things as well as Adam’s skinny legs and perfect ass that Kris might have been subtly checking out while Adam had strutted down Via Roma, carrying the paper shopping bags like that was what he’d been born to do. Really, he would survive. If he eliminated the chance of falling, he would survive. Kris had a plan, an excellent one that would get him out of this thing in no time.
If only it wasn’t for the text messages Adam sent him, Kris was fairly sure he could’ve carried out with it, too.
“I’m not really the clubbing kind of guy, you know,” Kris confessed, his eyes curious as he watched Adam picking an outfit for him. Adam himself was already dressed in his fabulous clubbing clothes, the ones he sent Kris pictures of, asking his opinion on them (as if he would actually have one), after the one where he was shirtless, trying to decide what to wear. Kris doubted Adam’s clothes were really very suitable for the type of climate they were in. Adam would probably get very hot under all those layers, but Kris couldn’t say that he would exactly mind Adam all hot and bothered.
“Yeah, I figured.” Adam chuckled. He turned around, presenting the outfit he had picked for Kris out of the piles of clothes they had bought and Adam had insisted Kris would take with him so Adam could choose him the perfect clothes to wear for the night. Kris’ gaze travelled from Adam’s glowing face to the grey t-shirt that looked very tight fitting before moving on to the black jeans that looked like they would fit even tighter than the t-shirt.
“We’ll just check out the scene and maybe drink something and dance a little and if it isn’t your thing, we can always leave.” Adam’s voice was soft, assuring and for a moment it looked like he was leaning in for a kiss, or maybe just to lift his fingers to brush Kris’ cheeks, but he prevented himself from doing exactly that before the signs were really even there. Instead, he handed the clothes over to Kris and excused himself to go get himself ready in the bathroom.
As he was applying the dark eye shadow, Adam realized that Kris had yet to see him like this, full-out glamorous, totally made-up and every strand of his hair styled to perfection. During the past few days Adam had left his make-up bag alone, only wearing a touch of black eyeliner as he left his hotel room in the morning and he hadn’t really bothered doing anything much to his hair, just letting it fall down on his face.
Now as he stood there, looking at his reflection in the mirror, he knew that he looked better than ever. He had taken his time to perfect his eye make-up, the foundation took care of hiding his freckles and the hairspray kept his do in place. Everything was as good as it would get. But maybe all of this wasn’t Kris’ thing. He didn’t exactly seem like the type of person to appreciate the way Adam had smudged his eyeliner. In fact, he seemed more like the type who had never even seen a man wearing make-up.
He prepared himself for the worst, giving himself one final look through the mirror.
Once Adam emerged from the bathroom, Kris was clothed in the outfit he had chosen and looking, unsurprisingly, hot. Adam smiled a little at the sight, watching as Kris turned his head to look at him and his lungs forgetting how to breathe as the brown eyes widened alarmingly.
“Holy shit” Kris exclaimed, far more loudly than he had expected or intended, and the smile that had graced Adam’s features fell, fast. He was pretty sure that was the first time he’d heard Kris curse. That couldn’t be a good sign.
“You look…” Kris started, searching for words.
Kinda good? Kinda gross? Like a woman? Adam’s mind was panicking as he looked expectantly at Kris’ rather shocked face, before Kris gasped out, “gorgeous.”
Kris’ ears were already alarmingly red as the rest of his face started to blush, but Adam had the smile back on his face before Kris had even finished. He probably looked like a total idiot, but he couldn’t help it; that wasn’t at all the reaction he had expected.
It really wasn’t Kris’ scene. He had never even heard of the club, let alone been inside, although it was on a street Kris regularly walked down as it was near his usual playing spot at Uffizi. The confident and determined way Adam walked inside the club was telling, there was no doubt he had been there before. Kris had no desire to think about Adam’s adventures in night clubs any further than that.
They stopped at the bar, Adam swaying a bit to the music as they waited for their turn. He seemed to have no problem ordering drinks for both of them, even though he had seemed almost shy getting them the wine only a day ago. Adam finished his Martini quickly and watched as Kris sipped his beer purposely slow, not so subtly trying to put off the inevitable; dancing in public.
Kris didn’t dance. He could barely do the swaying-a-little-in-your-own-spot-because-of-the-lack-of-space dancing without either stomping on someone’s toes or somehow ending up losing his own balance and knocking down the people around him. Okay, maybe that was the only time and he had been really drunk, but he was still no dancer.
Adam, on the other hand, looked like he was born to dance. Adam was born to do many, many things, it seemed. How very Renaissance of him, Kris thought absentmindedly. Even now he was doing a little dance of his own, his body moving to its own accord, while his gaze never left Kris’ face. Adam didn’t hurry Kris, didn’t say anything at all. After a while, the stare started to make Kris a little uncomfortable and he let his eyes scan the spacious room they were in instead of looking back at the man, whose gaze was still burning his skin. The fingers that came into contact with his left hip a moment later made him direct his eyes right back to Adam, though. The touch was soft, almost innocent, but somehow inviting when combined with the lazy smirk on Adam’s lips.
Kris downed the rest of his beer swiftly; this was as ready as he would get. The smirk grew into a full-on grin as Adam’s fingers left his side to take Kris’ hand in his.
The music got louder as they neared the packed dance floor. Kris couldn’t recognise the song, but to him all dance tracks sounded just about the same with a heavy beat and one of those female superstars singing seductive, meaningless lyrics. But it wasn’t like Kris was here to hear any inspirational music, anyway. He was here to watch Adam sashay to the dance floor like he owned the place, to witness the sexy sway of his hips and most of all, to see the hunger in his eyes as he finally turned to face Kris when they found themselves squeezed together tight by the surrounding crowd. He was the reason for that fire in those beautiful blue eyes. That was something that didn’t quite compute in Kris’ mind. But he wasn’t going to complain about a thing, not with the way Adam’s hands, gripping his hips again, brought them even closer together.
For a moment they just stood there, looking each other in the eye and letting the people dancing around them sway them a bit. But Adam couldn’t stay still for long and soon he was doing something very sinful with his own hips, making Kris’ breath catch in his throat. It took a second for Kris to get into it, to relax in Adam’s strong arms, but once he did, he actually started enjoying himself.
The song changed into something vaguely familiar and with it, Adam’s hands started travelling from their spot on Kris’ sides. It was subtle - well, as subtle as it could possibly be with Adam - at first, but soon his hands were lower and lower, teasing and burning and feeling deliciously good. Kris had trouble breathing. This was the best kind of torture possible, he was sure. His own hands grew bolder, travelling across Adam’s upper body.
Adam lowered his head, nuzzling the side of Kris head gently before tilting his head so his soft lips came to contact with Kris’ skin. The wet mouth moved down Kris’ jaw line, not really kissing, just sliding over it, getting acquainted with the soft skin. Adam’s hot breath on his jaw made Kris shiver with anticipation.
“Adam…” Kris heard himself whisper, not really sure what it was he wanted to say. But before he could mutter out whatever incomprehensible thought he was about to share, Adam’s lips were on his, shutting him up effectively. It was nothing like a first kiss should be. There was nothing tentative or shy about the way Adam kissed, he wasn’t asking for permission; he had no doubts about Kris wanting this as bad as he did.
There was no point in not giving Adam back just as much as he was giving, so Kris kissed him back with equal force, need and desire, moving his lips against Adam’s, loving the feel of Adam’s tongue exploring his mouth.
"So… Your place or mine?" Kris heard Adam whisper right into his ear as they stumbled out of the club and onto the street. The chilly night air greeted them, making Kris regret not taking a proper jacket with him.
He thought about the way they'd kissed inside, the feeling of Adam's hands doing what they were probably the best at over his erection, trapped inside the pants that were really way too tight, and the look in Adam's eyes as they'd continued their dance, the shameless foreplay they displayed, got lost into. It was something he hadn't experienced in a long, long time. And it scared him shitless.
"I don't think… that we should. You know." Kris blurted out. Kristopher Neil Allen, what the heck do you think you’re doing? Just get in his pants, already. Or let him get into yours, his mind scolded him and he frowned slightly. He looked up at Adam, expecting to see shock, anger or at least annoyance shadowing his beautiful features, but there was no sign of any of that.
"Oh." The shock that wasn't visible on Adam's face was somewhat detectable in his voice. The only response that Kris could think of was to apologize.
Suddenly there was a large hand cupping the right side of his face and two beautiful, slightly concerned eyes gazing into his. Adam's voice was soft as he spoke again.
"Hey, don't say you're sorry. It's… I understand. Okay, actually, I don't quite understand, since I think this is what we're been working towards for days, or then I'm even stupider than I thought, but it's okay. There's no need to be sorry, okay?"
Oh, damnit. See what you did there, Kristopher, you little prude. Kris tried to silence the little voice in his head as he nodded silently. Adam was certainly not the stupid one here.
"I'll walk you to your hotel."
~
PART II ~ MASTER POST ~ ART ~
~
When Adam had told his annoying but incredibly efficient assistant, Aimee, to book him a flight to anywhere for a little peace and quiet, he didn’t imagine that “anywhere” would be Florence of all places. He had pictured palm trees, huts and deserted beaches, not a city that attracted millions of tourists; being surrounded by people was exactly what he was trying to escape in the first place. He wasn’t sure if he could handle screaming fans and annoying tourists right now. But as long as he could get away from all the hassle in less than 24 hours, he wasn’t going to complain about anything. Except maybe about the lack of space in his luggage for his hair products and, despite what Aimee claimed, he did need his hair products with him. All of them.
Not having his return flight booked gave him an odd sense of freedom, the freedom he had missed so much during the last couple of months. There was no deadline for him to be done relaxing and that was exactly what he needed.
~
Aimee had told him that the night life in Florence was something else entirely, and definitely worth checking out, as it differed from the one he was used to back in Los Angeles. Aimee really needn’t worry about that though, as it was the first thing he had planned on doing as soon as he arrived in Florence safely. On his second evening he was already on his way to hit the bars for the second time during his stay. The jet lag was killing him, but he was determined not to let it stop him.
The night was warm, the air not boiling hot anymore like it had been during the hottest hours of the day, during siesta, but it was enough to keep Adam warm without his jacket on.
Wandering around the town and trying to find new clubs to explore, Adam arrived to the corner of some huge, ancient looking building that was without a doubt, a tourist attraction during the day.
This was the spot where he performed, Adam later found out, almost every night around ten. Had Adam known what kind of an adventure he was about to get sucked in, he probably would have turned on his heels and walked away from the guy, finding company elsewhere. But at the time, Adam was clueless. He was completely clueless of the power the guy possessed, the power to utterly turn one’s life in another direction. Most importantly, he was clueless about him. The man that was going to change his life.
Kris Allen was a simple kind of guy. Some would say deciding to move from his little hometown in Arkansas to a country like Italy was nothing but simple, but he had never seen it that way. As a student who studied art history, moving to Florence, a city full of magnificent art and architecture, was really the only option. It was simply the right thing to do.
He lived a simple kind of life, too. He woke up early every morning, bought freshly baked bread from the bakery around the corner for his breakfast and headed to the campus. He studied, he ate lunch, he studied some more and took the bus back to the centre of the city to get ready for his daily performance outside Galleria degli Uffizi.
Kris was an easygoing guy, who had no problem making new friends, with both other foreign students and locals. With people who didn’t judge him for his simplicity. They appreciated him for his intelligence, he hoped, and his personality, not for what he was wearing, what his political and religious views were or for whom he loved or did not love. He was free to be whoever he wanted.
Maybe it was the sound of music being played or perhaps the sound of a crowd cheering or just the atmosphere of something exciting happening that drew Adam closer to the mob. At first he couldn’t see who it was, this mysterious entertainer that made his crowd go wild in the Florentine night, but he could, however, hear the reason why the people around him were so ecstatic. It was not only for the skill with which he played his acoustic guitar, but for the soft, beautiful voice he had, that gathered such a crowd, people forming a vague circle on the street, leaving an empty space like a dance floor, inside it.
Adam weaved through the obstructing bodies, trying to avoid knocking down too many people on his way, until finally, he could see the reason for the enthusiasm that was radiating from the crowd.
There was a small, and he really was rather tiny, guy moving around opposite to Adam. He just gaped at the performer for a long while, taking in the scene before him. The guy’s movements were something Adam would’ve described as adorable, but there was more to him than the cute kicking of his feet.
He was good-looking, surely, but also pretty in a way that was rare for men. Adam knew the type of man he always fell for. It was always the pretty type. But the prettiness of this guy was something he had never seen before in anyone else. It was an honest look, special. His eyes were stunning, brown ones and as he sang, they fluttered and closed, like Adam imagined they would when he was in great pleasure. His lips looked soft and rich, both in colour and in shape, like they were longing to be kissed. His hair was short, the cut quite ordinary, but suiting for him.
There was something adorable, yet also something very gracious about him, about his face and how he was built, even about the way he stood while his long fingers stroked the guitar’s strings gently. There was something about that voice and that face that intrigued Adam like nothing else.
He couldn’t even describe the way this man sang, not in a way that would give him the praise that he deserved; it had Adam mesmerized.
Adam soon found himself in the group of people that was clapping their hands enthusiastically to the music, singing along to the covers of the familiar songs. It was hard not to, the guy was obviously talented, his takes on the songs he sang so original and creative that they had Adam grinning from ear to ear at some points, raising his eyebrows at others. He had to give the guy credit, his performance neared perfection.
The amount of people on the corner of the gallery and the piazza was increasing and Adam looked around to watch the crowd bursting into song by the time the chorus of Let It Be started again, some of the younger members of the audience swaying in time with the music, some of the older ones slow dancing on their own spots. It was impossible to resist breaking into smile at the sight.
By the time the mysterious singer started singing Mrs. Robinson there were couples full-on dancing on the makeshift dance floor, encouraged by the enthusiastic clapping and the occasional whistling from the crowd.
Adam could feel his eyes widening as the guy thanked his audience at great length, welcoming them to come and listen to him again the next day, shocked by the words flavoured with a distinct Southern accent. The guy was American. Slowly he walked towards the performer, Kris, as he had introduced himself into the microphone earlier, watching him as he talked to some of the locals. He crouched next to the guitar case on the ground, eyeing the good amount of money on the bottom and adding his own share to it. The CDs resting against the brink of the case caught his eye and he picked one up, turning it over to see the back. It was an independent record, that much was clear, and full of tracks he was sure he had never heard of.
Examining the back of the album, Adam listened to the guy talking to some British, by the sound of their accents, tourists and after a short moment, to a local group of girls in animated Italian that he spoke well, but from what Adam could hear, not perfectly.
He looked up, swearing he could feel someone watching him, right into Kris’ brown eyes and quickly stood up straight. Startled, he asked the price of the album and, barely hearing the singer’s reply as he was too distracted by the small smile playing on his lips, found the correct amount of money and placed it into Kris’ warm hand. His legs were barely listening to what his mind was telling them, turning around slowly and walking away from Kris, the cute Southern guy, who talked nearly perfect Italian. To his own puzzlement, Adam was feeling dizzy, in a strange way he hadn’t experienced in a long, long time.
Finding company for the night was far too easy for him that day, getting the image of that crooked smile and those warm, brown eyes, on the other hand, nearly impossible.
~
Kris wouldn’t say that his life was boring. Maybe he didn’t have too much going on at the time, after all, it was summer and he had the same time off of work as the kids did, but he wouldn’t go as far as to say that his whole life was boring. Except, he couldn’t be more bored. While his friends were travelling and spending time at the beach, he was stuck in one place, spending his summer doing practically nothing. He studied some books, did some research and wrote a few papers, but it was really way too warm to be able to properly concentrate on his studies.
He spent his days mostly walking around the city, which he never grew tired of doing, watching people, the beautiful locals as well as the clueless tourists, reading and eating grapes. It was really fine with him; he was fine with being alone. He wasn’t one of those people who needed people around him at all times. He barely even thought about how his friends were having a good time while he was wandering alone in the record stores of Florence. Really, he was fine.
Adam didn’t have the slightest idea what you were supposed to do as a tourist in Florence. While he did have his guide book with him, he didn’t really feel like going to all the attractions like any other average tourist. Of course, shopping was on the very short to-do-list and once he’d find the shops, he would be good to go. The problem was, he wasn’t sure where he was supposed to look for the said stores.
He started walking down a street that looked rather promising, the mass of people indicating that there had to be at least something interesting somewhere near. Seeing what looked like a bookstore of significant size, he crossed the street carelessly, causing a little chaos while he was at it, making bus drivers honk and shout out from their windows in angry Italian accompanied with a few international hand signs, the messages of which were not lost on him.
Compared to the hotness of the outside world, the air in the store felt cool and refreshing. After a few minutes of looking around it became clear to Adam that he would not find anything to read from the store, as every book they sold was in Italian, but he didn’t mind just wandering around for a while. Kris’ album, which he had put into his laptop the first thing that morning, was playing on his iPod as he found his way upstairs. It was better than he’d expected it to be; the songs were catchy and although the lyrics could’ve been better with a little extra work, they were still pretty damn good. He couldn’t really even complain about the quality of the sound, it was almost at professional level.
As he reached the top of the stairs, Adam looked around and grinned. The music section of the store was impressive and there would be no language barrier to stop him here. Excited as a child in a toy store, he bounced over to the first shelves, examining their content thoroughly, before noticing that he was not alone in the second floor, like he had first thought. As he turned slightly to see the person who had just witnessed his slightly embarrassing burst of enthusiasm, Adam saw the tiny singer from the previous night standing not too far from him, looking curiously at his direction.
Kris, Adam reminded himself of the man’s name again, turned back to the stack of CDs he was going through, but Adam didn’t miss the hint of a smile on his lips. Taking a deep, silent breath, he turned on his heels and walked towards the man slowly until he was next to him, leaving a little space between their hips as he faced the shelves instead of Kris’ side. After a few moments of silence, Kris turned his body slightly so he could see Adam’s face and let out a quiet “hi.”
“Hey,” Adam whispered back, clearing his throat and turning to face the tiny musician. “So… You come here often?” He flashed Kris his most charming smile. Kris was silent for a few seconds before bursting into laughter. By the sound of his laugh, it seemed like Kris was genuinely amused by his cliché of a pick-up line.
“I do, actually. They have the best selection of second hand albums in town.” Kris was still grinning as he said it, shaking his head a little before continuing. “Didn’t I… uhm... I think I saw you last night. At the art museum, Uffizi? I was performing there around ten, eleven.” Kris looked a little shy, shuffling his flip-flop wearing feet, a little awkward, worrying his bottom lip with his teeth, and a whole lot adorable, a sheepish expression taking over his face as he rubbed his neck with his hand. Adam hadn’t expected Kris to notice him last night, in fact, he had been kind of hoping he hadn’t. Lurking around and escaping like he was a thief at the scene of the crime wasn’t exactly the first impression Adam wanted to make.
“I was, yeah. I can’t believe you noticed me there.” Adam wasn’t used to sounding this unassuming and shy. Kris was doing something very odd to him, and he had yet to decide if that was a good or a bad thing.
“Oh, please, how could I not?” Kris replied immediately, his cheeks reddening a bit as he realised what had come out of his mouth. “I mean, you’re not exactly the type of person to be in my regular crowd.”
“Yeah, I guess not, since I’m actually not a teenage girl.”
“The teenagers do love me.” Kris said with a laugh. The short silence that followed wasn’t exactly an uncomfortable one, but Adam was still eager to break it as he wanted to get to know this man before him a little better.
“This is a little straightforward, but are you free now? We could go get a coffee or something.” Adam watched Kris look at him from under his lashes, not a hint of uneasiness on his kind face before Kris answered.
“Yeah, I think I’d like that. Just… I have to pay for these first.” Kris chuckled as he gestured towards the pile of used CDs he had gathered.
As they walked towards the checkout, Adam realised that Kris didn’t even know his name yet. For a second he pondered if giving his last name would be a mistake, if Kris would recognise it (and him) and get awkward, like people so often did, but dismissed his thoughts as Kris, apparently having the same realisation as he had, extended his hand and, unnecessarily, introduced himself as Kris Allen. It was only fair.
“Adam Lambert.” Kris repeated it as if he was tasting the name in his mouth before nodding his approval as they reached the checkout desk.
“If you just go and order a coffee, you’re going to get American coffee. You’re in Italy, there’s no need to drink the same crap they make back home. What you should order is an espresso. Or a caffè macchiato if you’d rather drink your coffee with milk.” Kris had amazing amount of knowledge when it came to coffee. Adam just found it incredibly endearing and amusing, if a little geeky. He also learned that when Kris really got going, he was as talkative as Adam himself. From what he could tell though, it wasn’t going to be a problem, for Kris seemed to have some kind of way to sense when to stop, a skill Adam himself lacked.
Kris had gone on and on about coffee for a good while now, Adam’s confession of not knowing what to get from the café they’d pick for their date fuelling him. Adam didn’t mind as he found it rather entertaining.
“What if I want a cappuccino, though?” Adam interrupted quietly as Kris took a breather after giving him a speech about coffee beans.
“Huh?” Kris turned swiftly to look at him before his mind had time to process Adam’s words. “Oh. So you do know how to order coffee around here. Cappuccino would be totally acceptable, I guess.” Kris offered to order the cappuccinos and cornettos and once his order was ready, he faced Adam once again.
“Did you know that you’re only supposed to drink cappuccino in the morning, though? They do serve it later in the day as well, but drinking it after lunch time is frowned upon.”
No, Adam didn’t know.
“Well, aren’t you the rebel, then.”
Kris’ beaming face made his gut do a little dance.
Kris turned out to be the perfect guy. In addition to being an amazing musician, extremely cute and excruciatingly hot with his toned body, gorgeous brown eyes and a smile that turned heads, he was funny and, despite some of his geeky qualities that were really rather charming, an interesting and wonderful person. Adam learned that he was an art student, this being his fifth year living in Florence, and that he taught arts at a school for American kids during the school year. He learned that Kris had spent his first year in Italy learning the language, working various jobs and having a good time with his friends, travelling around the country.
Kris told him about how he had only started playing in the streets as a dare almost two years ago. He told Adam about how he had enjoyed it so much he’d had to come back the next night and how slowly, but steadily he had started to gather bigger and bigger crowds, how good it felt. Kris’ voice was quiet as he told Adam about his irrational dreams of some day being discovered and having the chance to do what he loved the most for a living. Adam was barely able to stop himself from squirming in his seat at the confession.
It wasn’t like he didn’t want to tell Kris everything about his career, because he did. But the fear of scaring Kris away with the truth about his crazy, complicated life was winning over the need to share everything with him, the need to be completely honest. But leaving out a few details about his life wasn’t lying, was it? Kris had a curious expression on his face when Adam told him about working in the industry, but Adam’s own expression must have stopped him from asking any further questions. Adam didn’t think Kris would be the kind of guy who would take advantage of other people’s careers, but he couldn’t be too careful. He’d tell him eventually, if the need be.
Kris had a remarkable collection of the most adorable expressions. He had the tiniest smile on his face as Adam told him about his childhood and when he laughed his whole face seemed to crinkle up. Adam started to look forward to those unexpected moments that would have Kris throwing his head back, laughing so hard that soon he was wiping his eyes. It was an honest laugh and it sounded beautiful. Adam was rather sure that Kris didn’t even realise himself that he made the stupidest faces at times, but Adam found them charming, which in itself should have had the alarm bells in his head ringing. Stupid didn't usually equal charming in his mind.
But the best one by far was the one that took over Kris’ face as Adam confessed he had yet to go and see the tourist attractions. It was a hilarious mixture of shock, disapproval and confusion. After staring at each other for a moment, stunned on Kris’s part, amused on Adam’s, Kris grabbed Adam’s hand and started walking him towards wherever regular tourists spent their vacations in Florence.
Adam soon found out that the usual, boring tourist stuff wasn’t all that boring when done with Kristopher Allen. Kris had more information about his city than all the guidebooks combined and he had a way to make the facts actually interesting.
The best way to start exploring Florence was apparently to go see a huge ass church. Or Duomo Santa Maria del Fiore like Kris called it. It was beautiful, unnecessarily big and a little plain, but somehow at the same time quite remarkable. But what was even better than the dome itself was the way Kris talked about it. There was an odd sense of admiration and respect in Kris voice. He spoke of the architecture and the few pieces of art in the same tone Adam talked about music. The look on his face was soft and loving, peaceful.
The muscles of their necks ached after a good while of staring at the fresco in the dome.
Kris looked genuinely apologetic and reluctant as he told Adam that he would have to go and run some errands that he couldn’t possibly postpone. Before they went their own ways, Kris invited Adam to listen to his gig again, emphasizing that Adam didn’t have to come, but if he wanted to, Kris wouldn’t mind, before grabbing Adam’s phone and saving his phone number in the contacts.
After being so comfortable and confident for the whole afternoon, Kris started having that shy, unsure look on his face again once it was time for them to say their goodbyes. He smiled a little as he said: “Just give me a call, I’d be more than happy to be your guide for another day.”
Adam leaned in and pecked Kris’ cheek quickly, chastely, making the younger man flush helplessly, before telling him that he would definitely call.
The battle between going and not going went on and on in Adam’s mind for the rest of the evening. There was no denying that he didn’t want to go and see Kris again. But he had already spent the whole day with the guy, talking, laughing and having fun, and he needed a little time to process everything.
He opted to stay in that night, picking up a couple of slices of pizza from the pizzeria nearby for dinner and watching dubbed episodes of American TV shows from the large television in his hotel room. He barely gave the tiny Southern guy any thought. Really.
Kris had got to stop waking up so early every day. He couldn’t help it, even during his time off. Now he could only curse his habits, since being up early meant having to wait longer for possible contact from Adam. He had sworn that he wouldn’t send Adam a text before noon, because who knew how long the man normally slept, or how long he had stayed up, for that matter. Kris had tried to look for Adam in the crowd the night before, but there was no sight of him and even if he had been watching, he never came to speak to Kris. He tried not to read too much into it. After all, they had only just met and Adam had already been there the day before. So what if he had kissed Kris on the cheek, he probably did that with all his friends. There was no need to assume that all of it was more than it really was.
After hours of trying to distract himself with laundry, cleaning and practising new covers for his gigs, he felt his phone vibrating in his pocket.
I’m takin u shoppin 2day ;) Kris read from the screen. He chuckled, taking a deep breath before typing in his reply.
Oh really? Shouldn’t it go the other way around? Placing the phone on the sink, Kris emptied the washing machine once again, beaming despite himself. Adam took his time replying, but when the reply finally came, the buzzing sound coming from the phone startled Kris, making him jump a little, flailing his hands.
No way am I gonna let u shop 4 me. No offense. :p Kris laughed out loud and slipped into the shower.
Turned out that it really was Adam taking Kris shopping and not the other way around. Kris only showed him where to find the stores and then found himself being dragged by the hand to the general direction of where he had been pointing only a few seconds earlier.
“Is there anything in your closet that isn’t plaid?” Adam teased him as they stepped inside the third shop of the day.
“Yes. My jeans. But only because they don't make jeans in plaid.” Kris answered, making Adam laugh. The way he tilted his head back was absolutely gorgeous and made Kris want to run his tongue over the veins on his neck. Shaking his head, Kris took his eyes off of Adam’s neck and looked around the store.
Apparently shopping for tiny Southern boys was Adam’s idea of a good time. Kris had never realised what kind of a serious business buying clothes could be. There were colours and fabrics and accessories to consider and apparently buying a pile of plain, white t-shirts just wasn’t acceptable.
“I’m not saying that you can’t buy yourself white t-shirts. It’s just… you could mix it up a bit. Go crazy and buy a t-shirt with some kind of a print in it.” Adam showed him a green t-shirt with a lightning bolt printed on it. Kris didn’t mind the teasing tone of his voice, it made him feel at ease. If it weren’t for the bantering, he would've probably concentrated on thinking how divinely hot and beautiful this man asking his shoe size was. No good could ever come out of that.
“You really like shopping, don’t you?” Kris sighed as they sat down to have lunch after an exhausting round of running from shop to shop, only getting a wide grin from Adam as a response. The amount of bags they were already carrying was alarming. He really couldn’t even afford all the things he had somehow ended up purchasing under Adam’s watchful eye. Adam, on the other hand, didn’t seem to have any problem using his credit cards to buy more stuff than he could possibly need. He must be good at whatever it is he does, Kris thought. And he must be paid pretty damn well, too.
Kris was curious about what it was that Adam actually did. He had dropped the subject out of politeness, but that didn’t mean he didn’t want to know. He was dying to know. There really wasn’t any ulterior motive behind it, either. Kris was sure that there were people out there who would jump up and down in pure joy if the opportunity to use someone else’s career to get ahead presented itself, but he was rather sure that if Adam had so much as offered Kris a chance to do something like that, he would’ve blushed and declined. Taking advantage like that just wasn’t for him.
The only reason he wanted Adam to spill some details was just so he could talk about it with him. Maybe get a few tips, perhaps a couple of dos and don’ts of the business, but that was all. Instead of voicing his thoughts, though, Kris pushed them somewhere safe in the back of his mind and leaned forward to discuss the menu with Adam.
Convincing Adam to order wine for them in Italian wasn’t hard. He refused to order the meals that, according to him, had names too complicated for his mouth. Kris repeated the words Adam was supposed to say a couple of times, Adam mimicking the pronunciation to the best of his abilities. He was sure he’d sound ridiculous saying it and told as much to Kris.
“But it’s the thought that counts. It makes all the difference in the world that you are at least trying and coming out of your comfort zone. You’ll see.” Kris assured him with a smile and as their waiter came around, Adam repeated the words “mezzo litro vino rosso della casa” to him. Kris was right, the waiter’s broad smile was genuinely delighted and made any possible embarrassment on Adam’s side totally worth it. The complimenting “perfetto” he got as a response was more than enough to put a matching, wide smile to Adam’s face.
They didn’t mean to spend another day together, but somehow their post-lunch shopping round stretched into a pre-dinner shopping round, after which they once again found themselves sitting on the opposite sides of a small table, both of them making easy conversation and having a hard time taking their eyes off of the other.
Adam knew he probably shouldn’t feel so at ease with Kris, after knowing each other only for two days, for fuck’s sake. But the thing was, he couldn’t remember the last time he had met someone like this, someone who made him feel like he felt around Kris, confident, beautiful, and horny. Kris was hot, that much was clear. But it was the combination of that and Kris having the personality that he did that turned Adam on like nothing else. It was overwhelming and too soon and too much and too everything and yet he craved more; More conversation, more laughing, more geeky facts about coffee, more shopping tiny clothes for this miniature man and just more Kris. A hell of a lot more, if it was up to Adam.
~
“Are you gonna invite me back up to your place?” Adam asked, smiling lazily. The smile on Kris' face was so wide that Adam was afraid his facial muscles would start hurting soon, but he couldn’t really complain, for it made Kris look beautiful, more so than he would probably ever understand himself. All he wanted was to reach his hand to touch the wrinkles that the smile created around Kris’ eyes, but he kept his hands to himself.
The steady shake of head Kris offered him as a reply didn’t match the killer smile on his face. There was still a chance, a tiny glitter of hope.
“Why not?” Adam watched Kris’ wide smile change into something much more mysterious, but it was still there, now more of a smirk than anything else.
“Maybe I want you to chase me for a little while longer.” Kris said slowly, his voice low and his lips barely moving, and every lingering word was emphasised by a small step forward until Kris was standing right before Adam, too close for comfort, as Adam was wearing a very tight pair of jeans that wouldn’t leave much to imagination if Kris decided to stand there for even a little while longer.
Adam could feel the warm breath on his mouth and the soft lips ghosting on his, touching ever so slightly as Kris’ mouth formed the words to wish him goodnight. Adam could see the flash of that mysterious smile again just before the short man turned to walk up the steps leading to his apartment building.
Kris looked at the tall man from over his shoulder and Adam was sure had it been any other guy looking at him like that, he’d suppressed the dreamy smile and placed it with something much sexier, much more seductive, but, for the first time in his life, he didn’t feel the need to hide his imperfections.
Adam laughed, incredulous and amused. No one, no one, had ever made Adam Lambert chase them. No-one had ever made him feel as hungry as he was now.
~
Kris needed time to think.
This thing they were doing, whatever it was (as they had merely shopped and eaten and done touristy things together), was completely crazy. Adam was in Florence for a relaxing vacation, this much Kris knew even if they hadn’t discussed the details of why Adam had come or how long he was planning on staying. Adam hadn’t come to Italy to stay and Kris wasn’t in a hurry to move back to the States permanently, either. That equation only resulted in them spending a couple of, no doubt extraordinary, weeks together.
Kris wasn’t sure if that would be something he was interested in.
Adam was gorgeous. He was absolutely gorgeous and totally out of Kris’ league and Kris had a hard time seeing them working on any level in any other scenario than the one they were in right now. Maybe Kris was enough to keep him satisfied, to fill some kind of void inside of Adam with his music and his easy humour here in Florence where there wasn’t really anything else on offer. But what would happen if they were to try this thing of theirs somewhere out of Florence? What if somehow this became something serious and beautiful? What if Adam took him to Los Angeles only to realize that there was no way he would ever fit in his life? Kris couldn’t see Adam in a world full of small, plaid wearing men. He saw Adam in a world full of beautiful people with tattoos and dyed hair and glitter. And somehow that world only included people who were over six feet tall.
Kris was determined to not let himself get any deeper into this situation than he already was. So what if Adam had the most delicious looking lips he had ever seen, they were full and had freckles on them, and hair that was just begging Kris to pull on it so the pale skin of Adam’s throat would be revealed. He would get over him eventually and forget about all those things as well as Adam’s skinny legs and perfect ass that Kris might have been subtly checking out while Adam had strutted down Via Roma, carrying the paper shopping bags like that was what he’d been born to do. Really, he would survive. If he eliminated the chance of falling, he would survive. Kris had a plan, an excellent one that would get him out of this thing in no time.
If only it wasn’t for the text messages Adam sent him, Kris was fairly sure he could’ve carried out with it, too.
“I’m not really the clubbing kind of guy, you know,” Kris confessed, his eyes curious as he watched Adam picking an outfit for him. Adam himself was already dressed in his fabulous clubbing clothes, the ones he sent Kris pictures of, asking his opinion on them (as if he would actually have one), after the one where he was shirtless, trying to decide what to wear. Kris doubted Adam’s clothes were really very suitable for the type of climate they were in. Adam would probably get very hot under all those layers, but Kris couldn’t say that he would exactly mind Adam all hot and bothered.
“Yeah, I figured.” Adam chuckled. He turned around, presenting the outfit he had picked for Kris out of the piles of clothes they had bought and Adam had insisted Kris would take with him so Adam could choose him the perfect clothes to wear for the night. Kris’ gaze travelled from Adam’s glowing face to the grey t-shirt that looked very tight fitting before moving on to the black jeans that looked like they would fit even tighter than the t-shirt.
“We’ll just check out the scene and maybe drink something and dance a little and if it isn’t your thing, we can always leave.” Adam’s voice was soft, assuring and for a moment it looked like he was leaning in for a kiss, or maybe just to lift his fingers to brush Kris’ cheeks, but he prevented himself from doing exactly that before the signs were really even there. Instead, he handed the clothes over to Kris and excused himself to go get himself ready in the bathroom.
As he was applying the dark eye shadow, Adam realized that Kris had yet to see him like this, full-out glamorous, totally made-up and every strand of his hair styled to perfection. During the past few days Adam had left his make-up bag alone, only wearing a touch of black eyeliner as he left his hotel room in the morning and he hadn’t really bothered doing anything much to his hair, just letting it fall down on his face.
Now as he stood there, looking at his reflection in the mirror, he knew that he looked better than ever. He had taken his time to perfect his eye make-up, the foundation took care of hiding his freckles and the hairspray kept his do in place. Everything was as good as it would get. But maybe all of this wasn’t Kris’ thing. He didn’t exactly seem like the type of person to appreciate the way Adam had smudged his eyeliner. In fact, he seemed more like the type who had never even seen a man wearing make-up.
He prepared himself for the worst, giving himself one final look through the mirror.
Once Adam emerged from the bathroom, Kris was clothed in the outfit he had chosen and looking, unsurprisingly, hot. Adam smiled a little at the sight, watching as Kris turned his head to look at him and his lungs forgetting how to breathe as the brown eyes widened alarmingly.
“Holy shit” Kris exclaimed, far more loudly than he had expected or intended, and the smile that had graced Adam’s features fell, fast. He was pretty sure that was the first time he’d heard Kris curse. That couldn’t be a good sign.
“You look…” Kris started, searching for words.
Kinda good? Kinda gross? Like a woman? Adam’s mind was panicking as he looked expectantly at Kris’ rather shocked face, before Kris gasped out, “gorgeous.”
Kris’ ears were already alarmingly red as the rest of his face started to blush, but Adam had the smile back on his face before Kris had even finished. He probably looked like a total idiot, but he couldn’t help it; that wasn’t at all the reaction he had expected.
It really wasn’t Kris’ scene. He had never even heard of the club, let alone been inside, although it was on a street Kris regularly walked down as it was near his usual playing spot at Uffizi. The confident and determined way Adam walked inside the club was telling, there was no doubt he had been there before. Kris had no desire to think about Adam’s adventures in night clubs any further than that.
They stopped at the bar, Adam swaying a bit to the music as they waited for their turn. He seemed to have no problem ordering drinks for both of them, even though he had seemed almost shy getting them the wine only a day ago. Adam finished his Martini quickly and watched as Kris sipped his beer purposely slow, not so subtly trying to put off the inevitable; dancing in public.
Kris didn’t dance. He could barely do the swaying-a-little-in-your-own-spot-because-of-the-lack-of-space dancing without either stomping on someone’s toes or somehow ending up losing his own balance and knocking down the people around him. Okay, maybe that was the only time and he had been really drunk, but he was still no dancer.
Adam, on the other hand, looked like he was born to dance. Adam was born to do many, many things, it seemed. How very Renaissance of him, Kris thought absentmindedly. Even now he was doing a little dance of his own, his body moving to its own accord, while his gaze never left Kris’ face. Adam didn’t hurry Kris, didn’t say anything at all. After a while, the stare started to make Kris a little uncomfortable and he let his eyes scan the spacious room they were in instead of looking back at the man, whose gaze was still burning his skin. The fingers that came into contact with his left hip a moment later made him direct his eyes right back to Adam, though. The touch was soft, almost innocent, but somehow inviting when combined with the lazy smirk on Adam’s lips.
Kris downed the rest of his beer swiftly; this was as ready as he would get. The smirk grew into a full-on grin as Adam’s fingers left his side to take Kris’ hand in his.
The music got louder as they neared the packed dance floor. Kris couldn’t recognise the song, but to him all dance tracks sounded just about the same with a heavy beat and one of those female superstars singing seductive, meaningless lyrics. But it wasn’t like Kris was here to hear any inspirational music, anyway. He was here to watch Adam sashay to the dance floor like he owned the place, to witness the sexy sway of his hips and most of all, to see the hunger in his eyes as he finally turned to face Kris when they found themselves squeezed together tight by the surrounding crowd. He was the reason for that fire in those beautiful blue eyes. That was something that didn’t quite compute in Kris’ mind. But he wasn’t going to complain about a thing, not with the way Adam’s hands, gripping his hips again, brought them even closer together.
For a moment they just stood there, looking each other in the eye and letting the people dancing around them sway them a bit. But Adam couldn’t stay still for long and soon he was doing something very sinful with his own hips, making Kris’ breath catch in his throat. It took a second for Kris to get into it, to relax in Adam’s strong arms, but once he did, he actually started enjoying himself.
The song changed into something vaguely familiar and with it, Adam’s hands started travelling from their spot on Kris’ sides. It was subtle - well, as subtle as it could possibly be with Adam - at first, but soon his hands were lower and lower, teasing and burning and feeling deliciously good. Kris had trouble breathing. This was the best kind of torture possible, he was sure. His own hands grew bolder, travelling across Adam’s upper body.
Adam lowered his head, nuzzling the side of Kris head gently before tilting his head so his soft lips came to contact with Kris’ skin. The wet mouth moved down Kris’ jaw line, not really kissing, just sliding over it, getting acquainted with the soft skin. Adam’s hot breath on his jaw made Kris shiver with anticipation.
“Adam…” Kris heard himself whisper, not really sure what it was he wanted to say. But before he could mutter out whatever incomprehensible thought he was about to share, Adam’s lips were on his, shutting him up effectively. It was nothing like a first kiss should be. There was nothing tentative or shy about the way Adam kissed, he wasn’t asking for permission; he had no doubts about Kris wanting this as bad as he did.
There was no point in not giving Adam back just as much as he was giving, so Kris kissed him back with equal force, need and desire, moving his lips against Adam’s, loving the feel of Adam’s tongue exploring his mouth.
"So… Your place or mine?" Kris heard Adam whisper right into his ear as they stumbled out of the club and onto the street. The chilly night air greeted them, making Kris regret not taking a proper jacket with him.
He thought about the way they'd kissed inside, the feeling of Adam's hands doing what they were probably the best at over his erection, trapped inside the pants that were really way too tight, and the look in Adam's eyes as they'd continued their dance, the shameless foreplay they displayed, got lost into. It was something he hadn't experienced in a long, long time. And it scared him shitless.
"I don't think… that we should. You know." Kris blurted out. Kristopher Neil Allen, what the heck do you think you’re doing? Just get in his pants, already. Or let him get into yours, his mind scolded him and he frowned slightly. He looked up at Adam, expecting to see shock, anger or at least annoyance shadowing his beautiful features, but there was no sign of any of that.
"Oh." The shock that wasn't visible on Adam's face was somewhat detectable in his voice. The only response that Kris could think of was to apologize.
Suddenly there was a large hand cupping the right side of his face and two beautiful, slightly concerned eyes gazing into his. Adam's voice was soft as he spoke again.
"Hey, don't say you're sorry. It's… I understand. Okay, actually, I don't quite understand, since I think this is what we're been working towards for days, or then I'm even stupider than I thought, but it's okay. There's no need to be sorry, okay?"
Oh, damnit. See what you did there, Kristopher, you little prude. Kris tried to silence the little voice in his head as he nodded silently. Adam was certainly not the stupid one here.
"I'll walk you to your hotel."
~
PART II ~ MASTER POST ~ ART ~