fic: practicing the words
Title: practicing the words
Alternately: five times kris and adam's friends were totally not okay, kind of jealous of their relationship.
Fandom: American Idol RPF
Rating: PG-13
Pairings: Adam/Kris
Word Count: ~7,800
Summary: They're kind of disgustingly cute, aren't they? (Outside POV. High school AU.)
A/N: Thank you for your lovely comments, as always. <3 I'm so sorry it's been so long. My brain insisted that I just had to post this one next, but said brain refused to cooperate when I spent the last two weeks trying to actually write it. /o\ I struggled a lot, and I think it shows. It looked so much better in my head, but I don't think it quite translated on the page. I hope you guys still like it, though!
Good news is, the next two installments are 90% written, and I'll be posting them in a more timely manner, I promise. I'm really excited about them too, and I can't wait for you guys to read them. :) In the meantime, here you go!
This is for the kissbingo prompt: face: lips.
Master post of previous installments: here
one
The absolute last thing Danielle wants to do is to begrudge her friends anything. And she doesn't, not ever. Especially not Adam, who has waited for this forever; who, through most of puberty, insisted that he would never find a boy who'd love his ridiculous, freckly ass. He'd made her promise to let him live in her basement when she gets married off to - in his words - "another breeder". He'd promised fashion police and babysitting duties, grimaced at the mention of diapers, but perked up at the suggestion of a walk-in closet.
There'd been a perpetual sadness in his eyes when their group of friends started dating right around middle school. Danielle had to talk him into going through with his first hookup, and even when he finally started dressing up the way he wanted to and had his pick of boys, she still caught that look on him sometimes, mixed with more than a little frustration and longing. Adam was just born to fall in love.
And then came Kris. And even if they were all of sixteen, squinting through the haze of hormones and trying to stagger through life without falling down too many times, Danielle saw something else. This time around, it was different. Something more.
It was a little surprising, sure. They'd all known each other since kindergarten and they formed their little clique in middle school; all the girls harbored a crush on Kris at different points in time and Kris was totally chill about it, as casual as he was about everything else (even his coming out to them at a sleepover at the beginning of ninth grade was "totally not a big deal, guys, seriously"). He and Adam were just as close as everyone, and that was just that, but one day Adam started grinning at his phone like a complete idiot, acting all twirly and excited, like he was about to burst into song, going through the day like he's high ("on life, Dani," he'd say).
And Kris - well, Kris was exactly the same, but in hindsight, Danielle realized that he spent those early days with a smug smile painted on his face.
After a couple weeks of Adam gazing into the middle distance with a smile that threatened to split his face, Adam and Kris spilled drinks on her pants, started holding hands where everyone can see, and one morning, she took one look at Adam and just knew.
And here she is now, almost a year later, standing in front of her locker on a Thursday afternoon. Kris is next to her, shuffling his feet, eyes darting every which way.
"You sure it's okay, Dani? It's totally fine if --"
Danielle smiles at him, pinching his cheek. "Stop. I'll ask. I'll definitely even wheedle for you a little bit, pull the daughter card. I'll text you as soon as I get an answer."
Kris's face smooths into a grin, and Danielle takes a moment to appreciate just how unconsciously gorgeous he is. "Thank you so much. You have no idea how long I've been thinking of the perfect gift. This idea kept coming back to me, but I couldn't figure out how to make it work. Just - thank you."
It's not surprising. Kris's guitar has been his fifth limb since they were thirteen, and she knew from the boys that Kris had recently begun to write songs, too. She also knew Alisan had snooped on Adam's iPod and saw "Kris Allen" listed as an artist. Adam refused to let her see song titles, let alone listen to any of them, but it's easy to connect the dots. Danielle's dad is best friends with the guy who owns the only studio in town - she's helped make demos for a bunch of outgoing seniors over the years, and of course she's going to try to pull some strings to help her best friend's boyfriend give him the best anniversary gift ever.
Adam is going to die.
Danielle smiles at Kris, giving herself a handful of seconds to just wallow in her perpetual singlehood. Being unattached doesn't usually bother her, and moments like this are rare, but when they come along, she indulges herself. This time, it takes a full minute - how can it not, in the face of Kris Allen's sheer earnestness? She's usually a bigger person than this - envy has never been and never will be her thing. But. Kris's face.
She shakes herself out of the momentary melancholy and flicks her locker shut, eyes widening when she sees Adam hovering just beyond Kris's shoulder. Adam winks at her then covers Kris's eyes with his hands.
Kris starts in surprise, then his mouth curls into a crooked grin and he immediately leans back, smiling even wider when Adam's arms wind around his waist. They've done this in front of her a hundred times, but it still catches her off guard, seeing just how easy it is between the two of them.
"Hey, stranger," Kris says.
Adam grins and kisses the side of his head. "What are you doing all the way here?"
"To see you," Kris says, quirking a smile at Danielle. "Then I helped Dani put some stuff in her locker, and we got to talking."
Adam digs his chin on Kris's shoulder and grins at her. "Hi, Dani girl."
"Hey, Bubbles."
Danielle just laughs when Adam rolls his eyes. "Please don't."
"Aww, but it's cute," Kris says as he reaches up to touch the streak of blue in Adam's hair.
"It's not cute, it's fierce," Adam insists as he straightens up, putting his hands on Kris's shoulders and pushing him into the row of lockers.
Kris's eyes flash over to her, alarmed. "Um."
She just rolls her eyes. They're all used to the two of them losing track of everything else when they're together. She certainly can't blame them - if her boyfriend was even half as good looking as either one of them, she'd have trouble keeping even an inch of distance between them. Danielle learned her lesson on the very first movie night post-get together - she loves Adam more than anything, but she really doesn't need to see his tongue in his boyfriend's mouth.
Danielle - and Kris too, it seems - fully expects some macking to occur right in front of her face, and it's fine, it's no big deal. But Adam tugs down the arm of his jacket instead, exposing his wrist and pressing it on Kris's forehead. Kris's shoulders sag, and he smiles at her helplessly. "He keeps doing this," Kris says to her, a staggering amount of fondness laced in his voice. "Adam, stop."
Adam doesn't. His thumbs pull at Kris's cheeks, exposing the insides of Kris's eyelids. Then Adam's fingers start pressing down the side of Kris's neck. Kris huffs and grabs Adam's hands. "That's enough, Dr. Lambert."
Adam rolls his eyes, looking like he's about to let out a sharp retort, but he stands down. Kris is the only person who can get away with ordering him around. "Okay, okay."
Kris smiles and tangles their fingers together. "I haven't felt sick all week. I'm really fine now, I promise."
"Okay," Adam says again, soft, before leaning down to press a kiss on Kris's forehead.
Danielle's about to slink away to leave them their privacy, her cheeks burning at being witness to such a sweet, quiet moment, but then Adam's draped over her shoulder, babbling in her ear. "It's new show day!" he cries as he tugs her to the auditorium. She lets herself get steered down the hall and to the right. Out of the corner of her eye, she can see Adam's hand still linked with Kris's as he drags him with them.
"Our last one, can you believe it?" Danielle says. "And God, I already know Macy's going to make my life hell from now until opening night. Dance captains are such a pain in the ass."
"Oh come on, it won't be so bad," Adam says, breezy. "You'll have me to bitch to, at least."
"Never leave me," she answers, tipping her forehead on his shoulder.
Adam just laughs. "Never."
---
They're a hallway away from the auditorium when Adam suddenly stops in his tracks. "Shit!"
"What?"
"We're singing today - shit, I forgot to pass by the cafeteria to get water," Adam frowns, looking back the way they came, probably calculating the time it'll take for him to go all the way there and back. He'll be cutting it close.
Kris just makes a little noise, smiling has he reaches into his duffel bag and pulls out two unopened bottles of water. "You always forget," he says, handing them one each. "You take lukewarm too, right, Dani?"
Danielle just nods at him dumbly - there's no way Kris could have known that - and she glances up at Adam, whose face has gone all soft and open, shaking his head in disbelief. "You..."
Kris's smile just widens and he kisses the back of Adam's hand. "I know," he says, tugging them forward. "C'mon, I know Mr. D. gets pissy when principals are late."
---
When they reach the theater doors, Danielle smoothly ducks from under Adam's arm and darts forward. "Bye, Kris," she grins. "I'll save you a seat, Bubbles."
She pushes the door open and walks in, eyeing a couple of free seats next to Allison. "Hey, Blossom," she greets her with a smile. They make bets on how long it'll take for Macy to pout at them, promising they'll hold each other back from punching her in the face in the eventuality of annoyance levels going through the roof.
Adam slides in next to her just as Mr. D. emerges from backstage.
"Impeccable timing as always," Danielle says under her breath.
"Oh God, I would never hear the end of it," Adam whispers back, and he's right. Mr. D. is a huge stickler for rules and he holds a mean grudge. "It's just. I had to take my time. Kris really likes my new lip gloss."
Danielle snorts. "Uh huh."
They keep their eyes trained up front and pretend to listen - it's just Mr. D.'s annual pep talk, they really aren't missing anything. "And I guess he can still smell my perfume?"
Danielle leans a little to the side and takes a whiff of his shoulder. "Little bit, yeah."
Adam clears his throat. "Yeah, it makes him a little, uh, frisky."
Danielle can't help but duck her head and she tries really hard to keep her giggles as inaudible as she can, hoping her hair's covering her laughing face. "Stop," she says, elbowing Adam's side.
"What's so funny?" Allison hisses.
She's overcome with another wave of giggles as she vaguely sees Adam cover his face and lean his head on her shoulder. "Stop, oh my God," Adam wheezes. "It wasn't supposed to be funny."
Thankfully, Mr. D. makes them get up for vocal exercises then, and they don't get in trouble for their little giggle fit. They try their best not to look each other in the eye after that though, to prevent another wave of laughter neither of them can help.
Two hours later, throat pleasantly sore and feeling the burst of hope and optimism the first day of rehearsal always makes her feel, Danielle looks up from their huddle at the piano. Mr. D.'s clapping his hands, ushering them out of the auditorium, saying something about costumes and shoes.
Adam whizzes past her, dropping a quick kiss on her cheek and an "I'll be on tonight" in her ear, and next thing she knows, Kris has appeared beside him, hands curled comfortably around Adam's waist, laughing at something he said. She watches them walk out of the theater, a fond grin tugging on her lips.
"They're kind of disgustingly cute, aren't they?" Allison says, smile probably matching hers.
"Yeah, they really are."
two
It's Allison's first real party and Kris is being so annoyingly protective.
It's not like she doesn't know that she has, like, a dozen older brothers scattered all around the house, watching her alcohol intake, ready to beat up any guy who stands even just a little too close - Ryland had already pulled Immerman away and psssh, like she would even go for that dude - it's all a total drag. But Kris isn't even trying to be subtle about it. (Kris is never really subtle about anything.) He'd stolen two shots of tequila right from under her nose, and made her put on a jacket to cover her really awesome outfit. It took her and Scarlett three weeks to find the totally badass corset top, but Kris just stood there and glared until she relented. She'd have maimed him hours ago if he wasn't so cute.
So the night is pretty much nothing like she expected it to be, other than the stereotypical group of drunk football players crowded in the garden. And really, it's fine that she's just hanging around with Alisan and Megan, scoping out cute boys just like any day of the week. They let her take sips of their vodka crans so it's a little bit better.
The two other girls are giggling about Will Something-or-other's shoe size when something across the room catches Allison's eye.
A few juniors are sitting around the coffee table with a pack of cards. Kris finally left her alone for what looks like a poker game - which is just dumb, because there's no way Kris can play that game properly, what with his face and all, but maybe he likes to practice? They've been at it for a while, playing and razzing each other, a couple of them getting drunker and drunker by the minute.
Adam's sitting on the floor behind Kris, all curled up around him like a little koala bear. It doesn't at all look comfortable, but Adam's eyes are closed, face happily hidden in Kris's neck, and it looks like he'd fallen asleep, wow.
Allison asked him once how he could always twist himself around to drape over someone so much smaller than him - "seriously Adam, don't you get cramps?" - but Adam just smiled at her, crazy and bright and blinding. And remembering that look on Adam's face, that happy smile, seeing them wrapped around each other like that so many times, and seeing them now, Kris's careful movements so he won't disturb Adam, perfectly happy to be crowded in and bear his weight - it makes Allison ache, a little bit. Her friends date all the time, and she's caught pretty much all of them in compromising positions. She only ever has to raise her eyebrow at Andrew to make him duck his head and blush; and Brad had changed her views on peanut butter back when she was barely a teenager. But it's different with Adam and Kris. It always has been. She certainly wasn't expecting it, and while she loved playing matchmaker, they were never on her list, but as she saw them together more and more, it was like, well of course. Of course they're completely perfect for each other, silly and sweet and scarily serious as they are.
There's a little scuffle on the table - the guys are horsing around, Matt has Anoop in a headlock, and a couple other dudes Allison doesn't know were full-on wrestling on the floor, the rest of the table laughing hysterically. Kris is the only one not going completely nuts, but turning red from having to keep from being too loud. The other guys more than make up for it though, so Adam wakes up nevertheless, looking bleary-eyed and exhausted. He squints around the table for a few seconds before yawning hugely and cuddling closer to Kris, settling back in.
Kris reaches up to pat Adam's hair, twists his neck when Adam kind of head-butts him, and they kiss. Adam's smile is soft and sleepy, and he kisses Kris's shoulder before going back to his little nap.
They're all still so young, and she's having fun, she loves her life and she's not even remotely ready to get into a serious relationship. But they are, they're so good together, and getting this glimpse of what it could be like someday, maybe, hopefully - sometimes it's a little too much. Especially now, this late at night, and she's surrounded by people her age and she can't quite imagine finding it with any of them, not even close. Allison looks away from the coffee table and the rabble-rousing boys, heart a little heavy, a new and strange kind of loneliness pulling at her. She curls an arm around Megan's waist and cuddles up, shutting her eyes for a long minute.
three
The day has been long, and tedious, and irritating, and Anoop can feel a tension headache building behind his eyes. This is the English project from hell, and for a fleeting second he wishes he could just quit school and pile him and his friends into a van and drive all across the country to play music. They'd drink and toke up and play and sing, god, he wants to sing.
But this is real life, and he knows education is important even if he doesn't think he's ever been taught anything useful.
He looks up and sees Kris slumped forward on the coffee table, rubbing his eyes under his glasses. Anoop sighs. "Let's take a couple minutes?"
Kris smiles at him, sheepish. "Yeah? You wanna head into the kitchen for a snack? We have leftover pie."
Three straight hours of mind-numbing work - they deserve a break. "Hell yeah. Lead the way."
Kris's smile widens, suddenly a lot more bright and easy. "Awesome. My mom's pie will change your life, everyone says so."
Anoop is surprised at Kris's complete lack of surprise to find Adam sitting at the kitchen table, chatting up a storm with Kris's mom. Anoop just smiles at them both and takes a seat, while Adam pulls up a chair right against his and Kris collapses on it and on him.
"Hard at work?" Adam asks as he rubs Kris's back.
Kris's eyes are shut, like he's blocking the room out, so Anoop answers for them both. "I want to poke my eyeballs out with this fork."
Adam grimaces in sympathy. "Yeah, sounds about right. I don't know why Mrs. J. insists on torturing all the seniors this way. How far along are you?"
"Getting ready to wrap it up, actually. A couple hours of work left." Anoop feels himself perk up at the smell of warm apple pie filling the room.
"Here you go, boys," Mrs. Allen says as she puts down half of a pie and a bowl of vanilla ice cream. "This'll re-energize you and you'll finish that project of yours in no time."
Anoop smiles at her, grateful beyond words and sudddenly starving. "Thank you, Mrs. Allen. I hear your apple pie will change my life."
She laughs and squeezes his shoulder. "I see my son has been bragging. Eat up, no shyness is allowed in my kitchen."
"It looks amazing."
Adam has enthusiastically plated a large slice and heaped it with ice cream. Kris is draped over his back now, chin on Adam's shoulder. Anoop focuses on his own serving, taking a huge bite and groaning at the burst of heaven in his mouth.
"Holy shit, Kris. You weren't kidding. This is fantastic," Anoop gushes when he finishes chewing.
Kris snorts, "I know, right." And when Anoop looks up, Kris is grinning, seemingly recovered and completely reanimated, fork in hand, trying to feed Adam a huge bite.
---
They go back into the living room much too quickly for Anoop's taste - he resolves to finish the paper in the next two hours, or else they'll be driven even crazier. Kris and Anoop take the places they just left on either side of the coffee table, and Adam settles on the couch, his knee touching Kris's shoulder.
Kris frowns at his laptop for a couple seconds and turns to Anoop. "Can you look this over? I wrote, like, three pages on the nature versus nurture stuff, but I can't tell anymore if I hit all our points or if I just padded it with bull."
"Sure, man," Anoop answers, pulling Kris's laptop closer. "You could finish up the metaphor stuff? And after that, it's conclusions."
Anoop clicks on the trackpad, unused to handling something that isn't an Apple product, and starts in surprise when the word processor window minimizes and he's brought to Kris's desktop. The minimal clutter of icons off to the side barely registers with Anoop - all he sees is the wallpaper. It's a picture of Kris and Adam wedged to the corner of a couch, Kris leaning on the arm and Adam lying half on top of him. Adam's mouth is laughing, open, while Kris's eyes are closed, lips pressing a grin into Adam's forehead. Allison and Cassidy are sitting next to them, mouths open with laughter as well. It was probably taken while their group was hanging out, one quick moment frozen in time.
"Awesome," Kris says as he pulls on the pile of notes they've been sharing and passing between each other for two weeks. Anoop gets his bearings and clicks back to Kris's "LITPAPERFROMHELL.doc" file.
It's quiet for a few minutes, and Anoop makes a few edits on Kris's opening paragraph, reading and nodding along. When Kris breaks the silence to let out a little cough, Anoop lifts his head and pauses for a few seconds to just look.
Adam has shifted forward a little bit, his left hand petting Kris's hair while he types with his right. Kris is slumped sideways, his head resting on Adam's knee as he shuffles through the crumpled pages of their draft. A handful of seconds later, Kris kisses Adam's knee and lifts his left arm so he can tangle his fingers with Adam's, their hands resting on Kris's left shoulder. Anoop thinks it must be uncomfortable, flexing his arm like that just to hold hands with his boyfriend, but Kris doesn't seem to mind at all, doesn't even look like he noticed what he just did, and just keeps reading. They both look like they're used to handling schoolwork one-handed, and Anoop feels a sudden pang in his chest.
Anoop hasn't had a girlfriend since Becky in the eighth grade, and that barely counts - they just sat together and shared lunch every day; he walked her home sometimes and held her hand whenever he managed to gather up the courage. All through high school, it'd been easy to walk through hallways and parties full of couples making out; intellectually he knew it was just hormones going overdrive, and he didn't feel like he was missing all that much. But this, Kris and Adam's almost unnerving amount of ease in their domesticity, this is the kind of thing he sees in his parents and older cousins, never people his own age. Anoop has known both of them for years, has seen them walk down the hall holding hands or whatever countless times, but he usually runs with a different crowd, and he's never spent this kind of time with them.
"Baby, Cale's asking if you're still on for tomorrow afternoon," Adam's voice suddenly cuts through the quiet and interrupts Anoop's thoughts.
"Yeah, unless Ryland cancels," Kris answers without looking up. "Why didn't he text me?"
Adam shrugs. "Dunno, guess it was easier to ask in chat?"
Kris hmms absently and continues to read, not even flinching when Adam lets go of his left hand and blindly taps on his shoulder until Kris replaces it with his right. It's like a bizarre kind of telepathy, and Anoop looks away before he gets caught staring. So he focuses on his work, diligently reading and editing, but he can't help glancing back up a few more times, whenever he glimpses a flash of movement in front of him. There's Kris letting go of Adam's hand to take Anoop's laptop and start typing - they shift around until Kris is sitting snug between Adam's legs. There's Adam laughing loudly at something and Kris looking up at him with a grin. There's Adam setting his laptop aside and massaging Kris's shoulders. It's all so adorably sweet, and Anoop has never imagined he would think those words about things that aren't babies and small animals.
"This section is great, Kris," Anoop says after he looks it over one last time. "I'll type up the conclusions - I don't think it'll be more than a page long."
Kris's smile is tired, but relieved. "Oh my god, finally. Yeah, sure, I'm almost done with this too. Don't forget to say that thing about the dinosaurs."
Adam snorts at that. "Wait, what? Dinosaurs?"
Kris nods. "Uh huh. It's an awesome metaphor we came up with, Mrs. J. should give as an A just for that."
"A dinosaur metaphor for comparative literature? Oooookay then," Adam says, winking at Anoop and ruffling Kris's hair.
It's like he gets a second wind, because suddenly words start flowing out of Anoop's fingertips, complex sentences forming quickly in his mind and he gets them down on the page immediately, his hands flying on Kris's keyboard. He fills a page and a half in record time. The next time he looks up, Kris is curled on the couch, eyes closed and head resting on Adam's lap. Adam smiles at him, kind and a little embarrassed. "You were on a roll, he didn't want to interrupt. Dozed off a couple minutes ago."
"M'awake," Kris mumbles, eyes slitting open as he sits up. Adam steadies Kris with his hands and pulls until Kris slumps against him, yawning, glasses askew on his face.
"It's okay, man," Anoop says. "I'm just about ready to pass out too. We're finally done, Jesus."
Kris feebly waves his hands around. "Yaaay." He yawns again. "Just email me all the stuff you have and I'll put it all together."
"Yeah okay," Anoop bites down a yawn before he can answer. "Then send it to me for one last read-through, I'll take care of the hard copy."
"Awesome. I love you, man, but I'm so glad we never have to do this ever again," Kris says as he leans forward to switch laptops and pile up their notes.
Anoop's up on his toes and stretching, feeling his muscles relax, flooded with relief that they're finally finished. Sleep, he resolves. Sleep for the rest of the weekend, no more schoolwork until Monday night. He sighs at the thought of his big, comfortable bed waiting for him. It's going to be amazing.
His relaxing train of thought is derailed by Adam's sudden, indignant squawk. "What the hell is that picture doing there, Kristopher?"
Kris looks at the laptop screen and then back to Adam, puzzled. "What's wrong?"
"I look like an idiot," Adam sighs. "And all blown up like that, gross."
"Aww, I think you look cute," Kris says, rolling his eyes before pushing the screen down. "Stop yelling."
Adam pouts and Anoop can't help but laugh, feeling kind of giddy. "I hope I don't offend you guys when I say I'm itching to leave," he says as he packs up his things.
Kris just laughs, shuffling slowly to the front door, dragging Adam behind him. "It's all good. I'm getting kind of sick of you too," he says, eyes twinkling.
Once he's shouldered his backpack, he follows them to the foyer, slapping their backs in his patented bro-hugs before stepping out the door. "Thank your mom for me, Kris. I'm gonna have to come back here for some more of that pie soon."
"Anytime, man. And no more papers from hell next time."
"Drive safe, Anoop."
Anoop makes it halfway down the drive before he hears a loud shout of laughter from inside the house. He smiles and shakes his head, and keeps on walking.
four
He's lugging his amp through Ryland's garage door, and he stops when he sees the tableau in front of him. Adam is wedged in one corner of the beat-up couch and Kris is sprawled next to him, head pillowed on Adam's lap. Kris is idly plucking at his guitar and Adam is singing along under his breath - Alison Krauss, he can barely hear, and Adam's voice gets clearer and clearer as Andrew makes his way further into the room.
Adam smiles at him when he lets go of the amp with a grunt. "Hey, Dickie."
Andrew rolls his eyes, sighing when Kris lets out a little giggle. "Hi. Ryland's inside?"
"Went to get some food," Kris says. "Adam promised not to be too mean to you."
Adam narrows his eyes and tugs at Kris's hair. "Shut up."
Andrew just laughs as he continues to set up his electric. "Nah, it's good. You can say whatever you want, Adam. We're still kind of feeling it out, any feedback would help."
"I'm sure you're doing just fine. I'm happy to guide you or whatever," Adam says.
Cale staggers in, almost toppling over as he sets his own amp on the floor. "We really need a better system."
"It's always been every man for himself when it comes to equipment, man," Kris says as he sits up, leaning across Adam to set the guitar down beside the couch.
"Yes, and I'm saying we need to change it," Cale huffs from his crouch on the floor. "Hey, Adam, thanks for doing this."
Andrew watches from his perch on his amp as Adam absently straightens Kris's collar and uses his fingers to fix his hair. Watches as Kris just grins and lies back down on the couch, clutching Adam's hand to his chest. "No problem," Adam says again.
Andrew still remembers the day Kris showed up in school with silver polish painted on his fingernails. They sparkled every time he moved his hands. Later that afternoon, sitting in Ryland's garage and tooling around on their guitars, they glittered and shone, and were more than a little distracting.
Kris had caught his gaze. "Weird?" he asked, a strange smile on his lips.
Andrew had shaken his head. "No. Just... new."
And that was that.
It was a little startling at first, how one day Kris and Adam just started blushing whenever they were within five feet of each other, grinning like maniacs if they got closer. Normally he wouldn't even notice these things, but for a solid month it was all the girls could talk about. They'd all been friends for years, and Andrew considers all of them his brothers and sisters, it seemed almost incestuous, two of his siblings suddenly falling into a romantic relationship. But Kris and Adam were totally undramatic about it, transitioned almost seamlessly, and it's kind of unbelievable being right there to watch them kind of grow up and into each other.
Kris is usually with them for jam sessions, but Adam doesn't come around too often - he loves to play rock star as much as the rest of them, but theater and choir usually came first. It's a shame, because whenever they get the chance to play together, Adam's a pretty badass lead singer. But this time they're killing two birds with one stone - Mr. D. does RENT in five year cycles, and they're lucky to catch another go-around in their senior year. They're auditioning a band instead of utilizing the school orchestra, and a bunch of them decided to go for it. Adam's waiting to get cast and is one of the assistant music directors - he'd agreed to sit in on their rehearsal that afternoon, give them pointers and help out a little. None of them have any real playing experience beyond their little jam sessions and the very occasional party, and Andrew thinks they need all the help they can get.
Kris insists that he's not good enough to take a spot - they all just rolled their eyes at him - but he won't have time for it anyway, since all-state rehearsals are in full swing and he got first chair. He's spending the afternoon with them for no real reason, just that Kris can't say no to jamming even if it's this specialized. And Kris never says no to Adam.
It'll probably look kind of strange to other people if they saw them rehearsing together like this - three lead guitarists, and two pianists, drummers and bassists each - but it's always been this way with them. They're only competitive when it's fun (they've already destroyed two sets of Rock Band equipment - they get really intense, okay), otherwise they push each other to do better, and they never hold grudges. Andrew's looking forward to making Monte run for his money, and he's more than fine with the eventual second string position he'll get.
There's a honk outside, and Andrew knows that it's Lee come to drop Tommy, Chris and Monte off. Cale gets up and heads out the door to help out. Andrew stays and continues setting up, trying to make the equipment fit the small space. Ryland comes in with a tin of Danish cookies and they laugh at Kris making airplane noises as he tries to make Adam eat.
Once they're settled, they go at it for a solid two hours - they already have the easiest songs down pat, so they quickly move to the more complicated ones, helping each other out and critiquing each other, switching off to harmonize. Adam coaches them all through it, singing along, teaching them how to keep up with the liberties singers will take with the melody, warning them about the repetitiveness of rehearsal ("Oh man, you're gonna want to wring all of their necks," Kris says while Adam glares). It's great to have someone who knows his shit, and with Adam around, finally Andrew feels like he's got his legs under him, like this is something he can actually do instead of just stumbling into it by accident. Adam knows his shit so well it's really kind of ridiculous, and when he catches Kris's sappy, proud grin half a dozen times in the first hour, he knows he's not the only one who thinks so.
Andrew's hand is sore and fingertips halfway to numb before Adam calls for a break. Rylandand Monte go to the kitchen to get some drinks, and the rest of them stay behind and huddle together to try to harmonize the tricky La Vie Boheme chorus. Adam and Kris stay on the couch - Adam drinking his special tea from the tumbler he brought, and Kris sprawled next to him, tooling on his guitar as always.
Kris is strumming a familiar chord - Andrew's a few seconds away from figuring out what song it is when Adam interrupts.
"If you kick me one more time, I'm leaving you," Adam says firmly.
Kris just laughs and continues to tap his sock feet on Adam's chest. Then he starts singing - "when I come to the club, set aside, oh snap, part the seas don't be havin' me in the line, oh snap" - all of them start laughing at Kris's playfully earnest performance, Adam loudest of them all, head bopping exaggeratedly and leering as he sings "me love you long time". Kris blushes at that, and Andrew catches Tommy's gaze. They roll their eyes at each other and laugh some more.
They mumble through the next verse and laugh through two rounds of the chorus and suddenly Andrew feels a burst of renewed energy spread through his body, warmth flowing down his arm and through his hands and fingers. He wants to get this piece down, he's excited to maybe get the chance to play RENT the way it was meant to - behind a talented cast, in a theater full of people that are there to let the music wash over them and change them. It's not quite rock and roll, but it doesn't have to be. Andrew thinks he might like to do more stuff like this, when he gets the chance.
He's all inspired and hopeful, and as he watches Kris and Adam grin stupidly at each other while singing, his stomach bottoms out a little, and he thinks of what it would be like to be with someone like that, someone who loves music just as much as he does. It's great to jam with the guys, and they're talking about someday maybe putting together a real band, but he sees Adam tug on Kris's shirt, and it's the only sign Kris needs to switch to something Adam apparently wants to sing, and Andrew wishes so much that it could be that easy for him too.
Ryland starts tapping out the beat to I'll Cover You and Andrew drags his attention back to his guitar, fingers already forming the right chords to the song, and as always, he's taken over by the music. He can't help one last glance back to the couch - Kris has put his acoustic away and Adam's singing, tapping his feet to the melody. Andrew's about to turn away, but before he can, he sees Kris reach out to take Adam's hand and kiss it, clutching it in both of his before happily leaning on the couch, content to sit back and watch.
A new lease you are, my love
On life, be my life
five
Lee is grateful that he splurged on this pair of sunglasses. He'd balked at the price tag at first, yet he soldiered on and bought it even as Scarlett raised a skeptical eyebrow at him. His last pair was cheap, and he'd have burned his retinas if he tried to wear 'em now. The sun is high in the sky, and the glare from the water is almost unnatural.
July has barely started, and it's already their fourth (fifth?) afternoon at the lake. At the rate they're going, they're gonna clock more than a dozen trips before they separate for the fall.
Lee feels a sharp pang in his chest at the thought, and he tries to will it away. Just enjoy the time you have left. Don't dwell. It's been is mantra since May, but repeating it over and over in his head doesn't work for long. He lets his gaze drift past the grill, past the huge tent, past the epic water fight building in the middle of the lake, and landing on the group of girls lounging in lawn chairs under some shade way at the other end of the lake. He eyes Scarlett in unashamed appreciation - seeing her in a bikini will never, ever get old, no matter how many times it's been - and he feels a grin twist on his lips when he sees her burst out laughing, probably at something Alisan said. Her laugh, the sound of it, how she throws her head back - it always makes him warm all over. He can't imagine not hearing it every day.
It's going to be pretty fucking difficult enough as it is to say goodbye to his friends come fall. He'll freely admit that, even if he isn't usually the touchy-feely type. It's going to be hell, and though the idea of college is exciting and freeing, he wishes he can put it off. Saying goodbye to Scarlett will be... he doesn't even have words for it.
She's been in his life forever, they've been dating on and off since they were thirteen, shit, and they finally got their act together at the end of junior year. It's been pretty great, and yeah, they're going to try their damnedest to stay together while he's in Chicago and she's in Rhode Island, but they both know it's probably never going to be the same.
A loud yell from someone in the water pulls him out of his thoughts, and he can't help his laugh when he sees Cassidy perched on Cale's shoulders, arms flailing around. Tommy's climbing on Andrew, steady and smirking, and Lee wants to pull Scarlett away from her tanning so they can play too.
He's about to dart forward to get her when Kris suddenly appears next to him, panting, hair a wet mess. "Hey, man," Kris kind of gasps, a crazy grin on his face. "You playing?"
Lee smiles back. "Yeah, I'm gonna get Scarlett. You think the girls will let her leave?"
The girls are all watching the game too, giggling and jeering. Adam, Ryland and Matt are sitting on the ground next to them, soaking wet and laughing, too.
"I'm sure she'll let you drag her away if you ask nicely enough," Kris says, smirking.
"Yeah, I think so too." Lee goes to the tent, set up right at the shore, and he pulls his sunglasses off, hooking it on the back of Ferras's shirt. "Lemme know if you wanna come in, I'll switch after we play," Lee says to him, and he only barely hears Ferras's answering, "I'll hold you to that!" as he jogs away.
It's not a very long walk around the lake, and he smiles when he hears Scarlett laugh again. He makes his way to the back of her chair and looms over her, blocking the sunlight.
"Hey, stranger," Scarlett smiles up at him.
"Hi, you," he says, pushing away the stray bangs off her forehead. "Care to make fools out of those guys?"
"I thought you'd never ask," she says as she gets up. She jumps unceremoniously on his back, looping her arms around his neck. "Let's show 'em how it's done."
Lee runs forward until they're splashing in the water and Scarlett's shrieking in his ear. "Holy shit, it's cold!" she cries, and it really is, but Lee doesn't care. She's a warm weight on his back, familiar and easy to bear, and he almost regrets getting into the water so quickly, it's only a few seconds and he doesn't feel like he's carrying her at all.
They get there just in time to see Cassidy fall in the water with a loud yell, and Lee dips under as soon as Scarlett grips his shoulder in a wordless signal. He draws back up and she's steady, eager for this, already trash-talking Tommy. Lee shakes the water off his face and raises an eyebrow at Andrew challengingly. There's a "ready, steady, go!" from somewhere to his right and then they're fighting, Lee plants his legs on the mulchy lake floor as best he can, and he holds tightly on Scarlett's knees.
After what feels like three hours of an intense workout, he and Scarlett rack up six wins and lose only once, and that was to Allison and Cale, so it totally doesn't count. His arms and legs ache something fierce, but he doesn't care; he'd gladly play a hundred more games if that meant he can lazily float in the water with Scarlett wrapped all around his back, her talented hands massaging his aching shoulders.
"I got my roommate packet in the mail today," she says after a long, content silence.
"Hmm?"
"Her name is Rachel. She's from Boston. She's interning at the Met this summer, I think I'm dying of jealousy, a little bit," she says into his ear. After a pause, she adds, "It's getting more and more real, isn't it?"
"What's real?" Lee asks, feeling a little drowsy, even more lulled by the sound of her voice.
"All of it. College. Art school. Moving," she says with a heavy sigh.
Lee sighs too, and he doesn't know what to say to that without getting both of them upset. So he just pulls on her arms until she's flush against his back, arms wound tight around his neck. He kisses her arm and they drift for a while in melancholy silence.
The rest of the group is pretty much doing what they are, chatting and floating in the water, the soft cadence of their voices so painfully familiar. He can easily pick out Danielle's laugh and Brad's exaggerated drawl and if he strains hard enough, even Chris's laugh all the way to the tent. Cale, Matt, Anoop and Tommy are manning the grill, making dinner while Allison hovers behind them, trying to learn. He turns his head a little and sees Adam and Kris sitting on the dock, Adam sitting between Kris's legs, his feet dangling in the water. Their heads dart toward someone swimming close to them - Andrew? - and they all burst out laughing. Adam pretty much rests his full weight on Kris, and Kris just grabs his hands and kisses his shoulder.
Lee is suddenly taken over by a wave of sickening jealousy that makes his breath catch in his throat. This is just another summer for Kris and Adam; they're not counting down the days until they have to watch the other drive away to a totally new life. They don't feel an ounce of the misery that twists Lee's stomach when he thinks of his moving date, when he tries to imagine being thousands of miles away from Scarlett, when he thinks of the distance breaking them up eventually. His grip on Scarlett's arms tighten minutely, and she kisses his ear in answer.
He doesn't begrudge them anything, he never has, but Kris and Adam get to stay together, live together, and that's such a mindfuck right there. It's been more than a year, wow, and Lee honestly can't remember what it was like before they weren't a them. So stable and strong, right from the very beginning. It was a little frustrating to watch them back then, still so new to it yet making it all look easy while Lee struggled with just getting on the same page as Scarlett. All through senior year, they were treated as the two old married couples of the group, and that was fine, but now they get to have what he can't, and all Lee can feel now is sadness and pre-emptive grief.
When Lee lets his gaze drift back to the dock, Adam had turned around to kind of curl around Kris. The sun's almost set, and Lee knows that Kris is always the first of them to get cold. Lee watches Adam make the executive decision to stand and walk back to the tent, smiles at the sight of Adam toweling Kris down like a newly-bathed puppy, sighs a little when Kris pulls on a shirt and Adam drapes his ridiculous leather jacket on his tiny shoulders, drawing him into a long hug.
"Penny for your thoughts?" Scarlett murmurs into his temple.
"I love you," is the only thing he can think of to say.
He's rewarded with a smiling kiss on his cheek. "I love you too, mister."
Next: in the early light
Alternately: five times kris and adam's friends were totally not okay, kind of jealous of their relationship.
Fandom: American Idol RPF
Rating: PG-13
Pairings: Adam/Kris
Word Count: ~7,800
Summary: They're kind of disgustingly cute, aren't they? (Outside POV. High school AU.)
A/N: Thank you for your lovely comments, as always. <3 I'm so sorry it's been so long. My brain insisted that I just had to post this one next, but said brain refused to cooperate when I spent the last two weeks trying to actually write it. /o\ I struggled a lot, and I think it shows. It looked so much better in my head, but I don't think it quite translated on the page. I hope you guys still like it, though!
Good news is, the next two installments are 90% written, and I'll be posting them in a more timely manner, I promise. I'm really excited about them too, and I can't wait for you guys to read them. :) In the meantime, here you go!
This is for the kissbingo prompt: face: lips.
Master post of previous installments: here
one
The absolute last thing Danielle wants to do is to begrudge her friends anything. And she doesn't, not ever. Especially not Adam, who has waited for this forever; who, through most of puberty, insisted that he would never find a boy who'd love his ridiculous, freckly ass. He'd made her promise to let him live in her basement when she gets married off to - in his words - "another breeder". He'd promised fashion police and babysitting duties, grimaced at the mention of diapers, but perked up at the suggestion of a walk-in closet.
There'd been a perpetual sadness in his eyes when their group of friends started dating right around middle school. Danielle had to talk him into going through with his first hookup, and even when he finally started dressing up the way he wanted to and had his pick of boys, she still caught that look on him sometimes, mixed with more than a little frustration and longing. Adam was just born to fall in love.
And then came Kris. And even if they were all of sixteen, squinting through the haze of hormones and trying to stagger through life without falling down too many times, Danielle saw something else. This time around, it was different. Something more.
It was a little surprising, sure. They'd all known each other since kindergarten and they formed their little clique in middle school; all the girls harbored a crush on Kris at different points in time and Kris was totally chill about it, as casual as he was about everything else (even his coming out to them at a sleepover at the beginning of ninth grade was "totally not a big deal, guys, seriously"). He and Adam were just as close as everyone, and that was just that, but one day Adam started grinning at his phone like a complete idiot, acting all twirly and excited, like he was about to burst into song, going through the day like he's high ("on life, Dani," he'd say).
And Kris - well, Kris was exactly the same, but in hindsight, Danielle realized that he spent those early days with a smug smile painted on his face.
After a couple weeks of Adam gazing into the middle distance with a smile that threatened to split his face, Adam and Kris spilled drinks on her pants, started holding hands where everyone can see, and one morning, she took one look at Adam and just knew.
And here she is now, almost a year later, standing in front of her locker on a Thursday afternoon. Kris is next to her, shuffling his feet, eyes darting every which way.
"You sure it's okay, Dani? It's totally fine if --"
Danielle smiles at him, pinching his cheek. "Stop. I'll ask. I'll definitely even wheedle for you a little bit, pull the daughter card. I'll text you as soon as I get an answer."
Kris's face smooths into a grin, and Danielle takes a moment to appreciate just how unconsciously gorgeous he is. "Thank you so much. You have no idea how long I've been thinking of the perfect gift. This idea kept coming back to me, but I couldn't figure out how to make it work. Just - thank you."
It's not surprising. Kris's guitar has been his fifth limb since they were thirteen, and she knew from the boys that Kris had recently begun to write songs, too. She also knew Alisan had snooped on Adam's iPod and saw "Kris Allen" listed as an artist. Adam refused to let her see song titles, let alone listen to any of them, but it's easy to connect the dots. Danielle's dad is best friends with the guy who owns the only studio in town - she's helped make demos for a bunch of outgoing seniors over the years, and of course she's going to try to pull some strings to help her best friend's boyfriend give him the best anniversary gift ever.
Adam is going to die.
Danielle smiles at Kris, giving herself a handful of seconds to just wallow in her perpetual singlehood. Being unattached doesn't usually bother her, and moments like this are rare, but when they come along, she indulges herself. This time, it takes a full minute - how can it not, in the face of Kris Allen's sheer earnestness? She's usually a bigger person than this - envy has never been and never will be her thing. But. Kris's face.
She shakes herself out of the momentary melancholy and flicks her locker shut, eyes widening when she sees Adam hovering just beyond Kris's shoulder. Adam winks at her then covers Kris's eyes with his hands.
Kris starts in surprise, then his mouth curls into a crooked grin and he immediately leans back, smiling even wider when Adam's arms wind around his waist. They've done this in front of her a hundred times, but it still catches her off guard, seeing just how easy it is between the two of them.
"Hey, stranger," Kris says.
Adam grins and kisses the side of his head. "What are you doing all the way here?"
"To see you," Kris says, quirking a smile at Danielle. "Then I helped Dani put some stuff in her locker, and we got to talking."
Adam digs his chin on Kris's shoulder and grins at her. "Hi, Dani girl."
"Hey, Bubbles."
Danielle just laughs when Adam rolls his eyes. "Please don't."
"Aww, but it's cute," Kris says as he reaches up to touch the streak of blue in Adam's hair.
"It's not cute, it's fierce," Adam insists as he straightens up, putting his hands on Kris's shoulders and pushing him into the row of lockers.
Kris's eyes flash over to her, alarmed. "Um."
She just rolls her eyes. They're all used to the two of them losing track of everything else when they're together. She certainly can't blame them - if her boyfriend was even half as good looking as either one of them, she'd have trouble keeping even an inch of distance between them. Danielle learned her lesson on the very first movie night post-get together - she loves Adam more than anything, but she really doesn't need to see his tongue in his boyfriend's mouth.
Danielle - and Kris too, it seems - fully expects some macking to occur right in front of her face, and it's fine, it's no big deal. But Adam tugs down the arm of his jacket instead, exposing his wrist and pressing it on Kris's forehead. Kris's shoulders sag, and he smiles at her helplessly. "He keeps doing this," Kris says to her, a staggering amount of fondness laced in his voice. "Adam, stop."
Adam doesn't. His thumbs pull at Kris's cheeks, exposing the insides of Kris's eyelids. Then Adam's fingers start pressing down the side of Kris's neck. Kris huffs and grabs Adam's hands. "That's enough, Dr. Lambert."
Adam rolls his eyes, looking like he's about to let out a sharp retort, but he stands down. Kris is the only person who can get away with ordering him around. "Okay, okay."
Kris smiles and tangles their fingers together. "I haven't felt sick all week. I'm really fine now, I promise."
"Okay," Adam says again, soft, before leaning down to press a kiss on Kris's forehead.
Danielle's about to slink away to leave them their privacy, her cheeks burning at being witness to such a sweet, quiet moment, but then Adam's draped over her shoulder, babbling in her ear. "It's new show day!" he cries as he tugs her to the auditorium. She lets herself get steered down the hall and to the right. Out of the corner of her eye, she can see Adam's hand still linked with Kris's as he drags him with them.
"Our last one, can you believe it?" Danielle says. "And God, I already know Macy's going to make my life hell from now until opening night. Dance captains are such a pain in the ass."
"Oh come on, it won't be so bad," Adam says, breezy. "You'll have me to bitch to, at least."
"Never leave me," she answers, tipping her forehead on his shoulder.
Adam just laughs. "Never."
---
They're a hallway away from the auditorium when Adam suddenly stops in his tracks. "Shit!"
"What?"
"We're singing today - shit, I forgot to pass by the cafeteria to get water," Adam frowns, looking back the way they came, probably calculating the time it'll take for him to go all the way there and back. He'll be cutting it close.
Kris just makes a little noise, smiling has he reaches into his duffel bag and pulls out two unopened bottles of water. "You always forget," he says, handing them one each. "You take lukewarm too, right, Dani?"
Danielle just nods at him dumbly - there's no way Kris could have known that - and she glances up at Adam, whose face has gone all soft and open, shaking his head in disbelief. "You..."
Kris's smile just widens and he kisses the back of Adam's hand. "I know," he says, tugging them forward. "C'mon, I know Mr. D. gets pissy when principals are late."
---
When they reach the theater doors, Danielle smoothly ducks from under Adam's arm and darts forward. "Bye, Kris," she grins. "I'll save you a seat, Bubbles."
She pushes the door open and walks in, eyeing a couple of free seats next to Allison. "Hey, Blossom," she greets her with a smile. They make bets on how long it'll take for Macy to pout at them, promising they'll hold each other back from punching her in the face in the eventuality of annoyance levels going through the roof.
Adam slides in next to her just as Mr. D. emerges from backstage.
"Impeccable timing as always," Danielle says under her breath.
"Oh God, I would never hear the end of it," Adam whispers back, and he's right. Mr. D. is a huge stickler for rules and he holds a mean grudge. "It's just. I had to take my time. Kris really likes my new lip gloss."
Danielle snorts. "Uh huh."
They keep their eyes trained up front and pretend to listen - it's just Mr. D.'s annual pep talk, they really aren't missing anything. "And I guess he can still smell my perfume?"
Danielle leans a little to the side and takes a whiff of his shoulder. "Little bit, yeah."
Adam clears his throat. "Yeah, it makes him a little, uh, frisky."
Danielle can't help but duck her head and she tries really hard to keep her giggles as inaudible as she can, hoping her hair's covering her laughing face. "Stop," she says, elbowing Adam's side.
"What's so funny?" Allison hisses.
She's overcome with another wave of giggles as she vaguely sees Adam cover his face and lean his head on her shoulder. "Stop, oh my God," Adam wheezes. "It wasn't supposed to be funny."
Thankfully, Mr. D. makes them get up for vocal exercises then, and they don't get in trouble for their little giggle fit. They try their best not to look each other in the eye after that though, to prevent another wave of laughter neither of them can help.
Two hours later, throat pleasantly sore and feeling the burst of hope and optimism the first day of rehearsal always makes her feel, Danielle looks up from their huddle at the piano. Mr. D.'s clapping his hands, ushering them out of the auditorium, saying something about costumes and shoes.
Adam whizzes past her, dropping a quick kiss on her cheek and an "I'll be on tonight" in her ear, and next thing she knows, Kris has appeared beside him, hands curled comfortably around Adam's waist, laughing at something he said. She watches them walk out of the theater, a fond grin tugging on her lips.
"They're kind of disgustingly cute, aren't they?" Allison says, smile probably matching hers.
"Yeah, they really are."
two
It's Allison's first real party and Kris is being so annoyingly protective.
It's not like she doesn't know that she has, like, a dozen older brothers scattered all around the house, watching her alcohol intake, ready to beat up any guy who stands even just a little too close - Ryland had already pulled Immerman away and psssh, like she would even go for that dude - it's all a total drag. But Kris isn't even trying to be subtle about it. (Kris is never really subtle about anything.) He'd stolen two shots of tequila right from under her nose, and made her put on a jacket to cover her really awesome outfit. It took her and Scarlett three weeks to find the totally badass corset top, but Kris just stood there and glared until she relented. She'd have maimed him hours ago if he wasn't so cute.
So the night is pretty much nothing like she expected it to be, other than the stereotypical group of drunk football players crowded in the garden. And really, it's fine that she's just hanging around with Alisan and Megan, scoping out cute boys just like any day of the week. They let her take sips of their vodka crans so it's a little bit better.
The two other girls are giggling about Will Something-or-other's shoe size when something across the room catches Allison's eye.
A few juniors are sitting around the coffee table with a pack of cards. Kris finally left her alone for what looks like a poker game - which is just dumb, because there's no way Kris can play that game properly, what with his face and all, but maybe he likes to practice? They've been at it for a while, playing and razzing each other, a couple of them getting drunker and drunker by the minute.
Adam's sitting on the floor behind Kris, all curled up around him like a little koala bear. It doesn't at all look comfortable, but Adam's eyes are closed, face happily hidden in Kris's neck, and it looks like he'd fallen asleep, wow.
Allison asked him once how he could always twist himself around to drape over someone so much smaller than him - "seriously Adam, don't you get cramps?" - but Adam just smiled at her, crazy and bright and blinding. And remembering that look on Adam's face, that happy smile, seeing them wrapped around each other like that so many times, and seeing them now, Kris's careful movements so he won't disturb Adam, perfectly happy to be crowded in and bear his weight - it makes Allison ache, a little bit. Her friends date all the time, and she's caught pretty much all of them in compromising positions. She only ever has to raise her eyebrow at Andrew to make him duck his head and blush; and Brad had changed her views on peanut butter back when she was barely a teenager. But it's different with Adam and Kris. It always has been. She certainly wasn't expecting it, and while she loved playing matchmaker, they were never on her list, but as she saw them together more and more, it was like, well of course. Of course they're completely perfect for each other, silly and sweet and scarily serious as they are.
There's a little scuffle on the table - the guys are horsing around, Matt has Anoop in a headlock, and a couple other dudes Allison doesn't know were full-on wrestling on the floor, the rest of the table laughing hysterically. Kris is the only one not going completely nuts, but turning red from having to keep from being too loud. The other guys more than make up for it though, so Adam wakes up nevertheless, looking bleary-eyed and exhausted. He squints around the table for a few seconds before yawning hugely and cuddling closer to Kris, settling back in.
Kris reaches up to pat Adam's hair, twists his neck when Adam kind of head-butts him, and they kiss. Adam's smile is soft and sleepy, and he kisses Kris's shoulder before going back to his little nap.
They're all still so young, and she's having fun, she loves her life and she's not even remotely ready to get into a serious relationship. But they are, they're so good together, and getting this glimpse of what it could be like someday, maybe, hopefully - sometimes it's a little too much. Especially now, this late at night, and she's surrounded by people her age and she can't quite imagine finding it with any of them, not even close. Allison looks away from the coffee table and the rabble-rousing boys, heart a little heavy, a new and strange kind of loneliness pulling at her. She curls an arm around Megan's waist and cuddles up, shutting her eyes for a long minute.
three
The day has been long, and tedious, and irritating, and Anoop can feel a tension headache building behind his eyes. This is the English project from hell, and for a fleeting second he wishes he could just quit school and pile him and his friends into a van and drive all across the country to play music. They'd drink and toke up and play and sing, god, he wants to sing.
But this is real life, and he knows education is important even if he doesn't think he's ever been taught anything useful.
He looks up and sees Kris slumped forward on the coffee table, rubbing his eyes under his glasses. Anoop sighs. "Let's take a couple minutes?"
Kris smiles at him, sheepish. "Yeah? You wanna head into the kitchen for a snack? We have leftover pie."
Three straight hours of mind-numbing work - they deserve a break. "Hell yeah. Lead the way."
Kris's smile widens, suddenly a lot more bright and easy. "Awesome. My mom's pie will change your life, everyone says so."
Anoop is surprised at Kris's complete lack of surprise to find Adam sitting at the kitchen table, chatting up a storm with Kris's mom. Anoop just smiles at them both and takes a seat, while Adam pulls up a chair right against his and Kris collapses on it and on him.
"Hard at work?" Adam asks as he rubs Kris's back.
Kris's eyes are shut, like he's blocking the room out, so Anoop answers for them both. "I want to poke my eyeballs out with this fork."
Adam grimaces in sympathy. "Yeah, sounds about right. I don't know why Mrs. J. insists on torturing all the seniors this way. How far along are you?"
"Getting ready to wrap it up, actually. A couple hours of work left." Anoop feels himself perk up at the smell of warm apple pie filling the room.
"Here you go, boys," Mrs. Allen says as she puts down half of a pie and a bowl of vanilla ice cream. "This'll re-energize you and you'll finish that project of yours in no time."
Anoop smiles at her, grateful beyond words and sudddenly starving. "Thank you, Mrs. Allen. I hear your apple pie will change my life."
She laughs and squeezes his shoulder. "I see my son has been bragging. Eat up, no shyness is allowed in my kitchen."
"It looks amazing."
Adam has enthusiastically plated a large slice and heaped it with ice cream. Kris is draped over his back now, chin on Adam's shoulder. Anoop focuses on his own serving, taking a huge bite and groaning at the burst of heaven in his mouth.
"Holy shit, Kris. You weren't kidding. This is fantastic," Anoop gushes when he finishes chewing.
Kris snorts, "I know, right." And when Anoop looks up, Kris is grinning, seemingly recovered and completely reanimated, fork in hand, trying to feed Adam a huge bite.
---
They go back into the living room much too quickly for Anoop's taste - he resolves to finish the paper in the next two hours, or else they'll be driven even crazier. Kris and Anoop take the places they just left on either side of the coffee table, and Adam settles on the couch, his knee touching Kris's shoulder.
Kris frowns at his laptop for a couple seconds and turns to Anoop. "Can you look this over? I wrote, like, three pages on the nature versus nurture stuff, but I can't tell anymore if I hit all our points or if I just padded it with bull."
"Sure, man," Anoop answers, pulling Kris's laptop closer. "You could finish up the metaphor stuff? And after that, it's conclusions."
Anoop clicks on the trackpad, unused to handling something that isn't an Apple product, and starts in surprise when the word processor window minimizes and he's brought to Kris's desktop. The minimal clutter of icons off to the side barely registers with Anoop - all he sees is the wallpaper. It's a picture of Kris and Adam wedged to the corner of a couch, Kris leaning on the arm and Adam lying half on top of him. Adam's mouth is laughing, open, while Kris's eyes are closed, lips pressing a grin into Adam's forehead. Allison and Cassidy are sitting next to them, mouths open with laughter as well. It was probably taken while their group was hanging out, one quick moment frozen in time.
"Awesome," Kris says as he pulls on the pile of notes they've been sharing and passing between each other for two weeks. Anoop gets his bearings and clicks back to Kris's "LITPAPERFROMHELL.doc" file.
It's quiet for a few minutes, and Anoop makes a few edits on Kris's opening paragraph, reading and nodding along. When Kris breaks the silence to let out a little cough, Anoop lifts his head and pauses for a few seconds to just look.
Adam has shifted forward a little bit, his left hand petting Kris's hair while he types with his right. Kris is slumped sideways, his head resting on Adam's knee as he shuffles through the crumpled pages of their draft. A handful of seconds later, Kris kisses Adam's knee and lifts his left arm so he can tangle his fingers with Adam's, their hands resting on Kris's left shoulder. Anoop thinks it must be uncomfortable, flexing his arm like that just to hold hands with his boyfriend, but Kris doesn't seem to mind at all, doesn't even look like he noticed what he just did, and just keeps reading. They both look like they're used to handling schoolwork one-handed, and Anoop feels a sudden pang in his chest.
Anoop hasn't had a girlfriend since Becky in the eighth grade, and that barely counts - they just sat together and shared lunch every day; he walked her home sometimes and held her hand whenever he managed to gather up the courage. All through high school, it'd been easy to walk through hallways and parties full of couples making out; intellectually he knew it was just hormones going overdrive, and he didn't feel like he was missing all that much. But this, Kris and Adam's almost unnerving amount of ease in their domesticity, this is the kind of thing he sees in his parents and older cousins, never people his own age. Anoop has known both of them for years, has seen them walk down the hall holding hands or whatever countless times, but he usually runs with a different crowd, and he's never spent this kind of time with them.
"Baby, Cale's asking if you're still on for tomorrow afternoon," Adam's voice suddenly cuts through the quiet and interrupts Anoop's thoughts.
"Yeah, unless Ryland cancels," Kris answers without looking up. "Why didn't he text me?"
Adam shrugs. "Dunno, guess it was easier to ask in chat?"
Kris hmms absently and continues to read, not even flinching when Adam lets go of his left hand and blindly taps on his shoulder until Kris replaces it with his right. It's like a bizarre kind of telepathy, and Anoop looks away before he gets caught staring. So he focuses on his work, diligently reading and editing, but he can't help glancing back up a few more times, whenever he glimpses a flash of movement in front of him. There's Kris letting go of Adam's hand to take Anoop's laptop and start typing - they shift around until Kris is sitting snug between Adam's legs. There's Adam laughing loudly at something and Kris looking up at him with a grin. There's Adam setting his laptop aside and massaging Kris's shoulders. It's all so adorably sweet, and Anoop has never imagined he would think those words about things that aren't babies and small animals.
"This section is great, Kris," Anoop says after he looks it over one last time. "I'll type up the conclusions - I don't think it'll be more than a page long."
Kris's smile is tired, but relieved. "Oh my god, finally. Yeah, sure, I'm almost done with this too. Don't forget to say that thing about the dinosaurs."
Adam snorts at that. "Wait, what? Dinosaurs?"
Kris nods. "Uh huh. It's an awesome metaphor we came up with, Mrs. J. should give as an A just for that."
"A dinosaur metaphor for comparative literature? Oooookay then," Adam says, winking at Anoop and ruffling Kris's hair.
It's like he gets a second wind, because suddenly words start flowing out of Anoop's fingertips, complex sentences forming quickly in his mind and he gets them down on the page immediately, his hands flying on Kris's keyboard. He fills a page and a half in record time. The next time he looks up, Kris is curled on the couch, eyes closed and head resting on Adam's lap. Adam smiles at him, kind and a little embarrassed. "You were on a roll, he didn't want to interrupt. Dozed off a couple minutes ago."
"M'awake," Kris mumbles, eyes slitting open as he sits up. Adam steadies Kris with his hands and pulls until Kris slumps against him, yawning, glasses askew on his face.
"It's okay, man," Anoop says. "I'm just about ready to pass out too. We're finally done, Jesus."
Kris feebly waves his hands around. "Yaaay." He yawns again. "Just email me all the stuff you have and I'll put it all together."
"Yeah okay," Anoop bites down a yawn before he can answer. "Then send it to me for one last read-through, I'll take care of the hard copy."
"Awesome. I love you, man, but I'm so glad we never have to do this ever again," Kris says as he leans forward to switch laptops and pile up their notes.
Anoop's up on his toes and stretching, feeling his muscles relax, flooded with relief that they're finally finished. Sleep, he resolves. Sleep for the rest of the weekend, no more schoolwork until Monday night. He sighs at the thought of his big, comfortable bed waiting for him. It's going to be amazing.
His relaxing train of thought is derailed by Adam's sudden, indignant squawk. "What the hell is that picture doing there, Kristopher?"
Kris looks at the laptop screen and then back to Adam, puzzled. "What's wrong?"
"I look like an idiot," Adam sighs. "And all blown up like that, gross."
"Aww, I think you look cute," Kris says, rolling his eyes before pushing the screen down. "Stop yelling."
Adam pouts and Anoop can't help but laugh, feeling kind of giddy. "I hope I don't offend you guys when I say I'm itching to leave," he says as he packs up his things.
Kris just laughs, shuffling slowly to the front door, dragging Adam behind him. "It's all good. I'm getting kind of sick of you too," he says, eyes twinkling.
Once he's shouldered his backpack, he follows them to the foyer, slapping their backs in his patented bro-hugs before stepping out the door. "Thank your mom for me, Kris. I'm gonna have to come back here for some more of that pie soon."
"Anytime, man. And no more papers from hell next time."
"Drive safe, Anoop."
Anoop makes it halfway down the drive before he hears a loud shout of laughter from inside the house. He smiles and shakes his head, and keeps on walking.
four
He's lugging his amp through Ryland's garage door, and he stops when he sees the tableau in front of him. Adam is wedged in one corner of the beat-up couch and Kris is sprawled next to him, head pillowed on Adam's lap. Kris is idly plucking at his guitar and Adam is singing along under his breath - Alison Krauss, he can barely hear, and Adam's voice gets clearer and clearer as Andrew makes his way further into the room.
Adam smiles at him when he lets go of the amp with a grunt. "Hey, Dickie."
Andrew rolls his eyes, sighing when Kris lets out a little giggle. "Hi. Ryland's inside?"
"Went to get some food," Kris says. "Adam promised not to be too mean to you."
Adam narrows his eyes and tugs at Kris's hair. "Shut up."
Andrew just laughs as he continues to set up his electric. "Nah, it's good. You can say whatever you want, Adam. We're still kind of feeling it out, any feedback would help."
"I'm sure you're doing just fine. I'm happy to guide you or whatever," Adam says.
Cale staggers in, almost toppling over as he sets his own amp on the floor. "We really need a better system."
"It's always been every man for himself when it comes to equipment, man," Kris says as he sits up, leaning across Adam to set the guitar down beside the couch.
"Yes, and I'm saying we need to change it," Cale huffs from his crouch on the floor. "Hey, Adam, thanks for doing this."
Andrew watches from his perch on his amp as Adam absently straightens Kris's collar and uses his fingers to fix his hair. Watches as Kris just grins and lies back down on the couch, clutching Adam's hand to his chest. "No problem," Adam says again.
Andrew still remembers the day Kris showed up in school with silver polish painted on his fingernails. They sparkled every time he moved his hands. Later that afternoon, sitting in Ryland's garage and tooling around on their guitars, they glittered and shone, and were more than a little distracting.
Kris had caught his gaze. "Weird?" he asked, a strange smile on his lips.
Andrew had shaken his head. "No. Just... new."
And that was that.
It was a little startling at first, how one day Kris and Adam just started blushing whenever they were within five feet of each other, grinning like maniacs if they got closer. Normally he wouldn't even notice these things, but for a solid month it was all the girls could talk about. They'd all been friends for years, and Andrew considers all of them his brothers and sisters, it seemed almost incestuous, two of his siblings suddenly falling into a romantic relationship. But Kris and Adam were totally undramatic about it, transitioned almost seamlessly, and it's kind of unbelievable being right there to watch them kind of grow up and into each other.
Kris is usually with them for jam sessions, but Adam doesn't come around too often - he loves to play rock star as much as the rest of them, but theater and choir usually came first. It's a shame, because whenever they get the chance to play together, Adam's a pretty badass lead singer. But this time they're killing two birds with one stone - Mr. D. does RENT in five year cycles, and they're lucky to catch another go-around in their senior year. They're auditioning a band instead of utilizing the school orchestra, and a bunch of them decided to go for it. Adam's waiting to get cast and is one of the assistant music directors - he'd agreed to sit in on their rehearsal that afternoon, give them pointers and help out a little. None of them have any real playing experience beyond their little jam sessions and the very occasional party, and Andrew thinks they need all the help they can get.
Kris insists that he's not good enough to take a spot - they all just rolled their eyes at him - but he won't have time for it anyway, since all-state rehearsals are in full swing and he got first chair. He's spending the afternoon with them for no real reason, just that Kris can't say no to jamming even if it's this specialized. And Kris never says no to Adam.
It'll probably look kind of strange to other people if they saw them rehearsing together like this - three lead guitarists, and two pianists, drummers and bassists each - but it's always been this way with them. They're only competitive when it's fun (they've already destroyed two sets of Rock Band equipment - they get really intense, okay), otherwise they push each other to do better, and they never hold grudges. Andrew's looking forward to making Monte run for his money, and he's more than fine with the eventual second string position he'll get.
There's a honk outside, and Andrew knows that it's Lee come to drop Tommy, Chris and Monte off. Cale gets up and heads out the door to help out. Andrew stays and continues setting up, trying to make the equipment fit the small space. Ryland comes in with a tin of Danish cookies and they laugh at Kris making airplane noises as he tries to make Adam eat.
Once they're settled, they go at it for a solid two hours - they already have the easiest songs down pat, so they quickly move to the more complicated ones, helping each other out and critiquing each other, switching off to harmonize. Adam coaches them all through it, singing along, teaching them how to keep up with the liberties singers will take with the melody, warning them about the repetitiveness of rehearsal ("Oh man, you're gonna want to wring all of their necks," Kris says while Adam glares). It's great to have someone who knows his shit, and with Adam around, finally Andrew feels like he's got his legs under him, like this is something he can actually do instead of just stumbling into it by accident. Adam knows his shit so well it's really kind of ridiculous, and when he catches Kris's sappy, proud grin half a dozen times in the first hour, he knows he's not the only one who thinks so.
Andrew's hand is sore and fingertips halfway to numb before Adam calls for a break. Rylandand Monte go to the kitchen to get some drinks, and the rest of them stay behind and huddle together to try to harmonize the tricky La Vie Boheme chorus. Adam and Kris stay on the couch - Adam drinking his special tea from the tumbler he brought, and Kris sprawled next to him, tooling on his guitar as always.
Kris is strumming a familiar chord - Andrew's a few seconds away from figuring out what song it is when Adam interrupts.
"If you kick me one more time, I'm leaving you," Adam says firmly.
Kris just laughs and continues to tap his sock feet on Adam's chest. Then he starts singing - "when I come to the club, set aside, oh snap, part the seas don't be havin' me in the line, oh snap" - all of them start laughing at Kris's playfully earnest performance, Adam loudest of them all, head bopping exaggeratedly and leering as he sings "me love you long time". Kris blushes at that, and Andrew catches Tommy's gaze. They roll their eyes at each other and laugh some more.
They mumble through the next verse and laugh through two rounds of the chorus and suddenly Andrew feels a burst of renewed energy spread through his body, warmth flowing down his arm and through his hands and fingers. He wants to get this piece down, he's excited to maybe get the chance to play RENT the way it was meant to - behind a talented cast, in a theater full of people that are there to let the music wash over them and change them. It's not quite rock and roll, but it doesn't have to be. Andrew thinks he might like to do more stuff like this, when he gets the chance.
He's all inspired and hopeful, and as he watches Kris and Adam grin stupidly at each other while singing, his stomach bottoms out a little, and he thinks of what it would be like to be with someone like that, someone who loves music just as much as he does. It's great to jam with the guys, and they're talking about someday maybe putting together a real band, but he sees Adam tug on Kris's shirt, and it's the only sign Kris needs to switch to something Adam apparently wants to sing, and Andrew wishes so much that it could be that easy for him too.
Ryland starts tapping out the beat to I'll Cover You and Andrew drags his attention back to his guitar, fingers already forming the right chords to the song, and as always, he's taken over by the music. He can't help one last glance back to the couch - Kris has put his acoustic away and Adam's singing, tapping his feet to the melody. Andrew's about to turn away, but before he can, he sees Kris reach out to take Adam's hand and kiss it, clutching it in both of his before happily leaning on the couch, content to sit back and watch.
A new lease you are, my love
On life, be my life
five
Lee is grateful that he splurged on this pair of sunglasses. He'd balked at the price tag at first, yet he soldiered on and bought it even as Scarlett raised a skeptical eyebrow at him. His last pair was cheap, and he'd have burned his retinas if he tried to wear 'em now. The sun is high in the sky, and the glare from the water is almost unnatural.
July has barely started, and it's already their fourth (fifth?) afternoon at the lake. At the rate they're going, they're gonna clock more than a dozen trips before they separate for the fall.
Lee feels a sharp pang in his chest at the thought, and he tries to will it away. Just enjoy the time you have left. Don't dwell. It's been is mantra since May, but repeating it over and over in his head doesn't work for long. He lets his gaze drift past the grill, past the huge tent, past the epic water fight building in the middle of the lake, and landing on the group of girls lounging in lawn chairs under some shade way at the other end of the lake. He eyes Scarlett in unashamed appreciation - seeing her in a bikini will never, ever get old, no matter how many times it's been - and he feels a grin twist on his lips when he sees her burst out laughing, probably at something Alisan said. Her laugh, the sound of it, how she throws her head back - it always makes him warm all over. He can't imagine not hearing it every day.
It's going to be pretty fucking difficult enough as it is to say goodbye to his friends come fall. He'll freely admit that, even if he isn't usually the touchy-feely type. It's going to be hell, and though the idea of college is exciting and freeing, he wishes he can put it off. Saying goodbye to Scarlett will be... he doesn't even have words for it.
She's been in his life forever, they've been dating on and off since they were thirteen, shit, and they finally got their act together at the end of junior year. It's been pretty great, and yeah, they're going to try their damnedest to stay together while he's in Chicago and she's in Rhode Island, but they both know it's probably never going to be the same.
A loud yell from someone in the water pulls him out of his thoughts, and he can't help his laugh when he sees Cassidy perched on Cale's shoulders, arms flailing around. Tommy's climbing on Andrew, steady and smirking, and Lee wants to pull Scarlett away from her tanning so they can play too.
He's about to dart forward to get her when Kris suddenly appears next to him, panting, hair a wet mess. "Hey, man," Kris kind of gasps, a crazy grin on his face. "You playing?"
Lee smiles back. "Yeah, I'm gonna get Scarlett. You think the girls will let her leave?"
The girls are all watching the game too, giggling and jeering. Adam, Ryland and Matt are sitting on the ground next to them, soaking wet and laughing, too.
"I'm sure she'll let you drag her away if you ask nicely enough," Kris says, smirking.
"Yeah, I think so too." Lee goes to the tent, set up right at the shore, and he pulls his sunglasses off, hooking it on the back of Ferras's shirt. "Lemme know if you wanna come in, I'll switch after we play," Lee says to him, and he only barely hears Ferras's answering, "I'll hold you to that!" as he jogs away.
It's not a very long walk around the lake, and he smiles when he hears Scarlett laugh again. He makes his way to the back of her chair and looms over her, blocking the sunlight.
"Hey, stranger," Scarlett smiles up at him.
"Hi, you," he says, pushing away the stray bangs off her forehead. "Care to make fools out of those guys?"
"I thought you'd never ask," she says as she gets up. She jumps unceremoniously on his back, looping her arms around his neck. "Let's show 'em how it's done."
Lee runs forward until they're splashing in the water and Scarlett's shrieking in his ear. "Holy shit, it's cold!" she cries, and it really is, but Lee doesn't care. She's a warm weight on his back, familiar and easy to bear, and he almost regrets getting into the water so quickly, it's only a few seconds and he doesn't feel like he's carrying her at all.
They get there just in time to see Cassidy fall in the water with a loud yell, and Lee dips under as soon as Scarlett grips his shoulder in a wordless signal. He draws back up and she's steady, eager for this, already trash-talking Tommy. Lee shakes the water off his face and raises an eyebrow at Andrew challengingly. There's a "ready, steady, go!" from somewhere to his right and then they're fighting, Lee plants his legs on the mulchy lake floor as best he can, and he holds tightly on Scarlett's knees.
After what feels like three hours of an intense workout, he and Scarlett rack up six wins and lose only once, and that was to Allison and Cale, so it totally doesn't count. His arms and legs ache something fierce, but he doesn't care; he'd gladly play a hundred more games if that meant he can lazily float in the water with Scarlett wrapped all around his back, her talented hands massaging his aching shoulders.
"I got my roommate packet in the mail today," she says after a long, content silence.
"Hmm?"
"Her name is Rachel. She's from Boston. She's interning at the Met this summer, I think I'm dying of jealousy, a little bit," she says into his ear. After a pause, she adds, "It's getting more and more real, isn't it?"
"What's real?" Lee asks, feeling a little drowsy, even more lulled by the sound of her voice.
"All of it. College. Art school. Moving," she says with a heavy sigh.
Lee sighs too, and he doesn't know what to say to that without getting both of them upset. So he just pulls on her arms until she's flush against his back, arms wound tight around his neck. He kisses her arm and they drift for a while in melancholy silence.
The rest of the group is pretty much doing what they are, chatting and floating in the water, the soft cadence of their voices so painfully familiar. He can easily pick out Danielle's laugh and Brad's exaggerated drawl and if he strains hard enough, even Chris's laugh all the way to the tent. Cale, Matt, Anoop and Tommy are manning the grill, making dinner while Allison hovers behind them, trying to learn. He turns his head a little and sees Adam and Kris sitting on the dock, Adam sitting between Kris's legs, his feet dangling in the water. Their heads dart toward someone swimming close to them - Andrew? - and they all burst out laughing. Adam pretty much rests his full weight on Kris, and Kris just grabs his hands and kisses his shoulder.
Lee is suddenly taken over by a wave of sickening jealousy that makes his breath catch in his throat. This is just another summer for Kris and Adam; they're not counting down the days until they have to watch the other drive away to a totally new life. They don't feel an ounce of the misery that twists Lee's stomach when he thinks of his moving date, when he tries to imagine being thousands of miles away from Scarlett, when he thinks of the distance breaking them up eventually. His grip on Scarlett's arms tighten minutely, and she kisses his ear in answer.
He doesn't begrudge them anything, he never has, but Kris and Adam get to stay together, live together, and that's such a mindfuck right there. It's been more than a year, wow, and Lee honestly can't remember what it was like before they weren't a them. So stable and strong, right from the very beginning. It was a little frustrating to watch them back then, still so new to it yet making it all look easy while Lee struggled with just getting on the same page as Scarlett. All through senior year, they were treated as the two old married couples of the group, and that was fine, but now they get to have what he can't, and all Lee can feel now is sadness and pre-emptive grief.
When Lee lets his gaze drift back to the dock, Adam had turned around to kind of curl around Kris. The sun's almost set, and Lee knows that Kris is always the first of them to get cold. Lee watches Adam make the executive decision to stand and walk back to the tent, smiles at the sight of Adam toweling Kris down like a newly-bathed puppy, sighs a little when Kris pulls on a shirt and Adam drapes his ridiculous leather jacket on his tiny shoulders, drawing him into a long hug.
"Penny for your thoughts?" Scarlett murmurs into his temple.
"I love you," is the only thing he can think of to say.
He's rewarded with a smiling kiss on his cheek. "I love you too, mister."
Next: in the early light