Title: One Of Those Rowdy Boys
Title: One Of Those Rowdy Boys
Words: 2,206
Fandom: Bandom (The Academy Is.../The Jonas Brothers)
A/N: For this prompt over on anon_lovefest: Mike Carden/ Kevin Jonas high school AU. Switch the roles so that Kevin is the cool asshole-ish guy and Mike is the total faily dork. Title is from the JoBros song Year 3000. All blame can be directed at icanbreakthesky.
His car dies two blocks from school, in the middle of the intersection, and it's just about the icing on the motherfucking fail-cake that's been Mike's week. People are honking from every angle as he gets out and starts to push, and he can hear a few voices he recognizes as cars zoom past him. One swipes dangerously close-his hair flutters in the breeze it creates-and he hears someone yelling "Watch out!" as they go by.
Mike really wants to yell back, but he doesn't think they'll hear him. Or care. He recognizes the car, not least of all because of the vanity license plate proclaiming "JONAS" to the world. Mike's pretty sure the Jonas brothers don't know who he is, so at least they probably didn't do it on purpose. They were probably just too busy being perfect or something to notice how they almost ran him over, Mike thinks sourly. Not that he really wants them noticing him or anything, but still.
Once he finally gets his car off to the side of the road, he pulls out a cigarette and starts trudging toward FBR High. The late bell rings while he's still a block away, and he can't even bring himself to care all that much. It's the third time he's been late this week, he's already got detention all of next week because of it, and Mrs. Martinez already hates him because of it. Another tardy won't hurt anything.
He slinks in while Mrs. Martinez is finishing roll. She glares at him but he doesn't look back, heading for his seat in the last row, next to William. He's barely had time to sit down and drop his shit before she's swooping down the aisle.
"I'll take your homework, if you've got it, Mr. Carden," Mrs. Martinez says loudly, crossing her arms over her chest as she stares him down. Mike smirks a little, because for once, he's totally, totally got his homework, and it's done and-
-in his math book. In the back seat of his car.
"Fuck," Mike sighs, squeezing his eyes shut.
"Mister Carden."
He doesn't say a word the rest of the class, and takes his referral form down to the office during passing period. The secretary informs him the principal's busy, and to come back at lunch. Mike nods and leaves without the little slip of paper, already planning on 'forgetting' about it all by lunchtime.
By lunchtime he's truly forgotten all about it, remembering instead how his wallet is back in his car as well. He storms over to their usual table in the corner and waits for everyone else to get through the lines to see what he can mooch. It isn't long before Bill's heading his way, nose in a book and hair all in his face. Sisky's following behind him, practically on Bill's heels, his own 'fro bobbing left and right. He's talking a mile a minute, and there's nothing from Bill to indicate he's listening at all except an occasional smirk. Chiz isn't far behind them, looking a little lost as he stares at the side of his soda. He nearly runs into Zac and Vanessa without even realizing it; they dodge around him, laugh at each other behind his back, and Mike rolls his eyes as they head for the Center of the Universe.
Right in the middle of it all (of course) is the Center of the Universe. It's the table the Jonases sit at, along with all their friends. This early in the lunch period there's only Miley, Selena, Demi, Vanessa and Zac, but Mike knows soon their entire table will be overflowing with perfect smiles, perfect hair, perfect...everything. They're adored by all the adults and most every other kid in school. One of the sophomores in Mike's math class, something DeLeon, had been trying to infiltrate their ranks since freshman year. Mike secretly thinks he's got a good chance, DeLeon's kind of one the fringes of the goody-two-shoes music-y crowd.
Mike also sometimes secretly thinks about what crowd he and Bill and Sisky and Michael and Butcher make up together, off alone in their corner of the cafeteria, ignored by most everyone...but ultimately he always decides he doesn't want to know. If Kevin and everyone are the Center of the Universe, they're probably Pluto or some shit. Hell, Butcher is probably the coolest of all of them, and only because he's totally in the art-chic crowd as well, and sometimes hangs out with Gerard and Travis and their friends.
Speaking of Butcher, Mike hasn't seen him all day. He sits up a little more, peering around the cafeteria.
He's still scanning the cafeteria when he realizes there's someone at the table.
"Hey."
Mike looks up-and his jaw actually drops.
Kevin Jonas is leaning on the other side of the table, looking straight at him.
His first reaction is to glance sideways quickly, make sure he somehow didn't lose his God-damn mind and sit at the wrong table or something. But no. He's in the back left corner of the cafeteria, the same place he and the guys have always sat, out of the way and far from the Center of the Universe.
"Mike, right?" Kevin asks, smiling brightly. "I wanted to apologize."
"...huh?" Mike manages.
"Uh, about this morning?" Kevin says, his tone turning it into a question. "My little brother Nick, we're teaching him how to drive and he, uh, nearly ran you over. So. Sorry about that."
"Um," Mike says. After a second he recovers enough to say, "Don't sweat it."
Somehow, that sounds like an invitation; Kevin smiles again and sits down, and while he's dropping his backpack Mike sneaks a glance over in Bill's direction. Bill, Sisky, and Chiz are staring at him, gaping, and Butcher's come out of nowhere to join in. Mike shrugs feebly before turning his attention back to Kevin, who's talking again.
"So is your car alright?" Kevin asks and he actually sounds concerned. "You were pushing it, that's not good."
"Uh, no," Mike says, looking down at the empty space in front of him. "The, uh, I think the battery's just dead or something, I'll get my dad to take a look at it today after school or something."
"Speaking of after school, how're you getting home? I mean, if your car's still broken down?"
"Oh, I'll probably just make Bill-uh, my friend Bill-I'll have him give me a ride home."
"I thought you lived out by Schaumburg though." This time it's Kevin's turn to blush, as Mike's eyes go wide. "I just-I mean, I know I've-I mean, we've seen you driving out that way-on our way home, you know? We live out that way. My brothers and I. Our family."
"Uh, oh yeah, sure," Mike grabs his backpack, mainly for something else to focus on as his face turns bright red. "I do. Live out there, I mean."
"So yeah. If you wanted-if you don't want Bill to have to, you know, go out of his way-you could always-we could give you a ride. Since, you know, we're kind of in the same direction."
He honestly doesn't know how to respond. He's just staring at Kevin, and Kevin...Kevin is slowly turning pink.
"Okay, well," Kevin says abruptly, standing up and climbing over the bench in one movement. He grabs his backpack before turning back to Mike. "You're in my history class, right? Luna, last period?"
"...yeah."
"Kay well just let me know if you want a ride then, okay later!"
Just like that, Kevin is off like a shot, disappearing back into the crowd that's starting to encircle the Center of the Universe. Almost as quickly, Mike is surrounded as well, Bill and Chiz on either side of him while Butcher and Sisky lay halfway across the table.
"What," Bill asks quietly. "Was that?"
---
After talking it over all lunch period and most of Gym and Chemistry, Mike heads for History with a mixture of dread and butterflies in his stomach. He still hasn't decided what he's going to say to Kevin, if he's going to say anything, if he even believes Kevin was serious or whatever. He and Michael had walked by Miley and Demi on their way out of the cafeteria, and they'd started snickering as soon as he was past. He hasn't completely disregarded the idea that this might all be a huge joke or something, but.
But Kevin had seemed really...sincere when he had been talking with Mike. Not that Mike really knew what the guy was like or anything, they'd never really hung out obviously, and their longest conversation before today had probably been while in a group discussing something-or-other for history, but. Just...but. Mike stops just outside the classroom door, one hand on the doorknob and shaking his head. He didn't know what he was thinking anymore, he did know that he was being ridiculous, and Kevin probably didn't even mean anything by it except to clear his conscience from nearly sideswiping Mike, and, and...
Kevin looks up as he walks in and smiles at him, and Mike catches himself smiling back until Mr. Luna walks in, yelling at them all to sit down already.
The rest of the period passes in a blur, and suddenly Mike's standing next to his desk awkwardly, while Kevin stands in front of him, smiling just as goofy as Mike had before.
---
Mike finds himself in the back seat of Kevin's car, with Joe Jonas staring at him like he's up to something and Kevin riding shotgun, coaching Nick, "Okay, not too fast, just baugh!"
They're barely out of the parking lot before Kevin makes Nick pull over.
"Mike," Kevin says, as he yanks the keys out of the ignition and unbuckles his seat belt. "You come sit up here. I'm banishing Nick."
"You can't banish me," Nick grins as he and Mike switch places. "I quit."
Joe slouches, sounding slightly amused as he adds, "That makes no sense."
Mike sort of frowns when he gets into the passenger seat, because Joe and Nick are whispering now, and Kevin is totally, totally ignoring them. Mike's got siblings, he knows when someone's ignoring their family. Before he can think about it too long though, Kevin's pulling carefully into traffic and talking about the homework for Luna's class, which Mike totally spaced on.
Somehow history turns into music, and music turns into Mike talking about the band Bill's trying to con him into, and before he knows it Kevin's turning into his driveway. Mike can sense the awkward coming, so he gets his shit together as quickly as possible, thanking Kevin for the ride as he fumbles with the door handle and saying something about seeing him on Monday as he climbs out.
Mike is busy rushing up the walkway, so he nearly trips and eats it big time when Kevin calls "So hey!"
"Yeah?" Mike asks, turning slowly.
"Um," Kevin starts. He loses his train of thought as Nick and Joe start to outright laugh in the back seat. "So well, you know. I was wondering. What're you doing tomorrow?"
Mike stares dumbly at him. "Um..."
"Because if you're not busy, maybe we could-study."
"Study?"
"For the history test?" Kevin asks. "Would you...do you wanna?"
"Study?" Mike makes a face. He's never studied a day in his life. He's surprised when he gets Bs, fuck. "Uh, I don't really...study, man."
Kevin's face kind of twitches, quirks up on one side. "Kay, well, wanna not study tomorrow, and possibly grab lunch and see Demi's show at Java Rock?"
"Actually, I've already got..." Mike stops suddenly. "Java Rock?"
He's pretty sure he sounds like a moron, but he's also pretty sure that's the place Bill had been talking about at lunch on Wednesday. The place Nick's new band was playing a show...on Saturday...
He's also pretty sure, all of a sudden, that Kevin's trying pretty hard not to laugh at him.
---
"So hey," Mike says, leaning back on the counter next to Kevin. They're both bobbing their heads slightly; Demi's not too shabby, if Mike's being honest. "So if you knew I was gonna be here and wanted to like, hang and all, why the whole set-up with driving me home and everything?"
"Well," Kevin takes another sip of his milkshake. "First off, it wasn't a total set-up. I didn't know your car would break down. But I knew you were gonna be here for the 5o4 show, so I was gonna ask you about it at lunch and...and I dunno, I asked Nick and Joe for help and that's what we came up with."
Mike frowns. Something's still not quite clicking for him. "But why'd you wanna talk to me so bad?"
If he were a little less well-mannered, Mike thinks, Kevin might have rolled his eyes before leaning in and pressing his lips to Mike's cheek. As it is, he only sighs a little, and Mike only flails one hand.
"If this is some kinda joke-" Mike starts, as soon as Kevin pulls back.
Kevin leans in and kisses him again, this time on the lips, and Mike decides no, definitely not a joke.
Words: 2,206
Fandom: Bandom (The Academy Is.../The Jonas Brothers)
A/N: For this prompt over on anon_lovefest: Mike Carden/ Kevin Jonas high school AU. Switch the roles so that Kevin is the cool asshole-ish guy and Mike is the total faily dork. Title is from the JoBros song Year 3000. All blame can be directed at icanbreakthesky.
His car dies two blocks from school, in the middle of the intersection, and it's just about the icing on the motherfucking fail-cake that's been Mike's week. People are honking from every angle as he gets out and starts to push, and he can hear a few voices he recognizes as cars zoom past him. One swipes dangerously close-his hair flutters in the breeze it creates-and he hears someone yelling "Watch out!" as they go by.
Mike really wants to yell back, but he doesn't think they'll hear him. Or care. He recognizes the car, not least of all because of the vanity license plate proclaiming "JONAS" to the world. Mike's pretty sure the Jonas brothers don't know who he is, so at least they probably didn't do it on purpose. They were probably just too busy being perfect or something to notice how they almost ran him over, Mike thinks sourly. Not that he really wants them noticing him or anything, but still.
Once he finally gets his car off to the side of the road, he pulls out a cigarette and starts trudging toward FBR High. The late bell rings while he's still a block away, and he can't even bring himself to care all that much. It's the third time he's been late this week, he's already got detention all of next week because of it, and Mrs. Martinez already hates him because of it. Another tardy won't hurt anything.
He slinks in while Mrs. Martinez is finishing roll. She glares at him but he doesn't look back, heading for his seat in the last row, next to William. He's barely had time to sit down and drop his shit before she's swooping down the aisle.
"I'll take your homework, if you've got it, Mr. Carden," Mrs. Martinez says loudly, crossing her arms over her chest as she stares him down. Mike smirks a little, because for once, he's totally, totally got his homework, and it's done and-
-in his math book. In the back seat of his car.
"Fuck," Mike sighs, squeezing his eyes shut.
"Mister Carden."
He doesn't say a word the rest of the class, and takes his referral form down to the office during passing period. The secretary informs him the principal's busy, and to come back at lunch. Mike nods and leaves without the little slip of paper, already planning on 'forgetting' about it all by lunchtime.
By lunchtime he's truly forgotten all about it, remembering instead how his wallet is back in his car as well. He storms over to their usual table in the corner and waits for everyone else to get through the lines to see what he can mooch. It isn't long before Bill's heading his way, nose in a book and hair all in his face. Sisky's following behind him, practically on Bill's heels, his own 'fro bobbing left and right. He's talking a mile a minute, and there's nothing from Bill to indicate he's listening at all except an occasional smirk. Chiz isn't far behind them, looking a little lost as he stares at the side of his soda. He nearly runs into Zac and Vanessa without even realizing it; they dodge around him, laugh at each other behind his back, and Mike rolls his eyes as they head for the Center of the Universe.
Right in the middle of it all (of course) is the Center of the Universe. It's the table the Jonases sit at, along with all their friends. This early in the lunch period there's only Miley, Selena, Demi, Vanessa and Zac, but Mike knows soon their entire table will be overflowing with perfect smiles, perfect hair, perfect...everything. They're adored by all the adults and most every other kid in school. One of the sophomores in Mike's math class, something DeLeon, had been trying to infiltrate their ranks since freshman year. Mike secretly thinks he's got a good chance, DeLeon's kind of one the fringes of the goody-two-shoes music-y crowd.
Mike also sometimes secretly thinks about what crowd he and Bill and Sisky and Michael and Butcher make up together, off alone in their corner of the cafeteria, ignored by most everyone...but ultimately he always decides he doesn't want to know. If Kevin and everyone are the Center of the Universe, they're probably Pluto or some shit. Hell, Butcher is probably the coolest of all of them, and only because he's totally in the art-chic crowd as well, and sometimes hangs out with Gerard and Travis and their friends.
Speaking of Butcher, Mike hasn't seen him all day. He sits up a little more, peering around the cafeteria.
He's still scanning the cafeteria when he realizes there's someone at the table.
"Hey."
Mike looks up-and his jaw actually drops.
Kevin Jonas is leaning on the other side of the table, looking straight at him.
His first reaction is to glance sideways quickly, make sure he somehow didn't lose his God-damn mind and sit at the wrong table or something. But no. He's in the back left corner of the cafeteria, the same place he and the guys have always sat, out of the way and far from the Center of the Universe.
"Mike, right?" Kevin asks, smiling brightly. "I wanted to apologize."
"...huh?" Mike manages.
"Uh, about this morning?" Kevin says, his tone turning it into a question. "My little brother Nick, we're teaching him how to drive and he, uh, nearly ran you over. So. Sorry about that."
"Um," Mike says. After a second he recovers enough to say, "Don't sweat it."
Somehow, that sounds like an invitation; Kevin smiles again and sits down, and while he's dropping his backpack Mike sneaks a glance over in Bill's direction. Bill, Sisky, and Chiz are staring at him, gaping, and Butcher's come out of nowhere to join in. Mike shrugs feebly before turning his attention back to Kevin, who's talking again.
"So is your car alright?" Kevin asks and he actually sounds concerned. "You were pushing it, that's not good."
"Uh, no," Mike says, looking down at the empty space in front of him. "The, uh, I think the battery's just dead or something, I'll get my dad to take a look at it today after school or something."
"Speaking of after school, how're you getting home? I mean, if your car's still broken down?"
"Oh, I'll probably just make Bill-uh, my friend Bill-I'll have him give me a ride home."
"I thought you lived out by Schaumburg though." This time it's Kevin's turn to blush, as Mike's eyes go wide. "I just-I mean, I know I've-I mean, we've seen you driving out that way-on our way home, you know? We live out that way. My brothers and I. Our family."
"Uh, oh yeah, sure," Mike grabs his backpack, mainly for something else to focus on as his face turns bright red. "I do. Live out there, I mean."
"So yeah. If you wanted-if you don't want Bill to have to, you know, go out of his way-you could always-we could give you a ride. Since, you know, we're kind of in the same direction."
He honestly doesn't know how to respond. He's just staring at Kevin, and Kevin...Kevin is slowly turning pink.
"Okay, well," Kevin says abruptly, standing up and climbing over the bench in one movement. He grabs his backpack before turning back to Mike. "You're in my history class, right? Luna, last period?"
"...yeah."
"Kay well just let me know if you want a ride then, okay later!"
Just like that, Kevin is off like a shot, disappearing back into the crowd that's starting to encircle the Center of the Universe. Almost as quickly, Mike is surrounded as well, Bill and Chiz on either side of him while Butcher and Sisky lay halfway across the table.
"What," Bill asks quietly. "Was that?"
---
After talking it over all lunch period and most of Gym and Chemistry, Mike heads for History with a mixture of dread and butterflies in his stomach. He still hasn't decided what he's going to say to Kevin, if he's going to say anything, if he even believes Kevin was serious or whatever. He and Michael had walked by Miley and Demi on their way out of the cafeteria, and they'd started snickering as soon as he was past. He hasn't completely disregarded the idea that this might all be a huge joke or something, but.
But Kevin had seemed really...sincere when he had been talking with Mike. Not that Mike really knew what the guy was like or anything, they'd never really hung out obviously, and their longest conversation before today had probably been while in a group discussing something-or-other for history, but. Just...but. Mike stops just outside the classroom door, one hand on the doorknob and shaking his head. He didn't know what he was thinking anymore, he did know that he was being ridiculous, and Kevin probably didn't even mean anything by it except to clear his conscience from nearly sideswiping Mike, and, and...
Kevin looks up as he walks in and smiles at him, and Mike catches himself smiling back until Mr. Luna walks in, yelling at them all to sit down already.
The rest of the period passes in a blur, and suddenly Mike's standing next to his desk awkwardly, while Kevin stands in front of him, smiling just as goofy as Mike had before.
---
Mike finds himself in the back seat of Kevin's car, with Joe Jonas staring at him like he's up to something and Kevin riding shotgun, coaching Nick, "Okay, not too fast, just baugh!"
They're barely out of the parking lot before Kevin makes Nick pull over.
"Mike," Kevin says, as he yanks the keys out of the ignition and unbuckles his seat belt. "You come sit up here. I'm banishing Nick."
"You can't banish me," Nick grins as he and Mike switch places. "I quit."
Joe slouches, sounding slightly amused as he adds, "That makes no sense."
Mike sort of frowns when he gets into the passenger seat, because Joe and Nick are whispering now, and Kevin is totally, totally ignoring them. Mike's got siblings, he knows when someone's ignoring their family. Before he can think about it too long though, Kevin's pulling carefully into traffic and talking about the homework for Luna's class, which Mike totally spaced on.
Somehow history turns into music, and music turns into Mike talking about the band Bill's trying to con him into, and before he knows it Kevin's turning into his driveway. Mike can sense the awkward coming, so he gets his shit together as quickly as possible, thanking Kevin for the ride as he fumbles with the door handle and saying something about seeing him on Monday as he climbs out.
Mike is busy rushing up the walkway, so he nearly trips and eats it big time when Kevin calls "So hey!"
"Yeah?" Mike asks, turning slowly.
"Um," Kevin starts. He loses his train of thought as Nick and Joe start to outright laugh in the back seat. "So well, you know. I was wondering. What're you doing tomorrow?"
Mike stares dumbly at him. "Um..."
"Because if you're not busy, maybe we could-study."
"Study?"
"For the history test?" Kevin asks. "Would you...do you wanna?"
"Study?" Mike makes a face. He's never studied a day in his life. He's surprised when he gets Bs, fuck. "Uh, I don't really...study, man."
Kevin's face kind of twitches, quirks up on one side. "Kay, well, wanna not study tomorrow, and possibly grab lunch and see Demi's show at Java Rock?"
"Actually, I've already got..." Mike stops suddenly. "Java Rock?"
He's pretty sure he sounds like a moron, but he's also pretty sure that's the place Bill had been talking about at lunch on Wednesday. The place Nick's new band was playing a show...on Saturday...
He's also pretty sure, all of a sudden, that Kevin's trying pretty hard not to laugh at him.
---
"So hey," Mike says, leaning back on the counter next to Kevin. They're both bobbing their heads slightly; Demi's not too shabby, if Mike's being honest. "So if you knew I was gonna be here and wanted to like, hang and all, why the whole set-up with driving me home and everything?"
"Well," Kevin takes another sip of his milkshake. "First off, it wasn't a total set-up. I didn't know your car would break down. But I knew you were gonna be here for the 5o4 show, so I was gonna ask you about it at lunch and...and I dunno, I asked Nick and Joe for help and that's what we came up with."
Mike frowns. Something's still not quite clicking for him. "But why'd you wanna talk to me so bad?"
If he were a little less well-mannered, Mike thinks, Kevin might have rolled his eyes before leaning in and pressing his lips to Mike's cheek. As it is, he only sighs a little, and Mike only flails one hand.
"If this is some kinda joke-" Mike starts, as soon as Kevin pulls back.
Kevin leans in and kisses him again, this time on the lips, and Mike decides no, definitely not a joke.