Chapter Text
“Today’s the big day,” Mikael said eagerly after he ordered. They were meeting up for breakfast, which had become a semi-regular thing for them over the past week. As regular as something could be after becoming friends only two weeks before. “Can you believe Harold is 85?”
“Can you believe that the most exciting thing I’ll have done all vacation is the birthday party of an 85 year old man?” Jonas laughed. “I mean look at us. How many people in their twenties spend so much time with someone that old.”
“Hey Harold is the best,” Mikael said defensively. “He’s the cheekiest person I know.”
“I don’t know,” Jonas said. “You might have him beat by that one.”
Mikael narrowed his eyes and playfully kicked Jonas under the table. He laughed, full bodied as their food arrived.
“It’s been good though, yeah?” Mikael asked around a mouthful of food. “Your holiday?”
“Oh yeah,” Jonas grinned. “Best one I’ve ever had.”
“Good,” Mikael said. His smile was soft and there was a slight blush on his cheeks. Jonas thrilled at the thought that maybe it was because of him. Mikael’s face lit up quickly though, and he pointed out the window. “Oh my god, check out this amazing dog.”
Jonas looked but didn’t see anything. He turned back to Mikel who sat there with a guilty smile on his face.
“There was no dog,” Jonas said.
Mikael shrugged, “Maybe you missed him.”
“You ate some of my food didn’t you?”
“What? Psht. No, I would never do something like that,” Mikael laughed, not trying in the slightest to be convincing.
“Fine then that means I get to take some of yours,” Jonas said reaching across the table to Mikael’s plate.
“No, go eat your own,” Mikael whined trying to block Jonas’s fork with his own. They fought for a minute, until Jonas successfully swiped a potato and considered it a victory.
They passed the rest of breakfast in much the same way, and Jonas was starting to get sad that he was leaving in just a few days. He loved spending time with Mikael. Their conversation flowed very naturally from one subject to the next, seamlessly transitioning from serious to lighthearted.
Jonas loved his friends back home. They were some of the best people he’s ever known. But there was something about Mikael that made everything come easier. The older guy always seemed to be able to pull a laugh out of him with his carefree energy, and Jonas is sure he has laughed more on vacation than he has in months. They could debate serious subjects, and Mikael would always have some quip to remind Jonas that not everything in life needed to be taken so seriously. But at the same time, Jonas always felt like he was listened to, and that Mikael respected his opinions.
He didn’t exactly know how to describe it, but it felt like there was part of him that was meant to find friendship with Mikael. He doesn’t think it would have happened if he hadn’t been spontaneous and flown to L.A. But since that first day when he saw Mikael making a sandwich in his kitchen, he’s been happy to have done something so completely impulsive and unlike anything he’s done before.
They were walking out of the restaurant, Mikael telling some embarrassing story from when he was younger, gesturing wildly with his hands, when Jonas’s cell phone rang.
“It’s Eva,” Jonas said, looking at Mikael with wide eyes. His hands dropped to his sides and he stopped talking, nodding at Jonas to pick up the phone.
“Halla,” he said.
“Jonas Vasquez!” he heard a loud squeal come through the other line. “You will never guess where I am right now.”
“Uh, Oslo?” he asked.
“I’m in L.A.!” She shouted.
Jonas nearly choked and he covered it up with a cough, a wide grin splitting his face as he looked excitedly at Mikael.
“Seriously?” He sputtered out, “Why?”
“For work! It was really last minute, and I was going to tell you and then before I realized it I was on the plane here. Anyway, can we get lunch or dinner or drinks or something? I really want to see you! You’ve done a terrible job of keeping me informed about what you’ve been up to, and I need to pick your brain.”
Jonas laughed, “Okay yeah. Text me your address and I’ll come pick you up. We’ll figure something out.”
“Yay!” she squealed one more time. “I’ll see you soon.”
“Sorry about that,” he said hanging up the phone and turning to Mikael. He laughed, a bit in shock, “She’s in town and wants to meet up.”
“Oh,” Mikael said, nodding. “That’s uh, that’s great.”
“You don’t mind?” Jonas asked. “I know we had plans to hang out before the party, but--”
“No no, I get it. It’s Eva. I mean she’s...she’s it for you,” He said, scuffing his shoe on the ground. “Anyway I have some work that I should try to get done before the party anyway.”
“Right,” Jonas knitted his eyebrows together. “Yeah. But hey, I’ll still see you at the party. I’m not gonna miss that.”
“Yeah yeah,” Mikael said, “Go have fun with your girl. Take your time. I’ll see you when I see you.”
He turned abruptly with a wave and walked away leaving Jonas standing there in the middle of the sidewalk. He wondered briefly what could have changed so drastically between breakfast and now, but he didn’t linger on the thought because Eva was here.
Eva was in L.A. Yes, it was for work, but maybe that also meant something good for him. Maybe the thing with Noora was brief and she was ready to come back to him. It was a stretch, and Jonas knew it. But he couldn’t stop the thought from slipping in and making him smile.
---
“Fy faen Jonas,” Eva said as they pulled up to the house after lunch, “This is where you’ve been staying?”
Jonas laughed, a bit chagrined. “Yeah. Wait until you see inside.”
“You mean it gets better?” she gaped, unbuckling herself.
Jonas just laughed and showed her the inside. He couldn’t keep the smile off his face the whole time he gave her a tour. Her eyes practically bugged out of her head and he mouth got exponentially larger with every room they went in.
“So,” Jonas said once they got to the kitchen, “What do you think?”
She let out a disbelieving laugh and stretched her arms over the expanse of the countertop, as if testing whether it was real or fake.
“I can’t believe you’re staying here,” she said.
“I know.”
“This goes against everything you believe in.”
“I know.”
“But you’re not paying for any of it?”
“Nope. It’s a home exchange, so he’s in my house free of charge, and I’m here.”
“Oh my god.”
“I know,” he said again. He reached into the cupboard and pulled out a bottle of wine. “Want something to drink.”
Eva smirked, “You know me so well.”
Jonas flushed a bit. It felt like old times, the same ever-loving Eva, easy with her affection and touches. When he first picked her up, she flung her arms around him in a huge, warm embrace. Throughout lunch, she grabbed his arm, especially when he made her laugh. It thrilled him to see her react so physically to his presence and what he said.
She still marveled at everything in the house, head thrown back taking in the tall ceilings. Jonas laughed as he handed her a glass of wine and tugged her by the hand to the living room. They settled on the couch and Eva looked as relaxed as Jonas felt. She let out a soft groan at the comfort of it all, and Jonas smiled. She looked beautiful, hair thrown wildly among the pillows, like she always belonged there.
“So how long are you here?” he asked.
“Until the second. We have a big meeting with some ad executives out here. I don’t know why they picked me, but when they offered it I certainly wasn’t going to turn it down,” she said. She poked him in the side. “Especially since I knew you were here.”
“Yeah, but I’ll be flying back on the 30th.”
“Still,” she said turning to him. “Better than nothing.”
He smiled softly at her. “How’s uh, Noora doing?”
She beamed, “She’s good! I’m sad she couldn’t come with. But her newspaper doesn’t have a big staff right now with the holidays, so she couldn’t get time off. But it’s okay because I have you!”
“Yeah,” he said taking a sip of his wine. “Why didn’t you tell me about her?”
Eva’s face crumpled into chagrin, “It wasn’t just you, you know. We didn’t know how to tell anyone. It’s not easy, dating someone in the friend group. You never know how anyone will react. And if it ends up going south it could wreck things. I mean look at what happened to us.”
“What do you mean what happened to us? We’re best friends,” Jonas said.
“Yeah now,” she said. “But when we first broke up it was really difficult. I felt like I couldn’t be around any of your friends. And it was fine I guess because I wasn’t really that close with any of them but Isak. But it was still hard. I guess Noora and I just...wanted to be sure about each other before it happened.”
“You’re sure about her? Like she’s the one for you?”
“Do you really think there’s only one person for everyone, Jonas?” She looked at him quizzically, trying to figure out his meaning.
He looked down at the wine glass in his hands and swirled the contents inside, as if they would somehow give him the right words to say. “I did. For a long time I thought that.”
“And now?”
“Now I’m not so sure about anything,” he admitted.
She stared at him for a minute and he shrunk under her gaze. “I’m not so sure that’s true,” she said finally.
He raised his eyebrows at her sure tone, “Care to enlighten me?”
“You’re different,” she shrugged. “I don’t know what it is exactly, but you seem more sure of yourself. Maybe it’s just this unbelievably luxe house, but you seem happier than I’ve seen you in years.”
“I do?” He asked. She nodded. His mind raced, trying to figure out how she could notice this, but he could fail to realize it about himself. It’s true that this vacation gave him more than he expected. He never expected to meet Harold, and come to like him so much. The conversations they’ve had have been some of the best Jonas has had with anyone, and he’s learned so much. He knows he’s grown into a different person just from his relationship with Harold, but he didn’t think it would be so obvious.
His thoughts drifted to Mikael and his easy nature. He always felt so relaxed around him. Mikael was unapologetically himself all the time, and it was contagious. Jonas felt completely free to be himself around Mikael, in whatever capacity that might mean. He knew that Mikael wouldn’t judge him for what he said, and even if they disagreed, they could talk until one of them saw the other’s point of view. It was so easy to talk to him and just be around him that sometimes it was hard to believe they’ve only known each other for two weeks. Jonas could admit that meeting Mikael is without a doubt the best thing he’s done on vacation. Maybe even one of the best things in his entire life.
“You okay?” Eva’s voice interrupted his thoughts.
“Yeah,” he said shaking his head. “Sorry I got lost in my thoughts a bit.”
“What were you thinking about?” she cocked her head.
“I was thinking about my friend Mikael actually,” he said, the corner of his mouth lifting.
“What about him?”
“Just that,” he laughed, “It’s so strange because I’ve only known him a few weeks. Twelve days really. And...and he’s honestly become one of the best friends I’ve ever had. He’s one of the weirdest, funniest people I’ve ever known. And he’s so genuine all the time and so excited about every aspect of life and...and I’m honestly forgetting what my life looked like before he was in it.”
He looked at Eva and saw his own disbelief in her eyes.
“Eva, I’m sorry. It was really great seeing you but,” he said. “I’ve gotta go.”
---
Please still be here, please still be here, Jonas thought to himself as he rushed up the steps to Mikael’s house. He knocked on the door, bouncing his leg, tapping his fingers waiting for a response.
He peered through the glass at the side of the door, when no one answered, trying to see movement inside.
Nothing.
“Fuck,” Jonas said, rushing back to the car.
---
He practically flew threw Harold’s front door when he arrived. The house was empty. Everyone was in the garden for the party. He only peeked out the kitchen windows, but he saw no sign of Mikael.
He knows he could probably ask. Knows he probably should ask. But that would bring up a lot more attention and questions to something he hadn’t logically thought out himself.
Jonas searched every room in the house, ending in the living room where he was greeted by a lonely grand piano. He sat down hard on the bench and put his head in his hands, sighing. He was on the verge of giving up hope when he heard a quiet, “Hey,” from the doorway.
He looked up and his heart flew to his throat. Mikael stood before him, half in shadow of the waning daylight. His shirt collar was unbuttoned, suit jacket hanging open, and his hands were shoved deep into the pockets of his dress pants. He looked beautiful.
“Mikael,” He said standing up.
“You look like Hell,” he said. His features were soft and full of concern, and Jonas almost couldn’t stand it. “Are you okay? How did everything go with Eva?”
“Everything’s fine,” he said taking a tentative step closer. He wrung his hands together, not knowing exactly how to say all the thoughts that spun around his head. “Listen I’m sorry I ditched you for her earlier.”
Mikael shuffled on his feet, “It’s fine. I told you I understand.”
“That’s just the thing though. I’m not sure you do,” Jonas said. Mikael’s eyebrows raised in a silent question, and Jonas pushed on. “Because you see. I don’t even like Eva like that.”
“You don’t?”
Jonas shook his head. “I think...I think I started to realize it the other day, when we were watching movies,” he said, taking another step closer. “It’s a good thing I lied to you and said I hadn’t seen the Sound of Music, because I honestly didn’t pay attention to any of it. The whole time I was just focused on how much space there was between us and how badly I didn’t want it to be there. And I know that night we talked a lot about sexuality and stuff and how neither of us is really sure about anything right now. But I do know,” he took another step forward, “that I’ve laughed more with you in the last couple weeks than I have in the last four months. Probably longer even. And I know this might be strange because we only met twelve days ago but...but you’ve become one of my best friends in that time and I don’t even remember what life was like before I knew you” he swallowed and took another step forward. “And I know I live in Norway and you live in America and there might not be a way that anything more than friendship could work between us.”
Mikael’s soft brown eyes were wide with emotion and Jonas took the last step toward him, joining him under the doorway. “But I guess, what I’m trying to say is, I like you. And I’m hoping you might like me too?”
The older boy nodded, and relief flooded Jonas’s body. He let out the breath he didn’t know he was holding and smiled. Mikael smiled back and Jonas dared to ask, “Can I kiss you know? Because I honestly haven’t stopped thinking about it since I met you?.”
Mikael laughed, teeth gleaming bright against his brown skin. He looked up, and back at Jonas with a smirk. “Mistletoe,” he said.
Jonas laughed and, threading his fingers in Mikael’s silky hair, he locked their lips together gently. Mikael tugged him closer by the waist and his mouth opened easily. They stayed like that, just kissing, until the light faded around them.
---
They spent the rest of the night mingling with Harold and Sylvia and their friends. To anyone watching, it would have looked no different than any of the other times they spent together. But to Jonas the night felt alive with magic. He stared unabashedly at Mikael, and blushed freely when Mikael caught him staring. He thrilled at the brush of Mikael’s hand under the table and was amazed at the pure, unadulterated joy that Mikael emitted to the world.
Maybe he was high off their kiss. Maybe he was drunk on champagne. Maybe it was the magic of vacation or fairy lights in the garden. Whatever it was, Jonas felt so alive and he really didn’t want the night to end.
When the night wound down and only a few people remained at the house, Mikael found his way to the piano and began playing Harold’s theme. Jonas stood in the doorway, watching his whole body move with the song.
“You know I know you’re there, right?” he asked without turning around.
Jonas laughed, moving toward him, “How could you possibly have known that?”
“Does it matter?” He quirked an eyebrow and scooted over on the bench.
“I guess not,” Jonas said sitting next to him. It felt good, sitting next to Mikael, knowing he was allowed to be comfortable with it. He relaxed more, unlike the other day. He lost himself in the music, and he didn’t even realize the song had morphed into the one Mikael wrote for him until Mikael was nudging him.
“Hey,” he said quietly, “Can I take you on a date for New Year’s?”
Jonas slumped a bit, “I’ll be back in Norway by New Year’s.”
Mikael nodded, nonplussed. “I’ve never been to Norway,” he said. “I’ve actually never been to Europe.”
“No?”
He shook his head, the corner of his mouth quirking up. “If I follow you to Norway will you go out with me on New Year’s Eve?”
Mikael paused playing the piano as Jonas’s hands came up to grab his face. He kissed Mikael, gently tugging his lip as he pulled away.
“I’d love to,” Jonas said.
Mikael beamed and turned back to the piano while Jonas bit his lip, trying to hide his smile. Mikael nudged him and they both laughed breathlessly, shyly looking up at each other through their lashes, soft smiles playing at their lips as they drank each other in under the lowlight of the room.
“Fuck,” Isak whispered as they stepped outside. “This shouldn’t be this hard. Why is this so hard?”
“Because you fell in love with a dazzling American stranger over Christmas,” Even teased.
“Ha ha,” Isak said. He rolled his eyes fondly, but squeezed them tight together, rubbing the heels of his hands into them. “Fuck,” he whispered again.
“Hey,” Even said pulling Isak into his arms and wrapping him in a tight hug. “It’s okay. It’s not like we’re not going to talk to each other. Technology exists nowadays, so we can talk as often as we can.”
“I know, I know,” Isak said into his neck. “But you’re the one who’s leaving. You get to go back to sunny, happy, L.A. Meanwhile I’ll be here. I mean,” he laughed bitterly, “This is my best friend’s house for Christ’s sake! How am I supposed to visit now when all I’ll be able to think about is you.”
Even kissed Isak’s eyes, catching the tears before they fell. He pressed kisses to his temples, cheeks, jaw, before settling gently on his lips. He kissed him as if he could take Isak’s sorrow as his own, to save the younger boy from whatever heartbreak Even could inflict upon him.
He pulled back, pressing their foreheads together. His strong hands cupped Isak’s jaw, hoping to convey some surety with his words. “I love you,” he said. “We’ll figure it out.”
Isak nodded. “You’re right. You’re right,” he said. “You’re strong, I’m strong. We’re both mature adults. We can do this. Whatever this is.”
Even huffed out a laugh, half fond, half devastated. He kissed him one more time and pulled him into a strong hug. “I’ll be seeing you,” he whispered into Isak’s ear before pulling away.
“Take care of yourself,” Isak said quietly, brushing a hand through Even’s hair one more time. He nodded, squeezed Isak’s hand, and settled into the car.
He watched Isak as long as possible while the car drove away, until they turned a corner and he disappeared with the trees.
“Did you have a good holiday, sir?” the driver asked him.
“Yeah I did,” Even said. “The best one ever.”
He pulled away from the window, settling into the seat. He double checked his boarding pass, passport, secretly hoping there would be something forgotten so that he could go back just one more time. But it was all there.
He closed his eyes and laid his head back against the seat. Visions flashed behind his eyelids as the car drove on. Joints passed through fingers that purposefully brushed one another. Wet kisses that trailed across their bodies. Gasping as hair was tugged. Warm lighting. Ice skating. Smiling into kisses. Secrets divulged during quiet moments in the woods. Dancing in the kitchen. Holding each other with the innocence of teenagers in love. Whispered praises, gentle caresses and breathless I love, I love, I love yous as they held each other like they might break
Even’s breath came in shallow and his cheeks burned as a few silent tears escaped his eyes.
He laughed, disbelieving while he roughly brushed the tears away.
“Can you turn around?” He asked the driver.
“Have you forgotten something?” he asked.
“Yes,” Even said, breathless. “Something very important.”
The driver turned the car around as quick as he could, and Even’s hands tapped restless rhythms on his thighs.
“Can’t you go any faster?” He asked impatiently.
“Sorry, sir. The road’s a bit icy, and if I go any faster we’ll end up in a ditch.”
Even sighed. “You know what? It’s fine. Just stop here.”
“You sure?” The driver asked putting the car in park.
Before Even could give him an answer, he was out the door and flying down the street. He ran as fast as he could in the thick snow until he couldn’t possibly run any more. He overestimated his athletic ability and had to pause multiple times to catch his breath. But Even barely noticed anything, his mind still except for the quiet repetition of Isak Isak Isak.
He turned the last corner and the cabin came into sight. He paused briefly smile playing at his lips before he pushed on, sprinting the last hundred meters to the house.
“Isak!” He shouted, throwing himself through the door.
“Even?” Isak asked quietly, standing up from where he sat at the kitchen table.
“You know, I was just thinking,” Even panted, “Why would I ever leave before New Year’s Eve? I mean, that doesn’t make any sense at all.” Isak’s mouth lifted up at the corner. “You didn’t exactly ask me out. But you did say you loved me. So, I’m thinking I have a date. If you’ll have me?”
Isak rolled his eyes fondly, and rushed to Even, lips slotting together. His fingers knotted in Even’s hair and Even held tight to his waist as they breathlessly licked into each other’s mouths. Even doesn’t know how long they stayed there kissing, but he couldn’t help but think that there was no better kiss in any universe.
Jonas’s cabin was definitely too small to fit this many people. How did he manage to have so many friends and how did he never manage to have them all over at once before now?
Regardless of the lack of space though, Jonas was overflowing with joy. He was leaning against the doorframe of the kitchen, looking out into the living room where he saw Mikael engaged in conversation with Magnus and Mahdi. He didn’t have any idea what they were talking about, but Magnus’s head was thrown back in laughter and Mahdi’s bright smile lit up the dark room. Mikael’s smile was small in comparison, but as Jonas caught his eye, it widened. Jonas blushed and made his way over to them, slipping a hand around Mikael’s waist and kissing him on the cheek.
“Are you having fun?” Jonas murmured once the other boys left to get more drinks.
“So much,” Mikael laughed. “Your friends are a riot.”
“They seem to like you too,” Jonas whispered against his lips before kissing him quickly.
“Well look who finally decided to show up,” Eskild’s voice rang out. Isak and Even walked through the door, hand in hand, Isak blushing deeply.
“We got a bit...distracted,” Even said biting his lip to hide his smirk. Isak blushed impossibly deeper and smacked Even on the arm as a chorus of “oohs” went across the room. Even laughed and pulled Isak into a kiss, which the younger boy immediately melted into.
Jonas never thought he’d see the day Isak looked so blissfully happy, and he was so glad for his best friend. After they broke apart, Isak caught Jonas’s eye and dragged Even over to he and Mikael.
“Missed you,” Jonas said pulling Isak into a hug.
“You too,” he said clapping Jonas on the back.
“This is so weird,” Mikael said, shaking his head, his long hair hiding his features.
“What is?” Jonas asked, tucking a piece behind his ear before lacing their fingers together.
“All of this,” Mikael gestured between them. “Me and you. My best friend and your best friend.”
“It’s pretty wild isn’t it?” Even said, looking Isak up and down, hardly paying attention to his friend. Isak blushed again and Even pressed a kiss into his cheek. Jonas had a feeling they would be seeing a lot of that tonight. He was glad Mikael was here because he wasn’t sure he wanted to see what they would look like when the clock struck midnight.
“You two are gross,” Mikael said.
“Absolutely disgusting. Oh hey that reminds me,” Jonas said, pointing with his free hand. “Isak, you owe me new bedsheets.”
“What? Why would I do that?” Isak asked.
“Why do you think?” Jonas sassed.
“Did you not wash those?” Even whispered to Isak and Isak groaned.
“Fuck.”
Jonas laughed, “It’s the least you can do, considering I gave you the best Christmas gift ever.”
“Oh yeah?” Isak quirked an eyebrow. “What was it?”
“Spontaneously flying to L.A. and letting you meet the love of your life.”
“Oh yeah,” Isak melted into Even’s side, looking up at him with so much fondness Jonas thought he might be sick. “That’s a pretty great gift.”
Even licked his lips and practically attacked Isak’s mouth.
Mikael laughed, and Jonas turned to his boyfriend, taking in the glow that surrounded him. “I never thought I’d see Even that happy again,” he whispered as Isak and Even kept kissing. “They’re disgusting, but I’ll take that over the fights he had with Sonja, any day.”
“You’re incredible, you know that?”
“Yeah, I’m okay,” Mikael teased.
“TEN, NINE, EIGHT.” Their friends started chanting. Isak and Even broke apart from their kiss, but stayed plastered together, noses brushing until it was appropriate to kiss again.
“FIVE, FOUR, THREE, TWO, ONE!”
Jonas kissed Mikael gently, before separating. He looked around the room at all his friends, kissing, laughing, hugging, confetti flying everywhere.
Jonas looked at Mikael, and smiled, softly squeezing his hand. He brought their foreheads together and locked eyes.
“Happy New Year,” Mikael whispered.
And Jonas knew, even before he spoke the words that it was true. “It’ll be the best one yet.”