Work Text:
This is how they meet:
Doug joins Boy Scouts as a kid because his family says that he needs to get out of his room and go outside, and Boy Scouts is preferable to sports. He loves it, even if he gets a lot of bug bites and isn't particularly good at tying knots.
Doug meets a boy in his den who has curly hair and a slight stutter and carries a lot of bug spray because he's afraid of the bugs. The boy teaches Doug how to tie knots, and Doug helps him with his homework, and it works.
So, Chad Charming was his friend back before he was an asshole, before he became more popular and more well liked than Doug, before he stopped caring about badges and bug spray and knots.
Well, what changed?
When Chad and Doug get assigned to the same room at Auradon Prep, Doug breathes a sigh of relief. He's been anxious about possible roommates for weeks, months, but he knows Chad, and they're friends, thankfully. Doug isn't social enough to build a new friendship with a stranger that he would have to live with.
It'll be fun, he thinks. Like camping, except indoors. He already knows most of Chad's living quirks, anyway; Chad was the only boy in their den who brought hair care products, and he was the only one concerned with keeping the tent clean, too. If anything, Doug is the one with the bad living habits.
It'll be fun. Doug is usually excited for school to start no matter what, but Auradon Prep seems infinitely more interesting.
Chad isn't good at school. He's not dumb, certainly not, not with how he memorizes the names of trees and bugs and the rules of every sport he's ever cared about. Not with the way he can read a room or a person like an open book, and knows how to react accordingly.
Chad definitely isn't dumb. But something about a textbook shuts off the the interested part of his brain, through no fault of his own, because Chad is really trying. So Doug helps, because it's what they do, it's how they work, and Chad struggles but he makes progress.
Then - Chad stops trying. Chad figures out that if he bats enough eyelashes at enough girls he can get his homework done without lifting a finger. Chad gives Doug a sheepish grin and says thanks, but he doesn't need any more help, that he's really got this in the bag himself.
Doug raises his eyebrows and doesn't say anything, but Chad should know that he can't charm Doug at this point, really.
They drift apart in terms of interest. Chad, with his indifference to learning and the nerdiness that comes with Boy Scouts, decides to join any sport available to him, starts gelling his hair, erases any remaining traces of his stutter. Doug ends up continuing to be a nerd, not that he minds, because he likes band and rocket club. He wears bowties and tries out some different hats and it works for him.
He wishes he got to see Chad more, because the intense amount of extra-curriculars they both have is eating up their time, but they room together, so it's really not that big a deal.
Doug is (mostly) straight and Chad is (definitely) gay. Most of the girls Doug wants, Chad gets, and it's super annoying, because Chad literally does not even like girls. Chad doesn't intend to date the girls he picks up for long, uses them to finish an essay or to remind the student body how popular and straight he is.
It's so fucked up. Chad definitely isn't happy, he comes back to their dorm and sulks whenever a girl tries to kiss him, and Doug rolls his eyes because, really, what does Chad expect? Doug jokes that maybe, this time, Chad can send the girl of the week to Doug when he inevitably dumps her, and Chad makes a joke back that the girl would really have to drop her standards.
Neither of the jokes are very funny. Doug doesn't think he's ever laughed at either of them.
Chad comes back to the dorm and complains again and Doug doesn't have the patience for it for a variety of reasons that have been building up over time - insecurities, jealousies, regrets, anger. Chad, in a moment of what he probably thinks is kindness, stops talking about himself and asks Doug what's wrong.
It's the insecurity that outs itself when Doug bitterly responds, "Well, with girls busy fawning after you, I really don't have much of a shot at romance, do I?"
Chad frowns. "That's not true."
"Who's going to say yes to me when you're busy exploiting half the student body? I'm awkward and nerdy and weird looking." It's pathetic, but Doug has dealt with enough of Chad's bullshit. Chad can take it, for once.
"That's not....you aren't weird looking." Chad responds.
"Definitely awkward and nerdy, though."
"That's just a part of your charm! You wouldn't be Doug if you were suave and...not nerdy."
"Wow, thanks."
"I'm serious! I probably wouldn't like you nearly as much."
"Can you let some of the girls know that?" Doug dryly asks. "I'm sure more people would say yes to me if they knew I was Chad Charming's nerdy friend."
Chad gives a slow nod. "Just don't...ever feel like you aren't worth something, y'know? 'Cause you super are."
Doug smiles, despite himself. This reminds him of Boy Scouts, back when they actually talked about their feelings and told secrets or whatever. Chad smiles back, genuine.
It's probably more earnest than they've been in a while.
Chad gets Doug a date with Ruby, somehow. Doug is excited - he's something of a closet romantic, and he's been planning dates for an embarrassingly long time. He gushes his thanks and his joy to Chad, who grins, but advises that dinner and a movie is probably the way to go.
"Her hair is so long that horseback riding or picnics wouldn't be much fun, anyway." Chad points out. "Figure out what her favorite flowers are, and just bring those."
"Seems uninspired." Doug responds.
"Well, it works for me." Chad shrugs. But what works for Chad is a relationship that is approximately a week long, so maybe Doug won't take his advice.
But what works for Chad is also what keeps getting him dates, even though everyone, in their heart, knows how fake he is. So maybe Doug will take his advice.
Doug dates Ruby for a couple months, and their relationship is sustained on Doug's ideas, Chad's advice, and Ruby's wholehearted acceptance of nerd culture. Doug really likes her, likes talking with her and going on dates and doing couple things. It's nice to feel wanted.
Which is why he's really surprised when she dumps him. She tells him that he's a really nice guy and that she knows he'll find someone but that she just doesn't think they're going to work out. Doug takes it gracefully, and truly wishes her nothing but the best, but is obviously hurt.
"She gave me the 'it's not you, it's me' speech," Doug complains to Chad, later. "I still don't even know why we broke up."
"Usually girls tell me I'm the problem, so I don't know how to help you out." Chad grins, before taking on a more serious tone. "I know you really liked her, though. That sucks, dude."
"Well," Doug wryly says. "Can't win them all over, I guess."
This is where it shifts:
Chad laughs at that pathetic attempt of a joke, and says, quieter, "I really don't know why she dumped you. You're so...good."
Doug feels his posture go rigid, because that could mean any variety of things. "Yes?" he ventures.
"Well, you're definitely a better boyfriend then I am," Chad laughs. "More genuine, for sure. And, uh. Sweeter."
"Hmm." Doug says, because Chad is walking over to him, and even though Doug sees it happening, he's not quite processing that Chad is closer to him until Chad sits down on the bed next to him, until Chad puts his hand on Doug's thigh and Doug feels his heart speed up.
"And you're super hot, too," Chad whispers, and Doug turns his head at that because there's no way anyone, let alone Chad Charming, thinks Doug is hot, and before he can register what's happening Chad is on top of him, pinning him to the bed, kissing him like he needs him to breathe. This is nothing like the few, reserved pecks he had with Ruby - this is wild, uncontrolled, and Doug has no idea how to respond, so he just lets it happen.
It's not unpleasant, not unwelcome, but Doug is mostly confused, too busy trying to figure out why this is happening to match the fire and enthusiasm that Chad has. He thinks that the reality of Chad's hand on his chest and Chad’s tongue halfway down his throat would be a lot more enjoyable if he had any context for this, at all.
Chad comes up for air, and frowns down at Doug, hair messily falling over his eyes. "You aren't kissing back," he says, and he looks terrified, desperate, even. "I can stop, if this isn't...if you don't-"
"I'm just wondering," Doug interrupts, because he needs to force the words out, beat Chad to the punch. "If this is real, or if you just haven't kissed any dudes in a while."
Chad stares at him, silent, and Doug half expects him to go away, but Chad stays where he is. He looks at Doug, inquisitive, pensive, and Doug looks back, really looks. Chad is so gorgeous, the light of their room shining through his hair, his mouth parted only slightly, lips slightly swollen.
"This is real. This is so real." Chad finally says, slowly moving to place his mouth against Doug's neck. "Let me show you." He moans, his breath hot on Doug's skin, his lips chapped and wet and raw.
Doug shivers, excited, and lets him.
It hits him the next morning, when Chad is still draped on Doug's bed and hogging the covers but providing ample body heat to make up for it.
Oh my god, he thinks, staring at Chad. Chad Charming was my rebound hook up.
Well, what the fuck is he supposed to think about that?
Chad shifts in his sleep, and Doug regards him like a specimen, because there's no way Chad was desperate enough to do anything with Doug, let alone to be genuine in his actions. He studies Chad for a tell, for anything that could indicate the reality of this situation. Nothing shows up, because Chad is sleeping and Doug is just being paranoid, hopefully.
Chad stirs again, and Doug leans away on instinct. Chad gently opens his eyes, and mumbles, "We can spoon. 'S fine," before closing his eyes again. And, really, is Doug going to turn down his potentially only chance to snuggle with Chad Charming?
He lies back down, slowly, and Chad wraps his arms around him, loosely but decisively. Doug relaxes into it, listens to Chad's steady breath and Chad's heartbeat, unsure what else to do. Chad lets out a contented hum, pulls him a little closer, and Doug thinks that this can't be real.
This is what happens afterwards:
Nothing. Like, literally nothing. Doug doesn't know what he expected, doesn't know if he wanted Chad to come out of the closet or proclaim his love or what, but the day that follows is disappointingly average, so much so that Doug begins to wonder if his loneliness and sexual frustration had manifested into a Chad-shaped hallucination.
But when they're alone again, Chad is on Doug so fast Doug can't chalk it up to a hallucination, because when he shoves Chad off and tells him that they have homework to do, Chad sulks but he listens. Doug might be a self-acknowledged nerd, but his sexual fantasy definitely wouldn't let him do homework. He's worked through that daydream already, and it went very differently.
So, it's real in the "it has a physical presence on this earth" sense. But that doesn't clarify if it's real in the less scientific, less measurable "feelings" sense of the word.
And, honestly, Doug isn't sure if he wants to find out about that one. If it means giving this up, giving up the sloppy makeouts and the sweet nothings Chad whispers like he really does care about Doug, he's willing to quiet the scientist in him.
Chad holds hands with three different girls in the span of a day and Doug finds himself getting extremely jealous. But he wouldn't say irrationally jealous, because he has a very rational, valid reason to be jealous of the girls who are receiving Chad’s attention.
He dares to bring it up once, asks why Chad still dates those girls, afraid even he asks that it's too much, that this will break whatever spell he had unknowingly cast on Chad.
“It's just a part of my image, babe.” Chad yawns, stretched out on Doug’s bed. “You know you're the only one I do, like, this stuff with.”
An answer, an honest one, but Doug feels his heart clench up. They're the only ones you do romance stuff with, he thinks. He doesn't say it, and the bitterness grows inside him, because he likes Chad, he really does, and it's not like he has other options here. He can't hook up with a girl to get Chad back, he can't tell Chad to stop dating girls, he can't do anything, really.
Well, he could bring it up again. He doesn't want to risk it. He stays quiet.
Then the VKs come, and Doug meets Evie. Evie is fantastically beautiful and smart, and she's literally so out of his league but she's also in his science class so he figures he has nothing to lose.
But Evie is looking for a prince. And, at Auradon Prep, when someone is looking for a prince, it's usually Chad. Who sits right across from Doug in science class, which normally Doug is totally down with, but not now, not when Evie is staring at him like that.
Doug has wished himself to be a lot of things before, but this is the first time he's ever wished to be a prince. He shocks himself with the disdain in his voice when he tells Evie exactly who Chad is, knowing Chad will probably ask him about it later, and Doug cannot bring himself to care. He practically rolls his eyes into the back of his fucking skull when Chad hands Evie the note, because Doug has seen Chad do that same trick over and over and over.
He has, surprisingly, never detested Chad before, but the hatred burns in his chest unreasonably strong and he can't bring himself to try to stop it.
It's really easy to fall out of love with someone who's supposed to be a Prince Charming. Chad should probably work on that.
This is what he does:
When Chad makes a move to kiss Doug that night, Doug stops him.
“I don't want you to use Evie,” he says. “She has it hard enough, transferring here.”
Chad scowls. “Why do you care who I date? It's never bothered you before.”
“Not like you would know,” he snaps. “I'm serious. Leave Evie alone.”
Chad folds his arms and stares at Doug, eyes scanning his features like he thinks Doug is lying to him. Doug holds his ground and stares back, and eventually Chad sighs. “Whatever,” he spits out.
He doesn't make a move to kiss Doug again, the mood is in shambles, but Doug feels a distinct sense of accomplishment.
Chad doesn't stop using Evie. If anything, he gets worse, and he stops ignoring Doug in public, starts snarling nasty things at him in the hall. It makes Doug feel ill - he has figured that nothing could feel worse then Chad not talking to him, but the insults are definitely worse, because Chad is a lot of things, but he's never been a bully. And that's what he is, now, because he's unjustifiably rude to the VKs and to Doug, and he doesn't stop being rude in their dorm, either, just goes back to not talking.
Doug, very briefly, wonders what went wrong and what he can do to fix it. But he gives up on that fairly quickly; the only one who needs to fix something here is Chad.
When Chad dumps Evie, it's...different. Chad has never been tactful at breakups, usually doing it through text or...whatever happened with Doug, if that counts. But making out with Audrey in front of your current girlfriend? That's a new low, and downright cruel. Doug is honestly pissed.
And Chad doesn't drop it there. He steals Evie’s mirror, tries to get her expelled - Doug feels disgust coil in his gut as he frantically convinces the teacher to give Evie another chance, and shoots Chad the nastiest glare he can muster before he goes back to taking the test. Chad looks taken aback, hurt, and Doug is so, so done with him.
And, of course Evie passes the test, just like he knew she could, and she’s so happy about it and Doug is so proud of her. It’s the start of a friendship that may or may not evolve into romantic tension, but Doug would honestly be happy with either. He thinks Evie is probably the coolest person he knows, he thinks Evie is definitely the prettiest person he knows, he thinks he probably has more in common with Evie than with Chad.
He hopes Chad calms down. Evie doesn’t deserve the nonsense he’s putting her through, and he really doesn’t know who is actually benefiting from it.
This is how Family Day goes:
Awful. So bad. The fucking worst.
Well, it doesn’t start that way. It starts fine, Be Our Guest goes exactly the way they’ve been rehearsing it, and Chad is less aggressive and rude during all of it. He gets embarrassed when Doug gets a little too into the song and he gives him an awkward fist bump when they’re done, and it’s like things are back to normal.
And then the VKs get there, and Chad’s entire demeanor shifts. He tenses up, posture becoming more formal, and Doug is anxious because Chad is going to do something dumb and uncalled for, he just knows it. It comes in the form of Chad defending Audrey’s honor, which seems noble and heroic and all to observers, but it really isn’t, because the things he says to Mal and Jay and Evie are completely out of line and unfair. When Chad calls Evie a gold digger and a cheat, and then turns to look at Doug, Doug wants to do something, anything, to stop this, but he can’t think of anything to say so he stands there, helpless.
Evie doesn’t need his assistance, anyway, she handles the situation perfectly fine with Jay, if ‘handling the situation’ means putting Chad into a short coma, which apparently it does. Doug panics, because he and Chad might be on bad terms right now but they’re still friends, kinda, he doesn’t want anything bad to happen to Chad, surely Evie wouldn’t go too far, though she is totally justified in her response - Doug has a million thoughts swirling around in his brain and he doesn’t know which one to focus on, his anxiety seizing him up like a snake, squeezing the breath out of him, so he drops to the ground and tries to shake Chad awake because it’s the easiest thing to do. Evie looks at him with hurt in her eyes before storming away, and Doug wonders if he made the wrong choice.
He can talk to her later, right now he has to deal with Chad, who is drifting in and out of consciousness. Chad slowly stands up, assisted by Audrey, but he collapses again soon after, deep in sleep.
According to the nurse, Chad is fine. While the curse is magical in essence, it’s not permanent, and should wear off in an hour or so. They don’t even need true love’s kiss (Audrey breaths a deep sigh of relief at this, and Doug shifts uncomfortably).
So, that’s how Doug finds himself waiting in the nurse’s office next to Audrey and Chad’s parents. King Charming is making several calls, Ella is nervously talking to the nurse, and Audrey is anxiously scrolling through something on her phone, trying to take her mind off the entire situation. Doug feels out of place, feels like the room is filled with people who care way more about Chad then he does, even though he’s known Chad for years and was his best friend in Boy Scouts and had a whole friends with benefits thing going on. He doesn’t want to leave, he wants to make sure Chad is actually alright, but he doesn’t feel like he quite belongs there, especially considering that he and Chad aren’t even really speaking right now. God, everything is so messed up.
Chad groans from the cot in the corner of the room, and everyone in the room snaps their head over to look at him. He sits up, slowly, rubbing his forehead, and Doug gets a sickening sense of deja-vu. The nurse ushers them out, and then calls Chad’s parents back in, telling Doug and Audrey that they need to wait before they can see him. Doug thinks maybe he should bolt, now that he knows that Chad is okay, but Audrey is staring at him, and he can sense the awkward smalltalk that’s going to happen before she even says anything.
“I didn’t know you were friends with Chad,” she says, raising her eyebrows.
“Um. We’re sort of...we’re fighting right now, is all. We’ve...I’ve known him forever, he probably just doesn’t talk about me.” Doug stammers out.
“He talks about you,” she frowns, thoughtfully. “Just, from the way he talks about you, I didn’t think you liked him very much.”
“Uh. We share a dorm room.” Doug responds, at a loss for anything else to say.
She rolls her eyes. “Yeah, I know.” It’s silent for a few seconds, and Audrey tilts her head and offers a tiny smirk. “You know I’m not actually dating him, right? It didn’t work out. We’re just friends.”
What? He thinks, but he doesn’t say it, just stammers out a few syllables before closing his mouth. Audrey lets out a soft laugh, and goes back to scrolling on her phone, visibly more relaxed than she was a few seconds ago. Doug, alternatively, feels like he’s about to melt into a puddle of pure, unidentifiable emotion.
Chad’s parents leave the room, King Charming visibly upset while his wife tries to calm him down, and Audrey shrugs at Doug. “You can go next. I don’t have anywhere to be.”
Doug really doesn't either, but he knows that if he has to stand alone in the hallway, he’ll probably bolt, and then things with Chad will be worse than ever. So he weakly smiles and walks into the nurse’s room, where the nurse is, thankfully, in her office, door closed, entering some sort of data on her computer. Chad is still on the cot, but he’s sitting up now, back against the wall, arms crossed. Doug lets out a breath he didn’t realize he was holding, relief flooding through his body. Chad’s eyes snap to Doug’s, and he flushes, looking down at the pillows on the cot.
“I didn’t know you were here,” Chad mumbles, and Chad Charming is nervous because of Doug.
Well, how about that?
“Of course I’m here. I was worried.” Doug says, because it’s true. Chad’s blush gets darker, and he’s still not looking at Doug.
“I mean. I thought you would be mad at me. I haven’t been that nice, recently.”
“You haven’t,” Doug agrees. “And I am mad at you. Those things you said were really fucked up, Chad.” Chad’s eyes darken at that, and he scowls.
“It was all true,” he glowers. “And look how they reacted.”
“It was rude, and uncalled for, and you seriously didn’t need to say it.” Doug retaliates, annoyed at Chad for still not getting it, annoyed at himself that it’s taken him this long to call Chad on this. “You need to stop. I don’t know why you hate them so much, especially Evie, considering how you treated her-”
“Can you shut up about Evie for a minute?” Chad snaps, finally looking up. “I know that she’s, like, the love of your life or whatever-”
“Are you jealous?” Doug asks, and suddenly it all makes sense. Chad is jealous of Evie. Chad, who dates girls without even considering Doug, is jealous of Evie. How stupidly hypocritical (and yet typical) of him.
Chad doesn’t say anything, just covers his face with his hands. Doug walks over and sits next to him, putting a hand on Chad’s back, who flinches at the contact. He says, muffled through his fingers, “It’s just...I don’t know, you’ve never been like that with anyone before, and I just-”
“Chad,” Doug interrupts. “I would’ve been like that with you, you just didn’t let me.”
Chad lowers his hands, frowning. “That’s not true, though.”
Doug, despite the growing anger he feels, keeps his voice steady. He needs to talk about this with Chad now, before it’s too late to do anything. “It is true. You’re the one who stopped hanging out with me and kept dating girls and acted like we were some big secret.”
“Oh.” Chad says. His forehead creases in thought. “I just...I thought you didn’t care.”
The laugh that Doug emits at that is surprisingly bitter. “Of course I cared,” Doug says. Then, softer, he adds, “You’re, like, the most emotionally perceptive person I know. Why didn’t you think I cared?”
Chad shrugs. He looks embarrassed - good, Doug thinks, because Chad has a million things to be embarrassed for and a million things to make up for. They sit in silence, Doug awkwardly rubbing Chad’s back as Chad has an internal crisis.
“Listen,” Doug says, breaking the uneasy quiet. “I really do like you, Chad. But I can’t do the thing where we don’t talk in public, or where we don’t talk about our feelings, or any of that stuff. You don’t have to decide anything right now,” he adds, because Chad looks like he’s about to cry. “But you need to think about it, and you need to talk to me, and you need to stop being mean to Evie and her friends.”
Chad nods. “I can do that.” He grins at Doug, and it’s not his usual, smarmy, confident one, but something much softer and more nervous. Doug grins back, giving Chad a final pat on the back before standing up.
“See you later, Chad. Feel better.”
Chad waves, and Doug closes the door behind him. Audrey stares at him, questioningly, but she doesn’t ask anything, and he doesn't offer, just focuses on replaying the conversation inside his head. He can't believe he did it.
That went much better than he imagined it would.
Doug finds Evie sitting at a picnic table with her friends, and it takes him 10 minutes of pacing before he’s ready to talk to her. He walks up to them and is instantly met with raised eyebrows from Evie and glares from her friends. Oh, god.
“Hey, uh, Evie, can I talk to you for a second?” Doug manages to choke out. Mal tenses up, but Evie nods, and stands. Doug’s heart thumps anxiously in his chest as Evie follows him a little bit away from the table, but not too far. “Um. I wanted to apologize. For letting everything...go that far.”
Evie’s face softens. “It’s not your fault.”
“I mean, I should’ve said something.”
“Don’t be dopey, Doug,” she says, a hint of anger in her tone. “The adults should have done something. They let it go way too far.”
He rubs the back of his head. “Yeah, well...I still feel bad,” he shrugs. “I don’t know. Also, I talked to Chad, and I told him to stop treating you guys so awfully. I really should’ve done something sooner, but I figured that after this, I definitely had to...y’know. Talk.”
Evie smiles at him, and it’s not a polite smile, but a genuine one. “Doug, I really appreciate that. I’m not going to pretend I wasn’t offended when you helped Chad, but it’s none of my business, really. Whatever is going on with you two is,” she waves her hand, ambiguously. “Complicated. I get it.”
Doug flushes, because can everyone tell? Honestly. She keeps going, adding, “And, really, I’m glad that we’re friends. You’ve been one of the nicest people here. I’m not going to stop talking to you over something that’s not your fault, especially not when you apologized for it.”
Doug is so relieved, he must have given a visual tell, because Evie laughs at him and hugs him. She’s too good, she really is, he thinks, as he hugs her back.
When Doug is walking in the hallways, the next day at school, he’s worried. He hadn’t seen Chad the night before, which probably means that Chad was just skipping, but it’s still unsettling. Chad is almost never absent from their dorm at night, and even when he wasn’t talking to Doug, he was still a calming presence, a constant.
Doug is mulling this over at his locker when he hears someone running up to him, and turns to see Chad, dramatically skidding to a stop in front of him. How Chad of him. Chad grabs Doug’s hands, and says, with a grin too big for his face, “I thought about it. Go to coronation with me?”
Doug feels himself grinning back, even though he’s probably red as a tomato. “You don’t need a date for coronation, you dork.”
“Yeah, don’t care.” Chad says, gripping Doug’s hands like he’ll never let them go again. Chad is blushing, too, and even though he has to know Doug’s answer already, he still looks nervous. Doug feels his heart melt inside of him, completely floored by this, still, and, fuck, he’s probably been quiet for too long because Chad’s face is starting to fall.
“Well, of course.” Doug quickly says, before he can ruin this, and Chad beams and kisses him right there, in front of other students, in the light of day. It’s exhilarating, Doug’s heart stops working and he forgets how to breathe, how to kiss, how to function. Chad pulls away and whispers, mockingly, “You aren’t kissing back. I can stop, if you want.”
“Please don’t.” Doug grins back, and Chad listens, pulling him into a kiss deeper than the first. Doug wants to stay here forever, pressed against the lockers, making out with the boy he's known since Boy Scouts.
This isn’t how it ends, not by a long shot, because they have the rest of their lives to get through; this is how it starts.