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It was around 10 pm when Mickey barged through the door, throwing his bag on the couch and walking to his room. Mickey was exhausted, tired from his day at the Alibi. His workday typically didn’t start until around 1 pm but today it started at 8 am and it ended at its workday time. He wasn’t sure why Kevin asked him to come in so early that day but he obliged and was regretting it now.
Mickey threw himself on the bed, face down in defeat after slamming the door shut behind him. He quickly perched up on his elbows after hearing a light tap on the door. “You okay Mick?” It was Ian.
Ian had bought a keyboard. Well, he had months ago but before today he had it hidden in the basement of his home away from his new home - at the Gallagher house. He knew Mickey would never vocalize it, but he had noticed how his face light up slightly to the sound of classical music and Ian wouldn’t have admitted it when he was younger for fear of being out, but he was out now so that was no longer a concern. Though Ian had wanted to learn to play the piano himself. So he started teaching himself some songs and he’d been practicing almost all day while Mickey was at work. He wanted to surprise Mickey, and he intended to do that tonight.
Mickey grumbled in reply, too tired to form proper words. “Can I come in?” Ian asked as Mickey groaned faintly in agreeance. Ian enters the room slowly, a grin lighting up his face as he saw Mickey lying there. “I’m so fucking lucky.” He muttered.
“Oh fuck off,” Mickey mumbled without exasperation as he turned on his back and rested his elbows beneath him.
“Didn’t notice anything new in the living room?” Ian smirked.
“Was I supposed to? I’m tired as fuck if you couldn’t tell.”
“It was just a little surprise for you. I’d love for you to see it tonight but I guess it can wait until tomorrow if you really are that tired.” Ian told Mickey, purposely trying to get a slight rise out of him.
“Don’t fucking reverse phycology me,” Mickey replied through slightly slurred words brought on by his fatigued state. “Let’s go see this surprise for me, shall we?”
“My prince charming,” Ian said as Mickey stumbled out of the bed and made a fake bow towards him.
As they exited the room side by side Mickey’s eyes widened at the keyboard behind the couch. “Who’s the fucking piano man?” He asked as he pointed at the piano.
“I believe that’s Billy Joel. But the piano is mine.” Ian remarked. He then walked over and sat down on the bench, back still to the keyboard as he looked at Mickey and repeated himself. “The piano is all mine.”
“What can you even play? You’ve had it for, what, two hours? Maybe three. Let’s hear this lovely twinkle twinkle little star. I’m excited.” Mickey was annoyed. He felt like Ian had just interrupted his much-needed sleep to show him a frankly simple song, however, Ian had something different in mind.
“Not exactly,” Ian admitted. “I got it months ago.”
“Months ago? You never told me.”
“I wanted it to be a surprise. Intended to play some songs for you that I thought you’d like.”
“Like what?” Mickey asked.
“You know, the classics,” Ian replied.
“Fucking classical music?” Mickey couldn’t believe the words he just heard.
“Well, I noticed how it made your face light up in the car that one -”
“Fuck off.” Mickey interrupted.
“You know Mickey, you really surprised me there. Never thought you’d listen to that type of music but I guess now that you’re a big old ‘mo-”
“I fucking hate you sometimes,” Mickey said, cutting off Ian once again.
“You don’t hate me at all.” Ian reminded him of Mickey’s face seemed to soften and mold into a smile. “But anyway, I was working on some songs for you to hear. I think you’ll like them. Classical shit, stuff like that.”
“What songs are they anyway?” Mickey asked Ian as he peered at the folder resting on the piano.
Ian turned around and opened the folder filled with sheet music and started reading off the titles slowly, pausing to flip the pages in between each name. “Moonlight Sonata, Invention No. 1, Clair de la lune, and Rhapsody in Blue.”
“That’s not fucking classical shit Ian. That’s fucking classical, baroque, impressionist, and modern/ragtime shit. Those are really hard songs to play, no way you can play them. I mean, no offense, but you’d have to practice a shit ton.”
“I didn’t think I could either, but thinking of you was all the motivation I needed.” Mickey sat down next to Ian after he said that and Ian lifted the keyboard lid, relieving 88 pearly white keys and 36 black keys. “Also, I had no idea you were such a music nerd.”
“That’s a secret I tend to keep to myself. I may be fucking gay and all but I don’t want to be viewed as a bitch due to it because like what I like don’t make me a bitch.”
“Never said you were a bitch. Just not used to seeing this side of you.”
“Is that a fucking problem Gallagher?” Mickey said as he lightly nudged Ian's shoulder with his own, showing the insincerity of his latest statement while he continued to sport a grin from ear to ear.
“Nah, I like it,” Ian confessed. “I really fucking like it.”
“Good. Now, I’m about to pass out but you got me all excited to hear this ‘classical shit’ so let’s hear it.”
Ian smiled, revealing the pearly whites that nearly matched the shade of the keys below him. “Gladly.”
He placed his hands on the keys, spread out as an octave in the left hand, pinky and thumb on C# as he went back and forth between three notes in the right hand: G#, C# and E. Ian started off shaky, revealing how nervous he was as he the first movement of Moonlight Sonata.
Mickey rested his head on Ian’s shoulder, which Ian wasn’t too pleased about for it got in the way of his playing, but Ian was too happy for him to say a word to Mickey about it. So Mickey laid there, listening to Ian play this advanced song on the piano, while Mickey wasn’t even aware that Ian knew the difference between an A and a B on the keyboard just a month ago. However, Mickey was inexplicably happy, as he laid there listening to the love of his life reveal how talented he secretly was. He couldn’t help but be tired, but the concept of falling asleep went away; he could listen to Ian play forever. At that moment, any doubt Mickey had about Ian and him together went away. He couldn’t believe Ian had been able to notice his love for music, he really had kept it well hidden, but he knew Ian could read him like his favorite book.
Mickey continued laying his head on Ian’s shoulder as Ian held out the final chord of Moonlight Sonata’s first movement and went on to play the next song, Invention No. 1. Ian’s long fingers grazed on the C, then D, E, F, D, E, C, and G before adding in his left hand. This song was fast, unlike the other one, and Ian moved through it like it was simple, when Mickey knew the song must have taken hours on hours to learn. Mickey couldn’t help but be in awe of Ian’s ability to play the music as if he had been playing the piano from a very young age, strong and precise, much different than how he started the first song.
This went on for around 20 more minutes as Ian played Clair de la Lune and Rhapsody and Blue. Ian messed up a few times along the way but Mickey couldn’t tell; it was too beautiful and the songs were too challenging for Mickey to notice something so trivial. He wanted to tell Ian how much he loved him and kiss him once he was finished playing. Mickey had never been more impressed with anyone in his life as he was with the beautiful red-haired boy beside him.
Ian suddenly got off the piano bench and went down on one knee, holding out a small black box and opening it to reveal two golden rings. “Will you -”
Mickey cuts him off with a deep kiss, their tongues intertwining and their breaths heavy. Suddenly Mickey pulls away, gasping for air as he says, “Of course I will.”
And as they say, the rest is history.