Work Text:
lovedrunk is the only way to describe them. smiles never fade; happiness never disappears. when they’re together, nothing can go wrong; it’s like the universe smiling down, pushing their hearts to beat faster, pushing blood to their cheeks. they’re lovedrunk, high on the presence of each other, and nothing can bring them down.
they walk down the street, smiles wide as they chat. sneakers that are slowly falling apart tread on beaten pavement, jumping and skipping around one another. a small breeze forms ripples in shirts with designs drawn on lovingly with sharpie, blowing dark hair into eyes squeezed almost shut by a grin. laughs ring through the air as they jest, and it’s as if the sunlight beams not from the sky but from their smiles, from the grins flashing white teeth and the lines framing their eyes as they tease. a gangly arm throws itself around broad shoulders; long, clumsy fingers muss curly hair with a wink. bill laughs and jokingly shoves at ted before poking his side gently. it’s the teasing roughhousing of friends; it's the touch of boys not yet adults, with simultaneously a thousand worries and none. they pass through the town they’ve lived in their whole lives, following the sidewalk beneath them from memory, eyes focused on each other. summer light beats down on their backs, but their joyous laughter is brighter than the sun. they are warmer than summer, walking on clouds, drunk not on alcohol but friendship.
they sit together on a park bench, drinking cola, legs thrown haphazardly over each other as they face each other. trees throw shade over them, a brief respite from the heat of the day. families go past, children running or bicycling, parents following behind closely. couples walk hand in hand past the trees, softly smiling at each other; in the distance, a man gets on one knee before the tree that recorded his first kiss. on the bench, bill and ted talk, sipping their pop. they discuss nothing and everything, talking at length but never really speaking at all. the afternoon is peaceful; even the shrieks and giggles of young children seem somehow muted through the trees and hazy air. the future passes ted’s lips, the past bill’s, and time spirals from their discussion into the warm air, meaning nothing to the two as they sit together. their arms, tan from days spent beneath the sun as they travelled through town, are thrown over the back of the bench as they sit with their feet up on the wood; their fingers trace words on the back of each others hands, doodle invisible patterns upon skin. as they drink their pop, the breeze gently pushes past them again. bright green leaves flutter down and swirl around them, a summer’s autumn-like gift. one blows into bill’s hair, and ted giggles, leaning forward to pull the offending plant out of the mop of curls before releasing it back into the wind. the hour is neverending; the lazy heat, the filtered sun, the wood bench slow time to a standstill as they drink. small beams of light are cast through the leaves above them, turning chocolate hair to dark gold and dark gold to silver. the sun glints off of the relaxed smiles that spread over both of their faces, and they feel secure, tucked away beneath trees hundreds of years older than them, together in a buzz of happiness and caffeine.
the sun is setting, and they sit on the grass behind bill’s house, feet dangling into his pool. the house behind them is empty, and the lights are off; the only source of light is the sun, casting rays of colour onto their faces and painting the sky brilliant hues of pink and purple. in the distance, they can faintly hear cars on a road, the far off hum of engines a soft drone in the background. they sit together, licking and biting ice cream as they chat. the words passing their lips now are softer now, quieter. still, they carry the same happiness; some things come through no matter how loud they are proclaimed. an ice cream cone stains ted’s lips as bill speaks, words slightly muffled by the vanilla in his mouth. smiling softly as he swallows his ice cream, ted watches bill, taking in the light softly illuminating his face. the sunlight, surely only planning to last a couple minutes longer, turns bill’s face a glowing gold-orange, his hair shining as if spun from strands of pure gold. his smile is wide as he talks, setting the bowl down to gesture with his hands as he continues. ted’s head is light, and the evening is warm, melting his ice cream as it slowly drips onto his hand. quickly finishing the cone he licks the ice cream from his thumb, watching bill finally begin to quiet as the horizon begins to hide the glowing sun. when bill turns to him, he sees the soft smile on ted’s face, the sheen on ice cream on his lips. after a moment, his own grin widens, and he reaches up, tangling his fingers in ted’s own sticky ones before leaning forward and pressing their lips together. feet gently kicking in the warm pool water, they each smile into the kiss, eyes closing as the sun disappears. they ride the high of the rainbow sky, of the water gently whirling around their feet, of the taste of ice cream on ted’s mouth. they’re lovedrunk, and it’s a sweet feeling they ride together as their hands slowly find their ways to the skin beneath the fabric, running softly, slowly, over skin normally hidden, over dips of muscle and ridges of bone. bowl of ice cream forgotten, they pull each other closer, the feeling of each other’s hands and breath warmer than the evening’s air. the first of the stars begins to come into view, but neither bill nor ted is in any position to notice; their eyes are shut as they kiss, smiles wide as they hold each other. the stars are the only witness to the buzz of young passion, and if they have something to say about it, their words are drowned by soft declarations of love.