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“Any plans for Valentine’s Day?”
“I plan on popping a pill, crying a bit, and going to bed early. So just a regular weeknight.”
“Well, it sounds like fun.”
“It is.”
“Want to come over to my place? Ray’s gonna be out, we could get a pizza and watch a movie.”
“You don’t have to do that.”
“No, I’d—I’d like to.”
“Sure.”
“Let’s say eight o’clock?”
“David,” Patrick says with a smile when he opens the door. “And Stevie!” His eyebrows shoot up. “Hi, come in… both of you.”
Stevie shoots David a look as they step inside.
“Come on in,” Patrick says. “The, uh, the pizza just got here. Help yourselves to the wine. I’m just gonna, uh, go get another glass.”
David sits at one end of the couch as Stevie opens the bottle of red on the coffee table and pours herself a glass. She opens the pizza box and takes a peek. The pizza is shaped like a heart.
Stevie turns to David with the same look she gave him before. “You told me this was a casual hangout. Just a few single people on Valentine’s.”
“It is.”
“No, I think I’m crashing a date.”
“What?! He invited me to have pizza and watch a movie. That’s classic ‘single friends on Valentine’s’ stuff.”
“He got a heart-shaped pizza. And wine.” Stevie hands him the bottle and he pours himself a big glass.
“It’s Valentine’s Day. I’m sure all the pizza places are doing heart-shaped pizzas. And wine is just a given.”
“He only put out two glasses! He didn’t know I was coming. He thought it was just going to be the two of you. Doing dinner and a movie. On Valentine’s Day.”
“No. Stevie. No.” David shakes his head. “There’s no way he thought this was a date.”
“We’ll just have to agree to disagree on that point, won’t we?” She gives him a little smile.
“You’ve got that evil look on your face. What are you planning?”
Stevie doesn’t say anything, just takes out her phone and pointedly looks at it and not at David. David glares at her, but before he can figure out what she’s up to, Patrick’s coming back to the living room with an extra glass and plate.
“I’m so sorry, Patrick,” Stevie says, holding up her phone. “I just got a text from Mr. Rose. There’s an emergency at the motel. I have to go.”
“Oh no, I’m sorry to hear that.” Patrick says.
“My dad texted you?” David asks skeptically. “Does my dad even know how to text?”
“Sorry, I should really go. Like right now. Bye.” Stevie ignores the death stare coming from David’s direction, swallows the rest of her glass of wine in one big gulp, and is out the door.
“Gosh, I hope everything’s okay,” Patrick says, pouring some wine for himself and sitting on the other end of the couch from David.
“It better not be,” David says under his breath.
“What?”
“I said I hope so too.”
They sit in awkward silence for a moment.
“Pizza?” Patrick asks.
“Yes, please, I’m starving,” David says in one breath, relieved that the silence has been broken. David notices Patrick blushing a little when he opens the pizza box and sees the heart-shaped pizza, but neither of them comments on it as they dig in.
“So, Ray’s DVDs are on the shelves by the TV over there,” Patrick says. “Feel free to pick something out. I know you like rom-coms, I think he has several.”
David takes his plate over and continues eating as he peruses Ray’s movie collection. “Okay, I may have to reevaluate my opinion of Ray based on this selection. There are actually some good movies here.”
“I’ll be sure to tell him you approve.”
“Okay, I wouldn’t go that far. He also has a copy of All About Steve here. I would take a bullet for Sandra Bullock, but I would not watch that movie again.” When David glances at Patrick over his shoulder, Patrick is giving him an amused little smile. “Still, there are some good ones here. He actually has all three Tom Hanks-Meg Ryan movies. Most people forget about Joe vs. the Volcano. And he’s got Dirty Dancing. So clearly he respects the classics.”
“I take it those are all good things?”
“Patrick!” David turns fully to face him now. “Okay, we will come back to the fact that you’re apparently unfamiliar with the rom-com power team of Tom and Meg. But are you telling me you’ve never seen Dirty Dancing?! How is that possible? It’s one of the greatest movies of the ‘80s!”
“Well, I was two when the ‘80s ended, so…”
“Okay, I didn’t really need you reminding me of my age and your relative youth. But you could have watched it anytime after that! There used to be these things called video stores, you know. Maybe you’ve heard of them?” David quirks an eyebrow at him.
Patrick chuckles and blushes down at his slice of pizza. “I’m familiar.”
“Well, it’s settled. Dirty Dancing it is.” David puts the disc in the player as Patrick fiddles with the remote to get it started.
David sits back in the same spot on the couch and picks up his wine glass. He can’t stop stealing glances at Patrick as the movie starts and they eat their pizza. He cares whether Patrick likes the movie, he’s surprised to find. And he can’t stop thinking about what Stevie said. Was this really supposed to be a date? They’re sitting at opposite ends of the couch, that doesn’t seem very date-like. But maybe Patrick’s nervous. Maybe bringing Stevie sent the wrong signals. David’s not quite sure what the right signals are, but as he watches Patrick out of the corner of his eye, he realizes he wants to be sending them. He wants this to be a date.
“Can you pause it?” David says once they’re done eating. “I’m gonna wash my hands.”
“Sure.” Patrick hits the pause button. “Bathroom’s over there. I’ll clear the plates.”
Once his hands are clean, David spends some time fixing his hair in the bathroom mirror. He’s nervous, and he’s stalling. He was never this nervous before, with any of the other people he’s been with. He never really cared about them. Not like this. He didn’t like being rejected, of course, but he didn’t have as much at stake then. Not just the business, but Patrick himself. He cares about Patrick, and that’s why this feels so risky. But that’s also what makes it a risk worth taking.
When David comes back to the living room, Patrick’s back at the same end of the couch, with his arm resting along the back of the middle seat. Instead of sitting in his same spot at the opposite end, David sits in the middle. Not touching Patrick, but still, not all the way at the other end. Patrick gives him a brief, unreadable look, then turns back to the TV and starts the movie again.
David is acutely aware of the location of each of their limbs. He’s not sure sitting in the middle was the right move here, and is feeling more and more awkward about it, wondering if it’s weirder to move back to his previous spot or weirder to stay where he is, only inches away from Patrick, when he feels Patrick’s arm drop from the back of the couch to his shoulder. He’s surprised and relieved and breathes out in a deep, slow sigh that shifts him infinitesimally closer to Patrick. Patrick notices, even though he’s not looking at David, even though his eyes are still intent on the screen, as if he’s giving the movie his full, undivided attention. He’s clearly as aware of David’s body as David is of his. When he feels David shift closer to him, David swears he feels Patrick breathe out, too, as if he’d been holding in a breath, so nervous about putting his arm around David that he’d stopped breathing.
David shifts closer again, deliberately this time, until his side is almost touching Patrick’s, and out of the corner of his eye, he can see a small smile form on Patrick’s face, and the arm around David’s shoulder gently tightens as he pulls David in the rest of the way, so they‘re touching along the entire length of their sides now. David’s heart is racing. He can’t believe this is happening, but he allows himself to sink into Patrick’s side, tucking his legs up onto the couch and getting comfortable.
David’s not sure what to do with his right hand, the one on the side where he’s now touching Patrick. The way he’s positioned, it would feel awkward to rest it on his own leg, but the only place left for it is Patrick’s thigh, and that seems too forward, too… something. David’s not sure what this cuddling means, and whether that would be welcome. His hand hangs uncertainly in the air for a moment. Finally, not seeing another option, he brings it down tentatively on Patrick’s thigh.
It’s quiet, so quiet he almost misses it, but David hears Patrick’s sharp intake of breath. He’s about to move his hand, thinking he’s made a mistake, when Patrick brings his own right hand down on top of David’s. David hears his own slightly shaky breath at the contact, skin to skin. He gives Patrick’s leg a light squeeze, trying to encourage him, and Patrick shifts his hand forward a little, sliding his fingers between David’s.
Patrick moves his thumb back and forth on the back of David’s hand in a soft caress, and David bites his lip. He’s not sure how the simple touch of Patrick’s hand on his can feel so intense. Patrick’s thumb traces a small arc back and forth, over and over, and David can feel the movement through his whole body. His cock twitches, and he takes a deep breath, trying to calm himself down. Holding someone’s hand has never been a turn-on for him before. He wants Patrick to stop moving his thumb like that. He never wants Patrick to stop moving his thumb like that.
David tries to focus on the movie, and on keeping his breathing steady. He watches as Baby learns to dance. Patrick is still moving his thumb, so slowly and gently, and David’s insides are slowly and gently turning to jelly. He catches Patrick’s thumb with his own, and folds his fingers under his hand, taking Patrick’s with them. Patrick gives his hand a little squeeze.
Now that Patrick’s thumb is no longer moving, driving him crazy with gentle touch, David should be able to actually watch the movie again. But he still can’t focus. Patrick’s still right there, he’s still got one surprisingly muscular arm around David’s shoulders, David’s still pressed against his side and feeling his warmth and the movement of his breath. Their hands are still interlaced and Patrick’s is beautiful, with wide palms, dexterous fingers, and veins visible on the back. And now, with their hands folded together, Patrick’s fingertips start to brush David’s palm lightly, a similar gentle, repetitive movement that makes David feel tingly all over. David can’t bring himself to stop it, so he melts into the feeling and just accepts the fact that he’s not going to be able to focus on the movie. He rests his head on Patrick’s shoulder and feels Patrick’s arm slide further around him, pulling him in even more. He snuggles further into Patrick in response. Patrick has nice shoulders, he notices.
Patrick’s fiddling with the silver rings on David’s hand now, tracing their edges. Feeling Patrick’s fingertips graze the creases of his own fingers, where they meet his palm, sends shivers up David’s spine, and even though he’s nestled into Patrick’s side, he wants to be even closer.
They haven’t looked at each other since Patrick put his arm around David, not wanting to acknowledge what was happening between them for fear it might break the spell. Now, though, David tilts his face up towards Patrick’s. Their faces are so close now, closer than they’ve ever been. Their eyes lock, and the air between them buzzes with breathless anticipation.
“Hi,” David says softly.
“Hi,” Patrick whispers back with a tiny smile that makes David’s heart stutter.
David wants to kiss him, then, but he’s still not sure if he should, if Patrick wants it too, so he hesitates, just for a moment. Then Patrick’s eyes flit down to his lips, and that’s what gives him the courage to close the space between them.
He presses his lips to Patrick’s, gently, briefly, then pulls back, looks into Patrick’s eyes. He sees reflected there the same thing Patrick must see in his own eyes: wonder, desire, and, best of all, hope. The fluttery warmth that’s been slowly filling his chest all evening bubbles up and threatens to burst onto his face in a smile. He brings his free hand to the back of Patrick’s head as Patrick’s arm tightens around his shoulder and they draw each other in for more.
David’s tongue peeks out, licking at the seam between Patrick’s soft lips, and they part for him. Patrick’s mouth feels so sweet, much sweeter than David expects given all the sass that comes out of it, and all this sweetness is almost too much for David to handle. Patrick kisses him like he’ll let David take whatever he wants and be happy to give it, and David’s heart is racing. It scares him to be feeling so much from a first kiss, and part of him wants to retreat to the safety of their teasing banter, but a bigger part of him wants more of this, wants to sink into Patrick, into all the tenderness he’s pouring into David with this kiss.
Patrick slips his hand out from David’s and moves it up his arm, up his neck. David moans a little at the touch, and Patrick pulls away to catch his breath, running his fingers over the same spot on David’s neck again, along the vein there, and watching David’s reaction before returning to the kiss with even more enthusiasm. He brings his hand up to cup David’s jaw, running his fingers over the thick stubble, and now it’s his turn to moan.
David’s right hand is resting on Patrick’s thigh still. He slides it further up, just a little, and feels, rather than hears, Patrick’s breath catch. His other hand, on the back of Patrick’s head, is raking through the short hair there. If it was longer he’d be tempted to pull it, but he settles for running his fingernails over Patrick’s scalp, scratching a little. Patrick’s breathy moans are enough to make David’s jeans start to feel tight.
He moves his hand up to Patrick’s hip, pulling it forward, shifting them so Patrick is under him, lying on the couch, their bodies pressed together. The hand Patrick had on his shoulder moves down to his waist. When he moves his hips into place over Patrick’s, he can feel the hardness there, and knows Patrick can feel his too when he hears a noise halfway between a gasp and a moan. He pulls back, sees Patrick’s wide-eyed surprise. “Is this okay?”
“Yeah. Yeah, David, it’s… very okay,” Patrick gasps out, still looking half nervous, half turned on.
The nervous part gives David pause. “Are you sure?”
“David, I… I should tell you. I’ve never done this before. With a guy.”
“O—Okay,” David hesitates, not sure what to do with that information. He starts to pull back a little, but Patrick’s hand on his waist keeps him in place.
“And I was getting a little scared that I was gonna let you leave here without us having done this. Kissing, I mean, not, uh… this,” Patrick clarifies when David raises his eyebrows. “So, uh, thank you for… making that happen for us.”
David’s face softens. “Well, fortunately, I’m a very generous person,” he says, trying and failing to keep a straight face as Patrick’s head tilts up for another kiss. David holds himself just out of reach, though, wanting to check in before they keep going. “Do you want to talk about it?”
“Can we talk tomorrow?” Patrick asks, giving up on trying to reach David’s mouth and kissing his neck instead, starting at the edge of his jaw, just under his ear, and moving down, licking at the same spot that made David moan when he touched it earlier.
“Uh huh,” David gasps out. “We can talk whenever you’d like.”
Patrick nips at his pulse point and David’s hips jut forward into him involuntarily. He tries to get them in check, but Patrick responds by moving his own hips, and David can’t help but grind down, slipping one of his legs between Patrick’s. The hand Patrick has on his waist is inching beneath his sweater now, teasing at the soft skin there, and David squirms, a little ticklish, but loving the feel of Patrick’s hands on him.
David places a hand on Patrick’s chest for leverage, trying to get even closer, and feels how wildly Patrick’s heart is pounding under that soft sweater he has on. This is all new for Patrick, he reminds himself. It’s simultaneously an incredible turn-on and a reminder that he needs to pace himself.
He pulls back again, looks into Patrick’s eyes. Patrick has a slightly dazed look on his face in place of the sharp focus he usually has on David. David likes this look. He wants to make Patrick look like this again and again, as many times as Patrick will let him, as often as he can before Patrick gets tired of him.
His big brown eyes look at David with heavy lids, his hands firm on David, not quite pulling him back down, but keeping him from moving away. Patrick swallows, and David sees his throat bob, and then he can’t help but lean back down and kiss that throat, feel the rumbly vibration of Patrick’s moan when he sucks a little on the tender skin there.
He pulls the neck of Patrick’s sweater aside, trying to get at more sensitive spots. Patrick’s gasps and moans spur him on, and the noise Patrick makes when David gives him a gentle bite encourages David to bite a little less gently.
He kisses back up Patrick’s neck to his lips again, sucking the bottom one between his teeth and admiring how flushed and plump it looks when he lets it go. Patrick may be inexperienced with men, but he’s a good kisser. They’re both trying to hold themselves back from just dry humping on the couch, but their hips rock together more and more as they keep kissing. This feels so good, and David knows he should slow down, but Patrick is under him, warm and ready and making all these lovely needy sounds, and David just wants more, wants to keep kissing him, touching him, feeling his hands—
“Shit,” Patrick says under his breath, and David is startled because he’s never heard him curse before, so he doesn’t notice at first the reason that Patrick is cursing. He follows Patrick’s eyes over his shoulder to see the door open, and Ray is standing in it.
“Good evening, gentlemen! I’m so sorry, am I back early? Patrick asked me to be out of the house until at least midnight, but I’m afraid my date didn’t go quite as well as yours seems to have.”
Ray doesn’t seem at all surprised or embarrassed to see David on top of Patrick on the couch. David quickly sits up, sliding off of Patrick and straightening his clothes. Patrick follows suit, clearing his throat. He still looks delicious. David wills his erection to go down. He can’t have an erection in front of Ray.
“Please, please, don’t stop on my account,” Ray says. “I’m just going to the kitchen to get a glass of water, then I’m going straight to bed. So I won’t bother you anymore tonight. Oh, are you watching Dirty Dancing? I love this part.” Ray perches on the arm of the couch as the final dance scene begins.
“Ray?” Patrick asks.
“Hmm?” Ray doesn’t take his eyes off the screen.
“Would you mind excusing us?”
“Oh! Sorry, yes, I’ll leave you two alone,” Ray says, getting up and heading to the kitchen.
Once he’s out of the room, Patrick turns back to David and smiles, a little shy now that they’ve been interrupted. His eyes flit down to David’s lips like he’s thinking about kissing him again.
Ray’s head pops back into the living room. “Would you boys like some dessert?”
“What kind of dessert?” David starts to ask as Patrick simultaneously says “no, thank you, Ray.”
“I mean, no thank you,” David says.
“You’re sure? I’ve got some leftover pudding in the fridge that Jocelyn brought over last week. It’s been in there a few days now, so it’s developed quite a skin, but it’s still perfectly good underneath,” Ray says.
David can’t keep the look of horror off his face. At least his erection is fully dead now. “I’m good, thanks.”
“Okay, I’ll just go get my water, and then I’ll let you two have some privacy,” Ray says, disappearing back into the kitchen. David can hear him humming as he gets his glass of water.
“So… I should probably head home,” David says. He’s a little embarrassed to have been caught making out like a teenager, and he can tell there won’t be much privacy now that Ray is home.
Sure enough, before Patrick can respond, Ray is heading back through the living room. “I’ll just get out of your hair now,” Ray says. “But Patrick, I’m very happy for you. I’m glad your date went well. I think you two will be good for each other. And I know you’ve had a crush on David for a long—”
“Thank you, Ray,” Patrick says loudly. “Good night.”
“Okay, good night!” Ray says cheerily, and finally heads to his bedroom.
David turns back to Patrick with a grin threatening to burst off his face. “What was that Ray was saying?”
“You know, I’m not sure what he was saying, I didn’t really catch that last part,” Patrick tries to cover.
“Uh huh.” David narrows his eyes at Patrick, his mouth twisting in a smile, and decides to let it slide. Or to let that part slide, anyway. “So… you told Ray to be out until midnight, huh? What did you think we’d be doing until midnight?”
Patrick’s blush grows deeper. “I just… wanted to avoid any possibility of… well, of what happened,” he stammers. “I figured if I told him midnight, he’d at least give us ‘til eleven. Which was apparently too much to hope because it’s not even quarter ‘til yet.”
David nods. “I really should head home now.”
“I know,” Patrick says. Neither of them moves to get up. They keep smiling dopey smiles at each other. Patrick’s eyes are so expressive, David loves how he can read them perfectly even after only knowing him a few months. He leans in for another kiss, just because he can’t stand to not be kissing Patrick.
“Okay, really, though,” he says when he pulls back, and forces himself to stand. He puts a hand out to help Patrick up. “Walk me to the door.”
Patrick smiles a shy grin. “Okay.”
They don’t let go of each others’ hands on the short walk to the door. Now that he’s allowed to touch Patrick, David never wants to stop. He stands at the door, twisting Patrick’s fingers in his own. “I had a really nice time tonight.”
“Me too,” Patrick says, ducking his head with a blush and looking up at David with those doe eyes, and it’s so cute David has to pull him in for another kiss. Patrick responds with enthusiasm, backing him against the door and kissing him thoroughly. David’s not sure how long it’s been by the time they resurface, but he doesn’t really want to be doing this while Ray is home, and also, the later he stays out, the more teasing he’ll have to endure from Alexis when he tells her what happened.
He gives Patrick one last kiss, a short, sweet, soft one on his lips, then presses his forehead to Patrick’s briefly, breathing in his presence one last time before he has to tear himself away. “See you tomorrow.”
“Yeah,” Patrick says with a smile, as if he’d forgotten that they’d be seeing each other at work the next day and is delighted with the realization.
David opens the door, and Patrick follows him, standing in the doorway as David leaves. A few steps out, Patrick calls after him. “Goodnight, David.”
David turns back and gives Patrick a soft smile. “Goodnight, Patrick.”
Ray sticks his head out the bedroom window upstairs. “Goodnight, David!”