Work Text:
Adam should have seen it coming.
It felt inevitable now with the empty page in front of him, “How to Seduce Ronan Lynch” written at the top, but Adam, honestly, never thought he would fall for him. He figured that, after Blue, he would focus on school and fulfilling his life-long dream of getting out of Henrietta, but here he was, trying to come up with ways to make Ronan confess his feelings for him, if he had them that was.
He knew Ronan looked at him sometimes, always looking away when Adam gathered his courage to look back, but that didn’t mean he was actually attracted to him. Adam Parrish only dealt in certainties and Ronan Lynch wasn’t one. He couldn’t afford taking this risk and telling Ronan how he felt. Feelings were more Ronan’s forte even though he repressed them almost as much as Adam did. No, he couldn’t tell him, but he could try to push Ronan far enough to admit his possible feelings to which Adam could confess his own. It was foolproof, perfect, if only he could come up with seduction methods.
Adam gripped his pen a little tighter and tapped it against his lip, his mind working into overdrive. Maybe he was going about this wrong… Instead of focusing on how to seduce Ronan, maybe he had to tap into his core. His deepest desires. You would think Adam knew Ronan enough by now to know what those were, but he didn’t. Ronan was as much a mystery to him as Adam was to others.
He wished karma didn’t work as well as it did.
He could start simple, though. Maybe simple was enough. Maybe, trying to write down the entirety of Ronan onto a single paper was too ambitious, and he could start with the basics.
What did he know about Ronan Lynch?
1. Ronan likes the smell of gasoline.
Ronan’s car breaking down was bound to happen someday. Lucky enough for Adam, that day was sooner than later. He had set his sight on just fixing a car in Ronan’s presence, hoping it would awaken something in him, but the fact that it was his car he was fixing made it even better.
“How did you even manage to fuck up the motor this much?” Adam asked, staring at the mess that was the inside of Ronan’s dreamt up BMW. His father obviously knew nothing about cars, Adam couldn’t even find the brake fluid reservoir.
Ronan shrugged, watching him from the roll chair in the corner. “I was driving, and it started smoking.”
“Driving or racing?” Adam asked, a smirk pulling on his lips.
“Driving, you shit,” Ronan replied with a roll of his eyes though he didn’t sound angry. He hadn’t sounded angry in a while now that Adam thought about it.
“I’ll see what I can do,” Adam said, wiping his oil covered hands on a piece of cloth that he slung over his shoulder before he bent over the hood of the car again in a more exaggerated way than necessary. He had to force his features to remain neutral when he felt Ronan’s eyes follow the lines of his body.
He worked slower than was strictly necessary, liking how it felt when Ronan watched his every move. Adam decided to take it one step further and unzipped his coveralls a little, shrugging out of the sleeves before tying them round his waist, the white, tight t-shirt he wore sticking to his upper body with sweat. It was a little too small so his hip bones were on display. He knew Ronan was trying his hardest not to look.
Ronan still remained seated on the other end of the garage, only looking, never speaking up.
Adam sighed and with one more turn of the wrench he was done. He came to a standstill in front of Ronan, a little closer than he had to be, who kept his eyes on Adam’s face, never straying.
“I’m done, wanna test it out?” Adam asked, waiting for Ronan to nod and follow him to the BMW. “Start it for me?”
Ronan looked relieved but not surprised when the car started, sounding better than ever. “What do I owe you?” he asked, the only hint that he had been affected at all was the rough edge to his voice.
“Nothing,” Adam said with a half-smile. “It’s on the house.”
“Let me at least drive you home?” Ronan asked. Adam intended to decline, would have done so before he knew he liked Ronan’s company a bit too much for it being just platonic. He nodded instead. Even if Ronan wouldn’t speak up today, he could spend some precious hours in his company.
Ronan returned to his seat in the corner and watched Adam work, looking away every time Adam happened to look his way. It was the months old game they had been playing, forever captured in the feeling of longing and despair, waiting for the other to make the move. Adam was determined not to be the one to do it, and Ronan was too scared he was wrong to lay his own cards bare.
The car ride to St. Agnes church was loaded and silent, neither of them ready to speak up and break the palpable tension. Ronan took his place next to Adam’s bed as Adam worked on his homework for a few more hours before getting his much needed sleep; the next part of his plan culminating in his head as he drifted off.
2. Ronan likes cars a little too much (his own car in particular)
Adam closed his eyes against the burning sun, waiting for Ronan to finally finish with tennis practice and take him home. He had accepted Ronan’s ride to school in the morning, casually “forgetting” that Ronan had tennis practice that afternoon so he could work out his plan which involved him lying down on the hood of Ronan’s car, his shirt rucked up a little to reveal half of his stomach.
He knew it was a pretty cheap display but if it worked, it worked.
“I will rip your head off if there is a scratch on her,” Adam heard from beside him. He opened his eyes slowly, his eyelashes fluttering against the blinding light of the sun.
“No, you won’t,” Adam said with a shit-eating grin and sat up a little, leaning back on his forearms, squinting up at Ronan, knowing the sun had brought out the small freckles that littered his face. Ronan looked good, a little too good for Adam to handle. It was supposed to be him that seduced Ronan but it was starting to feel like Ronan was turning things around without knowing. He was still dressed in his tennis uniform that clung to his body sinfully, and it took Adam everything to not throw the whole plan away and speak up.
Ronan rolled his eyes but didn’t disagree just as Adam knew he wouldn’t. “I’m leaving, with you still on the hood or not.”
Adam laughed and stretched his arms above his head languidly. He could feel Ronan’s eyes zoom in on his flat stomach, undoubtedly tracing the pale scar that travelled beneath the waistband of his pants.
He slid himself off the car and looked up at Ronan who didn’t seem like he could look away, his eyes flickering from Adam’s to his freckles, following the line of his throat down to where Adam had loosened his tie and unbuttoned his dress shirt slightly. Adam swallowed and Ronan copied him unconsciously. “I thought you were leaving?” Adam asked, his tone light and teasing.
“I am,” Ronan said but made no move to actually get into his car and drive off. Adam daringly took a step forward, peering up at Ronan from underneath his eyelashes, a smirk pulling on his lips.
“Then what are you waiting for?” he asked, his voice purposefully low.
Ronan swallowed again and shook his head a little, taking himself out of his daze. “Nothing.”
He stepped away from Adam, leaving him standing with his mouth slightly agape, the moment broken. Adam felt the disappointment settle into every fibre of his being. Taking the hint, he got into Ronan’s car and didn’t say anything, letting him drive them to Nino’s, hoping some cheap pizza would at least get his mind off of this.
3. Ronan likes to be touched, even if he pretends he doesn’t.
Adam slid into the booth at Nino’s, actually trying to keep his distance from Ronan after the rejection from earlier, but Ronan was obviously not following the script and leaned in close, his thigh nearly touching Adam’s.
Two could play that game.
Adam let his leg fall and rest against Ronan’s, watching as Ronan dropped the menu, his cheeks flushed. He wasn’t sure if he was blushing because of Adam or because he dropped the menu, but he counted it as a win anyways.
“What are you ordering?” he asked, leaning in close to Ronan’s face so he could look at the menu even though he already knew exactly what he was going to order.
Ronan wordlessly pointed to something on the menu, and Adam silently cheered about the fact that he managed to get Ronan Lynch of all people speechless.
“I was thinking this one,” he whispered, gently taking Ronan’s hand in his own and shifting it so his finger pointed at something else.
Ronan cleared his throat and nodded. “You always get that.”
“You noticed.”
Ronan looked like he was going to say something but he was interrupted when a waiter came to take their orders. Adam shuffled back in his seat, annoyed with the interruption but always polite as he explained what he wanted. He kept his leg pressed against Ronan’s, and he didn’t move away which was a step in the right direction for sure.
He zoned out Gansey’s chattering about whatever he found that was somehow relevant to their quest and focused on Ronan and the new plan forming in his mind instead.
He placed his drink only a few inches from Ronan’s and waited until Ronan was about to take a sip to move forward as well, his hand brushing Ronan’s just like he had planned.
What he hadn’t planned was Ronan dropping his drink in shock spilling it all over the table and himself. “Shit!” he exclaimed, jumping back in his seat with a dismayed look on his face. Adam bit his lip and wordlessly handed him some napkins helping him to clean up the mess.
“Are you okay?” he asked, placing a tentative hand on Ronan’s thigh as he wiped some soda from his shirt. Ronan’s leg was warm under his palm but he didn’t want to overdo it so he let go and sat back again, avoiding the curious stares of the others.
4. Ronan likes guys???
Sunday came slower than usual.
Normally, Adam always thought the week was flying by too fast, time being his worst enemy with the amount of things he had to do in a day. Now, however, it seemed like the week lasted forever, filled with boring classes and jobs he didn’t even like doing.
But then it was Sunday, and time to initiate step four.
He knew Ronan would come up every Sunday after mass, it was a tradition between the two of them Adam wasn’t even sure the others knew about. They didn’t do much else than talk a little while Adam worked on his homework, and Ronan dreamed or listened to his god awful music Adam had come to appreciate.
This time however, Adam pretended that he had slept in, which was not common, but it wasn’t entirely unlikely either. He didn’t have work today for once, and he did try to get a few more precious hours of sleep every once in a while to fuel him.
Adam smiled when he heard the telltale knock of Ronan’s fist on the door and turned to check his reflection. Slightly mussed hair, sweatpants hanging low on his hips, no shirt in sight. It was perfect.
Ronan knocked again and Adam rolled his eyes. “I’m coming, chill!” he said before opening the door, taking in Ronan’s appearance with his mouth slightly agape.
He thought he would be the one seducing Ronan, but it looked like it was the other way around.
He was wearing a suit as usual but his buttons had been undone a bit further than usual, his tie hanging loose around his neck while the edges of his tattoo peeking out from his collar. His suit jacket was slung over his arm, the sleeves of his dress shirt rolled up so it revealed his forearms, his skin silky and pale, soft enough to touch if Adam dared.
“Hi,” he said, his brain functioning just enough to let Ronan through.
“You okay, Parrish?” Ronan asked, and Adam swore he could see a glint of something in his eyes, but he was too enthralled by him to really think about it too much.
“Perfect,” he said and sat down in front of his makeshift desk, reopening his laptop. He had been too caught up in watching Ronan that he hadn’t noticed Ronan had been looking back, trailing his eyes down the wide expanse of Adam’s chest, following the freckles dusting his skin down to his stomach.
Ronan was still watching him sometimes, glancing his way every now and then. Adam could feel his eyes burning into his skin.
He felt rather hopeless. Ronan was still just looking instead of actually doing something about the tension between them in the exact same way he had before Adam had even come up with this plan.
Instead of focussing on Ronan, this time he turned his attention to his homework, hoping that school was at least one thing he wouldn’t fail.
5. Ronan
probably
definitely has a hand kink.
“You look like you’re in pain,” Adam said, watching as Ronan tried to get comfortable on his hard wooden floor.
“No shit, Parrish,” Ronan grumbled and shifted his weight again. “This floor is not exactly soft.”
“You’re looking more uncomfortable than usual,” Adam replied, abandoning his open text book to crouch down next to Ronan. “You okay?”
“Must’ve pulled something,” Ronan finally said with a sigh, unconsciously rubbing his back a little. “It’s fine, just do your homework.”
A brilliant plan started to form in Adam’s mind.
“I could give you a massage,” he said innocently, rubbing his hands a little. “I’m stronger than I look.”
Ronan’s eyes flickered from Adan’s hands to his face and back, swallowing hard before he spoke. “Why?”
“Because you’re in pain,” Adam said simply and motioned towards his bed. “You can just lie down and let me help you or you can be in pain for the next couple of hours.”
Ronan thought for a few moments longer while Adam waited in anticipation. “Fine,” he said and moved to lie on Adam’s bed.
“This would be more effective with your shirt off, you know,” Adam said smugly and moved to sit down next to him.
Ronan leaned up with a grimace and unbuttoned his shirt, pulling it off before lying back down.
Adam watched the muscles shift underneath his tattoo, staring in wonder at the black lines swirling around his back, the image seemingly changing every time he blinked.
He put a tentative hand on Ronan’s skin, relishing in the shiver Ronan let out before letting his other hand join, moving slowly up to his shoulders to rub the muscles there
He kept his hands light and gentle until he heard: “I’m not going to break,” and pushed harder, earning himself a small sound from Ronan. Adam balanced himself by leaning on Ronan’s back a little and swung his leg over Ronan’s hips, hovering above him. He leaned down so his mouth was right next to Ronan’s ear.
“Is this okay?” he asked softly. Ronan made a strangled sound and nodded his head, Adam could only smile and move back a little, letting his hands dance across Ronan’s back.
They stayed like that for a while, Adam rubbing Ronan’s sore muscles while Ronan shifted underneath him, sometimes letting out a sigh, even more rarely did he make a sound, but they were etched into Adam’s brain all the same.
Adam kept going until his hands were sore and kept going a little longer after that, not wanting to take his hands off of Ronan’s skin now that he had the chance. But his hands were starting to cramp up, and Ronan could feel that he wasn’t putting as much force into it as he did before.
“I think my back’s okay now,” Ronan mumbled and Adam got off his back after a moment of hesitation wherein he thought about kissing the centre of Ronan’s tattoo but refrained, knowing it would be a step too far.
Ronan rolled his shoulders and gave Adam one of his rare smiles, one that said thank you without Ronan having to say it out loud.
And that was it.
+1 step that wasn’t planned and oh my god why did Ronan choose this moment to confess his love what the actual fuck?
Or, so, Adam thought.
He quickly put a shirt on and drifted towards the bathroom, getting ready for bed. He cursed himself as he brushed his teeth for thinking that these stupid steps of trying to seduce Ronan were going to help at all. He probably made a fool out of himself more than anything.
Maybe Ronan didn’t even like him as much as Adam initially thought he did. It had never been a certainty, but something in the way Ronan looked at him or did things for him without taking credit for it made Adam believe there was more to them than just the friendship they had carefully crafted together. It was his apartment, after all, that Ronan seemed to be drawn to every night, though he was now questioning if it was because of him or because it was away from Gansey who Ronan didn’t want to harm.
Dejectedly, he stepped out of the bathroom and turned off the lights, letting the pale shine of the moon guide his steps forward, expertly avoiding the hanging nails in the floorboards.
Ronan had already turned his jacket into a makeshift pillow, his headphones on, though the music was turned down a little for Adam’s benefit, something Ronan would never admit.
“Goodnight,” Adam said quietly and climbed into bed, pulling his threadbare blanket around him tightly, hiding half of his face behind the fabric.
Ronan nodded at him and Adam closed his eyes but sleep didn’t come to him.
He could hear Ronan take his headphones off and place them next to him, rearranging his sleeping position with a soft groan.
Minutes ticked by, and Adam was still very much awake.
“Can you lie still?” He could hear from below him. Adam rolled his eyes and bent over so he could look at Ronan’s face.
“If it bothers you so much, go sleep somewhere else.”
Ronan grumbled and sat up. “Want me gone, Parrish?” he asked but Adam could see he wasn’t serious.
“Nah, if people break in, they will go for you first. I’m using you as my personal shield.”
Ronan huffed out a laugh. “Nobody would break into this shithole.”
“You’ve got a point,” Adam said and smiled, openly and freely, a present given to Ronan for sticking with him throughout this entire ordeal and beyond.
Ronan looked at him and Adam looked back, and Ronan didn’t look away.
The air between them suddenly felt loaded, filled with the months of yearning they had both been through, the tension that had built between them these past few days.
Ronan leaned in.
“Seriously, now?!” Adam exclaimed indignantly, unable to stop himself. He immediately regretted it when Ronan pulled away again, his eyes hard but his true feeling of embarrassment betrayed by the blush dusting his cheeks.
“A simple ‘no’ would have done,” Ronan said, his tone icy as he pulled away, snatching up his jacket in the process.
“I didn’t mean it like that,” Adam scrambled to say, his hand wrapping around Ronan’s forearm. Ronan could rip his arm away easily if he wanted to but he didn’t. He stood frozen next to Adam’s bed, looking at him expectantly. “It’s just… These past few days I tried to… seduce you, and you didn’t react at all but you want to kiss me now?”
“You wanted to seduce me?” Ronan asked before laughing loudly, clutching his stomach a little as he sunk down next to Adam.
“Starting to regret that now,” Adam said, his lips pulling into a bit of a pout. He had half a mind to get up, run out of the door and catch the next plane to whatever country was available so he didn’t have to deal with the fallout of the mess he had created.
“Don’t be like that,” Ronan said and it sounded light and teasing rather than angry or disgusted like Adam had expected. He turned to Ronan and could see the hope in his eyes, the glee that had softened the edges a little.
This time when Ronan leaned in, Adam wisely kept his mouth shut besides opening it to welcome Ronan’s tongue into his mouth moments later when he was pushed against the bed, Ronan hovering over him with red, glistening lips that was all Adam’s doing.
“You could’ve just said something,” Ronan said but they both knew Adam couldn’t have. There had been too many risks, too many possibilities for failure.
“Didn’t have to apparently,” Adam shrugged and pulled Ronan down again for a kiss, the taste of him on his tongue addicting. “The plan worked.”
“The plan didn’t do shit, I thought you were messing with me half the time,” Ronan laughed but it wasn’t unkindly.
“But it led you to kissing me,” Adam said stubbornly. “It was a well thought out and perfectly executed plan.”
Ronan shook his head with a laugh and kissed him again and again until Adam was breathless, and his plan was the last thing on his mind.