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Will Graham was hiding in the boys' bathroom at his high school on the night of the homecoming dance, cursing himself and the world for the series of events that had led to this.
"This" being: Will Graham, noted wearer of rumpled khakis, plaid shirts, and boots, was wearing a dress.
Now, plenty of people wore dresses, he knew that, he respected that. He, however, had never worn a dress before. ("In public," his smug inner self noted. "Shut up," he muttered out loud.) And he had been happy, thrilled, delighted, to keep it that way ("Or so you thought." Will sighed. "Shut UP"). HowEVER, he just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time and lost a bet to Jimmy Price, and here he was.
He thought back to that fateful lunch hour lo but a few days ago when he'd innocently walked up to a table of his friends eating lunch, having a lively discussion which immediately shut down as Will approached.
Will glanced suspiciously at everyone, who all looked as though they'd zipped their mouths shut. "...uh, hey - hey guys, what's - what's going on?"
He noticed his good friend Bev Katz trying to catch his eye, but then Jimmy jumped in.
"Oh, Will! Just the person I wanted to see."
"Sounds ominous," Will muttered.
Jimmy laughed. "Oh Will, you're always so suspicious all the time. You should really try to relax, have some fun; who knows, you might even like it." He snorted. "Anyway. We were just having ourselves a little bet, and I was wondering if you'd care to join us."
Will's jaw tightened; nothing like being told in front of your peers that you should have fun to make a guy tense up.
"Why do I get the feeling I don't have a choice?"
Everyone at the table giggled.
Will shook his head. He didn't have the energy to fight this time. "Fine. What's the bet, Price?"
Jimmy clapped his hands. "Oh how delightful. I am thrilled you chose to participate. Don't roll your eyes so much, Graham, they'll get stuck that way someday. Now. The bet is a deceptively simple one. We're betting on whether or not you think Hannibal Lecter has a date to the dance."
Will raised an eyebrow. Hannibal Lecter was the golden boy senior of their high school, two years older than him. He had everything (looks, money) Will didn't, and was everything (intelligent, handsome, polite) Will wasn't. The idea of him not having a date to the dance was immediately preposterous to him. "That's a ridiculous bet, Jimmy, come on."
Jimmy leaned forward conspiratorially. "Oh really?" He looked around at everyone else gathered around. "Will here says the bet is ridiculous. Well, let me tell you the stakes, Graham. If you win, I will wear a dress to the dance."
Everyone gasped. Katz even laughed. Boys at their school didn't...wear dresses to school dances, it just wasn't "done."
"And if I lose?"
Jimmy stared at him. "If you lose, then YOU have to wear a dress to the dance." Everyone went silent. "Of my choosing."
Everyone was staring at Will, whose cheeks started burning up from all the attention (and other feelings, if he was honest with himself).
"Wh- what?" he stumbled over his words, totally flailing. It felt like the floor had dropped out from underneath him. "I - a dress?" He quickly tried to save face by forcing an awkward laugh. "Haha, good - good one Jimmy. That's crazy. There's no way I'll lose."
Jimmy gave him a knowing look. "If you're so certain, then do you agree?"
Will had to prove Jimmy wrong; he didn't want anyone even imagining him wearing a dress, much less seeing him in one. The thought was simply mortifying.
He spoke with as much defiance and confidence as he could muster. "Yes. I agree."
Jimmy clapped his hands with glee. "DELIGHTFUL. So what's your answer?"
Will snorted. "Of course Hannibal has a date to the dance, he's been dating Alana for...forever now." Will didn't talk to Hannibal that often ("Well to do that you'd have to be able to look at him without blushing and turning into a stuttering mess" his inner voice told him. Rude. ) but he did...observe him. Will watched him all the time, to be honest. After all, Hannibal was endlessly fascinating to watch. He found himself memorizing all the lines of Hannibal’s face and how they changed depending on his expression, the way his lips moved when he said certain words, the way he walked down the hallway just so...this train of thought was going down a dangerous path.
He realized no one had said a thing, and came back to Earth. He glanced at Bev who had a grave look on her face, and at Jimmy who looked positively giddy.
"Oh I see, I see. You say, of course Hannibal has a date to the dance. Well, let's ask him directly, shall we?"
Will's stomach lurched. "Wh- what, now?"
"But of course! No time like the present, Graham. Hey, Hannibal!" Jimmy shouted across the lunch room to where Hannibal was holding court with his regular lunch time tutoring group. No downtime for that boy, Will thought to himself with a sigh. He noted Hannibal looked mildly annoyed as he looked up, but then excused himself and walked over.
"Jesus Christ," Will muttered to himself, his cheeks and neck burning red at this point.
"Oh Hannibal," Jimmy said in a sing-song voice, "We were just wondering, do you happen to have a date to the upcoming dance?" Jimmy did that thing where he tried to flutter his eyelashes but it didn't quite work.
Hannibal molded a polite smile onto his face. "Why, are you offering yourself?” Everyone laughed, and Jimmy looked a tad bashful. “No, I do not have a date to the dance, though I do have a special suit I will be wearing for the occasion."
Of course he does, Will thought to himself, it probably looks incredible.
Then he realized what Hannibal had said.
Fuck. Fuck fuck fuck.
He barely heard Jimmy dismiss Hannibal while his inner world was completely imploding. He was trying and failing not to hyperventilate. He'd lost the bet, the stupid bet, the bet that was too obviously simple, how could he have been so careless? Damn Jimmy Price.
He glanced up at Jimmy, who looked like the cat who'd got the cream, and was about to run off when Jimmy tugged at his sleeve. "I have the perfect outfit already picked out," he said knowingly, which prompted everyone within earshot to burst out laughing. Will wished he could be swallowed up by the ugly floor tile in the lunch room as everyone around him cackled, except for Beverly who actually looked concerned.
"This isn't funny, Jimmy," she started, while Will walked as fast as he could to the nearest bathroom to try not to throw up.
It was the same bathroom he was in now, funnily enough (or not).
Jimmy had brought Will over to his house earlier that night, the night of the big event, to try the dress on; he hadn't attempted to make Will put on makeup or style his hair, maybe he hadn't wanted to push his luck. If Will was being honest with himself, he wasn't sure whether he'd been secretly hoping Jimmy would make him go all the way, or not. He'd tried to resist the pull he felt these last few years towards Bev's lip gloss or the hair accessories left around the house by her sister, but the pull was still there. He really did like wearing his usual uniform of Dockers and flannel shirts; he just…sometimes wanted to wear other stuff, too, no matter how often he’d tried to convince himself he didn’t.
Will had nervously gone into Jimmy’s surprisingly large closet to try the garment on in private. He took it out of the bag it was in and studied it - the dress was...fine, actually. It was quite tasteful - a burgundy satin slip dress with spaghetti straps; he’d been anticipating Jimmy forcing him to wear some puffy-sleeved neon concoction from the 1980s, but he was pleasantly surprised.
He took off his pants and shirt, and slipped the dress over his shoulders. Somehow, suspiciously, the dress fit Will pretty well - it lightly skimmed his body and went to his mid-calf. He'd been pretty self-conscious about his relative lack of body hair compared to other boys, but he had to admit he liked how smooth the fabric felt against his skin.
He peeked at himself in the full-length mirror hanging on the back of the closet door, and felt a tiny beam of excitement form in his gut. Maybe…maybe the dress looked good on him, not that he'd ever tell Jimmy that. He looked at himself from the back, and was actually feeling kind of…happy about it.
“Knock knock! I’m coming in!”
Will hurriedly stepped away from the mirror and tried to act bored by the whole thing so as not to arouse suspicion, though he probably was unsuccessful, judging Jimmy's skeptical look on his face.
“Well, Will, what do you think of this little number, hmm?”
Will coughed and looked at the floor, avoiding Jimmy’s probing gaze. “Um, it’s, I don’t know, it’s fine I guess.”
“Mmhmm,” Jimmy replied, quite skeptically, but thankfully didn’t say anything else. Jimmy handed him a special pair of underwear to go along with it. Will studied the package.
"How...why do you have these???"
"Don't tell anyone but I started doing drag performances in town. One of the old queens took me under her wing, bless her, after I saw her perform and wouldn’t leave her alone. She actually helped me with this whole endeavor." Jimmy looked far too pleased with himself.
"How..." Will felt his face burn up again. Had he been so transparent? He'd tried so hard to keep his...yearnings a secret, how could Jimmy have known? "How long have you been planning this, exactly?"
"Oh not long, trust me. Truth be told, Will, I've always thought you'd look good in drag, and this was just the most perfect opportunity. I hope you're not too upset." Jimmy attempted fluttering his eyelashes again, and again he failed.
"You really need to practice that," he muttered. He sighed. "It's just one night. You'll be there, right? I just...I don't want to get...hurt."
"Oh, honey, of course I'll be there! I wouldn't send you into the wolf's den without protection! Who do you take me for? Don't answer that." He patted Will's shoulder. "My crew will be there, enforcing the code of conduct, alright? Trust me, I understand your worries." And when Will looked up at Jimmy, he saw that Jimmy was being sincere for once.
"Alright, okay."
Jimmy stood back and studied him. "I have to say, you look better than I'd dared hope. I wish I had your complexion, good gracious."
—-----------------------
The memory faded as Will sighed from inside the high school bathroom in the stall at the end of the row. He could hear dance music blaring from the gym nearby, and the occasional student walking in to use the facilities. He supposed he needed to make an appearance sometime. He was so nervous. After all, this was...more than just losing a bet. This was...him barely dipping his toes into a much bigger pond that he had been curious about, that he'd been drawn to for a long time but had always forced himself to deny. But denial hadn't worked. Maybe Jimmy could see that; maybe he was more observant than Will had given him credit for.
And, he suddenly remembered with a lurch, this was also about Hannibal potentially seeing him, like really, actually seeing him, the him underneath the veneer he put on at school. Shit.
Will tried to shake some of the feelings racing through him out, then unlocked the stall door and looked at himself in the mirror. He wasn't wearing makeup, that was too much for him to consider for tonight. His curls looked halfway decent. He liked how pink his lips looked, he could admit that to himself. The dress really felt amazing; he loved how it felt to twirl in it. And the ballet flats he’d borrowed from Jimmy were actually kind of comfortable. But he didn't want everyone to know just how good it felt. This was supposed to be a punishment for a bet that he lost, right? That part suddenly felt so far away.
He tried to psych himself up, and left the bathroom, his stomach an absolute ball of nerves. He feared he'd throw up on the first person who even looked at him. All he had to do was just make an appearance, then throw off the dress and change into some regular clothes he'd left in his locker, and he'd be okay, he could handle this...
"Will!"
Will quickly turned around, and Beverly ran up to him, smiling. "Will! Wow, look at you!"
"Shhh, not so loud!"
She grinned. "Why not, Graham? You look better than me!"
He smiled shyly. "Now, come on, that's not true. You're gorgeous." Bev's jet black hair was up in a bun with a couple strands loose framing her face, and she was wearing a beautiful glittering navy halter dress. "That dress looks amazing on you."
"Aww, thank you. I can say the same to you!"
He blushed.
Quietly, she asked, "Should we go in?"
Will swallowed a lump in his throat, and felt his heart really start to race. This was it.
Bev put her arm around him. "You can do it. It's just one night. And you have Jimmy's crew to protect you, okay? And me. Especially me."
Will smiled at her. "Okay."
They walked down the hallway and into the gym, which had been transformed into a midnight garden-theme - the lights were low and the walls were covered in floral decorations, with lots of flickering faux candles littered throughout. It didn't look half bad. A DJ was playing some pop hits and most of his classmates were on the dance floor. Most people didn't even pay attention to him or Bev, as they stood against the wall watching everyone. The more he got used to the environment, the more he started to calm down, which Bev seemed to pick up on.
"See? It's fine. Everyone's doing their own thing."
"You're right, as usual." Bev gave him a friendly punch in the shoulder.
"Of course I am, Graham. Oh hey, there's Hannibal."
Any calmness that had been in his demeanor immediately vanished at hearing those words. He wasn’t ready, he wasn’t ready for this. It meant too much.
"I think I'm really going to be sick this time." He felt dizzy and quickly turned around to grip Bev's arm for balance.
Bev rubbed his back as he hid his head in Bev's shoulder. "Shh, you're fine, you're fine; you know, Will, you worry too much."
"Easy for you to say," he mumbled into her neck.
Dread filled his entire body as he heard a familiar accented voice say, "Ah, Beverly, you look lovely this evening. And who is that with you? I am afraid I am unfamiliar."
Will wished he could fit his whole body into Bev's neck, or better yet, walk through the wall behind him and never return. He would be free, he'd never see Hannibal again, everything would be fine.
Bev chuckled. "Oh, you've already met, trust me. Will?"
He peeked up at her and saw her with a reassuring look on her face. It was now or never.
Will kept his eyes on the floor as he slowly turned around, and had to remind himself to keep breathing so that he didn't pass out. This is only one night, he repeated to himself like a mantra.
"Will! I hardly recognized you."
Rather than sounding mocking, Will thought Hannibal sounded...pleased? That couldn’t be right. He looked up and briefly glanced at Hannibal's face - Hannibal was smiling and looked almost...in awe.
Will looked back at the floor shyly. "Um, h- hi Hannibal. I, uh - well I lost a bet with Jimmy." He tried to force himself to laugh, but it ended up sounding extremely pained.
Hannibal, ever the gentleman, took it in stride. "I never would have guessed." He touched Will's shoulder, and Will shivered. "You look...incredible. I saw Beverly with a fetching companion from across the room and I had to come over right away to introduce myself; imagine my surprise at discovering it's you."
Will made eye contact with Hannibal and he swore actual sparks flew between them. He'd never felt anything like it. Everything else fell away - the noise, the people, all the worrying he'd been doing. All he could see was Hannibal Lecter, in his clearly custom-made tuxedo, his stupid high cheekbones and sharp jawline, his stupidly attractive sandy blond hair swept away from his stupid hot face. All he could feel was the warmth emanating from Hannibal's body as it inched closer to his, and his firm hand resting gently on Will’s bare shoulder.
Will swallowed, and was incredibly grateful for the low lighting which did not show just how red he was. "I - th- thank you, Hannibal, you look - you look really, um, really good, yourself."
Hannibal smiled genuinely and made a slight bow. "Thank you." He looked at Beverly. "I hate to intrude, but would you mind if I -"
"Oh, of course, you dance with Bev," Will said, more to the floor than to Hannibal as he started to step away.
"Ah. I would be happy to ask Beverly to dance, later, perhaps, but not before I ask you, Will."
This time Will's stomach dropped but in the best way possible. Did he really just say what Will thought he'd said?
"M- me?"
"Of course. Will Graham, may I have this dance?"
He could practically feel the smugness emanating from off of Bev's body, and he'd really have to give her shit for that later. "Go get him, tiger," she said to him under her breath.
He laughed nervously. "I, uh, I'm not the greatest dancer, I - I don't really know what I'm doing. I mean, you're an incredible dancer."
Hannibal smiled modestly. "Thank you for the compliment. I am not concerned with your dancing abilities, however." Hannibal leaned down and whispered in his ear, "Please. I would be honored."
Hannibal's hot breath tickled and he felt light-headed all of a sudden. He swayed and Hannibal grabbed onto his shoulders; his grip was firm, and Will instantly relaxed. He felt safe. He never felt safe with anyone. How was this happening to him? He knew he was thinking too much. Bev lightly poked him out of his reverie.
"Um, wow, okay. I mean - yes. Yes, Hannibal." He looked into Hannibal's eyes, and any doubts he may have had about Hannibal's sincerity were immediately gone. Hannibal looked as though Will was his whole world. When had that happened?
"Wonderful. Beverly, it has been lovely talking with you."
"Yeah, yeah, go dance with each other, you two," she grinned and shooed them away.
Will looked back at her and mouthed Thank You, and she winked. Then he was being gently led to the center of the crowded dance floor by the most popular, attractive, intelligent, unattainable boy in school, Hannibal, who wanted him, Will Graham. The crowds parted around them as they saw who it was, and suddenly, everyone was looking at him, in his dress, but they weren't laughing at him. And Hannibal was looking at him with such fondness that it took Will's breath away.
When they got to the center of the dance floor, Hannibal said, “May I?” Will blushed again (he was beginning to suspect he was about to never stop blushing ever again) and shyly nodded. Hannibal took Will's hands and placed them around his neck, and he put his hands gently on Will's waist, and they started to sway to the slower tempo music the DJ had started playing. He couldn't believe this was happening. Maybe he was dreaming. Was he dreaming?
"What are you thinking about?" Hannibal asked after a few moments.
Will startled. "I, ah, well I was starting to wonder whether or not I was dreaming, honestly. I - can't believe this is happening right now."
"What can't you believe?"
"Where do I even begin? That I'm at a school dance, that I'm wearing...this...that no one's beat me up for it yet, that the Hannibal Lecter is choosing to dance with me...unless...." A chill ran through his body; Will swallowed and looked at the floor. "Unless you lost a bet, too," he said quietly.
"Will, look at me," Hannibal said sternly. Will looked up with trepidation, and quickly saw the genuine concern on Hannibal's face. "I assure you, I did not lose a bet. Please believe me, that I simply...wanted to dance with you. I was unsure whether you would be attending at all, though I had hoped. And when I saw what you were wearing, I..." he faltered. His voice sounded husky when he managed to say, "You look beautiful, Will."
Tears started forming in Will's eyes. Hannibal was not lying. Will leaned in and whispered, "Thank you." Hannibal looked at Will's lips with such longing that Will stopped thinking for once in his life and leaned in further to meet Hannibal halfway to a kiss, right there in the middle of the gym.
Will's lips met Hannibal's and he could sense a hush in the crowd around them. Hannibal seemed stunned at first as he didn't move right away, but after a second he lightly caressed Will's jaw with one hand and gently pressed the full lips Will had daydreamed about for months into Will's own. Will decided then and there that if he died right at that moment he would have lived a full life. But he didn't die, the earth didn't swallow him up, and he didn't wake up from what would have been the best dream ever. He really was kissing Hannibal Lecter, his first kiss was happening right here, in front of everyone.
Hannibal's lips felt as warm and soft and delicious as he'd dared imagine they would. He was in heaven.
Just as quickly as it started, it ended. They parted and both seemed somewhat out of breath. Hannibal looked at him and said, "Would you like to...I realize we just started dancing, but perhaps you’d like to…sit down somewhere with me, and chat?”
Will laughed. “What type of ‘chat’ are we talking about here?”
Hannibal looked visibly flustered, which only made Will laugh harder. It was going to be so easy for him to tease this beautiful boy.
“Of course, I would never assume - I only meant -”
Will cut him off. “I know what you meant, Hannibal,” he said warmly. “I would love to chat with you.”
Hannibal nodded with a shy smile, then held out his arm for Will to hold onto as he led him to a more secluded, quieter part of the gym.
Will couldn’t look into the future to see how this would all turn out, but he had a suspicion that whatever started here tonight would last far longer than just one evening, and he couldn’t wait to experience all of it.