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"I wanna marry you," Michael says, over breakfast. Ashton looks up from his phone.
"Whoa, isn't this kind of sudden?" He asks. Michael flips him off. Ashton thinks he's hilarious.
"Luke," Michael says, to get his attention. Luke is staring into his cereal bowl like it's way more interesting than Michael's proposal. Probably because this isn't the first time Michael's asked. Actually, it may be the fourth or ninth. Michael's not counting. The last time had been when they were both sweaty and post-orgasmic and still a little high. Admittedly, Michael could have chosen a better time. Luke had told Michael to "shu'up up and lemme sleep, Gordon" and then fallen asleep.
Finally, Luke takes a heaping spoon of his cornflakes and looks up, chewing thoughtfully.
"Are you still drunk?" Is what he asks.
"No," Michael frowns. "You're drunk."
Luke just frowns, then opens his mouth wide so Michael can see the orange mush that the cereal has turned to, purely because Luke knows Michael hates that. Luke is the worst and Michael wants to spend the rest of his life with him.
He squints at him, shutting his mouth and cocking his head to the side a little, trying to assess how serious Michael's being. Michael holds his gaze, folding his arms for added effect. Luke sighs and leans back in his chair, hand rubbing absentmindedly at his beard.
"Michael." Is all he says.
"You know, eventually I'm gonna get offended at being rejected so often." Michael is aware that he's pouting, and he's glad when Luke looks sorry. Good. He should be.
"Mikey." Luke says, drawing out the y sound because he knows Michael's a sucker for it. "You know I love you."
"What, is there someone else? Are you fucking Ashton?"
"He's not fucking Ashton." Ashton says flatly, not looking up from his phone. Michael glares at him. Now he can talk; where was he when Michael's heart was getting crushed?
Luke shrugs, as if to say 'there you have it', then goes back to eating his cereal, quicker this time because it's starting to get soggy. Michael sighs loudly.
—
The first time Michael asked, it had just slipped out. Luke was walking around the tour bus in a pair of boxers with cartoon bunnies all over them, courtesy of Liz. He had been so excited, to the point of giving each of them a name.
"...And this one's Ashton, because he's huge and always on my ass," Luke said, pointing to one of the two bunnies that were printed on the backside of the underwear.
"Yeah?" Michael chuckled, laying back on the sofa and laughing as Luke modeled the boxers around.
"Yeah. This is Calum." Luke pointed to the one on his right thigh. "'Cause he's got great hair. Like Calum." Luke grinned, and Michael was glad no-one else was here because his smile was so fond it was probably embarrassing.
"And me?" Michael wondered.
Luke thought for a second, staring down at the boxers to find a suitable match. Eventually, he shrugged, then walked towards Michael, arms outstretched. "I'll be your bunny, Mikey," He said, collapsing on top of him, knocking all the air out of him. Michael put his arms around him, hugging him tight, lips against his neck
"Marry me," He said, voice low; the words were meant as a joke but they froze between them and suddenly the teasing atmosphere was gone.
"You really like bunnies, huh?" Luke said after Michael's heart had nearly drummed through his chest. It would have been so easy to laugh it off, agree with Luke, even call him a name and tell him he'd never marry him, but Michael had been determined.
"I'm serious."
"No you weren't," Luke moved a little, raising his head so he can see Michael's face. He must have seen the sincerity there, because his small smile drops. "Oh."
"Yeah." Michael said. Then, again, "Marry me?"
"Not now." Luke had said.
—
That "not now" has been preying on Michael's mind forever, because it's the only real answer he's ever gotten. Usually Luke just brushes it off jokingly.
("Will you marry me?"
"You just want me for my body." "I think I'm straight." "I forgot to tell you but I'm eloping with Calum tomorrow.")
But the not now was a promise of something else, later. Except it's been three fucking years and how much later can you get? Not to rush him, but how much time did he need? He decided to get his lip pierced in about two hours, should it be that hard to decide whether or not he likes Michael that much?
Michael's said all this and more to him, and he gets the same response every time.
"Love you, Mikey." With huge blue eyes and a slight pout that makes Michael feel bad enough to just let it go. Luke is an absolute terror.
xxx
"When we get married," Michael begins, during movie night. There's a loud groan from every member of his band as soon as he says the word 'married'. Okay, so maybe Michael's been talking about marriage a lot. Maybe everyone should just fuck off and let him. "Do you think we should, like. Take my last name, or yours?"
Luke's pensive for a while. Calum slots in the DVD and comes to sit next to them on the couch.
"Luke Clifford." He says after a short silence. Both he and Ashton start to giggle uncontrollably, clutching their stomachs as they double over and cackle.
"Oh my God," Ashton giggles. "Wait, wait; Michael Hemmings," He splutters, bringing on another fit of laughter, nearly falling on top of Calum as he tries to regain his breath.
"I fucking hate this band." Michael breathes.
"I think Clifford's nice," Luke says, ignoring the other two. "I always liked in because back in year nine, you were closer to the top of the roll so you always got called first when they were picking people to do things while I was stuck with the rest of the shitty H's. Also, it reminds me of that cartoon with the big red dog."
Michael snorts, and Luke giggles and kisses his cheek. "Nerd," Michael mutters, although his heart has swollen to three times it's original size.
"Can we go to your room?" Luke asks. Michael looks down at him, and there's an eagerness in his eyes that makes him feel a little warm inside.
"Mm," Michael hums, darting a look in Calum and Ashton's direction. The movie has started up and they're focused on it, so Michael kisses Luke, and Luke sighs softly and deepens it. He takes Michael's hand and guides it under the blanket that's over their legs, letting it rest in his lap, so he can feel him, feel how hard he is.
"Michael," Luke says, voice all breathy.
"Yeah?" Michael says, slipping his hand into Luke's sweatpants.
"Yeah," Luke sighs. "yes, fuck,"
"Nice to hear you saying yes for once." Michael mutters. Luke laughs quietly. "Wanna fuck you till' that's all you can say," Michael says quietly, smirking when Luke's breath hitches in his throat.
"What, you've got some kind of fetish for the word 'yes' now?" He asks breathlessly.
"S'your own fault, Hemmings."
—
"Luke?" Michael rasps over the phone. It's 2 am and Michael's rooming with Calum because they have to be up early tomorrow and Ash thinks that if he lets Michael room with Luke they won't sleep. Ashton obviously doesn't know how much they value their sleep.
"Yeah?" Luke replies, voice sleepy and a little irritated.
"Bro," Calum calls from the bed next to him,Michael, "Don't do it."
"Will you marry me?"
Luke hangs up.
—
Michael is sitting on the end of the sofa in the back lounge, pretending to be concentrating really hard on his phone, when really he's eavesdropping on the conversation going on in Luke's bunk.
"So," Calum says, sighing heavily. "Uh, Michael says I should ask you if you'll marry him."
There's a long, tense silence. Then, sounding like he's about to snap, "Michael asked you to ask me to marry him?" He says, voice raising a little at the end. "Is this fucking kindergarten?"
"Don't shoot the messenger!" Calum whines.
"He's an idiot. I hate him. I'm not touching his laundry ever again, he's so- Michael!" Luke yells, "I know you can hear me! You're doing your own fuckin' laundry from now on."
"Whatever, you don't even use the nice soap that I like!" Michael huffs in reply.
"You two don't even need a ring," Calum sighs exasperatedly, "you're already married."
"Stay out of this," Luke grumbles.
—
Michael's been excited all day, but now it's 11:55 pm and exactly 5 minutes until their album is released. He's sitting on his bed, bouncing up and down giddily, jostling Ashton in the process.
"Michael, stop," He says, phone in his hands. He's on twitter, interacting with the fans, reading what they're saying about the album. Luke and Calum and doing the same, on the other bed. Michael continues to bounce, until Ashton slaps a huge hand down on his knee. "Stop." He says again, more stern this time.
"Get your hands off my man, Irwin." Luke says, looking up from his phone and frowning at Ashton's hand. He gets up, poking Ashton in the stomach and lying down next to Michael. "That's my Michael, get your own."
"I'm leaving," Ashton sighs, getting up to go sit with Calum instead.
"Good." Luke nods. Michael resumes bouncing, since he knows Luke will tolerate it. It's 11:59.
"Guys I'm so excited." Michael says. "I mean— what the fuck, we have an album? Two albums? This is fucking surreal. I feel like my mom's gonna call me up later and ask when I'm getting a real job or something."
Luke kisses the top of his head. "I'm glad I got to do all of this with you." He says. Calum and Ashton start furiously coughing and clearing their throats, and Luke sighs, and adds, "With all of you. I love you guys a lot."
"It's fucking 12, holy fuck," Calum gasps, and then their phones are ringing and vibrating and beeping with people calling to congratulate them, and Calum starts playing the Lion King soundtrack to celebrate, and Ashton gets on the phone with his mom, and even through all the noise, everyone can hear her screaming about how proud she is.
Michael watches the scene in front of him with a huge smile on his face, and just when he's about to pick up his own phone and talk to some of the people furiously trying to contact him, Luke taps his arm.
"Here," Luke hands Michael his phone, and his earphones. "Listen to track 12."
Michael stares at Luke. "I've heard the whole thing. I wrote most of that song."
"Yeah, but I edited it a little. Just listen." Michael continues to stare at Luke, wondering what exactly he's trying to do. Luke sighs and lays down next to him, sticking an earphone in Michael's ear, and putting the other in his own. The music starts to play, and it's nothing Michael doesn't recognize, seeing as he listened to the album at least 30 times to make sure it was perfect.
It's a love song, the one that was the hardest to write because it's the first one he's written about Luke, the first time he's tried to capture what he means to him in a song. Michael wrote most of it by himself, with a little help from Calum. He's proud of it, and he knows exactly how it goes, so why Luke wants him to listen to it is a mystery to him.
"Luke, I don't—" He starts to say, but he trails off as a fourth verse starts to play after the chorus, frowning in confusion. He'd been sure the song only had three verses.
The instruments fade out, so it's just the sound of Luke's voice, filled with the most emotion Michael's ever heard in it. The lyrics he's singing are unfamiliar but beautiful, and as the song slowly comes to an end, the guitars come in, and then;
'Cause you're the one that I can always come to,
Michael, I wanna marry you.
There's a long drum solo, but Michael doesn't hear it. He just lays there, staring at the ceiling, until the song ends and he realizes that everyone's staring at him. But he still can't move because Luke just proposed to him, in their album, no less, for anyone in the world to hear. After nearly four fucking years of telling Michael no—
"Luke." He says, sounding exactly like he's going to cry, which he is. He turns his head to the side, but Luke's not there. He sits up a little, and there he is, down on one knee. "Oh my God." Michael chokes.
Luke grins up at him, his dimples denting his cheeks. The huge fucker. Michael makes a loud whining sound and wipes at his eyes.
"Michael," He reaches into his back pocket.
Michael is vaguely aware of the fact that both Calum and Ashton are recording this. Michael realizes that trying to stop crying is futile and just lets it happen.
"What," He replies, voice cracking as Luke slowly opens the little black box.
"Michael, you're a huge dork with colorful hair and a lovely smile and I love you."
"You're fucking with me." Michael tells him.
"I want to fuck with you for the rest of your life. Will you marry me?"
Michael's got a hand covering his mouth because he's pretty sure he's going to start sobbing and he nods shakily but surely, holding out his left hand. Luke takes it and kisses his ring finger, and Michael nearly chokes. Luke slides the ring onto it, and both Calum and Ashton coo, Awwwww. They sound like they're crying a little too.
"I don't know what you're crying about," Michael says to them, though he's still looking at Luke. He doesn't think he can ever look away again, because he's his whole life, this blond kid with blue eyes and stupid jokes. "I'm the one that has to spend my whole life with this dweeb."
"Shut up and kiss." Calum demands.
"Can't." Luke shrugs. "Ashton says no PDA when we're around him."
"Just fucking kiss." Ashton says, and Luke pulls Michael onto the ground with him. They sit like that for a little while, just looking at each other, and then Michael leans in slowly, pressing his lips to Luke's.
"Stop teasing," Calum tells them. "We know how you two work, you can do better than that. Where are your tongues at?"
"You're ruining their moment." Ashton chides.
"I'm enhancing it." Calum tells him.
Luke giggles and Michael deepens the kiss, kissing him harder like it's every emotion he's felt, everything they've been through leading up to this, pouring out into one moment. They don't even notice Calum and Ashton whooping and yelling for them to keep it PG13 in the background.
"I can't believe I'm engaged now," Michael laughs softly when they pull apart.
"Yeah your wild single days are over now."
"Yeah no more wild nights playing Xbox and eating his body weight in Doritos." Calum rolls his eyes, shutting his phone off.
"I kinda want to try it," Michael says, sitting up and looking at Luke. "Luke," He says, "Will you marry me?"
Luke nods, smiling like Michael's the light of his life. "Yes."