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“He has looked at me a thousand thousand times,
But there is something different in his gaze,
An intensity I do not know.”
— The song of Achilles, Madeline Miller
“Gem, wait. Stop. We can't —”
The boy in question had his wrist in a death grip and continued to drag him through corridors, Fourth barely jogging to keep up, until they got to a closed door labeled 'Staff' and both of them stumbled across the threshold.
The room was blessedly empty. Fourth had no idea how Gemini knew that fact, because he hadn't once hesitated while he pushed open the door and locked them both in the darkness inside.
Instantly, he was crowded against the wall and Gemini's heavy, damp breathing was on his neck. It raised goosebumps on Fourth's skin and made him feel a little lightheaded.
“Do you have any idea” panted Gemini, right onto his skin, “How freaking hot you looked in those clothes?” He almost growled.
Fourth's hands ended up on Gem's shoulder, an unconscious action, and he was struggling to make coherent thoughts appear as Gemini nosed along the column of his throat, inhaling him in, harshly.
In moments like these, Gem was unrecognizable, almost possessed. Gone were the traces of his sweet, goofy, cute ass friend who Fourth loved to tease and baby and look after. This Gemini was a different creature altogether. Fourth would love to stop and compare one day, but right now, he couldn't care less.
Gemini pressed his lips on the underside of his ears, then behind them, grazing the soft skin with his teeth. Fourth felt like he could barely remain standing, if he wasn't already clinging onto Gemini desperately.
“I wanted to rip them all off. Your clothes,” Gemini said, like a crazy person. “Or better still, I wanted to shove them all out— all the camera people, the makeup artists, the freaking photographers, everyone. Because I couldn't bear to let them see you like that.”
And wasn't that insane? Fourth's eyes fluttered closed, an electric thrill running down his spine. He hated the fact that he loved when Gem got like this. This feral, crazed version. That seemed to come out at random moments such as this one.
Fourth thought back to this afternoon. They were scheduled for a regular cover shoot for a magazine, and neither of them had looked at the concept of the shoot beforehand. It wasn't unusual. They had both been busy, and their managers and staff had already approved it.
But what Fourth hadn't counted on were the outfits being that slutty. Both his and Gem's. All black, with plunging necklines, Gem in a sleeveless sheer top, him in just a blazer, chest showing. The makeup matched the erotic vibes— smoky eyes, dark nude lips, silver body chains dangling till his navel. Their fingers adorned with metal rings, they were both in ear cuffs and false eyebrow piercings. He knew they both looked absolutely sinful , and the fans would lap up the photoshoot like crazy, hence, that concept. The blushing looks from the junior female staff they had been met with when they emerged from hair and makeup had confirmed his suspicions.
As the shoot was being set up, he and Gem had got a couple of minutes to go over the basic poses the magazine wanted and the vibes they were looking for. The director had basically asked them to be as sensual (and slutty) as they could possibly make it look, only difference was, he had used some laughably polite and corporate terms.
They had taken one look at each other and like they always did, stood off to the side, in relative privacy and built up the mood together. After about ten seconds, Fourth was realizing exactly how bad the idea had been. Not because it'd look bad on glossy pages, but for how bad it'd be for him and Gem, personally.
The mood shifted rapidly as they looked into each other's eyes, gaze dancing along the lines of each other's bodies, the figure hugging cuts, the flattering tapers.
“You look like—” began Gem, voice pitched far below normal. That should've been the first sign. Fourth had ignored it in favor of drinking in the sight of Gemini in that ludicrous sheer top. He had the most insane urge to press his palms along Gem's chest and see exactly how thin the silky material was.
“You look insane,” Gem finished, in a pained whisper. Fourth could see him gulping, his eyes already darkened, bottomless pools of emotion.
Fourth was aware his own mouth had gone dry.
They were nineteen. And hungry. For each other.
The next hour was torture.
Hundreds of camera flashes. The back of their necks prickling with sweat. Holding poses at awkward angles for the best shots to emerge. Gem's hands were like brands on his skin, even through fabrics. Burning.
He barely kept it together in the room full of people. He could hear the harsh pants of Gem's breathing at the back of his neck, as his eyes got wilder by the moment. It was impossible for anyone else to notice, but he had known Gem since they were fifteen, it was clear as day. Gem was at his breaking point, and either of them would have to cave.
The last ten minutes were agony. Neither of them could wait till the cameras stopped flashing and they were given the okay to go get changed. Thank god both he and Gem had worked together hundreds of times before, and knew exactly what looked good and how to make their natural chemistry feed off of each other. The director was happy with the photos, he could tell by his approving smile.
They both made a beeline for the changing rooms, then sped through makeup removal, scrubbing the stuff off from their skins. The hair would have to wait.
Fourth emerged from the restrooms and saw Gemini already waiting, his eyes stormy.
“Come with me,” he said, and without waiting for a reply, grabbed his hand and jogged past curious staff.
“We just need to uhm. Talk about something that came up at the shoot! We’ll be back soon, P’Yui,” he threw over his shoulder at their manager, who gave them a suspicious glance, but didn't stop them.
He wished she had, in hindsight.
Because this? Now? Gemini's hands on his waist, under his shirt, his mouth at his throat, Fourth's hands curling in Gem’s hair in turn? It was insanity.
They had long ago tiptoed and crashed over the boundary of friendship. They both had agreed it was nobody else's business but theirs.
And so they were here.
“I didn't like the way that photographer was trying to touch you, on your back,” Gem suddenly said, frowning, pausing in between dropping wet kisses on his collarbones.
“W- what?” Fourth panted, struggling to get his brain to come back online.
“I wanted to yell at him, or twist his arms,” Gem said darkly, as if that was any better. He curled his arms around his lower back and tugged Fourth flush against him, in a possessive gesture. And damn if that wasn’t hot.
“You know I wouldn't have allowed that, Gem? Look at me,” Fourth tried to reason, in a voice that brokered no argument. He was used to these overly handsy photographers, it wasn’t something new, both he and Gem had to deal with their fair share. They had a mutual tacit agreement— they’d signal each other whenever they spotted one and would stay alert so that no unpleasantness happened. Usually it was Gem who called them out, politely but strictly, and sometimes Fourth would take the initiative.
Gemini looked at him, gaze flitting in between his own, and even in the midst of this haze of lust, the protectiveness and concern that he had as Fourth's best friend, (as his soulmate , whispered Fourth’s traitorous mind), shone through. It made something warm and glowing unfurl in his chest.
“And besides, if worse came to worst, I'd have let you break his arm,” he replied, dead serious, a sliver of a sharp smile curling his lips, Gem answering him back with a mirrored one.
He tucked Gemini’s bangs behind his ears tenderly, and cupped his jaw to bring their faces closer.
“Now,” he murmured against his lips, “kiss me.” A plea. A demand. An order.
Gem crushed their mouths together and the fireworks erupted again. Their lips came together in a sensual dance— once, twice, thrice, a hundred times, Fourth lost count. The heat was unbearable, their breaths fogged up the space between their panting mouths, hands roaming along backs and sides, bunching up whatever fabric they could reach. Gemini tasted like the nutty chocolate he had been munching on during the shoot, the sweetness lingering on the insides of his mouth even now. Fourth drew him closer still, wishing he could mold into the arch of his body altogether. The sounds of their wet kisses, of soft groans and bitten off moans filled up all his senses. He felt almost delirious with it. Thank god the room was dark and he couldn't see Gem’s eyes that well. Fourth knew how pleasure looked on that beloved face, and the added visual of Gem losing himself into it as much as he was, it would've undone him, right here.
They knew they didn't have much time. P’Yui would come looking for them anytime now, and the time constraint seemed to heighten their senses and made their movements feverish.
“I wanna bite you, can I?” Gem murmured against his cheeks, asking for permission, demanding. And fuck, there it was, the thing Fourth was dreading. (And wanting. And anticipating. And craving.)
Gemini liked to bite. It should have come as a surprise, but really, what was Fourth expecting from a guy who had been biting him playfully on the neck and arms and shoulders, since the days they were shooting their first ever projects together? Gemini had weird ways of showing affection— he’d goof around, hug you randomly, scream weird sounds in your ears, ask you to be weird with him. That was a part of his love language.
Biting, Fourth had soon discovered, was another. Gemini liked to claim.
Fourth should probably be a little ashamed of how quickly it turned his knees to jelly, every single time.
He really shouldn't say yes. He knew Gem would stop if he said no, he always did. Ever the caring guy, even in the midst of them being like this.
But Fourth wanted it. That was the problem. He was nineteen and there was a fire inside him that seemed unquenchable. (He had been gratified to discover Gemini was just as insatiable as him.)
They both wanted stuff, wanted to explore stuff that probably wasn’t very orthodox to most people. But what the hell ever. Gem would simply listen to him and say Okay, we’ll try that, I want to do it for you if it makes you feel good. And that had been that.
Biting was one of Gemini's things. Fourth could never say no.
Gem was looking at him, eyes blown wide, lips swollen and shiny, panting softly, but his gaze was intent, waiting for Fourth. Their height difference meant Fourth was looking up at him, going nearly cross eyed at the proximity.
He made a quick decision. Neck and throat were out of the question, they still had work till well into the night today.
The only option was—
Deliberately, keeping eye contact, he undid the first few buttons of his shirt. He saw Gem following his every movement, his breaths coming faster, licking his lips.
He exposed a side of his chest and Gem whispered, “Fuck.”
It always turned him on, when Gem cursed like this, so affected by Fourth that his usual polite and articulate vocabulary failed him.
Holding his shirt open with one hand, he snaked the other up around the back of Gem’s head, slowly pulling him down.
“Be gentle,” Fourth whispered, toes curling in anticipation.
Gemini drew a shuddering breath, resting his forehead on the warm skin just below his collar bone. And then he kissed his chest, oh so softly, a tender press of damp lips over Fourth's thundering heart. And then he bit.
Fourth had to stuff a fist into his mouth to keep the obscene moan that threatened to escape, as a spine curling wave of pleasure jolted though him. Gem did not waste a second of his chance— He bit and pulled the skin between his lips, the pleasure-pain of the sensation driving Fourth crazy. Gem blew over the now blooming red patch in apology, the contrasting feeling of scorching heat and cool breeze turning Fourth lightheaded, as his head thunked back against the wall. Gem continued to lave the skin, littering small bites over whatever area he could reach. It was going to leave bad marks. Not even five layers of concealer was going to cover them tomorrow. Belatedly Fourth thanked the heavens that neither of them had any upcoming photoshoots this week at least, only workshops and live events.
He was growing hard now, he could feel it. They had to stop.
He pawed at Gem's shoulder to get his attention. Gem looked up, eyes glazed over, breaths coming in gasps, absolutely dazed and out of it. Fourth couldn't help it— he pulled him in and slotted their mouths together again, in a deep and slow kiss.
“We need to stop, Gem. They’ll come looking for us soon,” Fourth groaned as they came up for air, reluctantly.
Gem swore under his breath again, resting their foreheads together.
“Come over to my condo tonight. Please,” he murmured. “I’ll drive you to uni tomorrow.” There was an unmistakable note of hope and longing in his voice that pulled at Fourth’s heartstrings.
“Okay, alright.”
Gem’s answering smile was absurdly cute.
Fourth could never say no to him anyway.