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Dylan had only been back in LA a few days when, on Sunday afternoon, a new text beeped its arrival on his phone. He had been relaxing on the couch, stuffing chicken dippers into his mouth, catching up with the latest TV shows he’d missed while filming ‘The Internship’. Wiping his hands on his pants, he grabbed the phone where it had been lying next to him, checking his inbox, then frowning slightly when he saw it was from Jeff. It wasn’t that they didn’t all get on extremely well outside of filming, but filming on season 3 only started back up in winter, so he was just a bit puzzled as to what Jeff could possibly want from him. Opening the message, he had to read it twice to make sure his eyes weren’t deceiving him.
‘Hey guys. You might have heard of the afterelton slash tourney. Sterek looks set to go thru to the final today. If you win this thing I might just make you 2 canon in S3 ;)’
He hadn’t even realized he had placed the phone down next to him when it started ringing with an all too familiar ringtone.
Tyler!
Of course the dude would call. After all, the two of them had encouraged this whole Sterek thing for a laugh in the first place.
Pressing the answer button Tyler’s voice came down the line clear and smooth.
“Dyl, did you just see the message from Jeff?”
“Yeah. Got it just now.” He couldn’t quite keep the disbelief out of his voice.
“Man, you think he might seriously go through with this?” Dylan wasn’t sure what Tyler’s tone was implying, but it definitely wasn’t a, ‘I’m so freaking happy if we get to make out’ one.
Fuck! Dylan wanted this. He wanted Sterek so goddamn badly! He knew it was the only way he’d ever be able to make out with Tyler, and at this point he didn’t care that it would have to be in character. He’d been pushing Sterek onto the fans like his life depended on it; and given the massive, all-consuming crush he harboured for his cast mate over the last… Hell make that since the first time they met, it probably did. It had been pure torture being up close and personal with Tyler on an almost daily basis, getting shoved into walls and grabbed by his clothing into hello definitely personal space; but he knew that if Sterek became a thing, it would become a living hell. He was looking forward to it. Apparently he was a masochist. Who knew.
Trying to keep his voice neutral he pulled a couple of deep breaths before replying. “I don’t know Ty. I mean it’s Jeff. So I guess anything goes.”
“Yeah, I guess you’re right. Well as he said, it’s only if Sterek win, so…”
The sentence hung unfinished between them and Dylan wasn’t sure what Tyler was really implying. The guy had never struck him as anything other than 110% hetero and his playing along with Dylan’s crazy Sterek antics were probably done out of simple friendship and good natured humouring.
“Yeah, I’ll guess we’ll see. Can’t do much about it, right?” Dylan sounded a lot calmer than he felt and he was glad that the turmoil going on inside of him didn’t translate into the open. He wasn’t sure he wanted Tyler to know just how much he wanted this.
As it always did, their conversation drifted onto baseball and what they were up to. When they finally hung up an hour or so later they had arranged for Tyler to come and hang the following Friday. Dylan had, after all, just moved into his own place and Tyler had been adamant that a house-warming get-together was needed. So beer, sports and food it was going to be.
He found the afterelton.com website quickly enough and looking at the results it was clear that they were going to go on despite the few hours that still remained. Looking at the pictures of him and Tyler plastered around the edges of the graphic, he knew he was going to make sure he had as much a say in them winning as their fans. If that meant voting every hour on the hour from his phone, iPad and laptop then so be it. If Dylan couldn’t get Tyler then at least Stiles should get Derek!
He kept that promise easily. Sure, he had appointments to keep (mostly with his manager), had to drop by his parents and spend some time with his family but his phone was always with him, ready for him to vote. It became his hourly routine.
1. Select ‘Teen Wolf: Stiles & Derek (Sterek)
2. Click Vote
3. Check the results and either internally freak out a bit or punch the air with glee
4. Refresh
5. Repeat
By the time Friday came around they were still neck and neck; and despite Tyler coming over, Dylan just knew that the laptop was going to stay on in his bedroom so that he could sneak in and vote every once in awhile. It was too close to call and he didn’t want to let it go. Even for just a couple of hours.
Being the neat/clean/punctual freak that Tyler was, Dylan’s doorbell rang on the dot at 8pm.
Placing the last bottle of coke on the coffee table, he made his way to his front door. He wasn’t even surprised when he was immediately engulfed into a tight hug. He and Tyler, hell even the rest of the cast, had always been pretty touchy feely and he guessed they hadn’t seen each other in a good few months. So he hung on for as long as he dared.
Patting each other on the back, they made their way into his living room where Tyler proclaimed that he absolutely needed to see the rest of the place. Dylan felt a bit weird showing him around the place, after all he was still mostly living out of boxes; but the older guy was being his usual happy self and loved everything about Dylan’s new digs.
Having settled on the brand new couch a little while later, Fox was showing major league baseball that was definitely way better than some rom-com.
Munching their way through all the crap that lay sprawled out in front of them wasn’t a huge challenge. They weren’t shooting at the moment, so even Tyler was allowing himself the occasional treat. It was comfortable. Comfortable only in a way that came from having lived together before, each knowing what the other was like. Not having to fight over who got the last chicken nugget cause that so clearly went to Dylan, thank you very much.
It was actually perfect. Dylan knew he missed seeing Tyler every day, but it was never really quite as clear to him as it was now. Having the hulking figure of Tyler Hoechlin breathing right next to him, his elbow brushing his every time he grabbed another snack, their knees bumping against each other in good natured boy-on-boy shoving was making him painfully aware of every single thing. He was sure that had as much to do with the fact that they had been separated for a while and he was now soaking everything up like a dry sponge as it had to do with his crush seemingly having gotten even more intense since the wrap party.
Excusing himself with, “I have to take a leak”, which wasn’t even that much of a lie, what he really wanted to do was go into his room and vote for Sterek. It was now more than an hour since his last vote and he knew it was pathetic but having Tyler around just gave him that extra little incentive he needed to vote, vote, vote.
When he came back into the living room, Tyler was already halfway up from where he’d been sitting. With a small grin smile, he pointed at the empty bottles littered around the table then at his crotch. Dylan should have gotten a fucking award for not moaning out loud.
“Man, so gonna follow your example there.” Tyler said with a smile as he brushed by him on his way to the toilet.
Once they had both resettled on the couch, Dylan was acutely aware that Tyler had shifted much closer. Most of Tyler’s body was pressed against his own. He had to convince himself this was purely by mistake, but telling his dick that message was a different story. He could feel himself harden in his pants and he tried to be as subtle as he could when he first laid a hand over his crotch followed not too long after by a couch cushion. Sure he might look like a total twit but he didn’t want Tyler to see the tent that was clearly shaping down below. To make matters even worse, Tyler was casually draping an arm over him, rubbing his thumb just so at the side of Dylan’s neck. He shuddered internally, a moan held back only by sheer force. How was this his life?
“So….” Dylan wasn’t quite sure what to make of the one word riddle posed by Tyler.
“So what?” The question came out a lot more hesitant than Dylan intended.
“Sterek. It could happen.”
Tyler was still stroking his neck, because there was no better word for it, and Dylan was sure he had just lost his sanity. This was not happening. Tyler did not just casually drop Sterek into the conversation and imply the possible progression of their on-screen relationship while stroking along his body. He pulled away from Tyler’s touch only to be dragged back against the older man’s warm body.
Without waiting for any input from Dylan, the next sentence out of Tyler’s mouth punched him right in the guts.
“You know. I wouldn’t really mind it all that much. I mean Derek could definitely use some loving and I guess who better than Stiles. I mean the guy gets under his skin pretty badly but if someone can break through Derek’s hard exterior, no one is going to be more capable than Stiles.”
Turning his head to the side he finally dared to look at Tyler, who just sat there with a small smile playing on his lips, eyes intent on his own, a warmth seeping out that had been directed at him many times before but never in this context.
He opened and closed his mouth a few times, lost for words. He knew Tyler was being truthful, but he just wasn’t sure how to take that truth. So he just sat there a little while longer, lost in his thoughts. What finally pulled him out of his reverie were the words that followed next.
“So have you been voting for Sterek or Destiel then?” Dylan’s head whipped up in an instant, eyes latching back onto Tyler’s. That same smile was still stuck on that unfairly sexy face.
“What? How? I haven’t!” Words tumbled out of his mouth and a blush crept up his neck. He hated when his emotions betrayed him.
“Well I’m pretty sure I saw the afterelton website open in your room.” Tyler was smiling at him even wider now, his eyes crinkling with obvious mirth. “But don’t worry. I won’t tell anyone. Not unless you tell them I’ve been voting for Sterek myself.”
The shock that ran through Dylan’s body propelled him off the couch. He had to get away from Tyler’s touch.
Stepping away from the couch, his skin felt too tight. A clamminess threatened to engulf his body. He couldn’t deal with this. What the fuck was Tyler getting at. Turning around he stared at the man sitting on his couch taking him in. He looked completely relaxed. The arm that had held onto Dylan still draped across the back of the couch.
“You what?” He couldn’t hold the disbelief out of his voice and for once he didn’t care. He was confused and god dammit if this wasn’t turning into the biggest clusterfuck of an evening.
“I said I’ve been voting for Sterek. And I really hope you are going to tell me you have been too. Cause if you’ve joined team Castiel I’m not sure I’ll ever forgive you.”
“But why?”
“Well for one, I think Stiles and Derek would make a pretty good pair. And second, making out with you wouldn’t be such a bad thing.”
Dylan was officially lost for words. His heart was beating hard and fast. He was sure the sound had to be heard by the whole apartment complex. Hell, it was threatening to jump out of his chest. Before he could do more, like faint or flail, Tyler was holding onto his biceps, fingers curling around his muscles. The smile had dropped from Tyler’s face, replaced by a slight frown. His eyes shining with what Dylan could only describe as mild panic.
“Shit, man I’m sorry. I think I might have totally misinterpreted the situation.” The strong hands dropped from his arms and fell heavily against their owner’s thighs as he was taking a step back. Out of Dylan’s personal space. And it was this that finally broke through Dylan’s subconscious. Did Tyler seriously just confess to having a crush on him?
Without a second thought, he closed the space between them placing a hand behind Tyler’s neck and pulling him in for a kiss.
Tyler’s lips were surprisingly soft against his, the stubble he sported scratching against his chin in the best possible way. Their mouths opened of their own accord, and when a warm tongue licked a slow, lazy strip across his bottom lip all of Dylan’s reservations crumbled at his feet.
He captured Tyler’s tongue with his teeth, gently nipping at the soft flesh before twisting his way around the other man’s tongue. He had never kissed another guy, but he had to admit this was so much better than any other kisses he ever received. Tyler was all hard edges and an innate male dominance. Both fighting for the upper hand in their first kiss that he came to realize had been long overdue.
When they finally pulled, Dylan was greeted with a view that nearly knocked him dead. Tyler’s cheeks were flushed a crimson red, his eyes heavy-lidded and cloudy. A smile crept onto his face and he gave a silent triumphant yell when it was returned to him instantly.
“So I guess we both want Sterek to win then.”
“I guess we do.” Tyler’s face split into a grin and all Dylan wanted to do what to capture it with his lips. So he did.