Work Text:
Kevin Day was one beautiful man. That was certain.
There’s something alluring about losing everything you ever had, everything that made you who you were, what pieced you together, and gaining it back one million times better that was so beguiling.
Kevin’s story was as captivating as his eyes—poetic, layered, and beautiful. Though he wasn’t without his faults, because he knew how to grate on people’s nerves when he wanted to, sometimes without trying.
Kevin was truly something to admire, a refreshing thought to dream about in your free time. At least, that's what he was for Aaron.
“Are you gonna come with?” Nicky asked him, trudging along the darkly lit sidewalk towards the music that could be heard from not too far away. The football team had invited them to a house party, and after last night’s win the foxes were more than eager to let loose with some liquor and a dancefloor.
Aaron shook his head. “Kevin’s not here yet.”
Nicky sighed. “I don’t think he’s even gonna come. He hasn’t finished reviewing the game.”
Aaron knew Kevin was feeling stressed by their performance this season, even though it had just started. Usually Kevin was one of the first to jump at the chance of alcohol, but he didn’t this time. It must be a testament to how uneasy he's been.
Aaron was so used to partying with Kevin, they would stick close to each other whenever they went to Columbia, and he was always used to downing shots next to Kevin. It bummed him out a little bit that Kevin wasn’t gonna show today.
“Aw, chin up, Aaron, there’s always next weekend.”
Aaron glared at Nicky with scorn, but Nicky just laughed it off.
It was easy for Nicky to pick up on Aaron’s growing feelings for Kevin, though it certainly wasn’t obvious. It started with simple things, like lingering by the door, or leaning too close to him, talking to him more quietly, and the way Aaron consciously fixed his hair before Kevin could see it.
Nicky always seemed to know when Aaron liked someone before he did, like a sixth sense. It was convenient for Aaron, so he didn’t mind too much. Nicky always helped Aaron realize when he truly liked someone, because even though it took himself a while to realize, Nicky always could always see it, and that saved him the trouble of guessing if his feelings were certain or not. Actions do speak louder than words after all, and Nicky saw all the actions.
“But this party’s gonna be so lame without him.” Aaron said, sighing.
Nicky slapped him lightly on the back. “That’s what I’m here for.”
Ahead of them, Matt turned around and ushered them closer. They’d ridden here in Matt’s car because Neil and Andrew were gonna show up a bit later with Kevin in tow, hopefully, but it wasn’t for certain.
“Guys come on, we should go in together.”
Nicky grabbed his hand tightly and pulled him up the pathway toward the door.
It was pretty hot inside, music thumping deep into his bones, flashing lights, and Aaron could feel his hair getting sweaty instantly, but he didn’t let go of Nicky’s hand. They walked up to the jug of mysterious liquid and grabbed two cups each. Everyone around them was getting pretty plastered, and though they didn’t pregame it seemed like they wouldn’t need to with whatever type of drink was in these cups.
“Bottoms up.” Nicky said cheerfully, and Aaron closed his eyes as he downed the liquid quickly. It tasted like straight vodka.
He winced as he threw the cup off to the side, and Nicky was also making a face as he quickly drank the other.
“God, that's disgusting.” Nicky said. No argument there.
Still, the goal was to get drunk, so they went back for another.
“Should we really be doing this?” Aaron asked, he could tell the drinks were strong and would hit them like a bullet once it kicked in.
“Live a little.” Nicky shouted over the music, and dragged him towards the throng of moving bodies. Aaron finished the third drink as he reached the dancefloor.
As soon as Aaron entered the floor, he felt the heat of the alcohol enter his senses. His head got a little buzzy, only slightly, but it was enough to let the music move him easier and without fuss. His throat got a little dry, and even though the drinks tasted horrible he found himself wanting another to get even drunker. It seemed Nicky was feeling it too, because he quickly started jumping along to whatever remix was playing.
Aaron didn’t care where Dan and the other upperclassmen were, because the drinks were hitting him quicker than he thought. One minute he was dancing next to Nicky, and the next he was back in line to pick up some more liquid from the mysterious jug.
It was an endless loop of grabbing a drink, dancing, drinking, dancing, and laughing with Nicky. He couldn’t tell how much time had started to pass since he first entered this party, but the music was good, and he even started forgetting he was upset that Kevin hadn’t come in the first place.
“Aaron! Nicky!”
Aaron’s head swiveled towards the sound of his name, but the simple movement had him dizzy and uncoordinated. God, he really was getting drunk. At least he still had his wits about him.
It was Matt calling for them, gesturing for them to come to the backyard. Aaron didn’t really want to go, he wanted to stay on the dancefloor, but Nicky was already pulling him to the back, so all he could do was follow.
It was much fresher outside, the scene gently lit by fairy lights. The cool air sobered him up a little bit, only a little bit, because every step he took felt a little clumsy, and he was swaying a bit. There weren't that many people outside, so he wondered who Matt wanted him to talk to.
He only realized it a bit too late.
He froze, halting Nicky as well.
Matt had led them towards some of the football players, who’d they talked to before, so nothing new there. He knew some of their names and he could be cordial, but that wasn’t the problem, because standing next to them were some Vixens.
Aaron had a bad relationship with the Vixens.
They hated him for ending things with Katelyn, even though it was mutual and they’re still on good terms, they hated him for all the time Katelyn had invested into him, and how understanding she was despite everything.
It’s not Aaron’s fault that they pried so much into his past relationship, or the fact that it just didn’t work out between him and Katelyn because they were too busy with their school work and social lives, he just wished the Vixens would mind their own business.
He nodded a greeting towards some of the football players, then turned his head to look at the Vixens who were already looking at him with disdain.
“Just the person we wanted to see.” One of them said, was Marcie her name? He really couldn’t remember and he didn’t really care.
“I could say the same to you.” Aaron said dryly. The football players looked at him a little oddly but just watched the interaction, Matt on the other hand, seemed to realize his mistake in bringing Aaron here and tried to backtrack.
“Oh, I was just bringing my buddies out here for some air but they’re going back inside now.” He tried, and quickly started moving them towards the door when one of the Vixens spoke up.
“Well I’d prefer it if they stayed out here, they have some explaining to do.” That was definitely Marissa. She was usually pretty nice, but there wasn’t a single Vixen who didn't hate Aaron. He sighed, he was having such a good time earlier and wanted nothing more than to head back inside.
“Let’s just stay,” Aaron slightly slurred, he tried his best to maintain his composure even though his head was swimming.
“Are you sure Aaron? I mean no offense, but they hate you.” Nicky said, and looked back at the Vixens who were watching them coolly.
“It’s fine. They’re gonna talk shit anyways, they might as well do it to my face.”
They all walked back to where the Vixens and the football players were standing. Aaron shook out the last of his frustrations at not being able to party and faced them head on.
“Katelyn’s not here. Is there something you want to say to me?” Aaron asked, glaring at them defiantly.
They seemed keen at the opportunity to tear him to shreds without Katelyn’s intervention, grinning wickedly from ear to ear.
Marcie stepped up first. Her arms were crossed and she had a predatory stance. Aaron braced himself, he was really gonna hear it.
“You’re such a dick, do you know that?” Fun way to start. “Katelyn was with you for like two years and she put up with a lot of shit just for you to dump her? I mean, come on, you’re not even that worth it. You’re small, unassuming, snarky, mean, and you have that God-awful brother who controls you like some freak. You are not even thankful for the time that she put into you. You just threw it all away.”
Wow, that was harsh. Aaron could handle all of the comments about himself, hell, he was his own biggest hater sometimes, but what he couldn’t tolerate was people disrespecting Andrew. Sure, Andrew was an evil piece of shit most of the time, but he always looked out for Aaron, which was more than most people in his life had done. And besides, he didn’t hate Andrew anymore, in fact he hasn’t hated him for a long time.
“And who are you to talk to him like that?” Nicky interjected. He stood slightly in front of Aaron to shield him from the harsh stares he was getting from other people in the backyard. “You don’t even know what you’re talking about, you’re just shitting on him for literally no reason.”
“She’s doing it because he’s a dick.” Marissa added, and she looked like she also had a few things to say. Wow, he had a list of haters. “He could have put more effort into saving his relationship instead of doing God knows what, and he could have told her he wasn’t serious about her from the start. Maybe then Kate wouldn’t have had to worry so much about this lost cause.”
Those words really stung, because Aaron frequently debated his worth. These people really wanted to kick him while he was down, they didn’t know that there was a time when Aaron would have done anything for Katelyn, he was serious about it. But life doesn’t work that way sometimes, and things just happen differently than expected, that doesn’t mean he didn’t love her, but that was in the past now. Feelings just changed. Some stayed, some didn’t.
That thought had him thinking of a certain pair of green eyes. He really wished Kevin were here to cheer him up. They could talk about nothing and laugh about everything, he could be with the person he wanted. All of a sudden Kevin’s absence made all of the eyes on him weigh a few tons, it made the silence of the backyard louder, made it feel like all the lights were facing him.
“Hey, that’s not fair.” Matt said, and also stepped in front of Aaron. “You don’t know anything about Aaron, you don’t know the details about their relationship and I’m sure Katelyn wouldn’t want you talking to him like this considering the fact that they ended on good terms.”
“Good terms don’t matter, he’s probably already screwing somebody else.”
Aaron snapped out of whatever self-deprecating haze he was in just as fast as he entered it. Who were these people to tell him what he could or couldn’t do? What did they know about his life, or his past relationship, or what he did with his free time? They don’t have a right to tell him that he can’t move on or screw whoever he wants because all of these things they’re talking about are made up and in the past. Marcie and Marissa don’t know anything about him.
He pushed Nicky and Matt to the side and glared at her.
“Acutally since you want to cuss me out I have something to say to you as well.” Aaron saw the people around them perk up and Marcie rolled her eyes. He shoved a finger in her face. “You know that me and Kate are friends, you know that we have no bad blood and things ended only because we were both too busy, but yet you still choose to embarrass her by making this little show for your five seconds of attention and you completely and continuously disregard the things she wants because you’re both selfish as hell. You’re a twin pair of annoying, stuck-up assholes and you can both go to hell.”
He heard Matt gasp beside him, but Nicky only smiled proudly.
Marcie and Marissa had matching scoffs and glares on their faces. The people listening in seemed to be waiting for their next move.
Marcie came back to her senses first, scoffing again. “You really think you can talk to us like that?”
Aaron quirked a brow. “Think? I am talking to you like that because you deserve it. And for the record, I am screwing someone else because I’m allowed to move on with my life. It’s been a whole year.”
“I knew it!” Marcie shouted, shaking Marissa like she won the lottery. “I knew you were seeing someone else, that’s why you wanted to leave Katelyn.”
Aaron rolled his eyes, “Don’t get me started. Me and Katelyn broke up a long time ago, I’ve moved on and she probably has to.”
“So who is it?” Marcie asked, grinning vilely. The football players turned to look at Aaron.
“What?” He asked, caught off-guard by the question.
“Who made you move on from Katelyn? Who was so worth it that you would give up any chance of being with her again?”
Aaron couldn’t believe her. Is that really what she’s focusing on?
Even Matt seemed curious to know. Aaron didn’t blame him, he and Kevin were mostly a secret kept from everyone except Nicky and Andrew, hell, even Neil didn’t know.
He wouldn’t reward her with an answer. He’d have to tell Matt later.
“That’s none of your business.” He said. Then added, “Me and Katelyn broke up, things ended and it’s over, we’ve moved on so why can’t you?”
“Because we were right about you all along. We never supported your relationship. We knew you weren’t gonna last.”
Aaron scoffed. “Would you like an award for being psychic? I’m sure you have much more to do than dwell on my past so give it a rest.”
He was honestly getting tired of all this back and forth. Now he really just wanted to go home. Screw the party, screw the drinking, home was where Kevin currently was, and Aaron wanted nothing more than to go tell him all about this fiasco. He could tell Matt and Nicky were over it as well.
“I think we're just about done here.” Matt said, he started moving them towards the exit once again, but before Aaron could even take one step, Marcie spoke again.
This time she sounded more defeated. Aaron actually could respect the fact that she cared so much about Katelyn, maybe a little too much and not in the right way, but she cared all the same. That didn’t mean Aaron wasn’t fed up with her.
“There is no one more important, talented, caring and beautiful than Katelyn.” She called, almost like it was a last resort.
There was that word again.
Beautiful.
The word that made him think of Kevin. The word that described Kevin’s eyes, his story, his flaws—him.
Aaron looked back at her slowly. She seemed very distraught, like she was about to tear up. Aaron felt pity for her, but he understood the feeling. The people in the backyard looked at him as they waited for his final response.
“Maybe.” He said, eyes downcast, acknowledging his past love for all that it was. When he caught her eyes again, he recognized the art of being perceived—she hated him, she didn’t know him. Aaron was a picture caught on a polaroid who was stuck in between the layers of film; that was the only version of him she would ever know. That wasn’t his problem.
He felt so smug when he said his next words. He’d been meaning to reveal this for a while. No more hiding. “But you haven’t seen my man.”
Marissa’s eyes widened. Matt gasped next to him.
The shock of the people around him had him grinning with triumph, he was glad to have stumped them.
Marcie started sputtering. “What? You mean you…” She trailed off, looking behind him suddenly towards the door.
Aaron followed her gaze, and the next events unfolded like a perfectly wrapped gift.
The first thing he saw was green eyes.
He was coming out from the heat of the party, wearing a black button up that revealed half of his chest. His hair was gelled, in that model sort of way, and he was scanning the field looking for a certain blond. His face lit up when he spotted him.
“Aaron.” Kevin called gently. He looked around at all the commotion, at all the attention on him, and quirked a brow at Aaron.
“Is something going on?” He asked. And Aaron couldn’t help his sigh of relief. He couldn’t keep the smile off his face as he walked up to Kevin either.
“No, Kevin. It’s nothing.”
Kevin reached for his hand as soon as he was in reach, staring at him considerately. He looked back and forth between the Vixens and Aaron, even glancing at Nicky and Matt. He probably knew Aaron would want to talk about it later, if at all, and judging from everyone’s faces, he could tell something had gone down.
After a moment, Kevin had come to the conclusion to ignore it, and he just tugged on Aaron’s hand, disregarding everyone else.
“Well, what are you doing out here? ‘Party’s inside.”
Aaron grinned even harder. Everyone was probably piecing it together, that Kevin was the man he was talking about. It’s not like Kevin was hiding it, he was holding Aaron’s hand for the world to see, because their relationship wasn’t anybody’s business, and he had a right to do what he wanted. It helped that Kevin looked like he was crafted out of marble, that he was a breathtaking, invaluable piece of art that was only Aaron’s.
“Yeah. I was just leaving.”
He started following Kevin back inside, Nicky and Matt in tow, but then, he turned back and looked at Marissa quickly, calling out to her.
“You know, you could always confess your feelings to Kate if you care so much about treating her right, that’s always an option for you.”
He smiled at Marissa, noting her considering gaze before heading inside.
Kevin didn’t let go of his hand, keeping him close since it was dark and busy inside as they headed towards the jug of mysterious alcohol. Matt and Nicky stood close behind, and Aaron noticed that Matt was looking at him and Kevin closely, trying to discern if what Aaron had said was real or not.
They each grabbed a drink, Kevin two, and headed towards an empty corner.
Nicky looked like he was holding back a smile, and he kept glancing at Aaron proudly. But Aaron was more concerned with what Matt was gonna say, because Matt’s friendship was really important to him too, and he wanted his opinion.
Matt sipped his drink quietly, not even bothering to hide his staring, then after a moment a slow smile spread on his face and he looked at Aaron with a teasing grin.
“Your man, huh?”
Aaron’s cheeks reddened as he leveled a glare at Matt.
Kevin seemed confused for a minute, tilting his head at Matt’s inquisition, before he simply chugged the drink rapidly and muttered a simple, “Yeah.”
“Since when?”
Aaron squeezed Kevin’s hand. “Like two months.”
Matt nodded his approval. “So Kevin finally found someone who could tolerate his exy obsession.”
Aaron sighed dramatically, feigning annoyance even as Kevin glared at Matt. “It’s not so bad, I guess.” Aaron said.
Matt chuckled, then nudged Nicky’s side. “Let’s go find the girls, I’d say we’ll only be here for about another hour.”
Nicky nodded, and ruffled Aaron’s hair before following Matt.
“Good job, kid.” Nicky said.
They were left alone.
Kevin turned to look at him.
“So what went on out there?” He asked, leaning his shoulder against the wall.
Aaron shrugged. “You know the Vixens hate me. They took turns calling me a waste of space for ending it with Katelyn.”
“But that wasn’t your fault. It was mutual.”
Aaron shook his head. “They don’t care.”
Kevin looked down at their joint hands, brushing his thumb over Aaron’s knuckle before bringing it up to his lips.
“I’m sorry I wasn’t there,” he murmured against Aaron’s hand, just loud enough to be heard over the speakers. Then he kissed Aaron’s hand.
Aaron brushed off his apology. “Trust me, your timing was perfect.”
Kevin smiled. “Was it?”
“Yeah.”
Aaron brought their hands down and turned to face the party. He was about to take another sip of his drink, but then he thought about something and turned back towards Kevin, gesturing with his hand for him to bring his ear down to his mouth.
Kevin leaned down and Aaron grabbed the back on his head to steady himself. As he spoke his lips brushed the shell of Kevin’s ear.
“I told them about us.” He said, tentatively.
He pulled back to look at Kevin’s face as soon as he said it, expecting some sort of bad reaction. After all, this was Kevin ‘it’s easier to remain heterosexual’ Day, even if they were dating. But he felt silly as soon as he saw Kevin’s smirk, because sure it is easier to be straight, but not when you really love someone. Of course Kevin wouldn’t be mad.
Kevin brought Aaron’s face close, like kissing-level close, they were mere inches apart.
“No more hiding.” Kevin said. From here Aaron could stare deep into those forest green eyes, and could trace the brown flecks for hours.
Aaron nodded, grinning. “No more hiding.”
He leaned in.
Kevin’s lips were warm, slightly chapped, but the kiss was soft, and so was the supple brush of Kevin’s mouth. Aaron tilted his head and brought his hand up to Kevin’s face, wanting Kevin to give him more access. Kevin did, leaning further and further into Aaron’s mouth, into his embrace, until the party was completely forgotten behind them. Kevin’s back hit the wall as Aaron demanded more, the hand around Kevin’s neck squeezed a bit harder, the way Kevin liked it. It wasn’t too rough, only slightly, but it made Kevin clasp his hands loosely behind Aaron’s back, needing him closer.
Aaron bit Kevin’s bottom lip, and was about to lick into his mouth when a nauseating voice interrupted them.
“Ew, what the fuck?”
Aaron rolled his eyes as he let go of Kevin, who blinked fast at the loss of Aaron’s tongue.
Neil was looking at them with pure repulsion on his face. His blue eyes were stark against the dark lights and he was staring at Kevin with horror.
“Kevin, you—” Neil started, but he was cut off by Aaron’s dramatic sigh.
Aaron crossed his arms and glared at Neil distastefully, daring him to say something. Of course it was Neil who interrupted them, the number 1 cock-blocker in the world.
Neil just kept staring in shock even as he spoke. “Andrew thinks this is lame so we're leaving.”
Neil kept looking at Kevin like he wanted to say something, so Aaron just squeezed Kevin’s shoulder as he shoved past Neil.
“I’ll be outside.”
Kevin smiled at him one last time, catching Aaron’s hand as it descended and kissing it again.
Aaron couldn’t help the butterflies that fluttered in his stomach, so he just scoffed lightly and walked away. Kevin could really catch him off-guard sometimes.
Aaron smiled as he went. His man was gold. He was beautiful, made of stardust, but most of all he was his. What a marvel, that Kevin Day, and what a lucky man Aaron Minyard was.