Chapter Text
[2 hours after the show, the band are all cooling off. Dan, Daniel, Pascal & Frank have all decided to go to a local bar to drink. Nico & Kevin weren't too up for it, so they decided to stay behind.]
"Kevin?"
"Ja?"
"Do you think we did well?"
"What, tonight?"
"Yeah, I just..felt a bit more tired & nervous than usual.."
Kevin shrugged.
"I think we were great, and, hey, it's ok to be tired sometimes, we've been on tour non-stop recently." He grinned. Nico sighed and laughed.
"You're right, thanks"
Silence. Not that awkward, just.. thick. Tense. But the tension was..different. Not an anxious tension, or a scary tension, something..something that had been brewing for a while. Kevin could feel it.
"I know we didn't wanna go drinking with them but...beer?" He offered. Nico considered.
"Go on then, I'll have one. Hopefully I'll sleep a bit better" He chuckled. Kevin opened the mini fridge located underneath the sink and threw a beer over to Nico, taking one out for himself in the process. He shut the fridge, grabbed a bottle opener, and dropped back onto the 2 person sofa beside Nico. He offered his hand out, and Nico handed his beer over, which Kevin opened and passed back. He opened his own beer and they clinked the bottles against each other.
"Cheers"
"Cheers"
They both drank, Nico more slowly than Kevin.
Nico inspected his bottle, swirling the beer inside. He was sat forward on the couch, elbows resting on his legs. Kevin sat back, one leg bent and crossed over the other and rested his beer between his legs. Silence resumed. Nico felt like he needed to say or do something, he wasn't sure what. He was too tired to really think. Which was a risk. What if he did something dumb? Something risky...Something shocking? No. He'd avoid something like that. He didn't need to ruin a lovely close friendship with his bandmate over something stupid. He didn't even know what he was on about anyways.
Or did he?
"Kevin?"
"Nico?"
He sat back a bit.
"Can I tell you a story? From my teen years?" He asked, not really planning his next move.
"Sure, I'd love to hear" Kevin responded. Nico took a sip of his beer and started.
"Back when I was 15, there was this boy. His name was Josef. He was the only queer boy in my school that I knew of."
Kevin slowly nodded, curious as to where this was going.
"Me and him started talking, and as most people avoided him like the plague, I was his only friend. Sure, I was mocked for it, but he wasn't a bad person, at all."
"Of course" Kevin replied.
"He was also surprisingly handsome. If he'd not been found out to be gay or alternative, all of the popular kids would've swarmed around him. But of course, his romantic preference and music taste mattered so much more than him as a person." Nico continued. "Eventually, after a year or so, he kissed me. And, I was ok with it, as I realised I too was also gay. Not GAY gay, bisexual."
Kevin sat there somewhat surprised for a few moments. Not that he had assumed Nico to be straight, but the information was still new to him. It then occurred to him that this was likely his first time confessing this. Not to anyone, but probably within the band.
"Sorry, is that weird to say?" Nico apologised.
"Not at all. I couldn't care about what gender you're attracted to, it's not my business." Kevin reassured him.
Nico nodded, and grinned in embarrassment. His face flushed, warm and tingly. He facepalmed.
The silence grew again.
Nico washed a lump that was building in his throat down with a sip of beer. He tasted the bitterness more than usual, sharp on his tongue.
Had he made it awkward?
"Sorry". Apologising, again? How fucking awkward, he thought.
"I think you probably should head to bed soon. You seem exhausted from the show, now you're getting all silly over something that's not that big of a deal..not as in your story didn't matter, you just seem to think I'm upset. I promise I'm not." He said firmly but kindly.
Nico just nodded.
"Let's get to bed then" Kevin said, putting down his beer. He started to stand up, until Nico dragged him back down. He placed a hand sturdily on Kevin's middle thigh. Kevin gasped shortly and looked at Nico. He saw the look in his eyes: intentional. He studied Nico. Nico now sat, one hand on Kevin's right thigh, torso twisted and leaning towards him. Nico averted his gaze briefly downwards, staring at his own hand on Kevin's thigh, and back at his face. They stared at each other for what felt like an eternity, their breathing the only sound in the bus. They found themselves shifting closer, still gazing into each others eyes.
Nico placed his beer on the coffee table.
"Kevin?" Nico said quietly.
"Yeah?" Kevin whispered.
"You won't be mad, right?"
"No. I won't. Promise."
Nico flickered his eyes nervously down at Kevin's lips and back to his eyes, his mouth slightly agape. He swallowed, and leaned in.
And their lips touched.
It was a soft, gentle press, but sparked something much more erratic. It lasted no longer than a few seconds. They gently pulled away, looking each other in the eyes once again. The brief moment inbetween felt like years, as Kevin cupped his hand around Nico's left side of his neck, and pulled him in again. This time, the kiss grew more passionate. Not crazy, just meaningful, their lips parting and overlapping continuously. The heat grew as the kisses turned more intense, Nico now leaning against the sofa's armrest with Kevin half on top of him. Nico reached to his face to remove his glasses, and blindly located the coffee table next to the sofa to place them. Once placed, he gently grabbed Kevin's waist, making him let out a small, startled noise. Kevin smiled through the kiss.
A sudden thud came from the front end of the bus, startling them both. Kevin jumped back and landed on the other side of the sofa. They both panted, looking towards the location of the noise intensely, in fear of being caught. Gathering themselves, they sat up straight, Kevin pretending to be on his phone and Nico taking a swig of his beer.
Fuck.
What now?