#but like there was almost a world where i started out as a biadore writer can you imagine | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

artificialqueens · 7 years

Text

"New Man"

A/N: Hi everyone – long time listener (reader), first time caller (writer). Was inspired to write something after listening to “New Man’ by Ed Sheeran (link here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EwzD8U4u76k) on repeat, and because at my core I am shameless Biadore trash. This is angsty, but ideally it leads to something fluffy. As “real world” of a universe as my twisted brain can make up, set in the present. All is from Danny’s POV, because I feel closer to his headspace. If you like, I will do a Part 2 that finishes the story and involves some attempt at fluff and/or smut (I guess?). Anyway ok thanks this may be awful.

Also, lyrics are in italics, but I’m sure you figured that out.

Two things were concerning Danny in this moment. Confusing, distracting, maybe even disturbing – to bundle it up, it was fucking with him.

The first – Roy was not a cheater. He was many many things – a talented tailor and designer, a cutting insult comedian, a damn good dog parent, a friend you could really count on…but he was not a cheater. So when Danny saw Roy – Roy, who had a boyfriend of 2 months – cozying up with a race chaser in the back corner of the bar, Danny was confused.

And when this stranger dude went for it and kissed Roy, and after just a moment’s hesitation Roy jammed his tongue down the stranger’s throat with some real enthusiasm…that’s when the second thing happened.

The second – so this second one is where it got weird. As a friend Danny was entitled to be confused, but the moment the two men’s lips touched he instantly felt like he was going to throw up. His lungs and his stomach dropped into his ass, at the same time as all his other muscles seemed to tense up. Danny’s heart was thumping and he almost fell of his seat as he sprinted (really, tripped) to the bathroom of the bar.

Roy had a boyfriend, and it wasn’t Danny. Roy was kissing someone else, and it wasn’t Danny – but it wasn’t his boyfriend either. So why the fuck was he reacting like this?

—

After a few deep breaths – and mentally thanking the city of Seattle for teaching him all kinds of new hippie ways to clear his mind – Danny looked into the mirror. He desperately wanted to throw water on his face, but god dammit he had put good effort into a ‘boy beat’ tonight and he wasn’t going to let tap water and Roy – ugh, Roy – fuck up his cut crease. Continuing to take deep breaths – in for 4, out for 4 – he started to take stock of what was happening around him. People liked to make jokes about Danny’s intelligence, but really he was both very smart and incredibly perceptive. He ran the tape back…

Roy was in Seattle for a long weekend, on a tour hiatus. This was the first time Danny had seen him in person since moving to up north, a move that Danny knew annoyed Roy. “Really, Queen? I moved my tired ass across the country, where I will no doubt be killed by this hell-hole drought or in a 5-hour traffic jam on Santa Monica, and as soon as I’m settled in you flit off in your Birkenstocks to be the next Kurt Cobain? You know granola makes you fat, right? You and you’re fucking Starbucks…” But a few months later and Roy couldn’t wait to make the trip…

Roy was alone. He had been so very vocal about his new relationship, particularly with Danny and Shane, and wasted no opportunity to talk about his new man at every chance. This guy was (allegedly) fabulous, beautiful, rich…Danny honest-to-God couldn’t remember his name, but he knew he was an Equinox trainer with a lot of family money that Roy met hiking in Runyon. Which reminded him of that other thing…

Roy was different. Bad different. Shallower, cuntier, careless. At first Danny chalked it up to his new ultra-mellow Seattle attitude, but seeing Roy do something so very un-Roy convinced him that this wasn’t just his perception. Danny had noticed little things changing since this new guy – Roy developed an obsession with jicama/turmeric/unpronounceable health foods, but drank much more; spent mad money on flashy things almost daily; indulged in social media trash and flame wars; and followed his stinging insults with less and less kindness…but Danny figured Roy was just tired or something, though it was creating real distance between them. Now, publicly cheating on his boyfriend with a stranger in a crowded bar, Danny saw clearly that something was very and truly “up” with B.

And of course, the last thing – Roy was silent. Not actually silent – bitch never shut up – but he was silent on the subject of him and Danny. A relationship never consummated, two best friends who were clearly attracted but respected each other and the difficulties of their lives too much to but their friendship at risk. They had a system of denial, and it worked…at least it did until 2 weeks ago. The night Roy announced his plans to visit Seattle – to Danny and Jinx, in a group text – he later drunk texted Danny. Ok, drunk sexted. And it happened again, every night until this one, when he arrived in Seattle. Roy’s 3am texts were rapid fire, riddled with boozy typos and anything but poetic advances, but fuck if they didn’t make Danny’s heart race and pants tighten. Danny never responded, refusing to make this a “real” issue to deal with, and Roy seemed equally avoidant. Danny assumed it was just drunken ramblings (for a New Orleans native, Roy was a light-weight) and didn’t want to embarrass his friend (or, let’s be real, himself) by bringing it up.

But now Roy was here, in person, and Danny was worried. The world famous Bianca Del Rio was going off the rails, and apparently only Adore Delano was going to steer him back. He always wanted to be Superman…and maybe if he could just get Roy out of here and acting normal, Danny wouldn’t have to address the emotion he could finally identify: jealousy.

—

Danny was not in the best head space to confront Roy, this he knew. In addition to the green monster still banging at his chest, he was 4 shots into a night that started off with a bowl shared between him, Jinx and – surprisingly – Roy. He knew his perception was sharp as ever, but his decision making…well Captain, those systems were compromised.

So when he finally walked out of the bathroom and saw that race chaser –Chase, because no one is working hard to name that guy – with one hand in Roy’s hair and another on his “upper thigh,” Danny decided to do something dramatic. Instead of going back to the table with Jinx and his other friends, he made a beeline for the bar.

“Todd! Todd! Can I sing tonight?“

A big bear of a man made his way past bartenders and bar backs to speak to Danny, who was now flittering his eyelashes in faux seduction.

“Delano, this isn’t drag night. We don’t have the –“

“No, no – I don’t mean do the Adore act. I mean, I’m feeling moved by the spirits to sing a song and I want to sing here for the first time as Danny and I know you have a guitar and an amp and my friends are here from LA and I really need to get this of my chest and performing as Danny and not Adore is really important to me and if you were really mine and Johnny’s friend…” He was officially rambling at this point, leaning into the personality everyone imposed on him to get what he wanted. He smiled doe-eyed as he talked Todd into submission.

“Oh for fuck’s sake, if you sing will you stop talking to me?

“Absolutely.” Cue the Disney smile.

Todd sighed and waved over 2 of his staff, asking them to set up the guitar, mic and lighting Danny would need to perform.

“Thank you Todd. One of these days you’re going to have to let me…”

“Delano, appreciate the sentiment but this ride is for biological women only. Just get up there and don’t fuck it up.”

“Ok, RuPaul.” Danny grabbed a shot of couple Fireball shots off the bar, ripping them as he thought about the song. This fucking song…

Danny was about to sing a real Top 40, iHeartRadio and Casey Kasem wet dream of a song – “New Man,” by Ed Sheeran. This was all Spotify Discovery’s fault; the track had somehow ended up in his curated weekly recommendations, and before he could realize that he was listening to Taylor Swift’s man BFF he was in love with the words and the melody. And fuck if it didn’t apply to his life in this moment – maybe the universe was sending him a sign here. A catchy song, from the perspective of a man who sees his on-and-off lover cheating on their new man and tries to help sort out their life – Geez, sound familiar? That, plus a song with a simple enough guitar melody that Danny could already play from memory…the stars aligned, and as a Libra Danny was never one to ignore the signs from the stars.

—

Todd quieted the crowd down, announcing that there would be a performance from none other than new hometown boy Danny Noriega. The bar patrons cheered – Danny had made short work of turning this place into his Cheers, and everyone sure knew his name – with the exception of 3: Jinx, who clapped cautiously while mouthing “What are you doing bitch?” at Danny, and the Roy-Chase pretzel. Roy stopped moving (kissing), broke away and stared at Danny for a full 30 seconds before hopping onto his feet to wolf-whistle and cheer with the rest. “Chase” started asking for Adore and pulling out his cellphone to record.

Danny hopped up on the stage, strapped on the guitar, and dropped his head to speak into the mic. God, it felt good to perform as Danny sometimes.

“Hey you weirdos, settle down. Todd, thanks for indulging my last minute request to perform a little diddy for these drunk and stoned hippies.” The good-natured crowd laughed, until Roy – in full Bianca mode – interrupted:

“Christ Delano, leave the insult comedy to the pros,” Roy yelled up at the stage.

Danny knew that Roy wanted to get a rise out of him, this was their usual tour banter. Bianca picks at Adore’s imperfections and they trade insults for a while, but Adore is just so damn charismatic that Bianca ends up (eventually) being sweet. But that wasn’t the point of tonight – this wasn’t Snatch Game for a crowd of RPDR fans, this was drama to shock Roy into behaving himself. Danny wasn’t sure why he thought that was such a good idea – the mix of vodka and Fireball probably had something to do with it – but he wasn’t going to get sidetracked.

“I made Todd haul out the equipment so I could play, but mainly I just want to get this one song out. It’s a cover – nothing new or my own – but it’s been stuck with me over the last few weeks and I feel like some people here tonight really need to hear it. So here we go – “New Man,” by some redhead that isn’t Adele or Ginger Minj.” With that, Danny began to sing and play:

I heard he spent five hundred pounds on jeans Goes to the gym at least six times a week Wears boat shoes with no socks on his feet And I heard he’s on a new diet and watches what he eats

Too early in the song for anyone to know what is about – anyone except Jinx, who Danny could see glaring at him near the front row. He probably should’ve run this plan by his sensible if-always-sleepy friend, but again…this was not a night or an act to be rationalized.

But still, I’m just keeping it real, still looking at your Instagram and I’ll be creeping a little I’ll be trying not to double tap, from way back, cause I know that’s where the trouble’s at Let me remind you of the days when you used to hold my hand And when we sipped champagne out of cider cans I guess if you were Lois Lane, I wasn’t superman, just a young boy trying to be loved

Danny started to freak out a little bit. Fuck – the chorus was coming, and it was going to get really obvious to anyone paying attention at all that this song was directed at Roy. But he wasn’t ever one to do things subtly so…

I don’t wanna know about your new man, cause if it was meant to be You wouldn’t be calling me up trying to fuck Cause I’m positive that he don’t wanna know about me

I don’t wanna know about your new man, we’ll get there eventually I know you’re missing all this kind of love But I’m positive that he don’t wanna know about me

Well, it was out there and nothing was happening. The crowd seemed to dig the song, but he hadn’t seen Roy’s adorably dimpled face go wide or slack jawed or change in any way that showed he understood what was happening here. No choice but to continue.

You were the type of girl that sat beside the water reading Eating a packet of crisps but you will never find you cheating Now you’re eating kale, hitting the gym, keeping up with Kylie & Kim In the back of the club kissing a boy that ain’t him

How did that 90’s song go – whatever, whoop there it was. Drunk Roy’s eyebrows raised, and his head snapped to look at “Chase” bopping along next to him and recording the song for Snapchat. A look that read simply as Oh fuck washed over his face, and Danny knew it was time to bring it home.

Ok you need to be alone, and if you wanna talk about it you can call my phone I just thought that I would tell you cause you oughta know You’re still an old man trying to be loved

That changed lyric and his piercing stare at Roy really drove the point home, if Jinx’s undeniably audible “Holy shit” was any indication. Roy continued to watch, looking some mix of embarrassed, guilty, and nervous as he avoided direct eye contact with anyone – especially Danny. Danny was ready to close the song with a bang.

Baby, I’m not trying to ruin your week But you act so differently When you’re with him I know you’re lonely Please, remember you’re still free, to make the choice and leave And don’t call me up you need to show me

With one more round of the chorus, the song was done. The crowd cheered, again with the notable exceptions of Jinx, Johnny and Roy. Jinx and Johnny clapped politely, their eyes darting back and forth between Roy seated and Danny on stage looking for some explanation. Roy stayed in his seat, his expression unreadable except for the clear annoyance that “Chase” was up and clapping. Danny felt this could be a good sign of mission accomplished.

Never one to renege on his show promises, Danny went ahead and did a 30-minute set for the bar. He mixed covers and originals, racked up some good tips, and got to feel alive in the way that only performing makes him feel. Combining that with the high of potentially shocking Roy back into his old self, and Danny had a great day. It was made better when he realized Roy had abandoned the race chaser and gone to sit back with his and Danny’s crew; though his friend was being uncharacteristically quiet around the crew, at least he wasn’t actively cheating anymore.

As he played through the set, Danny could feel the confusion subsiding. Roy wasn’t a cheater, he was drunk and made a mistake. All he did was kiss that kid, not a big deal in the grand scheme of things. Everything was ok again.

Except it wasn’t. Danny still felt that nasty green monster living in his chest, beating on his ribs and his heart every time he thought of Roy while he sang. This was a feeling Danny made it a point to repress and avoid, but for some reason when he thought of Roy kissing another man he felt possessive and mean and scared and still somehow love… must be the vodka and Fireball. Danny reminded himself not to mix booze again, especially on a night he sings.

—

After a raucous round of applause and a demand for an encore – which Danny obliged – he jumped of stage and headed out for a smoke. Danny reached into his pocket and grabbed his lighter and cigarettes, but the moment his hand entered his pockets he was pressed up against the brick wall of the building…by none other than his best friend Roy.

“What the fuck was that, Danny?” Roy was clearly angry, but there was something else in his voice that made it sound husky and almost luxurious. After a painful moments of silence, Danny finally decided to respond.

“Music is a powerful way to– “ Danny’s speech was abruptly cut off as Roy’s lips crashed onto his own. All Danny could do was smile.

—

[End of Part 1]

#adore delano #bianca del rio #jinkx monsoon #biadore #angst #tw cheating #rpdr fanfiction #submission #canon compliant #new man #fucking awful

49 notes · View notes

artificialqueens · 7 years

Text

Baby, New York City: Chapter Four (Biadore) - Boleyn

AN: Hi lovelies! Sorry for the super long wait. Life got crazy! My classes at university picked back up and I donated bone marrow (which was an amazing experience, got to bethematch.org for more information about it!). I’m not totally happy with this chapter, but to make up for the huge delay, it is a good bit longer than my others have been! Thank you so much for waiting and I hope you enjoy!! Oh! And the sketchbook library in this story is a real place in in Williamsburg! xx Boleyn

Chapter Four: Miscommunications and Sketchbook Pages

Roy tossed and turned in his bed for hours that night, eagerly anticipating his date the next day. He had no idea what he was doing but he knew that how he felt for Danny was something meaningful for him. He had never fallen for anyone so quickly but, god, was he taken with this young man. His full lips and sparkling eyes, his easy smile and ethereal voice, his profound maturity hidden behind a mask of humor and naivety, it all ate away at Roy’s tough, no nonsense exterior and warmed the most bitter recesses of his heart. He had spent the past hour just trying to conjure every nuance of Danny’s face in his mind, wondering if he was doing the same for Roy.

He wasn’t. Danny was preoccupied with Gregg. He always brought out a lot of raw emotion in him. His mind wouldn’t stop churning and Danny knew that this was his one chance to channel that emotion into his writing.

He heaved himself out from beneath his covers and in front of his laptop screen. He slowly typed a few words, feeling as though each one had to be forcefully pulled out from the tips of his fingers. He deleted everything he had written and tried to start again. He couldn’t. He could feel the words ready, lingering just beneath the surface of his skin, dancing on the tip of his tongue, but he was somehow unable to give physicality to them. He groaned in frustration and threw his head into his hands.

This is shit. You’re shit. Fuck, what are you doing? This is never going to cut it. Why the fuck did you think you could complete a Master’s degree? You’re a dumb bitch from Azusa. You’re not fucking Hemingway or Fitzgerald. You’re not a writer. You’re barely a real student. When was the last time you actually wrote anything fucking close to good?

Danny had always struggled with confidence when it came to his writing. He never felt these same fears on stage, singing into the microphone, sharing his voice with a room full of people. But his writing was and always had been somehow more personal to him. He drew inspiration from his life and he tended to use his stories as a way of understanding himself and his emotions better. When he wrote, it was just him alone in a room with nothing but his own words looking back at him. He couldn’t hide behind the screams of a crowd or dissociate into an open sea of faces. There was no energy bouncing back at him that he could absorb power from. He was face to face with his successes and his failures.

He began to feel hollow and cold and knew a panic attack was threatening to sink its demanding claws into him. Inhaling harshly in an attempt to drag in good, clean oxygen and release the dark clasp of anxiety from around his lungs and heart, he managed to quell the harshest wave of panic and focus his vision again. He stared at the empty screen before him and knew that he would never accomplish anything like this. His nerves were an absolute mess and his emotions so wildly fighting for dominance that he could hardly grasp one feeling tangibly before it had slipped and given way to the next.

He got up and went to his nightstand, pulling out a small container of weed, a few rolling papers, a filter, and his grinder. He went back to his desk and made quick work of rolling a joint and lighting it, relishing in the warmth that spread through his body at the first pull. He needed to quiet the insecure, self-conscious part of himself in order to make the most of his torrential emotions.

It was not only the drive to make something good out of feeling shitty that was motivating Danny to sit down and write. He was also keenly aware that he had a meeting with his toughest professor in a matter of days and that it would be a fate worse than death to walk in there empty handed.

It had been a while since Danny had written anything even halfway decent and he was nervous that perhaps he never would again, but as the joint burned slowly closer to the butt, and Danny allowed the negativity to leak out into the night air with the exhaled smoke, he could feel the words within his fingertips. He grabbed an ashtray and placed it next to his laptop, deposited the still burning joint in it, and began to furiously attack the keyboard, typing out any and everything that came to mind. It mattered not that it was conveyed in coherent prose or consistent structure, it mattered only that he felt it and wrote it the moment he felt it. His mind was working quickly and his fingers struggled to keep up but he wanted to get it all out before it slipped away and was lost forever. He was unaware of the passage of time as he stared at his laptop screen, letting his emotions flow from his heart to his hands to his ever-growing Word document.

–

Roy awoke the next morning smiling. He had dreamt of Danny. He was overwhelmed with the way he felt about him. Roy didn’t do this kind of thing. He didn’t just fall for someone. It wasn’t his style. Danny wasn’t really his style either, but he had crept into his heart and filled it with warmth.

Roy threw on some clothes and grabbed his two pups, heading out to take them on a quick walk. He pulled out his phone as Sammy and Deedee investigated a particularly interesting smelling tree and typed out a message to Danny.

Roy H: Good morning. I don’t think we ever decided when or where we were going to get lunch. Did you have any place in mind?

Roy frowned after a couple minutes went by without a response, but after last night, he couldn’t blame Danny for wanting to sleep in some. He allowed his Chihuahuas to drag him down their usual path, refusing to let anything ruin his wonderful mood.

But then an hour passed by, and another. It was now nearing 11:00 and he still hadn’t heard back from Danny. Roy chewed his lip and decided to type out another message.

Roy H: Hey, just checking to see if you’re still alive?

Another hour later. No response.

Roy H: Earth to Daniel???

It was now two in the afternoon and Roy was pissed. He felt stupid for having been so excited to get lunch with Danny. What if Gregg was right yesterday? What if I’m too old for him? Maybe this was all a mistake. Maybe he thinks I’m a mistake. Oh God…

Roy paced his apartment up and down. Anger, worry, disappointment, humiliation all swam in his head and heart. He felt almost sick from the warring emotions all simultaneously fighting for dominance.

He bitterly grabbed his phone and had a message written and sent before he had even thought it through.

Roy H: If you didn’t want to see me today, you could’ve told me. You really didn’t need to be a fucking child about it and just ignore me all day. It’s comforting to know you care about me enough to at least inform me that you were ditching our plans. Thanks.

Roy looked at the screen and cringed at the words, remembering the way tats had spoken to him the night before. He felt nauseous, already regretting the entire message.

Roy H: Danny, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean that last text and I shouldn’t have said what I did. I’m just really worried.

Roy H: Please respond to me. At least so I know you’re okay?

Roy finally let himself think about the thought that he had been trying to block all day. What if Gregg found out where Danny lives… Roy could feel his skin prickling as anxiety coursed through him. He looked to his two dogs that were blissfully sleeping on their beds. He envied their ignorance. He felt like he was drowning.

Roy knew that the only thing he couldn’t stomach more than Daniel not wanting to see him, was Danny hurt somewhere trying to face the world on his own.

Before he allowed himself to think it through rationally, Roy had grabbed his keys and wallet and walked out the door. Perhaps it was forward, but he needed to make sure Danny was okay. He needed to know that Danny wasn’t in danger. He turned left out of his apartment building and started retracing the path he had taken last night to get home.

He felt stupid as he arrived at Danny’s building. He didn’t even know which apartment he lived in! How the fuck am I going to make this casual? Oh hey Daniel, you didn’t reply to my texts and I know your crazy ex is in town so I thought I’d just swing by and make sure you’re only ignoring me and not like hurt or something?

He had just about given up and turned around when a slender woman jumped by him, her hair in an exaggeratedly long ponytail flowing behind her. She held three large paper grocery bags in her arms, attempting to balance them while fishing her keys out of her small, circular bag.

“Hey, need a hand?” Roy gently offered, his hands outstretched, ready to retrieve a bag or two from her grasp.

The small woman looked up at him and smiled genuinely, relief spreading across her face. “Oh my god, yes, absolutely! Thank you!” She then unceremoniously plunked two of the bags into Roy’s arms while continuing to dig through her bag. “My roommate was supposed to help me with the groceries today but he’s had some kind of, like, creative awakening, or whatever, and was too busy feeling his oats to come help me.” She flipped her ponytail with her free hand, exaggeratedly flourishing it as she finally retrieved the key.

Roy smiled, not really knowing what to add. He looked the chipper young girl up and down. She wore an acid washed denim jumper with a lace bralette beneath. She completed the look with a faux pearl choker around her slim neck, an arm full of assorted bracelets and bangles, and grey heeled combat boots. It was quite the statement, but somehow felt befitting of her large personality.

She managed to unlock the downstairs door, and swung it open. She turned around to Roy and frowned. “Do you live around here? I haven’t seen you around and it’s not exactly like people walk this street for the sights,” the lady gestured around her and Roy took in the surroundings for the first time. Guess I’ve been too focused on Danny to notice anything else. The neighborhood wasn’t anything special, but it wasn’t anything terrible either. Just a street full of smaller apartment style buildings, most of them walk-ups, with the occasional tree thrown here or there.

“No, I was here to visit a friend,” Roy decided to try to keep his answer as simple as possible when the whole scenario felt anything but.

“Oh, who? I can totally let you in if they live here.” She smiled at him.

“Isn’t it a bit dangerous to just let whoever into your building?” Roy laughed a bit incredulously. He could tell the woman before him was young but her naivety made her seem even younger.

“Okay, c’mon Campus Security RA Hall monitor. I thought that was something only people in dorms freaked about.” She reached over and took one of the bags back from Roy. “Besides, if you’re a murderer, or whatever, you’re a super helpful one who’s welcome back here every time I have to get the groceries,” she punctuated the statement by flipping her hair around her and proceeding toward the staircase inside of the apartment. Roy looked down at the bag still in his hands and, for lack of what else to do, he followed her up the stairs. “Now tell me, who is it you made your way down here to see?” she threw over her shoulder as she turned at the second floor to continue up the steps.

“Umm,” Roy didn’t see what harm could come of telling this strange woman the truth. “My friend. We had plans today and he kind of went off the grid last night and I just was starting to sort of get worried about him.” Roy shrugged his shoulders despite knowing that the lady wouldn’t see it.

“Oh no!” she clucked as she reached the third floor landing. “You’re too cute for that shit. What’s the kid’s name? I’ll let him know what Mama Gia thinks of that behavior.” She turned around to look at Roy, seriousness plastered across her face. Roy would’ve thought it comical if the whole situation weren’t so odd and out of character for him.

“Umm, Danny?” He replied as if it were a question on a test he could get wrong.

Gia gasped catching Roy by surprise and causing him to almost topple the bag he was holding. “What? What’s wrong?” Roy looked around as if he could deduce the answer from the hallway walls surrounding them.

“OH MY GOD! Bitch wasn’t lying when he said you were cute,” she smiled at him, looking him up and down as if in appraisal. Roy was completely lost. “Okay honey, I’m gonna need you to do a spin for me okay?” Roy looked at her in utter confusion. “Baby, a spin, a twirl?” She mimed the movement with her hand.

Not knowing what else to do, Roy slowly spun around, heat creeping up his cheeks, embarrassed by his lack of understanding. Once he had completed the circle and was facing the woman again, he opened his mouth to speak.

“No sweetie. You’re coming with me and I’m going to let Daniel have it, officially, and then you two are going to have a lovely afternoon. He has these fits where he gets really into his writing and it’s like he’s fucking hibernating because you don’t see him, you don’t hear him, the only way you know he’s alive is because you can smell the coffee and weed. You know? One of those artsy types.” She scrunched her nose and nodded daintily as she said the last bit and, with that, she turned around again and headed to the end of the hallway, unlocking the door to apartment 3D, and stepping over the threshold. Roy awkwardly stood outside the door, not knowing whether to step inside or run away, but Gia peeked her head into the hallway with an exasperated look and intimated to him to follow her.

He stepped into the small space. Before him was a narrow hallway that met in a T style intersection, to the left were two doors (bedrooms?) and an open door to a bathroom. To his right was a standard gangway kitchen and an open concept living room space that held a bookshelf overflowing with books and vinyl records, a dining table that was home to several of those records and a beat-up older record player, two well-loved sofas, and a pair of mismatched armchairs sat around an ornate coffee table. No two pieces of furniture went together, but as a whole, the room seemed perfectly eclectic, as though it had been staged for a cliché Urban Outfitter’s shoot and then had been left behind to be loved by the people who lived there.

“Now, sweetie, you leave that bag on the counter, have a seat anywhere, and you let me go remind Daniel that he has a handsome young man waiting for his attention and he can’t be bothered to leave his room.” She pranced down the hallway back the way they came and plowed into the first door on the right. Roy heard the muffled evidence of Gia’s lecture. He felt guilty. Clearly Danny had been purposely ignoring him and here he was, invading his home, setting his energetic roommate on him, for no other reason than his selfish need to make sure that Danny was okay. God I’m fucking pathetic.

He listened for another minute to the quiet traces of Gia’s berating before he decided he had had enough. Danny doesn’t need to suffer because I’m a soft bitch who doesn’t know when to back off.

Roy strode over to Danny’s door and paused, self consciously running two hands through his hair, making sure it was coiffed in just the right way. If I’m going to be rejected by this adorable kid, I may as well look good. He smoothed out his shirt, took a deep breath and stepped into the room.

“Hey Danny,” Roy mentally scolded himself for how coy he sounded. He raised his gaze from the ground and immediately regretted it. He lost all resolve at the sight before him. Danny looked amazing. He had a light smattering of stubble across his jaw and his hair was no longer in a carefully arranged mess but a full-on, hands had been raked through it several times, hadn’t been brushed in a minute, mess. He had thick, black, large rimmed glasses on and the trace of dark bags beneath his eyes. He wore grey jogging bottoms and a baggy Misfits muscle shirt. He looked goddamn delicious. Roy’s mouth went dry and he nearly forgot why he was there all together.

“Roy!” Danny’s face lit up as he focused on Roy. Fuck. Fuck what time is it? “Oh my god. I’m so sorry! I had to write while it was all still fresh and I’m so sorry! I’m so terrible when I get into the zone like I don’t like think about anything else. I’m so so so sorry.” I’m such a fucking asshole. Shit. I’ve fucked it up. Fuck.

Roy saw Danny’s face go from excitement to realization to regret in the space of maybe two or three seconds. Roy could almost feel the panic emanating from the frazzled man before him and he felt a swell of relief. At least he wasn’t ignoring me to ignore me. God he’s cute when he’s flustered. Roy laughed a little and allowed an easy smile to spread across his face. Danny visibly relaxed and gave a shy, guilty smile in return.

“You’re a fucking cunt, you know that?” Roy laughed as he stepped closer to Danny. “I’m pretty sure I paced a fucking hole in my floors worrying about you and turns out you’re just an adorable brooding writer.” Roy felt himself flush a little until he noticed that Gia had conveniently slipped out of the room and closed the door behind them.

“I know, but seriously. Like I’m so sorry,” Danny turned his gaze to his feet and lowered his voice. “Seeing Gregg again and everything that happened, it stirred up a lot of emotions and I just needed to capture all that while it was still fresh and in my mind and the best way for me to do that is shut myself in so yeah it was very that. Trust I wasn’t ignoring you. Like, that was the last thing I wanted to do. I really wanted to see you and spend time with you, I just-”

Roy was struggling to follow the stream of words running out of Danny’s mouth seemingly as quickly as they formed in his mind. All he could focus on was how hot Danny was like this. Disheveled. Dark. The fucking picture of the stereotypical tormented writer and Roy wanted him more than anything.

With Danny still mid sentence, Roy jumped him, pulling his face down to meet his mouth, enveloping Danny’s deliciously full lips with his own. He greedily pulled Danny closer to him until they were flush to one another. Danny eagerly opened his mouth allowing Roy to entwine his tongue with Danny’s. Roy’s fingers curled gently into the hair at the nape of Danny’s neck as their tongues scraped together deliciously. Danny’s hands traveled down Roy’s body, drawing teasingly over his tense shoulders and trailing to his full biceps.

Fuck. So good. The world beyond Roy ceased to exist as Danny became overwhelmed by the taste, the feel, the sound, the sight of Roy wrapped so fully around him. God. So hot. Danny’s entire being felt on fire. He could feel Roy everywhere. One hand scraping through his stubble, one hand pulling gently at his hair, his chest firmly pressed against his, his hips perfectly aligned with his. Danny allowed his hands to wander dangerously low on Roy’s back, one curling beneath Roy’s shirt and traveling up his defined torso. Fuck.

Danny pulled away for lack of air, keeping their foreheads pressed together to allow only a minimal amount of space between them. Danny felt drawn to this beautiful man. He couldn’t bring himself to put any amount of distance between them. He gazed into Roy’s eyes, reveling in the blown out pupils and the primal hunger he saw in them. He smirked.

“Remind me to disappear more often,” Danny panted into the air between them, diving back in for another kiss, this one slower but no less heated.

“You pull this shit on me again and I may slap you,” Roy laughed, immediately stopping when he remembered Danny’s ex. Fuck, no. God you’re such an idiot! He’s actually been in a relationship where that was a thing. God I’m such an asshole! Roy’s eyes widened in regret and he began profusely apologizing for the slip trying to assure Danny he didn’t mean any of it and that he would never hit him and god he was so sorry when Danny’s face broke into a mischievous lopsided grin.

Danny leaned in a bit closer and all but breathed into Roy, “sometimes I like being slapped,” before reclaiming his lips.

Roy felt his breathing stop. His eyes rolled to the back of his head as he internalized what Danny had just said. He felt the words travel through his body, lighting up every nerve ending. The words ran down his body and settled in his groin. Roy knew that he wouldn’t be able to resist this delicious man if he didn’t stop them now.

“Danny, Danny,” he breathed greedily as he pushed him away, not yet entirely decided on the direction this encounter was going to take.

“Mmm, yes Roy?” Danny asked him dangerously, all big eyes, thick lips, and warm sighs. God, he’s fucking sexy.

“We need to stop,” Roy managed to spit out.

Danny backed away, glints of hurt and confusion in his eyes.

“No, no,” Roy never wanted Danny to feel unwanted but he desperately needed some oxygen and space to get the words properly thought out, let alone said, to him. Roy pecked Danny’s lips one last time before partially extricating himself from the delicious man he couldn’t get enough of. “I want you Danny. Believe me, I do. But, call me old fashioned, it’s just that I’d really prefer to wine, dine, and make you feel special before we get too physical.”

Danny’s hesitation dissipated into a grin far too wide for his face, but, at the same time, absolutely perfect and too good for this world. Roy couldn’t help but mirror it. “Okay, old man,” Danny teased, leaning in to press his lips delicately to Roy’s for a moment. “Then I guess I have to ask you to leave while I change…?” The question was clear to Roy. Danny was trying to figure out if he had blown his date today. Good God, no you haven’t. Roy had already lost himself in Danny. He felt young and light for a change, a far cry from the dull, weighted days he had grown accustomed to.

“I take it all back,” Roy whispered, capturing Danny’s lips again in a kiss that was certainly NOT reminiscent of the honor he was trying to uphold.

Danny felt the relief palpably reverberate through him. He didn’t blow his chance. He thanked whatever deity was looking out for his interests at that moment. He met Roy’s passion, trying to convey how grateful he was for his support and understanding. He eventually pulled away, wanting to respect Roy’s wishes to not take the physicality too far just yet. “Out.” He smirked as he ordered the beautiful man before him.

Roy composed himself enough to only mock disappointment at having to leave Danny alone, to undress, everything, and redress. Damn it. Why did you have to open your fucking mouth?! Fuck.

Danny turned around and went to grab his phone and it was at that moment that a cold panic gripped Roy’s heart as he remembered the slew of texts he had sent earlier that day. “Danny, wait!” Roy lunged toward him, doing his absolute best to not let his fear show in his eyes.

“What? Do you need another kiss before you go?” Danny teased, his eyes alight with affection.

“Umm, well yes, but can I see your phone for a sec?” Roy laughed, doing his absolute best to feign nonchalance but failing miserably.

“Okay …?” Danny had no idea what Roy would need with his phone but handed it over, making sure to wind his fingers through Roy’s as he deposited it in his palm.

Roy smiled at him in relief and went into their conversation, noting that he was saved as ‘Roy [heart eyes emoji][tongue out emoji]’ in his phone. He was about to delete the longer message, the harshest of the five he’d sent, when Danny plucked it from his fingers.

“Nope, you’re being weird so you’re going to tell me what’s going on first.” Danny had been in a relationship before where his boyfriend hadn’t trusted him and had felt the need to perpetually police his messages and calls and he wasn’t doing it again. He was never going to be made to feel like he was perpetually doing something wrong or like he wasn’t worthy of someone.

“Umm,” he started off, nervously laughing in an attempt to relieve tension. He brought a hand up to scratch the back of his head. “I may or may not have gone a little overboard with the texts today and one of them I wrote in anger and I didn’t mean what I said in there. I feel terrible about it and I shouldn’t have said what I did. It’s not who I am, I was just frustrated and worried about you. I really wish I had waited until I was calmer to text you.” Roy smiled ruefully at Danny, sincere regret in his eyes.

Danny knew he should probably hand the phone back and let Roy delete the text but he felt a desperate masochistic need to know exactly what Roy had said that had him this worked up. Is it bad? I can’t do the whole toxic relationship thing again… But it’s Roy. He’s been so nice and sweet to me. But he decked Gregg and wasn’t sorry about it. But that was Gregg and this is Roy. Roy told me he’s not like that and that he never would be. But what if he is..? He was horribly conflicted. He exhaled slowly. He knew he should probably respect Roy’s wishes but he also needed to protect himself, to know what this relationship was going to be before he got invested in it and couldn’t turn away.

He looked down at the messages and scanned them.

Roy H: Good morning. I don’t think we ever decided when or where we were going to get lunch. Did you have any place in mind?

Roy H: Hey, just checking to see if you’re still alive?

Roy H: Earth to Daniel???

Roy H: Danny, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean that last text and I shouldn’t have said what I did. I’m just really worried.

Roy H: Please respond to me. At least so I know you’re okay?

Danny burned with shame. He could practically feel the fear and anxiety he had caused Roy through the messages. God I’m such an ass. The fourth text, the one he assumed Roy was desperate to erase forever was harsh, yes, but not totally out of line. He was mad. Of course he was mad. I practically stood him the fuck up the day after he saved me from being beaten by my ex and listened to me and fed me and took care of me so I didn’t have a full scale panic attack. Fuck. You’ve finally found an amazing, smart, kind, understanding man, and what’s the first thing you fucking do? Make him feel like shit because he thinks you’re not interested. Great work Dan. Really nailed that one.

Danny stood silently scrolling through the messages. Roy felt like he was on trial, awaiting the judge’s verdict. Would Danny be disgusted by his words? Would he look at them and think Roy was his ex? Not that he hadn’t been cruel in those messages and couldn’t understand the assumption that Roy was a piece of shit, but he wasn’t ready to lose Danny before they had even gotten a real start. Just say something. Please. Anything.

“Danny, please? I’m sorry and I regret it so much. Please just tell me what you’re thinking?”

Danny looked back up at Roy. He saw hope and shame and reverence in his eyes and he realized in that moment that Gregg had never been this genuinely sorry, and over something this small. He had hardly ever apologized for the big things.

He smiled sweetly at Roy. “I think I need to get changed so we can go on our date,” he gently reassured him, reaching out to twine his fingers with Roy’s. “And I’m sorry too.”

Roy exhaled in relief and smiled mischievously. “Alright princess. You need to get dressed and then we are going to spend the day doing whatever you want to do!” Roy helped to spin him around and swatted his butt. Danny threw a smile over his shoulder at Roy and wiggled his playfully.

Roy looked at Danny with admiration. God he’s amazing. He was determined to start their relationship off today showing Danny just how wonderful he was and just how committed Roy was to treating him like royalty. He backed out of the room and blew Danny a kiss before going to wait in the living room. He was ready to be the one that got to treat Danny like the angel incarnate he was.

He pottered on his phone while Danny was changing, searching up fun young people date ideas in the event that Danny didn’t have something in mind. He felt so out of touch. What the hell is Vietnamese-Mexican fusion cuisine?! Why would I take him to tour a postage stamp museum?! None of the suggestions he found were good enough for Danny. He was not going to take him on some cliché rom-com date but he didn’t want to overdo it by trying to be too hip either.

He heard a door close and looked up. “Okay gorgeous. What do you want to do?” He smiled as Danny curled his arms around him, his eyes radiating excitement.

“I don’t know man, I thought we could kinda just let this day take us wherever.” He smiled adorably.

Roy looked into Danny’s eyes and smiled. “Okay, freeform isn’t usually my style, but we can try it.” He laughed, pecked a kiss to Danny’s lips, and dragged him out the door.

Once they’d exited the building Roy looked to his date and asked, “right or left?”

Danny looked both ways down the street and declared, “right.” Roy happily snaked his fingers between Danny’s and turned down the street. They wandered through the city, deciding at every intersection whether to continue straight or to turn. Roy was surprised by how calm he felt. They had no set plan for where they were going or what they were going to do, and he was perfectly happy with that.

They turned right onto 9th Avenue and walked several blocks, window shopping and chatting. Danny pulled Roy to the left down W 19th toward the Joyce Theater, explaining that his roommate Jay was a dancer and had performed there a while back, lamenting that he hadn’t yet been in New York then. Roy smiled and watched Danny excitedly share the most trivial things about himself with him. It felt wonderful to be getting to know such special details about this man and Roy committed to memory as many of them as he could.

They then turned right again on 8th and walked a few blocks until they got to the first subway station on their journey. Roy turned to Danny. “Now what?”

Danny laughed. “First we have to choose above ground or underground?”

Roy smiled at him. “Underground.”

“Party. Now we gotta decide the blue or gray line?”

“I made the first choice. It’s your turn, chola.”

Danny swung their hands between them as he scrunched his mouth in contemplation. He gasped excitedly. “We should totally go to Williamsburg! Yeah?”

Roy’s face slowly broke into a big smile and Danny could see the wheels turning. “Okay, man, what’s with the grin?” Danny asked him suspiciously, pouting his mouth.

“Nothing, kid. But, yes we are going to Williamsburg.” Roy dragged Danny down to the subway platform, laughing when Danny bypassed paying by hopping over the turn style.

“C’mon old man. You got any moves left?” Danny teased from the platform.

Roy cocked his head and placed his hands on his hip, his brows raised in amusement and mock disappointment. “Daniel, do I look like a teenager? I’m a little beyond doing silly stunts to impress a guy.”

Danny rolled his eyes. “Alright, man. I’m just saying, it would impress me and it might get you a kiss. But, whatever. Your choice.” Before Danny had time to finish shrugging his shoulders in feign nonchalance, Roy had vaulted over the turn style and was standing before him.

“I’ll take that kiss now,” Roy smugly grinned, his dimples popping. Roy was a little too pleased with himself for Danny’s liking.

“No one likes a sore loser, Roy.”

Roy cocked his eyebrow. “No one likes a tease, Danny.”

“I’m pretty sure you’re into it.” Danny leaned in to kiss Roy’s cheek, pointedly looking him up and down, then turning around and to watch for the train. Roy felt himself flush under Danny’s scrutiny.

Roy shook his head, partially in frustration and partially in adoration. Mostly adoration though. With you Danny, I’m very into the tease. He allowed himself to focus on Danny’s ass for a moment before he moved to stand beside him, wrapping his arm around Danny’s waist.

He leaned over to whisper into Danny’s ear, “don’t start something you’re not able to finish.” He gently pressed his lips to Danny’s earlobe and reveled in the hungry look it elicited from him.

Their train arrived and they boarded, standing hand in hand for the duration of the ten-minute trip across the East River to the Bedford Avenue Station. Roy laced his fingers through Danny’s and pulled him up the staircase and proceeded to lead him in a zigzag pattern.

“Roy, where the fuck are you taking me?” Danny groaned as he was turned from Union onto Frost Street.

“Calm down, princess. We’re almost there.” Roy bit his lip in excitement and Danny sighed, allowing himself to be lead further down the street. He was suddenly stopped as Roy flourished his wrists and chimed “ta-da!” spinning around to face him with a big smile on his face.

Danny looked around in confusion. “What? I don’t get it?”

“Here, bitch!” Roy pointed to a simple brick two-story building with large, glass windows exposing the first floor. It looked empty and incredibly ordinary. Not exactly the kind of place Danny was expecting such a cultured, intelligent man to get this excited about. He smiled perplexedly at Roy, still not understanding what he was looking at but not wanting to hurt Roy’s feelings either.

Roy sighed. “C’mon chola.”

He opened the door and let Danny in before him. Once they stepped inside, Danny noticed that the space was large and open, the walls lined with recessed bookshelves stuffed with books of varying colors and degrees of wear. Danny noticed that none of the books had titles on the spines. The shelves were clean, white and uniform along the lengths of the walls, strangely juxtaposed with the torn, beaten, and faded books that overwhelmed them. There were wooden tables and chairs strewn in the space between the shelves and a red park bench sat along one wall, blocking a section of shelving. Danny felt the spirit of the place flowing through him. It was exciting and eclectic and vibrant, there was obvious creativity and human exploration within these walls. Whatever this place was, he fucking vibed with it.

He looked over to Roy with an incredible grin and found that he was smiling as well. He looked so incredibly youthful. So beautiful. “What is this place?” Danny asked him quietly.

“This is the Brooklyn Art Library. These are all sketchbooks. All by different people, from different places, and then they’re stored here and you can look through them. See things people you’ll never know see. Find out how they experience the world, what they think is beautiful. I like coming here when I’m feeling stuck on a project. It’s like I get to borrow inspiration from someone worlds away that thinks in ways I don’t. That can see things, understand things that I don’t. It’s one of my favorite places.”

Danny couldn’t tear his eyes away from Roy. His eyes had wandered around, growing wistful as he explained this place to Danny. He was so beautiful. Danny felt warmth flutter through him as Roy shared how meaningful this library was to him. Roy was sharing a part of his soul with Danny, welcoming him into this sanctuary of creativity where he felt at home. Danny felt the faint tingle of emotion sting his eyes as he realized that Roy was sharing this special space with him because Roy thought he was special. If they had been anywhere even remotely private, Danny would’ve jumped Roy, shown him how grateful he was for opening himself up like this. But they were in public, so Danny contented himself with grabbing Roy’s hand, tangling their fingers together, and giving his absolutely incredible date a slow kiss on his cheek. “Thank you for bringing me here,” he grinned around the words, his jaw hurting from the pull of his smile. He couldn’t remember a time he had felt this amazingly happy.

Roy flushed with color, squirming slightly under the intensity of Danny’s praise. “I’m glad you took a chance on an old guy like me,” he laughed. Danny rolled his eyes and looked at him with affection. Roy felt his chest swell with emotion. “Whoever finds the weirdest sketch gets to choose where we have dinner.”

“Fuck yeah, I’m gonna win,” Danny declared, moving off to a shelf in a quiet back corner of the room.

Roy smiled and followed him, stopping at the other end of the shelving unit and grabbing a book. He flicked through it, occasionally stealing glances at Danny. He was furiously sifting through the books, his brows furrowed and his tongue captured between his teeth poking out from his lips. Roy suddenly found himself imagining what Danny would look like in bed, wrapped around him, allowing Roy to- Nope. Nope no. Not that. Calm down Haylock. You’re a fucking adult. Act like it. He quietly took a few deep breaths, forcing his body to calm down. He made a pointed effort to focus on the task at hand and not the gorgeous man a few paces to his left.

Danny was watching Roy. God he’s fucking hot. Danny watched as Roy’s tongue poked out to wet his lips and watched his chest rise and fall deliberately. He wondered what Roy looked like without a shirt on. How his chest and arms and stomach would feel under Danny’s touch. Holy shit man. Keep your fucking cool. He’s mature and smart, bitch. Last thing he wants is a guy who can’t keep his mind out of the fucking gutter longer than ten seconds. Danny took a moment to close his eyes and refocus. He continued flipping through the sketchbooks, purposefully keeping his eyes on the pages of the books and not on the deliciously tanned man just down the shelf from him.

Roy gave up trying not to stare at Danny, his adorable face scrunched in concentration. He looked at the book he was holding and flipped to the back page, it was blank. He looked on the table behind him and found a pencil. If he was going to spend the afternoon staring at Danny, he might as well do something productive about it.

Danny was flipping through his fifth book when he found it. There was no way Roy could top this. He triumphantly strode up to Roy and displayed his treasure, a very well-drawn sketch of an octopus body with Queen Victoria’s stern head holding a balloon animal dog with one of its arms. Roy burst out laughing. He has such an cute laugh.

Danny stared warmly at Roy, trying to commit this picture of Roy to memory, his head tilted back laughing until he was out of breath at this stupid sketch. Danny smiled. “So, I win?”

Roy managed to nod and gasp out between giggles, “yes bitch. You fucking win. That’s either the best or the worst thing I’ve ever seen.”

Danny laughed with Roy for a few moments before he snatched Roy’s sketchbook out of his hands. “What did you find?” He looked down at the page the book was opened to and felt his heart warm. “Roy, did you draw this?” On the page before him was a sketch of Danny. Danny had always been confident about his looks. He knew that his full lips, baby Jesus eyes, and delicate bone structure blended together in a unique and appealing way. He had never doubted that he oozed sex appeal. But as he looked at Roy’s sketch, for the first time he felt beautiful. Roy had delicately carved his features out with different hues of shading, contouring out his cheek and brow bones. He instinctively drew his finger over the drawing half expecting to feel the dips and grooves Roy had created on the page. He gazed in awe at the detail captured within the drawing’s eye, flecks of white broke through the myriad of tones Roy had managed to create using just pencil on paper. It was amazing.

Roy smiled bashfully at Danny. “Sorry, I couldn’t find anything so I guess I just,” he shrugged his shoulders, not knowing where the sentence was going himself. I guess I just wanted to capture the most beautiful person in the world on paper so that I can look at it forever? Yep. Perfect Roy. Keeping it reeeal casual. Great.

“It’s beautiful,” Danny whispered gently as if the drawing would leap from the page and disappear forever if startled.

“It’s easy to draw beauty when one is looking at it,” Roy whispered back, half hoping Danny wouldn’t hear him, half hoping he would.

Danny looked up at Roy, his eyes wide.He didn’t know what he had done to deserve such an amazing man in his life. He was so sweet and so kind and so good to him. It was overwhelming and far too much but absolutely right at the same time.

“Roy,” Danny breathed, not knowing how to possibly convey through words how much it all meant to him. “Thank you.” He leaned forward and softly kissed this incredible man, attempting to pour his gratitude into Roy through his lips. He pulled away and smiled.

“You’re welcome,” Roy whispered back. He had never known himself to be this type of person. This ridiculously sappy, romantic idiot that did grand gestures and expressed emotion, but Danny did something to him. He made him feel safe exposing these parts of himself, completely unafraid of ridicule or judgment for it. But he could only do this kind of this for so long. Recovering his dignity, he stepped back a pace. “So, where are we having dinner?”

Danny smiled and laughed in exasperation at this adorable man that obviously was not used to sharing so much of his heart with the world. He felt a heated wave of almost affection rush through him and started at the realization that he wanted to be the one to open Roy’s heart up, to be the one to show Roy how wonderful emotion could be. But he also knew that the poor guy had probably maxed out on romantic deeds for the day.

“What’s the least attractive food to eat you can think of?” Danny grinned at him.

Roy laughed. “Umm I don’t know. Barbecue, maybe? Or tacos?”

“Fuck yeah, I choose Mexican,” Danny decidedly informed his date, depositing the sketchbook with the incredible profile of him back on the shelf, mentally noting it to be sketchbook #705 on the far right of the third shelf of unit #21, and grabbing Roy’s hand. “Do you know any places around here?”

Roy nodded and explained that his friend owned a taqueria right by the metro station they had gotten off at. They walked back the way they had come, hand in hand, looking in shop windows and chatting about nothing in particular. Danny smiled when they stopped in front of a building that resembled a cantena. A large sign read “Cynthia’s Especiales” across the entryway.

Roy ordered for Danny and took him to the back to introduc him to the owner Cynthia. Danny smiled when Roy introduced him to her as his date.

“Roy! Mis amores, my heart is falling out my cucu. This man,” the tiny, energetic Puerto Rican jabbed a finger at Roy while looking pointedly at Danny, “he has been alone too long. He’s a good man, and if you treat him bad, amore, I will come at you like tiger. Yes?” Her accent grew thicker as her words grew more impassioned.

“Ms. Fontaine, I swear on my chola mom that I’m not just using him for his hot bod,” Danny teased, smiling into Roy’s eyes.

Roy laughed. “I mean, he has to like my personality if he’s willing to pretend I’m hot,” Roy joked, putting air quotes around the word ‘hot’.

Cynthia and Danny protested at the same time.

“Roy Haylock, you are a sexy man,” Cynthia scolded while Danny leaned over to Roy’s ear and whispered, “I happen to think you’re very attractive Roy.” Roy was ready to tackle him there and then. He sounded like pure sex breathing into his ear.

Cynthia smugly watched the two men fawn over one another. It had honestly been far too long since Roy had let someone into his life. She had never understood how he hadn’t been snapped up already, but looking at the younger man before her, the way he looked at Roy and tenderly held onto him, she thought that perhaps it had been for the best.

“Okay, amores, out! I need to work and I can’t do that with you making love eyes in my kitchen!”

Roy rolled his eyes. “Sorry. We’ll get out of your hair.”

They contentedly worked their way through dinner and took the L line back to Chelsea. Roy walked Danny back to his place, the streetlights burning brightly by the time they made it back there.

Danny pouted when they got to his door. He didn’t want to say goodbye already. He turned to Roy. “Would it be, like, extra of me to ask when I can see you again? Without ghosting out on you this time?” He chuckled in an attempt to mask his nerves.

“Danny, I don’t know if there’s anything about you that’s not extra. You’re a writer, musician, singer who has creative binges. I’m pretty sure you’re the definition of extra.” Roy laughed, kissing him on the cheek. “But I would love to see you again. I’m free Wednesday night I think? I’ll have to check my calendar.”

Danny quirked his eyebrow, “Your calendar? Okay cool guy. Let me know if you can pencil me in.” He leaned into Roy’s touch, not ready to let go of him yet.

Roy laughed. “I’ll have my people get in touch with your people.”

“Perfect.” Danny sighed and angled his head downward to kiss Roy’s lips. “Thank you for today. It was honestly, like, the greatest day I’ve had in a really long time.”

“I’m glad. I had a great time, too.” Roy couldn’t remember the last time he had been so shy about things. He tipped his head up and captured Danny’s lips in a heated kiss, releasing suddenly and backing away.

“Goodnight, Daniel.”

“Excuse me. I thought ‘no one likes a tease’?” Daniel exasperatedly threw Roy’s own words back after him, frustrated and excited and filled with affection for this amazing man who had him wrapped around his finger.

“Maybe there’s something to it after all,” Roy smirked. He waved to Danny and watched the younger man slip into his apartment building.

Roy Haylock, bitter old bitch Roy Haylock, had it bad for Danny Noriega, and he wasn’t interested in stopping anytime soon.

#boleyn #bnyc #biadore #au #bianca del rio #adore delano #gia gunn #cynthia lee fontaine #rpdr fanfiction #submission #m/m au

62 notes · View notes