#i spent too much time one anderperry

[masivechaos]

GOOD LUCK KISS

steven meeks x fem! reader

Request: yes / no

see the request here!

Synopsis: You're acting in your first play ever and Steven is the most supportive boyfriend ever

Warning/content: fluff, anderperry, kissing, my English

a.n.: 1.4k words - not really proud of this one oops

masterlist / dead poets society masterlist / navigation

── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ.─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ.───･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ.──

Steven Meeks didn’t want to be anywhere else. He couldn’t wish better than to be lying on his bed, watching you walk back and forth in his dorm as you recited your lines. 

It’s when you went to see your best friend, Neil, playing Puck in A Midsummer Night’s Dream that you decided to start theatre. You always liked the idea of being on stage but thought it was impossible, that it couldn’t be you, or that it was too late to start. Neil showed you the opposite.

If he could, why couldn’t you?

You told him about your project of becoming an actor and he immediately helped you find a play where you could audition, and for support he auditioned too. You both got your parts, you were Gwendolen Fairfax as he was Jack Worthing and you were happier than ever.

Steven, your boyfriend, insisted on helping you learning your text. So, there you were performing The Importance of Being Earnest in front of him. “I am always smart! Aren’t I, Mr Worthing?” 

Steven proudly recited Neil’s lines, pushing his glasses on the bridge of his nose “You’re quite perfect, Miss Fairfax” he was smiling as he talked, just like he was actually thinking this about you.

“Oh! I hope I am not that. It would leave no room for development, and I intend to develop in many directions”

If you ever doubted Steven loved you, you were sure now. He was looking at you with his shining eyes and this adorable beam of his. You couldn’t help but shy under his stare, he was interpellated when you didn’t pronounce your next line “What’s happening, sweetheart?”

You could melt on the spot “You make me nervous” you said with a quiet laugh Steven loved so much.

“Me?” he asked innocently before getting up and walking to you. His hands settled on your waist, gripping gently at your white shirt “I can show you a way to relax” one of his hands roamed to your cheek and he leaned forward, closing the gap between the two of you.

But as you were kissing, the door opened, revealing a disgusted Pitts “Ew”

Meeks’ cheeks dusted in pink immediately “You could have knocked” he said in a quiet voice, hiding in the crook of your neck and you chuckle, a little embarrassed 

“We, um… we were doing rehearsal” You offered Gerard an awkward smile as you felt heat chasing your face.

The boy’s mouth extended into a smirk “A kiss scene?” he was messing with you and you knew it. You decided to ignore his teasing and looked down at Steven “I gotta go” you whispered to his ear and he nodded before leaving a quick kiss on your neck and pulling away, letting you get out of the room.

When your presence was just the smell of your perfume left on Steven’s clothes, Gerard closed the door and gave his roommate the widest grin “Weird way to help with her lines”

“Oh shut up. She’s amazing at this” Gerard took a deep breath, preparing himself to hear a ramble about you. Steven didn’t talk about you like Knox talked about Chris, it was pure. Knox was maybe Gerard’s friend but he had no qualms about saying his behaviour with the blond girl could be a little creepy sometimes. He sat as Steven didn’t even try to shut up about how talented, pretty and funny you were.

Later that week, as you spent more and more time perfecting your acting, you had less time to do your homework. Hence why he was doing your trig exercises as you were sleeping on his bed, exhausted from the last days full of rehearsals, nose plunged in his pillow because it smelt like him, cinnamon, chamomile and cigarettes if you were attentive enough.

Steven helped you during the following weeks, more and more excited to see you on stage. And the big day finally arrived. He took ages to prepare himself, changing of outfit every two seconds, Pitts having to choose clothes for him otherwise they would never leave.

The ginger boy rushed everyone so they won’t be late, Todd being happy to go to the theatre early so he could see a certain brunette before the play would start. 

:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ

Steven pushed the doors open, you were sat on the wooden stage next to Neil, both of your legs dangling, texts in hands and costumes on. It was the first time your boyfriend saw you in this huge dress and he was so mesmerised, he earned a smack on the shoulder from Charlie.

Steven walked to you with a shy smile, cheeks a dark shade of pink “H-hi” he mumbled.

When you saw him you finally jump off the stage and threw yourself in his arms. You wrapped your arms around his waist and squeezed, containing your excitation as much as you could. 

He let out a chuckle before hugging you back “Not too stressed?” he wasn’t a boy with social anxiety or whatever but he wasn’t ready to act and talk in front of an entire theatre, he didn’t know how you weren’t repulsed by the idea or how Neil managed to do this multiple time without ending up stuttering.

“No” you replied quickly and then really tried to find an answer “A little?” you said with a laugh before hiding your face in his neck. You felt a hand on your shoulder, a hand you didn’t recognize as Steven’s.

You raised your head and found Neil next to you “You’ll do great! I promise you!” he looked at you with a reassuring smile. Neil was your best friend for as long as you could remember, he almost considered you as his little sister he never had. He saw your heart being broken and it hurt him, so when you started dating Steven he was relieved, he knew he was going to treat you right, he was gentle with you and never failed to make you feel loved. He was glad you finally found someone right.

Someone quickly called both of you and you had to leave Steven after giving him a small peck on the cheek. But he stopped you “Wait!” he grabbed you by the shoulders to capture your lips into a proper kiss “Good luck kiss”

You smiled widely at him and Neil had to pull you away or you were gone for minutes of kissing and would be late “C’mon!”

:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ

Steven stared at the red velvet curtain, grinning, waiting to see you “Are you going to explode?” Pitts whispered with a chuckle, Cameron laughing beside him.

“Oh shut up” he pressed his hand over Gerard’s mouth so he wouldn’t talk anymore when the curtain opened. He knew you weren’t on the first scene but he couldn’t help but be disappointed.

You and Neil finally showed up and he had to stop himself from cheering. Jubilant, he glanced at Pitts who offered him a small smile, he couldn’t deny he found you cute together. Steven would do anything for you.

You were incredible acting, it seemed like you weren’t even acting, you were the character. You were Gwendolen Fairfax. And Neil was good too obviously, but for your first time you were really talented. Even Mr Keating, who insisted on coming, was left impressed and he didn’t miss telling you at the end of the play. Steven spent the entire play smiling and laughing, prouder than ever.

The curtain closed and all the poets got up, clapping as loud as they could, hoping you and Neil could hear from wherever you were.

The room emptied and the boys waited for you. You rushed into Steven’s arms “I did it!” you said, delighted and Steven quickly capture your lips in a short kiss. When he pulled away you were going to chase for another kiss before realizing you were watched and letting out an awkward laugh.

"You were amazing" Steven praised and you couldn't doubt he was honest by the way he was grinning and it looked like there were stars in his eyes.

You smiled at him, grabbing his hand, brushing your thumb on his skin. “Did you like it?” Neil asked coming by your side. Everyone gave their opinion, each one more adorable than the other.

You leaned into Neil’s side “I think someone really enjoyed” you smirked, showing a blushing Todd who staring at the ground to flee Neil’s gaze. 

The brunette rolled his eyes “Pfff. You’re telling nonsense”

“Oh yeah? Just talk to him for 2 seconds before he kisses you” you didn’t know if you had a good instinct or were clairvoyant but Todd did end up kissing Neil at the end of the night.

On your side you walked back to Welton, exhausted and fell asleep with Steven on his bed, arms firmly wrapped around his middle and face buried in his chest.

── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ.─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ.───･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ.──

⋆ ★ steven meeks taglist: @moonlitmeeks @toindeedbeag0d @juneberrie @goodoldfashionedluvergirl @spookydarkwitch

#margot is writing! ੈ✩‧₊˚ #dead poets one shot #dead poets fanfic #dead poets headcanons #dead poets society #dead poets in nyc #steven meeks #stephen meeks #gerard pitts #charlie dalton #neil perry #knox overstreet #richard cameron #todd anderson #steven meeks x reader #dps #dps hc #dps headcanons

[cameronsactivities]

Anderperry Week 2023, Day 1

(Life together)

The Sun Rises

“Good morning, my love.”

Neil heard his voice before his weary eyes could focus on his surroundings. “Hi,” he mumbled through his dry throat. Todd was sitting cross-legged on their bed, holding a notebook with poetry scrawled in blue ink. With the dark green blanket scrunched up by his waist, he looked like a forest nymph in a painting, sitting in lush grass. 

Neil squinted at the clock, unable to tell the time through his bleary, hopelessly nearsighted eyes. 

“Seven-twelve,” Todd supplied, mindful that Neil preferred to know the exact time. 

“Much too early for a weekend,” Neil grumbled, replacing the poetry book in Todd’s lap with his head. 

“You’re just in time for the sunrise,” Todd said. Sure enough, the sun was appearing in thin streams through the window, making his hair seem even blonder. 

“Were you watching me sleep, just now?” Neil mused. 

Todd looked away, smiling gently. “If you put it like that, no. I was… using you for inspiration.”

“Inspiration? You’d better have something to show for it, then.” Neil sat up suddenly, landing a kiss on Todd’s chin on the way up. 

“It’s not good,” Todd mumbled dismissively. “I wrote it because I couldn’t fall back asleep, but you can read it.”

“I’ll always read your poetry.” Neil accepted the notebook, but kept his eyes on Todd, directing a puckish smile toward him. “Unless, of course, you’re here to read it to me.”

“Read it to you?” Todd said with a laugh. “God, you’re just like Keating. Alright, give me the notebook.”

The sun rises, again and again and again

Every morning, it leads me out of the vicious night

Where wolves with their bloody maws chase me through a dense wood

But unfalteringly so, the sun is always there

Greets me by thawing my frostbitten fingers,

Breathing tranquil into my shuddering heart, 

Day after day, again and again

The sun rises upon a meadow

I can feel its heartbeat when I lay my cheek upon the grass

Wafting around me, a scent which cannot be captured in perfume

Willow tree and windchimes putting on a magnificent play 

The shadows dance in some unchoreographed ballet

The chimes laughing, harmonizing like a group of friends

My sun rises for me, again and again and again.

When Todd finished reading, Neil leaned over and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. 

“You flatter me, Neil,” Todd laughed. 

“I want to know what you picture in that second part,” Neil said.

“I guess the world will never know.”

“What do you mean?” 

“I can’t draw to save my life.” 

“No way,” Neil said adamantly. “Draw something.”

“Like what?”

“I don’t know, a leaf or something.”

Todd shrugged, roughly drawing in his notebook and showing it to him as if proving a point. Neil stayed silent for longer than he would have if he were about to give praise. He debated his response to what looked like three scraggly pine cones arranged in what was supposed to be, it seemed, a maple leaf. 

“This may be one of the few skills you didn’t underestimate your ability to do,” Neil said slowly. 

Todd laughed, a quiet giggle that sounded what fresh, butter-soaked bread tasted like. 

Neil leaned into Todd’s shoulder, saying, “I can picture it so clearly in my mind. God, I wish I had something to paint with.”

“I think Meeks has some watercolors from last Christmas,” Todd said, his hands habitually toying with Neil’s hair. 

“I’ll get them later,” Neil murmured through a yawn. He fell back into his pillow, dragging Todd down with him. Without realizing, they soon drifted back to sleep in each other’s embrace.

***

Neil spent the rest of the day painting to the music of Todd’s pen scratching across paper, almost indistinguishable from the breezy rustling of leaves outside the window. He stepped back to look at the small landscape he had painted — a vibrant green meadow with a single willow tree reaching up to an equally bright blue sky. He’d spent so long perfecting the shadows of the nimble and supple branches, hoping he had captured the essence of Todd’s “unchoreographed ballet.” He made sure the sunlight glistened off the silver wind chimes brilliantly, and that the atmosphere was perfectly dreamy.

“I’m done,” he announced, stretching his arms. Todd came up behind him to look at the painting, propping an arm on the back of Neil’s chair. 

“That’s exactly how I imagined it,” he said, in awe. “Neil, this is so uncanny. I-I can’t believe it.”

A massive grin broke out on Neil’s face. “Thanks,” he said. “That’s the best compliment I could ever get.” 

He left the room to clean Meeks’s paintbrushes, and returned to find Todd absent from the room. However, the painting had an extra detail. It was only four dots of color, simple enough that anyone could paint them. A brunette figure with a dark green sweater, next to a head with slightly lighter hair, and a blue sweater. They matched the grass and the sky quite nicely.

#anderperry week 2023 #neil perry #todd anderson #dead poets society #dps #day 1 #anderperry #i am on a roadtrip and posting this from mobile forgive the scuffed formatting in the poem #i wrote this in a car while trying not to die from motion sickness #an excellent start to my first fandom week

[itwasfortheaesthetic]

My school books have cornered me, I am left with no choice but to study

#i spent too much time one anderperry #i have an exam in the morning #like a final #this is insane #how will i even do all the chapters #but every second for the wedding was worth it #maybe if i try hard enough i will atleast get a B

[inahallucination]

since everyone seems to be falling into the blackhole of anderperry teacher au’s with me (as they should) i humbly offer more 

this is actually something i thought of while talking to @aedan-mills on my first teachers au

but anderperry teaching au “rivals” to lovers except they weren’t rivals theyre married

-

everyone knows that mr. anderson, the english teacher and mr. perry, the drama teacher cant stand each other,,, it’s speculated it’s because of the overlap in their syllabus but none the less the two are rivals or something

like, for example, one time during a school assembly mr. perry had been decked up in a nice fitting suit and leading the ceremony, but mr. anderson had taken one look at him and left. He had come back but he had stuck to the back (”warn me, babe, the next time ur going to show up looking so fucking hot”)

it was a weirdly antagonistic behavior from the usually sweet teacher

and once, mr perry had seen mr anderson in a sweater and had snorted and said “nice sweater” in a mocking tone. (”todd please i’m running out of clothes” “didn’t u vow that what was yours was mine at our wedding? was it a lie?” “todd baby, please, i can’t go to school naked” “why not”)

and who could forget the time mr anderson had taken mr perry’s lunch straight from his hands and mr perry had to go get another one (”thanks for bringing me lunch, honey, i didn’t have time to get up with all this grading” “don’t worry about it, love, lemme just go grab mine too and then i can help”)

and of course the snaps at each other

like the vaguely threatening ones

“meet me in the parking lot after your meeting” (”sorry for rushing you, but i needed to get home to get some work done and i didn’t want you to have to ask someone for a ride”)

the vaguely weird ones

“i don’t know what id do if i wasn’t a teacher” “you could manage the worlds first flying desk set” no one knew what that meant but it sounded rude. what the hell was a flying desk set anyway 

and then the obvious ones like when mr perry was absent for a few days and mr. anderson was talking to a man around his age 

“mr. perry is such a fucking asshole, why can’t he just for once in his miserable life” the rest had been too quiet for anyone to hear (”i just don’t like it charlie, why can’t he just be happy for neil?” “i know todd”)

it’s a big situation so it feels like there would be a big conclusion, but no. 

one day before class had started but after the bell in mr. perry’s room, mr. anderson came in. everyone was at the edge of their seat wondering if they were finally just going to throw fists but no

“neil, i accidently grabbed your lesson plans” 

“oh my god im sorry and thank you so much !” mr perry gave him an almost identical folder in exchange for the one mr. anderson was holding. then mr anderson left

but not before mr. perry leaned over and gave him a soft kiss in gratitude

.

.

in the end mr. perry didn’t need the lesson plans cuz he spent the hour calming his class down

(”WAIT WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU THOUGHT I HATED TODD??? WHO THE FUCK COULD HATE TODD”

 “..we’re sorry mr. perry”

 “JUST LOOK AT HIM WHO COULD LOOT AT THAT FACE AND HATE IT?”

 “...mr perry...” 

“ESPECIALLY AFTER GETTING TO KNOW HIM WITH HIS PERFECT PERSONALI--”

 “... we should've minded our own business”)

this is getting long so imma end it here 

.

.

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@poetofthedyingstars

@aedan-mills

@maisietheweltoncow

#anderperry #dps fandom #dead poets fanfic #dps fanfiction #anderperry fanfic #todd anderson #neil perry #todd and neil #neil and todd #anderperry teachers au #dps #dead poets society #deadpoets #dead poets headcanons #dps headcanons #todd anderson headcanons #neil perry headcanons #dps hc #anderperry fic #anderperry au #anderperry headcanons #todd anderson hcs #todd anderson hc #dps hcs #neil perry hc

[mortuus-poet]

anderperry!🥰🥰

YESS I got so many requests for anderperry I must make content for the gay poetry boyfriends (modern AU bc I love modern DPS stuff)

Neil learned which sweaters Todd likes to steal the most and always makes sure to spray extra cologne on them so when Todd takes them he smells Neil no matter what

Neil likes to lay his head in Todd’s lap when they read together

He also loves when Todd sits against the wall/headboard and legs Neil lay between his legs with his head on his chest

Neil hums a lot when he’s reading/writing/doing work and Todd made a fun game for himself about it. Every time he heard Neil singing he has to figure out which song it is without asking Neil directly

Todd then makes it a point to play the song he last heard Neil humming when they listen to music together because he likes watching the way Neils eyes light up and he likes seeing how excited he gets as he yells “you know this song??? This is my favorite song it’s been stuck in my head all week!!”

Todd never tells him that he purposely looked for it, it makes Neil more excited to think it’s just a coincidence

Neil loves to tell Todd he loves him, but he loves coming up with creative ways to say it even more

So far his favorite way to say it is telling Todd “you are the most incredible poem there is, and I will recite you till the day I die”

Todd cried (and cries every time) when Neil told him that

Todd got really good with writing in Shakespearean and writes Neil poems in said form constantly

Neil calls Todd “Whitman” a lot. Like at least once a day

Todd is an astrophile. He loves stars, astrology, space, all of it

Neil takes him on late night drives to the mountains to star-gaze regularly because he loves hearing Todd actually talk about what he likes

Todd will rant for hours about certain constellations, planets, space, and Neil just lays there and listens to him, making sure to ask questions about whatever he’s talking about every now and then so Todd knows he’s listening

Todd sits backstage for a lot of Neils performances

he likes to see Neil when he’s not on stage and give him kisses and tell him to break a leg before he goes back on stage

He’s also a huge help, he helps people find props, fox their costumes, and just lifts everyone’s spirits by telling them how fantastic they’re doing and constantly telling them “break a leg!” In his most cheerful voice

He spent so much time backstage at every show helping actors out and lifting everyone’s spirits that he was recruited as a stage crew member

Todd was the first one to say I love you, he said it after one of Neils biggest performances as soon as he finished his bows and came backstage

It made Neil cry. He hugged Todd as tight as he could and picked him up and spun him around before kissing him and telling him he loved him too

They both obviously prefer proper kisses, but if they’re in a rush or saying goodbye/goodnight they both have their favorite places to plant a quick peck

Neil loves to give Todd forehead kisses, he loves to kiss Todd’s hand, and loves to kiss the tip of his nose

Todd loves to kiss Neils temple or cheek

Todd loves hand holding, he absolutely adores it. He always says that his and Neils hands just fit together perfectly.

Whenever he’s anxious or getting overwhelmed he’ll grab Neils hand as quickly as he can

They learned morse code together and communicate by taps or by squeezing each other’s hands in the right patterns when they’re in a place they can’t talk in

Todd doodles on Neil while he reads/studies, usually while he’s laying in Neils lap, or when Neil is laying in his lap

Neil got one of the doodles tattooed, it’s a simple flower with a heart above it on his shoulder

Todd cried when Neil showed him it, and then decided it was only fair if Neil drew something for him to get tattooed as well, so now they have matching doodle tattoos in each other’s style

#anderperry #neil perry #todd anderson #dead poets society #deadpoetsociety #dead poets society headcanons #anderperry headcanons #steven meeks #charlie dalton #gerard pitts #knox overstreet #richard cameron #stephen meeks #mr keating #john keating

[sapphicnoel]

anderperry week day 6: sick!fic or hurt/comfort

A/N: hello lovelies. welcome to day 6 of anderperry week! it just turned midnight of the 24th for me, but i wanted to post early in case tumblr decides to be a little bitch again. anyway, for today i bring you the 2nd option: hurt/comfort. so... beware of angst. there's a happy resolution, though, I promise. also: i nabbed a couple dialogue bits from here to jumpstart my writing process. enjoy, i'm quite proud of this one :D - xx, sam

‘I’m okay, Neil,” Todd repeats for the millionth time. It wouldn’t have gotten to this point if Neil would stop pestering him, but... Todd supposes the other shoe had to drop eventually. This is what he gets, honestly. “Stop lying to me!” Neil shouts after a long moment of silence, a new fierceness rising within him. “Stop telling me you’re okay. I know you, Todd! I know you’re looking right at me and lying. This isn’t like you. What’s wrong?”

Neil looks about as terrible as Todd feels, now. His eyes are wet with tears and his face… Man, Todd hopes he never has to see that sort of expression ever again. It strikes his very soul, chilling him to the bone. The hurt on the face of someone he loves so dearly does something to his fragile heart. It gets to all the parts of him that love Neil and the parts that wish he hadn’t spent the last half hour lying to his face. Todd sighs, barely beginning to accept such a mistake. He looks up at his boyfriend, their gazes meeting. Todd stares at his crushed expression for a minute, taking it all in. A tear rolls down Neil’s cheek, unbidden.

Oh, no, no, no. Fucking hell, Todd thinks as a sense of dread and desperation wash over him. He wishes he could take it all back and just tell Neil the fucking truth.

“Neil, please don’t cry,” He whispers. “I hate it when you cry.”

That part is true. Todd hates to see Neil cry, this handsome young man who’s smart and kind and so many things Todd hasn’t managed to be yet. His brown eyes are best seen under bright stage lights, not filled with tears in the dimness of a cheap floor lamp.

Neil, though, stays silent. The silence says so much; it’s clear how hurt he truly is.

You did that to him, Todd’s mind reminds him, you made Neil cry.

That’s when he finally shatters. Todd slumps forward with the weight of the emotion as he starts to cry, gross sobs wracking his thin frame. Neil is there to hold him up. He envelopes him in a warm, welcoming embrace. Neil’s always been there for him. From fights with his father to his older brother’s sudden illness. It makes the hurting that much worse. As if Todd didn’t feel bad enough about this whole thing. Damn.

“I’m sorry, Neil,” Todd sobs into his shoulder, “I’m sorry. I just didn’t want to, to be a b-burden. M-my dad called this morning to tell me that Jeffrey’s taken a turn for the worse. I didn’t want to say anything, because you just got that new role you were so excited for, and-”

“Hey. Everything’s gonna be alright, I promise,” Neil cuts off Todd’s rambling swiftly, but not unkindly. “I’m sorry I yelled at you, baby. I’ll wait for you here if you need to make the trip back home. Take as long as you need. I’ll always be here for you. You’re never a burden to me, okay? Never.”

Todd’s too stunned to stay anything in response, he sits there for a minute and processes Neil’s words. Even after six years together, Neil’s patience and devotion never waver. Todd often wonders what he must have done in a past life to deserve someone like him. In this life, though, Neil holds him through the onslaught of tears. And everything that comes after. Even as Todd stops crying and shaking, finally going still in his arms, Neil doesn’t let go. Todd’s never loved him like this. A rush of pure affection washed over him. The heater clicks on, but they stay right where they are, sitting on their bed. A faint bell-like noise grows louder, and Walt comes in to lay on the blanket at their feet. He curls into a ball and falls asleep; typical cat behavior.

Todd sniffles and says, his voice rough, “Thank you. A-and I understand why you were angry with me.”

He rests his head in the crook of Neil’s shoulder for a little while longer to prolong this tender touch. Neil’s hand runs over Todd’s back soothingly, drawing circles on the skin under Todd’s Welton Academy alumnus sweatshirt. It’s comforting in the midst of this emotional roller coaster. It reminds Todd of their first year away from home and living in New York. There were many fights and many more sleepless nights, but they got through it. Just like they’ll make it through this rough patch. Todd makes it a point to remember to call his mom later. It looks like he needs to get a plane ticket for Vermont. His hopes that his older brother would get better are all but dashed now. Neil’s voice jolts Todd back into this moment and out of his head.

“There’s no need to thank me, my darling,” Neil replies as gently as ever, “I love you. We don’t have to talk about anything if you don’t want to. But I’ll be here when you’re ready, okay?”

“Okay.”

Todd pulls away from him a little, then presses his lips to Neil’s. Neil smiles into it and kisses back just as fervently.

They part all too soon, the moment of complete closeness gone in a flash. Neil smiles softly and swipes away a tear from Todd’s cheek with his thumb. Todd blushes at the gesture, the skin warm.

“Neil?”

“Yeah?”

“I love you, too.”

Neil wraps his arms around Todd again and squeezes him by the middle. Todd hugs back, failing to keep the silly grin off his face.

Todd joins Neil on their living room couch that evening with a blanket splayed over them. Walt lays nearby, guarding the arm of the couch. The TV is playing some trashy Hallmark flick, but Todd isn’t watching. He’s staring at Neil, at the man he’s lucky enough to call his. He reaches out for one of Neil’s hands and grabs hold of it, lacing their fingers together. Todd rests his head on Neil’s shoulder, staring at the screen as he tries to figure out what’s going on. He fails miserably. Instead, Todd lets his thoughts wander elsewhere.

Maybe Neil’s right. He’s been wrong before, as humans so often are. But it certainly feels like everything will be alright after all. There’s much more to come, Todd’s well aware. But Neil makes it all feel worthwhile. The difficult parts of life suck far less when there is the assurance of his steadfast love for someone else, and Neil’s own utter fondness to match.

taglist :D @regina-della-poesia @maisietheweltoncow @aedan-mills

#anderperry week 2k21 #anderperry #anderperry fic #sam does things #my writing #my fic

[ameliterature]

Another Rainy Day (AnderPerry Fluff)

Part 1

Ever since Todd became Neil's comfort during that rainy day, it became apparent that all rainy days would need to be spent with him.

One of those days, when the boys were all hanging around the rec-room, chattering up whatever nonsensical allegory Charlie had to spew while he played his bongos-- they heard a low rumble in the background. Todd looked over at Neil, seeing his grin begin to fade.

"So there I was, on my back--" Charlie was cut off by a loud thunderclap, making everyone yelp. ".....Guess the rain isn't really fond of my story, huh?"

Neil faked a laugh, just a single huff from his nose. And it was enough to make Todd know it was one of those days.

Todd walks over to Neil, tapping his shoulder. "Neil, I forgot something in our room, I'll be back-"

"I'll go with you." Neil says, like Todd said a code word to him. "Charlie, Todd and I will just take a rest alright? You continue your story."

Charlie waves at them and continued his story. Knox and the others still huddled around him, Cameron was wishing he had went with Neil and Todd but decided to just hear where Charlie's dumb story was headed.

When Neil and Todd entered their room, the rain had gotten louder and the rumbles of thunder echoed throughout the dorm. Neil shuts the door before making his way over to their spot.

It was once Neil's spot, the nest he made for himself during rainy days, curled up by the corner of his bed that was turned away from the window. But now it had become his and Todd's spot for reasons such as now-- the howling winds and the raging thunderstorm outside.

Neil took off his shoes, climbed onto his bed, unfolding his green blanket to place it over his shoulder. He left a bit of the blanket longer so that Todd would join him in it. Todd, still getting used to being Neil's cuddle-weather-buddy, willfully obliged. He took off his shoes, got his own blanket for extra warmth and joined Neil inside his green blanket.

They don't do much when they were like this, just Neil hugging Todd (seemingly for dear life) and a few distracting conversations. A lot of times, Neil likes to ask Todd questions, like what he did before he came to Welton, what he did during rainy days, or what were his favorite seasons aside from this one.

Todd told him of the times he wasn't in boarding school. When classes would suspend and he could stay in his room all day. He told him of the books he read when he would pass the time during the cold weather. Todd admittedly prefers Winter because it had the biggest excuse to stay indoors.

"I'm glad you like staying indoors." Neil said, still clinging onto Todd.

"Yeah? How come?" Todd was warm, and he wasn't sure if it was because of his normal body temperature or if it was because Neil is nuzzling him.

"Because if you were the type to go out and make puddles, or the type to stay downstairs with the others, I wouldn't be able to do this right now." Neil tightens his hug on Todd, burying his head on Todd's shoulder even more. His long legs were over Todd's lap, messily entangled with Todd's legs. Todd wasn't sure how to react to how touchy Neil was being but it felt nice.

"Don't worry, I promise I'll be here for you whenever it rains, I've got nowhere else to go." Todd said as he hugged Neil back, now facing him slightly. This weird position made them sink down into the bed, no longer sitting up by the bed frame. Neither of them did anything about it and just continued to stay in each other's arms.

Another crackle of thunder emerged outside their window, causing both of them to flinch. Todd wrapped his left arm around Neil to compensate for their posture.

Despite Neil being the taller guy between the two of them, he let his head rest on Todd's chest once more. He wanted to be engulfed in just Todd's presence and forget about the storm. His voice, his scent, his warmth, and the sound of his heart beat going faster. He just wanted to focus on Todd.

It was all good on his senses, the way Todd's scent masked the smell of rain, how Todd's voice and heart beat tuned out the raging winds outside, how just by being hugged by Todd made him feel warm and safe. But it wasn't enough. He wanted everything about Todd to distract him but because of how much stronger the storm was getting, small talk and and awkward hugs weren't enough to suffice. The hugs were the best part, actually, Todd's arms around him, petting his hair gently, are what he looked forward to most. So Neil theorized, in the purest of logic, that he needs more physical distractions from Todd.

Neil wasn't sure how to test out his theory out. There couldn't be a friendly way to ask your roommate for something more than a hug. Just when he was about to resign this thoughts, the power went out. Their once lit room was now pitch black, a few muffled yells from outside their room confirmed it wasn't just their room having a blackout.

"Wow-- that's first," Neil tried to joke.

"Welton's never had a blackout before?" Todd sounded out, still seeing nothing but darkness. He turned to Neil's direction.

"Yeah, just flickering lights but never this. It's a once in a life-" Neil paused for a bit. This never happens. It could be a momentary sign, maybe from the rain gods he despised, but a sign nonetheless.

He slowly reached out to side Todd's face, clumsily poking his eye.

"Ow-- hey, don't worry, I'm still here." Todd chuckled, assuming Neil was just worried he'd left.

"Todd..." Neil finally held the sides of Todd's face, just barely making out the figure as his eyes adjusted to the darkness of the room.

Todd looked at what seemed to be Neil's face. He couldn't tell what expression he was making but he could tell Neil was being a bit more serious. "Y-Yeah?" Neil's hands were jittery and starting to sweat.

"... C-can... Can I kiss you?"

If only Neil could see how wide Todd's eyes were at that moment. Neil probably could by the whites of Todd's eyes being more exposed.

"S-sorry... I knew that was too much-- Forget it-"

"S-sure."

"... Wait, what?"

"You can kiss me... but you have to tell me why though."

"I--" A million things popped into Neil's head that moment. A million more reasons why he wanted to kiss Todd. It became apparent it wasn't just about him wanting to be distracted by the rain anymore.

"I need a better distraction right now." Neil lied. Todd wouldn't be able to tell because it was so dim and Neil had to bite his lip to refrain him from exposing his lie.

Not that this broke Todd's heart a little, but Todd had wished Neil wasn't afraid of the rain, he wished their first kiss wasn't a distraction method.

Todd reached out for Neil's face as well, bringing their faces slightly closer, their lips just brushing against each other. "Good, because I've been looking for an excuse to kiss you too." Neil could feel his own face turn warm.

Nothing else was said in that dark room. All they heard was the sound of their breathing as their lips met and the low rumble of the storm outside their window.

Neil was right. A kiss did make him distracted.

Just like the storm, this kiss was just one of many more to come.

Part 3

#anderperry #anderperry fanfic #anderperry one shot #anderperry fic #fanfic #fic #one shot #dps fanfic #dps fic #dps one shot #rainy day fic #fic continuation

[fulltimecatwitch]

I Found a Reason ( To Keep Living)

My first anderperry fanfic set in the late 60s´ and early 70s´! 

I had already posted the a03link to the first chapter but it doesn´t show in the tags for some reason (?) so i´m posting it here as well.

Summary: It is the fall of 1969 and the start of senior year at Wellton for the Dead Poets. The world around them is changing fast and soon they will have to decide what they want for their lives. Neil is struggling against his fathers wishes of becoming a doctor,while his roomate Todd is trying to find the confidence to allow himself to lead the life he wants. They connect through their shared loved for music and dreams of moving to New York ,but don´t quite know what to do when it comes to the feelings they have for each other.An ode to the dead poets and the counterculture of the 60s´.

Warnings for: underage smoking, underage drinking, period typical homophobia, police brutality ( mentioned), brief mentions of war, poor parenting

Chapter 1: Gimme Shelter 

Neil Perry loved music, there was no other way to say it. Even before acting and performing, music had been his lifesaver in the ever-demanding life his father had already planned for him. Whenever he was feeling blue, he knew all he had to do was listen to his favourite records. He kept them in his closet, neatly ordered and hidden under piles of sweaters and other clothing items. Under the bed was the record player his mother had gifted him when he turned fifteen. His father had resisted at first, going on about how much it had costed and how much it was going to distract him from his classes. It took some help from his mother, but he let him keep it as long as he promised to use it “moderately and only after he was done studying”.

Neil had some records stored at home, but the ones he kept at Wellton were the ones that would get a disapproving look from his father and one or two of his professors. Most of the albums from the Beatles and the Stones, some Bob Dylan, Led Zeppelin, Hendrix, Clapton, he had a bit of everything. It hardly mattered now that he was back at school, away from his father and his incessant demands. He listened while doing homework in the afternoon with the volume almost at the lowest just in case Hager was around. Saturdays were his favourite days because he would then take the record player to the school´s rooftop along with some records; the others would join him too. Charlie provided cigarettes and wine that nobody knew how he obtained. Pitts would bring snacks and when he was feeling particularly happy, he would dance along with Meeks. They spent their afternoons lazily listening and dreaming how their lives would be after Wellton. For Neil, sometimes it seemed as if there was no future. There was so much chaos in the world around them: the war, the civil rights movement, the riots at that bar in New York, the police brutality, the list was endless. Yet, all his parents could think of was getting him to medical school. He supposed they had a point; in a year he and all his friends would be eighteen, all eligible for the draft. Sure, he could play it safe for a year or so with the college defer but what if he wasn´t able to keep up with the workload? Pre-med wasn´t easy, he knew that much, and it did not help that he dreaded the idea of becoming a doctor almost as much as the idea of getting dragged to the jungle. Unlike Charlie, who kept bragging about how he would burn his draft card if he ever got called, Neil´s parents had no connections that could help him. He was certain Todd and Knox had them but the rest of them were screwed. Pitts had once told him that if he ever got drafted, he was done for. No way he would survive in the jungle. They had all seen the news coverage; it was a massacre. “Perry,” Charlie said on one of those afternoons, while rolling his eyes “Knoxious here wants to listen to Rubber Soul because he thinks that the Beatles are better than the Rolling Stones, can you believe it?" Neil sighed internally, the same thing happened with Charlie and Knox every time they listened to music. They would first argue about which record to play and then endlessly debate who had the better music taste. Since Neil was the owner of the record player, he unofficially had the power to ultimately decide which album to liste, and he often had to intervene between the two. “I didn´t say that Charlie,” Knox interrupted “I´m just saying they have more idea of what they are doing, what they want their music to sound like. Even Bob Dylan said so.” “Well Dylan hasn´t really been the same since he went electric right?” “Come on Charlie you love the guy” “Not relevant right now, Neil” he said while putting out his cigarette “I say we take a vote to settle this for once and all” He called to the other dead poets, who were mindlessly talking about the massive amount of workload they had barely a month into the fall semester. “What are we doing?” asked Pitts “Taking a vote on who is better: the Beatles or the Stones” Neil said hoping his voice conveyed the slight annoyance of the situation Cameron rolled his eyes all the way back to his skull “Not again” Todd was standing slightly behind Meeks not saying anything yet. His new roommate was still a bit of a mystery, one that Neil found himself drawn to immediately. He was a bit of detective, so he tried hard to be friendly and the payoff was that little by little he saw glimpses of what composed the entirety of Todd. He liked hot tea on the afternoons, he only liked to shower at night, he clasped his hands together when nervous, his favourite sweater was a blue woollen one, he wasn´t good at maths, such little things. The most important one Neil had noticed was that even if Todd didn´t speak his mind often, his brain worked a thousand miles an hour and when he spoke, he did it with power, like prophet. He had such a gift with words and probably so much to say; it made Neil a bit sad that he would not allow himself to do it. He didn´t quite know what it was, but he had bonded with Todd in a way he had never with anyone else in his life. He suppossed that is what some would call "connection" but there had to be another word for it. Everytime there was this electricity running through both of their bodies and pulling them together. He felt the static in every inch of him, amplifying every part of his soul. “Who do you prefer, Perry? Asked Charlie, pulling him out of his thoughts. Damn it, Charlie. “Look, I don´t know who is better but right now I would take Let it Bleed over Revolver any day of the week” “You are a man of taste, Meeks? Pitts? “Sorry Charlie,” said the ginger “but I prefer the Beatles, not the old stuff though” “I agree the old stuff sucks, but I´d rather go to a Stones concert” added Pitts. “Cameron?” “You should know that I don´t approve much of either but if I had to pick, I would go with the Beatles. No way I am listening to someone who calls themselves satanic” “Why did I even ask?” sighed Charlie. What about you Todd? asked Neil raising his brow. The blue-eyed boy jolted slightly; he knew he had the final decision in his hands. If he was completely honest, he was more of a Beatles guy himself. He found that the lyrics suited him better, the mellow sounds were more of his taste, and even the old cheesy stuff ,he found endearing. The problem was that Neil had said he preferred the Stones and he could not deny Neil anything, even if he wasn´t aware he was asking. Neil was special on his own: he had this energy and passion to live that Todd had never seen on anyone else. He loved everything and everyone so much. He was determined to share bits and pieces of his beautiful soul, some he might never get back, just to make his friends feel the same joy he radiated. Neil was also the first person who had not given up on Todd. He had tried to push him away for good as much as he could during their first days at Welton and yet Neil persisted, like the leaf that refused to fall of a tree. Soon enough Todd realised that talking to Neil was easy and lovely. They had developed this little game, an unspoken one, where they guessed each other with just a hand gesture or a smile. Neil could guess what Todd was feeling or thinking with just a glance and the other way around. He liked this game, he liked being predicted and basked in sheer happiness whenever Neil smiled at him, signalling that they were thinking the same. Wasn´t that beauty in this world? To finally be able to talk with someone? To laugh? To dance? To read? someone to a dream about? Maybe it seemed small for Neil but the kindness he had showed him made Todd cry every time he thought about it. He took a few more seconds to think before finally saying: “Sorry, Knox but lately I´ve been more into the Stones and their blues” “Oh, you guys are the worst” Everyone laughed and the first few notes of Gimme Shelter were heard. The sun was setting, and the air was filled with cigarette smoke, everything was perfect. Todd wanted to preserve this in his head, capture it like a short film he could go over and over every time he felt alone. He tried to take it all in and took the courage to glance at Neil´s direction. Todd was certain he would be there, looking with that secret smile of his. Their eyes met through the last beams of light the sun had to offer, and when he curved his lips into a playful smirk and then a smile, they both knew he was saying: “Liar, we both know you prefer the Beatles” Todd smiled back and slightly shrugged his arms “You are welcome, Neil”

#dead poets society #anderperry #Neil Perry #todd anderson

[indeedbeagod]

date night

for the lovely @guccimetti for @dpsficexchange!!! i tried to work in charlie/meeks and anderperry, and i’m not sure if this is quite what you had in mind, but i hope you like it and i hope you don’t mind if i’m a little late on posting this!! college is hard and time draining

but basically charlie, steven, neil and todd sneak out to go on a double date at a diner. shamelessly self-indulgent cute first date anderperry with a little cheeks on the side. the original prompt was “anderperry or charlie/steven ditching welton for the weekend to go on a date in canon time frame” so here’s hoping i did that justice.

Charlie is the one who suggests the double date. Which is funny, because as far as Neil knows, Charlie isn't dating anyone. Neil isn't even dating anyone. But apparently one night of talking about Todd was enough to convince Charlie that a date was necessary, and that Charlie had to be there if only to "keep you from fainting or something, jesus christ". (To be fair, Neil had spent nearly forty-five minutes on just the topic of Todd's smile, and about four hours talking about the rest of him. And yes, maybe he would possibly lose consciousness if Todd laughed at too many of his jokes. But that was a slim chance at best, really, and anyways, what license was a few hours of venting for scheduling a date?) It's a rather one-sided conversation- Neil can't get a word in to protest or even to ask who Charlie plans on taking- and by the time he's alone again in his room, he's got plans to not only go out, but sneak out. And true to Charlie Dalton fashion, there had been no specifics, only a request (a demand, really) to meet by the clock tower at 10:30. Neil wanted to chase him down the hall and grill him for details (was he supposed to ask Todd? Where were they going? How in the hell did he plan to not get caught sneaking out on a Friday night? What was even open that late around Welton on a Friday night?), but by the time he'd managed to get through the door, the other was nowhere to be found. Todd follows the same pattern. Neil doesn't see him once for the entire day, not even in Keating's class, not even during evening common room study. In fact, he's not even there when Neil goes back to their room that night, and something between confusion and worry worms its way into his stomach at the sight of the empty bed. But he believes in Charlie's haphazard planning (for what reason, he doesn't know), and at 10:25, he slips out his window and heads towards the tower. The three shadows backlit by the clock (one, Neil notes with relief, is Todd-shaped and seems fully intact) come into focus as he approaches, but it's not until he's three feet away until he can make out faces. Charlie's there, grinning like he's pulled off some extraordinary bank heist, and Todd has a scarf piled around his shoulders covering his face to the nose. The third figure, he realizes, is Meeks, and he has to cover his mouth to stifle the surprised noise that escapes him. "What- why- since when is this-" "I told you I was coming, didn't I?" Charlie's shit-eating grin is ever-present, and he slings an arm around Steven's waist as he speaks. The latter rolls his eyes, even as he leans into the grip. "I wasn't about to be the sad lonely one in this situation, who do you think I am?" Neil can't help at laugh at that, if only because it's the most Charlie response he could've received. Todd smiles too, and Neil's heart jumps a little into his throat. It's nothing, it's nothing. Half an hour later, they're trudging along the path off campus, chilled night air occasionally blowing upwards what fall leaves don't crunch beneath their feet. Neil and Todd trail behind Steven and Charlie, the latter leading the way towards whatever destination he's got planned. Steven's tried his hardest to wheedle it out of him- constant complaining questions of "where the hell are we even going, oh my God, why did I agree to this"- but as far as Neil can tell, there hasn't been any response past gentle refusals and the occasional "breathe, you nervous wreck, you'll see soon". He can't help but be jealous of how comfortable they seem to be; they haven't separated more than a couple inches, and the way they touch is so comfortable, so /easy/. He doesn't know how nobody's noticed them, because it's clear they've been doing this for awhile now. He looks over at Todd, like he has about a million times since they set off, and when he gets a small smile in response he ventures his hand out to lace their fingers together. He hopes he's not imagining the gentle squeeze Todd gives him. "So where've you been all day, huh?" Neil asks, quiet even though they're far enough from Welton that there's no need to be. "Just dropped off the face of the earth." That elicits a chuckle from Todd, muffled behind the scarf. He pulls the fabric down to speak, though, and Neil can't help but notice that his cheeks are wind-flushed pink. It's almost painful how much he wants to kiss them. "Charlie helped me. Said something about, uh, keeping me from flaking out? I think he thought I'd get too nervous if I had to- had to see you all day. I've been in his room instead." Todd's voice is just shaky enough for Neil to hear the falter, and it makes his chest warm in a way he almost feels guilty for. It feels good to know that the nerves are mutual. "So were you going to?" Neil asks after a moment. "What?" "Flake out. Were you going to?" The flush in Todd's cheeks goes darker. "No," he answers quietly. His eyes are trained diligently on the ground below, but the grip on Neil's hand tightens a bit. "No, I wanted to see you." It takes Neil a minute to remember how to operate his mouth. "Well in that case," he manages, "I'm sorry Charlie kept you hostage all that time." When Todd laughs again, Neil makes a mental note to thank every deity he can think of for this night. He also sends out a general prayer that he doesn't mess this up too badly.

It turns out that the only place open at this time of night is a 24-hour diner a short ways away. Charlie and Meeks must come here often, because they both address the ancient woman behind the counter by name ("Joanie! Babe!" "Hey Joan- I'm trying to get him to stop that, I promise"). Joan, on her part, seems to have been in on the whole...thing they're doing, because the table in the back corner of the building is decorated with a couple candles and a pretty, if worn, red-checked tablecloth. Neil is in the middle of gauging how many times the other two have come to this place when Todd squeezes his hand lightly. "You wanna sit?" he asks, nodding to the table. Somehow Meeks and Charlie have sat down already, and from the way Todd is looking at him (somewhere between confusion and worry) Neil realizes he's been thinking longer than he thought, so he nods and lets Todd lead him forward. The meal goes about as well as any plan of Charlie's can be expected to go; in fact, it goes better than most of Charlie's plans can be hoped to. Neil chalks a good amount of that up to Meeks, who, as usual, seems to have been the mediating factor in this whole event even without knowing exactly where they were going. The pie Joan brings out towards the end also looks suspiciously similar to the ones that appear in Neil and Todd's room during finals week, so Steven's either been stress baking or he just wanted to make this special. From the way he keeps glancing at Todd and him, Neil would guess it was the latter. For his part, the blond boy stays relatively quiet, but the smile on his face doesn't leave for more than a few seconds at a time. It must be some blessing, Neil knows, and for once there's no overstatement in his thought.

It's not until on they're safely back in their rooms (two close calls with professors on night rounds and about twelve snarky comments from Charlie later) that Todd manages to speak past a few words. "Thank you," he says, his initiative almost as uncharacteristic as the way he sits beside Neil on his bed to say the words. "For tonight. I, uh- I didn't know if you'd like it, y'know? Like, the whole dinner thing. Charlie said you would, but- I mean, I couldn't be sure till it actually happened, and I'm terrible at planning so I had no idea what I was doing, thank god Charlie and Meeks helped me-" Neil cuts him off the moment his brain makes the connection. "Helped you?" he asked. "This wasn't Charlie's idea?" His mind is working a mile a minute, simultaneously trying to process the fact that he didn't catch this earlier and that, more importantly, Todd Anderson had had the organic desire to go on a date with him. The chaos in his head is only compounded by the way the other's face goes red at the question; it's not a distraction he needs right now. "No." The word is said through a nervous laugh, and Todd's toying with his hands as he speaks. Neil has to suppress the impulse to grab them. "I mean, um, the restaurant and the timing and stuff was the other two's planning, I wouldn't have known the first thing about where to go, but-" He takes a deep breath like he's trying to steady himself. "-I told Charlie about wanting to ask you to dinner and he helped me from there. I think I might've spent half an hour stumbling if I tried to ask you myself." The shaky smile Todd manages is enough to make Neil want to kiss him then and there. As it is, he reaches over, taking his hand like he'd wanted to and shifting close enough to lean into the other's side. "Well you know what this means," he replies after a moment, thumb tracing over skin lightly. "I'm gonna have to repay you for all this. But do you mind if we don't sneak out next time? I think worrying that much took a year off my life." Todd's laughter is a yes before he even says the word.

#dps fic exchange #guccimetti #i really hope there's no glaring typos or holes or anything in this oh my #anderperry #cheeks #dead poets society #dps #neil perry #todd anderson #charlie dalton #steven meeks

[ofravens-andwritingdesks]

Nothing So Well As You: Chapter One

Aka the Anderperry and Cheeks Theater AU I promised on my main and an excuse to write about the theater my friends and I actually spent a lot of time in during the festival of new works when I lived in Roanoke last year. It will go up on my AO3 one of these days I promise

Summary: Fresh out of college, playwright Todd Anderson moves to Roanoke, Virginia to be in the place to be for new plays. He enters is play Nothing So Well As You, a play on Shakespeare’s Much Ado, into the Roanoke Festival of New Works, never dreaming it will be chosen. And when it is, his world turns upside down. Especially once he meets the man playing his romantic lead….

Chapter One

It was a strange turn of events that caused Todd Anderson to move from his college town in Vermont down to Roanoke, Virginia. But mostly, it was the fact that his college advisor had told him that Roanoke was the place to be for playwrights trying to establish themselves. New York would come in time, when he was older and had some plays under his belt. But since he was just starting out, he wanted to be in Roanoke.

So when he graduated, he picked up his bags and moved. He got himself a decently paying job at a local publishing company. He was mostly doing organizational work, but he didn’t mind. The simple work meant that he could spend more time with his mind wandering so he could tweak his play and not get behind.

He had been writing and editing this play for over a year. It had been his senior thesis. John Keating, who had been Todd’s advisor at school, had only one real complaint about the boy: his perfectionism meant he never believed his writing was finished, and it would be his downfall in the professional world. Todd had never actually believed that until he was staring down the deadline for entries to be considered for the Roanoke Festival of New Works with a play he wasn’t one hundred percent satisfied with. In the end, he submitted it while also thinking of things he could have fixed. Promised he would fix if he got accepted. He didn’t think he would. Here he was, a nobody fresh out of college, being considered among writers who had been doing this for years if not their whole lives. No, he didn’t stand a chance.

So when he received an email from a Charlie Dalton, who informed him that he would be directing his play in the Festival of New Works and wanted to know how soon he could hold auditions, he nearly started crying in the middle of the office he was working in. When he could finally compose himself to tell the concerned middle aged women working with him why he looked so floored, they all cheered for him. They had already been planning on attending, but now they had all the more reason to.

So soon, Todd Anderson was sitting in a room at the Mill Mountain Theater, sitting behind a desk with the man who would be directing his play, waiting for people to file in for auditions.

Charlie had clearly been doing this for a while. He was at least familiar with the way things worked at this theater, as proven by his relaxed and almost arrogant attitude about the entire ordeal as he explained it to Todd. “Alright, so this shouldn’ take too long. I’ve already picked out all the behind the scenes guys, so you won’ have to worry about that. We always recruit from the local women’s college. They’ve got a great theater program, they’ll be a good asset to your play. Some’ll probably audition too, but I don’ see ‘em gettin’ more than ensemble.” He had a thick drawl, one that was unusual for the locals he had heard from around here. They weren’t so below the mason-dixon as to warrant the accent coming from his mouth.

“Where are you from?” Todd asked absentmindedly.

Charlie furrowed his eyebrows. “Georgia. Went to Virginia Tech, but spent most of my time here, despite the bitch of a drive. Can I start callin’ people in now?”

Todd felt so completely out of his element. He knew how theater worked, in theory. He had taken a couple of theater classes in order to better understand how to write plays. But he had never actually been on this side of it all. He had never imagined that he would actually get here. But Charlie clearly knew what he was doing and it made Todd feel like a complete idiot. He just nodded and Charlie started calling people in for their auditions.

It went smoothly, for the most part. Todd didn’t know how he would ever cast this play on his own. He could see so many of the people auditioning playing the parts he had written. But he supposed that was what Charlie was there for. He had an eye for these things. And Todd could tell when a person auditioning wasn’t going to get the part just by the way Charlie held himself. His body would stiffen ever so slightly if he didn’t like the acting choices a person was making. He managed to hold his tongue about it, but Todd felt bad that the person in front of him believed they had a chance.

Just after a girl with a curly bob left her audition, a tall boy walked in. Todd could have fallen out of his seat. The way he smiled at the two of them put all of the stage lights to shame. His brown hair was neatly put into place. He was wearing a deep blue sweater and khaki pants, but Todd could forgive the choice of pants for the sheer warmth the boy brought into the room. And he knew next to nothing about casting, but he couldn’t shake that the boy was exactly how he had pictured one of his characters while writing them

Charlie rolled his eyes, “Get out of here, Neil, you already know you’ve got the lead.”

Todd could hardly hide the excitement in him. So this was going to be his Quincy, the romantic lead for his play. Everything was falling into place.

The boy, Neil, shook his head. “I’m auditioning like everyone else, Charlie. If you don’t stop giving me leads without auditions, people are gonna start thinking I’m sleeping with you for parts.”

“So that’s not what you’re sleeping with me for?” Charlie teased, leaning forward.

Todd couldn’t explain why his heart sunk.

But Neil laughed. “You wish you were getting me.” He looked to Todd apologetically. “I’m sorry for him. He thinks he’s clever and witty, but really he’s just crass and annoying. You must be Mr. Anderson.”

Todd blushed. The boy standing in front of him couldn’t have been more than a year younger than him, if that. “T-There’s no need for the formality. Please, call me Todd.”

Neil grinned. “Well, it’s a pleasure to meet you, Todd. Your play is a work of genius. I love how it subverts the typical Shakespearean tropes and–”

“Stop flirtin’ with the playwright and get on with your audition if you insist on havin’ one. This is why people are gon’ think you’re sleepin’ with directors and playwrights for parts,” Charlie interrupted. But the director looked more amused than anything.

Neil flushed a light pink, which was nothing in comparison to the crimson that was coloring Todd’s cheeks. The boy nodded and opened up his script. He started to read Quincy’s main soliloquy, and when he did, Todd could see why Charlie had picked him out quickly to play the lead. There was a melody in the way that he performed. It was obvious that he understood the character perfectly, and loved him. In short, he was perfect. And the playwright was completely blown away. He could have sat there for the rest of the day and listened to him recite lines. But after the soliloquy was over, Charlie sent him out of the room and reminded him that rehearsals started next week.

There were only three people after Neil who auditioned, and none of them were particularly remarkable. They weren’t bad, just nothing to write home about. When the last person left, Charlie turned to Todd.

“I’m gon’ be honest, I already have your cast list figured out. So unless you wanna make a case for any particular actor…”

Todd shook his head. “Uh, no, I trust your judgement. Quincy is the most important anyway, and you’ve got him…perfect.”

Charlie smiled. “When I read the play, I thought of Neil. I told Neil he had the part the day I was assigned your director.”

“How do you know each other?” Todd wanted to know everything there was to know about this magnificent man, every minutiae and detail of him.

Charlie leaned back in his chair. “Met at VT. He was pre-med, funnily enough. But halfway through his sophomore year, he told his dad to shove it where the sun don’ shine, and look where we are now. I like to think he got that from me.”

Todd nodded, chewing on the inside of his cheek. He flushed as the next question left his lips. “And you two arent…?”

Charlie just laughed. “Me and Neil? No way, he was just pullin’ my leg. Not my type, Neil. He’s too much of that sappy poet, hopeless romantic type. I ain’t lookin’ for that right now. Neil’s the kinda guy you bring home to Mom and Pop, settle down with. I’m the kinda guy they warn you ‘bout.” He offered Todd a wink, which made the playwright blush involuntarily. He chuckled like it was part of a game. “I’ll send out the cast and crew list tomorrow then. Rehearsals start next tuesday.” He offered his hand to shake. “Nice to meetcha, and I’m lookin’ forward to workin’ with you.”

Todd nodded and shook his hand before getting up and leaving the theater they were in. Upon exiting, he was immediately met by a curly-haired ginger with horn-rimmed glasses. “Oh! You must be Todd Anderson. Sorry to accost you like this. I’m Steven Meeks, I’ll be the stage manager for the play.” He spoke with an accent that told Todd that he was not from down south, but he couldn’t place just where.

Todd smiled. It was still so surreal to hear people talking about being on the crew for the play that he wrote. It was hard to believe that the play wasn’t just his anymore, that it belonged to other people too, that they could love it almost as much as he did.

“Nice to meet you, Steven. Have you met the director yet?”

The ginger rolled his eyes. “Please, just Meeks. And unfortunately. Charlie Dalton is the most most miserable person I’ll ever have the misfortune of working under. He thinks that Georgia accent and southern charm can get him whatever he wants. But I’m from Brooklyn and I’m not phased.”

“Brooklyn?” Todd asked, an eyebrow raised. “How’d you end up here, then? Guess I shouldn’t talk, being from Vermont.”

Meeks ran a hand through his curls, “I ask myself that question every goddamn day. Thought getting so far away from home would be nice. And the theater here is great, but I kind of can’t wait until I can go back up there. But anyway, just wanted to introduce myself. I’m sure you’ve got places to be. Nice to meet you, Todd.”

Todd smiled, “Likewise, Meeks.”

Todd made his way back to his tiny apartment just outside of Roanoke and flopped down on his couch. On the coffee table in front of him was the original, unedited copy of his play. It was hard to believe that his senior thesis had turned into all of this. It was hard to believe that in about two months time, people would be paying to see something he spent countless sleepless nights working on. And as he picked that original script up, he couldn’t help but feel like he had done something great.

#anderperry #dps #nsway

[inahallucination]

I know you mostly write for anderperry, but a Meeks and Pitts prompt where they're going to school together, and Pitts has always been really short, and then he comes back to school after summer and he has grown like 1 or 2 entire feet, and Meeks is like "shit he's tall and hot now"

~ Charlotte

kinda rushed sorry :,(

//

growth spurts

Gerard Pitts and Steven Meeks had been friends for most of their lives. Their parents met at some party or the other – the boring kind where grownups sat together with bad tasting but expensive drinks bragging about themselves and their kids – but only as an extension to themselves. But the Meeks and the Pitts had hit it off and soon Mrs. Meeks was telling her son Steven to put on his best shirt for his playdate.

Steven liked Gerard just fine, pretty quickly. At seven years old, Steven was already falling behind his classmates in height. But Gerard was only a little taller than him. That was the reason Steven had liked him initially, even if Gerard didn’t talk much and when he did, he stumbled over words.

But then a week later Steven was being put in his other good shirt and was once again taken to the Pitts’ residence. Gerard still didn’t talk much. But as Steven grew bored waiting for him to speak, he decided to just do the speaking for the both of them. Steven started rambling about something he’d read in a book about space. And Gerard’s eyes lit up because apparently he’d read the book too.

And then the day after Steven was begging his mother to let him go meet Gerard again. And his mother laughed and called the Pitts, and this time Gerard came to the Meeks’ house. Which was even better, in Steven’s eyes, because he could now show him his space books collection and every other book he had.

That very afternoon, Gerard and Steven sat in the living room taking apart a remote control.

It was the start of many other taken apart house appliances and Ger and Stevie’s friendship.

They entered Welton together. Their parents had both decided to wait until they were a little older before sending in applications. And at 12 years old, Steven Meeks and Gerard Pitts walked to Welton hand in hand.

Gerard was still only an inch or two taller.

The first person to acknowledge them was a loud, mischievous boy by the name of Charlie Dalton. Steven stood next to Gerard as Dalton “Call me Charlie, fellas” rambled about something or the other. Charlie was even shorter than Gerard (though taller than Steven) and Steven – a little too old to choose friendships based on something as silly as heights – smiled to himself. Younger him would be so excited to know he was befriending people his own height.

With Charlie came Neil – a tall, sweet boy who probably would’ve spoken to them anyway, even without Charlie. He was friendly and bright and offering to show them around. He reminded Steven of a puppy in a way. HE had this magnetic-ness to him, and Steven would often find himself searching for him. He noticed Ger did too. And so did Charlie.

And then they were meeting someone named Knox and the next thing Steven knew the five of them were always together. TO the point that event eh other students referred to them as if they were all one thing. One group.

Steven met Cameron through Neil. He was smart but a little uptight and Steven wasn’t sure what to make of him.

But then one day a teacher asked Cameron to help Gerard study in a class Steven didn’t take. Ger was the smartest person Steven knew. But sometimes he learned in ways that teachers didn’t teach. And Welton was very particular about how everything was done.

But Cameron hadn’t made fun of Ger for being so confused about things and had simply explained it over and over until he understood.

Ger remained his closest friend through it all, however.

Things started to change their sophomore year. The summer before was the only summer that Steven and Gerard hadn’t spent together since the Pitts were off on a work vacation curtesy of Mrs. Pitts’ job. They had offered to take Steven with them too, but summer was the only time Steven ever saw his parents or other family, so he had sadly declined.

Ger’ had sent him letters throughout so Steven hadn’t missed him too much. Though he still looked forward to seeing him again.

Neil also wrote to him – stuck in summer classes because of his father and unable to visit. Charlie’s family had also flown away on vacation though Charlie had asked him to come too and had offered to stay – Wouldn’t want you to miss my pretty face too much- when he found out Ger was leaving.

Cameron had been spending his summer tutoring some kids and Steven often tagged along.

Knox showed up too sometimes – the weeks before he was whisked away to somewhere by his parents – but he ended up just confusing the kids more.

It hadn’t been the best summer, but Steven supposed it could be worse.

Either way he was excited to see his friends again – and Ger especially.

Summer ended slowly in Steven’s impatience, but ended, nonetheless. And soon he was being kissed on the cheek by his mother and finding his way to his dorm.

“Holy Shit! Pitts, man! What did they feed you?” Charlie’s voice, like usual, cut through the usual chaos of settling back to Welton. Steven followed his voice, after the name Charlie called registered in his head. And-

Oh.

Ger…

Summer had done Gerard well, apparently, Steven thought, dazed. He’d gotten taller. Way taller. Way taller than even beanpole Neil.

And-

Ok, objectively, Steven knew that Ger was kind of cute. But he’d never thought of it. Not until it hit him in the face like this.

“Looking good, Pitts!” Neil’s voice came as he made his way over. He caught Steven’s eye and winked knowingly. Steven felt his cheeks flush, and he quickly looked back to Ger.

This… was not going to be a good year for Steven Meeks. Oblivious to his inner turmoil, Ger turned his way and beamed happily. Steven’s heart skipped a beat and he pretended not to notice.

He wondered if there was a book on how to handle your best friend getting hot overnight.

//

the strength i needed to not somehow add todd in fasdkjfjadslkf

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