No Shirt, No Problem?
Author's Notes: This is just a short little fluff piece. I saw on Tumblr this morning where Damian McGinty (Rory) had posted a picture of himself from vacation, and he was shirtless. I was so happy because hey, he's hot. What I noticed is that Damian isn't built like the other Glee guys. He doesn't have the six pack, the chiseled pecs, the buffed up look. Instead, he's rather average with very little definition and maybe even a teensy bit of a tummy starting, and to me, that makes him sexier. He's much more like the boy next door, like the kind of guy most of us might end up with, and that is incredibly delicious to me. Not to say guys like Chord and Darren aren't hot, they definitely are, but they certainly don't remind me of guys I could ever obtain. What makes me a little sad though is that there are people out there dissing on Damian for not being buff and built, saying he's fat and whatnot. Well that's not true, but people like that are why people have body issues, and I imagine to an extent, if Rory were in a locker room with the rest of his glee mates all toned up and buff, he might feel a little self concious. This is a story about confidence and friendship. It's Sory fluff with the assumption that Rory is still at McKinley for junior year. Enjoy and pray for more Damian shirtlessness in the near future!
Rory sat in the locker room, staring down at the pair of incredibly short leafy green trunks Brittany had picked out for him to wear. He glared at them as if they were something evil, created simply to taunt him. In fact, they made him feel slightly sick, perhaps even enough to make him vomit.
It all started because of a stupid calendar. After a scandal with the Warblers new captain bribing the judges at sectionals along with Marley's fainting spell, the New Directions were able to claim victory and go on to regionals. The thing was, regionals was being held in southern Ohio, three hours away. Not only did they have to pay someone to drive the school bus down there and back, but they had to afford gas. Principal Figgins wasn't giving any slack with the budget, and if the glee club didn't do something to raise money, they would be out of luck.
Previously they had gotten funding through donations and bake sales, and even Sugar's father, but this year was different. Despite being national champions, nobody was willing to sponsor them, and Sugar's father was having a slight financial crisis with his own scandal in business. When Mr. Schuester suggested a bake sale, it was met with a resounding 'no' and a wave of complaints.
It was Brittany who came up with the bright idea of the Men of McKinley calendar. When she told Tina, the Asian girl was estatic and anxious to help. She discovered that they could take the pictures themselves and put the calendar together in iPhoto and send it off for production. It would only cost ten dollars to make, and if they charged fifteen a piece, they could have more than enough money for regionals and maybe even start saving for nationals.
Rory could have killed Brittany and Tina both when they announced the idea. There were seven guys total: Sam, Ryder, Jake, Joe, Artie, Blaine, and himself. That covered seven months, with the others consisting of pairs and groups. Oh, and to make matters terrible, none of them would be wearing shirts. As far as Rory was concerned, 'Mr. March' would feel more comfortable wearing his Itchy the Christmas Elf costume than posing without his shirt.
The photo shoot was scheduled during normal glee club rehearsal time. Brittany and Tina were taking the pictures while Sugar, Marley, and Kitty set up the props and backgrounds between takes.
Rory did have to admit, at least he wasn't stuck with April or October. Poor Joe was stuck wearing bunny ears and a cottontail on his fluffy bunny pants, while Jake had to wear a jack-o-lantern for shorts and a pumpkin top for a hat. Both of those had been Brittany's brainchild obviously. Ryder was lucky enough to get July with stars and stripes board shorts and top hat, while Artie was given May, disguising his wheelchair as a race car, and Blaine was nicknamed the naughty Santa with his Santa Claus pants and hat, with a very large candy cane for December. His best friend, Sam, even got June, dressed in a lifeguard's shorts with a whistle and flip left only himself, March being his obvious assignment since his former status as a leprechaun was quickly pointed out by Brittany.
Sugar came up with the idea for Mr. March's outfit. A pair of dark green trunks with a black belt and gold buckle. He'd wear a black top hat, also with a gold buckle, and black boots and a green and gold bow tie. She named her creation 'the sexy leprechaun' despite the fact that Rory felt anything but sexy.
"Rory, you in here?" he heard his best friend's voice echo in the otherwise empty locker room. Rory didn't answer. "Hey, where are you?" Sam called again.
Maybe if I don't say anything, he'll go away and they can just do it without me.I won't have to do it if they can't find me.
Too late. "There you are!" Sam exclaimed, popping his head around the lockers. He noticed the distressed look on his friend's face and immediately came out to talk to him. "You okay, Ror?"
Rory looked up at his friend, a terrified look in his eyes. "I'll take that as a no," Sam said, sitting down on the bench next to him. "Dude, what's wrong? You look like you're gonna pass out or something."
"I feel sick," was all the younger teenager said, his voice quivering slightly.
"That cafeteria food will do that to you. Why do you think all I eat is the jell-o?" Sam chuckled a little, trying to cheer his friend up, but it wasn't working. "I bet the nurse has some Pepto or something. You know unless you're puking your guts up, Britt and Tina won't let you out of this."
"Maybe I should stick my finger down my throat then," Rory replied sarcastically. He opened his mouth and started to put his finger in, but Sam yanked his hand away.
"Stop that! Didn't you see what that crap did to Marley? Fingers down the throat are not your friend," Sam declared. "Now what's the big deal, huh? It's just a picture or two, then it's done. Then we can go to the mall like you wanted."
The young teen shook his head. "No, that's okay. I don't wanna go now. I just wanna go home and forget about this stupid calendar altogether."
Sam's first inclination was to simply tell his friend to suck it up and deal with it, get it over with, but something told him there was a deeper issue here. If he was willing to force himself to throw up, it had to be more than just not feeling like doing the calendar. He put his arm around the boy's shoulder, comforting him.
"What's wrong? Don't say 'nothing' either, because something is obviously not cool. Your forehead's even sweating," Sam said, urging the boy to open up. Rory merely hung his head down, refusing to look at his comrade. "Come on, Rory. I'm your best friend. You can talk to me."
Rory sighed helplessly. "Fine. I don't wanna do the calendar. I don't want my picture taken and I don't want to..." He looked over into Sam's emerald eyes, the man waiting for him to go on. "I don't want to take my shirt off in front of everyone. There, I said it."
Sam was confused. "Why not? Dudes take their shirts off all the time at the beach and pool and stuff. This isn't really any different."
"Yes it is!" Rory shouted unexpectedly. Startled, Sam pulled back, eyes wide and blinking. "Sorry, I didn't mean to yell."
"Don't worry about it," Sam said. "So uh, why don't you wanna take off your shirt? I'm not wearing one right now, it's no big deal, right?"
Rory hung his head again, staring at the awful green shorts. "Because... because I'm not like you, Sam. Or any of the other guys."
His friend cocked his head to the side. The only way he knew Rory to be unlike the rest of them was that he had an Irish accent, and thick as it was, he didn't see the relation to the current situation. "Explain."
Sighing, Rory went on. "Look at you, Sam. All of you guys. You have muscles. Your arms are strong and you have sip sack abs and muff chests."
"You mean six pack and buff?"
The Irish teen blushed at his mistake. He had only heard the slang a couple of times and apparently had misheard them both, just like many other slang terms in America. "Yes, those. You guys are built up, all strong and muscular and girls like to look at you, and guys want to be you."
Sam put his hand on the boy's back and gave him a gentle rub. "Is that what this is all about? Us having six packs and biceps? Getting girls attention and jealousy from guys? I doubt there's anything wrong with you."
Rory crossed his arms over his chest and hugged himself as if protecting something. "No, it's bad. I'm chunked and wimpy looking."
"Chunky, and no, you aren't. At least I doubt it. I bet you look fine."
"No, I don't. Why do you think I change in the bathroom stall and shower in the only enclosed shower?"
Sam thought a moment. "I just thought maybe you were shy about being naked in front of everyone else. That whole weird dick thing going on and all."
"It is not weird! It's called uncircumcised and Americans are the weird ones chopping up their babies five minutes after they're born!" Rory replied harshly.
"Er, sorry, I didn't mean it like that. I don't mean weird, I just mean it's different and maybe you were shy about it or something. Sorry about upsetting you," Sam apologized, feeling bad for insulting his friend. The hurt look on his face only made Sam feel all the worse.
The blonde scratched his head, trying to think of some way to make his friend feel better. Finally he decided on the direct approach. "Take off your shirt," he ordered firmly.
"What? No! I'm not taking off my shirt!"
"Please? Just right here. In front of me but nobody else. I'm your best friend, you should feel okay with that, right? You can trust me, I'm not going to make fun of you," Sam said. "Now, take off your shirt."
Sighing, Rory stood up, took a deep breath, and pulled his shirt over his head, immediately crossing his arms in front of himself, his shirt gripped tightly in his hand, still hiding his stomach.
Sam reached forward and snatched the garment from the boy's grip. "Arms down. There you go. See, that wasn't so hard, was it?"
"Yeah, but Sam, of course you're not gonna make fun of me. You don't look at me that way and this is just in the locker room, you and me. Going out in front of people, being put on a poster, that's different."
"Rory, I'm gonna say something to you that might freak you out, or it might not, but I think saying it might be the only thing that smacks some sense into you," Sam said hesitantly. "Just don't get mad at me, okay?"
Rory nodded his head, scared of what Sam was about to tell him. What could he possibly have to say that I might get upset about? Does he think I need hipposuction or something? Stop eating? Six pack implants?
The senior took a deep breath, terrified about the confession he was about to make. "Rory, I think you're sexy."
The junior's face filled with confusion, invisible question marks floating around his head. Did he just say I was sexy? Isn't rhat what guys say to girls, or girls to guys? I thought only gay guys told other guys they were sexy.
"Well, you didn't punch me so that's a start," Sam stated, trying to read the boy's face and determine what he was thinking. "I mean that, though. I think you're sexy. Hot. Handsome. Especially now."
"Wait, I'm confused, Sam. I didn't think guys said that to other guys unless they were, you know, gay? You're not gay, you like girls. You were in love with Mercedes last year, and been flirting with Brittany all year."
The blonde chuckled softly. "No, I'm not gay. I'm bisexual. I like girls and guys. I never told anyone else that before." Rory stared at him like he had three heads. "I understand if you're mad."
"No, I'm not mad. I'm just confused. Not about the bisex thing, but about you thinking I'm sexy or hot or whatever. How can you think that, about me?" Rory asked, his sapphire blue eyes filled with questions.
Sam smiled at him. "Ror, you're not built like me, or Blaine, or Ryder or any of the other guys. You're not muscular or anything, but that's okay. It's you. You aren't fat. I don't know who told you that, but they were on drugs if they think that."
"I don't get it, Sam. If I'm not like you, why am I sexy?"
"Because I said so. Really, you don't have to be like me to be sexy." Sam reached forward and put his hand around Rory's upper arm. "You have more strength than you think, but who cares that you don't have bulging biceps? Your arms are nice how they are."
The boy's eyes glanced downward even though his head was still 'looking' at his friend. He was pulled out of his daze when he felt Sam's hand on the middle of his chest. "Not trying to get familiar, I just want to see." He paused a moment. "Just like I thought. Not fat. Just firm. And your stomach? No six pack, but you're still slim. You have no reason to be ashamed of your body."
"Thanks Sam, but I don't think-
Rory was interrupted by Sam's finger across his lips. "You're just gonna have to stop arguing with me, here." He thought a moment before bringing up something he really didn't want to think about, but would be for Rory's benefit. "You dated Sugar for a few months, right? I know you guys had to go past kissing. Did she ever see or touch your chest?"
The young teen blushed heavily. "Uhm, we uh, we did kiss, and uh heavy touching. She had her hands up my shirt but I never took it off."
"Okay, well, when she touched you, did she seem to like it?"
"I guess. She didn't stop. She put her hands all over, like she was trying to give me a massage," Rory admitted, refusing to look Sam in the eyes.
Sam grinned. "Point made then. If she didn't think you were sexy, she would have stopped. She wouldn't want to touch you."
Rory shrugged. "I guess. But Sam, what's the point of all this? I don't look like you guys. Nobody is going to want to look at my picture for an entire month. The plain average guy with nothing special."
Sam put his hands on the boy's shoulders and shook him, then playfully smacked his cheek. "You stop that right now, Rory Flanagan! I know at least two people who would love to look at you all March long, and maybe even more."
There was an awkward silence between them, Sam releasing his friend from his grip and just standing in front of him, waiting for the teen to look up into his eyes and see his honesty there.
Taking in a deep breath, Sam decided to do something he had wanted to do for a long time but never had the balls to do it. He lifted Rory's chin with his finger, stared deep into his ocean eyes, closed the distance between them, and planted his lips firmly against his friend's.
Stunned, Rory had no choice but to stare right back at Sam, feeling his warmth. The kiss was unexpected, but not unwanted in the least bit. He had always found Sam attractive. At first he thought he just had a serious case of hero worship for the older teenager, but when he had seen Sam in his boxer briefs over Christmas holiday, he knew he felt more than just admiration.
Breaking the kiss, Sam stood back a bit and nervously gazed at his friend, searching for a reaction.
"Th-That was nice," was all Rory said. The corner of his mouth started to slowly turn up, a smile creeping up.
"I would never kiss someone who wasn't sexy. I guess that means you are, and you just have to accept it. It's now fact," Sam insisted. "Now, get in your outfit so we can get this photo shoot out of the way and I can take you on a proper date."
Rory scrunched up his brow. "Date? Huh?"
Sam grinned widely. "Yes, a date. You don't have other plans do you?" Rory shook his head in reply. "Alright then. We do this thing, get dressed, and then I'm taking you on a date. I'm gonna make sure you realize just how sexy you are, and not just outside, but inside too."
"Sam, we've been friends for over a year now. Don't you think-"
"Yes, I think a date is long overdue," Sam interrupted.
"I was going to say 'Don't you think a date is kind of unneccesary?'."
Sam blushed a little. "Oh. Well, I stick by my sentiment. Rory, would you do me the honor of going out with me tonight?" he asked, getting down on one knee and taking the boy's hand in his.
"Y-y-yes, I will," Rory replied. Sam smiled and stood up, pulling him in for a hug.
"Good. I don't think I could handle the rejection. Now, on with your outfit. I'll turn around so you can change shorts."
Rory didn't say anything as he picked up his shorts, Sam turning his back toward him. Certain that his friend couldn't see anything, he slipped off his running shorts and pulled on the green ones, pulling the belt and buckle around. "You can turn around now."
Sam faced back to his friend and smiled. The trunks looked adorable on him, and accentuated his form in just the right places. He put the rest of the outfit on- the boots, top hat, and bowtie, and then shrugged his shoulders. "So, how do I look?"
"Wonderful!" Sam replied. He leaned in for another innocent kiss. "I think I will be buying twelve calendars and putting your picture up for every month. It'll be Mr. March all year 'round."
Rory beamed at the sentiment. Here he was, just an average kid with one of the hottest jocks in the school asking him on a date and calling him sexy. He let Sam lead him back to the choir room, trying his best to maintain the little bit of confidence Sam had given him.
"Hey, what took you so long?" Tina asked upon seeing the two teens return to the room. "We thought you ran away or something!"
"Nah, we just got talking and forgot the time. Sorry about that," Sam covered. "Hey, you mind if me and Rory do one of the extra shots together? You know, best friends and all."
Brittany shrugged her approval. "Fine, fine, but we need to get a move on. It takes a whole hour for them to develop film."
Nobody bothered to tell Brittany they were using a digital camera and thus would not need to develop it, nor take it to a store.
After the calendar shoot was finished, the boys changed back into casual clothes and Sam took Rory to BreadstiX and a movie for their date. They didn't see half of the movie, however, because they were too busy kissing, Sam's hand up Rory's shirt, taking every advantage of the closeness in the special armless seats.
A week later, the calendars were published and girls and guys alike were buying them until they sold out. Students were begging the men for their autographs on their months, and Rory couldn't help but feel better about himself as a swarm of girls (and a guy) gathered around him, squealing for his signature.
By the time September came, Sam still had his copy of the calendar in his locker and on his desk at home. Both of them turned to March 2013.