A/N: Heehee I named Sodia after baloney because I am a vindictive five-year-old. Also, I'm just gonna go ahead and apologize for Yeager's accent.
Anyways, my friend's considerably more epic story is nearing completion, and she should start posting soon under the name badomens. She is leagues ahead of me about actually having plot-type-stuff in her writing.
Pretty much a follow-up story to "Second Story Window."
Disclaimer: The characters and settings in this story are borrowed from Tales of Vesperia and do not belong to me.
It had been Yuri's idea to meet up at prom rather than ride together and, when he finally arrived almost half an hour late, Flynn could see why.
"Yuri, what are you wearing? This is a formal occasion."
"Right. That's why I wore my good jeans."
He was grinning, completely unrepentant about showing up to prom in a pair of jeans and a tuxedo t-shirt. Flynn sighed, wondering why he'd expected anything different.
"I thought maybe you weren't going to show up," Flynn murmured. It wouldn't have been the first time Yuri cancelled their plans last minute. He'd been doing that a lot lately.
"What, and miss this enchanting beneath-the-waves fantasy?"
He gestured at the gymnasium which had been thoroughly decorated by someone who was entirely too obsessed with The Little Mermaid. Streamers in white and shades of blue hung from the ceiling, crisscrossing the room and undulating slowly in the air blasting from the vents. Blue curtains had been hung around the entire room and decorated with an assortment of ocean-themed miscellany that ranged from nets and real shells to crane game plush crabs. Balloon jellyfish were anchored in bunches along the walls, their crepe paper and curling ribbon tendrils waving feebly whenever someone passed by. The lights had mostly been covered by blue film, and someone had put up a disco ball over the dance floor. There was a mermaid mural hung up as a stage backdrop.
Yuri snickered. "Man, this is lame. Why don't we—"
"No."
"You didn't even hear me out."
"I didn't need to. I don't want to ditch and go somewhere else. I don't want to mess with the decorations or screw around with the music or spike the punch or whatever it was you were going to say. I just want to enjoy the prom with my boyfriend."
"Jeez, Flynn. I was just gonna suggest we give 'em something to talk about, if you know what I mean." He leaned forward close enough that their noses almost touched before rocking back too quickly for Flynn to react to the brief invasion of his personal space.
The idea was tempting, particularly with Yuri smiling like that and the dancing lights from the disco ball glittering in his eyes. That tuxedo shirt was way too tight on him, clinging to skin that Flynn had become increasingly and intimately familiar with in the months since they'd begun dating.
Flynn swallowed, licked his lips, realized he was staring, realized Yuri realized he was staring.
"I'm not an exhibitionist like you, Yuri."
"Oh, I think there are a few people who remember that one time at the theater who'd argue that." The grin Yuri flashed him was full of mischief and entirely too 'Come hither' for Flynn's comfort. He felt the heat of a blush crawling up from under his collar. He was quickly losing control of the situation, not an uncommon occurrence where Yuri was concerned.
"Shut up and come with me. Ioder's saving us a table." Flynn started off around the edge of the dance floor. He jumped a little when Yuri leaned in so close behind him that he could feel his boyfriend's breath on the back of his neck.
"You look hot in a tux," Yuri whispered.
Had he any confidence that the compliment was serious rather than an attempt to fluster him, Flynn would have had a hard time not turning around and dragging Yuri out to the back of his car. As it was, he rolled his eyes, repressed a sigh, and reminded himself that Yuri was not dating him for his body. Probably.
"Mine liebschen, you made it after all!" Yeager, one of Yuri's friends, cut through the crowd like a shark. He was a flamboyant oddball who affected a German accent and dated junior twins Gauche and Droite. The girls currently flanked him, arms linked with his.
"'Sup?" Yuri quit following Flynn to talk to them.
"Ach, girls look at zis mess, ya? My friend, you look as if you haff been attacked by ze srift store."
"Hey, I bought this shirt new, just for tonight."
"It is vorse zan I sought. You admit to paying money for zis…travesty you call an outfit? I cannot. Ve vill see you later, ya?" He swept off with his entourage.
"Hey, I make this look good!" Yuri shouted after him.
"Schatzi, I assure you, no von makes zat look good."
Yuri turned his attention back to his boyfriend. "Flynn, do I look good?"
"You look like a sardonic teenager."
"Oh, for fuck's sake. Here, then." With no further warning, Yuri stripped off his t-shirt, turned it inside out, and pulled it back on. There was a brief chorus of catcalls.
"There, classic black. Happy now?"
"Lowell!" LeBlanc, Halure High's gym teacher could out-bellow a steam train, Yuri was sure. He eyed the man striding angrily towards him, heedless of the students dancing as he crossed the floor.
"Evening, Coach."
"Just got here and already you're making trouble. Keep your clothes on, or I'll kick you out."
"Hey, just trying to fix my dress code violation."
"I heard you don't plan on going to college."
The abrupt change of topic threw Yuri for a loop. "What?"
"It's a waste, and no mistake. You're a smartass, but you're a bright kid. Can't say I've said that much about members of the boxing team. They usually get the sense beat right out of them."
"Uhh…thanks?"
"Do yourself a favor and think about it. Take a year off, get yourself together, whatever, but think about it, all right?"
"Yeah, okay."
Flynn watched with interest as Yuri's cockiness dissolved, leaving him scuffing his sneakers against the tile self-consciously. It was hard to tell in the dim, blue light, but it looked like he might be blushing. Flynn's encouragement had never gotten a reaction like that from him.
Satisfied that he'd said his piece and that Yuri probably wouldn't be breaking any more rules for a few minutes, LeBlanc went back to patrolling the perimeter.
"Are you going to reconsider?"
"Told him I'd think about it."
"You never agreed to do that for me."
"Yeah, well, Coach is a good guy." Yuri rubbed the back of his neck. Flynn saw the smile he was trying to force back, recognized the way he shifted restlessly where he stood. He was embarrassed. He was embarrassed because he'd been praised by a teacher and it made him happy. Oh, this was too good.
"Are you feeling all right? Your face looks a little red."
"Shut up, Flynn. Isn't Ioder waiting for us?" He took off in the direction Flynn had been heading before they'd gotten waylaid.
"Of course. Can't keep the junior class president waiting, even for the brightest kid on the boxing team."
"Shut. Up."
Flynn tried not to laugh. Yuri could be sensitive about the strangest things and he was contrary to a fault. Too much teasing and he'd probably bomb his finals intentionally and seriously hurt his chances of getting into Zaphias if he ever did decide to apply.
They were within sight of the table when Elizabeth Kaufmann strode up to them, smiling. Kaufmann—everyone called her Kaufmann, even the teachers—was the senior student council treasurer and about as infamous as Yuri. Three of her siblings had graduated from Halure in rapid succession: all top of their class, all active in clubs or student council, and all very popular. She was just as sharp as any of them and, like the rest of her family, she had a way of carrying herself that said she only followed rules when it worked in her favor to do so.
"Evening. You two look as delightfully mismatched as always."
"That's an interesting choice of attire," Yuri observed. Kaufmann was dressed in a full-on tailored tux with tails. "If you were going for ringleader, you're missing the top hat."
"I really don't think you have room to be commenting on anyone else's ensemble this evening. By the way, I caught your little show a minute ago. Very nice." She gave a little golf clap and turned her smile to Flynn. "If I didn't know better, I'd say you are a very lucky man."
Her tone stated quite clearly that in reality she did know better, but would be pleased to play along for her own reasons. Flynn was thankful when Yuri called her attention back to him.
"You all set for your big MC gig this evening?"
"Of course. How very thoughtful of you to ask. While I'm thinking of it, thanks for your help last week."
"Of course." Yuri matched her smirk for smirk, and Flynn got the distinct feeling he was missing something.
"So what does a girl have to do to get asked to dance around here?" Before Flynn could speak up, Yuri offered her his arm.
"Being direct helps." They started towards the dance floor and Yuri glanced over his shoulder, smiling crookedly at Flynn. "Sorry. Duty calls."
Sighing, Flynn turned away from the table where Ioder was waiting and moved out of the flow of traffic. He found a spot near the wall where he could still see the dance floor and watched his boyfriend happily dancing with someone else.
They hadn't told anyone else about the change in their relationship, and none of the few people who knew were inclined to gossip about it. They'd been careful not to be obvious about it, but there were still people who suspected and had apparently done so for a while. Flynn found it slightly disconcerting, even if he did have to concede that he wasn't nearly as good at hiding his thoughts as Yuri was.
Lately, though, all the caution and sneaking around had started to grate on his nerves. He wanted to be able to act like all those other couples that hung all over each other without a second thought. He wanted to show off to the world, flaunt his happiness openly without having to worry about jeers and fights and people hating him because of who he loved. Really, if it came to it, the two of them together would be a match for anyone who tried to start something. It was only people's prejudices they couldn't fight back against, and what did those matter in the end?
"Flynn!" Sodia appeared suddenly out of the crowd, making a beeline for him and breaking him out of his thoughts. Flynn had never seen her in a dress before, and he was surprised to realize the look suited her as well as her ROTC uniform.
"I'm glad I found you. I've got a table over this way with Witcher and the others."
"Actually, I'm sort of here with Yu—" A hand clapped him on the shoulder and suddenly he noticed Yuri standing next to him. The song had ended. Kaufmann was nowhere in sight.
"I'm gonna grab some punch, Flynn. Catch you later."
"Yuri, wait a sec. I'll talk to you later, Sodia. Um, you look nice!" He took off after his rapidly retreating boyfriend, but Yuri had a gift for weaving though crowds that Flynn had never quite mastered. He didn't catch up until he reached the refreshments table. By then, Yuri was already halfway through a plastic cup of punch.
"Are you going to spend the rest of senior year running away from her?"
"I wasn't running away. I wanted some punch." To prove his point, he held up his cup in front of Flynn's face before draining the last of its too-red contents. "Not bad. Has more of a kick that you'd expect from some off-brand Kool-Aid."
"Yuri…."
"What? What did I do this time, Flynn?"
"Knock it off. I'm not trying to start a fight." He sighed. "Come on. Let's just go sit down."
Shrugging, Yuri refilled his cup, grabbed a second, and followed after him.
"I don't drink that stuff," Flynn said, eying the punch dubiously.
"It's not for you."
They made it to the table with no further interruptions. Ioder was about the only student council member Yuri could stand, so he was annoyed, though not surprised, to see several other student body reps there. He snagged the empty seat next to the junior president, leaving Flynn to sit on his other side. Ioder welcomed him with a friendly smile and Yuri wondered again how it was that he and Flynn weren't related. Some of their expressions were way too similar. He nodded his acknowledgement and took a sip of punch.
"I was beginning to think you weren't going to make it back."
Flynn shrugged. "We stopped to chat a couple times. Anything come up?"
"Not really. Aside from Yuri's impromptu strip show there haven't been any problems so far. We've just been kicking around a few ideas for next year."
"Costume balls are always good," Yuri suggested. He grinned wickedly. "That was last year's theme. Flynn went as Cloud. In drag."
"At least I was dressed as a guy dressed as a girl. You were Tifa."
"Good times. Thinking back, the whipped cream balloon boobs may have been a bit much."
"You think? That took forever to clean up."
"How did you two end up choosing those costumes?"
"Truth or dare," they replied in unison. They exchanged grins and Yuri noticed Flynn's expression soften, saw him start to reach over to hold Yuri's hand under the table. Yuri snatched up his first glass of punch and drank it down.
"Told you the second one wasn't for you. Now I don't have to get back up." He picked up the second cup and leaned back in his chair, trying to ignore the look Flynn was giving him.
"So, what are you two planning on doing after graduation?"
Flynn dragged his attention away from Yuri. "I've been accepted to Zaphias. They've got a good criminal law program. I'm looking at becoming a prosecutor. I feel like it will afford me a better opportunity to make a difference than simply joining the police force."
Ioder nodded, smiling. "That sounds like you. I'm sure you'll do well. What about you, Yuri?"
He shrugged. "Dunno, really. Figured I'd just bum around and see what comes my way."
Flynn slapped Yuri's arm lightly with the back of his hand. "He's moving to Dahngrest to look for a job. His uncle is a P.I.—"
"He follows around cheating spouses and takes Polaroids. Not exactly Dick Tracy."
"—and Yuri is considering working with him."
Landon, one of the council members, laughed. "So he's going to play spunky boy assistant to some sleazy private eye?"
Flynn started to say something in his defense, but Yuri cut him off, grinning. "I'll be like Penny to my uncle's Inspector Gadget. All the awesomeness, none of the adult responsibilities."
"…What?"
"Yuri, not everyone has your bizarre interest in old cartoons."
"Well, there go half my snappy comebacks."
"Flynn, how are you even friends with this guy?" Landon asked.
"Yuri is—"
"We've known each other since we were kids. Flynn just had the bad luck to get stuck with me."
"It isn't—"
"Really, I think he keeps me around just because I know too mu—"
"Yuri and I are dating!"
Everyone at the table, Yuri included, stared in stunned silence at Flynn. More unnerved than he'd expected by their scrutiny, he cleared his throat and snatched the forgotten cup of punch out of Yuri's grasp, setting it aside so he could hold his boyfriend's hand.
"We're going out. We have been for a few months."
When it became apparent that no one else was going to break the silence, Yuri pulled his hand free and shrugged.
"Guess the cat's outta the bag now. Damn, Flynn. You're supposed to be the discreet one."
"Well…I can't say I'm all that surprised. You two have always been very close." Ioder smiled encouragingly. "I hope things work out."
"Thank you. If you'll excuse us, I need to talk to Yuri for a minute." Flynn grabbed Yuri's arm as he stood and started to drag him away from the table.
"I haven't finished my punch!"
"It's not going anywhere." They made their way through the groups of students dancing and milling around and traded the watery light of the gym for the bright hallway outside. They were alone, but Flynn still ushered Yuri a little ways down from the door.
"So what's so important that you had to drag me away from the party?"
"You're acting weird. What's going on?"
"You suddenly out yourself at prom and I'm the one acting weird? I think you've been studying too hard."
"Why don't you try making it a little more obvious that you're hiding something?"
"I'm not hiding anything! What's your problem?"
"What's yours?"
Just then, the doors to the gym were thrown open hard enough to slam against the walls to either side.
"Yuri Lowell!"
Groaning, Yuri rubbed a hand over his face. "Not again, Zagi."
Smiling ear to ear, Zagi strode forward. A fellow member of the boxing team, he had more pride than brains and had somehow decided that Yuri was his archrival.
"I've been waiting for this. Now that I've got you alone we can settle things between us!"
"What do you mean 'alone?' Flynn is right here, you psycho."
"No, don't mind me. I'll let you handle your one-man fan club yourself."
"More like a stalker."
"Just try to get it over with before a teacher comes out, all right? I don't want to be kicked out of my prom."
Yuri waited until Zagi was right in front of him, waited for the punch he knew was coming. then ducked low and struck. The hit knocked the wind out of Zagi, and Yuri knocked his feet out from under him, dropping him to the floor where he curled up, wheezing.
"That all? That wasn't even a warm up." Yuri settled an arm around Flynn's waist. "Let's go back in. After your little outburst and our abrupt departure for privacy, we're probably a hot topic. Bad form to disappoint our slack-jawed public."
Flynn sighed, but he wrapped an arm around Yuri's shoulders and even went so far as to lean in and kiss his cheek as they walked back into the gym.
"May as well," he said when Yuri looked at him. "Everyone'll know soon enough anyway."
"You don't seem worried."
"Should I be?" When Yuri started to move away, Flynn grabbed his hand. "Hey. Come dance with me."
"What, now?"
"Yeah." He smiled, tugging him toward the dance floor.
"I'm not really good with slow songs."
Despite his protest, Yuri kept walking. He'd always found it difficult to resist when Flynn smiled like that. As they reached the edge of the swaying couples, the song that had been playing came to an end. Yuri had a brief moment to hope that the DJ would pick out something fast for the next track, but the notes that started filtering through the sound system signaled another slow dance.
"It'll be fine." Flynn let go of Yuri's hand to wrap his arms around his neck.
"I don't really get the point of wobbling around like a couple of sleepwalkers."
Somehow, without his conscious direction, Yuri's arms had found their way around Flynn's waist as they danced. They swayed to the music, turning slowly in a circle. It was lame and cheesy, but Flynn was beaming, looking ridiculously happy about the whole thing, and Yuri didn't have the heart to spoil it for him.
"This is kind of nice, don't you think? Maybe we should take dancing lessons together once we get settled in."
"You mean in Dahngrest? Aren't you getting a little ahead of yourself? We can't even afford an apartment right now."
"I know, but I can sort of picture it in my head. We can get a little one bedroom like in that song, and we'll have a big couch in the living room and a little kitchen. You can teach me to cook."
Now Yuri could see it, too. It would be a tiny apartment, probably messy with their things thrown together throughout. The kitchen wouldn't just be little, it would be cramped, too small to move in without brushing up against each other.
"You're such a sap," he said, pulling Flynn closer and ducking his head to hide his expression.
"We should get a dog."
"Most apartments don't allow them."
"We'll find one that does."
"You'd have to walk him every day. Probably more than once."
"We'd go together, explore the neighborhood."
"Stroll through a park, hand-in-hand? Sap."
"Cynic."
Another minute or two and then the song was ending and Yuri was leading Flynn off the dance floor. He noticed the stares and whispers and tightened his grip on Flynn's hand defiantly, thinking: Yeah, what of it?
Yeager found them shortly before they made it back to the table. He smirked at Flynn.
"Congratulations on your coming out, ya? Ve vere all on ze very edges of our seats, vondeirng if tonight vould be ze big night."
"Am I really that obvious?"
"Only someone stupidly in love could haff put up viss ziss one for so long."
"Hey!"
"I don't apologize for ze truth, mine liebschen. Here: I haff procured for you a respectable jacket, at least."
Gauche stepped forward to offer a gunmetal gray tuxedo jacket. Yuri took it hesitantly.
"Where'd you get this from?"
"Best not to ask, liebschen. Put it on und try not to embarrass your poor boyfriend any furzher zis evening."
"Whatever." He shrugged the jacket on, surprised by how well it fit. Yeager always managed to be creepy in the strangest ways.
"It looks good on you," Flynn said. He stepped around in front of Yuri, smoothing down the lapels and tugging at little wrinkles in the fabric.
Yuri could feel himself blushing and knew by the look in Flynn's eyes as he smiled that he'd noticed it. Yeager was smirking at both of them, now.
"Thanks for the upgrade. Why don't you go 'procure' me a fedora or something to go with it?"
"Alvays so ungrateful." He laughed as he turned and melted back into the crowd with the twins.
"Flynn, quit fussing with it. You're acting like my mom. …What are you staring at, anyway?"
Shaking his head, Flynn pushed aside thoughts of Yuri in a proper suit, buttons coming undone one by one to slowly reveal the skin of his throat, chest, stomach…. He sighed and wished his boyfriend didn't have such an aversion to formalwear.
"Should we go get our picture taken?"
"May as well."
They made their way over to the corner of the gym that had been reserved for prom photos, the curtains there mercifully free of ocean-themed knickknacks. As they waited in line, Yuri took off the jacket and passed it to Flynn.
"Hold this for a sec." He stripped off his t-shirt to turn it right side out again.
"Lowell!" LeBlanc's voice echoed across the gym.
"Sorry, Coach!" he shouted back. Flynn helped him back into the jacket, trying not to laugh.
"I suppose you think that's an improvement."
"I'll look properly dressed for the photo, won't I?"
"You would if you were a cartoon, maybe. Come on, we're up."
As they posed in front of the camera, Flynn reached for Yuri's hand. It probably wouldn't be in the frame, but he didn't really mind. The camera flashed and he started to step aside for the next couple but Yuri held him back.
"Hang on, I think I blinked in that one. Can we try again?"
"Only one redo," the cameraman warned. "Get it right this time."
"Yeah, okay. Flynn, say 'cheese.'"
"Che—mmph!" Just before the flash, Yuri yanked Flynn close and kissed him. He pulled away as the afterimages were fading from Flynn's vision, whooped once, and walked off, leaving Flynn to catch up.
"What was that all about?"
"I thought it would make a nice reminder."
"You could have warned me. I think I went all bug-eyed."
"Yeah, well…." They made it to the refreshments table and Yuri helped himself to another cup of punch.
For a minute, Flynn eyed him speculatively. "Are you okay?"
"Sure. Why?"
He thought about how Yuri had run away when Sodia showed up, how he'd been so defensive when Flynn had caught up with him. He thought about how Yuri had pulled his hand away so suddenly back at the table, then strolled back into the prom with an arm around Flynn's waist. Yuri had danced with him and squeezed his hand when people started whispering, then there'd been that joke of a kiss for the camera before he went running off again.
Flynn shrugged. "You just seem…strange tonight."
"You're over-thinking things." Yuri stared into his empty cup, turned around and filled it again from the bowl.
"I don't know how you can drink that stuff. It's always so sweet."
"It's not bad. Whoever mixed it knew what they were doing."
"What's to know? Dump powder into bowl, add water."
Yuri laughed. "You're missing the most important ingredient."
"What would that be?" A thought occurred to him suddenly. "Yuri, that's not spiked, is it?"
"The most important ingredient is always love. That's what mom taught me, anyway." He downed the punch. "I guess that sounds pretty lame, huh?"
"Yuri—" Flynn was cut off as the music ended and three taps on the stage mic reverberated through the speakers.
"Everyone, may I have your attention please?" The request came from Kaufmann as she stood in the spotlight on stage. She waited a moment for the students to quiet down.
"Is everybody enjoying the prom?" There was a chorus of cheers and shouts from the crowd. "Great! Then I suppose you're wondering why I'm interrupting!" Another brief wave of noise filled the gym. "Well, it's time to announce this year's prom king and queen!"
The applause and cheering were much louder this time and went on for a couple minutes. Flynn glanced over at Yuri, wanting to pull him aside and find out what was going on, but his boyfriend was actually watching the proceedings with interest. Even more unsettling, he was trying to hide a smile.
"So let's hear it for our prom king, Halure High's very own Mr. Congeniality: Flynn Scifo!"
As the spotlight found him, Flynn gaped back and forth between Kaufmann and Yuri, who did not look nearly as surprised as he should.
"Yuri, did you—"
"Flynn Scifo, come on up for your coronation!"
Suddenly he was being grabbed from both sides and propelled towards the stage. He was practically pushed up the steps and stood in the spotlights, blinking and dumbstruck as Kaufmann was handed a gaudy crown from the theater props and settled it on his head.
There was no way he'd been fairly elected. He wasn't nearly popular enough for that. He could just barely make out Yuri in the darkness beyond the stage lights and realized he must have rigged it somehow, must have made some sort of deal with Kaufmann. Suddenly, Flynn knew what was going to happen next, knew what name was going to be called for prom queen, and it was no wonder Yuri had been acting so weird all evening! He'd been planning this, but how could he have known Flynn would go and out them right before his little joke?
"And now, the moment you've all been waiting for…the highlight of the evening, the most anticipated announcement of the school year!"
Here it comes.
"This year's Halure High School prom queen is…"
Yuri Lowell.
"…Sodia Meyer!"
"What?" Flynn slapped a hand over his mouth, relieved beyond measure that there hadn't been a microphone in front of him. Sodia? Sodia?
All of a sudden, there she was on stage next to him as Kaufmann placed a rhinestone tiara on her hair. She looked just as surprised as he felt, except she kept sneaking pleased glances up at him. The fight between her and Yuri had been bad enough before. Flynn would be surprised if this didn't escalate it to a blood feud.
"Let's hear it for our royal couple!" The encouragement wasn't really necessary. People were cheering like they hadn't realized anything was wrong. Maybe they were all in on it. Kaufmann had a lot of pull, and Yuri knew just about everybody, after all.
"Get on out there, you two! This dance is all yours."
The spotlights stayed on them as Flynn escorted Sodia down the steps and to the center of the dance floor. A slow song started up as she put her hands on his shoulders and Flynn was struck by the sudden reversal of positions from the way he'd danced with Yuri only a few minutes before. He didn't hold her as close as he had Yuri, not entirely comfortable with the thought of dancing with the girl who was feuding with his boyfriend. Sodia must have noticed.
"You're thinking about him, aren't you?"
"Ah, yeah. Sorry." He smiled, embarrassed to be caught letting his mind wander. "Congratulations," he said, because it seemed like the thing to say, even if he wasn't sure they had been fairly elected.
"What do you see in him?" There was a hint of bitterness in her voice, but she'd learned not to openly badmouth Yuri if she wanted the conversation to continue.
"I guess…everything you don't. It's hard to explain. We've been friends for as long as I can remember. I know him. I can trust him and I just…really, really love him."
"But he's nothing like you."
"I know. That's part of it, I think. You know I took karate, right? Yuri and I would get picked for two-on-two matches, sometimes. We never once lost. Even though we're really different, we're still kind of in synch, you know?"
"No." She pressed herself against him and laid her head against his chest. "There's no chance for me?"
He wasn't particularly surprised at that, had actually been expecting it sooner or later. "I'm sorry, Sodia. I don't feel that way about you."
She nodded, face hidden against him. They swayed together for a few more minutes until couples began filling up the dance floor. As the lights refocused on the disco ball and were dispersed, Sodia hugged him tight for just a second, then pushed him away and walked off.
Weaving his way through the oblivious couples, Flynn searched for Yuri. He'd abandoned his place next to the punch bowl in favor of a quiet spot against the wall near the double doors leading into the school proper. He'd obviously been waiting and tossed back the last of his punch, throwing away the cup as Flynn approached.
He bowed theatrically. "Your majesty."
Flynn had forgotten he was wearing the crown and pulled it off, frowning a little. "Somehow, I get the feeling that you aren't surprised I was elected prom king."
"Come on, you're Halure's golden boy. Have a little more faith in yourself."
"Did you have anything to do with this?" He looked him in the eye, knowing that even if Yuri did try to lie, he'd see it.
Yuri didn't try. "I may have done Kaufmann a favor or two in order to ensure the outcome."
"You shouldn't have done that. It's cruel. This sort of thing is supposed to be really important to girls."
"Don't lump Sodia in with regular girls. Aside from being completely bonkers, she'd probably be a decent match for you. At the very least, you'd never have to worry about her cheating on you."
"I wouldn't date anyone I thought would cheat on me, which is entirely not the point. What I want to know is why my boyfriend is trying to set me up with the loathe of his life."
"Please. I don't spend nearly enough energy on her to hate her. And I'm not trying to set you two up."
"Really? Because I'm having a hard time reading anything else into this. If it's a joke, it's a bad one, even for your standards."
"Would you have danced with her otherwise?"
"What? No. You're my date to prom. I wouldn't have danced with someone you don't like unless I had no other choice."
"Doesn't that mean I did something nice for her, then?"
"I don't think rigging an election to make her prom queen counts. She'll figure it out sooner or later, and then it's going to bite you in the ass."
"Whatever. You two have a nice talk?"
"No. She asked me out and I turned her down."
"Sounds good to me."
"Yuri, what the hell's up with you tonight? You're not acting like yourself."
"Sorry, but I'll have to get back to you on that one." He gestured towards the doors and the restrooms in the hall beyond. "Too much punch."
Of course, Flynn didn't believe it was anything more than an excuse, but he kept quiet as Yuri left the gym. Yuri had been acting weird for a couple weeks: blowing hot and cold, picking fights over the stupidest things, canceling plans or dragging a friend along to a date, or showing up at Flynn's window unannounced in the middle of the night to make out. Flynn needed to get his thoughts together, try and reason through what was going on and see if he couldn't figure out what was eating at Yuri before it got too big and consumed them both. He needed an answer, because right about then, the only explanation that kept coming back to him was that Yuri no longer wanted to be dating him.
In the bathroom, Yuri locked himself in a stall, leaned back against the door, and pulled out his phone.
|what the hell am i doing?|
After a few minutes passed with no response, he tried again.
|coud rly use ur help j ur the 1 who nos best|
|judy|
|judles|
|hey i no ur ther|
|gonna keep bugin u till u talk to me|
|i no u no i rly need help|
Finally she answered back. |I'm not the one you should be talking to.|
|ezr tho|
She didn't reply, and he sort of figured she wouldn't no matter how long he waited or how annoying he was. Things just felt like they were falling apart lately and Flynn was the last person he wanted to talk to about it because, one way or another, everything came back to him. Yuri didn't want to think about what their relationship meant—to either of them—or where it was headed. All good things, and all that….
Reluctantly, he left his sanctuary. He felt restless and uneasy. He felt like this was the night when everything was going to come to a head. He felt like fighting.
It took a moment for his eyes to adjust to the gym. Once they did he headed straight for the punch. He didn't know who'd spiked it, but he raised a glass in their honor. It was a wonder it had gone unnoticed by the teachers for so long.
Sodia found him before Flynn did.
"You don't deserve him," she muttered.
"Probably not."
She spluttered, thrown off by his agreement. "If you know that, then why are you going out with him?"
"Seemed like a good idea at the time."
"How can you toy with him like that?"
Yuri shrugged. "I'm not."
"You lying bastard!" Furious, Sodia snatched up the closest thing at hand which happened to be a plastic knife and jabbed Yuri in the stomach. The knife snapped and she shoved a stunned Yuri onto the table, right into the punch bowl.
Dripping red puddles all over the floor, Yuri stood up and shook what excess drops he could off his arms. He licked the side of his hand, eyeing Sodia, then smirked.
"Like I care. I'll just have Flynn lick it off."
Sodia let loose a strangled scream and tackled him to the floor. Suddenly, Flynn was there, trying to pull her off, but she had a death grip on Yuri's shirt with one hand and was throwing wild punches with the other. A moment later, and Sodia was the least of Yuri's problems as Zagi dove into the fray.
"Back off! Yuri Lowell is my prey!" He managed to knock her back far enough for Yuri to get free, and then they were going at it in a full-on three-way brawl with Flynn shouting at them to stop and doing his best to pull Sodia or Yuri out of the fray. A wall of shouting, cheering teenagers penned them in against the overturned refreshments table, snapping photos or recording the fight on their phones.
In the end, it took Coach LeBlanc and two other teachers to pull them apart and unceremoniously eject them from the prom. Sodia was escorted to the office to call her parents for a ride home. LeBlanc walked the boys out to the parking lot. Flynn hadn't been forced to leave, but he followed them out anyway. Yuri felt the confrontation bubbling in the air, building and frothing. That little spat in the gym had been a teaser. Something was going to break.
Zagi pulled a pair of rollerblades out of his backpack and took off into the night. Before he went back inside, LeBlanc looked at Yuri and sighed heavily. It had the unexpected and highly aggravating result of making Yuri feel like crap.
Counting back over the number of refills he'd had from the spiked punch bowl, Yuri decided that he didn't really want to test his luck driving home. He turned to Flynn, struck again by how good he looked in that tux. The cummerbund very nearly matched his eyes. Would've been a miracle if it had been an exact match. Damn, it would have been fun to get him out of that, like unwrapping a really nice treat.
"I need a ride," he said.
Flynn looked up at that, fixed him with those piercing blue eyes, and Yuri just wanted to grab him and kiss him senseless because if they were kissing, they couldn't be talking.
"Too much punch," he elaborated.
"I knew it. You told me it wasn't spiked."
"No I didn't. I didn't even lie, just changed the subject."
Rolling his eyes, Flynn unlocked the trunk of his car and pulled out the blanket his mom insisted he keep there in case he was ever stranded on a cold night. He threw it over the passenger seat to keep Yuri's punch-flavored shirt from staining his car, and stalked around to the driver's side. He got in, tossing his keys on the center console and slammed the door shut, staring straight ahead. There was an echoing thunk from Yuri's side.
"What the hell is your problem? Is this all just a big joke to you?"
"Since when do you care if I goof off a bit?"
"You set Sodia and me up to be prom queen and king. What the hell kind of boyfriend does that? Do you even want to be going out with me?" Yuri hesitated and Flynn felt something clench in his chest.
"I don't know."
"What do you mean, you don't know?"
"What do you want me to say, Flynn? Maybe it was a bad idea."
Flynn felt the anger bubbling up in him. He held his arms rigid, fists clenched in his lap, fighting the impulse to knock some sense into Yuri.
"You are not running away from this. You're the one that kissed me, you asshole. I'd've kept it to myself the rest of my life if you hadn't kissed me on a dare. You don't get to say 'oh, never mind' now. Even the apartment was your idea!"
"I'm not running away, I'm thinking about what we're doing, you prick. And you should be, too. You're the one with the scholarship to the biggest fucking college on this coast. You're the one who said he knew what the fuck he was doing with his life."
"I do know what I'm doing!"
"Then why are your grades slipping?"
"I got 'B's on a couple tests, so what?"
"You never did before!"
"I don't think you have any room to lecture me about grades!"
Immediately, Flynn wished he hadn't said it as Yuri reeled back like he'd been struck. He gathered himself pretty quickly, but the fight had drained out of him, leaving bitterness in its wake.
"You're right. I'm not. You're way more put together than I am. Sorry for not wanting to drag you down with me."
"That isn't what I meant, and you know it. Is that why you've been acting so weird? Are you actually worried that you're a bad influence?"
"That's not it."
"Then what is your goddamn problem?"
"We didn't used to fight before."
"We fought all the time, you idiot!"
"But it never meant anything! We could fight about anything, and it never mattered, because I knew we'd wake up the next day and still be friends. It's different now."
Sighing heavily, Flynn slumped in his seat. "What the hell, Yuri? We start dating and you stop trusting me?"
"Don't try to make this a trust issue. We've known each other forever, but things are changing. New city, new people, new opportunities…." He trailed off, staring out the window into the fluorescent-lit night. It was pretty lame, worrying about something like that, but Flynn was going to be attending college with a bunch of people who actually took their studies seriously, people who might have more in common with him than Yuri did. He really wouldn't blame Flynn for dumping him in favor of someone who had a little direction in life.
"Hey," Flynn's soft voice broke into Yuri's thoughts. "Do you remember that summer the year after we started the karate classes? We were supposed to go to camp together for the first time, but I broke my arm when we were horsing around practicing karate at home."
"The way I remember it, I broke your arm." They'd been playing in Flynn's back yard, trying to figure out the throws they'd seen some of the older students doing. Yuri had nearly managed it, but something went wrong when Flynn landed. As soon as his mother had seen him, she'd rushed him off to the hospital.
Flynn laughed a little, and there was something self-depreciating in the sound that kept Yuri from feeling that guilt again. "Yeah. I was so mad at you, especially when you went ahead and left for camp without me."
Yuri had begged his parents not to send him, but it had been paid for already, and he wasn't the injured one.
"I remember. You didn't speak to me all summer, even after I got back."
A rueful smile twisted his lips. "And then, just after school started, your dad took off."
"I ran away to try and find him." It was a half-truth at best, but he'd never told Flynn why he left. When his best friend hated him for breaking his arm and his dad had taken off, what other answer could a kid come up with except that it was all his fault? At the time, Yuri had thought his dad would go home to the rest of his family if his troublemaking son was no longer around. "Things were pretty messed up back then."
"You were gone for days. No one told me about your dad. I thought it was all my fault you'd disappeared."
"You cried when they brought me home. Then you yelled at me. You made me promise never to go anywhere without you again."
"Yeah. I owe you an apology, I suppose. I was the one who almost broke that promise. I had made up my mind to go to Zaphias, thinking you'd be staying here. Looking back, I'm actually really glad you took that stupid dare. I didn't want you to leave me by myself. I just didn't know how to tell you that."
They were quiet for a few minutes, remembering. It was Yuri who eventually spoke first.
"I applied to Zaphias."
Flynn sat straight up in his seat, turning to look at him. "What? Why didn't you tell me?"
Yuri shrugged. "Telling you now. Doesn't matter anyway. I didn't get in. Not even waitlisted."
"Why?"
"Why do you think, Flynn? I bombed too many tests for my grades to make the cut. I fucked up."
"There's always next year."
"Forget it. I really didn't wanna go anyway, it's just everyone kept pushing me and saying what a cinch it'd be for me to get in if I just 'shaped up.' Pisses me off."
"…I'm sorry,"
"Yeah, me too." He paused a moment, then added: "Sorry I fucked up your prom."
"It's all right. It was kind of lame, anyway. You should probably apologize to Sodia, though."
"Fuuuuuuuuuuck. Seriously, man? She tried to stab me. Probably gonna have a bruise. I bet she's issued shoot-on-sight orders to all your little ROTC buddies."
"I'll ask her to apologize, too."
They lapsed into silence again. The punch had soaked through the jacket Yeager had brought and Yuri's t-shirt was uncomfortably cold and damp. He wondered if Flynn would loan him his jacket if he took off his wet top.
"Flynn…are we okay?"
"You tell me."
"I don't know."
"You know how I feel about you. That hasn't changed, and I've been in love with you since eighth grade. You're the one who seems to have trouble putting feelings into words." When Yuri didn't say anything, Flynn sighed and reached for his keys to start the car. "I'll drive you home."
"'I am sure my love's more ponderous than my tongue.'"
For a minute, the only sound in the car was the noise of Yuri trying to slouch all the way to the floorboard. The embarrassed blush spreading across his face was uncharacteristically adorable.
"Yuri…did you just quote King Lear to me?"
"I don't sleep through all my English classes. Can't believe you even got the play right," he muttered. "Nerd."
Flynn laughed softly. "More ponderous than your tongue? That's certainly saying something. In this case, anyway." Smiling, he leaned over, looking down at him. "Will you come out of your burrow?"
Yuri made eye contact for a fraction of a second. "Are we gonna talk or make out?"
"I can talk to you just fine from this position. Making out, however…."
Message received, Yuri straightened up in a flash and practically dragged Flynn across the center console. He probably tasted like punch and Everclear, but from the way Flynn kissed him, it seemed he didn't really care.
After an uncomfortable minute or two of bracing himself against the passenger armrest while he knelt in the driver's seat, Flynn clambered fully across the car to straddle Yuri. He reached down next to the seat, fumbling for the catch as he tangled a hand in Yuri's hair and began sucking at a spot on his neck just beneath the corner of his jaw. There was a clunk as the seat fell back, and then all of Flynn's weight was pressing down on Yuri, grinding into him as he bit down on tender skin knowing it would leave a mark and not caring anymore about who would see or what they would think.
Squirming, Yuri ran his hands up underneath Flynn's jacket, pulling and tugging at it until Flynn had to rear back far enough to get the damned thing off and out of the way. Yuri thrust his hips up to meet Flynn's, and the friction froze him for a moment as a tingle ran up his spine. In a moment, Flynn was kissing the breath out of him again and he couldn't focus, could only feel the back and forth of tongues, the warmth of Flynn's body pressing down upon him, Flynn's hands under his shirt, hot against his clammy skin, Flynn's shirt under his hands, fabric tucked too tightly into his pants and who the fuck ever thought a cummerbund was a good idea?
"Wait," Yuri gasped. He pushed Flynn back, shivering a little at the loss of his warmth, particularly since Flynn had managed to shove the hem of his shirt all the way up to his chest. "Wait, wait, wait. Fuck, gimmie a minute."
Obediently, Flynn stopped, though he was biting his lip impatiently. "Yuri…."
"Sorry. Just…I have something for you." He fished his wallet out of his back pocket, a move that necessitated raising his hips just high enough that he barely brushed against Flynn. The contact was nearly enough to break Flynn's resolve and send him diving head first into another flurry of kisses, but Yuri found what he'd been looking for and held up a card between them.
"What is that?"
"I know the backseat of a car is kind of traditional, but I figured you might like something a little classier. And honestly, I could use a shower." He flipped the card—the key card—around so that Flynn could see the logo.
"Yumanju? Yuri, that's…that's an expensive hotel. How were you able to afford this?"
"Do you want me to tell you how I paid for our room this evening, or do you want to drive us there so we can carry on?"
Flynn leaned down to kiss him again, slower, but with no less need behind it. He broke it off before things got out of his control and slid back into his seat as Yuri popped his back upright.
"You gonna make it to the hotel?" The smirk in Yuri's voice was audible.
"I'll think deep thoughts, or something." With his heart still beating too fast and the promise of the night to come ringing in his ears, Flynn figured it would be a wonder if he could keep his imagination in check. His entire body hummed with anticipation, and he reached out to hold Yuri's hand as he pulled out of the parking lot.
"Damn."
"What?"
"I really wish you'd worn a suit."
Yuri laughed. "Maybe next time."
Next time. Yeah. Flynn could live with that.