A/N: Twice now have I been shitty at writing NSFW stuff. It was borderline that, but I remember the disaster of smut that I wrote in an earlier fic and decided not to use it. Solution? Add Evie, the gambling cockblocker. Anyways, R&R! :)
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Carlos is confused. He wishes everything wasn't quite so complicated with his life. Even after the whole Maleficent fiasco, things for him haven't died down one bit.
That's because he has more than a bucketful of feelings for Prince - well, now King Ben.
It all started that time in the woods when Ben offered to help him with his tourney skills. He said something along the lines of, "good boy," then made a quick recovery.
Carlos pondered that for the longest time, who wouldn't?
He suspects Ben isn't completely straight, anyways. He'd be a fool to not notice him occasionally checking out Chad and Jay, which sets off a twinge of pain in his chest.
So Carlos sucks up the miniscule amount of courage he has and decides to confront Ben about it.
He stands nervously outside the King's dorm, shifting his feet, debating whether this is a good idea or not.
Then, the door swings open and his decision is made up for him.
Ben and Mal stand hand in hand at the doorway, looking puzzled. "Hey… Do you need anything?" Ben asks courteously and Carlos' heart pounds.
Mal will end up finding out his affection for Ben eventually, he might as well just get it over with now.
"Yeah. Can I come in?" His voice wobbles.
Ben can tell it's something of urgency, so he steps aside. Mal looks a little peeved at Carlos for interrupting their assumed date, but she doesn't say anything.
Ben's room is much bigger than theirs, he realizes. Carlos has never been here before. He doesn't share it with anybody and there's a king sized bed (Carlos holds back a snicker, maybe the twin ones were called prince sized) covered in blue duvets. He has a gigantic walk in closet on the other side, a long couch in front of a television set, a desk that has a laptop, and many windows. Carlos envies him, but he suspects Adam and Belle have a more luxurious bedroom than this.
Ben walks over to the couch with Mal and pats a seat next to him. Carlos goes quickly over to them.
"Is something wrong?" Ben starts. He can tell that Ben's oblivious to everything and he feels a flash of pity. Maybe he should just lie and tell him he's having trouble with his classes. That wouldn't really work, though, because he's doing excellent in all of them.
"Carlos?" Ben repeats and Carlos shakes out of his daze.
"Umm… Sorry. So, I've been meaning to tell you, because I feel like you should know. It'll mean more if Mal's here too, I guess." He stalls.
Mal's eyebrows furrow, and Carlos can't tell if she's figured it out or if she is just as naïve as Ben.
"I like you." Carlos says simply and quickly.
The King's eyes widen a little bit. He has no idea what to make of the situation. "I… I'm flattered, Carlos. And glad that you told me. But-"
"Yeah, I know. You're in love with Mal and it's unrequited." He says, and he wishes his tone wasn't so harsh.
Ben looks guilty as he glances away from the white-haired boy to the floor. "Yeah… I'm really sorry, Carlos. There's someone out there for you, but I'm afraid it isn't me."
Carlos can hear the true sadness in Ben's voice, and that makes it harder. He doesn't want to cry, but he can feel his hands start to shake like they do before he does.
Carlos nods, then focuses on making his voice stable. "I'll just be going, then."
Ben stands up and leads him to the door with Mal in tow.
Before Carlos can leave, Mal catches his hand and yanks him into an unexpected hug. He halts, but then wraps his arms around her neck, holding her tightly. This doesn't happen often, he can only recall her hugging him once before.
"I'm proud of you, C." She whispers into his ear and she means it, especially with his nickname that only she calls him.
His hands continue to move restlessly, emotions bubble unsteadily in his chest.
"Thanks." He mutters brokenly.
Carlos pulls away, waves, and heads back to his room.
Mal and Ben don't immediately walk out after him, they're probably talking over what just happened.
When he's out of sight, he sprints as fast as he can back, bursts through the door, and collapses onto his bed.
Then, the tears come. He can't tell if it's because of heartbreak, or Mal's acceptance, but it feels good to cry. Normally he just punches a wall in a secluded area, though he prefers this.
Ten minutes later, the door opens and Carlos stops moving. He forgot to lock the door, or at least hide himself, which makes him want to sob more. Maybe he can pull it off as sleeping, but his hands still twitch, and Carlos can't seem to stop them.
"Carlos?" Jay asks cautiously.
The white-haired boy doesn't move.
"Are you okay?" He sounds so concerned that Carlos pulls himself together, quickly wiping away his tears.
"Yeah, it's all good now." He fibs, glancing quickly back at Jay and hoping he doesn't look like a complete wreck.
He must though, because after he turns back around he feels a weight on the edge of his bed. Jay then pulls Carlos into his lap, securing him in a hug.
Now, these aren't as foreign as the ones with Mal. Their friendship is fairly physical, though Carlos doesn't like it from a lot of people. He flinches when anybody besides his established friends reach out to him.
"Jay, what the hell?" He grumps, looking up at his friend. He loves cuddling with Jay (shut up, it's not as bad as it actually sounds), but now is not the time.
"Tell me what's wrong." God, why does Jay have to look so worried? Carlos just wants Jay to dispel him like he would if he saw anybody else crying.
"I don't want to." He says stubbornly.
That's not a hundred percent true. He just doesn't want to bawl his eyes out in front of Jay again.
"Sharing helps." Jay suggests.
Carlos snorts. "Yes, because you're an open book that will always tell me what your troubles are." He says sarcastically.
The de Vil boy immediately feels bad when a flash of sorrow casts across Jay's expression, and he regrets saying it. "I'm sorry, Jay. I'm just upset. I know you can tell me stuff, whether you want to or not. That was shallow of me, since I'm not doing the same."
"Whatever." Jay mumbles distantly, starting to pull away from Carlos.
Cold air hits the white-haired boy and he hates it. He loves to be in Jay's arms, where he feels safe, happy, and, most importantly, warm.
"No, Jay, don't." He pleads, hating how whiny he sounds.
"You're right, I don't-"
"No… Just… Shut up. Hear me out." Carlos says quickly, scooting closer to Jay again.
Jafar's son looks like he wants to move, but he doesn't out of curiosity.
"I had a crush on Ben. It was unrequited, and I told him about it in front of Mal. They were nice about it, and he let me down easy." It was difficult for Carlos to say, and he can feel his pinky finger start to tremble. He clenches his fist, he doesn't feel like sobbing like a dainty princess again (no, he is most certainly not implying Cinderella).
"That was brave of you." Is all Jay says and Carlos just shrugs.
"I think we'd all be lying if we said we hadn't checked Ben out once or twice, though." He says, a tiny smirk on his face.
Carlos looks up, surprised. "Did you just…?"
"Oh." Realization clouds Jay's expression. "I just admitted to you that I think guys are hot. Wow." He frowns. "That wasn't how I wanted to come out."
Carlos laughs, actually laughs, and he doesn't know where it came from, but Jay makes him really giddy. "I can't say anything, I'm only into guys. And don't worry about Mal or Evie, or the others. I'm pretty sure Auradon is a safe place."
"It is, I just haven't told a lot of people yet. Evie already knows because she walked in on me making out with Chad in an empty classroom."
"You what?" Carlos yells incredulously. He's more than a little furious. Evie found out before him and Chad of all people?
Jay rubs the back of his neck anxiously. That's his nervous tick, and Carlos finds it especially endearing. "Sorry I didn't tell you sooner."
"So, does Audrey know, or…?" He trails off, trying not to sound as disgusted as he is, implying the couple that just started dating.
"Nah, it was just kind of a one-and-done thing. I don't really like him. He's hot, but Chad's an asshole, so that doesn't make up for the factor of his good looks."
Carlos lets out a sigh of relief. The sexual tension between the two had always been there, but dating was out of the question. It stirred something in Carlos' chest and made him uncomfortable, and he didn't like that feeling.
"I should've told you sooner, but… I don't know. I thought you'd be weirded out."
"How could I be weirded out? I've never shown any interest in girls whatsoever, I dress nicely-"
"Everybody in Auradon dresses well." Jay points out.
"It just so happens that the majority of us are gay, too." Carlos adds to his point.
Jafar's son laughs, his smirk melting and replacing with his genuine smile. It's oddly comforting and his heart tingles because he's the one to make Jay laugh.
Once his chuckles die away, he looks serious. "I'm sorry it didn't work out, though. You'll find someone else, I know it."
"Ha, I've already heard that twice today, pick another line." Carlos tries to pass it off as jokingly, but it comes out as bitter.
"No, trust me, it will. Like you said, everybody here is really, really gay." Cue Jay's snickers. "You'll snatch up somebody in no time."
Carlos knows Jafar's son is trying his best to reassure him, and he's grateful.
"Thanks, Jay." He loops his arms around Jay's neck and leans up to hug him.
There's a miscommunication in the intent and the other boy's lips crash into his.
Carlos is so surprised, he freezes, before shoving Jay away from him.
Jay looks exactly like how the white-haired boy feels, but there's some sadness too. "Oh, that wasn't what you were going for…?" He trails off, and places his hand behind his neck again.
Carlos brings a hand up to his lips. They feel weirdly sparky, and he kinda likes it. He focuses back on Jay. "You took my first kiss."
"Listen, Carlos, I'm sorry, I was getting mixed signals, and-"
"Can you do that again?" His impulsivity gets the better of him.
Jay raises his eyebrow. "What, kiss you?"
"Yeah, it was nice."
"Oh…" He looks sort of pleased. "Okay."
Carlos ignores the awkwardness of the situation before Jay leans forward and presses their lips together again.
The kiss is chaste and slow, because Jay can sense his inexperience and he's just trying to make him feel as good as possible. Carlos lets out an embarrassing moan of pleasure and sits fully in Jay's lap, his hands running up and down his back.
Jay turns over to the right, so that Carlos is underneath him. Their kisses get more heated to the point where they're sloppily making out. Carlos thinks he's got the hang of this kissing thing now as Jay slips his tongue into the white-haired boy's mouth. Carlos gives an experimental suck on it and Jay lets out a long, hot groan.
Trying to ignore the sudden tightness in his shorts, he tugs on Jay's leather jacket, rolling so that he's on top of him.
Unfortunately, things go wrong (as always) and Carlos accidentally tugs him off the bed, hitting the night table and smacking over the lamp, which crashes on top of Jay.
Thankfully for him, Jay shields him from the lamp, but it hits him in the head.
That really ruined the moment.
Jafar's son bursts into more laughter as he climbs off of Carlos and holds his head.
"Sorry, that was my fault." Carlos says sheepishly.
"Relax, it was worth it. I got a really hot make-out session from that… And possibly a new boyfriend."
The white-haired boy's brain stutters at that sentence. Did Jay just ask him out?
Oh god, he's doing his nervous tick again, and Carlos can't help himself.
He grabs Jay by his waist and drags their hips together, the friction making his breath hitch. "I'd love to go out with you." Carlos says before connection his kiss-swollen lips again with Jay's.
In an instant, they're back on the bed and feeling each other up like no tomorrow.
Again, the door is opened at the worst possible time.
Both boys whirl around to see Mal in complete shock and Evie with a knowing smirk on her face.
"I knew what those sounds were and I told you, Mal!"
"Yeah, E, but I didn't know it was Carlos, I thought it was Chad or something!"
"Hold up, you knew about Chad too?" Jay asks loudly.
Evie suddenly looks very nervous.
She changes the subject by saying, "You owe me ten bucks."
"You betted on us?" Carlos snarls.
"Twice, actually. Five that it'd be you, and another five that Jay would have his hand down your pants and shirtless." Evie innocently says.
"That's oddly specific." Jay says, trying to hide the fact that he's pulling out his not-so-discreet hand from Carlos' shorts.
Mal grumbles and fumbles around in her pocket, finding a wad of bills and throwing it at Evie.
She takes the money graciously and turns back to the boys, her signature smile on her face. "Well, I'd best leave you two to whatever you were doing earlier! Stay safe, use protection, and don't hurt Carlos." She says that last part directly to Jay, causing him to flinch. Evie can be as horrifying as her mom when she wants to be.
She drags Mal out of the room and shuts the door.
Jay gets off the bed and Carlos lets out a whine. The other boy smirks, then crosses the room and locks the door, finally.
"Aren't you overexcited?" He asks and Carlos shivers at the seductive glint in his eye.
"Whatever, just get over here and finish what you started." Off goes Carlos' pants and Jay's jaw drops.
"Will do."
