Dial In
Summary: Alexianos was captivated by quirky Sadik from the moment they met, and this captivation soon blossomed into something more as he befriended the friendly, opinionated student. However, will the trials of a controlling "ex" and Alexianos' hesitation to introduce Sadik to his family nip their romance in the bud? ArmeniaXTurkey, FinlandXFem!Scotland, EstHun, slight ArmRus, and others.
Rating: T at most. There's a possibility for an "M" rated chapter (yaoi ;D) or two, but they'll be posted separately and won't interrupt the flow of the story. :)
If you don't like OCs or genderbends, this story probably isn't for you. Fem!Scotland, Armenia, and Fem!Turkey will all show up often. That said, please enjoy this!
Pairings list (in alphabetical order; I don't subscribe to the whole "seme-uke" thing): ArmeniaXTurkey, FinlandXFem!Scotland, EstHun, ArmRus, GreeceXFem!Turkey, and possibly a few others. Lord knows I love DenSu. :)
…
It was my first costume party.
To be fair, I hadn't been to many bashes before in high school (Unless you count family weddings, Hye Camp receptions, and birthday parties- none of which I'd had anything to drink at), and costume parties were usually reserved for October thirty-first, but still. The fact that I was a sophomore in college and a virgin to celebrating Halloween with R'n'B and cheap beer shocked my friends, who promptly decided that I would absolutely go with them to the party, and no, I couldn't get out of it.
And so, in a senior's apartment a mile off campus, I sported round Harry Potter glasses and a black cape. An awesome black cape, thank you very much. Eileen even agreed to dress up as Ginny, and Tino as Draco. Elizaveta went as Hermoine, and the two of us hung out together whenever Tino and Eileen danced. The room was packed- Pavla and Feliciano wore dreadlocks and proclaimed they were Milli Vanilli, Ivan and his date (Ming, a friendly exchange student from China) clad themselves in tongue-in-cheek Soviet garb, and still another student wore only a waiter's apron. Interesting.
Elizaveta and I chatted for a while, the both of us cautiously sipping our beer from plastic red cups, unwilling to make fools of ourselves while we were in costume. I wasn't much of a drinker, anyway, so this suited me well. Tino and Eileen, however, had already had three drinks each; one could tell just by the watery smiles on their faces and their spastic dance moves on the floor. Elizaveta and I blushed for them, though we weren't concerned. The two of them were only buzzed, and considering that they didn't have alcohol very often, we figured that a night of letting loose couldn't hurt either of them. It couldn't hurt us, either, come to think of it…
"Serpil!" Elizaveta cheered, beckoning her Scripps friend over to us. Though Scripps was the only all-female college in the Claremont system, I knew Serpil well from the Ski Club and eagerly waved her over, as well. She grinned, shimmying over in a gold belly-dancer get up, and took her place among our small group.
"Hey! It's good to see you guys. I saw Eil and Tino just a moment ago. Did you come with them?"
"Yep. I love your costume!"
"Thanks! I love yours. Hermoine, right?"
Elizaveta nodded. " You know Alex, don't you?"
"I sure do- how's it hangin', Alex?"
I was thankful that she recognized me and smiled to display my gratitude."It's going pretty well. Am I gonna see you on the slopes this winter?"
"I hope so! My coach says I need to save my legs for sprinting, but I'm sure I'll be going, anyhow. You're going on the Mount Baldie trip this New Year's, aren't you?"
"I am, and so is Tino."
"Great! I'll make my payment for it, then."
The three of us chatted a bit more before Elizaveta declared that she needed to dance to one of the dubstep songs that blared from the speakers. The three of us headed into the outskirts of the dancing throng and moved in time, glancing about furtively at the others to see if anyone attractive was watching us (save for Serpil, who was dating Heracles). To my surprise, a tall man with a white mask (was he the Phantom of the Opera?), who was otherwise debating a major (the man's confident smile and the other's palpable frustration led me to believe he offered a better interpretation) glanced in my direction every so often. I stopped dancing.
"Who is he?" I didn't realize that I'd shouted this over the music, because Serpil turned around to glance over at him. Once her eyes were set on the man, she laughed.
"Oh, you don't know him?" My Turkish friend grinned. "You should, then. I'll introduce you."
I nodded, immediately curious. Why had he been looking at me? "What's his name?"
"I'm confident you'll figure it out for yourself." She winked at me as we approached the man, who stopped his debate to smile at us.
"Hey, Serpil! Serpil's friend! Good to meet you guys. We were just discussing 'Anna Karenina.'" His voice was lower than I'd expected, with what I thought to be a thick Chicago accent. Just like Serpil's…
"Discussing," the Literature major bitterly repeated, turning away from the masked man.
"Discussion, debate, tomato, to-mah-to. Anyhow, how's it goin', Harry? I'm Sadik."
Did he just call me 'Hairy?' Oh! Harry! I smiled. "I'm pretty good; thanks, Sadik. I'm Alexianos."
"Nice to meet ya, Alexianos. I could swear I've seen you around campus. Are you at Harvey Mudd?"
"No, Pomona. But you do look familiar…You're in On The Loose, aren't you?"
"I go to their events occasionally. I'm not quite as active as my sister, here," he grinned at Serpil, "but I must have seen you there."
I gaped. "You're Serpil's brother?"
Serpil grinned. "Well, adopted brother."
"Biological twin brother," Sadik poked Serpil playfully, "I was born a whole two minutes before her, and I think she's jealous." He winked.
"Two minutes longer in the womb makes all the difference in brain development, Sadik." His twin sister teased.
I laughed. "Well, it's good that I finally know the both of you."
"Likewise," Sadik offered another confident smile. "I'll see you, Alexianos."
"You can just call me Alex."
"I'll do that."
Serpil and I joined Elizaveta again, who we'd assured was dancing with someone else before we'd left. She was talking with her dance partner, a thin blond with suspenders, a "Vote for Pedro" shirt, and taped glasses. Deciding to let them continue their conversation in peace, Serpil and I situated ourselves by a bowl of tortilla chips and noshed.
"So, what did you think?" She asked, munching on a Tostito.
"Of your brother?" She nodded.
"He's nice. What's his major?"
"At Mudd, a lot of students choose tracks, so he does the combined Biology-Chemistry one. He also minors in history; he's really interested in all that Ottoman stuff, like you are."
This piqued my interest. "Really?"
Serpil smiled knowingly. "Yep. Don't worry, he acknowledges the genocide. How anyone doesn't is beyond me…"
"You do, too?"
"Me?" She smirked. "Of course I do! Really, just because I'm Turkish, Alex…" She stuck her tongue out in jest.
"Sorry, sorry, you just never know."
"I understand. So…what are things like with you and Ivan?"
I frowned- this wasn't a topic I necessarily wanted to discuss, but I figured I could vent a little. "Well, he chose to go to this party with Ming, so… I don't know. I mean, we're dating, but not frequently."
"Sorry to hear about that. You'll find someone else if it doesn't work out, though. You're a great guy, Alex."
I smiled. "You're nice, Serpil. Thank you."
"You know," she continued, wrapping her necklace around her index finger, "My brother likes guys."
"Were you trying to set me up?" I laughed. "I appreciate it, Serpil, but I barely know him."
"I understand. I just have to tell you- it's not often that Sadik stares at someone. He really doesn't have much of an attention span outside of the classroom…"
I processed her words for a moment, looking into the bowl of chips, as if it would somehow make sense of everything like a coffee-grind prediction. When I glanced up, Serpil was gone, and I only felt more confused.
…
I came to one conclusion: Serpil was buzzed at the party.
I probably had been, too. Sadik probably hadn't even been staring at me, or if he had been, it was because I had guacamole on my face or because he really liked Harry Potter. People don't just stare at people across the room. This wasn't a Stephanie Meyer novel.
I voiced this notion to my roommate and close friend, Tino, who only smiled sympathetically at me. I was thankful that I could talk about my dating concerns with him without judgment; sure, I didn't get into the gritty sexual details (not that I'd ever even had sex before), but he was a great listener and gave surprisingly good advice.
"I dunno, Alex. He might have liked you."
"I don't think so. I probably drank too much," I insisted.
"You had one beer! And Serpil said he's into guys. I honestly doubt he was staring at his sister, especially considering that he seemed eager to talk to you."
"Eh, whatever. I'm analyzing this too much. How was the party for you and Eil?" I wanted to evade the topic. Truth be told, I was a little afraid that I might develop a crush on Sadik. Sure, he seemed like a great guy, but I could only imagine what people in my hometown would think of me dating a Turkish guy. Glendale wasn't too open to that sort of thing.
"We had fun. Sorry that we sorta left you and Elizaveta, but you two seemed to get on well. I feel great, man- I'm not even hung over."
I laughed. "Damn your Finnish genetics!"
"Damn your good luck! If you can pick someone up while wearing Harry Potter glasses, then…"
"Let's forget that. Anyway, wanna go down to the living room? I think The Soup has reruns at this time, and if we're lucky, everyone else will be too exhausted to watch TV."
"That sounds good. I could use some coffee, anyway."
"I thought you said you weren't hung-over."
He chuckled. "I'm not. I just like coffee."
…
To my surprise, Ivan came to Pomona's dining hall that night, greeting Tino and I as he dropped his tray across from ours on the table.
"Hey! How are you guys?"
Tino frowned- he didn't trust Ivan, and I could understand why. The two had gone to the same high school, and Ivan had dated Tino's cousin, only leave her while mentioning that he'd had serveral…intimate partners during the course of their relationship. The poor girl moved back to Finnish Karelia to attend university at Jyvaskyla, utterly heartbroken. Still, I didn't see why Tino held this against Ivan now. People change, after all.
I glanced over at Tino, a silent question conveyed. He nodded. Ivan could stay.
"We're fine, thanks. And you?" I answered, smiling for the both of us. Tino swirled his mashed potatoes with his fork.
"Ah, okay. I'm good, thank you." Ivan ignored Tino's solemnity and continued talking to me. "Hey, I saw you at the party the other night. You went as Harry Potter, right?"
"The party that you went to with Ming?" I smirked. I wouldn't let him off the hook that easily.
He blushed. "She'd never celebrated Halloween before, you know? I would have rather gone with you."
"Well, I had fun." I smiled teasingly, and he sighed with relief. "Nice costume, by the way."
He grinned. "So you liked it? I thought you might, you being a history buff, and all."
Tino bit back what I believed could have been a Winter War comment and rose to stand. "I actually have to go. See ya later, Alex." He patted my back as he left.
"Yeah, man, see ya soon." I felt bad, isolating my friend like that, but I couldn't help that I liked Ivan. He was charming, after all.
"Anyway, I actually wanted to talk to you about something." Ivan lowered his voice. I shivered- I loved the sound.
"Of course."
"You were talking to Sadik last night." He stated this as if he'd caught a child playing with matches or a kitten chewing on a plastic bag. As if I were the child or the kitten.
"I was…" I answered, a bit confused that he cared so much.
"You should really be careful of him. He's in my history class, and I'm not too fond of him."
"Why?"
Ivan furrowed his brow. "He's very opinionated. He thinks he knows everything about history."
I recalled the debate Sadik had been engaged in with the literature student. Was he a know-it-all?
I shrugged, remembering that I shouldn't judge too soon- though I would certainly keep Ivan's opinion in mind. "He seemed nice to me."
"I think you should be wary of him. I don't trust him."
I was taken aback by this. Was Ivan jealous? No- he was just watching out for me.
"I'll be careful," I promised.
He smiled. "Glad to hear it. I actually have to go, but I hope to see you soon, solnyshko. I'll call you."
I nodded. My stomach churned, but I disregarded the feeling. "Sure."
…
"Good evening, Claremont- you're listening to KSPC 88.7 FM. It is seven PM, a lovely Wednesday evening at fifty-eight degrees, and I'm Sadik Adnan, a sophomore student at Claremont Harvey Mudd. When I'm not falling asleep on my books I'm finding music for this hour. We have a great playlist for tonight, but first, let's go back to the summer of '68 with Scott McKenzie's 'San Francisco,' followed by Global Deejays' remix of the song. Here we go; hope you enjoy…"
"Woah!" Eileen nearly rolled off her bed, the magazine that she was reading sliding off her forehead. "Serpil, your brother's on the radio?"
Serpil smiled. "He has his own hour every Wednesday. He's not bad, either- I actually like a lot of the stuff he plays."
I kept quiet, not wanting to voice any of my thoughts too quickly. He sounds so smooth on the radio. But more than smooth; comfortable. Happy…Why am I even thinking this?
"Alex, you okay?" Eileen glanced over at me, her mouth puckered in concern. Serpil smiled, amused.
"I'll bet he's thinking about Sadik. You know, he talked about you to me."
My eyes widened, and I had to swallow thickly to compose myself. "…Okay."
Now Eileen grinned as well. "What did Sadik say?"
"He said that you're really nice. He also said that you seem like someone he'd like to hang out with."
"He really said that?" I blushed, chiding myself for not thinking before I spoke. Serpil and Eileen giggled.
"He did. I'm convinced he likes you."
"I think so, too!" Eileen nudged me teasingly. "Perhaps ye'll be listenin' in on his show a bit more, eh?"
"Well…"
"Welcome back, listeners. Again, that was Global Deejays with 'The Sounds of San Francisco.' Great song, huh? I always cheer a little when they mention my hometown, Chicago. Oops- I'm not supposed to say that so close to LA." He chuckled. To my chagrin, it made me smile. "Anyhow, this next song is a Creedence Clearwater Revival cover of 'I Put a Spell on You.' All you Harry Potter lovers out there, enjoy."
"Oh my God!" Eileen covered her mouth, laughing incredulously. "He dedicated a song to ya!"
"It's not to me! You were dressed up as Ginny- he could have been dedicating it to you. Or to Eli or Tino."
"Oh, these are lies, and ye know it. Why can't ye at least get to know the guy?"
Beads of sweat dampened my forehead. I didn't want to hurt Serpil's feelings, and there was no easy way for me to explain my trepidation.
And, truth be told, they were right. Sadik was a nice guy, and even if the thought of him meeting my family wasn't pretty (I had no idea how my dad or grandma would react- they were both nice people, but what if I had to face their silent shame- or worse- for the duration of my potential relationship?), I was getting too far ahead of myself. I could at least be his friend.
"You guys are right. Now, I'm into him like that, but he does seem nice. It couldn't hurt to try to be friends."
"Atta boy!"
"You won't regret it. Hey! How about you and Sadik come with me to the Coop Fountain on Friday? We could all get some pop."
"Pop?" Eileen asked, confused.
"Yeah, what's pop?"
Serpil pursed her lips in confusion. "You guys have never heard of pop? You know, the fizzy drink, like Coca-cola or Pepsi."
"Oh!" Eileen smacked her own forehead and chuckled. "Like soda! Is that what you Chicagoans call it?"
"Soda! So that's the other word for it. Yeah- in Chicago, we all call it pop. We could all get soda! And I can conveniently ditch you both."
I chuckled. "That sounds great, but don't feel the need to leave us alone. We should hang out more, as well. I honestly forgot that you were one of Eil's friends."
"Ye did? I hang out with this chick more than I do with Tino!"
"Well, you know what they say about Pomona students, in their own little world…" Serpil teased.
"Just like they say that Scripps students are misanthropes?" I winked, and Serpil laughed before replying:
"Okay, okay. Now everyone shush- I love this song!"
"I ain't gonna take none o' your foolin' around;
I ain't gonna take none o' your puttin' me down;
I put a spell on you because you're mine, all right!"
A/N:
Majors/minors of main characters (subject to change):
Sadik- Harvey Mudd- Biology and Chemistry track with history minor.
Serpil- Scripps- Biochemistry and varsity track.
Alexianos- Pomona- Russian Language Major, music minor.
Eileen- Scripps- Psychology major, business minor.
Elizaveta- McKenna- International Relations and Politics, part of choir.
Ivan- McKenna- Business Major, history minor.
Tino- Pomona- Physics major, music minor.
Eduard- Harvey Mudd- Internet Technology major, part of choir.
Note on Claremont Colleges: Claremont Colleges is a college system that houses five undergraduate universities (as well as two graduate unis) on the same campus. These undergraduate universities are Harvey Mudd, Scripps (the women's college), Pomona, Pitzer, and McKenna. These colleges are all located in beautiful Claremont, California. The Claremont Colleges are all private universities and their order of difficulty to get into generally follows this trend (from most difficult to least difficult): Harvey Mudd (which is about as difficult to get into as MIT- expect high school GPAs to be at least 4.4, along with very high SAT, ACT, and subject test scores), Pomona, Scripps, McKenna, and Pitzer (which is still difficult to get into, but in a different way- SAT or ACT scores are not required, but the average accepted applicant had a GPA of 3.9 in high school). However, they are all known for academic achievement and foster leadership, confidence, and ethical consideration. :) (I personally hope to apply to both Scripps and Pomona! Scripps, especially, as they give great merit scholarships.) The unique thing about Claremont Colleges is that their five colleges are all in consortium with one-another; therefore, a Pomona student can take classes at Harvey Mudd, as Scripps student can take classes at Pitzer, etc. They're fantastic colleges, and I'd really recommend checking them out if you like the idea of a small, private, academic university! :)
Hey, guys! :D So, this is my first time posting an actual ArmTurk story on ff net! I'm really excited for this- I love this pairing and I love writing fluff about it, so prepare yourselves. ;) I can't wait to start writing more of this, but as promised, I will try to finish up Knock Out and continue working on Good Will. Updates might not be the quickest (My choir is going to the UK and Ireland this summer- yes, we're singing at the track events in the Olympics! :D- so with rehearsals and my music theory class, I'll be very busy), but I promise that I'll put plenty of effort into the story. :) Please enjoy, and please review!
Also, please take no stereotypes, intended or otherwise, seriously. There are no hard-and-fast rules for any group of people, after all!