"FUCK!" A loud shout echoed through the hut.
"KEVIN PRICE!" Elder McKinley shouted back at the younger Mormon, "WHAT HAVE I TOLD YOU ABOUT SWEARING!?"
"WELL, I WOULDN'T BE SWEARING IF YOUR FUCKING COSTUME COLLECTION HADN'T FALLEN OUT OF THE CLOSET INTO MY FACE!"
"THEY ARE NOT COSTUMES, THEY ARE DANCE...DON'T SWEAR AT ME YOUNG MAN!"
"DON'T CALL ME YOUNG MAN, YOU CLOTHES WHORE!
"KEVIN PRICE! YOU ASSHOLE!"
Chris sighed as he munched his pop tart. Kevin and Connor didn't argue much, but when they got mad, they got mad. It was scary.
And that was why Chris had removed himself from the mission hut and was sitting outside.
That's why all the missionaries had migrated outside in the last few minutes, actually.
"OH, SO I'M AN ASSHOLE NOW, HUH? WELL, MAYBE I THINK YOU'RE AN ASSHOLE!"
"OH, YOU DO, DO YOU?"
Arnold sat down next to Chris. "How long do you think they're gonna be at it?"
Chris shrugged, "Who knows. Pop tart?"
"No thanks. I hate it when my friends fight." Arnold said sadly.
Chris patted him on the shoulder comfortingly. "I know, buddy. Just let them get it out."
Chris heard Connor's piercing shout again. "WELL, IF I'M SUCH AN ASSHOLE, WHY DO YOU EVEN BOTHER TALKING TO ME?"
"Oh, God, here we go." Chris put his head in his hands. By now some of the villagers had come to stand slightly further away from the mission hut, curious as to what was going on.
"YOU KNOW WHAT, CONNOR, I DON'T KNOW! SOMETIMES, I DON'T EVEN KNOW WHY I'M STILL HERE. I WOULDN'T GET THIS KIND OF SHIT IN ORLANDO!"
"OH, HERE WE GO AGAIN WITH THE ORLANDO CRAP! IF YOU'RE SO IN LOVE WITH ORLANDO, WHY DON'T YOU JUST GO AND LIVE THERE?"
"MAYBE I WILL! I DON'T NEED YOU AND YOUR STUPID DANCING ANYWAY!"
Silence.
"Uh-oh." Chris muttered under his breath.
No one ever called Connor's dancing stupid. Ever. They all knew how much it meant to him; it was one of the only ways he had been able to express himself back home, without drawing too much attention to his sexuality. So when someone told him that it was stupid...
Suddenly, Connor ran out past the missionaries in floods of tears. He flew past the villagers and into the bushes.
Kevin came running to the door soon after, just in time to see Connor disappear. "Connor, wait!" Kevin shouted after him, concern and guilt written across his face.
"Nice one, Kevin." Chris didn't usually get pissed, but Connor was his friend.
"I didn't mean to make him upset like that. God, I'm so stupid. CONNOR!"
Kevin launched himself off the patio of the mission hut, sprinting in the direction Connor had to hand it to Kevin; he could be a complete idiot sometimes, but he always tried to right his wrongs.
"I hate it when they get like this." Arnold muttered to himself. Chris looked over at Elder Cunningham. He seemed to be in great distress.
"Yeah, me too." He agreed.
"They just make each other so happy, but then when they argue..."
"It's okay. We all want our OTPs to get along."
Arnold furrowed his brow in thought. "Yeah, but this isn't just some TV show pairing. These are our friends, which makes it so much worse when they fight."
Chris nodded. "You're right. It sucks when they fight." He sighed and stood up. "Come on, let's go inside."
"Don't you want to wait for them to come back?"
"Well, yeah, but we can do that inside. Besides, they'll want their privacy. Let's just hope they're okay."
Kevin, ran through the bushes looking for Connor. He was inhaling dust with every step, but he didn't care; he just had to find him. He cursed himself for being so stupid. He hoped he had a hell dream tonight - he probably deserved it.
He was starting to get worried when he heard a quiet sniffling coming from behind a large shrub he was standing a few feet away from. He sighed in relief, approaching cautiously. He knew that Connor wouldn't want to talk to him, but he had to apologize. He just hoped the older boy could forgive him.
He turned the corner of the bush to see Connor sitting with his legs drawn up into himself, head between his knees. Kevin felt a pang of guilt. How could he have made someone he cared for so much feel so bad?
He cleared his throat. "Connor?"
"Go away." The other boy said without looking up.
"Connor, please." Kevin had never felt so guilty in all his life.
"I said go away." Connor turned to look at Kevin, his face red from crying. "Can't you see I don't want to talk to you?"
Kevin looked down at his feet shuffling awkwardly. "I just wanted to make sure you were okay." He admitted quietly.
"Yeah, well, I'm not." Connor snapped back. "Are you satisfied now?"
"No, of course not." Kevin looked up at his boyfriend, who promptly looked away. Kevin didn't know what else to do. As good as he may have been with people he didn't know, he was hopeless when it came to people he actually loved.
Kevin tried to speak again, but Connor just buried his head back in his knees, showing that he didn't want to listen. Kevin stood staring helplessly down at Connor. Then, not knowing what else to do, he sat down.
Connor glanced at him in confusion. "What are you still doing here?"
Kevin flinched at the disdain in Connor's voice. "Making sure you don't do anything rash."
Connor looked away again, although Kevin thought he saw him blush a little. They both knew how much of a drama queen Connor could be.
They sat in silence, with Connor sniffing every so often. Kevin wanted to say something, but he didn't know what. Then it came to him. He looked down at his hands.
"You know, when I was younger, I was obsessed with 'The Little Mermaid'."
Connor didn't move but he lifted his head a little to listen. Kevin continued, still looking down.
"I still love it, actually; it's my favourite Disney film, as you already know. Hope it doesn't get too annoying."
Connor smiled in spite of himself. Kevin would always sing in the shower in the mornings, and the songs from 'The Little Mermaid' were some of his favourites.
"Anyway, when I was in school all the kids would tease me about it, cause it was a girls' film. They'd say, 'You can't like that film, Princesses are for girls.' Even my dad encouraged me not to sing it so much."
Connor shifted uncomfortably on the ground. Kevin glanced up, then continued.
"The thing was, whenever they told me that I couldn't like it, or when kids would say it was..." Kevin hesitated, "stupid," Connor sniffed again, prompting Kevin to shift a little closer to him, "I would start feeling really bad about myself. I hated them for telling me that I couldn't like what I wanted to, but at the same time I couldn't help but wonder if they were right. And I don't think anyone should have to feel that."
Connor wiped some fresh tears from his eyes. Kevin carefully took his hand, prompting Connor to look into his eyes.
"Connor, I am so, so sorry that I called your dancing stupid. I don't know what I was thinking, but I would hate for that thought to stay in your mind. Your dancing is anything but stupid; it's artistic, it's creative and it brings you so much joy. I couldn't live with myself the rest of my life knowing that I had hurt you, or that I had made you think that your dancing isn't worthwhile, because it is. I'm so sorry. Can you forgive me?"
Connor's eyes welled with tears. He threw his arms around Kevin, who wrapped his arms around Connor's back in a tight embrace. Connor started crying again, so Kevin held him tighter.
"Hey, it's okay, Connor. It's okay. I'm sorry."
"You are such an idiot, Kevin Price."
"I know. I suck."
Connor laughed. "Yeah, you do."
Kevin smiled, happy that Connor was cheering up. "Are you okay now?"
"I just...it means a lot to me, you know? The dancing, that is. And when I here people saying that I shouldn't do it..."
"I know, I know." Kevin wiped the tears from Connor's eyes. "I shouldn't be so sensitive about it. I've just spent so long telling myself not to do things, this was one of things I told myself I could do."
"No, no, Connor, you can be as sensitive about it as you want. Dancing is your passion; no one should be allowed to take that away from you. Come on, tell me I was a dick."
"No, Kevin-"
"Connor, tell me I was a dick."
"Kevin-"
"Connor."
"Oh my God, you're a dick! It was a mean thing to say. Are you happy now?"
"Yes. Now, come here."
Kevin pulled Connor over to him by his tie, leaning in to kiss him gently. Connor relaxed into the kiss, his hand lingering in Price's hair.
When they pulled away, Kevin eyes met Connor's blue ones. The older boy smiled.
"Do you wanna go home now?" Connor asked, interlocking their fingers.
"You sure you're okay?"
"Yes, Kevin, I'm okay." "Alright then, let's go home. Whatever makes you happy."
"Aw, Kevin." Connor blushed, giving Kevin a playful shove.
They walked back hand in hand, talking idly about this and that. When they got back to the Mission Hut, they found Chris and Arnold waiting for them in the kitchen.
Arnold greeted then tentatively, but still with his usual vigor. "Hey! Are you guys okay now?"
Connor smiled back at him. "Yes, Arnold, we're fine." He looked up to Kevin, a teasing smile on his face. "Someone just has to watch what they say from now on."
"Yeah, Connor is super sensitive, so I have to careful." Kevin teased back.
"Shut up, Kevin." Connor tapped hit on the arm. Kevin laughed and picked Conner up, earning a laugh from Chris and a protesting sound from his boyfriend.
"Come on, sweetheart, we're going to my room."
Arnold looked confused. "But it's only 5:30. Why would you go to bed before dinner?"
Chris looked exasperated and amused at Arnold's ignorance. "That's not why they're going, Arnold."
"What? But then why - OH! OH! Oh."
Kevin laughed at the embarrassed blush spreading on Connor's face. "No, Arnold, I wasn't thinking of that." Kevin turned, still carrying McKinley, and strode off towards his room, leaving a confused Arnold.
"So, what are they doing?"
Chris shrugged. "Beats me." He said, tucking into his fourth pop tart of the evening.
Kevin put Connor down on his bed. "Hey, take your shoes off, will you? I don't want to get my bed dirty."
Connor cocked an eyebrow at Kevin. "You don't? Then what are we doing here?"
Kevin gave Connor a bitch face. "Ha ha. Very funny. I though you might appreciate using me as a teddy bear for a little bit. You know, to make you feel better."
Connor smiled sheepishly, which Kevin found adorable. "Aw, honey, you're so thoughtful."
"I know. That's why you love me."
"Kevin, don't ruin the moment."
"Sorry." Kevin smiled, coming over to the bed and kissing Connor. "Come on, scooch over."
Connor moved over and Kevin climbed into the bed, putting his arms around Connor and kissing his nose, causing the other boy to giggle.
Kevin smiled "I love your laugh."
Connor blushed lightly, then put his arms around Kevin's neck. "I love, your smile."
"I love your eyes."
"I love you."
"I love you too."
Connor leaned in to kiss Kevin, losing himself in a moment of divine euphoria. Kevin pressed himself closer to Connor, loving him more with every second.
After a while, Kevin pulled away, moving down to place gentle kisses on Connor's neck, earning a sigh of pleasure from him.
"You know," Kevin whispered, "If you wanted to do anything else..."
He felt Connor grin. He looked up at the older missionary, meeting his bright blue eyes, alive with love (and a little but of lust too).
"This is good...for now."
Kevin smiled and so did Connor.
Making up was one of Kevin's favourite things.