Winning Him
Craig Dean pounded his fist against the McQueen's front door, bag still in hand because he'd not even gone home to the dog since he'd gotten off the plane. He'd come straight here to see John Paul, no hi to his mother or sister. Not a care for the Osbourne's at the Dog, how is mother had been coping with all the stress of her son being sent away, grandson fighting a disease, husband and step-son staging her husband's death or even her son in law's death. No. He'd gone straight to see John Paul McQueen with the plan on kissing that boy on that damn doorstep and not leaving till he knew he still had John Paul's heart. Only things never do work out the way you planned.
Instead he was greeted by Michaela, chewing gum and twirling her blonde hair. "What do you want?" She looked him over, clearly not impressed. On the inside she was already planning the story. 'Gay returns to find lover but is met with heart break' Yeah, that sounded real good. Craig swallowed the lump in his throat, shifted his bag to his other shoulder and wiped sweaty palms against his jeans. The jeans John Paul once said he liked because they hugged Craig's arse just so. He was also wearing John Paul's favourite shirt. "W.. Where's John Paul?" Craig stammered slightly because reality was slamming down ontop of him. He was finally home to claim John Paul. He'd not seen him in ages. Had he changed? Was he fat? Had he grown his hair out to some ridiculous length and dyed it bright pink? Had he pierced his nose, his nipple, his co..? Craig blushed slightly at that thought. Then he realised Michaela was staring at him as if he had something in his teeth or someone had drawn a moustache on him while he slept. He subconciously rubbed his top lip. "Mum!" Michaela shouted into the recesses of the house and in moments not only was Myra McQueen stood at the door but so was Mercedes in a tight denim skirt. As soon as Mercedes' eyes landed on Craig they bulged from her head slightly. "Oh. My. Go...!" Myra shushed her quickly, muttering about taking the lord's name in vain before pushing both of her daughters back into the house. She stopped finally and stared at Craig with wary eyes. "Why are you here? Want to break my son's heart again?" She stood, hands on hips and lips pursed as she looked him over. He hadn't really changed that much since he'd gone. Not that she'd really ever liked him anyways to begin with. "Is John Paul home? I need to speak to him" Craig tried to sound more confident, it worked but he felt he'd have failed if he'd of said another word. Myra was staring him down still and the girls were peeking at them from the top of the stairs. He was sure Myra knew but she didn't bother to say anything. She was one of those mothers that you sometimes wondered if maybe she did have eyes in the back of her head. After a long, painful silence Myra sighed, face changing to a look of sympathy. "He's at the flat with Kieron and Niall" She turned and shouted for Michaela to fetch her some paper and the girl was by her side in seconds with her beloved notepad and pen. Myra quickly wrote down the address and handed it to Craig. Michaela looked sympathetic now aswell, for a moment she looked like she wanted to say something but Myra shot her a look and she scampered back to sit on the stairs with Mercedes. "Don't mess things up for him Craig" Myra gave no clue of saying something more and Craig nodded, taking it as his que to leave.
He found the apartment some time later, having decided to try and sneak into The Dog on his way. Frankie had spotted him and was on him in a second but he managed to escape eventually with promise that he'd be home later for tea. He had no intention of doing so if things went his way. He'd make up for it in the morning. So he set off again from the Dog. Found the flat Myra had spoken of easily enough, it was in a fairly nice area. He was wondering who Kieron and Niall were though. Probably just friends he thought. John Paul was selective with lovers and he couldn't be over him already, could he?
As he got the apartment the door swung open and two men bounded out. The first was tall and slender with shaven hair, wirey and cocky. The second was equally as tall but had a thicker build, bright blue eyes, short dark hair and an amazing smile. He was grinning from ear to ear as he locked the door behind them. The first man smiled to Craig. "You lost, mate?" He quirked a brow slightly, neither recognising the boy despite having seen pictures occasionally. Craig shook his head. "I'm looking for John Paul actually, I was told he'd be here?" Craig felt suddenly foolish but he couldn't explain why. Here he was, John Paul's ex-lover and stood infront of two men who now knew John Paul, two men he didn't know. They knew John Paul, would know if he'd dyed his hair or grown fat. They'd know if John Paul had been suffering from a broken heart and talked about the 'one that got away' all the time, or whether he'd moved on and found someone knew. Hell, for all he knew John Paul could of gone straight. Wait... John Paul? Straight? Now he was pulling his own leg. He laughed to himself for a moment before realising the other two were staring at him. Maybe he did have something on his teeth or a drawn on moustache or some obscene word written on his head afterall. He made a mental note to check a mirror as soon as he got the chance. The two men just grinned and the first gave him a gentle shove, pushing him out of the hallway and to the stairs. The pair raced down and the second paused for a moment, inclined his head for Craig to follow "Come on. We're off to meet him now" and with that he was bounding down the stairwell.
Outside, they began to walk, rather quickly, towards the SU bar, the second bloke leading the way. "So, you a mate of John Paul's then? Here for the party?" Craig quirked a brow. "Party?" He had no clue there was going to be a party. He couldn't remember anyone having a birthday just yet but maybe someone new had moved to town and was having one. "Yeah, the big engagement, Mate!" The taller man grinned, playfully shoving Craig. "Bet you're excited, eh Groomsy" The other man turned to them as he kept up the pace, a deep laugh and bright smile across his lips. Craig studied it for a moment, noticed that 'Guy 1' looked like he had the world in his hands, had just been made king, recieved that bike for christmas that he'd been looking at all year long. He realised that he must really be in love with his bride to be smiling like that... Either that or she was amazing in bed. "You're getting married?" Craig asked, trying to make conversation because they were still a few minutes from the centre of the village. The man nodded. "This is just the engagement party. We're thinking of getting married in a few months.. maybe a year.. not sure yet" He was flashing that amazing smile again and Craig couldn't help the thought of what it would be like to kiss that smile. But he was here for John Paul and he couldn't mess up by pulling the hot, straight groom-to-be. The thin guy finally spoke up. "Shit, if we go any slower John Paul is gonna cut our knobs off. Get moving!" The group laughed, breaking into a run. The faster of the group, the groom was laughing hardest. "Whatever, we both know it'll be my balls on the line not yours" Craig quirked a brow at that but had no time to question it because they were nearing the SU bar.
They stopped outside to catch their breath. Amazingly the guy with the awe-filled smile seemed to be barely panting whilst skinny and Craig himself were bent over, heaving. He hadn't even broke a sweat the bastard. Craig leant against the wall, the skinny man stood besides him, hands pressed against the wall and bent double. Smiler just laughed at them, hands in his pockets as he pulled out a small ring box from his pocket. "Another ring?" Skinny wheezed as he looked at the other over his shoulder. Smiler blushed deeply, flashing another smile. "It's a promise ring..." Skinny laughed at that, deep and booming before it cut into a wheezing hack. "Promise ring?" He sputtered as he recovered his breath still. "What are you in nursery school again?" Craig laughed along, smiling light heartedly at smiler. He just grinned back in friendly acceptance. "Actually, Niall. It's a promise that I'll be there no matter what. We both know we've had our shares of ups and downs..." He trailed off, eyes looking glazed over as he looked at the ring before he was pulled into a sidewards hug by Niall. "Oh you must be Kieron then" Craig suddenly spoke, surprising the three of them. The pair looked surprised and were both nodding when Niall suddenly shoved Kieron away and jumped to stand besides Craig. "Hide your Balls, mate. Here comes the monster!" Monster? Craig wondered what Niall was on about. Kieron sounded head over heels for this bride but was she a monster and he couldn't see it? Or was he in love despite her being a cow to him? Or was Niall talking about John Paul? He'd said John Paul was going to hack their balls off if they weren't on time. Before he could even ask a blur moved past him and Kieron was knocked backwards, stumbling into some chairs before finally catching his balance against a table. The force had been non other than John Paul McQueen and in those moments Craig felt his heart shatter because he should of been over the moon on seeing John Paul. It should of been one of those moments when all you can hear is fireworks and sappy romantic music, everything fades and blurs except that one special person and they're glowing golden light as they lay eyes on you and smile your way. But instead he laid his eyes on John Paul, who had laid himself on Kieron. Kieron was seated on the edge of the table, John Paul's legs curled around his waist, hands in his hair and lips pressed to Kieron's, kissing that amazing smile off plump lips. He swallowed that lump in his throat. Shit.
"Shit. You're Craig" Niall was looking at him now, a slight smile on his lips that made Craig feel demeaned and anxious but it was quickly replaced with sympathy and an arm around his shoulders. "Come on, mate. Let's get you a drink" Niall moved but Craig was fixed to the spot. His legs wouldn't move and all he could see was John Paul and Kieron, gripping at each other and so in love. Finally Kieron managed to stand, sliding John Paul down to his own feet and pressed a kiss to the student's forehead. Kieron was blushing deeply and John Paul still hadn't noticed him. "Meet Kieron's bride" Niall chuckled from the doorway and John Paul turned around, mouth wide open to put Niall into place till he spotted Craig and just.. blinked. Kieron stared on, confused, as Niall, who had now found himself a drink, took a loud slurp from his beer can. "You're engaged?" Craig broke the silence first, eyes teary and fists clenched. John Paul's jaw set in reaction and Kieron's hand was instantly squeezing John Paul's in concern. "You're back?" John Paul sounded harsh and rough, squeezed back at Kieron's hand before raising it to his lips, kissing the back of it. Kieron watched on silently, feeling suddenly in the way and like a piece of jewellery or a priceless artifact that was being paraded. "I just got back today. God, John Paul. You're engaged and you've" Craig was running on autopilot. He couldn't think straight. Didn't really know what to say."Congratulations" was definitely not one of his options. "Craig, meet Kieron, love of my life" John Paul smiled lovingly at Kieron who just stared back, shocked beyond his wits. He knew John Paul loved him but there'd always been that little nagging voice in the back of his head from so long ago when John Paul hadn't been sure a relationship with him had been worth it like the one with Craig had been. Kieron looked to Niall helplessly whilst Craig's own jaw tensed. He was going to cry any minute now. He could feel it building. His eyes were stinging and his vision was clouded. "So that's it then?" He looked pleadingly to John Paul, outstretched a hand in invitation. "We were best friends, lovers and you're throwing it all away? For him? How long have you been with him? a couple of months? weeks? days?.. You're throwing it all away for some old man?" Niall let out an outraged cry at that last remark because he was older than Kieron and he was not an old man. John Paul opened his mouth to speak, closed it, opened it again. He then noticed his mother and the girls all crowded around the doorway with Kris, Hannah and Sarah. He looked to Kieron, then to Craig and back to Kieron. "Kieron's not old! and we've been friends for nearly a year but that's irrelevant" John Paul hiss angrily, squeezing Kieron's hand with a bruising force.
He ran a hand over his eyes, trying to calm himself for a moment as he felt one of his own tears fall, the first from any of them and when he looked at the two men again he noticed that both were struggling to hold back their own. "I love you, John Paul" Craig gasped, whiney and pleading as tears streaked his cheeks. Kieron just squeezed his hand and offered him a smile. He'd let fate run it's course. He hoped that John Paul would choose him but he wouldn't pray. John Paul had made his look differently at religion and if he turned to religion for this then it was a lost cause. But either way, he knew, John Paul would be happy. In that moment John Paul made up his mind. He turned to face Kieron, took both his hands in his and from the corner of his eyes he saw Craig break into sobs. Kieron looked like he'd cry to as John Paul kissed his knuckles. "Kieron, I'm so sorry" He saw the hurt flash in Kieron's eyes, saw the smile that had been growing quickly die and he released the hands of the man that had given up his life for him. Craig was rushing forwards, one hand still oustretched in invitation. John Paul threw up his hands, shook his head from side to side. "Woah there, mate. Not happening" Craig blinked at him, smile faltering slightly just as Kieron's had. "You never loved me. You could never say it, could never be with me. I was your dirty little secret and I hurt so many people. You couldn't even say you loved me at the airport. I was going to go to dublin for you and you still couldn't say it when there was nobody we knew there. You think I want that?" He put his hand over Craig's and folded the Dean son's fingers, closed his palm and turned down the invitation. "Why would I come back to you when Kieron gave up everything for me? Kieron can say it, has said it, has prooven it and made it solid and real" He fingered the silver band around his finger, comforted by the feel of it. "I said sorry, Kieron" He turned now to the ex priest who stared at him in confusion, still fighting back tears that Craig had released ages ago. "I said sorry to you because he's put you through this. A horrible experience at our engagement party. He made me choose between someone I used to love and someone I do love, full heartedly and it wasn't fair on you" He smiled, arms held out and Kieron was on him in seconds. Holding him tightly and smiling that amazing smile that lit up the faces of so many around them. Craig felt something cold press against his hand and noticed Niall was pushing a can of beer into his hand. He stared at it, then at Kieron, the luckiest man in the world. He'd thought Kieron's smiles earlier had been amazing but the one now was just sheerly breath taking and he couldn't hate Kieron, couldn't bring himself to it because John Paul was smiling too, much brighter than he ever remembered seeing him smile. Craig thanked Niall then and moved away, not missing the defiant smirk Sarah shot at him as Hannah swooned over the two hot gays.
Steff caught up to him minutes later. He'd not seen her in the group but was glad to take some comfort from her as she pulled her brother into a tight hug. "I'm sorry, Craig. I'm really sorry it didn't work out but it's for the best. You never could bring yourself to say it in Public and well.. Kieron gave up his job for John Paul and a lot of his friends. People hated him for loving John Paul but he stuck by him. He gave up everything, Craig. Maybe one day you'll find the guy you can give up everything for too" She squeezed him tightly as she felt tears land on her bare shoulders, rocking the boy in her arms. She loved her brother but she was glad he didn't win the boy.
Author's Notes:
So, I'm yet another diehard JPKieron fan who's outraged over the way they're killing off Poor Kieron. I'm annoyed by the fact that Kirkwood the producer or whatever he is hopes kieron's fans will be happy with the end of his story. Yes Mr Kirkwood, We all love how you ended his story with poor Kieron dying alone on the floor whilst the love of his life was in bed with his ex and on his way to break things off with him. That's an amazing way to kill off such a good character. If your sarcasm detector just broke, I apologise.
So this is my happy ending. My way of making things right in JPKieron land because Craig is undeserving in my view
Like everything else I write this is unbeta'd and written and a stupid AM time (between 2-4am I believe) and well yeah..sorry for spelling and other grammatical? mistakes