It started off as a joke. One that Alex didn't particularly think would catch on, or even work for that matter, then again Sean wasn't exactly the brightest bulb on a vanity mirror. Sean wasn't dumb, so much as gullible, but either way the redhead fell for it...

Hank and Sean were off campus at a grocery store because Sean was literally dying for some junk food since Charles was against it. All Charles ever shopped for was healthy crap, stating he wanted everyone to be in the best health during development at his school. Well, Sean was more than developed damn it and he needed junk to fill the bottomless pit created by granola and lettuce.

Sean walked aimlessly through the aisles with Hank close behind with a basket. Occasionally, Sean would toss an item over his shoulder just to keep Hank on his toes as he tried to juggle the various types of junk in the basket. This trip to the store only happened once a month, so Hank was thankful for that. If he had to follow his boyfriend around every other day Hank would probably rip his hair out.

Hank wasn't even sure how anyone could eat all of this as fast as Sean could. Most of it was food, seeing as how Charles at least gave them soda, but Sean was also particularly picky about what soda Charles got. Hank doesn't know where Sean gets all the money to buy this junk sometimes and he figures he doesn't want to know.

Hank trudges along with lazy steps, sighing and rolling his eyes every time Sean picks something up and sets it down just as fast. A breeze flutters by them, rustling Hank's and Sean's hair, which can only mean one thing. Peter is raiding a shelf for twinkies and Hank can't help but get involved.

"Peter, what are you doing here?" Hank asks in that ridiculing teacher tone Charles often uses.

"Whaddya think? Same thing as you guys," he replies, regarding Hank and Sean for a moment.

"Does Charles know you're off campus without consent again?"

"You're not gonna tattle on me, are you?" Peter mocks, looking over his shoulder at Hank with an innocent pout.

"Just..." Hank sighs, rubbing the bridge of his nose with his free hand. He knows he can't win because Peter will talk him into circles until he's blue in the face. "At least tell me you're going to pay for what you're stealing."

"I wouldn't count on it. Later, guys," Peter dismisses, giving Sean a once over before speeding off.

"That guy is an ass," Hank proclaims after Peter has departed.

"I think he's funny," Sean comments, skimming his fingers over price tags.

"You think everyone with half a brain is funny," Hank remarks, making Sean smile a little. "Are you almost done?"

"Almost..." Sean says in a far off tone that suggests he's not even sure.

Hank sighs even louder this time, slumping against one of the shelves for support as Sean continues to sift through the various options. He shuts his eyes for only a moment before casting a gaze over at the ginger. He watches Sean's fingers drifting over price tags and biting his bottom lip in consideration, making Hank fall in love with his little quirks despite how tedious these trips are.

There's usually a point during their expedition for junk food that signifies the end, and that's when Hank starts to complain about the ache in his arms for hauling around Sean's crap. Sean usually responds to this with a peck to Hank's cheek and begging for just five minutes. It usually works too.

When Sean is finally done stocking up on junk food and merciful enough to cut Hank some slack, their way to the check out. For each item that is scanned and tallied up Sean's smile dims more and more because he knows he won't be able to pay for all of it with his own money. Which means Hank will have to cover what his boyfriend can't.

Sean watches all his items get bagged with dismay, casting a hurt and lost puppy dog stare over at Hank who caves instantly. Hank is getting ready to pull out his wallet and chip in for the ginger's vice but the cashier, who is a boy roughly around their age, waves his hand at him.

"No, sir, that won't be necessary," the cashier says.

"Why's that?" Hank inquires.

"You happen to be my hundredth customer," he goes onto explain. "It's a new policy that whenever we reach a milestone the customer's items will be free of charge."

"How thoughtful! Thanks!" Sean exclaims.

He throws his upper half across the counter and wraps his arms around the cashier, kissing him squarely on the mouth for everyone nearby to see. There is a shroud of shock written across not only the cashier's face but Hank's as well when Sean pulls back. Both Hank and the cashier stare at each other as Sean casually grabs his things and strides towards the exit, grinning widely all the while.

"I am so sorry. Please excuse me," Hank gushes with a raised finger.

He runs out of the store after Sean, leaving the cashier to wallow in shock without so much as an explanation. What could Hank say? Even he wasn't aware of what sick joke Sean was trying to pull right now, but that didn't stop him from getting an answer. He grabs Sean by a shoulder and turns him around abruptly.

"What the hell was that all about?" Hank whispers harshly under his breath, refraining from yelling it to the heavens.

"What?" Sean asks dimly, truly puzzled by Hank's reaction.

"Oh, I don't know... Maybe you kissing the cashier!?" Hank elaborates, raising his voice a little more.

"Calm down, Hank. It's perfectly normal," Sean says, hugging his groceries. "Just a 'thank you' kiss... Everyone does it."

"Nobody does that!" Hank declares, feeling the jealousy bubbling up inside him like a gale.

"Yeah huh! Alex said so," Sean explains, and everything starts to click. "Alex said whenever someone does something nice for you, the proper way to thank them is to give them a kiss."

"Did it ever occur to you that Alex is a liar who has played a rotten joke on you?" Hank asks mostly rhetorically.

Sean can't help but burst out in laughter at this. He doesn't do it to mock Hank or his feelings, but more so to laugh at himself for falling for one of Alex's pranks. Hank rubs at the headache forming in his right eye, causing his glasses to shift slightly.

"Hank, it's not that serious," Sean tries between bursts of giggles.

"Yeah, but you can't just go around kissing people like that," Hank chides, feeling a tinge of hurt surfacing. "How do you think that makes me feel?"

"Are you jealous or something?" Sean inquires curiously, grinning from ear to ear. "Because you get awfully cute when you're jealous."

"I'm not jealous!" Hank protests lamely, façade falling short of believeable. "I'm the guy who just so happens to be your boyfriend... If that means anything to you."

"Of course it does. You mean the world to me," Sean reassures, leaning over to Hank and kissing him on the lips. "You know I love you, right?"

"Yeah, yeah... Come on," Hank brushes off, smiling a little even though he's upset. "Let's just go home already."

Sean pushes his buttons a lot but he knows he can't stay mad at him forever for something Alex started. Still, it made Hank's blood boil because, despite his denial, he was obviously jealous and perhaps a little possessive, but what's his is his.

End of story.

Period.

But it seems as if Peter didn't get that particular memo because not soon after Sean and Hank came home he was already planning to make a move. He'd be lying if he said he wasn't curious about the ginger but the situation at hand enabled him to satisfy certain curiosities. Peter, after all, had a thing for redheads and wondered what it would taste like to kiss those lips.

Peter liked to imagine that redheads tasted like cinnamon or something similar of that nature. Like a stick of Wrigley's Big Red gum that was just on the right side of spicy with an underlying hint of sweetness to it. It was silly, he knows, but it made his mouth water just thinking about it.

He was aware that Sean and Hank were an item, but Peter figured it wouldn't do much harm to get a kiss from Sean. So, when Sean was finally alone later that evening, Peter was able to make his move without the interference of Hank. Sean, obviously, could be found in his room at this time. Peter knocks quickly on the door.

"Come in," Sean says from with his room.

"Hey buddy," Peter greets, smiling at him mischieviously and walking further into the room. "I see you're stocked up for the month."

"Yeah, right... Most of this stuff won't keep for more than a week," Sean says with disdain, sifting through his various snacks and junk. "What I need is a fridge..."

Sean really was one of the cutest gingers Peter has ever seen in person and he couldn't help but feel a tad bit envious of Hank. The generous dusting of freckles across Sean's cheeks were enough to drive Peter crazy in the best, but also unfortunate, way possible.

If Sean was handing out kisses for good deeds, then this should be a cakewalk right?

"Well, you should know that I'm actually in the refrigerator business," Peter offers, crossing his arms across his chest and studying Sean's body language.

"You work with refrigerators?" Sean asks skeptically, looking up at the silver haired boy with an unconvinced expression.

"No, but I know where to boost one," Peter says with a wide smirk.

And that was how it all started. Day after day Peter would go out of his way to get things Sean wanted with the intention of receiving a thank you kiss. Clothes, food, hip new gadgets, you name it. Sean was impressed with Peter to say the least, but it yielded no kisses from him.

It was perhaps a little tedious but to be honest Peter found the challenge quite fun. He's never had any problems with stealing before, so the practice was nice. Peter even went so far as to court the ginger around, holding doors open for him and retrieving stuff Sean had left behind on accident.

Still, there were no kisses. All his efforts were crashing and burning hard, but it didn't keep the quickster down for long. Peter was a little discouraged by this, sure, but he vowed that in the end he would get a taste of those cinnamon lips one way or another.

It had been a week after the whole kissing incident at the grocery store and Hank was still a little ticked off by it to say the least. Alex had been wise is staying away from him for a while because Hank was more than likely to give Alex a piece of his mind for playing such a tasteless joke.

"Trouble in paradise?" Alex quips when Hank walks by.

"Shut up," Hank says automatically, brushing past the blonde on his way to Charles' office.

Hank eventually forced an apology out of Alex just the other day, even though it did little to make up for tricking Sean. Other than that they haven't spoken to each other, simply because Hank couldn't stand Alex's smug satisfaction over Hank's chagrin.

"Fine, then I won't tell you about Sean's new friend," Alex calls from halfway down the hall. This, of course, makes Hank stop in his tracks. Alex smiles.

"What are you talking about?" Hank asks, turning around and taking the bait.

"Seems like Romeo is getting some unwanted attention in your absence."

"What kind of attention? From who?" Hank pesters, walking back over towards Alex who leans lazily against the wall.

"That guy Peter has been spending an awful lot of time around Sean," Alex divulges, sparing the suspense. "Just hanging out, giving him things-"

"Things?"

"Yeah, Peter's been stealing stuff for him and giving it to him as gifts. Sounds like he's trying to get something in return, if you know what I mean."

That's right... Peter had been at the store when him and Sean were shopping, which means he must have seen what happened and how Hank reacted. Now Peter was trying to get a kiss from Sean by stealing stuff for him, being nice... For what purpose though? Was Peter playing around or did he just have a deathwish?

"Are you screwing with me right now? Because I'm not laughing," Hank says firmly, feeling that particular primal urge rising up inside him.

"Just telling you what I know," Alex says, raising his hands up in surrender.

"If Peter is trying to kiss my boyfriend it's because of you," Hank accuses blatantly, pointing a finger at him in a firm warning.

"I said I was sorry, didn't I?" Alex tries, smirking slightly because he knows that doesn't mean shit to Hank.

"Your apology would mean more if it wasn't coming from you."

Hank takes off down the hall in the opposite direction, disregarding any further comments from Alex. He didn't have time for anymore of Alex's jokes or taunts and Charles could wait to see him about the new arrivals. This was more important to Hank at this particular juncture.

His heart was pounding harder than it ever has within his chest and Hank practically sprinted down the halls trying to get to Sean's room as if it were a race against time. If he wasn't mad before he was essentially fuming by now and his hand trembled as it reached for the knob of Sean's door.

He bursts in with barely contained rage, expecting to find Peter with his tongue halfway down Sean's throat. What he sees isn't as shocking as Hank thought it would be but no less reassuring. Sean and Peter are sitting on the bed across from each other, too close for Hank's comfort, with Sean squealing with joy.

"Hank! Guess what?! Peter got me a ticket to the amusement park tomorrow!" Sean exclaims, jumping up and down on his bed with uncontainable energy.

"Sorry I couldn't get you one too, Hank," Peter offers lamely, lying through his teeth just to get closer to Sean.

Hank is glaring holes right through him and Peter smirks smugly, turning his attention back to Sean.

"I get a thank you, don't I? After all, these tickets were very hard to obtain," Peter's explains, pouting almost innocently to accentuate his words.

Sean is getting ready to lean in for a kiss but his lips never meet Peter's because Hank is fuming with jealousy and crosses the room before it happens. Hank can feel a more primal part of him taking over and protecting what is his by any means necessary. He parts the two men effortlessly, grabbing Peter by the front of his shirt and yanking him off the mattress.

"You kiss my boyfriend and I'll rip out your tongue," Hank threatens, growling under his breath as if the Beast dares to come out.

"Dude, chill out," Peter admonishes, bringing his hands up to show Hank that he means no harm as well as holding up the tickets. "I was just having a little fun, ya know?"

Hank snatches the tickets out of Peter's hand and lets go of the quickster's shirt slowly, gauging him momentarily. Hank takes the tickets, bunches them up in one hand, and proceeds to shred them up right in Peter's once smug face. Sean makes a little put off noise and Peter seems to tense visually at this. Hank isn't playing around.

"I'm letting you off easy," Hank warns, grabbing Peter by the ear and dragging him out the door. "Now leave, before I change my mind."

Peter stumbles slightly when Hank shoves him roughly and he adjusts his askew shirt before speeding off to parts unknown. Hank slams the door shut and turns around to face Sean who is no longer laughing or smiling. Sean audibly gulps as Hank stalks towards him like a predator who has cornered his prey.

"You," Hank practically growls huskily, letting his eyes turn a shade darker than usual. "What do you have to say for yourself?"

"I wasn't really gonna kiss him, Hank," Sean starts to say but it falls on deaf ears.

"Do you have any idea what you look like right now?" Hank inquires rhetorically, stepping closer. "Letting Peter give you gifts and acting like a tart... You look like some cheap hussy."

Hank closes the distance between him and where Sean sits on the edge of his bed. He snatches up Sean by a handful of ginger hair, yanking slightly to elicit a small whimper from his lover. It's not something Hank let's himself indulge in frequently, but he figures now is as good a time as any to do so.

"You think I'm cute when I'm jealous? Well, I'm about to get goddamn sexy," Hank mocks in a stern tone, releasing Sean's hair with a tiny shove. "Take your clothes off and get on your knees."

Sean hesitates for a moment because he's genuinely surprised at Hank for taking charge like this.

"Did I stutter?" Hank berates with growing intensity.

Sean complies quickly, sliding off his bed and taking his clothes off as swiftly as possible. Hank takes this time to sit on the edge of Sean's bed, watching and waiting as Sean struggles to take off his jeans. All that's left is his underwear and he looks to Hank expectantly for silent praise.

"Did I tell you to stop?" Hank orders at Sean's wide eyed gaze. "Panties too, you little tart."

Maybe it disparages Sean a little to hear Hank saying these things, but it also turns him on beyond belief. Sean bends down to slide his underwear down his pale legs and straightens back up to reveal his half hard cock. Hank seems to be satisfied with the sight but makes a gesture as if to say 'I'm waiting'.

The redhead hurriedly drops to his knees in front of Hank and waits for further instruction. Hank leans back slightly to undo the fly on his pants, unzipping the front swiftly to pull himself out for Sean to marvel. He's never seen Hank so bold and it's really starting to grow on him in the best way possible.

"Since you're so keen on kissing, why don't you put your mouth to better use?" Hank suggests, gripping the base of his cock and tangling his other hand in Sean's hair. "Go on. Kiss my cock."

Sean let's himself be pushed in close towards Hank's erect manhood, kissing the tip of it tentatively as if he's shy. Hank hums with satisfaction at this and draws him in further until Sean's mouth is filled with his cock. Sean moans at the notion and wraps his lips around Hank.

"Finger yourself while you suck me off," Hank commands.

He pulls Sean off his cock for a moment so the ginger can wet his fingers with saliva before pushing him back down again. Hank sets up a steady rhythm of push and pull with his hand tangled in Sean's hair, fucking his mouth steadily.

Sean moans excessively due to how far Hank slides down his throat and how deep his fingers scissor inside him, working diligently to open himself up. A generous amount of saliva builds up within Sean's mouth and seeps out of the corners of his mouth to run down his chin.

The redhead looks so pretty when his eyes are fluttering shut and his pink lips are wrapped around Hank's cock with his freckles highlighting each expression he makes. Sean sucks loosely in order to wet Hank's arousal more than bring him to completion. Sean knows Hank has a much firmer lesson to teach him, which is why Sean thrusts three fingers into his entrance in preparation.

"You want me to fuck that little ass of yours? Show you just how jealous and possessive I can be?"

Sean moans around his mouthful as his reply becomes muffled by Hank's cock and Hank has to take this as a yes. Hank pulls his cock out of Sean's mouth, letting the redhead gasp for air as he taps it against the flat of Sean's tongue. Sean sticks his tongue out further to let Hank do it a few more times before slipping his fingers from his ass and being pulled up onto the bed.

Unlike the other times they've had sex, Hank poises Sean on his hands and knees so his ass is up in the air. Hank doesn't bother to take off any of his clothes because it isn't necessary. This isn't for Sean. Hank isn't the one being taught a lesson here, which is why Sean is stripped bare. To be vaguely humiliated in a way that's subtle.

"Look at you. All flushed and so ready to please me," Hank admires distantly, raking his eyes along the pale and freckled expanse of Sean's back. "I hope you opened up that tight hole of yours good enough."

Hank grips the base of his cock and lines it up with Sean's pink little hole, pausing a moment before pushing in on one thrust. Sean howls out much to his discomfort, but braces himself against the mattress for much needed support. There's a brief period of breathing room made just for Sean, letting him adjust to Hank's manhood, before Hank pulls out fully.

Sean takes a deep breath because he knows this is the part where Hank punishes him. His hips snap into the curve of Sean's ass, making and audible slap! that increases in noise and repetition as Hank thrusts into him mercilessly. The glide in and out of Sean isn't the smoothest but it does the trick, more so enough to actually get Sean fully hard from the friction.

One hand goes to Sean's hip while the other fists in auburn curls for better leverage as Hank thrusts faster and more shallowly. The noises Sean makes are unbelievable and Hank knows nothing could ever sound this perfect. Sean's head is bowed back by where Hank pulls on his hair and his mouth is hung up on forgotten syllables.

His thrusts become more jagged as Sean clenches his body tighter and tighter around him, trying to close up and open at the same time. Sean is so tight around him that he can feel Hank's cock twitching and pulsing, threatening to spill over at any given moment. This prompts Sean to reach a hand down and stroke himself in tine with Hank's frantic thrusting.

It pushes him to the brink and back a few times until Hank nudges incessantly against his prostate enough to the point where he finally comes with a broken and shattered moan. Sean comes over his hand, wincing as his hair is pulled more harshly and pumping his flushed cock until he feels come oozing over his knuckles.

Sean is panting and sweaty mess by the time Hank pulls him up on just his knees and holds his back flush against his chest. Hank wraps a possessive arm across the ginger's pale chest while the other cups his chin firmly, angling his mouth to Hank's. The kiss they share is rough, but claiming in every sense of the word.

"You're mine. No one else's."

Hank thrusts a few more times into Sean until finally emptying himself deep inside of Sean's narrow body. He grunts throatily, animalistic really, waiting for his cock to stop pulsating and twitching before pulling out. They collapse down against each other, panting hotly in the humid space between them.

Hank isn't particularly possessive or jealous, but what's his is his.

End of story.

Period.