A/N: Whoa, big chapter. Like the longest one yet. Haha. I got carried away, I really love these dorks. Anyways, they're getting... closer. And closer. And closer to eternal gayness. I promise the torture will end soon. Once they kiss each other, it's all downhill from there. Or maybe uphill. I dunno, whatever's best. I'm downright delirious from staying up so late writing this and the letters look like they're swirling out of the screen at me. I need to sleep, holy fuck. Enjoy this...
When a woman wearing a pale gray blouse and blonde hair tied up in a loose ponytail answered the door, Adam flinched a bit and felt a wave of hot awkwardness dump over his head and trail down his body from head to toe.
"Uhm," was his flawless introduction. The woman, who Adam knew was Alison since he has seen pictures of her, blinked at him and scrunched her eyebrows together in confusion. She opened her mouth, but not a moment after she inhaled, Lawrence appeared from behind her, blue eyes shining brightly and a blinding smile spread across his face.
"Adam, come in!" Alison processed for a moment before stepping aside, giving Adam a look up and down and plastering on a fake, friendly smile.
"You must be Adam, the photographer Larry told me about?" Alison held out her hand, and Adam shook it awkwardly as he stepped inside.
"Yeah, that's me," Adam laughed a little, trying to figure out how to act around… well. Who was Alison to Adam? What about Lawrence? Was he Adam's… friend? For some reason, the word settled oddly in his head, but for the moment he would think of Alison as his… customer's wife.
"Come in," Alison lead the way into the kitchen towards the source of noise, and Adam shuffled awkwardly along, flushing momentarily when Lawrence placed a hand on the small of his back when he passed by the taller man.
Adam's eyes settled on a bunch of little girls, all stuffing their faces with cupcakes. They all were giggling and squealing and chatting amongst each other, and when Adam stepped inside, some ignored him and others stared at him, including the one with bright blue eyes that matched Lawrence's perfectly. Their eyes met and Adam recalled the picture of her- Diana.
"Diana, this is my friend, Adam," Lawrence smiled and held a hand out to Adam, and Adam waved a little stiffly. He didn't understand kids. They stared and stared and stared with little to no change in expression, and it made Adam feel like they were reading into his soul or something. However, he was lucky Diana was 9 years old- while still very young, he knew that once kids hit age 7 they were pretty mature, especially girls. He didn't baby talk kids over age seven, he knew kids hated to be treated like they were as young as they truly are. So he usually took on a casual atmosphere around kids. This time, though, was a bit different. Adam was nervous. He wanted Diana to like him. Why, he didn't know. Little kids have never meant shit to him before. But this girl… Adam felt fiercely protective of suddenly. He knew if anything were to happen to her, he would do anything to get revenge on whatever bastard dared lay a hand on her. They may have just met, but Adam felt these feelings probably because he's seen the way Lawrence adores her, and he wants to protect the one person that makes Lawrence so full of love.
"Hi," she said shyly, and Adam smiled a bit. Somehow, it was not forced.
"Hey, nice to meet you," Adam gripped the strap of his camera bag slung over his shoulder. "Happy birthday, kid."
"Thanks," she smiled, and Adam felt like that meant something good. Feeling good, he looked at Lawrence with a hopeful expression, receiving an approving nod from Lawrence.
"He's going to take pictures during the party," Lawrence explained. "So smile lots, okay?"
"Think of it like the paparazzi," Adam added in, "You and your friends are the celebrities here, so act cool and… everyone else will be jealous they weren't invited to this party."
"Okay," she giggled a little bashfully, then scurried off to join her friends, who were gathered around a playlet of plastic horse figurines. They all had their own horses which they moved around a set of obstacles, stables and trees. Diana plopped down in the circle and claimed her horses and did the same thing, talking amongst the kids around her as they created a plot and story to what they were doing.
Adam set down his bag and got his camera ready, then sat down at the dining room table and snapped a few pictures of them playing with the horses. Lawrence lingered around him, silently watching him take pictures.
"So, Adam," a woman's voice spoke beside him and Adam almost jumped, but he looked over his shoulder, noticing Alison standing beside him. "What do you do, besides photography?"
"Oh, I'm a barista," Adam explained, pausing to take another picture, "At a coffee shop."
"Ah," Alison said warily, and watched the girls playing next to him. After a moment of silence, she spoke again. "Aren't they adorable?"
"Very," Adam smiled a bit, then stood. "I'm gonna, um, go over here for some other angles," he explained, then stepped around the unopened presents and crouched down, taking more pictures.
The horse game got old after a while, and the girls took interest in more cupcakes. Adam got some quality shots of frosting-smeared faces and chocolatey fingers, but before they could get more cupcakes Alison rounded them up for birthday cake. They agreed, because who could turn down cake?
When Diana took her seat and the lights were turned off, her face was illuminated by the flickering candles, and her friends gathered in a circle around the table, all smiles as they stared at the cake, the candles, and their special friend. Behind Diana stood Alison and Lawrence, side by side, hands on the back of her chair. They crouched over her protectively, all smiles as they counted down and everyone began to sing. Adam was momentarily hypnotized with the scene. He knew Alison and Lawrence currently lived an unhappy marriage. He knew they were no longer in love, possibly never in love in the first place. Their love for their child, however, was out of this world and genuine. For these moments, they were parents joined together with mutual feelings for their precious daughter, and Adam needed to get that on camera, if nothing else.
Diana must know that even if her parents can't settle their differences and see no value in being married any longer, they still loved her, and they still would do anything for her. So Adam made sure to put the lens before his eyes and click, and the moment was saved forever.
When she blew her candles out, Adam snapped a few pictures in quick succession, getting a nice shot of the flames being pressed down in horizontal lines before vanishing entirely in wisps of smoke. He then took more pictures at the cheers and claps and Diana's toothy smile, her eyes gleaming with the innocence of childhood and the joy of her special day.
Adam was so absorbed in pictures that he didn't notice Lawrence approach him and hand him a plate with a plastic pink fork and a slice of chocolate cake on it. Adam took a picture of Lawrence handing him the cake and lowered the camera, smirking at Lawrence's confused expression.
"Why did you take that?" Lawrence chuckled, and Adam took the plate from his hand.
"Artist's intuition," Adam responded wittily, picking up the fork and tasting the cake.
"I can't wait to see the shots," Lawrence leaned against the counter, eating his own piece of cake. "I have faith that you're incredibly good at this."
"Way to set the standards high, jackass," Adam joked, then winced when he swore. Luckily, none of the girls heard him, and if they did, they did not react. "Sorry," he murmured, and Lawrence chuckled.
"I admit I was a bit concerned about your sailor's mouth when I invited you to this," Lawrence elbowed Adam lightly.
"Shut up," Adam grumbled around his cake. "It's not very easy to hold back. I'm not around little kids often."
"Get used to it," Lawrence advised, and Adam stopped.
"Wait, what's that supposed to-"
He was interrupted by Alison announcing it was present time, and the girls all excitedly got out of their eats, grabbing their gifts and fighting over which one Diana gets to open first. Lawrence set down his paper plate and walked over to watch her open her gifts, leaving Adam blushing a little and holding a forkful of cake in the air. Get used to it? It was almost like Lawrence was telling him that he would be around his daughter more often than he thought.
Adam set down his cake and shuffled over, raising his camera again and capturing the look of surprise and glee whenever Diana unwrapped a new gift. Alison eventually stepped away to chat with the mothers picking up their daughters from the party, and Lawrence settled next to Adam.
"Here you are!" Lawrence declared, handing Adam an envelope. Adam stared at it for a moment before processing it was his pay.
"You really didn't have to," Adam murmured, taking the envelope and looking up at Lawrence gratefully.
"You really didn't have to, either," Lawrence pointed out, and Adam shrugged a bit.
"I guess, but I feel like I should, I mean, you've done a lot for me…" Adam trailed off, face warming at his words. Lawrence blinked at him.
"What, the tips?" Adam nodded. "That's not a big deal…" Lawrence reassured him.
"To me, it is," Adam responded and looked him in the eyes, wanting to convey how those tips really have helped Adam the past few weeks. Lawrence's throat bobbed as he swallowed, and he seemed to get momentarily lost in Adam's green eyes, leaning closer to the shorter man and noticing how his hair looked really soft and that his nose was actually really cute and kissable…
"Good," Lawrence spoke softly, and Adam noticed how he was a little closer, how he seemed to be staring at Adam's face. Adam shivered a little but bit his lip, looking up at Lawrence's strong jawline and perfectly shaped eyebrows, his plump lips and sky blue eyes… he rocked forward slightly to appear a little taller than he really was, but in reality he was maybe, possibly, leaning into Lawrence as well, and they may have stared at each other longer if Alison hadn't walked into the kitchen. They abruptly broke their eye contact and stepped away from each other, Adam flushing hot with embarrassment.
"W-well, looks like I should get home and develop these," Adam announced awkwardly, suddenly losing stable control over his hands and fumbling with his equipment.
"Thank you for coming, Adam," Alison said formally. "It was a pleasure meeting you."
"Thank you for having me," Adam nodded politely, then noticed Diana watching him pack up his things. He smiled at the brown-haired girl.
"You look like a star in the pictures," he assured Diana. "Hope you had a great day, squirt."
She smiled wide at the nickname. "I did!" She exclaimed, then seemed to hover, wanting to say more but unsure of what to say. "D-did you like the cake?"
"It was to die for," Adam rolled his eyes back a little, over exaggerating his love for the cake. "Like, seriously, the best cake ever. Next time you should get the same cake."
"I will," she agreed happily, and after a period of silence, Adam smiled again and made his way to the door, Lawrence following behind him.
"Again, thank you," he leaned forward when Adam was stepping out the door, speaking almost directly against his ear. Adam paused in his steps, turning to look at Lawrence who was hovering behind him with their faces hardly a few inches apart.
"S-see you," Adam stuttered, and he only realized when he stepped away that Lawrence's hand was settled on the small of his back again, like it belonged there.
The spot burned searing hot into his skin as he trekked over to his car.
—
"Good news," Adam announced when Lawrence entered the cafe the next day. "The shots are developed and they look pretty damn good."
"Really?" Lawrence set down his briefcase and momentarily pushed aside the chocolate mudslide mocha already prepared for him. "Let me see."
Without further ado, Adam placed the envelope in front of Lawrence. "Have at 'em," he grinned, clearly proud of his creation. Lawrence excitedly opened the envelope and pulled out the pictures. He studied each one carefully, his heart warming at the sight of his daughter's happiness captured so flawlessly in timeless photographs. He loved how some of them were done in black and white- Alison would like to hang those up around the house.
"Adam…" he breathed, placing the stack of photos down and looking up at the man himself, who had on a cocky smirk and hands on his hips.
"Impressive, huh?" Adam boasted, and Lawrence grinned.
"Extremely so," he agreed. "These are beautiful. I couldn't ask for anything better."
Even though Adam was bragging about his work, hearing the words from Lawrence made Adam melt a little inside. A new bashful nature took over, and he blushed, rounding his shoulders and itching behind his ear.
"They're not… perfect or anything," Adam murmured, but he couldn't wipe the smile off his face. "I think I did pretty good, though…"
"They're as perfect as they're ever gonna be," Lawrence assured him, and Adam was ushered away due to the arrival of a customer. Lawrence picked up his mocha and sipped at it as he went through the pictures a second time, eyes gleaming with love and joy at the memories.
"Okay, now this is just getting embarrassing," Adam complained when he returned to Lawrence, "Put them away already."
"But they're so great," Lawrence insisted. "It's hard to put them back into hiding."
Adam felt his ears burn and Lawrence looked up, expecting a snippy retort, but Adam crossed his arms in front of his chest.
"Thanks," he grumbled, and Lawrence was momentarily fascinated at the sight of Adam tensing his shoulders, ducking his pink face away and murmuring something that wasn't, 'fucking rich geaser,' or 'you're a fucking idiot.' It was polite and without profanity. Lawrence felt he was staring at a different man. It was really, really cute- Adam was really cute. He was all confident one moment and shy the next…
"Oh, for fuck's sake, stop staring at me, you freak," Adam snapped after an extended period of silence, and Lawrence instantly grinned. There's the Adam he knew.
"And it's time to go," Adam added, snatching the pictures from Lawrence's fingers and gently stuffing them in their envelope. "Get your ass out of here and make money for your daughter so she can get more books and horse toys and whatever she fucking pleases, okay?"
"Yeah, yeah. Mrs. Gordon," Lawrence teased, but Adam froze and basically mimicked a cartoon character- Lawrence could almost see the way the blood filled his face from the base of his neck to the crown of his head, like someone was pouring the blush into him from a pitcher over his head.
"Y-…" Adam managed one weak sound before shoving the envelope at Lawrence and staring down at the counter, ears impossibly red behind his shaggy black hair. "G-get the hell out of here, you fucking weirdo."
Lawrence gave him a smirk and took the envelope, making his leave. "See you at lunch, darling."
"If you don't shut the fuck up I swear to god-" Adam's threat went unfinished as the door closed behind Lawrence, and Adam was left grumbling and fuming and nearly scaring the next customer to death.
Lawrence was a stupid fucking attractive tease that made Adam's heart pound way too hard, and he wanted to smack the charming smile right off his shitty perfect face.
He fucking hated hot 'prince-charming' assfucks. Particularly Lawrence shit-eating Gordon.
"I think you feel the opposite of hate," Amanda added once Adam realized he was grumbling his thoughts out loud. "Most of the time, when you hate someone, you don't think of them as hot."
"Amanda, go fucking mop the floor," Adam snapped, and Amanda only rolled her eyes and listened, assuming Adam would torture himself enough today with daydreams and fantasies. She didn't need to intervene.
For now. Her wicked smirk returned to her face as she grabbed the mop handle, thinking of ways to embarrass Adam in the future.
—
Lawrence was staring into his coffee cup the next day with fascination.
"Just drink it," Adam demanded, but Lawrence was staring at it. There as a heart drawn in it. A heart. Drawn in the froth.
"Why did you-"
"Drink. It." Adam's eyes were intense, but the splash of red on his cheeks was even more intense.
Lawrence slowly lifted the cup and sipped at it, making Adam clear his throat.
"So…" Lawrence set the cup down, "Any reason why you… drew a heart in my coffee?"
"Practice," Adam responded quickly. "I'm not good at coffee art. So I'm starting with basic shapes to get the hang of it."
"Alright…" Lawrence slowly began to make his signature smirk of I-know-the-truth, and Adam felt himself blushing all over again.
"Stop making that fucking face, holy fuck," Adam sighed with exasperation, but Lawrence had his reasons for making 'that fucking face.'
—
A few days later, Lawrence came in to Chance In Counter with tensed eyebrows and his lips drawn tight in a line.
"If you need to take a shit, the bathroom is down the hall over there-" Adam pointed to the corner of the cafe, and Lawrence shook his head.
"Well then, what's shoved up your ass this morning?" Adam dried off a few cups and saucer plates as Lawrence settled down in his seat.
"Alison and I talked," he sighed, "We're officially getting divorced."
Adam stared at him blankly. He knew this was going to happen, but he knew that regardless of their personal feelings for each other, getting divorced was a sad process. It was the official acknowledgement that their connection was over, and Lawrence had been married for…
"… how long?" Adam asked out loud, and Lawrence raised an eyebrow. Adam set down a dried cup. "How long were you two married?"
"11 years," Lawrence admitted, "But we only dated for five months before getting married. Only knew each other 3 months before that."
"Ah," Adam nodded, "So…"
"I'm moving out," Lawrence answered the next question before it was asked. "We'll work out exact times Diana will visit me in the papers, but so far the agreement is weekends."
Adam finished drying the dishes and he set the rag down, coming a little closer to Lawrence and leaning against the counter. "Do you know where you're moving to?"
"Not far from where we already live," Lawrence shrugged. "Gonna get a two-bedroom home. Good enough for me. I would just get an apartment, but I don't want Diana to be bored when she comes over. She should have her own space to spend time in."
Adam nodded his agreement and watched as Lawrence drank his macadamia brittle latte.
"I hope the squirt is okay," Adam said softly, "I mean. Even if she understands it all, it's not easy on a kid."
"I know," Lawrence nodded gravely, and Adam kind of felt bad for bringing it up. There was a period of silence before Lawrence set down his empty cup and got his things together.
"I should get going," he said tiredly. "Have a good morning, Adam, I'll see you at lunch."
"Bye," Adam said simply, watching as Lawrence seemed to drag himself out the door. He felt bad for Lawrence. He seemed like a man who had his life in order and planned out perfectly, and now his little perfect dream had ended. It made sense for him to grieve over that.
Chewing his lip, Adam turned his attention to the cash register, deciding to assist the next customer in line.
—
Adam was just about finished with his macaroni and cheese a few days after the big news. He was poking at the last few noodles that continued to slip around his fork's prongs, and Lawrence was taking the last bites of a Caesar salad. Lawrence had been moping badly the last few days, and Adam was tired of it.
"Okay, look," Adam spoke, making Lawrence lift his tired eyes from the salad. "You need to stop being so fucking depressed."
"It's not that—" Lawrence began to argue, but Adam continued without mercy.
"No, it's fucking annoying," Adam snapped. "It's like a shitty gray cloud is raining over your head all goddamn day and I want to- I don't know, I want to make it fuck off."
Lawrence blinked at him in confusion, and Adam angrily shoved macaroni in his mouth, chewing it and swallowing before continuing, pointing his cheesy fork at Lawrence's face.
"I want you to fucking smile again," he stated.
Silence stretched out between them. Cheese dripped onto Lawrence's salad.
"Shit, sorry," Adam pulled his fork back, blushing stupidly. "B-but I mean it. It's stupid, seeing that ugly-ass scowl on your face, you're old. You're gonna get wrinkles. Stop fucking frowning."
Adam's complains made Lawrence snicker, and Adam looked up in shock as Lawrence laughed, laughed for the first time in days and then he couldn't stop smiling.
"You're a charming little shit, you know that?" Lawrence's eyes crinkled in the corners and his smile lit up the whole room. Adam felt his heart flip over in his chest at least four times.
"I-I'm just so fucking sick of seeing you sulk," Adam protested. "Look, why don't we go drink again?"
"Tonight?" Lawrence's eyes gleamed with excitement.
"Of course," Adam responded with a smirk this time, and he kicked Lawrence's foot under the table. Lawrence yelped at first, then he kicked Adam back, and to say the least, they almost tipped over the table and were rewarded with the humor of a few dirty looks from employees.
—
"Fuck," Lawrence slurred, nearly dropping the empty shot glass on the bar's surface. "Fuuuuck."
"You're shitfaced," Adam stared, stared at the way Lawrence's eyes were hazy and his face was flushed, how he seemed to have a hard time keeping his head upright. "You're absolutely shitfaced."
"No…" Lawrence hiccuped. "No shit, Sherlock."
Adam gawked for a moment before grinning wide. "Wow, you're plastered. I never thought I'd ever see this. You had such a rule of no more than three drinks."
"You're not my mom," Lawrence complained, and Adam laughed at the stupid way he pouted.
"You're so fucking drunk, this is hilarious," Adam nudged Lawrence's side, and Lawrence stuck out his tongue like a five year old. It only made Adam laugh harder.
When it was time to leave, Adam was supporting Lawrence's weight and gripping his waist with one hand, the other holding Lawrence's arm around his shoulders. When he got to Lawrence's car, he paused and shoved his hand in Lawrence's pocket, grabbing his car keys and unlocking it. Adam maneuvered them around and got Lawrence in the passenger seat, buckled him and closed the door, then got into the driver's seat and started up the car. The gentle rumble under his feet made Adam shiver, and he inhaled the scent of clean leather seats and admired the dim glow of the lights inside the car.
"This car's fucking amazing," Adam whispered. He's obviously been inside of it before, but he never has driven it, and when he got out onto the main road and felt it rolling down the pavement, he was in love with it. It drove so smoothly Adam could hardly believe he was driving.
Adam went straight to his apartment without question. There was no way he could bring Lawrence home this drunk. His wife- now ex-wife- would probably kick him out, anyways. When they got to Adam's shitty apartment complex, he reached over and got Lawrence's phone from his pocket, unlocking it with ease (it was the year Lawrence was born, duh, Adam knew how basic Lawrence was with passwords) and going to his messages. He saw Alison's contact and texted her back (she asked what he was doing, if he was coming home so she knew to lock the garage door), telling her he was staying at Adam's that night. She responded almost instantly with a simple 'Ok' and Adam shut the phone off, slipping it back into his pocket and helping Lawrence out of the car. Lawrence woke up again, dizzy and asking where he was.
"Welcome to my shitty home," Adam chuckled, locking the car and slipping Lawrence's arm over his shoulders again. "You're staying here tonight, buddy."
"With you…" Lawrence groaned a little, and Adam glared at him.
"What's that supposed to mean, asswipe?"
"One bed…"
Adam paused at first, feeling his heart thud against his chest.
"I-I'll be on the couch, moron," Adam mumbled, and Lawrence grunted in response. He helped Lawrence up the stairs and set Lawrence's almost limp body against the wall as he fished in his pockets for his keys. Once finding said keys, he opened the door and pushed Lawrence inside, then locked the door behind him. Lawrence stood in front of the door, staring at the living room where the couch with the sunken-in cushions and ancient TV sat.
"C'mon…" Adam lead Lawrence to the bedroom, where he sat Lawrence down on the bed and left to get water. He returned with the glass and crouched down in front of Lawrence, placing a hand on his jaw and coaxing his mouth open. He tipped the glass gently, and most of the water went into Lawrence's mouth, the rest trickled out on his chin, but Adam pulled the glass away and wiped the excess off with his thumb. Lawrence swallowed the water, then seemed to focus. He reached out, took the glass and downed the rest.
"Thanks," he managed to say, then flopped over onto the bed and was out like a light.
Adam sighed, watching Lawrence's sides rise and fall as he was lulled into sleep. He took off his flannel and grabbed a pair of sweats, going to the bathroom. Even though Lawrence was asleep, Adam was self-conscious about changing in front of him, for… unspoken reasons.
Adam returned to the bedroom and leaned down, taking off Lawrence's shoes and deciding it was good enough. He tucked Lawrence in, got him another glass of water and a trash can in case he woke up and puked everywhere, then left the room to sit on the couch. He scrolled through the TV channels aimlessly, but the thought that Lawrence was in his room in his bed was too much and he couldn't pick a show to watch.
He tried to lay down on the couch, but there was no way he would sleep.
Worse, he heard a thump from somewhere in his dark kitchen and although Adam knew it was nothing, he jumped to his feet and scrambled into the bedroom, throwing himself onto his bed and trembling.
He fucking hated the dark. It was… unpredictable.
He turned over, clinging desperately to the sleeping form next to him, nuzzling his face into Lawrence's back and inhaling the smell of his cologne.
It calmed him instantly. Two deep sighs later and Adam was drifting to sleep, still gripping Lawrence's waist tightly.
—
Lawrence would be lying if he wasn't completely confused when he woke up.
He grabbed the water and chugged it down instantly, luckily refrained his gag reflex and avoided puking, but his head pounded like a bitch, and he felt someone clinging to his back like a baby koala and Alison never snuggled. She eventually pushed him away in their sleep… with a little bit of dread, Lawrence looked over his shoulder, expecting the secretary he slept with a few times a few months back.
Instead, he saw Adam's messy black hair and thick lashes and he felt his heart slam against his ribcage.
His constant movements made Adam peek his eyes open, and slowly, Adam woke up and stared at him.
They were laying in that position long enough for the air to get incredibly hot and tense, and Adam unwrapped himself from Lawrence's back and blushed to his ears.
"You got smashed as all hell last night so I brought you to my apartment for the night," Adam murmured his explanation. "Then I couldn't sleep on the couch so I came back to the bed. And I tend to have a death grip on my pillow when I sleep."
Lawrence was too dazed to respond, so he nodded and flopped back down, sighing and trying to control the way his head was throbbing. Adam noticed the empty glass of water. He got out of bed and shuffled over to it, grabbing it and leaving to the kitchen. He got a new glass, then handed it to Lawrence with a pill in the other hand.
"Take it," Adam assured. "Painkiller."
Lawrence nodded his thanks and took the pill, then drank the entire glass of water immediately afterwords.
"Sorry," Lawrence mumbled, and Adam shook his head.
"I'll make breakfast," Adam informed Lawrence as he left the room, and Lawrence sat there, zoning out until he smelt bacon. He stood up and found the bathroom, washing his face and seeing an unopened toothbrush next to the sink, assumedly from a dentist visit. Lawrence opened the package and used it with Adam's toothpaste, feeling better that his mouth didn't taste like cat piss anymore.
He wandered into the kitchen and saw Adam place the plate of bacon and scrambled eggs on the table for Lawrence. He blinked at it, then at Adam, who blushed and got himself a bowl of cocoa puffs.
"You're gonna eat that shit?" Lawrence looked at Adam's spoonful of cocoa puffs, and Adam narrowed his eyes.
"I'm fucking coo coo for cocoa puffs, you got a problem?" Adam growled, and Lawrence managed to smile at that. Adam was a big dork, really.
"It was really good," Lawrence said as he was washing the dishes. "Thank you. You didn't have to do that."
"I wasn't just going to throw you out," Adam rolled his eyes. "I'm not that much of an asshole. Only a little bit."
Lawrence laughed and handed Adam the last dry plate. Once everything was cleaned up, Lawrence gathered his things and decided he should leave.
"Thanks… again," Lawrence felt the need to say with his hand on the door knob. "I haven't gotten that drunk… probably ever. I'm thankful you helped me out."
"It was funny as hell," Adam grinned. "But really, it's nothing."
Lawrence smiled again and finally made his leave, and as soon as his footsteps disappeared down the stairs, Adam exhaled and felt a little chilly.
His apartment felt really empty suddenly, and Lawrence had only been there for a night.
Fuck this. Adam went to the couch and turned on the movie channel, deciding to watch Titanic and eat a huge fucking tub of ice cream, because he could, and because Lawrence was so perfect and drastically unattainable.
