God bless you all, you've waited a shitload amount of time for this. Wait I should not swear. Screw that, this is a T-rated fanfiction.

It seems that, for me, summer holiday is the time for hiatuses, not for more updates.

God, if others were like me too...

Oh well. Go, read it, you've waited long enough.

Disclaimer: I don't out Glee, god bless me, or...what else did I put in here? w'ever. i don't own that either.

Sorry if the narration (is that the right word?) sounds different, but I've been reading too much..stuff.

Thank you and sorry and enjoy this if you can.

Chapter 21 – Short mushrooms

When Nick woke up very early on Saturday morning to find Jeff brushing his teeth at the foot of his bed, he had to take a moment to untangle dream from reality. As a helping factor, this Jeff was fully dressed (thank God) and wasn't showing any intention whatsoever to pin him down on his bed (just for the moment, he hoped).

Then it hit him: the possibility of Jeff watching him having an almost wet dream, regardless of who was in it, didn't sound so good, so he held his breath for a while as they looked straight into each other's eyes. With a hand gesture, the blond went into his bathroom and finished brushing his teeth. Why was he doing it in his room, he had no idea. It wasn't as if they've slept together. Again, it was too early for Nick to deal with all these disappointments.

"Jeff?" he brought himself to ask, still sitting on his bed, his legs under the comforter.

"'Morning," Jeff smiled and leant on his arms on the bed to kiss his cheek before handing him a bowl of cereals (seriously, how did that get there anyway?). "I would've never thought..."

"What? Morning," Nick blinked, a little uneasy with the way Jeff seemed to look at the bowl on his lap.

In the end, the blond just succumbed and started eating what he had earlier presented as Nick's breakfast. "...that cereals would taste so good with yogurt." He swallowed, lost in thought and then took another spoonful.

Nick gave him a friendly chuckle, although a little nervous at having his boyfriend's head so close to his hips. No, that was nothing a cold shower couldn't help him with. "What made you try it, then?" he jogged in for a little more small talk, so it wouldn't look as if he was dashing to the bathroom at the mere sight of him.

"Tiny bit of information from my birthday present," Jeff winked, spoon in the air. There was strawberry yogurt in that bowl. "You used to ramble a lot more when you were little. I recall 2-page worth of you discussing toothbrushes. It was informative, if nothing else." Nick narrowed his eyes at the blond, gaining himself time to analyse the way the other's smile was getting guiltier by the second.

"Are we gonna be late?" the brunet eventually asked.

The answer apparently required another spoon of cereals. "Not yet. I've been poking you since 5 am and you got up pretty quickly."

"5 am? And why...?" This was a little disconcerting. Nick, as far as he knew, hasn't been sleeping in too much in his life, so he had no witnesses to tell him about any weird behaviour he had in bed. While sleeping. Of course while sleeping.

"I couldn't sleep. We should probably be ready to go by 6.30."

Wait.

"Weren't we supposed to leave at 5?"

At this, Jeff grinned. "That was before Thad found out about the plan. He wouldn't get up so early for anything except the zombie apocalypse."

"I see...um, thanks. I'll be ready in a few moments," he threw his legs over the other side of the bed, ducking the comforter from their reach. Another look behind him after he got up and Jeff was looking expectantly at him, still splayed over one third of the bed. "Finish my breakfast for me, please," Nick gave him another smile.

"Ugh, I didn't mean to eat so much, I swear!"

"Not holding a grudge over it," the brunet laughed just before closing the bathroom door.

Right then.

o0o0o

"Dude, I told you, we should have turned right while we had the chance..."

"Now we're doomed at a life of sorrow and starvation!"

"Shut up, Dave. Like I was saying, let's try to do a U-turn."

"Whatever you say. It's not like I know what I'm doing." He did, however, think he had a better sense of direction than the buffoons in front of them.

"Right...Follow me."

What else can I do?!

o0o0o

"Wow..."

For starters, maps always lie. Never trust a map. Never. They're the inner demons of a society that's been feeding on utopian truths for decades. It's them.

Furthermore, despite being May, New York was cold. Very cold. Outrageously cold. Did the constitution allow it to be this cold?

"It's..." Jeff spoke again and although his breath hadn't condensed into a tiny cloud in front of him, he rubbed his arms again as the wind cut through his sweater.

"Cold?" Thad laughed and lead the way to the hotel, trying at the same time not to look too eager about getting inside.

"Yeah..." his response remained unheard and he forcefully disentangled his left arm from his tight grip in order to reach for Nick's sleeve.

At least they didn't have to walk back to the cars after checking in. Since they were only there for the weekend, they only had backpacks. And...okay now, really? Why was Nick's hand so warm?

"You're a radiator," the blond mumbled as they waited for the way to clear up at the entrance.

"I thought I was a generator. Mom used to oil my joints every winter. She said I could light up the whole house."

"Cheeky," he gripped the brunet's hand tighter, failing to hide a smile when he chuckled.

They were soon going to have other problems on their hands. Bigger problems. World changing problems. Like...who was sleeping in the bed with the bigger pillow?

Now that, that was a really important, grown-up problem.

o0o0o

After their second breakfast that day (and Nick's first), another major motion problem came in sight. Since they had taken three rooms in total, nobody had any fights about personal space or belongings. Frankly, the rooms were a little too big for them. And that's saying something when you're talking about six 17-year-olds. However, Wes had carried his clothes to the second floor like they were bags full of crystal shoes and he was Prince Charming on a quest to find Cinderella.

Which, unfortunately, wasn't too far from the truth. The biggest problem of Wes's life was if he should go for the green shirt, the purple sweater or the brown T-shirt.

"T-shirt," Thad voiced out from his place in one of the armchairs.

For obvious reasons, all six of them were now in the same room. This was a grown-up conference.

"The green thing makes your eyes stand out, man," David snickered from the bed and Wes glared at his reflection in the mirror uselessly.

Jeff was taking his time analysing Dave's Rubik Cube MP3. He was taking all his sweet time and no one could catch his attention more than that little piece of electronic heaven. No matter how many glances Nick was throwing at him, he remained splayed across the bed, with his head hanging over the edge.

"Get the sweater, Wesley," Trent finally found his pity glands and put them all out of their misery. Yes, because none of them was better at choosing decent clothing than Trent. Bless him.

"Uh...okay, I'll take the sweater. Do you think I can, like, go behind the scene or something? Should I wait until they're done?"

"Be chill...be the man..."

"You must swift as the coursing river..."

"Thad, don't even start."

Jeff still played with the MP3. Who ever thought about giving that thing so many options?

Kicking off the empty bottle of water that rebounded from Wes, to Thad and then to him, Trent harrumphed. "Why don't you do the only sensible thing there is and ask Nick what to do? He's the only one who hasn't been exposed to as much madness as we have."

Hearing his name, the brunet squinted. "Um...I've been rooming with Lewis, been dragged around by Cade and had breakfast with Aaron for the past few years. Where's the part where I've been spared?"

"And went on almost double dates with Jane. That must count for something," David chirped in.

The sigh was his only response. "Come to think of it, had Cade taken you on any of his dates lately?" Trent obnoxiously kept the subject changed.

"Not really. No. I stopped listening if he ever did ask that." Really now. They were right.

"Excuse me, but..." Wes flailed a little, goggling at them. "Rachel?" A collective Oh. "Since I'm gonna take any of you with me, you may use this chance to make your presence acknowledged."

A pause.

A connection is made. The others, perplexed.

"Wait, we're not going with you? What are we here for, then?" Trent and Thad voiced out, the most bewildered of them all.

"Guys, it's New York. You're here to visit it, not to come with me at a school choir competition."

"That's his nice way of saying he doesn't want us to embarrass him in front of the shorty," David laughed.

"Half true," Wes pointed at him and was just about to give 15 points to Ravenclaw when a low music started and Jeff kicked his feet excitedly on the bed.

"I unlocked it!"

o0o0o

Hmmmm... Since they have finally managed to boost Wes's self esteem to such a level that he almost called them 'peasants' before going to watch the Nationals – and Rachel. Before going to watch Rachel. Full stop. – the rest of them retreated to their rooms to get ready to go exploring. Or whatever they were going to do. It was still pretty early in the day.

Hmmmm... Nick was taking a lot more to get ready the second time that day, Jeff observed as he watched him closely, chin in his hands. He'd felt a little weird following him with his eyes as he got ready for a shower. He'd felt weird for as much as 2 seconds.

But now, now Jeff knew that, sooner or later, Nick had to take off that shirt. He did, right? So, he watched and waited. "Hmmmm..."

Nick took out another sweater and inspected it before putting it back on the chair. "I'll be ready in a moment," he then said without turning his head.

"Hmmmm..."

"Yes, Jeff?" he then turned with a small grin on his face. Unfortunately, it wasn't an evil one. He was totally oblivious.

"Shower?" the blond gestured lazily, although his eyes could almost burn holes in that shirt. Nick narrowed his eyes for a few moments until he remembered that activity too. His lightbulb almost made a pop. "Don't apologize, I know you're the main cause of the world water problems."

"Hey! I'm not that bad." His smile almost made him forget about the shirt. Almost.

"Shirt," Jeff said as he got up and crossed his legs on the bed. He even extended a hand, for dramatic purposes.

"Huh?" Nick blinked before looking, puzzled, at his empty hands.

"Your shirt. Give it to me." He wriggled his fingers a little.

Nick simple looked from his hand to his eyes, back and forth, a few times before finally getting it and reaching for said article of clothing too. "What, like, now?" His smile was a little terrified.

Like a cold blooded wanna-be predator, Jeff shrugged. "Yes, since you're gonna take the world drought in your hands with that shower."

Nick was on the edge of saying something. He almost said it too, when he realised that acknowledging that you knew that your boyfriend wanted to see you shirtless was actually worse than just being aware of it. He guessed...he could play the oblivious a little bit longer.

"Oh—kay..." Now would have been the moment that somebody burst into the room just long enough so he could run and lock himself in the bathroom. A few seconds later, the door was still untouched. No such luck.

At least Jeff had lowered his hand now. It was less intimidating. Would it be easier to take it off step by step – if there were any steps on taking off your shirt – or by being as swift as possible? His hands decided that on their own and they've chosen the latter one.

Jeff's eyes trailed fast over the larger and larger patch of skin that was being exposed, unconsciously biting his lip when he hovered just above the waistband. But as good things don't last forever, he hadn't even had the chance to raise his eyes towards Nick's chest before the shirt was thrown over his face, perfectly obscuring everything.

That...little...sh—

Oh, nevermind. Before he could even manage a – not so playful, more like dark – growl, he got a layered kiss. That's right. Through the fabric.

That little sh—ort mushroom.

The bathroom door clicked open and then closed.

o0o0o

To get back at his boyfriend for that really ungentlemanly move, Jeff took the liberty of borrowing his clothes for the day. If only for Nick's face once he was out and changed and freshened from the shower and it was worth it. They were quite fitting and Jeff decided that he liked Nick's sweaters a lot more than his own. They were softer and they smelled nicer. Duh.

And so, neatly folded in Nick-scented clothes and grinning like the world belonged to him since the moment the bathroom door opened, Jeff led their way to the beautiful landscape that was...a New York boulevard. Now, for the second part of this thing, it was true that neither of them had protested too much when Trent, David and Thad gave them wicked grins and pushed him in the opposite direction.

It looked like they were in for a date. Again. Not that they could complain, since they've only had one in their one month and a half of relationship. It wasn't so bad, either. But it was still cold. Cold meant hand holding was perfectly justified on both sides.

"Nicky..."

The other's smile remained on his lips as they walked down the street to God-knows-where, but he didn't make a sound.

"Nick."

"Yeah?" His smile was maybe a little too broad for Jeff to think he hadn't been ignored the first time.

Like this, he narrowed his eyes susceptibly. "Where are we going?"

"No idea," the other shrugged and pushed his fingertips under Jeff's – his, it was his sweater – long sleeve, resting them on his knuckles.

New York smelled different from Columbus, Jeff had a few silent moments to gather that information. The people looked slightly different too, even though he presumed it was more or less a self-induced thought. There were so many clouds that he wondered if they even had an hour before being drenched in water.

And maybe it was the atmosphere or just the anonymity of it all, but holding hands in plain sight felt safer there.

o0o0o

Kissing in Central Park was also nice.

o0o0o

"How do you think it went for Wes?" Jeff asked later that day over a large mug of tea – because, you know, he always drank tea while raining. Except he didn't, really, but it felt like the sensible thing to do while they were waiting for their friends in a cosy diner.

"I'm hoping for the best, but I'm no expert," Nick poured a little more milk in his own cup before stirring it just so he could try out the teaspoon. He then smiled into his drink when Jeff's leg pressed softly on his calf under the table. "Ideally, they haven't been caught in this rain."

It was downright pouring and they had a good chance to look at the damages when their other three friends got out of a cab and stumbled into the cafe. Why they chose this location when it took them fifteen minutes to get there, the other two had no idea.

"Why are you so dry?" David asked as he hanged his wet jacket in a free spot.

They simply shrugged. "We were only two blocks away..."

"Charming. Okay, I'm starving. What's this? Lunch? Dinner? Supper?" Thad placed himself at Nick's side, followed by a very not amused and dripping wet Trent, while David took a place beside Jeff.

"Whatever you want, but be sure to take enough time so we don't have to get out in that anytime soon," Trent basically said the magic words there. Eat as much as you can. And then more.

"Sounds like a plan!" David laughed before receiving the menus.

Who would've thought there were so many ways in which one could cook beef?

"So...any news from Wes?" Nick asked several minutes later, when they were done with their order and waiting calmly for the food.

The others snickered. "Ever since he threw a tantrum about not being able to find the place and then finding it, not really."

o0o0o

Maybe his mother's idea of all of them trying to become vegan wasn't bad at all, after all. This thing tasted really good, in fact. Even though it reminded him of the guinea pig he had back in elementary school. It was a faithful, broccoli-eating friend.

"Jeff?"

"Hm?" he snapped out of it as fast as he could, turning his head towards David, vegetables still being stabbed by his fork.

"You know we've always though you're not that much into talking..." his friend's tone was weird and the words even weirder, so he quirked an eyebrow over his glasses.

"What?"

"...and that's why we've never pressed you to be active in our conversations..."

"But I'm usually listening..." he started defending himself when Thad raised a hand on the other side of the table. Nick still had that blank look his face adopted while he was processing information.

"We thought you're a wallflower," Trent joked, clearly stealing Thad's line, as the other slumped back into his seat.

"Uh..." Jeff was on all grounds failing to see where this was going.

"But since we've seen you talking to Nick in a day more than you do with us in a month – and since we're obviously and justifiably jealous – we'll make sure that from now on you'll be shared between equals." David really liked big phrases.

The blond tested a confused smile, which turned into a wide-eyed one the next moment.

"Did you just throw a pea at me?" the senior Warbler turned this time towards Nick, who was holding his fork in the air, blank expression melting into an amused grin.

"Mine," he said and Jeff had a hard time squishing his meal in between the butterfly whirlwinds that had accumulated in his stomach. Stupid word.

o0o0o

This was certainly not something he had expected. "You have really strange pyjamas," he deadpanned from the bathroom door.

"You're wearing Spiderman pants..."

Now, he smiled. "I'm me, it's justifiable." As he got to his own bed and sat down on it, the one metre and a half to Nick's bed felt really, really far away. "You have little grey cars on yours," he bit his lip over his chuckle, but the brunet didn't even mock a glare.

"I was trying to be funny," he continued to smile, but he tugged a little at his blank white T-shirt, trying to make his grey pants seem a little more normal. "It didn't work. Better luck next time," he said afterwards, following his boyfriend's hands as they were taking down his glasses.

"They're cute."

"Are you saying that now, that you can't see them well anymore?" Nick cracked up, making him laugh too. "That's a really nice gesture, Jeff," he giggled, holding his ankles tighter, still wondering if he should go over. As was previously remarked by the other, one metre and a half is a serious distance.

There was something unexpectedly foreign about seeing his boyfriend without his glasses. It wasn't either in a bad or in a good way, but his expressions looked really different like this. It made Nick feel like an explorer, sometime, but it went as long as he didn't start thinking about wearing shorts and funny hats.

He wondered how long people usually took before being able to sleep in the same bed. Which was ridiculous because they've done that before and what the hell are you even thinking about, Nick? You've slept together as soon as the possibility was offered to you. No biggie.

Too bad these particular beds were a little too small for Jeff's hugging syndrome. But a good night kiss couldn't hurt, could it? "Be up at seven tomorrow," he said as he crossed the distance and then pressed his lips against the other's blond locks.

"I'll wake you up," Jeff grinned, once again bragging about his early bird feathers. They had an interrogation to assist to tomorrow.

o0o0o

"Spit it out. Spit it all out." Thad went as far as obstructing his shirt in order to get all the details.

"I'm not telling you anything while you can still stalk me through New York City and give me back my shirt. No, don't even think about stalking. I can still get you grounded back at school."

All in all, none of them had that much success in getting information. More time to get lost in the city, then. Which they did. A lot. Not even the GPS helped some of them.

Is Colin still there?

Um, yeah. If you want to visit him, even after this disgustingly long pause, go ahead.

If not, wait for the next and last few chapters, I guess.

I still don't know if there are 2 more or 5 more...