This story was inspired by Rather Be, originally by Clean Bandit, feat Jess Glynne, but I have the Pentatonix version on my Spotify playlist of The Spotify Chronicles. This is a KevEdd tale.

Kevin sighed but Edd just gave his hand a gentle squeeze and a small smile. Kevin couldn't help but to smile back, but he knew things weren't right.

"We're lost, Babe."

"No, we're not."

"How ya figure?"

"Because we're here. So we're not lost."

"We're so lost, Edd."

Edd sighed and dropped Kevin's hand so he could unfold the map and look at the entire thing versus the square he was looking at a moment before. He bit his lower lip and his brows furrowed together in complete concentration as his eyes danced across the paper.

"Adorable," Kevin thought.

"We're lost. I can't make heads or tails of this thing," Edd said as he sighed in frustration and threw his hands in the air.

Kevin just laughed and pulled out his phone. Pulling up the translator app Edd's mother had insisted they download before they left, Kevin spoke a few key phrases into the microphone and grabbed Edd's hand. Running to the first vendor he saw, with the help of the app, they ordered some sushi and got directions to the Shrine Edd had wanted them to visit.

They munched on their snack along the way and Kevin took in their surroundings.

Kyoto, Japan

How the hell did they get here of all places?!

It all started junior year...

They were in the same AP Intro into Asian Languages course. They were going to learn the basics of four languages that year. Japanese, Mandarin, Korean and Thai. The class would conclude with a trip to Hong Kong, Kyoto, Seoul and Bangkok. It killed one of the foreign language credits they'd need to go to any college in the state and they'd get a trip out of the deal. Kevin saw nothing wrong with this plan. He'd get to see Asia and he had the smartest kid in school as a neighbor and direct classmate. Getting in and staying on Edd's good side guaranteed him a passing grade AND that trip. And maybe...Edd?

Edd had other ideas, though.

It was easy being Kevin's friend and good acquaintance. But since freshman year, he knew two things: he was gay and he had a HUGE crush on Kevin. Having classes with him was a thing to be dealt with so he could move on to the next class and eventually graduate and get the hell out of Peach Creek. It wasn't a super conservative place to live, but it wasn't all that tolerant, either. He started counting down the days til graduation Christmas break freshman year. He had two countdowns for Kevin: time spent with the redhead and time spent getting away from him.

Ok, so it was the same countdown, but non tangible feelings aren't logical.

Kevin didn't let up, though.

Seeing Edd in class, he put his usual plan into action: sit next to or behind the genius, make sure he was in Edd's work groups for group work, study sessions at least three times a week and pray that whatever it was that was being taught would stick. Because since sophomore year, Kevin knew two things: he was gay and had a HUGE crush on Edd.

In the fall, they'd study on Saturday mornings, and Tuesday and Thursday nights after Kevin got out of practice for football and Edd got of practice with the swim team. Kevin didn't mind not getting to sleep in because it meant that he got to hang out with Edd before the rest of the world woke up and thus rip them away from each other.

By Christmas break, Edd couldn't say no to Kevin's plans to hang out after they studied. Edd had been going to football and baseball games since freshman year to see the redhead play, but disguised it under plans to help various booster clubs with their concession stand fundraisers. Edd was an organizational phenom so everyone asked him for help during games. It was a win-win all around.

They went to Nazz's New Year's Eve party and spent most of the party doing an awkward dance of avoiding but wanting to talk to each other. Midnight found them in the kitchen, avoiding their friends kissing each other. Eddy was dating Nazz, Rolf had Angela, Ed had May and Nat and Rave were on a break, but for some reason that didn't stop them from smooching at midnight.

As the clock struck twelve, Kevin raised his hand.

"Midnight High 5?," Kevin asked, but Edd noticed there was something different in his eyes.

His tone was playful, but his eyes had a sincere nervousness about them. Like he was putting something on the line and was hoping it wouldn't blow up in his face. When Edd returned the High 5 with his usual giggle to Kevin's silliness, the look in Kevin's eyes changed.

Relief, anticpation, hope and yearning. So much yearning.

When they're hands touched, Kevin quickly intertwined their fingers as he pulled Edd into a hug. Edd didn't resist, go stiff or awkwardly hug the redhead back. He quickly wrapped his free arm around Kevin's waist and melted into the redhead in front of him. His happy sigh of relief was followed by slightly embarrassed giggles from them both.

"Happy New Year, D," Kevin whispered into the kiss he placed on Edd's beanie.

"Happy New Year, Kevin," Edd whispered into Kevin's chest.

It took a good couple of minutes before they let each other go, and even then it was mostly because Ed came in the kitchen to get a soda for May, but they both knew that that moment, was the moment that kicked off their something big.

They both slept with and didn't wash their shirt for a week.

The spring semester was more of the same, but there was something more between the redhead jock and the ravenette genius. Edd was at his baseball games when he didn't have track meets and Kevin was the loudest one in the stands at Edd's track meets when he didn't have to pitch on the ball diamond. They'd catch as many new movies as they could and Kevin's Netflix queue was always full of new documentaries. They'd play video games on Sunday nights and at school, their bromance was starting to rival Eddy and Edd's. The former scammer would have been upset if Double D wasn't so damn happy when Kevin was around and the redhead was always making an effort to be nice to him. He gave Nazz a warning to give to Kevin and left it at that.

They studied on Wednesdays and Thursdays after practice and Sunday mornings. And spent every day of Spring Break on Kevin's motorcycle going wherever the wind took them. On the last day of Spring Break, they were on the coast walking along the boardwalk. The sun was starting to set and they had made it their favorite spot on the beach to have lunch and people watch. While Edd hated riding back to Peach Creek on Kevin's motorcycle in the dark, he loved sunsets on the coast with redhead. The dayglo red from the sun going down behind the horizon always reminded him of Kevin's hair. The visages of blue in the sky reminded Kevin of Edd's eyes. To see it reflected off the water and to see that reflection in Edd's eyes always sent the redhead's heart reeling.

So they stood in their spot, side by side, til Kevin reached for Edd's hand. He hadn't held it since Christmas and the gentle squeeze Edd gave him as he leaned his head on Kevin's shoulder sent fireworks down his spine. Kevin, never really one to let things sit, especially when there were no other people around that knew them, thus making him more open to taking a shot in the dark at deepening what they had, pulled on Edd's hand til he was right in front of him and the he spun him around so he could wrap him in a from behind hug, rested his chin on Edd's beanie and just held him there as the sun dropped way too quickly behind the horizon.

And they missed the sun actually setting because at one point, Edd leaned his to the side against Kevin's chest. This caused Kevin's head to drop and they were suddenly cheek to cheek. They'd been close before, mostly hugs, but never thisclose. Edd held his breath as his face went red, but Kevin didn't move. A couple skipped heartbeats later when he did, the look in his eyes held Edd spellbound.

Anticipation and yearning. So much yearning.

Edd felt like he had to do something, but he wasn't quite sure what. When the look in Kevin's eyes went from yearning to questioning, Edd could only nod and a skipped heartbeat later Kevin's lips were on his. Somehow it felt right. Better than right. When Kevin tried to deepen the kiss, all Edd could do was hold onto the front his shirt as his knees went weak and his mouth played along with Kevin's. When they finally came up for air, each was thankful for the night sky to hide crimson blushes, but relieved giggles filled the air.

Then Edd's phone started buzzing. Without even pulling it out of his pocket, he hit the power button on it to send whoever was trying to contact him to voicemail. When Kevin raised a brow at him, as Edd was never one to ignore an incoming anything on his phone, what Edd said next let him know that the chance he had just taken was worth it.

"There's no place I'd rather be than here with you."

That summer found the two soon to be seniors lost all over Asia. But with each new spot they found, they learned something new about themselves and each other. Kevin had gotten a scholarship to play football at Peach State, but Edd had gotten into Stanford. While they'd be a thousand miles from the one that comforted them the most, they'd wait forever, because they knew that eventually they'd get back to the one person they'd rather be with.

Eventually became seven years, and after Kevin suggesting that they get Edd another name, they moved to The Bay after a honeymoon in Kyoto. Life was simple, sacredly so. With each other, they found a sense of inner peace that only being together could bring. And sometimes, when they're out and about and get lost, Edd will just grab Kevin's hand and say those beautiful, yet simple words.

"As long as I'm with you, there's no place I'd rather be."