Caution: Falling

By Kay

Author's Notes: Wow... thanks for all the reviews! *glomps everyone* You're so wonderful! ^__^ I appreciated every single one of them-- absolutely fantastic. You guys are the best. It's you that keeps me writing. Well, that, and a huge appreciation for Jalil in leather. And yes, I realize some of the reviews left aren't showing on the site... I'm not sure what's up with that. Don't worry-- I get my reviews through email, too, so I've seen them all. ^__^ I appreciate every single one. I wub you all!

Enjoy the SLASH-- finally gettin' some C/J action coming up here! ;) And a big G/D, as well...

One again-- I don't own, don't sue me. Sorry this chapter took so long to get out, but I've been busy working on another Everworld ficcie, and I had to stay at my Da's house this weekend. :) The next one will be coming up SUPER fast.

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The moment they stepped in the dance club, Jalil remembered why he hated them.

"This place is really rippin' tonight!" Ganymede screamed above the ridiculous amount of blaring music and shrieking voices. He clenched Jalil's arm reassuringly, tossing him a wild wink and the careless grin that had reduced thousands of simpering college girls to jello. On the face of a young man, it was a weapon.

Jalil decided he hated it, too.

"I don't like these kind of places," he said loudly, his own voice almost inaudible in his ears. The thundering trance mix blasting over the speakers pulsed the very floor, moving people out onto a large open space to dance. The flashing multi-colored lights sparkled against their gyrating bodies, flying over the area to illuminate the dusky scene. Jalil, who'd been to fewer social events in his life than his estranged hermit of an uncle, Greggory, was almost awed at the sheer amount of people bouncing around to the music-- or just getting plastered and snogging in random corners.

It was possibly the most disturbing thing he'd ever seen.

"Ganymede, I want to go home," he yelled, standing on his tip toes to tug at his roommate's shirt sleeve and get his attention.

"What?!" shouted Ganymede, leaning down slightly to hear even as his green eyes were surveying the scene of the Vicious Wade.

"I want to go home!" Jalil nearly screamed-- but his voice was drowned out by a sudden boom coming from a makeshift stage set up in the corner, where the speakers were standing.

Ganymede shook his head silently to indicate he hadn't caught the words, before leaning down to yell in Jalil's ear. "I'm going to find April! Stay here!"

"What?!"

It was too late, however-- his flamboyant roommate (gathering quite a few appreciative stares with his emerald silk shirt and rather flattering torn jeans) had already clambered off into the mass of people. Jalil bit his lip savagely to keep from crying out in anger, pressing back against the wall and away from the huge crowd of ravers. He didn't like this. Didn't like the loud music, the strange and heady feeling of no control, and most of all, the insane amount of people crammed into the tiny establishment. It was like a nightmare come true.

And he really didn't like the sly glances some of the people were starting to give him.

'Why did I agree to this?' Jalil wondered with a mental moan of despair. He scowled furiously at an audacious idiot frat boy who dared to flash a flirtatious wink at him. He crossed his arms almost defensively over his skinny chest, trying not to look as uncomfortable and upset as he felt. The boy got the picture, but threw him another wink as his partner shoved him out to the dance floor. 'Bastard. I hope he's in my Chemistry class, so I can blow him to hell the next lab day.'

He should never have come here.

There were some things in Jalil Sherman's life that he could live without. One was this experience-- he'd never go to another dance club again if they were all loud, feverishly hot, and obsessively packed inside a tiny space. What a horrible concept. Some demented outcast in life probably thought up the idea in his basement, cackling madly to himself and plotting Jalil's future humiliation and discomfort. 'Jesus... you can barely breathe in here...'

He searched the floor for Ganymede's tall, blonde form, but to no avail. The lights dashed across the numerous people, dying hair shades of pink and green, bruised violet and burgundy-- it was impossible to unblend the sea of color washing out individual identity. Not to mention, all the movement and bouncing made height nearly impossible to determine. The entire room was a technicolor blur of unfamiliar faces, and Jalil found himself shaking slightly in alarm.

It had been too long since he was in a crowd of this proportion. The last instance he could recall being in a group this size was his cousin's wedding, and that had ended in an all-out brawl between the ring bearer and the groom. (The younger teen had been sucking idly on the piece of jewelry, but accidentally swallowed it in a coughing fit during the ceremony. It took three days to retrieve it. Jalil didn't ask how.) By then, his cousin had gotten so sick of her fiancée that she called the wedding off again.

It seemed like all his experiences with lots of people turned out bad. Jalil sighed warily and surveyed the mass of sweating, pitched people. At least this had no brawls. Yet.

It was only a matter of time, of course.

Keeping in mind that caution should always be exercised in groups of freakish people, Jalil started off to look for his missing roommate.

And a drink. A really strong drink. He heard from Ganymede that if you were drunk, you could actually survive these things.

'... stupid roommates.'

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By the time Ganymede spotted April's curly auburn hair over by the left bar counter, he'd already been accosted by approximately eighteen and a half women. (The half still counted, even though she thought he was someone else.) Of course, the blonde turned every suitor and lovely lady away. He was in love, after all.

"You're late," April quipped amusedly as he approached, tapping her watch. He made a face at her before breaking into a large grin. Though the friendly redhead was closer to Jalil, he'd been introduced to her after his tiny infatuation with David had began, and the two warm and magnetic personalities immediately labeled them tight friends. Ganymede was thrilled that she loved Rent as much as he did (while Jalil was apt to hide the CD whenever he took to listening to it full volume in the apartment), and was especially touched that the redhead was willing to aid him on his quest to ensnare the delectable David 'Gorgeous-As-Sin' Levin.

"Jalil took forever getting dressed," he informed her. He smirked slightly, remembering the new look his roommate was wearing. "But it was worth the wait, believe me."

"My god, Jalil's here?!"

"Yeah. Lots of duct tape, bribery, and electric shock prods later..." Ganymede made a quick motion to the bartender, who waved at him. The blonde made it a habit to know every bartender in the area-- one could never be too careful. By now, everyone knew his favorite drink, which certainly saved time on the ordering block. "I left him near the entrance while I came to find you. I'm a little worried, but I think he can handle himself in here. It's a little more toned down tonight than usual."

April looked dubious, but let it pass. "Well, if you say so. Why did you bring him?"

"I told him I needed help reeling in David," Ganymede admitted. "But I really just wanted to get him out of the apartment and into a situation where he'd have to deal with people again. I'm hoping he meets someone."

"You're despicable, Gany," his friend laughed, tipping her glass back and finishing off whatever she was having. "And as a reward for your wicked ways, I'll inform you that, yes, David did come. His friend Christopher dragged him here on a leash practically. I think he thought the same thing you're thinking about Jalil-- you know, see a few people, destroy the bubble of isolation... all that stuff."

Ganymede purred. "Oh, but he won't be alone for long... oh no, my love..."

"You're very odd, honey."

"Yes. I am. Jalil reminds me every moment of the day."

April made as if to laugh, but her eyes were scanning the room, and suddenly the green orbs lit up happily. "Oh-- oh, there he is! David's over there!"

"Where?!"

"Look by the tables set in the corner. No, further to the left. He's slumped in the shadows near the back."

Ganymede squinted, slitting his emerald eyes carefully at the darkened part of the room. He could make out the figure, veiled slightly by the ashen pallor of the room where the lights weren't flashing. "How do you know it's him?"

April threw him a teasing smirk, and grabbed his arm to steer him towards the area. "Body language. I've spent ages with him in class. By now, I can spot the classic 'David Levin Angsting Slump' anywhere."

"Oooh, teach me the ways..."

"Observe the way his shoulders lean forward in upset frustration. The tension in his arms, the awkwardness in which he holds himself." The redhead giggled slightly. "All point to a major angst fest and self-pity party. Poor baby didn't want to come."

"Awww," murmured Ganymede sympathetically, although his green eyes were fixed upon the unmoving figure with an almost frightening hunger. "Poor baby. I'll make everything better."

"And if not, you can at least see him up close, right?" April chuckled, lowering her voice as they drew nearer. By now David's figure was plainly visible, including the miserable and annoyed expression that drew his dark eyebrows together in a furrow. Despite the scowl on his face, he looked remarkably at ease in the pounding heat of the club... most likely resulting from the many times April knew Christopher had dragged him there.

'Yes,' the redhead thought to herself impishly. 'Maybe Ganymede is exactly what David needs in his life.'

Only time, and a stellar first impression to hopefully ease the crushing blow of Ganymede's powerful personality, would tell. April weaved her way through the remains of the crowd, giving a casual nod to David. The dark haired boy looked up at her with a faint smile.

"Hey, April. How's it going?"

"Good," she responded cheerfully, shoving Ganymede into a chair at the table. She sat down beside him after doing so, ignoring his dirty look. "I thought it was you; no one else could be in such a deep funk at a party."

David rolled his eyes at her. "You sound just like Christopher... you sure he's not imprinting on you? I'd hate to see you start running around drinking beer and making an ass out of yourself."

"Never gonna happen," April told him resolutely. She flashed an innocent smile and reached out to pat Ganymede's hand. Up until now, the tall blonde had been uncomfortably ignored-- the motion made him start uneasily before looking at David with a bashful smile. Whatever confidence he'd bolstered before immediately flowed out of him at the view of the gorgeous brunette's face.

"Hi," he said lamely, and waved.

April choked back a snicker.

David just gave the blonde a strange look. "Hi," he answered back slowly. "Is this your new boyfriend, April?"

"I wish," she admitted wistfully. "But no. We're just friends."

"She's my beautiful redhead goddess that agreed to drive me home when I'm too smashed to walk," Ganymede added sagely. David's lips quirked into a grin. The blonde almost squeaked, and his heart stopped and thudded to a shuddering death in his chest.

'Oh yeah. Must make him do that again. Oh my,' the blonde groaned inwardly, staring intently at the fantastic smile on his crush's face. April was watching his reaction with amusement, understanding the sappy, love-sick expression on Ganymede's handsome face, and mentally filing it so she could tease him later.

David, oblivious to the effect he was having on a certain blonde, slumped comfortably in the chair. Although it was close to stifling hot in the room, a heavy black denim coat lay casually over his shoulders, hiding most of him from view. The habit had been born out of too many close calls with random gropers, much to his embarrassment. As long as he wore a coat and stayed near the back, most of the scary ones would leave him alone.

Ganymede didn't let this stop his imagination. He feverently hoped there was mesh under that jacket.

'Okay, phase 1 of my plan has been followed through-- I've met the guy of my dreams. Now onto phase 2, in which I find a way to make him fall in love with me. Or I can just skip to phase 3... find someway to get that goddamn jacket off, and leer at my prey with undisguised appreciation.'

Of course it was in his best interests to stay with the second phase. Not a good idea to start acting up just for a glimpse of what the gorgeous brunette had to offer. No, Ganymede should play his cards right and end up with the grand prize before making any attempts to do things like... like...

'That's it, damn it. I'm spilling my drink on him so he'll take off the jacket. If I can't woo him tonight, I'll at least get to take a peek at some of the goods.'

Feeling rather pleased with his decision, Ganymede reached for his glass-- and found nothing. Slapping his head mentally with a groan, he recalled the fact that he did not have a drink to spill on David Levin yet. A major setback in the plan.

Of course, April had a glass of something. One of those cutesy woman drinks that he secretly indulged in, being the huge strawberry fanatic he was. (And they got umbrellas. Was that fair? No, it wasn't. Sexism was an ugly thing.)

David wasn't paying attention. April was trying to talk to him, bring him out of his shell to create a decent conversation. Ganymede snuck another look at them both, and then glanced down at the redhead woman's drink. Half full. More than enough to get across the table on 'accident.'

'Alright! Phase 3, start! Your mission, Gany, should you choose to accept it, is to randomly find a way to spill that womanly, strawberry drink all over the victim, David Levin's, incredibly sexy yet unrevealing coat. At which point you can bluntly stare at his chest, and hope he offers you the chance to ravish him silly in some alleyway. Then we'll worry about the long term relationships and the future wedding. Yeah. Good plan.'

Ganymede had just finished congratulating himself, and began to subtly move towards April. If he got close enough and pretended to stand, pitching forward and losing momentum... and accidentally knocking her drink across the table... then...

"So Christopher's here?" April was saying, seeming to ignore the blonde beside her. David gave a short nod.

"I suspect he's somewhere over there. Drunk as hell. And getting into trouble, no doubt."

"Hah!"

Ganymede made as if to stand in the exact same moment that April lifted her glass-- and drained the rest of her daiquiri.

'Shit! Mission abort, mission abort--'

It was too late for the blonde, however-- his feet twisted under him, already beginning to lean forward-- and with a muffled curse under his breath, he tried to twist differently as he fell, trying not to hit the surprised April and the table-- but it was too late, and he turned wrong, and his wide and shocked green eyes fell upon large brown ones, and a gaping mouth that said:

"Watch it--!"

CRASH!

It hurt. That was the first thing he was aware of. Ganymede could feel his muscles ache, already feeling as though the skin were sprouting bruises from the table that he knocked into. He had the vague feeling he had thrown the entire thing off its stand, which wasn't good. So much for the brilliant plan. Mission failure, indeed.

The second thing he noticed was the fact that there was something very, very warm underneath him. Something sputtering and squirming uncomfortably. Something demanding, very loudly in his ringing ears, "Are you okay?! Can you get off of me?!"

That was when it hit Ganymede Ryle that there was a very embarrassed, very red-faced, very adorably confused David Levin that he was laying on top of.

Oh yeah. There was a god somewhere.

And if April laughed when he said, "I can't seem to get up!" it was okay.

'Cause I'm in he-e-eaven!'

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Jalil was starting to get hopelessly lost.

After looking over all the club that he could make his way through, he still hadn't found his wayward roommate. Ganymede seemed to have disappeared altogether, and when he called his name, he only got a few lewd winks and offers to dance. Actually, even without asking around for Ganymede, he'd been getting too many propositions to make himself comfortable. There was something awkward and yet vaguely flattering about having strangers come up and tell him he was attractive, though.

Of course, after the first eight, it started getting old.

"No, I don't want to dance. I'm not interested in a date. And I certainly don't want to go see your favorite hotel room at the local Holiday Inn," he insisted firmly. His latest suitor-- a large, dark eyed man with a funny golden shade of eye color-- frowned at him.

"Eh... mien lammfliesh... you are certain? I do not like seeing one as beautiful as yourself in this environment," the man said innocently, deceptively concerned. Jalil eyed him suspiciously, trying to dredge up his knowledge of the German language.

"... did you just call me your lamb?"

The man didn't answer, but the red flush in his face answered for him.

"Oh, hell no, you go away. I don't deal with people like you. I'm just looking for my friend," the dark-eyed scientist insisted again, backing away warily. Once he made a safe distance, he turned into the crowd and shoved his way through the throngs of people. This was getting ridiculous, of course... but he still couldn't find Ganymede...

Jalil bit his lip harshly and fought the urge to cringe. This atmosphere was starting to warp his mind. He'd actually been watching some of the crazy people dance with fascination-- the way they moved so close together, as though hypnotized...

It was odd. Disturbing, even. But after agreeing to take the first two drinks some random, strange people had bought for him, it was actually starting to appeal to him.

'Which is why I have to find Ganymede,' Jalil reminded himself sternly. He forced his slightly dizzy body to slow down and stick to the walls, away from the mass of dancing people. 'Before you actually agree to go dance with some freakish guy like Mr. Lamb. It's definitely time for you to go home, man. Gany can go chase David Levin by himself, thank you very much.'

He still found himself slightly swaying to the music. Catching himself and uttering a muttered curse as though it were poison, Jalil forced himself to start looking again.

"Ganymede? Gany--"

"Lookin' for someone, sugar?" purred a low voice in his ear. Jalil nearly eeped.

'Not another one!' Turning in trepidation, Jalil forced a polite smile at the woman who had spoken to him. "Sorry, miss, but I'm... I'm here with someone, and... just looking for him, so I'll just be going now, you know."

The older aged woman pouted at him. "Aww. Looking for a 'him'? All the good ones are taken or gay." With that, she released him, and Jalil was left blushing madly after her. Not only with embarrassment, but with a good deal of irritation and irrational anger as well. He didn't like this scene. He didn't like these people. They were vulgar and cheap and...

He definitely had to find Ganymede, or he'd end up killing someone.

Turning cautiously towards the back, where tables lined all the way down the wall, Jalil made his way out to the edge of the crowd. He couldn't see Ganymede, although he heard a large crash that made his head turn sharply-- looked like the 'brawl' parts were beginning to develop. Sighing slightly and wavering from the earlier inbibment of alcohol, the young black teenager stood indecisively. He had absolutely no idea what to do next.

He didn't have to worry about it. Not five seconds after he decided to go home, a nearby dancer slammed right into him-- and sent him careening backwards, arms flailing.

"Aaa--!" Jalil squeezed his eyes shut tightly, entire body tense and ready to hit the cold and unforgiving floor. The world spun in his eyes, an effect from the fall and the alcohol, seeming much worse because of the whirling lights in his eyes.

When he hit, he let out a soft gasp and 'oomph!'.

"Well, well, well... what do we have here?"

Jalil became aware of exactly three things in the next sixty seconds.

One was the fact that he wasn't on the floor yet. In fact, he was rather comfortable, although slightly perturbed by the realization that whatever he landed on was more cushioning and warm than any furniture the club could offer.

The second item was the fact that he was currently sitting in someone's lap.

Someone who was very warm, very strong, and from the tone of voice, very amused. He'd landed over the arm rest of the chair, knees hanging off the edges, and his back sprawled across the other body. An arm was hooked carefully around his waist, preventing him from falling any lower. It was a strange sensation, as Jalil was quite sure he'd never been in anyone's lap before.

The third thing. This person was definitely a male.

Despite the first impulse to snarl and deck whoever was daring to snatch onto him-- although, technically, it saved him from a nasty fall onto a hard floor-- Jalil found himself taking a very deep and relaxing breath to calm himself. That done, he tilted his head up and opened his eyes to gaze into the face of his "somewhat savior" and then stopped.

Jalil took another deep breath, and it shook in the air.

He was looking into the bluest pair of eyes he'd ever seen.

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WHEE! Finished that chapter. Already started the next one. HTML is a bitch. ^^;;

Thanks to everyone who reviewed! I didn't like this chapter at all. But I hope I do well on the next one, as it's Chris and Jalil's first meeting! And it's not happy, but it's steamy as hell. ^_^ Who wants a lime scene? Hmmm? That should give you something to look forward to. Although this means I'm upping the rating to an "R"... you'll have to change to include that rating to see the fic up...

Honestly, I'm surprised with the warmth this story was accepted with-- new fans who really love it and everything. I really appreciate the support for this fic. It makes me all warm and fuzzy and want to write more. ^_^

There's already at least twenty more chapters planned, so it won't be ending any time soon. Plenty of more hilarity and slash. I like this. It's fun to write about normal love trials in the life of a person living in the alternative love style. *winks* I hope my college years are this fun.

Thanks again! I hope this doesn't disappoint anyone... ^^;;