kiss me quick
shepherd
Summary:
Written for the prompt 'My friend just dragged me to this party and I just saw my ex quick makeout with me'.
Apollo's dragged to a party full of people he doesn't know and left alone, and enlists Klavier's help in keeping unwanted attention away. By that, he means he plucks a stranger out of a crowd and kisses him senseless.
Clay no, Apollo said with the most disapproving frown he could muster.
Clay yes, Clay beamed at him, as bright and as innocent as the sunshine, and two hours later Apollo found himself leaning against a wall with a tall glass of cranberry in his hand, watching crowds of people pass him by.
There were dozens of them, all somehow crammed into someone's tiny house- Apollo had no idea whose. A cousin of a friend's sister, Clay had told him like it was nothing, and Apollo had felt the migraine coming on the thunder rolling across the city. Not only was it a part, but it was in the house of a complete stranger in an unfamiliar part of the city. Apollo had only agreed to come after hours of whining and if Clay promised to stick by his side all evening and didn't touch a drop of alcohol- Apollo had yet to take driving lessons, and he wasn't going to let Clay throw up in the back of a cab. Again.
As far as he knew, Clay was keeping at least one of his promises. He couldn't know for sure, as he was now alone. Clay had sworn he would keep him company on pain of death, and then a cute girl had gone by in galaxy style leggings and that was Clay long gone. Presumably, considering he had been gone for almost an hour, they were either deep in conversation about space or making out in one of the backrooms. Apollo wouldn't have been surprised.
He had toyed with the idea of leaving, sitting in the car until Clay was done, but the heater was broken as it was a biting November night- he wasn't going to shiver out there, even if there were impossibly loud drunken people surrounding him, most of which looked several years younger than him, with walls of heat pressing together and bustling into each other.
Apollo hadn't partied since his university days. He had hated it then, and he hated it now.
He took another, longer drink, and resisted the urge to look at his watch. It had been sixteen past ten the last he looked, what felt like hours ago, but he knew it had probably barely been ten minutes. Time seemed to not exist here. There were too many people, the faces too strange and the music too loud and he felt like the most boring person in the world- but he was one man outside of the crowd, and no matter how he tried he could never join. It's not that they were pushing him out- he just wasn't that kind of person.
And that's probably why you're all alone, a nasty voice said in the back of his mind, and try as he might to shake it away, it lingered.
He took another gulp- and found that finished his drink. Getting another meant making his way across the room, squeezing through the bodies and trying not to make a fool of himself the entire way. The chances of that weren't in his favour. His belly clenched tight at the thought of moving, deeper into the masses. Clutching the glass between two hands, he frowned out at the room, and wondered if he was going to make it through unmolested.
He doubted it.
Apollo rubbed a hand over his face, and wondered why the hell all this happened to him. He was never trusting Clay's word ever again. He fumbled with his glass for a few moments, looking to check if anyone was watching, and then tapping it to the floor, leaving it. It was one glass on the floor, hardly a mess- a clumsy girl had spilt pink lemonade all over the floor earlier, and it still filled his nose with sweetness, and his shoes still stuck to the floor every time he moved.
Maybe I should just go to the car, he thought. His hoodie was thin and would not protect him from the cold wind, but he would rather be cold than isolated in a happy crowd.
The laughter rose up around him, innocent and joyous, and that made his decision for him.
He stepped forward with the intentions of heading for the door and giving Clay hell once he finally turned up, and the crowd shifted, suddenly parting, and then Apollo saw a face he finally knew. There was a familiar man in the group, his face flushed and delighted, and it took Apollo a moment to place it. And then, it clicked. Apollo's chest suddenly turned cold.
Fuck, he thought as Arthur threw back his head and laughed at some joke Apollo couldn't hear over the din. He hadn't been prepared for anything like this, not to run into an ex from years ago. He was surrounded by people Apollo didn't know, people he guessed were new friends of his, and Arthur reached back, slinging his arm around a woman's shoulder.
That could have been anyone, he thought, but going by the way she looked at him with a shine in her eyes, she was probably his lover. It didn't sting at all- they had both made it clear to each other that they were bisexual, and Arthur was by no means a 'traitor' like a pettier man than Apollo would have thought. The only thing that stung was that he clearly had someone who cared deeply for him- and since he and Apollo had broken up almost three years ago, Apollo hadn't dated anyone since.
He watched them for a while, shock still. He hadn't made it far from his humble beginnings- the wall he had stuck to for the entire night was still right behind him. He wondered if he was ever going to make it out of the goddamn room. He sucked in breaths, trying to alleviate the numbing feeling, like his ribs were made of icicles.
He couldn't do a thing. He could only watch, silently, as Arthur turned his head, still grinning away- and horror of all horrors, his eyes met Apollo's.
The world around him screeched to a halt, and Apollo tried to hold back his instinctive reaction to recoil. He didn't even move a muscle, just staring, unable to tear his eyes away. Arthur was looking at him, and his grin faded. The man was startled. It took him a moment, but eventually his eyes brightened up. He pulled his arm away from the lady, murmuring something to his group, before stepping out of their little circle.
Oh god, no.
Apollo looked around, in a panic. He didn't want to be forced into awkward conversation with anyone, let alone an ex, but there was nothing to do, nowhere to escape. The door was too far, Arthur would only find him in the crowd, and Apollo doubted he could miraculously find Clay in time to save him. He wasn't going to be caught alone with Arthur, no way in hell.
There was a small group of women going by, chattering away, and he considered merging with them and hoping they moved towards the door- but they were moving too quickly. Instead, his eyes went for a man who followed behind them much more slowly, clearly not a part of their group. He was tall and blonde and for a split second Apollo couldn't help but notice that god he was handsome, and he was giving Apollo a strange sideways look as he walked as if wondering why Apollo stared, and Apollo could only think of a thousand apologies as he stepped forward, and grabbed the man's closest arm.
He stopped dead, looking at Apollo properly, and Apollo was hugely apologetic for what he was about to do. He had to be truly desperate to try something like this.
"My ex is here," He said, and in his urgency to speak quickly his words were slurring together. The man probably thought he was pissed out of his mind, but he made no move to interrupt. It was almost kind of him. He only stared. "Kiss me," Apollo told him, and that probably didn't do him any favours.
The man looked stunned, and he still wasn't moving. They were the only two standing still in a constant shifting crowd of bodies. "What?" He asked, dumbly, and Apollo could see that Arthur was coming closer and there was no time-
There was no time.
Swearing inwardly and praying that he wouldn't humiliate himself too badly in a room full of people, Apollo reached up, resting one hand on the back of the man's neck and the other on his cheek, and pulled him down for a kiss.
The first thing to hit him was the taste, and the second was the pleasant heat. The man tasted only faintly of alcohol- a fruity cider, Apollo thought, the taste of summer in the firm grasp of winter. His mouth was warm and his skin ran hotter under Apollo's palms, and everything about him was delicious. His lips were soft, and was that lip gloss he tasted?
Apollo kissed him for only a short while, but long enough for Arthur to see. The man- the stranger he had just forcefully kissed, what the hell was he thinking? - kept shock still, his lips utterly slack. He didn't move an inch. Apollo waited until he heard footsteps close, the sound of Arthur quickly approaching, and then he pulled away. He left his hands a little longer- he was so warm- but eventually he dropped them too.
Apollo hadn't realised he had closed his eyes. He opened them, and waited with bated breath for the stranger to freak out and shove him away.
The man looked at him for a moment, eyes alight with surprise and lips pink and swollen- and then abruptly, he looked delighted. "Cute Wallflower!" He cried, needlessly loud and attracting the attention of at least six people around them, and before Apollo could demand what the hell he was on about, Arthurwas upon them.
"Apollo," He greeted him with a charming warmth, like Apollo hadn't just been making out with another man. Apollo supposed it didn't matter now. Their relationship had ended mutually, if not with arguments that shook the foundations around them, and he appreciated Arthur's forgiveness. Not matter how random it seemed. They might have even been friends still if it wasn't for the habit. "What are you doing here?"
"I, uh," Apollo looked at him, but his lips were tingling, and he was almost incapable of words. "Arthur, hi!"
"Hi," Arthur said back, looking amused. He looked between Apollo and the stranger, one brow arched. "I haven't seen you around recently. What are you doing here?"
"Oh, just," He gestured around the room, towards the people that ignored, and to the blissfully silent stranger. Apollo wondered how long that would last for. "You know, hanging out."
"Sure." He didn't sound convinced. He turned from Apollo to his victim, and offered him a brilliant smile. "Hi, I'm Arthur."
Anxious, Apollo looked to the stranger, and blinked when the man only grinned down at Arthur- he had a good few inches on the both of them- and shoved his hand at him. "Klavier," He said, and after a moment of hesitation, Arthur accepted his hand. Apollo watched, stunned. All of Klavier's potential reactions had been running through his head- disgust, rage, embarrassment, but he wasn't showing a single one of them. In fact, he almost looked pleased. "Pleasure to meet you."
Arthur smiled at him, but a little too widely. He was baring his teeth. He didn't take his eyes of Klavier, even as he spoke to Apollo. "This your boyfriend? I hadn't heard you were seeing anyone."
That's because I haven't. "I don't tend to mix with this crowd," Apollo admitted, and he wanted to be anywhere in the world but in this room with this company. He very deliberately ignored the question about boyfriends, for Klavier's sake at least. "I only came along because Clay made me."
"Really?" Arthur arched a brow. He appeared genuinely surprised. "You're still close with Clay?"
"Of course!" Apollo immediately said, his own brows furrowing. He was a little stung by the implication- Clay was the only person Apollo had, and vice versa. They had been friends through it all and would remain friends, even if Clay has a terrible habit of rushing ahead sometimes. "He's my best friend. Why would I not be?"
"Friendships don't always last," Arthur said, a touch dismissively, and he turned his head. He was scanning the crowd, no doubt looking for the man himself. "Where is he?"
"Around," Apollo said, not wanting to admit he had no clue.
"He went off with Ema," Klavier said by his side, and the man sounded suddenly much closer. He had stepped closer somehow without Apollo noticing, and he even slung an arm around his shoulder. Apollo tried not to flinch at the touch or the weight, no matter how protective the touch seemed. Pretending was a complicated thing. Klavier didn't seem too bothered, touching him with remarkable ease. "I think they're going to be the best of friends. Do you remember the Fraulein I was going to introduce him to, schatzi? That's her."
"Oh, I…" Apollo wasn't sure how to respond, but he didn't need to. Klavier was surging ahead.
"Daryan also went off to go find drinks for us. We should go and find him before he gets too distracted with the Frauleins, ja?"
Arthur looked a little put out, and Apollo knew exactly why. "But I wanted to talk. We haven't seen each other in such a long time."
Klavier smiled at him, but it was just as nasty and fake as Arthur's. It didn't look comfortable on his face. His arm tightened around Apollo's shoulder protectively. It was like he knew. "Perhaps another time."
Before Arthur could protest, Klavier pushed Apollo along, and swept him away. Klavier's long legs meant long strides, and they were lost in the crowd and halfway across the room in moments. Klavier didn't stop. He guided Apollo along outside, down the hallway that was teeming with people, and into the kitchen. This room was almost empty. There were cups abandoned on the counters and the place was a mess, but the music was not as loud, and there were only two people sitting at the kitchen table, talking quietly. They didn't look up at their entry.
Klavier pushed the door shut behind them, so if Arthur went looking he wouldn't be able to find them immediately. Apollo felt a little safer shut away. Klavier removed his arm from Apollo's shoulders, and the warmth of him disappeared. His expression was suddenly serious. He crossed his arms against his chest, and looked down at Apollo- some stranger, who had grabbed him and kissed him. Apollo had no idea what he was thinking, but it couldn't have been good.
"Are you alright?" He asked, keeping his voice low. The other two people in the room didn't seem aware they were talking. "You didn't seem like you were having much fun out there."
I forcibly made out with you, and you're asking if I'm okay? Are you feeling alright?
"I am so, so sorry about that," He said, and he could tell his cheeks were burning and sweating. He could feel it- fire in his face, ice in his belly. He could still taste Klavier on his lips, his tongue, and wasn't that the most awkward thing in the world? "I don't know what I was thinking, I just really didn't want to see my ex, I'm such an asshole, I'm so sorry I did that-"
His rambling tirade was cut off by Klavier's grunt. Apollo feel silent, lest he carry on forever. He only shrugged dismissively. "I don't mind," He said, distantly, but then he flashed Apollo the brightest smile he had ever seen. It was like morning had suddenly come, sunbeams filtering through the windows. "In fact, I quite enjoyed it."
Apollo spluttered for a moment, unsure how to react. The instinctive sarcasm ended up kicking in, his gut reaction. See, this is why you don't have friends. "You often get kissed by random people at parties?"
His smile didn't falter. If possible, it only brightened. The man was grinning from ear to ear. "Not that often. But it happens. And it's even less often that I enjoy it.
Apollo pulled a face. The smile was so cheery it physically pained him just to look at it. "I just kissed you. Without consent. That's harassment." He didn't think he would end up harassing someone at this party, harassing someone ever, and not so deep done he felt a little sick at himself.
"Ja, you didn't ask," Klavier admitted, shrugging again. He didn't look the slightest bit bothered. "But that doesn't mean I wasn't consenting. I've been wanting to kiss you all evening. I didn't think you were going to be the one to initiate it, is all."
Apollo stopped, and blinked. There was a moment of brief silence, the only sound being the shouts and the laughter and the music from the other rooms, muffled by the walls and the closed door, and Klavier was looking at him a touch expectantly. Apollo had absolutely no idea what the man expected from him. "Sorry, what?" His voice died halfway through, and he shook his head, clearing his throat. "You've wanted to what?"
Klavier grinned, one side of his lips quirking in something alike to a smirk. He looked arrogant. "I saw you around, always alone and standing against the wall. Cute Wallflower. I wanted to talk to you, but honestly? You didn't look like you wanted to be disturbed." Putting his hands on his hips, he leant forward. It was like an adult leaning to talk to a kid. "I didn't expect you to grab me and kiss me when I walked past."
"You," Apollo started, but he couldn't finish it. "What?"
Klavier laughed in the face of his disbelief. "Is it really so hard to believe I'm into you?"
"Well, yeah," Apollo said, like it was obvious. "I'm…and you're….wallflower."
"I can be a wallflower with you if you like," Klavier offered, and he took a step forward. Apollo considered stepping away, but the kitchen was cold, the open window letting cool air in for people who got too hot in the other rooms, and Klavier was warm and tall and Apollo couldn't stop thinking about how he tasted, and how he had wanted to kiss him all along. It was making his head spin, and he could smell Klavier's cologne, making his brain fuzzy.
"You're gonna dump Daryan to hang out with me?" He managed after a moment, making a pathetic attempt to grin, but Klavier either didn't notice or didn't care.
"Ja, he's been an asshole today anyway. Not that he isn't always," Klavier was smiling back at him. "Anyway, I think it would be better if I walked around with you. Make it seem like we weren't lying to that friend of yours. I don't want him coming up to you again- you didn't look happy."
Apollo huffed out a heavy exhale. The fear and the agitation had melted away, but the memory of it still made him shiver. "Yeah. Every time I see him, he has this awful habit of propositioning me. It would be okay if he listened when I said no. He bothers me about it, and this time I didn't have anyone to tell him to fuck off. I've punched him in the face before and he's still hounded me."
"What a charming man," Klavier said, dryly. "Well, Apollo, I'm not going to be leaving you tonight. If that's okay with you, of course."
He couldn't help but feel a little flustered by that. Klavier was only more handsome when he smiled, and he had been doing nothing but. He was standing so close, radiating searing heat, and this idiot was apparently into him. "You don't have to-"
"Nonsense," Klavier said, cheerily. "I'll punch that Arthur of yours if I have to."
"Bless you." Apollo said, wryly, and he looked the door. He didn't particularly want to go back outside into all that noise, with the danger of running into Arthur again- but he had Klavier by his side now, stranger as he was, and if Clay was looking for him it would take forever for him to look into the kitchen. "We should go," He said, a touch dejected. "It won't do to stand about in the kitchen all day."
Klavier hummed, stepping even closer, and he looked at the door thoughtfully. Eventually, he peered down back at Apollo, and he should have known Klavier was going to ask- they had known each other for a matter of minutes, and Apollo already knew what that smile meant. "A kiss for courage?"
Apollo laughed quietly, assuming he was joking- and then stopped dead. Klavier's eyes were completely serious. "Oh- are you- are you serious?"
Klavier's expression shuttered for a moment, and he abruptly leaned back. "Ah. I'm sorry. I presumed too much, it seems." He cleared his throat firmly, and took a step back. "I'm sorry. We should go-"
"No, no," Apollo followed him that one step, panicking just a little. "I want to, I just thought you were fucking with me."
Klavier eyed him cautiously, no doubt making sure he was truthful, and eventually, he settled back down. His smile was gone. His expression was tentative. "I don't want to presume-"
"No presuming," Apollo interrupted, and Klavier's mouth snapped shut. "I just didn't expect you to want to kiss me again, that's all. Or even hang out with me, I suppose."
Klavier relaxed. Apollo could see his shoulders loosen and deflate, and while his smile was small, it returned. "I don't know you that well, but I enjoy you." He reached up to run a hand through his hair. It looked like a nervous habit. "I, uh, wouldn't mind kissing you again."
They no doubt looked like idiots, and the two at the table where no doubt staring, but Apollo found it very difficult to care. He had experienced the strangest evening of his life, a hell of a night, but the most handsome man he had ever seen in his life wanted to kiss him, and he couldn't find much to argue against that. Apollo laughed, a touch nervously, and reached up to bat lightly at Klavier's bicep. Lean down, he tried to get across to him. Apollo wouldn't be able to reach him that far up.
He got the message. Klavier ducked down, reaching to touch Apollo's arm softly, and it was like they were in their own personal bubble, alone in the room. The sound of the party drifted away and Apollo barely registered the existence of the other two. Nothing mattered outside them now.
Klavier hovered, just barely out of Apollo's reach, and he stayed there. Apollo knew it was a way of making sure Apollo wanted it, making him stretch that little bit further to make sure their lips touched- and he did, lifting on his tiptoes and pulling Klavier down, kissing him firmly.
The taste of summer was back, and this time, Klavier was kissing him back just as boldly. He was careful to keep his hands on Apollo's shoulder, rubbing lightly through his shirt. He tilted his head just a little, making their kiss easier, smooth, not like the first they had shared. Klavier's lips were soft and pliable, and the warmth was perfect.
He wondered how he was going to tell Clay that he got a man way out of his league interested in him by just grabbing him out of a crowd and kissing him.
Apollo curled his arms around Klavier's neck to pull him closer, and Klavier was forced to adjust. His hands hovered just over Apollo's body, not wanting to presume and touch- but Apollo stepped just a little closer, encouraging him, and Klavier eventually rest his hands on Apollo's hips. He hummed against his mouth, smiling a little, and they were quickly running out of oxygen but neither cared.
So caught up in each other, neither of them heard the door opening. But they did hear Clay's voice.
"Apollo, you dog!" He called over, sounding delighted, and Apollo immediately panicked, pushing Klavier away. With his hands moving to his chest, he kept the man at a careful distance- but not too far- and turned to stare wide-eyed at the door.
Clay stood there, grinning away. His hair was a mess, like hands had been run through it, and the girl- Ema, Apollo remembered- was standing behind them, with a judgemental glare. He had his hands planted on his hips, and his shirt hadn't been done up properly. "I can't believe this!" He said, and his voice was suddenly loud in the kitchen's deliberate quiet. "I leave you alone for a minute!"
"More like an hour!" Apollo protested, and he could feel his face on fire above the overhead lights. "You ran off without me!"
"It seems you were doing well enough without me," Clay said, dismissively, and then turned to flash a grin at Klavier. Taking a peek, he didn't seem too nonplussed about being unceremoniously shoved away. "You're Klavier, right?"
"Infamously," He replied, through kiss swollen lips. "Clay, ja? A pleasure."
"A pleasure," Clay mimicked, taking on Klavier's subtle accent. "Apollo, why can't you be that nice to me?"
"Because you don't deserve it," He shot back, and they all laughed. Even Ema grinned. Apollo shook his head, and he couldn't help but smile despite the embarrassment. His hand slipped from Klavier's chest, and the man took the opportunity to creep forward again, taking hold of his hips once more. "Get out, you fiend. Leave me alone."
Acting stung, Clay opened his mouth wide and pressed a hand over his heart. He staggered backwards, like he had been shot, and pretended to reach out for Ema in search of comfort. "I can't believe this," He gasped. "My own son who I raised from birth, acting out against me, making out with random dudes in the kitchen… what will the neighbours think?"
"Get out," Apollo urged, and laughing, Clay disappeared back down the hallway. He shut the door behind him again, and now the two at the table definitely were staring. He struggled to supress the embarrassment, but when Klavier swooped back down and kissed him again, he found it hard to care about anything else but summer.
