Things came to a head on a chilly evening in November.
"Why is it so goddamn cold?" Sting grumbled, kicking the snow off his boots and shivering as he stepped into Natsu and Gray's apartment. "Your backwards seasons are ridiculous."
"You're the one with backwards seasons," Natsu teased, reaching out to take Sting and Rogue's jackets. Sting's cheeks were pink with cold and his fingers were freezing where they touched Natsu's. "I can't picture winter in June."
"Well," Rogue said, squeezing Natsu's arm as he passed into the living room, "it's never really winter in Greyton. Not like here, anyway."
Gray appeared in the doorway to the kitchen drying his hands on a dish towel. "You did say you wanted to see snow," he said, laughing as Sting shook the flakes out of his hair. "You got your wish."
"It's pretty to look at," Sting admitted. "But it's cold and it's awful."
"Here," Natsu said, shrugging off his hoodie and handing it to Sting, who took it gratefully. "You really need some better winter clothes. Or are you just planning to keep all of my sweaters instead?"
Sting's cheeks flushed pink as he zipped up the hoodie and mumbled an incoherent response to the question, then ducked into the kitchen to help Gray with dinner. Something funny twisted in Natsu's stomach at the sight of Sting in his sweater – as well as the knowledge that Sting had at least two of his other hoodies squirreled away at his and Rogue's apartment.
"You need help with anything?" Rogue asked, fingers brushing Natsu's elbow. The touch jolted Natsu out of his reverie but looking up at Rogue didn't make him feel any less confused. Rogue's hair had grown out a bit in the last few months and he had it pulled back in a messy French braid with some shorter pieces falling in his face. It looked ridiculously good on him.
Natsu sighed internally. He and Gray had talked a million times about telling Sting and Rogue how they felt, but neither of them could bring themselves to say we like you as more than friends. It seemed too taboo, even though Natsu was nearly a hundred percent certain that they felt the same way.
"Yeah," Natsu said, holding back a shiver when Rogue's fingers stayed for a moment too long on his arm. "Let's go set the table."
Dinner was the same noisy, flirtatious mess as every weekend. Even after only a few months it felt like Sting and Rogue belonged there, filling some sort of empty space in Natsu and Gray's lives that hadn't existed before they'd shown up.
"Can you pass the salad, babe?"
Natsu handed over the bowl, realizing belatedly that Sting had been talking to Rogue, not him. There was a brief, awkward pause where the word 'babe' hung in the air between them, but it was quickly broken when their fingers brushed, and Sting gave Natsu a bright smile.
"So," Gray said, pushing his empty plate forward and leaning back in his chair. "What are you guys doing for Christmas?"
Rogue looked at Sting, who shrugged. "We don't really have plans," Rogue said. "Back in Greyton we'd have a braai outside in the afternoon – like a big barbeque with the whole neighborhood. Somehow I don't think that would work out too well here."
"You'd freeze before you could eat anything," Sting grumbled, knocking his foot against Natsu's under the table as he took another bite of salad. "It's supposed to get even colder in December! It's unreasonable."
Natsu laughed, taking a sip of his beer and gently kicking Sting's shin. "You're not gonna wanna leave the house for the next couple months, huh?" Sting shook his head and made a face.
"The upside is that he's very cuddly when it's cold out," Rogue teased, and Sting flicked a pea at him. "And apparently hoards Natsu's sweaters – he wore one to bed last night after complaining about the temperature for almost the entire evening."
"Shut up," Sting hissed, cheeks turning even pinker as he poked furiously at his salad. "They're warm. And they…" He trailed off, refusing to make eye contact with Natsu, who could feel his own cheeks turning red.
"Christmas!" Gray interrupted, voice slightly louder than it needed to be. His face was flushed too, and he was trying his best to hide it behind his wine glass. Natsu suspected it had something to do with the fact that Rogue was sitting across from him with his legs stretched out under the table.
Natsu decided to jump in and save him, if only to avoid the conversation about Sting and his sweaters. "You guys wanna come over here for Christmas?" he asked quickly. "Our families are both out of town this year, so we were just gonna… I dunno, eat pizza and watch all the 'Die Hard' movies."
"So, a typical weekend for us then," Rogue teased. There was something about the way he said 'us' that made Natsu's stomach do a funny sort of cartwheel.
"Pretty much," he said around the sensation. "Only difference is that we drink eggnog instead of beer and Gray dresses up Happy in a Santa outfit."
"Oh, shut up," Gray grumbled, smacking Natsu's arm. Then he stood up, grabbing his empty plate and gesturing to everyone else's. "C'mon, lets clean up and watch a movie."
Cuddling during movie night had become a comfortable routine. Sting liked being in the middle, curled up halfway on Natsu's lap while Rogue sat behind him. Gray, who preferred to be on the floor in a pile of blankets, sat in front of Sting and Rogue, who would both absently play with his hair. It was warm and comfortable, and Sting looked forward to it every week.
This time it had been his turn to pick, and while 'Inside Out' had seemed like a good idea at the time, now that it was over, Sting was definitely regretting it.
"Babe, are you crying?"
Gray tipped his head back against the couch, looking up at Natsu, who was wiping his face with the sleeve of his shirt and shaking his head. Sting, who was curled up comfortably between Natsu and Rogue, was definitely crying and not bothering to hide it.
"'m not crying," Natsu insisted as they watched the credits scroll up across the TV.
"Yeah, you are," Gray said, voice more gentle than teasing.
"Shut up," Natsu grumbled. "You're just a heartless asshole."
Gray fake-gasped, putting his hand over his heart and looking indignant. "I am not heartless," he insisted, nodding at Rogue. "Look, Rogue's not crying either."
Sting sniffed and rubbed at his face, feeling something in his stomach jump as Natsu shifted next to him. They'd ended up holding hands during the movie again – not hiding it, and once again Rogue and Gray hadn't said anything – but the feel of Natsu's thumb moving over the back of Sting's knuckles had almost been enough to distract Sting enough to keep him from crying.
Almost.
"Look," Natsu said, squeezing Sting's hand as he sat up a little. "It hurt my heart, okay?"
"Want me to kiss it better?" Sting teased.
As soon as the words left his mouth, he wished he could take them back. His cheeks started to burn as Natsu stared at him, mouth slightly open, eyes filled with a confusing mix of things that Sting wasn't sure he understood. A soft silence fell over the four of them, and the air was so charged with everything they'd never said that Sting felt like he couldn't breathe.
"Yeah," Natsu whispered eventually. His gaze wavered for a second, flicking down to Gray, then over to Rogue, then slowly moving back up to Sting. "You, uh…"
Natsu's hand was so warm in Sting's, fingers drifting slowly across Sting's palm, and the sensation made Sting's stomach twist. He could feel Gray leaning against his leg, not moving away, not pushing Sting away, just resting his hand on Sting's knee and... waiting.
They were all on the edge of something, air crackling with nervous energy as Sting turned his hand and pressed his palm against Natsu's. It reminded Sting of going cliff-jumping for the first time – standing at the edge, toes pressed into the rock, staring down at the drop to the water and feeling like the world had narrowed down to just that spot, fifty feet below.
Rogue squeezed Sting's hip, then nudged him gently, and Sting finally gave in, leaning forward and closing the distance until he and Natsu were nearly nose-to-nose.
He could feel Natsu's breath, hot on his cheek, and when Sting brushed his nose against Natsu's, Natsu let out a soft, contented sound. Sting's hand slowly travelled up Natsu's arm, fingers drawing gentle patterns and brushing through the curls of hair at the base of Natsu's neck.
A step forward. A deep breath. Eyes closed. Jump.
Sting brushed their lips together and it was like plunging into the water – sharp and bright and exhilarating. The tension in the room broke, spilling into a heady energy that drew out quiet gasps and gentle touches. All the confusion and frustration and tension of the past few months melted away, and all Sting could think about was the way that Natsu made soft noises into his mouth, and the feel of Natsu's fingers in his hair.
And then Sting surfaced, breaking back into the sensation of Gray's body against his leg and Rogue's fingers on his lower back, and the quiet dark of the living room.
He pulled back slowly, breathing shakily and pressing his forehead to Natsu's, trying his best to keep the words inside because nothing he could say would—
"Sting." Gray's voice was so, so gentle, and Sting squeezed his eyes shut, taking a deep breath before pulling away from Natsu and looking down at dark eyes, dark skin, dark lashes. Sting wasn't sure what he'd expected to see there – anger, maybe, or confusion, or maybe grief – but it certainly wasn't the fond smile Gray was wearing.
"Wh... I..."
"C'mere," Gray said, reaching up and brushing his fingers across Sting's cheek. Sting felt his breath catch in his throat again, and he couldn't say no to the gentle touch, so he leaned down and let Gray kiss him.
Gray tasted like the fuzzy peaches he'd been eating, and when he ran his tongue across Sting's lip, Sting felt something coil in his stomach, hot and wanting. He exhaled, moving his hand to rest on Gray's neck, brushing lightly across Gray's throat as their tongues slid together and Gray let out a soft sigh.
Sting felt Rogue shift behind him, nudging him gently forward, and Sting broke apart from the kiss long enough to slide down to the floor onto Gray's lap. Gray shifted until Sting's knees were on either side of his hips, then brought both hands up to cup Sting's face, gazing at him with wide eyes.
"Are you okay?" Gray asked softly. Sting looked up to see Natsu's fingers tangled in Rogue's hair and Rogue's hand on Natsu's hip as they kissed each other, and he swallowed heavily.
"Yeah," he said, letting out a quiet breath and closing his eyes as Gray tucked his hair behind his ears. Soft lips pressed to Sting's throat and he tipped his head back, breath hitching as Gray's fingers trailed down his spine and rested on his hips. Sting dragged his fingers through Gray's hair as Gray continued to kiss his neck, tugging Sting closer to him until they were chest-to-chest and Sting could feel Gray's heart thundering against his.
"We should... talk..." Natsu murmured between kisses, and Sting opened his eyes to watch Rogue bite down gently on Natsu's lower lip. Natsu made a sound that was halfway between a sigh and a moan, and Sting echoed it as Gray's teeth scraped gently over his throat.
"You wanna... nnnn... stop?" Rogue asked softly, pulling back for a second and glancing over at Sting. Natsu shook his head, turning to watch Gray run his hand up under Sting's shirt.
"No," Natsu said, reaching out for Sting. Sting grabbed Natsu's hand, squeezing tightly, and Natsu tugged on Rogue's shirt, pulling him down until they were sitting on the floor next to Sting and Gray. "I just wanna make sure we're all on the same page here."
"I've wanted this since we met," Sting admitted, heart stuttering at the admission and the look of adoration on Natsu's face. "Both of you, and I—we've talked about it a lot and it's… I don't know if it's weird, or—"
"Hey." Gray's thumbs rubbed gentle circles across Sting's hips as he tipped his head back and caught Sting's gaze. "Us, too."
"Not just the kissing, though," Natsu said quickly, leaning into Rogue's fingers that combed through his hair. "It's not just this. You're both…" He trailed off, gesturing vaguely in the air, and Sting knew exactly what he meant.
"You're important to us, too," Rogue said softly, filling in the words that Natsu couldn't find. "We want…"
"Yeah," Natsu said softly, reaching out and touching Sting's cheek. "Us, too." Then he pulled Sting in for a kiss again, running his other hand down Gray's back. Sting could feel Rogue move behind him to kiss Gray, and he shifted off Gray's lap so Rogue could take over instead.
"God, you're gorgeous," Natsu murmured, running his fingers through Sting's hair and kissing his cheek before pushing him gently down to the floor. The carpet was soft and Sting dragged his fingers through it as Natsu leaned over him, air falling around him and tickling Sting's cheeks. Natsu's eyes searched Sting's face, dark and curious as he ran his thumb over Sting's cheek.
"Promise this isn't just…" Sting struggled to focus on the words – he could hear Rogue making quiet, contented sounds as Gray pulled him closer, and Natsu's fingers left sparks trailing across his skin.
"It's more than that," Natsu said, leaning down and brushing his lips against Sting's. "Not just this, but... I've wanted this for so long."
Sting brought his hands up to Natsu's waist, slipping his hands under Natsu's shirt and tracing a pattern over Natsu's hips. Natsu closed his eyes and exhaled shakily, pressing his forehead to Sting's.
Sting ran his hands up Natsu's back, nudging him down gently as he pulled him in for a kiss. Natsu braced himself on one arm, bringing his other hand to brush through Sting's hair as he ran his tongue across Sting's bottom lip.
A soft sigh from next to them drew Sting's attention and he looked over to see that Gray and Rogue had switched positions – Rogue against the couch with Gray in his lap – and Gray's shirt was on the floor. His head was tipped back and Sting could see Rogue kissing his neck as he ran his fingertips down Gray's back.
"Wow," Sting said softly, fingers stilling on Natsu's skin as he watched Rogue bring a hand up to Gray's hair and tug on it gently. Gray made a sound that was almost a whimper, following eagerly when Rogue nudged him onto his back next to Sting.
"Hey, baby," Rogue said to Sting as he straddled Gray's hips and ran his fingers across Gray's stomach. Sting hummed as Rogue brushed his other hand across Natsu's back, then leaned down and kissed Sting deeply. The familiar feel of Rogue's lips on his was grounding, and Sting touched his cheek for a second before reaching out and grabbing Gray's hand.
"You're both amazing," Natsu murmured as Rogue pulled back from Sting to kiss him instead. "Gods, I could do this forever."
"Good," Rogue said, smiling against Natsu's lips before looking back down at Gray and running a hand up his chest. "Because we have nowhere else to be, and all the time in the world."
