A/N- Lots of fluff...yeah...
"Do you think this'll work?" Raven asked.
"Ah, sweetheart. Has any of my plans ever gone astray?" Emma asked.
Remember Charles, be confident. Erik would like that. Charles mustered up his courage once more as he crossed the threshold of the school gates. Ignoring all heads that turned to him, he tried searching for the blue-grey eyes he wanted to see.
After that half-conversation with Emma and Raven, Charles had made up his mind. He'd confront Erik. And try not to faint, for that matter. If Erik liked this new version of his, he'd try to be content with it. Of course it hurt Charles; this was not who he was. He didn't want to pretend.
But he wanted Erik. And if that meant thrusting lens into his eyes and wearing jeans and jackets, and calling everyone 'darling' and 'sweetheart', he would do it.
"Oh, Hi, Charles!" said a female voice as a group of girls approached him. He recognized the Marilyn Monroe as Stacey…maybe.
"Hello, love," he decided not to take any risks by taking names.
"You came alone?" asked a Jennifer Lopez, but he wasn't sure. Was it Mia or Melissa?
He feigned a sigh. "Couldn't choose between you lovely ladies," he smiled, shrugging.
The girls giggled, and then said something he didn't pay attention to. He shortly excused himself when he saw Sean (?) dressed as the Mad Hatter, his red hair painted bright orange to complement his clothes. Sean knew everything about everyone, so…he must've seen Erik, right?
The answer was in negative, and Charles sighed mentally, struggling to maintain his composure.
His courage was running out, didn't Erik understand?
He was sulking around the drinks table when someone tapped on his shoulder. He turned to face Angel, who was literally dressed like an angel. Just not the "halos and white wings" type. The dark, emo type, with laces, and torn feathers, and dark make up. And yet, she looked gorgeous.
"Hello, Angel," he said. "Living up to your name?"
What? He couldn't help himself.
"Charles, you need to be in the parking lot," she said, ignoring his dumb question. She barely gave Charles the time to frown before she turned on her heels and walked away. Before he could follow, she disappeared in the crowd that was moving with the music. Some Dance this was.
Parking lot? Why would Angel of all people want him in the parking lot? Well, he didn't have anything better to do here, amidst the paper streamers and disco ball hanging in the middle of the gymnasium, people dancing to songs he didn't even recognize.
He slowly shuffled outside, taking his time searching the crowds for Erik. He finally stepped into the parking lot, empty and cold. Since everyone was inside, happy and busy, and not moping, like Charles.
"Hello?" he called out to the vacancy.
"Took you long," a voice called out from the farthest corner. Between the music floating from the building, the chilly winds and the distance between them, Charles still recognized the voice.
"Erik?" he asked the silhouette against the headlights of a car, walking towards him. Of course! Angel was one of Erik's friends, wasn't she?
The shadow shifted forward into the light, revealing Erik standing sheepishly with his hands shoved into his pockets. It was what he was wearing though, which caught Charles' eyes.
Erik was wearing an oversized sweater, and baggy cargos, his shirt and tie visible beneath the deep V of his sweater. It was the big thick-nerdy glasses that sparked off the realization in Charles' head.
"You're dressed…like me?" He asked. Well, a Calvin-Klein-version of Charles, with his oversized beanie and sleeves pushed up to the elbows, exposing his arms (dear God!), and the frames just focusing on how smoldering his eyes were. But his sheepiness in the costume was exactly what reminded Charles…of himself. "Why?"
"I was not going anywhere with words," Erik admitted, stepping forward. "I thought…to show you would be the best way, y'know. To let you know."
Charles' heart was hammering in his chest, and he just stood there, transfixed. "L-let me know…what?" He stammered, back as the old Charles again. He slowly moved back, till the back of his legs hit something. It was one of the cars, he turned and saw.
Erik took a deep breath. Woah! And exactly when did he step into Charles' personal space? "Look Charles…I uh, I-" he scratched his head through his beanie. "I like you."
Erik walked to Charles, till they were literally breaths apart. "I really, really like you." He raised one hand to gingerly caress it along Charles' face. "And it's not because of those lens," he whispered, pulling off Charles' glasses and placing it on the bonnet of the car Charles was leaning against.
"It's not because you changed your hairstyle," he said, the other hand sneaking into Charles' hair. He pulled open his hair, and rested their foreheads together.
"It's not because of the clothes you are wearing," he said and his hands ran down the silken vest. Charles' eyes fluttered close at the contact, skin going hot and flush.
"It's not because you called me 'darling' or 'love'," he said, placing his fingers under Charles' chin, thumb running over those obscenely red lips, the other hand holding down Charles at the hip.
Erik leaned away, thumb moving down to hold up Charles' chin. "It's because of the way you stammer. And the way you trip over nothing."
"It's because of the way you babble when you're nervous, and the way you push up your glasses as they slip down your nose when you're concentrating too hard."
"It's because you always walk into me. It's because of the thick books you read and carry around like your soul. The one you dropped on my feet. It's because you always flush when you talk with me."
Charles' eyes snapped open, but Erik didn't stop. Charles felt hot breath ghosting over his lips.
"It's because your eyes are ridiculously blue. And you don't know how to walk. Or talk. And I fell for that. I fell for your smile, smiling like you figured out the biggest secrets of life. I fell for your big sweaters and Oxford-manners." Erik's palms moved to framed Charles' face.
"I fell for you, Charles, long before you changed your looks," he whispered, before leaning forward to kiss Charles.
Erik was all that Charles had always imagined. And more. His lips were soft, even though they were chapped, just like he was lean and strong. All carved, his chest was, beneath the sweater that Charles had fisted his hands into as he kissed back. Erik tasted like coffee, and spicy, and minty. And something else that Charles figured must be Erik. He tasted like the oceans, and the winds, and well, Charles was never much of a poet.
Erik's hands left Charles' face and moved down. And then Charles was lifted up, onto the hood of the car, without even breaking the kiss. He gasped, surprised, and that was the opportunity Erik needed, his tongue licking those red, red lips before skirting past them, and into Charles' mouth. He pulled Erik closer, raising his legs to wrap them around Erik's waist, while the taller male worshipped Charles with his tongue.
When they pulled back, Erik saw Charles all messed up, his lips even redder (if that was possible), and hair all disheveled, skin going pink and highlighting his freckles in the light, and he was panting and breathing hard…and crying? Erik stopped dead in his tracks.
"Charles? Did I do something wrong?" He asked, jerking back.
Charles shook his head, wiping the tear that raced down. "No. It was me. I'm sorry," he whispered, voice rough. "All this time…"
Erik wanted him. Not his looks. How did he not understand? And Erik was dressed up like him when the headmaster said dress up like the person you admire. His heart was overflowing with emotions. No one had ever paid so much attention to him. He had never receivedso much affection from anyone.
"All this time," Charles said again. "And I didn't see-"
Erik didn't let him finish. He pressed another kiss onto his lips, muffling whatever Charles was about to say. The truth was…it took Erik some time to figure out himself. That, and a lecture from Emma Frost regarding someone's dismembered testicles if they didn't clear up their minds.
He pulled back, smiling. "Let's dance," he suggested at the soft music floating out from the gym, trying to distract Charles and cheer him up.
"I don't-cant?" Charles tried, but Erik was pulling him into the lights of the parking lot.
"I can't, either," Erik said as he put Charles' hand on his shoulder, his own slipping down to the shorter man's waist. The street lamps in the vacant lot acted like spotlights in their private dance. They shuffled around, stepping in the same direction, and stepping onto each other, until they both were laughing, and Charles' breathing had calmed down.
"Let's go inside?" Erik asked when the song finished, pressing yet one more kiss to Charles' lips.
"What? Me…looking like this?" Charles asked, hands motioning at his messed hair and red eyes, blush still prominent.
"Yes, you, looking like you're mine," Erik said, turning Charles to tie his hair back again.
"Besides," Erik said when he was done. "You look like you just had an after school special, with your favorite student, Professor. Don't I look like that perfect student for you?
"What, Erik! Not you too!" Charles huffed. "And…I wouldn't do that…it would be against the rules, y'know?"
"I always had a kink for rule breaking and sexy professors," Erik said, voice suddenly dipping low. "And I know you won't resist me, because I know I look good. It's my kinda look," he finished, offering a hand to Charles.
"And you've never looked more beautiful, darling," Charles said, taking his hand as he picked up his glasses.
"Well, this is going on Youtube," Raven said, pressing the Stop button on her phone's camera. "Professor X: after school specials," she giggled at her blackmail material. Raven walked out from behind the tree, picking out a few leaves from her jacket.
"Told you it'd work, didn't I, arrow-girl?" Emma asked, coming from behind the other tree.
"Emma…" Raven asked, hesitatingly. "Are you really a Witch?"
"And I was thinking no one would ever find out," she smiled, eyes glinting. "Come, let's go inside. I'm starving."