Hurt (Part I)

Disclaimer: I do not own the characters from Nothing Much to Do/Much Ado About Nothing.

A/N: This story is set in a universe where everything happens except Balthazar and Pedro getting together. The chapters will not take place in chronological order, so don't think you've missed anything if chapters don't match up with the ones before. Also, there'll be mention of a major character death, so yeah, there's that warning. Hope everyone enjoys this - I'll try to update as often as possible!

A soft rapping on Balthazar's bedroom door caught him off guard. He was in the middle of trying to slick his hair down, but it had a mind of its own. The gel he had globbed on it only seemed to add to the wildness.

"Coming!" He hoped his voice had carried enough to keep the person on the other side from barging in. With one last glance in his long closet mirror, Balth moved to the door and opened it. Tony was standing there, and his heart did a little flip.

With a grin, the other boy looked at him. "Wow, you clean up nice, Balthy. And it looks like I got the right color." Tony opened a small plastic box he had been hiding behind his back. Inside was a beautiful boutonniere with a on off-white rose that went quite well with Balthazar's dark blue shirt. "Here, let me put it on you. I promise not to stab you with the pin." He winked, and Balth just knew he was blushing. Tony leant forward to attach the flower. When it was fixed just right, he stepped back and Balth took his hand with confidence he wasn't even aware he had.

"Better get going. I know my mum is downstairs dying to take some pictures before her little boy gets swept off by Prince Charming." Balthazar said the last part with a slightly higher voice, mimicking his well-meaning mother, and the two boys laughed as they made their way downstairs.

Balthazar was having an amazing time. Considering the last dance he had gone to was in eighth grade, before he had actually come out, he didn't have high expectations in the first place. But amazing really was the word for the evening. Tony had danced every song with him: fast, slow, even the horribly in-between ones that everyone just awkwardly moved around to. Whoever had chosen the DJ needed to be fired (it was actually probably a Year 12, so they couldn't be fired), but still, some of the music was horrendous.

"I'm glad you said yes to coming with me." Balth had his head resting on Tony's chest as they danced. Without looking up, he smiled into the fabric of the taller boy's shirt and let himself be pulled in even closer.

"I'm glad, too. I never really thought I'd be dancing with anyone at a high school dance, much less a boy. There haven't really been many boys at the school who are publicly out."

Tony chuckled at that and dropped a kiss on Balthazar's head. "Balthy, you know, you're really cute." Balth was glad his face was still buried in the soft silk shirt, because he was pretty sure his blush had taken over his whole body.

"You're cute, too. Like, in a manly way. Not in an, aww what a cute kitten, way. But manly, and… yeah." He thought he had better end his sad little speech there before he ruined the moment more. Tony just chuckled again, and it send a gentle vibration to Balthazar's cheek.

The song ended, and the boys reluctantly stepped apart.

Tony inclined his head toward the drink table and asked, "What do you want to drink? I'll bring it to you. Free of charge." His smile was contagious, and Balth found himself saying something stupid about water, and how he would know if Tony spiked it. Seriously, why on earth would Tony spike water? Maybe it was best to not speak around Tony unless it was necessary. Otherwise, Balth might die from embarrassment at his own stupidity.

As Tony went for drinks, Balth felt a hand rest on his shoulder. "You having a good time, mate?" Pedro was smiling down at him and waggling those ridiculous eyebrows of his. Balthazar was so intoxicated by his previous proximity to Tony that he almost didn't feel the usual jolt to his heart that came from contact with Pedro. Almost, but not quite.

"Yeah, he's great, and it's all just - great! You?" He could see the slight falter in Pedro's smile before his friend recovered it.

"I'm having a great time, too!" Pedro's eye's quickly flickered to the corner where Balth knew Ben and Bea were dancing. Without talking about it, he had quickly picked up on the fact that the football captain still had feelings for the blond girl. He normally would have tried to draw out more from Pedro, but at that moment, Tony walked up with their drinks.

Balth's friends exchanged nods and quick questions about each other's evenings before Tony grabbed his hand for the next song. "Talk to you later, Pedro! Gotta get back to burning up the dance floor!" Balthazar did some eyebrow wiggling of his own while fake-shimmying backwards. Pedro grinned and raised his eyebrows in return at the ridiculous dancing. With one last look at his friend, Balth let Tony spin him around and into his arms.

Note: Hey readers, this is the first part of the school dance. I thought I would be able to get it all done tonight, but it's way too late, and the scene in my head is way too long. I'll hopefully have the second part up tomorrow!

Thanks for reading, and please comment/like/whatever if you're enjoying the story (or if you have any suggestions).