Lmao sorry for the wait everyone! I've been on a bit of a break for a number of reasons. A few of which being mental health stuff, real-life obligations, and a couple mini-fixations distracting me. I'm gonna be on break a little while longer, but I figured it was about time to post; this has been sitting finished in my files for about a month. Whoops.

A warning for this chapter: I've been informed it's a little heavy on the secondhand embarrassment. It's kind of supposed to be, a little, and I think I've resolved the worst of it. But if that kind of thing bothers you, I advise you to read it in smaller chunks. Otherwise, this is probably a safe chapter to skip.

"Ha, you missed!"

"Oh, come on, your monster was right next to mine! That should have hit!"

"That isn't even how you're supposed to do rage attacks! Here, I'll show you how it's done!"

"Okay, you have to be cheating!"

Danny had come over to Wes's house on Saturday, two Gamelads in tow; one was his, and one he'd "borrowed" from Jazz. He'd brought over one of his favorite portable titles— Monster Domination— as well as a cable to connect the two consoles so they could play against each other.

And Wes, being generally unfamiliar with video games, was getting his butt handed to him.

"That isn't fair!" he huffed as Danny's monster executed one of its "rage attacks." "My monster can't do laser beams like that!"

"That's because you picked a moth," Danny snarked.

"You picked a lizard!"

Of course, Wes lost the match shortly after, leaving Danny with a largely full health bar.

Wes growled, letting the Gamelad drop harmlessly onto his mattress. "Why is, uh, what did you call it, stun-locking? Why is that even a thing? That's basically cheating!"

"It isn't cheating if the game wants you to do it," Danny replied cheekily. "It isn't my fault you don't know how to use a ranged character."

"You had laser breath!" Wes countered. "All I had was clouds and larva mines you wouldn't even step on!"

"If you knew what the monsters were like, maybe you would have picked something you actually knew how to play as," Danny joked. "These guys aren't just video game characters. I would have thought you'd be all over the movies."

Wes wrinkled his nose. "You mean the ones with the lumpy costumes that barely even look like monsters? No thank you. I'll stick to the real deal, thanks."

Danny rolled his eyes, electing not to point out that there were no such thing as "real deal" kaiju monsters.

"...But maybe you could tell me about them anyway," Wes said. "You know, if they're so cool and all."

"You just want the upper hand in the next round," Danny accused him.

"Shut up and tell me already," Wes groused.

Danny had to bite the inside of his cheek to keep from laughing, but in the end, he relented. Agitating Wes was fun and all, but there was no reason to actually upset him.

"Alright, alright. The lore behind these guys gets confusing because they keep changing their origins and stuff, so I'll keep it simple. Like this guy?" He pointed at the spiky green lizard on the character selection screen. "Sometimes he's an irradiated iguana, and other times he's a deep sea creature. Obviously you know about the heat laser. He's one of the good guys, but he still wrecks stuff, which is why this dude came along."

He pointed at another character, similar in appearance but made of metal. "The first time it showed up, it was made by evil aliens. But now, there's a bunch of different versions of it, usually manmade, and they're all made to keep the lizard from rampaging."

Next he pointed to a birdlike monster, and then a three-headed dragon. "That one was a pterodactyl egg that hatched when exposed to radiation, and that one there is actually an alien, and the lizard's sworn enemy. The two bugs here are basically gods, and the beetle lives underwater, for some reason.

"And that isn't even all of them. There's an ankylosaurus that was frozen in ice, there's a couple ogres, a space bird covered in knives, and some of the lizard's cells ended up in a black hole and came out as an entire space lizard. And there's one guy that's basically a walking smog cloud, and there's walruses and crabs, and—"

Needless to say, Danny didn't keep things simple. Once he got going, he couldn't stop, growing more and more animated with each sentence. Basic rundowns on the most well-known monsters rapidly became more and more niche and complicated, until Danny had gotten so deep into the franchise's history that Wes couldn't keep up.

But that didn't stop him from paying attention anyway, even if that focus wasn't on Danny's words. It was rare to see him get so passionate about something, going on and on about some cheesy monster movie or other in a manner that put even Tucker's technobabble to shame. Wes could probably count the number of times Danny had gone off on a tangent that wasn't ghost-related on one hand.

It made him happy to see Danny's mouth motoring away a mile a minute, hands flying all over the place as he wildly gestured alongside his words. It wasn't every day he got to prattle on about his interests, whether that be space or horror movies.

Wes would be more than happy to see him like this every day.

Not long after, Danny's tirade trickled to a stop, half-forming words before silencing himself mid-sentence. The two found themselves staring at each other, so quiet that one could hear a pin drop.

It was Wes who eventually broke the silence. "...What's that look for?"

Danny's gaze flicked away and back so quickly that Wes almost missed it. "Nothing, what's that look for?"

"What look? You started it."

This time when Danny looked away, it was because he rolled his eyes. His lips curled into a half-smile, brows lightly drawn together.

"You look like you wanna kiss me," he answered bluntly.

The effect was instantaneous. Wes's face went beet red, the color leeching into the tips of his ears and masking the freckles on his neck. An instinctive thrill of fear grabbed him by the throat before he forced it down.

Danny was right. He was absolutely right.

"...No I don't!" Wes denied shrilly, voice barely a squeak.

One corner of Danny's mouth quirked up, and he huffed an incredulous laugh. "You keep looking at my lips."

Right again. How could Wes not look? They seemed so soft.

Still, he made a point to look away, violently shaking his head. Somehow, he was even redder. "Liar!"

"It's okay to want to, you know," Danny said, somewhat less cheekily. He was having a harder time looking directly at Wes, but he wasn't avoiding it with the same fervor as Wes himself.

"...I know," Wes muttered. Obviously he knew. He'd done it twice already. Danny had calmed him down after the first time, and the second time he hadn't said anything at all; there hadn't been a need to. The notion of wanting to kiss Danny silly wasn't a new one, and was in fact one Wes was slowly growing accustomed to being open to him about.

But knowing it, and having Danny bring it up himself, were two totally different things.

"...And you know you're allowed, right?" Danny persisted.

Wes buried his face in his hands. "Why?! We aren't even... you know!"

"We don't have to be dating to kiss," Danny said plainly. "I kiss Sam all the time if I need an alibi in a pinch. And Tucker, a couple times."

"...S-So?!" Wes stammered. Danny wasn't suggesting what Wes thought he was suggesting, was he? He didn't dare to hope.

"So," Danny replied, color only now gracing his cheeks for the first time that conversation, "I think it would be smart to, you know. Practice. Just in case."

"...Pr... Practice?" Wes squeaked. He shook his head again. "Like, so we can kiss where someone can see us later? Danny, you know I can't do that."

"Well, nobody's looking right now," Danny pointed out.

"Yeah, but later?!" Wes cried. "I can't do those... uh, what did you call them?"

"Fake-out make-outs?"

"Yeah, that!"

"Then how about we practice for the sake of practice?" Danny suggested. "Maybe it comes in handy later, maybe it doesn't. But I'd really prefer it if you didn't threaten to chip my tooth every time you went for it."

The last part was clearly said in jest, but that shut Wes up anyway. Something about what Danny was saying itched at his brain in a really weird way. If not necessarily to prepare for an on-the-spot cover story, then why would Danny bring up kissing? Why so insistently? Why now?

At that, Wes thought it was about time to stop looking a gift horse in the mouth.

"Okay," he eeped.

Danny smiled again, somewhat demure. He closed his Gamelad, the chiptune music muffled as it continued to play. He readjusted himself at the edge of the bed, turning to face Wes as fully as he could. Wes, in something of a daze, did the same.

"Close your eyes and relax," Danny instructed. His voice had gotten so soft. But how he expected Wes to relax under the circumstances, he didn't know.

Still, even with him so rigid, Danny shifted closer. Wes felt him move more than heard him. He almost jumped when their knees brushed, and his eyelids fluttered when he felt Danny's breath ghosting his cheeks.

Yeah, Wes had already kissed Danny twice before. Both of those happened in the heat of the moment, with no forethought before he went for it. He hadn't had time to think. But now that he was sitting here, waiting for Danny to make his move, he didn't think he'd ever been more scared.

Luckily, Danny didn't give him too much time to dwell on it. Without a word, their lips met, long but chaste.

Danny's lips were chapped. Only a little, but not quite as smooth as Wes had originally thought. It also wasn't as unpleasant as he would have expected that to be. If anything, it grounded him, keeping him from spiraling into a mild panic.

It was nice. Quite nice, actually.

Too soon, Danny pulled away. He didn't go far, staying close enough that their noses were nearly touching. "I told you to relax." He chuckled, the sound rumbling in his chest but never passing his lips.

"H-How do you expect me to do that?" Wes whispered, scared to break the almost-silence.

"You pucker your lips too much," Danny replied, just as quiet. "You're stiff as a board, too. Let your shoulders loosen up a little."

Wes didn't have a chance to obey. Danny's hands were already on his arms, and pulling down, gently coaxing him into lowering his shoulders. And even then, they lingered, keeping a loose hold on his forearms.

Wes made a very undignified sound that was almost words. He cleared his throat, and tried again. "D-Danny, I—"

He was interrupted when Danny came back for more, awkwardly catching his lower lip. Wes immediately shut up, instinctively puckering his lips. When he remembered he wasn't supposed to do that, he pursed them instead, pressing them into a thin line.

Once again, Danny pulled away, but this time he rocked all the way back onto his rear. His expression was hard to describe.

"Do you want me to stop?" he asked.

The question startled Wes, prompting him to open his eyes. "...Huh?"

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have sprung that on you," Danny stammered, suddenly nervous himself. Wes could see him closing himself off in real time. "I know this whole thing makes you nervous. And you're right, we aren't together. We don't have to do this right now. Or ever, really, I just thought—"

"Wait." Wes surprised himself by speaking up, his hand bridging the short distance to Danny's knee. Age-old anxiety surged in the pit of his stomach, but he pressed on anyway, encouraged when Danny didn't pull away from him.

"...You're right," he said. "We're just friends, and I'm alright with that, really. And yeah, I'm kinda terrified right now, even if I know I shouldn't be. And I don't know why you would ever wanna try. But..." A lump formed in his throat, so he stopped to swallow it back. "...But I do want to learn. Really. If you, uh. Still wanna show me."

"Wes, you really don't have to—"

"Please?"

That shut Danny up real quick. Wes didn't know why it surprised him so much; it wasn't like Danny didn't know how utterly infatuated he was with him. Maybe he didn't believe it.

Or maybe, for all of his experience and projected bravado, he was just as anxious about all this as Wes was.

Still, Wes's resolve seemed to win him over. Danny smiled, unsure but easy. He scooted closer, so that once again their knees could touch. He leaned in, one hand coming up to rest on Wes's shoulder, the other supporting his weight on the mattress between them.

"You can use your hands," Danny suggested quietly, admittedly embarrassed to even say it. "Just... whatever feels comfortable."

Wes didn't trust himself to speak, instead just nodding. He closed his eyes as Danny bridged the gap, forcing himself to keep his expression lax.

What was he supposed to do after this? Danny had said to use his hands, but Wes didn't know where to put them, leaving them to twitch and fidget half-raised at his sides. Should he put them on Danny's hips? On his arms? His shoulders? Should he put one hand on his cheek, or maybe in his hair? Should he hug him?

What if he tilted his head? It wasn't hands, but that was something people did when they kissed, wasn't it?

It was worth a shot. He tried it, and was surprised to find it infinitely more comfortable than before.

Danny seemed to agree. He smiled into the kiss, and the way his lips slid against Wes's had sparks dancing behind his eyelids.

"There, now you're starting to get it," Danny whispered against him.

Wes responded by tipping his head forward, eliminating the millimeters that had formed between them. He leaned in, his fingers finding the back of Danny's neck and pulling him forward until he unbalanced.

"Wes, ow, I can't lean that far!" Despite the protests, Danny was laughing, ducking out of Wes's grip to straighten back out. Wes, sheepishly, bowed his head, but the humor of the situation somehow proved to be enough to break through the last dregs of his fear.

It seemed to do the same for Danny, too. Despite the color in his cheeks, he was smiling, one of his dopey, lopsided ones. "Come on, meet me halfway here. And don't worry about leading, I can manage."

Wes blinked, somewhat confused by the statement. "...You can lead a kiss?"

Danny grinned and shook his head, clearly amused. It was obvious Wes had no idea what he was doing. But that's what all this was for, wasn't it?

He didn't bother answering the question, instead leaning in to resume the kiss. This time, Wes didn't make him cover the distance alone, coming forward to meet him in the middle. One hand cupped Danny's cheek, the other finding his thigh. Likewise, Danny's hands loosely draped over his shoulders, one of them idly thumbing the side of his sweater's collar.

It was getting easier each time. Wes felt bolder, and he made fewer mistakes; or, at least, he hoped he did. Danny never piped up, at any rate. Wes couldn't even remember why he was so scared, his worries slowly slipping away as he began to lose himself to an almost dreamlike high.

He knew there were no feelings involved. For him, yes, but not for Danny. Deep down he knew that. But when they were like this, awkward, bumbling limbs and all, he could pretend, even if it was just for a moment.

Over time, Danny's hands went from Wes's shoulders, to the back of his head, fingers gently tugging at the ginger locks at the nape of his neck. Normally, hands in his hair were soothing, oftentimes lulling him into a sense of calm and security. But this time, when it was Danny, when it was like this, it was electrifying, so much so that he couldn't be sure it hadn't stirred his core.

If it had, Danny wasn't fazed by it. He continued to card his fingers through Wes's hair, his breathing deep and steady. Any traces of nervousness were gone now, kissing Wes with confidence at a slow, self-assured pace.

Wes couldn't complain. All that was left now was a pleasant fuzz in his brain like cotton fluff, any and all coherent thoughts melting away at Danny's mere touch. If he were to kiss Wes like this again, again and again and again, Wes didn't think he would mind a bit. He would probably thank him, actually.

But, like all good things, it had to end. After some amount of time Wes couldn't measure, Danny broke away, staying so close that it would be easy to pull him back for more. But he didn't, the both of them panting quietly through parted lips. Danny's cheeks were flushed, and Wes was sure his own were far worse.

Wes could see the ceiling behind Danny's head. Was he on his back? When had that happened?

"Now that," Danny breathed after a pause, "is how you kiss someone."

"...Ubwhugnmm?" Wes said eloquently.

Danny laughed, and to Wes it sounded like a choir and tinkling bells. "Are you always gonna be like this when I kiss you?"

When? As in, this would happen more than once?

"Again?" Wes asked, more intelligible this time.

Danny didn't seem to know if he meant right then, or some unseen point in the future. He correctly chose to interpret it as the latter. "I mean, I guess so. If you wanted to. Uh. I wouldn't mind doing it again."

Oh, that was dangerous. That was dangerous in a way Wes shouldn't indulge in. Doing this just once, just to learn, was one thing. But to give him false hope, with unclear promises and an even more muddled purpose? The fallout could be devastating if Wes's feelings were never returned.

But maybe he could hope. Surely he could give himself that, even if it was just for now.

"...Um," he said, forcing his tone light, suave, and failing miserably. "I, uh. I don't think I really understand it yet. Do you think you could... show me again?"

Danny saw through the fib immediately. It was clear what Wes really wanted.

So Danny grinned, more than happy to play along. "Sure. I'll show you for as long as you'll pay attention."

Wes grinned too, a dopey smile so big his eyes crinkled.

And Danny really did show him, again and again and again. Because right then, it was easy. It was easy to lavish Wes with attention under the guise of a taught lesson.

It might not be so easy to fool himself later, but, well. Danny could hope.

I know this one was pretty short compared to other recent chapters, but I hope y'all liked it anyway! Our boys are slowly but surely coming to terms with Being Very Very Gay

I've got a few chapter ideas I'm trying to decide between at the moment, so even after I finish my break, it might be a while before I start actually writing again. But I expect the ideas to result in decently long chapters, so my hope is that you'll all have something super juicy to read when I next return!

(P.S.: whoever can guess the exact title of the game referenced here gets a cookie!)