"I caught it bad yesterday

You hit me with a call to your place

Ain't been out in a while anyway

Was hoping I could catch you throwing smiles in my face…"

The words in the music won their struggle for dominance against the overpowering bass of the beat, Will's focus clutching onto the story behind the words in an attempt to ground himself in the moment. The melodic baritone's voice breathed life into the song, low notes ripe with power and energy as Will pushed his way through the throng of moving bodies. The exhaustion lingering from this last week's hellish day of midterms still lived in the memory of his mind and body.

How long had it been since the last time he truly enjoyed being out in the vivid, breathing nightlife of the bustling city? While usually, the thought of trying to pursue hobbies and plastering fake smiles on his face in order to entertain unwanted company only exhausted him, tonight, the vitality of the numerous people in the area seemed to feed into his own social battery.

It had already been what seemed like an eternity of self-imposed, stagnant isolation in his little fourth-floor apartment. The never-ending cycle of attending class, taking notes, walking home, flopping down into bed had suddenly been shattered by a single confrontation. Here was his chance to break free from the shackles his mind had locked him into. Genuine interest, real emotion had flooded his physical and mental existence with a single touch.

Topped off with energy, Will eagerly followed Nico, who was strutting along a few steps ahead of him, the former's sky-blue eyes sweeping up and down over the small stranger's exposed, pale neck and shoulders. Will's gaze followed the angle that the side of Nico's torso made as it cut into that fragile waist, before subtly curving back out around his hips into a set of very nice legs.

"Romantic talking? You don't even have to try

You're cute enough to fuck with me tonight

Lookin' at the table all I see is weed and white

Baby, you living the life, but baby, you ain't livin' right…"

Fully aware of the tall blonde trailing behind him in the crowd, Nico made sure to really draw out the way he moved. With every step, he pushed off his back foot, flexing his calves and ever so slightly swaying his hip to the side. Remembering the sensation of Will's large, warm hands gripping his waist tightly, a shiver of excitement buzzed in his chest as he fought the sly smile trying desperately to reach his face.

Keep it cool, Nico. Make him want to come and get you. You've spun your web; all you have to do is seal the deal.

The feeling of the power in every movement the blonde made as he was pressed to Nico on the dance floor played back in his memory, the potential for a night worth remembering becoming more and more of a reality with every step Nico took towards the bar.

"Cocaine and drinking with your friends

You live in the dark, boy, I cannot pretend

I'm not fazed, only here to sin

If Eve ain't in your garden, you know that you can…"

Sliding between a pair of occupied stools in front of the bustling bar, Nico poked his head through the gathering of people, eyes searching for a familiar mop of dirty blonde hair. On the other side of the bar, Pollux was mixing up a drink in an excessively flamboyant fashion. Nico chuckled under his breath as he watched the expert flip a bottle of liquor into his hand, pour the mixture out of the shaker, and finish the drink.

"Oi, Pollux!" Nico called with his hand cupping his mouth, trying to make sure his voice reached all the way through the wall of noise between the two of them. "I'm cashing in on that drink you owe me!"

The bartender whipped his head around, violet eyes searching the faces around him until he finally saw Nico. Pollux grinned, charged his last patron for her drink, and sauntered over to the far side of the bar, picking up the half-full bottle of rum on the way.

"Just the usual?" he asked, reaching for a strawberry-flavored mixer and popping open the top to a clean drink shaker.

Nico nodded, before pausing to look behind him for Will. The blonde had almost caught up with him, scanning the figures of those at the bar before locking onto Nico. Nico watched as a small, excited smile crept onto Will's face, before turning back to Pollux.

"Actually, make it two. Put the other one on my tab." Nico said nonchalantly, internally bracing himself for Pollux's reaction.

Immediately, Pollux's eyebrows raised as a shit-eating grin crept onto his face. Nico knew that Pollux was never one to miss out on a chance to banter, always jumping at every possible opportunity to do so.

"Ooh, trying hard to get some action tonight. I can't even remember the last time you bought someone else a drink. Someone's really got you hot and bothered, huh?"

"Shut it," Nico grumbled, running a hand through his hair as the heat trapped in his messy waves escaped into the air. "So what if I want to buy him a drink? It might just make things more interesting today."

"Gods forbid you ever get tired of picking up guys here, you're the highlight of my night!" Pollux laughed as he placed both glasses on the counter, ice clinking as Nico pulled them towards him, nodding his thanks before squeezing back out of the crowd. As he turned, his right arm was lightly jostled as his shoulder bumped into a very firm chest.

"Ope, my bad," a warm, mild voice rumbled from just behind him. Nico looked up to see Will standing there, a light sheen of sweat on his forehead catching the colored lighting in the area. Stray blonde curls, far more erratically arranged than less than an hour ago, picked up the red tint from the overhead LEDs, setting ablaze to his hair like a fiery halo. Will's very existence at that moment felt like carnal passion mixed with angelic innocence in a way that would have made Nico catch his breath if he wasn't hyper-focused on holding the drinks in his hands.

"You're good, I've dropped way too many drinks to not have a tight grip," Nico said with a wink, delighting at the flustered expression on Will's face, as he too caught onto the double entendre.

I wonder if he heard any of what Pollux said…?

"Let's go sit down for a bit?" Nico asked, Will nodding, and quickly followed Nico, who had already started walking back towards his booth, his own abandoned leather jacket catching his eye. Nico lifted one of the glasses to his lips, gulping down a mouthful of liquid, relishing in how it washed away the dryness in his throat. The faint aftertaste of strawberries and liquor filled Nico's senses, permeating through the taste of his own saliva, thick from the effort he put into his earlier exertion.

He slipped into the cushioned faux leather seat of his booth, pushing his jacket from the table to set down the glasses instead. He shifted further in, Will sliding into the space next to him. Nico could practically feel the heat radiating off of Will, the sweat on his limbs beginning to cool now that he was no longer surrounded by other people.

Wonder how warm it would feel to have him pressed against my chest right now. How good it would feel to touch him and watch him shiver at the anticipation. To be touched by him with trembling, nervous hands.

I still can't believe he followed me all this way.

He recalled the panic in Will's eyes when he finally found Nico in the crowd, like a deer about to flee at the quietest of sounds.

I'm surprised he hasn't bolted yet. Be careful, don't fuck this up. When was the last time you saw someone this hot and interesting?

Heart beating rapidly, Will watched Nico as he took another large gulp out of his drink. The same smell of strawberries from earlier was clearly from the very drink Nico was currently nursing in his hands. Cocking his head to the right, Nico turned slightly to look back at him, matching Will's entranced gaze with an unreadable expression.

"Want one?" Nico asked, noticing Will's line of sight and sliding the untouched drink in front of Will. Will hesitated, the idea of consuming alcohol himself completely foreign to him. Flashbacks to shattering plates, furniture slamming into walls, heated yelling muffled only by his bedroom door, the smell of liquor on his mother's breath, and the sound of a car driving off into the night, flickered briefly in his mind as he eyed the drink in front of him.

The secondhand pain of an alcoholic parent, the fear of following in her footsteps, were all fresh in his mind despite years since being trapped in that situation. The memories should have been nothing more than a wisp of smoke, reduced by the passage of time to nothing more than a haze. But at this moment, they seemed more vivid than ever, almost every instinct in his body screamed at him to run.

However, Will's desire to impress the enchanting man sitting next to him overrode his other primal instincts, and despite feeling the palms of his hands clam up with his anxiety, he remained anchored in place. Will nervously glanced up at Nico, who was intently watching for Will's reaction, waiting for a response with that irresistible upwards look. overpowered every other urge Will had. Every single word in his vocabulary seemed to evaporate in that very moment as Will racked his brain to try to at least seem a little less like the complete loser he was.

"I, uh, don't really drink."

So much for being cool.

The raven-haired man shrugged indifferently, tank top riding up slightly as he moved, revealing a thin sliver of his pale, clear midriff. Cracking his neck slowly, Nico arched his back and stretched his left arm upwards, letting out a delectable sigh of pleasure as Will got even more of the view he was longing for. Will suppressed a shiver as his mind painted a vivid picture of where that thin trail of dark hair led to, imagination set free like a thrashing bull from a pen, raring to attack.

If looks could kill, Will would have already been six feet under days ago. He had been doomed since he first caught a glimpse of what lay under that terribly concealing leather jacket, as the garment was tossed aside and its owner was absorbed into the crowd. That Friday night, how he had longed to be the bright blue-haired fox that had slipped his way into Nico's field of view. Or to be Saturday's lanky ginger, to be Sunday's olive-skinned hunk.

It was a dangerous path he was walking down, and Will was fully aware of the fact. But it was now or never, and Will already carried too many regrets to watch himself create another one. At the very least, he could put to rest his incessant imagination of what Nico would look like pinned between Will and the nearest flat surface.

"Oi, cerbiatto." A short bark from Nico jolted Will out of his unholy thoughts, the lilt of a single Italian word sending Will's composure spinning in circles. Begrudgingly, Will lifted his gaze to meet Nico's half-lidded stare.

"You know you don't have to just look, right?" Nico asked playfully, a small, confident smirk pulling Will's attention to those plump, pink lips, and—oh gods, he was absolutely fucked. How was it possible to fit so much raw sex appeal and presence into a body about half his own size?

Will's breath caught in his throat, lifting his lightly trembling hand up from his lap before pausing, lips twitching as he tried to force himself to follow through with the single action of touching the other man. Frozen, he clenched his jaw, the frustration of being faced with his own cowardice nearly overwhelming him.

"Fuck it."

*cerbiatto - fawn, used as a pet name

Hi everyone!

As always, thanks so much for reading TMMM! Hearing from my readers brings so much light into my life, I truly do appreciate you all coming back and continuing to stick with the story. I just received news that I've been accepted into a study abroad program for the summer and then nursing school, so as things get busier in real life my chapter uploads will likely get bogged down even more than they already are. In the meantime, I'll be trying to update my stories more frequently when I have time. Thank you for bearing with me and I hope you enjoyed the chapter!

Love you all,

Aleavon