Gays in Space

So here he is, trapped in one of the gym's smaller rooms with 20 thirteen-year-olds while one of the most gorgeous people Grace has ever seen in his life is carefully explaining to the enraptured students how to best keep themselves safe while out with their friends. 

His name is Simon and he runs a local gym that specializes in self defence classes for women and children. Grace immediately loves that. He also immediately loves how softly he speaks to his kids. His voice is a deep growl that has Grace suppressing a shiver, but Simon never raises his voice or uses it to intimidate in any fashion. The loudest he’s been today is when he was addressing the whole class, giving a well practiced safety lesson and had to project his voice slightly to be heard over the excited students. 

One on one though he’s nothing but soft and gentle, giving them his undivided attention that Grace can tell instantly puts all the kids at ease. He can tell it’s intentional because Grace knows that unfortunately people are not inherently kind to those who look different. Simon may be attractive to him, but he knows that at first glance anybody else is just going to be seeing the heavy scarring and missing arm and think scary. 

He’s certain other people take one look and see the missing left arm, the twisting mess of scar tissue that crawls up his neck and cheek, and see nothing else. Simon isn’t as tall as Grace, but he’s broad shouldered and he doesn’t seem to smile much so that already can put people off. Grace wonders briefly what caused it the first time he meets Simon. Accident? Maybe he was in the military? Ultimately it’s none of his business and he’s so proud of his students for deciding the same as none of them so much as blink at Simon's physical appearance. 

( he doesn’t look scary to Grace. Grace doesn’t think he’s been so attracted to somebody in his life. )

So now he’s here on day 4 of a three week unit, and Simon is now looking at Grace while doing a demonstration. 

“Can I borrow you for a second?”

“Me??” Grace is very proud of himself for not letting his voice shake when he responds. 

“Yeah, you’re the only one here taller than me.” Which is…yeah Mr. Evans isn’t the tallest. But Grace also knows he’s taller than average. His older brother always lovingly calls him and Colt “freaks of nature” while gazing up at them from his respective 5’11”. 

“Um...”

“I’m not gonna hurt you. Promise.” Simon’s voice is soft and low, pitched only for Grace to hear. And fuck if that doesn’t immediately help put his rising anxiety at ease. 

“Okay.” He nods and lets Simon lead them back to the mats that have been set out. Some of the kids cheer at his arrival, waving excitedly. He can’t help but smile and wave back. 

“I’m gonna have you in front of me, right here - perfect. Then I’ll be placing my arm around here and putting slight pressure on your neck. Okay? Hey look at me? It’s not going to hurt. Not at all. You’ll get a little dizzy, but just let yourself fall, I’ll be supporting you the whole time and guide you to the floor.” 

Grace nods along, letting his body relax. Him and Colt used to take tumbling classes as kids and while Grace had stopped, Colt had turned it into a career. He still remembers what Colt has told him over and over when Grace would come to set and watch his brother work. I trust my team and I trust my body. But sometimes going limp is the safest option. 

“I trust you.” He tells Simon. “My brothers dropped me more times than I can count, so I’m sure you’re already gonna do better than him.”

He feels Simon laughing more than he hears it, his chest shaking slightly where it’s pressed to Grace’s back. “I promise I won’t drop you. You’re tall, but not the heaviest I’ve had to deal with.” 

Grace can’t help but smile back, letting Simon take over the lesson. He can’t see Simon behind him, but he has a perfect view of all the students watching. It’s a little amusing to see their eyes go wide when Simon’s arm goes around his throat. 

And true to his word - Grace gets a little dizzy and feels himself start to fall, but Simon is there the whole time supporting him with his body and guiding him gently to the floor. When the pressure on his neck is gone, so is the dizziness. Grace blinks up at the ceiling for a second before taking the offered hand to help him up. He mutters a quiet thanks to Simon who nods. He doesn’t let go of Grace’s hand until he’s certain Grace is steady and back on his feet completely, and Grace tries not to think about his larger hand lingering in his. He's going to be totally normal about it later he promises.

The kids give him a literal round of applause (he will never regret teaching them that) as he makes his way off the mat, making him chuckle. When he catches Simon’s eye again later he gets another nod of thanks along with a soft smile that no one else seems to catch. 

Yeah this is going to be a long month. 

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