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‘‘Bun why don’t you ever make an effort to do activities with me?’‘ He asked the other male with a long dramatic sigh. ‘‘I’m always so supportive but when it comes to that one thing I love,’‘ he shook his head, trying his best to keep a straight face. ‘‘I want to do yoga with you. I’ll hold your legs and if I have to, help you become the gymnast you always wanted to be.’‘

“Well, my love, it’s because I know once I say yes once, you’ll never let me get out again.” Nico’s voice ended out in an exasperated sigh and the hand movements to go along with it. “You’ll take any chance to spread my legs, wouldn’t you, you pervert.” he laughed through his sentence at the absurdity of it. “I’m already pretty flexible, you know. I’m sure I could actually do it if I wanted to. I’d rather do power jumps and acrobatics than stand still on a mat.”

‘‘You were the one who asked first to talk about it, therefore you did it and I only agreed to what was a terrible idea. I’ve been regretting that day every since– pft, a long time.’‘ He couldn’t even remember the date and giggled at the thought of it. He was obviously joking. ‘‘I like it very much. I wake up too early for my own good to do yoga, so you have no idea how beautiful it is when the sun finally reach the windows of my living room. I always loved places like this with wall-windows… Anyway, I’m rambling. It’s a cute place, it’s a bit small but I’m alone with Jekyll so,’‘ he shrugged lightly. ‘‘I mean, I was alone with Jekyll – cause now you’ll have to join me to sleep at night. It was a horrible thing to offer, you’ll regret it.’‘

“Oh so I broke your heart and you have never ever recovered from the tragedy that breaking up was?” Nico raised both of his eyebrows, coupled with a longing sigh, mockingly seemed pitiful. “I’m a morning person, but on sundays i’m more of a stay in bed and cuddle kind of person, so I don’t know if we mix up that well if you sneak out of bed to do your pre-sunup yoga.” he laughed, offering a light shake of his head, reaching up to stroke your shoulder again. “I’m taking my offer back. I’m not doing morning yoga with you, sorry. I’ll go for a run instead, but no yoga.”

‘‘I’m not that big of a fan either, but people tend to think so whenever they meet me. I mean, Shakespeare-who? Gotta be named after the evil parrot,’‘ he added with a cheeky grin. ‘‘I don’t eat meat so you’re safe, you got your pizza for yourself and I’ll have a slice of the vegetarian one. You can’t break up with me, by the way, you already been there and done that. Now is the perfect time to start new!’‘

“Exactly, you could burn my pizza on purpose, just to watch me starve. You’re a sadist deep inside, I can feel it.” he grinned widely, eventually resolving in a light laugh once more. “Hey hey, we both agreed that breaking up was the best idea then. Don’t put this on me alone.” he lifted his finger to point at Iago almost in an accusatory manner, but quickly lowered it again. “So how are you liking it here? This place starting to feel like home yet? Moving’s weird man.”

“I will watch the Lion King with them, but there’s no way I’ll let them know what Aladdin is all about!’‘ He chuckled, as he held him tightly, before slowly letting go of him. ‘‘Can we not talk about me, and my so called issues for a moment? You’re here, and I’m happy to see you, so make yourself useful and take the pizzas out of the oven! I’m hungry,’‘ he smiled brightly as he wiped away the tears from his eyes. ‘’I’ll call your first son Jafar if you continue,’’ that sentence alone made absolutely no sense.

“They’ll have to know why their uncle Nicholas is calling their dad parrot though. They need to get the reference. I’ll teach them about it in secret.” he reached up to gently caress your cheek once you let go for him and then nodded enthusiastically at your resolve. “If you burn my pizza then I’m breaking up.” he poked your shoulder and stepped back to give you some room. “Jafar’s a cute name.. I would prefer Jasmine though, but then again, I’m not that big of a disney fan.”

Nicholas’ words slapped him across the face; he really took a moment to think about what his friend said, letting the words sink in. ‘’Am I really a comfort addict?’’ He questioned him, sounding rather gloomy as he looked down at his own hands. Iago liked to think Eric just met him at a strange moment of his life, not that he was trying to compensate for something else. ‘’I’m not rushing anything, I promise,’’ he told him, a single tear rolling down his cheek before being quickly wiped away. The italian didn’t even know why he got sad listening to his friend’s words, but he nodded at Nico’s proposition. ‘’I think I broke my own heart, bun,’’ Iago said, moving closer to Nico before wrapping his arms around him, hiding his face into the crook of his neck. He was at a weird place, blaming himself for a lot of things that happened. ‘’I won’t be single at forty I’ll be married with kids stop day dreaming,’’

“For lack of better term.. You kind of are a comfort addict, yes.” he murmured at the look his friend was giving him, making him sure that he hit a bit of a soft node, letting out a heavy sigh the second he saw the actual sad face of Iago as he looked back up, tugging at him the wrong way. He scrunched his face up, almost as some sort of an apology as he felt Iago wrap around him. He promptly wrapped his arms around him as well and held him close. “I can’t wait for you to show me I’m wrong then. I do hope I’ll be at that stage too. My kids’ll be excited to head over to uncle Iago to watch Aladdin. What a scenario to imagine.” He chuckled, hoping to light up the mood at least a little, despite having dragged it down himself.

‘‘Listen, I didn’t mean to meet Eric so quickly but I did. He’s genuinely a good guy. I’m not saying we’re in a relationship, I’m just saying we – might get there someday,’‘ he felt stupid for trying to justify himself. Iago looked down, knowing Nicholas wasn’t judging but possibly disapproving was just as worst. ‘‘It is fast – but he pursued me,’‘ after Ben did the opposite, ‘‘and I don’t think it would be fair to not give him a chance.’‘ He nipped at his lower lip, avoiding eyes contact with his friend. He was very interested in the other male – they were compatible on many levels, but no one could deny it was an unhealthy habit to go from a man to another. He couldn’t help it though; he had so much love to give, and deeply hated being alone at night.

“Ben was a genuinely good guy as well, wasn’t he?” he knew it was a douchy move to bring up the ex boyfriend and comparing him to the new prospect as soon as it came out of his mouth, but to him, it was a necessary evil at this point. “I just don’t want you to get hurt, you thick headed comfort addict.” he shook the negativity out of his body as best he could as he shifted from one leg to the other. “Don’t rush into it, okay? Be you for a while, heck, if you need someone to hold at night, then i’ll live practically down street once I move next week now that Harper went back to Miami.” he offered a smile, knowing Iago was uncomfortable with the disappointment he’d uttered. “Right? We all know you and I are ending up getting married if we’re both single at forty anyway.”

‘‘If I’m getting marr– Nico!’’ He laughed lightly, moving a hand over his whole face as he tried his best to stop laughing. ‘‘Why do you always have to paint me as the desperate groom? I’m not getting married, ever again! I’m kidding, I want to get married again… but I already told you, I’m trying to get some me time. I don’t want to get into another relationship too fast,’‘ ironic coming from the lover boy’s mouth. ‘‘That being said: I’m seeing a guy, his name is Eric but it’s like, very casual,’‘ who was he trying to fool, here? He was realling jumping from a relationship to another, it was unhealthy, but he couldn’t help it. It was something he’s been doing since he was old enough to date. ‘’Hr’s a barber, he’s so handsome and has zero flaw… It’s very annoying,’’

“I’ve known you for a long time, it’s not the most crazy thing you’ve done!” he raised his voice with obvious amusement, waving his arm around to exemplify his words. “Eric doesn’t sound a lot like you time, babe.” his expression quickly grew serious, hearing his otherwise joking words being confirmed. “How long has it been since Ben? Iago I know you.” he let out a sigh and looked down into the floor beneath them, shaking his head from side to side, while thinking about the situation. “You started feeling lonely and latched onto the next boy in line.” he looked up and reached out to put a hand on his friend’s shoulder. “I’m not judging, It’s just.. fast. I think you know that.”

‘‘I need you to stop by more often, only to remind me how good-looking I am, just in case I forgot about it,’‘ he giggled as he ran his fingers through his curls, smiling widely as he looked at the other male. Iago loved the fact that Nicholas could always make his day better, his presence alone was enough to make him forget about the small things that were giving him anxiety. ‘‘Cartoon duo? I like it too. I’m be the pretty one and you can be the other one that talks too much,’‘ he teased him. ‘‘I’m not hitting on you; you know how smooth I can be when I’m truly trying! This is just kindness, and who said I wasn’t getting laid on a regular basis?’‘ He smiled at him, looking like he just got caught the hand in the cookie jar – but he was actually proud of himself and highly amused.

“I suddenly don’t feel like coming around that often anyway.. I’m sorry.” he tapped his foot against the floor and crossed his arms in front of him. “I’d call you out for being ugly, but there’s just nothing I can put my finger on, idiot.” he shook his head in a playfully bothered expression, then finally letting it up again, reaching out to light stroke you arm, then letting it fall limb again. “I’m okay with that distribution, I’ll get more lines that way. More money for the money man.” he stuck out his tongue between his lips, but only for a second. “Hmm, you’re in a good mood, so maybe you did get laid recently.. Is there something... someone you want to tell me about? You’re not getting married again.. are you?”

‘‘How do you think you’d manage to win a fight between the two of us?’‘ Iago snorted, raising an eyebrow as he looked at him. ‘‘I’m taller, muscular and I do yoga everyday I could probably strangle you with my thighs and propulse you oversea!’‘ Obviously. He wasn’t dramatic at all. ‘‘But I’ll probably end up feeling terrible about it, and cry every night… Let’s forget that option, okay? Don’t fight me, I don’t want to hurt you.’‘ Iago couldn’t help to giggle when Nicholas told him the meatball nickname was now allowed. ‘‘I like bunny the most anyway,’‘ he lightly shrugged. ‘‘Oh, it is! It suits you. I just want to cup your face and cover you in kisses. I’m not kidding, you look really handsome, like a proper manly man,’‘ Iago added knowing how terrible it sounded.

Nico made an exaggerated grimace as Iago kept on talking, lightly dabbing his head from side to side, feigning obvious outrage at his claims. “Despite your glorious thighs and chiseled body, I think you’ll find I’m nimble and flexible as well.” his expression softens up, stepping around the new place with a silent sense of awe. “Bunny and parrot then? We sound like a cartoon duo, I like it.” he shook his head, hiding the laugh behind  a wide grin. “A proper manly man. You’re just gushing with compliments today, aren’t you? Is this what you’re like when you don’t get laid on a regular basis? Are you hitting on me, Mr. Moretti?”

‘‘You can’t be my lil meatball but you’re still calling me a parrot? This is the kind of fight you don’t want to have, nico. Believe me.’‘ He glared at him, only to end up smiling widely as he invited Nicholas to follow him to the kitchen – only to watch him head the right way. ‘‘I made pizzas they are in the oven, I hope you’re hungry cause I decided to make two and… I added prosciutto to one of them!’‘ It was only for Nicholas, because Iago was (still) a vegetarian. ‘‘Would be polite of you to comment on my new place, bun. What do you think of it? Cute, hm? God I can’t stop staring at your facialhair,‘’

It might have been a new place and new everything, but the smell of pizza could always lead him the right way when it came to finding the kitchen. “Oh really, and why is that? We both know I’d win a fight between the two of us.” he referenced between them with his hands, taking in the aroma of the sizzling pizza’s in the oven. “Okay, you win. You can call me meatball all you want. Your promised prosciutto won me over.” he looked back at his friend with a crooked smile. “I’m sorry, not sorry for barging in without saying anything, but food was more important right then.” he finally took a good look around. “I like it. I might even come around more often. We live pretty close together now.” he scratched the side of his own protruding beard at your last sentence. “Hopefully because it suits me. It feels weird having it back.” 

nicosross:

‘‘The police would never call me a loser! I know it cause I married one!’‘ He was yelling from the other side of the door, and giggled light-heartedly when he opened it to look at his friend with a bright smile. He was shirtless, wearing nothing but his skinny black pants. ‘‘I felt like I needed to rebel against the obsessive control you’re trying to have over me. You can’t revoke our friendship so easily; please come in.’‘ Iago closed the door behind nico, and grabbed the edge of his shirt to pull him towards his body, giving him a small hug and a kiss between his cheek and ear. ‘’Since when are you growing a beard? It’s cute, all that scruff,’’ he scratched the side of his face lightly, like some kind of puppy he was fond of.

“That was just one of your many mistakes dealing with relationships!” Nico flashed his teeth in an overly accentuated smile to make sure his friend knew he was joking. He looked the man up and down with a displeased smile after a second. “Hey, my obsessive control is just a sign that I love you, little parrot.” He stepped inside the apartment, stopping for the obligatory Italian greeting that he was so familiar with by now. “My boss finally got whatever stick he had up his ass out and let me grow it out. Apparently you’re more believable and dependable to the jury if you have a scruff. I’m not complaining.” he slapped your hand away gently, just to stride past you inside the apartment towards the kitchen. “I’m starving. I have a serious case of hanger, so show me what you got, amore mio.”

The traffic was bad, but then again, when wasn’t it in downtown New York at this time of day. When he finally pulled up to Iago’s place and found a parking space, a lot longer than 20 minutes had passed, so he hurried up until he found himself at the door of his old friend. “It’s the fridge police, open up, loser.” he yelled from behind the door, giving it three loud knocks immediately after. “If you’re not wearing pants when you open this, then you’re not my friend.”

iago: you used to love the whole ‘me walking around without pants’ *heavysighs iago: okay bun see you in a bit  ❤ iago: well i’m single again, we never know what might happens… I planned to date a nicholas next and make you the sloppy second nico. You have a key to my apartment you could walk on us someday and hear it again :))) iago: Mm nico…

iago: you mean everyone wish they could, right? iago: and i can’t promise anything iago: BRB going to whole food iago: but you know i can’t say that without moaning :)))

iago: okay same i even took my pants off because it’s my own house and i can iago: i SAID 12!!! iago: don’t make me run to the grocery store… iago: you dismissed bunny too, what am I suppose to do, call you by your name? ew

iago: nico my lil meatball  iago: I only have food for 12 people like a good italian boy I am iago: you think it will be enough to satisfy your hunger? ps put a shirt on