#2jay

Jaylen isn’t paying a ton of attention to what Jayson’s doing, pressed shoulder to hip in the back of the SUV. If he looks over he can see JT’s phone open to some app and he isn’t interested in whatever girl he’s chatting up tonight. Jaylen stares out the window until Jayson laughs and nudges him with his elbow. He barely has to move. 

“Yo, check this out,” Jayson turns his screen to show him a reel of a drugged owl faceplanting.

Jaylen can’t help but laugh with him. “That’s messed up,” he says. “Poor dude.” 

“I know,” Jayson says, drawing the word out. He leans forward into the middle row to show it to Marcus. 

Jaylen resumes watching the city crawl by – all the clubs emptying into the streets. There’s too many of them in this car, and he wishes again he’d just ordered his own damn ride. It’s not like they don’t have the money for it. Jayson is furnace-hot against his side. 

Jaylen turns again to ask him to shift over some, but Jayson’s head is tipped back against the seat, mouth slack, eyes closed. 

Fucker passed out, Jaylen thinks, a surge of fondness. Not that he’d ever tell Jayson this, but he looks even more like Deuce when he’s asleep. Just some big kid. The SUV jostles over a pot hole, and Jayson slumps even further into Jaylen’s space, head lolling to rest on his shoulder. 

Jaylen reaches across his body with his right hand and adjusts Jayson’s head to a more comfortable position, cards his fingers briefly through Jayson’s neat curls. Jayson makes a mumbling sleep sound and exhales heavily, alcohol-sweet breath ghosting over Jaylen’s chest.

“Yeah man,” Jaylen murmurs. “You good.” 

So I think Jayson and Jaylen are very much dancing around what they both recognize are growing feelings but like... Jayson is over in Tokyo fucking around with Bam and Jaylen is sad boy summering it up in LA, soooo. Bam and Jayson have "frustrated about feelings for our dumb hopefully-soon-to-be-bfs" sex (Jimmy and Jaylen, respectively) bc they're hot for each other and friends and it's No Big Deal, truly. This is post my Jimmy/Bam fic so like, they're gonna figure it out. Eventually.

Anyway! Back at the ranch, Jaylen fucks Kyle exactly one (1) time unprotected because Kyle is sweet in the same dumb ways Jayson is and Jaylen’s just scratching an itch and feels kinda like an ass about it later which... does NOT help his overall summer vibe. But whatever, it was hot and they're both adults.

So then Team USA wins and Jayson and his medal take Jaylen straight out to celebrate and after, exhausted and full of good vibes and Big Dumb Jayson Smiles Jaylen is giving him shit about flirting with Bam the whole time and Jayson tells him they had sex. And he says it like it's not a big deal (because he's DRUNK and JET LAGGED and so gone on Jaylen he can't imagine how it could be a big deal or like, require context? Dope) and meanwhile Jaylen feels his heart crumble in his chest because he thought like, this was a thing. This was gonna be a thing and right he slept with Kyle SURE but they're not friends. Like Bam and JT. He wasn't grinning about it all over social media or whatever. But he can be a grownup, right, put his shit on the shelf.

And then Kyle calls. And to his credit he DOES tell Jaylen he may not be the father but like. He's in kind of a bad spot. And it is perhaps a character failing that Jaylen is all yeah, no, I'll be your baby daddy to the media don't sweat it. Because it's not exactly about being there for Kyle as much as it is kinda stabbing Jayson back (even though Jayson probably doesn't even CARE because he's got Bam and Deuce. Whatever.)

Jaylen really has not thought through what this fake relationship thing is going to entail and Jayson isn't in on it so he's like, giving Jaylen BOOKS and talking to him about being a DAD and Jaylen is just like oh fuck oh fuck I'm SO in love with him. And he's flying back and forth to DC to do daddy stuff with Kyle who doesn't actually suck as a person? Is really cool? They have some horny pregnancy sex about their respective fucked-up feelings? (but have actually talked at this point so Kyle knows Jaylen is losing his shit for Jayson and Jaylen knows it's probably LeBron's baby which. He thinks Kyle should at least tell him but that's SO not his business).

Anyway. Bron isn't fully stupid and can do math and shows up to talk to Kyle but he's kind of a dick (sorry babes this is how This Fic goes) and Jaylen is there and is like, yeah seriously you don't need this. And Kyle realizes he's got other people! And a support system! And his new team is being really great about everything actually? So he lets Jaylen off the hook with as much grace as can be managed but Jaylen still comes around and helps with everything because, you know, he went to all the classes and he's read all these books and been here, he's not fucking BAILING.

And back in Boston most of the guys are kinda giving him shit for playing baby-daddy (they don't know he knew the score the whole time) for another man's baby! LEBRON'S BABY!! But Jayson pulls him aside and is very serious and quiet when he tells him he's really proud of Jaylen and he can't imagine how hard this is and he's there if he wants to talk or can support him in any way he's such a good man. And Jaylen is all SUPPORT ME WITH YOUR COCK. Not really he says thanks and plays it off nbd whatever, it could've been his kid he had to do right by Kyle etc.