JOEL: -The present in question turns out to be a short home video video Joel made for Zuzu. About a minute and a half long. Set in the messy space of his room, he's just sitting cross legged on his hammock, fiddling with the guitar.- JOEL: -taps fingers on the base of the guitar, the words bouncing in single syllables.- We are. Runnin. So. Fast. And we. Never. Look. Back. JOEL: And whatever. I. Lack. You make up. -tap tap tap- JOEL: We make a really. Good. Team. -snorts a little.- Though. Not. Everyone. Sees. We got this. Crazy. Chemistry. JOEL: Between us. JOEL: -hums incoherently to himself. Da da. Da. Da. Da. So smooth.- ...Lets ride. JOEL: -and now the chords strum in sequence- You dont have to say I love you to say I love you. JOEL: Forget all the shootin stars and all the silver moons... JOEL: Weve been makin shades of purple out of red and blue. -cracks a grin just shaking his head. He's totally serious about this as the cresendo builds.- JOEL: Sickeningly sweet like honey dont need money. All I need is. JOEL: You. -the music drops and a low PSHHHH from Joel himself. Shuffling feedback and then the video ends.- ZUSERK: -EVENTUALLY, there is a tapping on Joel's vent cover. It's not especially subtle.- JOEL: -Spoons rattling sound effect. Just kidding. It's the vent covering?? Looks up from his plushy animal stitching and stows it away. He can maybe guess who it is.- JOEL: ... -peers into vent, bracing his fingers around the grate.- Hello? ZUSERK: nn. JOEL: -wiggles the covering off and sets it aside. Then brings himself back up to rest his elbows against the edges.- Well say there... handsome stranger. JOEL: Come here often. ZUSERK: -this certainly puts him in a... Position. He's still with indecision for several moments, unable to quite bring himself to find words to express why it is he came. Maybe because words have nothing to do with it. But it's just a little against the personal policy he's been trying to stick to, what he wants to do, and maybe even eventually decides he can apologize for it when he reaches one hand out to cup the side of Joel's face, his chin delicately, and he presses close enough that maybe Joel can feel the slightest brush of moist lashes on his cheek before their lips are touching.- JOEL: -All potential cheeky commentary dies. There's nothing Zoos could think to apologize for, at least Joel doesn't think so. He leans up to meet the kiss with barely disguised eagerness, his heart doing a fun little skipping number. Who the fuck cared about words.- JOEL: -but that only works so well until the smooches feel a little wet all of a sudden. That could either be really good or really bad. He keeps himself leaned as best he can while standing outside the vent.- ...You okay? ZUSERK: -he sucks in a soft, sharp breath when Joel pulls back, eyes blinking open that he hadn't entirely realized he had closed, but he has a hard time looking directly at Joel. he's feeling just a little overwhelmed.- ...nn. ZUSERK: yes. ZUSERK: ...wante. to give you somethin. ZUSERK: a-- appreciation. ZUSERK: was. ZUSERK: beautiful. JOEL: ...Beautiful huh. -Wow, that's just... Joel can't hide the smile, daring to reach up and swipe the purple smudges from his eyes.- JOEL: Thats a damn generous critique but Ill take it. -He's just trying to play it cool, okay. This was the second time he'd seen Zuserk cry and honestly, it's hard to know whether this was a good thing. Joel wanted to guess that it was.- JOEL: ...You wanna come inside? ZUSERK: -he would disagree, but he doesn't want to argue. He'll be keeping his opinion, anyway.- yes. ZUSERK: if an option. JOEL: You mean its not? -retracts himself, stepping aside to give Zuzu space to crawl in.- JOEL: Reckon I should think about puttin a welcome mat by this vent. -kicks some discarded clothes aside, plucking up a balled up sock with his toes and casually flinging it off.- JOEL: The point bein youre welcome to invade my room any time and always. ZUSERK: -he huffs an amused little breath as he wriggles and drops in- will... kee in min. ZUSERK: -he's quiet again, just slightly uncertain. He decides to reach out for one of Joel's hands and just take it. This is good enough for now.- JOEL: Count yourself special. It aint something Id do for just about anyone. -If he wants to take his hand, he totally can. Zuserk can expect to be lead towards his bed though.- JOEL: I was hopin Id see you today. ZUSERK: -it certainly made him feel special, so it's nice to note that sentiment is true. not that it would matter too terribly much in the end. he was glad to receive whatever Joel had to give.- ZUSERK: can always say so. ZUSERK: won interru more than... i interru myself now. -he hasn't managed to message that robot still. it's on his to-do list. right now, though, he's noting where they're going, gaze flicking between Joel and the platform. he only makes a few theories.- JOEL: You aint interruptin anythin. -pops a seat back onto his bed, pulling over the plushie cat he was sewing earlier. He quickly finishes up the button making one of its tiny eyes, threading the needle through.- Make yourself comfortable. ZUSERK: ! ZUSERK: -he sits down almost immediately, just staring with great interest at the plush project. HE GAZE.- JOEL: Check it. -he spies him watching and shows it off to him. The cat is black and its little bead eyes are purple.- Its you. ZUSERK: !!!! ZUSERK: me? ZUSERK: -reaches out to stroke a finger over one of the smooth little button eyes. his own eyes are wide. it's probably a good sign?- JOEL: Yeah look. Its gonna have like. -tilts it over so Zuzu can get a look at the limp, unstuffed body.- JOEL: Eight paws. ZUSERK: .... nnnnn. ZUSERK: is. ZUSERK: ... several paws. ZUSERK: more than usual. ZUSERK: -fuck. he just really likes this, and people's hobbies, and especially crafting hobbies, because they're the most fun to watch and to do. but now, apparently, he is part of it. again with this.- ZUSERK: have one. of you? JOEL: -snickers and looks towards the tentative pile of different plushies he has on his bed. He's gonna have to dig it out.- Uh yeah one sec. JOEL: -he crawls over and shifts through them until he finds the one he's looking for. A white fox with green button eyes and the floofiest tail. Tosses it at Zuserk.- Has my initial. Dove designed him. JOEL: -then just kind of. Sits there, crosslegged.- ZUSERK: -he scoops it up, and, shit. he really can't help smiling like this down at it, at the realization of something so nice and endearing and unique and significant to Joel. he also can't help petting it a few times, just because it feels nice.- ZUSERK: ... you mae these often. JOEL: Uh... yeah. -He's not fidgeting. You're fidgeting.- I tinker sometimes too but... JOEL: Dove and Sage like these better. ZUSERK: with... machines? JOEL: A lil. More old fashioned thermal electricity based machinery than anythin. -el shrug.- I can fix a mean toaster. ZUSERK: souns lie... coul use. attitue adjustmen. ZUSERK: - 8| - JOEL: -SQUINTS.- You sassin me catbug? ZUSERK: hnn. JOEL: That was a bad joke Zuzu. You made a bad joke. ZUSERK: was excellen. JOEL: I may forgive it. On account of your pretty face. -casually scoots closer.- ZUSERK: nn? ZUSERK: -is that. is that a thing.- ZUSERK: this is... acceptable reasonin? JOEL: -The question on his face is enough to roll with it. Yep.- Yeah its bein broadcasted all over the newsfeeds dude. JOEL: Zuserk Sanien is one hot piece. -strokes chin thoughtfully- Gotta watch out for that one. ZUSERK: definitely. exaggeratin. ZUSERK: however. ZUSERK: explain. ho piece. JOEL: I dont gotta explain it. Photographic evidence speaks for itself. -This conversation is happening. Eye contact and all.- JOEL: (Ho piece...) ZUSERK: ... ZUSERK: photograph. of me? ZUSERK: -damn it the SELFIES- JOEL: Uh. Yes? JOEL: My greatest treasure? ZUSERK: -of course he forgot the selfies...... the one kind of picture he takes that he doesn't file meticulously......- JOEL: -snorts into laughs as he witnesses the realization hit Zuzu.- Oh my god. ZUSERK: nnn. JOEL: Nnnoob. ZUSERK: nnnnnn. JOEL: -There's nothing but warm feelings and fond gazes at him though. Rests his temple against two fingers.- ZUSERK: -he's so embarrassed he forgot... and now Joel is just watching him. it's a strange feeling to realize suddenly that he's on the opposite end of his usual situation, and even more so with the way Joel is looking at him. he has to take a moment to reevaluate this situation again, eyes widening once more and combing over their surroundings, back over Joel again.- JOEL: -The glancing is adorable. Tell tale sign the guy was lost. Time to redirect his attention. Joel crawls until he's close enough to lean with Zoos, nuzzling gently against the other's shoulder.- ...Hey. JOEL: Wanna watch a movie? ZUSERK: ...can do this. -mostly, he wants to watch Joel, but that's complicated when Joel is watching him back, and he wants things to be right. whatever that means. he isn't sure, but Joel makes him want to find it. he also makes him want to find his hand again, to lean into him, too, his head resting gently against Joel's. he isn't so much thinking about the fact that watching a movie probably means setting it up and pulling away from each other. that doesn't seem to matter.- JOEL: -His first impulse is to twine their fingers together. Who was he to deny himself the chance?- Can. But will you. JOEL: For what its worth Im feelin a shad distracted. -pauses then, letting his thumb circle over Zuserk's fingers. Decisions like these always seemed to come in a fevered rush to Joel. Like they can't happen soon enough and the fact that it hasn't already leaves him with such jitters.- JOEL: ...I wanna tell people about us. -No that didn't seem to come out right. Dammit.- JOEL: I mean. I have but. JOEL: We should be on the same page with that. -glancing his way, cautious almost- ZUSERK: -somehow, it's the slight touches that seem more difficult to process, making his blood feel thick in his veins for trying to move that fast. it's new, and that's fascinating, and he's just as completely distracted. enough that what Joel says takes him an extra second to understand.- ZUSERK: ... do. wan this. ZUSERK: wante this. JOEL: -And without even asking him, Zuserk kept it under wraps. It's like he just knew to do it and... boy, was Joel feeling like an ass. He just exhales slowly, sighing out all the regret. All of it.- JOEL: I always... gotta fuck up before I get it right. -mutters, not directing it anywhere in particular.- JOEL: But I know I want it. Im just god awful at lettin myself have it. ZUSERK: -his brows knit, trying to follow this train of thought. fuck up? because he wanted to keep a secret?- ZUSERK: weren ready. ZUSERK: is differen. ZUSERK: no mistae... to wai. for yourself. ZUSERK: or for me to wai. with you. JOEL: -The words ring something painful deep inside. He hadn't been ready for a lot of things, it was so goddamn frustrating for him. Colt knew it and so did Zuserk. Where kindness for himself was missing, Colt and Zuserk were there instead. When the fuck did that happen? How did he earn that? Joel can't answer the question very well, he's too busy scrubbing the moisture from his eyes.- JOEL: ...Yeah. Youre right. -Fake it until you make it, Strider. Maybe one day you'll believe you deserve it. Doesn't mean he won't be miserable and shoulder-slumped about it in the meantime. Looks off dejectedly.- Youre a fucking gem. ZUSERK: -There was something about this he definitely didn't like. It didn't have anything to do with Joel showing emotion -- it couldn't -- but the struggle in it was clear enough. Somewhere along the line, he discarded the thought of analyzing this situation down and picking through options.- ZUSERK: -Instead, he was leaning closer again, following a line of impulse through and slipping a hand under Joel's chin, nuzzling his cheek, wrapping another arm around his waist and keeping his palm in a solid hold at Joel's hip as his lips familiarized themselves with the soft expanse of the side of this warm human's face.- JOEL: -The extra arm coming around him was one thing but then. Lips press and peck all along his cheek and jaw. It was openly affectionate, distracting from the spiral of his thoughts, but most of all. Ticklish. Joel stirs reflexively, suddenly blushing up a storm.- Nnnn... no?? -faint wheezing.- ZUSERK: -He stops at the word, a little spike of guilt in his chest; he pulls back some.- ZUSERK: a-- pologies. JOEL: -No, Zuserk. You misunderstand. He's wheeze LAUGHING. Or at least trying not to. Help him as he squirm.- Why??? ZUSERK: ???? ZUSERK: why? JOEL: Im uh...... -He's ticklish.- Fuck. -wheezes more. Hes a mess.- No Im not fuck. Im... JOEL: That was. JOEL: Ticklish. ZUSERK: ... ZUSERK: -LOADING.- JOEL: -N O.- ZUSERK: .... oh. ZUSERK: where. JOEL: Nowhere. -The denial is so much more difficult to execute in such a compromising position.- ZUSERK: ... -he's leaning closer again.- ZUSERK: -just brushing his nose against Joel's cheek.- is here? JOEL: -Honest to god, he shivers and at the same thought, he knows he's going to hell. It's the puff of his breath on his skin and the proximity of his voice. The arm still holding him tight around the hip. His face feels like a cherry chocolate lava lamp.- N... JOEL: -He wants to deny it so bad but. No. What was he learning here? Let him enjoy it, whatever it was. Joel huffs, gaze averted.- ...Yes. ZUSERK: -He swears he can feel that warmth rolling out in waves, ones that make him want to shiver, too, but he's too focused, too curious. He lets the answer hang in the air for a moment before testing a press of his lips to skin again, and this time, all his attention's rooted to the sensation of it, waiting for the slightest tensing of muscles and hitching of breath and resting another hand on Joel's thigh just to maximize what he can feel while his mouth takes a languid route over his jawline.- JOEL: -By this time, heartbeats are skipping erratically in Joel's chest, stalling his breath as kisses trail along his jaw. Soft and cruel, he might as well be sinking his teeth for how much Joel struggles not to duck his head. Everything is anguished. His knee shifts under the palm suddenly finding itself on his thigh. This... fluxuation of burning heat and delightful cold on his skin. It was overwhelming in the best way possible, he fails to understand how the hell words are forming somewhere out of his fast frying brain.- JOEL: ...Im thinkin I dont.... Wanna watch that movie anymore. ZUSERK: -He's so focused, he's hardly stopped to consider what it is that he's doing, where he's touching or where he intends to, so by the time he's just started to become curious about the soft skin at the side of Joel's throat and when he speaks, it's another few moments still to consider those words.- ZUSERK: -And when he does, he can't help it -- the little huff of silent laughter that makes his shoulders shake for several seconds longer than he intended.- ZUSERK: -Then, finally, another kiss.- agree. JOEL: -Don't LAUGH at him!!!!!! He wished he could have more to say about this brand of humiliation but the levels of fucks were rapidly deteriorating for Joel Strider. He stares off, face flushed and even a little sweaty but lets the troll have his giggle there mate.- JOEL: .............. Glad were in accord. . -Zuserk pecking his cheek is suddenly Joel curling fingers into the collar of his shirt, his mouth catching up Zuserk's in sweet, unforgiving revenge. No escape now, motherfucker.- ZUSERK: --nn! ZUSERK: -Oh. Well. This is definitely a thing currently happening, and he wasn't expecting it, but maybe he should have. With all that warmth and tense energy, he supposed it was bound to surge back at some point. He just wasn't certain that it was going to be here, specifically. But he doesn't make any move to fight it; rather, he's sliding closer, and so are his hands, partially of their own accord. Admittedly, he might be doing a little more enjoying than studying at this point, but he's lost track of which is which anymore. It's not hard when that spreading warmth he feels is all he can seem to think about.- JOEL: -Studying? Joel would admire Zuzu's attempt at justifying if he could. Too bad he's distracted wondering where the hands were going. Lips slide together but Jo finds himself grinning into the kiss. At least he knows where HIS hands are going-- up on Zuserk's chest as he attempts to push him onto his back.- JOEL: Kinda like not having distractions. -dark in the face sure, but the grin never wavers. If Zuserk lets him, Joel will be bearing down on him. Not quite on top of him but pretty damn close.- ZUSERK: -For only just a split second, he's tense, uncertain what's happening, but the struggle works its way out of his muscles just as fast, and it's soft under his back, now, too, even if it's not nearly as warm. The unfortunate thing is that his hold's gotten all jostled, though he's tempted not to try to reclaim it yet, to see what Joel intends to do first. At the very least, he knows what he is doing, or so the tingle in his spine and the tight, heavy feeling low in his belly tell him, his gaze having a difficult time moving away from that smile.- ZUSERK: nn... -It occurs to him suddenly that it might be a shame to get these nice clothes Rammie made him sticky. Not unrelated, he's also considering if there's some sort of good way to warn someone of your own impending and relatively mobile arousal.- JOEL: -Leave it to Zuserk to be way more attuned with his own bodily urges than Joel is. The guy isn't even thinking that far ahead, so distracted with a hand feeling along the other's shoulder. His touch is admiring, appreciative of the solid shape of muscle underneath. It was his own form of study, committing all of it to memory by touch alone. The hand moves along, stroking up his neck until his palm is settling to brush over Zu's cheek. Gentle as the look on his face.- ...You doin alright there boss? -murmurs, his voice being the only thing that slices through these intimately quiet moments.- ZUSERK: -He's making some attempt to keep his breath steady as Joel's touch moves, soft and just as curious as his own had been, but as much as he's noting that, it's more difficult not to focus on the way it makes him feel. "Alright" is a word, and he's not sure exactly how fitting it is. He hums another noise, clears his throat.- ZUSERK: f-- feelin. -He's... not sure where to go from there. He's feeling... something. A lot of things, actually. Too many to summarize. Maybe he will just pick the most immediately relevant one, for now.- ZUSERK: ... goo. -Okay, maybe he could have picked a better word than that.- JOEL: ... JOEL: Youre feelin swell. Swells a word that people use too. ZUSERK: ... nnnn. ZUSERK: may be. more accurae. JOEL: ........ -processing this a little bit. Was that. An innuendo???- ZUSERK: -it was one hundred percent an innuendo, except just. honesty. just straight up fucking honesty. help him. he's watching Joel with slightly raised brows. maybe he gets it??- JOEL: -Oh. Joel's face heats up all over again. It's like watching Zuserk read his thoughts. Real interesting.- ...Alright. JOEL: ........ JOEL: -keeps running hand along his shoulder, circling his palm along his collarbone now. He's keeping a close eye on his reaction, kind of wondering how far this was going... in the direction that it was going.- ZUSERK: -His breaths are uneven, coming out in occasional little sighs and his own face warm enough to be a little purple-tinged. He's wondering what Joel's thinking, whether or not to act or wait again, but maybe... he's overthinking it. Why can't he just ask? In any other situation, it makes just as much sense. This one just happens to feel a little more delicate.- ZUSERK: ... this. ZUSERK: -He glances down for just a second.- is okay? with you? JOEL: -swallows hard, feeling a little sweaty all over.- Just... curious I guess. -he almost felt like he should be ashamed but. Watching the purple spread on his face only furthered that curiosity.- JOEL: Never done this kind of thing with anybody before. JOEL: ... -a thought suddenly occurs to him- JOEL: Have you? ZUSERK: ... no. ZUSERK: no with. anyone else. ZUSERK: -His gaze moves around again, over the various shapes he can see of Joel's body from this close, and he supposes he can feel more. That's probably largely what... even more would be like. But he can only really wonder. For now.- ZUSERK: ... wan. more? JOEL: -The question hangs in the air for a moment, the meaning of it really settling with him. The opportunity was here and it was very real. Zuserk was real. And so was the decision-- there'd be no turning back from here. Maybe it was all enough to compel Joel to just say fuck it. Go for it. How long had he denied himself these thoughts, impulses, this whole side of himself that Joel never let himself have? It was like he could forget all that grief and be with this one troll. This one guy.- JOEL: -fingers curl into Zuserk's shirt. His puff of breath is short, brief as the final decision he comes to.- ...Yeah. I do. ZUSERK: -That short time waiting still seems to stretch out, and he hadn't realized he was hoping for it so much until the relief came when Joel answered, when the smile spread across his face without warning. It's a raw, giddy feeling in chest for more reasons than he can figure out right now, but he's not interested in picking it apart just yet. That it's there is enough.- ZUSERK: -So it doesn't take him much longer to reclaim that hold like he's wanted to, each hand finding its place on a different part of Joel -- the small of his back, the slight curve at his waist, the back of his neck (and the soft, fluffy hair that tickles at his knuckles). Last is the side of his face, maybe just to feel that warmth in his skin again when he leans up to meet their lips, when all the nice holds he's claimed help him pull and press Joel closer, and this close, there's really no hiding how his body reacts at this point, but he can't bring himself to feel concerned about that.- JOEL: -He's trapped by the press of Zuserk's body with his own, multiple hands coaxing them closer together. Arms seal their proximity tight, just the two of them, locked in place by the gentlest smile on Zu's face and the brush of his lips right after. All over again, Joel feels like his heart might skid right out of his chest. He can't breathe or be bothered to think clearly. He can only feel the spread of heat throughout his limbs and skin, eminating in such waves it's no wonder he was feeling clammy earlier. All these jittery, spiking hormones.- JOEL: -Before he knows it, Joel is following Zoos downwards, torsos lining up and legs shifting together. Fingers journey into shoulder blades, he can't tell which set. He only knows the messy mesh of lips, shortened breath, and tentative slide of his tongue just against the entrance of Zuserk's mouth. Not practiced at all but needy anyway. It was all about this heat, adventurous touches, and the curious press of weight on one another. At least from Joel.- ZUSERK: -He would agree, if communicating with more than touches were a thing they were doing. It seemed they had silently agreed, anyway, a soft, half surprised hum rising in his throat at the wet brush of Joel's tongue, a recalled understanding of this helping him to open his mouth just in time to meet it before he might pull away, a strange new feeling skittering up his spine at the unfamiliar sensation.- ZUSERK: -He hadn't quite realized he had tensed up in concentration on their mouths for a good many seconds, but when he did, he made some attempt to amend it, that hand lowest on Joel's back nudging exploratively under the hem of his shirt, appreciative fingertips smoothing over starkly warm skin, over the dip of his spine, all new and fascinating terrain.- JOEL: -It's all uncharted territory, the shivers of sensitivity curling into his core as fingers stroked up his back. It didn't seem fair, how freely Joel could be touched but couldn't return the favor. He blamed the sweater.- JOEL: -Breath hitched and puffed, his sloppy kisses trail from lips down the line of Zuserk's jaw, nestling somewhere against his neck. Blunt teeth nibbled harmlessly at the accessible gray skin, drawn in by the salty savor of him. A good distraction. Worst yet was the shift of his hips over the other's, a reflexive response to the centerpiece of tension winding deep in his belly. Which turns out to be a mistake.- JOEL: ...Uh. -His own fingers tense at Zuserk's sides, very awkwardly and suddenly aware of the stiffness pressing between them. If he shifts one more time, he could confirm. The boner was him.- JOEL: ............. -Motherfuck.- ZUSERK: -As Joel began to travel where he could, too, putting him on the receiving end of this particular series of sensations, Zuserk was piecing together pretty quickly how much he liked it. Especially that press of teeth and hot, moist breath on his skin, somewhere between hard and soft and mostly playful, that made his own muscles tense reflexively.- ZUSERK: -But he was aware of what made Joel pause probably before Joel was; he could feel it in his pulse that made every point of contact between them all the more intense, and he was all too aware of how he was trying to keep his own... parts somewhat in check, from trying to interruptively squirm. It was that much harder when Joel stirred, though, his jaw clenching and a definite twitch happening.- ZUSERK: -He couldn't quite account for what Joel was thinking, or feeling, but what he understood so far had been positive, and that was how he felt. So that was what showed when he searched for Joel's gaze again, half lidded eyes and a smile with maybe even a sliver of teeth involved. Pressing his hand a little firmer on the small of Joel's back and shifting his own hips, though, that didn't involve any kind of thought.- JOEL: Holy sh... -makes a shaky attempt at speaking, inherently embarrassed at his own hard-on but then... is left hanging for words by the trickle of pleasure strummed up by the press of Zuserk's hand. He's all short breathing and bunched up shoulders, transfixed by the softer look on the other troll's face. An honest to god smile that Joel wanted to keep in his head forever.- JOEL: You... feel so fucking--... JOEL: -Good is what he wants to say but he can't seem to form it very well. Joel shudders a sigh instead and drops his gaze, too caught by the converge of their waists together. Heat knots at his center, ready to pool in his abdomen at the first sign of friction.- JOEL: ...Swear this doesnt happen often. -mutters, hoping the joke will make this easier to comprehend. Looking down at Zuserk, Joel was just plain jane really fucking turned on right now. Dimly, he becomes aware of the faint movement of troll junk down south. Twitching and hallelujah. Internet porn was real and Joel's insides, his resolve for composure, was melting. He moves himself in a grind against the troll, pointedly watching for his expression.- ZUSERK: -His eyes widened somewhat at the reaction Joel gave him, warmth that was much more than arousal and the close tangle spreading through this veins at the sight of him so vulnerable, overwhelmed in the best kind of way; a precious thing. He was deciding already that he wanted more of that, as much as he could and just as immediately. The succession of broken sentences, the fumbling attempt at nonchalance, only made him smile that much wider. Everything about Joel was so incredibly, wonderfully endearing, and here it seemed so achingly obvious.- ZUSERK: -But an electric spread of pleasure crawling, washing over his nerves was sufficiently distracting as Joel moved back, and his own little stuttering huff of an exhale from parted lips, the tightening grip of his fingertips, were testament enough to the fact that yes, this was, in fact, much better with another person involved.- ZUSERK: nnn... -He wet his lips, trying to catch the breath that felt like it was knocked out of him, eyes opening again that he hadn't intended to close as he scrambled for thoughts that made sense together. He glanced down, up at Joel, back and back again.- ZUSERK: -The hand on Joel's back drifts even lower. Then, gingerly, the hand at Joel's waist slides a little more between them, gentle over the hard curve of his hip bone.- JOEL: -does nothing to stop the venturing of Zuserk's hands, gentle as his touch was. It was hard to keep track of them, they were all so equally careful and attentive. Joel was sure he scored some kind of sexy catch jackpot sealing the deal here with him. Teeth dig into his lower lip while fingers curl in anticipation, wrinkling Zoos's shirt up in a way Rammie was sure not going to appreciate. He watches the tongue skirt out, impulse making him want to catch it up in a kiss. But Joel keeps steady his course, leaning to press feather light lips against Zuserk's neck again.- ...Keep goin. -murmurs. And kisses the spot again, just as quiet as his voice.- ZUSERK: -Giddiness beats like hummingbird wings in his chest at the soft, murmured encouragement, the lips on his neck enough to make him want to shiver, but he's focused. He has a task he's more than eager to follow through, joining Joel in all these new things and simultaneously fulfilling this curiosity, this need they both shared for more. Bodies were incredible things, capable of feeling and sharing so much, and Joel's told him he was wanted here, as much as he wanted to be here.- ZUSERK: -That makes it easy to brush his fingertips over the swell in Joel's jeans, several slow motions of it that are just a little firmer each time before he pauses. Then, he's securing his hold again, because it occurs to him it would be easier for him to do everything he wants to do if he's the one pressing Joel into the mattress, instead, so that's the direction he's trying to roll them in, fingers trying to catch Joel's pants fastener and frankly make it stop doing that fastening thing.- JOEL: Haha-- Holy shit. -laughs breathily, sputtering under Zuserk's hold. It was like the giddy butterflies were contagious-- exciting and daunting, simultaneously the best and worst feelings imaginable. Several palms are making quick work of him, stiffling his attempts at squirming.- JOEL: -then suddenly, the weight underneath him shifts and Joel's back is crushing into the bed. Holy shit. He has to marvel in frank adoration at the focused look on Zuserk's face. That was the look of a man on a mission.- JOEL: You sure you... never done this before?? -voice hitching at the slight tug at his jeans. Never had he regretted wearing a belt so hard before. Fingers come to shakily pluck at the buckle in an attempt to help Zoos along. Cue the awkward hip shuffling.- Sorry. Hhh. God. ZUSERK: sure. -He manages to be still long enough to let Joel start to interfere with the process, but he's a little more impatient by the time the belt is pushed up far enough for one tug to free the pin, and that's exactly what he's doing, sliding the buckle off the belt's opposite end with a satisfying little fwip. - ZUSERK: no nee. for apologies. -He's smiling, and then he's finally futzing with the button of Joel's jeans.- still... fine? JOEL: Yeah yeah. Im. JOEL: Over the fucking moon over here. -at some point, his hand had come up to rub at his face, almost bashful but mostly to give himself a reason to do SOMETHING. It was all the futzing, driving him batshit with anticipation. His swear is muffled.- (Fuuuuuck.) ZUSERK: -Well, that sounded sincere, if not flustered. That fact just makes him smile more, something so rewarding about it. About all these things he could see Joel feeling, that he felt about what he was seeing. But he's still at work, here, and there's a gentle tug, the unmistakable sound of the zipper. His breath catches in a kind of focus like he's the one about to be touched when his fingers slip over Joel's skin, below his undone waistline of his jeans.- ZUSERK: -And he has very little doubt that what his fingertips brush over -- stiff, smooth, and warm like burning -- is exactly what's making Joel squirm the way he has been, and his heart pounds quicker in his throat. He manages to curl his fingers around it; it's not like a slick, squirming bulge, all sort of rigid and attentive, but the moment Joel might slip and let his muscles jump even once, to let it twitch in his hand, Zuserk will be grinning. If he isn't already. It's difficult not to right now.- JOEL: Jesus... f uck... -The touch of a hand pushes past his loosened fly, securing on the aching shape of his dick.He knew full well that it's what he wanted, but Joel was quickly realizing he was no where near prepared for how scrambled his brain would get. Lost for words or breath, or anything besides the interesting sound bubbling up from his throat. He's definitely never heard THAT come out of himself before.- JOEL: -Combine it with watching the grin of satisfaction spread on Zuserk's face as the troll loomed over him, it was all just... way too hot and bothersome for Joel. No turning back at this point. He props himself up on his elbows, hair disheveled and the heat high on his face.- ...Think you better get to kissin me again. -puffs.- ZUSERK: -And that sound almost makes it very difficult to concentrate, a little muffled grunt in his own throat as his bulge twists in its confines in unintentional reply. Yeah, he's feeling that heat, too, and there are way too many things to keep track of here for his overheating brain to juggle. Which, oh, includes the thing Joel is reminding him of currently.- ZUSERK: oh, -he says for some reason, but he stops worrying about what he said or why he said it and instead closes the distance between their mouths while his hand moves slow, mapping out an understanding of what he's feeling -- things like that curious, sticky dampness a few of his fingertips have found.- JOEL: Figured youd be up for multitasking. -murmurs, taking up his mouth with a new kind of hunger. What was slow exploration for Zuserk was pleasured, racy stimulus for Joel, coaxing him further up from the mattress and more into his crouched lap. A position of compromised satisfaction, especially with careful fingers still dipping and feeling along.- JOEL: -Knees hug the other's sides very loosely as Joel focuses more on this passionate kiss-making-- the slide of their lips together, the taste of his breath, and the wet probing of his tongue. Moments stretch and Joel finally exhales, a hand moving to follow Zuserks in touching him.- JOEL: ...Yeah its just-- just like that. -shudders, showing him the gesture with a slight squeeze of his hand over the other's, swirling their thumbs together.- ZUSERK: -Well, he had thought he was, too, but then he hadn't exactly prepared for Joel to be quite this endearing -- disarming -- along with many, many other things he was still trying to work out amidst labored breathing and gliding tongues and increasingly moist skin. But he managed to reel it back together when Joel took the opportunity guide him, instruct him, and he made it a point to pay close attention.- ZUSERK: - This was definitely more than enough incentive, chills over his skin every time Joel quivered like that, and the moment he pieced together how easy it would be to slide Joel's jeans off his hips, raised up off the mattress like that, was the moment a couple of his hands reached to do just that. It was only just unfortunate that he had to move back a little to tug them off, but there was no way he was staying far for long with the newly seared image of Joel bared from the waist down in his skull. Time to kindly replace Joel's thighs at either side of him.- ZUSERK: better, -he declared with a kiss, reaffirming his hold with a gentle squeeze, reaffirming what he had learned as his thumb massaged itself through another slow-trickling bead of pre. Well, he certainly thought so.- JOEL: -Curses tumble out of him, heart jumping as the pants are maneuvered clean off of him. Fuck fuck fuck. He has to brace himself on palms as he's pushed back, knees crooked. Heat burns into his skin as the cool air hits his bare legs and ass, starting from his face pooling deep down south. Holy SHIT. The manhandling motherfucker, working Joel up without so much of a shred of modesty.- JOEL: -His pants are discarded somewhere, he has no fucking idea where and there Joel sits on Zuserk's lap, naked and flushed with arousal from the waist down. Almost enough to piss him off, if he wasn't so goddamn caught up in the desperate heat surging up between them, tangy and hot as the taste of Zuserk's kiss. The troll's mutters are stiffled with a kiss, eclipsed by a needy sound from Joel himself. - JOEL: Zoos Zoos... f-fuck. -To hell with trying to keep himself balanced. Arms are looping around the other's neck as if trying to claw him closer, face dipping down to nestle into the space of his neck. - JOEL: Shits... not fair. -puffs into his ear, muscles tensing all over as a gray thumb runs generous, wet circles over the tip of his cock.- Youre gettin to touch me and I... cant. -Even as he talks, a feverish hands push and tug at Zuserk's stupid sweater.- I wanna feel you. ZUSERK: -He's making brief, passing notes of every new curse that bubbles up out of Joel's mouth like he's the Fountain of Profanity, only really quieted when Zuserk makes it a point to use his own mouth to do so, and it's difficult not to keep smiling in the face of what is likely his favorite person very quickly unraveling.- ZUSERK: -But that new assertion was one he hadn't entirely thought about. Well, certainly, he hadn't forgotten his own arousal, but that seemed secondary in the scheme of this whole thing to him. Joel could have kept quiet about it, and very likely, he would have put the whole of his attention on making Joel come as many times as he could.- ZUSERK: -Well, okay, that really hasn't stopped being the plan. But he supposes he needs to make an amendment here.- ZUSERK: can. if you wan. -So he says. He probably isn't making it incredibly easy, though, his own head turning to nip at the edge of Joel's ear and his hand only sort of slowing a little before he leans back enough to blink at Joel. Can he help you?- JOEL: -He would not be about this if it were that easy. Zuserk might make it sound like a challenge but there's no way in hell he was entirely in control here. And even if he was, why did any of it mean Joel would let him get away with it?- JOEL: -grins at the teeth prickling his earlobe, hand coming to cover the one still touching him.- If I want huh? JOEL: Real interestin... prospect. Particularly when you still got your pants on. -and with that, he guides Zuserk's hand off of him and scoots himself off his lap. No mercy, only the smirk on his face and the air of expectation as he lowers himself to chill against the mattress, exhaling as he relaxes. It's all for show, honestly.- JOEL: Might wanna do somethin about that. ZUSERK: -He can feel the disappointment in his chest when Joel guides his hand away, when he feels all that warmth receding, but he can tell by the look on Joel's face that it wasn't an error. It's... Oh.- ZUSERK: -Well. He knows that tense, spotlit feeling was exactly what Joel was intending, but he sits back on his knees and stares at Joel for a few moments more as the situation settles in. Then, he almost idly lifts the one hand he was using in particular and sucking the moisture from his thumb (though there's nothing idle about the sharp taste in his mouth that he's memorizing) before his hands grab at the hem of his own sweater, tug up, slipping it away and discarding it.- ZUSERK: -That's easy. But it's on his pants that he pauses, regarding the (poorly) contained shifting in there before looking up at Joel again.- ZUSERK: sure? ZUSERK: migh be... a mess. JOEL: -No disappointment here. His brain was still stalling by the image of Zoos licking up his thumb, looking like he was hardly thinking about it and leaving Joel to blush all over again. It wasn't fucking FAIR, he wheezes internally. Especially as an eyeful of Zuserk's bared torso enters his line of sight. Hot fucking damn were those muscles.- JOEL: -On one hand, he could admire the unique structure of his anatomy... on the other, Joel was privately lamenting the turn of the tide. Jokes on him. He wasn't in control here. He was at the mercy of a four-armed troll about to drop his pants for him. Did he dare let him know that???? Joel pulls himself to sit, skin damp with sweat and boner aching at the lack of contact from before. There are regrets to be had.- JOEL: ...I know what Im about son. Talkin about a mess. -mutters as he yanks his own shirt off his back and tosses it, now sitting in the full nude. If Zuserk could be shameless then by jove, so could Joel. He stares at him before shifting on his knees, motioning with a soft tone of voice.- Cmere. ZUSERK: -He's just watching Joel's expression almost like he can see the myriad of thoughts shifting under the surface with every little change, and his own brows raise when Joel shifts again, another smile twitching at the corners of his mouth when he speaks, when he all but throws his own shirt off like they're in a competition he's not about to lose, and even that by itself is too painfully charming, much less thrown in with the new sights he's been gifted.- ZUSERK: -So, then, of course, Joel has to beckon him over like that -- like twisting a hot knife in his gut, bare on his knees with his soft voice and his cloudy gaze and his throbbing alien anatomy, and, frankly, that's not fair. His sigh is almost tense enough to be a huff as he shifts closer, unable to do anything else but listen, a single hand resting on one of Joel's shoulders (a nice, firm shape) and, despite compelling reasons to look down, his own gaze having a hard time leaving the intensity he hadn't realized was so captivating in the color green.- JOEL: -Heart thuds. The only time his gaze balks from Zuserk's is when he raises himself to kneel, pressing a kiss to his chest. Gentle as he breathes the scent of him in. The stretch of pectorals really deserved closer examination, if only his hands weren't busy. They settle at Zuserk's sides, feeling his waist with almost lazy movements as fingertips brush along the muscles of his back. A steady kind of strength, just like the rest of him.- JOEL: -Then eyes flick back up to Zoos, grin spreading on Joel's face. Sly like he was only just remembering the task at hand. The slow, grazing of his fingers suddenly touch along his navel, tugging the buttons of his pants loose. It's all to make it easier when palms start to work the article right off his hips. Revenge, motherfucker.- ZUSERK: -His breath catches the closer Joel gets, close enough for him to feel the soft, supple press of his lips (ones he's already starting to get used to, to understand more and more), and the warmth that spills over him feels more like Joel's absolutely radiating goodness from every bit of him, the hot touch of it on Zuserk's waist enough to make him want to shiver again. And then he does, because that slide of Joel's touch low on his belly is almost sort of ticklish and too interesting, jaw clenching at Joel's smile as the tug of his pants loosening and pulling open presses tight against sensitive parts of him, and then...- ZUSERK: -Well. He didn't quite have time to plan for this, his tensing muscles the only preparation he manages, because his wet, slithery, purple cock is just sort of doing what it does and lurching right the fuck out for a greeting, curling over itself and reaching for one of Joel's nearby wrists.- ZUSERK: --nn. JOEL: -So kneeling there as he is, Joel is also only somewhat prepared to deal with troll junk. He's seen enough porn to at least have an IDEA of what to expect Cmon.  But his lack of experience is starting to catch up with his nerve. It's something Joel figures out as soon as the tentadick dips forward and wraps in a slick coil around his wrist. The friendliest probiscus imaginable. Fucking incredible. He doesn't dare to move or even glide fingers along the shape like his impulse tells him. Joel's goddamn perfectionism screams to DO IT THE RIGHT WAY (Whatever the fuck that meant??) and yet... The sound from Zuserk himself draws Joel's eyes back to stare at him. Adoration is slowly dawning on his face.- ...Holy shit. JOEL: -pauses for the briefest moment- JOEL: I think you needa get back down here Zoos. ZUSERK: -This is a nice little hold he's got here, firm and tense and at least keeping the thing from throwing itself around, and he liked to imagine he could almost feel the pulse in Joel's wrist if he weren't drowning in the feeling of his own. Presently, he would love to get these pants the rest of the way off, though this little binding he's apparently just given himself threatens to make that difficult. He grunts again, one of his own hands starting to reach carefully to maybe pry his bulge free from the Loving Grip.- ZUSERK: down... -He's raking his gaze over Joel, trying to process this.- you? JOEL: With me. Jesus. -he can't help but SNICKER, fingers twining up with the hand trying to guide the bulge away instead. All grinning gap tooths.- JOEL: But I mean take your time or whatever. -murmurs, leaning to peck kisses at his chest and belly. Nevermind how all of this makes things difficult for Zoos. Joel was a pampered prince with an attitude spoiled for Zuserk's attention.- Im in no hurry. -nibbles, very unhelpful- ZUSERK: -Okay, so, that wasn't happening. Zuserk was distinctly feeling some mixed messages here, and he found himself unsurprised by that, coming from Joel. He kind of liked to fuck around. ...Euphemisms aside, or maybe not, considering. Here, though, that behavior was just a little more risky, or so his body was telling him as Joel grinned, took his time and carefully doled out more gentle affection, increasingly closer to his tense, aching bulge.- ZUSERK: nnn... -The sound is edging a little bit closer to a whine than it had previously, and it might have something to do with how said bulge is loosening its grip and sort of trembling, slowly sliding free of Joel's wrist.- JOEL: -continues to nuzzle at his belly, noticing with some discretion the release of the slippery dick from around his wrist. Not to mention the interesting shade of purple fluid staining the skin there. It's pretty distracting, making Joel's curiosity venture.. places... But there would be time for figuring that out further. In the meantime, Joel focuses on coaxing the pants further down Zuserk's knees and maybe even encourage the guy to get rid of them completely.- JOEL: ...Cmon Zoos. I got you. -leans himself back onto the bed only to tug at his hands, keeping both his touch and his voice gentle. He has decided to be kind to the other and cut down the teasing.... for now. It all had to do with the faint whine. Talk about melting his fucking heart, god damn.- How you feeling? ZUSERK: -A great deal of his focus in the midst of this ends up centering around keeping his bulge in a position that's at least vaguely reminiscent of stationary, resisting reaching out for the boy that's much too close to him and instead settling in a curl along his own hip. It's more difficult with the added fact that Joel's current business involves touching him, and his exhale is almost relieved when Joel starts leaning back. He is making such an effort not to push any boundaries here, if they are even still in play. He's not sure, so he's trying to be safe.- ZUSERK: -He's being tugged along anyway, though, and at the question, he very carefully tries to kick his pants the rest of the way off before answering, a pair of hands that aren't holding Joel's bracing himself against the bed and at a reasonably respectable distance that he really wants to breach.- ZUSERK: incredibly. ZUSERK: arouse. JOEL: Sounds like trouble. -abandons the hand holds in favor of taking up his face, closing up the space between them with a kiss. The barest prickle of bare skin together was reminding him how very warm he was all over. Hard and desperate for contact.- JOEL: -breath levels out as he presses his forehead to him, all but straining to close this infernal space further.- ...I gotta ask. JOEL: How far you wanna go with me. Right now. -fingers card into his hair as he nuzzles him, barely able to disguise that conflict between desire and restraint. If Zoos could do it, so could he.- ZUSERK: -It was certainly trouble for someone, and right now, it felt more like him. Especially with Joel pulling him closer to kiss, that warmth all that much closer, his mouth soft and pleasant and full of promise. Joel may have had to ask, but there was no question in Zuserk's mind.- ZUSERK: presently. no limis. -The words came out even quieter than usual, the way he felt they should this close and this intense, with the way he wants to melt into the touch of the fingertips in his hair that send pleasant chills rolling down his spine. He has his own set of hands missing contact, and one's finding the side of Joel's face, too, the other slipping underneath him in a way that he thinks is perhaps comforting, but maybe ends up a little more anticipatory, ready to pull him closer at any indication.- JOEL: -the indication comes in the slight tilt of Joel's hip under the hand tucking under him, the draw of his own palms over Zuserk's shoulders. Just to touch him, tease at their proximity. His confirmation seemed to still the heat in his head and suddenly, Joel can only fixate in the minute details-- the faint tint of purple on monochrome skin under his fingers, the scent of him, the flash of amber in dark, focused eyes. Joel was lost in all of that and... they were hardly even touching.- JOEL: ...Im cold. -is the only thing he says, voice pleading and soft against his neck.- ZUSERK: -He's relatively still as Joel shifts, attuned to every movement, every breath, and he can't help but to be. It's everything he cares about in these moments, despite what he feels. And he's very aware that Joel is looking at him, too, for several seconds that feel much longer than that.- ZUSERK: -But the phrase gets through well enough, even if it isn't quite so direct. He understands Joel's body language and the neediness in his breath, and he understands that he wants nothing more than to make it better (or worse), so his hesitation sheds in a single movement, and he's learning so much more about Joel's warm, smooth skin as the contours of their bodies kiss, as his bulge dips and slides over a very human stomach and his hip before it curls helplessly around Joel's erection, a softly moaned sigh pressed into his cheek the only audible reply Zuserk has to give.-