Bringing It Home to You
Author: http://littlebluequills.tumblr.com
Recipient: http://madmana.tumblr.com
Summary: Ballet dancer Gavin is stuck in a rut and it takes the smooth moves of charming hip-hop dancer Ryan to get him out. (AU where everyone dances)
Warnings: N/A
WordCount: 10187
Bringing It Home To You
Dan was about ready to strangle Gavin.
“For the third time today, you’re doing it wrong!”
Gavin hissed in frustration at Dan. “I know, I know!” He spun around and threw his hands up, glaring at the other brit. “Trust me, I know!” He grounded out. Dan just shook his head, and offered Gavin a bottle of water, who huffed but took it gratefully.
“Maybe it’s my shoes,” Gavin said, taking a swig out of the water bottle. He pointed his feet, arching his foot to show his choreographer his ballet shoes. Dan shook his head, taking a seat on the little bench that was next to the door of the studio.
“Your shoes are fine. It’s your attitude that’s the problem,” Gavin bristled at the comment, and Dan was quick to correct himself. “That’s not what I meant, B. I mean your way of looking at it. You’re too high strung about it and you’re just looking into the mechanics of things. You’re not feeling it.” Dan sighed when Gavin gave him a puzzled expression; the ballet dancer’s eyebrows were knit together in both frustration and confusion. Dan pointed at his own head. “I mean you’re thinking about it too much.” He explained, “You’re not letting yourself feel the dance out and that’s preventing you from going anywhere with it.”
Gavin rolled his eyes and shook his head, “You’re wrong,” He capped the water bottle and tossed it to the side gently. It bounced off the ground and rolled until it hit the wall. Gavin stretched his arms before turning around to face the mirror again.
Dan was silent for a moment before he tried again, “B,” he started. Gavin whirled around.
“Don’t ‘B’ me! I don’t think you understand- I don’t have time to feel it out. I’m doing just fine right now, okay? The competition is in six weeks, B. Six weeks. Joel Heyman is going to be there.” Gavin hands were balled up in fists at his side and his teeth were clenched. “I have to be ready.” Dan tried not to scowl.
“Whoa, there’s no need to yell at me, okay? I’m just trying to help- don’t forget, that’s my choreography that you’ve been mucking up for the last, what, two weeks already? You’re not getting anywhere!” He shot back, instantly regretting his last few words.
Gavin just stared at him disbelievingly. He unclenched his fists, letting his hands rest freely at his side.
“You think I don’t know that already?” Gavin’s voice was softer this time, though there was still an edge to it. Dan stood up.
“B-“
“Dan, please, I don’t have time to argue. I really need to practice now. God knows I need it,” Gavin turned back around to face the mirror. Biting his lip, he watched his best friend and choreographer sigh and shake his head disapprovingly before leaving the studio. Gavin didn’t even know he was holding his breath until he finally exhaled. He stood there, looking at himself in the mirror for a few more minutes before finally bringing his hands up into position and starting the dance again from the top.
--
After Dan had left, Gavin practiced for another solid hour before there was a knock at the door. Gavin stopped mid-pirouette just as Michael peeked in. The redhead was grinning and he had his tap shoes hoisted over one shoulder. “Hey, Lindsay and I are going to go grab a bite to eat. Wanna come?” Gavin thought about declining the offer to practice some more, but after glancing down at his sore feet and giving them a wiggle, he sighed and nodded. Bouncing on one foot to slip his ballet shoes off, he grinned.
“I thought Lindsay had a show today?” Michael smirked and shook his head.
“Nope, that’s tomorrow, you idiot. She had a brush-up rehearsal today though.”
Sliding over to the door where Michael was standing, Gavin grabbed his bag from the bench. “Ah, and how did that go?”
Michael chuckled. “I’m not sure, but she seemed ready to kill a few of the back-up dancers.”
Gavin giggled and pretended to shudder.“Man, your girlfriend is scary sometimes.”
“Yeah… yeah she is.” Michael hummed in response. Gavin looked over at the tap dancer, who had a fond smile on his face. He smirked.
“Never would’ve thought you’d fall for a cha-cha dance- ow!” Gavin whined as he rubbed his forehead. “You smacked me!” Michael gave a triumphant laugh and elbowed Gavin in the ribs.
“You deserved it, you fucking idiot.”
--
“So…” Lindsay took a bite out of her sandwich. “How’s it going?” Gavin tired to play innocent.
“How’s what?” He blinked, swirling his drink absentmindedly with his straw. Dan sighed. Gavin glared at the brit. “For the last time, why are you here again?” Dan smirked, amused by Gavin’s exasperation.
“Why, my dear B, I am your choreographer! It’s only fair I eat with you guys too!”
Michael tried to stifle his laughter but failed. Lindsay was the same, letting out a very unlady-like snort. Not that she cared anyways. Gavin groaned.
“Bloody hell, leave the topic alone will you?” Michael shrugged and leaned his chair back. “It’s kind of hard not to, Gav.” Gavin sighed.
“You guys didn’t say Dan was going to be eating with us,” He whined, picking at his half-eaten sandwich. He hid his grin when Dan made an indignant noise of protest.
“Hey! I’m sitting right here, I can hear you, you bloody prick.”
Gavin rolled his eyes and took a bite out of a tomato he had picked out of his sandwich. Michael scrunched his nose at Gavin. “Gross. Eat your food like a normal human being.” Gavin just shrugged and Lindsay let out another snort.
“Out of all things, you find that gross?”
Michael’s lips quirked upwards. “What can I say? I’m not a barbarian like some people.” He looked pointedly at Gavin, who squawked.
“What?! I am not a barbarian! I am a respectable and talented ballet dancer!”
“Oh, get off your high horse,” Dan groaned. The look on Gavin’s face at Dan’s outburst had Michael and Lindsay nearly falling off their chairs laughing. Gavin could only huff in annoyance, even though he would not admit that he was slightly amused too.
Just as Michael and Lindsay were able to get a hold of themselves again, though now and then bursting into more fits of laughter, Dan perked up, remembering something. “Oh! That’s right. I have something for you, B.” Gavin lit up.
“Is it a present?” Gavin looked hopeful. Dan rummaged through his bag before coming up with a flyer and handing it to Gavin.
“Kind of. Take a look.” Gavin took the flyer from Dan and scanned through it rather quickly. When he was done, he scrunched up his nose and gave Dan a look. “This is a flyer for hip-hop classes.” Dan nodded mutely and Gavin paused. “You… you know how I feel about hip-hop.” He said, more as a statement then a question. Dan nodded again. “B, tell me what’s up.” Gavin said impatiently. Dan bit his lip.
“I signed you up for classes.”
Gavin blinked dumbly at Dan for a few moments.
“What did you just say?” His voice was dangerously stiff.
Dan coughed.“I said I signed you up for classes.”
Gavin huffed disbelievingly and Dan rolled his eyes at him.“Look B, you’re obviously having trouble right now and-“
“And what? You think a few stupid hip-hop classes will bloody help me with the competition?” Gavin stood up from his seat angrily. Michael and Lindsay who had both been quietly watching, tensed. Dan hadn’t moved an inch. The choreographer matched Gavin’s stare wordlessly. When he finally spoke, it was hard.
“Gavin, look. This competition means a lot to you, I know. Bloody hell, we all know,” He motioned to Lindsay and Michael. “But throwing yourself into practicing day and night, not to mention for hours on end, isn’t helping. I can see that, and you can certainly see that yourself too.”
Gavin opened his mouth to speak again but Dan cut in, “No, let me talk, B.” Gavin sighed and sat down. Dan continued. “As much as I know how you feel about hip-hop, I really think you should take it. I only signed you up for a one month long session, and after that, its up to you if you want to quit.” He sighed and rubbed his face with one hand. “Look. I took hip-hop lessons back in college, and they helped me out just fine. Actually, they were a big help with my senior auditions towards the end. You and I, we’re both tired. You already know the choreography inside out; the only limit is that you’re not feeling it. It seems too mechanical and you know it.” When Dan finally finished, Gavin shook his head.
“B… First of all, hip-hop is too… street. And second of all, I just don’t have time.“ Gavin’s bottom lip quivered just a bit before it drew up in a tight smile. “And we all know how Heyman walked away with gold last year.” He looked down, trying not to get too emotional about how he felt about his statement, only mentioning it as a reminder to Dan why he needed to win this competition. He took a deep breath in, telling himself to get a grip. He hadn’t cried then, he wouldn’t cry now.
“I’ll bet you,” A voice broke the silence and Gavin looked up quickly. Michael gave the brit a sober look before breaking out in a grin. “I’ll bet you. Finish that class, from start to finish, and I’ll give you three hundred dollars- no wait, how does three hundred fifty sound?”
Gavin wavered. Bets were a thing him and Michael did every once and a while when they had time. It had certainly been a while since the last bet he’d participated in and Michael knew just how much Gavin had a weakness for bets.
Lindsay coughed, reminding the two that she was still there. “I’ll offer… let’s say one hundred. Add that to Michael’s bet.”
Dan crossed his fingers and Gavin sighed. It wasn’t as if he had anything better to do.
“You’re all pricks, the lot of you.”
--
“I think it’ll help you,”
Gavin groaned. “Not you too, Grif.” Griffon chuckled, dipping her brush into more brown paint. “Hey, don’t move.” She glanced quickly at Gavin again looking back to her easel. “As I was saying, yes, I think it’ll help. After all, you’ve been struggling with the flow on things, right? Transitioning moves can be tough sometimes.” Griffon continued as she painted, glancing at her model every so often, who couldn’t help but agree with her.
“Yeah, especially groundwork. I can nail the triple pirouette before and then go directly into the fouetté en tournant but transitioning to the floor is…” He wrinkled his nose. Griffon sent him a look and he quickly smoothed his expression back to its previous state. He sighed. “Can’t you find another model?”
Griffon grinned, looking up mid brush stroke to cluck her tongue at Gavin, “I could… but come on, we both agree that ballerinas are much prettier, don’t we?” She didn’t look up from her painting again, but Gavin sent her a sheepish grin.
“I suppose so,” He muttered.
“Well, well. As vain as ever.” He didn’t have to turn his head to know it was Geoff.
“Back from the bar already? It’s not even noon yet.” Gavin responded haughtily. Griffon laughed while Geoff rolled his eyes.
“I was meeting with your sponsor, you stupid British twink.” He tossed at the ballet dancer, who squawked in protest. Ignoring Gavin, Geoff continued. “Burnie wanted to meet at the bar, though I had to leave early. Being your manager is hard work, Gav.” The brit rolled his eyes and Geoff smirked. “Actually, living with you might be harder.”
“Hey!” Gavin protested again. Geoff merely shrugged.
“Hello to you too.” Griffon grinned as Geoff sauntered over to give her a kiss. Gavin groaned.
“Come on, I can’t hold this pose forever.” He whined. Geoff snickered.
“You’ve certainly gotten into the habit of being roped into things unwillingly.” He commented. Gavin groaned again.
“Don’t even get me started on the hip-hop classes,” Gavin sighed. Geoff wandered over to the kitchen to set his stuff down. “Well, you’ve got nothing better to do,” Geoff reasoned. “I talked to Dan yesterday, and by the look of things, you have the choreography down pretty solid. He said it was looking good too.”
“Yeah, but not good enough.” Gavin reminded his manager. Geoff sighed.
“Just try it out, a single month of classes isn’t going to hurt you.”
“Ugh, fine Geoff.” Gavin ran his hand through his hair out of stress.
“Gavin!”
“Sorry Griffon!”
--
To say Gavin was nervous for his first hip-hop class was an understatement. There were students milling all around the studio, chatting and socializing. Most of them were wearing baggy sweats and t-shirts or tank tops. Gavin gulped. Dan had helped him decide what to wear, but that didn’t mean he felt any less out of place. Tugging on the slightly too big sweats he was wearing, he looked around.
Part of the reason why he expressed his dislike for hip-hop so much was its similarity to street dancing. He shuddered at the thought of break dancing or even worse, whatever the hell social media had labeled as ‘shuffling’. It just didn’t seem… graceful. He found it awkward and unnecessary. Furthermore, the thought of rap music was just all too revolting for Gavin to even consider. Hopefully he wouldn’t be subjected to such a torture in his first class.
He walked over to the side where everyone was setting their stuff and plopped his bag down. As he crouched down to shuffle in his bag, someone else put their stuff right next to his. Gavin looked up to meet eyes with a wavy-haired stranger. His eyes were a deep shade of blue, and when Gavin stood up, he noted that whoever this stranger was, he was a lot taller than Gavin was. Said stranger gave Gavin a smile. “Hey, first timer?” He seemed to study Gavin for a second. “I’ve never seen you in this class before. I’m Ryan.” He introduced himself and confidently held a hand out.
“O-oh. Well, I’m Gavin. Yeah, this is my first time here.” Gavin nodded hesitantly and shook Ryan’s hand. He hadn’t expected for someone completely random to suddenly talk to him. He tried not to think about how warm Ryan’s hand felt wrapped around his.
“No problem. I’m sure you’ll love this class. Monty’s a great teacher.” Ryan nodded. Gavin assumed Ryan was talking about the teacher of the class they were taking. He smiled and nodded politely.
“I’m sure he is.”
He chatted with Ryan for a few more minutes until the instructor of the class arrived. He found the other man to be rather amiable and couldn’t help but fall into easy conversation with him.
He was in mid conversation with Ryan when a hush fell over the classroom. Gavin’s eyes flicked up to the door to see a young Asian man walk briskly into the room. Gavin watched as he carried on to walking to the front of the room. The noise volume in the room had gone considerably down, acknowledging the fact that their instructor had arrived. “That’s Monty.” Ryan whispered to Gavin, who nodded wordlessly.
Gavin tried not to look at Monty, who was currently setting his stuff down near the stereos at the front. The man seemed rather attractive in a sort of strange way and was quick to warm up quickly with a set of very impressive stretches. Gavin’s jaw almost dropped.
“Wow…” Ryan looked over at Gavin’s small outburst and gave an approving nod when he saw who Gavin was looking at.
“He doesn’t teach a lot of classes here, but we’re lucky to have him. He’s a choreographer for Vale.” Ryan paused to think for a moment. ”I heard he works closely with that one ballet duo from the spring state competitions. They won gold I think. What were their names?” Almost immediately, Gavin knew which two dancers Ryan was talking about.
“You mean Jon and Miles?” he suggested. Ryan looked at him, surprised.
“Yeah. How did you know?”
“I’m a ballet dancer.” Gavin shrugged, giving Ryan a sly, sideways grin. He was as proud as ever. Always rooting for the opportunity to flaunt his talent and skill any change he got.
“Cool.” Ryan nodded. “I’ve always liked ballet. Don’t do it myself, but I admire the amount of discipline it requires.” Gavin smiled at Ryan’s praise. He was about to respond when suddenly, the room got really quiet. He looked up to see that Monty had stepped up to the front of the class, signaling that the lesson was about to start.
“Alright, class. We’re gonna start with stretches.” Monty’s voice carried across the room, and the students were quick to disperse from their little groups they had formed.
Gavin found himself a nice position in the middle of the classroom, his cheeks reddening when Ryan settled for the spot next to him. Bringing his focus back to Monty, he breathed in deeply. Here we go.
--
Learning the choreography wasn’t a problem. Gavin had that down just fine. The problem was getting the choreography right. By the end of the class, Gavin wanted to pull his hair out and downright quit the class right away. He grunted in frustration and shuffled his feet angrily after the fifth time of running the choreography through from the top. Normally at this point, he would at least have the ability to run through it cleanly, but for some reason, he seemed to be tripping all over himself. They were doing isolations. Isolations. Gavin couldn’t do isolations to save his life. Granted that ballet sometimes had isolations involved too, but Gavin tended to avoid them as much as possible.
He had to admit though, Monty’s choreography was nothing like he’d expected, but that didn’t make him detest the technique any less.
Ryan chuckled, and Gavin turned his head to glare at the other dancer.
“What are you laughing at?” Gavin’s eyes narrowed. Ryan just grinned, shaking his head. He seemed to notice Gavin’s offended expression, which made his grin wider.
“No, no. I wasn’t laughing at you, per say.” Gavin’s eyes narrowed and he gave Ryan a huff. It was quite evident that he didn’t believe Ryan at all.
“You don’t believe me, do you?” Ryan said. There was a twinkle in his eyes. “Trust me, I’m not that shallow.” Gavin sniffed and went back in position to start practicing the choreography from the top. He had just started the first few counts when Ryan spoke again.
“Wait, stop.” And Gavin did just that, turning his head around to ask the other dancer wha- oh. Gavin gulped as Ryan leaned in. Before Gavin could protest, Ryan wrapped one of his strong hands around Gavin’s thin wrist. “It’s much easier if you rest your hands by your hips.” Using his hand that was around Gavin’s wrist, Ryan moved Gavin’s hand for him before letting go to do the same with his other hand as well. “Think of it as moving your upper body and not just your shoulders.” Ryan let go of Gavin’s hand to demonstrate.
If anyone asked him, Gavin would absolutely deny how Ryan made hip-hop look good.
--
“It was horrible.” Gavin complained as he bit into his pizza. Lindsay snorted and kicked back her chair. Michael smirked.
“What, you’re quitting so soon?” He said, leaning forward. Gavin wrinkled his nose and the redhead.
“Whoa, don’t get too eager, Michael. Not so bloody soon, I won’t.” Michael huffed and leaned back again. His girlfriend rolled her eyes before sending a sly smile at Gavin.
“So. Tell us about this Ryan.” She said in a teasing tone. Gavin groaned.
“I know what you’re hinting at, Lindsay!”
“Oh, no, you got me! My ulterior motives have been discovered. What ever shall I do now?” Lindsay’s voice was all but serious and Gavin could’ve banged his head on the table if it wasn’t already occupied by his lunch. Instead, he opted for finishing his pizza.
“Cheeky,” he said between clenched teeth, making a face at Lindsay when she gave him a sweet smile in response. He groaned again when Michael started to laugh. “You two are the worst,” he grouched.
“Nah, you love us.” Michael said, wiping away his tears. Lindsay nodded enthusiastically in agreement.
--
His second time in class wasn’t as bad as the first. In fact, the choreography was gratifyingly a lot easier than the last time.
“See?” Ryan elbowed Gavin during water break, “It’s not all about isolations.”
“Uh huh.” Gavin didn’t seem impressed, which made Ryan laugh. Gavin rolled his eyes at the other dancer and took a sip of water. “What’s so funny?”
“Oh, it’s nothing.” Ryan said in between chuckles, wiping the sweat from his brow. “You’re just kind of cute.” Gavin choked on his water.
--
He was so close to giving up during his third lesson. Hunched over, hands on his knees, and heaving, gasping for air, he managed to spit out the words “Jesus christ, no more faffing around, I can’t go on.” Ryan rolled his eyes.
“What’s up with you and making up words?” Gavin looked up to give Ryan a glare.
“They’re not made up!” He protested. Ryan’s lips quirked upwards.
“Sure, sure. Whatever you say, Gav.” He parried back. Gavin couldn’t help but feel his cheeks heat up at the nickname. It felt so natural for Ryan to call him that, as if they’d known each other for years. Gavin absentmindedly noted the flutter he felt in his chest suddenly, but decided to ignore it. Instead, he retaliated Ryan’s comeback with a frustrated sigh.
“Ugh, it doesn’t matter, I can’t keep up with this rubbish anyways!” He said, exasperatedly. Ryan’s smile seemed to soften and he patted Gavin’s shoulder comfortingly. Suddenly, he had an idea.
“Hey, how about this. After class, I’ll walk you through it again. It’ll be like tutoring.” Ryan suggested. Gavin stood up, brightening. Once again, he tried to ignore the awful jittery feeling he felt in his chest.
“Ohh! Would you?” He asked, hopeful. Ryan chuckled and nodded.
“Yeah, it’ll be no problem. I think this room will be empty after the lesson, so it’s free game if we want to use it.” Ryan said. Gavin resisted a urge to hug the man.
--
It was funny because Gavin never truly realized how good Ryan was at dancing until he watched the blond demonstrate the choreography that afternoon. He couldn’t bring himself to say anything at all after Ryan had finished the dance because… wow.
He hated to ruin the hip-hop’s dancer’s vibes with his own horrible interpretation of the dance. He said the exact thing to Ryan, who laughed and shook his head. “You’re not that bad,” Ryan’s lips curved upwards. “You’re just having trouble feeling the beat.”
Gavin frowned. “Yeah, so I’ve heard. Everyone keeps saying that but I still don’t bloody get what you mean. I’m trying.” He tried not to let his frustration show.
Ryan stared at him for a few moments. He was silent and seemed to be searching for something in Gavin’s gaze. Suddenly breaking eye contact, Ryan turned and walked over to the room’s stereo system to press the replay button.
As the music started again, he rushed over to the light switch, flicking the lights off. The room went dark. The only lights left were coming from the window to the hallway in the studio. Ryan was quickly by Gavin’s side again. Gavin let out a ‘eep’ when the older dancer grabbed his hand and lead him over to the middle of the room. “Wha-“ he tried to ask, but was shushed by Ryan, who placed Gavin’s hands on his hips.
“Shh, just listen. Close your eyes and don’t think about it. Feel it.” Gavin’s cheeks flushed red when Ryan’s hips started swaying and he thanked the heavens that it was too dark for Ryan to see his blush. However, it wasn’t dark enough to hide their faces completely.
Ryan’s eyes had fluttered shut, completely immersed in the music, and Gavin just stared at him, gawking. The older man wasn’t just moving his hips, his entire body was involved, shoulders dipping up and down, feet sliding and tapping. He squeaked when Ryan opened one eye. “What? Come on, you’re supposed to do the same.” Gavin hesitantly started swaying his hips. Ryan laughed. “It’s not like you’re new at dancing, Gav. You should be far from shy by now.”
He has a point.
Gavin bit his bottom lip. What was there to lose? Maybe it would help, after all, Ryan wouldn’t be dancing without reason. Gavin sighed. Closing his eyes, he took in a deep breath and… let go.
--
“And did it help?” Griffon’s voice was more curious than teasing. Gavin didn’t have to think twice about nodding, but didn’t do so in fear of Griffon’s wrath if he moved.
“Yeah. Yeah, it helped.” He couldn’t put into words exactly how surprised he was when Ryan told him to try the choreography after dancing freestyle to the same song. He had felt a lot looser and definitely freer with his movements and less restricted. He told this to Griffon, who nodded approvingly. She looked up from her painting to smile at Gavin.
“That’s good.”
“I know! I’ve said this about three times already, but did I mention how bloody surprised I was?” Gavin couldn’t contain his excitement from his improvement. It was hard for him to keep still. Griffon laughed.
“Yes, you did.”
“Griffon? Can I move now?”
“Don’t you dare.”
--
“Tell me about this competition of yours.” Ryan said, looking expectantly at Gavin. They were eating lunch together at the sandwich shop near the studio. It wasn’t a date.
Michael and Lindsay were elsewhere. Gavin had already introduced his friends to the infamous Ryan Haywood that they kept hearing about. Thankfully, they had hit it off right away, and by now, Ryan was well acquainted with the two redheads. They had become fast friends, if not too fast.
Gavin shrugged, “It’s the same dance competition I was in last year. I won silver, but this time,” He paused for a moment. “This time, I’m going to win gold.”
“It sounds like its pretty important to you though.” Ryan took a sip from his drink. Gavin shrugged, trying to seem indifferent. He set his sandwich back down and stared blankly at it before glancing up at Ryan, who smiled sympathetically. “Hey, it’s okay if you don’t want to talk abou-."
“It was my mum’s last wish.” Gavin cut in. Ryan went silent. “It was her last wish before she died, for me to win the competition. She…” Gavin faltered. “She had cancer. She used to be a dancer too. A ballerina. She was the best, she won gold several years ago.” He stopped to take a shaky breath. “She wanted for me to do the same.”
Gavin picked up his sandwich again and took a bite out of it as casually as he could. Ryan didn’t move and Gavin didn’t comment on it, only continued on with his impromptu explanation. “I won silver. Joel Heyman.” Gavin stopped to sneer at the name. “He won gold. Even bloody bragged about it. Fucking tosser.” Gavin didn’t seem even the least bit shy about expressing his distaste for the other ballet dancer. He set his sandwich down on the tray again, but this time close to slamming it down hard. Ryan almost jumped. Gavin’s shoulders sagged. “Mum died a few weeks after.”
Ryan ached to reach across the table to comfort Gavin, but could only watch the young dancer blink through misty eyes.
“I know it sounds stupid, but yeah. It’s kind of important to me to win this year.” Gavin finished, trying to sound casual. He looked down at his hands. Ryan’s eyebrows furrowed and his head dipped down, trying to meet Gavin’s eyes.
“Hey, it doesn’t matter if it sounds stupid- not that it is, but it’s important to you. That’s what counts.” There was another short pause before Ryan offered his condolences. “I’m sorry about your mother.” Gavin looked up to give the blond a shy smile of gratitude, who in return, smiled back and stood up from his seat.
“You know what? Gav, I’m gonna help you win that competition.” Gavin’s jaw dropped. What?
“What?” He repeated out loud. Ryan shot him a confident grin.
“I’m gonna help you. The only problem is that you’re not living up to the choreography, right? I mean, you have it down and all that already, right?” Gavin nodded mutely.
“Yep, I’m definitely helping.” Ryan sat back down, picking his sandwich back up and taking a bite out of it. Gavin couldn’t help but stare.
It wasn’t a date.
--
It had been almost an entire month since Gavin had last touched Dan’s choreography for the competition, but he had no problem performing it for Ryan. Poor man had already had to deal with Gavin’s butchering of hip-hop, Gavin doubted that it could be any worse.
The choreography was just as Gavin had remembered it, and he stuck strictly to how it was scripted. By then, he didn’t really have to think too much about the dance. After practicing it for so long with the motivation and determination that would make his mother proud, almost everything could be done with muscle memory. He did exactly just that, closing his eyes halfway through the song and letting his body take over. Perhaps it was because of Ryan’s extra tutoring or the hip-hop classes he had been taking, but either way, Gavin was surprised by how easy it was to transition as well as flow to the music. There were still several spots he was stuck on, however, which he made sure to point out to Ryan as soon as they started working on the piece.
After Gavin’s confession, Ryan seemed very true to his promise on helping him achieve his goal. Sometimes in the middle of running the dance he would catch the blond staring at him intently. Not particularly to observe his dancing or movement, no, it was more like he was staring at Gavin by himself. Though Gavin would never admit it, he seemed to preen under Ryan’s gaze, enjoying the attention. Most of the time, he would have to hide the smile that would threaten to slip out, knowing that Ryan probably didn’t realize just how often he would be so focused on Gavin that he didn’t realize the dance was already over.
Back to the present, Gavin caught Ryan’s gaze halfway through the dance again and he swallowed hard, suddenly very self-conscious. Like he did before, Gavin forcibly shoved down that fluttery, warm feeling he felt.
--
The next few days were full of running the dance with Ryan and walking through it step by step as if it was his first time learning it. He had to admit that Ryan was doing a good job helping him pick the choreography back up again. The older dancer always seemed to have good advice and suggestions that Gavin found helpful. Dan would even come in every so often to the studio and nod approvingly.
Gavin wanted to slap that knowing grin and smirk off his best friend’s face. Damn his pride.
Still, even with the noticeable improvement, it didn’t prevent Gavin from being as frustrated as he was in the beginning whenever he hit a point he just couldn’t get past. As much as Ryan tried to console him, Gavin couldn’t help the hopelessness he felt at the aspect of possibly being stuck in a rut for forever.
“It’s no use! I should just give up, because there is no bloody way I am ever going to get this rubbish right.” Gavin pinched the bridge of his nose with his fingers, taking a deep breath in before sighing very dramatically. He huffed at reflection in the mirror before sitting down heavily. He let out a mournful noise of distress and closed his eyes- only to open them again at the rustling movement beside him and the deep chuckle that could only be identified as Ryan’s. Without thinking, he leaned in to rest his forehead against the blonde’s shoulder and let out whine.
To his surprise, instead of being rejected, Ryan let out another laugh and ruffled Gavin’s hair. “You’re not doing bad. You’re just too wrapped up in the mechanics again. Remember how we broke down the transition before the pirouette and then tried it again? Remember what happened?” Gavin nodded. When he spoke, his voice was a harsh whisper.
“It looked better afterwards.” He admitted. He sighed again, letting his body relax and lean on Ryan for support.
“That’s right. Remember what we did with the lights off? Keep that in mind, and we’ll walk through th- “ Ryan stopped halfway through his sentence when he realized that Gavin wasn’t listening. The younger man seemed to be drifting off despite nodding drowsily to everything Ryan was saying. Ryan couldn’t help but smile at the exhausted dancer.
Gavin was trying to concentrate on Ryan’s words, he really was. However he seemed to be lingering in and out of consciousness; he couldn’t help it if the older man’s voice was oddly comforting and warm, washing over him like a tidal wave. It took a while for him to notice that Ryan had stopped talking and he made a sleepy, barely coherent sound of confusion.
Ryan chuckled, and ran his hand through Gavin’s hair again. “Shh, it’s okay. You deserve some rest.” He squashed any attempts from Gavin try to shake the sleepiness off. There was a weak protest from the brit until he huffed and relaxed against Ryan again, to which the older man wrapped his arm around Gavin, pulling him closer. Neither said a word about the closeness or the acceptance of such comfort and soon, Gavin was asleep.
--
Things seemed to fall in place after that day. It wasn’t a sudden thing, but gradually, it felt as if Ryan was lifting the weight off his shoulders and sharing it, helping him hold it up above his shoulders and for once since a very long time, Gavin could breath again.
It wasn’t just a shift in their attitudes or his dancing, although he was improving drastically. But rather, their interaction with each other was a lot more… lingering. Ryan’s hands on Gavin’s hips when he was adjusting the brit in a different position, or when their fingertips met for a split second when Gavin passed Ryan his water bottle, or even sparing glances at each other every so often when the other wasn’t looking. He was faintly aware how suddenly, he felt excited to see the hip-hop dancer every time they met.
“It’s called love, honey.” Griffon stirred her coffee. Gavin, who sat across the kitchen table from her, scoffed.
“Nah, it couldn’t be.” He denied, shaking his head stubbornly. Griffon raised her eyebrow at him.
“Then tell me what you think it is then,” she said. Gavin faltered, unable to come up with a solid or rational reply. Griffon let out a triumphant smirk and took a sip of from her mug. Right before Gavin was about to protest, Geoff walked with a folder.
“Hey, Gav. I need you to sign these. They’re release forms for the competition in case any accidents happen.” Gavin nodded, absentmindedly taking the folder from Geoff. He was too busy brooding over what Griffon had said to notice Geoff ask Griffon what they were talking about. By then, it was too late to stop her from loud announcing what the brit was just beginning to realize himself.
“Haven’t you heard, dear? Gavin’s in love!”
--
He paid more attention to Ryan during their next practice together and he knew he was screwed as soon as he realized that he couldn’t take his eyes off of him when he was demonstrating a move or when Gavin tried to engage him into more conversation just for the sake of being able to hear him talk.
So it wasn’t surprising when he found himself stalling Ryan from leaving when practice was over by trying to rope the blond into some sort of debate over a speculation on the ability of rain to mutate and adapt to habitats.
“It’s not even possible, rain isn’t even animate.” Ryan rolled his eyes.
“Well, just imagine if it was! There’d be tiny drops of screaming rain.” Gavin argued, trying to keep a straight face. Ryan just huffed again and ruffled the brit’s hair roughly like he’d been doing recently since that day. He leaned in as Gavin started another tangent about the logic behind animate water, a fond smile crossing his lips at the enthusiasm of the younger dancer. Suddenly Gavin’s breath hitched and he stopped mid sentence when Ryan brought his hand up to brush his thumb lightly against the brit’s cheek. Gavin bit his lower lip and peered up at Ryan through his long lashes. Gavin diverted his eyes for a split second out of shyness before flickering them back to meet Ryan’s. He licked his lips, vaguely hoping that Ryan would just lean down and snog him.
Gavin’s gaze was fixed intensely on Ryan and he held his breath as the blond seemed to lean closer and closer and Gavin really wished that he would- oh. His eyes flickered shut as their lips collided, and he immediately leaned in, humming contently and looping his arms around Ryan’s shoulders. The kiss was soft and not at all demanding and desperate, but not any less passionate than it would’ve been if it were. When they pulled away for air, Gavin ended up with his head resting comfortably in the crook of Ryan’s shoulder and Ryan’s arms wrapped around his hips, holding him close. He wasn’t sure how long they stayed there, holding each other, but he didn’t mind losing track of time.
--
“Are you ready?” Dan arched his brow at Gavin who was rushing around in his apartment, stuffing random things in his bag as he made his rounds. “Seriously, B? Eyedrops? Are you really gonna need those?” Gavin made a strangled noise of distress.
“I know, I know. I just- what if I forget something that I really need? It has to be perfect.” Gavin quickly snatched up a comb from his dresser and shoved it into his duffle bag, shooting a look at Dan afterwards as if to challenge him to say something. Dan sighed and shook his head, smiling.
“Alright, if it makes you feel better. Do what you need to do, but remember that we’re leaving in ten minutes. Oh, and your boyfriend’s waiting in the car.” Dan hid his smile when Gavin perked up at the mention of Ryan.
“Oh! How long has he been waiting?” Gavin flew to the door, completely forgetting how stressed he was. The door opened before he could get to it, revealing a very amused Ryan. His blue eyes twinkled at the look of surprise and delight he got from Gavin.
“Ry!”
“Hey, Gav.” He chuckled when Gavin threw himself into his arms, ruffling the brit’s hair as he pressed his face against Ryan’s chest. Gavin keened from the back of his throat, letting Ryan know just how distressed he was. Ryan’s smile softened. “ Gavin. You’re gonna do fine. In fact, I’m sure you’re gonna do perfect.” He comforted. Gavin gave him a muffled response that Ryan couldn’t hear through the fabric of his shirt.
“Babe, you’re gonna have to speak up, I can’t hear you.” As Gavin grouched back, Ryan nodded at Dan, who had motioned that he was going to return to the car to wait for them. Ten minutes he mouthed at Ryan, reminding him. Ryan nodded and waved him off. Dan roll his eyes and stepped out.
Gavin wanted to forever be buried in the folds of Ryan’s jacket and never return to the land of the living. However, said person was currently prying him away from the safety of his chest. Gavin whined. “Ryann,” to which the blond laughed and shook his head at.
“Come on Gav, you know that we have to leave soon.” Gavin trembled. The anticipation and nervousness was killing him and hugging Ryan seemed to make everything go away. If hugging Ryan was the one way to get rid of everything bad, then so be it.
“But-“
“No buts, Gav. Come on, we practiced this for a long time- you practiced this for a long time. You’ve worked hard and I’m proud of you.” Ryan’s voice softened at the end. “You’re going to win, I just know it.” Gavin peeked out from his hiding spot and there was a hint of a grin at the corners of his mouth, nervousness slowly seeping away after hearing Ryan’s assurance. He was still reluctant to let Ryan go though.
“You think so?”
“I know so.”
--
“I swear to god if you don’t stop shaking your leg, I will smother you.” Michael gritted out. Lindsay rolled her eyes at her boyfriend.
“Threatening isn’t going to get you anywhere.” She reminded him. Michael only smirked at Gavin before turning his head to send his girlfriend a sweet smile and bat his eyelashes at her.
“It got you out of having Caleb as your partner, didn’t it?” Michael smiled innocently at Gavin’s horrified look. Ryan patted his boyfriend’s hand while Lindsay snorted.
“There was no need to threaten the poor boy,” she said. Michael huffed.
“It was completely necessary! Besides, it wasn’t that bad. I only told him t-” He was suddenly interrupted by Geoff, who had just returned from the sign-in desk to pick them up from the waiting room. He raised an eyebrow at Michael before turning to Gavin.
“Alright, Gavin, you’re signed in. Here’s your number,” Geoff handed Gavin a few papers, “And here’s the program.” Gavin thanked Geoff and took the papers.
“Where’s Dan?” He asked.
“Oh, he’s at the sound booth to make sure they have the right CD for your dance.” Gavin hummed a response, but was too busy looking around nervously at the competition and clutching at Ryan’s hand for support. Suddenly he straightened and squeezed his boyfriend’s hand to get his attention.
“Ryan! Look, it’s Monty. And I think that’s Kerry and Jon behind him.” Ryan looked over to where Gavin was pointing. Their hip-hop teacher was sitting on the other side of the waiting room, talking solemnly to two men who, by the way they were dressed, were obviously competitors. Gavin was vaguely aware that they were holding hands and were leaning against each other. Ryan nodded.
“I heard they’re really good.”
“Yeah, they are. I’m really glad that I won’t be competing against them. They normally only enter in the couple category.” Gavin said. There was a noise of agreement from Geoff.
“Have you seen Heyman yet?” Michael asked. Gavin’s eyes narrowed.
“Nope.” He replied crisply. Lindsay sighed.
“Gav, he’s hardly talked to you much, let alone mock you about winning gold.” Gavin’s lips tightened and he forced a smile.
“Doesn’t matter.” He shifted uneasily in his seat and Ryan wrapped his arm around Gavin’s shoulder in comfort.
Geoff rolled his eyes at the couple. “Yes, yes, you guys are very cute. Now come on, we have a competition to get to!”
--
The much dreaded confrontation with Joel didn’t happen until much later, once opening ceremony and orientations had already finished. Ironically, he was alone. Michael and Lindsay had gone to find seats in the auditorium and he suspected that Dan had gone to do the same. Ryan had sent Gavin off to find the dressing rooms for the dancers, leaving him with a kiss and a ‘good luck, dear’. Geoff was the last to leave to turn in some more forms and meet up with Burnie.
Gavin had been so nervous and jittery earlier, it was only until when he was finally alone did he finally realize that this was it. The day he had been planning for since the same time last year, the day that he had suffered so much stress and grief, that day. He was here. Shifting the weight of his duffle bag from one shoulder to the next, Gavin took a deep breath in. Okay you can do this. No more faffing around, this is your second chance. He tried to ignore the tingling voice in the back of his head that added on, your last chance. Shaking himself off, he started down the hallway to find the dressing rooms, walking confidently with his head held high and shoulders back. No use in being nervous now. Besides, it wasn’t as if it was his first competition either.
Ten minutes later, Gavin was feeling a lot less confident than he was earlier. “That’s it, I’m bloody lost.” He groaned. He was in yet another hallway that looked exactly the same as earlier. The only difference was the lack of people milling about. Great. Gavin let out a frustrated hiss, about to pull out his phone to call Dan for directions, when from a distance he saw two people walking in front of him. He brightened up. Civilization! He was saved.
“Hey!” He sped up his walk, calling out to the two people in front of him. “Excuse me, but do you know where th-“ Gavin stopped. “Oh, its you.”
Joel scrunched his nose at Gavin, and gave him a scrutinizing look. “Just me? Wow Gavin, nice way to greet a person.” The girl standing besides him quirked a smile and arched a teasing brow at Joel.
“Right, because you were ranting about how you were much more than just a person earlier, but now it’s suddenly okay.” She said. Joel sniffed.
“Hey, it’s a sensitive topic, okay?” and for once, Gavin was completely lost to their conversation. However, he recovered quickly from his surprise, straightening and trying to make himself taller and presentable to his main competitor. He coughed.
Joel gave a ‘hmm?’ and turned to Gavin. “Oh, sorry I forgot you were there.” The girl beside him rolled her eyes.
“Oh my god, Joel. You are just so smooth.” She shook her head at Joel before holding a hand out to Gavin. “Sorry about this lunkhead over here. I’m Barbara, Joel’s sponsor.” Gavin gave her a tight smile and shook her hand. He wanted to comment on how awkward their meeting was, but he held his tongue. Joel sighed very deeply.
“There’s no use in introducing ourselves, he’s just another competitor.” He said, sounding impatient. Gavin was just about ready to strangle the other dancer. Instead, gave them another stiff smile before interrupting.
“Well, this has all been… very nice meeting you,” He nodded at Barbara who nodded back. “But I must be going. Uh, do you guys know where the dressing rooms are?”
Joel smirked and pointed down the hall. “It’s that way. Just down the hall, take the second right and then go right again.” Gavin thanked him before hastily making an exit. He was almost out of earshot when Joel called down the hall.
“See you at the competition. I genuinely hope for your sake, your routine is a lot better than last year’s. I would say it’d suck if you were as static as last year, but to be honest, I don’t mind bringing back gold again.”
--
Dressed in his leotard with his makeup all prepped and ready, Gavin was already on deck, waiting backstage. He was very aware that there were only two more performances until his turn, and he couldn’t help but pace back and forth, running one hand through his hair while the other was tightly clutching his cell phone. He had already done his stretches to prepare and frankly, he couldn't bring himself to do anymore. He was too nervous to. Just as the previous performance ended, the door to the backstage opened and Ryan stepped in, quiet not to make any noise when he closed the door behind him.
“Ryan!” Gavin whispered loudly, rushing over. He threw his arms around the hip-hop dancer, tears pinpricking the corners of his eyes in relief. Ryan wrapped his arms around Gavin, holding him close.
“What’s wrong? Your call sounded serious.” Gavin pressed his face against Ryan’s chest and let out a huff.
“I ran into Joel Heyman.” He said quietly, scrunching up his nose is displeasure when he said his rival’s name. He sighed apologetically. “Sorry, I was just so nervous, I had to call you.”
Ryan was about to reply when he was interrupted by the roar of the audience that could be heard backstage, signaling that there was only one more performance until Gavin’s turn. He squeaked and Ryan couldn’t help but chuckle. Gavin pulled back to glare at Ryan.
“I’m not laughing at you, I swear,” Ryan’s lips quirked upwards and Gavin grimaced. Ryan grabbed Gavin’s hand and squeezed it. “Hey, listen to me. You are going to do great. Don’t even sweat it, because it doesn’t matter if this Joel guy has it in the works or that he won last year. This year isn’t last year and we both know that you worked your ass off to get here. I think your mother would’ve been proud.” He squeezed Gavin’s hand again. “She would’ve been very proud.” Gavin’s reply was lost when backstage was suddenly filled by the sound of clapping and cheers again, but it sounded a lot like thank you. Gavin was beaming happily and Ryan grinned and nodded towards the entrance to the stage. “Now get going- You are going to blow their socks off.” Gavin bit his lip.
“I’m going to blow their socks off.” He repeated. Ryan nodded firmly.
“Hell yeah, you are.”
--
The stage was dark when he made his entrance. Once he had crossed to the middle of the stage, he took the chance to close his eyes and take a deep breath before getting into his starting position. He opened his eyes just as the lights came on again, with him in the middle of the spotlight. He held his position until the music started.
His feet traveled by themselves, tracing the floor with each step he took, sliding gracefully. He paused in motion for a moment, just as scripted, waiting a few beats. He held his position there, suspended mid-motion, waiting for the music to raise in volume and rhythm. Right as the music hit the right notes, Gavin grinned and took off, sliding against the cool wood floor of the stage. His arms went up and he closed his eyes, counting each step as he took them. He could just imagine the beginnings of a ballad, unfurling vividly with each accompanied step. He let himself twirl, one leg coming up into position, the other one arching to support his weight. Tilting his chin up to perfect his posture, he landed the spin, holding the position just for a split second before he was sliding back into step. Each move was easy and light, but controlled. Not too controlled, of course. Not like he had been rehearsing time and time again before he had met Ryan. No, rather than sharp, articulated movements, he flowed easily though the choreography, and suddenly all nervousness and doubts seemed to disappear. Up on the stage, it was just him and no one else. Everything else seemed to fade out and by the end of his dance, right as he was posing in his final position and holding it there until the lights dimmed again, he had a huge smile stretched across his face.
--
“Ryan, did you see that?” Gavin practically threw himself into Ryan’s arms and Ryan laughed, picking Gavin up from the waist and twirling him around once.
“You were wonderful.” Ryan set Gavin down and ruffled his hair. Gavin beamed and bounced on the balls of his feet.
“Yes, I was!” He said excitedly. “Did you see my demi detourné? I didn’t expect it to go so smoothly, but I did a proper job of it!” He continued to chatter enthusiastically at Ryan, who, for all that he’s worth, nodded the entire time, letting Gavin have his moment. Gavin was still on his long tangent of self-praise when Michael, Lindsay, and Dan rushed over. Gavin perked up and switched his attention to them, to which Ryan didn’t mind as he linked his hand with Gavin’s.
“Gavin-”
“B,”
“You fucking idiot.”
Everyone was talking over each other, but Gavin didn’t mind at all. He had done good. After all that worrying and stress, he had done good, goddamnit. All the way from when he had got off stage to now, he hadn’t stopped smiling yet.
---
Ryan was sure that if Gavin squeezed his hand any harder than he was doing now, he would probably die out of lack of blood circulation in his body before ever knowing who the winners of the competition were. “Gavin.” He sighed, to which the brit shushed.
“Shhh, Ryan! They’re about to announce the top three.” For all the excitement he had earlier, Gavin was back to being worried and nervous over the results of the entire day of competitions. He watched in anticipation as the host, a young man who looked like he was in his mid-twenties, of the award ceremony approached the podium. He coughed into the mic to get everyone’s attention and once the crowd had settled, he began to speak.
“I’d like to thank everyone for their patience. After some discussion and considerations, the judges have now picked the top three winning competitors in our solo category.”
Gavin was sitting at the edge of his seat, squirming impatiently. He was so focused on what the man was saying that he accidentally missed the name of the winner of the bronze award. Gavin shrugged. It wasn’t him, he was sure of it.
The host adjusted his coat before leaning into the microphone again. “And the winner for the silver award goes to…” There was a brief period of silence for suspense before he finished his sentence. “Joel Heyman!” Gavin’s jaw dropped. He could mildly make out Michael whooping right next to the seat left of him.
“Ha! You hear that, Gavin? You’ve got this in the bag, boi!” the redhead seemed a little too over excited and had to be shushed by his girlfriend, who was shaking her head.
“Oh, sit the fuck back down, just because the all talented Joel Heyman placed second doesn't mean our equally, if not even prettier, Gavin, placed first.” She told him, to which he snorted at. Gavin didn't seem to process their exchange or excitement however, unable to unglue his eyes from the man at the podium. Hurry it up, hurry it up! He could help but mentally rush the host. He could hear loud clapping and cheers, but he was too focused on the next announcement.
“Gavin?” Ryan poked Gavin with his free hand. Receiving no response other than another squeeze from his hand, he sighed and ruffled his boyfriend’s hair affectionately. As the cheering died down and settled, he leaned over to whisper to Gavin. “Hey, don’t forget to breath.” Gavin elbowed his boyfriend just as the host raised the microphone to his mouth again.
“And for first place, gold medalist, we have….” Gavin squirmed in his seat, and this time, it was Ryan who squeezed his hand. “Gavin Free!”
--
Dan was about ready to strangle Gavin.
“If you wave that bloody trophy in my face one more time, I swear to god, B, I will break it.” He threaten irritably. Gavin squeaked and pulled back, retreating to settle himself in the seat next to Ryan. His boyfriend chuckled and Gavin frowned at the both of them.
“Hey, this is my moment, you knob.” He huffed. Lindsay laughed and elbowed Dan.
“Yeah, don’t rain on his parade.” The was an audible groan throughout the room. Griffon suddenly bustled in to set plates on the table. Geoff was close behind her. After the awards ceremony, they had all regrouped back to Geoff’s house to celebrate Gavin’s victory. As much as Gavin appreciated it, he could think of another place else he’d rather be.
Michael and Lindsay had both come, and of course, Dan was there too. Geoff was busy passing out breadsticks. Just then, he yelped when he felt something hit his head. He glared at Michael.
“Did you just throw a bloody strawberry at me?” He fumed. Michael laughed and popped one of the offending foods into his mouth.
“You’re goddamn right, you idiot.” He said, talking with his mouth full. Gavin rolled his eyes before smirking at the redhead.
“Don’t forget, you owe me four hundred fifty bucks.” He tossed back, laughing when Michael almost choked. “Ha, you forgot, didn’t you, you prick.” Gavin could feel Ryan snorting beside him and he shot a smile at his boyfriend.
“So, Gavin. What do you plan on doing now? I mean, you did it. You won. You’re not going to compete again, are you?” Lindsay asked, leaning forwards in her seat. Gavin snorted and shook his head.
“Nah, hell no. Now that I’m done clearing my name, I’m good.” He sat back in his chair, the trophy propped up in his lap. Lindsay arched a brow at him.
“Then what are you going to do?” Gavin shrugged.
“I don’t know? I’ll talk to Geoff about getting some gigs around the area? Furthering my career and all that rubbish.” He leaned his head back to look around the room for his manager, but Geoff had already left to help Griffon out in the kitchen. Dan sighed.
“Well, more work for me then.” He bit into a breadstick mournfully and Gavin rolled his eyes.
“Yeah, and don’t forget, you’re getting paid.” He reminded the choreographer. He paused for a moment, suddenly deep in thought. “Maybe I’ll try out a few more hip-hop classes.” He turned to wiggle his eyebrows at Ryan, who could only laugh and shake his head at his dorky boyfriend.
There was a lot more small talk at the table as Griffon and Geoff joined them, bringing out pans of pasta and plates of other food. Gavin’s mouth watered and for a moment, he forgot about the nagging thought that had planted itself at the back of his mind. Ryan seemed to guess what was on his mind though, and later, just as Gavin was finished up the food on his plate, the blond nudged his shoulder to get his attention. “Mm?” Gavin looked up. Ryan smiled sheepishly.
“Hey, so I talked to Geoff, and… um,” Ryan hesitated for a moment, suddenly unsure. He continued anyways. “Well, he said that once you’re finished eating, we can leave early if you want. To, uh.” Ryan ran a hand through his hair. “I can drive you to your mom’s.” He frowned when Gavin didn’t say anything right away. The brit had fallen silent, as if he were processing what the other had just said. Ryan was just about to ask Gavin what was wrong when suddenly the ballet dancer threw his arms around him.
“Yes! Yes, please. In fact, lets go now.” Gavin seemed to be bouncing excitably on the balls of his feet and before Ryan could reply, the younger man had already released him from the embrace and turned to shove the last bite of food into his mouth. Gavin hastily grabbed his coat, and stood up, looking expectantly at his boyfriend. “Well? What are we waiting for? Come on, I’ll give you the directions to the cemetery on the way.” He puffed, before his smile slipped and he went quiet, suddenly realizing that everyone else was staring at him. Whoops. He chuckled nervously and sat back down. Dan and Geoff were laughing while Michael snorted and Lindsay shook her head, smiling at him. Griffon was the one who patted his shoulder sympathetically and nodded her approval.
“Go. We don’t mind. It’s your moment after all, and you did this all for her. You should go see her.” She said understandingly. He gave her a grateful smile before turning to Ryan, who had already stood up and gathered his things.
“Well?” Ryan arched his brow and Gavin knew that he could just kiss his boyfriend right then. The blond had his hand held out to Gavin, patiently waiting for the ballet dancer. Gavin’s mouth opened and closed a few times before he finally sighed and smiled. He reached out to grab Ryan’s hand.
“Let’s go then.”
