[X]

"Blue?"

"Yeah?" Kevin turns away from trying to select a shopping cart without a busted wheel and looks up at Abel. He's wearing softer, more worn looking clothes-- a large red and black flannel and a pair of ripped skinny jeans, exposing his knees.

He grabs one of Kevin's hands, spreading the fingers apart with his. "What's this?" He's inspecting Kevin's colored fingernails.

He doesn't look angry or disgusted, but the question makes Kevin nervous anyways. "I was, um, trying it out. If you don't like it, I can take it off, I just... Wanted to see how it looked, how it felt."

Abel stares at the hand for a while longer, silent, just massaging Kevin's knuckles with his fingertips. After a time, he whispers, "I like it," hiding his pink cheeks by turning away and grabbing a cart. The wheels all work well, and Kevin smiles at him. "C'mon. Let's get some ingredients."

Kevin nods, glancing down at his phone. They've decided to make coconut curry, a dish that neither of the two have tried before but have always wanted to. "Okay, we need veggies. Snow peas, carrots, ginger, broccoli, that kind of stuff."

Abel nods, taking charge of the cart. "You wanna divide and conquer, or should we stick together?"

Kevin considers. He wants to be close to Abel, but he also doesn't want to spend a huge amount of time in the store. "Let's play it by ear. For now, stick together."

Abel smiles, and says, "Getting bags to put the vegetables in might be an issue, though." The pair look up at the bags, standing what seems like miles above Abel's 5'4".

Kevin giggles. "Maybe if you jump, we can get them?" Abel leaps, shoes rising off of the ground. He manages to get a grip on the roll of bags and removes about eleven of them in a single swoop.

"Is this enough?" Abel asks, a crease forming between his brows. Kevin smiles fondly, nodding. They push the cart to each of the vegetable sites, making their way through the produce section. Kevin even remembers to grab some basil for garnish, and is feeling pretty proud of himself.

"Okay, you get the veggie stock, agave nectar, and coconut milk. You'll need three cans. I can grab the rice and spices." He tells Abel.

Abel raises his eyebrows, surprised but pleased. He leans in to Kevin's ear and says, "I love it when you take charge," in what he hopes is a sultry tone. By Kevin's suddenly warm face, he believes that it's worked. Abel turns and walk away, calling over his shoulder to Kevin. "I'll meet you in the spice aisle."

Kevin curses Abel's sexiness under his breath, then pushes the cart that Abel had left behind to the rice. There are so many varieties- long grain, short grain, shelled, husked, organic, white, brown, instant. He just grabs a bag blindly and tells himself that it doesn't matter too much.

He moves on to the spice aisle, intimidated by the high shelves of spices. He swallows, and takes another look at the recipe. Assuming that Abel will have salt and pepper at home, he only grabs red pepper from the section holding the more basic spices.

He stares at the rarer spices, and scans them hesitantly for curry powder. He spots some, and it looks high quality, but Kevin has a problem with it.

It's on the top shelf.

Kevin pouts at it, climbing onto the bottom of the shelf in an attempt to reach it. He's in the process of climbing another level higher when a voice says, "Here, let me help you with that."

Kevin turns around, grateful that he won't have to climb anymore, then flips back around quickly. "Okay," he says, though he almost wants to refuse.

The man blinks in surprise. "Kevin? It's me, Jacob Pierce."

"Oh, yeah. Hi," Kevin says back, weakly. Jacob Pierce was an almost one night stand from his eighteenth birthday, on which he'd decided to take himself gay clubbing.

It was a bad idea.

Kevin hadn't know that, when you were so drunk that you couldn't look at the bartender without laughing, your perceptions could get that screwed up. He didn't know that after enough vodka, even Jacob Pierce and his foot fetish were hot enough to make out with.

He hasn't been drinking since.

"I was wondering where you'd run off to, silly. We never finished what we started that night, you know." Jacob licks his bottom lip, still holding the curry powder.

Kevin nods stiffly. "I know. I don't think we ever will, Jacob." He makes a grab for the packet, and Jacob swings it out of reach.

He tuts. "No, no. You'll have to work for it, Kevin."

Kevin winces at the way his name slithers from Jacob's lips, tasting like a mouthful of cough syrup. Abel says his name nicer. "I can't, Jacob. Not anymore."

"Why not?" Jacob looks like he's already won this argument, and moves much closer, which sets Kevin on edge.

"Because..." Kevin sees Abel wandering down the aisle, balancing a stack of cans in his arms and looking at the spices as he passes. "Because, I'm taken!" Kevin blurts before he can stop himself.

Jacob looks disbelieving, running his fingers through Kevin's hair. "Oh, yeah? Okay. Where is your hypothetical boyfriend, then?"

"Right here." Abel has suddenly appeared. His cans are in the cart, and he looks furious. Kevin looks down, feeling anxious. "Babe," Abel says softly, picking up Kevin's head with one hand and lacing their fingers together with the other. "Who's this?"

His light eyes are stormy underneath his aloof expression, and Kevin almost screams. He hopes that Abel isn't too angry. "This is Jake Pierce, a friend from high school. Jake, this is Abel."

Abel fakes a smile and sticks out a hand, which Jacob looks at with disdain before ignoring. "I'd say we were more than friends, Kev. You were two seconds away from giving me a bj in a filthy bathroom stall the last time I saw you." Jacob sneers. Kevin blushes, angry that it's true, and Abel glares harder.

Abel's fingers squeeze Kevin's a little harder, and Kevin wants to kick Jacob Pierce in the nuts. Abel smiles that creepy non-smile again. "That's really lovely, Mr. Pierce," he says. "Really."

Jacob gives Abel a once over, then snorts. "I bet you aren't even his boyfriend."

Abel says, "Oh, I'm not," and Kevin wants to kill the both of them for a moment. Then, Abel says, "I'm his fiance." Kevin gets a warm feeling in his stomach, and Abel rips the curry out of a stunned Jacob Pierce's hand. He then kisses Kevin's cheek, barely catching the corner of Kevin's lips, sending a tingle through his spine, and says, "Ready to check out, love?" Kevin, too dumbstruck to speak, nods and follows Abel towards the front of the store. As soon as Jacob is out of earshot, he leans down to Kevin. "Babe, you have a lot of explaining to do."

Kevin sighs. "I know... I'm sorry for pulling you into that, I just-"

"Not that," Abel says, a playful look in his eye. "I would be your fake fiance any day of the week. I was talking about the blowjob in a filthy bathroom part. I had no clue you were so dirty, Blue." He smirks, and Kevin flushes.

"I- I was drunk! And I didn't know what I was doing anyways..." He sounds so defensive that Abel snickers uncontrollably. "Don't laugh! Let's just- Ugh. Let's never speak of this again," Kevin pleads, burying his face in his hands. He wishes that he could curl up into a ball of nonexistence.

"Alright, but I'm getting the full story one of these days." They approach the line of checkout kiosks, and Abel pauses, studying Kevin. He suddenly cups Kevin's cheek with one hand, and presses a kiss to his cheek, and Kevin's knees quiver. Upon seeing his blush, Abel grins. "You're just so cute when you blush, Blue. Too easy." He almost sounds like he's talking to himself, but he keeps steady eye contact with Kevin.

Then, suddenly, Abel turns and loads their ingredients onto the moving conveyor belt at the deserted check out space. Kevin helps as much as Abel will let him, and the check out girl smiles at their interactions.

Abel insists on paying for the groceries. Kevin says that he already brought money. Abel says that Kevin doesn't need to pay for anything, that his presence is payment enough, and that Kevin can make it up to him when they get back to his place. Kevin blushes, tries to hold his ground, and fails when he starts stuttering.

Abel laughs, kisses Kevin's nose, and shoulders most of the grocery bags. On the way back out to the parking lot, Kevin looks at Abel. He's silhouetted by the setting sun, forearms flexing from the weight of the bags, smiling at nothing, and Kevin wonders if this is what having a boyfriend feels like. He trips and nearly drops all of the vegetables at the thought.

Boyfriend. He tries the word out in his head, looking at Abel sideways. It fits him so perfectly, like a pair of shoes that haven't been worn in a while but still remember the shape of his feet. Kevin mouths the word again. Boyfriend boyfriend boyfriend.

He must say it aloud once, because Abel turns around with a look of childlike surprise. "Pardon? Did you just call me your boyfriend?" He looks all together too pleased with himself for Kevin's liking.

Kevin blushes, stuttering over his words. "N-no you must have- Must have misheard me," he looks away, embarrassed. His mind still whispers, He would be a nice boyfriend, wouldn't he? and Kevin walks faster towards the car so he doesn't have to see Abel anymore.

If Abel notices the sudden change in speed, he doesn't say much about it. He does, however, notice Kevin's silence, and decides to try to coax him into speaking. "It's getting colder out lately," he says, loading his groceries into the backseat.

Kevin hums, says something in response, but Abel forgets to listen. Kevin's curls reflect the sun like a copper mirror, blue eyes smiling up at him, and Abel wants to kiss him so bad. Something holds him back, call it apprehension or just plain fear, but he doesn't.

Abel smacks his head on the car's ceiling distractedly, and Kevin smiles He shakes his head fondly, sending his hair floating everywhere, and calls him a klutz. Abel replies with a shaky laugh, and opens Kevin's door for him. Kevin blushes bright pink, sliding into the seat and fastening his seatbelt. During the ride home, Abel keeps his eyes on the road, his hands at the proper ten and two positions, but his head keeps mumbling Blue Blue Blue Blue, until he thinks he's ready to explode.

When they arrive at Abel's dorm room, Abel bursts out of the car, relishing the feel of the cool air on his face. Once he's relaxed enough to turn back to the car, he grabs as many groceries as he can and tells Kevin to follow him.

The walk to the apartment is long and chilly, but Kevin is bouncing up and down with excitement. "Is Cal home, do you think?"

Abel shakes his head. "Nope. He's out with Seymour." A smirk spreads across his face. "Tonight, it's just you and me." He winks.

Kevin's eyes widen, and he quickly averts his glance. He nods, and mumbles a prayer for holy thoughts.

Abel chuckles, jogging up the stairs to the apartment. He fumbles with the keys, missing the hole twice, before finally managing to open the door.

The two of them stumble into a small, cozy flat. The floors are dark and wooden, covered in soft rugs. The kitchen has beige tiles that may have been white at some point, bordered by a half wall. There's a large, floral couch in the living room sitting in front of a low, white coffee table. An entertainment center is on the other side of the table, and Abel looks at it self consciously. He discreetly swipes some dust off of a nearby shelf and pops off his shoes.

Kevin follows suit, noting that Abel is wearing blue socks with penguins on them, and stands near the door awkwardly. Abel, realizing this, apologizes and runs a hand through his hair. "Right, sorry about that. I don't have guests often. Um. Just, come in, sit down if you want. I'm gonna change my shirt."

Kevin nods, biting his lip because Abel looks rather cute when he's sheepish. Once the other boy leaves the room, Kevin squeals quietly. He's going to make dinner with his non-boyfriend, which is very exciting. He decides to snoop around a little, peering at the shelves near the entertainment center. There are a number of CDs ranging the spectrum of potential musical tastes. Kevin wonders how many are Cal's and how many are Abel's.

He's fingering an album by Belle and Sebastian, whoever they are, when Abel returns from his bedroom. He's wearing a short sleeved white T-shirt, which shows off a small button tattoo on Abel's wrist, and a pair of dark glasses. Kevin can see Abel's stomach muscles through the thin fabric, the way his forearms flex, his hazel eyes behind those dorky glasses, and he almost forgets to breathe.

"You wear glasses? You look like Clark Kent," He blurts.

Abel, to Kevin's surprise, blushes. "Don't make jokes about them. I can't see without them." Before Kevin can explain that he'd meant it as a compliment, that he's had a crush on Superman since he hit puberty, Abel is taking the CD from his fingers. "Belle and Sebastian? You like them?"

Kevin shrugs, smiling sheepishly. "Don't know them."

"Well," Abel grins, "Lucky for you, this album is great to cook to. Grab an apron and let's get going." He grabs his own red apron and ties it around his waist, helping Kevin with his strings. He has to take deep breaths every time his fingers touch the sliver of exposed skin on Kevin's back, but he manages to keep himself under control.

Kevin props his phone up against the utensil holder, then slips a rubber band off of his wrist. He scoops the top portion of his hair together as best he can and binds it with the band. Abel stares openly at Kevin's exposed eyes, his smooth forehead, skin without a single wrinkle. Kevin starts unpacking groceries, and Abel does his best to do the same until he just can't anymore.

"Blue."

"Hmm?" Kevin looks up with an excited glint in his eye. Abel is only too aware of how pressed together they are at the moment.

He hums to hide a much less appropriate noise. "Nevermind. What's the first step?"

The two of them get to work, cleaning vegetables and bickering about whether or not adding coconut milk to the rice would result in coconut rice or not. After an incident involving quite a bit more than a pinch of salt, "There's Too Much Love" falls from the speakers. Though it's obvious that he's trying not to, Abel begins singing softly under his breath, swaying his hips gently while he stirs the contents of the pan.

He certainly isn't oblivious to the way Kevin's eyes follow him around the kitchen, or to the way he licks his lips involuntarily. He makes his dance moves slightly more sensual, and, to his satisfaction, Kevin's breath hitches. Once he's decided that he's teased the boy enough, Abel slips his arms around Kevin's waist. "Dance with me."

Kevin complies; after all, the curry has to simmer for fifteen minutes. He lays his arms around Abel's neck, and the back of his brain whispers, Yes, this is a boyfriend. Kevin ignores it, tumbling further into their moving embrace. He lays his head on Abel's shoulder, pressing a kiss to his neck in a burst of boldness. Abel shivers, loses his self restraint, and pulls Kevin into a lip lock. Abel leans Kevin against the counter, easing his fingers into Kevin's hair, deepening the kiss. Kevin grips Abel's shoulders, pulling him closer. Abel nudges the shorter boy's mouth open, letting out a soft groan, and-

Kevin's phone rings.

The two of them pull apart, keeping eye contact, silent until Abel laughs. He motions for Kevin to answer the call, and turns to tend to their meal, which probably would have been left to burn otherwise.

Kevin, with a blush hot enough to melt steel, picks up his cell. "Hello? Seymour, I'm kinda in the middle of something right now- Oh." His tone switches from annoyed to interested. "Really? How's that going? And why are you whispering?" Suddenly, Kevin gasps, clapping a hand over his mouth. "You're kidding!" Abel gives him a curious look, and Kevin holds up a finger. "Why are you calling me? Shouldn't you be, you know, doing your thing? Why are you in the bathroom?" There's a pause, then Kevin's face flushes. "I- Um. Why are you calling me about this? I don't know! You have to, like, s-stretch it, and- D-do you have, um, lube and that kind of thing?" Abel whips his head around toward Kevin, who is purposefully avoiding his gaze. "What do you mean why? It'll hurt if you don't-" Abel catches Kevin's eye and smirks, causing Kevin's train of thought to completely derail. He turns away, speaking frantically into the phone. "U-um. If you don't... Look, just, don't s-shove it in there all willy nilly, make sure he's comfortable, and go slow. If you don't know how, do something else. Never call me about this again." Another short pause. "I don't know! Literally anyone else. I have to go. Good luck."

He throws the phone down like it's on fire and gulps some air. Abel laughs. "Goodness, Blue, you look so terrified." He hugs Kevin from behind, setting his head on Kevin's shoulder. "I'm guessing that Seymour and Cal are doing the nasty. Seymour freaked out?"

Kevin, embarrassed by Abel's word choice, stares down the counter. "Seymour didn't know how to... Um. You know. Be on top."

Abel blinks, then laughs aloud, his shoulders shaking. When he's regained his composure, he says, "Cal owes me twenty bucks." Kevin gives him a questioning look, and Abel waves it off. "Nothing. Now, let's eat."