[ SWEET TALK 101 ] [ Ryan Ross & William Beckett ] .006

I feel some kind of comfort when my watch wakes me up the next morning. I don't know why I feel this way. It takes me two tries to figure it out. It's either how I realize you're laying next to me, meaning you kept your promise from the night before. Or, it's just the way your sleeping chest moves against my arm. Because there are no words for that other than comfort.

Either way, I like it and I don't want to get out from under the covers. This is for two reasons as well. One, the thought of getting ready and going to the studio is almost irksome. And two, I know as soon as I move, you will wake up. And you need to sleep, baby. I vaguely remember a body crawling in next to me around 2:30 last night.

Maybe if I just inch my way out...you won't wake up. And I won't be late for Brendon.

I mean the band. The band.

And suddenly, you're alive. I can hear you shifting through the sheets. I sigh. "No, Will. Go back to sleep."

"Are you leaving?" you say in a horribly groggy voice.

"Yeah," I reply reluctantly as I lean back over the bed, brushing the hair out of your eyes. I hope you know I wish I could just lay with you all day. And I wish I had the right guts to say that to you. "I gotta go." I kiss your lips in soft disguise, both of our reaction times delayed due to lazy lips and tired eyes.

After showering longer than I should have, it's already 6:10 and I have no time to eat. So I grab an apple on the way out, only slowing down my pace when I reach the front door, taking every precaution I can to ensure its opening and closing wouldn't wake you up. But once I'm out, I dash to the parking lot.

And once I exit the apartment building, I realize it's going to be a bad day. It's raining. In L.A. My car isn't used to the rain. The last time it rained, it took twenty minutes for me to start it up. And this time, it's no different. I slam my fist on the dashboard in frustration, trying as hard as I can to get the car to start. I'm now half an hour late, so I'm not surprised when I hear my cell phone ring.

I clench my teeth, but I'm not as angry when I see Brendon's name. "My car won't start." I snap before anything else is said.

He giggles. "Don't worry about it. Want me to come get you?"

And as if on cue, the engine roars a bit louder than usual, and I smile. "I got it. See you in a bit."

"Bye, hun."

I hang up and throw my phone on the passenger's seat as I swerve out of the parking lot.

And the pet names, they can't become a habit.

I enter the building, shaking the rain off the bottoms of my pinstripe pants. I hate the rain. I never grew up with it and I don't plan on learning to. I get to our room and knock once. Then I open the door, finding the studio much emptier than last time. In fact, Brendon is the only person in there.

He's studying the screen of the laptop heavily, and I have to cough to get his attention. He looks over. "Ryan! 'Morning." He puts the laptop down and picks up a tall Starbucks coffee, bringing it over to me. "You sounded so pissed on the phone...that I ran and got you a hazelnut latte. I know you like 'em."

I can tell he's loving how amazing he knows he's making me feel. He hands it to me, and the warmth feels perfect against my cold hands. I grin and then kiss his cheek. "Thank you, Brendon." I take a sip as I sit down on the couch. "Where is everyone?"

"Jon and Spence went to order new mics."

My jaw drops. "What happened to our other ones? We just got those!"

"I know. They were cheap and retarded."

I groan and sit back, placing my latte on the table beside the couch before pulling off my coat. "Well," Brendon says softly, moving closer to me, "at least we're alone now."

My breath gets caught in my throat as he places his arm on the top of the couch behind me and moves his face an inch away from mine. Then I remember, I can trust Brendon. So I kiss him first. He places his hand behind my head and strokes my messy hair. It's quiet. The only sounds in the room is the low humming of the air conditioning. And the sound of our lips grasping one another's. I can't even hear our breathing. Just lips.

His tongue runs over my lip, and I get scared. I pull away. "We should...We should get on those vocals."

He sits back and studies me, smiling. "So...How's William?"

"Fine," I mutter.

"How was your first night together?"

Through the corner of my eye, I can see him smirking. "We didn't do anything," I mutter even more incomprehensibly, feeling my cheeks grow red.

And he moves back over to me, placing his hand on my knee, spinning his finger in small circles, breathing on my neck. "And you're okay with that?" He begins sucking on my ear, and I lose it.

"Let's go," I say, jumping off the couch and pulling Brendon up by the hand. "Let's go to your place."

---

An artificial beeping wakes me up for the second time today. This time, I'm in a different bed. And even if I wasn't naked, I would still feel like a slut. A liar. But I've been that for a while.

I cheated at 8:00 in the morning. Who does that?

My phone's ringing, and I don't want to answer it. Because I know it's going to say "William", and I know you're going to find out. I'm dead. I am seconds away from losing everything.

"Hello?" I answer in a terribly nervous voice.

"Hey, baby boy," you say happily into the phone. Brendon grins and leans next to me, listening in.

"Hi. What's up?"

"I'm at Siska's. We're partying again tonight. I want you to come."

"Oh...uh-"

"I wanna come!" Brendon yells. I look at him, wide-eyed.

You laugh. "Who was that?"

I panic. "Uh...That was Brendon. You're on speaker."

"Oh," you say, unfazed. "Well bring everyone! The more, the sexier. Just come over when you're done at the studio, okay?"

I barely hear a word you're saying. Brendon is kissing my bare chest, and I'm torturing my lung system by holding in my would-be heavy breathing.

"Ry?"

"Uh...Yeah. Bye."

I throw the phone under the covers, and Brendon bursts into laughter. "Brendon! You said you'd keep us a secret!"

He holds back more laughter. "I'm sorry, baby."

These pet names are killing me. Do I come off as a guy that likes pet names? ...Probably.

I stare down at the sheets and run my finger up and down Brendon's chest. "Look...I wanna see you. But you have to help me out, okay? I mean, you're cheating too. I just want to be with you."

Brendon, he doesn't look so amused anymore. He halts my finger and holds it, staring me in the eyes. "You know what I think, Ry?" I stare back, not liking the tone in his deep voice.

"I think you don't know what you want."

I snatch my finger back and move closer, twisting in the sheets. "No. I have what I want. All that matters is if you're okay with it all."

He purses his thick lips in thought. "I am."

"Good...Then you're coming tonight."
SCANDALOUS LOL.
you know what to do. and i'd like it if you'd do it.
<3