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booshslashhavenTitle: Sunrise Over the City
Fandom/Pairing: RPS. Noelian
Rating: PG. Kissing, mild language. Very innocent.
Genre/warnings: Fluff
word count: 2883
Summary: Noel is all colour and life, and it's terrifying and amazing, and dangerous. And Julian is drawn to him like a moth to the flame...
Disclaimer: Noel and Julian belong only to themselves. The events in this are entirely fictional; a product of my overly vivid, and mostly twisted, imagination. No harm/offence intended, and no money is being made from the writing of this.
Author's note: Just a little something I wrote this evening, because I needed some fluff. Unbetaed, so I'm sure there will be things I've missed, and I repeat myself too much... But I hope you like it anyway!
Julian has no idea what time it is as he blinks lazily, but there's sunlight filtering through the bare windows that tells him it must be sometime in the morning, early probably, with the softness of the glow. His thoughts shift automatically to the man whose sofa he's laying on; he's barely known Noel five minutes but yet already there's a spark between them that both amazes and terrifies him in practically equal measures.
He'd been frightened of Noel had first; the strange kid that had taken to stalking him at his shows, finding and talking to him backstage, all energy and openness and softly sparkling exuberance that seemed to light up his blue eyes whenever he talked. But gradually, with his tenacity and his childlike persistence, he'd worn Julian down; broke past the layers of carefully, and painstakingly, constructed barriers of self-preservation, that Julian had erected over the years, without even trying, and spirited his way into Julian's life to the point that Julian wasn't sure he remembered what it was like without him in it anymore.
Noel is all colour and life, and it's terrifying and amazing, and dangerous. And Julian is drawn to him like a moth to the flame...
And if he's honest with himself, which he rarely ever is except in the early hours of the morning, when everything is quiet and still and it's impossible to hide behind the hustle and bustle of life, he's still a little scared by, of, Noel. Noel with his constant shifting and movement, his ceaseless chatter and happiness; it's something that Julian's not used to seeing in people, and certainly not when it's directed at him. And there's a naiveté to Noel, that's charming and frightening all at once because he's like a small child at times, with his enthusiasm and his endless energy, that Julian's terrified of breaking, damaging with his pessimism and his cynicism. He's never seen a crack in that happy persona, and he's beginning to think that maybe Noel really is the sunshine kid, maybe he doesn't have any insecurities and worries like Julian has in droves, and if that's the case, how long is he going to want to hang around someone like Julian; someone who's neurotic and awkward to a fault at times? How long will it be before he gets fed up, and the spark burns out, and Noel's off to find someone younger, someone more like himself? The thought alone makes Julian feel cold.
Shifting under the heavy duvet, and sighing as he realises he's not going to be able to sleep again now with the thoughts running through his head, he sits up, wincing at the sharp pull in his shoulders from sleeping on the sofa all night. There's a draft coming from somewhere, he realises, as he shivers, cold air hitting his bare arms as the duvet slips down to his waist. Turning his head, he notices the back door is slightly ajar, and frowning, he gets up to go shut it.
It's so peaceful outside, in the early hours of the morning. In the distance he can hear the sounds of a city waking up; doors opening and closing as people leave for work, the quiet drone of their passing conversations with neighbours, car engines jerking into life, and behind all that, the soft musical chirruping of the birds that have managed to make London their home. There's a quiet buzz of energy that's yet to be fully realised, but is undeniably there, just below the surface ready and waiting to emerge with the rising sun.
Unwilling to step back inside the all too quiet house, he walks forward instead, breathing in air that still feels fresh from the night, lacking the smoke fumes and pollution of the day. Noel's back garden is tiny, more of a courtyard really, but it's overgrown with ferns and bright, colourful rose bushes, all scraggly and wild, weaving their way through the tiny beds and overrunning the stone slab walkway. It's pretty, in an unkempt, natural way, much like Noel himself; untamed, and untethered by guidelines and order.
“Jul'n?” Blinking at the soft uttering of his name, he turns around, looking up and frowning slightly as he sees Noel, perched delicately at the edge of the low, flat roof of the one-storey extension, legs swinging idly, kicking at the bricks of the wall. “Come on up!”
Looking around, Julian notices a little ladder at the side, and with more difficulty than Noel he suspects, manages to heave himself up it. Noel smiles at him as he gets clambers off onto the roof, a wide honest smile that makes his heart flutter against his ribcage. But then it falls suddenly, and Noel's biting his lip, looking worried.
“I didn't wake you up did I? I tried to be quiet.”
Julian shakes his head, trying to ignore the distance to the ground as he sits down next to Noel, albeit a little further from the edge.
“No. You left the back door open though. I just got up to shut it, but it seemed so beautiful out here that I didn't really feel like going back in...” He trails off, feeling the beginnings off a flush creep over his cheeks as he realises how sappy that must have sounded.
Noel doesn't seem to mind though, smiling and nodding. “'S my favourite time of day. It's genius like this, when the city's still half asleep like this.” It never ceases to amaze him, how similar his and Noel's thoughts are at times, although Noel is ever the more eloquent at voicing them.
The silence that descends over the pair of them then isn't uncomfortable in itself, but it is disconcerting, seeing Noel like this, so utterly calm and still, and he wonders briefly if anything is wrong, if something has happened, but Noel doesn't look sad or worried, he just looks pensive.
He finds his gaze caught then, unwilling to pull away from Noel's face, softly lit with the soft, golden rays of the sun and hair blowing in the light breeze. He's wearing a pair of jeans, wrapped up in a scarf and fur-lined coat, and he seems suddenly smaller, more vulnerable out here like this. It's something he's never before seen in the younger man, and Julian feels the sudden urge to bundle him up, wrap him in cotton wool and protect him from anything that might hurt him, including himself.
Something catches his eye as he tears his gaze from Noel, embarrassed at his thoughts. There's a sketchpad sat beside the younger man, open on a drawing that Julian can't quite make out from here.
“May I?” He asks finally, partly from curiosity, and partly to fill in the gap in conversation that is so unusual when Noel is around.
“Huh?” Noel blinks, awakening seemingly from some deep thought, as he turns to look at Julian, confusion clouding his features until he catches where Julian is looking, and he looks suddenly unsure of himself. Again, another first for Julian. “Um, yeah, if you want. It's a bit rubbish though.”
Slowly, Julian reaches out to pick it up, aware of Noel's gaze on him and the thumb firmly planted between his lips as he watches Julian carefully.
It's a picture of the scene from the roof, Julian realises as he draws it closer, inspecting it carefully in the half-light. A fairly crudely drawn depiction of the view, and coloured in pastels, but far from thinking it's rubbish, Julian's actually awed by it as he drinks in the details on the page. Sunrise over the city.
Noel seems to take his silence as a bad thing though, as he shrugs and mutters around the end of the thumb he's sucking on: “Told you. It's nothing like I normally draw. I just sketched it quickly this morning...” He looks down then, and Julian blinks, trying to come up with something to say.
“I... No. It's not rubbish; it's fucking amazing actually...” And it is. Really, he thinks, as his fingers trace the lines of a building. He's never seen a drawing that so effortlessly blends reality with fantasy before. It's better than a photograph really, more honest and alive somehow and almost more beautiful than the real thing; it's like London through the eyes of an innocent, without the pollution and corruption that comes with age and its respective cynicism. In short, it's something that so encompasses Noel, and everything he is. Soft lines and warm, vibrant colours, shades of red and orange and gold, that are somehow both chaotic and calming all at the same time.
Noel's smiling, almost shyly at him when he looks up, and it's lighting up his eyes with that strange glow again, but rather than feeling afraid of it, Julian feels warmed by it this time and can't help his own lips curling up in response.
“Do you come up here often?” He asks suddenly, blinking in the intensity of those blue eyes.
“Yeah. Usually when I've got things on my mind and I can't sleep.” Julian frowns at that, the thought that Noel has trouble sleeping sometimes just as he does, and the soft, almost wistful tone of his voice. He wants to ask why he's out here now, what he's thinking about, but he's not sure if he knows Noel well enough for a question as personal as that just yet.
In the end, whether it's the softness of the moment, or the serenity of their surroundings he's not sure, but he decides to throw caution to the wind for once: “Is there anything wrong?”
“What?” Noel looks confused for a second, before catching on and smiling, ducking his head. “No, not really, just thinking about someone, that's all.”
“Ah,” Julian's tone is teasing, although he doesn't really feel that way. “Someone you have your eye on I take it?”
“Yeah. I think so. Although I'm not sure he feels the same way. I've only just met him see. And I'm, well, I'm pretty fucking weird at times...”
Julian frowns at that, wanting to reach out and push the fringe back that's shielding Noel's face now. “You're not weird. Well, not that much.” He can't refuse the little dig, and he's rewarded with a sideways glance and a tiny smile for his efforts. “Seriously though. You're a pretty amazing person, Noel. You're funny, and charming, and charismatic; when you walk into a room, people stop and look at you, really look.”
“Trying to work out where the labels gone probably,” Noel says, but Julian can hear the smile in his voice. “You really think that about me?”
Julian's mouth is dry, and he licks his lips self-consciously. “Yeah,” he says finally, softly, and realises it's true, everything he's said, he really believes it.
He's not sure what drives him to it, a moment of madness maybe, but before he knows it he's shifting over, sitting closer to Noel and touching his arm tentatively, trying to offer some small measure of reassurance to the usually so confident man, who suddenly seems his age right now. He swallows, as Noel looks down at his hand, before covering it, just as tentatively with his own, and it seems like something unspoken passes between them in that moment, some spark of mutual understanding and companionship, and he feels calmer then, and more real, than he's ever felt in his life.
Noel shifts, leaning into him, head on Julian's shoulder, and it's almost enough to steal the air from his lungs, the feeling of warmth that he gets from just that simple gesture, and when he rests his arm around Noel's shoulder, the contented sigh that he gets from Noel in return, makes his stomach flutter and flip happily.
He thinks maybe, as they sit there in comfortable silence, watching the city coming to life and the shards of early morning sun turn to day, that the first joke they'd ever written together, just a few weeks before, wasn't really a joke after all. Because whilst it was a bit of exaggeration, saying that he had nothing on, it was true that he had nothing important on; after all, everything else simply pales when in comparison to Noel.
They stay like that for sometime, until Noel yawns, apologising softly as he rubs his head against the wool of Julian's jumper, soft hair tickling Julian's cheek, and Julian smiles, squeezing Noel gently and softly announcing that maybe he should go back to bed for awhile, as he's obviously still tired.
“Comfy here,” Noel says, through another yawn, and Julian laughs softly, smiling at the pout Noel throws at him as he sits up, arm slipping away as he pokes Noel's side softly.
“Come on, sleeping beauty. Before you fall asleep out here and get a crick in your neck, and moan about it all day.”
“Are you saying I complain a lot, Barratt?”
“I wouldn't dare!” Julian says, unable to keep the smirk from rising on his face.
“Jerk,” Noel says, although he's smiling and his eyes are shining. “Come on then I suppose. You are getting old, and you need your beauty sleep!”
“Cheeky little tart.” The banter between them is familiar, welcome, and it eases the bunched up emotions that are sitting on Julian's chest. He still feels like something has shifted between them though, something important that he can't quite put his finger on.
Noel stands first, grabbing his pencils and sketchbook as he does so, and Julian notices as he picks it up, that most of the pages are filled and he's curious as to their contents.
“Can I see the others sometime?” He asks, pointing to it, and Noel looks embarrassed again, shrugging nervously.
“S'pose. None of them are that good though. It's like, my normal pictures. Not the surreal stuff I usually do...”
“That's not a bad thing, Noel,” Julian says, frowning as he stands. “You don't have to be wacky all the time.”
“Yeah, I know. But 's what people expect of me, ain't it? Weird stuff...”
“I don't,” the words are soft, and meant, and they earn Julian an honest smile in return that contains so much.
“Yeah. I know...”
Julian lets Noel lead them back off the roof and into the house, insides twisting and mind whirring with everything that's happened on the roof. He wonders if they'll ever mention it again, that silent connection that seemed to form between them up there alone together...
Noel stops him, as he goes to walk back to the sofa, with a gentle touch to his arm, and when Julian turns to him, he's looking down, studying his shoes, hair over his eyes again and thumb between his lips.
“I...” There's so much uncertainty in Noel's voice, that Julian can't help but reach out, touching Noel's chin softly and lifting his head, almost shattering at the fear that's so alien in Noel's eyes.
“Go on...” He prompts softly, barely above a whisper.
“Would you think I was a bit strange if I asked you to come up and sleep with me. Not in a sex way or anything, just share my bed,” he adds the last bit quickly, cheeks flushing. “It can't be comfortable on that sofa, and I've got a double. It's just, I don't really want to be alone...” Trailing off at the end, he bites his lip, and Julian gently brushes his thumb across it, frowning as he plucks it from between his teeth.
“Yeah... I would. Maybe. Think it's strange that is,” he says softly, and not unkindly.
They're staring at each other now, and Julian can feel the tingling in his fingertips, little sparks of electricity flying from Noel's skin. Noel's breath is warm as it caresses his fingers, and more than anything, he wants to know what those lips taste like, and he thinks, thinks, he sees the same need in Noel's eyes.
He has no idea who moves first, maybe it's simultaneous, but he doesn't dwell on it for long, because he can't, not when he feels his lips touch Noel's; he can't think of anything but their softness. His whole world reducing down to nothing more than his lips, and the tingling that spreads throughout his body, right down to his toes. It's not a sexual kiss, nor is it practised or passionate; it's awkward, and anxious, and both their lips are dry, tongues not daring to press forward.
But still, it's perfect; soft and delicate, and so utterly consuming, that it sets his skin on fire, and when he pulls back, resting his forehead against Noel's, trying to calm his racing pulse and his swirling stomach at the realisation, that this is what has shifted. This is what's changed.
“It's a good thing I'm a bit strange, too, then, isn't it...”
The smile Noel gives him as he pulls away and looks at him, is so full of innocence and happiness and life, and the light in his eyes is absolutely blinding.
But this time, Julian's not scared.
Fandom/Pairing: RPS. Noelian
Rating: PG. Kissing, mild language. Very innocent.
Genre/warnings: Fluff
word count: 2883
Summary: Noel is all colour and life, and it's terrifying and amazing, and dangerous. And Julian is drawn to him like a moth to the flame...
Disclaimer: Noel and Julian belong only to themselves. The events in this are entirely fictional; a product of my overly vivid, and mostly twisted, imagination. No harm/offence intended, and no money is being made from the writing of this.
Author's note: Just a little something I wrote this evening, because I needed some fluff. Unbetaed, so I'm sure there will be things I've missed, and I repeat myself too much... But I hope you like it anyway!
Julian has no idea what time it is as he blinks lazily, but there's sunlight filtering through the bare windows that tells him it must be sometime in the morning, early probably, with the softness of the glow. His thoughts shift automatically to the man whose sofa he's laying on; he's barely known Noel five minutes but yet already there's a spark between them that both amazes and terrifies him in practically equal measures.
He'd been frightened of Noel had first; the strange kid that had taken to stalking him at his shows, finding and talking to him backstage, all energy and openness and softly sparkling exuberance that seemed to light up his blue eyes whenever he talked. But gradually, with his tenacity and his childlike persistence, he'd worn Julian down; broke past the layers of carefully, and painstakingly, constructed barriers of self-preservation, that Julian had erected over the years, without even trying, and spirited his way into Julian's life to the point that Julian wasn't sure he remembered what it was like without him in it anymore.
Noel is all colour and life, and it's terrifying and amazing, and dangerous. And Julian is drawn to him like a moth to the flame...
And if he's honest with himself, which he rarely ever is except in the early hours of the morning, when everything is quiet and still and it's impossible to hide behind the hustle and bustle of life, he's still a little scared by, of, Noel. Noel with his constant shifting and movement, his ceaseless chatter and happiness; it's something that Julian's not used to seeing in people, and certainly not when it's directed at him. And there's a naiveté to Noel, that's charming and frightening all at once because he's like a small child at times, with his enthusiasm and his endless energy, that Julian's terrified of breaking, damaging with his pessimism and his cynicism. He's never seen a crack in that happy persona, and he's beginning to think that maybe Noel really is the sunshine kid, maybe he doesn't have any insecurities and worries like Julian has in droves, and if that's the case, how long is he going to want to hang around someone like Julian; someone who's neurotic and awkward to a fault at times? How long will it be before he gets fed up, and the spark burns out, and Noel's off to find someone younger, someone more like himself? The thought alone makes Julian feel cold.
Shifting under the heavy duvet, and sighing as he realises he's not going to be able to sleep again now with the thoughts running through his head, he sits up, wincing at the sharp pull in his shoulders from sleeping on the sofa all night. There's a draft coming from somewhere, he realises, as he shivers, cold air hitting his bare arms as the duvet slips down to his waist. Turning his head, he notices the back door is slightly ajar, and frowning, he gets up to go shut it.
It's so peaceful outside, in the early hours of the morning. In the distance he can hear the sounds of a city waking up; doors opening and closing as people leave for work, the quiet drone of their passing conversations with neighbours, car engines jerking into life, and behind all that, the soft musical chirruping of the birds that have managed to make London their home. There's a quiet buzz of energy that's yet to be fully realised, but is undeniably there, just below the surface ready and waiting to emerge with the rising sun.
Unwilling to step back inside the all too quiet house, he walks forward instead, breathing in air that still feels fresh from the night, lacking the smoke fumes and pollution of the day. Noel's back garden is tiny, more of a courtyard really, but it's overgrown with ferns and bright, colourful rose bushes, all scraggly and wild, weaving their way through the tiny beds and overrunning the stone slab walkway. It's pretty, in an unkempt, natural way, much like Noel himself; untamed, and untethered by guidelines and order.
“Jul'n?” Blinking at the soft uttering of his name, he turns around, looking up and frowning slightly as he sees Noel, perched delicately at the edge of the low, flat roof of the one-storey extension, legs swinging idly, kicking at the bricks of the wall. “Come on up!”
Looking around, Julian notices a little ladder at the side, and with more difficulty than Noel he suspects, manages to heave himself up it. Noel smiles at him as he gets clambers off onto the roof, a wide honest smile that makes his heart flutter against his ribcage. But then it falls suddenly, and Noel's biting his lip, looking worried.
“I didn't wake you up did I? I tried to be quiet.”
Julian shakes his head, trying to ignore the distance to the ground as he sits down next to Noel, albeit a little further from the edge.
“No. You left the back door open though. I just got up to shut it, but it seemed so beautiful out here that I didn't really feel like going back in...” He trails off, feeling the beginnings off a flush creep over his cheeks as he realises how sappy that must have sounded.
Noel doesn't seem to mind though, smiling and nodding. “'S my favourite time of day. It's genius like this, when the city's still half asleep like this.” It never ceases to amaze him, how similar his and Noel's thoughts are at times, although Noel is ever the more eloquent at voicing them.
The silence that descends over the pair of them then isn't uncomfortable in itself, but it is disconcerting, seeing Noel like this, so utterly calm and still, and he wonders briefly if anything is wrong, if something has happened, but Noel doesn't look sad or worried, he just looks pensive.
He finds his gaze caught then, unwilling to pull away from Noel's face, softly lit with the soft, golden rays of the sun and hair blowing in the light breeze. He's wearing a pair of jeans, wrapped up in a scarf and fur-lined coat, and he seems suddenly smaller, more vulnerable out here like this. It's something he's never before seen in the younger man, and Julian feels the sudden urge to bundle him up, wrap him in cotton wool and protect him from anything that might hurt him, including himself.
Something catches his eye as he tears his gaze from Noel, embarrassed at his thoughts. There's a sketchpad sat beside the younger man, open on a drawing that Julian can't quite make out from here.
“May I?” He asks finally, partly from curiosity, and partly to fill in the gap in conversation that is so unusual when Noel is around.
“Huh?” Noel blinks, awakening seemingly from some deep thought, as he turns to look at Julian, confusion clouding his features until he catches where Julian is looking, and he looks suddenly unsure of himself. Again, another first for Julian. “Um, yeah, if you want. It's a bit rubbish though.”
Slowly, Julian reaches out to pick it up, aware of Noel's gaze on him and the thumb firmly planted between his lips as he watches Julian carefully.
It's a picture of the scene from the roof, Julian realises as he draws it closer, inspecting it carefully in the half-light. A fairly crudely drawn depiction of the view, and coloured in pastels, but far from thinking it's rubbish, Julian's actually awed by it as he drinks in the details on the page. Sunrise over the city.
Noel seems to take his silence as a bad thing though, as he shrugs and mutters around the end of the thumb he's sucking on: “Told you. It's nothing like I normally draw. I just sketched it quickly this morning...” He looks down then, and Julian blinks, trying to come up with something to say.
“I... No. It's not rubbish; it's fucking amazing actually...” And it is. Really, he thinks, as his fingers trace the lines of a building. He's never seen a drawing that so effortlessly blends reality with fantasy before. It's better than a photograph really, more honest and alive somehow and almost more beautiful than the real thing; it's like London through the eyes of an innocent, without the pollution and corruption that comes with age and its respective cynicism. In short, it's something that so encompasses Noel, and everything he is. Soft lines and warm, vibrant colours, shades of red and orange and gold, that are somehow both chaotic and calming all at the same time.
Noel's smiling, almost shyly at him when he looks up, and it's lighting up his eyes with that strange glow again, but rather than feeling afraid of it, Julian feels warmed by it this time and can't help his own lips curling up in response.
“Do you come up here often?” He asks suddenly, blinking in the intensity of those blue eyes.
“Yeah. Usually when I've got things on my mind and I can't sleep.” Julian frowns at that, the thought that Noel has trouble sleeping sometimes just as he does, and the soft, almost wistful tone of his voice. He wants to ask why he's out here now, what he's thinking about, but he's not sure if he knows Noel well enough for a question as personal as that just yet.
In the end, whether it's the softness of the moment, or the serenity of their surroundings he's not sure, but he decides to throw caution to the wind for once: “Is there anything wrong?”
“What?” Noel looks confused for a second, before catching on and smiling, ducking his head. “No, not really, just thinking about someone, that's all.”
“Ah,” Julian's tone is teasing, although he doesn't really feel that way. “Someone you have your eye on I take it?”
“Yeah. I think so. Although I'm not sure he feels the same way. I've only just met him see. And I'm, well, I'm pretty fucking weird at times...”
Julian frowns at that, wanting to reach out and push the fringe back that's shielding Noel's face now. “You're not weird. Well, not that much.” He can't refuse the little dig, and he's rewarded with a sideways glance and a tiny smile for his efforts. “Seriously though. You're a pretty amazing person, Noel. You're funny, and charming, and charismatic; when you walk into a room, people stop and look at you, really look.”
“Trying to work out where the labels gone probably,” Noel says, but Julian can hear the smile in his voice. “You really think that about me?”
Julian's mouth is dry, and he licks his lips self-consciously. “Yeah,” he says finally, softly, and realises it's true, everything he's said, he really believes it.
He's not sure what drives him to it, a moment of madness maybe, but before he knows it he's shifting over, sitting closer to Noel and touching his arm tentatively, trying to offer some small measure of reassurance to the usually so confident man, who suddenly seems his age right now. He swallows, as Noel looks down at his hand, before covering it, just as tentatively with his own, and it seems like something unspoken passes between them in that moment, some spark of mutual understanding and companionship, and he feels calmer then, and more real, than he's ever felt in his life.
Noel shifts, leaning into him, head on Julian's shoulder, and it's almost enough to steal the air from his lungs, the feeling of warmth that he gets from just that simple gesture, and when he rests his arm around Noel's shoulder, the contented sigh that he gets from Noel in return, makes his stomach flutter and flip happily.
He thinks maybe, as they sit there in comfortable silence, watching the city coming to life and the shards of early morning sun turn to day, that the first joke they'd ever written together, just a few weeks before, wasn't really a joke after all. Because whilst it was a bit of exaggeration, saying that he had nothing on, it was true that he had nothing important on; after all, everything else simply pales when in comparison to Noel.
They stay like that for sometime, until Noel yawns, apologising softly as he rubs his head against the wool of Julian's jumper, soft hair tickling Julian's cheek, and Julian smiles, squeezing Noel gently and softly announcing that maybe he should go back to bed for awhile, as he's obviously still tired.
“Comfy here,” Noel says, through another yawn, and Julian laughs softly, smiling at the pout Noel throws at him as he sits up, arm slipping away as he pokes Noel's side softly.
“Come on, sleeping beauty. Before you fall asleep out here and get a crick in your neck, and moan about it all day.”
“Are you saying I complain a lot, Barratt?”
“I wouldn't dare!” Julian says, unable to keep the smirk from rising on his face.
“Jerk,” Noel says, although he's smiling and his eyes are shining. “Come on then I suppose. You are getting old, and you need your beauty sleep!”
“Cheeky little tart.” The banter between them is familiar, welcome, and it eases the bunched up emotions that are sitting on Julian's chest. He still feels like something has shifted between them though, something important that he can't quite put his finger on.
Noel stands first, grabbing his pencils and sketchbook as he does so, and Julian notices as he picks it up, that most of the pages are filled and he's curious as to their contents.
“Can I see the others sometime?” He asks, pointing to it, and Noel looks embarrassed again, shrugging nervously.
“S'pose. None of them are that good though. It's like, my normal pictures. Not the surreal stuff I usually do...”
“That's not a bad thing, Noel,” Julian says, frowning as he stands. “You don't have to be wacky all the time.”
“Yeah, I know. But 's what people expect of me, ain't it? Weird stuff...”
“I don't,” the words are soft, and meant, and they earn Julian an honest smile in return that contains so much.
“Yeah. I know...”
Julian lets Noel lead them back off the roof and into the house, insides twisting and mind whirring with everything that's happened on the roof. He wonders if they'll ever mention it again, that silent connection that seemed to form between them up there alone together...
Noel stops him, as he goes to walk back to the sofa, with a gentle touch to his arm, and when Julian turns to him, he's looking down, studying his shoes, hair over his eyes again and thumb between his lips.
“I...” There's so much uncertainty in Noel's voice, that Julian can't help but reach out, touching Noel's chin softly and lifting his head, almost shattering at the fear that's so alien in Noel's eyes.
“Go on...” He prompts softly, barely above a whisper.
“Would you think I was a bit strange if I asked you to come up and sleep with me. Not in a sex way or anything, just share my bed,” he adds the last bit quickly, cheeks flushing. “It can't be comfortable on that sofa, and I've got a double. It's just, I don't really want to be alone...” Trailing off at the end, he bites his lip, and Julian gently brushes his thumb across it, frowning as he plucks it from between his teeth.
“Yeah... I would. Maybe. Think it's strange that is,” he says softly, and not unkindly.
They're staring at each other now, and Julian can feel the tingling in his fingertips, little sparks of electricity flying from Noel's skin. Noel's breath is warm as it caresses his fingers, and more than anything, he wants to know what those lips taste like, and he thinks, thinks, he sees the same need in Noel's eyes.
He has no idea who moves first, maybe it's simultaneous, but he doesn't dwell on it for long, because he can't, not when he feels his lips touch Noel's; he can't think of anything but their softness. His whole world reducing down to nothing more than his lips, and the tingling that spreads throughout his body, right down to his toes. It's not a sexual kiss, nor is it practised or passionate; it's awkward, and anxious, and both their lips are dry, tongues not daring to press forward.
But still, it's perfect; soft and delicate, and so utterly consuming, that it sets his skin on fire, and when he pulls back, resting his forehead against Noel's, trying to calm his racing pulse and his swirling stomach at the realisation, that this is what has shifted. This is what's changed.
“It's a good thing I'm a bit strange, too, then, isn't it...”
The smile Noel gives him as he pulls away and looks at him, is so full of innocence and happiness and life, and the light in his eyes is absolutely blinding.
But this time, Julian's not scared.
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Date: 2009-01-19 05:38 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-01-19 06:18 pm (UTC)Me and my boyfriend were talking about films and stuff the other day and I said (and I quote): "I like that guy, you know, the one you does the weird stuff." Yeah, so helpful, lol. *rolls eyes*
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Date: 2009-01-19 07:31 pm (UTC)"its the thing, with the guy, and hte other guy, and the whatjamacallit"
haha
Clearly it means we're cool
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Date: 2009-01-19 09:53 pm (UTC)And I'm pretty sure I've said that exact sentence more times than I can count! lol
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Date: 2009-01-19 10:45 pm (UTC)I think i've said it too, another favourite is : I see the world a little differently :)