stumbling into line (sidemen ff)

Chapter 17: 'a room full of slutty dressed women'

*thanks so much for 2k reads!!*

"No, Simon.  Just, no." Ethan firmly states as he marches into the kitchen, where Josh and Vikk are sat eating what seems to be chicken nuggets and chips.  Simon chases after him like a child whose trying not to lose his mum… or dad.

"Oh, come on, babe, it'll be fun." He whines standing right next to Ethan as he rummages through their fridge.  It's not his fridge but he doesn't care, Simon had raided and emptied his fridge many times.

"It's a room full of slutty dressed women, that's not exactly my ideal is it?" Simon grumbles, he wanted Ethan to go to a strip club with him.  He didn't understand why he didn't want to go because he was absolutely certain that they would have 'a right laugh', as Vikk would say.  They'd sit by the stage and watch as big, busty women shake their asses at them and, besides the obvious perks, they would be able to laugh and maybe Ethan would get over his slight fear of naked women.

"You wouldn't be complaining if it was a gay strip club!" Simon accuses, momentarily remembering where they are and whose there with them and his cheeks are tinted a slight pink.

"Yeah, because at least then both of us would enjoy it!" Ethan raises his hands over his head as if it was obvious as he steps round Simon and makes his way back to the stairs, a bottle of orange juice now in his tightening grip.

The argument wasn't supposed to be serious, just a way for him to jokingly give away his main concerns as to why he didn't want to go.  He also knew that he would enjoy himself became he had never managed to go out with Simon and not enjoy himself.

"We should just go to the cinema instead." Simon's voice interrupts his thoughts when he is halfway up the second set of stairs.  Ethan sighs, relief washing over him.

"Yeah, we should." Ethan mumbles, falling onto Simon's bed sideways, his feet dangling off the edge.

"Sounds good to me.  The Kingsman looks good?" Simon asks, shutting his door and flopping, rather awkwardly and much to the discomfort of Ethan, on top of him.  Ethan groans but wraps his arms round Simon's waist anyway.

"Yep." He wheezes, his chest still tense from Simon's weight on top of him.  He couldn't say that he didn't like it though because he did like it.  A lot.

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"Two for 17:00 Kingsman, please." Ethan grins at the middle aged women behind the desk before fishing in his pockets for some cash.

"We've never been to the cinema together." Simon points out, gripping onto Ethan's hand whilst he places the money for his ticket on the counter.

"We came to see American Sniper two weeks ago, Monei.  Or did you forget?  Old age and all." Ethan laughs at his own joke, like normal but Simon can't help but laugh too.

"I meant just us two and I am not old." Simon claims and Ethan nods sarcastically and thanks the lady as he hands their tickets over.  Simon was right, Ethan and him had never really been on a proper date, come to think of it, which added to the reasons as to why a strip club wasn't a good idea.  Who would go to a strip club for a first date?

After buying sweets and popcorn, salty, they headed towards their screen, hand in hand and uncontrollably smiling at each other.  Just like any other couple.  And that's what they were, even if it felt weird for both of them, Simon especially, they were a couple and it took them ten months, and their first date, to realise that it was serious and wasn't just kissing in the dark at early hours of the morning or sneakily brushing against each other when they didn't think anyone was looking.  Ethan was Simon's boyfriend and Simon was Ethan's boyfriend.  Ethan never felt weird at the thought of a boyfriend, he always knew he'd rather have a boyfriend than a girlfriend.  Even when he was a little boy, even when he was a teenager with a girlfriend trying to convince everyone around him, and himself, that he was straight.  Simon, on the other hand, had spent his childhood and teenager years fawning over different girls that were hot and never in a million years did he expect to have a boyfriend.  Never.  But he was happy and that was all he could ask for.

"That was sick!" Simon declares as they exit the cinema, he's bouncing up and down from the adrenalin from the film and Ethan can't help but laugh, really loud.  People stare at them, giving them weird looks, which sometimes turn sour when they notice their interlocked fingers, but in the moment, Ethan doesn't care and he wonders why he ever did because he loves this guy next to him and should never have been ashamed to be intimate with him in front of anyone.

"It was." Ethan confirms and Simon looks back at him, a devious twinkle in his eye.  It can only mean one thing and Ethan liked it.  He liked it a lot.

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There's only one thing that can be said about Ethan and Simon and that is that they love each other so much that sometimes it makes them blind.  Oblivious to the world and the scaffolding of support surrounding them, but sometimes the scaffolding towers so high that they wouldn't even to be able to see past it anyway.  They wouldn't be able to see if there was anyone trying to knock it down or even if it was someone they knew.  People say, a lot actually, that it's the people closest to you that hurt you the most and no one can deny it or say that it's only for a few cases because it isn't.  Strangers have no real reasons to hate you, so why would they?

Sometimes, the one person you would take a bullet for is the person behind the trigger.

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"Do you love me, Ethan?"

"Yeah, course I do."

"No matter what?"

"Yes."

"Good.  I love you, too."

Ethan didn't know it, but in the darkness of the room, where nothing was visible and the only thing telling them that the other was there was their arms wrapped securely around one another, a single tear slid down Simon's cheek.  It was small and accompanied with such a lack of emotion that even Simon wasn't sure it had rolled over his cheek and dripped from his chin and onto the crisp, clean sheets of his bed.

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I really enjoyed writing this Chapter so if you could tell me your favourite part then that would be great!!

If you didn't guess, they had sex... just thought I'd clear that up.

Also, the next two chapters are a little longer than usual and are action packed... if that's what you can call emotional turmoil within the already traumatic relationship of frosh.

That was super poetic.... how gay of me.

Also, caitstaketwo was my inspiration for this chapter... the strip club bit and especially the end bit because she said that Emon wasn't having enough drama.  So, prepare your feelers for a shit storm.

Chapter 18 sneak peek:

‘Everyone is looking at him and he feels slightly uncomfortable but proceeds to rip away paper after being prompted by Freya.  Each rip reveals nothing more than a shade of brown that can only be cardboard so he speeds up his ripping process until he is left with just a box in front of him.

"If this is a load of boxes inside each other, I swear to god, someone will die." For some strange reason, Tobi looks between Josh and Freya.  Freya guesses that that is what Josh did from the smirk on his face.'

Baiii!!!  Love you guys xx <3 xx