Sugar

01

As far as Sundays go, Amir supposes he could have had a lot worse. Sure, he's stuck with Luka and Yuri and their hands that never seem to stop touching each other, and Kaleb glares at him whenever he tries to complain at being dragged along, but at least he's getting a free lunch and a free cake with it.

He's sat beside Luka on one end of the table, desperate to go through his phone and do something, anything, but Kaleb's like a hawk on the other end, and he's forced to try to sit still, waiting for the baker and cake decorator for their wedding cake. He hadn't imagined it would be so much work, agreeing to be Luka's best man. Kris on the other side doesn't seem to be faring much better, eyes glazed over as he pretends to listen to Kaleb explaining the catering and cake details. It had been a little miracle, that Kaleb was their friend and a highly prized wedding planner, so they'd gotten a discount for his services, but when he was on work mode, he was frankly frightening.

Mercifully, someone finally comes in, immediately endearing with a kind smile that curls at the ends, and he introduces himself as Julian, shaking everyone's hands before sitting down across them.

"My partner will be out in a few more moments, he's had a full day with three unicorn cakes for a joint birthday party," he explains, still smiling. "He's very good, your cake will be beautiful, but first it needs to taste good."

"Jai swears by your pavlova," Luka says, and Amir can see him slipping his fingers into the hole in Yuri's jeans under the table. He wants to throw up a little in his mouth, but he persists, remembering free cake free cake free cake-

"Ah, yes, he's one of our favorites," Julian says, smiling a little wider, and Amir notes the pinkness of his cheeks. "Always willing to help taste test, yes. I'll just get a plate for some cakes for you guys to sample, if you'll excuse me-"

As soon as he's out the door, Amir turns his head a little and says, "Are we here on Jai's recommendation?"

"And mine," Yuri says, eyes telling him to behave. "Julian's lemon meringue is heavenly, and I've heard a lot about Milo. He's a genius with fondant and sugar, from everything everyone's told me."

"They're very much worth their fee," Kaleb says, fixing his glasses calmly. "I've worked with them for several weddings. There's a reason they're so high in demand."

"Is how the cake going to look really going to matter, though?" Amir says, and Luka pinches his thigh. "Yah, hey-"

"Hello," Julian comes back with a plate full over several slices of cake, with the most handsome man alive walking behind him, and Amir stares, chokes on his spit as the other man bows politely to them all, his green hair slicked back and his eyes piercing, his apron folded down to his waist to reveal a sleeveless white shirt, flecked with glitter and icing in pastel pinks and purples and blues, evidence of his hard work, and his arms, rather lithe but well-defined, muscular and no one has any business wearing sleeveless shirts when it's so close to winter, but Amir can't quite think out logic.

Amir wants to get on his knees, immediately.

"Hello, I'm Milo," he greets, smiling quietly and moving to shake their hands. Amir keeps staring when he gets to him, barely remembering to introduce himself, and Milo raises an eyebrow at him, looking amused.

"Sorry for only greeting all of you now," he says, his gaze lingering on Amir for another moment, making him feel particularly smug. "Five year olds are quite the handful."

"You're hot," Luka comments casually, and Yuri nods next to him, making soft noises of agreement. Amir dies a little inside, insanely jealous that he can just say it so easily because he expects nothing, but Amir doesn't think he can speak without the tightness of his pants getting in the way.