I'm Not the Guy You're Taking Home | LANDAN ✔

3 : Late-Night Talks

This time, Daniel decided to stay home. He's had a headache since morning and he didn't want to push it. So when Lando called him in the middle of the night, it took Daniel a few seconds for his sleep-clouded mind to register what was even happening.

"What do you want, mate? It's three in the morning."

He heard Lando sob at the other side of the line. "Dan, I- I need your help, please."

Daniel felt his heart drop to his pants. "What's wrong? Where are you?"

"I sent you my location. And I texted you but you wouldn't reply and- Dan, I think someone spiked my drink. I feel really sick, please help me."

"Fuck, okay, shit, I'm coming, stay where you are."

When the call ended, Daniel was already putting on his shoes, grabbing his keys and rushing out the door. He jumped in his car, quickly put the location Lando sent him into his navigation and fortunately, it wasn't too far away.

He may have broken a few traffic rules, but who cares? His friend is in danger.

He arrived at the pub Lando sent and ran inside, his navigation showing his friend is hiding in the bathroom. Entering said room, he found Lando in one of the stalls, unconscious.

He quickly knelt down in front of the younger, holding his face in his hands, lightly slapping his cheek, trying to wake him up. When that didn't help, he grabbed a handful of water from a nearby sink, splashing it on Lando's face, Lando finally showing signs of life.

He slowly opened his eyes, trying to focus on what was happening in front of him. "Dan..?" he whispered.

"Hi, baby, it's me, you're okay, everything's gonna be fine." the petname was purely a slip of Daniel's tongue but he had more urgent matters to attend to than his mouth betraying his brain, at the moment. "Do you know where you are?"

Lando swallowed, blinking heavily. "A... a bar?"

"That's right. Someone spiked your drink, can you remember that?"

"Think so."

"Okay, good. Can you move?"

Lando's left foot stomped against the floor loudly. "Uh... I can, but it's... hard."

Daniel slid one arm around Lando's back, the other one holding him by the waist. "That's okay, I'll help you, alright?"

It took quite some time to manoeuvre them both out of the bar, but once Lando was safe and sound in Daniel's passenger seat, Daniel let out a sigh of relief.

"Alright, let's get out of here."

Daniel decided to bring Lando to his house, feeling the need to look after him and make sure he's feeling okay.

He helped Lando change into some of his clothes and get into his bed, tucking him in and standing up to go and make himself comfortable on the couch for the night.

"Stay... with me?" Lando's words were quiet but clear and Daniel's heart did a somersault at the request.

"Are you sure?" he asked because Lando was still under the influence of alcohol and whatever drug someone added to his drink, and also because Daniel needed to stall a bit in order to completely process the request.

"Yes."

So Daniel lay next to Lando in his bed, the younger man looking at him through his eyelashes, very obviously exhausted.

"How do you feel?"

Lando scoffed. "Like someone ran me over with a hyrd- hydreu- hydrauning- how do you say it?" he stuck his tongue out, thinking for a minute while Daniel tried to contain his laughter. "Hydraulic press. Yes. That."

Daniel snickered. "Well, at least you've still got your sense of humor."

"Yeah." Lando smiled back at him. "Thank you. For, you know, saving me from the big bad guy, 'n' all."

"You're welcome. You need to be more careful, though."

Lando sighed. "I know. I don't even know how it happened, I was watching my drink the whole night."

Daniel hummed, observing Lando's face. "I'm glad you're okay. I don't know what I'd do without you."

Lando snickered. "Sap."

"Maybe I am."

Lando's eyes fell shut and so Daniel assumed it was time to go to sleep and closed his eyes as well when suddenly-

"You called me 'baby'."

And Daniel was wide awake. "What?"

"After I came round. In the bathroom stall. You called me 'baby'." Lando opened his eyes to look at Daniel, a somewhat nervous expression on his face.

Daniel gulped. "Sorry, it just- slipped, you know? You were in a bad shape and I don't know what came over me, I guess I just wanted to- I don't know- comfort you or something and it just-"

"Danny," Lando breathed out, covering Daniel's mouth with his hand. "I don't mind."

Daniel blinked at him. "You don't?" he asked through Lando's fingers.

The younger man smiled at him. "No. Of course not. No-one's called me that in a very long time, you know?"

Daniel's face scrunched up in confusion. "Really? But you-"

"I know." Lando sighed. "But the hook-ups- they're just that; hook-ups. Sometimes they'll call me slut or fuck toy or something like that." he bit his lip nervously. "I don't really like being called any of that."

"Yeah, I can imagine." Daniel's heart hurt a little at the idea of some drunk calling the sweetest boy he knows such horrible things. "Why do you keep doing it?"

"Sorry?"

Daniel's never asked. He didn't want to invade Lando's privacy, he didn't want to seem... judgemental. But Lando was wiped, drunk, and more open than he's been with Daniel in the past year and a half and Daniel just needed to know.

"Why do you keep... going home with random men?"

"Oh," Lando chuckled. "That. Takes my mind off stuff."

Daniel frowned. Stuff? What stuff? Has Lando been struggling and he's never noticed? Was he being a horrible friend?

"What stuff?"

"Feelings."

Well, fuck. Did Lando have a crush on someone? For some reason that felt even worse than Lando fucking around every night.

"What feelings?"

"Romantic feelings, Dan. What else could it possibly be?"

Daniel shrugged. "So you like someone then?"

"I'd say like is an understatement."

Daniel swallowed whatever feelings were happening in him and smiled. "That's great, though! I'm happy for you!"

Lando scoffed. "It's not great when you don't stand a chance with him."

"Oh, trust me," Daniel laughed. "I get it."

Lando looked at him. "Speaking from experience?"

Daniel gulped. "Sorta." he noticed how Lando's eyelids started to drop, his expression sleepy. Daniel smiled. "G'night, mate."

Lando was asleep before he could respond.