i like you (say it back) ; egobang

08

He slips on his sandals and grabs his keys, and Dan takes a moment to put his sneakers back on before following Arin out of the house. He hops into the passenger seat, and as soon as Arin starts the car, Dan's hand is reaching for the radio to adjust the volume.

They listen to music on the way, and Arin can't stop himself from grinning like a giant doof when Dan starts singing along loudly, getting very into it. Arin joins in, because why the hell not, and some people in the other cars stare at them when they have to stop at the red light. The both of them don't care and don't worry about the others though, singing along anyway even if they're forgetting some of the lyrics.

They find a parking spot at the grocery store and get out of the car, heading inside the building with big, dumb smiles on their faces, giggling away at nothing. They get a few looks, but neither Arin nor Dan pay any attention to anyone else.

Arin decides to push the cart and Dan stands on top of the bar jutting out a little on the end, just like a little kid would, letting the younger man push him around. He giggles a little when Arin starts messing with him, and once again, Arin can't keep a grin off of his face; Dan is just too cute like this. It's making Arin feel so many things.

Dan always makes him feel like this, and it feels great.

Suzy had made Arin a list of things to grab while they were here, so he reaches into his pocket, fishing it out and unfolding it. "Okay, so first thing's first," he murmurs, eyes scanning the list as he pushes the cart (and Dan) forward. "We need to get cat food, flavored water, soda, yogurt, milk, eggs, things to eat for dinner for the next few nights, and a couple of other things like fuckin' snacks and whatever. What do you want to have tonight?"

Dan seems to think it over. "We could just get take-out tonight and then get the other shit for tomorrow," he suggests with a shrug, hopping off of the cart when Arin rolls it to a stop in front of the produce. The younger of the two nods and looks over the food before he looks at Dan.

"How about chicken parm for tomorrow or something?" he asks, leaning into the cart. "Neither of us can really cook for shit so we'll probably be eating out a lot this week, but I can make chicken parm at least one night. Sound good?"

"Yeah, sure, sounds good," Dan replies with a bright smile, so with another nod from Arin they move along away from the produce, heading towards the dairy section nearby to get what they need there before getting lost for a while in the snack aisle.

It takes them about an hour before they're checking out with everything they came here for (and more) and then they're leaving the store. They load the groceries in and head back to Arin's house, listening to more music on the way back, their highs finally wearing off just a little.

Not much else happens for the rest of the day; they order chinese food for dinner, play some video games just to pass some time, and then they finally watch a couple of movies that they end up passing out together on the couch to around four in the morning, with Dan's head resting on Arin's shoulder and the cats both on them and near them.

They wake up at some point at least an hour later with stiff necks and decide to actually climb into bed. Arin shuts down everything and Dan sleepily makes his way up the stairs, heading into the guest bedroom across from the bathroom to change and then pass out. Arin follows after him, standing in the doorway to say goodnight.

His eyes flicker to where Dan stands in the middle of the bedroom, pulling his shirt over his head and tossing it onto the floor after, not caring about where it lands. Arin swallows thickly, feeling breathless as he lets his eyes wander and linger on Dan's exposed skin until he hears Dan working on taking off his belt.

He reluctantly tears his eyes away, clearing his throat. "Hey, goodnight dude," he says, hoping that Dan thinks he sounds weird only because he's tired. The older of the two turns slightly, giving Arin a cute, sleepy smile. "I'll uh- I'll see you whenever we get up, yeah?"

"Mhm," Dan mumbles with a little chuckle, stretching and yawning. Arin can't even look at him right now without feeling weird. He's holding his breath, his lip between his teeth, trying to calm down as Dan speaks. "Goodnight, Ar. Sleep well."

"Yeah, you too, Danny," he replies with his own smile before he leaves the doorway, heading to his own bedroom only right nearby.

He doesn't bother turning on the light, but he's already wide awake again as he strips down to his underwear to sleep. He crawls into the bed that feels so big and empty without Suzy, and knowing that she won't be coming to bed with him makes him feel so impossibly lonely.

He can't sleep now even though he feels exhausted. Part of him wants to go into the other room and climb into bed next to Dan, but he isn't sure if that's okay to do or not. Dan probably wouldn't mind; he knows how Arin gets when he's alone.

It hasn't been long since they've parted for bed, but Arin still makes sure he's quiet anyway as he throws on a shirt at least, heading out of his room and down the short hallway until he's stopped in front of the slightly opened door to the guest bedroom. It's dark for the most part, but the sun's starting to rise and it's lighting up the room just a little bit.

Arin carefully pushes the door open a little wider and slips inside, footsteps quiet on the carpeted floor of the guest bedroom as he slowly makes his way over to the decent sized bed Dan's occupying. The older man seems to be sound asleep already, and Arin finds himself smiling, unsure if he really wants to wake him.

Though once Arin's actually beside the bed, he's leaning over just a little to reach out and gently touch Dan's arm. He gives him a light shake, and then another until Dan stirs and his head pops up from under the blankets, his eyes squinting up at Arin.

"Danny?" the younger man whispers, his heart pounding so hard that it almost actually hurts. He wonders if Dan can feel his heartbeat through his fingertips or not.

Dan seems to get that there's something wrong and he sits up a little. "What's the matter, big cat?" he asks, but it comes out a bit slurred, his voice thick with sleep. "Is... is everything okay?"

"I need snuggles, dude," is all he says before Dan's opening his arms wide and Arin's climbing into the bed and under the covers like a child would after waking up from a nightmare.

He lies close to Dan, his forehead resting against the older's chest and his arms tucked safely between the both of them. "I can't fuckin' sleep knowing that Suzy won't be coming to bed," he finally admits with a soft sigh, and Dan nods in understanding, his own arms wrapped around Arin tightly.

"I understand, big cat," he tells the younger man sleepily, stroking his shoulder. "Just try to sleep now so you're not so tired when we wake up, okay?"

"Okay, it's just hard," Arin murmurs in response, letting his eyes flutter shut anyway. Dan gives him a gentle squeeze before releasing him just a little, his large hands resting on Arin's back.

"Do you want me to sing to you?" Dan questions in a whisper, brushing Arin's hair out of his face as Arin's eyes open and flicker up to him as if he doesn't understand. Dan gives a small shrug and a shy smile. "I don't know, it might help you fall asleep."

"Like a lullaby?" Arin asks him with a small quirk of the lips, almost as if he wants to snort and ask if Dan's being serious, but he isn't trying to be rude because Dan really is trying to help him.

"Sure," Dan says sleepily with a genuine smile. Arin goes quiet, but he nods and so Dan thinks it over for a bit before he finds a song that he can sing. Arin doesn't quite recognize it once Dan does start singing quietly, but in spite of that, it does help anyway. Dan's voice is quiet and soothing, and as he sings he looks down at Arin, running his fingers through the younger's hair as if he's trying to put him in a trance. The older man doesn't seem to realize he's doing it, but Arin doesn't mind, and his eyes get heavier and heavier.

Dan sings another song for him, and Arin isn't sure if it's his calming voice or the hair stroking, but he gets really relaxed and really tired. Within no time, he finally falls asleep to the sound of Dan breathing beside him and the sound of his soft voice filling the room as Dan plays with his hair, comforted by it all, but mostly by Dan's presence in general.

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