Matchmaking ~ James Marriott x Inabber ~ Imallexx x Memeulous

Chapter 1

"Heyyy Frazzle Dazzle!"

Fraser only laughed as James collapsed onto the sofa next to him. Tipsy James was rather amusing to be around. Honestly, James was always fun to be around.

"Frayyyy."

James persisted in trying to get the younger man's attention when he didn't answer.

"Yeah? What's up man?"

"Alex and George are fliiiiiiirting!" James' words slurred slightly and his face was slight with mischief and excitement.

"I'm sure they're not really flirting, Jay, they're talking. Like we are."

"What if we're flirting?" James' eyebrows wiggled suggestively, which only lead to Fraser laughing.

"I can assure you, we are not flirting. And I'm sure they aren't either. George's straight isn't he?"

James thought for a moment. "So's spaghetti until it gets wet!" He suddenly announced proudly, and Fraser sighed.

"You've had enough to drink, James, and it's getting late, are you going home or staying over here?"

They were currently at George and Alex's apartment, where a small party was being thrown. Fraser was pretty sure it was for an occasion, but he couldn't remember what it was. A milestone maybe? It didn't really matter.
It had been a really fun evening, a lot of the commentary crew had come over and they'd steadily laughed and chatted their way through many cans and bottles of assorted alcohols.
It was late though, and Fraser always looked out for James when he was drunk. It was an agreement between the two men; Fraser took care of drunk James, and James would variously help him with any favours he needed, like babysitting Kenji.
Looking after Kenji was more of a positive for James though, because who wouldn't want to spend time with this cute lil dog.

"I'm going home, but not yet, there's still stuff to do." James pouted childishly.

Fraser couldn't help but smile at his friend. He may be a big bear of a man, but it was a soft teddy bear, cuddly and sweet.

"What do you want to do?" He asked gently, his hand resting lightly on James' arm.

"Drink!"

And with that, the older man disappeared off to find more alcohol, leaving Fraser sighing in slight exasperation, but still with a fondness for his friend.

His attention wandered around the room, observing the people around him. Fraser had never been much of a party animal, but people fascinated him. While he never wanted to be centre of attention, he loved to watch how people acted around each other, how they changed as they became more intoxicated and comfortable in the environment.

His eyes drifted to Will and Steven, who were increasingly getting louder and louder as they debated something or other, Mia watching in exasperation, not bothering to interrupt the pair.

His attention was then grasped by Alex and George, the two who had apparently been 'flirting', and to his surprise, they did seem closer than usual. You didn't have to be an expert on body language to notice that George's hand lingered on Alex's thigh as they talked, and how Alex seemed to lean unnecessarily close to George's ear when he spoke.
Of course, people act differently when they drink, but this was definitely a new occurrence, or at least new to Fraser's knowledge.
Perhaps drunk James did have a point..

His thoughts were sharply cut off by Will, suddenly appearing in front of him.
"Best crisp flavour?" He demanded, his usually bright eyes flashing darkly.

"Uhh," Fraser thought for a moment, "I quite like salt and vinegar?"
He didn't mean it to come out as a question, but he was a little scared that Will was going to punch him.

"Thank you!" The Geordie grinned approvingly, whirling round to face Steven. "S and V is peng man, fuckin cheese and onion is mingin." His slightly slurred words and fast taking, combined with his strong accent made him almost unintelligible, but Steven understood enough to start arguing again.

Fraser took this as a golden opportunity to slip away unnoticed, and wandered into the hall where he walked straight into James' chest.

"Uh.. hey," he said quickly, trying not to get flustered at his sudden proximity to the other man.

"Heyyyy Frazzle," James grinned at him, "I think I'm gonna head home soon. Everything's spinning."

Fraser instinctively put his hands on James' shoulders to steady him, finding himself suddenly looking deeply into those 'hazel eyes with gold flecks'.

"Hi there," said James softly, and Fraser just sighed, turning away to hide the slight flush creeping up his neck, and tugging the older man by the arm.
"Let's get you home, James."

Despite all his arguments, Fraser insisted on taking James all the way back to his apartment to make sure he got there safely.
The older man insisted he was perfectly fine to get back alone, but then promptly tripped on thin air and stumbled over, only to be caught by patient arms.

"I'm taking you home, you incapable dumbass."

Once he was back at his apartment, James looked sadly at Fraser.

"I'm all alone here, Fray, stay for a bit?"

One look at his hopeful face and Fraser couldn't refuse, nodding quickly and stepping inside.

Straight away he started sorting out his friends apartment, just like he did every time he came over, as James wandered sleepily into his bedroom. Fraser wanted to make sure the place was nice and neat when he woke up in the morning, as he knew James would have a hell of a hangover.

Looking briefly into James' bedroom to make sure he had got to bed okay, he was faced with the sweet site of James already fast asleep, curled up in a next of blankets. Somehow, despite his height, he looked small, and quite frankly, adorable. Smiling fondly at his sleeping friend, Fraser silently closed the door and settled comfortably down onto the sofa for the night.

A/N
the next chapter is going to be about Alex and George, so hopefully I'll be able to get that up soon
I hope you're doing okay in lockdown and staying safe
Thanks so much for reading! It means a lot to me ♡

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