Fence, "You Forgot My Kiss, Part 1" Nicholas/Seiji, rated Teen

[paynesgrey]

Fandom: Fence comics
Title: You Forgot My Kiss, Part 1
Author: paynesgrey
Characters/Pairings: Nicholas Cox, Seiji Katayama, Nicholas/Seiji
Word Count: 1,578
Warnings: drug use, hazing, bullying
Spoilers: up to "Striking Distance" novel, since I'm in the middle of reading "Disarmed".
Notes: Written for the "flamingo" prompt for the Summer Mini Challenge. I have part two almost finished, but I won't be able to finish it by the end of the challenge, so I'm posting part one for now. 

Summary: A cruel prank turns into a night of interesting revelations for Nicholas and Seiji.

Also @ AO3

Part One

Nicholas woke up in his dorm room cuddling a stuffed flamingo with large twinkling eyes. He didn’t know how this happened, where this stuffy came from, and unfortunately, his memory of last night was still a blur. All he knew was upon waking, the duck curtain in their room was pulled back and bunched against the wall and his roommate was missing.

Oh, and to top it off, he smelled awful, like puke and sweat, and as if a skunk crawled into his mouth and made a home there. 

“Blech,” he said, sticking out his tongue. He tossed the stuffed flamingo to the floor and groaned. He made a motion to sit up in his bed and suddenly the room started spinning. His head pounded and his eyes ached from too much daylight.

He slumped back down in his bed, and after a minute of wishing he were dead, he powered through the pain in his brain and jumped up, and headed to the bathroom for a shower. When the hot water hit his skin, Nicholas let out a sigh of relief. He soaped up and scrubbed every inch of his body, hoping the remnants of last night could filter down into the drain and set him at ease. His memories were fuzzy, but he had some of them — all the embarrassing ones of course, but there were some moments of time that were grayed out, redacted from his brain as if to save him from further embarrassment. 

Or so he supposed.

He stepped out of the shower, dried his hair, and carelessly threw the towels on the wet floor. He knew that Seiji was going to throw a fit when he came back, but right now Nicholas didn’t care. His head hurt, and his stomach was growling and threatening to eat itself. 

He threw on some clean shorts but opted out of putting on a shirt. Food first, he thought, and he rummaged around his pile of stuff and found a small bag of unopened chocolate chip cookies. He scarfed down a few cookies before the dorm room door creaked open. 

Seiji stepped inside, still impassive as steel, and he immediately shot Nicholas a curious look. His eyes briefly roamed around their room to assess the state of things, and Nicholas watched his eyes narrow when he saw the crumpled duck curtain.

Nicholas was prepared for the lecture, but instead, his usually harsh roommate seemed concerned for his well-being. 

“How are you feeling?” he asked, his voice gentler than expected. 

Nicholas paused for a moment with shock before he answered him. “Um, terrible? I’ll survive I think.”

Seiji arched a single eyebrow at him, and Nicholas quickly moved to grab a shirt and pull it over him. Seiji averted his gaze, trying not to stare. Instead, he turned from Nicholas and carried a bag over to his side of the room.

Seiji set his things on his bed and reached inside a plastic bag he was holding. Inside, he pulled out a red Gatorade bottle and handed it to Nicholas.

“Here, if anything, this may make you feel better,” he said. 

Nicholas knew that Seiji would never drink something like this himself, so he was even more bemused by his roommate’s behavior.

“My father said this is good for hangovers, but I can’t tell you myself if it’ll work,” Seiji said. 

“Thanks,” he mumbled. Nicholas nodded slowly and then he felt even more terrible. “How was I drunk? I don’t really drink…” The memories of some of his mother’s drunkard shit-bag boyfriends flittered across his mind, and then he shuddered. He didn’t want to be like them, so he wouldn’t have dared binge on alcohol of his own volition. Never.

Seiji bit his lip, and he looked perturbed. For some odd reason, he didn’t seem mad at Nicholas, though something else was on his mind. 

“How much do you remember?” Seiji asked.

“Well, only bits and pieces. I remember eating like ten brownies that Bobby and Dante made,” Nicholas said, tapping his chin as he concentrated.

“Pot brownies, yes, but go on,” Seiji said calmly.

“Shit, those were pot brownies? Damn, I didn’t…” Nicholas said, feeling flushed from embarrassment. 

Seiji cleared his throat. “I’m not going to lecture you too much, but it isn’t wise just to shove food in your mouth without exercising some moderation. In this case, at a school dance, I’d use more caution.” Nicholas frowned, yet Seji continued. “And those weren’t all from Dante and Bobby. I think some others were snuck in there by… other people.”

“That still doesn’t explain why I suddenly decided to drink so much. I’ve had… edibles before and they don’t mess me up this much,” Nicholas confessed, rubbing his temple. He could feel the headache coming back, so he opened the Gatorade and took a large swig. The cool, sweet liquid felt soothing on his raw throat.

“You didn’t drink, Nicholas.” Seiji sighed heavily. “I think you may have been a victim of a prank. Do you at least remember that the Kings Row LaCrosse team was also at this school dance?”

He nodded. “Sure, everyone was there, football, basketball, baseball, and even swimming teams were there, and of course, the fencing team.”

“Well, I may have witnessed some students from the LaCrosse team talking about you, and not in a favorable way. Have they bullied you before?” Seiji asked.

“Oh, you mean Roger and Tad?” Nicholas said their names with derision and made a gagging face. He rolled his eyes and huffed. “Those guys are total douchebags. They’ve said some stuff to me before, none of it I haven’t heard here, like being the dirty poor kid and a charity case, blah blah, They are rich and so great and...whatever. Giant D-bags.”

“Well, I believe they are responsible for your …current state,” Seiji said bluntly. “Not only were they talking about you, but I heard them planning something, and they were feeling really proud of themselves for whatever they had done. I did some investigating while you passed out…”

“Hold on, back up, you heard them and then spied on them… for me?” Nicholas asked with wide eyes.

“Of course, I was concerned for your safety and with good reason,” Seiji said, his fair-skinned cheeks dusted with pink. He always enjoyed when Seiji blushed, so he couldn’t help but stare at him.

He looks so cute, Nicholas thought, and he was touched by Seiji’s consideration.

“Nicholas, pay attention,” Seiji said, drawing him out of his trance. “I was asking you if you remember any more from that night. What did you drink?”

Nicholas fidgeted as he answered. “Uh, um… well, someone brought grape Crush in those 2-liter bottles, and I love that stuff, so I think I filled my cup up with a least half the bottle through the night.”

“At any point during the night did you put your drink down and go somewhere else, leaving it unattended?” Seiji asked.

“Well, sure, loads of times. Lots of people were talking to me, a couple of people asked me to dance, and then one time I went looking for you,” Nicholas said. He at least remembered that.

“Yes, I remember that too. You asked me to dance,” Seiji said, his cheeks turning pinker. 

Nicholas grinned and winked at Seiji. “And with some convincing, you eventually danced with me.”

“Yes, and a slow song even,” Seiji said, his face looking redder. “Because you know how much I enjoy being close to another person and swaying in one place.”

“I do remember you liking it though, at least when you were with me,” Nicholas teased.

“I wonder about the validity of your memory,” Seiji said, and then he changed the subject. “So it seems it was likely with the number of times you left your drink unattended that someone could easily have drugged you.”

“Is that what happened?” Nicholas asked with wide eyes.

“I believe so,” Seiji said. “So you didn’t actually drink alcohol, but rather someone drugged your soda drink with some other substance.” Seiji looked angry, and Nicholas could tell he was trying hard to mask how furious he was on his friend’s behalf.

“So they drugged my drink as a prank, and I end up shitfaced and hungover, and I probably embarrassed myself and they took video,” Nicholas said. “Is that what you’re trying to tell me?”

“No, thankfully, I did not see them take a video of you,” Seiji said. “When I noticed that they were watching you and that you were starting to act strange, I convinced you to leave the dance with me. Thankfully, you complied with my request despite the state you were in.”

Nicholas felt relieved. “So you rescued me. I don’t know what to say, Seiji, other than thank you.”

“You really don’t remember anything after the dance?” Seiji asked.

Nicholas shook his head. “Barely. I just remember lights and sounds, tastes, and…” Nicholas paused and Seiji watched his friend blush. “Our dance, how it felt touching you…” he said honestly. It was Nicholas’s turn to squirm under his roommate’s gaze. 

“Right,” Seiji said quickly, feeling like he was about to explode. Tension filled the air, and Seiji fought through the awkwardness between them. He met his friend’s eyes with determination.

 “Nicholas, I suppose it’s best if I just tell you how our night went, from start to finish.”

 

And then Seiji began from the beginning.

(To be continued in Part Two).

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