Chapter Text
There was a firework event happening in town and there’d been posters up for weeks. There was going to be a fifteen minute display with food trucks and music and fairground rides, and all of their friends were going, Calum and Ashton included.
Luke was incredibly excited. Autumn was his absolute favourite time of the year – this season especially had been wonderful – and a firework display with hot food, a Waltzer, and all of his friends sounded like a brilliant way to say goodbye to autumn.
Calum and Ashton were loudly proclaiming that it was going to be the best night of the year so far, and Luke was equally excited, scrolling through his Facebook pictures that showed how much fun he’d had at the event last year with an enormous smile on his face.
Michael was being mysteriously quiet.
He seemed nervous and wary in the days leading up to the event, and it was kind of starting to worry Luke although Michael insisted it was nothing, simply blushing bright red whenever the younger boy brought it up.
When the day of the firework event dawned and Michael still looked just as uncomfortable as he had done for the last week, Luke finally drew the older boy aside, trying to hide how much his hands were trembling as he tugged Michael away from Calum and Ashton by the sleeve.
The four of them had been wandering around the shops in town but the tension rolling off of Michael in waves was setting Luke on edge and making his anxiety flare up.
“Mikey?” Luke’s voice was small and hopeless, and the concern blazing in Michael’s emerald green eyes when he looked up at Luke made confusion blossom in Luke’s chest. “You’re being… different.” The blond boy bit his lip, hanging his head and biting down on his bottom lip so that it wouldn’t have a chance to wobble. “Do you… do you r-regret…?”
Michael looked appalled but his hands were soft as he cupped Luke’s face gently, his thumbs rubbing soothingly under the blond boy’s tired eyes.
“Of course I don’t, Lukey!” Michael promised, his eyes wide like he was shocked that he’d made Luke think something so crazy. “I love y– Uh, spending time with you! I could never regret that!”
Luke’s blue eyes were sparkling faintly but he still looked worried.
“Then what’s wrong?” he breathed when he saw the hesitance bleeding back into Michael’s eyes.
“It… it’s really stupid,” Michael mumbled and Luke’s eyes flashed at that because he hated the knowledge that maybe someone had discounted something Michael had said before, made him feel like it wasn’t worthwhile.
“Try me,” Luke said, the late-autumn sunlight flashing off the burnished gold of his hair, his fiery blue eyes locked on Michael’s face. “Because if it’s important to you then it’s not stupid. Not in the slightest.”
Michael’s eyes softened infinitesimally but he still looked worried.
“I… I don’t really… I d-don’t like fireworks.”
He looked disgusted with himself but Luke could see the fear in Michael’s eyes now that he knew to look for it and it kind of hurt.
Luke’s arms wound around Michael’s tensed shoulders and he played with the soft little black hairs growing at the base of Michael’s skull. Luke rubbed his fingertips over the skin there and Michael’s jaw went slack as he let his forehead fall to rest against Luke’s broad shoulder, like it felt really good.
“It’s not stupid,” Luke promised, his lips brushing Michael’s neck as one of his hands fell to rub Michael’s back soothingly instead. Ashton and Calum had already wandered into another shop by now so the pair were alone.
“Luke –” Michael began hopelessly, like he was about to disagree.
“I mean it, Mikey,” the blond boy said, drawing back so that he could press a kiss to Michael’s forehead instead. “It’s a perfectly valid fear. Lots of people are frightened of them.” Luke bit his lip, his blue eyes sad as he brushed Michael’s overheated cheek gently with his knuckle. “Did you think I was going to laugh at you? Mike, I’m scared of talking in front of more than three people.”
“Shut up,” Michael said but he was smiling faintly now.
“Didn’t the fireworks at Ash’s place scare you?” Luke whispered after a moment and Michael shrugged half-heartedly as his expression tightened, face flaming and ashamed.
“I didn’t want you to miss it,” he said. Michael’s hair was soft beneath Luke’s fingers when he stroked it back from Michael’s forehead.
“I don’t mind missing this one,” Luke said honestly and his voice might have been steady but his hands were trembling. “You’re more important. A lot more.”
Michael pulled Luke into a grateful hug and the blond boy hid his smile in Michael’s neck, holding on tight as the cars rumbled quietly past them and Michael’s lips found Luke’s cheek.
“I’ll never regret you, Luke,” Michael repeated suddenly, like he could tell the blond boy was still worrying silently from earlier. Luke’s cheeks flushed with blood and he looked down at Michael, his beautiful face so kind that it took the older boy’s breath away.
“I’ll never regret you either,” the blond boy said softly, his voice sure.
Luke drew Michael into a kiss.
*
The pair of them decided to stay at Luke’s instead, sitting cuddled up together on the cushions covering the window seat, wrapped up in Luke’s duvet.
They got the best of both worlds that way.
Michael could see The Nightmare Before Christmas playing on the blond boy’s laptop where they’d balanced it on the edge of the desk and Luke could see the fireworks from a distance if he craned his head to look out of the window.
Luke wasn’t particularly bothered about the fireworks though.
He had a beautiful Michael Clifford snuggled safely to his chest and he seemed much more worthy of Luke’s attention.
The blond boy stroked Michael’s hair gently, carding his fingers through the dark waves and rubbing his fingertips on Michael’s scalp, making the smaller boy stretch contentedly like a cat in a patch of sunlight.
“Mikey?” Luke asked softly, his voice little more than a murmur as he brushed the black-haired boy’s fringe away from his forehead. Luke ducked his head to kiss the end of Michael’s nose when he looked up at him and Michael smiled slow and easy, his hand forming a loose fist in the material of Luke’s jumper, his rosy cheek soft where it was resting against the blond boy’s chest.
“I love you,” Luke said quietly and it didn’t feel scary like he’d been expecting it to. It felt safe.
Michael’s emerald green eyes were shining and Luke’s breath escaped him in a contented sigh when Michael stretched up to kiss him chastely in the early evening.
“I love you too,” Michael whispered back, his eyes glittering, his cherry-red lips tugging up into a mischievous smile when Luke’s hopeful blue eyes settled on his face. “Always will.”
Luke beamed, smiling so wide his face hurt as he cupped Michael’s cheeks gently, dropping kisses all over him.
“Always, always, always,” Luke giggled, feeling something click inside him.
He thought that, with Michael there beside him, they were probably going to be happy for a very long time.
(As it turned out, Luke was right.)