"Can I open my eyes yet?"

"Not yet."

"...it got really loud. Where are we?"

"You'll see."

"Now?"

"No, not now."

Pause.

"Now?"

"Christ, Rob, you're turning 24, not 4."

"You can't be mean to me, it's my birthday. Mike, he's being mean."

"Chester, stop being mean."

A snicker. "Yes, mom." A pause. "Okay, now."

The blindfold was lifted, and Rob tentatively opened his eyes, blinking rapidly against the sudden brightness. Once his vision had adjusted his surroundings sprang into sharp focus. He let out a surprised cry that was part gasp and yelp and clapped his hands firmly over his eyes.

"What's wrong?" Chester asked confusedly, shooting Mike bewildered look. The younger man just shook his head, equally lost. "Rob, what is it?"

"This--this is a strip club," he gulped.

Chester blinked owlishly at the frightened drummer. "Well...yeah."

Rob whimpered. "They're naked," he whispered, swallowing hard.

Mike blinked. "Yes. That's the point."

Rob whimpered again and took a step back, eyes still tightly closed. "I can't--this isn't--"

Mike exchanged another glance with Chester. This definitely wasn't the reaction they had expected.

"Okay..." Mike said slowly, mind working. "You stay here and talk about it with Chaz. I'm gonna get a table." Chester opened his mouth to protest but Mike was already disappearing into the crowd, leaving him with a very upset Rob.

"Here, let's go outside," Chester instructed gently, taking Rob's elbow and leading him through the door. Once the noise behind them died and the cool night air touched his face Rob uncovered his eyes, blinking widely in the dark. Chester was standing in front of him, a baffled expression on his face.

"Want to tell me what that was about?" he asked, the concern in his voice softening the sharp words.

Rob took a deep breath, the cold December air like fire in his lungs. "It just isn't...right," he said lamely.

"What?" Chester pressed.

Rob gestured expansively at the club behind them. "That!" he exclaimed emphatically, his unease clearly written in the tense set of his shoulders. "Seeing women...like that...I don't even know them!"

Chester stared at his friend as if he'd just told him that his outfit clashed. "You've got to be kidding me," he said, half-laughing in uneasy surprise. "For god's sake, Rob, it's not like you're a virgin, it's nothing you haven't seen...be...fore?"

Chester trailed off as the warm blush infusing Rob's cheeks blazed to new heights. The drummer dropped his embarrassed gaze to the ground, shifting nervously from foot to foot until he couldn't take the awkward silence anymore. "What?" he snapped, voice rough with anger to hide his humiliation. "Do you have a problem with that?"

Chester realized he was staring and snapped his jaw shut, lowering his gaze to the peculiarly un-scuffed toes of his grey Pumas. "No," he responded quietly, sounding thoughtful. "That's cool, man. I totally respect that."

"It's pathetic." Chester glanced up curiously to see Rob slump against the wall, sliding down the rough brick until he sat on the sidewalk with his knees bent in front of him. Chester hesitated a moment, then dropped delicately to the ground beside him, knees drawn primly to his chest. Rob glanced over at him and gave him a bitter smile.

"I'm a fucking pussy," he muttered disgustedly.

"Hey," Chester countered softly, scooting a little closer until their knees and shoulders touched. "Don't say that. You haven't found the right girl yet. It's okay."

"I'll never find the right girl," Rob mumbled.

"Of course you will," Chester reassured, but Rob's low, nervous laugh cut him short.

"No, I won't," he countered firmly. Dropped his gaze, then lifted it again, looking the singer defiantly in the eye. "I don't like girls."

He watched comprehension dawn in dark brown eyes and looked away. "Oh," Chester said simply, understandably surprised. There was an awkward pause, and then Chester spoke again. "Why didn't you tell anyone?" he asked gently. Rob's shoulders lifted and fell in a helpless shrug.

"It scared me," he murmured, so softly Chester had to lean closer to hear. "It still scares me. I didn't know how you--the guys--would react. And--" His voice dropped to a whisper. "I was ashamed."

"Rob," Chester murmured sympathetically. "Oh, Rob, no. that's nothing to be ashamed of, baby. Don't you know us at all? We love you. No matter what, we love you for who you are. As for the rest of the world, they can go fuck themselves." Rob couldn't help but smile at Chester's bluntness, and the singer flashed him an answering grin.

"But..." Rob paused, frowning as he gathered his thoughts. "I've always grown up learning it was wrong," he said slowly. "That's what my parents always taught me, it's a sin, it's wrong--"

His words were abruptly cut off as Chester leaned forward and pressed their mouths together. Rob stared at Chester's closed eyes in shock for a moment, back stiff with tension, then he slowly melted into the kiss. It was a soft, chaste little kiss, sweetly innocent, like your first kiss at the school dance but without the fumbling awkwardness. Chester was smiling slightly as he pulled away.

"Did that feel wrong?" he questioned gently. Rob shook his head slowly, then something broke in his eyes and he began to cry.

"I'm so confused," he exclaimed tearfully, mouth tight with misery. He leaned forward and Chester took him into his arms, holding him while he cried. The older man sighed and tightened his arms around the sobbing drummer, stroking the back of his neck until he calmed down. Once he stopped crying Chester pulled away, just enough to look his band mate in the eyes.

"Poor baby," he crooned, and somehow it didn't seem ridiculous coming from a man only two years his senior. "You should have told me. Told someone."

"I didn't know how," Rob whispered back, shaking his head. "I didn't know what to do, I didn't...I thought it was dirty," he confided, and with his wide eyes and his tear-streaked face he looked all of sixteen. "I didn't...there was no one to ask, and I was too embarrassed to look it up." His eyes shimmered with humiliated tears.

"It's okay," Chester murmured, gaze fixed on the drummer's full mouth. He leaned in and kiss him gently again, and this time Rob was relaxed enough to tentatively kiss back. Chester was right, it didn't feel wrong; it felt incredible, better than kissing a girl, better than anything with a girl. Chester's mouth was warm and firm, and pleasantly sweet without the lipstick and chapstick that girls always slathered on. Chester's tongue touched his lower lip and he gasped, pulling away, his eyes still closed.

"Chaz," he whispered, voice rough with emotion.

"What do you want?" Chester asked him, brushing the back of his hand tenderly across the drummer's cheek, drawing a shudder and a soft sigh.

"I don't--I don't know," he whispered, leaning into the gentle touch. And then, randomly--"It's cold."

"You want to go back to the car?" Rob nodded, and they stood and crossed to the parking lot, climbing into the back of the black SUV. Chester closed the door and turned to see Rob studying him, half a breath away. He looked both entranced and terrified.

"It's okay," Chester reassured him once again. "You don't have to be afraid. Just tell me what you want."

"I want..." He gasped and closed his eyes as Chester's hand covered his knee, trailing slowly up his thigh. "I want to kiss you."

Instantly the singer's lips were on his own. The kiss started out slow and careful like the others, but this time when Rob felt Chester's tongue lick along his lips he opened his mouth to let him in. He slid his tongue hesitantly past the singer's lips and groaned in pleasure as he plunged into the tight wet warmth. Chester's tongue was like velvet against his own, licking along his teeth, exploring the crevices of his mouth. He felt hands in his hair and without even thinking about it wrapped his arms around Chester's waist, pulling the smaller man closer until their chests pressed together. It felt so fucking good, so fucking right, he was going to pass out if this went on much longer...

"Chester," he breathed, breaking the kiss with a gasp. The other man was flushed and breathing hard, mouth slightly swollen from kissing. "Chester," Rob groaned again, hiding his face against the other's shoulder. He felt slim hands creep under his shirt and slide up his back and he moaned, a sound containing as much pain as pleasure. "God, I need you, need...more..."

"What do you need, Rob?" Chester whispered into his ear, dropping a small kiss on his pulse. He flicked an experimental tongue over the spot and smiled when Rob shuddered against him.

This is so wrong, Rob thought, even as he said the words. "I need you to touch me...god, Chester, please..."

He was rewarded with Chester's mouth on his neck, lips and teeth marking the delicate flesh. He leaned backwards until he fell against the window, hands fisting in Chester's shirt as the singer's hands slid up his chest. Warm, soft tongue lapped at his collarbone as blunt nails dragged across a nipple, making him yelp and arch into the touch. His own hands scrabbled at Chester's shirt, tugging feverishly at the resistant material in an effort to remove it. Chester pulled away and drew the shirt over his head, tossing it behind him and reaching for Rob's. The drummer sighed in bliss as warm skin met warm skin, reveling in the softness of Chester's body as his hands explored the singer's belly. A quick wetness on his chest took his breath away; looking down he saw the older man looking up at him as he licked a line from the middle of his chest to his collarbone. Suddenly they weren't close enough; the clothing that separated them was stifling, chafing at sensitized flesh. Rob moaned in longing and Chester pulled away.

"What do you want, Rob?" Chester demanded firmly, straddling the younger man's hips and looking down into his frightened face. "Just tell me."

"Touch...I need you to touch me..." Rob murmured shamelessly, reaching for Chester, but the singer pushed his hands away.

"I am touching you, Rob," he purred, running delicate hands over Rob's exposed stomach. "You're going to have to be more specific."

"Chester," the drummer groaned in agony, blushing at the thought of saying the words out loud.

"Tell me," the blond whispered, bending down to lick along the curve of Rob's ribs. "Come on. You can say it."

"Fuck," Rob whispered, as one of Chester's hands slid from his stomach to the button of his pants. He lifted his hips automatically and gasped when the hand ghosted over his thigh. "Ngh...I want...want to feel you, Chester, please...ahhh...make--make love to me," he whispered softly into the darkness, and shuddered as he felt Chester pull his zipper down.

"Okay," the slim blond singer whispered. He pulled the rest of Rob's clothes off and then undressed himself, until they were both naked in the back of the SUV. Thankfully the light from the street lamp wasn't bright, and the car had tinted windows, or everyone who walked by would be getting an eyeful.

"Is this going to hurt?" Rob asked apprehensively as Chester gripped the drummer's slim hips. The blond frowned in thought, then shrugged and smiled.

"I don't know, really," he murmured, rubbing his thumb absently over Rob's hip. "Maybe a little. If it hurts too much and it doesn't feel good, tell me stop, okay?" The other man nodded absently and Chester shook his head, throwing extra emphasis into his words. "I mean it. I want to know." This time the drummer hesitated a moment before he nodded his agreement.

He leaned down to kiss Rob's lips as they slowly came together, trying to distract him from the discomfort and get him to relax. They started off painstakingly slow, Chester showering Rob's face and chest with apologetic kisses until the pain eased. It wasn't that it really hurt all that much, Rob thought as he ran his hands up Chester's sides, watching through hooded eyes as the smaller man moved above him. It was just different, uncomfortable, but once he got past thinking that it hurt it actually started...to feel...good...

"Rob...oh god, oh god..." Chester was moaning above him, head thrown back to expose the delicate column of his throat. Rob's eyes closed as he felt himself go dizzy, hands reaching for Chester's shoulders as he searched for something to hold onto. Chester was panting and moaning incomprehensibly now; every so often Rob thought he heard his name. He slid his hands up to the singer's neck and dragged him forcefully down for a kiss as sparks exploded behind his closed eyes and the world swam grey and faded out.

He woke up a moment later with Chester's warm, pleasantly exhausted body curled up in his arms. He stared down at the singer wonderingly, mind reeling with the all-too-recent events. Chester sensed the scrutiny and opened his eyes, smiling up at the confused, but satisfied drummer.

"Happy birthday," the singer whispered, pressing a soft kiss to Rob's mouth before closing his eyes and falling back asleep. Rob smiled and hugged him closer, closing his eyes.

Happy birthday indeed.

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