Okay so I was listening to some 90s/early 00s country music (as an aside, I adore country music so if you’re planning to leave hate just, y’know, DON’T) and all of a sudden I HAD to write this. Eliot grew up being forced to listen to country music on he farm, he also developed a habit of singing while he’s planting. Quentin finds this endlessly charming. They are adorable at each other (my jaaaaaaam). Life in a Day ‘verse. Pretty short, so not under a cut. (also go listen to the song mentioned at the end and drown in Queliot feels with me)
It’s replanting the garden that does it. Arielle had been the one taking care of it, but she’s been gone three years now. So, much like her husband and her son, Eliot knows it’s gonna be up to him to take care of her garden. Loathe as he is to remember the farm (and his memories of it are blessedly fuzzier every day), Eliot learned how to take a patch of dirt and make things grow. So he gets some seeds on the way back from taking Rupert to tree school and he begins to plant.
Eliot can’t help it; he spent too many years on that fucking farm and he’s got habits. When he’s planting, he likes to sing. As he grew and discovered Broadway cast recordings, it became musicals, but when he first started to help out it was all country music. That’s all anyone in his family listened to, save the occasional Southern rock album as his brothers grew older.
He doesn’t even consciously register he’s doing it until Quentin starts laughing.
“What the hell was that?” Quentin asked between giggles (and they were giggles if anyone asked Eliot)
Eliot frowned. “What was what? Just do the Mosaic and let me work, Q.”
Quentin’s face fell instantly and Eliot immediately wanted to take back his words. He’d never liked that kicked puppy look on Quentin’s face and that was even before he got the chance to kiss Quentin’s face on a regular (and often very enthusiastic basis).
“You were singing and it was a funny song. Seriously, ‘prop me up beside the jukebox if I die’? Although that should really be when I die because everybody dies and- Eliot are you okay?”
Eliot wasn’t completely certain what expression his face was currently making, but it bet it looked like he’d just seen a centaur mounting a pixie: horrified and confused. “I was singing that?”
Quentin nodded, then tucked his hair back when it tumbled from behind his ear. “Yeah. I thought I’d misheard you, but you sang three verses and the chorus a bunch so I’m pretty sure those are the lyrics.”
Quentin laughed in his nervous way. “Why? I love your singing. I’ve been trying to place these tiles,” he waved on for emphasis, “quietly so I could hear you better. You’ve been singing since you started. This was just a really funny song.”
Eliot blinked. “All morning? Was it… was it all,” he could barely bite the words out, “country music?”
“I guess so,” Quentin said. “I didn’t know most of the songs though you did throw ‘Under Pressure’ in there, which was great.”
Answering Quentin’s smile with one of his own, Eliot asked, “Good to know I had some sense.”
Quentin nodded and didn’t bother tucking his hair back this time. “So, um, could you sing more?”
Eliot tilted his head and stared at his partner. He smiled and got up to sit near Quentin, pulling the other man into his arms. “They read you Cinderella/you hoped it would come true/that one day your Prince Charming,” Eliot gestured to himself and Quentin giggled, “would come rescue you/You like romantic movies/you never will forget/the way you felt when Romeo kissed Juliet.”
“Never liked Romeo and Juliet much.”
“I will tell John Michael Montgomery exactly that,” Eliot cooed as he went back to singing. “I can love you like that/I can make you my world-” He cut himself off when Quentin pulled away. “Q?”
Quentin was staring at Eliot. “Do you love me? That’s stupid; I know you love me. But, like, are you, um, in love with me?”
Eliot paused, he absolutely was but he’d long since learned his lesson about declaring feelings first.
But Quentin was looking at him like the world depended on the answer (and maybe it did, the world seemed prone to nearly ending on a pretty regular basis back in the timeline they came from).
“Yes, Quentin Coldwater. I am in love with you.” Eliot looked down and placed a couple tiles. “This shouldn’t be news.”
Quentin launched himself at Eliot, trying to kiss him and mostly missing as the momentum took them both to the ground.
“I am full on in love with you too.”
Eliot laughed. “I got that.” He kissed Quentin’s forehead. “I’m sure, if properly motivated, I could remember a whole more love songs.”
Quentin tilted his head back further to stare into Eliot’s eyes. “The kind of motivation best taken advantage of while the kid’s at school?”
“The very same.” Eliot was going to say something else seductive and charming, but Quentin was already scrambling to get them both into the cottage.
George Strait, Eliot thought as he was tugged along. Just want until I sing him some ‘I Cross My Heart’, Q ain’t gonna not what hit him.