Mathias' stomach turned as he sat in the passenger seat next to Orion. He must have noticed Mathias' nervousness because he turned his head and looked at him with a comforting smile. The nerves must have been rolling off of him in waves.
"You okay?" he asked, raising his brows a bit.
"Yeah... No... I will be?" Mathias huffed, embarrassed about how he was so jittery about meeting Orion's friends. This would also be the first time he'd be going into a situation where he and Orion would be recognized as a couple. They'd been in public together, obviously, otherwise they wouldn't be where they are currently, but it was different walking around with strangers around them in the big city that Orion lives in. This time they'd be making an announcement of some sort, telling people they were together. He knew that it was a completely different kind of crowd than what Mathias knew, but the knowledge didn't stifle the fears that were burned into his mind.
Making a good impression on them brought up a whole different set of fears, however. He was afraid that he'd embarrass Orion, or he wouldn't be good enough for them. They're actual stars, for Pete's sake. Not forgetting the fact that Mathias had had approximately 1% the amount of human interaction outside of The Church compared to anyone who'd be there. He wore what he thought was the most socially appropriate based off of what he'd seen when he was out with Orion. He only had a few items in his closet that would work so it didn't take long to find them, even though he spent hours debating on whether it was good enough.
He currently wore a blue sweater that was Mormon approved, khaki's and boots that were also Mormon approved; however, he didn't leave the house in them. As far as his parents knew, he was missioning in a neighboring city with his friend Lana who had agreed to help Mathias out with this if he helped her out in return with her own little trips into the city, an aspiring musician. He ended up having to change after Lana had dropped him off at he and Orion's meeting point. The line right where Mathias' small town met Orion's big city of glamour, Mathias changed out of his slacks and dress shoes and into the rest of his clothing items in the backseat on their way into the city before he climbed up front.
"We're almost there. You'll be fine, and you'll blow them away, just like you did, me. Got it?"
Mathias exhaled loudly, nodding. As they pulled up to the building, his heart thudded in his chest too annoyingly to be ignored. It was... huge... Possibly the biggest building he'd ever seen, with smaller surrounding buildings all around it. "This is it? All of this?"
"All of it." Orion nodded and grinned, admiring his place of work.
"Don't you get lost?" Mathias questioned, a small smile starting to appear on his face.
"Nah," he started, then began explaining his routes and how he learned to get around -- then made a joke about getting around. The chat was helping soothe Mathias' brain as Orion parked the car and came around to open Mathias' before he could open his own, getting stuck staring out at the scene in front of him.
"I know you can." Orion smirked at Mathias and locked the car after he got out. "Come on," he insisted, reaching a hand out for Mathias. He grabbed it quickly, needing the comfort of his hand in his own. As they began to reach the entrance, Mathias gripped his hand tighter. Orion turned to him before they entered and wrapped his free hand around the back of Mathias' neck. "You're amazing, okay? You're gonna be just fine, and they're all gonna be incredibly jealous of me, alright?" He chuckled as Mathias nodded at his words, though his eyes were still flooded with fear. Orion pressed slow and reassuring kiss to his lips, then pulled away to admire Mathias' flustered face afterward. Orion always made Mathias melt, and his reactions to Orion's actions were always something to witness. "Okay, ready?"
"As I'll ever be." He really hated himself for making this seem like it's such a big deal, but for him, it really was. It must be annoying for Orion to have everything he and Mathias did be a big deal for Mathias. Sometimes he wondered why he was with Mathias at all. However, he had to push his self deprecating thoughts away as he heard a shriek coming their way. They'd entered what looked like a lounge, and there was a brunette girl charging toward the two of them.
"Oh my God!" she shouted, "He is way cuter in person than in the pictures you showed me!" She jumped at Orion, wrapping her arms around him.
"Yes, hello, AJ," Orion laughed, pulling back from the hug to look at a very surprised Mathias. "This is my best friend AJ, Mathias."
"Hi," he said shyly, hoping his cheeks weren't changing any different shade. "I've heard things about you." He kicked himself. Hard. That sounded so awkward. That was really awkward.
"Things?" Autumn said with a certain sass in her voice, looking pointedly at Orion. She was only joking, but Mathias was oblivious.
"I meant good things, sorry." Here comes the flushing of his cheek color. He was pale, already screwing it up.
"I'm kidding, you cutie!" She leaned up to hug him and kissed his cheek, squeezing him.
"Oh," he choked out, shocked at her... entirely. The hug, the kiss, her demeanor.
He smiled a bit awkwardly as she let go of him. "C'mon, you gotta meet everyone else. We love our Orion -- well, your Orion now," she winked at him, "and we're dying to meet his new boy candy."
Mathias looked at Orion almost incredulously, "Boy..."
"Never mind," he interjected, a laugh hanging at the edge of his lips.
Apparently the lounge was more than just that one room, but a few different rooms combined. They walked into one that had food everywhere. Everywhere. He hadn't ever seen so much food in his life, not even at holidays and wakes.
"You can have anything you want." He squeezed his hand as he spoke and smiled over at Mathias.
"I think I'm still a little too..." His voice was quiet, not wanting anyone to hear how embarrassingly anxious he was.
"Okay," Orion nodded reassuringly. Pulling Mathias with him in the direction of more people sitting in a large -- very large -- purple booth around a table full of drinks and plates. "These are some cast members and behind the scenes folks for the show I work on, along with some from other shows," he said quietly to Mathias before they reached the table.
"Hey, guys," he directed at them all. In return, there was a loud and drawn out group hello. Suddenly there were voices from all over, including at tables next to this one and from people standing around the room.
"Is this your new boyfriend?"
"Of course it is, stupid, they're holding hands!"
"How long have you been together now?"
"Where did you meet this kid?"
"Ooh, Orion, best keep a leash on this one!"
"Oh my God, you lucky fucker."
Everything was catching him off guard, some things shocking him, some making him uncomfortable, but at the same time it was exciting and he liked it. He suddenly felt Orion's arm making its way around Mathias' waist and he was flooded with a new feeling of comfort he hadn't had before. It was really nice. Orion rolled his eyes at some comments, dodging others, and answering just a few of them. After some of them were satisfied, they got up, and Mathias and Orion slid into the inside. He smiled at the girl he sat next to, leaning as close to Orion as he could without being obvious about it.
People slid in and out of the booth for the next 20 minutes, and the two of them remained stationary in the very middle of it. Mathias stayed quiet much of the time, Orion discussing various things, mostly things regarding the two of them. Mid-sentence, Mathias' stomach interrupted Orion as it growled. Loudly. He froze, disbelieving that that happened.
"Hungry?" Orion laughed, pressing his finger against his stomach playfully. Mathias smiled small, shrugging. "I'll go get us something, be right back." He gave him a reassuring squeeze on his knee and gave him a chaste kiss before having two people on his side move so he could get out.
Mathias' face turned very red, everyone staring at him after 'aw'ing in unison. Someone commented on his red face and he turned even redder somehow. He cleared his throat and looked down, not wanting to meet their gazes. He thought about the first time he and Orion kissed. It wasn't just their first kiss, it was Mathias' first kiss ever. Besides when he'd kissed a girl named Candace when he was in 6th grade. It was just a peck, but he felt so guilty about it that he told his parents and had to confess his sins. Good God, the repentance they'd require if they knew of the sins he'd committed since he met Orion. Wearing the leather belt he had on, for starters. He didn't even want to think about their reaction to him kissing period, yet alone a boy, and even better, a non-white.
Orion took Mathias to a carnival, knowing he'd never been on a ride before and he'd previously shared how he'd always wanted to try going on a ferris wheel. He'd made that dream, which probably seemed small to many but significant to him, come true. They were only friends, but Mathias was lying to himself if he said he didn't feel more. They went up, and Mathias was downright terrified. He'd never been more scared in his life, every time it slowed down to add a new passenger, his heart skipped a beat. As they reached the top of the wheel, Mathias looked down to the ground, the people looking small, one of the most beautiful scenes he'd ever seen. With a big smile on his face, he looked to Orion, who'd surprised him by immediately placing his hands against Mathias' cheeks and pressing his lips against Mathias' before he could give it a second thought. His heart stopped but felt like it was beating out of his chest at the same time. It was magical, for all of the two seconds it lasted before Mathias pulled away, his face looking like he'd just been given the most puzzling riddle of his life. He took back his thoughts about fear. He'd never been more scared in his life than he was now.
Scared because, well, he was however high in the air for starters. Two, he was here with a beautiful boy that made him question everything he thought he knew about... everything. Three, he liked it. He liked the feeling of his lips against his, however short the kiss was. He liked being next to Orion, and spending time with him. That scared him. He'd never felt anything like this, and what was worse was that Orion was the exact opposite of every single thing that his family and his religion told him he was supposed to be with. Staring into Orion's eyes though, he didn't care. With wild eyes, Mathias looked into Orion's, soft and caring, waiting for Mathias to process what had just happened. Mathias relaxed, his heart slowing into an excited sort of beating rather than terrified. Seeing this, Orion smiled and pulled Mathias' face back toward his at the same time the ferris wheel finally began to move into a constant motion. Butterflies began to flit around Mathias' entire torso, and he felt lighter than air as Orion slowly moved his lips against his.
They stayed on the ferris wheel for another few rides after that, in which Orion also held his hand for the first time. That whole day, he couldn't pinpoint a "most anything". Orion was the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen, kissing him and holding his hand and being with him was the most beautiful feeling he'd ever felt. He was happier than he'd ever been, more scared, more everything than he'd ever anything. It was like the first day of his life. His new life, and he never wanted to go back. Being with Orion was... surreal. Except, it was real. It was the realest, and purest thing in his life. At this point, going back home was the surreal thing.
Someone broke his thoughts and he looked to her, sitting on his right. He hadn't even noticed that a few new people had replaced the previous ones while he was lost in thought. "Will you be around here often, now?" she asked.
"Uh, I dunno," he said with a shrug.
"Everyone's gonna want you as their new GBF, unless I claim you first. Do you wanna?"
"What?" he asked, furrowing his brows, entirely confused. He had no clue what a 'GBF' was, but he was 99.999% sure he didn't want to be it.
"Ignore Katy," Orion said as he approached the table, Autumn at his side. "She's stupid." This girl whom he assumed was Katy rolled her eyes and got up.
Orion grinned at Mathias and held his hand out. "I changed my mind. You met the important people, and everyone else got to see you and be jealous, so I'm ready to leave. Let's eat out." Mathias looked up at him with a happy smile, nodding.
He'd go anywhere Orion went.
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