for the ask thing, my love, what about woods, mushroom, and cupboard!!
of course!!
Woods: Where do you feel at peace?
it probably sounds kinda lame but I feel most at peace when im in my room haha
Mushroom: List unique things you like about yourself.
hhhmmmm i would say that i like how hardworking I am! i do my best to work hard at my job and at school and it’s nice to see when it pays off. also I like my ability to be gentle and make people laugh!
Cupboard: A good childhood memory.
my dad has this truck he’s had since ‘93 and he would take my sister and I out a lot in it, even today. my favorite memory of that truck is coming home from a long day at the lake, stopping to get ice cream, and sitting on the bed of the truck while we ate. it was just a nice way to end the day, and i still do it with him when we have the chance
thanks for sending this! sorry i couldn’t get to it until this morning :’)
Posting for @lovefromkelly who wanted to read 2000 words of gay poly Singing In The Rain even tho its the most niche piece of writing I’ve ever done.
What would happen if Don, lost for words in trying to ask Cosmo to join him and Kathy, chose to let an empty stage and luck do the talking again.
“If you could say anything to him, anything at all, what do you think it would be?” Kathy asked, leaning against Don and joining him in watching Cosmo across the busy stage. Cosmo was standing at the piano, talking excitedly with the director about how the music was going to sound. He punctuated his words with the occasional chords or refrain.
“If you could say anything to him, anything at all, what do you think it would be?” Kathy asked, leaning against Don and joining him in watching Cosmo across the busy stage. Cosmo was standing at the piano, talking excitedly with the director about how the music was going to sound. He punctuated his words with the occasional chords or refrain.
“I would say-“ Don stuttered, his eyes holding that distant, quiet look he always got when feeling particularly romantic, the laugh lines around his eyes smoothing. “I think that I would-“ His breath caught in his throat as Cosmo’s laughter joined the distant twinkle of his keys, as he threw his head back and laughed at a new idea, striking him.
Kathy would never tire of seeing Cosmo’s mind work, of seeing the joy he elicited from running off with his own thoughts and making something beautiful. Whether it ended up being a dance number, the next refrain of his symphony, or some wild-eyed plot to get the three of them to sneak out from one of Zelda’s particularly ridiculous parties, it was always beautiful.
“Oh, I’ve told you before, Kathy.” Don finally glanced down, “I’m a ham with this kind of thing. It’s like I have all the words written down and planned out in a screenplay, but I forgot to memorize them.” He sighed. “I couldn’t tell you how I felt until we had run off into our moonlight on that stage.”
Kathy looked up at him again, and they stole a quiet kiss at the memory. “What if you did the same for him? Just walked into a stage and let the picture tell you what to say?”
Don looked down at her tilting his head. “Why me? Why can’t you just ask him?”
“For this exact reason, Don Lockwood. I’ve already kissed him, and he doesn’t even see it, because you’ve been too hung up on each other for so many years.” It’s true, of course - ever since their good morning, Kathy giving Cosmo little pecks had become as commonplace and inconsequential as Don walking around the lot with his arm around Cosmo, his hand on his hip. That was, it was entirely commonplace, and not at all inconsequential, but none of them had noticed it.
“You’re right, as always.” Don smiled. “I’ll talk to him. I’ll find a stage, just like I did for you, and I’ll talk to him.”
--
“Come on, Cos, hurry up.” Don laughed, tugging on his friend’s hand and pulling him into an empty stage. Cosmo laughed, a little confused, allowing himself to be pulled.
“Gee, Don, what’s the rush? Roscoe gave us an hour for lunch. You have a feast set out, or something?”
Don deposited Cosmo in the middle of the stage, stepping back for a moment and trying to quieten his heartbeat. Cosmo, still completely off-guard around his longest friend, stuffed his hands in his pockets and bounced on the balls of his feet, looking around for the promised lunch.
“Okay, so I just wanted to steal you away - I don’t actually have lunch.” Don admitted, the first and easiest of the many admissions to be had. Cosmo put a hand on his heart, as if struck.
“What, no lunch? You’re just trying to get me back for finishing the bread again.”
“No, not that. I just have something important I need to say, about the three of us, and Kathy reminded me I’m a little abysmal at that stuff without the right setting.” He paused in approaching the light box. “Wait, you finished my bread?”
Cosmo doesn’t remember to laugh for half a second too late, and when Don glances back he sees Cosmo’s eyes shutter off slightly. His oldest friend glanced away, facing the dark far wall. “Well boy, Don, if you wanted to talk about me moving out of the mansion, you didn’t need to get all dramatic about it. I understand.”
“No, that’s not it.” Don assured him, before reaching down and running his hands over the levers. Don’t let me down now, he thought, talking maybe to the gods of cinema and maybe to himself. He finally flicked one up and, with a clash of lights, the wall in front of Cosmo lit up - a warm color, lighting up a vision of red mountains, a dreamy Arizonan landscape left stored after the studio’s last cowboy picture. And silhouetted against it, Cosmo, a vision in black, surveying his rocky kingdom before turning to look back at Don, his face cast half in shadow and his eyes soft and open in the half-darkness.
“Ah, a cowboy caper for lunch, then?” Cosmo joked, “You know, even cowboys had cold beans to eat.” Don grinned and switched another lever - with a quiet squeak, the great landscape set began to trundle to the side, spinning on rollers, creating the sensation of a great train lumbering slowly out of the station.
“After the biggest heist of our careers?” Don grinned, getting into character, and Cosmo looked back at the passing landscape with a smile and a shake of his head. Don danced, upbeat, across towards a pile of boxes near his friend, which had transformed before their eyes into a pile of luggage and crates on a cross-country rail journey. Don placed one foot on the nearest, posing dramatically. “After a score like that, you and I, partner, we’re going to be eating like kings!” Cosmo laughed, overzealously miming spinning his twin revolvers and holstering them, before falling back on another pule of crates, lounging, unimpressed.
“That’s my pardner, alright - all talk, but this train don’t stop till two states over - I’ll be starved by then!”
“And now, for the final touch…” Don muttered to himself, turning to a great light behind them and preparing to turn it on. “A wash of moonlight…” With a flourish, he lit it - only to flood Cosmo and their little stage with a bright yellow light that melted into the red.
Cosmo laughed, bright and full, at Don’s putout face, his best friend pondering why the cinema gods had decided to forsake him now. Cosmo leapt up, jumping upwards onto his crate.
“Wow, look at that sunrise, boss! Looks like we made it through the night after all!” He offered, his misinformed stomach not winning out against his love of playing along with Don, in anything with a sense of drama. Don smiled up at his friend and stepped forward.
“And look at you. My fantastic mastermind, looking like an angel in that sun.”
Cosmo faltered, his lips parting in a little surprise at whatever open love he saw in Don’s face - but recovered, thumbing his nose and putting his hands on his imagined gun belt. “Aw, gee, we all know you’re the real rootin’ tootin’ one-“ Don laughed at his phrasing - “You’re the real star in all this.”
“Nonsense!” Don said, jumping up onto the crate opposite Cosmo’s, tapping out an upbeat tune on it with his feet and pointing at his friend. “We wouldn’t have made it through that last heist without your brain. Actually, I think most of our heists would’ve died before leaving the house without you. I wouldn’t have amounted to anything if I hadn’t had you there.”
Cosmo matched his beat, then leapt upwards again to keep the high ground, a more complicated tap resounding on the different sized crate. “Ah, but it’s your name in all of the police reports and on bounty posters. Not to mention that big old mug of yours.” Don imitated the complicated tap, and the Cosmo laughed as they fell into that place they go, where they match each other step-for step in a dance with barely a word. Don finished the refrain and leaped up to match Cosmo’s height.
Da, da daa Don muttered, setting the pace and pulling them into a waltz beat. “You love this mug.” he smiled, and Cosmo looked up at him with a twinkling eye.
“You can’t prove that” Cosmo reposted, as they danced, and Don held out his hand, as if offering a girl a dance. Cosmo took the hand with a laugh, thinking himself securely in a joke shared.
“I know it’s true,” Don grinned, as they deftly swapped places on the crates, leaping between them with the confidence only attributed to lunatics and dancers in the midst of a routine.
“And how is that?” they jump again, in perfect time, and Don raises Cosmo’s hand, looking at his friend in the eyes.
“Because I know how I feel. I know there’s no mug in the world I love more.”
A few more notes, and Cosmo danced across the crates again - only to stop short, his breath freezing, when Don didn’t jump, didn’t let go of his hand, and let Cosmo land in his arms.
Their feet suddenly stopped, the silent music they were dancing to slowly fading from their minds. Don couldn’t help but be entranced for a moment, by the warm line of Cosmo’s body, leant against his, as they held each other for a moment to save themselves from falling. His throat closed for a moment, his mind singing quietly, he’s alive, you’re alive, you’re both here, as they stood frozen like a statue on their little mountain of boxes.
Cosmo visibly swallowed, glancing down at Don’s lips for a moment before back up at those open, smiling eyes. “What about the dame you have in the old town? Don’t you love her?”
“Okay.” Don smirked “so there is one mug I love as much as yours.” He cautiously ran the pad of his thumb up the seam of Cosmos’ waistcoat, catching his nail on the buttons there, before laying his hand on Cosmo’s side, a gentle waltz hold. “But I think I couldn’t bear to not get to see either of them.” He and Cosmo, beholden in every moment to their music, began to sway back and forth. “And she is hoping I convince you to come home with me. Convince you to be our…” Don smiled, chuckling quietly “….Partner?”
“No rules out in the wild west, huh?”
“Not that matter to me” Don whispered, before finally - finally, finally, finally his body sang - kissing Cosmo.
They kissed, and it was soft, and gentle, while the repeating landscape scrolled by behind them. Mountain, and Cosmo let out a little hopeful noise and melted forward. Valley, and Don squeezed his hip and hand just to assure himself it was real. A flowering cactus and Cosmo gripped the front of Don’s lapel, and they kept dancing, swaying slightly, mountain, valley, cactus. Don smiled into the kiss and Cosmo grinned back, breaking the kiss and just breathing quietly, mountain, valley, cactus.
“Don… are you sure…. you and Kathy have something so good. I don’t want to...” Cosmo pulled back a little, breaking their equilibrium and unsettling their little box mountain for a moment. Steadying himself, Don stepped back, one level lower and looking up at Cosmo, who closed his eyes and squinted at the sudden glare from their bright little sunlight.
“Cos,” Don smiled, when it looked as though Cosmo was about to dismount himself. Don held his friend up there, making Cosmo look him in the eyes. Cosmo smiled down at him, minutely, their own little balcony scene on an empty stage. Don looked up at the way Cosmo’s eyelashes caught the bright light, the way it played in his golden hair, on the bright spots of red on his cheeks. Don heard that silent music begin to swell up from his heart again.
“Kathy wants this as much as I do, Cosmo.” he said again, then sang, quietly; “I’ll kiss her with a sigh - Would you? Will you?” he asked, and Cosmo quirked his head at the choice of song.
“And if the girl were I?” Would you? Will you?” Cosmo asked in return.
“Every day” Don smiled, eyes alight with love, looking up at his dearest friend. “And would you dare to say, ‘Let's do the same as they.’?”
Cosmo ran his thumb along Don’s jaw. “I would. Would you?”
“Every day, while you’ll have me.”
“Well that’s every day until I die. Which may be soon if I don’t get any lunch.” Cosmo grabbed his stomach, a comedic look of agony on his face.
Don laughed, welcoming the lighter tone. “Well there’s the sound of our train arriving in the station, Partner” He grabbed Cosmo around the waist, and deposited him on the ground, where he landed with a flourish, and held his hand out to help Don dismount as well.
“Maybe we can find our cowgirl.” Don suggested, taking the proffered hand and jumping down. “I’m sure she’ll be happy to join us for a quick lunch in the saloon before the next scene. And she will want to hear the good news.” He threaded an arm around Cosmo’s waist.
“That sounds perfect.” Cosmo smiled.
“It does.” Don agreed. They walked out as behind them, the train trundled on, mountain, valley and cactus, and the sun continued to rise on
