Closed A Different Kind of Closeness

[Asher Beckett]

Asher had been torn up since his run in with Erik Drage and the mysterious, jilted lover. He hadn't wanted to talk to any of the band about it- he wasn't sure if Leo had suspected anything was wrong, but Asher had worked hard to move away from his past. He didn't want to tell to Leo about the incident. But Ash hadn't been able to stay in the house. He needed out, he needed to get away. He didn't want to think about this, not again. Ash wasn't even paying attention to where he was going, but when he looked up he was in an oddly familiar neighborhood.

He blinked, looking around. Was... this was Archie's neighborhood, wasn't it? Asher hesitated a moment, nervous about going to see a lover so soon after a serious issue with a now ex-lover. He stopped short, shaking his head and turning to shuffle to Archie's house. What was he even thinking? Archie wasn't just a lover, he was... he was... he was Archie baby. He made Ash laugh and the way Archie giggled, it just... Ash couldn't explain it, but he needed Archie right now in a way that he didn't usually need his lovers. It wasn't long before he found himself on Archie's door. He bit his lip, hesitating before raising a hand and knocking.

 

[Archie Renner]

It was a regular day off for Archie. He had woken up after a slight sleep in feeling refreshed and energized, and after spending the day completing a few errands, returning a letter to Knox and generally being productive, which felt very adult of him, Archie had returned home. He wanted to wind down with some food, do a face mask, and drink a nice glass of wine before going to bed. Usually he might have something else planned, but that night Archie had nothing else on his schedule other than self care and relaxing and eating, and that was exactly what he felt he needed after a week of working. Once he had placed his homemade pizza in the oven and set a timer, Archie headed to the bathroom to shower. After he was done and dressed, he moved to find a face mask from his skincare basket, one that was of course cruelty free and vegan as per Orwell’s suggestion, and one Archie was yet to try. He found a container with a new face mask, and placed it on the counter. He then opened the container, and was about to apply some of the product to his face when he heard a knock on his front door. Brow furrowing in confusion, Archie paused and tilted his head to one side, before placing the product back into the container and drying his hands and heading to the front door to open it.

Surprised to see Asher in the doorway, Archie couldn’t keep himself from tilting his head a second time, his brow still knotted as he tried to process the sight in front of him. Asher was more or less his friend, but until that moment they had met in bars or at events, or organized meeting each other first. It was contrary to what their normal was to have Asher show up unannounced, and Archie worried for a moment something was wrong. “Oh, hey, come in.” Archie said, eventually smiling and moving to open the door further and invite Asher inside. “Is everything okay?” He then asked, trying to understand the reason Asher had shown up to his house without sending a note first.​

 

[Asher Beckett]

Asher was surprised how much he relaxed when Archie opened the door. He smiled automatically, ducking his head and stepping inside. "Archie baby, hi," he gave the man a shy smile. "Uh, I- I'm sorry to come over without asking," he apologized, rubbing the back of his neck. He opened his mouth to lie automatically- Asher was fine, he was just nearby, the usual nonsensical things he tried to say when he didn't want to talk. But for some reason, when he looked into Archie's bright eyes, Asher found he couldn't lie.

"I'm not, actually," he admitted slowly, before sighing and sitting on the couch with Archie. He ran a hand through his hair. "I'm um... not really sure if it's something I should talk to you about," he spoke honestly, wanting to scoot closer and curl up against the other man. "I don't know why, I just... I wanted to see you." He blushed, looking away. "Not like, you know, the other times I want to see you, I mean, I always want to see you, but like... I don't know," he sighed. "I'm sorry, I don't really know why I'm here," his shoulders slumped. "I'm not trying to impose, I can go if you want,"

 

[Archie Renner]

Archie was admittedly caught off guard, and had many questions on his mind. Many questions of what had caused Asher to visit him unannounced, but also a few that asked why Asher had chosen to see him, of all the people he likely could have seen instead. Though he forced himself to stay quiet as he closed the door after Asher and followed him to the sofa. Archie was unable to avoid frowning again as he sat down and listened to Asher try and explain he wasn’t okay. He raised his hand gently to ask Asher to stop, not wanting to hear Asher apologize for showing up. “Hey, it’s okay if you stay. I’m happy to spend time with you, if you need me to.” He said softly. Archie was really not sure of how he could help, or what the problem was that had brought Asher to his door. But he knew enough that he wanted to help. He also knew that he and Asher were meant to be friends, as weird as it was for him to think of Asher as only a friend, and even if Archie didn’t know what the problem was he also knew it wasn’t his business to know, and that if a friend needed cheering up the only thing that truly was his business was helping them.

Archie chewed the inside of his cheek for a moment, leaning back on the sofa and looking to the oven that was still cooking his pizza, then to the timer that was quietly ticking away, and then back to Asher. “Um, well I don’t know what helps you when you’re sad.” Archie began, wishing that Asher was comfortable opening up and telling him what did help when he was sad. He wished he was close enough with Asher to just know those things, even if it might be crossing the line between friendship and something else. He wanted to know everything he could about Asher, but he knew he needed to settle with whatever Ash was comfortable telling him. Realizing he was getting distracted, Archie shook his head and then continued. “But when I'm sad, I like to talk to Orwell about it, and I like cuddling and Orwell reading me stories. But if Orwell’s busy or something, I always like to do skin care things and eat pizza. Pizza always helps too.” He explained with a definitive nod. “I was actually gonna have pizza for dinner and try a new face mask and stuff, if you wanna join me.” Archie then suggested, looking over to the bathroom door and then back to Asher. “The pizza’s already cooking and it would be nice to not eat it all by myself.” That was a half truth. Archie knew he could and would enjoy demolishing a pizza on his own, but he also knew he would enjoy sharing it with Asher and that the pizza itself was hopefully enough of a comfort food to cheer Asher up a little.​

 

[Asher Beckett]

Asher relaxed visibly as Archie said he could stay, unable to help the little flutter his heart did. Shut up, Asher, he isn't yours, he scolded himself, giving Archie a gentle smile. Ash just felt so tired. He wanted to reach over and pull Archie into his arms, kiss him and hold him and keep him close. But Ash held back, knowing if he touched Archie at this moment he wouldn't want to let go. Ever. And Archie deserved so much more than Asher.

He still wasn't able to help himself completely, though, looking over to the other man with a softer expression. "You," he replied gently, almost shyly. "You make me feel better," he offered, rubbing the back of his neck and looking away again. His hair fell to cover his eyes, a tiny little defense. "I, um... I would like to stay, if that's okay," he bit his lip. He struggled to find words for a moment, sighing. Archie deserved to know, didn't he?

Ash shifted a bit, folding his hands in his lap. His voice was sad as he spoke, trying to explain without letting too much slip. "I, um... you know I'm a casual guy," he offered slowly. "But I, uh, I have rules, nothing you need to worry about, but um, I don't..." he sighed, tears welling up in his eyes as memories rushed in. "I was um, talking to a guy, he seemed sad and I didn't want him to be sad, so he was in my lap, and um, there was a crash, and uh, another man was there, and he was staring at us, and he just looked so... devastated,"

Asher grimaced, shaking his head quickly. "I... I've been in that position before, seeing the pain on that man's face, I..." he sighed, running his hands into his hair. "I hate cheaters, Archie. I hate that I was involved at all. I didn't- I didn't know, I... god, I feel so dirty," he rubbed at his eyes. "I'm casual because of cheaters, I don't... I never meant to," Ash shook his head, unable to help a quiet sob. He knew the look on the man's face too well; memories he had buried long ago came rushing back, threatening to drown him in their darkness. He shook a bit, rubbing at his eyes and trying to make himself stop crying. He didn't want to cry in front of anyone, Archie especially, but his heart hurt with old scars and he couldn't quite help himself.

It took him a second to calm down, but he did his best to pull himself together. He sat up, mask shoved firmly back in place. "I, ah, sorry about that," he let out an awkward laugh, rubbing the back of his neck. "You were saying though? Pizza and... face masks?" He looked to Archie curiously. "Pizza definitely sounds good, I don't think I've eaten since last night," he admitted with a shy grin. He had felt too sick to really eat anything, but being near Archie was helping him feel better.

He was curious about something else, though. "What are face masks?" He asked. "Other than the cream you gave me last time, I haven't done a lot that could be considered skin care," he admitted, giving the man a shy smile.

 

[Archie Renner]

Archie really wasn’t sure what to do, other than watch on sympathetically and nod and listen when Asher told him what was wrong. As the story began he felt a pang of jealousy in his chest, his eyes slowly moving to the floor as Asher painted a picture of the situation he had been in and the realization of who had seen it and how devastated they were. Archie knew that feeling, the feeling of being the third, the extra, the person on the side. He had spent time with a lot of people who thought of him as such, and he had been heart broken when he had realized he wasn’t number one to them, and would never be. But as much as Archie knew the feeling Asher was describing, he hadn’t ever experienced such an outright confrontation of it. He for the most part was kept in the dark when someone he was seeing had a partner, and he had never been confronted with it so abruptly, if at all. As he looked up to Asher he couldn’t imagine how awful it must have been, and the toll it must have taken on his emotions. Archie was always a wreck when he realized he was a side piece, and it was awful enough of an experience just learning about it, let alone meeting the person that was betrayed and seeing the hurt on their face first hand. “Um, hey, I don’t think it’s your fault.” Archie eventually said, almost reaching over to touch Asher’s shoulder, although deciding against it when Asher then explained that was the reason he was casual. Resorting to a nod to show he understood, and wanting to respect Asher’s boundaries, Archie inhaled and decided that face masks and pizza were the least he could do to help.

He couldn’t help but feel relieved when Asher changed the subject for him. Archie looked over to the oven, and then back to Asher before speaking. “Face masks are these gooey things you put on your face. Hang on, I’ll show you.” He said, standing up from the sofa and heading to the bathroom. “Can you pour us some wine? There’s a bottle in the fridge.” Archie called out as he reached the bathroom, soon finding the container he opened earlier. He also searched for two headbands in one of the bathroom drawers, so their hair wouldn’t get in their faces. With the container in one hand and the headbands in the other, Archie moved to sit back down on the sofa, placing the face mask container on the coffee table. “Here, you can use this, it’ll keep your hair away from your face.” Archie explained, already in the midst of putting on his own head band with one hand as he used his other hand to offer the second headband over to Asher.​

 

[Asher Beckett]

Asher watched Archie, trying to appear as normal as possible. He nodded as the other man talked about face masks and asked him to pour wine. Ash smiled softly and moved to the fridge. Pouring the wine was the least he could do. He had fixed the wine and moved back to the couch with the glasses of wine. He had just set them on the closest surface when Archie reappeared. Asher gave him a smile. He took the accepted headband, copying Archie and putting it on. He couldn't help but admire how pretty Archie looked with his hair pushed back. "Thanks, Archie," he spoke softly, hand twitching as he wanted to reach over and take Archie's hand or hold him. But Ash held back. "I really appreciate this,"

He bit his lip, folding his hands together. "I, um..." he hesitated, wanting to tell Archie that he felt safe with him, that Archie made him happy and that he thought of Archie when they were apart. He decided against it, not wanting to scare Archie away. "Will you help me put the face mask on?" he asked instead, giving Archie a shy smile.

 

[Archie Renner]

Archie smiled, chuckling softly and shaking his head when Asher thanked him. “It’s nothing, true friends help friends in need, and you're in need and I care about you.” He commented, truly not seeing what he was doing as anything special. He had always been one to help his friends and give someone the shirt from his back if they needed it. Keeping Asher company and helping cheer him up was more selfish on Archie’s behalf, he thought. Even if Asher didn’t want more with him than what they already had, he was simply happy to be around Asher and be someone Asher felt comfortable talking to, outside of what it might mean. It was a way for him to get to know Asher better on Asher’s terms, and Archie was pleased that Asher had been the one to choose him to spend time with that night, over anyone else. As much as he hoped his company would help Asher, Asher's company would be helping him, too.

Engrossed in the task of opening the container for the face mask, Archie nodded gently when Asher asked if he could help him put the mask on. Once he had the small container opened, he placed the lid on the table and scooped out a portion of it with his hand. “Sure, here, stay still. It might be a bit cold at first.” Archie said, shifting closer to Asher, and gently applying the face mask to Asher’s face. He tried his best to make sure he didn’t apply it too close to Asher’s eyes, or in Asher’s eyebrows or near Asher’s mouth, so when the mask dried he wouldn’t have trouble removing it, and focused on trying to spread the product evenly. “There.” He eventually said with a nod, pleased that the greyish green mask was effectively on Asher’s face, before turning away to begin picking up some product for himself. Realizing how difficult it would be to apply a mask without a mirror, Archie soon turned back to Asher. “Can you help me with this too? It’s gonna be kinda difficult to make it even without a mirror.” He explained, picking up the jar and offering it to Asher. “Just like, make it evenly cover my face but not my eyes or eyebrows, or my mouth. I’ve tasted face masks before and its gross.” Archie added, hoping he had explained it thoroughly enough to Asher that he could help out.​

 

[Asher Beckett]

Asher's breath caught as Archie spoke, his mind catching on that one line. I care about you. What? His heart stuttered in his chest. Archie meant like friends, he just liked Ash as a friend... right? Asher was struck by the urge to kiss Archie, but before he could lean in, Archie had reached for the face masks. Ash took a deep breath, trying to steady himself. He needed to get a grip, really, Archie wasn't his and Archie wouldn't want to be his, it was stupid of Asher to get so caught up in this.

He held still as he was told, shutting his eyes and leaning forward just a bit, trying to ignore the way his heart fluttered at the feeling of Archie's fingers on his skin. He let out a soft sigh as Archie pulled away, opening his eyes and smiling shyly as the man asked for Ash to return the favor. He nodded, picking up the container. He turned it over in his hands, debating going for a kiss, but he doubted that Archie would want to kiss him when he had a face mask on. He dipped into the product instead, scooting closer and copying Archie's action, spreading the product onto Archie's face.

Asher paid close attention to what he was doing, but he still spoke gently as he worked. "Is this why your skin is always so soft, Archie baby?" he asked, resisting the urge to trail his other hand over the skin of Archie's arm. Ash pushed it down, making himself pull away as the mask was evenly applied. "There," he smiled shyly, thinking Archie looked adorable. "Now what?" He asked the other man.

 

[Archie Renner]

Closing his eyes when Asher agreed to help him apply the face mask, Archie tried his best not to flinch or scrunch his face at the coldness of product as Asher spread it on his face. He tried his best to stay still and calm, to avoid wrinkles appearing later as the mask dried, and eventually opened his eyes again when Asher said he was done. Archie trusted Asher had applied the mask well, and smiled slightly as he looked over to the coffee table. “Well.” Archie began, moving to place the lid back on the container of the mask, before he picked up one of the glasses of wine and sipped it gently. He was definitely beginning to feel relaxed with a face mask on and a glass of wine in one hand. “Now we wait until the masks dry, and until the pizza is done. The masks get really crusty as they dry but that’s the point, then we wash the masks off and eat the pizza and it’s fun, and your face should feel brand new, or something.” He explained, laughing slightly to himself as he sipped from his wine again. He never really understood the point of trying face masks, other than that it was apparently good for his skin. Though he did enjoy pretending like he knew more about skin care than he actually did.

“I think my skin is just smooth cause it’s smooth, but the masks help.” Archie added, uncaring if he sounded arrogant as he leant back into the sofa to get comfortable. “Anyway, cheers.” He added as he lifted his glass of wine slightly, waiting for Asher to reciprocate the cheers so they could properly move on to drinking in each other’s company. The pizza would surely be cooked soon, the timer was ticking away quietly in the background with a few minutes left before it would ring and let Archie know the food was ready to be eaten. It would be a final piece of the night to ensure Archie was relaxed, along with the face masks and wine, and Asher as company. Everything seemed to be perfect, despite the reason Asher had joined him that evening, and Archie was content, wanting to keep relaxing while he was able to.​

 

[Asher Beckett]

Asher picked up his own wine, shifting closer and laying his arm over the back of the couch. He smiled at Archie and clinked his glass against the mans as he settled into the couch. He sipped his wine and resisted the urge to slip his arm over Archie's shoulder. "So... how are you?" He asked, smiling softly. "Have you gone to see your dad? How's the ice cream shop?" He asked. It had been a while since they'd last caught up. Ash didn't want to pop in and just dump all of his worries on Archie's lap. He wanted to check in on the other man, see how his life was. Hopefully things were better than they had been last time they'd met.