Private Finished A Spot of Coffee, Maybe a Bandaid

Kal gave the biggest eyebrow raise ever at Cam's reply about pictures from that show from hell. So he did in fact have pictures-or at least that was being implied by the wording and teasing expressions. Cam wouldn't let just anyone see the pictures, but what if Kal wasn't just anyone? That train of thought oddly derailed Kal's mind and soon he wasn't even thinking about the pictures themselves anymore. He was wondering what Cam thought of him. Really thought of him- behind the usual flirting and jokes that Cam seemed to be able to fling with ease at everyone. For some reason that question felt really important to Kal all of a sudden.

He was still paying attention to the storytelling that was happening though, and when Cam threw his hands back down onto the table Kal grinned. "I have to know now. I figured they were probably being shady but I can't even begin to guess what they were raising money for. At this point it could be anything and I would believe it."

Cam's plan to distract Kal with coffee talk was pretty successful, at least from the outside. However it definitely wasn't erasing Kal's memory of the awkward face brushes that both of them had done, the feeling of being drawn in by Cam's talking , or the way their eyes had met. It certainly wasn't erasing all the powerful and confusing emotions Kal was feeling.

Kal was confused as hell how Cam could still have cocoa left in his cup. The man had barely even set the cup down but a few times before picking it back up. Maybe Kal shouldn't have been drinking his coffee so fast. He kind of wished his cup hadn't been revealed to be empty so he could have pretended to drink from it more. As it was his hands were just sitting there without something to do. "Good thing mine wasn't bottomless or i'd probably have to go change. I don't think wearing coffee is in style," he chuckled and tapped his empty cup. Unfortunately with his nerves he hit it a little harder than he thought, nearly knocking it off the table.



Interrogation was a bit of a harsh word for what his mother probably would have planned but it wasn't terribly off base. She absolutely would have been carefully nudging a person to talk about themselves and how they felt about Kal. As friendly and kind as she was she was still a mother dragon and they knew how to be fiercely protective. Even if their child was adopted apparently. "Tempted to have you over for dinner one night so I can watch the two of you lock horns in person. Though i'm half worried somehow it'd end up with both of you working together to embarrass me," Kal snickered and grinned. He'd have no hope of resisting that.

At that point, though he might not have know it, Cam could probably have gotten any answers he wanted out of Kal. The man was caught in his charm and despite being confused by that he was very much enjoying himself. Everything felt warm and exciting and nervous but in a good way. "Ok you make a fair point about the diaper modeling. I guess it's only fair I share an embarrassing story of my own. Funnily enough it's sort of related." Kal sighed and picked up his coffee cup to begin filling it with water from his hand.

It was both a pause for dramatic effect, to make Cam wonder how their stories could be related, and to give Kal something to drink. He was feeling thirsty and took a large swig of the warm water in his cup before continuing. "Well, sort of related. Apparently when I was very little I wasn't so much a fan of clothing. Lyr says she'd set me somewhere to play and next thing she knew I was fleeing towards the beach with not even a diaper in sight." Kaliyan had to stop. Why was he sharing that story? Sure he had just been a little kid but he still wouldn't have told that to just anyone.

The actual picture itself wasnt really Kal's main focus, though he was pretty sure he would love to see it if only for the reaction it would draw from Cam. Seeing the man in a strange modeling picture wearing a diaper wasn't really Kal's thing but seeing Cam flustered or blushing was apparently something Kal didn't mind. He might have even said he found that attractive if he was being honest.

Kal imagined the terrible conditions that Cam was describing. Kal liked the heat personally but he knew that it would have made things horribly sweaty and uncomfortable for the model. The makeshift curtain and closet for changing was completely disrespectful. Though as he imagined the changing area Kal's thoughts drifted towards Cam actually changing his clothing and he had to mentally slap himself a few times to avoid focusing too much on those kinds of thoughts. Thoughts he hadn't had before about a man and yet it didn't feel wrong- just inappropriate for the current setting. Also Kal didn't want to ruin a friendship just because his mind was wandering that way.

As if to answer his desire for a distraction Cam shivered the tiniest bit. Kal hadn't realized how carefully he was watching Cam's body language until then. Though Cam seemed to be ok that shiver made something deep within Kal rumble to life. Metaphorically speaking of course, though a bit of wind began to whip around near Kal. He could feel the first little waves of anger at the people who had taken advantage of Cam. However there was another feeling that warred with his burgeoning anger. A powerful desire to get up and move over to hug Cam. To hold him close and keep him from ever needing to shiver again. It was a ridiculous and overly dramatic thought but Kal was surprised enough by the strength of that feeling that his anger was pushed back into the depths and with it, the winds dissipated.

In fact Kal probably shifted in his seat and nearly stood up to move over to Cam's side before he managed to regain control over himself. His eyes however would have revealed more as they were a lot less guarded. First a flash of anger followed by soft compassion, and perhaps a tinge of longing. Also before Kal's desire to hold Cam overtook his anger at the other people from Cam's

As Cam leaned in to whisper it felt like Kal's hair was standing on end. He could have sworn there was the feeling excitement in the air, like a bolt of lightning just about to strike, as he too leaned in and Cam's face, and lips, drew close. And then Cam had told Kal the true reason for the modeling show and like a resounding clap of thunder the tension was released into a burst of snickering. "Well," he said as he tried to hold a straight face and utterly failed, "at least those asses chose to hire the best damn model around for their evil plots." He tried very hard to avoid thinking about what kind of shows those types of people would have been putting on. On top of the other wild swirling emotions Kal was dealing with already he could feel that very powerful desire again. Not a desire of an indecent nature, though perhaps there was a little of that hiding under the surface that he wasn't quite ready to deal with, but a desire to protect Cam.


Kal too felt the unspoken meaning of their waning drinks. Well Cam's drink anyway since Kal had finished all but the part he had been splashed with. He didn't want their... coffee trip to end but on the other hand he felt like he already had a mountain of emotions and buried thoughts that he was going to need to sift through. As much as he kept telling himself it was just friends having coffee Kal was just fooling himself. There was something else going on and he needed to figure out how he was going to handle that.

At Cam's mention of his hair Kal grinned. "Tell you what. If you think I could pull off being splashed with coffee I'll let you try it out sometime- you're the fashion expert. Just not here- getting kicked out for throwing coffee would be funny but I might actually want to come back here." He let that linger in the air. Whether he meant just coming back in general or with Cam wasn't clear, though the implication was there.


The sudden movement as Cam flung a hand out to catch Kal's cup caught him by surprise but Kal's gratitude was short-lived as he noticed how Cam had spilled his cocoa on his shirt. It was funny but Kal also felt responsible for the spill, as it was his careless brush against his cup that had caused Cam's spill. "Guess we're starting a new fashion trend. Here though," Kal grinned as he gathered a stack of napkins and held them in his palm. Warm water bubbled up through the napkins making them damp enough to blot some of the cocoa away. It probably would have been more effective to just do that trick with the clothing itself but that was a bit difficult to do since they were still being worn. "I'd offer to clean it for you but you're just too far away to reach," he smiled and outstretched his arm to offer the damp napkins to Cam.

Embarrassing me? No, i'm pretty sure i'm doing that all on my own.

Cam acting like a villain was great. Cute, even. Kal couldn't help but grin at Cam's act but the question about dinner lingered in the air. Kal could have made a joke or diverted to another topic but in the end he did actually want to have Cam over for dinner. Even knowing that his mother would be sizing Cam up and probably bringing up all kinds of embarrassing stories and pictures. He had to think about it just a little longer. Perhaps after he shared his embarrassing story and saw how Cam reacted. Just as Cam wanted to learn about Kal, Kal was trying to learn about Cam. Not the act that the man was so good at putting on, but the real person underneath it. Baby steps though. First that story.

Kal was relieved that Cam had reacted the way he did. He wasn't sure what he had expected, maybe teasing or maybe being told it wasn't embarrassing enough. Kal looked embarrassed though. Thinking about all the pictures Lyr had of him was enough to make him cringe. Still though as embarrassed as he was he had decided to go ahead and have the dinner anyway

"I'll make you a deal. We can definitely have that dinner, my mom and whatever horrors she brings to the table included, if you promise to keep telling me more about your life," he finally said. He knew that whenever they planned it Lyr would find a way to suddenly have an openign in her schedule. Hell, she'd probably close the Spa early and blame it on some random issue just to make sure she could cook. Kal smirked though as he decided to tease Cam a little bit, "it doesn't all have to be about you running around in diapers though- unless that's more common in your life than I thought." With that he raised he quirked his eyebrows.

Kal also looked over at the two cups side by side. Something about them seemed symbolic. Not so much the fact that they were empty but that they were sitting there next to each other. He again felt that urge to move over and sit next to Cam just like their two cups were doing. 'Probably just a silly thought' he tried to tell himself. When he looked over at Cam again he was amused at the amount of blushing. The only word that came to Kal's mind at that point was 'cute'.

"I think that's fair. Gotta save something for next time," Kal grinned. It was no secret that both of them were very much enjoying their time. They were going to spend more time together whether it was coffee, dinner or whatever else. He was definitely interested in the stories but mostly it was because it was Cam telling them. Cam's voice felt... comfortable. Even when he was making jokes or goofing off Kal just wanted to hear that voice. To hear the laughter and snickering and all the terrible puns.

Once more the contact between them, though it was brief and fleeting as Kal handed over the napkins, was exciting. For just a second their hands had touched and shared their warmth before separating again. If only Kal hadn't been so confused with how he was feeling he might have moved to hold that hand instead. But alas he was still figuring all this out and the opportunity came and went. Had there been another meaning behind his statement about being too far away? Maybe he had meant he wanted to reach out and hold Cam. That had certainly been a thought that had popped through his mind a couple times. Maybe it was an admission that there was something Kal had to work through before they could be closer. Maybe even it was some cosmic symbol of fate reminding Cam that there were other things that might keep them apart in the near future. Or perhaps there was no special meaning and Kal just couldn't reach across the table well to help clean Cam's vest. He was very happy though that Cam seemed to really appreciate the wet napkins even though it was a pretty minor gesture.

If Cam was a little glum for some reason Kal had no idea. He was much more focused on the laughing and grinning that the both of them were doing. "Trying to contain you or your genius would be foolish. I'm pretty sure you already sold me on the spilled drink fashion. Too bad my coffee spill wasn't as brew-tiful." It had been too long since he let out a bad pun. Couldn't let Cam think he had forgotten about that pillar of their friendship.

Ok, so they were both embarrassed about... well Kal wasn't entirely sure which part Cam was embarrassed about but whatever it was he thought it was pretty endearing. They were both excited for something as simple as a dinner with Kal's mom though so things couldn't be going too badly. Kal was going to be so nervous whenever they set up the dinner. Fortunately Lyr's aura would mean that everyone would be fairly calm.

Kal smirked as Cam turned the teasing right back on him. Of course he did, that was part of what made Cam so interesting. He seemed like he could talk himself into or out of anything. "Hey, I'm not gonna tell you what type of stories to tell. I really didn't expect to be interested in a story about wearing diapers but you drew me in. I'll be honest though, it's you i'm interested in," he said and then realized how that sounded. "I mean interested in you as opposed to the diapers. I, um..." he hurriedly added with a bit of panic showing in his face. Oh he was far more interested in Cam than he was even aware of but he wasn't quite ready to say that for real. Not until he had a moment to clear his head and think- which wasn't going to happen while Cam was sitting there so close and smiling at him. Even winking at him.

Kal sighed. He was feeling a little like he was losing control. Drunk? No, not technically but it wasn't a terribly bad way to describe it. "Tell you what," he said finally as he took a deep breath and leaned in across the table. "I'll give you one little horror story and that will be all the embarrassment I can probably handle for today." At the very least it might distract Cam from whatever that last little weird outburst was.

He put on the best serious face he could muster under the circumstances and began. "It was about 8 years ago and sweet little Kaliyan had begged his mother for weeks to let him go to his first sleepover at a friend's house. Pizza and cake and a pool party followed by video games until everyone falls asleep in a pile of pillows and cheetos or whatever right? Wrong. Something would happen that would make Kal never go on another sleepover again.." With an evil grin he paused with him leaning over the table and some of his loose hair covering just enough of his face to make him look a little crazy.

Man, that easy smile and the comforting look in Cam's eyes were both doing a number on Kal. He was mesmerized and feeling dizzy with his thoughts and feelings swirling. He could have sworn the temperature in the room was much higher than it was normally. It wasn't unpleasant though, just a little overwhelming. And he was definitely looking forward to the dinner. Even with the embarrassment it was sure to bring. For some reason he felt like it would still be worth it.

Speaking of embarrassment, Kal felt like he was scrambling after he mentioned being interested in Cam. He had tried to quickly clarify what he meant but then that had sounded wrong to him. Was he attracted to Cam? Maybe. Probably. Crap, what if Cam liked him back but was discouraged by that panicked outburst? Kal felt sick. He didn't want to hurt Cam and he probably definitely was feeling attracted to him but he just wasn't ready to tell him yet. Just before he sunk too low into internal misery Cam swooped in with a pun to save the day.

It wasn't the smoothest joke but that was perfectly fine. Part of their thing was enjoying the terrible, hilarious nature of bad puns and dumb jokes. The 'to die-per for' pun was enough to yank Kal out of his embarrassment and concerns back to smiling and laughing as he snorted at the joke. "Oh no," he said between laughter, "I'm pretty sure it's the puns that will be my doom, not the stories. I'll just collapse into a mess of laughter and tears and you'll have to wheel me out of here." He was back to grinning. Focusing on enjoying his time there with Cam rather than trying to figure out his own feelings was the best thing to do. Either way he really wanted to keep having fun with Cam.

And there they were again. Both leaning over the table towards each other. Not quite close enough to be super intimate but enough that those kind of thoughts probably weren't too far off, no matter how much each of them tried to push them aside. Kal's serious act broke at the giggling coming from Cam but he tried not to let himself get too side-tracked. Though Kal had moved on from the events in the story a while ago, he was still very much embarrassed to tell it.

"Now, now don't skip ahead- though your guess was pretty good. Poor little Kaliyan had been so excited to be at his first sleepover that he had partied too much and, from what he learned later, had been the first one to fall asleep. Never a good thing- being the first one asleep. As little Kal lay there amid the blankets and pillows his friends schemed and plotted. Why not spring a little prank on Kal and have a good old time?" Kal continued telling the story with the best evil sounding narrator voice he could muster. Of course it came out a little more comical than he intended because he wasn't used to trying to sound evil, and maybe the story itself threw him off a little, but it was still probably very entertaining.

Kal started to look for something to drink but then remembered his coffee had been emptied. So, he just took a deep breath for dramatic effect and resumed telling the horror story. "A simple bowl of warm water and a hand. Everyone knows the trick. They had to have held hands over their own mouths as they tried to silence their snickering. They must have been waiting to see little Kal wet the blankets but either it didn't happen or they got bored. The scene went dark and suddenly everyone was woken up by one of the boys laughing and saying "It worked! Holy crap it really worked!". Little Kal opened his bleary eyes and saw they were pointing at him. The blankets around him were soaked and his left hand was in a bowl." This time Kal really did need something to drink so he reached over to grab his cup and poured some water from his palm into the cup before taking a few sips.

He was almost done with the story, just a little more left to tell. "They didn't know it but a lot of the wetness was really just saltwater. Not that it really mattered- the prank had still worked like it was supposed to. It just looked even worse than it would have. As he resigned himself to taking that embarrassing fall, with a few tears forming in his eyes, he realized one more thing. His right hand, hidden under the blankets, was actually holding the hand of another boy who was just waking up to all the noise. Kal jerked both hands to the blanket around him, balling them up and throwing them in a corner before fleeing the party." With that Kal sort of looked away from Cam as he could feel again the echo of the embarrassment felt that night. He hadn't been kidding about never doing a sleepover again- that had been the first and last one he went to. Weirdly enough, Kal wasn't entirely sure why the whole hand-holding thing had stayed in that story. It seemed to be a little random and unimportant fact but it lingered clearly in his memories for some reason. For a fleeting moment Kal had the thought that he wished that had been Cam's hand.

Praise be to the deity of puns for they surely saved the day. Kal however was also struck with an idea as Cam brought up working out. "Hey, you know what everyone needs to help them work out? A partner. I'm no personal trainer but if you need someone to work out with i'll gladly join you. As a weight or otherwise," he smirked as he imagined Cam literally using him as some kind of bizarre training tool. Or just working out beside him. Yeah, that probably would be one hell of a great time.

As Kal told his story he wasn't terribly surprised that Cam had guessed what the prank had been. It wasn't exactly a very original idea. At least Cam seemed to be enjoying the story though as he chuckled and reveled in the plight of poor little Kal. To be perfectly honest Kal himself was grinning a little, but mostly that was a response to seeing Cam enjoying the story.

Kal had indeed missed Cam's longing glances at his hand and he certainly didn't know about that little creative addition to the story in Cam's mind but his attention was drawn back away from embarrassment and to Cam's face as the man spoke. Kal was glad he didn't have to clarify that yes, he had wet the bed but it had been covered up by the salt water. "I'd love to say she couldn't top that story but I wouldn't bet on it. Who knows what she has to share about me," he grimaced and then switched to a smile. It probably wouldn't be too painful if it was Cam hearing the stories.

He leaned back in his seat and raised one hand to brush the hair out of his face, leaving it to rest back on the table when he finished. One of his eyebrows raised as Cam showed his determined expression. "Alright Mr. Abel. I accept the terms of this war. I would love to hear those cute little Cam stories. Just remember, all's fair in love and war. I think that's a famous quote or something."

Kal extended his arm for a cheeky handshake with an air of mock seriousness. Of course he was preparing for another little harmless prank. If Cam shook his hand he planned to start producing warm saltwater right between their hands.

It was looking like their not-date was maybe getting close to finishing but that didn't mean Kal couldn't keep having fun. At the very least he would be sure they left on a high note. Then he could worry about sorting his feelings about Cam later.