Markus buried his face in Nikolas' neck almost immediately, trying to muffle the sound that slipped from his lips. That was absolutely divine. Even if the urge to tell him to bite a bit harder startled him, when it came out of nowhere. Instead, he gripped Nikolas a bit tighter, pulling him flush against himself. "Fuck-mistake. D-definitely a mistake." He grumbled, voice giving out for a moment. They had animals to take care of, but Markus almost wanted to pull him aside for a little while longer of this. And by little, he meant way longer than a little.
My Other Half // PRIVATE with Crocs
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Nikolas instinctively wrapped his other arm around Markus' waist when he was pulled even tighter to the point of being flush against Markus. He was startled, to say the least, by the boy's reaction, so he pulled his head away from Markus' neck and flicked his eyes over to him. There was no doubt that he liked it, judging from the sound and the fact that he had indirectly asked him to do it again, but Nikolas was still a bit concerned. His dragon, on the other hand, was stirring and itching to latch its fangs onto the boy's neck for as long as they could. Nikolas rolled his eyes and settled for nuzzling the spot he had bitten, lips pressing a delicate kiss to Markus' skin.
“Teeth. Huh.” Markus mumbled, the words sounding almost like nonsense. They were and weren’t, at the same time. He was wondering if Nikolas’ neck would fare the same as his when assaulted like this, considering ways to get him back. Ways, of course, beneficial to both of them. For now though, his scheming found itself dying out, as his cheeks darkened even more in response to the nuzzle. Somehow, something so soft was even worse for his thought process.
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Nikolas hummed in response, breathing in Markus' scent for a bit to allow the other boy some time to calm down. Now wasn't the time for this, despite how much he wanted to keep this up. It was almost like last night, the near-frenzy they had allowed themselves to fall into. Now was real life, now was work. Later, he reminded himself and his grumbling dragon, later. Still, he didn't pull away—not that he could with how Markus was holding him against his body. So he just stayed there, face pressed into the boy's neck and arms wrapped around his neck and waist.
"You know, when I called to let you know that I was going to be late, I didn't expect you take that as 'you should make out your boyfriend next to a pool full of 'gators."
The voice that had Markus releasing Nikolas suddenly and wheeling around, didn't come from someone one would expect to cause such a reaction. A small girl around their age stood with an eyebrow arched and a hip cocked, wearing a pair of white shorts and the clinic's uniform t-shirt, the sleeves cut off. Her blonde hair was pulled up into a messy braid, and she radiated summer as an entire vibe, even at this time of year. She was gorgeous, even though she sort of seemed to shrink into herself a bit.
"Uh-Lily. Hey. I thought you were gonna be later. Shit. Um-this is. This is Nik. Nik, this is Lily. My best friend."
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Nikolas blinked in surprise when Markus suddenly pushed away, then a small girl's voice registered in his ears and he turned around to survey her. His dragon stirred angrily, upset at the interruption and on edge, ready to protect its mate. Harmless, Icarus. She's harmless. Nikolas shifted with a soft smirk so he was leaning against Bambi's fence. "Well, looks like I haven't been friend-zoned just yet," he drawled with an amused tone, eyes sparkling with amusement at the situation and Markus' reaction. He dipped his head in greeting towards the girl. "Nice to meet you. It's all his fault."
"I have no doubt about that." Lily said, her voice carrying easily even with the occasional noise from animals in the yard. Steady, never once being drowned out by anything. "Meets himself a pretty boy with tattoos and suddenly he's breaking rules." She joked, making a face at a very flushed Markus. "So, Mark, if I'm your friend, what's he to you? You introduced me, but not him."
"Yeah. Right. Uh. Lily, this is Nikolas, if that wasn' obvious." Markus stuttered, motioning to Nikolas as he shifted a half step closer to the boy unconsciously. "What is he to me? Shit. You know he's-y'know. As for that…we ain't really decided yet. Leanin' towards boyfriend, once the word stops soundin' weird in my mouth. If he's cool with that. You're cool with that, right? I wouldn't want to just say anythin' ya ain't down with-"
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Nikolas appreciated the concern and how hard the boy was clearly trying, but he just wanted him to shut up before he tied his own tongue up with all the stuttering and babbling. Nikolas rolled his eyes and stepped forward to interrupt Markus, shooting a quick apologetic glance Lily's way before turning towards the stuttering boy, grabbing both of his hands, and leaning up to press a fond but brief kiss to Markus' lips. "I'm fine with that, Markus. Don't worry about it right now."
He stepped back after giving Markus' hands a gentle squeeze, then let go and turned towards Lily. "Is he always like that?" he asked with a smile. It was clear that he was amused by the bumbling and flustered mess he could get Markus into, especially by the way his eyes sparkled.
"Only seen him like that a couple times, and it was usually when he was presenting." Lily said, shaking her head. She uncrossed her arms, only to place them on her hips, looking between her best friend and the boy he used to hate. "Usually he's just quiet and angry. I like this though. More opportunities to tease him." She pointed out, earning a groan from Markus. "Anyway, y'all should go feed the puppies. I'll get Mr. Racer's number later, so I can tell him all your embarrassing secrets."
"Absolutely not. Y'all ain' swapping numbers now. I ain't lettin' ya plot shit like that. No siree." Markus said, wrapping his arms in a mock protective gesture, around Nikolas' waist. "She's a bad influence, anyway. Ya don' wanna get caught up with someone like her." It was mildly hilarious, considering she looked the complete opposite of a bad influence, and they both knew it. More like a Disney princess, literally. "I'm taking Nikolas to the puppies before you convince him to set something on fire or let loose Tick Tock in the McDonalds down the street."
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Nikolas laughed softly as he listened to them both, moving so he was in front of Markus when he felt the boy's arms around his waist. He tipped his head back to look up at him and arched a brow, amused with Markus' insistence that Lily was a bad influence. "You do realize who you're talking to, right? The one that quite possibly encouraged Tess's less than legal activities by not doing anything about it? The one that doesn't do quite so legal things either? Ringing any bells?" Nikolas shook his head with a smile and closed his eyes, leaning his head back even more until he was resting it against Markus' chest. "I just want to play with the pups. That's all I ask. I won't be a bother to you two."
Markus just harrumphed, shaking his head and pulling a face. "She's no good. Gotta keep you away from someone as tricky as her." He said, tightening his hold on Nikolas and pressing a kiss to the forehead of the boy in his arms. "Let's get you to the puppies. I trust them a bit more. Hey Lily, honey, Harvey left a note sayin' the snappers were a bit moody, so keep an eye out. Anyone can handle 'em though, 's you."
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Nikolas sighed and rolled his eyes, scrunching his nose playfully at the kiss to his forehead. His eyes lit up, however, at the mention of puppies. "Sounds good to me. You just have to let me go, love, so I can walk." He looked back down as Markus talked to Lily, humming and listening curiously. From what he's gathered so far, Lily was really good with the animals. She gave off that sort of aura, so he wasn't surprised.
Markus glanced up to see Lily make her way to Tick Tock's pool, nodding. "Yeah, yeah." He reluctantly released Nikolas, though not without another kiss, this time to his nose, which took some bending of his neck. "A'ight. Puppies it is. Hope ya feel special, gettin' t' feed 'em." He teased, grabbing Nik's hand to tug him along back inside.
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Nikolas swatted at Markus when he got kissed on the nose, but didn't fight when his hand was grabbed and tugged. He followed Markus inside and grinned cheekily up at him. "I do feel special. Fair warning, I might end up loving them more than you. It's just in my blood, a native Greek 'nd all." Of course he was joking—he highly doubted that some adorable puppies would beat-out his adorable boyfriend.
“Uh Huh.” Markus arched a brow at Nikolas, looking incredibly disbelieving. His lips were still pulled into a small smile, fingers linking through Nikolas’ despite the walk inside only being a few seconds. “I don’t doubt ya love ‘me, but more’n me? Seems fake. But a’ight.” He stuck his tongue out at Nik, squeezing his hand.
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Nikolas grinned and took the opportunity he was offered without batting an eye. He leaned over and caught Markus' tongue between his teeth, then used that opportunity to press his lips against the other boy's. That would be his answer, as he was too occupied to actually offer a verbal response to Markus' sarcasm. A puppy was great and adorable, but he wouldn't be able to kiss them like he could Markus, or—and he couldn't believe he was admitting this—be picked up by him. Markus was better than any puppy or dog.
Markus' noise of surprise was cut off by Nik pressing his lips to his, his tongue retracting into his mouth. He paused his movement to return the kiss, arms finding their way around his boyfriend. Boyfriend. What a word. Even if his head told him it was a blasphemous word for him to speak, his heart did jumping jacks in his chest at the thought. Boyfriend. Boyfriend boyfriend boyfriend- "Boyfriend. I can' get o'er that."
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Nikolas' smile grew quickly when Markus spoke, palms resting against the boy's chest. "I hope that's a good thing and not an 'oh gods, what have I done?' thing," he said, arching a brow. Even still, he was happy, because he highly doubted it was the latter. Markus wouldn't have kissed him back if it was, or done anything with Nikolas if it was that. Honestly, it just made him feel special. Special because Markus wouldn't have ever considered doing any of this with him before, but now look where they were. Markus often refused to let him go once he got a hold of Nikolas.
"Oh, it's a mix o' both. Mostly the former though. Just like, a sprinkle o' the latter." Markus said, smiling warmly down at Nikolas. At his boyfriend. God, he wanted to just sit there and say that word over and over. Maybe then it would click, that it wasn't just a dream. That it was happening. "Y'know, you're the perfect size for hugs. Carryin' too, if ya ever needed t' be, but hugs man. Ideal size."
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Nikolas rolled his eyes and playfully pouted, appearing to not be fond if being reminded of his smaller height. He crossed his arms over his chest and leaned his torso back as much as Markus' grip would allow him to. "Are you calling me short?" he accused, leveling a flat stare on his boyfriend's eyes. He might complain, but he loved Markus' hugs—and yes, him periodically carrying him around. Saved him from the effort of walking, and he could hear the boy's heartbeat when doing so, depending on how he chose to hold Nikolas.
“Maybe I am.” Markus said, smirking down at Nikolas. He tightened his hold, making it obvious Nikolas would have to ask him if he wanted free. “What are ya gonna do about it?” The tone of voice he had was horribly cheeky, and his dark eyes sparked with mirth. Fondness, too, if one was looking for it.
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Nikolas narrowed his eyes and hummed, pretending to think it over. He then leaned forward and reached up to lightly grasp Markus' chin, head tipping back enough to make their lips level and a mere inch apart. "Mmmm, you're just freakishly tall," he whispered, swiping his thumb over the boy's bottom lip slowly. His eyes were clearly on those lips, not hiding his gaze one bit. Two could play at that game, and Nikolas was confident he'd win.
"I'm a perfectly normal height. Y' are just short." Markus said, mentally applauding himself for keeping the slight tremor threatening to arise out of his voice. His eyes darkened slightly, but that was the only sign of how affected he was by Nik's grip on his chin and eyes on his lips. Not bothered at all… A lie, but nobody but him knew that. Or, so he had managed to convince himself.