Chapter Text
Reading and Leeds was one of the biggest musical weekends in England. This year promised to be a great one. It certainly wasn’t Gerard Way’s first time, but quite frankly, it might be the best. There were some awesome bands at the shows this time: Muse, Pearl Jam, Fall Out Boy, Slayer. But the band that had gained Gerard’s interest was a new one, one of Pete Wentz’s discoveries. And after he’d heard that the lead singer took a bottle to the head on Friday in Reading and got back up to continue the concert, he was really looking forward to seeing what they could do.
My Chemical Romance didn’t have to play on Saturday, so Gerard had conned Brian into letting him stay in Leeds to watch some bands. Frank, Bob and Mikey stayed with him with Brian overseeing. Ray had hooked up with the Slayer guys and was riding with them to Leeds. Brian was cool with that because Ray wasn’t the one that needed looking after. The rest of them were.
Gerard decided to stay around the main stage. Bob went to wander, but they knew he’d be back in time for Fall Out Boy. After last year when Patrick had stepped in for him on a song, they had become really good friends. Mikey, however, was still a little wary of Pete, but when Frank offered to “beat the little punk ass freak up,” he felt a little better and stayed with the two of them. Yes, Frank was going to stay with Gerard. That’s what Frank did.
He was wandering around backstage when he saw Pete walking towards him with two kids in his wake. One had quite a lump on his forehead and the other… Fuck. Gerard had never seen such a beautiful guy in his life. This kid was even prettier than William Beckett, and that was saying a lot.
“Gee!” Pete greeted as he got to him. The shorter man pulled him into an awkward hug. He knew he was the reason it was awkward. Gerard was not that much of a touching person. But Pete seemed to be excited to introduce him to whoever these two boys were. “Brendon, Ryan, this is Gerard Way, but you already knew that. Gee, this is Brendon and that’s Ryan. They’re half of Panic! at the Disco.” Pete pointed to each as he said his name.
That’s when it clicked. Gerard’s eyes lit up as he looked at Brendon. “Oh! You’re the one who got bottled. Dude, that really does look like a nasty war wound. You’re a fucking saint to get back up and finish like you did. Don’t worry. I’ll give that crowd fucking hell tomorrow night.” He smiled and shook Brendon’s hand before turning to Ryan. “And you’re the one who wrote all those incredible songs he sings.” He gestured with his head towards Brendon, but his eyes never left Ryan’s. Wow, they were intense and beautiful. They reminded him of some really good scotch. Subconsciously, his tongue snaked out to lick his lips as he waited for the younger man to shake his hand.
Ryan suddenly felt like a rabbit caught in headlights as he reached out to shake Gerard's hand. Somewhere in his brain, a voice was whispering 'Fuckfuckfuck, Gerard fucking Way.' Thankfully that wasn't the voice that was in charge. "I guess I am." He wanted to tear his eyes away from the older man's but he just couldn't. This was the guy with that voice, that stage presence. Ryan's mind quickly flicked back to the post he'd made what felt like a life time ago. 'My Chemical Romance makes me dance'. "So um....shouldn't you get heading to Reading?" Nice, Ryan. Smooth.
Gerard laughed and held onto his hand a little longer than necessary. This kid was okay. “We don’t play until Sunday and I wanted to watch you guys. Pete hasn’t shut up about you since he signed you.”
"Really?" Ryan squeaked out, clearing his throat immediately after in an attempt to retain some form of dignity. "I mean..." He paused a second to pluck up a little courage. "It'd be really cool to get your opinion on our stuff after, if you're not busy, which you're totally going to be. Never mind." Ryan seriously couldn't believe he just asked that. Like Gerard Way wouldn't have anything better to do than to talk about some start up band's music.
“Oh no, I would love that!” Gerard said excitedly. “I mean, I totally love your style. The outfits. The makeup. Wow, so out there.” Gerard really did love their style and their music. He admired what Ryan wore on stage.
Ryan could feel the blush starting to rise in his cheeks and probably everywhere else as Gerard spoke. The older man seemed to be genuinely interested and, dare he even say it, excited to talk to him about their band. "Awesome!" He had a feeling he'd just made a complete fanboy idiot of himself with his way too over enthusiastic reply, but part of him didn't care because he was going to talk to Gerard Way after their set!
Pete was watching them curiously. He knew that look on Gerard’s face. It was the same he’d seen on Mikey’s last summer. This might be interesting. “You know, there’re a couple of hours before your set, Ry. Why don’t you and Gee go out by the busses and talk? I’ll make sure Bren stays out of trouble.” He grinned broadly.
"Hey!” Brendon protested. “I never get into trouble. Trouble might find me but that's hardly the same thing!" He grinned lopsidedly at Pete, Gerard and then Ryan. "You should totally go, Ry." He could tell how much his guitarist wanted to take the opportunity to talk to the other singer and maybe it'd help his confidence in their work a little, too.
For a brief moment Ryan felt like he must be dreaming, still stuck on the bus between Reading and Leeds. Then he felt a pinch on his arm which clearly came from behind and therefore from Brendon. "Yeah, that'd be, well, great. If you're free now?" Damn this blush was not going anywhere. He felt like he was the same color as his vest. Not the best of looks when you're standing in front of one of your idols. It reminded Ryan of the first time he'd met Pete.
“I’m free all day,” Gerard said with a smile. He turned to actually look at Pete and Brendon, which he hadn’t done since he’d laid eyes on Ryan. “We’ll see you two soon. We won’t go far so Ryan can get back in time for the show.”
Pete grabbed Brendon’s arm and pulled him off towards where other bands were warming up. Brendon waved goodbye as they walked away. Gerard turned back to smile at Ryan. “Well, are you ready?”
Ryan managed a quick nod of his head before answering, "Lead the way...." He really hoped that hadn't sounded like the lamest pun ever. It certainly hadn't meant to be so he smiled, if not a little nervously, to try and make it seem like a genuine statement.
Gerard put his hands in his pockets and started heading out back. He stopped at one of the tents and grabbed a couple of bottles of water. Handing one to Ryan, he smiled. “It might be England, but it’s still warm.” He led Ryan off to one of the more quiet areas of the back.
Leaning against the warm side of one of the unoccupied buses, Ryan opened his bottle. "For some reason I thought it would be raining, like all the time. Thanks for this, I kinda forget sometimes, you know?" He waved the bottle as he spoke.
“Yeah, that’s what I thought our first time over, too. And you really should remember to keep a bottle of water with you all the time. I didn’t used to, but now…” Gerard shrugged and opened his bottle. He moved to stand right before the younger man. Reaching out, he fingered one of the roses on his vest. “I like this. I’ve never seen a vest like this.” His voice was soft and quiet.
Ryan was just about to say something when he suddenly found Gerard standing a little too close for comfort. Not that Ryan had major issues with personal space, but when someone as attractive and talented as Gerard Way does it, it's uncomfortable in all the awkward ways. "It's a custom piece. I," he swallowed as he tried to stay upright, "I wanted something individual, completely different. Something me?"
“Yeah, it totally is you.” He ran his fingers through the roses. He raised his head and looked into those beautiful eyes before him. “So, where do you get your inspiration for your lyrics?”
"Um," Ryan had to take a moment to arrange the words in his head since he'd suddenly become aware of how warm it was getting. "In part, they come from experience. Maybe not all mine, some of its observation." Ryan really felt the need to have a drink of water, his throat drying up as he spoke. And he seriously couldn't take his eyes off the man before him. "There's a couple that are just me though."
Gerard nodded. He had a couple of songs that were just him, too. He moved to lean next to Ryan against the bus. They were close to the same height, so their shoulders were right together when he shifted towards the younger man. "How do you like touring? It can be a little rough at first. I remember traveling all over the tri-states in a cramped van. It was fun, but you end up hating everyone after a while." He took another swallow of water and ran his hand through his bleached hair.
Finding it easier to concentrate with Gerard out of his line of sight, Ryan took some water from his bottle before answering. "Sometimes we have to hide the sugar from Brendon so we don't have to murder him, but so far it's pretty awesome. Anything's better than Vegas." Ryan was consciously aware of the fact that the other man was still in physical contact with him, but he at least felt a little more relaxed about it. "Are you guys heading straight back over after tomorrow?"
Gerard grabbed his cigarettes out of his pocket. “I really don’t know. We’ve been over here for, like, a couple of weeks. Man, that secret concert in London was incredible.” He smiled and tapped up a cigarette and offered it to Ryan.
"I would have loved to have been there." Ryan stopped himself before he said something ridiculously gushing about how amazing he thought the other man and his band were. He noticed what Gerard was offering and he shook his head once. "Thanks, but they're not my kind of smoke." Ryan smiled apologetically, hoping he wasn't coming across as rude.
Gerard shrugged and raised the pack so he could pull the cigarette out with his lips. Exchanging the pack with his Zippo, he slid his thumb over the roller to ignite the spark. He leaned into the flame, lighting up the tip of his cigarette. Snapping the lid of the lighter closed, he put it back in his pocket as he inhaled. “You should be careful with that other kind of smoke,” he said then exhaled the smoke from the corner of his mouth. “All things are addictive, but it can be a bit more destructive. I had to learn the hard way.”
Ryan couldn't tear his eyes away from the well-practiced movements of Gerard's hands as he lit up. There was just something in the way the other man moved that held his attention. Considering how often Ryan was around people who smoked, he was surprised by his reaction when Gerard took a drag and then exhaled. It was possibly one of the sexiest things he'd ever seen, and fuck, his body had started paying attention. Ryan shifted a little against the bus in the hope it wasn't obvious that his pants suddenly felt a little tighter. He realized Gerard had said something, and once he'd remembered what it was Ryan wasn't sure what to say. "I...um, I guess it can be. I mean it's not all the time, but it doesn't hurt to keep an eye open."
Gerard nodded as he took another long drag. “Yeah. At least this is my only addiction now.” He blew the smoke out away from the other man then leaned his head back against the bus behind him. “At least it’s relaxing.”
"Is it?" He had to admit he'd never felt the urge to try before, but something about the way the older man looked made him want to. His curiosity got the better of him and he had to ask. "But you're not on tonight. What's bothering you?"
Gerard turned his head towards him. There was a slight predatory look in his eyes and a ghost of a smile on his lips. “Just battling with myself, trying not to just jump you right here.” He inhaled deeply on the filter between his fingers. “You are incredibly fucking sexy, you know. But it wouldn’t be right for me to take advantage.”
The look in Gerard's eyes sent a rush throughout Ryan's entire body, the other man's words making him suddenly a little light headed as his blood was diverted elsewhere. "Please" was the whispered admission from the guitarist’s lips. Fuck this seriously couldn't be real, could it?!
Gerard had heard Ryan swung “that way”, but he hadn’t expected this type of reaction to what he was just going to brush off as a joke if the kid was appalled. Every word he’d spoken had been true. He did find Ryan fucking sexy. That vest was totally making it even more so. And now the kid was telling him he wanted Gerard to take advantage of him. Well damn.
He casually dropped his cigarette and twisted the heel of his boot over the dying embers as he moved to stand in front of the other man again. This time he was closer, much closer. He moved in, his mouth a mere breath away from Ryan’s. “Are you sure about this?” he asked. He was giving him a way out if he wasn’t sure.
Ryan's eyes flicked up from Gerard's lips to the other man's eyes. "Yes." Every instinct in his body was screaming out for him to move, to press his lips to the older man's, but he was frozen in place.
Well, that was confirmation. Gerard let his tongue wet his lips quickly before he closed the gap to press them against Ryan’s. He moved one of his hands to rest on the other man’s hip lightly.
Holyfuckingshit. Ryan could have sworn his heart stopped for a moment before his brain got into gear and reminded him how to react. He pushed back against Gerard, his lips parting as his hands flexed against the side of the bus.
The kid knew what he was doing. Gerard let his tongue slide inside Ryan’s mouth when his lips parted. He couldn’t stop the soft moan that came from deep within him as he felt the other man’s hard body pressing into his. He moved his free hand up to wrap around Ryan’s neck to pull him deeper into the kiss.
Ryan tentatively brushed Gerard's tongue with his own as his arms slid around the other man's waist. He was still half convinced that he was either asleep or high, that Gerard Way didn't have him pinned to the side of a tour bus; that any minute now Brendon would bounce into his bunk and wake him up. The heat from the older man's body, however, was a definite reminder that this was real and he was making out with the lead singer of My Chemical Romance at Leeds Festival.
Gerard tilted his hips forward against Ryan’s and was pleased when he felt the obvious bulge in the other man’s pants. Just as he was about to raise his hand from the younger man’s hip to join his other on Ryan’s neck, he heard someone clearing his throat nearby. Sighing inwardly, he broke the kiss and turned towards the interloper. “Frankie, go away. I’m kinda busy here.”
“So I noticed,” Frank said from his position leaning against the bus opposite the one Gerard had the kid pinned to. “Dude, he’s just a kid.”
“Yeah, but he’s fucking sexy and knows how to use makeup.” He turned back to look at Ryan with a smile. “How can I pass that up?”
Hiding his disappointment at being disturbed just when things were getting interesting, Ryan shrugged at the question posed by a Gerard. He smiled sheepishly at the man he instantly knew to be a Frank Iero, and not trusting his voice to say hello without squeaking simply waved at him.
“Well, he is kinda cute,” Frank replied and smirked, waving back at Ryan.
“Yeah, he is.” Gerard winked at Ryan and slid his hand from his hip to the front of his pants. He squeezed gently then looked back at Frank. “So, you can leave now so I can take care of things before he has to go on stage. Shoo, you little pest.” He grinned and flailed a hand out towards his miniature guitarist.
Frank laughed. “Don’t make him late,” he warned, shaking a finger at Gerard. “See you back at the stage later.” He turned and headed away from them.
Gerard turned back to Ryan. “So, I really was enjoying kissing you. May I kiss you some more?”
Ryan had no idea what just happened, but given that Frank was walking away and Gerard's hand was still there and the other man was asking if he could kiss him, Ryan didn't care what was going on anyway. In answer to the singer's question, he leaned in and pressed his lips to Gerard's.
Gerard pressed back, pinning Ryan against the bus. He brought both of his hands up to cup his head, tangling his fingers in the back of his hair. He rocked his hips against the other man to show him he was just as interested in what was going on.
This was something far beyond anything even Ryan's dreams were made of. He'd done this to literally one of the hottest guys Ryan had ever seen, let alone met. And the way Gerard had treated him in front of Frank, almost like a possession, had made his insides do things they'd never done before. More importantly, he'd liked it.
Figuring he might never get another shot at a chance like this, Ryan moved his hands to rest on the older man's ass, holding their hips together. The press of Gerard's cock against his own was amazing, even with the layers of clothing in between them.
Gerard moaned when he felt hands on his ass. That was really nice. He was glad Ryan was forward enough to do that. Honestly, he wasn’t even sure what was up with himself. He didn’t normally do this, but there was something about this kid, his music and his style and his beautiful bony hips, that just made Gerard want to do all kinds of things with him. He licked into his mouth, sliding his tongue along the younger man’s almost possessively.
Ryan felt his knees almost give way when he felt Gerard's tongue against his. A small part of his brain piped up to remind him that this was probably completely inappropriate right now when he should be concentrating on getting psyched for Panic's set, but it was soon silenced by the rest of him. He managed to pluck up the courage to rock his hips up towards the older man's, a moan rising in his throat at the friction.
A sigh left Gerard and he moved a hand to Ryan’s hip to hold him tight. He hadn’t felt like this in a long time. He was almost afraid that if they continued, he would end up coming in his pants like a teenager. That would be embarrassing, but also pretty damn hot. He moaned into the younger man’s mouth, his tongue tasting everything. He could detect a hint of smoke, probably from the pot he vaguely mentioned earlier, and something sweet. He wasn’t quite sure what that was. Maybe he’d have to ask later. Right now, however, he was totally preoccupied.
Still slightly disbelieving of the idea that he was eliciting such a response from Gerard fucking Way, Ryan groped the other man's ass harder. He could feel his heart beating faster as he wrapped his tongue around Gerard's, not wanting to pause even for a moment.
Gerard groaned as Ryan got a little more demanding. That was going to turn him into mush if he kept it up. Rocking his hips, he created friction between them. He was getting harder all because of this beautiful boy.
Ryan suddenly found himself in the embarrassing situation of being completely hard. Damn teenage hormones! The problem was that the obvious resolution to the problem was to stop, but no part of him wanted that. It wasn't like this was something he hadn't done before, but this was definitely different. Ryan decided to figure it out later, because right now he wanted all of his attention firmly on the feel of Gerard's ass in his hands and the heat developing between him and the other man. Moaning into the older man's mouth, Ryan rolled his hips up once again.
Gerard could tell his breathing was becoming ragged and so was Ryan’s. He broke the kiss and nipped along the younger man’s jaw. The younger man’s skin was rough on his lips, no doubt from stubble. He probably hadn’t even had time to shave after playing in Reading yesterday. That didn’t matter, though. Gerard liked stubble. He began nibbling on Ryan’s jaw, running his tongue over the prickly skin.
A whispered moan fell from Ryan's lips when he felt Gerard's teeth on his skin. Who'd have thought this could possibly happen to someone so seemingly insignificant? Ryan shifted, letting his head fall back to thump against the bus as he surrendered himself to the older man.
Gerard had just gotten comfortable right behind Ryan's ear when the other man's phone began to ring. He groaned and leaned against him. His hand fumbled with the younger man's pocket to pull out his phone and hand it to him. "You probably should answer that," he murmured against his skin.
Ryan took the phone, glaring at the device as he put it to his ear. "Yeah......aha......seriously?.....can't it wait?.....nah, just talking." He winked at Gerard before continuing. "Fine....Gimme ten minutes.....no, you don’t need to send Zack....promise." Hanging up, Ryan slid his phone back into his pocket. "I guess I'd better get going."
Gerard continued sucking on Ryan's neck while he was on the phone. He couldn't hear who was on the other end, but he guessed it was probably someone from his band. He detached himself from the younger man when he put up his phone. "Oops!" He grinned at him with a shrug. "Guess we lost track of time, huh."
"Just a little." Ryan managed to hold back a whine when Gerard pulled away. "But this was, yeah, amazing kinda covers it." He straightened up against the bus, eminently aware of the distinct tightness in his pants. "See you around?" Ryan really couldn't see why the other man would want to spend any more time with him afterwards and he didn't want to come across as overly presumptuous.
"Well yeah," Gerard said. "I'm coming to watch you perform. That's the reason we stayed over." He reached out to take Ryan's hand and lead him back to the main stage.
Ryan blinked a couple of times before taking Gerard's hand. "Wait. You stayed just to hear us? Holy fuck."
"Yes. Like I told you, Pete has been trying to get everyone to listen to you guys. And after what Brendon did yesterday, you guys are fucking hard core."
Battling the blush that threatened to rise in his cheeks, Ryan took a second to compose himself enough to reply. "Oh yeah, I think that slipped my mind. Must have been distracted by something."
Gerard grinned broadly, showing off all of his tiny white teeth. "I can be a bit distracting." He reluctantly let go of Ryan's hand as they got closer to the stage.
"I think you'll find I can be pretty distracting, too." Ryan had a grin of his own as he turned to face Gerard. "So I'll see you after, maybe? A word of warning, though. If you're watching back stage, don't be the first person Brendon sees coming off stage. He tends to get a little over exuberant. Oh and very fond of piggy backs."
"What about you?" Gerard asked with a wink as he headed over where Frank and Mikey were standing. "Smart kid."
"Uh huh," Frank replied. "You, uh, might want to step over here." He glanced at Gerard's crotch then motioned towards the speaker he was leaning against.
Gerard looked down and grinned, moving behind the speaker quickly. "Where's Pete?"
"Not here," Mikey replied. "Frank scared him."
Frank grinned back and shrugged. "I am the ninja master."
Gerard and Mikey rolled their eyes and turned their attention to the stage.
Ryan didn't get a chance to reply to Gerard before he walked off, mostly because there was a sudden weight on his back and a "RYAN!" being yelled in his ear.
"Jesus, Bren. Deafen me, why don't you?" Ryan hitched Brendon's legs up around his waist to get comfortable before heading back stage with his lead singer riding piggy back.
Brendon furrowed his brow and wiggled around just to be annoying. "But Ry," he singsonged, "you've been gone for ages! I seriously thought he'd Ryan-napped you." He really hadn't expected them to be gone so long, and he had to admit that Ryan looked a little flushed, but Brendon put that down to the fact that his guitarist had been talking to a veritable legend about their music. "So he likes us then? Like really really?"
Ryan managed to get them back to the rest of the band in the time it took Brendon to get to the point, thankful that because the younger man was on his back, Brendon hadn't noticed the distinct outline in his pants from Gerard. "Yeah, Bren, he really does. They're watching from backstage and Gerard said after yesterday, we're hardcore." Ryan let Brendon slide off his back, quickly grabbing his guitar to help hide his not so unnoticeable problem.
Having watched Brendon and Ryan arrive, Spencer greeted his best friend with a raised eyebrow. Brendon might not have noticed anything amiss, but Spencer could tell by the way Ryan moved that perhaps something more than talking had been going on. "Everything okay, Ryan?"
'Oh crap, busted,' was the first thought in Ryan's head. "Um, yeah? Just, you know, Gerard Way fucking likes our band. It's kinda a big deal." He beamed a grin at Spencer in the hopes of being convincing.
"Ah ha." Spencer glanced down and up Ryan's body, purposefully lingering over the other man's guitar. "Whatever you say Ry." He dropped his voice to a whisper so the others wouldn't hear. "He's like ten years older, Ry; the big kids play rough, you know?"
Ryan was about to ask what the hell Spencer was talking about, but instead found himself bring ushered out onto the stage. He got the feeling that he was heading for a patented Spencer Smith dressing down later, but right now he had a set to play and with any luck someone to see afterwards.