Nightlights by Stephie

The question hung tensely in the air. Daniel regarded Darren with hard eyes, sparks of mischief darting though. Darren looked the ground, unwilling to meet Daniel's gaze. He mumbled something.

"What was that?" Daniel asked, a grin forming on his face. Darren looking up, irritation flecking over his pretty features.

"Truth." His blond friend sighed and leaned back against the couch.

"You're no fun, Dazza." The brunette grimaced.

"Just because I don't find asking Leonie to punish me while wearing leather and a dog collar enjoyable, doesn't mean I'm no fun," Darren retorted.

"I bet Leonie would enjoy it. Very much."

"Well, she'll just have to find her fun in other places."

"Oh, no soft squishy feelings for our dear PA?" Daniel asked, eyebrows raised and mouth twitching.

"No. Now, truth or dare."

"Hey-"

"You asked me a question. And I answered truthfully."

"Damn. Um...truth."

Darren thought for a moment. So many questions he could ask to find out so many things to use for blackmail later...the trick to asking the perfect Truth or Dare question was using the right amount of both vagueness and clarity so as not to let the person being questioned have any idea of what the questioner asked, while still defining the question enough so the person couldn't roundaboutly answer and ruin the whole thing.

"Darren?"

"Have you ever wanted to make love to a guy?" Darren blurted out. Damn. That wasn't right. This wasn't good. Especially after Darren took a look at Daniel's embarrassed and mildly flushed face. Darren's own pulse began to speed up.

"Yes...I suppose."

"Oh."

"Yes."

"Hm."

"Truth or dare?"

"Truth."

"You?" Now it was Darren's turn to blush. He pulled on a piece of black hair, which was growing out, but in the opposite direction as it was during their first year of stardom.

"Yeah...I have. Wanted to. Make love to a guy. And stuff."

"Stuff?" Daniel asked, slightly amused. Darren's eyes darted to their melting chocolate milkshakes on the coffee table.

"Yes. Stuff." He sat back, arms crossed. "Now. Truth or dare."

"Dare," Daniel replied.

"Chicken," Darren muttered under his breath.

"What was that, Darren?" Daniel asked. "I couldn't hear you."

"Nothing, dear," he said, smiling innocently and batting his eyes.

"I would hit you, but you're too far away."

"Lucky me, then."

"Just get on with it," Daniel said, tapping his fingers on the couch. Darren gave a grin, one that made Daniel both afraid and not at all at the same time. He jumped up and walked with long confident strides to his bedroom. He disappeared for a moment, and came back with a CD case and a bag.

"I dare you dance to Sweet Transvestite," and Darren held out his Rocky Horror Picture Show CD, "while wearing full get-up," and he opened the bag, held it upside down, and out came numerous things, "and singing." Lastly the echo microphone came out, bought years ago by Darren. Daniel had gone pale by this point. He looked up at Darren as a deer looks in the headlights of an oncoming 4x4 Jeep.

"Must I?" Daniel choked out. Darren nodded, smug. Daniel picked up the clothing and headed into his bedroom to change. Darren watched him close the door, and sat on the couch.

A few minutes later, Daniel, emerged, wearing black high heels, fishnets attached to a garter belt, the leather bodice, and a pair of gloves. One must wonder how our dear Jonsey got all this on so quickly, as there were many difficult things...but one also must wonder where Darren got the clothes in the first place. Altogether, Daniel looked ridiculous, but not, in an odd bad crossdresser sort of way. Darren couldn't help but laugh. So he didn't resist the urge. Daniel ended up kicking him with a high heel several times, but finally he stopped, and gave Daniel the CD to put on the player. As Daniel walked over to the large amount of musical equipment they had, he unconsciously swung his hips, and Darren whistled lewdly. Daniel swung around, baring teeth.

"Don't make me kick you more!" He put the CD in, grumbling, "I can't believe you're making me do this..."

"A dare is a dare, sexy," Darren said. Daniel once again gave Darren a threatening glance, but the dark-haired man simply smiled and tossed the leather-clad man the echo microphone. "Have fun." Daniel pressed play, and on came Sweet Transvestite, and up came the echo microphone, and around the room went Daniel, sashaying and swaying and being mock-seductive and silly. He knew all the words, oddly enough. The song ended, and as Daniel took a bow, slow, almost sarcastic applause rang though the apartment. Both men looked over. It was Leonie. She had an odd little grin on her face.

"I would ask what the two of you are doing...but I really don't think I want to know..." she said. Daniel got the deer-in-headlights look again and ran back into his bedroom to change.

"We're playing Truth or Dare," Darren said, making a dismissive gesture with his hand. "Daniel was dared. And thus, you know."

"Yes. I do." They were silent until Daniel came out, red in the face and looking as though he wanted to crawl into a corner and die.

"Can I play?" Leonie asked. Darren and Daniel both looked over at her. An eyebrow was raised, fingers touched her face lightly, and she looked fairly amused about the whole thing.

"All right," Darren said. They all sat down on the ground and continued the game.

"Darren," Daniel said, looking his friend straight in the eye. "Truth or dare?"

"Truth," Darren said quickly, noting the evil glint in the blonde's eye.

"Hm..." Daniel thought aloud. "Do you still keep a stuffed animal? And if so, type and name."

"Yes," Darren mumbled.

"Type?"

"Pig..."

"Name?"

"Um..."

"Well?"

Darren looked up quickly, said, "Mike," and hid his face in the couch. Leonie laughed, as did Daniel. Darren sat back up after a moment and asked Leonie, "Truth or dare?"

"I'm a wuss. Truth."

"Umm...were you afraid of the dark as a child?" Darren asked.

"What kind of question is that, Dazza?" Daniel sounded mildly disgusted. Darren ignored him.

"No," Leonie said shortly.

"Oh, don't tell me little Leo didn't have a nightlight?" Darren teased. Leonie hit him on the shoulder.

"No. For many reasons. Now, Daniel, truth or dare?" She said, turning to the blond.

"Dare again." Leonie grinned.

"I dare you to..." and she glanced over at Darren, "lick our good friend Darren." Both men froze. Daniel opened and closed his mouth, then opened it again.

"Where?" Leonie and Darren looked at Daniel. "Umm..."

"Well..." Leonie paused, an evil look on her face. "I would say all over, as both of you need to suffer for several reasons. But, as I'm feeling merciful today, I'll just say...chest."

Daniel flushed red again for the nth time that night. Darren looked ready to bolt. "Um...isn't that a bit...extreme, Leo?" She shook her head.

"Nope nope nope...it's a dare...and we're all mature adults. So go ahead. I'm waiting." She smirked, crossed her arms, and waited.

Darren and Daniel looked at each other. There was a moment of awkwardness...then another...and another. Then, finally, looking irritated, Leonie went over to Darren, pulled his shirt off, and pushed Daniel in the dark-haired man's general direction. Rather difficult, as all of them were sitting down. But he got the general idea and found himself sitting in front of his friend. He leaned forward slightly. Darren, in sync, leaned back. Daniel was unsure of how to go about this. He didn't want this to be completely disgusting for Darren, but he could only get out of that by making it pleasurable. But that wasn't such a good idea, either. What to do, what to do? The hamster in Daniel's head ran frantically on its wheel. This was almost like slobbering all over Darren! Why did they ever let Leonie play? Why, WHY???? Darren spoke, interrupting the poor man's thoughts.

"Maybe you...should...just get it...over with..." Daniel nodded.

'OK, Daniel. Just imagine that Darren's a big bar of chocolate. You don't mind licking a big bar of chocolate, do you? Of course not. Especially if it's dark chocolate. Now taste his dark chocolaty goodness!' He blushed and quickly leaned down, softly touching Darren's chest with his breath. Darren jumped. He'd been thinking that Daniel would back out or one of them would be sick or that the world would end or that a crack would open up in the earth to let him in or maybe they'd all turn into some sort of animal without tongues or chests or maybe they could be one-celled organisms (not orgasms, and Darren jumped again at that Freudian slip of a thought) and that'd just solve the whole thing. And Darren wished he could simply die as he saw Leonie's amused smirk and the definite knowledge that this would get out into the public.

With thoughts of chocolate firmly placed in his head, Daniel braced his hands on the ground and licked up Darren's breastbone to the concave at the end of his neck where he barely consciously suckled the skin there. He felt Darren tense, and he soothed over the hard chest muscles. He moved back to the breastbone, below the ribcage, and finished the dare with a light nip at Darren. Darren jumped and ran, throwing Daniel back. He ran all the way into his bedroom, slammed the door shut, and then into his bathroom where the shower started. And though Leonie and Daniel did not know it, it was a cold shower. Leonie was in tears at this point, having started laughing after she snapped out of her transfixion of Daniel's oral little...show.

Daniel sat back, rather surprised and slightly hurt. He knew that Darren really hadn't wanted to do this dare...but that was all it was...dare...and besides...it couldn't have been that bad. It wasn't bad, was it?? 'You make it sound like you were bad in bed...with Darren...and you couldn't be bad in bed with Darren, anyway. As you wouldn't be doing anything bad in bed with Darren. Nor would it be good. Yes. But...' He made a depressed, confused, angry noise, causing Leonie to look over at him. He leaned back on the ground and pouted.

"Dan-" Leonie began.

"Go away and get some film developed or something," he snapped at her. She was taken aback. But she sighed and left the apartment and the two men to themselves.

Darren, meanwhile, was standing beneath the cold spray, trying compose himself. He felt warm after Daniel had...but the cold shower wasn't having any effect on the temperature of his body. He leaned against the shower tiles and quietly berated himself for making such a big deal of this.

Daniel was still lying on the floor when Darren finally came back out. "Where'd Leonie go?" He asked.

"Out," Daniel replied.

"Oh." Darren fidgeted. Daniel got up.

"I'm going to bed," he said, and did so. Darren muttered a good night, sat on the couch, and turned on the TV. Dawson's Creek was on, so he watched it, even though it was a rerun. The one where Andie and Pacey broke up...it nearly made him cry the first time, but he had just clenched at a pillow instead, since he couldn't cry, as he had been watching it with Leonie. He didn't cry this time either, but he came close. After it was over, he switched to VH1 and watched Behind the Music specials...then he started daydreaming about if they made a Behind the Music special on him and Daniel...

"The Savage Garden story," he murmured. Hm. Could he call someone or something?

The front door opening disturbed his thoughts. It was Leonie. She was holding bags of things and looking ecstatic.

"Look!" she exclaimed, holding out her arms, and bags along with them.

"I'm looking," he said. She nearly skipped over to him and dropped her bags, then proceeded to tell him about all the things she'd gotten. Like the tight black shirt she'd gotten him...and the dark gray fuzzy sweater she'd gotten Daniel...and many other things. He didn't really pay much attention. Everything went dark after a little while, and the next thing he remembered was strong arms carrying him...and then dark again.

When he woke up, it was 11 am and he was in bed. Bed...how had he gotten here? He had no recollection of coming in here...of course, he had no recollection of falling asleep, either. Maybe Leonie had told him to come in here. He faintly remembered arms though...and he doubted Leonie could carry him. Hm. This was truly puzzling. He got up and went into the kitchen to make himself a cappuccino. Leonie came in as he was finishing up.

"That thing is so damn loud, Darren..." She grumbled at him, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. "Make me a cappuccino, too, since you woke me up." And she sat at the kitchen table.

"All right..." He said, and began the process over again. He made it, set it in front of her, and joined her. They both sat in silence for a moment, Darren brooding and Leonie watching him.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

Darren looked up at her, surprised that she realized he was contemplating something, much less asking about it. But, he shook his head. "No..."

Leonie, being her photo-taking, bouncy little self, wouldn't take this as an answer. So she remarked offhandedly, "Daniel says you're heavier than you look to be."

"Oh?"

"Yeah, but he carried you to bed last night, so you can't weigh too much." Darren looked at Leonie. She was nonchalantly drinking out of her mug.

"I suppose not," he replied. He quickly drank the rest of the warm liquid. "I'll be right back." He stood up.

"All right." Leonie smirked as he left. Darren walked up to Daniel's bedroom, considered knocking, didn't, and barged in. He took in a breath when he opened the door when he remembered Daniel slept in the nude. Luckily, or perhaps unluckily, his blond friend was already awake and dressed, sitting at his desk and writing. Daniel looked up as the door opened and then closed.

"Morning," he said, and looked back down at the drying ink.

"Good morning." There was silence. Darren racked his brain. He knew he had some sort of plan to go about this before. Oh well. "Truth or dare?" He asked.

Daniel closed his eyes and sighed. He put down his pen and said, "Dazza..." Then looked up. The other man's face was serious. So Daniel took a breath and said, "Truth."

"The..men you've wanted to...make love to, who are they?" At each pause, Darren took a step forward.

"Well, actually...there was only one."

"Well, then who is he?" Another step forward.

"Is that really any of your business?" Daniel asked, beginning to get angry.

"It could be," Darren answered calmly, keeping eye contact. He took a few more steps forward, not even a half-foot away from Daniel now.

"Maybe I don't want to answer." Daniel looked straight down at Darren, trying to look imposing.

"Maybe I want you to." With that, Darren lifted a hand and touched that taller man's face, running a finger over his lower lip. Daniel kept still. "But," and Darren dropped his hand, looked down, withdrew, "you don't have to if you don't want to." He began to turn back to the door, but Daniel caught his arm, pulling the other man to and against him, and kissed him, hesitantly.

"You," Daniel said, after breaking free.

"Thought so," Darren said, smiling slightly, and Daniel kissed him again, slipping his arms around the shorter man. They stood like that for a few moments, holding each other quietly. Then, fairly unhappily, Darren pulled away.

"I left Leo in the kitchen...I'd better go tell her I haven't fallen in an abyss or anything."

"All right," Daniel said, looking disappointed.

"I'll hurry back," Darren said, somewhat breathless. Daniel smiled at him and sat on his bed as Darren left the room. He rushed into the kitchen. "Hi, Leo..."

"Hey." She didn't look up from the newspaper she had found.

"Um, Leo..."

This time she did look up. "I understand, Darren. Go, and don't make too much noise." She smiled at him, and then continued reading the comics. Darren smiled slowly at her, and started to leave, but paused and turned back around to look at her curiously.

"Leo..."

"Yes?" She looked back up at him.

"Why *didn't* you use a nightlight as a child?"

Leonie took a deep breath. "Well..."