Work Text
Number 1 Fan The upbeat synthesized beats flowed through the speakers around the office, filling the tiny room with energetic sounds and an enthusiastic voice. Theo sneered at the tablet in his hand as he watched the performer as his agent, Mr. Stiles Stilinski tapped his fingers against the brown leather chair, his leg hitched over the other side. Theo shot Stiles a glare and his agent adjusted his chunky, black rimmed glasses as he returned a smile. Theo huffed and tossed the tablet onto the long, matching brown couch on the opposite side of the room as he seethed, “I hate him.”Stiles jumped from his seat, loosing his brown beanie from his head, his thin blue suit falling into place as it practically hung from his frame, “That was awesome. You should be thanking him, not hating him.”Theo yanked the top button free from his collar, letting his white button up hang freely, as if to let some of the heat of his anger free, “Why should I thank him? That song! That song was the song I made and dedicated to Tara. Remember Tara? My sister that died. That song, sounded like a dance song that teens grind against each other on the dancefloor to.”Stiles cleared the room and stopped just short as he adjusted Theo’s shirt, balancing how the fabric held to his shoulders, “Yeah. What did I tell you about releasing it? Didn’t I say that if you release it, it becomes fair game? You wanted to honor her with a song. Well you did. And if fans want to listen to the original,” His voice dropped low and quiet momentarily, “and get wholly depressed, then they’ll listen to it.” Theo met Stiles broad smile with a grimace, “And if they want to celebrate being alive and living on in someone’s memory, they’ll listen to his cover. I still don’t see why you are complaining.”His lip curled as he practically spat the words, “He’s ruined the song. And did you see the hits? Over a million and he only released the cover three days ago.”Stiles’ smile shifted into a grin fitting of any agent as he leaned against Theo’s shoulder, “And your views shot up another 2 million in that time. Your sales of that song have increased dramatically. You should be happy. It was originally the only dud on that album. Now, it’s set to rival that one song, what was it? “One True Pair”?”He fought the violent urge that crawled through him before he slipped away from Stiles and turned his back to him, “Is it only about money to you?”Stiles facepalmed hard before he exclaimed, “YES! Why do you think I work for you? Because of your sparkling personality? You’re a supreme ass that likes to think your music is changing the hearts and minds of the world. I’m going to spit you a little truth, Theo Raeken, your songs are the ones people listen to after they break up after dating their “Soulmate” for like three months. Or the songs people listen to when they meet their “Soulmate” at the club, or third date, and they are fucking them in the backseat of a sports car or some motel.”Theo spun around and stepped to Stiles, getting into his face, “Why are you even my agent?”Stiles puffed his chest out and met the gaze, “Because you needed someone to take you from small potatoes to the big times. You’re here and guess what? It’s all about filling seats, selling songs, and making money. And because I’m not only your agent, but a damn good one, you’re rolling in the cash.” Stiles stepped away and flailed his arm to prove a point, “Your little charity dream, the children’s hospital back home, well it’s completely paid for and well on its way to being completed. You’re Welcome.”He narrowed his eyes at the remark. As much as he hated to admit it, Stiles was right. Without his agent, he’d still be performing in local clubs and events. Now, he was called to perform for celebrities, sought out by dignitaries and had sold out tours as soon as they were announced. “That doesn’t mean I like you.”“No shit. I don’t like you either. But I help your image and sales, you line my pockets. Pretty good deal.”“You’re the reason the tabloids got those photos, aren’t you?”Stiles feigned an innocent smile, “I have no idea what you mean.”“Yeah you do. The ones from when I met him in high school. The stupid prom photos where it looks like we were each other’s dates. We were waiting for our limos to arrive. That’s it.”Stiles glided to his side and elbowed him, “Come on. There were sparks, Theo. Plus, can I help it if that took you international? Everyone wants to see the One True Pair.”He snarled back, “That song isn’t even about him!”Stiles eyes bounced to the ceiling, “That’s not what every music magazine and blog thinks. In this world, you don’t determine the truth, they do.”He sighed and stepped to his desk, looking at the spread of contracts that they had discussed prior. “So what am I doing today?”Stiles’ cheer evaporated as he droned, “Your charity money raising event thing, your “Number 1 Fan” contest. Well, you’ve got a clear winner with $370,000. Your runner up isn’t even close with $32,000. I guess your hospital is getting new nurses or doctors or medicine or whatever hospitals use.”He looked back to his agent, “So the winner is here?”“Yeah. And remember the deal. Your number one fan gets to record a song with you and gets backstage passes to all of your future performances.”He nodded slowly, “It’s only fair. That’s a lot of money and it will do so much good for the sick children of the greater Beacon region.”Stiles rolled his hand on his wrist in a circular motion, “Yeah, yeah, sick kids get better. Money gets flushed away that could better be used.”“You’re an ass.”Stiles shot back the grin, “And it’s time to meet your number one fan.”He collected himself, running his fingers through his hair and fixing his shirt as Stiles threw open the door and motioned to someone. Two men crossed the threshold, one a taller man with a thick, wave mop of dark hair, piercings and tattoos with a crooked jaw and a smile that could light up a room. Beside him was someone practically swimming in a large grey hoodie, the hood covering his face as he shuffled inside in loose beaten jeans and sneakers. He looked to both before the taller man spoke, “Hey, Theo. I don’t know if you remember me, since high school seemed like years ago.”He deadpanned, “That’s because it was years ago. Last time I heard, you were working as Liam Sunshine’s agent.”Scott’s smile grew, “I do.”His face began to fall, “You have got to be kidding me…”Stiles cheered, “Nope! Theo Raeken, meet your number one fan.”The man slipped the hood from his head and those ocean blues met his greys. Liam looked just like the energetic puppy he was years ago. Piercings adorned his face and ears, a snake bite, a rod through his eye brow, gauges in his ears and a line of studs on ear lobe. His once sandy brown hair was shaggy but now colored as a fade of a mermaid’s cotton candy with dark greens at the back of his head, flowing to shades of blue and eventually the softest pink at the tips. Liam almost bounced on his heels as he beamed a smile, “I always wanted to meet you, Theo.”Theo groaned and shook his head, his hand raised to try to block out the vision of Liam’s attractive face. Wait? Attractive? That wasn’t right. “No, no, no! I specifically said individual donations no greater than $50. You can’t buy being number one fan.”Liam lowered his brow and pursed his lips, like the words hurt, as Scott stepped forward, his light demeanor growing heavier, more businesslike, “Liam didn’t. Actually, the largest donation he received from a single donor was $10 and that was from me.”He argued, “You mean to tell me that Liam Sunshine raised $370,000 in increments of $10 or less? That’s like 37,000 people. At least.”Liam raised his eyebrow, “Closer to a hundred thousand people.”His eyes widened, “What?!?!”Stiles held his hand out to Liam with a cheeky grin, “Toldja. It’s like the fates, or music blogs want the OTP together. The rags already practically jump off the shelves when they photoshop your pictures together.”He shot a glare to Stiles, “I told you to kill those stories.”Stiles shot back, “And I told you that I’m not killing your career because you can’t do something that “goes against your artistic integrity”. You sing pop songs. You aren’t Picasso.”Scott chuckled at Stiles comment as Liam stepped up to him, “So, as your number one fan, I get to record a song with you. That’s the deal.”He took a step forward as Scott called to them, “We’re going to step into Mr. Stilinski’s office and iron out the details. Talk. Get acquainted. Theo Raeken and his number one fan.”Scott and Stiles slipped out of the office and as soon as the door closed, he seethed, “I hate you.”Liam shot back with a growl, “You don’t even know me.”“Yeah. But I know the person who covers all of my songs and turns them into autotuned electro pop garbage.”“You started it.”“What?”Liam shook his head, “Back from hell, A first chance at love?”Theo’s eyes widened as he thought back, “I don’t remember.”Liam smirked, “My first song. The one I made the driver play in the limo. The one you sang to while I took the video. The video you uploaded and went viral. You know, your ticket to fame.”He took a step back as he tried to remember the ride to prom. It was quite a bit of time and he drank a lot that night. He weakly conceded, “I don’t remember but if we’re going to record a song together, I need to know you can actually sing. And not autotuned to hell and back.”Liam demanded, “Put on Tara.”Theo walked to his desk and opened a case hidden beneath. He placed the electric violin on his shoulder, “I’ll play the song for you. No relying on my voice.”He watched Liam as he began to play the song. The first long, sorrowful tone Liam released sent a chill down his spine. Was Liam’s voice always this angelic? No, he must be mistaken. As the song continued, his eyes focused on those lips and the two curls of metal the wrapped over those plump lips. He licked his own as he almost missed playing the right note. He got lost in Liam’s singing but felt the heat from Liam’s gaze on him. His throat began to tighten, his attention locked so tightly that he didn’t hear the door opening. When he played the last note and Liam held the slow mournful end, the applause from Scott and Stiles broke the magic. Stiles cheered, “See, Scotty. This is what I was talking about. This is going to be a great idea.” After much arguing, Scott and Stiles decided that they should sing “One True Pair” since it was the song that the most fans had listed as their dream duet.As they stood in the recording booth, a microphone in front of each of them, facing the walls and practically ignoring each other, they finished the first recording. Stiles sighed into the mic and stated, “That was the most emotional, heartwarming, convincing thing I’ve ever listened to.”Liam half smiled, “Really?”Stiles yelled back, “NO! That sucked! I’ve felt more emotions from mud dripping on to carpet. THEO! You can do better. You’ve sung this song as a duet with Meghan Trainor and another time with Shawn Mendes. You brought tears to my eyes with those performances. It might’ve been that body spray I used but I felt it burn. Around the corners of my eyes. So I think you can bring a tear to my eyes here.”Scott spoke into the mic, “From the top guys. And you might want to look at each other this time.”He grabbed his mic and shifted it, so he could look at Liam. His eyes were drawn to those lips, those deep blue eyes that he could swim in. “Alright Li, don’t fuck it up.”Liam chuckled, “You should save your words for yourself, Theo.”Once again, they sang. He could feel the emotion between them, slowly building as their duet carried. He stared at those lips and began to wander how soft they were. Wait? Why was he thinking that. Why did his chest ache when Liam sang, “You’re the only one for me.”After the song finished, Scott spoke up, “Very good. I think that could- “Liam interrupted, “No. Scott, we’re doing it again.”Stiles sighed, “Okay. Little Liam Sunshine wants to do it again.”Liam sidestepped the microphone and he followed the gesture. He couldn’t help but whisper, “Your last name isn’t Sunshine.”Liam sucked in his lower lip as he shook his head, a twinkle to his blues, “Nope.” When he popped the P that puffy lower lip returned, a little more red from the gesture. He wondered what it tasted like for Liam to suck it as much as he did.The music started, and they sang again. This time they slowly stepped closer, the distance between them fading as they projected but sang to one another. By the time they concluded the song, they were mere inches from each other. As soon as the mic keyed, Theo shouted, “AGAIN!”His breaths were shallow, the heat filled his cheeks, but he saw how that was reflected with Liam. They were so close and when the song began, he couldn’t wait anymore. He reached and pulled Liam just as Liam did the same. Their lips crashed together, all the animosity, all the anger, transformed into a single desire.Stiles held up his cell and took several pictures from inside the station through the glass separating the booth. He turned to Scott with a Cheshire grin, “So Scotty, looks like we’re going to be partners.”Scott raised a brow, “50/50 then?”Stiles tiled his head back, “60/40. I’m the one in this for money and I deal with the prima donna.”Scott chuckled and looked to Stiles’ camera and the picture of Theo and Liam kissing, “So what are we calling it?”“Thiam. OTP.”