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Brian was late.Actually, scrap that, Brian was in the biggest rush he had quite possibly ever been in, in his entire academic career. In hindsight, it had been a terrible idea to head to the library so late, but what else was he supposed to do when he was still awake at three in the morning? It was open 24 hours a day for a reason. And anyway, how was he to know he would end up falling asleep whilst his books were still open on the desk?But here he was rushing across campus to get to his 9am, even though it had started 10 minutes ago, and Brian himself had been awake for approximately 15.Cursing himself and his disturbed body clock, Brian finally made it to the lecture theatre. It was just like him to be late when he had to get to the oldest and furthest away room in the entire building. Easing the door open as quietly as he could (which was difficult considering the hinges probably hadn’t been oiled in around 30 years,) he ducked into one of the empty seats at the back of the room, praying that nobody’s view would be marred by his late entrance. Successful in his mission, he pulled his notebook and pen from his bag and opened the book to the next clean page.Turning his attention to the front of the room, Brian tried to work out what topic the professor was busy explaining. To his irritation, he realised that this lecture was dedicated to re-explaining what had been covered last week, and his attendance wasn’t necessary.Sighing, he closed his notebook and tried not to think about how much sleep he could have been getting, rather than wasting his time here listening to the laws of Quantum Physics for the millionth time. He leaned back in the uncomfortable wooden seat, resting his head on his hand. Glancing down at the small desk, he realised that this must be the seat favoured by those not actually interested in their studies, if the numerous graffiti was anything to go by.As he busied himself reading what other students has written, something in the left-hand corner caught his eye. Taking a closer look, he saw that it was a simple sketch of a stick man falling asleep at his little desk. Smiling at how relevant to his current situation the cartoon was, Brian took his pen and added a mop of curly hair to the head of the drawing. Much better. Not an exact portrait, but he thought that the little man resembled him rather well.Proud of his work, or rather the work he had stolen, Brian returned his belongings to his bag, and settled down to wait for the talk to come to an end.----------------------“shit!”Once again, Brian stumbled through the hallways in a rush as he made his way to his classes. After checking his watch, he realised that he was late for the second time that week.Curse Freddie and his damn cat that had tripped him up on his way out of the door, causing him to drop all the work he had been carrying.“For fucks sake Fred! Can you try to keep your cat out of my way!” Brian exclaimed as he gathered his papers back into a pile.“Maybe you watch where you going Bri!” Freddie replied, gathering his beloved pet into his arms. “Don’t listen to him Delilah, darling. It wasn’t your fault, was it?” he turned his back on Brian as he made his way back into the living room, Delilah cradled in his arms.Brian rolled his eyes at his friend, unlocking the door and making his way across the street. After tucking the papers back into his bag, he walked towards the university, that is until he checked the time, then he had to run.He once again found himself trying to sneak into the back of his lecture. However this time luck wasn’t on his side, as the door groaned loudly, causing the whole room to turn around to look at him. Muttering a quiet ‘sorry’ Brian slid into an empty seat, his face flushed with embarrassment as he unpacked his equipment. Ducking his head down, he began to take notes so that he could catch up on whatever he had missed. Looking down at the desk, he realised that he was seated at the same scruffy chair he had been in when he was last here. Eyes skimming over the surface he found his little drawing. ‘Stick Brian’ he so lovingly referred to him as.However, his eyes were drawn to the neat print written just above Stick Brian’s curly head.
Poodle
The audacity! Mouthing the word back at himself, Brian’s hand subconsciously reached up to feel a strand of his dark hair. Even though it was only referring to the sketch, it was pretty hard not to be offended. His hair was great goddammit!Picking his pen back up again, he wrote a reply to the incriminating note.
Rude
Not his most inspired comeback. Anyway, it was hardly important. It would be highly unlikely that he would ever come across the person who had insulted Stick Brian in this way.Shaking his head, Brian moved to pack away his things, the lecture was over and he needed to get home. Freddie had been banging on about some idea he had and Brian’s attendance this afternoon was apparently nonnegotiable. God only knows what he had come up with this time. But Brian was going to give him the benefit of the doubt, which was pretty generous of him really, considering the last time he went along with one of Freddie’s wild ideas, they had both ended up being banned from one of their local bars.As he walked the long journey back to the flat, his mind wandered again to the words written on that desk. On reflection, it was actually quite humorous, and it wasn’t like anyone knew it was him who had drawn Stick Brian anyway. Still, Brian was curious to know who the comedian was, could it be the same person who had initially created the picture? Shrugging it off, He unlocked the door to his home, throwing his coat and bag onto the sofa as he walked into the small living room.“Hey, Freddie! You in?” Brian called out as he poked his head round the door to the kitchen. He was greeted with the sight of Freddie’s cat curled up on top of the table in the centre of the room. “you haven’t seen Fred anywhere, have you Delilah?” Oh god, he was starting to sound like Freddie, talking to that cat as if she would be able to answer him. But if Freddie wasn’t in and had made him rush home for nothing, then…“Ah, there you are Brian. I was wondering where you had gotten to” Freddie sauntered through the kitchen door, gracefully sliding onto one of the wooden chairs.“I’ve been here for about ten minutes” Brian grumbled, crossing his arms across his chest. “What do you even need me for anyway?”“Well you see, Brian dear, with your guitar expertise and me, singer and songwriter extraordinaire, I had the most marvellous idea!” Freddie announced with a flourish.“Oh yeah, and what would that be?” Brian raised an eyebrow.“I thought that we could get together and perform a little something, maybe for a small audience” Freddie replied as he began to stroke Delilah’s head.Brian scoffed “just the two of us? Yeah, I bet that would be entertaining.” He shook his head, despairing.Freddie gasped dramatically “you wound me, Bri!” He hummed thoughtfully “no, perhaps if we found ourselves a third and fourth party.”“Well sure Freddie, if there’s anyone mad enough to get involved with us.” Brian highly doubted there was.“Excellent, I knew you’d agree” With that, Freddie rose from the table and made his way towards the door. Looking back in Brian's direction, he called out “oh and make yourself presentable, darling, our new bassist and drummer will be over in five.”Brian blanched “what? Wait, Fred!”What had he gotten himself into?
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Rushing out of the kitchen and into the living room, Brian heard the doorbell ring and quickly began to tuck his shirt into his trousers. He sat down on the sofa and tried to look casual, as if he hadn’t been surprised with the information of having visitors barely five minutes beforehand.From the hall he could hear Freddie greeting their guests “Roger! You made it. And this is your friend, the bassist, right?”Brian didn’t quite catch the muffled reply from ‘Roger’ who he assumed must be the drummer, if Freddie’s words were anything to go by.The door to the living room opened, and following Freddie was possibly the most attractive man Brian had ever seen. His tousled blonde hair brushed his shoulders and his blue eyes were surprisingly feminine.It was then that Brian noticed the second person standing behind Freddie. Wait, wasn’t that…“Hello, Brian”“John?” The younger man smiled, lifting his hand to wave as he sat down on the opposite sofa, crossing his right leg over his left.Freddie’s eyes narrowed “I take it you two know each other, then?”“Yeah, in the library the books on Engineering are on the shelves next to the Astrophysics books. We see each other all the time” Brian supplied. “I didn’t know you played?”“Bass. Since I was fourteen” John raked a hand through his hair.“Well, then!” Freddie clasped his hands together “That saves that introduction.”The blonde man, Roger, Brian deduced, cleared his throat. “Speaking of introductions, aren’t you forgetting someone, Fred?” He smirked, stepping forward from where he had been leaning against the wall.“If only I could forget you, dearie” Freddie sighed and gestured towards Brian “yes, this here is Brian.” He then pointed towards the blonde “and that fiend over there is Roger, he works with me at the market.”Brian stood up from the sofa and reached out his hand for Roger to shake. It was then he noticed how much shorter than him Roger was.Cute.Wait, where had that thought come from? Brian didn’t find other guys cute. But then again, he didn’t pay attention to how pretty the eyes of other men were, and that was one of the first things that he had noticed about Roger.Brian was snapped out of his thoughts when the smaller man took his hand.“Pleasure” Roger grinned up at Brian.“Uh, yeah likewise” Brian smiled back. After a few moments, he realised he still hadn’t released Roger’s hand from his grasp. Coughing awkwardly, Brian stepped back and placed his hands in his pockets.From behind him he heard a familiar sniff. Looking over at John, the younger man arched an eyebrow, his arms crossed. Next to him Freddie watched on, an amused glint in his eye. Since when had he sat down?“Right then darlings” Freddie leapt from the sofa “now that’s all settled, let’s get down to business!”----------------------Brian collapsed onto the sofa, his body aching from playing for most of the evening. He was alone in the flat, as Freddie had decided to go out clubbing with Roger, dragging a reluctant John with them. Brian had declined, he had a class early tomorrow morning and he really didn’t want to miss it.As they had begun to practice together, all four of them seemed to gel really well as a group, as if they had been playing together for years. Freddie’s voice was impressive, as always, and it turned out that John (or Deaky, as Roger affectionately referred to him as) was one of the best bassists he had ever heard.But it was the other member of their get together that remained in his mind. Brian found that Roger was not only attractive and generally fun to be around, but he was also a damn good drummer. The way he hit each beat with passion and precision, it was evident that he was a talented musician. And god, his voice! Brian could only dream of hitting notes that high. He was fascinated.He sighed, rubbing his hand over his face. Fascinated, more like harbouring the biggest crush ever. All he could think about was the little blonde. From his smile, to his slightly feminine clothing, even down to the adorable pink trainers he wore. Brian shook his head. He didn’t even like men. He was straight for god’s sake!Can’t be that straight. A voice spoke in his mind.Christ, he needed a drink. Getting up from the sofa, he made his way to the kitchen and pulled a beer from the fridge. Only one, mind, he really needed to make that lecture tomorrow.Sitting himself back down, Brian took a sip from the can. A soft meow interrupted the silence. Turning his head to the side, he saw Delilah perched beside him. The cat leaned towards him, rubbing her head against his palm.Strange. She never approached him unless Freddie was there.“What are you after, eh?” Great. Talking to the cat again.Delilah meowed a second time as he began to rub behind her ears. Fuck it. Brian needed someone to talk to, even if that someone was a cat who couldn’t talk back. And it wasn’t as if Delilah could go and tell anyone anything. Here goes nothing.“I don’t know what it is about Roger. I mean, I can tell when a man’s good looking, but I never think about them for hours after that initial observation. Know what I mean?”He looked down at Delilah. She blinked back at him.Brian sighed, leaning his head backwards against the back of the sofa. He was acting like a teenage girl, talking to animals about a boy. Delilah wasn’t even his pet! Perhaps he was overthinking this. He admired Rogers skills as a musician and enjoyed his company. Yeah, that must be it.He drained the rest of the beer, leaning forward to place the empty can on the small coffee table in front of him. His eyes felt heavy. What time was it? Brian lifted his wrist to check his watch, only to find that it wasn’t there. He must have removed it earlier.Swinging his legs up next to him, Brian shifted into a more comfortable position, resting his head against the arm of the sofa. He’d just close his eyes for a minute, give them a rest before heading to bed.Feeling a weight on his chest, he cracked one eye open to see Delilah curled up on top of him. He smiled. That cat wasn’t all that bad. Brian ran a hand over her back before shutting his eyes again.He was asleep in a matter of seconds.
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There was something rough and slightly damp running down the side of his face. Brian eased his eyes open to find a pair of amber eyes staring into his.“Delilah? What…” He trailed off as he took in his position on the sofa and the soft light shining through a gap in the curtains.The cat leapt of his chest, landing gracefully onto the coffee table and knocking over the empty can of beer in the process.Beer? Sofa?Brian rubbed his eyes in confusion, pushing away some hair that had fallen onto his face. Then the memories from last night returned to him. Roger, the talk with Delilah, the lecture he needed to attend…The lecture!He sat up sharply. What time was it? He had only intended to shut his eyes for a moment. How long had he been asleep for?Scrambling up onto his feet, Brian lifted his wrist to check the time. Oh yeah. His watch was missing. He hastily made his way into the kitchen to look at the clock on the wall instead.10:00“Aw, shit!” Brian turned on his heel and raced back to the living room. His lecture stared in fifteen minutes and it took at least half an hour to get to the university from here. He dropped back down onto the sofa and hurriedly began to pull on his shoes. Thank god they didn’t have any laces.Now, where was his bag? His coat?He found his bag by the coffee table, but his coat was nowhere in sight. Brian was ferreting around behind the sofa when Delilah came strolling past, sparing him a quick glance.He sniffed in irritation “You could have woken me sooner.”Delilah tossed her head and slinked out of the door. Brian scowled in the cat’s direction. So much for being friends.He straightened up. With so little time he would usually consider leaving without the extra layer, but with how bloody freezing it was out there, he really needed it.Seconds later, Freddie waltzed in through the door. “goodness, Brian!” he regarded the taller man. “you look terribly stressed, darling.”Brian pressed his hand against his forehead “my coat, Fred! My coat! I’m late and I can’t find my fucking coat!”Freddie stared at him. “is that it?” he questioned, unimpressed at Brian’s outburst. Then he shook his head and smiled. “Here Bri, just use mine.” Freddie then darted into the kitchen, returning with a dark brown bundle held out in his hand.“Thanks, Fred” Brian sighed in relief as he took the coat from his friend. holding it up, he made to slide it on when he noticed the soft and fury texture. “seriously?” He raised an eyebrow.“It’s either that or freeze to death. You’re choice, dear.”Brian was in too much of a rush to argue. He shrugged on the coat, slipped his bag onto his shoulder and made his way to the front door. As he swung it open, Freddie’s voice drifted in through the hall.“Oh, and remember that the band is rehearsing this afternoon!”As if he could forget about that.Brian closed the door with a bang and started to run.----------------------This was starting to become a regular occurrence. For the third time this week, Brian tried in vain to sneak into the lecture theatre as quietly as possible, sitting down at the back and attempting to appear nonchalant. A seemingly impossible task, since he was wearing one of Freddie’s most flamboyant coats. It’s difficult not to attract attention when you’re dressed in enough fur to compete with a yeti.He ducked his head down and stared at the small wooden desk. How he hated being late, and today was the latest he has ever been. Without his watch, it was difficult to tell how much he had missed, but if Brian’s estimate was correct, it seemed that he had missed the first 20 minutes of the talk.Lifting up his head and looking at the front of the room, Brian tried to focus and listen to what the professor was talking about. However, his mind wandered to the thought of band practice this afternoon and seeing Roger again. Brian was looking forward to getting to know him a little better, become closer friends. A lot closer- No!! He was not going there.Snapping out of his thoughts, Brian looked down at the desk. Was this…Ah yes! There he was, little stick Brian with his fluffy hair. However, there was a new edition to the drawing. Next to Stick Brian there was a small, neatly drawn guitar.Unfortunately, this did not help him narrow down who the other person could be. He had played at the student bar a few times, so anyone could have made that connection. Despite this, he couldn’t help but smile slightly at the new drawing.Brian though for a second, then he picked up his pen and drew a couple of small musical notes above Stick Brian’s head. There. Now he could listen to music to pass the time. It was a little bit silly, but Brian didn’t like to think about his mini lookalike having nothing to do. It seemed as if the person who first created the picture felt the same.Before he knew it, the lecture had come to an end. As he walked out of the theatre and towards the library, he saw a familiar face amongst the crowds of students.“John!” he called out, speeding up his pace as he walked towards his friend.John looked up from searching through his bag, his lips quirking upwards into a slight smile when he realised who had said his name. “Oh, Hi Brian. I-“ He paused, eyebrows furrowed as he took in Brian’s unusual attire- “nice coat.”Self-consciously crossing his arms over his chest, Brian rolled his eyes. As if he didn’t feel ridiculous enough. “yeah, well it’s Freddie’s. I can’t find mine.”“Ah, I see.” John nodded in understanding. “Anyway, did you need something?”Brian thought for a second. “uh, yeah actually, where about are we practising later? Freddie mentioned it but I can’t quite remember.”John seemed to brighten up at the mention of the band. “you know the old lecture theatre on the first floor, there at 5 o’clock.”Brian did know that lecture theatre. In fact, it was the one where Stick Brian resided. A thought crossed his mind, maybe he could get the others to help him find the mysterious artist. He patted the younger brunet on the shoulder. “Yeah, I know where you mean. Want to head to the library with me?”As the two walked together, their conversation drifted towards the topic of the band.“At first I was a little nervous when Rog asked me to come along, but now I’m actually really looking forward to playing again.” John looked up at Brian as he spoke. He smirked a little, “I bet you are too.”Brian paused. “I don’t know what you mean.”John raised an eyebrow, “come on, Bri. Freddie and I both saw how flustered you were yesterday.”Brian could feel the heat rushing to his cheeks. “I-“ He was interrupted by loud panting coming from across the hallway.Both Brian and John looked to the side to see a familiar blonde figure leaning against the wall, out of breath.“In a hurry?” John asked, teasingly.Roger glared at him. “No, Deaky, I just felt like sprinting halfway across campus” He replied sarcastically, still catching his breath. “Yes, I’m in a hurry, I’m going to be late!”“Well maybe you and Brian could talk, nowadays he’s late all the time.”Brian swatted John’s forearm, “it’s only happened three times.” He straightened up “hey, Rog.”Roger waved “hey, Brian” a wide grin slowly crept onto his face as he realised what the taller man was wearing. “Fred lent you his coat, didn’t he.”Brian nodded “how could you tell?” He asked, spreading out his arms.“Even though we met yesterday, I got the impression you’re not the type of guy to wear fur” Roger waved a hand dismissively, “besides, I’ve known Freddie for ages and he’s shown up to work in things more outrageous than that.”Brian laughed “I can imagine.”“I’d hate to interrupt,” John’s voice cut through “But I thought you were supposed to be late.” He threw Roger a pointed look.“Oh Shit, yeah” Roger fumbled for his bag, adjusting the strap on his shoulder. “I’ll see you later.” Turning to Brian, he gestured towards his head before adding mischievously, “maybe you should wear fur more often, Bri. It goes with your hair.” With that, he was off down the corridor.Brian smiled softly, absentmindedly fiddling with a strand of hair as he watched Roger speed away. A hand on his sleeve brought him back to attention. He looked down to see John shaking his head.“come on, we were going to the library, remember?” He shot Brian a knowing look, before adding playfully “don’t worry, it’s only a few hours until you’ll see him again.”Nudging John’s shoulder, Brian muttered a quiet “shut up” as the pair continued on their way.
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From the moment he first saw him, Roger Knew. The moment he clapped eyes upon Brian May, he knew he was the one.Brian was the one who had messed up his drawing.When he first discovered that somebody had added onto the little stick man, he had been highly irritated.Taking his usual seat in the lecture theatre and looking down to see his masterpiece with a messy mop of hair, there was no way to respond other than leaving a snide little comment. What gave some random person the right?Roger had had such plans for that sketch.He had said as much to Deaky whilst they were walking towards Freddie’s flat for his band meeting.“So, let me get this straight,” John rubbed his forehead in exasperation “you’re annoyed because someone gave your stick figure drawing hair.”Roger rolled his eyes “you make it sound stupid when you say it like that. Anyway, I had plans for that drawing! I was going to give him a good haircut and-“ he tugged at John’s sleeve to make sure he was paying attention- “you listening?”“Hmm?” John blinked before nodding, “oh yeah, hair” he gestured vaguely towards his head.Roger sighed, shaking his own head “uh, never mind. I just can’t believe someone would give a perfectly good sketch a crazy, poodle mane for hair!”John’s steps seemed to falter as he took in what Roger had just said, “hang on a second, did you just say poodle?”Narrowing his eyes, Roger looked at his friend suspiciously “yeah, why?” He then realised that they had arrived at Freddie’s. “Wait, tell me later, we’re here.” He reached up to ring the doorbell.Only after walking into Freddie’s living room and seeing the man sitting there, did Roger realise. The head of curly hair was just like that of the drawing. And when it was revealed that John knew him from University, well that seemed to confirm it. Roger hadn’t seen anyone else walking around with a style like that.It also explained Deaky’s reaction to his use of the word poodle.The man, Brian, was quite handsome in Roger’s opinion, with his kind hazel eyes and lean build. Although he vastly preferred women, Roger had been with a few guys and could definitely appreciate when they were attractive. And when Brian had stood to shake Roger’s hand awkwardly, stumbling over his words, he couldn’t help but grin.Huh. Roger decided that perhaps he could forgive the graffiti after all.Later on, whilst the newly formed band were playing together, Roger watched Brian play as he tapped his drums to the beat of the music. Clearly Brian was an expert in his craft, with the way he coaxed the most beautiful sounds from his guitar. There was something extremely appealing about the way the tall Brunet bent over the instrument, his dark curls falling around his face.But the thing that captivated him the most was the way in which Brian’s nimble fingers moved effortlessly up and down the fretboard. Roger had trouble keeping his eyes away from his skilful hands.The same hands, Roger reminded himself, that had irreversibly changed his drawing.Roger hit one of his cymbals harder than he intended to. He was supposed to be mad about that, dammit! Shaking his head, Roger focused his attention back to the music, keeping his drum beats in time.As the song came to an end, Freddie’s voice cut across the room “that sounded beautiful, darlings! Let’s take a short Break, Shall we?”Roger watched as Freddie made his way over to Brian, both of them examining some song lyrics that Freddie had written earlier. Glancing around the room, Roger searched for John. Finding the Bassist sat on the other side of the room, Roger stood up from his drum kit and casually walked over.Clearing his throat, Roger stood before the younger man, “so” he put his hands on his hips “your friend, Brian.”Looking up from tuning his bass, John met Rogers eye “yes…?” he questioned.Throwing his arms ups, Roger sighed in frustration “come on, Deaky! You and I both know what he did!”John carefully placed his guitar down next to him, “Jesus, not this again.” He rubbed his temples, exasperated “you don’t even know it was definitely him, Rog. Why do you care so much, anyway?”“I don’t!” Roger crossed his arms defensively “and who else could it have been? Have you seen anyone else walking around Uni sporting the very same hairdo?”“No, I haven’t, but that doesn’t mean that Brian actually did it. And if you’re really that bothered about it, just ask him” John reasoned.Roger’s eyes widened “I can’t do that, I’ll sound ridiculous!”John shot him a deadpan look “well we can’t have that, can we?”Huffing, Roger seated himself on the floor and held his head in his hands “uh, you’re right. I am being stupid about this” he groaned.Nudging his shoulder against Roger’s, John caught the Blonde’s eye “look” he said reasonably, “just talk to Brian, you know you want to really.”With that, John got up and walked over to where Brian and Freddie were standing. As he leaned over to look at the lyrics sheet, he placed his hand on Freddie’s shoulder, smiling when the singer turned to look at him.Roger narrowed his eyes at this. knowing how shy his young friend was, it was unusual to see him so forward. He brushed off the thought, it was probably nothing. Shaking his head, Roger also got to his feet and made his way over to the others.---------------------Now though, Roger had just made it to his class on time, breathing heavily as he sat down in his seat. The previous encounter with Brian was still running through his head. He couldn’t help but smile at the thought of the tall guitarist awkwardly dressed in Freddie’s coat.He hadn’t been lying though, he did actually like how the thick fur looked on Brian, and how could he resist making a teasing comment about his wild hair? After all, Roger didn’t want him to know how much he secretly loved it, how much he wanted to run his fingers through the thick, dark curls-Okay! Enough of that!Looking down at the table, he examined the doodle there. Brian, well he assumed it was Brian, had drawn some musical notes above the little man. It actually looked quite sweet.But Roger needed to be certain. Was the culprit definitely Brian?His gaze drifted to the words written on the table. There in a neat and stylised font, the word rude was looking back at him.That was it!All Roger needed was a sample of Brian’s handwriting and then he would know for sure. He leaned back in his chair, a self-satisfied grin on his face.Get Brian’s handwriting. How hard could it be?
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After nipping back home to collect their instruments, Brian met back up with John and together they walked to the lecture theatre where they would be practising that evening.When they walked into the room, Brian was greeted with the sight of Roger crouched by his drum kit, fiddling around with the tension rods on the snare drum. On hearing someone enter, Roger looked up nodding in greeting, “hey Bri, Deaky.” He then looked back down to the drum and continued tinkering with it.“Seems like you got here early,” Brian remarked as he started to take his guitar out of the case he carried her around in. Beside him, John was plugging his bass into an amp, giving the strings a few practice strums.Roger looked up once again, “yeah, I like to make sure the drums are in tune. It can take a while.”“Huh.” Brian had never heard of tuning a drum before, he always assumed that you played them as they came.More proof of Roger’s knowledge and skill as a musician.John glanced around the room, a slight frown on his face. “Is Freddie not here?” He queried.Roger snorted from behind the drum kit. “One thing to learn about Freddie, Deaks. He’s never on time.” He stood up and walked over to the other two, “You know, he even left the stall before I did!” Roger shook his head.Brian hummed in agreement. He had lost count of all the times he had sat waiting for Freddie, only for the man to waltz in like he wasn’t fifteen minutes late. “You better get used to hanging around.”John shrugged “Nothing knew then.” He looked down at his bass, plucking individual strings to check the tuning.Sitting down, Brian pulled from his bag a sheet of paper with the beginnings of a song written down. He had been working on it earlier, but had been unable to find words that sounded right. He hummed thoughtfully, tapping his pen against his upper lip.“Same song as last time?” Turning his head to the side, Brian found Roger peering over his shoulder at the lyrics sheet.Pulling the paper closer to his chest, Brian shifted to the side, “no it’s not, I only started working on this one today.”Roger’s eyes lit up, whether it was with interest or something else, Brian wasn’t sure. Anyway, whatever it was made him suspicious. “Let me see, then” the Blond craned his neck round trying to see the words written there.Brian shifted to the side even further, “no, it’s not finished yet.” He didn’t like showing his songs to other people before he was happy with them.The pair locked eyes for a brief second, before Roger made a sudden lunge for the paper.Brian yelped in surprise, quickly stretching out his arm so that the piece of paper in question was out of reach. “Fuck off, Rog!!” Using his free hand, Brian attempted to push the smaller man away.“Having fun over there? Please, don’t let me interrupt.”The pair ceased their mini battle, turning their heads to see Freddie leaning casually against the door frame, a smirk on his face.Roger scowled, “Would it kill you to be on time for once?”“It’s called being fashionably late, darling.”Putting down the piece of paper, Brian rolled his eyes “yeah well, it’s not so fashionable for the rest of us.” Out of the corner of his eye he could see Roger eyeing up the sheet of lyrics. He frowned, what was his fascination with it?“Speaking of fashionable-“ Freddie moved across the room towards Brian- “I figured you’d want this back.” He held out the coat he had been wearing. Brian’s missing coat.Reaching out his hand, Brian took his coat from Freddie, passing him back the furry monstrosity he’d been donning all day. “Where’d you find that?”“Would you believe that it was under the table the whole time? I think you might need your eyes testing, Bri” he teased.Brian put his coat out of the way, next to his guitar case. “Really? I’m sure I searched everywhere. Thanks, Fred.”“Don’t mention it, dearie” Freddie waved a hand dismissively. “Now, let’s not waste any more time and get started.”Brian folded up the sheet of lyrics and shoved it into the back pocket of his trousers. He thought he saw Roger looking disappointed, but dismissed it as his imagination as the blond went to sit down behind the drum kit.As Freddie counted them in, he focussed all of his attention on his guitar and began to play. Roger and the song lyrics momentarily forgotten.----------------------After a couple of hours, Freddie decided that they should all call it a day, inviting Roger and John back to his and Brian’s.Once back at the little flat, Roger immediately made himself at home on the sofa, leaning into the soft fabric and spreading his arm over the back.Making sure that he had definitely hung his coat up on the hook in the hallway, Brian walked into the living room, gesturing for John to sit on the other side of the sofa. Delilah was curled up on the right-hand arm of the sofa and Brian was surprised when she didn’t move when the Bassist sat down. He was even more surprised when Delilah allowed him to stroke the top of her head.Freddie seemed to be thinking the same. “Would you look at that. She seems to like you, Deaky,” He remarked.John looked up from where he was petting Delilah, smiling at Freddie “well, I like her too.”The two held eye contact, Freddie grinning back at the younger man.“Hang on a second,” Roger interrupted. “Delilah never sits near me, never mind stroking! What’s that supposed to mean?” He crossed his arms indignantly.Freddie pretended to look thoughtful for a moment. “I’ve always said that she has an excellent judge of character,” He teased.Roger scowled before grabbing a nearby cushion and lobbing it at Freddie. The singer laughed, catching it in one hand and throwing it back at him.“Right!” Brian decided to cut in, “anyone up for a drink?”Roger seemed to Brighten up at that. A small part of Brian was pleased that his suggestion appeared to cheer the Blond up.“Oh!” Freddie looked excited, “we could play Scrabble! Have you played before, Deaky?”John nodded. “I have, actually. I rather enjoyed it.”“Excellent!”“just a word of warning though, Deaky-” Brian looked to the other brunet- “Fred will try to convince you that his made-up words are real.”“Thot is a real word! The Scrabble dictionary is lying to you, Brian.” Freddie protested.Brian smirked, “Whatever you say, Freddie. Come on, let’s get those drinks.”Freddie turned to Roger, “would you get the box, darling? Its under the coffee table.” He followed Brian out of the room.---------------------As Brian and Freddie disappeared into the kitchen, Roger got up from his seat and crouched down to look for the board game under the coffee table. However, he paused in his task when a book lying haphazardly on the table caught his eye.Brian’s notebook.The game of Scrabble completely gone from his mind, Roger reached for the book. Considering his failure in getting the song sheet earlier, this seemed like a golden opportunity.“Why are you eyeing up Brian’s book like that?”He looked up to see Deaky watching him suspiciously.Roger slid the book across the table closer to him, “I need his Handwriting! Then I can match it to that drawing.”Shaking his head in disbelief, John rubbed a hand over his face. “Seriously? And you have to resort to stealing his class work?”“Shhh!” Roger glanced quickly towards the Kitchen, making sure that the owner of said work book wasn’t coming. He looked back towards the brunet, “I need to know! Don’t tell Brian, please Deaky!”John pressed his lips together, leaning back into the sofa. “I won’t say anything, however-” He nodded to his right- “It’s not me you have to worry about.”Furrowing his brow in confusion, Roger followed John’s eye-line towards the arm of the sofa.“You are joking!” He looked at the cat still perched beside John, amber eyes fixed on the book in Roger’s hand, before slowly moving her gaze up to Roger himself.Delilah straightened up, turning her head towards the kitchen, then once again meeting Roger’s eye. Only this time she seemed to shoot him a challenging look.Roger’s heart beat began to pick up. “Delilah,” He pleaded, inching slightly closer. “Please, Don’t!” He knew exactly what that cat was thinking, and it didn’t end well for him.Delilah tilted her chin almost defiantly. Then she leapt of the arm of the sofa and let out a loud yowl.Shit.John half suppressed a laugh, covering his mouth with his hand. Roger glared at his so-called friend, before looking towards the kitchen in panic.Delilah, darling! Whatever is the matter?” Freddie appeared in the doorway, Brian not far behind.Delilah ran up to Freddie's feet, preening when he crouched down to stroke under her chin. Roger looked down at the book in his hands, as if he could make it disappear with sheer willpower alone.Brian, however, looked less than pleased. “Is that my notebook?” He asked incredulously.The book fell from Rogers hands, landing with a thud on the table. “Er-“ He racked his brains for an excuse.Brian Crossed his arms, raising an eyebrow as he waited for an answer.Roger smiled sheepishly. “I can explain.”He was royally fucked.
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How on earth was he supposed to get out of this one?Roger was stumped. He’d have to tell Brian everything. How he was attempting to steal his book over a stupid drawing on a random desk at Uni, and Brian would hate him and never speak to him again and Roger couldn’t possibly bear that-“Astrophysics!”All eyes in the room turned towards the sound of the voice, surprised to see that it was John who had spoken up. He looked up at Brian innocently, “didn’t Roger tell you? He’s really interested in astrophysics.”Roger could have kissed him. Thank heavens for Deaky and his quick thinking.On the other side of the living room, Roger watched Freddie rise to his feet with Delilah in his arms, a puzzled look on his face. He needed to act quickly.“Yeah! It’s fascinating, all the stars and space dust…” he trailed off hoping that would be enough, however Brian still didn’t look convinced.“And you needed my book because...?”Shit, he hadn’t thought that far ahead. “Er… so I could give your work a read. I bet its great, Bri!” He was on a roll now, “I was hoping to borrow it, just for a bit.”That seemed to do the trick. Brian visibly relaxed, a small smile tugged at his lips “oh, really? I have a few textbooks; they might be better at explaining it all though.” He looked around thoughtfully.“No!” The shout escaped his mouth before he could stop it. “I mean, there’s no need. I think I’d understand it all much better written in your words.”“Well, if you’re sure. But I’ll need it back by Monday.”It was Thursday, so that gave Roger three days to complete his investigation. That was plenty of time!The matter seemed to be over as the group began to start setting up the game of scrabble. That is until Brian turned to Roger and Began to chat about some space theory.“…And I think its fascinating how gravity can cause the shape of space to curve, and consequently dilate the rate of time.” As he spoke, Brian waved his hands around animatedly. “What do you think, Rog?”Well this wasn’t good.“Er…“ Roger tried to think of what to say in response. He knew nothing of this, he was pretending for heaven’s sake! Thinking back to something he heard on the radio once, Roger took a wild guess. “Like how a clock ticks slower at a higher height.” He tried to sound confident.However, to his surprise, Brian nodded enthusiastically. “Yes, exactly!”Over Brian’s shoulder, he saw Deaky give him a small thumbs up. He winked in response. It was nice to have someone to be in cahoots with. Freddie on the other hand was watching him with narrowed eyes. With how observant his friend was, Roger should have known it would be more difficult to pull the wool over his eyes.He looked down at his scrabble tiles and focused his energy on thinking up a high scoring word.-----------------------The next day, Roger stood at the small table that severed as a counter at the market stall, carefully studying the words written in Brian’s notebook. Freddie was busy serving their only customer, giving Roger the chance to carry out his examination.The only problem was that no matter how hard he looked at Brian’s handwriting, he couldn’t be completely sure that it was the same as the writing on the table. And the more he stared at it, the less certain he became.Roger slumped in frustration, dropping the book down onto the table with a sigh. There was only one option. He would have to take the book with him to class next week and make a side by side comparison. That is if Brian let him keep it for a longer time.“You look truly engrossed, darling.”Roger jumped in his seat, “Jesus Christ, Fred! Could you not sneak up on me like that!” He twisted around to look at the older man. “and I’ll have you know, I’m thoroughly enjoying Brian’s work.”Freddie crossed his arms, raising an eyebrow. “Ah yes, I forgot about your sudden interest in space. Although as I recall, you found any science that wasn’t biology extremely boring.”Shit, he was onto him.“Yeah, well…” Roger racked his brains for a new topic. “Anyway, I thought you were busy with a customer?”“Oh, that guy?” Freddie said nonchalantly, “I just sold him that hideous jacket we’ve had in the back for ages and sent him on his way.”Roger grimaced. “The one with the green and brown paisley?”“That very one. Now-“ Freddie swatted Roger around the head- “no more changing the subject. what’s with all this interest in Bri’s studies?”Inside his head, Roger debated with himself. He could deny it, but Freddie knew him too well. He’d already seen through Roger’s lies. Really, there was only one other option.“Alright, fine!” Roger came clean. “I don’t have a secret passion for astrophysics. It was just a cover up for trying to take Brian’s notebook.” Before he knew it, the whole truth about the drawing and the snide little messages came pouring out.As he spoke, Freddie listened quietly, nodding every few seconds. “So, all this time you’ve been trying to get a writing sample from Brian. Even during rehearsal?” He smirked. “And here I was thinking that you were just looking for an excuse to sprawl yourself across Brian’s lap.”Roger crossed his arms, heat rising to his cheeks. “Shut up.” he mumbled. “It’s a very serious matter!” He had hoped for at least a little sympathy from his best friend.Freddie schooled his feature into a more neutral expression. “Of course, darling. But can I ask, why not just talk to Brian?”Roger shrugged. At this point, he didn’t even know himself.“I can’t!” Was the only answer he could give. He couldn’t tell Brian, he’d sound so stupid, whilst Brian almost always sounded so smart.“Look, Rog.” Freddie’s words snapped him back to reality. “I think what you need to be asking yourself is why you seem to care so much. And I think we both know why that is.”Why did everyone keep saying that to him? First Deaky, now Freddie. Hell, he’d even questioned himself about it. What was it about that drawing, about Brian?Why did he care so much?“I…”“Shhh. You don’t have to explain it to me, dear. But I happen to know that Brian finishes his classes in about half an hour. If you’re quick you might just catch him.” Freddie started to usher him away from the stall.Just then, an idea popped into Roger’s head, stopping him in his tracks. “Shit, you’re right, Fred.”Freddie nodded, “I’m always right darling.”Roger was grinning, now. “If I leave now, I can sneak into the lecture hall when Brian leaves! I can check the handwriting!” Grabbing his jacket, Roger shrugged it onto his shoulders.“What?” Confusion was evident on Freddie's face, “no, I meant-“Roger was in too much of a hurry to listen. “Thanks, Fred!!” He called as he disappeared amongst the people in the market, leaving Freddie alone at the stall.
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The lecture seemed to be dragging on for years. Usually Brian would hang onto every word the professor said, meticulously making notes in his book. Well, that was before he started arriving late for nearly every class. But that wasn’t the case today.Brian had arrived in good time, before the room was even half full. However, rather than taking a seat near to the front like he usually would have, he gravitated to the back of the room. Sitting himself in the empty seat he seemed to take every time he turned up late.It was as if he couldn’t focus on anything other than what was circulating around inside his head. The only thing he had really been thinking about since the evening before.Roger.Just the thought of the blond drummer caused a smile to creep onto his face. By now Brian was beyond trying to convince himself otherwise, he liked Roger. A lot. Over the few weeks that the band had been together, Brian found himself being drawn to the chaotic whirlwind that was Roger Taylor. He was smart and witty, and with each interaction, Brian looked forward to the next time they would meet. See, Brian could admit all of this to himself, to anyone else on the other hand, well he would no sooner run for the hills.Admiring from afar, that was what he did best. No one else needed to know.Shaking his head, Brian looked at his watch. He had finally located the damned thing, in Delilah’s little pile of blankets and whatnot that resided in the corner of Freddie’s bedroom. The sneaky cat must have made off with it without him noticing. Well now he had noticed, and he’d be keeping a closer eye on her in the future.Checking the time, he saw that there was still 20 minutes of the class left to go. Leaning forward, Brian tried to focus his attention back to what was being said, however the mere mention of the topic had his mind wandering once again.Roger liked Astrophysics too. A little voice whispered in his head. It seemed almost too good to be true. He loved to talk about his favourite subject, and to have someone to listen, even discuss it with him, well it made him feel all warm inside. And the fact that Roger wanted to borrow the notes he had written himself, even though he had a surplus of textbooks on the subject, well he couldn’t help but feel flattered.Although, he really did need the book back by next week, he was pretty sure that if Roger asked, he would let him keep it for much longer.Brian sat back into his seat. It seemed that he wouldn’t be learning anything in this lecture anytime soon. He put down his pen. Looking down, he noticed the lines drawn underneath.Oh yeah! This was Stick Brian’s table. It had been a while since he had thought of his namesake and his mysterious creator. Come to think of it, he had almost forgotten he was even there.Moving his pen out of the way, Brian studied the sketch. His position, the mop of hair, the remark about said hair. Brian sniffed in amusement. Now he thought about it, he found it quite funny and to be honest, the poodle comparison was pretty accurate. Not that he’d let anyone know he thought that way.
Poodle.
Brian stared at the word. It reminded him of the teasing comments Roger would make about his hair, that he always delivered with a slight smirk. Come to think of it, Brian was pretty sure he had heard Roger murmuring something about poodles to Deaky once.He frowned. There was something bothering him at the back of his mind. Eyes scanning over the surface of the table, he zeroed in on the small guitar drawn next to the stick figure. Unless he was mistaken, Brian was pretty sure that particular part of the drawing appeared after their first get together as a band. The first time he met Roger and probably the first time Roger found out that he played.But that would mean…No, it couldn’t be. Brian was assuming to much. There was no way that Roger was the other person. It would be too much of a coincidence. Talking to each other through desk graffiti, that was the sort of thing that happens only in story books, certainly not real life.Brian was clearly adding two and two together and getting five. That was it.Looking up from the desk and to the front of the room, he could see the Professor gathering his papers together. All the other students were piling out of the theatre. Brian must have been inside his head for longer than he thought.Hastily stuffing his notes into his bag, Brian followed the last few people out of the room. He quickly made his was down to the exit of the building. The sooner he made it home, the easier it would be to clear his head and the easiest way to do so would be to shut himself in his room and focus all his attention on the guitar. Brian just wanted all of these Roger-oriented thoughts out of his mind, for the time being at least.Brian was in such a hurry that he only just noticed the figure coming around the corner, managing to bring himself to a halt before he crashed into them.“Oh, Sorry! Almost didn’t see you there, Deaky.” Brian steadied the smaller man with a hand to the shoulder.“It’s all fine” John shot Brian a smile. “What has you in such as rush, then?”“just want to get home, that’s all.” Brian shrugged.John took in Brian’s appearance, then raised an eyebrow. “With no coat? It’s pretty chilly out there you know.”Looking down at himself, Brian cursed. What was it with his coat and never being where he needed it, “must’ve left it in the lecture theatre.”Something akin to recognition flickered onto John’s face, but was gone just as fast, “lecture Theatre…” He murmured to himself before smirking slightly, “you better go and get then, you’ll freeze otherwise.”Was it just him, or was John acting little odd? Brian dismissed the thought, “yeah, I probably should.” He patted John on the shoulder, “See you later, Deaky.”John offered him as small wave, “bye Brian.”Turning back the way he had come, Brian cursed himself inwardly. Just when he wanted to get home in as little time as possible, he had to leave his coat behind. He could visualise it to, draped over the back of the seat smugly.Trudging up the flight of stairs he had walked down only minutes ago, Brian prayed that there wouldn’t be a class in there, he didn’t think he could handle the embarrassment of interrupting a lecture only to get a coat he so foolishly forgot. He was pretty sure that the room was empty for a good hour or so after his class ended, but the thought was there.Thankfully, the room appeared to be empty when he pushed open the doors. That was until he noticed the shape crouched down by the small desk he had been sat in previously.The other occupant of the room seemed to notice Brian had entered around the same time he noticed them. A blond head whipped around with a look of shock on the familiar face. A small book fell from their hands and lay open on the floor. Brian recognised the handwriting written there. His own. The man in front of him stared down at the book before looking up to meet Brian’s eye, uttering a single word.“Fuck!”-----------------------It had gotten to the point where Roger’s legs had begun to tire, but then he had just rushed to the tube station and endured the 10-minute train journey before running the rest of the way to the university campus.He had never been more grateful for Freddie’s ideas before. Okay, so he wasn’t following his advice exactly, but without his friend’s words of wisdom then he would be waiting until next week to get to the bottom this. Now though, with his newly obtained knowledge of Brian’s class times, he could get this solved by the end of the day. But he would have to be sneaky about this, lest he be spotted by the man in question.As he walked towards the doors of the large building, he clutched Brian’s notebook a little tighter. He hoped that he was right about Brian being the person on the other side of the drawings, he didn’t know where else he could go to for information if it was someone else.Entering the building, he saw John sat on one of the few benches near the entrance. Catching the Brunet’s eye, he walked over and took a seat next to him.John cheerfully greeted him, only to frown in confusion seconds later, “weren’t you supposed to be working? I didn’t think you were in today.”“Oh yeah?” Roger nudged his shoulder with his own, “and how would you know that? Been stalking me?”John rolled his eyes, pushing Roger away, “you wish I was stalking you.” He began to stand, gathering his belongings together. ”I need to get to the library.”“You’re always in the library,” Roger grabbed John’s arm, tugging him back down, “sit Deaky! You can leave after I’ve told you about the latest development in my Brian investigation!”Letting out a long-suffering sigh, John reluctantly sat down again, “go on.”“Alright, so…” Roger filled John in on everything Freddie had said, gesturing enthusiastically using Brian’s book, “and now after his class ends, I can go into the theatre and check it with the real thing!” Roger grinned. He was pretty proud of his idea. “It’s clever, right?” He looked at John expectantly.John stared at him. “genius” he deadpanned.Roger let out a frustrated huff, “come on John! Just this once support me on this!” he pleaded.Placing a hand on his shoulder, John offered him a small smile, “you know I always do.” With that, John made to stand up again, briefly looking at his watch. “Brian’s class ends about now; you should probably get going if you don’t want him to see you.”Getting to his feet also, Roger looked at his friend questioningly, “How is it that you seem to know everyone’s timetables?”“Wouldn’t you like to know,” John shrugged his bag onto his shoulder, “see you later, Rog.”“See you, Deaky.”Roger started to climb the stairs up to the second floor, ducking around a corner once he got there as he could hear the many footsteps of other students. That must be Brian’s class leaving.He waited until the last few people had passed, then he turned around the corner and headed down the corridor towards the lecture hall. Shoving the door open he checked it was empty, then proceeded to walk through the rows of seating until he found the desk he was looking for. Crouching down next to the little wooden table, he opened up the book, failing to notice the large coat draped over the back of the chair.Bringing the book closer to the patch of writing on the desk, Roger examined it for similarities, eyes flicking between the book pages and table surface.There! No doubt about it. Brian’s handwriting and the writing on the desk were one and the same. Brian was the culprit! Roger could feel his chest swell with excitement. But wasn’t he supposed to be mad? Though, thinking about it, he hadn’t been angry for some time now.The sudden sound of the doors swinging open caused him to turn from the desk and towards whoever had just entered. There, his eyes met familiar hazel ones. Shit, it was Brian! Brian who was gaping at him with surprise.Roger felt the notebook fall from his fingers, landing on the ground with a thud. He looked down at it almost accusingly, then looked back at Brian. Searching his brain for something to say, only one word fell from his mouth.“Fuck!”
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It seemed like an eternity until Brian moved from where he had been standing, crouching down to collect the book from where it lay by Roger’s feet. Roger himself couldn’t seem to get any word out other than the curse he released seconds before. Silently he watched as Brian straightened up again, his notebook back in his grasp.It was Brian’s movement that snapped him back to reality. Opening and closing his mouth a few times, Roger struggled to form a coherent sentence. Was there even a reasonable excuse he could make for this situation? If there was, he certainly didn’t know it.“Brian! I… I was just…” Roger stumbled over his words, rubbing the back of his neck nervously.Brian’s voice was suspiciously calm, his words carefully controlled as he looked up from the book pages and into the Blond’s eyes, “this seems a strange place to choose to do a little reading, don’t you think?”Well, this wasn’t good.Right now was one of those moments where he had two choices. He could make the smart choice and tell the truth and lessen the consequences, or decide to attempt another lie. In true Roger fashion, he chose the latter.Putting on an air of confidence, Roger tried to look relaxed, “sometimes an academic setting helps with focus, you know.”Brian narrowed his eyes slightly, “oh yeah? Then why trek all the way here then? I know you were working today.”Crap. He really had him there. Roger lifted his chin, an attempt to appear taller, “well, you see I-““Enough with the excuses, Rog!” Brian interrupted, the calm and collected mask gone. “Seriously, how stupid do you think I am? I want the truth and I want it now!”Roger jumped slightly. Brian never seemed to raise his voice, and if he was honest, he was quite taken aback at the sheer volume of it. He had really fucked up this time.“Fine.” He was surprised at how quiet his voice had become. Grabbing the sleeve of Brian’s shirt, he tugged him closer to the desk he had been looking at earlier, “I was comparing your writing to something written there because I thought it was you. Will that do?” Roger felt heat rising to his cheeks as he pointed at the desk. He was more than aware of how ridiculous this all seemed.Shaking Roger’s hand from his sleeve, Brian peered down at desk, his eyes skimming over all the words and drawings etched into its surface. He then focused on one particular spot, muttering quietly, “Stick Brian…” All the anger seemed drain out of him and he looked up to Roger in confusion, “I… what?”Roger huffed, he had hoped that with all of the intelligence Brian possessed, he would have realised by now. Obviously not.“About a week ago I drew a picture on this desk and found that someone had drawn over it and I thought it was you, so I needed to check!” The words came flooding out of him before he had time to think.“That was you?” Brian stared at him, pushing some hair away from his face, “I have to admit I had my suspicions, but why go to all this trouble instead of just asking me?”Why did everyone say that! Freddie, Deaky and now Brian, Roger felt like an idiot. He really should have just asked instead of doing all that sneaking around.“Because I was embarrassed, okay!” He hadn’t meant to shout like that. It was like all of his frustrations were rising to the surface at last. Shoving his hands into his pockets, he lowered his voice, “I thought you’d think I was being stupid. That I was stupid.”Brian shook his head disappointedly, “I would never think of you as stupid, Roger. I thought you knew that.” He sighed, looking down at the notebook still in his hand. “Wait a minute-“ Brian’s head snapped back up, looking at Roger quizzically- “all those things you said about liking astrophysics, was that just a ploy to get a hold of my book?”“No! Well yeah, but… “ Roger trailed off, stepping closer to the man in front of him. “Look, I can explain. But not here. Can we go somewhere else?”Brian pressed his lips together, “fine. We can go back to mine.”Roger quietly watched as Brian put the book into his bag and picked up a dark coat from the back of one of the chairs. That must be the reason Brian had come back. He hadn’t even noticed the coat was there in his hurry to check the table. Maybe if he had, all of this would have been avoided.No, Roger told himself. All of this would have been avoided if he had just spoken to Brian rather than weaving that intricate lie. He could kick himself.Wordlessly, he trailed after Brian as the taller man walked out of the lecture theatre. This was going to be one uncomfortable journey home.-----------------------Needless to say, their walk back to Brian and Freddie’s flat was not one of many words. Roger couldn’t recall any one time where he and Brian had been anything but comfortable in each other’s company. Brian had barely said a word since they had left the university. He was probably waiting for them to get somewhere more private before he really tore into him. Then he would be for it.Roger hoped that Brian would at least leave his body somewhere easy for Freddie and John to find. Okay, perhaps that was a little overdramatic. But Brian was really mad at him, he could tell.When they got to the flat, Brian unlocked the door, holding it open and allowing Roger to enter first. Huh. Perhaps he wasn’t as angry as Roger had initially thought.Walking through the hall, Roger shrugged his jacket from his shoulders, holding it draped over his arm. Reaching the door to the living room, he waited for Brian to catch up before entering. He was more than surprised to see not one, but two familiar figures sat on the sofa.“Freddie!” Brian paused in the doorway, “…and John. What are you doing here?”“You know Deaky and I are friends outside the band, Bri. We were having a nice little catch up before you two rudely interrupted.” Freddie casually removed his arm from where it had been lying across the back of the sofa, behind John’s shoulders. Brian didn’t appear to notice, however Roger did.Roger put his hands on his hips, shifting his gaze to John, “I thought you were going to the Library?”“Plans change.” John simply replied.“And you, Fred! You were supposed to be looking after the stall!”Freddie shook his head, “you didn’t really expect me to look after it all by myself, did you? No, I closed up early after you went off to carry out your little mission.”“Little mission?” Brian gaped at him as realised what he was referring to, “don’t tell me you in on all this!”Freddie looked at him disapprovingly, “don’t get all hissy with me, darling. I only found out today.” He smirked, “look at Deaky here, he knew the longest.”John shot him an irritated look before turning to Brian, his hands raised in surrender. “In my defence, I told Roger to tell you. Numerous times, in fact.”Roger looked between to two on the sofa, “wait, were you two were discussing this between yourselves?”John shrugged, “it was you who told both of us.”“Yeah and we only talked about it this afternoon.” Freddie waved a hand dismissively, “it’s not important.”Brian crossed his arms, “so I was the last to know. Even though it only concerned me and Rog,” he huffed.“It appears that you two have lots to discuss. Let’s make ourselves scarce, shall we dear?” Freddie grabbed John’s hand pulling him to his feet and the pair disappeared off into Freddie room.Brian sighed wearily, covering his face with one hand, the other on his hip, “Right.” He gestured for Roger to follow him into the kitchen. He pulled out a chair and hung his coat over the back, nodding to Roger to sit down. Once the blond was seated, Brian pulled out his own chair, sitting with his bag on his knee, taking the notebook out and placing it on the table in front of him.Brian looked at Roger across the table. “Tell me everything.”
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Brian sat quietly and let Roger get everything he needed to say off his chest, nodding along every now and then to show that he was still listening. Hearing Roger’s side of things really helped to piece everything together; the drawing and the messages, Roger’s odd behaviour and the whispering between him and John. Brian wanted to laugh at how ridiculous the whole thing was. All because of a tiny little stick man.“…And I couldn’t tell you, Bri!” Roger concluded the story, looking at him earnestly from across the table, “I thought you’d be so mad at me. And you are, I can tell!”“What? No, I’m not mad at you.” Did he look angry? Brian hoped he didn’t. he had been trying to appear neutral. He scooted his chair around the table, closer to the rather deject looking blond. “I’m not mad, okay. Why would I be?”Roger stared at him, “because I lied to you, about the whole astrophysics thing.” He then cast his eyes down at the table. “you shouted at me earlier, what else was I supposed to think?”Brian winced at that. He hadn’t meant to raise his voice back in the lecture theatre. “alright, I am a little disappointed that you don’t actually like astrophysics, and the fact that John and Freddie knew about it all. But I promise I’m not mad about it, really.”Roger’s gaze was still fixed on the table top. Brian had never seen him look so small before. He must be really torn up about all this.Brian decided to be bold. He shuffled a little closer, putting his arm around Roger’s shoulders, “look Rog. The thing is, I really like you. I guess I was just excited to think we had something in common, but it really doesn’t matter.”Roger leaned into his arm, finally meeting his eye. “I like you a lot too, Bri. That’s why I was so worried to tell you, you see. I thought you might hate me.”Brian smiled reassuringly, “I don’t think I have it in me to hate you, Roger.”“But the drawing-““I don’t care about the drawing,” Brian said firmly, cutting him off before he said anymore. He attempted to lighten the conversation, “I take it you’re the original creator of Stick Brian, then.”Roger’s brow creased in confusion, “Stick Brian?”Oh shit. The nickname Brain so lovingly bestowed on the little drawing sounded so daft said out loud. Brian cringed internally.Then Roger laughed, “Stick Brian. I like it.” He poked at one of Brian’s curls, “the resemblance is uncanny.”Satisfied that Roger seemed less upset, Brian reluctantly removed his arm from around his shoulders. It was probably best to give him a little space after such a big confession. Although, he was pretty sure Roger would be back to his energetic self in no time. Brian smiled at the thought.Clearing his throat, Brian stood up “well now that we’ve sorted this out, I think it’s okay to let Fred and Deaky join us again.” He nudged Roger’s shoulder playfully when the shorter man got to his feet, “Knowing Freddie, I wouldn’t be surprised if he had his ear pressed to the wall this whole time.”Roger snorted at that, “you’re probably right.” He turned to tuck the chairs back under the table, “as all of us are here, how about a game of scrabble?”Brian smirked, “think you’re capable of beating me, hmm Rog?”Roger glared at him, “only if you stop using big old fancy words.”“Impossible.” Brian picked up his bag, bringing it with him into the living room and depositing it down next to the sofa.Roger had already curled up on one side of the sofa, looking expectantly at Brian until he too sat down. Shooting him an amused look, Brian made himself comfortable. “what happened to going and getting Fred and Deaky?”Roger stretched his arms, “lets have just a little time to ourselves, leave them in suspense just a bit longer.”“Alright.” Something rubbed against his ankle. Looking down he saw Delilah settling herself by his feet. It seemed that when Freddie wasn’t around, Brian was the next best thing. He was secretly glad. Delilah and himself seemed to have come to some sort of mutual respect.Seeing the cat, Roger leaned down to stroke her head, however Delilah ducked away. She then appeared to shoot him a withering look.Roger threw his hands up in the air, “what is it with that cat?” he settled back down into the sofa, crossing his arms. “She won’t give me the time of day!”Brian couldn’t resist teasing, “you may be off the hook with me, but obviously not with Delilah.” He patted Roger’s knee, “she’ll come to like you soon enough.”“I don’t know,” Roger grumbled, “it’s like she has it out for me or something.”Delilah looked directly at him before tossing her head and slinking away towards the kitchen.Roger looked at Brian in disbelief, “see what I mean!”Brian laughed at the expression on Roger’s face. He was then made aware of how close they were sitting. Had he moved closer subconsciously?He then noticed how quiet it was.Turning his head to the side, he was met with Roger’s bright blue eyes staring into his. “Did you really mean it?” Roger said so quietly that Brain almost didn’t catch it.“Mean what?”“When you said that you liked me.” Roger looked a little unsure of himself, although there seemed to be a little bit of hope in his eyes.Brian turned his body so that he was completely facing the other. “I do like you. Maybe even more than like.” He decided to be completely honest, not just with Roger, but with himself. “I think I’ve liked you ever since that evening when Freddie brought you round here. With the band and all the time we’ve spent together, I realised how much I enjoy spending time with you.” He swallowed, feeling heat rising in his cheeks, “I think you’re amazing, Rog.”Reaching out, Roger took a hold of his hand. He smiled softly, looking Brian right in the eye. “I feel the same. Getting to know you Bri, I realised how much I wanted you to feel for the me the way I feel about you.” He let out a shaky breath. “I guess this whole lying business escalated just because I didn’t want you to think lowly of me when I think so highly of you.”Brian felt his face heat up even more at what Roger had just said. Moving to hold Roger’s hand in both of his, he edged even closer. “Maybe we could spend a little more time together? No Freddie or John. Just us. You and me.” Brian could barely get the words out.“Are you asking me on a date, Bri?” Roger smiled widely at him.Brian nodded, “I suppose I am.” He sat up straighter, looking at Roger seriously, “but no lies, alright? This time complete honesty from both of us.” He loosened his grip on Roger’s hand, allowing him to pull away if he wanted to.Instead Roger squeezed his hand tighter, “I can do that. No more lying.”Holding on for a little while longer, Brian released Roger’s hand from his, lowering his arms. Neither of them moved away, their faces barely a breath away from each other. Slowly, Roger brought up his hand, reaching to brush Brian’s hair out of his face.Brian inhaled, holding Roger’s intense gaze. “I really want this to work, Rog” he whispered.“So do I.” Roger twirled a strand of Brian’s hair around his finger. “Poodle,” he said fondly.Brian chuckled, pulling Rogers hand away, “rude.”The smile Roger gave him in return was quite possibly the sweetest sight Brian had ever seen.