#supercard of honor 2023 | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

banannabethchase · 10 months

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Part Time Soulmate, Full Time Problem - also on AO3

After both of them lose to legends at Supercard of Honor on March 31st, a chance encounter leads to Danny and Yuta becoming friends with benefits. Well. It starts that way.

Bingo square B2 Fake Dating/Fakeout Makeouts complete! Title from Hold Me Like a Grudge by Fall Out Boy. I heard that line in March and went, "Holy shit that's a good fic title" and then Supercard hit and this fic began percolating in my mind. 12.5k later, here we are! Also, this is my 100th AEW fic! Wahoo!

March 31st, 2023: Supercard of Honor

Yuta drops onto a bench in the locker room, feeling a strange sense of self-loathing wash over him as he plugs his phone in with a random charger in the wall. He hasn’t felt this particular brand of misery since joining Blackpool Combat Club. He’d thought he wouldn’t feel it again.

He feels bare, empty without the belt in his hands, around his waist, over his shoulder.

He wants to go out for Claudio’s match. He should go out, right now.

But he can’t.

The room is practically empty, everybody else out watching or at home, and he zones out long enough that he doesn’t expect any interruptions.

So, when the door bangs open, Yuta jumps. He shouldn’t. He’s a grown man trained by some of the most violent people on the planet. He shouldn’t get scared anymore.

Daniel Garcia, pouting as always, walks in. “I won’t bother you,” he grumbles. “Forgot my charger.”

Yuta shoots him a sheepish grin. “Oh. It’s yours?” He holds up his phone, attached to the wall. “Can I get, like, twenty minutes?”

“No,” Danny says. He pout gets more intense. It’s cute. Yuta’d promised himself he’d stop thinking that, but it’s not the first promise he’d broken to himself tonight. “Give it.”

“Nah,” Yuta says, scrolling. “You can wait.”

“I need to get back to the hotel, okay?” Danny says, diving over Yuta to try and get the charger back. “I had a shitty night and I lost. Just let me have this one thing.”

“I lost, too!” Yuta snaps back, leaning backward to get the phone out of Danny’s grip while he kicks his legs out toward Danny. “I lost a fucking belt. You just lost a regular match.”

“A match that mattered – give me the fucking charger!” He lunges, and the impact is enough to throw Yuta down behind the bench, against the wall. His head cracks, enough to hurt but not enough to damage, and he’s stunned enough that Danny gets him pinned to the floor.

“Fuck off,” Yuta says, but the bench and Danny have him stuck. “Get off me!”

Danny snickers. “Probably could, but I’m busy.”

Yuta blinks. “What?”

“What?”

“Did you just make a sex joke?” Yuta is suddenly incredibly aware of how Danny’s straddling him. Of how close together their dicks are. “Right now? Seriously?”

“I – shut up.” Danny glares down. “Give me the charger.”

“I can’t give you anything,” Yuta grumbles, and he twists his hips to try and dislodge Danny. It doesn’t work – the bench is giving him leverage. “You’re pinning me to the ground.”

Danny snickers. “Yeah. Second time you’ve been pinned tonight.”

Yuta feels a weird sort of rage bubble in his gut. He reaches up and wraps a hand around Danny’s throat. “Shut up,” he growls.

And then Danny. Danny gets. Danny gets pink. He darts an equally pink tongue out to wet his lips, and Yuta thinks time stops.

“You wanna fuck?” Yuta blurts out, before he can stop himself. He drops his arm back down to his side.

Danny’s jaw drops. “What?”

“I – look.” Yuta forces himself to keep eye contact with Danny. “Tonight sucked. For both of us. Everything went wrong that could go wrong.” He shrugs. “Maybe we get laid. Make something good come out of the night.”

“Is that a come joke?” Danny asks, but he does grind his hips down. Yuta whines, before he can stop himself. “I can’t believe I’m gonna blow you.” He shuffles off of Yuta’s hips and yanks down his pants. “Yeah?”

“I – does anyone say no to a blow job like this?” Yuta asks, truly baffled. “Definitely yes.” He doesn’t get a chance to say anything else, because Danny’s dropped his head down and enveloped his cock so completely that Yuta’s brain stops working. Too much has happened tonight for him to do much more than feel, and he barrels toward an orgasm as Danny shows him his mouth is good for more than just bitching.

He grabs Danny’s neck. “Danny,” he warns.

Danny pulls back, hand on Yuta’s cock. “What?” he says. “You think this is the first dick I’ve sucked? First time I’ve had a guy come in my mouth?” He scoffs. “Please.” He drops back down, and Yuta’s not quite sure why jealousy surges in him as he comes, but it does. Danny’s mouth is hot and warm and oh so suddenly too intense. He inhales sharply as he twists his hips out of Danny’s mouth.

“Fuck. Don’t be so eager.” He grins, finally, getting the leverage to flip them. He yanks his pants up his hips, wincing at the oversensitive drag of his waistband against his cock. “Want me to blow you?”

Danny nods. “Get on with it.”

“I – you are never getting that charger back.” Yuta leans down and sucks Danny off as quickly as he can. He wants to regain some dignity from how fast he came down Danny’s throat while Danny was basically insulting him. It’s easier than he thinks it really should be, to draw cute little whimpers and little wiggles from Danny.

Danny tugs at his hair, like he’s trying to move Yuta.

“Gonna,” he mutters. “If you don’t want to.”

“Jesus, you’re stupid,” Yuta mutters, and dives back down onto Danny’s dick.

He’d always expected Danny to be loud when he comes, make a production of it. Maybe add in some sort of self-indulgent moaning or moving around.

Instead, Danny’s rather quiet. A tiny little noise, somewhere from the back of his throat, and then Yuta’s swallowing bitter salt. He waits until Danny shoves him off, just for mild revenge, and then sits up against the wall where his phone is charging. Their legs are tangled together, and Yuta kicks at Danny’s leg.

“This should be a thing,” Yuta muses, making sure his phone is still charging.

“What should?” Danny shuffles his sweats up his hips and sits up. He leans on the bench.

Yuta gestures to the two of them. “Fucking after the matches. Us.”

Danny raises an eyebrow. “What, when we lose?”

“Whenever,” Yuta says. “If you’re not down –”

“Oh, I’m down,” Danny says. “I’m always here to get off, you know?” His smile is a little cockier than Yuta wants to deal with.

“Cool,” Yuta says nodding. “You really aren’t getting that charger back.”

“Oh, fuck you.”

May 28th, 2023: Double or Nothing

Yuta’s grinning as he makes his way backstage. He’ll be the first to admit he’s got a bitchy little pep in his step as Mox ruffles his hair and shoves him into the locker room.

“From young boy to pinning Kenny fuckin’ Omega,” Mox says, yanking him in and kissing his forehead. “That’s my boy. Fuckin’ killed it.”

Yuta beams at him, leaning into his chest. “I pinned Kenny,” he says, his voice a weird little laugh. “Fuck.”

Bryan slaps him on the back and Claudio pulls him to do their handshake. Yuta feels whole, and loved, and strong.

There’s a knock on the door and Yuta gets it, still beaming.

“Oh,” he says, blinking. The magic isn’t broken, exactly, but it’s shifted. “Danny. Hi.”

“Hey,” he says quietly. His eyes are a bit shifty, like he’s not sure if he’s allowed to be here. To be fair, Yuta’s not sure if he should be here, either, but he isn’t going to kick Danny out before he finds out why he showed up in the first place. “Um. Here.” He shoves something into Yuta’s hand then walks away. He doesn’t seem sad, exactly. Just lost.

“Who is it, Yoots?” Mox yells. “Get your ass back in here. We need to celebrate.”

Yuta turns, remembering his victory. “Hell yeah,” he says. “Let’s do it.”

The paper burns a hole in his pocket as they eat too much at Waffle House, as they laugh and chat. Yuta should be focused solely on the moment, but he can’t stop wondering what Danny thought was so important to give him.

“I gotta head back to the hotel,” Yuta says. “I’m wiped.”

Mox nods at him. “Don’t do anything stupid.”

“Coming from you, that’s hilarious,” Yuta says. He pokes at Mox’s shoulder. “King of the stupid.”

“Don’t be a bitch.”

“Oh, my god,” Bryan laughs. “Shut up, the both of you. Go to bed, Yuta.”

Yuta nods and heads out. Once he knows he’s out of eyeline he pulls out the piece of paper and holds it as he steps in the elevator. He uncrumples it.

Room 413 if you want.

He hits the button for floor four and rides up, his heart pounding. He walks as if through water to Danny’s door, anticipation flooding his entire body. He crumples the paper back up and shoves it in his pocket. Before he can knock, the door opens.

“Oh, shit,” Danny says, stumbling back. “You startled me.” He raises an eyebrow.

“Getting ice?” Yuta asks.

Danny shakes his head. “I was actually going to the gym.” He licks his lips. “Didn’t have a real match tonight, so.” His eyes flicker down Yuta’s body. “Was thinking of getting in a little cardio.”

Yuta grins. “That’s a terrible line. Just get in the room.”

“Um,” Danny says, turning around and stepping back. “I – okay, yes, but I thought you weren’t coming.”

“Why wouldn’t I be?” Yuta asks. He glances down to see Danny barefoot and toes off his shoes. “You gave me the card, right?”

Danny nods, but he won’t meet Yuta’s eyes. “It’s been two hours, okay?”

“What, are you, like, not horny anymore?” Yuta shrugs. “That’s cool. I can go back.”

“That is definitely not it,” Danny mutters. “I, uh. Sometimes I do this thing where, to make the workout a little more exciting…” He trails off, eyes toward the ceiling. “Fuck, you’re gonna make me say it.”

“Say what?” Yuta asks.

“I’m wearing a plug, because I thought I wasn’t getting laid tonight.” Danny still won’t meet Yuta’s eyes. “Don’t – don’t make a big deal out of it, okay?”

Yuta presses his lips together. “You’re wearing a plug?” he asks. It’s harder than he thought to keep his voice steady. “Right now?”

Danny nods, and Yuta’s knees almost buckle as Danny shifts his hips. “I thought I was riding solo tonight. Don’t at me or whatever.”

“Don’t at – you’re the worst.” Yuta walks up to Danny, getting into his space until his back hits the door. “Tell me about it.”

“Tell – about what?” Danny says. “Didn’t you win a match tonight? You probably should be celebrating with your weird sex dungeon friends.”

Yuta snorts. “Yeah, they’re ass deep in pancakes from Waffle House. They’re fine.” His eyes flicker down to Danny’s lips. “Tell me about the plug.” He rests a hand on Danny’s waist, his skin warm and soft to the touch. “Were you thinking about me when you put it in?”

“Oh, fucking god,” Danny grumbles. “It’s not all about you, Yuta. We fucked, like, three times. Blew each other in a locker room. Handies. It’s not the only sex I’ve ever had.”

“That defensiveness tells me you did think about it,” Yuta murmurs. He doesn’t want to admit he’d been waiting for this opportunity since Supercard, that he’d been unable to see Danny or watch one of his matches without getting a little hard. “We didn’t kiss last times.”

“We didn’t,” Danny breathes, and the movement bumps his lower lip against Yuta’s. “You want to stay?”

“I want to see the plug,” Yuta says, his lip brushing Danny’s again.

“Fuck it,” Danny says, and he tilts his mouth up to catch Yuta’s lips. He grabs the front of Yuta’s hoodie and turns them as he sighs into Yuta’s mouth, shoving him up against the wall. Danny fists a hand in Yuta’s shirt. “This is a fucking stupid idea.”

“You didn’t say that last time,” Yuta says.

“Yeah, because – I can’t believe I’m doing this.” He pushes Yuta back, just far enough to look at him. His eyes dance across Yuta’s face, but doesn’t meet his eyes still.

“Hey,” Yuta says gently. “You can look at me, you know.”

“I want you to fuck me,” Danny grumbles, like he’s annoyed he has to say it.

Yuta grins. “Oh, yeah, I figured from that plug in your ass.” He reaches back and taps gently at Danny’s ass, nothing more than a soft touch, but Danny’s hips twitch forward into Yuta’s with a gasp. “You good?”

“I just – yeah, I’m okay,” Danny breathes. “It just feels – it’s a lot.”

“Tell me about it,” Yuta begs, again. “I wanna know everything about how it feels.”

Danny pulls back. “Want – want to see it, first?”

Yuta suddenly has never wanted anything more. “Yeah,” he says.

Danny steps back and shuffles his sweatpants down his hips. Always the damned sweatpants. Yuta’s going to develop a complex. “It’s easier if I…” He trails off with a grin. “Well, you’ll see.”

Yuta’s head gets spinning when Danny leans over the bed, ass perfect and in the air. Along with a deep blue flash.

“I – can I touch it?” Yuta asks. He doesn’t know why he’s whispering. He rests a hand on one of Danny’s ass cheeks.

“Yeah,” Danny squeaks. He clears his throat. “I mean, yeah. Go for it.”

Yuta trails his fingers down slowly, from the small of Danny’s back down to the top of his ass. He watches as his fingers brush against the flared base of the plug. On an impulse, he taps the top, and Danny shouts.

“Jesus, warn a guy,” Danny grumbles. “But, um. You can – you can play with it.”

Yuta laughs, heat flooding through his body. He’s pretty sure he’s never been this hard in his life. “Play with you, more like.”

Danny exhales, his forehead dropping onto the mattress. “Fuck. Fine, whatever. Just. Come on.”

Yuta nods, even though he knows Danny can’t see him, and pulls the plug out slowly until just the tip is left inside. Danny whines.

“I didn’t say slow,” Danny snaps. “Jesus.”

“Oh, my god, chill,” Yuta says, rolling his eyes. He presses the plug back in, watching as Danny closes around it. “You want me to fuck you?”

“I wish I didn’t, but yeah.”

“Then be patient,” Yuta says. “I’m having fun.”

Yuta thinks he can hear Danny roll his eyes.

He doesn’t draw it out too long, because he’s hard enough to break a diamond, but he does press the plug in and draw it back out a few more times.

“You have lube?” he asks. “Didn’t bring any.”

“Why the fuck not?” Danny asks. “You expect me to do everything?”

“No,” Yuta says, pulling the plug out a bit faster than may be kind. Danny gasps. “I just figured you’d blow me again.”

“You – it’s in my bag, and if you don’t put something in me in the next few seconds, I’m kicking your ass.”

Yuta digs around for a second then pulls out the lube.

“Take your fuckin’ clothes off,” Danny says to him.

“Damn, okay,” Yuta says, rolling his eyes. “You’re bossy as hell.”

“Am not,” Danny says. He goes easily when Yuta yanks his hips closer to the end of the bed. He’s watching over his shoulder as Yuta moves, eyes dark and wanting. “You look good, by the way.”

“Thanks,” Yuta says. “You, too. I can tell you’re making gains.”

“Gotta,” Danny says, pushing his hips back, all demanding. “Trying to get that world title.”

Yuta scoffs as he slicks himself up. Danny’s already so open that Yuta doesn’t even have to do anything, just lines himself up. “You wish.” Yuta pauses. “Wait. Uh. Do you want me to wear a condom?”

Danny turns around. “Do you want to wear one?”

Yuta shrugs. “Last tests were fine, no issues.”

“Then we’re on the same page,” Danny says. “Come on. Get in me while I’m still young.”

Yuta rolls his eyes, but he guides his dick into Danny slowly. He hasn’t done this in a while, not since Mox decided to make things exclusive with Claudio. He forgot what it felt like, to sink into somebody else’s body and zone in on every place where they touch. “Fuck,” he says, drawing out the syllable.

“Yeah,” Danny says. “Don’t get a big head about it or anything, but that feels fucking amazing.”

Yuta pulls back a little then slides back in. “Jesus,” he mutters. “Why weren’t we doing this before?” He keeps his pace slow and careful, not sure what Danny likes and not willing to risk a mistake. “It was only blow jobs and hand stuff.”

“You never – shit, do that again – complained,” Danny pants. “Plus, not much time for you to fuck me right when we’re in a locker room.” He circles his hips in a way that makes Yuta forget his own name for a second.

Yuta manages to recover his wits. “Yeah?” he asks, starting to rock his hips a little more. “Fuck you right?”

“Shut the fuck up or I’ll replace you with the plug again.”

“Sure,” Yuta says, “you could. But could a plug do this?” He pulls almost all the way out of Danny until only the head of his cock is sunk into Danny’s warm heat, then slams back into Danny, enough that Danny’s hips rock.

Danny loses his stability and falls forward, moaning. “Nope,” he pants. “Fuck. Keep that shit up and I might keep you around for good.”

Yuta laughs. Now that he knows what Danny likes, it’s easier to get into a rhythm. He hadn’t expected this tonight. A blow job, fucking around in the shower, maybe hand jobs like last week at Dynamite, but this is so much better.

“Christ,” Yuta mutters, fucking Danny faster. “You feel so good, dude.”

“Yeah?” Danny asks. “Well, you have a decent dick and decent game. I’ll get you better at it.”

“Get me – what’s wrong with the way I fuck?!”

“Nothing’s wrong, exactly,” Danny says, pushing back onto Yuta’s dick. He takes it as a cue to go faster, a little harder. Danny’s breathing catches. “You’re just kind of cute with it, you know?” He grins over his shoulder. “Romantic.”

“Am not!” Yuta says, but he’s not exactly sure why that’s a bad thing. He grabs at Danny’s hips and fucks Danny like the victor he is, and lets the pride and the adrenaline from the night kickstart himself a little more intensely than before.

“There you go,” Danny chuckles. He makes a little pleased sound, bracing his hands on the bed. “Knew you had it in you.”

“Why are you making fun of me while I’m inside you?” Yuta asks. “How did I go from pinning Kenny fuckin’ Omega to getting mocked during sex?” He reaches around and starts stroking Danny’s dick. “You’re lucky I’m even gonna let you come.”

“Let me,” Danny mutters. “Sure.” He moans a little. “Go faster. I’m close.”

“God. Fine.” Yuta strokes Danny faster and feels the way he comes on his cock, ass tightening around him as Danny slumps down and lets out a guttural sound that gets Yuta right to the front door of his orgasm. He fucks into Danny again and comes so hard his legs almost give out, and he leans a hand on the bed. “You got come on your sheets,” he pants, slowly pulling out of Danny. “Jesus. Gimme a second.”

“You’re fine,” Danny says. He rolls over, stretching like a cat. “God, that was good. Haven’t gotten railed like that in way too long.”

“Yeah?” Yuta asks. “Now you’re gonna compliment me?”

Danny rolls over with a knowing grin on his face. “Bitching at you got you to go harder, didn’t it? Don’t at me. I knew what I was doing.”

Yuta rolls his eyes. “You fucking suck.” He’s naked, standing in Danny’s hotel room, and isn’t sure what to do next. “Uh.”

“Come on,” Danny says, patting the bed next to him. “Wanna order room service? If I’m stuck here, might as well.”

They get steaks and margaritas on AEW’s business bill and rewatch the pay per view.

“Okay, that really is a wild match,” Danny says, eyes bright after his second margarita. “I’m impressed.” He throws a smile over at Yuta. “Don’t get a big head about it, though. I can tell you’re getting all self-obsessed.”

Yuta rolls his eyes. “You’re fucking awful sometimes, you know that?”

“Yeah, but you still fuck me.” He yawns.

“I should probably go,” Yuta says, hesitating. “You should probably get some sleep.”

Danny nods, but won’t meet Yuta’s eyes. He’s not sure what’s behind it. “Yeah,” Danny says quietly. “Uh, text me when you get to your room, okay?” His smile is back to normal. “Wanna make sure nobody kidnaps your young, nubile body.”

“It would be so fucking great if you ever shut the fuck up,” Yuta says, and he chucks his pillow at Danny’s face. “I’ll see you later.”

When he gets to his hotel room, he texts Danny that he got there and jumps into the shower. He checks his phone when he curls up into bed.

There’s one text from Danny: night dude

June 25th, 2023: Forbidden Door

Yuta’s used to quick hand jobs with Danny. When they’re both at a Collision or Dynamite taping, they find each other and sneak backstage to get each other off and laugh how short it takes them to come.

Today, though, Danny’s on him wildly. The kisses are less teasing and fun and more demanding, like Danny’s insisting on control.

“Jesus,” Yuta says, fumbling behind him for the door handle. “Dude, chill. Do you want people to find us?”

“Don’t care,” Danny says, biting at Yuta’s neck. Yuta manages to push the door open and the two of them fall over each other into the locker room.

“What,” says a familiar voice, “the eff?”

Yuta tilts his head backwards and sees Matt Jackson staring at them. “Shit.”

“Are you trying to jump us after our match or somethin’?” Hangman stands up, and he looks even bigger from down on the floor. Yuta shoves Danny off of him. “And what’s he doing here?”

Yuta scrambles to his feet. “Wrong room,” he says, glancing over and willing Danny to get his ass up and out the door. “Also, where’s your shirt?”

“I – don’t – get out of our locker room,” Matt says, flaming bright red. He crosses his arms over his chest, which Yuta finds funny since the two of them earlier that night were beating the shit out of each other. Yuta does notice a few newly red marks on his neck and chest, though, which might be what Matt's trying to hide.

“Sorry, man,” Danny says, brushing off his shirt. “Uh, let’s go. Discuss that. Pure rules match.” Yuta watches as Danny looks both Matt and Hangman up and down, then shake his head. Before Yuta can make fun of him about it, though, he grabs Yuta’s hand and yanks him away, and Yuta doesn’t get the chance to even close the door.

“This’ll work,” Danny says, spying a bathroom.

“People need to – we are not fucking in a bathroom!” But Yuta pulls the door shut and locks it. “Fuck, you’re, like, raring to go.” He presses the heel of his palm on Danny’s dick. “Losing get you off or something?”

Danny spins them and slams Yuta against the door. “Shut up,” Danny grumbles. “You didn’t win either. Take off your pants.”

Yuta shoves his pants down his hips, then shoves his hand into Danny’s sweats. “Bet you’re about to come right now,” Yuta teases. “You really like getting laid after you have a match, but you’re never this into it unless you lose.”

“Shut up,” Danny says again. Yuta can’t miss the pink patches across his cheeks.

“Do you really want me to?” Yuta asks, leaning in to bite at Danny’s earlobe. “Or do you want me to talk you through it? Tell you how good you look when you come so you forget you lost?”

Danny whines and fucks up into Yuta’s fist. “I – don’t know,” he pants.

“You like getting pinned?” Yuta says into his ear. “You like it when somebody big and strong shoves you down to the floor?”

“You got pinned too,” Danny bitches, his hips moving more erratically now.

“Yeah,” Yuta chuckles, biting at Danny’s neck. “But it doesn’t get me off like you do.”

Danny chokes something out like Yuta’s name and comes all over his hand. Yuta meant to say ‘it doesn’t get me off like it gets you off.’ He didn’t mean to –

He shakes his head and concentrates on where Danny’s hand is a tight vice around his dick. “I get you off?” Danny asks. “You like watching me, don’t you?”

“Yeah,” Yuta says, because he’s lost all pretense of a boundary between him and Yuta. “You look so fucking good out there.” He whimpers, chasing Yuta’s hand. “C’mon, don’t stop.”

“Won’t,” Danny says. “Tell me. What do you like to see?”

“I like – I – I like you,” Yuta confesses. “I like how you move. I like how you’re such a prick sometimes.” He thuds his head against the door and twitches his hips up.

“I knew it,” Danny laughs, grinning at Yuta. “You’re so into me it makes you look stupid.”

Yuta laughs as he comes, and Danny kisses him through it. They breathe against each other, foreheads pressed, until Yuta can feel his feet underneath him.

“We, uh,” Yuta says. “We should probably clean up.”

Danny nods and pulls back. “Yeah. Yeah, you’re right.”

They wash their hands in silence, checking the bathroom door periodically to make sure nobody’s trying to come in, and eventually they’re presentable again. Well, sort of. The wet spot on Danny’s sweats is pretty glaring.

“Nah, I do this all the time,” Danny says, and he splashes more water on his crotch.

“Oh, so, when you come in your pants, you cover it with water.” Yuta grins at him. “I’ll keep that in mind.”

“Go fuck yourself,” Danny says, pushing open the bathroom door.

“You already took care of that!”

Yuta tries to get his heart rate and hair under control before he leaves. Of course, halfway down the hallway, he runs into Mox.

“Oh, Jesus,” Mox chuckles.

“What?” Yuta asks. He’d checked his hair, his face, his pants. “What’s wrong with me?”

“Nothing’s wrong,” Mox says, and Yuta’s about to hit him for looking so smug. “You just can’t stop smiling.”

“I – yes I can.” But he realizes, as he forces his face flat, that his cheeks are hurting. “Shit.”

“Yeah,” Mox says, clapping Yuta on the shoulder. “You’re not into him at all.”

July 23rd, 2023: Blood and Guts

“Dude.”

Yuta manages to sit up. “Hey,” he says, frowning. “Why are you in here?”

Danny shrugs, his eyes flickering over to Mox and Claudio in the corner. “Figured I’d check on you. Do they know?”

“About how we fuck?” Yuta asks. “Yeah, they know.” He glances over to Mox and Claudio. Claudio nods and grabs Mox’s arm, but Mox steps forward. Yuta avoids the urge to wince.

“You here to mock him or something?” Mox asks. “I seem to remember you didn’t win, either.”

“Calm yourself, Jon,” Claudio says, a big hand placed across Mox’s chest. “Daniel would never. And if he did, I trust Wheeler would be able to defend himself.” Yuta smiles at him, and Claudio smiles back. “Come. They need some time.”

When the door closes, Danny turns to Yuta. “I don’t think you can fuck me tonight,” he says, sitting next to Yuta on the bench.

Yuta snorts. “You think?” He reaches up and rubs at his bruised neck. “Yeah, I’m a little fucked up right now. Sorry.”

“You don’t have to, like, apologize,” Danny says, and he rests his hand on the bench. Their pinkies touch. “I just wanted to check on you.”

Yuta nods. “I – thanks for that.” He looks up and smiles at Danny. “I’m glad you came.”

Danny’s quiet for a few moments. Yuta decides to wait him out, see if Danny has something else to say.

“Well,” Danny says, and he stands. “Feel better. I’ll talk to you later, okay?” He leans down and kisses Yuta, quick but insistent. “Bye.”

He walks out the door, and Yuta still confused about it when he, Mox, and Claudio curl up in their hotel room together and he falls asleep alone in the second bed.

August 27th, 2023: All In

“Shouldn’t you be watching the rest of the matches?” Danny’s stopped saying hello when Yuta calls him anymore. Yuta’s okay with it.

“I figured I’d call,” Yuta says. “How’s the show looking?”

“Dick move to ask me that when I’m not booked and not even in the country,” Danny grumbles.

“Not – that is not what I meant,” Yuta says, trying to not get annoyed. “You know it’s not. I haven’t been able to watch any matches because none of us know where we’re going in the venue and we keep getting lost.” He glances over at the door. It’s closed. Mox and Claudio are out doing production work with the Bucks and Tony. “But, um. What are you doing right now?”

“I’m talking on the phone with a dumbass,” Danny deadpans. “Why?”

“I have the locker room to myself.”

Danny sighs. “Man, you’re predictable. You BCC guys really do get off on getting hurt, don’t you.”

“Just – fuck off and get a dildo,” Yuta demands. “I want you to fuck yourself with it and pretend it’s me.”

Danny lets out a little squeak. “Okay.”

Yuta shoves his pants down his hips. He’d expected Danny to argue, maybe bitch a little about it. But nope. Yuta can hear rustling on the other side of the phone.

“Okay,” Danny says. “I have the stupid tie dye one you got me. I – I can start now.”

“Do it,” Yuta says. “And pretend it’s me.” He spits into his hand and wraps it around his cock. He listens to Danny’s breathing for a few moments, staying quiet until he can’t. “How’s it feel?”

“Good,” Danny murmurs. “Not like you.”

“What’s better?” Yuta asks. He’s already too hard, just from the little gasps and slick sounds on the other end of the line.

“You, always,” Danny says.

There isn’t much noise for the next few minutes, just focused breathing, and Yuta thinks he can see what Danny’s doing if he closes his eyes.

“Is it in?” he asks.

“Yeah,” Danny says.

“Ride it,” Yuta commands. “Like you’d ride me.”

Danny exhales. “Yeah, okay.”

Yuta pulls out memories of their previous nights together to paint an image in his mind. Danny, strong thighs and sculpted body rocking on his cock, clenching warm around him.

“Jesus,” Yuta murmurs. “Fucking gorgeous, I bet. Next time you should film yourself.”

Danny’s moan is open and loud as hell. Yuta glances around to make sure nobody’s knocking on the door. “Yeah,” he says. “Yeah, I could do that.”

There’s slick sounds and moans and things slipping out of Yuta’s mouth that are too close to Danny’s name.

“Next year,” Yuta says, arching up into his hand. No matter how tight he gets his hand, it’s never as good as Danny. “Next year, you and me. Pure rules.” He grunts, something a little too close to Danny’s name. “Wembley. We’ll show everybody we’re the best.”

“Yeah,” Danny says. The breathy moans on the other end of the phone are almost too much for Yuta to handle. “I’ll pin you in the middle of the ring.”

“You wish,” Yuta says. “I know you like it best when I get you flat on your back.”

“Fuck you,” Danny moans, and Yuta can tell he’s coming.

“Wish I was there?” Yuta asks, fucking his hips rapidly into his hand. “Bet it’s better when it’s me fucking you, right?”

Danny whimpers, and that’s it for Yuta. He’s gotten lazy about coming neatly, preferring something messy and unhindered when he doesn’t get to do it with Danny. His hand is covered in come.

“Fuck,” Yuta says. He waits a second. “Wish you were here.”

“Yeah,” Danny mutters. “Me too.”

The silence hangs heavy even across the Atlantic.

“You’re on All Out, right?” Yuta asks before he can stop himself.

“Yeah,” says Danny. “Yeah, I got a Battle Royal.”

“I have a tag match,” Yuta says. “Meet up?”

“Definitely.”

“I gotta shower real quick,” Yuta says. “But, um. I can call you back? If you want. We can sort of watch together, if you want.”

“Sure,” Danny says.

He cleans up then calls Danny back within half an hour. Yuta turns All In on using his laptop, and he and Danny swap to FaceTime and watch together for the rest of the evening. It’s too comfortable, too casual, and Yuta’s scared he’s getting used to it. He fights the feeling by insulting Danny every other sentence or so, which Danny returns in kind.

But it’s too easy, with Danny. Everything’s too easy.

And Yuta thinks he should be more scared of it.

September 3rd, 2023: All Out

He and Yuta fuck in the hotel room before and after All Out. Danny rides him with their fingers linked, eyes locked, and Yuta comes so hard when Danny calls him “Wheels” it’s almost embarrassing. After, in the shower, Yuta almost calls Danny baby and bites his tongue instead.

He’s fucked.

They’re fucking.

And Danny looks so goddamned pretty when Yuta’s hilt deep inside of him he almost forgets about his win and Danny’s loss.

October 1st, 2023: Wrestle Dream

Yuta doesn’t even have the time to be miserable about losing to Ricky. He’s pissed off, disappointed, and annoyed.

And calls Danny.

“Hey,” Danny says. “Sorry you lost.”

“Yeah, sorry,” Yuta says. “Get the dildo. The tie dye one.”

“How do you know I’m not at, like a watch party?” Danny asks, but Yuta hears rustling. “I could be busy right now.”

“Are you?” Yuta asks. He’s hiding in the shower with the water on and his cell phone in a plastic bag to keep it safe. He doesn’t want any interruptions.

Danny groans. “No. Fuck off. I’ll get the tie dye one. It’s weird you only like me to use this one when you’re not here.”

“I got it for you,” Yuta says. “That means it’s closer to me. Come on, let’s go.”

“Demanding,” Danny grumbles. “You should probably turn on FaceTime. So you can see.”

“Okay,” Yuta says, before he can stop to think. He switches to FaceTime and is greeted by Danny looking smug.

“You literally are in the shower,” Danny muses. “Pretty desperate of you, isn’t it?”

“It’s the only way to get any privacy,” Yuta retorts, rolling his eyes. “Come on. Let me see you ride that cock and pretend it’s me.”

Danny’s mouth drops open all pretty, and then he nods. “Give me a second. I think I have an angle you’ll like.”

Twenty minutes later, Yuta’s coming with the image of Danny fucking himself on the dildo he bought him, Danny’s name on his lips.

“Did you just say my name when you came?” Danny asks.

“No,” Yuta says automatically. “Yes. Shut up.”

“Oh, you’re down bad,” Danny says. “I get it, though. I’m the fuck of a lifetime.”

“I’m hanging up now,” Yuta grumbles. But he waits. “Um. I’ll see you at Dynamite?”

“Yeah,” Danny says. Yuta doesn’t think he’ll ever get over that sweet little smile on Danny’s face after he comes. “I’ll see you there.”

Yuta hangs up through the wet plastic and leans his head against the wall of the shower.

“I’m so fucked,” he mumbles, and closes his eyes.

November 17th, 2023: Collision

“Fuck,” Yuta says, dropping onto the bench next to Danny. “Just like that first night all over again.”

Danny laughs, a little darkly. “Yeah. Only thing better than you losing is when I win, but I’ll take what I can get.” He looks at Yuta. “Can we talk? Privately?”

“I got better things you could do with your mouth, but sure.” Yuta stands and makes his way to the door. Before he can ask, Danny stops and glances down the hallway. “Dude, you’re acting weird.”

“Am not,” Danny says, and he’s squirmier and more fidgety than Yuta’s ever seen him. “I need a date to a wedding Monday night, okay?”

Yuta blinks. “And you’re asking me? Now?”

Danny shrugs, and still won’t meet Yuta’s eyes. “You weren’t my first choice,” he grumbles. “Zay’s busy hanging out with Marq this weekend, Austin’s got a match, and Anna’s going on a weekend thing with Jack.” He looks up finally, looking so fucking annoyed he has to talk to Yuta outside their arrangement at all that Yuta almost wants to tell him no.

“So I’m your last resort,” Yuta says, frowning. “Can’t say that makes me feel good, Danny.”

“I didn’t think you’d even want to say yes,” Danny says. “Whatever. I’ll go solo. Explain it to my cousin.”

Yuta has a sudden flashback to his high school best friend’s wedding. Emily had almost burst into tears when five people no-showed. According to her, that was over $150 just for the plates. “I’ll go,” he says, before he can stop himself. “Danny, I can go with you. I’ll be there.”

Danny immediately goes suspicious. “Why?” he asks.

“Because – you asked!” Yuta yells. “Jesus, you’re so much easier to deal with when my dick’s inside you. Fuck.” He smacks Danny’s arm. “Shut up and let me help, you fucking douche. Text me the info.” He pauses. “Wait. Actually. Get in there.” He grabs Danny’s arm and throws him into the nearest room in the venue. He snickers. “In the closet again, it seems.”

“I fuckin’ hate it when you make jokes when I’m about to suck your dick,” Danny snipes, but he drops to his knees and yanks down Yuta’s ring gear without further ado. He looks up at Yuta, eyes dark. “Wanna make sure you know I still, like, want to kick your ass.”

“Yeah, whatever,” Yuta says, leaning against the wall. “Suck me off.”

Danny’s always so fucking good at this, and that’s what Yuta tells himself is the reason he keeps coming back. Danny’s not the kind of guy who shoves a dick down his throat and expects it to do the job, Yuta’s found. Danny sucks and licks, lapping with a talented tongue along the slit and the head of Yuta’s cock like it’s a lollipop he won at a fair and he won’t share it with anyone else. Yuta squirms with the sensations. He’s always hard after a match, even harder after he and Danny yell at each other, and he’s stroking a thumb along Danny’s jawline before long.

“Hey,” he manages to say. “Danny.”

Danny pulls off, a string of saliva connecting his lips and Yuta’s dick.

“Fuck,” Yuta says, and he wraps a hand around his dick. “Stay right there.”

“Are you seriously going to come on my face?” Danny asks, but he doesn’t move.

“What, you don’t want me to?” Yuta pants, stroking harder. “Then you should move.”

Danny sighs, but he stays exactly where he is. The bitchy, irritated look on his face is what gets Yuta: he comes with a grunt, painting Danny’s face, and slumps against the wall as he strokes himself to the point where he can’t touch anymore. Danny pouts up at him.

“You got me all messy,” he says, licking his lips to catch some of the come dripping down his face. “Gimme your hoodie.”

“I – no!” Yuta says. “This one’s new.” He throws the hoodie to the floor and strips off his shirt. He’s a little too gentle when he uses it to mop up Danny’s face, he thinks. “There. Better?”

“Probably gonna be sticky, but sure.” He stands up and pushes Yuta against the wall. “My turn?”

“You always ask like I’ve ever not gotten you off,” Yuta says, rolling his eyes. “Like, do you really think I’m not gonna suck your dick after you’ve sucked mine?”

Danny shrugs as Yuta drops to his knees and yanks down his sweatpants. Danny’s already left a wet spot on the front of his pants from the way he’d been leaking, and Yuta allows himself a moment to be smug about that.

Yuta sucks Danny down with a purpose. He knows Danny’s close, can tell by the way he yanks gently at Yuta’s hair, but the way he whimpers quietly and breathes.

“Come on,” Yuta says, pulling off for a second, “come in my mouth. I know you like to.”

Danny lets out a choked little moan as he comes down Yuta’s throat, and Yuta swallows him down without a second thought. They’ve been doing this long enough that Yuta’s figured out the exact thing to say, the way to say it, the way to circle his tongue around Danny’s cock.

It’s been months. He wants forever.

“Alright,” Danny says. He shoves at Yuta’s neck, nearly knocking him over. “Jesus, alright, too much.”

“You don’t have to hit me about it,” Yuta grumbles. He stands and glares. “One of these days I won’t suck your dick and then you’ll feel bad about how much of a douche you are.”

“Doubt it,” Danny replies. He adjusts himself in his pants and leaves the room, shooting a smile over his shoulder. “Wedding’s next Monday night. Upstate New York. Bring a jacket.”

Yuta wishes he had the sense to tell Danny no, that he hates being cold, that he’d rather be anywhere other than New York State in the middle of November when he could be home for Thanksgiving before Dynamite.

But the truth is, there’s nowhere he’d rather be than next to Danny.

“Cool,” Yuta says. “Don’t forget to go fuck yourself on the way home.”

November 20th, 2023:

Yuta’s fidgety as hell as he leaves the Lyft that drops him off in the front of the hotel. It’s a sweet place, small and relatively cozy for something in a city that wants to be bigger than it is.

“Thanks, man,” Yuta says, putting in the tip and the rating. “Appreciate it.”

He hauls his stuff out of the backseat of the car, a full suitcase and the carryon since he’s going directly from here to Dynamite.

“Yoots!”

He looks up as he drops his suitcase to the ground. “Hey,” he says, and he hates how much his heart lifts when he sees Danny come down the path from the hotel door. “Hi.”

When he gets in front of Yuta, he can see some tightness behind his eyes. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” Danny says too fast. “We’re good.”

Yuta stares at him until the Lyft pulls away and they’re standing in the cold. “Danny…”

“I, um,” Danny says. He won’t meet Yuta’s eyes. “I might have told my family you’re my boyfriend.”

“What?!” Yuta asks. “Danny – what happened to going Wedding Crashers?”

“I panicked, okay?” Danny squirms a little under the attention. Yuta starts his way to the lobby. He doesn’t want to have this conversation while he’s freezing to death outside. “My cousin Jameson’s always been a dick and was on me for not having a girl on my arm, so I was like, ‘what if I brought my boyfriend, bitch?’ It shut him up, but now…” He winces. “I fucked up.”

Yuta sighs. “It’s – it’s fine.” He steadies himself as he hauls the suitcase over the threshold. Danny grabbed his backpack and carryon, which was weirdly sweet. “It’s fine. We can just, like, lie our way through the night or something.” He grins. “I mean, I’ve smacked your ass enough to have my handprint on there. That’s a thing boyfriends do, right?”

“Go fuck yourself,” Danny grumbles. “Also, I hope you’re cool sharing a bed. Hotel room only has one.”

Yuta shrugs. “What am I gonna do, argue with you?” The two of them make their way into the elevator. “I can’t imagine there are any rooms left in this place with a wedding going on.”

Danny shrugs. “I figured I could get a cot or something if you were really weird about it.”

Yuta figures Danny has a point. This whole time, since Supercard, they’ve never slept in the same bed. They’ve never done much more than what happened in the moment.

“Nah, we can snuggle,” he says, flashing Danny his best facsimile of a smile. “Long as you don’t hog the blankets.”

He’s looking forward to sleeping next to Danny tonight, and wishes he knew how to make it stop.

“Goddamnit,” Yuta grumbles. He yanks the tie out again and throws it around his neck. Another attempt at the tie, and this time the skinny part is longer than the wide part and it looks even worse. “Fuck!”

“What’s wrong with you?”

Yuta looks over to see Danny styling his hair. He’d missed it, but it’s gotten longer over the past few months. It’s been long enough for Yuta to thread his fingers in it, angle Danny’s head, pull him around a little. He should have known just from that, but he hadn’t seen it. Not until today.

“Dude, what the fuck is wrong with you?”

Yuta shakes his head and blinks. “Oh. I can’t figure out how to get this tie to work.”

“Amateur,” Danny scoffs. He strides over, dress shirt unbuttoned and flowing behind him, and Yuta almost goes weak at the knees. “Gimme.”

“What?”

“The tie, genius,” Danny says. He grabs the tie from Yuta’s hands and wraps it around Yuta’s neck. It’s almost too intimate, and Yuta feels his heart race. Danny’s hands work mercifully quickly. “There,” he says, patting Yuta’s chest. “All done. Now you won’t embarrass me in front of my relatives.”

“Jackass,” Yuta mutters, but he does feel better. “Button your shirt. You look like a sluttier Fabio.”

“Who?”

“Jesus,” Yuta mutters. “Whatever. Go button up so we can get ready to go.”

“Wedding’s not until six.”

“No,” Yuta says, pulling out the invitation. “The ceremony starts at six. We need to get there, like, ten minutes early so we don’t hold up the ceremony start.”

“I forget you’re smart sometimes,” Danny says, and his eyes are fond. He claps Yuta, hard, on the shoulder. “Alright. I’ll be ready in a few minutes.”

Half an hour later, they’re settling into the seats for the ceremony and Yuta is pretending he’s not about to panic.

“This place is beautiful,” Yuta says, his leg bouncing with the anxiety. “I really like the –”

“Hold my hand,” Danny interrupts. “We have to look like a couple.”

“You could say please,” Yuta grumbles, but he takes Danny’s hand and rests their hands on his thigh. “That okay?”

“Yeah,” Danny says, a little softer than Yuta had expected.

He tears up at the vows, personal ones Carla and her fiancé had come up with on their own, and rubs at his eyes with a fist. He doesn’t know why he’s crying; he doesn’t even know these people. Mid rub, he catches Danny watching him. He braces for teasing.

He gets a soft smile instead.

Cocktail hour consists of fielding questions about their relationship to Danny’s family. It’s easier than he expected. Yes, they met in wrestling. No, they got together after the sixty minutes they wrestled each other.

“That’s, um. Personal,” says Yuta when Danny’s cousin Jerry asks if they wrestle when they fuck.

“Learn how to talk to people Jerry,” Danny says, rolling his eyes. “I forgot how weird you are.” Danny grabs Yuta’s arm. “Come on. Let’s get a drink.”

By the time the reception comes around, Danny and Yuta are two drinks in each and Yuta’s finally relaxing. With the music pounding, it’s harder for Danny’s relatives to ask inappropriate questions.

“Danny!” says the bride, walking over with a giant smile. “Hey, kiddo!” She rubs her hand on the top of his head and frowns. “I miss when you were little and you had that super long hair I could mess up.” She turns to Yuta. “Hello,” she says, sticking out her hand. “You must be the guy.” She winks. “Danny’s told me all about you.”

Yuta turns to Danny. “Oh, you have, huh?” He can’t fight the grin on his face. “What did you say about me?”

“Leave me alone,” Danny whines, but he won’t meet Yuta’s eyes. “Ugh. Yes. This is – this is Wheeler.” He sighs. “My boyfriend.”

It still feels weird to hear that word come out of Danny’s mouth, but not in the way Yuta expected. It feels cozy, comfortable. Right. Like what they’ve been doing the past seven or eight months has meant something.

He exhales. “I gotta get something to drink,” Yuta says. “You look beautiful. Congratulations.”

Danny looks baffled for a second until he realizes Yuta’s talking to Carla.

“Oh, you’re so sweet,” says Carla. “Thanks. And take care of my baby cousin. He’s always been very good at getting himself into sticky situations.”

Yuta thinks he deserves a fucking award for how he maintains a straight face. “Course,” he says, voice tight. “I, uh. Gonna get that shot now.” He grabs Danny by the hand. “Dude, that sticky situations line almost got me.”

“Yeah, I could tell. You have a shitty fuckin’ poker face,” Danny mutters.

“But, like, she’s not wrong,” Yuta says, leaning against the bar. “You do get yourself pretty sticky.” He winks and Danny rolls his eyes.

“I fucking hate it when you wink.”

“Do not!” Yuta argues. “You liked it so much that one time when I winked at you in the mirror that you came all over the bench.”

Danny flames bright red. “My entire family is here.”

“And?” Yuta asks. “They’re not, like, right here.” Yuta reaches around to Danny’s waist before he remembers that they aren’t actually boyfriends.

“Every other couple is dancing,” Danny says, and it’s almost too casual.

“Right,” Yuta says. “That’s what people do at weddings.”

He’s not sure why his heart is racing.

“We should probably go dance, too,” Danny says.

“Oh, definitely,” Yuta says. He can hear his heart pounding in his ears. “We need to make sure we actually look like we’re boyfriends, right?”

Danny and Yuta have a weird moment where neither of them have a damn clue where to put their hands. Yuta starts out with them around Danny’s neck, but then Danny puts one on his shoulder, so Yuta puts another one on Danny’s waist.

“We should have practiced slow dancing,” Danny mutters. “We look like idiots.”

“You always look like an idiot,” Yuta offers, and Danny pinches a little bit of skin on his neck in a mildly interesting way.

“Shut up,” Danny grumbles. “Just – here.” He grabs Yuta’s hands and slaps them on his hips. “Put them there and leave them.”

“This is the least romantic thing I’ve ever done,” Yuta grumbles. “Step closer to me. This isn’t middle school. You don’t have to leave room for Jesus.”

“Christ – fine.” Danny pulls Yuta in so close their chests bump and their mouths are almost too close to move without touching.

Yuta doesn’t think. He should. He absolutely should. But he doesn’t. Yuta leans in and kisses Danny gently, too softly. The way he’s wanted to for months.

They kiss. They do.

But never at a wedding. And never around other people.

Yuta pulls back, reluctantly, looking at Danny. “Um.”

“You kissed me,” Danny says, blinking.

Yuta nods. “I did.”

“Why did you kiss me?” he asks. “We don’t kiss like that.”

“We kiss!” Yuta argues, but he knows Danny’s right. “We kiss all the time.”

“Never in front of people,” Danny says, glancing around. But Yuta notices a little pink splotch across his cheeks, so Yuta thinks he may not get the shit kicked out of him. “Why did you kiss me?”

“I don’t know!” Yuta says. “Because.”

“No,” Danny says, and he stops dancing, stops swaying. He looks at Yuta with such a burning gaze it almost makes him uncomfortable. “Wheeler,” he says quietly. “Why did you kiss me?”

Yuta’s heart is pounding. He doesn’t know when it started. He doesn’t know why it won’t slow down. “Danny…”

“Why?” Danny asks, and suddenly Yuta’s being walked backward toward the wall of the venue. “Why did you kiss me, at a wedding, in front of everybody?”

Yuta collides with the wall, and he doesn’t hit his head too bad, at least. “Danny, I –”

Danny crushes his lips to Yuta’s, and Yuta almost slides down the wall with it. He slides his hands under Danny’s suit jacket, pulling him close, yanking his shirt to pull him closer. He knows why. He knows. “Danny,” Yuta says, pulling away. “I kissed you because I wanted to.” He’s breathing too heavily for this to look normal. “I kissed you because I always want to.”

Danny breaks into this sweet, devastating smile. Something Yuta never expected to see from Danny, and never toward him. “You want me,” Danny says.

“I’ve sucked your dick, like, a hundred times since March, and now you realize that?!” Yuta exclaims. “You’re stupider than you look.”

“Go fuck yourself,” Danny growls, and he kisses Yuta again, insistent and firm and knee-weakening. He tries to pull Danny as close as possible, slotting a knee between Yuta’s thighs and pushing up. Danny keens, whines against Yuta’s lips, and pulls him closer.

Yuta freezes when he hears someone clear their throat.

They pull apart, almost reluctantly.

“Um,” Danny says. “Fuck. Uh, hi, Dad.”

Yuta’s eyes widen. “Hi, Mr. Garcia,” he squeaks out. He clears his throat. “I mean. Hello, sir.” He sticks out his hand. “I’m Danny’s – um. Boyfriend? Date? To the wedding.”

“I can see that,” Mr. Garcia says, nodding to Yuta, firmly. Yuta stands his ground and pretends he’s not panicking a little.

“I – Danny didn’t tell me you were coming tonight.” He’s aiming for conversational, but he can hear that his voice is panicked and a little high pitched.

“Is that so, Daniel?” His father looks at Yuta and Danny rolls his eyes. “We weren’t able to get here until after the ceremony, but you knew we would be here.” He turns toward Danny, the expression surprisingly familiar. “Trying to hide me from your boyfriend, Daniel?”

“He’s – Dad, can we not?” Danny pouts, and Yuta resist the urge to roll his eyes. “Like, of all days.” To Yuta’s surprise, Danny reaches out and grabs Yuta’s hand. “Can we just have tonight to chill? You can interrogate him tomorrow.”

Mr. Garcia looks between the two of them for a moment, and Yuta almost holds his breath. He doesn’t know what for. But he’s holding.

“Fine,” Mr. Garcia says. “How about tomorrow at the brunch? The whole family is expected to be there.”

Danny wrinkles his nose. “Do I have to?”

“Do you want me to interrogate your boyfriend now?”

Danny sighs. “No. What time is it at?”

“One in the afternoon.”

“Do I have to be sober?”

Mr. Garcia chuckles. “No, I guess not.” He nods to Yuta. “Keep him from doing anything stupid, okay?”

“Hey!”

Yuta laughs. “I will, sir.”

Mr. Garcia nods and walks away, off to a pretty woman who looks strikingly like Danny.

“That your mom?” Yuta asks, as Mr. Garcia presses a kiss to her forehead.

Danny nods.

“She’s pretty.”

“Hey!” Danny says, shoving at Yuta’s shoulder. “Don’t hit on my mom.”

“I’m not hitting on your – I was just making out with you!” Yuta groans. “God, is this insecurity? Is this your deal?”

“I am not insecure!” Danny half shrieks. “You were saying my mom was pretty! That’s fucking weird, dude!”

“It is not! It’s a – fuck it.” Yuta reaches out and yanks Danny in for a searing kiss, catching all of Danny’s bitchiness and swallowing it before Danny can spew it back at him. Danny makes a cute little noise, somewhere in the back of his throat, and kisses Yuta back like a battle. Yuta laughs against his lips and pokes at Danny’s waist.

“Jesus – what?”

“If we’re going to get stupid, we should go somewhere more private.”

Danny glances around. “Um. There is a bridal room.”

Yuta raises an eyebrow. “That’s a terrible idea.” He glances over to where Carla is sitting with her bridesmaids, laughing about something. “Let’s do it.”

Danny drags Yuta by the arm to the bridal room, a tiny, closet-sized space that you can barely fit two of them in, let alone an entire party.

“Lock the door,” Danny says. “I, uh. I dropped a bag in here. Earlier.” His grin goes sly. “I might have had this in mind, even without the, uh. Kissing.”

“That’s what you were doing in the bathroom after the ceremony!” Yuta almost yells. “Oh, you dumb slut. I should have known.”

Danny glances over his shoulder as he shuffles his pants down his legs. “I think this is a sign I’m a smart slut, actually.”

Yuta shrugs, shoving his own dress pants just low enough to get his dick out. He strokes himself once, just to get himself a little relief, but it doesn’t work.

“You open yourself up, huh?” Yuta asks. He grabs at Danny’s asks, pulling apart his cheeks. “Aw. You didn’t.”

“I was being a wedding guest and drinking,” Danny snaps back. “You do it if you want to fuck me so bad.”

Yuta presses him to the wall with his body. “Yeah? Don’t mind if I do.”

He grabs the lube from Danny’s hands, resisting the urge to spray it in Danny’s face just as revenge for him being so annoying, and drips some onto his fingers.

“So fucking hot,” he mumbles, kissing at the soft space behind Danny’s ear. Danny sighs, pressing his ass backward. Yuta groans at it, sliding his dick between Danny’s cheeks. “If you do that, I can’t get my dick in you.”

“Yeah,” Danny says. “Shit. Yeah, hold on.” He pulls forward and turns, bracing his elbows on the sink. He glances over his shoulder and winks. “Come on. We won’t break it.”

“Tell that to that headboard at that one hotel in Garland,” Yuta chuckles, but he strokes between Danny’s cheeks to find his hole and, gently, reverently slides a finger in.

Danny’s loud enough that Yuta has to slap a hand over his mouth.

“Quiet,” Yuta hisses. “You really think you want your dad walking in here after we just met?”

“Ew,” Danny says against the palm of Wheeler’s hand. “You couldn’t have used, like, literally anyone but my dad?”

“Fine,” Yuta says. “You want some random bridesmaid coming in here?” He pumps his finger to hear some truly magnificent sounds tumble from Danny’s lips. “You want somebody to see you?”

Danny whimpers and nods.

“The point is, you’d like it if other people walked in,” Yuta says, and he presses his hand more firmly against Danny’s mouth as he works Danny slowly open, little circles that have Danny panting wet and hot against his hand. “That’s why you get off so hard when we’re fucking at venues, isn’t it?”

Danny nods, pushing back against Yuta’s finger.

“You want somebody to watch us?” Yuta asks, and Danny’s so relaxed, so ready, that Yuta’s able to add another finger. “See the way I fuck you?” He scissors his fingers and Danny slumps forward, Yuta’s hand moving from his mouth.

“Yes,” Danny whispers. He’s rocking his hips against Yuta so insistently that all Yuta has to do is keep his hand still and Danny does all the work. “Want – maybe Mox?”

“Oh,” Yuta laughs. “Now that you got me under your weird little sexy spell, you wanna get Mox in on it too?” He chuckles, gripping Danny’s ass with the hand not otherwise occupied. “Maybe we both fuck you at once, right?”

“Jesus Christ,” Danny says. “You want me to blow my load already?”

“Could be fun,” Yuta says, twisting his fingers to get a gasp from Danny. “Make you clean up my hand when you come in it.”

“There’s a sink, right there,” Danny points. “But, like. Okay.”

Yuta snickers. “Dumb slut energy.”

“You’re a dumb slut too, jackass,” Danny says, and he’s taking all three fingers like it’s nothing. Yuta pulls his fingers out and slicks up his dick. “Fucking me all desperate in a bridal room at a hotel ballroom?” His breath catches as Yuta lines his cock up with Danny’s hole. “That’s a slut move.”

“Well, then, we’re both sluts,” Yuta says. He teases the head of his cock into Danny, slowly, so neither of them get too loud. “Fuck. Fuck. You feel so good.”

Danny exhales slowly as Yuta pushes further in. “You do, too. You always do.” He whines, high pitched and needy, as Yuta bottoms out.

“You good?” Yuta asks. He’s breathing heavily. He doesn’t know when it started.

“Yeah,” Danny gasps. “Yeah, definitely good. Come on.” He pulls forward and pushes back just enough for Yuta to really feel him. “Fuck me good so I can’t speak. Don’t wanna get walked in on.” He winks at Yuta from over his shoulder.

“Did you just – are you – fucking fine.”

Yuta fucks Danny with intent, with focused, firm strokes. He’s got a hand around Danny’s cock while he does it.

“I think I like that idea from earlier,” Danny says, panting. “You – you should come in me. Make me feel it all as we say goodbye to everybody and go back to the hotel.” He hums, high pitched and whining. “Oh, god.”

“Then, what?” Yuta says. “You come in my hand and I feed it back to you?”

The open, wanting sound that comes from the back of Danny’s throat is almost too much for Yuta to handle. He speeds up his hand and his hips.

“Yeah,” Yuta says. “Yeah, I like that. You’ll feel me the whole time we go back out there.” He laughs, stroking Danny’s grip more tightly. “You’ll be saying goodbye to Grandma and I’ll get into a detailed conversation with your uncle, just to make you wait longer.

“Okay, in theory, this is good,” Danny says. “But mentioning my family is, like, gonna kill my boner.”

“Noted,” Yuta says. “Then maybe,” he fucks Danny, rolling his hand on the head of Danny’s dick, “I get on a phone call with Mox that can’t wait. Maybe I tell him all about this.”

Danny comes without anything else, into Yuta’s hand, and it’s – Yuta’s gone. He comes so deep into Danny he thinks he might have burnt a mark into him, and settles, rolling airplane-stiff shoulders.

Danny turns around with a grin on his face, and licks Yuta’s hand dry.

“You were just waiting to do this, weren’t you?” Yuta asks. “You should have said something sooner. We could have saved a bunch of loads of laundry.”

Danny laughs as he licks once more up the side of Wheeler’s pinky. “Didn’t think you’d want to,” Danny murmurs, leaning back against the sink. With his pants down his hips, his tie disheveled, and his shirt all mussed, Danny look like some sort of romance novel dream.

“Come here,” Yuta says, and he reaches out to yank Danny into him. Danny kisses him deep, like he means it, like he wants Yuta to taste the come he’d drawn out of Danny, and it’s enough to make Yuta weak in the knees.

“We really do have to get back out there soon,” Yuta mutters against Danny’s lips. “As good as you were at staying quiet, there’s a limit to how long we can be gone without people knowing where we were.”

“That something you learned from Mox?” Danny teases, and he pulls his pants back up and does the belt. “How do I look?”

“Freshly fucked,” Yuta says. “Let me – get over here.”

Danny and Yuta slap at each other at failed attempts at getting each other presentable and washed up, but it’s a good enough lie at it when they leave the room that they don’t feel too worried.

They stumble out of the room, still grinning, and immediately run into Danny’s cousin Megan.

“Oh, are you serious?” Megan says, rolling her eyes. “Danny, Jesus, you could keep it in your pants for the wedding?”

“Don’t tell Carla,” Danny says. “Or my dad. Or my mom. Actually, don’t tell anybody, or I’ll tell Grandma about that time you came to Thanksgiving high and backed into her rose garden.”

Megan’s face goes wide and panicked. “Don’t you fucking dare.”

“I won’t,” Danny says, “if you keep quiet about this.”

With an eye roll, Megan walks away. “Fine,” she yells over her shoulder. “You still fucking suck, though.”

“She doesn’t mean it,” Danny says, once Megan has walked away. “She loves me.”

“Does she?” Yuta asks. “Because it seems like the two of you want to kill each other.”

“Only when we’re sober,” Danny explains. “Speaking of which, let’s get to the bar. I wanna do some shots.”

“We need to go back to the hotel,” Yuta says. He leans in, “Or do you want other people to see my come leaking out of you?”

Danny goes pink. “Fuck. You’re right.” He exhales slowly. “If you say shit like that all the time, I’m gonna have a really hard time keeping it in my pants. Don’t say that shit at work if you know what’s good for you.”

“I know what’s good for you,” Yuta says, grinning as he makes his way down the stairs to the door. “And it’s my dick, right?”

“You’re the fucking worst,” Danny says, and he takes off down the stairs beyond Yuta. “Come on. I think you have to fuck me again.”

“It’s been minutes.”

“And?” Danny asks. “What, you too much of an old man to get it up or something?”

“Fuck off!” Yuta says. “God, you’re annoying. Go get in the car.” He pauses. “Actually. You need to say goodbye to everybody, first.” He grins at Danny. “It would be rude to leave without telling people.”

He watches how Danny wiggles, just the tiniest bits, as he talks to his family and says goodbye. Yuta plays the perfect gentleman, shaking hands and sharing smiles, until Danny gets a hold of his hand and yanks.

“Alright, well,” Danny says. “We’re getting tired. Congratulations again, Carla.”

She eyes Danny and Yuta for a minute. “Yeah,” she says. “Thanks. And I’ll pretend I didn’t see the two of you leaving the bridal room earlier.”

Yuta feels himself flush as Danny drags him out of the car. “Took you long enough,” Danny says. “What, are you trying to woo my entire family?”

“I’m apparently your boyfriend now, so I want them to like me.”

Danny throws Yuta truly sinful smile as he slides into the driver’s seat. “Yeah? You gonna try and stay around for a while?”

“Only because you like me so much.”

Danny laughs, throwing his head back as he starts the car.

“Don’t crash it with your hornyvision,” Yuta warns as he slides into the seat. “I can’t believe you’re gonna make me fuck you again, already. You’re awful.”

“I’m not gonna make you fuck me. What is wrong with you?” Danny scoffs, pulling out of the driveway. He wiggles. “Oh, god. It’s getting really uncomfortable.”

Yuta shrugs. “You earned it.”

Danny blushes pink and goes silent.

“Oh, that a thing you like?” Yuta asks. “You wanna hear that you got what you deserved or something?”

“This is just a dick move now,” Danny grumbles.

“You’re lucky the hotel is close to the venue,” Yuta muses.

“You’re not,” Danny bitches back. “You probably have to wait another, like, ten minutes before you can even think about a boner.”

“Why are you insulting me right after we decided to be, like, a thing?” Yuta asks. But he knows he’s laughing. “You changing your mind? Only want me for my dick or something?”

“Of course not,” Danny says. He takes the turn toward the hotel. “I like you because you’re a good wrestler and you’re hot.”

“Oh, so I’m a piece of meat to you,” Yuta says. “You might as well date a fleshlight.”

“Nah. Fleshlights can’t fuck me into next week or take me to dinner.” He flashes a gentle smile over to Yuta, completely disconnected from his words, when he hits a red light. “Which, um. Tomorrow? Night? Since we don’t leave until Wednesday morning.” He flutters his eyelashes and smiles.

Yuta reaches out and touches Danny’s hand. Danny immediately flips his over and laces their fingers. “Yeah,” Yuta says. “Yeah, I’ll take you to dinner.”

“I’ll take you to dinner,” Danny corrects, parking the car.

“What? Why?” Yuta steps out of the car and leans on the hood while Danny carefully wiggles himself out. “You asked me to take you to dinner.”

“Yeah, but now I want to take you to dinner.” He wrinkles his nose. “Actually, I want you to fuck me again and then to take a shower. This is getting weird.”

Yuta snickers the whole way up to the hotel room. Danny glowers, shifting his hips every few seconds.

“Are you done making jokes about how I can’t get it up again?” Yuta murmurs, getting into Danny’s space in the elevator. Danny leans against the wall.

“Don’t have proof you can yet,” Danny taunts back.

Yuta grabs his hand and places it on his crotch, allowing Danny to feel that he is, in fact, ready to go again. “How about now?”

Danny presses his lips together, squeezes his hand gently, and exhales. “Yeah,” he mutters. “Yeah, I – okay.”

Danny unlocks the door with impressive speed, then turns and grabs Yuta by the tie and yanks him into the room. Yuta gets straight up dizzy. He hadn’t realized he could get harder, but here he is.

“Pants down,” Yuta says. “I gotta – fuck.”

Danny yanks at his tie and pulls it off over his head, unbuttoning his shirt with surprisingly deft fingers. “Nah,” he says. “I’m getting naked for this one.” He looks Yuta up and down. “And so are you.”

Yuta shrugs and unbuttons his shirt two down and then pulls everything off in one go. He almost gets stuck in his tie, but he thinks he saves it and starts on his jeans.

“Saw you get your tie stuck around your neck,” Danny says. It’s unfair how good he looks stretched across the bed. “Smooth.”

“Get on your knees and stop bitching,” Yuta says. He watches a smile spread across Danny’s face.

“Damn, alright,” Danny says. For the first time in a while, Danny does what he’s told and gets up on his knees, stretching downward like a cat. Yuta’s head spins.

“Holy shit,” he murmurs, kicking off his pants. “Look at that.”

He traces his fingers along the mess left behind on Danny’s ass.

“I really can’t, but I can feel it.” He clenches on nothing and Yuta whimpers. “Yeah? You like the mess you made?”

“I’m gonna fuck you,” he says, tracing his fingers along the mess then between Danny’s cheeks. He slides two fingers in easy and Danny pushes back, sighing.

“Good,” Danny murmurs. “Come on.”

“Hold on.” While the come is an interesting slickness, Yuta leans over and grabs the lube from the TV stand and coats his dick. “Okay.” His hands are a little shaky. “You ready?”

“Ready,” Danny says. “Weird to think this is fucking my boyfriend now.”

“It’d be great if you stopped talking for, like, eight minutes.”

Yuta’s never fucked Danny like this, when there’s evidence left behind of what they’d done before. He’s never been able to slide into Danny so easily, to feel that hot vice around him with every sense memory that they just did this and neither of them could get enough. He’s never fucked his boyfriend, his boyfriend who is Daniel fucking Garcia, in a hotel room before.

He drags out, taking his time and taking in the moment. Danny exhales sharply. Yuta freezes.

“Are you okay?” he asks.

Danny nods. “Just – sensitive.” He turns, lips pressed together. “Don’t stop.”

“You want me to go slow?” Yuta asks. He circles his hips, slow and aching, and Danny sighs deeply into the mattress. “Take my time with you?”

“Yeah,” Danny says. His arms are stretched out in front of him, pressing against the mattress.

Yuta does as Danny requests, taking it slow and dragging. His mind is scrabbling to focus on everything at once, but each thought pops in and pops out like fireworks.

“I wasn’t really your last choice, was I?” Yuta asks, moving his hips in a gentle circle. “For the wedding.”

“No,” Danny sighs. “Wanted to ask you first. Didn’t think you’d say yes, though, so I asked everybody else.”

“Oh, baby,” Yuta says, and he trails his fingertips down Danny’s back. He can tell they’re not fucking right now. This feels like more. “I wish you’d asked. I thought you didn’t think about this as more than just a way to get your dick wet.”

“Yeah, well, that’s a bonus.”

He taps at Danny’s hip. “Roll over. I want to see you.”

Yuta pulls out and arranges Danny on the bed. His eyes are fluttered half shut, a pretty smile on his lips. “There you are,” he murmurs as he pushes back into Danny. “I’ve been fucked up over you for months, Danny. I think, maybe,” he runs his hands along Danny’s thighs. “Maybe since that first time.”

“Course you were,” Danny says, grinning up at him as his heels dig into Yuta’s back. “I’m a habit you can’t quit, baby.”

Yuta rolls his eyes. “You’re talking a big game for a guy who practically fell in love with me at a wedding.” He pauses. “Fuck. Pretend I didn’t say that.”

Danny shrugs. “Do you think you’re wrong or something?”

Yuta searches his eyes and sees no mockery there. He dives down and kisses Danny, tasting the implications on his lips, intent to tell a promise through his own. Danny threads his fingers in Yuta’s hair, tugging gently, and Yuta, with an involuntary twitch of his hips, comes in Danny before he can think about it.

“Sorry,” he gasps against Danny’s lips. “Fuck, that’s embarrassing.” He slides down Danny’s body and takes Danny’s cock in his mouth, slides his fingers through the mess of his own come and pushes two fingers into Danny. He crooks his fingers up and sucks hard.

“Yeah, it was,” Danny says, gripping Yuta’s hair. “But, like. Yeah. I think I was – Jesus fucking Christ, Wheeler – for a long time. But I didn’t know until I saw your face when they said their vows.”

Yuta flicks his eyes up to see Danny arching his back off the bed. He wants to memorize it.

“Wheeler,” he gasps. “I think I love you.”

Yuta crooks his fingers up again and then Danny’s coming into his mouth. He swallows Danny down, stroking his inner thighs, until Danny shoves at him with his heel.

“Of course you tell me you love me when your dick’s in my mouth and I’ve got two fingers in your ass,” Yuta says, breathless. He dives down and kisses Danny deep, swallowing the whimpering moan coming from his lips. “You fucking suck.” He kisses Danny again, gentler this time. “I can’t believe I love you.” He kisses Danny’s nose, cheeks, jaw. Danny’s hands roam across his body. “But, um. Yeah. I think I figured it out way back when we – at All In.” He strokes Danny’s cheek. “When I realized I cared more about missing you than losing the match.” He leans down and kisses Danny again. “We sure fucked up being friends with benefits, didn’t we?”

Danny grins. “Yeah. You’re so sappy you fell in love with me.”

Yuta rolls his eyes. “Yeah. I did.”

They fall asleep curled around each other. It’s just as good as Yuta had hoped.

Mini playlist: Hold Me Like a Grudge - Fall Out Boy Time Bomb - All Time Low Somewhere A Click Is Ticking - Snow Patrol I Wanna Be Yours - Arctic Monkeys

#DannYuta #Yes hello welcome to a fic I've been trying to write since the end of March #They ended up being #precious about it #But also masters in himbology #wtf i like wrestling now???#in which sara writes

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dunkzillla · 1 year

Text

Here We Go One More Time

Nigel McGuinness/Bryan Danielson

Been going crazy about not only Nigel being back but also Nigel/Bryan so I had to revisit it. Went back and watched their matches and this comes from that — set immediately after both Supercard of Honor 2023 and Unified 2006, flashback is time stamped!

Title: Here We Go One More Time

Pairings: Nigel McGuinness/Bryan Danielson

Ratings/Warnings: Mature, Language.

Summary: Bryan’s older now, they both are, his hair is longer and he’s got a beard. But he’s still wearing those stupid plaid button downs. Still vegetarian, or vegan, or whatever they’re calling it these days, according to Instagram. That’s still his American Dragon.

Word Count: 2,416

AO3

——————————————

— 31st March 2023 —

Nigel McGuinness knows what it feels like to lose a title. Knows what it’s like to fall short of being the best on the night, so he knows what Wheeler Yuta feels when he loses his Pure title to Shibata.

The kid refuses to shake Shibata’s hand and slinks away to the back, cradling his sore head. Nigel’s never wrestled Shibata, but he knows how that feels too, when your brain feels like it’s rattling around in your skull unattached to anything.

Once the show wraps up, Nigel catches up with everyone backstage he hadn’t managed to see before the show started. He’s glad to be back. WWE had been fun, great even, but Ring of Honor was, is, home. It’s where he feels at peace, and even if he can’t get in the ring anymore, it’s still where he wants to be.

He’s walking through the halls biting into an apple he’d nabbed from catering when he hears it. It’s a hushed conversation, hidden behind a bunch of production boxes. He could recognise that voice anywhere.

“I was stupid, wasn’t I?”

“Yes, but I’m still proud of you. Not many men would call out Shibata like that.” Bryan’s voice is unusually soft. Well, unusually to Nigel. He hasn’t been on the receiving end of that tone of voice in a long time.

“You’ll get it back. You’ll be three time Pure champ. Whether that’s in a few months or years down the line. This isn’t the end Yuta. Losing isn’t the end.”

“That’s not—“

“What I said before, yeah, I know. I didn’t think I had anything else to teach you, but I was wrong. You might not need me to teach you moves, but there’s still a lot you need to learn mentally.”

Nigel shakes his head even though there’s no one around to see him. Losing isn’t the end, no, but Nigel remembers losing the Pure title, and how it was retired in Bryan’s hands. Bryan himself only had a day with it, he has to know how it feels having it taken away from you.

It’s good to see the Pure title back. The night Nigel lost it to Bryan, he’d taken Bryan out for a terrible kebab and wondered where he would go from that loss. And now here he is, back in Ring of Honor, having just called a Pure title match between a young kid tutored by the one and only American Dragon. His American Dragon.

— 12th August 2006 —

The bleeding has stopped, and Nigel’s head isn’t swimming as much. He’s got clothes on, and he’d managed to lace his trainers up, so that’s something. He hasn’t bothered to brush out the spikes in his hair, or even really clean the blood from himself. It’s the middle of the night in Liverpool. No one will care.

“Oi,” He shouts across the room. Bryan’s dressed too, talking animatedly to Colt about God knows what, but the minute he hears Nigel’s voice he looks over. Good. He doesn’t have anything against Colt, but moments like this, just after they’ve beaten seven bells out of each other in the ring — Bryan fucking coming away the victor, he’s title-less now — that Nigel feels the most possessive of the American Dragon. Bryan made him bleed, Bryan knocked him out so that the ref had to stop the match, Bryan took his title from him. He’s his. They belong to each other.

“I’m leaving, you coming?”

They’re not even rooming together. Bryan’s rooming with Colt, both of them coming up with some crazy scheme about maybe we should video the shit we do, and Nigel’s with Doug, but Bryan knows to follow. Wants to follow wherever Nigel goes. He’s good like that.

“Yeah, lemme just—“ Bryan spins around, looking for his jacket and bag before spotting it and pulling it on, swinging his bag over his shoulder.

Nigel busies himself with pulling a cigarette from the pack in his jeans pocket, letting Bryan get together before he’s striding out of the arena.

It’s late, nearly midnight, and the show’s been wound down for a while now so the streets are pretty empty. Bryan walks beside him, no doubt wanting to say something about his smoking habit but keeping his mouth shut because he knows what type of mood Nigel’s in.

“Where are we going?”

Bryan always talks about not trusting him. Bryan hits him in the ring like he wants Nigel to completely disappear, like he wants to finish him for good. Yet he follows without question whenever Nigel asks.

“I’m hungry, we’re getting something to eat.”

If it hadn’t been past last orders Nigel would have probably corralled Bryan into a pub and made him sink a couple of pints to loosen him up, even if he does say he’s T total. Get him all pliable and soft like he likes him. Instead, he’ll have to make do with whatever late night kebab shop is still open along the streets of Liverpool.

Nigel takes them into the first one he sees, and thankfully it’s got a few tables so that they can actually sit down to eat. It’s deserted, and Bryan looks up at the menu sceptically.

“Is everything cooked… together?”

Nigel hasn’t been in a kebab shop for a bit, any time he comes back to the UK it’s usually a short visit, and he tries to be good and eat the right food like Bryan — but not tonight. Not when he just lost his Pure title after almost a year.

“Probably. You could just ask for a salad if you’re gonna be a little prick.”

Bryan’s vegetarian, but he doesn’t like to eat any kind of dairy product or even really come into contact with the stuff. Nigel tries to be good, better than he used to be when he was at University and eating take out food every night, but he needs meat. Meat and cheese. He doesn’t know how Bryan lives.

“Shut up.” Bryan mumbles, as someone comes from the back to take their order.

“What can I get you boss?”

Ah, Nigel’s missed good old British customer service. He rattles off his kebab order, practically feeling the disgust from Bryan next to him before looking at him, waiting for his order. Bryan stares at the menu for another moment before sighing.

“The veggie burger please.”

“Chips?” The guy asks and Bryan frowns.

“Fries?”

“Yeah, chips mate, thanks.” Nigel says, handing over the money.

“I don’t want chips I want —“

“They’re the same thing, wanker. We call them chips over here. You won’t be getting crisps.”

“Crisps?”

“Shut up, sit down.” It’s as if Bryan’s never been to the UK before. He’s told him about chips versus crisps so many times now.

Nigel bullies Bryan over to one of the tables once he’s been given his change, taking their two cans of soda over with him. They’re diet, because life’s all about balance.

Bryan’s little flip phone starts buzzing uncontrollably. Word must have gotten out that he’d won, now the holder of the World and Pure title’s. Undisputed. Everyone texting him words of congratulations. They don’t know that it’s not going to be for long. Bryan’s not going to be walking around with two belts. They’re putting the Pure title on the shelf.

Nigel’s not angry. He’s grown up from being angry about title losses. Losses aren’t the end, you come back from them, fight another day and win again. It’s just. That was his Pure title. Three hundred and fifty plus days of his life he’s spent defending it, showing just about anyone who’ll listen as to why he’s the best. He’s sad. Sad that it’s over, sad that he doesn’t have the final laugh with the title.

“When are they taking it off you?”

Bryan seems confused by the question, confused even more by the burger that’s put in front of him and the mountain of chips — fries — it comes with.

“What do you mean?”

“You’re not going to have the belt long, Dragon.”

“You’re not getting a rematch—“

“No one’s getting a match with it. Haven’t you heard? They’re retiring it.”

Bryan doesn’t look like he’s heard, no. He’s picking at his chips, looking down at them as he processes that information in his head. Nigel knows how he feels. The Pure title is special. He likes the rules that he can twist and twist until it’s his advantage, he likes that it’s different, that you can call yourself a different type of wrestler when you hold that belt. You’re a Pure wrestler. But at least Bryan gets to go down as the last champion. He’ll get his name up there on all the statistics. Last champion. Shortest reign, probably. Nigel won’t have his name on the statistics. He’s not the first or the last. He’s not the longest and he’s not shortest. He’s not the oldest and he’s not the youngest. He’s not anything. He’s just one guy who held the title once. Bryan’s going to outdo him, again.

“Oh.” Is all Bryan says, taking a tentative bite of his burger.

He’s — he’s Bryan. Handsome, clean shaven with a close buzz cut, always wearing some soft looking t-shirt or plaid button down. Nigel hates him. He hates that Bryan is so good. Hates that he’s always so happy. Hates that he wins and wins and gets everything. Nigel hates him but he’s his, they’re… theirs. Bryan followed him when he asked him to, even after everything they did to each other in the ring. Nigel will take him back to his hotel room, tell Doug to find Colt, and he’ll screw his Bryan into the mattress. He’ll take all his feelings out about losing the title, about Bryan beating him, about the amount of concussions he’s had and where he goes from here on Bryan. And then he’ll get up in the morning and get in the car and drive to the airport. He’ll keep pushing on, keep being beaten by Bryan. He doesn’t know how much longer he can go on, but he’ll go on.

“You’ll challenge me for the world title again?”

Bryan seems to have deemed the burger good enough to take a second bite out of, and his foot kicks Nigel’s under the table.

“Might do, don’t know if I’m next in line though.”

He’s barely touched his food. Just picking at it as he watches Bryan eat his.

“It was the ref's decision. Those losses don’t count.”

“Still lost me the belt.”

“You’re pretty high up on the list of challengers, I’d say.”

Bryan would say that. He wants Nigel in the ring any chance they can get. They’ve had four matches so far, their first being a tag match that Bryan’s team won. Then Bryan challenged for the Pure title and lost because Nigel kept Bryan out of the ring and won by count out. Nigel challenged for the World title and lost, and then tonight, Nigel lost again. He’s sure they’ll have many more matches, title and non title, but he’s not sure it will be as soon as Bryan’s hoping.

Nigel hates him but Bryan’s here, eating shitty kebab shop chips at midnight in rainy Liverpool. Bryan wants to take him on again, wants him to have another go for his title. Bryan’s got his foot against Nigel’s ankle even though there’s probably still some of Nigel’s blood on his hands.

There’s no one else Nigel would rather do this dance with than his American Dragon, Bryan Danielson.

— 31st March 2023 —

Nigel steps away from the private moment. He doesn’t need to hear anything else, he’s just a commentator, he doesn’t need to get inside intel to help him win anything, though the instinct is still there, buried deep inside of him.

He and Bryan have had many, many more matches since that night in Liverpool. They’d both been champions, both won and lost against each other, but then Bryan had gone onto bigger and better things and he had stayed stagnant, injury and illness holding him down until he went behind the commentary desk and got all the way to WWE. They’d been in the same company for a while but they never really crossed paths.

And now the Pure title is back and Bryan’s not extending his one day reign any longer, he’s making sure his protege cements his legacy. Wheeler Yuta is already on the statistics board, with the most amount of reigns. Bryan’s got the shortest. Nigel, just like back then, isn’t anywhere near it.

That’s okay, though. Nigel’s learnt to live with that. He’s got a hell of a lot of other stuff to be proud of.

There’s footsteps behind him, soft voices, but Nigel doesn’t turn around. Not until Bryan calls out to him.

“Oi,” He says, loud, and with the most terrible attempt at a British accent Nigel’s ever heard. He’s got a smirk on his face. They haven’t spoken, Nigel hadn’t bothered to tell him he was joining the company, figured either he’d have found out on his own and wouldn’t care or they’d have a conversation when he got here. Bryan’s older now, they both are, his hair is longer and he’s got a beard. But he’s still wearing those stupid plaid button downs. Still vegetarian, or vegan, or whatever they’re calling it these days, according to Instagram. That’s still his American Dragon.

They haven’t followed each other for a long time. Their paths have been separate for the better part of thirteen years, when Bryan left Nigel couldn’t follow, not in the way he wanted to, anyway.

“We’re leaving, are you coming?”

Wheeler’s next to him, holding the back of his neck. Bryan’s arm is around him, looking at Nigel expectantly. The way Nigel used to look at Bryan. He could follow him now. They’re in the same company. Bryan’s still wrestling but he’s got a group now, a young kid looking up at him, he’s building the next wave of wrestlers. He’s moulding Yuta into something akin to what Bryan was when they first met, just with all the veteran Bryan knowledge. If Nigel follows, he’ll be back in Bryan’s space, Bryan’s orbit, the one he was catapulted out of so long ago. If he follows, his story with Bryan will start again.

Nigel bites into his apple and shoves a hand in his pocket, stepping towards Bryan and Yuta.

Here they go again.

#writing #nigel mcguinness #bryan danielson #wheeler yuta #nigel mcguinness x bryan danielson #bryan danielson x wheeler yuta #ring of honor

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