[ ✧ // 1x1 Kies & it.will.rain]

[it.will.rain]

Anthony looked at Kacey and hugged him back. He melted into his embrace. He was so glad that he had his support through this. That was a lot for him. He was still shaking a little bit but it got better as he hugged his boyfriend. "Thanks..." He said quietly. "I did not like that at all." He said quietly. He held his boyfriends hand and laced their fingers together as he walked. "I just do not know that they would do that... I never thought that they would go that far. Everyone knows that I am not good in crowds..." He said to him and went and sat back down in his spot next to the kids. He was so glad that he was able to hide how he wasn't normally picked for that in front of the kids. He did not want them to have to deal with their high school drama. He thought that they were way too young to have to get involved with that. He stayed close to his boyfriend.

[all_is_lxst]

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K A C E Y

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”I know,” Kacey said when the other stated how he hadn’t liked that at all. He listened to Anthony and felt a wave of sadness for Anthony and anger at the populars hit him hard. He knew Anthony was bad in front of crowds, and this made the Stu t so much worse since at least half the town was here to watch the game. Maybe more. He was just glade Anthony was okay for the most part and made a note to make this up to Anthony later. And to chew Erik out for this later, even if it caused more trouble for Kacey. That had been too much for Anthony. On the brighter side of the night, the two of them, mostly Anthony though, were welcomed back to their seat by wide awed eyes and ecstatic grins from Ashton and Quinn. ”Eeeeh! You got King! You got Homecoming King Anthony!” Quinn squealed, showing her girly side in a rare moment as she clapped her hands together quickly. She was competing with Ashton though as he held up a hand for Anthony to high five and cried out, ”Way to go Anthony! You’re amazing!” Kacey was glad his siblings hadn’t heard the group making fun of Anthony, but was also oh so proud of them for trying to make Anthony feel special. Their enthusiasm was so loud and vibrant though it caught Erik and the other populars’ attention and they looked over with narrowed eyes, some of them looking angry, and the rest looking confused as to why these kids thought so highly of ‘the nerd’. Especially as Kacey looked over at Anthony with a smile and added, ”You know, I always knew I was dating someone special, I just never realized he was a King.” He once again leaned over to kiss the others cheeek fondly.

[it.will.rain]

Anthony smiled a little at him. "Thanks for being there for me love." He said quietly so only Kacey would hear him. He looked over at the kids and could not help but laugh at them. They were really good at making him feel better about all of this. He gave Ashton a high five. "Thanks. I am pretty happy about it." He said to the kids. He was only saying that so the kids would not have to face their realities. He glanced over at the populars who were upset that it had not phased Anthony nearly as much as they had been hoping. They had wanted him to run off. He would have if it had not been for Kacey cheering him on and making him feel better about everything. He looked at Kacey as he spoke. "Thanks. You are really special too." He said to him. He was still not too happy about all of this. He sighed glad that the attention was back on the game. At least for now. He knew they would turn back to him later because it was a tradition for the king to ring the victory bell if they won. He was just praying that they would not win but by the looks of it, they would. He did not know how he would handle that. "I think I might head out a little early..." He said to Kacey. "I can meet you guys at the car. I was thinking about going back before the forth quarter ends..." He said so Kacey would be the only one to hear him.

[all_is_lxst]

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K A C E Y

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Ashton and Quinn seemed satisfied with the response they received from Anthony, and as the game started up again, it stole their attention away from the couple sitting just above them. Kacey could sense that Anthony still was a hundred percent okay with it all, but Kacey kept up the happy act until the last few populars finally looked away from them. He looked over as Anthony said he might not stay the whole game and he immediately knew it was because of the bell ringing at the end of the game. He might not have gone to school here to know it was tradition, but people had talked about it so much in the past two weeks that he knew the most of how everything went here. He was quiet a moment before answering.”Yeah... if you feel you need to, that’s perfectly fine. Do what makes you feel the best. But.... if you want, I could go down a be with you while you ring the bell. I don’t care if anyone says anything. Either way though, do what you feel is best.” he answered in the same quiet tone Anthony was using.

[it.will.rain]

He knew it would only make it worse if he did not go down and do it. He was not cut out for this. He knew most of the town was here and a lot of alumni and they all knew who he was now and the rumors had spread past just his school as to why he was picked. He should do it. It would give the populars even more to say and he knew the principal would be mad if he didn't. He sighed and nodded. "Please come." He said to him. He could not do this without him. This was so stressful for him and he was not sure how to handle it. He put his hand on his cheek and smiled a little at him. "I don't know what I would do without you." He said to him. He kissed him and then took his hand again. He knew the football team was working harder than normal to win. They had never lost a homecoming game so there was no way to avoid it.

[all_is_lxst]

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K A C E Y

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Kacey let the other take his time to come to a decision and when Anthony asked him to come along, he nodded understandingly. ”Of course, Anthony,” he answered, leaning into the other’s touch nd kiss slightly before they both pulled away slightly. “Now don’t worry about it for a bit. Focus on the game, or even just me, and try to enjoy the rest of the night,” he said as he leaned into Anthony a little, giving him something to focus on and draw comfort from, and rubbing the others hand that was still in his with both his hands. All little acts of comfort to hopefully help Anthony calm down enough to get through the night.

[it.will.rain]

Anthony smiled at his boyfriend when he kissed him back. Anthony nodded and held his hand happily. He felt so much better there with him. He focused on having a good night with Kacey and his siblings. He was enjoying the rest of the game. He looked over at the kids to make sure they still had plenty of snacks. He was glad that they did. He had hoped that they would have enough. He cheered with the others as their team got another touchdown. He was glad the game was going well. He knew it would be horrible to lose a homecoming game. They would be really upset if that happened. He was glad that the kids were having a great time. That was all he had been hoping for that they would and this was great other than the half time incident. He watched the game.

[all_is_lxst]

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K A C E Y

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Kacey happy that the other was able to relax and enjoy the rest of the game. It was so much fun just being there with his boyfriend and his siblings. To be cheering and happy and loud and just enjoying a relaxing night. Well, not exactly relaxing..... more along the lines of a casual night. No pressure of a date, but also without the laziness of just laying around all night. It was so close to perfect in Kacey’s mindset, he didn’t notice as the time ticked away and was slowly lost in the night.

[it.will.rain]

Anthony sighed when time came for him to go ring the bell. They had won. He got up as he was asked back to the field. "Do you want to bring your brother and sister too so we do not get separated?" Anthony asked before he started to go to the field. He told the couch that his boyfriend was coming up with him too. They started to complain. He did not care though. The players and cheerleaders stood around the bell waiting. Eric was standing there waiting to make fun of Anthony. He made some comments about the loser king as he walked by. Anthony sighed and walked to the bell and looked at it. "Okay..." He said softly before taking the microphone. "Great job to our football team for leading us to another victory." He said trying not to make it seem as tense as he was. He then rang the bell and watched as everyone cheered. Some of the football team lifted up Eric and walked around. Eric then started to sing a song with the rest of the football team. It was clear that it was about Anthony but pretty much only the kids at school would know since they never said his name. Anthony stood there and listened.

[all_is_lxst]

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K A C E Y

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Kacey nodded at the other’s suggestion that Ashton and Quinn come with them, and had the younger kids gather up and carry their stuff before they all headed towards the field in a small group. He heard the coaches begin to complain and protest, but just like earlier, he ignored them and stayed by Anthony’s side the entire time, the twins waiting in the front row of the crowd around the bell as Anthony rang the bell and congratulated the football team. He squeezed the other’s hand gently before resting his hand on the crook of Anthony’s arm, so, SO proud of Anthony, which was evident to everyone there by the adoring look on his face. That look dimmed with concern though as Erik and the football team started some stupid little song that all the high school students would know was about Anthony. Kacey didn’t show his distaste towards Erik while so many people were around, but he tugged gently on Anthony’s arm and whispered to him. ”Let’s just go. He’s being an idiot and a jerk, and we don’t need to stick around any longer for that to be proven. Plus, it’s getting late. We all should be heading home,” he added as he looked over at the twins. They still seemed swept up in the excitement of the crowds, but Kacey could see tired circles appearing under their eyes and how their movements were slowly growing sluggish. Kacey himself was starting to feel drained from the amount of excitement and energy they had all used throughout the game.