Work Text:
Josh is still beaming when they cut to let them rearrange for the More, a fact he doesn’t know until Alex sidles up to him and pokes his cheek.
“You’re real cute,” Alex says, fond; Josh wants immediately to put him in a headlock. It’s hard to stop smiling, though, because despite Link gagging they’d liked the blood taco and Josh wasn’t lying, this is his proudest moment, probably ever. He settles on smiling harder, more pointedly, in Alex’s direction, and it earns him a laugh and a head shake.
Then Alex is looking away, towards the desk, eyes distant, and Josh realizes Alex had a reason for coming over, and he tones it down in favor of nudging Alex’s shoulder with his own.
“You’re pretty cute, too, even if you look like that gif of the dog staring at the cupcakes.” It’s enough that looks back over, grins, and Josh gets another wave of sweet, sweet validation.
“I love that gif,” Alex says, then, after a particularly long pause to give Josh ample time to be concerned. “I’m sorry, I just, want you to be careful.” He’s not looking at Josh, is looking around them as if he either can’t bear to look at Josh while he’s vulnerable or doesn’t want anyone to overhear them.
“I can be careful,” Josh hedges. “It’d help if you gave me more to work on than that, though.”
Alex’s lips twitch and he glances back at Josh, then at the ground.
“You just seem like you’re, I don’t know. Falling pretty hard for them. I just don’t want you to get hurt, you know.”
Josh watches Alex’s eyes dart to the desk then away as his face turns slowly pink.
“Oh,” Josh says. “Oh, that’s - ” He stops himself from denying it outright, because he’s a grown ass man in touch with his feelings who doesn’t have to prove his masculinity. He can admit, with his chest still full of warmth and Rhett and Link still glowing under the studio lights, that he’s got a crush. But he’s watched enough old episodes and seen Alex off-camera enough to know what kind of thing Alex is worried about.
“That’s really sweet of you,” Josh says, earnest. Alex’s eyes snap back to his, so Josh offers him a smile and a shoulder squeeze to show he’s being sincere. “I think I’ll be okay, but thank you for looking out for me. I appreciate it.”
Alex swallows before, curiously, he looks at Josh’s mouth. Just for a heartbeat, quick enough that Josh is ready to write it off as a twitch, bro to bro, but when Alex meets Josh’s eyes again the blush has turned straight up scarlet.
“Yeah,” Alex manages. “Yeah, no problem. I should - I think I’m getting mic’d, I should - ”
“Yeah, of course.”
“I’ll just - yeah.”
Josh watches Alex shuffle away, pride forgotten - well, not at the front of his mind. That’s still pretty huge. He’s pretty damn proud, okay.
–
He and Alex hang out sometimes. It’s a thing that they do, as friends. Alex isn’t hugely into sports, which Josh respects because he’s not a douchebag, so mainly Josh comes over and cooks Alex and his girlfriend some sweet vegetarian grub and they drink and they chat or Josh has Alex come over and he cooks some sweet vegetarian grub for him and Josh’s girlfriend and they drink and they chat. It’s pretty great. Except, it’s stopped happening lately, and there’s only really one thing that Josh can attribute it to.
He’d prefer to have this conversation outside of work, but considering Alex has been dodging his texts recently there’s not much of an option unless Josh is ready to slide into Alex’s dms. It seems like it’ll go better sober and in-person, though, so when he sees Alex take his lunch outside Josh follows.
“Oh - hey,” Alex says, startled, when Josh sticks his hand out to keep the door open. “What’s up?” He hesitates, like he’s honestly considering going back inside, but sheer social discomfort wins out in the end and Alex drops down on the wicker sofa. As Josh sits next to him, Alex nods at Josh’s meal. “What kind of crazy special awesome burrito is that?”
Josh glances down at the foil. “Oh, carnitas, black beans, brown rice and guac. From Chipotle.” When Alex’s little bark of laughter fades, Josh goes on, “Listen, Alex, I miss you.”
It’s way too forward, definitely, but Josh isn’t a fan of beating around the bush unless it’s flirtatious foreplay. He’s still half-convinced Alex is going to cut and run any second now, social niceties be damned, and Josh wants to get to the heart of things while he still has the chance.
Alex has frozen where he has his tupperware half open, mouth in a similar position. It doesn’t look like he’s going to contribute to the conversation, so Josh forges on.
“I know I see you everyday at work, but you know, you’re my friend, and I enjoy hanging out with you.” Josh puts his burrito down, needing his hands to gesture with. “If there’s something I’ve done to make you not want to hang out with me, that’s - my fault, and I want to make it up to you, if I can. But if there’s something else, can we talk about it? I don’t want to lose you.”
Josh works on his communication skills a lot. Practices whenever he can. But there’s never really any getting over the way you feel like you’re gonna vomit after being that honest with a person. By the look of him, Alex seems like he’s feeling pretty sick, too. The lid goes back on the tupperware.
“I’m sorry,” Alex says at last, soft and uncomfortable. “I didn’t mean to, uh, hurt you.”
“I’m not hurt, man, it’s okay. I just miss hanging out with you and I want us to be able to again.”
“That’s, uhm.” Alex runs a finger under his collar. He’s flushed. “Maybe not a good idea? It’s, it’s nothing you’ve done, I just…” His lunch joins Josh’s on the table. “I’m like, really sorry, but I’ve got a - a crush, on you, dude.” He laughs a bit, miserably. Josh waits for the rest of the reason. It doesn’t come.
“Okay?” Josh says finally. “Has like - does your girlfriend not want us to hang out anymore?”
Alex blinks and shakes his head. “No, she, uhm, we’re - open, she thinks it’s - cute.” His cheeks are bright red. “It’s just. Awkward, right?”
Josh affects a frown when he really wants to laugh. “Is it? I don’t feel awkward. Do you feel awkward?”
Alex laughs again, a bit more honestly. “Right now? Uh, yeah.” When Josh smiles at him, Alex swallows and looks away. “I guess it’s. No, if you don’t think it’s awkward, I - wow, are you sure? Wouldn’t like, your girlfriend? Be upset to know?” He’s turned towards Josh unconsciously as they spoke, and Josh takes advantage of it to bump his knee against Alex’s.
“Nah, we’re open, too.”
Alex’s eyelashes flutter as he takes in this new information. “Los Angeles,” he sighs, like it’s a complete thought. Josh considers.
“I think it’s more that the younger generations are putting more and more emphasis on communication, and in communities where progressiveness is valued polyamory becomes more valid because you don’t have to pretend you’re monogamous.” He picks up his burrito and starts to unwrap one end to hide how he’s suddenly shy. “You want to go on a date?”
“Oh,” Alex says. “God - yeah. I mean, good point.” He fumbles with his lunch. “Yes. To the date. Jesus, Josh, you’re so…” Alex laughs again, this time one of the really good ones, and Josh has never been so proud of himself.
He spent a lot of time on reddit for that answer.
–
The date turns out to be a lot like hanging out was in that Alex comes over to eat, except this time Josh’s girlfriend smacks him on the ass on her way out and tells him not to cook something with a lot of garlic. Josh does, anyways, because garlic is amazing, and of course he has to sample the food as he makes it, so by the time Alex comes over Josh is hyper aware of how he smells and, by extension, tastes.
“Don’t kiss me,” he says at the door, probably too loudly. Alex’s eyebrows twitch together and Josh rushes to explain. “I’ve been eating garlic - not straight, it’s in the sauce, I just - I don’t want that to color the experience.”
Alex laughs, that little hiccup of sound doing so much to soothe the nerves Josh didn’t know had been building. He’s in touch with his emotions, okay, but no one’s perfect.
“Relax, dude,” Alex tells him, and Josh sublimates the urge to put him in a headlock out of the same emotion that got them here and wraps Alex in a hug, instead.
Or, wait, was all that the other way around? Shit. Sublimation.
“It smells amazing,” Alex says into Josh’s chest, neatly distracting him with the vibration of it. “Is it ready?”
“The pasta still has to cook.”
“Can I try the sauce?”
“Yeah, sure,” Josh says, then sighs, because this necessitates letting go of Alex, and everything seems a lot better when they’re hugging in the entryway. Still, Josh manages it, and is pretty sure he doesn’t blush when he catches sight of Alex’s soft smile.
Josh is grabbing Alex a fresh spoon when he turns around and sees Alex bringing the one Josh had been using to his mouth, instead, and the twelve year old in Josh delights in the indirect mouth to mouth contact.
“It’s good,” Alex says. “Garlicky.”
Josh laughs and rubs at his forehead to hide how pleased he is with the praise and therefore doesn’t see Alex moving forward until he’s in Josh’s space and pressing up on his toes to kiss Josh.
It’s warm, dry. No tongue, so the garlic doesn’t really come into play.
When Alex rocks back onto his feet Josh is distantly aware of the fact that he’s beaming. Alex returns the expression for a moment before laughing and trying to step away, which is unacceptable, and Josh brings his arms up to prevent him from doing so.
“You’re cute,” Josh tells him. Alex’s nose scrunches up.
“Careful, buddy. Keep talking like that and we’re not gonna make it til dinner’s ready.”
Josh kisses him again.