A bus ride in Germany 1996. AJ teases, Howie squirms, and the boys discuss…

Title: Bottom
Author: Shirasade
Pairing: Howie/AJ and a surprise pairing implied at the end…
Rating: PG-13 for some language and sexual imagery I guess
Date: July 27, 2002
Warning: Slash - m/m relations. Don’t like, don’t read please!
Disclaimer: This is fiction - I don’t know the Backstreet Boys. I’m just a fan with an overactive imagination…
Note: This shortie snuck up on me one night when I was already in bed. I had read “In Your Darkest Dreams”, a Qui-Gon/Obi-Wan fic by Emma Woodhouse:
Qui-Gon chuckled and leaned down to plant a soft kiss on the nearest ass cheek. “I can already tell, you’re going to be one of those pushy, demanding little bottoms, aren’t you?”
“Uh-huh,” Obi-Wan said happily.
This invoked a sudden mental image of babies!AJ wriggling on a bed - and I just had to get up and write it! The is the first fic I’ve hand written in ages…
Written for Lucy’s challenge on bsbslashfic.
Beta: Thanks go to the lovely Gray - all mistakes left are entirely mine!
Summary: A bus ride in Germany 1996. AJ teases, Howie squirms, and the boys discuss…

Turning away from the bus window and the boring landscape outside of it, AJ licked his lips deliberately and stared at Howie with slow eyes. Involuntarily Howie shifted uncomfortably in his seat and subtly tried to adjust himself.

But Nick had noticed - not much escaped his attention nowadays - and he theatrically buried his face in both hands. “Please, Bri”, he whined, “they’re at it again, stop them!”

Brian looked up from his book and back and forth between AJ’s unreadable if slightly smug expression and Howie’s flushed face, uncomfortable body stance and darting eyes.

“You really should tone it down a bit - you’re getting obvious and making Nicky uncomfortable.” It was clear where Brian’s priorities lay and Nick suppressed a smirk.

Howie shifted some more, trying to melt into the wall. “Sorry”, he mumbled, avoiding everyone’s eyes and concentrating instead on the dirty carpet of the bus. His hands were fiddling with his shirt, buttoning and unbuttoning it nervously.

Now Kevin joined in the conversation, glancing sympathetically at Howie over the rim of his German teeny magazine featuring them on the front page.
“We all know it’s not yourfault, D…” he finally said, his voice reasonable as always.

AJ glared at him. “So now it’s all my fault?”

Nick watched the proceedings like a spectator at a tennis match, head moving from left to right, from AJ to Kevin and back again.

Kevin only shrugged at AJ’s challenge, his whole posture calm and composed - how Nick wished to be like that… “Sure.”

AJ’s eyes were slits now, shooting daggers at Kevin, but his voice was tightly controlled: “And why would that be?”

Howie was wishing desperately for the ground to open itself up for him, but Kevin’s calm was impenetrable.

“You are one of those pushy, demanding little bottoms, Alex - you wriggle your scrawny little ass and Howie can’t help but comply”, Kevin explained patiently in a voice that could just as well have belonged to a teacher explaining a math problem.

Howie’s face was flaming in shame and Brian’s comforting hand on his arm didn’t really help.

AJ looked at his lover and only Nick saw the strange look creep into eyes. He got up without a further word to Kevin, offering a hand to Howie.

“You coming, D?” he asked, his tone cocky but his eyes soft.

Meeting those eyes Howie gave him a wavering smile and took the offered hand. He looked around the other three guys and met their gazes with a small half apologetic, half defiant shrug before following AJ to the bunk area.

This time there was no mistaking the wriggle in AJ’s step, nor the tight grasp he had on Howie’s hand, and Nick smiled secretly to himself.
There were definitely things to be said for being a pushy bottom, he thought - it had after all gotten AJ Howie. He might even try it himself one of these days…

Having decided that, Nick snuggled up next to the reading Brian and at once felt an arm sneak around his shoulders to hold him close.

Nick smiled a bit smugly andsettled down on Brian’s lap to listen to the sounds coming from behind the curtain.

There were worse ways to spend a day on the bus.

~~~