Same Direction (Dare/Michael)

[Michael Blackwood-Hardt]

Michael didn't answer immediately. He had hoped they would be able to, but would they really be able to do a big vacation? "We can try," he said finally. He would look into it, surely there was a way they could do it. There would be complications, just like during his time last year figuring out their expenses, but he thought he could work it out.

[Dare Blackwood-Hardt]

"If we can't, let's not worry about it," Dare said. "We'll figure something out. Maybe buy a month's worth of groceries and lock ourselves in the house or something." They'd definitely be able to afford that much, and he was sure they could entertain themselves. When the bartender arrived, he had no clue what to order. He didn't know what any of the things they'd had at the bachelor party were and couldn't have told which ones he'd liked anyway. He looked to Michael for guidance, as though Michael were an expert on cocktails.

[Michael Blackwood-Hardt]

Michael raised an eyebrow at Dare, wondering how he could be considered for any kind of guidance for this. His eyes flickered to the bartender, then up to the many bottles that lined the wall. After a moment, he threw out a name, his voice turning up in a question. He thought he remembered hearing the name at some point over the night at the bachelor party.

[Dare Blackwood-Hardt]

Michael's guess was as good as any. He thought about ordering the same thing, then decided against it after all. He wasn't crazy about drinking, so if they got different drinks there was a chance he'd like one. He gestured down the bar at something someone else had that looked fun. As the bartender turned to make the drinks, he looked back at Michael. "If they both suck I'll pay you back," he said.

[Michael Blackwood-Hardt]

"Don't worry about it," Michael said, shaking his head. He slipped his arms around Dare's waist and propped his chin on Dare's shoulder. He had no idea what they were going to be getting, but he hoped that they wouldn't be so strong they couldn't drink them. And to think that a little over a year before Dare had freaked out over wine.

[Dare Blackwood-Hardt]

The bartender was fast, and soon their drinks were waiting for them. Dare picked his up and looked at it as though it would start laughing and declare itself undrinkable. In some ways he had calmed down over the past month or two. He'd regained quite a bit of his ability to calm himself and to think rationally when things weren't going perfectly. His self-control hadn't been tested much, though. He was feeling how close the future was and he was doing the testing himself. This was a test, in a way. Would it change things? Could they handle it? It was a small test, a legal test, and one they were unlikely to find themselves overwhelmed with. "Should we toast something?" he asked Michael.

[Michael Blackwood-Hardt]

Michael shifted to Dare's side and picked up his own, bringing it up to smell. It was orangey smelling, but he didn't take a sip just yet. "I suppose we should," he said, though he was fully unable to think of something to toast. He couldn't toast to health, not really, maybe to healing? They were certainly healing, both mentally and, at least for Dare, physically.

[Dare Blackwood-Hardt]

Dare had hoped that Michael would suggest something, but he had no such luck. That left it to him, and he didn't want to over-think it. "To temperance," he said with a teasing smile. "To trying something new and taking whatever life gives us." He waited, in case Michael wanted to alter or add something, excitement at this new adventure coursing through him.

[Michael Blackwood-Hardt]

Michael couldn't think of anything to add, so he smiled and held his glass up to lightly touch it to Dare's. "Cheers," he said, then took an experimental sip. His drink wasn't strong at all, though he could taste the different parts of it. Of course, it could be strong and it was just covered up very well. Either way, it was good, and he took another sip.

[Dare Blackwood-Hardt]

Dare made a face at his own before he even had a taste, but somehow between the two of them they managed to finish both. Dare wanted to dance again now, and he caught Michael's hand, laughing as he dragged him back to the dance floor. The music was infectious and he didn't want to resist it.

[Michael Blackwood-Hardt]

Michael followed close behind Dare once again, excited to be back in the crowd. As long as no one else tried to intrude, they would be fine. He knew he wouldn't be feeling just that one drink yet, even though the only thing he had had the past few years, other than the bachelor party, was wine, and even that was only a few times. It was easy to get back into dancing.

[Dare Blackwood-Hardt]

Dare threw himself into dancing with Michael, soaking in the music, the energy, and the way Michael looked at him. That one drink made his head a little dizzy, or maybe it was the heat. Definitely the heat, he decided at last. His brows drew together as nauseousness took over and the dizziness grew. He tried to work through it, but the energy was fading now.

[Michael Blackwood-Hardt]

Michael's hands found their way to Dare's hair before one broke away from the other to settle at Dare's hip. He wasn't really feeling anything from the drink, or the heat, but it was hard not to notice when Dare became less energetic. He pulled closer and looked up at Dare, his movements slowing. "You okay?" he asked, tilting his head.

[Dare Blackwood-Hardt]

Dare's gaze dropped, then flickered out into the club in the moments before he shrugged. "I just... it's hot," he said. He was grateful for the excuse to slow down and confused at how badly he wanted to just sit somewhere. "Just a little dizzy," he said, finally stopping. He shook his head slightly. "I don't know, I was fine before." He grimaced as the nausea swelled. "I think I'm gonna be sick," he said.

[Michael Blackwood-Hardt]

Michael shifted to Dare's side and slipped his arm around Dare's waist. "Come on, let's go to the bathroom," he said. It wasn't really that far, and he didn't think Dare would appreciate something happening out in the middle of the dance floor. What was wrong? It couldn't be the drink, there hadn't been enough in them to cause such a reaction, or at least, Michael didn't think so.