Baby Steps

I didn’t see Tony until call time for the set, and even then he refused to talk to me. I won’t lie, I was pretty confused and upset, but I had to wait until after our show. I’m not about to risk a performance for a little drama. He participated in our chant before we ran onto stage as the crowd cheered our names like everything was okay. I had a feeling that this was going to be a long night.
I watched him throughout the set. On the outside, he looked like he normally did. The normal happy-go-lucky turtle that we loved, but I knew better. There were subtle things that he did that told me everything was bothering him. For instance, every time he would turn away from the crowd, he would wipe his eyes and take a deep breath. Whatever had upset him earlier was really eating at him.
After the set, I waited for Tony by the bus. I knew that he would go out for a walk and cool down like he usually did when he was upset. It was cold outside so I was hoping that it wouldn’t be too long. Just as it was getting to the point where I couldn’t handle the cold anymore, I saw him walk around the corner. He was walking with his head down and had a pair of headphones in so he didn’t notice me. He was about to walk into the bus when he noticed me and jumped a little in surprise.
“The hell.” He put his hand up to his heart and pulled his headphones off. “What are you doing out here, Mike?”
“I was waiting for you.” I stood up straight and looked down at him. He went to move past me.
“I’m not in the mood to talk.” I reached out, grabbed his arm, and pulled him with me as I walked away from the bus.
“Well too bad.” He struggled against my grip but I kept a firm grip on him. It took a minute, but he finally stopped trying to get away and walked along side me.
“Where are we going?” there was a harsh tone to his voice.
“Just keep walking.” When he had run off earlier, I came across a small park and that’s where I figured we could talk. It was a place where we can be alone. It took us only minutes to reach the park and I walked over and parked my butt on a bench. Reluctantly, Tony sat down next to me and folded his hands in his lap.
“So what’s up?” He asked, not even looking at me.
“I can ask you the same thing.” I watched him carefully. “What the hell happened earlier?” He scoffed and turned to me.
“Really?” He was acting like I should know why he was mad.
“Yes really? Why the hell are you avoiding me, what did I do?” He stared at me for a long time before sighing and looking at the ground.
“You’ll think it’s stupid.” His voice was barely audible and he still wouldn’t look up at me.
“Tony, you know that I won’t.” I reached over and placed my hand on his knee, trying to get him to realize how sincere I was being. He turned his face towards mine and took a deep breath.
“I was jealous okay.” A light pink tinge was beginning to cross his cheeks.
“Jealous? Of what?” I was the one who had been jealous… I couldn’t even stand to see Tony talk to girls, let alone let them touch him.
“That girl…” he turned away again. I was still slightly confused.
“What about her, Tone?”
“I didn’t like her touching you.” He faced me again, angry tears threatening to fall from his eyes. “She had no right to touch you like that.”
“And that’s your decision?” I know that was kind of douchey but I was beginning to get mad. We had been playing this cat and mouse game for a long time and I was starting to get really tired of it. “Tony, where do you think that you get the right to say who can and cannot touch me?”
What happened next was something that I was not prepared for. He reached up and grabbed the sides of my face and pulled me towards him. Our lips collided and I let out a small gasp of surprise. He used that opportunity to slip his tongue into my mouth and battle it out for dominance. By this time, I had regained some sort of conscious idea of what was going on and kissed him back. I reached over and pulled his hips towards me and he straddled me on the bench. This was what I had been waiting for for so long, and let me tell you it was way worth it.
We finally parted to breath and Tony kissed my neck a few times before he pulled away to look at me. Nothing was said for a few moments and my anxiety began to rise slightly. He had on a poker face but I could see the fear that crept into the depths of his eyes and his breathing picked up in pace.
“I-I…” He was beginning to panic. “Oh god, Mike… I’m so sor-“ I cut him off with my lips and pulled him back into another passionate kiss. We had finally taken a step in the right direction and I wasn’t about to let him get away from me. I felt him relax into me again and he put his arms around my neck. I wrapped him in my arms and held him tightly to me. I pulled away and wiped a tear from his cheek.
“It’s okay Tony.” I tried to calm him down. “Truth be told, I was jealous too.” He gave me a confused look.
“Of what?”
“That girl who touched you…” I looked down and he chuckled lightly.
“Well you don’t have to worry about her.” I quirked my eyebrow at him and he laughed. “She’s a lesbian.” I made an ‘oh’ face and nodded.

We spent about an hour just having him sit against me and talking. We never actually said what our feelings were, but I had the feeling that we understood each other. By the time we were ready to head back, Tony was beginning to fall asleep. I walked with my arm around his shoulder and tucked him into bed as soon as we got into the bus. I kissed his forehead and he rolled over and fell into a comforting sleep.
I walked out into the lounge and grabbed my laptop. I was a little wired from the events of the night and didn’t think I would be asleep for a little while. It was a little while after we had gotten back and my phone went off.
*So??? –Taylor*
*Well we didn’t talk for long… -Mike* He was going to make her a little uneasy, but he wanted to surprise her.
*Oh…well then what happened? –Taylor* he waited a few minutes. *Mike? –Taylor*
*He kissed me. –Mike*
*YAY!!! –Taylor*
*Haha yeah. –Mike*
*That’s great. So what are you guys going to do now? –Taylor*
*I don’t know yet, but I’m not as worried. –Mike*
*Well congrats. I’m super excited for you >.< -Taylor*
*Thanks =). I’m really glad we met. –Mike*
*Me too <3. –Taylor*
I wished her a good night and went back to my laptop. I was way happier than I had been in a while. I was just hoping that things would continue to go along this route.