What Happens in the Office

I’m going to this party for one reason and one reason only: Kellin Quinn.

I work a pretty stereotypical office job, and since it’s mid-December, my boss has decided to host a holiday party before Christmas. Usually I wouldn’t go—who wants to spend their Saturday night at work?—but according to my colleague, Alex, a certain someone said he’d be there. That certain someone is, well, Kellin Quinn.

To put it bluntly, Kellin is the cute new guy who works in a different department than I do (which means that I never get to see him), and I kind of have a major crush on him. This party could be the perfect opportunity for me to talk to him.

When I get there, I find that it’s not as lame and awkward as I thought it would be. Set up in a large room that’s not really used for much are a bunch of tables and chairs, along with food, holiday-themed decorations, and even some Christmas music playing in the background. There are more people than I expected, too, a pretty fair amount. I don’t see Kellin yet, though.

"Dude, you’re crazy," Alex says, walking up to me with a cup of red punch. "Coming here just to unleash your gayness on the innocent new guy. You should be ashamed of yourself." He shakes his head in false disapproval.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," I say dismissively, scanning the groups of people. "Don’t pretend you’ve never corrupted someone somehow," I tease.

"Well, there was that one time…”

"Exactly."

For about ten minutes, Alex and I mostly just stand by the wall and talk about random things. Then Alex’s gaze seems to shift towards the doorway, and when I glance in the direction that he’s looking, I understand why: Kellin has just walked in.

Dark hair, bright eyes, short stature, pale skin, a few tattoos—physically, that pretty much sums him up, along with the suit he’s wearing. (I’m wearing one, too—most of us have dressed up at least a little bit, especially considering that a lot of these outfits are the ones we wear when we’re actually working.) I don’t see him much, but when I do, he seems pretty quiet unless he’s with people he’s familiar with. A girl named Tay calls his name, and he smiles, waves, and makes his way over to her. They work in the same department, like Alex and I, so it’s not too surprising that they’ve become friends. Still, I can’t help but feel a little jealous. With my luck, Kellin’s probably straight and madly in love with her.

"Go talk to him, loser," Alex says, nudging me. "Go. Seduce him."

"Uh, maybe this was a bad idea," I say slowly. "He’s probably straight, and even if he’s not, he might not be interested in—"

"Shut up and stop worrying," Alex replies simply. "This was your plan, so just go with it."

"Easy for you to say," I mutter. "I can’t just walk to him and start flirting with him when he’ll probably be like, ‘Dude, I don’t swing that way.’ That’s just stupid and humiliating. What am I thinking? I’ve gotta be subtle."

"Well, Tay told me that he said he’s openly gay," Alex says. "So, no, you do not need to be subtle. Now go.”

"Whoa, holy shit, are you serious?" I just look at him incredulously. "Why didn’t you tell me earlier?"

"I thought you knew." He gestures toward where Kellin is standing. "Seriously, though. The clock is ticking. Unleash the gay."

"Unleashing the gay," I reply, pushing myself to walk over there. Kellin has stopped talking and is now standing alone somewhat awkwardly, which is probably good for me. In the brief moment of panic as I realize that I have no idea what to say, a brilliant holiday-themed pick-up line pops into my head.

"Hey, wait a minute," I say to him, putting on my confident façade as he turns to face me. "Shouldn’t you be on top of the tree, Angel?"

A slow smile spreads across his face. “I was supposed to be,” he replies smoothly, “but I didn’t want to because I thought you’d fit the role much better.”

Hot damn. I’ve definitely got a crush on him now.

"Hi," he continues casually, holding his hand out. "I’m Kellin."

"Oh, I know." I take his hand and shake it. "I’m Vic."

Kellin’s smile widens, and then he repeats my words back to me: “Oh, I know.”

This could not have gotten off to a better start.

I lean against the nearby wall, letting my facial expression match his. “So, what brings you here on a Saturday night?”

He shrugs, crossing his arms over his chest. “Didn’t have plans anyways. Plus, I’ve got lots of hot coworkers to flirt with.”

I raise an eyebrow at that. “Oh, really? Like who?”

"Well, first I thought Matty was pretty attractive, but then I saw Alex and I thought he was pretty attractive, but then? Then I saw you, and, well…" He perks up suddenly. "Oh, that reminds me!" Before I can say anything, he’s pulling a pair of gloves out of his pockets and holding them out to me. "Do you think you could hold these gloves for a second?"

I narrow my eyes—now I’m just confused. “What? Why?”

He shrugs again. “Well, I usually warm them up by the fireplace, but you are way hotter.”

I can’t stop myself from grinning at that one.

"Well," I say, taking a step closer, "you know what else looks cold?"

"What?" he asks, following suit and meeting me halfway so that we’re only inches say from each other.

"Your lips," I tell him. "Guess I should warm them up, too, huh?"

One side of his mouth quirks up. “Well, all you had to do was ask.” Then he leans forward and lightly presses his lips to mine.

I think this is the fastest I’ve ever even come close to seducing someone.

We keep it quick and innocent, but I can tell he wants more, and I definitely don’t have a problem with that. “There’s a closet in the hallway right outside this room,” I whisper. “Just in case you want to get a little more intimate…”

He nods. “I’ve wanted that pretty much since the moment I saw you.”

"I could say the same about you," I agree, taking his hand and leading him out of the room. Sure enough, the supply closet is right there, and I quickly open the door to let us both in. The very second that it closes, Kellin grabs me by the collar of my white shirt and kisses me long and hard. Our hands are moving fast, unbuttoning each other’s jackets and tossing them down on the floor. I push him up against the wall, biting his bottom lip as I kiss him back. He threads his fingers in my hair, pulling me even closer to him and moaning softly into my mouth when I grab him by the hips and run my fingers underneath his shirt.

"Holy fuck," he whispers against my lips. "That escalated quickly.” He moves his lips downward, leaving tiny kisses all over my neck. “I like it.”

I reach up to loosen his tie, and he does the same with mine, but we only get so far because we’re stopped by the closet door opening.

"Okay," Alex says, "if you two are in here, I’m gonna—Jesus Christ." He cringes in an exaggerated fashion when he notices the position Kellin and I are in. "I guess this is my fault for telling Vic to unleash the gay. That’s very, very gay. And also not G-rated."

I take a step away from Kellin, trying to fix my tie and feigning innocence. “Uh…oops?”

"I was sent to go figure out where you guys were headed," Alex explains. "And, well, now I’ve got my answer." With that, he walks away, leaving Kellin and I to stand there wondering what the hell just happened.

"He’s got a point," I say. "This is not the location for make-out sessions." I raise an eyebrow suggestively. "Wanna go to my place? It’s such a shame, having a king-sized bed and no one to share it with."

Kellin smirks, picking his jacket up off the floor and putting it back on. “I like the sound of that. Let’s go.”