Devil's Impact

Playtopia

Ryan glanced at his outfit for the third time since he'd put it on twenty minutes ago. He was fresh from the shower, and his hair looked good - jagged and pushed to the side, the way he'd been wearing it for awhile now. He double checked his jawline and chin, but his dark scruff looked good, not too long or too short. Despite having gone all over the country with Chester Bennington, spending many nights in hotel rooms together and sightseeing in beautiful cities like New Orleans and San Francisco, tonight was different. Tonight was the first time they'd be going out on an actual date. And not just as friends, but on a romantic date as boyfriends.

It was exciting, and Ryan could only hope that Chester would approve of the activities he'd lined up for the two of them. It had been an easy choice to leave their cars at home. Their first stop was dinner, and Ryan wanted them to have the freedom to order drinks and not worry about getting behind the wheel. And Jay didn't argue. Especially after I reminded him that I didn't want to end up in the same situation that he and Mike did in Seattle - too drunk somewhere to drive home.

Ryan curled his lips together in a silent chuckle. The look that had crossed Jason's face had been priceless. Ryan had patted his husband on the bicep, and also mentioned that he wanted to pay for the whole night, too. It was his and Chester's first date, after all, and he didn't want Chester worrying about the cost of anything. Ryan smiled when Jason had nodded and said sure, still a little taken aback by the Seattle comment. It was comical in Ryan's head and in the end, he'd gotten what he wanted - permission to call an Uber to take him and Chester around L.A. and the greenlight to pay for the whole night. It felt like the sky was the limit, and Ryan was bouncing on his toes as he thought about it.

It's too bad we're all still on break though. Coming home and taking him to bed would be a great cherry on the top of our first date...but it's okay,he decided as he stood in the bathroom in front of the vanity, checking his outfit again. His short sleeved black dress shirt looked nice over his black jeans. Just the slight touch of blue in his shirt buttons and on the collar brought it all together, and Ryan was happy with his outfit. I hope this isn't overdoing it, he questioned himself as he leaned forward to take one last defining look at the eyeliner he'd applied just a few minutes ago. It looked good around his blue eyes, but he didn't want to look out of place next to Chester. He had no idea what his boyfriend would or wouldn't be wearing.

He thought about turning on the water and washing it away before going out to the living room, but then decided, Fuck it. Chazzy will like it, and that's all that matters tonight.

He let out a deep breath, ran his hands over his shirt and the expensive cobalt blue buttons, and then he looked at the time. He was out of it. Ryan turned off the bathroom light, and headed into the bedroom. He snatched his wallet from his bedside table before leaving for the living room. He knew Mike and Jason would be waiting on him and Chester to leave before settling Julien down to eat dinner with them, and the girls, too, if they were awake. Ryan was hoping all three kids would be good for their husbands while they were out having fun.

He could hear Julien laughing before he even made it all the way into the common area, and he smiled instantly at the sight of his son playing with Jason on the floor, the two of them playing with the Jack-in-the-box Jason had brought back with him from Seattle as a surprise. Ryan was stopped on the other side of the couch as he watched. It was hard to not run over and sit down with them to play the game, too. He glanced towards the kitchen where Mike was making something in the microwave, and Ryan had to figure it was the leftover chicken and rice casserole from last night. He could smell it.

The girls were on the floor, both of them on double playmats, staring up at hanging toys over their heads - a mix of farm animals and flowers. Ryan couldn't help the instant nostalgia. It wasn't so long ago that Julien was that age, happy to lay in one place and stare at dangling safari animals. Now his little boy wanted to go everywhere and touch everything.