The Noble Desire (Peterick)

.•°Fifteen.•°

A/N: Sorry.

He thought he would give Gabe the benefit of the doubt since he had been gracious enough to save them from their problem. Though, Patrick was still wary of being alone with him, so he made sure Brendon stuck around a while. Pete's friend had pulled out another joint when they walked into the garden and was balancing it in the corner of his plump lips while he struggled to light it.

"Wow. It's really beautiful here," Gabe commented, fingers trailing some rose petals.
Patrick nodded in agreement and noticed Brendon had finally sparked a flame.

"It's rad that you landed this sweet job," he continued, "Like I wouldn't have ever imagined I'd attend a royal party, but you get to go to them all the time, don't you?"
"Yup."
"Hey, I've gotta call my girlfriend and tell her where I am. I forgot she was going to come over tonight. Can I use your phone real quick?" Brendon spoke.

Gabe handed the device over, and Patrick's throat seized as they watched him walk off.
"You're a bit tense there, Pat. Everything cool?"
"What? Um...yeah. Definitely."
"I can tell that it isn't. I understand. You want nothing to do with me. Let's just hang out tonight as friends, okay? No harm in that."

Patrick took a deep breath and followed the college student back inside where they walked around aimlessly for a few minutes, talking about nothing. Gabe went on about school, and Patrick attempted to be invested in the boring subject matter by nodding his head and smiling at the right times. They eventually found the kitchen unoccupied by any other souls. It was uncomfortable to be somewhere he knew was off-limits during parties, but it was far too late to inform Gabe of that when he had already gone inside and was looking around.

"Hey, man. Someone left some perfectly good champagne here. Want a glass?" he told Patrick, holding up the bottle.
Patrick shrugged in response, which prompted Gabe to grab a corkscrew from a drawer. The cork released a soft hiss after being opened- a prelude to the effervescence whooshing like the stirring of leaves in the breeze or the rustling of taffeta, right before its more sedate arrival in the glasses. The bubbles were shooting stars, whizzing through the liquid- whirling and spiraling upwards.

Wrapping his fingers around the cup, he felt his heat leach into the alcohol. He raised the glass to sip, the delicate fragments of gold bubbles that formed a cordon round the edge of the rim tickling his lips. The whiffs he received from the champagne were mature scents of white flowers with hints of orange peel and wild berries, but the aroma was volatile and constantly evolved in each glass he had. Patrick savored the pleasant sparkling, the instantly seductive and velvety taste that had underlying fruitiness sneaked in between. The bubbles felt like crystalline pearls on his tongue- acidulous flavors that stood out against a rich, smooth background of ripe fruit and exotic wood interlaced with the fragrance of those white flowers.

They reminded him of musicians in a symphony orchestra, rising to a crescendo then diminishing by degrees to close on a note of peace and harmony. Excitement, completeness, tranquility- a symphony in three movements that made him disappear into a blissfully drunken state that could not so easily be broken. Gabe took notice in how times Patrick grabbed the bottle to pour it, obviously much more sober in how he stood and watched the latter. The drinking nullified the bodyguard, stealing away reality in favor of blurred senses and no common sense. Patrick was a fool when he drank, and he could cross his heart that he'd only have more drink, but he was never able to stop once he started.

"You've probably had enough already," Gabe told him.
His hair was tussled by the taller man, but Patrick simply lowered his head and teetered into open arms. The student was quick to catch him and try to stand him up straight, but he stumbled backwards into the open closet, knocking against cleaning supplies with feet stomping on the other's. Gabe looked down at the lovely pools of blue and yellow combined in an illusion of emerald staring up at him, and he had that desire again that rose to the crest of his heart. There was no denying how beautiful Patrick was.