Title: On the Bus
Author: meagan <nutmeg@serv.net
Summary: Immediately (like two minutes) after "Support," Xander and Oz talk a bit more and take a little bus ride. Part of the Marked series.
Distribution: Niccy already has it it for her X/O page. Otherwise, please ask. If nothing else, it will eventually be on my page -- http://www.oocities.org/meaganola Spoiler: Just the rest of the Marked series.
Rating: PG, I think.
Disclaimer: Of *course* they belong to someone else. If they were mine, things would be different. Specifically, they belong to Mutant Enemy, Fox (I'm still mad at them for [a] pulling the transcripts and sound files and [b] cancelling _Action_), WB, and anyone else I forgot.
Feedback: I use it to gauge whether anyone still cares about this stuff and whether I should bother writing and posting more. Also, I save it and read it whenever I need a happy.
Notes: There's nothing quite like a mind-numbing day of work to get fic ideas rolling. I haven't decided where Molly lives yet. For those familiar with Seattle, I'm trying to decide between three areas: Wallingford, Fremont, and Ballard. Probably Ballard, maybe Fremont, and Wallingford is a last resort thing. Also, if you like to see little bits of the city dropped in stories, go read J.A. Jance's J.P. Beaumont series (he's a Seattle homicide detective. They're quick, fun, easy reads. Depressing for people like me who still mourn the death of the Doghouse, but it's still fun to picture Beau doing his assorted things around town). Also Earl Emerson's Thomas Black series. Another detective, but instead of SPD, he's private, and the tone is darker than J.A. Jance's stuff.
Dedicated to the complete stranger on the 26 and 28 buses in the pink t-shirt and brown pants the day before I wrote this. I have no idea who she was, but she was sure fun to watch. Also dedicated to a former acquaintance who once said, "Every time I think I might be exclusively gay, I have a dream about women's breasts." The last I heard, he had just married a nice girl and was working on planning a family with her.

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Something Oz had said earlier stuck in Xander's mind. Carefully, he pulled away from Oz's arms. "Oz?"

"Yeah?"

"Crying?"

A long pause. Finally, "Yeah." Nothing more.

Gently, or so he hoped, Xander pressed. "When?"

"After you left me alone in the living room." Ashamed, Xander was speechless. And his distress showed. "No, Xan, it's cool. It wasn't like you abandoned me. It's just that it finally hit me when you left to talk to Moll."

"I'm sorr --"

Like a toddler tired of listening to his mother, Oz placed his hand over Xander's mouth. "No. You left me alone --" Xander attempted a protest. Or maybe an apology. Either way, Oz wasn't letting him say a word. Oz's other hand cradled the back of Xander's head, forcing him to look Oz in the eyes. He spoke slowly and deliberately. "-- when I needed to be left alone. Alone, not lonely. I knew you were there in the kitchen if I needed you. And right then, I needed you to be away from me. It was like... It was like there had been this huge weight pressing down on me. A pressure I hadn't even realized was there. But then you came along and lifted it. But I didn't know it was gone until you left the room to talk to Moll. I thought it was just you physically being there -- at the beach, in the U District -- that did it and that you needed to be there to keep it away from me. But it wasn't, and you don't." Now Oz flushed, finally removing his hands from Xander's mouth and head. Xander stared, amazed. He hadn't been aware that the quiet musician ever experienced embarrassment. "I'm talking a lot again."

Xander smiled. "That's okay. I like listening to you talk. And you do it so rarely at home."

"I'm not myself when I'm up here. Or maybe I'm myself only when I'm up here. Either way, things are kind of different here."

"So I noticed."

They stood, silently staring at their shoes, for a long moment. "Xander?"

"Hmm?"

"Thanks."

"For?"

"For letting me be different up here. And not making me feel weird about it."

Xander sighed. "Same here. I feel... adult. Responsible."

Now their stomachs rumbled in unison. "Can we go get something to eat now? I'm starting to feel a bit light-headed. Woozy. And emotional discussions are much easier to deal with on a full stomach."

~~~
They decided to take the bus to dinner since parking could be tricky in the area. Shortly after they boarded the extremely noisy and crowded bus, it stopped to pick up a passenger. A female passenger. With large, heavy breasts and a lacy bra under a t-shirt. It wasn't a thin t-shirt, but the lace of the bra was so textured that it was obvious what was underneath. Due to the lack of seats on the crowded bus, she was forced to remain standing, hanging on to the overhead bar, half-facing Xander and Oz. Because of this hanging position, her breasts swayed with every jolt and jerk of the bus. Xander stared, entranced.

And Oz chuckled. Whispering, he asked, "What, still into girls?"

"Um..."

"Hey. Remember who just asked that question." He paused, contemplating the woman. "She could make straight women want to feel her up."

Stunned by Oz's remark, Xander could only stare. First at his friend, then at the stranger.

Oz shrugged. "Hey, I know who you're going home with." Xander said nothing. He simply continued to stare at the girl. "Xan? Anybody home?"

With great effort, Xander tore his attention away from the swaying breasts and back to Oz. "Sorry."

"What, you think I'm upset?" Embarrassed, Xander nodded. "Nah. After all, I'm looking at her, too. And I have a girlfriend." As soon as Oz said that last word, he realized it was the wrong thing to say. Xander's face fell, and he hunched over in his seat. Gently, Oz pulled Xander's head to his shoulder. "No. None of this guilty angsty crap. It's not allowed. All I'm saying is that what we're doing doesn't automatically mean that you're going to not be attracted to females. We'll deal with everything else later."

"'What we're doing?' That's what you want to call it?" Xander's voice grew sadder with each word.

Oz sighed, exasperated. "No, it's not. But it was the quickest way to say things." He paused, considering ways to get Xander thinking about something else. When none of his options seemed most appealing, he shrugged. And then licked Xander just behind his earlobe.

Before he realized what he was doing, Xander closed his eyes and moaned softly. When he opened them, he saw the girl turn around and smile at them. Then he realized Oz's mouth was still at his ear, sucking and pulling at his earlobe. "Oz?"

"Hmm?" Softly, because Oz was cautious about noise so close to Xander's ear, but still loud enough to send vibrations skittering down Xander's spine.

"Could you not do that right now?"

It was Oz's turn to be embarrassed. He pulled away. "Public place. Display of affection not cool. Sorry." He carefully wiped the saliva off of Xander's ear. "There. No marks."

"No, that's not it. Well, kind of. It's just..." Words were eluding him. Time for a hands-on demonstration. So to speak.

Just like Xander had done before him, at the first touch of tongue to skin, Oz closed his eyes and moaned, a low, rumbling sound that made Xander smile. Then Oz opened his eyes and sighed, happy yet resigned. "Okay. I see your point." Now he picked up Xander's hand, tracing the lines on his palm. "We *really* need a car right now."

"Car?" Xander was thoroughly perplexed.

"Mmhmm." Oz's fingers continued to dance lightly over Xander's hand, now moving up to his wrist. "With a big back seat or fold-down seats."

"Huh?" Truthfully, Xander wasn't paying much attention to Oz's words. He was too busy watching and feeling those fingers on his hand and wrist.

Smiling brightly, Oz dropped Xander's hand. Right onto Oz's crotch.

"Oh." Xander looked up once again to see the girl still smiling at them.

"Hey, this is our stop." Oz pulled the stop request cord and nudged Xander out of the seat. Since this was the only vacant seat on the bus, Xander motioned, offering it to the standing girl.

"Thanks." She sat, watching the two of them until the bus came to a halt, as if trying to decide whether to say anything else. Then, just as they were preparing to finish the push the the front of the bus, she spoke again. "Have fun, you two."

Xander turned and smiled politely. "Thanks."

Oz grinned widely. "Well, that's the plan."

She smirked. "It looks like you have a head start on it already."

Confused, Xander followed Oz off the bus. "I wonder what that was all about."

"You really don't know?" Xander shook his head. Oz stopped, stepping up to mold his body tightly against Xander's. "Do you understand now?" A small smile played at the corner of Xander's lips.

"I'm not sure. Can you explain it a bit more clearly?" Slowly, Oz began to rock his hips against Xander's.

"Ah. I see your point."

"Come on. Let's eat. I'm hungry." Oz pulled Xander along the sidewalk towards the restaurant.

"Oz?"

"Yeah?"

"Next time, let's take a car."

~~~ the end ~~~