I find it funny that the music from my ‘inspiration’ playlist actually worked, and now I’m suffocating in drabble ideas. I’m actually planning to do a drabble for each song, all twenty of them, so here’s number one. And yes, this is Joseph as in ‘Lancaster twin number one’, Jordyn’s brother (it helps if you read Twin Dynamics first, because then you know who they are.)

Inspiration: Our Lawyer Made Us Change The Name Of This Song So We Wouldn’t Get Sued, by Fall Out Boy

Warnings: Slash. And that’s it.

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It was January when Caden first really noticed Joseph Lancaster.

Before that chilly Thursday it was like he’d never really seen the sheen of his gold-whiskey colored hair, dusted with highlights of snow and blue dye, nor the mischievous glint of his cerulean eyes or the seemingly eternal upward tilt of his mouth. Maybe he’d never realized how angelic his laughter sounded, or how lithe and deliberate his movements were. Now it seemed highly unlikely that Caden, who wasn’t stupid in any sense of the word, could be that ignorant.

It was the next day that he’d actually started talking to Joseph, and the next week they grew close enough to trade casual crude comments and flirt like it didn’t mean anything. And it was the week after that that the red ribbon appeared around Joseph’s wrist, proclaiming proudly to the world ‘Do Not Open Before Christmas’. And it was the day after that when Caden realized exactly what that phrase was supposed to mean.

It was February on Valentine’s Day that Caden found Joseph at his locker being bombarded by both girls and boys alike, flinging valentines randomly as they passed and wishing him a happy Valentine’s Day. He’d turned to Caden and shrugged sheepishly, grinning like he always did. Caden had presented Joseph with a valentine and a slip of paper that he told Joseph meant he owed the blond a favor; any favor, anything at all. Joseph had smirked and slipped the favor slip into his pocket and the valentine into his binder, and he’d hugged Caden and announced that his valentine was undying love and devotion to the end of the world.

It was March when Joseph’s brother Jordyn pulled Caden aside and told him that he suspected that Joseph was crushing over someone, and did he know who it was? Caden, bewildered and disappointed that Joseph hadn’t told him, relayed those feelings to Jordyn. He’d sighed and gone off to his next class, probably to ask someone else who it was. Caden wondered why he didn’t connect with Jordyn the way he did with Joseph, even though they were twins.

It was April when Jordyn found Caden again, this time to tell him that Joseph was positively lovesick. Caden had noticed this; Joseph was happier and livelier than ever, especially that Caden could see, and his innuendoes had become increasingly dirtier when he spoke to Caden. He’d also noticed that Joseph’s flirting seemed more intentional than before, but had no idea what that meant. Jordyn had flung up his hands in exasperation and stormed off.

May had rolled around when Joseph agreed to go out with Mallory Devon, and Caden was happy for him. But Jordyn said that he was still as obsessed as anything with his crush, and it definitely wasn’t Mallory. That was all he’d been able to get from his brother, and Caden should ask him about it. Caden had decided not to, simply to respect Joseph’s privacy. But when Joseph broke up with her two weeks later, Caden was struck by the thought that friends were supposed to meddle.

June had appeared when Joseph and his ribbon became something to lust over, and apparently someone had started a betting pool about who would take the ribbon off, how long he would hold out, and who exactly Joseph was crushing on. Caden was furious, as any best friend should be, but he was especially angry when he saw Joseph talking to boys whose only intentions, he knew, were to take that ribbon off. And then to leave him, was his next conclusion, and Caden always drove them away. It was worth it to see Joseph smile gratefully at him.

July was high in the sky when Caden had become something of a bodyguard, almost always at Joseph’s side. He’d learned not to trust anyone who he knew had impure intentions, and an irrational jealousy boiled in his blood whenever someone got too close to his blond friend. He found himself growling at anyone whose hands strayed; boys whose fingers rested on Joseph’s belt, girls who leaned in too close when they told secrets. Almost always Caden scared them away, and always Joseph laughed and hugged him.

August dawned as Caden ended up saving Joseph from an end no one would want for themselves; late in the week he’d found Joseph and one of the footballers struggling, Joseph obviously losing. And just as the jock’s fingers began to tug on the red ribbon Caden had punched him in the jaw so hard his own knuckles were bruised. Later, Caden had double-knotted the ribbon himself, and Joseph had laughed and cried on his shoulder.

September was setting when things became awkward between the two; the hugs Joseph had always given so freely were now quick and tentative, and Caden’s reassuring touches became rare and fleeting. Jordyn told him that Joseph was actually getting sick, hardly eating or sleeping and spending all too much time by himself. Caden became worried and jealous; whoever Joseph loved that much was lucky, but also a complete idiot. But how much could you love someone? Somewhere in the back of his mind, he knew exactly how much.

October had newly risen when Caden confronted him about this depression, and Joseph had broken down for the second time in so many months. He’d explained through tears that he really, really liked someone–a guy, he confided, smiling grimly–and that it hurt because he was so in love. And he was afraid that his crush had no feelings for him, even though he was so obvious in dropping hints. Caden finally began to see the light, and he’d held Joseph close as he cried himself to sleep.

November came quickly, as did the sense of anticipation of anxiousness in Caden’s stomach. That week he asked Joseph to date him, and Joseph had readily accepted, flinging his arms around Caden’s neck enthusiastically and kissing him. Caden found out later that Joseph had been trying to tell him that he was the one he’d loved for so long, and he’d laughed until Joseph punched him.

December was welcomed with open arms, and everyone who knew Caden and Joseph were wondering if he would return from break minus the ribbon. Caden himself didn’t know what the future held until the night before Christmas, when Joseph had stood and taken a familiar slip of paper from his pocket. Caden’s eyes widened; Joseph sat himself in his boyfriend’s lap and asked him, smirking, if he knew what it meant. And Caden, for his part, knew all too well.

January came too slowly for everyone, and anyone who was anyone wanted to know what Christmas had brought their favorite couple. It was that day at lunch, in view of the whole school, that Caden had stood Joseph on the table, kneeled before him, and slipped the ribbon off with his teeth. The room had erupted in cheers and Joseph had been congratulated; there had even been pictures of the event circulated afterwards. Caden was triumphant.

The next week, Caden had returned from the weekend with twin gold ribbons around his own wrists bearing the fateful insignia ‘Do Not Open Before Christmas’. Joseph had grinned wickedly, and Caden got the feeling that he wouldn’t be able to hold out until December.