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ganglylimbs · 8 years ago

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A Cup Of Sugar

Pairing: Gavin Free/Lindsay Tuggey/Michael Jones/Meg Turney

Summary: Gavin gets new neighbors. This is how his life changes.

Notes: So, I’m late again with another story for Mavinseg week. This one is a combination of 3 seducing 1 and Go Big or Go Home.

Warnings: Neighbor AU, abstract amount of time. It’s also the longest one sot I’ve written. 10,855 words

Edit: I forgot to say, if you would like to buy me a coffee, please do!

The neighborhood was a small one, quiet with neatly manicured lawns and white picket fences. It was close enough to the nearest city, and to the nearest community college, that getting groceries wasn’t too much of a trek but far enough away that the prices were reasonable cheap. Gavin was no social butterfly, but even he knew most of his neighbors. He knew Burnie and Geoff from down the street often have BBQ competitions during the summer. He knew their wives, Ashley and Griffin, put up with because they love them. He knew not to disturb his grumpy neighbor Gus during Saturday mornings, as he’s most likely to be recovering from a hangover. He was friends with the rowdy but strangely nice group of college boys who live across the street from him. Though the guy scared him and was a bit weird, Gavin was even on friendly terms with Haywood who lived three doors down and to the left of him.

And of course he was well aware when quiet, funny Ray Narvaez Jr., who had previously lived to the right of him, moved to another city to live with his girlfriend. It was practically the talk of the neighborhood for two weeks. Gavin, being the guy’s next door neighbor and sort of friend, got used to the coming and goings of cars as the realtor showed off the house. Two months later, when the talk had slowed down, as did the cars, Gavin had mostly forgotten about it.

Gavin had just gotten back from a long shoot, paying the cabbie and thinking of the nice hot bath he was going to take, when the sight of a moving truck parked in front of the house next to his made him pause. I guess they sold the house? Which Gavin thought was weird, considering he hadn’t heard anything about it, especially with the way the neighborhood loved to gossip.

Not wanting to be caught awkwardly staring, Gavin finished paying the cabbie and quickly walked into his own house. Once the door was closed, he briefly thought about what he should do now. It was customary that he introduced himself, right? That was the social norm? So should he go over and say hi? Gavin didn’t really see the point in that and besides, it would require him to bring something (he can’t cook and after his disastrous try at meeting new people by bringing wine to the surprising-nonalcoholic Ryan, he was warily of trying that route again). So...maybe not.

What if they wanted to come over here and introduce themselves? Gavin looked around. His house was neat enough (?) and Gavin was great at faking small talk. But the thought of new people coming into his space slightly frightened him and Gavin found himself hoping it didn’t come to that.

So his best course of action was to meet them at the next block party, where they could be distracted by other people and no expectations would be placed on him. Nodding to himself for coming up with such an excellent plan, Gavin went to start that bath.

Of course, Gavin should have taken in the fact that it was spring and while they lived in a fairly warm place, Geoff and Burnie usually waited till they were sure that the cold weather wouldn’t come back before bringing out their pits.

So it wasn’t till a month later, when Gavin heard a knock on his door, that he realized he had no idea who this strange woman was on his doorstep.

“Hi there!” Gavin had to admit, she was cute. Shorter than him, and plumper, with bubble gum pink hair, she seemed to shine with happiness. Her smile was wide, her eyes bright, and Gavin couldn’t help smiling back at her.

“Hi?” Gavin asked, hyper aware that he was still in his shirt that he slept in last night and the hastily put on pajama bottoms.

She stared at him for a second before blinking. “Oh. Sorry. I guess I should introduce myself. Lindsay Tuggy, I recently moved next door.”

Gavin shook her outstretched hand, purely out of instinct. He was a bit shocked that this was his next door neighbor. If he had known that he may have gone over sooner-yeah no. No he wouldn’t have. “Gavin Free.”

“Nice to meet you.” There was that bright smile again and Gavin could feel his face getting hot. “I know we’ve never met before and I’m sorry if I’m bothering you and how awfully cliche this is, but could I borrow a cup of sugar?”

Gavin was a little taken aback. “Oh, um. Sure? Sure. I could go get it...or do you want to come inside? I have some tea I made up. It’s probably not hot but I could heat it up again. Or maybe some water-do you drink water? I don’t have a lot of other drinks-”

“Water is fine.” Lindsay broke in, chuckling a little.

Gavin smiled back at her, relaxing, and let her in. “Ok.”

Lindsay followed him into the kitchen. Gavin noticed her looking around as he got her a cup, fiddling with it for a few seconds as he tried to think of a topic. Small talk. He could do this. “So...you recently moved here? From where?”

“Oh from uptown Austin. Finally decided it was time to move in with my partners, to our very first house.”

“That sounds nice.” Gavin handed her the water. “What’s your partner’s name?”

“Partners. Meg Turney and Michael Jones, the loves of my life.” She beamed again and Gavin caught the dreamy look in her eyes.

He couldn’t help feeling a bit disappointed that such a cute and nice girl was taken by not one, but two people, but quickly shook that off. “You sound really fond of them.” He noted.

Lindsay nodded. “I’m serious when I say I’ll probably spend the rest of my life with them.”

“Wow, I’m a bit shocked. But happy for you!” He quickly added on. “I can’t imagine finding someone to live with me, not to mention two people.”

“Oh, you can’t be that bad.” Lindsay teased.

“That’s because you’ve only known me for five minutes.” Gavin pointed out. “Trust me, I’m terrible. Can hardly take care of myself.”

“Sounds just like me! I’m so lucky I met Michael and Meg. I probably wouldn’t have made it this long without them. I’d burn water and I tend to throw my clothes everywhere. Michael threatened to break up with me the next time he trips over my shoes.”

“I’m horrible at making food too.” Gavin replied. “The last time I tried to make food for myself, I nearly burnt my kitchen down.”

“I almost did that too. Thank God for take out, right?”

“Absolutely. Gets a bit expensive though.” Gavin laminated.

“Well, maybe I’ll bring you some of Michael’s food. He’s great at feeding me. And Meg is fabulous at baking sweets. Which reminds me.” Lindsay looked over Gavin’s shoulder, at the clock on the microwave. “I should probably get back with that sugar.”

Gavin quickly straightened up. “Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to keep you.”

Lindsay flapped her hand at him. “Don’t worry about it. Meg can wait a few minutes.”

They were walking back to the door, saying their goodbyes, when Lindsay caught sight of Gavin’s cat slinking around.

Lindsay immediately stopped, squealing. “You have a cat?”

“Yeah. His name is Smee.” Gavin looked over to where Smee was giving them an unimpressed look, sat atop Gavin’s couch like a King on his throne. “I’m guessing you like cats?”

“I fucking love cats. Unfortunately, Michael hates them and refuses to let us get one. We do have a dog, but that’s because Meg had Penny before we started dating her.” Lindsay had already set her plastic tub of sugar down and was quietly calling to the cat with little kissing sounds.

“Woof. That sucks.” Gavin said as he watched her, instantly feeling sympathy. His old apartment hadn’t allowed pets. It had been freeing, to buy his own house and get Smee. Less lonely too. “I love Smee, though he can be a little minge pot at times.”

“Minge pot?” Lindsay questioned, smirking up at him.

“It’s a word.” Gavin defended. “And Smee is the mingest cat. He sometimes gets grumpy and swipes at me. Or wakes me up at three am because he went mental.”

“Sounds like the cats I grew up with.” Lindsay gave up on trying to call Smee over to her. Gavin blames the way her mouth briefly turns down into a pout for the next words that come out of his mouth.

“You can come over some other time?” He offered. She tilted her head at him and Gavin looked away. “If you want to, that is, and play with Smee a bit. He’s usually more relaxed and willing in the morning, after being fed.”

Lindsay was silent for a brief second before breaking out into that sunny smile that Gavin’s was starting to associate with her. “That’s sounds awesome. Michael will certainly be grateful anyways.”

Gavin waved goodbye to Lindsay from his doorway, a piece of paper in hand with a date for when Lindsay would next come over. As soon as he shut the door, Gavin felt some panic starting to set in.

What had he done?

Flowers had started to bud as spring set in and Lindsay had visited him four more times. Most of the time, it was to play with Smee and lightly talk with Gavin (those visits usually lasted no more than ten minutes) but she also had a habit of coming over to borrow something from him.

Mostly sugar.

“I’m starting to suspect you're taking advantage of me.” Gavin brought up one day as he handed her a full cup (neatly labeled Lindsay because if they were going to do this, Gavin was going all out).

“Would I do that? Me?” Lindsay fluttered her eyelashes at him. Gavin gave her a look and she laughed. “Ok, so maybe I’m being a little lazy. But at least it gives me an excuse to come talk to you.”

“You don’t need to make up an excuse.” Though Gavin was flattered she wanted to. He had half-thought that he had scared her away with his extensive talk of cameras and editing when they had talked about their jobs one day (though Gavin had to admit, she almost had him running for the hills when she casually mentioned she worked for a big name company. As the bloody CEO).

But she had stayed. And listened. And asked questions. And wasn’t that strange? Gavin wasn’t used to people being interested in his work. Yeah the people he worked for, and Dan, and his parents were, all to different degrees. But the people around here? The second Gavin dived into anything more than “I film slow motion”, people had a habit of tuning out.

Lindsay didn’t and Gavin was grateful for that.

So no, Gavin was more than ok with Lindsay popping up now and again. Dare he say, even looking forward to it.

Lindsay shows up for sugar and Gavin provides it without argument.

There’s a knock on Gavin’s door and Gavin eagerly opened it. Because either it’s a package from his company or Lindsay and Gavin was looking forward to both.

Instead, what he was met with was the sight of a grumpy looking guy, with freckles and glasses and short boyish hair and Gavin could feel his heart thumping loudly. It was like meeting Lindsay for the first time all over again, only with less blinding smiles.

“Are you Gavin Free?” The man asked. Or, well demanded.

Gavin could feel his shoulders hunching, mind racing to think about who he had pissed off. His company was happy with his latest video, he had cleared up that thing with his ex months ago, and Dan hadn’t inappropriately hit on anyone for a while. Nothing coming to mind, Gavin hesitantly nodded. “Yeah?”

If possible, the man’s frown deepened. “This is so fucking stupid.” He muttered before straightening. Gavin could only blink at him in confusion before the man continued. “My name is Michael Jones and I’m here to borrow a cup of sugar.” He paused before, almost reluctantly adding. “And some cold medicine, if you have any?”

Michael Jones? That name sound familiar-wait, cup of sugar? “Are you Lindsay’s boyfriend?” Gavin asked, eyebrows raising.

Michael rolled his eyes. “Has that idiot never mentioned us before? Yeah, I’m her boyfriend. Can I get that medicine?And sugar, I guess?”

Gavin licked his dry lips before letting Michael in and leading him to his kitchen. “Lindsay mentioned you. I just, uh, wanted to confirm? I guess.” He gave Michael the sugar before heading to the cabinet above his kitchen counter, rooting around for any left over cold medicine he may have had. “Did she send you over? Is she ok?”

“Yeah.” Michael’s voice was coming to the right of him. “Fucking idiot got herself sick and now I have to take care of her. Why she wants the sugar, I don’t fucking know. We have sugar at home.”

“You do?” Gavin looked over at him. Michael nodded. “Well she usually comes over to borrow some from me. I guess it’s more of an inside joke. She probably knew I wouldn’t remember her saying your name and so used that as a way to make sure I know she’s with you.”

“That or she’s a fucking idiot.”

Gavin frowned at those words. That was the third time he said that. It was hard imagining Lindsay, sunny Lindsay, with someone like Michael Jones. Even now, whenever Gavin glanced at the man, he was scowling at the room. Gavin hurried his search, wanting to end this meeting and becoming increasingly uncomfortable by the silence. He’d might have to ask about their relationship the next time Lindsay came to visit.

“So I only have a little of the off brand. It’s not much but I hope that it’ll do for now-” Gavin turned around and cut himself off as he tried to understand what he was seeing.

Michael was lightly petting Smee. He was still frowning but Smee seemed pretty happy enough for the both of them. Michael looked up to see Gavin staring at him. “What?”

Gavin shook himself. “Sorry, sorry. Just surprised, is all.”

Michael raised an eyebrow. “Surprised I’m petting your cat?”

Gavin shrugged, giving the man a small smile and hoping that it would calm Michael down. “Lindsay had mentioned that you didn’t care for cats?”

Michael stared at him. Then he slowly shook his head. “Of course she did.” He took the medicine and the sugar and headed for the door. Gavin followed, worried that he messed up.

As soon as they reached it, Michael spoke again. “I don’t hate cats.”

“What?”

Michael looked back at Gavin, still frowning but there was something...sad (???) about it. “I don’t hate cats. Lindsay likes to joke that I do. Sure, I’m a dog person. But I don’t hate cats. I just know we don’t have enough time to take care of one and I refuse to get a pet and treat it like a toy. Lindsay understands that. But she still wants one, one day.” His mouth twisted up at that, a small smile and his eyes seemed to sparkle a little, like he was remembering something funny.

Gavin was having a little mood whiplash. Michael had, honestly, seemed a little hateful. Unpleasant. But what he was saying was making sense and Gavin gained a little respect for him. Plus, the way he said Lindsay’s name, like something sweet he couldn’t get out of his mouth and didn’t want to, had Gavin thinking maybe he had judge Michael too quick.

But just as he was thinking that, Michael’s smile disappeared. “Thanks for the medicine. And the sugar.”

“Ah...you’re welcome.”

With a nod, Michael left. And Gavin was left standing there, thoroughly confused about what had just happened.

Three days later and Lindsay was back at his house. The first thing she said when he opened the door was “I’m sorry about Michael.”

Gavin turned to the side to let her in. “Hey Lindsay, how are you feeling? Your voice sounds a little rough.”

Lindsay sniffed at him. Her nose looked red and her hair was messy but her eyes were as clear as ever. “What? Yeah I’m fine. I just came to apologize for Michael.”

“Why? Did he say something?” Gavin asked as he lead Lindsay to the kitchen so he could pour her a glass of water.

“No, he didn’t. I know because he’s Michael.” Lindsay said it like that explained it. And maybe it did but what Gavin wasn’t sure. Instead he motioned for Lindsay to continue. “And because it’s Michael, I know the asshole acted like, well, an asshole. I wanted to apologize for it.”

“He was pretty...intense.” Gavin agreed.

Lindsay sighed before sitting down in one of the chairs, sipping at her drink. “Yeah, he can be. But honestly, it’s just because he was worried.”

“He seemed annoyed at me.” Gavin said, sitting down across from Lindsay.

“Like I said, worried. I was pretty sick but because I was suddenly busy at work, I didn’t really pay too close attention to what my body was trying to tell me. I woke up Tuesday dizzy and ready to vomit. Meg is out of town but luckily Michael was there. And Michael can get pretty protective when one of us gets hurt in any way so you can see where this is headed. He’s annoyed I didn’t take better care of myself, annoyed we don’t have any medicine, and annoyed that he has to ask for help.”

“Oh.” Gavin said, relieved as he slumped in his chair. “I thought he hated me.” Gavin had been so worried that he had done something to upset Michael. Worried that he had somehow ruined the friendship he had with Lindsay because her partner hated him.

“What?” Lindsay sputtered. “No, no. He doesn’t hate you. He thinks you’re cute actually-”

“What?” Gavin sat up.

“And if anything, he’s upset with me for making him look foolish in front of a pretty boy.”

Gavin was RED. He knew it, could feel the heat in his cheeks.

Lindsay smiled at him and if Gavin didn’t know any better, he would say that the smile was a bit devilish. “What?” Her voice was innocent. “That’s what Michael was most annoyed by, the fact that I told him he needed to ask for a cup of sugar. You wouldn’t believe the fit he threw. I had to argue with him for like, ten minutes. While I was sick.”

“Why?” Gavin moaned. He was a second away from dropping his head into his hand.

Lindsay shrugged, unbothered. “Because I thought it would be funny.” Gavin gave her a look. There was that smile again. “I had to entertain myself somehow.”

“You’re an arsehole.” Gavin grumbled.

“Yes, but I’m an asshole who got a good laugh when Michael slammed open the door, ranting about how silly he looked, standing on your doorstep, asking for a cup of sugar.” Lindsay leaned in, voice dropping down to a half-whisper, like she was sharing some big secret. “You know what he told me?”

Gavin was sure whatever Lindsay was going to say would make him blush again, but he leaned in.

“He told me that he felt like he was in some black and white film, like a suitor showing up on the doorstep asking for the hand of a delicate Southern Belle.”

And yep, there goes his cheeks. “He did not!” Not only couldn’t Gavin see the man he met yesterday saying those words, he wasn’t so sure if his poor brain could take it.

“Well, ok. Maybe not. But he did say he felt like some asshole from the 1950’s by doing that.” Lindsay was laughing. The cheerful sound was broken up by horrible coughing. Gavin sat there awkwardly, not knowing what to say or do as he let it pass over.

“Are you alright?” He finally asked.

Lindsay nodded, taking in large gulps of her drink. “Yeah, I’m good. But I should probably go now, before Michael comes home. I promised I would stay in bed all day, no matter how boring it is.”

“Your secret is safe with me.” Gavin gave her a little grin.

“Thanks.”

Before she left, Lindsay turned back towards Gavin, biting her lip. “I...I came over here to today because I wanted to let you know that Michael really is a sweet guy. Really. He’s romantic and fun to be around and. Well, I love him. And I know he didn’t leave you with the best impression. But he’s my partner and we’re friends and I...want you guys to get along.”

Gavin thought about the way Michael petted Smee, carefully, and the passionate response to why he didn’t want pets. “He certainly scared me, but if Smee likes him than he can’t be too bad right?”

Lindsay’s eyes went wide but she was smiling again. “He actually pet Smee?”

“And Smee let him.” Gavin eagerly agreed.

“He wouldn’t pet our old neighbor’s cat no matter how much Meg and I cooed over it!” Lindsay said, faux offended. “I can’t wait till he comes home to make fun of him for this one.”

To say his feelings surrounding Michael was confusing would be an understatement. When meeting with rude assholes or people that made him feel uncomfortable, Gavin’s stance on them usually didn’t change. But Lindsay seemed to be determined to make sure that they got along.

The next time she came over to chat, she brought along Michael.

It was awkward. Michael still scowled the entire time and Gavin remained fidgety. Lindsay was the only one who really talked, chatting excitedly about some big thing her company was going to do. Gavin tried his best to listen, but couldn’t get past the feeling of Michael’s eyes glaring at him. As they were starting to leave though, Michael caught sight of Gavin’s gaming system and they ended up staying an extra ten minutes, talking about favorite games and what new releases they were looking forward to.

The next time they come over, Gavin is out of town. This prompts Lindsay to ask for his phone number so they could text. Gavin doesn’t feel nervous when he hands it over.

Lindsay and Gavin send cat memes to each other. Michael asks that he not help fuel Lindsay’s cat obsession. Gavin starts sending pictures of Smee instead.

About the third time the two come over, it was unexpected and Gavin was slightly embarrassed by the pile of takeout he had yet to throw away. Michael took one look at it and then exploded. Started going into a tirade that embarrassed both Gavin and Lindsay. Then he left, leaving Lindsay to apologize. He reappeared twenty minutes later with home made food. Gavin took one bite and instantly forgave him.

It became, like, a thing between them. Lindsay would come over to pet Smee and Michael would feed Gavin some home made food. In between bites, they talked and Gavin grew to like the other man. Lindsay was right, he was really sweet. When you got pass the foul language and angry scowls that is.

Around the sixth time they came over, they brought another woman. She was beautiful, enough to make Gavin tongue tied. She had long purple hair and glasses, her makeup was spot on. She was thin looking, dressed in running gear. Michael introduced her as Meg. Gavin could only nod as his mouth had turned dry.

“So this is the guy you two have been sneaking off too.” Meg said, smile wide.

Gavin sputtered causing Meg to chuckle.

“We have not been ‘sneaking’ over here.” Lindsay admonish, but she was smiling too. “We told you where we were going. You were just too lazy to join us.”

“If by lazy, you mean incredibly busy than yeah. I was totally lazy.” Meg rolled her eyes.

“What do you do?” Gavin finally blurted out, having scrambled his brains back together in order to form a sentence.

“I’m a cosplayer.” Meg said. “I make all my own cosplay and have a Pateron going. I also make Youtube videos.”

“Wow, what do you cosplay?” Gavin asked. He never had the time or patience to cosplay himself, but he loved to look at what others did.

“Mostly video games. The last shoot I did was as Tracer from Overwatch.”

“Oh nice. Do you play?”

“Only occasionally. I usually play indie games instead. And Mario Kart!”

“I don’t think I’ve played Mario Kart since I was a teenager.” Gavin mused. He blinked as the three of them looked at him in shock. “What?”

“You haven’t played Mario Kart in how long?” Meg asked, sounding slightly offended.

“Um...I guess like, eight years?” Gavin said, confused.

“Lindsay.” Meg said.

“On it.” Lindsay replied, already heading towards the door.

“What?” Gavin asked.

“I’m going too. We’ll need snacks and I know he won’t have any.” Michael butted in, already following Lindsay.

“What?” Gavin asked again.

Meg laughed and grabbed him, dragging him deeper into his own home, towards the living room. “We are going to play Mario Kart. You get the added bonus of watching me kick everyone’s ass in it.”

Gavin could only grin as they began setting up his game station. Lindsay returned with the game and Michael with the promised snacks. Gavin thoroughly got his ass kicked by Meg but he wasn’t always last and delighted in the angry shouts Michael and Lindsay let out whenever they got screwed.

Mario Kart turned to beers and horrible movies and Gavin could honestly say he has never had so much fun in all of his life.

With the weather getting nicer, the Ramsey’s and Burn’s started their cookouts. Gavin of course was invited as was Michael, Meg, and Lindsay. The first one they attended, the neighborhood swamped around them, wanting to get as much information as they could. Gavin stayed a little away from the circle, knowing how tough it can be to be hounded with questions.

But after a few minutes, Meg had weaseled away to find and chat up Gavin.

“It’s good to see you.” She said. “I don’t think I’ve seen you anywhere but at your house.”

Gavin smiled. “I’m very...reclusive. I usually don’t have time to go outside and enjoy myself.”

“Shame. Michael has commented a few times about how your backyard would look lovely with a few flowers.”

“Michael likes to garden?”

“More like he likes to the act of being productive. He likes planting and pruning and watering. Don’t know if he actually likes the flowers. They do make a good background for photos though.”

“He really seems to like to work with his hands huh?” Gavin observed, looking over at where Michael and Lindsay were busy entertaining everyone. He noticed that Michael seemed to be hitting it off well with everyone. Lindsay was too, but he expect that of her.

Michael had a really nice smile. It showed off his dimples.

“Oh, I can assure you. He loves working with his hands.” Meg’s wink was raunchy.

It took real effort from Gavin to not spit out his drink. “That’s, uh. Good to know?”

Meg chuckled, taking a sip of her own drink. “By the way. What do you do for a living?”

Gavin, almost shyly, told her all about his work with slow motion. Meg asked question after question after question and Gavin found himself relaxing into a conversation with her. He told her all about him coming over to England at the recommendation of his mentor and setting up his business. That lead into a conversation about England and, after finding out about her stints in other states, California.

Gavin found himself really liking Meg. She could make him laugh about anything.

This continued for the next few barbecues. Everyone would gather around the newcomers, Meg would somehow slip away and find Gavin, and the two would engage in conversation before someone noticed them. Eventually, everyone got bored of questioning Lindsay and Michael, and the next time they came to a block party, they were left alone.

For some reason, they always chose to hang out with Gavin. Gavin would be talking to Geoff about something and they would pop up and immerse themselves in the conversation. Gavin ended up introducing them further to people, including Ryan (Gavin pushed down the feelings of jealousy-and what was that about-at the way Ryan and Meg got along so quickly) and Jeremy and Trevor and Matt and the rest of the college boys. That lead to Gavin finding one of Michael’s weakness-the man couldn’t say no to a bet.

Later, Gavin would have to apologize to Burnie for the chaos that followed.

Summer was always a busy time for Gavin (well, every season was busy, Gavin was always busy but particularly in the summer). Summers in Texas always produced good weather, especially the light Gavin needed to film. As long as he drank enough water and wore sunblock, Gavin filmed as long as he could.

As such, his visits with his next door neighbors went down. He still texted them (Meg had given her own number to Gavin, with much blushing on Gavin’s side, and Michael soon followed saying he might as well) but he sorely missed their face to face chats.

Also, Dan came to visit.

Gavin ran his business as sort of a one-man band. He filmed, he edited, he dealt with demanding producers, he created the website, and he owned the camera. Gavin did everything himself. Expect during the summer, when his workload picked up.

Dan wasn’t as experienced as Gavin was with camerawork, but he had helped Gavin when the Brit first started up his business. After awhile though, Dan had to go back home to England to take care of his grandparents, leaving the business to Gavin. But Dan was welcomed back anytime he wished. The problem was, Dan didn’t want to live in America and give up his house back in England and Dan wasn’t entirely set on being a cameraman either.

So the two came to an agreement. Whenever summer came around and Gavin got a little overwhelmed, Dan would come live with him till work slowed down. Then Dan would go back to England until next summer.

Gavin welcomed Dan into his house one fine May day. While Dan started to put his stuff away, Gavin called the company he would be working with tomorrow to tell them he was bringing an extra guy.

While he was negotiating prices with the man, Gavin heard a knock on his door. He put the guy on hold and opened the door to find Meg standing there, looking pristine and with a polite smile on her face. Surprised, he let her in and told her he had to finish a phone call first. Meg just nodded and Gavin went about his business.

A few minutes late, Gavin finished the call and walked into his kitchen to find Dan and Meg staring at each other.

“Meg, good to see you.” Gavin grinned, walking forward to give her a hug. Meg hugged back, a little tighter than Gavin was used to. “I’ve see you met Dan.”

“Yes.”

“He’s my best bet mate from England. He’s here to help me with work.” Gavin explained.

“Oh really?”

“Yes?” Gavin said. Something about Meg seemed...off. Meg was usually warm and friendly, at least to Gavin. It was weird to see her acting cold. “Is everything alright? Oh wait, you want a cup of sugar right?”

Dan snorted behind him.

“What?” Gavin questioned, turning to see his friend smirking.

“Nothing.” Dan replied, innocently.

“It sort of sounded like you were going to kiss me.” Meg jumped in, but she was smiling now. She winked at Gavin. “I wouldn’t mind getting some sugar from you.”

Gavin stammered as his brain disconnected. Meg shared a look with Dan before the two bust out laughing. After that, Meg seemed to warm up to Dan rather quickly as the three talked.

When Meg left, Gavin commented about Meg’s weirdness. Dan smiled at Gavin. “Looks like you got yourself a possessive bird there, Gav.”

Gavin gave him a look but didn’t commented. Probably just Dan pulling his leg again.

Expect Meg started visiting more often. Their visits were usually one every few days. Now it was like she found a reason to show up at Gavin’s house everyday. When Gavin asked, Meg just shrugged and said that Michael and Lindsay were out of town for a convention and she was lonely. It didn’t sound like a lie...but Gavin didn’t think it was the whole truth either.

Even when Michael and Lindsay came back, they just followed Meg to Gavin’s house. Gavin actually didn’t mind it, even with how busy he was, but it was weird. Lindsay was constantly touching him and Michael glared at Dan the entire time (more than usual, that is). Meg was the one to introduce them to Dan and Gavin didn’t know if he was imagining the way she put an emphasize on “friend”.

Dan took everything in stride, with an annoying little smirk. Like he knew something Gavin didn’t.

Gavin and Dan had just returned from a job out in California when Gavin got a text from Meg.

You want to have dinner with us tonight?

“Meg just asked us to have dinner with them.” Gavin told Dan, showing him the text.

Dan shook his head. “No. She asked you to dinner.”

“What?”

“Sounds like you’ve got a date, Gavin.”

“What?”

Dan’s smirk was slow to spread across his face. “B. I think she’s asking you out on a date.”

Gavin stood there blinking at him. “What?” He finally whispered.

“Gavin, they like you.”

“They do not.”

“They do. You should have seen the way they were all over you when they thought I was your boyfriend.” Dan continued to tease him.

“They weren’t.” Gavin knew his voice was getting a bit high. Dan just laughed at him and Gavin slapped Dan’s shoulder. “Don’t make fun of me.”

“I’m not making fun. I’m telling you the truth. They like you and Meg just asked you on a date.” Dan said, matter-o-factly.

Gavin stared at his phone. “Do you really think so?”

“I do.” Dan gave Gavin a friendly pat on the shoulder. “Wear that dark blue shirt of yours, makes your eyes pop.”

“Dan.”

Gavin is not sure what to expect when he goes over to the Jones-Tuggy-Turney house. He flipped and flopped over if this was a date or not. Had stared into his mirror, wondering if he was overdoing it with the shirt. He had an intense debate about whether to bring flowers or not.

Instead he brought a cup of sugar.

When Meg answered the door, she burst out laughing. Gavin could feel his cheeks burning (why, why did they always make him blush). “I...I hope this is ok?” He asked, holding out the cup. His eyes roamed over Meg. She wore a white, off the shoulders shirt, that ended out in a ruffle with black tights that hugged her calves. She looked good and Gavin was grateful that he decided to go dressy today. He supposed he should thank Dan later.

“It’s fucking perfect. Come on in.” Meg took the cup, leading Gavin further inside.

Gavin looked around. It suddenly struck him that, with the amount of time the three of them visited his house, he had never visited theirs.

It was nice. They clearly put some love into decorating the place. Pictures of the three of them decorated the walls, there were flowers in a couple of vases setting on top of tables (Gavin asked if they were Michael’s-Meg said yes), and an old clock sat in the corner. It sort of made Gavin’s house look bare.

Lindsay met them in the hallway, handing both Gavin and Meg a glass of wine. “You look good.” She said, looking him up and down.

“You do to.” Gavin replied, returning the favor. Lindsay had on a long-sleeve black sweater with a short pale skirt. Her black heels clicked against the wooden floors.

They made small talk for a bit, Gavin even met Meg’s little weiner dog Penny, before moving into the dining room, which was connected to the kitchen, the only thing separating them was a counter. In the kitchen, Michael was cooking. He looked over his shoulder at them and smiled. Gavin liked having those dimples aimed at him. Michael looked just as cute as the girls. He had on soft looking jeans and a light blue shirt, covered by a long brown jacket. His curly hair was covered by a brown beanie.

“I hope you like steaks? I figured I couldn’t go wrong with a steak.”

“I bloody love them.” Gavin reassured.

“Great, how do you want it cooked?”

“Medium, please.”

“Do you want to sit down?” Lindsay asked. “You look a bit tired?”

“I just got back from a shoot. Two days with very little sleep and I have to head out again Friday.”

Meg made a sound of sympathy. “I know that feeling. Back to back flights? It’s horrible.”

“Especially if you get the middle seat. The last time I had a middle seat, it was an absolute nightmare.”

“Tell me about it. One time I had a guy lean his head on my shoulder, using me as a pillow.”

“No.” Gavin said, aghast.

“And then he started reading my texts!”

“No!”

“Ok, you two. We don’t need to be discussing flying at the dinner table.” Lindsay said.

“Yeah, we hear Meg bitching about it enough. We don’t need two of you doing it.”

“Aw, but Michael.” Gavin said.

Michael pointed his finger at him, grinning. “Don’t you Micoo me.”

“But it’s cute the way he says your name.” Lindsay chimed in.

Gavin ducked his head and quickly steered the conversation to what they had been up to that week. Meg told him about the cosplaying she’s building, Michael complained about this shitty electrical job that he had to do, and Lindsay told him her company was thinking of buying their competitor. Gavin listened, amused by the way they told their stories and the way Michael exaggerated, hands flying all over the place.

The food was served, along with more wine and water. Gavin eagerly dug into his food, openingly moaning. “This is as good as always.”

“I’m glad you like it so much.” Michael looked far too pleased with himself.

“Hey, I made the potatoes.” Lindsay piped up. “Took me all day to peal too.”

“No you didn’t.” Meg said. She stabbed her fork at Lindsay. “This are instant.”

“Michael would never let us eat instant.” Lindsay said, sticking her nose in the air.

“I would if someone forgot to actually pick up potatoes and then had to go to the store thirty minutes before Gavin arrived.”

Lindsay pouted.

Gavin was grinning like a loon. He pointedly took a bite of the potatoes. “This taste delicious too, Lindsay.”

Lindsay stuck her tongue out at the other two.

Meg rolled her eyes before asking Gavin about his plans to attend the party the college boys were throwing. “The whole neighborhood is invited.”

Gavin shrugged as casually as he could. “I’m not good with parties, but if you guys go I will.”

That seemed to greatly please Meg.

The rest of the night went much the same. They swapped stories about their childhood and experiences in life, asked about parents and other relatives, touched on their dreams for the future, and even got into an argument about the way Gavin pronounced his words.

It felt comfortable and familiar.

Gavin helped them clean up, even going so far as to offer to help clean dishes, and all three walked him to the door. Gavin bit his lip before asking the question that had been on his mind for the whole night. “So...this was a date right?”

Meg’s smile was wide and soft. “Of course it was.”

Michael snorted. “You idiot. Yes.”

Lindsay giggled. “If you want it to be. I mean, I was hoping it was a date considering how much I like you and all.”

“Really?” Gavin asked, hopeful.

“Oh man, you should have seen these two.” Meg broke in. “They wouldn’t shut up about the cute neighbor with the amazing accent who I just had to meet. Lindsay practically threw away all our sugar at first so she could go over to talk to you-”

“I told you didn’t have to do that, Lindsay.” Gavin interrupted. Lindsay just shrugged.

“And Michael was an anxious mess for those first day, worried he had lost his chance.”

“As if you’re any better.” Michael pointed out. “The second you met him, you told us how much you wanted to ruin him.”

Meg wiggled her eyebrows at Gavin. “Oh I definitely did. And still want too.”

Gavin just shook his head. “So this was a date then.”

“Yep.” They all agreed.

Then they kissed him.

Meg’s kiss was hot. She clearly knew what she was doing as she pulled him closer to her, manhandling him into the perfect position so she could slot her lips against his.

Michael’s was passionate. His hold was tight against Gavin’s shirt, his lips aggressive as they clashed with Gavin’s.

Lindsay’s was sweet. She wiped off a bit of Meg’s lipstick from his mouth before pulling him in. Her’s was shorter than the rest, but she left Gavin with a nip on his bottom lip.

Gavin was dazed as they all smirked at him. “So...a date next week?”

“Date next week. But you’re planning it.”

They continued to visit him, but now the visits had a lot more making out included in them. Lindsay would peck him on the check before crouching to scratch Smee. Michael would demand a kiss in exchange for his food. Meg would pull him into a kiss as soon as they saw each other.

Gavin noticed that they were very generous too. Meg brought flowers as often as she could and Michael made a comment about decorating Gavin’s backyard. Lindsay would look online for objects that he commonly needed in his field and order them for him (even if it wasn’t a part Gavin needed, he still kept it, grateful that she bought it thinking of him). Michael brought over games they could play together and the two often shared their games’ library.

Dan had been right in calling them possessive. They would lay their arms across his shoulders and waist, would sit or lean close to him, had even sat in his lap a few times. The first time Meg did this at one of Geoff’s parties, Gavin had to hide his face in her neck at the teasing he got. Meg had no shame, of course, and neither did the others. They kept up their physical contact. Gavin didn’t mind as much as he complained he did.

Gavin also noticed how much more he was going to their house now. It just seemed easier, with all of them living there. Even if it was arriving at their house so that they could go somewhere else. Gavin started to think of the place as his second home. Slowly, little by little, he started leaving his things there. Some socks, a book, his controller-even his phone once.

He startled himself one day upon finding an extra toothbrush for him in their bathroom. And after they started having sex, he left an extra pair of clothes and pajamas in their room.

Sometimes, when Gavin slept in his own bed in his own house, he thought about what it would be like to live there full time. To always wake up looking at Michael, curled around Lindsay with Meg at his back. What it would be like to add his things into the mixture, his hair gel mixed in with their makeup and his coffee cup sat next to theirs. He would close his eyes and imagine adding new pictures to their walls, ones including him.

Of course that was all his imagination as they had only been together for a couple of months. It was too early to be thinking of living with them. Don’t let yourself sink too deep, Free. He scolded himself. You don’t want to mess this up.

After all, they hadn’t even mentioned anything to do with moving in together. And Gavin sure wasn’t going to be the one to ask.

Fall came and went in it’s usual whirlwind of gold and red. Dan went home, a neighborhood wide prank war started by Jeremy was ended by Ryan, and Gavin was still dating his neighbors. Halloween came by and Gavin spent most of it swallowing his tongue at the sight of their costumes. Gavin felt a bit stupid next to them in his store bought wizard hat and long black cloak over a pair of jeans and shirt. Michael at least wasn’t as glamorous in his black cat costume but it fit him really, really well. Gavin could see every muscle Michael has, every curve and dip, as the black velvet clung to his body. A long black tail swung from his backside and on his head were two cat ears.

Lindsay had dressed as a Slytherin. She had the green scarf and wand she actually got from Universal Studios. She even wore the nerdy looking glasses. Gavin had to admit, her gray sweater looked really warm. Though he doubted she was as comfortable as she assured him she was with the short, short skirt she was wearing.

Meg absolutely stole the show though, with her Lara Croft outfit. Tight, brown short shorts with a cut off shirt that that showed off her stomach. Strapped to her thighs were realistic looking holsters. Meg showed them to Gavin earlier, explaining all the work she did to make sure they didn’t pinch into her skin. Gavin tried them out for himself. They were really comfortable. Her hair was pulled into a braid and black makeup was smudged along her skin and clothes to look like dirt. She looked perfect.

Geoff made fun of him for the amount of times he almost ran into a wall while looking at them.

Halloween passed and then it was November. Which meant Thanksgiving.

“Are you sure you can’t go?” Lindsay asked him again.

Gavin watched as her and Michael walked around packing their bags. They were going to New Jersey to visit Michael’s parents and planned to stay from Wednesday to Sunday. Meg was out of town for a convention and wouldn’t be able to make it. Gavin had politely declined, stating that he too would be out of town for a shoot.

Gavin shook his head, uncomfortably aware that he was sitting on their bed, surrounded by their stuff. “I couldn’t get out of this one.”

“What asshole makes people work through Thanksgiving?” Michael grumbled.

“He’s a very...particular client. Everything has to be done by a certain timeline.” Gavin gave them a sheepish smile.

“Well, we’re going to miss you.” Lindsay told him, giving him a swift kiss.

Gavin helped them into their cab and waved at them from his doorway, watching as they drove away.

Thanksgiving Day saw Gavin sitting on his couch, watching the parade. “I don’t even celebrate Thanksgiving.” Gavin told Smee, the cat laying next to him in order to receive pets.

Smee gave him an unimpressed look.

Gavin frowned back. “It’s too soon to meet their parents anyway. We’ve only been dating for...five months? Way too soon.”

Smee licked his paw.

“Besides, the two should have their time together. Alone. I’ve been coming over a lot. They’re probably glad to be going without me.”

Smee got up, stretched, then walked away.

Gavin just hummed, looking back at the T.V. and watched as a large Snowman floated down the street. He idly wondered what he would tell them when Christmas time came.

It turns out he didn’t have to come up with any excuse.

Gavin didn’t enjoy working in the cold (he was used to England winters, but that didn’t mean he enjoyed it). The shoot he was on (an actual shoot this time) made him work through not only cold, but rain. A terrible combination.

Gavin arrived home with a red nose and sore muscles. He spent the next day in bed, with a fever. Distantly, he was aware of Lindsay, Meg, and Michael coming to visit him. Gavin sniffed and coughed at them and they feed him soup.

It was Michael visiting him now, putting a cool cloth on top of his forehead. Gavin shivered and burrowed himself deeper into his covers.

He thought he heard Michael sigh and say something about how this would be much easy if Gavin was at their house. But Gavin couldn’t be sure as he immediately fell asleep, soothed by the sound of Michael’s voice.

Spring came and things were still going great. January seemed to fly by. Gavin had a mini heart attack when he looked at the date and realized that it was February 13th.

They laughed anyway at the cheap chocolates he gave them. Especially when he combined it with a mashup video of all the places he had had filmed them at. Later that night, they enjoyed another dinner Michael had made. In between mouthfuls of grilled chicken, Gavin asked a question that he’s idly thought about. “Have you guys ever wanted to get married?”

That cause the three of them to pause. Meg finished swallowing her food before nodding. “I’d love to get married, if we’re ever allowed to. I even have the dress picked out.”

Lindsay raised an eyebrow. “Do you really?”

Meg sniffed. “Of course. Don’t you?”

“Not really.” Lindsay replied. “I haven’t really thought about getting married. Not seriously anyways.”

“Same.” Michael said. “As soon as I knew I loved the both of you, getting married sort of went off the table. After meeting Gavin, that feeling doubled. I mean, gay marriage just got approved. Do you really think multiple marriage will happen in our lifetime?”

Meg sort of deflated at that. Gavin quickly said, “Maybe not in America but I’m certain some country will legalize it. Maybe England?”

“Ohhh, Gavvy, are you offering to marry us?” Michael teased, but there was an odd note to his voice.

Gavin looked down and picked at his food. “No. It’s not legal anyways.”

“What do you think of marriage?” Meg asked.

Gavin shrugged.. “My parent’s…it didn’t end well. I don’t have a very positive view on marriage.”

“Oh.”

They ate in silence for a second before Michael jumped into a ridiculous story about something stupid that happened at work.

With summer came Dan and work and Gavin celebrating one year being in love. Gavin knew it was coming, had saw them celebrating each other’s anniversary. But it still surprised him when they took him out to the movies and dinner. He got a kiss from each of them and a cake.

Gavin enjoyed the time he spent with them because, as with every summer, he got extremely busy again. Dan and him were in New York to meet with another director, sitting in the lobby of an expensive hotel, when Dan asked him, “So how is everything going in lover town?”

Gavin snorted, rolling his eyes. “Everythings fine. Meg’s lovely, Michael is a pain, and Lindsay is cute.”

Dan smiled at him. “Sounds like you're in love.”

Gavin looked back at him. “I really am.”

“Wow. I don’t think I’ve ever seen you this way.” Dan teased. Gavin stuck his tongue out at him. “But seriously, B, I’m happy for you.”

Gavin’s smile softened. “Hey thanks, B.”

There was silence for a second before Dan spoke again. “So when are you moving in?”

“Dan.”

“What? It has to be hard to constantly move back and forth between houses, even if you are neighbors. I suppose you can connect your house in some way but I don’t know how that would go over with the rest of the neighborhood.”

“I..haven’t thought about moving in.” Gavin said, looking down at his phone.

“Liar.”

“Dan.”

“Gavin, look. I know you. I’ve been your friend for years. I know how you think. You want to move in, you want to spend the rest of your life with them. But you don’t know how to ask and so then don’t.”

“I do not.”

Dan gave him a look. “Gavin, I once saw a girl flirt with you, give you all the clues that she wanted to hook up, maybe something more, and you completely missed it because you didn’t realize that was what she was doing and was too shy to ask.”

“That’s not-”

“Or how about the time a guy came up to you and asked for a date and you told him it was November 6?”

“You can not use-”

“Or how about that time with the chief?”

Gavin slumped into his seat. “So you what? Think I’m being childish?”

“No. I think you're just being Gavin.” Dan said. “They like you, and you like them. What’s so wrong with asking them about moving in?”

“I don’t know, B? Don’t you think it’s too soon?”

“You’ve been dating for over a year. I don’t think it’s too soon to start at least talking to them about it. Just tell them you’ve been thinking about wanting to move in at some point. If they think it’s too soon, at least you have the conversation started and they know what you want.”

“You make it sound so easy.” Gavin grumbled.

“That’s because it is easy. Look, they can’t read your mind. What if they want you to move in but are waiting for you to say something?”

Gavin made a face at him. “When did you get so reasonable at dating stuff?”

“I’ve always been reasonable.” Dan said, sounding offended.

Gavin side-eyed him. “You once got drunk and ended up sleeping out in the lawn, where your girlfriend then had to drag you inside.”

“Sounds reasonable to me.”

“Once inside, you started crying and tried to break up with her because she had a Mr. Blobby mask sitting on the table left over from Halloween.”

“Like I said, sounds reasonable to me.”

Gavin took Dan’s advice to heart. Well, he did after agonizing over it for a good few days after getting back from the shoot. He finally mention it when playing games with Meg (both Lindsay and Michael were away at work).

“It would probably be easier if my game system was next to your game system, that way we don’t have to go back and forth with our games.”

“Totally.” Meg replied, not looking away from the screen.

Gavin felt like that was good enough.

Gavin was panicking. He was all smiles on the outside, but inside, he was full on freaking out. It was Thanksgiving again and there was no way Gavin was going to get out of meeting Meg and Lindsay’s parents.

It was going to be a two partner, apparently. Since both Lindsay’s and Meg’s family lived in Texas, so it would be easy to spend two days with Lindsay and then two days with Meg.

They were super sneaky about making sure Gavin was free. And by sneaky, he meant that they asked if he had shoots coming up and, because Gavin didn’t realize what month it was, he saw no need to lie.

Not even a perfectly reasonable “I don’t even celebrate Thanksgiving” can get him out of it.

So now Gavin had a couple of hours stuck in a car to dread about what could possibly happen. He wasn’t so worried about them not liking him as a fourth member of the relationship, he was sure if they were fine with their child dating two other people, one more wasn’t such a big deal. He did worry that they wouldn’t like him. Would they be ok with him? What if he offended them in some way?

But what Gavin was worried about the most was that this was all too soon. What would they think about bringing home a partner they’ve only been dating for a year?

But Gavin didn’t tell them that and instead just braced himself for bad outcomes.

Surprising (but probably only to Gavin) everything went well.

Lindsay’s parents were warm and positive and baked the best pie Gavin had ever had. They welcomed him home with open arms.

Meg’s family was intense. She had a lot of siblings and her parents practically grilled him about what he did, but in the end they invited him to join in on some family games and Gavin left feeling welcomed.

Gavin was...happy he went. And he could tell that the others were happy he was accepted too. For the first time, he wondered if maybe he wasn’t being stupid about the too early thing.

For the first time in forever, Gavin thought about what it would be like if he brought someone home to England.

The Christmas tree was set up in the corner of the living room and Gavin was dragged into decorating it. They hung tinsel up everywhere and Lindsay seemed to want a snowman every five feet.

Gavin loved it.

There was something so nice about watching Michael squeeze everyone’s faces as he kissed them before starting to complain that it looked like Santa threw up in here. Meg would laugh and say that they haven’t even gone through half the decorations and Lindsay would pull out another endless string of lights.

At some point, Gavin knew they would bake cookies and try to build a gingerbread house. And later they would watch Christmas movies and Meg and Lindsay would try to put a Christmas hat on Smee while Michael yells at them and Gavin films it.

It was a happy time. It filled Gavin with all sort of feelings.

Gavin knows he can be oblivious sometimes. He’s been told that plenty by Dan. Geoff would roll his eyes when saying it and Burnie always laughed at him.

But it still came as a complete shock to Gavin one fine March day when Michael came up to him, while they were at Gavin’s house, frowning. “So are we just not dropping enough hints or are you a complete moron?”

“Michael, why are you always so mean to me, Michael?” Gavin whined, though he took no actual offense.

Michael rolled his eyes but bent down to help Gavin, picking up the other side of a heavy camera case so they could put it away in Gavin’s closet. “I’m only mean because you ask for it. But seriously, what’s it going to take?”

��What are you talking about?” Gavin asked.

“About us wanting you to move in.”

Gavin almost dropped the case. Michael cursed. “What the fuck, Gavin? Are you trying to fuck up my foot or something?”

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry.” Gavin quickly picked up the slack. As soon as they put the case away, Gavin turned towards Michael. “Wait? You what?”

“We. Want. You.” Michael gestured between Gavin and himself and Gavin scowled at him. “To move in. With. Us.”

“Thank you, I can hear.”

“So?” Michael said, crossing his arms. His foot started tapping against the ground.

Gavin bit his lip. “You guys really want me to move in?”

“I wouldn’t be asking if we didn’t.”

“Are you sure?”

“Absolutely.”

“You don’t think it’s too soon?”

“After nearly two years? No?” Michael frowned. “If you don’t want to move in with us, just say so.”

“I do!” Gavin blurted out. He started fidgeting with his hands. “I do, I want to move in with you guys.”

Michael grabbed his hands. “Gavin, do you want to move in with us?”

Gavin took a deep breath, then looked up and into Michael’s eyes. “Yes. I want to move in with you.”

A slow smile began to spread across Michael’s face. “Yeah?”

“Yeah. I really, really do.”

Later, lying in their bed, Gavin would laugh and mention that he thought he had dropped hints about moving in.

All three of them looked at him with confused looks. “When?” Meg asked.

“Yeah, I’m pretty sure we would have picked that up.” Lindsay chimed in.

“W-w-with you.” Gavin said, pointing at Meg. He had to half-sit up in bed to be able to do it, but he did. “I mentioned it when we were gaming.”

Meg’s eyebrows went nearly into her hair. “That was your hint? Mentioning it once when we were gaming?”

“Yeah!”

Michael just shook his head. “You’re unbelievable.”

“What? What?”

It took three days to move all of Gavin’s stuff to their house. Gavin won’t sell his house for another year (it’s a source of many arguments but ultimately they know it isn’t him having a backup just incase things go south-he’s just too lazy to get to it).

Two days after agreeing to move in, Gavin calls up Dan to talk about their agreement. Dan can still stay in Gavin’s old house during the summers until Gavin sells it. They all agree it’ll be pretty useful to have someone there to keep the house in good condition.

Dan is smug the entire time they talk. Gavin lets him be, because, well he deserved it.

At the end of it Dan tells him “I told you so.”

Gavin sighs. “I know, B.”

“You could have done this like a year ago.”

“I know Dan.”

A pause.

“Hey, Gavin?”

“Yeah?”

“I’m happy for you.”

Gavin smiles. “Thanks B.”

Gavin almost feels natural in their house. Sure, he’s been spending a good amount of time there since they started dating, but still. He woke up now in his bed, and ate food at his table, and played games on his T.V.

Their house had become his. Gavin loves it.

He loves how Lindsay and he will fight for coffee as they leave for work, how Michael is yelling at them as he cooks them breakfast, and how Meg comes down to complain about them waking her up.

He loves how one of them will knock on the door to his office, making sure Gavin took some breaks while he working.

He loved surprising them with gifts, loves going to Michael’s work to give him food (it was shitty compared to what Michael could make but he figured he should return the favor), loves helping Meg with her cosplays.

Gavin loves being with them. And he knows they love him.

Gavin is nervous as he waits in front of the putt putt golf area. It’s his two year anniversary. The rest of them were on their way, Meg and Lindsay were picking Michael up from work. After golfing, they figured they could move on to go-kart racing. Or maybe ice-cream. They haven’t really decided.

Gavin checks his watch. He looks down at the little box he had in his hand. Then back up, smiling as Lindsay waved at him from where they were walking down the sidewalk. Gavin meets them halfway.

He gives all three a kiss on the cheek. Meg kisses back but her eyes are glued to the box. “What’s this? You got us something?”

“Yeah.” He practically pushes the box into her hands.

Meg raises an eyebrow but opens it anyways. As soon as she looks inside, she bursts out giggling before showing Michael and Lindsay. Lindsay starts laughing too. Michael shouts “What the fuck, Gavin?” but he’s also smiling.

The box was filled with sugar. Gavin took the box back, shaking it a bit as he began to explain. “So I know I’m not the best at commitment and I have a hard time...expressing myself and putting myself out there. And I’m sure you know my problems with meeting...parents.”

“You mean the time you lied to us to get out of meeting my parents?” Michael asked.

Gavin winced. “You know about that, huh?”

“It wasn’t very hard to figure out. Elyse mentioned that she was surprised we didn’t take you and then told us that you had been home all week.”

“Yeah, well, ok. So I have a thing about parents.” Gavin mumbled. He shifted the sugar around some more. “So yeah. I thought this would be a good...surprise.”

“Surprise.” He lifted the box up. Beneath the sugar were a couple piece of paper.

Delicately, Meg pulled them out. “Plane..tickets?”

Gavin nodded. “To England. If you would like, would you like to meet my mom?”

They meet his mom. She loves them. They love her.

Gavin is happy.

#mavinseg #neighbors au #i don't know how to eel about this one #i love the first half #but don't know how to feel about the second half #but i hope everyone else enjoys it

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