Idol ficlet: Soup for the Soul
Jul. 7th, 2009 01:16 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
sarashina_nikkiWritten for the ontd_ai drabble prompt: Kris is really protective of Adam. A bit over 700 words, and gen...ish? To be honest, I don't really know how to evaluate the stages of gen/pre-slash/ust/slash with these boys. :D?
The tour starts out fairly tame, as far as rude fans go. They make it nearly the whole first month without anything noteworthy happening -- but like the saying goes, everything is bigger in Texas. Anoop's the first one to see them as the guys pile off the tour bus, he stumbles and stiffens in the door frame, unmoving until Matt shoves him out of the way, laughing. He stops laughing when he sees what Anoop is looking at.
It isn't that many people, a dozen at the most Anoop thinks, but the ugly looks on their faces as they brandish their signs give Adam a full-body flinch when he steps out. He recovers quickly, a stone mask on his face as he pointedly turns his back, but everyone saw. Danny and Mike exchange uneasy looks, and no one knows quite what to do. The girls' bus stopped farther in, so they probably got inside without seeing American Idol's first ever culture war picket line. The handlers descend, wild-eyed, to hustle everyone into the arena.
"Yeah, just a second," Kris says, and everyone's heads whip around. He touches Adam's back once, then grabs Danny's arm in a white-knuckled grip. "Danny, you're with me. Come on." And before anyone can stop him, he frogmarches Danny over to the protesters with him.
The protesters don't seem to know what to do with them, exchanging confused looks as Kris engages them in conversation. Kris pulls out his iPhone and fiddles with it, only half of his attention on the people. Kris then says something to Danny that makes him fumble through his pockets, eventually coming up with a pen he hands over reluctantly.
Kris plucks a sign out of one woman's startled grasp and tears it down the middle, straight through where the word 'AIDS' is scrawled in lurid red. He bites the cap off Danny's pen and scribbles something on it, consulting his phone screen. He shoves the sign back into the woman's hands. "Please go," Anoop can see Kris saying to them, over and over again. He gives Danny his pen back, which startles him out of his awkward fidgeting, and Danny starts rambling in that too-quick way of his that makes it impossible for Anoop to guess what it is he's saying. Although Anoop doubts Danny knows what he's saying either.
This goes on for another few minutes, the bodyguards milling around tensely, and Kris speaking in low tones to a large, red-faced man who seems to be the ringleader. Danny tugs on Kris's elbow, but Kris doesn't even blink when the red-faced man gets in his face. Kris points at whatever he wrote on the woman's sign. "Please," he repeats again clearly.
Adam has his hands over his face, vibrating like a guitar string before it snaps. "Oh God. Tell me when it's over. Please tell me it's over," he mutters to Anoop.
Anoop squints across the haze rising from the asphalt. "It's okay, Kris knows what he's doing," he says unconvincingly.
"Oh God," Adam says.
And then, just like that, it is over. Everyone watches in shock as the protesters mulishly pack up and head out, herded along unsubtly by a very perturbed security team.
Anoop touches Adam's shoulder belatedly. "Uh -- it's over. They're leaving."
Adam drops his hands. "What?"
Kris wanders back into the group with his hands in his pockets. He wraps his arms around Adam's waist affectionately. "Let's have a kick ass show tonight. Sold out arena, man, lots of people excited to see us."
Adam grips either side of Kris's face and gives him a shake, voice cracking. "Are you CRAZY?"
Danny laughs nervously as he rejoins the group too, still wide-eyed himself. Probably never envisioned himself standing on that side of an anti-gay picket line, Anoop thinks somewhat uncharitably. "Talk about killing them with kindness! He sent them to a soup kitchen downtown, oh my God, seriously, I could not believe it."
Kris just shrugs. "We should get inside. It's hot and the girls must be wondering where we are."
With the stand-off over, this sounds like an eminently good idea. Everyone hurries to comply. Anoop glances over his shoulder when he realizes Kris and Adam are lagging behind. Adam is scrubbing his eyes, face blotchy red, and Kris waits with him patiently, never letting go.
Yeah, Anoop thinks. It'll be a good show tonight.
The tour starts out fairly tame, as far as rude fans go. They make it nearly the whole first month without anything noteworthy happening -- but like the saying goes, everything is bigger in Texas. Anoop's the first one to see them as the guys pile off the tour bus, he stumbles and stiffens in the door frame, unmoving until Matt shoves him out of the way, laughing. He stops laughing when he sees what Anoop is looking at.
It isn't that many people, a dozen at the most Anoop thinks, but the ugly looks on their faces as they brandish their signs give Adam a full-body flinch when he steps out. He recovers quickly, a stone mask on his face as he pointedly turns his back, but everyone saw. Danny and Mike exchange uneasy looks, and no one knows quite what to do. The girls' bus stopped farther in, so they probably got inside without seeing American Idol's first ever culture war picket line. The handlers descend, wild-eyed, to hustle everyone into the arena.
"Yeah, just a second," Kris says, and everyone's heads whip around. He touches Adam's back once, then grabs Danny's arm in a white-knuckled grip. "Danny, you're with me. Come on." And before anyone can stop him, he frogmarches Danny over to the protesters with him.
The protesters don't seem to know what to do with them, exchanging confused looks as Kris engages them in conversation. Kris pulls out his iPhone and fiddles with it, only half of his attention on the people. Kris then says something to Danny that makes him fumble through his pockets, eventually coming up with a pen he hands over reluctantly.
Kris plucks a sign out of one woman's startled grasp and tears it down the middle, straight through where the word 'AIDS' is scrawled in lurid red. He bites the cap off Danny's pen and scribbles something on it, consulting his phone screen. He shoves the sign back into the woman's hands. "Please go," Anoop can see Kris saying to them, over and over again. He gives Danny his pen back, which startles him out of his awkward fidgeting, and Danny starts rambling in that too-quick way of his that makes it impossible for Anoop to guess what it is he's saying. Although Anoop doubts Danny knows what he's saying either.
This goes on for another few minutes, the bodyguards milling around tensely, and Kris speaking in low tones to a large, red-faced man who seems to be the ringleader. Danny tugs on Kris's elbow, but Kris doesn't even blink when the red-faced man gets in his face. Kris points at whatever he wrote on the woman's sign. "Please," he repeats again clearly.
Adam has his hands over his face, vibrating like a guitar string before it snaps. "Oh God. Tell me when it's over. Please tell me it's over," he mutters to Anoop.
Anoop squints across the haze rising from the asphalt. "It's okay, Kris knows what he's doing," he says unconvincingly.
"Oh God," Adam says.
And then, just like that, it is over. Everyone watches in shock as the protesters mulishly pack up and head out, herded along unsubtly by a very perturbed security team.
Anoop touches Adam's shoulder belatedly. "Uh -- it's over. They're leaving."
Adam drops his hands. "What?"
Kris wanders back into the group with his hands in his pockets. He wraps his arms around Adam's waist affectionately. "Let's have a kick ass show tonight. Sold out arena, man, lots of people excited to see us."
Adam grips either side of Kris's face and gives him a shake, voice cracking. "Are you CRAZY?"
Danny laughs nervously as he rejoins the group too, still wide-eyed himself. Probably never envisioned himself standing on that side of an anti-gay picket line, Anoop thinks somewhat uncharitably. "Talk about killing them with kindness! He sent them to a soup kitchen downtown, oh my God, seriously, I could not believe it."
Kris just shrugs. "We should get inside. It's hot and the girls must be wondering where we are."
With the stand-off over, this sounds like an eminently good idea. Everyone hurries to comply. Anoop glances over his shoulder when he realizes Kris and Adam are lagging behind. Adam is scrubbing his eyes, face blotchy red, and Kris waits with him patiently, never letting go.
Yeah, Anoop thinks. It'll be a good show tonight.
