Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

All Mickey has ever known is fighting. Growing up in the south side of Chicago, in the worst part of town, with an abusive father - it’s all he could do to survive. Terry - his abusive prick of a father - is a lowlife. He sells guns, drugs, and anything he can get his hands on to survive. Growing up, Mickey remembers Terry beating his mom up all the time until she finally left them all behind. It was hard when she left - Mickey now getting the worst of all his beatings. He couldn’t blame his mother though. He watched his father beat on her daily for years until she left. Not long after she left they found out that she overdosed in some crack house. That’s what happens to people in his neighborhood - you either get locked up or die. 

His little sister, Mandy, also got abused by their father but not like how Mickey got abused. She looks so much like mom that she got the worst kind of abuse from him. He’s happy she left too. At sixteen, she fled with a boyfriend - not wanting any part of the Milkovich house of horrors. Mickey couldn’t blame her either. When he found out the type of abuse that their father was doing to her, he almost killed him himself. Mandy stopped him though - not wanting him to end up in prison for the rest of his life because of that miserable prick.

Mickey still lives in this hell hole with his piece of shit father and two older brothers - Iggy and Joey. They’re more up dad’s ass than anyone else. They go on runs with him and live the same piece of shit life as he does. At least they have some common sense not to get caught and get thrown in prison. Terry’s an idiot - he gets thrown in prison every year for something but it’s never too long. He usually only spends a few months in prison at a time, the longest being a little over a year. That year might have been the best year of Mickey’s life. It was right before Mandy took off. The two of them were mostly alone the entire year since Iggy and Joey had to do all of dad's work while he was locked up. All Mickey had to do was focus on training and fighting. He should have been in school but he hasn’t been in school since he was a fucking freshman. 

Growing up in the south side, in an abusive home, all Mickey could do was fight - fight for his family, fight for the things he wants, fight for his life whether it was against his father, against shitheads who didn’t wanna pay up when he did help his dad on runs, or against someone in the cage.

His dads been out of prison for a couple years now - son of a bitch hasn’t gotten caught to get thrown back in. Living life with him around makes it a million times harder for Mickey. All Terry does is bitch at him, try to fight him, and pressures him to make it big in the MMA world. 

The one good Terry ever did for him was put him to train for MMA. He found him a good gym to train in so he could get a coach and eventually get some fights and make money. That’s the only reason Terry put him into this. He saw that Mickey could fight - better than anyone he’s seen before - and figured he’d make some money off of him.

Mickey was fifteen when he started training at the gym. He didn’t really care that Terry was using him - what else is new. He just wanted to hit something. Coming to this gym every day and punching a bag or finally getting into the cage to train with someone else - hitting a real person - it sends an adrenaline rush through Mickey that nothing else can compare to. Not drugs, not alcohol, nothing feels as good as fucking somebody up. 

Mickey knows that’s a fucked up thing to wanna feel - but that’s who he is. He’s fucked for life. 

*

Being an MMA fighter is a very competitive world to live in. It’s hard to get good fights that will pay well. Mickey’s twenty - well, he’ll be twenty one in a few months, early August, and he’s getting a little bigger in the MMA world, finally. It’s been almost six years of him training, fighting, winning, losing, all of it. Mickey’s gotten only a couple fights; he's won both of them. He’s a little killer - that’s what his coach calls him. His coach is great, used to be a big time MMA fighter - blew up in Japan, he’s a legend, everyone wants to be coached by him. It took three years of Mickey training at the gym for Dom to notice him. Once he did though, everything changed for Mickey. He couldn't start fighting legally until he turned eighteen so for three years of him training he couldn't take any fights. He still fought but he did it illegally. All set up by his father. The gym wasn't involved in this. 

Dom started really working with him, multiple times a week, getting him ready and finding him fights. The manager - Dom’s wife, Lisa, she sets all that shit up. She gets fighters on the card and gets them paid. She also hounds Mickey’s ass for his payments all the time - it ain’t free or cheap to train at this gym. Mickey does a lot of grunt work though to help alleviate what he owes them - he’ll clean the gym up when the day is over so they don’t have to have their cleaning lady come in every night, he takes out the trash, he cleans the bathroom, he does all that dirty shit, just so he has a place to continue to train and fight. 

He wouldn’t have it any other way though. The gym - Dom and Lisa, the other fighters - it’s his home, way more than the Milkovich house of horrors is. Mickey’s waiting for that one big fight to help him move out. That one big fight that will open the doors for him to so many bigger fights that pay way more than what he’s been making. 

*

Mickey’s changing in the locker room after his very intense lesson with Dom. It’s late afternoon, so he has a lot of free time. It’s Friday so Mickey doesn’t need to stick around to clean up tonight - Lisa insisted that on the weekend that she has her girl come in to clean and that if he wants to continue cleaning up to help out and not owe them so much to train then he can do that on the weekdays. The other guys in the room are talking about their plans for the night. 

“I need to get fucking laid, man,” Jay says, punctuating his words with thrusts up against his open locker door making the guys laugh. 

Mickey shakes his head at him. Jay is a nutcase but he’s fucking hilarious. He’s a great fighter, leaves nothing in the cage but his raw, animal like instincts. He’s a great fighter, but like he said, he’s a fucking nutcase.

“Have a party, man, you got that nice house by the water,” Mac tells him. Mac is Jay’s best friend, he’s this big fucker with orange hair and a lot of freckles. He’s a nurse, comes by with a lot of pills and other shit to help the fighters out. He’s been warned a million and one times by Dom and Lisa not to sell that shit to their fighters. The fighters don’t listen though, wanting every advantage to help them get the best fights. Mickey doesn’t fuck with that shit. He smokes weed sometimes but that’s usually to ease his anxiety living at home. He’ll maybe fuck with coke sometimes but only when he’s not training for a fight and only if its a special occasion like his father being released from prison - if you call that special - and everyone is doing it and he’s being called a fucking pussy for not doing it.

Mickey’s gay, he’s known since he started fighting at the gym regularly that he is. He knew before but wasn’t quite sure - he was always more drawn to looking at the guy in porn but he thought that could be because he wanted to learn how to fuck. He always thought that Steven Seagal was pretty hot though. 

He’s had sex with girls when he was thirteen or fourteen, but he never liked it as much as his brothers did with the way they talked about it. It’s not until he started training here and seeing all these guys shirtless and sweaty that he realized that he’s gay. It takes everything inside of him to keep it a secret. His father is the biggest homophobe in all of Chicago. He’s even had to help him beat up some gay guys they so happen to walk by. It always left the taste of bile in his mouth after having done that. Knowing that those guys he just beat up could be him. His father would literally kill him if he knew he was gay. Not only that, the MMA world - fighting, all of what he’s been working so hard to achieve, would be taken away from him in a flash. No fighter wants to be in the cage with another dude who sucks other dudes off. 

“What are you doing tonight, Milkovich? Wanna come to the party?” Jay asks, waggling his eyebrows. 

Mickey had completely zoned out. He shakes his head, “Nah man, gotta help my dad with some shit,” he lies. His dad is out on a run for two weeks with his brothers so for the first time since fall he has the house to himself for a couple weeks. 

“Bummer,” Jay says, slamming his locker closed. He passed by Mickey, tapping him on the back, he adds, “Next time, yeah?”

“Yeah, man,” Mickey nods. He makes sure all of his things are packed away into his gym bag before slinging it on his shoulder and closing the locker door. He makes his way out of the locker room and through the gym, saying bye to those who acknowledge him. 

Lisa stops him and tells him to follow her into his office, so he does. “Everything okay, boss?” he asks when he closes her door behind him. 

“Yeah, Mickey, take a seat,” she tells him as she takes her own seat on her chair behind her desk. He sits down on the black leather sofa near her desk and waits for her to continue. “I’ve got a fight for you.”

Mickey feels relief flood through him, he chuckles lightly. “No shit.”

“Yeah, no shit. Franco wants to put you on the card that Jay’s on. It’s six weeks out, could you get ready in time?” Franco is a promoter they regularly work with who sets up all these cards - fight nights. He’s a slimy piece of shit but he gives the fighters here good fights, nothing they can’t do. 

Six weeks isn’t a lot of time to prepare for a fight, usually camp is a minimum eight weeks out but that won’t stop Mickey. He can definitely handle it. “I’ll be ready. Who’s it against?”

“Someone named Tommy Vasquez,” she tells him.

Mickey’s never heard of him. “What’s Dom think?”

“He thinks it’s a good match up. He wants to meet with you on Monday to go over his tapes and really start getting you ready for this fight,” Lisa explains.

“Sounds good to me,” Mickey tells her. “What’s the weight?”

“Your weight class so it’s perfect, might not have much to cut depending on where you’re at.”

“Even better.” Mickey hates cutting weight. Correction. All fighters hate cutting weight - well, with the exception of Jay but that motherfucker is actually crazy.

Lisa nods, smiling. “Well great, I’ll tell Franco you’re in. Take it easy on the drinking this weekend but it is your last weekend to do all that shit so I guess get it out of your system but you better be ready to get started Monday.”

Mickey nods. “Yes, boss. I will be.” 

“Good, now get the fuck out of my office,” she says with a wave of her hand. Mickey laughs as he stands, collects his bag and gets the fuck out of her office.

*

The gym isn’t in the south side but it doesn’t take Mickey too long to get home by train. He walks into the house and it’s a mess as usual. His brothers and dad just left that morning and left it a pigsty before leaving. Mickey’s too tired for this so he just makes his way through the mess and to his bedroom. He drops his bag to the ground and flops onto his bed. He showered at the gym before leaving - the water pressure is much better than the shit he has here. 

Mickey wakes up a couple hours later, not realizing how tired he actually was. His shithead family didn’t let him get much sleep last night, being the loudest fuckers in the neighborhood, and then Mickey was up early for a run before heading over to the gym for most of the day. 

He flips the light on, the room completely dark from where the sun went down while he was asleep. He’s hungry and since he’s going to start prepping soon and eating right he decides to treat himself to some pizza. 

Mickey calls in his order for delivery before getting started on cleaning up what he can of the house. He doesn’t like living like this but it’s been the norm for his whole life. Whenever his dad is away whether it’s prison or runs, Mickey tries to keep the house clean, at least while he’s living there alone. He gets the living room and kitchen clean, his room is decent already and he doesn’t even bother looking into any other room - that’s not his problem. 

The doorbell rings so Mickey grabs some cash from his nightstand where he’s taken to hiding some cash inside of his socks. He opens the door and hands the money to the delivery guy as he takes the large pizza box from him. He kicks the door shut before dropping the pizza box on the coffee table. He grabs himself a beer from the fridge, popping it open as he walks back to the living room. 

Mickey puts on an episode of ‘Cops’ since there’s fuck all on TV and they don’t have any of that Netflix or Hulu shit. He eats most of the pizza and drinks three beers before he feels restless. He knows he should get out of the house and go do something but he doesn’t have friends, he doesn’t date - can’t date. What the fuck is he gonna do? 

Mickey knows what he’s going to end up doing but it’s always such a huge risk for him to take. Nonetheless, he does it. He wraps the rest of the pizza up in some aluminum foil and puts it in the fridge before going to his room and getting ready.

By the time Mickey leaves the house, his hair is styled back, he’s wearing black jeans and a black button down shirt, and his black tims. He takes the El train to Boystown and prays to God nobody he knows or knows him finds him in this part of town. He gets inside this club called The Fairytale and goes straight to the bar. He orders a whiskey neat and chugs it back before ordering another to sip on this time. Mickey’s anxiety always spikes when he comes to this part of town but for good reason. If someone from the MMA world or someone adjacent to that world were to find out he’s gay, his career would be over before it’s truly even begun. Not to mention his father would kill him if he got word of this. 

It’s the first time Mickey comes to this club. He usually goes to sketchier places - not really vibing with the club scene. Anywhere that he could potentially get some guy to blow him in the back alley before going home alone and without exchanging names, not like that’s happened often. He doesn’t always find a guy he finds attractive enough to get hard for. Sometimes his anxiety and panic over getting caught stops him from even going through with anything. 

This club is nice - it’s big, filled with people, loud with the music, and it’s got good drinks and even better dudes to look at. There are guys dancing up on podiums in these ridiculous little gold shorts and nothing else. Mickey takes his whiskey with him and walks over to where the dancers are mainly located, wanting a better view. He perches up against the other end of the bar, taking a vacant bar stool and turning to face the dancers up on their stands. 

One of the dancers closest to him, turns around and makes eye contact with him. Mickey feels his breath being knocked out of him. The guy is fucking gorgeous. He’s tall, red hair, impressive body and even better moves. He’s got this little smirk on his face as he starts dancing for Mickey, eyes never leaving his. 

Mickey feels hot all over - not only from the club being packed and the liquor in his system but because this guy is the most beautiful man he’s ever seen and he’s just staring at Mickey with such intensity. 

Mickey finishes his drink and is about to turn around and order another even though he’s already feeling the three beers and two whiskeys in his system, but before he can the redhead dancer jumps down from his platform and makes his way over to him. Mickey sits still, not knowing what to do but wait for the man to stand right in front of him. 

“Hi,” the redhead says to him, loudly over the music, leaning in slightly so he can hear him. 

“Hey,” Mickey says with a nod of his head. He turns around to put his drink on the bar and waves over the bartender. 

The redhead slides up next to him and when the bartender comes, he says, “Can I get a water, Charlie? And another drink for him.”

Mickey watches as the guy - Charlie - gets a water bottle for the redhead and pours him another whiskey without asking for money. Mickey picks up his drink and turns to face the redhead. “Thanks,” he mumbles before taking a sip. 

“No worries,” the redhead says. He chugs half of his water bottle before putting the cap back on it. 

He looks like he wants to say something else but a big black dude with a ‘security’ top on says, “Curtis, there are some people who want a dance.”

“Yeah, got it, Roger, thanks,” the redhead - Curtis - says. Mickey feels like that’s not his real name because it really doesn’t suit his face. 

“I’ll take a dance,” Mickey finds himself saying. 

Curtis looks at him, shock on his face before a smirk takes over as he eyes him. “Twenty five bucks gets you dance,” he tells him.

“Twenty five bucks for your ass huh?” Mickey teases. He stands up from the stool he’s been sitting on and takes his wallet out of his back pocket. He pulls out the needed cash and is about to hand it to him when Curtis pulls the waistband of his little shorts and looks down and back up at him. Mickey shakes his head as he bites his bottom lip. He looks around before relenting and putting the money into his tiny gold shorts.

The redhead grabs his hand and walks him over to the couches. He sits him down before starting the lap dance. He moves his body in slow rolls in front of him, in between his open legs before turning around and lowering the top half of his body towards him. He says hotly into his ear, “How’s your day going?”

Mickey scoffs, can’t help it. “How’s my fuckin’ day goin’?”

“Yeah, how’s your day going?” the redhead repeats, a smug smile on his face. “Better with me on your lap now I hope.”

Mickey laughs. “You’re not wrong,” he finds himself saying. 

The redhead smiles so brightly and Mickey feels his heart drop down to his gut. Curtis - or whatever his actual name is - continues to move against him, grinding at one point and making Mickey way too fuckin’ hot. 

The song ends and the redhead runs his hand down his thigh and says, “That was fun.”

Mickey can’t find his voice so all he does is stand and nod at the redhead before getting the fuck out of there. 

*

Getting back home, Mickey feels a little disoriented. He feels a little panicked and he knows it’s anxiety building up inside of him. He slides down the door, sitting on the floor. He takes deep breaths and tells himself that he’s alone and no one saw him in Boystown. 

Mickey shakes it off, standing back up. He heads to his room to deposit his light jacket, the beginnings of spring here. He heads to the kitchen and grabs a beer from the fridge and a leftover slice of pizza. Sitting on the sofa, eating his cold pizza, drinking his beer - he thinks about what just happened. He got a lap dance from a really fucking hot redheaded go-go dancer at a gay club in Boystown. 

“Fuck,” Mickey mumbles to himself. Curtis - cannot be his name - was so hot, Mickey’s never seen someone be so good looking. Fucker. Mickey never thought he was into redheads, seeing as the only redhead he sees regularly is Mac and that fucker isn’t good looking. This guy at the club though, wow . And he ran out of there so quick, fucking pussy. He groans before taking another big bite of his food. He turns the TV on, half watching and half thinking about the hot redhead in gold booty shorts grinding up on him.

*

Mickey finds himself running longer than usual over the weekend. Thoughts of the red headed dancer filling his mind. Mickey’s never felt this way about a guy before. He’s never been one to dwell on or think about some guy. Mickey grew up with fear inside of him - fear that he’ll end up in prison or dead, fear that his father will find out that he’s gay, fear that he’ll lose his chance to really have a career in MMA because he’s gay. Mickey’s always known he’d be fucked for life but also romantically. He’s never going to just settle for a woman but he knows he’ll never be able to truly love or be loved by a man. That’s just not the life he was dealt. Being a fighter and Terry Milkovich’s son - that’s not the life in store for him.

He pushes out thoughts of the ginger as much as he can but they’re still there lingering in his mind. It’s easier when Monday comes and he has a fight to focus on. He’s reviewing tapes of past fights from his opponent, he’s sparring in the cage with Dom - who’s actually taking time to coach him properly for this fight. “It’s a big one,” is what Dom told him. Not only is Jay, one of their best fighters - even if he’s a crazy fuck - is fighting the same night so to have multiple fighters on the same card is a big deal. It’s an even bigger deal because Mickey has to win this. He’s confident he can though - he’s got a really strong right hook, has knocked fuckers out cold with it. He just can’t have any distractions, which is proving difficult with a toned, very pale, redhead that keeps popping up into his mind. 

*

Mickey’s in the gym, hitting the bag - Joe holding it for him, another coach for the gym, who’s been working with him since his first day there - when he sees someone he didn’t think he’d see again. The same someone who’s been occupying his mind since Friday night. 

Curtis - or whatever his name is - walking into the gym with a duffle bag slung over his shoulder. He’s with Carl Gallagher - the kid just started training at the gym, trying to get ready to apply to the police academy or some shit. Why he’d wanna be a cop, who knows, but the kids alright. They walk up to him and Carl says, “Hey Mickey,” with a nod of his head. The minute Mickey stopped hitting the bag, it gave Carl the opportunity to come say hi.

“Sup?” he nods back. 

“This is my brother, Ian,” Carl tells him, thank you for that. Mickey knew Curtis wasn’t his real name. “He wanted to start going to a new gym so I told him to come with me.”

“What makes you think I give a shit? Leave me alone, gotta train, got a fight coming up,” Mickey waves him off.

“Sick! When?” Carl continues like Mickey didn’t just tell him to fuck off.

He sighs. “Six weeks, now fuck off.”

Carl nods and pulls Ian with him, who the whole time he could feel his eyes on him. He better not fucking tell anyone he was in that gay club. He’s a Gallagher though, he knows what it’s like in the southside. That whole fuckin’ Gallagher shitshow lived a few blocks away from him growing up. He’s shocked he hasn’t ran into Ian before the club. Mickey was always too busy fighting. He gets back to his workout all while trying desperately not to look for Ian around the gym.  

*

Mickey finishes up with Joe and heads towards the locker room. He passes by Ian who’s hitting a bag while his brother holds it for him. Ian looks up at him, watching him go. Mickey takes a shower - the pressure infinitely better here than the one in the Milkovich house of horrors. He puts on his black sweatpants and a grey t-shirt with the gym’s name on it in black. As he’s getting his things ready he sees Ian walking into the locker room alone and towards him. He’s sweaty from working out, his red hair darker than usual with sweat. 

Mickey doesn’t hear anyone else in here, not having seen anyone on his way back from the showers. “Hey,” Ian says with an easy smile. “I’m not stalking you or anything. I swear I didn’t know you trained here.”

“Didn’t think you did, you didn’t get my name before now,” Mickey says, eyeing him. 

Ian’s doing the same thing and it makes Mickey feel warm inside, a fluttering feeling deep in his stomach. “I -”

Mickey cuts him off, “You better fucking not say anything about the other night. People can’t -”

“I wasn’t going to,” Ian tells him quickly. Mickey eyes him, looks in his eyes and doesn’t see that he’s lying. He’s a Gallagher, he’s southside, he knows what being gay means there.

Mickey nods, thumbing at his bottom lip. “Good,” he says simply. He shuts his locker, picking up his bag and slinging it over his shoulder. “See ya, Gallagher,” he says, moving to walk past him.

“Wait-” Ian says, grabbing his elbow. Mickey shakes him off and Ian stutters, “Sorry, um, I was wondering -”

“I’m going outside for a smoke,” Mickey tells him, cutting him off. He walks out of the room and through the gym. Ian seemed like he was going to ask when he’d see him again, probably like the other night, but Mickey can’t fucking talk about shit like that in there. If someone came in - his MMA career would be over before it truly even begins. 

He throws his bag on the beat up old leather sofa outside the gym and climbs on top of it, sitting on the back of it with his back against the wall. He lights up a cigarette and inhales a large puff before blowing it out. He takes two puffs before Ian is walking outside, like he waited all of thirty seconds before following him outside. 

Mickey feels the smile creep on his lips and he wipes it away with his thumb before taking another hit. Ian joins him up on the sofa, at a reasonable distance. “Can I get one of those?” he asks him.

Mickey takes his pack back out and hands him one and the lighter, tossing the pack back onto his bag at his feet. Ian hands back the lighter and their fingers brush. Mickey feels his breath catch in his throat.

He blows the smoke out of his nose, watching Ian inhale his own smoke before blowing it out and away from Mickey. “How long you been fighting?” Ian asks.

“Fifteen,” Mickey tells him. “Couldn’t start fighting legally until eighteen though.” 

Ian nods. Mickey’s the same age as Ian’s older brother, Lip. He remembers this cause he used to pay Lip to write his assignments for him when he actually did go to school. He wonders if Ian knows this. “I’ve never been to a fight,” he says, catching Mickey off guard.

“Okay,” he says, confused, eyebrows raising. 

“I hope I get to come to yours,” Ian tells him, making him blush - he knows he’s blushing cause his face gets really hot all of a sudden. 

Mickey laughs. “Cocky little shit huh?” he teases. A smile blooms on Ian’s face and fuck, is it ever breathtaking.

“Can I ask you something?” Ian asks him, more serious now. Mickey’s not sure he wants to know but he nods, shrugging slightly. “Why’d you take off so quickly?”

Mickey knows he’s talking about Friday night. What’s he supposed to say, I was having a panic attack and needed to get the fuck out of there. No fuckin’ way. He’s not even sure what really happened, his body was just like nope and got him out of there. “You know what it’s like on the southside, man. I can’t be - and I’m a fighter. No one wants to fight a -” he sighs. 

Ian nods, seeming to understand what he’s saying. “You were there though so you wanted to have a good time. You should have stayed longer and you might have had a really good one,” he tells him, smirk on his face.

Mickey laughs. “You’re an idiot,” he says and for some reason Ian smiles at that. That smile is becoming his favorite thing about him. “Don’t expect that to ever happen again.” 

Ian eyes him, “Why don’t I believe you?” 

“Don’t give a shit if you do or not, it’s what it is,” Mickey tells him. He flicks away his cigarette butt and climbs off the sofa, he pockets his pack of cigarettes before throwing his bag over his shoulder. Now that he knows the redhead won’t say shit, he needs to go before he gets too comfortable talking to him out here where he shouldn’t be getting too cozy to anyone. 

“How often do you train here?” Ian asks him before he has a chance to leave.

“Every day,” Mickey tells him. “See ya, Gallagher.” He turns and leaves, heading for the El train.

Mickey’s sure the redhead won’t give up on him anytime soon so he knows he’ll see him again. The thought of that thrills Mickey like he’s never felt before. He’s totally fucked.

Chapter Text

The days that Ian is at the gym are especially trying on Mickey. His coach yells at him too often to focus or asking him where his fucking head is and to get back in it or he’s out for the day. Mickey shakes his head, refocusing on this training and not watching Ian train at one of the bags not too far from him. 

The days that Ian isn’t at the gym is also trying on Mickey. He gets into his head wondering what he’s doing or if he has a day job or if he only shakes his ass for money at night to do something else or if he just works at the club because he likes it. He doesn’t know why he’s thinking of it because he doesn’t give a shit. He does but he’s telling himself he doesn’t. 

It’s been a week since the redhead started training at the gym and Mickey’s not focused enough on his fight. He’s up next in the cage and this is where he really needs to focus and not think about the hot, sweaty redhead working out. 

He’s got his headgear on and his gloves so he makes his way into the cage with Dom. He really can’t fuck this up. Not with Dom. He definitely doesn’t want to waste his time. Training sessions with Dom are precious and not to be fucked with. 

Dom tells him how to get out of a hold, when to hit and when to dodge, he’s giving him all these pointers that will help him in his fight in a few weeks against Tommy Vasquez. Dom and Mickey have been watching his fights, trying to study his movements so Mickey knows what to do to win against him. 

When their time is up in the cage, Mickey’s sweating like crazy and he’s out of breath. “Did good today, Mick. You’re on schedule, just don’t get into your head, okay?” Dom tells him. “I see it, you’re too in there,” he puts his glove covered hand on top of his head, “You gotta get your mind off of shit and just focus on the fight, you hear me?”

“I hear you, coach,” Mickey agrees with a nod.

“Good, now get the fuck out of my cage,” Dom tells him, pushing him lightly. 

Mickey laughs as he puts his hands up in defense. He makes his way out of the cage where Joe helps take his gloves off. He notices that Ian’s been watching him, he’s standing by the cage like he’s waiting to talk to him. 

Joe gets his gloves off and goes to help someone else. Jay heads into the cage next and Mickey makes his way over to Ian. “The fuck are you looking at?” he asks him in a hushed tone.

“You - uh, you looked good in there,” Ian tells him, nodding to the cage. 

Mickey rolls his eyes, “Don’t fuckin’ say shit like that.”

“I meant fighting wise,” Ian clarifies with a small smirk.

“Oh,” Mickey says simply. “Well what the fuck ever, man,” he brushes off with a wave of his hand before heading towards the locker room. 

“You leaving?” Ian asks him, following him.

“Yeah.” Mickey opens his locker and turns his head slightly to see Ian hovering. “The fuck do you want?”

Ian shrugs, “Nothing. What are you doing tonight?”

“Well, it’s Wednesday so I gotta work,” Mickey tells him, trying to keep it simple.

“Oh, what do you do?” Ian asks.

Mickey sighs, “To help pay for my training here, I clean the place on weekdays after the gym closes for the day.”

“Oh that’s cool of them to do that. So you’re just a fighter then?”

“The fuck you mean just a fighter?” Mickey asks, turning to face him, defensiveness coursing through him.

“Shit, sorry, that’s not what I meant. I just-” Ian stutters. He looks around and sees their alone so he says, “I had just been wondering stuff about you like if you had a job or -”

Mickey cuts him off, “Fighting is my job. That a problem, Gallagher?”

Ian smiles, “Definitely not a problem.” 

“Good.” Mickey gets his smokes out of his bag before slamming his locker shut. 

“You’re not leaving right?” Ian asks, stopping him from leaving since he’s still fucking here and in the way.

“Jesus, are you deaf? I told you I gotta work here tonight so no I’m not leaving, just going for a smoke,” Mickey says before pushing past him and out of the room. He takes a deep breath when he’s outside. 

“You okay, Mickey?” Lisa asks from the sofa, startling him.

“ Jesus ,” Mickey says in shock. “Yeah, I’m fine.”

Lisa laughs, patting the seat next to her. “Why you so fucking jumpy lately?” she asks when he sits next to her, lighting up his own smoke.

“I’m not.”

She lets out a cloud of smoke before saying, “Bull shit. You’re unfocused and you literally just jumped when I asked if you were okay.”

“I didn’t fuckin’ see you here, I’m not jumpy,” Mickey says, getting annoyed now.

“Jesus, fine,” Lisa says, putting her hands up in mock surrender. She chuckles when he rolls his eyes at her. She takes another hit of her cigarette. “What do you think of the new meat? The redhead Gallagher?”

“Why you askin’ me?”

She blows out some smoke from her nose as she turns to look at him. “Seen you guys talk. I think he’s sweet. He’s athletic - could tell he’s had some training before this. Wondering if you think he’s got it in him to be a fighter?”

Mickey thinks about it but he can’t see it. “No, definitely not fighter material,” he tells her.

“Hmm… I don’t know - I see something in him,” she says, shaking her head lightly.

“Okay so why the fuck you even asking me? I don’t know the kid.”

“And you say you aren’t jumpy today,” Lisa scoffs. She puts her cigarette butt out into the little ashtray she brought with her and stands. “You sticking around?”

Mickey looks up at her, the sun low in the horizon, about to set soon enough. He nods, “Yeah, gonna probably go for a run then eat before getting started.”

Lisa nods before heading back inside. Mickey finishes his cigarette before also going back inside. He passes through the gym without looking at anyone - or anyone in particular. He goes to his locker, grabs his water jug and chugs down as much as he can before using the washroom. He makes sure he has what he needs for his run before heading back out. 

Before he’s able to leave the locker room Ian is there again. “Not now,” Mickey tells him, trying to go around him.

“Where you going?” Ian asks him, stepping in front of him. 

“For a run,” Mickey tells him. “You’re fucking annoying, you know that?”

Ian smiles at him. “Can I join you? I could use a run.”

“Whatever, hurry up,” he says, waving his hand. Ian smiles at him brightly as he quickly makes sure he’s ready. They head back out the locker room and towards the exit. 

*

The run starts off quiet and that shocks Mickey. Since he’s met the redhead he’s been nothing but clingy - asking him questions, following him around, watching him train. Mickey hates that he likes it. The attention. He’s never had another guy's attention in this way before. 

Ian’s got good stamina, he’s able to keep up with him, even going a little faster but that’s cause of his fucking giraffe legs. “You tryna race me, Gallagher?” he asks, not slowing down.

“Maybe. Why? You wanna?” Ian asks, a smirk in place.

Mickey raises his eyebrows. “Okay, let’s do it. Get ready to lose, bitch,” he threatens. 

Ian laughs, “Someone’s forgetting how short their legs are huh?”

“Fuck you,” Mickey says, pushing at his shoulder as they still haven’t slowed down or made their move to actually race.

“Mm gladly,” Ian teases, wiggling his eyebrows.

Mickey rolls his eyes, trying to keep his blush at bay. “We racing or what?”  

“Now-” Ian says before taking off.

“You little bitch!” Mickey calls after him before kicking it into high gear and taking off after him.

He pushes his shoulder as he passes him, trying to make him stumble but all it does is give Ian access to his arm where he grabs at his wrist. Their race turns into them chasing each other down the street and into an alley, pushing at each other, gearing up to fight the entire time. Mickey’s never laughed this much in… ever. 

They come to a stop in the alley, both bent over, holding their knees as they regain their breath. “How you so fuckin’ fit? Banging old dudes in the club doesn’t get you a body like that,” Mickey tells him, leaning back against the brick wall, eyeing him.

Ian’s standing across from him, plenty of space between them. He laughs. “I don’t bang old dudes in the club - not anymore anyway,” he says with a shrug. “I used to be in ROTC so I’ve been training for years. I also run every day so you know, I can build up some stamina.”

Mickey nods. “Army huh? Did you go?” he asks, thumbing at his bottom lip.

“I did,” Ian says with a nod.

“Bull shit, wouldn’t you still be there?” Ian hesitates, biting his bottom lip slightly so Mickey adds, “Don’t need to talk about it if you don’t want, man.”

“No, it’s cool, I just haven’t really talked about it with anyone other than my family or - um, not really a conversation I’d wanna have in an alley though,” Ian says, a dimness now in his eyes. He doesn’t seem as happy as he just was when they came running after each other into this alley.

“Yeah, okay,” Mickey shrugs. 

“I’d like to tell you though,” Ian says, stepping closer towards him. “Um - if you want, maybe we can go for a drink later?”

“Can’t - in camp, alcohol is empty calories,” Mickey tells him. That’s the one thing he hates about being in camp for a fight - not drinking. Not eating greasy food, he can live without - though it is extremely hard - but no beer? No whiskey? That’s what really fucking sucks. 

“Right, how about weed?” Ian asks instead, a hopeful little smile on his face.

Mickey shrugs one shoulder. “Yeah, I can smoke weed. Just can’t eat any good munchies after,” he says, making Ian chuckle. 

“You still live in the same house?” he asks.

Mickey nods, “Yeah why?”

“I’m just around the corner, stop by when you finish at the gym, we can smoke a joint - I’ll provide the weed and some healthy munchies for you,” Ian offers, and there’s that hopeful smile. 

For some reason Mickey can’t find himself to say no. “Yeah, okay,” he says instead, shrugging slightly. Ian grins at him and Mickey can’t help but roll his eyes, stopping his own smile from taking over his face. “Ready to run back or you too tired, Red?” he asks, teasing him. 

“Let’s go,” Ian says, up for the challenge. 

*

When they get back to the gym it’s dark out and Mickey is starving. They head inside and to the locker room. There’s about a half hour left before the gym closes so there’s only a couple people left in the gym finishing up their training. Mickey’s too hungry to shower first so he goes to the kitchen in the back and takes his tupperware out with the food that he prepped that morning and heats it up in the microwave. It’s chicken and steamed vegetables - nothing enjoyable but it’s the sustenance he needs. 

Ian makes his way over to him. He’s changed into some grey sweatpants and a deep green hoodie with his duffel bag swung over his body. They’re alone so he makes his way over to stand next to him and says, “Here take my number so you can text me when you’re done here and coming by for that joint.”

“Phones in my locker, just take mine,” Mickey tells him. He recites his number as Ian plugs it into his phone, he texts him so Mickey has his number too. 

“Great, I’ll see you later,” Ian says with that bright ass fuckin’ grin. It’s too damn beautiful, Mickey kind of wants to gag.

“Yeah, whatever,” he says before watching Ian leave. He turns back and smiles at him when he sees Mickey’s watching him. 

Mickey turns back to the microwave when it beeps and takes his steaming food out. He grabs his phone out of his locker as his food sits at the table to cool down a second. He sits down and eats as he looks at the new text thread with Ian. All Ian texted him was his name but it’s the start. Mickey adds him into his contacts and puts his shitty iPhone on the table and finishes off his food. 

He washes his tupperware when he finishes eating and shoves it into a plastic bag and into his duffel bag - not wanting his dirty gym clothes that he’ll eventually take off and put into the bag to touch his clean tupperware. 

Mickey gets what he needs ready before wandering out into the gym. He sees Lisa closing the door behind the last guy and turns to see Mickey. “Hey, didn’t even see you come back,” she tells him. 

“Yeah, was eating in the back,” he tells her, hooking his thumb over his shoulder. “You sticking around?”

“Not much longer, just got some stuff to finish up,” Lisa says, walking by him and towards her office. “You can get started though.”

“Gotcha.” 

*

Cleaning the gym is kind of therapeutic. There’s no one else around - sometimes Lisa is here like she is now but she stays in her office with the door closed so it’s like no one is here - and he gets to just think for a while. His mind this whole week has been filled with thoughts of Ian Gallagher. This fucking kid came into his life completely - he’s training at his gym, he’s coming on his runs, he’s in his fucking head constantly. And now, well - now, Mickey managed to get himself a date. Not a date. It’s definitely not a date. He’s just going to smoke a joint and eat some fucking cucumbers or whatever healthy snacks Ian promised to have for him. 

Thoughts of showing up at the Gallagher house to smoke weed with Ian and talk - it’s not something he ever imagined he would be doing. Especially not when he thinks about how their first meeting was at a gay club Ian works at and he paid twenty five bucks for a lap dance from him.

Mickey blushes to himself as he thinks about it. It was hot - like really hot. He was wearing those ridiculous shorts but his body was on display and fucking glorious. His fire red hair grabbing all of his attention. He shakes those thoughts away as he finishes up his job for the night. 

It’s eleven when he finishes. He puts everything away before heading to the locker room. He takes a shower - not having had one yet today before changing into some black sweatpants and a clean black t-shirt. He puts his blue zip up sweater on over and small jacket before putting his duffel bag over his body. He closes all the lights and heads for the door. He makes sure everything is locked and enters the code before leaving the gym. Lisa had given him the code on his first day, knowing that most days he would be there until well after she left. 

Mickey makes his way to the El and heads towards the Gallagher home to spend some time with Ian. What is he even doing?

*

Mickey knows where the Gallagher’s live. Everyone in the South Side knows where the Gallagher’s live. He texts Ian that he’s outside and waits by gate out front. 

Ian  [11:34 pm]: Meet me in the back

Ian [11:35 pm]: No pun intended

Ian [11:35 pm]: Unless you’re down

Mickey laughs as he pockets his phone. He opens the rickety gate and closes it behind him. He makes his way around the house and to the backyard where he sees Ian coming out of the house. 

“You talk too fuckin’ much, man,” Mickey tells him when he nears the bottom of the stairs. 

Ian’s smiling at him from the top. “You don’t talk enough,” he counters. “Come up here,” he tells him.

Mickey climbs the steps, dropping his bag off to the side before he sits on the first step next to Ian. They’re sitting close together since there isn’t much space on the step but Mickey doesn’t mind too much, they’re alone out here. “I’d invite you in but my sister's kid is sleeping and we try not to smoke in the house when she’s around. It’s a bitch in the winter but we definitely don’t need her getting into anything she’s not supposed to - that’s happened before with my little brother,” Ian rambles. 

“It’s fine, man.” Mickey takes a smoke out of his pocket and lights it. Ian reaches for it after a moment and Mickey swats him away. He takes another hit before passing it over to him. They share the cigarette in almost complete silence before Ian asks, “How was your shift?”

Mickey rolls his eyes. “Same as always,” he says before taking the last drag of the cigarette and flicks it away.

Ian sparks the joint he promised and takes a long hit before passing it over. “I can’t smoke too much so that’s mostly yours,” he tells him before coughing lightly. 

“Why can’t you smoke too much?” Mickey asks, curious.

“Fucks with my meds,” he tells him. 

Mickey nods. “This has to do with the shit you didn’t wanna talk about in the alley?”

Ian smiles at him as he accepts the joint. “Yeah…” he says softly, looking off in front of them at the darkness around them. 

They’re quiet for a few moments as Mickey takes the joint back from him. He doesn’t know why but he feels like lightening the mood and making Ian smile. “Here, shotgun,” he says, turning to face him. Ian does the same, a small smile on his lips. Mickey takes a hit of the joint before leaning in close to Ian who opens his mouth slightly to accept the smoke Mickey blows into his mouth. 

Ian smiles and Mickey can’t help but feel good about it. Whatever Ian is going through, it’s something major. He doesn’t expect to be told about it, nor does he even really need to know. He’s finding that he doesn’t want Ian to be uncomfortable around him. He wants him to be happy and smile that big goofy smile. 

“It’s not easy talking about this stuff,” Ian starts. They’re both facing back out at the yard, Ian’s eyes are locked somewhere on the pool that hasn’t yet been opened. Mickey can’t take his eyes off of him though. 

“You don’t have to,” he offers. He shrugs slightly when Ian turns to look at him, a sweet smile on his face like he appreciates the offer.

“I want to. I - I’m not really sure why but I feel like I can talk to you,” he tells him. Ian’s looking at him now and Mickey kind of wishes he wasn’t because his eyes are this deep green and it feels like he’s seeing what’s left of Mickey’s soul. 

“Well, you do fuckin’ talk a lot,” Mickey teases.

It works because Ian laughs, knocking his shoulder into his. Mickey can’t help but smile at him, the weed making his walls drop down and letting himself be more open to Ian. “Please, I can tell you like it,” he teases back.

“How does me telling you to shut the fuck up translate into me liking it?” 

Ian shrugs, “I don’t know but it just does.” 

Mickey rolls his eyes but has to thumb at his bottom lip so he doesn’t smile too wide. After a few moments of silence between them Ian continues, “It’s hard because I’ve never talked to anyone about this that wasn’t family or a professional…” Mickey nods, not knowing what to say or if he even needs to say anything. He doesn’t because Ian says, “I have bipolar disorder.” 

“Not to sound like a jackass or whatever but um, what is that?” Mickey asks, confused. Mickey didn’t finish school, he doesn’t know anything about psychology or biology or whatever. It’s not like he gives a shit - he doesn’t need to be smart to be a good fighter.

Ian smiles at him softly. “It’s manic depression so I’ll get these very intense and extreme highs and then I’ll get these very intense and extreme lows. I got diagnosed when I was seventeen. Before that I didn’t know what was wrong but something felt off inside. My life just felt like a fucking joke and I had been working so hard in ROTC to make it to Westpoint but I couldn’t pull it off. Nothing seemed good enough - I wasn’t - anyway, my mom - she had bipolar also, she brought me to enlist. I was sixteen, almost seventeen, so they wouldn’t let me. Monica - she took off again. She was always in and out of our lives, never medicated, never a stable person. After she left, I just - I don’t know, I was just not thinking straight. I stole Lip’s ID and I enlisted. I barely made it through basic before going completely off the rails and stole a helicopter. I didn’t get far before I crashed it and went AWOL. I ended up finding my mom and living with her in some dirty crack house. I started working at this gay club,” at the look on Mickey’s face he says, “- not the one we met at but similar. I started off bartending but quickly became a dancer. I was all over the place. I barely slept, I would run eight miles a day, I took drugs instead of cash when I worked. I -” he takes a deep breath. 

Mickey puts his hand on his leg gently and just for a second but it’s enough to get Ian to smile and continue, “I did a lot of bad things but then it all stopped because I couldn’t get out of bed. It took about three weeks before I finally did. My siblings brought me to an institution and I stayed there for thirty days. That’s when they gave me the diagnosis. Soon after I left, the military police arrested me. It wasn’t for long though. Because of my diagnosis, my family played the crazy card - that I wasn’t in my right mind when I signed up, that because I was manic it made me do all those bad things like steal a helicopter and crash it. I hated that it became a crutch - an excuse to get out of something. I would have almost rather go to prison than have to admit I was fucking crazy-”

“You’re not,” Mickey interrupts. Ian looks at him and Mickey tells him, “You’re not crazy,” not breaking eye contact. He knows that he doesn’t really know Ian, only just getting to know him now, but the one thing he does know is that Ian is not crazy.

“Thanks, Mickey,” Ian says. 

Mickey nods and shrugs slightly. “So what happened after?”

“Well, I got stable. I still see the psychiatrist and every so often she has to readjust my meds because it can change quickly. It’s helped a lot. At first I hated it. Taking these meds every single day, the side effects were brutal at first. I couldn’t feel anything, I felt like a robot or something. Eventually we got the dosage right and everything sort of clicked into place. I started working out regularly again but not too intense. I stopped working at that club - yes, I know I still work at a club but it’s to help pay for school.”

“What are you studying?” Mickey asks. Now he knows - those thoughts swirling in his head the last week and a half about what Ian does when he’s not at the gym or if he only works at the club. 

“I want to be a paramedic. I finally got my GED and I got into the program. I’m in my first year now. It’s a bitch to pay for hence the club job. It pays well when I actually take cash and not pills for my work.”

“Yeah, shaking your ass in those little gold shorts,” Mickey whistles. “Hard work.”

Ian laughs, bumping his shoulder into Mickey’s again. “Shut up, I seem to remember you getting a lap dance from me in those little gold shorts,” he teases.

“Nah, you have me mistaken for somebody else,” Mickey says, shaking his head. He relights the forgotten joint and takes a puff, blowing the smoke out in front of him.

“Nah, nah, nah, it was definitely you. I’d remember those blue eyes anywhere,” Ian says, a small smirk on his lips.

Mickey laughs, choking lightly on the smoke making Ian laugh. He flips him off as he regains his composure. He offers what’s left of the joint to Ian but he asks, “Shotgun again?”

Mickey’s mind is foggy, all he can see is this gorgeous redheaded man sitting next to him wanting to shotgun the last puff of the joint. He takes the hit and leans forward, meeting Ian halfway. He blows the smoke into his mouth, their lips very briefly and very lightly touching before Mickey pulls back and flicks the finished joint away. 

They remain silent for a few moments before Mickey asks, “So where’s these healthy snacks you promised me, man?”

Ian chuckles. He says, “Inside, c’mon.” He stands and heads for the door. 

Mickey stands also, taking his duffel bag inside with him. This is the south side, he doesn’t need someone stealing his shit from the Gallagher porch.

They walk inside the warm house and it’s pretty quiet. Mickey looks around as he drops his bag to the ground near the backdoor. Ian walks to the fridge and pulls out a couple water bottles and a vegetable platter. He sets them at the table where they both take a seat.

Mickey can’t help but smile knowing that Ian must have gone to the store after their run to buy this veggie platter for him. He takes a few baby carrots, shoving them in his mouth. 

Ian takes a cauliflower and dips it into the ranch dressing. “So who lives here with you?” Mickey finds himself asking. He uncaps the water Ian brought for him and takes a large drink.

“It used to be the six of us and sometimes Frank, but now it’s just me, Debbie and her daughter Franny, Carl, and my little brother Liam,” Ian tells him.

“What happened to Lip?” Mickey asks him.

“It’s true, you two know each other,” Ian remembers. “He’s got a kid and everything now. He and his girl just rented a house like a block away so they’re still around a lot. He’s sober too. Took a lot of work but he’s been doing great.”

“Wow, that’s good man,” Mickey tells him, crunching on a celery stick. “What about your sister, the other one?”

“Fiona,” Ian tells him. “She took off like a year ago. She needed her own life and it’s hard to blame her. She’s been raising us and taking care of us all since forever.” 

Mickey hums as he takes another celery stick. Ian knocks his knee against Mickey’s under the table. Mickey’s sitting at the head of the table with Ian on his right, closer to the kitchen counter. He rolls his eyes at him and Ian grins that big goofy smile. “You’re such a dork,” Mickey says.

Ian shrugs, “You like it though.”

Mickey scoffs, “You got some fuckin’ imagination.”

“You don’t even wanna know half of my imagination…” Ian teases, voice low and leaning forward on the table, close to Mickey. 

Mickey raises his eyebrow, “Oh yeah?”

“Yeah,” Ian challenges, not moving an inch. Their eyes never break their gaze.

They hear footsteps coming down the stairs and Mickey turns to see a redhead girl making her way down. “Didn’t realize you had company,” she says to Ian as she passes by them and to the fridge.

“Sorry, we didn’t wake Franny or anything, did we?” Ian asks her even though he’s still looking at Mickey. 

“Nope, she’s asleep, just came down for some water,” she - Mickey assumes is his sister Debbie - says. She looks at Mickey and asks, “Who are you?”

“Mickey,” he tells her. 

“How do you know my brother?” she asks, shifting her weight onto her side as she props her free hand on her waist.

“Trains at the gym Carl brought me to,” Ian tells her.

“Cool,” she says simply before making her way back to the stairs. “As you were,” she adds before heading upstairs.

“I should head out,” Mickey says when they’re alone again. He stands from the table and Ian reaches out, grabbing his wrist. Mickey lets him hold it for a second longer than normal before pulling his arm away. “What?”

“Can we do this again sometime?” Ian asks him, looking up at him with these puppy dog eyes. 

It’s actually really hard to say no to so Mickey says, “Yeah whatever.”

Ian grins that big goofy smile before standing from the table, right in Mickey’s space. Mickey has to crane his neck back to look up at him when Ian says, “Cool, I’ll text you.”

Mickey nods before turning and stepping away from the towering ginger who smells way too good. He grabs his duffel bag and Ian tells him to follow him. He leads him to the front door, through the kitchen and living room. The house is messy but not bad - definitely not like his house - but it feels like a home, something his house has never felt like. 

Mickey goes to open the door but Ian stops him, he’s in his space again and this time he’s leaning forward. Mickey’s heart is pounding and his mind doesn’t know what to do but his mouth says, “Kiss me and I’ll cut your fuckin’ tongue out.” 

Ian pulls back, looking at him, probably wondering what the fuck is wrong with him. Mickey doesn’t know either. He has no idea what the fuck is actually wrong with him. Just that a hot redhead almost kissed him and he stopped it. He feels stupid now that they’re just standing there looking at each other. “See ya, Gallagher,” he stammers out before grabbing the doorknob.

He opens the front door and Ian says, “Night, Mick.”

Mickey gives him a final look before heading out into the cooling night air. 

*

Mickey’s mind is racing the entire like three fucking blocks back home. He makes his way into his cold and dark house - a house that has never once felt like a home, a place that should be filled with love and support. Thankfully he’s still on his own for the next few days. His dad and brothers still on their run - Iggy called that morning to say they would be back Monday and not Friday, giving him one last weekend to himself. Mickey told him about his fight coming up and they all can’t wait to come watch it. It’s the only thing they do as a family - well, sans Mandy since she moved away a couple years back. 

He tosses his bag on the floor next to his dresser, throwing his light jacket off and onto the bag before he climbs into bed. He can’t stop thinking about what just happened. He spent time alone with Ian at his house, smoking weed, and talking. He knows things about him that he’s never told anyone other than family or his therapist. That thought makes him smile but the smile disappears when he thinks about kiss me and I’ll cut your fuckin’ tongue out. He groans as he shoves his head into his pillow. 

Mickey wishes he could have let it happen. Just let the hot guy kiss him. But he couldn’t. Every fiber of his being was yelling at him to not let it happen. What if someone saw or what if Ian happened to tell the wrong person and then everyone knows he’s gay. He would lose everything he’s worked for the past six years before he even truly got anything good out of it. Not to mention, his father would literally kill him. Mickey sighs as he flips onto his side, trying to get comfortable. He feels his phone vibrate against his leg. He pulls it out of his pocket and looks at the tiny screen of his shitty old iPhone.

Ian [1:02 am]: I hope I didn’t make you uncomfortable

Before he has a chance to even think of something to say back he gets another text.

Ian [1:03 am]: I’d still really like to hang out. I promise I won’t try to kiss you again.

He hates how that one text just felt like a punch to the gut. 

Mickey [1:05 am]: When u free?

He sees the three dancing dots instantly before they disappear. They come back two seconds later and Mickey finds himself watching, waiting for Ian’s response.

Ian [1:07 am]: I have class tomorrow and work the next three nights but I could hang out before my shift on Saturday if that works for you

Mickey [1:08 am]: Ok

They continue to text out the details. Ian asking when would be good and Mickey saying he’ll be at the gym most of the day training. They finally decide to play it by ear, but knowing that Ian’s got work at ten o’clock. Ian texts him a ‘Night Mick’ like he said to him earlier. Mickey can’t help but smile at it. 

He finds himself rereading their conversation a couple of times before plugging his phone in to charge and falling asleep to thoughts of a certain redheaded guy who he’s going to hang out with again in a few days.

Chapter Text

Mickey doesn’t see Ian on Thursday, meaning Ian doesn’t show up at the gym. Mickey assumes he has school and he knows that he’s working at night from their texts the night before. He hates that he’s thinking about it - where Ian is. He should be thinking about his upcoming fight.

He is thinking about his upcoming fight. He’s thinking about how he’s going to get into that cage and rip the motherfucker apart. He’s thinking about winning the fight. He’s thinking about what could open up to him having won his third fight in a row. 

Mickey trains hard since there isn’t a physical distraction of the redhead present. He started training at the gym later today, having gone to bed late the night before. He trains until he has enough time to shower and eat something before the gym closes and he’s gotta clean the place again. 

Mickey finishes up for the day so he heads to the locker room. There’s one other person in there that he doesn’t really know - a casual trainer - and a couple more out on the mats who will come in here soon enough to get their shit and leave. He notices a flashing from his phone so he takes it out of his bag and turns the screen on. Mickey sees a few text messages waiting. Mickey never has messages waiting for him - maybe one or two from his brother or dad but that’s rare since they usually use burners. He opens up his messages app and sees they’re from Ian.

A fluttering erupts in the pit of his stomach and he looks around him out of habit. The one guy is zipping up his bag and heading out so Mickey opens the text thread from Ian.

Ian [3:18 pm]: Hiii Mickey 

Ian [4:03 pm]: I was trying to give you time to text me back but I just realized you’re probably training. My bad!

Ian [5:51 pm]: I hope you’re still training and not ignoring me but wow you train for long

Ian [7:39 pm]: I’m so not in the mood to work tonight 😭

Mickey can’t help but chuckle as he reads them all. The kids a fucking dork and he can’t stop the smile from coming onto his face. His phone buzzes in his hand once with another text that just came in.

Ian [8:27 pm]: I’m sorry for all the texts, I don’t usually text this much 

Mickey rolls his eyes before texting back.

Mickey [8:28 pm]: Ur a fucking dork

He sees the dots appear instantly and bites his lower lip to stop the smile as he waits for his text.

Ian [8:29 pm]: He lives! So I’m assuming you weren’t ignoring me?

Mickey rolls his eyes before texting a response. 

Mickey [8:30 pm]: I just finished training, didn’t see ur texts

Mickey [8:30 pm]: U talk too much

Ian [8:31 pm]: Pfff you like it

Mickey’s realizing that he does. 

Mickey [8:32 pm]: That’s ur imagination running wild again

He doesn’t wait for a response as he still needs to shower and eat so he tosses his phone back into his bag and takes what he needs before closing his locker. 

Mickey takes a shower, changes into his clean clothes, and dumps his dirty ones into his bag. He takes his phone out and pockets it before heading to the fridge to grab his food and microwave it.

Once he’s seated and letting his food cool for a moment, he takes his phone out and sees what he missed from Ian. 

Ian [8:33 pm]: I did tell you that you don’t want to know half of my imagination 

Ian [8:35 pm]: Or do you… 😉

Ian [8:41 pm]: I hated the wink the moment I sent it, that’s my bad. Don’t leave though.

Mickey chuckles before taking a bite of his food. He texts him back.

Mickey [8:45 pm]: I had to shower and now I’m eating

Mickey [8:46 pm]: Also never wink at me again

Ian [8:50 pm]: 🤣 promise, never again. 

Ian [8:51 pm]: Send me a pic of what you’re eating!

Mickey rolls his eyes as he looks at his empty tupperware, having basically inhaled his food since he was starving. He takes a picture of it and sends it before texting him. 

Mickey [8:53 pm]: I’m done. It was just chicken and vegetables.

Ian [8:54 pm]: Damn then maybe a pic of you? 😜

Mickey hates that he blushes, feels the heat move throughout his entire body. He rolls his eyes as he stands and brings his tupperware to the sink to wash. He puts it in the sink then texts Ian back before washing it.

Mickey [8:55 pm]: U promised not to wink at me again, bitch

Ian [8:56 pm]: That was a tongue emoji, doesn’t count.

Mickey rolls his eyes after reading that, fighting a smile. He tosses his tupperware into the plastic bag and in his duffel in his locker before responding.

Mickey [8:57 pm]: Does to

Mickey [8:58 pm]: I gotta get to work so bye

He shakes his head, what a dumb way to end that conversation. He puts the phone in his bag and closes his locker before getting to work on cleaning this place. 

*

The next couple hours go by quickly - they normally do when no one stays late and he can play music from Lisa’s office as he cleans. She doesn’t mind him using the sound system to play his music. Mickey’s got an old iPod that he plugs in and listens to all his favorite tracks as he works. 

He puts everything away before unplugging his iPod and closing her office door behind him as he leaves the room. Mickey goes to get his stuff from his locker - putting his warmest hoodie on and slinging his bag over his body. He closes his locker and heads out, closing all the lights and turning the alarm system on before he leaves for the night. He rummages for his phone outside on the sofa and his smokes. He pockets the phone so he can light a cigarette for his walk to the train. He takes his phone out and sees the missed texts from Ian. 

Ian [9:00 pm]: Ok talk to you later!

Ian [9:45 pm]: Almost at work. So not down to be here.

Mickey texts him back, he probably won’t get a response right away so he just pockets it after sending it.

Mickey [11:18 pm]: Not down to gargle on old man balls huh?

Mickey tosses his finished cigarette as he approaches the El. He makes his way in and only waits a couple of minutes before the train comes. He sits down on the first seat he sees and takes his phone back out, he sees he just got a new text from Ian.

Ian [11:27 pm]: Ha. Ha. You’re so funny.

Before he could type a response another comes through.

Ian [11:27 pm]: I wish I could be sitting on my back porch talking to you right now instead.

Mickey feels those same butterflies again. He looks around but there’s no one even close to him. He looks back at that text and bites his bottom lip - that smile trying to come back. 

Mickey [11:30 pm]: Who says I’d be over again? 🤨

Ian doesn’t respond and he’s at his stop so he pockets his phone and hops out, walking home. He knows Ian had to get back to work but he has this weird need to text him again. He doesn’t though. He’s not like the chatty redhead.

He gets home and decides to throw a load in the wash since he has quite a lot of clothes to wash and lies down on the sofa as he looks for something to mindlessly watch. His phone sits on the coffee table, his eyes wandering every few seconds to the device. 

He knows where Ian is right now and he knows what he’s doing. He’s dancing in a club full of dudes watching him in his tiny gold shorts. Some - or most because look at him - will buy lap dances from him and they’ll get to have him fucking gyrate on them for the length of a song. 

It makes Mickey feel a little better knowing that Ian does not want to be there and would rather be spending time with him but he’s still there so that feeling doesn’t last very long. 

*

Mickey’s startled awake by the washing machine stopping. He rubs at his eye as he sits up, after having nearly jumped right off the sofa. He gets up after a moment and transfers his clothes to the dryer. It’s mainly all gym clothes so they don’t need to be hung up to dry. He starts the machine and heads back to the living room to shut off the TV and grab his phone.

Mickey gets to his room, tosses his phone on his nightstand, strips down to his boxers and white tank top, takes a large drink of water from his jug then heads to the washroom. Once he’s ready he closes all the lights and slips into bed. 

He releases a breath of relief when his head hits his pillow. It could be more comfortable but it is what it is - giving him enough comfort at the end of a long training day. He closes his eyes and tries to fall back asleep but thoughts of Ian swarm through his mind 

Mickey thinks about Ian at the club but his thoughts are of the night they met there. How unsure he was the entire night and then his eyes locked with Ian’s and everything disappeared. How nervous he felt when Ian came right up to him and got him a drink. How he got a lap dance from him because he didn’t want him to walk off to give someone else one. How weird it was to get the lap dance but also how good it felt. He thinks about how he basically panicked and fled but how he still managed to see the redhead again and now be friends with him. Is that what they are? They’ve hung out in private, they’ve shared a joint, they’ve talked about personal shit - well, Ian has and Mickey listened. 

He thinks about how badly he wants Ian to text him again. Mickey’s brain hasn’t stopped since he’s laid his head on his pillow. He wants to fall back asleep like he was on the sofa but it doesn’t seem like that will happen. 

He reaches for his phone and opens up instagram. He doesn’t use it often and his account is completely private with no pictures, he doesn’t even have his name on there. His account name is @fuckvandamme and he basically only uses it when he’s bored. He follows a bunch of famous fighters and other shit he’s interested in like memes, guns, training and fitness accounts. He also follows Mandy to keep an eye on her. 

Mickey decides to search for Ian - curious as to what his account looks like. He’s sure he has all kinds of selfies. He snorts to himself at the thought of it. It doesn’t take long to find his account since he has his phone number in his contacts. And he’s right - he does have quite a bit of selfies but he mostly has pictures of his family or the sunrise or sunset. 

He scrolls through, looking at each picture, careful not to double tap any. He gets to a shirtless photo. It’s Ian in the pool and he’s holding up who Mickey assumes is Debbie’s kid. She’s got this huge grin on her face and she looks like Ian with that same red hair. Ian’s holding her up in the air like he’s going to drop her right back into the pool. He’s standing so you can see his entire torso - his soft chest hairs and the trail down his abdomen, a peak at his stupid eagle tattoo on his ribs - that Mickey noticed at the gym one day - his toned abs, and his strong arms. His hair is wet and is completely pushed back showing off his goofy grin - matching the one of his niece. It’s a really great picture. It makes him wish he could screenshot it to look at whenever but even though this is his phone, he doesn’t want someone to happen to see it and get outed. 

Mickey scrolls past the picture to look at the rest when his phone vibrates in his hand with a new text from Ian. He hates how quickly he clicks on it to read it.

Ian [2:03 am]: Me, I say 

Another text comes in right after.

Ian [2:04 am]: Sorry for responding so much later. Couldn’t take a break to grab my phone but I am finally done work now! 😁

Mickey [2:05 am]: Long night of gyrating on geriatric viagroids?

Ian [2:05 am]: What are you still doing up?! 🤨

Ian [2:06 am]: And yes, exactly, it’s been a very long night. Thank fuck it’s almost over.

Mickey [2:08 am]: Fell asleep on the couch when I got home but now that I’m in bed I can’t sleep

Ian [2:09 am]: In bed huh? 😜

Mickey [2:09 am]: I still don’t accept that fuckin’ emoji man

Ian [2:10 am]: 🤣 too bad 

Ian [2:11 am]: Send me a selfie?

Mickey rolls his eyes but a heat forms in his gut. He bites his lower lip as he types out a response.

Mickey [2:12 am]: Can’t but I can assure u that I am in bed

Ian [2:13 am]: Boo, no fun

Mickey [2:14 am]: 🖕

Ian doesn’t text back right away so Mickey goes back to his instagram and continues looking through his pictures. He sees one from about a year ago, Ian’s in a suit, he’s got a beard going on that is doing things to Mickey right now. He isn’t wearing a tie and the first few buttons are unbuttoned on his white dress shirt. He still has his suit jacket on and there’s a white pocket square in it. He’s looking off to the side in the photo with a woman sitting next to him. She’s also looking off camera and she has her arm around his shoulders, holding him close to her. She’s pretty in her green dress over a black long sleeved shirt and red lips, and her long dark hair in soft curls framing her face. Mickey can’t help but wonder who she is. He taps the photo once and it shows a tag for her so he clicks on her profile. 

Svetlana. She doesn’t have very many photos but there are a few on her profile that Ian is in. They seem to be good friends from what the pictures show. 

His phone vibrates with another text so he goes back to their thread.

Ian [2:31 am]: Finally on my way home 🙌

Ian [2:32 am]: I’m really excited about Saturday by the way 

Mickey takes a breath. Why does he constantly text him things like this? Things that make him have to stop for a minute and think of what to say back. 

Mickey [2:33 am]: What r we even doing?

Ian [2:34 am]: Pretty sure everyone will be home so I don’t know if you want to hang out at my place or not. Or we could go out somewhere but I have a feeling that’s not something you’d be down for.

He hates that Ian’s right. He can’t just hang out with Ian in public without wondering what people are thinking about it - do they think they’re on a date? Do they know they’re just hanging out? He knows he’s being paranoid but he knows being around Ian in public is risky. It’s too much to stress about and he can’t be stressed training for a fight.

He texts without really thinking all that much about it.

Mickey [2:38 am]: Could come here and chill. I’m alone until Monday.

Ian [2:40 am]: Um why aren’t I there right now?! 

Ian [2:41 am]: But yeah that sounds great 😊

Mickey [2:42 am]: Cause u prob have old man sweat on u and it’s almost 3 am

Ian [2:43 am]: What’s with all the old man comments? Not everyone who comes to the club or who gets lap dances from me are old. 

Ian [2:44 am]: And so what? We’re both awake 👀

Mickey [2:46 am]: I’ve been to that club. I saw who goes there, man.

Ian [2:47 am]: You were not there long enough

Mickey [2:48 am]: Oh I definitely was

Ian [2:49 am]: Not even close 

Mickey [2:50 am]: 🖕

Ian [2:51 am]: Did I mention how excited I was for Saturday because I retract that statement

That makes Mickey laugh out loud and smile at his phone in the dark of his bedroom like a dumb, smitten boy.

Mickey [2:52 am]: Can’t take it back now bitch, u already said it

Ian [2:53 am]: 🖕🖕

Mickey [2:54 am]: Better not come for my brand

Ian [2:55 am]: Flipping people off is your brand? 

Ian [2:55 am]: Of course it is, why am I even asking

Mickey [2:56 am]: Damn straight Gallagher

Ian [2:57 am]: There is nothing straight about me, Milkovich

This makes Mickey pause. Not that he didn’t know Ian was gay but for him to just say something like that to him. It has him stopping and reading the text over. Before he can think too much about it, Ian texts again.

Ian [2:59 am]: Yesss finally home 

Mickey [3:00 am]: That was fast

Ian [3:00 am]: Got a lift 😎

A lift? From who? A client? A coworker? Someone he picked up at the club? Would he be texting him this whole time if he was with someone else? 

Ian [3:01 am]: From a friend so don’t go and get jealous now 😜

Mickey [3:02 am]: The fuck would I have to be jealous for?

Ian [3:03 am]: 🤷 just saying

Mickey [3:04 am]: Go to sleep, ur clearly losing it

Ian [3:05 am]: But I like talking to you and I can’t do that if I sleep

Mickey takes another long breath in and out as he feels his heartbeat speed up at that text. 

Mickey [3:07 am]: We can talk tomorrow

Ian [3:08 am]: I’m gonna hold you to that

Mickey [3:09 am]: Whatever 🖕

Ian [3:10 am]: Are you going to sleep too?

Mickey [3:11 am]: Gonna try to, ya

Ian [3:12 am]: You can text me if you want

Ian [3:12 am]: If you can’t sleep, I mean

Mickey [3:13 am]: Ok

Ian [3:13 am]: Night Mick

Mickey [3:14 am]: Night

Mickey doesn’t go to sleep though. He re-reads their entire thread, not just from tonight’s exchange but from the beginning. He reads through it a couple of times until his eyes hurt from the light shining in his eyes and he puts his phone back down on the bedside table. He turns around, facing the window as he pulls the covers up over his shoulders, getting deeper into his bed, hoping for sleep to finally overcome him. 

*

Mickey starts his day with a run - and a shake prepared for when he gets back. He runs around his neighborhood, earphones in as he listens to his running playlist. He didn’t get much sleep - the need to pee too strong to ignore so he was up and ready for his run by nine. He passes the Gallagher house at the start of his run and stops for a moment, wondering if Ian is still sleeping or if he’s up and having breakfast at the kitchen table, or if he’s not even inside and maybe he’s also out on a run. He shakes himself out of it before he continues his run. 

He doesn’t bring his phone on his run, only wanting one device in his pocket while running - his old ass iPod - so when he gets home from his run he goes to his room and checks his phone. He has a couple of missed texts from Ian and his heart skips a beat.

Ian [9:07 am]: Morning Mick

Ian  [9:08 am]: Was that you I saw outside my window? 

Ian [9:54 am]: I was going to come train today, when will you be there?

Mickey smacks himself, he really had to stop and creep outside the Gallagher house and now Ian knows it was him.

Mickey [10:37 am]: Probably was me, passed your place on my run

Mickey [10:38 am]: Just got home from my run so probably within the hour I’m gonna head to the gym 

Mickey tosses his phone on his bed and strips down, tossing his sweaty clothes in his hamper. He takes a quick shower - just so he doesn’t smell before he even gets to the gym. He dries himself off before putting on what he usually wears when he heads to the gym - some sweatpants, a t-shirt with the gym’s name on it, and a hoodie. His hair is wet but he doesn’t feel the need to dry it. It’s not too cold out - the warm spring air finally coming through and leaving behind the remnants of winter. He grabs his phone from the bed and sees some texts that came in when he was showering.

Ian [10:43 am]: More than just passed, I saw you standing there for a little while. Were you wondering what I was doing in here? 😜

Ian [10:46 am]: Don’t have much to do so can I just come by your place and whenever you're ready we can head to the gym?

Mickey doesn’t think too much about it even though his heart is hammering in his chest. He texts him back before putting his phone down on the counter and getting started on making his food for today and the weekend since he didn’t do it last night. He doesn’t have any sessions booked today so he has time and doesn’t need to rush to the gym. 

Mickey [10:55 am]: Wtv doors unlocked 

He hears his phone vibrate against the counter so he flips it over and opens the new text from Ian. It’s just a smiley face emoji, the one where it’s smiling so wide and the eyes are all small. Mickey rolls his eyes but knows he’s smiling like a jackass. He leaves the phone alone as he moves around the kitchen, drinking his shake that he made before his run. 

He bought enough food to be set to meal prep for the past two weeks. He pulls out the vegetables, the chicken, the turkey meat he also got, and the salmon. He starts with the salmon first, knowing he’ll eat that tonight when he gets home from the gym.

He can’t do all that much to his food since they have to be low in calories and high in protein. It’s not the most fun to cook or eat but it’s still good food and it helps him for training so he does what he needs to do. As he finishes up the salmon, putting it into a tupperware, he hears the front door open and close. 

He then hears the redhead call out, “Hello?”

“In the kitchen,” Mickey calls back as he goes to wash the pan. He looks over his shoulder when he hears footsteps approaching. He catches Ian’s eye and sees that big goofy smile. “Hey.”

“Hey, whatcha doing?” Ian asks as he walks into the small kitchen. He leans against the counter near where Mickey is cleaning the pan so he can cook his chicken next.

“Meal prepping for the next couple days, didn’t get a chance to last night,” he tells him as he dries the pan off and moves around the tall ginger to get back to the stove. 

“Hmm, I wonder why,” Ian teases. Mickey rolls his eyes making Ian laugh. “You need some help?”

“Sure,” Mickey says, he sees the vegetables on the counter and adds, “Grill some vegetables?”

“You got it,” Ian says with a nod. Mickey points him in the right direction to grab another pan and soon the two of them are at the stove cooking - Mickey cooking the meat and Ian cooking the vegetables.

*

The time goes by quickly as they finish prepping a few meals for Mickey, chatting about random shit the whole time like how Ian’s doing in school, how he likes training at the gym, then he tells Mickey, “I’m excited for tomorrow,” making him fight a blush. 

“Yeah and why’s that?” he asks, eyeing him. 

Ian eyes him back, taking in his entirety from his eyes down to his feet and back up again. He’s lightly biting on his bottom lip and Mickey feels like he’s going to combust from the sheer heat that’s rising inside of him. Ian acts like he didn’t just cause an internal flame inside of Mickey by shrugging and teasing, “I like watching you squirm.”

“Fuck you, I don’t squirm,” Mickey says back, rolling his eyes.

Ian laughs and it’s hard not to want to smile at the sight. He fights it though, not wanting the annoying redhead’s ego to grow. “You do too, and it’s cute,” he says once his laughter subsides.

Mickey flips him off before grabbing the pan to wash. Ian moves to come stand close to him, holding a towel waiting to be passed the pan to dry. 

His fingers brush Mickey’s as he hands him the pan. Mickey pulls his hand back and he continues washing the dishes he’s used as Ian dries them. Once that’s done, they put his prepped meals in the fridge before saying, “I’m just gonna grab my bag and we can go.” Mickey heads to his room and he hears Ian behind him. “The fuck are you doing?” he asks him, looking over his shoulder, eyebrow raised. 

Ian smiles at him, “I wanna see your room.”

“Why?!” he asks before entering his bedroom. Ian right there with him. 

He pokes his head inside before stepping in. “Just cause,” he says.  

Mickey rolls his eyes at him before making sure he has what he needs in his bag before putting it over his body. “Can we go now or you still wanna stare at my bed?”

Ian flushes, “I wasn’t staring at your bed,” he says before turning to leave the room. 

Mickey smiles to himself as he walks behind Ian. “Sure you weren’t,” he teases, closing his door behind him.

*

The day flies by as Mickey trains. He and Ian even train together at one point. Ian asks him to hold the bag for him and it leads to Mickey showing him some techniques to help him get better like his stance when he hits or the best way to breathe as he’s doing it. Ian smiles at him too wide, too openly, it makes a flutter erupt in the depth of his stomach, it makes him want to smile back, it makes him want to kiss him. That thought almost drags Mickey to the locker room before he realizes he’d look insane if he just walked away. He remembers that nobody knows anything, he hasn’t done anything with Ian - with anyone that the guys here would have seen or heard about. 

The thought of kissing Ian scares him because he’s never felt that desire before. He’s never kissed a guy and he’s only kissed one girl before - the first girl he fucked, he didn’t like it. He’s hooked up with guys - three to be exact - but he’s never kissed one. He’s never been fucked either. Two of the guys he’s hooked up with he’s only gotten a back alley blowjob, and the other he fucked back at the guys place. He gave a fake name and left right after. It really made him realize that yes, he is gay, he likes fucking guys but he didn’t feel completely satisfied. He’s fingered himself and even has some hidden toys that he’s used to fuck himself with and it helped him figure out he is definitely a bottom. 

After Ian leaves and the gym starts to slow down, Mickey tries to refocus his thoughts on training. It works but only until he gets home and can’t focus on it anymore. He doesn’t have to clean tonight so he’s home, eating his prepared meal that Ian helped him make and he can’t stop thinking about the ginger. He finishes his food quickly, cleaning his dishes before sitting on the sofa. He turns the TV on but doesn’t go looking for something, his mind too busy thinking about the tall redhead who’s bulldozed his way into his life, into his mind. 

Mickey thinks about Ian’s goofy smile and how badly he wants to shove his tongue down his throat. He thinks about his toned arms and body and how he wants him to bend him over the table and fuck him hard, rough, going deeper and deeper, making Mickey see stars. 

Mickey’s dick twitches in his sweatpants, starting to get hard at the images his mind is conjuring up. He presses his palm to his dick outside of his pants and just lazily rubs at it as he closes his eyes, biting his bottom lip lightly. He pictures Ian here, in front of him, pulling his pants down. His big hands yanking them off him before grabbing onto his hips tightly. Mickey moans as he slips his hand into his pants, his dick now completely hard. He frees his aching cock, pants still up around his waist. He takes hold of the base of his cock, rubbing gently as his mind shows him Ian looking at his hard cock, licking his lips like he can’t wait to swallow him whole. 

Mickey strokes himself gently, teasingly as he imagines Ian would be sucking him. Slow and teasing just to work him up and up. He wishes he had lube but he doesn’t want to get up right now so he goes gently as he strokes himself, up, down, twisting his wrist at the head. He rubs his thumb over the slit, the precome sliding down his cock giving it a light lubrication. He moans softly, lips parting as he imagines Ian moaning around his cock as his hand fondles his balls and the other gripping onto his waist to hold him down. Mickey brings his left hand into his pants and touches his balls, fondling them how he sees Ian doing in his mind. 

He’s close. He can feel the tightness and the anticipation of it all building up. Ian looks up at him through his lashes, mouth full of his cock and Mickey can picture it so clearly, he comes hard into his fist with a moan, “Ian.”

Mickey looks down at the mess in his hands and feels disappointment that what he imagined so clearly didn’t just happen. He reaches for his discarded napkin on the coffee table and cleans himself up quickly before getting up to go to the washroom to properly clean himself and his hands. 

Mickey makes his way back to the living room, lying down on it now and searching through the channels for something to watch mindlessly. He finds that one channel is playing a Van Damme movie so he keeps that on and turns the volume up a bit. He prefers Steven Seagal but there’s jack shit on so whatever. Mickey makes it through the movie before starting to fall asleep on the sofa so he turns the TV off and heads to bed. 

It’s not late but being up late last night texting with Ian, not sleeping much, and then training intensely today - Mickey’s beat. He crawls into bed in just his boxers and a grey tank top. Now that he’s comfortable in bed, sleep doesn’t come so easy. He huffs before reaching for his phone. It’s a little past eleven so he knows that if he texts Ian he won’t answer since he’s at work. Not that he would text him first. What would he even say to him?

Mickey opens up instagram and goes to Ian’s page again. He sees that he posted a new picture yesterday. It’s one of him at the gym, mid punch to a bag. He remembers seeing Carl take the picture for him and rolling his eyes before getting back to his own training. The shot looks good though - Ian’s shirtless, sweat glistening in all the right places, illuminating his abs, and his shorts hanging low on his hips, teasing that V line. Mickey zooms into the picture and his dick reacts. 

“Jesus, again?” he says to himself. He gets out of that picture and sees that his profile picture is highlighted a different color and clicks it. It opens his story and Mickey’s thankful his username has no traces to who he really is. He watches Ian’s story - there’s four posts. The first one is from 13 hours ago and it’s a selfie of him with wild hair and half his face is covered by his coffee mug. The next one is a shot of the outside of the gym with the caption reading ‘Another day, let’s get it 💪’. The third post is a video of the interior of the club posted half an hour ago with the location tagged and the text reads ‘Come fill this place up, no pun intended 😉’. Mickey rolls his eyes at that caption. It leaves him feeling unsettled, wondering if guys did show up because of this story and hoping Ian doesn’t leave with any of them. The last one was posted ten minutes ago and it’s another video but this time it’s of him in all his mostly naked glory. He’s in what appears to be the washroom and the camera pans from his smoldering face down his chest and abs and briefly to his little gold shorts before it goes right back up to his face. Ian winks into the camera and the video ends there. 

If Mickey replays the story about ten - or fifty - times that’s nobody’s business but his. His eyes eventually get tired so he closes out of the app and puts the phone down on his bedside table. He gets cozy in bed, waiting for sleep to consume him.

What feels like five minutes go by before he hears his phone vibrate on the bedside table. He reaches for it again, opening it to see he got a text from Ian. He hopes he doesn’t know he’s watched his story a few too many times.

Ian [11:36 pm]: So you really were serious about not coming back here again huh?

Mickey was not expecting that.

Mickey [11:37 pm]: Yup 

Ian [11:38 pm]: 🙁 not the answer I was hoping for, Milkovich

Mickey smirks at the phone. 

Mickey [11:39 pm]: Sry to burst ur bubble, Gallagher

Ian [11:40 pm]: I guess I just gotta wait until tomorrow

Mickey [11:41 pm]: Guess so

Ian [11:41 pm]: Whatcha doin?

Mickey [11:42 pm]: In my bed that you couldn’t stop staring at

Ian [11:43 pm]: Cheeky motherfucker

Ian [11:44 pm]: Maybe I was trying to imagine you in it texting me like you are now

Mickey feels himself blush. He’s never been so affected by another guy before. 

Mickey [11:45 pm]: Think ur cute huh?

Ian [11:46 pm]: Bitch, I am 

Mickey [11:47 pm]: Don’t u gotta go shake ur ass for money now or somethin?

Ian [11:48 pm]: 🖕 

Mickey laughs as he sees the text come in. He feels nerves set in that he sent him away by saying that but then another text comes through making Mickey blush beat red.

Ian [11:49 pm]: Too bad I can’t shake my ass for you tonight but maybe tomorrow 😜  

Mickey [11:51 pm]: Oh look it’s that wild imagination u were tellin me about

Ian [11:52 pm]: 😂 you’re actually the worst

Mickey [11:53 pm]: 😈

Ian [11:54 pm]: That was so flirty, gosh Mickey

Mickey [11:55 pm]: 🖕🖕

Ian [11:55 pm]: Nvm he’s back 

Mickey doesn’t know what to say and Ian doesn’t text again so he re-reads the conversation a few times before putting his phone back down and trying to get some sleep. All he could do is think of Ian and how he wants to shake his ass for him tomorrow. God. He’s so fucked.

Chapter Text

Mickey gets a jump start on his day at the gym come Saturday morning, starting with a session in the cage with Dom. They’re working on his strategy for the upcoming fight, what best to do to win this thing and what moves to look out for that the other fighter is really good at. He didn’t notice Ian come into the gym - not until he came up to the cage to watch. Dom knocks him on his ass in his distracted state and he groans as he hits the ground of the cage. Dom’s on him, trying to put him in a hold but he tries not to get distracted by the redhead watching him and do what he’s here to do - train. 

Once their session is done, Mickey steps out of the cage and Joe helps him take his gloves off. He sees Ian over by a bag, punching away, working on his own training. Their eyes meet briefly before he refocuses on the bag in front of him. Mickey takes his gloves from Joe before heading to the locker room. He relaxes for a minute on the bench in front of his locker, drinking from his 4L jug of water. His mind wanders to the redhead out there training and how good he looks and how he’s going to be hanging out with him later - alone, at his house. 

He tries not to think about it and decides to head for the sauna. He changes out of his clothes and wraps his towel around his waist before stepping inside the sauna. He’s alone - thank God - and takes a seat. It’s not the biggest sauna - can’t really be more than maybe two people at a time but it does the trick. Mickey was already sweating from his session in the cage and now with the heat of the sauna he’s sweating more. He brings both hands up to his forehead pushing the sweat up and into his hair as he runs his fingers through his hair, pushing it completely back. He feels a strand get loose and fall back onto his forehead but leaves it alone.

Fighters tend to only come in the sauna when they need to cut weight but ever since Mickey started training here, he always found the sauna to be kind of therapeutic. Yeah, it’s hot as balls in here but whenever he comes in here he’s usually alone and it gives him the peace and quiet to think. He closes his eyes and lets his mind wander.

Mickey’s mind can’t help but wander right back to the redhead that completely and out of nowhere pushed his way into his life. He thinks about how Ian is planning to come over before work to hang out and how the night before he made a comment about shaking his ass for him tonight and fuck - now Mickey is thinking about their first meeting when he did get a lap dance from Ian. 

He tries to push those thoughts away since he’s only in a towel and anyone could join him whenever they please and he sure as shit doesn’t need any of these fuckers to see him with a hard on. So he thinks about his upcoming fight and what doors that will open up for him when he wins. There’s nothing that can stop him from winning this fight. Not even his complete and utter desire for Ian Gallagher who hasn’t stopped distracting him for two weeks. 

*

Mickey’s thankful no one came into the sauna with him. He exits the sauna, completely drenched in sweat and so ready for a nice shower. He walks back over to his locker and sees Ian walking into the locker room. He’s got his shirt slung over his shoulder and sweat glistening his perfect fucking body - like seriously who has a body like that?! Mickey knows he has a good body himself since he’s been training in MMA since he was fifteen but to see Ian looking the way he does, fuck , he needs to look away.

“Hey,” Ian says as he walks over to Mickey’s locker. Mickey looks up at him and nods, noticing how Ian’s eyes are taking him in from head to toe. 

When Ian meets his eyes, their darker, and it gives Mickey pause for a second before he says, “The fuck are you looking at?”

Ian bites his lower lip before confidently saying, “You.”

Mickey rolls his eyes, trying to fight the blush he feels crawling up his neck. Whatever, he could just blame it on the heat of the sauna. “Shut the fuck up,” he tells him before rummaging through his things for his shower stuff. 

“Where were you this whole time?” Ian asks him, sitting down on the bench behind him. 

Mickey turns his head back to look at him and catches him looking at his ass. Heat furrows in the depths of his loins but he pushes it away since he’s still just in a towel. “Sauna,” he says simply.

“Damn, wish I knew, would have joined you.”

Mickey didn’t tell him because he knew it would be too risky. Being alone with Ian in just towels in a bowling hot room, sweating, and mostly naked. Fuck. “Tough titties,” he says before closing his locker and heading for the showers.

Ian doesn’t follow him, thank God, so he’s able to take a shower in peace before getting dressed in his black sweatpants, white tank top and grey hoodie. He’s ready to head out when he sees Ian also ready and joining him at his locker again.

They don’t say anything as they leave the gym together and make their way back to the south side. Mickey kind of expected this to be awkward, you know, just sitting together on the train and not talking but it’s not. It’s actually kind of nice.

“So what do you do for fun apart from constantly training?” Ian then asks, breaking the silence.

“You know it was actually kind of nice there for a moment,” Mickey says. Ian looks at him confused so he adds, “Didn’t know you could stay quiet for so long.”

Ian rolls his eyes but he’s got a smile on his face. “Fuck you, you like how chatty I am,” he teases.

Mickey scoffs, “And what gave you that impression?”

“You’re still here.”

It’s so simple but yet feels so packed with a lot of emotion. Ian said it teasingly but the look in his eyes tells Mickey that there’s more to it than just harmless teasing. The train stops and Ian stands so Mickey follows suit. They exit at their stop and head for home. 

“I’m going to shower and get my shit ready for work then I’ll come by,” Ian tells him when they get closer to his place. 

“Whatever,” Mickey says simply. 

*

They part ways when they get to the Gallagher house - Ian going inside and Mickey heading the few blocks over to his house. Mickey gets inside and sees that the house is relatively clean since it’s just been him for two weeks but it’s still not clean-clean . He drops his gym bag in his room before taking his dirty clothes and towels and putting them in the wash. He strips his hoodie off - staying in just his white tank top and sweatpants. As the machine washes his clothes, he decides to clean some of the living room up, bringing dirty dishes and cups into the kitchen to put in the dishwasher. 

He feels like an idiot - cleaning for a fucking Gallagher. Especially since this Gallagher has already been here before. But he can’t seem to help it. He needs to do something before the redhead gets here and there’s literally nothing else he could do. He’s already showered. He can’t have a beer to relax - oh , weed. He finishes off with the dirty dishes and heads to his bedroom. He hasn’t smoked much in the last two weeks so he’s sure he still has some - bingo. He finds his stash in his sock drawer. There’s about three and a half grams left, perfect . He finds his rolling papers, something to use as filters, and an extra lighter in different areas of the house before sitting on the sofa and rolling a small joint for himself. He lights it up, taking a large hit and letting the smoke settle in his lungs before blowing it out. He finds the remote wedged in between the couch cushions and turns the TV on. He flips through the channels, landing on one that’s playing an old Jackie Chan movie so he leaves it there, tossing the remote back down on the sofa. 

The joint was small and didn't take him long to smoke - stubbing it out into the ashtray on the coffee table - but it does the trick. He’s feeling a little more at ease - calm. 

He’s thirsty as fuck, only downside to this shit. Mickey makes his way to the kitchen where he left his 4L jug of water. It’s more than halfway done - he needs to drink the full thing at least once a day. He takes that with him to the sofa, chugging it down to quench his thirst. A little spills out the sides of his mouth landing on his shirt but who gives a shit.

There’s a knock on his door so he puts the jug down and goes to see who it is. He’s sure it’s Gallagher but you never know in this neighborhood. 

He opens the door and sure enough it’s him with his big, goofy, stupidly handsome smile. “Hey,” he greets leaving him there to head back to the living room, plopping back down before Ian even closes the door behind him. 

Ian drops his bag down near the door before making his way further into the house, taking it in. He walks over, passing by Mickey’s legs to sit next to him on the sofa. “You smoke without me?” he asks, offended.

“Bitch, how would I know you’d wanna smoke? Don’t you have to go shake your ass for old ass men later?” Mickey asks, eyeing him as he leans back against the armrest of the sofa. 

Ian rolls his eyes but breaks, a small smile slipping onto his face as his eyes take him in. “I’m a Gallagher,” he says simply.

“Point taken,” Mickey says because well, it kind of is. They don’t say anything, just look at each other and the intensity in Ian’s eyes and the way he lightly bites on his lower lip sends heat coursing through Mickey so he nods his head at him and says, “Roll it up then.”

Ian laughs. “Not even going to roll, what kind of host are you?” 

“Fuck you, fine,” he says, sitting back up and moving closer to the coffee table again. He sits at the edge of the sofa, legs spread as he takes a king sized paper and starts sprinkling the weed into it. He feels his leg touching Ian’s and Ian’s eyes on him while he rolls and he feels that same heat again. “You just going to fucking stare at me the whole time?” he asks, glancing up at him briefly.

“Am I distracting you?” Ian teases, his leg pressing a little harder against his.

Mickey tries to regain his breath - the way Ian looks at him is just too much. Mickey scoffs, looking away and focusing on rolling this joint. “As if,” he says.

Ian laughs but he stops watching him because Mickey doesn’t feel that heat directly on him anymore. He feels Ian lean back into the sofa, his leg pressing harder into his as he spreads his legs to get comfortable.

All the heat he feels is there. Right there against his leg where Ian’s denim-clad thigh is pressed against him. Mickey wants to move his leg so he can focus on rolling this fucking joint but he also doesn’t because despite himself, it feels good. 

He does focus on finishing rolling and hands it to Ian after he sits back against the sofa, his leg pressed even more to his now that they’re both sitting back. 

Ian’s fingers graze his as he takes the offered joint and he feels that heat again. “Yeah maybe I should have rolled,” Ian says, smirk on his face.

“Oh fuck you, bitch,” Mickey says, flipping him off and making Ian laugh. That sound. Fuck . It makes Mickey want to smile. He can’t help himself so he does. He thumbs at his mouth, stopping it before Ian sees too much of it. Ian takes the lighter from the coffee table and leans back against the sofa once the joint is lit. He blows the smoke out before taking another, smaller hit and passing it over to Mickey who gladly accepts.

He can feel Ian’s leg pressed against his even more so than before as he shifts in his seat slightly, trying to get comfortable. Mickey’s sure he did that to get a little closer, to make him squirm, and it’s working. 

Mickey tries to ignore it though - that feeling building deep in the pit of his gut. This warm, fuzzy feeling like there’s a million butterflies swarming inside of him. His heart is beating fast and he knows it’s because of Ian and not the weed. He passes the joint back to him, their fingers grazing again. It’s like they’re magnetic.

Their eyes flicker over to each other but neither of them say a word. They pretend to watch the TV when they aren’t looking at the other. Mickey doesn’t like this feeling - it’s all too hot . He feels like he’s going to combust. He stands suddenly, shocking Ian a little.

“You want something to drink?” he asks as he makes his way to the kitchen. “I don’t really have much - just water, uh,” he continues as he looks through the fridge. “I have some orange juice too.”

“Orange juice is good,” Ian says from right above him. 

Mickey stands back up to see Ian behind the fridge door, watching him. “K,” he says simply as he grabs the container of juice out of the fridge before closing it. He grabs a clean cup and pours him a glass before handing it over.

“Thanks,” Ian says with a small smile before taking a large sip. 

Mickey watches as his Adam's apple bobs up and down in his throat as he drinks the juice. His eyes wander down to his neck - fuck , the veins. His eyes snap back up to his eyes when he finishes drinking, his eyes on him. He’s smirking at him and Mickey blushes.

“The fuck do you want?” he asks.

Ian’s eyebrows raise, that smirk still on his face. “You,” he says boldly, that it makes Mickey pause for a second.

“Don’t say shit like that,” Mickey finally manages to say, pushing himself off the counter and walking past him back to the living room. He hears Ian follow him. 

He sits on the sofa, in his previous spot, before Ian passes by his legs to sit down next to him, depositing his glass on the coffee table next to the ashtray that holds their forgotten joint. 

Ian watches him and Mickey snaps his head to him and asks, “The fuck are you looking at?”

Ian smirks. “You get so flustered so quickly. It’s very amusing.”

“I do not,” Mickey says but he can feel the blush as Ian watches him. 

Ian laughs so Mickey flips him off, only making him laugh more. Mickey rolls his eyes but can’t help but let out a small laugh. He pushes Ian’s shoulder and says, “Fuck off.”

Ian bounces right back and knocks his shoulder into Mickey’s. When their laughter subsides, Ian asks, “Does it make you uncomfortable when I flirt with you?” Mickey doesn’t know what to even say - why does this redhead feel the need to blurt out every fucking thought in his head. “Because if it does then I’ll stop. I don’t -” he pauses briefly before continuing, “I don’t want to make you uncomfortable.”

Mickey thumbs at his lip. He doesn’t want Ian to stop, fuck no, he doesn’t want that, but if he tells him that then the fucker will continue to do it and make Mickey blush like a fucking fourteen year old girl. “It’s fine,” he says simply, hoping that’ll be enough.

It seems to be because Ian smiles softly and says, “Good, uh - that’s good.”

Mickey rolls his eyes, knocking his knee into Ian’s. “Doesn’t mean you can keep askin’ me such stupid fuckin’ questions though,” he tells him as he leans forward to pluck the joint out of the ashtray to relight it.

“It was a valid question!” Ian laughs. “Excuse me for giving a shit.”

Mickey inhales the smoke and as he exhales he says, “Yeah, well don’t.”

“Okay so then I could just tell you that you look ridiculously hot and I haven’t stopped thinking about getting my mouth on you since I got here?” Ian challenges, eyebrow raised.

Mickey coughs on his next hit. Fucking ginger shit. He holds the joint aside as he continues to cough out the hit he took. He feels Ian take it from him so he grabs his water and takes a sip.

“Didn’t I say not to say shit like that?” he asks when he’s no longer dying of his cough. Sitting back against the sofa, he looks at Ian who looks too fucking cocky.

“Why can’t I? We’re alone… there’s no one from the gym here or your family. Unless it actually does make you uncomfortable?” Ian asks, hesitant again.

“It doesn’t -” Mickey starts to say before shaking his head. He continues, “Not everyone just gets to blurt out how they fucking feel every minute.”

Ian’s eyes go soft, “I’m -”

“Don’t fucking start to apologize,” Mickey stops him. He shrugs, “It’s just the way it is and it’s fine.”

“It’s not fine, Mick…” Ian trails off. Mickey gives him a look so he adds, “I know why you’re not out or anything but that doesn’t mean you have to hide who you are with me.”

Mickey chuckles cynically. “I don’t even know you,” he tells him.

“Let’s change that,” Ian says with all the confidence in the world. 

Mickey shakes his head. This fucking kid just - ugh, he’s driving him insane. He stands and Ian asks, “Where you going?”

“I need a cigarette, calm down,” he says as he makes his way to his room where his pack is still in his duffle bag.

He finds the pack, taking it out of his bag before standing back upright. He feels more than hears Ian step into the room and towards him. His back is to him and for some reason he can’t find it in him to turn around. Ian’s right behind him, he can feel his hand lightly graze his arm from his bicep down to his elbow. His body isn’t touching him but Mickey feels like he’s on fire from just how close he is. 

Like he’s reading his mind, Ian steps forward one step, pressing his body to his. He can feel his groin against his ass and his hand now grazing his hip. Mickey lets out a small moan and that’s all it takes before he feels Ian’s lips on his neck, his hands gripping onto his hips tightly, pulling him closer against him.

“Fuck,” he moans softly before biting his bottom lip. 

Ian thrusts his hips once against him. Mickey can feel how hard he is through his jeans and it makes his own dick twitch in his sweatpants, now completely hard and starting to leak at the head. 

Mickey doesn’t do anything with his hands, completely unsure of what he should even do. Ian’s right hand slips from his waist to cup his dick through his pants. 

Mickey moans louder, pressing his ass back into Ian. Ian slips his hand into his pants and takes hold of his aching cock. “Fuck, Mickey…” he pants hotly into his ear as he starts to stroke him.

Now that they’re doing this all Mickey can think about is what Ian said earlier. “Still want to get that mouth on me?” he finds himself asking.

Ian bites down on his shoulder gently before saying, “So fucking badly.”

“Then get to it,” he says. It’s all of ten seconds by the time Ian manages to get Mickey’s pants and boxers down and have him sit on the edge of his bed. Ian gets on his knees in front of him and looks at his aching, leaking cock in front of him. He looks up at Mickey with a smirk before licking the slit of his cock, gathering the precome on his tongue.

Mickey moans softly, watching how that mouth that hasn’t shut up for two weeks since he’s known him is now about to suck his dick. Ian holds eye contact as he lowers his mouth over Mickey’s dick, taking him further and further into his mouth before his eyes close and he moans around his cock. Flashbacks to his fantasy on the sofa yesterday flood his mind - nothing compares to this, here, now, Ian’s mouth actually on him.

“Jesus Christ,” Mickey moans out, feeling his dick hit the back of Ian’s throat. He runs his fingers through Ian’s hair, grabbing onto what he can manage. 

Ian moans around his dick as he works his tongue around him, driving Mickey wild. Mickey’s never felt such intense pleasure before. He’s had some blowjobs before but fuck , Ian Gallagher’s mouth is something special. 

Ian’s running his hands up his thighs, gripping onto them as he bobs his head up and down. He brings one of his hands to his balls and fuc, that does it. “I’m about to -” he starts to say but Ian doesn’t stop, he doubles down, trying to get him there faster.

Mickey moans out a “Fuck,” as he comes hard down Ian’s throat, fingers gripping onto his hair. 

*

He’s trying to regain his breath as Ian wipes at his mouth, looking up at him from between his legs. “Fuck,” he says on an exhaled laugh. “That was good.”

Ian smirks and Mickey rolls his eyes at him making him laugh. Ian stands and Mickey can see his erection pressing against his jeans before Ian sits down on the bed next to him. “Do you - um, need me to?” he asks, nodding towards his groin. He’s not sure why it comes out all broken and stuttery. That’s a lie. He knows why. He’s never sucked a dick before. He’s had a couple of guys suck him off before - two before Ian to be exact - but he’s never had one in his mouth.

“Have you before?” Ian asks him. 

Mickey looks at his face and it’s soft - it’s not mocking and it’s not judging. He shrugs and says softly, “No.”

Ian smiles at him, “That’s fine. You don’t have to -”

“Let me do something for you, man,” Mickey finds himself saying. It’s not that he feels bad to get a blowjob from Ian and not reciprocate anything - that’s how his other sexual encounters have gone - but he wants to. He’s never wanted to before. Not like how he so badly wants to with Ian.

Ian’s smirking at him and says, “Okay, jerk me off and -”

Mickey raises his eyebrows, “And?” he asks.

“I know you don’t want to kiss - you’d cut my tongue out and all - but if you could like on my neck while you do that?” Ian asks hesitantly, almost like he’s nervous.

“Whatever,” Mickey says with a shrug. 

Ian smiles and undoes his jeans. He leaves his pants and briefs on but with the jeans wide open. Mickey can see his erection pressing against his briefs, wanting to be free. From what Mickey felt against him before and what he sees now, he’s sure Ian’s big - bigger than Mickey is - and the thought of getting his hand on him is making his dick twitch with want again. 

He reaches into Ian’s briefs and takes his cock out. Fuck, it is big. Bigger than he’s ever seen in person. Bigger than in some of the porn he watches. His mouth salivates as he holds it in his hand. 

He realizes his hand is dry and that won’t be pleasant for Ian to be jerked off with a dry hand so  he grabs the lube in his bedside drawer. Ian smirks when he sees it and Mickey tells him, “Fuck off.” He pours a bit into his palm before taking hold of Ian’s cock again. 

Ian moans softly as Mickey starts stroking his length. It doesn’t feel that different to jerking himself off - well, apart from the size. He feels Ian move his arm to the side, planting his palm against the mattress, giving Mickey more room next to him. Mickey moves a little closer and he finds his face to be right near Ian’s. Ian’s watching Mickey’s hand move up and down his cock, twisting at the head as he swipes his thumb across his slit.

“Fuck, Mickey,” he moans softly, biting his bottom lip.

Mickey hates that he threatened Ian and now he can’t kiss him. Okay, he can , but what’s he going to look like if he just gives in. Plus, kissing is so fucking intimate, and like he said before, they don’t know each other. 

But he does what Ian asked because well, his neck does look really hot with the veins popping out and he really badly wants to see what it’s like to have his mouth on Ian Gallagher.

He licks Ian’s neck from base to just below his ear lobe and Ian moans louder, bucking his hips up into Mickey’s fist. Mickey smirks, loving how he can affect Ian like this. He hears a small “fuckkkk,” come out of Ian’s mouth before Mickey kisses his neck softly. He opens his mouth and sucks on his neck lightly as he jerks Ian’s cock faster.

“So good, fuck, Mickey, you’re so hot,” Ian rambles and fuck does it ever spur Mickey on. 

Mickey bites Ian’s neck lightly like he did to him before and that’s what it takes for Ian to come hard into his hand with a low moan of his name on his lips. 

Mickey strokes him through it until there’s nothing left, letting him go softly. He reaches for some tissues for the two of them before cleaning his hand off, hoping to one day taste him.

He stands, picking up the pack of cigarettes he dropped on the floor. Ian tucks himself back into his jeans once he’s cleaned up, as he also stands from the bed. Mickey thumbs at his bottom lip nervously as they just stand there, looking at each other. He doesn’t know what to say or do so he just walks out of his room, needing badly to smoke this fucking cigarette already.

Mickey sits on the sofa, letting Ian pass him to sit next to him, a little closer than before, as he lights his cigarette. He offers the pack to Ian who takes one out. The lighter is on Mickey’s thigh so Ian takes it, letting his fingers touch his inner thigh briefly, sending butterflies swarming in his stomach and heat roaring in his groin. 

They sit together, smoking their cigarettes, pretending to watch the TV as they not so subtly take glances at the other. 

*

Ian gets hungry so Mickey offers to make him some frozen shit that’s still in the freezer since his family isn’t here to eat it and Mickey’s in camp. Ian eats some pizza rolls as Mickey eats his prepped meal. The TV goes unnoticed as Ian asks Mickey question after question.

“What’s your favorite color?” 

“Red.” Ian smirks at that making Mickey roll his eyes.

“How did you realize you were gay?”

“What?”

“For me it was Justin Timberlake,” Ian tells him.

“That’s so gay,”  Mickey says. 

“Yeah no shit.”

They laugh. “Uh, I don’t know… probably when I started fucking girls and knew I didn’t like it. I would watch porn and focus only on the guy. But I guess Seagal?” he says.

“No fuckin’ way. Van Damme is the way to go,” Ian tells him. 

They stop the questions to argue about who’s the better action star. 

Before either of them wanted it to be, Ian tells him, “I should head out.”

“Off to choke on some gray pubes huh?”

“Jealous much?” Ian teases, eyebrow raised.

Mickey scoffs. “Not really, you were just sucking me off not too long ago,” he reminds him.

“Mmm, I know, I can still taste you,” Ian flirts.

“Fuck off,” Mickey says, blushing.

Ian laughs. “No, I can’t but I’d really like to - um, again, sometime,” he says, nervous again.

“We’ll see,” Mickey says simply.

“Tease,” Ian chuckles. He gets up, using Mickey’s leg as leverage, an excuse just to touch him again. “Can I use your bathroom before I go?”

“Sure, it’s right near my room,” he tells him.  

Ian smiles at him before disappearing to the washroom. He comes back out not long after, grabbing his bag near the door. Mickey meets him by the door and Ian smiles. 

“Can I text you later?” he asks him.

“I don’t give a shit man, do what you want,” Mickey tells him, trying to be nonchalant, but he really does want Ian to text him. He wants Ian to stay. 

Ian grins devilishly, “Don’t tempt me.”

Mickey bites on his lower lip and Ian moans softly, his fingers reaching out to touch his lip, pulling it out from between his teeth. Mickey’s breathless as he feels those long fingers on his lips. He puts his hand back down, eyes looking into his now. “Can I convince you to come with me? Promise I’ll give you a lap dance that won’t have you running out of there like last time,” Ian teases, his expression hopeful.

Mickey wants to say yes but he can’t. “Can’t, man,” he tells him simply. 

“I know. I still thought I’d give it a shot,” Ian says. He looks at his watch and adds, “Okay, I really need to go now. Talk later?”

“Sure,” Mickey tells him and watches as the smile blossoms on Ian’s face. Ian opens the front door and before he leaves, Mickey says, “As long as you don’t die from choking on too many gray pubes.”

“You’re so funny,” Ian mocks with an eye roll. He does send him a gorgeous grin though before he leaves the house, leaving Mickey to close the door, his own smile taking over his face.

*

It’s Saturday night and Mickey’s smoking another joint, watching a movie, and about to snack on some cucumbers because he’s in fucking camp for a fight. Preparing for a fight sucks. He can’t drink. He can’t eat any of that good and junkie food he likes. But it is what it is. This is the life he wants. He wants to be a professional fighter. He’s been training for it for the past six years but he’s been fighting his whole life. 

Why does he feel so fucking miserable though? It’s not like this is any different than a typical Saturday night for him. Usually it’s not even this good because his douchebag brothers and psychotic father are here or getting home from The Alibi piss drunk. Mickey usually tries to stay in his room before his dad comes home from a night of drinking because he likes to get competitive and try to fight Mickey. Fucker is big too so he gets some good hits in. Wants to show he can still beat his ass even though he’s a trained MMA fighter. 

Mickey’s happy to be home alone, just smoking a joint and watching a movie but he also hates every second of it. He knows why and he hates himself even more for it. He should have just gone to the club with Ian but he couldn’t - he can’t. It’s risky enough going to gay clubs but to show up with one of the dancers? No. That wasn’t going to happen.

If he was wishing for stuff then it would be for Ian to have stayed here with him. His phone vibrates on the coffee table so he reaches for it, putting the joint in the ashtray for now since it’s not lit anymore. He sees he got a text from Ian, before even opening it he smiles. God, he’s got it bad for the redhead.

Ian [11:43pm]: Wish you were here 

Ian [11:43pm]: I know you said no pics or anything but I wanna send you something do you have like a snapchat or instagram or something?

If Mickey gives him his instagram then he’s going to know for sure that he’s watched his stories before so he quickly creates a snapchat account and texts Ian back.

Mickey [11:47pm]: Just made a snapchat, its @mmamick810

He doesn’t get a text back but he gets a notification on his new snapchat account. It tells him that @iangallagher3 wants to add him as a friend. He accepts the request and soon their little chat is highlighted blue. He clicks on it, not knowing how the fuck this app even works. It slides and shows that there’s a video there. He clicks on the video and it opens the full screen of his phone. It’s loud - music thumping all around but the shot is of Ian dressed in those ridiculous shorts. The video shows his face smirking into the camera before it pans down his body as he slowly dances to the music, gyrating his hips. Ian cups himself through his shorts with his free hand before the camera pans back up his body and to his face where he has the cutest little smile. The video ends and restarts on its own so he watches it a bunch more times.

He hits back to exit the full screen and sees that Ian also sent him a winking emoji. He types back to him.

@mmamick810: I thought I told u not to wink at me

He doesn’t say anything back right away and Mickey hates it because it means he’s busy probably giving a dance to some old fuck. He exits out of the chat, closing the screen, and tosses his phone down on the sofa next to him. He takes a drink of his water and tries to calm the fuck down. It’s not like they’re together or anything, what Ian does for work shouldn’t bother him. 

Mickey takes the joint, relighting it when an idea pops into his mind. He’s never done this before but apparently snapchat is famous for everything disappearing instantly so he decides to send Ian a video back. Nothing as steamy as what Ian just sent him but something nonetheless.

He opens their chat back up, still seeing his latest message there, assuming that means Ian hasn’t opened it yet. He clicks on the camera button at the bottom left of the screen. It opens up and he flips it to be on his face. He holds the button down to start filming as he takes a hit from the joint between his fingers. The ‘FUCK’ tattoos on his knuckles shown in the video. He raises an eyebrow to the camera before blowing out the smoke through his nose, and then stops recording. He watches as the video plays for him before deciding to send it to Ian. He sees that it sends differently than the one Ian sent him. There’s a purple arrow instead of a video.

“Huh,” he says to himself. He exits out of the app and goes to google to find out more about the app.

After extensive research, he now knows how the app works and is confident this will be a good  way for them to send shit to each other without anyone knowing. Not that anyone goes through his phone anyway to see his texts but just in case. If his dad or brother takes his phone and sees their texts then it won’t be as incriminating if a video like the one Ian just sent him was there. At least on snapchat it disappears - but he found out that you can keep things if you want but what’s the point? The whole concept of the app is so they disappear. Mickey likes that idea.

He doesn’t get anything back from Ian on snapchat but he decides to open his instagram. He goes to Ian’s page and sees new stories so he clicks on his icon and watches.

There’s a shot of him in the mirror at the gym after his workout. He has his tank top slung over his shoulder in the shot and his body is glistening with sweat. He must have taken it when Mickey went to shower. He looks too good in this picture. The next story was posted when he got to work, it’s another mirror selfie but this time of him in his gold shorts and he wrote in the picture ‘another mirror selfie’ - at least he’s self-aware. He rewatches his stories, holding his finger down on each one so they don’t disappear before he’s ready to stop looking at them.

Once he feels like too much of a stalker, he puts his phone down, focusing on the movie playing on TV and eating his healthy snack.

*

Mickey finally feels tired enough to head to bed. He checks the time and it’s almost two in the morning. He yawns as he heads to the front door to make sure it’s locked before heading to the washroom where he does his nighttime routine, which is only to piss and brush his teeth. He turns all the lights off, taking his phone with him and climbing into bed in just his boxers and white tank top. He sees a notification for snapchat so he opens the app and there’s unread messages from Ian.

@iangallagher3: Fuckkk you look so hot

@iangallagher3: Sorry took so long to respond, it was busy af tonight

Not feeling so tired anymore, Mickey messages him back.

@mmamick810: Lot of old queens want lap dances huh

He sees a little redheaded character pop up from the corner of his screen - a bitmoji or whatever the fuck it’s called, that he read about when trying to learn the app - so he knows Ian’s typing.

@iangallagher3: Oh yeah so many 🙄

@iangallagher3: You’re still up

@mmamick810: No shit

@iangallagher3: Waiting up for me? 🤪

@mmamick810: Bitch u wish

@iangallagher3: Since you’re up… 

Mickey waits for Ian to continue, his heart pounding in his chest. 

@mmamick810: ??

@iangallagher3: Can I come back over?

Mickey feels like all of his breath just left his body. He wasn’t expecting that. He has no idea what to say. He wants him to, fuck, does he want him to. When Mickey takes too long to respond he sees that Ian sends another message.

@iangallagher3: Nevermind, shit, forget I asked

Mickey’s fingers move before his brain has time to catch up to what he sends back.

@mmamick810: Ya u can if u want

There’s a few minutes where Mickey is just laying there waiting for Ian to respond and wishing he never agreed to this before Ian finally messages back.

@iangallagher3: Oh I definitely want 😏

@iangallagher3: I’m headed out now, getting a lift from a coworker to my place. I’m going to shower all this glitter and shit off then I’ll walk over if that’s cool with you?

@mmamick810: Sure, can't promise I won’t fall asleep tho

@iangallagher3: Don’t you dare! 

@iangallagher3: I’ll be there soon. I’ll message you when I’m walking over.

Mickey doesn’t bother to respond but instead he stares at the ceiling, phone on his chest as he thinks about what this means. Ian is coming back over now, in the middle of the night. This is definitely a booty call… right? 

He tries to slow his wildly beating heart but he can’t seem to. Thoughts of Ian in his bed with him are swarming in his mind. Ian will spend the night - well, he’s assuming he’s going to since it’s already the middle of the night. Ian is going to be in his bed with him. Touching him. Possibly even fucking him. Oh my God.

The thought of Ian’s huge cock entering him as him hard as fuck. “Shit,” he mumbles, pressing his palm against his erection. He wants it - fuck, does he ever want it to happen but… Mickey’s never been fucked. He’s only gotten a couple blowjobs in dirty alleys before and he’s fucked one dude once. It was quick and he came but it wasn’t as satisfying as he thought it would be. Is he even ready for this? He’s considered it - getting fucked hard in the ass. He’s played with himself enough to know that he likes it - that he’d definitely prefer to bottom should the time come - would want a nice big dick - like Ian’s - up inside of him but he’s never actually considered it to be a reality. Definitely not a reality that could happen tonight.

He feels the need to get up, laying here thinking about all of this, he can’t do it so he gets out of bed. He pockets his phone as he makes his way into the living room, turning on the light. He paces the room, spiraling - his mind going wild with all these thoughts of Ian coming over, what they’ll do, what it all means.

Before he knows it, he feels his phone vibrate in his pocket. He sees the snapchat icon and knows it’s a message from Ian.

@iangallagher3: Gonna walk over now, if you’re still okay with it?

Mickey bites his lower lip. He’s not not okay with it. His fingers move on their own again.

@mmamick810: Ya, unlocked the door so just lock it when u get in

He sees that Ian saw the message, receiving a simple smiley face emoji so he pockets his phone and goes to unlock the door. Ian only lives a few blocks away so leaving it unlocked should be fine, not like anyone would dare to walk into the Milkovich house of horrors uninvited. He turns the light off as he makes his way back into bed. There’s no way he could greet him at the door.

He slips into bed, turning the lamp on in his room. It’s another couple of minutes or so before he hears the door open and close. He hears footsteps making their way towards him and then the sound of his voice.

“Hey.”

Chapter Text

Mickey turns his head to see Ian standing in the open doorway of his bedroom dressed in grey sweatpants and a dark green hoodie. He looks too good just standing there. His hair looks a little darker, probably still wet from his shower.  

“Hey,” he greets him back with a nod. Ian smiles at him, biting his lip slightly as he still stands there. “The fuck are you doing?”

Ian lets out a breath of a laugh. “I don’t know - I feel awkward, sorry,” he says.

“Well, don’t,” Mickey says simply.

Ian nods, smiling that beautiful smile before stepping into the room. Mickey pulls the covers back on the side closest to the window and pats it. Ian walks around the bed, slipping out of his shoes before sitting on the bed. His back is to Mickey as he pulls his hoodie off, tossing it to the ground. Ian’s got one of the gym t-shirts on and Mickey can’t help but smirk.

“Got yourself one of those shirts huh?” he asks him.

Ian gets into the bed more, pulling the covers over him as he smiles at Mickey. “Yeah, they looked so good on you, figured they’d look even better on me,” he teases.

Mickey laughs, flipping him off. Ian laughs too and that sound is really doing it for him. It might actually be his new favorite sound. “Does look good,” Mickey says after their laughter subsides.

“I see you haven’t changed,” Ian says eyeing him. 

Mickey blushes, knowing he’s only in his boxers now. Ian watches him before pulling the covers up and seeing for himself. Ian groans, “Fuck, Mickey,” before putting the covers back down and watching him again.

“Turning you on, Gallagher?” Mickey finds himself saying, biting his bottom lip, eyebrows raising.

“More than you know,” Ian tells him. “Couldn’t stop thinking about you at work.”

“Oh yeah? Like what?”

“Like how badly I wanted to suck your cock again, to taste you. How badly I wanted to get my dick inside that perfect ass of yours,” Ian tells him hotly, voice so deep it sends shivers down Mickey’s spine and heat furrowing in his groin.

“Fuck,” he mutters under his breath but Ian hears it. He moves closer to him in the bed, his hand tentatively coming up to touch his neck before sliding down his chest. He pinches his nipple through his shirt and Mickey moans. 

“You’re sensitive,” Ian notes before trailing his fingers to his other nipple and doing the same thing and getting the same reaction from Mickey. “I like it.”

Mickey looks at Ian, their eyes meeting as Ian trails his fingers down his body. His hand slips beneath the sheets as he cups his hand over Mickey’s growing erection through his thin boxers. Mickey lays back, hips thrusting up into Ian’s hand. Ian slips his hand into his boxers and takes hold of his cock, swiping his thumb over the slit, collecting the precum. He leans forward, kissing Mickey’s neck, just under his earlobe.

Mickey moans deeply, his hand wrapping around Ian’s shoulders and up into his hair at the back of his neck, keeping him in place. He wants more, he needs more. He’s just not sure how to ask for it.

Ian moves his head back to look at him, Mickey’s hand sliding back down to his shoulder. “You’re so hot Mick, I need -”

“What?”

“I wanna fuck you so badly,” he tells him, eyes darker than Mickey’s ever seen them.

“I - I never have before,” he admits, chewing on his bottom lip nervously. “I mean, I’ve fucked chicks and I’ve fucked a dude once before but I just never -”

Ian smiles at him softly. “That’s okay, Mick. If you’re not ready we don’t have to.”

“I want to,” he says quickly. He does. Fuck, does he ever want Ian inside of him. “I want you to fuck me.”

Ian smirks before pulling his shirt over his head. Mickey does the same with his before they both work on their bottom halves. Once they're both completely naked, Ian settles in between Mickey’s legs. He hovers above him, his mouth so close to his that Mickey thinks maybe he’ll just finally kiss him and he’ll finally let him. But he doesn’t. Ian’s lips move to his jaw and down his neck as he reaches for the lube still on the bedside table. He tosses it to the mattress near their hips as he kisses his way down Mickey’s body. 

This feels so good. Mickey’s never had anyone pay this much attention to his body before. The way Ian kisses him, his lips soft and his mouth open so his tongue can lightly trace the spot he kissed. It’s delicious torture. Ian finally makes it down to his cock but he avoids it. He kisses his thighs first, working on each one, sucking on them lightly - not enough to leave marks, smart enough to know not to. 

Mickey runs his hand through Ian’s hair, encouraging him to get to it without having to tell him. Ian smirks up at him before taking his cock into his mouth. “Fuck,” he moans, biting his lip as his fingers curl into the strands of Ian’s red hair.

Ian pulls off after a moment to pour some lube onto his fingers, rubbing them together to coat them completely before taking Mickey’s cock back into his mouth with a moan once it hits his tongue. He taps on Mickey’s leg so Mickey plants his feet on the mattress, giving Ian better access to him. Ian circles his hole with his lube finger, applying just the smallest amount of pressure against the rim. 

Mickey moans, his fingers back in Ian’s hair, tugging lightly on it. Ian moans around his cock before he slips his finger inside of Mickey. He moans deeply, never having someone else’s finger inside of him like this. Not just anyone’s finger - Ian’s long, perfect finger, twisting and turning, fucking him open before adding in another one and making him moan a little louder. 

Mickey feels like he can come from just this - Ian’s mouth on his cock and fingers in his ass. It’s like Ian reads his mind because he pulls off his cock, looking up at him with swollen lips that are shiny with precome and saliva - he looks fucking perfect.

“How you doing, big guy?” Ian asks him before nipping at his thigh lightly making Mickey moan.

“Fuck - good, you ever gonna stick that thing inside me or what?” he teases, biting his bottom lip and raising his eyebrows at him.

“Mmm, you ready for it?” 

“Definitely.” Ian grins before removing his fingers from him. He reaches over the bed where he tossed his sweatpants and when he gets back into position he has a condom in his hand. “Thought you were gonna get lucky, huh?”

“No, just hoping I would,” Ian tells him with a grin.

Mickey chuckles, shaking his head back and forth. Ian tears the condom wrapper open before tossing it on the mattress and sliding the condom onto his big, hard cock. He adds a bit of lube to his hand and strokes his cock before lining it up with Mickey’s hole.

“You ready?” Ian asks him, searching his eyes.

Mickey nods. “Just go slow, okay?” 

“I got you,” he tells him softly before pressing his cock to Mickey’s rim. 

Mickey closes his eyes as the head of Ian’s cock pushes inside of him. Ian’s hand comes up to touch his cheek causing Mickey’s eyes to open, locking with Ian’s green ones. His hand moves softly against his cheek, relaxing him so Ian can push further inside of him, slowly . 

Once Ian is fully inside of him he starts to fuck him, in and out, still keeping a slow pace. Mickey’s never felt anything like this before. He has a couple of hidden toys but nothing remotely close to the size of Ian’s huge cock. He doesn’t get to use them often since his shithead brothers and asshole father are always around but when he does it feels great. Ian’s dick inside of him though… fuck, it’s unlike anything Mickey’s ever experienced. 

Ian’s hand moves down his cheek and to his neck as he thrusts in and out of him, picking up the pace just a bit. “You okay?” he asks him softly, a little breathlessly.

“Yeah,” he says simply before deciding to add, “Fuck me harder.”

“Yeah?” Ian asks with a small smile.

“Yeah, common.”

Ian doesn’t need to be told twice, he snaps his hips harder into Mickey and Mickey moans out, his hands coming up from the sheets to grab onto Ian’s hips. He runs his hands up his back, scratching back down as Ian fucks him harder, deeper. His legs wrapped around him.

Ian’s hand is still on Mickey’s neck, a light hold, his thumb gently moving across his Adam’s apple and up to his chin. Mickey’s lips part as Ian hits his prostate, making him moan out, and arch his back. 

Ian’s thumb comes up to touch his bottom lip and he says, “Fuck, wish I could kiss you.”

Mickey wants him to but he just can’t seem to tell him to just do it. Ian snaps his hips harder into him, his abs rubbing against Mickey’s neglected, aching, leaking cock, and he comes hard in between them, moaning loudly into the quiet room, “Fuckkk.”

“Jesus, Mick,” Ian says watching him come apart. “You’re so tight, fuck,” he says as he feels Mickey clenching around him. Ian buries his head in Mickey’s neck and Mickey holds his head there, his fingers going into his hair. Ian kisses his neck before he comes hard, panting against his neck.

*

After cleaning himself off, Mickey climbs back into bed, still naked, to a waiting, grinning Ian. “What?”

“Nothing,” he says simply, still smiling too widely. 

Mickey rolls his eyes at him but his face betrays him by smiling back. He closes the light, it’s late, or early, depending on how you look at it and Mickey still has a day of training to get to tomorrow. 

Mickey settles into bed, pulling the covers up but he feels that Ian’s still sitting up. “What?” he asks again with a sigh. “Aren’t you fuckin’ tired?”

“Yeah…” he trails off.

“Okay then lay the fuck down.”

Ian does as he’s told, laying down in bed, pulling the covers up more. Mickey can feel his heart beating fast. Ian’s in bed with him. He just had sex with him. And this - laying here together in the darkness of his room is what’s making him the most nervous. Mickey turns around, his back to Ian, and prays that sleep finally pulls him under because he cannot stay awake any longer.

As he finally starts to feel tired, exhausted from the day - and night - finally pulling him in, he feels Ian also turn on his side but he doesn’t turn facing away from him. He’s facing him because he moves closer and tentatively places his hand on his hip. Mickey doesn’t say anything so after a moment Ian moves closer, covering Mickey’s body with his. His hand slipping up from his hip to his chest. Mickey places his hand over Ian’s and he can feel Ian smile as he nuzzles his face into the crook of Mickey’s neck, intertwining their fingers together.

Mickey sleeps better than ever has before.

*

Mickey smiles when he wakes up, feeling Ian still pressed against him, holding him tight to his body. His eyes flutter open as he looks down to see their hands still intertwined. He doesn’t feel Ian’s face in the crook of his neck so he gently looks back to see him sleeping peacefully, his head on Mickey’s pillow. Mickey slowly and quietly, removes his hand from Ian’s and places Ian’s hand off of him before slipping out of his embrace and sitting up in bed. He looks over at Ian and he looks even more beautiful than he’s ever seen him before. Like a sleeping angel. He gently touches his head, smoothing his hair back, his thumb gently caressing his temple. As he watches him sleep, thoughts of wanting to kiss him flood his mind again. His lips just slightly parted as he sleeps, those soft lips that he felt on his neck and down his body. Fuck. He removes his hand and gets out of bed. He slips his black sweatpants on and one of his gray t-shirts from the gym before leaving the room to head to the washroom, closing his door gently so Ian can sleep a little longer.

After using the bathroom, Mickey walks to the kitchen and sees that it’s early, barely ten in the morning. He didn’t sleep much at all but he’s never felt more rested in his life, even with a sore asshole - it’s a good kind of sore though, a sore he wants to feel more often. 

He’s glad he doesn’t have any sessions today but he was planning on getting to the gym at some point. As he moves around his kitchen, getting things he needs to make breakfast, his mind wanders back to his bedroom where a naked Ian Gallagher is sleeping. He thinks about last night - or this morning - and how he got fucked by a guy for the first time. And not just any guy. With Ian. Someone he met only a couple weeks ago but has completely turned his life around - well, not completely but he feels it. He knows Ian is going to turn it around, he’s already doing it by making him want to be someone who can be open and free in his sexuality, like he is. How he wishes he could have the courage to kiss Ian on the lips. How he wishes he could go to the club Ian works at and get a lap dance without bolting the fuck out of there. How he -

“Morning,” Ian breaks through his spiraling thoughts. He’s standing in the entry of the kitchen with his gray sweatpants on, hanging low on his hips and no shirt. Fuck .

“Mornin’,” he mumbles. “Didn’t mean to wake you,” he adds when he realizes that him grabbing for a pan probably woke him up.

Ian reaches his arm up as he scratches at the back of his neck, his muscles contracting with the movement. He yawns before saying, “It’s okay.” 

Mickey nods, turning away from him so he stops staring at his perfect fucking body. He starts cracking some eggs but takes the yolks out so he can make them one of his new favorite breakfasts. 

He hears Ian walk into the small kitchen and comes up behind him. He wraps his arms around his waist, hooking his chin over his shoulder. “Mmm, you makin’ me breakfast?” he teases.

“Fuck off, I’m making me breakfast but I’ll make you some too,” he lies, like he wasn’t fully planning on making Ian breakfast too.

“Sure,” Ian sees right through him. He turns his face so his lips are pressed to his neck and kisses him softly, breathing him in at the same time. A heat runs through Mickey and he feels it - this could be the moment where he just turns in his arms and crashes their lips together but before his body can catch up to his mind, Ian’s letting him go. 

“Got any coffee?” he asks him.

Mickey takes a steadying breath before saying, “Yeah, in that cupboard,” he points to the one on the right of his head. 

Ian moves around his kitchen with ease as he makes coffee and Mickey makes them breakfast. It’s actually kind of nice.

*

Ian eventually went to put his shirt back on before they sat together at the table to eat the food Mickey made them. He made them a breakfast burrito wrap with avocado, tomato, lettuce, and some turkey bacon, however the wrap part is egg and not bread. 

“This looks fucking amazing, Mickey,” Ian tells him. 

Mickey mumbles out, “Thanks,” before wrapping up his burrito and taking a large bite. Ian follows suit and moans around his bite. 

He swallows the bite and says, “Okay, this also tastes amazing.”

Mickey chuckles, watching how much Ian enjoys the food he made is making him feel really good inside. They eat quickly and in relative silence before Ian helps him clean up. 

“So what are you doing today?” Ian asks him as he dries the plate Mickey hands him.

“Gotta train,” he tells him simply. 

“You wanna hang out later? After your training I mean,” Ian asks hesitantly, still drying the same plate. 

“Yeah, whatever,” Mickey shrugs. He turns the water off and grabs the dishcloth from Ian to dry his hands. 

Ian’s got that wide smile on his face that just lights up his whole god damn face. “Cool,” he says simply before putting the plate away. 

Mickey rolls his eyes at him before moving around him to head to his bedroom. Ian’s quick to follow him, turning him around to face him once they’re standing by his bed. Mickey looks up into his eyes and Ian says, “Got a little time before you have to leave?”

Mickey sees the smirk on his face and his dick reacts, twitching in his pants. He bites his bottom lip before saying, “Depends what you got in mind.”

“I wanna eat you out,” Ian tells him, eyes watching his lips where Mickey’s trapped his bottom lip between his teeth again. “Wanna get my tongue in that tight, perfect ass of yours.”

Mickey’s dick is hard now, wanting this more than he’s ever thought before. “Yeah, okay, I got time,” he manages to say, making Ian grin at him before pushing him onto the mattress.

Ian pulls Mickey’s sweats off, tossing them to the ground and sees how hard he already is. He groans, a deep guttural noise before climbing on the bed with him.

Mickey removes his shirt before moving to lay down with his head on his pillow before Ian gets between his legs and swallows his cock whole, moaning deeply around it. “ Fuckkk ,” Mickey moans out, his fingers threading in Ian’s hair instantly. 

Ian laps at his dick for a few moments, tasting his precome where he swirls his tongue around the head, before letting go with a pop. “Turn over,” he says deeply, so turned on. 

Mickey sees how dark Ian’s green eyes are and fuck is he ever turned on. He does as he’s told, turning around and Ian adds, “On your knees,” so he gets on his knees and elbows, ass out for Ian.

Ian moans as he watches Mickey get into position for him. Mickey looks over his shoulder to see Ian took his dick out and is stroking himself, looking at Mickey’s hole. Ian winks at him before leaning forward and licking a stripe up his hole making Mickey drop his head back down to look away from him. Ian brings his hands to Mickey’s ass, spreading him open more and really getting in there.

“Jesus,” Mickey says as he feels Ian’s tongue work in and out of his hole. 

Ian moans as he continues working his tongue, even bringing a finger into the mix. Mickey’s a mess, he’s moaning and pushing back into Ian, wanting - needing more. 

He puts his weight on his left elbow as he brings his right hand to his dick to jerk off to the feeling of Ian’s tongue fucking him. 

Ian pulls back momentarily to say, “Fuck, yes, Mick, so hot, touching yourself while I devour your tight ass.” 

Mickey moans at his words, letting out a, “Fuck,” when Ian gets back to it, his finger arching inside of him and brushing his prostate. He can hear the noises Ian makes as he fucks him with his tongue and the sound of him jerking off while doing it, and Mickey’s own sounds - it’s all so much and one more brush against his prostate has him coming hard into his hand and on the sheets beneath him as he lets slip a moan of Ian’s name. 

He feels Ian bite his ass cheek, his finger and tongue now gone from his hole. He plops down on the bed, away from the wet spot on the sheets and sees that Ian also came, his hand covered in come. He arches an eyebrow at him and Ian chuckles.

“You moaning my name did me good,” Ian tells him, blushing slightly. “Hottest thing I’ve ever heard.”

Mickey doesn’t even realize he did moan his name. He blushes at Ian’s words, still reeling from what they just did. “Yeah, that was - fuck,” he laughs.

Ian grins, “Yeah, that was so hot. Definitely need to do that again soon,” he flirts.

Mickey rolls his eyes but blushes making Ian chuckle. They finally get out of bed to get cleaned up and get dressed.

*

Ian heads home, claiming he did enough exercise and needs some sleep, so Mickey goes to the gym alone. He’s pretty exhausted now too from their vigorous night and morning but he has a big fight coming up and he doesn’t want to miss a day if he doesn’t have to. 

He trains mostly on the mats and the bags with Joe, though Dom has some free time since one of his other fighters had to cancel their session in the cage, so he gets extra one on one time with his coach. He notices the exhaustion so they don’t push too hard and he even tells him it’s best to just go home and rest so that tomorrow he can be back up to speed and ready to crush it.

This was the shortest training day he’s had in years and it’s all Ian Gallagher’s fault. So why can’t he be mad at him for it? All he can seem to do is want to be with him.

He showers at the gym before putting his sweats back on and heading outside. Today’s a nice day, not too chilly, he even rolls up the sleeves of his hoodie. He lights a cigarette as he walks to the train. 

Once inside and waiting for the train to come, he takes his phone out of his pocket and decides to text Ian. He hasn’t ever texted him first but he’s done training for the day - earlier than expected - and he did tell him that he would text him after his training.

Mickey [3:14pm]: I’m heading back now

Ian [3:15pm]: 😮 already?!

Mickey rolls his eyes before he texts him back, smirking to himself. The train comes so he steps inside and takes a seat away from other people. He looks back at his phone to see Ian texted him back.

Mickey [3:16pm]: Somebody wore me out before the gym 

Ian [3:17pm]: Come over, wanna wear you out some more

Ian [3:18pm]: No one’s home in case you were worried about that. Should be gone most of the day.

He was and he hates that he was and that Ian had to say it to make him come over. 

Mickey [3:22pm]: Just gonna stop at home quickly to eat and I’ll come

Ian [3:24pm]: I’ll definitely make you come 😜

Mickey laughs, rolling his eyes.

Mickey [3:25pm]: Ur the worst

Ian [3:26pm]: You love it

Ian [3:26pm]: Hurry the fuck up

Mickey [3:27pm]: 🖕

Ian [3:28pm]: 😘

Mickey feels them again - those fucking butterflies or whatever the hell it is, swarming inside his stomach. All because of a fucking kissy emoji. Really?! It just makes him think about how he still hasn’t gotten to kiss Ian yet all because he threatened him like a scared little bitch and now it’s all he wants, all he can think about. 

The train stops at his stop so he pockets his phone as he stands to exit, heading for home. 

*

It’s a little past four when he makes it to the Gallagher house. Ian texted him telling him to just walk in through the front door so he does. He immediately sees the redhead sitting on the sofa watching some Joker animated TV show and smiles. “Hey,” he says, closing the door and walking over to join him.

“Hey,” Ian says with a grin, moving over slightly to give Mickey some room on the sofa. Mickey notices the bowl of fruit loops he’s eating and snorts. “What?”

“Fruit loops? Really? What are you five?” Mickey teases.

Ian rolls his eyes. “Fuck off, there’s nothing else,” he says before adding, “Plus I like fruit loops, fuck you very much.”

Mickey laughs, putting his hands up in surrender. “Can’t eat shit like that - too much sugar,” he tells him in his defense.

Ian finishes off his last bite before putting the empty bowl down on the coffee table. He leans back on the sofa, turning his head to look at Mickey and asks, “What made you want to be a fighter anyway?” He props his socked foot up on the coffee table, his other leg - closest to him - moves closer to him before touching his.

Mickey tries not to show that that small gesture - their legs touching - is affecting him. He refocuses his energy on answering his question. He shrugs, “Just kinda always been doing it. Fighting, I mean. I - Terry would take me on runs with him ‘cause I would be able to knock the fucker out if he didn’t pay up. He found the gym for me and told me to start training - get into the MMA world and make some money.”

“Did you want to do that? I - do you like it?” Ian asks, unsure, eyes soft and too open.

Mickey shrugs again, “I didn’t really think about it much. I was fifteen, man. I was able to just focus on hitting a bag instead of having to hit some poor schmuck or worse, some f- some gay dudes for just being them.” He sees Ian shift uncomfortably. He hates that part of his life. Wish it never happened. But that’s living under Terry’s thumb. It’s a cruel life. “But yeah… I love it. I can’t picture myself doing anything else.”

Ian smiles softly. “How many fights have you had?”

“Two - won them both,” he says, a little cocky - confident, a small smirk on his face.

Ian smirks too, eyebrows raising. “Look at you,” he teases.

Mickey flips him off making Ian laugh. “It’ll be three soon,” he adds.

Ian smiles. “When is that fight anyway?”

“Four more weeks,” he tells him. 

“I’d like to come to it,” Ian says, a small smile on his face, it’s shy - something he hasn’t seen much of yet.

Mickey wants that. He’d love to have Ian there but… “I don’t know, man. My dad is at every fight and literally everyone is there -”

Ian rolls his eyes, “Not like I’m gonna fuck you there or anything,” he teases. “Just wanna watch you fight, Mick.”

“I know that. We’ll see…” he trails off.

Ian turns in his seat to face Mickey, his entire leg up on the sofa and pressed against Mickey’s side. He puts his elbow on the back of the sofa and his head against his fist as he eyes him. “Am I that big of a distraction for you?” he challenges.

Yes . “The fuck?” he asks, eyebrows raised. 

“You’ll be too focused on my presence that it’ll distract you too much and you won’t win but you need to win this. I’m right, aren’t I?”

“Fuck you and the high horse you rode in on,” Mickey tells him making Ian laugh. 

“I don’t see you denying it,” Ian teases. “I’m right.”

“You’re a pain in the ass.”

“Literally.”

“Oh my God,” Mickey says, shaking his head.

Ian grins that big goofy smile making Mickey crack, smiling back at him. “How are you doing anyway? Sore? Or can we maybe do it again?” he smirks.

Mickey raises his eyebrows, his own smirk on his face. He stands and Ian’s quick to follow before leading the way up the stairs and to his bedroom. 

Mickey closes the door - if you can even call it that - behind him and it all happens so quick. Clothes being thrown to the floor before Ian’s pushing him onto his bed and crawling on top of him. His lips - fuck those perfect lips kissing and licking his entire body, teasing him. 

He takes his time and it feels like sweet torture to Mickey who’s never been devoured this way before. Ian’s mouth is magic as he sucks him off. His long, perfect fingers working him open, brushing against his prostate making him moan loudly.

Ian removes his mouth from him to lightly bite on his inner thigh. “I love the noises you make, it’s so fucking hot,” he tell him.

His words cause more heat to pool inside of him, his dick leaking so much. “Get inside me already,” he tells him.

Ian smirks up at him before removing his fingers. He rolls a condom on and Mickey decides to turn around and get on all fours. “Jesus, Mick,” Ian says as he caresses his ass before spreading him open and pressing the head of his cock against his aching, waiting hole.

Ian pushes into him slowly and Mickey can feel every inch enter him. He feels even bigger at this angle if that’s even fucking possible. “Fuckk,” he moans out when he feels Ian’s pelvis pressed against his ass, all of him inside. 

“You feel so fucking good, so tight,” Ian tells him.

“So fucking big like this, fucking move,” Mickey tells him, pushing his ass back against him causing them both to moan. Ian’s hands are gripping onto his waist as he pulls slightly out before moving back in. He fucks him slow and steady before Mickey tells him, “ Faster ,” in a broken voice, his head hanging low as he feels every inch of Ian’s huge cock move in and out of him.

Ian picks up the pace, fucking harder, faster, slamming into him. “Fuck, yes, umphh,” Mickey moans. Ian hits his prostate and it knocks the breath out of Mickey, making him move his upper body down against the mattress so only his ass is up in the ass as Ian fucks him. 

“Oh my God, Mickey -” Ian moans, the grip on his hips tightening as he fucks him even harder. “You’re so fucking hot, I’m close.”

“ Fuck, yeah ,” Mickey manages to say as he strokes his cock a couple times before coming hard over his hand and the sheets below him. Ian’s right there with him, coming hard inside of him, before his hold on him loosens.

*

After they cleaned themselves off and Ian stripped the bed of his stained sheet, they got dressed and lay back down on the bed together. Mickey lights up a cigarette, leaning against the pillow where he’s sitting up in bed. He takes a couple puffs before Ian, who sits up as well, reaches for it. He lets him take it, taking his own puffs before handing it back to him. They share the cigarette in silence, eyes drifting back to each other every so often, smiling shyly at the other. 

Mickey stubs the cigarette out in a small ashtray on the windowsill before looking back at Ian, feeling nervous now that he has nothing to do with his hands.

Ian smiles at him softly and asks, “Wanna stick around? Maybe play some video games or something?”

“Whatchu got?” 

Ian grins, nodding his head to the side, “Common,” he says before getting off the bed. Mickey follows him back downstairs where he sits on the sofa. Ian puts in Mario Kart and hands him a controller before sitting next to him with his own.

Right before they’re about to start, Mickey says, “Hope you’re ready to lose, bitch.”

“Care to make a wager?” Ian asks, eyebrow raised, challenging.

“Like what?”

“Loser has to blow the winner?” Ian asks, losing some of that confidence from just a moment ago, and he knows it’s because Mickey’s never given head. 

Mickey’s confident he’ll win but he also wouldn’t mind losing and having to blow Ian - his mouth salivates at the thought of that big cock in his mouth. He shifts slightly before saying, “You’re on,” smirk in place.

Ian grins before focusing on the television screen. He hits start and they wait for the count before taking off. Mickey’s played this game his entire life. He’s played a lot of video games throughout the years. He’s beaten every one of his brothers and most of the time won against Mandy but she had this weird fucking talent when it came to video games, most of the time she was unbeatable. 

Gallagher is shit though so Mickey’s breezing through this. He feels Ian knock his elbow into his trying to throw him off course. “Fucking cheater,” he says before knocking him right back wih his.

“Look who’s fucking talking,” Ian says, laughing. They continue to try and fuck with each other while playing but it only ends up making Ian lose.

“Yes!” Mickey cheers, laughing. “Told you I’d win,” he adds with a smirk when Ian looks over at him with a scowl. 

“How’d you know I didn’t just lose on purpose so I can suck you off?” Ian challenges, raising his eyebrow.

Mickey scoffs, even though his words caused a flutter inside of him. “Please, you suck at this game - no pun intended,” he says, making Ian laugh. 

“Mhm… guess I better pay up,” he says flirtily before getting off the couch. Mickey’s about to stand but Ian pushes him back down. He moves the coffee table back a bit and gets on his knees in front of him, between his spread open legs. Mickey’s half hard just watching Ian get on his knees and rub his hands up his thighs. He lifts his hips so Ian can pull his pants down slightly and take his dick out. 

Mickey watches as Ian takes his dick into his hand, stroking it lightly, getting it to full hardness before teasing him by licking the slit. He bites down on his lower lip as Ian lowers his mouth onto his cock, taking him in all the way, his nose buried in his short pubic hair. 

“Fuck,” Mickey lets out as his fingers run through Ian’s hair, gripping on lightly. Ian moans around his cock, sending vibrations through him. He doesn’t let his eyes slip closed - this feels too good that he wants to but it also reminds him of his fantasy he had and he wants to watch Ian, see that it’s real. Ian looks up at him through his lashes, mouth full of his dick, and he bites his lower lip again. Ian’s eyes move slightly down to look at his lip trapped between his teeth. He reaches his left hand up, pulling his lip out from his teeth. His right hand takes hold of the base of his cock, stroking him where Ian has pulled his mouth off slightly. 

Mickey’s eyes can’t leave Ian’s as he feels Ian’s finger trace his bottom lip pulling at it slightly. He lets out a small moan, his lips parting slightly. Ian slips his index finger into his mouth and Mickey takes it. He sucks on it lightly, twirling his tongue around it. Ian’s eyes go even darker, moaning around his cock. He slips his middle finger alongside the other. 

The way Ian’s moaning around his cock as he watches Mickey suck on his fingers makes him want to suck his dick. The noises he makes, fuck, it’s getting him so hot. Ian’s right hand moves down to play with his balls and that’s all it takes before Mickey takes Ian’s fingers out of his mouth and says, “Gonna come,” and comes hard down his throat, his hand still holding his as he moans out a, “Fuckk.”

Ian takes it all before letting go softly. He wipes his mouth with the back of his free hand before sitting back on his heels and watching Mickey regain his breath. He smiles at him, intertwining their fingers where they’re still holding hands, resting on the sofa. Mickey looks down at them, enjoying the feel of Ian’s hand in his before he lets him go. 

He tucks himself back into his pants so Ian gets up. “I’ll be right back,” he tells him.

“Where the fuck you going? Don’t you need-”

Ian looks shy as he rubs the back of his neck and says, “No, I - uh, already did.”

“Oh,” Mickey says when he realizes, smirk on his face. 

“Shut up,” Ian says, rolling his eyes, making Mickey laugh. 

“I didn’t say shit,” he defends, watching Ian leave to go upstairs. He feels pretty good about himself knowing that Ian got so turned on by sucking him off that he came untouched.

Mickey waits for Ian to come back to tease him some more. He plops back down on the sofa, close to him, in some different joggers. His arm on the back of the sofa. “So what was it? That did it?” he asks, eyebrows raising slightly.

Ian turns to look at him and says, “That’s literally never happened to me before.”

“Really?” he teases, feeling smug.

Ian rolls his eyes but he’s got a small smile on his face. “Fine - it was seeing you suck on my fingers and the noises you were making,” he says deeply, his eyes roaming his body before reaching his eyes again. “It was just really fucking hot, okay?”

Mickey feels a lump in his throat so he just nods, all teasing gone knowing how much he actually affected him. 

“What? Nothing left to say?” Ian challenges.

Mickey’s eyes move down to his lips before looking back up. There’s this magnetic pull between them and fuck, he just wants Ian to kiss him. 

The back door slams open and closed as some kid walks in. Mickey pulls back from Ian, shifting a little away from him. Ian frowns but schools his emotions as he turns to see who walked in. “Hey, you’re back early,” he calls out to the kid.

“Bunch of morons,” the kid says annoyed as he sounds like he’s getting something from the fridge before closing it again. “Nothing in here.”

“Hey, come here,” Ian calls out, concerned. 

The kid walks into the room and sees them sitting on the couch. “Who’s that?” he asks, nodding to Mickey.

“That’s Mickey,” Ian tells him and when the kid looks at him, he adds, “Just a friend I made at the gym.” The kid nods and Ian turns to look at him and says, “This is my brother, Liam.”

“Hey,” Mickey says lamely, nodding his head.

Liam nods back before Ian looks at him and asks, “What happened?”

“Science project for school,” Liam says, before groaning, coming to sit on Ian’s other side. “Mr. Murray grouped us into teams of three and I swear I got the biggest morons in the class because the entire time we worked, they were too busy looking at tiktok videos.”

“What the fuck is tiktok?” Mickey asks.

Liam looks at him over Ian and says, “Some app to make videos - it’s dumb.”

Ian asks him about the project and the kid goes off about it. Mickey sits there watching them. He likes the way Ian seems super interested in what the kid has to say and giving him advice on how to deal with them. 

“And I’m hungry, there’s nothing to eat,” Liam ends his rant about school.

Ian smiles at him softly. “I’ll order us a pizza. Do you know when the others will be back?”

“Nope. I’m going upstairs. Call me when the pizza’s here,” he says before getting off the couch and heading upstairs, leaving them alone again.

Ian turns to look at Mickey and smiles. “Sorry about that,” he says.

Mickey shrugs it off. “Don’t gotta apologize, man. Kid’s funny. Seems smart as fuck too,” he tells him.

Ian grins, proud. “He is. He might even be smarter than Lip. He’s definitely going to be the first Gallagher to go to college.”

“Aren’t you in college?” he asks, eyebrow raised.

“Studying to be a paramedic at a technical school so it’s not technically college. It’s a ten month program,” Ian informs him. 

“How much longer you got?” 

“I started at the end of August so about three to four more months,” Ian tells him. Ian pulls his phone out and says, “Let me just see when the others are back so I know how much pizza to order,” as he texts his family.

“I should get going,” Mickey notes, seeing how the sun is setting outside the window. 

Ian frowns and Mickey rolls his eyes, chuckling. “Relax, man, I’ll see you soon, yeah?” he asks, wishing he didn’t have to leave but knowing he should. 

Ian grins. “Yeah, I’ll text you,” he tells him.

Mickey nods before standing. He puts his shoes back on, having dumped them there when they came downstairs. They say goodbye before Mickey leaves, walking back home, to his empty, sad house, wishing he could have stayed at the Gallagher’s with Ian, where it’s bright and warm, and filled with love. 

Chapter Text

Mickey’s not home when his brothers and dad get back from their run. He’s at the gym the entire day because he knew they were coming back today and did not want to see them. Not yet. And his workout yesterday was shit - he was too tired and distracted because of Ian, not that he minded, he was able to leave early and spend the rest of the day with said Gallagher, but Mickey needed to get a good full day of training to prepare for his fight.

Mickey focuses his energy on training. All of the pent up frustration he already feels from having his shithead brothers and father home, without even having seen them yet. All of his anger knowing that until Terry goes on another run or he wishes, gets locked up, he has to be extremely careful now that he has Ian in his life. He doesn’t want to ignore Ian, far from it, but Terry is a dangerous man. He’s seen him kill someone with his bare hands, having helped him dump the body off of the pier. He was twelve. He can’t subject that same kind of shit on Ian. The thought of Terry finding out and doing that to Ian, it makes bile rise in his throat. It makes his chest ache. 

No, he can’t let Terry find out, if not for his own safety, for Ian’s. He doesn’t want to ignore him or not see him but sneaking around… that gets risky. He’s never had to even consider it before seeing as he’s never actively been seeing a dude before. The few times he’s hooked up with guys in the past, Terry was either locked up or out on a run, having no chance of finding out what his queer son was doing behind his back. 

He doesn’t see Ian at the gym since it’s Monday and he has school. Mickey wishes it didn’t bother him. It shouldn’t. But it does. He can’t help but miss him even though he just saw him yesterday and almost every day before that. He hits the bag harder, trying to push those thoughts out of his mind. He doesn’t miss people - okay, maybe just Mandy, but she’s his sister. He definitely doesn’t miss guys… and certainly not a Gallagher. But every time he thinks of Ian, thinks of his stupid red hair that he for some reason is very much obsessed with, thinks of his deep green eyes, thinks about the way his smile takes up his whole face making the room impossibly brighter, thinks about his hands and his mouth and how good he makes him feel, he can’t help but miss the kid.

Mickey finishes his training for the day, heading to the locker room. He takes his phone out of his bag and sees some missed texts from Ian that makes him smile.

Ian [2:04pm]: Normally I love this class but I cannot seem to focus at all today

Ian [2:10pm]: I blame you for this by the way

Ian [5:08pm]: Finally heading home, what a long ass day

Ian [6:31pm]: Are you seriously still training? 🤨

Ian [6:32pm]: Of course you are, why am I even asking?

Ian [7:04pm]: When can I see you again?

Mickey thinks about that last one for a moment. He chews on his bottom lip, unsure of what to even say. 

Mickey [8:10pm]: Bitch u still talk too damn much

Mickey [8:11pm]: I’m working tonight but if u wanna meet me at the gym when I’m done we can chill

He puts his phone away instead of waiting to see if he’ll answer because he only has a little more than half an hour to shower and eat before he needs to get ready to clean this place at closing. 

Once he’s cleaned, changed, and sitting at the table letting his food cool, he looks at the messages he got from Ian.

Ian [8:16pm]: Bitch you like it, stop pretending

Ian [8:17pm]: I’ll be there! What time?

Mickey rolls his eyes but can’t help but smile at Ian’s eagerness to see him. He’s never had anyone stay after hours with him when he cleaned. He’s not even sure if that’s allowed but he’s not about to ask. 

Mickey [8:39pm]: I finish at 11

Ian [8:41pm]: See you then 😘

Mickey blushes seeing that damn kissy emoji. Why does Gallagher insist on lighting a flame inside of him with the dumbest fucking texts?! He sends him back a middle finger before putting his phone down and devouring his food.

*

Cleanup goes by quickly and he’s thankful for that because Ian is coming to meet him and if those last two hours were to have dragged on he would have lost his mind. He’s about to put the stuff away when he hears a knock on the door. He goes to open it, making sure the alarm doesn’t go off as he does so. 

Ian’s standing there, waiting for him - his face looking soft and angelic in the low light. His smile shines bright when his eyes land on Mickey. “Hey,” he says.

“Hey, I still need like ten minutes,” he tells him before nodding his head to motion him inside. Ian squeezes by him, touching him teasingly as he does so. Mickey closes the door and makes sure the alarm is set before walking past Ian. “Wait there,” he calls out to him.

Mickey finishes putting everything away before getting his things and meeting Ian where he left him. He lets them out, making sure the doors are locked and the security system is set up. “Common,” he tells him, nodding his head before walking down the few steps. Ian’s quick to follow him, falling into step next to him, bumping his shoulder into his, a big smile on his face.

“How was your day?” Ian asks him as they walk towards the El.

Mickey arches an eyebrow at him but he finds himself answering anyway, “Fine, busy. Had to make up for missing training yesterday.”

“You didn’t miss training yesterday, you just didn’t train like -”

“Like a fighter,” Mickey cuts in.

“Like an insane person,” Ian says instead.

“Fuck off,” Mickey says, making Ian laugh. “I have no choice, man.”

“I know,” Ian teases, bumping his shoulder into his again. 

They get to the El, making their way up and inside, waiting for the train. Ian tells him about his classes today and how poorly he was doing. “I still blame you.”

“The fuck did I do?” Mickey counters, eyebrows raised. 

They step into the train, taking two vacant seats. “You’re in my head, that’s what,” Ian tells him softly, just for him to hear.

Mickey rolls his eyes but he feels the blush creep up his neck, turning away from Ian so he doesn’t see it. Ian bumps his shoulder into his again, he’s sure he did a poor job of hiding it.

They’re quiet as the train takes them back to the south side. They get out at their regular stop and Mickey leads the way in a different direction. 

“Where we going?” Ian asks, following him. 

“You’ll see,” Mickey teases, a small smirk on his face. Ian smiles at him. 

*

They get to the field and Ian laughs. “Really?” 

“What?” Mickey asks, as he leads the way to the dugout. 

“I used to be in little league back in the day, we’d always play here,” Ian tells him.

“No shit?” Mickey chuckles. “So was I. I remember this one time I pissed on first base.”

Ian laughs, “Oh my God, I was there for that! Coach dragged you off by your ear before you started pissing on him too.”

Mickey laughs. “Yeah, wow, small world.” They step into the dugout, Mickey putting his duffel on the bench before leaning against the fence, Ian standing near him, watching him.

“Well, we do live five minutes from each other, it was likely we would have met before,” Ian tells him.

“Think I’d remember you,” Mickey says quickly and regrets it because of the smug fucking look on Ian’s face. “Fuck off, I meant cause you’re annoying as hell.”

Ian laughs, “Uhuh, sure.”

Mickey rolls his eyes and says, “You wanna chit chat more or you wanna get on me?”

Ian smirks as he shoves at Mickey’s shoulder, turning him around against the fence making him chuckle. Ian’s right up behind him, his lips on his neck, making a heat run through him straight to his groin. He pushes his ass back into him, rubbing against Ian’s hard length through his sweatpants. 

Ian’s hands are on his hips before he slips his right hand around to cup him through his pants. Mickey moans, pushing into his hand and back against him. Ian slips his hand into his pants and strokes him, making him ache.

“Get in me,” Mickey tells him impatiently.

“Do you have -”

Mickey moves away from him to rummage through his duffle, producing a small bottle of lube and a condom, handing them to Ian. Ian smirks at him and Mickey rolls his eyes. “My shithead family got back today, I don’t keep anything incriminating in the house. They have no boundaries or respect for personal property.”

Ian doesn’t say anything, just watches Mickey get back against the fence, pulling his pants down just past his ass. Ian puts the condom in his pocket before putting some lube on his fingers and putting the small bottle in his pocket. He preps Mickey quickly - Mickey just wanting Ian’s big cock inside of him already.

He moans lowly when he finally gets it, biting his bottom lip, trying not to be too loud since they’re outside. It’s late and no one usually comes around here at this time but just in case. Mickey likes to come here when he needs to get away from his dad. Getting fucked by Ian here is not something he ever expected to happen but now that it is, it feels like it’s always supposed to have been like this. 

Ian’s hands are all over him - his left holding his waist in place as he slams into him, and his right hand traveling up his hoodie to feel his back. Mickey holds onto the fence in front of him, his right hand moving behind him to grab onto Ian. Ian takes his hand bringing them back to the fence where they intertwine their fingers. 

“You feel so good, Mickey,” Ian says hotly into his ear, his hand squeezing Mickey’s. 

It doesn’t take much more before they are both coming hard, Mickey biting his lip so he doesn’t moan Ian’s name loudly like he was about to. 

*

They sit together on the bench, passing a cigarette between them. “So how was it seeing your family?” Ian asks, breaking their silence.

“Haven’t yet,” Mickey says, exhaling smoke from his nose. When he sees the look on Ian’s face, he elaborates, “I left for the gym this morning before they got back.” 

Ian nods, taking the cigarette back from him. “Um, what does this mean for us?” he asks, not looking at him.

Mickey shrugs, “You definitely can’t come over.”

Ian chuckles, “No shit.”

Mickey rolls his eyes. He lights up another cigarette when Ian tosses the one they were sharing. He takes a long drag before saying, “I don’t fuckin’ know, man. Terry - he’s dangerous. You don’t want to be anywhere near him. Trust me.”

“I do,” Ian says quickly. “Uh, trust you. I just don’t want this to end now that they’re back.”

Mickey looks at him and Ian looks like a sad puppy. He puts his hand on Ian’s leg and squeezes his thigh reassuringly, rubbing his thumb against the soft material of his joggers. “It won’t,” he tells him. “Just gotta be careful.”

Ian nods, smiling. He takes Mickey’s hand and squeezes it. Mickey let’s him. 

*

The rest of the week goes by agonizingly slow. Mickey knows it’s because he’s barely seen Ian. Having his dad and brothers back from their run is worse than it’s ever been and it’s because he’s now seeing Ian. Is he seeing him? He’s definitely not dating him because that would entail actually going on dates in public. No matter what their label would be - Mickey doesn’t want to think about labelling them because that’s when shit gets complicated - he just knows that they have to be careful. Terry would kill them both if he found out. 

Mickey doesn’t see Ian again until Friday when he comes to work out at the gym. They texted the last few days, a lot more than they’ve been texting since they met, to make up for not seeing each other in person. 

By the end of their workout - they trained together today, alternating holding the bag for each other and Mickey showing Ian some moves on the mat, careful not to get too into it since they were basically wrestling. Ian still has time before he would need to get home to get ready for work at the club so they decide to go for a run. 

Running with Ian is fun, he can actually keep up and sometimes likes to race which helps push Mickey. The sun is starting to set and they’re running by the water, a little over two miles away from the gym, when Ian slows down. 

Mickey stops and turns to see Ian walking closer to the edge to look out at the water and see the sun setting. “The fuck are you doing?” Mickey calls out as he walks towards him. Ian takes his phone out of his pocket and points it toward the sunset. Mickey scoffs, laughing. “Another sunset for the gram huh?” he says before he can stop himself.

Ian turns to look at him, he can see it registering on Ian’s face before he gasps and says, “I knew it! I knew you were @fuckvandamme!”

Mickey feels like he loses all color in his face, his skin going cold. “The fuck are you talking about?” he asks, trying for nonchalance.

Ian rolls his eyes, a big smile on his face. Smug bastard. “I thought maybe you just didn’t have instagram since when I asked, you had made a snapchat instead, but I had noticed this account watching my stories and when you mentioned being more of a Seagal fan over Van Damme, it just clicked. I wasn’t one hundred percent sure until now though,” he says, knowing. 

“What the fuck ever, man,” Mickey says, rolling his eyes. He turns around and walks, continuing their run without actually running.

Ian catches up to him, bumping his shoulder into his when he falls into step with him. “I think it’s cute you keep an eye on me,” he tells him.

“What? That’s not -” he says, shaking his head. “I wasn’t.”

“Okay, whatever you say,” Ian teases, a smirk on his face.

“You’re the worst,” Mickey says, making Ian laugh. 

“Yeah, I don’t believe you,” Ian teases. 

“Fuck off,” Mickey flips him off. “Can we finish this fuckin’ run or you need to take more pictures?”

Ian laughs as he follows Mickey into a jog before they start racing again. Ian leads him into an alley like that first run they went on together. Pushing and groping at him making Mickey laugh as he moves to grab at him too. 

*

Mickey gets home a little after nine, having stayed as late as possible to avoid seeing his father and brothers as much as he could. Thankfully none of them are home. He does his laundry as he smokes a joint on the sofa. It’s the last of his weed that he has and he’s enjoying it very much. He’s sure they’re at the Alibi drinking and Mickey just hopes he can avoid them completely when they get home later. Ian sends him videos on snapchat before getting to work and some from when he gets there, starting his shift, and Mickey sends back his own flirty videos, mostly just of him smoking but every time, Ian sends him back a message of appreciation for it, making Mickey smile. 

He eats his mini carrots and watches a movie on TV, pretending like the breaks when Ian isn’t messaging him aren’t driving him crazy. Before midnight, his brothers and dad come stumbling into the house. Mickey pockets his phone, not wanting them to grab it or see anything on it. His dad sits next to him, grabbing the controller from him and flipping through the channels. “Get me a beer,” he tells him. 

Mickey stands and does as he’s told, not wanting any issues. “Want the pack, pop?” he calls out when he sees there’s still most of the six pack in the fridge, his brother having just taken one.

“Yeah, why not,” Terry says.

Mickey grabs the pack, taking one out and handing it to Terry before putting the other four on the coffee table. Iggy having taken his place on the sofa next to Terry and Jamie sitting on the recliner smoking a cigarette. He picks up his mostly empty pack of carrots and brings them back to the fridge. He’s about to head for his room when Terry says, “Mick, come sit.”

He tries not to sigh as to not annoy his dad and make him want to fight. Mickey walks over and Terry kicks at Iggy’s leg, “Move it, shithead.”

“Jesus,” Iggy complains as he gets up and sits on the floor near where Jamie is sitting, taking a cigarette from him and lighting it up. Mickey reaches for one too, lighting it up and leaning back into the sofa. 

“How’s camp going?” Terry asks him, smacking his leg lightly. “You doin’ okay?”

Mickey smiles, glad to see he’s in a good mood tonight. “Yeah, pops. It’s goin’ good.”

“When is it? The fight.”

“Three more weeks,” he tells him. “Lotta good fighters on the card that night.”

“Yeah, nobody as good as my boy huh?” he laughs, smacking his leg again. Mickey laughs, accepting the compliment. “Gonna be a good fight, I know it.”

“Thanks pops,” Mickey says. “I think so too.”

“Eh you’re a good kid,” he says before taking a swig of his beer. He looks to his brothers and says, “Not like these two fucking idiots.”

“The fuck?!” Iggy scoffs.

“Bunch of morons,” Terry adds.

The dryer goes off so Mickey stands, going over to take his clothes out. “I’m gonna head to bed, big day of training tomorrow,” he mentions.

“Alright, kid, go to sleep, we’ll try not to be too loud out here,” Terry tells him. 

Mickey nods, knowing that that will most likely not be the case. He dumps his clean clothes and towels on the bed, stripping down to his boxers and tank top before heading to the washroom. He gets back to his room, closing the door and putting his stuff away. He slips into bed, lights off, clothes put away, and his phone in hand. He can hear them out there, laughing and arguing but it’s all very civil, no real fighting. Mickey smiles, happy that his dad seemed to be in a good mood. These moments are few and far between. 

He sees some missed videos on snapchat from Ian so he watches them with the sound off, not wanting them to know he’s still up. He messages Ian back.

@mmamick810: Was with my dad and brothers

@mmamick810: In bed now 

@iangallagher3: How’d that go? 

@mmamick810: Was fine, dad seems to be in a good mood

@iangallagher3: That’s good

@mmamick810: Shouldn’t u be working? 

@iangallagher3: Are you really complaining?

@mmamick810: No def not

@iangallagher3: Good 😏

@mmamick810: U coming to train tmr?

@iangallagher 3: If it’s the only way I get to see you then yeah I’ll be there 

@mmamick810: Cool 

Mickey rolls his eyes at himself for that response. 

@iangallagher3: Miss me already huh? 😜

@mmamick810: I think u have me confused with somebody else

@iangallagher3: Can’t be, not seeing anyone else

Mickey re-reads that sentence over and over. His heart is beating wildly and he feels those damn butterflies swarming around his stomach. He sees Ian’s little bitmoji popping up but disappearing, so he decides to just message back.

@mmamick810: That’s good

@mmamick810: I mean, neither am I

@iangallagher3: Yeah I didn’t think so, no offence, but that’s good to know 😊

@mmamick810: Fuck u, I’m offended

@iangallagher3: LOL don’t be, you know what I meant, bitch.

@mmamick810: Whatever 🖕

@iangallagher3: Gotta get back 🙁 

@iangallagher3: Don’t wanna keep you up later but text me tomorrow when you’re gonna head to the gym?

@mmamick810: U can if u want to

@mmamick810: Text me when ur done 

@mmamick810: But uh ya I will

@iangallagher3: Okay 😘

Mickey reads over their conversation since it’s all still there for him, not having left the chat at all. He finally does though, putting his phone down on the bed next to him. The second it’s down on the bed, he hears it vibrate. It’s an instagram notification so he opens it up. There’s a follow request from Ian. He rolls his eyes, smiling at his screen. He had made his account private when he created the instagram, not wanting anyone to follow him. Not like anyone’s ever requested to follow him since he has no posts. Ian’s such a little shit. He accepts the request and soon gets a mention in Ian’s story. He goes to their new DMs and sees a video that shows him being mentioned. He clicks the video and watches as Ian does one of his flirty selfie videos where he smirks at the camera before panning it down his body. In this one though, his hand slides down his body and cups his crotch before the camera pans back up his body where he winks. Mickey notices in the top corner of the video it’s written ‘Missing you’ but he can’t see where his username is. Mickey’s thankful for that, he doesn’t need anyone to know who he is. Mickey rewatches the video another twenty times before double tapping on the mention, showing a little red heart attached to it. He writes back, Tease . Ian sends him one of those winking tongue emojis. If Mickey watches the video a few dozen more times that’s nobody's business but his own.

*

Only seeing Ian at the gym sucks. Mickey finds that it’s hard to just be casual with Ian when they’ve spent the last two and a half weeks fucking around and getting to know each other a lot more personally - and sexually. By Tuesday, Mickey’s feeling fed up and wondering when the fuck this kid is going to ask him to come to his place to hang out or something . 

Mickey checks his phone at the end of his workout and sees his hopes answered.

Ian [5:46pm]: Come over after work

Ian [6:02pm]: Please? 

Ian [6:05pm]: It’s been too long since, well, you know 😏

Mickey blushes, rolling his eyes before texting him back.

Mickey [8:13pm]: Just say u miss me bitch 😈

Mickey [8:14pm]: I’ll be there

Ian [8:16pm]: Obviously I miss you bitch

Ian [8:16pm]: Good, text me when you’re on your way!

Mickey sends him back a thumbs up, pushing down the butterflies he feels seeing that Ian misses him. He puts his phone away so he can shower and eat before getting to work. 

*

Mickey gets to the Gallagher house, letting Ian know he’s outside. He meets him by the back like last time, walking up the steps and depositing his duffel by the door. Ian comes out with a huge smile and says, “Hey,” before he sits down next to him on the first step, bumping his shoulder into his. Mickey nods as he lights up a cigarette. “How was your day?”

“Fine, long,” Mickey tells him simply. “Uh, you?”

Ian smiles before telling him about his day at school and how he can’t wait to just finish already so he can get started on working in the field instead of the club. “Oh and I was wondering,” he trails off. Mickey looks at him expectantly, eyebrows raised. “Do you wanna come to this house party this weekend? I got the night off Saturday for my best friend’s birthday and she said I can bring anyone and yeah, I’m rambling,” he chuckles.

“I don’t know…” Mickey worries. Looking into Ian’s expectant eyes and seeing them dim, he immediately regrets saying that. “Will I know anyone there? Other than your ass.”

Ian smiles, “No, I don’t think so. Not really the MMA type.”

“Alright, whatever, I’ll come,” Mickey tells him with a shrug. 

Ian grins, that big, bright smile and Mickey feels a warmth inside. “That’s - um, that’s great. It’ll be fun. Svetlana is hilarious, you’re gonna love her.”

“Svetlana?” Mickey asks, recognizing her name from when he first stalked Ian’s instagram and saw a really hot picture of him with some girl.

“Yeah, here I’ll show you,” Ian says before reaching into his pocket for his phone. He opens instagram and scrolls down to the photo Mickey was just thinking about. He shows Mickey the screen and says, “That’s her. This was actually on her birthday last year. She turned 21 and had this big blow out at some fancy lounge type of place.”

“Cool,” Mickey says simply, nodding. “How do you know her? She’s - uh, she’s older than you are.”

“Oh yeah, we met at a club,” Ian laughs. “It was such a random night. I ended up going to this club with some work friends. It was - well, it wasn’t the best time in my life,” he tells him, alluding to before he got diagnosed. “But that night - I remember it being a lot of fun. We met this group of girls and it was Svetlana and some of her Russian friends, and they were speaking Russian, and I remember I went up to her and said the only thing in Russian that I knew and she just laughed, eyeing me up and down like who is this orange boy? She literally said to me ‘who are you orange boy?’,” Ian laughs, making Mickey chuckle. “We got to talking, had a bunch of shots, and exchanged numbers. Not long after I got diagnosed and she was really there for me even though we barely knew each other. She quickly became my best friend because of that and we’ve been close ever since.”

“Wow,” Mickey says. “Uh, that’s a good friend to have.”

“Yeah, I think so,” Ian smiles. “So yeah, uh, I guess you can just meet me here and we can head there together?”

“Yeah, whatever.”

“Cool.”

“So you gonna invite me in or we gonna sit out here all night?” Mickey asks. He wouldn’t mind but now that his shithead family is back, best to not be outside in case they somehow see them. He also wants Ian’s mouth on him and they can’t do that here.

Ian smirks at him before getting up. Mickey follows him inside, bringing his bag in and leaving it by the door where Ian locks it.

“Everyone should be sleeping upstairs,” Ian tells him. “We could hang out in the living room.” Mickey nods, shrugging a shoulder.

They make their way there, sitting on the sofa close together. Ian turns the TV on, keeping the volume low so as to not wake anyone up. It doesn’t take long for Ian to forget the TV and turn to Mickey, his hand on his inner thigh and sliding up. 

Mickey bites his lower lip as he watches Ian’s hand slide up and up. Ian’s breath is hot as he feels it on his neck before Ian pushes his hoodie slightly out of the way to kiss his neck as his other hand moves away from his leg to slip into his sweatpants and stroke his hard cock through his thin boxers. 

“Fuck,” Mickey moans lightly, bucking his hips up into Ian’s hand. “Gonna put that mouth to good use or what?”

Ian pulls away from his neck to look at him, eyes filled with lust. He teases him lightly, “Mm, how do you mean?” 

His face is so close to his and fuck, Mickey so badly just wants Ian to take his head and kiss him but he doesn’t, he just fucking watches him, waiting for him to say something. “Suck my dick,” he tells him and Ian’s eyes basically roll back into his eyes, moaning lightly.

“That shouldn’t be so hot but fuck, Mickey,” Ian says before moving to kneel between his spread legs, pulling at his pants. 

He has his mouth on him as soon as his dick is free, moaning around him as he uses his other hand to play with his balls, teasing him. “Jesus,” Mickey moans as he watches Ian take him apart. Mickey runs his hand through Ian’s hair, pulling at it lightly causing Ian to moan around his cock, looking up at him through hooded eyelids. 

He sees Ian’s free hand go down to his own aching cock and Mickey finds himself saying, “Don’t.” Ian looks up at him and cocks an eyebrow in question. “Don’t touch yourself, I wanna get a turn.”

Ian pulls off Mickey’s cock to say, “Mick - fuck, that’s probably the hottest thing I’ve heard you say,” before getting back to it. Ian’s words and the way he works that fucking tongue, it doesn’t take long before he’s coming hard down his throat.

Mickey tucks himself back into his pants as Ian stands, moving to sit back down next to Mickey. He turns to look at Ian and sees his hard cock tenting his sweatpants. He reaches for it, feeling him through his pants, rubbing his hand against it. “Umphh,” Ian lets out as he leans back into the sofa. “You don’t have to, if you don’t want to.”

“I want to,” Mickey says quickly. He hasn’t been able to stop thinking of having Ian’s big cock in his mouth. “Just um, maybe lay back?”

Ian smiles softly before moving to lay down on the sofa, his legs spread open in front of Mickey, who pulls his pants down enough to get that big cock out. It springs out, standing up at attention. Mickey licks his lips before leaning forward and taking hold of it, stroking up and down lightly from base to tip. There’s a lot of precome, making it smooth to stroke before Mickey just says fuck it to himself and lowers his mouth over the head of his cock. He starts slow, never having done this before, and just sucks on the head of Ian’s cock. Ian moans softly, his hand coming to caress the side of his face. Mickey looks up at him and sees how into it Ian is, the way his eyes are so dilated and his bottom lip is trapped between his teeth. 

This spurs Mickey on so he lowers his mouth further onto his cock, relaxing his throat as he twirls his tongue around, using his hand to stroke what he can’t reach. 

“Fuck, Mickey,” Ian moans lowly, trying to stop himself from thrusting up into his mouth. “You’re so fuckin’ sexy. You look so good with my cock in that filthy mouth. Fuck.”

Mickey moans around his cock, his own twitching in his pants at Ian’s words. He talks dirty like a fuckin’ champ. Mickey swallows around him and that’s what it takes for Ian to say, “Fuck, I’m gonna come, Mick.”

Mickey doesn’t remove his mouth, wanting to taste him so he keeps going. He feels Ian start to come, it’s hot on his tongue and then it’s all at once. He swallows as much as he can before pulling off, the rest coating Ian’s dick and Mickey’s lips. “Fuck, that was good, Mickey,” Ian tells him as he lays there, trying to regain his breath. 

 Ian grabs a discarded napkin from the coffee table and cleans the rest off of him before tossing it back onto the table and tucking himself back into his pants. He sits back up, watching Mickey. “How was that for you?”

“It was good - uh, different, but good,” Mickey shrugs. 

“Yeah,” Ian chuckles. “Well for your first time, it was fuckin’ great.”

Ian lets out a breath of a laugh, warmth and butterflies taking over inside of him at the compliment.

Mickey reluctantly has to leave, heading out by the back, and smoking a cigarette on the way. No one’s home when he gets in and he thanks his lucky stars for that. He hurries through his nighttime routine before crawling into bed. He sees a missed text from Ian.

Ian [12:37am]: Wish you could have stayed

Mickey [12:43am]: Me too

Ian [12:44am]: Would be cuddling the shit out of you right now

Mickey laughs, feeling those butterflies again, before texting him back. 

Mickey [12:45am]: Ur a fuckin koala

Ian [12:46am]: Didn’t see you complaining last time

Mickey [12:47am]: Who’s complaining?

Ian [12:47am]: 😍 you’re fucking cute

Mickey [12:48am]: Don’t call me that 🖕

Ian [12:49am]: Ok tough guy 🖤

Mickey [12:49am]: 🖕

Ian [12:50am]: Goodnight, Mick 😘

Mickey [12:51am]: Night 🖤

Ian [12:51am]: 😍😍😍

Mickey [12:52am]: 🖕🖕🖕

Ian [12:52am]: 😘

Mickey leaves it there. This is already the gayest fucking text thread they’ve had but why can’t he stop smiling?

Chapter Text

The days between seeing Ian go by too slowly. It’s finally Saturday and Mickey spent the day training - Ian did too, but Mickey had a session in the cage and had to really focus on his training for the fight so they didn’t spend much time together but he’s fine with it because they’re going to a party together that night. Ian trained with his brother so the two of them left before Mickey did. 

Mickey makes his way back home after having showered. He eats his food at the small kitchen table, listening to his idiot brothers and dad argue about some illegal and dumb shit - Mickey’s not really listening. He cleans up quickly before heading to his bedroom and looking through what he should wear. He’s got four different shirts laid out on his bed before he finally chooses one - a plain black dress shirt and his dark jeans. He sprays a little cologne before heading to the bathroom to check on his hair. It looks good but he adds a bit of product to it, trying to keep it back since the top is a little longer on top. 

Mickey grabs his black bomber jacket, slipping it on before heading for the door. “Where the fuck are you going dressed like that?” Terry asks him, eyeing him from the table. 

His brothers look up also. “Got a date or something?” Iggy asks, a smirk on his face.

“Just going to some chicks party,” Mickey says casually, leaving part of the equation out. “Don’t wait up.”

His brothers whistle, throwing up signs like a bunch of morons. He sees his dad laugh at them before Mickey flips them off and heads for the door. He walks towards the Gallagher house, smoking a cigarette on the way, and texts Ian when he gets there.

Ian tells him to come in so he walks in through the front door. There’s much more life in the house then the last couple times he was there. Liam’s sitting on the couch with a little redhead girl and there’s noise in the kitchen. Liam looks back at him and says, “Ian will be down soon.”

“Cool,” he says simply, standing there awkwardly.

Debbie walks into the room from the kitchen with a beer in hand and a bowl of popcorn. “Hey,” she nods before sitting down next to the little girl - her daughter. 

“Hey.” 

Thankfully Ian comes down, looking way too fucking good like what the fuck. He’s dressed in some fitted black pants and a red button down with little blue dots all over it, and a black leather jacket. His hair is styled back and he smells fucking fantastic. 

“Hey, sorry. You were quicker than I was expecting,” Ian tells him. “Just needed to finish rolling us a couple joints,” he adds, showing them to him. “Put them in your cigarette pack?”

“Sure, thanks,” Mickey says, taking them and putting them in his pack before putting that back in his pocket. 

“Okay, going out now,” Ian informs his family before leading them towards the door. “Bye!”

“Yeah, bye,” Debbie says, waving dismissively, not turning to look at them. Liam just grunts. 

Ian closes the door behind them, following Mickey down the stairs. “You look really good by the way,” he tells him, bumping his shoulder into his.

Mickey blushes slightly. “Yeah, you too,” he tells him, making Ian grin. 

They head to the El, Mickey following Ian’s lead since he has no idea where they’re going. It takes about 40 minutes for them to get there but it doesn’t feel that long since Ian talks the entire time. Mickey finds that it doesn’t even annoy him anymore. That’s a lie. It kind of does but it also kind of makes him happy. 

They get to the house and Ian just opens the door so they walk right in. Ian scans the room for - well, Mickey’s assuming Svetlana but could really be anyone. They walk further into the house, Mickey following Ian lamely as Ian greets people on the way. “Svet!” Ian calls when they spot the birthday girl in the kitchen, leaning over the kitchen island. She’s wearing black leather pants and a very low cut black bodysuit. She has on some hoop earrings, her makeup is all done up and she has a red lip again. She grins so broadly when she sees Ian, moving to jump into his arms. 

“My favorite orange boy is here!” She says in a very thick Russian accent.

Ian laughs. “Pretty sure I’m the only one you hang out with,” he tells her as he hugs her back.

She steps out of his arms and looks at him, “What is difference?”

Ian shrugs it off, “Never mind, happy birthday!” She kisses his cheek in thanks and he adds, “Svet, this is Mickey,” he introduces, turning to his right where Mickey has been just standing by awkwardly. He nods his head at her and Ian finishes by saying, “Mickey, this is Svetlana.”

“Uh, happy birthday,” he tells her.

She eyes him up and down before asking, “So you are fighter Ian always talk about?”

Mickey blushes and he notices that Ian is too. He always talks about him? What does he say? His eyes shift but there’s no one around them paying any attention. “Svet, what the fuck?” Ian mutters to her but Mickey hears him.

She looks at Ian then back at Mickey. “You are small. Are all fighters small?” 

“The fuck?” Mickey asks confused, was this chick for real?

“Svet,” Ian warns, pinching her arm. “Be nice.”

“I am always nice,” she tells him, glaring. 

 Mickey finds that very hard to believe but he doesn’t want to be an asshole to her on her birthday, it’s totally not because she’s Ian’s best friend or anything.

“You’re not but -” he squirms away from her when she tries to smack him, moving behind Mickey and using him as a shield, laughing the whole time. Svetlana puts her arm back down and Ian pokes his head up from behind Mickey’s shoulder. Before either of them could say anything some girls came running into the kitchen, knocking both Ian and Mickey, making them bash into each other as they went for Svetlana. 

“I need a smoke,” Mickey comments. 

“Yeah, let’s go outside,” Ian agrees, leading them around the group of girls and out onto the back patio. 

Thankfully they’re alone as they go to sit at the table. Mickey sits down, taking out his pack as Ian sits down at the head of the table so they’re close without it being weird. Mickey offers his pack to Ian who shakes his head, “I’ll share yours.”

“The fuck you are,” Mickey tells him but Ian gives him this look like he knows Mickey will share his cigarette and he hates that he’s right. 

He lights his cigarette and they sit in silence for a few moments as Mickey smokes before Ian reaches for it. Mickey just lets him take it and they continue to just look at each other softly and act like they aren’t. 

“So you talk about me all the time huh?” Mickey asks somewhat teasingly but also just really curious.

Ian scrunches his brow. “I don’t think that’s what she said and also don’t listen to her,” he says, shaking his head. Mickey chuckles making Ian grin. “She won’t say anything - like I said, nobody here knows anything about MMA or anything. She’s not going to out you or anything,” Ian reassures him. 

Mickey nods, having taken back his cigarette. He takes a drag before letting the smoke out through his nose. “Best to not talk about me to anyone else though, I can’t -”

“I know,” Ian interrupts, “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have told her anything but -” he looks apologetic and also nervous at the same time. He shrugs his shoulder lightly before saying, “I just needed someone I could talk to about things.”

“About me.”

“Yes, well, um, us?” he says, sounding more like a question.

Mickey tries not to blush but knowing that Ian just needed to talk to someone about them as an us is making butterflies erupt inside him. 

*

The party is - well, it’s not really fun without a drink in his hand. He can’t drink cause of his fucking fight coming up but they did smoke one of the joints - Ian letting Mickey smoke more of it. After that they came back inside to rejoin the party since the whole point wasn’t to stay together outside the whole night, more people had shown up, and it felt more like a house party. Minus Mickey being drunk, thankfully he was riding a nice high.

Ian wasn’t going to drink but Mickey told him to if he wanted to, he didn’t want him to feel like he shouldn’t because Mickey can’t drink. So they’re in the living room standing, talking to some people - Mickey doesn’t remember who they are nor does he care but he pretends to listen to them, meanwhile he’s just watching Ian interact with them. Ian finally turns his head to look at him and he smiles so softly. 

There’s some commotion in the front of the house making them turn to look, seeing a few more people walk into the room. He hears Ian mutter, “Oh shit.” Mickey looks at Ian who says to him, “Hey you wanna go outside?”

“Uh sure?” Mickey says uncertainly before one of the guys who just walked in walks right up to them.

“Ian, it’s so good to see you,” the guy says before kissing Ian right on the lips. 

Mickey’s eyebrows shoot up as he watches the guy kissing his - he was kissing Ian right in front of everybody, in front of him. The guy pulls back after what felt like too long but was actually only a brief moment of his lips locked on Ian’s lips. “How are you doing?” he asks Ian, smiling right at him with his stupidly attractive face.

“Good, uh -” Ian starts to say, he doesn’t hear the rest since Mickey walks away, ticked off but not able to even react in public. He doesn’t want to be around people so he heads out of the room and towards the front of the house. He walks out the front door, closing it behind him and heading down the few steps and onto the walkway. 

There’s no one outside since it’s gotten chillier out and anyone who was outside was sitting out back. He paces briefly before turning to see Ian walking out and towards him. 

“Mick, I’m sorry about that. I don’t even know what the hell that was,” Ian says gesturing towards the house, towards some random ass guy kissing him on the lips.

“Who is that?” he asks before adding, “Cause from what I remember you said you haven’t been seein’ anyone else.”

“I’m not!” Ian says, defending himself. “I was telling you the truth. That’s just some guy I was seeing briefly before I met you.”

“Why would he just kiss you like that then?” Mickey asks confused, his thumb rubbing at his eyebrow. Some jackass just walks right in and kisses Ian on the lips like what the fuck?

Ian shrugs, eyeing Mickey. “He’s not afraid to kiss me.”

Mickey scoffs, “You think I’m afraid to -” he stops, leaving the sentence hanging.

“You can’t even say the words,” Ian teases. He sighs and says, “Look, Mickey, I’m sorry if that made you uncomfortable to see but I promise, I’m not still seeing him. I didn’t lie to you about not seeing anyone else.”

Mickey listens to him and can see he’s being honest but all he could think about is someone else getting to kiss Ian like that just because they wanted to when all Mickey wanted was to do just that. He takes the few steps towards Ian and takes his face into his hand before pressing their lips together. It’s soft and tentative at first - Ian frozen in place, until he snaps into it and his hands come up to cradle Mickey’s head, his fingers wrapping around his head as he pulls him deeper into the kiss. He feels Ian’s tongue slip into his mouth when he parts his lips in a small gasp and fuck does it feel good.

Mickey remembers where he is though and pulls back from Ian, stepping a few steps back. He watches Ian as they both pant, regaining their breath, Mickey looking around and not seeing another person in sight. 

“Let’s get the fuck out of here,” he tells Ian, eyeing him up and down, needing Ian inside of him now or like as quickly as possible.

Ian grins at him wickedly before walking towards him, grabbing his arm and leading him in the direction of home.

*

It takes way too much time to get back to the Gallagher house but it’s just keyed Mickey up more, he’s hyper aware of Ian the entire train ride home, wanting badly to have his hands on him again. Once they get inside the house, there’s no one awake downstairs so they make their way up as quietly as possible before closing Ian’s makeshift door. Ian presses him against the nearest wall and kisses him instantly. His hands hold his head in place again - it quickly becoming Mickey’s favorite fucking thing, having those long fingers wrap around his entire head as he kisses him. Mickey moans lightly into the kiss, letting their tongues slide together as he reaches for Ian’s body, pulling him even closer to him. 

Ian’s right hand moves down his body and to his thigh, lifting him up slightly against the wall as he bends before thrusting up against him. “Fuck,” Mickey moans out against his lips. Ian smiles at him wickedly before kissing him again, biting his bottom lip. The way Ian kisses - he wishes he never waited to do this because it’s the best thing he’s ever felt.

Mickey wants Ian inside of him but this also feels so fucking good. Ian pulls back and Mickey almost desperately moves towards him, stopping himself from physically pulling him back in. He rips off his jackets and Mickey smirks, following his lead quickly. They strip down, tossing their clothes to the ground as they make their way onto Ian’s bed. Ian pins Mickey under him, his lower half is pressed against his as he leans in and kisses him again. Mickey lets him, he so badly needs to feel his lips on his again now that he’s gotten a taste.

Mickey ruts against him as Ian thrusts lightly, their hard, leaking cocks rubbing against each other. “Need you to fuck me now, Gallagher,” Mickey tells him impatiently, not too loud, not needing any of Ian’s siblings to hear them.

Ian smirks before getting up quickly and grabbing some lube and a condom before hopping back on the bed and on top of Mickey making them both laugh. As Ian settles back in between his legs Mickey says through his laugh, “You’re a dick.”

“Gonna give you this dick,” Ian says back, making Mickey shake his head. “Yeah, I regret that,” Ian adds when he hears himself. 

Mickey leans up slightly and presses their lips together. Ian smiles into the kiss before pulling back. He lubes his fingers before kissing Mickey again softly but so filled with passion. Mickey moans into the kiss as they deepen it and he feels Ian’s finger circling his hole. He plants his feet on the mattress giving him more access before Ian presses his finger inside of him. Mickey kisses Ian hard, more tongue and teeth as Ian continues to add fingers inside of him, fucking him open.

“Get in me,” Mickey says impatiently against Ian’s lips.

Ian puts the condom on before pressing into Mickey who moans out, arching his back as he accepts all of Ian inside of him. It’s been a while since they’ve gotten to fuck, and fuck is Ian big. He missed this. Ian presses his lips to Mickey’s neck as he bottoms out, kissing him lightly on the neck before teasing him with his tongue. He nips at his jaw and Mickey wraps his legs around Ian. Ian fucks him hard and deep, kissing him so they can’t moan out too loudly. They come hard at the same time, both needing that release so badly. 

Ian is heavy on top of him but it feels good. He likes the feel of his weight on him, it just reminds him that he’s with a man, someone he’s attracted to, and even likes. Ian lifts his head from Mickey’s shoulder and kisses him softly a few times making Mickey smile before flopping onto the mattress beside him. Ian ties the condom off, tossing it on the ground next to him before laying back down. He turns his head to look at Mickey so he does the same and they just fucking smile at each other.

“What?” he asks with a bit of an edge to his voice to not sound too fucked. 

Ian shrugs his shoulder, soft little smile on his face. “Nothing,” he says simply. After a moment he asks, “Can you stay tonight?”

Mickey looks into Ian’s green eyes - they’re soft and worried and so nervous, it’s like what Mickey’s feeling is being reflected back at him in Ian’s eyes. “Yeah, okay,” he finds himself saying, not wanting to leave Ian’s side. 

Ian grins before taking Mickey’s face and kissing him. Mickey laughs into the kiss before shoving Ian off him. 

Ian climbs out of bed to get them cleaned up before they get under his covers together. Ian wraps Mickey into his arms, cuddling up against his back. “Fuckin’ koala,” Mickey teases.

Ian giggles. “You love it,” he says as he snuggles closer, reaching his hand up from around his torso to grab his hand, intertwining their fingers together and laying their hands together at Mickey’s chest.

Mickey has never felt safe and comfortable in his life and right now in this moment, he is. 

*

Mickey wakes up to the feeling of lips brushing over his skin. He feels a hand holding onto his waist. His mind catches up to his body and remembers sleeping at Ian’s last night after the party, and finally kissing for the first time. Speaking of Ian’s lips, they’re moving lightly across the juncture between his neck and shoulder. Mickey lets out a soft moan, pressing his ass back against Ian’s hard cock he feels pressed against him. 

“You’re finally up…” Ian trails off softly in his ear.

“Somebody is definitely up,” Mickey teases, wiggling back into him again causing Ian’s dick to slide briefly between his cheeks.

Ian nips at Mickey’s earlobe with his teeth as he moans at the feel of Mickey’s ass against him. The hand that was on his hip reaches across his skin until he grabs hold of Mickey’s now hard cock. “So are you,” Ian teases as he slowly strokes him, kissing the side of his neck and his shoulder.

Mickey moves his hips gently, fucking into Ian’s hand and back onto his hard cock that’s for some reason not inside of him. “Gonna get in me or what?” 

Ian bites Mickey’s shoulder before removing himself from him for a brief moment to get what they need. Mickey just wants it now so he says, “Just get in me, I’m still good from last night.”

“You sure?” Ian asks him.

“Yes, just fuck me, Gallagher.”

Ian groans, “Well when you put it that way.” He puts the condom on and pushes inside of Mickey’s waiting hole, slowly. “Fuckkk, you feel so good like this,” he moans out when he bottoms out.

“C’mon, Ian,” Mickey says impatiently, actually using his first name, having just slipped out but it works for Ian who starts fucking him the way he likes it. Ian’s lips are back on his neck, but careful not to leave any marks. He’s gripping onto his hip for leverage to fuck him hard and deep. 

Mickey reaches his arm back, grabbing onto Ian where he can. Ian’s hand slips from his hip to take his cock again, stroking him to match his thrusts and Mickey feels pleasure all over from his hand on his cock, his dick in his ass, and his lips on his skin.

“Fuck, Ian, I’m close,” he moans. He wanted this to last but it feels too good.

Ian whispers into his ear, “Come for me, Mickey,” then bites his shoulder and Mickey’s coming hard all over Ian’s hand. He can feel Ian coming too, right there with him, as his hips stutter and he’s moaning in his ear. 

*

They’re dressed and heading downstairs from the stairwell that leads to the kitchen. Mickey was worried about this but Ian reassured him that his siblings won’t say anything nor do they even care so he doesn’t need to worry. When they reach the kitchen the only one there is Liam, pouring cereal into a bowl. 

“Morning,” Ian tells him as he walks by to the coffee machine. Mickey stands awkwardly by the table. Liam gives him a grunt in response. “Where’s everyone?”

“Carl went to the gym and Debbie took Franny to some convention to meet her favorite wrestler,” Liam informs him. The kid takes his bowl with him and heads into the living room, getting comfortable on the sofa and turning the TV on.

Ian smiles at Mickey as he walks over to him. He sets their mugs down and sits, Mickey doing the same. They sip on their hot coffee for a few moments in silence before Ian says, “So last night was fun… and this morning.”

Mickey smiles above the rim of his mug before humming, “Mhm.”

Ian smiles shyly back at him, looking down into his mug where he set it down on the table. “Can we do it again sometime? You know, like you staying over?”

“Maybe,” Mickey teases, a small smirk on his face. 

Ian chuckles, shaking his head. He reaches over to Mickey, taking his head into his hand and kissing him on the lips. It happens fast and Mickey can’t even think to stop it before Ian’s lips are on his and once they are, Mickey just wants to be kissing him. He grabs onto Ian’s arm as he deepens the kiss, slipping his tongue into Ian’s mouth. Ian moans lightly into the kiss, teasing his tongue against Mickey’s. He bites Mickey’s bottom lip lightly as he pulls back from the kiss.

Mickey’s half hard just from that and if he doesn’t leave, he never will. “I should get going, need to train today,” Mickey tells him. Ian actually pouts and Mickey laughs. “Come with me then you baby.”

Ian grins. “Calling me ‘baby’ already huh?”

“Shut the fuck up,” Mickey laughs.

Ian laughs, grinning so wide Mickey feels the room get brighter. “Fine, I’ll come.”

“I’ll text you when I’m leaving,” Mickey tells him before getting up. Ian stands too and pulls Mickey into him by his waist. He brings his right hand up to cradle the back of his head. Mickey looks up at Ian and they meet for a soft kiss. Mickey holds onto him and feels Ian press himself closer to him, deepening the kiss. 

Mickey pulls back and smacks his chest. “Later, Gallagher,” he tells him as he opens the backdoor and heads out. 

*

No one’s awake when Mickey gets home so he quickly showers before changing into his black sweatpants and dark blue gym shirt. He makes a healthy breakfast and eats it quickly before getting his shit together, throwing a hoodie on and texting Ian. They meet at the El and head to the gym together. 

Training with Ian is not something Mickey thought he’d enjoy as much as he has. Ian can keep up and Mickey doesn’t feel like he didn’t train enough when he trains with Ian. Dom even tells them to get into the cage together. Told them that he saw them working well on the mats together so to get in there, plus it’ll help Mickey prepare for his fight. They put on their headgear and gloves before getting into the cage. Dom’s inside with them as he coaches them through it. Mickey knows what he’s doing but Ian doesn’t so he can’t go too hard on him. Ian’s good though and gets him down on the ground on his back, pinning him. Mickey knows exactly how to get out of it so he does, now getting Ian pinned under him in a hold. Ian taps his arm and he lets him go. 

The session goes well, Dom even showed Ian some tricks, which made him really happy to learn more about the sport Mickey loves so much. They finish out their training by going on a run together and if they stop to fuck around in an alley then that’s nobodies business but theirs. 

*

The next couple weeks fly by as Mickey focuses mainly on his training for the fight, only seeing Ian sporadically at the gym or after work, meeting him to go to the dugouts or Mickey sneaking into the Gallaghers to spend the night with Ian. 

Mickey just finished training when he’s at his locker getting his shit together. He’s planning to spend the night at Ian’s since it’s one of the last night’s pre-fight that he can spend with him. 

Jay comes up to him and says, “Yo Mick.”

“Sup,” Mickey says with a nod.

“Having a big party after the fight, you better be there,” Jay tells him. Jay has a fight that night too. It’s right after Mickey’s fight. It’s going to be a big night for the gym.

“Yeah man, sounds good,” Mickey tells him.

“What’s up?” 

Mickey turns to see Ian walking towards them, his t-shirt slung over his shoulder, his body glistening with sweat. Fuck. Mickey looks back at Jay who’s telling Ian, “Just telling Mickey about the big party I’m gonna throw after fight night. You should come, man.”

“Yeah, for sure, that sounds great,” Ian tells him.

“Cool, okay, I’ll see you guys,” Jay says before heading out. He turns back to yell, “Oh and bring some chicks!”

Ian laughs as he watches Jay leave before turning to face Mickey. “That should be fun,” he says.

“Yeah if you like doing coke off some strippers ass,” Mickey tells him. Ian eyes him curiously. “Been to one of his parties before, it was definitely something…”

“Well this time you’ll have me,” Ian says softly, “so it’ll be way better.”

Mickey rolls his eyes at him but he can’t help but smile. He’s not wrong but they also can’t just be together at this party. “Sure, whatever you say, firecrotch.”

Now Ian rolls his eyes making Mickey chuckle. They part ways as Mickey showers and Ian gets ready to head home. 

*

They’re laying in Ian’s bed, sweaty and regaining their breath. Mickey sits up, leaning back against the wall with the pillow propped up behind him. He lights a cigarette and smokes it silently. Ian moves closer, laying his head on Mickey’s stomach. Mickey runs his free hand into Ian’s hair, feeling the soft strands across his fingers.

“Are you nervous?” Ian asks suddenly, breaking the silence in the room, but his voice is soft, barely above a whisper.

Mickey knows what he’s talking about so he says, “No.”

“I am,” Ian says after a few moments. 

Mickey puts the cigarette out in the small ashtray Ian left by the bed. He lowers himself back into the bed, turning so he and Ian are facing each other. He looks into Ian’s deep green eyes and says, “Don’t be. I’m going to win.”

Ian smiles softly before it falls from his face. “Not worried about you winning, I know you will.”

“Then what?” Mickey asks, confused.

Ian doesn’t meet his eye when he says, “About you getting hurt.”

Mickey feels a tightness in his chest. He hooks his finger under Ian’s chin and lifts his face up so their eyes meet, and he says, “I’m gonna be okay.”

“Promise?” Ian asks, his eyes so full of worry that Mickey’s never seen in another person before, not directed at him.

“Promise.” He presses his lips to Ian’s softly, his fingers gently caressing his cheek. Ian kisses him hard, his hand reaching for his hip as he presses himself fully to Mickey.

Ian pulls back slightly, just enough to press their foreheads together. Ian rubs his thumb gently across Mickey’s bare skin on his back. He asks, “So I really can’t come to the fight?”

Mickey sighs, “Nah man, you’ll be too much of a distraction. I need to focus on the fight. I need to win.”

Ian pulls back enough to look at Mickey. He’s got a shit eating grin on his face and Mickey groans. “I knew it,” he tells him.

“Yeah, yeah, shut the fuck up,” Mickey tells him, making Ian laugh.

Ian pulls him back in for another kiss before saying against his lips, “I guess I’ll have to wait to see you at the party then huh?”

“Guess so,” Mickey says before kissing him again, slipping his tongue inside and hopefully shutting him up for good.

Ian takes his hint, kissing him back just as hard, pressing him back into the mattress to get on top of him. Their cocks sliding together, getting hard again. Mickey can’t get enough of Ian. Especially now, knowing he won’t be able to be with him until after his fight. Ian puts another condom on before pushing inside of Mickey easily, having just been inside of him. Mickey wraps his legs around his waist as Ian fucks him deep and slow into the mattress.

It’s not like earlier. Earlier was hard, fast, deep, just wanting to get each other off. Now it’s slower, softer, just as deep and passionate but with a tenderness to it. It makes Mickey feel whole and that same tightness in his chest as earlier. He doesn’t know what it is but it feels good, better than he’s felt in - ever. 

Ian’s moaning lightly in his ear as he gently teases him with his tongue and teeth on his neck and earlobe. He says sweet nothings in his ear like you feel so good, Mickey , you’re so sexy, you look so good, can’t get enough of you, come for me, Mick . It all makes Mickey feel so good that he comes hard between them, his eyes squeezed shut and his back arching off the bed. Ian comes hard along with him, panting and moaning into his neck. 

*

Falling asleep with Ian wrapped around him, feeling his body pressed against him, his hands holding him close, his lips pressed to his neck or his shoulder, Mickey feels like he’s where he’s meant to be. He feels like he’s home.

Chapter Text

The last few days have been non-stop training for Mickey. Well, everyday is non-stop training for Mickey but these last few have been brutal. He thankfully only had to cut a couple pounds so sweating it out in the sauna was easy. Unlike Jay who had about thirteen pounds to lose for his fight. Jay and Mickey can handle it though, unlike a lot of the fighters here, who just bitch and whine about cutting weight. Mickey also hasn’t seen Ian much since his last night over at his place. He sees him at the gym but it’s not enough but it’s all they can get right now. At least until after his fight. 

It’s fight night and Mickey’s at the gym warming up with Joe as Jay warms up with Dom. They are the two fighters the gym has on the card for that night. To have one on is great but to have two, it’s almost unheard of. Dom has a lot riding on them both performing very well tonight - and winning. It will mean more business for the gym and could lead to some great sponsorships for them as fighters. Mickey doesn’t have any sponsors yet and he’s hoping that with this fight and this win he knows he’ll pull out, that those doors will open for him. 

By the time Mickey gets to the arena, he hasn’t seen Ian all day. He gets a few texts from him as he’s walking to his designated room to get ready.

Ian [8:02pm]: Good luck tonight 🖤 

Ian [8:02pm]: Even though I know you’ll kill the motherfucker

Ian [8:03pm]: Can’t wait to see you later. Stay over at my place after? 

Mickey smiles before pocketing his phone. He’s not alone so he doesn’t answer right away. Once they get to his room - him and Joe, he excuses himself to use the washroom so he can text Ian back privately.

Mickey [8:10pm]: Damn straight, Gallagher

Mickey [8:11pm]: Sounds good, hopefully I won’t be hurt too badly

Ian [8:12pm]: I’ll take care of you 😘

Mickey blushes reading the text. He gets those butterflies again and his heart beats fast in his chest. Ian wants to take care of him.

Mickey [8:13pm]: Fuckin better

Ian [8:14pm]: Anything for you babyface 

Mickey [8:14pm]: Ur such a fuckin dork 

Ian [8:15pm]: You love it 

Mickey ignores that word - love - it’s hitting a little too close to reality right now and he doesn’t have the time to think about it.

Mickey [8:16pm]: I gotta go. Text u after.

He turns his phone off and pockets it. He uses the washroom before heading back out. Mickey changes before Joe puts his gloves on him, making sure they’re nice and snug on his hands. They warm up a bit before Dom and Lisa come to join them.

“How you feelin’ Mick?” Dom asks, looking him over. 

“Good, ready,” he tells his coach. 

“Good. Gonna win this thing?” 

“Abso-fucking-lutely,” Mickey tells him. “Gonna kill this motherfucker.”

Dom grins, “That’s my boy.” He pats his arm, “I’ll let you keep warming up. Gonna go check on Jay. I’ll see you in a bit okay?”

Mickey nods, “Thanks, coach.”

Dom leaves but Lisa stays, she looks him over and asks, “You got this, right?”

“Doubting my abilities all of a sudden Lis?” Mickey asks, cocking his eyebrow. 

She rolls her eyes and scoffs. “No, just want to be sure you got this in the bag. It could be huge for you if you do,” she tells him. Having Lisa as his manager is great. She sets up fair fights and is always trying to find something worth it. She won’t ever book him a fight if she doesn’t think it’s fair or worth either of their time. 

“I know,” he says simply. 

Lisa nods, “Okay. You got this.”

“I got this.”

She nods again before leaving him to continue his warm up. Mickey puts his attention and focus on warming up. Not all of his energy but just enough to get him pumped up for this fight. 

*

Soon after Dom and Lisa left he hears ruckus outside and knows that’s his fucking family. They burst into the door - Terry, Iggy, and Jamie - before hollering at him.

“Mickey, my boy!” Terry says excitedly - definitely drunk or getting there at least.

“Hey pops,” Mickey says, putting on a fake smile. 

“You ready?” he asks him, coming up to him and grabbing him by the back of his neck, a little too hard for Mickey’s liking.

“Definitely.”

“Atta boy,” Terry says before letting him go. 

Mickey notices Joe backed away, not wanting to deal with Mickey’s family. He got into it once with Terry at Mickey’s first fight. They came into the room just like this and Joe told them they had to leave and Terry headbutted him. Joe almost broke his nose. Now he just sits back and doesn’t speak, not wanting to get on Terry’s bad side again.

“I should keep warming up,” Mickey tells him. 

“Yeah, yeah, we’re going,” Terry waves him off. “Common morons, let’s go find our seats,” he says to his other sons, leading them back out of the room. 

Before they leave he hears Iggy yell, “KILL THE MOTHERFUCKER MICK!”

Mickey wishes he didn’t have to give them backstage passes but if he didn’t then he’d get Terry’s wrath and he gets that unprovoked enough times that he doesn’t want to get it for no reason.

Mickey shakes his head, turning back to Joe who rejoins him. With no more distractions, Mickey can focus on warming up, properly this time.

*

It’s time. Mickey’s escorted out of his holding room with Joe, Dom, Lisa, and a couple other guys from the gym. He has on his shorts, shoes, and a thin robe over his body. They walk out into the arena where all Mickey is focusing on is the cage. Vasquez is already in the cage, pacing, waiting for him so they can get this fight started. 

Mickey ignores the cheering and booing all around, he ignores people screaming shit - all he can think about is winning this fight. He hits his gloved hands together, moving his head side to side, cracking his neck. 

They get to the edge of the cage where Joe takes his robe before Mickey turns to face Dom. “Remember what we talked about. Aim low and work those legs - fucker’s still got a wonky knee, use that,” he tells him before putting his mouthpiece in Mickey’s mouth. 

Mickey nods, understanding, listening and taking in everything his coach tells him and remembering all that he’s been teaching him the last eight weeks. Dom pats his arm and says, “Go kill that motherfucker.”

Mickey nods before walking up the steps and into the cage. He goes on the other side of where Vasquez is and paces in place. He looks to the audience and sees Dom and Joe standing by the cage ready to come in when each round is up. He looks past them and sees Lisa sitting next to one of the guys from the gym then right next to him he sees his father and his brothers. They have beers in hand and they look excited. It’s always a nice feeling to have them here supporting him even if they’re a bunch of psychopaths that he hates more often than not. 

Mickey waits until the referee gets between them before they both step closer to him. The ref tells them the rules before asking them both if they are ready to fight. He asks to see their teeth and Mickey flashes his mouthpiece that says FUCK U-UP on it, just like his knuckle tattoos. 

The bell dings and the ref yells, “Fight!”

Mickey paces in place as he sees his opponent do the same. He waves his gloved hand over, telling Vasquez to come get him. He tries to hit him but Mickey ducks before throwing his first punch right into his gut. 

Vasquez gets him right in the jaw but Mickey shakes it off before getting another shot in his opponent's gut. He kicks his bad knee, knocking him to the ground before getting on him and putting him in a hold. 

Vasquez is able to escape and they’re both up on their feet. They both get some really hard hits in and Mickey can feel the blood pooling in his mouth. His eye is a bit swollen and must be cut because he can feel something sliding down the side of his face - blood.  

The first round is up and they are told to separate and go to their corners. Dom and Joe are immediately in the cage, getting him down on the small stool they brought in. Mickey sits, spitting his mouthpiece out for Joe to catch. Joe helps him clean his mouth out, giving him some water to drink. 

Dom is telling him what to keep doing and what to avoid. He’s telling him what he’s seeing from Vasquez’s end and how Mickey should go about this next round. “Get him in a hold, Mick. Your holds are strong. Hold on tight and don’t let the fucker go. Got it?” 

Mickey nods and they hear the ding of the bell and the ref is telling them their little pause is up so Joe puts Mickey’s mouthpiece back in before he and Dom leave the cage.

Round two begins and Mickey takes into consideration everything Dom told him as he launches into this next round. Vasquez knocks him down with one really good hit and he can hear a loud ringing noise. He sees the ref down next to him counting but he shakes it off, getting back to his feet. The ref asks him if he’s good and he nods, knocking his gloved hands together. Mickey and Vasquez get back in each other’s faces. He ducks when Vasquez goes for another hit and Mickey’s able to get him down on the ground in a hold. He struggles against him, trying to flip them and switch their positions to get Mickey in a hold but it doesn’t work. The ref is down near them counting and Mickey tightens his grip not wanting the fucker to escape this time. He feels Vasquez tap him and it’s done.

Mickey jumps up and he can hear cheering around him. Dom and Joe are in the cage grabbing him and hugging him. 

Once Vasquez is up and okay, Mickey goes over to him. They hug briefly before parting. The ref stands between them, holding both of their gloved hands. They hear over the speakers, “Your winner by submission, Mickey Milkovich!” The ref holds Mickey’s hand up in the air, indicating that he is the winner. 

He can see his family on their feet cheering for him and he can’t help but smile, feeling proud of himself for winning during only the second round of the fight. 

*

Mickey’s escorted to the back to be seen by the doctor. He says that all is fine with him, he just needs to clean his cut eye, but that the cut isn’t bad and doesn’t need stitches, just a bit of tape. 

Once he’s cleaned up and changed into some black skinny jeans with rips in the knees and his dark grey crewneck sweater, he turns his phone back on. He sees the text he missed from Ian that wished him luck once more.

Mickey [10:42pm]: I won 🥊

Ian [10:43pm]: I saw, you absolutely killed it! I knew you would.

Wait what?! 

Mickey [10:43pm]: Ur here?? I told u not to

Ian [10:44pm]: I’m up at the top, out of sight. Clearly it worked since you were so focused and didn’t see me. 

Mickey [10:45pm]: Not the fuckin point, man, my family is here

Ian [10:46pm]: Okay but you’re not even with me so what’s the issue??

The issue is that now that Mickey knows Ian’s here, he just wants to go see him and kiss him but he can’t. He was going to go sit with his family to watch Jay fight next. 

Mickey [10:47pm]: The issue is that I want to be but can’t 

Ian [10:47pm]: Me too, Mick. Meet me after Jay’s fight?

Mickey [10:48pm]: I’ll try

Ian [10:48pm]: See you at the party if not?

Mickey [10:49pm]: Definitely

Ian [10:50pm]: Can’t wait 😘

Mickey pockets his phone and heads out of the room. He heads to the bar, wanting a drink since it’s been two months without one. He orders a beer, taking a long gulp of it before making his way to the arena to watch Jay’s fight that’s supposed to start soon. As he walks out, he looks up at the balcony and sure enough he spots Ian with Svetlana. Ian catches his eye and grins. Mickey so badly wants to wave or acknowledge him in some way but this is not the place to be risky. He turns around and continues on his way to sit with his family and Lisa. 

His brothers and father congratulate him, getting a little too rough for his sore body but he takes it, smiling and thanking them. He sits next to Lisa who pats his leg. “Really fucking great job, Mickey,” she tells him.

“Thanks,” he says shyly. 

“I’m already getting emails, texts, and calls about you. Sponsors and people trying to you on their card,” she informs him.

“Sweet, when?” he asks excitedly.

“Easy tiger. We’ll figure all this out on Monday or hell, in a few days. Enjoy yourself, you deserve it,” she tells him with a wink. 

There’s cheers and boos happening so their conversation ends there as they stand and watch Jay’s opponent walk out. 

*

Jay’s fight goes to a tie breaker after going through each round without a knock-out. Jay deserves this win, but Mickey’s not sure if he’s going to pull it out though. The third judge votes and it’s announced, “By a 2 to 1 vote, your winner is… Jay Kulina!” and the ref holds Jay’s arm up. They all explode out of their seats as they cheer for Jay. This is a perfect fucking night for the gym. Both of their fighters won tonight. 

Thankfully, Terry and his brothers leave right after Jay’s fight, heading to the Alibi to keep drinking. They ask Mickey to join them but he tells them he has a party with the other fighters. Mickey heads back to the bar to get another drink. He’s not heading out just yet since Jay won’t even be at his own party until after he gets checked out and cleaned up. He orders a whiskey neat and leans against the bar, looking out at everyone filtering out. 

Before he even says a word, Mickey can feel his presence near him - that and he can smell his cologne. “Excuse me? Are you that really hot fighter who won earlier?” 

Mickey laughs as he turns to see Ian grinning at him like the big goofball he is. “That was so lame,” he tells him.

“I got nervous,” Ian admits with a shrug of his shoulder. “You look…” he trails off as his eyes scan him from head to toe and back up. “Really fuckin’ good.”

Mickey looks around but no one’s near them to have heard. He might also be trying to stop Ian from seeing the blush that’s definitely creeping onto his face. He looks at Ian who’s got a smug little smile on his face. 

Mickey eyes him, taking him in and fuck does he look good too. He’s got on some nicely fitted dark jeans, a green button down shirt with small dots all over it, and a black jean jacket on top. He smirks when their eyes meet again and the only thing he could think of to call the look Ian is giving him is fuck me eyes. 

“Where’s your friend?” he asks, breaking eye contact to pick up his drink and take a sip.

“Getting her car, I told her I’d come find you so you could ride with us,” Ian informs him. 

Mickey cocks his eyebrow and it makes Ian grin. “Ride with you or ride you?” he teases. 

Ian has the nerve to blush but his smirk tells Mickey he loves the idea. “Mmm, would love to have you ride me,” he whispers to him teasingly.

Mickey’s cock twitches in his jeans. They need to stop or something that cannot and should not happen here, will. Before he can say anything else, Lisa joins them. “Hey Ian, I didn’t know you were here,” she says, wrapping her arm around Mickey’s shoulders. She turns to look at him and adds, “Order me one of those,” as she nods to the drink in his hands.

“Uh, yeah, I was sitting up in the balcony with a friend,” he tells her when she looks back at him.

“Friend?” Lisa looks around like she’s scoping the place out.

Mickey rolls his eyes as he hands her the drink he ordered for her. She takes it, removing her other arm from around him. Ian laughs, “She -”

“So?” 

Mickey’s eyebrows shoot up as he looks at her. “Since when are you into chicks?”

“Since always,” she eyes him. 

“Weren’t you and Dom-” he leaves it hanging.

“Mickey, I’m bi,” she tells him like it’s the most obvious thing. How would he know? All he knew coming into the gym was that Lisa had been dating Dom for like five years. They broke up about a year into when Mickey started training at the gym. They’re partners in the gym - Lisa handles finances and most of the management for the fighters, and Dom is mainly the coach, everyone wants him.

“Ah,” Ian says before adding, “Well, Svetlana is also bi so if you’re coming to Jay’s party you’ll meet her there. She’s just getting the car now.”

“Svetlana,” Lisa says flirtily before knocking back her drink in one gulp. “See you guys there,” she says before bouncing the fuck out of there.

Mickey looks at Ian and they both start laughing. “Svetlana will like her,” Ian comments.

“Speaking of,” Mickey says before sipping down the last of his drink and putting it on the bar. “Let’s get the fuck out of here.”

Mickey leads them out and towards the room he was getting ready in, the room Jay might be in now getting ready. Ian doesn’t have a pass so he waits for him outside as Mickey goes to get his bag and light blue jean jacket. He gets in the backseat of the car, right behind Ian, putting his bag on the seat next to him.

“Hey,” he greets Svetlana.

“It was good fight - boring it last two rounds but good win,” Svetlana tells him before pulling off of the curb and towards the address put into her GPS. 

“Uh thanks?” Mickey says but it comes out as a question - is that a compliment or?

Ian chuckles as he turns his head to look at Mickey. “She’s kidding. You killed it,” he reassures Mickey. 

Mickey smiles at him before he hears Svetlana say, “No, I no kid,” lifting her right hand from the steering wheel to wave her finger once. “Jay killed it.”

Ian rolls his eyes and Mickey says, “He did.”

“But so did you,” Ian says again, giving him a soft, sweet smile.

“Turn around,” Svetlana tells him, smacking his arm. “Stop making eyes at each other. I get sick.”

Ian smiles at him before doing what she said but he lifts his right hand and places it on the seat in front of Mickey. He wiggles his fingers and Mickey can’t help but giggle like a fucking school girl. He brings his right hand to meet Ian’s and they intertwine their fingers instantly. Ian squeezes and Mickey feels pulled out of his seat a bit. He scooches a bit closer so that Ian can be comfortable. 

*

The party is in full effect as they get there. Jay lives in this little house that’s just one floor but it’s a great space. There’s two bedrooms, a decently sized living room and kitchen, and one bathroom. The best part is his backyard. It’s the most spacious part of the property with a table in one corner with chairs everywhere, there’s an inground pool, and a couple of pool chairs. In one corner, Jay has a tiki style bar. 

There are fairy lights strung up everywhere and there are a few people actually in the pool. “Isn’t that cold?” Ian asks as his eyes land on the girls in the pool. 

“They can heat it when it’s cold,” Mickey tells him, having asked Jay that same question when he was here for the first time it was cold out that they knew each other. 

“That’s sick,” Ian comments. 

Mickey spots Mac with Jay’s brother that he lives with at the picnic style table near the tiki bar. They walk over to the bar first to get a drink before joining them. “Gallagher, you meet Mac?” Mickey asks when they sit. Mickey sat next to Mac and Svetlana sat next to Nate, leaving Ian next to her but facing Mickey. 

“Yeah, man, we met at the gym a few weeks ago,” Mac tells him. “Good you came, man.”

“Douchebag, it’s my house,” Nate says. “I’m Nate, hi.”

“I am Svetlana,” she greets, offering him her hand and smiling at him. Nate shakes her hand and Mickey shakes his head, hiding his laugh in his beer bottle. 

Ian just nods at Nate from behind Svetlana, “Ian.”

“Nate is Jay’s brother,” Mickey supplies. 

“Are you a fighter too?” Ian asks him looking past Svetlana to him. 

“I was,” Nate tells him with a nod of his head. “Had a really bad accident and had to stop.”

“Sorry to hear that.”

“Thanks,” Nate nods. 

“What happen? You look fine,” Svetlana tells him, looking him over. “Very fine.”

Mickey almost chokes on his sip of beer. Nate laughs, “I got jumped. There was a small crack in my skull. I had to go to physical therapy for a long time just to get my motion back. I’m basically good as new, just not as good to keep fighting because of my head.”

“Wow,” Ian says, shocked. “I’m sorry you went through that.”

Nate shrugs his shoulder. This happened about three years ago. Mickey remembers it so well, he had just started getting his foot into fighting, trying to get into the MMA world and Nate was being taken out. Nate’s one of the only people Mickey would consider a friend but still not enough to hang out all the time. So seeing him go through what he did - it was tough. Mickey, his brothers, Terry, and Jay all took a visit to the gang bangers who jumped Nate but it didn’t cure him not having to go to therapy and get his skull sewn back together.

“Okay well this is sufficiently fucking awkward,” Nate says after a moment.

“No shit,” Mickey adds.

“Douchebag,” Nate throws at him, making Mickey laugh. “Shots?” he asks the table.

“Yes, fucking please,” Mickey tells him.

“Yes, celebratory shots for Mick,” Nate says as he makes his way over to him. He puts his hands on his shoulders from behind and says, “Congrats, man. Sorry, I couldn’t be there tonight.”

“No worries,” he says, as Nate walks over to the bar to grab what they need. “Sure, your brother will be pissed you missed his win.”

“He’ll be fine, he knows I had shit to take care of,” Nate says as he brings over the shot glasses before going back for the bottles. He brings over tequila and whiskey. “Who wants what?”

“Whiskey,” Mickey and Ian both say at the same time. 

Ian knocks his foot against Mickey’s under the table. Mickey hides his smile behind his beer. 

*

The party gets crazy when Jay finally shows up. Svetlana’s friends also arrive and she meets Lisa - both of them hitting it off. Mickey’s pretty sure he saw Svetlana kiss both Lisa then Jay. When the party starts to feel like this - too much, it’s when Mickey usually steps away for a moment. He stands from the picnic table where he and Ian haven’t really moved - neither has Mac and Nate. He takes his fifth - maybe sixth beer with him and nods his head at Ian who is watching him. 

They head off the property near where Svetlana parked, a little down from where the gate is to the backyard. Mickey takes a cigarette out of the pack and doesn’t offer Ian, knowing he’s just going to want to share his. They lean against the fence next to each other in silence as Mickey smokes. He passes the cigarette to Ian who takes it, brushing their fingers together. 

Mickey smiles at him as he watches him inhale then blow the smoke out above him. Mickey watches his perfect mouth blow the smoke out, watches his perfectly cut jaw move, watches his perfect neck and the veins in them. 

“So Nate?” Ian asks simply before looking at him. 

Mickey cocks an eyebrow at him and asks, “What? You interested or somethin?”

Ian smiles at him as he shakes his head no. “More like he’s interested in you,” Ian tells him.

Mickey laughs, “No.” He takes the cigarette back from Ian before taking a hit.

“Seems like it from in there,” Ian says, nodding towards the house.

Mickey turns to face him, smirk on his face, “You jealous?”

“Maybe,” Ian says, turning to face him too. “Did anything ever happen between you two?” 

Mickey can’t the smile that blooms on his face hearing Ian be jealous. He blames all the beers and shots and his lowered tolerance since being in camp the last eight weeks. “Nah, man,” he says, letting the smoke out of his lungs. “When he came out, he was already in a relationship.”

“And if he wasn’t?” Ian asks.

“Still no,” Mickey tells him. 

“Why not? He’s obviously hot.”

Mickey’s eyebrows raise. “You sure you’re not interested?” 

Ian rolls his eyes. “I just - he was also a fighter, he knows what you’re going through like exactly. I just find it hard to believe you wouldn’t want to be with that,” he says softly, almost like he doesn’t want to in case Mickey were to realize how right he was and go be with him.

“Ian, you’re who I want to be with,” Mickey tells him honestly. “Nate’s just a friend. Only ever will be.”

“You sure?” Ian asks, it’s the most vulnerable he’s seen Ian be. 

“Yeah,” he says, smiling at him softly, hoping he can tell him how much he’s sure with his eyes. “Besides, Nate’s a bottom too,” he adds before flicking the cigarette away and taking a sip of his drink.

"On second thought, maybe I am interested,” Ian says. Mickey punches his arm making Ian laugh and move out of reach. “I’m kidding,” he says, grabbing Mickey’s arm and pulling him into him. 

“We can’t,” Mickey says softly before moving out of his arms. It hurts him just as much as it’s hurting Ian by the look on his face. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine,” he says with a shrug. “Let’s go back?”

“Yeah.”

*

Ian - the most sober of the bunch - drives Svetlana home before taking her car to drive himself and Mickey back to the Gallagher house. He promised her he would bring her car back to her tomorrow in one piece. 

Mickey and Ian make their way up to Ian’s room as quietly as possible but Mickey is drunk and very fucking horny. He’s grabbing at Ian the entire way there and Ian tries not to giggle too much as he maneuvers them into his room. Mickey presses Ian against the wall and their lips crash together. Finally. 

He slides his tongue into Ian’s mouth, fucking him with his tongue as his hands roam his body, pushing his jacket off his shoulders. They both take their jackets off, tossing them to the floor. Mickey sees that Ian’s shirt under his jacket is short sleeved and, “Fuck,” he says, seeing Ian’s arms in that shirt. Ian smirks at him before pulling him back in by his neck. Mickey moans into the kiss, pressing his body hard against him, his hand slipping between them to roam under Ian’s shirt, feeling the soft hair at the top of his waistband. 

They get their clothes off quickly, not wanting to waste another second without being skin to skin and on Ian’s bed. Ian presses Mickey into the mattress, their hard cocks sliding against each other. “Fuck, I missed you,” Ian tells him as he kisses his way down his neck to his chest. He flicks his tongue around Mickey’s nipple eliciting a deep moan from Mickey, his hips arching up. Ian sucks the peak into his mouth, nipping at it softly before going across his chest to his other nipple, before continuing his way down his body. He takes Mickey into his mouth in one sweep. 

“Jesus,” Mickey says, not expecting it. His fingers tangle in Ian’s hair as he pulls at his hair lightly, his hips thrusting up into his mouth.

Ian moans around his cock, his hands gripping onto his thighs, pulling him in deeper. Mickey plants his feet on the mattress and fucks up into Ian’s mouth. “Fuck, you look so hot, taking my cock like that, shit,” Mickey tells him and Ian moans deeply around him. Mickey feels like he can come any second so he pulls Ian off of him. “Get inside me.”

Ian quickly preps him and slides the condom on before pushing inside of him in one thrust making them both groan. “Oh my God,” Ian moans once he’s bottomed out. 

“Move, Ian,” Mickey reminds him, wrapping his legs around him. 

Ian starts fucking him hard and fast, fucking deep and then Mickey remembers something. He flips them over, shocking Ian for a split second until realization hits. Mickey rides Ian for the first time, pushing himself up and down on his cock, his hands on Ian’s chest. Ian’s hands are gripping onto his hips, helping him up and down his cock. Ian’s eyes roam his body until they land on their bodies where they are connecting.

“Fuck, you look so good like this, Mick. You take my cock so good,” Ian says, his hands moving to his ass cheeks to spread them further as he watches his cock go in and out of him.

“Big - so fuckin’ big like this, fuck,” Mickey moans as his eyes meet Ian’s. 

“You fuckin’ love it,” Ian says through a moan as he slams up into Mickey making him moan a little too loud. 

“I do, fuck, don’t stop - do it again,” Mickey tells him. Ian fucks up into him hard until they’re both coming. Mickey paints Ian’s torso with his come, a bit lands up on his chest.

Mickey flops down onto the mattress next to him, out of breath. “Jesus, Mick,” Ian says breathlessly, looking down at the come covering his body. “That was so fucking hot.”

“Yeah,” Mickey agrees, panting, trying to regain his breath.

Ian grabs his face and kisses him on the lips before getting out of bed. He returns clean before getting under the covers with Mickey. “I did miss you, you know? These last few days,” Ian tells him softly, after their bodies have cooled down, their hearts have stopped racing, and the room is dead silent. 

Mickey turns his head to look at Ian and smiles softly. “Me too,” he says just as softly.

“So, I’m just wondering…” Ian trails off. Mickey turns to face him fully, waiting for him to continue. “If we’re a couple or not?”

Mickey looks into those deep green eyes and smiles. “Of course we are,” Mickey tells him with the most sincerity he’s ever felt. 

“A couple that hides?” Ian asks, it’s soft but it packs a punch.

“Ian…” Mickey trails off.

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said that,” Ian tells him quickly, grabbing onto the side of his face, his fingers moving to the back of his neck. 

“It’s the truth though,” Mickey tells him. “I can’t be out.”

“Nate is…” 

“Nate’s not a fighter anymore. Why do you think he got jumped?” 

“What?” Ian asks shocked, his hand dropping from Mickey’s head.

Mickey sighs. “Some bitch told her friend about Nate who then told her family - fucking Mexican gang bangers. They jumped Nate - middle of the fuckin’ day. He only came out because people already knew and he couldn’t fight anyways so why keep it a secret? His mother’s a recovering junkie who actually loves him, and his alcoholic father who would have beaten the shit out of him is long dead. Nate met a good guy who helped him come to terms with who he is and he was able to openly be with him because he wasn’t in the MMA world anymore. That’s not me, Ian. My career has really just started to begin.”

“I didn’t - I’m sorry about Nate, and that you can’t be who you are while also doing the thing you love the most,” Ian tells him softly, bringing his hand back up to his face, caressing his cheek.

“I want to be with you,” Mickey tells him, bringing his hand up to his, holding it there. “But if you can’t be with me cause I won’t come out -”

Ian moves closer, kissing him softly on the lips, once, twice, before pulling back just enough to look into Mickey’s eyes. “I want to be with you, however I can have you.”

Mickey’s never felt like this before - his heart feels too full like it might just explode out of his chest. He presses his lips back to Ian’s and hopes that he can tell him just how much he means to him with this kiss.

Chapter Text

Mickey spends the weekend with Ian, not wanting to be anywhere else than in his arms and in his bed. But it’s over way too quick when Monday rolls around and Ian has school. Mickey heads home, thankful no one is awake yet. He doesn’t feel like sticking around so he grabs what he needs for the gym before heading there. He makes his protein shake at the gym before meeting with Lisa in her office. 

“Have a good weekend?” she asks him when he sits on the sofa.

“Yeah,” he nods before taking a sip of his shake.

“Good,” she says simply before leaning back in her chair. “So, about all the calls and emails I was getting for you after your fight.” Mickey sits forward in his seat, hoping this will be good news. “I’ve lined up some meetings for us this week with potential sponsors. You’re hot right now, Mick. After that fight - they see what you’re capable of and they all want you.”

Mickey grins. “That’s fuckin’ great,” he laughs.

“It is,” she smiles. “So get out some of your best outfits, we have two meetings tomorrow and two on Wednesday.”

“You got it boss,” he tells her. “Um, what about fights?”

“There’s talk - I’m working with Dom to find you a good match up. Don’t worry. You just had a good fight, a good win. Ride this high for a bit. We’ll get you something worthwhile.”

“I trust you. Thanks, Lisa,” he tells her before standing. 

“You’re training today?” she asks, looking him up and down.

“Yeah, got fuck all else to do.”

*

Since Mickey’s not in camp, he doesn’t have to be so strict with his diet but he doesn’t want to go too extreme and end up getting a fight soon and having to cut a lot of weight. He isn’t going to turn down the burgers and fries Ian brings when he meets him that night after he finishes cleaning the gym. They sit on the beat up old sofa outside the gym to eat the food before it gets too cold and Mickey tells Ian about his meetings with potential sponsors.

“That’s amazing, Mick,” Ian tells him. 

“Yeah,” Mickey says around a mouthful of fries. “Having a sponsor will be huge for my career. And Lisa and Dom are working on getting me my next fight.”

“So soon?” Ian asks, concerned.

“Don’t worry your pretty little face, I’ll be fine,” Mickey teases. Ian rolls his eyes at him and Mickey adds, “Lisa wants me to enjoy myself before putting me back in the cage so really, don’t worry.”

“I’m not, but good - that’s good,” Ian says doing a bad job of convincing Mickey he’s not worried. 

“Common, let’s get the fuck out of here,” Mickey tells him, tossing his wrappers into the brown bag their food came in. 

They make their way to Ian’s place since he just spent the entire weekend there, his siblings know about them - plus they can’t seem to keep their noses in their own business. Ian promised him that nobody would say anything, knowing the severity of what could happen if anyone finds out about Mickey. 

The house is quiet so they make their way up to Ian’s bedroom, stripping down and getting into bed. Mickey feels tired and full and just wants to be held by Ian so he moves closer to him, laying his head on Ian’s chest. Ian wraps his arm around him before soothingly running his hand up and down his arm. 

“Big softy,” Ian mumbles against his hair before kissing him there.

“I’m sensitive, you’re soft,” Mickey tells him, making Ian chuckle above him, kissing his head again. 

“Hey, so I wanted to ask you something,” Ian says after a few moments. 

“Okay…”

“Would you go get tested with me?” 

Mickey moves from Ian’s embrace to lean on his elbow so he can look at Ian. “What?” he asks.

“I was hoping we could maybe stop using condoms? Only if you’re okay with that, of course. Um, so I figured we could go get tested together first before we stop using them. I go often anyway, but haven’t since we started and not that I think you’re -”

Mickey puts his finger to Ian’s lips. “You’re rambling,” he says.

“I know, I’m nervous,” Ian admits.

“I’ll go with you,” Mickey tells him. 

“Yeah?”

“Yeah,” Mickey says simply. Ian reaches for him, pulling him into a kiss. When they break apart, Mickey adds, “Would be nice to feel you inside me without a condom.”

“Mmm, can’t wait to fill you up and watch my come spill out of you,” Ian tells him.

Mickey’s dick twitches against Ian’s leg and soon, their tiredness and need to just cuddle disappears as a deep hunger and desire for one another takes over.

*

The next day, Mickey goes to his meetings with Lisa. He gets a text from Ian after the first one, that says he made them an appointment for after Ian finishes class to go get tested. Mickey meets Ian at the clinic when he’s finished with his sponsor meetings and Ian is done with school. 

The two of them sit side by side, waiting for their turns. “You okay?” Ian asks him.

Mickey’s leg is bouncing up and down and he stills it when he sees Ian glancing at it. “Fine,” he says simply. 

“It’s all very routine,” Ian tells him softly. “They’ll ask you questions about your sex life and if you use or share intravenous drugs. They’ll take some blood, and do some swabs, and then you’re done. Don’t be nervous -”

“I’m not,” Mickey mumbles.

Ian smiles at him softly. “It’s okay if you are. I always am. I’ll be right out here though, waiting for you.”

Mickey nods, thankful that he has Ian. Ian’s name is called so he squeezes Mickey’s arm gently before getting up and following the guy down the hall and into a room. Mickey waits, looking around. He fiddles with his phone before putting it back in his pocket. He continues to bounce his leg. Ian’s out quicker than expected. He’s not sure how long he’d be but it’s good to know it doesn’t take very long. 

Mickey’s next and the whole thing feels so fucking weird to him. He’s being asked all these personal questions about his sex life and his personal life, stuff he’s never talked about out loud before. He knows it’s all confidential, they made sure to tell him that at the beginning, but it still feels weird to discuss the most personal parts of his life with a complete stranger. 

When they’re done, they’re told they will get a call with their results in a few days. They leave the clinic and hang out until Mickey needs to get to the gym to clean up. 

*

Mickey doesn’t see Ian again and he’s really missing him. It’s Friday and he knows Ian works that night and the following night so he won’t be able to see him at all and that’s just unacceptable to Mickey. 

Before he could text Ian, his phone rings. It’s the clinic with his results. He came back completely clean, as he knew he would, but it still feels like a weight lifted off of him hearing the confirmation. 

Mickey [1:24pm]: Got my results… I’m all good 

Ian [1:27pm]: Just got the call too. Same here 😁

Mickey [1:28pm]: Tonight? 😈

Ian [1:29pm]: I’m working 😭

Ian [1:29pm]: Unless you wanna come by the club? Then sleep over after? 

Mickey [1:30pm]: Ok

Ian [1:30pm]: You better not be fucking with me right now

Mickey [1:31pm]: I’m not, douchebag

Ian [1:31pm]: OMG MICKEY

Mickey [1:32pm]: Wanted to keep an eye on u anyway, don’t need no old ass fuckers tryna touch what’s mine

Ian [1:33pm]: That’s really old school of you, Mick, but I don’t even care, I’m too excited that you’re coming by the club again.

Ian [1:34pm]: Gonna give you the best fucking lap dance of your life 

Mickey [1:35pm]: I’ll try not to run this time

Ian [1:36pm]: You’re not funny

Mickey [1:36pm]: I rly am tho

Mickey finishes his training for the day, leaving before the gym closes so he doesn’t have to spend too much time at home. He gets inside the house to see his dad and brothers getting ready to leave. “Where you fuckers going?” he asks.

“Got a drop then headed to the alibi,” Iggy tells him. “Wanna come?” 

“Not a fuckin’ chance,” Mickey says. 

“What the fuck else you got goin’ on?” Terry asks him.

“I can’t go on illegal drops with you, man. If I get caught, my fighting career is fucked.” Terry makes a grumbling noise like he forgot for a second. 

They leave quickly after finally giving Mickey some goddamn privacy. He takes a shower, has something to eat, then gets ready. It’s still early by the time he’s ready so he cracks open a beer and sits on the sofa to roll a joint. 

*

Sufficiently buzzed, Mickey makes his way to the club to see his boyfriend. He gets inside quickly, trying not to think too much about if anyone he knows or knows of him saw him come in here, or if anyone in here knows who he is. He goes to the bar and orders a whiskey neat, sitting on a stool that gives him a vantage point to see Ian dancing up on that same platform he first saw him dancing on. 

As if Ian could tell Mickey’s eyes were on him, he turns and their eyes meet. Ian grins but doesn’t stop dancing - no, he continues as if Mickey’s the only one in the room watching him. It’s hot as fuck and Mickey has to remember that there are other people around. He sips on his drink, watching Ian do his thing. He finally jumps down and makes his way over to him. Mickey turns to face him in his stool, legs spread as Ian steps between them. 

“You look fuckin’ good,” Ian tells him, looking him up and down. Like that first night they met, Mickey’s wearing the same outfit - black jeans and a black button-up shirt.

“So do you,” Mickey teases, eyeing his boyfriend in his tiny gold shorts and stupid gold tie around his neck. He flicks at the tie and Ian smirks at him. He takes the water bottle that’s brought to him and takes a long drink, a bit of water falling down his neck and onto his chest. “Come on, man. You’re doing this shit on purpose now.”

“Doing what?” Ian asks, innocent face on. 

Mickey shakes his head and laughs. Ian’s smiling at him and he just wants to kiss him so bad. Someone interrupts them though to tell Ian to get back on stage so Ian winks at Mickey before going back to work, putting on a show just for him.

As Mickey watches him, he sees all the men around his platform watching him too - more like lurring at him. It’s making Mickey feel sick. He sees some fat fuck lick money before reaching to put it into Ian’s gold shorts and Mickey’s up and out of his seat and headed towards him in record time. He grabs the guys arm and pulls him away from the platform Ian’s still dancing on but watching them. 

“If those fingers go anywhere near that cock, Ima break every knuckle on your hand, all fifteen of ‘em,” Mickey threatens, shoving the guy roughly so he knows not to fuck with him.

“Settle down, grumblefish,” the man slurs, rubbing at his arm. “Anyway, a hand only has fourteen knuckles,” he says smugly.

“You wanna fuckin’ die?!” Mickey advances on him and the man retreats in a hurry. 

Ian’s down and in front of him now and Mickey looks away feeling kind of embarrassed for acting so protective. “Mick…” Ian starts to say, pawing at his arm.

Mickey nods. “Sorry, I just - I don’t like seeing some fat fuck trying to shove his fingers down your pants,” he admits, looking up into his eyes. 

Ian smiles at him softly before leaning in. Mickey pulls back, looking around the club. He sees men dancing on other men, he sees men kissing other men, he sees just - a lot of men being who they are. He looks back up at Ian who has his eyebrow raised and has a stupid little smirk on his face. Mickey leans forward, taking Ian’s face in his as he kisses him on the lips. Ian’s hands are on his face instantly and he’s kissing him back with passion. Mickey slips his tongue into Ian’s mouth and presses their bodies together. His free hand holds onto Ian’s waist as he feels his bare skin on his fingers. He gets lost in the moment as all he hears is the rushing of blood in his ears from his heart beating so fast and the loud music around. He’s only focused on Ian’s mouth on his, his hands on his body and face, and the way it feels like they’re the only two people in the room.

Mickey pulls back, the need to breathe too strong, and stares into Ian’s deep green eyes. He knows in that moment that he’s falling head over heels in love with Ian Gallagher.

“How about that lap dance, big guy?” Ian flirts, pulling Mickey into him by his waist. 

Mickey cocks his eyebrow and says, “Fuck yeah.”

Ian pulls him by the hand towards a booth where he could push Mickey down into it before climbing on top of him. Mickey’s not surprised but he is very happy that Ian made good on his promise to give him the best lap dance of his life because fuck was it ever. By the time he’s done, Mickey’s so fucking hard in his jeans. Ian knows it too and drags him to the washroom.

They fumble into one of the stalls, a mess of lips and tongues and hands all over each other. Ian is quick to his knees as he undoes Mickey’s jeans and swallows Mickey whole when his aching cock bounces out of his boxers. 

“Christ, Ian,” Mickey moans, his fingers threading into Ian’s hair. He watches as Ian looks up at him and works his mouth and tongue all around his cock. It doesn’t take long for him to come hard down his boyfriend’s throat with a moan of his name. Mickey quickly returns the favor, needing Ian in his mouth. 

They return out into the club and unfortunately part ways as Ian is asked for a lap dance, but Mickey is not far away, watching and seeing it for what it is - just a job for Ian. With him it was so much more. He knows the difference, it just hurts inside watching the man he’s realizing how badly he’s in love with, dance for other men.

*

Mickey’s allowed to wait for Ian inside the club when they close, sitting at the bar, waiting for him to get changed before they can leave. Ian emerges from the backroom with jeans on and a hoodie and he’s got his backpack over his shoulder. He’s scrubbed off most of the stupid makeup he has to wear but his eyes are still rimmed with black eyeliner. He’s got a big smile on his face as he approaches Mickey. 

“Ready?” he asks him, stopping in front of him.

“God, yes,” Mickey says, having been ready hours ago but not wanting to leave without Ian. 

They head out together and Mickey’s glad to see that most of the streets on their way to the El are deserted or with some drunk stragglers walking together with their arms linked. 

They sit across from each other on the train, just eyeing each other. There’s this heat and tension between them, like this pent up energy that just needs to be released. Even though they got dirty in the washroom at the club, Mickey is straining in his jeans, badly wanting Ian on him. Ian’s eyes flick down to Mickey’s crotch when he shifts in his seat. His eyes lock with his and he has a smirk on his face. He bites his lower lip as he cocks his eyebrow. 

Mickey has to look away, the heat in Ian’s eyes too much, he feels like he can come just from his eyes on him. When he looks back to Ian he’s got such a smug smile on his face. Mickey flips him off, making Ian laugh. They finally get to their stop so they exit, Ian bumping his shoulder into Mickey’s. “Can’t wait to get you underneath me,” he whispers in his ear.

“What if I wanna be on top?” Mickey challenges as they make their way out of the station. He laughs as he makes his way down the stairs. 

“I’ll have you whichever way you want, baby,” Ian tells him when he reaches him at the bottom of the stairs. Mickey rolls his eyes at the pet name but can’t help but smirk at his boyfriend. 

They finally get to the Gallagher house, making their way inside from the backdoor, and up the stairs from the kitchen. 

Inside Ian’s bedroom with the door closed, he looks at Mickey, eyeing him up and down before saying, “Strip and get on the bed.” Mickey does as he’s told, undressing quickly before getting onto the bed. Ian eyes him up and down again, his eyes getting darker as he looks at him naked and sprawled on the bed. Mickey’s dick is hard, standing up straight, wanting Ian’s mouth on him badly. He takes hold of his cock at the base, squeezing it gently. 

Ian groans deeply watching him. “Don’t touch yourself,” he tells him. “I’m going to take a quick shower.”

“Are you serious right now?” Mickey asks, confused. “You’re just gonna leave me here like this?”

“Yup, and you better not touch yourself while I’m gone,” Ian warns before leaving the room, closing the door behind him.

“Unbelievable,” Mickey mutters to himself. He’s annoyed but extremely turned on by this. Ian taking control and telling him what he can and can’t do, it’s doing things to him he never thought could be possible. He looks down at his aching cock, wanting badly to stroke it just a bit to take the edge off but he thinks that somehow Ian will know if he does and the thought of disobeying Ian right now doesn’t sit right with him. Though, maybe he’ll punish him if he does disobey and that thought turns Mickey on to no end. He groans as his dick twitches against him. 

After what feels like an eternity, Ian slides the door open and steps inside, closing it behind him. His towel is wrapped low around his waist and Mickey can see beads of water covering his body like he didn’t even dry himself when he stepped out of the shower. Mickey’s still hard, even more so now that Ian is back and looking way too fucking sexy.

“Mmm, still hard for me, you better not have touched that beautiful cock,” Ian teases as he lets the towel fall to the ground.

“No,” Mickey manages to say through the lump in his throat as his eyes scan Ian’s perfect body and the way his big cock stands at attention. “I didn’t, been waiting for you.”

“Good boy,” Ian says and Mickey moans deeply, his hips lifting off the mattress slightly. Ian watches Mickey’s body react to the praise and licks his lips as he crawls onto the bed. “You like that, huh?” he asks, trailing his hand up Mickey’s calve and to his thigh. 

“Yes,” Mickey says simply, watching Ian’s hand move up his thigh and to his hip, avoiding his now leaking cock. Ian’s hand moves up his torso and to his nipple, pinching it between his fingers. “Fuck,” Mickey moans, hips thrusting up at the contact.

“You’re so fucking sexy,” Ian tells him. “Turn around, get on your knees.”

Mickey does as he’s told and he feels Ian’s big hands spread his ass apart before his tongue is on him. “Jesus Christ -” he moans out, trying to remember to be quiet. 

Ian’s tongue is fucking him open, he’s moaning against him and Mickey feels like he’s going to come from just this. “Ian, please,” he moans.

“Please what?” Ian asks before biting his left cheek.

“Fuck me, please, I need your cock,” Mickey begs. 

Ian groans before biting his ass again and says, “I could listen to you beg all night.”

“Please, now, Ian, fuck,” Mickey begs some more and it pays off because Ian’s reaching over him for the lube.

“Get on your back,” Ian tells him. 

Mickey turns around and plants his feet on the mattress. Ian strokes his cock, lubing it up before pressing the head against his hole. Ian leans his body over Mickey’s, pressing his lips to his as he slowly presses inside of Mickey completely.

This is their first time bareback and “Holy shit,” Mickey moans out against Ian’s lips, his hands grabbing onto whatever part of Ian he can.

Ian moans into Mickey’s mouth when he bottoms out. “Fuck, you feel so good, Mick,” he moans. 

“Yeah, fuckin’ move,” Mickey tells him impatiently.

Ian pulls out almost completely before slamming back into him, causing them both to moan a little too loudly in the quiet night. There’s a bang against their wall so they make sure to stay as quiet as they can. 

Ian fucks Mickey hard and deep, not too fast, wanting this to last but the feeling of just his cock inside of Mickey is too strong. “I’m close, Mick,” he tells him.

“Fuck, right there, Ian don’t you fuckin’ stop,” he warns, wrapping his legs tightly around his waist. Ian picks up the pace, fucking him hard and fast in that same spot until Mickey’s pulling him in for a kiss, moaning deeply into his mouth as he comes hard between them. Ian’s right there with him, coming hard inside of him as he holds onto him tightly. 

*

Cleaned up and cuddled up together in bed, Mickey lays his head on Ian’s chest. Ian’s stroking the side of his arm lightly. “Can’t believe we haven’t been doing that the entire time,” he says softly.

“Now we can keep doing it that way since we’re together and everything,” Mickey whispers against his chest.

Ian hugs him tight, wrapping him up in his arms. “I love you,” he says softly but Mickey hears it.

He looks up at him and sees vulnerability in Ian’s green eyes, maybe even a little bit of fear. “I love you, too,” he says just as softly.

Ian smiles softly, not that big goofy smile that lights up the room but something smaller, sweeter, just for him. They meet in a sweet, tender kiss - Ian’s hand on Mickey’s cheek holding him in place as Mickey’s hand rests on Ian’s chest, feeling his heart beat fast under his palm.

Mickey lays his head back on Ian’s chest and let’s his warm embrace lull him to sleep.

*

This next week goes by in a blur. Mickey barely sees Ian since he has so much shit to do for work and Ian has a lot of assignments and exams coming up he needs to study for. Mickey finally chose a sponsor and started getting all this free shit - gym bags, protein powder, gym clothes, new gloves and mouthpieces with his signature FUCK U-UP on them. He’s set and he’s so fucking happy this happened. He was hoping that this last fight he won would open the doors to all of this shit and it did. 

Lisa also tells him by the end of that week that she lined up another fight for him and it’s a title fight. It’s in about four weeks so he has time to prepare for it. It’s not nearly enough time to prep if he wasn’t coming out of another fight but since Mickey just had a fight a couple weeks ago, he’s still feeling good from it. Now he just can’t divulge in anything good to eat or drink and has to get back to prepping his meals and training vigorously. It being a title fight means the world to Mickey. If he wins he will be the new champion. This is something he’s dreamed of for a very long time. 

The first person Mickey tells is Ian. He wishes they could celebrate instantly but with Ian’s work schedule and Mickey now having to train hard for the fight, there isn’t really the time. He gets some sessions scheduled in the cage with Dom before he heads home for the night. It’s Friday so Ian’s working at the club. Mickey stops at the grocery store before heading home. Thankfully no one is home so he’s able to listen to some music as he prepares his meals for the week. He also bought some junkie food for his shithead family so that they don’t eat his healthy meals. 

Once he’s made enough for the week, Mickey labels all of his containers and puts them in the fridge. His brothers and dad are pretty good with not eating his meals but only if there’s other stuff for them to eat. He’s come home to them eating his food and complaining about how bland it was. He wanted to bash their heads into the walls for that. 

Mickey changes into some loose gym shorts and a t-shirt before going to lounge in the living room. It’s nearing the end of April and he’s happy that spring is here. It’s cool out but not too cool - he’s able to leave the window open to let that nice spring breeze in. Mickey rolls a joint, putting it to his lips. He sparks it up and takes a long hit. As he blows the smoke out, he grabs his phone and opens it to snapchat. He films himself smoking, looking into the camera like he’s looking right at Ian. He bites his lower lip before ending the video. He sends it to Ian and puts the phone down next to him. It buzzes instantly so he picks it back up and opens the app. 

@iangallagher3: Fuck you’re so hot

@iangallagher3: Miss you

@mmmamick810: Me 2 

@iangallagher3: Wish you could come over tonight

@iangallagher3: When’s this fight again? 

@mmamick810: 4 weeks

@mmamick810: Doesn’t mean I can’t come over but I have a session with Dom tmr so it’s prob best I don’t

@iangallagher3: Fine 😭

@iangallagher3: Still on for Monday tho right?

@mmmamick810: Def

@iangallagher3: Good 🖤

@mmamick810: How’s work?

@iangallagher3: Would be better with you here, would much rather be grinding on you 

@mmamick810: That turned me on and made me sick at the same time

@iangallagher3: Sorry

@iangallagher3: I gotta get back, can I text you later?

@mmamick810: Ya

@iangallagher3: 😘😘😘😘😘

Mickey hates how much he misses the redhead. Since saying those three words to each other, Mickey feels like such a little bitch. His mind is even more on this man who completely turned his life around. He’s never felt so much in his life before now. Mickey thought he was fucked for life for the longest time. He was put into the MMA world and while he doesn’t regret it one bit, he never thought he’d get anywhere, but now he has three wins, just got a sponsorship, and has a title fight lined up only weeks out from his last fight. He could potentially be a new champion and that’s not something he could ever regret. And he’s met a man that he’s fallen so completely in love with, he never thought that was possible. They’re not free to be open together but Ian makes Mickey feel free, he’s never felt this good in his life, and it’s all because of him. 

*

Monday night, Mickey meets Ian at an abandoned building. Mickey told Ian that he used to come here a lot when he was a kid to get away from Terry. He would steal one of the guns lying around and he’d come shoot it at a target on the wall, imagining it was his father. Ian had held him tight and kissed his head when he told him that. He’s shocked when Ian told him to meet him there instead of at the dugouts or even at his place. 

“Are you here?” Ian asks when the call connects.

“Yeah, where are you?” Mickey asks looking around.

“Come up to the roof,” Ian says before hanging up.

Mickey does as he’s told, wondering what his boyfriend could have planned. He makes his way upstairs and to the roof. It’s illuminated with candles and there’s a big blanket in the middle. Mickey’s breath catches in his throat when he sees Ian sitting on it, waiting for him. His smile is brighter than the moon right now when his eyes meet his. 

Mickey shakes his head, a smile on his face as he walks over to him. “What are we gonna look for shooting stars?” he teases as he gets down on the blanket next to him. “Cause that’s pretty gay.”

Ian scoffs. “We’re gay.”

“I’m not this gay,” Mickey says. Ian shakes his head but laughs, reaching for his face and pulling him in. He kisses him softly on the lips once, twice, before saying, “I missed you, thought we could do something nice to celebrate your upcoming title fight. My boyfriend is going to be a champion.”

Mickey chuckles, a blush creeping up his neck. “Got a lot of training left to do but damn straight, your boyfriend is going to be a champion,” he says, making Ian grin so wide before pulling him into a deeper, more passionate kiss that leaves Mickey breathless when he pulls away. “And you know, I might have missed you too, or whatever.”

Ian smiles softly at him, “Good.”

“What’s all this?” Mickey asks, pulling back to see some stuff out on the blanket with them.

“Oh, well, since you can’t have like real people food,” Ian says to which Mickey scoffs. “I got some nuts, veggies, and fruits. I also have weed.”

“Oh my God, thank you, I love you,” Mickey says, making Ian grin. 

“Long day?” Ian asks, a slight blush coloring his cheeks. 

“Pretty much, just want to relax so thank you for this,” he tells him, moving closer so their legs slot together and he can pull him into a kiss. 

Everything else disappears as Mickey feels Ian’s arms wrap around him, pulling him in deeper as their kiss gets steamier. Mickey’s fingers slide up into Ian’s hair, pulling him harder into him, wanting him closer even though there’s no space left between them. 

Ian and Mickey strip down as much as the cooling night allows before Ian is pressing inside of Mickey, making him moan into the night as he pulls him closer, his hands gripping onto his back. 

“Love the noises you make, fuck, Mick,” Ian tells him, his lips on his neck, “Fuck, I wish I could mark you, leave a small hickey right here,” he says before licking the spot on his neck he just loves so much, where he could feel Mickey’s pulse the most. 

“Don’t - fuuu right there, Ian,” he moans out as Ian hits his prostate. “Don’t stop, so good, Ian, fuck.”

Ian moans deeply, biting his neck as he continues to slam into Mickey hard, deep, just where he needs it. “I love you so much, Mickey, holy fuck,” Ian moans out as Mickey clenches around him, his hands now gripping the blanket below him.

“I love you, fuck, Ian,” Mickey moans as he comes hard between them. 

Ian moans out his name before he comes hard inside of him, kissing his neck and over to his lips. 

*

After regaining their breaths and cleaning up, they get dressed before laying back down on the blanket together, passing the now lit joint between them. Their fingers brushing lightly every time they pass it. Mickey turns his head to look at Ian as he blows smoke out above him only for it to waft back down towards him. 

Ian turns his head to look at Mickey and smiles that soft, just for him smile. “What’s up?” he asks softly.

“Can’t just look at you, Gallagher?”

Ian smiles again and it makes Mickey smile back. “‘Course you can.”

“You really think I could win this fight?” Mickey asks after a few silent moments. 

“Without a doubt,” Ian tells him, looking into his blue eyes. “I believe in you, Mick. You’re a champion.”

Mickey caresses the side of Ian’s face before whispering, “Come here.”

Ian scooches a bit closer and presses his lips to Ian’s in a tender, loving kiss. “This is without a doubt the gayest thing I’ve ever done,” he says after they lay back down, shoulder to shoulder.

Ian laughs. “You literally just had my dick in your ass, and this is the gayest thing you’ve ever done?”

“Exactly,” Mickey smirks. 

Ian laughs and it’s still Mickey’s favorite sound, hoping he could make that sound happen for the rest of his life.

Chapter Text

Mickey has never felt so secure in his life. He actually found himself a guy and they’ve fallen deeply in love with each other. That’s not something he ever thought he would have. And he has it with Ian, who is the dorkiest, chattiest motherfucker but he’s - he makes Mickey feel safe. He makes Mickey feel like he’s on top of the world. Ian is beautiful and sexy and he’s kind and thoughtful. He has his own issues with mental health and trying to survive in the Southside, but he’s never used it as an excuse. He’s always just been Ian. And he knows it hasn’t been long that they’re together but when he thinks about his life, he can’t imagine Ian not in it.

As well as his love life, his career has been incredible since his last fight. Winning in the second round by a submission felt incredible. Better than any high he’s ever had. He’s got himself a sponsor who sends him free merchandise, who is sponsoring his next fight, and Lisa was able to get him a great contract for this next fight. He’s going to be making more than he’s ever made before. It’s a title fight so everything is just that much bigger. 

Mickey can’t wait for this fight. It’s two weeks out and he’s been prepping for it like crazy these last couple weeks. He didn’t get much time so everything has just been that much more intense to get ready for it. He’s been training extensively with Dom for this fight since it’s his first title fight. Title fights are usually five five-minute rounds, whereas his previous fights have been three five-minute rounds. Dom’s goal for this fight is for Mickey to get the guy on a knockout before the end of five rounds. 

“I’m worried that if it goes to a tie-breaker that they’d give it to Wheeler because he’s already the champ,” Dom tells him when he suggests working on his right hook.
Dom’s right. Judges could easily just give it to his opponent because he already holds the title. “Let’s fuckin’ do it than,” Mickey tells him, hitting his gloves together, ready to train.

Dom grins, and they get started. He instructs him on when to avoid hits and kicks. He shows him how to exert power so that it comes out in a knockout punch.

Mickey’s got a good right hook but his strong suit is his holds. Working on his punches is the main focus of their training session. He sees a flash of red at the corner of the cage and sees Ian watching him, a small smile on his face. Mickey looks back at Dom, trying to stay focused on their session. 

Ian’s still a huge distraction for him - how could he not be? But he’s been getting better at focusing on his training instead of his boyfriend watching him. Now that they’re official and have said those three words to each other, he feels secure in knowing that Ian will still be right there waiting for him when he’s done, and that he can just focus on training.

After his session in the cage, he heads to his locker. He sits on the bench and chugs down some water. 

“Hey,” Ian says as he leans on the locker near where Mickey’s sitting. “You looked good out there.”

Mickey knows they’re alone, he made sure to check the room before sitting down, knowing Ian would be in shortly after him. He eyes his boyfriend up and down, sweaty from his own workout, his t-shirt slung across his shoulders. His eyes get stuck on that V shape of his pelvis and the soft ginger hair that trails down into his shorts. His eyes look back up into his and Ian’s smirking. Mickey bites his bottom lip to stop from grinning so wide and asks, “Gonna see you tonight?”

Ian grins, “Definitely, meet me at my place when you finish?”

Mickey nods. It’s Wednesday so he works tonight. “Hey, you wanna go for a run or you gotta go?” Ian came by the gym for a quick workout after class. He still has a couple hours before the gym closes and he has to get to cleaning. 

“I have time for a run,” Ian tells him. “Give me a few minutes.”

“Meet you out front,” Mickey tells him as he stands to put his water back in his locker. 

Ian leans closer to him, his hand trailing down from Mickey’s bare chest to his abs. “So fuckin’ hot,” he teases with a wink before heading towards the washroom.

Mickey shakes himself out of it before putting his shirt on and closing his locker. He makes his way out of the gym and waits for Ian outside. He’s not long before they both take off in a run. 

As they run, they pass by some bars and restaurants before Ian stops and says, “Mick, wait.”

Mickey stops, walking back over to where Ian stopped in front of a restaurant. He looks in the window and sees the promo shot he did to promote the fight. It’s a big poster of him and his opponent with the date and time of the fight. It also says that they will be showing the fight at this restaurant/bar and instead of paying to watch it, you’d have to pay for at least two drinks. 

“I’m so proud of you,” Ian tells him as Mickey looks at the poster. 

Mickey looks at Ian who’s watching him. “Thanks,” he says softly.

“Do you have any copies of those promo pics by any chance?” Ian says, a small smirk in place.

Mickey punches his arm and says, “Shut up.”

“I’m serious! You look so fucking hot. How are you even mine?” Ian flirts but keeps his distance from him even though they both want to be closer.

“Look who’s talking,” Mickey says, eyeing him up and down, biting his lip.

“You need to stop biting that bottom lip, it’s driving me crazy,” Ian tells him. 

“Let’s go,” Mickey says before taking off again. Ian’s right there with him as they run back towards the gym but going past it and towards that alley they once stopped in before.

They check that they’re alone before Ian presses Mickey up against the brick wall, his mouth instantly on his. They moan into the kiss, their hands all over each other, pulling to press even further together. 

Mickey slips his hand into Ian’s shorts and takes his hard cock in his hand, stroking him gently. He loves the feel of him whether it’s in his hand, his mouth, or inside of him, Ian’s dick is fucking perfect. It’s big and thick and it drives Mickey wild with need and lust. 

Ian pulls back slightly to look in his eyes, “I want you so badly, baby, fuck you make me feel so good.”

“Keep an eye out,” Mickey tells him before he gets on his knees, taking Ian’s cock out and immediately taking him into his mouth. 

“Jesus,” Ian moans, his hand immediately in Mickey’s hair. 

Mickey looks up at him and sees that Ian is keeping his eye out around them and not on him. Good. This is risky but Mickey can’t help himself with Ian. 

*

Mickey gets to Ian’s a little before 11:30 that night. He walks in from the backdoor, into the kitchen. Ian’s sitting at the table, studying from what it looks like with all the books around him. “Hey,” he greets him, closing the door behind him and dropping his gym bag to the floor.

“Hey,” Ian grins, “Come here,” he reaches for him.

Mickey rolls his eyes but goes to where he’s sitting facing the door. Ian turns in his seat and opens his legs so Mickey can stand between them. He wraps his arms around Mickey’s waist and leans up kissing the side of Mickey’s jaw until he presses his lips to his, placing his own arms around Ian’s shoulders. 

As their kiss gets heated, Ian’s hands slip down to Mickey’s ass, grabbing onto him. Mickey moans into the kiss before pulling back. “You done here or?”

Ian smirks before pushing him slightly making Mickey laugh. He grabs his bag as he follows Ian upstairs and to his room. It doesn’t take them long to be naked and on his bed, Ian on top of him and grinding against him. Their hard cocks sliding against each other between them. Ian kisses his way down Mickey’s body, teasing him as he avoids his cock, sucking on his inner thigh. He licks a stripe up the underside of his cock, making Mickey moan lowly. 

“Ian, please,” he moans. 

“You want my mouth, Mick?”

“Yes.”

“Tell me.”

Ian licks up the underside again making him moan. “I want your mouth,” he tells him.

“That’s it baby,” Ian purrs before taking Mickey’s cock in his mouth, deep throating him.

“Jesus, Ian,” he moans, his fingers threading in Ian’s hair. “Perfect mouth, fuck.”

“Mmm,” Ian moans around him, sending vibrations through him. He sucks him down, teasing his tongue around him before pulling off. “Turn around.”

Mickey does as he’s told, lying down on his stomach before Ian lifts his hips up. Mickey gets on his knees, ass in the air for Ian, before he feels Ian’s tongue teasing his hole.

“Oh God, yes, Ian, want that tongue inside me,” Mickey begs. 

Ian plunges his tongue inside him and Mickey has to grip onto the sheets below him. Ian adds two fingers with his tongue, prepping him before Mickey is begging for his cock.

Ian lubes his cock, stroking himself as he taps Mickey’s hip, “On your back,” he tells him.

Mickey lies back, watching Ian stroking himself before lining up with his hole. He presses inside of him, lifting Mickey’s leg up before he wraps them around Ian. 

Ian fucks him hard and deep, the head of his cock brushing against his prostate. He moans out, his back arching off the bed. Ian kisses his exposed neck, “I love you so much, you’re so fucking beautiful,” he murmurs against his skin.

Mickey flips them, getting on top, pressing his hands into his chest as he rides him, making Ian arch back, his hands gripping onto his hips. “So deep, fuck,” Mickey moans.

“You take my cock so good, Mick, so perfect,” Ian tells him as he thrusts up into him.

Mickey moans, “Oh God, do that again.”

Ian continues to fuck up into him until Mickey comes hard across his abs and chest untouched, his head thrown back as he bites down on his bottom lip to contain his moan. Ian is right there with him, coming hard inside of him, filling him up.

Mickey flops down on the mattress beside him, panting, trying to regain his breath. Ian gets up and between Mickey’s legs. He presses his finger inside of him, feeling his come inside before pulling it out and watching it leak out of him. He moans, “Fuck, that’s so hot.”

“Freak,” Mickey teases him.

Ian shakes his head. “You can’t see how fucking sexy you are right now,” he tells him, teasing Mickey’s fucked out hole with his finger.

“Right back at you, Gallagher,” Mickey tells him. Ian’s hair is wild as he tames it with his free hand running through it, Mickey’s come on his chest and abs - if Mickey didn’t just get fucked properly he would be hard again and wanting Ian inside of him.

Ian smirks at him after looking down at the come on him starting to dry. “Let’s take a quick shower, c'mon,” he says nodding towards the door as he gets off the bed.

Mickey is reluctant for all of five seconds before he sees Ian’s perfect ass walking away. He jumps out of bed and follows Ian into the washroom. 

Their quick shower turns into Ian sucking Mickey down before he comes down his throat and Mickey then returning the favor in bed before curling up together under the covers and falling asleep.

*

Mickey gets home the next morning to see his brothers and father about to head out. “Where the fuck you going?” he asks them.

“Going on a run for a few days,” Iggy tells him.

“Where the fuck you been?” Terry asks, eyeing him.

Iggy scoffs, “Obviously at some chick's house.”Terry grunts. 

“When you gonna be back?” Mickey asks.

“Monday,” Terry responds. “Unless these dumbasses don’t hurry the fuck up!” 

“Shut the fuck up, I’m coming!” Jamie calls from his room. 

The three of them leave right after, leaving Mickey alone for the next few days. 

Mickey [8:53am]: My dad took my brothers on a run til Monday

Ian [8:55am]: I’ll be over tonight 😘

Mickey smiles to himself before sending Ian a black heart emoji. He gets himself ready for the day, needing to get to the gym as soon as possible. This unexpected news definitely made Mickey’s day even better, and he woke up in Ian’s arms that morning so it already started out better than it does when he’s not with him.

Mickey tosses out his dirty gym clothes for some clean ones before changing into some clean clothes. He makes himself a protein shake before putting his prepped meals in his bag and heading for the El, drinking his shake on the way. 

His day goes by quickly - he trains all day then cleans the gym before heading back home. Ian’s over within three minutes of him being home and it makes Mickey smile knowing Ian couldn’t wait to come over.

Ian sits on the sofa, pretending to watch TV but really he’s watching as Mickey does a load of laundry before joining him on the sofa. He brought his bong with him and some weed. They each take a couple hits from it before putting it down on the coffee table. Mickey’s on Ian in a heartbeat, crawling onto his lap and kissing him hard on the lips, grinding down against him.

“Fuck, Mick,” Ian moans, grabbing his ass and pulling him harder into him, thrusting up against him.

“Mm, wanna ride you right here,” Mickey tells him, biting his bottom lip.

Ian moans, pulling him back in and taking that bottom lip into his mouth. “Go get what you need,” he says.

Mickey smirks at him before getting off of him to grab the lube from his room. When he gets back Ian’s naked on the sofa. His eyes roam his body before he tosses Ian the lube and strips down too. He climbs back onto his lap, pressing himself completely to him, wrapping his arms around his neck, kissing him hard. 

Ian’s slick finger teases Mickey’s hole before pressing inside of him. Mickey rocks back onto him until Ian adds another finger, scissoring him open, his fingers brushing against his prostate.

“Fuck me,” Mickey tells him. 

Ian removes his fingers and Mickey moves back onto Ian’s thighs. He takes the lube and puts some on his palm, dropping the lube on the couch and taking Ian’s hard, leaking cock in his hand, stroking him, getting him lubed up. He twists his wrist at the head, making Ian buck up into his fist as he bites his bottom lip. “Fuck, Mickey,” he moans.

Mickey lowers himself onto his boyfriends big cock until he’s all the way in. They both moan out, not having to bother keeping it down. Mickey rides Ian, on the sofa of his childhood home and it gets him even more turned on knowing this is something so forbidden. 

Ian wraps his arm around Mickey before flipping him onto his back on the sofa, fucking him hard and deep. Mickey’s legs are lifted up against Ian’s body as Ian slams into him repeatedly.

“Fuck, Ian, I’m close,” Mickey tells him. 

Ian slides his hands up to cradle his face. He slips his right hand down to his neck, wrapping it around his neck and Mickey moans. Ian smirks at him, his eyes dark, his pace picking up as he slams into Mickey, his grip tightening slightly around his neck.

“Ian, fuck, don’t stop,” Mickey moan out.

Ian doesn’t dare stop, his own release so close, Mickey can feel it in the way he fucks him. “You’re so fucking sexy. Such a perfect, tight ass. Fuck, Mick. I’m so close,” Ian tells him. Mickey moans and Ian tells him, “Come on, baby, come for me.”

Mickey comes hard between them and Ian’s right there with him. Ian slumps down on top of Mickey, kissing his neck. Mickey rubs his back as he tries to regain his breath. “That was so hot,” he tells him hotly in his ear.

Ian moans against a kiss he presses to his neck. “You’re perfect,” he says, lifting his head to look Mickey in the eyes. He kisses the tip of his nose making Mickey blush slightly. Mickey’s never had this much love and affection before, he can’t help but still feel shy about it all. “Cutie,” Ian says softly before kissing him softly on the lips. 

Ian gets off of him and the two of them make their way to the washroom so they can clean off in Mickey’s shower with his shitty water pressure.

*

Ian spends every night at Mickey’s until Saturday night - not wanting to risk him staying over Sunday night in case Terry and his brothers got home early on Monday. They didn’t but they didn’t need to take that risk. Terry would literally kill them both. 

The next week and a half flies by as he has to continue to focus on his fight. Only seeing Ian sporadically. Mickey goes to his weigh in, taking his shirt off and stepping onto the scale. They announce his weight out loud before Wheeler is up next. They both stand in front of each other, fists up as they pose for cameras before stepping away from each other. Mickey heads back to the gym with his team who came - Lisa, Dom, and Joe. Ian’s there working out with his brother before following him into the locker room. 

“How’d it go?” Ian asks him.

“Good, made weight,” Mickey tells him as he starts putting his stuff into his locker. 

“That’s good,” Ian nods. He looks around before saying, “Um, so you’re sure you don’t mind me coming this time?”

Mickey told Ian he could come to his fight just to stay out of sight of his father, not wanting them to cross paths at all. He looks up at Ian’s worried little face and tentatively caresses his cheek softly before letting go. “I’m sure,” he tells him.  

Ian smiles softly. “Got a little surprise planned for you post-fight, to celebrate.”

“And if I don’t win?” Mickey asks.

“You will,” Ian says confidently.

Mickey smiles at him and Ian winks. “Can I hold your bag while you train?” 

Mickey chuckles. “Dork,” he tells him, shoving his shoulder, making Ian laugh. 

Ian does hold the bag for Mickey as he trains, happy to be able to spend some time with him since he won’t be able to for the next couple days until after his fight.

*

It’s the middle of May and Mickey is getting ready to head to the arena for his title fight. He didn’t get a chance to see Ian before leaving the gym and heading out. Ian had texted him that morning to tell him he had things to do for his surprise later that night but that he loves him and is wishing him luck, and that he can’t wait to see him after the fight.

Mickey’s in the back room, getting his gloves put on, listening to some music to get him pumped up. He was able to convince his father and brothers to not come backstage at all, that he really needs to focus so he can win this fight and hold the title of lightweight champion. 

They’re told that Mickey needs to make his entrance now so they all head out of the room. Mickey’s just thinking about beating Wheeler. He’s worked too hard to get to this point and not win this title fight. As he steps out into the arena, the crowd goes wild. He hears a mix of cheers and boos as he walks towards the cage. He’s out first so when he steps into the cage, it’s just him and the referee. He can’t see much when he looks out of the cage, the lights too bright for him to see past the first couple rows. He looks at his coach and his manager, and they’re both mouthing that he’s got this. It’s encouraging and gives Mickey the drive to win this.

They announce Brian Wheeler and the crowd cheers loudly for him. Mickey does hear booing as well but he doesn’t give a shit if people like Wheeler better or if they want him to keep his title and for Mickey to lose. It’ll feel that much sweeter when he wins. And he likes ‘em sweet.

Wheeler makes his way in the cage and the two meet in the middle where the referee tells them the rules, etc. They both know the drill but once asked to touch gloves they do and both move to their corners. They’re both asked if they’re ready and when they both nod yes, the first round begins. 

Mickey recites a mantra in his head, it’s simple - knock him out - but it’s soothing him and making him focused on the goal here. Wheeler gets some good hits to Mickey’s gut, even getting him down on the floor. Mickey flips them, putting him in a hold. Wheeler gets out and they’re both up. Mickey backs him into a corner, hitting him as much as he can before Wheeler is able to get out of the corner. 

Five minutes go by quickly as the first round ends and they’re pulled apart to go to their separate corners. Dom and Joe are right there with him in his corner. Mickey sits on the small stool, spitting blood out before accepting water. “You’re doing great, Mick,” Dom tells him. “Get him in a corner, he panics when he’s there. Just don’t exert yourself. You got this. Just like we practiced.”

Mickey nods before their pause is done and everyone is out of the cage. Round two begins and Mickey gets Wheeler back into the corner, landing punches to his face repeatedly before he manages to slip out, putting Mickey in the corner. Mickey avoids as many hits as he can before knocking Wheeler down to the floor and putting him in a hold. They wrestle down on the ground, both trying to pin the other. Wheeler gets free and they’re both back up. Mickey gets hit right in the side of his head and stumbles backwards. He doesn’t fall but there’s a ringing in his ear. He hits Wheeler hard in the gut before the bell dings, signalling round two is done. 

Sitting in his corner, they check to make sure Mickey’s okay from that hit to the side of his head but he tells them he’s fine. “Now’s the time, Mick,” Dom says. “Knock him the fuck out. Think of every piece of shit, motherfucker who made you feel like you couldn’t do this. Told you that you couldn’t be a fighter. Told you that you were nothing but a piece of Southside trash. Think of those sons of bitches and channel it into a knockout to this piece of shit who definitely thinks your Southside trash. You hear me?”

“Yes, coach,” Mickey says, feeling enraged. Dom’s words really helping him want to win this fucking thing right now. Joe puts his mouthpiece back in as their pause is done and they rush out of the cage. 

Mickey looks to Dom who’s standing right there at the cage, holding onto it. “Knock him out,” he shouts as round three begins. 

Wheeler advances on him and Mickey feels all that rage he’s been feeling his whole life. He pictures his father on Wheeler. The man who made him become a fighter just so he could make money off of him. The man who beat him since he was just a toddler. The man who has made him feel like dog shit his entire life. The man who told him that his very existence is a disgrace to humanity - not that he knows he’s gay but that’s what he said about gays. Wheeler pulls back to hit Mickey but Mickey ducks and when he gets back in his face, Mickey puts all his force into this one hit right in his face. Wheeler goes down, fast and hard, smacking into the ground. 

The ref is down beside him counting. Mickey stands there waiting before it’s called. Mickey is the new lightweight champion.

“Holy shit,” he mumbles with his mouthpiece still in.

The room erupts as Dom and Joe rush into the cage to jump on him. Mickey hugs them back, completely shocked that he managed to actually knock the fucker out.

Wheeler gets up after a quick check by a doctor. He’s okay so he stands and Mickey goes to hug him quickly. Wheeler tells him, “Good fight, Milkovich. I’m gonna wanna rematch though so don’t get too chummy with the belt.”

“Yeah, sure thing,” he says sarcastically.

They stand on either side of the ref so that they can officially call it. “The winner by knockout and your new lightweight champion, Mickey Milkovich!” Mickey’s arm is lifted into the air and he grins widely. 

They make their way out of the cage and Mickey goes over to his brothers and dad who pull him into a big group embrace. “My son is a fucking champion!” Terry shouts into the arena.

Mickey laughs, shoving at him. “Shut the fuck up,” he says.

Mickey slips away from them to get checked on by a doctor before he can get cleaned up and leave. He gets a text from his brother while he’s getting ready.

Iggy [11:58pm]: Goin to the Alibi, u in?

Mickey [11:59pm]: Nah man, got plans, go without me

Iggy [11:59pm]: 💦💦💦💦💦💦💦💦

Mickey [12:00am]: 🖕🖕

Mickey’s about to pocket his phone when it starts vibrating in his hand. Ian’s calling him. “Hey,” he answers.

“Hey champ,” Ian teases. “Where are you?!”

“Still in the back, I’ll be out soon,” he tells him.

“Svet let me borrow her car, I’ll meet you out front?” Ian asks.

Mickey smiles. “Yeah be there soon.”

“Can’t wait,” Ian says before hanging up.

Mickey makes sure he looks okay in the mirror. He has a cut on his cheek and one near his eyebrow but other than that he’s not too badly hurt. He pushes his hair back a bit with water before grabbing his bag and championship belt and heading out. 

He accepts congratulations from remaining people as he passes, and says a quick goodbye to his team before heading out. Lisa tells him he’s gonna have a shit ton of interviews to do tomorrow so not to get too fucked up. He’s not sure what Ian has planned but he hopes he gets fucked good. 

Mickey sees Svetlana’s car and makes his way to it. He opens the back door to put his bag in before climbing into the passenger seat. 

Ian grins at him before driving the fuck out of there. “How you feeling, champ?” he asks, eyeing his cuts on his face.

“It’s fine, man, I’m good,” he tells him. 

Ian reaches for his hand, holding it tightly. Mickey squeezes his hand, holding it on his lap as Ian drives. “I’m so proud of you, I knew you would win,” he tells him. 

“I wasn’t sure until Dom told me something during the pause between round two and three,” Mickey tells him honestly.

“What did he say?”

Mickey plays with Ian’s fingers in his hand, looking down at their joined hands as he says, “He told me to picture everyone who told me I wasn’t good enough, or told me I was just some piece of Southside trash. As I went into that third round… I don’t know what happened but Wheeler’s face became Terry’s and all the rage and hatred I have for him just came out of me and resulted in that knockout.”

Ian squeezes Mickey’s hand, looking at him briefly, a soft look in his eyes. “You know you’re not that right? Southside trash. You’re a strong, caring, thoughtful, intelligent man, who makes me feel so happy and loved,” he says, looking between him and the road.

Mickey kisses Ian’s hand, letting it linger as he keeps his hand up by his lips. He puts their joined hands back into his lap and lets out a deep breath. “So where are we going anyway?” he asks, changing the subject.

“It’s a surprise, but we’re almost there,” Ian smiles. 

They drive in silence for the next five minutes before Ian pulls into a hotel parking lot. “No way,” Mickey laughs. “You got us a fucking room?”

Ian smiles, “Yeah, thought we could celebrate properly… alone.”

“It’s perfect,” Mickey says, wanting badly to kiss him already. They make their way out of the car and into the hotel. Ian leads them to the elevators where they get inside and head up to their floor. This must be where Ian was this afternoon, checking in and getting everything ready. He’s so in love with this man, it’s unbelievable.

As they get to their room, Ian slides the card key in before opening the door. Mickey steps in and sees a banner that says Congratulations! above the drapes of the windows. As he walks in further he sees a bottle of champagne in an ice bucket with some takeout containers next to it.

“Svet helped me out, she came by to chill the champagne and bring the food so that it would be ready for us when we walked in and not gross from when I set up earlier,” Ian explains.

“It’s perfect,” Mickey says, turning to face him. He steps up to him, taking his face in his hand, gently caressing his cheek with his thumb. 

“I love you, Mick,” Ian says softly, looking into his baby blue eyes.

Mickey smiles gently, “I know. Love you too.” He reaches up to press their lips together in a soft kiss. He feels Ian’s arm wrap around him as he pulls him flush against him, his other hand at the back of his head, holding him in place. 

Mickey slips his tongue into Ian’s mouth, wanting more, before Ian pulls back gently. “We should eat…” he trails off as Mickey kisses his way down his jaw and to his neck.

“Not hungry,” Mickey murmurs against his skin before working on sucking a mark right into his neck. 

“Fuck,” Ian moans, his hands moving to grab onto Mickey’s ass. He lifts him up, Mickey going willingly, wrapping his legs around Ian as Ian drops them down onto the bed. It’s comfortable as fuck and Mickey knows they’re going to have the best night here.

*

After a quick shower and sitting cross legged on the bed in their big white bathrobes, Ian and Mickey eat their takeout - burgers and fries -  while also drinking champagne. Mickey sees the championship belt laying on the desk and he’s just so happy. Here with Ian and for what happened tonight with the fight.

“I can’t believe I only have a month left of classes,” Ian tells him. 

“When do your exams start?” Mickey asks.

“Couple more weeks,” Ian says around a mouthful of fries. 

Mickey tosses a fry at him making them both chuckle. “You excited?” he asks softly.

“I can’t wait,” Ian grins. “Hopefully I can get a job in the field as soon as possible after graduating.”

Mickey nods, hoping for the same thing. He sees how hard Ian works at this and how much he cares. He also wouldn’t be mad about Ian finally quitting working at the club. He’s looking forward to it, honestly, but he feels bad bringing it up to him. Ian’s only doing it to make money to help pay for his education. It’s also how they met so Mickey is grateful for it but he just doesn’t like knowing the man he loves is grinding on old fuckers. 

“Hey, where’d you go?” Ian asks, touching his leg gently.

Mickey looks up and shakes his head. “Nowhere, I’m good,” he smiles. 

Ian nods before getting back to his food. They finish up, putting everything away before discarding their robes and getting under the covers together.

The lights are all off, except for the washroom where the door is mostly closed, letting a bit of light into the room. Ian leans on his elbow as he looks down at Mickey, the bit of light giving them the light they need to see each other. He brings his hand to Mickey’s face, caressing it gently with his thumb across his cheekbone. It’s the one that’s cut so he’s very gently caressing it. 

“Does it hurt?” Ian asks so softly.

Mickey smiles at him. “No.”

Ian leans down, pressing his lips so softly to Mickey’s that Mickey’s breath catches in his throat. He still feels those butterflies deep in his gut, and he doesn’t think they’ll ever go away. He reaches for him, his hand holding onto his arm so he can’t let go. Ian slips his tongue past Mickey’s lips, teasing it against his in slow, languid movements. 

Mickey wants Ian’s weight on him so he pulls at him and mumbles against his lips, “Get on top of me.”

Ian moves so he’s between Mickey’s spread legs, their hardening cocks sliding against each other. His arms frame Mickey’s face as he looks down into his eyes. Mickey reaches his hand up to cup Ian’s face. 

Ian’s eyes go soft and he has that too soft, too sweet smile on his face. “I love you, so much, Mickey,” he whispers in the same between them.

“Come here,” he mumbles, pulling him into him, kissing him hard and showing him just how much he loves him back. 

Ian moans into the kiss as he grinds down against him. He feels Ian’s hand slide down the side of his body before he takes hold of his thigh, lifting it up. Mickey plants his feet on the mattress as Ian brings his fingers to Mickey’s hole. He’s still stretched out from before but Ian lubes his fingers and makes sure he’s ready for him.

“I’m good, get in me,” Mickey tells him after a few slow, torturously pleasant moments.

Ian moves to lie down next to him instead and says, “Turn around on your side away from me.”

Mickey smiles at him, earning a small kiss to his lips before turning around, lying down on his side away from Ian. Ian gets right up behind him, pressing the tip of his hard cock against his hole. He presses in slowly and “Fuck,” Mickey moans out as he feels Ian’s entire length breach him. 

“Christ, Mick, you feel so good,” Ian tells him as he slowly moves in and out of him.

It’s definitely the slowest they’ve ever had sex but it feels nice. Mickey can feel all of Ian inside of him, around him. Mickey can feel how loved he is by this man. Ian’s hand is on his hip, his mouth at his neck, kissing him softly and whispering how good Mickey feels into his ear.

“So deep, fuck, Ian,” Mickey moans, rocking back into him, his hand reaching back and threading into Ian’s hair, holding him close.

Ian lifts his upper body slightly so he can tower over Mickey. Mickey turns his head, looking up at Ian and they meet in a sweet kiss. Ian’s hand reaches over Mickey’s hip and to his hard, leaking cock. He strokes him, twisting his wrist at the head, using his precome as lube to stroke him. Mickey rocks back into Ian’s cock and forward into his fist, all the while not wanting to stop kissing him. He bites Ian’s lower lip when he hits his prostate. 

“Don’t stop,” he mumbles against his lips. “So good, Ian, fuckkk,” he moans as Ian continues to hit that same sweet spot. 

“C'mon baby, come for me, so close, you feel so fucking perfect,” Ian says into his neck before Mickey comes hard into his fist. Ian stokes him through it before his own release hits him, coming hard inside of Mickey.

Ian pulls out of Mickey before Mickey turns his head, pressing their lips together once more. He pulls back slightly, bringing his hand up to touch his cheek, caressing it like Ian did to him just before. “You mean everything to me, Ian,” he tells him so softly.

Ian’s eyes are soft and look like they’re filling up with tears before he crashes their lips together, pulling him into him. They’re messy and gross but there is nowhere else in the world Mickey would rather be right now.

Chapter Text

Waking up in the most comfortable bed Mickey has ever been in, he feels Ian’s lips on his skin. He smiles softly as he feels Ian’s lips move from the side of his neck down over his shoulder and to his back. Mickey pushes back into Ian, feeling his hardening cock touching his ass. Ian moans into his neck. 

“Morning,” Ian mumbles into his skin, his hand gripping onto his waist.

Mickey reaches his hand back, touching the back of Ian’s head from where he’s still kissing his neck. “Mornin’,” he mumbles, voice a little horse from just waking up. “You gonna get inside me or you gonna tease me all fuckin’ day?”

Ian bites his neck causing Mickey’s dick to twitch. Ian flips Mickey onto his back before hovering above him. Mickey looks up at him, a smile on his face that feels like it’s taking up his entire face. He reaches his hand up to caress Ian’s neck and cheek. Mickey pulls him closer, kissing him hard on the lips. Ian kisses him back, pressing his body to Mickey’s. Mickey smiles into the kiss before pulling back.

He plants his feet on the mattress and Ian gets the hint. He lubes his straining cock before pressing into Mickey slowly since he hasn’t prepped him. Mickey moans, arching his back as he accepts all of Ian inside of him, getting a slight burn but ultimately, it feels amazing since he’s still good from a few hours ago the night before. 

“Fuck, Mick, you feel so good,” Ian moans as he bottoms out. Mickey wraps his legs around Ian’s waist as Ian starts to move, fucking him slow and steady, his lips pressed to his. 

Mickey bites Ian’s lip, pulling him closer even though there’s no space between them. “Harder,” Mickey moans into his mouth and Ian listens. He fucks him hard, holding his hip as his other hand against the mattress, holding his body up. He lifts Mickey’s thigh higher as he fucks him faster, deeper.

“Fuckkk,” Mickey moans, his back arching off the bed, his head digging into the pillow beneath him. “Don’t stop,” he says breathlessly.

“So perfect, fuck,” Ian moans. “Tight, perfect ass, you take my cock so good, Mick.”

Mickey moans at his words, “So close, Ian,” he tells him.

Ian takes his neglected cock in hand, stroking him until he comes hard between them, all over Ian’s hand, moaning his name as Ian comes hard inside of Mickey. 

Ian pulls out slowly before laying down next to him. They lay together trying to regain their breathing. Ian turns his head to look at Mickey and grins. Mickey matches his smile and Ian comes closer to kiss him before kissing his nose, his cheek, and then his eye. Mickey laughs, pushing him off but Ian doesn’t let him. They end up wrestling on the bed.

Mickey can’t stop laughing. He’s never had so much fun just being with another person like he  does when he’s with Ian.

*

Mickey wakes up later to the sound of the toilet flushing. He blinks awake, looking around the room. The blinds are still closed but he’s sure it’s at least the early afternoon by now. Ian walks back from the washroom and sees Mickey awake.

“You’re up,” he says, walking towards the window. He opens the curtains, letting the sun in. 

Mickey looks away, rubbing his eyes as he sits up in bed. “What time is it?” he asks.

Ian picks up his phone from the desk and says, “Just past noon. Gotta check out by three. You wanna order some room service?”

Mickey smiles, “Yeah.”

Ian grabs the room service booklet and jumps back into bed with him. He’s now wearing a t-shirt and his boxers, while Mickey’s naked under the covers. They go through the menu together before deciding on what to get. Ian calls it in as Mickey gets up and heads to the washroom and takes a shower. When he gets out, he puts a t-shirt on that he had in his gym bag and his boxers. Their food comes shortly after and the two of them eat together on the bed with a random show  playing on the hotel’s TV. 

Mickey looks over at Ian, smiling as he sees this beautiful man with his orange hair shining in the sunlight, sitting cross legged on the bed next to him. Ian looks over at him and smiles. He’s breathtaking, and not for the first time, Mickey thinks about how lucky he is to have found him.

*

After checking out, Ian and Mickey drive around for a bit, going to hang out at the dugouts for a bit before Ian drops him off near home and he heads back to bring Svetlana’s car to her. Mickey was hoping no one would be home but they are. Because Mickey didn’t go out with them last night, they’re forcing him to come with them to the Alibi tonight. Mickey changes clothes - black jeans and a dark blue crewneck sweater with his jean jacket on top - before heading out. Mickey texts Ian that he can’t come spend the night and where he’s headed before silencing his phone and putting it in his pocket. 

Terry slams open the door to the Alibi as they walk in, Mickey right behind him. “A round of beers on my son, the champion!” Terry calls out, wrapping his arm around Mickey’s shoulders.

Mickey laughs him off as they walk towards the bar. The few patrons in the bar clap for him as Kev goes about getting beers for them. 

“Rack em up,” Terry says to Jamie, pushing him towards the pool table after getting their beer. 

Mickey sits at the bar with Iggy. “So who’s this chick you been seeing?” he asks him.

Mickey eyes him, eyebrows raised. “What?” he asks him. 

“Spending all these nights with,” Iggy says, waggling his eyebrows.

Right. “None of your fucking business,” Mickey tells him. 

“Fine, fuck you,” Iggy shrugs. He leans back in and says, “Does she have any friends?”

Mickey eyes him and Iggy backs off. He takes his beer and goes to watch Terry and Jamie play pool.

Mickey sits at the bar and drinks his beer. He takes his phone out and sees Ian texted him back.

Ian [8:47pm]: Have fun? Text me if you can. I’m just heading home. 

Mickey [9:16pm]: Drinking by myself at the bar while they play pool, having the time of my fuckin life 

Ian [9:18pm]: If you can sneak away I’ll be at home, in bed, naked, waiting for you, wishing those perfect lips were wrapped around my cock

“Jesus Christ,” Mickey mutters to himself, covering the screen and looking around. No one’s even sitting near him and Kev is at the other side chatting with Kermit. He wills down his dick from where he got half hard just from reading those words Ian sent him.

Mickey [9:21pm]: U cant just fuckin say shit like that

Mickey [9:21pm]: Christ, Ian

Ian [9:22pm]: Come over later

Mickey [9:23pm]: I’ll try

And he definitely will. He wants to go back with Ian, in his arms, in his bed, in his comfort. He pockets his phone and drinks his beer, going over to sit with his family so they don’t come looking for him while he’s distracted on his phone. 

The time moves slowly but Mickey gets kind of drunk and finally, they’re heading back home. Terry goes straight for his room and passes out the second he hit the bed. Iggy does the same but on the sofa and Jamie heads to the kitchen. 

Mickey heads to the bathroom, locking the door and taking his phone out to text Ian.

Mickey [2:26am]: U still up?

Ian [2:27am]: No but come 

Mickey smiles at his phone. Ian’s clearly sleeping but woke up to answer him and he still wants him to come over.

Ian [2:28am]: I’m going down to unlock the backdoor. Come.

Mickey [2:28am]: Omw

Mickey takes a piss, washes up and brushes his teeth. He checks how he looks in the mirror quickly and heads out the door. Jamie’s nowhere to be seen and Iggy is face down on the sofa. He leaves the house and walks to the Gallagher house. 

Stepping inside, he locks the door behind him and heads upstairs. Ian’s bedroom door is open so he walks in and closes it behind him. 

“Mick?” his voice soft as he calls out to him.

“Sorry I’m late,” he whispers back as he toes out of his shoes, leaving them by the door as he walks to the bed. He strips down to his boxers and t-shirt and gets under the covers with him.

Ian throws his arm over him, pulling him in close. Mickey grins, letting his sleepy boyfriend pull him in close, kissing him softly on the forehead. Ian lifts his head up and kisses the side of his mouth and then another fully to his lips. 

“Glad you came,” Ian mumbles as he snuggles in close. 

Mickey smiles softly. “Night, Ian,” he whispers, kissing his head again before letting sleep consume him. 

*

Mickey is woken up by Ian trying to climb out of bed. He tells him to stay and keep sleeping that he can leave whenever he wants but that he has to get to class. Ian kisses him softly before leaving. Mickey stays, being too comfortable and hungover to leave just yet.

When he finally wakes up again, he makes his way home and gets into his own bed. Not wanting to do anything today. He deserves it. 

Mickey does nothing all day before finally making it back to the gym Tuesday morning. Lisa calls him into her office when he gets in so he follows her, closing the door behind him. He sits on the sofa, putting his bag down next to him. 

“Have a good weekend?” she asks him.

“Uh yeah,” he says.

“Good, so Wheeler wants a rematch,” she tells him right away. “His manager called me yesterday and they want to set something up.”

Mickey knew this would happen if he won. He’s not afraid of a little competition. “Sure, for when?” he asks.

“End of June so about six weeks.”

“Fine with me,” he tells her.

“Alright, I’ll set it up,” she nods, leaning back in her  chair.

Mickey nods before standing, taking his bag with him and heading out the door. He has a good workout - spending all day there preparing for his next title fight, this time he’s trying to keep the belt. 

*

The next four weeks fly by as Mickey starts preparing for his fight and Ian spends most of his time studying as he finishes school mid June. The Gallaghers are having a small party for Ian to celebrate his last day of classes and exams so Mickey shows up dressed in black jeans that are ripped at the knees and a burgundy crewneck sweater. It’s a Saturday night and Mickey’s happy he gets to see Ian. Usually he works at the club on the weekend so it’s nice to be able to spend some time with him. He’s missed him these last few weeks, only seeing him sporadically. 

Ian’s face lights up when he sees Mickey making his way over to him from the living room. Mickey greeted everyone as he passed them, heading for his goofy smiling boyfriend who’s standing in the middle of the kitchen. “You came,” Ian says excitedly when Mickey reaches him.

Mickey laughs, “Course I did.” He smiles at him as Ian bumps their shoulders together. Mickey’s still not comfortable with any PDA even though he knows Ian’s siblings and best friend know about them. He also noticed Kev and Veronica from the Alibi when he walked in so he doesn’t need them to catch him and Ian doing anything that could make it’s way back to his family. “Congrats on finishing school,” he adds, looking up at Ian.

“Thanks,” Ian smiles. “Wish I could offer you a beer.”

“Two more weeks,” Mickey shrugs. “I brought a joint though. Step outside with me?”

Ian grins, nodding his head, “Yeah.”

The two of them sit on the back porch together, side by side, their legs pressed together. Mickey takes his face and kisses him on the lips before pulling back to see Ian smiling at him so softly. “Missed you,” Mickey tells him, making that smile widen.

“Missed you too,” he says back softly before kissing him again.

They pull apart and Mickey sparks his joint. Mickey asks him about his exams and Ian starts talking, telling him about which exams were easy, which were a little bit more difficult, and how he’s so happy for school to be over and he can start applying for jobs as a paramedic.

“So you can finally quit the club, huh? Or did you already?” Mickey asks, a small smile on his lips. 

“Not yet, I still need an income until I get a job,” Ian tells him. “Plus it’s decent money for just dancing,” he shrugs. 

Mickey’s eyebrows scrunch together, he assumed Ian would quit the club when he finished school but now he’s saying he’s not going to. “But you will quit when you get another job right?” he asks, trying to get some clarity.

Ian shrugs. “I don’t know, it’s good extra money, I guess it depends on the hours of the paramedic job,” he tells him.

Mickey looks down at his hands where the joint is between his fingers having gone out without use. He puts it back in his cigarette pack and takes one of those instead, lighting it up. 

Ian puts his hand on Mickey’s knee and asks, “Are you upset?” 

“Fine,” he says on instinct, flicking the ash from his cigarette. He feels Ian remove his hand. He sighs and says, “No, actually I’m not. I don’t like that you work at the club. I’ve tolerated it because it was what was helping you pay for school but now you’re done and you might still wanna work there even after getting a job as a paramedic? I fucking hate thinking about you dancing for other guys, grinding up on them.”

“Mick, it’s just a job. It’s not like I’m sleeping around with any of these people. You’re the only  one I want to be with,” Ian tries to reassure him, putting his hand back on Mickey’s knee. He feels Ian’s thumb hook under the opening of his jeans on his knee as it moves back and forth across his skin.

“Okay so then just quit,” Mickey says. “If it’s just a job and you’re going to make good money as a paramedic, you don’t need a job where you have to wear stupid fucking shorts and grind on old fuckers all night.”

“What’s it going to take for you to realize I only want to be with you?” Ian asks him, turning his body more to face him, his hands on his own legs now. “It’s just a job, Mick. I love you. I’ve never loved anyone the way I love you.”

Mickey sighs, he feels ridiculous for being so jealous, uneasy, in distress, whatever that feeling was. He just can’t help it. It doesn’t sit well with him knowing what he’s doing when he says he’s going to work. He’s seen him at work, he knows what it is, and although Ian is completely faithful to their relationship, it doesn’t stop his mind from imaging the worst case scenarios. “I love you too, more than I’ve ever cared about anyone before. I just - I have a lot of trust issues, clearly. I trust you and I need to not let this shit bother me.”

Ian smiles at him softly, putting his hand on Mickey’s thigh and squeezing. “I get it and I will quit the club. I’m applying for jobs on Monday so hopefully I’ll get hired and I can quit. I don’t want to keep working there anyway. It was always about just paying for school and you’re right, I was able to do that. Working as a paramedic will give me more money and will be able to continue to pay off the rest of my loans,” he tells him.

Mickey nods and Ian takes his face in his hands. He kisses him softly and says, “We’re good.”

“Okay,” Mickey says simply before pressing their lips back together, his hand coming up to hold Ian’s arm.

Ian pulls back from the kiss and smiles at him sweetly. “You wanna finish your smoke or go back inside?” he asks, nodding to the cigarette still in his other hand.

“Yeah, you can go in if you want though,” he tells him before relighting it and taking a drag.

“I’ll sit with you,” Ian says, taking his free hand and interlacing their fingers, squeezing his hand. Mickey smiles at him as they sit together in silence. They share the cigarette, their hands never letting go.

Svetlana joins them not long after so Mickey takes his hand back and decides to relight the joint as the three of them sit together and Mickey mainly just listens to the two of them talk. 

*

The Gallaghers know how to party and Mickey’s pissed he can’t drink. The weed gave him a nice buzz but it’s not the same as he watches them all do shots and chug beers. They dance around the living room - mainly just the girls, Ian’s sister, Svetlana, and Veronica. Ian joins them, leaving Mickey sitting on the bottom step of the staircase watching as his boyfriend dances freely with his family. 

Mickey smiles when Ian’s eyes land on him, that big goofy grin spreading across his face as he points to him before turning back around and dancing like an idiot. Mickey chuckles. He sees Kev come up on his side, standing by the staircase, also watching them dance, his eyes on his wife. “So Mick,” he says softly. “You and Ian huh?”

“The fuck are you trying to say?” Mickey asks, looking up at him as threateningly scary as possible.

Kev just smiles at him. “No worries, my man, your secret’s safe with me,” he says with a wink.

“Don’t know what the fuck you’re talking about,” he says, looking away. Denial is his automatic move but he knows it’s not working here. 

“Right,” Kev says, drawing Mickey’s back up to him. “You better not hurt him. He’s a good kid.” Mickey doesn’t say anything but he doesn’t have to. Kev winks at him again before walking away and joining the dance party, grabbing his wife into his arms.

Mickey thinks about Kev’s words and knows that he would never do anything to hurt Ian. Ian has completely turned Mickey’s life around in the sense that he’s finally opening up to new things. He never expected that he would ever fall in love or feel so happy being with another man. He’s still not out and knows that he can’t be if he wants to have a career in MMA which is what he wants, but the fact that he could still find love and happiness with someone amidst all the lying and sneaking around, he’s not sure what he’s done to be so lucky to have Ian. Ian makes him feel safe, he makes him feel free to be who he is, even if that’s only behind closed doors. Ian means so much to Mickey, he would do anything to protect him, to make him feel loved, and to make him feel as happy as he makes him.

Ian comes over to him and squeezes in next to him on the step, their bodies pressed together. Ian’s flushed, he’s a little drunk and his skin is bright pink from the alcohol and dancing. He looks fucking cute. Mickey smiles at him and asks, “Havin’ fun?”

Ian grins, “Mhm. Would be more fun if you came and joined me. I wanna grind all up on my man,” he teases. 

“Oh yeah?” he raises an eyebrow, turning his body to face him more.

“Yeah,” Ian says in a breathy voice. He leans a little closer and says, “Wanna feel that ass grind back against me, my arms wrapped around you, feel you tease me with that perfect ass on me.”

“Fuck,” Mickey mutters, his words going straight to his cock. 

“Been wanting to bend you over something all night and just fuck you so hard,” Ian tells him in a low voice, his fingers trailing up the inside of his thigh, going higher and higher, teasing very close to his crotch.

Mickey grabs onto Ian’s wrist, stopping his hand from going any higher. Their eyes meet and Ian’s eyes are so dark, filled with lust. Ian’s eyes move down to Mickey’s bottom lip where he’s trapped it between his teeth. Ian stands so Mickey does the same, following him upstairs.

Ian closes his door once they're both inside and takes hold of Mickey, pulling him into him as he kisses him hard on the lips. They scramble to get undressed before Ian’s pushing Mickey onto the bed and tells him to get on all fours. 

Mickey’s cock is hard and leaking, wanting Ian to give it to him good. “Fuck yeah,” he moans when he feels Ian’s lubed fingers fuck him open, Ian’s body pressed up against him from behind, his lips trailing along his back. “Fuck me,” he tells him, wanting him inside him now.

Ian strokes lube over his hard cock, Mickey turning back to watch him before he sees and feels Ian pressing into him. Mickey moans, not too loudly so that anyone downstairs hears them. 

Ian is relentless. He fucks him hard and fast, so fucking deep and Mickey’s so turned on and so in love with this man. 

Ian pulls Mickey’s upper body up until his back is pressed against his front. Ian kisses his neck before turning his face to him and crashing their lips together. Mickey moans into the kiss when he feels Ian’s hand come around to grasp his cock. He strokes him in time with his thrusts.

“Fuck, Ian, so good,” Mickey moans.

Ian moans, speeding up. “Come for me, Mick, I’m so close, wanna feel you come,” he says hotly into his ear.

“Fuckkk,” Mickey moans as he comes hard, Ian right along with him, moaning into his neck.

They return to the party not long after getting cleaned up, only to stick around for a bit before people start heading out. Mickey’s spending the night so they crawl into bed together in their boxers and cuddle up under the covers. Ian’s still a bit tipsy as he completely covers Mickey’s body with his own. He’s pressed up against his back, his leg thrown over Mickey’s, and his hand is holding his up by his chest. 

Mickey wouldn’t change a thing.

*

Mickey’s one week out to his fight. He has to win and hold the title of lightweight champion. This fight feels like the most important one thus far. Fighting to keep the title is a lot harder than fighting to win it in the first place. Mickey feels lucky with that knockout that earned him the belt. He’s not sure if he can do it again, especially since Wheeler now knows how he fights. He’s been training like crazy and now that the fight is so close, he’s just feeling all of the pressure and stress surrounding this fight.

It’s Monday and his fight is just mere days away on Saturday. After cleaning up the gym, he meets Ian at the dugouts, the warm June air hitting him as he walks through the field. “Hey,” he smiles, greeting Ian who’s sitting on the bench. He walks over to sit next to him, putting his bag down next to him on the bench. 

Ian smiles at him, taking his face in his hands and kissing him softly. “Missed you,” he says softly.

“Everything okay?” he asks when he sees the look on Ian’s face. Something feels off and he doesn’t know what it could be.

Ian sighs. “Yeah, I’ll be fine,” he tells him softly.

“What’s going on, Ian?” he asks again.

“Just been thinking a lot about your fight coming up and - I don’t know,” he shrugs. “I guess I’m just having a lot of bad thoughts about it. Not that you won’t win or anything like that. It’s just -”

“Just tell me,” he says when Ian doesn’t continue.

“I don’t want you to fight anymore.”

Mickey blinks, confused and not sure if he even heard him right. “I’m sorry, what?”

“I want you to quit fighting. I’m tired of hiding our relationship and I just want to be free with you - to go out and do things, not to hide in the dugouts. Fighting stops all of this from happening,” Ian explains.

“Fighting’s been my life forever, man, I can’t just quit,” Mickey tells him.

“Why not? Do you even like doing this? You like hiding who you are and pretending like we aren’t what we are?” Ian asks him, getting more heated, he can see it in the way he’s facing him and the look in his eyes.

“Ian, I’m not hiding who I am to you,” he says simply.

“To everyone else?”

“Who gives a shit about anybody else. Ian, you make me free, that’s all that matters,” he says softly, hoping Ian can understand.

“I quit my club job for you because you didn’t like it,” Ian tells him.

“That’s not the same, Gallagher -”

“How is it not the same? I’m asking you to quit fighting like you asked me to quit the club.”

“Because this is my fucking life!” Mickey says loudly, now getting upset that they are arguing about this. “Christ, Ian,” he says, standing, running his hand through his hair. He turns back to face Ian who’s looking up at him. “You knew what this would mean for us. You told me that you would have me in any way you could get. Well, this is me! My father will kill me if he found out I was gay. My career would be ruined when it’s literally just begun. I would have nothing left.”

“You would have me,” Ian says softly.

Mickey sighs. “I thought I had you now. You said you were okay with all of this,” he says softly. 

“I guess I’m not okay with it anymore,” Ian says, his eyes looking down at his hands, clasped together. “I’m tired of living a lie.”

“I’m not lying to you though, Ian, I love you,” Mickey says, feeling like he’s grasping at straw.

“I love you, so much, Mickey,” Ian says, his eyes filling with tears as he looks up at him. He looks back down at his hands and Mickey can see the tears falling down his cheeks. “I just can’t live this way anymore. I want all of you. I don’t want to be your hidden secret.”

Mickey feels like he’s gotten the wind kicked out of him. “So that’s it? This is you breaking up with me?” he asks, his own eyes filling with tears.

Ian looks up at him, his eyes rimmed red with tears. “I guess so,” he says, sniffling.

“Fuck,” Mickey says breathless, his own tears sliding down his cheeks. He did not expect this to happen now, just a few days before his big rematch. He nods before grabbing his bag and getting the fuck out of there. 

Ian made up his mind. He didn’t want to be with him if this is how things were going to be and this was the only way things could be. He couldn’t come out and live this free and open life with Ian. His father would kill him after killing Ian first. He wouldn’t have a career if he managed to live from his fathers wrath. Everything he has worked for for the past few years would just be gone and he’d have nothing. 

As he locks himself in his room, curled up under his covers, he feels like he already lost everything.

Chapter Text

Mickey’s motivation falters in the coming days after Ian ends their relationship. He tries hard to get himself out of bed and to the gym, knowing he doesn’t have a fucking choice in the matter seeing as he has a fight on Saturday to hold the title of lightweight champion. 

Mickey knew being with Ian was too good to be true. Ian made him happy. Ian made him feel loved, made him feel wanted and needed. He made him feel like he wasn’t so alone in his life and that he had somebody who was happy to be around him. Mickey was hesitant when they made their relationship official, unsure if Ian could handle keeping it quiet, but Ian reassured him he wanted him no matter the circumstance, but in the end, it was just too much for Ian to keep hiding. Mickey wishes he could give Ian what he needs. He just can’t do it without losing everything he’s worked so hard to achieve.

Mickey channels all of his anger and hurt, all of his sadness and devastation over losing Ian, someone who he loves unconditionally and wishes he could be with, into training over the next few days for his fight.

He’s training in the cage with Dom and he’s doing shitty, he knows it, he can feel it, and Dom’s getting pissed. “Get out of your fucking head, Mick!” he yells at him, hitting the side of his covered head with his gloved hand.

“I am!” Mickey yells back, going to throw a punch and missing.

“No, you’re not,” Dom yells, getting Mickey down on the ground in a hold. “Look at you, you can’t even get out of this.”

“Fuck off,” Mickey spits as he tries hard to get out of it. He finally manages to, the both of them getting back up.

“You’re too in that fucking head of yours,” Dom tells him before they can get back into the training. “You need to let shit go.”

Something in Mickey snaps and he yells, “Fuck you! You don’t know shit.”

“That’s it,” Dom tells him. “Get the fuck out of my cage. You’re done.” Mickey watches him, breathing heavily. Dom yells, “Now, Mick!”

Mickey storms out of the cage, pushing past people who stood around to watch the show, as he makes his way to the locker room, tossing the head gear to the floor on his way there. Mickey punches his locker before saying, “Fuck!” 

“Hey, what is going on in here?” Lisa calls out as she walks into the room.

“Nothing,” he snaps, turning to face her.

“My office, now,” she says before turning and heading to her office, not giving Mickey a chance  to say anything.

Mickey sits down on the bench in front of his locker and takes a deep breath, trying to calm himself. He hears someone approaching and looks up to see Joe. “I’m sorry,” Mickey mumbles to him.

Joe shrugs it off and helps remove Mickey’s gloves. He thanks him before Joe heads back to the floor. Mickey heads over to Lisa’s office, closing her door behind him. He sits on the sofa in the corner and looks down at his hands interlocked in his lap.

“What’s going on with you?” she asks him after a few silent moments.

Mickey sighs, “Nothing I can’t handle,” he lies. “Sorry for the outburst.”

“You need to apologize to Dom too,” she tells him.

“I know.”

“Mickey, look at me,” she says.

Mickey looks up at her from where she’s sitting behind her desk. She stands and makes her way over, sitting beside him. “Tell me what’s going on. I can see that something is really upsetting you.”

Mickey bites his bottom lip, contemplating on telling her the truth but he can’t. He shakes his head and says, “It’s fine. I’ll be fine. I need to get back to training.”

“Dom doesn’t want you training today. You pissed him off. Go apologize, go blow off some steam - maybe go for a run or something, and come back tomorrow with your head in the game. Your fight is in two days,” she reminds him, like it’s not a constant flashing sign in his mind. 
“Yeah, okay,” he nods before standing. He gets to the door and looks back at her, “Sorry,” he says again before leaving.

Lisa’s right, he needs to blow off some steam so a run is a good idea. He goes to his locker to get his music before walking back out onto the gym floor. He sees Dom by the cage and walks over to him. “I’m sorry,” he says instantly. Dom turns to face him and he continues, “I was out of line. Won’t happen again.”

“Good. Going for a run?” he asks, nodding his head to the iPod in his hand. Mickey nods. “Good, get the fuck out of here. Be here at 7 am tomorrow. We’ll start again.”

“Yes, coach,” Mickey agrees before heading for his run. 

As Mickey runs, he tries hard to let the music drown all the thoughts about Ian and the fight out of his mind but it doesn’t work. He pushes himself harder, runs faster, until his legs feel like jell-o. He comes to a stop, bending over his legs and panting, trying to regain his breath. He sits down near the edge, taking in big, deep breaths. He calms down enough to look around and sees he’s by the water, having taken the same route he usually takes with Ian. Now he feels breathless for a whole other reason. 

He picks himself back up and jogs slowly back to the gym to get his things and go home before he needs to be back tonight to clean. Mickey takes a shower at home, hating the pressure of the water, before changing into some clean gray sweatpants and a plain black t-shirt. No one’s home thankfully so Mickey decides to just smoke a joint and chill until he needs to head back to the gym for nine. 

Mickey’s still friends with Ian on instagram as he scrolls through his pictures while smoking up. He misses Ian more than he ever thought he could miss another person before. Sure, Mickey misses Mandy but it’s different. He misses her just being around. With Ian… he misses everything about him. He misses the way he smiled at him, the smell of his cologne and just his overall musk. He misses his laugh and the way he’d tease him. He misses his hands and his cock and the way he made Mickey feel so much pleasure. He misses just being around Ian, having him curl up behind him in bed, or the way he’d hold his hand when they fell asleep together. Mickey tosses his phone aside, the memories too painful as he looks at Ian’s beautiful face. Even without the pictures, Ian’s face, his smile, his eyes, his laugh, everything is ingrained into Mickey’s mind and he’s not sure if he’s ever going to get over the pain of losing him. 

*

Mickey gets through training on Friday without Dom yelling at him like the day prior and soon enough, it’s Saturday and they’re heading to the arena for his fight. Mickey knows how important this fight is - not only for himself but for the gym. If Mickey wins, he will make a ton of money on this fight which will help him get out of Terry’s house once and for all. It’ll also make him widely more popular within the MMA world, something he’s craved since he started training at fifteen. And it’ll bring more attention to the gym, which is something he wants because of how good Dom and Lisa have been to him in the past few years.

Everything leading up to the fight is the same - he gets to a room in the back to get ready, he avoids having his father and brothers come to the back again, and he gets some encouraging words from Lisa and Dom. The only thing that’s different is that he doesn’t get a good luck text from Ian. He knows he wouldn’t, they aren’t together anymore, but Mickey wishes he still got it. It always put his mind at ease, made him feel comforted that Ian was thinking about him. 

Mickey pushes all those thoughts out of his mind and tries to do what Dom said - to only focus on the task at hand, which is winning this fight. 

Mickey is helped into his robe over his bare torso and red shorts. He has his gloves taped on, and he’s ready to go. They walk through the arena, Dom and Joe in front of him and a few other guys from the gym around him. As they walk through the corridor down towards the entrance of the arena, a few guys are passing by them. One of whom just had his fight right before. As they pass by the guy who just fought, leans in and says, “Faggot.”

“The fuck you just say to me?” Mickey spits, trying to advance on him but the guys hold him back. Dom pushes the fucker out of the way and tells him to fuck off before he beats his ass. Joe rubs Mickey’s shoulder, trying to calm him before Dom comes over to him. “You good?”

“Fine,” Mickey says simply but he’s not. He wants to go back and find that fucker and kill him.

“He’s a pussy, just wants to get you riled up before the fight so you fuck up. Don’t let it get to you. Channel that shit into winning this fight,” Dom tells him.

Mickey nods, knowing his coach his right. They continue out to the arena where they call out his name. Like always, there’s booing and cheers for him as he walks towards the stage. Wheeler is already in the cage, pacing, waiting for him. Mickey is taken out of his robe before Joe puts his FUCK  U-UP mouthpiece into his mouth. He steps into the cage where the referee pats him down, making sure everything’s good before explaining the rules to them. 

“You ready to fight?” he asks Mickey. Mickey nods then the ref turns to Wheeler and asks the same thing, “You ready to fight?” 

When Wheeler nods yes, he declares the start of the first round and it begins. Mickey paces, hitting his gloves together, waiting for Wheeler to advance, which he does. Mickey avoids his hit, ducking and hitting Wheeler right in the gut. Wheeler grabs onto him and hits him hard in his side. Mickey gets out of his hold and tries backing him into the corner. It doesn’t work and Wheeler knocks his feet from under him and gets him down into a hold. Mickey escapes before they’re both back up and advancing on each other. Mickey gets in a few solid punche before Wheeler backs him into the corner, getting his own shots in on his face and stomach. 

The first round ends and the ref is pulling Wheeler off of Mickey. Mickey’s dragged into his corner and pushed down onto his stool. He’s being cleaned up, blood wiped away from his eyes as he spits blood out into a bucket. He accepts the water and then spits again, all while listening to Dom, absorbing everything he’s telling him, or trying to around the ringing in his ears. 

Round two begins and Mickey gets Wheeler in the corner, hitting him over and over again until Wheeler is able to break free from the corner. Mickey paces back and forth, taunting Wheeler, telling him to come at him. Wheeler does and Mickey all but laughs when he tries to hit him but misses and Mickey hits him hard in the side of the head, knocking him down to the ground.  

Mickey paces watching as the ref bends down to Wheeler who’s slowly trying to get back up. He does get up and the ref asks if he’s good, he nods so the round continues, as Mickey gets back on him, hitting him over and over again in his side, stomach, anywhere he can reach from where Wheeler’s holding him. The bell sounds, ending round two and they’re pulled off each other once again.

Mickey feels stinging in his lip and knows it’s split open. He tries hard to listen to Dom but all he can think about is that fucker who called him a faggot before and wondering how he knows. Did something happen? Do people know? Or is it just some piece of shit trying to get in his head? He also thinks about Ian and how much he wishes he could see him and hold him and - Mickey’s being thrown back into the next round. He hits his gloves together, cracking his neck before advancing on Wheeler. This fight needs to end now. Mickey pushes through, channeling all the rage he has into this moment right now as he ducks out from a hit being thrown by his opponent before winding his own arm back and hitting Wheeler right in the middle of his face, knocking him right down to the ground. 

Mickey stands over him until the ref pushes him away and gets down, he counts and soon the fight is done, the bell ringing. Mickey just won, he holds the title. Dom and Joe come rushing in for him, hugging him and cheering him on. Mickey looks around and sees his father and brothers cheering as they stand, hugging each other, proud of Mickey. Mickey’s eyes see a flash of red and his eyes immediately find it. He feels like the wind got knocked out of him when his eyes land on Ian’s. He has a small smile on his face as he stands further back in the crowd but still close enough that he can see that sweet little smile. 

He can’t hold his gaze long since they’ve gotten Wheeler up and the ref is pulling them both to his sides. They announce Mickey as the winner by knockout before his arm is pulled into the air. They hand him back his belt and he holds it against his waist, grinning. He hands it over to Dom as he goes to hug Wheeler with one arm and to tell him good game. But before he can, Wheeler says right into his ear, “Good luck getting any more fights, everybody knows you’re a fag.”

“The fuck did you just say to me?!” Mickey snaps, pushing him with his upper body before the ref steps in to split them up. 

Wheeler smirks, laughing as he’s escorted out of the cage. Mickey looks around, unsure of what the fuck is happening, until his eyes find Ian’s again through the cage. Ian looks worried, having come a bit closer before stopping. 

“Fuck,” Mickey mutters to himself before making a decision he’s hoping he won’t regret. 

There’s a reporter in the cage, asking Mickey if he can say a few words so he takes the microphone from him and says, “Yeah, I got something to say,” right into the mic, his voice loud over the speakers. He looks at Dom and Joe, before looking over to his father and brothers, then to Ian. He takes a steadying breath as he looks at Ian, the love of his life, and says into the microphone, “I just wanna let everybody here know, I’m fuckin’ gay! Big ol’ mo. Just thought everybody should know that.”

He hands the mic back to the stunned reporter, and his eyes can’t even look to Joe and Dom in the cage with him before he hears a guttural scream coming from the audience then he hears, “I’ll fucking kill you,” being yelled by Terry as he storms the cage with his beer bottle. He makes it inside, everyone stunned, as Terry breaks the bottle against the side of the cage and tries to attack Mickey. He’s instantly stopped by security who rush in and throw him down to the ground, and get the broken bottle out of his hand before holding his arms behind him. “You fucking faggot! Get out of my house, you poll smoking queer! I’ll fucking kill you!” Terry continues to yell as he’s being dragged out of the cage and the arena. 

Dom grabs Mickey’s arm and escorts him out of the cage with Joe and a few of the other guys around him as they rush out. Mickey is quickly pulled past Ian as they make their way out of the arena and towards the room where he got ready. 

Once inside the room, Dom turns to Mickey and asks, “You okay?”

“Yeah… fine,” Mickey says, shocked.

“What the fuck was that, Mick?” Dom asks him. 

“I-” Mickey starts to say but stops. Before he can try to come up with something there’s a knock on the door. Joe opens it and Lisa comes in. “Everybody out except for Mickey,” she commands. “Now!” 

Everyone leaves the door, leaving the two of them alone, the door closed behind her. “What the fuck was that, Mick?” she asks the same question Dom did.

Mickey sighs, “I don’t fucking know, okay?! Wheeler told me that people knew I’m a - that I’m gay and I wouldn’t get any more fights and to enjoy this while it lasted. I don’t know what came over me, I just had to fucking say something - come clean.”

“So it’s true?” she asks, nodding her head.

“Yeah.”

She steps forward and punches his shoulder. “Why the fuck didn’t you tell me this before?”

“Ow, fuck,” he says, rubbing his shoulder. “Because! Nobody could find out. You saw how my dad reacted.”

“Your dad is a piece of shit. And he’s going to prison,” she tells him.

“Wait - what?” he asks, confused.

“Yeah, security called 911 and escorted him outside. When the cops came, they explained how he came at you with a broken beer bottle, shouting how he was going to kill you. Cops said he was breaking his probation and they took him away,” she explains. 

“Wow,” Mickey says softly. He feels such relief but the reality of what he has done comes crashing down around him. “Fuck! This is bad. This is going to be so bad.”

“I’m going to do damage control and assess how bad this actually is. You need to lay low. Do you need a place to stay?” She asks him.

“I don’t -” he starts to say before there’s another knock on the door. 

Lisa walks over to answer it and Mickey sees Ian standing there. “Not a good time,” she tells him.

“Let him in,” Mickey tells her. 

She looks back at Mickey before stepping out of the way to let Ian in before closing the door again. “How’d you get back here?” she asks him.

“Saw Joe, asked him for his pass,” Ian says, flashing the backstage pass that’s hanging from his neck.

Lisa turns back to Mickey and asks again if he needs a place to stay. Mickey looks to Ian who is looking right back at him and says, “No, he’s staying with me.”

“Oh my God, you two are together aren’t you?” she asks, shaking her head, a small chuckle escaping. “How did I miss this? You fucking hate everyone and you were always hanging out. I feel dumb.” 

“We’re not together,” Mickey says, the words hurting him as he does so. 

“Okay, well, whatever is going on here, take it home and stay low. I’ll call you when I know anything,” Lisa tells him. She looks Mickey over and says, “You need to see the doctor, I’ll go get him. Stay here.” And with that she closes the door behind her, leaving Mickey alone with Ian.

Mickey sits down in the chair behind him, his legs feeling shaky. He takes a deep breath before he hears Ian walking towards him. Mickey says, “What are you doing here, Gallagher?”

Ian stops so Mickey looks up at him, closer than he was before. Ian says, “I - fuck, I fucked up, Mick. I shouldn’t have ever ended things between us. I was not doing well, I felt really down and off balance and everything just felt too much. Everything just felt like it was going to end anyways and I thought it would be a good idea to get you to come out and I was wrong for that, Mickey. I went to see my therapist and my meds were out of balance. I slept it off, readjusted my meds, and I realized what a fucking asshole I was to you. I’m so sorry.” Ian ends up right in front of him, crouching down between Mickey’s spread legs, his hands on his knees. “I love you and I want to be with you, if you’ll still have me.”

“Fuck…” Mickey lets out, a tear sliding down his cheek as he watches Ian, now down on his knees, begging to have him back. “Come here,” he says, reaching for his face and pulling him towards him. He kisses him hard on the lips before pulling back in pain. “Fuck,” he curses as he touches his bottom lip. 

“Shit, are you okay?” Ian asks, his hands coming up to cradle his head, assessing the damage done to him during the fight.

“I’m fine.”

There’s a knock on the door before it’s being opened. Lisa and the doctor walk in so Ian gets back up and moves out of the way. Mickey sits up on the table and lets the doctor clean his wounds and apply any bandages needed. Like the last fight, his cuts aren’t too bad. 

The doctor leaves and Mickey changes quickly back into his sweatpants and a hoodie before Lisa is ushering them out. Ian carries his bag for him as the three of them, and a security guard, make their way outside. Mickey sees his brothers outside and they make their way towards him. 

“Yo Mick,” Iggy says as they approach. “They took Terry in.”

“Yeah, I heard,” Mickey says, eyeing them both.

“You good?” Iggy asks.

“Fine.”

“Good,” he says. His eyes roam over Ian before landing back on Mickey’s. “You coming home?”

“Don’t know,” Mickey shrugs.

“Look man,” Iggy says. “We don’t give a shit that you’re gay. Come home. Terry’s locked up. You’ll be safe there, promise.”

Iggy elbows Jamie who smacks him before saying, “We don’t care, Mick.”

Mickey looks at both his brothers and says, “Thanks.”

“Congrats on a sick fight though,” Iggy adds with a grin.

Lisa pulls up to the curb with her car. “I gotta go but I’ll uh, see you guys later,” Mickey tells them. He and Ian get into Lisa’s car and she drives them to Mickey’s place. They get inside, Ian dropping Mickey’s bag in his room, while Mickey drops the belt on his dresser. 

“Congrats, champ,” Ian says, breaking the silence between them.

“Yeah, thanks.”

“Come here,” Ian says, pulling Mickey’s hand until he’s standing in front of him. He caresses the side of Mickey’s face, careful with his cuts, and says, “I’m so proud of you for coming out like that. It was - well, it was wild,” they both chuckle, “but you were so brave.”

“I don’t know what even came over me, I -” Mickey sighs. “Before the fight some jackass called me a faggot then after I knocked Wheeler out, he told me everyone knew and I just couldn’t keep it in anymore. I saw you there and it just felt right to do it.”

Ian smiles at him softly, his green eyes shining as he looks at him. “So what does this mean for us? Are we okay?” Ian asks hesitantly.

Mickey brings both of his hands up to Ian’s neck, holding him in place as he looks into his eyes. “Ian, you are the only thing worth anything to me. I don’t want to live without you.”

Ian’s eyes are shining with unshed tears before he closes the space between them and kisses him softly on the lips, careful of his injuries. Mickey kisses him back harder, not caring about the pain, just needing to be closer to Ian. 

Ian presses his forehead to Mickey’s as they both breathe heavily. “You’re the only thing worth anything to me, too. You’re the love of my life, Mick,” he says softly, in the small space between them.

Mickey wraps his arms around Ian’s neck, kissing him again. He’s done with words for tonight, he just wants to feel close to Ian now that he has him back in his arms.

Ian wraps Mickey up in his arms around his waist, pulling him flush against him. He moans softly into the kiss and Mickey slides his tongue into his mouth, teasing it against Ian’s. Ian picks Mickey up and carries him to the bed behind them, gently dropping them to the mattress. Mickey crawls backwards up the bed as Ian gets on top of him, between his legs. Ian’s mouth is on him instantly, as he grinds his pelvis into Mickey’s, making him moan as he feels the hardness through Ian’s jeans pressing against his through his sweatpants. Mickey pulls at Ian’s shirt from the bottom, trying to slide it up and off of him. Ian breaks their kiss to pull his shirt off, Mickey doing the same. They strip down to nothing before getting back in their previous positions. 

Having Ian’s body hard and naked on top of him again, it makes Mickey feel so many emotions. He truly thought he lost Ian forever because of his own cowardice, but Ian came back to him and is here with him, now and always, his home came back to him.

Ian’s hand is soft against his cheek as he holds his face to his. He pulls back from the kiss to look at Mickey, his thumb moving across his jaw and to his lips, like he’s committing his touch to memory. Mickey reaches his hand up to Ian’s face and does the same thing. He says softly, “I’m not going anywhere.”

Ian smiles at him softly, that sweet little smile, before he says, “Neither am I. Never again.” He leans back in, kissing him softly. He pulls away to reach for the lube and then works on prepping Mickey. 

Mickey moans when Ian pushes his fingers inside of him, not having touched himself or been touched since he was with Ian last. Ian moves down Mickey’s body, leaving trailing kisses in his wake before he takes Mickey’s hard, leaking cock into his mouth, moaning instantly. Mickey threads his fingers through his red hair as Ian swallows him down, his fingers brushing against his prostate as he fucks him open.

“Christ, Ian,” he moans, his back arching. “Need you inside me.”

Ian doesn’t waste time. He gets back up to Mickey’s face, kissing him sloppily on the mouth before he strokes himself with more lube and pressing against Mickey’s waiting hole. Mickey wraps his legs around Ian as he slowly presses inside of him until he bottoms out.

Mickey moans loudly. “Fuck, missed you so much.”

“Talking to me or my cock?” Ian teases him.

“Both?” Mickey teases back, a small smirk on his lips. 

Ian grins at him before pressing his lips to Mickey’s, kissing him silly as he fucks him deep and slow, until Mickey begs for it harder and faster.

“So good, fuck, Ian, don’t stop,” Mickey moans.

Ian kisses Mickey’s exposed neck, biting his shoulder lightly. “You’re so perfect, Mick, fuck, I missed you, love you so much,” he rambles, kissing Mickey’s neck.

“Yeah, c’mon, Ian,” Mickey pants, gripping onto Ian’s back. Ian takes Mickey’s cock into his hand and strokes him in time with his thrusts and it’s not long before Mickey’s coming hard between them, moaning loudly into the empty house.

Ian comes hard inside of him, biting his shoulder, before dropping his full weight on Mickey. He kisses Mickey’s neck, his jaw, his lips, before he slowly pulls out of him then drops down onto the mattress beside him. They both pant, trying to regain their breaths. Ian takes Mickey’s left hand with his right and intertwines their fingers, holding them up between them. Ian’s playing with Mickey’s fingers, and just looking at them. Mickey smiles softly, pulling their joined hands to his mouth and kissing Ian’s hand. He looks at Ian who has the sweetest smile on his face. Ian pulls their hands to his lips and kisses Mickey’s hand. 

Ian lets his hand go to hop out of bed and make his way, in the nude, to his bathroom. He comes back with a cloth and cleans Mickey up before they both get under the covers. Ian lifts his arm and nods his head for Mickey to come into that space. Mickey rolls his eyes but goes willingly, putting his head on Ian’s chest and curling into his side. Ian’s arm wraps around him, holding him close, as the other takes Mickey’s hand in his again and continues to play with his fingers where they lay together on his stomach.

“Are you okay?” Ian asks softly, his lips in Mickey’s hair before he presses a small kiss to his head.

Mickey sighs, “I don’t know what’s going to happen with anything but the only thing I know is that you’re here,” he says, looking up at Ian, their eyes locking, “and I couldn’t be happier.”

Ian smiles before kissing him softly on the nose before kissing his lips. “Everything is going to work out somehow, but no matter what, I’m going to be by your side, for as long as you want me,” Ian tells him, his voice so soft.

“Forever, that’s how long. You can’t leave me again, Gallagher,” Mickey threatens but his voice is soft and Ian’s smiling at him so he doesn’t do a very good job at it.

Ian kisses his nose again making Mickey scrunch his face up. Ian giggles, kissing him again. “You’re it for me, Mick. I’m not going anywhere,” he reassures him.

Mickey slides his hand up Ian’s chest and to his neck, curling his fingers into the hair at the nape of his neck, as he pulls him closer, pressing their lips together in a kiss that Mickey hopes tells Ian that he’s it for him too. 

Today has been a lot. Mickey came out to the entire MMA world and his father tried to kill him before getting arrested. But he’s in bed with Ian, back together, and he can’t help but finally feel truly free.

Chapter Text

Waking up in bed with Ian feels great, natural, like this is how he should be waking up every single day, and now that Mickey’s out, this has the potential to happen every day. He smiles as he slowly wakes up, that thought lingering in his mind. He feels Ian pressed against his back, his arm wrapped around his middle. He slowly sits up, careful to not rouse Ian. Ian doesn’t wake so Mickey just sits there watching him. Ian’s head is on Mickey’s pillow and he looks like an angel sent to him from Heaven to show him his new path in life. 

Mickey reaches out, gently caressing his head, pushing his hair back slightly as his thumb traces his temple. Ian leans into the touch, a small smile forming on his lips as he slowly wakes up. He blinks his eyes open as they immediately seek Mickey’s.

“Creep,” he says in a horse voice making Mickey chuckle.

“Fuck off,” he says, but he doesn’t remove his hand or stop looking at him.

Ian turns to lay on his back, forcing Mickey’s hand away but not far because Ian takes it in his and kisses his knuckles that are battered from his fight last night. Ian holds his hand to his chest in both of his hands as he looks up at him, all cozy in Mickey’s bed, he thinks that he could get used to seeing Ian waking up in his bed. 

Ian makes a face so Mickey asks, “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing - just, I don’t have my meds here, need to take them soon,” Ian tells him.

“Okay so we’ll go to your place, you can get some things and we can come back here,” Mickey tells him. “I have to lay low at home so I thought if you want, you can spend a few days here with me?”

Ian grins, “I’d love to. Still trying to find a job so it’s not like I have anywhere else to be.”

“Gee thanks,” Mickey sasses.

Ian sits up and pulls his face to his, kissing him on the lips with a big ‘mwa’ sound. “You know what I meant,” he tells him, looking into his eyes.

Mickey smiles softly, not able to stop it. “Good.” He kisses Ian again, softer this time, slower. 

They get out of bed and Ian gets dressed in his clothes from last night. He tells him he’s gonna just go grab his things and come back, no need for Mickey to go with him, so Mickey takes a shower before dressing in some loose shorts and a black tank top. He goes to the kitchen and starts to make them some breakfast. He has all the ingredients to make that same breakfast he made for Ian the first night he slept here so he gets started on that. 

He isn’t sure if his brothers made it home last night so he tries to be quiet just in case as he takes pans out of the cabinet. By the time Mickey’s done with breakfast, Ian is walking back into the house with his gym bag slung over his shoulder. The sight makes Mickey smile. 

Ian brings his bag to Mickey’s room before coming to sit with him at the table, kissing him softly on the lips before sitting next to him. “Oh my God, is this what you made the first time I slept here?” Ian asks when he looks down at his plate. 

“Yup,” Mickey says simply. “Uh, I wasn’t sure what you could drink with your pills so there’s coffee and orange juice. I could also get you water if you want.”

Ian smiles at him softly. “This is perfect, thanks, Mick,” he says, taking his hand on the table and squeezing it.

Ian takes his pill bottle out of the pocket of his shorts and takes what he needs to, washing it down with the orange juice. He sits there, not touching his food yet. “You okay?” he asks him.

“Mhm,” he hums, looking over at him with that small smile. “Just get a little nauseous when I get a new dosage. It’ll pass soon and then I can dig in,” Ian explains.

Mickey nods, taking a mental note to read up on Ian’s bipolar disorder and medication so he knows what he could do to help him if he needs it. They eat in silence, just giving each other soft looks and smiles the entire time and it feels so nice . Mickey knows that because Terry is locked up, he feels free enough to just be like this with Ian but it’s more than just Terry. Coming out in front of thousands of people, and even more who were watching on TV, has Mickey feeling more liberated than he’s ever been before. Terry’s been locked up before or out on runs but Mickey still had that same paranoia and anxiety when it came to being with other men or even just watching gay porn in his room and playing with his one toy. Now that he’s out and everyone knows, he doesn’t feel that anxiety or paranoia anymore. He should still feel it, he knows he should, everything is still so up in the air, he has no idea how Dom feels about this, or what kind of damage control Lisa has to do, but yet here he is, sitting at the table eating breakfast with his boyfriend and Mickey doesn’t have any worries in his mind. 

As they finish up and are bringing their things to the kitchen there’s a knock at the door. Mickey hands his plate to Ian before heading to answer the door. “Hey, what are you doing here?” he asks when he sees Lisa standing there with her sunglasses on, dressed all in black as usual, even in the summer.

“Hi, it’s nice to see you too,” she sasses. “Can I come in?”

“Yeah,” he says, stepping out of the way to let her in, closing the door behind her. “What’s going on?” he asks her when they’re standing in the middle of his living room.

Ian joins them, “Hey Lisa,” he greets her with a bright smile. 

“Hey, so you two are together,” Lisa says, directing her statement to Mickey, cocking her eyebrow. 

“Yeah, we are,” Mickey tells her honestly, noticing Ian’s smile from behind her. 

“Cute,” she says with a smile. She walks over to his sofa and takes a seat, crossing her leg over the other and propping her elbow on her leg. “So, I thought I’d come by before going to the gym. See how you are after last night.”

“Good,” he says with a shrug. “It’s not like I was planning to fucking come out like that but -” he stops, looking over at Ian, “it was time.”

“For what it’s worth, I’m proud of you, Mickey,” she tells him. “I can’t say I was surprised, not since Ian joined the gym, but I’m happy you found someone who means enough to you that you would come out the way you did. It was very brave and I’m proud of you.”

“Thanks,” he says simply, feeling weird getting this kind of praise from his manager, or maybe former manager? “So what’s gonna happen now? What did Dom say?”

Lisa sighs, “I haven’t talked to Dom yet, he wouldn’t take my calls last night. I’m not gonna lie to you, Mickey, I have no idea what’s gonna happen now. I have calls to make and I need to speak with Dom. You know how the men are in this world, obviously, since you didn’t come out earlier, but I’m not going to give up on you. You’re an amazing fighter and our gym is lucky to have you. If some insecure men can’t handle fighting you then that’s their problem.”

“Exactly,” Ian comments from behind them, sitting at the table just listening.

Lisa stands, hoisting her purse back up her arm, and says, “Just lay low at home. You’re safe here right?” 

“Yeah.”

“Good so just chill out, enjoy the BF,” she winks, “and I’ll come back to see you when I know more.” She pats his cheek before putting her sunglasses back on and walking out the front door without another word to either of them, door closing behind her.

“You okay?” Ian asks, walking over to him.

Mickey shrugs. “I don’t know, fighting’s been my life for years and it all just started coming together. Just sucks that it could all be taken away in a flash, you know?”

“I’m sorry, Mick,” Ian says, hand caressing the back of his neck, reassuring when so much isn’t sure. Mickey gives him a small smile before stepping closer to him. Ian wraps him into his arms and holds him close. Mickey lets himself be embraced, keeping his face tucked into Ian’s neck as he breathes him in. 

“I don’t regret it,” Mickey mumbles.

“What?” Ian asks, pulling back slightly to look at him.

“I don’t regret it,” he repeats, looking into Ian’s eyes. “Coming out the way I did. I’ve never felt better knowing that I could just be, and just be with you.”

Ian smiles, his hand caressing his face. “Lisa was right you know. You’re brave. And I’m also very proud of you,” he tells him.

Mickey feels tears welling up in his eyes so he closes the distance between them, getting right back in Ian’s nook, letting himself be hugged tightly, comfortingly. Ian kisses the top of his head and Mickey can’t help but smile, feeling so completely loved for the first time in his life. 

He sniffles before pulling back, “What do you wanna do today?” he asks, trying to not let their day get ruined by any sadness over Mickey potentially never fighting again.

“Is it cool if we just stay here?” Ian asks.

Mickey smiles softly. “Yeah, wanna play some video games?”

*

Mickey’s brothers were home but they didn’t come out of their rooms until mid-afternoon where they grabbed some of the leftover pizza Mickey had gotten them for lunch. His brothers didn’t say much but it’s their actions that matter to Mickey. They didn’t act any differently to him, they weren’t assholes to Ian, they were still just his shithead brothers. They were gone shortly after, saying they were going to go find out about Terry, what the situation is and how long he could potentially be locked up for. Mickey’s thankful that they are doing this. Knowing when or if Terry will be out is critical for his and Ian’s safety. They definitely do not want to be here if he gets released. Iggy told him he’d let him know anything when they find out and with that it was just Ian and Mickey again.

Ian turns to face Mickey, moving in closely and kissing his neck. Mickey smiles, moving his head slightly to give Ian better access to his neck. “Now that we’re alone…” Ian says against his skin, his lips trailing up his neck and to his ear. He sucks Mickey’s earlobe into his mouth, nipping at it lightly. “Want you to ride me,” he says hotly into Mickey’s ear, sending heat pooling in Mickey’s groin, his dick now hard.

Ian goes back to sucking on his neck as his hand trails up his thigh and cups his hard cock in his thin shorts. “Fuck, Ian,” Mickey hisses out, turning his head and capturing Ian’s lips in a searing kiss. Mickey climbs onto Ian’s lap, not breaking their kiss as he runs his hands up his torso, pulling at his shirt. 

They break the kiss to get Ian’s shirt off then Mickey’s as he slowly grinds his ass down onto Ian’s hard cock. Ian’s hands are holding on tightly to Mickey’s hips, moving him just as he wants, just as he needs. “Fuck, you’re so sexy, Mickey, look at you, so fucking perfect,” Ian praises, watching Mickey slowly grind against him, their bottom halves still clothed. 

“Fuck,” Mickey moans. “Let me get the stuff, don’t move, but get these fucking shorts off,” he tells him before climbing off of his lap and rushing to the bedroom to grab the lube. He sheds his shorts along the way, tossing the lube at Ian before climbing right back onto his lap making them both laugh. Mickey kisses Ian as he feels lubed fingers breaching him. The way Ian fucks him open with his fingers sends shivers down his spine. He knows just the right pressure and angles, the way to crook his fingers and where his prostate is making Mickey arch his back and moan loudly into the empty house. 

“Jesus, Mick,” Ian moans watching his boyfriend unravel in front of him just from his fingers. 

“Get the fuck inside me,” Mickey tells him. 

Ian removes his fingers before slicking up his cock with a bit more lube. Mickey takes Ian’s cock in his hand, stroking him lightly before lining himself up with it and sinking down. Ian moans, his eyes never leaving Mickey’s as he slowly fills himself with his cock.

“You’re so beautiful, Mick,” Ian tells him when he’s fully seated. 

Mickey pulls Ian to him, kissing him hard on the lips. He pulls back slightly to say, “You’re not so bad yourself, Gallagher,” making Ian chuckle. 

Mickey starts riding Ian, now making Ian unravel before him as he bites his lower lip, his hands gripping onto Mickey’s hips, his own hips trying hard to not chase the perfect embrace of Mickey’s hole around him. Mickey’s hands are on Ian’s thighs as he uses them to lift himself up and down his big cock. 

Ian thrusts up and Mickey moans loudly, “Mmph, fuck, again,” he tells him.

Ian does it again, and again, and doesn’t stop until they’re both coming hard, moaning loudly into the empty house. 

*

It’s been three days of bliss with Ian. They haven’t left the house much, just for a grocery run and a couple of actual runs so Mickey doesn’t get all soft now that he isn’t training vigorously. They haven’t come into any problems while they were out, something Mickey was a little worried about but didn’t mention to Ian, not wanting him to also be worried about it. 

By Wednesday, Lisa still hasn’t contacted him but he does get a visitor he wasn’t expecting. He opens the door to see Nate standing there, “Hey, man,” Mickey greets with a grin. 

“Hey, Mick, can I come in?” Nate asks, matching his smile. He steps aside to let Nate in, closing the door behind him. “Hey, Ian,” Nate says when he spots Ian on the sofa.

“Hey, Nate, how’s it going?” Ian asks, a tentative smile in place.

“Good, good,” Nate says, nodding his head. He turns to look at Mickey and asks, “Can we talk?”

“Yeah, uh, let’s go outside, need a smoke anyway,” he says, even though he smokes inside most of the time, the look on Nate’s face tells him that this should be a private conversation. “I’ll be right there.”

Nate nods, he turns back to Ian and says, “It was good to see you.”

“Uh, yeah, you too, take care of yourself,” Ian tells him before Nate heads back outside.

“Sorry, I don’t know what the fuck this is about but I’ll just be outside,” Mickey tells Ian, walking over to him and kissing him softly on the lips.

“Yeah, it’s fine, I’ll be here when you need me,” Ian says with a soft smile.

Mickey nods before heading outside and sitting next to Nate on the porch. He lights a cigarette and after he takes his first hit Nate speaks. “I heard about your fight, wanted to give you some time before reaching out,” he says.

“It’s cool, man,” Mickey says, blowing smoke out of his nose. 

“How are you holding up?” Nate asks, turning to face him, back against the railing.

Mickey shrugs, “Not really sure, honestly. It’s been great the last few days just being here with Ian, you know? But I miss the gym - training, fighting. It’s just weird not having a purpose right now.”

“I get it, I felt the same way after my accident. I wanted so badly to get back into fighting but just couldn’t because of my injuries but then as time went on and I realized that fighting wasn’t the only thing worth holding onto, it made it easier for me to leave it behind and focus on what I wanted to do and live my life with Will,” Nate tells him. Mickey nods, taking in his words. He appreciates Nate coming to talk to him, he’s the only one who could possibly understand what Mickey’s feeling. Nate pushes his shoulder and cracks a smile, “I’m proud of you though, for what you did. Takes a lot of fucking balls, man, especially with how you came out.”

Mickey laughs, “Yeah, I wasn’t planning it but - Ian had ended things a few days before the fight and when I saw him there, it’s like a light was ignited inside me or something, I don’t really know how to explain it-”

“You found something - someone , worth more to you than fighting, Mick,” Nate tells him. “Fighting has been your purpose, your life for years, but you found someone who loves you and  that you love more than fighting. Your subconscious made the decision for you to come out because you knew you couldn’t lose Ian again.”

“That’s - exactly it, what the fuck,” Mickey says, making Nate laugh. 

“Listen, I believe that people come into our lives and leave them for a reason. Ian came into your life for a reason, Mickey. If that reason was for you to be your true self, or to quit fighting, or I don’t know - whatever the reason is, he’s someone very important to you, right?”

“I would die for him,” Mickey says with his whole chest.

Nate smiles softly. “Then embrace whatever comes. I don’t know what the future holds for you in terms of fighting, or even for your relationship, but I do know that there is something very true and very real between you and Ian, and it’s going to be worth a hell of a lot more than anything MMA could offer you.”

Nate’s right, Mickey knows he is. Ian is the most important thing to him. He was telling the absolute truth when he said he would die for Ian. He would do anything for him, anything to protect him. Mickey also knows that Ian came into his life and completely turned it upside down but he’s thinking that maybe, he actually turned it the right side up.

Mickey and Nate chat for a bit more until he tells him he has to get going and a promise for the four of them to get together soon before Mickey goes back inside.

Ian’s still sitting on the sofa but he’s just on his phone, the TV’s sound turned off. “Hey, everything okay?” he asks, putting his phone down.

“Yeah,” Mickey says simply, plopping down next to him on the sofa. He takes Ian’s hand in his and squeezes it. He looks into his green eyes and says, “Whatever happens, with fighting or not being able to anymore, you’re still the most important thing in my life. As long as you’re here with me, I don’t care what happens with all that shit.”

Ian smiles at him softly, squeezing his hand back. “I’m not going anywhere, never again. You are the most important thing to me too, Mick,” he says before leaning in and kissing him softly on the lips. 

Ian pulls back, caressing Mickey’s cheek softly with his free hand. “Nate wants us to go on a double date with him and Will at some point,” Mickey tells him.

Ian grins. “That sounds fun.”

Mickey leans his head on Ian’s shoulder and closes his eyes, “Yeah,” he says simply. They stay like that for a while, neither letting the others hand go, neither moving, neither saying anything, just simply being there together.

*

Since his talk with Nate, Mickey’s been thinking a lot about his future. He still hasn’t heard from Lisa, or Dom, and now that he knows Terry is going to be locked up for a while, Mickey’s just had a lot of time to think about his life. Talking with Nate, someone who has been in a similar situation to him, made Mickey realize that he wants to live an open and honest life with Ian because he’s the only thing that matters to him. He always thought that he had to be a fighter because that’s all he knew. Terry brought him on runs and made him beat the shit out of people until he put him in the gym and told him he was gonna be the best fighter and make them a lot of money. Mickey always thought fighting was what he wanted to do but after all these months with Ian, and especially these last few days, he’s realizing it’s not what he wants to do anymore, not when it almost cost him the only good thing he’s ever had in his life - Ian. 

“Are you sure you want to do this?” Ian asks him on Friday morning. 

“Yeah, I don’t want to have to hide out because of who I am. I don’t want to pretend like I’m something that I’m not,” Mickey tells him and Ian grins, hugging him tightly from behind, where they stand in front of the bathroom mirror where Mickey was fixing his hair. 

“Proud of you,” Ian says before kissing his neck. 

There’s a knock on the door so Ian lets him go so Mickey could go answer it. “Hey,” he greets, seeing Lisa in all black, similarly to how she was dressed a few days ago, except this time she’s in a dress. 

“Hey, Mick,” she says, stepping inside when he moves to let her in. She pushes her sunglasses on top of her head and says, “I tried my best but -”

“Save it. I’m done,” he tells her.

“What?”

“I’m done with fighting. I know I’m never going to get another fight or be accepted into this world, I’m not stupid. Been in this shit for long enough to know how it works. I don’t need it though. Gonna find something else to do eventually but either way, I’ve got Ian, and that’s all that matters to me,” Mickey explains, turning to smile softly at Ian who’s sitting at the table, not even pretending like he’s not listening to their conversation.

Lisa smiles, “I’m happy for you, Mick. I wish things could be different, you’re my best fighter.”

“I know,” Mickey says, smugly making Lisa chuckle. “You’ll find others though, you’re the best manager a guy could ask for. I’m grateful for everything you’ve done for me.”

Lisa waves him off. “I brought your check for your last fight. It’s a big one, Mick. Whatever you decide to do next, I know you’ll be great at it,” she tells him before pulling out her work book from her bag. She opens it, taking a check from it and handing it to Mickey. 

Mickey looks it at it and his eyes bug out. “This - this isn’t the amount we went over before the fight,” he tells her.

“I know, I managed to get more for you, think of it as a parting gift.”

“Thanks,” he says simply, not knowing what else to say to her.

She walks over to him and wraps him into her arms. He hugs her back and realizes this is the first time they’ve ever hugged. “You’re going to do great things, Mick, I believe in you,” she tells him before letting him go. “Take care of each other,” she tells him before looking behind him at Ian.

“I will,” Ian tells her. Mickey nods his agreement. 

“Don’t be a stranger, okay?” 

“Thanks for everything, Lisa.”

She winks at him before turning and heading for the door, closing it behind her. Ian walks over to him, wrapping his arm around his shoulders. Mickey looks down at the check again and shows it to Ian. 

“Holy shit,” Ian says.

“Yeah.”

*

Mickey had opened a bank account when he started getting paid for fights legally, so after every fight that he got paid for, he would put it into his account only keeping some on him to buy groceries. Today, with Ian, they go to the bank to deposit the check he got for his last fight plus a bonus according to Lisa. Mickey deposits $50,000 into his bank account. 

Walking back to the house, Mickey’s never felt better. He feels light, carefree. But his mind is working, thinking about this new path in front of him, with Ian. That amount of money is a fresh start for him, he can do anything he wants. 

That night when they’re laying in bed, Mickey turns to face Ian who smiles at him, all wide and open, his face still a little flush from what they just finished doing. Mickey puts his hand on Ian’s chest, looking at his hand as he traces soft patterns across his skin. “How would you feel about leaving Chicago?” he asks before looking into his eyes.

“Like to move?” Ian asks.

“Yeah,” he says, biting his bottom lip sofly.

Ian smiles softly, “Where would we live?” 

Mickey shrugs his shoulder, “Not really sure, we could go anywhere. Where would you wanna go?” he asks, hoping that Ian would be okay with leaving.

“Hmm,” he hums, his large hand going over Mickey’s on his chest where his fingers had stopped moving. “Maybe somewhere close? Or did you want to move far away?”

“As long as we’re out of Illinois. I know Terry’s locked up for a while but it would be good to get distance, and there’s nothing here for me, just you, but I thought we could go together. You could become an EMT anywhere,” Mickey tells him.

“What about Michigan?” Ian asks. “It’s not that far away so that we could still come back to see  my family or they could come stay with us.”

“Detroit could be cool,” Mickey says. Ian smiles. “I was thinking - I could open my own gym. Teach like at-risk youth or whatever to fight, or just to train. And keep them from becoming people like my dad. Keeps them healthy and shit too cause of the food we can’t eat.”

Ian grins, “I think that’s an amazing idea, Mickey.”

“Yeah?” he asks softly, a small laugh escaping as he smiles.  

Ian leans forward to kiss his nose softly. “Absolutely. You’d be an amazing coach,” he tells him.

“Thanks,”  he says softly. “I made a lot of money from that fight and I was thinking maybe I could see if Lisa would want to invest. Maybe one day I could even get her to move too and become a partner.”

“That’s a great idea,” Ian says. He looks into his blue eyes, a small smile on his face as he asks, “Are we moving to Detroit?”

Mickey lets out a small chuckle, “Seems like it.” Ian starts laughing which makes Mickey laugh.  “We would have to find a place to live, you’d have to apply for EMT jobs, and I need to find a space to lease to build the gym.”

“This is really exciting,” Ian says, that big, bright smile on his face. He pulls Mickey into him more, his hand moving up to the back of his neck as he pulls him in for a kiss. Mickey moans softly into his lips, Ian’s tongue slipping into his mouth, deepening the kiss.

Mickey pulls back slightly to say, “Mmm, ready for round two?” 

“Definitely,” Ian says, dragging Mickey’s lips back to his. 

Mickey’s soft chuckles get swallowed by Ian as his hands move down Mickey’s body to grab onto his ass, pulling him harder into him. Mickey moans, he moves on top of Ian, straddling his hips as he grinds against Ian, their hard cocks sliding together. Ian pulls Mickey higher up so that when Mickey grinds back against him Ian’s cock slides between his cheeks. Mickey moans before taking hold of Ian’s cock and lowers himself onto him, still slick and stretched from just a few minutes ago. Ian moans deeply, his hands gripping onto Mickey’s hips. Ian flips them over and fucks Mickey hard and deep, his lips all over his neck, his jaw, his chest. Mickey holds onto Ian’s hair from the back of his head, holding him close to him as he meets every one of Ian’s thrusts, his other hand gripping onto his lower back. 

“Fuck, Mick, you feel so good,” Ian moans into his neck.

“Yeah, fuck, love that big cock, mmph, there, Ian, ff -” Mickey moans, his head thrown back into the pillow. 

“Shit,” Ian moans, watching Mickey unravel beneath him, “so sexy, Mickey, fuck, look at you. Wanna see you come for me, Mick.”

Mickey moans Ian’s name as he comes hard between them, coating both of their stomachs. Mickey’s clenching around him and seeing Mickey come apart has Ian coming hard inside of his boyfriend.

Ian pulls out slowly before plopping down beside Mickey on the bed, panting for the second time that night, trying to regain their breaths. 

“I’m disgusting,” Mickey laughs, looking down at the come stuck to him and what he feels coming out of him.

Ian turns to look at him so Mickey looks back. “You look hot as fuck,” Ian tells him with a bright smile.

“Fuck off,” Mickey laughs, but he feels the blush creeping up his neck. “Need a shower.”

“I’ll join you,” Ian wiggles his eyebrows before hopping out of bed.

Without his brothers here, they both walk to the bathroom and get in the shower, going for another half round in the shower before curling up together in bed on some new sheets, all clean and cozy.

Mickey falls asleep that night, excited and hopeful for what’s to come for him and Ian.

*

Ian tells his family about them potentially moving to Detroit and after explaining the situation now and their plans, they all are happy for him and Mickey, and promise they’ll do some visits  back and forth since it’s only about a four and a half hour drive. With his family okay with it, Ian gets started on applying for EMT jobs. They also start looking for apartments, condos, even houses, seeing what would be their best option, as Mickey looks for spaces he could lease within the budget he prepares.

It takes them about eight to nine months before they are all moved into their new condo in Detroit. Mickey found a space not far away to lease for cheap as he’s going to start turning it  into a gym for anyone to come train in MMA, boxing, or even just weight training or cardio. It’s  also a space for at-risk youth to come and get healthy and train, keep them off the streets. And Ian got a job as an EMT at a hospital about twenty minutes away by car. 

Lisa took Mickey’s deal and invested in Mickey’s new gym, giving him $50,000 to put into building the gym and she will get a small percent of shares. Mickey also applies for some grants since he is planning to help at-risk youth. 

*

It’s been a year since they got back together at Mickey’s last fight - almost four months since living in Detroit, building their new life together, and Ian tells Mickey he has something special planned on the roof of their condo building. The weather is warm tonight as they walk out onto the roof in jeans and t-shirts. Mickey sees the roof lit up with lights, a blanket in the middle with a picnic set up. Mickey smiles, looking at Ian, remembering a night not that long ago but feels like lifetimes, when Ian did this same set up in an abandoned building in the South Side, back when Mickey was still in the closet. 

“What’s all this?” he asks as he follows Ian over to the blanket, sitting down next to him.

“It’s been a year that we’re back together and I wanted to commemorate this day,” Ian smiles softly. He takes two beers out of a small cooler and hands one to Mickey. They twist the top off and touch bottles. “To us, and this new life here, together,” Ian says with a bright smile.

Mickey smiles before taking a sip of his beer. They eat, enjoying this beautiful night together up on the roof. 

Once they decide to head inside, Mickey stands up, looking back down at Ian who’s moved to kneel on one knee. He smiles softly when he sees the look in Ian’s eyes and the nervous smile on his lips. He takes Mickey’s hand and says, “I love you, Mickey Milkovich. More than anything. And if you’d let me, I’d love to spend the rest of my life -”

“Safe the fuckin’ speech, I’ll marry you,” Mickey interrupt him, a small chuckle escaping. “Of course, I’ll fuckin’ marry you.”

Ian grins and stands, taking Mickey’s head in both hands and kissing him on the lips. Mickey’s hands come up to caress Ian’s head, holding each other close as their lips move in perfect synchrony. Mickey laughs softly into the kiss, the two of them pulling back to grin at each other. 

Mickey’s life was turned right side up when he met Ian Gallagher. He’s engaged to this incredible man who loves him unconditionally and who he loves more than anything, and he’s  just opened a gym that will become widely successful with fighters wanting to be trained by the great Mickey Milkovich, and young teens training and staying off the streets. 

Mickey found a way to still do something he’s loved to do for years but in a new place where people don’t care or judge him for being who he is, and he gets to do it all while being with Ian, someone who makes him feel free, loved, supported, and protected. This is a new life for Mickey and he’s excited to get it started.