topino | (no subject)

Does the casual stroke of Nicky's thumb over his own lip draw Joe's attention and rob him of his ability to reply for a full second? Yes, it does.

"Yes, well. Let's focus on the ugly ones, if you don't mind," Joe drawls, mock-archly. He takes a sip from his wine, humming low at the taste. "This is good wine," he says, grinning to Nicky. Perhaps he wasn't the only one trying to impress, after all.

"What if they're attractive, but assholes? I have one or two of those," he assures, nodding his head with a scoff as he thinks about those smug artists who think they are god's gift to humanity. He reaches for his own glass, shrugging and trying to play it off.

"It's like you said. If this is going to go for a while, I want to be comfortable and enjoy myself, yes?" He sips it, grateful when it tastes decent, arching a brow. "You should instruct me on what I need to do, before I sink into your sofa and do nothing but drink wine and eat olives. Unless you want to sketch that?"

"Let's focus on the assholery, then," Joe quips, before chuckling and standing up when Nicky prompts him to start sketching. "Alright, I'll show you the studio." He arches an eyebrow. "Take your wine and olives with you."

It's a small room next to Joe's bedroom, with large windows overlooking a park. There is still a lot of sunlight coming in, so Joe won't need to add any artificial lights. He likes this; Nicky will look good in direct sunlight.

There is a old couch for Nicky to sprawl on, covered by a soft plaid blanket. In front of it are Joe's chair and desk, covered in paint tubes, brushes, charcoal sticks, pastels and watercolour pots. On the chair is a stack of drawing notebooks, sharp pencils on top of them.

Joe grabs the bathrobe that was on the sofa and takes a second to compose himself. You will not make this weird, he tells himself. He's drawn many nude models, and it's never been inappropriate. Granted, he wasn't attracted to any of them the way he's attracted to Nicky, but still. He. Can do this.

"Here," he says, handing Nicky the bathrobe. He smiles and makes himself meet Nicky's eyes, keeping his voice casual. "You can undress in the bathroom, if you'd like."

Nicky reaches down for the olives and the wine, following Joe into the studio. He's so occupied staring at the lighting, the space, the couch, and it's all a bit much so that he doesn't process what Joe says. It's also because English is not his first language, so it takes him a moment to process that Joe just asked him to strip.

"I..." He blinks, setting down olives and wine before he drops them. "What?"

He's missed something, hasn't he? He doesn't remember saying anything about posing for Joe naked, yet he's just offered to give him a place to undress. Given that he's not pinning Nicky to the couch and making out with him, he also thinks the request has more to do with art and less to do with anything fun. He does take the bathrobe, aware that it's leading him towards opening the door, feeling slightly unmoored.

Joe can clearly see that Nicky is surprised, even as he takes the bathrobe. He tilts his head to the side, wondering what part of this is coming as a shock.

"I mean, you could do it here if you'd rather, I won't peek," he jokes, lightly. He watches as the look on Nicky's face grows more and more confused, his own eyebrows furrowing. "Nicky, are you okay?"

"When we talked about this, I didn't realize that you would want me to sit for nude portraits," Nicky admits, feeling like he should be honest about the misunderstanding. "I should have asked more questions, but I thought that it wouldn't be so personal when we hardly know each other."

Even if it feels otherwise, as if they have a connection deeper than the few times they've met and talked, so far.

He turns the robe over in his hands a few times. "I still want to sit for you, but I'm not sure how I feel about being fully nude today; not for the first time," he amends, leaving the door open for another time. "Would you be willing to sketch me in...just this?" he suggests, letting the robe dangle from two fingers.

Oh. Oh.

Joe's eyes go wide. "Shit! I didn't even think of making sure! All the portraits at the exhibit were nudes, and the ones I've done before too, so I thought you knew." His eyebrows furrow in genuine worry and he reaches out, touching Nicky's arm gently. "I should have asked, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable."

He shakes his head, giving Nicky's arm a squeeze. "Listen, Nicolo. You can sit fully dressed if you'd rather. I don't want to make you do anything you don't want to do."

On the other hand, the thought of Nicky wearing just the silky bathrobe and a blush is... not terrible. But, no. Joe will be good. "Anything you'd like," he states, very earnestly. He's such an idiot, he can't believe he didn't even think of this.

Nicky says nothing.

He tightens his hold on the robe as he considers it, and then, heads to change without saying another word. He doesn't intend to take the robe off, but he thinks that he can compromise to a degree. He strips off all his clothes, even the underwear, and ties the robe before he exits, clearing his throat as he heads back for the wine to sip it and give himself the liquid courage he needs.

He settles on the couch, stretching out his legs and folding one bent knee over the other, sitting sideways and draping his arm over the knee with the wine. "Which artist do you want me to talk about?" he starts, intending not to call attention to how he's dressed. "The handsome man who is an aggressive asshole, or the timid woman who you would think would not be a problem, but then is vindictive and stubborn and digs her heels in after?"

As he gets no reply, Joe worries that he messed this up and Nicky is going to leave. But Nicky is clearly headed for the bathroom and he took the robe, so Joe feels hopeful he's decided to stay and sit for him. He busies himself preparing his pencils and charcoal sticks, making sure he can sit in front of Nicky comfortably and attempt to capture his unique beauty.

He nearly drops his notebook when Nicky comes back, wearing -as far as Joe can tell- nothing but the robe. Somehow it feels more illicit than him being naked, that little tease of silky fabric moving against Nicky's bare thighs, showing just a little of his chest and arms.

Joe has to swallow hard and sit down, not looking at Nicky for a few seconds as he composes himself. When he glances up, he's firmly considering Nicky like a model, not an object of desire. "Pick a position you're comfortable keeping for a while," he advises, gently. "And please look my way." Nicky doesn't have to look at Joe (perhaps it's better for Joe's sanity he doesn't, really) but Joe would like to see his face clearly.

He grins, trying to relax and focus, picking up a pencil. "I think you'll have time for both, so start with whichever bothered you most."

Nicky feels suitably covered like this, if only that it gives him a chance to tease a little. Given that Joe looks somewhat flustered when he arrives back, it gives Nicky a thrill that makes him feel very powerful. He arranges his arm over the back of the sofa, draping it over as he stretches one leg out, the other knee bent.

It allows the robe to ride up, revealing all of his thigh and a hint of more. It gives Nicky the ability to casually rest his chin on his shoulder as he peers at Joe, noticing that he seems to have rebounded just fine. He is looking straight at him, though, his gaze intense and unflinching.

"Maybe you should start," he suggests. "Who was the last person to wear this little robe, Joe? Before me?"

Joe is professional enough about this that he can set his desire aside and look at the shapes, colors, lights and shadows that make Nicky up, focusing on drawing him.

He's not, however, professional enough to stop himself from staring at Nicky's bare thigh as the robe rides up and up and up. He promptly looks down at his notebook when Nicky meets his eyes, setting down a few lines, the general shape of Nicky's body. This is going to be difficult, he can already tell, for more reasons than one.

"A professional model I hired a few months ago," Joe answers, glancing back to Nicky but not meeting his gaze, sketching slowly. "He used to be a bodybuilder. Interesting to draw." He smiles. "He didn't keep the robe on for very long, though. It was too small and he felt silly."

Edited 2021-01-02 00:15 (UTC)

Nicky is going to try and take this seriously, try and not move, but it's like asking him not to think about a pink elephant. He's going to think about it, and probably dancing in the corner of the room. He keeps his gaze fixated on Joe, as if the beautiful line of his jaw will distract him from the fact that he is naked.

And that he's sharing this robe with a bodybuilder. "Did you pay him in olives too? Or was he not Italian and wouldn't appreciate them?"

He shifts his hand to his thigh, and it's not moving, not really, but he's absently stroking his skin in light brushes, just to give him something to focus on that isn't the overall position.

Good, because Joe is trying very hard to take this seriously too. There is something at stake here, and he does need his art to impress. He can't let himself be distracted by how pale and kissable the inside of Nicky's thigh looks.

He chuckles, shading in the many folds of the robe, making it dark enough to contrast with Nicky's skin. "No, I paid him with money, as we'd agreed. I did pour him a drink, though." He did not make the man dinner. That's just for Nicky.

He can see Nicky's fingers brush against his own thigh from the corners of his eyes and hurriedly finds something else to focus on. That's how he ends up drawing the curve of Nicky's lips, the line of his jaw, the mole on his cheek. That's almost worse, actually.

Nicky doesn't notice Joe's attentions growing any more intense, because he's busy trying not to think about handsome bodybuilders who had a drink with Joe while wearing this robe (or nothing at all). Well, at least the jealousy is keeping him from getting an inappropriate hard-on.

"You know, there's only one problem with this position," he muses, on the heels of that.

There might be more problems, but only the one he plans to talk about. "Those lovely olives and my good wine are so far. You may have to feed me."

Nothing happened with the bodybuilder, really. Joe wouldn't try to seduce someone he was paying to model, that would not have been appropriate of him.

He's shading Nicky's hair carefully when he speaks up again, making Joe look at him. "Are you getting sore already?" he teases, gently, his eyes widening when Nicky requests to be fed olives.

Joe takes a slow, deep breath. Okay, then. If that's how it's going to be, he can play that game.

"I can do that," he answers, his voice low. "I'd like to draw your eyes up close. Can I come nearer?" That much is not a lie: Nicky's eyes are fascinating and Joe feels like he's too far to do them justice.

"Of course," Nicky says, because in his mind, nearer is better. Nearer means that he doesn't have to worry about Joe looking too long at his thigh and ass, thinking about how much of Nicky is on display (and how little is under the robe).

Close also means he gets the olives, which he genuinely does want. After all, Joe went to all that trouble to buy them for him, and they really are delicious. "In exchange for olives, you can draw my eyes," he permits, and then opens his mouth slightly to encourage Joe to feed him.

Closer also means that Joe will be looking deep into Nicky's eyes, close enough that he could touch all that skin on display if he wanted. Which he does. Want.

He pulls his chair forward and sits right next to Nicky, turning a page in his drawing notebook so he can start fresh. "A fair deal," he comments, picking up an olive and gently placing it between Nicky's parted lips. He holds Nicky's eyes as he does it, partly as a challenge, partly because he is thinking about how to best draw them.

And if his fingers linger for just a second too long on Nicky's bottom lip, well. He's only human. "Tell me about the other artists," Joe asks, a little desperately, as he starts sketching again.

Nicky opens his mouth a little wider for the olive, and when Joe's fingers are near, he flicks his tongue out just a little, brushing against the thumb and the fingers that are lingering. It's Joe's fault for not pulling them away quicker, something that he's feeling very smug about.

"Well," he begins, "the one I have been reviewing now is a photographer who does angry black and white scenes of destruction. If you thought that I lambasted you for being too one note, you should see my review of him," he snorts. "He is very angry when he replies to my reviews, but not with your eloquence," he rambles. "It is profanity and anger, and only that."

There is a very obvious shiver that goes through Joe as he feels Nicky's tongue against the pads of his fingers but he says nothing, picking up his pencil again. He wants, still. Wants to push his thumb inside Nicky's mouth and feel the heat of his tongue, wants to take it out and put his lips against Nicky's instead.

He won't do any of it but his desire shows in the way his eyes are growing darker when they meet Nicky's again. He keeps sketching, tilting his head to the side, listening. "I'll make sure to read that review then, it'll make me feel better about the one you gave me," he comments, his voice low but amused. He shrugs, his eyes flickering between Nicky's face and his sketching pad, starting on a new set of eyes when he finds the ones he finished lacking. "And the woman?"

Nicky's eyes are half-lidded, as he hasn't done much blinking. He doesn't want to miss any moments, especially not with Joe so close to him. He smells incredible, just like his home smells amazing with the food he's prepared for Nicky.

Add in the excellent olives, the warmth of him so close, and Nicky is reminding himself that he doesn't put out on first dates. "Ah," he says, pulled from his distraction by Joe's words. "She is seemingly kind. Calm enough. Only, after I pointed out that her work lacked soul and emotion, I found out she tried to rip my reputation to shreds from mutual friends."

He's staring at Joe's lips as he speaks, wondering what it would be like to feed him some of the olives.

Joe will be struggling to capture that half-lidded look, to sketch the way Nicky's eyes are full of heat and longing. It's tricky, but he thinks he's doing a good job of it.

"Well, that's just shitty," he comments, drawing the line of Nicky's lovely Roman nose. "If you want to take someone down, do it to their faces, not in their backs." He finds himself sketching the curve of Nicky's lips again.

"Do you get into a lot of trouble because of your reviews?" he inquires, curiously. He can tell Nicky is staring at this mouth and he flicks his tongue to wet his upper lip, just to see what will happen.

Nicky breathes in deeply to get himself a little more control, because Joe is still so close, and he keeps staring at him. Worse, now he's licking his lip, wetting it. Nicky's breathing catches as he stares at it, the wetness, and wonders what it would be like to kiss this man.

First date, he reminds himself, this is the first date.

"I'm honest and blunt and sometimes people see that as being cruel," he points out. "You certainly reacted." Over-reacted is what he would say a few weeks ago, but he likes Joe now, so he's not going to say that.

It's nice to know that Nicky is just as affected by this as Joe himself is. It doesn't help tame down the simmering heat in the pit of his stomach, but it's nice nonetheless.

"I think what you have to understand is that art is very intimate, very personal," Joe answers, earnest but careful too, because he doesn't want an argument with Nicky either. "It feels like an extension of yourself, one you put so much thought and work into. To see someone criticize that, even mildly, can be painful." He smiles. "Even when they are obviously mistaken."

He sets his pencil down and considers his sketch -Nicky's face, eyes full of heat and longing- before turning it around so Nicky can see it. "Here."

The only reason that Nicky is holding himself together is by thinking about cold shower things, ones that put a little ice in his spine, so he doesn't get an inappropriate reaction when he's only wearing a little slip of a robe.

He doesn't think that would bode well. Or, well, it would bode very well, but it would go against Nicky's principles.

"When you put it out into the world like that, it's there to be reviewed, though," he counters, even if it's a touch gentler. "Films, novels, art, it is passionate and represents you, but it is still something that people want to know what is worth seeing, what is better. I think yours is at the top of the pile, though."

He leans forward to see the sketch, arching a brow to see his lust staring back at him. "It's very accurate," he confirms.

Joe is holding himself back out of respect, mostly. He knows Nicky is interested -it's pretty obvious at this point- but it's also their first date and Nicky has agreed to make himself vulnerable to Joe as he sketches him, and Joe really doesn't want to take advantage of that.

"True," Joe sighs, though he's still smiling. "It doesn't mean the review doesn't sting." His eyes soften at the compliment and he reaches out to squeeze Nicky's arm gently. "I appreciate that."

He chuckles when Nicky assesses his drawing as accurate and turns a new page. "Will you show me your hands? I'd like to draw them too." Nicky has lovely hands, he's noticed, very large for someone who doesn't do manual labor.