Mx Male Relationship-Focused MxM Plot

[little darling]

_

_

Welcome, everyone!
I've got a bit of a particular plot in mind, so if you're interested in writing it with me, that'd be great!
For reference, I've been writing and roleplaying for about a decade, and I consider myself advanced.
(There will be a writing sample below, for anyone curious.)
However, this doesn't necessarily mean that I'm going to write a novel every post.
While I can write up to five paragraphs, my usual is two to three—I find the roleplay flows a little better that way.
Don't worry, though! They'll be solid, detailed paragraphs, and I'll always give you plenty to work with.
In return, I ask that you write at least two paragraphs, but you can write more than that, if you'd like.
I also ask that, like I will, you please use proper spelling, grammar, and punctuation. Mistakes happen, but do your best!
I'm looking for literate to advanced writing partners—I'm a big quality over quantity person.
I will reply at least once a week, but I can go up to multiple replies a day if I've got free time.
For the plot listed below, I'm only interested in playing a submissive bottom.
Important to note that, while my characters may be inexperienced or quiet, he won't be a one-dimensional doormat.
Also note that, while this plot is relationship-focused, it can absolutely also be very smut-heavy.
If there's anything you're unsure about, or anything you don't see, just ask!
I prefer to roleplay exclusively on site, and exclusively through PM. What can I say, I like my privacy.
Now, with that out of the way, feel free to move onto the latter parts of this thread, and reach out to me if you're interested!

_

_

I don't generally write in this short paragraph style anymore, but this will still give you an idea of what you'll be working with.
———————————————————————————————————————————————————————

Marilyn's hands were shaking. A solid decade as a smoker had made her good at lighting her cigarettes—she could do it in the dark, with her eyes closed—but now, her hands trembled so hard that she couldn't seem to line up the lighter. Giving an irritated grunt, Marilyn pulled the unlit cigarette from between her teeth, drumming it nervously against her knee. She had never liked being out in the open like this. Nearly seven years had passed since she got out of that life, but still, sitting on the sidewalk outside of a seedy little gas station, she could feel that same unease pooling in her gut. Like there were a million eyes on her, waiting for her to make a move, waiting for her to make a mistake. As though she was about to step off a cliff side and plunge into an icy sea, and an invisible audience was waiting to hear her shriek when she hit the water.

Maybe it was because of what she was about to do.

The stormy expression on Marilyn's face softened, and she glanced at the little girl sitting on the pavement beside her. Sweet little Camilla, with her dark curls and big doe eyes. She was making her stuffed bunny walk down her skinny legs, marching the tattered toy proudly along the goose-bumped flesh (god, why had Marilyn dressed her in a skirt, it was too cold for a skirt) and silently mouthing nonsense to herself. The jacket she was wearing, an ancient cargo jacket that Marilyn was fairly sure was a relic of a past relationship, practically swallowed her whole, but Camilla had refused to wear any other. As though she could feel Marilyn watching her, she tipped her head, letting it rest against her mother's arm, and Marilyn looked away before her throat could tighten. The poor thing. Lord knows Marilyn was never cut out to be a mother. Camilla deserved a better mother. She deserved a better life.

And that's what Marilyn was giving her, wasn't she? Surely, she wouldn't be able to stomach giving her away if she didn't think it was in Camilla's best interest. This would benefit both of them. Camilla wouldn't have liked Paul, anyway, and Paul definitely wouldn't have liked her. He didn't want children, and that was perfectly alright with Marilyn. Carrying one was more than enough. Beside her, Camilla began to hum, and Marilyn turned her gaze skyward, breathing in as deeply as she could manage. It was only fair. She'd spent six years raising Camilla on her own, with nobody's help. It was someone else's turn. Hadn't she earned a break?

The screech of tires brought Marilyn back down to earth with a jolt, and her head snapped forward, whipping towards the cherry red Panther De Ville pulling into the parking lot. She'd recognize that monstrosity anywhere. It parked, just across the way, and Marilyn took one last breath to steel herself before flicking her still unlit cigarette aside and getting to her feet.

"Wait here, baby," she murmured to Camilla, who showed no sign that she'd heard, but didn't get up to follow when Marilyn walked away. With a quick glance both directions, Camilla made her way to the rear of the car, leaning her hip against the carefully shined exterior as the driver climbed out. "Well, I'll be damned. Beckett Finch," she greeted warily, gaze flickering over the familiar features of his face, "I didn't think you'd come."

"Damn, Marilyn. You look like shit."

Immediately, Marilyn's expression soured. She wasn't above admitting that she was a vain woman, who cared about her appearance and the way she presented herself, so jabs about her looks tended to hit a little close to home. Still, she also wasn't above admitting that he was probably right. Even with crime left long in her past, Marilyn's working life was far from a walk in the park, and all her nasty little habits were making their mark known, now that she was getting a little older. Not to mention the stress of carrying and raising a child.

The thought made her stomach clench, and she only barely fought the urge to glance over her shoulder at Camilla, hopefully still singing beneath her breath on the sidewalk where she'd left her. Best not to draw attention to her quite yet. Maybe she should lure him away from his car, first. So that he couldn't hop back in at the sight of a kid, and speed off before Marilyn could do the trade off. God, the trade off. Like Camilla was some damaged good Marilyn was dying to get off her hands.

"Glad to see you haven't lost your roguish charm," she snarked back, reaching up to run her manicured fingers through her mousy brown hair, tied back into a sloppy bun marred with fly-aways. Camilla's was darker, had been since she was just a little baby. Marilyn's gaze flickered up to Beckett's tousled hair, longer than she remembered it. Camilla must have gotten it from him. "Don't you know that isn't how you talk to a lady?" Beckett flicked his burning cigarette onto the ground, and, on instinct, Marilyn pressed the toe of her knockoff Louboutin heel into it, grinding it into the pavement. Camilla had driven the habit into her, citing a fire safety ad she'd watched on TV while Marilyn was away at work. Speaking of...

"Can we talk, for a minute?" Marilyn asked warily, glancing around once more and then jerking her head towards the gas station building, and the shadowy corner she'd been hiding out in since she arrived, "Out of sight, preferably." It was probably for the best that no strangers saw her shirking a child off on a man with greasy hair and a stained sweatshirt. She didn't want to imagine the questions that would bring.

_

_

Storyline
You know that stereotypical, trope-y gay storyline, where a closeted boy starts falling for an openly out boy, leading to an up-and-down secret relationship while the closeted boy grapples with his internalized homophobia and tries to figure himself out? That's precisely what I want. YC's deeply repressed his attraction to other boys, convincing himself that it's just a glitch in the system every time his eyes wander in the locker room or his mind drifts to some male celebrity or another while he's in bed with a girl. MC is one of the few openly queer people in town, if not the only, and YC tells himself it's morbid curiosity that has MC drawing so much of his attention, nothing else.

The idea I've been toying with is that YC and MC end up fooling around at a party, which forces YC to confront his attraction to him, and to men as a whole, but that isn't necessarily set in stone. How their relationship builds is up for discussion, but the end result is them developing something of a friends-with-benefits, secret relationship set up, with YC struggling to come to terms with his sexuality and MC being torn between his growing affection for YC and his discomfort with being a dirty little secret. You'll get bonus points with me if you'd be willing to have YC having developed something of an obsession with MC even prior to them hooking up, due to MC being possibly the only out boy in town and thus the center of many of YC's repressed fantasies. The more you play up that obsession, the more bonus points you get.

Basically, I want a more adult version of Heartstopper, though whether YC is more of a Ben or more of a Nick to start is entirely up to you.

Who our characters are is also up for discussion. Some potential pairing ideas, formatted YC x MC. This is not at all an exhaustive list. If you have a pairing you think could be interesting, feel free to bring it to the table! Some of them can also be combined.
Jock x Nerd
Jock x Artist
Jock x Delinquent
Delinquent x Valedictorian
Valedictorian x Delinquent
Best Friend x Best Friend
Rich x Poor

Setting
This storyline can be set anywhere from the 80s to present day, depending on your preference and what we ultimately decide would work best. Either way, it's going to take place in a small, conservative, rural town, though where in the USA this town is situated is up for discussion. (My usual go-to is to pick a state, look up the cities by population, and then just choose one of the least populous towns at random. Our representation of it doesn't have to be true to life, obviously.) It's the sort of place where everyone knows everyone, people are always sticking their noses in each other's business, and nothing exciting ever happens. I'd imagine our characters would be in high school; that setting lends itself best to this sort of storyline, since that's when we care the most what other people think.

Main Themes
Internalized homophobia | Self-discovery | Character growth | Relationship development | Mutual crushes | Secret relationship | Jealousy | Bonding​

 

[little darling]

⋙ bump ⋘​