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Deleted&scene!from%Playing(for(Keeps!by#Avery#Cockburn:!

Original(ending(to(hotel(scene((kilted(sex)(!!They!lay!for!a!long!while!without!speaking,!then!John!opened!his!eyes!to!see!Fergus!staring!at!the!ceiling.!Not!staring,!actually—his!eyes!had!that!animated!look!they!got!when!he!was!solving!a!problem!in!his!head.!It!startled!John!to!realize!that!that!face!had!already!grown!so!familiar!to!him.!!He!didn’t!want!to!interrupt!his!train!of!thought—or!to!be!the!sort!of!guy!who!asks,!“What!are!you!thinking?”—so!he!just!waited!for!Fergus!to!speak.!!“What!about!big!country?”!Fergus!said!finally.!!!“Which!country?”!!“No,!the!song,!‘In!a!Big!Country’!by!Big!Country?”!!“What!about!it?”!!“For!the!Warriors’!promo!video.!Like!Gillian!suggested,!like!the!‘Call!Me!Maybe’!thing!the!US!swim!team!did?!But!we!should!do!something!Scottish.!And!we!should!all!wear!kilts.!Except!perhaps!the!lasses.!Would!it!be!funnier!if!they!wore!trousers?”!John!sat!up.!“Have!you!gone!mad?”!!“No.”!!“Then!you’re!having!me!on.!You’re!not!serious!about!this.”!!“I!am.”!He!looked!at!the!bedside!table.!“Where!are!the!tissues?!I’m!a!mess.”!!“Allow!me.”!John!leaned!over!to!lick!Fergus’s!stomach.!!Fergus!laughed.!“Stop,!stop.!I’m!too!ticklish!for!a!courtesy!tongue!bath.!But!thank!you.”!!John!fetched!the!tissues,!a!warm!wet!washcloth,!and!a!dry!towel!from!the!loo,!where!he!also!disposed!of!the!condom!and!gave!himself!a!childish!but!sincere!high!five!in!the!mirror.!!!

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“One!problem!with!your!idea,”!he!told!Fergus!as!he!tossed!him!the!cleaning!supplies.!“‘In!a!Big!Country’!isnae!about!Scotland.!I!mean,!we’re!not!a!big!country!and!we!cannae!see!the!sun!in!wintertime.”!!“True.!Then!what!about!a!folk!tune?!Something!!internationally!famous.!Is!‘Scotland!the!Brave’!too!clichéd?”!!John!climbed!onto!the!bed!beside!him.!“Wait,!can!I!just—were!you!thinking!of!all!this!while!we!were!fucking?”!!“Afterwards.!While!I!was!basking.”!!“Are!you!aye!so!creative!when!you!bask?”!He!ruffled!Fergus’s!hair.!“Suddenly!aw!the!blood!returns!to!your!brain?’!!Fergus!tilted!his!head!into!John’s!hand!like!a!cat!getting!petted.!“Perhaps.!But!I!was!thinking!about!kilts!and!how!sexy!they!can!be,!and!how!people!all!over!the!world!are!fascinated!by!them.!And!then!I!thought!about!what!you!said,!that!we!need!international!attention!to!bring!in!more!sponsors.”!!John!gasped!as!an!idea!hit!him.!“Would!you!consider!playing!the!match!in!kilts?’!!“Would!you!like!that?”!!“I!would.”!!“Would!you!like!that!more!than!me!keeping!my!balls!attached!to!my!body?!Because!there’s!a!reason!why!no!one!plays!football!in!a!kilt.”!!“Hmm.!No,!I!think!I!like!your!baws!attached!to!yourbody.!That!way!I!know!where!to!find!them!when!I’m!hungry.”!He!almost!reached!for!them!before!remembering!Fergus!was!ticklish,!so!instead!he!laid!his!head!on!Fergus’s!shoulder.!“If!I’d!known!this!would!change!your!mind,!I’d’ve!fucked!you!much!sooner.”!!Thankfully,!Fergus!laughed!at!this!joke.!“I’m!glad!you!didn’t.!I’m!glad!we!waited.”!He!gave!John!a!lingering!kiss.!“And!I’m!glad!we!can!work!out!our!differences!this!way.”!!John!turned!his!face!away!so!Fergus!wouldn’t!see!his!smile!disappear.!If#only#all#our#differences#were#so#easily#solved.!