Dean & Brando

Summer - 1955. Los Angeles had heated up to its usual heights with long days of sun for hours on the beach and warm, cozy nights for sitting outside drinking after dinner. Marlon Brando's house looked like a small palace lit up in the evening, flashy yet inviting to anyone who drove by. His new home was decorated in tasteful art and the finest furnishings with his Academy Award firmly on one of the shelves drawing every guest's eye since he'd won it months earlier. That night's guest however, wasn't as impressed. He'd seen it several times by now. James Dean was one of the only guests of Marlon's that wasn't taken back by his expensive home. Even sitting there eating the pasta Brando had cooked for them at the table, he might as well have been at some local restaurant. The only real standout to him was Marlon himself, the 31 year old bona fide movie star sitting across the table from him, the 24 year old rising actor on his way to hopefully hitting the same heights.

"What's wrong? You haven't touched your meatballs. I made them myself" Marlon pointed out with a curious smirk. "I ate a few of them. I actually have a date with a vampire after this and all this garlic, well, it just wouldn't be good" James answered with a straight face, growing Brando's smile until his own began to sprout. "A vampire huh? What's she look like?" "Who said it was a she? Maybe I just like getting my blood sucked" Dean suggested with another slurp of a noodle. "Such a wise guy..." Brando laughed almost to himself as he smiled back down at his plate to finish his meal, his attention only pulled away from it when he felt something grazing his knee. Without dropping his fork or looking back up, he sat there, still as the foreign object became more familiar, the cotton-covered toes flexing against his leg some more until Marlon knew what was playing with him under the table. "What about your vampire boyfriend?" "Boyfriend? I didn't say I was going steady with him...just letting him at my neck a little, that's all" James teased some more with a put-on over-confidence as his lean foot rubbed down Marlon's calf and back up toward his thigh, watching his host slowly react the whole time

"I may not be a vampire but I've got my own tricks" Brando offered as he reached under the table to catch the playful foot, earning a momentary look of surprise on Dean's thin face. "A man can't have too many tricks...I mean, you're a good enough actor to have your own Oscar and you can cook. Anymore would just be greedy" James answered with a growing grin as Marlon's strong hands wrapped around the top half of his foot and began molding it between his fingers. James' eyes fluttered a bit at how good it felt and relaxed in his chair a little as the massage continued, melting him into his seat with each knead into the balls and arch. "See? Told ya" "Show off" James answered back with a full-grown smile this time as his eyes closed a little with enjoyment while Marlon watched him become putty in his hands.

The smell of a sweet, delightfully sweaty cologne drifted up from his lap the more he rubbed Dean's socked foot, his unique aroma mixing with the Italian notes already in the air from dinner. His socks were thin, cheap. It was hard telling how long he'd had them, meaning each dip of Marlon's fingers made a full impact as they worked down toward his heel and made James' mouth fall open a little when he got back up to the balls with just the right amount of attention. "Were my meatballs really that bad?" Marlon asked out of nowhere, breaking the steamy silence. "No...they were fine" James asked as he forced himself out of the induced haze, even trying to sit up straighter. "Don't give me that; I know when you don't like something" "Why would I lie about something as small as meatballs?" "Because you're too polite" Marlon answered before his massage hold on the foot suddenly shifted so one hand was holding it in place and the other started scratching along the base of his toes. "HEeY! DdoOOnTDDoOOTThhAT!" "Do what?" Marlon questioned as James' foot writhed in his lap to break free and he watched his guest squirm in the chair with a killer smile.

"CCuUTTiITtoOouUT!" James shouted from the other side of the table as his leg tried to kick away but Marlon was too strong. "It's just meatballs, Jimmy...you can tell me if you didn't like them. You won't hurt my feelings" Marlon pressed with a specific grin at the scene he was causing as he clawed down across the balls with curled fingers. "JJuUSTT LLLEETGGOo OoFFmMyYFFoOTT!" "You're the one that brought it over here. Don't blame me" Brando dismissed as James's foot suddenly jerked against Marlon's knee just the right way to push his sock nearly halfway off. "No! Come on!" James whined with disbelief and tried to force it back on his foot by rubbing back across Marlon's leg, getting a laugh out of the older actor. "I think you're making it worse" Brando pointed out with a grin of handsome destruction before scratching down the exposed part of his smooth sole and doubling James' reluctant reaction.

"AAhAoOOoHoHSHHiIIT! OAhoNnONNOoAOhASSTToHOHoPPiIIITT!" James rang out with a wider, wilder smile as he reached out toward Marlon as if he could pull him off before resorting to pounding on the table with his fists a few times, unsure what to do with himself to keep from exploding. "Too bad you didn't just finish your meatballs...you could've saved yourself the trouble" Brando teased some more as the sound of James' warm, boyish laughter did more for Marlon than the wine they'd been drinking. Watching James let loose and laugh like that was better than any sunrise or starry sky Marlon had laid eyes on, captivated by Dean's attempts to tough it out only to break every few seconds, obviously no match for the short nails dragging across the bare half of his foot but still trying to hold out, to not show how desperately ticklish he was only to fail over and over.

"OOKOoohOKK! TThhEEYyWWEEeRREE AAHhALLlIiITTLLLTTLLLLEeEEDDRRrYyY!!" James confessed just as the rest of his sock was being shoved off and his pink, marshmallowy toes were revealed. "Really? Dry? Huh...I guess I let them cook for too long" Marlon concluded like he sincerely appreciated the feedback while James regained his composure. "But I got full quick too...so maybe that was part of it" James added as if he feared being too harsh. "You're too nice, kid" Marlon answered as he leaned down and planted a quick kiss on the top of James' foot. "You kiss all your guests' feet?" James teased. "Maybe I do..." Brando answered before letting his lips land on the beautiful foot again before suddenly pouncing on the naked toes before James could expect it. "NNoO! NoOOAoHAOhA!! BBAAsSSTtAARRDDDAhHAA!!" Dean couldn't help but come alive with heavier laughter as Marlon went crazy on his plush toes, letting his fingers fly every which way back and forth along the soft targets. "AAHAoOhASSTtohoOHOPP!! AohAOHNNoOMMOoORREETTiIICCkKLlIInNGG!!" "Tickling? At dinner? Don't be silly, Jimmy" Marlon teased before spidering down the edge of his foot toward his heel and making Dean shriek with goosebumps as he flailed at the table. Brando hadn't smiled this big the night he'd won the Oscar.

Marlon was beyond content letting his fingers scurry away at James' cute toes, holding his ankle in place with one hand and using the other to torment the dreamy foot of his dreamy friend without fear of ever growing bored of it. Watching the pale toes splay out and curl in front of him and his sole wrinkle with ticklish despair was the best film ever shown at his house, one only complimented by James' charmingly uncontrollable laughter. But just as suddenly as it started, it all stopped like a storm having lost its power. Marlon pulled away from the delicate toes and buttery sole and instead kissed the bottom of his foot one good time before letting his leg go to retreat back into safer territory. "...who needs an Oscar when you've got Marlon Brando kissing your feet?" James asked as he gathered himself in the chair, getting a laugh out of Marlon. "Just don't tell anyone. People might start asking for that instead of autographs" Brando suggested, getting a humored look from James, "Yeah, you might be onto something there." Dean added as he ran his hand through his hair to regain its shape.

With their plates still on the table and both their glasses empty, Marlon and then James stood up from the table and started toward the living room. "I feel silly walking around with just one shoe and sock on" Dean admitted as he looked down at his bare foot. "You can fix that, ya know" "I guess you're right" James answered with a smirk of understanding as he leaned down and pulled his loafer off and peeled the white sock off behind it, opting to place them together near the couch instead of wherever they fell like Marlon had. James looked back up before Brando did, too busy admiring the pair of feet standing on his floor. "My eyes are up here" James teased, convincing the acclaimed actor to lift his head back up in no hurry at all, uninterested in hiding his affection. "How about some dessert?" Brando changed the subject with a lingering smile. "Sure" James answered before Marlon started back toward the kitchen in front of his guest but was stopped mid-stride when two hands shot into his underarms unannounced.

"AAhAhANnoAohAH!" erupted from Marlon like he'd been struck by something as he seized up and locked his arms to his sides but was too late; James' nimble fingers were already burrowing in. "Too slow!" James laughed as he followed every way Brando jerked and flailed until he was against the back of one of the couches with nowhere to go. "GGEETToOOFFFoAhAOhAAOH!!" "I guess winning an Oscar doesn't make you any less ticklish" "AASsKkFFrRAAnNNkKKAhAHASSIiiNNAAAtTRrAAhA!!" Marlon offered back as he buckled with hearty laughter, squirming against the leather couch while James did his worst digging into the depths of both warm pits. "Give up?" "AhAohAyYOouUuRREeaAhACCRrAAZZZyYY!!" Marlon rejected before managing to break loose of the attack only to lose his balance over the couch, leaving his legs in the air as he slid onto the seat.

James sprang into action, wrangling one ankle in his arm and yanking the loafer and sock off before he could be interrupted and launched onto the fresh bare foot like he knew he wouldn't have such an advantage for very long. "DDAAmMIiIT! NNOoAohAOhA!! CCoOOmMMEEOONN!" barreled out of Brando with a giant smile as he tried to sit up and intervene but couldn't focus enough, leaving Dean to scratch away at his meaty sole with unchallenged fury. James smiled with a similar sinister excitement as Brando had, fueled by the unique high of getting the better of someone like that, a high that he was normally the reason someone else had. "What about the toes?" Dean soon asked as if he figured they were worth exploring before prying them back a little and concentrating on the velvet undersides. "AAhAhANNOO! AohAohAoAohASSOONNoOoFFAAbBIIiTTCCChhAAHA!" "That's not any way to talk to your guest, Mr. Brando" James teased almost like he was auditioning for a new part, not usually this mouthy.

Marlon's muscled-up arms swung and grabbed for James to save his thick toes but couldn't make solid contact with Dean slipping out of his grip every time. It wasn't until James started focusing on his arch that Marlon was motivated enough to really give it his all, having let out an uncharacteristically high-pitched laugh from the fingers running up and down the middle of his foot and he wasn't interested in doing it for a second time. "AhOHAoHACcCCoOmMmhHheEERREE!" Brando let out as he finally locked onto James' shoulder and forced him over the back of the couch too, rolling onto Brando and falling off onto the ground with him. Marlon was quick on the draw, making the first move before James could get his bearings about him. "No! NO!" James laughingly argued as they wrestled for power for a few seconds until Brando forced his arms by his sides with his knees and left James pinned to the floor.

"Come on! This isn't fair!" Dean complained as he kicked around trying to get up. "It's my house...I say what's fair here" Brando answered back with a cocky smile before his hands reached back and James' eyes lit up with realization. "Dammit - NO! No more tickling!" "Not even a little bit more?" "NO! No mooROAohAOAoha!!" James had no choice but to explode with fresh laughter with Marlon prodding around into his stomach and squeezing along his sides, forcing the younger star into a fit of hopeless bucking and writhing on the hardwood floor. "Give up?" Brando asked, purposely turning James' juvenile terms of surrender back on him. "AhoAohANnOoOAOHAA!" "No? No??" Marlon challenged before suddenly diving into the mostly closed-off pits, digging into the spots that judging by the look on James' face, he'd thought weren't even accessible. "AhAHANNOONNOO! AohAOHSSSTToHoOOPPPIIITT!!" Dean howled louder than he ever normally spoke, the tickling forcing him out of his introverted shell more than anything else ever did. "OoKOOK!! AohAOHAiIiGGIIIVVEEE!" "Now he gives...how convenient" Marlon answered without pulling out of the tender pits, steadily digging into them just to make James suffer a little more under him and to see his gorgeous smile on full display a little longer.

Brando's playfully ruthless fingers finally retreated about a minute later and James' head full of hair fell back with relief, his eyes tired from being so alert. Marlon took Dean's head in his hands to steady it straight and leaned down to kiss his sweet lips, melting James again as the first kiss became one long one until Brando pulled back. "Sorry about the meatballs" "Don't be sorry...they were great" James answered with a low smile before helping him up and actually getting to the dessert he'd picked up at a local bakery. With two empty dessert plates on the tray next to them hours later, Marlon and James sat under the back terrace while every house around them slept. Dean sat in one chair and Brando in another facing each other at an angle with Marlon happily rubbing James' still bare feet while James told him about his idea for a script, an idea he'd never told anyone else. The only real witness was the moon above them shining a dim light on the pair and what they shared, as if it too was content to let that night go on forever.