![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
turpsHappy birthday, Raven!
I hope you have a most fantastic day. For a present I wrote a ficlet for you, a little TrickC :)
ETA: My bad, I forgot to thank![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
ephemera_pop for beta reading. She did a great job as usual.
Pools of light pattern the driveway, fuzzy circles against dark brick. JC drives through them all, past the cast iron lamp-posts, surrounded by leafy plants that sway in the breeze, filling the air with their whispers of home.
He parks carefully and clicks open his belt, movement automatic, wanting to be out of this seat and into the open where there’s no metal to confine him. Unfolding from the car, JC stretches, arms high above his head, back pulled tight as the chill night air cools his body and sweat damp skin.
It’s been a long journey. Too many hours spent on dusty roads and busy highways, searching for something he thought he hadn’t found. That elusive something that remained just out of reach, taunting with its closeness as it slipped through his fingers once more.
“JC?”
Chris is standing in the doorway, brilliantly backlit by the lamps just visible inside. They highlight his body, bleeding glow across the edges of the faded t-shirt that hangs almost to his thighs, the shorts with the torn hems, the spoon he’s holding, knuckles white. Only his face remains hidden, unreadable in the shadow. JC narrows his eyes against the glare, blinking hard as Chris shakes his head and pushes back his hair, fingers pushing through dark strands gilded with light.
“I thought you were coming back next week?” Chris steps out of the doorway his bare feet padding against the ground as he hurries to take JC’s bag from the trunk. He loops it over his shoulder where it slaps against his bare leg as he turns to JC, waiting for an answer.
“I was.” JC doesn’t look at Chris as he locks up the car, closing windows and setting alarms. “I came back.”
JC doesn’t know what he expected but all Chris does is shrug.
“I was making dinner. I suppose it could stretch to two.”
All JC can do is follow as Chris goes back inside.
~*~*~*~
“You’ve got time to shower; I still have to steam the rice.”
JC considers. He feels dirty, skin clogged with dust and sweat that itches each time he moves, but at the same time he doesn’t want to leave this stool. From here he can watch as Chris bustles around the kitchen, stirring a pot that steams and suddenly spits, making Chris suck at his wrist with a glare.
“I won’t eat it all you know.” Chris looks at JC through his eyelashes, his words muffled around his wrist. “So go, get clean.”
“Are you saying I stink?”
“If I thought you stank I’d say that,” Chris says. He’s rubbing a finger over his wrist now, poking at the reddened skin. “But you look like you’ve been sleeping on a park bench, so go. Get clean.”
JC can take a hint, especially when Chris picks up a spatula, pointing it in his direction. “Okay, going. Give me a yell when it’s done.” Ignoring Chris comments about servants JC slips down from the stool, feeling the scrape of plastic against his legs.
Upstairs, the master bathroom gleams when JC switches on the light, tile and counter spotless and shining. A toothbrush stands up in a glass, alone when it shouldn’t be, and he takes a step back outside. Then reaches for the shower instead, adjusting the temperature and spray as he kicks off his clothes.
JC steps into the shower and lets out a sigh. He braces himself against the wall, hands flat against the tile, head down, as the water pounds against his skin, cleaning and relaxing muscles that have been tight for too long.
“JC!” Chris yells, his voice easily carrying up the stairs. Reluctantly, JC straightens and quickly rummages through the bottles on the shelf, looking for one he can use on his hair. He settles on something that smells good despite the unfamiliar bottle, lathering a blob into his hair then rinsing it out with a blast of cold water that leaves him shivering as he wraps a towel around his waist and another around his head.
Kicking his clothes into a pile under the sink, JC opens the connecting bedroom door, a cloud of steam billowing after him. He can hear Chris downstairs, singing along to the radio and can’t help smiling at the familiar sound.
The song ends and Chris yells up the stairs. “One minute before I eat yours.”
JC hurries into the bedroom, bare feet sinking into the carpet with each step. He leaves off the light, automatically readjusting to this space, this place he’s walked through so many time before.
It’s simple to reach into a closet, grabbing t-shirt and shorts. Simple to towel at his hair and slip on the clothes, not so simple to see the big double bed and the bedside cabinet that’s been stripped bare. The books pushed into bags, the pens swept into a drawer, propelled there under JC’s hand when he was frustrated and needed to run away.
~*~*~*~
“Die Hard.” Chris says, fingers sliding along the spines of DVDs as he reads. “Lord of the Rings, Queer as Folk, Youngblood, Mighty Ducks, Green Mile, Dumbo, The Shining.” He stops then, drumming a beat with his finger-tips against the shelf. “You know what there is anyway, so pick now before I do it for you.”
“Lord of the Rings, the first one.” JC says, deciding quickly. He settles back further into the corner of the couch, sprawled and full as Chris pulls the DVD from the others.
“Don’t think I don’t know you’ve a thing for that elf.”
“What can I say, the ears turn me on.”
Chris rolls his eyes then thumps down onto his knees, t-shirt riding up expose a broad strip of skin as he bends forward to slide the disc into the machine.
Memories merge with reality as JC stares, the way Chris looks back and smiles, the way he stands, rubbing at his knees. Things that had faded into the usual, making JC think they’d slipped away.
“Sit with me.” JC settles back into the corner of the couch, regretting every word, every action that causes Chris to hesitate, because hurting him was never part of the plan. “Please.”
Chris sits then, arms crossed and back straight as he stares at the tv. The tension in the air heavy with remembered words.
“I’m sorry.” The words slip out easily, free after being held back so long, hidden behind small talk as JC phoned home each day.
“Me too.” Chris gives up pretending to watch the movie, turning so he can look directly at JC. “I said some horrible things. I never meant any of them.”
“So I’m not ass-licking scum with one hand down my pants and the other on a mouse?” JC risks the joke, relaxing back into the cushion when Chris’ mouth tugs up at the corners.”
“Maybe I meant some of them.” He laughs, ducking JC’s hand, them lies back, leg just touching JC’s. “So you’re staying?”
“I’m staying,” JC agrees, covering Chris’ hand with his own.
I hope you have a most fantastic day. For a present I wrote a ficlet for you, a little TrickC :)
ETA: My bad, I forgot to thank
ephemera_pop for beta reading. She did a great job as usual.Pools of light pattern the driveway, fuzzy circles against dark brick. JC drives through them all, past the cast iron lamp-posts, surrounded by leafy plants that sway in the breeze, filling the air with their whispers of home.
He parks carefully and clicks open his belt, movement automatic, wanting to be out of this seat and into the open where there’s no metal to confine him. Unfolding from the car, JC stretches, arms high above his head, back pulled tight as the chill night air cools his body and sweat damp skin.
It’s been a long journey. Too many hours spent on dusty roads and busy highways, searching for something he thought he hadn’t found. That elusive something that remained just out of reach, taunting with its closeness as it slipped through his fingers once more.
“JC?”
Chris is standing in the doorway, brilliantly backlit by the lamps just visible inside. They highlight his body, bleeding glow across the edges of the faded t-shirt that hangs almost to his thighs, the shorts with the torn hems, the spoon he’s holding, knuckles white. Only his face remains hidden, unreadable in the shadow. JC narrows his eyes against the glare, blinking hard as Chris shakes his head and pushes back his hair, fingers pushing through dark strands gilded with light.
“I thought you were coming back next week?” Chris steps out of the doorway his bare feet padding against the ground as he hurries to take JC’s bag from the trunk. He loops it over his shoulder where it slaps against his bare leg as he turns to JC, waiting for an answer.
“I was.” JC doesn’t look at Chris as he locks up the car, closing windows and setting alarms. “I came back.”
JC doesn’t know what he expected but all Chris does is shrug.
“I was making dinner. I suppose it could stretch to two.”
All JC can do is follow as Chris goes back inside.
~*~*~*~
“You’ve got time to shower; I still have to steam the rice.”
JC considers. He feels dirty, skin clogged with dust and sweat that itches each time he moves, but at the same time he doesn’t want to leave this stool. From here he can watch as Chris bustles around the kitchen, stirring a pot that steams and suddenly spits, making Chris suck at his wrist with a glare.
“I won’t eat it all you know.” Chris looks at JC through his eyelashes, his words muffled around his wrist. “So go, get clean.”
“Are you saying I stink?”
“If I thought you stank I’d say that,” Chris says. He’s rubbing a finger over his wrist now, poking at the reddened skin. “But you look like you’ve been sleeping on a park bench, so go. Get clean.”
JC can take a hint, especially when Chris picks up a spatula, pointing it in his direction. “Okay, going. Give me a yell when it’s done.” Ignoring Chris comments about servants JC slips down from the stool, feeling the scrape of plastic against his legs.
Upstairs, the master bathroom gleams when JC switches on the light, tile and counter spotless and shining. A toothbrush stands up in a glass, alone when it shouldn’t be, and he takes a step back outside. Then reaches for the shower instead, adjusting the temperature and spray as he kicks off his clothes.
JC steps into the shower and lets out a sigh. He braces himself against the wall, hands flat against the tile, head down, as the water pounds against his skin, cleaning and relaxing muscles that have been tight for too long.
“JC!” Chris yells, his voice easily carrying up the stairs. Reluctantly, JC straightens and quickly rummages through the bottles on the shelf, looking for one he can use on his hair. He settles on something that smells good despite the unfamiliar bottle, lathering a blob into his hair then rinsing it out with a blast of cold water that leaves him shivering as he wraps a towel around his waist and another around his head.
Kicking his clothes into a pile under the sink, JC opens the connecting bedroom door, a cloud of steam billowing after him. He can hear Chris downstairs, singing along to the radio and can’t help smiling at the familiar sound.
The song ends and Chris yells up the stairs. “One minute before I eat yours.”
JC hurries into the bedroom, bare feet sinking into the carpet with each step. He leaves off the light, automatically readjusting to this space, this place he’s walked through so many time before.
It’s simple to reach into a closet, grabbing t-shirt and shorts. Simple to towel at his hair and slip on the clothes, not so simple to see the big double bed and the bedside cabinet that’s been stripped bare. The books pushed into bags, the pens swept into a drawer, propelled there under JC’s hand when he was frustrated and needed to run away.
~*~*~*~
“Die Hard.” Chris says, fingers sliding along the spines of DVDs as he reads. “Lord of the Rings, Queer as Folk, Youngblood, Mighty Ducks, Green Mile, Dumbo, The Shining.” He stops then, drumming a beat with his finger-tips against the shelf. “You know what there is anyway, so pick now before I do it for you.”
“Lord of the Rings, the first one.” JC says, deciding quickly. He settles back further into the corner of the couch, sprawled and full as Chris pulls the DVD from the others.
“Don’t think I don’t know you’ve a thing for that elf.”
“What can I say, the ears turn me on.”
Chris rolls his eyes then thumps down onto his knees, t-shirt riding up expose a broad strip of skin as he bends forward to slide the disc into the machine.
Memories merge with reality as JC stares, the way Chris looks back and smiles, the way he stands, rubbing at his knees. Things that had faded into the usual, making JC think they’d slipped away.
“Sit with me.” JC settles back into the corner of the couch, regretting every word, every action that causes Chris to hesitate, because hurting him was never part of the plan. “Please.”
Chris sits then, arms crossed and back straight as he stares at the tv. The tension in the air heavy with remembered words.
“I’m sorry.” The words slip out easily, free after being held back so long, hidden behind small talk as JC phoned home each day.
“Me too.” Chris gives up pretending to watch the movie, turning so he can look directly at JC. “I said some horrible things. I never meant any of them.”
“So I’m not ass-licking scum with one hand down my pants and the other on a mouse?” JC risks the joke, relaxing back into the cushion when Chris’ mouth tugs up at the corners.”
“Maybe I meant some of them.” He laughs, ducking JC’s hand, them lies back, leg just touching JC’s. “So you’re staying?”
“I’m staying,” JC agrees, covering Chris’ hand with his own.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2005-08-11 12:54 pm (UTC)But you lost me here :
JC steps into the shower and lets out a sigh. He braces himself against the wall, hands flat against the tile, head down, as the water pounds against his skin, cleaning and relaxing muscles that have been tight for too long.
GUH! ;-)
no subject
Date: 2005-08-11 01:04 pm (UTC)But thank you ;)
no subject
Date: 2005-08-11 01:06 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-08-11 01:21 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-08-12 08:54 am (UTC)Can it be my birthday next? lol.
If I'm not SeSa stressed then I'll see what I can do ;)
no subject
Date: 2005-08-12 12:42 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-08-11 01:50 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-08-12 08:55 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-08-13 06:57 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-08-11 02:41 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-08-12 08:55 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-08-11 06:10 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-08-12 08:56 am (UTC)I know when your birthday is, you have an IOU for the last one ;)
no subject
Date: 2005-08-11 06:47 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-08-12 08:57 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-08-11 07:38 pm (UTC)I am totally unable to find the words that I want to use to convey how much I love the story. *sigh*
no subject
Date: 2005-08-12 08:58 am (UTC)I'm so glad you enjoyed it and hope you had a great day.
*hugs tight*
no subject
Date: 2005-08-12 01:45 am (UTC)Can they have sex in part2? ;)
}:)
no subject
Date: 2005-08-12 08:59 am (UTC)The story is incredibly awkward, full of silences and not talking, I'm so glad you saw that :)
Can they have sex in part2? ;)
Just imagine they're having it now *g*
no subject
Date: 2005-08-12 12:21 pm (UTC)*whines* But I want youuuuuuuu to write it! :D
}:)
no subject
Date: 2005-08-12 06:03 am (UTC)*smooshes them closer together*
*looks*
*shrugs*
*smooshes one into the other's lap*
There.
Much better.
but good LORD, it can't get much better, because That? Was Fantastic.
no subject
Date: 2005-08-12 09:01 am (UTC)Thank you so much for all your help :)