Title: The Morning After
Fandom: Jericho
Characters: Jake, Stanley
Genre: Jake/Stanley friendship/slash (very mild)
Word Count: 1566
Rating: PG
Warnings/Spoilers: 1x09
Summary: "After the Fight" sequel: Jake and Stanley in the morning after Jake's night at the ranch.
The Morning After
As soon as Jake began to wake up, there were two things he registered. The first one was that he was a bit disorientated, which hadn't been the case in quite a while. The second and most surprising was that there was a warm body spooned against him, even though he didn't remember taking a girl home the night before… hell, he couldn't remember taking a girl home in weeks; oh, well, at least he did sleep well. When he finally opened his eyes, he frowned. That most certainly wasn't his room.
It took him a few seconds for the events of the night before to come back to him and, with it, came the realization that the other person in the bed was none other than his best friend Stanley Richmond. He groaned.
"Having remorse, sweetheart?" a joking voice came to his ears.
"Shut up, Stan'!" Jake growled, finally sitting up and looking at his friend.
He frowned again when he saw that Stanley had apparently had the time to freshen up and get dressed before lying back down on the bed with him, probably waiting for his waking up. Jake also noticed that the sun was already up in the sky and was bathing the room in a bright light; he wondered how he hadn't been woken up by it earlier.
"What time is it?" he asked.
"Almost eleven," Stanley informed. "You really needed to sleep."
Well, no wonder he felt so rested. He hadn't had such a good night since the bomb had exploded, pulling the town into chaos. He had, of course, taken a few hours of sleep here and there, but never a real night. He had to admit it, it was nice and he was almost sure that it had been more than partially because of Stanley's presence at his side.
Stanley had always had a calming effect on him. He felt strangely safe with him and maybe it was because being with him always make him think back on his childhood, when everything was still easy, when all he had to worry about was doing his homework and house chores.
"Thank you," Jake said, meaning it. "You didn't have to do that."
Stanley shook his head and sat down on the edge of the bed.
"You would have done the same for me," he sighed. "And you really needed to rest, Jake. For God's sake, you have been running yourself into the ground since you came back to Jericho. You have done anything you could and then some more. You would have crashed down in the end and you know it. You shouldn't have let things go that far."
"I know. I just… every time I go to sleep, the nightmares…. Sometimes, it's just easier to avoid it altogether," he admitted, looking down.
"You were in a war zone," Stanley stated, not as surprised as he ought to have been.
All the new skills that Jake had showed since he came back, the calmness and the level-headed attitude he demonstrated during the various crisis had all converged together when his friend had admitted that the mercenary situation had brought back memories to him and the conclusion hadn't been very difficult to make.
Jake looked up and into Stanley's eyes.
"Stan', I…"
"I won't ask you about. I'm not going to pry. But when you're ready to talk about it, I promise I will listen. And I won't judge."
Jake was so surprised that the words failed him for a few moments and he swallowed with difficulty.
"Thanks," he said, his voice hoarse.
Stanley smiled and got up, offering his hand to Jake.
"Now what do you say we go down and have breakfast, preferably before the girls think I've got you tied up to the bed?"
Jake snorted but took the hand nonetheless.
"And now, why would they think that, huh?"
"Oh, well, you know, Mimi saw me sneak in your room last night and not going out 'til morning so who knows what her dirty little mind has come up with, especially considering the fact that I came back here after taking my showed. And then, she will use this as something to bond over with Bonnie and we will be doomed."
Jake fixed his friend for a while, trying to decided whether he was serious or not but it had always been a difficult task with Stanley.
"You're kidding, right?"
"Nope, she really wants to find something to bond over with Bonnie."
Jake shook his head and laughed.
"Alright, so I will just go down and assure the girls that you didn't have your wicked way with me," he said, getting up and padding towards the door.
"Yep, you do that," Stanley approved and he watched Jake get out of the room.
Smiling to himself, he took his time to make the bed and open the window before going down to the kitchen.
"The girls left for town," Jake told him as soon as he entered the room. "They needed to go to Gracie's."
Stanley nodded and stayed silent for a while, letting Jake have his breakfast in a comfortable silence. It had been a while since they had time to do just that. Not running around or trying to solve a situation but just sit down and enjoy each other's company in peace. Not once had it happened since the bombs exploded, and therefore five years earlier.
After a while, Jake got up only to sit down closer to Stanley. The latter turned his head to him and raised an eyebrow in question but Jake just smiled before resting his head against his friend's shoulder.
Stanley was left speechless. That was something new. But he most certainly wasn't going to complain, not when he got to be that close to his best friend. Silently, he let his arm come around his friend's shoulders and held him closer. It wasn't often that Jake let the though act slip and people see the man – boy behind the façade. But when he did, it was in the search of someone willing to give comfort and Stanley never once turned him down ; he never would either.
"Stan'?" Jake began, hesitating only a little.
When only a questioning noise answered, he continued.
"Since you regressed back to childhood last night, you think I can go back to teenage years?" he asked.
Stanley let Jake go to be able to look at him, half-amused, half-asking.
"And what do you mean by that?" he wondered out loud.
"Can you come with me to talk to my dad?" he asked, biting his lower lip.
That startled a laugh out of Stanley. He just couldn't help it. The last time Jake asked him something like that, they must have been seventeen and it was just after a very bad story involving a bar, a brawl and a hotwired car.
"It's not fun!" Jake exclaimed but he conceded when he saw Stanley's incredulous look. "Okay, maybe just a little, but you will do it right?"
Stanley shook his head.
"Whatever you want, Jake, whatever you want."
He received a relieved smile in return and couldn't help but internally laugh at the fact that a man who wasn't afraid of risking his life on a fairly regular basis was scared to face his own father alone. Briefly Stanley wondered what would the Green say when he showed up at their house, with Jake, like they did fifteen years before. Would they see the pattern or would they just think that Stanley had tagged along because he needed to come to town too?
"Then let's go, I would rather get this done," Jake stated.
And it was true. He may not have been very keen on facing Johnston Green after their discussion the night before but he would have to do it sooner or later… so he quite frankly preferred the sooner. At least it would be done with it and behind him and, with a little bit of chance, his father would have had time to cool down with the help of his mom and they would be able to have a normal conversation, with Stanley to back him up or take him out if need be.
Getting up, Jake took at face value what he hoped he had understood correctly during the last twenty-four hours and kissed Stanley on the lips, praying internally he wouldn't ruin their friendship. He was reassured when he felt his friend answer the kiss but broke it up way too soon for his liking.
"You know even when things work out with your dad, you should at least spend another night here; it wouldn't do well to force yourself in close quarters with him so soon after a fight."
"You're right, I should. And I will probably have nightmares again," Jake continued, playing it along.
"Now… we can't have that. But I've got a way to keep the nightmares at bay in my room."
They exchanged a smile. It was easier, more natural, than either of them would have thought it would be. In one instant everything had changed but, at the same time, everything was still the same. And that was the most important thing.
"Well, let's go talk to your dad."
And when the door closed, it was on a renewed complicity that ran deeper than ever before.