Title:Replaced With Imagination
Word Count:166
Disclaimer: I don't own it, wish I did though.
Notes: Come ride the Pineapple trolley.
"No amount of skillful invention can replace the essential element of imagination."
~ Edward Hopper
They both acknowledge that they're replacements. It's not something Carlton and Nick talk about exclusively of course, but they know. There are signs, not blatantly obvious, but they're there if you know where to look. A touch too long here or a look which lingers can say a lot without saying anything at all.
Nick and Lassiter don't talk about it. They never bring the secret to light because at least this way they have a warm body to wake up next to instead of being cold and alone. They understand each other, but they don't love one another. So as soon as they walk through the front door they're on each other, clothes off, grinding desperately on the bed.
And when Lassiter closes his eyes and he can almost imagine that the man sliding in and out of him is someone entirely different. That the soft kisses traveling up and down his neck is someone with bright hazel eyes and a condescending smirk.