In The Path Of The Sun
*For the Tower Prep Fic Fest. Prompt: Ian never even considered Gabe was the mole, not once. This is one of TWO fics I'm filling out for this prompt. The happy one (this one) where Ian knows Gabe isn't the snitch, and he's right. And the other (In The Shadows Of The Night), the one where he's wrong.*
"But it's times like this when our guard is down that can get us all busted." Ian turned his gaze to Suki, "Like with your father, Suki," he said as an example. Hazel green eyes turned cold as he directed them at CJ, "Or Cal, CJ," he added darkly, and she looked away. Glancing up, he went on, "And Gabe, you and I are pretty solid but we have to be on guard at all times."
Gabe nodded, knowing that in that sentence alone no truer words had ever been spoken. Besides the two others in this room, they hardly ever spoke to anyone outside of themselves.
They were safe that way, secure. And Gabe would sometimes prefer if no one, not even CJ and Suki, entered their little bubble.
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Ian sat on the edge of his bed, right leg jiggling restlessly as he stared at the closed door in the wall. Gabe sat at his side, shoulder to shoulder, their thighs brushing. The blond shuddered, inhaling a shaking breath before he closed his eyes and folded his arms over his chest in what Gabe instantly recognized as Ian putting up his walls. "It's okay," he whispered, laying a hand on the other's leg.
"It's not," Ian replied shortly, keeping his eyes squeezed shut. "I let the Gnomes get Conner. I didn't help him at all."
"I stopped you," Gabe pointed out reasonably.
Ian exhaled, swallowing, "Don't you think it's a little suspicious, Gabe? This is the second time the Gnomes have taken out people who relied on us. First The Broken, and now Conner." He shook his head, blinking his eyes open again, "Someone's been ratting us out from day one."
Gabe raised a skeptical eyebrow, "From day one? That's a little harsh, don't you think?"
"You almost walked straight into the Gnomes when I first met you," Ian said sharply, "As if they were waiting for you."
"Are you saying I'm a sneak?" Gabe snorted, relieved when Ian laughed grimly as well.
"No, never."
"The girls then?"
Ian shook his head again, shrugging his shoulders, "I don't know, Gabe. I just don't know anymore." He uncrossed his arms, slumping in defeat, "Some leader I am, I can't even pick out a traitor from the loyal."
"A secret is a secret because no one knows it," Gabe murmured, tugging on the sleeve of Ian's shirt as he lay back on the bed, "Stop thinking about it so hard."
"Yes, mom," Ian huffed, following him down and stretching out beside the bespectacled teen on his stomach, pressing his face into his pillow with a heavy sigh. Gabe chuckled, rolling over and wrapping an arm over the blonde's back, pressing his lips to the crown of Ian's head. Ian curled into him with an unintelligible mumble.
"We'll get through this," Gabe whispered.
Ian made a noise of protest, "Don't you try to Hyper-suade me into believing that, Gabe."
"Not believe," Gabe corrected, "Know. I know we'll get through this. Besides, I have much better uses for my power than stating the obvious."
"Such as . . ." Ian prompted.
"Making other students give me their desserts, convincing Fenton that he loves to help me with math homework, getting Ray to leave me alone, saying there's a stain on your shirt until you actually believe it's there and take it off . . ." Gabe grinned.
"You're evil."
"You love it."
"You're a terrible person."
"Don't you have some pajamas to put on?"
Ian growled and sat up, shoving Gabe off the bed, "Not tonight, Gabe." He leaned down, grabbing the maps from where they had fallen on the floor, "I should have done something."
There was no winning this argument, Gabe decided with a sigh.
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Gabe rested his head in his hands as he took up root at his desk after Ian left, wishing to God he'd done something to stop him. It wasn't as if he hadn't tried, hell, he'd even insisted on going with him. Damn Ian and his stupid protective streak and hero pride.
"And all he says is 'later' and I say 'be careful,'" He hissed, frustrated with himself.
So he prayed. Prayed that whoever was giving their movements away wouldn't find the absolute poison he held in the small vial in his hands, prayed that Ian would be safe in the tunnels, prayed that help would come.
He prayed that when morning dawned, Ian would be back, and that this would no longer feel like a deadly final goodbye.
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Ian's heart went to his throat as CJ spoke, informing him that Gabe was gone, sent to West Campus. He shouldn't have left. How could he have left Gabe all alone with the Chemica Desin? All alone period? Not when there was a spy in their midst who had even gone so far as to turn their friends in now. Ian growled, turning his back to her and stepping towards the tunnels again, knowing what he had to do right that second before it was far too late.
Anger flared up in his chest as she tried to stop him, and he gritted his teeth. He wanted to whirl on her, to yell at her and tell her to back off because none of this would have happened if she had simply picked a side. But he had nothing to go on, no real proof that she was the snitch. Even so, he let out a snarl between his teeth and gave her ulterior orders when she tried to follow him. Stop him.
He was going to get Gabe out of West Campus if it was the last thing he ever did. Because Gabe was loyal, Gabe believed in him.
His heart told him that CJ didn't, if she ever had at all.
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"Sometimes I wonder if we trust each other too much," Gabe murmured, drawing whorls and swirls in the dirt with a stick, his back to a sturdy tree. "Everyone knows we do, and it's not like they haven't used it against us before," he went on, frowning, "Next time, one of us is going to get hurt."
"No one's going to get hurt," Ian sighed, gazing up at the sky and the stars that were starting to blink into existence overhead as the sun sunk below the horizon, "Not if I can help it."
"And what if you can't, like today?" Gabe asked, glancing at him. "They took me to West Campus, Ian, and you weren't there to stop it."
"I should have been-"
Gabe snorted, "But you weren't, Ian. And they didn't just take me because of the Chemica Desin, they did it because I'm a weakness to you, and they expected to catch you trying to free me. Just like with Howard, or the Rooks."
Ian turned to him, their shoulders brushing as he shrugged, "Not all weaknesses are a bad thing."
"But their certainly not a safe thing either," Gabe argued.
The blond smiled, letting out a soft laugh, "No, they're not. But I'd say they're worth it," he elbowed Gabe as the other blushed. "You know," he added, "I never doubted you. Not once."
Gabe smirked, tilting his head up so that their eyes met, "Can't really say the same for you, buddy," he said airily, watching as Ian gaped at him, shocked. "I saw you trying to mack on CJ back there, and if it weren't for my impressive skills at interruption, you would have."
"That doesn't mean I was a traitor," Ian huffed, crossing his arms, "I was just a little caught up in the moment."
The bespectacled teen made a mock gagging noise, grabbing Ian's shirt collar, "Just don't do it again."
"Gabe . . ." Ian started warningly, but Gabe tugged him down, pressing a quick kiss to his lips.
"Don't make me Hyper-suade you," he warned, pulling away.
And Ian laughed, breathing in the air of their uncertain freedom and the feeling of the unshakeable trust between them.
RANDOM AUTHOR RAMBLE
Whoa, Happy!Fic is happy. The other one is so much angst. GAH. Anywho . . . This is how I see the two of them in their private life, actually. So it was fun to write that finally. O 3o nothing much to say otherwise. Go read the alternate version! And send letters and emails to CN to renew the show for a second season!