Chapters
Roxas Destati
It started as a drizzle, wet air that simply made his skin cold and hair damp but as the hour passed and the sky grew darker with the settling night, a downpour began. It was ironic, coincidental as the darker his thoughts grew, the heavier the rain fell. He sneered silently at nothing, the expression almost malicious on his sharp face. The Englishman felt foolish, neglected, but most of all, he felt an emptiness so profound it made his chest ache. His mind was stranded amidst an ocean of emotions he detested, his eyes staring off into the rain without seeing anything.
How had it happened?
He should never have looked into that Mormon brat.
Gregory rubbed his soaking face in exasperation with freezing hands, ignoring the sheet of rain stinging his skin and making him shiver unconsciously. It hardly made any difference to him if he ended up sick or not anymore. All he could be bothered with was how he could have gone without knowing, without dealing with these feelings that he couldn't stand.
"You want a background check on ze 'Arrison boy?"
"Is that too much to ask?"
"Non, eet eez just.. why?"
Gregory shrugged. "No one is that perfect."
The young Frenchman laughed. "So you are.. jealous?"
"Of course not. That's preposterous. Are you going to do a check or not?"
"Oui. I weel check my sources."
The blond huffed, his breath fogged in the air. He shouldn't have made that stupid request. He should've just done it himself. But he'd thought it'd been fine to speak with the dirt-loving mercenary. They hadn't been together in so long ever since...
Gregory winced.
He'd thought he was over it, over the fight that had ended them and the hurt he'd suffered from it. He thought himself above heartache, above that fluttering in one's chest or the knots of guilt and regret that hurt the stomach.
They were watching a team of teens playing basketball, sneakers scraping concrete and bodies moving with speedy agility. Gregory's 'target' was among them, laughing at the antics of the Marsh boy who had taken to making faces at the Jew when he wasn't looking. He snorted and glanced at the brunette who had just taken that moment to stalk up from behind him, a cigarette dangling from his lips. He looked pleased about something despite the nasty bruise spreading across one of his cheeks and the cut marring his bottom lip. He had half a mind to ask.
"Well?" he'd asked, voice short and to the point.
"'E eez completely clean."
Gregory made a face. "Your.. sources tell you that?"
"Oui."
The blond eyed him warily, his throat tightening in the others presence in the way it always did. He felt a surge of cruel humor bubbling up, the need to be spiteful burning his chest. He stamped it down and chuckled halfheartedly instead. "And your sources gave you that ghastly bruise?"
"Ah. Ze Broflovski boy 'as an eencredible fuckeeng right 'ook."
Gregory brow shot up in question.
"'E does not.. appreciate eet when people sneak eento 'is bedroom weendow zough you would zink 'e would learn to lock ze damn zing."
"Kyle Broflovski?"
Christophe "The Mole" De Lourne grinned at him in a way that had Gregory narrowing his gaze. It was a sly grin, one that said the brunette had been up to something. "Do you know any ozzer Broflovski?"
"He does have a brother."
"'E does? Well, I meant Kyle."
"...So Broflovski is your source."
"Oui."
Gregory snorted. "And he's reliable? How on earth did you manage to get information out of him after breaking into his room and earning yourself a battered face? I'm surprised he even managed to hit you."
"I made eet up to 'im."
"You made it up to him."
"Oui. I fucked 'im."
"...You-." Gregory snickered at first despite the hole ripping into his chest. It hurt, it hurt like a bitch, but he'd be damned before he let the filthy mercenary see it.
He sighed, rubbing his face again and staring up into the rain with a frown. He hadn't seen that coming. It never occurred to him that Christophe might move on and leave him behind. He had no room to speak, no room to argue, no right to object. But it hurt just the same. Gregory had been so tied up in competing with Gary Harrison of all people. It was infuriating, how the good boy of the school never seemed to do any wrong or mess up. It was even more annoying that he, Gregory, a student of Yardale, couldn't seem to win at anything anymore when it came to Gary. It didn't matter what he said or did, the Mormon always had something to say back. On top of everything, he was so damn nice about it that it made him want to punch him just to see if he'd bleed like any other human.
"Well, 'e pulled up ze Mormon's records after 'e assured me zat 'e really eez as good as 'e seems.'E said eet eez.. irritateeng but true. And 'is records are spotless."
"That is irritating."
How could someone be so downright good? It couldn't be possible, he had to have some sort of weakness to play on as low as that was. He'd admit he was a bit of a sadist but he couldn't seem to help it around the goody-two-shoes. Gregory stared at his hands silently, his soaked hair dangling in his face as he clenched his cold fingers, the leather of the gloves he'd been wearing squeaking quietly. Nothing seemed to phase Gary Harrison, nothing at all.
"'E also told me zat you 'ave been followeeng ze Mormon around lately."
"No, I've simply been staking out the competition."
Maybe he had been following him around a lot lately, but he had to find the other male's weakness somehow. Everyone has an Achilles's heel and he was damn determined to find Gary's.
The Mole eyed him, his dark eyes critical. "Competition? So zis eez about your superiority complex."
Gregory was glaring at him now, his smooth accent steady despite the venom in his voice. "No, this is about someone being suspiciously perfect to the point that it's creepy."
He felt like his memories were arguing with him now. He felt that familiar surge of anger he'd felt and the regret. Superiority complex? Perhaps. He hated it so much, he hated how quick the other blond was to respond to him... didn't he?
His brow furrowed.
Maybe at first... no, he still hated it.
"Non, you are jealous and like 'im."
Gregory frowned deeply. He remembered snorting in response, saying something harsh even as he had stared off at the same blond they were arguing about, unaware of the war he'd initiated in the Englishman's mind. He didn't like Gary. He..
"Kyle told me. 'E zays any time you speak to 'im, it's like you're initiateeng some kind of challenge and zis.. Gary.. never loses. You walk around growleeng like an angry tiger but you keep comeeng back for more. Sounds to me like you like figheeng wiz 'im."
He'd said something rude then but he couldn't remember what it was, his memory wearing a bit the more irritated he'd gotten with Mole. It always seemed to happen. Every conversation ended in some sort of argument, some sort of insult. It hurt, it always hurt but he couldn't stop it.
But it was true.
No matter how much Gary's clever comebacks or naturally nice personality utterly pissed him off, he wandered back, determined to win 'this time'. In all honesty, neither of them were losing but neither was anyone winning. Even when he'd rubbed in his fencing skills, Gary had simply congratulated him in being so talented and how much he envied that without any hint of irony or sarcasm. It'd thrown him for a loop. He wasn't sure if Gary was some sort of secret genius of lies or genuinely naïve when he'd purposely acted arrogant.
"You're nozzeeng but a 'urt beetch 'oo doesn't realize when 'e 'as met 'is fuckeeng match. So you tuck your damn tail between your fuckeeng beetch legs and snap at 'im because you are scared of likeeng anyzing like ze insecure leettle cocksucker you are."
Had he hit him after that? He wasn't sure. Had he argued? He had no idea. He only remembered walking away and leaving Christophe there frowning after him over something. He deserved it, every single word. Especially after he-
The rain suddenly stopped, the sensation of the heavy curtain of water hitting his frozen form suddenly ceasing despite that it was still falling steadily around him. Someone was standing next to him, a pair of sneakers stepping forward from behind him to stand on the curb close to his side. The soaked blond silently looked up at the male standing over him, umbrella in hand and met with a familiar pair of hazel eyes. He paused, simply staring into the quiet gaze watching him and found himself between groaning in frustration and welcoming the others presence.
Fuck, he really needed to figure out his emotions.
"What's wrong? Are you... looking for something?" Gary quietly asked though he didn't seem to mean it in the way most would think. There was something there today, a strange understanding that Gregory had a hard time grasping.
The Englishman hung his head, staring at his soaked black slacks with mild distaste. "I don't know. Maybe."
Gary nodded quietly, his head tilted up and staring out into the rain much like Gregory had done before. Silence fell between them, a comfortable silence that seemed to make the air still and calm. It was the first time it'd happened between them and the soaked-through of the two found himself falling into it without a fight. A hand descended on his shoulder, the fingers grasping the wet fabric of the coat he often wore against the cold. He turned his head and looked up as he tugged on the fabric in a beckoning manner, silently asking the frozen blond to stand.
His brow furrowed. "Why?" It was a simple question without the necessity to elaborate.
"Why not?"
He should've seen that coming.
Gregory sighed in a defeated manner, all the fight in him gone as he stood. His body yelled in protest, his body wracked with newly awakened shivers from the new bout of cold striking him to his very core. He no longer felt angry or spiteful or even the need resist the arm that slid around his shoulder. He simply felt lost, his mind once again at sea.
The silence was falling again, their steps sure and without falter as they continued to stride along casually in the night. It occurred to him at some point to ask why the Mormon was even out so late or even ask where they were going but he couldn't be bothered. Instead he casually pressed against the other male who matched him in height easily, leeching what warmth he could without being obvious about it. It would be a lie to say the English male didn't feel the least bit pathetic about being dragged out of the rain like a child, but he didn't protest the treatment. It was almost.. nice in a way, dare he say it.
Gregory would rather die under a painful penalty of death than admit such a thing.
Gary didn't comment or start any sort of conversation. It wasn't long before they reached a familiar house that the other male identified as Gary's residence. He glanced at him as he unlocked the door, preparing to turn and leave when a hand grabbed his coat sleeve and tugged him inside. Gregory glared at Gary, opening his mouth to retort but the other blond was already closing the front door and locking it, not even paying him any mind. He set a plastic grocery bag off to the side that the other hadn't even noticed him carrying as he went through the motions of propping his newly closed umbrella by the door and hanging his jacket before sliding out of his shoes.
The house was dark and strangely quiet, leaving the dripping blond wondering as Gary motioned him up the stairs. He followed warily, both of them ignoring that he was dripping on the carpet of the stairs. He glanced at the pictures on the darkened walls of the house, taking in the happy faces of family members young and old when they reached the landing and it became too dark to see. A warm hand slid into his, leading him forward into the dark.
What was he doing? Why was he going along with this?
Whatever 'this' was.
A door opened and they turned, a hand pressing to Gregory's chest to stop him before a light flipped on. Blinded a moment, the Englishman stayed there a moment, blinking against the light before glancing around as his vision cleared. It was a rather average bedroom, much to his surprise. The walls were littered with various sports posters, some trophies hiding at the top of a crammed bookshelf, and a T.V. with an xBox hooked up to it. The blond raised a brow. He'd never imagined the other to be the video gaming type in the least.
"Here you go."
Gregory turned abruptly only to find a few towels thrust in his direction.
He cocked a brow in the others direction.
Gary chuckled and gestured to a door a few feet from them. "You're freezing and your clothes are dripping. Go use my shower, okay?"
The Englishman smirked. "Eager to have me naked are you?"
Gregory hadn't expected the reaction he got for that. Gary had paused, mouth open and hazel eyes widening a fraction mid-response. But it was the red that had flooded the other male's cheeks that had stumped the clever Englishman. He'd never seen such a look on the others face, he'd never managed to catch him off guard so entirely that it filled him with a smug sense of satisfaction. Could he have actually found a weakness? He could only imagine. He should have figured that saying something so crude would have embarrassed someone who seemed so pure.
Though, there was the thought that perhaps there was something more going on with Gary than he thought. People only get so flustered when you've spoken the truth.
Gregory paused.
Now that was an interesting thought.
"Just... Just get washed, okay?"
The colder blond smirked in an unsettling manner. "As you wish, Mormon."
He was staring off again, eyes glued to the tile in front of him, that cream color that decorated the shower walls. His limbs were tingling pleasantly as the blood in them warmed again beneath the hot spray of the shower head above him. It had burned at first, his skin having been so absolutely chilled to the bone that the warm water had seared him through and reddened his otherwise pale skin.
He'd washed long ago, using the soaps and the like lying casually about the tub's sides, but still he stood there. Thoughts? He had none. Not at that moment. He'd already driven himself crazy with thinking to the point he didn't dare do anymore. A sigh escaped him and he finally moved from his stationary position, hands reaching up and habitually sliding backward through the sopping wet blond strands. The Englishman turned beneath the spray over the water, facing the shock of warmth briefly, and reach for the knobs, turning them off. The sound of rushing water ceased and a lull of quiet filled the bathroom for a moment as he pulled the shower curtain back.
"No.."
A towel made its way into the blond's hand as he glanced up at the sound of the Mormon male who stood just beyond the bathroom door. A soft chuckle followed the softly spoken word as Gregory began to rub down diligently to get dry.
"Yes. Mom, it'll be fine... yes, I'm sure. He's a friend from school."
Mom? Gregory's eyebrows shot up in curiosity. He heard no voice returning or prompting the others statements, leading the English male to wrap the towel he held around his waist in a tight fashion before using the second on the rack to rub at his soaked hair idly so that he could go to investigate. Stepping toward the door, he pushed it open a few inches, light brown eyes watching the Mormon boy cross the bedroom before him, a phone touched to his ear. The other blond didn't notice his emerging, his back to him as he spoke.
"I know. Yes ma'am. I'll make sure to do that." There was a quiet chuckled. "I love you too. I'm sorry again for waking you."
Gregory watched this exchange curiously, eyebrow raised as he leaned against the frame of the bathroom door casually. The Mormon standing before him pulled the phone from his ear after a cheerful goodbye and with a beep, the wireless device was off.
"Your mum?"
Gary peered at him quietly over his shoulder at the barely clothed Englishman. His cheeks tinted a light red, something that looked surprisingly attractive on his usually calm countenance. A sheepish smile slid on his lips in a way that had Gregory reevaluating where he stood with the Mormon. "Yeah. My family's actually not here right now. They went to take care of some cancer patients in a hospital in Denver for the weekend."
Gregory straightened up a bit though the casual sense of his stance remained as Gary sat on the edge of his bed, unaware of the way the others eyes seemed to bare down on him like a hawk. "And you remained? How odd. I was under the impression that your family never roams from one another."
An amused chuckle was his response. "Actually, I have an essay due Monday. I needed extra time to finish it and my family left yesterday. I managed to get it done shortly before I ran into you."
"I see."
Gary smiled easily, feet shuffling back and forth like a child. "Well, you're welcome to make yourself at home. There's um.. ah, a pair of shorts and a T-shirt for you at the edge of the bed." The Mormon's cheeks tinted a soft red again and he motioned toward the pieces of clothing sitting at the foot of the bed.
But the Englishman ignored him, instead taking to observing the room again, his interest temporarily lost in the other boy. Gary's brow knit slightly at the blatant disregard the other had for the fact that he was standing in the middle of his room in a towel but made no protest. Rather, he leaned back slightly, politely averting his eyes to some other part of the room, away from the display of skin that tempted him to look back again.
"So, how long have you liked men?"
Gary jumped, his head turning and meeting the other blond's accusatory gaze only inches from his face. The more innocent of the two flushed and started crawling back and away from him, the Englishman smiling in a mocking manner as he crawled forward onto the bed after him.
"W-what on earth are you talking about? I don't like other guys." The cornered blond was frowning, something the other found a bit out of place on his face. He was teasing, pushing, and seeing how far he could tempt the 'pure' Mormon boy. It was sadistic really, how much he wanted to find out if the blond was simply modest or embarrassed for less than pure reasons. He was sure this was the one thing he could use against him, the one thing that got a nice reaction. Gary was flustered, stuttering, and all Gregory wanted was more of that.
The Englishman reached up, gripping Gary's shoulder firmly and pressing him down, forcing the other boy to lie as he crawled over him. The towel was slipping, hanging loosely from his hips once his hand abandoned its hold on the side to grip the other male's hip instead. Gary squirmed beneath him, trying to crawl away only to have Gregory hold on tighter, the European smirking at the panicked and flustered expression on his face.
"Oh come now, Gary. Isn't this what you wanted? To have me here with you alone?"
"N-no! Ah! Y-your towel-!"
Gregory raised a blond eyebrow at him, his expression mocking. He knew very well what had him panicking, the other blond glancing down and away quickly with a dark red expression as he felt the slip of cloth sliding down, revealing more of the trail of blond hair on his abdomen.
He leaned down, a smirk on his lips as he brushed them against the athlete's cheek and trailed down, chuckling as he felt the shudder that rippled through the other male. Gary's hands were gripping his shoulders, pushing though the other wasn't applying near enough force. Another smirk and his teeth found the skin of his shoulder, tugging a soft gasp of alarm and new squirm from the blond. A few more protests met his ears, all stutters and heightening pitches that egged him on. His hands slid over his sides, coaxing him quietly as one hand ventured beneath his shirt and stroked along the heated flesh hidden under the fabric.
"A-ah.." The lean muscles he found along his abdomen jumped beneath his touch, shuddering in a delightful way that had the Englishman eager to touch him more. Each reaction drove the more arrogant of the two to touch him more, exciting him by the way he responding so easily to him now even if they were all conflicted and unsure in sound. Had he ever liked touching someone for the first time this much? He wasn't sure, but it wasn't about to stop him.
"This is.. G-Gregory.."
He was panting, breath short and trembling. Gregory smiled again, taunting him though the Mormon couldn't see from the way he'd pressed his face into his neck. He bit him, clamping the skin between his teeth and causing Gary's back to arch suddenly as he shouted softly in alarm, fingers digging hard into the Englishman's shoulders and pulling him closer.
Well.
He ground his hips down, drawing a groan from them both. The towel did well with soft friction, protecting him from rubbing raw against the fabric of Gary's pants. There was a responding hardness against his own, exciting him as he ground down against the blond Mormon again and basking in the startled moan that he had pulled from him. "You're so responsive." he murmured as he mused aloud against the skin of his skin, every grind of his hips forcing another bodily shudder and trembling whimper out of the blond busily clutching at the bare skin of his back.
Lips brushed together and a slick tongue slid inside without warning or care, sliding against the timid muscle lying within the Mormon's mouth and coaxing it to respond. Hands slid down, gripping under the others jean clad thighs and hooking them around his fairly naked waist, his hips mimicking the intimate slide of in and out known for such a compromising position. Gregory's mouth trailed away, tongue retreating as he lined the other male's jaw with soft kisses.
"Bad.. B-bad.." Gary was fumbling again, words unsteady as he tried to pull his mind back from where it had fallen behind the white noise of lust. "T-this.. is bad.."
"It's only sex, Gary." Gregory responded easily, his words almost a soft coo against his ear. "Just once."
Everything froze and the warmth beneath him was gone.
Gregory tumbled off the bed, crashing to the floor in a heap, his jaw smarting and hand between his legs in order to ease a new pain. He hadn't even realized the other boy could move so fast, hadn't even realized he'd been shoved and kicked so hard to the floor for a few moments of confusion as the hard surface beneath his back dawned on him. The Englishman groaned softly for a moment before slowly coming to a kneeling position, his expression outraged as he glared at the Mormon half standing and back pressed against the wall. Gary's expression was odd, a mix of emotions that he had a hard time placing right in that moment but above all, he looked...
"N-no." He was panting, his breath shaky and hands steadying his half crouch as they pressed palm flat against the wall.
Gregory frowned deeply, teeth gritting from the painful throb between his leg that a misplaced yet well-aimed foot had caught on the way down. "How dare you-"
"No!" The Englishman paused, peeved at being cut off and yet surprised by the raised volume of the Mormon's voice. He'd never heard him even come close to shouting before. "No! How dare you! T-there is no one time. I-I'm not- I can't-.." His brow furrowed deeply, troubled and confused as he tried to take a deep breath. "All right so you how I feel about me-.. ugh.. that doesn't mean I-I'm about to just-.."
"Well, you sure as hell were doing a bloody piss poor job of fighting me!"
"B-because I kinda like you!"
Gregory froze, watching him in surprise. He'd put the others shy embarrassment up to be his innocence or perhaps even curiosity about men but the Englishman hadn't considered that Gary might have actually had feelings. It was almost absurd to him and yet made all the sense in the world.
"A-and you don't even.. you were.."
-taking advantage of him.
Rage bubbled up in the floor ridden blond, crushing down the heavy guilt he pretended he wasn't feeling settle in his chest. Silence fell between them, heavy and tense as Gary continued to fidget nervously before the blond finally jumped unsteadily from the bed and across the room, the bathroom door closing behind him loudly. Gregory glared at the door, one hand clenched in the carpet before his expression softened now that no one was looking and he was left staring at the floor alone in his thoughts.
A soft voice, devoid of anger or accusations spoke quietly through the door, surprising him with its words. "Don't.. please don't stop being my friend.."
There was a soft grunt from the Englishman, his hand sliding through his still damp hair. "Fine."
If the Englishman had known how irritating it was to be the friend of Gary Harrison, he would have backed out at the very start.
Or at least that's what he told himself.
Hi, don't mind me sitting here and writing new things for pairings no one else would in their right mind consider.
My girlfriend and I ah.. we came up with this in a manner of speaking. She was Gregory on Tumblr, and I was Gary and it was how we first met, as them. It became this fascinating development the more she and I roleplayed. It fit, Gary's so perfect and Gregory strives to be nothing but perfect so naturally Gregory would become irritated and oddly intrigued by the kid who seems to do no wrong whereas Gary would secretly admire him.
I don't know, I hope you guys enjoy this. It's not finished yet. I'm working on a lot of writing projects right now.