Written by Katrina :)
A/N: This is set before the show starts - around 1997
Happy Days - Chapter 1
When Colin gets home one evening - exhausted after a long operation - to find a pipe has burst in his flat, destroying everything, he cannot possibly know it will turn out to be one of the best things that could have happened to him. At the time however, his first thoughts are along the lines of: 'bugger!' and 'now what am I going to do?'
He can see quite clearly that the flat's a write-off: the floor to the main living area and kitchen is swimming in a foot of water, and the furniture has taken a thorough soaking. It'll take a while for everything to dry out, and he'll need to get professional cleaners in.
In the meantime, Colin knows he'll need somewhere to stay. He could call his sister, he muses, but he doesn't really fancy spending an indeterminable number of weeks sleeping on her sofa and being woken up every few hours by a screaming baby. He has a couple of friends in the London area, but they probably wouldn't appreciate him commandeering their flats any more than he would feel comfortable doing so.
Colin knows deep down that he really has only one viable option, but it's the one he really doesn't want to admit to himself. The person in question is so lovely that no doubt he'd willingly give up his spare room for Colin - after all, Colin has stayed in it on a number of occasions - but only for one night. The premise of weeks spent in his company, along with the associated closeness Colin knows is unavoidable from living with someone for a long period of time, is more than he thinks he can bear. It doesn't help that Colin is very aware that he's attracted to the person in question; unrequited love is not a feeling Colin enjoys, and he's not sure how he'll be able to cope living in such close proximity to the man he wants to live with in much less platonic terms. It also doesn't help that the person in question is Malcolm Wynn-Jones, his colleague and best friend.
Swearing under his breath, Colin pulls out his phone from his jacket pocket and, squeezing his eyes shut once he's on Malcolm's number, he presses the call button. The wait between the dialling tone and Malcolm answering the phone is far too short for Colin's liking, and he lets the breath he hadn't known he'd been holding out in a shaky rush when he hears Malcolm's voice.
"Hello?"
"Hi, it's me." He must sound more distressed than he thought, because Malcolm immediately sounds worried.
"Colin? Is everything okay?"
"Um, well, not really actually," Colin admits, taking a steadying breath. "I've just got home to find my flat currently resembles a swimming pool."
"Ah," Malcolm says.
"A pipe burst," Colin explains. "There's quite a lot of damage and it's going to take a while to clean up - the furniture and a lot of my stuff is ruined -"
He's aware that he's rambling, but he doesn't know how to ask the question he actually rang to ask. Luckily, Malcolm interprets the meaning behind his call and saves him from having to find the words.
"Can I help in any way?" Malcolm asks. "Do you need to stay at mine while everything gets sorted out?"
"If you don't mind, that would be really helpful, thanks," Colin smiles, more out of nerves and anticipation than anything else.
"Shall I come over and pick you up?" Malcolm asks. "If you want to get some stuff together I can be round in half an hour?"
"Sounds good, thank you."
By the time Colin steps into Malcolm's house, clutching a large bag of things he'll likely need over the next couple of weeks, his nerves have settled slightly. Well, until Malcolm's shoulder accidentally brushes against his when closing the door, that is. Colin successfully stifles a gasp at the contact, but his breath hitches almost imperceptibly and his heart jumps slightly. This is ridiculous, he thinks - there's no way he can spend weeks living here without giving himself away, if this is how he reacts to only the briefest of touches.
Shaking his head slightly to clear his thoughts, he accepts Malcolm's offer of a cup of tea and heads upstairs to dump his bag in the spare room. Giving himself a quick stern talking to, he returns downstairs, determined to act like a rational adult and a friend, rather than a teenager with a stupid crush. After Malcolm has been kind enough to let him stay in his house, it's the least Colin can do: he's not going to make the man feel uncomfortable in his own home.
Malcolm smiles consolingly at Colin as he enters the kitchen, passing him a cup of tea.
"Thanks," Colin murmurs. "And thank you for letting me stay here, I can't explain how grateful I am. The only other person I could have asked is my sister, but she's got her hands full with a newborn baby and I didn't think she'd appreciate having to look after me as well," he jokes.
The edge of Malcolm's mouth quirks upwards. "Technically you didn't ask me either," he quips. "I offered."
A soft laugh escapes Colin, and he feels marginally more relaxed now that they've slipped into the easy banter that characterises their friendship.
As the evening wears on and they settle into the living room to watch some TV after eating, Colin begins to think that maybe everything will actually be alright.