the game you won, an a separate peace fanfic

"You know, you're so stupid," Gene whispers, and laughs nervously, "for not telling me sooner."

Phineas only smiles at him, pulls his sheets back and climbs into Gene's bed next to him. "I don't know," he says, "I think it almost makes this," he rubs his hand up Gene's thigh, "even better."

Gene inhales sharply. "Phineas -" he breathes the name, desperate and longing (finally, he thinks). Phineas kisses him in response, hesitantly at first and then Gene makes a sound. More, it means, and Phineas obeys.

Finny stands up, making his way to the door to go to the bathroom, stumbles drunkenly, and Gene laughs at him. "Shut up, it's not like you're any better at this." Gene is still laughing as he closes the door behind him, making his way down the hallway.

The bathroom is empty when Finny enters it, and after he takes a piss he zips his pants and turns to wash his hands; so it startles him to see Leper sitting on the sink countertop, looking at him intently.

"Fuck," he exclaims, staggering backwards. Leper smiles at him and turns the nearest faucet with his right foot. Phineas approaches and washes his hands.

"What the hell are you doing, Leper?"

The addressed boy does not answer, only continues looking down at him. Only after Phineas dries his hands does Leper say something; "Sit here," he says, patting the space of countertop in front of him.

"What? But there's no -"

"Sit."

Phineas's mind runs with excuses, objections, but he's too drunk to pick out the best one, so he obliges, sits with his back to Leper. The countertop is too flat, too hard, and he can't find a suitable position; he settles for putting his legs out in front of himself like Leper is, making triangles, feet nearly dangling off the edge. He's trying not to lean back into him too much, turns around as if to ask Leper what now? but any questions he may have had are answered when Leper puts one arm on the countertop between Phineas's legs and grabs his hair with one hand forcefully, maneuvering Finny's face to kiss him roughly.

"Please, Finny, I want this," Gene says, when Finny moves his lips away to kiss at his jaw where he can reach it. "Like I said, you are stupid for not telling me sooner." Phineas laughs, his lips vibrating against Gene's skin, Gene who he loves and who he has wanted for so long and who he now finally has and who reminds him of that one night -

Fuck, what the hell? he tries to say, but it only comes out against Leper's chapped lips as "fffk, ut t hl?" Leper moves his hand on the counter to pull at something in between them, and then he unbuttons and takes off Phineas's shirt, throwing it in the just-used sink and pressing Finny's back against his own chest so that Phineas feels cool, bare skin.

Leper moves his head and begins biting, sucking at the skin at Phineas's jaw, and Finny thinks this is wrong because he's getting hard, and he shouldn't be - this is Leper, for fuck's sake - but anyway right and wrong don't seem to matter when his skin vibrates against the other boy's lips as Leper makes a moan-sigh sort of sound. Fuck.

Finny moves, standing on his knees next to Gene's lap, indicating for him to do likewise. He pulls his and Gene's shirts off, throwing them haphazardly - wherever they happen to fall. He kisses Gene again, and again, and again, rubbing warm hands over his chest and shoulders and back - and he scrapes his nails down Gene's spine, causing Gene to arch his back and pull away from Phineas, mouth open and breathing warm desperation, eyes big. "Fuck, Phineas, what the hell?"

Finny digs his fingers in near the base of his spine. "Leper," he says simply, and Gene pulls away slightly. "What?"

He moves his feet to rest against the edge of the sink, not caring if he's wrinkling his shirt, his knees pressing against Leper's shins. Leper licks a long line from the base of his neck to his jaw, trailing back up against the blossoming bruises he's left behind. He teases Finny's cock, his balls, alternately touching them lightly and grinding his palm hard against them through the fabric. Just when Finny thinks he's alright, just maybe, Leper runs his nails down his back on either side of his spine, leaving red lines, and Finny moans loudly (someone's bound to hear him) and arches his back. Leper laughs, curved lips against Phineas's neck, repeats the action.

"Damn it, Leper, if you don't do something soon you won't be able to do anything," he groans, because all that Leper is doing is making him harder, more hungry.

Leper unbuttons Finny's trousers then, pulls down at the fabric, wrist brushing his underwear; and then he pulls them down too. Finny hisses in anticipation as Leper stops for a moment, licking his fingers and running them down Finny's back once more.

"Yeah. Well, uh, one night, we were drunk, you and I, and I went to take a piss. And Leper was there. He was just being Leper, Gene, it wasn't anything about love. He just - it was a game, a stupid game," his grip on Gene's skin loosens, his voice becomes more desperate in its honesty, "I love you. Fuck, I love you." He leans in to kiss him again, proving his point, running his tongue over Gene's bottom lip and grabbing hold of the hair near the base of his neck; Gene moans and his creased brow relaxes.

Leper grabs Finny's cock in a moment, pumping quickly, hand squishing against his skin in the friction; Finny is writhing, feet throwing themselves around the sink, almost kicking Leper's shins - ohmyfucking - and then Leper pushes Finny's cock down quickly and presses it against the countertop, thrusting his palm against it roughly, and Finny comes with a force ("Ah, nnngh -"), the new sensation inducing the waves of his orgasm.

He falls back against Leper, breathing deeply. "What the hell was that, Leper?" He's looking at the floor, where his semen is spread, white and shining in the glaring bathroom-light.

"Really?" Gene asks whenever Finny pauses to breathe. From the way he sounds, Finny may as well have never given him a sappy Valentine's day card, may as well not have just said it, may as well not be doing this at all with Gene.

"Yes. Yes, really. I love you and I fucking want you, Gene," he confirms against his skin, kissing along his jaw and marking the skin there lightly, letting his eyelashes brush Gene's skin gently, looks up at Gene's face. He scrapes his nails lightly down his spine again and Gene seems to forgive him, reveling in the simple sensation of it, the cool spread of saliva on his neck and the hot pain of nails down his back (Leper who?).

"Finny," Gene says after some long moments, breathless, "please." Finny pulls both their pajama pants down as far as they'll go. He presses his body against Gene's, all fire and hardness and fuck, why hadn't they done this before? Gene moans loudly and Finny swallows as much of it as he can in a kiss; he grabs Gene's cock and begins pumping.

"It was a game," Leper answers, in his normal matter-of-fact, well-isn't-that-interesting? tone, but now it comes out rather breathless and laced with lust. "Now my turn." He indicates Finny to hop off the counter, and Finny does so reluctantly, pulling up his trousers with trembling hands and leaning against the wall to soothe the shaking of his legs.

"Watch, now, I bet I can get further," he states proudly. Finny watches as Leper scoots forward a bit, undoes his pajama pants and pulls them down. He looks at Phineas with a sort of lopsided smile, watches him as he begins touching himself. He's slow at first, but then he looks away from Finny's face and begins going faster; pulling, squeezing, writhing and thrusting against the counter, pushing his cock against the marble and finally he comes, head thrown back against the mirror, and he sits there for a few moments, body sagging, eyes closed.

"Wait," Gene says breathlessly, and puts his hand on both of their shafts; indicates Finny to do so too, and his head falls back slightly at the sensation. "Oh, Gene," he says as Gene begins rubbing his hand along the both of them, doing the same as soon as he can think to do so.

They go on like this - not long - and then Gene comes with a cry, spilling on both their stomachs, and Finny follows him, the pulsing of Gene's cock against his own overwhelming, making his legs shake and give way underneath him; Gene falls back against the sheets and Finny follows, placing his head on Gene's outstretched arm, kissing his shoulder, breathing deeply.

"So you see," he says, able to think properly at last, "I could not even have bothered. You're lucky I love you so much, though," he says, blushing slightly as he does so, and Gene kisses his nose. "You're so hopeless," he adds, and Gene only smiles at him.

Finny glances at the floor; Leper checks, also. "Oh. Well, it's only your first time, right? You'll get further with practice, I bet," Leper reassures him - there is another mess of seed inches further from the sink than Finny's. Finny looks at him with a raised eyebrow, awkward and unsure what comes next.

Leper knows; "Brinker was the best I've seen; Chet Douglass didn't do quite so well. And none of them come around for another try. Do you think you will?" Phineas looks at him in shock, only says yes, he will (and that's the alcohol talking). "Good. It gets rather boring doing this alone. You should ask Gene to join, I think he would like it, too." Leper begins pulling his pants back up, smiling at Phineas as he does so. (Fuck, he thinks, doing this with Gene?)

"Oh, uh, yeah," he says, trying to dismiss the thought, "whatever. Look, Leper, I should go, actually. I - Gene and I pilfered some beer, he's probably not doing so well on his own."

"Lucky," Gene repeats, "I suppose so," and he reaches underneath his back to pull out the now-wrinkled Valentine's day card. He smiles at it and sets it on the bed between them.

"I do love you, too, Phineas. You know that. I do," he whispers, and falls asleep quietly, every breath stirring Phineas's hair where it falls in his face.

"I'm lucky," Phineas whispers - to Gene or to himself, he isn't sure which - looking at Gene's dozing form. He covers Gene's hand over the card with his own and slumbers.

"Oh. Alright, I suppose. Some other night, then?" Leper throws him his shirt, which drips as it flies through the air; Finny thinks he'll just tell Gene he fell in the sink, or something equally stupid.

Finny nods; makes note never to come to the bathroom at night again. Never to let Gene come to the bathroom at night. (Not like he doesn't disapprove of Gene making his own decisions - but Gene is his best friend. He should watch out for him, and all that.)

In the dormitory next to theirs, Leper has his ear to the wall, listening intently. Finny and Gene had sounded like they were having a good time, hadn't they? Leper had heard his name once - maybe Finny was telling Gene about that game they'd had? It certainly would be fun with the three of them, Finny and Gene best friends and all (very best friends, it seemed now). He thought he would saunter down the hall to the bathroom - just in case.