Title: In Time
Author: homo_genius A.K.A. pikapika217 A.K.A. CosmicPudding
Pairing: Eric/Shawn, mentions of imagined Eric/Jack & Cory/Shawn
Rating: R
Summary: Neither of them thought they wanted this, but as it turns out, they did
Disclaimer: not my characters
Author's note: (originally posted/published 03/06/2008. Italicized text is the original author notes)AU slightly. set after the wedding and in the non-descript future after Cory,Topanga, Shawn and Eric move to New York. It's been so long since the wedding episode! I'll just make up dialogue if I need to, so more AU

He never meant for it to happen this way, or even with this guy, but here they were.

"What? You gonna chicken out on me now, Matthews?"

Eric looked back at a still semi-drunk Shawn Hunter. He looked so...so hot there. So what if he was Eric's little brother's best friend? If needed be, he'd blame it on the whole wedding atmosphere. Still, he was hesitant. Why?

"Alright, look" Shawn sat up on the bed, sitting the half empty bottle of champagne on the floor. Walking over to him, condom in one hand, he undid his tie with the other and rested his arms on Eric's shoulder. "I know I'm not the Hunter you want, and I'm sure you know that you weren't the Matthews' I wanted. So, If you need to picture me as him, then fine, as long as you don't mind me doing the same with you, ok?"

He may have been reluctant that night, but he had also been horny. Extremely so. So what the hell, he thought as he pushed Shawn back down on the bed of hishotel room, why not have him just this once. They both seemed to 'need' it that night, and who was he to deny them that pleasure. But if soon became more than that. Shawn felt better than he ever could've wanted to imagine that Jack did. The faces, the grinding, all of it seemed designed to turn him on. Shawn, in turn, seemed to be enjoying himself as well. The bed began softly to squeak as their thrusts sped up, which only made Eric go faster.

Their second release followed soon after, with the two spilled themselves all over the other. Shawn removed his hand right after while Eric decided to stroke him just a few more times. He kissed Eric when the hand was finally moved from in between his thighs, as if he was maybe up for another round. Even so, when Eric passed out, Shawn slipped away leaving no trace of his presense and Eric wondered if the whole thing was just a wild dream.

Time passed on and nothing was metioned, so Eric just resolved that it was just a dream, or at least he would've had he not seen Shawn's questioned looks of love every so often. Like he was missing something that was in front of his face the whole time. But years went on, and Eric had resigned himself to the idea that if it wouldn't work with Jack then maybe he wasn't meant for romance. Jack had always been the only one. Well, that's not true. He'd often fantasized about a lover when he was younger. Someone who'd help him make sense of himself and the world around him after it all had stopped making sense. Chasing after girls his age just seemed to become monotonous and he wondered exactly why he was doing it in the first place. So, he stopped and became the jokester because, really, he didn't have anything else. At least now until Jack.

Jack was funny as well, but he seemed to understand all of Eric's crazyness and accept him. He was wise and became someone he depended on. But was that what love was? He argued with it to himself before deciding that he must be the only person in the world with this problem. He never knew though, that Shawn had felt the same way about Cory for years.

Nothing else happened between him and Shawn until they decided to start living together to save on rent. It made sense, since Cory and Topanga were getting their own place. It was late one night when it was raining like never before. The lights cut out and Shawn managed to find his room when thunder and lightning made an appearance.

"I...I'm scared, ok?" was all the explanation given as Shawn slipped himself into Eric's bed. He made room for him, but Eric was sure he would've let him in with no explanation at all. Lately, that lover he dreamed about was starting to look less like Jack, and more like Shawn. Eric felt Shawn's eyes on him, and he started to blush, before he pulled Shawn closer. It started as just kissing at first, but at their state of undress, and their attraction to each other, boxers soon fell to the floor as well, joined soon by Eric's sleeping shirt. They only kissed for a bit, but oh wherethey kissed. Eric's skin seemed on fire with each passing touch, and when he felt warm, wet moment on his nether regions, well, he could've started a forest fire from how hot he felt. Moaning came next, followed soon by Eric, who had sweat enough to soil his sheets. He hadn't dare looked down when it was happening, but when Shawn lifted himself onto his arms Eric grabbed his face and kissed him hard on the mouth. tounges engaged next before the relief of sweet release. They were silent for a while, listening to the rain beat against Eric's window as Shawn wrapped himself around his bedmate.

"It was real, wasn't it? What happened the night of Cory's Wedding. It all really happened." Eric said it as more of a realization than a real question. He could remember the sweat and the moaning and Shawn digging into his back, begging him to go faster, harder more more more.

"Yeah." was all he got for a response. Shawn brought Eric's face closer to his before continuing "I didn't mean what I said then. I didwant to be with you then. really."

"Then how come I woke up alone?" More than anything, Eric felt...he didn't know really. He was curious though: why weren't they together all this time if they could've been?

"I don't know. I just remembered how happy you looked during, well, you know, sex and I didn't want you to be dissapointed that it was me you'd been with, not Jack." The thunder was subsiding and Shawn took it as a cue to leave. "Well...thank you."

"Shawn!" he found himself shouting and he grapped the other man's wrist. "Wait. ...Don't leave me again."

"Why not?" was what he shot back. He sounder both hurt and angry at once. "I refuse to be a substitute for who you reallywant, Eric."

"What the hell are you talking about? last time I checked you were the one I wanted. and given what happened an hour ago, I thought you felt the same."

"You...You're just sayin' that now. No one wants me for too long. I'm fun for a bit, but then they always lose interest. I'd rather not do that with you" Even in the dark, Eric could see the tears that were either forming on, or had already found there way onto his face. Why did he feel unworthy of being loved? Why did they both feel that way?

"No, I'm not. I've been trying but failing to keep from saying it to myself for years now. I want you, Shawn Hunter." He was the one to start the kiss that time, running his hands through the others' hair as he cupped his face. "I'm not letting go of you, you hear? Never."

It would take a few more months of constant affection and validation before Shawn started to believe him, but when they reached their 3rd anniversary, Eric finally felt that he believed in him. Because he wasn't going to let Shawn go, not for anything. He used to think that his dream lover would turn out to be Shawn, but their reality was so much better than that.

So, what do you think? I always liked Topanga /Cory as canon, but felt so torn since I loved Shawn/Cory just as much. both seem so canon. Anyway, since I broke them up in the other Boy Meets Slash World fiction I wrote, I figured I'd Leave Cory and Topanga alone and slash my way around them. I honestly do think that Eric/Shawn could work, but what about you guys? tell me what you think!

Another old favorite. I think this pairing is very underused, and otherwise stand by my original notes. I do hate that I can't keep my personalized line breaks anymore XP