It's just past five o'clock as Jason is walking over to his roommate's bed. He smiles devilishly before holding his radio to Shane's ear, but then has a second thought and puts the device back down on its stand. Instead, he shakes the singer's shoulder, saying, "Wake up, City Boy."
"Nnnugh," the actor responds, face shoved into the pillow and distorted at the same time. "What?" he asks, rolling onto his back with hair sticking up in strange directions.
"Time for breakfast," Jason comments before leaving the room.
Shane, having gone to bed early, is energetic enough to get out of bed right after the nineteen-year-old leaves the room. Once he's on his feet, the singer heads down stairs, stopping at the entrance.
"Mornin', Honey," Cindy says with a smile as Jason sits down. "Come on in, don't be shy. Jason, Baby, show the chil' where to sit."
The nineteen-year-old lightly pats his hand on the empty space on his left where Eric normally places himself. Sighing softly, the teenager asks as if out of habit, "What're we havin'?"
"Eggs 'n' bacon," Cindy replies before setting a cup of black coffee in front of her nephew and heading into the kitchen again.
"Uh, I wanted to tell you somethin'," Jason starts slowly and awkwardly.
"About what?" Shane asks in an articulate manor.
"Well, I was a bit of a... jerk yesterday," the nineteen-year-old admits. "I was kinda just havin' a bad day."
"Oh," the singer responds, mouth making a small 'o' shape before shaking his clean hair away from his face.
"So, I'm sorry," Jason says, turned away from the songwriter's attention.
"Well, that's understandable," Shane comments. "Everyone has bad days. Even me."
"Even you?" the southern boy asks in amusement. Shane takes that as a sign and decides to stop talking all together. "I'm just kiddin'," Jason replies softly. "Where is everyone?" he then asks his aunt when she walks in.
"New studs are comin' in from Arizona today, remember?" Mrs. Kennedy replies as she sets the boys' plates down in front of them. "They'll be back by noon."
"Oh yeah," Jason nods, smiling. "You think Uncle Carlisle'll let me ride Tennessee?"
"Tennessee?" Shane wants to know through a bite of eggs.
Face distorted because of the celebrity's lack of manners, Jason swallows his mouthful of coffee before replying, "One of the studs that's comin' in."
"Oh," the singer nods stupidly.
"I'll tell you what, Honey," Cindy breaks in. "If your uncle doesn't let you, you just tell me and I'll have a word with him."
The nineteen-year-old quickly finishes eating and clears the table of everything but his roommate's dishes. "Hurry up or we're gonna get a late start," Jason tells him softly before going upstairs and changing into his clothes for the day: fitted jeans with holes at the knees, a white wife beater under a plaid button-down shirt. A barrel racing buckle adorns his leather belt and riding boots are pulled up over his jeans.
Shane is just finishing breakfast when Jason checks on him again. Letting out a soft breath, the nineteen-year-old retreats to his room and makes his bed and then Shane's. Finally, finally the singer comes upstairs to get dressed.
As he's looking through his clothes, he decides that noting he brought is suitable for ranch work. He can't get his designer jeans dirty, and his Italian leather boots aren't going anywhere near the barns. Turning to Jason he asks, "Do you have anything I can borrow?"
Sighing softly, the nineteen-year-old nods and ventures into his closet where he comes out with a shirt similar to his and a tank top. "You have jeans, don't you?"
"I can't get them dirty," Shane replies with a deadly serious face.
Forcing himself to stop rolling his eyes, Jason grabs a pair of pants and boots as well before tossing them to his oh-so-annoying city boy roommate. The eighteen-year-old gives Jason a weird look before the ranch hand responds with, "What're you waitin' for?"
"Well, you're still-"
"Oh," Jason retorts stupidly before walking out and waiting in the hall. Never mind that we're both guys,' he thinks. But then he remembers that Shane is... gay.
"I'm ready," the singer announces several minutes later.
The two head out to the mare barn as the sun is just rising. It's nearly seven in the morning, and Shane doesn't think he's ever been up this early in his entire life. Yawning, he falls behind Jason's pace as he's taking in his surroundings but when he realizes he's slowed, he looks for his roommate. As the actor's pace quickens, the teenager finds entertainment looking at Jason's ass and thinking 'I'd like some fries with that shake.'
"You're gonna start with groomin' the brood mares," he comments. They're in the tack room now, and Jason's getting a container of brushes before walking to the end stall and leading Bella into the aisle. Shane is currently holding his hand over his nose immaturely. "Oh, come on," Jason says, playfully slapping the singer's arm all in good fun. The eighteen-year-old sneers at his mentor and momentarily waves a hand in front of his face. "Have you ever brushed a horse before?" he asks before going on with a curry comb in his hand. "You've gotta be careful where-"
"How hard can it be?" Shane asks, grabbing the rubber brush from the nineteen-year-old without warning.
Frustrated, Jason crosses his arms and watches in amusement as the city boy attempts to remove the dirt and stall sand from the paint's coat. After a few minutes of hopeless attempts, the teenager steps forward and places his left hand over Shane's, saying, "Here..." He stops after that, though. He freezes because the skin of the actor's hand is so unlike his. It's soft, smooth and warm. He remembers that he's supposed to be attracted to girls, and pulls back as if he's touched fire.
"What?" Shane wants to know, raising an eyebrow.
"N-Nothin'," Jason responds softly. "Here, do it like this," he murmurs, taking Shane's hand in his and making circular motions in his mare's fur so that a cloud of dust appears above it. "Now keep doin' that and I'm gonna start on Sunshine." He drops his hand and goes into the quarter horse's stall at the very end and retrieves her.
The dark-haired boy nods, swallowing. He doesn't know why he's so nervous, and he can't seem to stop thinking about Jason's juicy, delicious ass even though he already have a boyfriend who's well-endowed in other areas besides that.
While he's waiting for his next instructions, the city boy decides to check his cell phone for signal. When he sees that there are no bars, he puts the device back in his pocket and leans against the stall door before throwing his head back and sighing.
--
By one o'clock the boys have eaten lunch and are now cleaning out horse stalls. Shane is in the one right beside Jason, and he finally decides to say, "Hey."
"Hm?" the nineteen-year-old responds plainly.
"What's with the ring on your finger?" Shane asks as he absently traces Carson's name in the sand with the prongs of his manure rake.
"Oh," Jason nearly whispers. "My parents gave it to me..."
"Is it one of those purity thingies?" The nineteen-year-old nods silently. "So you've never had sex before?" His head shakes this time. "Whoa, man. That's gotta be a drag."
"Not really," Jason mutters in response. He doesn't really know why he's answering these rude questions. With one last scoop into his wheel burrow, the southern boy leaves the stall and heads for the manure pile. After dumping his collection, the teenager walks by Shane and through the barn silently.
The songwriter starts, "Hey, what'd I-"
"Nothing," the ranch hand calls back over his shoulder as he heads for the house. "Just goin' to the bathroom."
Frowning, Shane mutters 'whatever' and continues with his chores. But when Jason doesn't return after at least thirty minutes, he heads inside. "Mrs. Kennedy," he calls out before finding the woman in the living room. "Where'd Jason go?"
"Honey, come sit down," Cindy says, closing her Southern Living magazine and putting it on the end table. The city child obeys, taking a seat next to the woman. "Jason's been a bit upset lately."
Confused, the eighteen-year-old asks, "Is it because of me?"
"No, Sweetheart. See, Jason's parents were killed a few years back and around this time of year he gets a little hostile and distant from everyone."
Suddenly something clicks. "Is that why he was being kind of mean yesterday?"
With a soft sigh, Cindy puts her arm around Shane's shoulders and nods. "Yep, yesterday was Diana and Dean's anniversary. If they were alive it'd be their thirty-first."
"H-How'd they die?" Shane asks curiously.
"On a mission trip in Africa. They were there spreadin' the word, and a riot broke out. Jason's parents were trying to protect village children but were shot to death anyway."
"That's so sad," Shane breathes, eyes transfixed by the wooden floor of the living room.
"So if you could, just try and be nice to poor Jase, okay?" Cindy say, patting Shane's thigh in a motherly way. "I know he's kind of stubborn, but it'll help everyone out if you do your best to be kind."
Nodding, the eighteen-year-old agrees. "I can do that."