This chapter turned out completely different than what I had planned for it. Hope you still enjoy it.
Chapter-Title: Worn Out
Disclaimer: I own my muses and my ideas. Everything else belongs to the business.
End of January
"Are you serious?"
They were walking into Randy's house, THEIR house, boxes in hand, the younger man following behind his lover, sighing reluctantly.
"I am serious. Ask Ted."
Of course, he would not ask the blond. Randy was still in a war with him, silently begrudging Ted, glaring at him whenever possible with the coldest of stares he could muster, snapping at him with the harshest of 'Fuck off' whenever Ted tried to be friendly, be social.
A snorting sound echoed through the house as Randy's lips formed a deep frown and he let the box in his hands fall onto the plush carpet in the far corner of his living-room. They had already stored three boxes there and more would follow until they had the time to unpack Cody's stuff one box after another.
"Randy!"
The warning tone of the younger brunette let Randy sigh in defeat, shoulders slumping as he let Cody wrap his arms around him.
"I know... But damn, I just... I can't help it..."
"Grumpy ass, you... I know you can't help it. I don't want you to be friends with him again immediately, but could you at least TRY being somewhat friendly to him?"
Cody inched closer, pressing his body flat against his older lover and getting up on his toes to press a chaste kiss onto the frowning lips he had come to love so much.
"For me? Please?"
"Yeah, yeah... I won't promise anything though."
Cody knew it was a lie, rolling his eyes as he shook his head and took his lover's lips into another lock before pulling away and out of the older man's embrace. He did not have the energy nor the nerves for that kind of argument yet again. Not after discussing the topic with Randy already a felt million times over the past two weeks. He knew it would not get him anywhere to push Randy. When the time was right, Randy would finally forgive and forget. Until then he could just hope Ted was staying out of the hot-tempered man's way.
"You really wanna store all the stuff here? What about the room next to the kitchen? I think that's a much, much better place. Here it's just standing in our ways... and Al's."
He was referring to the little sunshine's visit that was planned for the next day, knowing how full of energy she always was and that she would not look where she was running once she was on a sugar-rush. He did not want her to get hurt running into one of the boxes or falling over them.
"Well... the room's not really empty... We can keep it here. I'll just tell Al to be careful."
Brow arched, Cody stopped dead in his tracks on his way back outside to Randy's jeep and his other stuff, turning around and looking suspiciously at his lover.
"Randy... You know she won't listen."
Something was off, and he just about had the perfect idea what. Crossing his arms over his chest, his brow ceased up higher, wide, crystal-blue eyes regarding the older man with concern. The man had suddenly gone very quiet and nervous, arms wrapped around his waist and head hung low as he avoided eye-contact with Cody.
"You've stored your guns in there, right?"
"I didn't have any other chance. They are renovating my storage and..."
"Randal!"
Finally, the older man looked up again, meeting the disappointed blues of his brunette lover who had his hands placed in his hair and was shaking his head.
"Are you fucking serious? You know how much I hate that shit and Al will be here tomorrow. What if she walks in there?"
He was gesticulating with his hands, wildly, head shaking, lips frowning as he tried to make Randy understand the seriousness of the topic.
"I won't stay in a house where weapons are stored in..."
"They're not even loaded!"
Randy's voice got slightly louder as he defended himself.
"Geez, Codes... Calm down!"
Cody's head snapped in the direction of where his older lover stood, anger visible on his features as his eyes iced over.
"Calm down?"
His tone was a mixture of surprise and frustration, legs automatically bringing him back over to the taller brunette.
"Randy... Even if they are not loaded, those are GUNS. You can't keep them in a house were a kid is playing."
Randy knew his lover was right. He had already expected such a reaction from him, knowing how much Cody despised any kind of violence, especially weapons. They even had a discussion about the wrongness of hunting once.
"I know... But... I can't store them anywhere else. I can lock the door though."
The defeated sigh he gave was a sign for Cody that he indeed regretted bringing the guns to his house, but it was not helping the matter any.
"Randy..." He was lost for words, not knowing what to reply to that offer nor knowing how to solve the problem at hand. He just knew he wanted those weapons gone. Now.
Sensing the younger man's discomfort and his inner turmoil, Randy reached out to brush his palm over the slightly heated and flushed cheek in an attempt to make Cody look at him.
"I swear as soon as the storage is done, I'll bring them there again. And I'll lock the door and place the key somewhere Al can't reach it. Really, baby..."
Sighing again, reluctantly and defeated, Cody nodded hesitantly, knowing he stood on lost ground. The argument was not over yet, not from his side anyways, but he would drop it for now. There was no need fighting an already lost battle. Not now. He was just too tired for it.
"Let's get done with the boxes then. Maybe unpack a few already so we'll have a bit more space down here tomorrow."
After Randy nodded in agreement, he leaned down to brush a kiss onto the younger man's lips, but Cody turned away deliberately before they could meet only to walk past his lover and out of the house.
Scratching his neck, then letting his palm rub over his face, Randy let go of a long breath, knowing damn well that the topic wasn't over yet.
The drippling of little feet echoed through the house, girlie squeals and child-like giggles ringing through the air.
Cody was chasing the little blond with big, slow steps, following her everywhere, growling, grunting, the widest of smiles on his lips.
Randy had retreated into the kitchen to prepare lunch for them, now leaning against the door-post as the meal slowly cooked on the stove. His features were calm, had a content to them that they only ever had when Alana was around, lips twitching into s smile each time the two ran past him.
"Eene, meene, mitze, I'll get you and then I'll eat you." Again, Cody reached out -in slow-motion- to grab the little wildfang, but missed as she slipped past his arms and ran over to her daddy to hide behind the long legs of the older man.
"Awww... that's cheating!"
"Is not! Daddy gonna pwotect me from you!"
The older male could not hold back the chuckle any longer as he watched the playful banter between his lover and his little sunshine, Cody crossing his arms over his chest and sticking his bottom-lip out in a child-like manner.
Arching a brow at his older lover, voice dropping to a low baritone, he almost whispered to him "Anyway I can get you to hand me that little devil?"
Almost mirroring the younger brunette, Randy also crossed his arms over his chest and raised a brow, lips twitching up into a smirk, that oh so very sexy smirk Cody never could resist.
"Maybe... But I don't think that's appropriate right now, right here."
Alana's head turned from his dad to Cody and back to her dad again, confusion written all over her bright features as she stepped away from her dad.
"Daddy... You not gonna let uncle Cody win!"
Still holding Cody's gaze, the tattooed male did not even hear his daughter at first, eyes already darkening over with a lust he had not felt in quite some time. The last day and especially the last night he had felt Cody's entire coldness. The argument about the weapons still not forgotten, the younger man had not even kissed him good night before pulling the covers over him and turning to his side.
Cody's lips curled up into a small smile as his eyes stayed fixed on his older lover, tongue instinctively darting out to wet his bottom-lip before sucking it in.
"Daddy! Uncle Cody!"
The little bug was now pulling on her father's shorts as her voice became whiny and her lips started to tremble.
"You're meanies!"
Finally, Randy snapped out of it at the shaky voice of his daughter, looking down at her to see the tears in her eyes. Sighing, he reached out for her and picked her up in his arms, placing a rather wet and sloppy kiss to her cheek.
"Don't cry, sunshine. I'm sorry we ignored you."
She buried her head in the crook of Randy's neck, away from him and from Cody, clinging to his neck with her little fingers.
"How about I'll make it up to you with some ice-cream again, huh? Chocolate with an extra mountain of whipped cream?"
"Daddy? Why's Uncle Cody living wid you now?"
They had just finished lunch topped with ice-cream for the now again happy girl, relaxing on the couch in the living-room and watching some cartoons. Alana on Randy's lap, Cody in the other corner of the couch, far enough to not cause any suspicion but still close enough to brush his fingers over Randy's arm every now and then.
They still had not told the little girl about their relationship, still keeping up the facade of being just friends and nothing else, in fear the quirky blond would not understand. After all, she had only just accepted the break-up of her parents, and that alone had needed thousands of talks, lots of explaining and many, many hours of sleepless nights to comfort her when she had finally understood.
That question now caught Randy completely off guard... and Cody almost choked on the Coke he was sipping on.
"Well... He... You see... We..."
Nothing but stammered words coming out of Randy's mouth as he tried to desperately find a good excuse, Cody's face fell inwardly and though he knew it was a topic they had already discussed often enough, it hurt that his partner still did not confess their love to his daughter. Anyhow, he did what every good lover would do and jumped in with a pokerface on and the most sincere smile he could muster.
"That's because my house is getting renovated, hun. And daddy's such a good friend that he let's me stay here for a while."
Hearing the sigh of relief slipping past Randy's lips let his heart break even more and despite wanting to put on a brave face, he could not hold back the tears wanting to form in his eyes as he kept his head low. If he had looked at his older, he would have seen the whispered 'Thank you' on his lips and the frown when he did not even acknowledge him.
Feeling the sudden need to catch some fresh air and get away from them, Cody got off the couch and excused himself, not wanting for Randy or the little sunshine to see his trembling lips. As soon as he was out of the room and back in the kitchen, bracing himself against the sink, he let go of a shaky breath and the tears started falling.
Not only disappointed with Randy but also angry at himself for being weak enough to cry, he furiously wiped the salty pearls away with his shirt only for more to fall as his mind would not stop reeling. Those past few weeks had just been tiring and frustrating for him, the exhaustion written clearly on his face. The stress at work, the holidays, their relationship and the seemingly growing arguments they had had worn him out and at that moment he just could not do it anymore.
He did not only doubt his decision about moving in but also his decision to start something with Randy. He had doubted it for weeks now already, ever since their argument about Ted and over time it had only gotten worse. The argument over the weapons yesterday and that just now had been the last straw for him to break down. And he damned himself for being such a pussy.
"Fuck" Muttering under his breath, he again tried to get rid of the silently falling tears, jumping when he heard someone behind him clearing his throat and ushering a whispered "Language".
Shaking his head, not ready for Randy to see him like this, he stayed in place and willed his breathing to calm down as much as he tried to keep his temper in check. With the roller-coaster of emotions he was currently going through it was hard to tell if to snap or to cry even harder.
Even though he was often deemed as cold-hearted or even emotionless, Randy had immediately sensed Cody's inner turmoil and after nicely asking his daughter to stay put, had followed him into the kitchen and watched him for a while. He knew his reaction had been the trigger to Cody's outburst but what he didn't know was why he had reacted to it that strongly... and he sure as hell did not know how to make it right again.
Finally moving over to where the younger man was leaning over the sink, trying to figure out what he could do to make him understand why he had reacted the way he had, he run a shaking hand over his short hair, designating with a heavy sigh.
"Baby... I..."
Trying to place a palm on Cody's shoulder, to soothe, to reassure, he was met with a barked "Not now" as the younger man shrugged away from his touch.
Chewing his lips in and wrapping his arms around his own waist, Randy let his head hang low.
"Codes, really... I didn't..."
"Not now, Randy... Really... Just... Gimme a minute, okay? I'll be right back out. Just... give me a minute."
The hurt in his voice paired with it's trembling, defeated tone made Randy swallow hard and without another word he turned around to leave again... until the little voice in his head screamed 'Screw it' at him. Quickly walking back over to his younger lover, he placed a kiss to his cheek fast enough for Cody to not push him away again and whispered a heart-felt, sincere 'Sorry' into his ear before leaving again. If Cody wanted some space, he was the last to object. Now, with Alana wide awake and sitting only a few feet away in the living-room, was not the right time to discuss such a topic anyway. He just hoped Cody would be ready to talk later.
TBC
Yes, I've really done it. I ended with a cliffhanger. Sue me for it :P
