Disclaimer: As always I own nothing but the original characters and the situations all characters find themselves in. Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoy and let me know what you think!

Helping The Boys

To say that Eames was grateful Robert had told old man Fischer to shove it would be a massive understatement. By far. Arthur was in such a good mood following Tuesday's big showdown that the man was all but radiating Christmas spirit now. Not to mention the fact that his darling was jumping him all the time to work off all that excess happiness, which was something Eames could definitely get behind. And in any number of positions Arthur might be interested in trying in the spirit of giving during the holiday season. Plus, as icing on the cake, he genuinely liked the lad, and was glad to see him start to bloom at school now that he wasn't being burdened with the weight of his bastard father's expectations. The boy was finally acting like a teenager should, instead of like an old man himself. Or he had been, Robert having given him some weird looks during rehearsal.

So it was with some surprise that at the end of the week Eames happened to notice young Saito sitting off to the side of the stage long after practice had finished, the teen having declined to go Christmas shopping with a group of other students that had included Robert. That had happened a half an hour ago though, he'd been backstage cleaning up and storing various props since this production called for a bloody lot of them. And staring at the boy's back, the lights dim and casting shadows over the teenager, Eames thought the picture Saito was making at the moment suggested the current play he was watching was a tragedy.

Wishing Arthur hadn't left early to pick up a friend of his from the airport as a favor, Eames mentally sighed, shoulder his responsibility, and strolling across the stage walked over to take a seat beside the boy, offering a penny for his thoughts.

"Shouldn't you say a pound given that you're British and my thoughts are worth more than a mere penny?"

"Why is it my fate to be surrounded by such smartasses?" Smirking, Eames gave Saito a companionable elbow to the side. "Now no distracting me, what's up? Something obviously is, and it must be big if I can actually tell. You're generally not the easiest person to read after all."

Silence, then Saito's gaze dropped down to his lap. "Have you…have you ever wanted something really badly, and then it happened and it did the opposite of make you happy?"

"I have. Professionally and personally. Stings like a right bitch every time too." A pause. "What did you want that came back to bite you on the arse?"

Glancing over, Saito gave him a considering look. "And if I said I didn't want to talk about it?"

"I'd say you were lying through your pearly whites."

That at least got a small smile and a snicker, though both faded pretty quickly.

Eames knew that something was still currently eating Robert at the moment, the teenager had come over for dinner the day before and then he and Arthur had gone down to the basement for a talk that had ended with the boy leaving looking like he'd been hit upside the head with a frying pan. What they'd talked about Arthur had refused to say, but the look on his darling's face had indicated it had not been a walk in the park for him either. So logically he knew where to start this particular conversation.

"Look, whatever you say stays between you and I, you know that, yeah? I won't even tell Arthur, especially since I'm gonna go out on a limb here and guess that whatever's eating at you, it has to do with your best mate."

"Do you ever stop and wonder why the English decided to use the term mate for a friend, when everywhere else it means a romantic and or permanent sexual partner?"

"No idea. Now quit stalling or we're both going to miss our dinner. Or you will, I'm stopping off at McDonalds on the way home."

"Not hungry."

Throwing in a theatrical gasp for emphasis, Eames clutched at his heart like something out of a Bugs Bunny cartoon. "A teenager that's not hungry… Has the world as I know it come to an end without me knowing it? Pigs will be flying and Arthur's clothes will clash any day now."

Another laugh and small smile from the teenager, more points for him.

And then, just like that, it all came out.

"I wanted him to get out from under his father's control. I wanted that more than anything. It was killing me, seeing the way that sonofabitch treated him, hurt him, made him feel less when Robert's…when he's just perfect the way he is! But I'm just a kid, I couldn't do anything! I couldn't protect him and I couldn't make him see what bullshit his father was feeding him, and then he did see, and he left that house and moved in with Mr. Gordon's parents and I thought everything would be perfect! That finally he'd be safe and he could be who he wants to be and…"

"And?"

"And now he's changing." The boy's voice went a little hushed, the words obviously the hardest for him to speak. "He's talking about joining new clubs when we get to university, maybe even applying for somewhere besides Harvard. We were going to go to Harvard together. We…it was supposed to be the two of us."

Getting the picture in high definition now, Eames lifted a hand and gave the teenager's shoulder a squeeze. "You're worried that if he makes more friends and tries more things you'll be left behind. But you shouldn't be, Hikaru. He left that house in the first place for you. Because being mates with you meant more to him than his sodding father and everything else."

"He didn't know then that I want to be more than just friends."

Ah, okay, he probably should have seen that coming. Damn, where was Arthur when he needed him? Oh right…airport. Dammit.

"He heard Mr. Gordon and I talking about it, and he's been acting different towards me ever since. It's just little things, we weren't…neither of us is the affectionate type, but we did touch sometimes and now he jerks away or blushes or acts awkward."

"That sounds pretty standard for a teenager."

"That's not how we are though."

"Not how you were." Eames corrected, silently praying that he didn't fuck this up since Arthur would hang him with Christmas garland if he fucked things up between the two boys. "Everything is changing for the boy now, but if I was a betting man, which frankly I am, I'd put my odds on the two of you. I don't know if you'll be more than friends, but friends no question. Hell, the mere fact that Arthur had his tail in such a knot wondering if you two were a couple should reassure you. The man's a genius after all."

"So am I."

Agreeing that that was true, Eames knew the boy was top of his year, Eames ran his fingers through his hair as he tried to think of what to say to that, the best he could come up with being an offer to talk about it with Arthur for him, see if the man had any suggestions.

"I suppose it couldn't hurt."

"There you go. Cheers. Now what's say you and I get the hell out of here and get some McDonalds together? I'll steal some of your fries."

The look the teenager gave him could only be described as condescending. "Do you know what they put in their food? If you can even call it food."

"Don't tell me." Eames pointed a finger in Saito's direction just for emphasis.

Smiling fully now in amusement, Saito inclined his head. "How about Uno's instead?"

"Never heard of it."

"It's not gourmet cuisine by any stretch of the word, but the food is good and Robert and I enjoy the large, warm chocolate chip cookies with vanilla ice cream and real chocolate drizzle for dessert."

Eames didn't even have to think about it. "Sold."

)

Having had an enjoyable evening catching up with Garrett, he'd missed his friend more than he'd realized, Arthur was smiling and singing along with the radio when his phone signalled that he had an incoming call. Picking the cellphone up one handed, Arthur very quickly check to see who it was, the screen identifying his caller as Robbie. And that being the case Arthur accepted the call and put it on speaker, his eyes widening a little as he'd no sooner said hello than the boy was demanding to know why he wasn't at Uno's with Hikaru and Eames.

"Uno's?"

"I just got a text from Mavis saying that your stupid boyfriend is having dinner at Uno's with MY best friend. And they got the cookie thing for dessert, and that's what Hikaru and I always get!"

"Because it's the best dessert on their menu." Lips twitching at the huffing noise Robbie made in response to that, Arthur couldn't help but smirk a little. "I had plans for the evening, I guess they decided to catch dinner after rehearsal." Which technically they shouldn't have done since people like Mavis Robbs would get the wrong idea, but he figured he could let it pass this one time since he'd noticed that something was off with his godbrother's best friend the last couple of days. Obviously Eames had noticed too and was trying to help, which he did approve of.

"If Hikaru wanted to go out to dinner with someone he should have asked me!"

"Robbie…are you jealous of Eames? Because if that's the case you need to start using that brain of yours. You AND Eames know what I would do to him if he cheated on me with a student."

A long, drawn out pause greeted that statement, the boy no doubt traumatizing himself a little imagining what Arthur would do if Eames were that stupid. Which, lucky for Eames, he wasn't.

"Okay, you have a point." His tone grudging, Robert huffed again in total teenage frustration. "But why didn't he ask me? Do you think he's mad at me? He's been acting weird ever since I talked to my dad at 'Danny Boy's', and even though he said he wasn't mad at me maybe he is, and just doesn't want to tell me because he thinks I can't handle it. Do you think that's it? Do you think I should apologize again? Because really, if he's upset with me he should be the one to say something and I don't want to look stupid if that's not it. I've been looking really stupid lately in front of him and-"

"I don't think he's mad at you."

"You don't? Then what the hell's his problem?"

"Maybe you should ask him that."

"I can't! He's out to dinner with someone so his phone will be on silent, and if we just text I can't hear his voice to know if he's telling the truth or just humoring me!"

Telling himself he shouldn't be so amused to hear the teenager sound like such an overly emotional teenager, though he was, Arthur did his best to keep his current smile out of his voice as he pointed out that it was the weekend now, and therefore it shouldn't be too difficult for the two to arrange to get together at some point. Plus they had another week of school before Christmas holidays on top of that.

"But what if he won't tell me? He can be all stoic and hard to read sometimes. And I did sorta ask how he was yesterday and he SAID he was fine, but I don't think he was, but I didn't want to call him a liar and if he is mad at me then that-"

"Robbie…talk to him. If you can take on your father than you can most definitely talk to your best friend."

"But I already developed ulcers from my father, why do I have to have more? They can kill you, you know. Ulcers, I mean."

Rolling his eyes, Robbie should try being a teacher if he wanted to know about ulcers, Arthur took a calming breath and then spoke in his most authoritative tone of voice, the one that hinted at the end of the world as that person knew it if he wasn't obeyed voice.

"Robert. If you're this worried then get into your car, drive over to Saito's place, and stay there until he gets home. Then you talk to him about whatever's been bothering him, and then you need to tell him some of the things you and I talked about yesterday. Man up and use the set you had to grow to tell your father off."

"I already had a set. I didn't need to grow them at all!"

"Right. Good night, Robbie."

And so saying Arthur hung up on the boy, hoping that the kid would take his advice and get his head on straight. If not he'd have to do some head knocking, and that just wasn't very Christmasy.

)

Sitting in his car, Robert bullheadedly refused to notice how pretty the snow falling was, or how it was packing snow and wouldn't it be fun to get out of the car, put on his gloves, and build a snowman while he waited for Hikaru to get his butt home. No, building a snowman would make light of the situation, and that he most definitely refused to do. This was serious, and he wasn't going to pussy foot around it anymore. And hell, after the week he'd had it just made sense to confront Hikaru and get it over with before the next week started. Or at least that's what he was telling himself at the moment.

And what the hell was taking Hikaru so long? Why had he gone out to dinner with Eames? He'd thought Arthur was Hikaru's type. And Arthur and Eames weren't at all alike, unless you counted their age, and what if that was what Hikaru was into? Older men. Cause if that was the case then-oh shit.

The twin beams from Hikaru's car announcing his arrival, Robert twisted around in his seat to watch the familiar vehicle come up the lane and then come to a stop beside his own car. Which meant he needed to get out of his own car, Robert told himself, especially since this was going to be awkward enough as it was already.

Hikaru having gotten out of his own car and started towards him by the time Robert had come around his own car, the darkness cloaking them both as Hikaru asked him what he was doing here.

"I was waiting for you. I want to talk to you."

"I see. Well come in, it's cold out."

Well duh, it was friggin winter. And where exactly did Hikaru get off sounding all in control and mature and crap when they had a major crisis on their hands? Or was he the only one all torn up about the fact that Hikaru had said that he'd like to date him? Had Hikaru not meant it? He had said that he'd be fine if he didn't feel the same way, had basically thrown it in his face that there were plenty more where he came from if he wasn't interested. Maybe Hikaru had already found someone else? Maybe that was why he was being so distant all of a sudden.

"You assehole!"

Hikaru nearly stumbled over the last step onto the porch, just barely catching himself before turning to face Robert with a stunned look on his face, which Robert would have found humorous if he weren't so busy poking a finger into the other teenager's chest and yelling at him.

"I've spent all this fucking time trying to wrap my head around the fact that you said you wanted to go out with me, and you're off having dinner with our drama teacher and acting like nothing's wrong when everything is! So you need to grow a set and tell me what the heck is going on, because if I went through what I went through yesterday for no good reason I swear to god I'm going into that house, grabbing those ceremonial blades your father gave you, and turning you into a human pin cushion!"

"What's a pin cushion?"

"It's…I…something you stick pins in…I think? Don't distract me when I'm threatening you!"

Lips twitching in amusement, which made Robert want to punch him that much more, Hikaru raised a questioning eyebrow as he pointed out that he would have to be suicidal to attempt to steal Mr. Eames from Robert's godbrother, especially since their drama teacher wasn't at all his type. And what exactly had he gone through yesterday?

"What did I go through? I'll tell you what I went through. I had to get the TALK. From Arthur! About gay sex! And there were pictures and diagrams and he gave me gay porn! Gay porn." Robert reached out and dug his fingers into Hikaru's shoulders, shaking the teenager by them. "And I had to watch it, didn't I? And Arthur explained the stretching and stuff but seriously, how does that not hurt like hell?!"

"You watched…seriously?"

"I had to! I've always been more of a visual learner, and Arthur said they'd be okay to start with but they weren't, and I'm traumatized now, and I can't look him or Eames in the eyes ever again because they do that and if I think about them doing that my head will explode!"

HIkaru started laughing.

"Laughing? You're laughing at me?" Shifting his hands over Robert gripped both sides of Hikaru's coat collar, drawing the other teenager close so that they were nearly nose to nose. "Keep that up and I am punching you, best friend or not! It would serve you right since it's all your fault I had to watch that stuff in the first place!"

"Robert."

"WHAT?"

"Shut up."

And so saying Hikaru closed the distance between them, angling his head before gently brushing his lips against Robert's in soft, gentle kisses until he felt Robert relax into it. Then he kissed him properly, as the snow fell down around them.