A/N: Woo! I feel loved! Soli, Selena, Tai, you guys rock! ::group huggles:: Not to worry, Wolfie, I couldn't take the sadness too much longer myself. Enjoy, darlings! And remember, more reviews mean more chapters!
****
"Might as Well, Part Eight"
["Every whisper of/ Every waking moment I`m/ Choosing my confessions/ Trying to keep/ An eye on you/ Like a hurt lost and blinded fool/ Oh no I`ve said too much/ I set it up/
Consider this/ Consider this/ The hint of the century/ Consider this/ The slip/ That brought me to my knees failed/ What if all these fantasies/ Come flailing around/ Now I`ve said too much/
I thought that I heard you laughing/ I thought that I heard you sing/ I think I thought I saw you try/
But that was just a dream/ That was just a dream/
That`s me in the corner/ That`s me in the spot-light/ Losing my religion/ Trying to keep up with you/ But I don`t know if I can do it/ Oh no I`ve said too much/ I haven`t said enough..."
--from "Losing My Religion" by R.E.M.]
It was a bright Saturday afternoon, windy to the point of being cold enough for people to huddle in their jackets and hurry through the streets. The sun hung, a cheerless white orb in a frozen clear blue sky, rendered impotent by the cold wind.
Luis, being the latest victim to Coach Orion's somewhat insane demands, was being treated by Adam to a lunch "wherever you want to go." Now, though, Connie was complaining about it, to the annoyance of Charlie, Banksie, Luis, and Fulton. Guy attempted to placate her, unsuccessfully.
"Cons, we'll go out to dinner at that nice sushi place you like, the one that serves the tofu California rolls."
Connie shot her boyfriend a look of suffering. She twined her hand with his and looked at him with sad, puppyish eyes. "Guy, honey," she started, her voice dripping sweetness, "I couldn't possibly...I think I'll be sick just being here...I'm so sorry."
"Quit it, Connie," Charlie huffed, "McDonald's isn't /that/ bad."
"Yeah," Adam cut it, "You can eat the french fries or an apple pie. Besides, I gave Luis a choice, so why don't you respect that and be nice, for /once/?"
Connie let go of Guy, and, eyes blazing with fury, snapped, "Just what are you insinuating, Cake-Eater? That I'm not nice? That I'm disrespectful? That I--"
Guy cut her off, "Cons, don't let him get to you. He's making you cause a scene." He looked at Adam, asking for forgiveness with his expression. Adam rolled his eyes and huffed with annoyance. When Connie nodded and excused herself to the ladies' room, Luis said in a low voice,
"Guy, man, you are /whipped/."
"Okay, I'll have a number one, large...are you gonna order, you guys?" Fulton called from the counter. The rest of them hurried over, and Adam paid the bill. As they walked with their trays to one of the booths, Adam commented,
"I gotta tell you, I expected to spend a /lot/ more. You're pretty cheap to treat, Luis."
"Guess so. Thanks, Banks, " Luis said with a shrug, biting into his Double Quarter Pounder with Cheese. Connie just barely hid her gag behind a napkin. She went through the whole meal like that, nibbling on Guy's french fries and looking completely disgusted. Needless to say, the boys all ignored her.
****
They walked around town for a while, stopping outside the movie theater to check the shows and times. Charlie's eyes lit up and he suggested,
"How about we go see 'Beavis and Butt-head Do America'?" Fulton, Guy, and Luis nodded in agreement, but Connie and Adam looked reluctant. Connie had never seen the show; Adam had, but he found it utterly pointless and stupid.
"How about 'The Craft'?" He counter-suggested. Connie nodded enthusiastically, and Guy muttered that if Connie wanted to see it, he would. Luis looked a little concerned.
"That's the one about the witches, right? I don't think we should see anything to do with the occult."
"'From Dusk Til Dawn'," Fulton read aloud. "It has vampires."
After a few more minutes of arguing, 'From Dusk Til Dawn' was what they decided on.
****
As they came out of the theater, Connie grabbed Guy's arm and dragged him off to the left, just so she could avoid a scruffy-looking, probably homeless young man sitting on the curb, smoking a cigarette. Adam looked embarrassed and followed the two of them, while Charlie and Luis simply ignored the man, still deep in conversation about the movie--especially a certain scene involving a stripper and a snake.
Fulton, though, went right up to the man and said, "Hey." The man looked up and shrugged, taking a long pull on his cigarette,
"'Sup, man."
"You doin' okay?" Fulton inquired, sitting beside him. The man pushed dirty brown hair behind his ears and looked at Fulton with his brow furrowed in confusion. Shifting slightly, uncomfortable with Fulton's friendliness, he muttered,
"I guess." When Fulton didn't say anything else, the man decided to ask him, "You know about a place I can spend the night? I just got here from Hayward."
"Wisconsin?"
"Yup. Spent all my money on the Greyhound ticket."
Fulton reached into his pocket and pulled out the eight dollars and seventy-five cents he had there. Pressing the bills and coins into the man's hand, he said, "There's the Marie Sandvik Center on East Franklin Avenue."
As Fulton got up to rejoin his friends, the man said, "Hey, thanks!" Fulton lifted a hand in acknowledgement but didn't look back. The other Ducks were staring at Fulton, and Luis commented, not unkindly,
"Man, Fult, you're one soft touch."
Fulton shrugged. "Some friends of mine were homeless for a long time."
****
"Oh!" Dean whirled around in his swivel chair, seeing Fulton standing in the doorway. "You're back. I was just," he leaned down and grabbed his boots, "leaving."
Fulton watched without comment as Dean pulled on his shoes and got up to leave. But as his roommate approached the door, Fulton slammed it shut and said calmly, "No, you weren't. And you're not now."
"What the hell is /this/?" Dean demanded.
Folding his arms over his chest, Fulton replied, "I want to talk to you."
Dean rolled his eyes. "Can it wait?"
"No!" Fulton looked angry. He had a right to be, Dean mused. Taking a deep breath, Fulton said, "Look. I just...I feel like we aren't friends anymore, and I want to know if it's something I did, so we maybe can fix it."
"We're still friends!" Dean protested. It was Fulton's turn to roll his eyes.
"Yeah, sure, we're still friends. So why do you go out of your way to avoid me?"
Dean stared at the floor, unsure of what to say. Finally, he muttered, "It's not you, bro."
"Then what is it?"
"I don't know!"
"Bullshit. You know. Tell me."
Dean glared at him rebelliously. "I /can't/ tell you."
Fulton's eyes softened. He stepped toward Dean, saying softly, "You can tell me anything, Dean."
"Not this." Dean backed away. "I can't, not this."
"Why not?" Fulton asked. He took a step back, to widen the distance between them and hopefully make Dean more comfortable. Dean looked like he was going to cry.
"You'll hate me."
"No, I won't. I swear."
"You will."
Fulton said patiently, "I won't."
"I know you will," Dean retorted. Fulton was starting to get frustrated.
"I wouldn't say you could if it wasn't true."
"You don't know!"
"That's right!" Fulton cried, grabbing Dean by the shoulders and giving him a single, rough shake. "I don't know, because you won't stop being a scared little bitch and just /tell/ me what's the matter!"
Dean pulled away. He let out a breath and said shakily, "I love you, okay? I tried to stay away from you because I've fallen in love with you, Fulton." At the shocked look on Fulton's face, Dean closed his eyes and began mentally berating himself for being so stupid, not only to fall in love with his best friend, but to tell his best friend so.
"You bastard," he heard whispered vehemently, and a pair of strong arms were flung around his shoulders, followed quickly by soft, warm lips pressed over his mouth. Fulton was...kissing him? Kissing him, not yelling at him, not storming away, not...
Eager fingers raked through his hair as a tiny sound of pleading escaped Fulton's throat. 'I can live with this,' Dean admitted dryly to himself, embracing Fulton tightly and kissing the boy back. But a simple, chaste kiss such as that couldn't satiate months of desire and denial all on its own. With a thrilling growl of need that sent chills throughout Dean's entire body, Fulton pulled the boy toward him until his own back was up against the door and their bodies meshed comfortably. Their tongues met and wrestled, as hands explored tentatively, until the need for air outweighed the need for that sublime contact and they broke apart, gasping.
Both were flushed, and Fulton laughed at Dean's expression as he gently finger-combed the errant curls out of Dean's angelic face. "You look surprised."
"I am," Dean whispered, "It's a nice surprise."
"Mm-m..." Fulton responded, a sly smile making him look positively devilish. "So, I take it that another would be appreciated?"
"Always," Dean answered, claiming Fulton's mouth again.
~~To Be Continued....~~
A/N: Bash-slash, Bash-slash! Woohoo! ::does happy dance:: I hope I made you guys happy, too!
****
"Might as Well, Part Eight"
["Every whisper of/ Every waking moment I`m/ Choosing my confessions/ Trying to keep/ An eye on you/ Like a hurt lost and blinded fool/ Oh no I`ve said too much/ I set it up/
Consider this/ Consider this/ The hint of the century/ Consider this/ The slip/ That brought me to my knees failed/ What if all these fantasies/ Come flailing around/ Now I`ve said too much/
I thought that I heard you laughing/ I thought that I heard you sing/ I think I thought I saw you try/
But that was just a dream/ That was just a dream/
That`s me in the corner/ That`s me in the spot-light/ Losing my religion/ Trying to keep up with you/ But I don`t know if I can do it/ Oh no I`ve said too much/ I haven`t said enough..."
--from "Losing My Religion" by R.E.M.]
It was a bright Saturday afternoon, windy to the point of being cold enough for people to huddle in their jackets and hurry through the streets. The sun hung, a cheerless white orb in a frozen clear blue sky, rendered impotent by the cold wind.
Luis, being the latest victim to Coach Orion's somewhat insane demands, was being treated by Adam to a lunch "wherever you want to go." Now, though, Connie was complaining about it, to the annoyance of Charlie, Banksie, Luis, and Fulton. Guy attempted to placate her, unsuccessfully.
"Cons, we'll go out to dinner at that nice sushi place you like, the one that serves the tofu California rolls."
Connie shot her boyfriend a look of suffering. She twined her hand with his and looked at him with sad, puppyish eyes. "Guy, honey," she started, her voice dripping sweetness, "I couldn't possibly...I think I'll be sick just being here...I'm so sorry."
"Quit it, Connie," Charlie huffed, "McDonald's isn't /that/ bad."
"Yeah," Adam cut it, "You can eat the french fries or an apple pie. Besides, I gave Luis a choice, so why don't you respect that and be nice, for /once/?"
Connie let go of Guy, and, eyes blazing with fury, snapped, "Just what are you insinuating, Cake-Eater? That I'm not nice? That I'm disrespectful? That I--"
Guy cut her off, "Cons, don't let him get to you. He's making you cause a scene." He looked at Adam, asking for forgiveness with his expression. Adam rolled his eyes and huffed with annoyance. When Connie nodded and excused herself to the ladies' room, Luis said in a low voice,
"Guy, man, you are /whipped/."
"Okay, I'll have a number one, large...are you gonna order, you guys?" Fulton called from the counter. The rest of them hurried over, and Adam paid the bill. As they walked with their trays to one of the booths, Adam commented,
"I gotta tell you, I expected to spend a /lot/ more. You're pretty cheap to treat, Luis."
"Guess so. Thanks, Banks, " Luis said with a shrug, biting into his Double Quarter Pounder with Cheese. Connie just barely hid her gag behind a napkin. She went through the whole meal like that, nibbling on Guy's french fries and looking completely disgusted. Needless to say, the boys all ignored her.
****
They walked around town for a while, stopping outside the movie theater to check the shows and times. Charlie's eyes lit up and he suggested,
"How about we go see 'Beavis and Butt-head Do America'?" Fulton, Guy, and Luis nodded in agreement, but Connie and Adam looked reluctant. Connie had never seen the show; Adam had, but he found it utterly pointless and stupid.
"How about 'The Craft'?" He counter-suggested. Connie nodded enthusiastically, and Guy muttered that if Connie wanted to see it, he would. Luis looked a little concerned.
"That's the one about the witches, right? I don't think we should see anything to do with the occult."
"'From Dusk Til Dawn'," Fulton read aloud. "It has vampires."
After a few more minutes of arguing, 'From Dusk Til Dawn' was what they decided on.
****
As they came out of the theater, Connie grabbed Guy's arm and dragged him off to the left, just so she could avoid a scruffy-looking, probably homeless young man sitting on the curb, smoking a cigarette. Adam looked embarrassed and followed the two of them, while Charlie and Luis simply ignored the man, still deep in conversation about the movie--especially a certain scene involving a stripper and a snake.
Fulton, though, went right up to the man and said, "Hey." The man looked up and shrugged, taking a long pull on his cigarette,
"'Sup, man."
"You doin' okay?" Fulton inquired, sitting beside him. The man pushed dirty brown hair behind his ears and looked at Fulton with his brow furrowed in confusion. Shifting slightly, uncomfortable with Fulton's friendliness, he muttered,
"I guess." When Fulton didn't say anything else, the man decided to ask him, "You know about a place I can spend the night? I just got here from Hayward."
"Wisconsin?"
"Yup. Spent all my money on the Greyhound ticket."
Fulton reached into his pocket and pulled out the eight dollars and seventy-five cents he had there. Pressing the bills and coins into the man's hand, he said, "There's the Marie Sandvik Center on East Franklin Avenue."
As Fulton got up to rejoin his friends, the man said, "Hey, thanks!" Fulton lifted a hand in acknowledgement but didn't look back. The other Ducks were staring at Fulton, and Luis commented, not unkindly,
"Man, Fult, you're one soft touch."
Fulton shrugged. "Some friends of mine were homeless for a long time."
****
"Oh!" Dean whirled around in his swivel chair, seeing Fulton standing in the doorway. "You're back. I was just," he leaned down and grabbed his boots, "leaving."
Fulton watched without comment as Dean pulled on his shoes and got up to leave. But as his roommate approached the door, Fulton slammed it shut and said calmly, "No, you weren't. And you're not now."
"What the hell is /this/?" Dean demanded.
Folding his arms over his chest, Fulton replied, "I want to talk to you."
Dean rolled his eyes. "Can it wait?"
"No!" Fulton looked angry. He had a right to be, Dean mused. Taking a deep breath, Fulton said, "Look. I just...I feel like we aren't friends anymore, and I want to know if it's something I did, so we maybe can fix it."
"We're still friends!" Dean protested. It was Fulton's turn to roll his eyes.
"Yeah, sure, we're still friends. So why do you go out of your way to avoid me?"
Dean stared at the floor, unsure of what to say. Finally, he muttered, "It's not you, bro."
"Then what is it?"
"I don't know!"
"Bullshit. You know. Tell me."
Dean glared at him rebelliously. "I /can't/ tell you."
Fulton's eyes softened. He stepped toward Dean, saying softly, "You can tell me anything, Dean."
"Not this." Dean backed away. "I can't, not this."
"Why not?" Fulton asked. He took a step back, to widen the distance between them and hopefully make Dean more comfortable. Dean looked like he was going to cry.
"You'll hate me."
"No, I won't. I swear."
"You will."
Fulton said patiently, "I won't."
"I know you will," Dean retorted. Fulton was starting to get frustrated.
"I wouldn't say you could if it wasn't true."
"You don't know!"
"That's right!" Fulton cried, grabbing Dean by the shoulders and giving him a single, rough shake. "I don't know, because you won't stop being a scared little bitch and just /tell/ me what's the matter!"
Dean pulled away. He let out a breath and said shakily, "I love you, okay? I tried to stay away from you because I've fallen in love with you, Fulton." At the shocked look on Fulton's face, Dean closed his eyes and began mentally berating himself for being so stupid, not only to fall in love with his best friend, but to tell his best friend so.
"You bastard," he heard whispered vehemently, and a pair of strong arms were flung around his shoulders, followed quickly by soft, warm lips pressed over his mouth. Fulton was...kissing him? Kissing him, not yelling at him, not storming away, not...
Eager fingers raked through his hair as a tiny sound of pleading escaped Fulton's throat. 'I can live with this,' Dean admitted dryly to himself, embracing Fulton tightly and kissing the boy back. But a simple, chaste kiss such as that couldn't satiate months of desire and denial all on its own. With a thrilling growl of need that sent chills throughout Dean's entire body, Fulton pulled the boy toward him until his own back was up against the door and their bodies meshed comfortably. Their tongues met and wrestled, as hands explored tentatively, until the need for air outweighed the need for that sublime contact and they broke apart, gasping.
Both were flushed, and Fulton laughed at Dean's expression as he gently finger-combed the errant curls out of Dean's angelic face. "You look surprised."
"I am," Dean whispered, "It's a nice surprise."
"Mm-m..." Fulton responded, a sly smile making him look positively devilish. "So, I take it that another would be appreciated?"
"Always," Dean answered, claiming Fulton's mouth again.
~~To Be Continued....~~
A/N: Bash-slash, Bash-slash! Woohoo! ::does happy dance:: I hope I made you guys happy, too!
