Fair Ain't What I'm Looking For

Chapter Seven: It Was Just A Sound

Ryan passed his canteen over to Nick who was sitting next to him on the large tree branch. Their feet swung in rhythm with one another as they ate. Nick's habitual smile still in place as Ryan watched their feet in odd fascination.

"We have to be the worst two people to patrol ever."

Ryan stopped staring at their feet, "Of course we are, this is all we do."

"Well, you know, besides other things," Nick quirked an eyebrow at him.

"Can I take the eye patch off? I swear if I wasn't already blind in that eye, I'd be going," he bit into his sandwich, chewing loudly, he was never a quiet eater.

"No, eye patch equals sexy!"

"Eye patch equals rash."

"Now you're just making it up," Nick tossed bits of crackers at him.

"No I'm not, let me throw scolding hot water in your face and tell me you don't want to scrape it against a tree just to counterbalance the pain."

Nick frowned, confused, "What does that have to do with rashes?"

Ryan chewed loudly for a moment then furrowed his brows in confusion, "I'm sorry I lost my train of thought, what were we talking about?"

".............." Nick shrugged.

"It was important, something to do with trees......."

"Well, trees are important."

"Niiiick, can you be real for a moment?"

"I am real, I don't know what you're talking about."

Ryan sighed and leaned against Nick's shoulder before leaning over to kiss him on the cheek. Nick's smile seemed to soften and he reached for Ryan's free hand and laced their fingers together.

"It's going to be ok, you know that right?"

Nick sighed, "When I'm with you everything has to be fine."

Ryan's eye seemed to unfocus for a moment and shimmered with years of unshed tears. He blinked, it was gone, "No it doesn't and it won't always be."

"Ryan? What are you talking about?" Nick smiled at him, but his grip was tight.

"Nothing, Nick, nothing."

"Nah, it's something," Nick pointed out in the distance, "looks like we got business."

Ryan frowned for a second and tried to make out the figure in the distance, "Oh, great, should we rock, paper, scissors to see if we should tell Shawn or get David?"

"Sounds like a plan to me!" said Nick as he placed his fist in his palm.

"You Shawn, I David?"

"You be Shawn, I wanna be David."

"I don't wanna be Shawn....."

"NOBODY DOES!" Nick slapped his hand over his mouth and stared wide-eyed for a moment.

"You thank Rhapsody he's not around," Ryan smiled at his lover.

"Forget that, I'll thank GOD," muttered Nick.

"Ok, so I'm Shawn, you're David, ready?"

Nick nodded.

"Rock, paper, scissors."

-x-

She remembered that day so vividly, like most other people in Saint Morning Hall. Really who would have thought that David Jacobs would have been a sympathizer? Let alone the fact that he'd been helping the more then wealthy Robert Mavlotski sneak around with his ..........friend, Fletcher. If the fact that they were committing a horrible act wasn't enough, Fletcher was really aiming too high and Robert for all his wealth was reaching far below his means. She really had to laugh at that thought, if it wasn't intolerance there was always class.

She paused as a fallen tree branch cracked beneath her foot. She stared up into the trees, then slowly turned on the balls of her feet to stare in the other direction. With her eyes still cast to the tree tops she slowly turned back around and kept walking.

That boy, Shawn, she shuddered, was the damn leader of the pack of everyone who lived in The City. David was pretty much not so forth coming with many details on his new home though she definitely got the feeling that her brother did not see it as one.

It wasn't even like she'd done it on purpose, but that day she suddenly realized how much she said was heard.

-x-

David for the life of him could hardly contain his anger. He stared at his sister, face calm, but inside he was a swirl of emotions. It seemed like more and more she'd show up across the lake, hiding just around a set of tress, trying to walk stealthily through the forest. Shawn was going to have his head when and if he found out.

"What are you doing here, Sarah!?"

"Is it so wrong for me to wonder around on my own?" she flung her hair over her shoulder.

"I can get into a lot of trouble if you keep doing this, is that what you want?"

"Please David, what can I, a girl, do?" she leaned against a tree.

"A lot more then you give yourself credit for," David glared.

"Mom and Dad aren't home, won't be for weeks......"

"And?" he arched an eyebrow.

"I don't know, it's lonely, maybe I could-"

David cut her off, "No!"

"David!"

"What? You expect me to trust you?" he laughed.

"Yes, I'm your sister, I'm a girl, I can't be left alone in that house."

"Sometimes I wonder," David scoffed.

Sarah glared at him, "Look, David, all I'm asking is that I stay with you for a few days and go into town when you need stuff. Simple."

"Up until Shawn kills me for bringing you there, Sarah, he'll have my head. I'm forever treading on eggshells as is, you being there would be like me destroying the whole chicken coop."

"…….chicken coop?"

"……you know what I mean," he sighed.

"Fine, protect your little chickens, but when it comes straight down to it just remember David, you can never trust anybody but family," she turned on her heels and headed in the direction of town.

David sighed as he watched his sister walk away angrily.

"She sure is quite the catch," Ryan muttered as he finished his food.

"She also forgets the fact that she's the reason I'm here in the first place," David ran his hand through his hair.

"I can only imagine the lucky man who's going to make her his wife," said Nick smiling.

Ryan glanced up at the sky, "Our shift is about over now."

"You guys want to walk back with me then?" asked David feeling utterly sick.

"You really hate her don't you?" asked Ryan.

"She's my sister, I love her, but I hate the fact that she hardly considers anyone but herself," they went down a well covered hatch and locked it behind them.

They arrived in Rhapsody fifteen minutes later, a strange static sound filtering boomed from hidden speakers, "As of this moment, nobody is allowed contact with anyone from the outside."

The line went dead, they all stared at each other for a moment. Chris casually walked over to them coming down from the main entrance and motioned them to follow him.

-x-

Jack stood not too far away waiting for David; he'd been with Shawn and Anthony when Chris had come in and informed Shawn that David had been spotted outside talking to his sister. Shawn had merely raised an eyebrow but Jack could tell Shawn had made some sort of decision. After Chris had finished speaking Shawn had told everyone but David, sans Anthony, to leave.

Jack looked to Chris glaring.

Nick glanced at the door, "Shawn's been dying for an excuse."

"An excuse for what?" asked Jack.

Chris shrugged, "Rhapsody help us, I don't know…."

"Well, thanks for giving Shawn an excuse to do whatever the hell he's been wanting an excuse for!"

"Look someone else told me, I can't just not say anything to Shawn, when nothing happened to David they'll come asking why and-"

"Heaven forbid something happen to you, right?" said Jack quirking an eyebrow.

Ryan nudged Jack, "So how was the thing with Shawn?"

"I hear you guys were talking about Rapture, I really want the garden," Nick smiled as he joined the conversation, he was uncomfortable with Jack being angry at Chris as he and Ryan had not been implicated.

"He said Fletcher's gonna have a look at it with us," Jack felt like hitting something.

They all jolted as the doors slammed open, Shawn stared at them for a second and started walking, David trailing behind him. Anthony was carrying a notebook, writing as he followed the pair, he motioned for Jack to follow. Anthony handed a note to Chris and the four continued on. Nick and Ryan glanced down at the note in Chris's hand. Chris frowned and pressed the note to his chest.

"Send Fletcher to Rapture?"

"You don't think they're gonna do anything to David do you?" asked Ryan watching as the four turned the hall.

"Shawn's got his cane with him, something's going on," said Nick.

"I guess I should go get Fletcher," muttered Chris as he walked off.

"I'd be more worried if it had said City of Rocks," said Ryan as he wrapped his arm around Nick.

"No joke, Rhapsody help me if we never see David again……."

Ryan glanced down at Nick's face, it had been a while, but Nick looked genuinely worried his ever present smile gone. Nick was never around for the bad parts, he never got to hear Shawn's speeches about traitors or punishments. Ryan didn't know if Shawn did it intentionally or what, but he was glad.

"…..Nick, about the noose on your bed that night," it was the first time he asked about, he figured this was his only chance.

Nick's head shot up to look at him, he seemed surprised.

"What was it doing there?"

For a brief second he thought Nick was going to cry, but he just opened his mouth and spoke softly, "It wasn't mine…..they placed it there, neatly on my bed, every night….."

"You didn't make it….?" he slid his hand to Nick's and held it tightly.

"…..every night….." he clenched his eyes shut and shook his head, forcing a smile, "I think, we should go home."

Ryan felt like his heart was going to shatter, "I love you Nick."

"Me too, I love you," Nick leaned against him as they headed down the hall.

-x-

Shawn watched as water dripped out of the ceiling. Anthony and Fletcher stood behind him. The sound of something cracking drew their attention to the floor. Water poured in through a vent, Shawn raised an eyebrow in distaste. Anthony cringed and started to take some mental notes as he did not have his other notebooks on him.

Fletcher looked to Shawn, "I don't know what else to tell you except that air's escaping."

"I'm not always too bright, but I'm very certain that's a bad thing," muttered Shawn.

"So there's really no way to stop it?" asked David timidly.

Whatever Shawn had said or done, it showed. Jack couldn't help but notice how very docile David suddenly seemed.

Fletcher shook his head, "I mean, pumping out the water will only do so much."

"Fuck," Shawn glared at the water pooling at their feet.

"I suppose everyone was gonna have to move on eventually."

Anthony looked over at Fletcher, "This was more of a home then any other space on this planet, for a lot of people……not just us."

"You think I have any idea where I'm supposed to go with Robert after this place floods?"

"It's bad to talk about the end before it happens," Shawn watched tightlipped as a tin box floated by.

The door opposite them opened a very looking small boy with black hair walked in, Robert trailing behind him, "We got a bit of a problem."

Shawn looked at Jack and David, "Go home, and think carefully Davey, not like anyone's life is on the line."

-x-

Once they were far enough away Jack turned to David, "What did he do?"

David took a deep breath and exhaled, "He told me I had three options, go back up and get punished, stay down here and never go back up again, or he could shoot me right then and there……"

"You serious?!" they kept walking, pushing past people as they went through the center of the city.

David didn't say anything till they got to Hedos, he dropped to the ground once they got out the tunnel, "I can't never see my parents again Jack."

Jack knelt next to him, "Then just, go back up there."

"You really think Shawn would just let me walk away? Jack, I know things, too many things. Shawn's never going to let me leave this place, don't you get that?" David ran his hands through his hair and pulled.

Jack wasn't entirely sure what to do, "Then why would he give you options?"

"I go up there they're going to….." he couldn't even say it, "…till I- till I talk, I'm not a strong person Jack. They'd just torture me till I talked, I couldn't do that, I couldn't live with myself."

"They all treat you like crap anyway j-" Jack seemed startled as David cut him off.

"They may not like me, trust me, but Shawn gave me a place that has mean something, right?" David pulled his hands out of his hair and stood.

He didn't seem confident, he just seemed resigned.

Jack stood also and followed him back to the house, "I'm ……I'm sure…."

He shut the door behind him as David went upstairs, the house was too quiet, too dark. He stared out the window into the metal ceiling and down at the fake lawn…..Shawn wanted David to suffer, David seemed content to let him have his way. Jack just wanted David to be himself again…..He stepped away from the window and went up the stairs.

Slowly he pushed David's door open, he found him sitting on the other side of his bed staring down at a family photo. For all his worth, David did not cry, he never looked like he even thought about crying. He wanted to though, as society said it, it's okay to have opinions, so long as they were the same as everyone else. It wasn't okay, to be emotional. He glared at Jack.

"Get out."

Jack sat next to him, "Make me, David."

It took all his strength not to rip up the photo, he wasn't mad at his family, he was mad at himself. If he had just, been like everyone else…..

"I just….I miss them so much. I shouldn't be here, I didn't do anything wrong, nobody has……"

Jack slid his arm around his shoulder, "I know that David."

David slowly pulled his gaze from the photo, he was staring Jack straight in the eyes. Neither of them spoke the room echoed in silence. It felt like if something didn't happen soon the world would shatter, it only took a heartbeat. Jack leaned in and kissed him.

"I don't want to be alone together, Davey," David looked confused at Jack's statement, "I want it to be us together."

"Me too, Jack," David found himself clinging to him feelings welling up inside him he couldn't even begin to fathom, it scared him.

XXX

A/N: Things are a little crazy for me at the moment, but I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter.