Title: Catching the Stars (4/14)

Pairing: Pike and Henry (from the movie Big Eden)

Rating: NC-17

Word Count: ~3700

Summary: The courtship and evolving relationship between Pike and Henry is told in flashbacks after a horrible incident rocks shakes the foundation of everyone who loves them both. (i.e.: The entire town of Big Eden!) (In my universe the last scene of the movie - the dance and kiss - happened a year later at the annual summer picnic.)

Genre: Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Romance, Friendship

Disclaimer: They don't belong to me - I just play with them a little.

Warnings: Injection of harsh reality into the idyllic world of Big Eden.

PRESENT

Pike was in deep sleep before Henry had even finished brushing his teeth. The pain meds hit him hard. Henry crawled underneath the warm bedding and propped himself up on an elbow so he could look...just look. Pike's face was a little less swollen, his wrapped chest rose and fell in a steady rhythm. Henry knew the bruises were deeper and darker on the parts of Pike's body that were covered by blankets and he couldn't stop himself from crying quietly, so he wouldn't wake his lover.

He had waited his whole life to find the kind of love he and Pike shared. He may not have been expecting it - he certainly didn't expect Pike to be part of it - but now that he has it, with Pike, the thought of losing the wonderful, almost magical love they shared left him feeling achingly empty. Someone carelessly and hatefully almost took his true love away - almost took the best part of hie life away. He couldn't stop thinking about it.

He faded into sleep without even realizing it.

The heat was all around him as he woke. He was burrowed beneath the soft old sheets and ancient quilts. Pike radiated heat when he slept and it felt like being baked gently in a warm oven. It was a little confusing to his sleep addled brain. He could see the brightness of morning light through his eyelids and yet Pike was still in bed.

Pike's never in bed after the sun rises.

It took him a few seconds to understand the feeling of fear that the thought caused in his chest. Then it all came together in a blur of horrible memories.

Pike was home because he had been hurt.

And even if he wasn't battered from head to toe - his store was a wreck and would be for weeks. So either way - Pike was home when he should be a few hours into his work day.

It felt like a punch to the gut to think about how this must feel for his fiercely independent boyfriend.

He reached across the few inches that separated them to touch Pike's warm skin, finding cotton beneath his fingers instead. He felt his throat close up from the emotion Pike's wrapped ribs stirred up.

He finally opened his eyes - he just needed to see that Pike was really there. He was met with the intense gaze of his lover. The sight of it left him feeling a little breathless. He wondered when he started thinking of Pike as beautiful.

He could feel himself smile. "What are you doing?"

"I've never watched you wake up before." Pike answered.

Henry scooted a little closer. "That's because you're not lazy like your boyfriend."

"My boyfriend's not lazy." Pike reached for Henry's hand.

"So, do I drool?" Henry tried to lighten Pike's mood.

Pike's released Henry's hand and trailed his fingers along the sensitive skin covering Henry's unmarred ribcage until he was touching his stubbly face. "I love you, Henry."

"I blame it on the head wound." Henry teased as he grabbed Pike's hand to kiss his fingers. He saw the warning in Pike's eyes. Henry had promised a long time ago that he would curb the self-deprecation. "I love you, too." He sighed.

FLASHBACK

Pike stood near a concrete pillar near the middle of a large, industrial loft-style gallery. Henry's art was hanging on every wall. The artist in question was standing in a small circle of finely-dressed art patrons, Mary Margaret flanking one side.

Every now and then Henry would look around in search of his hard-to-miss lover, but it was like Pike had just vanished.

In reality, he had just found a great little hiding place standing behind the wide pillar so he could watch Henry nervously entertain his admirers. Henry insisted he had no such thing - admirers were for the beautiful people of the world. He said he found it impossible to believe that anyone would admire a slouch like him.

Pike never understood how Henry could be so blind to his own magnificence. He looked even more so tonight and Pike couldn't take his eyes off of him.

They had gone shopping after they checked into their hotel - the Bryant Park Hotel to be exact. Between the over-the-top suite, courtesy of Mary Margaret, and the young, hip hotel clientele - both men felt a little out of place. Mary Margaret met them at the clothing store and had a stack of perfectly matched outfits ready to try on.

After almost an hour of trying, she finally selected the outfits they would wear to Henry's opening. The black slacks, green silk shirt, and shiny black shoes with matching belt were outside of Pike's comfort zone, but he wore them because Mary Margaret said it would be best for Henry if his partner looked dressed for the occasion. And Pike would do anything for Henry.

Except the tie. He tried, but it just felt like he was being strangled so he took it off and shoved it in his pocket.

He thought Henry looked really, really good in his own black slacks. Mary Margaret had picked a dark brown shirt that shimmered when Henry moved. He had taken his tie off too, in a show of solidarity.

Pike was enjoying watching his insecure lover struggle through being the center of attention when his imaginary isolation bubble was burst by two men who chose his hiding spot to hold a conversation.

"I heard he's living with some gas-jockey in Alaska." One of the perfectly put together men said.

"No. It's a stock boy in Wyoming." The other one scoffed. "I heard he's hot - like in an exotic sort of way. He's Hawaiian or something."

"I heard he was an Eskimo."

"Eskimo?" His friend laughed. "There's no such thing as an Eskimo."

"Yeah - they're the people who lived in Alaska before we bought it."

"Bought it?" The man obviously thought his friend was a complete idiot. "We didn't...whatever, they're called Native Alaskans, not Eskimos." He patronized. "And those people are never hot - exotic maybe - but not hot."

"That's what I heard - he's hooked up with a hideous Eskimo who pumps gas for a living."

Pike was getting ready to find another hiding place when the man with the superiority complex spoke to him. "That's Henry Hart."

Pike just looked at the man with a crinkled brow.

"That guy you keep staring at - he's the artist - Henry Hart." He explained.

"He's dripping with talent apparently." His companion chimed in. "It's a shame it's being wasted."

"Be nice, Franco. It's not Henry's fault that he's genetically predisposed to looking like that."

Franco chortled. "At least he finally found his unattractive match with the hideous Eskimo gas jockey."

"Stock boy!" Franco's friend insisted. "And he's hot. I heard from a good source."

"Henry Hart couldn't get a hot guy in bed if he paid him." Franco argued. "I mean look at him. Mary Margaret can dress him up all she wants, but a wart hog is still a wart hog, no matter what he's wearing."

"Now you're just being a catty little bitch, Franco." The prissy man turned to Pike. "What do you think?"

Pike was a little confused by the sudden question from a man he had never met. "About?"

"Hart. You're pretty hot and exotic as hell..."

"You'd be perfect if you just worked out a little."

"Ignore him. You're hot. So would you go for something like that?" Franco's friend pointed toward Henry.

"You know him?" Pike asked.

"Henry?" Franco chimed. "Yeah - we've known Henry for..." He looked at his friend. "...how long has it been, Sedrick?"

"About ten years." Sedrick said after thinking about it for a second.

Franco returned his attention to Pike, leaning a little closer. "Henry's one of our best friends. Well, he was before he moved in with the hot Hawaiian stock boy."

Pike just looked at the two men for a few seconds. He understood Henry's insecurity so much more now. "Excuse me." He said politely before he walked away.

As he made his way toward his lover he wondered if all of Henry's New York friends were as shallow and unkind. He watched as Henry finally caught sight of him and felt his heart melt just a little by the look of relief on Henry's face.

"Hey Pike, I've been looking for you." Henry said as Pike joined the little group surrounding his boyfriend.

"I've been looking at your exhibit." He fibbed to spare Henry's feelings and then said something he thought Henry really needed to hear more often. "I'm so proud of you."

Henry's face broke into a giant, happy smile. When Pike put his arm around his shoulders, Henry literally beamed. He reciprocated with his own arm snaking around Pike's waist before he turned to the odd assortment of artist's groupies. "Everyone, I'd like to introduce you to my partner, Pike Dexter."

Pike noticed Franco and Sedrick staring at them with matching shocked expressions. Pike pulled Henry a little closer.

They found themselves sitting at Del Frisco's Steakhouse after the opening, surrounded by gallery patrons and a handful of Mary Margaret's interpretation of Henry's friends. Pike noticed Sedrick and Franco staring and whispering a lot. He had a pretty good idea what they were whispering about, too. It made him want to scoop Henry up and hop on the next flight home.

"That's Sedrick and Franco." Henry's words ghosted across Pike's neck as Henry whispered privately.

It caught Pike off guard. "Hm?"

"Those guys you're staring at." Henry clarified. "That's Sedrick and Franco."

Pike turned his head enough to look into Henry's eyes as he spoke. Their mouths were achingly close because Henry didn't move to accommodate the face-to-face situation. "Was I staring?"

Henry grinned. "You know you were. I can't blame you - everyone stares at them." Henry tried to keep it light, but Pike could see the pain and insecurity lurking in his eyes. "They're cute."

"Cute?" Pike asked.

"Yeah, cute." Henry smirked. "Don't act like you didn't notice."

Pike shook his head ever-so-slightly. "I...didn't...I don't think they're cute at all."

Henry contemplated for a moment without moving. "I take it you met them."

Pike nodded.

"That explains it. You're not the type to think jerks like Franco and Sedrick are cute."

"You're cute." Pike smiled. "You look really nice tonight." Pike thought the blush that tinted Henry's cheeks looked nice too. "How long do we need to..."

"I'm ready whenever you are." Henry interrupted. He had that look in his eyes as he rushed his words.

Pike finally closed the tiny space between their mouths and placed a solid, but brief, kiss on Henry's lips. "I just need to use the restroom real quick."

"Okay." Henry said with his eyes still closed. "I'll say goodbye to Mary Margaret."

Pike wasn't accustomed to public urination, so he chose to lock himself into one of the private toilets instead of standing at one of the bright, white porcelain urinals. He was surprised to find Sedrick - or Franco - whoever - standing at the row of sinks when he exited his stall. He walked to the sink farthest away from the man to quickly wash his hands.

Sedrick-Franco just leaned against his sink and stared at Pike in a way that was uncomfortable and nerve-wracking. "So you're the stock-boy?"

Pike didn't answer as he moved to the paper towel dispenser.

"What is it? Does he have money? Is he the only option in Wyoming?" He asked while stepping toward Pike. "Because you could do so much better than a hag like Henry Hart."

That was more than Pike could tolerate. "Montanta." He corrected before he turned to face the horrible little man who was standing way too close now. "Didn't you say you're a friend of Henry's?"

"I am. I like him despite his obvious deficits." Sedrick-Franco said it as if he were doing Henry a favor. "He's a brilliant artist. Might even be a little famous someday. That makes him worth knowing."

Pike now knew exactly the kind of person deserving of the label vile creature. "Excuse me." He didn't think there was anything left to say.

By the time he made it back to the large table, Henry was standing. Mary Margaret was at his side, doing the work of a best friend and top-notch agent by saying all of the gracefully polite and confident words to the table full of admirers that Henry was usually too shy to come up with on his own. Pike draped a long arm over Henry's shoulders while glaring in the direction of the vile creature and his vile companion at the other end of the table.

Henry seemed to get a boost from the contact, he suddenly found his voice. "Thank you all for joining Pike and I. We both enjoyed our evening with you." Henry turned his head to smile at Pike. "You ready to head out?"

Pike nodded. He scanned the table while adding his own. "It's been a pleasure meeting you."

As soon as they settled into the back of the taxi and instructed the driver on where to take them, Henry looked at Pike gratefully. "Thank you for coming here."

Pike was a little confused. "Where else would I be tonight?"

Henry shook his head. "No, I mean thank you for coming here. To New York. I know how much you hate being away from home...and your store...but I'm so glad you're here. So thank you."

Pike delicately brush his fingers through Henry's hair - just enough to feel comforting without causing Henry to worry about losing more hair. "I don't hate it so much when I'm with you."

That earned him a very sweet kiss.

Pike was pressed against Henry's back within an hour. He pushed Henry until he stood in front of the full length mirror that was also the door of the hotel room's closet. He stood behind Henry, his arms around Henry's chest and waist. He kissed Henry's neck as he looked into Henrys eyes via the mirror in front of them and whispered against his skin. "You look really nice."

"You already said that tonight." Henry was already sweating from the desire Pike was stirring up in his belly.

"It bears repeating." Pike's hands roamed.

Henry leaned back and rolled his head on Pike's shoulder. "Thanks to Mary Margaret's impeccable fashion sense."

Pike bit Henry's neck just a little too hard. "No." His hands met at Henry's belt buckle. He slowly unbuckled. unfastened, unzipped...undressed Henry while never losing eye contact in their refections. Once he had Henry completely naked he cupped the hardness between Henry's legs. "You still look nice."

PRESENT

"More coffee?" Henry asked after hopping up and grabbing Pike's half-empty cup. He had been fussing over Pike all morning.

Pike grabbed Henry's wrist before he got too far away. "Just sit, Henry."

Henry placed his cup back onto the table. "Did you get enough to eat? There's more cereal."

"I'm good." Pike squeezed Henry's hand. "Thank you."

"I'm sorry about the cereal - I could have made eggs and bacon. Toast. I could have made toast. I just didn't want to...mess it up. Cereal seemed like a safe bet. I can still make eggs though."

"This was fine."

"Toast?"

Pike smiled. "This was perfect. Really."

"Okay." Henry looked unconvinced. He sat in the nearest chair. "Can I do anything for you?"

"I want to go to the store."

"You...can't." Henry swallowed hard. "I mean...you're...you still have...you can't."

"I just need to see...check on it...for myself."

Henry grabbed Pike's hand. "I just got you home." He tried another tactic.

"I was only gone two days and you never left my side." Pike argued.

"I just think you need to take it easy for a few days." Henry soothed by rubbing the back of Pike's hand with his thumb. "You're still limping and you're head took a pretty hard hit. You don't want to get another one of those headaches, do you?"

"Henry..." Pike pulled Henry's hand to his lips and kissed it. "...I just need to see."

Henry knew Pike meant it - he really did need to see - but Henry also knew how devastating the sight of it would be for his sweet love. Dexter's General Store was as much a part of Pike as his long, dark hair and quiet, reserved kindness. Pike had invested all of himself in every way possible into that store. It was one of the threads that wove the fabric of Big Eden. Pike was proud of it.

And it was currently torn apart.

Henry knew he had no choice - he would take Pike to his store and he would do his best to hold Pike together. "When?"

"After I clean up - my hair feels...I really want to take a shower." Pike looked almost embarrassed. "I might need a little help."

Henry smiled while he brushed a strand of stringy, black hair from Pike's face. "Nothing would make me happier."

Henry was so careful. He followed Pike into the bathroom that had been equipped with an accessible shower for Sam. "Just let me do all the work, okay?"

Pike simply nodded and gave Henry complete control. Henry carefully removed Pike's bathrobe and unwrapped his ribcage. "Don't move around too much without support." Henry said softly as he double-bagged Pike's cast.

It wasn't the most graceful process, especially the hair washing. Between Pike being so tall and Henry being so short - well, it was a challenge - especially considering Pike couldn't really stoop or bend. But Henry got the job done and soon he was carefully and gently drying Pike's skin with a soft towel. He couldn't resist kissing the dark bruise on Pike's hip.

He was just so damn grateful.

"Let's get this on." Henry said more to give Pike a little warning before he wrapped the tight-fitting, velcro-fastened, girdle-like rib wrap around him. "Does that feel okay?"

Pike winced before he nodded.

"Okay." Henry hated seeing Pike in pain. He grabbed a pair of black boxer-briefs - his personal favorite despite the fact that Pike preferred looser fitting underwear - and kneeled in front of his lover. He gently tapped Pike's left ankle, "Lift."

"Why'd you pick those?" Pike complained about Henry's choice. Pike usually only wore them for 'date night'.

"Because you need something a little more supportive right now." Henry smirked a little. "The fact that you look hot in them is only a perk." He gently pulled the briefs up and over various injuries, being especially careful of the worst of them on Pike's hip. "Sweatpants or jeans?"

"Seems you're in charge." Pike tried to hide his petulance as he adjusted himself in the underwear.

"Sweatpants it is, then." Henry ignored Pike's pout. He helped Pike step into the loose fitting track pants that were normally only worn around the house. He chose the biggest flannel shirt in Pike's side of the closet because pulling a t-shirt on would be almost impossible at the moment.

Pike looked at himself in the mirror as Henry once again knelt in front of him to work on some socks and shoes. "Looks like Ben or Andrew dressed me."

"It's not the prom, Pike." Henry teased.

"Can we just go, please." Pike was obviously not in the mood for levity.

Henry tied the laces on the second shoe and didn't acknowledge the tension between them. "Yep."

He saw the dark cloud grow over Pike's head the moment he pulled the truck in front of the store. It was obvious that the guys had been working non-stop for the past three days. There were piles of destruction along side piles of new construction materials and right in the center of the chaos was the shattered remains of Pike's former cold case. Pike jumped from the truck before Henry had come to a complete stop.

"Careful, Pike!" He couldn't stop himself from yelling a little. He was so worried about Pike's physical condition.

He managed to get parked and rushed inside of the store. Pike was standing in the middle of his currently torn apart business. Jim stood at his side, gently rubbing Pike's shoulders.

Henry stepped to Pike's other side and grabbed his good hand. "I'm so sorry."

Pike just swept his eyes around the store, trying to take it all in. The place had been gutted. No stocked shelves. No frosted glass cold case. His precious cappuccino station was gone. There was no circle of chairs. The small, contained cube of counter and cash register - where he reigned over his little retail kingdom - was no longer there. It was no longer Dexter's General Store - it was just a big, empty, ugly room. "It'll never be the same."

"No it won't, Son." Jim soothed in his straight-forward way. "But we're working hard to make sure it's even better than before."

Pike walked away without a word. He made his way toward the back part of the building to continue with his visual assessment. Jim leaned toward Henry to speak quietly enough for Pike not to hear. "We haven't had a chance to start on the back yet."

"How bad is it?" Henry asked. He hadn't see much of the damage when he had found Pike. The only thing he could focus on was his bleeding, unconscious lover.

Jim simply place a warm hand on Henry's back. "Let's just say you might want to get back there - I think Pike's gonna need you."

TBC