For a moment the room remained silent, neither man in the room daring to breathe. Bret opened his mouth several times to continue his tale but sound refused to come out of his mouth. He was still a little shaken by the story he just told; a true story that was supposed to remain buried in the depths of his soul forever…until now. Bret shifted uncomfortably in his seat with a part of his mind wishing he could see Shawn's face again. But he knew what would happen. Or rather, he had thought about it enough in the last couple of hours and had reduced it to two things, one of which before now he knew would never happen. But now he was not so sure and it was best to just keep the divider up to save him the heartache. Finally after a long awkward silence, Chris spoke up.

"Thank you for sharing that Bret," he said softly. Chris turned to Shawn who was now staring down towards the floor with a blank expression on his face. Chris cleared his throat proceeding with his questions. "Shawn after hearing this from Bret, I'm pretty sure it's safe to assume that your friendship became even more awkward." Shawn slowly nodded his head. "Alright. Do you care to elaborate or would you rather I moved on to something else?" Shawn shook his head.

"No. I'll talk," he managed. "I just…it's been so long. I practically forgot all about that night."

"Figures you would," Bret mumbled. "But no lies Michaels. It happened and you know it."

"I wasn't going to deny it Bret. I know it happened. I just…it's been so long that I barely remember it. What stands out more than that first kiss is all the weirdness that took place afterwards. We avoided each other like the plague during shows and if we managed to run into one another, we kept it brief. This worked for a while but it did nothing to ease the growing tension between us."

"What do you mean?" Chris asked. Shawn let out a deep breath before continuing.

"I guess you could say we were attracted to one another since our first meeting though I can't really speak for Bret." Bret scoffed at this.

"I don't really know how I felt but at the rate I'm going today it's looking more and more like I've always been stuck on your impossible ass. So sure. What the hell Chris? I guess you could say I'd been curious since day one." I just didn't know it.

"You don't have to get so angry Bret," Shawn snapped. "I'm not at all happy about this either but the truth is the truth. The way is sounds right now is that you and I had an instant attraction."

"Fine. I'll agree to that so will you continue please?"

"Fine," he said rolling his eyes. "What I'm getting at Chris is that after a while the attraction becomes unavoidable. Any little touch, brush, breath – any contact whatsoever can be a big deal. The sexual tension between us was so thick that it made breathing around each other taboo. When you've been physically attracted to someone for so long it's bound to explode at some point even if it's just in spurts."

"Wow. So how long did you two keep this up until…you know?" he asked nervously.

"Well…it all started with a few close calls…"

~*~*~

Shawn stood in front of the mirror in his locker combing through the wet strands of his hair. He was all alone in the locker room which meant he could relax and take his time without worrying about what guys were whispering behind his back. He hated being in the locker room when others were around…well, except for Bret and even now it was just as hard being around Bret. Shawn's eyes suddenly closed remembering the way Bret's hand clasped his head bringing their lips in contact. For weeks Shawn imagined it was just a dream and maybe it was, but that couldn't possibly explain why he and Bret were practically avoiding each other all the time. And I thought we were going to be pretty good friends from now on… The thought made the blonde laugh. Since when have I ever had good friends who actually cared enough to stay with me? All of them seem to leave me so maybe something is wrong with me… A single tear fell down the blonde's face and then another until he was practically sobbing. A gentle touch on his shoulder made jump. He quickly spun around gasping when he saw a pair of familiar, gentle eyes staring back at him.

"Bret," he breathed. "I…didn't hear you come in." Shawn was tense. The air was tense and it didn't help that Bret was standing ridiculously close to him. All it did was make him think of other things…

"I'm sorry but you were so deep in thought…" His voice trailed off and Shawn knew what was coming next. "Why are you crying again?" he asked. Feeling slightly irritated Shawn snapped.

"Stop…being so concerned about me Bret. I'm fine."

"No you're not and I can't help it. We're friends and I want to be there for you."

"Well don't. I'm fine. Really. Just go…"

"Shawn—

"Please?" he begged. He could not take this closeness any longer. He was having a hard enough time breathing and he feared Bret's touch. One touch from him and…

"Are we alone?" Bret asked. Shawn blinked several times wondering what that had to do with anything but he didn't ask. He only nodded nervously hoping Bret would go away now. He did not. Instead he reached up and ran a finger under Shawn's eyelids wiping the tears that had not yet dried away. The gesture lit a fire in Shawn making him even more jumpy than usual. I have got to get out of here so I can breathe…

"I…I'm leaving." Shawn quickly brushed past Bret in an attempt to escape. He was in such a hurry to get away that he failed to avoid the huge dumbbell lying in the middle of the floor. His foot caught the bar. He spun around trying to avoid the fall but ended up flailing backwards onto the floor.

"Shawn!" Shawn cursed himself mentally for being such a klutz. His head hit the floor pretty hard and even though his head was throbbing, it only made him that much angrier. He opened his clinched eyes to find Bret standing over him, his hand extended. Shawn reluctantly grabbed his hand in an attempt to pull himself up but he ended up bringing Bret to the floor with him. The raven haired Hitman landed right on top of him, his body positioned comfortably between his legs.

To say that it was awkward would have been an understatement. Awkward wouldn't even begin to cover it, but that didn't matter. In a matter of seconds so many things happened that Shawn barely had time to register said awkwardness. Bret's head was resting comfortably on Shawn's chest but due to the instant, subconscious reaction to Bret's fall, Shawn's arms were wrapped around Bret's back seemingly holding him in place. Quite the predicament it was until Bret decided to shift. He raised his head and Shawn's body just froze. He wanted to move. In fact, a voice in the back of his head screamed for him to move but he couldn't. Something – and Shawn couldn't be sure exactly what – brushed against his member and he reacted. Something of a half gasp half whimper escaped his lips and the next thing he knew Bret's mouth was on his. It was slow, almost a tease of a kiss but that quickly changed when Shawn's lips moved on their own. Bret wasted no time claiming his lips, shoving his tongue down his throat. Shawn's body reacted in every way possible, his hands betraying him by feverishly exploring his sides tugging at the tight tee. Shawn heard Bret moan for the very first time and it made his entire body react.

"Bret," he breathed.

Beep. Beep. Beep.

Bret's body suddenly froze. Then as if he'd seen a ghost, Bret quickly scrambled to his feet. Once again he extended his hands and this time he managed to pull Shawn off the floor with no problem. Bret pulled the pager from his side reading the tiny numbers.

"I uh…I have to go," he managed. "Owen."

"Yeah uh…"

"Good night."

"Good night." Bret tore out of the room like lightening and minutes later Shawn did the same, heading back to his hotel room for another sleepless night.

~*~*~

"That was the first of several close calls," Shawn continued. "I don't know for sure if we would have…you know if Bret's pager wouldn't have gone off but you best believe we were relieved. It gave us both an excuse to get the hell out of that locker room before we could do anything we'd both regret later."

"Bret did you feel that same way? Relieved?"

"Oh yeah," he answered. "You really have no idea."

"Just out of curiosity Bret, why'd you kiss him again knowing that it would only cause problems?" Bret let out a sigh.

"I…don't really know Chris. Like I said before, this is the first time in a long time that I've had to think about these things. That night…I can tell you that when I landed on top of him my body suddenly became more alert than ever before and when he gasped, my body just…it was like an invitation. My body just moved."

"I understand. So I take it things only got worse."

"That's an understatement," Bret answered.

"I don't know if I'd say the tension was worse," Shawn chimed in. "We uh…kind of reached a point where the kisses were…how do I explain this…?"

"We found ourselves doing little things that daresay tested the lines of our friendship," Bret answered for him. "It helped at first, make our friendship seem more like a normal friendship though it was hardly normal at all. We still didn't talk much in public but…I don't know. I just remember…well here's an example…"

*~*~*

Bret stood idly in the airport lobby debating which plane he should get on. He knew Davey and Owen were probably getting on the first plane. He also knew that a lot of the lower card guys were probably on the second plane to avoid any unwanted attention from jokesters like his brother. While Bret loved taking long plane rides over seas with his family sometimes they could be a little annoying. On the other hand, Bret didn't want to get on plane two and have no one to talk with. After much debate, he decided on plane two. After all, it was still going to be a fairly long flight and if all else fails, he could always take a nap since these days sleep was hard to come by.

Bret grabbed his gear bag and headed through the second gate straight to his plane of choice. As Bret boarded the plane it was just like he suspected. Only a few guys were on the plane nearly all of them mid carders. Some of them acknowledged him as he moved to find a seat. Others ignored him completely. Bret shrugged it off not really caring if anyone talked with him. That only motivated him more to just take a nap. He looked around the plane trying to decide where to sit when he noticed what looked like some familiar blonde hair in the back. Fighting back the smile crept up on him, Bret headed towards the back. Much to his surprise Shawn was alone sitting next to the window staring out of it as if lost in thought. Bret cleared his throat and Shawn quickly looked around.

"Bret! Uh…what are you doing here?" He shrugged.

"I guess you could say I wanted to take a nap. That's damn near impossible when you're riding a plane with Owen and Davey."

"I guess you're right," he grinned.

"So…is this seat taken?"

"No. I usually sit alone but not because I want to. People just never ask. So…I usually just fall asleep ignoring everyone. This is the first time since Marty that someone's sit next to me."

"Wow." Bret tossed his bags in the seats across from then before taking his seat. "How come you never ride the other plane?" Shawn shrugged.

"I don't know. I guess I just feel more comfortable riding this one. The guys ignore me which is fine. It's better than listening to others whisper behind my back."

"Ahh I see. But you know, if you ever decide to ride the other plane let me know. I'll save you a seat." Shawn glanced over at him shaking his head.

"You think that would be smart considering…things?" he asked lowering his voice. Bret looked over at him surprised that he would even go there but Bret smiled. If he wasn't afraid to address their 'moments' then he supposed he shouldn't be either.

"Well…it might help," he laughed. "At least I'd have to control my actions. And for the record I do try," he joked. And it was more or less the truth. He DID try to keep his hands and lips to himself but he couldn't help it. He wasn't doing it on purpose but it seemed like God had it in for him or if not God, somebody did. Every time he would forget to think and his body would cave in to curiosity.

"And for the record, I DO try not to cry so much. I never thought my tears would cause so much trouble."

"You don't know your tears." Shawn laughed.

"I doubt you'll have to worry about any tears on this flight. I'll probably fall asleep soon anyway provided I can actually get to sleep."

"Sleepless nights?"

"Oh yeah. You have no idea." Bret looked over at the blonde and smirked.

"Well…I wouldn't go that far," he mused. "I haven't slept much either."

"In days?" Bret nodded. "Oh gee," Shawn laughed. "Don't tell me it's for the same reason."

"What reason would that be?" Bret inquired teasingly. Shawn glanced over at him biting his lip nervously. His eyes had a knowing look about them as if hoping Bret would answer for him, but Bret couldn't. He wouldn't have been able too anyway because he was too distracted watching the lips he'd managed to kiss accidentally one more than one occasion. Even now they looked just as tempting as ever which was wrong.

"I uh…" A small, nervous laugh escaped him. "I guess…I guess I couldn't stop thinking about all the times you've helped me…among other things," he added softly. Bret looked around and noticed that just about everyone was settling in to get some shut eye; a few of the guys already sleeping. He glanced back over at the blonde briefly afraid of meeting his eyes. They were practically invisible to everyone else on the plain which meant a repeat of past mistakes could happen and he didn't want to risk it.

"Same here," he added. Before Shawn's piercing blue eyes could trap him again, he quickly looked away fighting back the image from two weeks ago. A few seconds passed and both men remained silent. Bret was doing his best to ignore the fact that he really wanted to kiss him again. But it was so damn hard especially since the object of his evil desires was sitting next to him. Get a grip Bret! You're into women… Even though Shawn's hardly a guy. He's too pretty…That long blonde hair and those eyes… Those soft lips that taste sweeter than anything I've ever tasted before…Damn I'm doing it again. God why can't I get him out of my mind? I'm definitely not gay so why am I attracted to him?

Bret had no idea how long he'd been struggling with his inner self to sort out his problems. He just happened to glance towards the window and that's when he realized Shawn had fallen asleep. His head was resting in an awkward position against the window and Bret was certain it had to be extremely uncomfortable. Then again, commercial flights for long trips were hardly anything to brag about. Bret sat there for a second looking around to see what would be the best thing to do. He could move and sit in one of the empty seats across from them but it probably wouldn't help Shawn's comfort any more or less. Still if Shawn hadn't slept good in days Bret at least wanted him to sleep comfortably while he could. So he did the next best thing.

"Shawn," he whispered. He pulled back a strand of Shawn's hair attempting to wake him. The blonde stirred groggily looking around slightly confused. "You fell asleep on that hard ass window. If you'd like you can lean on me. I don't mind but only if you want to." Shawn didn't even answer. He simply allowed himself to be pulled into Bret. Bret gently placed his arm around Shawn allowing him to nestle comfortably underneath his arm.

"Bret?"

"Hn?" Shawn looked up meeting Bret's eyes.

"Thank you," he whispered. Bret caressed his cheek with the back of his hand, Shawn's smooth skin sending sparks through his body. He bent his head planting a kiss on his forehead.

"You're welcome. God you're so pretty," Bret breathed. He hadn't meant to say it but it was the truth and for reasons unknown he didn't care if Shawn knew how he really felt right now. He still considered Shawn his friend, but he also thought Shawn was pretty in a friendly sort of way…or at least that's what he kept telling himself.

"Someone else told me I was pretty. Coming from him I thought it was disgusting but when I hear you say it…I almost believe it."

"Oh but you are," he said soothingly. "If you weren't so pretty then I wouldn't be doing things I shouldn't do like…like kissing you all the time."

"Who said you shouldn't?" Shawn's inviting stare was all it took to make the raven haired man do the unthinkable again. He slid his hand under Shawn's chin drawing him in for another kiss. Their lips met and it was like the first two times – an explosion of passion mixed with the sweet taste of lust. A current spread through Bret's body all the way to place in between his legs startling him and frustrating him at the same time. He quickly pulled back from Shawn cursing himself silently while the blonde settled himself again for another attempt at a nap. It wasn't long after until Shawn was sound asleep underneath the Hitman's arms. The sound of Shawn's soft breathing was music to Bret's ears and pretty soon he too fell fast asleep.

*~*~*

"We both woke up when my pager went off," Bret continued. "It was Owen asking me how my flight went. I…think I ended up kissing Shawn again but up until now, I really had no idea why I was kissing on him. I knew I was attracted to him but I also knew I wasn't gay. Funny how 15 years can change one's perspective so much." Chris was about to ask another question but Shawn cut him off.

"Just answer me this Bret. I vaguely remember much of that flight because I think I really did fall asleep but… I just have to say that hearing all of this from you…hearing this now really works my nerves." Shawn's voice was a mixture of anger and sadness that Bret couldn't quite understand.

"Shawn listen…"

"I just…we both started off so good you know and then it was ruined because of your—

"Don't you dare blame all of this on me Shawn," Bret growled. "We were both attracted to one another."

"But you waited until I started to fall in love with you to act so—

"I don't want to go there Shawn. I'm sorry for a lot of things but I can't take back anything that happened afterwards because I was scared and confused. You knew this because I told you."

"BUT I GAVE YOU THE OPPORTUNITY TO WALK AWAY!" Shawn cried. "I GAVE YOU SEVERAL OPPORTUNITIES TO WALK AWAY BUT YOU CAME BACK! YOU ALWAYS CAME BACK!" He was so angry and so frustrated that tears were streaming down his face unbeknownst to him. Listening to Bret tell this story reminded him of so much. It reminded him of how his heart ached for Bret, how his body longed to be near him… I hate him! I hate him all over again!

"I tried Shawn," he answered weakly. "I…I wanted to walk away from you but you're so impossible and so—

"I was just good in the sack right?" he said coldly. "That's all I was good for right? Your boy toy. Just like all the others."

"THAT'S NOT TRUE AND YOU KNOW IT! I FELL IN LOVE WITH YOU DESPITE ALL THE TROUBLE YOU WERE WORTH!"

"YOU DUMPED ME AND YOU USED ME!"

"I DIDN'T…I…"

"Forget it," Shawn sniffed. "I'm…I need to go Chris. I don't…I can't talk anymore."

"Oh no!" Bret snapped. "You're staying. I have one more thing to say and if you wish to leave after that then fine but neither of us are leaving today until you hear what was going on in my head when we—

"I don't want to know." I'd rather not know. I can't…my head already hurts and these feelings he keeps stirring up…I just want to go home to my…

"But you're going to listen. I'm fucking serious. Right now, you've got me so confused and feeling so conflicted that even though my brain's telling me "No", my lips are disobeying by pouring every ounce of my soul out to you and the Universe."

"I don't—

"STOP BEING A SCARED LITTLE BRAT!" Bret snapped. "Not everything I have to say is going to be a diss to you. Is that what you're afraid of? If so then I must have failed you long ago," he said his voice filled with disgust. "You know that despite all of our problems Shawn I never once made you feel like you were anything less than me. I didn't get mean until Hunter came into our lives but that's a whole other story. I loved you and since the day we met I did everything I could to encourage you and build you up. I never, EVER tried to crush your soul so stay in your seat and hear me out goddammit!" The room got crazy quiet all of a sudden except for Bret's heavy breathing. Chris dared not to breathe while Shawn stared at the divider as if he were going to attack it. More and more intense dense air filled the room and Chris half wondered whether or not he'd have a stroke. Finally after ten, long minutes an angry Shawn spoke up.

"Fine," he growled. "But don't—

"You'll just sit there and shut up," Bret said through gritted teeth. "I'm the one who needs to speak about this because quite frankly I'm the only one who knows how I felt about that day and that moment in time."

"But you can't speak for me." Bret scoffed.

"Trust me. I know how you felt. I remember every sound like it was yesterday which again, angers the hell out of me."

"Then forget about it," Shawn snapped again. "Don't tell the—

"I'm telling it and I'm telling it now. Chris. Pay attention big boy. You're about to leap face first into the start of a beautiful relationship."

AN: Thanks for reading and reviewing. Don't you just love their friendship? The next chapter will be a doozy so I hope you stick around to see what happens next!