Fireworks. [Chapter Forty-Six]
Title: Fireworks
Author: Harriet, a.k.a masokisstiic
Rating: R
Pairing: Alex and Jack, if the kids don't believe, make them believe.
POV: Third
Summary: So it's true what they say, if you love someone, you should set them free.
Disclaimer: Totally fictional, soz.
Credit: Title to YouMeAtSix
A/N: Thank you to everyone who commented on the last chapter, it really helped me to write this current update, hopefully we can keep it up until the end? Also, I'm having a hard time to decide whether I want the next chapter to be the last, and then have the epilogue, but we'll see!
Tumblr.
Masterpost.
“Ugh, how did I get stuck with being the fucking housewife of this relationship?”
“Actually, it’s housewife-to-be. Currently you’re just my bitch.”
“Do you want me to finish ironing your shirts or would you like to take over?”
“Carry on, you’re doing a lovely job.”
Alex rolled his eyes as he pressed the iron down onto a sleeve of one of Jack’s white shirts he wore for work. “Sometimes I wonder why I even proposed to you, psh, I’d have been better off running away.” He was only joking, yet he was still grumbling like an old man would. He was becoming more and more like his father every day and that scared him shitless.
Jack shrugged in response, walking toward the boy and wrapping his arms around his waist from behind, hands settling against Alex’s stomach. “Because you love me, because you want to spend the rest of your life with me, and because even though I’m irritating as hell you know for a fact you wouldn’t wanna be anywhere else.” He ticked off the checklist he’d created in his mind.
Alex had to laugh; Jack’s cheek still stunned him.
“Mm, I guess that’s true.” He sighed, carefully folding the shirt he’d finished taking the creases out of. “Now get off me before I do a Tracy Barlow and stick this on your arm.” He teased, referring to the mad woman from Coronation Street, a soap opera that Jack had become quite fond of (yet it was nothing compared to Hannah Montana).
“Yeah, yeah, very funny.” Jack commented with a hint of sarcasm, letting go of his boy but not before pressing a kiss to the clasp of that necklace still fastened around his neck.
Probably on its tenth chain by now, and the pendant itself was worn, the clean silver slightly dull now, and Jack reminded himself to take it to a jewellers for a good ol’ buff up soon.
“Anyway,” He started, “You became the housewife-to-be ever since I burnt a hole in your top and almost dropped the stupid thing on my foot.”
He remembered that day very well, the boys were arguing (nothing unusual there) and Jack decided it’d be a good idea to do the ironing whilst frustrated. He successfully managed to burn a disgusting black and orange mark into Alex’s favourite t-shirt.
“You burnt that top on purpose.” Alex huffed, pressing the iron onto another shirt. It always amazed him how much clothes Jack needed to be crease-free. Even his boxer shorts were in the pile and the only person who’d see Jack in his boxers was Alex, he hopes, or maybe the postman on a Saturday morning if he’s lucky.
“I didn’t! It was an accident! You just think I burnt it because of that argument. Although, to be fair, it was good revenge and you totally deserved it you asshole.” Jack started to laugh cheekily as he crawled beneath the ironing board to lie on his back on the floor, eyes looking up at the ceiling. “Karma hates you.”
That’s it, Alex had had enough.
He stood the iron upright with a “Hmpfh.” and bent down to switch it off at the wall.
Following Jack in suit, he crawled beneath the board then knelt over the young man. “Oi, that argument was your fault in the first place if I rightly remember, so I deserved nothing.”
Jack was trying his hardest not to smile because he knew exactly what Alex was doing, I mean come, you’re with a guy for six years you begin to know them better than you know yourself.
“Oh, really? I mean if I rightly remember, it all started because you are a jealous little boy.”
“Here we go again...”
“All I done was say, "That boy looks like Freddy from Skins, shit he’s hot." and you totally just blew up about it!”
“Exactly! You only say people are hot if you want to fuck them, so you implied you wanted to fuck him.”
Jack shrugged his shoulders, “Well, if he offered I mean-“
“Jack.” Alex whined, dragging out the ‘a’. “I’m the only person you should find hot, and you know that’s the only thing I’m really touchy about ever since-“
“The only thing?!” Jack thought he was about to collapse from laughing so hard. “Alex, come on, you’re touchy about everything. For example, just then, moaning about being the housewife! You’re touchy about the fact you’re a shit cook, you’re touchy if I look at your body when you come out of the shower-“
“It is a little bit pervy, you have to admit.”
“Alex, if I’m going to marry you I should be able to admire your body.”
Alex was about to fire another quick remark, yet his tongue appeared to tie in his mouth.
He frowned, just a little, and cocked his head the way he always does. A small tilt to the side, his fringe falling over his eyes, Jack instinctively brushing it away only for it to fall back.
“Admire?”
The small smile that crept on his face only proved to Jack that Alex was just fishing for a compliment, but how could he deny such an adorable face?
“You really want me to go there?” He asked with a raised eyebrow, lifting up his arms to lace them around Alex’s neck.
The other man nodded, leaning down a little bit so their noses were just brushing.
They hadn’t had a moment like this for a while, what with their busy lives, he just wanted to make the most of it.
“Well, where do I start? Every inch of you is beautiful, so fucking beautiful.” He began, his breath fanning against Alex’s cheek. “You have hips like a woman, your tummy is podgy and fun to poke, the only six pack you’ll ever have is a crate of Stella, and for some reason you only have hair on your forearms, and a jungle of hair at that.”
Alex should have known better, Jack’s rarely serious anymore.
He tried to pull his head back, but Jack only leant forward himself, just enough to let their mouths collide.
“I haven’t finished.” He murmured against the boy’s lips, “But even though you have those “imperfections”, God, you’re still so beautiful.”
A kiss to Alex’s nose, “And I still can’t believe, after all this time, after everything, that you’re mine. You’re mine, all mine, and fuck I count myself lucky every day.”
A kiss to Alex’s forehead. “You have a cute little mole on the inside of your thigh, and I love it because nobody else can see it. You have a dip in your chest that’s perfect for running my finger up and down in. My hands fit around your waist perfectly,” Jack’s hands slipped down to said position just to prove his point, “and the way our bodies are when they’re pressed together, it’s like we were made for each other, you know? ‘Cause there’s no little gaps, not one, you fit me perfectly, and I fit you perfectly. We’re beautiful together, and I love you, so, so much.”
It was more than the small compliment that Alex was expecting, but he couldn’t complain.
He edged his body forward as his mouth slotted to Jack’s, their lips moving in sync as he sat back onto Jack’s knees, pulling the other up into a seated position.
And when they pulled back, they just looked at each other and smiled.
‘Cause Jack was right, they were truly beautiful together.
Alex laced his fingers with the other male’s, and brought Jack’s hand to his mouth. He kissed the silver engagement band and whispered, “I love you, too. This is forever, okay? You and me, forever, in sickness and in health, for richer for poorer, and until death do we part. Forever.”
But a wonderful moment could never last as long as they wanted it to in the Gaskarth-Barakat household.
Not when the pager in Alex’s jeans pocket began to beep as loud as anything, the sound familiar to both men, the sound usually hated by both men.
The corners of Jack’s lips, previously in a smile, turned downwards as Alex clambered off of him. He was left to sit on his own as Alex gave him an apologetic smile and a shrug, saying, “Hopefully I’ll be back soon, yeah? Then we can carry on from where we left off.” But who was he kidding? It was already nine o’clock, Alex was never back home within two hours and by the time it got to eleven pm Jack really should be asleep as he wakes at six to get ready for another day at work.
“Ugh, just forget it Alex, it doesn’t matter.” Though the bitterness in Jack’s voice didn’t settle the other man. He knew his job wasn’t ideal, sometimes he had to rush out of a family get together if his pager went off, but he couldn’t help it. This was all he was good for, and he got paid good money. He knew how difficult it was for them to get a moment of peace, and it was rare to have a single night where they both could lounge around in each other’s company, without Alex having to get up and go.
“I’m sorry baby, I’ll make it up to you.” And that was that, Alex had rushed out of the front door and clambered into his car.
Jack didn’t even get time to say, “Be careful.” like he usually does, and the thought of this alone tied his stomach in knots. What if something happened to Alex now? There was always a danger, and he couldn’t even give him the usual warning that he knew he was tired of hearing by now.
See, Alex decided that after failing his second term of his first college course, he’d try again with a public services course. He was surprised at how taken by it he was, and there was something about the fire service that he just adored. He knew he wanted to be a part of it somehow, but with only five GCSEs to his name (he really had only scraped his way into sixth form), he couldn’t apply to be a fulltime firefighter, so instead he opted to apply for an on-call firefighter, and to his surprise he succeeded.
Of course it was tough at first, he had to take part in several tests, several courses, but he did manage to pull through and at first Jack was really supportive of his choices.
“You know, I’ve always found firefighters to be extremely sexy. Who doesn’t love a man in uniform?”
That’s what he’d said, and Alex thought he’d be fine with it.
Yet, when Alex missed out on Jack’s twenty-first birthday, that’s when things didn’t seem to go to plan. Hell, that was the reason why Jack moved out for those few weeks, ‘cause he hated not being able to be with Alex after he’d had a shitty day at university, or only being able to give him a quick kiss before the other man was off again doing some other rescue type heroic activity.
It did make Jack feel selfish though because he knew how much this job meant to Alex. He knew that Alex had tried and studied so fucking hard because this was what he wanted to do. After Alex was such a shitty teenager, he wanted to pay back the community, he wanted to do something good and show that he’s not a heartless bastard anymore. He wanted to save somebody’s life and risk his own to do just that.
But that was another factor in itself that Jack hated. He hated not knowing what it was that Alex was doing. The pager never told either of them what it was Alex was being called for, it simply bleeped over and over and over until Alex reached the fire station and was ready to get changed into his uniform.
Jack would be left sitting at home, scared to death that Alex was going to have to be trudging through a house fire, choking on the fumes whilst trying to act the hero, whereas Alex was hoping to be put in that situation. He didn’t want to have to get another kid’s head out of some railings because they thought it’d be funny to see if it would fit. He didn’t want to get a cat out of a fucking tree, (and yes, that situation really does happen). He wanted to be able to fight danger, he wanted to have a burning house with its foundations threatening to collapse, he wanted to be able to get out just in the nick of time, because that’s what it’s all about, isn’t it?
It’s just a shame that neither man could see each other’s points of view.
But now, here Jack was, sitting on the couch watching reruns of Come Dine With Me, because what else could he do? He was sick of worrying, he was sick of not knowing when Alex would be coming back that sometimes he just tried to forget.
There was always one thing he could never forget though, not ever.
What if something happened to him whilst Alex was gone?
Author: Harriet, a.k.a masokisstiic
Rating: R
Pairing: Alex and Jack, if the kids don't believe, make them believe.
POV: Third
Summary: So it's true what they say, if you love someone, you should set them free.
Disclaimer: Totally fictional, soz.
Credit: Title to YouMeAtSix
A/N: Thank you to everyone who commented on the last chapter, it really helped me to write this current update, hopefully we can keep it up until the end? Also, I'm having a hard time to decide whether I want the next chapter to be the last, and then have the epilogue, but we'll see!
Tumblr.
Masterpost.
“Ugh, how did I get stuck with being the fucking housewife of this relationship?”
“Actually, it’s housewife-to-be. Currently you’re just my bitch.”
“Do you want me to finish ironing your shirts or would you like to take over?”
“Carry on, you’re doing a lovely job.”
Alex rolled his eyes as he pressed the iron down onto a sleeve of one of Jack’s white shirts he wore for work. “Sometimes I wonder why I even proposed to you, psh, I’d have been better off running away.” He was only joking, yet he was still grumbling like an old man would. He was becoming more and more like his father every day and that scared him shitless.
Jack shrugged in response, walking toward the boy and wrapping his arms around his waist from behind, hands settling against Alex’s stomach. “Because you love me, because you want to spend the rest of your life with me, and because even though I’m irritating as hell you know for a fact you wouldn’t wanna be anywhere else.” He ticked off the checklist he’d created in his mind.
Alex had to laugh; Jack’s cheek still stunned him.
“Mm, I guess that’s true.” He sighed, carefully folding the shirt he’d finished taking the creases out of. “Now get off me before I do a Tracy Barlow and stick this on your arm.” He teased, referring to the mad woman from Coronation Street, a soap opera that Jack had become quite fond of (yet it was nothing compared to Hannah Montana).
“Yeah, yeah, very funny.” Jack commented with a hint of sarcasm, letting go of his boy but not before pressing a kiss to the clasp of that necklace still fastened around his neck.
Probably on its tenth chain by now, and the pendant itself was worn, the clean silver slightly dull now, and Jack reminded himself to take it to a jewellers for a good ol’ buff up soon.
“Anyway,” He started, “You became the housewife-to-be ever since I burnt a hole in your top and almost dropped the stupid thing on my foot.”
He remembered that day very well, the boys were arguing (nothing unusual there) and Jack decided it’d be a good idea to do the ironing whilst frustrated. He successfully managed to burn a disgusting black and orange mark into Alex’s favourite t-shirt.
“You burnt that top on purpose.” Alex huffed, pressing the iron onto another shirt. It always amazed him how much clothes Jack needed to be crease-free. Even his boxer shorts were in the pile and the only person who’d see Jack in his boxers was Alex, he hopes, or maybe the postman on a Saturday morning if he’s lucky.
“I didn’t! It was an accident! You just think I burnt it because of that argument. Although, to be fair, it was good revenge and you totally deserved it you asshole.” Jack started to laugh cheekily as he crawled beneath the ironing board to lie on his back on the floor, eyes looking up at the ceiling. “Karma hates you.”
That’s it, Alex had had enough.
He stood the iron upright with a “Hmpfh.” and bent down to switch it off at the wall.
Following Jack in suit, he crawled beneath the board then knelt over the young man. “Oi, that argument was your fault in the first place if I rightly remember, so I deserved nothing.”
Jack was trying his hardest not to smile because he knew exactly what Alex was doing, I mean come, you’re with a guy for six years you begin to know them better than you know yourself.
“Oh, really? I mean if I rightly remember, it all started because you are a jealous little boy.”
“Here we go again...”
“All I done was say, "That boy looks like Freddy from Skins, shit he’s hot." and you totally just blew up about it!”
“Exactly! You only say people are hot if you want to fuck them, so you implied you wanted to fuck him.”
Jack shrugged his shoulders, “Well, if he offered I mean-“
“Jack.” Alex whined, dragging out the ‘a’. “I’m the only person you should find hot, and you know that’s the only thing I’m really touchy about ever since-“
“The only thing?!” Jack thought he was about to collapse from laughing so hard. “Alex, come on, you’re touchy about everything. For example, just then, moaning about being the housewife! You’re touchy about the fact you’re a shit cook, you’re touchy if I look at your body when you come out of the shower-“
“It is a little bit pervy, you have to admit.”
“Alex, if I’m going to marry you I should be able to admire your body.”
Alex was about to fire another quick remark, yet his tongue appeared to tie in his mouth.
He frowned, just a little, and cocked his head the way he always does. A small tilt to the side, his fringe falling over his eyes, Jack instinctively brushing it away only for it to fall back.
“Admire?”
The small smile that crept on his face only proved to Jack that Alex was just fishing for a compliment, but how could he deny such an adorable face?
“You really want me to go there?” He asked with a raised eyebrow, lifting up his arms to lace them around Alex’s neck.
The other man nodded, leaning down a little bit so their noses were just brushing.
They hadn’t had a moment like this for a while, what with their busy lives, he just wanted to make the most of it.
“Well, where do I start? Every inch of you is beautiful, so fucking beautiful.” He began, his breath fanning against Alex’s cheek. “You have hips like a woman, your tummy is podgy and fun to poke, the only six pack you’ll ever have is a crate of Stella, and for some reason you only have hair on your forearms, and a jungle of hair at that.”
Alex should have known better, Jack’s rarely serious anymore.
He tried to pull his head back, but Jack only leant forward himself, just enough to let their mouths collide.
“I haven’t finished.” He murmured against the boy’s lips, “But even though you have those “imperfections”, God, you’re still so beautiful.”
A kiss to Alex’s nose, “And I still can’t believe, after all this time, after everything, that you’re mine. You’re mine, all mine, and fuck I count myself lucky every day.”
A kiss to Alex’s forehead. “You have a cute little mole on the inside of your thigh, and I love it because nobody else can see it. You have a dip in your chest that’s perfect for running my finger up and down in. My hands fit around your waist perfectly,” Jack’s hands slipped down to said position just to prove his point, “and the way our bodies are when they’re pressed together, it’s like we were made for each other, you know? ‘Cause there’s no little gaps, not one, you fit me perfectly, and I fit you perfectly. We’re beautiful together, and I love you, so, so much.”
It was more than the small compliment that Alex was expecting, but he couldn’t complain.
He edged his body forward as his mouth slotted to Jack’s, their lips moving in sync as he sat back onto Jack’s knees, pulling the other up into a seated position.
And when they pulled back, they just looked at each other and smiled.
‘Cause Jack was right, they were truly beautiful together.
Alex laced his fingers with the other male’s, and brought Jack’s hand to his mouth. He kissed the silver engagement band and whispered, “I love you, too. This is forever, okay? You and me, forever, in sickness and in health, for richer for poorer, and until death do we part. Forever.”
But a wonderful moment could never last as long as they wanted it to in the Gaskarth-Barakat household.
Not when the pager in Alex’s jeans pocket began to beep as loud as anything, the sound familiar to both men, the sound usually hated by both men.
The corners of Jack’s lips, previously in a smile, turned downwards as Alex clambered off of him. He was left to sit on his own as Alex gave him an apologetic smile and a shrug, saying, “Hopefully I’ll be back soon, yeah? Then we can carry on from where we left off.” But who was he kidding? It was already nine o’clock, Alex was never back home within two hours and by the time it got to eleven pm Jack really should be asleep as he wakes at six to get ready for another day at work.
“Ugh, just forget it Alex, it doesn’t matter.” Though the bitterness in Jack’s voice didn’t settle the other man. He knew his job wasn’t ideal, sometimes he had to rush out of a family get together if his pager went off, but he couldn’t help it. This was all he was good for, and he got paid good money. He knew how difficult it was for them to get a moment of peace, and it was rare to have a single night where they both could lounge around in each other’s company, without Alex having to get up and go.
“I’m sorry baby, I’ll make it up to you.” And that was that, Alex had rushed out of the front door and clambered into his car.
Jack didn’t even get time to say, “Be careful.” like he usually does, and the thought of this alone tied his stomach in knots. What if something happened to Alex now? There was always a danger, and he couldn’t even give him the usual warning that he knew he was tired of hearing by now.
See, Alex decided that after failing his second term of his first college course, he’d try again with a public services course. He was surprised at how taken by it he was, and there was something about the fire service that he just adored. He knew he wanted to be a part of it somehow, but with only five GCSEs to his name (he really had only scraped his way into sixth form), he couldn’t apply to be a fulltime firefighter, so instead he opted to apply for an on-call firefighter, and to his surprise he succeeded.
Of course it was tough at first, he had to take part in several tests, several courses, but he did manage to pull through and at first Jack was really supportive of his choices.
“You know, I’ve always found firefighters to be extremely sexy. Who doesn’t love a man in uniform?”
That’s what he’d said, and Alex thought he’d be fine with it.
Yet, when Alex missed out on Jack’s twenty-first birthday, that’s when things didn’t seem to go to plan. Hell, that was the reason why Jack moved out for those few weeks, ‘cause he hated not being able to be with Alex after he’d had a shitty day at university, or only being able to give him a quick kiss before the other man was off again doing some other rescue type heroic activity.
It did make Jack feel selfish though because he knew how much this job meant to Alex. He knew that Alex had tried and studied so fucking hard because this was what he wanted to do. After Alex was such a shitty teenager, he wanted to pay back the community, he wanted to do something good and show that he’s not a heartless bastard anymore. He wanted to save somebody’s life and risk his own to do just that.
But that was another factor in itself that Jack hated. He hated not knowing what it was that Alex was doing. The pager never told either of them what it was Alex was being called for, it simply bleeped over and over and over until Alex reached the fire station and was ready to get changed into his uniform.
Jack would be left sitting at home, scared to death that Alex was going to have to be trudging through a house fire, choking on the fumes whilst trying to act the hero, whereas Alex was hoping to be put in that situation. He didn’t want to have to get another kid’s head out of some railings because they thought it’d be funny to see if it would fit. He didn’t want to get a cat out of a fucking tree, (and yes, that situation really does happen). He wanted to be able to fight danger, he wanted to have a burning house with its foundations threatening to collapse, he wanted to be able to get out just in the nick of time, because that’s what it’s all about, isn’t it?
It’s just a shame that neither man could see each other’s points of view.
But now, here Jack was, sitting on the couch watching reruns of Come Dine With Me, because what else could he do? He was sick of worrying, he was sick of not knowing when Alex would be coming back that sometimes he just tried to forget.
There was always one thing he could never forget though, not ever.
What if something happened to him whilst Alex was gone?