A Painful Prelude 1/1
Title: A Painful Prelude
Part: 1/1
Word Count: 2,038 (although WP tends to be off by a couple numbers usually)
Characters: Shaun, Zach, Gabe.
Pairings: Shaun/Zach
Rating: PG13
Genre: Angst.
Warning: Spoilers for the movie, obviously.
Disclaimer: The movie, characters and actors are not mine. Which is rather disappointing.
Un-beta'ed, sorry. Any and all mistakes are my own (i'm known as the typo queen around friends), and i apologize for them.
Author's Note: This takes place pre-movie, before Zach and Gabe graduated when Zach's mother died. I know it's never said when or how old he was when she died, when considering her death and Cody were both factors in him not leaving for school, i just took a guess and figiured it happened when Cody was a baby (around 11 or 12 months old). So yeah, consider this about four years or so before the movie takes place when Zach and Gabe are around 18 and Shaun's in his mid twenties ^^ And yes, it follows canon so there's no smooching unfortunately.
Summary: When Zach's mother dies he hides out at Gabe's house, only to find Shaun being the one there when he needs someone the most.
Warning: There's a bit of blood, some nudity and much angst happening.
The house was silent as Shaun made his way into his bedroom. Sitting down on the edge of his bed with a sigh, he slipped one finger into the knot of his neck tie and slowly undid the bothersome article of clothing. He hated wearing ties and suits and the whole corporate get up, it all felt so fake. But the one suit he hated the most was the plain black one that he wore to funerals, which was the one he was currently attempting to strip off with numb fingers. He got as far as peeling his jacket off before he stopped, tossing the bit of clothing onto the bed behind him. He got up from where he sat and walked over to his desk, opening the top drawer. Inside he pulled out a letter that was addressed to him, it was from a publisher. One that actually wanted to publish his book, opposed to the last three that didn’t. He had gotten the letter that morning, of all the mornings to get it, it just had to be that one didn’t it? With a sigh he leaned against the desk, reading over it once again. He kept waiting for the happiness and excitement that was expected to bubble up inside him, but it just wouldn’t come. It seemed the pity and pain he felt in his gut was squashing any of the good feelings that he should have been experiencing.
There was a loud bang as the bedroom door slammed open, causing Shaun to jump slightly. “Gabe, I swear to god dude! Learn to open a door normally!” Shaun chastised his younger brother as the boy walked into the room. The young surfer was dressed exactly like Shaun, in black dress pants and a white button down shirt. Only difference was that he still had on his shoes, whereas Shaun had kicked his off the moment he got home.
“Sorry.” The teen said, holding a bunch of towels and some clothes in his arms.
“What do you want?”
He held out the towels. “Mom said to take these to Zach.” Gabe said simply.
“She said for me to take them to him?” Shaun sounded skeptical.
“She said for one of us to take them.” Gabe tried again, which only got him a disbelieving stare in response. “Okay, okay! She told me to take them, but I can’t.”
“Gabe.” Shaun couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “This is not the time to suddenly abandon your best friend.”
“I’m not abandoning him!” The younger man insisted. “I, I just...” He trailed off, shrugging.
Shaun shook his head at his younger brother, he understood what the boy meant. Neither one of them had ever experienced a loss like Zach’s, and it seemed that Gabe wasn’t handling being in the passengers seat of a major loss very well. As grown as the eighteen year old liked to have people believe he was, it was blatantly obvious that right then he still felt like a scared child.
“I just don’t know what I’m suppose to say.” Gabe finally admitted.
“I don’t think he expects you to say anything.” Shaun said.
“It’s just, she was his mom, man! And she was so nice, and now, she...” Gabe seemed on the verge of tears as he fought with his words.
“Okay, okay, shh.” Shaun put his hands on Gabe’s shoulders to silence him. “It’s okay, I’ll do it. You just, go help Larry with the barbeque or something.”
Gabe smiled a little relieved smile. “Thanks man.” He said as he handed the towels to Shaun.
“You owe me.”
“Totally.” Gabe agreed before quickly exiting the room, leaving Shaun alone with the task of dealing with a distraught Zach.
Shaun didn’t really hold it against his brother, he understood his nervousness. After all, Gabe very rarely managed to say the right thing at the right time. And in a way, he was also in mourning. The two friends had known each other since early childhood, so Zach’s mother’s death was a painful shock to Gabe as well.
Shaun quickly made his way down to the guest bath, standing outside the door. He could hear the shower running, but that was it. He exhaled sharply before knocking on the door. “Zach?” He called out. When there was no response he tried again, this time opting to open the door slightly. “Zach? It’s Shaun, I’m coming in okay man?” He quickly entered the large bathroom, the steam from the shower causing his clothes to feel sticky against his skin.
He could see the outline of Zach through the fogged glass of the shower doors, his back to room, shoulders slumped forward.
“My mom sent up some clean towels, and some of Gabe’s clothes.” Shaun explained as he placed the items down the toilet lid. “So you don’t have to say in the -“ He looked down at the floor and saw the borrowed suit of Gabe’s tossed there. “Suit.” He finished lamely, looking at the rumbled clothing. He truly hated funeral suits, but right then he hated them even more.
“Thanks.” Zach’s soft reply was slightly masked by the hiss of the water.
“Jeanne called, she wanted to know where you went after the service.” Shaun said, undoing the buttons on his cuffs as he spoke. “Larry told her that you were going to stay here for a couple days.”
“What’d she say?”
“She said it was fine.” Shaun lied, not wanting to tell Zach what his sister really said. The woman was harsh and wanted the teen home to help with his baby nephew, demanding that he be with family.
“Yeah right.” Zach scoffed.
“Hey don’t worry about what Jeanne says, you’re here and that’s that.”
“Yeah.” Zach muttered softly.
Shaun shifted a bit, unsure of what to do or say. After a few minutes of silence he finally spoke up again. “Okay, well, I’ll let you finish.” He said as he turned to leave. “We’ll be downstairs if you need anything.” When there was no response, Shaun just gave a little silent nod before leaving the room.
As he closed the door, the undeniable sound of something breaking echoed down the hall. It actually took a moment for Shaun’s brain to realize that the sound had come from within the bathroom and not somewhere else in the house.
“Zach?” He quickly re-entered the bathroom. “Are you okay? What happened?”
There was no answer besides the sound of a choked sob coming from the shower.
Shaun didn’t think as he marched over and pulled the door open, not worrying that he might embarrass the teen. He saw the small glass hanging shelf that usually hung from the arm of the showerhead broken in the bottom of the tub, small shards of glass swirling around the drain in the slightly pink colored water. “Christ!” He cursed when he saw Zach’s bleeding knuckles, from where he had obviously taking his frustrations out on the fragile knick-knack. He reach to the other boy. “Come here.” He said in a coaxing tone, trying to get Zach to leave the shower.
Once he had a hold of the younger man’s wet wrist, he attempted to pull him out. Shaun’s firm touch seemed to break through whatever wall Zach had been hiding behind throughout the entire funeral, because the teen suddenly broke down into heart wrenching sobs. Without thinking, Shaun, carefully to avoid the glass, stepped into the shower fully clothed and pulled Zach into a hug. The younger man molded to his chest, gripping his drenched shirt and sobbed against his strong shoulder. Shaun felt a few small pieces of glass digging into the sides of his feet, but he didn’t mind. There were more important things to worry about right then, like Zach.
With one foot, he managed to kick the small lever that switched the water from the showerhead to the faucet. The water swirled warmly around their feet, slowly draining in a whirlpool of glass and blood drops. He made soft ‘shushing’ noises as he rubbed Zach’s back, allowing the teen to cry out whatever pain he needed. He felt his own eyes stinging with tears or pity and heartache for what Zach must have been feeling, but he held them back the best he could.
After a few minutes, Zach’s sobs subsided into small hiccups. He continued to hold onto Shaun, his face buried against his body.
“You okay?” Shaun asked softly against Zach’s wet hair.
The younger man just shook his head slightly.
“Of course not, sorry, that was a stupid question.” Shaun attempted to backpedal.
“It’s not that.” Zach’s voice was sightly muffled by not only Shaun’s shoulder, but also by the sound of the still running water.
“Then what?”
“I’ve just made a complete fool out of myself, plus I’m naked.”
Shaun couldn’t help but chuckle at Zach’s little realization about his nudity. “So you are.” He nodded, moving back a bit so he could look at Zach’s face. The boy’s eyes were red rimmed and puffy from the crying, and his cheeks held a lovely shade of embarrassed pink to them.
Shaking his head softly at Zach, Shaun turned and reached out of the shower to grab one of the towels from where he had sat them on the toilet. “Here.” He handed Zach the towel before he turned and finally shut off the water. He stepped out of the shower, holding a out a hand to help Zach out. “Sit down.” He told the teen, pointing at the edge of the tub. Zach did as he was told, holding the towel firmly in place around him. Shaun crouched down near his knees, placing a first aid kit on the floor. “Lemme see that hand.” He said, taking Zach’s wounded hand in his own.
Zach watched Shaun closely as the older man tended to his cut up knuckles, wrapping soft gauze over the torn skin. He noticed how careful he was, his touch chaste and caring. He felt a warm sense of gratitude toward Shaun rise within him, feeling lucky to know such a man.
“You’re sopping wet.” Zach said suddenly, his mouth speaking without his mind’s okay.
“I know.” Shaun said with a chuckle, placing a piece on tape on the gauze to keep it in place. He was soaked through to the bone. This white shirt was opaque and stuck to his body like a second layer of skin, and his pants were hanging heavily on his hips. His brown hair was matted to his head, droplets of water ever so often cascading down his forehead and along his cheeks.
“Sorry.”
“Don’t be.” Shaun said, looking up into Zach’s emotional eyes.
“I fucked up your shirt.” Zach motioned toward the blood stain on the shoulder from where he had grabbed a hold of him with his bloody hand.
Shaun just shrugged slightly. “I always hated this shirt.” He said nonchalantly.
Zach chuckled, smiling softly for the first time all day.
Shaun patted the teens toweled leg before he stood up straight again, placing the first aid kit back on the shelf. “ Well, I’ll leave you to get dressed. Larry’s out back grilling if you’re hungry, okay?”
Zach just nodded, not trusting his voice to work. As Shaun turned to leave, Zach suddenly stopped him. “Shaun?”
“Yeah?”
“Nothing.” He shook his head.
“Okay.” Shaun nodded again.
Once he was outside the bathroom, he leaned heavily against the door frame. Covering his face with both hands, he sighed loudly.
“What the fuck happened to you?” Gabe asked as he walked up to where his brother was.
Shaun dropped his hands from his face, glaring at his younger brother. “You so owe me!” He said firmly before turning and walking down the hall, his wet clothes leaving a small trail of water on the carpet as he went.
“Yeah, okay.” Gabe said in a bewildered voice as he watched his bother walk back to his bedroom. He couldn’t help but wonder what exactly had gone on in the bathroom between his best friend and his brother that would have caused Shaun to look the way he looked, but something told him that he’d never find out.
Love it? Hate it? Wanna take it home and cook it dinner? Let me know! Comments are love ^^
Part: 1/1
Word Count: 2,038 (although WP tends to be off by a couple numbers usually)
Characters: Shaun, Zach, Gabe.
Pairings: Shaun/Zach
Rating: PG13
Genre: Angst.
Warning: Spoilers for the movie, obviously.
Disclaimer: The movie, characters and actors are not mine. Which is rather disappointing.
Un-beta'ed, sorry. Any and all mistakes are my own (i'm known as the typo queen around friends), and i apologize for them.
Author's Note: This takes place pre-movie, before Zach and Gabe graduated when Zach's mother died. I know it's never said when or how old he was when she died, when considering her death and Cody were both factors in him not leaving for school, i just took a guess and figiured it happened when Cody was a baby (around 11 or 12 months old). So yeah, consider this about four years or so before the movie takes place when Zach and Gabe are around 18 and Shaun's in his mid twenties ^^ And yes, it follows canon so there's no smooching unfortunately.
Summary: When Zach's mother dies he hides out at Gabe's house, only to find Shaun being the one there when he needs someone the most.
Warning: There's a bit of blood, some nudity and much angst happening.
The house was silent as Shaun made his way into his bedroom. Sitting down on the edge of his bed with a sigh, he slipped one finger into the knot of his neck tie and slowly undid the bothersome article of clothing. He hated wearing ties and suits and the whole corporate get up, it all felt so fake. But the one suit he hated the most was the plain black one that he wore to funerals, which was the one he was currently attempting to strip off with numb fingers. He got as far as peeling his jacket off before he stopped, tossing the bit of clothing onto the bed behind him. He got up from where he sat and walked over to his desk, opening the top drawer. Inside he pulled out a letter that was addressed to him, it was from a publisher. One that actually wanted to publish his book, opposed to the last three that didn’t. He had gotten the letter that morning, of all the mornings to get it, it just had to be that one didn’t it? With a sigh he leaned against the desk, reading over it once again. He kept waiting for the happiness and excitement that was expected to bubble up inside him, but it just wouldn’t come. It seemed the pity and pain he felt in his gut was squashing any of the good feelings that he should have been experiencing.
There was a loud bang as the bedroom door slammed open, causing Shaun to jump slightly. “Gabe, I swear to god dude! Learn to open a door normally!” Shaun chastised his younger brother as the boy walked into the room. The young surfer was dressed exactly like Shaun, in black dress pants and a white button down shirt. Only difference was that he still had on his shoes, whereas Shaun had kicked his off the moment he got home.
“Sorry.” The teen said, holding a bunch of towels and some clothes in his arms.
“What do you want?”
He held out the towels. “Mom said to take these to Zach.” Gabe said simply.
“She said for me to take them to him?” Shaun sounded skeptical.
“She said for one of us to take them.” Gabe tried again, which only got him a disbelieving stare in response. “Okay, okay! She told me to take them, but I can’t.”
“Gabe.” Shaun couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “This is not the time to suddenly abandon your best friend.”
“I’m not abandoning him!” The younger man insisted. “I, I just...” He trailed off, shrugging.
Shaun shook his head at his younger brother, he understood what the boy meant. Neither one of them had ever experienced a loss like Zach’s, and it seemed that Gabe wasn’t handling being in the passengers seat of a major loss very well. As grown as the eighteen year old liked to have people believe he was, it was blatantly obvious that right then he still felt like a scared child.
“I just don’t know what I’m suppose to say.” Gabe finally admitted.
“I don’t think he expects you to say anything.” Shaun said.
“It’s just, she was his mom, man! And she was so nice, and now, she...” Gabe seemed on the verge of tears as he fought with his words.
“Okay, okay, shh.” Shaun put his hands on Gabe’s shoulders to silence him. “It’s okay, I’ll do it. You just, go help Larry with the barbeque or something.”
Gabe smiled a little relieved smile. “Thanks man.” He said as he handed the towels to Shaun.
“You owe me.”
“Totally.” Gabe agreed before quickly exiting the room, leaving Shaun alone with the task of dealing with a distraught Zach.
Shaun didn’t really hold it against his brother, he understood his nervousness. After all, Gabe very rarely managed to say the right thing at the right time. And in a way, he was also in mourning. The two friends had known each other since early childhood, so Zach’s mother’s death was a painful shock to Gabe as well.
Shaun quickly made his way down to the guest bath, standing outside the door. He could hear the shower running, but that was it. He exhaled sharply before knocking on the door. “Zach?” He called out. When there was no response he tried again, this time opting to open the door slightly. “Zach? It’s Shaun, I’m coming in okay man?” He quickly entered the large bathroom, the steam from the shower causing his clothes to feel sticky against his skin.
He could see the outline of Zach through the fogged glass of the shower doors, his back to room, shoulders slumped forward.
“My mom sent up some clean towels, and some of Gabe’s clothes.” Shaun explained as he placed the items down the toilet lid. “So you don’t have to say in the -“ He looked down at the floor and saw the borrowed suit of Gabe’s tossed there. “Suit.” He finished lamely, looking at the rumbled clothing. He truly hated funeral suits, but right then he hated them even more.
“Thanks.” Zach’s soft reply was slightly masked by the hiss of the water.
“Jeanne called, she wanted to know where you went after the service.” Shaun said, undoing the buttons on his cuffs as he spoke. “Larry told her that you were going to stay here for a couple days.”
“What’d she say?”
“She said it was fine.” Shaun lied, not wanting to tell Zach what his sister really said. The woman was harsh and wanted the teen home to help with his baby nephew, demanding that he be with family.
“Yeah right.” Zach scoffed.
“Hey don’t worry about what Jeanne says, you’re here and that’s that.”
“Yeah.” Zach muttered softly.
Shaun shifted a bit, unsure of what to do or say. After a few minutes of silence he finally spoke up again. “Okay, well, I’ll let you finish.” He said as he turned to leave. “We’ll be downstairs if you need anything.” When there was no response, Shaun just gave a little silent nod before leaving the room.
As he closed the door, the undeniable sound of something breaking echoed down the hall. It actually took a moment for Shaun’s brain to realize that the sound had come from within the bathroom and not somewhere else in the house.
“Zach?” He quickly re-entered the bathroom. “Are you okay? What happened?”
There was no answer besides the sound of a choked sob coming from the shower.
Shaun didn’t think as he marched over and pulled the door open, not worrying that he might embarrass the teen. He saw the small glass hanging shelf that usually hung from the arm of the showerhead broken in the bottom of the tub, small shards of glass swirling around the drain in the slightly pink colored water. “Christ!” He cursed when he saw Zach’s bleeding knuckles, from where he had obviously taking his frustrations out on the fragile knick-knack. He reach to the other boy. “Come here.” He said in a coaxing tone, trying to get Zach to leave the shower.
Once he had a hold of the younger man’s wet wrist, he attempted to pull him out. Shaun’s firm touch seemed to break through whatever wall Zach had been hiding behind throughout the entire funeral, because the teen suddenly broke down into heart wrenching sobs. Without thinking, Shaun, carefully to avoid the glass, stepped into the shower fully clothed and pulled Zach into a hug. The younger man molded to his chest, gripping his drenched shirt and sobbed against his strong shoulder. Shaun felt a few small pieces of glass digging into the sides of his feet, but he didn’t mind. There were more important things to worry about right then, like Zach.
With one foot, he managed to kick the small lever that switched the water from the showerhead to the faucet. The water swirled warmly around their feet, slowly draining in a whirlpool of glass and blood drops. He made soft ‘shushing’ noises as he rubbed Zach’s back, allowing the teen to cry out whatever pain he needed. He felt his own eyes stinging with tears or pity and heartache for what Zach must have been feeling, but he held them back the best he could.
After a few minutes, Zach’s sobs subsided into small hiccups. He continued to hold onto Shaun, his face buried against his body.
“You okay?” Shaun asked softly against Zach’s wet hair.
The younger man just shook his head slightly.
“Of course not, sorry, that was a stupid question.” Shaun attempted to backpedal.
“It’s not that.” Zach’s voice was sightly muffled by not only Shaun’s shoulder, but also by the sound of the still running water.
“Then what?”
“I’ve just made a complete fool out of myself, plus I’m naked.”
Shaun couldn’t help but chuckle at Zach’s little realization about his nudity. “So you are.” He nodded, moving back a bit so he could look at Zach’s face. The boy’s eyes were red rimmed and puffy from the crying, and his cheeks held a lovely shade of embarrassed pink to them.
Shaking his head softly at Zach, Shaun turned and reached out of the shower to grab one of the towels from where he had sat them on the toilet. “Here.” He handed Zach the towel before he turned and finally shut off the water. He stepped out of the shower, holding a out a hand to help Zach out. “Sit down.” He told the teen, pointing at the edge of the tub. Zach did as he was told, holding the towel firmly in place around him. Shaun crouched down near his knees, placing a first aid kit on the floor. “Lemme see that hand.” He said, taking Zach’s wounded hand in his own.
Zach watched Shaun closely as the older man tended to his cut up knuckles, wrapping soft gauze over the torn skin. He noticed how careful he was, his touch chaste and caring. He felt a warm sense of gratitude toward Shaun rise within him, feeling lucky to know such a man.
“You’re sopping wet.” Zach said suddenly, his mouth speaking without his mind’s okay.
“I know.” Shaun said with a chuckle, placing a piece on tape on the gauze to keep it in place. He was soaked through to the bone. This white shirt was opaque and stuck to his body like a second layer of skin, and his pants were hanging heavily on his hips. His brown hair was matted to his head, droplets of water ever so often cascading down his forehead and along his cheeks.
“Sorry.”
“Don’t be.” Shaun said, looking up into Zach’s emotional eyes.
“I fucked up your shirt.” Zach motioned toward the blood stain on the shoulder from where he had grabbed a hold of him with his bloody hand.
Shaun just shrugged slightly. “I always hated this shirt.” He said nonchalantly.
Zach chuckled, smiling softly for the first time all day.
Shaun patted the teens toweled leg before he stood up straight again, placing the first aid kit back on the shelf. “ Well, I’ll leave you to get dressed. Larry’s out back grilling if you’re hungry, okay?”
Zach just nodded, not trusting his voice to work. As Shaun turned to leave, Zach suddenly stopped him. “Shaun?”
“Yeah?”
“Nothing.” He shook his head.
“Okay.” Shaun nodded again.
Once he was outside the bathroom, he leaned heavily against the door frame. Covering his face with both hands, he sighed loudly.
“What the fuck happened to you?” Gabe asked as he walked up to where his brother was.
Shaun dropped his hands from his face, glaring at his younger brother. “You so owe me!” He said firmly before turning and walking down the hall, his wet clothes leaving a small trail of water on the carpet as he went.
“Yeah, okay.” Gabe said in a bewildered voice as he watched his bother walk back to his bedroom. He couldn’t help but wonder what exactly had gone on in the bathroom between his best friend and his brother that would have caused Shaun to look the way he looked, but something told him that he’d never find out.
Love it? Hate it? Wanna take it home and cook it dinner? Let me know! Comments are love ^^