Fic: let your troubles roll by 2/4 (Deadliest Catch RPS, Jake A./Josh)
Title: let your troubles roll by 2/4
Fandom: Deadliest Catch RPS
Pairing: Jake Anderson/Josh Harris
Rating: still PG
Summary: Jake, Josh, and After the Catch. Neither of them wants to be there, but at least they have each other.
Warnings: Spoilers for season five.
A/N: I am not sure what the point of this fic is, no. I'm not even sure there is a point. Given the fandom, I'm not sure it matters. I'm mostly just writing this to entertain Michelle. Also, I have no idea how filming After the Catch works, so if there are any glaring errors, sorry?
He doesn't see Jake again for awhile. Doesn't talk to him, anyway, but he watches Jake's interview from the edge of the set where the cameras won't catch him lurking. He watches the line of Jake's jaw, tensing every time the camera swings in his direction. The worst of it is when they play back that one scene where he's talking about going to work for another boat, about not taking any shit from Matt or anybody else. And it's just talk -- Josh knows that, and so does everybody else in the room -- but that doesn't mean anybody wants that stuff thrown back in their face.
Josh doesn't get a chance to talk to him once Mike's through with the Northwestern crew, because as soon as they're off the set a P.A. grabs him and herds him over to his brother for their introduction. He doesn't even have time to see which direction Jake went before Mike's calling them out, and Josh takes the seat between Murray and his dad and does his best not to look around to see if he can spot Jake just offstage somewhere.
The conversation goes exactly the way he expects it to; Murray answers a bunch of questions about their lousy luck with King Crab last year, and Jake and Josh answer a bunch of questions about their father's absence and how that affected the rest of the crew. It's boring, because they've rehashed it a million times already, but it's part of their contract, so he sits there and he chain smokes and he tunes in just enough to catch the questions Mike directs at him. And okay, his brother has to elbow him once about an hour in, but that's only because Josh lost the thread of the conversation somewhere between Phil's rundown of his current medical status and Murray's bit about why they never did really hit the crab. After that he keeps his head in the game, but it still feels like hours before the producers are finally done with them.
When they finally turn him loose he looks around backstage for Jake, but there's nobody hanging around except the camera crew and a bunch of assistants. The whole Northwestern crew is gone, and Josh knows Jake probably didn't have a choice, but he's still a little disappointed Jake didn't hang around. He fishes a cigarette out of his pack and stops long enough to light it, taking a drag before he pockets his lighter and looks up. Jake's walking past him, nose already buried in his Blackberry and his fingers flying on the keyboard. Josh shakes his head and follows him out of the studio, past the fake walls they set up and then the real ones. He thinks about calling after Jake, making him wait for Josh to catch up. Making him put that stupid thing away for a minute, but then Josh would just have to listen to him run his mouth, and he's heard enough of that for one night already.
He catches the door as it swings shut behind his brother, blinking at the sudden change in light. It's darker than he expected it to be, which means it's later than he thought. "Jesus," he mutters around his cigarette, "how long were we in there?"
"Fucking forever," someone answers, and he looks over to see Jake Anderson leaning against the wall. Josh stops walking, glancing ahead of him to make sure his brother's not watching before he crosses the few feet between him and Jake. "Jesus, I thought they were gonna keep you in there all night."
"Me too," Josh says. "I thought you went back to the hotel."
Jake shakes his head, then nods in the opposite direction. "They're all at the bar already. I got sick of listening to Matt get drunk, so I took a walk."
"I thought he was on the wagon."
Jake snorts a laugh, and Josh can just see his grin in the glow from the streetlight at the edge of the parking lot. "Yeah, that lasted about as long as it took for him to get home from Dutch. I told you, he can't cope without Edgar around to tell him when to wipe his ass."
And there's an image Josh didn't need, but he's not surprised to hear that Matt's drinking again. It's easy to quit when they're out on the water, because they're working too hard to worry about catching a buzz, and when they're not working they're shoveling in enough calories to keep going, or they're passing out in their bunks. Once they get back to their lives everything slows to a crawl, and it's tough to find a rhythm again. It's easier for Josh now that Jake's around, but when Matt goes home he's on his own.
"Aren't they gonna notice how long you've been gone?" Josh asks, lifting his cigarette to his lips and taking a long drag. And yeah, it bugs him a little that he has to worry about what the Hansens and their crew are going to think, but Jake's the one who has to work with them. It's bad enough that they've been in the same town for most of the day and he hasn't even touched Jake; if Sig or Edgar -- or worse, Matt -- sees them together, it'll just make things worse. Still, Jake came looking for him, andJosh can't help enjoying that a little.
Jake shrugs and pushes himself off the wall, stepping into Josh's personal space until Josh can feel Jake's breath on his cheek. "Doubt it. Anyway, who cares? I'm sick of listening to their shit."
Josh knows Jake doesn't really mean it. He likes working for Sig most of the time, likes Edgar too and even Norman. They all treat him like he's part of the family, and Josh is pretty sure that's at least part of the reason Matt hates him so much. He can smell the beer on Jake's breath and he's pretty sure that's the only reason Jake isn't worried about who might catch them together, but there's a lot of crew around and if somebody gets this on film, both their careers are probably over.
As soon as he thinks it the door behind them opens, and Josh clears his throat and takes a step backwards. He looks up in time to watch his father and Murray walk out of the studio, and when Phil looks over and spots them he rolls his eyes. "Where's your brother?" is all he says, but he's looking at Jake and Josh knows exactly what he's thinking. That they're being stupid, taking risks that Phil's already warned him about like a million times, about how many guys in Dutch would just as soon kill them both as ever work with them again if they found out they were sleeping together, and that includes some of the guys on the show. It sucks, but it's true, and Josh knows Phil's just trying to keep him safe. Still, he can't pretend it doesn't hurt when his own father doesn't want to look at him.
"Took off," Josh answers, tossing his cigarette and turning to face his father. "Probably went back to the room to be alone with his phone."
Phil makes another face at the mention of the Blackberry, and it makes Josh feel a little better to know that at least he disapproves of Jake's new toy as much as he disapproves of Josh's boyfriend. Not that he doesn't like Jake; sometimes Josh is pretty sure Phil likes Jake better than he likes either of his sons, but it's pretty clear that the fact that Josh has a boyfriend still bugs him, and that might not ever change.
"Yeah, well, I told the guys we'd meet them at the bar when we were finished," Phil says, glancing at Jake again before he turns his attention back to Josh. "You two coming or what?"
"We'll catch up in a minute," Josh answers, and it's not easy, but he holds Phil's gaze until his father finally gives up and shakes his head. He mumbles something Josh doesn't catch, but the sympathetic glance Murray shoots in his direction lets him know what he missed. Josh waves and Murray nods, patting Phil on the shoulder as they head toward the car the Discovery Channel pays for while they're at these things.
"I should get back anyway," Jake says, letting out a sigh like the idea of an evening of drinking with his crew makes him almost as tired as a record Opi season. "I don't want any of those guys saying anything to your dad."
And Josh wants to laugh, because of all the people they could say something to, Phil, Murray and his brother are the only ones who already know the truth. But he gets what Jake means; he doesn't want Phil lying to protect them, not to the other captains or anybody else. "Yeah, okay," Josh says, hands in his pockets so he won't do something stupid. "I better go find Jake so Phil doesn't have a heart attack wondering what he's doing."
Jake grins at him, all the frustration gone for a few seconds and Josh can't help smiling back. He wishes they were back in Seattle, back in his apartment where he could feel that smile curving against his skin while he peeled all their clothes off. He wishes a lot of things, but Jake's here, and that's better than nothing. "So I'll see you over there," he says, taking a step backwards toward the hotel.
"Yeah, see you," Jake says, smile fading as he watches Josh back away. He glances over his shoulder at the lights of the bar down the street and heaves another heavy sigh. "Man, I can't believe they're making me bunk with fucking Bradley."
Josh laughs and turns around, willing his legs to carry him to the hotel before he does something stupid like grab Jake and kiss him until they can't breathe. That's what he wants to do, what he's wanted since Jake found him in the hall hours ago and stole his smoke. Instead he goes in search of his brother, and he hopes that by the time he finds him and drags him back to the bar, he'll be able to sit in the same room with Jake without everyone around them reading exactly what he's thinking all over his face.
~
Part One is here, if you're playing catch-up.
Fandom: Deadliest Catch RPS
Pairing: Jake Anderson/Josh Harris
Rating: still PG
Summary: Jake, Josh, and After the Catch. Neither of them wants to be there, but at least they have each other.
Warnings: Spoilers for season five.
A/N: I am not sure what the point of this fic is, no. I'm not even sure there is a point. Given the fandom, I'm not sure it matters. I'm mostly just writing this to entertain Michelle. Also, I have no idea how filming After the Catch works, so if there are any glaring errors, sorry?
He doesn't see Jake again for awhile. Doesn't talk to him, anyway, but he watches Jake's interview from the edge of the set where the cameras won't catch him lurking. He watches the line of Jake's jaw, tensing every time the camera swings in his direction. The worst of it is when they play back that one scene where he's talking about going to work for another boat, about not taking any shit from Matt or anybody else. And it's just talk -- Josh knows that, and so does everybody else in the room -- but that doesn't mean anybody wants that stuff thrown back in their face.
Josh doesn't get a chance to talk to him once Mike's through with the Northwestern crew, because as soon as they're off the set a P.A. grabs him and herds him over to his brother for their introduction. He doesn't even have time to see which direction Jake went before Mike's calling them out, and Josh takes the seat between Murray and his dad and does his best not to look around to see if he can spot Jake just offstage somewhere.
The conversation goes exactly the way he expects it to; Murray answers a bunch of questions about their lousy luck with King Crab last year, and Jake and Josh answer a bunch of questions about their father's absence and how that affected the rest of the crew. It's boring, because they've rehashed it a million times already, but it's part of their contract, so he sits there and he chain smokes and he tunes in just enough to catch the questions Mike directs at him. And okay, his brother has to elbow him once about an hour in, but that's only because Josh lost the thread of the conversation somewhere between Phil's rundown of his current medical status and Murray's bit about why they never did really hit the crab. After that he keeps his head in the game, but it still feels like hours before the producers are finally done with them.
When they finally turn him loose he looks around backstage for Jake, but there's nobody hanging around except the camera crew and a bunch of assistants. The whole Northwestern crew is gone, and Josh knows Jake probably didn't have a choice, but he's still a little disappointed Jake didn't hang around. He fishes a cigarette out of his pack and stops long enough to light it, taking a drag before he pockets his lighter and looks up. Jake's walking past him, nose already buried in his Blackberry and his fingers flying on the keyboard. Josh shakes his head and follows him out of the studio, past the fake walls they set up and then the real ones. He thinks about calling after Jake, making him wait for Josh to catch up. Making him put that stupid thing away for a minute, but then Josh would just have to listen to him run his mouth, and he's heard enough of that for one night already.
He catches the door as it swings shut behind his brother, blinking at the sudden change in light. It's darker than he expected it to be, which means it's later than he thought. "Jesus," he mutters around his cigarette, "how long were we in there?"
"Fucking forever," someone answers, and he looks over to see Jake Anderson leaning against the wall. Josh stops walking, glancing ahead of him to make sure his brother's not watching before he crosses the few feet between him and Jake. "Jesus, I thought they were gonna keep you in there all night."
"Me too," Josh says. "I thought you went back to the hotel."
Jake shakes his head, then nods in the opposite direction. "They're all at the bar already. I got sick of listening to Matt get drunk, so I took a walk."
"I thought he was on the wagon."
Jake snorts a laugh, and Josh can just see his grin in the glow from the streetlight at the edge of the parking lot. "Yeah, that lasted about as long as it took for him to get home from Dutch. I told you, he can't cope without Edgar around to tell him when to wipe his ass."
And there's an image Josh didn't need, but he's not surprised to hear that Matt's drinking again. It's easy to quit when they're out on the water, because they're working too hard to worry about catching a buzz, and when they're not working they're shoveling in enough calories to keep going, or they're passing out in their bunks. Once they get back to their lives everything slows to a crawl, and it's tough to find a rhythm again. It's easier for Josh now that Jake's around, but when Matt goes home he's on his own.
"Aren't they gonna notice how long you've been gone?" Josh asks, lifting his cigarette to his lips and taking a long drag. And yeah, it bugs him a little that he has to worry about what the Hansens and their crew are going to think, but Jake's the one who has to work with them. It's bad enough that they've been in the same town for most of the day and he hasn't even touched Jake; if Sig or Edgar -- or worse, Matt -- sees them together, it'll just make things worse. Still, Jake came looking for him, andJosh can't help enjoying that a little.
Jake shrugs and pushes himself off the wall, stepping into Josh's personal space until Josh can feel Jake's breath on his cheek. "Doubt it. Anyway, who cares? I'm sick of listening to their shit."
Josh knows Jake doesn't really mean it. He likes working for Sig most of the time, likes Edgar too and even Norman. They all treat him like he's part of the family, and Josh is pretty sure that's at least part of the reason Matt hates him so much. He can smell the beer on Jake's breath and he's pretty sure that's the only reason Jake isn't worried about who might catch them together, but there's a lot of crew around and if somebody gets this on film, both their careers are probably over.
As soon as he thinks it the door behind them opens, and Josh clears his throat and takes a step backwards. He looks up in time to watch his father and Murray walk out of the studio, and when Phil looks over and spots them he rolls his eyes. "Where's your brother?" is all he says, but he's looking at Jake and Josh knows exactly what he's thinking. That they're being stupid, taking risks that Phil's already warned him about like a million times, about how many guys in Dutch would just as soon kill them both as ever work with them again if they found out they were sleeping together, and that includes some of the guys on the show. It sucks, but it's true, and Josh knows Phil's just trying to keep him safe. Still, he can't pretend it doesn't hurt when his own father doesn't want to look at him.
"Took off," Josh answers, tossing his cigarette and turning to face his father. "Probably went back to the room to be alone with his phone."
Phil makes another face at the mention of the Blackberry, and it makes Josh feel a little better to know that at least he disapproves of Jake's new toy as much as he disapproves of Josh's boyfriend. Not that he doesn't like Jake; sometimes Josh is pretty sure Phil likes Jake better than he likes either of his sons, but it's pretty clear that the fact that Josh has a boyfriend still bugs him, and that might not ever change.
"Yeah, well, I told the guys we'd meet them at the bar when we were finished," Phil says, glancing at Jake again before he turns his attention back to Josh. "You two coming or what?"
"We'll catch up in a minute," Josh answers, and it's not easy, but he holds Phil's gaze until his father finally gives up and shakes his head. He mumbles something Josh doesn't catch, but the sympathetic glance Murray shoots in his direction lets him know what he missed. Josh waves and Murray nods, patting Phil on the shoulder as they head toward the car the Discovery Channel pays for while they're at these things.
"I should get back anyway," Jake says, letting out a sigh like the idea of an evening of drinking with his crew makes him almost as tired as a record Opi season. "I don't want any of those guys saying anything to your dad."
And Josh wants to laugh, because of all the people they could say something to, Phil, Murray and his brother are the only ones who already know the truth. But he gets what Jake means; he doesn't want Phil lying to protect them, not to the other captains or anybody else. "Yeah, okay," Josh says, hands in his pockets so he won't do something stupid. "I better go find Jake so Phil doesn't have a heart attack wondering what he's doing."
Jake grins at him, all the frustration gone for a few seconds and Josh can't help smiling back. He wishes they were back in Seattle, back in his apartment where he could feel that smile curving against his skin while he peeled all their clothes off. He wishes a lot of things, but Jake's here, and that's better than nothing. "So I'll see you over there," he says, taking a step backwards toward the hotel.
"Yeah, see you," Jake says, smile fading as he watches Josh back away. He glances over his shoulder at the lights of the bar down the street and heaves another heavy sigh. "Man, I can't believe they're making me bunk with fucking Bradley."
Josh laughs and turns around, willing his legs to carry him to the hotel before he does something stupid like grab Jake and kiss him until they can't breathe. That's what he wants to do, what he's wanted since Jake found him in the hall hours ago and stole his smoke. Instead he goes in search of his brother, and he hopes that by the time he finds him and drags him back to the bar, he'll be able to sit in the same room with Jake without everyone around them reading exactly what he's thinking all over his face.
~
Part One is here, if you're playing catch-up.