Waiting For The Big One
Another ficlet!
Disclaimer: Not mine.
Rating: PG-13.
Summary: Tommy wants a drink, Scotty pouts, and Kevin thinks about earthquakes.
Timeline: Partly during, partly just after 2.14
Waiting For The Big One
Tommy hated these shindigs. The tux wasn't a selling point to him, the way it was to Kevin or Robert or even Scotty, and he always felt so uncomfortable making polite small talk with people who thought being on a charity committee was hard work. He'd like to see them deal with Ojai or the vineyard for a week or two.
This one was particularly hard to stomach, because Julia wasn't there, and he couldn't help but worry about Elizabeth's cold. No matter how many people assured him that she was fine, that it was a normal part of childhood, seeing his daughter sick terrified him. Babies were so vulnerable, so fragile, and Lizzie more so than most. Maybe Julia had had time to get used to it, during the time she was away, but he hadn't had that chance.
Looking for the comfort of a familiar face, he approached Kevin at the bar. “Hey,” he said casually, as he tried to catch the bartender's attention. “What's up?”
“Go away.”
Now what? “What's crawled up your ass?”
“Scotty's mad at me, and it's all your fault.” Kevin drank deep from his glass.
“My fault? What did I do?”
“What didn't you do? All that talk about insurance, and 'domesticated' partners...”
“That was Justin.”
“You started it. And I'm the one paying for it.” He gestured sloppily with his glass in the general direction of where Scotty was leaning against a wall some distance from them, cradling his bandaged hand. “If he dumps me, I'm telling the whole family it's your fault.”
“If he dumps you? Come on, Kev, it can't be that serious, can it?”
“Who knows. It's Scotty - I can never tell what's going to set him off.”
“That's because you have no people skills.” But Tommy sighed, knowing that he owed his brother. Kevin was the only one who was willing to listen to him about Lena without judging, the only one who made an effort to understand. “I'll talk to him.” He left the bar - still drinkless, dammit - and sidled up to Scotty instead. “Hi. How's the hand?”
Scotty shrugged. “It hurts. I went easy on the painkillers because I'd be drinking champagne.”
“Shouldn't mix them at all... but I guess you know that,” Tommy added when he saw the look on Scotty's face. “So, Kev says you're mad at him and it's my fault.”
“How is it your fault?”
“Because he mentioned your insurance issues earlier, and I said maybe he could put you on his insurance?”
“Oh.” Scotty grimaced. “Thanks ever so much. Like Kevin needs help being devastatingly practical.”
“So you're mad at him for being practical and trying to help.”
“Let's see, how to put this... imagine if, back when you and Julia were dating, she had come up to you and said 'Hey, babe, I hear you could get these awesome tax benefits if we were married, so let's do that!' How would you have liked that?”
Tommy groaned. “Tell me he didn't.”
“There was talk,” Scotty said darkly, “of protection in case of death and dismemberment.”
“Oh, Kevin.” He let his head fall back against the wall, and covered his face with his hands. “He just never gets it, does he?”
“Oh, he does sometimes.” Scotty pressed his lips together into a thin line. “Occasionally. Like, once every two-three months.”
“You know, if you didn't both look so unhappy right now, this would be really funny.”
“Screw you.”
“No thanks, you're not my type.”
“You sure about that? Because according to Kevin, you think I'm cute.”
“What?” Startled, Tommy looked over to find Scotty grinning mischievously. And he remembered that conversation during Justin's detox. “I was just trying to look at the situation through Kevin's eyes.”
“Mmhmm. Keep telling yourself that.” The smile widened. “You're not too bad yourself, by the way.”
“Oh, shut up. And stop flirting with me, or Kev's going to get really drunk and make a fool of himself like he did the other year.”
“I don't know, that might not be such a bad thing. He gets considerably more romantic when he's drunk.”
“Whatever you're thinking about right now, I do not want to hear about it.” Scotty laughed openly at that. “Look, Scotty... Kevin may be practical rather than romantic, but that doesn't mean he's not crazy about you. Taking care of people, trying to fix their problems, it's how he shows he cares.”
“I know that. It's just... This is the big one for us, you know? It's the biggest commitment available to us. You can't just squander something like that on insurance. It matters. At least to me it does.”
“I'm willing to bet it matters to him, too. He just doesn't know how to express it. Look, you and I both know Kev's a great guy. The best. But he doesn't see that. He sees himself as the eternal screw-up, he knows all his flaws but can't seem to see his own strengths. I'm guessing he's not sure why you'd even want to marry him, if he asked you for non-practical reasons.”
“And can you see how much that hurts me? That after all this time, he still thinks I give a damn about how much money he has or what he can do for me?”
“It's not that he thinks you care about it. It's that he cares.” Tommy frowned, wishing really hard for a drink right now. He was no good at this 'talking about feelings' stuff. “Besides, if he asks for practical reasons, the worst you can do is reject the practical reasons. That doesn't hurt as much as if you had the chance to reject him.”
“As if I would,” Scotty muttered under his breath. Tommy was pretty sure he wasn't supposed to hear that, so he didn't respond. But it did his heart good, to know that the guy his brother was so crazy about was just as crazy right back.
“Go talk to him. He's worried you're going to dump him or something.”
“Yeah, right.” But Scotty straightened up, and looked around the room for Kevin. “Thanks, Tommy. You're not half bad - for a straight Republican.”
“Well, next to my brother, you're my favorite gay Democrat. Now go smooch his fears away.”
“Will do. See you around.” He walked off, but didn't get far before turning back. “Tommy?”
“Yeah?”
Scotty looked down at the floor, then up again. “You told Kevin he should marry me?”
“Well, not in those exact words, but yeah.” When Scotty only stared at him, he added, “You find something good, you hold on to it.”
There was more staring. Then Scotty smiled, his cheeks a little redder than usual. “Forget 'not half bad.' You're pretty damn awesome.”
Suddenly uncomfortable, Tommy cleared his throat. “For a straight Republican, right?”
“Nope. For any guy.” Scotty came up to him, wrapped his good arm around Tommy's shoulders, and kissed him on the cheek. “You're just plain great.”
Then he was off, leaving Tommy to blush in private. Well, almost in private; as he turned to find the nearest bar - he really needed a drink - he caught some guy staring at him. “What?” he barked, and was satisfied to see the other man lift his hands in a warding-off gesture and back away. Damn nosy people. Why couldn't everybody just mind their own business?
Tired and achy and maybe a little bit affected by the Oxycodone and champagne, Scotty stared at himself in the bathroom mirror and wondered just how he was going to floss with one hand. He was simply not up for that kind of acrobatics tonight. Surely missing one night wasn't going to land him with the kind of dental emergency that would completely devastate what was left of his finances.
Being a grown-up sucked. Right then, a really big part of him wanted to just hide under the covers and let Kevin worry about anything practical, like he so badly seemed to want to. But what would that make him? He wasn't a child. He wasn't a sponger. He wasn't going to be Kevin's kept boy-toy. Soon enough, his internship would be over, and then he'd actually get paid at both his jobs, and then maybe he could even contribute towards rent. With a sigh he straightened up, cricked his neck, and headed out into the bedroom.
Kevin was sitting on the bed, still half dressed and looking adorably lost and confused. When Scotty sat down next to him, he looked up from where his hands rested in his lap.
“I want you to know,” he began haltingly, “that there's nobody else I would make that offer to.”
“I know.”
“There's never been anyone else I'd even consider taking that step with, practical or not.”
“Really?” Scotty smiled and leaned in for a light kiss. “Me either,” he whispered against Kevin's lips.
“Yeah, but you're young. How many serious relationships have you even had?”
“Depends on what you mean. Serious as in lasting longer than a couple months? Three, not counting you. Serious as in feeling for him anything close to what I feel for you?” He kissed Kevin again. “None.”
“Really?” it was Kevin's turn to say now.
“Really. I love you.”
“I love you, too.”
“That's all I need.”
“You don't... dream about more?”
“Of course I dream about more. But they're dreams, not goals set to a timetable. I also dream of owning my own successful restaurant one day. That doesn't mean I'm not very happy being a sous chef. A couple years ago, I couldn't have imagined being where I am today.” He smiled softly. “I'm the luckiest guy in LA.”
“No, that's me.” Kevin cupped his face in both hands, and leaned in for a long, lingering kiss. When it ended, he rested his forehead against Scotty's for a moment, before pulling back a little. ”So you're not going to storm off in a rage.”
“Oh, come on, Kev. It's been months since I did that,” Scotty mocked himself lightly.
“Yeah, I know. That's both great, and kinda scary. Like with earthquakes.”
“Excuse me?”
“You know, you're happy about the fact that there hasn't been an earthquake in a while, but kinda worried too, because you wonder what's building up under the surface. Maybe the Big One is about to hit, and you could lose everything that matters to you.”
Scotty sat back, not sure whether to feel flattered or offended. “Did you just compare me to an earthquake?”
“No! No, you storming off is the earthquake. You're... You're California. Warm, sunny, friendly, completely worth the risk of an occasional earthquake. I love California. I can't imagine living anywhere else.”
“I'm California.” Scotty shook his head, laughing a little. “You are so cute.” Kevin smiled at that, and they kissed again. It gradually began to heat up, and Scotty was just about to suggest they get rid of their clothes, when... “Ow! Ow-ow-ow-ow-ow!”
“Oh my God, your hand! I'm so sorry!” Jumping to his feet, Kevin hovered fretfully, while Scotty bent over, clutching his hand in his lap. “Should I get you a pain pill? Water? Anything?”
“No, I just took a pill before brushing my teeth. I'll be okay, just... Ow.”
“I am so sorry, Scotty. I completely forgot.”
“Yeah, me too. Kissing you kinda has that effect on me.” He relaxed his grip on his hand as the pain started to subside. “Actually, maybe we should try that. Here.” He tapped the index finger of his good hand against his lips, and Kevin obediently leaned in to kiss him. “Mmmm. Yeah, that's better already. Another one?”
“Okay, but that's it.” There was another quick brush of lips against his own, and then Kevin was taking charge. “Let's get you stripped and into bed. And get that smirk off your face, with that hand you're not going to do anything in bed but sleep.”
“Aww. Not even a cuddle?”
“Maybe. If you promise to behave yourself.”
“I'll be good.”
Kevin quickly and efficiently stripped them both, put them to bed, and turned out the light. His arm wrapped around Scotty's waist, warm and strong, and he was a solid presence behind Scotty's back.
“Kev.”
“Mmhmm,” came the sleepy reply.
“You don't have to worry about me storming off. I mean, I might slam the door behind me occasionally, but I won't go far, and I'll always be back. I'm in this for the long haul.” He turned his head a little, trying to make out Kevin's face in the darkened room. “I did that because I was scared. I didn't think you could possibly want me as much as I wanted you, so I did the whole 'leave him before he can leave you' thing. But I don't feel that way anymore. You make me feel warm, and safe, and loved.”
There was a long silence, and then Kevin cleared his throat. “Good,” he said, his voice rough and hoarse. His arm tightened its grip, and he pressed a light kiss to Scotty's hair. “Now go to sleep.”
Scotty smiled to himself. “I love you too.”
Disclaimer: Not mine.
Rating: PG-13.
Summary: Tommy wants a drink, Scotty pouts, and Kevin thinks about earthquakes.
Timeline: Partly during, partly just after 2.14
Waiting For The Big One
Tommy hated these shindigs. The tux wasn't a selling point to him, the way it was to Kevin or Robert or even Scotty, and he always felt so uncomfortable making polite small talk with people who thought being on a charity committee was hard work. He'd like to see them deal with Ojai or the vineyard for a week or two.
This one was particularly hard to stomach, because Julia wasn't there, and he couldn't help but worry about Elizabeth's cold. No matter how many people assured him that she was fine, that it was a normal part of childhood, seeing his daughter sick terrified him. Babies were so vulnerable, so fragile, and Lizzie more so than most. Maybe Julia had had time to get used to it, during the time she was away, but he hadn't had that chance.
Looking for the comfort of a familiar face, he approached Kevin at the bar. “Hey,” he said casually, as he tried to catch the bartender's attention. “What's up?”
“Go away.”
Now what? “What's crawled up your ass?”
“Scotty's mad at me, and it's all your fault.” Kevin drank deep from his glass.
“My fault? What did I do?”
“What didn't you do? All that talk about insurance, and 'domesticated' partners...”
“That was Justin.”
“You started it. And I'm the one paying for it.” He gestured sloppily with his glass in the general direction of where Scotty was leaning against a wall some distance from them, cradling his bandaged hand. “If he dumps me, I'm telling the whole family it's your fault.”
“If he dumps you? Come on, Kev, it can't be that serious, can it?”
“Who knows. It's Scotty - I can never tell what's going to set him off.”
“That's because you have no people skills.” But Tommy sighed, knowing that he owed his brother. Kevin was the only one who was willing to listen to him about Lena without judging, the only one who made an effort to understand. “I'll talk to him.” He left the bar - still drinkless, dammit - and sidled up to Scotty instead. “Hi. How's the hand?”
Scotty shrugged. “It hurts. I went easy on the painkillers because I'd be drinking champagne.”
“Shouldn't mix them at all... but I guess you know that,” Tommy added when he saw the look on Scotty's face. “So, Kev says you're mad at him and it's my fault.”
“How is it your fault?”
“Because he mentioned your insurance issues earlier, and I said maybe he could put you on his insurance?”
“Oh.” Scotty grimaced. “Thanks ever so much. Like Kevin needs help being devastatingly practical.”
“So you're mad at him for being practical and trying to help.”
“Let's see, how to put this... imagine if, back when you and Julia were dating, she had come up to you and said 'Hey, babe, I hear you could get these awesome tax benefits if we were married, so let's do that!' How would you have liked that?”
Tommy groaned. “Tell me he didn't.”
“There was talk,” Scotty said darkly, “of protection in case of death and dismemberment.”
“Oh, Kevin.” He let his head fall back against the wall, and covered his face with his hands. “He just never gets it, does he?”
“Oh, he does sometimes.” Scotty pressed his lips together into a thin line. “Occasionally. Like, once every two-three months.”
“You know, if you didn't both look so unhappy right now, this would be really funny.”
“Screw you.”
“No thanks, you're not my type.”
“You sure about that? Because according to Kevin, you think I'm cute.”
“What?” Startled, Tommy looked over to find Scotty grinning mischievously. And he remembered that conversation during Justin's detox. “I was just trying to look at the situation through Kevin's eyes.”
“Mmhmm. Keep telling yourself that.” The smile widened. “You're not too bad yourself, by the way.”
“Oh, shut up. And stop flirting with me, or Kev's going to get really drunk and make a fool of himself like he did the other year.”
“I don't know, that might not be such a bad thing. He gets considerably more romantic when he's drunk.”
“Whatever you're thinking about right now, I do not want to hear about it.” Scotty laughed openly at that. “Look, Scotty... Kevin may be practical rather than romantic, but that doesn't mean he's not crazy about you. Taking care of people, trying to fix their problems, it's how he shows he cares.”
“I know that. It's just... This is the big one for us, you know? It's the biggest commitment available to us. You can't just squander something like that on insurance. It matters. At least to me it does.”
“I'm willing to bet it matters to him, too. He just doesn't know how to express it. Look, you and I both know Kev's a great guy. The best. But he doesn't see that. He sees himself as the eternal screw-up, he knows all his flaws but can't seem to see his own strengths. I'm guessing he's not sure why you'd even want to marry him, if he asked you for non-practical reasons.”
“And can you see how much that hurts me? That after all this time, he still thinks I give a damn about how much money he has or what he can do for me?”
“It's not that he thinks you care about it. It's that he cares.” Tommy frowned, wishing really hard for a drink right now. He was no good at this 'talking about feelings' stuff. “Besides, if he asks for practical reasons, the worst you can do is reject the practical reasons. That doesn't hurt as much as if you had the chance to reject him.”
“As if I would,” Scotty muttered under his breath. Tommy was pretty sure he wasn't supposed to hear that, so he didn't respond. But it did his heart good, to know that the guy his brother was so crazy about was just as crazy right back.
“Go talk to him. He's worried you're going to dump him or something.”
“Yeah, right.” But Scotty straightened up, and looked around the room for Kevin. “Thanks, Tommy. You're not half bad - for a straight Republican.”
“Well, next to my brother, you're my favorite gay Democrat. Now go smooch his fears away.”
“Will do. See you around.” He walked off, but didn't get far before turning back. “Tommy?”
“Yeah?”
Scotty looked down at the floor, then up again. “You told Kevin he should marry me?”
“Well, not in those exact words, but yeah.” When Scotty only stared at him, he added, “You find something good, you hold on to it.”
There was more staring. Then Scotty smiled, his cheeks a little redder than usual. “Forget 'not half bad.' You're pretty damn awesome.”
Suddenly uncomfortable, Tommy cleared his throat. “For a straight Republican, right?”
“Nope. For any guy.” Scotty came up to him, wrapped his good arm around Tommy's shoulders, and kissed him on the cheek. “You're just plain great.”
Then he was off, leaving Tommy to blush in private. Well, almost in private; as he turned to find the nearest bar - he really needed a drink - he caught some guy staring at him. “What?” he barked, and was satisfied to see the other man lift his hands in a warding-off gesture and back away. Damn nosy people. Why couldn't everybody just mind their own business?
Tired and achy and maybe a little bit affected by the Oxycodone and champagne, Scotty stared at himself in the bathroom mirror and wondered just how he was going to floss with one hand. He was simply not up for that kind of acrobatics tonight. Surely missing one night wasn't going to land him with the kind of dental emergency that would completely devastate what was left of his finances.
Being a grown-up sucked. Right then, a really big part of him wanted to just hide under the covers and let Kevin worry about anything practical, like he so badly seemed to want to. But what would that make him? He wasn't a child. He wasn't a sponger. He wasn't going to be Kevin's kept boy-toy. Soon enough, his internship would be over, and then he'd actually get paid at both his jobs, and then maybe he could even contribute towards rent. With a sigh he straightened up, cricked his neck, and headed out into the bedroom.
Kevin was sitting on the bed, still half dressed and looking adorably lost and confused. When Scotty sat down next to him, he looked up from where his hands rested in his lap.
“I want you to know,” he began haltingly, “that there's nobody else I would make that offer to.”
“I know.”
“There's never been anyone else I'd even consider taking that step with, practical or not.”
“Really?” Scotty smiled and leaned in for a light kiss. “Me either,” he whispered against Kevin's lips.
“Yeah, but you're young. How many serious relationships have you even had?”
“Depends on what you mean. Serious as in lasting longer than a couple months? Three, not counting you. Serious as in feeling for him anything close to what I feel for you?” He kissed Kevin again. “None.”
“Really?” it was Kevin's turn to say now.
“Really. I love you.”
“I love you, too.”
“That's all I need.”
“You don't... dream about more?”
“Of course I dream about more. But they're dreams, not goals set to a timetable. I also dream of owning my own successful restaurant one day. That doesn't mean I'm not very happy being a sous chef. A couple years ago, I couldn't have imagined being where I am today.” He smiled softly. “I'm the luckiest guy in LA.”
“No, that's me.” Kevin cupped his face in both hands, and leaned in for a long, lingering kiss. When it ended, he rested his forehead against Scotty's for a moment, before pulling back a little. ”So you're not going to storm off in a rage.”
“Oh, come on, Kev. It's been months since I did that,” Scotty mocked himself lightly.
“Yeah, I know. That's both great, and kinda scary. Like with earthquakes.”
“Excuse me?”
“You know, you're happy about the fact that there hasn't been an earthquake in a while, but kinda worried too, because you wonder what's building up under the surface. Maybe the Big One is about to hit, and you could lose everything that matters to you.”
Scotty sat back, not sure whether to feel flattered or offended. “Did you just compare me to an earthquake?”
“No! No, you storming off is the earthquake. You're... You're California. Warm, sunny, friendly, completely worth the risk of an occasional earthquake. I love California. I can't imagine living anywhere else.”
“I'm California.” Scotty shook his head, laughing a little. “You are so cute.” Kevin smiled at that, and they kissed again. It gradually began to heat up, and Scotty was just about to suggest they get rid of their clothes, when... “Ow! Ow-ow-ow-ow-ow!”
“Oh my God, your hand! I'm so sorry!” Jumping to his feet, Kevin hovered fretfully, while Scotty bent over, clutching his hand in his lap. “Should I get you a pain pill? Water? Anything?”
“No, I just took a pill before brushing my teeth. I'll be okay, just... Ow.”
“I am so sorry, Scotty. I completely forgot.”
“Yeah, me too. Kissing you kinda has that effect on me.” He relaxed his grip on his hand as the pain started to subside. “Actually, maybe we should try that. Here.” He tapped the index finger of his good hand against his lips, and Kevin obediently leaned in to kiss him. “Mmmm. Yeah, that's better already. Another one?”
“Okay, but that's it.” There was another quick brush of lips against his own, and then Kevin was taking charge. “Let's get you stripped and into bed. And get that smirk off your face, with that hand you're not going to do anything in bed but sleep.”
“Aww. Not even a cuddle?”
“Maybe. If you promise to behave yourself.”
“I'll be good.”
Kevin quickly and efficiently stripped them both, put them to bed, and turned out the light. His arm wrapped around Scotty's waist, warm and strong, and he was a solid presence behind Scotty's back.
“Kev.”
“Mmhmm,” came the sleepy reply.
“You don't have to worry about me storming off. I mean, I might slam the door behind me occasionally, but I won't go far, and I'll always be back. I'm in this for the long haul.” He turned his head a little, trying to make out Kevin's face in the darkened room. “I did that because I was scared. I didn't think you could possibly want me as much as I wanted you, so I did the whole 'leave him before he can leave you' thing. But I don't feel that way anymore. You make me feel warm, and safe, and loved.”
There was a long silence, and then Kevin cleared his throat. “Good,” he said, his voice rough and hoarse. His arm tightened its grip, and he pressed a light kiss to Scotty's hair. “Now go to sleep.”
Scotty smiled to himself. “I love you too.”