Our Green Mile - 7/?
Our Green Mile - miss-bilvy
Chapter: 7/?
Previous Chapters: here.
Rating: R
Pairing: William Beckett/Travis McCoy
Warnings: References of rape and murder, references of execution, cussing, and sex scene later on.
This Chapter: 1,980 words
Summary: After being a lawyer for five years, William’s never worked with the green mile cases. Never found a point, really. But when one of the guards called his firm and told him to come and have a look at one of the inmates, he couldn’t really refuse.
William thought that this growing obsession would cease after a few weeks, perhaps just die down in the least. But every day William goes to see Travis it gets harder and harder to leave. He comes as early as he can but is sure to keep his visits during the night time. Sometimes he’ll see Gabe leaving but mostly it’s just Nate there with him, watching quietly and minding his own business.
After the incident three weeks ago, Gabe had hurt Travis something awful. He sprained his wrist and broke the skin to bleed on his shoulder, but Travis doesn’t show any signs of it bothering him. He just soldiers on, forcing smiles as long as William is looking.
Travis is talking more, too. He still talks mostly of Gabe, of how he hates him and how he’ll get what he deserves some day, but when William tries to change the subject then Travis doesn’t linger. He accepts the change, which is something he had been having trouble with when they first met.
For every hateful word that comes out of Travis’ mouth, William squeezes his hands a little tighter. These days, Travis has both hands wrapped around the bars as they sit indian style opposite one another, William holding both of his knuckles. He can tell Travis gets tired and sore from gripping the bars so tightly, but he knows Travis can’t help it. He knows he’s trying.
---
It’s a Thursday when William lets go of Travis’ hands to tuck his hair behind his ear. Travis recoils his hands back instantly, rubbing gently at his palms with his calloused fingers. William almost feels guilty. “If your hands are sore,” he says, trying to speak quietly so Nate won’t overhear, “You can let go. You don’t have to hold the iron all the time.”
Travis shakes his head and stands up, shifting his footing for a while before sitting back down. William watches him fidget before rubbing his hands together and dropping his head. “S’okay, Bill,” he mumbles, leaning forward to rest his head against the bars.
Even though William has been here for hours, he can feel like there is a tensity in the room. He felt it when he came in and it wouldn’t go away. Travis has been fidgeting more, speaking less of Gabe and more of William. He’s asked questions, addressed him in ways that he hasn’t before. William can tell that Travis is nervous, even if he wasn’t a psychology student. He can tell he’s nervous, maybe scared, because the date of his trial is coming up within the next six weeks.
“Do you want me to read from the paper?” William asks gently, touching a finger to the cell bars in front of him. Travis shakes his head quickly, grumbling something under his breath before he just swings his fist to ram it into one of the bars. William jumps back but tries not to shake from the shock, knowing Travis will need him to be calm in order to help him cool off. “I’m sorry-”
“I don’t wanna, I just wanna leave. I don’t belong in here,” Travis growls, wrapping his fists tightly around the bars and resting his forehead against them again. William looks at his hands sadly, silently inspecting the bruises and grazes from Travis’ past outbursts.
“I’m going to find a way to help you out,” William promises, although he finds it hard to keep his voice steady. It’s the first lie he’s told Travis intentionally since they got closer, but he doesn’t know if it will be the last. Travis is a good person when he tries, but William knows that he can’t afford to be out in public with his outbursts. The lie lingers in the silence until William has to correct himself, “It won’t be that bad.”
Travis doesn’t answer him and William watches as his hands gradually loosen around the bars to rest them in his lap. They sit in silence for a minute or two, the only sound being their quiet breathing and Nate’s occasional tapping of his nightstick against the warden’s desk. Finally, Travis breathes, sounding deflated and exhausted, “I’m tired.”
William looks down to his wrist to check his watch and rubs at his eyes. He hadn’t even noticed how late it was; three AM? He whispers an apology and reaches through the bars, waiting for Travis to close his hand in a fist before he touches his knuckles. “I’ll let you get some rest.”
He quickly takes his hand away so Travis can relax and stand. He nods, using the bars to help him up before he walks over to his bed and immediately crawls into it. William stays where he is for a while before he stands and walks back to the warden’s desk to collect his things slowly, readying to leave.
As he collects his files into his brief case, Nate approaches slowly and leans against the desk. “Hey, Mr Beckett,” he says at first, tapping his bat against his hand and waiting for William’s attention. “I was wondering, maybe if you wanted to come out to a bar with me sometime. On Sunday, I start my shift later so I’ve got time to relax in town before work.”
William pretends to think about it for a moment before shrugging awkwardly and closing the clips on his briefcase. “I don’t know, Nate. I should probably, you know, maybe do studies and things. Got some notes to catch up on with Travis, and-”
“Come on,” Nate interrupts, pulling a face before looking down. “My girlfriend and I - we’re going out, and she’s bringing a couple of friends.” He looks back up at William and waits for their eyes to meet before he continues, “Maybe you’d get along with some of them. They’s pretty girls, they’d like you.”
William rubs at his temples and just shakes his head. “I really can’t. I’ve just - with all this, and, you know.” He watches Nate’s expression change from one of curiosity to one of seriousness. Nate reaches out to take William’s arm gently, leaning closer to him to speak more quietly.
“I just don’t think this is healthy, you know?” William gives him a look so he quickly continues. “Peoples are going to start judging this little romance. If anyone finds out about it, you know.”
William frowns gently and pulls his arm easily from the grip. “What romance?”
Nate licks his lips before nodding his head towards Travis’ cell. “You should see yourself, Mr Beckett,” he murmurs. “Just. Have a think about it.”
William shuts his eyes and nods as he picks up his briefcase. “Alright,” he says, although he’s trying not to listen anymore. He doesn’t want to think about it. He was perfectly happy before it had been pointed out to him, don’t people realise that? “Alright, okay.”
He picks up his briefcase and mumbles his goodnight before heading towards the doors at the end of the hall. Although he does pause by Travis’ cell, he considers cooing for his attention, but when he sees Travis already soundlessly asleep, he decides against it. He smiles gently at him before fighting it back and heading out the doors, into the hallway.
Rather than catching a taxi, William walks back to his law firm. It’s a while and it’s fairly cold in the night, but he needs to save the money and he’d rather be alone to think. When he gets to the office building he steps inside, turning his key into a lock by the elevator to activate it past office hours. There are a few files he needs to pick up on his way home, a few he needs to drop off, and so he figures it’ll be best to do it now.
On his floor, he takes a look around the empty halls and offices and sighs to himself. It’s eerily peaceful, so he tries to soak it up on his way to his office. Before he can reach his door, though, a figure catches his eye and he turns to see Alex hunches over some papers at his desk.
“Suarez?” He questions, speaking quietly and unsure if it’s really him. Alex looks up from his desk and smiles tiredly, rubbing at his eyes with one hand before leaning back in his chair.
“Morning, Bill,” he greets, speaking in the same tone. “Everything okay? I haven’t seen you for a while.”
William frowns gently as he puts his things down on the closest desk and takes a look around. “Alex, it’s nearly four in the morning,” he murmurs, “What are you doing?”
Alex just shrugs and leans over his desk again with his elbows on the table and his sleeves rolled up. “Late night work. I didn’t realise how late it had gotten though. But really, you alright?”
William quickly nods and turns to pick up his briefcase. “Just getting a few things before going home. Spent the night at the gaol.”
He turns to enter his office, thankfully remaining alone as he organises his files. When he exits onto the main section of the floor, though, Alex has his jacket on and his briefcase in his arms, already packed up as well. “I should get going too,” he explains, “Could we share a cab?”
William can’t find a way to shake his head, so he nods instead. They head towards the stairs and take them two at a time until they’re outside, peering out at the road to search for passing taxis to flag down. “It really has been a while,” Alex thinks out loud, looking at his feet as he holds his briefcase with both hands. William glances at him before turning his attention to the road, making a small sound of agreement. “It’s kind of worrying how much time you spend at that gaol, though.”
William shifts uncomfortably from foot to foot. “What do you mean?” He asks quietly, although he really wish he didn’t have to. He hates manners, sometimes.
“It’s just kind of.. worrying,” Alex shrugs, glancing out at the road as a taxi passes them. William quickly waves for it and it luckily slows down and turns into the curb. “I mean, it’s four in the morning and you’ve just returned.”
William shrugs as he gets in the back of the car and tells the driver his address. Alex gets into the backseat next to him, closes the door and does up his belt. “It’s worth it,” William tries to explain, “For the schooling. To talk to Travis, yes? It’s worth it to get the insight, I mean.”
Alex hums quietly and William can tell he’s trying to bite his tongue. “Look,” he adds, “Next week, I’ll take you. I’ll bring you along and you can meet Travis and you can see what I mean.” He turns to Alex, who appears to be a little skeptical, but William holds out. “I promise, I’ll bring you along and I’ll tell you all about his case, all about everything so that you’ll understand.”
The taxi begins to slow down when it nears his small home, and for once, William doesn’t care about his insecurities; he doesn’t mind Alex seeing about the tiny, cheap little place he lives in. “How does that sound?” He asks, fishing out his money from his back pockets until Alex holds a hand out for him to stop.
“It sounds good,” Alex says, almost reluctantly. “We’ll worry about it then. You just go and get some rest, alright?”
William smiles feebly and gets out of the car, breathing in the fresh night air as he does. He gives one last wave to Alex in the back of the taxi before the door shuts and it drives away, leaving William to wonder whether inviting Alex along was really a good idea or not.
---
A/N: i don't deserve any love for this chapter. this took me way too long to get my ass into gear and all you get is some badly rushed and written chapter. i apologise, the next one will be better. i promise :c
Chapter: 7/?
Previous Chapters: here.
Rating: R
Pairing: William Beckett/Travis McCoy
Warnings: References of rape and murder, references of execution, cussing, and sex scene later on.
This Chapter: 1,980 words
Summary: After being a lawyer for five years, William’s never worked with the green mile cases. Never found a point, really. But when one of the guards called his firm and told him to come and have a look at one of the inmates, he couldn’t really refuse.
William thought that this growing obsession would cease after a few weeks, perhaps just die down in the least. But every day William goes to see Travis it gets harder and harder to leave. He comes as early as he can but is sure to keep his visits during the night time. Sometimes he’ll see Gabe leaving but mostly it’s just Nate there with him, watching quietly and minding his own business.
After the incident three weeks ago, Gabe had hurt Travis something awful. He sprained his wrist and broke the skin to bleed on his shoulder, but Travis doesn’t show any signs of it bothering him. He just soldiers on, forcing smiles as long as William is looking.
Travis is talking more, too. He still talks mostly of Gabe, of how he hates him and how he’ll get what he deserves some day, but when William tries to change the subject then Travis doesn’t linger. He accepts the change, which is something he had been having trouble with when they first met.
For every hateful word that comes out of Travis’ mouth, William squeezes his hands a little tighter. These days, Travis has both hands wrapped around the bars as they sit indian style opposite one another, William holding both of his knuckles. He can tell Travis gets tired and sore from gripping the bars so tightly, but he knows Travis can’t help it. He knows he’s trying.
---
It’s a Thursday when William lets go of Travis’ hands to tuck his hair behind his ear. Travis recoils his hands back instantly, rubbing gently at his palms with his calloused fingers. William almost feels guilty. “If your hands are sore,” he says, trying to speak quietly so Nate won’t overhear, “You can let go. You don’t have to hold the iron all the time.”
Travis shakes his head and stands up, shifting his footing for a while before sitting back down. William watches him fidget before rubbing his hands together and dropping his head. “S’okay, Bill,” he mumbles, leaning forward to rest his head against the bars.
Even though William has been here for hours, he can feel like there is a tensity in the room. He felt it when he came in and it wouldn’t go away. Travis has been fidgeting more, speaking less of Gabe and more of William. He’s asked questions, addressed him in ways that he hasn’t before. William can tell that Travis is nervous, even if he wasn’t a psychology student. He can tell he’s nervous, maybe scared, because the date of his trial is coming up within the next six weeks.
“Do you want me to read from the paper?” William asks gently, touching a finger to the cell bars in front of him. Travis shakes his head quickly, grumbling something under his breath before he just swings his fist to ram it into one of the bars. William jumps back but tries not to shake from the shock, knowing Travis will need him to be calm in order to help him cool off. “I’m sorry-”
“I don’t wanna, I just wanna leave. I don’t belong in here,” Travis growls, wrapping his fists tightly around the bars and resting his forehead against them again. William looks at his hands sadly, silently inspecting the bruises and grazes from Travis’ past outbursts.
“I’m going to find a way to help you out,” William promises, although he finds it hard to keep his voice steady. It’s the first lie he’s told Travis intentionally since they got closer, but he doesn’t know if it will be the last. Travis is a good person when he tries, but William knows that he can’t afford to be out in public with his outbursts. The lie lingers in the silence until William has to correct himself, “It won’t be that bad.”
Travis doesn’t answer him and William watches as his hands gradually loosen around the bars to rest them in his lap. They sit in silence for a minute or two, the only sound being their quiet breathing and Nate’s occasional tapping of his nightstick against the warden’s desk. Finally, Travis breathes, sounding deflated and exhausted, “I’m tired.”
William looks down to his wrist to check his watch and rubs at his eyes. He hadn’t even noticed how late it was; three AM? He whispers an apology and reaches through the bars, waiting for Travis to close his hand in a fist before he touches his knuckles. “I’ll let you get some rest.”
He quickly takes his hand away so Travis can relax and stand. He nods, using the bars to help him up before he walks over to his bed and immediately crawls into it. William stays where he is for a while before he stands and walks back to the warden’s desk to collect his things slowly, readying to leave.
As he collects his files into his brief case, Nate approaches slowly and leans against the desk. “Hey, Mr Beckett,” he says at first, tapping his bat against his hand and waiting for William’s attention. “I was wondering, maybe if you wanted to come out to a bar with me sometime. On Sunday, I start my shift later so I’ve got time to relax in town before work.”
William pretends to think about it for a moment before shrugging awkwardly and closing the clips on his briefcase. “I don’t know, Nate. I should probably, you know, maybe do studies and things. Got some notes to catch up on with Travis, and-”
“Come on,” Nate interrupts, pulling a face before looking down. “My girlfriend and I - we’re going out, and she’s bringing a couple of friends.” He looks back up at William and waits for their eyes to meet before he continues, “Maybe you’d get along with some of them. They’s pretty girls, they’d like you.”
William rubs at his temples and just shakes his head. “I really can’t. I’ve just - with all this, and, you know.” He watches Nate’s expression change from one of curiosity to one of seriousness. Nate reaches out to take William’s arm gently, leaning closer to him to speak more quietly.
“I just don’t think this is healthy, you know?” William gives him a look so he quickly continues. “Peoples are going to start judging this little romance. If anyone finds out about it, you know.”
William frowns gently and pulls his arm easily from the grip. “What romance?”
Nate licks his lips before nodding his head towards Travis’ cell. “You should see yourself, Mr Beckett,” he murmurs. “Just. Have a think about it.”
William shuts his eyes and nods as he picks up his briefcase. “Alright,” he says, although he’s trying not to listen anymore. He doesn’t want to think about it. He was perfectly happy before it had been pointed out to him, don’t people realise that? “Alright, okay.”
He picks up his briefcase and mumbles his goodnight before heading towards the doors at the end of the hall. Although he does pause by Travis’ cell, he considers cooing for his attention, but when he sees Travis already soundlessly asleep, he decides against it. He smiles gently at him before fighting it back and heading out the doors, into the hallway.
Rather than catching a taxi, William walks back to his law firm. It’s a while and it’s fairly cold in the night, but he needs to save the money and he’d rather be alone to think. When he gets to the office building he steps inside, turning his key into a lock by the elevator to activate it past office hours. There are a few files he needs to pick up on his way home, a few he needs to drop off, and so he figures it’ll be best to do it now.
On his floor, he takes a look around the empty halls and offices and sighs to himself. It’s eerily peaceful, so he tries to soak it up on his way to his office. Before he can reach his door, though, a figure catches his eye and he turns to see Alex hunches over some papers at his desk.
“Suarez?” He questions, speaking quietly and unsure if it’s really him. Alex looks up from his desk and smiles tiredly, rubbing at his eyes with one hand before leaning back in his chair.
“Morning, Bill,” he greets, speaking in the same tone. “Everything okay? I haven’t seen you for a while.”
William frowns gently as he puts his things down on the closest desk and takes a look around. “Alex, it’s nearly four in the morning,” he murmurs, “What are you doing?”
Alex just shrugs and leans over his desk again with his elbows on the table and his sleeves rolled up. “Late night work. I didn’t realise how late it had gotten though. But really, you alright?”
William quickly nods and turns to pick up his briefcase. “Just getting a few things before going home. Spent the night at the gaol.”
He turns to enter his office, thankfully remaining alone as he organises his files. When he exits onto the main section of the floor, though, Alex has his jacket on and his briefcase in his arms, already packed up as well. “I should get going too,” he explains, “Could we share a cab?”
William can’t find a way to shake his head, so he nods instead. They head towards the stairs and take them two at a time until they’re outside, peering out at the road to search for passing taxis to flag down. “It really has been a while,” Alex thinks out loud, looking at his feet as he holds his briefcase with both hands. William glances at him before turning his attention to the road, making a small sound of agreement. “It’s kind of worrying how much time you spend at that gaol, though.”
William shifts uncomfortably from foot to foot. “What do you mean?” He asks quietly, although he really wish he didn’t have to. He hates manners, sometimes.
“It’s just kind of.. worrying,” Alex shrugs, glancing out at the road as a taxi passes them. William quickly waves for it and it luckily slows down and turns into the curb. “I mean, it’s four in the morning and you’ve just returned.”
William shrugs as he gets in the back of the car and tells the driver his address. Alex gets into the backseat next to him, closes the door and does up his belt. “It’s worth it,” William tries to explain, “For the schooling. To talk to Travis, yes? It’s worth it to get the insight, I mean.”
Alex hums quietly and William can tell he’s trying to bite his tongue. “Look,” he adds, “Next week, I’ll take you. I’ll bring you along and you can meet Travis and you can see what I mean.” He turns to Alex, who appears to be a little skeptical, but William holds out. “I promise, I’ll bring you along and I’ll tell you all about his case, all about everything so that you’ll understand.”
The taxi begins to slow down when it nears his small home, and for once, William doesn’t care about his insecurities; he doesn’t mind Alex seeing about the tiny, cheap little place he lives in. “How does that sound?” He asks, fishing out his money from his back pockets until Alex holds a hand out for him to stop.
“It sounds good,” Alex says, almost reluctantly. “We’ll worry about it then. You just go and get some rest, alright?”
William smiles feebly and gets out of the car, breathing in the fresh night air as he does. He gives one last wave to Alex in the back of the taxi before the door shuts and it drives away, leaving William to wonder whether inviting Alex along was really a good idea or not.
---
A/N: i don't deserve any love for this chapter. this took me way too long to get my ass into gear and all you get is some badly rushed and written chapter. i apologise, the next one will be better. i promise :c