Two 50ficlets ficlets
I cheated a bit with the first one. I actually wrote it for theatrical_muse for the same prompt, but I think maybe five people read it so I figured I would recycle it.
For those of you who are interested, the last bit of Boobs in Love will be forthcoming eventually, when I get some time (not this week, for sure). I had 90% of Growing Up written already so it only took 20 minutes to finish.
Black and White [Drake and Josh, Drake/Josh, G, 486 words]
"Hey, Drake."
Drake meets Josh's eyes in the mirror. His brother's hair is wet and he's got a towel slung over one shoulder. "Hey," Drake says. His eyes move back to his reflection and he continues to comb his hair, but inwardly he's cringing. Shit. He'd meant to be gone before Josh got out of the shower.
"What are you doing?"
"What's it look like?" Drake drops the comb on the bureau and swipes at his bangs with his fingers. "I'm getting ready for my date."
Josh's mouth drops open. "What? You can't go out. We're grounded."
Drake snorts. "So?" He turns away from the mirror. "You gonna rat on me?"
"Well..." Josh shifts his weight from foot to foot, his expression tense. "No," he says finally, sounding disappointed with himself. He yanks the towel from his shoulder and tosses it onto his bed, his mouth set in an angry line.
"Cool," Drake replies, a tiny smile curling his lips. "'Cause Marissa is waiting and I do not want to let her down."
"Marissa?" Josh says, flopping down on the couch with a book in one hand. "I thought you were dating Lyndsey. Or no, what's-her-name... Anna?"
"Pffft. They're both so last week." Drake grabs his keys off the desk and palms his wallet. "Hey, you want to come with me? Maybe Marissa has a desperate friend I can set you up with."
Josh pulls a face. "Ha, ha. No, thanks. We're grounded, remember? And I've got some studying to do anyway."
"On a Friday night?"
"Yeah, well, we've got that quiz on Monday. Besides..." His voice trails off and he looks down at the book in his hands.
"Josh." Drake sighs. "When are you going to get over Mindy? You guys broke up like, three months ago already."
"I know. There's just no one else I want to date right now, that's all." Josh opens the book and settles back on the couch, signaling an end to the conversation.
Undeterred, Drake steps up beside him and pulls the book out of his hands, turning it over so it's right side up before handing it back. "Whatever," he says. "Can I borrow a few bucks? I'm broke again."
"What am I, the First National Bank?" Josh says, his cheeks flushing, but he doesn't say anything to stop Drake when he crosses to Josh's desk and flips open his wallet. "You already owe me about five hundred dollars."
"I'll pay you back when I'm famous," Drake replies, stuffing two twenties into his pocket.
"Just be quiet when you get home," Josh says sternly. "I'm not going to cover for you if Mom and Dad find out."
"Yeah. Right," Drake says, giving Josh a lopsided grin as he heads toward the open window. He's not worried. If push comes to shove, he knows Josh will be there for him. Josh has always been the dependable one that way.
***
Growing Up [Drake and Josh, Drake/Josh, G, 625 words]
Two graduation tassels dangle from the rearview mirror.
One of them, the yellow one, is Josh's salutatorian tassel. He missed the top spot by just a few points, second, as always, to Mindy. The other tassel, the red one, is Drake's. He was at the other end of the class ranking; not the very bottom, but close enough to touch it without having to reach very far. He sat at the back of the gym and spent most of Josh's speech blowing the tassel's fringe out of his eyes for the amusement of the girl sitting next to him. When the ceremony ended, Josh pushed his way through the crowd and pulled Drake into one of his bear hugs, and they freed the tassels from their mortarboards before tossing them into the air with whoops of joy. Out in the parking lot, they threw their wrinkled gowns in the back of the car and looped the tassels around the rearview mirror before zooming off to a round of parties that lasted until the sun came up.
At first the tassels had hung there separately, the strings parallel, fringes brushing against each other only when the car turned a corner. Then Drake got into the habit of twirling them around one another whenever he stopped at a red light, and now the strings are so hopelessly entwined it would take hours to separate them, if it can even be done. It would probably be easier to just cut them apart, but then they'd both be ruined so there's really no point. They're one unit now, two halves of a whole that's something different, something completely new.
That's the way it had been growing up with Drake, Josh muses one afternoon when they're stuck in traffic on the interstate. Their lives started out running in parallel lines. Josh had always known who Drake was, of course; everyone knew who Drake was. But before their parents had started to date, the only time Josh ever built up the courage to talk to Drake he'd ended up in the Emergency Room with a nose full of olives.
Sometimes he wonders what his life would have been like if his dad had never met Drake's mom. He'd probably have watched Drake from across the lobby at The Premiere, just as he'd watched him across the playground when they were kids. He might have jostled Leah out of the way so he could wait on Drake when he came to the concession counter. He'd definitely have been envious of Drake's success with girls, though not for the reason most people would probably expect. But he's also pretty sure Drake would never have thought of him as anything more than the nameless dork behind the counter at The Premiere, a guy Drake would say hi to in the hallway and then laugh about with his friends after Josh passed out of earshot.
But their parents had met, and the parallel lines had slowly become perpendicular. They'd started hanging out, unwillingly at first, at least on Drake's part, and over time their reaction to being together had morphed from reluctance ("He's goofy. He's clammy. He's...here.") to friendship ("C'mon, man, he could never replace you. You're my brotha.") to need.
Josh glances at Drake, asleep in the passenger seat next to him, and resists the urge to smooth the hair out of Drake's eyes. Now they aren't just perpendicular lines, Josh thinks, giving the tassels a twirl so he has something else to do with his hands. They're a helix, just like these two tassels. Something new and totally different together than they were apart. One unit you'd have to cut to separate, but that would ruin them both so there's really no point.
For those of you who are interested, the last bit of Boobs in Love will be forthcoming eventually, when I get some time (not this week, for sure). I had 90% of Growing Up written already so it only took 20 minutes to finish.
Black and White [Drake and Josh, Drake/Josh, G, 486 words]
"Hey, Drake."
Drake meets Josh's eyes in the mirror. His brother's hair is wet and he's got a towel slung over one shoulder. "Hey," Drake says. His eyes move back to his reflection and he continues to comb his hair, but inwardly he's cringing. Shit. He'd meant to be gone before Josh got out of the shower.
"What are you doing?"
"What's it look like?" Drake drops the comb on the bureau and swipes at his bangs with his fingers. "I'm getting ready for my date."
Josh's mouth drops open. "What? You can't go out. We're grounded."
Drake snorts. "So?" He turns away from the mirror. "You gonna rat on me?"
"Well..." Josh shifts his weight from foot to foot, his expression tense. "No," he says finally, sounding disappointed with himself. He yanks the towel from his shoulder and tosses it onto his bed, his mouth set in an angry line.
"Cool," Drake replies, a tiny smile curling his lips. "'Cause Marissa is waiting and I do not want to let her down."
"Marissa?" Josh says, flopping down on the couch with a book in one hand. "I thought you were dating Lyndsey. Or no, what's-her-name... Anna?"
"Pffft. They're both so last week." Drake grabs his keys off the desk and palms his wallet. "Hey, you want to come with me? Maybe Marissa has a desperate friend I can set you up with."
Josh pulls a face. "Ha, ha. No, thanks. We're grounded, remember? And I've got some studying to do anyway."
"On a Friday night?"
"Yeah, well, we've got that quiz on Monday. Besides..." His voice trails off and he looks down at the book in his hands.
"Josh." Drake sighs. "When are you going to get over Mindy? You guys broke up like, three months ago already."
"I know. There's just no one else I want to date right now, that's all." Josh opens the book and settles back on the couch, signaling an end to the conversation.
Undeterred, Drake steps up beside him and pulls the book out of his hands, turning it over so it's right side up before handing it back. "Whatever," he says. "Can I borrow a few bucks? I'm broke again."
"What am I, the First National Bank?" Josh says, his cheeks flushing, but he doesn't say anything to stop Drake when he crosses to Josh's desk and flips open his wallet. "You already owe me about five hundred dollars."
"I'll pay you back when I'm famous," Drake replies, stuffing two twenties into his pocket.
"Just be quiet when you get home," Josh says sternly. "I'm not going to cover for you if Mom and Dad find out."
"Yeah. Right," Drake says, giving Josh a lopsided grin as he heads toward the open window. He's not worried. If push comes to shove, he knows Josh will be there for him. Josh has always been the dependable one that way.
***
Growing Up [Drake and Josh, Drake/Josh, G, 625 words]
Two graduation tassels dangle from the rearview mirror.
One of them, the yellow one, is Josh's salutatorian tassel. He missed the top spot by just a few points, second, as always, to Mindy. The other tassel, the red one, is Drake's. He was at the other end of the class ranking; not the very bottom, but close enough to touch it without having to reach very far. He sat at the back of the gym and spent most of Josh's speech blowing the tassel's fringe out of his eyes for the amusement of the girl sitting next to him. When the ceremony ended, Josh pushed his way through the crowd and pulled Drake into one of his bear hugs, and they freed the tassels from their mortarboards before tossing them into the air with whoops of joy. Out in the parking lot, they threw their wrinkled gowns in the back of the car and looped the tassels around the rearview mirror before zooming off to a round of parties that lasted until the sun came up.
At first the tassels had hung there separately, the strings parallel, fringes brushing against each other only when the car turned a corner. Then Drake got into the habit of twirling them around one another whenever he stopped at a red light, and now the strings are so hopelessly entwined it would take hours to separate them, if it can even be done. It would probably be easier to just cut them apart, but then they'd both be ruined so there's really no point. They're one unit now, two halves of a whole that's something different, something completely new.
That's the way it had been growing up with Drake, Josh muses one afternoon when they're stuck in traffic on the interstate. Their lives started out running in parallel lines. Josh had always known who Drake was, of course; everyone knew who Drake was. But before their parents had started to date, the only time Josh ever built up the courage to talk to Drake he'd ended up in the Emergency Room with a nose full of olives.
Sometimes he wonders what his life would have been like if his dad had never met Drake's mom. He'd probably have watched Drake from across the lobby at The Premiere, just as he'd watched him across the playground when they were kids. He might have jostled Leah out of the way so he could wait on Drake when he came to the concession counter. He'd definitely have been envious of Drake's success with girls, though not for the reason most people would probably expect. But he's also pretty sure Drake would never have thought of him as anything more than the nameless dork behind the counter at The Premiere, a guy Drake would say hi to in the hallway and then laugh about with his friends after Josh passed out of earshot.
But their parents had met, and the parallel lines had slowly become perpendicular. They'd started hanging out, unwillingly at first, at least on Drake's part, and over time their reaction to being together had morphed from reluctance ("He's goofy. He's clammy. He's...here.") to friendship ("C'mon, man, he could never replace you. You're my brotha.") to need.
Josh glances at Drake, asleep in the passenger seat next to him, and resists the urge to smooth the hair out of Drake's eyes. Now they aren't just perpendicular lines, Josh thinks, giving the tassels a twirl so he has something else to do with his hands. They're a helix, just like these two tassels. Something new and totally different together than they were apart. One unit you'd have to cut to separate, but that would ruin them both so there's really no point.