Nuke Big Bang 2010 fic: And Then There Were Three. Pt. 3
Title: And then there were three
Author: la_fours
Artist:dirklover23
Rating: R
Disclaimer: I own nothing, but my words and the order in which I put them. Don't sue, cause I don't want to give you my cat.
Characters/Pairings: Luke/Noah, Luke/Reid
Word Count: 21 500 for all 8 parts
Warnings: Angst, Adultery, Alison (she's not really a warning, I just like alliteration)
Spoilers: None unless you haven't watched in the last few months. No future spoilers.
Summary: Following the events of the past six months this is the story of how three men Luke Snyder, Noah Mayer and Reid Oliver found themselves at the mercy of love, friendship and betrayal.
Luke has already been pacing outside Reid's apartment for about 20 minutes by the time Reid gets home from the hospital. He's been having second thoughts since the moment he put the phone down this morning, but somehow he is still here. Reid must pick up on this because the minute their eyes meet he kisses him, suppressing (though not erasing) his doubts. As they kiss Reid fumbles for his keys trying desperately to open the door without letting Luke go. Luke has never seen such a eager and forceful side of him and he kind of likes it.
As they stumble into the apartment they wordlessly remove their jackets and shoes, still keeping each other as close as possible.
Soon they're negotiating their way through the apartment to Reid's bedroom and Reid laughs. Luke stops for a moment wondering what's so funny. Reid simply blurts out "Sorry, I've just never been happier to know that Katie and Jacob won't be home for hours. They're at some sort of family something or other." Luke smiles an uneasy smile, knowing how disappointed his own family would be in him right now, but he pushes it to the back of his mind, because this really isn't a time to be thinking of his mom and dad.
Luke lets Reid take the lead as if it somehow reduces his culpability. He can't find it in himself to initiate anything, though he's completely willing. But Reid seems eager to be in charge so Luke just lets it happen. However, anytime Luke tries to speak, Reid swallows his words with another kiss, as if he's scared Luke's going to turn him away. But it's too late for that now, Luke's in too deep, and after another kiss and another, Luke completely forgets what he had originally wanted to say anyway.
Luke's mind is moving lightning fast, just as fast as Reid's hands. He feels like he can barely breathe, much less think. All he knows is that in this moment, he wants Reid. And Reid wants him too. Reid who is exciting and uncomplicated and had never walked away from Luke, never made him cry. With Reid he doesn't have to worry about love or commitment or broken promises or the future. He can forget about everything and everyone, and just let himself feel. So when Reid undresses him, and lays next to him on the bed grabbing lube and a condom from the nightstand, Luke finds he can say nothing but yes.
~
After getting home from an exhausting therapy session, Noah is feeling confident and really damn happy. He checks his phone and sees no missed calls or texts from Luke, so he decides to give his boyfriend a call. Boyfriend, God it's nice to call him that again. Luke answers the phone and automatically Noah is concerned. Luke sounds distracted and a bit anxious, and Noah wants to know why. It's his job to know why and fix it if he can.
"Hey Luke is something wrong? You don't really sound like yourself. Is everything alright? It's not the family right?" Noah knows he may be overreacting a bit, but after pushing Luke away for so long he feels the need to be as supportive as possible.
"No baby, it's nothing," Luke says, still sounding like his mind is elsewhere. Noah can hear a rustling in the background so he thinks that maybe he just caught Luke while cleaning his room.
"You just sound a little frazzled is all, and I don't want to distract you if you're doing something important." Actually Noah really does want to distract him, in fact he's been dreaming of distracting Luke in all the best possible ways.
The line goes quiet for awhile and for a moment Noah thinks that Luke is gone. Then there is a muffled noise in the background that doesn't quite sound like Luke. Is there someone else in his room with him? Noah may still be kind of blind, but he is no way deaf, and the way Luke is acting is confusing him to no end.
"Luke, um, if you're busy I can call you back." Maybe there is a problem with the family and Luke is trying to deal with it on his own. Noah knows he's letting his mind run to places he shouldn't but a distracted Luke is usually not a good thing.
"Oh Noah! I'm sorry, I was just um, talking to dad. All is well, nothing is wrong, I promise. What's up?"
Noah can still hear the strange far off quality in Luke's voice, but he doesn't push.
"I was just wondering if you wanted to have dinner tonight, but if you're busy..." He just lets his voice wander off, hoping that Luke will respond.
"Actually Noah, tonight's not a great night for me. I'm just feeling a little run down and I think I'm gonna take it easy. But tomorrow I'm all yours."
Noah tries not to let disappointment creep into his voice as he agrees. He is letting Luke set the pace, so if it means waiting till tomorrow, he can do that.
~
After sleeping with Reid, Luke feels weird. Weird because he's not sure if he actually feels good or bad about what he's just done. His feelings of regret and shame seem to be at odds with his feelings of genuine affection for Reid, coupled with the orgasm he was just finally coming down from. When they finish, Luke just rolls over and tries his hardest to think of nothing at all. Not the fact that he had just cheated on his boyfriend and not the fact that the man he was in bed with seems to be slowly pushing for round two. Luke doesn't want to think of any of it, and for a minute he manages to lay still with his eyes closed ignoring everything around him. That is, until his phone rings.
"Shit, it's Noah," he exclaims, unsure of whether to answer or not. Against his better judgment and ignoring the smug smirk on Reid's face, Luke leaps out of bed and answers the call. He knew he must sound a little out of it, but he really can't let Noah in on the fact that he is currently getting dressed after having sex with his doctor. Information like that would kind of be really really terrible. Then out of nowhere Reid starts talking. As if he's trying to rat Luke out, trying to ruin everything. He covers the phone as tightly as he can and whispers to Reid to shut up.
After hanging up the phone, Luke sits on the bed, letting out a huge sigh. He just needs a moment to collect himself, to remember how to breathe again. Then Reid touches his back, rubbing his shoulders and asking him to come back to bed. This is all too much right now, and he needs to be alone. Needs to be away from Reid as much as he needs to be away from Noah. So with an awkward goodbye, Luke leaves the second man he's ever slept with to go home and figure out why he did it in the first place.
~
After Luke leaves, Reid is a little unsettled. He had hoped that Luke would be in his bed for at least a couple more hours, and now he's pretty on edge not knowing what to do with the rest of his evening. He grabs something to eat and paces the apartment, wondering if that was the first and last time he'll ever have Luke Snyder in his bed. He can't even fathom that being the case.
An hour later his phone rings and he's just happy for the distraction if only for a minute. Once he picks up the phone that feeling soon disappears.
"Uh, hey Reid, it's Noah...Noah Mayer?"
Oh shit, why is he calling me. Did Luke say something? Great, I'm going to get pummeled. Reid, however, pulls it together enough to not say any of the things he's thinking, keeping his voice on a even and somewhat uninterested tone.
"Oh, hi Noah. Is there something wrong? Do you need me to meet you at the hospital?" As long as Reid remains the aloof surgeon there is no way he'll come across as the other man. Right?
Noah sounds really calm and it's a good sign, but Reid refuses to let his guard down. He hasn't since he was a kid, and he sure as hell isn't starting now.
"Um," Noah starts, "I was just wondering if you had time to go grab that drink I mentioned? Luke is busy with probably some family stuff and well, I figured it would give us a chance to get to know each other better. Unless you have plans, I don't mean to presume that you you're just sitting around the house waiting for patients to call."
Noah sounds a bit flustered, as if making friends isn't as easy for him as Reid may have believed. And God does Reid ever understand what that is like. Against all logic and reason he has grown kind of fond of Noah. Yes, he just slept with his boyfriend, but Reid can easily separate the two aspects of his life. He can pursue Luke and be friendly with Noah. At least he wants to. And maybe, just maybe being friendly with Noah will stave off the new and annoying feelings of guilt that seem to have crept us since their phone call began. He just wants Luke so much, but Noah is such a nice guy. So maybe at least being friends with Noah will help relieve his conscience somehow. He's not sure how exactly, but it's worth a try.
"Sure Noah, sounds good. Yo's in an hour?"
Reid can hear the smile in Noah's voice as he confirms, and as he starts to get dressed to go out, he wonders how in the hell he ended up in this predicament.
~
Allison drops Noah off at Yo's on her way into the hospital. Her confusion about Noah's choice of drinking buddy for the night is made evident as she constantly repeats "Reid? Reid Oliver?" throughout the short car ride to the bar. Noah can only laugh at that, understanding fully where that sentiment is coming from. Yes, Reid is caustic, rude and downright anti-social at times, but beyond that Noah is pretty sure there is a decent guy underneath. A guy that has maybe spent too much time in the OR and not enough time in the real world. And maybe he feels like he owes the guy something. After all, he did give him back his sight. So maybe Noah figures that extending the proverbial olive branch is just the right thing to do. For all he knows it may end up being awkward and weird and blow up in his face, but it's a small price to pay to the person that helped him get his life back.
Though his vision is still pretty blurry Noah is able to make out a Reid-sized shape sitting at one of the first tables. He makes his way over, cane in hand, and reminds himself that he's here to have fun.
"Noah, hey," Reid's voice calls out to him, "Take a seat. Since you called the first round is on me, what are you drinking?"
So far so good. Noah thinks to himself. "I'll have a draft beer, whatever's on tap." He feels himself relax more as Reid heads to the bar.
Reid returns with a pitcher of beer and pours them both a pint. At first it's a little awkward, especially since Noah can't see Reid's face too clearly. It's a string of tentative sips and mindless chatter. Small talk about Noah's classes and Reid's job. Nothing that couldn't have been shared in an appointment at the hospital.
That is until Noah asks Reid if his family lives back in Dallas and the table goes dead silent. Noah knows that Reid is sitting there, but he has no clue what he's not talking anymore.
"My family?" Reid starts. "No, they don't live in Texas, they live in Connecticut where I'm from. I don't think they've actually ever been to Texas. At least not while I've been alive"
Noah takes a moment with what Reid is saying, fully understanding what it's like to have a less than stellar parent-child relationship. He decides not to say anything besides "Really?" in the hopes that Reid would continue speaking.
"Yeah, Texas is a bit too common for them. And they seem to find the heat personally offensive. They aren't the most open minded people to say the least."
Noah nods "Oh I know all about close minded parents, well, at least my dad was. Well he still is. At least I assume he is, I haven't actually spoken to him in about a year."
Noah figures that Reid knows all about his past and the Colonel, since there are very few people who don't. But he never lets on, and doesn't treat Noah like he's the spawn of Hitler. So that's nice.
"Tell me the worst thing your folks have ever done and I bet I can beat it." He knows it's an odd topic to dwell on, since he his dad is pretty much a weather machine short of being a cartoon villain, but it's nice to have something to bond about. At least something more that Noah's blindness or Reid's shitty bedside manner.
"Hmm, let's see." Reid contemplates. "My parents tried to turn me into Bobby Fisher before I even hit puberty, and once I did hit and quit playing chess, their next plan was to match me up with the various vapid and beautiful yet all too female daughters of their friends. It was pretty much expected that I would be a captain of industry, just like dear old dad, and marry into an old money family, just like dear old mom. They had been brokering my marriage to some dizzy blonde whose name I still don't care to remember and eventually it got so intense I had to come out. I hadn't planned on it, but I figured it was better than weekend after weekend of enduring go nowhere dates with Hamptons Barbie."
Noah can't believe that Reid is actually sharing so much with him, but he's really pleased to know that the human side of him was in fact very, very real.
"Even after I came out," Reid continues, "my parents wouldn't stop hassling me. First they told me I was just nervous at the prospect of having a serious girlfriend, then their next argument was that it was just a phase. When they finally came around it was only because an old money friend of theirs also had a gay kid and they wanted to fix me up with him the same way they had before. So when I got my scholarship to med school and a chance to leave home, I took it and pretty much never looked back. Don't get me wrong I know they're proud of everything I accomplished, I mean who wouldn't be...sorry. But I've never really been the son they wanted, and that's okay, because the feeling is quite mutual."
Noah sits in utter disbelief that the man he once thought he would never possibly get along with was confiding in him as if they had been friends for way more than one night. But Noah understands what loneliness does to a person and how sometimes you just need to let it out. And he is happy Reid did.
"Hmm," Noah said thoughtfully. "That's pretty rough, and if your parents didn't think that Texas was classy enough they would have hated Branson. That's where I lived before Oakdale and the best word to describe it would probably be..."
"Quaint"
"Lame?"
After answering at the same time (though Reid's answer was a little harsher than Noah's), both men burst into laughter, knowing that both answers were kind of true.
"My dad was a real stickler for discipline and order. Being a military kid and all I never even considered coming out to him. Well, not until I met Luke."
Reid gets quiet at the mention of Luke's name and Noah wonders to himself if they really still aren't getting along.
"Uh, Reid? What's the deal with you and Luke? I know you guys didn't get along at first, but that is so far behind us now, I was hoping we could all be friends."
At the mention of Luke's name Noah can hear Reid choke on his drink. He chokes and sputters a little more until he takes a clear breath.
"Friends with Luke?" he asks. Noah can hear some trepidation in his voice but he still can't quite figure out why. But Reid is the first new friend he's made in a while and he would love if the people he cared about could get along.
"Uh, sure." Reid finally says. He doesn't sound all that convinced, but hey, it's a start, right?
As the night goes on and Reid and Noah continue talking, he thinks that maybe, just maybe things are finally really looking up for him.
~
Part 4: la-fours.livejournal.com/4257.html#cutid1
Author: la_fours
Artist:dirklover23
Rating: R
Disclaimer: I own nothing, but my words and the order in which I put them. Don't sue, cause I don't want to give you my cat.
Characters/Pairings: Luke/Noah, Luke/Reid
Word Count: 21 500 for all 8 parts
Warnings: Angst, Adultery, Alison (she's not really a warning, I just like alliteration)
Spoilers: None unless you haven't watched in the last few months. No future spoilers.
Summary: Following the events of the past six months this is the story of how three men Luke Snyder, Noah Mayer and Reid Oliver found themselves at the mercy of love, friendship and betrayal.
Luke has already been pacing outside Reid's apartment for about 20 minutes by the time Reid gets home from the hospital. He's been having second thoughts since the moment he put the phone down this morning, but somehow he is still here. Reid must pick up on this because the minute their eyes meet he kisses him, suppressing (though not erasing) his doubts. As they kiss Reid fumbles for his keys trying desperately to open the door without letting Luke go. Luke has never seen such a eager and forceful side of him and he kind of likes it.
As they stumble into the apartment they wordlessly remove their jackets and shoes, still keeping each other as close as possible.
Soon they're negotiating their way through the apartment to Reid's bedroom and Reid laughs. Luke stops for a moment wondering what's so funny. Reid simply blurts out "Sorry, I've just never been happier to know that Katie and Jacob won't be home for hours. They're at some sort of family something or other." Luke smiles an uneasy smile, knowing how disappointed his own family would be in him right now, but he pushes it to the back of his mind, because this really isn't a time to be thinking of his mom and dad.
Luke lets Reid take the lead as if it somehow reduces his culpability. He can't find it in himself to initiate anything, though he's completely willing. But Reid seems eager to be in charge so Luke just lets it happen. However, anytime Luke tries to speak, Reid swallows his words with another kiss, as if he's scared Luke's going to turn him away. But it's too late for that now, Luke's in too deep, and after another kiss and another, Luke completely forgets what he had originally wanted to say anyway.
Luke's mind is moving lightning fast, just as fast as Reid's hands. He feels like he can barely breathe, much less think. All he knows is that in this moment, he wants Reid. And Reid wants him too. Reid who is exciting and uncomplicated and had never walked away from Luke, never made him cry. With Reid he doesn't have to worry about love or commitment or broken promises or the future. He can forget about everything and everyone, and just let himself feel. So when Reid undresses him, and lays next to him on the bed grabbing lube and a condom from the nightstand, Luke finds he can say nothing but yes.
~
After getting home from an exhausting therapy session, Noah is feeling confident and really damn happy. He checks his phone and sees no missed calls or texts from Luke, so he decides to give his boyfriend a call. Boyfriend, God it's nice to call him that again. Luke answers the phone and automatically Noah is concerned. Luke sounds distracted and a bit anxious, and Noah wants to know why. It's his job to know why and fix it if he can.
"Hey Luke is something wrong? You don't really sound like yourself. Is everything alright? It's not the family right?" Noah knows he may be overreacting a bit, but after pushing Luke away for so long he feels the need to be as supportive as possible.
"No baby, it's nothing," Luke says, still sounding like his mind is elsewhere. Noah can hear a rustling in the background so he thinks that maybe he just caught Luke while cleaning his room.
"You just sound a little frazzled is all, and I don't want to distract you if you're doing something important." Actually Noah really does want to distract him, in fact he's been dreaming of distracting Luke in all the best possible ways.
The line goes quiet for awhile and for a moment Noah thinks that Luke is gone. Then there is a muffled noise in the background that doesn't quite sound like Luke. Is there someone else in his room with him? Noah may still be kind of blind, but he is no way deaf, and the way Luke is acting is confusing him to no end.
"Luke, um, if you're busy I can call you back." Maybe there is a problem with the family and Luke is trying to deal with it on his own. Noah knows he's letting his mind run to places he shouldn't but a distracted Luke is usually not a good thing.
"Oh Noah! I'm sorry, I was just um, talking to dad. All is well, nothing is wrong, I promise. What's up?"
Noah can still hear the strange far off quality in Luke's voice, but he doesn't push.
"I was just wondering if you wanted to have dinner tonight, but if you're busy..." He just lets his voice wander off, hoping that Luke will respond.
"Actually Noah, tonight's not a great night for me. I'm just feeling a little run down and I think I'm gonna take it easy. But tomorrow I'm all yours."
Noah tries not to let disappointment creep into his voice as he agrees. He is letting Luke set the pace, so if it means waiting till tomorrow, he can do that.
~
After sleeping with Reid, Luke feels weird. Weird because he's not sure if he actually feels good or bad about what he's just done. His feelings of regret and shame seem to be at odds with his feelings of genuine affection for Reid, coupled with the orgasm he was just finally coming down from. When they finish, Luke just rolls over and tries his hardest to think of nothing at all. Not the fact that he had just cheated on his boyfriend and not the fact that the man he was in bed with seems to be slowly pushing for round two. Luke doesn't want to think of any of it, and for a minute he manages to lay still with his eyes closed ignoring everything around him. That is, until his phone rings.
"Shit, it's Noah," he exclaims, unsure of whether to answer or not. Against his better judgment and ignoring the smug smirk on Reid's face, Luke leaps out of bed and answers the call. He knew he must sound a little out of it, but he really can't let Noah in on the fact that he is currently getting dressed after having sex with his doctor. Information like that would kind of be really really terrible. Then out of nowhere Reid starts talking. As if he's trying to rat Luke out, trying to ruin everything. He covers the phone as tightly as he can and whispers to Reid to shut up.
After hanging up the phone, Luke sits on the bed, letting out a huge sigh. He just needs a moment to collect himself, to remember how to breathe again. Then Reid touches his back, rubbing his shoulders and asking him to come back to bed. This is all too much right now, and he needs to be alone. Needs to be away from Reid as much as he needs to be away from Noah. So with an awkward goodbye, Luke leaves the second man he's ever slept with to go home and figure out why he did it in the first place.
~
After Luke leaves, Reid is a little unsettled. He had hoped that Luke would be in his bed for at least a couple more hours, and now he's pretty on edge not knowing what to do with the rest of his evening. He grabs something to eat and paces the apartment, wondering if that was the first and last time he'll ever have Luke Snyder in his bed. He can't even fathom that being the case.
An hour later his phone rings and he's just happy for the distraction if only for a minute. Once he picks up the phone that feeling soon disappears.
"Uh, hey Reid, it's Noah...Noah Mayer?"
Oh shit, why is he calling me. Did Luke say something? Great, I'm going to get pummeled. Reid, however, pulls it together enough to not say any of the things he's thinking, keeping his voice on a even and somewhat uninterested tone.
"Oh, hi Noah. Is there something wrong? Do you need me to meet you at the hospital?" As long as Reid remains the aloof surgeon there is no way he'll come across as the other man. Right?
Noah sounds really calm and it's a good sign, but Reid refuses to let his guard down. He hasn't since he was a kid, and he sure as hell isn't starting now.
"Um," Noah starts, "I was just wondering if you had time to go grab that drink I mentioned? Luke is busy with probably some family stuff and well, I figured it would give us a chance to get to know each other better. Unless you have plans, I don't mean to presume that you you're just sitting around the house waiting for patients to call."
Noah sounds a bit flustered, as if making friends isn't as easy for him as Reid may have believed. And God does Reid ever understand what that is like. Against all logic and reason he has grown kind of fond of Noah. Yes, he just slept with his boyfriend, but Reid can easily separate the two aspects of his life. He can pursue Luke and be friendly with Noah. At least he wants to. And maybe, just maybe being friendly with Noah will stave off the new and annoying feelings of guilt that seem to have crept us since their phone call began. He just wants Luke so much, but Noah is such a nice guy. So maybe at least being friends with Noah will help relieve his conscience somehow. He's not sure how exactly, but it's worth a try.
"Sure Noah, sounds good. Yo's in an hour?"
Reid can hear the smile in Noah's voice as he confirms, and as he starts to get dressed to go out, he wonders how in the hell he ended up in this predicament.
~
Allison drops Noah off at Yo's on her way into the hospital. Her confusion about Noah's choice of drinking buddy for the night is made evident as she constantly repeats "Reid? Reid Oliver?" throughout the short car ride to the bar. Noah can only laugh at that, understanding fully where that sentiment is coming from. Yes, Reid is caustic, rude and downright anti-social at times, but beyond that Noah is pretty sure there is a decent guy underneath. A guy that has maybe spent too much time in the OR and not enough time in the real world. And maybe he feels like he owes the guy something. After all, he did give him back his sight. So maybe Noah figures that extending the proverbial olive branch is just the right thing to do. For all he knows it may end up being awkward and weird and blow up in his face, but it's a small price to pay to the person that helped him get his life back.
Though his vision is still pretty blurry Noah is able to make out a Reid-sized shape sitting at one of the first tables. He makes his way over, cane in hand, and reminds himself that he's here to have fun.
"Noah, hey," Reid's voice calls out to him, "Take a seat. Since you called the first round is on me, what are you drinking?"
So far so good. Noah thinks to himself. "I'll have a draft beer, whatever's on tap." He feels himself relax more as Reid heads to the bar.
Reid returns with a pitcher of beer and pours them both a pint. At first it's a little awkward, especially since Noah can't see Reid's face too clearly. It's a string of tentative sips and mindless chatter. Small talk about Noah's classes and Reid's job. Nothing that couldn't have been shared in an appointment at the hospital.
That is until Noah asks Reid if his family lives back in Dallas and the table goes dead silent. Noah knows that Reid is sitting there, but he has no clue what he's not talking anymore.
"My family?" Reid starts. "No, they don't live in Texas, they live in Connecticut where I'm from. I don't think they've actually ever been to Texas. At least not while I've been alive"
Noah takes a moment with what Reid is saying, fully understanding what it's like to have a less than stellar parent-child relationship. He decides not to say anything besides "Really?" in the hopes that Reid would continue speaking.
"Yeah, Texas is a bit too common for them. And they seem to find the heat personally offensive. They aren't the most open minded people to say the least."
Noah nods "Oh I know all about close minded parents, well, at least my dad was. Well he still is. At least I assume he is, I haven't actually spoken to him in about a year."
Noah figures that Reid knows all about his past and the Colonel, since there are very few people who don't. But he never lets on, and doesn't treat Noah like he's the spawn of Hitler. So that's nice.
"Tell me the worst thing your folks have ever done and I bet I can beat it." He knows it's an odd topic to dwell on, since he his dad is pretty much a weather machine short of being a cartoon villain, but it's nice to have something to bond about. At least something more that Noah's blindness or Reid's shitty bedside manner.
"Hmm, let's see." Reid contemplates. "My parents tried to turn me into Bobby Fisher before I even hit puberty, and once I did hit and quit playing chess, their next plan was to match me up with the various vapid and beautiful yet all too female daughters of their friends. It was pretty much expected that I would be a captain of industry, just like dear old dad, and marry into an old money family, just like dear old mom. They had been brokering my marriage to some dizzy blonde whose name I still don't care to remember and eventually it got so intense I had to come out. I hadn't planned on it, but I figured it was better than weekend after weekend of enduring go nowhere dates with Hamptons Barbie."
Noah can't believe that Reid is actually sharing so much with him, but he's really pleased to know that the human side of him was in fact very, very real.
"Even after I came out," Reid continues, "my parents wouldn't stop hassling me. First they told me I was just nervous at the prospect of having a serious girlfriend, then their next argument was that it was just a phase. When they finally came around it was only because an old money friend of theirs also had a gay kid and they wanted to fix me up with him the same way they had before. So when I got my scholarship to med school and a chance to leave home, I took it and pretty much never looked back. Don't get me wrong I know they're proud of everything I accomplished, I mean who wouldn't be...sorry. But I've never really been the son they wanted, and that's okay, because the feeling is quite mutual."
Noah sits in utter disbelief that the man he once thought he would never possibly get along with was confiding in him as if they had been friends for way more than one night. But Noah understands what loneliness does to a person and how sometimes you just need to let it out. And he is happy Reid did.
"Hmm," Noah said thoughtfully. "That's pretty rough, and if your parents didn't think that Texas was classy enough they would have hated Branson. That's where I lived before Oakdale and the best word to describe it would probably be..."
"Quaint"
"Lame?"
After answering at the same time (though Reid's answer was a little harsher than Noah's), both men burst into laughter, knowing that both answers were kind of true.
"My dad was a real stickler for discipline and order. Being a military kid and all I never even considered coming out to him. Well, not until I met Luke."
Reid gets quiet at the mention of Luke's name and Noah wonders to himself if they really still aren't getting along.
"Uh, Reid? What's the deal with you and Luke? I know you guys didn't get along at first, but that is so far behind us now, I was hoping we could all be friends."
At the mention of Luke's name Noah can hear Reid choke on his drink. He chokes and sputters a little more until he takes a clear breath.
"Friends with Luke?" he asks. Noah can hear some trepidation in his voice but he still can't quite figure out why. But Reid is the first new friend he's made in a while and he would love if the people he cared about could get along.
"Uh, sure." Reid finally says. He doesn't sound all that convinced, but hey, it's a start, right?
As the night goes on and Reid and Noah continue talking, he thinks that maybe, just maybe things are finally really looking up for him.
~
Part 4: la-fours.livejournal.com/4257.html#cutid1