19 - More potassium than DMil's banana
*waves to everyone who is still around*
It's great to still see people prompting and writing :) We may have lost a few people on the way but we also had some new intake. Thanks for keeping this place alive!
Let's hope that conference season and the next election will help to pick up the pace a bit.
The ususal stuff:
1) All fills for prompts of ( Read more... )
It's great to still see people prompting and writing :) We may have lost a few people on the way but we also had some new intake. Thanks for keeping this place alive!
Let's hope that conference season and the next election will help to pick up the pace a bit.
The ususal stuff:
1) All fills for prompts of ( Read more... )
“What's this?” asked David in a soft whisper. “What's all this?”
“This is the end, the end of my career,” answered Nick chokingly. “In less than a month it will all, it will all be over.”
“Not necessarily, Nick,” began David, but Nick interrupted him.
“We both know, David. We both know that it is.” Nick clung to him tighter. “We did some good, made some good policy, didn't we?”
“Yes,” answered David simply, comforting his steadfast coalition partner further by trailing his fingers tenderly through the soft folds of hair at his temple. David knew that the fight they had faced had been harder politically, and personally, on Nick than it had ever been on himself. He was mildly surprised that it had taken this long for Nick to break, after everything that had been thrown at him over the years. Everyone expected the heartless conservative to pass policies that the general public did not like, things that had to be done but would never be accepted, and David was used to the cruel insults and mindless hatred. Nick, however, had sacrificed some treasured liberal democrat policies to get other, just as treasured, policies passed, because that had been what he had to do, and now it seemed that the country would knife him and his whole party in the back for it.
“Do you think that--” whispered Nick, then stopped speaking again, his question unfinished. David felt him turn his head so that his warm breath ghosted against David's neck, shallow, regular bursts of air tingling against David's skin. David sighed and simply held him, kneeling awkwardly between his legs, their bodies pressed together at their shoulders, cheeks touching, David held him and thought of everything that might have been if their respective lives had been different.
“Will they forgive me one day?”
David closed his eyes to the question, sighing once again, breathing in deeply and with no small level of unhappiness.
“There's nothing to forgive,” whispered he, even as Nick gave a choked cry, his long-suppressed tears falling wetly to the material of David's expensive jacket. “You did everything you could. Everything you could.”
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All of it had only made David respect more the man now weeping against his shoulder, the man finally breaking under the weight of his supposed betrayals, crying for things he could not have changed.
All of it made David love him more.
“David,” whimpered Nick, voice the softest sound, the most heartbroken and most unguarded David had ever heard in the time he had known him. The arms about David tightened, gripped with renewed intensity as a single, single and so very brief, kiss fell on David's neck.
All these years together and they had never done this. But here on this last night, what officially marked the very last day of the coalition before parliament was dissolved, this little room in the eaves of Downing Street would bear witness to the only time they would both admit the truth.
“We could, we could give in, David,” murmured Nick against David's shoulder. “It's almost, almost finished now. Would it really matter if we gave in just once?”
“Could we do that?” asked David quietly. “Yes, yes I'm sure we could.” He stroked Nick's hair softly and gently cupped his hand at the back of Nick's neck. “But we won't, Nick. We won't.
“Because it's not really me you want right now. You want comfort. And I would never do that to you.”
Nick sobbed again, his shoulders shaking in David's grasp, his years of heartache finding an outlet at last as David held him tight and close, held him through the release of all the tears he had never shed in the years that came before.
“So cry, cry against my shoulder and let me hold you,” said David, caressing Nick's cheek tenderly. “Because you see, Nick, I love you. I love you too much to use you.”
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*lip wobble*
This is heart-breakingly sad, and yet utterly beautiful. Bless David for being there when Nick needed him!
And Nick! Poor Nick, finally coming to the end of his astonishing endurance. I love the way you've managed to point out how tough and brave and passionate he's been, and what an achievement it is for him to have lasted so long without breaking, even as you portray his breakdown so vividly and compassionately.
And that last sentence... Oh David! you darling!
But - Nick, poor bb!
*smooshes them both*
This is just one, poignant, heart-hurtingly lovely fic, AA.
Just beautiful.
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This was perfect. It was a perfect match to your prompt of respect. That was exactly what David showed. Respect. To not take advantage of Nick when at his most vulnerable. To not do the very thing he wanted. This was beautifully perfect, and so realistic.
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sacrificed some treasured liberal democrat policies to get other, just as treasured, policies passed, because that had been what he had to do
This certainly rings true, as does your description of Nick's determination to keep fighting, and frustration when another treasured idea fell under the axe of compromise.
I like that you didn't take the easy route of having David make everything better with kisses, even when Nick would have done that - and for all the wrong reasons, too! It gives this an extra emotional depth beyond the already haunting description of Nick reaching his breaking point.
Fantastic work, anon.
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