When Last We Left Our Heroes
Things were looking mighty grim,folks! But in this part, the comic relief part, they figure out how to make the money they need to get away.In a hilarious turn of events, they become hustlers, and comically...well. Perhaps not.
But there is more story! Those little blurry marks? Oh, pay no attention, that's just my *blood, sweat and tears!!!!* No, singing, you oldsters....
Like ta see it? Here it is!
RAKE THE MOON
When Dominic came in that evening, Bruce stopped him in the foyer and silently handed him a note. Dominic looked surprised but he took it, and read it right there. He turned a fierce red, but he just nodded his head without looking at Bruce. He left Bruce standing there and after a moment Lex looked out and saw him.
“Bruce…come out side with me. Please?” Lex looked a little nervous, so Bruce nodded with a smile, and walked out to the patio with Lex.
He did really like the patio. He liked the way Lex looked out here, healthier, not so pale and worried. They walked out to the farthest edge, and Lex turned to him, leaning up against the railing that blocked access to the edge of the roof. Evening sun turned his skin gold and rose--his eyes look blue in this light-- Bruce thought to himself.
He smiled at Bruce, the real smile that held hints of self-mockery but also tenderness, a certain sweetness. He was all Bruce could see; he was vaguely aware of plants and the sky and clouds, maybe the breeze that teased his hair and the tails of Lex’s shirt, but Lex filled up his sight and his heart. All the world was there in him, in his eyes now dark blue in the fading light, in the upward tilt of his chin, in the smooth roundness of his cheek. Everything that Bruce could ever want was there next to him, smiling up into his eyes.
“ Bruce? I *am* speaking to you-though why I don’t know--”
Bruce grinned and blushed. And figured there was no save here, he’d been caught being a geek.
“ Umm, sorry Lex, you were saying?”
Lex rolled his eyes. “I *said*, Jerk Off wants to talk to the both of us, when dad goes out tonight.” His forehead wrinkled for a moment and he looked up at Bruce. “ What do you think he wants?”
“He’s going to help us. Alfred told him to. So…” he shrugged and smirked.
Lex stared blankly for a second, and then smiled widely. "Alfred? Dominic is sooo screwed!” He laughed delightedly, “I can’t wait till he gets his hands on Lionel, too!”
His pleased expression dimmed slightly and Bruce immediately leaned forward and cupped his face.
“ Baby,” he stopped, totally shocked-- Baby? Where the fuck did that come from-- But it *felt* right, and by the look on Lex’s face, it was the right thing to say. “ I promise you, things are getting better right now!”
He leaned on the rail next to Lex and inhaled. Whatever was growing in the pots smelled so good, spicy and sweet at once. He closed his eyes and let the feeling of contentment wash over him. “Let’s just …relax for a minute, ok?”
Lex nodded, and laid his hand over Bruce’s. Bruce looked down at the one elegant hand laid over his broad one, a sturdy hand, he guessed. Not beautiful, not elegant, but strong. What Lex needed. He smiled at Lex. God, just this moment, he felt …good.
He heard steps behind them, and turned to face whoever it was. Dominic.
“Well. I called Alfred. He had very…. interesting ideas.” He looked distinctly unhappy as he went on to say, “ I think one or two of them might work. He’s offered to…make sure I don’t crash and burn completely, as a result of this.” He searched Lex’s face, and smiled crookedly. He made a production of pulling a folded square of paper out of his pocket and handed it to Bruce with a flourish. “Take this back. I don’t want it on me-and I’ve got some work to do.” He walked away from them, but called back over his shoulder. “It’ll hurt a lot more before it gets better. Be prepared.”
They watched him walk away, Lex with a sneer that made Bruce shiver; the degree of contempt on his face made him reassess his opinion of Lex as Dominic’s victim. Maybe…the reverse was true? He knew that Lex was capable of it. His victimization hadn’t made him weak. It didn’t seem to have made him particularly compassionate either…
“ What a drama queen!” Lex snarled, dismissing Dominic from his thoughts. He turned sharply away, nearly vibrating with annoyance. Bruce looked away, and stared out over the city. Lights were glimmering on in all the buildings as the sky shaded into a deeper purple, and lights bloomed along the decks. It was like standing in the stars…he looked over at Lex and thought-- and here’s my angel-he snorted, shook his head and smiled at Lex’s little noise of inquiry. He was about to ask Bruce again what he was thinking, but the playful look vanished: his fathers voice cracked through the air.
“ He sounds annoyed “ Lex said distractedly. “ I’ll be right back....” even as he spoke Lex was moving towards the doors.
Bruce grabbed his arm, “Hey! -Remember, it’s stopping, right? You don’t have to do anything you don’t want!” He was practically trotting to keep up with Lex, “He can’t make you do that-- Tell him no, lock yourself in my room--*please*!”
Lex glanced over at Bruce, his expression as puzzled as if he’d been speaking another language.
“ I’ll be back, later.” He murmured and glided through the patio doors. Bruce was devastated. “I don’t understand! You don’t have to--”
Lionel appeared at the patio doors, reached out to shut them. “ We’re letting all the cool air out…it’s not locked,you can come in when you’re ready.” he smiled and put his hand on Lex’s shoulder and guided him away.
Bruce stood with his mouth open, gasping for breath. He felt something in his hand and went to toss it, but opened it instead. It was the same paper he’d given to Dominic, the message to call Alfred. There was something added, a few words at the bottom.
Cameras. Tape. Fuck you too
Bruce shocked himself by laughing. He grinned just a little until the words really sank in.
Cameras…tape…god. This was more than pain. This was the universe purposefully stirring his brain with a sharp knife. This was the part in which Lex had to offer himself up like a sacrificial lamb in order to try to get free….
**********************
Lionel was gone again, out for the evening, Dominic was pacing around the living room and Lex was nowhere to be seen. Bruce wanted badly to look for him, but he needed to calm Dominic down before setting in motion the next part of Alfred’s plan-and then talk to Lex again, reassure him. Again.
“ He’s going to crucify me! He’s going to cut me up into bits and scatter me all over the city!” He stopped and ran his hands through his hair, “God, or worse…he’s going to send me back home….”
He sounded so forlorn, and Bruce realized that he wasn’t really all that much older than they were. He remembered Alfred’s words and felt some sympathy for him-some. He still thought he was pretty much an asshole. And there was something about him and Lex…he wanted to get to the bottom of that. The last two days seemed to ratchet that uneasy feeling up to a fever pitch. Maybe it was simple paranoia, maybe the stress was making them all flip out.
“Look, try and get a grip, if Alfred says he can fix it, he’ll fix it, ok?” He turned the little package in his hand over and over, handling it like it was poisonous. “This is …going to help?”
Dominic laughed bitterly. “ Yeah, it’s going to help. Sure you don’t want to watch it-ow!”
Bruce had the man’s tie wrapped around his fist, pulled him in face to face, -let everything he was feeling show in his eyes. Dominic went white, and shook his head hard.
“Sorry, sorry! I’m freaked, being an idiot. I’m on that tape too--”
Bruce dropped him like he was hot, whipped his hand away and wiped it on his shirt. “ What? Who did you-- How -why?”
“Don’t be stupid!” He rasped out, frantically loosening his tie. “ I need some protection. If he’s going to screw Lionel--”He stopped for a moment “-than I’ve got to try to cover my ass as much as I can.”
He looked over at Bruce and smirked. “You really can’t stand me, can you?” He smiled. “You know why? Because we share an obsession. We both want him. I want him so much it makes me-makes me sick. I wish I could *die* of it some times.”
Dominic’s eyes were fixed on some distant point and he talked on in a monotone, not really sharing with Bruce; the words were just-falling from his lips. “When he jerks me-when I can get him to do it,” he ignored or possibly didn’t even hear Bruce growl possessively, “He stares into my face the whole time. If I close my eyes, he stops until I look at him again-disgust. Contempt. His eyes…it’s all in his eyes, how much I disgust him.. And when I come, he wipes it on my shirt-on me. I thought once he was going to kiss me-when I leaned forward, he wiped my come on my face.”
Bruce backed away from him, feeling light-headed with revulsion. Every muscle twitched in the desire to run, to get away from this- this-horrible mess.
Dominic loved it. He loved his humiliation like a child-he held it close, nurtured it. The father and son fed it for him. He looked at Bruce with a drugged out, dreamy smile on his face for a moment, and than he was back in the present. His eyes hardened again and it was back to business.
Bruce stared at him in horrified fascination. “ You truly are one sick fuck….”
“ And for that, be thankful, or this? Would never work.”
Bruce jerked his head in acknowledgement, he was right, but still, “ Why did you let this go on and on--”
“What could I do? Who am I? Five seconds after I told, I’d be in jail for -whatever Lionel could come up with -or in a psych ward…you don’t know.”
Bruce looked at him, a terrible realization dawning, “ You don’t want to leave *Him, * either. Jesus, you’re a--a fucked up bastard. You drug up the kid you claim to love so he can deal with fu-fucking his-*and* you want to fuck his fath-Shit! I hate my life right now! * Hate it*!”
“Yeah well, now we’re *both* going to fuck him real hard. And maybe he’ll realize that he’s not god, and maybe,” He laughed shakily, “I can keep my job, and I’ll be able to live with whatever punishment he’ll dole out. Even I can’t imagine what could be worse than this….”
TBC...*sob*
Tell me you still care...pretty please?
But there is more story! Those little blurry marks? Oh, pay no attention, that's just my *blood, sweat and tears!!!!* No, singing, you oldsters....
Like ta see it? Here it is!
RAKE THE MOON
When Dominic came in that evening, Bruce stopped him in the foyer and silently handed him a note. Dominic looked surprised but he took it, and read it right there. He turned a fierce red, but he just nodded his head without looking at Bruce. He left Bruce standing there and after a moment Lex looked out and saw him.
“Bruce…come out side with me. Please?” Lex looked a little nervous, so Bruce nodded with a smile, and walked out to the patio with Lex.
He did really like the patio. He liked the way Lex looked out here, healthier, not so pale and worried. They walked out to the farthest edge, and Lex turned to him, leaning up against the railing that blocked access to the edge of the roof. Evening sun turned his skin gold and rose--his eyes look blue in this light-- Bruce thought to himself.
He smiled at Bruce, the real smile that held hints of self-mockery but also tenderness, a certain sweetness. He was all Bruce could see; he was vaguely aware of plants and the sky and clouds, maybe the breeze that teased his hair and the tails of Lex’s shirt, but Lex filled up his sight and his heart. All the world was there in him, in his eyes now dark blue in the fading light, in the upward tilt of his chin, in the smooth roundness of his cheek. Everything that Bruce could ever want was there next to him, smiling up into his eyes.
“ Bruce? I *am* speaking to you-though why I don’t know--”
Bruce grinned and blushed. And figured there was no save here, he’d been caught being a geek.
“ Umm, sorry Lex, you were saying?”
Lex rolled his eyes. “I *said*, Jerk Off wants to talk to the both of us, when dad goes out tonight.” His forehead wrinkled for a moment and he looked up at Bruce. “ What do you think he wants?”
“He’s going to help us. Alfred told him to. So…” he shrugged and smirked.
Lex stared blankly for a second, and then smiled widely. "Alfred? Dominic is sooo screwed!” He laughed delightedly, “I can’t wait till he gets his hands on Lionel, too!”
His pleased expression dimmed slightly and Bruce immediately leaned forward and cupped his face.
“ Baby,” he stopped, totally shocked-- Baby? Where the fuck did that come from-- But it *felt* right, and by the look on Lex’s face, it was the right thing to say. “ I promise you, things are getting better right now!”
He leaned on the rail next to Lex and inhaled. Whatever was growing in the pots smelled so good, spicy and sweet at once. He closed his eyes and let the feeling of contentment wash over him. “Let’s just …relax for a minute, ok?”
Lex nodded, and laid his hand over Bruce’s. Bruce looked down at the one elegant hand laid over his broad one, a sturdy hand, he guessed. Not beautiful, not elegant, but strong. What Lex needed. He smiled at Lex. God, just this moment, he felt …good.
He heard steps behind them, and turned to face whoever it was. Dominic.
“Well. I called Alfred. He had very…. interesting ideas.” He looked distinctly unhappy as he went on to say, “ I think one or two of them might work. He’s offered to…make sure I don’t crash and burn completely, as a result of this.” He searched Lex’s face, and smiled crookedly. He made a production of pulling a folded square of paper out of his pocket and handed it to Bruce with a flourish. “Take this back. I don’t want it on me-and I’ve got some work to do.” He walked away from them, but called back over his shoulder. “It’ll hurt a lot more before it gets better. Be prepared.”
They watched him walk away, Lex with a sneer that made Bruce shiver; the degree of contempt on his face made him reassess his opinion of Lex as Dominic’s victim. Maybe…the reverse was true? He knew that Lex was capable of it. His victimization hadn’t made him weak. It didn’t seem to have made him particularly compassionate either…
“ What a drama queen!” Lex snarled, dismissing Dominic from his thoughts. He turned sharply away, nearly vibrating with annoyance. Bruce looked away, and stared out over the city. Lights were glimmering on in all the buildings as the sky shaded into a deeper purple, and lights bloomed along the decks. It was like standing in the stars…he looked over at Lex and thought-- and here’s my angel-he snorted, shook his head and smiled at Lex’s little noise of inquiry. He was about to ask Bruce again what he was thinking, but the playful look vanished: his fathers voice cracked through the air.
“ He sounds annoyed “ Lex said distractedly. “ I’ll be right back....” even as he spoke Lex was moving towards the doors.
Bruce grabbed his arm, “Hey! -Remember, it’s stopping, right? You don’t have to do anything you don’t want!” He was practically trotting to keep up with Lex, “He can’t make you do that-- Tell him no, lock yourself in my room--*please*!”
Lex glanced over at Bruce, his expression as puzzled as if he’d been speaking another language.
“ I’ll be back, later.” He murmured and glided through the patio doors. Bruce was devastated. “I don’t understand! You don’t have to--”
Lionel appeared at the patio doors, reached out to shut them. “ We’re letting all the cool air out…it’s not locked,you can come in when you’re ready.” he smiled and put his hand on Lex’s shoulder and guided him away.
Bruce stood with his mouth open, gasping for breath. He felt something in his hand and went to toss it, but opened it instead. It was the same paper he’d given to Dominic, the message to call Alfred. There was something added, a few words at the bottom.
Cameras. Tape. Fuck you too
Bruce shocked himself by laughing. He grinned just a little until the words really sank in.
Cameras…tape…god. This was more than pain. This was the universe purposefully stirring his brain with a sharp knife. This was the part in which Lex had to offer himself up like a sacrificial lamb in order to try to get free….
**********************
Lionel was gone again, out for the evening, Dominic was pacing around the living room and Lex was nowhere to be seen. Bruce wanted badly to look for him, but he needed to calm Dominic down before setting in motion the next part of Alfred’s plan-and then talk to Lex again, reassure him. Again.
“ He’s going to crucify me! He’s going to cut me up into bits and scatter me all over the city!” He stopped and ran his hands through his hair, “God, or worse…he’s going to send me back home….”
He sounded so forlorn, and Bruce realized that he wasn’t really all that much older than they were. He remembered Alfred’s words and felt some sympathy for him-some. He still thought he was pretty much an asshole. And there was something about him and Lex…he wanted to get to the bottom of that. The last two days seemed to ratchet that uneasy feeling up to a fever pitch. Maybe it was simple paranoia, maybe the stress was making them all flip out.
“Look, try and get a grip, if Alfred says he can fix it, he’ll fix it, ok?” He turned the little package in his hand over and over, handling it like it was poisonous. “This is …going to help?”
Dominic laughed bitterly. “ Yeah, it’s going to help. Sure you don’t want to watch it-ow!”
Bruce had the man’s tie wrapped around his fist, pulled him in face to face, -let everything he was feeling show in his eyes. Dominic went white, and shook his head hard.
“Sorry, sorry! I’m freaked, being an idiot. I’m on that tape too--”
Bruce dropped him like he was hot, whipped his hand away and wiped it on his shirt. “ What? Who did you-- How -why?”
“Don’t be stupid!” He rasped out, frantically loosening his tie. “ I need some protection. If he’s going to screw Lionel--”He stopped for a moment “-than I’ve got to try to cover my ass as much as I can.”
He looked over at Bruce and smirked. “You really can’t stand me, can you?” He smiled. “You know why? Because we share an obsession. We both want him. I want him so much it makes me-makes me sick. I wish I could *die* of it some times.”
Dominic’s eyes were fixed on some distant point and he talked on in a monotone, not really sharing with Bruce; the words were just-falling from his lips. “When he jerks me-when I can get him to do it,” he ignored or possibly didn’t even hear Bruce growl possessively, “He stares into my face the whole time. If I close my eyes, he stops until I look at him again-disgust. Contempt. His eyes…it’s all in his eyes, how much I disgust him.. And when I come, he wipes it on my shirt-on me. I thought once he was going to kiss me-when I leaned forward, he wiped my come on my face.”
Bruce backed away from him, feeling light-headed with revulsion. Every muscle twitched in the desire to run, to get away from this- this-horrible mess.
Dominic loved it. He loved his humiliation like a child-he held it close, nurtured it. The father and son fed it for him. He looked at Bruce with a drugged out, dreamy smile on his face for a moment, and than he was back in the present. His eyes hardened again and it was back to business.
Bruce stared at him in horrified fascination. “ You truly are one sick fuck….”
“ And for that, be thankful, or this? Would never work.”
Bruce jerked his head in acknowledgement, he was right, but still, “ Why did you let this go on and on--”
“What could I do? Who am I? Five seconds after I told, I’d be in jail for -whatever Lionel could come up with -or in a psych ward…you don’t know.”
Bruce looked at him, a terrible realization dawning, “ You don’t want to leave *Him, * either. Jesus, you’re a--a fucked up bastard. You drug up the kid you claim to love so he can deal with fu-fucking his-*and* you want to fuck his fath-Shit! I hate my life right now! * Hate it*!”
“Yeah well, now we’re *both* going to fuck him real hard. And maybe he’ll realize that he’s not god, and maybe,” He laughed shakily, “I can keep my job, and I’ll be able to live with whatever punishment he’ll dole out. Even I can’t imagine what could be worse than this….”
TBC...*sob*
Tell me you still care...pretty please?