Fic: Hurting You and Me
Title: Hurting You and Me
Author: shaming_jezebel
Rating: PG-13
Note: Fic Friday Prompt #10
Summary: For the prompt "Even though he knew the blood was all fake, Steve winced when Chris put up pictures from the Leverage set."
Chris seemed to revel in the idea of squicking out the thousands of fangirl followers that hung on his every word on twitter by posting pictures of the blood and bruises from his numerous Leverage fight scenes. Apparently Chris enjoyed showing off the stage blood and make up effects as much as he enjoyed choreographing the fights that caused them to be necessary.
Even though he knew the blood was fake, Steve winced when he saw the images of Christian covered in blood, it reminded him too much of the one time that he had seen the real thing on Chris.
----
The last thing Chris saw before the pain struck was the glint of the bracelets that Steve always wore. Then he felt the hot burning as a hand struck his face. The force of the blow sent him flying back, but he wouldn’t fall down - Christian knew how to take a punch but had never expected one from Steve. Chris was not a man known for going down without a fight, had even gone out looking for them in his younger years, but the one person he would not fight with was his best friend.
Steve stood frozen next to him, the taste of Jack still fresh on his lips, as the pain in his knuckles gave him enough sobriety to see Chris’ face dripping with blood. The reality of his actions came through the alcoholic haze and he heard a gasp of disbelief from his own lips before he bit down on the whimper that tried to escape.
Chris remained stoic - all those years of playing the uncaring Lindsey coming in useful as the mask slipped into place. Chris was every bit of the “Christian F’ing Kane” persona as he ignored Steve and stood his ground.
"I'm so sorry..." Steve said as he looked at Chris with both shock and fear clear on his face. Steve was the hippie, the tipsy gypsy that everyone assumed was a pacifist because of the pot that he smoked and the free-love he practised, but ironically it was him and not Chris that had raised his fists when it came to this.
Steve wanted to reach for his lover but before he could see Chris flinch or pull away from him he was headed out of the door. Christian Kane never walked away from a fight, but it took everything within him to do just that before he said or did something he would regret.
Steve wasn’t so lucky.
Steve fell onto the bed, laying down as the tears fell and he was again struck by the depression that hung over him like a dark storm cloud.
For years people had been warning him that Kane was going to break his heart. That the southern country boy with his passive aggressive anger and his drinking and womanising would one-day be too much for Steve. Jensen, Riley, hell, even Jared had assumed that Steve would need protecting from Christian when the time came and he lost his anger.
When it came down to brass tacks though, it was Steve that had broken the relationship.
He had lost everything and this time it was his own goddamn fault.
God, Steve thought, I need another drink.
---
The blip of his phone pulled Steve out of his dark thoughts as he was just remembering the thought from that night about needing a drink.
It’s just make up
Chris’ text read.
Steve threw the phone back onto the sofa cushion and sighed. He knew it was just make up. He knew that the blood was fake but that didn’t stop the injuries from hurting him.
Chris and Steve had re-kindled the friendship, had reformed the band but the easy relationship they had before Christian left for his solo project had been more elusive and Steve knew it was his fault that it had ended so badly. He didn’t know if he could ever get that back.