More of the same.
Title: Thou Shalt Not Covet 2/5
Pairings: Chris Pine/Joe Quinto, Chris/Zach
Rating: R
Summary: He can't believe he's being so mature about this, but he loves his brother more than anyone else on this planet, save his mom. If this is what he needs to be happy, then Zach will grin and fucking bear it. As for the way he feels about Chris... Well, that isn't up for debate anymore.
Disclaimer: They're not mine. They belong to themselves. Slavery is so last century.
***
The next week goes by in a blur for Zach, mostly because he keeps himself busy. Even though he has no projects at the moment, it doesn't mean that he's going to sit at home and contemplate the meaning of life. He finds things to do, including going out and getting trashed with Kristen, who he says nothing to about The Situation. He thinks she knows something is up, though, because at the end of the night when she's pouring him into his empty bed she strokes his hair once and gives him a kiss on the forehead.
When he gives himself five minutes between taking Harold to the vet and going grocery shopping, that's what he thinks of it as. The Situation. With capital letters, because they seem to help denote the importance of this event in his life. He hasn't been able to stop by his brothers house, or Chris' apartment, for fear of seeing the two of them together again.
Idiot, Zach keep telling himself. You're going to have to get used to it sooner or later. He'd rather it were later, though. Right now just the thought of seeing them together feels like swallowing tacks.
Saturday morning he gets up and looks at the clock. Six twenty. Once again, nightmares have woken him earlier than he'd like. Zach stares at the ceiling, biting his lip. This time he was running around the neighborhood, only it was eerily silent. Nothing around him was moving, no cars or people or even animals. The sound of his feet hitting the pavement echoed in the silence, until he realized someone was running with him. But every time he turned around, there was no one there.
He lays in bed for a good ten minutes, giving himself this short time to hate the world before the start of his day. Then his cell phone rings and ruins it.
When he looks at the display, he curses aloud. What the hell, there's no one around to hear it. He picks it up.
"What?" He grunts, glaring out the window. The sun is hardly up, the ugly grey-blue light of morning is making its way into his room.
"Good morning to you too, sunshine." Chris sounds far too chipper for this time of day. "Feel up to a run?"
Zach bites his lip. This is their thing, they used to love running around their neighborhood together, sometimes giving the paps a show by showing off a little skin. Chris once joked about how they cared more about their runs than their dates. Then, as a lark, Chris started calling them dates. It used to drive Zach up the wall when Chris would call him at ass o'clock and tell him to get ready for their date.
It's such a small thing, but hearing him call it a run now only hits home how everything is changing. And he doesn't like it. But he hasn't seen his friend and he misses him, so Zach bites the bullet.
"Yeah, fine." He tries to chase the petulance out of his voice with the thought of seeing Chris after a full week of no contact. It's not the first time he'd gone that long without, but this time it's different: this time it's self imposed. "Give me a bit to get up and dressed, at least. I'll call when I'm outside your place."
"Take all the time you need," Zach can hear the smile in Chris' voice. "I'm in your kitchen with Harold."
"What?" This makes Zach sit up. He listens real hard for noise and can't hear dick. "I knew I shouldn't have given you a key. How long have you been here?"
Chris' laugh is like silk, curling around his ear. "Fifteen minutes or so? You looked so peaceful, I thought I'd give you some more time to sleep but I got bored. Come on down and let's hit the pavement, man."
Zach ends the call with a sigh. Then he drags himself out of bed and searches through his drawers for a pair of shorts. It's just a run, damnit. He just has to stop thinking about Chris getting hot and sweaty and Fuck! Zach yanks a t-shirt out of his drawers and pulls it on angrily over his head. He can do this. He will.
By the time he gets down Chris is lounging in his living room on the couch with Noah in his lap. Zach takes a second to soak in the picture of Chris in his space, playing with his dog. It makes him disgustingly happy, before reality crashes back in when Chris shifts and his t-shirt moves enough to let a tiny hickey on his collarbone emerge.
He doesn't have time to dwell on it, though, because Chris is giving him a blinding smile and bounding to his feet. "Hey lazy, ready to go?"
Zach turns his attention to Noah, whose ears go back and his tail stops wagging. "Get down." Zach orders, and Noah scrambles off the couch and darts into the kitchen. "You've got to stop letting them jump all over my furniture. The hair gets all over everything."
"Yeah, but doesn't their love more than make up for a few hairy cushions?" Chris crouches and whistles. Noah pokes his head around the doorway and takes a few tentative steps into the living room. "C'mere, boy."
Keeping his head low, Noah scuttles over to Chris, who ruffles his fur and makes a bunch of gooey noises. The beast flops over onto his back and squirms around, enjoying the love Chris is giving him. Zach just raises a brow.
"Do I need to leave the two of you alone?" He gives in and crouches next to Chris, cupping Noah's muzzle and enjoying the soft kisses his dog lays upon him. "You're the one who called me, buddy. If you wanted to just run with him all you had to do was grab his leash. You know where it is." Noah rolls over and sticks his snout into Zach's face.
"Nah," Chris stands and watches Zach and his dog for a second. "Though it is tempting. He doesn't try to talk to me while I'm overexerting myself, unlike some people."
Zach looks up at Chris and catches the soft smile on his face.
"Sorry I haven't really been around lately." Chris is still smiling, but it's tinged with something else. "I kept meaning to call, but. You know how it is."
Zach does. The first few days into a new relationship he gets so wrapped up in the other person everything else around him seems to fade. Especially when it's with someone he's crazy about. To think, the same is happening to Chris. With his freaking brother.
Well, good for him, Zach thinks snidely, then feels immediate remorse. He makes it up to himself by shrugging lightly at Chris' comment.
"Yeah, I know." He stands, giving Noah one last good ruffle. "It's cool, don't worry about it."
He checks his pockets for his earbuds, then snags his keys off the side table. He's in the middle of scrolling through his iphone for his running playlist when he feels a hand on his elbow.
"This whole thing, with me and Joe." Chris starts out, then runs a hand through his hair. "It's. I mean, he. It just happened."
Zach stares at his friend, who is staring at Noah, who is staring at them both. "You don't have to explain anything to me, Chris-"
"But I feel like I should." Chris turns his gaze to meet Zach's eyes. "Is that weird? I feel like I should be explaining this."
Zach swallows past the lump in his throat and shakes his head. "No, it's not. But you still don't." He whispers, betraying hand coming to rest on Chris' shoulder. His skin is warm under the thin cotton. He wonders how many times in the past week Joe's own hand has lain there, upon bare flesh.
Chris gives him an unreadable look. "I don't want things to change between us, though. If things go bad with me and Joe, I don't want to worry about losing you as well."
Something eases in his chest at these words, but it's still painful.
"You'll never get rid of me, man." He slaps his shoulder, then pushes Chris gently to the door. "I'm like a fungus."
Chris opens the door and pauses, turning to give Zach a smile over his shoulder. He's backlit beautifully, and Zach's almost too busy drinking in the sight to realize Chris has just called him Herpes.
He knees Chris in the ass and pushes him (a lot harder) out the door.
***
Part Three
Pairings: Chris Pine/Joe Quinto, Chris/Zach
Rating: R
Summary: He can't believe he's being so mature about this, but he loves his brother more than anyone else on this planet, save his mom. If this is what he needs to be happy, then Zach will grin and fucking bear it. As for the way he feels about Chris... Well, that isn't up for debate anymore.
Disclaimer: They're not mine. They belong to themselves. Slavery is so last century.
***
The next week goes by in a blur for Zach, mostly because he keeps himself busy. Even though he has no projects at the moment, it doesn't mean that he's going to sit at home and contemplate the meaning of life. He finds things to do, including going out and getting trashed with Kristen, who he says nothing to about The Situation. He thinks she knows something is up, though, because at the end of the night when she's pouring him into his empty bed she strokes his hair once and gives him a kiss on the forehead.
When he gives himself five minutes between taking Harold to the vet and going grocery shopping, that's what he thinks of it as. The Situation. With capital letters, because they seem to help denote the importance of this event in his life. He hasn't been able to stop by his brothers house, or Chris' apartment, for fear of seeing the two of them together again.
Idiot, Zach keep telling himself. You're going to have to get used to it sooner or later. He'd rather it were later, though. Right now just the thought of seeing them together feels like swallowing tacks.
Saturday morning he gets up and looks at the clock. Six twenty. Once again, nightmares have woken him earlier than he'd like. Zach stares at the ceiling, biting his lip. This time he was running around the neighborhood, only it was eerily silent. Nothing around him was moving, no cars or people or even animals. The sound of his feet hitting the pavement echoed in the silence, until he realized someone was running with him. But every time he turned around, there was no one there.
He lays in bed for a good ten minutes, giving himself this short time to hate the world before the start of his day. Then his cell phone rings and ruins it.
When he looks at the display, he curses aloud. What the hell, there's no one around to hear it. He picks it up.
"What?" He grunts, glaring out the window. The sun is hardly up, the ugly grey-blue light of morning is making its way into his room.
"Good morning to you too, sunshine." Chris sounds far too chipper for this time of day. "Feel up to a run?"
Zach bites his lip. This is their thing, they used to love running around their neighborhood together, sometimes giving the paps a show by showing off a little skin. Chris once joked about how they cared more about their runs than their dates. Then, as a lark, Chris started calling them dates. It used to drive Zach up the wall when Chris would call him at ass o'clock and tell him to get ready for their date.
It's such a small thing, but hearing him call it a run now only hits home how everything is changing. And he doesn't like it. But he hasn't seen his friend and he misses him, so Zach bites the bullet.
"Yeah, fine." He tries to chase the petulance out of his voice with the thought of seeing Chris after a full week of no contact. It's not the first time he'd gone that long without, but this time it's different: this time it's self imposed. "Give me a bit to get up and dressed, at least. I'll call when I'm outside your place."
"Take all the time you need," Zach can hear the smile in Chris' voice. "I'm in your kitchen with Harold."
"What?" This makes Zach sit up. He listens real hard for noise and can't hear dick. "I knew I shouldn't have given you a key. How long have you been here?"
Chris' laugh is like silk, curling around his ear. "Fifteen minutes or so? You looked so peaceful, I thought I'd give you some more time to sleep but I got bored. Come on down and let's hit the pavement, man."
Zach ends the call with a sigh. Then he drags himself out of bed and searches through his drawers for a pair of shorts. It's just a run, damnit. He just has to stop thinking about Chris getting hot and sweaty and Fuck! Zach yanks a t-shirt out of his drawers and pulls it on angrily over his head. He can do this. He will.
By the time he gets down Chris is lounging in his living room on the couch with Noah in his lap. Zach takes a second to soak in the picture of Chris in his space, playing with his dog. It makes him disgustingly happy, before reality crashes back in when Chris shifts and his t-shirt moves enough to let a tiny hickey on his collarbone emerge.
He doesn't have time to dwell on it, though, because Chris is giving him a blinding smile and bounding to his feet. "Hey lazy, ready to go?"
Zach turns his attention to Noah, whose ears go back and his tail stops wagging. "Get down." Zach orders, and Noah scrambles off the couch and darts into the kitchen. "You've got to stop letting them jump all over my furniture. The hair gets all over everything."
"Yeah, but doesn't their love more than make up for a few hairy cushions?" Chris crouches and whistles. Noah pokes his head around the doorway and takes a few tentative steps into the living room. "C'mere, boy."
Keeping his head low, Noah scuttles over to Chris, who ruffles his fur and makes a bunch of gooey noises. The beast flops over onto his back and squirms around, enjoying the love Chris is giving him. Zach just raises a brow.
"Do I need to leave the two of you alone?" He gives in and crouches next to Chris, cupping Noah's muzzle and enjoying the soft kisses his dog lays upon him. "You're the one who called me, buddy. If you wanted to just run with him all you had to do was grab his leash. You know where it is." Noah rolls over and sticks his snout into Zach's face.
"Nah," Chris stands and watches Zach and his dog for a second. "Though it is tempting. He doesn't try to talk to me while I'm overexerting myself, unlike some people."
Zach looks up at Chris and catches the soft smile on his face.
"Sorry I haven't really been around lately." Chris is still smiling, but it's tinged with something else. "I kept meaning to call, but. You know how it is."
Zach does. The first few days into a new relationship he gets so wrapped up in the other person everything else around him seems to fade. Especially when it's with someone he's crazy about. To think, the same is happening to Chris. With his freaking brother.
Well, good for him, Zach thinks snidely, then feels immediate remorse. He makes it up to himself by shrugging lightly at Chris' comment.
"Yeah, I know." He stands, giving Noah one last good ruffle. "It's cool, don't worry about it."
He checks his pockets for his earbuds, then snags his keys off the side table. He's in the middle of scrolling through his iphone for his running playlist when he feels a hand on his elbow.
"This whole thing, with me and Joe." Chris starts out, then runs a hand through his hair. "It's. I mean, he. It just happened."
Zach stares at his friend, who is staring at Noah, who is staring at them both. "You don't have to explain anything to me, Chris-"
"But I feel like I should." Chris turns his gaze to meet Zach's eyes. "Is that weird? I feel like I should be explaining this."
Zach swallows past the lump in his throat and shakes his head. "No, it's not. But you still don't." He whispers, betraying hand coming to rest on Chris' shoulder. His skin is warm under the thin cotton. He wonders how many times in the past week Joe's own hand has lain there, upon bare flesh.
Chris gives him an unreadable look. "I don't want things to change between us, though. If things go bad with me and Joe, I don't want to worry about losing you as well."
Something eases in his chest at these words, but it's still painful.
"You'll never get rid of me, man." He slaps his shoulder, then pushes Chris gently to the door. "I'm like a fungus."
Chris opens the door and pauses, turning to give Zach a smile over his shoulder. He's backlit beautifully, and Zach's almost too busy drinking in the sight to realize Chris has just called him Herpes.
He knees Chris in the ass and pushes him (a lot harder) out the door.
***
Part Three