Original: "So Your Boyfriend's a Werewolf." Slash
I'm apparently never going to tire of writing werewolves, so have one last one for the last Snuggle of the year. May next year bring me some writing company :]
This was written for the 1000 Themes, for 44. Insanity. Beta'ed once again by the ever-encouraging, grimcognito.
Summary: Of all the ways this could go, Lane never expected this is how it would happen.
“So you’re a werewolf.”
“So I’m a werewolf.”
Lane slouched back, a crease between his brows. “I have literally no idea what to do with this information.”
Cameron hadn’t sat down, still hunched into himself across the room, looking more like cornered prey than Lane thought he had any call to considering the circumstances. He was wringing his hands, returned to human now they’d gotten past the ‘prove it’ portion of this conversation. Lane had firmly passed the point where he thought this was some kind of joke - he just wasn’t sure what he was supposed to feel in the absence of disbelief.
“Well, um, m-maybe you’re a-angry or, um, scared, o-or I could g-give you time? To, um, digest this or, uh, you, uh, you might, um -” Cameron cut off and sucked in a high, tight breath.
Lane could see him working himself up, just like he’d done before his thesis defense last year. Just like he’d done then, Lane cut in before he could really get steam behind him. “Why do you sound uncertain? Shouldn’t you know how this goes by now?”
“I don’t know!” Cameron squeaked out, almost an octave higher than normal. “I’ve never done this before!”
Lane threw his hands up, frustration bleeding through despite his best efforts. “This isn’t your first real relationship, Cam. How have you never done this before?”
“I never got to this part!” he returned hotly, a spark of his temper overtaking his panic enough for him to string actual sentences together again. “I’ve never reached the point with anyone where I felt like I should tell them about the thing that could affect whether they wanted to stick around for the rest of their lives.”
Lane thought Cameron might still be talking - he was almost sure of it, in fact - but none of it was making it through the haze that seemed to have come over Lane. He could only seem to hear the same four words playing through his head on a loop: rest of their lives. It didn’t seem like Cameron had meant to reveal that particularly, and Lane wasn’t even positive Cameron had realized he said it. For Lane, though, it made a number of things much, much clearer.
He tuned back into what had become a one-sided conversation of Cameron ranting, “-don’t even understand why you wouldn’t just -”
“Cameron,” Lane interrupted impatiently as he realized Cameron had started working himself up again. “Take a breath, huh?” He rolled his eyes as he leveraged himself off the couch, slowly crossing the room. “You’re gonna talk until you faint if you keep going like that. Just chill for a sec, okay?”
Cameron focused in on Lane instead of ranting to the room at large, breathing heavily through his nose. At Lane’s approach, he grew more agitated though, backing up frantically until his back made sudden contact with the wall. “What’re you doing?! I could hurt you; I’m a werewolf.” He stressed the last word by curling his fingers into claws and baring his entirely-human teeth, like either he or Lane had somehow forgotten about his shifted form in the last couple of minutes. “You should stay away.”
Lane rolled his eyes again, fondly. It was like Cameron didn’t even know him. “Have you only recently become a werewolf?” he asked casually, stopping a couple feet away from Cameron.
He could see the panic slipping into confusion, eyebrows drawing together. “No, I was born one. Wha-”
“And since you met me, have you ever hurt me?” Lane continued, a grin tugging at the corner of his mouth.
“Well, no -”
Lane cut him off again, fighting to keep something resembling a straight face. “So, what you’re saying is that in the three years and seven months that we’ve known each other and been dating, you’ve never hurt me?”
Cameron seemed to see where this was going, but his eyebrows didn’t let up. “Yes, but-”
“Shut up, Cam.”
True to form, Cameron pointedly did not shut up. “No, Lane, you can’t just-”
“Seriously, Cam, shut up. Are you suddenly going to hurt me now, just because I happen to know that you’re a werewolf?” Lane smirked. Cameron was shaking his head, mouth open - undoubtedly to argue more - but Lane continued before he could. “Werewolves don’t whine,” he singsonged.
He got a human growl in response, before Cameron bit it off, eyes wide. Lane could see him suddenly lose patience altogether, though, eyes rolling hard. “Lane! You can’t just decide this is all suddenly okay.”
Lane marched a couple steps closer, hands planted on his hips. “Cameron Windebaker, I didn’t just decide anything. You said ‘rest of their lives.’”
Cameron slumped to the side a bit, like the conversation had physically taken an unexpected turn. “What?”
The smile that Lane couldn’t suppress was warm and amused. “You said ‘stick around for the rest of their lives’.” He softened, dropping his arms, head tipping uncertainly. “I was hoping, maybe, you meant the rest of our lives.”
Cameron lit up, the rest of the conversation falling suddenly away. “You’d want to spend the rest of your life with me?”
Lane thought maybe he should roll his eyes less often, but that didn’t stop him from doing it. “No, asshole. I just asked my dad for his grandfather’s ring so I could propose to my other boyfriend.”
The space between them evaporated as Cameron bounced closer. “You mean it?”
A laugh burst out before Lane had even realized, and he shook his head ruefully, pulling Cameron into a loose hug. “God, you’re such a puppy.”
Cameron pulled back, brows bunched together in a disapproving frown. It took Lane only a moment to catch up, chest shaking with laughter over the joke he’d accidentally been making for months. “Oh my god,” he finally gasped out. “I’ve got to be the only gay guy who still has to deal with his partner’s time of the month.”
With a long-suffering groan, Cameron pulled away completely, making to walk away. “How long am I going to be subjected to dog jokes?”
Lane didn’t let him get far, draping himself over Cameron’s back. “For the rest of our lives.”
Cameron froze for a moment, before turning to look over his shoulder at Lane with a soft smile. “Yeah. Okay.”
This was written for the 1000 Themes, for 44. Insanity. Beta'ed once again by the ever-encouraging, grimcognito.
Summary: Of all the ways this could go, Lane never expected this is how it would happen.
“So you’re a werewolf.”
“So I’m a werewolf.”
Lane slouched back, a crease between his brows. “I have literally no idea what to do with this information.”
Cameron hadn’t sat down, still hunched into himself across the room, looking more like cornered prey than Lane thought he had any call to considering the circumstances. He was wringing his hands, returned to human now they’d gotten past the ‘prove it’ portion of this conversation. Lane had firmly passed the point where he thought this was some kind of joke - he just wasn’t sure what he was supposed to feel in the absence of disbelief.
“Well, um, m-maybe you’re a-angry or, um, scared, o-or I could g-give you time? To, um, digest this or, uh, you, uh, you might, um -” Cameron cut off and sucked in a high, tight breath.
Lane could see him working himself up, just like he’d done before his thesis defense last year. Just like he’d done then, Lane cut in before he could really get steam behind him. “Why do you sound uncertain? Shouldn’t you know how this goes by now?”
“I don’t know!” Cameron squeaked out, almost an octave higher than normal. “I’ve never done this before!”
Lane threw his hands up, frustration bleeding through despite his best efforts. “This isn’t your first real relationship, Cam. How have you never done this before?”
“I never got to this part!” he returned hotly, a spark of his temper overtaking his panic enough for him to string actual sentences together again. “I’ve never reached the point with anyone where I felt like I should tell them about the thing that could affect whether they wanted to stick around for the rest of their lives.”
Lane thought Cameron might still be talking - he was almost sure of it, in fact - but none of it was making it through the haze that seemed to have come over Lane. He could only seem to hear the same four words playing through his head on a loop: rest of their lives. It didn’t seem like Cameron had meant to reveal that particularly, and Lane wasn’t even positive Cameron had realized he said it. For Lane, though, it made a number of things much, much clearer.
He tuned back into what had become a one-sided conversation of Cameron ranting, “-don’t even understand why you wouldn’t just -”
“Cameron,” Lane interrupted impatiently as he realized Cameron had started working himself up again. “Take a breath, huh?” He rolled his eyes as he leveraged himself off the couch, slowly crossing the room. “You’re gonna talk until you faint if you keep going like that. Just chill for a sec, okay?”
Cameron focused in on Lane instead of ranting to the room at large, breathing heavily through his nose. At Lane’s approach, he grew more agitated though, backing up frantically until his back made sudden contact with the wall. “What’re you doing?! I could hurt you; I’m a werewolf.” He stressed the last word by curling his fingers into claws and baring his entirely-human teeth, like either he or Lane had somehow forgotten about his shifted form in the last couple of minutes. “You should stay away.”
Lane rolled his eyes again, fondly. It was like Cameron didn’t even know him. “Have you only recently become a werewolf?” he asked casually, stopping a couple feet away from Cameron.
He could see the panic slipping into confusion, eyebrows drawing together. “No, I was born one. Wha-”
“And since you met me, have you ever hurt me?” Lane continued, a grin tugging at the corner of his mouth.
“Well, no -”
Lane cut him off again, fighting to keep something resembling a straight face. “So, what you’re saying is that in the three years and seven months that we’ve known each other and been dating, you’ve never hurt me?”
Cameron seemed to see where this was going, but his eyebrows didn’t let up. “Yes, but-”
“Shut up, Cam.”
True to form, Cameron pointedly did not shut up. “No, Lane, you can’t just-”
“Seriously, Cam, shut up. Are you suddenly going to hurt me now, just because I happen to know that you’re a werewolf?” Lane smirked. Cameron was shaking his head, mouth open - undoubtedly to argue more - but Lane continued before he could. “Werewolves don’t whine,” he singsonged.
He got a human growl in response, before Cameron bit it off, eyes wide. Lane could see him suddenly lose patience altogether, though, eyes rolling hard. “Lane! You can’t just decide this is all suddenly okay.”
Lane marched a couple steps closer, hands planted on his hips. “Cameron Windebaker, I didn’t just decide anything. You said ‘rest of their lives.’”
Cameron slumped to the side a bit, like the conversation had physically taken an unexpected turn. “What?”
The smile that Lane couldn’t suppress was warm and amused. “You said ‘stick around for the rest of their lives’.” He softened, dropping his arms, head tipping uncertainly. “I was hoping, maybe, you meant the rest of our lives.”
Cameron lit up, the rest of the conversation falling suddenly away. “You’d want to spend the rest of your life with me?”
Lane thought maybe he should roll his eyes less often, but that didn’t stop him from doing it. “No, asshole. I just asked my dad for his grandfather’s ring so I could propose to my other boyfriend.”
The space between them evaporated as Cameron bounced closer. “You mean it?”
A laugh burst out before Lane had even realized, and he shook his head ruefully, pulling Cameron into a loose hug. “God, you’re such a puppy.”
Cameron pulled back, brows bunched together in a disapproving frown. It took Lane only a moment to catch up, chest shaking with laughter over the joke he’d accidentally been making for months. “Oh my god,” he finally gasped out. “I’ve got to be the only gay guy who still has to deal with his partner’s time of the month.”
With a long-suffering groan, Cameron pulled away completely, making to walk away. “How long am I going to be subjected to dog jokes?”
Lane didn’t let him get far, draping himself over Cameron’s back. “For the rest of our lives.”
Cameron froze for a moment, before turning to look over his shoulder at Lane with a soft smile. “Yeah. Okay.”