(no subject)
Title: Light My Way
Pairing: Orlando Bloom and Craig Parker
Rating: NC-17 overall
Summary: Um… there’s a lighthouse in it. Obviously. And two gorgeous men. Need I say more?
Disclaimer: We don’t know the real Craig and Orlando. We are only borrowing their lovely images for our story.
Chapter Fourteen
"Smells good. What are you making?" Craig asks as he comes into the kitchen and peers over Orli's shoulder at the bubbling pots on the stove, undoing his tie where he's just come in from work.
"Osso Buco," replies Orli as he replaces the lid on the pot and turns to smile at Craig. "How was your day?"
"Ossowhat?" Craig asks looking blank. "Yeah, fine thanks. Nothing too demanding."
"Braised veal shanks," Orli chuckles and reaches for a couple of wine glasses. "It's the next recipe in my book," he explains.
"You're working through a book?" Picking up the open tome from the counter, Craig flicks through it. "Does this mean we're having chicken parmesan tomorrow?" he chuckles, checking the next recipe and the few after. "Uh, skip the venison hearts. Not particularly liking the idea of that one," he adds, pulling a face.
"Will do," laughs Orli as he rummages through the kitchen drawer in search of the cork screw he knows is in there. "So you're not going to mind being my taste tester then?" he asks, finding the corkscrew and closing the drawer.
"I haven't up till now," Craig points out as he puts the book back and takes a sip from one of the glasses of wine Orli has poured, nodding approvingly.
"True. You've been very cooperative. And I appreciate it." Orli leans back against the kitchen counter and sips at his wine. "I can't wait to get started at school. I keep wondering what they will have us do first."
"Boil an egg probably," quips Craig with a smile. "Seriously, isn't that what they do, all that 'back to basics' stuff?"
Orli laughs and nods. "Yes, you're right. But I need that since everything I know, I learned from my mother or reading it in a book and trying it out."
"Then I shouldn't be expecting anything more than a ham sandwich for dinner for a while. Oh well. Pizza Hut delivers," Craig teases.
"You..." Orli laughs and nudges Craig's leg with his foot. "Careful. Venison hearts could be on your horizon."
Laughing, Craig puts down his wine. "I'm going to change quickly before dinner. Oh, and I think your ocelots are telling you something," he adds, nodding to the pan on the hob, the lid rattling loudly.
Orli just shakes his head and laughs again as he moves over to the stove to take a peek in the pot. When Craig returns, Orli is staring at two packages and trying to decide between the two. "Risotto or pasta?"
"Pasta?" Craig suggests assuming it's the easier of the two, taking a seat at the breakfast bar now he's more comfortably attired.
"Good choice," Orli says brightly, tossing the pack of risotto aside for now. "I made a salad, too. For something green." He fills a large pot with water to boil for the pasta. "So things are going well with the new job?" asks Orli as he puts the pot on the stove and turns on the heat.
"I think so. They haven't thrown me out yet at least," Craig ponders. "It's strange being back in an office though. I forgot how all the office politics works, and the gossiping. No such thing as a private life in an office."
"Gossip, huh? Like what kind of gossip?" Orli turns back toward Craig and picks up his wine glass.
"Who's doing who in the stationary cupboard," Craig chuckles then shrugs. "I dunno. I try not to listen. Too much backbiting and malcontent. Offices are like those isolated villages, you know, where everyone knows everyone else rather too well and copious amounts of inbreeding goes on. Sends them all crazy."
Orli gives him a look of confused curiosity. For someone who's not been exposed to much beyond his work at the lighthouse, this office environment sounds both horrifying and intriguing.
Noting the bemused expression, Craig shakes his head. "I'm kidding. Mainly. I guess people get bored so quickly they have to have something to keep things interesting. They aren't too bad at my place, a bit nosy but harmless."
"Oh, okay..." Orli laughs softly. "You had me scared there for a moment," he adds, trying to make light of his own bemusement.
Craig gives a resigned expression. "Nothing like a load of caged in people to really get to see the dark side of human nature," he murmurs.
"Are you talking about these people? Or people from before..." asks Orli, detecting something in Craig's tone that makes him feel that perhaps he's been on the wrong end of office talk in his past.
Craig shrugs slightly. "I don't really know these well enough to say. And as it's only a temp job I doubt I will. But they're all the same. No matter what office you go to there's always the same types. The swaggering moron with a beer gut who thinks he's god’s gift to anything in a skirt. The dumb blonde with overdone makeup who's nowhere near as dumb as she makes out. The sweet old dear who likes to mother everyone and seems completely misplaced in that setting. I think there are rules as to the exact mix they have to have or something. It's weird," he chuckles.
Orli leans his elbows on the counter and smiles at Craig. "And what's your role in all that? The handsome and insightful guy? Every office should have one of those."
"Oh yes, that's me," Craig agrees. "At least once I get the promotion from tea boy," he laughs.
"Well work hard. You'll make it," jokes Orli, enjoying the sound of Craig's laughter.
"I'm still looking for other jobs, but this will do until one comes along," murmurs Craig. "I'm not sure I want to be stuck in offices all the time, but not much else out there at the moment."
Orli moves to the stove to check on dinner. "Like you said, it's temporary. Something better might come along. At least you won't starve until then. Not with me around. Ready to eat?" he asks, grinning at Craig over his shoulder.
"Definitely," Craig responds eagerly, jumping up to help with the serving of the food.
"Good, because it's ready." Orli opens the cabinet and gets out two plates. "Mind if we just do it buffet style? Less dishes to wash."
"Fine with me as it's my turn to wash up," smiles Craig as he collects a plate. "It smells so good."
"Hopefully it will taste as good, too," he says as he starts to spoon some of the Osso Buco onto Craig's waiting plate. "And part of being my taste tester is that you have to be brutally honest in your evaluation. Don't hold anything back."
"Brutal and honest. Right," Craig murmurs as Orli adds pasta to his plate which he then takes back to the breakfast bar, wondering if Orli has mistaken him for someone who might actually know what this stuff is meant to taste like.
Taking the seat next to Craig, Orli doesn't start eating right away. Instead he watches as Craig brings the first forkful to his mouth, biting his lower lip in hopeful anticipation of his reaction.
Aware he's under scrutiny, Craig pauses with the forkful before popping it into his mouth and chewing thoughtfully.
Orli isn't aware of it, but he leans closer as he watches Craig chew.
Somehow, given the rapt attention from Orli, Craig doesn't think he will get away with just saying it tastes good, but neither does he have any idea how to actually describe what he tastes. "The meat is really tender, just kinda melts in the mouth," he offers as a hopeful start, "I can't identify all the flavours, but I really like it," he murmurs, trying another bit. "Is there fruit in here?"
"Orange," replies Orli as he nods his head, taking in Craig's evaluation of the meat dish. "So you like it then," he says with a satisfied smile.
"No complaints from me," Craig confirms with a grin as he attacks the rest of his dinner with enthusiasm. "You know, you're going to have to train me at this food critiquing thing. I just don't understand all the words to use."
"The words you used were just fine," Orli tells him as he takes a bite of his culinary creation, still smiling happily as he chews. It's one thing to make a dish that is liked; it's an added bonus that it is Craig who likes it.
"Well, you can train me to be your assistant chef then," Craig nods. "Then I can make you dinner sometime that isn't beans on toast," he snickers.
"I like beans on toast. You can't forget the classics," chuckles Orli as he reaches for his glass of wine. "But you can still be my assistant. Any time," he adds before taking a sip.
Craig smiles at the words and then refills the wine glasses. "I think you'll be good at this," he comments. "You obviously have a natural flair for it. What are you going to do when you graduate?"
"I'd like to get a job as a sous chef or a line cook in a good restaurant." Orli swirls a bit of pasta around his fork as he stares at his plate. "I dunno. One step at a time is all I'm managing these days, I guess. I'm just happy to be here, you know?" He looks up at Craig, dark eyes meeting blue. "Glad to be here with you."
"I'm glad you're here, too," Craig replies with a smile. "And that now you have a chance to achieve something you want and make a change. How did your mum take it by the way?" he asks carefully, looking back at his plate of food.
Orli nods and gestures excitedly as he finishes chewing his mouthful of pasta. "She was totally chuffed. Thrilled, actually. She told me that she never wanted that life for me and she was glad that I decided to try something that I want."
"Yeah? That's great!" Craig grins, happy Orli has the backing of at least one of his parents. "Perhaps you should arrange to meet up with her before school starts, she probably hasn't seen you in a while right?"
"Yeah... but I don't want to go home right now. As excited as mum was for me, he wasn't."
"So...why don't you invite her here for a couple of days then?" is Craig's next suggestion. "There's plenty of places around here you can take her and spend some time. She might like a little break."
Orli thinks about Craig's suggestion for a moment as he pushes his pasta around on the plate. "You wouldn't mind if she came here instead of me going there?" he asks tentatively.
"Why would I?" Craig picks up his glass of wine and takes a sip. "This is your place as well, you can invite people over. She'd probably like to see where you're living anyway."
"Yeah, I think you're right about that. She asked me a lot of questions when I told her. She wanted to know if the flat was in a good part of town, if I felt safe..." Orli laughs softly as he recalls the conversation with his mother. "And she was glad that I'm not alone, too."
"There you go then. Mothers worry, it's what they do. You can kill two birds with one stone and get to see her and put her mind at rest as well," Craig nods.
"I'll call her after dinner." Orli smiles before taking a big bite of his pasta.
"Okay, well whenever she wants to come is good. If she can't make it before you start college then any weekend will be fine I'm sure," Craig responds before finishing up his dinner. It would be slightly daunting having her visit as she would no doubt be evaluating everything the way mothers do, and it would mean he'd have to give up his room for the sofa probably, but Craig knows how much Orli would like to see his mum so one weekend isn't much of an imposition.
"That was really good," Craig sighs, setting down his knife and fork when he's done with his meal.
"I'm glad you liked it. I'll mark that recipe as a keeper and make it another time." Orli gets to his feet and reaches for Craig's plate. "You go relax and I'll clean up," he tells him.
"You cooked. I'll wash up," Craig corrects. "You can go ring your mum now if you want. It won't take me long to get this done."
"But you worked today, I didn't..." Orli looks up to see the determined expression on Craig's face so he relinquishes the plates to his roommate. "Thanks," he smiles. "I'll go ring mum."
Washing the dishes and leaving them to dry on the drainer, Craig wipes down the counters and hob to make sure everything is clean and tidy before he wanders through to the lounge area and sinks onto the sofa where Orli is still on the phone.
"Okay, that's great. Talk to dad about the best time and give me a ring back." Orli gives Craig a smile and a nod to let him know the conversation is going well. "No, it's fine. Really. It was actually his idea for you to visit."
Listening to the end of the conversation Craig figures Orli's mum is keen to come stay. "All set then?" he asks when Orli hangs up.
"All set." Orli sets the phone on the table and relaxes back into the couch. "She's going to talk to dad to figure out the best time to come. She sounded really happy."
"That's good then," murmurs Craig as he wonders just what Orli's mum is like. "If she lived a bit closer I could invite mine as well and they could swap stories about us," he chuckles, imagining some of the things his mother would have to say about him.
"Oh no..." Orli suddenly has an almost frightened expression on his face. "I didn't think about that. She's going to tell you stories. About me."
Craig laughs outright. "Too late now!" he teases. "I'll look forward to this. Sounds like it could be fun."
"Oh no... you can't believe a word the woman says," Orli says brightly. "Really. Pathological liar." He shakes his head and gives Craig a sly smile.
"With a son that takes after her," Craig murmurs under his breath while flashing a bright smile at Orli.
Orli stares at Craig, lost in his smile. Caught up in the moment of happiness and shared laughter, he gives into the attraction that is always there, just below the surface. He leans in and kisses Craig on the lips.
Taken somewhat unawares, Craig pulls back from the kiss slowly and surveys the brown eyes. "I think maybe we should talk about... this..." he murmurs quietly, a slight tone of regret in his voice.
Orli leans back, his smile slipping into one of resignation. Something in Craig's manner lets him know right away that he probably isn't going to like this. "Okay," he says quietly.
Rubbing a hand through his hair distractedly as he tries to think exactly what to say and how to say it, Craig lets out a small sigh. "I just want..." he begins then shakes his head. "I'm just not sure it's a good idea for us to carry on, well, the way we were right now," he says softly.
"Carry on?" Orli's brow wrinkles in confusion. "You mean kissing?"
"That. And the...other stuff," Craig confirms. "I think at the lighthouse we were kind of caught up in the moment. The isolation. But we don't have that now." Not sure this is sounding at all how he wants it to, Craig lets out another sigh. "I just want you to have a chance to meet other people, you know? Not feel like you're tied to me in any way."
"I liked the way things were at the lighthouse, but I don't feel tied..." Orli shakes his head and starts to continue but then it occurs to him that Craig might be trying to tell him something else. Maybe he's the one who feels tied and now he wants the opportunity to be with other people.
"I don't think I'm explaining myself too well..." Craig murmurs. "It's not that I don't like you. I do. I wouldn't have suggested this," he gestures to the room around them, "if I didn't. But it was never my intention to get involved with someone straight out of the break up of my last relationship. This is your first real foray into something of a normal life as well. I guess what I'm saying is perhaps we should keep things... uncomplicated for a period while we figure out where our lives are taking us."
Orli doesn't know what to say, his worst fears about his relationship with Craig coming to pass right before his eyes. Everything the other man is saying to him, he's thought about, and worried over. The few weeks they were separated, it was the only thing that was on his mind. And now Craig is saying it. Making it all too real.
"Okay..." Orli murmurs, turning away as he repositions himself on the couch.
"So… you're okay with us just being friends?" Craig asks, not really sure what Orli's thinking.
Orli nods his head slowly. "Sure. Yeah... friends." He turns his head to give Craig a reluctant smile.
"Okay," Craig isn't sure there's much else to say on the matter. He can only hope this doesn't affect things between them too badly. "I value your friendship, I don't want to lose it," he says quietly.
"Me, too," Orli agrees hurriedly. "Friends." The word doesn't sound as hollow as it feels. But better to have Craig in his life as a friend than to lose him all together.
With a small smile, Craig pats Orli's hand. "You have school starting soon, and your mum coming. That's probably enough to deal with right now."
"That's right. You're right," he nods again, his smile feeling even more forced as he tries to pretend that it doesn't matter as much as it really does. "I appreciate it. You not minding about my mum..."
"Of course I don't. I know you don't want to go home..." Craig tails off. "I think spending some time with your mum here will be good for both of you."
"Yeah. And I want her to meet you..." Because I love you.
"Well have to think of something to do when we know when she's coming. I guess we don't need to worry about feeding her at any rate," Craig chuckles. "She'll no doubt be very proud of you I'm sure."
"She'll want to cook. Wait and see. It's her favorite thing to do. Feeding everyone," Orli chuckles softly. "Don't be surprised when she tells you that you're too skinny."
"Mm, I'm not sure that will be an issue." Looking down at his stomach ruefully, Craig pulls a face. "I really should find a gym now I have no excuse not to."
"You don't need a gym, you look great..." Orli's voice trails off as he averts his gaze. Things are different now and it feels weird to know that he will have to try and censor himself, even more than he already has since the realization of his feelings for Craig.
"I'm not running up and down several flights of stairs anymore though." As he looks up, Craig catches the expression on Orli's face. "If you have something you want to say about the previous conversation, now is the time to say it," he advises softly.
"No," Orli says too quickly. "What I mean is... I'm sorry if I pushed you into how we were... at the lighthouse." He sighs softly. "I'm not sorry it happened though. I…I liked our time together. But I understand what you said about starting new."
After a short pause, Craig nods slightly. "Okay. I just wanted to understand how you felt," he tells Orli. "So, do you want to watch a movie or something?" he asks, the silence in the room making him uneasy.
"Sure. A movie's good," he replies, trying his best to disguise his deep disappointment in the decision that he really has no choice but to agree to or run the risk of losing Craig all together. Orli's not sure how he'll be able to take it when Craig does find someone new either. But that's a bridge that he'll just have to cross when he comes to it.
Getting up to flick through the DVD's, Craig can't quite decide whether he's relieved or disappointed that Orli accepted them being “just friends” so readily. He's not sure a part of him didn't want his flat mate to protest and stand his corner, but maybe it's just easier this way after all.
On to Chapter Fifteen
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