Reconnect
Title: Reconnect
Author: Valour
Disclaimer: This is FICTION. As in, not based in reality. As in, not real. As in, I have never met these men. Nor is it likely that I ever will. Don't sue.
Fandom: Popslash
Pairing: Chris/Justin, Justin/Britney (implied)
Summary: Midnight stops at gas stations aren’t fun when you’re on your own.
Feedback: Yes, please.
Archive: Just ask.
Author's Notes: Unbetaed. Sorry, folks. Hope I caught everything. (k_leale you're falling down on the job, hon.) kimannebb, hopefully this is more what you're hoping for. :) Sequel to "Coming to an Understanding". (This is/is not the Tour Bus o' Love.)
Justin calls from his cell phone in the middle of the night. He’s inside a 7-11, just off the highway. He’s standing in the middle of a small aisle looking at the candy selection. He has a cap pulled down low, a bodyguard nearby and it all felt familiar but not in a comforting way. He calls Chris because he wants to say- he needs to tell Chris- that midnight stops at gas stations aren’t fun when you’re on your own. There is no one to grab the mountain dew. No one to hunt for the pixie sticks. There is no one to point at the clock on the wall in an effort to herd everyone back on the buses. There is no one.
Chris takes the unspoken request and runs with it. He meets up with Justin at the next club show. He watches from the sidelines and Justin plays the entire show just for Chris. For once, on this tour, his bitterness doesn’t bleed into his performance. Justin sings his everything and he can hear Chris, to his right, humming along. It’s exactly what he needs.
They slip inside the bus afterwards, laughing and making faces at the bodyguards. Justin’s face aches from smiling. They stay awake all night, catching up, their voices falling into the easy rhythm of the bus. Justin whispers his feelings about Britney; tries to explain the change, the evolution. They’re surrounded by the darkness of the road, faces only lit from the glow of the television. Chris listens, running his fingers over Justin’s shaved scalp, tracing lines across and through the fuzz. Chris hums in all the right places. He doesn’t laugh at Justin’s awkward explanations. He gives gravity to the things Justin has been saying, in a way that only Chris can. Chris understands the workings of a broken heart. Chris knows the path to forgiveness.
Chris’s wisdom is hidden under layers of sarcasm and hyperactive wit. Chris’s age only shines through when he lets it but Justin has long been able to see past the façade. Justin understands the things Chris is really saying. Justin hears exactly what Chris wants him to. Justin has his head cushioned in Chris’s lap and he can see in Chris’s eyes everything he needs to see.
Chris laughs at all the right moments. He tells jokes when Justin needs to hear them. He points out things Justin can’t see. He is right where Justin needs him. It isn’t perfect. There are two not five and it isn’t everything Justin wants. But curled up against Chris’s small, warm body as the sun rises Justin is happy with what he has. Happy to be with Chris, to still have this.
Justin whispers “thank you” long after Chris is asleep. He doesn’t whisper “I love you” even if that is what he means. He has moved past Britney but he isn’t quit ready for that yet. He’s not ready to admit it.
But Justin knows he’s almost there.
Author: Valour
Disclaimer: This is FICTION. As in, not based in reality. As in, not real. As in, I have never met these men. Nor is it likely that I ever will. Don't sue.
Fandom: Popslash
Pairing: Chris/Justin, Justin/Britney (implied)
Summary: Midnight stops at gas stations aren’t fun when you’re on your own.
Feedback: Yes, please.
Archive: Just ask.
Author's Notes: Unbetaed. Sorry, folks. Hope I caught everything. (k_leale you're falling down on the job, hon.) kimannebb, hopefully this is more what you're hoping for. :) Sequel to "Coming to an Understanding". (This is/is not the Tour Bus o' Love.)
Justin calls from his cell phone in the middle of the night. He’s inside a 7-11, just off the highway. He’s standing in the middle of a small aisle looking at the candy selection. He has a cap pulled down low, a bodyguard nearby and it all felt familiar but not in a comforting way. He calls Chris because he wants to say- he needs to tell Chris- that midnight stops at gas stations aren’t fun when you’re on your own. There is no one to grab the mountain dew. No one to hunt for the pixie sticks. There is no one to point at the clock on the wall in an effort to herd everyone back on the buses. There is no one.
Chris takes the unspoken request and runs with it. He meets up with Justin at the next club show. He watches from the sidelines and Justin plays the entire show just for Chris. For once, on this tour, his bitterness doesn’t bleed into his performance. Justin sings his everything and he can hear Chris, to his right, humming along. It’s exactly what he needs.
They slip inside the bus afterwards, laughing and making faces at the bodyguards. Justin’s face aches from smiling. They stay awake all night, catching up, their voices falling into the easy rhythm of the bus. Justin whispers his feelings about Britney; tries to explain the change, the evolution. They’re surrounded by the darkness of the road, faces only lit from the glow of the television. Chris listens, running his fingers over Justin’s shaved scalp, tracing lines across and through the fuzz. Chris hums in all the right places. He doesn’t laugh at Justin’s awkward explanations. He gives gravity to the things Justin has been saying, in a way that only Chris can. Chris understands the workings of a broken heart. Chris knows the path to forgiveness.
Chris’s wisdom is hidden under layers of sarcasm and hyperactive wit. Chris’s age only shines through when he lets it but Justin has long been able to see past the façade. Justin understands the things Chris is really saying. Justin hears exactly what Chris wants him to. Justin has his head cushioned in Chris’s lap and he can see in Chris’s eyes everything he needs to see.
Chris laughs at all the right moments. He tells jokes when Justin needs to hear them. He points out things Justin can’t see. He is right where Justin needs him. It isn’t perfect. There are two not five and it isn’t everything Justin wants. But curled up against Chris’s small, warm body as the sun rises Justin is happy with what he has. Happy to be with Chris, to still have this.
Justin whispers “thank you” long after Chris is asleep. He doesn’t whisper “I love you” even if that is what he means. He has moved past Britney but he isn’t quit ready for that yet. He’s not ready to admit it.
But Justin knows he’s almost there.