FAKE Fic: Switching Sides
Title: Switching Sides
Fandom: FAKE
Author: badly_knitted
Characters: Drake, JJ
Rating: PG
Setting: After Like Like Love.
Summary: Drake just doesn’t have much luck with women, maybe it’s time he tried dating a guy instead.
Word Count: 824
Written For: My own prompt ‘Any, any, One time too many,’ at
fic_promptly.
Disclaimer: I don’t own FAKE, or the characters. They belong to the wonderful Sanami Matoh.
Drake liked women. They were soft and sweet, smelled good, and were interestingly shaped. Trouble was, he just didn’t understand them and could never figure out what they wanted. When he complained about it to Ted, after getting dumped yet again, the Irishman just shrugged.
“Join the club, buddy. I’ve yet to meet a man who understands the fairer sex. Their mystery is part of their charm.”
Not in Drake’s opinion it wasn’t; the one thing every woman he’d ever dated had in common, and the one thing he hated most about the female of the species, was that they seemed unable to make up their minds about anything. No matter what he did, it was wrong. Open the door for them? They found it demeaning that he thought they couldn’t do it themselves. Let them open the door for themselves? They got pissed off because he wasn’t being a gentleman. If he made a move on a woman on the first date, she’d accuse him of thinking she was easy. If he didn’t, she’d accuse him of not finding her attractive. He couldn’t win.
Every time he started dating someone new, he’d get his hopes up only to have them dashed within the month, yet still he kept trying because he really wanted to have someone special in his life, someone he could love who’d love him back. He’d thought he really had something with Theresa, they’d been on five dates and things had seemed to be going really well. Right up until she’d told him that their relationship wasn’t working. He didn’t get it.
Well, that was it; he’d been dumped one time too many, maybe he should just give up and resign himself to being sad, single, and celibate for the rest of his miserable life.
But then JJ took him out to dinner to cheer him up.
Drake had been uncertain at the time whether the meal had just been two friends getting a bite to eat, or a first date. JJ’s choice of restaurant seemed to indicate the latter but Drake hadn’t wanted to make assumptions. He’d been wrong about things like that so many times when he’d been out with women.
After dinner they’d gone back to JJ’s place and JJ had shyly invited him in.
It was odd because for once Drake found he didn’t need to guess, or wonder if he was misreading things. Even though he was gay, JJ was still a guy, and Drake understood guys a whole lot better than he understood women. He knew what guys wanted, and what felt good to them. What he didn’t know was why he’d never considered a relationship with a man before. Now that he thought about it, it made perfect sense.
He’d grinned at JJ. Being straight wasn’t working so maybe it was about time he switched sides, left all the other poor fools to continue trying to work out what women wanted while he enjoyed the benefits of being with someone who wanted the same things he did; a beer or two after work, sport on the TV, and plenty of sex. He and JJ had a lot in common after all; they already knew pretty much everything about each other, worked together, and hung out together, so why shouldn’t they sleep together too?
“Sure, okay, why not?”
JJ’s smile was blinding.
So, that was how this had started, the longest relationship he’d ever had, five months and counting. They spent more nights together now than they spent apart, and JJ had mentioned only yesterday that it probably didn’t make sense for them to pay rent on two apartments. Drake had agreed and by the time the rent on his place is due again, they will have moved everything JJ considers worth keeping into his apartment, which is much nicer than Drake’s anyway. It makes economical as well as practical sense, especially as they’re trying to save up for a vacation somewhere hot.
Drake still likes women, but just as friends. He even feels sorry for Ted, who just got dumped. He knows too well how that feels, and he’s glad it’s something he’ll never have to go through again. He and JJ are solid, there’s no one else Drake would rather have in his life and he knows JJ feels the same now they’re together. Both of them spent way too long chasing after people they were never destined to have, it didn’t matter that Drake had been chasing an endless string of women while JJ had been pining over just one man.
What matters is that they’re together now and they don’t need anyone else. Drake wishes he’d had the sense to switch sides years ago. It would have saved him a lot of heartbreak and confusion.
Then again, maybe he’d just been waiting for the right man to come along and save him from himself. JJ was well worth the wait.
The End