Oz Part 6-2
Title: Merry Old Land of Oz (Part 6)
Pairing: John/Randy, Cody Rhodes/Ted DiBiase
Rating: NC-17
Summary: They're all locked up at Oswald State Penn, with John as the leader of the Italians, Randy is an "Other," Ted is a Christian and Cody is one of the gays. Lots of shit goes down, good and bad. And while it may not all be started by and of those guys, they make sure to finish it.
Disclaimer: All rights belong to the WWE and Tom Fontana
Word Count: 15042
Part 6-1
John scratched behind his ear as he approached the table he had been sitting at just prior to getting called over to talk to Ryan. “Hey, Cody?”
Cody could tell that something was wrong simply by the way John addressed him, not to mention his body language. “What is it? Something’s up. What did Ryan have to say to you?”
“Uh, Teddy’s in the hole.”
“Runnels!” Murphy called as he walked to the table.
“Yeah?” Cody asked, visually upset.
“DiBiase’s in the hole.”
“So I heard. What happened?”
“Visit with Daddy didn’t go so hot. He wound up cutting it short, then stormed off outta the room. And then a CO caught him deckin’ Sam Gougeon.”
“Shit. Wait, isn’t Gougeon…?”
“Yeah, he’s a Christian.”
“Shit,” Cody muttered again as Murphy shrugged and walked off.
John finally sat down across from Cody, who had long since forgotten his solitaire game. He glanced at Randy, then back to Cody. “I’m sorry, man.”
“Looks like I’ll be sleeping alone again.”
Ted had no idea how long he had been in there. Hours… Days… Maybe even a week. He didn’t know anymore. But he had finally moved from his spot in the corner. He was walking around, back wall to the door, door to the back wall, repeat the cycle. God hadn’t given him an answer, no matter how hard he asked for one. Between his praying to God, he also played out his life these past few months.
He was always peaceful, always had God to rely on. And then Cody came into his life. Cody, some eighteen year old kid who slept around with anyone and everyone and sold drugs on top of that, had taken his virginity. Cody, this kid who Ted loved more than anything else in this world. Maybe if he had never spoken those first words to Cody, none of this ever would have happened. He could have continued to live his life, Cody could live his. Apart. He sighed. Hadn’t he gotten over that? Hadn’t he gotten over the fact that he was sleeping with, in love with, a man?
Two more days had gone by before Ted was told he could return to Em City. He didn’t see Cody sitting at their normal table, nor was he in front of the TV, and he wasn’t talking with Pancamo in John and Randy’s pod. So he headed to his own pod where he found Cody asleep with a book open on his chest. He placed a hand over Cody’s, slowly easing the book from his grasp. Cody opened his eyes, sitting up as the sleep left his body once he saw Teddy.
“You’re back,” he said with a smile as he jumped down from his bunk to stand next to Ted.
“Yeah.”
“What happened?” he asked, running a hand through Ted’s hair.
“My dad pissed me off. Someone tapped me on the shoulder, I didn’t wanna talk. Turned around and punched him.”
“Oh, Teddy… You’ve changed so much.”
Ted blinked and tilted his head slightly. “I’ve changed?”
“You’re so fucking angry all the time.”
“Angry? Well, don’t I got a right to be fuckin’ angry? Look at what happened to me! First there was Kennedy and Schillinger, now my dad decided to stop by to patronize me, and you’re tellin’ me that I’m angry?”
“I’m not telling you not to be, Teddy! God, not at all. But… You’re so different than when I met you.”
“The hell is that even supposed to mean? I’m different, yeah, I am. Sure as hell ain’t the same man I was when I got here. Oz made sure of that.”
“But you were always so set with your religion. You always went back to God.”
“I know. And now I’m not so sure. He’s really testin’ me this time, and I don’t know if I can keep up like I am now and still go back to Him.”
“Teddy,” Cody said with sad eyes, continuing to stroke his hair, “you need to stay true to who you are. I love you, I really do-”
“How many people have you fucked before?” Ted asked, his bitterness coming back full force, taking Cody by surprise. “How many guys have you told that they’re your one and only? How many guys have you said I love you to?”
“None! Ted, I’ve never told another man that I love him! Why are you even asking me that? You know how I feel about you!” Cody shouted back at him.
Ted stepped back, out of Cody’s reach. “How many men came before me?”
“I don’t know,” Cody replied, shaking his head. “Lots. But none-”
“Let me guess what you’re about to say. None of them meant anything to me. They’re nothing like you, Teddy. How could you possibly have sex with so many people and not feel anything towards them?”
“A fuck is a fuck.”
“And now I’m your most convenient option.”
Cody’s mouth fell wide open as he stared at Ted in shock. “You did not just say that to me. That couldn’t be further from the truth.”
“I’ve had nothing but shit thrown at me since I fucking met you. And then you used me for sex. You tricked me into sleeping with you.”
Cody turned around and left their pod.
“Woah, the fuck’s your deal?” John asked as Cody ran down the stairs, plopping himself next to John.
“Teddy. He just said I was fucking using him for sex. I thought he was over all that shit, John. I mean… He’s told me that he loves me, and I’ve said it to him. Fucking hell, John, I don’t know what’s gotten into him!”
“Couldn’t tell ya, man. He goin’ through a lot. Maybe he just need space. Prolly still confused ‘bout it all, ‘specially now with his dad showin’ up like that outta the blue. He angry, and he ain’t used to feelin’ that way.”
“I just don’t understand. It’s like he was trying to push me away. He said that meeting me fucked up his life.”
“Don’t know what to tell ya.”
Ted hadn’t moved from where Cody left him. What had he just done? Fucked up his relationship with his best friend and love of his life, that’s what he had just done. But, no, it was for the best. He tried before to end it, and he hadn’t been strong enough. He gave into temptation every time. But no more. He’d be strong this time. He’d resist. Because maybe then things around him would smooth out, calm down. Something.
Randy, who had been watching Miss Sally with Busmalis, headed over to John and Cody once the show ended. “Why are you here and not… catching up with Ted?”
“Because he’s a motherfucking shit head who claims that I’m using him for sex because he was my most convenient fuck.”
“You’re shitting me.”
Cody turned his attention away from Randy when he saw Ted out of the corner of his eyes as he walked across the upstairs platform and knocked on Said’s door. “What is he up to now?”
Said opened his door, surprised to see Ted there. “Minister Said, I need to speak to you.”
“Come in,” he said, stepping aside so Ted could enter. “What did you need to speak to me about?”
“God,” he answered bluntly, then waited for Said to nod before he continued. “I’ve always been a believer, Minister. I’ve never questioned him. Until recently.”
“Because of your rape?”
Ted nodded, cringing at the still fresh memories. “That and… Before that, even. With Cody.”
“You know that I believe homosexuality is a sin.”
“And I always did, too. You and me, Minister, we have a lot of the same beliefs. But Cody turned that on its head. And I was wondering what was so wrong about it. Even Father Mukada and Sister Pete tell me that loving Cody was the best thing to happen to me. And yet… I still find myself wondering if that’s really the truth…” Ted looked into Said’s eyes, his own eyes full of emotion, full of questions, full of uncertainty, “Do you believe God is punishing me for loving Cody?”
“God wouldn’t punish you for loving someone. But God tries everyone, especially his most faithful followers.”
“I don’t understand. Why would he test the faithful?”
“To assure that we remain faithful, no matter what happens to us. We must always believe that Allah, or God, is looking out for us, and that someday, because of our faith, we will be delivered to Him, we will go to Heaven.”
Ted sighed, and he knew that Said was right. God could be a cruel bastard, but he always had a bigger plan. No matter what happened to him on Earth, nothing would matter once he got to Heaven. He would forever be happy and peaceful because he did believe. “Minister, I… I feel so angry all the time. And I take out my anger on all the wrong people, people who don’t deserve it.”
“Such as Cody and that man that you punched.”
“Yes, like that. I just don’t know how to deal with everything. It’s all been coming at me so fast, all these bad things, one right after the other after the other. And it’s changing me for the worse.”
“And you think I can help you?”
“I know you’ve been going through some tough times, as well.”
“Ted… While our situations are different, I think I can tell you something, the same thing I told Kofi Kingston. Maybe you’ll actually listen to me. You cannot let the anger take over, that’s simply unhealthy, but you cannot ignore it, either. You have to let yourself embrace the anger in your heart, in your soul, in your being. You must recognize that it is there, and once you do that, you’ll be able to carry on. It’s not an easy thing to do, though, not if you want to stay true to your beliefs as a Christian.”
“So… so… you’re saying it’s ok to be angry?”
“Of course,” Said told him. “It’s only human. No one can be above their human nature. It’s natural to feel anger, especially when you have experiences like you have had.”
It all made sense to Ted. As Said’s words sank in, everything became clear. Embrace the anger, balance that anger internally, but don’t let the anger become who you are. “Thank you.”
“And remember, the last thing you should do is push those closest to you away.”
“Yes, Minister. Thank you again.”
“You’re welcome. And if you ever feel like you need to talk, you’re free to do so at any time.”
Ted nodded and opened the door, walking back to his pod to think.
Through dinner, Ted didn’t speak to Cody as they worked. And then they were in their pod for a solid hour before Ted spoke up. “Cody,” he said solftly.
“What?” Cody snapped.
“I’m sorry. I… I never should have said that to you.”
“Damn right. After all I fuckin’ did for you, I’m the last person you should be treating like shit. To say that I don’t love you… Fuck, Ted, that hurt more than anything else you said.”
“I know. And I’m sorry. But when I was in the hole, I blamed my getting close to you on every bad thing that happened to me.”
“Fuck that. I’m fucking sick of you blaming me for everything! Is that why you pushed me away? Because I’m the sinning little fag boy who corrupted you and your Christian ways?” Cody shouted.
“I don’t know!” Ted yelled back. “I’m so… lost and confused and hurt. But I don’t want to show that to them,” he said, sweeping his arm out to encompass all of Em City. “And then, well, you were there. Everything I thought about when I was sitting in the hole came back to me, and… I’m sorry.”
Cody sighed. He knew Ted was conflicted about what he was going through, and he could completely understand Ted’s bitterness. “I know you are. And I get it, I really do. Just don’t fuckin’ take it out on me again. I forgive you this time, though,” he said, trying to fight his smile. “Now how about you believe me when I say that I love you, ok?”
“Ok, I got it,” Ted answered.
Cody climbed up to his bunk, now smiling fully as Ted followed him. He placed a hand on Ted’s lap, his fingers running up and down. “Does it really bother you that I’ve been with so many men? Because you have to know that I really didn’t feel anything for them, not like you.”
“I just don’t understand how there can be so many. You’re only eighteen!”
“It’s been my life since I was fourteen. It’s really all I’ve known. Sex and drugs and clubbing. That’s it. One man after another. I didn’t care. Fucked anyone who looked at me. And when I started selling, guys only wanted me more.”
“And that never bothered you? Just… jumping from one guy to another?”
“It got me off. That’s all it was ever about.”
“And that’s what you’d still be doing?”
“You mean if I hadn’t gotten caught in that bust? Of course. Not like I had anything else going for me. I could peddle those drugs like a motherfucker and I can give a killer blowjob. Figured one day I’d wind up getting HIV or overdosing on one of those rare times I actually did some of that shit instead of sell it.”
“How could you be ok with that kind of fate?” Ted asked, leaning his head onto Cody’s shoulder.
“Teddy, I don’t even have a high school degree to fall back on. I don’t got shit to live for. What the fuck did it matter to me what happened? But now… I don’t know, but I keep thinking that soon enough I’ll be out of here. I’ll be 25 at the earliest. Still young, still able to start a new life. If I could maybe get my education in here, finish up my high school degree, that’d be a start, wouldn’t it? No more selling drugs on the street, either. I could maybe find a job somewhere. And the funny thing is, every time I think about my future outside of Oz,” he said, biting his lower lip out of nervous habit as he looked down to Ted, “you’re there next to me.”
Ted raised his head off of Cody’s shoulder, turning his head to look into Cody’s eyes. “Really? You mean… I’m not just some… not just some prison fuck?”
“Teddy, quit saying shit like that. Ok, in the clubs, I was never one for a chase. I got turned down? Just move onto the next guy. But I tried with you. Even after all that shit you said to me, I still went after you. So don’t tell me that I don’t love you. We’re in fucking prison, we need every good moment me can get. Just stop fighting it, ok? You’re always so back and forth about us. Every time something bad happens, you think it’s because of us. It’s not. You can’t keep blaming every little thing on the one good thing in your life right now. I can only take so much of it.”
Ted reached down and laced his fingers with Cody’s, still on his lap. “I know, I know. I’m sorry. Talking to Said, that helped a lot. I thought that pushing you away might help me clear my mind of all the shit that’s piled up in there the last few months.”
“Why do you always try to push me away?”
“Because no matter what I tell myself, how much I say you’re the cause of all my problems, I know that I’ll always go back to you, and I know you’ll always take me back,” Ted admitted out loud to Cody, and, finally, to himself.
John sat up and hopped down from his bunk, making a quick stop by the door to look around Em City. He looked to the second floor, seeing Cody and Ted sitting together on the top bunk. “Well, it looks like they made up,” he said as he continued to the toilet to complete his original intention of taking a piss.
“That’s good. Maybe Teddy will finally come to his senses and quit fucking Cody over like he has been.”
“Maybe. What they really need to do, though, is just fuck already. Been too long since either one of ‘em got laid properly. That’s the problem. And don’t tell me that Teddy’s all hesitant and shit cuz he got raped, cuz all he needs is a good fuck to get back into the swing of things. Always works for us.”
“You got a point,” Randy agreed. “Maybe we should fight more. Have better make up sex.”
John grinned, “You right. That first time in the gym… Fuck, that shit was good, damn good.”
“That it was. So, either we can fight, or we could just kill someone again.”
“Told you that was a rush like nothin’ else. Bet you could find someone to really piss you off. You good at pissin’ people off.”
“Fuck you. I can get along with people.”
“People who can put up with your bullshit, yeah,” John egged him on.
“You’re such a dick. But you knew that already, didn’t you?”
“Sure did. So, how about that sex?”
“Think we should put that off until lights out, at least. Don’t feel much like giving everyone a free show.”
“Got a point there. Maybe we just fight more for the next few hours then.”
Randy laughed, “We could. Really get each other worked up.”
“We are good at that,” John said. “But, fuck, wish we didn’t have to wait a few hours for it to be lights out. Cuz I’d love nothin’ more ‘n ta just fuck you right here, right now. Lean you up ‘gainst the side of the bed and fuck you till you’re raw.”
“Quit stayin’ shit like that, otherwise I’ll make you do just that.”
The next day, after they were done serving breakfast and back in Em City, the four headed to their usual table. Ted sat across from Cody, playing a game of checkers. Randy was between them, and John was directly across from him. “Come on, Ted,” Randy cheered on, “I’ve got $10 on this game.”
“Oh who?”
“Cody.”
“You’re cheering for me to lose?” Ted asked, looking up briefly at Randy, confused.
“No, I’m cheering for you to win. Since it seems like whoever I support always loses.”
“I hate you all.”
“Sorry, Teddy,” Cody told him as he jumped two of Ted’s pieces.
“You’re not sorry. If you were really sorry, you’d let me win.”
“But if I let you win, it’d tarnish my reputation as a checker playing god.”
“I hate you all,” Ted muttered again.
“You two fucked yet?” Randy asked out of the blue.
Cody snorted when he glanced up and saw Ted’s face. He then turned to Randy and asked, “Do you have to be so… so…?”
“Yes. Yes, I do,” Randy told them. “Sooo… have you?”
“No,” Cody answered.
“No? Shit, Codes, you must be beatin’ off about three times a day. Am I right?”
“Jeez, Randy,” Ted cut in, his face bright red, “you gotta be so blunt about that?”
“Course he does, he’s Randy,” John said.
“He’s right,” Randy agreed.
“Orton!” came Mineo’s voice behind him.
“Officer,” he replied.
“I need you to come with me.”
“What for?”
“Just get up. I’ll tell you once we’re there.”
Randy followed Mineo out of Em City, and everyone was wondering what was going on, John especially. “Don’t got a good feelin’ ‘bout this…”
They ended up back in the same interrogation room he was in a few weeks back. He sat down across from the same detective, Glynn was there again, and McManus also decided to stop by. “There a reason I’m back here? Thought you gave up on the investigation?”
“Someone came forward with new information. He said he saw you and Cena pulling Kingston into the gym.”
“Someone should get their eyes checked. Me and John were in the kitchen, everyone told you that already. Whoever’s telling you all these lies must really have it out for us.”
“Are you saying that someone set you up?” the detective asked.
“Look, news travels fast in here. I’m sure everyone and their mothers knew that I had trouble with Kingston on the outside. Would I really be stupid enough to kill the guy?” he returned.
“It’s been done before.”
“Yeah, sure. But not by me.”
“Then Cena, maybe?”
“No, John wouldn’t, either,” he said flatly.
“The witness said he saw someone leaving the gym just after you entered. That man who was in the gym has already been questioned because he was scheduled for time in the gym, and the timelines would have overlapped. He told us, however, that he already left before anyone else showed up.”
“See, there you go. This guy is spoutin’ shit outta his ass. It’s this one man’s word against everyone else’s who you already questioned. Why would you re-open an investigation that you ended because of one guy? Unless… It was a CO,” Randy said. That wasn’t a question, it was a statement. A CO must have seen them go into the gym. So why didn’t he stop them right then? Why didn’t he call the SORT team on them? And why had he waited for so long to come forward with the information? And then he remembered. There was a new hack, his job was mainly to patrol the halls. He came in about a week before they killed Kofi, and then handed in his notice the day after. “Officer Allan,” he muttered.
“Orton, we have a credible witness. Will you confess to the murder of prisoner number 02K108, Kofi Kingston?”
Randy looked between the men in the room, from Mineo to the detective currently in his face, to Glynn and then to McManus. “John wasn’t with me.”
“Officer Allan saw you together, Orton.”
Randy stood from his seat and growled, “John. Wasn’t. With. Me.”
“Are you, then, officially confessing to the murder of Kofi Kingston?” the detective asked him again.
“Not like I have any other choice. Yes. But I did it alone.”
“You know you’ll be going to trial in the next few weeks so a jury can determine your crime and sentence,” Glynn told him. “I hope you know that at least thirty years will be added to your current time.”
“Oh, boy, now I can get out in my seventies at the earliest,” he retorted, sarcasm dripping from his words. But then he looked at Glynn, his seriousness returning, “You’re not going to question John, are you? Or anyone else, right? It’s just me.”
“Stay out of our business, Orton,” the detective told him. “We’ll do whatever we need to do to bring justice to this situation.”
“I think this one confession is all we really need,” Tim butted in. “He could do this without an accomplice. He’ll pay for the crimes that he committed. By himself. Escort him back to Em City.”
“Don’t you want him in Solitary?” the detective asked.
“You do that, it’ll only cause more problems in Oz. He’s staying in Em City. When he goes to trial for murder, he’ll be staying in Em City. When he gets convicted, he’ll be staying in Em City,” McManus told everyone. “Unless you fuck up even worse. But for now, you’ll stay in Em City. Just don’t fuck up again, Orton.”
“Yes, McManus,” he said, following Mineo out the door and back into Em City. He didn’t really know what he was feeling at that moment. He was pissed off that they got caught, but relieved that McManus told everyone it was ok that Randy was the fall guy. He could live with that, live with being the only one at fault for this. As long as John didn’t get the blame, as well. He walked past their table and into his pod, lying down on his bed instantly.
John stood from the table and entered his pod. He sat on the metal toilet so he was able to look at Randy as they talked. “What was that about?”
“There was a witness, John,” he said flatly.
“What are you talkin’ ‘bout?”
“There was a fuckin’ witness. Someone saw us.”
“That ain’t possible,” John said, his normally calm exterior crumbling. “No one was there, no one coulda seen us!”
“Someone did, ok!”
“Who the fuck was it?”
“You’re a smart guy, you figure it out…”
John leaned back, his head hitting the wall as he did so, racking his brain. “They haven’t looked into this investigation for weeks. Why would someone come forward now? Know they’d be scared. But any fuck in this prison got some form of backup. And Glynn wouldn’t open up a closed case for just anyone. Means it was a hack,” he realized, stating it out loud. “That hack that quit day after we whacked Kingston, he the one that seen us.”
“Bingo.”
“And he just too chickenshit to anything about it then. So he quit and then prolly called up Glynn to let him know why he quit. Couldn’t handle the job, not after seein’ us. Fucker! What’d you do?”
Randy sighed, “What do ya think I did?”
“Don’t tell me…” John trailed off, fearing the worst.
“I confessed. Told ‘em I did it.”
“Why’d you do that?! You fuckin’ shit head, why the fuck would you confess to that?!”
“Because I did it, John!”
John rolled his head, letting his eyes settle on Randy’s. “And what about me?”
“Don’t think you quite heard me. I told ‘em I did it. Not with you, just me. By myself.”
“But you said-”
“Yeah, hack said he saw both of us. I said it was just me.”
“Why the fuck would you do that?!” John shouted, standing from the toilet.
Randy rolled out of the bed and stood, as well. “I didn’t want you to be involved! Shit, John, you’re already in here for life for two counts of murder. I… I didn’t want anything else to happen to you, ya know?”
“But what if they put you on death row!”
“Not gonna put me on death row.”
John raised a hand and placed it on the back of Randy’s neck, his fingers trailing through his hair. He then pulled Randy in close to him, his lips hovering just centimeters from Randy’s. “Better not fuckin’ put you on death row,” he whispered before leaning in to close the gap and crush Randy’s lips to his in a fierce, passionate kiss.
Randy’s hands slipped around John’s waist and into the back pocket of his pants, grabbing a handful of John’s ass he pulled him in even closer. “I would die for you, though,” Randy breathed into the kiss.
“I know. Just try not to, ok?”
“Ok,” he answered before returning all his attention to kissing John.
“Wonder what’s up with them,” Ted pondered, leaning back in the chair, glancing over at John and Randy.
“Either something really good, or really bad,” Cody reasoned.
“Way to narrow the playing field.”
“What? It’s one of two things. Fifty fifty chance. Those are pretty good odds if you ask me.”
“You’re a piece of work.”
Cody grinned as he saw the small smile forming on Ted’s lips. “Yeah, I know.” He reached a hand up to his own neck, scratching lightly before saying, “I think John and Randy might be right.”
“Right about what?”
“Let’s go upstairs,” Cody suggested, standing from the table. Ted followed, and soon they were in the privacy of their own pod.
“What were John and Randy right about?” Ted asked, crossing his arms.
“About us. It’s been a while since we had sex, and maybe it’s time that we give it a shot. What would it hurt, really?”
Ted’s eyes were wide as he looked at Cody. “Are you serious? After what happened to me?”
“That happened over a month ago. And it’s like I told you on your birthday, we don’t have to do anything you don’t feel comfortable with.” Cody moved in closer, his arms draping over Ted’s shoulders, “But I really want to feel you inside me again. It’s been so long, and I need to feel you.” He brushed his lips over Ted’s, “Please, Teddy,” he whispered. “Tonight, please.” His hand fell from Ted’s shoulder down to his crotch where he could feel Ted’s cock hardening beneath his touch. “I want you to fuck me. Please, fuck me.”
“I don’t know…”
Cody backed away, breaking off all contact, but he looked at Ted with pleading eyes. “You’ve got a few more hours to think about it. Won’t you please do it? For me?”
Ted opened his mouth to speak, but just as he did so, the kitchen crew was called for their last round of work detail.
Tonight they had Cody serving the food next to Randy. “Hey, Dad, hey Dustin,” he greeted as he scooped some peas onto their trays.
“Hey, sonny boy,” his dad replied.
“Hey, Codes,” Dustin said.
“You enjoying your new work detail?” Dusty asked as he moved on down to Randy, but continued to look at Cody.
“Yeah, it’s nice here. A lot of hours, but they’re worth it. Lots better than that dress factory.”
Dusty smiled. At least Cody had something to be happy about in here. “I hope to see you more, Cody. I miss our meals together.”
“Same here, Dad. I’ll see you later.”
After serving dinner to the prison, the guys all had their dinner and returned to a locked down Em City. Cody was sitting up in his bed, a magazine opened in front of him. On the bunk below him, Ted sat with a book open in front of him, but he wasn’t really paying attention to it. And Cody noticed. “Something wrong with that book of yours?”
“Huh? Oh, no, nothing’s wrong with it.”
“Really? Than how come I haven’t heard you turn a page in at least fifteen minutes?”
“Oh, well… I’ve just been thinking is all.”
“Thinking about what I said earlier?” Cody asked, sounding hopeful.
“Yeah, thinking about that.” Ted looked over to the side and saw Cody’s feet hanging from the side of the bed, listening to the bunk above him creak as Cody adjusted his position.
“And?”
“And I don’t know.”
“What’s not to know? You can’t go the rest of your life without touching me again. On your birthday, you remember how good that felt? My hand wrapped around your dick, gettin’ you off.”
“Yeah.”
“And you remember the first time we had sex, right?”
“Couldn’t forget.”
“Well, think about how good you felt then. Felt so good you came back to me. But now you’re letting those two fucking scumbags ruin your life. Don’t let them.”
Ted reached a hand over and brushed it along the bottom of Cody’s foot, laughing as the man above him squeaked and jerked his foot away. “You’re right. You know that, don’t you?”
“Of course I’m right, Teddy. Look, when I was in school, I got made fun of all the time. I was the little queer, the fag, the buttpirate… Couple months before I dropped out, someone pushed me against a locker and almost punched me, probably could have broken my nose or jaw if he did, but someone yelled, ‘don’t do it, you could get AIDS,’ and he let go of me that instant, giving me the nastiest look you could imagine. But I didn’t let those assholes bother me. No, I just went out and fucked every man in sight as my fuck you to all the homophobic shits out there.”
“Is that supposed to make me feel better?”
Cody shrugged, which Ted saw in the mirror. “That was the intent. Because, sometimes, you need to say fuck you to the world, even if that means the negative voices in your own head. So,” he began, catching eyes with Ted in the same mirror, “about tonight.”
~~~
“You shouldn’t have taken the fall for me,” John said as he sat next to Randy.
“Why not? Don’t I owe you?”
“Owe me for what? You talkin’ ‘bout this?” he asked as he took Randy’s hand and ran a finger over the scar on his neck, sending a shiver down his body.
“Yeah,” Randy breathed as he felt the raised tissue below his figner.
“Didn’t do anything you wouldn’t a done.”
“Exactly. Know you woulda done the same thing for me if you were in my shoes, taken the fall. You’re already in here for murder, don’t think a jury would be as kind to you. Might think ‘he’s already in for life, so why not just end his now?’ And I couldn’t stand that, John.”
“Yeah, ok, now we even. Let’s try and cut back on doin’ stupid shit like that from now on, though. From here on in we do sumthin’ together, we take the fall together.”
“LIGHTS OUT!”
~~~
Cody looked around, grinning, “Hey, check that out… It’s dark now.” He glanced out the glass door, “And would you look at that, hack just went by on his rounds.”
“That he did.”
Cody then hopped down from his bunk, squatting in front of Ted’s. “We got lots of time now. So?”
Ted looked into Cody’s eyes, seeing the want and need for him in them. Cody was right before, he couldn’t let those two men destroy his life. They tried to, and he was letting them win. But not anymore. He reached out and took Cody’s hand in his. He was ready. “Come here.”
Climbing into the bottom bunk, Cody instantly seeked out Ted’s lips, his weight resting comfortably on the older man. Their tongues collided in a battle as Ted flipped them around, settling himself on top of Cody.
That weight was a welcomed feeling on top of Cody. In a few short months, he had grown accustomed to having Ted’s muscular body hovering over him each night. And in the time since the rape (still choked him up thinking about that; how could anyone want to hurt his Teddy like that?), he grew to miss that naked body as he pounded into his ass like nothing before. Soon, both were naked, having removed their boxers and t-shirts, Cody running his palms over Ted’s chest from beneath.
Suddenly, though, Ted rolled off, rubbing his face in his hands. Maybe he wasn’t so ready. “I…”
“What is it, Teddy?”
Those things that had been done to him weighed heavy on his mind. The pain, the voices, the blood. “I’ll hurt you.”
“You would never hurt me. You are not them, Teddy. Do you understand? You will never be like them. You’ve got a heart, a soul,” Cody assured.
“But what if…” He didn’t know how to voice what it was he was thinking, picturing. “What if I just lose control?”
“Then let yourself go, I’m not gonna break.”
“But… what if-?”
“Ted,” Cody said, placing his hand on Ted’s cheek, “I’m gonna tell you something, ok? I’ve been working the clubs since I was fourteen. Kids that age? Men love to take advantage. That was my life. When I got older, I learned who to avoid, where not to go. But that’s all behind me now, cuz I got you, and you’re the best damn thing that’s ever happened to me. I trust you more than anyone else in the world, and I want you to know that you can do to me anything you want. And, right now, Teddy? I just want you.”
Ted nodded his head, they needed to do this. If he was going to move past everything, then it was going to have to start with himself. And if he couldn’t even do that, couldn’t give this man beside him everything he wanted simply because he was afraid, well, that wasn’t fair to anyone. He cupped his hand over Cody’s, then rolled back on top of the younger man, kissing his face as he did so. “I want you, too.”
A small smile graced Cody’s face, he was so happy. “I don’t need you to be gentle, I don’t need you to make love to me, just do whatever feels right for you.”
Biting his lip as he did so, Ted ground his hips forward, shutting his eyes as his crotch ground against Cody’s straining cock. Cody’s hips bucked upwards, his hands scrambling to hold onto something, deciding that the back of Ted’s head would suit him just fine. His fingers gripped the hair tight, pulling as his head flung back and he cried out.
Their lips crashed together, as well, Ted’s tongue finding its way into Cody’s willing mouth. His eyes were screwed shut as he continued to grind against Cody’s cock, the sweet friction feeling oh so good. Why had he ever denied himself this? He was done letting them have control of his life. His hand slid down to his own dick, spreading the precum over it to slick it up.
Without breaking their kiss, they managed to arrange themselves, Ted settling between Cody’s spread legs. Ted began to push his dick inside that tight hole, no other preparation beforehand besides a quick slide of two fingers in and out a few times, but Cody accepted it, willing his body to loosen, wanting Ted inside of him. The grip on Ted’s hair tightened, and a few pained noises escaped his lips, only to get lost inside of Ted’s mouth.
Cody was so tight, so hot. It had been so long since he had done this. Ted fought the urge to come the second the head of his cock was encased within Cody’s ass. Slowly he managed to fully sheathe himself inside, but he knew he wouldn’t be able to last long.
“Anything,” Cody whispered as their kiss broke off in a need for air. He again bucked his hips, taking Ted’s cock in deeper, emphasizing his point. Shit, it felt so good having Ted in his body again. He had never gone this long without sex, either. It was all hitting him at once. “Fuck, Teddy, move before I come right now.”
Moving his hips back slightly, Ted began a steady rhythm, short slow strokes at first, building to the point where he was drawing back and nearly pulling out before slamming his hips forward.
Beneath him, Cody was writhing in pleasure, bucking upwards to meet Ted’s forceful thrusts, cock meeting prostate each time. Cody’s hands were all over Ted’s back and neck, sliding over the sweat covered surface. Their lips came together again, tongues in their familiar back and forth dance.
How Ted had managed to not come already was beyond him. Cody’s body just felt so good, that heat surrounding his dick, that lithe frame underneath him reacting to every single move. His hands were next to Cody’s head, gripping the pillow as he continued to thrust his hips, their lips connected as their bodies below. “Cody, I…” he said, before he got cut off by another kiss.
Cody’s hands once more found their way to Ted’s head, wrapping his fingers in his hair, he tugged as he found his own release. Right then, he couldn’t care less about the people next to them, didn’t care if the guards came over to tell them to stop fucking, all he cared about was them. He could feel Ted’s twitching cock inside his body as he came deep within.
They lay together after, Cody wrapped in Ted’s arms, back pressed into chest. “I missed this, Teddy.”
“I did, too,” he agreed, running the back of his hand over Cody’s cheek. “I shouldn’t have been so scared to-”
“It’s ok, Teddy. You made sure you were ready first, that’s nothing to apologize for. Got it?”
“Yeah. Thank you, though, for being there for me.”
Cody smiled and turned his head around enough so he could see Ted out of the corner of his eye. “Always.”
That next day, there was more talk around Emerald City, news passed from O’Reily onto John, who passed it onto Randy as they walked with Ted and Cody towards the kitchen. “Hey, man, I heard word that a new biker is bein’ brought into Em City.”
“Oh, yeah?” Randy asked, raising his eyebrow.
“Yeah. Name’s Dave Batista.”
Randy grinned, “Shit, Dave’s comin’? He’s a cool dude, used to run together, me and him.”
“You know every damn person in New York?”
“I’m the one that grew up here. And it’s not like you’re short of connections yourself, you know. But, yeah, know lots of people here. Makes sense that some of, if not most of ‘em come here eventually. Not the best people out there…”
John was still skeptical, “You’re totally cool with him? You sure?”
“Haven’t seen him in a while, but we were always on good terms. ‘Course, I thought that about Hunter. With him, things changed, but me and Dave? We never had any problems.”
“Good. Can’t afford to have any more shit going on right now. Not with your trial coming up. Shit,” he muttered, hating that the trial was brought up.
“I know. Look, don’t worry about him. We can scope him out.”
“All right, that’s what we’ll do, then. He’ll be in tomorrow.”
They headed into the kitchen then, cleaning up quickly before they began preparing breakfast for the inmates.
The next day, the newest inmate was brought in. Everyone watched him walk in carrying his sheets and roll of toilet paper, following one of the other bikers to his pod. After setting his belongings down on his bunk, he headed out to explore Emerald City. “Randy Orton. Fuck, man, long time no see,” Dave greeted, a grin on his face.
Randy stood, shaking Dave’s hand before closing in for a back slapping hug. “Figured it’d just be a matter of time before I saw you here,” he said when they pulled apart, a smirk on his own face.
“Fuck you, too, man. So, how you been?” Dave asked, sitting down at a table.
“Good as you can be in here, I suppose. Life sucks in Oz, no denying that. But things could be worse… I mean, I could be dead, right?”
“True, true.” His attention turned from Randy to a new man joining them at their table. He noticed the scar on his neck, wondering if that was the man Hunter attacked a few months back.
“John, this is Dave. Dave, this is John,” Randy introduced.
Bingo. This was Randy’s little butt buddy. He stuck his hand out, offering his respect and friendship, false though it may be.
John eyed him warily, pausing for a few seconds before shaking hands, staying silent.
After witnessing his lover and old buddy shake hands, Randy continued on talking to Dave. “So, what did you do to land your ass in here?”
“Got caught stealin’ a motorcycle.”
“Shiiiit, dude.”
“Well, I wasn’t intendin’ to get caught,” he joked.
“Sucks, man. But if we can get our shit together like back in the day-”
“I dunno, that was more Hunter that got us rallied together,” he said as he cut Randy off.
That name alone was enough to start both John and Randy’s blood boiling. And it got both of them wondering why Dave would bring that name up. “What’re you sayin’? You don’t think we could work without him?”
“Not at all,” Dave said, trying to recover from his slip. He couldn’t give too much away. “Just sayin’ he was top dog.”
“Gonna tell you sumthin’ right now. Italians the top dogs ‘round here, have been forever, and you ain’t comin’ in to take over, got it?” John cut in just before standing to leave.
“He don’t take well to competition,” Randy said. “We’ll talk later, ok?”
“Sure, later dude.” He watched Randy enter the pod with John before he stood up and slipped out of Emerald City.
“What the fuck you think you sayin’ out there?” John growled at Randy.
“Just sayin’ how back in the day we-”
“Well, this ain’t no ‘back in the day,’ this is fuckin’ Oz! You can’t go talkin’ ‘bout new alliances, ‘bout runnin’ the joint with jus’ anyone, Randy! Fuckin’ Christ!”
“Sorry for thinkin’ that Dave could be beneficial to what we already got goin’!” he shouted back.
“Keep your goddamn voice down. It your big ass mouth and quick temper what always gets you in trouble. Learn to think first, ok? Try and quit runnin’ your mouth for once.”
Randy grabbed John by the shirt and pushed him backwards into the glass wall. “Fuck you,” he hissed. “All I was doin’ was tryin’ to help-”
“And I don’t trust the guy! We ain’t bringin’ him in, you fuckin’ got that? I’m in charge here, not you, understand?”
“Excuse me? The fuck am I, then?” he asked, pushing his arm into John’s neck.
“All you good for in the operations is movin’ the shit. You ain’t got the brains to run nothin’.”
For one of the rare times in his life, John didn’t see the punch coming. The uppercut caught under his chin, causing his head to slam back and bounce off the plexiglass. Next thing he knew, he had them flipped around, he was the one holding Randy against the glass as he laid a punch to the side of his face. “Fuck you,” Randy spat, wiping at his mouth, seeing the blood that began to drip out of his mouth.
John saw that blood, too, as a few drops slid down over Randy’s lip and chin. He should be angry, wanted to be angry, but he soon realized it was hard to be so angry at the man that turned him on like no other. Before Randy knew what was happening, he had John’s lips on his, that tongue lapping up the blood that he had caused to spill. Hands gripped the other tight as mouths continued to clash together.
As John and Randy continued to make up from their brief argument, Dave made his way to solitary, finding the guard in charge. “I gotta talk to Hunter.”
“This is solitary. You can’t talk to anyone.”
Dave held out a roll of bills right in front of the guard. “How about Ben Franklin? You let him talk?”
The officer grabbed the bills, counting out $500. “Make it quick.”
Smirking, Dave walked past the guard and down to Hunter’s cell. He knocked and slid open the small peep hole, saying, “Long time, no see, Hunt.”
Hunter stood from the bed and walked over to the door, a smile on his face. “Dave, man, what brings you here?”
“About $500. Just met Randy’s little boyfriend. Don’t think he likes me yet. I’ll have Randy work on that one, don’t worry. Those two are close, though, it’s gonna be tough to get Randy alone. It’ll take time before John trusts me enough for that.”
“Fuckin’ Cena. He’s why I’m here and Orton’s not dead.”
“We’ll make sure it happens. Just give it time. I’ll be in John’s good graces soon enough. And then we’ll get ‘em both out of our hair.”
“Good. Make sure word gets to me. You ever need cash for the hacks, I got connections. But I need to be in the loop for this, got it?”
“Got it.”
Hunter grinned a sick, twisted grin as their plan began to take shape. Then the officer walked down the hall, shutting the grate, blocking Hunter once again from the outside world. “Time’s up. Get back to your cell block.”
“Had all the time I needed, sir,” he said before returning to Emerald City.
Pairing: John/Randy, Cody Rhodes/Ted DiBiase
Rating: NC-17
Summary: They're all locked up at Oswald State Penn, with John as the leader of the Italians, Randy is an "Other," Ted is a Christian and Cody is one of the gays. Lots of shit goes down, good and bad. And while it may not all be started by and of those guys, they make sure to finish it.
Disclaimer: All rights belong to the WWE and Tom Fontana
Word Count: 15042
Part 6-1
John scratched behind his ear as he approached the table he had been sitting at just prior to getting called over to talk to Ryan. “Hey, Cody?”
Cody could tell that something was wrong simply by the way John addressed him, not to mention his body language. “What is it? Something’s up. What did Ryan have to say to you?”
“Uh, Teddy’s in the hole.”
“Runnels!” Murphy called as he walked to the table.
“Yeah?” Cody asked, visually upset.
“DiBiase’s in the hole.”
“So I heard. What happened?”
“Visit with Daddy didn’t go so hot. He wound up cutting it short, then stormed off outta the room. And then a CO caught him deckin’ Sam Gougeon.”
“Shit. Wait, isn’t Gougeon…?”
“Yeah, he’s a Christian.”
“Shit,” Cody muttered again as Murphy shrugged and walked off.
John finally sat down across from Cody, who had long since forgotten his solitaire game. He glanced at Randy, then back to Cody. “I’m sorry, man.”
“Looks like I’ll be sleeping alone again.”
Ted had no idea how long he had been in there. Hours… Days… Maybe even a week. He didn’t know anymore. But he had finally moved from his spot in the corner. He was walking around, back wall to the door, door to the back wall, repeat the cycle. God hadn’t given him an answer, no matter how hard he asked for one. Between his praying to God, he also played out his life these past few months.
He was always peaceful, always had God to rely on. And then Cody came into his life. Cody, some eighteen year old kid who slept around with anyone and everyone and sold drugs on top of that, had taken his virginity. Cody, this kid who Ted loved more than anything else in this world. Maybe if he had never spoken those first words to Cody, none of this ever would have happened. He could have continued to live his life, Cody could live his. Apart. He sighed. Hadn’t he gotten over that? Hadn’t he gotten over the fact that he was sleeping with, in love with, a man?
Two more days had gone by before Ted was told he could return to Em City. He didn’t see Cody sitting at their normal table, nor was he in front of the TV, and he wasn’t talking with Pancamo in John and Randy’s pod. So he headed to his own pod where he found Cody asleep with a book open on his chest. He placed a hand over Cody’s, slowly easing the book from his grasp. Cody opened his eyes, sitting up as the sleep left his body once he saw Teddy.
“You’re back,” he said with a smile as he jumped down from his bunk to stand next to Ted.
“Yeah.”
“What happened?” he asked, running a hand through Ted’s hair.
“My dad pissed me off. Someone tapped me on the shoulder, I didn’t wanna talk. Turned around and punched him.”
“Oh, Teddy… You’ve changed so much.”
Ted blinked and tilted his head slightly. “I’ve changed?”
“You’re so fucking angry all the time.”
“Angry? Well, don’t I got a right to be fuckin’ angry? Look at what happened to me! First there was Kennedy and Schillinger, now my dad decided to stop by to patronize me, and you’re tellin’ me that I’m angry?”
“I’m not telling you not to be, Teddy! God, not at all. But… You’re so different than when I met you.”
“The hell is that even supposed to mean? I’m different, yeah, I am. Sure as hell ain’t the same man I was when I got here. Oz made sure of that.”
“But you were always so set with your religion. You always went back to God.”
“I know. And now I’m not so sure. He’s really testin’ me this time, and I don’t know if I can keep up like I am now and still go back to Him.”
“Teddy,” Cody said with sad eyes, continuing to stroke his hair, “you need to stay true to who you are. I love you, I really do-”
“How many people have you fucked before?” Ted asked, his bitterness coming back full force, taking Cody by surprise. “How many guys have you told that they’re your one and only? How many guys have you said I love you to?”
“None! Ted, I’ve never told another man that I love him! Why are you even asking me that? You know how I feel about you!” Cody shouted back at him.
Ted stepped back, out of Cody’s reach. “How many men came before me?”
“I don’t know,” Cody replied, shaking his head. “Lots. But none-”
“Let me guess what you’re about to say. None of them meant anything to me. They’re nothing like you, Teddy. How could you possibly have sex with so many people and not feel anything towards them?”
“A fuck is a fuck.”
“And now I’m your most convenient option.”
Cody’s mouth fell wide open as he stared at Ted in shock. “You did not just say that to me. That couldn’t be further from the truth.”
“I’ve had nothing but shit thrown at me since I fucking met you. And then you used me for sex. You tricked me into sleeping with you.”
Cody turned around and left their pod.
“Woah, the fuck’s your deal?” John asked as Cody ran down the stairs, plopping himself next to John.
“Teddy. He just said I was fucking using him for sex. I thought he was over all that shit, John. I mean… He’s told me that he loves me, and I’ve said it to him. Fucking hell, John, I don’t know what’s gotten into him!”
“Couldn’t tell ya, man. He goin’ through a lot. Maybe he just need space. Prolly still confused ‘bout it all, ‘specially now with his dad showin’ up like that outta the blue. He angry, and he ain’t used to feelin’ that way.”
“I just don’t understand. It’s like he was trying to push me away. He said that meeting me fucked up his life.”
“Don’t know what to tell ya.”
Ted hadn’t moved from where Cody left him. What had he just done? Fucked up his relationship with his best friend and love of his life, that’s what he had just done. But, no, it was for the best. He tried before to end it, and he hadn’t been strong enough. He gave into temptation every time. But no more. He’d be strong this time. He’d resist. Because maybe then things around him would smooth out, calm down. Something.
Randy, who had been watching Miss Sally with Busmalis, headed over to John and Cody once the show ended. “Why are you here and not… catching up with Ted?”
“Because he’s a motherfucking shit head who claims that I’m using him for sex because he was my most convenient fuck.”
“You’re shitting me.”
Cody turned his attention away from Randy when he saw Ted out of the corner of his eyes as he walked across the upstairs platform and knocked on Said’s door. “What is he up to now?”
Said opened his door, surprised to see Ted there. “Minister Said, I need to speak to you.”
“Come in,” he said, stepping aside so Ted could enter. “What did you need to speak to me about?”
“God,” he answered bluntly, then waited for Said to nod before he continued. “I’ve always been a believer, Minister. I’ve never questioned him. Until recently.”
“Because of your rape?”
Ted nodded, cringing at the still fresh memories. “That and… Before that, even. With Cody.”
“You know that I believe homosexuality is a sin.”
“And I always did, too. You and me, Minister, we have a lot of the same beliefs. But Cody turned that on its head. And I was wondering what was so wrong about it. Even Father Mukada and Sister Pete tell me that loving Cody was the best thing to happen to me. And yet… I still find myself wondering if that’s really the truth…” Ted looked into Said’s eyes, his own eyes full of emotion, full of questions, full of uncertainty, “Do you believe God is punishing me for loving Cody?”
“God wouldn’t punish you for loving someone. But God tries everyone, especially his most faithful followers.”
“I don’t understand. Why would he test the faithful?”
“To assure that we remain faithful, no matter what happens to us. We must always believe that Allah, or God, is looking out for us, and that someday, because of our faith, we will be delivered to Him, we will go to Heaven.”
Ted sighed, and he knew that Said was right. God could be a cruel bastard, but he always had a bigger plan. No matter what happened to him on Earth, nothing would matter once he got to Heaven. He would forever be happy and peaceful because he did believe. “Minister, I… I feel so angry all the time. And I take out my anger on all the wrong people, people who don’t deserve it.”
“Such as Cody and that man that you punched.”
“Yes, like that. I just don’t know how to deal with everything. It’s all been coming at me so fast, all these bad things, one right after the other after the other. And it’s changing me for the worse.”
“And you think I can help you?”
“I know you’ve been going through some tough times, as well.”
“Ted… While our situations are different, I think I can tell you something, the same thing I told Kofi Kingston. Maybe you’ll actually listen to me. You cannot let the anger take over, that’s simply unhealthy, but you cannot ignore it, either. You have to let yourself embrace the anger in your heart, in your soul, in your being. You must recognize that it is there, and once you do that, you’ll be able to carry on. It’s not an easy thing to do, though, not if you want to stay true to your beliefs as a Christian.”
“So… so… you’re saying it’s ok to be angry?”
“Of course,” Said told him. “It’s only human. No one can be above their human nature. It’s natural to feel anger, especially when you have experiences like you have had.”
It all made sense to Ted. As Said’s words sank in, everything became clear. Embrace the anger, balance that anger internally, but don’t let the anger become who you are. “Thank you.”
“And remember, the last thing you should do is push those closest to you away.”
“Yes, Minister. Thank you again.”
“You’re welcome. And if you ever feel like you need to talk, you’re free to do so at any time.”
Ted nodded and opened the door, walking back to his pod to think.
Through dinner, Ted didn’t speak to Cody as they worked. And then they were in their pod for a solid hour before Ted spoke up. “Cody,” he said solftly.
“What?” Cody snapped.
“I’m sorry. I… I never should have said that to you.”
“Damn right. After all I fuckin’ did for you, I’m the last person you should be treating like shit. To say that I don’t love you… Fuck, Ted, that hurt more than anything else you said.”
“I know. And I’m sorry. But when I was in the hole, I blamed my getting close to you on every bad thing that happened to me.”
“Fuck that. I’m fucking sick of you blaming me for everything! Is that why you pushed me away? Because I’m the sinning little fag boy who corrupted you and your Christian ways?” Cody shouted.
“I don’t know!” Ted yelled back. “I’m so… lost and confused and hurt. But I don’t want to show that to them,” he said, sweeping his arm out to encompass all of Em City. “And then, well, you were there. Everything I thought about when I was sitting in the hole came back to me, and… I’m sorry.”
Cody sighed. He knew Ted was conflicted about what he was going through, and he could completely understand Ted’s bitterness. “I know you are. And I get it, I really do. Just don’t fuckin’ take it out on me again. I forgive you this time, though,” he said, trying to fight his smile. “Now how about you believe me when I say that I love you, ok?”
“Ok, I got it,” Ted answered.
Cody climbed up to his bunk, now smiling fully as Ted followed him. He placed a hand on Ted’s lap, his fingers running up and down. “Does it really bother you that I’ve been with so many men? Because you have to know that I really didn’t feel anything for them, not like you.”
“I just don’t understand how there can be so many. You’re only eighteen!”
“It’s been my life since I was fourteen. It’s really all I’ve known. Sex and drugs and clubbing. That’s it. One man after another. I didn’t care. Fucked anyone who looked at me. And when I started selling, guys only wanted me more.”
“And that never bothered you? Just… jumping from one guy to another?”
“It got me off. That’s all it was ever about.”
“And that’s what you’d still be doing?”
“You mean if I hadn’t gotten caught in that bust? Of course. Not like I had anything else going for me. I could peddle those drugs like a motherfucker and I can give a killer blowjob. Figured one day I’d wind up getting HIV or overdosing on one of those rare times I actually did some of that shit instead of sell it.”
“How could you be ok with that kind of fate?” Ted asked, leaning his head onto Cody’s shoulder.
“Teddy, I don’t even have a high school degree to fall back on. I don’t got shit to live for. What the fuck did it matter to me what happened? But now… I don’t know, but I keep thinking that soon enough I’ll be out of here. I’ll be 25 at the earliest. Still young, still able to start a new life. If I could maybe get my education in here, finish up my high school degree, that’d be a start, wouldn’t it? No more selling drugs on the street, either. I could maybe find a job somewhere. And the funny thing is, every time I think about my future outside of Oz,” he said, biting his lower lip out of nervous habit as he looked down to Ted, “you’re there next to me.”
Ted raised his head off of Cody’s shoulder, turning his head to look into Cody’s eyes. “Really? You mean… I’m not just some… not just some prison fuck?”
“Teddy, quit saying shit like that. Ok, in the clubs, I was never one for a chase. I got turned down? Just move onto the next guy. But I tried with you. Even after all that shit you said to me, I still went after you. So don’t tell me that I don’t love you. We’re in fucking prison, we need every good moment me can get. Just stop fighting it, ok? You’re always so back and forth about us. Every time something bad happens, you think it’s because of us. It’s not. You can’t keep blaming every little thing on the one good thing in your life right now. I can only take so much of it.”
Ted reached down and laced his fingers with Cody’s, still on his lap. “I know, I know. I’m sorry. Talking to Said, that helped a lot. I thought that pushing you away might help me clear my mind of all the shit that’s piled up in there the last few months.”
“Why do you always try to push me away?”
“Because no matter what I tell myself, how much I say you’re the cause of all my problems, I know that I’ll always go back to you, and I know you’ll always take me back,” Ted admitted out loud to Cody, and, finally, to himself.
John sat up and hopped down from his bunk, making a quick stop by the door to look around Em City. He looked to the second floor, seeing Cody and Ted sitting together on the top bunk. “Well, it looks like they made up,” he said as he continued to the toilet to complete his original intention of taking a piss.
“That’s good. Maybe Teddy will finally come to his senses and quit fucking Cody over like he has been.”
“Maybe. What they really need to do, though, is just fuck already. Been too long since either one of ‘em got laid properly. That’s the problem. And don’t tell me that Teddy’s all hesitant and shit cuz he got raped, cuz all he needs is a good fuck to get back into the swing of things. Always works for us.”
“You got a point,” Randy agreed. “Maybe we should fight more. Have better make up sex.”
John grinned, “You right. That first time in the gym… Fuck, that shit was good, damn good.”
“That it was. So, either we can fight, or we could just kill someone again.”
“Told you that was a rush like nothin’ else. Bet you could find someone to really piss you off. You good at pissin’ people off.”
“Fuck you. I can get along with people.”
“People who can put up with your bullshit, yeah,” John egged him on.
“You’re such a dick. But you knew that already, didn’t you?”
“Sure did. So, how about that sex?”
“Think we should put that off until lights out, at least. Don’t feel much like giving everyone a free show.”
“Got a point there. Maybe we just fight more for the next few hours then.”
Randy laughed, “We could. Really get each other worked up.”
“We are good at that,” John said. “But, fuck, wish we didn’t have to wait a few hours for it to be lights out. Cuz I’d love nothin’ more ‘n ta just fuck you right here, right now. Lean you up ‘gainst the side of the bed and fuck you till you’re raw.”
“Quit stayin’ shit like that, otherwise I’ll make you do just that.”
The next day, after they were done serving breakfast and back in Em City, the four headed to their usual table. Ted sat across from Cody, playing a game of checkers. Randy was between them, and John was directly across from him. “Come on, Ted,” Randy cheered on, “I’ve got $10 on this game.”
“Oh who?”
“Cody.”
“You’re cheering for me to lose?” Ted asked, looking up briefly at Randy, confused.
“No, I’m cheering for you to win. Since it seems like whoever I support always loses.”
“I hate you all.”
“Sorry, Teddy,” Cody told him as he jumped two of Ted’s pieces.
“You’re not sorry. If you were really sorry, you’d let me win.”
“But if I let you win, it’d tarnish my reputation as a checker playing god.”
“I hate you all,” Ted muttered again.
“You two fucked yet?” Randy asked out of the blue.
Cody snorted when he glanced up and saw Ted’s face. He then turned to Randy and asked, “Do you have to be so… so…?”
“Yes. Yes, I do,” Randy told them. “Sooo… have you?”
“No,” Cody answered.
“No? Shit, Codes, you must be beatin’ off about three times a day. Am I right?”
“Jeez, Randy,” Ted cut in, his face bright red, “you gotta be so blunt about that?”
“Course he does, he’s Randy,” John said.
“He’s right,” Randy agreed.
“Orton!” came Mineo’s voice behind him.
“Officer,” he replied.
“I need you to come with me.”
“What for?”
“Just get up. I’ll tell you once we’re there.”
Randy followed Mineo out of Em City, and everyone was wondering what was going on, John especially. “Don’t got a good feelin’ ‘bout this…”
They ended up back in the same interrogation room he was in a few weeks back. He sat down across from the same detective, Glynn was there again, and McManus also decided to stop by. “There a reason I’m back here? Thought you gave up on the investigation?”
“Someone came forward with new information. He said he saw you and Cena pulling Kingston into the gym.”
“Someone should get their eyes checked. Me and John were in the kitchen, everyone told you that already. Whoever’s telling you all these lies must really have it out for us.”
“Are you saying that someone set you up?” the detective asked.
“Look, news travels fast in here. I’m sure everyone and their mothers knew that I had trouble with Kingston on the outside. Would I really be stupid enough to kill the guy?” he returned.
“It’s been done before.”
“Yeah, sure. But not by me.”
“Then Cena, maybe?”
“No, John wouldn’t, either,” he said flatly.
“The witness said he saw someone leaving the gym just after you entered. That man who was in the gym has already been questioned because he was scheduled for time in the gym, and the timelines would have overlapped. He told us, however, that he already left before anyone else showed up.”
“See, there you go. This guy is spoutin’ shit outta his ass. It’s this one man’s word against everyone else’s who you already questioned. Why would you re-open an investigation that you ended because of one guy? Unless… It was a CO,” Randy said. That wasn’t a question, it was a statement. A CO must have seen them go into the gym. So why didn’t he stop them right then? Why didn’t he call the SORT team on them? And why had he waited for so long to come forward with the information? And then he remembered. There was a new hack, his job was mainly to patrol the halls. He came in about a week before they killed Kofi, and then handed in his notice the day after. “Officer Allan,” he muttered.
“Orton, we have a credible witness. Will you confess to the murder of prisoner number 02K108, Kofi Kingston?”
Randy looked between the men in the room, from Mineo to the detective currently in his face, to Glynn and then to McManus. “John wasn’t with me.”
“Officer Allan saw you together, Orton.”
Randy stood from his seat and growled, “John. Wasn’t. With. Me.”
“Are you, then, officially confessing to the murder of Kofi Kingston?” the detective asked him again.
“Not like I have any other choice. Yes. But I did it alone.”
“You know you’ll be going to trial in the next few weeks so a jury can determine your crime and sentence,” Glynn told him. “I hope you know that at least thirty years will be added to your current time.”
“Oh, boy, now I can get out in my seventies at the earliest,” he retorted, sarcasm dripping from his words. But then he looked at Glynn, his seriousness returning, “You’re not going to question John, are you? Or anyone else, right? It’s just me.”
“Stay out of our business, Orton,” the detective told him. “We’ll do whatever we need to do to bring justice to this situation.”
“I think this one confession is all we really need,” Tim butted in. “He could do this without an accomplice. He’ll pay for the crimes that he committed. By himself. Escort him back to Em City.”
“Don’t you want him in Solitary?” the detective asked.
“You do that, it’ll only cause more problems in Oz. He’s staying in Em City. When he goes to trial for murder, he’ll be staying in Em City. When he gets convicted, he’ll be staying in Em City,” McManus told everyone. “Unless you fuck up even worse. But for now, you’ll stay in Em City. Just don’t fuck up again, Orton.”
“Yes, McManus,” he said, following Mineo out the door and back into Em City. He didn’t really know what he was feeling at that moment. He was pissed off that they got caught, but relieved that McManus told everyone it was ok that Randy was the fall guy. He could live with that, live with being the only one at fault for this. As long as John didn’t get the blame, as well. He walked past their table and into his pod, lying down on his bed instantly.
John stood from the table and entered his pod. He sat on the metal toilet so he was able to look at Randy as they talked. “What was that about?”
“There was a witness, John,” he said flatly.
“What are you talkin’ ‘bout?”
“There was a fuckin’ witness. Someone saw us.”
“That ain’t possible,” John said, his normally calm exterior crumbling. “No one was there, no one coulda seen us!”
“Someone did, ok!”
“Who the fuck was it?”
“You’re a smart guy, you figure it out…”
John leaned back, his head hitting the wall as he did so, racking his brain. “They haven’t looked into this investigation for weeks. Why would someone come forward now? Know they’d be scared. But any fuck in this prison got some form of backup. And Glynn wouldn’t open up a closed case for just anyone. Means it was a hack,” he realized, stating it out loud. “That hack that quit day after we whacked Kingston, he the one that seen us.”
“Bingo.”
“And he just too chickenshit to anything about it then. So he quit and then prolly called up Glynn to let him know why he quit. Couldn’t handle the job, not after seein’ us. Fucker! What’d you do?”
Randy sighed, “What do ya think I did?”
“Don’t tell me…” John trailed off, fearing the worst.
“I confessed. Told ‘em I did it.”
“Why’d you do that?! You fuckin’ shit head, why the fuck would you confess to that?!”
“Because I did it, John!”
John rolled his head, letting his eyes settle on Randy’s. “And what about me?”
“Don’t think you quite heard me. I told ‘em I did it. Not with you, just me. By myself.”
“But you said-”
“Yeah, hack said he saw both of us. I said it was just me.”
“Why the fuck would you do that?!” John shouted, standing from the toilet.
Randy rolled out of the bed and stood, as well. “I didn’t want you to be involved! Shit, John, you’re already in here for life for two counts of murder. I… I didn’t want anything else to happen to you, ya know?”
“But what if they put you on death row!”
“Not gonna put me on death row.”
John raised a hand and placed it on the back of Randy’s neck, his fingers trailing through his hair. He then pulled Randy in close to him, his lips hovering just centimeters from Randy’s. “Better not fuckin’ put you on death row,” he whispered before leaning in to close the gap and crush Randy’s lips to his in a fierce, passionate kiss.
Randy’s hands slipped around John’s waist and into the back pocket of his pants, grabbing a handful of John’s ass he pulled him in even closer. “I would die for you, though,” Randy breathed into the kiss.
“I know. Just try not to, ok?”
“Ok,” he answered before returning all his attention to kissing John.
“Wonder what’s up with them,” Ted pondered, leaning back in the chair, glancing over at John and Randy.
“Either something really good, or really bad,” Cody reasoned.
“Way to narrow the playing field.”
“What? It’s one of two things. Fifty fifty chance. Those are pretty good odds if you ask me.”
“You’re a piece of work.”
Cody grinned as he saw the small smile forming on Ted’s lips. “Yeah, I know.” He reached a hand up to his own neck, scratching lightly before saying, “I think John and Randy might be right.”
“Right about what?”
“Let’s go upstairs,” Cody suggested, standing from the table. Ted followed, and soon they were in the privacy of their own pod.
“What were John and Randy right about?” Ted asked, crossing his arms.
“About us. It’s been a while since we had sex, and maybe it’s time that we give it a shot. What would it hurt, really?”
Ted’s eyes were wide as he looked at Cody. “Are you serious? After what happened to me?”
“That happened over a month ago. And it’s like I told you on your birthday, we don’t have to do anything you don’t feel comfortable with.” Cody moved in closer, his arms draping over Ted’s shoulders, “But I really want to feel you inside me again. It’s been so long, and I need to feel you.” He brushed his lips over Ted’s, “Please, Teddy,” he whispered. “Tonight, please.” His hand fell from Ted’s shoulder down to his crotch where he could feel Ted’s cock hardening beneath his touch. “I want you to fuck me. Please, fuck me.”
“I don’t know…”
Cody backed away, breaking off all contact, but he looked at Ted with pleading eyes. “You’ve got a few more hours to think about it. Won’t you please do it? For me?”
Ted opened his mouth to speak, but just as he did so, the kitchen crew was called for their last round of work detail.
Tonight they had Cody serving the food next to Randy. “Hey, Dad, hey Dustin,” he greeted as he scooped some peas onto their trays.
“Hey, sonny boy,” his dad replied.
“Hey, Codes,” Dustin said.
“You enjoying your new work detail?” Dusty asked as he moved on down to Randy, but continued to look at Cody.
“Yeah, it’s nice here. A lot of hours, but they’re worth it. Lots better than that dress factory.”
Dusty smiled. At least Cody had something to be happy about in here. “I hope to see you more, Cody. I miss our meals together.”
“Same here, Dad. I’ll see you later.”
After serving dinner to the prison, the guys all had their dinner and returned to a locked down Em City. Cody was sitting up in his bed, a magazine opened in front of him. On the bunk below him, Ted sat with a book open in front of him, but he wasn’t really paying attention to it. And Cody noticed. “Something wrong with that book of yours?”
“Huh? Oh, no, nothing’s wrong with it.”
“Really? Than how come I haven’t heard you turn a page in at least fifteen minutes?”
“Oh, well… I’ve just been thinking is all.”
“Thinking about what I said earlier?” Cody asked, sounding hopeful.
“Yeah, thinking about that.” Ted looked over to the side and saw Cody’s feet hanging from the side of the bed, listening to the bunk above him creak as Cody adjusted his position.
“And?”
“And I don’t know.”
“What’s not to know? You can’t go the rest of your life without touching me again. On your birthday, you remember how good that felt? My hand wrapped around your dick, gettin’ you off.”
“Yeah.”
“And you remember the first time we had sex, right?”
“Couldn’t forget.”
“Well, think about how good you felt then. Felt so good you came back to me. But now you’re letting those two fucking scumbags ruin your life. Don’t let them.”
Ted reached a hand over and brushed it along the bottom of Cody’s foot, laughing as the man above him squeaked and jerked his foot away. “You’re right. You know that, don’t you?”
“Of course I’m right, Teddy. Look, when I was in school, I got made fun of all the time. I was the little queer, the fag, the buttpirate… Couple months before I dropped out, someone pushed me against a locker and almost punched me, probably could have broken my nose or jaw if he did, but someone yelled, ‘don’t do it, you could get AIDS,’ and he let go of me that instant, giving me the nastiest look you could imagine. But I didn’t let those assholes bother me. No, I just went out and fucked every man in sight as my fuck you to all the homophobic shits out there.”
“Is that supposed to make me feel better?”
Cody shrugged, which Ted saw in the mirror. “That was the intent. Because, sometimes, you need to say fuck you to the world, even if that means the negative voices in your own head. So,” he began, catching eyes with Ted in the same mirror, “about tonight.”
~~~
“You shouldn’t have taken the fall for me,” John said as he sat next to Randy.
“Why not? Don’t I owe you?”
“Owe me for what? You talkin’ ‘bout this?” he asked as he took Randy’s hand and ran a finger over the scar on his neck, sending a shiver down his body.
“Yeah,” Randy breathed as he felt the raised tissue below his figner.
“Didn’t do anything you wouldn’t a done.”
“Exactly. Know you woulda done the same thing for me if you were in my shoes, taken the fall. You’re already in here for murder, don’t think a jury would be as kind to you. Might think ‘he’s already in for life, so why not just end his now?’ And I couldn’t stand that, John.”
“Yeah, ok, now we even. Let’s try and cut back on doin’ stupid shit like that from now on, though. From here on in we do sumthin’ together, we take the fall together.”
“LIGHTS OUT!”
~~~
Cody looked around, grinning, “Hey, check that out… It’s dark now.” He glanced out the glass door, “And would you look at that, hack just went by on his rounds.”
“That he did.”
Cody then hopped down from his bunk, squatting in front of Ted’s. “We got lots of time now. So?”
Ted looked into Cody’s eyes, seeing the want and need for him in them. Cody was right before, he couldn’t let those two men destroy his life. They tried to, and he was letting them win. But not anymore. He reached out and took Cody’s hand in his. He was ready. “Come here.”
Climbing into the bottom bunk, Cody instantly seeked out Ted’s lips, his weight resting comfortably on the older man. Their tongues collided in a battle as Ted flipped them around, settling himself on top of Cody.
That weight was a welcomed feeling on top of Cody. In a few short months, he had grown accustomed to having Ted’s muscular body hovering over him each night. And in the time since the rape (still choked him up thinking about that; how could anyone want to hurt his Teddy like that?), he grew to miss that naked body as he pounded into his ass like nothing before. Soon, both were naked, having removed their boxers and t-shirts, Cody running his palms over Ted’s chest from beneath.
Suddenly, though, Ted rolled off, rubbing his face in his hands. Maybe he wasn’t so ready. “I…”
“What is it, Teddy?”
Those things that had been done to him weighed heavy on his mind. The pain, the voices, the blood. “I’ll hurt you.”
“You would never hurt me. You are not them, Teddy. Do you understand? You will never be like them. You’ve got a heart, a soul,” Cody assured.
“But what if…” He didn’t know how to voice what it was he was thinking, picturing. “What if I just lose control?”
“Then let yourself go, I’m not gonna break.”
“But… what if-?”
“Ted,” Cody said, placing his hand on Ted’s cheek, “I’m gonna tell you something, ok? I’ve been working the clubs since I was fourteen. Kids that age? Men love to take advantage. That was my life. When I got older, I learned who to avoid, where not to go. But that’s all behind me now, cuz I got you, and you’re the best damn thing that’s ever happened to me. I trust you more than anyone else in the world, and I want you to know that you can do to me anything you want. And, right now, Teddy? I just want you.”
Ted nodded his head, they needed to do this. If he was going to move past everything, then it was going to have to start with himself. And if he couldn’t even do that, couldn’t give this man beside him everything he wanted simply because he was afraid, well, that wasn’t fair to anyone. He cupped his hand over Cody’s, then rolled back on top of the younger man, kissing his face as he did so. “I want you, too.”
A small smile graced Cody’s face, he was so happy. “I don’t need you to be gentle, I don’t need you to make love to me, just do whatever feels right for you.”
Biting his lip as he did so, Ted ground his hips forward, shutting his eyes as his crotch ground against Cody’s straining cock. Cody’s hips bucked upwards, his hands scrambling to hold onto something, deciding that the back of Ted’s head would suit him just fine. His fingers gripped the hair tight, pulling as his head flung back and he cried out.
Their lips crashed together, as well, Ted’s tongue finding its way into Cody’s willing mouth. His eyes were screwed shut as he continued to grind against Cody’s cock, the sweet friction feeling oh so good. Why had he ever denied himself this? He was done letting them have control of his life. His hand slid down to his own dick, spreading the precum over it to slick it up.
Without breaking their kiss, they managed to arrange themselves, Ted settling between Cody’s spread legs. Ted began to push his dick inside that tight hole, no other preparation beforehand besides a quick slide of two fingers in and out a few times, but Cody accepted it, willing his body to loosen, wanting Ted inside of him. The grip on Ted’s hair tightened, and a few pained noises escaped his lips, only to get lost inside of Ted’s mouth.
Cody was so tight, so hot. It had been so long since he had done this. Ted fought the urge to come the second the head of his cock was encased within Cody’s ass. Slowly he managed to fully sheathe himself inside, but he knew he wouldn’t be able to last long.
“Anything,” Cody whispered as their kiss broke off in a need for air. He again bucked his hips, taking Ted’s cock in deeper, emphasizing his point. Shit, it felt so good having Ted in his body again. He had never gone this long without sex, either. It was all hitting him at once. “Fuck, Teddy, move before I come right now.”
Moving his hips back slightly, Ted began a steady rhythm, short slow strokes at first, building to the point where he was drawing back and nearly pulling out before slamming his hips forward.
Beneath him, Cody was writhing in pleasure, bucking upwards to meet Ted’s forceful thrusts, cock meeting prostate each time. Cody’s hands were all over Ted’s back and neck, sliding over the sweat covered surface. Their lips came together again, tongues in their familiar back and forth dance.
How Ted had managed to not come already was beyond him. Cody’s body just felt so good, that heat surrounding his dick, that lithe frame underneath him reacting to every single move. His hands were next to Cody’s head, gripping the pillow as he continued to thrust his hips, their lips connected as their bodies below. “Cody, I…” he said, before he got cut off by another kiss.
Cody’s hands once more found their way to Ted’s head, wrapping his fingers in his hair, he tugged as he found his own release. Right then, he couldn’t care less about the people next to them, didn’t care if the guards came over to tell them to stop fucking, all he cared about was them. He could feel Ted’s twitching cock inside his body as he came deep within.
They lay together after, Cody wrapped in Ted’s arms, back pressed into chest. “I missed this, Teddy.”
“I did, too,” he agreed, running the back of his hand over Cody’s cheek. “I shouldn’t have been so scared to-”
“It’s ok, Teddy. You made sure you were ready first, that’s nothing to apologize for. Got it?”
“Yeah. Thank you, though, for being there for me.”
Cody smiled and turned his head around enough so he could see Ted out of the corner of his eye. “Always.”
That next day, there was more talk around Emerald City, news passed from O’Reily onto John, who passed it onto Randy as they walked with Ted and Cody towards the kitchen. “Hey, man, I heard word that a new biker is bein’ brought into Em City.”
“Oh, yeah?” Randy asked, raising his eyebrow.
“Yeah. Name’s Dave Batista.”
Randy grinned, “Shit, Dave’s comin’? He’s a cool dude, used to run together, me and him.”
“You know every damn person in New York?”
“I’m the one that grew up here. And it’s not like you’re short of connections yourself, you know. But, yeah, know lots of people here. Makes sense that some of, if not most of ‘em come here eventually. Not the best people out there…”
John was still skeptical, “You’re totally cool with him? You sure?”
“Haven’t seen him in a while, but we were always on good terms. ‘Course, I thought that about Hunter. With him, things changed, but me and Dave? We never had any problems.”
“Good. Can’t afford to have any more shit going on right now. Not with your trial coming up. Shit,” he muttered, hating that the trial was brought up.
“I know. Look, don’t worry about him. We can scope him out.”
“All right, that’s what we’ll do, then. He’ll be in tomorrow.”
They headed into the kitchen then, cleaning up quickly before they began preparing breakfast for the inmates.
The next day, the newest inmate was brought in. Everyone watched him walk in carrying his sheets and roll of toilet paper, following one of the other bikers to his pod. After setting his belongings down on his bunk, he headed out to explore Emerald City. “Randy Orton. Fuck, man, long time no see,” Dave greeted, a grin on his face.
Randy stood, shaking Dave’s hand before closing in for a back slapping hug. “Figured it’d just be a matter of time before I saw you here,” he said when they pulled apart, a smirk on his own face.
“Fuck you, too, man. So, how you been?” Dave asked, sitting down at a table.
“Good as you can be in here, I suppose. Life sucks in Oz, no denying that. But things could be worse… I mean, I could be dead, right?”
“True, true.” His attention turned from Randy to a new man joining them at their table. He noticed the scar on his neck, wondering if that was the man Hunter attacked a few months back.
“John, this is Dave. Dave, this is John,” Randy introduced.
Bingo. This was Randy’s little butt buddy. He stuck his hand out, offering his respect and friendship, false though it may be.
John eyed him warily, pausing for a few seconds before shaking hands, staying silent.
After witnessing his lover and old buddy shake hands, Randy continued on talking to Dave. “So, what did you do to land your ass in here?”
“Got caught stealin’ a motorcycle.”
“Shiiiit, dude.”
“Well, I wasn’t intendin’ to get caught,” he joked.
“Sucks, man. But if we can get our shit together like back in the day-”
“I dunno, that was more Hunter that got us rallied together,” he said as he cut Randy off.
That name alone was enough to start both John and Randy’s blood boiling. And it got both of them wondering why Dave would bring that name up. “What’re you sayin’? You don’t think we could work without him?”
“Not at all,” Dave said, trying to recover from his slip. He couldn’t give too much away. “Just sayin’ he was top dog.”
“Gonna tell you sumthin’ right now. Italians the top dogs ‘round here, have been forever, and you ain’t comin’ in to take over, got it?” John cut in just before standing to leave.
“He don’t take well to competition,” Randy said. “We’ll talk later, ok?”
“Sure, later dude.” He watched Randy enter the pod with John before he stood up and slipped out of Emerald City.
“What the fuck you think you sayin’ out there?” John growled at Randy.
“Just sayin’ how back in the day we-”
“Well, this ain’t no ‘back in the day,’ this is fuckin’ Oz! You can’t go talkin’ ‘bout new alliances, ‘bout runnin’ the joint with jus’ anyone, Randy! Fuckin’ Christ!”
“Sorry for thinkin’ that Dave could be beneficial to what we already got goin’!” he shouted back.
“Keep your goddamn voice down. It your big ass mouth and quick temper what always gets you in trouble. Learn to think first, ok? Try and quit runnin’ your mouth for once.”
Randy grabbed John by the shirt and pushed him backwards into the glass wall. “Fuck you,” he hissed. “All I was doin’ was tryin’ to help-”
“And I don’t trust the guy! We ain’t bringin’ him in, you fuckin’ got that? I’m in charge here, not you, understand?”
“Excuse me? The fuck am I, then?” he asked, pushing his arm into John’s neck.
“All you good for in the operations is movin’ the shit. You ain’t got the brains to run nothin’.”
For one of the rare times in his life, John didn’t see the punch coming. The uppercut caught under his chin, causing his head to slam back and bounce off the plexiglass. Next thing he knew, he had them flipped around, he was the one holding Randy against the glass as he laid a punch to the side of his face. “Fuck you,” Randy spat, wiping at his mouth, seeing the blood that began to drip out of his mouth.
John saw that blood, too, as a few drops slid down over Randy’s lip and chin. He should be angry, wanted to be angry, but he soon realized it was hard to be so angry at the man that turned him on like no other. Before Randy knew what was happening, he had John’s lips on his, that tongue lapping up the blood that he had caused to spill. Hands gripped the other tight as mouths continued to clash together.
As John and Randy continued to make up from their brief argument, Dave made his way to solitary, finding the guard in charge. “I gotta talk to Hunter.”
“This is solitary. You can’t talk to anyone.”
Dave held out a roll of bills right in front of the guard. “How about Ben Franklin? You let him talk?”
The officer grabbed the bills, counting out $500. “Make it quick.”
Smirking, Dave walked past the guard and down to Hunter’s cell. He knocked and slid open the small peep hole, saying, “Long time, no see, Hunt.”
Hunter stood from the bed and walked over to the door, a smile on his face. “Dave, man, what brings you here?”
“About $500. Just met Randy’s little boyfriend. Don’t think he likes me yet. I’ll have Randy work on that one, don’t worry. Those two are close, though, it’s gonna be tough to get Randy alone. It’ll take time before John trusts me enough for that.”
“Fuckin’ Cena. He’s why I’m here and Orton’s not dead.”
“We’ll make sure it happens. Just give it time. I’ll be in John’s good graces soon enough. And then we’ll get ‘em both out of our hair.”
“Good. Make sure word gets to me. You ever need cash for the hacks, I got connections. But I need to be in the loop for this, got it?”
“Got it.”
Hunter grinned a sick, twisted grin as their plan began to take shape. Then the officer walked down the hall, shutting the grate, blocking Hunter once again from the outside world. “Time’s up. Get back to your cell block.”
“Had all the time I needed, sir,” he said before returning to Emerald City.