Fic: Let's Be More Than This (8/19) [The Covenant, OT4, FRAO/NC-17]
Title: Let's Be More Than This - Chapter 8
Author: mickey_sixx
Fandom: The Covenant
Pairing: Caleb Danvers/Pogue Parry/Reid Garwin/Tyler Simms (eventual), Reid Garwin/Tyler Simms (established)
Rating: FRAO/NC-17/M
Word Count: ~67K (yeah, it's an epic)
Disclaimer: Characters are not mine. I do not own them!
Beta: Sam | hawk_dancing (Thank you so much! *smishes*) & barefoot_starz ♥
WARNING! This fic contains scenes of a graphic sexual nature between two (three... eventually four) men. If this offends you, please do not read.
Summary: The last of the old Covenant has died, leaving the new Generation to carry on the legacy, but Caleb soon discovers there is more to the Power than he'd previously thought. Friendships will be tested and secrets revealed as the Sons of Ipswich find out what it really means to be one of the Covenant.
Prologue | Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3 | Chapter 4 | Chapter 5 | Chapter 6 | Chapter 7
Chapter 8
His entire body was shaking with suppressed rage, foot all but flat on the floor as he broke the speed limit in order to get to his destination. Car horns blared as he weaved in and out of the thankfully light afternoon traffic but Reid didn't take any notice. The red mist had descended, barely holding on to the Power inside him as his seething anger took him over.
How could he? How could he! Reid could barely think of anything else, couldn't feel anything other than the burning betrayal that made him sick. A car pulled in front of him and he swerved dangerously, the sound of squealing tires and car horns mixing with the rapid pounding of his heart. He got through unscathed, but it was close.
If it was someone else, it wouldn't have been as bad. Oh, he'd have been angry, hurt, even heart-broken. But this? This was the ultimate betrayal. This wasn't just a random chick or some guy from school, this was their brother. The guy they trusted. It was like Caleb had stuck a knife in his heart and twisted, knowing exactly where to strike to cause maximum pain.
"You've gone too far this time," He growled into the tense air, shifting gears violently and heading towards the Danvers Estate, "Be damned if you'll get away with it."
~*~*~*~
The journal sat on the breakfast bar, lying innocently on the marble surface as it had since he'd got back from Gorman's. Caleb, who was leaning against the counter by the sink, stared at it. Or, more accurately, through it.
He was at war with himself. Part of him wanted to hide the book away and never think of it again. It was full of his dad's thoughts; full of things that he'd done and events in his life that were private, that shouldn't be read by anyone. Another part of him wanted to snatch the book up and just absorb its stories. It was a part of his father than he'd never seen before, a chance to get to know him like he hadn't been able to when he was alive.
But, in truth, Caleb was scared. He was scared at what he'd find, hidden in the pages and between the lines of ink. He was scared that whatever he found would change the way he looked at things, at people, forever, and Caleb wasn't sure if he could deal with that. So many things had happened lately; Chase had sucked them in and turned on them, his father had caused his own death and his mother was an alcoholic. The only people in the world he could trust were his brothers; the three guys that meant more to him than his own life.
Only that too was fucked to hell and he didn't know how to put it right.
Running his hands over his face, Caleb sighed and pushed himself towards the breakfast bar. He placed both hands flat on the cold marble and leaned into it, staring hard at the brown, leather-bound journal. Gorman's words echoed in his head: He wanted you to have this one.
"C'mon, Danvers, this might be the only thing that gets you out of this mess."
He snorted and rolled his eyes at himself before straightening and reaching out for the book. His fingers hadn't even touched the cover and the Power spiked around him, raising goosebumps on his arms. Caleb snatched his hand back and frowned, murmuring a soft, shocked exclamation to the silent room. Another spike of Power shot through his body, stronger this time, and Caleb's knees weakened while he shivered.
That definitely wasn't from the book.
Like a tidal wave, Reid's presence crashed into him, making his heart skip a few beats. A tortured moan echoed around the room at the same time as the front door crashed open. He felt dizzy and weak and so unbelievably horny that he stumbled from the kitchen to the hallway, barely able to control his own body. Reid's emotions washed through him and Caleb had to grab the wall to keep himself from falling to his knees. His rage was like a drug, stoking an already burning fire inside him and Caleb moaned low in his throat in response.
The blond appeared at the other end of the hall, his anger so strong that the Power was already responding with it. Blond hair fluttered over white hot blue eyes and Caleb choked on another moan that was crawling up his throat.
"Reid?" His voice was strained, thin, pain and pleasure warring inside his body for dominance, "Reid, what the h-"
Before he could even finish the sentence, Caleb was slammed back into the nearest wall, so hard that the pictures rattled and tilted. His breath left his body and he struggled to pull in another, but it was hard with Reid's hand wrapped around his throat, fingers tight against his jugular. Caleb's entire being throbbed with his anger, with his rage and his hurt and his heat.
"You bastard," the blond growled dangerously, voice dripping with hatred and pain, "You fucking bastard!"
The next thing he knew, Caleb was flying through the air and crash landing on the antique sideboard that had been in the family for generations. Splinters of wood scratched and cut him, snagging and pulling at his clothes. Dizzy and disorientated, Caleb groaned and pulled himself upright, trying to stand, but Reid got there first. A pale hand tangled in the front of his shirt and hauled him to his feet, once again slamming him back into the wall and making Caleb hiss in pain.
"I trusted you," Reid spat, the pitch black of his eyes doing nothing to hide the seething storm swirling behind them, "You betrayed me!"
This time Caleb sprawled across the floor, hissing as the carpet burned across the bare skin of his back when his t-shirt hiked up. He ended up in a roll and bounced off the bottom of what he thought was the sofa in the den, although how they ended up here he didn't know. If he'd been in his right mind, he would have forced Reid back with the Power. Caleb had three times the amount Reid did now, it would have been so easy to Use, to pin him against the wall and keep him there while he caught his breath.
But he couldn't.
"Reid. Reid, fuck, stop-"
Instead of listening to him, Reid knelt over him and fisted his hands in his shirt once more, pulling his upper body from the floor and putting them nose-to-nose.
"Fuck... you ...Caleb," He panted, blazing anger pouring into the oldest's body and making him moan, "Fuck you. You took... the only thing that fucking mattered to me. Couldn't stand that I was happy, could you? Couldn't stand that I had Tyler. Me!"
"Re-"
"No!" The blond snapped, releasing him suddenly. Caleb winced as his head bounced off the floor, but that was nothing compared to the explosion of pain he felt across the left side of his face as Reid punched him. "You couldn't stand that he was mine and not yours!" He punctuated each word with a brutal punch and Caleb was powerless to stop him. He squirmed and groaned trying to shove him off, but Reid wouldn't budge until he'd got his point across and beaten the hell out of Caleb in the process.
But somehow, by some miracle, Caleb managed to find enough leverage to roll them until Reid was on his back. He caught both of Reid's wrists in his hands, struggling to keep him from continuing to use him as a punch bag. Using his body weight, he managed to pin Reid down and lift up on his knees, body hovering over the blond's.
"Fuck," Caleb breathed, "Fuck, Reid, what the hell?"
Reid growled and spat in Caleb's face, trying to use the distraction to buck the older male off. When that didn't work he went back to glaring at him, taking a perverse pleasure in the multi-colour patches on his face and the blood trickling down his chin from his split lip, "Don't pretend you don't know, asshole, or do I have to remind you of the time you fucked my boyfriend."
The shock and guilt choked him and it was enough to let Reid get the upper-hand again. The blond rolled them and brought his knee up at the same time, lodging it firmly in Caleb's lower stomach. The dark haired male lost his grip on Reid and went sprawling out on the floor again.
"Reid, I didn't-oomph!" Reid's foot connected with his stomach and Caleb curled around himself on instinct.
"Fuckin' liar!" Reid screamed, coughing and wiping the back of his hand over his mouth. Caleb struggled up to a standing position again and Reid just watched, snarling at him and balling his fist in preparation for another hit. But this time Caleb was ready; he caught Reid's arm mid-air and swung him around, slamming him face first into the wall opposite and pinning his arm behind his back. The blond cursed and struggled against him, trying in vain to buck him off.
"Goddammit, Reid, I didn't fuck Tyler!"
"Fuck you, you saying he's lying!"
Caleb panted, dropping his head forward slightly as he felt the guilt claw at his insides again, adding to the already turbulent emotions that were swirling inside of him. The adrenaline coursed through his veins along with the Power and the chemical reactions firing along his skin every time Reid moved against him. If he didn't do something he'd explode.
"He's... it's not his fault, I couldn't stop it-"
"What part of my boyfriend didn't you understand!"
He growled threateningly and used all his strength to flip Reid around so they were face to face, noses a scant inch apart. Caleb's body pressed him into the plaster, knee already tight between Reid's thighs while his hands pinned his wrists back to the wall to keep him from fighting him off. Reid's eyes were wide, still sparking with fierce anger, but now there was something else. Something like fear. Something like lust. Something like need.
"No, you don't understand," Caleb growled, breathing hard and feeding off the aggression and the anger between them. "You don't understand what's going on, you don't understand what just being near you does to me."
And before Reid could even formulate an answer, Caleb's mouth was already swallowing the words. It was brutal; all teeth and tongue and need and desperation, and the blond couldn't do anything but squirm under his weight and take it, tasting the coppery tang of blood and everything that was Caleb. Embarrassingly needy sounds echoed between them, but neither was sure who was making them. Neither cared. The Power shifted around them, prickling their skin like shards of glass and hitting every pleasure point it could find. Reid's hands buried roughly in thick dark hair, not even knowing how he'd worked out of Caleb's bruising hold. A solid thigh brushed against his erection and Reid whimpered, nails digging into his brother's scalp as his body bucked wildly. ‘Oh god, yes, more Cay, c'mon...’
"Oh my God!"
A split second later, Reid was left wide-eyed and panting, hands groping at the wall behind him to keep himself upright. An involuntary whimper escaping him as he mourned the loss of Caleb's body heat. The blond looked over to the right, cursing under his breath as he realized both Tyler and Pogue were witness to their lip-lock. Caleb, however, looked between the three of them, chest heaving as he tried to hold on to his last shred of control, staggering back to the opposite side of the room and not stopping until he felt the wall at his back.
"Fuck," Caleb muttered, bringing his hands to his face and closing his eyes against their stunned, angry looks, "Fuck."
Breathing hard, Reid slid down the wall until he reached the floor, tongue flicking out against his lips to lick the small trace of blood Caleb had left behind. His body was shaking, but he didn't know if it was anger or lust or both. He'd never experienced anything like that before. It was like his body was on autopilot, like his mind had shut down and he was feeding off Caleb's desperation, his need to join them in the most intimate way. The sounds of their laboured breathing filled the otherwise quiet room but Reid doubted he would hear anything over the roar of his own blood in his ears. He scrubbed his hands through his hair, resting an elbow on his knee and finally looking up at Caleb, now on the other side of the room, looking as sick and as shell-shocked as he felt.
Pogue was the first to break the silence. He moved slowly into the room, feeling strangely calm in the face of recent events, and turned his head towards Caleb, fixing the oldest with an intense stare.
"I think-" he said carefully, voice low but carrying in the hushed silence between them, "-you'd better explain what's going on." Caleb dropped his hands and let his head fall back to the wall, wincing when his tongue caught the split in his lip. "And no more bullshit."
Caleb swallowed thickly, hands shaking as he pressed them back into the wall, trying to find his equilibrium again. Inside he was a wreck; his blood was burning, adrenaline and lust warred, mixed with Reid's outpouring of emotions. It was a miracle he was even standing. He shook his head slightly and moved carefully over to the sofa, where he grabbed the back with both hands and leaned into it, hoping that it would keep him on his feet.
"It... it's the Power," He said finally, head dropping forward a little so his eyes focused on the worn material of the seats. He could still feel their eyes on him as he spoke, "I don't know much, I just... I just know that it makes me... want you."
"What does that mean?" Tyler asked
"It means that I can't be in the same room with you without wanting to screw you into the wall," Caleb shot back with a frustrated growl before lifting his head and levelling his gaze at them. "All I think about, all I dream about... is being with you. All three of you. I can't stop, I can't sleep." He gave a humourless laugh that sounded more like a sob and he turned away from them, "Jesus, you have no idea how many times I've had to keep myself from just..."
"And that's why you've been avoiding us lately?" Pogue said, voice eerily calm. Caleb frowned and looked up again, gaze fixing on the second eldest at the same time Tyler and Reid looked at him. The long-haired teen stared into middle-ground, "That's why every thing's changed..."
"Pogue, did you hear what he said?" Reid croaked from his position on the floor. He coughed to clear his throat, "He wants to fuck us-"
"I heard what he said!" The other boy snapped, losing his cool. He pushed his hands through his hair and shook his head, his focus back on the room again. Caleb's heart twisted and he dropped his head again, unable to stand the pained looks that they shared.
"I'm sorry," he murmured, straightening up and running a hand over his eyes, hoping that the pain would make things better. It didn't. "I'm sorry, this... I didn't know anything about this until Mom-"
"Wait," Tyler interrupted, glaring at Caleb, "You told you're mom about this?!"
He flinched, "She told me. Like I said, I don't know much about it. According to mom it's tied with the Power and as far as I can make out, as each of us Ascends, we get... urges."
"Oh, so that's what I felt just now," Reid muttered sarcastically.
Caleb ignored him, "Because I got double share of the Power, its worse for me. I feel it more than I should. That's why I can't be near you for very long." He rubbed his arm, the itching under his skin getting worse, "I just... I lose all control and-"
"-throw us into a wall." Tyler finished, eyebrow arched as he flicked between Reid and Caleb.
The eldest's lips quirked slightly, "Yeah."
"It'll be like this for all of us?" Caleb looked to Pogue, who looked a little sick at the thought. Not that Caleb blamed him, but somewhere deep inside, it hurt to see that he was obviously so disgusted at the prospect.
"When you Ascend, yeah. It eases after... after we..."
"Fuck?" Reid supplied.
Caleb rolled his eyes and replied flatly, "I was going to say 'bond'"
"How does your mom know about this?" Tyler asked with a frown, "I mean, no offence, but she just married into the family. She couldn't have known about this unless..." Tyler trailed off as Caleb looked at him, confirming his line of thought, "Unless your dad told her."
"He knew he wasn't going to be around to explain himself."
"Whoa, whoa, wait a minute," Pogue said around a humourless laugh, "Are you saying that this happened with our father's too? That they-" He cut himself off and swallowed, shaking his head in revulsion. Caleb shivered as Pogue's emotions reached out to him and he forced himself not to respond.
"Pogue-"
"Is this what happens to us?" He growled out, his earlier calm slipping away rapidly, "We all become queer for each other and ruin our lives?"
Reid's head snapped up along with Tyler's, eyes blazing holes into his older brother, "Ruin our lives? So that's what we're doing now? Fuck you, Pogue," Using the wall at his back, he slid back into a standing position and moved to stand beside Tyler, who's head was turned away in the face of Pogue's apparent disgust. The blond didn't even think before he reached over and laced their fingers together, feeling the tremors in the brunette's body, "Fuck you very much."
Shame burned inside of him, crawling up his throat, making him sick with it. Pogue swallowed against it and dropped his eyes, running his hands through his hair in frustration as he tried to calm himself down. "I... I didn't mean that. I'm happy for you, you know I am, but this... what the hell is this going to do to us, man? How is this ever going to work?"
"We'll figure it out," Tyler answered, voice quiet and hollow in the tense air surrounding them.
Pogue snorted, "No offence, baby boy, but you don't know that. I mean, look at what happened between you three. Can either of you honestly say that you're ok with that?" He looked to Caleb, "What if this doesn't work? What if this destroys us?"
Caleb couldn't answer. He'd been asking himself the same questions; over and over in his mind. He loved his brothers, but was it enough? The urges had been hard, fast, burning inside him like an everlasting fire, but was that all it was going to be between them? Just sex? Or would it deepen into something more, something stronger, something that would transcend their friendship.
He just didn't know.
But he had something that could give them the answers they were all searching for.
"Gorman... Gorman gave me something from dad's stuff," he said deliberately, trying hard to shield himself from their emotions, "A journal. He said dad wanted me to have it because it would help me - us - understand what's going on."
"What, like a manual?" Reid asked, cynicism colouring his voice. Caleb shot him a look and the blond fidgeted a little but stared back defiantly.
"No, like a journal," He said.
"So, lemme get this straight," Pogue said put in, "you're going to read your dad's journal to find out what's going on?"
"It's the only thing we have right now," Caleb said, eyeing the long haired teen across from him.
"Jesus, have you got any idea what's in that?"
"Not until I read it, no," Caleb tried to answer calmly, "What the hell is your problem?"
"Problem? My problem?!" Pogue laughed mockingly, "God, where do I start? How about with the part where you're going to read about your dad screwing our dad's!"
They all flinched a little, but it was Tyler who answered, "I don't think it will be that bad."
"It's true though. It’s... it’s wrong, ok?" He shook his head, running his hands over his face and avoiding their eyes, "I'm sorry, I just... I just can't do this right now." The second eldest brushed past Reid and Tyler and walked out, head down and hiding behind his hair.
"Pogue, c'mon..."
But he’d already gone. Caleb blew out a long breath, pressing both elbows into the soft top of the sofa and putting his face in his hands. God, they were so screwed. This was not the way he wanted it to go; he'd wanted to know about it first, to understand it so he could explain better and avoid the inevitable explosion. Instead he'd been forced to spill the whole damn thing.
It was his own fault.
"What now?"
Caleb looked at Reid between his fingers, noting the way he and Tyler stood; shoulder-to-shoulder, fingers entwined, supporting each other. Envy stirred inside him and he ruthlessly squashed it down before it could cause any more problems.
"Good question," He said, straightening slowly and moving until he could perch on the arm of the couch. His jeans provided some pressure to his aching erection, but it wasn't enough, and Caleb winced a little as he settled, trying to ignore the sparks of pleasure that raced up his spine. "I don't know. Nothing I guess."
"Bit late for that, don't you think?" The youngest replied. "This changes everything." The brunette’s eyes slid down the other boy's body, resting for a moment on the impression his hard-on made in his jeans. "We can't ignore it."
A shiver rolled over him, his cock twitching almost painfully as Tyler's eyes settled on him. He hissed and leaned forward slightly, body tensing. "Jesus, Ty... don't ....please don't do that."
The brunette flushed and looked away, telling himself that he wasn't turned on by Caleb's reaction. "Sorry," he mumbled.
"Look," Reid said, suddenly becoming the unlikely voice of reason, "This isn't helping. Caleb's right, maybe we should just leave it for now. Pogue..." He sighed, "Pogue needs some time and Caleb needs to get friendly with his left hand or he's probably going to explode from the sexual tension."
Despite himself, Caleb chuckled, "Something like that."
"Are you going to be ok?" Tyler asked, concerned, "I mean that's-"
"I'll be fine," Caleb lied, his smile strained. "You should go."
They nodded and turned to go, but at the last moment, Reid turned and looked over his shoulder, blue eyes fixing on him seriously. Caleb's body throbbed in lust and need, surprised at the concern that flickered behind the residual anger.
"Do me a favour?" He said, "Stop hiding from us."
He swallowed and nodded, emotions clogging his throat so much his voice couldn't get through, and Reid turned and followed Tyler out of the den. A few moments later the dull sound of the door closing floated along the hallway and once again Caleb found himself alone, his world crumbled and broken at his feet.
On to Chapter 9