For feelforfaith: Righting Wrongs
Title: Righting Wrongs
Recipient: feelforfaith
Author: sassywitch
Pairing: Billy/Dom, Billy/Orlando and a hint of something else
Rating: PG, or M for language
Summary: Orlando tries to fix a problem he can see.
Pre-reveal Notes: I had a completely different fic written but I decided it didn't quite fit the request, I'm hoping that this one fits a little more. Oh and I needed a villain.
Disclaimer: This is a non-profit, non-commercial work of fiction using the names and likenesses of real individuals. This fictional story is not intended to imply that the events herein actually occurred, or that the attitudes or behaviors described are engaged in or condoned by the real persons whose names are used without permission.
Orlando had watched for eight long years. He knew exactly what had been going on and, until now, the only thing stopping him from intervening was the secrecy. It had taken that long for Billy to finally open up to him; the entire fellowship knew exactly what was going on but not one of them would ever say a word. Since his supposed ignorance was no longer an issue, Orlando had angrily decided the time was right to confront his long-time friend about the duplicitous nature of his behavior.
"Get your ass out here." He called, banging loudly on the door.
Hearing footsteps inside the house, he stepped back from the door and waited, his toe tapping impatiently on the stairs.
A tousled brunette head peered around the edge of the door, her smile widening as she realized who it was and opened the door.
"Hello...Orlando? What are you doing here?" Evangeline asked with a sleepy, seductive smile, opening the door to him.
"Is HE home?" Orlando looked her up and down derisively. Wrapped in a pale blue bed sheet, one hand held a clump of sheet together over her breasts as the other swung the door further open.
"He's sleeping, we had late shooting last night. We can have breakfast while he sleeps if you like." She smiled coyly, her grip on the sheet slipping enough that the upper curve of her breasts spilled forward and bared itself to his view.
"No thanks." Orlando looked her up and down and pushed past, her stalking through the house in which he'd so often been a guest.
Stopping just inside the door to Dom's bedroom, he saw Dom lying spread-eagle, face down on the bed and stark naked. Glancing around, he grabbed a pair of sweatpants from the washing basket just inside the door and flung them at the bed. He was strangely satisfied when they landed across Dom's body and startled Dom into wakefulness. Orlando could only assume Evangeline was wrapped in the sheet that had been covering both of them.
"Orli?" Dom rubbed at his eyes, confused.
"Get dressed, Monaghan. We need to talk. Now." Orlando said shortly as he turned on his heel and walked without a backward glance out of the house and down the path to the sandy private beachfront.
He stalked across the sand, his footsteps digging a rut into the warm sand as he castigated himself for his actions. He wasn't sure who he was more annoyed with, his friend or himself. Orlando paced incessantly in the warm golden sand as he waited for Dom to emerge from the house.
"You're going to wear a path down to China, Orli." Dom murmured, his voice amused, as he walked down the beach towards him, fingertips scratching at the sparse hair on his chest.
"I want to know what you're up to." Orlando asked without preamble, his teeth clenched together as he struggled to hold his anger.
"Up to? I'm not up to anything, mate." Dom answered quickly.
"Then what the fuck is going on with Billy?"
"Don't see how that's any of your business...mate." Dom responded firmly, one hand lifting to scratch through his sleep-tousled hair.
"Like hell it isn't. Somebody has to look out for him. You're his lover and you sure as hell don't."
"And you think that you're up to the job, do you?" Dom laughed.
"More than you will ever be." Orlando answered.
"Slight catch with that plan, Elfboy." Dom responded calmly, "He loves me."
"Yeah, well they say love is blind." Orlando sneered, enraged by Dom's nonchalance.
"Do you two want to keep it down, or maybe move inside?" Evangeline trotted out of the house towards them, glancing pointedly at their neighboring houses.
"Can't interfere with the image can we?" Orlando grimaced, "For God's sake, can't you think about him for a change instead of what the bloody public thinks?"
Evangeline looked at him coldly. "You of all people should know that image is everything in this business, Orlando."
"In this industry it might be, but a person is nothing without their friends. Keep this up and you're well on the way to being nothing, sweetheart."
"Are you going to let him talk to me like that Dommie?" Evangeline pouted, her eyes hard.
"So, Dommie?" Orlando responded sarcastically emphasising his name, "You won't defend your boyfriend from yourself, are you going to defend her honour?"
"I can't see what any of my relationships have to do with you, Elfboy, so why don't you just fuck off back to the mainland and mind your own business." Dom snarled.
"You can't, can you?" Orlando grimaced watching the couple in front of him closely. "You're so wrapped up in your own images and publicity that you honestly can't see what you're doing to anyone else. I was wrong to be pissed at you. I should be pitying you. You're not heartless, you're pathetic."
"What the fuck are you talking about Orlando?" Dom frowned shaking his head in consternation.
"Answer me one thing." Orlando pressed his fisted hands to his hips, his feet slightly apart. He rocked back on the balls of his feet, desperately trying to release the anger that was blinding him to everything else. "Did you ever love him? Or is he just a convenient fuck?"
"That's none of your concern." Evangeline answered primly as Dom fell silent.
Orlando stretched to his full height and stepped closer to the couple in front of him. "When I want your opinion I'll give it to you." He snarled at her angrily, "This..." he gesticulated between himself and Dom, "Is none of your concern, so butt out."
"Watch your mouth, Orlando." Dominic growled, standing straighter.
Orlando stepped back and turned his back on the couple that enraged him so badly.
"Why do you do it, Dom? Make me understand. You have a man that loves you so completely that he'll put up with all this shit for one night every three months, despite the fact that you treat him like crap, yet you swan around here with her, like he never even happened."
"She loves me." Dom stated quickly.
"Bullshit. She loves the connections you can give her. While your back is turned she's hitting on anyone that can get her further. She doesn't love you, you're a fucking stepping stone to fame."
"You're full of shit, Bloom." Dom's face was flushed as he growled, his fists clenching and unclenching at his sides.
"I'm not here to sort you pair of assholes out. I'm here for Billy. Either treat him properly or fucking cut him loose."
"Why? He's not stupid, he knew the score before we'd even fucked."
"Maybe his head did, but it sure as hell didn't send the memo to his heart. He loves you Dommie, please stop hurting him."
"He's a big boy Orlando, besides, he was told that it was over when we started dating." Evangeline explained.
Orlando's anger flared white-hot again as he listened to her speak.
"Really, well then why was it that the sweat hadn't started to cool on their skin after they'd fucked before he was asking Billy to be his best man?"
If it hadn't been so important to him, Orlando would have laughed at the expression on her face.
"You fucked him?" She shrilled, turning to Dom as she pushed her hair back from her face. "You told me that it was over with him! You told me you hadn't been with him in two years, Dom!"
"Didn't he tell you? Billy is an itch he just can't scratch. They can't just visit like normal friends; they have to shag like bunnies." Orlando chuckled.
"Dominic?" She asked quietly, her voice as brittle as her expression.
"Evi, please, you have to understand." Dom started to explain.
"I don't have to do anything, Dominic." She replied coldly, "We had an agreement."
"And I tried, but you don't know how hard it is." He murmured, his eyes downcast.
"Yup." Orlando grimaced tightly, "It's so hard for you to keep going back slaking your thirst and breaking his heart every time you fucking see him."
"You don't understand either." Dom looked up at Orlando, his blue eyes shimmering with tears. "He's Billy."
"Oh, believe me, you selfish asshole, I understand completely. He loves you and every time you get the urge, you go and you twist him around your little finger. Every single time you've had your fill and come back here to your 'normal' life, you break him. He just gets himself back together again and then you start all over again. You've got your 'normal' life you come back to here, but you don't even tell her. He has a beautiful woman and an adorable son, a family that loves him, regardless of anything else, you included, but they're all in limbo, waiting. He can't commit himself to anything, just in case you decide you want him the same way he wants you. Forever. But the whole world knows that will never happen. The only one who doesn't see it is Billy. Trust me, I know exactly how hard it is."
"It's not fucking like that at all." Dom stated firmly. "Billy's happy with..." he paused glancing at Evangeline carefully, "Our arrangement."
"Billy's happy with whatever scraps you'll throw him, you heartless bastard." Orlando replied, "For three or four days he's the fucking king of the world and then you leave him. It takes Ali and his sister two months to put him back together and then you come along and fuck it all up again."
"Why hasn't he ever said anything?" Dom frowned, finally considering Orlando's words.
"Because, you stupid bastard, he's terrified that you'll stop giving him what he thinks he needs." Orlando growled angrily, "How fucking stupid are you, Dom? When are you going to realize that it's not all about you? When are you going to cut him loose so he can have a real life? When will you stop fucking up so many other lives?"
"I don't see how it's any of your business, Elf boy." Dom evaded the questions, his brow furrowed in concentration.
"I'm making it my business, Dom, somebody has to protect him from you. Since he can't or doesn't want to do it himself." Orlando sighed wearily.
"I know exactly why he's doing it." Evangeline stood straighter, "I wonder what your fans would say if they knew?"
Orlando looked from one to the other then focused his attention on her, realizing that she thought she knew his motives.
"Unlike you, my whole existence isn't based on what people think. I'd hope they'd be happy for me... for us and if not, I don't give a shit." Orlando shrugged.
"Liar. I've seen you, you bask in the publicity." She almost sneered at him.
"No. I enjoy certain aspects, but I would never sacrifice my happiness to increase or keep my fanbase." He turned to glare at Dom.
"What's going on? Orlando , why are you so concerned about Billy?" Dom frowned.
"He's in love with him." Evangeline laughed.
"What if I am? He's so easy to love and you just can't see it. You could have it all, but you're too worried about looking normal and what the fans might think and all the shit that goes with it. In the grand scheme of things it doesn't matter. All that should matter is how much he loves you and how much you could love him and be happy together."
"In this business, if we don't have that, we don't work." Dom shrugged.
"You of all people should know better than that. You've seen it, I know you have. Speculation that you two are a couple has only increased your popularity, not diminished it. But you started spending your time with small-minded, fame-hungry assholes and you've turned into one of them. For fuck's sake, Dominic, grow a brain. Either love him or cut him loose once and for all so somebody, hell anybody else has a chance with him." Orlando threw his hands in the air and turned his back on both of them.
Breathing heavily as his eyes glistened with angry tears, he jammed his hands into his pockets and concentrated on controlling the tumultuous emotions threatening to overwhelm him. So what if he was in love with Billy, someone had to look out for him, he was doing a shite job of it himself.
"You're only doing this to score points with him, aren't you?" Evangeline questioned.
Orlando sighed deeply and spoke without turning back towards them. "No. I just want him to be happy. With Dom, with me, with someone else, I don't care. I just want him happy; you haven't seen him, man. You don't know how heartbreaking it is to hold him while he's drunk and sobbing against you, wondering what the hell he's doing wrong and what's wrong with him that he can't make you happy enough to stay with him. I had to get him trolleyed before he'd confess to me and break your promise. You can't expect him to be so completely alone when you do this to him, Dom. He's got no one, if you cared even a little you'd stop hurting him. He doesn't know what he's done, and he can't fucking talk to anyone about it. At least tell him what's wrong with him."
"It's not him." Dom whispered.
"Well he sure as fuck doesn't know that." Orlando continued. "You have to stop it, Dom. It's not going to be long before you break him so much none of us can fix him."
"I just... we just...I don't want to break him." Dom said quietly.
"But you do. Every. Single. Time. You fuck him and leave him and he loses another little piece of himself." Orlando turned to look at Dom, his eyes filled with sadness.
"I need him, Orli." Dom stated simply.
"Do you love him?" Orlando asked quietly, watching Dom carefully.
Dom thought about the question, his gaze studiously on his feet, his hand moving nervously across his bare chest. "In my own way, I do." Dom nodded.
"Then do what's best for him. Either show him you do or cut him loose man. If you keep this up much longer you'll lose Billy the lover and Billy the best mate at the same time."
"You'll be good to him?" Dom asked softly.
Orlando couldn't help the laugh that bubbled up and burst out of him at Dom's question.
"You're fucking kidding, right?" Orlando snorted. "You routinely break his heart and you want me to declare my honorable intentions? Don't think so, mate."
"I know you think I'm an asshole and I know that it probably looks bad to you and anyone else that looks, but he knew the score going in or we never would have done anything."
"You're telling me that even with the connection that has always been between you two, if Billy had said no to a casual fuck buddy arrangement you would have said no?"
"I'm not a complete bastard, Orlando. We discussed it and agreed on terms." Dominic shrugged.
"And he was already in love with you so he would have agreed to being hung by his toenails if it meant he got even a little piece of you." Orlando sighed.
"I didn't know." Dom huffed, exasperated. "He's never told me he loves me."
"He shouldn't have to tell you." Orlando groaned, "Jesus, Dom, exactly how blind are you? The entire fellowship knew it before filming was half finished and you still don't know?"
"I told him we couldn't, I didn't think he'd fucking fall in love with me." Dom threw his arms up in the air.
Orlando wiped his hands across his face and struggled to maintain his composure. "What are you going to do, Dom?"
"I'll talk to him." Dom nodded, "I'll book a flight today."
"No, you won't." Evangeline stated quickly, "We've got filming all week, and you're not going there without me again. Not if I can't trust you to keep your pants on." She watched him closely, then turned on her heel and walked back into the house.
"Bring him here then." Orlando shrugged, "I'll stay, Just fix this, man, let him go."
Dom nodded, jamming his hands into his pockets, his shoulders slumped, he turned and walked towards his lanai.
Orlando watched him walk into the house, and turning to watch the gently rolling waves, he sank down to sit in the white sand. He rested his chin on his updrawn knees as he struggled to calm his turbulent emotions enough to cope with the hopeful call he was about to receive.
He stood, brushing the sand off his jeans and started the trek back to his car and await Billy's call.
~*~*~*~*~
Sure enough, sitting in his car not thirty minutes later, his gaze drifting out over the ocean, watching the azure waves rolling onto the golden sand had calmed his tempestuous mood until his phone rang. When the tinny notes rang out, any semblance of calm was shattered.
Checking the screen he smiled briefly at the fact that he could read his friend so well, before he pressed the button to connect the call.
"Why did you do it?" Billy asked without preamble.
Orlando could hear the anger in his voice. His mind's eye could see the way Billy's lips would be pressed so tightly together that the soft skin would be pinched and white, his brow furrowed tightly and the hand not gripping the phone would be running through his hair, finger combing it roughly as he fought the anger flooding his small muscular frame.
"Because I had no choice." He answered honestly, "I can't stand by and watch him rip your heart out."
A long sigh was Billy's only reply.
"What did he say to you?" Orlando asked quietly, filling the awkward silence that grew between them.
"That you were rude to her, and he needs to see me to talk about 'us'."
Orlando could hear Billy's anger leaving him in a rush only to be replaced by soul eating fear and uncertainty.
"What did you tell him?"
"That I'd be on the next flight."
"For Christ's sake, Bills! Why the hell did you do that?"
"Because...It's Dom, Lan, how could I say no?"
"Easy." Orlando answered drolly. "Try repeating this after me. Sorry. Can't. Fuck off and stop being a heartless bastard."
"I knew what I was getting into Orlando, I told you that. This is my fault, not his."
"Stop making excuses for him."
"What do you want me to do?" Billy murmured into the phone, his voice little more than a whisper in Orlando's ear.
"Stop letting him fuck with your head like this, don't let everything be on his terms."
"Easier said than done, mate." Billy replied, "I told you, this is my Dom."
"Then come down here, see him and then we'll do some surfing. Just you and me."
"We can't...I don't...You won't...We...." Billy stammered nervously.
"Bills, you great prat." Orlando interrupted, "Calm down, you're my mate, my best mate. I don't expect anything other than that. If anything ever happens between us, it won't be now and it sure as hell won't be planned and staged. It'll just be us. But I just want to hang out with my mate."
"But..." Billy tried to continue.
"But nothing." Orlando cut him off. "I'm not Dom, Billy."
"I didn't say you were." Billy countered quickly.
"But you expected me to be selfish just like he is. Thanks a lot Bills, I thought you knew me better than that."
"I did." Billy sighed loudly, "I do and I'm sorry."
"No matter what happens with Dom, you and I are going to surf and have a bloody good time. It's been too long, Billy." Orlando spoke.
"Aye it has." Billy's voice faded as they both fell into silent memories of New Zealand. "I'll be there late tomorrow night. I told Dom I'd stay at a hotel."
"That's a good idea. I'll book you a room at mine or you can stay with me, I've got a spare bed." Orlando suggested quietly.
"Why are you doing this for me, Orlando?" Billy questioned warily.
"I told you already, I can't watch him hurt you anymore. It's not right."
"I'll be there tomorrow...Meet me at the airport?" Billy asked hopefully.
"Absolutely." Orlando nodded and severed the connection.
Folding his arms, Orlando leaned them across the steering wheel and dropped his head against them.
~*~*~*~*~*~
Orlando didn't know what to do. He couldn't do what he wanted to do, and he didn't want to do what he should do. Dialing a familiar number, he lifted his phone to his ear and waited for an answer. When the call connected, they made small talk for a couple of minutes and then Orlando explained his quandary. Sure enough, once discussed, his problems didn't seem as all consuming as they had before. A plan of action outlined in his head, Orlando set them in motion.
~*~*~*~*~*~
Hat pulled low across his eyebrows, sunglasses firmly perched on his nose, Orlando plunged his hands deep into the pockets of his jeans and waited for Billy to clear customs.
Watching the smaller man drag his small suitcase across the floor towards him, he grimaced at the weak smile plastered across Billy's face.
"I thought Dommeh might be here." Billy spoke as he embraced Orlando warmly.
"Why?" Orlando murmured, "He hasn't got an itch yet."
"He's not the bastard ye would make him be." Billy answered slowly, "You haven't seen how loving he can be."
"Mate, stop it. Just stop it. I don't want to hear you defending him." Orlando stated as he pulled Billy's suitcase from his hands. "C'mon, if we hurry we can get in some surfing before dark."
"Actually." Billy replied, "I'd rather get this over and done with."
"Fine, I'll drop you at his house. I'll wait for you." Orlando shrugged.
The drive to the north side of the island was made in silence. Billy's eyes scanned the view out the windscreen worriedly, his fingers plucking nervously at the thigh of his jeans. Orlando watched him surreptitiously as he drove, his fingers itching to reach out and still the smaller man's hands, but he restrained the urge. When he stopped the car outside of Dom's home, he turned in his seat to look at his friend.
"You don't have to do this now, Bills." He spoke softly.
"Yes, Yes I do." Billy sighed as he opened the car door and stepped down from the car.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Bills." Dom spoke as he answered the door.
"Dommeh." Billy replied, avoiding Dom's outstretched arms and stepping into the house.
"So. It's going to be like that, is it?" Dom asked quietly.
"Like what, Dommeh?" Billy shrugged. "I'm only obeying your requests. No inappropriate touching. Remember?"
"Since when is a hug between mates inappropriate?" Dom stood with his hands on the waistband of his low slung yoga pants.
"Since every single fucking time we touch we end up in bed." Billy answered him.
"Evi's not here." Dom stated.
"So, that's how it is. She's not here so it's all right for us to shag, but as soon as she's back it's back to impersonal Dom again. I can't keep doing this, Dommeh."
"You know she's the answer to everything I've ever wanted." Dom spoke.
"And I'm what? Just some dalliance along the way? Good enough to fuck but not good enough to keep? The best fuck you will ever have but not good enough for you to be proud enough to acknowledge publicly." Billy's eyes filled with a sheen of frustrated tears as he spoke.
"Jesus, Bill. You know as well as I do that if we were to come out, we're fucked. That's why Evi is so perfect for me."
"That's the difference between you and me isn't it?" Billy grimaced. "If it came down to you or my career, well, I don't give a fuck about my career. You mean more to me than any movie we could ever make." He sighed sadly. "Orli was right. I am better off without you."
"Orli only wants you for himself." Dom growled angrily. "He's worse than I could ever be, he's playing with your mind, making himself look good so that you'll fall into his arms."
"Not going to happen Dommeh." Billy stated calmly. "When I leave here, I have Ali and Jack and I'll be a damn good father."
"I already know that, Bills." Dom murmured sadly. "Please?" he murmured, his eyes glazed with a sheen of heavy tears.
"Dommeh." Billy whispered softly, one arm lifting to reach out to pull Dom into his arms and pulling back as he realized what he was doing. "Don't do this to me. If you feel anything at all for me, please don't. Just let me go." Billy's voice cracked brokenly as he begged his lover for the strength to release him.
"I don't want to lose you, you're my best friend." Dom stepped forward, one hand cupping Billy's stubble covered cheek.
"That is why this has to happen, if we break 'this' off now we can still be mates. If we fuck each other's heads up, we will lose everything." Billy pulled away from him.
"You put too much stock in what that stupid bastard says to you." Dominic sighed angrily.
"Orlando?" Billy shrugged, "He isn't saying anything I didn't already know."
"I don't know why you even fucking told him."
"You don't get it, do you?" Billy turned to face his erstwhile lover. "I love you. And truly, I'm fine with the fact that you don't love me. Believe me, I get it. But to have you rub my love in my face all the time. It fucking hurts, Dom. I needed someone to talk to, and he's my best friend after you."
"You're such a fucking nancy." Dom sneered, moving to the front door, he flung it open. "Go on. I get it, you don't want to fuck any more because there are no hearts and flowers, well that's not gonna happen, so no point you being here is there?"
Billy watched him for long minutes, torn between irrational anger and the sorrow of loss before he walked out without a further word.
~*~*~*~*~
Orlando sat up straighter when he saw Billy walking across the grass towards the car. He could see the defeated slump of the smaller man's shoulders. He leaned across the car and opened the passenger door and waited for him to climb inside before he started the engine. He didn't have to ask to know that it had gone badly, he hadn't expected any better.
"You okay?" he asked gently.
"Just drive, Lan." Billy spoke quietly, his voice thick and unintelligible.
Orlando watched him for a few seconds and threw the car into gear and drove off, spinning his tires satisfyingly across Dominic's front lawn.
~*~*~*~*
Driving directly to the small beachfront house he had rented Orlando parked in the driveway. Billy hadn't spoken or even turned his face from the window during the whole trip. Stopping the car, he removed the keys from the ignition and turned to look at his friend. Billy's lips were pressed tightly together, pinched and white; one hand gripped the arm rest on the door, and the other curled into a tight fist on his thigh.
"Do you want to talk about it?" Orlando asked softly, turning his head to look out through the windscreen at the perfect waves rolling in onto the golden sands.
"No." the single word answer drew his attention back to Billy's face.
"It might help." He offered gently, one hand reaching out to cover Billy's taut fist.
"Is it true what he says?" the words were little more than a whisper but it was louder than cannon fire in Orlando's head.
"That I love you?" He decided that honesty was probably the best policy at the moment, "Yes."
"Why?" Billy asked flatly, he still hadn't looked back from the window.
"Why do I love you? Don't know, have asked myself a million times. I don't know."
"Did you do this so that I come running and fall gratefully into your arms?"
"I want you to be happy, Bill." Orlando shrugged. "I don't care who it is with I just don't want to see you like this anymore."
Seconds ticked into minutes, before either of them broke the tense silence that shrouded them.
"Fuck this." Billy growled and flung the car door open, "Let's surf."
~*~*~*~*~*~
Three hours later, the sun was starting to sink below the horizon and Orlando dragged himself exhausted onto the beach. As he flopped onto the warm sand, a can of soda appeared in front of his face, and he accepted it gratefully.
"How is he?" Viggo asked as he sank onto the sand beside him.
"Hasn't said a word to me since we left the car, I think he's thinking." Orlando shrugged.
"Want me to send Karl out to get him?" the older man slipped an arm around Orlando's neoprene clad body and hugged him tightly before pulling back.
"Let him go, I'll watch him."
"We'll be inside, dinner is ready whenever you two are." Viggo pulled himself to his feet again and walked back into the house.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Orlando wasn't sure how long he sat there watching but as the last shards of orange light dipped below the horizon, the light failing quickly, he was grateful for the flaming torches that Viggo and Karl had lit. He glanced around to count the torches and watch their orange flames flickering and turned back to find water dripping on him as Billy shook himself off.
"Did I see Viggo before?" he asked.
"Karl is here too." Orlando nodded, passing a thick fluffy towel up to him.
"They're still happy?" Billy asked as he toweled his hair dry.
"As far as I can tell." He nodded in reply.
Billy flopped down onto the sand and laid back, Orlando watched his feet for a few moments, counting the golden grains of sand that clung to the ginger whorls of hair above his ankles. After several long moments, he chanced a glance over his shoulder and looked at his companion. His folded arm was across his eyes and he seemed to be asleep. Content to sit there and let him have some peace, Orlando turned back to watch the waves rolling onto the beach, allowing the ocean noises to sooth his taut nerves.
"I can't promise you anything, Lan." Billy's voice seemed loud in the silence.
"I don't want anything, other than you being happy." He responded truthfully.
"I do." Billy answered.
"We'll see. I'm not forcing you into anything. Get over him and then we will talk." Orlando replied.
In one fluid movement, Billy lifted himself to his feet and extended a hand to Orlando. He watched Billy's hand for a moment before he folded his own hand around Billy's fingers, pulling himself to his feet. As he stood Billy closed his arms around him and hugged him tightly. No words were needed and none were given.
Everything was going to be okay.
***
Recipient: feelforfaith
Author: sassywitch
Pairing: Billy/Dom, Billy/Orlando and a hint of something else
Rating: PG, or M for language
Summary: Orlando tries to fix a problem he can see.
Pre-reveal Notes: I had a completely different fic written but I decided it didn't quite fit the request, I'm hoping that this one fits a little more. Oh and I needed a villain.
Disclaimer: This is a non-profit, non-commercial work of fiction using the names and likenesses of real individuals. This fictional story is not intended to imply that the events herein actually occurred, or that the attitudes or behaviors described are engaged in or condoned by the real persons whose names are used without permission.
Orlando had watched for eight long years. He knew exactly what had been going on and, until now, the only thing stopping him from intervening was the secrecy. It had taken that long for Billy to finally open up to him; the entire fellowship knew exactly what was going on but not one of them would ever say a word. Since his supposed ignorance was no longer an issue, Orlando had angrily decided the time was right to confront his long-time friend about the duplicitous nature of his behavior.
"Get your ass out here." He called, banging loudly on the door.
Hearing footsteps inside the house, he stepped back from the door and waited, his toe tapping impatiently on the stairs.
A tousled brunette head peered around the edge of the door, her smile widening as she realized who it was and opened the door.
"Hello...Orlando? What are you doing here?" Evangeline asked with a sleepy, seductive smile, opening the door to him.
"Is HE home?" Orlando looked her up and down derisively. Wrapped in a pale blue bed sheet, one hand held a clump of sheet together over her breasts as the other swung the door further open.
"He's sleeping, we had late shooting last night. We can have breakfast while he sleeps if you like." She smiled coyly, her grip on the sheet slipping enough that the upper curve of her breasts spilled forward and bared itself to his view.
"No thanks." Orlando looked her up and down and pushed past, her stalking through the house in which he'd so often been a guest.
Stopping just inside the door to Dom's bedroom, he saw Dom lying spread-eagle, face down on the bed and stark naked. Glancing around, he grabbed a pair of sweatpants from the washing basket just inside the door and flung them at the bed. He was strangely satisfied when they landed across Dom's body and startled Dom into wakefulness. Orlando could only assume Evangeline was wrapped in the sheet that had been covering both of them.
"Orli?" Dom rubbed at his eyes, confused.
"Get dressed, Monaghan. We need to talk. Now." Orlando said shortly as he turned on his heel and walked without a backward glance out of the house and down the path to the sandy private beachfront.
He stalked across the sand, his footsteps digging a rut into the warm sand as he castigated himself for his actions. He wasn't sure who he was more annoyed with, his friend or himself. Orlando paced incessantly in the warm golden sand as he waited for Dom to emerge from the house.
"You're going to wear a path down to China, Orli." Dom murmured, his voice amused, as he walked down the beach towards him, fingertips scratching at the sparse hair on his chest.
"I want to know what you're up to." Orlando asked without preamble, his teeth clenched together as he struggled to hold his anger.
"Up to? I'm not up to anything, mate." Dom answered quickly.
"Then what the fuck is going on with Billy?"
"Don't see how that's any of your business...mate." Dom responded firmly, one hand lifting to scratch through his sleep-tousled hair.
"Like hell it isn't. Somebody has to look out for him. You're his lover and you sure as hell don't."
"And you think that you're up to the job, do you?" Dom laughed.
"More than you will ever be." Orlando answered.
"Slight catch with that plan, Elfboy." Dom responded calmly, "He loves me."
"Yeah, well they say love is blind." Orlando sneered, enraged by Dom's nonchalance.
"Do you two want to keep it down, or maybe move inside?" Evangeline trotted out of the house towards them, glancing pointedly at their neighboring houses.
"Can't interfere with the image can we?" Orlando grimaced, "For God's sake, can't you think about him for a change instead of what the bloody public thinks?"
Evangeline looked at him coldly. "You of all people should know that image is everything in this business, Orlando."
"In this industry it might be, but a person is nothing without their friends. Keep this up and you're well on the way to being nothing, sweetheart."
"Are you going to let him talk to me like that Dommie?" Evangeline pouted, her eyes hard.
"So, Dommie?" Orlando responded sarcastically emphasising his name, "You won't defend your boyfriend from yourself, are you going to defend her honour?"
"I can't see what any of my relationships have to do with you, Elfboy, so why don't you just fuck off back to the mainland and mind your own business." Dom snarled.
"You can't, can you?" Orlando grimaced watching the couple in front of him closely. "You're so wrapped up in your own images and publicity that you honestly can't see what you're doing to anyone else. I was wrong to be pissed at you. I should be pitying you. You're not heartless, you're pathetic."
"What the fuck are you talking about Orlando?" Dom frowned shaking his head in consternation.
"Answer me one thing." Orlando pressed his fisted hands to his hips, his feet slightly apart. He rocked back on the balls of his feet, desperately trying to release the anger that was blinding him to everything else. "Did you ever love him? Or is he just a convenient fuck?"
"That's none of your concern." Evangeline answered primly as Dom fell silent.
Orlando stretched to his full height and stepped closer to the couple in front of him. "When I want your opinion I'll give it to you." He snarled at her angrily, "This..." he gesticulated between himself and Dom, "Is none of your concern, so butt out."
"Watch your mouth, Orlando." Dominic growled, standing straighter.
Orlando stepped back and turned his back on the couple that enraged him so badly.
"Why do you do it, Dom? Make me understand. You have a man that loves you so completely that he'll put up with all this shit for one night every three months, despite the fact that you treat him like crap, yet you swan around here with her, like he never even happened."
"She loves me." Dom stated quickly.
"Bullshit. She loves the connections you can give her. While your back is turned she's hitting on anyone that can get her further. She doesn't love you, you're a fucking stepping stone to fame."
"You're full of shit, Bloom." Dom's face was flushed as he growled, his fists clenching and unclenching at his sides.
"I'm not here to sort you pair of assholes out. I'm here for Billy. Either treat him properly or fucking cut him loose."
"Why? He's not stupid, he knew the score before we'd even fucked."
"Maybe his head did, but it sure as hell didn't send the memo to his heart. He loves you Dommie, please stop hurting him."
"He's a big boy Orlando, besides, he was told that it was over when we started dating." Evangeline explained.
Orlando's anger flared white-hot again as he listened to her speak.
"Really, well then why was it that the sweat hadn't started to cool on their skin after they'd fucked before he was asking Billy to be his best man?"
If it hadn't been so important to him, Orlando would have laughed at the expression on her face.
"You fucked him?" She shrilled, turning to Dom as she pushed her hair back from her face. "You told me that it was over with him! You told me you hadn't been with him in two years, Dom!"
"Didn't he tell you? Billy is an itch he just can't scratch. They can't just visit like normal friends; they have to shag like bunnies." Orlando chuckled.
"Dominic?" She asked quietly, her voice as brittle as her expression.
"Evi, please, you have to understand." Dom started to explain.
"I don't have to do anything, Dominic." She replied coldly, "We had an agreement."
"And I tried, but you don't know how hard it is." He murmured, his eyes downcast.
"Yup." Orlando grimaced tightly, "It's so hard for you to keep going back slaking your thirst and breaking his heart every time you fucking see him."
"You don't understand either." Dom looked up at Orlando, his blue eyes shimmering with tears. "He's Billy."
"Oh, believe me, you selfish asshole, I understand completely. He loves you and every time you get the urge, you go and you twist him around your little finger. Every single time you've had your fill and come back here to your 'normal' life, you break him. He just gets himself back together again and then you start all over again. You've got your 'normal' life you come back to here, but you don't even tell her. He has a beautiful woman and an adorable son, a family that loves him, regardless of anything else, you included, but they're all in limbo, waiting. He can't commit himself to anything, just in case you decide you want him the same way he wants you. Forever. But the whole world knows that will never happen. The only one who doesn't see it is Billy. Trust me, I know exactly how hard it is."
"It's not fucking like that at all." Dom stated firmly. "Billy's happy with..." he paused glancing at Evangeline carefully, "Our arrangement."
"Billy's happy with whatever scraps you'll throw him, you heartless bastard." Orlando replied, "For three or four days he's the fucking king of the world and then you leave him. It takes Ali and his sister two months to put him back together and then you come along and fuck it all up again."
"Why hasn't he ever said anything?" Dom frowned, finally considering Orlando's words.
"Because, you stupid bastard, he's terrified that you'll stop giving him what he thinks he needs." Orlando growled angrily, "How fucking stupid are you, Dom? When are you going to realize that it's not all about you? When are you going to cut him loose so he can have a real life? When will you stop fucking up so many other lives?"
"I don't see how it's any of your business, Elf boy." Dom evaded the questions, his brow furrowed in concentration.
"I'm making it my business, Dom, somebody has to protect him from you. Since he can't or doesn't want to do it himself." Orlando sighed wearily.
"I know exactly why he's doing it." Evangeline stood straighter, "I wonder what your fans would say if they knew?"
Orlando looked from one to the other then focused his attention on her, realizing that she thought she knew his motives.
"Unlike you, my whole existence isn't based on what people think. I'd hope they'd be happy for me... for us and if not, I don't give a shit." Orlando shrugged.
"Liar. I've seen you, you bask in the publicity." She almost sneered at him.
"No. I enjoy certain aspects, but I would never sacrifice my happiness to increase or keep my fanbase." He turned to glare at Dom.
"What's going on? Orlando , why are you so concerned about Billy?" Dom frowned.
"He's in love with him." Evangeline laughed.
"What if I am? He's so easy to love and you just can't see it. You could have it all, but you're too worried about looking normal and what the fans might think and all the shit that goes with it. In the grand scheme of things it doesn't matter. All that should matter is how much he loves you and how much you could love him and be happy together."
"In this business, if we don't have that, we don't work." Dom shrugged.
"You of all people should know better than that. You've seen it, I know you have. Speculation that you two are a couple has only increased your popularity, not diminished it. But you started spending your time with small-minded, fame-hungry assholes and you've turned into one of them. For fuck's sake, Dominic, grow a brain. Either love him or cut him loose once and for all so somebody, hell anybody else has a chance with him." Orlando threw his hands in the air and turned his back on both of them.
Breathing heavily as his eyes glistened with angry tears, he jammed his hands into his pockets and concentrated on controlling the tumultuous emotions threatening to overwhelm him. So what if he was in love with Billy, someone had to look out for him, he was doing a shite job of it himself.
"You're only doing this to score points with him, aren't you?" Evangeline questioned.
Orlando sighed deeply and spoke without turning back towards them. "No. I just want him to be happy. With Dom, with me, with someone else, I don't care. I just want him happy; you haven't seen him, man. You don't know how heartbreaking it is to hold him while he's drunk and sobbing against you, wondering what the hell he's doing wrong and what's wrong with him that he can't make you happy enough to stay with him. I had to get him trolleyed before he'd confess to me and break your promise. You can't expect him to be so completely alone when you do this to him, Dom. He's got no one, if you cared even a little you'd stop hurting him. He doesn't know what he's done, and he can't fucking talk to anyone about it. At least tell him what's wrong with him."
"It's not him." Dom whispered.
"Well he sure as fuck doesn't know that." Orlando continued. "You have to stop it, Dom. It's not going to be long before you break him so much none of us can fix him."
"I just... we just...I don't want to break him." Dom said quietly.
"But you do. Every. Single. Time. You fuck him and leave him and he loses another little piece of himself." Orlando turned to look at Dom, his eyes filled with sadness.
"I need him, Orli." Dom stated simply.
"Do you love him?" Orlando asked quietly, watching Dom carefully.
Dom thought about the question, his gaze studiously on his feet, his hand moving nervously across his bare chest. "In my own way, I do." Dom nodded.
"Then do what's best for him. Either show him you do or cut him loose man. If you keep this up much longer you'll lose Billy the lover and Billy the best mate at the same time."
"You'll be good to him?" Dom asked softly.
Orlando couldn't help the laugh that bubbled up and burst out of him at Dom's question.
"You're fucking kidding, right?" Orlando snorted. "You routinely break his heart and you want me to declare my honorable intentions? Don't think so, mate."
"I know you think I'm an asshole and I know that it probably looks bad to you and anyone else that looks, but he knew the score going in or we never would have done anything."
"You're telling me that even with the connection that has always been between you two, if Billy had said no to a casual fuck buddy arrangement you would have said no?"
"I'm not a complete bastard, Orlando. We discussed it and agreed on terms." Dominic shrugged.
"And he was already in love with you so he would have agreed to being hung by his toenails if it meant he got even a little piece of you." Orlando sighed.
"I didn't know." Dom huffed, exasperated. "He's never told me he loves me."
"He shouldn't have to tell you." Orlando groaned, "Jesus, Dom, exactly how blind are you? The entire fellowship knew it before filming was half finished and you still don't know?"
"I told him we couldn't, I didn't think he'd fucking fall in love with me." Dom threw his arms up in the air.
Orlando wiped his hands across his face and struggled to maintain his composure. "What are you going to do, Dom?"
"I'll talk to him." Dom nodded, "I'll book a flight today."
"No, you won't." Evangeline stated quickly, "We've got filming all week, and you're not going there without me again. Not if I can't trust you to keep your pants on." She watched him closely, then turned on her heel and walked back into the house.
"Bring him here then." Orlando shrugged, "I'll stay, Just fix this, man, let him go."
Dom nodded, jamming his hands into his pockets, his shoulders slumped, he turned and walked towards his lanai.
Orlando watched him walk into the house, and turning to watch the gently rolling waves, he sank down to sit in the white sand. He rested his chin on his updrawn knees as he struggled to calm his turbulent emotions enough to cope with the hopeful call he was about to receive.
He stood, brushing the sand off his jeans and started the trek back to his car and await Billy's call.
~*~*~*~*~
Sure enough, sitting in his car not thirty minutes later, his gaze drifting out over the ocean, watching the azure waves rolling onto the golden sand had calmed his tempestuous mood until his phone rang. When the tinny notes rang out, any semblance of calm was shattered.
Checking the screen he smiled briefly at the fact that he could read his friend so well, before he pressed the button to connect the call.
"Why did you do it?" Billy asked without preamble.
Orlando could hear the anger in his voice. His mind's eye could see the way Billy's lips would be pressed so tightly together that the soft skin would be pinched and white, his brow furrowed tightly and the hand not gripping the phone would be running through his hair, finger combing it roughly as he fought the anger flooding his small muscular frame.
"Because I had no choice." He answered honestly, "I can't stand by and watch him rip your heart out."
A long sigh was Billy's only reply.
"What did he say to you?" Orlando asked quietly, filling the awkward silence that grew between them.
"That you were rude to her, and he needs to see me to talk about 'us'."
Orlando could hear Billy's anger leaving him in a rush only to be replaced by soul eating fear and uncertainty.
"What did you tell him?"
"That I'd be on the next flight."
"For Christ's sake, Bills! Why the hell did you do that?"
"Because...It's Dom, Lan, how could I say no?"
"Easy." Orlando answered drolly. "Try repeating this after me. Sorry. Can't. Fuck off and stop being a heartless bastard."
"I knew what I was getting into Orlando, I told you that. This is my fault, not his."
"Stop making excuses for him."
"What do you want me to do?" Billy murmured into the phone, his voice little more than a whisper in Orlando's ear.
"Stop letting him fuck with your head like this, don't let everything be on his terms."
"Easier said than done, mate." Billy replied, "I told you, this is my Dom."
"Then come down here, see him and then we'll do some surfing. Just you and me."
"We can't...I don't...You won't...We...." Billy stammered nervously.
"Bills, you great prat." Orlando interrupted, "Calm down, you're my mate, my best mate. I don't expect anything other than that. If anything ever happens between us, it won't be now and it sure as hell won't be planned and staged. It'll just be us. But I just want to hang out with my mate."
"But..." Billy tried to continue.
"But nothing." Orlando cut him off. "I'm not Dom, Billy."
"I didn't say you were." Billy countered quickly.
"But you expected me to be selfish just like he is. Thanks a lot Bills, I thought you knew me better than that."
"I did." Billy sighed loudly, "I do and I'm sorry."
"No matter what happens with Dom, you and I are going to surf and have a bloody good time. It's been too long, Billy." Orlando spoke.
"Aye it has." Billy's voice faded as they both fell into silent memories of New Zealand. "I'll be there late tomorrow night. I told Dom I'd stay at a hotel."
"That's a good idea. I'll book you a room at mine or you can stay with me, I've got a spare bed." Orlando suggested quietly.
"Why are you doing this for me, Orlando?" Billy questioned warily.
"I told you already, I can't watch him hurt you anymore. It's not right."
"I'll be there tomorrow...Meet me at the airport?" Billy asked hopefully.
"Absolutely." Orlando nodded and severed the connection.
Folding his arms, Orlando leaned them across the steering wheel and dropped his head against them.
~*~*~*~*~*~
Orlando didn't know what to do. He couldn't do what he wanted to do, and he didn't want to do what he should do. Dialing a familiar number, he lifted his phone to his ear and waited for an answer. When the call connected, they made small talk for a couple of minutes and then Orlando explained his quandary. Sure enough, once discussed, his problems didn't seem as all consuming as they had before. A plan of action outlined in his head, Orlando set them in motion.
~*~*~*~*~*~
Hat pulled low across his eyebrows, sunglasses firmly perched on his nose, Orlando plunged his hands deep into the pockets of his jeans and waited for Billy to clear customs.
Watching the smaller man drag his small suitcase across the floor towards him, he grimaced at the weak smile plastered across Billy's face.
"I thought Dommeh might be here." Billy spoke as he embraced Orlando warmly.
"Why?" Orlando murmured, "He hasn't got an itch yet."
"He's not the bastard ye would make him be." Billy answered slowly, "You haven't seen how loving he can be."
"Mate, stop it. Just stop it. I don't want to hear you defending him." Orlando stated as he pulled Billy's suitcase from his hands. "C'mon, if we hurry we can get in some surfing before dark."
"Actually." Billy replied, "I'd rather get this over and done with."
"Fine, I'll drop you at his house. I'll wait for you." Orlando shrugged.
The drive to the north side of the island was made in silence. Billy's eyes scanned the view out the windscreen worriedly, his fingers plucking nervously at the thigh of his jeans. Orlando watched him surreptitiously as he drove, his fingers itching to reach out and still the smaller man's hands, but he restrained the urge. When he stopped the car outside of Dom's home, he turned in his seat to look at his friend.
"You don't have to do this now, Bills." He spoke softly.
"Yes, Yes I do." Billy sighed as he opened the car door and stepped down from the car.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Bills." Dom spoke as he answered the door.
"Dommeh." Billy replied, avoiding Dom's outstretched arms and stepping into the house.
"So. It's going to be like that, is it?" Dom asked quietly.
"Like what, Dommeh?" Billy shrugged. "I'm only obeying your requests. No inappropriate touching. Remember?"
"Since when is a hug between mates inappropriate?" Dom stood with his hands on the waistband of his low slung yoga pants.
"Since every single fucking time we touch we end up in bed." Billy answered him.
"Evi's not here." Dom stated.
"So, that's how it is. She's not here so it's all right for us to shag, but as soon as she's back it's back to impersonal Dom again. I can't keep doing this, Dommeh."
"You know she's the answer to everything I've ever wanted." Dom spoke.
"And I'm what? Just some dalliance along the way? Good enough to fuck but not good enough to keep? The best fuck you will ever have but not good enough for you to be proud enough to acknowledge publicly." Billy's eyes filled with a sheen of frustrated tears as he spoke.
"Jesus, Bill. You know as well as I do that if we were to come out, we're fucked. That's why Evi is so perfect for me."
"That's the difference between you and me isn't it?" Billy grimaced. "If it came down to you or my career, well, I don't give a fuck about my career. You mean more to me than any movie we could ever make." He sighed sadly. "Orli was right. I am better off without you."
"Orli only wants you for himself." Dom growled angrily. "He's worse than I could ever be, he's playing with your mind, making himself look good so that you'll fall into his arms."
"Not going to happen Dommeh." Billy stated calmly. "When I leave here, I have Ali and Jack and I'll be a damn good father."
"I already know that, Bills." Dom murmured sadly. "Please?" he murmured, his eyes glazed with a sheen of heavy tears.
"Dommeh." Billy whispered softly, one arm lifting to reach out to pull Dom into his arms and pulling back as he realized what he was doing. "Don't do this to me. If you feel anything at all for me, please don't. Just let me go." Billy's voice cracked brokenly as he begged his lover for the strength to release him.
"I don't want to lose you, you're my best friend." Dom stepped forward, one hand cupping Billy's stubble covered cheek.
"That is why this has to happen, if we break 'this' off now we can still be mates. If we fuck each other's heads up, we will lose everything." Billy pulled away from him.
"You put too much stock in what that stupid bastard says to you." Dominic sighed angrily.
"Orlando?" Billy shrugged, "He isn't saying anything I didn't already know."
"I don't know why you even fucking told him."
"You don't get it, do you?" Billy turned to face his erstwhile lover. "I love you. And truly, I'm fine with the fact that you don't love me. Believe me, I get it. But to have you rub my love in my face all the time. It fucking hurts, Dom. I needed someone to talk to, and he's my best friend after you."
"You're such a fucking nancy." Dom sneered, moving to the front door, he flung it open. "Go on. I get it, you don't want to fuck any more because there are no hearts and flowers, well that's not gonna happen, so no point you being here is there?"
Billy watched him for long minutes, torn between irrational anger and the sorrow of loss before he walked out without a further word.
~*~*~*~*~
Orlando sat up straighter when he saw Billy walking across the grass towards the car. He could see the defeated slump of the smaller man's shoulders. He leaned across the car and opened the passenger door and waited for him to climb inside before he started the engine. He didn't have to ask to know that it had gone badly, he hadn't expected any better.
"You okay?" he asked gently.
"Just drive, Lan." Billy spoke quietly, his voice thick and unintelligible.
Orlando watched him for a few seconds and threw the car into gear and drove off, spinning his tires satisfyingly across Dominic's front lawn.
~*~*~*~*
Driving directly to the small beachfront house he had rented Orlando parked in the driveway. Billy hadn't spoken or even turned his face from the window during the whole trip. Stopping the car, he removed the keys from the ignition and turned to look at his friend. Billy's lips were pressed tightly together, pinched and white; one hand gripped the arm rest on the door, and the other curled into a tight fist on his thigh.
"Do you want to talk about it?" Orlando asked softly, turning his head to look out through the windscreen at the perfect waves rolling in onto the golden sands.
"No." the single word answer drew his attention back to Billy's face.
"It might help." He offered gently, one hand reaching out to cover Billy's taut fist.
"Is it true what he says?" the words were little more than a whisper but it was louder than cannon fire in Orlando's head.
"That I love you?" He decided that honesty was probably the best policy at the moment, "Yes."
"Why?" Billy asked flatly, he still hadn't looked back from the window.
"Why do I love you? Don't know, have asked myself a million times. I don't know."
"Did you do this so that I come running and fall gratefully into your arms?"
"I want you to be happy, Bill." Orlando shrugged. "I don't care who it is with I just don't want to see you like this anymore."
Seconds ticked into minutes, before either of them broke the tense silence that shrouded them.
"Fuck this." Billy growled and flung the car door open, "Let's surf."
~*~*~*~*~*~
Three hours later, the sun was starting to sink below the horizon and Orlando dragged himself exhausted onto the beach. As he flopped onto the warm sand, a can of soda appeared in front of his face, and he accepted it gratefully.
"How is he?" Viggo asked as he sank onto the sand beside him.
"Hasn't said a word to me since we left the car, I think he's thinking." Orlando shrugged.
"Want me to send Karl out to get him?" the older man slipped an arm around Orlando's neoprene clad body and hugged him tightly before pulling back.
"Let him go, I'll watch him."
"We'll be inside, dinner is ready whenever you two are." Viggo pulled himself to his feet again and walked back into the house.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Orlando wasn't sure how long he sat there watching but as the last shards of orange light dipped below the horizon, the light failing quickly, he was grateful for the flaming torches that Viggo and Karl had lit. He glanced around to count the torches and watch their orange flames flickering and turned back to find water dripping on him as Billy shook himself off.
"Did I see Viggo before?" he asked.
"Karl is here too." Orlando nodded, passing a thick fluffy towel up to him.
"They're still happy?" Billy asked as he toweled his hair dry.
"As far as I can tell." He nodded in reply.
Billy flopped down onto the sand and laid back, Orlando watched his feet for a few moments, counting the golden grains of sand that clung to the ginger whorls of hair above his ankles. After several long moments, he chanced a glance over his shoulder and looked at his companion. His folded arm was across his eyes and he seemed to be asleep. Content to sit there and let him have some peace, Orlando turned back to watch the waves rolling onto the beach, allowing the ocean noises to sooth his taut nerves.
"I can't promise you anything, Lan." Billy's voice seemed loud in the silence.
"I don't want anything, other than you being happy." He responded truthfully.
"I do." Billy answered.
"We'll see. I'm not forcing you into anything. Get over him and then we will talk." Orlando replied.
In one fluid movement, Billy lifted himself to his feet and extended a hand to Orlando. He watched Billy's hand for a moment before he folded his own hand around Billy's fingers, pulling himself to his feet. As he stood Billy closed his arms around him and hugged him tightly. No words were needed and none were given.
Everything was going to be okay.
***