(RPS, Josh/Elijah, PG-13, eight 100 word drabbles)
Title and Lyrics by K's Choice
note: timeline of filming has been altered for fic purposes
I. We’re So Creative
You haven’t seen him in a few years, the last time being the movie awards, where you each nodded a vague hello, while Josh eyed Dom like an Orc hungry for hobbit flesh; not the good kind of hunger either. When Robert calls you, you say yes before he finishes his sentence. All you needed to hear was “Frank Miller.”
“It’s gonna be a bit of a reunion,” he said next. “You. Me. Josh. Texas.” You space out, then. Josh, your first real boyfriend, first person you ever attached that four-letter word to. Josh, whom you never really got over.
II. So Much More
You each only have one day of shooting, both on different days. You wonder if Robert knew more than he let on and deliberately planned it that way. You never asked; you pretty much knew the answer. That didn’t explain why you hang around for a few weeks. When asked, you casually reply that you love the set, love everything about this cult project you are a part of. As Josh’s filming day approaches, you smoke more, sleep less, and look up flights to L.A. for the millionth time, never booking one. You call Dom for advice. He hangs up.
III. Just a Person on My Own
You and Dom possibly had the best break-up in relationship history. Which was why he could tell you to, “grow some balls, ya cunt and don’t come back till you shag the bastard!” and hang up on you, leaving you with a fond smile on your face. You wish your break-up with Josh had been that comfortable. Wished it weren’t awkward anytime you saw one other. But you were both very young heartthrobs, with grueling schedules and homophobic agents and couldn’t make it work. As time passes, you’re more and more sure it was an immaturity thing above all else.
IV. Nothing Means a Thing to Me
You broke-up over the phone six months after the premiere. You’d choked back tears, while secretly hoping for a sign of some in his voice. Years later, you saw an interview saying he’d cheated on his girlfriend with someone on a set. You didn’t know how to feel about that: pleased he was acknowledging you, in so many words? Or pissed that he contextualized it like that? It was hardly cheating. They were having an open relationship, trying to be practical while Josh was ‘trying this movie thing.’ As far as you know, they’d never gone back to being faithful.
V. The Deeper the Thoughts
It sometimes still hurts that he made it work with her for so many years. You’re well aware of the fact that if you were a girl, it would have worked with you too. The gay thing was just another problem on the long list you like to call: Josh and Elijah’s Fucked-Up Timing. You have no idea if he thinks of it like that, or at all. While waiting for him, you hang with Nick a lot, and consider sleeping with him. He’s a good guy, and hot as hell. You try not to examine the reasons you don’t.
VI. I’m Falling
Robert walks onto the set, Josh trailing behind him. You look up and suck in your breath. He’s gorgeous, hair slick back, dressed in a devastating suit. He looks at you briefly, eyes searching your face. You have no idea how much you want to show him just now. Hopefully, it was good enough, because he turns away with a small smile. You don’t talk until after the scene. He walks off and when he comes back, the suit is gone, the hair unslicked. You mourn the loss, but only briefly. “Let’s get out of here,” he says. You follow.
VII. Maybe That’s a Lie
Of course, nothing outside of a movie is that simple. He doesn’t whisk you away to a hotel for hot, mind-blowing sex. Instead, he takes you to a field. A football field. Your heart jumps into your throat. Was it really seven years ago you sat here and shared your first kiss? It feels like forever and yesterday all at once. You talk, catch up and suddenly it’s as it always was, except you’re seven years older and there’re no girlfriends between you, no boyfriends to be jealous of. When he kisses you, you think maybe it is that simple.
VIII. There’s No More Pain
He laughs when he discovers your breath tastes of Cloves. Murmurs, “I really corrupted you, didn’t I?” into your mouth. You push him down on the grass, settling your body over his, smiling into the kiss. It’s fast and frenzied. Even when you were teenagers, you didn’t do it in this field. Didn’t rub against each other desperately in broad daylight until you each came in your pants. You hold each other afterwards, laughing. He pulls out a pack of cigarettes. You take out your matching ones. You realize then, you’ve always had a piece of one another with you.
[end]