Trouble (Rhett.)

[Odion Martins]

Odion felt really bad for Rhett. After the whole thing was said and done, and Trouble had been taken away, he slipped back into the blonde’s room, despite how irritated or depressed he may be. The ginger approached the older boy, sitting on the bed. The covers and pillows had somehow managed to collapse over and around Rhett’s head and face. “I’m sorry about Trouble,” he finally said, a small sigh escaped his lips, his dark eyes looking over the lump in the bed that was his friend.

Running his hands through his hair, Odi let his hands rest in his lap, trying to think of something to say in a situation like this. He had never seen Rhett act so, well, childish. It was really only a dog, but he wasn’t about to stir that pot. “Maybe we can get him back somehow,” he offered, his fingertips touching the others slightly. The innocent act in and of itself proved how unsure he was to go about this whole situation. “I’m sorry,” he said again, removing his hand and resting it next to his friends.

Finally, Odion was tired of not looking at Rhett’s face, so he shuffled closer, removing the pillow and sheets from the blonde’s head. “Come on, you know this isn’t going to help anything,” he said, unable to tell if Goddard had been crying or anything. It was hard to know what to say or do when you couldn’t even see the person in front of you.

He let his fingers trail down the back of Rhett’s neck after her unburied him, gripping his shoulder for a moment and shaking him a bit. “He’s in good hands,” he said, pulling his hand back and running it through his own hair again, sitting on the edge of the bed and leaning forward, turning his head to look back at Rhett.

He was so bad at this. This whole comforting thing.

[Rhett Goddard]

After he entered his room, Rhett knew it was a good idea to lock it behind him, but he didn't. Odion's sudden entering behind him was easily the reason why. To be honest, though, Rhett had no idea of what good having Odion there was, but Rhett nonetheless wanted him there. He didn't even want, nor particularly enjoyed, Odion's attempts to make him feel better, if the ginger could just stay there silently it would be just as good. Maybe even perfect, but that was asking too much from Rhett's feelings since admitting they were feelings was troublesome enough.

Rhett barely moved or produced any sound while Odion said his words. What was he to say? He had no idea. What was he to do? He was even more lost at this. Maybe if he could just stay there motionless, moving only his chest as he breathed, eyes staring at the wall, maybe if he mimicked a hard cold rock, he could be as strong as one. He tried and tried, but it just wasn't working. When Odion uncovered his face, he just tried harder, but there he was still feeling like a mess. After Odion shook him to react, he pushed all his will into attempting his impossible mission, but he still felt like making everything around him explode if only he were able to.

He still had no idea why just a simple puppy was causing such a chaotic soup of emotions inside of him, but the events happening in the last minutes may had been the drops that spilled the cup. Eighteen full years of being a stone-cold robot even after going through what he had in his childhood couldn't come for free and almost-catatonic Rhett in bed was the consequence.

And now it was back to what to do, how to react. All hell had broke loose, so he might as well... go with it? Deciding not to think it through too much, and not fully in control of himself anyway, he rolled to give his back at the wall and not at Odion. Raising his arm, he grabbed the younger boy one side and forced him to lie down with him, quickly burying his face between Odion's neck and the bed.

"Can we, just, not say anything?" His voice weakly asked.

[Odion Martins]

Rhett wasn’t reacting at all, and Odion was left to simply watch the boy lie on his bed, moping. But the redhead was probably the only person who would understand what his friend was feeling right now. Rhett had Trouble for about a week, which meant that he had a creature who loved him unconditionally, depended on him, and enjoyed being with him without saying much of anything. Rhett had found his own little family, and the white dog had touched his heart more than he wanted to admit – but Odi could see right through him. “You don’t have to hide from me,” he said, still trying to get through to his old mate. Rhett knew Odion could match him in stubbornness.

“So we’re going back to not talking about things?” He asked, trying to lighten the mood by joking around. Really he was a little bit mad that Rhett wouldn’t talk to him. Had he done something wrong? He had been right there when the whole thing happened, isn’t that what the blonde wanted? But Odion didn’t need to think for long, as he must’ve missed Rhett’s hand reaching for him due to the high intensity of emotions in the room. He wasn’t sure why the blonde had pulled him down, but he didn’t care – he was happy.

Rhett had changed a lot, and Odion was having trouble keeping up with it all, unsure if it was a good thing or not. The blonde didn’t turn his back to Odi, he had invited him into his life again. Something like this was very strange for Rhett. But the redhead grinned when his partner buried his face into his freckled neck, and muffled speech could be heard. Rhett was starting to grow on Odion, becoming less and less annoying and more... vulnerable. This struck a chord with Odion; Rhett was never vulnerable.

“Yeah, okay,” he said, deciding not to be harsh to this new Rhett. Who, if he happened to look up from the sheets, would notice a rather happy smile on Odion’s face. He wasn’t happy that Trouble was taken away, but if it meant being like this with Rhett, he would do it again. “You’re acting strange,” he finally decided to say, but it wasn’t meant to be condescending, it actually came out a bit excited. Anywhere Rhett was, Odion wanted to be, as had already been proven time and time again – he always came after Rhett.

[Rhett Goddard]

The smell of Odion's neck puzzled Rhett for a few short moments. It felt good. Too good. He wondered where that smell had been his whole life since the two met. He wondered why he hadn't feel it before when they kissed. It was deep, it was comforting and somehow, it made him feel... safe. His breathing became stronger every time, he felt he couldn't get tired of such aroma.

Pushed by something close to, but different from, reflexes, Rhett passed his arm around the ginger, embracing him tightly. Hugging someone when lying down was uncomfortable, he thought, but apparently it just didn't matter.

Some of Odi's words were still echoing in his mind, though. He didn't have to hide from Odion. Still, this was probably the proof that he wasn't. This was Rhett's way to open himself to the boy. A month earlier Rhett had been cursing the fact that Odion had come to Hammel at this moment, "the worst one", but now, now it seemed like it was the perfect moment. Maybe Rhett needed Odion, and it was a possibility that he realized just by having him there so incredibly close too him.

From his hiding place beneath the ginger's neck, Rhett thought if "strange" was everything Odion could conclude, then he was more lost at everything that he thought when the truth was that word was not even close to the start. Then again, Odion couldn't be blamed, he didn't know much of Rhett's past couple of months in Hammel and how they had all summed up and caused his apparent change. Rhett was still keeping such stories for himself and the right time to tell them, if there was such thing, would reveal itself in time. This particular time, however, he still didn't want to talk, he didn't want to say anything at all, but letting himself go with the flow, he swallowed saliva in a futile attempt to make that knot in his throat disappear.

"I'm sorry." He finally said. "I never said it before, but I am." He tightened his grip on the younger boy. "I will never leave like that again. Just..." His voice was fragile and weak, and it had nothing to do with the fact that his face was buried. "don't you do it either." I don't want to be left again... "Promise me."

[Odion Martins]

Odion shuddered under Rhett’s soft breath on his neck, the chain from the ‘gift’ Rhett had given him was pushed out of the way from the blonde’s getting closer, making the tiny hairs on his neck rise up. “Just don’t fall asleep okay?” He asked, finding it not too much to ask since the blonde had asked him to stay. He was just worried that if he fell asleep, then Odi might too, and getting up in the morning, after not leaving the room at all, would leave lots to the imagination of his roommates, something the ginger wasn’t ready for just yet.

He let Rhett hug him though, hold him, silent like Rhett had requested. Odion’s arm slipped over the others, not necessarily waiting for something to happen, just being there. With Rhett, he just wanted to slow time down and embrace the moment like he was embracing his long time friend, but he didn’t want to put the older boy through more misery than he was in right now.

Rhett wasn’t the only one who had changed.

Odion watched Rhett, who still hadn’t moved much and if it wasn’t for his inconsistent breathing, he would assume that the boy had fallen asleep. There must’ve been a lot on his mind, it wasn’t just the fact that Trouble had been taken away. It seemed as though the dog had become his shield, and now that the pup was gone, his walls were down and so was his guard. Odi wasn’t sure what to make of that. He remembered making a silent bet with himself back in Europe that if Rhett started to go soft, hell was freezing over. But things had changed somehow, and Odi wasn’t stupid enough to think it was all because of that dog – Rhett wasn’t that stupid either.

Rhett also wasn’t the only one keeping secrets.

”I’m sorry” Odion tried to memorize these words, not really the words themselves but who was saying them. He was trying to memorize the voice, and the way the words rung out in his ears. Never once had the blonde stated this to the younger boy, and this time, after Rhett was done speaking, he stopped time. He just couldn’t help himself. He needed a few extra moments just to pause and make sure this was real, that the blonde was sincere. The slow ticking from the clock around his neck stopped, and everything stood still. Rhett had been genuine, the redhead could tell by the crack in his voice. Neither of them was going to leave again.

“Je t'aime,” Odion said, comforted by the fact that his frozen, buried friend wouldn’t be able to hear it, it just felt good to get it out. Finally, he let go of his grasp on time, but not Rhett, resting his head on the other’s, deciding that what he just said aloud, just wasn’t the right thing to proclaim right now. And even Odi had to admit it was a little bit crazy. “I promise,” he said, looking out the small window of Rhett’s room. He was home.