TIMEWARP: Nothing is Sacred, and Everything Hurts

[Tanner Larson]

Non-canon: September 2015

When the lights came up at the House, the crowd was already on its feet.

It had been three years since Tanner had started singing at the House, and during that time, his star had risen into the stratosphere. After a frank and rather nerve-wracking talk with Cynthia the summer after his final year at Hammel, during which everything had been laid on the table, the woman had decided that she was going to put more into Tanner's career than she ever thought she would. And after putting him up for all three weekly shows for three years, they had made quite the name for him in Pilot Ridge. A household name he was not, but he was well-known by everyone who ever attended a show at the House.

Taking the mic off the stand and into his hands, Tanner swayed gently to the beat of the music, bringing the mic up to his mouth to sing when the time came.

"Boy, you know you really blew it.
Tell me, what led you to do it?
After all that we have been through,
You don’t love me like you used to.

So you thought you’d find a plaything;
Don’t you know I brought back your ring?
Now I know you’ll never be mine,
But I don’t need you to be fine."

The spotlight was on him by now, and all eyes were glued to the twenty one year old. His blonde hair, which he still kept short and piked up, was covered by a maroon and white baseball cap which was tilted down to hide part of his face. His body, which was more toned than it had been while he was at Hammel, was covered in a tight white tee shirt and black jacket. Dark jeans clothed the rest of his body.

"Cuz I got this little song
About how you did me wrong
And lost everything you had;
Now every time you hear my name,
And how I dumped you for the fame,
It’s gonna drive you fucking mad!"

This song was very familiar to Tanner; he'd written it. He hadn't started dabbling in songwriting until his senior year at Hammel, but Cynthia thought he had a natural knack for it and had helped him set his lyrics to music. He only had a few songs that were 'ready for primetime,' so to speak, but he sang them every once in a while. This was an up-tempo song, a sort of P!nk-esque pop-rock anthem. The sort of thing Tanner loved belting at the top of his lungs.

As the song hit the chorus, two columns of fire rose up off platforms on the stage to frame the set; it had taken Tanner a long time and a lot of training to master the art of using his pyrokinetic abilities while singing, but once he had, Cynthia had been all too happy to shell out the money to make it all work.

"If it hurts when you think of me,
My face in everything you see,
Like your head is trying so hard not to let me go;
If it crushes you to hear my voice,
You’d stop it if you had a choice,
Do yourself a favor and turn off the radio;
Don’t listen to this,
Don’t listen to this,
Don’t listen to this,
Don’t listen to this..."

Once the song had finished, Tanner took a deep bow and gave a big wave to the audience before heading offstage; in three years, he had grown much more confident in his singing abilities and no longer shied away from the crowd or its cheering.

After a few minutes, Tanner emerged in the Main Hall, giving a few polite waves and smiles to those who greeted him as he made his way towards the bar. Casual banter still eluded him, so he just tried to be polite. Once he got to the bar, he took a seat and ordered a vodka soda.

[Robbie Wilkes]

It wasn't working out. It hadn't been for awhile, but Robbie had tried to hold on for as long as he could but in the end, they stopped kidding themselves. As far as breakups went, this had been the cleanest and easiest Robbie had ever done. The fact was, he still loved Dani. How could he not? She was there when everybody abandoned him. He didn't know when that stopped being enough.

Robbie didn't want to stay in his apartment alone so he went out and started walking. He didn't even know where he was going but he didn't stop.

Until he saw the sign to Tanner's workplace. The last time Robbie went there, it was to see Tanner perform. It was his first time hearing Tanner's voice and it had been unforgettable. He didn't try coming back though, he didn't know why.

He spent a few minutes just staring at the sign before realising that it had a line. It was a short one, but it was a line no less. He stood in it and heard the muffled sounds of a rock-y song playing. The words filtered out every now and again as people went in or left.

Once he was inside, he saw Tanner standing on stage, performing like Robbie had never seen him perform. He had heard that Tanner was making his name around town and he had been so proud of his friend. He hadn't known, and still didn't know, whether it was okay to approach the younger man.

There had to be a reason why he was here now.

When Tanner left the stage and to the bar, Robbie inched towards it through the crowd and sat beside the other blonde. "Hey, good job out there." He announced. His voice cracked just a tiny bit as he forced a smile on his face. No reason for him to put a damper on Tanner's day. "Whiskey." Robbie ordered.

[Tanner Larson]

'Good job out there.'

Tanner was used to hearing the words; not that he had become vain and didn't appreciate them, but objectively it was a compliment he received with relative frequency now that he was better-known around the club district. But he was as polite and modest as he had ever been, so when he heard them this time, he turned towards the source to thank the person with a smile.

"Hey, thanks-"

He cut himself off at the sight of a familiar face. It had been nearly three years, but he would recognize Robbie Wilkes anywhere. He looked very similar to when he'd known him at Hammel, but older - and, if he were to dig a little deeper, a bit more mature and more 'manly' in a sense. It was a very welcome change; he was as handsome as he'd ever been. Though Tanner's eyes had widened at the initial sighting, he recovered quickly.

"Thanks, Robbie," he said, briefly wondering if the other went by Robert or Rob now that he was older. He hoped he didn't; a name like Robbie suited him perfectly. For a moment, he couldn't even think of what else to say. The last time they had seen one another, it had been seven months since their last interaction. This time, it had been nearly three years. So much had changed, he imagined for both of them, and yet here they were.

He remembered everything about their last day together. While he no longer crushed over the boy - there were still lingering feelings, but only in the very back of his mind - he did think about the performance he had given that night so long ago. He wanted to know, more than anything, whether Robbie had actually shown up, but he couldn't just ask right away.

He had heard the anxiety in Robbie's voice, but he never would have guessed that it had to do with breaking up with Dani; he wasn't even sure whether they were still together, as they were on very different paths and moved in different social circles. He imagined they were still together, though, since Robbie had seemed so deeply in love. As it were, he just assumed the boy was nervous about greeting him: the last time he had done so after a prolonged absence, it hadn't exactly gone well.

"So... how are things?" He asked with genuine interest. Since they were both here, they probably had time to catch up; they certainly had a lot of catching up to do.

[Robbie Wilkes]

Robbie gave Tanner a smile when the look of recognition dawned on the younger blonde. It was a good thing the other meta didn't look...what, scandalised? when he saw Robbie. It would have been a giant mess had Tanner told him to go away or something.

Tanner's question made his smile falter a little before he strengthened it, looking at the other man with a shrug. "I've just started my Bachelors in Linguistics. I'm applying for a teaching diploma in November." He answered. "So all in all, pretty good." He took the whiskey with a nod to the bartender and took a long sip of the strong liquid.

"Can't believe the last time I saw you here was three years ago." He sighed softly, setting his glass quietly on the bar top. "You've made quite a name of yourself. I'm so proud of you." He patted Tanner on the back, his hand lingering just a little bit before he leaned it against the countertop.

[Tanner Larson]

There was a time when Tanner would have advised Robbie not to interact with him, but that was nearly three years ago. Since then, a lot had happened to Tanner, including a rapid boost in his career and a few short-lived relationships. Robbie still came to his mind every once in a while, but far less frequently and far more fondly than he had before. Robbie had been right to ask him to spend that last day with him.

The pyro listened with genuine interest as Robbie caught him up; obviously he wanted to know more, but then again he wanted to know basically everything that this kid had been up to since they had last seen one another. "That's great, Robbie," Tanner said sincerely, giving the other a bright smile. Tanner knew he was doing well, but he hadn't know that about Robbie and it was good to hear. "Teacher? Wow, cool," he said with a nod. Tanner was still an academic, but with work and everything else that was going on, his scholarly pursuits had taken a backseat for now. "Sounds like it," he agreed. How funny: Robbie had always been the less intelligent of the pair (to put it lightly), but now he was the one going to college while Tanner forewent it to pursue other opportunities. Time sure had a funny way of changing people.

The boy's face brightened up noticeably as Robbie indicated that he had been at the House for his performance. "You came..." he breathed, and it was quite clear that he was happy, if not feeling a bit sentimental. "I'm glad." He normally didn't voice his feelings, but he was too happy for his brain to tell his mouth to stay shut. He desperately wanted to know what Robbie had thought of it - and what Dani had thought of it, for that matter, if she had showed up - but he didn't think it appropriate to ask. As Robbie congratulated him and gave him a friendly pat on the back, Tanner looked down. There was something very nostalgic about this moment, almost bittersweet? He couldn't quite place it, but it made him both extremely happy and a bit sad at the same time. "Thank you," he said, meaning every word and appreciating the gesture. "So... umm..." Now was another time in which his brain simply didn't stand a chance against his mouth. "How are things with Dani?" He knew it was inappropriate to ask, but he was simply too curious for his own good.

[Robbie Wilkes]

Tanner's smile made Robbie form his into a much more genuine one. "Thanks. And yeah. Fell in love with Linguistics and figured, the only reasonable occupation for that would be to teach it. U of V has an excellent program for it and there are actually a lot of people who seem pretty interested in that field so why not?" He was glad they were talking about some neutral. There was just no way he could handle anything more serious than this.

"Of course I did! You asked." Robbie pointed out, his smile softening when he saw how happy Tanner looked. He had wanted to tell Tanner that in person but the way the boy left the stage suddenly sort of told Robbie that maybe he should just give him space.

But at least it helped. Tanner was still talking to him and it wasn't at all with animosity or coldness.

And then the hard question came and as much as Robbie wanted to continue with his jovial facade, the break up was still fresh in his mind. His smile dropped an inch as he hid it by drinking from his glass. "Good. But...uh...we broke up. A couple of days ago." He took another long sip of his drink and flashed Tanner a quick smile before turning back to his glass.

[Tanner Larson]

Tanner listened to Robbie describe how he came to the decision of majoring in linguistics. "Oh, cool," he said with a nod; he knew he should feel awkward, like this was some sort of forced conversation, but he didn't. He was happy to see Robbie, and he was happy to hear that he was doing well. Tanner was doing well, too, and perhaps that was why he didn't feel bitter that Robbie seemed to have it all. "Well, it's good you found something you wanted to do," he offered.

The blonde was genuinely thrilled that Robbie had come. While it had been very difficult to get through at the time, he was very proud of him for having gone through with it, and frankly if he were ever asked his favorite song, it would be that one for that exact reason. Knowing that Robbie was there, after three years of wondering, was not only a weight off his shoulder, but a very welcome surprise. Color rose to his cheeks as Robbie proudly said he had come because Tanner had asked. "Well, I'm glad you did," he stated, nodding his head. "I hope you... 'got' it."

When Robbie replied at first that things with Dani were 'good,' Tanner simply nodded, trying to ignore the slight tinge of bitterness that swept through his mind as he heard it. He was over Robbie, he swore he was, but still... that could have been his three years. But then Robbie stated they had just broken up, and Tanner's face completely fell in that instant. "Oh, Robbie..." he breathed, trying to find the words. Sure, he was sort of annoyed that he'd never been given a shot, but to break up after three years? "I'm... so sorry." Without thinking about it, the boy placed a hand on the weather manipulator's shoulder, rubbing it gently. "Are... you okay?" He seemed so, but Tanner knew he wasn't very good at reading people. To see Robbie for the first time in three years, immediately after he'd broken up with his long-term girlfriend, was extremely weird. He didn't want to seem sadder than Robbie was, however, so he would take his cues from how the boy responded.

[Robbie Wilkes]

"Thank you." Robbie nodded with a grin. "It was a surprising revelation to say the least." He was rather proud of finding something he wanted to do so early in life. Then again, it wasn't a hard decision either.

"So am I. It was a beautiful performance." He commented, genuinely believe it to be so. And he did get what Tanner had tried to tell him. Initially he thought it had just been that Tanner had wanted him to see his performance but having Dani there sort of clinched it.

The hand on his shoulder was comforting and Robbie, though he wanted to just curl up right then into Tanner's arms, he held his head high and smiled, shaking his head as if to say he was fine.

"Of course. I just...I'm glad that we got out of it before we started resenting each other." He admitted. That would not have been pretty. "I still love her. And I know she loves me too. But I dunno...I guess people are right in saying love is sometimes just not enough."

[Tanner Larson]

Tanner blushed profusely when Robbie called his performance 'beautiful.' Normally, he would disagree, but having spent literally an entire day working on every aspect of the performance with Cynthia, and having put his entire heart and soul into it, he had to grudgingly agree. "Thanks, Robbie," he replied with a soft but warm smile. "That really means a lot to me." And it did - because if he could never have Robbie, then at least he wanted the boy to have known how he felt, then and now.

Tanner decided not to get too sympathetic, not because he didn't care - he did, truly, care about Robbie's feelings and wanted him to be happy - but because he didn't want Robbie to be uncomfortable or accidentally trigger some sort of sadness. He had to admit, though, that this confused him: so they still loved each other, and yet had broken up? Tanner knew very little about relationships, even after having been in a few admittedly short-lived ones, and this was an example of some aspect of love that completely eluded him. "I'm sorry, I... guess I don't understand," he replied, deciding he'd might as well admit this aloud. "What do you mean? I mean, if you love each other..." Wasn't it sort of a waste? After all, what more than love could Robbie have possibly wanted?

[Robbie Wilkes]

Robbie simply smiled in response to Tanner's statement. He understood now. He didn't know what to make of it before but knowing had somehow put his mind at ease.

A cynical bark of laughter escaped Robbie's lips at Tanner's confusion. Truth be told, Robbie didn't understand either. Everytime he discussed it with Dani, the voice mimic had also said she didn't understand. They had tried reliving moments that had sparked their feelings in the first place, they had tried to get out of their routined lifestyle, but nothing worked. They cared for each other, they knew they would still do anything for each other but they didn't know if they wanted to be with each other anymore.

"Frankly, I'm as confused as you are." Robbie shook his head and finished the remains of his drink before signalling for another. "I guess...things just expired." He slumped forward on the countertop. "I'm sorry bud. I don't mean to rain on your parade. I was just trying to clear my head and suddenly found myself here." He admitted with a sad smile.

[Tanner Larson]

Tanner's confusion only deepened as Robbie laughed at his question, and the blonde developed the feeling that this would be something he would just never understand. Which was okay, since the more he opened up, the more Robbie seemed at least a little bent out of shape over this. But given the fact that his relationship with Dani had lasted three years, Tanner wouldn't have blamed him for being more than a little upset - or, at least, more upset than he was letting on. But it seemed like Robbie didn't really want to talk about it - again, something he couldn't blame the weather manipulator for - so he was going to back off for now. His curiosity remained, though, and he was determined to tease out pieces of information wherever he could.

"No, don't be," he replied quickly, taking a final sip of his drink before placing it back down at the bar; he discreetly motioned to the bartender for another, under the assumption (or hope) that he would be there a while. "I'm glad you found me." He regretted his phrasing: it wasn't like Robbie had come here for the sole purpose of running into him, though that was certainly what had happened. "I mean, I'm glad to see you," he corrected with a nod. "You know, you can come to me whenever you need anything." Robbie probably didn't know this, given that Tanner had asked not to see him for a while the last time they'd met, but after three years, he was sure he could handle some sort of friendship with this boy. And if he was hurting, then that hurt Tanner, too.

It did seem somewhat strange, when he mentally stepped back, that Robbie would end up at the club where Tanner sang just days after breaking up with Dani, but Tanner didn't want to grow curious in that way, so he let that thought escape his mind. "Have you... been coming here?" He asked, throwing caution temporarily to the wind. This boy had certainly piqued his curiosity in a number of ways, and the pyrokinetic couldn't help but ask these questions.

[Robbie Wilkes]

Tanner's silence after Robbie's poor attempt of explaining his situation made Robbie feel a little bit worst. Like he had broken up with Dani over nothing. Or something that was just unexplainable. Did he though?

"I'm glad I found you too."

It's true that the weather manipulator hadn't sought out the pyrokinetic purposely but he had to have had Tanner in mind when he left his apartment for him to actually end up at the House.

"Can I really?" Robbie blurted out without meaning to. He didn't say it out of malice but there was a trace of bitterness in it. It wasn't directed to Tanner though. He knew how Tanner had felt about him back then and Robbie didn't want to be the jerk who kept on shoving himself into Tanner's face just because he wanted to. Or just because he could.

At Tanner's question, Robbie shook his head and looked down at his almost empty glass. "I wanted to but...I didn't want..." Robbie paused and thought over what he was going to say and found that it sounded presumptuous and conceited. Like Tanner would actually revolve his world around Robbie.

"I'm sorry...I'm a mess. I shouldn't have come here." He rubbed his eyes, looking more like a child than he was when he was actually a child. He finished up his drink and threw a tenner on the counter before slipping off his stool. "You really did do a good job. I'd hate to be the person you wrote that song about." He smiled sadly and hugged his jacket closer to him as he walked out of the club.

[Tanner Larson]

Tanner couldn't help but smile as Robbie agreed on the comfort of their having stumbled into one another. He still wasn't totally sure that it was an accident, but he wasn't going to push the weather manipulator on that. He didn't want things to be as uncomfortable as they had been the last time they had seen one another after a long time - at the mall, when Tanner had basically just walked away from him. "Good."

But his smile disappeared at the other boy's next question, and he turned away from him slightly, eyes lowering to the bar. He was embarrassed now, but on top of that he also felt guilty. If Robbie had needed him, then he hated to think that he hadn't been there. "I'm sorry-" he started, but then stopped himself, slicing through the air with one of his hands. "No, that's not how I wanted to start that," he admitted. He wasn't sorry: he had needed that time, had needed to find his own happiness without someone there to create it for him. "I shouldn't have taken so long," he added at length, turning back towards Robbie. "But once I... you know, I wasn't sure if you'd want to hear from me." Robbie was right in his assumptions: there was a time when Tanner wouldn't have been able to be his friend without wanting something more. It wasn't conceited; it was the truth based on what they had both experienced. And while the pyrokinetic still wasn't entirely sure what sort of feelings Robbie had harbored for him way back when, he had known at the time that keeping away was just the right thing to do for both of their sakes.

He could tell the other boy - man, he had to remind himself - was getting upset, and he attempted to reach out to him. "Robbie, no," he interjected, practically whining the words as the other blonde stood up from his stool. His eyes darted down to the bar when he saw the bill drift down onto the polished wood, and when he looked up again, Robbie was already leaving. The blonde sighed, deeply, running a hand through his hair: that had not gone as anticipated, not that he had expected anything. But while his younger self would have sat there at the bar moping for the rest of the night, Tanner no longer let things he wanted slip through his grasp.

He hopped up off his stool, hurrying out of the main hall and out the front door. Turning this way and that, Tanner spotted Robbie heading down the sidewalk and raced to catch up to him. "Hey, wait!" He called out, shoving his hands bashfully in his jean pockets as he approached the other boy. "I know I did that to you, but... I guess now I know how it feels," he said as one of his hands reemerged to find the back of his neck. "Look, I... didn't... want you to leave yet," he admitted slowly, eyes once again hitting the ground as he made this confession. "It's been a while, ya know?" What was it about this boy that always made him feel so small?

[Robbie Wilkes]

When Tanner started to apologise, Robbie wanted to cut him off with a dismissal. There was no reason for Tanner to be apologetic at all. He hadn't done anything wrong. But he cut himself short and started it over and what he came up with made Robbie feel horrible for not reach out to the other blonde. What a pair they made. They felt bad about each other without even talking.

He wanted to contribute to this part of the conversation but he found that there was nothing he could say that would remedy the situation because it was in the past. All he could do was give Tanner a tired smile.

Robbie didn't hear Tanner's protest as he walked out of the club and almost didn't turn around when he heard Tanner closing in on him. He paused and took deep breaths to stop himself from breaking down right then and there. Half a decade ago, this scene would have made Robbie laugh because it would have been in a soap opera that he couldn't care for. But here he was, living his nightmare.

He turned and regarded the other blonde with a pained expression. "You don't need to see my like this." Robbie ran his fingers through his hair haggardly before scratching his growing scruff. "I'm sorry Tanner." He said softly. "I can't pretend like everything's okay. And you don't deserve seeing me in a mess like this." He paused and shifted his weight to his other leg. "I...want to stay. I want to sit down and talk to you because I've missed you. But I can't be ruining your night just talking about my problems."

[Tanner Larson]

It was just as well that Robbie had stopped for him, since Tanner wasn't letting him get away regardless: hell, he would have followed the boy home if he'd had to. Once Robbie was facing him again, the pyro looked up at him - they were virtually the same height, though Robbie had about an inch on him - with a curious look. He had assumed that Robbie was okay because he had acted as such back at the bar, but it was beginning to dawn on him now that his initial assessment had been incorrect.

He frowned as Robbie continually excused himself, and as the other boy spoke, Tanner found himself taking a few more steps until they were quite close to one another; this was, apparently, how Tanner felt most comfortable around Robbie. He was used to their being physically close, even if they weren't really 'together.' They had spent most of that final day they'd shared rather close, and of course, the kiss had only confirmed that they were physically comfortable with one another. Robbie, as he knew, used to be very happy to do that with virtually anyone (an unfair assumption, really), but it had taken Tanner a long time to be okay with all of that stuff.

"Robbie..." he started quietly, trying to sound comforting as opposed to morose; he lifted a hand absentmindedly to run his fingers through the other boy's hair, not romantically but almost maternally. "You need to worry about yourself and not me, okay? I'm just fine." And it was true: he didn't need Robbie anymore like he used to feel like he did. Of course, he still wanted him, but not so strongly as before. "If you need someone to talk to... I swear I can be your friend." His hand joined the other back in his pockets; that word still hurt, for a reason he couldn't quite articulate, but he did mean it. "Maybe we can walk somewhere? And just talk? I can listen, I can." It was starting to sound like Robbie had been keeping any negative feelings to himself, and Tanner was willing to shoulder that burden with him. "It's... not good to keep these things to yourself." He'd learned that lesson a long time ago, and he certainly didn't want Robbie to feel like he didn't have anyone to talk to; he especially didn't want Robbie to feel like he couldn't talk to him.