Static Shock Fan Fiction ❯ My Happy Ending ❯ Don't Leave Me Hangin'... ( Chapter 17 )
[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]
By: Manga-Chick 
Things start to happen in ways they shouldn't...
Non Anime: Static Shock Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance / Hentai / Drama | Type: Alternate Universe | Uploaded On: 11.27.2005 | Pages: 7 | Words: 9.1K | Visits: 374 | Status: Completed
Things start to happen in ways they shouldn't...
Non Anime: Static Shock Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance / Hentai / Drama | Type: Alternate Universe | Uploaded On: 11.27.2005 | Pages: 7 | Words: 9.1K | Visits: 374 | Status: Completed
Disclaimers Apply Here: Manga-Chick does NOT own any part of Static Shock...no matter what she thinks.
Chapter Seventeen:
Don’t Leave Me Hangin’...
Eustacio stared, with some confusion, as Danny sat down in a cross-legged fashion and ran his claws through his fur.
There came the sound of a tongue clicking on palate, something that Eustacio knew Rudy did at times to call him. Danny often mimicked sounds and words that he heard commonly, but he broke out with something different from time to time. Eustacio was uncomfortable around the metahuman, and he knew it showed.
“Dinner time,” Danny growled, the mixture of sound making what hairs Eustacio had to stand straight up.
“You just ate!” Rudy said in exasperation, from the room where the dog food was kept. He hauled a twenty-five pound bag from the doorway, and tossed it easily to his little brother. Eustacio dropped it clumsily, making Rudy roll his eyes. “So...we got to runnin’ around, last night. Did you hear?”
“About what?” Eustacio muttered, tipping the bag over to search for the tab that would open it.
“Stone.”
“...No. Should I have?”
“Stone beating some stupid fucker down for his...man.” Rudy made a face of disgust, as if he’d eaten something very foul. “That’s fuckin’ sick, man! I mean–two guys? Together? Gettin’ it on?”
“...Fuckin’ sick,” Danny echoed.
Eustacio was already irritated with his older brother, and he shot the metahuman a glance of annoyance. “Like you haven’t fucked a chick up the ass.”
“...Why you defending on that?” Rudy asked curiously, looking over sharply. Danny rose to all fours and shifted around the room. “Hey, man, go outside! Don’t be stupid, go outside! Dumb mutt...”
“I’m just saying. That’s all it is. I don’t like fags, same as you, but, fuck–it’s the same fucking property.” Eustacio watched Danny leave the room, heading outside to do his business.
“Man...don’t even go there, Eu.”
“I’m just sayin’–!”
“You all fag, son? Like Stone?” Rudy shivered. “And, man, seriously? I ain’t no fuckin’ fag, but I’m man enough to admit that a fucker’s...like, okay-looking? Y’know? But the guy they were fighting over was, fuckin’...not even that good looking.”
Eustacio thought of that night. He would agree, as well, but he still hadn’t admitted that it was them that had beaten him. He looked away, to watch the pits bite and gnaw at their cages in their maddened haste to get at the food they smelled.
“Ivan was getting a kick out of the whole thing. Dunno. Then they were saying that he’s all fag, too!” Rudy blinked incredulously. Then he shook his head. “What’s with the world, huh? Gettin’ all that way?”
“...Dunno.”
“Sayin’.. .sayin’ that Stone’s husband was all over him, an’ Ivan was liking it. You know, I gotta bone to pick right now. Say you got a cute chick, huh? And all the boys are liking her, and everyone wants to sleep with her–y’know, all that. It’s natural, right? To want to hit something like that, specially if she all fine an’ shit. THAT I can understand.”
Danny hurried in, ears pricking the air, and Eustacio glanced at him curiously.
“But if a guy’s like that–would guys be actin’ the same way? Wantin’, to, like, fuck some guy, even if he puts out? I mean, I ain’t fag! But...think about it.”
“...I don’t wanna think about it...” Eustacio muttered sullenly, shaking his head.
“I mean, it sounds like it. Stone’s all married to him, then that guy was all over him, then they sayin’ that Ivan’s all over him–but it could be just gossip–!”
“Tyson,” Danny barked, shifting to scratch at his ear. “Tyson!”
Rudy and Eustacio looked over at him. “What about him?” Rudy asked, befuddled. “He all dead. You killed the fucker, man.”
Anxiously, Danny began to pace. “He was with Tyson!”
“...Wait...he was with Tyson, too?” Rudy then exclaimed. Danny bobbed his head furiously, and both men looked shocked. “Damn...this guy sounds like a fuckin’ ho!”
“Others!”
“He was with others?!”
“A lot!”
Rudy looked at Eustacio with an expression of shock, Eustacio giving one of his own.
“I didn’t know fags could be sluts, too!” Rudy exclaimed in outrage.
“Not Static...not with Static.”
“...er...I don’t get that, Danny. What about Static?”
“Gear!”
“...What about them?”
“Not him!”
“...Okay...he wasn’t with them?”
“He’s–!” Danny suddenly averted his face, rising to stand on his hind legs, Eustacio and Rudy staring up at him in silence. He then dropped once more to all fours. “Not with Static.”
“...That was fuckin’ random.” Rudy then laughed. “You fag, Danny? You like guys?”
Danny gave a snort, shaking his head furiously.
“You get laid, lately? You want him? Maybe he’ll put out for you, too!” Rudy exclaimed with mock excitement.
“That’s so fuckin’ sick,” Eustacio commented with immense disgust, shooting his older brother a withering look. “You’re fuckin’ sick! That’s fuckin’–! Gross!”
“Hey, they fucked you over, right? Bitches aren’t safe–look! Danny ain’t denyin’ it! He wants a piece of that ass, too!” Rudy laughed again, uproariously as Danny continued to shake his head, almost with an embarrassed fluster.
“Rudy, shut the fuck up! You all gettin’ all hard just cuz you want it!” Eustacio shouted with a revolted expression.
“Man, fuck you, you bitch. Don’t be talkin’ shit like that. Bitches ain’t safe! We could use him to lure in Stone and Evans. Since they all loved up on him. Fuck, we’ll just use him to get back at them! They fucked you over, we’ll fuck that piece of shit fag over. Then we get at them! Since they be all hard-core for revenge an’ shit! Plus, it’ll be, like, our public duty to get rid of fags. Since AIDS ain’t doing shit, anymore.”
“Rudy, you fuckin’ psycho. Man. Sometimes–!”
“‘Sometimes’ what, Eustacio? Huh? You bein’ all pussy, now? Fuck!” Rudy then cursed, giving his youngest brother a disgusted expression. “You all soft? I know it was them that fucked you over! I already told you, I’m watching out for my family. They fuck with you, they basically fucking with me! We know where they live! I can have someone stake out that fuckin’ shit place and tell me when we can go over. We’ll take care of that fag, then take care of the others when they want revenge. It’ll be cool. Eye for an eye...”
“Fuck you, Rudy. Sounds fucked up. Sounds like something you’d think up.”
“What’s wrong with it? Huh? You want a piece? We’ll give you Ivan, then, ‘k? Cuz I bet it was him that fucked you over. Or how about Stone? You want him? Personally, I want a crack at both. Stone thinks he’s tough shit–Ivan’s just a punk. I want to fuck both of them.”
“Fuckin’ faggot ass homo...”
“I wanna fuckin’ beat them down, man! See how tough they are THEN!” Rudy slammed a fist into the opposite palm, looking determined. “They all hard-core when they have powers and shit, but when they all regular like us, and they get all hard up on making themselves look all bad? Someone needs to put them down in their place!”
“Ooh, an’ you’re just the man to do it, huh?” Eustacio asked sarcastically.
Rudy’s shoulders slumped, and he shot him an exasperated expression. He turned to Danny. “What do YOU think? Huh? Sound like a plan? Bet all the others would think so.”
Danny tossed his head, a smug expression on his face.
“See? See? Danny wants it! You can have him when we’re done fucking him over...”
Danny immediately shook his head in flustered denial, and Rudy laughed again, slapping him across his shoulders.
Eustacio tossed the bag of dog food away from him in disgust, and left the room, limping as angrily as he could. Rudy watched him leave, then frowned over at Danny. “What’s with him?”
Danny made a shrugging motion, then sat on his haunches, tongue lolling out in a lazy way. Rudy reached out to push on his head playfully. “It all a plan, man? You think? We get the fag, fuck him over, then fuck over the others when they come lookin’. Sound good, huh? Least ways, that’s one less faggot the world has to worry about. ‘Specially when they’re sleeping around, an’ shit. You with me?”
Danny tossed his head again, pacing anxiously, Rudy watching him with confusion.
“What’s with you?” Rudy asked, an annoyed tone filtering into his words. “We ain’t killin’ him. Just...fuckin’ him over, like Eustacio got fucked. Eustacio lived–he’ll live. Just an eye for an eye. Sounds good, huh?”
Danny made a low growling noise, turning away from him. Rudy immediately shot him a pained expression, drawing away from him. “You ain’t fag, too, are you? Danny? Danny-boy?”
At the immediate denial, Rudy exhaled forcefully. “Then what’s your fuckin’ problem? What do you want?”
“It’s fair,” Danny replied, in that growling mixture of sound. “Eye for eye. Just...”
“What? ‘Just’ what?”
“It’ll be war. With them. All over, again.”
“So?”
“I can be...cured. He’ll cure me.”
“WHO?”
Danny seemed reluctant to say, shaking his head. “I heard him. He’ll cure me.”
“Who?” Rudy repeated, looking immensely frustrated. “Who the hell are you talking about?”
“Gear.”
“Fuck that ho! He can’t do shit! ‘Sides, him an’ Static haven’t been around, lately. An’ they been taking care of the Playas for us.”
Danny shook his head fiercely. But he seemed reluctant to part with his information. He rose, to lift an arm over his head and use his teeth to scratch at his elbow.
“Then what’s your fuckin’ problem?” Rudy drew out in exasperation. “You and Eustacio have been acting weird, man. Since we been talkin’ about that fag. That’s it, huh? You all in love.”
“NO!”
“Then what the hell? Huh? What the hell, then?”
Before Danny could answer, Armando strolled in with a light laugh. “Guess what, hos?”
Rudy turned away from Danny, frowning as he eyed his brother with annoyance. “Huh?”
“Stone was hauled in, this morning. My friend Marcus was driving by, and saw him get ‘cuffed up and hauled in.”
Rudy blinked, then laughed. “That fag from last night must’ve called and told on him! Hah! Fuckin’ fag.”
“Probably, huh? But he’s all up in jail, now.”
Rudy immediately grew excited, grinning widely. “Meanin’ that his boy is home alone, then, huh?”
“Yeah.” Armando gave him a puzzled look. “So?”
“Let’s get the Blazer, man. We makin’ a trip. I was just tellin’ Danny-boy here and fuckin’ Eustacio that we were gonna snatch Stone’s man. Eye for an eye. Fuck him up like they did with our little brother.”
“Wha–? Really? Shit...I don’t wanna do that.”
“Ah, man, what the fuck?! C’mon! Don’t you fuckin’ want to teach those fucks a lesson?!”
“Well, yeah, but...it’s like pickin’ on a girl.” Armando’s lips pulled back in disgust, recalling what he’d seen last night. “Entirely like a girl.”
“So? Fuck...bitches ain’t safe. Only exception we made was with Theresa. Since Eustacio’s all loved up. Man, it makes fuckin’ sense, why are you guys being such pusses?” Rudy asked in exasperated disgust. “We bad-ass, man! We gotta keep it, that way! Man, if Stone an’ nem thinks they can get away with fucking up our little brother–our little brother!–then what the fuck is the world coming to if we can’t return the favor?”
“...Why not use Adam? Adam’s Ivan’s little brother. That’s making it even.”
Rudy stared at Armando for so long that the other Sedano shifted uncomfortably. Danny gave a small whine as he moved away, leaving the room. Rudy immediately shifted, shouting, “Hey! Where you going?!”
Danny popped his head back into the room. “Walk.”
Both Sedanos watched him leave, then Rudy turned back to Armando. He gave him a long, annoyed look, Armando shifting again in uncomfortable relation to the expression.
Rudy then turned away, giving a mutter of exasperation as he wondered about his brothers’ state of minds.
SS.SS.SS.SS.SS.SS.SS.SS.SS.SS.
Angrily, Richie made sure that all traces of electronic tampering was eliminated. He had Virgil on his cell, listening to him exclaim eagerly over Oscar’s and Jean’s progress, but his mind was fully focused on ruining Joe’s life. Working from his home computer, Richie hacked into Joe’s bank account and made large quantities of donations to various charities around Dakota. He eliminated his trace by using a program he’d designed himself to cover all his footprints. From there, he hacked into the gym’s financial records, and began transferring funds from that station to Joe’s account with deliberate obviousness. He made sure to hack away at small amounts that steadily grew bigger with each transaction. By the time he was finished, it would appear to those looking as if Joe had been stealing money from the gym since December of last year. He also hacked into the membership information base and began transferring files to Joe's home PC.
Satisfied with that aspect, he then hacked into his email accounts to write grievous letters to Joe’s family members and friends, a cruel and deliberate hoax that made it seem as if Joe was ready to commit suicide from all the ‘wrongdoing’ he’d been doing. Still–it didn’t satisfy Richie, and as he finished with all that, he leaned back in his chair and wondered what else he could do to ruin Joe’s life.
He’d woken up alone, figuring that Francis was called away on some business of his own, only to find a note that let him know he was being arrested for assault. After speaking with his parole officer, Francis looked to be doing time for a minimum of five years for violating his parole. Richie had seen red–it didn’t matter that he’d been angry at his husband for various things; what mattered is that this smug sonofabitch knew that Francis was already on parole, and that any little thing could cart him straight back to prison for any small doing.
And for Joe to file assault charges–!
Well, it took awhile for him to calm down to think of ways to ruin the brunette. He’d been at his computer all morning, working to destroy him in all aspects that he could think of. After he was finished, he activated the program once more to erase all his traces, and eliminate any outgoing footprints he may have made from his computer.
If Joe worked at it, and hired someone to investigate, they would never find the evidence needed to convict Richie on that account. The blond knew what he was doing, and he was smart enough to eliminate all his traces using various programs that he’d designed himself.
He crossed his arms and fumed as he stared at the computer screen. John had warned him that Francis could be convicted quickly due to his status and potential to retaliate. And since the redhead had been attending AM weekly, that had been hint enough for the aged parole officer to officiate that Francis had been slipping. The judge ruling the case would take that as evidence needed in that Francis was needed off the streets in case anything more happened to endanger others.
No matter what Richie said in his defense, people weren’t going to take things lightly when it came to Francis’ actions and attitude.
“...and it was fun and exciting and I seriously hope that you have one, too–!”
“I’m not having any kids!” Richie then screamed into the cell, hanging up abruptly. He’d forgotten he was still talking to Virgil. Frankly, he was on edge, right now. Enraged and angry and a little guilty that all of this had started because of him.
His cell rang again, and he scowled at it, not really wanting to talk to Virgil. Ever since his kids came, it was ‘Jean’ this and ‘Oscar’ that, and Richie felt a little guilty in that he didn’t want to hear about it. He didn’t want kids, he didn’t want to feel pressured into having any. They were having enough problems of their own to add kids to the picture.
He tossed his cell away from him and scowled at the computer screen. Virgil had also been pressuring him to investigate further into Daniel Trujillo’s past to find out what connection he had with the Playas’ deaths. He took a few moments to compose himself, then rose from his seat to venture into the kitchen to look for something to snack on. Eager to get his mind off his husband’s premise into jail, and for the fact that bail wasn’t posted–John advising against that, as Francis was fully capable of retaliating despite his and Richie’s word that he wouldn’t–Richie decided to think about Daniel Trujillo, instead. He made himself a quick sandwich and grabbed a soda, then headed back into the spare room to continue working on the computer.
He was able to work with Backpack once he slipped in a transferrable program disk into his home PC. Once the online connection told him that Backpack was waiting for his command, he downloaded the information he’d already gathered from previous searches, then began searching for any files within Dakota’s gang unit to find any information they may have had with Daniel.
After a few minutes, a positive response popped up–Daniel had been registered as a Pitt member before the first Big Bang. His only charge had been a simple B and E into a jewelry store in downtown Dakota. The information he’d gathered from what the gang unit had on him was very limited. The social security number was fake, his birthdate as well, and his driver’s license were fake. He had to wonder why the gang unit was so sloppy in keeping that information on hand.
But that info made him shrug–he and Static had deduced that because it was the Playas being slaughtered, either the Pitts or the Thugs had something going on. Now that it was official, Richie could find out the rest of the information they needed in order to bring Daniel down.
He researched the Pitts, finding out that the eldest recorded member was a Sedano.
“Holy fuck,” he said on a slight giggle. He hoped that it was a coincidence. But more research yielded that it wasn’t. Gathering information on Rudy was easy, and he had to shake his head as he realized how complicated things were getting. He had to wonder if that was why Daniel was hanging around their home–had Rudy discovered that it had been Ivan and Francis that had broken their little brother?
He was concerned for Theresa’s safety, then.
Licking his lips, he was so intensely focused on gathering more information about the gang and Rudy Sedano that he almost didn’t hear the front door open and shut softly. He swallowed hard, withdrawing from the connection he had with Backpack, and eliminating all traces once more.
He stared over at the doorway, wondering who it may be. He had to hope that it wasn’t Ivan–at that thought, his belly twisted with uncomfortable severity. Once Ivan knew that Francis was in jail, who knew what the black man would do?
The thought was both exciting and terrifying at the same time.
Sex was most likely a high possibility, and he hated himself for feeling excited at the prospect. He felt evil and guilty, then–knowing that he’d enjoy sex with Ivan while his husband was in jail because of his actions.
He heard nothing coming from the front, and inhaled sharply, exiting the Internet and shutting off the computer. Rising from the chair, he cautiously ventured out from the room. He walked down the hall and into the living room, looking around with a puzzled expression. The house was quiet–the door was shut. He frowned, looking over at the glass door, then around himself. He knew he had heard the door open and shut–there was no mistaking that familiar noise.
He turned to go and find his cellphone, just in case he needed quick assistance, when he smelled something both familiar and frightening at the same time. He whirled around with a startled gasp, eyes widening at the sight of the tall, bearded, muscular and very naked man standing there in the hall he’d just come out from.
Richie froze with confusion and startled surprise as he stared at the quiet man, wondering if someone had escaped from the small mental hospital located a few miles away from the neighborhood.
There was no denying the man’s ethnicity–his skin was a dark tan color, his face broad with high cheekbones and thick lips. He stood well over six feet tall. He had shoulder length hair that was a very dark brown, the ends frayed and tangled, his beard equally as thick and dark. There were tattoos on his shoulders and biceps–gang affiliations that took him a few moments to realize what they were. His upper shoulders, chest and arms were defined and thick, very heavy with muscle–his mid-section just as built and trim–his legs equally thick and strong. It was hard not to appreciate this, being a man of healthy hormones.
But he flushed in embarrassment, turning slightly so that he couldn’t be staring quite obviously at the sculpted sight before him.
“D-Daniel!” he stuttered, fully turning his back to the quiet man.. “So you can turn back!”
Daniel was quiet for a few moments, unabashedly standing still, uncaring of his unclothed state. “I can reveal your secret to anybody that listens,” he said quietly, carefully.
Richie stilled, blinking as he registered this and recognized the threat being said. He then flushed with guilt and frustration, realizing that he was right.
“Okay,” he said slowly, frowning. He started to turn, but remembered that Daniel was still naked. “You want some clothes? Please?”
“No...they’ll just...tear. Anyway, when I change,” Daniel said, his English stilted, and every word carefully spoken. He worked his jaw, giving the pale blond a frown as he shifted. “I’m comfortable the way I am.”
“Hookay...just...I’d like to talk to you, but I can’t when–”
“Cuz you’re homo, huh? I saw you. With that black guy...Tyson. And last night with Ivan.” Daniel’s voice was low with accusation, traces of revulsion on his tone. “And you smell more of Stone than anyone. But then again, I’ve seen you with many other guys–!”
“All right, all right! Yes, I’m homosexual, and it’s not about that. Even if I were straight, I’d be uncomfortable facing you with you being naked. It’s the matter of the thing.”
“You’re a whore,” Daniel then said with amazement. “For a guy, you get around.”
“All right!” Richie snapped at him, turning to shoot him an annoyed expression. Then flushing again as he struggled to keep his eyes up. “Let’s not talk about that. There are other things that I want to–!”
“Francis would be angry,” Daniel said softly, head dropping slightly. “If he were told. So, that’s two things I have on you.”
Richie stared at him in silence, realizing what Daniel was setting on the table. Finally, he swallowed hard. “Fine. I won’t tell. Anybody.”
Daniel gave a satisfied expression, grinning as he shifted. Long, muscular legs took him quickly, with the air of an animal, to one of the bar stools nearby. He pulled it before him, then took a seat, knees spread, ankles hooked, hands settling on the cushion with all the easy grace of a man well relaxed. The position hid obviously private parts, and for that, Richie was grateful. Because he knew he would be sneaking peeks continuously if they were revealed to him. He had the unfortunate reaction to seeing that the metahuman was of pleasing length and width.
He could just hear Virgil calling him a ‘ho’.
Feeling more than confused as to the visit, as to why Daniel was revealing himself to him, he drew close enough to grab another stool and sat down on it. Daniel watched him the entire time, in silence. Daniel could change back, and apparently did so at his own knowledge.
Hoping to keeping things light and neutral, Richie touched his own chin and neck. “That makes you look funny, man. It makes you look older than you should be. How old are you?”
“Twenty-six. I’m afraid to cut it off. My hands don’t work the way I want them too, sometimes,” Daniel admitted, reaching up to run his fingers through the growth. “I cut my hair just once in awhile...But this...I dunno. Sharp things kinda scare me.”
“A contradiction, considering that you use both your teeth and claws...”
“That’s different. Just...”
Richie stared at him for a few moments, then lifted an eyebrow. “Since we’re on amicable terms... for the now...want me to...?”
Daniel blinked then caught the unspoken suggestion. He shrugged.
Ten minutes later, Richie was carefully trimming off the excess hair, working carefully with Francis’ goatee trimmer set to get rid of the beard. The water ran quietly nearby, and Daniel sat patiently on the covered toilet, having been convinced to at least wear a towel around his waist. It was a really humorous situation if Richie focused on it–here he was, grooming the metahuman with all the familiarity and comfort he would with a friend, knowing that the man could turn on him at any moment.
But he was curious as to know why the visit, why the strange revelation. So he pulled on every bit of charm and practiced comfort that he used in reeling in a hapless admirer and tested Daniel’s comfort levels, while already planning on pulling information from him.
“There is a cure,” Richie said, looking into his face at one point. Daniel looked up with dark, knowledgeable eyes, acknowledging this with a slight nod. “You don’t have to be this way, anymore...”
Daniel shook his head, and watched dark curls of hair fall onto his towel and onto the floor. “No. I like being this way.”
“If the authorities catch you, you will be cured, and you’ll serve time for the murders you committed.”
“I’m not going to be caught. I’m too quick.”
Richie cleared his throat pointedly. Daniel shot him a careless grin. “You can’t do anything. You don’t have powers. Just...stuff. You don’t even have any of them on you. And any wrong move you make, I’ll move quicker.”
Richie nodded in friendly agreement, and set the scissors aside. He worked the electric razor over his skin. Over the noise, he said, “Fair enough. I’m at your mercy.”
Daniel shifted slightly, throwing him a suspicious look. “You had a way of making that sound...dirty.”
“Remember? I’m a ho. I hit on anything that moves, apparently.” Richie grinned at him, carefully running the electric razor over the beard darkened areas. Daniel made a face, but continued to sit still. Afterward, while Richie was putting the kit away, Daniel washed his face, continuously touching his newly revealed skin. He resumed sitting atop of the toilet as Richie used a small dusting set to clean up the hair on the floor.
“It’s a little insulting that you don’t find me dangerous,” Richie said with some annoyance, glancing up at him.
Daniel narrowed his eyes. “You aren’t. I can overpower you easily.”
“Now you’re the one talking dirty.”
Daniel blinked, frowning as Richie smiled slowly at him, throwing the gathered hair into the trash can between the sink and toilet and setting the dustpan set away.
“No, I admit. I am a little submissive. You’ve got me bottomed out, Daniel. You can take me easily, no question. You being...bigger than me.”
“...Are you hitting on me?” Daniel asked with shocked discovery, staring at him with widened eyes.
“Huh? No...I’m just saying...you’ve got me under your power. There’s no way I can top you.”
“...Wha...?”
“Heh. Daniel, all joking aside, please consider what you’re doing. Rudy Sedano is just using you. Like a toy.” Richie’s voice turned stern and disapproving as he leaned against the sink counter, facing Daniel as he bent his elbows back, palms flat on the counter.
“I respect him. He’s been there for me. He’s taken care of me. I am loyal to him,” Daniel insisted. “He’s watched over me and taken care of me when I couldn’t! It was hell, turning into–into that, and having no idea on how to control myself! I changed and shifted and couldn’t stop my actions and attitude each time! But he was always there, to lock me up, to teach me to control myself–!”
“That sounds horrible!” Richie exclaimed, straightening away from the counter. “Like those dogs he has? He trained you the same way he works those pits?”
“...I...I don’t know. But if he didn’t, I wouldn’t be here today. I was mindless, back then. I couldn’t think. Couldn’t–couldn’t distinguish the differences of good and bad.” Daniel shrugged, averting his eyes as he continued to stroke his newly shaven jaw and neck. “He trained me. Eventually, as I grew used to my transformations, it was–I was grateful for him. Because without him, I would have been dead.”
“No...no, you would have been captured and cured.”
“Still...I respect him. Rudy rescued me–twice. By now, I’ll bet you know my past. Yeah, I ran away from home. Yeah, I came here. He took me in. Yeah, I had to do some stuff to do it, but...he knew my family situation. So he took me in.”
“...But joining a gang wasn’t a good choice, Daniel. What did you have to do to join?”
“...Nothin’ that I’m willin’ to talk about. But...but it felt good. To be with a family. My mom was so fuckin’ shitty to me. Me and my sisters–I feel bad for leaving them, but I couldn’t take them. You know how teenagers are! Never really think things through...I just left home and never really looked back. I wanted to send money home, but...knowing mom, she’d just use it on herself. I still wonder about them, but last I heard, my sister Elisa got knocked up, Georgie’s walkin’ the street, and Aleasha is...doin’ whatever she’s doing.”
Richie didn’t know what to say, so he said nothing. Even as puzzled and amazed as he was about the willing divulging of information, of his complete shock at Daniel approaching him, he just kept himself still and listened to what Daniel had to say.
“He respects me,” Daniel then said fiercely, gesturing at himself.
“He respects your powers!” Richie then denied, growing annoyed at the selfless giving the metahuman had toward the gang member. For taking advantage of this person. “You’re stronger, faster and about ten times more than that of a normal man. You can do things he can’t–!”
“It’s not like that, man. It’s not!”
“How does he act toward you? Brotherly? Or does he treat you like a pet?”
“He–!”
“Does he pet you? Scratch you behind your ears?” Richie asked angrily, frowning as Daniel began to look troubled. “Does he talk to you, have conversations with you? Does he treat you like a man?”
“No...No, man, he–!”
“Or does he throw you treats after you’re done doing what he asks? Like one of his pets after they perform a pretty trick?”
Daniel went silent, and Richie shook his head, grabbing onto his bare shoulders. “That doesn’t sound caring and brotherly to me, Daniel!”
“D.”
“...huh?”
“Call me D. Everyone else did.”
“...Okay. But Rudy is using you. Back then, when you were human, how did he treat you? Was it different from now?”
Daniel thought of those times–how Rudy would give him attention here and there, but he really didn’t interact with him as much as he did, now. There wasn’t the same level of comradery as there had been, back then. But Rudy did talk to him–he did draw him in and gave him the things that Daniel had been looking for. He shifted away from Richie, shaking his head. “Forget it. It’s nothing.”
“D...please...I’m not good with people. I’m the last person people should be coming to to talk,” Richie confessed, anxiously playing with his toothbrush. He then wet the bristles under running water, and slathered on toothpaste. He handed it to Daniel pointedly, then shifted to allow him room as Daniel got the gist of the subtle hint.
“What Rudy is doing is wrong,” Richie then continued. “It is degrading to you–it’s demeaning you. Putting you down. Why can’t you see that he’s using you?”
Daniel spit into the sink. “No...no, it’s not like that. Not at all!”
“How can you say that, D? When you can’t even–!”
Daniel dropped the toothbrush into the sink without finishing. But at least his breath wasn’t as rank as it was before. “You don’t know!” he said firmly. “You don’t know! You don’t know the way I feel! I think! You don’t know! Rudy gave me what I’d lost! I would like to repay him with my loyalty!”
“D! This is the wrong sort of loyalty that you are giving him! You are killing people, D! You can be sent to prison with life behind bars! Or even execution! He’s doing you wrong by making you prove this sort of loyalty by asking for all the wrong things!”
Daniel grabbed his arm, squeezing tightly as he insisted, “I respect him! Anything he asks, I’ll do because–because I want to make him happy. To repay him for the things he’d done. I don’t want him to think down on me...I don’t want him to be...to disapprove, or to be disappointed...”
Richie stilled, looking at Daniel closely. Suddenly, instead of that tanned, broad face, he saw Francis’. How vehement he was in wanting to change, in wanting to change his life around for the person he loved. Francis had given him a similar speech a long time ago–Richie had talked him out of committing robbery because he hadn’t any money, nor any prospects in a job. This was before Custom Auto Shop came along–Francis had been so vehement in wanting to take care of the one that loved him, and was willing to do anything for him.
He couldn’t see Daniel as a monster, anymore. He could only see him as a lost soul, struggling to do what he felt was right by those that he felt cared for him.
Suddenly, his compassion for this man surged all other things, despite his logical thinking. Francis was, and would always be, his weak spot. Unfortunately, this person reminded him of him enough to overlook many obvious things.
He gave Daniel a compassionate expression, smiling fondly. He couldn’t resist reaching out to touch his face, uncaring of the startled expression that burst across the other’s features.
“No...not like that. Not like that. What about you, huh? What about your happiness, D? Do you feel good about doing this sort of thing, knowing that it’s wrong, but knowing that it pleases him?”
“...I’m happy if he’s happy, truthfully,” Daniel answered carefully. “He’s my...he’s like an older brother I’ve never had–”
“Someone that you want to impress,” Richie insisted, dropping his hand with some embarrassment.
“No...just...I want approval, I guess. To be accepted. You know?”
“...In a way, I understand. But...my husband was like you. Needing approval and reassurance, wanting to feel acceptance. Sorry. You just remind me of him, of what he used to be back then. I know what you mean, D, but I can’t condone you for it. I just hope you’ll find that it’s better to listen to yourself than to others. You’ll still have to pay the consequences for your actions. That always catches up to you in the end.”
Daniel listened to him, then looked at him with a frown. Richie caught the expression, shifting uncomfortably as he then put space between them.
“You’re like a woman,” Daniel then blurted out, his face revealing his confusion. “You smell like one, and you touch and speak to me like...like you’re one.”
Richie stuck his tongue against the inside of his left cheek and found that it wasn’t that much of an insult. Yet.
Realizing that he needed to break the sudden tenseness, he felt his player mode shift into place. So far, Daniel had not expressed any disgust or repulsion of his gender preferences, nor had he expressed any discomfort in his closeness or attitude.
“But I’m not,” he said with some annoyance. He then smiled sweetly at him. “You wanna check and make sure?”
“...You’re a whore, man,” Daniel then pointed out, his face giving away his own irritation.
“‘M just playing with you!” Richie then laughed, reaching up to brush Daniel’s hair from his face. He caught himself in the action and pulled back quickly, grimacing. But noticed that Daniel didn’t move or comment on the action. He was starting to realize once more how built Daniel was, how handsome...he flushed nervously, patting his shoulders, unable to resist that. “You okay, then? You cool?”
“...Yeah. Yeah, I am. Just...I...you’re like a girl.”
Richie froze for a moment–noticed how close they were. Without saying anything, he shifted his arms around Daniel’s shoulders, tiptoeing to kiss his lips gently. He expected to be shoved away, to have his ass kicked–but nothing came. So he deepened the kiss, tasting unfamiliar lips and smelling the strong scent of a body that had gone without many washings. It was disgusting, but strangely arousing in a wrong sort of way.
When he pulled away, Daniel was staring at him in shock, but Richie didn’t move his arms–nor did he apologize for his actions.
“What?” he asked quietly, smiling slightly.
“Just...I’m not gay,” Daniel stammered, face flushing. But he still didn’t move.
Richie lifted an eyebrow, fiddling with the short hairs on the nape of his neck. “Okay, you’re not. But you’re naked, you’re letting me molest you without protest, and you haven’t complained once of me making the wrong comment or giving you the wrong look...”
“...I’m not!”
“Hey, I totally understand!” Richie exclaimed, then kissed him again, drawing his body fully against his, fingers moving through his hair.
Daniel stiffened in reaction, but then moved, pulling away from his touch and his lips. Richie pulled himself back, separating to give him space just in case he needed to move quick. Seeing that Daniel’s face was splashed with confusion, he gave a cocky little smile and left the bathroom to give him some time to think about things.
He heard his cell phone ringing out in the hallway, and sighed impatiently, hurrying over to answer it.
He saw that it was from the jail, and he answered quickly. After accepting the collect call offered from the computer automated voice, he heard Francis’ immediate apology for losing control of himself.
“Oh, don’t apologize, babe,” he said quietly, returning to the bedroom to sit on the bed. “Are you okay? I mean, despite it all?”
“Just...fuckin’ pissed, I guess. Mostly at myself. For...like...letting my anger take control of myself, again. Just....I wish I hadn’t done that. I–”
“It’s all my fault, Francis,” Richie said glumly, kicking off his shoes and pulling his legs cross-legged. He looked up when he saw Daniel peering out from the bedroom, an unreadable expression on his face. Richie shifted on the bed and patted his knee with a teasing smile. Daniel returned that smile, but he also left the bathroom to climb onto the bed, Richie watching him with bewilderment as the man stretched out over the mattress, crossing his arms over Richie’s lap and laying his head into that pillow. He then shifted again, to rub his forehead against Richie's stomach and chest, like an animal seeking affection.
Stunned, Richie jerked himself out of his surprise and said quickly, “For messing around with him. I’m so sorry, baby. I wish I did things differently. I should have just left and went to find you, but I thought I was able to handle it–!”
“That fuckin’–fuck. Just...he ain’t bothering you now, is he? Tryin’ to call you, an’ shit?”
“No...if he does...then I’ll just file a restraining order against him. I should, anyway. Baby, I’m so sorry. I feel bad that you’re in jail,” Richie murmured, looking down to run his fingers through Daniel’s hair, playing with the thick, dark strands. “Did John talk to you? About your options?”
“Said he’d get back to me. He’s doin’ some talkin’, now. But taking those classes again...man, Rich, that’s just a strike against me.”
Richie felt immense guilt flood through him at that moment, and he stopped playing with Daniel’s hair long enough to sigh. He apologized again, then started at the feel of Daniel’s hands curling and stroking against his legs.
“No, no, baby, it’s all me,” Francis said dejectedly. “It’s my problem–I mean, I fuckin’ know I have a problem with it! It’s all on me! I can’t control it...I dunno. But...but I just wanted to fix things between us, an’–when I thought I was doin’ good, it just...it just ain’t. Plus, someone filed a complaint against us, again. Cuz...cuz of all that shit that went down, last night. So, that’s another strike.”
Richie closed his eyes, tilting his head back with exasperation. More guilt hit him, then, and he exhaled slowly. Things weren’t looking good for Francis–he cursed Joe again, and wondered how he could get away with hacking into the man’s records and replacing them with an escaped convict’s, so that he’d land his gym-built ass into prison on another man’s crime. As the idea grew to appealing lengths, Daniel shifted in his lap, drawing his attention down.
“But...I dunno...maybe...maybe a miracle will come along, huh? And get me outta here. Man, this is just...I haven’t even gotten a fuckin’ parking ticket, or shit like that, man! It’s just–I’m so sorry, babe. I might be in here for, like, ten years for violating my parole.”
Richie couldn’t speak for a few moments, pulling the cell away from his face as Daniel found his lips with his, pushing him back against the bed. He managed to break his face away long enough to say, “Five. But–but maybe something will count for you, Francis! You’ve done nothing wrong all this time, an–!”
“...Rich? Rich, what are you doing?”
Richie couldn’t exactly say that he had another man on top of him, doing very bad things with his hands over his crotch. So he swallowed hard and eked out, “Making a sandwich.”
“Babe, while I’m in here? Don’t be startin’ shit with Ivan. I’m pissed at that, man. That was fuckin’...”
“I...I’ll just...apologize....”
“...Rich. What are you doing?”
“Making a sandwich!”
“...Then why’s your voice gettin’ all breathy?”
Richie managed to shove Daniel away from him to growl, “What are you implying, Francis?”
“...Nothin’. Sorry. I’m sorry. I...I’m just frustrated, baby. Just...I’m sorry. Baby, I’m sorry. Don’t be mad.”
“...I’m not mad. It’s all right, Franny. You are mad, and you are understandably on edge. I love you. Maybe they’ll realize they made a mistake, babe. That you–shouldn’t they have taken a blood test on that bastard? He reeked!”
“John mentioned that, and I think they did. But check on that. He should be slapped, too. Not just me. Fuck. Baby, I have to go. Be careful, okay? Lock up the house. I don’t know when I’m going to be out, but I don’t want no fuckers messin’ with you while I’m gone. Baby, I love you. I’m sorry for this.”
“No, Franny, it’s okay. It’s okay. Things will work out. Baby, I love you, too. I’ll talk to John and see what our options are, all right?”
“...’K. Love you.”
“Love you, too.”
Richie hung up, feeling horrible about the circumstances. He wished he’d done things differently the night before–he wished he’d just left when Joe first grabbed him. He then lowered the phone when he remembered that he had an insanely handsome metahuman atop of him, feeling obviously frisky as he nosed his stomach.
Laughing, he tossed his cell away from him, pulling Daniel’s head up by his hair. “You said you aren’t gay!” he accused him.
Daniel simply gave him a slow grin that did fluttery things to Richie’s stomach. “But how would I know if I don’t try?”
“How often do you mess around, like this?”
“Not very much. I don’t...I don’t feel that way when I’m changed, y’know? Just...it’s different. But when I’m a man, I–I do. But...but you turned me on, that night...Remember? When I killed Tyson? You laid down before me, and–and I couldn’t stop thinking about it. I was so pissed when Rudy called for me. I could’ve–you and Tyson were getting busy, and I could just smell that you were still all turned on–”
“Erm, please don’t talk like that. That’s kinda...freaky. Oh my god, that’s kinda freaky,” Richie then realized with rising panic, the more he thought of it that way. He pushed at Daniel, then growled when the man kept his position. “Get off. All right? Get off. I don’t want this.”
“You do this with all of them. You did the same thing with Joe that night. Made him work on talking you into bed, but you were the one leading him into the decision the entire time.”
“...You...You were there?” Richie asked, his voice filling with a tightness that followed the suddenly creepy feeling that drifted over his skin.
“I followed you everywhere. After that night. I watched everything. I followed you everywhere I could, and made sure you came home all right. I watch you, and I watched you with your husband. I would stand outside the window, and–!”
“GET OFF ME! YOU PSYCHO! GET OFF! Do you realize how fucking creepy you sound?!”
Daniel growled low as he caught his arms and pinned them to the mattress, but a slow, predatory smile graced his features. “Like you said before–I’m bigger than you. I can overpower you easily. Even if you don’t want it, I do. Depending on you, it can be easy–or hard. No one’s going to come by, you know. Stone’s all in jail–Evans is doing his own thing somewhere else. And your friend, Static–well, I heard he’s busy. I followed him, too. He has a couple of kids, huh? You like games, don’t you? Let’s play a game. Let’s play a Let’s Not Get Our Friends’ Children Killed game.”
Richie stilled completely, staring up at him in complete shock and numbed horror. He thought of the way Virgil spoke so proudly of Jean and Oscar–how the women were still so completely vulnerable, even with Shenice’s superhuman state.
Virgil would kill anybody that threatened them.
His expression turned venomous. “I am the last person on this planet you want to threaten. You completely underestimate me, Daniel. You don’t want to do that.”
Daniel’s look shifted to that of mocking disbelief. “One word to Rudy, and your family, Static’s family, Ivan’s family–plus the fact of your identity leaking out to a husband that don’t sound as if he knows what you do–you’ve got things stacked against you. I really don’t think you should be threatening me.”
Every one of his muscles were trembling violently. He couldn’t seem to stop shaking. Doubt and uncertainty started to overtake his confidence, but Richie kept himself composed. He shot Daniel an evil glare, shaking his head tightly, even as his skin crawled with the man’s touch and proximity.
“Besides, you were asking for it, you whore. Hitting on me ever since I came in. Practically inviting me on top of you. Sluts like you won’t be taken seriously. After all that shit you played with everyone else, how am I different? Huh? I’ll just be taking what you’ve been offering. You've been giving it to everyone else.”
Richie licked his lips, suddenly hating himself even further. For all the attention that he desired and wanted. He didn’t have anything to say to that, swallowing tightly as Daniel sneered at him.
He shut his eyes with reluctant acquiescement, feeling the other man shift on top of him.
Chapter Seventeen:
Don’t Leave Me Hangin’...
Eustacio stared, with some confusion, as Danny sat down in a cross-legged fashion and ran his claws through his fur.
There came the sound of a tongue clicking on palate, something that Eustacio knew Rudy did at times to call him. Danny often mimicked sounds and words that he heard commonly, but he broke out with something different from time to time. Eustacio was uncomfortable around the metahuman, and he knew it showed.
“Dinner time,” Danny growled, the mixture of sound making what hairs Eustacio had to stand straight up.
“You just ate!” Rudy said in exasperation, from the room where the dog food was kept. He hauled a twenty-five pound bag from the doorway, and tossed it easily to his little brother. Eustacio dropped it clumsily, making Rudy roll his eyes. “So...we got to runnin’ around, last night. Did you hear?”
“About what?” Eustacio muttered, tipping the bag over to search for the tab that would open it.
“Stone.”
“...No. Should I have?”
“Stone beating some stupid fucker down for his...man.” Rudy made a face of disgust, as if he’d eaten something very foul. “That’s fuckin’ sick, man! I mean–two guys? Together? Gettin’ it on?”
“...Fuckin’ sick,” Danny echoed.
Eustacio was already irritated with his older brother, and he shot the metahuman a glance of annoyance. “Like you haven’t fucked a chick up the ass.”
“...Why you defending on that?” Rudy asked curiously, looking over sharply. Danny rose to all fours and shifted around the room. “Hey, man, go outside! Don’t be stupid, go outside! Dumb mutt...”
“I’m just saying. That’s all it is. I don’t like fags, same as you, but, fuck–it’s the same fucking property.” Eustacio watched Danny leave the room, heading outside to do his business.
“Man...don’t even go there, Eu.”
“I’m just sayin’–!”
“You all fag, son? Like Stone?” Rudy shivered. “And, man, seriously? I ain’t no fuckin’ fag, but I’m man enough to admit that a fucker’s...like, okay-looking? Y’know? But the guy they were fighting over was, fuckin’...not even that good looking.”
Eustacio thought of that night. He would agree, as well, but he still hadn’t admitted that it was them that had beaten him. He looked away, to watch the pits bite and gnaw at their cages in their maddened haste to get at the food they smelled.
“Ivan was getting a kick out of the whole thing. Dunno. Then they were saying that he’s all fag, too!” Rudy blinked incredulously. Then he shook his head. “What’s with the world, huh? Gettin’ all that way?”
“...Dunno.”
“Sayin’.. .sayin’ that Stone’s husband was all over him, an’ Ivan was liking it. You know, I gotta bone to pick right now. Say you got a cute chick, huh? And all the boys are liking her, and everyone wants to sleep with her–y’know, all that. It’s natural, right? To want to hit something like that, specially if she all fine an’ shit. THAT I can understand.”
Danny hurried in, ears pricking the air, and Eustacio glanced at him curiously.
“But if a guy’s like that–would guys be actin’ the same way? Wantin’, to, like, fuck some guy, even if he puts out? I mean, I ain’t fag! But...think about it.”
“...I don’t wanna think about it...” Eustacio muttered sullenly, shaking his head.
“I mean, it sounds like it. Stone’s all married to him, then that guy was all over him, then they sayin’ that Ivan’s all over him–but it could be just gossip–!”
“Tyson,” Danny barked, shifting to scratch at his ear. “Tyson!”
Rudy and Eustacio looked over at him. “What about him?” Rudy asked, befuddled. “He all dead. You killed the fucker, man.”
Anxiously, Danny began to pace. “He was with Tyson!”
“...Wait...he was with Tyson, too?” Rudy then exclaimed. Danny bobbed his head furiously, and both men looked shocked. “Damn...this guy sounds like a fuckin’ ho!”
“Others!”
“He was with others?!”
“A lot!”
Rudy looked at Eustacio with an expression of shock, Eustacio giving one of his own.
“I didn’t know fags could be sluts, too!” Rudy exclaimed in outrage.
“Not Static...not with Static.”
“...er...I don’t get that, Danny. What about Static?”
“Gear!”
“...What about them?”
“Not him!”
“...Okay...he wasn’t with them?”
“He’s–!” Danny suddenly averted his face, rising to stand on his hind legs, Eustacio and Rudy staring up at him in silence. He then dropped once more to all fours. “Not with Static.”
“...That was fuckin’ random.” Rudy then laughed. “You fag, Danny? You like guys?”
Danny gave a snort, shaking his head furiously.
“You get laid, lately? You want him? Maybe he’ll put out for you, too!” Rudy exclaimed with mock excitement.
“That’s so fuckin’ sick,” Eustacio commented with immense disgust, shooting his older brother a withering look. “You’re fuckin’ sick! That’s fuckin’–! Gross!”
“Hey, they fucked you over, right? Bitches aren’t safe–look! Danny ain’t denyin’ it! He wants a piece of that ass, too!” Rudy laughed again, uproariously as Danny continued to shake his head, almost with an embarrassed fluster.
“Rudy, shut the fuck up! You all gettin’ all hard just cuz you want it!” Eustacio shouted with a revolted expression.
“Man, fuck you, you bitch. Don’t be talkin’ shit like that. Bitches ain’t safe! We could use him to lure in Stone and Evans. Since they all loved up on him. Fuck, we’ll just use him to get back at them! They fucked you over, we’ll fuck that piece of shit fag over. Then we get at them! Since they be all hard-core for revenge an’ shit! Plus, it’ll be, like, our public duty to get rid of fags. Since AIDS ain’t doing shit, anymore.”
“Rudy, you fuckin’ psycho. Man. Sometimes–!”
“‘Sometimes’ what, Eustacio? Huh? You bein’ all pussy, now? Fuck!” Rudy then cursed, giving his youngest brother a disgusted expression. “You all soft? I know it was them that fucked you over! I already told you, I’m watching out for my family. They fuck with you, they basically fucking with me! We know where they live! I can have someone stake out that fuckin’ shit place and tell me when we can go over. We’ll take care of that fag, then take care of the others when they want revenge. It’ll be cool. Eye for an eye...”
“Fuck you, Rudy. Sounds fucked up. Sounds like something you’d think up.”
“What’s wrong with it? Huh? You want a piece? We’ll give you Ivan, then, ‘k? Cuz I bet it was him that fucked you over. Or how about Stone? You want him? Personally, I want a crack at both. Stone thinks he’s tough shit–Ivan’s just a punk. I want to fuck both of them.”
“Fuckin’ faggot ass homo...”
“I wanna fuckin’ beat them down, man! See how tough they are THEN!” Rudy slammed a fist into the opposite palm, looking determined. “They all hard-core when they have powers and shit, but when they all regular like us, and they get all hard up on making themselves look all bad? Someone needs to put them down in their place!”
“Ooh, an’ you’re just the man to do it, huh?” Eustacio asked sarcastically.
Rudy’s shoulders slumped, and he shot him an exasperated expression. He turned to Danny. “What do YOU think? Huh? Sound like a plan? Bet all the others would think so.”
Danny tossed his head, a smug expression on his face.
“See? See? Danny wants it! You can have him when we’re done fucking him over...”
Danny immediately shook his head in flustered denial, and Rudy laughed again, slapping him across his shoulders.
Eustacio tossed the bag of dog food away from him in disgust, and left the room, limping as angrily as he could. Rudy watched him leave, then frowned over at Danny. “What’s with him?”
Danny made a shrugging motion, then sat on his haunches, tongue lolling out in a lazy way. Rudy reached out to push on his head playfully. “It all a plan, man? You think? We get the fag, fuck him over, then fuck over the others when they come lookin’. Sound good, huh? Least ways, that’s one less faggot the world has to worry about. ‘Specially when they’re sleeping around, an’ shit. You with me?”
Danny tossed his head again, pacing anxiously, Rudy watching him with confusion.
“What’s with you?” Rudy asked, an annoyed tone filtering into his words. “We ain’t killin’ him. Just...fuckin’ him over, like Eustacio got fucked. Eustacio lived–he’ll live. Just an eye for an eye. Sounds good, huh?”
Danny made a low growling noise, turning away from him. Rudy immediately shot him a pained expression, drawing away from him. “You ain’t fag, too, are you? Danny? Danny-boy?”
At the immediate denial, Rudy exhaled forcefully. “Then what’s your fuckin’ problem? What do you want?”
“It’s fair,” Danny replied, in that growling mixture of sound. “Eye for eye. Just...”
“What? ‘Just’ what?”
“It’ll be war. With them. All over, again.”
“So?”
“I can be...cured. He’ll cure me.”
“WHO?”
Danny seemed reluctant to say, shaking his head. “I heard him. He’ll cure me.”
“Who?” Rudy repeated, looking immensely frustrated. “Who the hell are you talking about?”
“Gear.”
“Fuck that ho! He can’t do shit! ‘Sides, him an’ Static haven’t been around, lately. An’ they been taking care of the Playas for us.”
Danny shook his head fiercely. But he seemed reluctant to part with his information. He rose, to lift an arm over his head and use his teeth to scratch at his elbow.
“Then what’s your fuckin’ problem?” Rudy drew out in exasperation. “You and Eustacio have been acting weird, man. Since we been talkin’ about that fag. That’s it, huh? You all in love.”
“NO!”
“Then what the hell? Huh? What the hell, then?”
Before Danny could answer, Armando strolled in with a light laugh. “Guess what, hos?”
Rudy turned away from Danny, frowning as he eyed his brother with annoyance. “Huh?”
“Stone was hauled in, this morning. My friend Marcus was driving by, and saw him get ‘cuffed up and hauled in.”
Rudy blinked, then laughed. “That fag from last night must’ve called and told on him! Hah! Fuckin’ fag.”
“Probably, huh? But he’s all up in jail, now.”
Rudy immediately grew excited, grinning widely. “Meanin’ that his boy is home alone, then, huh?”
“Yeah.” Armando gave him a puzzled look. “So?”
“Let’s get the Blazer, man. We makin’ a trip. I was just tellin’ Danny-boy here and fuckin’ Eustacio that we were gonna snatch Stone’s man. Eye for an eye. Fuck him up like they did with our little brother.”
“Wha–? Really? Shit...I don’t wanna do that.”
“Ah, man, what the fuck?! C’mon! Don’t you fuckin’ want to teach those fucks a lesson?!”
“Well, yeah, but...it’s like pickin’ on a girl.” Armando’s lips pulled back in disgust, recalling what he’d seen last night. “Entirely like a girl.”
“So? Fuck...bitches ain’t safe. Only exception we made was with Theresa. Since Eustacio’s all loved up. Man, it makes fuckin’ sense, why are you guys being such pusses?” Rudy asked in exasperated disgust. “We bad-ass, man! We gotta keep it, that way! Man, if Stone an’ nem thinks they can get away with fucking up our little brother–our little brother!–then what the fuck is the world coming to if we can’t return the favor?”
“...Why not use Adam? Adam’s Ivan’s little brother. That’s making it even.”
Rudy stared at Armando for so long that the other Sedano shifted uncomfortably. Danny gave a small whine as he moved away, leaving the room. Rudy immediately shifted, shouting, “Hey! Where you going?!”
Danny popped his head back into the room. “Walk.”
Both Sedanos watched him leave, then Rudy turned back to Armando. He gave him a long, annoyed look, Armando shifting again in uncomfortable relation to the expression.
Rudy then turned away, giving a mutter of exasperation as he wondered about his brothers’ state of minds.
SS.SS.SS.SS.SS.SS.SS.SS.SS.SS.
Angrily, Richie made sure that all traces of electronic tampering was eliminated. He had Virgil on his cell, listening to him exclaim eagerly over Oscar’s and Jean’s progress, but his mind was fully focused on ruining Joe’s life. Working from his home computer, Richie hacked into Joe’s bank account and made large quantities of donations to various charities around Dakota. He eliminated his trace by using a program he’d designed himself to cover all his footprints. From there, he hacked into the gym’s financial records, and began transferring funds from that station to Joe’s account with deliberate obviousness. He made sure to hack away at small amounts that steadily grew bigger with each transaction. By the time he was finished, it would appear to those looking as if Joe had been stealing money from the gym since December of last year. He also hacked into the membership information base and began transferring files to Joe's home PC.
Satisfied with that aspect, he then hacked into his email accounts to write grievous letters to Joe’s family members and friends, a cruel and deliberate hoax that made it seem as if Joe was ready to commit suicide from all the ‘wrongdoing’ he’d been doing. Still–it didn’t satisfy Richie, and as he finished with all that, he leaned back in his chair and wondered what else he could do to ruin Joe’s life.
He’d woken up alone, figuring that Francis was called away on some business of his own, only to find a note that let him know he was being arrested for assault. After speaking with his parole officer, Francis looked to be doing time for a minimum of five years for violating his parole. Richie had seen red–it didn’t matter that he’d been angry at his husband for various things; what mattered is that this smug sonofabitch knew that Francis was already on parole, and that any little thing could cart him straight back to prison for any small doing.
And for Joe to file assault charges–!
Well, it took awhile for him to calm down to think of ways to ruin the brunette. He’d been at his computer all morning, working to destroy him in all aspects that he could think of. After he was finished, he activated the program once more to erase all his traces, and eliminate any outgoing footprints he may have made from his computer.
If Joe worked at it, and hired someone to investigate, they would never find the evidence needed to convict Richie on that account. The blond knew what he was doing, and he was smart enough to eliminate all his traces using various programs that he’d designed himself.
He crossed his arms and fumed as he stared at the computer screen. John had warned him that Francis could be convicted quickly due to his status and potential to retaliate. And since the redhead had been attending AM weekly, that had been hint enough for the aged parole officer to officiate that Francis had been slipping. The judge ruling the case would take that as evidence needed in that Francis was needed off the streets in case anything more happened to endanger others.
No matter what Richie said in his defense, people weren’t going to take things lightly when it came to Francis’ actions and attitude.
“...and it was fun and exciting and I seriously hope that you have one, too–!”
“I’m not having any kids!” Richie then screamed into the cell, hanging up abruptly. He’d forgotten he was still talking to Virgil. Frankly, he was on edge, right now. Enraged and angry and a little guilty that all of this had started because of him.
His cell rang again, and he scowled at it, not really wanting to talk to Virgil. Ever since his kids came, it was ‘Jean’ this and ‘Oscar’ that, and Richie felt a little guilty in that he didn’t want to hear about it. He didn’t want kids, he didn’t want to feel pressured into having any. They were having enough problems of their own to add kids to the picture.
He tossed his cell away from him and scowled at the computer screen. Virgil had also been pressuring him to investigate further into Daniel Trujillo’s past to find out what connection he had with the Playas’ deaths. He took a few moments to compose himself, then rose from his seat to venture into the kitchen to look for something to snack on. Eager to get his mind off his husband’s premise into jail, and for the fact that bail wasn’t posted–John advising against that, as Francis was fully capable of retaliating despite his and Richie’s word that he wouldn’t–Richie decided to think about Daniel Trujillo, instead. He made himself a quick sandwich and grabbed a soda, then headed back into the spare room to continue working on the computer.
He was able to work with Backpack once he slipped in a transferrable program disk into his home PC. Once the online connection told him that Backpack was waiting for his command, he downloaded the information he’d already gathered from previous searches, then began searching for any files within Dakota’s gang unit to find any information they may have had with Daniel.
After a few minutes, a positive response popped up–Daniel had been registered as a Pitt member before the first Big Bang. His only charge had been a simple B and E into a jewelry store in downtown Dakota. The information he’d gathered from what the gang unit had on him was very limited. The social security number was fake, his birthdate as well, and his driver’s license were fake. He had to wonder why the gang unit was so sloppy in keeping that information on hand.
But that info made him shrug–he and Static had deduced that because it was the Playas being slaughtered, either the Pitts or the Thugs had something going on. Now that it was official, Richie could find out the rest of the information they needed in order to bring Daniel down.
He researched the Pitts, finding out that the eldest recorded member was a Sedano.
“Holy fuck,” he said on a slight giggle. He hoped that it was a coincidence. But more research yielded that it wasn’t. Gathering information on Rudy was easy, and he had to shake his head as he realized how complicated things were getting. He had to wonder if that was why Daniel was hanging around their home–had Rudy discovered that it had been Ivan and Francis that had broken their little brother?
He was concerned for Theresa’s safety, then.
Licking his lips, he was so intensely focused on gathering more information about the gang and Rudy Sedano that he almost didn’t hear the front door open and shut softly. He swallowed hard, withdrawing from the connection he had with Backpack, and eliminating all traces once more.
He stared over at the doorway, wondering who it may be. He had to hope that it wasn’t Ivan–at that thought, his belly twisted with uncomfortable severity. Once Ivan knew that Francis was in jail, who knew what the black man would do?
The thought was both exciting and terrifying at the same time.
Sex was most likely a high possibility, and he hated himself for feeling excited at the prospect. He felt evil and guilty, then–knowing that he’d enjoy sex with Ivan while his husband was in jail because of his actions.
He heard nothing coming from the front, and inhaled sharply, exiting the Internet and shutting off the computer. Rising from the chair, he cautiously ventured out from the room. He walked down the hall and into the living room, looking around with a puzzled expression. The house was quiet–the door was shut. He frowned, looking over at the glass door, then around himself. He knew he had heard the door open and shut–there was no mistaking that familiar noise.
He turned to go and find his cellphone, just in case he needed quick assistance, when he smelled something both familiar and frightening at the same time. He whirled around with a startled gasp, eyes widening at the sight of the tall, bearded, muscular and very naked man standing there in the hall he’d just come out from.
Richie froze with confusion and startled surprise as he stared at the quiet man, wondering if someone had escaped from the small mental hospital located a few miles away from the neighborhood.
There was no denying the man’s ethnicity–his skin was a dark tan color, his face broad with high cheekbones and thick lips. He stood well over six feet tall. He had shoulder length hair that was a very dark brown, the ends frayed and tangled, his beard equally as thick and dark. There were tattoos on his shoulders and biceps–gang affiliations that took him a few moments to realize what they were. His upper shoulders, chest and arms were defined and thick, very heavy with muscle–his mid-section just as built and trim–his legs equally thick and strong. It was hard not to appreciate this, being a man of healthy hormones.
But he flushed in embarrassment, turning slightly so that he couldn’t be staring quite obviously at the sculpted sight before him.
“D-Daniel!” he stuttered, fully turning his back to the quiet man.. “So you can turn back!”
Daniel was quiet for a few moments, unabashedly standing still, uncaring of his unclothed state. “I can reveal your secret to anybody that listens,” he said quietly, carefully.
Richie stilled, blinking as he registered this and recognized the threat being said. He then flushed with guilt and frustration, realizing that he was right.
“Okay,” he said slowly, frowning. He started to turn, but remembered that Daniel was still naked. “You want some clothes? Please?”
“No...they’ll just...tear. Anyway, when I change,” Daniel said, his English stilted, and every word carefully spoken. He worked his jaw, giving the pale blond a frown as he shifted. “I’m comfortable the way I am.”
“Hookay...just...I’d like to talk to you, but I can’t when–”
“Cuz you’re homo, huh? I saw you. With that black guy...Tyson. And last night with Ivan.” Daniel’s voice was low with accusation, traces of revulsion on his tone. “And you smell more of Stone than anyone. But then again, I’ve seen you with many other guys–!”
“All right, all right! Yes, I’m homosexual, and it’s not about that. Even if I were straight, I’d be uncomfortable facing you with you being naked. It’s the matter of the thing.”
“You’re a whore,” Daniel then said with amazement. “For a guy, you get around.”
“All right!” Richie snapped at him, turning to shoot him an annoyed expression. Then flushing again as he struggled to keep his eyes up. “Let’s not talk about that. There are other things that I want to–!”
“Francis would be angry,” Daniel said softly, head dropping slightly. “If he were told. So, that’s two things I have on you.”
Richie stared at him in silence, realizing what Daniel was setting on the table. Finally, he swallowed hard. “Fine. I won’t tell. Anybody.”
Daniel gave a satisfied expression, grinning as he shifted. Long, muscular legs took him quickly, with the air of an animal, to one of the bar stools nearby. He pulled it before him, then took a seat, knees spread, ankles hooked, hands settling on the cushion with all the easy grace of a man well relaxed. The position hid obviously private parts, and for that, Richie was grateful. Because he knew he would be sneaking peeks continuously if they were revealed to him. He had the unfortunate reaction to seeing that the metahuman was of pleasing length and width.
He could just hear Virgil calling him a ‘ho’.
Feeling more than confused as to the visit, as to why Daniel was revealing himself to him, he drew close enough to grab another stool and sat down on it. Daniel watched him the entire time, in silence. Daniel could change back, and apparently did so at his own knowledge.
Hoping to keeping things light and neutral, Richie touched his own chin and neck. “That makes you look funny, man. It makes you look older than you should be. How old are you?”
“Twenty-six. I’m afraid to cut it off. My hands don’t work the way I want them too, sometimes,” Daniel admitted, reaching up to run his fingers through the growth. “I cut my hair just once in awhile...But this...I dunno. Sharp things kinda scare me.”
“A contradiction, considering that you use both your teeth and claws...”
“That’s different. Just...”
Richie stared at him for a few moments, then lifted an eyebrow. “Since we’re on amicable terms... for the now...want me to...?”
Daniel blinked then caught the unspoken suggestion. He shrugged.
Ten minutes later, Richie was carefully trimming off the excess hair, working carefully with Francis’ goatee trimmer set to get rid of the beard. The water ran quietly nearby, and Daniel sat patiently on the covered toilet, having been convinced to at least wear a towel around his waist. It was a really humorous situation if Richie focused on it–here he was, grooming the metahuman with all the familiarity and comfort he would with a friend, knowing that the man could turn on him at any moment.
But he was curious as to know why the visit, why the strange revelation. So he pulled on every bit of charm and practiced comfort that he used in reeling in a hapless admirer and tested Daniel’s comfort levels, while already planning on pulling information from him.
“There is a cure,” Richie said, looking into his face at one point. Daniel looked up with dark, knowledgeable eyes, acknowledging this with a slight nod. “You don’t have to be this way, anymore...”
Daniel shook his head, and watched dark curls of hair fall onto his towel and onto the floor. “No. I like being this way.”
“If the authorities catch you, you will be cured, and you’ll serve time for the murders you committed.”
“I’m not going to be caught. I’m too quick.”
Richie cleared his throat pointedly. Daniel shot him a careless grin. “You can’t do anything. You don’t have powers. Just...stuff. You don’t even have any of them on you. And any wrong move you make, I’ll move quicker.”
Richie nodded in friendly agreement, and set the scissors aside. He worked the electric razor over his skin. Over the noise, he said, “Fair enough. I’m at your mercy.”
Daniel shifted slightly, throwing him a suspicious look. “You had a way of making that sound...dirty.”
“Remember? I’m a ho. I hit on anything that moves, apparently.” Richie grinned at him, carefully running the electric razor over the beard darkened areas. Daniel made a face, but continued to sit still. Afterward, while Richie was putting the kit away, Daniel washed his face, continuously touching his newly revealed skin. He resumed sitting atop of the toilet as Richie used a small dusting set to clean up the hair on the floor.
“It’s a little insulting that you don’t find me dangerous,” Richie said with some annoyance, glancing up at him.
Daniel narrowed his eyes. “You aren’t. I can overpower you easily.”
“Now you’re the one talking dirty.”
Daniel blinked, frowning as Richie smiled slowly at him, throwing the gathered hair into the trash can between the sink and toilet and setting the dustpan set away.
“No, I admit. I am a little submissive. You’ve got me bottomed out, Daniel. You can take me easily, no question. You being...bigger than me.”
“...Are you hitting on me?” Daniel asked with shocked discovery, staring at him with widened eyes.
“Huh? No...I’m just saying...you’ve got me under your power. There’s no way I can top you.”
“...Wha...?”
“Heh. Daniel, all joking aside, please consider what you’re doing. Rudy Sedano is just using you. Like a toy.” Richie’s voice turned stern and disapproving as he leaned against the sink counter, facing Daniel as he bent his elbows back, palms flat on the counter.
“I respect him. He’s been there for me. He’s taken care of me. I am loyal to him,” Daniel insisted. “He’s watched over me and taken care of me when I couldn’t! It was hell, turning into–into that, and having no idea on how to control myself! I changed and shifted and couldn’t stop my actions and attitude each time! But he was always there, to lock me up, to teach me to control myself–!”
“That sounds horrible!” Richie exclaimed, straightening away from the counter. “Like those dogs he has? He trained you the same way he works those pits?”
“...I...I don’t know. But if he didn’t, I wouldn’t be here today. I was mindless, back then. I couldn’t think. Couldn’t–couldn’t distinguish the differences of good and bad.” Daniel shrugged, averting his eyes as he continued to stroke his newly shaven jaw and neck. “He trained me. Eventually, as I grew used to my transformations, it was–I was grateful for him. Because without him, I would have been dead.”
“No...no, you would have been captured and cured.”
“Still...I respect him. Rudy rescued me–twice. By now, I’ll bet you know my past. Yeah, I ran away from home. Yeah, I came here. He took me in. Yeah, I had to do some stuff to do it, but...he knew my family situation. So he took me in.”
“...But joining a gang wasn’t a good choice, Daniel. What did you have to do to join?”
“...Nothin’ that I’m willin’ to talk about. But...but it felt good. To be with a family. My mom was so fuckin’ shitty to me. Me and my sisters–I feel bad for leaving them, but I couldn’t take them. You know how teenagers are! Never really think things through...I just left home and never really looked back. I wanted to send money home, but...knowing mom, she’d just use it on herself. I still wonder about them, but last I heard, my sister Elisa got knocked up, Georgie’s walkin’ the street, and Aleasha is...doin’ whatever she’s doing.”
Richie didn’t know what to say, so he said nothing. Even as puzzled and amazed as he was about the willing divulging of information, of his complete shock at Daniel approaching him, he just kept himself still and listened to what Daniel had to say.
“He respects me,” Daniel then said fiercely, gesturing at himself.
“He respects your powers!” Richie then denied, growing annoyed at the selfless giving the metahuman had toward the gang member. For taking advantage of this person. “You’re stronger, faster and about ten times more than that of a normal man. You can do things he can’t–!”
“It’s not like that, man. It’s not!”
“How does he act toward you? Brotherly? Or does he treat you like a pet?”
“He–!”
“Does he pet you? Scratch you behind your ears?” Richie asked angrily, frowning as Daniel began to look troubled. “Does he talk to you, have conversations with you? Does he treat you like a man?”
“No...No, man, he–!”
“Or does he throw you treats after you’re done doing what he asks? Like one of his pets after they perform a pretty trick?”
Daniel went silent, and Richie shook his head, grabbing onto his bare shoulders. “That doesn’t sound caring and brotherly to me, Daniel!”
“D.”
“...huh?”
“Call me D. Everyone else did.”
“...Okay. But Rudy is using you. Back then, when you were human, how did he treat you? Was it different from now?”
Daniel thought of those times–how Rudy would give him attention here and there, but he really didn’t interact with him as much as he did, now. There wasn’t the same level of comradery as there had been, back then. But Rudy did talk to him–he did draw him in and gave him the things that Daniel had been looking for. He shifted away from Richie, shaking his head. “Forget it. It’s nothing.”
“D...please...I’m not good with people. I’m the last person people should be coming to to talk,” Richie confessed, anxiously playing with his toothbrush. He then wet the bristles under running water, and slathered on toothpaste. He handed it to Daniel pointedly, then shifted to allow him room as Daniel got the gist of the subtle hint.
“What Rudy is doing is wrong,” Richie then continued. “It is degrading to you–it’s demeaning you. Putting you down. Why can’t you see that he’s using you?”
Daniel spit into the sink. “No...no, it’s not like that. Not at all!”
“How can you say that, D? When you can’t even–!”
Daniel dropped the toothbrush into the sink without finishing. But at least his breath wasn’t as rank as it was before. “You don’t know!” he said firmly. “You don’t know! You don’t know the way I feel! I think! You don’t know! Rudy gave me what I’d lost! I would like to repay him with my loyalty!”
“D! This is the wrong sort of loyalty that you are giving him! You are killing people, D! You can be sent to prison with life behind bars! Or even execution! He’s doing you wrong by making you prove this sort of loyalty by asking for all the wrong things!”
Daniel grabbed his arm, squeezing tightly as he insisted, “I respect him! Anything he asks, I’ll do because–because I want to make him happy. To repay him for the things he’d done. I don’t want him to think down on me...I don’t want him to be...to disapprove, or to be disappointed...”
Richie stilled, looking at Daniel closely. Suddenly, instead of that tanned, broad face, he saw Francis’. How vehement he was in wanting to change, in wanting to change his life around for the person he loved. Francis had given him a similar speech a long time ago–Richie had talked him out of committing robbery because he hadn’t any money, nor any prospects in a job. This was before Custom Auto Shop came along–Francis had been so vehement in wanting to take care of the one that loved him, and was willing to do anything for him.
He couldn’t see Daniel as a monster, anymore. He could only see him as a lost soul, struggling to do what he felt was right by those that he felt cared for him.
Suddenly, his compassion for this man surged all other things, despite his logical thinking. Francis was, and would always be, his weak spot. Unfortunately, this person reminded him of him enough to overlook many obvious things.
He gave Daniel a compassionate expression, smiling fondly. He couldn’t resist reaching out to touch his face, uncaring of the startled expression that burst across the other’s features.
“No...not like that. Not like that. What about you, huh? What about your happiness, D? Do you feel good about doing this sort of thing, knowing that it’s wrong, but knowing that it pleases him?”
“...I’m happy if he’s happy, truthfully,” Daniel answered carefully. “He’s my...he’s like an older brother I’ve never had–”
“Someone that you want to impress,” Richie insisted, dropping his hand with some embarrassment.
“No...just...I want approval, I guess. To be accepted. You know?”
“...In a way, I understand. But...my husband was like you. Needing approval and reassurance, wanting to feel acceptance. Sorry. You just remind me of him, of what he used to be back then. I know what you mean, D, but I can’t condone you for it. I just hope you’ll find that it’s better to listen to yourself than to others. You’ll still have to pay the consequences for your actions. That always catches up to you in the end.”
Daniel listened to him, then looked at him with a frown. Richie caught the expression, shifting uncomfortably as he then put space between them.
“You’re like a woman,” Daniel then blurted out, his face revealing his confusion. “You smell like one, and you touch and speak to me like...like you’re one.”
Richie stuck his tongue against the inside of his left cheek and found that it wasn’t that much of an insult. Yet.
Realizing that he needed to break the sudden tenseness, he felt his player mode shift into place. So far, Daniel had not expressed any disgust or repulsion of his gender preferences, nor had he expressed any discomfort in his closeness or attitude.
“But I’m not,” he said with some annoyance. He then smiled sweetly at him. “You wanna check and make sure?”
“...You’re a whore, man,” Daniel then pointed out, his face giving away his own irritation.
“‘M just playing with you!” Richie then laughed, reaching up to brush Daniel’s hair from his face. He caught himself in the action and pulled back quickly, grimacing. But noticed that Daniel didn’t move or comment on the action. He was starting to realize once more how built Daniel was, how handsome...he flushed nervously, patting his shoulders, unable to resist that. “You okay, then? You cool?”
“...Yeah. Yeah, I am. Just...I...you’re like a girl.”
Richie froze for a moment–noticed how close they were. Without saying anything, he shifted his arms around Daniel’s shoulders, tiptoeing to kiss his lips gently. He expected to be shoved away, to have his ass kicked–but nothing came. So he deepened the kiss, tasting unfamiliar lips and smelling the strong scent of a body that had gone without many washings. It was disgusting, but strangely arousing in a wrong sort of way.
When he pulled away, Daniel was staring at him in shock, but Richie didn’t move his arms–nor did he apologize for his actions.
“What?” he asked quietly, smiling slightly.
“Just...I’m not gay,” Daniel stammered, face flushing. But he still didn’t move.
Richie lifted an eyebrow, fiddling with the short hairs on the nape of his neck. “Okay, you’re not. But you’re naked, you’re letting me molest you without protest, and you haven’t complained once of me making the wrong comment or giving you the wrong look...”
“...I’m not!”
“Hey, I totally understand!” Richie exclaimed, then kissed him again, drawing his body fully against his, fingers moving through his hair.
Daniel stiffened in reaction, but then moved, pulling away from his touch and his lips. Richie pulled himself back, separating to give him space just in case he needed to move quick. Seeing that Daniel’s face was splashed with confusion, he gave a cocky little smile and left the bathroom to give him some time to think about things.
He heard his cell phone ringing out in the hallway, and sighed impatiently, hurrying over to answer it.
He saw that it was from the jail, and he answered quickly. After accepting the collect call offered from the computer automated voice, he heard Francis’ immediate apology for losing control of himself.
“Oh, don’t apologize, babe,” he said quietly, returning to the bedroom to sit on the bed. “Are you okay? I mean, despite it all?”
“Just...fuckin’ pissed, I guess. Mostly at myself. For...like...letting my anger take control of myself, again. Just....I wish I hadn’t done that. I–”
“It’s all my fault, Francis,” Richie said glumly, kicking off his shoes and pulling his legs cross-legged. He looked up when he saw Daniel peering out from the bedroom, an unreadable expression on his face. Richie shifted on the bed and patted his knee with a teasing smile. Daniel returned that smile, but he also left the bathroom to climb onto the bed, Richie watching him with bewilderment as the man stretched out over the mattress, crossing his arms over Richie’s lap and laying his head into that pillow. He then shifted again, to rub his forehead against Richie's stomach and chest, like an animal seeking affection.
Stunned, Richie jerked himself out of his surprise and said quickly, “For messing around with him. I’m so sorry, baby. I wish I did things differently. I should have just left and went to find you, but I thought I was able to handle it–!”
“That fuckin’–fuck. Just...he ain’t bothering you now, is he? Tryin’ to call you, an’ shit?”
“No...if he does...then I’ll just file a restraining order against him. I should, anyway. Baby, I’m so sorry. I feel bad that you’re in jail,” Richie murmured, looking down to run his fingers through Daniel’s hair, playing with the thick, dark strands. “Did John talk to you? About your options?”
“Said he’d get back to me. He’s doin’ some talkin’, now. But taking those classes again...man, Rich, that’s just a strike against me.”
Richie felt immense guilt flood through him at that moment, and he stopped playing with Daniel’s hair long enough to sigh. He apologized again, then started at the feel of Daniel’s hands curling and stroking against his legs.
“No, no, baby, it’s all me,” Francis said dejectedly. “It’s my problem–I mean, I fuckin’ know I have a problem with it! It’s all on me! I can’t control it...I dunno. But...but I just wanted to fix things between us, an’–when I thought I was doin’ good, it just...it just ain’t. Plus, someone filed a complaint against us, again. Cuz...cuz of all that shit that went down, last night. So, that’s another strike.”
Richie closed his eyes, tilting his head back with exasperation. More guilt hit him, then, and he exhaled slowly. Things weren’t looking good for Francis–he cursed Joe again, and wondered how he could get away with hacking into the man’s records and replacing them with an escaped convict’s, so that he’d land his gym-built ass into prison on another man’s crime. As the idea grew to appealing lengths, Daniel shifted in his lap, drawing his attention down.
“But...I dunno...maybe...maybe a miracle will come along, huh? And get me outta here. Man, this is just...I haven’t even gotten a fuckin’ parking ticket, or shit like that, man! It’s just–I’m so sorry, babe. I might be in here for, like, ten years for violating my parole.”
Richie couldn’t speak for a few moments, pulling the cell away from his face as Daniel found his lips with his, pushing him back against the bed. He managed to break his face away long enough to say, “Five. But–but maybe something will count for you, Francis! You’ve done nothing wrong all this time, an–!”
“...Rich? Rich, what are you doing?”
Richie couldn’t exactly say that he had another man on top of him, doing very bad things with his hands over his crotch. So he swallowed hard and eked out, “Making a sandwich.”
“Babe, while I’m in here? Don’t be startin’ shit with Ivan. I’m pissed at that, man. That was fuckin’...”
“I...I’ll just...apologize....”
“...Rich. What are you doing?”
“Making a sandwich!”
“...Then why’s your voice gettin’ all breathy?”
Richie managed to shove Daniel away from him to growl, “What are you implying, Francis?”
“...Nothin’. Sorry. I’m sorry. I...I’m just frustrated, baby. Just...I’m sorry. Baby, I’m sorry. Don’t be mad.”
“...I’m not mad. It’s all right, Franny. You are mad, and you are understandably on edge. I love you. Maybe they’ll realize they made a mistake, babe. That you–shouldn’t they have taken a blood test on that bastard? He reeked!”
“John mentioned that, and I think they did. But check on that. He should be slapped, too. Not just me. Fuck. Baby, I have to go. Be careful, okay? Lock up the house. I don’t know when I’m going to be out, but I don’t want no fuckers messin’ with you while I’m gone. Baby, I love you. I’m sorry for this.”
“No, Franny, it’s okay. It’s okay. Things will work out. Baby, I love you, too. I’ll talk to John and see what our options are, all right?”
“...’K. Love you.”
“Love you, too.”
Richie hung up, feeling horrible about the circumstances. He wished he’d done things differently the night before–he wished he’d just left when Joe first grabbed him. He then lowered the phone when he remembered that he had an insanely handsome metahuman atop of him, feeling obviously frisky as he nosed his stomach.
Laughing, he tossed his cell away from him, pulling Daniel’s head up by his hair. “You said you aren’t gay!” he accused him.
Daniel simply gave him a slow grin that did fluttery things to Richie’s stomach. “But how would I know if I don’t try?”
“How often do you mess around, like this?”
“Not very much. I don’t...I don’t feel that way when I’m changed, y’know? Just...it’s different. But when I’m a man, I–I do. But...but you turned me on, that night...Remember? When I killed Tyson? You laid down before me, and–and I couldn’t stop thinking about it. I was so pissed when Rudy called for me. I could’ve–you and Tyson were getting busy, and I could just smell that you were still all turned on–”
“Erm, please don’t talk like that. That’s kinda...freaky. Oh my god, that’s kinda freaky,” Richie then realized with rising panic, the more he thought of it that way. He pushed at Daniel, then growled when the man kept his position. “Get off. All right? Get off. I don’t want this.”
“You do this with all of them. You did the same thing with Joe that night. Made him work on talking you into bed, but you were the one leading him into the decision the entire time.”
“...You...You were there?” Richie asked, his voice filling with a tightness that followed the suddenly creepy feeling that drifted over his skin.
“I followed you everywhere. After that night. I watched everything. I followed you everywhere I could, and made sure you came home all right. I watch you, and I watched you with your husband. I would stand outside the window, and–!”
“GET OFF ME! YOU PSYCHO! GET OFF! Do you realize how fucking creepy you sound?!”
Daniel growled low as he caught his arms and pinned them to the mattress, but a slow, predatory smile graced his features. “Like you said before–I’m bigger than you. I can overpower you easily. Even if you don’t want it, I do. Depending on you, it can be easy–or hard. No one’s going to come by, you know. Stone’s all in jail–Evans is doing his own thing somewhere else. And your friend, Static–well, I heard he’s busy. I followed him, too. He has a couple of kids, huh? You like games, don’t you? Let’s play a game. Let’s play a Let’s Not Get Our Friends’ Children Killed game.”
Richie stilled completely, staring up at him in complete shock and numbed horror. He thought of the way Virgil spoke so proudly of Jean and Oscar–how the women were still so completely vulnerable, even with Shenice’s superhuman state.
Virgil would kill anybody that threatened them.
His expression turned venomous. “I am the last person on this planet you want to threaten. You completely underestimate me, Daniel. You don’t want to do that.”
Daniel’s look shifted to that of mocking disbelief. “One word to Rudy, and your family, Static’s family, Ivan’s family–plus the fact of your identity leaking out to a husband that don’t sound as if he knows what you do–you’ve got things stacked against you. I really don’t think you should be threatening me.”
Every one of his muscles were trembling violently. He couldn’t seem to stop shaking. Doubt and uncertainty started to overtake his confidence, but Richie kept himself composed. He shot Daniel an evil glare, shaking his head tightly, even as his skin crawled with the man’s touch and proximity.
“Besides, you were asking for it, you whore. Hitting on me ever since I came in. Practically inviting me on top of you. Sluts like you won’t be taken seriously. After all that shit you played with everyone else, how am I different? Huh? I’ll just be taking what you’ve been offering. You've been giving it to everyone else.”
Richie licked his lips, suddenly hating himself even further. For all the attention that he desired and wanted. He didn’t have anything to say to that, swallowing tightly as Daniel sneered at him.
He shut his eyes with reluctant acquiescement, feeling the other man shift on top of him.