Work Text:
Chase came awake in the early hours of the next morning, confused as to where he was. Everything came back in a rush, and he lay back down. He looked at the clock to see that it was 3:45 a.m. He'd have to get up for work in about an hour, so he tried to go back to sleep even though he knew he wouldn't. As he lay there in the dark, his thoughts turned to Tony. He couldn't believe he'd been wrong about the man. Deep down Chase wanted to believe what Tony told him, but his actions said otherwise. He didn't really want to think that Brett would stoop so low as to try and take Tony away from him, but Brett's actions told a different story too.
While Chase understood the need for a friend to talk to from time to time, he couldn't understand what was so important that Brett seemed to need Tony's undivided attention all the time. Chase couldn't count the times that Brett had interrupted quiet evenings with his phone calls, and thwarted Chase's plans for he and Tony to have some “quality time”. When Brett was at the house, Chase started paying attention to how Brett and Tony talked to each other, and especially how Brett looked at Tony when he could get away with it. That had a lot to do with Chase acting out like he did. Chase tried to put all of that out of his mind because it was time to get checked out of the motel and get to work.
Meanwhile, over in Pasadena, Tony was worried sick. He hadn't heard one word from Chase, and it was driving him up the wall. He'd been up most of the night trying to figure out what he could do to get Chase back home where he belonged, and get Brett to find somebody else to unload his problems on. Chase was the most important thing in his life, and he'd managed to fuck that up royally. If he could determine whether or not Chase was okay, he might feel a bit better. He decided not to open up the shop that day, and decided to see if he could find out anything about Chase. Just as he was getting ready to leave, there was a knock at the door. He went to answer it, and was so relieved to see Chase standing there......
“Chase! Oh thank God! Are you alright?”
“Will you please let go of me?”
“What?”
“Please let go of me......”
“I don't understand....”
“It's very simple: I don't want your hands on me!”
Tony couldn't believe what he was hearing. Chase had never been so stoic and nearly emotionless......
“Chase, would you please come inside so we can talk?”
“Tony, I don't know that we have anything to say to each other.....”
“Chase, I'd really like to sit down and try to work this out.....”
“I don't know, Tony...”
“Chase, please talk to me..... Babe, I can't stand you not being here.....
“The way things were going, it's like I wasn't here anyway.....”
Tony started to argue, but he knew Chase was only stating a fact. He'd gotten so tangled up in Brett and Eddie's problems that he completely neglected his lover. Now Tony understood why Chase had behaved so well after a whole week of mayhem. He simply wanted to be acknowledged and loved......
“Chase, why didn't you come to me and tell me how you were feeling?”
“Because I didn't think what I felt mattered anymore, and besides, you would have just shined me on by telling me I had nothing to worry about......”
Tony knew that everything Chase had stated was pure fact. He had shined Chase on, and told him more than once that he had nothing to worry about. This gave Tony an idea, one he hoped Chase would be receptive to......
“Chase, I have an idea.....”
“What's that?”
“How about you , me, and Brett all get together and try to work this thing out? Baby, I want you home with me where you belong,and I'm hoping that between Brett and I, we can convince you that we are telling the truth. What do you say?”
Chase thought about what Tony was saying. He really wanted to be home with his Daddy, but he wanted to be absolutely certain that coming back wasn't a mistake. He knew that he needed to trust Daddy, and if it meant a sit-down with Brett, then so be it. He though about it a little longer then looked at Tony and said; “Okay....”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes.....”
Tony jumped up to hug Chase, and was hurt when Chase pulled away. Not wanting to make things worse, Tony let it go and went to call Brett to ask if he would come by after work that afternoon. Brett asked if Tony had heard from Chase, and Tony explained that Chase was there, and that he was willing to sit down and try to work things out. Brett told Tony that he would be there around 6-ish and Tony told him that would be fine.
When Tony went back to the living room, he panicked because Chase was nowhere to be found. Just as Tony was about to call out, Chase appeared in the doorway.....
“You thought I'd left , didn't you?”
“I didn't know what was going on.....”
“Did you get in touch with Brett?”
“Yes, and he said he would be here shortly after 6.....”
“Good...... the sooner we get this tended to, the better..... is it okay if I take a nap? I didn't sleep too good last night.....”
“Go right ahead..... you want something to eat?”
“Not really hungry..... just tired.....”
“Okay...... I'm going downstairs to the shop. Just call if you need anything....”
“I will.....”
Chase headed for the bedroom while Tony headed downstairs to the shop. As he lay there waiting for sleep to claim him, Chase hoped he hadn't made a mistake by agreeing to sit down with Tony and Brett. He wanted things back the way they used to be, but wasn't sure anymore if they could be or not. As he drifted off to sleep, he hoped this mess could be cleaned up soon.
Downstairs, Tony was doing his best to concentrate on the invoices in front of him. He'd much rather be upstairs at that moment making love to his sweet boy, Chase, but he knew better than to try to make romantic overtures at the moment. Tony couldn't quite understand how he let himself get so absorbed with the whole Brett/Eddie thing that he would neglect his boy the way he had. He never intended to mistreat Chase at all, but he had. The evidence lay in the fact that Chase had actually walked out on him. Sure, he was only gone overnight, but it could have been much worse. He could have left for good, and that thought scared the living hell out of Tony..........
When Chase woke up, the apartment was quiet. That meant Tony was either downstairs in the shop, or had run an errand. Chase got out of bed and took a piss. When he was done, he washed his face and hands and headed to the kitchen for a snack. He was thinking about the talk he was supposed to have with Brett and Tony later that evening. Most important on his mind was why Brett had done some of the things he did. Couldn't he tell that it was affecting Chase and his relationship with Tony? Did he even care? Chase planned on finding out the answer to that if at all possible. Also, when did Tony become Brett's confidante? They didn't hang out that much, mostly because everybody was always busy working. Then there were the looks Brett sneaked at Tony when he thought Chase wasn't looking. He eyed the man like a midnight snack! Chase knew he shouldn't get all worked up over all of this because in the end, it might not even matter. He figured the best thing he could would be to play it by ear and see what happened.
About an hour later,Tony came upstairs from the shop to check on Chase. He found him watching a baseball game on TV. Tony spoke to Chase, but only got a grunt in response. That grunt spoke volumes. To Tony, it meant that Chase wasn't ready to talk to him much yet, and it told him that he should tread lightly. He asked Chase if he was hungry, but Chase told him he'd had a sandwich earlier. Tony decided to leave Chase alone, so he went into the bedroom and lay down across the bed. Before he knew it, he was sound asleep. When the doorbell rang at 6:30, Chase went to the bedroom to wake Tony. He then went to answer the door. He told Brett to come in and that Tony would be out in a minute. Brett attempted to make small talk with Chase, but Chase had very little to say in return. Tony finally made an appearance, and the three men got down to business.......
“Brett, you know why I've asked you here this evening, and I want you to help me convince Chase that he's gotten the wrong idea about us......”
“I wish I could, Tony, but Chase isn't exactly wrong....”
“I knew it! I just knew I wasn't wrong about this!!!!!”
“Hold on there, Chase..... I admit that I was starting to develop feelings for Tony, but I never acted on them because I knew that he was in love with you. I admit that I used to come by to discuss a problem, but it was just to be near Tony, but then I began to notice how things were between you and Tony, and I knew my best bet was to leave Tony alone. Chase, we've been friends for a good while now, and I want you to know that I would never do anything to hurt you.....”
“But you DID, Chase! I can't tell you how many times I died a little inside when Tony would neglect me just so he could continue a phone conversation with you, or how many time I lay in bed at night wondering what I did wrong, or why one of my so-called friends would take away my happiness in the blink of an eye.....”
“Chase, babe, please calm down.....”
“No, Tony! I will NOT calm down! You both need to know how I feel, and I'm taking the opportunity to let you know. You think you're such a great partner, yet you couldn't see what was happening RIGHT IN FRONT OF YOUR FACE!!!!!! No, all you had on your mind was Brett and Eddie's latest plight and nothing more. Every time Brett dropped by or called, you dropped everything to give him your fullest attention......
The three men sat there in silence, each thinking about what had been said. Tony knew Chase was right about everything. The more he thought about it, the worse he felt. Brett was feeling guilty as hell because Chase had him dead to rights on the shit he'd pulled. Brett decided to ask what should be done next.....
“Brett, you need to stay away from Tony for a while. If I'm going to have any chance of saving what's left between Tony and I, you need to keep your distance and find someone else to talk to about Eddie for a while. I'm not saying we aren't friends anymore, all I'm saying is that Tony and I are going to need some space and a bit of time.......”
“That's right, Brett. I need to concentrate on Chase, and I don't need any distractions. We'll get in touch when the time is right......”
“So am I forgiven, Chase?”
“Not yet, Brett. Let's just say that we'll mend our fences when Tony and I get us figured out.....”
“Fair enough..... Chase, I really am sorry about all this.....”
“Whatever, Brett.....”
Brett stood leave, and Tony walked him to the door. After he was gone, Tony turned to Chase and asked if they could talk......
“Sure..... what's on your mind?”
“I really wanted to talk about us, and where we go from here.....”
“A lot of that depends on you.....”
“What do you mean?”
“Do you want to try and repair this?”
“Yes, I do....”
Chase stood up and took his t-shirt off, then his sweats. He looked Tony dead in the eye and asked; “Then what are you waiting for, Daddy?”
The End