thepiedcounselor:

Damien was tired. 

No, he was more than tired, he was lonely. And had been for some time. It seemed like he’d smiled more in the last few weeks than he had in the last ten years, but there was something missing. There was always something missing, but it was never more apparent than when Damien would have a thought pop up. An odd quirk, or inside joke that he knew with one glance he would’ve been able to communicate with Rob, but now it was like they were on opposite planets. 

He’d been complacent, stuck in a rut of silence and isolation, and Isabelle, of course, had to be the one to break through it all and show him everything he was missing. Everything that he had lost. He wanted the man he’d once considered a brother back, he just…didn’t know how.

Scrubbing a hand through wayward curls he grabbed his bag, looping it over his shoulder, and moving towards the door. He was tired of this place, tired of the quiet, so he was going to Granny’s. At least there he could have the illusion of not being alone. Grabbing the rest of his things he opened up the door to his flat, and came face to face with the last person he expected to see on his doorstep.

“…Rob.”

He hadn’t known what to expect, walking over there, not even bringing Rebel along for a small piece of comfort that would have just ended up with him to continue to drive by. Exactly the reason he walked over, because he only trusted himself far enough that to get him there and hope that his legs would keep moving till he hit the front door.

Maybe he had been looking for a few more minutes, try to think up something clever to say or even a grunt that matched his usual demeanor when he was working in the garage, anything than the silence he met when Damien opened the door. Ten years was a long time to know someone and not really know them anymore, while everything he had wanted to say all but flew out his head.

Even though he had seen the other man, around town or even in the house he’d bought for him and Maria, they hadn’t been face to face for some time now, not really. Sizing him up, he stood there for a moment longer wishing he had brought Maria along or even Iz, someone to break the tension that was filling up that front door faster than he could even capture a thought in his head. They would have known what to say, what to do, instead of standing there, hands in pockets and grunt noncommittally before finally saying the only thing on his mind.

“Damien.”

To say something had been weighing on his mind for some time now would have been an understatement. It was an everyday occurrence,  hitting about the same time everyday when he’d just look up from whatever he was working on and know exactly what time it was. 1:23 in the afternoon, same time every time. A silent reminder of everything he had lost that day, all those years ago, at the exact time he had dialed for the ambulance and subsequently ended a lifelong friendship with one of the few people that mattered to him, a man who was more like a brother than blood could ever hope to create. 

So when he looked up and found the time judging him again, like it did every day, he decided enough was enough. He and Mar were moving on, Iz had her life on track and judging by the way she lit up lately, he didn’t have to guess that there was a new someone in her life. She’d tell him when she was ready or he’d just find out on his own, maybe when his mind was less burdened. And that was the reason for him standing there, outside Damien’s house, unable to even sleep through the night without the nightmares plaguing him and waking both him and Maria. He had had enough. There was something that needed to be done, even if it couldn’t be fixed, even if he slammed the door in his face, he’d deserve it all but he had to try. It was now or never and Rob couldn’t have been scared more.

thepiedcounselor:

You tell them, and I’m going to tell them who really ate all of the pudding last Sunday. {Leaning down against the branch, he rested his hands behind his head, and crossed his legs at the ankle, staring up at the sky. He knew that people would have no doubt that it was the pair of them who had set off the fireworks, but without any concrete evidence, they’d get nowhere. And since any evidence was soon to be ash by the time the Sheriff got there, he’d be even more at a loss with what to do.}

You wouldn’t because then you’d have to confess who helped me eat the pudding by letting me in. We both know I’m temporarily banned from there. [It wasn’t supposed to go off here, actually it was meant for the middle of town but things got out of hand quickly and well, there they sat, waiting for the smoke to clear.]

thepiedcounselor:

{Stumbling a bit as he was pulled down, he fell against Rob’s shoulder, grin widening as the teen counted down and when the last digit fell a wash of color appeared in the sky above them. Ducking as the occasional firework blasted over their heads, he could only laugh and stare up at the sky, watching it become painted with light.} I solemnly swear I had nothing to do with that.

Ooo, the nuns are gonna getcha for that whopper of a lie. [Laughing, he relaxed against the branch, waiting out the fireworks even as a few blasted against the other side of where they sat.]

thepiedcounselor:

{Rolling his eyes at the wink, he couldn’t keep his grin fully away as he followed after him. The moment Rob disappeared behind the fallen trunk he was dashing behind him, leaping further than he probably should and rolled through the grass a few times before sliding to a halt on his back, breathing heavily.} Well….he has come after you a number of times, if you’ve forgotten the Wellings incident, oh and the Robinsons. They weren’t very happy about their flamingos, if I remember correctly. {He tilted his head towards Rob with a grin before rolling to a crouch and moving closer to him, bunking down behind the tree trunk with him.}

[Pulling Damien down beside him, he held up his left hand and counted down silently with a big grin until the last finger fell away just as he heard the first of many fireworks go off in the distance, tearing up the sky and the forest with it’s screams and lights. Looking up, he watched as some of them broke free of their tethers and came flying at them, just shy of the trunk they hid behind, grateful it had been there for them.] The Wellings.. oh with their daughter, not my fault, she was the one who gave me the car keys and the Robinsons should have thanked me for what I did with those damn things if they knew I had done that. Still neither could be pinned to me despite how many evil eyes I got from them and the Sheriff cause someone is looking out for me. [Grinning, he looked over at his friend before turning his eyes back up and watching firework after firework light up the sky and trees around them.]

thepiedcounselor:

{He skidded in the dirt as Rob suddenly turned his direction, sliding a few feet before picking himself up and chasing after, never once stopping his laughter.} It was inevitable, as it always is on nights like these. I do hope you know you’re on your own, though, if the Sheriff comes sniffing around. I’ve got to keep up my sterling reputation, I hope you’re not too put off by it. Survival of the fittest and all of that.

[Sending a wink and a laugh over his shoulder, he didn’t slow his footsteps, wanting to make sure to put as much distance between them and their prank. It was easy to move through the forest, having done it time and time again, it was second nature to him.] Sheriff come for little ol me? Please, D-man, I think you know me a little better than that to let him get that far onto my trail. He’ll never even know I had anything to do with this, let alone be the one to light the fuse. [Grinning, he jumped over a fallen branch and skidded to a stop to drop down behind it with a thud as he waited for his friend to follow suit. It was the perfect hiding place, with just enough cover because if his calculations were right, it was just about to get hot around here.]

thepiedcounselor:

Shit! {Grabbing onto Rob’s shoulder, he turns and starts to bolt, a laugh crawling up his throat as they ran away from their impending doom.} You’re never allowed around flammable objects again, you know that, right?! {He knew he should be angry, but he couldn’t get over the fact that it had all been his plan in the first place, so really…he’d been asking for it leaving Rob in charge of the fireworks.}

You say that every time and yet, here we go again! [Seeing the laughter bubbling up on the edges of Damien’s face, he couldn’t hold back his own roar as they tumbled further down the dirt road and away from the impending explosion that was sure to follow them. Counting down the seconds left before the fireworks were set to go off, he took a sharp right, taking the pair of them off the path and deeper into the woods and hopefully find cover.] But really, who thought it would end this way? You and I, running for our lives now and surely in a few hours from now when the Sheriff finds out who took the fireworks in the first place. If they didn’t want them taken, they shouldn’t have locked them up so nice and neat like. It was a present begging to be unwrapped.