#irlhoundoom

he’s half dead && lying across the couch in the deputy’s living room, trying his best not to bleed over the upholstery. recovery will COME, he knows, but that doesn’t erase the pain in the meantime. a hand to his SIDE, pushing a bandage in, trying to stop the bleeding, && they’re arguing. they do that a lot, truth be told. this time it’s about anakin’s rushing head first into danger, lightsaber SWINGING && caution to the wind, && his refusal to go see a DOCTOR. though human, he doesn’t want to know what will happen if the BEACON HILLS HOSPITAL takes a look at how his biochemistry is altered due to EXPOSURE to the force && his own high midi-chlorian count. 

voices rise, && though he knows it comes from a place of CONCERN, the teenager can’t help but think he views the situation more CLEARLY than the deputy. after all, he may be OLDER, but it’s anakin that understands the ins and OUTS of the universe, anakin who can  f e e l  the fabric of life itself. it leaves a bit of OVERCONFIDENCE brimming through him as he argues, desperate for a way to STOP jordan’s worry, to convince him once and for all that it will be alright. his body ALREADY aches           ;             he doesn’t need to add jordan’s TENSION to that as well. 

a kiss, though a rather EFFECTIVE way to silence his argument, is something as of yet UNBROACHED between them. there is an age difference, yes, but MORE than that, he has never had any indication that such advance would be WELCOMED. yet a kiss is what comes, before he even REALIZES it’s done, && he freezes. jolting back, he stares, SHOCKED, before making an excuse, blaming crazy things on the ADRENALINE, claiming to need rest to heal. he doesn’t want to think about THAT, doesn’t need more confusion to deal with.

II.

the second time comes a good deal after the first. he’s on the side of the road, pulled OVER with the blinking lights signaling a DEPUTY’S car. he knows exactly the reason, his habit of SPEEDING having been pushing a new record, but he’s also  l e t  himself be caught at it, sensing a familiar presence, knowing just WHICH deputy it was behind the wheel. they’ve been avoiding each other, after THE FIRST TIME, leaving the kiss untouched on, untalked about. they haven’t talked since then, have been AVOIDING being in the same place as much as possible. but it’s time, anakin thinks, for that to END. 

if nothing else, as he rolls down the window of his car, he’s expecting to be GIVEN a ticket in return for an apology for his previous behavior. so surprise colors his features, GALAXIES swimming in his gaze as he nods && undoes his seatbelt. the door opens, his hand shaking as he STEPS out, eyes trained on the deputy in front of him. hands held UP, he waits for further instruction. it doesn’t come. instead, his arms are guided down to rest at his side, the posture of CASUAL CONVERSATION rather than of deputy && suspect. 

an apology falls from his lips, hushed, HURRIED tones falling from his lips, only to find them cut off by the press of jordan’s lips to his own. it leaves his BREATH to pause, toes curling in his shoes as he leans up, an arm DRAPING around the other’s neck. shock comes           ;           he had never expected such a response, never THOUGHT that jordan might be kissing him. but he will not DENY it, his smaller frame melting into the older’s until they pull back, foreheads RESTING together in silent embrace. again, he starts an apology, this time WORDS cutting through it, the hushed whisper of it’s okay preceding the GHOST of lips to lips once more. yes, he can’t help but think. it’s VERY okay.

III.

the third time, it’s casual. it’s just the touch of lips against lips in the KITCHEN of jordan’s apartment. they’re making dinner, anakin’s PARENTS out on a job for his uncle, his older siblings off with them, && he was taking advantage of their absence to spend time with DEPUTY PARRISH. he’s a horrendous cook, but it’s a lucky thing that jordan will eat just about anything. still, laughter flows, a bit of FLOUR stuck to the side of anakin’s nose while a streak lines jordan’s hair. it’s with a GRIN that he traces that streak with his fingertips, tugging him in for a KISS that is more smile against smile than anything else.

IV.

the fourth time, there’s the taste of ANGER, of a lack of understanding, of  f r u s t r a t i o n .  the fourth time, anakin thinks it might be the end. an EASY trip, a spin around the bend, && he thought it would be fun. the engines roar, nowhere near the FASTEST he’s ever gone, yet the deputy’s knuckles on the dashboard are WHITE. he pulls over to the side, a bit of  a n n o y a n c e  clouding the face of youth, && he stares dubiously at the one so OBJECTIONABLE towards his habits. 

they fight, one STAUNCH in his belief that anakin’s use of the force undermines authority && the laws which he protects, the other ABSOLUTE in his belief that the force is his to use as a tool, that no harm is done. around && around, the arguments go, neither gaining any ground. finally, they FADE into hushed apologies from both sides, both TIRED of the fighting though neither has won. they meet in an embrace, face pressed into the curve of a neck, && fingers find the curve of anakin’s jaw. the slightest tilt, && he looks up, only to find himself DRAWN into the gentlest of kisses. they may not always agree, but they will always come back together in the end.

V. 

the fifth comes in soft breaths && gentle caresses, HEAT gathering between them as two become one. anakin will be LEAVING soon, his UNCLE calling for him, a new threat brimming on the horizon. even as they come together, he feels it in the distance, TEARING them apart. && who knows when they will once more come together again ?  in this sleepy town, JORDAN has his own demons to face, the rising threat imminent && threatening the LIFE of everyone here. && beyond the town lines, a world waits, && anakin left to protect it. their duties will take them APART, will rob them of this happiness. but NAME ONE HERO WHO WAS HAPPY. it is not the path they must travel.