AU Fic: Hellfire, Part 2

[cloversworld]

Title: HELLFIRE
Fandom: American Idol (Season 7)
Rating: PG-13
Warning: Death of some minor characters; swear words - lots of them
Read DISCLAIMER

Masterpost  |   Part 1

2 -   
It's burning my soul

“Two people are dead, Simon.” Cook did his best to keep his voice at a professional level but his fucking boss was being stubborn. “You sent me here to investigate. Now I’m telling you that this town may be in a …” He paused to steal a glance at the cops wandering around the area before lowering his voice. “This town may be in a serious situation, Simon. So send the fucking team here as soon as you can.”

“Are you sure those people didn’t die of any other cause?” Skepticism weaved through every word Simon uttered. And Cook had a ridiculous wish of getting his hands passed through his phone so he could strangle Simon.

“They had third degree burns and the water’s temperature is rapidly rising to boiling point. What other fucking evidence do you need? Damn it!” Cook could hear his voice echoing and noticed the paramedics, who had come to retrieve the bodies, watching him.

“Fine.” Simon sounded like he was conceding against his will. “We’ll be there first thing in the morning.”

When the call ended, Cook heard Lupe telling Archie to go ahead and take his siblings with him. “Cook and I will need to go down to the station with the sheriff.”

Something glimmered across Archie’s face - a hint of painful reluctance. “But mom-“

“Please David.” Lupe raised a hand, cutting Archie off, resoluteness apparent on her tone. “Just take your brother and sisters home.”

Cook didn’t know why, couldn’t yet understand why there was a sharp tweak in his chest at the sight of Archie looking dejected. And the words “I’ll see you back at the inn tonight” were out, before he could even ponder further.

It wasn’t supposed to mean anything, just a casual see-you-later line of gab, but the way Archie brightened and Lupe’s lips pursed, Cook had a feeling he’d hit a spot.

There was this inner battle swirling around his head, his conscience ripped in half. One half telling him to go for it, and perhaps this was what he needed - to deal with the shit that’s been bugging him or something similar to what Michael had said. And the other half - well, the other half was telling him that it would be a mistake to get himself involved with someone he probably could lose and that he would most likely get hurt all over again. Just like… just like with Andy.

“So what now?” Lupe yanked Cook out of his contemplation and he tried to recall whether they were in a middle of discussing something really important or - or if he’d been quiet throughout the ride. He couldn’t even remember leaving the hot springs area. Damn. This boy - young man really had his head all mixed up now. “Cook?”

“Umm…” Cook pushed his mind to focus on the situation at hand. Considering the handful of substantial information he’d been able to gather and using past experiences to form an analogy, Cook thought it was safe to suggest, “You might need to call a city council meeting as soon as possible.”

Lupe agreed. Pulling her phone out, she began making calls. They had reached the town proper when she had just finished talking to her ex-husband, Cook presumed, since he heard her say Jeff’s name more than twice.

“I couldn’t tell them what the meeting would be about. Yet,” Lupe started with a sigh. “So most of them refused to drop what they’re currently doing in favor of an unscheduled meeting.” She looked out the window, running a hand through her dark hair. And Cook wondered if she was watching the people who were still having fun at the - whatever festival the town was celebrating. “Tell me Cook. What do you think are the chances that this town might be in danger?”

“I’ve seen signs similar to Fourpeaked Mountain. Change in climate, acidity level of the water in the surrounding rivers and streams were unstable.” Cook paused when he noticed that they had almost reached the local police station. “You’d have to understand, though. Ninety percent of the time, these signs often lead to false alarms.”

Lupe shifted slightly in the back seat to face Cook. “And the other ten percent?”

Scenes from the last eruption Cook had witnessed flashed in his mind. “Is something I hope will never happen.”

“This won’t take long mayor,” the sheriff said as soon as the car came to a stop. Cook and Lupe followed him to his office and as promised, they weren’t held up too long. Cook had already given them a rundown of what happened before leaving the hot springs, so they were brought there merely for formality.

“I sent Archie a text message earlier, asking him to keep you company,” Lupe told Cook on their way out of the police station. And as if Lupe had said the magic word, Archie was right there, leaning against the white Hybrid. “I wish I could still show you around, but I have a headstrong seventeen-year-old son to deal with and…“

“Don’t worry about it.” Cook pulled his lips up into a smile, remembering how he was when he was Daniel’s age, or maybe much younger, but he’d been there - being rebellious and all, after his parents got divorced. He knew it was none of his business, but he ended up asking Lupe if they had tried getting Daniel into some activity relevant to his interests. “That was what my mom did after she and Dad got divorced so I could sort of divert my attention to other things. It helped, I guess. I hardly noticed Dad wasn’t around much. Well, he wasn’t really around often to begin with, anyway.”

“Why’s that?” Lupe leaned against their car, beside Archie.

“Well, Dad’s also a volcanologist. So he traveled a lot.” Cook recounted some of the places where his dad had brought him and his brothers along and admitted that it was because of the exposure that he ended up with the same profession.

There was a spark of interest - or at least Cook hoped it was interest - that went past Archie’s eyes and Archie lifted a hand but then pulled it back, tucked it behind him and cleared his throat instead. “What would you have been if uhm - well, not what you are now?”

“A rock star.” Cook could feel the grin stretching across his face when Archie’s face twitched, his eyebrow arched, like he was dubious, perhaps not sure whether to believe Cook.

But it was Lupe who said, “Seriously?”

Cook chuckled, shaking his head while shifting his weight from one leg to the other. Then he told them a concise version of how he was in a band while in college, playing in gigs but had to quit later so he could focus on his studies.

A car horn sounded just as Lupe had started telling Cook that Archie was supposed to pursue music as a career but ended up choosing journalism instead. “Hey Brooke!” Lupe waved over at her assistant. “I asked her to come pick me up so Archie wouldn’t need to drive me home,” she told Cook. “You boys enjoy the rest of the day.”

Once Brooke’s car was out of sight, Archie smiled up at Cook brightly. “So where would you want to go?”

It was already dark then. And as much as Cook wanted to spend more time with Archie, he could feel the pressure of fatigue pulling at every nerve in his body. “To be honest, I was thinking of a quick dinner then hopefully call it a night.”

Archie’s smile faltered for a second but was back as quickly as it faded, although, it didn’t quite reach his eyes. “Sure,” he said, “you must be tired.”

Before Archie could pull the car door open, Cook pressed his palm against the frame and leaned closer, keeping Archie in place, the other hand went straight to the back of his neck, rubbing on a spot.

“Listen I uhm…” Words didn’t come easy when it came to this - pre-dating jitters and all that shit. And it had been too long since Cook last did this - he didn’t even dare do it with Andy. Because he was too much of a coward and had too many ‘what ifs’ that he didn’t even try to- Cook jerked his head, shaking Andy out of his thoughts. Andy was dead. And… And Archie was there looking up at him, waiting for whatever the fuck he was going to say. “Why don’t we head back to the inn, and maybe you have some DVDs we can watch until I pass out and…”

“Oh.” Archie’s face lit up, and the spark in his eyes that had been making Cook’s heart do cartwheels returned. “How does ‘It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia’ sound?”

“You’re kidding.” Cook couldn’t tear his eyes away from Archie’s eyes. “I love that show.”

“My uhm…” Archie fidgeted, his fingers tugging at the hem of his shirt, lower lip wedged between his teeth, eyes darted on the ground. “My sister, Claudia, left her DVD collection with me and kinda forgot about it so…”

“I’d love to watch it with you, Arch,” Cook said and Archie glanced up at him furtively, dark eyelashes fluttering, and the corner of his mouth curling into what Dave could sense was a flirtatious smile. Fuck.

=0=

Perhaps it wasn’t an ideal first date, or if Archie could even call it a date. But whatever. Cook was all gentlemanly and nice and cool to be with and made watching a comedy show a lot more fun because… Because Cook loved to laugh even at the shallowest of jokes and his laugh was like music to Archie’s ears.

Archie enjoyed spending time with Cook, and he couldn’t even remember when he’d fallen asleep or how he made it back to his quarters. Maybe Cook guided him? Or… Or maybe Cook carried him? Which would be, gosh, embarrassing.

At least Cook looked refreshed when Archie saw him that morning. And Cook looked really handsome in his pink plaid shirt and dark tight jeans and-

“Yo Archie!” Syesha, their innkeeper, stood at the doorway that connected the main foyer and café area, one hand resting on her hip, and Archie had no idea how long she’d been there or if she’d been watching him daydream. “Are you even with me?” Syesha’s voice broke through his daze once more.

“Hmm?”

Then Syesha shook her head, lips spread into a wide smile. “Oh no, it’s that volcano guy, isn’t it?”

“He’s a volcanologist, Sy.” Archie went back to his task of straightening up the coffee counter, wiping off the surface with the rag he’d been clutching.

“Whatever.” Syesha blew away a stray lock from her face. “I just came to tell you that his friends have arrived, and I gave them the rooms on the second level as you instructed.”

“Thanks.”

Syesha made a move to leave but then said, “Oh!” and swiveled in place to face Archie once more. “I gave them full access to the den near the main entrance where I told them they could set up their equipment and all those stuffs they brought.”

As soon as Syesha left, a man wearing a gray shirt walked in. And one of the first things Archie noticed was his hair, which seemed to have been cropped meticulously, making him look like one of the male dolls with stiff hair that came with his sisters’ Barbie collection.

“Hi.” Archie greeted, dropping the rag discreetly on one of the hidden shelves.

“Hi. I’m Simon Cowell. I was wondering if you could tell me where I could find David Cook.” The man had a thick British accent and Archie remembered Cook mentioning his boss’ name so…

“He’s with my mom at town hall right now. I think they’re having a city council meeting.” But Archie belatedly regretted having told the man - uhm, Simon - where Cook was or what Cook could be doing when Simon’s expression morphed from friendly to confused to something close to being miffed.

“I see” was all Simon said and added, “Thank you,” before stepping outside.

Archie wondered if he should call Cook and warn him that his boss was, uhm, on his way. But then he didn’t want to bother Cook if he was in some meeting.

A thousand thoughts were playing tag in his head when a group of people came pouring into the café.

=0=



=0=

“I don’t think placing the town on alert is necessary, Lupe,” Jeff nearly hissed while he constantly threw deathly glares over to Cook. “I mean consider the damage it might cause if this turns out as nothing but a false alarm.”

The meeting had been going on for hours. And Cook could feel the beginning of a nasty headache.

“I’m sorry, but I’m going to have to agree with Jeff,” another council member, Randy Jackson, spoke up. And he stated the pros and cons that would affect real estate values if the town would be alerted of a catastrophe that might or might not happen.

“But Randy, two people are dead! How many more must we see before we do something about it.” It was Dr. Paula Abdul who spoke this time and she was clearly on Cook’s side.

Lupe had to be in the middle, some kind of mediator until everyone could come to an agreement. Cook could tell she was also fighting off a headache, seeing as how she was constantly rubbing on her temple. “Can we just… let’s just vote on it, okay?”

Cook was about to remind them what he had learned so far, to give them some facts but then Simon ambled in, eyes roving among the council members before settling on him.

“What’s going on, Dave?” There was an edge in Simon’s voice that suggested this wasn’t going to go well, that whatever fucking plan Cook suggested to the mayor would be thrown out the window.

“Everyone, this is my boss, Simon Cowell.” Cook then turned to Simon and explained that the council had been discussing whether or not to put the town on alert. “We were just about to vote on it.”

Then Simon smiled deviously at the council, saying, “Excuse me,” before leaning closer to Cook, close enough to hear Simon whisper through gritted teeth. “Can I talk to you outside for a moment?”

When they were at the hallway, safely out of anyone’s earshot, Simon rattled on. “What the hell were you thinking?” And, okay.

First, Cook was practically forced to come out there in the first place. And he was sent there to investigate, to determine whether the town was in danger. Now that he’d come up with answers, hypothetical they might be, he couldn’t believe that his own boss seemed skeptical about it.

“Look, Dave. Let me take over from here.” The way Simon had said it - straight-faced and unyielding - broke every fiber of hope Cook had in saving the town’s residents.

“You’re making a big mistake” was all Cook could squeeze out of his thoughts. He was desperate, now that Simon clearly would not to listen to reason.

“Take my advice and go on vacation. I’ll see you in a couple of weeks.” Simon returned to the meeting room, leaving Cook standing at the hallway, his hands clenched into fists at his sides.

Cook could hear what Simon was telling the members of the council, about his experience some years ago in Britain where he was certain that a dormant volcano would erupt and had advised against good judgment to put the town on alert. Cook knew about this story, about how it turned out that the signs were merely false alarm. But it was too late. The town’s economy plummeted, real estate suffered when property values dropped, and investments were pulled out.

Not wanting to hear more, Cook left without saying a word to anyone. Simon’s voice, saying, “We have a team who would set up equipment to monitor the volcano’s activity. If we see any definite sign that it might erupt, we would notify you immediately,” faded behind him.

Yeah right. Cook continued to grumble as he rounded a corner leading out of the building. He knew there was a possibility that the moment they see an obvious indication of probable eruption, it might be too late to save the town. But if Simon wanted him out of the way, then that was exactly what he would do. He didn’t need another catastrophe on his conscience.

It wasn’t long before he’d reached the inn. He decided to slip through the back door unnoticed, knowing fucking well that his teammates might have set up a temporary headquarters somewhere near the main entrance. As soon as he stepped into his room, he grabbed his bags and started packing. There was no looking back this time. He should never have come in the first place.

“Cook?” The sound of Archie’s voice penetrated the walls that he’d instantly built around him, creeping right through to his heart. Fuck. “What are you doing?”

Cook was afraid to turn around, afraid of what he might see if he did. But then something cold grazed his skin, and Cook felt trembling fingertips resting against the slope of his forearm. So Cook twisted his head to face Archie and look into those eyes that were like windows to a world where everything was beautiful and serene.

There was a shift between them, a strong pull that drew Cook closer to Archie. Cook reached out and took a hold of Archie’s shoulder then let his hand slip all the way to Archie’s back, the other arm coiling around Archie’ waist, pulling him in for a hug. Cook had his arms wrapped around Archie longer than he should, but he didn’t feel like letting go.

“I’m no longer needed here,” Cook said then buried his face in Archie’s hair, breathing in his scent, all powdery and musky and - Fuck. It made his - his pants feel somehow tighter.

A puff of warm breath against the side of Cook’s neck made the hair at his nape stand. “But do you have to go?” Archie’s voice came in a whisper, softly caressing Cook’s ears.

It hurt to pull back, to look into Archie’s eyes, all hopeful and- “Would you like me stay?” To hell with Simon, and to hell with the city council. If Cook’s instincts weren’t playing games, then he wouldn’t want to be anywhere else. He might lose the town to Mother Nature’s wrath but he wasn’t going to stand back and lose Archie, not now after they’d connected.

“Please.” Archie almost breathed out the word, sounding more desperate in Cook’s ears. “Stay.”

That was all Cook needed to send his fucking pride crumbling, to break the chains that kept his heart restrained. “Well, since I’m considered ‘on vacation’, maybe you can show me around town.”

Archie’s eyes glinted; lips curved into that heartwarming smile Cook had always craved to see. “Sure. I’ll uhm… I’ll go check on Syesha first, see if she will be ok on her own considering she has her hands full with your uhm… your colleagues.”

“Okay.” Cook finally let go of Archie, but the warmth of Archie’s body still clung on his own.

The inn wasn’t a huge place and Cook, for the life of him, couldn’t believe how stupid he was to think he wouldn’t run into any, if not all, of his teammates. So when he was sneaking through the stairs to meet Archie at the back, Carly saw him and dragged him all the way to the den.

When Cook went through the door, his wrist still in Carly’s deadly grip, the rest of the team’s voices filled the room with “there’s the fucking shit” and “dude, we were looking for you” and “nice shirt” but it was Chikezie who caught his attention.

“Your theories are down pat, Cook.” Chikezie was holding a piece of paper, which Cook presumed held the report he’d sent to Simon the day before.

“What makes you think so?” Cook remained skeptic, knowing that Simon hadn’t agreed with him.

“Well.” Chikezie used his foot to push against the floor and sent the chair he’d been sitting on gliding across the room. “Using the readings from the acidity level of the water in the lake and the amount of carbon dioxide present on the rocks and plant life among other things you’ve reported,” Chikezie said, his fingers tapping rapidly on the keyboard until a graph appeared on the computer monitor’s screen. “I did a comparative analysis against the reports received prior to the eruption of Mount Saint Helen, and look…” His index finger now traced the lines on the graph. “There are a lot of similarities. See?”

Chikezie had a point. But Cook knew where he stood at the moment. “I wish Simon would agree, but he just pulled me off of this assignment.” Cook did his best to hide the bitterness in his voice.

“The fuck he did.” Michael blurted from behind Cook.

It took a huge amount of pride for Cook to face Michael and tell him, “I’m afraid he did,” and endure the sick feeling rising in his stomach upon seeing disappointment flash on his teammates’ faces. “I guess I should all wish you luck then,” he added, patting Chikezie on the shoulder.

Archie showed up at a perfect time, giving Cook an excuse to leave. Michael offered the key to one of the four-wheel, partly amphibian vehicles they often used on field but Cook refused, settling for the red pick-up truck he had rented.

They drove up the mountains, taking a stroll along the lakeshore. It proved difficult for Cook not to reach out scratch off the black soot that coated the tree trunks or bend down and pick up rocks to observe, which he ended up doing.

“They said a man staring at a rock has a lot in his mind,” Archie said, breaking through Cook’s cogitation.

Cook chuckled and tossed the rock back on the ground. “I’m sorry. I must make an ultimately boring companion.”

“At least you’ve got gorgeous eyes,” Archie said; then his own eyes widened, cheeks turned scarlet and arms flailed as if he had not meant to let the words slip. Cook couldn’t help but laugh and was soon bent, clutching on his side.

When laughter faded into soft chuckles, Cook pulled Archie by the waist, laying his palms against Archie’s lower back. Cook leaned in, forehead resting against Archie’s, and he could feel Archie’s hands crawling tentatively on his shoulders.

“I should say the same thing about you, Sir,” Cook said softly. His heart thumped wildly, making it hard to push the words out. “I uhm...” Cook closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He was as nervous as fuck. “I don’t know, Arch. I really haven’t been with anybody for a long time. So I’m not sure I know how to do this right.”

“I…” Archie cleared his throat, a thread of hesitation spun around wordless seconds before he spoke again. “I haven’t been with anyone, I mean, in a serious relationship before. And uhm…”

Cook dared to open his eyes and felt a lump form in his throat upon seeing Archie looking up at him through his thick eyelashes. The depth of Archie’s stare pulled Cook in, loosening the last remnants of self-fucking-control that had held Cook back.

Their lips met. Brushing. Gliding. Cook savored the softness of Archie’s lips, daring to let the tip of his tongue feel the silk-like surface. Then he felt Archie’s lips part, and Cook took it as an invitation so he pushed through it warily, loving the small whimpers that rose from Archie’s throat.

When they finally pulled away, something different, something Cook couldn’t put a name to yet, unfurled within his chest. The sight of Archie - lips kiss-swollen and eyes dark and heavy-lidded - undid Cook. Emotions he had tried to restrain, to keep tucked away deep within his core, came crawling up to the surface.

=0=

It was sundown when they got back to the town proper. They both craved enchiladas and tamales so Archie took Cook to one of the Mexican restaurants in the district, which, Archie claimed, also offered interesting live music.

They talked while having dinner, getting more and more comfortable with each other. The hours stretched on without them noticing.

Archie was away when Simon slid into the seat Archie had vacated.

“I guess I shouldn’t be surprised that you decided to stick around,” Simon said, but there wasn’t any malice in his voice. In fact, he sounded amused somehow.

“I have a pretty good reason” was Cook’s reply before downing the last few gulps of beer from his mug.

“I’m sure you do. I might have a pretty good idea what - or shall I say who the reason may be. I’ll even bet my car and my house on that.” Simon’s words were colored with a drop of good-natured teasing. His eyes were trained somewhere behind Cook and before Cook could turn to follow Simon’s gaze, Archie appeared right beside him.

“Hi.” Archie blinked at Simon. His lips were turned up, bright smile adorning his face.

The corner of Simon’s mouth lifted into a tight but genial smile, then he said, “Hello,” a bit stiffly. And Cook wasn’t fucking sure if he imagined it but Simon’s cold demeanor seemed to melt away. “Nice to see you again, lad.” Simon’s eyes were still on Archie, but then shifted over to Cook when he said, “I was just telling Dave here that I’m glad he chose to stay.” Then Simon got up, the beer bottle he’d had with him in his hand. “If you’d excuse me.”

Cook watched Simon make his way to the table in the corner and that was when Cook noticed his other teammates. Michael had a bottle raised, as if proposing a toast and Jason mimicked him. Carly and Simon’s assistant, Ramiele seemed to be watching Cook and judging from the way Carly cocked her head a little to the side, Cook could only guess naughty thoughts were forming in her brilliant mind.

Archie had just sunk back to his chair when Cook leaned forward, elbows propped on the table. “Wanna go back to the inn?”

Fifteen minutes later, the car was parked in front of the inn and Cook… well, Cook had Archie leaning against the door of Archie’s quarters, his lips pressed against Archie’s pulse point, feeling the blood rushing toward the spot. One hand was clasped on the door frame to support his weight, the other had made his way underneath Archie’s shirt, carefully exploring the plains of Archie’ abdomen.

As Cook’s hand moved up to feel the contours of Archie’s upper torso, he dragged his mouth down Archie’s neck at the same time, traced Archie’s clavicle with his tongue, dipped the tip into the hollow at the center then licked a path back to Archie’s jaw.

Cook ran his teeth lightly along the slope before capturing Archie’s lips, earning a strangled moan from the younger man, whose fingers curled tightly on Cook’s shirt.

Something warm pooled right beneath Cook’s belly. Cook followed his instinct and pulled away before he got too lost in the kiss. And-

“I have to go,” Cook said between pants, his lungs seemed to have been deprived of air. His forehead was pressed against Archie’s. “I uh- I might not be able to control myself if we go on.”

“But-“ Archie’s voice came in a little whine. And Cook could hear the strand of disappointment twirling around that single word Archie managed to utter. “I want you to. I mean- I want this.”

Fuck self-control. Fuck it because it wasn’t there when Cook needed it. Cook braced himself, hands now gripping on both sides of the doorframe, hanging on for dear life, hanging on to his remaining fucking morals.

“No, Arch, it’s…” Cook’s teeth sank in his lower lip while he tried to get the rational part of him together. “Let’s take it slow, alright? Not tonight. I mean. It’s not that I don’t want to just… not yet, okay? I uhm…” He ran his thumb along Archie’s jaw before swooping down to give him a chaste kiss. “Good night, Archie. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Archie leaned up and brushed his lips at the corner of Cook’s mouth. “Good night, Cook.”

continued on Part 3