Remix of Brenda: Second Chance
Title: Second Chance
Author: kitty_trio
Original story: Fresh Start by azewewish (Brenda)
Pairing: Sean Bean/Orlando Bloom
Rating: PG-13
Summary: A 'chance' meeting for Sean and Orlando at Billy's gig 9 March, 2007, at the Hotel Café, Los Angeles
Pre-reveal Notes: After discovering Brenda's lovely nugget about Sean and Orlando reconnecting at Billy's gig, I wondered what was in Sean's head that fateful evening. Through one section I did 'lift' Brenda's excellent dialogue, not knowing another way to work around it.
Post-reveal Notes: In a way, this really is Brenda's fault. She had to post a shout-out for more participants, she did give me an extra nudge while I debated entering. Of course, I nearly had a heart attack when I received Brenda as my assignment. No way, no how could I ever hope to do justice to her work or pairings she originally made me fall in love with *koffs* Karl/Harry. Thank you for the opportunity to play with Sean, I hope he's close to what you envisioned.
Beta: with some fits and starts, the incomparable 'PoL' committee of lozateazer, lookingglassf1, haldoor and niceandfluffy, thank you one and all, loves.
Disclaimer: This is a non-profit, non-commercial work of fiction using the names and likenesses of real individuals. This fictional story is not intended to imply that the events herein actually occurred, or that the attitudes or behaviors described are engaged in or condoned by the real persons whose names are used without permission.
"Ye're a fookin' mad bastard, ye know."
Whiskey and cigarette rough, Sean's voice skittered down Viggo's spine.
"What? Billy has a lovely cock, one he should be proud to show off." A completely unrepentant grin wreathing his face, Viggo spun around to be enveloped in Sean's strong arms. Clasping the back of Sean's neck, fingers sinking in the short blond strands at the back, he brought their foreheads into contact.
Still in a loose embrace they grinned like loons at each other for a few more minutes, calculating changes time and experiences had wrought on each other's faces. A few more laugh lines on Sean's face, and Viggo knew he was sporting more grey hairs every year.
"You made it finally. Obviously you've been here long enough to hear my very apt request."
"Aye, arrived not much before that. I were at the back, bloody maniac southern California drivers. Accident on the freeway and me driver didn't have a Sat-Nav to navigate around the traffic."
Pushing Viggo back to arm's length, Sean gave him one of his endearing sheepish grins, "Enough whingeing, eh?"
"I told to you come early..."
"Yeah, yeah," Sean interrupted, "and where is the man of the hour?"
"Over there, with his beautiful wife and son," Viggo nodded absently across the room, his expression both wistful and proud. "You should see him, he's so happy."
Sean pulled his chin around and stared deeply into clear blue-grey eyes, "Regrets?"
"Never, how could I?" Viggo referred to Billy and the time they'd been lovers. "We had what we had, and it was phenomenal. When it was time to move on, we did."
"Aye..." the dim interior of the nightclub faded away as Sean stared off in the distance. The heat and sand and salt spray of the Malta coast filled his senses. He could feel and taste again smooth, bronzed skin. Laughter and bright chatter filled his ears, and then the silence and emptiness after he let Orlando walk away.
"He's here, you know." Viggo's nasal purr broke in as if he knew exactly what Sean was thinking. He probably did, as much as he and Viggo had debated his decision to end things with Orlando in the time since.
Sean's head popped up, turning to look where Viggo was. Orlando. The faint sound of Viggo's chuckle ringing in his ears, Sean found himself several steps across the room before he realized he'd moved.
Then, Sean was exclaiming Orlando's name and pulling him into his arms. Fucking Christ, the feel of Orlando's slim frame--that fit perfectly against his--was too much for Sean to handle. Heart thumping madly in his chest, he had to pull back, but couldn't let go completely.
Orlando looked good; so very good. The long curls and extensions were gone. A few character lines and a slight thinning of his face lent him an air of maturity that sat very well on him.
Realizing he was staring like an idiot, Sean asked after the lad. Lost in the timbre of Orlando's voice, the intervening years faded away. Whether excited babble, heated debate of a myriad of subjects, quiet reflection, or the husky tone Orlando's voice dropped to after spent passion, he was one of the few whose voice alone could break through Sean's brooding or soothe him when he got too wound up.
When Orlando looked at him expectantly, Sean blinked, blushed slightly. 'Beg pardon?' he thought he asked. Everything became a blur then; the sadness lingering in Orlando's eyes cutting deep into Sean's heart. He had no right to assume it was anything on par with the regret he felt.
They'd gone their separate ways amicably once they wrapped filming Troy. At the time, Orlando's career was exploding on the world stage. He was young and had a bright future ahead of him. He didn't need the baggage of an old lover dogging his heels, holding him back. An emotionally stunted old lover that three failed marriages and other relationship failures throughout the years could attest to.
It didn't matter that in the years since, Sean regretted walking away so easily. That Orlando would consume his thoughts; populate his dreams with what could have been. It didn't matter how many times Viggo had called him a fool, had tried to cajole, angrily order, or sneakily challenge him to 'fucking pick up the phone and call him already!'. As much as he rued his decision, he was convinced it was the best for Orlando, if not for him.
Or so Sean had thought.
A kernel of hope formed within him as he and Orlando exchanged pleasantries. The emotions flitting across Orlando's face weakened his resolve to remain detached and protect his heart from breaking once again.
The edit function to his brain--and to his tongue--definitely was no longer engaged. Sean found himself inviting Orlando for a drink, or back to his for the bottle of Australian Shiraz Billy'd had delivered as a welcoming gift when he arrived earlier in the week. Running his tongue along the tops of his teeth, Sean cursed his lack of self-preservation. He did need a drink, desperately, and a smoke, and someone--Viggo--to come along and rescue him from himself.
He glanced away, partially avoiding the rejection he expected, also looking for Viggo. Although, why he thought Viggo would do anything other than toss him to the wolves... well, toss him to grovel at Orlando's feet with his heart ripped open so Orlando could trample it as he wished.
"You sure you want to do this?"
Orlando's words cut deep, but still, Sean's long abandoned better judgment had him frowning and asking for clarification, "Meaning?"
"I've been a pity fuck before. I'm not interested in going down that path again."
The vitriol contained in that bombshell had Sean gasping, "Is that...?" what you think? What you've always thought was between us?
Sean might not be adept at discussing emotions, but surely he conveyed how deeply he cared about Orlando while they were together. He knew he did, with actions if not with the words. Was Orlando only lashing out, protecting himself as Sean now seemed incapable of? Or did Orlando truly think that little of Sean and his motives?
Furious, Sean leaned in to hiss, ""Y'think I'm here because I've got an itch? Because we've got a past and you're available? Any port in a storm, that it?"
"Are you?" Orlando's head came up defiantly.
"I've got places to go for a cheap fuck. Which you never were." Sean shot back angrily. How could Orlando ever have thought that? Was it because Sean let him go without a fight? Convinced his actions were 'noble', were right thing to do so the lad could move on, free of baggage, Sean had wallowed in the emptiness his life was without Orlando.
Sean's gut twisted that he was the cause of Orlando's bitterness. If not directly, then because he wasn't there to protect Orlando from whoever came later; whoever made Orlando devalue himself to this degree.
"Fair enough," Orlando said, the tension visible across his shoulders lessening slightly.
Bloody Fuck! He was an idiot! The stubborn tilt of Orlando's chin, the way he was holding himself stiffly. Sean knew those mannerisms. He'd watched numerous times while Orlando was on the phone with his agents in the early days after Rings. Expecting the crushing blow of rejection, Orlando would remain perfectly still until he was positive his agent wasn't having him on, and he truly had landed a choice role in a potential blockbuster.
He could see Orlando was holding his breath; waiting for the next shoe to drop? Hope blossomed that there was a slim chance Sean could redeem himself.
Holding his breath as if his life depended on it, Sean scrutinized Orlando's face. Both their lives depended on what they did next; what Sean did next. Any hope of a future depended on Sean not cocking it up now. From somewhere, a tiny nugget of self-preservation kept Sean's irritation on a low simmer until he cleared up one gross misunderstanding.
Sean invaded Orlando's space. "Now that we've got that settled..." He reached out to grasp Orlando's chin, intending to make his point. The first touch of his fingers to a cheek had Sean caressing the smoothness, a flood of remembered intimate moments washing over him. He pinched Orlando's chin to keep from pulling him forward and kissing the stuffing out of him. He couldn't do that; not yet.
"If you ever insult me or yourself like that again, I'll thrash the fuck out of you. We clear?" No one had the right to disrespect Orlando, not even Orlando himself.
"Yeah. We're clear."
"Good." Sean exhaled, the expectation and wariness he saw in Orlando's eyes reflected what he felt.
Releasing Orlando's chin, Sean took a deep breath and met Orlando's gaze head on. Between them, his hand was steady as he held it out palm up. "Want to have that drink now? I think we're long overdue."
"I'd love to." So warm... so firm... so right... Orlando's hand wrapped over his and held tight. Sean took his second breath in what seemed hours, years. Second chances did not happen for him. Deeply regretting the years they'd lost, Sean vowed to never let Orlando go again.
Wasting no more time, Sean searched out Viggo--finding him with Billy and Billy's family--and hustled Orlando over to bid their friends a hasty goodnight. He didn't miss the cheeky exchange of winks between Billy and Viggo--the buggers--nor Viggo's pointed look at his fingers laced with Orlando's. Sean's chin came up stubbornly and he gripped Orlando's hand tighter. Despite knowing Viggo would ring in a few days to give him hell, Sean was not releasing Orlando any time soon.
The ride back and up to Sean's suite was spent in quiet reflection, Orlando's hand held firmly in his. He breathed in the oh-so familiar scent of Orlando's hair products and cologne, knowing there was much they still had to hash out. Before they could move forward, thoroughly convincing Orlando that he was never leaving again was uppermost in Sean's mind.
Only once they were safely ensconced in the hotel room did Sean finally drop Orlando's hand, offering to open the wine. His mind on opening the bottle on the bar, Orlando calling out for him to wait and diving for his hand pulled Sean up short.
All he could do when Orlando again asked him to wait was to tell the lad that he wasn't going anywhere. Looking up from the desperate grip on his fingers, Sean parted his lips to tell Orlando he was never letting him go again.
The next words out of Orlando's mouth felt like a punch to his solar plexus. 'I'm so sorry', reverberated in Sean's head. Good God, could he have gotten it all wrong and Orlando now had cold feet about resuming a relationship?
He nearly missed Orlando's next stammered words. "I never meant to let you go."
Sean suppressed a nervous snort of laughter. He wanted to shake Orlando for scaring him half to death and for assuming it was his fault alone they parted. What he did do was finally give in to his desire to caress the softest of skin at the back of Orlando's neck. His thumb unerringly traced over Orlando's pulse point as he explained that it took two to walk. It also took two to forge something new. Sean wouldn't relax completely until he made sure he and Orlando were headed in the same direction.
Neither of them was guiltless. They had a lot to resolve before they could begin something new. For now Sean only needed one thing.
"I was so happy to see you tonight. Felt like, maybe..." Sean trailed off, waiting for Orlando's response.
"We'd been given a second chance." Orlando's short laugh and relaxation of his face and through his shoulders had Sean moving in. They chuckled about a few remembered and not always endearing habits, relief evident with every word they spoke.
Hand now cupping the back of Orlando's head, Sean sighed when Orlando touched their foreheads together. He brushed Orlando's lips with the lightest of kisses and asked for the words he most needed.
Orlando's quiet 'I love you.' echoed in Sean's heart. Incapable of speech, Sean answered Orlando's kiss. He'd hoped, but until he heard the words, Sean truly hadn't believed second chances were possible for him. Anything was possible now, and the thought was liberating as Sean deepened the kiss.
***
Author: kitty_trio
Original story: Fresh Start by azewewish (Brenda)
Pairing: Sean Bean/Orlando Bloom
Rating: PG-13
Summary: A 'chance' meeting for Sean and Orlando at Billy's gig 9 March, 2007, at the Hotel Café, Los Angeles
Pre-reveal Notes: After discovering Brenda's lovely nugget about Sean and Orlando reconnecting at Billy's gig, I wondered what was in Sean's head that fateful evening. Through one section I did 'lift' Brenda's excellent dialogue, not knowing another way to work around it.
Post-reveal Notes: In a way, this really is Brenda's fault. She had to post a shout-out for more participants, she did give me an extra nudge while I debated entering. Of course, I nearly had a heart attack when I received Brenda as my assignment. No way, no how could I ever hope to do justice to her work or pairings she originally made me fall in love with *koffs* Karl/Harry. Thank you for the opportunity to play with Sean, I hope he's close to what you envisioned.
Beta: with some fits and starts, the incomparable 'PoL' committee of lozateazer, lookingglassf1, haldoor and niceandfluffy, thank you one and all, loves.
Disclaimer: This is a non-profit, non-commercial work of fiction using the names and likenesses of real individuals. This fictional story is not intended to imply that the events herein actually occurred, or that the attitudes or behaviors described are engaged in or condoned by the real persons whose names are used without permission.
"Ye're a fookin' mad bastard, ye know."
Whiskey and cigarette rough, Sean's voice skittered down Viggo's spine.
"What? Billy has a lovely cock, one he should be proud to show off." A completely unrepentant grin wreathing his face, Viggo spun around to be enveloped in Sean's strong arms. Clasping the back of Sean's neck, fingers sinking in the short blond strands at the back, he brought their foreheads into contact.
Still in a loose embrace they grinned like loons at each other for a few more minutes, calculating changes time and experiences had wrought on each other's faces. A few more laugh lines on Sean's face, and Viggo knew he was sporting more grey hairs every year.
"You made it finally. Obviously you've been here long enough to hear my very apt request."
"Aye, arrived not much before that. I were at the back, bloody maniac southern California drivers. Accident on the freeway and me driver didn't have a Sat-Nav to navigate around the traffic."
Pushing Viggo back to arm's length, Sean gave him one of his endearing sheepish grins, "Enough whingeing, eh?"
"I told to you come early..."
"Yeah, yeah," Sean interrupted, "and where is the man of the hour?"
"Over there, with his beautiful wife and son," Viggo nodded absently across the room, his expression both wistful and proud. "You should see him, he's so happy."
Sean pulled his chin around and stared deeply into clear blue-grey eyes, "Regrets?"
"Never, how could I?" Viggo referred to Billy and the time they'd been lovers. "We had what we had, and it was phenomenal. When it was time to move on, we did."
"Aye..." the dim interior of the nightclub faded away as Sean stared off in the distance. The heat and sand and salt spray of the Malta coast filled his senses. He could feel and taste again smooth, bronzed skin. Laughter and bright chatter filled his ears, and then the silence and emptiness after he let Orlando walk away.
"He's here, you know." Viggo's nasal purr broke in as if he knew exactly what Sean was thinking. He probably did, as much as he and Viggo had debated his decision to end things with Orlando in the time since.
Sean's head popped up, turning to look where Viggo was. Orlando. The faint sound of Viggo's chuckle ringing in his ears, Sean found himself several steps across the room before he realized he'd moved.
Then, Sean was exclaiming Orlando's name and pulling him into his arms. Fucking Christ, the feel of Orlando's slim frame--that fit perfectly against his--was too much for Sean to handle. Heart thumping madly in his chest, he had to pull back, but couldn't let go completely.
Orlando looked good; so very good. The long curls and extensions were gone. A few character lines and a slight thinning of his face lent him an air of maturity that sat very well on him.
Realizing he was staring like an idiot, Sean asked after the lad. Lost in the timbre of Orlando's voice, the intervening years faded away. Whether excited babble, heated debate of a myriad of subjects, quiet reflection, or the husky tone Orlando's voice dropped to after spent passion, he was one of the few whose voice alone could break through Sean's brooding or soothe him when he got too wound up.
When Orlando looked at him expectantly, Sean blinked, blushed slightly. 'Beg pardon?' he thought he asked. Everything became a blur then; the sadness lingering in Orlando's eyes cutting deep into Sean's heart. He had no right to assume it was anything on par with the regret he felt.
They'd gone their separate ways amicably once they wrapped filming Troy. At the time, Orlando's career was exploding on the world stage. He was young and had a bright future ahead of him. He didn't need the baggage of an old lover dogging his heels, holding him back. An emotionally stunted old lover that three failed marriages and other relationship failures throughout the years could attest to.
It didn't matter that in the years since, Sean regretted walking away so easily. That Orlando would consume his thoughts; populate his dreams with what could have been. It didn't matter how many times Viggo had called him a fool, had tried to cajole, angrily order, or sneakily challenge him to 'fucking pick up the phone and call him already!'. As much as he rued his decision, he was convinced it was the best for Orlando, if not for him.
Or so Sean had thought.
A kernel of hope formed within him as he and Orlando exchanged pleasantries. The emotions flitting across Orlando's face weakened his resolve to remain detached and protect his heart from breaking once again.
The edit function to his brain--and to his tongue--definitely was no longer engaged. Sean found himself inviting Orlando for a drink, or back to his for the bottle of Australian Shiraz Billy'd had delivered as a welcoming gift when he arrived earlier in the week. Running his tongue along the tops of his teeth, Sean cursed his lack of self-preservation. He did need a drink, desperately, and a smoke, and someone--Viggo--to come along and rescue him from himself.
He glanced away, partially avoiding the rejection he expected, also looking for Viggo. Although, why he thought Viggo would do anything other than toss him to the wolves... well, toss him to grovel at Orlando's feet with his heart ripped open so Orlando could trample it as he wished.
"You sure you want to do this?"
Orlando's words cut deep, but still, Sean's long abandoned better judgment had him frowning and asking for clarification, "Meaning?"
"I've been a pity fuck before. I'm not interested in going down that path again."
The vitriol contained in that bombshell had Sean gasping, "Is that...?" what you think? What you've always thought was between us?
Sean might not be adept at discussing emotions, but surely he conveyed how deeply he cared about Orlando while they were together. He knew he did, with actions if not with the words. Was Orlando only lashing out, protecting himself as Sean now seemed incapable of? Or did Orlando truly think that little of Sean and his motives?
Furious, Sean leaned in to hiss, ""Y'think I'm here because I've got an itch? Because we've got a past and you're available? Any port in a storm, that it?"
"Are you?" Orlando's head came up defiantly.
"I've got places to go for a cheap fuck. Which you never were." Sean shot back angrily. How could Orlando ever have thought that? Was it because Sean let him go without a fight? Convinced his actions were 'noble', were right thing to do so the lad could move on, free of baggage, Sean had wallowed in the emptiness his life was without Orlando.
Sean's gut twisted that he was the cause of Orlando's bitterness. If not directly, then because he wasn't there to protect Orlando from whoever came later; whoever made Orlando devalue himself to this degree.
"Fair enough," Orlando said, the tension visible across his shoulders lessening slightly.
Bloody Fuck! He was an idiot! The stubborn tilt of Orlando's chin, the way he was holding himself stiffly. Sean knew those mannerisms. He'd watched numerous times while Orlando was on the phone with his agents in the early days after Rings. Expecting the crushing blow of rejection, Orlando would remain perfectly still until he was positive his agent wasn't having him on, and he truly had landed a choice role in a potential blockbuster.
He could see Orlando was holding his breath; waiting for the next shoe to drop? Hope blossomed that there was a slim chance Sean could redeem himself.
Holding his breath as if his life depended on it, Sean scrutinized Orlando's face. Both their lives depended on what they did next; what Sean did next. Any hope of a future depended on Sean not cocking it up now. From somewhere, a tiny nugget of self-preservation kept Sean's irritation on a low simmer until he cleared up one gross misunderstanding.
Sean invaded Orlando's space. "Now that we've got that settled..." He reached out to grasp Orlando's chin, intending to make his point. The first touch of his fingers to a cheek had Sean caressing the smoothness, a flood of remembered intimate moments washing over him. He pinched Orlando's chin to keep from pulling him forward and kissing the stuffing out of him. He couldn't do that; not yet.
"If you ever insult me or yourself like that again, I'll thrash the fuck out of you. We clear?" No one had the right to disrespect Orlando, not even Orlando himself.
"Yeah. We're clear."
"Good." Sean exhaled, the expectation and wariness he saw in Orlando's eyes reflected what he felt.
Releasing Orlando's chin, Sean took a deep breath and met Orlando's gaze head on. Between them, his hand was steady as he held it out palm up. "Want to have that drink now? I think we're long overdue."
"I'd love to." So warm... so firm... so right... Orlando's hand wrapped over his and held tight. Sean took his second breath in what seemed hours, years. Second chances did not happen for him. Deeply regretting the years they'd lost, Sean vowed to never let Orlando go again.
Wasting no more time, Sean searched out Viggo--finding him with Billy and Billy's family--and hustled Orlando over to bid their friends a hasty goodnight. He didn't miss the cheeky exchange of winks between Billy and Viggo--the buggers--nor Viggo's pointed look at his fingers laced with Orlando's. Sean's chin came up stubbornly and he gripped Orlando's hand tighter. Despite knowing Viggo would ring in a few days to give him hell, Sean was not releasing Orlando any time soon.
The ride back and up to Sean's suite was spent in quiet reflection, Orlando's hand held firmly in his. He breathed in the oh-so familiar scent of Orlando's hair products and cologne, knowing there was much they still had to hash out. Before they could move forward, thoroughly convincing Orlando that he was never leaving again was uppermost in Sean's mind.
Only once they were safely ensconced in the hotel room did Sean finally drop Orlando's hand, offering to open the wine. His mind on opening the bottle on the bar, Orlando calling out for him to wait and diving for his hand pulled Sean up short.
All he could do when Orlando again asked him to wait was to tell the lad that he wasn't going anywhere. Looking up from the desperate grip on his fingers, Sean parted his lips to tell Orlando he was never letting him go again.
The next words out of Orlando's mouth felt like a punch to his solar plexus. 'I'm so sorry', reverberated in Sean's head. Good God, could he have gotten it all wrong and Orlando now had cold feet about resuming a relationship?
He nearly missed Orlando's next stammered words. "I never meant to let you go."
Sean suppressed a nervous snort of laughter. He wanted to shake Orlando for scaring him half to death and for assuming it was his fault alone they parted. What he did do was finally give in to his desire to caress the softest of skin at the back of Orlando's neck. His thumb unerringly traced over Orlando's pulse point as he explained that it took two to walk. It also took two to forge something new. Sean wouldn't relax completely until he made sure he and Orlando were headed in the same direction.
Neither of them was guiltless. They had a lot to resolve before they could begin something new. For now Sean only needed one thing.
"I was so happy to see you tonight. Felt like, maybe..." Sean trailed off, waiting for Orlando's response.
"We'd been given a second chance." Orlando's short laugh and relaxation of his face and through his shoulders had Sean moving in. They chuckled about a few remembered and not always endearing habits, relief evident with every word they spoke.
Hand now cupping the back of Orlando's head, Sean sighed when Orlando touched their foreheads together. He brushed Orlando's lips with the lightest of kisses and asked for the words he most needed.
Orlando's quiet 'I love you.' echoed in Sean's heart. Incapable of speech, Sean answered Orlando's kiss. He'd hoped, but until he heard the words, Sean truly hadn't believed second chances were possible for him. Anything was possible now, and the thought was liberating as Sean deepened the kiss.
***