A Tour To Treasure
Disclaimer: This is a total figment of my imagination and any resemblance to reality must is a mistake.
It was a more subdued Fabian who climbed into his bed that night. He buried his face in the pillow and breathed deeply. There was a faint musky scent on the bedclothes and he remembered Fränk had been here earlier. He inhaled again in an attempt to breathe it in.
Fränk had been in his bed earlier, lying almost exactly where he was now. He felt his body begin to respond to the images his mind was providing. Fränk in his bed looking so incredibly tempting, waiting for Fabian to pull down the sheet inch by tantalising inch. He’d wanted to use his mouth to explore and finally claim the kiss that had been eluding him for months. Eager hands would’ve helped him out of his clothes until they got the skin on skin contact they both craved. Now he’d apparently upset the older Schleck which he didn’t really understand. As far as he was aware he hadn’t done anything he wouldn’t normally have done.
Or maybe Fränk had caught Fabian admiring the pale skin exposed by the sheet and been repulsed by the whole thing. A sudden chill went through him as his heart began to pound. Maybe Fränk had suddenly realised all that touching could be misconstrued and that’s why Andy was suddenly being so protective.
He swallowed with difficulty as he began to worry that he was about to become the pervert on team Saxo Bank. He should’ve known this was going to happen, Tom had warned him about it. Hell, after Ivan he should have learnt his lesson. Obviously one attempt at committing career suicide hadn’t been enough. How could he have been so stupid?
He looked around for a distraction and caught sight of Stuey in the bed opposite studiously reading his book. Now his arousal had been effectively killed off it was safe for him to move so he shifted onto his side. He realised his roommate was deliberately not looking away from the page. “You’re quiet,” Fabian broke the silence.
Stuart looked up from his book. “I think you’ll find that’s you.”
“Why?” Fabian asked as if Stuart hadn’t spoken.
“Big Stage tomorrow, I thought you’d appreciate the peace. I can be noisy if you’d prefer?”
Fabian made a non-committal sound which made Stuart put down his book when he rested his head back on the pillow. “Is everything.... all right?”
The carefully worded question made the chill run through him again. Obviously he was about to become very unpopular. He liked it here at Saxo Bank though so he just hoped he could weather the worst of it without having to change teams. He hadn’t even considered that possibility. What if the other teams found out and nobody wanted him? He wouldn’t be able to find anywhere else to ride and then his family would want to know why. “Fine,” he snapped.
Stuart watched him with something akin to understanding in his eyes. “I know Fränk was here earlier.”
How was he going to get out of this one? He licked his lips nervously and tried to get his heart rate to slow down. “Yeah, Andy was hogging the beds so he figured he’d crash in mine. No big deal,” he dismissed.
Stuart snorted and Fabian wasn’t quite sure how to interpret that. “What?”
“I don’t think he normally does that starkers,” Stuart pointed out.
“He had clothes on!”
Except now he was thinking about it Fränk hadn’t got out of the bed while he was in the room so Fabian couldn’t be sure. He didn’t think it was something Fränk would do though, surely if he got into everyone’s bed naked there would have been some gossip about it?
“My mistake, obviously,” Stuart responded after a while.
It was the most likely explanation of course, a simple misunderstanding somewhere along the way. Only now Fabian couldn’t stop thinking about it. Fränk naked in his bed stretched out beneath him with sweat-damp hair plastered to his head. Was that what Fränk wanted? For a moment he allowed himself to indulge in the fantasy, to wonder what it would be like if Fränk really did want him. All the time they’d get to spend with each other to just explore each other’s bodies and find all the spots that would make the other cry out in pleasure.
Reality soon intruded however and Fabian realised that in the long term that sort of fantasy was only going to torture him. Fränk had wanted to get some sleep and given how close their rooms were it was only natural this was where he would end up. Fabian’s bed was the one next to the door so it would stand to reason it would be the one Fränk got into. It was the logical explanation and the only one that made any sense.
Fabian turned away and tried to sort out the jumble of emotions. Fränk was just doing what he’d done on a semi-regular basis for the past year. It was nothing new so maybe if he was really lucky he would get to stay with his team.
When he woke the following morning he felt surprisingly good given his night had been restless. The time trial always seemed to improve his mood regardless of how he’d felt before. It was comforting to have a familiar routine to fall into and happily everything went the way it was supposed to. “I don’t see why we can’t go on ahead of everyone else,” Andy protested.
He came to a halt just out of sight of the rest of the team. “You know Fabian likes his routines,” Bjarne reasoned. “You’re not going to upset him today.”
Andy didn’t appear to take that news very well. “But it’s all right for Fabian to upset everyone else, is that it?”
“That’s enough,” Bjarne stated. “You are a professional so start acting like it. If that’s what the two of you want to do when we hit the Pyrenees then that’s a different matter but not today.”
He faltered slightly at the argument going on just outside the hotel. He briefly debated whether to go back to his room and come back down again so he could pretend he hadn’t heard any of it. In the end Stuart made the decision for him when the other rider pushed him gently towards the door. Fabian was acutely aware of the silence that had fallen as he went to grab his bike.
Once he sat on the bike and clipped one foot into the pedal it became less noticeable. This might not be the mood he was used to but at least now he could ignore it with more success. He was just checking nothing had happened to his bike overnight when someone pulled up alongside him. “Ready to go?” Fränk asked just the way he had every morning this season the team had been together.
“If you are.”
That addendum to the morning ride hadn’t been expected by the man beside him who was looking rather confused. Stick to the routine, Fabian ordered himself, and wondered if he could possibly attempt to start today again.
Fränk eventually raised an eyebrow as though asking what he thought he was doing. Fabian couldn’t take back the three words he’d said now, it would send the wrong message to the team. Today he had to be sure and tomorrow he could do whatever he wanted. He suddenly became aware of the tension now coming from Fränk even though the other man appeared to find nothing wrong with what just happened.
“Are you ready to go?” Fränk asked again before he could formulate a plan of action. When Fabian tilted his head slightly continued, “I’m ready if you are.”
Was he ready? For the time trial absolutely, for being around Fränk he wasn’t so sure of his answer. Nevertheless he nodded and watched as Fränk looked around for his brother. “OAP’s coming through,” Andy yelled.
The uncomfortable tension that had been building dissipated when most of the team laughed and they set out at a leisurely pace. Fränk rode beside him and Fabian kept looking over to check the other man was still there. He didn’t know how he was supposed to act right now. Was he meant to be worried about his future? It was obvious Fränk didn’t want to be anywhere near him if he had a choice so presumably he should be.
Fränk’s gloved hand came out to rest on his back making Fabian tense. “You okay?”
All he had to do was behave like he did before the start of every other race. Except the Tour de France wasn’t just any race and this situation was anything but normal. “I’m fine,” he replied, repeating Fränk’s response to the same question last night.
“Fabian,” Fränk chastised.
“Why don’t you go see what Andy’s doing?” he replied
“Fränk, stop flirting with Fabian and pay attention to what you’re doing,” Bjarne ordered over the team radio. “What do you think, Fabian?”
Fränk yanked his hand back and Fabian was surprised to see a faint blush covering his cheeks. After an initial period of stilted remarks he was soon unable to stop the running commentary about the state of the part of the course they were riding along. “Are you trying to tell me you think I’m blind?” Fränk suddenly asked him.
Fabian finally noticed Fränk hadn’t actually gone anywhere. Then he remembered the comment he’d just made about the corner. “I’m just covering all eventualities.”
“You’re meant to be on my side!”
“I am, that’s why I mentioned it.”
A small smile appeared on Fränk’s face and Fabian couldn’t stop himself responding to it. This was more familiar but before he could attempt to push the advantage further Andy came past them. “Are you guys asleep at the wheel or something?”
“You’re one to talk,” Fränk retorted. “Who’s the one who has trouble remembering to eat?”
“It was only the once!” Andy protested.
Fabian finally allowed himself to relax at the familiar banter between the brothers. This at least seemed less like it had last night when they’d tried to ignore him completely. He breathed a sigh of relief and he began to hope that maybe he might just manage to survive this without too much damage being done. If they were willing to talk to him, or at least include him, then maybe given enough time this would all blow over. Fabian was consequently quite happy to be mostly silent for the rest of the ride. When the hotel came into sight Andy looked over at him. “Race?”
He smiled at the challenge. “I don’t see any mountains around here.”
“Chicken,” Andy muttered under his breath.
“Sure, why not?”
The rest of the team disappeared around the corner but he just kept pedalling at the same tempo. By the time Fabian got back to the hotel with the team car they’d all gone inside. He wasn’t particularly bothered about that, it would give him some more time before he had to deal with any potential fallout from yesterday. He’d just walked through the hotel entrance when he heard a familiar voice. “Get lost?”
He looked across at Fränk who was leaning against the reception desk. “Not exactly.”
They gravitated towards each other and they met somewhere in the middle. He wasn’t sure how he was meant to behave now so they just eyed each other wearily. “Just wanted to wish you luck for today,” Fränk finally said.
Fabian felt the laughter bubbling up inside him and he was powerless to stop it. “I’m not the one who needs it,” he teased.
“Hey!” Fränk swatted at him with a hand.
“Yes?”
“I’m not that bad.”
Fabian just smiled broadly which made Fränk shake his head in disbelief. He put a hand on Fränk’s chest. “You’re forgetting I’ve seen you butcher a beautiful art before.”
“I think you’ll find it’s you not the TT.”
Fränk looked horrified the minute the words were out and Fabian stiffened. Had he heard that right? Was this some kind of test? Fabian’s eyes rapidly scanned Fränk’s face in an attempt to get an answer to that question. There had to be a correct way to respond to that comment and if only he could find it then things might be all right again. “I need to take a shower,” Fränk said all of a sudden.
“Fränk!”
He watched as Fränk headed towards the stairs at a rapid pace, ignoring him. Would whatever was going on between them just go away? On the bike it was clearly a possibility, or at least Fränk was more willing to ignore it then. The rest of the time wasn’t looking very hopeful right now. Fabian could feel his friendship with Fränk start to slip through his fingers. He’d never liked it when they argued because it meant he suddenly had all this time on his hands but at least then he could do something about it. This was an unknown and there was nothing he could do to stop it from happening.
Why did he have to find men attractive? Life would be so much simpler if he didn’t. He should’ve learnt his lesson the last time and never gotten into such a precarious position. He was so stupid and now he’d ruined something good just because he couldn’t keep his hormones in check.
Disgusted with himself Fabian trudged in the same direction as Fränk. Life would certainly be a lot quieter without the Schleck brothers disrupting it every day. Maybe next week he’d see if there were any options out there for him. It would be better to see Fränk from a distance than up close every day knowing he’d made a mess of things.
It was a more subdued Fabian who climbed into his bed that night. He buried his face in the pillow and breathed deeply. There was a faint musky scent on the bedclothes and he remembered Fränk had been here earlier. He inhaled again in an attempt to breathe it in.
Fränk had been in his bed earlier, lying almost exactly where he was now. He felt his body begin to respond to the images his mind was providing. Fränk in his bed looking so incredibly tempting, waiting for Fabian to pull down the sheet inch by tantalising inch. He’d wanted to use his mouth to explore and finally claim the kiss that had been eluding him for months. Eager hands would’ve helped him out of his clothes until they got the skin on skin contact they both craved. Now he’d apparently upset the older Schleck which he didn’t really understand. As far as he was aware he hadn’t done anything he wouldn’t normally have done.
Or maybe Fränk had caught Fabian admiring the pale skin exposed by the sheet and been repulsed by the whole thing. A sudden chill went through him as his heart began to pound. Maybe Fränk had suddenly realised all that touching could be misconstrued and that’s why Andy was suddenly being so protective.
He swallowed with difficulty as he began to worry that he was about to become the pervert on team Saxo Bank. He should’ve known this was going to happen, Tom had warned him about it. Hell, after Ivan he should have learnt his lesson. Obviously one attempt at committing career suicide hadn’t been enough. How could he have been so stupid?
He looked around for a distraction and caught sight of Stuey in the bed opposite studiously reading his book. Now his arousal had been effectively killed off it was safe for him to move so he shifted onto his side. He realised his roommate was deliberately not looking away from the page. “You’re quiet,” Fabian broke the silence.
Stuart looked up from his book. “I think you’ll find that’s you.”
“Why?” Fabian asked as if Stuart hadn’t spoken.
“Big Stage tomorrow, I thought you’d appreciate the peace. I can be noisy if you’d prefer?”
Fabian made a non-committal sound which made Stuart put down his book when he rested his head back on the pillow. “Is everything.... all right?”
The carefully worded question made the chill run through him again. Obviously he was about to become very unpopular. He liked it here at Saxo Bank though so he just hoped he could weather the worst of it without having to change teams. He hadn’t even considered that possibility. What if the other teams found out and nobody wanted him? He wouldn’t be able to find anywhere else to ride and then his family would want to know why. “Fine,” he snapped.
Stuart watched him with something akin to understanding in his eyes. “I know Fränk was here earlier.”
How was he going to get out of this one? He licked his lips nervously and tried to get his heart rate to slow down. “Yeah, Andy was hogging the beds so he figured he’d crash in mine. No big deal,” he dismissed.
Stuart snorted and Fabian wasn’t quite sure how to interpret that. “What?”
“I don’t think he normally does that starkers,” Stuart pointed out.
“He had clothes on!”
Except now he was thinking about it Fränk hadn’t got out of the bed while he was in the room so Fabian couldn’t be sure. He didn’t think it was something Fränk would do though, surely if he got into everyone’s bed naked there would have been some gossip about it?
“My mistake, obviously,” Stuart responded after a while.
It was the most likely explanation of course, a simple misunderstanding somewhere along the way. Only now Fabian couldn’t stop thinking about it. Fränk naked in his bed stretched out beneath him with sweat-damp hair plastered to his head. Was that what Fränk wanted? For a moment he allowed himself to indulge in the fantasy, to wonder what it would be like if Fränk really did want him. All the time they’d get to spend with each other to just explore each other’s bodies and find all the spots that would make the other cry out in pleasure.
Reality soon intruded however and Fabian realised that in the long term that sort of fantasy was only going to torture him. Fränk had wanted to get some sleep and given how close their rooms were it was only natural this was where he would end up. Fabian’s bed was the one next to the door so it would stand to reason it would be the one Fränk got into. It was the logical explanation and the only one that made any sense.
Fabian turned away and tried to sort out the jumble of emotions. Fränk was just doing what he’d done on a semi-regular basis for the past year. It was nothing new so maybe if he was really lucky he would get to stay with his team.
When he woke the following morning he felt surprisingly good given his night had been restless. The time trial always seemed to improve his mood regardless of how he’d felt before. It was comforting to have a familiar routine to fall into and happily everything went the way it was supposed to. “I don’t see why we can’t go on ahead of everyone else,” Andy protested.
He came to a halt just out of sight of the rest of the team. “You know Fabian likes his routines,” Bjarne reasoned. “You’re not going to upset him today.”
Andy didn’t appear to take that news very well. “But it’s all right for Fabian to upset everyone else, is that it?”
“That’s enough,” Bjarne stated. “You are a professional so start acting like it. If that’s what the two of you want to do when we hit the Pyrenees then that’s a different matter but not today.”
He faltered slightly at the argument going on just outside the hotel. He briefly debated whether to go back to his room and come back down again so he could pretend he hadn’t heard any of it. In the end Stuart made the decision for him when the other rider pushed him gently towards the door. Fabian was acutely aware of the silence that had fallen as he went to grab his bike.
Once he sat on the bike and clipped one foot into the pedal it became less noticeable. This might not be the mood he was used to but at least now he could ignore it with more success. He was just checking nothing had happened to his bike overnight when someone pulled up alongside him. “Ready to go?” Fränk asked just the way he had every morning this season the team had been together.
“If you are.”
That addendum to the morning ride hadn’t been expected by the man beside him who was looking rather confused. Stick to the routine, Fabian ordered himself, and wondered if he could possibly attempt to start today again.
Fränk eventually raised an eyebrow as though asking what he thought he was doing. Fabian couldn’t take back the three words he’d said now, it would send the wrong message to the team. Today he had to be sure and tomorrow he could do whatever he wanted. He suddenly became aware of the tension now coming from Fränk even though the other man appeared to find nothing wrong with what just happened.
“Are you ready to go?” Fränk asked again before he could formulate a plan of action. When Fabian tilted his head slightly continued, “I’m ready if you are.”
Was he ready? For the time trial absolutely, for being around Fränk he wasn’t so sure of his answer. Nevertheless he nodded and watched as Fränk looked around for his brother. “OAP’s coming through,” Andy yelled.
The uncomfortable tension that had been building dissipated when most of the team laughed and they set out at a leisurely pace. Fränk rode beside him and Fabian kept looking over to check the other man was still there. He didn’t know how he was supposed to act right now. Was he meant to be worried about his future? It was obvious Fränk didn’t want to be anywhere near him if he had a choice so presumably he should be.
Fränk’s gloved hand came out to rest on his back making Fabian tense. “You okay?”
All he had to do was behave like he did before the start of every other race. Except the Tour de France wasn’t just any race and this situation was anything but normal. “I’m fine,” he replied, repeating Fränk’s response to the same question last night.
“Fabian,” Fränk chastised.
“Why don’t you go see what Andy’s doing?” he replied
“Fränk, stop flirting with Fabian and pay attention to what you’re doing,” Bjarne ordered over the team radio. “What do you think, Fabian?”
Fränk yanked his hand back and Fabian was surprised to see a faint blush covering his cheeks. After an initial period of stilted remarks he was soon unable to stop the running commentary about the state of the part of the course they were riding along. “Are you trying to tell me you think I’m blind?” Fränk suddenly asked him.
Fabian finally noticed Fränk hadn’t actually gone anywhere. Then he remembered the comment he’d just made about the corner. “I’m just covering all eventualities.”
“You’re meant to be on my side!”
“I am, that’s why I mentioned it.”
A small smile appeared on Fränk’s face and Fabian couldn’t stop himself responding to it. This was more familiar but before he could attempt to push the advantage further Andy came past them. “Are you guys asleep at the wheel or something?”
“You’re one to talk,” Fränk retorted. “Who’s the one who has trouble remembering to eat?”
“It was only the once!” Andy protested.
Fabian finally allowed himself to relax at the familiar banter between the brothers. This at least seemed less like it had last night when they’d tried to ignore him completely. He breathed a sigh of relief and he began to hope that maybe he might just manage to survive this without too much damage being done. If they were willing to talk to him, or at least include him, then maybe given enough time this would all blow over. Fabian was consequently quite happy to be mostly silent for the rest of the ride. When the hotel came into sight Andy looked over at him. “Race?”
He smiled at the challenge. “I don’t see any mountains around here.”
“Chicken,” Andy muttered under his breath.
“Sure, why not?”
The rest of the team disappeared around the corner but he just kept pedalling at the same tempo. By the time Fabian got back to the hotel with the team car they’d all gone inside. He wasn’t particularly bothered about that, it would give him some more time before he had to deal with any potential fallout from yesterday. He’d just walked through the hotel entrance when he heard a familiar voice. “Get lost?”
He looked across at Fränk who was leaning against the reception desk. “Not exactly.”
They gravitated towards each other and they met somewhere in the middle. He wasn’t sure how he was meant to behave now so they just eyed each other wearily. “Just wanted to wish you luck for today,” Fränk finally said.
Fabian felt the laughter bubbling up inside him and he was powerless to stop it. “I’m not the one who needs it,” he teased.
“Hey!” Fränk swatted at him with a hand.
“Yes?”
“I’m not that bad.”
Fabian just smiled broadly which made Fränk shake his head in disbelief. He put a hand on Fränk’s chest. “You’re forgetting I’ve seen you butcher a beautiful art before.”
“I think you’ll find it’s you not the TT.”
Fränk looked horrified the minute the words were out and Fabian stiffened. Had he heard that right? Was this some kind of test? Fabian’s eyes rapidly scanned Fränk’s face in an attempt to get an answer to that question. There had to be a correct way to respond to that comment and if only he could find it then things might be all right again. “I need to take a shower,” Fränk said all of a sudden.
“Fränk!”
He watched as Fränk headed towards the stairs at a rapid pace, ignoring him. Would whatever was going on between them just go away? On the bike it was clearly a possibility, or at least Fränk was more willing to ignore it then. The rest of the time wasn’t looking very hopeful right now. Fabian could feel his friendship with Fränk start to slip through his fingers. He’d never liked it when they argued because it meant he suddenly had all this time on his hands but at least then he could do something about it. This was an unknown and there was nothing he could do to stop it from happening.
Why did he have to find men attractive? Life would be so much simpler if he didn’t. He should’ve learnt his lesson the last time and never gotten into such a precarious position. He was so stupid and now he’d ruined something good just because he couldn’t keep his hormones in check.
Disgusted with himself Fabian trudged in the same direction as Fränk. Life would certainly be a lot quieter without the Schleck brothers disrupting it every day. Maybe next week he’d see if there were any options out there for him. It would be better to see Fränk from a distance than up close every day knowing he’d made a mess of things.