Forever His

TITLE: Forever His ~ Revelations (3/13)
RATING: PG-13 at the moment.

Revelations


The next morning, Elijah and Sean were first to the set. Sean had insisted on leaving early with Elijah the previous night, determined to give the youngster a chance to open up if he ed ted to. This had been a chance that Elijah had leapt upon, figuring that it couldn’t hurt to tell Sean the truth – after all, he seemed a pretty understanding kind of guy.

So the whole story had come tumbling out – about how he missed his boyfriend, about how Orlando made things more bearable, and about how he was about to be left to fend without either. Sean had been even more understanding than Elijah had hoped, reassuring him that he could cope without them, that he wouldn’t be alone without them and that he would still be able to keep in touch with both Josh and Orlando.

As they reached the make-up trailer, Sean turned to his companion. “So, are you going through with what you said you would last night?”

Elijah nodded. “There’s no point in me hiding it. You were right, how can I expect the others to understand if I don’t tell them what’s going on?”

Sean smiled reassuringly. “They’ll accept it, Elijah. And if you need any backup, I’m sure Ian would be more than willing to support you.”

Elijah risked a small smile. “Thanks, Sean. I don’t know what I’d have done without you.”

“You’re welcome.” Sean glanced at his watch. “Dom and Billy will be here soon.”

“Orli needs to know first.” Elijah spoke determinedly. “He deserves to know why I was so off with him yesterday.”

Sean nodded. “If you feel that’s how you need to do it, that’s up to you. He’ll most likely be at the other trailer with Viggo.”

Smiling gratefully at the older man, Elijah almost ran to the other make-up trailer. He hoped that Orlando would already be there – if he had to wait much longer, he wasn’t sure that he wouldn’t bottle it and not say anything.

When he knocked on the trailer door, it was Viggo that answered. “Hey, Elijah. What can we do for you?”

“Is…um…is Orli about?” The apprehension in his voice was all too apparent.

Viggo nodded. “I’ll just get him for you. Hey, are you feeling any better than last night? You had us all worried.”

Elijah nodded. “I’ll be alright, thank you, Viggo. There’s just…I need to talk to Orli first.”

Viggo smiled. “Alright. I won’t be a sec.”

Almost as soon as the man had gone back into the trailer, Orlando was outside and at Elijah’s side. “Viggo said you needed to speak to me?”

Was it Elijah’s imagination or was there a certain hopefulness to the Brit’s voice? Shrugging it off, he asked, “Can we go to our usual corner?”

Orlando nodded. “Of course.” Deep inside, he couldn’t help but get hopeful. Maybe the phone call had just been family. Maybe the reason Elijah had been so off with him was because he was working up the courage to ask a particular question. Maybe the message last night had been no-one special, and Elijah was just using it to make him jealous. Of course, this didn’t explain why he got so upset last night, but Orlando was perfectly happy to gloss over this in his hopeful state.

Once they had reached the habitual smoking corner, Elijah lit up, the faintest of tears glinting in his eyes as he did so. Orlando stood waiting patiently, figuring that since he’d waited so long for this, a few more moments wouldn’t hurt.

Eventually, Elijah spoke, his voice low and quiet. “I…I have something I need to tell you, and…I don’t know how you’re going to react.”

“Try me.” Orlando took a step closer to Elijah. “You might be surprised.”

Elijah opened his mouth to begin the speech he had prepared countless times in his head. Instead, the first words to tumble out of his mouth were, “I’m gay, Orli. And…”

“I guessed as much.” Orlando could barely keep the joy from his voice.

Elijah looked confused. “You…you did? How?”

“If I spend enough time with someone, I can just tell.” Orlando’s next step closer brought him as close to Elijah as he could get without them touching. “And I’ve been waiting weeks for you confirm my suspicions.”

Before Elijah could respond, Orlando had tilted his face up and gently pressed his lips to the American’s. Elijah instantly struggled to pull away, finally understanding the hope in his friend’s voice.

As he finally broke free, Elijah uttered almost apologetically, “You didn’t let me finish.”

Orlando backed away, a little stung. “I didn’t think I needed you to.”

Elijah sighed. “Orlando…you’re my best friend here, and I don’t know what I’d have done if I didn’t have you here. But…I have a boyfriend.”

Orlando nodded, the realistic side of him piecing together Elijah’s biouriour far too quickly for his liking. “The phone call. That was him, wasn’t it?”

“What phone call?” Elijah looked genuinely confused.

“Yesterday.” Orlando paced away a little, unable to keep still in his current state. “I overheard you talking to someone, but I didn’t say anything because I didn’t think it was any of my business.”

Elijah looked down at this. “I’m sorry I didn’t mention this sooner, Orli. I should have said something yesterday, but I couldn’t.”

Orlando stepped forward again. “Why did you react so badly to my news, Lij? I mean, I didn’t even tell you much more than the film it was.”

“You didn’t have to.” When Elijah looked up, Orlando could see the trail of early tears on the American’s cheeks. “You wanted to know about the phone call, well I’ll tell you. Josh…my boyfriend…he was supposed to be coming to see me out here soon. Then yesterday he phoned to tell me that he didn’t know when he could visit, because he’d been cast in this film. Ridley Scott’s Black Hawk Down.”

Orlando turned away a little. “I should have known it was nothing to do with me.”

“No, Orli, it was!” Elijah moved to place a hand on Orlando’s arm, only to have the arm snatched away impatiently. “Like I said, you’re my best friend out here. If you and I hadn’t gotten as close as we have, I don’t know that I would have lasted even the first month here. And when you told me about your role in the same film…” He trailed off, his voice catching a little. “It seemed like something was determined for me to have all three of the people closest to me hundreds of miles away.”

Orlando turned at this. “Three? Is this where you tell me you’re actually bisexual and have a girlfriend as well? Because if it is, I don’t need to hear it.”

“Well it isn’t.” Elijah flinched away at the harshness in Orlando’s voice. “Although my other best friend is female.”

Orlando took another hesitant step forward. “Why are you telling me all of this, Elijah?”

“Because you deserve to know why I was so off with you yesterday.” Elijah glanced down. “It was supposed to make you stop being upset with me, not make things worse.”

Orlando didn’t reply – he couldn’t find the words to. Part of him wanted to yell at Elijah for leading him on, but the rational side of him stopped him, pointing out that it wasn’t Elijah’s fault. This same rational side wanted to comfort Elijah, but was being stopped by the angry side.

Elijah sighed at the silence. “I…I have to go. I’ll see you later.”

Orlando watched as his friend walked away, still not sure of how he was supposed to react to everything. In a whisper, he uttered to himself, “He doesn’t deserve you, Lij.”


~EW~*~JH~


When Elijah finally got back to the make-up trailer, it was to find his three fellow Hobbit actors already having their feet applied. As he walked in, he uttered a barely audible, “Sorry I’m late.”

Dom looked up at this. “Is everything alright, Elijah?”

Elijah took a deep breath, wanting to get any other negative reactions over with. “The J stands for Josh.”

Billy smiled at this. “I knew it! Why did you feel you had to hide it from us, Lij?”

Elijah looked down. “I…I wasn’t sure how you’d react.”

“Why would it bother us that you’re gay? That’s your choice, Elijah. And besides,” Dom’s voice took on a mildly teasing tone, “if you have a boyfriend then you’re not exactly a threat to us.”

Elijah smiled weakly. “Thanks, Dom.”

As he sat down so that he could have his feet applied, the American glanced over at Sean, who was giving him a concerned look. “How did things go with Orlando?”

Elijah bit his lip. He wasn’t sure how open Orlando was about his sexuality, and he didn’t want to reveal something that his friend didn’t. Finally, carefully, he admitted, “It didn’t go great.”

As he said this, Ian poked his head around the divide between his section of the trailer and the Hobbits’. “Sorry to interrupt, but I couldn’t help overhearing…I’m surprised that Orlando didn’t confess.”

“He did,” Elijah replied, almost before he knew it. “Before I could tell him I was already taken.”

Ian nodded, venturing into their side of the trailer. “That was always going to be a risk. I did warn him as much.”

Dom looked up at this. “So…Orlando’s gay as well? I can’t say I’m as surprised by him as by Elijah.”

Elijah gave the oldest man in the room an apologetic look. “I didn’t want to upset him.”

Ian knelt down by the youngster. “No-one is suggesting that you did. And this certainly explains a lot about your behaviour.”

Elijah bit his lip, suddenly tearful again. “I didn’t think it’d be this hard.”

Dom moved to hug Elijah, ignoring the protests of the make-up artist who had almost finished applying his feet. “It’s natural to miss someone you care this much about. It shows that things are still right between you.”

Ian nodded in agreement at Dom’s words. “It’d be more worrying if you didn’t miss him. The only thing you can do is try to find a way to stop it bringing you down.”

“And that’s what you have us for,” Billy joined in, finally moving over after having the sense to at least wait for his feet to be finished. “Now that we know what’s bothering you, we can find ways to distract you.”

Elijah smiled a little at this. “Thanks, guys.”

“And don’t worry about Orlando,” Sean spoke up. “He’ll just have to accept that he can’t have you. After all, how long have you been with Josh now?”

“About a year and a half.”

“Exactly. That’s the sort of time that suggests this is a serious deal.”

Elijah nodded. “It is. I mean…I haven’t told Orli this…but…” He bit his lip, trying to find a way to word his next sentence that wouldn’t set the others’ backs up.

“He’s jealous as hell that Orlando will get to see Josh before he will.”

At the female interjection, everyone looked up. Elijah instantly brightened. “Clea!”

Clea smiled as she moved forward to hug Elijah, kissing the top of his head before saying, “I’ve been sent to check up on you. I know I’m not Josh, but…”

“Certainly the next best thing,” Elijah finished for her. “It’s good to see you.”

He swiftly made the introductions. Clea nodded. “I’ve heard a lot about you all, mostly from the pre-pining days.”

“So…about a week, then?” Dom teased.

Elijah laughed a little at this. “Can’t say he doesn’t have a point.”

“Glad you admit it,” Billy replied.

Ian smiled as he stood up. “Well, I’d best leave you Hobbits to get ready for your scenes. Clea, it was a pleasure to meet you, however briefly.”

Clea smiled. “Well, I’ll be here for a while, so I’m sure you’ll see me about.”

Ian nodded. “I look forward to it,” he commented, before going back to his half of the trailer.

Billy turned to Clea. “You don’t object to being left with four men, do you?”

Elijah smiled as he met Clea’s amused gaze. “I think she’ll manage.”


~EW~*~JH~


It didn’t surprise Elijah to learn that, by lunchtime that day, news of his sexuality had spread through the cast. He had been expecting it – after all, nothing in the group stayed secret for long.

He was grateful to find that most people still treated him in the same way – they seemed to freely accept that he was gay, he had a boyfriend ahat hat he was still the Elijah they knew.

However, there were three people who seemed off with him. The first, Elijah had been expecting. After the events of the morning, he hadn’t expected Orlando to shrug it off and pretend it hadn’t happened – although he had wished for it.

The other two upset him more. Though he accepted that Viggo and Sean Bean were closer to Orlando than to him, it hurt that they seemed more concerned about Orlando’s rejection than they did about how he felt.

Clea spotted the glances he kept shooting at the group. “Don’t worry about them, Lij. They’ll get over it – they’ll have to.”

“I hope so.” Elijah sighed as he picked at the food on his plate. “Orli was the one person I hoped would stand by me on this.”

“Maybe he’s just embarrassed by the way he just assumed?” Dom offered. “You know Orlando can be overconfident at times, so maybe he’s just nursing his hurt pride.”

“So why are Viggo and Sean off with me as well?”

“Loyalty to Orlando, mostly,” Billy replied. “Though I suspect they’ll come around soon enough.”

“Orlando could have twisted this morning’s events,” Dom pointed out. “If he’s focussed on telling them about you rejecting him, that’s all they’re going to know.”

“You think he would?” Eh’s h’s voice was small, almost betrayed.

“Maybe not intentionally,” Sean reasoned. “But he can be self-absorbed sometimes.”

Elijah sighed. “As long as he doesn’t leave hating me.”

Pushing his half-full plate away from him, he stood up and turned to Clea. “Come with me?”

Knowing that he wouldn’t appreciate her nagging him, Clea nodded and stood. “Of course.”

As the pair left, Dom shot a glance at Orlando’s table. The three men sat there all seemed to be watching Elijah as he left, though Dom couldn’t read their expressions.

Sean shook his head. “Don’t interfere, Dom.”

Dom sighed. “I just…how can they suddenly be so unconcerned for him? Don’t they know how hard it must have been for him to talk about this?”

“As we said, Dom, it’s just their loyalty to Orlando,” Billy consoled. “It’ll all calm down soon enough.”

“I hope so. I hate seeing Elijah this upset.”

“We all do,” Sean replied. “But the important thing is, we’re on his side.”

As he said this, there was a sudden clatter, as of a chair being flung back violently. Everyone in the room turned to see Orlando stood up, his chair fallen behind him. The Brit seemed angry and upset, and everyone soon learnt why.

“I thought you two would understand! You’re supposed to be backing me on this one!”

“We are backing you.” Viggo’s voice was controlled, reasoning. “We’re just saying, maybe you want to look at it from Elijah’s point of view.”

“Been there, seen that. I was just his stand-in, someone to plug the gap because his boyfriend is too stupid to realise that he should be out here!”

“Or maybe he was looking for a friend that would help him forget about the fact that he misses his boyfriend.” Dom had stood and spoken before anyone could stop him. “There was obviously a reason for him going to you first, but you won’t see that, will you? All you want to see is the side that leaves you as the victim.”

A hush fell over the room at this. As far as everyone was aware, Orlando got on well with the Hobbit actors, and yet here there was a divide. The only one to move was Billy, who stood to show his support for what Dom had said.

Sean Bean glanced from them to Orlando. “It makes sense, Orlando. Just because he’s only ever seen you as a friend, doesn’t mean he doesn’t care about you or what you think of him.”

Orlando scowled. “Well, I am sorry for not being a small eighteen-year-old with pathetic eyes. Maybe if I was, you’d look at the actual facts of the argument instead of being drawn in by his act of helplessness.”

Before anyone could stop him, the Brit had stormed out of the room. The silence slowly dissipated as murmurs began to spread through the room, everyone keen to discuss what they had just heard.

Dom shook his head as he sat down. “Unbelievable. He’s spent more time with Elijah than any of us, and he’s the only one who can’t see how hurt Elijah is.”

“Or he doesn’t want to see it,” Sean off. “B. “Believe me; Orlando knows that Elijah is really upset. He just doesn’t want to admit it.”


~EW~*~JH~


Just outside the canteen, Orlando sighed as he leant his forehead against the wall. Angry tears pricked at his eyes as he overheard the indecipherable murmurings of the cast and crew.

Stupid Elijah! He kicked at the wall in front of him, moving away a little as his temper continued to swirl around him. And I trusted him!

As he began to head off for his trailer, he knew one thing was plain. He wanted revenge – and he knew the perfect chance to exact it.