Smack the Dog

Smack the Dog 40 Act I: Self Inflicted Wounds
Author: Foofy
Rating: NC17
Pairing: SB/VM/OB; KU/DW
Disclaimer: Work of fiction. I am lying through my teeth.
Summary: Sean struggles to regain the upper hand when his plans take an unexpected twist.

*

Sean had come to the conclusion that original plans were there solely to remind you how badly things were going.

There were a number of things which were currently running through Sean’s mind, which in itself was more than a novel experience. What to do next, what to say, how to act, how to touch…

Bugger this for a game of soldiers. All this thinking, all this consideration, all this panicking that that mark he had just crossed was actually part of the carpet pattern rather than something more permanent. And all of this without allowing anything to cross your expression.

Bloody hell, if this was what being the ‘Master’ was all about, Viggo could keep it.

Sean’s expression hadn’t changed in the meantime, he *knew* the damn thing hadn’t changed although he suspected that this was simply through sheer force of willpower rather than any confidence in what he was doing. Viggo might have been right about that as well. He was a coward. Strip him and you’d probably find a yellow stripe down his back, although knowing Orli’s tendency for practical jokes this might actually be graffiti instead.

The paddle he still clutched in one hand slipped in his grip, and suddenly in his mind’s eye that wasn’t the hilt of a paddle anymore. Oh no. He could hear the sounds of the Wimbledon tennis championships and the offers of strawberries already, and for fuck sake where did he have such a graphic imagination from? He faintly remembered a quote from some horror writer, Stephen King he believed; you can tell those people with a good imagination. They’re the ones still scared of the dark.

Sean had never realised how fucking scary a tennis racket could possibly be until you started seeing it in the dark of your mind. He really should start fitting lights in there.

And still his gaze continued to be steady as though the internal monologue was happening in a different head. Sean knew that he had his acting skills to thank for that little factor and prayed it would hold fast for as long as he needed it. Fear was, after all, infectious. He didn’t have to be generous and share everything after all. That included freedom.

Viggo himself was still giving Sean a look that was as steady as an old horse with a young rider, although there was a faint flicker in those grey-blue eyes as though the older man had worked out that possibly not all was well within Sean’s mind. Mind you, the longer the blonde stayed here looking like he had been petrified into stone the longer that little suspicion was going to get confirmed.

Move, goddamn it. *Move*

Sean growled softly to himself and all but forced his legs into movement. The flicker in Viggo’s eyes faded slightly, the older man now looking as though he was waiting to see what the next exciting episode of Sean’s Plot was likely to involve. It was almost easy to believe he was relaxed, although Sean’s watchful eye managed to pick up the faint shiver in Viggo’s body as though the man was cold, an indication of nerves that Viggo had evidentally failed to stamp down. Sean knew the feeling.

Not that Sean’s own body was currently behaving itself either. The heartbeat in Sean’s chest seemed determined to get in on the act for the most annoying body part, pounding away as though it had secretly sneaked a look into the future and worked out there was no tomorrow. His palm still felt clammy, the paddle slipping slightly despite the rubber decorations. His muscles demanded surrender. His groin screamed for satisfaction.

As a dramatic and confident posture, it seriously needed work.

Finally, it was Viggo who broke the silence again.

” Well?” he asked softly. “ You planning to do anything, Sean, or have I scared you off?” There was a laugh to himself as though he had discovered the most amusing joke on the face of the planet. Sean gritted his teeth.

“ Of course not. Anyone tell you you’re far too impatient, Viggo?”

“ Not often, no.” Viggo’s eyes continued to play on his, a smile working in the corner of his mouth. “ How’s the lip, Sean?”

Sean had entirely forgotten about that. He wiped it with the back of his hand, the skin of which took on a much redder tone than it had ever been subjected to before, before Sean glanced back at Viggo casually. The lip, now that it had people’s attention once more, started to throb its complaint about the rough treatment. Sean ignored it.

“ It’s fine, thanks,” It was the same tone that you could ask a punk whether he felt lucky.

“ Well, that’s good. You look like you’re about to faint,” Viggo stared back at him. “ Couldn’t have that,”

“ Is it just me or are you attempting to be sarcastic?” Sean stared back at him stonily. “ There are *rules* Vig. Don’t break them,”

There was another soft chuckle by Viggo before the man turned his gaze back in front of him and rested his forehead on the pillow once again. Sean’s eyes drifted over the body that was lain out in front of him, the tempting skin waiting for him to rest himself against. Sean could remember how firm that body felt under his own, how enticing. His groin stepped up the screaming; his face developed a little more of the flush.

“ Well?” Viggo said again without bothering to look around. Sean shot a look towards Orli who was watching him with a guarded expression. Damn the guarded expressions! Didn’t he know when Sean needed a few hints and tips?

“ You know,” Viggo mused to himself. “ I don’t think you’ve quite got this. Sure, I admire your attempt. It’s cute, in a faintly embarrassing way. But you just don’t have the balls to take charge do you Sean? Haven’t got the guts. You’d be much better on your knees waiting for a-“

“ Viggo,” growled Sean, whose mind had already filled in the rest of that sentence.

” – an *instruction*, someone to tell you what to do because you really can’t do it yourself, can you? Can’t work out what’s supposed to be happening, which way up a paddle goes, no, nothing at all-“

The sound of the blow was almost as loud as a gunshot, although a gunshot probably wouldn’t have been so dramatic. Viggo cut off at the last word so sharply that Sean wasn’t sure whether tongues had been caught by the jaw shutting fast. The paddle drooped again, as though losing the will to live. The blonde almost felt light headed as the blood decided it was needed somewhere else other than his mind.

And then the room was silent. Not a moan nor a murmur ruined this moment, which was quite frankly a pain in the rear. Even something would have been more preferable than this. Sean’s imagination needed no encouragement into the world of paranoia, let alone giving it the golden ticket of entry. The blonde gave a glance towards Orlando, although he knew damn well what neutral expression he would find. If Orli was upset, Sean had a sneaking suspicion he would know about it well before actually having to look at him.

True enough, the younger man was staring down at Viggo in shocked fascination, as though he had witnessed a mythical beast step through the door and ask to borrow a cup of sugar.

Sean took a better grip on the paddle again.

“ Better?” he tried to make it as flat toned as Viggo normally made. There was a snort of amusement.

“ That’s it?”

Sean gritted his teeth. If he didn’t know better he could have sworn that Viggo was deliberately trying to wind him up. Patience, patience. 10 – 9 – 8 – 7-

“ That’s what I like about you, Sean. Does exactly what it says on the packet. You always did look like you couldn’t possibly follow through in your threats,”

- 6 – 5 – 4 – The numbers were all but growled in his head.

“ But it’s sweet of you to try. In some sick twisted world, I’m sure,”

- 3 – 2 – 1- Damn. He was down to negatives already. He knew he should have started higher up. Sean growled something to himself again and this time the sheer menace within showed itself to a greater extent. Viggo paused in his attempt to make Sean’s uncertain mind agree on the fact that certain people under their command were being bloody wankers. The paddle was gripped hard, Sean’s eyes glinting in the light of the gym. There was a faint pain in his palm where the edge of the paddle was digging into flesh mercilessly.

If this was Viggo’s little game of getting Sean’s blood boiling, there was no way Sean was going to let him win. Even when he’s tied to a sodding bed he had to try and take control over the surroundings. Well, *it wasn’t happening*. At all. This was his time, his go, and for fuck’s sake that arse was tempting him more and more for every second that was passing.

Patience, patience. A virtue that seemed to be interchangeable with certain forms of torture. God, Sean did not do patience well, he knew that. It really wasn’t going to change any time soon.

*Get on with it * he told himself firmly. If he carried on like this they could expect to still be there a year from now, and it was going to get so very old by that time. Not to mention Viggo would have even more reason to gut him slowly over a roasting fire.

Sean gave Orlando another glance. The younger man nodded in his direction, his eyes still wary. Sean knew they should have rehearsed this beforehand, even if they would have to drag Dave into it to pretend to be Viggo. Or better yet, Karl. No one could do moral outrage like Mr Urban. No one would want to.

Viggo sighed again. It suddenly occurred to Sean that perhaps the fears were being conquered simply through boredom, but a closer inspection managed to ruin this idea. There was still a faint tremour running through Viggo’s body, his hands still not completely relaxed from gripping the blanket on the bed. The possum was playing dead, and wasn’t quite at Oscar level yet.

The paddle was growing less and less comforting with each second. Sean had no idea why. Two weeks ago he would have given anything to be a little more in control. Now he would have given anything to give the damn thing back again, and possibly throw in a free meal whilst he was at it. Okay, the plan could go to hell. At least it could toast some marshmallows whilst it was there.

Throwing the paddle onto the floor beside the bed, Sean stepped a little closer, his eyes travelling down Viggo’s naked back hungrily. Obviously the gaze was heavier than Sean expected as Viggo shivered again as though a goose had walked over his grave. Sean gently rested his fingers on the heat of Viggo’s skin, feeling the soft warmth under him, and carefully checking for any more shivers that might suggest further morbid waterfowl. However, Viggo had controlled himself carefully. Not even a gasp betrayed him.

Sean glanced up.

“ Orli,” he instructed. Orlando was giving him a funny look, as though the younger man had realised that the script had not only been torn in two but also used as the liner for a kitty litter tray, but he moved forward gracefully enough. His eyes burned a question, which was the ruder query on what on earth was going on. Kids these days. Minds should be washed out with soap and water.

Sean wouldn’t have said that the lube was thrown at him, but a gentle toss was definitely under redefining. A quick glance told him it was strawberry scented. Wonderful. Orlando might be a good little serf, but he was on route to having a smacked backside by the end of this little session. Sean had tried to avoid saying the word strawberry ever since he had accidentally managed to turn it into a sexual saying during GoldenEye. The favoured fruit in the Bean Household had to rapidly turn into grapes.

He knew that Viggo had already had the start of the Orli Special for Preparation, which normally did in anyone in a ten mile radius. However, today really should have that personal touch, not least because Sean had a sneaking suspicion that Viggo’s body was going to fight him all the way. Sean knew that from experience. Just because you know something shouldn’t be feared didn’t mean your gut instinct was going to take the slightest bit of notice. Suspicious bastards, gut instinct.

Sean glanced towards Orlando again before moving to kneel over Viggo’s body in much the same way Orli had done. Orli stepped towards the head of the bed and knelt on the floor, his hand on Viggo’s hair in a manner that was soothing and relaxing and completely absent from any normal bondage session. Oh well. It probably went with the strawberry lube. And one thing Sean really really didn’t want to think of was a distressed Viggo, or at least distressed any more than normal. Angry, fine. Pissed off, wonderful. Distressed was going to be on Sean’s guilty conscience for the rest of his life.

Viggo reacted to Sean’s hand on his rear as though he was being branded, which was more a shock for Orlando than the more prepared Sean. There was a low growl, the tension in Viggo’s body tightened to an unbearable degree. Whenever you could see muscles that tense it normally suggested bad things were happening.

Sean’s hand slid lower. Viggo stiffened some more which was impressive considering the space he had to work with. Orli was still purring something sweet and innocent in Viggo’s ear, although Sean had a sneaking suspicion that it held more kinky stuff than he had ever heard in his life. A sickly sweet smell of strawberries rose into the air as Sean popped the tube lid as quietly as he could do, although it was clear by the additional tension in Viggo’s body that he had heard him. Stealth lubrication was probably completely out the window.

Strawberry stuff was a little sticker than Sean was used to, and he had a growing and annoying urge to lick his fingers. Another look was aimed at Orli, this time faintly annoyed, before Sean turned his attention back to Viggo.

“ You dead back there?” Viggo’s voice was rough around the edges. “ Or just taking in the scenery?”

Sean trailed his fingers between Viggo’s legs lightly, feeling the immediate jerk away from the older man, the full body shiver, and faintly, oh so faintly, the light groan.

“ Scenery works for me,” Sean knew his voice was sounding smug but couldn’t help himself. There was another noise, this time a growl.

“ If I had my hands free Bean, you’d be sounding a lot less smug at this point in time,”

“ But you don’t. I’m the one with the upper hand, and currently that upper hand is busy exploring places most other upper hands just don’t get around to exploring,” Sean kept his voice pleasant, still gently stroking, ensuring that the sensation was more tickling than anything that held anything resembling satisfaction.

“ Bastard,” spat Viggo.

” Think we’ve covered that bit before,” Sean’s eyes slid to Orli, but the younger man seemed in no hurry to get Viggo off his current rant. With a weary sigh that spoke volumes about not being able to find the staff these days, Sean flickered his fingers again. Viggo arched his back and groaned, albeit in the most angry voice that a groan probably was able to be groaned at. With his other hand Sean started to massage the back of Viggo’s thighs, feeling battle toned muscles under the palm of his hand, every so often stroking with the hand between Viggo’s legs as though using it as punctuation.

It didn’t take long for the main curses to turn up. Sean thought they might be along soon.

“ If you’re going to do something Sean, do it,” growled Viggo. “ Don’t pussy foot about!”

“ Do something?” asked Sean politely. “ And what would that *something* be, Vig? Knitting?”

There was another gasp as Sean’s fingers put a little more pressure. Viggo’s hips shifted almost automatically, the older man grinding against the blanket before obviously he worked out what he was doing and stamped down on this practise like a child with an annoying bug. There was another furious growl that suggested that torture techniques were definitely being thought of.

A minute passed. Two. And it was only the knowledge that Viggo was so close to asking for it that allowed Sean the power to continue. His body was almost trembling as much as Viggo’s, his heart rate so fast that it was in danger of burst out of his chest altogether.

Orlando had managed to get back to crooning, his hand caressing Viggo’s ear.

Another minute.

Sean felt the sweat drip down his back, form on his forehead, and still the man refused to beg. Sean dragged his nails down Viggo’s buttocks. Nothing more than a gasp, then silence. His fingers flickered over Viggo’s cleft, causing the older man to shift his weight but nothing else. And Sean had already vowed to himself that nothing was going to penetrate this particular lover without a pleading note to enter his voice.

However, he himself was almost ready to burst.

His eyes sought out Orli in interest. Young, beautiful Orli. A porn movie’s dream man, with energy to spare and an erection that could teach mountains a lesson in firmness. An erection that really screamed out to be satisfied at least once tonight. Possibly more.

As though aware he was being studied, Orli glanced up startled, a deer spooked by a breaking branch. Wide chocolate brown eyes sought him out as though seeking safety, only for a look of caution to enter them at the expression that was being aimed in his general direction.

Sean all but slid off the bed like a snake into water, his eyes fixed hungrily on Orlando. The caution was still in the younger man’s eyes but he stayed perfectly still as though it was of vital importance that he do so. Sean was aware of Viggo’s eyes on him as the blonde ran a hand across flawless cheekbone to gently cup Orli’s chin in one hand, ensuring that the younger man was looking directly at him. And slowly Sean kissed him, using all the techniques for screen kissing he had developed over the years to make it the stuff of romance movies.

Orlando was quick on the uptake, although this might have had something more to do with the fact that Orli had an erection that was harder than steel bars. Sean knew it was taking all of the younger man’s willpower to keep his hands at his side and therefore the blonde took a sadistic pleasure in taking his time, his tongue flickering over Orlando’s lips before plundering his mouth once again. Orli gave a little squeak moan in approval, his eyes drifting shut, his hands curling into fists and back again in a steady rhythm.

Of course the squeak moan was nothing in comparison to the groan that was given as Sean sank to his knees and gently took the younger man into his mouth. That groan could have won awards for sheer dirty thoughts, could have made anyone come just from the sound of it. And, of course, that was without the visuals that Viggo would have had access to.

Sean ran his tongue over the head of Orli’s cock again before taking him as deep as he could go. Another whimper accompanied the movement, Orlando’s hand now buried in Sean’s messed up blonde hair and guiding his mouth gently, encouragingly, trying to get Sean to speed up. Not that Sean had any intention of allowing Orlando an easy ride. The younger man’s whimpers and low cries were enough to make him come in his pants, let alone Viggo.

Keeping his eyes firmly on the task, Sean ran his tongue along the full length of Orlando’s cock, feeling the younger man clench his hand a little tighter in Sean’s hair until there was the faintest of tugging sensations. The blonde’s groin begged him to do something, even if it was nothing more than using one of his free hands to relieve himself, but that wasn’t going to be fair. If Viggo was going through the torment, the least Sean could do was have a little torment himself. Misery loved company after all.

There was a hitch in Orli’s breathing that suggested that the younger man was certainly on his way to a full blown out orgasm, his breathing quick and sharp like a woman in childbirth. Sean could see the younger man’s chest shine with light sweat already, feel the tremble through his body, and deliberately slowed down his actions. Orli almost wept with frustration, his hand tightening again briefly as though Orlando desperately wanted to share the hurt, but Sean ignored him entirely. Orlando would have to get weapons involved before he caused more agony than the desire that was currently burning in Sean’s loins.

However, ignoring Orlando’s actions was getting harder by each second that passed. Orli really really didn’t want to get forgotten. Sean looked up into desperate brown eyes pleading with him for some action, either release or penetration; Orli had the type of eyes that you could read a whole sexual novel in them, a ficlet free with each blink. And they were currently promising Sean a sexual world if he wanted it. Sean’s groin gave another throb that felt like someone had kneed him in the balls, a low ache that demanded something be done before hostages were taken and ransoms demanded.

Fuck, this was hard. There was something to be said for the quick ten minute fuck in the missionary position after all.

Orli’s breath hitched again, a weak little noise like an overheated animal. At the point where Sean felt the young man’s body begin to tense, his muscles harden even more, the blonde pulled his mouth off Orli’s length entirely. There was a gasp of frustration from Orli, who sounded as though he was at the point where he was planning to do a little torturing himself; on the other hand, this desire to kill Sean vanished in a blink of an eye as Sean stroked him roughly and quickly, aiming to get a conclusion as quickly and as messily as he possibly could.

It all but killed Orli. Having expected further frustrations, the younger man obviously wasn’t expecting it; within five seconds Orlando howled in his release and Sean, who was still positioned as close as he dared to Orli without fear of his nose being broken by any sudden movements, was suddenly a lot messier than he was a second ago. He felt Orli’s seed slowly trickle down his face and resisted the urge to wipe it off with the back of his arm. That really wouldn’t be sexy. Mind you, it certainly didn’t feel sexy having the damn stuff all over his face but then again he was sure it didn’t matter what the recipient thought. What mattered was the fact that it normally pushed a few buttons in the male conscious and was undeniably evidence of Orli’s excitement.

Make that embarrassment as well. By the startled look on Orli’s face, obviously this sort of thing was reasonably new on his ‘things to screw’ list, which wasn’t exactly unsurprising when Sean thought about it. One thing that ‘Masters’ really didn’t do, Sean assumed, was have their little slave jerk off on them. Although Orli had mentioned that whole golden showers thing….

Must have been someone else. Viggo might take the piss on occasion but that was taking things far too literally for Sean’s mind to grasp at this point. And, after all, there were much more pleasurable things to grasp.

Sean licked the side of his mouth to taste the salty goodness that was Orli, and finally looked back at Viggo. He was unsurprised to see that grey-blue eyes had been watching them with solid dedication, a sheen of sweat on Viggo’s forehead. Sean was willing to bet if he checked Viggo’s wrists he would find chafed marks from struggling. The blonde licked the side of his mouth again slowly, not actually aiming to do anything but tease the older man further.

Viggo, he prayed silently to himself. Start begging. Please god start begging, before I get there myself.

But still nothing. Just that almost wounded look that was being aimed at him, like a weakened animal that was just waiting for the final blow between this life and the next. Sean could see Viggo’s breathing, laboured, slow; a hand placed on Viggo’s arm and Sean could feel the light tremble in the man’s body.

And yet Viggo still wouldn’t speak. It was enough to make you turn evil.

On the other hand, he wasn’t throwing sarcastic comments or evil glares either. There had definitely been progress made, although in which direction Sean wasn’t entirely sure. He glanced towards Orlando, who had the flushed non-concentrated look of the just-royally-fucked, then slowly back at Viggo. He didn’t mean it to be taunting but he realised that was exactly what it would appear like.

Come on come on come on come on-

Sean almost jumped at Orlando’s hand on his shoulder, and glanced round quickly enough to threaten whiplash. The younger man smiled shyly at him, his chocolate brown eyes sliding to Viggo in assessment then back at Sean. And suddenly the flushed look managed to concentrate fully on him, like a shark who had just worked out that the surfer who had floated into its territory was edible. Sean frowned at him, unable to read the expression other than that it seemed entirely naughty.

Orli’s hand slid from Sean’s shoulder to trail fingers down Sean’s back and along his spine, causing a full body shiver. Sean tried to get his expression off from Shocked and back onto Cautious but it seemed a long long way between the two, especially when Orlando bent down and started to nibble his earlobe. Apparently the world had decided that Sean’s earlobe was going to be connected directly by nerves to his groin. Bastards! Did they not even *know* of forward planning?

However, Orli’s mouth obviously wasn’t making the earlobe sexual encounter the main course, merely a tantalizing starter. Sean was aware of Orli’s breath in his ear, the warmth of Orli-used air on his skin, and suddenly the low murmur of Orlando’s silken voice. He never realised how low and how seductive Orlando sounded when he really put his mind to it. It was incredibly unfair of the world again. Double bastards!

“ If you want him pleading to come,” murmured Orli in such a low voice that Sean wasn’t entirely sure the boy wasn’t simply transmitting his thoughts directly into his brain. “ I have a suggestion that is almost guaranteed to work,”

Orlando’s fingers continued to trace down Sean’s back in a suggestive manner. Sean stared back at him briefly, trying to work out whether the thing that he thought Orli was suggesting was actually the correct conclusion or whether he had finally snapped in his ability to read people. God, this would be so much better if they really could read each other’s minds like they did in the decent novels, the one which normally involved secret bases, evil sarcastic villains and a bit of rough sex on the side, not to mention some catchy codenames and loyal team mates.

Unfortunately for the here and now he was just going to have to try without the paranormal assistance, which was a right pain in the arse.

If he was reading Orlando Bloom correctly however, apparently that was the plan.

Orlando straightened up again, looking down at him. Sean suddenly realised that this was going to get more complicated than he ever realised was possible. There were so many things a master didn’t do which Sean was currently doing, and that was proving a little bit awkward, not least because the original plan was well and truly binned. Shredded. Burnt at the stake. Gone with the wind.

He couldn’t be suggesting what Sean thought he was suggesting.

He *couldn’t* be.

Could he?

Slowly, finally, Sean lowered himself onto his hands and knees and waited to see if this was what Orlando wished. Obviously bridges had already been burnt in the depths of Orli’s mind regarding what he was happy about doing, although the intense stare in the young man’s eyes suggested that said subject wasn’t something he would happily chat about over tea and biscuits. It was an almost dangerous look which of course made it feel even more nerve wracking through its surrealness, as though the world had discovered that sheep were actually vampires after nightfall.

The blonde dropped his eyes to the floor as he felt Orli’s hand rest on the smooth rise of his backside. There had been a brief plan to be nice and submissive to someone who obviously didn’t do this much, but this was well and truly ruined by the fact that the nice and gentle hand suddenly slid lower between Sean’s legs and shoved his legs wider apart. The older man bit back a yelp of surprise and focused on the floor a little more, feeling a low ache in his thigh muscles at the stretch. The phrase ‘spread ‘em’ had obviously been taken to its logical conclusion.

There was a pause behind him. Sean suddenly remembered the major disadvantage in keeping his eyes away from the ‘master’ – or whichever master decided to turn up – in that he suddenly had no idea what was happening. Not even a hint. Orli was even more of a problem in that he seemed to take the elf like ability of stealth outside of work with him, which was a bastard of a problem. People shouldn’t be allowed to do that. It wasn’t fair on the innocents outside of the set.

Sean’s groin was all but on fire at this point in time, and it was becoming more than a little uncomfortable. His erection seemed to rejoice in the idea of being brazen, opened and waiting for someone to slide into him which only went to prove that it was clearly on another wavelength to the rest of his body who had chosen the more cautious card. Orlando was suddenly becoming more of a mystery than Sean had planned. He briefly cursed himself for not querying this aspect with Dave The All Knowing, before his attention had to be drawn to the action in the rear once again.

Ice cold lube suddenly poured onto him. Sean bit back another yelp, this time with added pain as teeth connected to lip a little too hard, sending new agony to his face and reopening the split lip which had already been stinging through Orli’s cum sliding down his face. Red hot skin met ice cool lube and had a brief and uncomfortable discussion on who was in command.

There was another pause behind him and a soft padding sound that indicated that Orli had moved away. Sean spat out a mouthful of red-tinted spit before freezing at the sound of a drawer being opened.

Oh.

My.

God.

It seemed ridiculous to look back on it, but Sean had completely forgotten Orlando’s fondness for battery powered toys. The blonde suddenly felt very vulnerable and very open with his legs spread as far as they could without ripping tendons, and his arse dripping lubrication whilst bared and waiting for the next happy client. Hands clenched into fists on the floor, waiting.

And waiting.

And waiting.

And now this was getting daft. If people were going to be kinky bastards, the least they could do was to be upfront about it. None of this dawdling in the rear, as it were. Sean was tempted to glance to the side and see what expression was currently on Viggo’s face at this little performance in his honour but couldn’t quite work up the courage to do so. This had better work, he told himself firmly, otherwise I’m going to scream.

He almost screamed anyway when Orlando finally got around to what he was doing. It wasn’t particularly kinky and it wasn’t something Sean didn’t know the name of. However, the dildo was of an interestingly rough texture, vibrated at what felt like three settings and was currently vibrating over the opening to his body at high speed. Fists were clenched even tighter, Sean’s back arching at the tickling sensation, a gasp working its way out of his body.

And finally, when Sean was beginning to get used to the strange sensation, Orli started to slide it into his body for a few centimetres, then stop. Sean’s muscles fought the invader. Sean’s mind fought the desire to jump up and wallop Orli over the arse a couple of times for teasing the fuck out of him. Sean’s mouth fought the pathetic whimper that was threatening to breach his throat any moment. And then, of course, Orlando started to thrust it in and out, each time only entering Sean’s body slightly, allowing him all of the sensation and none of the satisfaction.

Bastard. Utter, utter bastard. There wasn’t a word for how much of a bastard Orlando was, but once Sean found it he would print it on a t-shirt and make Orli wear it for the rest of his natural life. And possibly some of his unnatural life as well.

Sean finally couldn’t stop the whimper from escaping, although he was pleased to note that half of it sounded like a distinctly pissed off tiger. There was a soft chuckle from Orli which allowed Sean to grimly promise the word to be carved on Mr Bloom’s gravestone as well, before the toy was withdrawn all together and something else decided to get into the action.

Like Orli’s tongue. Wet warmth applied itself to Sean’s secret innermost areas and slowly began to lick around the muscle, teasing Sean even further. Orli’s hands were pressed onto Sean’s buttocks, opening him out even more, making him feel like Orlando had accidentally dropped his favourite ice-cream down Sean’s crack and was trying his best to get what he could back. The tip of Orlando’s tongue delicately rested against Sean’s opening before making little circles in a talented way.

Sean gritted his teeth and tried to think of happy things which weren’t connected to the fact that his cock currently felt like it was about to explode and his balls were so heavy and aching it was doubtful whether they would hurt more if Orlando kicked him squarely between the legs. Orli certainly wasn’t in any kind of hurry, and why would he be? He had just had Sean on his knees in front of him, sucking him to a conclusion. No, young Orli could afford to wait. It was not him who was currently in agony and wondering whether he should bypass his pride altogether and plead to get fucked.

He finally glanced to the side to focus on Viggo. The older man was watching them with a flush to his cheeks, a shine on his face which spoke of perspiration. His mouth was slightly parted, and, as Sean watched, a tongue darted out to lick his bottom lip. Grey-blue eyes were fixed on what Orli was doing with such a dedication that Sean doubted whether Viggo would even notice should someone else come through the door. The blonde could see the steady and quick rise and fall of Viggo’s chest, the slight tremble of his arms as his hands gripped hold of the handcuff chain for support.

All in all, it was going well on the whole Viggo front. Sean had a sneaking suspicion if they let him out now that Viggo would completely forget the problems of the last half hour and go straight for the satisfaction.

All in all, it was going terrible on the ‘be nice to Sean’ front. This was not what he had in mind. When you were supposed to be master on an evening, being left trembling and aching with need really hadn’t featured in the To Do list. And Orli *still* hadn’t increased his speed; his tongue was now lazily exploring every nook and cranny that Sean possessed, Orli showing a patience that Sean was annoyed to note never turned up unless the young man wanted it to. Every so often it would flicker against his entrance and a shudder would work its way through Sean’s body, a gasp from his lips. Sean had given up on the silent strong hero portrayal. Now he would be happy with a satisfied whore look.

“ Orli,” he growled finally, unable to resist any further. There was another chuckle and the tongue slowed down even further. Sean wanted to scream, his body tensing so much he was sure he was going to hear something crack any minute.

Finally Orlando relented. Or least, in a manner of speaking anyway. Relenting normally suggested people giving into the demands and being more sympathetic. Orli was so far from sympathetic that Scrooge would be giving him awards; having removed his tongue from the Wild West of Sean’s body, Orlando calmly pressed his slick cock against Sean’s body and waited for a moment before sliding inside.

Okay, so he was careful. He was smooth. And he was definitely going to hear about this tomorrow morning, if Sean could actually walk again. His thighs were still complaining about the stretch as it was without the fact that Orlando’s length was happily stretching other places which were still getting used to the preparation factor. Despite the fact that Orli was slim as a whippet, his cock was much larger than Sean could just simply ignore; the blonde’s head snapped up again, a groan that was more of a howl filling the air at the shock and indignity, his back arching in sympathy. It wasn’t painful as such, more distinctly uncomfortable, his muscles arguing back about such treatment.

Waiting patiently, his cock sheathed fully within Sean, Orli calmly waited for Sean to cool down. The blonde managed to regrab control over his breathing, which was trying to steal all the oxygen it could, and tried to fight down the trembling in his legs and arms which were holding his weight. For someone who hated to top, Orlando was annoyingly happy about this.

“ Okay, old man?” asked Orlando finally and with a hint of mischievousness.

” Fucking bastard,” growled Sean.

” Jolly good,” Orli seemed pleased by the response and slowly started to move within him. Sean had to bite his lip and simply react, the blonde tasting blood yet again as bruised and battered lips were bruised and battered once more. On the other hand, it was definitely like the ability to ride a bicycle; once you learn it once, it apparently was extremely difficult to forget. Sean found himself moving against Orlando within the first few thrusts, feeling his body demand more and more satisfaction having been driven to distraction through torment.

He couldn’t help yelping as suddenly Orlando’s hand drifted from Sean’s hip to between his legs and pinched sensitive skin on the blonde’s inner thigh in a deliberate manner. Half a minute later he did it again. Another half a minute Sean had worked out that this was the young man’s way to indicate that he wanted Sean to be more vocal, but that wasn’t particularly useful considering his right inner thigh was now throbbing with several pinch marks.

Mind you, at least the vocal nature of the fuck wasn’t that difficult to do. Orli had obviously had the same trainer as Viggo and seemed desperate to bury himself further and further inside Sean with hard, strong thrusts. Sean groaned and panted louder, only partly exaggerating. His hand clenched even tighter into fists to resist the urge to stroke himself, stars exploding in front of his eyes at the sudden burst of sensation within him. Orlando, bastard that he was, had managed to find the angle that Sean was really really praying he wouldn’t. Suddenly the need to come was so strong that it blotted out anything else in his mind to the extent that Sean reckoned he probably wouldn’t remember his own mother’s name.

The cry that emerged was more a miserable whimper with added volume. Apparently there was a small streak of mercy within Orli as he carefully avoided that particular angle and thrust harder, obviously trying to speed up his own climax. Sean gasped as he felt a thrust that had more power than a guided missile suddenly push into him; at his muscles clenching in retaliation, Orlando suddenly came hard, trembling, giving a gasp that sounded mildly shocked before pushing himself off of the blonde in front of him. It had been from force to finish without anything else in the middle, not that Sean was complaining. He was currently trying to ensure he didn’t come himself. Perhaps handcuffs were a damn good idea in sex games.

Speaking of handcuffs… letting the sweat roll from his forehead, Sean finally lifted his head and looked at Viggo. The blonde could feel his own muscles trembling with effort, his groin scream at him angrily for doing this to it, heat radiating off his body. And all of that looked like it was mild in comparison to what Viggo was going through.

Sean had to hand it to him, Viggo was possibly the most stubborn creature on the planet. He was obviously in discomfort, his body shifting to try and get some type of release, a flush to his face. However, his eyes were now shouting the fact that someone better come and give him some action otherwise there was going to be hell to pay. Sean smiled slowly and lazily and pushed himself off the floor, ignoring the fact his muscles yelled at him to stop being an idiot. His arse already felt more than a little abused from Orlando’s exercise but he made sure this didn’t show.

Viggo’s eyes fell on him, obviously attempting some sort of distain but merely managing a desperate glare. Sean looked back at him.

And finally, finally, Viggo’s eyes fell away to look back at the bedspread in front of him. Sean could see the man take a few deeper breaths as though to calm himself down, then glance back at Sean, waiting.

Sean didn’t move, simply watching him. Triumph was almost there, so close Sean was sure he could just lean over and touch it, but based on Viggo’s previous reaction he wanted it to be so clear it was all but scrawled over his forehead. He owed it to his lip, if nothing else.

Movement to his side told Sean that Orlando was now standing beside him, the young man’s expression almost bearing on Viggo’s usual neutrality and so unlike the usual expression that was normally on Orli’s face that Sean was almost tempted to ask whether anything was the matter. But then again, Orlando’s upsets were normally clearer to see than anything else, a little bit like a herd of stampeding buffalo in the subtly area.

Viggo sighed in a manner that suggested that he was more than a little impatient with the world at large.

“ Well?” he said finally, and with a hint of irritation. “ Are you doing anything or am I stuck here the rest of my life until you get the courage?”

Sean’s eyes narrowed. Viggo hesitated, and it was in that hesitation that the blonde knew he had him. Viggo never hesitated in his opinions. That was the hesitation of someone who was worried they had pushed someone a little too far, that their little scheme was about to backfire. The blonde smiled slowly to himself and glanced casually to the door. Out of the corner of his eye he could see Viggo stiffen slightly at this.

“ Well, I guess I could go have a little think about what to do next,” Sean said easily, much more easily than his aching body was happy with but you couldn’t have everything in this life. “ Come back a bit later. What do you think, Orlando?”

Orli raised an eyebrow and shrugged. “ Can’t hurt,” he agreed.

Viggo turned an interesting colour at this, his eyes getting darker. There was a brief struggle against the headboard again, before dangerously frustrated eyes turned back to the pair who were watching him with honest fascination.

“ If either of you walk out that door without doing anything to me, I vow to kill you slowly then chase you forever in the afterlife.” Viggo’s growl was almost the same level as Russell Crowe’s voice in Gladiator. Sean cocked his head to one side.

“ I’m sorry? Is that an order or a request?” he asked politely. Viggo snarled.

“ Sean, get on with it,” he snapped, then hesitated again. “ *Please*,” his voice almost broke at that word.

The blonde needed no further invitation. He slid onto the bed again, and caught the lube that Orlando tossed towards him. Slicking himself up, his fingers moved to caress Viggo. However, the older man obviously had other plans.

“ No. Just get on with it,” Viggo pushed his hips towards the blonde as Sean’s finger breached his body. Finger suddenly found itself deep within its target, much to their and their owner’s surprise. Sean hesitated briefly before his groin finally took charge. Viggo said he could do it, he could do it. After all, he had to be released at some point. It would be nice to start stocking up on brownie points rather than bad marks.

Sean’s gaze met Orli’s once before he slowly slid into the waiting body.

Well, it was supposed to be slow anyway. Again, there was the little problem of Viggo’s point of view, which was obviously set to warp factor nine. As soon as Sean had begun to press into him, Viggo immediately shoved back with his hips, a growl accompanying this. Sean almost came there and then as tight heat surrounded him, squeezing his length so incredibly that he was certain that he was likely to explode within a few seconds.

Gasping for air, Sean paused to take count of the situation. Apparently this was also not a Viggo favoured thing to do, although the blonde did suppose that the older man had been teased a little more than Sean himself anyway. Frustrations were probably going to have to be expected, and it took both Sean’s hands on Viggo’s hips to stop him from immediately trying to move.

“ Vig, calm down,” panted Sean, essentially pinning him to the bed. Viggo growled again angrily and tried to shake off Sean’s grip. It only took the blonde a few moments to decide that it was either fight Viggo all the way or just go with it, and going with it did have the added advantage that relief was but a few thrusts away.

If Viggo continued to squeeze with his internal muscles to this extent, a few was literally correct.

Growling back at him, Sean started to move, finding a rhythm remarkably easily. Viggo thrust back on him, altering the speed to become faster and faster, harder and harder, until Sean was shocked to discover he was fucking Viggo with all the strength he possessed, stars already flickering in his vision to demonstrate that a bloody huge orgasm was teetering on the brink. Teeth bared in concentration, Sean tried to hold it back but he couldn’t, just as he couldn’t hold back the sheer power against him.

Sean’s cry as he came could probably have smothered the noise of a full blown war, the power flowing through him and into Viggo, flashing lights briefly against his vision. He felt drained, empty, his body almost punishing him for the length of frustration he had had to endure. His heart beat like a drumroll, his pulse racing in his ears. Sean felt, all in all, as though he had been hit by a bus and then reversed over.

There wasn’t any energy left to be dignified in his retreat. Collapsing against the older man, Sean rolled off and shakily lifted his hand towards the keys, knowing that there was no way he could deny Viggo his climax any longer if he wanted to live past the next hour. Orlando, however, was already there. Keys shining in his hand, Orli moved to the side of the bed and waited for Sean to slide off before he leant over and deftly flipped Viggo to rest on his back.

Viggo’s moan of appreciation as Orli’s mouth closed over his waiting and aching erection was definitely a contender with Sean’s yell as the Loudest Sexual Moment. Sean watched as Orlando quickly and skilfully licked over Viggo’s arousal before taking it as deep as he could. It was only a matter of seconds before Viggo came down Orlando’s throat, the young man leaning away and licking his lips as soon as the older man had flopped back onto the bed with a heavy noise.

Before Sean had even had a chance to open his mouth, Orlando had leant forward and sought Viggo’s wrists. The keys shined in his hands.

*click!*

The handcuffs were off.

Viggo was free.

Sean felt a cold chill of apprehension at this, and tried to shake it off as he stood nearby, waiting for Viggo to move. He was briefly reminded of a Frankenstein movie he had once watched, the monster slowly rising up from the bed, but shoved this image to the back of the mind as well.

Finally, slowly, Viggo moved to a sitting position. He rubbed his left wrist, focusing entirely on the task in hand. And then, just as slowly, his head raised to look Sean in the eye.

The cold chill was back and this time it had brought the family.

Not that there was anything particularly aggressive in Viggo’s stare, mind you. It wasn’t the Terminator of stares that promised that it would be back when you weren’t expecting. It wasn’t even particularly hard or evil. However, it was the type of look that suggested memories were being filed at the front of the memory for ease of use, the type of look that suggested that Viggo was merely biding his time before revenge was sought.

The word revenge really should be banned by law, Sean decided uneasily.

Orlando seemed more relaxed now the cuffs were removed, and was almost back to his old bouncy self. Busy clearing away the props, Orli was only confronted by the situation when he rose back up after picking up the discarded paddle. Chocolate brown eyes went from Viggo to Sean then back to Viggo. There was the lightest of sighs, before Orlando continued with his chores.

Sean found he couldn’t move his gaze from Viggo, like a rabbit stuck in an oncoming car’s headlights and unable to save itself. He swallowed through a drying throat, and tried to put a little more ease in his posture. This wasn’t easy, not least because his body was still aching from Orlando’s cock.

The youngest member of the group only looked a little more concerned when Viggo stood and crossed the few paces between himself and Sean and paused, looking at the blonde steadily. Sean felt his heart race pick up again as he stared back at him, waiting for his reaction. Viggo scanned the blonde’s face then allowed his gaze to drop, taking in the rest of Sean’s body as though assessing him for the slave market.

“ You know,” he said softly. “ I could do a lot to you for that little stunt,”

Viggo’s hand lifted to trace a finger across the split lip, almost in curiosity. Sean watched him numbly, waiting for the explosion. Even Orli had paused to watch. Viggo smiled again.

“ A lot,” he repeated softly, as though to himself, then shrugged and turned to the door. “ But at this point in time I really need a shower instead.”

Sean stared after him, unable to speak or comphrend what had just happened. Having steeled himself for at least a verbal lashing if not a full blown punishment, it was a kick to his sense of reality when Viggo had decided that he would prefer the feel of hot water on his back and a rubber duckie by his side rather than beating the crap out of the man who had just handcuffed him to a bed.

Reality had obviously decided to change again without leaving Sean a forwarding address. By the look on Orlando’s face, apparently the likelihood of Sean’s punishment hadn’t passed him by either.

Viggo reached the door and glanced back at the two men who were looking at him with expressions that suggested that the neighbourhood stray dog had started tap-dancing on the bed. A rueful smile crossed Viggo’s face.

“ You two coming?” he queried. The other two exchanged glances. Orli nodded finally and slowly, as though not entirely sure what this acceptance would bring.

And apparently that was it.

*

Sean knew he had a good imagination, which of course had a downside. He was paranoid. Paranoia struck him far too often and mostly with the metaphorical version of a baseball bat, but on this occasion he had a sneaking suspicion that it would be considered fair enough. Because Viggo wasn’t the same, not by any means, and that was beginning to give Sean a low constant fear in his mind and an ache in his heart that in fact he hadn’t helped at all.

Viggo wasn’t crying. He wasn’t shaking. He had had his shower and continued with the rest of the evening perfectly, without fear or anger. He had slept between Orlando and Sean without a murmur of protest or a raising of a hand. He walked around with a smile on his face and casual indifference in his voice, and performed brilliantly as Aragorn in front of the camera. The crew loved him. The cast loved him. And yet Sean still had a nagging suspicion that all was not well within his lover, regardless of how easily he carried out his day to day business.

Apparently this feeling wasn’t just his.

“ Okay,” said David Wenham when the redhead turned up to the pub late one night. “ What’s going on?”

Sean took a long swig from the pint glass he held in his hand and looked at it in interest. Dave sighed and slid into the opposite chair, putting his coat on the chair beside him and folding his arms on the table. Sean was aware of an intense blue gaze looking at him.

“ What?” green eyes flickered from the pint glass. Dave gave him a look to say that he knew damn well Sean wasn’t that stupid, but played along anyway.

” Viggo. What’s going on with him?” Dave shook his head. “ He’s too quiet,”

“ Too quiet? How the hell can you tell?” Sean snorted. “ He’s normally quiet! And how the hell would you know anyway, Daisy? You’ve hardly been on the set long enough to notice!”

“ I’ve been on the set long enough,” Dave’s voice was level and clipped. “ Did you go through with that scheme of yours yesterday or is this all a happy coincidence?”

Sean avoided his gaze and prayed his paranoia wasn’t paying attention. Dave’s breath was let out in a controlled manner.

” I see,” he said in the type of voice soothsayers would use to predict the end of the world. Sean’s annoyance bristled.

“ If you’re going to start saying how I screwed things up, please don’t bother. Because I know how crap I am in relationships without you pointing it out to me, okay?” Sean stared angrily at the pint glass in his hand as though it was the sole reason for his woes. He was aware of Dave watching him silently, as though waiting for something else to come from the outburst. Sean growled to himself and kept quiet. Let the bastard speak without some prompt.

Finally Dave let out another sigh.

” Oh, Sean,” he said, and his voice was sympathetic. “ You really do have a lack of confidence in yourself, don’t you?”

Sean was shocked to find a hand resting on his own in support; he glanced up and met honestly sympathetic eyes looking at him. The blonde stared back uncertainly for a moment, then shook his head stubbornly. He was not going to be some sort of emotional charity that was for bloody certain.

“ I know what I’m like. *You* know what I’m like. I’ve got three failed marriages behind me, Dave. And the only reason why I don’t have a fourth is because of legal technicalities. And before you say anything,” he added quickly as Dave opened his mouth to comment. “ this isn’t me being depressed or attention seeking or whatever else you want to say. This is me being realistic.”

Dave paused for a moment, just playing with a bar mat in his hands. Sean took another swig of his beer then glanced towards the bar thoughtfully.

“ You want one?” he offered. Dave’s eyes flickered to him. Sean growled inwardly. “ Yes, I’ll get coke for myself. Okay?”

The redhead smiled and nodded once. Sean slid off his chair and went off in search of drinks, muttering to himself about Australians and their desire to keep pet semi-alcoholics. By the time he got back with the two drinks, Dave already had company.

Dark hazel eyes shifted onto him in appraisal. Sean groaned to himself. After everything else that happened today, now he was going to get beaten up for having a supposed affair with Dave. Life was so wonderful.

” Karl,” he nodded and passed Dave his beer. He plonked the coke unenthusiastically by his own chair and glanced towards the Kiwi thoughtfully. “ You want a drink while I’m up?”

A head shook in negative. Sean shrugged and sat down, pulling the pint of coke towards him and staring at the fizzy liquid idly. He was aware of those dark brooding eyes still fixed on him, like a vicious dog on a passing cat. Was this how it was going to be from here on? Every one assuming he was going to jump on their partners whenever their backs were turned?

“ Okay,” Sean said finally without bothering to raise his eyes. “ What’s the matter with you? Cause I’m really having a bad day at the moment, so if you want to do something to me just get on with it and I can get on with my life, okay?”

Karl shot a look at Dave, who shrugged.

” I think he’s expecting you to be jealous,” Dave offered as an explanation. Karl looked back at Sean incredulously, and grinned to himself. However, he was still silent. This was bloody spooky.

The blonde waited for a few more moments to make sure. Definitely not a peep out of Mr Urban. Apparently miracles were alive and well and appearing in a pub near you. Sean shot a look towards Dave in case he was able to explain the miracle of nature that sat opposite him.

“ He’s got a sore throat,” Dave explained, amused. “ He’s supposed to rest his voice. So he’ll probably be gesturing at you rather than shouting, if that’s any help.”

“ Why change a habit of a lifetime,” replied Sean gloomily, and promptly ignored Karl who had stuck his middle finger up at him. “ Anyway, where were we?”

“ You felt you were crap,” Dave played around with his bar mat a little more idly. Sean was aware of Karl’s eyebrow lifting, and stared down at the coke again. Dave sighed. “ So what *is* happening with Viggo anyway? Orlando seems to think he’s coping well, although he can’t work it out either. What happened last night, as a matter of interest?”

“ He kicked me in the face,” replied Sean gloomily. Dave looked momentarily baffled.

“ What, all night?”

“ Just once. I apparently said a line that …,” Sean’s eyes slid to Karl then back at Dave. “ .. reminded him of bad times, and he freaked on us. Really freaked. I’ve never seen him that scared in my life, and so the whole plan got a little altered.”

“ How altered are we talking?” Dave’s voice was curious. Sean sank a little further in his chair and kept his eyes on the drink. There was a noise of understanding. “ I see,”

“ Is that what’s going to happen for the rest of the conversation? I say something and you say ‘I see’? What the hell are you, some type of empath?” Sean was in a sulky mood. Dave shrugged.

“ I think I might be in a different line of work if I were, although knowing my luck it’d probably be military based. I don’t look good in green,” he explained at Sean’s baffled expression at this. Dave shrugged. “ So he freaked. He’s not freaking now. You must have done something right to change it,”

“ Orlando did that,” Sean sank even lower in his chair and watched the bubbles rise to the surface of his drink. A polite silence waited for him to add some details. The blonde sighed and shook his head. “ He … did something that managed to take Viggo’s mind off the freaking and back on to us. And no,” he added firmly. “ I’m not telling you what it is,”

There was an annoyed look on Karl’s face at this. Dave however didn’t look like he particularly minded, which whispered all sorts of things to Sean’s paranoia. Sean stared at him.

“ He’s already fucking told you, hasn’t he!” he exploded angrily. Dave sighed patiently, as though he had expected the outburst and had already concocted a response.

“ Just once can you imagine the world isn’t trying to get you?” the Australian queried sadly. “ No. He didn’t. But I can guess what sort of thing he might have done based on previous knowledge. And, of course, the fact that you haven’t sat up straight since I got here,”

Karl suddenly developed a smirk. Sean growled softly and took a mouthful of coke. It really needed some sort of kick to it, but at least it allowed him to do something with his mouth that didn’t involve a large amount of swear words. It also allowed him to try and focus on something which wasn’t either coming out of Dave’s mouth or aching from his neither regions. Orli had managed to pull more than a couple of Sean’s muscles in the young man’s quest to locate the centre of the Bean using only his cock, and his arse was definitely making its viewpoint known about the hardness of chairs.

Dave smiled to himself and sipped his own drink thoughtfully.

“ So,” he said idly. “ How did the conversation go?”

There was a blank pause. Sean looked at him in confusion. Dave narrowed his eyes as he stared back at him, the glass lowering as the full implications of Sean’s genuine surprise managed to hit home.

“ Please God tell me you had a conversation as well as this little round of activity?” he queried in a voice of one who already knew and dreaded the answer. Dave groaned. “ For fuck’s sake, Sean, you can’t go through life hoping everyone’s going to know what your actions mean! You have a language. Use it.”

“ There wasn’t a good point-“ Sean tried but Dave cut him off at the pass, a frustrated look making a guest appearance on the Australian’s face.

“ Bollocks! Grab hold of Viggo, get him somewhere and let the three of you talk it through!” Dave shook his head slowly as though it pained him. “ No bloody wonder you get confused so often, Sean.”

Sean scowled at him, not liking where this conversation was headed. There were many things that held great fear for him, he realised. Flying was one. Sitting down and talking about feelings was rapidly becoming another. Allowing Orlando control over their wardrobes was probably a third.

Uncomfortable, Sean attempted to find an alternative area for his rage.

“ Like you’re great at expressing your feelings,” he countered with an edge to his words that a knife would be proud of. “ How many weeks before you and Karl got together?”

“ That’s not the point,” For the first time since Sean had known him, Dave actually sounded more than a little rattled. Karl’s head raised slightly, a silent snarl in his eyes at the taunt.

Sean shrugged and resisting the urge to smirk, glancing towards the bar again. There was a warning noise from the back of Dave’s throat which only went to prove that language wasn’t the only way to make your point known. Sean sighed, recognising that the redhead was being overprotective on the alcohol front yet again.

” Toilet,” he explained as a suitable excuse for looking in said direction. Dave looked slightly more mollified. Sean rolled his eyes and disappeared off in search of the men’s for a piss he wasn’t entirely sure he needed.

But it was the thought that counted.