Forever His

TITLE: Forever His ~ Wake-up Call (7/13)
RATING: Still PG-13, although there is rare strong language from here onwards

Wake-up Call


When Orlando returned to New Zealand this time, the reception he received was markedly different to the previous occasion. Though some of the actors were still on their breaks from filming, there were still plenty of cast and crew members on set to give him a welcome that was on the border between cold and icy.

When he finally found Viggo, Orlando was relieved. There, at least, was one person who would be glad to see him. The Dane was currently deep in conversation with Liv, but Orlando was equally confident that she wouldn’t shun him.

Forcing as much confidence into his voice as he could, he called out, “Hey guys. It’s great to see you again.”

His response as he reached the pair was a sharp slap across the face from Liv. The American gave him a furious look. “How could you do that to poor Elijah?”

“Alright, Liv.” Viggo pulled the woman back, but his tone had not suggested an open defence of the Brit.

Orlando gave the pair a quizzical look. “What are you talking about? What am I supposed to have done this time?”

Viggo shook his head. “Drop the act, Orlando. You know exactly what we’re talking about.”

Orlando seemed genuinely taken aback by this response. “But…I haven’t done anything.”

“Much.” Liv glared at him. “You only decided to have sex with Elijah’s boyfriend.”

Orlando ran a nervous hand through his hair. “What has he said to you?”

“Well, in the brief moments when he’s spoken more than cried, he’s told us how he caught the two of you together.” Liv shook her head. “He’s supposed to be your friend, Orlando.”

Orlando raised an eyebrow. “How do you mean, he caught the two of us together? Caught us in the same trailer, maybe, but that doesn’t mean anything.”

“Wearing little more than shirts and boxers?” Viggo’s voice had taken a rare accusing tone. “Doesn’t sound the most innocent of situations to me.”

“On top of which, Josh all but confessed,” Liv added. “Call me stupid if you want, but given what I’ve seen of Elijah lately, I wouldn’t say he was really up to lying, even if he wanted to.”

Seeing that denial wasn’t an option, Orlando tried a different tack. “So what if something did happen? It’s not like Elijah will be bothered by it much once the other Hobbits get here.”

“He’s been betrayed by someone he loves! Two people, in fact. You don’t think it’ll take a little more than Dom and Billy’s distracting him to make it better?” Liv shook her head. “It’s time you woke up, Orlando. Elijah’s not that superficial.”

Orlando was about to respond when Dom and Billy approached the group. He wasn’t surprised to note that they blanked him.

Dom turned to Liv. “We’ve just got back. Is Elijah about?”

Liv nodded. “Last Iw hew he was with Andy. He’s going to be so glad to see you guys.”

Viggo turned to her. “Why don’t you go with them? If there’s anything Elijah hasn’t told them yet, he might be glad of you being there.”

Liv nodded, knowing what Viggo was hinting at. “Of course. Come on, guys. I think Andy said they were going back to the trailer.”

Dom and Billy followed her away, still refusing to even acknowledge that Orlando was there. Viggo watched them go before turning to his friend. “Why, Orlando? What’s it all achieving?”

“Does she hate me?” The first trace of real concern was beginning to creep into Orlando’s voice.

Viggo shook his head. “No-one hates you, Orlando. They’re just angry with you.”

“Because I slept with Josh?”

“Partly.” Viggo glanced around to make sure no one else was nearby. “Why did you do it, Orli?”

Orlando shrugged. “Why not? I liked him, he liked me, what else could have happened?”

“You could have thought about Elijah.” Viggo’s tone was not accusing. “He didn’t reject you without reason, Orli. You have to stop taking it personally.”

Orlando scowled. “I wondered how long it would be before you admitted it. He’s taken you in as well, hasn’t he?”

Viggo let out a frustrated sigh. “For god’s sake, Orlando, can we stop making this about choosing between his side and yours? Do you think maybe we could get down to the facts of the matter, that you’ve lashed out because you can’t handle rejection?”

Orlando fell silent at the older man’s outburst. He had never known Viggo to shout, not the way he just had. Any defence he thought he had was lost to him as the truth of the situation started to sink in.

Viggo took a step closer. “I don’t like shouting at people, Orlando. But you weren’t listening to reason, so what choice did I have?”

Orlando looked down. “No-one’s ever been that honest with me before.”

“You were best friends with the most honest person on set, Orli. You just chose not to look at it that way.”

“He should have told me from the start.” Despite everything, Orlando wasn’t quite willing to back down completely.

“He was afraid, Orli. And to be fair, did you ever actually tell him that you’re gay?”

“No.” Orlando sighed, suddenly starting to admit to himself that maybe he had been wrong. “I just jumped on him the first chance I got.”

Viggo placed a hand on his friend’s shoulder. “And did anything warrant telling Josh that Elijah was cheating on him?”

Orlando shook his head, tears pricking the corners of his eyes. “Only my selfishness in wanting him, and in wanting to hurt Elijah.”

Viggo locked eyes with the younger man. “So now you understand why people are being off with you. We’re all a little selfish, Orli, that’s part of the acting game. The key is knowing when to stop.”

Orlando nodded, feeling himself on the verge of breaking down. “I…I should go and speak to him.”

“I wouldn’t, not just yet,” Viggo advised. “At least wait until Dom and Billy have had a chance to bring him back a little from his despair.”

Orlando sighed. “You’re right. Though I don’t know what difference it’ll make if I wait.”

“It’ll make the difference of whether or not he listens to you,” Viggo replied. “Besides, I doubt you’d get the others to leave him just yet.”

“True.” Orlando looked down. “I’ve got a lot to make up, haven’t I?”

“It’ll work out,” Viggo reassured. “Just wait until you speak to Elijah. Everything else will have to come from that.”


~EW~*~JH~


That night, Orlando found himself standing outside Elijah’s hotel room, still not entirely sure how he was going to explain everything.

He gave a hesitant knock at the door, which was swiftly answered by Clea. Unsurprisingly, she didn’t look pleased to see him. “What do you want?”

“I, um…I need to talk to Elijah.”

“Why? Come to rub in the fact that Josh betrayed him with you?”

“Actually, I’ve come to apologise.” Though part of him longed to fight back, Orlando knew that it wouldn’t achieve anything. It was natural that Clea would want to protect Elijah, and falling out with her wouldn’t help his cause.

Clea looked a little surprised by this, though she was far from convinced. “Hold on.”

Orlando sighed as she closed the door on him. He could hear muffled discussion from inside the room, followed by Clea’s reluctant sigh as she opened the door again. “You’d better come in.”

Orlando did as he was told, following her into the room. His eyes instantly fell on Elijah, who was curled up on the bed looking thoroughly broken. Clea instantly went back to her friend’s side, a position that looked natural enough for her to have been sat there a while.

Orlando stood awkwardly, not entirely sure how to react. He glanced at Clea, who simply shrugged. “You said you wanted to apologise.”

Orlando nodded – he should have known not to expect her to help him out. Cautiously sitting on the edge of the bed, he offered, “I didn’t mean for this to happen.”

Not even bothering to turn and look at him, Elijah replied, “Then why did it?”

Orlando sighed. “Because I’m a stupid, selfish bastard who doesn’t realise what he’s got for wanting more.”

Elijah sat up at this; finally turning to face the Brit. Orlando was shocked at how pale and drawn the youngster looked. Almost to himself, he uttered, “What have I done to you?”

“Where do you want me to start?” Though his voice was weak, the anger that Elijah felt was still plain. “Do I start with you making our kiss into more than it was, or do I jump straight to the part where you start fucking my boyfriend?”

Orlando bit his lip. “I know I shouldn’t have done it.”

“So why did you?” Clea couldn’t help but ask. “If you don’t wanna screw someone, you don’t screw them. It’s that simple.”

Orlando looked down. “I haven’t started this well, have I?”

“What were you expecting, Orli?” For the first time in a long while, Elijah slipped into using Orlando’s nickname. “What, did you think that you could just say sorry and everything would be okay? That somehow, your saying sorry would change what’s happened?”

“That wasn’t what I thought at all.” Orlando fought back the sting of tears that threatened. “I just hoped that maybe if I apologised, things could start to get better.”

Elijah shook his head. “This is going to take more than an apology to sort out, Orli. A year and a half Josh and I have been together, and before now, we’ve not so much as argued. Well, maybe little rows, but they don’t count. And now we’re not even speaking because he’s too busy having sex with you.”

“He was never having sex with me.” Orlando’s voice was quiet. “Not really. When it came down to it, you were still the one he was thinking of. It was you he always cried out to.”

“Well, that says something in Josh’s favour at least,” Clea commented. “But that’s not the issue we’re working on here.”

Ignoring her, Orlando edged closer to Elijah. “I wish I knew how to make everything right again.”

Elijah risked a glance at Clea before speaking. “I don’t know what you were expecting tonight, but this is what I can give you. Take it or leave it, it’s up to you. I’m prepared to accept your apology, and I’m prepared to be friendly to you again – but don’t ever expect me to forgive you for this.”

Orlando sighed. “That’s more than I expected. Maybe in time…but it’s enough.”

Clea nodded. “Is that it, then?”

“Clea…” Elijah gave his friend a pleading look.

“No, it’s alright. I should probably go. I think I’m meant to be filming tomorrow.” Orlando stood from the bed. “Thank you, Elijah.”

Clea stood with Orlando, moving to show him out of the room. As she opened the door, she muttered, “You got off lightly. Try anything like this again, and I’ll make sure it’s the last time you do.”

Orlando nodded. “You’re good for him, Clea. I wish I could have been more like you are to him.”

“You lost that chance a long time ago.” Clea almost forced the Brit out. “Just be glad of what you’ve got.”

Orlando sighed as the door closed on him. He knew Clea was right – he had gotten off lightly, and that made his guilt even worse. Still, at least he had started to make amends now – he just hoped that the others would accept Elijah’s decision.