Anders and Simon, then Nathan

[om_chroma]

Simon is looking for Anders so he undoes what he's done. They reach an agreement, and Nathan falls straight out of love.


It had been difficult to get any sleep that night, and Simon had been out of their room as early as possible. He'd skipped his usual work-out session to track down Anders, but he hadn't managed to find him until lunch break, in the cafeteria.

He didn't even go and get a tray, but just walked over to Anders' table and sat opposite him, hands on his thighs, trying not to let his nerves show. It wasn't easy, because he was almost all nerves.

"I think we need to talk."

"Suddenly the whole school wants to talk to me. How lucky am I?" Grumbled the Kiwi, barely looking up at the other boy. He was fucking sick of being treated like the bogeyman.

Simon frowned as a closer look at the other boy let him see how banged up he seemed. "What happened to you?"

"I walked into a door." Anders replied sarcastically.

Simon opened his mouth to answer something, then closed it again, because it wasn't what he was here for. "You did that to Nathan, didn't you? Made him think he was in love with me?"

"I can't make anyone do anything. I open a door, it's entirely their choice if they walk through it or not." Anders informed him, all but reciting bits of old arguements with his older brother as he picked at his food. Chewing wasn't easy of fun for him right now.

"But you can make it stop," Simon went on, not about to stop, because that had been a yes. He couldn't stop and think about the fact that this was, according to Anders, something that was inside Nathan. A door he'd decided to go through. He didn't even know if that was true of Anders' power; right now, he was just glad that he had got it right, and that it was Anders' doing.

"I could do a lot of things." Was commented mildly with a small shrug followed by a barely suppressed wince.

"Will you?" Simon asked, trying again not to let his desperate eagerness show. "I know he was a twat to you about those photographs. It's not personal. He's a twat to everybody, he doesn't realise."

"Oh no, he knew exactly what he was doing." Anders corrected as he pushed the pasta peices around his plate.

"You don't know him," Simon pointed out, temporarily finding his backbone, because it was about Nathan more than it was about him. "Will you make it stop? He's out of control."

"You're not enjoying your very own little love sick puppy?" And there was perhaps a hint of a smirk in there.

There was, however, no hint of humour in Simon as he genuinely answered, "No, I'm not."

"It'll wear off eventually. Probably. It almost always does." Was shrugged back. Anders really wasn't interested right now, his little joke of Nathan hadn't been enough to distract him from how shit everything else was getting.

Simon remained quiet for a moment, then softly but determinedly said, "You're responsible."

"Usually I'm being told I'm irresponsible. Still, makes a change I suppose." Could this kid seriously not see the lack of fucks he gave about his little friend? Anders had a lot bigger problems on his plate.

"If I bring him to you, will you make it stop?" Simon came right out and asked, wide eyes staring intently at Anders.

"Why? Why should I?" Anders asked back as he finally looked up again at the other boy.

Simon frowned, then asked, "Why not? You'd only have to talk to him, right?" A pause, and, "I don't think you want this getting back to the headmasters. It's already all over the journals." It wasn't a threat exactly; Simon didn't trust any adults enough to bring this to them, and he wanted, desperately, to handle this himself. But Anders didn't need to know that.

"I'm already being punished by them and look at me. Think you can do anything that hasn't already been done to me this week?" Why should he help anyone? No one helped him.

"I thought you might want to do the decent thing," Simon answered, privately wondering if the people with this sort of power were pillocks to start with, or if it was their power that made them this way.

"Who says it's the decent thing? Besides, he crossed a line, someone had to take him down a peg or two." Anders was moving his mouth as little as possible as he spoke.

"So you acted for the good of everybody?" Simon asked, not actually sounding as doubtful as he was. "What about me."

"He loves you, isn't that better than what he was like before?"

Simon did not hesitate at all as he answered, with absolute certainty, "No."

Anders tilted his head thoughtfully at him. He didn't speak at first until finally "I don't see anything in it for me to change him, if I even could."

Simon held his gaze for a few seconds, still lacking self-consciousness in a way that was only possible because it was about helping someone else, about helping Nathan, about setting things right. Finally, he asked, "Is there anything I can do to change your mind?"

He probably wouldn't have asked if it had been anybody else, and he did not look as if he enjoyed asking the question (or waiting for the answer), but it was Nathan. Nathan who had died for Simon.

"What are you offering?" Was asked back stiffly, eyes narrowed suspiciously.

"What would you take?" Simon answered with yet another question. He didn't know what the other boy might accept as compensation for setting Nathan right, and he felt helpless that he had to actually offer something. Some superhero wannabe he made.

The other boy shrugged again before an idea struck and he grinned though regretted the reflex instantly because OW.

"How about for a promise. If I need something, anything, you'll help me or do it. No time limit, not buts. How does that sound?" It was always good to have someone in his debt after all.

"As long as it doesn't hurt anyone," Simon supplied. He had read and seen enough IOU storylines to know that this wasn't a good idea, but if no one was hurt...

"Yeah, I don't think you'd be much cope as a hired thug again. You've got no worries about that." Eyes were rolled once again.

"I mean any kind of hurt," Simon replied, because he wanted to be clear on the deal they were making.

"I'm not some sort of monster, you know. I don't go around hurting people for the fun of it." Sometimes he stirred shit or pushed people in a certain direction, sure, but he never usually had malicious intent.

"You're hurting Nathan and me," Simon simply answered. Backbone; he only had it when it was about right and wrong, about something bigger than just him.

"He hurt me first." Was shot back just as simply. "But fine, I'll try to change it but it's not my fault if he wants to stay this way. It's his choice in the end, not mine."

"I'll bring him to you," Simon stated, pushing up to his feet. He had no doubt that Nathan wouldn't choose this, once he was free of suggestion.

"But I still want that debt from you. Can't do something for nothing, that way people'll just walk all over you."

"I'll bring him to you," Simon reiterated, with a nod that acknowledged the deal. He made to go, but tucked his chair back under the table first, then only went. He had only taken a few steps when he saw Nathan walk into the cafeteria, clearly looking for someone - probably him. He paused instinctively, then walked on towards him with new resolve. "Nathan."

"You are here," Nathan cried ecstatically when he saw Simon, grinning. Ah, just to hear Simon saying his name... "We're getting to know each other so well. So, lunch! What'll you have? My treat. You want the lot? I'll clear a whole table for you. Or we could try for something more private in the kitchens..."

Simon felt terrible for doing this, but... He smiled over at Nathan, tentatively, and his tone made it sound like a request between two people who were more than just friendly. "Come with me. Anders has something to say to you. Lunch can wait."

Nathan beamed back at Simon, totally gone on him, even the little signs of affection from Simon speaking volumes considering how over-starched he always was. Probably, they were going to thank Anders for getting them together, and then... "You're a filthy pervert. No wonder I love you so much," he reached to take Simon's hand for a squeeze.

Simon only just managed to avoid that hand by putting his own in Nathan's back, instead, taking him along in Anders' direction. "He's just over there."

"Cheeky," Nathan smiled, but he let Simon keep his hand to himself as he went along to see Anders.

Anders sighed inwardly as he saw them approach. Just great. Though he's never actually had to undo anything before, in theory he guessed it would be the same but in actuality he had no idea whatsoever.

Simon pulled his hand back once he was sure that Nathan was coming with him, and swallowed nervously as he led the way back to Anders. This had better work. "Here he is," he told Anders as they stopped beside his table, looking a lot more like the awkward, nervous teenager he usually was.

"Anders," Nathan piped up warmly, dropping onto the bench across from him. His eyebrows shifted once he'd got a good look at him. "Who happened to your face, man?"

"A crazy Canadian and a barmy Brazilian, that's what." Anders muttered before looking to Simon and warning "I've never actually tried this before."

Simon frowned at that piece of news, wondering what Anders could have done to anger their very own football star, and one of the three Canadians he could think of off the top of his head, but he could wonder about that later. For now, he simply nodded in acknowledgement of Anders' words, wide eyes clearly hopeful as he remained standing beside the other two.

Nathan looked from Anders to Simon, and back again. "You've never tried what?"

"How about you try being quiet for a second?" Because after the last time even the sound of the Irish cunt's voice grated on him. When he spoke again, the register had dipped. A sign that his power was coming into effect. "You're going to forget you ever thought you were in love with Simon. Ok?"

Simon frowned immediately. Even if it had stayed between the two of them and Nathan hadn't made very public journal posts about it, Simon would not have been easy with the thought of Anders erasing Nathan's memories, of this or of anything. "You can't make him forget what happened," he blurted out, working hard to overcome his self-consciousness as he added, "Just make him not love me anymore."

Nathan's face screwed up where he looked at Anders, seeming mostly confused as his mind half-heartedly tried to process what seemed impossible at the moment. But then Anders wasn't speaking, and Simon was telling him...

Nathan pulled his eyes from Anders to look at Simon, his expression both terrified and lost as he reached to grab hold of Simon's sleeve. "What?! No! Simon, why? I couldn't!"

Anders looked up at Simon with a 'See what happens when I'm interrupted?' expression.

"Oh I'm sorry, did you want to drive?" He smirked, regaining a little of his sense of humour surrounding the situation. "You'll need to calm him down now or I can't do anything."

Simon kept on frowning, but ended up turning to Nathan and crouching beside him, since there was no chair at the end of the table. "You trust me, don't you?"

Nathan was frowning softly at him, doubtful, but still starry-eyed at Simon (who made it very difficult to frown indeed, handsome thing). "You only ask people that when you want them to do something entirely sketch." It wasn't a no. Of course he trusted Simon. And he didn't trust most people.

Simon shook his head slightly, still letting Nathan cling to his sleeve. "I just want you to listen to Anders. For me?" He felt like he was taking advantage of a puppy: terribly guilty.

Nathan sighed tightly, chest all constricted, but he managed to unlatch himself from Simon's arm and even, with more difficulty, to pull his eyes away from those drowning blues to look back at Anders. "Well? Go on, then."

Still smirking just a little, Anders reached out across the table and took a hold of Nathan's forearms. Partly to stop him running if he didn't like being told not to be in love anymore. Coz sometimes the mojo thing just did not work.

"Ok, this last week? It was a crazy blip. You're not in love, you were never in love. Not with Simon." He told Nathan, just as when he started this whole mess, he was going for blunt to make it easier. Not his usual style but this wasn't a usual scenario.

The suggestion that had started this entire mess had been a very strong (obviously too strong) one. It took Anders pushing an equal amount of effort and intent into his words now to begin to un-work the last persuasion, and you could more or less watch the thing happen all across Nathan's features. A kind of plain disbelief, first, that slackened with bafflement, to sink like a large stone slowly descending into his gut, which could very well have been a kind of nauseated heartbreak.

There was a damp sheen to Nathan's hazel eyes when he finally narrowed them somewhat at Anders, looking more sober and less pleased than he'd been through this whole affair. "...Say you're sorry to him," he told Anders in a low, strangely snappish tone.

Simon watched Nathan's face with trepidation as Anders spoke, and relief washed through him at the first signs that this was working. It was only to be replaced with confusion at Nathan's words to Anders - him, as in Simon? He wasn't the injured party, here.

Anders blinked twice, actually kind of startled that he'd managed to reverse it at all but even more so at the demand. "Excuse me?"

"Whatever I did or didn't deserve, he only ever tried to fix things, and a hell of a time he's had of it, too, all because of your stupid idea. If you've any kind of decent left in you, you're going to admit you did him wrong." Nathan's forehead was furrowed deeply at Anders, but he hadn't moved or changed expression otherwise.

"I'm - I'm fine," Simon assured them both as he stood back up, looking between one boy and the other and feeling increasingly self-conscious. None of this was supposed to be about him, and now it was resolved.

"You have a nerve to talk about decency? That's rich!" Anders snorted back. Fuck, he hated that prick.

There was only half a beat between the derisive snort and the almost casually immediate, snake-quick motion of Nathan's hand. Just like that, he snatched the fork Anders had been eating his pasta with, and whipped his forearm down to drive the prongs down into the meat of Anders' hand. One thing he'd say for the posh cafeteria - they used good flatware. "I'm so done with listening to you," he said in a tired tone, already shifting to get up and leave.

Though Anders let out a groan of pain, he quickly bit his lip to muffle it as much as possible. He didn't want any of the others to notice what had happened, it's probably start another fucking free for all with a round of Kick-The-Kiwi.

Since he couldn't leave it there after all, he reached for the fork and pulled it out. It didn't come cleanly and fucking FUCKING FUCK. After the week he'd had, he wasn't sure how he was still managing to feel fresh pain.

Simon watched the fork bite into Anders' hand with eyes wide with surprise. Before he knew it, Nathan was leaving, and Anders had pulled the fork out. "I... I'm sorry about that," he managed, as if he'd just run into Anders around the corner or something equally benign, by opposition to watch his friend drive a fork into his hand. Still, he turned to go after Nathan, quickly, before Anders decided to take his revenge out of him.

Simon didn't fancy falling in love with Nathan any more than the other way around.

Nathan didn't wait up for Simon, if he expected to be followed. He didn't look back at Anders or the rest of the lunchroom. He just kept walking, heading directly outside and lighting up a cigarette immediately, as soon as he could burn the tip from his lighter and suck the ember going.

Simon stopped jogging once he realised that Nathan had stopped outside, hunch of his shoulders telling him exactly what he was doing even before the angle allowed him to see the cigarette he had just lit up. The door opened and closed as he walked out, and stopped beside Nathan, giving him a few seconds before he asked, concern evident in his voice, "Are you alright?"

Nathan didn't say anything for a few moments, needing the cigarette to start working on him first, to dry out his eyes and loosen his throat enough so he could think up words. "Haven't you had enough of me for a good long while?" He didn't look at Simon, as he eased himself down to sit on the steps. He felt sort of woozy, disoriented.

"It wasn't your fault," Simon said quietly, because maybe Nathan could use hearing it. Simon had no doubt about it anyway, and he wasn't saying it out loud to try and convince himself. He had had no doubt even before Nathan had told Anders to apologise to him, of all people. "But I'll go, if you want," he added, awkwardly standing beside his now sitting friend. Because it would make a lot of sense for Nathan to have had enough of Simon for a good long while.

"I still did some...really, really messed up shit," Nathan sucked another deep drag from his cigarette. It was too surreal. He remembered how it had all happened, how he had thought, how he had felt... He knew those feelings hadn't really been his. But he felt the space where they used to be, like they'd been removed, and being able to look back on them now made him feel sick. Oh, other emotions would probably come up the longer he had to go over it - embarrassment, guilt, most likely - but he was too drained, too flat, too numb for all that quite yet. "If you'd rather I moved out of the room... I can do that, you know." The headmasters wouldn't even ask for a reason, would they?

Since Nathan was talking to him, instead of telling him to piss off, Simon sat down on the steps beside his friend, making sure to leave some space between them. It would be the worst time to crowd Nathan, and Simon wasn't naturally very tactile at all, anyway. He listened in silence, arms folded over his bent knees, chin resting on them. "No," he said, straightening up just enough to shake his head slightly. "Not unless you want to." He paused, pursing his lips as he hesitated. "I never thought it was you."

"Didn't you?" He knew Simon had got suspicious early on, but if he'd been convinced of himself, who was to say? He watched a bit of his ash drop off onto the concrete. "...Why not?"

"You wouldn't be in love with me," Simon answered with a small, one-shouldered shrug, looking ahead instead of at Nathan. "And it wouldn't have been your kind of prank."

"I'm surprised you could tell," something wry twisted in the words. It was too weird just then, sitting this close to Simon and...not wanting him, how he had so very recently, but not being back to normal yet, either. Restless, Nathan stood. "Are we going to be okay, d'you think? Not today, you know, but... Soon, maybe?"

Simon straightened up to be able to look at Nathan more easily when he stood, but made no move to join him. If Nathan wanted to put some more distance between them, of course Simon would let him. "We're friends," he simply answered, hoping that for once, Nathan wouldn't mock him for it - although part of him hoped that he would, because the regular Nathan would.

"I know I'm a complete shit to deal with sometimes," Nathan admitted. If his own parents couldn't stand living with him... He lost track of exactly what he was going to say, or at least changed his mind about it, the words stuck in his throat until he swallowed them He eventually just shoved Simon's shoulder lightly from behind with his knee. "You're a really good friend." He started walking along the side of the building. He needed to stretch his legs by himself for a little while, take in some fresh air. But he'd be back soon enough. "Even if you are a weirdo pervert freak," he added - sounding just a bit more like himself.

These first two statements had Simon watch Nathan walking away with a frown. It was the last that made him duck his head on a small smile.