Title: Mercury Descending

Author: Zenia

Summary:  Someone finds out about the boys’ love affair.

Rating: NC-17

Series/Sequel: Yes, Part six of the “Tarnished Metal” series

Email: ZAguilera@aol.com

Disclaimer: They’re not mine, never will be.  Please don't sue. 

Feedback: Please, I’m such a feedback slut.

Warnings: Incest and sex between two men. 

Notes:  This story is situated right before the first season of S&S.  Now you know why Cecilia was so pissed at Rick in the episode “Details at 11.”  Also, I know technically mercury is not a metal but it seemed kind of appropriate so I used it.

 

Mercury Descending

By Zenia

 

There wasn’t anything he wouldn’t do for AJ.  The thought hit him, hot and bright, as he watched the kid read his paper.  The sunlight glinted off AJ’s tousled hair and he smiled suddenly.

 

He looked up at him, his mouth opening to say something about what he was reading, just like he did every morning.  But instead of mentioning about how some stupid crook got stuck in a window or how the Padres won the game yesterday, he paused, a delightful confusion coming into his eyes. “Why are you looking at me like that?”

 

“Like what?”

 

“Intense.” He put the paper down. “What is it?  Give.”

 

“Nothing.” Rick touched his fingertips to AJ’s cheek. “Just…. nothing.”

 

“Oh, nothing.  I see.” He turned his head, brushing his lips to Rick’s fingers.

 

Rick shuddered. “You are—I mean— It’s beautiful day isn’t it.”  There were times when words couldn’t possible cover what he wanted to say.

 

“Yeah it is.” AJ smiled and took Rick’s hand in his, squeezing it gently.

 

He understood.  That’s what made AJ so special.  He could understand these things without being told with words.  All Rick had to do was touch him, but not even that, because a look could tell AJ everything he need to know and more.

 

“I want to kiss you,” he said, whispering the words.

 

AJ laughed. “I suppose you could lay one on me here, but what would the neighbors think?”

 

“Oh, they’d probably think you’re one lucky guy to get a chance to kiss me.”

 

“I’m a lucky guy?” He raised his eyebrows. “I think you have that backward Rick.”

 

“Let’s go inside.” Rick nodded toward the house.

 

“You’re insatiable.”

 

“I wanna kiss you, AJ, not have sex with you.”

 

“Then I really must be losing my touch.” He stood up. “Well come on, let’s go so I can give you that kiss.”

 

Rick followed him inside, closing the door behind him.  He turned, grabbed AJ by the hair, and tilted his head back.

 

“You keep doing that and I’ll start losing hair.”

 

He rolled his eyes and pressed his lips to AJ’s.

 

AJ automatically opened his mouth, snaking his tongue out to brush it against Rick’s.

 

He pulled back. “Has anyone ever told you that you’re easy?”

 

“Are you complaining?”

 

“Nope.” Rick guided him to the couch and shoved him down.

 

“The ladies must really love these smooth moves of yours.” AJ looked up at him. “I’m surprised that you don’t have women crawling all over you.”

 

“Who says I don’t?  I hide them under the bed when you come by.  They know how jealous you get.” He jammed his leg between AJ’s knee and the back of the couch.  After a moment’s thought he shoved the other between his brother’s thighs.

 

With a single-minded intensity he began working on the buttons of AJ’s shirt.

 

“We should really do this in bed.”

 

“Will you be quiet?  You’re distracting me.” He bent his head, placing a kiss on AJ’s nipple.

 

“Sorry,” he replied, his voice soft and breathless.

 

Rick looked up at AJ’s face.  He always managed to look slightly dazed before they slept together.  It made Rick wonder if he had that same expression on his face.

 

He popped the button of AJ’s pants and pulled down the zipper.  He did the same to his jeans and opened his shirt.  Then Rick lowered himself onto his brother, enjoying the feel of his smooth chest.

 

AJ slipped his hands around Rick and under the waistband of his jeans. “So much for just a kiss.”

 

Rick chuckled and kissed his temple. “You’re a bad influence.”

 

“I take after my big brother.”

 

Rick pressed his thigh against AJ’s crotch. 

 

AJ moaned, one hand rubbing the small of Rick’s back, the other hand sliding around to grasp him.

 

“Lift up.” He pushed AJ’s pants down around his knees.

 

That’s when Rick heard the sound of the doorknob being jiggled.  For one frantic second they both froze.  Then Rick went into action trying to roll away.  Unfortunately AJ still had his hands down his pants.  Rick fell with a painful thud onto his back, his brother falling on top of him.

 

Their mother had come striding in just as confidently as she always had.  But when she saw them on the floor she stopped.  She stood very still, looking down at them, her purse dropping to the floor.

 

Rick wondered what her reaction would be if he shouted ‘April Fools.’  He knew it wouldn’t work, seeing as how it was August.  But for one desperate moment it was the only thought in his mind.

 

She looked from AJ to him, her eyes filling with horror.

 

AJ scrambled to his feet, in his hurry ramming his elbow into Rick’s stomach.  Rick watched him pull up his pants and fumbled with the buttons of his shirt. “Mom, hi.”

 

Rick began to laugh, hysterical, half-sobbing guffaws.  He couldn’t believe that the first words out of AJ’s mouth could be something as normal as ‘hi.’  He clapped a hand over his mouth.

 

“No, oh no!” She shook her head slowly. “Tell I’m dreaming.  Tell me it’s not what I think it is.”

 

“What—” AJ swallowed. “What do you think it is?”

 

“Don’t you dare play that game with me AJ Simon!” She turned furious eyes at Rick. “Are you?  Are you, damn it!”

 

Rick dropped the hand from his mouth. “Yes.”

 

“My God!  How could you?  What the hell are you thinking?  Are you thinking?  You’re brothers.” She walked over to him. “Get up Rick, you look like an idiot sprawled like that.”

 

“Mom—” AJ reached for her but she pulled away.

 

“Don’t you dare speak to me.”

 

AJ looked like he had been slapped.

 

Rick got slowly to his feet and zipped his jeans.

 

She looked into Rick’s eyes and did slap him. “He’s your baby brother.  You’re supposed to take care of him, not… not do what you’re doing.”

 

“Mom, Rick and I—”

 

“I said not to speak to me.  What the hell is wrong with the two of you?  Do you realize how sick, how perverted, how…”

 

Each word flayed Rick’s nerves until he felt numb.  AJ actually flinched, looking like he was going to cry.

 

“How could you do this to me?  How could you do this to yourselves?  You have to stop this, you have to stop this now.” Then she began to cry. “I don’t know who the two of you are, but you aren’t my sons.”

 

“Mom.” AJ was clenching his jaw, his eyes haunted.

 

“Just looking at you makes me sick.” She grabbed her purse and with one last disgusted look, walked out.

 

“You’d think that after last time we’d—we—” Rick pressed his lips together.

 

“What are we going to do Rick?” AJ sat down and looked at the floor in front of him.

 

“I don’t know Kid, I don’t know.” God he needed an aspirin.

 

“I think you do know but you don’t want to say it.”

 

“Maybe I should go,” he whispered.

 

AJ stood and grabbed Rick by the shoulders. “No, stay.  Stay.  We’ll go upstairs and make love, we’ll be happy for a while.  Then afterwards we’ll be able to say the things we need to say and do things we need to do.”

 

 

Later, afterwards, AJ held him close, his ear pressed to Rick’s chest. “We thought we lived in a vacuum.”

 

“What?” Rick ran his fingers through AJ’s hair.

 

“We thought that nothing could touch us.  We should have realized that someone was bound to find out.  We should have known that Mom would find out.” AJ’s lips pressed against his chest. “We have to stop don’t we?”

 

“No, we could go on but we’d never be able to see Mom anymore.”

 

“I don’t think I can do that.” AJ rolled away.

 

“I know.”

 

“So we had—It was—”

 

“Yeah.” He turned on his side and touched AJ above his heart. “I want you to let me handle this AJ.  I want you let me talk to Mom.”

 

“What are you going to do Rick, tell her you seduced me, that you corrupted me?”

 

“Better her angry at me than the both of us.  And it’s true isn’t it?  I mean, I kissed you first.”

 

“That’s a bunch of bull.  I wasn’t some sixteen year old virgin who’d never been touched before.” He grabbed Rick’s fingers in a crushing grip.

 

“Let me do this AJ.  Please.”  Rick saw the look on his face, the sadness mixed with fear, and he knew that AJ would let him take the blame.  Not because he believed it but because he knew that it would be the only chance to win back something of their mother’s affection.

 

“I’m in love with you.  I will always be in love with you.”

 

“And I’m in love with you.  That will never change.” Rick pulled his fingers away. “I’m going to my boat.”

 

“Stay with me.”

 

“I have to go.  If I don’t, I won’t wanna ever leave.” He smiled. “Every will be okay AJ, I promise.”

 

Early the next morning Rick knocked on his mother’s door.  He shifted from one foot to another as he waited for the door to open.

 

“What are you doing here?”

 

He shrugged. “I want to talk.  I deserve that much, don’t I?”

 

“Is that what you think?”

 

“We could do this right here but I don’t think you want your neighbors knowing.”

 

“Come inside.” She shut the door behind her. “Well?”

 

“It’s over.  That’s what you wanted right, for it to be over?”

 

“It shouldn’t have even begun.” She made her way to the living room, her steps quick and concise.

 

“Maybe not, but it did and nothing you do or say is gonna change that.”

She spun around to look at him. “Can you tell me when?”

 

“When we were in Florida.”

 

“Oh God, two years?” She sat down on the couch.

 

“It was all my fault, I seduced him.  But you already came to that conclusion, didn’t you?  I—I got him drunk one night…. I convinced him it was okay…. I….” He trailed off, his throat closing against the words.

 

Cecilia was silent.

 

“I’ve been in love with AJ for a very long time.”

 

“No, don’t you dare call what you feel love.  Lust, twisted desire, animalistic, degrading…. But don’t you dare dirty love that way.

 

Rick cleared his throat. “Well whatever you want to call it, it’s done.”

 

“I don’t believe you.”

 

“Why would I lie?  We know that we’ll lose you if we don’t end it.  When Dad died there was just the three of us: you, AJ, and me.  We were all we had and we were all we needed.  AJ and I don’t want that to change.  Do you?” 

 

“Do you expect me to forgive you?  Am I supposed to forget?”

 

“No.  Mom, you not being in my life would hurt me.  It would leave something empty inside of me but I’d survive because that’s how I am.  I love you Mom, but I can be alone if I need to.  It’s not the same with AJ; you’d destroy him.  Maybe it’s ‘cause he was only five when we lost Dad.  If you disown us you will destroy that part of him that makes him compassionate, innocent, human.  Can you do that to him?  Can you do that to your golden boy?”

 

She shook her head.

 

“Blame me if you have to blame anyone.  Mom don’t—don’t hate him.  Hate me.  I corrupted him, I did this to him.”

 

The look she gave Rick said she knew he was lying.  But he could see that she wanted to believe.  Wasn’t it better to believe that the troublemaker, the problem child, was to blame?  If what he said was true then she could forgive AJ right off and maybe work on forgiving him.  Eventually. 

 

It was all wrapped up in a neat little package for her.

 

“Why Rick?  Why?”

 

“Don’t ask, ‘cause I’m not gonna give you an answer that’ll make you happy.  Don’t do this to him Mom.”

 

She sat thinking for a while then she said, “I want you to leave Rick.  Just get into your truck and drive away from here.  Go to Mexico or back to Florida.”

 

He laughed. “I’ll do anything but that.  I can’t Mom, I can’t leave him.  Maybe he doesn’t need me as a—a lover but he needs me as a friend, a partner, a brother.”

 

“You’ve left before.”

 

“It ain’t the same and you know it.   What you’re asking me to do is never come back.” He fell to his knees in front of her.  His voice was choked with tears. “I swear I’ll never touch him.  Don’t make me go away Mom.  Don’t make me choose between him miserable and him happy.  He can’t live without you and I can’t live without him.  I’m begging you…. Please.”

 

“Damn you, damn you both to hell.” She cupped his face in her hands.  “If I ever find out you’ve touched him… If I ever—”

 

“You won’t, I swear you won’t.”

 

She nodded. 

 

Rick could see something very close to hate in her eyes and behind that, such pain, such love.  Someplace deep inside she must have known that he was sacrificing himself for his brother and she accepted it. 

 

Rick had told himself that he would do anything for AJ, and now he knew it was true.

 

 

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