put your dukes up

Contrary to popular belief, I am not a puppy. Chain smoker, barfly, occasional handyman when the other guy isn't available, full-time coffee drinker, undisputed champion of Cards Against Humanity. Living that motorcycle club life. Name's Duke.

[dukey--boy-blog]

|Duke & Tony| Calling All Cars

[tony-graham]

 Tony took down whole lungfuls of air, tried to clear his mind of all it’s racing thoughts and bring himself back to the present. It was hard, though, when he could still taste Duke on his tongue, when there were warm traces of Duke’s touch on him. Duke’s suggestion brought an eager gleam to Tony’s eyes, and the younger wolf perked up immediately, head tilting back up, shoulders straightening.

 "Okay,“ He said quickly, nodding, "I like that.”

 He scooted himself back another few inches until he could lean back against the cabinets, knees still drawn up to his chest.

 "You finish the sink,“ He said, "And I'll sit right here and not get up for awhile.”

 As far as subtlety went it was about as good as a brick through a windshield, but Tony wasn’t trying to hide anything from Duke. They’d played that game before, and made each other miserable for it.

[dukey--boy-blog]

Duke didn’t exactly expect Tony to reject the idea, but when Tony’s affirmation came quick and eager, a thrill of excitement shot through Duke. He flashed a grin, eyes lingering as the younger wolf shifted closer to the cabinets, and he couldn’t help but laugh at the other’s words. But as he raked his gaze over Tony, allowing himself the privilege of mental images he’d been blocking since that day in his trailer, a thick little sound of contemplation stirred in his throat. 

He needed to get Tony alone. It wasn’t just a want anymore -- it almost felt like those scenes in the movies where a bomb is ticking and the character has to disable it or else Really Bad Things™ will happen. And time was counting down. 

“I dunno. If you get up and let me get a good look at ya, might be even more of an incentive for me,” he joked with a teasing glint in his eye. But he didn’t need any more incentive, god knew. He gathered up the nuts he’d dropped, ducking back under the sink, and he had those bitches back where they belonged in seconds flat -- normal werewolves probably didn’t use their heightened agility for stuff like this, but normal werewolves didn’t have someone like Anthony Graham waiting on them. Duke had reached a point where he’d do anything just to continue being in his packmate’s presence.

He replaced all of the odds and ends his mother kept under the sink, shimmying out and shutting the cabinet doors maybe a little too abruptly. Cleaning up was a breeze, and just as he tossed Tony a look, he playfully said, “Last one to their bike is a rotten egg.” 

[dukey--boy-blog]

|Duke & Tony| Calling All Cars

[tony-graham]

 Tony didn’t need Duke’s hold to stay close. There was nothing that could have pulled him away from Duke then, not with Duke’s tongue in his mouth, not with Tony finally getting to taste him like this. The hand on Duke’s hip flexed, Tony’s grip tightening, twisting up the material of Duke’s shirt, the hot skin of his palm sliding up to press against the inch of Duke’s exposed skin.

 Duke broke the kiss, but Tony followed, trying to steal another. The press of Duke’s forehead against his made Tony blink his eyes open, realizing for the first time that his breath had gone a little heavy. He panted through an open mouth, licking out over an already slick lower lip. He shifted his grip on Duke’s hip again, and considered telling Duke that he really didn’t give a fuck, that he wanted Duke anyways.

 Duke, though, bless him, had a point. Tony sat back on the ground hard and heaved a sigh. He brought his knees up and hung his arms over them, giving a short nod.

 “Yeah. Good point. You uhm. I uh.” And he found himself asking the question a hundred times in his head, unable to get the words out of his mouth, somehow. My place or yours my place or yours. “I should go then, right?”

[dukey--boy-blog]

He was sweet, so sweet. His taste lingered on Duke’s lips, his scent completely enveloped him like a tight embrace, and all Duke wanted to do was get more of him. He shuddered a little as Tony’s hand was suddenly on his bare skin, thrills shooting through Duke’s entire body and straight to his jeans. And despite how much he wanted to be touched more, it was exactly that that helped level his head. 

He smiled a little as he watched Tony seem to come back into himself, and he couldn’t help but feel a bit smug. Had Tony always had it this bad for him? Duke had, at one point, almost thought it was one-sided, that he’d been the only one to feel the connection between them. But seeing Tony now, his lips pink and glistening, his skin flushed very slightly, made Duke realize differently. 

Letting his hand fall away from Tony’s neck, he  studied the other man as he relaxed back. His smile grew some at Tony’s words, finding his uncertainty endearing, and he glanced around the kitchen, licking his lips. He lifted one of his shoulders in a casual shrug, then nodded towards the sink and said, “I just gotta screw the rest of these things back on and I’m done. Was gonna head home.... We could hang out.” 

[dukey--boy-blog]

|Duke & Tony| Calling All Cars

[tony-graham]

 Tony didn’t give himself time to second guess it, to try and dig deep for his real motives. He wanted to kiss Duke, the reasons didn’t matter. They’d danced around the damn thing for long enough, anyways.

 Duke started slow, and it was Tony that tried pressing harder. One hand was pressed to the kitchen floor, supporting himself as he leaned over Duke to kiss him. The other hand hovered, anxious, over Duke’s body, Tony eager to touch, but not wanting to come across as too eager, not when Duke was still holding back.

 And then, when desperation was ready to sink it’s claws in deep, Tony felt the weight of Duke’s hand on the back of his head. Tony opened into the kiss, and his hovering hand finally found purchase, resting on Duke’s hip, palm against the leather of his belt, fingertips stretched out over the material of his shirt. Duke was warm against him, underneath him, and Tony only wanted to sink in closer, to feel as much of Duke against him as he could. The kiss had wiped any other thoughts from his mind, including their current location.

[dukey--boy-blog]

Tony’s hand on his hip was a welcome weight, fiery hot even through Duke’s clothes -- it made Duke’s skin tingle. And as Tony’s mouth opened, Duke needed no further encouragement from the younger man. He slid his tongue past Tony’s lips, exploring his mouth boldly, the way he’d wanted to for so long. His hand slipped from Tony’s head to the back of his neck, cupping it gently but holding him in place, like he was worried Tony might pull away. 

A low, pleased sound started to well in Duke’s throat, and it was this sound alone that reminded him where they were and what they were doing. He already wanted to do so many things with Tony, to Tony, and if they kept at this, he’d be trying to do said things with him while his poor mother listened on in the other room.

He broke the kiss, breathing a little heavily, and he pressed his forehead against Tony’s. “If I don’t stop now, there’ll be no stoppin’ me, Graham Cracker,” he murmured with a sheepish little laugh. He pressed a quick kiss to the corner of Tony’s mouth and pulled back so he could look into his eyes, and he teased, “And I doubt you want Ma walkin’ in on us, yeah?” 

[dukey--boy-blog]

|Duke & Tony| Calling All Cars

[tony-graham]

 Tony gave another little hum for a response, feeling content for a moment with the conversation tapering off. Hopefully to shift into something else. Being this close to Duke again after so long apart was almost overwhelming. He wanted Duke to touch him back, wanted to feel those wide hands on him, but Duke didn’t reach for him.

 He felt the nuzzle though, and turned into it. Tony caught his lower lip between his teeth as Duke spoke, holding back what felt like a whine trying to rise out of his throat. Jesus, that’s what he wanted, that’s all he’d ever wanted. To know Duke was thinking about him, because God knew Tony spent enough time thinking about Duke. And he had the scribbles to prove it, too, the harried lines, quick thought scrawled out on the back of bar napkins, little sections of words for him to expand upon, or leave as they were. He just had to hope Duke would never find them.

 He pulled back a little when Duke finished speaking, just enough to angle his head differently, to turn in, and this time when he made contact, it was to press his mouth against Duke’s, to give in and finally kiss him like he’d been wanting to do for so long now.

[dukey--boy-blog]

It almost felt surreal to be there like that -- especially after every nasty word Duke had hurled Tony’s way. That they were sharing this moment of solace in the kitchen Duke had grown up in, awash with warm yellows that poured in through the windows and painted it up like an old photograph. In a way, it seemed fitting -- like it was where they both belonged somehow. Duke had avoided his mother’s house like the plague since he’d returned to Boston, but now he found himself not wanting to leave. At least, not as long as Tony was there. 

As Tony turned his head, Duke knew what was coming. Time slowed and he held his breath without realizing it, and there was a part of him that felt like he needed to stop Tony. Did Tony actually want to do this or did he feel like he had to for whatever reason? Would Duke be taking advantage of him if he went through with it? After what Tony had said, Duke didn’t think so, but things could change, right? 

But then Tony’s lips were against his and it was all that Duke had wanted for what felt like ages. Duke couldn’t think anymore -- all he could do was react. Slanting his mouth against Tony’s he kissed him softly at first, testing it, waiting for Tony to change his mind and pull away. His taste was slightly familiar, the slightest trace Duke had gotten the night they’d run into each other at the carnival -- a night that felt like it’d happened years earlier -- and Duke wanted more. One of his hands came up to the back of Tony’s head, fingers threading into the short dark hair, and he kissed Tony deeper. 

[dukey--boy-blog]

|Duke & Tony| Calling All Cars

[tony-graham]

 It took him a minute, but Duke did as Tony asked of him, even if he didn’t look excited about it. But it was enough. Apologetic and shy weren’t two things Tony normally saw on Duke, and while he appreciated the novelty of it all, he felt done with it. He didn’t want to fight with Duke anymore, didn’t want to listen for him and never hear anything, didn’t want to wait and be left waiting anymore.

 “You can stop being a dumbass, for one.” Tony started, and just because he wanted them to be over this didn’t mean he was going to let Duke off easy. “I know that might be hard for you but…”

 He sighed, and shifted a little closer. With his head dropped down, he leaned in to rest his forehead on Duke’s shoulder. He took in a deep breath, Duke’s scent thick on the air, close and overpowering and god, Tony had missed it.

 “Just… go back to the part where you want it enough.” And then, carefully. “You mean me, right?”

[dukey--boy-blog]

Duke snorted and nodded -- he couldn’t exactly protest against that. The more he talked, the more he only proved that his first instinct was to do just that: be a dumbass. And though it sounded like a promise, the idea of which daunted him and made him worry that it was just something he’d end up breaking, he said, “I’ll stop.” 

As Tony dropped his head so that his forehead pressed against Duke’s shoulder, Duke shifted very slightly as though he could get closer. This was the sort of closeness he’d craved for so long, and it took everything in Duke not to wrap an arm around Tony and pull him against him. His fingers itched to slide into Tony’s hair.

Instead, he just leaned his head in and nuzzled it against Tony’s. He didn’t respond right away to Tony’s words, considering them for a moment. Honesty but without the normal dumbass attitude -- he could do that. “Yeah,” he said. “Not very good at making that much clear, but you’re all I can think about. Even hidin’ out here, you’re the only thing on my mind.” 

[dukey--boy-blog]

|Duke & Tony| Calling All Cars

[tony-graham]

 Tony had just reached to brace a hand on the floor, ready to push himself back to his feet when he felt Duke’s hand on his. The touch was warm, heavy, grounding, everything Tony wanted from Duke’s contact. He nodded, and let out a heavy breath. He sank down onto the floor, parking his ass on the linoleum and letting his hands fall at his sides.

 He watched Duke work, drank in every quick glance he was given, but it wasn’t enough. He heard Duke’s words, and god, he was just starting to get the hang of apologizing, wasn’t he? Tony wondered if he should feel a little proud of that, but right then he didn’t know how many other emotions he had room for. He felt fit to burst, chock full of worry, and guilt, shame, and that anger was still there, blanketing the hurt that Duke had first left him with.

 Tony moved to his knees, dragged himself closer to Duke and reached out, grabbing a handful of the front of Duke’s shirt and tugging, gently, but wanting to other wolf out from under the sink.

 “Get out here.” He said, and he tried to sound demanding, but it only came out weary. Was it wrong of him to feel exhausted? To be bone-tired of all this shit between them?

[dukey--boy-blog]

Duke flinched a little as Tony’s fingers tightened in his shirt, and he even dropped the last slip nut he’d been securing. He wanted to finish what he was doing, but he wasn’t sure if it was because he wanted to get the job done or if he just wanted to hide from Tony for as long as he could. But Tony’s voice, the way it sounded drained and unlike the way it usually did, felt like something pushing its way into his chest. 

He sighed a little, forgetting the task at hand, and he pulled himself out from under the sink, almost clumsy in his sheepishness. He sat up, his head ducked a little, and after a long moment, he slowly raised his gaze to meet his packmate’s. Tony looked just like his voice had sounded -- drawn and worn out, a shell of his normally teasing, playful self. And it was because of Duke, wasn’t it?

He smiled a little -- an apologetic, embarrassed smile. “I don’t know how I can make it up to you.” Softly, like he were confiding some big secret, he added, “Ma, she acts like it’ll be easy, like all I gotta do is want it enough, and I do. But this is new to me. All of this.”

[dukey--boy-blog]

|Duke & Tony| Calling All Cars

[tony-graham]

Tony gave a short little nod, a noncommittal hum at Duke’s response. Getting this close was a mistake, he realized belatedly, Duke was so close that it wouldn’t take more than the barest effort to reach out and touch him, and Tony felt the pull so strong in his fingertips that he curled them tight and dug them into his palms.

“You can’t believe it?” He asked, and gave a short laugh. “You shoulda seen my face. I had no idea what was happening.”

It wasn’t much of an exaggeration. Hearing from Duke’s mother had definitely thrown him for a loop, and Tony had just tried not to ask any stupid questions. Has he said anything about me? What has he said? Does he miss me like I miss him? He’d managed to get through the conversation without embarrassing himself, though, or so he hoped. Now he’d just have to repeat the process.

Worry hit him then, like a solid punch to the gut, and he was glad his hands were already clenched to fists. It would help to hide the shaking, he thought. He leaned back a little, readied himself to get to his feet.

“Should I go?” He asked, and was glad that at least his voice sounded steady, for the most part, even when it seemed his chest had seized up. “You didn’t want to see me, did you?”

[dukey--boy-blog]

Duke laughed as well, imagining how that must have gone. It was actually a little embarrassing when he really thought about it -- his mommy trying to fix his relationships -- but here in her house, he felt protected. Who needed to know that he went crying to her when he had a problem? He doubted Tony would spread that sort of information around, no matter how pissed Duke made him. 

He finished cleaning out the trap and replaced it, but before he could make a move to continue, he could sense Tony’s anxiety spiking. Just as Tony spoke, Duke reached for him, without thinking, and he grabbed him gently by the wrist. “Stay.” And he added softly, his thumb tracing a tiny circle against the warm skin, “I always want to see you.” 

And wow, that was a little embarrassing too. He cleared his throat a little, awkward, and he jumped to his feet to turn on the tap and see if he’d fixed the issue. “I, uh, I’m sorry,” he said, and he shook his head. The water drained the way it should, so he smacked off the faucet and dropped to the floor again, passing the younger wolf a quick glance. “All I know how to do is dig myself into a deeper hole, seems like,” he said with a snort, disappearing back under the sink to replace and tighten the nuts. “But I mean it -- I’m sorry for all the shit I said to you.” And maybe it was easier to say it like this when he wasn’t looking at Tony, or maybe it’d gotten easier to say simply because he meant it so much. 

[dukey--boy-blog]

|Duke & Tony| Calling All Cars

[tony-graham]

Tony had done a lot of stupid things in his life, pre-bite, and post. As such, he’d had a lot of guilt-heavy conversations with his mother, done a lot of head hanging, a lot of apologizing. He knew that tone, the one that said he’d fucked up. I’m not angry, I’m disappointed. So when he heard that familiar tone on the other end of the phone one warm afternoon, he felt that particular rush of shame that only a mom could inflict upon him.

It was probably uneccessary, Tony wasn’t the one who’d done the majority of the fucking up (so he liked to tell himself), and honestly, she was nicer to him than she could have been. Talk, was all she asked of him, show up, was all she required. Tony couldn’t have said no if he wanted to. He felt like a child being chastised for fighting with a classmate, but honestly, Tony was a little grateful to be given the chance. He hadn’t seen Duke since the fight, and each day and night gone by had made him bitterly regret his words. He’d said get out, but he hadn’t mean for good. It was just like Duke, though, wasn’t it, to run again? To take Tony’s anger as some twisted form of permission.

Duke’s bike was out front, chrome reflecting the bright sunlight, and as he walked by, Tony let a hand glance over the hot metal of the tank as he approached the house. Duke’s mother let him in, and god, this was weird. Even with the invite, Tony didn’t feel like he should be here. These were the things Duke worked so hard to protect, to keep quiet about, and here was Tony, barging in without asking again.

She waved him through, and he thanked her, softly, offering a smile, praying for the first time in his life that he could be the sort of person that a mother would like. Duke was under the sink when Tony found him, but Tony wasn’t stupid, Duke knew he was there. He didn’t say anything at first, didn’t know where to start. After a moment, though, he stepped over, knelt down beside Duke’s outstretched legs and looked up into the innards of the underside of the sink.

“Need a hand?”

[dukey--boy-blog]

The moment Tony entered the kitchen, his scent was everywhere. His heartbeat was steady and regular, and everything about the way he sounded and smelled and even tasted on the air was a distraction. Duke just lay there stupidly, pliers attached to one of the slip nuts and his other hand braced on the pipes. He should speak, shouldn’t he? What was he supposed to say? Should he have acted like everything was normal? 

And then Tony was moving closer, his nearness nearly making Duke’s different senses sing, and Duke forced himself to start unscrewing the nuts. It was Tony who broke the silence. Duke hesitated. The sound of the other’s voice -- after so much time had passed between now and their most recent argument -- felt like electricity down Duke’s spine.

He cleared his throat and said, “It’s nothing really -- just a clog.” He finished with the last of the nuts and shifted to come out from his hiding space -- as much as he would have liked to stay, there was no reason for him to. “Was leaky a few months ago and I fixed it, but apparently this thing just likes givin’ Ma hell.”

He glanced at Tony. It hurt, but he didn’t regret it. He opened his mouth to joke about how there were no bruises or open wounds this time, before he realized yeah, that probably wasn’t a good opener. Instead, as he leaned in to remove the P-trap and clean it, he said, “Can’t believe she called you.” And he didn’t bother keeping his tone low -- his mother would hear him anyway, there was no point in trying to hide it. 

[dukey--boy-blog]

|Duke & Tony| Calling All Cars

It wasn’t very glamorous, hiding out at his mother’s after what had gone down, but he knew she would never complain. And not just because he was slowly making his way through the old house to fix the problems that plagued it. When he’d come clean to her, when he’d confided in her about Tony and all of the emotions he always tried his best to hide, her satisfaction had been palpable. How long had she been waiting for him to come to her like this? For him to actually treat her like a mom? Of course, she’d had nothing but sharp words for him at first -- telling him it was his own fault, that he was always getting himself into messes like this, that Rollo never made mistakes like he did and if he did, he at least knew how to fix them before they got bad -- but after the initial tongue-lashing, she’d fed him and babied him like he was a child all over again, and had told him to stay as long as he liked. 

She lived closer to the heart of the city than he did, and there was always someone from the pack coming by to visit -- staying there almost made Duke feel closer to it all. It was weird how much he enjoyed it, considering he’d come to her for an escape. His first thought hadn’t been to go to her, of course. His first thought had been to pack a bag and take a trip out of town, because that was his answer to everything -- a long stretch of road, wind in his hair, nothing but his bike to keep his company. But he’d made a promise that he wouldn’t leave again, hadn’t he? He didn’t know if it still meant anything, but....

He was under the kitchen sink, trying to find a reason as to why it wasn’t draining properly, when he heard his mother opening the front door. He didn’t pay it any mind at first, at least not until he ducked out from under the cabinet to grab something and caught his scent. His chest went tight, his eyes going to the backdoor -- it would be so easy to slip away undetected -- but something stopped him. Something more than just the fact that he was in the middle of fixing his mother’s sink. Something that had more to do with Tony’s words the last time they’d spoken, the words that had been replaying in Duke’s mind over and over since then. 

But just because he wasn’t going to try and make a quick getaway didn’t mean he wasn’t going to at least hide. Grabbing the slip-joint pliers, he ducked back under the sink to distract himself with the P-trap. 

[tony-graham]

 “Fuck you.” Tony spat, hot and angry, before Duke could even protest. He listened to the last of Duke’s words, expression twisted in anger. It was easier to grasp onto thatn the hurt. That pain was buried too deep, rooted in his bones, a thorough ache that he’d never be able to rend free. Anger though, flared up along his skin, reddening his cheeks.

 “So you got out and get your ass kicked so I’ll play nurse? Fuck you.” He said again. “I care about you without your face all fucked up, I worry about you enough, god damn it. Don’t think you need fucking pity to get me to pay attention to you because it’s always been you, Duke. Since the first time we saw each other in this fucking bar. Always.” He didn’t know where the words were coming from, but they poured out of his mouth unbidden, spilling out secrets Tony hadn’t even known himself, not directly. But it all fit, it slotted together perfectly like they should have, if they could both stop being stubborn assholes for two minutes. Tony, though, wasn’t ready to forgive Duke for all this. Not yet.

 “Get out.” He said, turning resolutely away from Duke, “Go home, Duke.”

[dukey--boy-blog]

Duke shook his head a little and looked away, biting his tongue hard enough to taste fresh blood. What could he say? To any of it? It was all like a broken record, wasn’t it? Duke had gone and ruined someone else. Three people in less than ten years, hollowed out and hurt, because Duke was too selfish to put their needs before his own. Was this what he’d come back to Boston for? 

“Tony,” he tried, but it was low and weary and he sounded angry, and this wasn’t what he’d wanted at all. Why couldn’t he do anything right? He ran his fingers through his hair, taking in a slow, deep breath to try and calm himself, to keep himself from arguing and digging this hole deeper. A wordless sound left his throat as Tony turned away from him, the action hurting just a little bit more than a punch might have, and he took another step back. 

“I’m -- I’m sorry,” he said. And even if Tony doubted it, at least it was there, at least he hadn’t waited as long this time around. But Tony had turned away from him, had told him to leave -- so he did. 

[were-fridadiaz]

Frida laughed and starting looking around the kitchen for what she wanted to use. The bar didn’t always have the most luxurious ingredients, but she’d make do. “Good so I get to be creative when you come around. I’ll try not to experiment too much on you. I hope it doesn’t need to come too fisticuffs, but I’m glad to have you on my side.” She winked over at Duke before she stared pulling odds and ends  from the shelves. “I’ve only ever done it with my mom, but we were locked up. So I don’t think it really counts.” Frida busied her hands hand preparing and cutting as she spoke, looking over her shoulder at Duke every once in a while. “I’d really like that.” She answered smiling widely at him. “Maybe it’ll be better for both of us.”

[dukey--boy-blog]

He grinned a little and held his arms out. “Experiment away, I’m just happy to be included.” And as she winked at him, he bumped his fist against his chest in a playful gesture that said he had her back. He watched as she fluttered around to prepare whatever idea she’d concocted, and he couldn’t help but smile -- her exuberant personality was the exact kind of personality he favored in people. With her working at the Blue Moon, he wondered if she’d ever become part of the pack -- and wondered how long he should wait until he asked her if she wanted to. The Raff weren’t like the Circle pack, they didn’t discriminate, and they welcomed any and all to their family. “It’s gonna be so different, but in a good way. All the space and freedom and the night sky above you. It might feel like too much at first, but then it’ll just feel kinda.... perfect.” His smile grew as she tossed one his way, and he nodded. “Me too.” And it was true. In fact, it almost made him look forward to the next full moon -- which was something he’d never done. 

[caleb-martell-blog]

“Oh don’t start. I really can’t handle two stubborn Lowells. I’d have to visit you mom just to get some piece and rest from it.  ” Caleb rolled his eyes noticeably at Duke’s comment. “Trust me; I’ve seen him humming along to some not so ominous tunes.” The comment had Caleb’s smile jerk downwards slightly. “What do people say about him?” He tried not to sound so concerned, even though he was. “It is not true, you know, its not.” The young wolf shook his head softly. He was not all that sure if they were talking about the same thing, but there was little else that people talked about Rollo in such instances, if not for the alleged murder of his father.

[dukey--boy-blog]

“Hey, our ma can be pretty stubborn too, she’s just better at hiding it,” Duke said with a little laugh. He pointed a finger at Caleb and added, “And the next time you catch him humming something not so ominous, promise me you’ll record it on your phone.”

The somber turn the conversation took was his fault, he knew, and he regretted it almost instantly. “I’m sure you’ve heard it all -- that he... you know. Most of ‘em have stopped since he got back, but...” He dropped his gaze, hanging his head a little sheepishly, and he nodded. He couldn’t say anything. When he looked at Rollo, actually looked at him, he knew he couldn’t have done something like that, but that didn’t stop the little voice in the back of his mind that said, ‘What if?’ It’d happened near a full moon, after all, it could have been an accident. He nodded again. “I know,” he said. 

[tony-graham]

 Tony wondered how many times this week Duke was going to leave him nearly breathless with emotion. They’d really dug into each other, been forced to face each other and themselves and even with their recent talk, and the forgiveness it had brought, it was apparent they weren’t done yet.

 Jealous. Duke was jealous, and while Tony knew that a small part of him wanted to be pleased, to feel elated and triumphant, Tony couldn’t bring any of those feelings to surface. He’d thought he’d wanted Duke’s jealousy, but now that it was laying out before him… He just felt angry.

 “Jealous of what?” He snapped, gripping the edge of the sink tightly, staring furiously at Duke, who had the nerve to look tentative.

[dukey--boy-blog]

Tony’s anger smelled and tasted sharp and sour, and it practically sparked off of him like he was a bare electrical wire. When he glared at Duke, Duke was surprisingly able to hold his gaze -- though the urge to duck his head or even bare his neck was there, somewhere, in the back of his mind. 

He snorted. “What do you think? How much more obvious can I be?” And he gave a wry bark of laughter and said, “I want you. And when I think about someone else touching you -- someone who doesn’t know you like I do, or care about you like I do -- how else am I supposed to feel?” 

He took a step back, limbs locked and heavy. “And yeah, before you say anything, I know it’s my fault that you felt like I didn’t care. I fucked up and now I’m just tryin’ to figure out how to deal with the consequences, hence the colorful fuckin’ masterpiece that is currently my face.” 

[tony-graham]

 “Well, it’s about time we found something you were good at. I was beginning to think you were completely lacking any sort of skill set.” Tony said, as though seriously considering Duke’s level of royal dickery.

 He’d gone to rinse the rag again when Duke answered his question, and for a moment Tony simply fell still. He shut the tap off, and draped the rag over the side of the sink where it dripped with water stained red.

 “…What the fuck is that supposed to mean?” Tony asked, voice low.

[dukey--boy-blog]

A surprised little laugh left Duke, but wasn’t that one of the things he liked about Tony? How easy and witty his remarks always were? He didn’t reply though, because he didn’t know what to say. Normal Duke would have hinted at his skill set being better situated in a bedroom setting, but they weren’t back to that level of banter yet. He didn’t know if they’d ever get back there. The phantom taste of cotton candy spread through his mouth before it bittered and disappeared. 

He watched Tony carefully. Held his breath without realizing it as the younger man tensed. And when Tony spoke, Duke was surprised that only half of him regretted saying anything. He dropped his gaze and took a slow, even breath. Honesty, right? That was what he was trying for. Slowly, bracing himself for what would come after, he said, “It means, uh, that I wanted to tear that kid apart because I -- I was jealous.” 

[tony-graham]

 “At least you’re admitting it’s a problem, now.” Tony said, and even though he’d wanted to beat it into Duke before, seeing the wolf give himself hell over it made Tony ache faintly. He grabbed for the offered pack, pulling out a cigarette and holding his hand out for the lighter next.

 He gave a shallow nod at Duke’s question, still occupied with the cigarette before handing the lighter back. It was Duke’s last statement that caught him off guard, and the exhale that Tony let out was shaky. He dropped his head, cigarette clamped between his fingers and he had to dig the heels of his hands into his eyes to try to rub away the sudden sting of emotion. Fuck, he knew that, didn’t he? He knew he belonged with the Raff, with Duke, too. He knew right where he was supposed to be, he’d just needed everyone else to know it, too, and here, here was the most important person telling him exactly what he wanted to hear most. His inhale was even shakier than his exhale had been, breath hitching, and Tony shook his head quickly to try and shake away the emotions clouding him.

 “Yeah.” He said, voice thick. “I’ll stop, promise.” And god, Duke was an idiot. Saying ‘however you feel about me’ as though Tony’s feelings had changed at all. Sure he sort of wanted to kick Duke’s ass, but that was only because he was refusing what Tony knew to be true. Tony could be mad all he wanted, he was still loyal to Duke, devoted in his own way.

[dukey--boy-blog]

He nodded. What else could he do? The fact that this flaw of his, his biggest fault, was so obvious to someone else was a little embarrassing, and there was certainly know way he could try and deny it now. He couldn’t just take it back and sweep it up under the rug. As he passed his lighter over, his fingertips brushed against Tony’s and it took everything in him not to snatch his hand away -- he was afraid the simple contact would lead to him just wanting more. And it did. Damnit. 

He took the longest drag possible on his cigarette like he could forget how badly he wanted to run his fingers through Tony’s short hair, like he could forget the way his fingers longed to trace the contours of his face. Duke was practically visibly out of breath by the time he exhaled smoke through his nose, but that was when he realized something was up with Tony. Worry shot through Duke and he tossed his unfinished cigarette out, taking a step nearer -- this time, his need to touch Tony didn’t come from anything other than concern for a packmate. 

He reached over and placed a hand on Tony’s shoulder, giving it a little squeeze. “Hey,” he said gently, “You alright?”

[slowsweetbxrn]

Lark couldn’t help the small pout, “I’m not that short…” She mumbled, She glanced at her feet. “If you put me in a taffy puller, I’ll stretch a few inches.” She glanced back up. “Very true. Ilium gets mad when I don’t wear shoes and it’s cold.” 

“That’s life. But before you were chewed up and spit back out by a competitive eater, how were you?”

[dukey--boy-blog]

He laughed. “I never heard that one before. Of course, we put you in a taffy puller and you’ll just get skinnier than you already are,” he teased. The name sounded only vaguely familiar to him, but it was certainly unique. “Ilium, huh? Boyfriend?” 

“I guess things are alright,” he said. Which was a lie, but he didn’t exactly know how to say, ‘My brother and I can’t get along and I seem to ruin every good relationship in my life,’ without it sounding like he was looking for a pity party. “Still jobless, so if you know anyone who needs carpentry work done or something, keep a guy in the loop, yeah?” he said playfully.

[vic-jones-blog]

 “You know, I’d say I do it on purpose, but really I don’t. I’m just me, and if that reads non-asshole to you, cool.” She grinned crookedly, and gave him a nod. “Yeah, of course. I mean, I can smell the wolf, but like, right now I can smell the human, too, your skin, sweat, the little bit of whiskey spilled on your shirt.” She closed one eye and gave a dramatic sniff, “And the ketchup from lunch. You totally got it in your beard, caveman.”

 “Vicky. Ouch. Now I know what you really think of me.” She said with a laugh. Honestly Victoria had been a result of Vic, instead of the other way around, but she’d always picked names like that, going by feel, by what sounded right at the moment. She felt like a Vic. It had been a long time since her first name, and honestly, she’d never felt like an Aliceanna Edith Woodward. “Duke’s not that bad. Fits you, in a way. Coulda been worse, really. Coulda been Bruiser or something.”

[dukey--boy-blog]

“Well, maybe non-asshole is pushing it. But your brand of asshole at least comes in a funny flavor,” he teased. He flashed a quick grin, glancing down at his shirt as though he could see the whiskey that’d spilled on him just before his impromptu brawl. “Now that’s insulting, you don’t know how much care I take of this thing,” he said playfully, running his fingers over his beard -- and carefully avoiding the tender skin of his jaw. “I would never sully it with the likes of ketchup. Mustard, maybe.”

He laughed with her. “Don’t worry, I won’t call you Vicky. Mostly because Vic somehow fits now that I’ve gotten used to it. Are you kidding? I saw a commercial a few days ago for dog food and the damn dog’s name was Duke. Like to think the old man’s watching over me and getting a real kick outta shit like that.” And it was weird to mention his father so casually -- he’d been moping around about his death for so long that it almost felt like a betrayal of sorts. He laughed again and nodded. “Very true. If I’d been called Bruiser and gotten my ass kicked like I did tonight, it’d be a disgrace.”