Dancing Across The Screen

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Play.

Boy #1 spins around, loose pants moving with him as he went around the yard, arms high above his head and waving slightly. He laughs cheerfully, grins showing all his teeth, and stops to catch his breath. He looks beautiful, dark hair settled in disarray around his pale face. The sky is bright blue, almost too bright, and the sun warms his skin, although it doesn’t tan or burn it. His dark eyes squint as he turns around, facing the sun as another boy his age -roughly the age of fifteen- comes into the yard.

His grin seems to outshine the sun then.

Pause.

Man #1 stares at the image of him on the decent-sized TV that's a few feet away. He looks so happy, so worry free. He doesn't have to wonder what happened to make him change. He knows it like he knows what color his eyes will be when he looks in the mirror; he knows it like the fact that he hates waking up in the morning. He'd like to say things don't change, but everything- almost everything did.

Play.

Boy #2 walks up to him, walk and expression uncertain. His hands are stuffed in the pockets of a pair of old jeans that have more holes covering then than non-ripped space. He offers a lop-sided grin, which makes Boy #1's heart speed up, although he doesn't let it show. He keeps his bright smile on his face and motions with his head for Boy #2 to come closer. He does, movement slow and hesitant. This makes Boy #1 want to laugh, and maybe he wants to dance more, but he smartly keeps in his place.

"Hey." Boy #2 says, halting when he gets to be a foot or so away.

"Hey." Boy #1 replies.

Pause.

Man #1 smiles at the screen, scarred lips not complaining as the skin stretches. He doesn't smile often anymore, so it seems a bit awkward to him, but it feels nice so he doesn't let it fade for a few more seconds. When it does fade, it goes slowly, and a reminder of the smile shines in his eyes afterwards.

Play.

Boy #2 waits for the other to say something. Boy #1 does the same. They both stand around, the silence not completely uncomfortable. It seems normal to them, comforting even, and they wait it out until one finds the words and the courage to say something else. The time comes about fifteen seconds later -silence broken by Boy #1. Neither of them are surprised when he speaks.

"You haven't come over in a while." His tone doesn't reveal his true thoughts. Truly, he's hurt by it. Not a lot, but enough that he can still feel it at times when he's lonely.

"I know." Boy #2 pauses to move an inch or two closer, "I'm sorry."

Boy #1 tilts his head back to feel more of the sunlight on his face, and he watches Boy #2 out of the corner of his eye, "Are you?"

Pause.

Man #1 has come to hate the words 'I'm sorry.' He feels like when everyone says it now, it doesn't mean anything. It's just two words people say when they feel like it's the right moment, no matter if they're lying or not. 'I'm sorry she died,' they would say to him. 'I'm sorry you came out so injured,' they would tell him. He can feel the lies that the word carries just as easily as he can feel the wind blow. No one was ever really sorry.

He barely notes the sound of someone on the other side of the door as...

Play.

"I said I was, didn't I?" Boy #2 responds, turning his head away from the sun, "You decide if I am or not."

Boy #1 sighs, turns his head more toward Boy #2, and they lock eyes before it become too intense for Boy #2 and he lets his eyes drift away. A warm hand finds his chin, surprising him, and he lets the hand guide his head up a little, so the two boys are full on facing each other. Boy #2's surprise grows when he sees that Boy #1's face in getting closer by the second.

"And how am I supposed to do that?" Dark eyes water, "You remember what happened last time I did, don't you?"

"Of course I do." Boy #2 almost sounds defensive, "It's what got us in this situation in the first place. I couldn't have forgotten it."

Boy #1's lashes flutter shyly, "Do you want to?"

Awkward grins turn into reassuring smiles, and it's Boy #1's turn to be surprised as their faces get closer, "No. Do you?"

Dark hair dips as a head does, "No."

Pale pinks lips meet darker red ones somewhere in the middle.

Pause.

Man #2 slips off his coat, hanging it in a small closet before walking over to the couch where Man #1 is. Said man has a faint blush on his face, a weak hand gripping the remote. He can't look at the screen anymore.

"You're watching this again?" Man #2 asks, amused.

Man #1's blush grows, and his words are laced with embarrassment, "I like it."

"You didn't when you first found out your sister taped it. Even I was worried for her life then."

"Reliving the past is nice. I was so...nice looking then." Scarred lips curve into a frown as a face turns to Man #2, "Wasn't I?"

"Yes." Perfectly soft lips are pressed to imperfect ones for a few brief kisses, "And you are now. Now, up off the couch and into the kitchen. I doubt you've eaten all day."

A reluctant smile shows on Man #1's face, "And if I haven't?"

"You don't get any dessert."

Man #1 doesn't have to ask what Man #2 means, and he pouts a little. Man #2 just smiles and is already walking toward the dark kitchen, both rooms becoming lit as he switches the light on.

There's a sigh from Man #1, and a hand reaches for a black cane that rests on top of the table.

He can't dance anymore, but it's okay.

Sometimes.

Stop.

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A/N: No idea where this one came from, but I actually like it. Of course, thanks to my beta(s) for helping me. I mixed both of your versions. Um, reviews, of course, would be really awesome, no matter the length.