Tensions

(sequel to An Apology)

By Liritar Thranduiliell and Veet Voojagig.

 

Pairing: Jack/Boone

Rating: PG-13

Summary: Jack takes the information Sayid gave him and makes everyone uncomfortable.

Disclaimer: If I owned Jack, I’d knock some sense into him. Same with Boone. Gods, do characters always have to be such idiots?

 

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Boone stretched out on the sand with an exasperated sigh. God, this was impossible. Here he was, stranded on an island with some of the most gorgeous men he’d ever seen, and if he approached any of them, he’d no doubt get his ass beaten. Not that he wanted just anyone. Oh, no. He had to fall for almost the straightest man on the whole damn island. “What the hell is wrong with me?” he moaned, covering his face with his hands. He would NEVER get Jack. He was obviously head over heels in love with Kate. ‘Stupid bitch,’ he thought with a growl. ‘What does she have that I don’t?’

 

‘Tits,’ his mind supplied far too readily. ‘Not to mention guts and a hell of a cool attitude.’

 

“Fuck this shit!” he snarled.

 

“So, who is it this time?” He looked up to see Shannon looming over him, then shut his eyes. “All the usual signs,” she continued. “Brooding, sulking, talking to yourself… So, which of the hot, sweaty, sexy guys caught your fancy of the moment?”

 

“Bite me, Shannon,” Boone muttered. “I don’t fucking need this.” He kept his eyes closed and tried to ignore her presence.

 

“Really, Boone, who is it?” She settled on the sand beside him with a grimace. “This place is going to ruin my clothes,” she griped.

 

He opened his eyes to glare at her. “God, Shann, is that all you ever think about?”

 

“No, it’s not, bonehead,” she snapped. “If you’d pay attention, you’d notice I was thinking about you. If you don’t want my extensive relationship knowledge, though, I can leave.”

 

“Sorry. Being head over heels for a straight guy can make you snappy.”

 

“I don’t know, it seems to work for me.” Shannon smirked. “Seriously, Boone, I want to help.”

 

“Fuck you, Shann,” he laughed. “Ok. How are you gonna help me?”

 

“Well, first you’ve got to tell me who you want to have fuck you, dumbass. You have to use different stratagems on different people.”

 

Boone felt his cheeks heating. “It’s… Jack,” he whispered.

 

Shannon gave a wild burst of laughter. “Jack? Oh, good luck with that, brother. Ok. Now, let’s see, how to lure the doctor away from Kate and into your bed. Or pile of sand, or whatever. Fuck, I hate this place.”

 

“Who doesn’t? Anyway, you’re right. There’s no chance in hell. So don’t bother.” He sighed and closed his eyes again.

 

“Don’t worry, Boone. I’ll think of something.” She paused for a moment. “Eventually.” She stood, brushing the sand off her skirt. “I need to watch him for a bit and come up with a plan even you can’t fuck up.”

 

*  *  *  *  *  *

 

Boone stopped dead as he reached the pool, his eyes locking on the figure kneeling by the water, his back towards him. Oh, God, how he wanted to touch him, to shove him to the ground and kiss him, to feel his body above him as he… He wrenched his mind away from those tantalizing images. He swallowed and dropped his backpack to the ground, fishing out his water bottles, then slowly walked over to Jack. “Hey,” he murmured, kneeling next to him and shoving his bottle into the pool.

 

“Oh, Boone. Hi.” Jack gave him a quick smile. “So, uh… how’s it going?”

 

“Fine.” Boone gave a weak laugh. “Still stuck on this damn island, huh?”

 

“Yeah. We are. Boone, I…” Jack shook his head and continued in a rush. “Sayid thinks you’re attracted to me. Are you?”

 

He choked, staring at Jack with wide, panic-stricken eyes. “I… I… No. Yes. Maybe. How did he…”

 

“Yeah, well, Sayid’s a smart guy. Smarter than me, at any rate. I admit, I didn’t notice. Boone… I’m sorry if I did or said anything unintentionally cruel to you.”

 

“No, Jack.” Boone flushed and shoved his half-filled bottles back into his pack. “It’s not your fault that I’m an idiot,” he muttered as he rose and turned to stalk away.

 

“Boone,” Jack called, hurrying to catch up. His hand closed on Boone’s shoulder. “Look, Boone, you’re not an idiot. It’s not your fault. You can’t help who you…”

 

He pulled away with a snarl. “Fuck off, Jack. I don’t need this talk. I came to terms with who I am years ago.”

 

“Boone, I wasn’t—I didn’t say—” He threw up his hands. “I didn’t mean anything, Boone. I don’t want to hurt you.”

 

“I know you don’t,” Boone sighed. “All of it is my fault. Don’t worry about me. I’ll handle it. See ya, Jack.” He stormed off down the path.

 

*  *  *  *  *  *

 

Boone dropped his bag beside Shannon without a word. He stripped off his shirt and took off at a run for the shore, diving into the waves. He let the water close over his head, peaceful in a way nothing else was.

 

After a long moment, he broke the surface, gasping for breath. He looked up to see his sister standing on the beach, arms crossed.

 

“What the fuck’s your problem?”

 

He swam back to the shallows and stood, slowly walking towards her. “I can’t go back to the caves. Can you get the water next time?” He brushed his dripping hair out of his eyes.

 

“Why? What the hell’s wrong with you?” She glared at him, then her expression changed to concern. “Boone? What happened?”

 

“God, Shann, Sayid found out and told Jack. I’ve never been so embarrassed in my life.” He raised a hand to cut off whatever contradicting incident she was about to mention. “My life is so fucked…”

 

“Don’t worry, Boonie. We’ll figure something out. What did he say to you?”

 

“The usual crap about not wanting to hurt me, you know? The one that hurts so fucking much.” Boone gave a mirthless bark of laughter.

 

“Yeah, I’ve used that one a few times,” Shannon said, pushing a strand of hair behind her ear. “Well, look on the bright side. He’s noticed you.”

 

“Uh huh. Noticed that I’m a total fucking loser.” He dropped to the sand and wrapped his arms around his knees. “Why can’t I ever fall for someone who’ll work out?”

 

“Oh, God, would you stop fucking whining? I told you I’ll come up with something. Trust me.”

 

“Yeah, whatever,” Boone muttered. “Don’t waste your time, Shann.”

 

“What, you don’t think I can get you into his pants?”

 

“If anyone can, it’s probably you, sis, but…” He shrugged. “I really doubt it’s possible.”

 

Shannon reached down and patted the top of his head. “Just leave it to me,” she said before strolling off along the beach.

 

*  *  *  *  *  *

 

Boone dropped down onto the sand with a sigh. He couldn’t think or focus on anything long enough to actually do anything useful. The only things that would stay in his head for any length of time were images of Jack… and that really didn’t help his already tight nerves.

 

‘What I need to do right now,’ he thought, ‘is go to a bar, get so drunk I can’t think, and then get fucked really hard. Too bad that’s all impossible.’ He picked up a handful of sand and threw it into the wind, watching the grains scatter. ‘It would be great if I could even just get laid. If I can’t have him, I can still have some fun… I wonder if anyone else here is gay? Doubt it. With my luck, someone like Sawyer would find out and beat up the “pretty little fairy boy.” God, life sucks…’

 

He heard footsteps approaching but didn’t look up. It was probably Shannon with some scheme that would make him look like even more of an idiot. As if he needed help. The person sat next to him without a word. Ok, so it wasn’t Shann. A tiny wave of curiosity prodded him, and he turned his head slightly. It was Jack. ‘Oh, God, no,’ he thought as his body temperature jumped a few degrees just from his presence. ‘Please. I don’t fucking need this.’ He bit his lip and tried to ignore him, hoping he’d go away.

 

He didn’t. He just sat there in silence for what seemed like an eternity while Boone got increasingly more frazzled. When Jack finally spoke, Boone jumped like a skittish colt. “I’m sorry, Boone,” he said softly. “I handled that very badly. I probably shouldn’t have said anything.”

 

“No. You shouldn’t have.” Boone’s voice was terse. “And you shouldn’t be here.”

 

“I couldn’t leave you like that without apologizing, Boone.” Jack gazed seriously at him.

 

Boone turned to stare at him for a long moment. “You know what, Jack? Fuck you. Fuck you in every fucking way possible. You got that?”

 

Jack gaped at him. “Boone… I…”

 

“Shut up, Jack! Please, just go away and leave me the fuck alone. You can’t fix this! All you can do is fuck it up worse.” He was shuddering from the force of his conflicting emotions, the rage, the pain, the desire. He just couldn’t take any more. “Go.”

 

“Boone, please.” Jack’s hand gripped his shoulder.

 

Before Boone could stop himself, his hand was behind Jack’s head, pulling him closer. Their lips met, and then Boone’s tongue was teasing Jack’s lips, begging for admittance. The man’s mouth opened, probably in a gasp of shock or protest. Fire flowed through Boone’s veins as he let his tongue slide into the gap, devouring Jack’s mouth with desperate hunger. He ignored all the thoughts in his head screaming at him that this was stupid, that he was only going to get hurt. He needed this man so much…

 

And Jack was kissing him back! He could have died from sensory overload right there. Instead, he let his eyes drift shut and released a muffled moan into the other man’s mouth.

 

Jack pulled away, and Boone’s eyes flew open again. The doctor was gazing down at him, looking dazed and confused. “Boone,” he murmured. “I…” He leaned forward, pressing his lips to Boone’s once more.

 

And then he was gone, vanishing into the trees.

 

Boone’s half-voiced scream of frustration was cut off by a chuckle behind him. He turned to see Sawyer walking down the beach from the cover of the jungle. Boone gaped at him in frozen terror. ‘Oh, shit…’

 

“Well, well, well, that’s a sight you don’t see every day.” Sawyer’s grin was… warm? Boone blinked. Warm and amused. Not the malicious sneer usually plastered across his face.

 

“I… I…” he stammered nervously.

 

Sawyer’s expression took on a tinge of disgust. “Jesus, kid, what do you think I’m gonna do, pound ya into the dirt for kissin’ Hero? Fuck, I’ve seen that happen far too many times, pretty boy. I’m not addin’ to it. I don’t give a shit who you wanna fuck. Or whatever.”

 

Boone’s heart slowly calmed to a more normal rhythm. “Sorry… you just don’t seem the type, ya know? To be open minded about stuff.”

 

“Look, kiddo, just because I’m a southern boy don’t mean I’m a homophobic asshole.” He gave a wry laugh. “I’m just a normal asshole.”

 

Boone managed a small smile. “You know, Sawyer, you’re not as bad as you’d like us all to think.”

 

The man glared slightly. “Don’t ya go spreading that around, ya hear me? I’ve got a reputation to keep.” He grinned and patted Boone’s shoulder.

 

“Of… of course not.” This was too weird. Sawyer… being friendly? That had to be a national event.

 

“Good. Well, talk to ya later, blue-eyed wonder.” Sawyer headed back towards the trees, then stopped. “Oh, and Boone?” he called over his shoulder. “If the doctor drives ya too crazy for ya to handle, come see me. I can help ya with some of those, uh, tensions.”

 

Boone gaped in the direction he had vanished. Had Sawyer really suggested… No. He had to have misheard him.