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perpetual_motionTitle: A Boy from Nowhere (1/?)
Author: Perpetual Motion
Fandom: Green Lantern Corps
Pairing: Guy/Kyle
Rating: PG-13 [Language]
Summary: Guy, Kyle, high school AU, and angst. Oh, my, angst.
Disclaimer: Bullshit and lies, as always.
Author's Notes: This is a high school AU. Also, I drop the three-letter f-bomb (and possibly the four-letter one, but I like that one). This story was completed for my![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-community.gif)
dcu_freeforall. The prompt was "taboo." Have I mentioned the delicious angst?
A Boy from Nowhere
By Perpetual Motion
"Art fag, three o'clock."
Guy follows Tommy's eye line and spots the kid, dark hair, dark eyes, paint spattered on the front of his striped T-shirt. "Rayner," Guy supplies. "He's in gym with me."
"Bet he runs like a girl," Tommy scoffs, flailing his arms back and forth. He picks up his empty milk carton, crumples it into a ball, and flings it towards the back of Rayner's head. It misses and lands in Rayner's pudding, and Tommy bursts out laughing, the rest of the table joining him.
Guy's the only one who sees Kyle glance over his shoulder, and his stomach twists when Kyle looks him in the eyes for just a second before turning around.
"I think the fag's got a crush!" Tommy crows, and he slaps Guy on the back. "Your milkshake bring all the gays to the yard?"
"Shaddup," Guy says, shoving at Tommy a little harder than necessary. Tommy narrows his eyes at him for a moment, then punches Guy in the shoulder.
"Chill, dude; I'm just fucking with you."
Guy finishes his lunch in silence. He can't bring himself to eat his pudding.
*
Gym is seventh period, and they're in a basketball rotation, Coach Kilowog choosing captains by pulling names from a hat. "Gardner," he barks, and Guy steps onto the free throw line with the other three captains.
In the third round of picks, Guy points at Kyle. "Rayner," he says, and Kyle looks stunned as he steps behind Guy with his other two teammates. After final picks—Guy taking on a guy with hunched shoulders whose name he can never remember—Coach reminds them of half-court rules and settles on the first row of the bleachers to watch them play.
"Play nice, kiddies," Guy snarks, and he catches a grin on the edge of Kyle's mouth as they bounce the ball into play. Ten minutes later, Guy turns just in time to see one of the guys on the other team put an elbow into Kyle's ribs. "Foul!" he yells as Kyle stumbles to the left.
"I slipped," the guy says, crossing his arms.
"And your elbow landed right in his ribs. Convenient," Guy snaps.
"What do you care?" the guys asks. "He's just—"
"Just what?" Coach Kilowog asks as he looms over the kid. "Kyle," his voice is kind, but his eyes are hard on the offender, "you okay?"
"Fine." Kyle coughs once, rubs a hand over his ribs. "I'm okay."
"You can take five—"
"No." Kyle says, flat. "I'm all right."
Guy watches Kyle straighten up, watches him set his face, and something about it seems familiar. Guy can't figure out what it is before the game is back in play. Ten minutes later, when another guy tries to trip Kyle up, Guy recognizes the look. It's his look when he's trying not to punch back at his father.
Five minutes later, one of the guys who has been trying to knock Kyle over suddenly ends up with Guy's elbow in his nose. "Oh, shit!" Guy yelps. "Coach! Coach! I think I broke his nose!" He pokes at the nose as the kid tries to keep blood from pouring through his fingers, and the kid winces away.
Coach Kilowog gives Guy a quick, hard look before barking for the kid to go to the nurse and sending Kyle's first attacker with him. "Gardner," Coach orders, "you and Rayner get off my court before one of you kills someone."
Guy wants to argue. He had totally elbowed the guy by accident. Really. And Kyle hadn't been trying to hurt anyone. Those guys had been trying to—
"Gardner! Move!" Coach hollers, pointing to the locker room.
"Yes, Coach," Guy mutters, and he jogs towards the locker room. Kyle's already at his locker, shirt half off. Guy's palms itch, and he rubs them on his shorts. "Hey," he mumbles as he walks around Kyle, his hip brushing Kyle's arm.
"Hey," Kyle replies and doesn't look over when Guy opens his locker. "Thanks," Kyle asks after another minute. "I know it wasn't an accident."
"What?" Guy asks, gruff, as he pulls his sweaty shirt over his head. "Those guys whaling on you?"
"You breaking that guy's nose," Kyle tells him. "It was a pretty good fake-out."
"Yeah," Guy agrees. He turns his back to pull off his shorts and pull on his jeans. When he turns back around, Kyle is staring into his locker, face red. "Get a good look?" He asks; it comes out meaner than he intended.
"I wasn't…" Kyle glances over his shoulder, looks into his locker again. "It's not—"
"Are you?" Guy asks, and the question surprises him. He blinks a few times and waits for Kyle to say something. Kyle keeps staring into his locker. "A fag?" Kyle flinches, and Guy shifts from foot to foot. "That's not—"
"Yes," Kyle whispers, the word echoing into his locker. He slams his locker door, hard enough to make the lockers on either side rattle. "I'm gay," he says, and he looks at Guy, eyes sharp, jaw set. "And you're not the only one who knows how to break some asshole's nose with your elbow."
Guy takes three steps, stopping just inside Kyle's personal space. "Why don't you?" he asks. "Break someone's nose?"
"What would it solve?" Kyle asks. "I break one guy's nose, and three other guys will jump me to defend the hetero."
"Yeah." Guy places a hand on the locker next to Kyle's, tries to lean casually and feels like an idiot. "If you need help…"
"Not getting whaled on by 'phobes? Not getting milk cartons flung at my head by your fucktard friends?"
"Tommy's not my friend." It comes out in a rush. Guy breathes in hard, feels his fingers tremble on the locker. "He's just…"
"An asshole," Kyle says. "Who you hang out with. And eat lunch with. And laugh with when he calls me names."
Guy takes another step forward, curls a hand on Kyle's shoulder. "I don't…"
Kyle glances at Guy's hand. Shrugs it off. "You sit there. You let him say shit. You let him throw things at me. Say you're not a 'phobe if you want. You're still—"
"I'm not a homophobe," Guy says, voice hard. "I'm not." He presses Kyle against his locker. "I just…I can't…"
Kyle doesn't shrink away; he doesn't shove Guy away from him. He stares Guy in the eyes and touches Guy's waist. "You can't what?" he asks as he curls his fingers through one of Guy's belt loops.
"I can't be…" Guy can't look away from Kyle, the determination on his face. He leans in, just a little, his nose brushing Kyle's. "My dad hits me," he whispers. "For anything. He knocks the shit out of me. Tells me I'm a fucking failure. I can't be…" He breathes in, and he smells Kyle's sweat. "I can't be gay. I can't." It comes out a little broken, Guy's voice going up on the second sentence.
"You could be bi," Kyle replies, serious. "Maybe you are. Maybe you just think—"
"I know who I am," Guy interrupts. "I know what's…I'm gay."
Kyle kisses him, lips pressed hard against Guy's, nose bumping Guy's cheek. Guy tilts his head, presses a hand to Kyle's jaw, opens his mouth just a little and sighs when Kyle presses his tongue to his lips.
Guy pulls away first, the reality of what they're doing—and where—slamming through his head like a shotgun blast. He stumbles backwards a step, nearly falls over the bench that runs between the rows of lockers. Kyle sags against his locker, the hand that had been on Guy's waist still hanging in the air, as if Guy's going to step right back into place. Guy opens his mouth to say something, but nothing comes out.
Kyle turns around, opens his locker, takes out his backpack, and slides it over his shoulder. "Think Coach will let us head out before the bell?"
Guy blinks. He swallows. He wipes a hand across his mouth. "What?" he asks. He pulls at his shirt, runs a hand through his hair, bites his lip. "You just—"
"Yeah, I know," Kyle tells him. "You going to suddenly un-closet yourself and tell Tommy to fuck himself?"
"No." Guy clenches his hands. "I mean—"
"You mean what you said," Kyle interrupts. He looks at Guy straight on, and Guy sees, for just an instant, absolute loneliness in Kyle's face. "I'll see you around," Kyle says, and he walks up the stairs and out of the locker room.
Guy sits on the bench, shudders, closes his eyes and tries to think. He could go after Kyle, he thinks. Try to explain himself. Try to explain what it's like to go home and get kicked around because his dad is bored or drunk or just feeling mean. He could tell Kyle that he hangs with Tommy because he's afraid what he'll do if he hangs out with people who need protecting. That breaking that kid's nose is the least of what he's capable of if someone looks like they're about to come to harm. That kissing Kyle is something he's been thinking about since the rumors about Kyle started going around a year ago.
Guy sits on the bench. Thinks about what he could say. He sits on the bench.
Author: Perpetual Motion
Fandom: Green Lantern Corps
Pairing: Guy/Kyle
Rating: PG-13 [Language]
Summary: Guy, Kyle, high school AU, and angst. Oh, my, angst.
Disclaimer: Bullshit and lies, as always.
Author's Notes: This is a high school AU. Also, I drop the three-letter f-bomb (and possibly the four-letter one, but I like that one). This story was completed for my
dcu_freeforall. The prompt was "taboo." Have I mentioned the delicious angst?A Boy from Nowhere
By Perpetual Motion
"Art fag, three o'clock."
Guy follows Tommy's eye line and spots the kid, dark hair, dark eyes, paint spattered on the front of his striped T-shirt. "Rayner," Guy supplies. "He's in gym with me."
"Bet he runs like a girl," Tommy scoffs, flailing his arms back and forth. He picks up his empty milk carton, crumples it into a ball, and flings it towards the back of Rayner's head. It misses and lands in Rayner's pudding, and Tommy bursts out laughing, the rest of the table joining him.
Guy's the only one who sees Kyle glance over his shoulder, and his stomach twists when Kyle looks him in the eyes for just a second before turning around.
"I think the fag's got a crush!" Tommy crows, and he slaps Guy on the back. "Your milkshake bring all the gays to the yard?"
"Shaddup," Guy says, shoving at Tommy a little harder than necessary. Tommy narrows his eyes at him for a moment, then punches Guy in the shoulder.
"Chill, dude; I'm just fucking with you."
Guy finishes his lunch in silence. He can't bring himself to eat his pudding.
*
Gym is seventh period, and they're in a basketball rotation, Coach Kilowog choosing captains by pulling names from a hat. "Gardner," he barks, and Guy steps onto the free throw line with the other three captains.
In the third round of picks, Guy points at Kyle. "Rayner," he says, and Kyle looks stunned as he steps behind Guy with his other two teammates. After final picks—Guy taking on a guy with hunched shoulders whose name he can never remember—Coach reminds them of half-court rules and settles on the first row of the bleachers to watch them play.
"Play nice, kiddies," Guy snarks, and he catches a grin on the edge of Kyle's mouth as they bounce the ball into play. Ten minutes later, Guy turns just in time to see one of the guys on the other team put an elbow into Kyle's ribs. "Foul!" he yells as Kyle stumbles to the left.
"I slipped," the guy says, crossing his arms.
"And your elbow landed right in his ribs. Convenient," Guy snaps.
"What do you care?" the guys asks. "He's just—"
"Just what?" Coach Kilowog asks as he looms over the kid. "Kyle," his voice is kind, but his eyes are hard on the offender, "you okay?"
"Fine." Kyle coughs once, rubs a hand over his ribs. "I'm okay."
"You can take five—"
"No." Kyle says, flat. "I'm all right."
Guy watches Kyle straighten up, watches him set his face, and something about it seems familiar. Guy can't figure out what it is before the game is back in play. Ten minutes later, when another guy tries to trip Kyle up, Guy recognizes the look. It's his look when he's trying not to punch back at his father.
Five minutes later, one of the guys who has been trying to knock Kyle over suddenly ends up with Guy's elbow in his nose. "Oh, shit!" Guy yelps. "Coach! Coach! I think I broke his nose!" He pokes at the nose as the kid tries to keep blood from pouring through his fingers, and the kid winces away.
Coach Kilowog gives Guy a quick, hard look before barking for the kid to go to the nurse and sending Kyle's first attacker with him. "Gardner," Coach orders, "you and Rayner get off my court before one of you kills someone."
Guy wants to argue. He had totally elbowed the guy by accident. Really. And Kyle hadn't been trying to hurt anyone. Those guys had been trying to—
"Gardner! Move!" Coach hollers, pointing to the locker room.
"Yes, Coach," Guy mutters, and he jogs towards the locker room. Kyle's already at his locker, shirt half off. Guy's palms itch, and he rubs them on his shorts. "Hey," he mumbles as he walks around Kyle, his hip brushing Kyle's arm.
"Hey," Kyle replies and doesn't look over when Guy opens his locker. "Thanks," Kyle asks after another minute. "I know it wasn't an accident."
"What?" Guy asks, gruff, as he pulls his sweaty shirt over his head. "Those guys whaling on you?"
"You breaking that guy's nose," Kyle tells him. "It was a pretty good fake-out."
"Yeah," Guy agrees. He turns his back to pull off his shorts and pull on his jeans. When he turns back around, Kyle is staring into his locker, face red. "Get a good look?" He asks; it comes out meaner than he intended.
"I wasn't…" Kyle glances over his shoulder, looks into his locker again. "It's not—"
"Are you?" Guy asks, and the question surprises him. He blinks a few times and waits for Kyle to say something. Kyle keeps staring into his locker. "A fag?" Kyle flinches, and Guy shifts from foot to foot. "That's not—"
"Yes," Kyle whispers, the word echoing into his locker. He slams his locker door, hard enough to make the lockers on either side rattle. "I'm gay," he says, and he looks at Guy, eyes sharp, jaw set. "And you're not the only one who knows how to break some asshole's nose with your elbow."
Guy takes three steps, stopping just inside Kyle's personal space. "Why don't you?" he asks. "Break someone's nose?"
"What would it solve?" Kyle asks. "I break one guy's nose, and three other guys will jump me to defend the hetero."
"Yeah." Guy places a hand on the locker next to Kyle's, tries to lean casually and feels like an idiot. "If you need help…"
"Not getting whaled on by 'phobes? Not getting milk cartons flung at my head by your fucktard friends?"
"Tommy's not my friend." It comes out in a rush. Guy breathes in hard, feels his fingers tremble on the locker. "He's just…"
"An asshole," Kyle says. "Who you hang out with. And eat lunch with. And laugh with when he calls me names."
Guy takes another step forward, curls a hand on Kyle's shoulder. "I don't…"
Kyle glances at Guy's hand. Shrugs it off. "You sit there. You let him say shit. You let him throw things at me. Say you're not a 'phobe if you want. You're still—"
"I'm not a homophobe," Guy says, voice hard. "I'm not." He presses Kyle against his locker. "I just…I can't…"
Kyle doesn't shrink away; he doesn't shove Guy away from him. He stares Guy in the eyes and touches Guy's waist. "You can't what?" he asks as he curls his fingers through one of Guy's belt loops.
"I can't be…" Guy can't look away from Kyle, the determination on his face. He leans in, just a little, his nose brushing Kyle's. "My dad hits me," he whispers. "For anything. He knocks the shit out of me. Tells me I'm a fucking failure. I can't be…" He breathes in, and he smells Kyle's sweat. "I can't be gay. I can't." It comes out a little broken, Guy's voice going up on the second sentence.
"You could be bi," Kyle replies, serious. "Maybe you are. Maybe you just think—"
"I know who I am," Guy interrupts. "I know what's…I'm gay."
Kyle kisses him, lips pressed hard against Guy's, nose bumping Guy's cheek. Guy tilts his head, presses a hand to Kyle's jaw, opens his mouth just a little and sighs when Kyle presses his tongue to his lips.
Guy pulls away first, the reality of what they're doing—and where—slamming through his head like a shotgun blast. He stumbles backwards a step, nearly falls over the bench that runs between the rows of lockers. Kyle sags against his locker, the hand that had been on Guy's waist still hanging in the air, as if Guy's going to step right back into place. Guy opens his mouth to say something, but nothing comes out.
Kyle turns around, opens his locker, takes out his backpack, and slides it over his shoulder. "Think Coach will let us head out before the bell?"
Guy blinks. He swallows. He wipes a hand across his mouth. "What?" he asks. He pulls at his shirt, runs a hand through his hair, bites his lip. "You just—"
"Yeah, I know," Kyle tells him. "You going to suddenly un-closet yourself and tell Tommy to fuck himself?"
"No." Guy clenches his hands. "I mean—"
"You mean what you said," Kyle interrupts. He looks at Guy straight on, and Guy sees, for just an instant, absolute loneliness in Kyle's face. "I'll see you around," Kyle says, and he walks up the stairs and out of the locker room.
Guy sits on the bench, shudders, closes his eyes and tries to think. He could go after Kyle, he thinks. Try to explain himself. Try to explain what it's like to go home and get kicked around because his dad is bored or drunk or just feeling mean. He could tell Kyle that he hangs with Tommy because he's afraid what he'll do if he hangs out with people who need protecting. That breaking that kid's nose is the least of what he's capable of if someone looks like they're about to come to harm. That kissing Kyle is something he's been thinking about since the rumors about Kyle started going around a year ago.
Guy sits on the bench. Thinks about what he could say. He sits on the bench.
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no subject
on 2010-03-25 05:01 am (UTC)no subject
on 2010-03-25 05:25 am (UTC)This is Kyle Rayner (http://media.comicvine.com/uploads/3/31566/1063208-kyle_1_super.jpg). For reasons I do not understand, I cannot find a picture of him without his mask.
Also, in my icon for this entry, that's Guy's butt (mooning Batman), and Kyle looking ashamed/proud. They are freaking AWESOME.
no subject
on 2010-03-25 05:56 am (UTC)no subject
on 2010-03-25 06:22 am (UTC)no subject
on 2010-03-25 08:37 pm (UTC)I'm glad you enjoyed it!
no subject
on 2010-03-25 06:52 am (UTC)Even in AUs, I love the hell out of these two. Loved it! <3
no subject
on 2010-03-25 08:38 pm (UTC)no subject
on 2010-03-25 04:20 pm (UTC)...right?
*hopefully* Will there be more?
no subject
on 2010-03-25 08:38 pm (UTC)So glad you liked it!
no subject
on 2010-03-26 02:19 am (UTC)This was perfect. <333 Guy was so Guy and Kyle was so Kyle and god, I just wanted Guy to go running after him, but obviously, ISSUES.
I hope there's going to be more in the future! *puppy eyes*
no subject
on 2010-03-26 03:06 am (UTC)There'll be more. I've already started writing it. Oh, Guy, you woobie.
(Also, icon LOVE. I burst out laughing.)