It's Called Being a Hero

[chimeramimicry]

"It's Called Being a Hero"
Who: Peter, Peter, Nathan
When: After some weird selfcest.


The knock on the door made Peter blink as he tilted away from the open refrigerator door.  Who the hell came for a visit without calling first?  Delivery guys.  Huh.  Did his new Superman resin kit arrive already?  He didn't get the confirmation email or--  Well, whatever.  He's just glad that it came up to his door instead of being left at the mailboxes like usual.  Jeez, he had more stuff swiped that way.

"Hang on."  Slam goes the door.  Milk in hand, and wearing only his boxers, Peter and his rumpled hair go to answer the door.

He's not expecting Nathan.

The deer in headlights look gives that away.

Comments

[chimeramimic.livejournal.com]

As the mood lifts, so does Peter's smile and he shakes his head. "I'm your only brother." And maybe that's why Peter constantly forgives and trusts Nathan too. They're all they have. And with Peter being so much younger than Nathan, he has quite the disconnect and quite the need to repair that. He doesn't want to be alone, not really.

Brunch with Nathan's nice. It's nothing at all formal, just the two of them and Nathan's ever present tie. It's like he's always eager or at least prepared for a photoshoot. Which really doesn't make sense in light of the Los Vegas thing, but oh well.

He's use to Nathan screwing him over.

"I'm gonna stop by Saturday to see the boys, all right?" he says at the end of the meal, eager actually to get back to his apartment.

[law-anddisorder.livejournal.com]

Nathan wipes his mouth with his napkin, hiding his frown. He'd been about to bring just that suggestion up right before Peter had mentioned it himself.

But not for next Saturday. For today. The children missed their uncle Peter, and had been letting him know it for the past month. He'd been putting it off for too long.

He recovers quickly and says, digging in his pocket for his Amex, "You sure you want to make them wait a whole week, Pete? I was hoping you'd want to come by today. They're nuts over this new video game they got, and Heidi's making those ricotta stuffed shells you like."

[chimeramimic.livejournal.com]

Crap. Well, the choice is between Nathan and, technically, himself. So what's he suppose to do?  Pick Nathan of course. It's always Nathan. Always has and always will be. 

Peter's smile drops, he runs the back of his neck. And, ultimately, nods. 

"Uh, yeah. I'll come by for dinner." Which gives him a few more hours with Peter. 

The embrace with his brother is needlessly awkward when they part and Peter lingers on the street until Nathan's car shows up and pulls away again. He runs back into the shop to get breakfast or, lunch now, for the man hopefully waiting for him at his apartment. 

He's overly eager to please, and probably that's because of the guilt of it. 

The weirdness of it. 

And because Peter can't believe he's this  narcissistic. 

Hint taken. ^__^

[fallen-empath.livejournal.com]

Peter has spent the last hour and a half cleaning up an apartment that isn't even really his. He can't understand why he's even doing it. This isn't his place. It isn't his life, not anymore. He changed it all by coming here, interrupting the natural order of things. He should be home, sleeping in abandoned houses and helping the survivors struggle for their survival.

Even so, Peter showers and shaves, and then he strips the bed, remakes it, collects the dirty laundry. The empty bottles go in a recycling bag, and the pizza box gets torn up and tossed down the trash chute.

He even has a quick conversation with the nice old lady next door. She compliments him on his haircut, and it makes him want to cry.

He wishes he could harbor even a bit of jealousy over having watched his other self and his lost brother's awkward exchange, but he can't even do that. He likes him too much. Way too much. And that's why, when other Peter finally returns, he opens the door and gives him a big crushing hug. He's able to smell Nathan's cologne on his jacket, but he's quickly distracted by the delicious aroma coming from the bag in Peter's hand.

"You brought me food? You're the best!"

[chimeramimic.livejournal.com]

Grinning somewhat madly, Peter lingers in the hug and sits down on the sofa to watch himself eat. It's funny. His mannerisms and everything. They eat like they'll never get another scrap of food again. 

He taps his shoe on the floor and tangles his fingers in the sleeves of his shirt. He's a little fidgety. 

"Hey, how long are you staying?"

If anything, he wants the company. He wants to wake up with someone in his bed. He wants someone that likes the same thing he likes. And it's a bonus that they're sleepin together. 

Or had slept together. 

Shit. What's he suppose to do?