simplepuzzle | Under The Mistletoe

FINE

It's better if they don't.

Clearly.

There's no more texts from this end.

Good. They all need to move on. Raleigh's not for polyamory and if he wants back in a relationship with Yancy and Chuck he's going to have to be; and Chuck's not risking it without Raleigh giving him something to go on, not after what happened.

...It still hurts. Chuck loses himself a little bit in the partying, just to stop feeling for as long as he can.

He. Gets a little bit too lost, a little too often. Something bad happens, and he's rushed to the hospital.

Of course, it ends up on the covers of half a dozen magazines; Hansen Rushed To HOspital After Night Of Debauchery! IS IT PILLS????

which is bullshit of course, but he's still fending off calls when he's recovering, mostly from his dad calling him an idiot.

If Chuck would actually talk to him, Raleigh genuinely wants to make it better. Make it work. He needs more open communication from everyone, including himself.

He doesn't deserve the chance, but it irks him that he keeps getting told to fuck off.

He hears about what happened from social media first, phones Yancy and they're immediately on a private jet, getting ferried in Luxury all the long way to Australia.

And as Chuck is recovering, both Beckets bust in after sweet talking the nurse.

Chuck did something stupid, he knows that, he just--he had too much to drink, he started throwing up he was passing out and that was when they called the ambulance.

He's fine, really, it's just that twitter's making it more than it was and other celebrities are either reaching out to him or crucifying him and knowing he did something stupid is just not helping the whole situation.

So the last thing he needs to see are his ex boyfriends.

"What the fuck are you doing here?" he demands, pushing himself up in his bed. "Don't I have any goddamn security?"

"Chuck!"

Raleigh scrambles for one side while Yancy takes the other.

"Are you okay? What happened?"

"I'm fine, what the hell are you doing in Australia?" he wants to grab them both and pull them in and curl between them like he did and feel safe but he can't.

He curls his arms around himself and hunches his shoulders, not touching either of them.

"We were worried," Raleigh says, looking down at him with a furrowed brow.

"We took my jet," Yancy supplies. "Got here as quick as possible."

"I just drank too much, I didn't take anything or do anything stupider than that."

He wants to say they're not allowed to do this any more, remember? They're not together any more.

"Jesus."

Raleigh sinks down into a chair beside him, dragging a hand over his face.

"Scared us, kid." Yancy says.

"Yeah cos everything I gotta do is for you," he snaps. He's a second away from calling the orderlies to drag them out. He's not sure what's stopping him. "Why didn't you just call?"

"Never said that." Raleigh snaps back. Yancy sighs and rolls his eyes.

"Because we love you, Chuck. A breakup doesn't turn off a switch."

"Yeah but three months apart might imply something."

Seeing them feels so good and hurts him all at once, Chuck leans back and pulls a pillow over his head.

"No," Raleigh says tightly. "I'm still very much in love with both of you. If you'd--"

"Raleigh," Yancy says quietly. Almost a warning.

Raleigh's anger deflates and he looks away.

"I'm sorry," Raleigh says, staring at his hands.

"I need more than that," Chuck snaps, pulling the pillow off his face and glaring at Raleigh. "I need--Dammit, tell me you didn't fly all the way here just to argue for me taking you back!"

"I flew all the way here because I fucking love you like some sad puppy," he snaps.

Yancy sighs.

"I flew here because I was fucking terrified something had happened to you! Because I'm in love with you!"

"I never stopped!"

Chuck's heart monitor's going and they're going to have a doctor in here in a minute throwing them out. "Either of you," Chuck bites out. "I never wanted to lose either of you!"

"I'm sorry," Raleigh says again.

"I just needed time to think about it. I want to try again."

"I'm not talking about this," he growls. "You came to see I'm all right and I'm alive."

He doesn't want to talk about this now.

"Please," Yancy says softly. "Just think about it."

Chuck sits up again, hands clenched in his hands.

"I need a reason," he says shortly. "Love wasn't enough for you last time. If you can't do it you can't do it and that's fine, but I'm not going through it again. Go away and come back and give me a reason to trust you." He wants to trust Raleigh so badly but he can't.

"I have no idea what the fuck sort of reason you're looking for," Raleigh snarls. "You accuse me of giving up, talk down to me, you act like I personally betrayed you when I was honest. Fuck if I know why I want it back. I wonder how you'd feel if I treated you how you treat me."

He stands up.

"I want it back because I feel like I'm missing pieces of my soul. Like I'm not complete without either of you. Like I'm empty. But you know what? Maybe you're right. You've told me to go away enough that that's what I'm gonna do."

Fuck you both.

"You didn't tell us there was a problem!" And holy fuck does Chuck not want to do this now. "Yancy didn't know and he knows you better than anybody! You didn't trust us to be able to deal with what you were feeling, Raleigh, I need a fucking reason not to think you won't leave us again because I can't--"

And it's stupid and he's exhausted and he's still getting the shit out of his system but he's feeling tears prick his eyes and he hates it.

"I can't watch you leave again, Raleigh." It tore him up once, he's not sure he'd survive it again.

"I don't have reasons! It's not like I can pick up a fucking box and go 'oh this one will do!' I just gave you all I had!"

What the fuck else do you want from him?

"Don't worry. This is the last time you'll ever see me. I'm gonna do you a favor and never contact you again."

He's starting to stomp out.

"Raleigh, stop."

Yancy has had enough of you both.

Raleigh stops.

"Sit down, kid. Chuck - you're gonna have to elaborate what you mean by reason for him. He doesn't understand."

Raleigh gives Yancy a murderous look, but he sits down and folds his arms.

Chuck can feel himself curling in, heat pressing at his eyes and nose and he's a grown fucking man and he's not going to cry. Not over Raleigh. ~~Not again.~~

"You know what I'm talking about though, right?" he asks Yancy, voice rough. "We can't just be together just because he changed his mind." He turns back to Raleigh though it's hard to look directly at him. "What are we supposed to do if you change your mind back? It's...it's like you said, you said you'd try, and you tried it and you couldn't do it. Other than missing us, what's changed? What are you going to do to stop this happening again?"

How can he trust Raleigh not to go over all jealous on them again?

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