InsaneJournal

Tweak says, "blame Canada!"

Savannah Monroe (savannah_monroe) wrote in omega_reality,
@ 2013-02-09 16:59:00

Entry tags:

*complete, 2013 02, character: alexis castle, character: brian kinney, character: bud hammond, character: claudia donovan, character: derek reese, character: dominic vail, character: douglas hammond, character: elaine barrish hammond, character: john connor, character: margaret barrish, character: marty deeks, character: maura isles, character: nell jones, character: oliver queen, character: robert callen, character: savannah monroe, character: sean hanna, character: thomas hammond, character: tim riggins, character: tommy merlyn, character: travis marks, character: troy bolton, dead: eric beale, dead: jenna hanna, dead: leon vance, dead: mike renko, dead: nathan ford, dead: nick green, dead: sheldon cooper

RP: Club night
Who: Everyone
Where: Rec center
When: Saturday, February 9, 2013
Summary: It's a Saturday night, but not everything goes according to plan

Saturday nights were nothing like before, but they were still fun. People got to sit around and play, sing, or just talk. It was even better without Brian's magical brownies.

Savannah enjoyed the singing, but her eyes were always on Marty and the twins. She would have never believed two years ago and she'd always be prepared for the worse, but she was. It was something else to put in the long list of 'things G was right about'. She was writing it to and kept it in her backpack, because one day, she would give it to him. She just knew it.

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Re: Tommy/TJ

hammond_tj
2013-02-09 03:21 am UTC (link)

"You trying to tell me something, Tommy-boy?" TJ raised an eyebrow and gave Tommy a playful once-over before. "You know, I'd say yes to you any night, but I've promised Travis not to sleep with any hot men but him." Shaking his head, he laughed softly.

Sobering a moment later, when he could see his friend was being entirely serious about his inquiries, TJ ran a hand over the back of his neck before continuing. "I've read the research. Didn't have much of a choice, really, all things considered. And, honestly? I don't have much use for it. Numbers can be made to say whatever the prevailing authority wants them to say. When you consider how many people have a variety of reasons not to admit to their desires by any definition, the numbers get really pointless."

TJ settled back more comfortably. "How do you know you like women?" he asked. "And I'm not being annoying. I mean it. How do you know when you want to take a woman to bed? Not when you're high or drunk and everything feels good. When you're clean and sober, how is it you know you want someone?

"Here's the thing. Sexuality, desire, attraction...it's all fluid. It's about people not body parts. At least, that's the way I see it. People identify as whatever they think they're supposed to, really, and the labels don't always have much to do with the behavior. While I might prefer men ninety-eight percent of the time and identify as gay, I can tell you for a fact there are more than a few straight men willing to fuck another man if they just want to get off. And there are men who go for years only having sex with women who meet that rare man they find attractive."

He regarded Tommy for a moment. "You want to tell me why you're asking? Or should I guess?"

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Re: Tommy/TJ

tommy_merlyn
2013-02-09 03:55 am UTC (link)

"Because I've decided that I'm in love with you," he deadpanned. "Yes, you got me. I've been hesitating, wondering how to tell you about the depth of my feelings for you," he added, before snorting. "But, for Travis' sake, I'll have to keep these feelings hidden and you can go on fucking him."

It would be so easy to leave it at that. In a way, Thomas had given him the perfect way out, but he'd been the one to start all of this. "So basically, people are straight because society tells them and would fuck anything? I don't know if I buy that, because if you're right, why the hell would you want to identify as gay? Do what's convenient, and be straight, except you're not."

Tommy thought about the question, but he had no real answer. "I like them, because I do, because it never cross my mind not to, because I like to get laid, because they have boobs, because it's what I do. I party with models, I play strip football, I fuck women I can't remember a week later even if I'm sober. There hasn't been anyone long term in... well ever, unless you count bullshit relationships in high school, and even then, I was mostly lying to get laid. And sober is a recent development too."

He shook his head. When he put it like that, the emptiness of his life was even more obvious. "Christ, my father was right; I am pathetic."

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Re: Tommy/TJ

hammond_tj
2013-02-09 06:05 pm UTC (link)

"I'm sorry, are we talking about you or me, here? Because I could swear 'my father was right; I am pathetic' is my line," TJ teased. "That's not what I'm saying, though."

Turning, he propped his head up on his hand on the back of the couch. "Society has a part of it, but what I'm saying is that gay, straight, bi...there's no clear line a person can point to and say 'there! that's where one becomes the other'. Males do not represent two discrete populations, heterosexual and homosexual....The living world is a continuum in each and every one of its aspects. Kinsey wrote that in the introduction to his Heterosexual-Homosexual Rating Scale. Using his scale, I'm probably about a five, mostly gay with an occasional interest in women. I told my brother once that just because you get dealt the gay card it doesn't take breasts off the table.

"If you're starting to think you're attracted to a man -- and please tell me it's Queen because I'll have to start questioning your judgement if it's any of the other available men here. Well, maybe not if it's Doug. You don't stand a chance in hell, since he's definitely a zero on Kinsey's scale, but you'd have good taste. Anyway, if you're starting to be attracted to a man, it doesn't mean you're gay, either. I don't think Travis is gay, even though we're together. He's as gay as I am straight. Women are his preference, but occasionally he's attracted to men. And I'm just irresistible," he added with a smirk.

TJ thought for a moment before continuing. He wasn't sure about whether or not to say anything. But, in the end, maybe his fucked up experiences would help Tommy. The man was the closest thing TJ had to a friend by Travis' definition, even if they weren't all that close, defined as they had been by their world. "Look, if anyone knows how confusing it can be, it's me. When I came out...God, I was fourteen and didn't really understand anything. Gay, straight, it was all vague concepts and the social conversation was still only really beginning, even in the nineties. I didn't get that half the country would consider me the spawn of Satan and the other half a champion of gay rights. All I knew was that Joshua Billings had beautiful green eyes and lips that fueled a lot of teenage jerk-off fantasies. He didn't know how to keep his mouth shut once we got a taste of some of those fantasies. But, that's neither here nor there.

"The point is, it's confusing to suddenly find oneself attracted to someone you don't think you should be, whether that's because of gender or class or sheer irritating optimism. But, if it was just about sex and getting laid, there are single, available women here you could be attracted to instead."

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Re: Tommy/TJ

tommy_merlyn
2013-02-09 06:43 pm UTC (link)

"Sorry, that's my line. I copyrighted it long ago. In fact, my father will tell the world how pathetic I am. Well, maybe not now that I'm dead. It's always bad form to speak ill of the dead," he said, nodding. "Shit, Thomas, if your father thinks you're pathetic, you haven't met mine. Your parents are absolute balls of love and affection compared to mine. Not that it really matters anymore." He was never going to fix things with his father. Then again, he never thought he would before coming to this dimension.

Tommy chuckled. "Did you memorize that? Admit it; you ad to for the press." He couldn't even imagine what it was like for Thomas. Even in his circles, you weren't gay. It was simple at that. Homosexuality made you weak, unpopular, an handicap in business. You were straight and that was that.

"I hate it to break it to you, but if you fuck a guy, you're gay,' Tommy answered. "Whether the guy is irresistible or not. Okay, maybe not if you're desperate. You know, like people with life sentences. It's not like they will ever see a woman again" And wasn't this just another jail? They might not have cells and bars, but it wasn't much different. "I told you, I'm desperately in love with you. Douglas' virtue is safe with me."

He snorted. "Spawn of Satan? You sound like Savannah now. Not a comparison I'd have thought to make before now." He raised an eyebrow. "If you're about to tell me that you're grandmother is available, I swear, I'm going to hit you." He sighed again. "But, there aren't available women, not the women I date. One, I don't date doctors that stick their fingers inside my body, thank you very much. Two, I don't date nerds, which pretty much excludes all three available women, and yes, I know exactly who's available."

He sat up, looking at Oliver who was speaking with Isles. "I don't know, Thomas. I've missed him so much for so long. I thought he'd died and with him a part of me, and now we're together 24/7, but everything is screwed up. We partied together, we picked up women together, we lived life together. We did not have sex together, and he is straight. Let's not forget that part. Oliver Queen is very, very straight, with his girlfriends and flings, mostly the two co-existed too, or at least they did before the shipwreck. Now, he's just... I don't know. Five years on that island, you'd think he'd fuck his way through Starling City, but instead he was with one woman, just one. This isn't confusing, this is insane, and I keep thinking that it's just because we're stuck here instead of being home."

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Re: Tommy/TJ

hammond_tj
2013-02-10 04:40 am UTC (link)

"All that means is both our fathers have fucked us up, or we've let them," TJ replied seriously. "Your father isn't here, Tommy. You have the same chance I took when we left these people before: to live for yourself and not for him."

Rolling his eyes, TJ laughed. "You don't think I looked up medical studies for entertainment, do you?" As he'd gotten older and it became more of a talking point, TJ had lost count of the number of aids feeding him quotes and numbers as if any of it meant anything concrete. The tone always changed subtly for the audience, even if the same numbers were used.

"By that argument, if you fuck a woman, you're straight. I've fucked women. Would you seriously call me straight?" He snorted and shook his head. "I might sound like her, but it's people like her that used the term. I'm just quoting them. You should have seen some of the letters I got back then, the things that come up on a google search for my name are equally as entertaining. But, that's beside the point. I didn't say you would date the available women -- and so not thinking of you and Nana, no." TJ shuddered. "I said sex and getting laid, neither of which requires dating. Dating is a very different thing."

And clearly Tommy wasn't just thinking about sex and physical attraction to other men, not the way he was talking about Queen. "Honestly? Because the two of you were so close at home, maybe it's possible. You're all either one has; you're close friends, which we both know is rare in the circles we travel. It very well might be that you're...clinging to the familiar. Or, it could be that, outside of that world you're finally allowing yourself to feel something you've felt all along.

"I don't think being here has made any of these men gay. For those I have knowledge of, they had desires that way before coming here. At most the things holding them back from acting on it have been removed."

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Re: Tommy/TJ

tommy_merlyn
2013-02-10 04:59 am UTC (link)

"My father wasn't here, even when we were in the same place," he said, sighing. "He disappeared the moment my mother died, and then it was me, the help and Oliver. That's the difference between us. We both have father who fucked us up, but I never lived for mine. I never cared enough about what he thought. At least until he cut off my trust off. Other than that, I don't give a damn about what he wants."

Tommy chuckled. "Strange, I always thought that underneath the Armani suits, you were really a geek at heart. "God, it really must suck to be you. I'll take my brand of rich any day of the week. At least people expect me to screw up regularly and no one really cares when I do."

He knew what Thomas was saying, and yet the argument felt uneven. If you fuck a woman, you're just doing what you're supposed to? I get what you're saying, but it still feels different, and I don't think I can even express why without sounding totally homophobic, which... that's not what it is, it's just men and women, that's just how things are in our world." He turned his head to look at TJ. "People were just jealous. You're rich, famous, good looking. Women were upset because they lost that imaginary chance and men were threatened because if the first son comes out, who else? It was never about you, and it sucks, but that's life." Tommy laughed. "Sex and dating go hand in hand with women, at least most of the times. That's why you pretend to date them and lie to them. That's something you've never learned."

Maybe he was confused, but he couldn't imagine Oliver going through the same thing, not when he barely blinked when Tommy touched him. "Honestly? He's still very straight, and what I may or may not feel is irrelevant. He means too much to me to ruin our friendship for something I'm not even sure about, because the caring is easy. We've been inseparable since we were children. The logistics of getting laid, so not simple. And, yes, I know I brought it up, but I needed to say it aloud to realize just how absurd it is."

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Re: Tommy/TJ

hammond_tj
2013-02-10 09:13 pm UTC (link)

"We both have fathers we let fuck us up," TJ murmured. "I think you give more of a damn than you want to admit, just like I do." Sighing, he reached out to grip Tommy's shoulder briefly. "No matter that he's here or not, or that mine is still hovering over my shoulder, likely passing judgement on each choice, we still have that chance."

He laughed softly. "I might be a little smarter than I look, but not geek-level. Following Dr. Isles' conversation at dinner is...an exercise sometimes." Sitting back again, he sighed more heavily. "'The troubled former first son'," he said, actually doing the air quotes. "Honestly? I don't really care what the public thinks. It's not like they saw much I didn't want them to unless it involved someone else leaking information."

TJ snorted. "Of course it was never about me. Neither were the imaginary chances. Or the dashed hopes, the letters, the media reports. Trust me, that's not news to me. And I never learned that particular lesson about dating and sex because I could supply the best party money can buy. Besides, what women needs to date me when she can tell her friends she had sex, alone or in a threesome, with the gay first son? Also, not about me. It's not like there was a line of gay men clamoring to date me, either. They'd have to come out themselves to do that. It was never going to happen at home."

He shook his head. "It's not absurd. Look, I'm hardly the foremost expert on relationships. Before Travis there was one man, it was very secret, and it ended very badly. But, I do know a little something about straight men who find themselves attracted to other men: It takes a metaphoric two-by-four to the head to make them see it for what it is. Your problem is that both of you are straight, or have been, so there's no one to pick up that two-by-four. And, no offense to your best friend and potential love, but Queen strikes me as about as emotionally forthcoming as the two-by-four. He could have similar feelings and you'll never know if you don't say something because I'm not sure he'd recognize them for what they were. Not if he's been that isolated from people for that long.

"The logistics of sex aren't really all that complicated. It's the exact same concept as sex with women: do what feels good and what gets you both off. Neither one of you has to take it up the ass if you don't want to. There are very, very gay men who refuse to. Or suck the other off. I don't give blowjobs and I'm a 'gay icon'. As much as I can't believe the words I'm about to say are coming out of my mouth, if you both have feelings for each other, the sex will work itself out because it's secondary to the rest."

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Re: Tommy/TJ

tommy_merlyn
2013-02-10 10:29 pm UTC (link)

Tommy shook his head. "No, I don't. I used to, but I stopped long ago. When you only see your only parent three times a year, you stop caring or expecting anything. I haven't lived for him in a very long time. I'm not sure I lived for me either; so I guess I can do that part."

He chuckled. "I can imagine. She's lucky she's staying with you. I can't imagine many people getting what she's saying, or even caring enough to pay attention. She should learn about different rifles and how far they can shoot accurately and she'll be the belle of the ball." Tommy patted Thomas' leg. "The troubled former first son seems pretty untroubled to me, so fuck what anyone says or thinks."

There were a lot of things that were never going to happen at home, like Tommy even considering what Thomas was saying. "Oliver doesn't react well to feelings. Usually lies, cheating and getting drunk follow any and all love declarations. Sometimes the cheating happens with the girlfriend's barely legal sister. That was before he was isolated, so I can't blame that island for that," he said, chuckling.

"That's also why I can't say anything. Oliver doesn't really do relationships. He has sex and pretends to be in a relationship until he can find sex elsewhere and right now, he's not even looking for sex." Tommy looked at Thomas amused. "Sex is secondary? Are you sure you haven't been taken over by aliens?" He sat back, leaning slightly against Thomas. "I never even thought about another guy. Forget about sex; I've never even considered kissing another guy, and I can't start with the straight man who doesn't do relationships, because that would end our friendship, and it's way more important than something I'm not even sure about." He turned his head and looked at Thomas. "Thank you, though. You're a good friend."

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Re: Tommy/TJ

hammond_tj
2013-02-11 03:30 am UTC (link)

"And you still say 'my father was right; I am pathetic'." TJ raised an eyebrow, but said nothing further. Tommy didn't need him to push. "Hey, if I can start trying to live for myself with my parents right here, anyone can," he teased.

"Oh, I'm sure she knows already." TJ laughed. "Thankfully, she doesn't seem to have any interest in explaining bullet trajectories unless someone else brings it up and she feels a need to correct their facts."

Smiling, he sought out Travis in the room with his eyes. "The troubled former first son found someone to help deal with the troubles. And might also have been possessed by space aliens," he agreed with a smirk. "Still getting used to that part myself. But, I'll you what. If Travis ever figures out he deserves better and breaks up with me, I'll be sure to rebound towards you so you can find out if it's men or just Queen. Then you can tell him how awful it was to be the rebound guy and open the conversation that way. If he doesn't freak because you were with a guy, it bodes well for not freaking when you finally give in and kiss him."

Staring at Tommy, h blinked in surprise at his last statement. It was possibly the first time anyone had ever said that while they were both sober and he hadn't just given them the good drugs for later. "Well, if that's true, I guess it's probably about time you started calling me TJ instead of Thomas. And you're welcome."

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Re: Tommy/TJ

tommy_merlyn
2013-02-11 04:04 am UTC (link)

"That's because in this particular circumstance, he might be right. It happened. On occasion," he said chuckling. "I'm man enough to admit it when it happens."

Tommy snorted. "Except those people would actually shoot her to prove how theory and practice vary, and the impact of external factors like the wind or if you're left eyed instead of right eyed, and which hand you shoot with. For someone who claims not to like research and theory, Savannah sure knows a lot about how many ways you can shoot and kill someone. We're starting on bows and arrows, if you'd like to join us."

He laughed at the next comment. "So basically I have to hope that you break up with the man who's helping you deal with the trouble, so we can be troubled together. It sounds like such an amazing plan. You know, if we were high, which we aren't. How about we give up the plan, you stay with the person that makes you smile like that, and I keep my lips to myself." He nodded "And TJ it is, and now I'm going to let you go, because you're about to have company. Good luck with that." He winked at Tj and got up. "I'll see you later."

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