Ashley Karas (thehellamidoing) wrote in worldsapart_ic, @ 2019-08-04 19:43:00 |
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Entry tags: | ashley karas, cameron lakota |
Who: Ashley Karas & Cameron Lakota
What: Getting Sir Limps-a-lot home
When: After this [backdated]
Where: Cameron's place
Rating: Low
Cameron was exhausted. Mentally, physically and emotionally. He never would have thought coming off a stage would have such an impact but apparently, it did. The hours spent down in the ER probably hadn't helped but he was lucky that he had good friends, friends like Waverley and Mariana, one of which had come to keep him company while the other had gone round to his place to get it ready for his arrival.
And then there was Ashley who true to his word was waiting to give him a lift home which as it turned out was actually needed because Cameron had a fractured ankle and a set of crutches to hobble about on until the ankle was fully healed. Getting into his apartment proved more trouble than it should have been but eventually, between the two of them, they got him inside.
"I'm going to get changed," he said, indicating towards his bedroom with his head. "Feel free to make yourself at home, grab something to eat or drink, mi casa et su casa."
He tossed the bag of painkillers he'd been given onto the side before making his way towards his room.
Ashley had driven Cameron back with the intention of at least ribbing him a little bit about having broken his ankle falling off the stage but honestly, the guy looked like he was in a lot of pain and he seemed embarrassed enough about what had gone down that Ashley refrained. He wasn't a total jerk, after all.
He rubbed the side of his neck and shrugged out of his jacket, hat resting on a nearby table as he toed off his boots. They were dusty and Cameron looked like he had a nice apartment - much nicer than the motel Ashley was currently calling home.
"Ain't so sure that's a wise idea, Cam," he called, after the fire-manipulator had hobbled into the bedroom. He did, however, locate glasses in the kitchen and bottled water in the fridge so he poured Cameron a glass of that and cracked open a beer for himself. One wasn't gonna kill him and he'd driven after having had many more than that.
Hand outstretched, Ashley summoned the painkillers and had a look at the pill bottles when they flew into his palm. There was a small note with the next timings on; Cameron was due some in about half an hour. But they had to be taken with food.
Aw shit.
"You hungry?" he called, figuring he could at least put something on for the guy. "You need to eat somethin'."
Cameron grimaced as he rested the crutches on the wall near his bathroom and he basically hopped into it to fish out his contact lenses because he wanted to be comfortable and right now he didn't even care that Ashley would seem him in his glasses. Like at all. His vision blurred for a moment before it cleared right up when he slipped his glasses on and blew out a breath, hand fiddling with and ruffling his hair. Not his strongest or greatest look but whatever.
"I could eat," he answered back as he made it through to his bedroom and slipped out of his stage clothes as best he could, the jeans weren't an issue given that the doctor had basically cut them off of him and Waverley had brought him a loose pair of jogging pants to wear. He rummaged out a sweater and tugged that on before he just breathed as apparently changing clothes was exhausting, more so than it had any right to be.
Ugh.
Cameron didn't even want to think about how much he was going to have to dip into his pot of savings in order to keep things running while he recovered from this stupid injury but maybe he could still work if he thought about his set differently?
"Anythin' in particular you're lookin' to eat?" There was bread and stuff in the fridge to make a sandwich and that was probably enough for it being three am and honestly they should be sleeping rather than doing anything else, but he was positive Cameron hadn't eaten since before his set had started and that was a long time ago, and he needed something in his stomach so that the good meds didn't make his brain trip out too much.
He carefully opened and closed a couple of cupboard doors in the interest of trying to find plates, which he did after three attempts, and took a sip of his beer.
"Y'okay with a sandwich?"
"Yeah, a sandwich works," Cameron said as he appeared out of his room aided by crutches as he headed over to pick up and down half the glass of water. Apparently, he was thirsty, go figure.
He knew how late or rather early it was and he was super conscious that he'd already taken up a lot of Ashley's time.
"You don't have to stay if you don't want to or you need to get home. I think I've already eaten up a lot of your time and hopefully, I didn't ruin your evening too much?"
"Ain't no trouble," Ashley said with a little shrug of his shoulders, swallowing a little as he took in the sight of Cameron in his natural habitat. Fuck, he was gorgeous. His throat felt dry all of a sudden so he took a sip of his beer and turned to start preparing sandwiches. "Got nothin' better to be doin' than lookin' after someone as needs it."
He rubbed the back of his neck and then washed his hands before touching any of the actual food.
"You should go sit down, take a load off that ankle o' yours."
"I appreciate it," Cameron assured Ashley with a warm smile because he did. Ashley hadn't needed to come out, could have told him to grab a cab, but he hadn't. "Alright, alright," he said as he collected up his crutches and headed in the direction of his couch.
He bit his lower lip as he shifted to get settled and exhaled a breath as he propped his ankle up on the nearby coffee table.
Nope. Ashley returned the small smile but looked away quickly on the basis that Cameron wasn't the kind of guy that you just fucked and left and Ashley actually liked the guy and didn't want to fuck up one of the precious few friendships he'd managed to make here. Besides, just because he danced in Midnight and had flirted back when they met a little while ago in front of Ashley's beaten up truck didn't mean that Ashley was his type. Didn't mean that he was down to do the only thing Ashley was capable of.
He dried off his hands and glanced over, frowning a little before he moved through and grabbed a spare pillow, fluffing it up and gently lifting Cameron's leg so he could slot the pillow underneath his foot; it made it more comfortable to rest against the table and propped it up at a slightly better angle. Another pillow followed a second later; "Stick that under your back at the bottom. It'll stop your glutes from seizing up."
And with that, he went back to the open-plan kitchenette to go and start making that sandwich.
Cameron lifted his eyebrows when Ashley fussed with pillows and gave him a second pillow, for his back, and he accepted it without commentary. He had a feeling that if he teased the other man right now he might seize up and that was the last thing he wanted. Cameron did as instructed, he slid the pillow he'd been given behind his back and shifted so it was pressed against his lower back.
He buried his fingers into his hair as his other hand sought out the television remote as it was possible that some really crappy tv was on that they wouldn't have to think about.
"Does that at least feel a lil' better?" Ashley asked, moving around and finishing up the sandwich. It wasn't often that he got to be in an actual kitchen - which he quite liked - but it was too late for him to whip out proper food of any kind. The middle of the night wasn't the right time to make a nice meal.
He would say 'maybe next time' but he'd learned that hope was far too much of a dangerous thing.
Refilling the glass with water, he padded around to see Cameron with his fingers in his hair and he damn nearly dropped the plates. Fuck. He'd thought the guy was hot when he was on stage without the glitter and the make up. But in sweatpants and an oversizes sweater, hair a mess and glasses on there was something ethereal about him and fuck.
Well, he was fae-touched after all. He had to be, to control fire. Ashley had always thought he'd gotten the rough end of the stick with that; he had the powers, sure, but he didn't have the ability to stop people in their tracks with his looks. He did well enough for getting free shit - and for getting into shit - but it wasn't the same.
"Uh- here. Ain't much but it's late an' really you should be goin' to sleep."
"Yeah, yeah it does," Cameron readily agreed because it did feel a lot better, more than he thought possible with a pillow. He glanced up at Ashley through the lenses of his glasses and offered him a soft smile as the sight of him with those loose curls, plates in hand, a small furrow in his brow from where he'd clearly been concentrating on not dropping anything was something else. It really was.
He leaned forward to take the plate. "Hush," he admonished quietly. "It's better than anything I could have done on my own, Ashley."
Ashley was right, he should be sleeping, but now that he was home he didn't know if he'd be able to.
"Youda probably just called an ubereats or somethin'," Ashley pointed out, "an' let them let themselves in 'cause you ain't gonna get up twice to lock that door."
He grinned a little and relinquished the plate, tugging the small side table a little closer to Cameron's side of the couch to rest the glass on.
"Get this down you an' then you can take your painkillers an' go to bed. It's damn late."
"It really is, " Cameron agreed with a nod of his head. "I mean if you wanted to crash here tonight you're welcome to. The couch is pretty comfortable and I have some spare pillows and blankets?" He took his first bite out of his sandwich as he waited to hear what Ashley would say.
Ashley eyed Cameron for a second, years of disingenuine offers warring with the desire to actually sleep somewhere warm and comfortable that wasn't the bed of his truck or the crappy, lumpy motel mattress he was currently stuck with. He wet his lower lip and lifted a shoulder.
"Don't wanna put you out none," he said, finally, looking away and stuffing his hands in his pockets.
Cameron washed back a mouthful of his sandwich and shook his head. "Seriously, you wouldn't. I mean, you basically came out in the middle of the night to pick me up and drive me home. If anything I'm the one who put you out this evening." He offered Ashley a soft reassuring smile. "So, if you want to, you'd be welcome."
"'s not like I was doin' anythin' else," Ashley said honestly, hoping he didn't look as awkward as he felt. He wasn't used to people thanking him in ways that didn't involve a handshake and a 'off you go'. He had to look away when Cameron smiled at him, stomach twisting in a way he wasn't familiar with in response. "'sides, it'd have been shitty if you'd had to uber back home or somethin'."
"I don't even want to think about what sort of uber driver I would have wound up with at this time of night, morning, whatever." Cameron shook his head before he took a further bite from his sandwich. He combed his fingers through his hair and frowned slightly when his touch felt cooler than it normally did but he figured that was to be expected, shock or whatever, he had fallen off a stage after a fan had rushed it after all.
Ashley snorted. "Yeah, you've probably hadta bring your own stuff in an' no one woulda made you a crappy sandwich." He grinned a little and flopped himself down in the armchair. "s about time for you to take your next pain med thing too, accordin' to your schedule. Figure you can finish up your food an' take it 'fore I get you into bed for the night."
"Yep, absolutely." Cameron gave a soft laugh before he held up a finger to indicate that there was something to do before he took his next pain med and with the assistance of his crutches he headed over to a nearby cupboard. He dug out some spare blankets and pillows that he kept on hand in case his friends felt like crashing and thankfully all were clean so that wasn't something he needed to be concerned about.
He knew he wouldn't remember to find those when the pain med kicked in so better to do it now rather than later.
"Shit, Cameron," Ashley said, getting to his feet and taking the items off him before he fell over again trying to balance it all, powers reaching out almost without his permission to support Cameron without touching him physically, though the slight cushioning of air was probably able to be felt. "Coulda just told me where they were, yanno."
He hovered awkwardly, not wanting to help where it wasn't needed - or wanted - but still not wanting Cameron to topple over less than two hours after he'd been carefully handed over to his care by the very beautiful Waverley.
"Sit your ass down, man."
Cameron was stubborn. Stupidly so. He'd always been that way, ever since he was a kid, and whilst he'd definitely gotten better at accepting help from others there were still moments where he struggled. Of course what he hadn't been expected was to feel was that cushion of air around him that did in fact catch him whenever he stumbled and he shot Ashley a grateful look as that could have been nasty.
"Fine, fine," he said with a roll of his eyes as he returned to the couch with blankets and pillows still in his arms. "For reference, that's where these are kept."
"Ah, yeah," Ashley drawled, "for all the future time I'm gonna be crashin' on your couch."
He smiled a little, hoping Cameron hadn't noticed him using his heretofore hidden ability but even if he had, he hadn't said anything negative so Ashley just figured that was a small win.
"Finish off your sandwich, man, I still gotta get you to bed." He moved a little closer, sitting on the other side of the couch this time, fussing with the blankets before putting them on the back of the chair. "You think you're gonna need anythin' else?"
Cameron did as he was told, finished up his sandwich, and then popped out the pain med that he swallowed with a mouthful of water. "Mm, no, I think I should be okay soon as this pill kicks in and the pain in my ankle lessens." He'd probably strip out of his sweater for bed though or he might wake up feeling like he was melting. Most of the time he did in fact sleep naked, the upside to never really feeling cold, but he couldn't do that with company.
Ashley hummed a little. "You're gonna be waiting at least three weeks 'fore the pain settles properly, and even then for a little while longer after before it stops achin' when you move it funny. Make sure you don't just keep it on one place once they take the splint off else you'll lose all the movement an' have to work it up again in physio and shit."
He rubbed the back of his neck, "You need a hand gettin' to your room?"
Ashley seemed to know a lot about broken bones or so Cameron had noticed. "You know a lot about what to do with broken bones it would seem." He thought about saying no that he didn't need a hand but honestly he was starting to feel the events of the night including the oh so painful poking and prodding which had happened by both the paramedics and the doctors so a little help wouldn't hurt.
"Yeah, please."
Ashley collected the plate and waited for Cameron to finish the water before putting them back in the kitchen and then he held a hand out. Once Cameron took it, he carefully hauled him to his feet and tucked himself underneath the performer's arm on the hurt side, so he could adequately take his weight as they hobbled into the bedroom, guided by Cameron waving his hand vaguely in the right direction.
"You pick shit up," he offered, "some things you gotta learn real fast."
"That's true," Cameron agreed with a nod of his head as he leaned on Ashley in order to get to his bedroom. Thankfully it was mostly tidy, a little messy, but still tidy enough. Most importantly there was nothing embarrassing out for all to see and by all he, of course, meant Ashley.
He exhaled a breath as Ashley helped him to his bed and then grimaced as his ankle was definitely complaining now which was not fun, at all.
"You should be comfortable on the couch, I definitely bought it on the basis of comfort."
"Darlin'," Ashley said patiently as he settled Cameron on the bed and took his glasses off his face to fold them neatly on the bedside table. "I've slept in worse places and on far less comfortable couches. Don't you worry 'bout me none."
He moved away to grab another pillow, tugging the sheets back and placing it down at the foot of the bed. "Foot on there, okay? An' I'm a light sleeper so if you need anythin' in the night you just shout, okay?"
Cameron chuckled. "Okay, okay." He ignored the weird feeling that stirred in the pit of his stomach when Ashley called him 'Darlin' because yeah he was southern it just made sense that he'd come out with something like that. Didn't mean anything.
He hesitated but only for a moment as he caught on the hem of his sweater and he tugged it off as there was no way he was sleeping in it, tossing it onto the nearby chair before he shifted his weight so he was able to lie back into bed and put his foot up on the pillow.
"That look right?"
"Just about," Ashley said, clearing his throat as he did his best to focus on the boot-covered foot and not the tanned expanse of chest suddenly on display in front of him. He wet his lower lip and rubbed his hand through his curls before he moved a little closer to fix the sheets, resisting the urge he had to reach out and brush his fingers along the sharp line of Cameron's cheekbones. "Thanks for lettin' me stay, Cam."
"Least I could do considering how much you put yourself out for me tonight," Cameron answered with a smile directed at the other man as he slid an arm under the pillow and shifted to get a little more comfortable.
"You gotta stop makin' it out like I did somethin' special," Ashley muttered, ducking his head and backing up towards the door. "Sleep well, man. See you in the mornin'."
He swallowed again and flicked off the light, pulling the door shut behind himself as he headed into the lounge to set himself up on the couch for the night.
Cameron wasn't wrong; it was comfortable.