Story: Saving Elliot

Type: Canon

Word Count: 2k

Pairing(s): Benjamin O'Connor/Christopher Finley, Jamie Callahan/Christopher Finley

Summary: In which Finley is stuck between two idiots, goes to yet another boring party and has a heartbreaking realisation.

⇹

Oh that boy's a slag
The best you ever had
The best you ever had is just a memory
and those dreams weren't as daft as they seem
Not as daft as they seem,
My love, when you dream them up...

⇹

IT'S QUITE SAD. It's not romantic or anything like that, to be brutally honest, it only happened because he felt alone and kind of depressed and well, she was just so beautiful.

It happens at a house party. He can't remember whose party it was but he does remember the girl. She's tall, dark and looks like she came straight out of a Vogue magazine. You see, Finley's standing in the corner of the busy living room, glaring at his drink, feeling bitter about the fact Benjamin O'Connor already has his tongue shoved down some girl's throat. Finley's really starting to hate these house parties. Why does he keep coming to them? He glances up and sees O'Connor flash his signature grin at a red-haired girl. Finley grits his teeth and -

"Jesus Christ, are you even listening?"

Finley jolts in surprise as his green eyes flit over to his best friend. Elliot Jensen glares at him, her mouth is pressed into a fine line. He blinks. He forgot Jensen was talking to him. He must have zoned out when O'Connor came into his line of vision. Benjamin O'Connor has that effect on him.

"Uh, sorry, what?" he says.

She rolls her eyes and takes a sip of her drink. It's a cup of orange juice. She says she has no desire to get drunk. Jensen's not much of a drinker anyway. Which is a major disappointment because have you seen Elliot Jensen drunk? It's the best thing this side of England. Alcohol brings out a dangerously reckless side to her. The kind of reckless that is trademarked by the Jensen brothers. Finley would pay top money to see Jensen wrestle (actually wrestle) Theodore West again and win each time. He suspects she prefers to sit back and watch people make arseholes of themselves when they're drunk.

Jensen looks at O'Connor, who's gone back to kissing the redhead, and then back to Finley. She sighs and gives him a look he's seen a thousand times. It's one of pity and understanding and it makes him want to run and hide.

"Oh, Christopher," she says.

He swallows and feigns nonchalance. "What?"

"I thought you were over him," she says.

It takes all his energy not to look at O'Connor in that moment. "I am."

It's a half truth. He only gets like this when he's tipsy. Alcohol seems to ignite his feelings for O'Connor. It should be a great motivation to stop drinking but - but as much as this thing (whatever this thing is) with O'Connor hurts, he can't bring himself to let go.

"What about Jamie?" she asks.

Ugh. Jamie. O'Connor's cousin. He just moved to England from Ireland and much to O'Connor's dismay (and Finley's delight), Jamie started sixth form at St. George's. He's in the year below but he hangs with them most of the time.

Finley's not going to deny the fact Jamie's gorgeous and funny and he's some sort of music prodigy since he can play the piano (and thirteen other instruments) like you wouldn't believe. When he smiles dimples indent his cheeks and Finley is always so captivated, he forgets where he is for a moment. Did he mention Jamie was gorgeous? And his Irish accent. Don't get him started on the accent. Finley is starting to suspect he has a thing for charming Irish boys like Jamie Callahan and Benjamin O'Connor.

"Tam thinks he fancies you," she says with a smile.

Finley tries hard not to blush at that but he must fail because Jensen's smile transforms into a knowing smirk that's too reminiscent of Elliot Fintry's. She must be spending way too much time with that American.

Jamie Callahan isn't here to distract him from O'Connor or this increasingly depressive party. He's stuck at home with a pretty bad case of flu that doesn't look like it's going to clear up any time soon.

"And I agree, Jamie's amazing and I think you could be really happy with him," she says.

Finley stares down at his drink like it's the most fascinating thing in the world.

The thing is, if Finley's being completely honest with himself (which is a very rare occasion by the way), he might just have a tiny, burning crush on Jamie Callahan. He fears this crush will grow into a screaming forest fire, something deeper than what he has for O'Connor and if that happens he's well and truly fucked. It's confusing because he still has feelings for O'Connor and God knows how long it's going to take to get over that blond idiot. It's just that Jamie Callahan is remedy and sunshine, the kind you need after a long winter of sickness.

He sighs and takes a long gulp of his drink, it burns its way through his throat but leaves behind a warm, burning sensation. Holy shit, what even is this? Fuck it. He's getting plastered. He gulps the last of it down, and somehow manages not to cough his lungs out from the bitter taste.

"Fin, maybe you should -"

"I told you, El," he says with a slight frown, "I'm over him."

She raises an eyebrow.

He frowns, "I am."

"Then why have you been moping in the corner all night?" she asks. He can feel the alcohol working its way through his system. The world feels so light and warm.

"I...I haven't!" he says, distantly he's aware he sounds like a petulant child but doesn't care.

Her eyebrow is still raised. Finley grunts and he scans the room. That's when he sees her. She's standing between a painting of some obscure English countryside and a bay window that looks out onto the cold, evening street. She has high cheekbones and wavy black hair and long, slim legs. She's wearing this tight fitting mini-skirt and low cut top and just wow. As if sensing, she's being watched, her eyes snap over to him. Sharp, dark eyes that look black in the dim light. The corner of her mouth flicks upwards into an inviting smile.

He glances at Jensen, "I'm over O'Connor."

Goddamn Jensen. She doesn't know what she's talking about. He is over O'Connor. He'll show her.

"Fin, what are you doing?" she asks him but he's already heading over to the girl. He can feel Jensen's gaze on him. He shakes it off and concentrates on the girl. He's terrible at talking to girls (girls who aren't his sisters or Jensen and Tamara) and his especially terrible at talking to girls as beautiful as this one but the alcohol makes him brave.

"Aalia," she whispers it into his ear in a slow purr. He smells her perfume, it's sweet and rich and her close proximity makes his heart jump.

"Finley," he replies, his mouth rising into a smile Tamara says could make the Arctic melt. She even swears it made Jamie blush a few times.

He doesn't take his eyes off her as he takes a sip of his drink. Aalia bites her red lips as a vaguely familiar Adele song comes on. She takes his hand and leads him onto the dance floor. They're dancing for maybe two minutes before the closeness becomes too much and he has to kiss her. He can't help himself. She's so gorgeous and he needs a distraction from O'Connor (and Jamie) and her mouth is so hot and his head is spinning. Everything's a blur from there as the alcohol he downed begins to take effect. Aalia says something about going upstairs as their kisses turn heavy and heated and he says yes because why the fuck not? If O'Connor can make out with random girls and not care about whose heart he breaks in the process then so can he.

They stumble into a bedroom as they yank each other's clothes off between kisses. It's quieter here. The blaring music from the party is a muffled hum. Finley lands on the bed and Aalia clambers on top of him, dressed in nothing but her bra and knickers. He pushes all thoughts of Benjamin O'Connor and Jamie Callahan out of his mind and kisses Aalia. Everything is so hazy and too hot and filled with the sound of his heart drumming hard in his chest. She yanks his top off and throws it across the room. She's on his mouth in a second as her hand slides down his stomach onto the elastic band of his boxer and her other hand slips into his dark hair. Fuck, he can't-

BUZZ. BUZZ. BUZZ. BUZZ.

Finley's eyes snap open. His mobile buzzes almost violently in his back pocket. He turns his head and Aalia seems to think that's an invitation to suck on his neck. He can't find the words to let her to just pause for a second. He grabs her hips and turns her over, so he's lying on top. He doesn't really get a chance to really appreciate just how beautiful she is since his phone is still buzzing in his pocket.

"Wait, wait," his voice sounds so hoarse, "one second."

He digs into his back pockets of his chinos and pulls out his mobile. He blinks, blinded by the bright light for a moment before his eyes finally adjust.

It's O'Connor. Why the hell is O'Connor ringing him? Shouldn't he be snogging that redhead?

He rolls off Aalia and slumps back on the bed. He stares at O'Connor's name on the screen, the phone still buzzing in his hands. He shouldn't answer it. He knows he shouldn't but -

"Who is it?" Aalia asks. She rises onto her elbow and flicks her hair behind her back.

He accepts the call without even thinking and he presses his phone to his ear.

"Fin!" O'Connor's booming voice cuts through the haze clouding his mind. Finley can hear the music blaring in the background as O'Connor tries to shout over it. "Fin! Hey, where are you? Listen, our song's playing! Come down! I wanna dance with you!"

It's then that Finley recognises Alex Turner's voice singing with the drums and guitars in the background. Fluorescent Adolescent. It's like a wave of cold water has crashed over him and he's left gasping for breath .It's their favourite song by the Arctic Monkeys.

"Landed in a very common crisis, everything's in order in a black hole!" Alex Turner sings to him through the phone. "Nothing seems as pretty as the past though..."

O'Connor made him promise he would dance with him whenever the song came on and Finley had foolishly accepted. It's so hard to deny O'Connor anything.

"Fin? Finley?" O'Connor shouts, "Can you hear me? Oh shit, look, wherever you are just come down into the living room, okay? Fin, listen, I want to -"

He ends the call. He closes his eyes and lets out a long sigh.

"You alright?" Aalia asks. He almost forgot she was there.

"Yeah, sorry," he says, suddenly feeling so empty and lost, "Not really in the mood anymore."

He thinks she says something but he's not listening. His mind is elsewhere. It's with a certain Irish boy. Maybe, Jensen's right. This thing (whatever this thing is) is a lost cause. Maybe it's time to let go. At some point, Finley falls into a dreamless sleep.

He wakes up a few hours later and slides out of bed. He wanders around the room, bleary-eyed and groggy, for a few moments until he finds his top and tugs it back on. He glances over at the bed, both relieved and a little disappointed to find that Aalia has gone. He's also glad to find the world isn't spinning anymore, meaning he's sobered up considerably. Yeah, he's still a little bit tipsy but at least he doesn't have the urge to throw up. That'll come later. He heads downstairs. The music has quietened down and there are far less people. A hand lands on his shoulder and he turns, expecting it to be Aalia or O'Connor but he's met with the familiar dark eyes of Elliot Fintry.

"There you are," he says, "Jensen's been looking for you, we're all waiting in the car."

"F-Fintry," he stammers.

Elliot quirks an eyebrow. "I'd ask you where you've been..." his dark eyes take in his dishevelled hair and the hickey at the base of his neck. "But, I can take a guess."

Finley rubs the back of his neck as he glances away, his cheeks are dusted pink, "Shit."

He practically hear the smirk in Elliot's voice, "You got laid didn't you?"

Finley winces. "No...No, I didn't."

"No?" Elliot says, his usually cool voice carries a tone of curiosity, "What happened?"

Finley licks his lips and glances away. "Nothing."

Elliot's eyes narrow for a second before he shrugs. "Alright then."

Finley sighs a breath of relief. God. If it had been Jensen, she would have pushed him into spilling all the details. He can't keep it quiet for long. O'Connor knows him too well and he bets plenty of people saw him head up the stairs with Aalia.

Fuck sake.

"Are you okay?" Elliot asks, the smirk has gone and he has this soft look on his face that looks so alien on him. Elliot Fintry doesn't do soft. He's only ever seen that expression directed at Jensen and he suddenly sees why she's fallen so deeply in love with the American.

"Yeah," he says but he's not. He feels like he's burning up inside. "I'm great."

Elliot gives his shoulder a sharp squeeze, yanking him back to reality. "You need to work on your acting skills."

He just wants to go home, have a shower and fall asleep (for eons). He looks at Elliot and he has a sudden, burning desire to have this boy's cold, efficient outlook on life.

"Look, can we just go?" Finley says.

Elliot nods and turns to leave. He follows him out of the door and into the chilly autumn air. Outside, birds are singing somewhere in the distance and he can see the small splashes of light on the horizon that tell him dawn is coming.

"What time is it?" he asks Elliot as they leave the small front yard and start walking down the street.

"Ten to five," he says.

Finley groans, "Thank God, it's Sunday tomorrow...wait, no, today."

It's then he spots O'Connor's car, a dark grey Peugeot. Jensen's waiting in the driver's seat and next to her, Tamara's scrolling through Tumblr on her mobile. He's about to ask where O'Connor is when he spots the blond, he's fallen asleep in the back with his face pressed against the window as he snores.

Jensen's blue eyes flicker up to him and she frowns, "Where the fuck did you go? What happened with that girl? You didn't do anything stupid did you?"

Finley falters for a moment, the haziness left behind by the alcohol makes it hard to think. "Uh...uhm, I..."

"Calm down, munchkin," Elliot says, throwing Jensen a smirk he knows will only piss her off, "he's here isn't he?"

"Don't call me that," she snaps at him, "Fuck sake, just...just get in the bloody car. I'm so tired, I might pass out. I need sleep."

Finley has never been more grateful for Elliot Fintry's uncanny ability to piss Elliot Jensen off more than he does now. He gives the American a grateful smile, who just nods in return and they both hop into the car. Finley sits in the middle with O'Connor on his right and Elliot on his left. The engine roars to life as Jensen turns the key and starts driving down the road. Tamara leans forward to switch the radio and the sound of the Arctic Monkeys fills the silent car.

"Oh that boy's a slag! The best you ever had, the best you ever had is just a memory," Alex Turner sings and Finley freezes. "And those dreams weren't as daft as they seem, not as daft as they seem, my love, when you dream them up..."

O'Connor shifts in his seat and lets out a sound close to a purr. It shoots straight down Finley's spine. He glances over at him. O'Connor's deep brown eyes flutter open and meet Finley's gaze.

"Fin," he says, his deep voice thick with sleep. He shifts in his seat again and rests his head on Finley's shoulder. "It's our song. Where...where were you? I looked for you...I wanted to dance with you. You're -" he yawns and snuggles closer to him, "you're the only one who...who...I could ever..."

Finley waits, his mouth parted and his breathing shallow but O'Connor doesn't finish his sentence.

"Oh that boy's a slag! The best you ever had!"

His eyes flutter shut once more as falls back to sleep. O'Connor's breath is warm on his neck and Finley feels his heartbeat picking up. Despite himself, a smile tugs at his mouth. He brushes an eyelash off O'Connor's cheek and sighs softly.

"Falling about, you took a left off Last Laugh Lane, you just sounded it out...You're not coming back again."

Finley looks out the window at the passing houses and shops and vows never to drink again. O'Connor sleeps soundly with his head on Finley's shoulder and he smells like citrus and fresh linen and with a heavy heart, Finley thinks - he thinks, yes, it's time to let go.

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Author's note: i actually meant to upload a THBS fragment (which is about half way done) but then i thought about finley and o'connor and i couldn't resist. i just love these two so much (but i like fin and jamie as well). anyway i hope you liked it! i will be upload the THBS fragment next, so keep an eye out for that.

- Rose xoxo