Don't Fall Apart On Me Tonight

Jonan decides to have our session after lunch instead of after dinner as usual. When I step out of his office Casey appears at my side almost immediately. He pokes his head in Jonan's office and smiles sweetly. 

"Can Chretion and I go swimming?" He asks. 

Jonan nods in agreement and grins. "Have fun." 

Casey beams and grabs my wrist. "C'mon! The weather's perfect and the water is amazing and everyone went to The Y already and we'll have the whole pool to ourselves and I can finally use the goggles without someone yelling at me and-"

"Casey!" I pull him to a stop and grab onto his shoulders. "Calm down! We'll go swimming. There's no need to have a fucking heart attack."

He blushes and nods. "Sorry. It's the meds." 

I smile at him. "Yeah, okay. Go get changed. I'll meet you outside the pool showers."

Casey grins at me and skips off down the hall to his room. I quickly change into my board shorts and flip flops. Casey waits somewhat patiently outside the pool showers and bounces up and down slightly as we rinse ourselves of in the freezing cold water. 

My friend runs past me and dives into the pool. I laugh and watch as he kicks to the surface. "Chretion, let's go! I can't play Marco Polo by myself!" 

I shake my head at him and jump into the cool water. As soon as my head breaks the surface Casey jumps on my back, dunking us both. I come up coughing and he just laughs. I send a wave of chlorinated water into his face and his laughter ceases immediately. 

His eyes widen in shock before grinning evilly and disappearing under the water. I search for him frantically before I feel a hand wrap around my ankle. I'm pulled under the surface once again, thriller movie style.

I pull my leg out of his grasp and strategically swim out of his way to the edge of the pool. I watch as Casey's head pops out of the water. His hair is plastered to his forehead and he looks around confusedly. I make sure to stay out of his line of sight, contemplating my next move. 

Casey has started a war and I'm not one to give up fights easily.

I swim up behind quietly as he's fixing his hair out of his eyes. I wrap one hand around one of his wrists and twist his arm behind his back.

Casey yelps in surprise but laughs shortly thereafter. Our legs brush against each other as we try to keep ourselves afloat. I bring my other hand up to grasp the back of his neck and he starts to struggle as I push his head back under the surface, laughing. 

He sends a strategic kick to my shins and I let him go in the split second pain that shoots up my leg. Casey takes this opportunity to latch onto my side. 

"You play dirty, young grasshopper." He laughs, trying to regulate his breathing. 

"That's the only way to play." I joke, swimming back towards the shallow end with him still on my back.

**************

"So," Casey starts. "I know we haven't really known each other that long and you don't have to if you don't want to but I was wondering-"

"-if I'd tell you why I'm here?" I finish for him, plucking the question from the air between us. Casey blushes a little bit and nods.

It's just after dinner and we're sitting outside on one of the porch swings watching the day wind down slowly.

I sigh and scratch the back of my neck which buzzes beneath my fingers. The twitches and tremors haven't subsided completely but they've become much less of a nuisance. I know how to deal with them now. "Too much partying. Drugs and alcohol." 

"Oh." He says softly. "That sucks."

I laugh bitterly. "Yeah, it sucks. But it helped me forget." 

"Helped you forget what?" He asks curiously. I can see the slight surprise of his own bluntness cross his face but I shrug to dismiss his anxiety. And suddenly I'm telling him my life story.

Well, not my entire life story. Just from the moment I came out up to now. Everything from my one night stands to my increasingly worse drug usage to Killian looking after me to him finally insisting I come here. I leave out a few gory details but for the most part, everything becomes out in the open. 

Casey listens silently, a somber expression on his features. "Killian sounds like an amazing friend to care enough to get you out of that situation."

"He really is." I muse. Every time I've thought about Killian this past week I start to realize more and more how much he really does care and just how much I took him for granted. I've come up with several plans to make it up to him. All the worry and the heartache. 

The first step is me getting through this program. That's what would make him the happiest, I think.

I'm just so lucky to have him and I've already sworn to myself to treat him that way. Like the royalty he deserves to be treated like. He'll be so much happier. I just can't wait until I can start. There's nothing more I want than to see him happy again. Hell, I just can wait to see him again, period. I seriously miss my best friend.

Casey lets out a huge yawn and I laugh, standing up and stretching. "C'mon. It's bedtime." 

He gives me an indignant look and pouts, crossing his arms over his chest playfully. "I'm not tired."

"You can't lie to me Casey. Hell, you can't lie to anybody. Let's go. It's already dark and lights out is in half an hour anyway. I don't know about you but I really don't want to be put on discipline." I reason.

Dicipline is for those who break the rules and usually consists of a series of unfavorable cleaning tasks. Cleaning out the pool, mopping the bathrooms, vacuuming the common area, doing the dishes. Each equally unappealing. 

Casey groans but stands and falls into step with me as I head back inside and up to our rooms. Casey's room is on the floor above mine so I wish him sweet dreams before walking down the hallway and closing the door to my room. I change into my Green Lantern pajamas quickly and settle into my chair, tearing open Killians latest letter.