Blind Date
Author: Rayden Star
Date: January 31, 1999
Fandom: Walker, Texas Ranger/Sons of Thunder
Pairings: T/C
Archive: Yes
Notes: I don't own them, I do believe Norris Brothers
Productions does, and
I really don't want to piss those guys off, so no
copyright infringement is intended, I just wanted to
write a little love and a little romance. Thanks to
Bast for a quickie (get your mind out of the gutter!)
beta.
Summary: A blind date is the catalyst for our boys
to get together.
Warnings: None, unless you count m/m sex, and if you
do, then what the
dickens are you doing on this site anyway!
//I can't believe I'm doing this; I can't believe
I actually let Carlos talk me into one of his blind
dates. I must be nuts. I wish I could tell him
exactly why I don't want him to hook me up ... but
that would ruin a life-long friendship. I can do
this, I *can* do *this*, all I have to do is show up
at the restaurant, make small talk for a couple of
hours, see the lady home, peck her on the cheek and
go home myself. Go home and dream about a life I'd
like to lead, a life where I'm not such a coward.//
Trent Malloy shook his head. //Who would've thought,
*me* a coward. But I am. I'm continually running from
what I really want.//
When Trent's feelings for his best friend had
changed from deep abiding loyalty and trust over to
deep love and caring he wasn't sure. It wasn't like
he *liked* men, it was just Carlos. Carlos meant the
world to him and he'd do anything in his power to
keep him safe and happy. It was as if his love for
Carlos had transcended gender ... that that part of
Carlos that made him unique was what attracted Trent
to him in the first place, not his gender, not his
body, ...but man, what a package.
Trent looked up from his musings to find his feet
had taken him to the restaurant without his conscious
knowledge. Looking at his watch, he realized he was
right on time.
//Here goes nothing.// He opened the door and
asked for Carlos Sandoval's table. Easy enough, put
the reservation in Carlos' name so both he and this
mystery lady would know who to ask for. He waited
while the reservation was looked up and noticed the
pleasant, but darkened surroundings. //Great. Trying
to get me into a romantic mood with this woman,
aren't you Carlos? Sorry buddy, it won't work, I only
have eyes for ...//
"Mr. Malloy? Your table is this way. The rest of
your party hasn't arrived yet." The waiter showed him
to a table in the corner, very much away from the
rest of the dining patrons. Trent sat down and was
given a menu. "Would you like something to drink?"
"Um, I guess I'll have an iced tea, thank you."
The waiter took the order and bustled away. Trent sat
back in the very intimate booth and hoped the evening
would go by quickly.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Carlos Sandoval sat in his car across from the
restaurant. He'd watched Trent go in, but now he was
doubting his plan. It all seemed so easy when he had
thought it up last week, and after a few days of
pressuring Trent, it all seemed to be a go. Now his
heart was pounding and his hands were sweating at the
prospect of what he was going to do.
//This could end it all. I go in there and within
the span of a few minutes I'll have lost the best
friend I've ever had. I can't take that chance, can
I?// Carlos sat for a few more minutes, trying to
decide his fate. //But I can't go on living like I
have; I need to let him know. It's not like he'll
hate me or anything, but everything will change.
Heck, maybe he'll be flattered that someone loves
him, no matter *who* that someone is. I just hope ...well, it doesn't matter what I hope because it
certainly ain't going to come true.// He took a deep
breath and got out of his car, walking determinedly
toward his destiny.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Trent had decided to give this lady ten more
minutes before he left his excuses and went home.
However much a gentleman, he wasn't in the habit of
sitting in restaurants waiting forever for someone to
show. He looked at his watch for the fifth time since
sitting down when a shadow crossed his line of sight.
Looking up, he was pleasantly surprised.
"Carlos! What are you doing here? Don't tell me
she backed out at the last minute. I mean, you didn't
show her the pictures of us in junior high did you?
Trent's eyes sparkled in the dim candlelight.
"No, Trent, I didn't show anyone any pictures. Um,
can I sit down?"
Trent motioned for his friend to sit beside him in
the booth. If Carlos didn't look so nervous and
upset, Trent would have reveled in having the object
of his deepest desires next to him in such an
intimate place. //Don't go there Malloy, he's upset
about something and he doesn't need you to complicate
matters.// "Hey man, you okay?"
"Yeah, I'll be okay, just give me a minute."
"Nothing's happened to this woman you've set me up
with, has there? What is it, Walker? Trivette?"
"No man, everyone's okay, it's just, I, um, well,
this evening ..." Carlos started to look everywhere
but at his friend. This was much harder to do than he
thought.
Trent turned to face his friend in the small booth
and he placed his hand over his friend's. "Carlos,
you're scaring me. What's wrong?"
Carlos still couldn't look at the one thing he
desired, but he did start to talk, his body poised to
run once the rejection started. "Your date, that's
me, ...I mean, *I'm* your date for tonight, um..."
Carlos started to stand, but a firm grip on his hand
kept him in place.
Trent tried to process this information as fast as
he could. //This can't be happening, no *way* can
this be happening. It's a joke, that's what he's
doing, it's a practical joke.// "Look, if this is
your way of pulling a joke, it's not very funny."
"It's no joke." Carlos' voice was so quiet Trent
wasn't certain he'd heard
correctly.
"What are you trying to say to me?" //Oh please,
oh please let it be what I
think it is.//
"I set you up with me because I ...um ...look I
just thought you ought to
know..."
They both stood on the brink; one false step and
there wouldn't be a friendship any more. One true
step, and they would start a whole new wonderful
relationship.
"I understand." Trent took a deep breath and went
in for the kill. This might tear their relationship
apart if he'd read the signals wrong, but he had to
let him know. "I love you too, Carlos."
Carlos looked at Trent for the first time since
sitting down. Those eyes that bore into his, those
eyes that showed nothing but sincerity and ...is it
possible? Yes, those eyes held love, *love* for him.
He cleared his throat.
"Can we get out of here and talk?"
Trent gave him one of his brightest smiles.
"Sounds like a plan. Your
place?"
"Yeah, let's go."
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
The ride to Carlos' place was extremely quiet ...
too quiet for guys who'd been friends since
childhood. It wasn't exactly uncomfortable, but it
wasn't normal, either. Within a few minutes, they'd
made it to Carlos' loft and both had settled in on
his couch. Carlos decided to break the silence first
as he turned to look at his friend.
"Um, sorry about the blind date trick, but I
wanted, well, I ...I need to tell you, well,
actually say it ...I do love you. I don't know when
or how, or even why, and I've never, you know, felt
this way about a guy before, but somehow my brain and
my heart got together and decided on you. Does that
make any sense?"
"Yeah, it does. I have to admit, I've felt the
same way for some time now, but I just didn't want to
ruin anything. After seeing you with all those women
...well, I just couldn't ignore signs like that."
"None of those women meant as much to me as you
do. I think I was trying to hide from what I really
felt, trying to fit into a role that has been
ingrained into me since birth. The 'Latino Lover'
persona ...very macho and very hetero. I just
couldn't hide anymore. I wanted to let you know you
were loved and hoped it wouldn't destroy our
friendship too much."
"You don't give me enough credit. I must admit, I
never thought about 'guys' that way until one day I
looked at you and saw something different, something
very unique. And it suddenly didn't matter if you
were a guy, I just knew I loved you. I think it all
started when those mob thugs were after you and I
found you in the homeless shelter."
"Yeah, that was one rough time. I think it was
just a bit before that that I'd come to terms with
how I felt about you."
"I thought you might, especially after you kept
asking for me while you were delirious. But
afterwards, you threw yourself into the dating scene
again and I thought it was my imagination. So I kept
quiet."
"Man, we've wasted some time hiding from our
feelings, haven't we?" Carlos chuckled and felt some
of the tension he'd been feeling lift from his
shoulders. Everything was going to be okay, they were
going to be okay.
Trent smiled back at Carlos and placed his hand on
his friend's shoulder. "Would you do something for
me? I mean, if you don't want to, I'll understand,
because both of us are flying blind here ..."
"What?"
"Kiss me."
Carlos blinked twice then a sly smile spread
across his face. He leaned in to capture those lips
that he'd only tasted in his dreams. He felt Trent
open up to him, their tongues dueling with each
other, tasting, mapping out the foreign territory,
marking it, claiming it as theirs. Their bodies
started to respond to the closeness, the passion
rolling off of them in waves. Hands started to
explore the uncharted domains, as their kisses grew
deeper and their desire rose to levels neither one
had experienced before.
Hands with minds of their own roamed lower, deft
fingers unbuckling belts, unbuttoning flys and
unzipping zippers until they were both laid out, bare
flesh to bare flesh, heated erections rubbing against
each other, frenzied motions bringing them closer and
closer to the edge then backing off, wanting more,
needing it to last forever. But nothing this good,
this intense, this pure physical manifestation of
love could last forever, and they soared higher and
higher ... until, with a shout, they both came
together, they holding onto each other for dear life,
riding out each other's climax, needing to feel
everything until the final end.
Panting, they pulled apart slightly, Carlos
looking down at Trent and knowing he'd found the
other half of his life he hadn't known was missing
until now. Trent beamed back up at him, and knew his
future was finally secure in the arms of the man that
now held him. Neither one would ever be alone again.
With whispered "I love yous" to each other, Carlos
wrapped a blanket that was on the couch around them
and they fell asleep in each other's arms, knowing
that would be the way they would be for the rest of
their lives.
*****The End*****
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