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wroughtbetwixtfanfic · 5 years

Text

Love, Blood, And Rhetoric, Ch 3.

Fandom: The Society.

Summary: Campbell’s just trying to survive in the new world. He knows he can make it– it’s everyone else he’s worried about.

Rating: Mature.

Tags: Canon Divergence, Mental Health Issues, Family Issues, Substance Abuse, Complicated Relationships, Consent Issues, Antisocial Personality Disorder, Homophobic Language, Hurt/Comfort, Minor Character Death, Mild Sexual Content, assuming Elle and Campbell are both 18 for the sake of things, Underage Drinking, PTSD, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, implied eating disorder, Fix-It, Campbell has mild ASPD, and is actively trying to not be awful

Word Count: 4782

Ch 1 || Ch 2 || Ch 4 || Ch 5 || AO3

Campbell woke to the sound of his phone beeping.

It was early. Sunlight filtered through the window, bright and shining as if nothing had happened the night before at all. It would have seemed like any other morning except for the fact that Elle was snuggled under the covers and snoring quietly. He considered waking her up, but she looked so peaceful that Campbell couldn't bring himself to do it. A few extra minutes wouldn't hurt.

He eased out of the bed and tiptoed downstairs, glancing at his phone. Voicemails. Texts. Two missed calls. What the hell had happened now? Campbell opened his phone and read over everything. Cassandra and Harry had texted and called him. Sam had texted. There had been bunch of robberies, and a fight had broken out at some point. Cassandra wanted to know if he and Elle were okay; Sam, to Campbell's surprise, also wanted to know if he was okay. Harry, as per usual, was just freaking out in general.

Yes, Campbell texted back to Sam and Cassandra, I'm fine. Are you?

Harry could wait. Campbell wasn't ready for that mess, not until he'd had some coffee; he turned the ringer on his phone off and let out a breath of relief. Luckily, Grizz had sent out a mass text to everyone saying the power had only been off for a few hours, and that Will said all the food people had stored should be safe to eat. Cool. It meant Campbell could cook breakfast. Fifteen minutes later and he was heading back upstairs with frozen waffles, eggs, bacon, and two cups of coffee. Elle was awake by the time he got back, stretching and yawning just as he came through the door.

"Good morning, sunshine."

Elle rubbed her eyes. "Mm. The power came back on?"

"Just in time to save our bacon, literally. I didn't know what you liked, so I kinda just went with the staples... Unless you're one of those free-range asparagus water types, then I can't help you." When Elle didn't reply, Campbell set the tray down and sat next to her on the bed. "Hey. No judgment, if you want free-range asparagus water, I can get you some."

"No, no. I like all these things. It's just..." Elle shook her head. "School here is almost as bad as ballet. There's so much pressure to be so thin and pretty. And people here just hate me, even when I look like they think I should. If I didn't..."

"If you didn't, you'd still be beautiful."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. And you know what else is beautiful? A big stack of waffles with fancy butter and real maple syrup."

"I can't argue with that."

They both ate in silence, knees touching; Campbell tried to think about how to bring up the night before, but Elle seemed content, and he didn't want to act like it was some big deal. After all, they'd just slept. But what if he'd fucked up again? What if she was upset, but just wasn't saying anything?

But then Elle's phone buzzed. She glanced at it and sighed. "Cassandra's holding some sort of no-men-allowed meeting at the church. I should go and see what's going on." Elle inspected Campbell over the top of her phone. "Maybe you could go see Harry in the meantime? He's called twice in five minutes."

She wasn't wrong. More than that, there was another slew of text messages. Campbell sighed, giving Elle a spare toothbrush from the cabinet and walking her to the church once they were both freshened up a little. He waited until she was inside before moving on to Harry's home; he probably should have messaged first, but of course Harry would be home. He didn't really have anywhere else to be. Not anymore.

"Fuck. Where've you been?" Harry slurred, not even bothering to get up. He was sprawled in his bed wearing not much more than a sheet. "I thought you got beat up."

"Your concern is noted."

"You didn't come to my party, Cam."

"No, Elle and I went back to my place."

"Ooh, fun. I had some fun, too. Think I might be in love with Allie, for real. She's like... gorgeous." Harry pushed himself up off the bed, stumbling towards the bathroom. He didn't even try to cover up; he was acting like he was still half drunk, and hell, maybe he was. "Is that weird for you?"

Campbell ignored the comment, kicking some beer cans towards the trash. He very suddenly wanted to be anywhere but in Harry's presence. "You've gotta pull yourself together a little bit. It looks like a dumpster in here."

"Okay, mom."

"Don't be ridiculous. Your mother wasn't much better than this."

When Harry came back out of the bathroom, at least he had on some underwear. "What's gotten into you this morning? Would've thought you'd be in a better mood."

"Since when do you get to make comments about my sex life?" Campbell snapped. "Life isn't about screwing everything with a pulse, you know."

"Don't be mad at me just because you don't get any."

Campbell felt a surge of anger. His fists balled, and oh god he wanted to punch Harry so hard his ancestors would feel it. "Keep your fucking mouth shut, Harry."

Something in Harry's expression shifted, as if he'd become at least somewhat sober the moment he heard Campbell's tone. "I'm just playing around, Campbell. Seriously. What's with you?"

"Maybe I don't want to play."

"Are you... are you jealous?"

What had been rage mere seconds before guttered and went cold, turning into something hollow. Campbell's shoulders dropped. Their eyes met, and Campbell wanted to just say it. But it was too goddamn late. "I gotta go. Elle needs me."

"And I don't?"

"I'm sure Allie's available. Call her."

Harry stared at Campbell like he'd been slapped. Campbell turned on his heels and walked out the door, slamming it behind him. What the fuck had that been? Campbell fumed at himself the entire way to the church; Elle was waiting on the sidewalk, and though she smiled when she saw him, he couldn't bring himself to smile back.

"What's wrong?" Elle asked. "Is Harry okay?"

Campbell kicked a rock into the road. "Yeah, peachy. He's slept with damn near everyone in this town, and finally got around to my cousin."

"Surely you don't mean Cassandra."

"No. Allie. Cassandra, I could understand. Allie? I don't know what the hell she's thinking, getting involved with him."

"I didn't think you and Allie got along."

"We don't, but she's still family, and I'll end up having to hear about it either way. And Harry... he's just confused. Latching onto anyone he can for a distraction. But in the end he'll get left, and I'll have to clean up the mess."

Elle was silent for a couple blocks. "It's gonna get worse, isn't it? All of this. Cassandra said it's only a matter of time before men start attacking women. That's going to be a worse mess, if she's right."

"She isn't wrong. Did she say what she wants to do about it?"

"There's going to be a meeting in a few days. She told us to talk to the rest of you, see if we could get the men in town to agree to some ideas. Not taking anything, a work schedule, that sort of thing."

It wasn't going to go over well, Campbell knew. Even if all the women in town agreed to it-- and they wouldn't all agree, that was clear from the night several were prepared to walk out of the church-- that didn't mean everyone else would. "She'll have to get the Guard on board. A lot of people look up to them. Grizz and Luke probably will be easy to convince. Clark's an asshole, but Helena is tough. She'll crack him."

"And you?"

"I'm always on her side."

Elle stuffed her hands into her pockets. "It just feels so pointless. At some point, we're gonna run out of medicine. Someone will get sick and we won't have doctors. Electronics will wear out. Gas will run out. Power, water. Aren't we just delaying the inevitable?"

"Hey." Campbell stepped in front of her. "Don't talk like that. Yeah, we're stuck right now, but we can survive this. I will dump these fucks off a bridge if they try to hurt you. Okay? We'll be alright."

"You don't know that."

"There are a lot of people here who know what they're doing. Cassandra, Gordie, Bean. They're smart. So's Will, and he knows how to survive. Grizz is like a weird bag of cool special interests, and I can do anything that needs to be done that they won't do. Trust in us a little."

"Trust isn't my strong suit."

"Me, either. But I trust them, even when I don't like them."

Storm clouds were rolling in again. Elle looked up at them and shivered. She didn't say anything, but she stepped around Campbell and kept walking towards her home. By the time they got there, rain was starting to fall. Campbell watched Elle stand in the front entrance; the place was oddly sparse, for having been lived in for years, and Elle looked so small and pale among the stark white walls and hardwood floors. Suddenly, he understood what she'd meant by one person being alone in such a big space. It didn't feel quite right. Not at her home, or his, either. But...

"Can I stay over at your house for a few days?" Elle asked, interrupting his thoughts. "I just really don't like the thought of being alone."

"Yeah, of course. Estás en tu casa."

It didn't take long for Elle to pack some clothes, her make up, and a few other belongings. Campbell left and got the car, coming back to pick her up; there was no point in walking in the rain and having her stuff get damp. He helped her unpack in his parent's bedroom. He wasn't about to ask her to stay in his room. It was a huge assumption, and besides, he knew the value of having one's own space.

Elle was hanging up her clothes when she saw him stop, looking at a framed picture. "That's me, after that first solo I told you about." In the photo, she looked even smaller, with a big toothy grin and flushed cheeks. Her parents were darker blonde. Pretty. "We didn't get ice cream often, but we did that night to celebrate."

"They look like nice people."

"They tried, I think. I'm an only child, so they went all in on me I guess."

"What's that like?"

"Intense." She took the photo from him and set it on the bare nightstand next to the bed. "They gave me a lot of love, but they expected so much from me all the time. I guess it's an immigrant family thing, you know? Parents want a better life for their kids. They gave up everything back home to make sure I'd have a good future. It was hard, but I know they mean well."

Campbell tried to smile, but it didn't really stick. "That sounds nice. It must suck to be here without them."

"I do miss them. What about your parents? Do you really not miss them?"

"No. I know I'm supposed to, but all I feel is relieved."

Elle examined the room, her gaze falling on another picture. It was his parents' wedding picture, sitting on the dresser across from the foot of the bed. "I noticed they have a lot of pictures everywhere, too. It must suck, being in a place surrounded by them."

"I guess so. I try not to think about it."

"Have you ever considered just getting rid of it?"

Eyeing the picture, Campbell stood up and walked to the dresser. He lifted the picture off the wall, took it to the trash basket, and dropped it in. "Yeah, that does feel better."

They went through the house together, with Elle holding a big, black garbage bag. Campbell dumped in all the photos of his parents, and everything else that reminded him of them. He avoided Sam's room, and left the photos that were just him and Sam together. There was no telling what was going to happen between him and Sam, but he didn't want to bother Sam's stuff, in case they smoothed things over eventually.

When he was done, Elle hefted the bag into the middle of the living room floor. "What do you wanna do with it all? Take it to the dump?"

"I'll take it to the basement." Campbell dragged it away. "Thank you for helping me. It's better, not having their blank eyes everywhere."

"Also less weird seeing your parents' underwear in the room where I'm sleeping."

Campbell shuddered, taking the crap downstairs and sticking it in the darkest corner of the basement. Why shouldn't he? Until the adults came back-- if they came back-- it was his house. What did he owe them, really? He hadn't asked to be born. They had only done the bare minimum his whole life. Most of everything he had, he'd worked to get for himself. They weren't around to appreciate the crap, anyways. Campbell shut the door to the basement and put it out of his mind. Time to start looking forward.

They were making dinner when Campbell's phone buzzed. Harry. He hit the decline button, going back to stirring the tomato sauce he had on the stove; he wasn't in the mood for more drama and whining. Elle looked up from the salad she was working on the second time the phone went off. She didn't say anything, but Campbell saw the question in her eyes.

"I need a night to cool off," Campbell muttered. "I know he's probably drunk or high or both, and I just can't deal with him like that."

"Do you get into fights often?"

"Every now and then. We know each other too well."

"You'd think that'd help you fight less."

"Maybe. For us, it just means we know how to hurt each other."

Elle turned her attention back to the salad, but not before he saw the troubled expression on her face. Well, it wasn't any secret that his relationship with Harry wasn't healthy. Still. Harry depended on him, and he knew Harry wouldn't actually leave, no matter how ill-tempered Campbell got. Which was why, after he and Elle had their nice spaghetti dinner and headed to their separate bedrooms, Campbell read the texts Harry had left.

I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that. Please call me?

Campbell, I'm sorry. Pick up.

Please, Cam.

I need you.

Ah, and there was the sweet spot. Campbell smiled at those three little words, opening the message and tapping out a reply. Heading to bed. I'll call you in the morning. It was a cruel reply; he knew Harry wouldn't sleep well after that. It'd do the guy some good to think about being an asshole to his few, true friends. Campbell turned off the phone, rolled over, and immediately fell asleep.

The next morning, Campbell woke up to Elle sitting down at the foot of the bed. "Cassandra texted. She wants everyone to meet up at the church." Elle had dark circles under her eyes. "I didn't wanna wake you up, but she said it was urgent."

"It's okay. How long?"

"An hour and a half."

Campbell nodded and stretched, rolling out of bed and into the shower. He was half dressed when he popped downstairs, his shirt slung over one shoulder. "Why don't you go on ahead? I'll have to go drag Harry out of bed and haul him down by the ear, probably."

"Sure. Good luck."

He wasn't sure he needed luck, but by the time he shrugged on the rest of his clothes and got to Harry's house, Campbell had thought too much about the whole situation. This was a new world, one they were going to have to likely fight to survive in. Harry was going to need some tough love, if he was gonna make it. Right? Maybe Allie made him feel good, for a little bit, but Allie was also gaga over Will; in the end, she would leave, and Harry would fall apart again. It wasn't something that Harry could afford. It only made sense for Campbell to be hard on him, didn't it? It was pretty clear Harry's mental health was going down the pipes already. Once the booze and drugs were gone, how was Harry going to survive? Maybe Campbell was being too harsh, trying to put their friendship between Harry and Allie, but it was the only way to toughen Harry up.

The point was proven when Harry answered the door, looking like he'd gotten mowed over by a tractor. When he saw Campbell, his eyes lit up, if only a little. "Hey. I didn't expect to see you."

"Surprise. Jesus christ, have you taken a shower since the party?"

"Uh..."

Campbell stepped inside the house, shoving Harry towards the bathroom. "I'm not talking to you while you smell like a garbage disposal. Go."

Harry sighed, but did as he was told. When he came back out, his hair was combed and still a little wet, and the asshole looked like some sort of model that you'd see posing next to the ocean with some expensive, organic wine or some damn thing. Campbell scowled and threw him an apple and a bottle of water.

"What's this for?" Harry asked.

"Something for you to eat while we head to the church. Cassandra texted, she's calling for a meeting of some kind."

"Is that the only reason you're here?"

"No, but we can talk on the way. Get your shoes on."

They could have taken Harry's car, but Campbell chose to walk. Fresh air would do Harry a little good, and it gave them time to talk about whatever it was Harry thought they needed to talk about. It was quiet for a long while. Harry kept glancing over, but he just rubbed his neck and kept his mouth shut.

"What's going on between us, Cam?"

Campbell paused for a step at the sudden question. Fuck. Fuck, that was not the conversation he was expecting. Time to play ignorant. "What are you talking about? We had a spat. Whatever. There's nothing going on."

"Come on, you know what I mean. You've got to." Harry looked at him again, eyebrows knit together in worry. "First you hated Kelly..."

"Kelly wants me dropped into a volcano because I stole her pizza rolls in the 4th grade."

"...And now you're jealous of Allie."

"Okay, so why would I be jealous of Kelly and Allie?"

"You tell me."

Grabbing Harry's shoulder, Campbell spun Harry around to face him. "What do you want me to say, Harry? Huh?" He stepped closer, until he could feel Harry's breath on his face, and then a little closer still. "That I want you? Is that what you think this is?"

Harry swallowed hard. "Is that what this is?"

"It doesn't matter, either way."

"Cam."

"No, just stop. Even if it were true, you had years to figure this out. Years. But you slept around, and then you settled down with Kelly. Now, you have Allie. I have Elle. Whatever could have happened here, it's not happening now."

"I just..." Harry trailed off. Oh, Campbell had hit a nerve. The hurt in Harry's eyes was almost enough to make Campbell take it back. "I just want us to stay friends, okay? I don't want anything to come between us."

"We're still friends. That's not going to change. Alright?"

"Whatever."

But it wasn't whatever. Campbell could tell that from the way Harry pulled away, moving like he was trying not to jostle some sort of wound. Well, what was Campbell supposed to do? Harry might not have known specifics, but he knew Campbell was a roller-coaster. He knew Campbell had trouble with feelings. If he'd wanted something more out of their relationship, he should have said something sooner. Why sugarcoat the truth?

They had other people, and unless Kelly and Elle were interested in polyamory, nothing was going to happen. It sucked, but it was true. It still forced Campbell to look at those goddamn emotions, and that wasn't something he'd counted on having to do any time soon. Of course Harry was handsome. Most of the male-attracted population of the school agreed, even if they hated him. And of course they knew each other well, to the point that they could look at each other and know what the other was thinking. That wasn't even mentioning all the times they'd flirted under the pretense of a joke, and everything else remotely sexual that had ever happened between them.

But did Campbell want to be with Harry? Hadn't it all just been a little bit of a game? A phase? Some weird hormonal thing? Harry hadn't ever really seemed interested in guys, beyond Campbell. Maybe Harry was just confused. Campbell had already accepted being a little bit bi, even if he'd only ever told Harry. But Harry had never confessed anything like that to Campbell. Not until now, and even then, he hadn't actually admitted anything.

The rest of the trip was just as silent as the first part had been, thank whatever higher powers existed. By the time they got to the church, they were late; the entire church was packed, and Campbell couldn't even really see Elle in the giant flock.

"There's practically no seats left," Harry mumbled. "Damn."

Campbell shrugged, smiling a bit at Cassandra as she stood at the front of the church. She certainly had stepped into the leader role. "She called, and they came."

They found a seat, and Campbell listened as Cassandra began to speak. It was hard to focus, though, what with Harry hunched up and radiating irritation. Christ. He was already on edge, and a quick glance around the room revealed he wasn't the only one. Hopefully Cassandra was going to be careful. She was an expert on the debate team, and knew politics well enough. She was the best leader they could have. But... she wasn't popular, so much as infamous. They both were. He knew better than anyone that she had to be careful.

And at first, she was. Cassandra spoke of making an inventory of resources. A good idea, but then she followed it up with the words food rationing. Logical and another good idea, but Campbell could feel the tension in the room growing. Communal eating earned a few groans, but it was the sharing houses idea that shut the room down. Campbell felt a slight jab of disappointment. He'd told Cassandra it would be a bad idea. Yes, it would save resources if they were limited-- potentially-- but people would grate on each other. Even friends who were stuck together against their will could turn on each other. Strangers? Enemies? It was asking for trouble.

She continued on. Work rotation lists, good. Sharing the work load, good. A committee, excellent. There was a murmur of excitement when Cassandra announced a committee on finding out how to get home. That would be something to help keep people hopeful, for sure. They'd put up with things much better if they thought it was temporary. And, likely, they'd be used to the new way of things by the time the geeks inevitably came to the conclusion that they were trapped.

"I think we should take a vote," Cassandra concluded with a smile. "All in favor, raise your hand."

A large portion of people raised their hands right away. A few more went up, slower. More uncertain. A few women hissed at their partners, and another small group of hands went up. There were still plenty of holdouts. Campbell watched Harry from the corner of his vision, waiting. Harry didn't budge. A lot of people didn't budge.

Cassandra scanned the room. Her smile faded. "I don't think we can do this unless it's unanimous."

A bad move, that. What was the point of putting it to vote, if those who expressed dissent were going to be pressured into agreement? Wasn't a majority of the vote good enough? If she could convince them... but it didn't matter, it seemed, because those begrudging hands went up after a long pause. Cassandra glanced towards Campbell, who in turn looked to Harry. Harry stared back at him. Don't do it, that look said. Campbell smiled and raised his hand. Gritting his teeth, Harry raised his, too.

When the meeting was over, Harry cornered Campbell by the door. "What did you do that for?" he seethed. "Those rules are bullshit."

"They're not bullshit. It's common fucking sense."

"Easy for you to say. No one's gonna want to share houses with you."

"Elle already is."

"Wait, what?"

Campbell almost felt bad at the note of upset in Harry's voice. "I mean, you were in bed with Allie, so maybe you didn't hear. She asked to stay at my place for a few days. But honestly, with these new rules, I don't think she'll be leaving again any time soon. We're both kinda high key social rejects."

"I guess that makes sense, then." Harry studied his hands. "I better get going. Lock up all the valuables before these assholes move in and wreck everything." He stood, heading towards the exit, but then paused. "Would it have made any difference, if I had said something sooner? Would you have felt anything?"

"No."

A lie, but Harry took it at face value. He shook his head and kept walking. Campbell leaned back in the pew and sighed. Whatever was going on in Harry's head, hopefully it would blow over now. Campbell wasn't going to abandon Elle, and Harry needed to see his thing with Allie through. Even if it ended-- and of course it would-- he wasn't going to be the reason for it. Allie already loathed Campbell, and it wouldn't be a good idea to make that whole thing worse.

Footsteps came closer, and there was a whiff of jasmine in the air. "That bad, huh?" Elle asked as she sat down next to him. "I see you managed to get Harry down here."

"For all the good it did. This is all going to explode."

"I don't know. A lot of people seemed open to it."

"They did. And they will be, for a while. But..." Campbell rubbed his face. "Cassandra is a good leader. She's tough and she's fair. The issue is, she's a total goddamn extraterrestrial when it comes to feelings. Give her a puzzle and she can solve it, but this isn't just a puzzle. People are going to get upset, and she isn't going to know how to fix that."

Elle rested her hand on his knee. "Maybe it'll be alright. Sometimes people can surprise you."

Campbell wanted to argue, but he just smiled instead and placed his hand over hers. "Yeah. I'm sure you're right. What are you gonna do about your house, though, now that we're all getting sardined together?"

"Well..." Tucking her hair behind an ear, Elle hesitated. "I've never even really gone out for sleepovers or anything. The idea of living with someone else is kind of terrifying. I thought maybe I could stay with you. I know we're not serious or anything, but..."

"If you want to stay with me, you can. I'd be happy to have you there."

"Yeah?"

He gave her hand a little squeeze. "I seriously like you, regardless of whatever this is or where it's going. And like I said, I think maybe I do need someone there with me. Keep me from staying in my head too much."

Elle smiled, and Campbell felt that little flutter of warmth reserved especially for her. They headed back to her house, and she packed up the rest of her things. The rest of the day was spent moving; it was an interesting feeling, seeing her possessions slowly replace the traces of his parents. For the first time, the house started to lose that cold, hostile chokehold it always had whenever he walked through the door. It was inviting, instead. Comfortable.

They had some cheese pizza rolls and a couple beers, the closest thing they could get to the American moving-in tradition. Elle still slept in the other room, but Campbell didn't care.

Someone else there, someone who seemed to want to be around him. Someone safe to love. That was good enough.

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