strawberry daiquiri

one

ryan wasn't sure what day it was.

in fact, he didn't really even know what year it was.

all he knew was that he was surrounded by darkness in the middle of a forest, and his senses were being overloaded with strange sights and noises and every tree looked like a ghost and every noise sounded like a demon's growl--

"ryan," said shane, snapping him out of it.

"oh, sorry. i'm just a little freaked out."

"i can tell," shane said, laughing a little. he put a comforting hand on ryan's back, between his shoulders. he rubbed up and down a little.

ryan wanted to scream "YOU'RE NOT HELPING", but decided against it and leaned into shane's touch just a little bit more. it was a guilty pleasure, of sorts.

ryan's mind once again wandered, but this time it was to thoughts of shane. he had been grappling with his feelings for the man lately. he knew that he probably liked him more than just a friend, but at the same time, wouldn't it be easy for someone to fall in love with the only other person in a haunted forest? he went back and forth all the time. and he was almost certain that shane didn't feel the same way, which made a lot easier (albeit more painful) to pretend that these weird feelings just didn't exist.

"r-y-a-n," shane said, once again snapping ryan out of his thoughts.

"i keep doing that, huh?" ryan remarked.

"yes! i think this is the most freaked out you've been in a while."

"well i always hate these solo missions. you know, having to scope the place out before actually filming the episode. it's a lot more comforting when there are 10 more people here with you."

shane smiled wryly. ryan hated how shane never, ever got scared. "i don't think ghosts see a camera crew and go 'come on guys, let's get the fuck out of here!'" any more than they do when they see two boys."

ryan knew shane was trying to make him laugh, but he wasn't in the mood right now. something about this forest seemed seriously...off.

suddenly, there was a large disturbance in the tops of the trees, as if a gust of wind had suddenly blown them forward-- but the night air remained still. ryan let out a whimper that he knew shane would tease him about later and whispered, "what the fuck was that, shane?!"

"a g-g-g-ghost!" shane said mockingly. his hand moved to ryan's right shoulder and almost seemed to pull him closer, just in case.

ryan blushed and was thankful for the first time that he was surrounded in darkness. he once again did not find himself amused by shane's comment. "you know, this is why everyone thinks you're a demon."

shane stopped suddenly and turned towards ryan, his hand slipping off the man. "what did you say?" he asked incredulously.

"people think you're a demon because you never get scared, even in situations where, regardless of your stance on ghosts, you probably should be."

shane's eyebrows raised. "and who are these, people? are their names ryan, brian, zion--"

"no, shane." ryan turned to face the man, craning his neck a little. "i mean like, the fans of the show. do you ever read the comments, like, anywhere? there are people who genuinely believe you're a demon."

ryan could have been making this up, since they were still in the dark, but he swore that shane turned a little pale. however, he composed himself quickly and again turned to the path ahead.

they took a few slow steps, the night now punctuated with an air of awkwardness. then, shane blurted out, "well, what if i was?"

ryan rolled his eyes. "i'm used to you fucking with me, but even i don't believe that," he said. "and i believe in everything."