Summary: Five times they shared a bed, part one. (Episode-tag for the Pilot)
Rating: PG
Author's notes: My mind is a weird place and demanded I write this right now. Also, this is friendship!only and ties in with events I've planned for my backstory!verse.
Disclaimer: The moment unicorns are real, I make money with this.

F&B&FB

Pillow talk

F&B&FB

Jared lets himself into Peter's bedroom and gently closes the door behind him. Peter doesn't acknowledge his presence at first, just keeps playing the guitar quietly, but that's okay because Jared can wait - especially when one Peter Franklin is concerned. He crosses the distance to the bed without a word and sits down, leaning against the headrest. He thinks he recognizes the melody; it's 10 CC's I'm not in love.

He makes a face.

This is bad. Really bad. And it has something to do with Janie, he just knows it from the way Peter's shoulders are slumped and that he tried to change the subject to Scarlett earlier. Yeah, nice try, but not even Scarlet takes precedent over Peter - well, on most days anyway.

And Jared knows Peter long enough (more than half his life, actually - shit, they're getting old) to know that something's happened with Janie. Which automatically makes everything more complicated and less fun.

"She's engaged," Peter finally tells him, sounding dejected. He puts the guitar on the ground and flops down onto the bed, staring at the ceiling.

"That sucks," is what Jared says, because there's nothing else to say. It sucks that Janie still can make Peter so unhappy, that she broke his heart in the first place and didn't appreciate the awesomness that was Peter's self-written Rock Opera. This practically disqualified her for any further pursuing in Jared's eyes, but he doesn't think Peter will appreciate that thought right now.

"Yeah, it does." He sounds like he's close to crying, and with anybody else this would be the exact moment Jared would start to feel uncomfortable, but this is Peter. And that explains a whole lot in Jared's world. They've traded drunken hand jobs and slightly less drunken kisses and came out okay, with their friendship still intact. They've seen each other behind bars, in hospitals; they've been to Summer Camps and tattoo parlors together; they've shared practically every moment of their lives since Junior High, so Jared is not going to freak out because of some tears.

"I'm sorry, man," Jared says quietly and shuffles a bit closer to Peter, so that their bodies touch.

"You know, you don't have to stay with - "

"Shut up. You'd probably mope the whole night and wouldn't get any sleep and who will have to put up with your cranky, sleep-deprived ass tomorrow morning then? Me. Nope, not going to do that, buddy."

Peter shifts so he lies on his side, head propped up by his hand, and there's a small, thankful smile on his lips. "So … Scarlett," he begins, and Jared groans.

"Please, not Mike Tyson again! My nose already looks as if somebody broke it."

"No, but you have to go round the world in a hot-air balloon," Peter says with a smirk. He knows that Jared is not exactly fond of heights.

"Before or - "

"Before."

"Man, that will take ages!"

"Probably, but you can have Scarlet for a whole week afterwards."

"A whole week? Woah … do I actually have to steer the balloon? Or can I hide in a corner and pretend we're not like 10.000 feet above ground?"

"Nope, you have to enjoy the view."

"I kinda hate you right now."

"C'mon, it's Scarlett," Peter reminds him, and Jared shrugs his shoulders.

"That's true."

"So?"

"Yeah, sure. Now, Marisa Tomei … "

And so they keep playing and joking and bit by bit the smile on Peter's face becomes wider and the laughter louder till they finally fall asleep side by side.

- fin