FIC: On A Tuesday

I’ve blended a couple challenges, a writing prompt, and a cartoon that was shared on the Den. Leland and RJ are new characters that I've been playing with....actually they are playing with me as they will NOT shut up inside my head!



Title: On A Tuesday
Characters: Leland/RJ

Leland’s arm trembled as he lifted the heavy cast iron skillet. As he poured the bacon grease in the Mason jar, he remembered the old quote that vacation calories don’t count. He hoped the same principle applied to cholesterol. The four days that he and RJ had been at the resort, their diet had been less than healthy. But the crisp Maine air seemed to call for bacon and hamburgers grilled outside. Maybe he’d run to the small store and pick up some vegetables for dinner tonight, he thought to himself. 

He set the skillet in the dishwater. He turned to RJ and asked, “How does vegetable kabobs sound for dinner tonight? I could run up to the store and pick up some eggplant, zucchini, squash, and tomatoes while you’re out taking pictures.”

“Do you want me to go with you? Help you get groceries?”

Leland held back his sigh. RJ’s need to please everyone, even at the expense of his own happiness had been something they’d worked on for years. Leland understood where the need came from. RJ had been taken in by his grandmother when his parents had been killed in a car crash. He grew up doing everything he could to please the sweet old lady and that had spilled over into wanting to please everyone. The problem was RJ would often lose his self worth by trying to make everyone else happy. Most of their discipline stemmed from this need.

The sigh was held back, but unbeknownst to Leland his expression showed his displeasure and his sternness. His eyebrows raised, his eyes turned hard, and his shoulders squared in determination. “Did I say I needed help?”

RJ shuffled his feet. “Um. No?”

“Repeat back to me what I just said.”

RJ looked down at his feet as he shuffled them again. “Um. That you would go to the store.”

“And?”

“I can go out and take pics.”

“I’m sure your feet find that fascinating, but I am the one who asked you. Not your feet.” Leland wondered if RJ’s neck popped as he quickly looked up.

“You said that you’d go to the store and I can go take pictures.”

“Exactly. I don’t need you to change your plans to make me happy. Clear?”

RJ nodded his head in weary acceptance. “Clear.”

“Good.” With that statement, Leland finished washing the skillet, dried his hands and hung the towel on the rack. “While you are out, please be safe. One spanking this vacation is enough, yes?”

“It’s a Tuesday. I know how to restrain myself.”

Laughing as he wrapped his arms around RJ, Leland squeezed him hard. “I think we both know the day of the week doesn’t matter when you are focused on your art.”

RJ grinned. “I’ll be good. No hanging upside down.”

Leland gave RJ’s butt a swift pat. “You have your key?”

“Yes! Do you?”

RJ’s teasing kept Leland laughing as they walked out the door. “Brat! Go take your pictures.” He stood and watched his boy walk toward the hiking trails, then he turned to walk to the store.

The walk took thirty minutes, but the morning was still cool. June in Maine wasn’t nearly as hot as it was in the Midwest. In the distance he could see the mist rising off the lake. Leland wondered if RJ was there taking his pictures. There was so much beauty in this state. He tried to look at the flowers and plant life with an artistic eye. He chuckled to himself as the little store came into view. He was too practical and pragmatic to get the shots that RJ took on a regular basis.

Stepping up on the wooden porch, Leland heard the bells above the door ring as an older man walked out. Quickly he stepped to the side as the man wasn’t watching where he was going. Leland didn’t get out of the way quickly enough and the man ran right into him.

“Oh. Oh. Excuse me. I was just checking to make sure I got everything. I forgot the list.” The last was said with a small sigh.

“No worries,” Leland assured the familiar looking man. “Have we met before? You seem familiar.”

The older man tilted his head. “Hmm. You’ve been to a seminar I’ve led. No, no. Don’t tell me. I’ll remember. Yes! You were at Discipline and the Continual Broken Rule.”

“Yes. Last year. You’re Saul. There were several couples there. I’m surprised you remember me.”

“I tend to remember things, people’s faces. How are you doing? Did the seminar help you and your husband?”

Leland nodded. “Yes, thank you. We’ve employed several strategies that were presented.”

“Good. Good! It was very nice to bump into you...literally. But I need to rush off. I’d forgotten to get a few things and breakfast is waiting to be cooked,” Saul said. With a quick wave the older man hurried off.

Leland chuckled and walked into the store. The older man was intelligent, witty, and definitely a Brat. He waved at the clerk, then went back to the produce aisle. They had a good selection of organic vegetables from local farmers. He picked up eggplant, several different colored peppers, some tomatoes that were bigger than his palm, and several other vegetables. Although, he’d told RJ that they needed to eat healthier, he could resist picking up a package of marshmallows. He dashed down the aisle with graham crackers, and then to the register. Chocolate bars were happily waiting for him in their rack. He chatted with the cashier and then strolled back to their cabin.

After putting the groceries away, Leland went into the bedroom. He’d packed a book but hadn’t had a chance to read yet. With RJ doing his thing, this was perfect opportunity to relax and read something fun. He’d ordered a book written by a popular author who wrote gay romances. He rarely had time to read anything but professional journals so this was a nice change of pace.

Leland got the book and walked out to the main room of the cabin. He opened the door and the windows to let in the fresh country breezes. Lying down on the couch, he opened the book and started reading.

The quietness of the cabin lulled Leland into a light doze. He woke when he heard the door shut and RJ’s voice softly call out, “I’m home.”

Just as Leland responded with a welcome home, he let out a small “oof”. RJ had crawled on top of him and snuggled into his arms. Stroking his boy’s back, he asked, “Rough day?”

RJ shrugged. “Not rough, really.”

“A question of ‘to obey or not obey’?” Leland felt RJ’s whole body sigh.

“I obeyed. I didn’t climb anything. Just....well, there was this guy on the trail. He started talking. He’s trying to get into photography. Started asking me questions. And, you know, one thing lead to another...”. RJ’s voice drifted off.

“Come on. Sit up.” He waited until RJ lifted himself up and sat on the couch. Leland sat up and turned to face him. “So you didn’t obey.”

“Oh, yes. I did! We didn’t climb on anything or do anything dangerous. I just showed him how to take some shots, some different filters. You know, things like that.’

“But you didn’t obey me. I said you were to make yourself happy. Not me. Not someone else. Just you.”

He saw the red of shame creep up RJ’s neck. “It’s ok. Helping him out wasn’t bad. He just needed a few pointers.”

Glancing at the clock, Leland asked, “Two hours of pointers? That’s how long you’ve been gone. So instead of taking pictures, which I know gives you an escape from reality, you spent the afternoon putting your own needs aside for someone else’s need. So, no. You did not obey me.”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to disappoint you,” RJ said softly. He met Leland’s eyes. “This is what discipline is for. I know I deserve a spanking.”

“You’ve disappointed yourself, not me. And you are always much harder on yourself than I am. You do not deserve a spanking. But you do need discipline.” At RJ’s nod, Leland continued, “We’ve done this before. We’ll do it again. You don’t need to write the rules out again; one of the quotes will suffice. So, until I say otherwise you’ll write lines every morning and every night before bed. Thirty minutes each time.”

“Which lines?”

“You choose.”

The despair in RJ’s eyes was almost Leland’s undoing. Yet he knew that if he let this go, RJ would continue trying to make everyone he met happy and would lose his own happiness. “This isn’t new, darlin. You’ve written many lines about this. You know which one will help you the most. Go on. Go get your notebook.”


RJ’s notebook was one of the strategies the seminar had suggested. Leland and RJ had talked about how the notebook would be used. That was one of the suggestions of the seminar-to take the strategies offered and make them their own. They’d decided to put the seven strategies to stop pleasing people. They spent days looking up quotes that were the most relevant to RJ. They were on their third notebook. Sometimes they used it to reflect on what had happened before. But like today, sometimes the book was used for writing lines or the repeating the quotes.

Leland patted the couch beside him as RJ came back in. “Come on. Sit beside me.” Once RJ was settled next to him, he asked, “Do you want to find one on your own or would you like me to help?”

“I already know which one works best.”

When Leland raised his eyebrows, RJ opened the book, flipped a few pages, and pointed to a quote. It was from Paulo Coehlo. Leland read it aloud. “‘When you say yes to others, make sure you aren’t saying no to yourself.’ Good. How does that apply to you?”

RJ sighed. “I said no to myself when I spent so much time helping him.”

“Extra good! Now, how could you have handled things differently?”

“Seriously? Extra good? Any moment you’ll expect me to sit up and beg.”

“I can make you beg any time I want.” Leland’s voice held a hint of sternness. And yet also a hint of sexiness. “Now, tell me how you could have done things differently.”

“I could have spent a little bit of time with him and then said goodbye. Then I could have gotten some pictures of my own.”

Leland leaned in and gave him a kiss. “Doubly extra good. Now, come on into the kitchen. You can do thirty minutes now and thirty minutes before bed.”

As RJ sat down to write, Leland mixed some lemonade. He gave his boy a glass full of the bittersweet drink and then started to prepare the vegetables. The homey feel of fixing dinner while RJ sat at the table filled his heart. Later, he’d grill the vegetable kabobs. They’d roast marshmallows and make s’mores. And despite what RJ said about Tuesdays, Leland decided he’d test that restraint tonight. Maybe even under the moonlight. He knew that no one could restrain themselves under a full moon even on a Tuesday.

The End