Page 267 of Untouchable

It makes him sound like an airhead, Harp thinks unkindly, but even as the words are through his brain, he knows they're Gil's and not his.

Parker’s eyes go wide. “Hurricanes? That’s so scary. Do you have to, like, evacuate all the time?”

"Eh," Gil says, raising a shoulder nonchalantly. "The worst year ever, we had to evacuate three times. That was fucking annoying. I guess there's nothing big and scary like that in Colorado, right? Landslides, maybe."

Parker cocks his head, considering.

“Well, not really? I mean, definitely not in Denver, because it’s a big city. I dunno, even when it snows a lot, it’s still just… kinda fine because people are used to it. It’s different here in Mink Creek, though, because the snow is more in the way. It’s easier to get stuck places.”

He flashes a grin at Harp.

Harp wants to smile back. He wants to warmly recall the way that things had been hard but had been so right, the way that he wouldn't change a thing about the first nights they spent together snowed in because that's the only way it could've happened, the only way they could've gotten to this point where they are now, where they share something so unshakeable.

Well. Unshakeable until Gil came to town.

Because Harp can't return the warm smile. Because Harp sees Gil watching Parker, finding every little thing to pry wide open and exploit, and sure enough Gil laughs softly like he's in on some joke and he gives Parker a winning, friendly smile.

"There's gotta be some story there, right? What, did Harp get stuck in town and he had to spend a week with you and, uh, Mindy, or something?" Gil is like a bloodhound.

Please Parker,Harp thinks at him desperately, for once in your life, play your cards close to the chest.

Parker snorts. “That would be Harp’s nightmare, I think. He’s still pretty afraid of Mindy.”

He takes a nervous sip of his drink, and Harp wonders if he even notices that it’s already half gone.

“But, yeah, usually I just try to check the weather reports and stuff? But then sometimes I’m an idiot and forget, and that’s how I ended up getting snowed in at Harp’s for three days.”

Goddamn it, Parker.

Gil goes for the jugular.

Naturally. It’s like he can sense there’s some lurid detail here to exploit—a smoking gun in his case against Parker.

"That's not so bad though," Gil says with an easy smile. "I mean, blowing off work to spend three days with your boyfriend could definitely be worse."

* * *

Parker biteshis lip and blushes. “I mean, we weren’t dating yet, but, it was definitely a pretty good way to wait out a snowstorm.”

He glances at Harp shyly, but Harp seems like he’s barely even aware of the conversation going on around him. Parker wonders if Harp is panicking because of the crowds, wonders if he should check in and see if Harp really wants to stay.

"Oh yeah?" Gil says, his smile unchanging. "What'd y'all get up to?"

Parker grins.

“Well, I tried to go home, and then basically slid right off the road because the roads were so icy. And, I mean, you’ve seen the road to Harp’s place. I barely made it out of the driveway, and there’s no way I would have made it down the mountain. So Harp basically dragged me out of the car and made me stay, because I was being a dumbass and felt really bad, because, you know, it was totally weird. But then I helped Harp make a shelter for the valley cats, which was really cool. And Harp cooked a bunch, which was amazing, as usual, and, um, we went hiking and stuff, and did like, normal snow day stuff, like playing cards and drinking? Oh, and I tried weed for the first time. I’m really lame about that stuff but Harp was really nice about it and explained it all to me and it was fun.”

"I didn't realize you were holding out on me, Harp," Gil says, shooting Harp a look that Parker can’t even begin to parse. Harp begins to say something, but Gil barrels forward. "That must have been crazy, getting stuck with a client for three days. Your work didn't care about you staying with him? I mean—it wasn't like this big HR nightmare, right?"

Parker falters.

“Well, um, I mean—yeah, it makes things weird, but, um—well, it’s like—” He blushes. “We had to fill out some paperwork? When we started dating, you know? But my boss was really chill about it, and he trusts me, so... Yeah, it wasn’t... It wasn’t that bad, I guess?” He blushes and finishes the last of his drink.

He hates this.

He hates the way he can’t seem to string a sentence together anymore. He hates the way Harp has gone silent and distant, trapped in his own mind. He hates the glint in Gil’s eyes, as if there’s some joke he’s laughing at that’s going right over Parker’s head. He hates the way he feels like this is somehow his fault—that this wouldn’t be happening if he were smarter, more educated, less naive, or just bettersomehow.

"Good thing for you Parker didn't get stuck on some other mountain, am I right?" Gil says, turning back to Harp with a giant grin. "I mean, who knows what guy and his brother you might be drinking with in that case.” Gil glances at Parker.

---