8AN: Oh my gosh. Here it is 3am, I've work tomorrow and this would not get out of my head. Ever since I heard this song this couple is all I could think about. So enjoy my sleep deprived mind and it's ideas. :D
Disclaimer : I do not own any of these characters, I am merely borrowing them. And the song belongs to Brad Paisley. NONE OF IT'S MINE!
"C'mon Cam, you're being ridiculous-"
"I'M being ridiculous? " Cameron screamed back at the rather frazzled looking crimson ranger. "You almost fucking died Hunter! DIED! And for what? Your stupid pride?"
Kanoi Watanabe was shocked at his sons curse, he had never seen Cameron so upset by anything in his entire life; barring the loss of his mother. The ninja sensei wondered at his sons reaction from his perch on Blake Bradley's shoulder; who was currently ducked behind a very conveniently placed wall. They had heard the commotion the two men were making and when they found said rangers, they had mutually decided that divulging their presence would not be welcome at this time.
But Kanoi did not understand Cam's reaction. Hunter was alive and well, the mission was a success. While he himself had also worried for the blond he did not understand exactly why his son, who claimed to dislike said man greatly, looked as though he was about to shatter any minute at the thought of his death.
Hunter's eyes narrowed, his jaw clenching in anger. "Pride? I wanted to make sure the bastard was gone, so that he couldn't come back and fuck with us again! How is that being prideful? I was trying to protect the team! Protect you!"
"I don't need protection." Cam spat. " Especially not from you!" He was shaking with rage and other emotions that Kanoi was not quite able to place. The samurai stared down his teammate, eyes gleaming with what looked suspiciously like tears. His breath was coming out in harsh gasps, chest rising and falling at a rapid pace, as though he had just come back from an extensive run. If he had not been the mans father…he may have been rather intimidated.
Hunter, to his credit, did not back down from the fierce glare but met it evenly with his own. "You…you're such a stubborn bastard!" he growled. "Why can't you ever just let me-"
Cam cut him off, " That's not the point Hunter!"
" Then what is the fucking point Cam?"
" The point you arrogant ass is that I almost LOST you!"
Everything came to a sudden halt. Kanoi could feel Blake holding in a gasp and was glad that the navy ranger had the sense to not give away their hiding place at this time. Hunter's blue eyes softened instantly; lighting up in realization as his defensive stance melted into limp shock. Cameron seemed to deflate before him as he tore his gaze away from the other man. Without another word he took off down the hall to his room, leaving a stunned crimson ranger in his wake.
Kanoi shared a confused look with Blake as Hunter starred in the direction his son hand ran off to. Then the faint click of a lock being set seemed to break the blond out of his stupor . He furrowed his brows and brought a hand to his face, breath coming out in a sharp hiss.
"Shit. I didn't even think about…"He cursed again, cutting himself off and turning to follow the path Cam had taken.
Kanoi was loathe to spy on his rangers in such a way, let alone his own son. But something about this situation just did not make any sense. After sharing a silent look with the youngest Bradley brother, he held on to the navy collar as Blake silently crept up to hide at the end of the corridor. They could hear Hunter attempting to speak to Cam through the thick door.
"Cam…" The blonds voice was almost pleading. "I'm so sorry. I..I didn't.. I'm an idiot, okay, I know that, just please-"
"Hunter. Leave." Kanoi could tell the sorrow in his sons own voice, despite the distance and the young rangers attempt to disguise it with indifference. He was very much aware of where Cameron had acquired such defenses.
Blake seemed to be mesmerized by the situation as he carefully leaned over to catch a glimpse of his brother. Hunter's hands were against the door and his eyes were burning into it as if that alone would make the man behind it come out from his hiding place. Once again Kanoi and Blake shared a look.
What in the world was going on here?
"Cameron.." Hearing Cam's full name from the elder Bradley's lips only served to fuel their confusion. Not once in their entire time with them at Ninja Ops did either of the brother's refer to his son as 'Cameron'. That, however, was not nearly as strange as the…way Hunter said it. As thought Cameron wasn't a person so much as something invaluable; precious.
Blake was shaking his head silently mouthing, "Bro?…What?" as he watched his brother lean towards the door until his forehead rested on it. Kanoi wished they could converse without Hunter hearing them, if only to see if the navy ranger had any inkling of what exactly it was they were witnessing.
There was no answer from Cam this time and Hunter merely stood there silently; head rested against the door . At some point the blonds eyes had fallen closed, his mouth was moving silently as if he was conversing with himself. Kanoi was almost convinced that this was the end of it and made a move to communicate to Blake that they should take their leave when Hunter did something that surprised them both.
"I remember
Tryin' not to stare the night
That I first met ya.
You had me mesmerized.."
Kanoi froze at the sound of Hunter's surprisingly melodious tenor flowing out from the corridor. He barely registered the look of utter shock on Blake's visage as he tried to understand.
The song itself was familiar. He hadn't agreed with his sons odd infatuation with 'country' music but in reality, Cam rarely showed that he liked music at all, despite the genre. But Kanoi had heard faint parts of this particular song drifting throughout their base at times when his son thought there was no one around to witness his indulgence.
Though he could not account for the blonds' tastes in music, he was not particularly curious as to where the crimson ranger had learned it as much as he was wondering why Hunter Bradley was…crooning a love song through his sons door.
"And three months later
In the front porch light
Takin' forty-five minutes,
To kiss goodnight,
Blake looked at him then. His brown eyes wide in realization and mouth hanging open in astonishment as he looked at Kanoi. They had come to the same conclusion then, it seemed.
"I hadn't told ya yet..
But I thought I loved you then."
Hunter was in love with Cam.
Hunter Bradley was in love with his son.
A myriad of questions ran through his mind with that comprehension. How long had this been going on? Had Hunter told Cam before this moment? Did the other rangers know? Did Cameron return these feelings?
…How did he himself feel about this situation?
Kanoi had watched his son grow more and more distant every day since the day his mother had been lost to them. He had withdrawn into himself and his technology. Angry at him for not allowing Cam to become a ninja, angry at the world for taking his mother from him. As that anger had turned to acceptance and Cam had started to talk to him again, there had been a time where he had believed that his son had come back to him. And though Kanoi had known, that a lot of it was more of an act than anything else, he had been grateful to have even just that. He allowed Cameron his façade. He had allowed him to go on not letting his true emotions ever show, not letting anything slip past his well established barrier.
"And now you're my whole life
Now you're my whole world
I just can't believe,
The way I feel about you boy.
His small, sensitive ears twitched as the metallic sound of the lock reached them once again. Hunter hadn't seemed to have noticed in the midst of his song, but Kanoi recognized the noise for what it was.
Cameron's resolve was breaking.
And with that Kanoi understood. Nothing, not even he, Cam's father, had been able to really break through to his son's heart after he had hidden it. Nothing and no one….except Hunter.
Hunter made Cam angry. He frustrated him, pushed him, had his son twitching with irritation at his mere presence. He had Cam sighing in exasperation one minute and stifling laughter the next. Cam had looked at Hunter with anger and fear in his eyes. He had held back tears; tears that Kanoi hadn't seen his son shed in many years.
"Like a river meets the sea
Stronger than it's ever been
We've come so far since that day,
Hunter Bradley…He made Cameron feel.
And much to his own surprise, Kanoi found himself to be very 'okay' with that idea.
A smile appeared on his face as he saw Hunter flinch back from the door as it opened to reveal the tear-streaked face of his son. They stared at each other, gazes locked. And it seemed as though they were trying not to even breath for fear the other would bolt.
Hunter's hand twitched at his side as if he was resisting the urge to punch something…or touch something. He opened his mouth again, expression holding nothing but the utmost affection for the man standing before him as he sang softly,
"And I thought I loved you then.."
The words seemed to echo around them for a long moment, but Kanoi could hardly contain his joy as Cameron smiled through his tears.
"You…You are officially the biggest cornball to exist ever." His chuckle was watery but warm.
Hunter's grin could have lit up Blue Bay Harbor in a rolling blackout, " I know."
"You're an idiot."
"I know."
"And an asshole."
"I know."
Cam rolled his eyes but his smile was still firm on his face. "Oh? And what else do you know?"
He reached out slowly to trace the line of Hunter's jaw up into his hairline as the crimson ranger leaned into his hand, eyes drawing closed. "I know you love me." Hunter smirked.
The samurai smiled, "Smug jerk." he muttered but offered no resistance as Hunter slid his arms around his waist and pulled him closer. Cam tapped the blonds jaw twice to get his attention. "Only you would say you know everything…" He tensed, eyes boring into the electric blue of the other ranger, "But then turn around and forget that you are the most important person in the world to some people."
Hunter's body language screamed with guilt. He lifted a hand to cup Cameron's jaw, thumb swiping under the Asian's eye to catch a tear as it fell. "Cam…I know I made you worry. I know it was a stupid thing to do and I could have gotten hurt or worse. But I didn't. I didn't because every move I made out there, every breath I took was to make sure I made it back here to you." He tilted his lover's chin up slightly, "I will always come back to you Cameron."
Cam closed his eyes and tilted his body forward, inhaling the air around Hunter deeply. Leaning up until there was only a hairs breath of space between their mouths he whispered," I know you will." A hand trailed up to bury itself in Hunter's sandy blond locks, " Because if you didn't," he breathed out against the other man's mouth. " I would come find you." And with that Cam locked his arms behind Hunter's neck and closed the distance between their mouths in a passionate kiss. It was urgent and almost feral in nature, but underlying that was tenderness and a powerful love that a blind hermit could not miss. This wasn't the awkward blushing moments of a new couple, this was the natural fluidity of a practiced pair.
Kanoi's heart swelled at the sight. As he had never seen his son so upset as he had been earlier, he had also never seen him as happy as he was in the arms of the crimson ranger. And though he was slightly saddened that his son had not entrusted him with his newfound happiness, he knew that the time would come eventually. He could wait.
Blake hadn't moved from his position the entire time, his face was still contorted in complete shock at the sight of his brother engaging in such acts with the 'tech guy'. Kanoi chuckled almost silently then leaned very close to the younger Bradley's ear.
"Come Blake. Let us leave them be. They will let us know when they're ready." Blake nodded, still completely befuddled by this turn of events, but kept the sense to streak silently out of the main room.
Kanoi fell asleep that night with the remnants of a certain song floating through his mind as well as one simple thought.
Thank you, Hunter Bradley.
I was a little dramatic with Cameron's 'emotionless' thing. He's really not, he's actually an expressive guy. I took liberties with that. Also, sorry there's not a whole lot of mention on Blakes reaction. I wanted this mainly to be a Kanoi thing but Blake got thrown in there somehow.
I'm also thinking about doing a companion piece from Cam's POV. What do you guys think?
Let me know! R*R!