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Footman in Training	By : imdirty Category: 1 through F > Downton Abbey Views: 2654 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Downton Abbey and am not making money from this story. And I'm hoping I'm doing this disclaimer thing right :)

Chapter List
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Thomas’s nausea upon leaving London was not, in fact, due to the whiskey he drank the night before. In the weeks following his return, Downton felt impossibly claustrophobic, worse than it had in years past. He was irascible, blowing up over the slightest of grievances. Price felt helpless, watching Thomas self-destruct while others in the house rolled their eyes and shrugged as if the behavior was routine. Price was especially bewildered given the train ride home from London, which he thought represented a final break through Thomas’s wall, not the building up of a new one.

Price began to commiserate with the only other person who didn’t simply accept that Thomas was just being Thomas. He asked Miss Baxter to try and help him get through to Thomas, or at least understand what was upsetting him so deeply. At breakfast one morning, Miss Baxter attempted conversation.

“Mr. Barrow, what are you planning to do with your half day tomorrow?”

“What’s it to you?” Thomas asked, barely glancing at Miss Baxter.

“Are you going to do anything fun?”

“Fun? Around here? I’ve never heard of such a thing.”

“Miss Baxter’s just trying to be kind, Thomas, though I don’t understand why she bothers,” Mr. Bates said.

Thomas pushed his plate away. “And I don’t know why I bother with any of you, anyway. I should probably take my meals in the courtyard with David’s stable cat. Better company even with the fleas.”

“Fine with me,” Mr. Carson said under his breath, but loud enough for the table to hear.

“Well then, if we’re all in agreement, that’ll be my plan moving forward.” Thomas avoided Price’s eyes as he excused himself from the table and went up to the dormitories.

“I thought we’d seen our last of this Thomas,” Mr. Bates said. “I never expected he’d become friendly, but this is quite the step backward.”

“You know Thomas,” Mrs. Hughes said. “It’s only a matter of time before he flies off the handle.”

Price put his fork down carefully. “With due respect, Thomas is a like a bottle of champagne. Something shakes him up, then someone here pops the cork and wonders why he’s exploding. I don’t think he’s acting this way just for the sake of it. I think something shook him.”

The senior staff exchanged glances. “David, you are such a sweet young man,” Anna began. “You want to see the good in everyone, even Thomas. But you haven’t even known him a year. I know you want to believe he’s not like this, but this is who he is.”

Price took a breath before he spoke to ensure his voice didn’t quake. “Miss Baxter has known him longer than any of you, and she’s never given up on him.”

Miss Baxter smiled at Price. “He’s a tortured soul,” she said quietly.

Mr. Carson looked at Mrs. Hughes and shook his head.

“If I may be excused?” Price asked Mr. Carson.

“Yes, David, go on. But I agree with Mrs. Hughes. We’ve known Thomas a very long time. Whatever analogy you want to make, the bottom line is that Thomas always ends up exploding, and you, David, don’t need to be caught in the crossfire.”

“Thank you, Mr. Carson,” Price said as warmly as he could manage, and then headed up to find Thomas.

Price knocked on Thomas’s door but entered without waiting for a response. Thomas sat on his bed, feet on the floor, forearms on his knees, a cigarette between his fingers. He looked up from his feet. “What have I told you, David? Never shut the door when you’re alone with me. The staff would have a field day.”

“They already know I’m up here,” Price said, sitting next to Thomas on the bed. “What happened in London that’s had you so down since we got back?”

Thomas finished his cigarette before speaking. “I have to ask you something. David, how do you stay so positive when your brother is off leading a life someone like you or I could never dream of, while you’re trapped downstairs at Downton?”

Price put his hand on Thomas’s shoulder. “But I’m not trapped. Maybe you haven’t noticed, but I’m well suited to this work and this life. Most servants are single, so no one questions me about a wife, and I like serving a family I respect alongside people I enjoy working with day in and day out. I won’t deny that this wasn’t the life I pictured for myself, but here I am, and I’m making the best out of it that I can. I’m happy for my brother, and I’m happy for myself.”

Thomas moved his hand from his lap to Price’s. “I wish I was like you.”

Price held Thomas’s chin between his forefinger and thumb and lifted Thomas’s face to his. “I wish you could see what I see in you, even just for a moment.”

The two looked into each others eyes, their lips inches apart. Price leaned in for a kiss.

“David, you shouldn’t,” Thomas said, turning his head back down. “Not here, at least.”

“Where then?”

“There is nowhere here. That’s part of why I'm so bothered.”

Price laughed. “In this giant home the size of a passenger ship, is there really nowhere two men could hide away for a little while?”

“Well when you put it that way, maybe I can think of something.”

“Now for the most important thing. Where is that drink you promised me?”

Thomas smiled and looked back up at Price. “Ah, maybe that’s how you stay in such a good mood. Lousy drunk.” He stood and walked to his dresser, retrieving the flask from his drawer and tossing it to Price.

“Ah, finally,” Price said, twisting off the top to take a quick sniff. “Thomas, do something on your half day tomorrow that will raise your spirits. Promise me you won’t just sit here and sulk.”

“I promise, if only to get out of here for a little while,” Thomas said. “Don’t I get a thank you for the drink?”

“I can show you how thankful I am, just find a private place as I asked.”

There was a knock on Thomas’s door and Price stood quickly, tucking the flask under Thomas’s pillow as he rose. Thomas opened the door to find Mr. Bates behind it.

“There’s only so much patience you can expect from Mr. Carson,” Mr. Bates said. “You should both head back downstairs.”

“I was just leaving, thank you, Mr. Bates.” Price followed him down the hall, resisting a look back at Thomas.

….

Thomas left for his half day without saying any goodbyes. He headed into Ripon in search of an address he hadn’t visited in ages. He wasn’t sure if ownership had changed, but the house looked much the same as the last time he visited, other than an unfamiliar and curious dog in the yard. Thomas pulled the sleeves of his jacket straight, closed his eyes, exhaled a puff of air, and then knocked.

The owner was indeed the one he expected. The door opened, and on the other side was a woman who looked older than he pictured, but undeniably the person he came to see; his sister.

“Thomas?” she gasped as though he were an apparition.

“Yes, Jennie,” Thomas said, pressing his lips together into what he hoped was a smile.

Jennie motioned for Thomas to come into the house. He took off his hat and held it by his side. The house was quiet other than the tick tock of a grandfather clock by the door. Jennie hung Thomas’s hat and then pulled him by the arm to the window.

“Let me look at you,” she said, holding his face gently in her hands.

“I’m pretty much the same, maybe grayer above the ears.”

Jennie laughed but her eyes filled with tears. She threw her arms around him and cried into his shoulder.

Thomas stood frozen for a moment, then put his arm around her back. He stood there, letting her cry, while he listened to the clock ticking. She finally pulled away and wiped her eyes with her handkerchief.

“Why did you come? Was it Phyllis? I write to her sometimes to ask how you are.”

“No, not her. I realized I’ve been unfair to you, Jennie.”

Jennie shook her head. “I don’t understand.”

Thomas motioned toward two chairs near the fireplace. They sat, and Jennie moved her chair closer so she could hold Thomas’s hands.

“I’m never going to have a life like yours, and I punished you because of it. It’s not your fault I’m the way I am. And I didn’t only punish you, I missed out on having you in my life, whatever life it is. I know now that I was wrong.”

Jennie looked down at Thomas’s hand, having finally noticed his glove.

“War injury.”

“Yes, so I heard. Thomas, you know I would always want you in my life, no matter what way you are. You’re family.”

“You may feel that way, but does Paul?”

“Paul is my husband, not my keeper. I honestly don’t know what way he feels any more, it’s been so long since we’ve seen you. He would probably be less upset about who you are and more upset that you’ve been avoiding me for so long.”

“He’s every right to feel that way.”

They sat quietly together, one pair of gray eyes looking into the other, until Thomas broke the silence again.

“Where are the kids?”

Jennie’s eyes filled again and she leaned closer to Thomas. “It’s really been that long since we’ve seen you. They’re grown, silly brother! Even Tommy is sixteen.”

Thomas was the one who now looked like he saw a ghost. “Even Tommy is sixteen,” he repeated. “I missed so much.”

“It’s alright. Well, no, I won’t lie. It’s not alright, Thomas. I’ve been hurting over it for years. However, I always vowed if you wanted to come back into my life, I would be here.”

Thomas finally felt his own eyes water. “What did I do to deserve you?”

Jennie squeezed Thomas’s hands in hers. “I will always be your big sister. It’s as simple as that. I’ve loved you since you were a little bundle in mama’s arms.”

Thomas spent the afternoon with Jennie. They walked around her neighborhood and stopped into a local shop for tea. She asked him to stay for supper, but Thomas wasn’t quite ready to see his brother-in-law. He vowed to visit again, to read and reply to her letters, and to call if he could manage. He felt lighter as he headed back to Downton.

The rest of the staff was just sitting down to supper when Thomas came home. He got his own plate from the kitchen and joined everyone at the table.

“So, how was your afternoon?” Price asked. The staff stopped chewing for a moment awaiting Thomas’s response.

“Went into Ripon and saw my sister.”

Miss Baxter dropped her fork onto her plate. “You what?”

“She says ‘hello’,” Thomas told Miss Baxter.

“Is that a big deal?” Anna asked Miss Baxter.

“Only that he hasn’t seen her since long before I came to Downton,” Miss Baxter answered, resuming her meal.

“What brought that on?” Mr. Bates asked.

Thomas drank his water and took another bite. “I dunno. I just felt inspired.”

Price pushed his potatoes around his plate and tried not to smile.

…..

Thomas put on his pajamas and sunk into bed that evening feeling like he may actually be able to sleep through the night, something he hadn’t done since returning from London. He turned on his side and, unable to get comfortable, realized the flask was still under his pillow where Price left it. He smiled and removed it, placing it on his nightstand. As he began to fall asleep, he heard his door open. The moonlight came through the skylight enough that he could tell it was Price.

“Did you come for this?” Thomas asked, sitting up, holding out the flask.

Price shut the door and walked to Thomas. He sat on the bed, took the flask and put it back down on the nightstand. “No. I came for you.”

“Is something wrong?”

“Yes. You haven’t let me kiss you yet.”

“I told you I would come up with something.”

“Well I came up with a plan. You shut up and kiss me. Now.”

“David, you can’t get caught in here, it would ruin you.”

“If someone catches me when I leave, I will confess to having asked you for liquor. We’ll both get a slap on the hand and that will be the end of it.”

Thomas opened his mouth and Price laid his finger on his lips.

“Not another word,” Price ordered. He leaned closer to Thomas, but the bed creaked, and Thomas put his hand on Price’s chest.

“See, this is a bad idea.”

“Does your floor creak?”

“Not… usually?”

“Then stand up.”

Price stood and pulled Thomas by the hand out of bed. He put his other hand on the side of Thomas’s face. “Tell me you want me.”

“Why? You know how I feel.”

“Yes, but I need to hear you say it.”

Thomas looked down into Price’s eyes. There was no hint of teasing.

“Say it, Thomas.”

“David,” Thomas said, closing his eyes. “I want you so badly.”

Price pulled Thomas’s face to his. “Then please have me.”

Thomas couldn’t stop himself from picturing his failed attempts at love and love making with other young men behind closed doors in the dormitory. He pressed his cheek against Price’s and put his hands on Price’s waist. “So, so badly,” he repeated, whispering into Price’s ear. “But it’s just not safe here.”

“If we wait for safety we’ll be waiting forever. So as I said, shut up and kiss me.”

Thomas hesitated, then lowered his lips to Price’s. He kissed Price softly as though Price’s lips may shatter beneath his own, then pulled away, releasing Price’s waist from his hands.

Price grabbed Thomas’s wrists before Thomas could back away. “Don’t say you can’t, don’t tell me you’re doing this for me, don’t tell me I don’t know what I’m getting into. Save it all, Thomas. I’m not naive. I know exactly what I want, what I’m asking, and what I’m risking. And not to be crass, but I’m actually quite good at doing these things covertly.”

Price let go of Thomas’s wrists. His eyes were wider and more serious than Thomas had seen in him before. Price was practically panting, staring back at Thomas, awaiting reply.

Thomas put his hands back on Price’s waist and pulled him so that their bodies came together. His hands traveled slowly up Price’s stomach, then chest, then neck, and finally he pulled Price’s face up to his. He kissed Price’s lips gently once, then kissed them over and over. “Alright, David. No more waiting,” he said between kisses.

Price unbuttoned Thomas’s top while they kissed, slipping it easily off Thomas’s shoulders and onto the floor. In return, Thomas’s slid his hands under Price’s undershirt and pulled it over his head. Price laid light kisses on Thomas’s collarbone and neck while his hands explored Thomas’s back. Thomas tilted his head to give better access, allowing his hands to explore Price as well.

Price pulled back and smiled up at Thomas. “It’s so nice to finally see your skin.”

Thomas kissed Price’s neck, then whispered, “I have to admit, I’ve seen yours before.”

“You what?” Price said, not quite shocked enough to stop Thomas from kissing him.

“The night you confessed you snuck out to go swimming, I already knew, because I saw you there.”

Price laughed and pinched Thomas’s sides. “How much of me did you see?”

“Everything that counts,” Thomas said, licking his lips before putting them back on Price’s.

“You’re naughty,” Price whispered.

“Well if that’s not the pot calling the kettle black.”

“There’s no sense in keeping these trousers on when you’ve already seen the goods,” Price said, removing everything below his waist. Thomas quickly followed with his own bottoms, as well as his glove. The two looked at each other in the dim moonlight.

“I suppose I don’t need to ask how you feel about me,” Thomas said, looking down at David. “I must say, you look even better up close.”

“And you look even better than I imagined,” Price replied.

“Do you imagine me often?” Thomas asked, pulling Price back to him again.

Goosebumps covered Price’s arms when their naked bodies touched. “Only once per night, unless you’ve been especially handsome earlier in the day.”

Thomas kissed Price again, this time slipping his tongue between Price’s lips. He let his hands find their way from Price’s lower back to his backside, and squeezed him, pulling him even closer. Price moaned quietly into Thomas’s mouth, eliciting a moan from Thomas in response. Price’s goosebumps spread to the rest of his skin as he throbbed against Thomas’s thigh. He began thrusting between Thomas's legs, his moaning becoming quicker and higher pitched.

Thomas broke their kiss and grinned. “My goodness, a little kiss and a moan and you’re halfway to ecstasy.”

“Not usually, but this is what you do to me, Thomas.”

“I love hearing you call me Thomas.”

Price smiled impishly and moaned, “Oh, Thomas.”

“Ooh, now that I like. Say that again.”

Price grabbed Thomas’s cock and stroked him, moaning his name again softly.

“And that makes it even better,” Thomas said, tilting his head back and closing his eyes.

“Why don’t we move to the floor?” Price said, laying himself on Thomas’s braided rug.

“Please, help yourself to my lavish accommodations,” Thomas said, tossing his pillow down to Price before joining him.

Price put the pillow behind his head as Thomas knelt between his legs. Price sighed. “Your accommodations are just fine, though it wouldn’t matter to me if we were laying on a pile of angry snakes, so long as you keep looking at me like that.”

Thomas rubbed his hands from Price’s bent knees to his hips and back a few times before leaning down and licking Price’s stomach. Price flexed in response, and Thomas traced Price’s muscles with his tongue. Price weaved his fingers gently through Thomas’s hair, stroking himself with the other hand. Thomas’s tongue traveled lower, licking the sensitive spot where Price’s thigh met his groin. Price laughed and flinched in response, and Thomas flicked the spot again.

“Do you want me to wake people up?” Price whispered.

Thomas looked up at Price and smiled, then enveloped Price in his mouth. Price arched his back and bit his bottom lip, catching himself before crying out. He tightened his grip on Thomas’s hair, guiding Thomas’s head up and down. He propped himself up on his other elbow to watch, panting quietly, still biting his lip. “You look so good,” he whispered to Thomas.

Thomas looked up, and Price murmured a barely audible, “oh god” at the sight of Thomas with mouth full and eyes on him. Thomas kept his eyes on Price and let him slip out of his mouth, licking his stomach again before kissing his lips. Price nibbled Thomas’s bottom lip before sliding his tongue into Thomas’s mouth. He rolled Thomas onto his back, crawled between Thomas's legs, and returned the same favor Thomas had paid him.

“Do you- would you, are you-” Thomas stuttered.

“What is it?” Price asked, looking up, stroking Thomas as they spoke.

“Would you let me inside you?”

Price giggled. “Hmm, I don’t know Thomas, do we know each other well enough yet?”

“That’s not what I meant, you just don’t always know if someone is open to that.”

“I’m very open.”

Thomas rolled his eyes and shook his head.

Price climbed off of Thomas and onto all fours, watching as Thomas positioned himself behind him. Price hugged his arms around the pillow and sank to the floor, raising his hips to Thomas. Thomas rested his body on Price’s back, guiding himself inside.

Price used the pillow to muffle his grunts, raising his hips higher as Thomas wrapped one arm around Price’s chest, his other hand around Price’s hardness. When he was finally in completely, he licked Price’s shoulder, neck, then ear, and asked, “You sure this is alright?”

Price pushed himself back and forth against Thomas in response. Thomas dug his chin into Price’s shoulder and joined his rhythm, panting as Price picked up his pace. They both struggled to keep quiet, Price pressing his lips together, Thomas biting Price’s shoulder. Thomas pushed as deep as he could into Price, and in Price’s attempts to stifle himself, he growled.

“See, I said you were a dog.”

“Not now, Thomas!” Price laughed. “Let me on top so I can at least see the face I should probably slap.”

Thomas pulled out and took Price’s former place on the ground, face up, grabbing Price’s hips as he climbed on top. “Slapping, hmm? You into that?”

“I ought to punish you at least a little for sneaking a peek at me by the pond,” Price said, letting Thomas back inside him.

“Yeah, how’re you gonna punish me then?”

Price grabbed Thomas’s forearms and laid his body onto Thomas, pinning Thomas’s arms above his head. He poked Thomas’s nose with his own. “I could stop.”

“That would punish us both.”

“True, true,” Price whispered, riding Thomas slowly. “I could… bring you just to the brink, and not let you cross.”

Thomas smiled, “After all this waiting, that would be very mean.”

“I can be mean.”

“No, I can be mean. You’re incapable of such a thing.”

Price pulled off of Thomas. “Is that mean?”

Thomas raised his hips, trying to reach Price, but Price pulled himself up further and held Thomas’s arms harder against the floor. Thomas tried again in vain to reach Price with his hips, and Price shook his head.

“Uh uh uh, there are actually several crimes against you for which you must be punished.”

“Stop it, I need you on me.”

“The first crime, spying on me at the pond.”

Thomas tried once more to reach Price. “And the second?”

Price rested his forehead against Thomas’s. “Going after that tall, handsome London man when I was right here the whole time.”

“David!”

Price laughed, sat back up and guided Thomas back inside him. “You deserved that,” he said, lacing his fingers through Thomas’s. He pulled Thomas’s fingers to his lips and kissed them. “The look on your face is priceless.”

“I take back what I said; you’re very mean.”

“Then we’re equally matched,” Price said, picking up his speed again.

Thomas let go of Price’s hand to stroke him again. “I think that little stunt made you even harder.”

“Imagine how hard I’d be if I actually slapped you.”

“Remember how you told me to shut up and kiss you? Well shut up and fuck me.”

Price smiled. “Yes, Mr. Barrow.”

“I’m warning you. Don’t test me.”

“Or what?”

Thomas rolled Price onto his back and held him tightly. Hi thrust into him, hard and fast, with all the desire and longing he had been harboring since his knees first touched Price’s when he sewed the younger man’s finger. Price hugged Thomas in return as tight as he could, arms and legs around him, burying his face in Thomas’s shoulder. Thomas’s breath became ragged as the emotion of their lovemaking finally caught up with him. He suddenly wanted to say dozens of things, and make dozens of promises and apologies. But all of his avoidance and deflecting with Price came from the same place that made him want to stay in their tight, sweaty, intimate embrace forever. He slowed his pace so the moment could last.

“I’m sorry, I crossed the line,” Price whispered, and Thomas could hear the beginning of tears in the words.

“No, no,” Thomas said into Price’s ear. “I forget you can be very much like me, but let everything else go, David, and just be here with me now.”

“I have. I am.”

Thomas pushed up onto his hands so that he could look at Price below him. Price’s parted lips were swollen from kissing and sucking, his cheeks rosy and glowing with sweat, his eyebrows knitted together as Thomas reached a hand down to pleasure him. “You look incredible right now.”

Price smiled and closed his eyes, “Shh, I’m trying not to finish.”

Thomas smiled as well and stroked Price faster, speeding up his hips to match. Price squirmed and opened his eyes again. “See I knew I upset you. Now you’re punishing me.”

“Not hardly. I just want to see what your face looks like when I make you cum.”

Price’s cheeks grew even more flushed. He held Thomas’s gaze until the rush of orgasm flooded him. He closed his eyes, tilted his head back, and grabbed the rug below him, seeing stars behind his eyelids as he came. Thomas wrapped his arms back around Price and kissed his neck before he let his impulses take over, biting Price’s shoulder again to avoid moaning while finishing. He kissed the spot he had bitten, then Price’s lips. They continued to hold each other as their hearts came to rest.

Price traced Thomas’s cheekbone and jaw with his finger. “I really am sorry. I've just been worrying that you’re so angry lately because you want to be in London with him, not here with me.”

Thomas laid next to Price and held his hand. “That’s not it at all, but I do wish I lived like him. For one thing, he doesn't worry about getting caught having sex under a roof where he lives in servitude.”

“Then I envy him for that, too. I wish I could make love to you somewhere without any fear. Maybe someday?”

Thomas kissed Price’s hand. “At least once, we can make that happen.”

Price sat up. “With that all said, I think I ought to get back in my bed.”

“I see, you got what you wanted, now you're off?”

Price stumbled, his legs not steady yet, as he searched for his clothes. “Not quite, I didn't get to be inside you, which hardly seems fair.”

Thomas found Price’s shirt and handed it to him. “Honestly, I haven't let anyone do that in years.”

“But I'm not just anyone.”

Thomas poured water from his pitcher into his bowl and washed himself while Price dressed. “That is a fact, David. You are something else.”

Price snatched the flask from Thomas’s nightstand. “Next time, somewhere less risky, for your sake.”

“And less cheek next time, for both our sake?” Thomas requested.

“You know I can’t promise that.”

Thomas wrung the washcloth out into the bowl. “Why’re you looking at me like that?”

“You’re standing there, naked as the day you were born, and now you’re all wet. How am I supposed to leave you looking like that?”

Thomas put his hand out and Price walked to him, taking it in his. “Will you let me be serious for just a moment?” Thomas asked.

“While you’re, I repeat, naked and wet?”

Thomas took Price’s other hand as well. “None of my anger is toward you. You are the only thing in this house that keeps me inspired to trudge onward.”

“Don’t say that, Thomas.”

“Why not?”

“Because I want you to find that inspiration in yourself.”

“Enough.” Thomas kissed Price one last time for the evening. “Now don’t go stumbling on the way back to your room like you did on your way to your shirt.”

Price put Thomas’s pillow back on the bed before heading to the door. “That’s exactly what I should do. Don’t forget my cover story,” he said, shaking the flask at Thomas.

When he was finally in his bed for the night, Thomas looked out the skylight above him. He promised himself he would have a different view from his next bedroom. One of a city, London or not, somewhere the walls didn’t feel like they would close around him. In the meantime, he could find his freedom in the moments he spent with Price. Even if they couldn’t shout how they felt from the rooftop of Downton, they could at least whisper their feelings back and forth while wrapped in each others arms.
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Footman in Training