Sara (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
scripted_sra) wrote2009-03-03 05:04 pm
scripted_sra) wrote2009-03-03 05:04 pm
Fake News (FPF) | Need To Know | PG | Jon/"Stephen"
Title: Need To Know
Fandom: Fake News (FPF)
Pairing: Jon/”Stephen”
Rating: PG
Content: References to a D/s-style relationship.
Summary: There are certain things that Bobby needs to know.
Word Count: 1,285
Disclaimer: All copyrighted material referred to in this work, and the characters, settings, and events thereof, are the properties of their respective owners. This work is not created for profit and constitutes fair use. References to real persons, places, or events are made in a fictional context, and are not intended to be libelous, defamatory, or in any way factual.
A/N: I'm a bit of a POV whore. I love using different people's (and sometimes animals') perspectives to tell a story; hence this fic's existence. (Let’s pretend in this universe that Bobby never left, plz? I like him too much for that.) Oh, also: this one references a couple things in Four Times Jon Needed To Punish Stephen (And One Time He Rewarded Him), so it might be beneficial to read that one as well. Thank you for the beta, Kelly.
There were some things that Bobby needed to know while working at The Colbert Report.
He needed to know when Stephen demanded something ridiculous, so he could figure out whether it was possible to achieve or if he’d need to be adeptly handled. He needed to know when Stephen randomly blew up, broke down, or freaked out, so he could play damage control between his boss and whoever had accidentally triggered said reaction. He needed to know when Stephen harassed another intern, whether sexually or otherwise, so he could limit the possibility of them filing a lawsuit. He needed to know what advice the writers were trying to give Stephen for that night’s show so he could find a way to work in what was necessary, since Stephen never listened. And most of all, he needed to be able to predict when Stephen might do any of these things and, if possible, prevent it from happening.
Lately, though, he hadn’t needed to know most of the usual information. Stephen’s ridiculous demands had been more than halved; now they mostly took place on air, and weren’t made of his staff. He hadn’t had a major freak out or blow-up in almost two months. The interns were starting to relax about being alone with him. And Bobby knew of at least three instances where Stephen had actually paid attention to something Allison had been saying.
At first, the change of pace was perplexing, but Bobby quickly developed a theory—one that was soon proven correct.
He knew that there had been a certain flirtation between Stephen and Jon Stewart, the host of The Daily Show, for quite awhile, and he also knew the precise day when that flirtation had finally grown into more. His boss’s outward intense homophobia was so blatantly transparent that the staff had started a private betting pool about when he would finally end up in a serious relationship with another man. (Tad had won; Bobby had missed it by two days.) And while Bobby knew that Mr. Stewart, as Stephen’s boss, had basically allowed Stephen to get away with murder, his theory was that something had changed when he had become his lover.
Stephen and Mr. Stewart (“Bobby, it’s Jon,” the man would always say, correcting him with a kind smile, but Bobby had never been able to call him by his first name) didn’t exactly hide their relationship. They hadn’t come right out and told everyone that they were together, but Bobby and the rest of the staff had seen enough small gestures of affection to know they were an item.
It was because of this that Bobby had been able to develop his theory. He’d witnessed an interaction one day that seemed to him to be out of the ordinary.
“But Jon,” Stephen had been saying, leaning in and toying with Mr. Stewart’s tie, “I don’t like doing the dishes.”
“Stephen, we’ve talked about this,” Mr. Stewart had replied in a tone that Bobby had never heard him use before. The accompanying look and eyebrow raise made him seem all the more deserving of the full title. “You have to help out with the chores.”
Stephen had sighed, pouted a little, and then nodded reluctantly. “All right. I’ll do them when we get home.”
“Good.” Mr. Stewart kissed him quickly. “I have to get going. I...”
That was all Bobby heard, because he took that moment to hurriedly walk away. For some reason, he did not want to be caught eavesdropping on this conversation.
He thought about it for the rest of the day, though. Stephen had deferred to Mr. Stewart. While he knew his boss had a tendency to do that to those he perceived as authoritative, he’d never really thought he viewed Mr. Stewart as an authority. It was interesting.
Eventually, however, he forgot about it—or at least put it in the back of his mind. It wasn’t until a couple weeks later that he remembered what he’d overheard, thanks to a reminder. Said reminder had been much more blunt than that snippet of conversation.
Stephen had been acting oddly the entire day. He’d seemed a little jumpy, on edge, and Mr. Stewart had been around the studio a lot more often than he usually was. While the reasons he gave for this seemed legitimate, Bobby couldn’t help but think his presence had something to do with Stephen’s odd behavior.
This was all but confirmed in Bobby’s mind when he heard that Mr. Stewart and Stephen had disappeared into Stephen’s office for about fifteen minutes shortly before rehearsal. When the grapevine added that a few interns had heard some odd noises coming from the room, he was all the more convinced. Mr. Stewart left shortly after that, and while Stephen acted a little calmer for the rest of the workday, he still seemed pretty frustrated during the show that night.
It made him wonder again, and his theory grew. Did Mr. Stewart exert more control over Stephen, now that the two of them were actually together? It certainly seemed like it.
Then the bracelet appeared, and he knew he’d been on the right track.
Allison had actually been the first person to notice it. “What’s that, Stephen?”
Stephen looked up from the script he’d been reading, glancing down to where Allison was pointing. He smiled briefly before saying, “A bracelet. Jon gave it to me.” There was an interesting note of pride in his voice.
“It’s nice,” she said, and smiled back.
“Thank you,” Stephen said, practically glowing.
“Was it an anniversary present?” Bobby asked curiously. He couldn’t think of what anniversary it would be—Stephen and Mr. Stewart had been together just shy of four months—and he knew it wasn’t Stephen’s birthday.
“No,” Stephen said simply. “It’s just a reminder.”
Bobby blinked. “A reminder?”
“That I’m his.” Stephen said this so matter-of-factly that Bobby just nodded and immediately accepted it as though it made perfect sense.
It did actually make sense, Bobby realized later. It just took a little thinking about in order to see. Stephen had always acted uncontrollably, and he’d always had weird fascinations with people who were controlling (Bill O’Reilly was one notable example, even if just thinking about it made Bobby shudder). Now that he was with Mr. Stewart, Bobby realized that those behaviors had lessened considerably—both the acting out and the approval seeking. He’d finally found someone who would keep him in line and take care of him.
Bobby was happy for his boss. Stephen might not be up for any Employer of the Year awards any time soon, but he and the rest of the staff were all fond of him in their own way. He could be demanding, mean, and unpredictable, but those were just some of the qualities that made him Stephen.
And, Bobby thought privately, if slightly selfishly, Stephen being involved with Mr. Stewart had so far only made his job easier. He liked not needing to know when the next unpredictable demand, breakdown, or harassment suit would crop up, and he hoped it stayed that way.
He had a feeling it would. If there was anything Bobby would always know about Stephen, it was that the man never gave up what was his (or even what wasn’t his) without a fight. Considering how Stephen had beamed with pride at the mere mention of the bracelet, and the obvious importance Mr. Stewart held for him, Bobby figured it’d take nothing short of supernatural forces or divine intervention in order to split them up.
After all, there were just some things you could always be sure of, no matter what.
Bobby knew this was one of them.
Fandom: Fake News (FPF)
Pairing: Jon/”Stephen”
Rating: PG
Content: References to a D/s-style relationship.
Summary: There are certain things that Bobby needs to know.
Word Count: 1,285
Disclaimer: All copyrighted material referred to in this work, and the characters, settings, and events thereof, are the properties of their respective owners. This work is not created for profit and constitutes fair use. References to real persons, places, or events are made in a fictional context, and are not intended to be libelous, defamatory, or in any way factual.
A/N: I'm a bit of a POV whore. I love using different people's (and sometimes animals') perspectives to tell a story; hence this fic's existence. (Let’s pretend in this universe that Bobby never left, plz? I like him too much for that.) Oh, also: this one references a couple things in Four Times Jon Needed To Punish Stephen (And One Time He Rewarded Him), so it might be beneficial to read that one as well. Thank you for the beta, Kelly.
There were some things that Bobby needed to know while working at The Colbert Report.
He needed to know when Stephen demanded something ridiculous, so he could figure out whether it was possible to achieve or if he’d need to be adeptly handled. He needed to know when Stephen randomly blew up, broke down, or freaked out, so he could play damage control between his boss and whoever had accidentally triggered said reaction. He needed to know when Stephen harassed another intern, whether sexually or otherwise, so he could limit the possibility of them filing a lawsuit. He needed to know what advice the writers were trying to give Stephen for that night’s show so he could find a way to work in what was necessary, since Stephen never listened. And most of all, he needed to be able to predict when Stephen might do any of these things and, if possible, prevent it from happening.
Lately, though, he hadn’t needed to know most of the usual information. Stephen’s ridiculous demands had been more than halved; now they mostly took place on air, and weren’t made of his staff. He hadn’t had a major freak out or blow-up in almost two months. The interns were starting to relax about being alone with him. And Bobby knew of at least three instances where Stephen had actually paid attention to something Allison had been saying.
At first, the change of pace was perplexing, but Bobby quickly developed a theory—one that was soon proven correct.
He knew that there had been a certain flirtation between Stephen and Jon Stewart, the host of The Daily Show, for quite awhile, and he also knew the precise day when that flirtation had finally grown into more. His boss’s outward intense homophobia was so blatantly transparent that the staff had started a private betting pool about when he would finally end up in a serious relationship with another man. (Tad had won; Bobby had missed it by two days.) And while Bobby knew that Mr. Stewart, as Stephen’s boss, had basically allowed Stephen to get away with murder, his theory was that something had changed when he had become his lover.
Stephen and Mr. Stewart (“Bobby, it’s Jon,” the man would always say, correcting him with a kind smile, but Bobby had never been able to call him by his first name) didn’t exactly hide their relationship. They hadn’t come right out and told everyone that they were together, but Bobby and the rest of the staff had seen enough small gestures of affection to know they were an item.
It was because of this that Bobby had been able to develop his theory. He’d witnessed an interaction one day that seemed to him to be out of the ordinary.
“But Jon,” Stephen had been saying, leaning in and toying with Mr. Stewart’s tie, “I don’t like doing the dishes.”
“Stephen, we’ve talked about this,” Mr. Stewart had replied in a tone that Bobby had never heard him use before. The accompanying look and eyebrow raise made him seem all the more deserving of the full title. “You have to help out with the chores.”
Stephen had sighed, pouted a little, and then nodded reluctantly. “All right. I’ll do them when we get home.”
“Good.” Mr. Stewart kissed him quickly. “I have to get going. I...”
That was all Bobby heard, because he took that moment to hurriedly walk away. For some reason, he did not want to be caught eavesdropping on this conversation.
He thought about it for the rest of the day, though. Stephen had deferred to Mr. Stewart. While he knew his boss had a tendency to do that to those he perceived as authoritative, he’d never really thought he viewed Mr. Stewart as an authority. It was interesting.
Eventually, however, he forgot about it—or at least put it in the back of his mind. It wasn’t until a couple weeks later that he remembered what he’d overheard, thanks to a reminder. Said reminder had been much more blunt than that snippet of conversation.
Stephen had been acting oddly the entire day. He’d seemed a little jumpy, on edge, and Mr. Stewart had been around the studio a lot more often than he usually was. While the reasons he gave for this seemed legitimate, Bobby couldn’t help but think his presence had something to do with Stephen’s odd behavior.
This was all but confirmed in Bobby’s mind when he heard that Mr. Stewart and Stephen had disappeared into Stephen’s office for about fifteen minutes shortly before rehearsal. When the grapevine added that a few interns had heard some odd noises coming from the room, he was all the more convinced. Mr. Stewart left shortly after that, and while Stephen acted a little calmer for the rest of the workday, he still seemed pretty frustrated during the show that night.
It made him wonder again, and his theory grew. Did Mr. Stewart exert more control over Stephen, now that the two of them were actually together? It certainly seemed like it.
Then the bracelet appeared, and he knew he’d been on the right track.
Allison had actually been the first person to notice it. “What’s that, Stephen?”
Stephen looked up from the script he’d been reading, glancing down to where Allison was pointing. He smiled briefly before saying, “A bracelet. Jon gave it to me.” There was an interesting note of pride in his voice.
“It’s nice,” she said, and smiled back.
“Thank you,” Stephen said, practically glowing.
“Was it an anniversary present?” Bobby asked curiously. He couldn’t think of what anniversary it would be—Stephen and Mr. Stewart had been together just shy of four months—and he knew it wasn’t Stephen’s birthday.
“No,” Stephen said simply. “It’s just a reminder.”
Bobby blinked. “A reminder?”
“That I’m his.” Stephen said this so matter-of-factly that Bobby just nodded and immediately accepted it as though it made perfect sense.
It did actually make sense, Bobby realized later. It just took a little thinking about in order to see. Stephen had always acted uncontrollably, and he’d always had weird fascinations with people who were controlling (Bill O’Reilly was one notable example, even if just thinking about it made Bobby shudder). Now that he was with Mr. Stewart, Bobby realized that those behaviors had lessened considerably—both the acting out and the approval seeking. He’d finally found someone who would keep him in line and take care of him.
Bobby was happy for his boss. Stephen might not be up for any Employer of the Year awards any time soon, but he and the rest of the staff were all fond of him in their own way. He could be demanding, mean, and unpredictable, but those were just some of the qualities that made him Stephen.
And, Bobby thought privately, if slightly selfishly, Stephen being involved with Mr. Stewart had so far only made his job easier. He liked not needing to know when the next unpredictable demand, breakdown, or harassment suit would crop up, and he hoped it stayed that way.
He had a feeling it would. If there was anything Bobby would always know about Stephen, it was that the man never gave up what was his (or even what wasn’t his) without a fight. Considering how Stephen had beamed with pride at the mere mention of the bracelet, and the obvious importance Mr. Stewart held for him, Bobby figured it’d take nothing short of supernatural forces or divine intervention in order to split them up.
After all, there were just some things you could always be sure of, no matter what.
Bobby knew this was one of them.