What It Seems by Speranza (NC-17)

[gardendoor.livejournal.com]

Fandom: DEAD ZONE
Pairing: Johnny/Walt
Author on LJ: cesperanza
Author Website: Speranza's Fiction
Why this must be read:

In this AU, Sarah is the one in the coma and Johnny is the one Walt builds a new life with. What's perfect about it is that Johnny's questioning of his sexuality makes the relationship just as fragile and precarious as Walt's relationship with Sarah in the original history.

The guy looked up sharply, and my God, he had the bluest eyes Walt had ever seen. "I need ice," he said.

"O-kay," Walt cautiously agreed, raising his palms to show that he meant no harm. "We'll get you some ice." He saw now that there was a blue rubber bucket on the counter next to the piles of paper cups and plastic lids. It was already half full; the guy'd probably emptied the machine already and it hadn't yet had time to fill up. "Just, relax for a minute, all right?" Walt said. "Punching the machine's not going to make it work any faster, and you're gonna get blood in your Slurpee."

The guy frowned, eyes moving from his knuckles to the bucket and back up again. There were dark shadows under his eyes. "It's not a..." He turned back to the ice machine distractedly, and Walt decided to get a doctor; this guy had maybe wandered off a mental ward somewhere. "It's...sometimes coma patients wake up when you dump a bucket of ice on them. It's supposed to stimulate the brain."

"Oh," Walt said, surprised and uncomfortable; shit, this guy wasn't crazy, he was just tired—really tired, from the look of him.

"I try it once a week," the guy said, eyes doggedly fixed on the dented metal front plate, the plastic spout, the bright square that said, "Press here." "Hasn't worked yet, but..." He shrugged and lifted his chin, but this challenge wasn't aimed at Walt; it was more like he was swearing something to himself, digging his heels in.

"I'll hold the bucket," Walt said in a quiet voice.

What It Seems