Title: "Silence" Pairing: Karl Urban/Orlando Bloom Rating: PG Disclaimer: Never happened. Summary: The not-so epic love story of Karl and Orlando Notes: Written for the Comment_Fic One Word post - my word was 'silence'. Hard as it is to believe these days, but Karl really hadn't expected that he and Orlando would last six months after filming Lord of the Rings, let alone almost ten years. Sure, yeah, they'd burned bright and hot in the early days, buoyed by hellaciously long hours together and intense scenes that left every sense heightened to the point that falling into bed together had been almost inevitable. And, fuck, the sex had been absolutely unbelievable, the perfect combination of intense and rough and caring, better than anything Karl'd ever experienced. But he'd been around long enough to know that sexual chemistry didn't automatically equal compatibility. And Orlando had been a rising star, destined for great things and a stellar career and life beyond this bubble they'd created on this tiny island in the middle of the Pacific. But his insane work and promotional schedule hadn't stopped Orlando from taking a day or two or three when he could and flying to meet Karl wherever he was – on the smaller films he'd been working on, on his own promotional tours, back in New Zealand between jobs. Long enough to make his presence felt, to create new memories to layer on top of the old. Long enough that Karl'd finally gotten the point that Orlando had been serious about making this work. Long enough that Karl'd gotten the point there was no one better and bigger waiting for Orlando on the horizon, that he'd made his choice a long time ago, and Karl should really get used to it. After that, it had been easy enough to meet Orlando halfway, to go to Orlando instead when he could, to treat each meeting as a continuation, a building-block to something lasting, as opposed to an itch to scratch when they both had a need. These days, when asked, Orlando tells the story of their start with glee, with a certain amount of satisfaction in the ironic knowledge that he'd been the one to chase Karl, instead of the other way around. Karl's just content to listen and bask in the knowledge that he had been the one who'd been smart enough to allow himself to be caught. If you enjoyed this fic, please leave feedback here. Thanks!