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deadpoetsandlivinglegends · 2 months ago

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Chetknox Julius Caesar fic idea I have a month to write and if I don’t, at least I can reblog this on the day

So I was talking bout it in the tags on another post but I figured I would make my own post as I’ve worked out some more details and this works as an outline of the whole story, it’s an ides of march inspired fic

Chet used to go to Welton, but he had to drop out sophomore year, so he went to public school nearby. Chet and Knox have a bit of history (haha puns), but they were never really close or friends friends, like at best, acquaintances who didn’t talk except when forced to hang out by their parents, but could hold a conversation if they wanted to. Their parents were good friends though so sometimes throughout the years Chet, Ginny, and Knox had dinner at each others houses, but in terms of welton and such, overall they didn’t interact a lot, most was they just had to stand around as their parents talked at the beginning of the year. There was this one time in middle school when Knox and Chet went up to Chet’s room after dinner and they had kissed but neither every talk about it with the other after, but still they were on good terms but they were never really friends.

So like the movie, Knox goes to the danburry’s for dinner. Chris answers the door and Knox is kind of stunned because this is not who usually answers the door, this person is none of the danburrys he knows, so stupidly he says the only thing he can think to say ‘Mrs. Danburry?’ The girl didn’t realize he was double checking that the danburrys did in fact still live here, but rather thought he was asking if she was Mrs. Danburry. As she giggles and says no, Mrs. Danburry coming up behind her to greet him, finally confirming that they do in fact still reside in the same *sarcastic tone* humble abode. Chet calls for this girl, Chris, and she goes back to the kitchen. He is let in, where he is led to the living room. Ginny is there, and Knox sits down awkwardly. It’s been years since he’s seen Ginny, but before either of them say anything, Chris comes out to the living room, sitting down beside Ginny on the floor. Chet comes in after her.

This is the first time he’s seen Chet since Chet left welton. He now formally meets Chris, Chet’s girlfriend who he started dating earlier in this school year. Chet plays football, and he seems to have grown more into himself since leaving welton, both physically, as he doesn’t seem to be as much the awkward gangle of limbs as before, and personality wise, he doesn’t seem as lost or unhappy as he was in Welton, or even before Welton, and Knox clocks both right away. One conversation with Chet and you could tell he was doing much better now-a-days.

Dinner goes well enough. Knox’s parents didn’t go, so he had to fill in for them in the small talk department with Mr. Danburry about what’s been going on in the Overstreet lives. They talk about school, Knox talks about welton and Mr. Keating and about other gossip the danburrys might be interested in. They talk about Ginny and Chet’s schooling, Chet’s football and Chris’s cheerleading, and how the two are nominated for homecoming king and queen. They talk about how Ginny signed up for a local play, Midsummer Nights Dream, and how Knox should come see it when it comes out.

Knox notices throughout the night he can’t help but stare at Chet and Chris. He finds himself feeling flushed and embarrassed, and a twinge of jealousy, every time he catches himself staring at the two. Miserable seeing the two together, he resolves he must be in love with Chris.

That night, he goes back to welton, and the poets ask how dinner was. It wouldn’t have been that bad if he hadn’t spent so much of it focusing on those two, dinner itself was actually enjoyable. He tells the boys how he thinks he is in love with Chet’s girlfriend.

The story continues, and he calls up Chris. She seemed both surprised and pleased that he called, because it was the perfect opportunity to invite him to a party Chet was having this weekend while his parents are away. Knox, egged on by the poets, is convinced he needed to be with Chris because that is the only way to understand these feelings, these sudden intense emotions. He tells the boys he is going to sneak out to that party.

A matter of days before the party, he has worked out most of the kinks of how he will go. The party is all that’s been on his mind, that and Chris and Chet. He realized every time he thinks of Chris, he always thinks of the two of them together, isn’t it weird how Chet was always there too, perhaps just that Knox knows he is an obstacle that must be overcome to finally get what he desires. He’s reading before bed, Keating is having them read Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare.

That night he has a dream, he’s in Julius Caesar. He’s Brutus. Chris is Calphurnia. Neil, who just got the part of Puck in the local production of Midsummer, is Cassius because he knows how to act in Shakespeare best, the other poets are the members of the conspiracy to kill Caesar. Chet is Caesar. Chet is about to become (homecoming) king in the dream and Neil convinces Knox that they can’t let that happen, he has to stop that otherwise he will never get Chris. Knox goes through with the plan to kill Chet, despite being his close friend and ally, and he immediately regrets what he’s done. He and the poets run, as an army of football players go after them. Neil, like Cassius, dies. And while Knox is grieving Chet, knowing he must kill himself soon as per the end of the play, he talks to Chris. She asks him why he did it, and he says, “if he is with you, then what of me? If he has everything, if he is happy, and he does it all without me- how can he live so happily without me?” And Chris sitting with him, asks if it was ever really about her, and Knox sits in silence before speaking, “I do not know you. But him, he was mine before he was yours, before he was Rome. How could I want him to give himself to the empire? As Caesar loved me, I weep for him; as he was fortunate, I rejoice at it; as he was valiant, I honor him; but, as he was ambitious, I slew him.” Chris looks at him, “is ambition such a wicked thing?” Knox replied, “it took him from me, how could I not have seen it as wicked.” Chris, looking over, points out he is not with Chet now. Knox says, “because of my own ambitions, he is gone. What a wicked twist of fate. What fool am I to try to control the fates, for they spit in my face, leave the blood still soaking my hands as I mourn him.” Knox pauses for a moment, then asks “do you think he hates me?” Chris looks over at him, “I don’t think so. Not yet.” And then Knox wakes up.

Knox is reeling from the dream, not knowing what to make of it. He goes to class, where they are having a discussion about the book. Keating asks the boys, “what purpose would a man have to kill his friend” and Knox, without thinking, speaks up, “Love. Brutus claims he loves Rome more than Caesar. But, um, perhaps it was also jealousy” Keating shushes the boys and tells Knox to go on. “Well, Brutus knew Caesar before everything, before Caesar was Rome’s, he was Brutus’, and Caesar trusted Brutus, so much so he calls him specifically out, so perhaps Brutus figured the only way for Caesar not to leave him behind, the only way for Caesar to stay his, was to make sure Caesar didn’t become the ruler of Rome.” Keating nods, “interesting, most would have stated that Brutus as a senator would be jealous of Caesar for where he is politically, but to say he is jealous of Rome for taking Caesar from him is an interesting interpretation.” Knox thinks of Chet and his dream for a split second before pushing it out. He turns bright red and doesn’t speak up for the rest of class.

He sneaks out of welton for the party, utterly unsure of what his feelings are anymore. He rings the doorbell, only to once again be met by Chris. She greets him and tells him beer is in the kitchen and most people are downstairs. As he shuffles to the kitchen, he realizes he is far overdressed for this. He gets handed a beer and some loud boys are screaming at him about some man he doesn’t know. He guzzles it with them as they pour him another one. He makes his way downstairs, tripping over some people making out on the floor. He sits on the couch only for a drunk Chris to pass out on the couch, slumping over onto him. He has no idea what to do so he just lets her stay there as he sips on the drink and curses silently to himself.

At some point, Chet makes it over to them, and he asks Knox about Chris. He tells her she is passed out, and Chet asks him to help bring her upstairs. They head into Chet’s room and lie her on the bed. The room, although familiar, is much different from the last time he was in there. He feels like the room is spinning, so he sits on the floor. Chet sits down next to him and asks if he is ok. Knox mutters something in Latin as he lies his head on Chet’s shoulder, and Chet lets him. They go quiet as they sit there like that.

Chris starts moving around, turning over to see Chet and Knox like that. “Not a word” he tells her, blushing. “Hmm I’m just surprised you aren’t downstairs making out with the left tackle.” “Maybe i would be if someone wasn’t downstairs passed out on the couch.” “And how did you two end up back in the place of the crime?” She makes kissy noises as she came over and sat next to him, “he helped bring you up” she looks over at Knox and laughs, “I don’t think he could help much with anything in his current state. I think you just have a soft spot for him and wanted to bring him back to the place of your first kiss.” “Shut up, you know he’s probably straight.” “Hmm you could always ask. I’m going to go find Ginny.” “Good luck, busy down there.” “You know most boyfriends don’t wish their girlfriends luck at scoring with their sister,” she teased. “And most girlfriends don’t leave their boyfriends alone with the guy they’ve been pining over for a week straight,” he retorted. “Oh there was nothing straight about that week, love.” She pecks him on the cheek then goes to find Ginny.

And after Chris leaves, Chet turns back to Knox. Knox mumbles out, “you told her about the kiss?” “Oh, I didn’t know you were awake.” “Mhmm.” He still doesn’t open his eyes though. “So Chris and Ginny?” “Yeah, we figured if we pretend to date, she could see Ginny without any of our parents knowing.” “Oh that’s good.” Chet snorts, “and why is that?” “Cause I didn’t wanna share you with Rome.” “Wow you are drunk, I thought I was drunk but you are like drunk drunk.” “If I pretend to date Ginny could I be with you?” “You want to?” “Of course. Buy a big house, the four of us, and we could live together.” “I’d like that. Now you should probably sleep off all that liquor.” Chet brings him to the bed and lies him down. He sits back on the floor, leaning his head against the bed. Knox looks around Chet’s bedroom and points random stuff out that’s different. Chet humors him until Knox falls asleep.

Knox wakes up the next morning rushing to leave, and Chet, who reluctantly lied on the bed too when Knox argued with him about not sleeping on the floor, wakes up during Knox’s franticness. “Wha- what’s going on?” “I shouldn’t have gone to sleep, I was supposed to be back at Welton by now” and Knox is going to rush out the door to a confused Chet, then Knox runs back in and kisses Chet’s forehead before running out again, leaving Chet even more confused. Knox cycles back to Welton when it all hits him.

None of the administration noticed he was out, and after a little bit of bribing his roommate, he figured they wouldn’t find out. But the poets had definitely noticed he was out all night and are pressing for details. Knox keeps insisting nothing happened, which is technically the truth, but he later pulls Neil aside to talk. Neil felt like the safest option, as he seemed most likely to be accepting. Him being in theater (with Ginny), and he’s pretty sure something has been going on with Neil and Todd since the beginning of the school year but he never bothered to ask. Don’t ask, don’t tell. Neil listens for a bit without saying anything, and then tells Knox he should go for it if it’s what he wants.

Then Knox decides he needs to do something, so he cycles to the stadium where they are hosting a football game. He runs into Chris before he does Chet, and Chris pulls him aside. “What are you doing here?” “I wanted to see Chet.” “If the Danburry see you, you’ll be in trouble.” “I don’t care.” “Look Knox, Chet is my best friend, don’t make his life hard, especially if this isn’t serious to you.” “It is Chris, it is” “then wait to talk to Chet until after, ok.” “Ok.” So Knox watches the game, how the crowd cheers wildly for the team. During the game, he realizes this is Chet’s Rome. And if Knox doesn’t handle this right, he will bring down Julius Caesar. Knox is Brutus, but maybe this time it doesn’t have to be a tragedy. Maybe if Knox is careful, history can be rewritten. Maybe their story can be different.

As the game is ending, people start filing out. Knox sticks around in the stands longer, staring out onto the empty field. Chet comes to the entrance of the stands, scanning the small clumps of people still left before his eyes land on Knox. He sits besides Knox, “couldn’t find you out there, had thought maybe you left” “you were good out there” “oh. Thanks” Knox lets his pinky veer overtop Chet’s pinky, interlocking them, and when he glances, Chet’s face is red as he stares at their hands.

“Do you think Brutus was afraid Caesar would leave him behind when he became ruler of Rome?” Chet looked at him, confused as to where this suddenly came from, “I don’t know why he would be, no one talks about Caesar without bringing up Brutus, I think their lives were so interwoven it wouldn’t have been feasible for Caesar to be without Brutus, and vise versa. And I don’t think Caesar would have wanted to have Rome without Brutus with him.” Knox stares back over the empty field. Caesar wouldn’t want Rome without Brutus. “Hey Knox” “yeah” “did you mean what you said at the party?” “What did I say?” “Nevermind.” Knox grabs his hand, but doesn’t say anything. They both stare at one another. Chet is the first to say anything, “do you want to date?” Knox glances around, the stadium has since fully cleared out. He kisses Chet before nodding his head. Chet now fully blushes at this, leaning his face into Knox’s shoulder to hide it. “It’s not fair, this is the second time you’ve caught me off guard.” “Well then I guess I need to kiss you a lot more so you can be prepared,” Knox teased. “I’m not opposed,” Chet replies.

#chet started the meme about asking your boyfriend how often he thinks about the Roman Empire #chet danburry #knox overstreet #chetknox #ides of march

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