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!Joe Flanigan (![[info]](http://www.journalfen.net/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} dr_dolittle) wrote,@ 2008-05-23 22:24:00 |
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Joe Flanigan and David Hewlett. There you are. Part 1/2
[Back in 2000.]
[The same day that Pixel has a vet appointment and spills some beans.]
Joe! Joe! Joe! Joe! Max bounces around the front hall as Joe comes into the house. You brought treats! Are those treats I can have? Or are they people treats? It doesn't matter to me!
Just like last time, Joe's walking inside David's house, and just like last time, he'd fought a losing battle with his hair. Unlike last time, he doesn't have cookies, but he had managed to find both a bottle of wine and a six-pack of beer, not to mention a few DVDs.
None with animals in them. He tends to laugh inappropriately at the comments from the animal actors.
"Hey there, Max--I missed you today! There might just be treats in my pocket... you'll find out once my hands are free."
"Joe! Hi there." David's got a dish towel over his shoulder as he comes into the hall from the kitchen. He seems to not realise it's there right away, and when he does, he drags it quickly off his shoulder and tries to hide it behind his back.
"Hi--I've got beer, wine, and DVD's, so... here," Joe says, holding them out to David. "Anything's good for me."
"Wow. That's--thanks. A lot." David takes them and smiles brightly. "This is very thoughtful of you. I've got lasagne cooking. I hope you like lasagne?"
I've never seen David move so fast in such a short period of time! He's done dishes and he vacuumed a bit and he cooked. He must REALLY like you, Joe!
"I love lasagne--really, you didn't have to go to all the trouble," Joe says, dropping down to Max's level and giving him treats. A few of them.
"It wasn't any trouble at all," David says. "Really. I make lasagne all the time."
He's a terrible liar, isn't he? Max licks Joe's face enthusiastically.
Joe snorts very softly, giving Max a good ruffle about the ears. "Well, your breath is better, so there's that at least," he says, standing up again. "It smells wonderful. Can I do anything to help?"
"There's nothing to do, really. Everything's cooking. Come in and sit." David leads the way into the kitchen, stepping swiftly over Pixel as she deigns to get up to come and see Joe.
He reaches down and scoops the small kitten into his arms as he follows David into the kitchen. "Any reaction to the shot at all, or is she okay?"
"Her hip's a bit tender, but she's a tough girl and wouldn't possibly admit it. She had a power nap just until she heard Max reacting to you coming in."
"Yeah, I bet she did. Not that Max makes noise or anything when someone comes to visit, does he?" Joe laughs, still holding on to Pixel. "You sure you don't need help setting the table or anything?"
"But you're a guest," David protests. He doesn't want to talk about Max's embarrassing displays when they have company--the one behaviour that he's never been able to train out of him.
"And you're making me dinner. It's only fair," Joe points out, setting Pixel down and heading over to the cupboard, guessing where the plates might be and getting it right on the second try.
Joe! Can I help, Joe? Let me help!
"Max, on your mat. Now." David points imperiously.
Max's tail droops a little and he goes to sit. Fine. Pixel goes to sit with him to keep him company.
"He's pretty well trained, even if he gets terribly offended about being sent there," Joe says, looking impressed as he starts setting the table. "Too bad there's not much a dog can do to help you set the table."
I wanna help.
"He always wants to help with everything. You should see him when I vacuum."
I'm gonna catch that thing one day.
"Not a big fan of the vacuum, is he?" Joe gives Max a sympathetic look. "You could get hardwood. Wrap polishing cloths around his feet and throw a ball."
Don't say the b-word! Pixel looks adoringly up at Max to get him to stay put.
"That's... that's a really interesting idea. I might have to look into that." David pulls down a couple of wine glasses and takes them to the table.
"If you're getting wine glasses, I should probably open the wine," Joe says, with an apologetic look to Pixel. Finding a corkscrew, he starts attacking the wine bottle with it. Trying to figure out what to do next.
"Joe, Joe, Joe," David says, gently but obviously trying not to laugh. "You have to be gentle. A guy would think you'd never opened a wine bottle before." He steps up next to Joe and gently takes the corkscrew from him, carefully opening the bottle.
"I'm sorry, I'm... not very good with wine bottles," Joe admits, more than a little sheepish as he watches David take over. "I like wine, but I usually end up swallowing a lot of cork."
David laughs softly and pours some wine for both of them. "That's the cutest thing I've ever heard," he says, then turns bright red and mumbles something about garlic bread.
Cute. He thinks I'm cute. The dog and the cat are right! Joe looks a little triumphant as he reaches for his wine glass and takes a sip. Maybe a bigger one than he should have, judging by the way he starts coughing.
David turns around again quickly. "Are you all right?"
"Sorry, I... drink... to fast... wine in nose." That's more or less what Joe's able to get out between coughs.
"Joe..." David gets him a glass of water, then steps up next to him and rubs his back.
Okay, now this is nice, although it would be a lot nicer if he wasn't coughing his guts out, his eyes weren't tearing up, and there wasn't a distinct presence of Merlot in his sinuses. A few long moments and a sip or two of water later, and he's got himself mostly calmed down, bringing his hand up to wipe at his eyes. "Well. That was classy."
David smiles up at him. "We all choke once in a while." His hand is still moving on Joe's back. "We went back to England for a cousin's wedding last year--me, Kate, my parents--and right in the middle of the best man's speech, I forgot how to swallow."
"Oh dear... not exactly the best timing," Joe says, his voice still sounding a little rough. And no, he didn't just lean a little into David's hand. Except yes, he did. "I've never been to England."
"I was born there," David says. "Still have lots of family across the pond."
"I didn't know that. It must be nice, getting to go and visit like that," Joe says, taking another sip of water, then setting the glass down.
"Well, I don't really get to go and visit much," David admits, stepping away and finally getting around to that garlic bread. "Can't really afford it, exactly."
"I've never seen your shop. You said... something about geeks? Did I hear that right?"
"Geek shop," David says, glancing shyly over his shoulder. "I'm founding geek. We build and repair computers."
"Wow. One of these days, I might have to stop in. I had a computer, but then there was an accident involving a cat that ate cheetoes and, well... it stopped working. Apparently using soap and water to try and clean it was a bad idea," Joe winces at the memory.
David looks horrified. "Tell me you're joking."
"Um."
"Oh. Oh dear."
"So, yeah. It makes a decent paperweight, but not much of a laptop. I'll stop by sometime... maybe look at something new," Joe says, looking thoughtful.
"I'm sure I could put something together for you," David says. He turns a bit pink and goes back to the garlic bread.
"So when you say you build computers, you mean you really build them? They don't just come pre-made at Wal-Mart?"
"Nope, we get all the pieces from suppliers and put them together. We can completely custom build a system for somebody."
"Wow." Joe looks truly impressed. "Wow, I really didn't know that's how it works. Of course, I'd have no idea what I'd want built other than... shiny?"
"You want a shiny computer? We can polish one up for you." David grins.
"I'm probably the worst example of what kind of people walk into your door. You know that joke about the guy using the CD tray as a coffee holder? I didn't get what the problem was until it was explained to me by one of my techs. Twice." Sadly, Joe isn't kidding.
"Oh, that's... that's very sad," David says. He puts a baking sheet into the oven, then reaches for his wine again. "I could probably give you some private lessons."
Subtle, isn't he? Max is lying with his nose on his paws and Pixel on his back.
Max really needs to stop doing that when Joe's about to take a drink. Fortunately, this time, he's just shy of having wine in his mouth, so it only requires him to clear his throat loudly to keep the laugh back. "I... you know, I might just hit you up for that."
"Well, good." David smiles. He peers at the clock. "We can eat in ten minutes."
"Good. That's good too." A pause, interrupted by Joe taking another sip of wine. "One of these times, maybe you should come to my place. I mean, you're not allergic to cats or dogs, so you'd be fine."
"Yeah, I can do that. Definitely."
Max sits up and runs forward to look imploringly up at Joe. You're not going to come see me anymore?
Big furry lump! Pixel is very offended to have been dropped to the mat as Max gets up, and she yowls as though she's been kicked. David rushes over to her. "Max! Be careful with the baby."
"Oh now, Max," Joe says, going over to him and dropping down to pet him, once he sees that Pixel's all right. "You know I won't forget you," he murmurs, nice and low, just for Max, as he ruffles him up lots. "You don't have to knock Pix flying."
You'll keep coming to see me? You promise? You can't only pay attention to David. Promise?
"Promise," Joe murmurs again, then kisses the top of his head. "Pixel ruffled but okay?" he asks David.
"Very ruffled, but she's just fine. She's springy." David rubs a hand down her back then sets her down again. "Okay, you two. Time for those of us who can see over the counters to have dinner. On your mat."
Max licks up the side of Joe's face before he goes to settle down on his mat again. Pixel curls up in a tight little ball as far away from him as possible.
"Hell hath no fury," David says, shaking his head as he heads back to the oven.
"Oh yeah. She'll forgive him once she can make it seem like it's her idea," Joe smiles, wiping at his face and heading for the table, grabbing the bottle of wine and bringing it with him on the way. "Okay, it smelled good before, it's been upgraded to amazing."
David dishes out their dinner and brings it to the table. "Thanks," he says. "I really hope you like it."
"I don't really cook, so... wow. Okay, wow." Joe hasn't even tasted it, yet, but just the look and smell of it is making him monosyllabic.
"I don't really either," David says. He pushes a napkin toward Joe, and shrugs a little. "Dig in, dig in."
He cooks a lot. He likes cooking. And sometimes he shares it with me. Pixel's too little for people food.
Am not.
Are too.
Am not!
Are too!
Joe hides a smile behind his wine glass. "Well, I'm sure whatever we don't eat, Max will try and score some of the leftovers. This is amazing, really," he says, after a bite.
"Really?" David hasn't touched his and he looks very anxious.
Joe looks up at him, mouth full, eyes expressing disbelief that David need even ask the question.
"I guess that's a yes." David looks relieved and joyful and he still hasn't touched his own dinner.
"Yes. God, it's a yes. Eat, please, you're making me feel guilty, and if you don't, I might steal your plate," Joe threatens.
"Oh, don't you dare," David says, laughing. A few minutes of silent eating later, he adds, "Oh, and I stopped and got some ice cream for dessert. Ben and Jerry's. Cherry Garcia."
"You stopped and got ice cream for dessert, and you managed to make something like this?" And vacuum and do dishes, but he doesn't say that part aloud. "You're a fast worker."
"I, ah--" David looks very embarrassed. "Okay, okay, I bought the ice cream this morning when I went out to get that loaf of bread. It was on sale!"
Joe can't help it--that gets him laughing. "Hey, anyone who can think of dessert at breakfast time has my vote."
David looks embarrassed again. "I always think of dessert." His waistline speaks to that. He wonders if Joe thinks he's too chubby.
"I usually forget until I really really want it, at which point there's no ice cream in the fridge, at which point I end up going on a late night grocery run, and my hair is all over the place." Joe wonders if David thinks his hair is stupid.
David laughs softly. "I generally have that problem when I'm out of milk."
"I think everyone has that problem when they're out of milk. I'm usually not awake when I use the milk, so I put the empty container back in the fridge, then swear the next morning and put it back again. I think I went three days in a row like that once."
"I have a bad habit of putting my breakfast plates in the fridge when I'm half-asleep," David says. "And coffee filters in the dishwasher."
"That could be really messy if you didn't catch it before you turned it on," Joe winces.
"I've been very, very lucky." David tears the last piece of garlic bread in half and hands one half to Joe and takes the other for himself.
Joe nods in thanks, taking an immediate bite of the bread. "Heaven. Seriously," he says, blushing a little since his mouth is full.
David smiles quite bashfully. "Well, thanks. I'm really glad you like it."
Joe looks blissful swiping the bread around in the leftover sauce to make sure he doesn't miss any. "I'd ask for the recipe, but there's no way I could make this."
"Maybe I won't just teach you how to work a computer--I should give you some cooking lessons."
"I think it's possible that I might be beyond hope," Joe sighs, standing up and starting to collect the dishes.
"Do you have someone who can keep you well-fed?" David gets to his feet and tries to help Joe with the dishes.
He swats at David. "The guy who cooks doesn't do dishes. It's like a law. And, well... the local Dominos pizza delivery kid does a decent job of keeping me well fed."
"Joe," David says, despairingly.
"What! I do okay, don't I?" Joe turned to face David and struck a bit of a pose, which was marred by the fact that he was holding a plate in each hand.
David gives him an up-and-down look, biting his lip to keep from laughing. Or blushing. Or jumping him. Or something. "Yes, yes, you do okay."
"Well there we go then," Joe says, nodding firmly, and starting to load the dishwasher. "At least I make sure my animals eat well. That's a start, I suppose. And my vet tech yells at me if she catches me eating anything that comes out of a box and can be cooked in the microwave."
David winces. "Joe, Joe, Joe..."
"I'm going to start finding care packages on my doorstep, aren't I?"
David gives him a wide-eyed innocent look.
"I'm gonna start finding care packages on my doorstep, oh yeah." Joe sighs dramatically, grinning as he keeps loading the dishwasher, heading back to the table to grab more stuff.
"No, no, the big dishes have to go in front," David says, hurrying forward to start rearranging the dishwasher.
"Sorry... I didn't know there was a system," Joe says, both apologetic and rather amused as he watches David start shuffling things around. "Cutlery goes up or goes down?"
"Knives down, everything else up," David says. "The big knives go in that little basket up top." He stands straight and turns around, only to bump into Joe. "Oh. Uh, hi."
"I...hey. No, it's... uh, it's okay." Joe takes a bit of a step back, then ducks around David and deposits the cutlery as instructed. "Okay, that's better."
"Yeah," David says. "Thanks. Um. So, uh, ice cream?"
"Yeah, I... yeah. Or... maybe after the lasagne's had a chance to settle?" he offers. "There's still wine. And DVDs. We could... do wine? And DVDs?"
"Wine and DVDs, yeah," David says. "Sure. Let dinner digest some."
"Okay. The bottle's open, so it's probably safe if I refill our glasses. Do you want to pick something?" Joe says, backing up again and heading for the wine bottle.
"A movie? Yeah, I can... I can do that."
Max gets up off his mat and dashes across the kitchen. David, on his way to look at the DVDs, sees him too late and trips and catches himself on a chair. "Max! Geez..."
"Max... what's the matter, man, you don't have to trip David." Joe turns and laughs. "You can come sit with us."
Max barks and dashes into the dark living room. Pixel, for her part, gets up slowly--very slowly--and stretches just as slowly before she follows after him.
David shakes his head. "He acts like such a goof when you're involved," he says, grinning. "You'd think he has a crush on you."
Close... but apparently not quite. "Well, animals just like me," Joe says, shrugging it off and giving David a charming smile, heading over to him and giving David back his glass of wine, standing just a little bit inside what would be considered David's space.
David looks at him and takes the glass, his fingers lingering a moment on Joe's. "I can't say as I blame them."
Do it. Do it, do it, do it, you know he likes you, the cat and the dog told you, he just touched your fingers, stop being such a chicken! The voice in the back of his head sounds eerily like Pixel's. Joe actually looks down to make sure he's not getting coaching from the kitten, then back up at David again, licking his own lips. "I... yeah?" is what he actually says, although he does lean in a little bit closer.
"Yeah," David says, quietly. "Can't blame them at all. You're... you're... there you are." There you are? What? Good God, man.
Setting down his wine, Joe takes that one little step closer and takes David's wine out of his hand, moving right in front of him. "I'm where? Here?" he murmurs, eyes focused on David's mouth.
"Right... right there," David says, swallowing hard. "Just--ah..."
"How 'bout right here." It's cheesy. It's horribly cheesy, and maybe sometime they'll laugh about that, but right now, he just sees it as the perfect opportunity to lean in and plant a soft kiss right on David's mouth.
After a little gasp, David leans in for another kiss. He isn't touching Joe; he doesn't dare. But he does want that second kiss, right now, especially with Joe being, well, right there.
David didn't pull away. David wants another kiss. Dear god, the animals were right. Armed with that knowledge, Joe does reach out to touch David, sliding his hand down his arm and moving so that he's just about pressed up against him, barely as much as an inch between them.
Ohmygod. Oh my god. David puts his own hand on Joe's arm in return. He leans into the kiss, for a moment, then has to stop to breathe because he's pretty sure he's suffocating.
"I... is this... this is okay, right?" Joe leans his head against David's forehead, trying to hide the fact that he's actually trembling.
"Yeah, it's... it's okay." David laughs breathlessly, his fingers tightening on Joe's arm. "I've been wanting to kiss you since you took over the practice."
That long? Fable obviously had more of a taste for discretion than Max does. "Wow. Really? I didn't... wow." Joe tries to take that in, licking his lips and tasting David on them.
David goes pink. "Yeah. Really. Of course, if the animals could talk you'd have known sooner."
Ohdeargod, if you only knew. "Yeah? I would, huh?" Joe says, his other arm managing to creep its way around David's waist.
It's really warm in the kitchen all of a sudden. David nods. "You would." He lifts his free hand to lightly touch Joe's hair.
"Careful... it's dangerous up there. Remember, Pixel almost got lost," Joe warns him, taking the opportunity to sneak another kiss.
"Don't care." David's fingers sink in. "Wow," he mumbles against Joe's mouth. "It's... soft."
"Ohgod..." Joe embarrasses himself by moaning when David touches his hair. "Yeah, I... if I don't use conditioner, it's even worse, if you can believe that."
"I just thought... I mean, it feels like you don't put anything in it at all. It's really nice." Nice? Oh lord.
Nice! He thinks my hair is nice! Oh my god! "Thank you--that's... I have no idea why we're still standing in the kitchen," Joe blurts out.
"We were kissing," David says, softly, fingers still playing with Joe's hair.
"No, I knew that part, I just..." Joe can either embarrass himself further, or kiss David again. Kissing David again wins.
Joe's kissing him again. David moans a little bit against his mouth and presses as close as he can.
And with just a little bit of a shift to the right and a step back, Joe's able to push David right up against the edge of the counter, groaning softly into the next kiss and letting his hands slide up his back nice and slow.
Oh. David tangles his fingers in Joe's hair. This can't be real--it can't, but there's the counter, and that's Joe, and he tastes like wine, and he's right there.
"You taste good," Joe whispers the next time he has to break away long enough to breathe, although he's careful not to move his lips away from David’s.
"You're just saying that because you liked dinner," David teases, gently.
"Yes, but that doesn't make it any less true," Joe grins back at him, shifting a little and happening to glance behind David, doing a double take and giving a bit of an unmanly yelp.
"What? What is it?" David turns and sees two little faces peering at them from over the ledge of the pass-through between the kitchen and the den. "Voyeurs!"
Joe puts one hand to his chest like he's just been scared half to death. "I beg your pardon, you two, don't you have something better to do than to watch us? Plus, Pixel, you're too little to watch this."
Both animals suddenly vanish from view.
David laughs helplessly and rests his forehead against Joe's shoulder. "Oh, geez."
"Oh, life with pets. Do they usually hang around and watch?" Joe groans, both arms nice and wrapped around David's shoulders.
"No, no, they don't. I'm not sure what's got into them." David wraps his arms around Joe's back. "I'm so sorry about their behaviour."
"They like you. They just want to make sure that you're okay," Joe assures him. "Don't worry about it. Believe me, I'm used to it." Most of Joe's life is accompanied by an animal commentary track.
David lightly strokes Joe's cheek. "I guess that's something," he says, then gives him another quick kiss. "Maybe if we're really quiet we can sneak into another room and, ah..."
"I'd like that. I'd... yeah, I'd definitely like that," Joe says, nodding quickly, not quite meeting David's eyes because dear God, was this really happening? Had he managed to not screw it up?
"Really?"
Joe just about laughs, then nods again pressing a little closer to David's body. If nothing else, there's ample evidence to convince him that's he's interested pressing right against David's hip. "Really."
"Oh, I. Oh. Well. I can. We can. It's..."
He kisses David again, really lingering over it this time. "Which way?" he whispers.
"To my bedroom?" David's voice is distressingly squeaky.
"Bathroom, living room, garage, I don't care, so long as I can lie down before my knees just completely give out," Joe says, laughing at himself.
"Down the other hallway past the front door," David says. He's very, very thankful for the bungalow now--stairs wouldn't be good right now.
Slowly--reluctantly--Joe pulls back away from David and reaches for his hand. "So take me there."
[Back in 2000.]
[The same day that Pixel has a vet appointment and spills some beans.]
Joe! Joe! Joe! Joe! Max bounces around the front hall as Joe comes into the house. You brought treats! Are those treats I can have? Or are they people treats? It doesn't matter to me!
Just like last time, Joe's walking inside David's house, and just like last time, he'd fought a losing battle with his hair. Unlike last time, he doesn't have cookies, but he had managed to find both a bottle of wine and a six-pack of beer, not to mention a few DVDs.
None with animals in them. He tends to laugh inappropriately at the comments from the animal actors.
"Hey there, Max--I missed you today! There might just be treats in my pocket... you'll find out once my hands are free."
"Joe! Hi there." David's got a dish towel over his shoulder as he comes into the hall from the kitchen. He seems to not realise it's there right away, and when he does, he drags it quickly off his shoulder and tries to hide it behind his back.
"Hi--I've got beer, wine, and DVD's, so... here," Joe says, holding them out to David. "Anything's good for me."
"Wow. That's--thanks. A lot." David takes them and smiles brightly. "This is very thoughtful of you. I've got lasagne cooking. I hope you like lasagne?"
I've never seen David move so fast in such a short period of time! He's done dishes and he vacuumed a bit and he cooked. He must REALLY like you, Joe!
"I love lasagne--really, you didn't have to go to all the trouble," Joe says, dropping down to Max's level and giving him treats. A few of them.
"It wasn't any trouble at all," David says. "Really. I make lasagne all the time."
He's a terrible liar, isn't he? Max licks Joe's face enthusiastically.
Joe snorts very softly, giving Max a good ruffle about the ears. "Well, your breath is better, so there's that at least," he says, standing up again. "It smells wonderful. Can I do anything to help?"
"There's nothing to do, really. Everything's cooking. Come in and sit." David leads the way into the kitchen, stepping swiftly over Pixel as she deigns to get up to come and see Joe.
He reaches down and scoops the small kitten into his arms as he follows David into the kitchen. "Any reaction to the shot at all, or is she okay?"
"Her hip's a bit tender, but she's a tough girl and wouldn't possibly admit it. She had a power nap just until she heard Max reacting to you coming in."
"Yeah, I bet she did. Not that Max makes noise or anything when someone comes to visit, does he?" Joe laughs, still holding on to Pixel. "You sure you don't need help setting the table or anything?"
"But you're a guest," David protests. He doesn't want to talk about Max's embarrassing displays when they have company--the one behaviour that he's never been able to train out of him.
"And you're making me dinner. It's only fair," Joe points out, setting Pixel down and heading over to the cupboard, guessing where the plates might be and getting it right on the second try.
Joe! Can I help, Joe? Let me help!
"Max, on your mat. Now." David points imperiously.
Max's tail droops a little and he goes to sit. Fine. Pixel goes to sit with him to keep him company.
"He's pretty well trained, even if he gets terribly offended about being sent there," Joe says, looking impressed as he starts setting the table. "Too bad there's not much a dog can do to help you set the table."
I wanna help.
"He always wants to help with everything. You should see him when I vacuum."
I'm gonna catch that thing one day.
"Not a big fan of the vacuum, is he?" Joe gives Max a sympathetic look. "You could get hardwood. Wrap polishing cloths around his feet and throw a ball."
Don't say the b-word! Pixel looks adoringly up at Max to get him to stay put.
"That's... that's a really interesting idea. I might have to look into that." David pulls down a couple of wine glasses and takes them to the table.
"If you're getting wine glasses, I should probably open the wine," Joe says, with an apologetic look to Pixel. Finding a corkscrew, he starts attacking the wine bottle with it. Trying to figure out what to do next.
"Joe, Joe, Joe," David says, gently but obviously trying not to laugh. "You have to be gentle. A guy would think you'd never opened a wine bottle before." He steps up next to Joe and gently takes the corkscrew from him, carefully opening the bottle.
"I'm sorry, I'm... not very good with wine bottles," Joe admits, more than a little sheepish as he watches David take over. "I like wine, but I usually end up swallowing a lot of cork."
David laughs softly and pours some wine for both of them. "That's the cutest thing I've ever heard," he says, then turns bright red and mumbles something about garlic bread.
Cute. He thinks I'm cute. The dog and the cat are right! Joe looks a little triumphant as he reaches for his wine glass and takes a sip. Maybe a bigger one than he should have, judging by the way he starts coughing.
David turns around again quickly. "Are you all right?"
"Sorry, I... drink... to fast... wine in nose." That's more or less what Joe's able to get out between coughs.
"Joe..." David gets him a glass of water, then steps up next to him and rubs his back.
Okay, now this is nice, although it would be a lot nicer if he wasn't coughing his guts out, his eyes weren't tearing up, and there wasn't a distinct presence of Merlot in his sinuses. A few long moments and a sip or two of water later, and he's got himself mostly calmed down, bringing his hand up to wipe at his eyes. "Well. That was classy."
David smiles up at him. "We all choke once in a while." His hand is still moving on Joe's back. "We went back to England for a cousin's wedding last year--me, Kate, my parents--and right in the middle of the best man's speech, I forgot how to swallow."
"Oh dear... not exactly the best timing," Joe says, his voice still sounding a little rough. And no, he didn't just lean a little into David's hand. Except yes, he did. "I've never been to England."
"I was born there," David says. "Still have lots of family across the pond."
"I didn't know that. It must be nice, getting to go and visit like that," Joe says, taking another sip of water, then setting the glass down.
"Well, I don't really get to go and visit much," David admits, stepping away and finally getting around to that garlic bread. "Can't really afford it, exactly."
"I've never seen your shop. You said... something about geeks? Did I hear that right?"
"Geek shop," David says, glancing shyly over his shoulder. "I'm founding geek. We build and repair computers."
"Wow. One of these days, I might have to stop in. I had a computer, but then there was an accident involving a cat that ate cheetoes and, well... it stopped working. Apparently using soap and water to try and clean it was a bad idea," Joe winces at the memory.
David looks horrified. "Tell me you're joking."
"Um."
"Oh. Oh dear."
"So, yeah. It makes a decent paperweight, but not much of a laptop. I'll stop by sometime... maybe look at something new," Joe says, looking thoughtful.
"I'm sure I could put something together for you," David says. He turns a bit pink and goes back to the garlic bread.
"So when you say you build computers, you mean you really build them? They don't just come pre-made at Wal-Mart?"
"Nope, we get all the pieces from suppliers and put them together. We can completely custom build a system for somebody."
"Wow." Joe looks truly impressed. "Wow, I really didn't know that's how it works. Of course, I'd have no idea what I'd want built other than... shiny?"
"You want a shiny computer? We can polish one up for you." David grins.
"I'm probably the worst example of what kind of people walk into your door. You know that joke about the guy using the CD tray as a coffee holder? I didn't get what the problem was until it was explained to me by one of my techs. Twice." Sadly, Joe isn't kidding.
"Oh, that's... that's very sad," David says. He puts a baking sheet into the oven, then reaches for his wine again. "I could probably give you some private lessons."
Subtle, isn't he? Max is lying with his nose on his paws and Pixel on his back.
Max really needs to stop doing that when Joe's about to take a drink. Fortunately, this time, he's just shy of having wine in his mouth, so it only requires him to clear his throat loudly to keep the laugh back. "I... you know, I might just hit you up for that."
"Well, good." David smiles. He peers at the clock. "We can eat in ten minutes."
"Good. That's good too." A pause, interrupted by Joe taking another sip of wine. "One of these times, maybe you should come to my place. I mean, you're not allergic to cats or dogs, so you'd be fine."
"Yeah, I can do that. Definitely."
Max sits up and runs forward to look imploringly up at Joe. You're not going to come see me anymore?
Big furry lump! Pixel is very offended to have been dropped to the mat as Max gets up, and she yowls as though she's been kicked. David rushes over to her. "Max! Be careful with the baby."
"Oh now, Max," Joe says, going over to him and dropping down to pet him, once he sees that Pixel's all right. "You know I won't forget you," he murmurs, nice and low, just for Max, as he ruffles him up lots. "You don't have to knock Pix flying."
You'll keep coming to see me? You promise? You can't only pay attention to David. Promise?
"Promise," Joe murmurs again, then kisses the top of his head. "Pixel ruffled but okay?" he asks David.
"Very ruffled, but she's just fine. She's springy." David rubs a hand down her back then sets her down again. "Okay, you two. Time for those of us who can see over the counters to have dinner. On your mat."
Max licks up the side of Joe's face before he goes to settle down on his mat again. Pixel curls up in a tight little ball as far away from him as possible.
"Hell hath no fury," David says, shaking his head as he heads back to the oven.
"Oh yeah. She'll forgive him once she can make it seem like it's her idea," Joe smiles, wiping at his face and heading for the table, grabbing the bottle of wine and bringing it with him on the way. "Okay, it smelled good before, it's been upgraded to amazing."
David dishes out their dinner and brings it to the table. "Thanks," he says. "I really hope you like it."
"I don't really cook, so... wow. Okay, wow." Joe hasn't even tasted it, yet, but just the look and smell of it is making him monosyllabic.
"I don't really either," David says. He pushes a napkin toward Joe, and shrugs a little. "Dig in, dig in."
He cooks a lot. He likes cooking. And sometimes he shares it with me. Pixel's too little for people food.
Am not.
Are too.
Am not!
Are too!
Joe hides a smile behind his wine glass. "Well, I'm sure whatever we don't eat, Max will try and score some of the leftovers. This is amazing, really," he says, after a bite.
"Really?" David hasn't touched his and he looks very anxious.
Joe looks up at him, mouth full, eyes expressing disbelief that David need even ask the question.
"I guess that's a yes." David looks relieved and joyful and he still hasn't touched his own dinner.
"Yes. God, it's a yes. Eat, please, you're making me feel guilty, and if you don't, I might steal your plate," Joe threatens.
"Oh, don't you dare," David says, laughing. A few minutes of silent eating later, he adds, "Oh, and I stopped and got some ice cream for dessert. Ben and Jerry's. Cherry Garcia."
"You stopped and got ice cream for dessert, and you managed to make something like this?" And vacuum and do dishes, but he doesn't say that part aloud. "You're a fast worker."
"I, ah--" David looks very embarrassed. "Okay, okay, I bought the ice cream this morning when I went out to get that loaf of bread. It was on sale!"
Joe can't help it--that gets him laughing. "Hey, anyone who can think of dessert at breakfast time has my vote."
David looks embarrassed again. "I always think of dessert." His waistline speaks to that. He wonders if Joe thinks he's too chubby.
"I usually forget until I really really want it, at which point there's no ice cream in the fridge, at which point I end up going on a late night grocery run, and my hair is all over the place." Joe wonders if David thinks his hair is stupid.
David laughs softly. "I generally have that problem when I'm out of milk."
"I think everyone has that problem when they're out of milk. I'm usually not awake when I use the milk, so I put the empty container back in the fridge, then swear the next morning and put it back again. I think I went three days in a row like that once."
"I have a bad habit of putting my breakfast plates in the fridge when I'm half-asleep," David says. "And coffee filters in the dishwasher."
"That could be really messy if you didn't catch it before you turned it on," Joe winces.
"I've been very, very lucky." David tears the last piece of garlic bread in half and hands one half to Joe and takes the other for himself.
Joe nods in thanks, taking an immediate bite of the bread. "Heaven. Seriously," he says, blushing a little since his mouth is full.
David smiles quite bashfully. "Well, thanks. I'm really glad you like it."
Joe looks blissful swiping the bread around in the leftover sauce to make sure he doesn't miss any. "I'd ask for the recipe, but there's no way I could make this."
"Maybe I won't just teach you how to work a computer--I should give you some cooking lessons."
"I think it's possible that I might be beyond hope," Joe sighs, standing up and starting to collect the dishes.
"Do you have someone who can keep you well-fed?" David gets to his feet and tries to help Joe with the dishes.
He swats at David. "The guy who cooks doesn't do dishes. It's like a law. And, well... the local Dominos pizza delivery kid does a decent job of keeping me well fed."
"Joe," David says, despairingly.
"What! I do okay, don't I?" Joe turned to face David and struck a bit of a pose, which was marred by the fact that he was holding a plate in each hand.
David gives him an up-and-down look, biting his lip to keep from laughing. Or blushing. Or jumping him. Or something. "Yes, yes, you do okay."
"Well there we go then," Joe says, nodding firmly, and starting to load the dishwasher. "At least I make sure my animals eat well. That's a start, I suppose. And my vet tech yells at me if she catches me eating anything that comes out of a box and can be cooked in the microwave."
David winces. "Joe, Joe, Joe..."
"I'm going to start finding care packages on my doorstep, aren't I?"
David gives him a wide-eyed innocent look.
"I'm gonna start finding care packages on my doorstep, oh yeah." Joe sighs dramatically, grinning as he keeps loading the dishwasher, heading back to the table to grab more stuff.
"No, no, the big dishes have to go in front," David says, hurrying forward to start rearranging the dishwasher.
"Sorry... I didn't know there was a system," Joe says, both apologetic and rather amused as he watches David start shuffling things around. "Cutlery goes up or goes down?"
"Knives down, everything else up," David says. "The big knives go in that little basket up top." He stands straight and turns around, only to bump into Joe. "Oh. Uh, hi."
"I...hey. No, it's... uh, it's okay." Joe takes a bit of a step back, then ducks around David and deposits the cutlery as instructed. "Okay, that's better."
"Yeah," David says. "Thanks. Um. So, uh, ice cream?"
"Yeah, I... yeah. Or... maybe after the lasagne's had a chance to settle?" he offers. "There's still wine. And DVDs. We could... do wine? And DVDs?"
"Wine and DVDs, yeah," David says. "Sure. Let dinner digest some."
"Okay. The bottle's open, so it's probably safe if I refill our glasses. Do you want to pick something?" Joe says, backing up again and heading for the wine bottle.
"A movie? Yeah, I can... I can do that."
Max gets up off his mat and dashes across the kitchen. David, on his way to look at the DVDs, sees him too late and trips and catches himself on a chair. "Max! Geez..."
"Max... what's the matter, man, you don't have to trip David." Joe turns and laughs. "You can come sit with us."
Max barks and dashes into the dark living room. Pixel, for her part, gets up slowly--very slowly--and stretches just as slowly before she follows after him.
David shakes his head. "He acts like such a goof when you're involved," he says, grinning. "You'd think he has a crush on you."
Close... but apparently not quite. "Well, animals just like me," Joe says, shrugging it off and giving David a charming smile, heading over to him and giving David back his glass of wine, standing just a little bit inside what would be considered David's space.
David looks at him and takes the glass, his fingers lingering a moment on Joe's. "I can't say as I blame them."
Do it. Do it, do it, do it, you know he likes you, the cat and the dog told you, he just touched your fingers, stop being such a chicken! The voice in the back of his head sounds eerily like Pixel's. Joe actually looks down to make sure he's not getting coaching from the kitten, then back up at David again, licking his own lips. "I... yeah?" is what he actually says, although he does lean in a little bit closer.
"Yeah," David says, quietly. "Can't blame them at all. You're... you're... there you are." There you are? What? Good God, man.
Setting down his wine, Joe takes that one little step closer and takes David's wine out of his hand, moving right in front of him. "I'm where? Here?" he murmurs, eyes focused on David's mouth.
"Right... right there," David says, swallowing hard. "Just--ah..."
"How 'bout right here." It's cheesy. It's horribly cheesy, and maybe sometime they'll laugh about that, but right now, he just sees it as the perfect opportunity to lean in and plant a soft kiss right on David's mouth.
After a little gasp, David leans in for another kiss. He isn't touching Joe; he doesn't dare. But he does want that second kiss, right now, especially with Joe being, well, right there.
David didn't pull away. David wants another kiss. Dear god, the animals were right. Armed with that knowledge, Joe does reach out to touch David, sliding his hand down his arm and moving so that he's just about pressed up against him, barely as much as an inch between them.
Ohmygod. Oh my god. David puts his own hand on Joe's arm in return. He leans into the kiss, for a moment, then has to stop to breathe because he's pretty sure he's suffocating.
"I... is this... this is okay, right?" Joe leans his head against David's forehead, trying to hide the fact that he's actually trembling.
"Yeah, it's... it's okay." David laughs breathlessly, his fingers tightening on Joe's arm. "I've been wanting to kiss you since you took over the practice."
That long? Fable obviously had more of a taste for discretion than Max does. "Wow. Really? I didn't... wow." Joe tries to take that in, licking his lips and tasting David on them.
David goes pink. "Yeah. Really. Of course, if the animals could talk you'd have known sooner."
Ohdeargod, if you only knew. "Yeah? I would, huh?" Joe says, his other arm managing to creep its way around David's waist.
It's really warm in the kitchen all of a sudden. David nods. "You would." He lifts his free hand to lightly touch Joe's hair.
"Careful... it's dangerous up there. Remember, Pixel almost got lost," Joe warns him, taking the opportunity to sneak another kiss.
"Don't care." David's fingers sink in. "Wow," he mumbles against Joe's mouth. "It's... soft."
"Ohgod..." Joe embarrasses himself by moaning when David touches his hair. "Yeah, I... if I don't use conditioner, it's even worse, if you can believe that."
"I just thought... I mean, it feels like you don't put anything in it at all. It's really nice." Nice? Oh lord.
Nice! He thinks my hair is nice! Oh my god! "Thank you--that's... I have no idea why we're still standing in the kitchen," Joe blurts out.
"We were kissing," David says, softly, fingers still playing with Joe's hair.
"No, I knew that part, I just..." Joe can either embarrass himself further, or kiss David again. Kissing David again wins.
Joe's kissing him again. David moans a little bit against his mouth and presses as close as he can.
And with just a little bit of a shift to the right and a step back, Joe's able to push David right up against the edge of the counter, groaning softly into the next kiss and letting his hands slide up his back nice and slow.
Oh. David tangles his fingers in Joe's hair. This can't be real--it can't, but there's the counter, and that's Joe, and he tastes like wine, and he's right there.
"You taste good," Joe whispers the next time he has to break away long enough to breathe, although he's careful not to move his lips away from David’s.
"You're just saying that because you liked dinner," David teases, gently.
"Yes, but that doesn't make it any less true," Joe grins back at him, shifting a little and happening to glance behind David, doing a double take and giving a bit of an unmanly yelp.
"What? What is it?" David turns and sees two little faces peering at them from over the ledge of the pass-through between the kitchen and the den. "Voyeurs!"
Joe puts one hand to his chest like he's just been scared half to death. "I beg your pardon, you two, don't you have something better to do than to watch us? Plus, Pixel, you're too little to watch this."
Both animals suddenly vanish from view.
David laughs helplessly and rests his forehead against Joe's shoulder. "Oh, geez."
"Oh, life with pets. Do they usually hang around and watch?" Joe groans, both arms nice and wrapped around David's shoulders.
"No, no, they don't. I'm not sure what's got into them." David wraps his arms around Joe's back. "I'm so sorry about their behaviour."
"They like you. They just want to make sure that you're okay," Joe assures him. "Don't worry about it. Believe me, I'm used to it." Most of Joe's life is accompanied by an animal commentary track.
David lightly strokes Joe's cheek. "I guess that's something," he says, then gives him another quick kiss. "Maybe if we're really quiet we can sneak into another room and, ah..."
"I'd like that. I'd... yeah, I'd definitely like that," Joe says, nodding quickly, not quite meeting David's eyes because dear God, was this really happening? Had he managed to not screw it up?
"Really?"
Joe just about laughs, then nods again pressing a little closer to David's body. If nothing else, there's ample evidence to convince him that's he's interested pressing right against David's hip. "Really."
"Oh, I. Oh. Well. I can. We can. It's..."
He kisses David again, really lingering over it this time. "Which way?" he whispers.
"To my bedroom?" David's voice is distressingly squeaky.
"Bathroom, living room, garage, I don't care, so long as I can lie down before my knees just completely give out," Joe says, laughing at himself.
"Down the other hallway past the front door," David says. He's very, very thankful for the bungalow now--stairs wouldn't be good right now.
Slowly--reluctantly--Joe pulls back away from David and reaches for his hand. "So take me there."
