The Best Luck I Ever Had (2/4)
Title: The Best Luck I Ever Had
Authors: blueraccoon & sandersyager
Fandom: Criminal Minds
Pairing/character: Derek Morgan/OMC, hints of Spencer Reid/OMC
Rating: NC-17/FRAO
Word Count: 26,717
Kink: first time, dirty talk, mild hand fetish, handjobs, oral sex
Warnings: sex between two consenting adult males; references to past relationship and child abuse and domestic violence
Summary: It's been a very long time since Derek Morgan's had someone in his life long enough to meet his friends and even longer since anyone's taken him home to meet their mother. When he meets Christian Godfrey, he gets all that and the bonus of a small white cat with more attitude than Garcia.
Notes & Cautions: We don't even pretend to like David Rossi (I'd feel bad for Rossi, but really, he's an asshole.-blueraccoon). We are also fully aware that several of the characters also appear in Blueraccoon's Geometry series and our joint project, Ranks of the Freaks; please forget what you know from those universes because this is an AU of an AU of an AU in which neither of those universes ever existed. kelly_girl, bookgodess15, henchgirl, and lillian13 poked holes in the plot, prodded us to keep writing and pointed out mistakes. We love them for it more than words can say.
Artist: sylum_tru made us a truly kickass banner and solved our (years long) issue of trying to cast Christian.
Part One
Part Two
Part Three
Part Four
Single post (Redirects to Dreamwidth)
* * *
Christian gets through the interview, has lunch with his parents, goes back to their place and sleeps for four hours. He wakes up to the sound of his phone ringing and fumbles it off the nightstand, managing to answer before it goes to voicemail. "Hullo?" he says sleepily.
"Hey, Christian, it's Derek," he says, already regretting the call when he realizes he woke him up. "I can call back and just leave a message. You should go back to sleep."
"No, no, it's fine," Christian says, sitting up. "Should get up anyway, I've slept too long or I'll never sleep tonight. How're you?"
"Honestly? I've had better days," Derek says. "That's why I was calling. I need something good to balance out the day and I thought dinner with you would be perfect."
Christian's glad Derek's not there to see him blush. "Where and when?" he asks simply.
"Why don't you meet me here and we can find somewhere in the neighborhood," Derek suggests, kicking off his shoes and dropping onto the couch.
"Sounds good," Christian says. "Can you give me--say, an hour? I need a shower to wash the sleep away."
"Why don't we make it two?" Derek counters. "I could use a nap. I got up to listen to your interview and then Reid called and I never made it back to bed."
"Two is good," Christian says. "Did you like the interview?"
"I did," Derek says. "You're quick on your feet and so's Jared. The DJ seemed to think she could catch you off guard with some of her comments and you both just went with it. I could have lived with her flirting with you a little less. I bet you were blushing the whole time, weren't you? Or did you even notice?"
"Oh, I don't mind women flirting with me," Christian says. "So long as they know nothing's going to happen, it's just fun."
Derek smiles, enjoying the sound of Christian's voice and hearing him gradually waking up, losing a little of the gruffness. "Still, I could have done without it," he says. "The song you performed was pretty incredible. I'd like to hear it with the full band, but the stripped down version was... I'm impressed."
"It's one of our standards," Christian says. "It'll probably be the first single off the album."
"I have a feeling my music collection's about to grow," Derek says, opening his laptop. He ignores the flashing alert that he has email from Garcia, and wonders what it's going to take to get her to remove the silly little sparkly dolphin from his desktop. He goes straight to Belfry's webpage and looks at the preorder information again, determinedly not staring at the promo photo of Christian in nothing but a pair of painted on black leather pants.
"I can get you a free copy," Christian offers, running a hand through his hair.
"What if I'd rather work out a trade?" Derek asks, giving up on the whole not staring at the photo thing.
"We can do that," Christian says. "Depending on what you had in mind."
"There were a few things we didn't get to do last night," Derek says. "We could start there and see what you think."
"All right," Christian agrees. "I'll see you in two hours?"
"Two hours. I'll meet you in the lobby," Derek says.
* * *
The two alarm clocks go off and the phone rings and Derek's computer blares OK Go, and he hears none of it for the first fifteen minutes. He wakes up instead on the end of a dream and barely manages to turn it all off before stumbling into the shower.
By the time he's dressed in jeans and a black sweater, he's almost awake. He's also at least ten minutes late according to the clock. He makes his way downstairs and spots Christian, and tries to compose himself.
"I overslept," he says with a sheepish grin. "I'm sorry."
Christian grins and looks up from his music notebook, pleased to see he's not underdressed in dark jeans and a blue v-neck sweater. "No problem," he says. "I didn't even notice, I was caught up in this." He marks his place and puts the notebook away.
"So," Derek says once Christian's stood up. "Do I get a kiss hello?"
"Of course," Christian says, kissing Derek lightly.
Derek raises his hand to the back of Christian's neck and pulls him back for a longer kiss, lingering and soft. "Hi," he says softly.
Christian blushes a little. "Hi," he murmurs.
"Did you---I mean, was that not okay?" Derek asks, a little concerned as he brushes his fingers over Christian's cheek.
"No, no, it's fine," Christian says. "But if you keep touching me like that we won't make it to dinner."
"I did promise we'd go out." Derek slides his hands down to rest on Christian's arms. "It's really tempting to suggest we just order a pizza or room service upstairs, though. It's just been a long day," he says apologetically. "If I were home, I'd probably be surrounded by cartons of Chinese and watching ESPN, but I'm here and I wanted to see you again."
"It's fine, Derek," Christian says, stepping back and taking Derek's hands. "I really don't mind."
Derek smiles, letting go of Christian's right hand so they can walk back to the bank of elevators. Once they get upstairs, he calls room service for pizza and a bottle of wine, and sits down beside Christian on the couch. "Tell me about the rest of your day?"
"There's not much to tell," Christian says. "We did the interview, which I think went well, I had lunch with my parents, and then I went back to the house and sacked out. Apparently Amy and Kevin have lined up a few more interviews for us over the next couple weeks, mostly radio with a couple print publications in there somewhere. Nothing huge, but it's press."
"How do you feel about putting yourself out there like that?" Derek asks.
Christian shrugs. "Part of the job," he says. "And Amy and Kevin claim that since they're the bassist and the drummer they don't have to talk to the press. I don't mind, and if it helps our reputation..."
"You should just send out copies of that photo of you on the website," Derek says teasingly. "I'm sure that would draw in a pretty huge crowd."
"Oh, that one," Christian says, blushing. "Ruth took it. There's a whole set of them on our website, not just of me, but all in that style."
"I saw them, eventually," Derek says, reaching up to brush the back of his fingers across Christian's cheek. "The others just didn't interest me."
Christian laughs. "Well, they all decided I looked the best in those damn pants, which is why the promo picture has me."
"I might be in love with 'those damn pants,'" Derek says. "You're so funny. You want to be the center of attention but you shy away from anyone noticing the amazing things about you."
"I want people to notice me for my music," Christian says. "Not the way my ass looks in a pair of leather pants."
"Does it have to be an either or situation?" Derek asks. "You're talented and you're hot."
Christian ducks his head. "You really don't have to say that," he says.
"Okay, you're a hack and a troll. Is that better?" Derek says dryly, rolling his eyes. "I've witnessed you performing on the radio and in bed in the last twenty-four hours. You're just going to have to get over it, baby, and accept that both are true."
"You sound like a therapist," Christian says, laughing.
"Profiler, remember?" Derek says with a shrug. "I like you and every time you say 'you shouldn't say that' or whatever, you know you're basically telling me I've got bad taste, right? So, it's really all about me."
"Oh, of course," Christian says. "Makes perfect sense now."
Derek laughs, picking Christian's hand up between both of his own. "Just remember, I'm a well trained judge of character with perfect hearing and twenty-twenty vision," he says, kissing Christian's fingertips. "And what I see is a beautiful man with a great voice and a good heart. Oh, and an incredibly fine ass."
Christian blushes again, but leans against Derek, tilting his face up for a kiss.
Derek touches his lips to Christian, closing his eyes and relaxing for the first time that day. Christian's mouth opens against his and he sighs softly into it, moving closer.
The kiss blends into the next, and the next, and then they get jolted apart by the knock on the door. "Right," Christian says. "Dinner." He smiles a little.
"Right," Derek says, kissing Christian again quickly before getting up to answer the door. He watches as the trays are placed on the dining table and joins Christian there once the hotel staff is gone.
Christian watches Derek pour the wine, taking the glass handed him. "Thank you," he says.
"You're welcome," Derek says, sliding into his chair and opening the pizza box. "I never did get to ask you about your ink this morning. What's the story behind them?"
"Pick one and I'll tell you," Christian says, sipping his wine.
"The yin-yang," Derek says, placing two slices on each of their plates and settling his napkin over his lap. "It just says yes and no. What was the question?"
"It's from a quote by Aaron Copeland," Christian says. "The quote says 'The whole problem can be stated quite simply by asking, 'Is there a meaning to music?' My answer would be, 'Yes.' And 'Can you state in so many words what the meaning is?' My answer to that would be, 'No.'" He smiles and spreads his napkin over his lap. "It really resonated."
Derek nods, considering the quote. He's read it before, but this is a new context and another layer of meaning. "You know, we never really talked about music last night. At least you never said anything about what you listen to, just what you play."
"I listen to pretty much anything," Christian says. "Opera, classical--well, by the broad definition of the word, my preference is for Romantic--all the way up to country and hip hop. If it's good, I'll listen. My CD collection takes up way too much space, and that's after I gave up and filled a 500 gig drive with music. I think I need another one."
"Impressive," Derek says. "I don't think I'm quite that bad, but I've got three separate iPods without any overlap in the playlists. I learned to be way more specific about Christmas gifts after that year."
"I have an iPod, but I have to rotate what goes on it," Christian says. "The current CD I'm loving is 'Begin to Hope', by Regina Spektor. She's wonderful."
"I've heard a little of her music," Derek says. "I've been listening to Ben Harper lately. Well, except for yesterday." He smiles, taking a bite of pizza.
Christian laughs. "Yes, well." He takes a bite of his own pizza.
"When it came back on today, all I could think was 'Thank God it wasn't Barry White'," Derek says. "I think I'd have probably died then and there."
"Once I took a boyfriend home, he turned on my stereo, but the last thing I'd left in there was a CD of a recording I was working on, so it comes on and the first thing you hear is me saying 'Oh, bollocks it all to hell!'" Christian grins. "That was interesting."
Derek's laughing too hard to respond and has to focus on setting his glass back down without spilling the wine. "You could have told me that last night," he says finally. "Could've saved me feeling like an idiot."
"But you're adorable when you're all flustered," Christian says. "I didn't really have an incentive."
"I am not adorable," Derek protests, hiding his face in his hands.
"I think you are," Christian says, grinning.
"The last time someone called me adorable, I was five," Derek says, shaking his head. "And even then, I really wasn't."
"How about incredibly cute?" Christian asks. "Is that better?"
Derek looks at him, smiling a little. "Keep trying. I doubt you looked at me yesterday in that suit and thought 'he's incredibly cute'."
Christian laughs and takes a sip of his wine. "No, I thought 'Now that is one seriously nice piece of eye candy'."
"Hey, I'm a brilliant profiler," Derek says. "You should notice that and not how good I make a suit look."
"I didn't know you were a profiler when I saw you in my mum's office, honey," Christian says. He grins. "Besides, can't you be hot and brilliant? I seem to remember you telling me it's not an either/or situation."
"Oh, I think I just proved I'm brilliant," Derek says. "I didn't know you were talented either, just that you had a great smile. You're proving my point for me."
"Do you profile everyone you meet?" Christian asks. "Is that some kind of occupational hazard?"
Derek laughs. "You have no idea," he says. "No, I don't profile everyone, just the ones I might want to keep around. As far as work goes, we have one rule in the team, we don't profile each other. That one gets broken a lot."
"I bet," Christian says. He tips his head to the side. "So have you attempted to profile me?"
"You wouldn't have asked if you didn't think I had," Derek points out. "You want to know what I think."
"I'm not sure I do," Christian says. "I'm curious, but on the other hand, I'm not sure I really want to know."
"Let's leave it at I liked you enough to want to see you again, even though neither of us slept much last night, and even though it's been a rough day," Derek says.
"All right then," Christian says, tracing a finger around the rim of his wineglass. "Maybe I'll ask you for a fuller explanation another time. Why was today so rough?"
"I met with the woman in the case Carol's handling," Derek says, leaning back in his chair. "Talked to her and her daughters. Then I had to go meet with her ex. This guy terrorized his partner for years, she left to try and keep her daughters safe, and he still got to them." He sighs, reaching for his glass. "I see a lot of scumbags, but the ones who would hurt a kid... It's hard to sit in the same room and have to be professional."
"It's always worse with kids," Christian says quietly. "I'm sorry."
Derek nods, swirling the wine in his glass. "It's rough with anybody. This one just dragged up things I didn't really want to deal with."
Christian reaches out, resting his hand on top of Derek's free one. "You don't have to tell me about it," he says. "But... I'm a good listener."
"Not tonight," Derek says, shaking his head. "No offense, but we've known each other for less than two days. Let's see if you even call me once you're home and then I'll cry on your shoulder."
"None taken," Christian says. "I get home tomorrow, when will you be back in DC?"
"I'm flying back Monday afternoon," Derek says. "It's not a guarantee I'll even get to visit my apartment before I have to leave again, though."
"Tell you what, then," Christian says. "You email me when you'll be around and I'll call you."
"Or you could just call me when you want to," Derek says, turning his hand to rub his thumb over Christian's palm. "I never really know when we're going to get a case or if it's going to in Arlington or Seattle. Either way, I think I wouldn't mind hearing from you."
"All right," Christian says. "I can do that. We'll be having a listening party in a couple weeks, for the CD. Do you want to come?"
"If I'm in town, yeah," Derek says. "If you want me there."
"I do," Christian says. "Bring your friend with the cool pens. I want her to meet Travis."
"Garcia," Derek says. "I think she has your ass as one of her desktop images now. She sent me a text this morning to make sure I was okay--we've both had some seriously bad dates--and I told her to Google you. You don't want to know what she said."
"Yes, yes I do," Christian says, laughing.
"Let's just say she called back and offered a couple dozen ways she wanted to see me redefine Google with you," Derek says with a little bit of a smirk.
"Wait. She has my clothed ass as her desktop image, right?" Christian asks. "Because--there were a couple pics that didn't make it on the site that--well--" He blushes.
"Are you telling me there are nude photos of you somewhere online?" Derek asks, raising one eyebrow. "As far I know she didn't find them or you'd have heard the shriek up here."
"I don't think they're online," Christian says. "I have them on my computer."
"That doesn't mean she wouldn't have found them," Derek says. "It just means she would have had to work to do it."
"Let's hope not," Christian says. "Ruth talked me into it after a pitcher of margaritas and didn't let me weasel out of it once we were sober."
"Maybe you'll let me see them sometime," Derek says, pushing his chair back and standing up. He walks around the table to stand beside Christian and leans down to kiss the side of his neck. "I've been thinking about doing that for a while. Couldn't wait anymore."
Christian smiles. "My throat is that tempting?" he asks.
"It is," Derek says, running his fingers over the spot he kissed. "This was the... most subtle of the things I was considering."
"What else were you considering?" Christian asks, tipping his head back.
Derek slides his fingers into Christian's hair and kisses his jaw. "Picking up where we left off before we were interrupted," he says. "Suggesting we leave the food and go to bed."
"I haven't performed today, so you're in luck," Christian says. "Otherwise I'd be telling you not to get between me and my food." He smiles and gets to his feet.
"You weren't really eating anyway," Derek says, moving closer and sliding his arm around Christian's waist. "You were in college at sixteen and you're a musician now. I'm sure you can deal with cold pizza."
"Absolutely," Christian says, kissing Derek's jaw. "Especially if it comes with Coke."
"I'm sure we can manage that," Derek says, turning to meet Christian's mouth with his. It's not exactly where they stopped before, a little softer and a little less needy, and he works his hands under Christian's sweater to rest on his back.
“Bedroom?” Christian murmurs against Derek’s mouth, his own hands running over Derek’s sweater.
“Yeah,” Derek says, kissing him again. It takes a moment before they separate enough to move, and Derek takes Christian’s hand as they walk to the bedroom, threading their fingers together.
They sink down on the bed, wrapping around each other. Christian closes his eyes and scratches over Derek’s scalp and the back of his neck, letting himself just be in the moment.
* * *
"Tell me about Garcia," Christian says, snuggled against Derek. "What's she like?" He idly runs his hand up and down Derek's arm.
"She's a goddess," Derek says, playing with Christian's hair and making the curls stand up more than they already do. "Brilliant and funny, and a walking contradiction on three inch pumps."
"Why's she such a contradiction?" Christian asks.
Derek shakes his slightly. "It's everything about her," he says. "She's one of those women who can find a designer outfit, splice it together with thrift store items and own it. She flirts shamelessly but can't tell when someone's being genuine with her and pulls away the second you realize she might not be playing. She's kind of like you, wants to be noticed but doesn't want to be seen."
"She sounds fascinating," Christian says. "I want to meet her. Is she a profiler like you?"
Derek laughs. "Oh, god no. She swears she hates us," he says. "She's our tech analyst, which means she's an agent, too, doesn't have a gun but can use her computer as a deadly weapon."
"She'd probably get along with Kevin," Christian says. "He builds computers for fun."
"I don't know," Derek says. "She bowls, with a group of nuns and another analyst from an agency you've probably never heard of."
Christian sits up. "She bowls with Abby?" he asks, trying not to laugh.
"I don't know her name," Derek says. "All I know is she's got a hell of a sexy voice and works at NCIS."
This time Christian does laugh. "That's Abby," he says. "She's Travis's best girl friend. The two of them met via Travis's partner's dungeon."
"Huh. Small world," Derek says, reaching up to run his fingers over Christian's back. "I guess we'd have met sooner or later, probably."
"Depends," Christian says, stretching. "Do you like dungeons?"
"The only times I've been in them have been in an official capacity," Derek says. "It's not really my thing."
"No?" Christian lies back down again. "It's not for everyone."
"I get that it can be... cathartic," Derek says, choosing his words carefully. "A lot of what comes across my desk, though, are scenes that have gone wrong because boundaries were crossed. Personally, I can appreciate a little rough stuff, but I'm not into intentionally causing pain or wanting someone to submit to me. I get paid for that already."
Christian laughs. "Fair enough," he says. "I'll try anything once, twice if I like it." He shrugs. "Then again, I've tried a few things that I haven't liked."
"Yeah, me, too," Derek says, shifting to lie against Christian. "I don't know. I like sex to be simple, bodies, lube, latex. Toys can be nice, but there's just a point where you're thinking too much and having to carry around an overnight bag the size of Utah, and it's too much work to get off."
"I have a few friends who'd disagree," Christian says. "I'm... not sure."
"Then maybe I'll have to try to convince you," Derek says.
Christian smiles. "Maybe," he says.
"You know," Derek says, resting his hand against Christian's chest, "I would like to see you when we're back home. Even if it's not... not like this, maybe we can still find time to hang out once in a while."
"I'd like that," Christian says, draping his arm around Derek. "I'd like that a lot."
Derek smiles, taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly. "I was afraid you'd say no," he admits softly.
"Well, that's just silly," Christian says. "Why would I do that?"
"Why wouldn't you is the better question," Derek says, tilting his head to look at Christian.
"You're cute, you're intelligent, you're--" Christian stops for a moment. "I like you," he says. "I want to see you again."
"I'm what?" Derek asks, smiling a little. "Feel free to keep going."
It's not what he is, it's what he isn't, Christian thinks. "You make me laugh," he says. "And I like that."
"So, now I know what I have to do to make sure you still like me after tomorrow," Derek says. "I think I can handle the cute part, and I don't see my IQ taking a downswing. Keeping you amused might be a little harder."
"I also accept bribes of good tea and cherries," Christian says, smiling.
"Cherries? Really?"
"I love them," Christian says. "I go through pounds in the summer."
"I'll try to remember that," Derek says. "One of the perks of traveling so much is what's in season changes. I might have to see what I can do."
Christian laughs. "Oh, you don't have to," he says. "What do you like?"
"For bribes or as fruit?" Derek asks.
"Either," Christian says.
"Oranges, strawberries, blueberries," Derek says. "That's the answer on fruit, not bribes. Home-cooked meals work pretty well for me. Massages are good, too. If you cook for me, then give me a back rub, I'll pretty much do anything you ask."
"They do say musicians have great hands," Christian says, running his fingers over Derek's back. "You'll have to try me out sometime."
"There are so many things I could say to that," Derek points out, grinning against Christian's shoulder. "So many things I could do with that kind of invitation."
"You're a smart man," Christian says. "What would you like to do with that invitation?"
"Right now, just this," Derek says, lifting his head to kiss Christian.
* * *
Part Three
Authors: blueraccoon & sandersyager
Fandom: Criminal Minds
Pairing/character: Derek Morgan/OMC, hints of Spencer Reid/OMC
Rating: NC-17/FRAO
Word Count: 26,717
Kink: first time, dirty talk, mild hand fetish, handjobs, oral sex
Warnings: sex between two consenting adult males; references to past relationship and child abuse and domestic violence
Summary: It's been a very long time since Derek Morgan's had someone in his life long enough to meet his friends and even longer since anyone's taken him home to meet their mother. When he meets Christian Godfrey, he gets all that and the bonus of a small white cat with more attitude than Garcia.
Notes & Cautions: We don't even pretend to like David Rossi (I'd feel bad for Rossi, but really, he's an asshole.-blueraccoon). We are also fully aware that several of the characters also appear in Blueraccoon's Geometry series and our joint project, Ranks of the Freaks; please forget what you know from those universes because this is an AU of an AU of an AU in which neither of those universes ever existed. kelly_girl, bookgodess15, henchgirl, and lillian13 poked holes in the plot, prodded us to keep writing and pointed out mistakes. We love them for it more than words can say.
Artist: sylum_tru made us a truly kickass banner and solved our (years long) issue of trying to cast Christian.
Part One
Part Two
Part Three
Part Four
Single post (Redirects to Dreamwidth)
* * *
Christian gets through the interview, has lunch with his parents, goes back to their place and sleeps for four hours. He wakes up to the sound of his phone ringing and fumbles it off the nightstand, managing to answer before it goes to voicemail. "Hullo?" he says sleepily.
"Hey, Christian, it's Derek," he says, already regretting the call when he realizes he woke him up. "I can call back and just leave a message. You should go back to sleep."
"No, no, it's fine," Christian says, sitting up. "Should get up anyway, I've slept too long or I'll never sleep tonight. How're you?"
"Honestly? I've had better days," Derek says. "That's why I was calling. I need something good to balance out the day and I thought dinner with you would be perfect."
Christian's glad Derek's not there to see him blush. "Where and when?" he asks simply.
"Why don't you meet me here and we can find somewhere in the neighborhood," Derek suggests, kicking off his shoes and dropping onto the couch.
"Sounds good," Christian says. "Can you give me--say, an hour? I need a shower to wash the sleep away."
"Why don't we make it two?" Derek counters. "I could use a nap. I got up to listen to your interview and then Reid called and I never made it back to bed."
"Two is good," Christian says. "Did you like the interview?"
"I did," Derek says. "You're quick on your feet and so's Jared. The DJ seemed to think she could catch you off guard with some of her comments and you both just went with it. I could have lived with her flirting with you a little less. I bet you were blushing the whole time, weren't you? Or did you even notice?"
"Oh, I don't mind women flirting with me," Christian says. "So long as they know nothing's going to happen, it's just fun."
Derek smiles, enjoying the sound of Christian's voice and hearing him gradually waking up, losing a little of the gruffness. "Still, I could have done without it," he says. "The song you performed was pretty incredible. I'd like to hear it with the full band, but the stripped down version was... I'm impressed."
"It's one of our standards," Christian says. "It'll probably be the first single off the album."
"I have a feeling my music collection's about to grow," Derek says, opening his laptop. He ignores the flashing alert that he has email from Garcia, and wonders what it's going to take to get her to remove the silly little sparkly dolphin from his desktop. He goes straight to Belfry's webpage and looks at the preorder information again, determinedly not staring at the promo photo of Christian in nothing but a pair of painted on black leather pants.
"I can get you a free copy," Christian offers, running a hand through his hair.
"What if I'd rather work out a trade?" Derek asks, giving up on the whole not staring at the photo thing.
"We can do that," Christian says. "Depending on what you had in mind."
"There were a few things we didn't get to do last night," Derek says. "We could start there and see what you think."
"All right," Christian agrees. "I'll see you in two hours?"
"Two hours. I'll meet you in the lobby," Derek says.
* * *
The two alarm clocks go off and the phone rings and Derek's computer blares OK Go, and he hears none of it for the first fifteen minutes. He wakes up instead on the end of a dream and barely manages to turn it all off before stumbling into the shower.
By the time he's dressed in jeans and a black sweater, he's almost awake. He's also at least ten minutes late according to the clock. He makes his way downstairs and spots Christian, and tries to compose himself.
"I overslept," he says with a sheepish grin. "I'm sorry."
Christian grins and looks up from his music notebook, pleased to see he's not underdressed in dark jeans and a blue v-neck sweater. "No problem," he says. "I didn't even notice, I was caught up in this." He marks his place and puts the notebook away.
"So," Derek says once Christian's stood up. "Do I get a kiss hello?"
"Of course," Christian says, kissing Derek lightly.
Derek raises his hand to the back of Christian's neck and pulls him back for a longer kiss, lingering and soft. "Hi," he says softly.
Christian blushes a little. "Hi," he murmurs.
"Did you---I mean, was that not okay?" Derek asks, a little concerned as he brushes his fingers over Christian's cheek.
"No, no, it's fine," Christian says. "But if you keep touching me like that we won't make it to dinner."
"I did promise we'd go out." Derek slides his hands down to rest on Christian's arms. "It's really tempting to suggest we just order a pizza or room service upstairs, though. It's just been a long day," he says apologetically. "If I were home, I'd probably be surrounded by cartons of Chinese and watching ESPN, but I'm here and I wanted to see you again."
"It's fine, Derek," Christian says, stepping back and taking Derek's hands. "I really don't mind."
Derek smiles, letting go of Christian's right hand so they can walk back to the bank of elevators. Once they get upstairs, he calls room service for pizza and a bottle of wine, and sits down beside Christian on the couch. "Tell me about the rest of your day?"
"There's not much to tell," Christian says. "We did the interview, which I think went well, I had lunch with my parents, and then I went back to the house and sacked out. Apparently Amy and Kevin have lined up a few more interviews for us over the next couple weeks, mostly radio with a couple print publications in there somewhere. Nothing huge, but it's press."
"How do you feel about putting yourself out there like that?" Derek asks.
Christian shrugs. "Part of the job," he says. "And Amy and Kevin claim that since they're the bassist and the drummer they don't have to talk to the press. I don't mind, and if it helps our reputation..."
"You should just send out copies of that photo of you on the website," Derek says teasingly. "I'm sure that would draw in a pretty huge crowd."
"Oh, that one," Christian says, blushing. "Ruth took it. There's a whole set of them on our website, not just of me, but all in that style."
"I saw them, eventually," Derek says, reaching up to brush the back of his fingers across Christian's cheek. "The others just didn't interest me."
Christian laughs. "Well, they all decided I looked the best in those damn pants, which is why the promo picture has me."
"I might be in love with 'those damn pants,'" Derek says. "You're so funny. You want to be the center of attention but you shy away from anyone noticing the amazing things about you."
"I want people to notice me for my music," Christian says. "Not the way my ass looks in a pair of leather pants."
"Does it have to be an either or situation?" Derek asks. "You're talented and you're hot."
Christian ducks his head. "You really don't have to say that," he says.
"Okay, you're a hack and a troll. Is that better?" Derek says dryly, rolling his eyes. "I've witnessed you performing on the radio and in bed in the last twenty-four hours. You're just going to have to get over it, baby, and accept that both are true."
"You sound like a therapist," Christian says, laughing.
"Profiler, remember?" Derek says with a shrug. "I like you and every time you say 'you shouldn't say that' or whatever, you know you're basically telling me I've got bad taste, right? So, it's really all about me."
"Oh, of course," Christian says. "Makes perfect sense now."
Derek laughs, picking Christian's hand up between both of his own. "Just remember, I'm a well trained judge of character with perfect hearing and twenty-twenty vision," he says, kissing Christian's fingertips. "And what I see is a beautiful man with a great voice and a good heart. Oh, and an incredibly fine ass."
Christian blushes again, but leans against Derek, tilting his face up for a kiss.
Derek touches his lips to Christian, closing his eyes and relaxing for the first time that day. Christian's mouth opens against his and he sighs softly into it, moving closer.
The kiss blends into the next, and the next, and then they get jolted apart by the knock on the door. "Right," Christian says. "Dinner." He smiles a little.
"Right," Derek says, kissing Christian again quickly before getting up to answer the door. He watches as the trays are placed on the dining table and joins Christian there once the hotel staff is gone.
Christian watches Derek pour the wine, taking the glass handed him. "Thank you," he says.
"You're welcome," Derek says, sliding into his chair and opening the pizza box. "I never did get to ask you about your ink this morning. What's the story behind them?"
"Pick one and I'll tell you," Christian says, sipping his wine.
"The yin-yang," Derek says, placing two slices on each of their plates and settling his napkin over his lap. "It just says yes and no. What was the question?"
"It's from a quote by Aaron Copeland," Christian says. "The quote says 'The whole problem can be stated quite simply by asking, 'Is there a meaning to music?' My answer would be, 'Yes.' And 'Can you state in so many words what the meaning is?' My answer to that would be, 'No.'" He smiles and spreads his napkin over his lap. "It really resonated."
Derek nods, considering the quote. He's read it before, but this is a new context and another layer of meaning. "You know, we never really talked about music last night. At least you never said anything about what you listen to, just what you play."
"I listen to pretty much anything," Christian says. "Opera, classical--well, by the broad definition of the word, my preference is for Romantic--all the way up to country and hip hop. If it's good, I'll listen. My CD collection takes up way too much space, and that's after I gave up and filled a 500 gig drive with music. I think I need another one."
"Impressive," Derek says. "I don't think I'm quite that bad, but I've got three separate iPods without any overlap in the playlists. I learned to be way more specific about Christmas gifts after that year."
"I have an iPod, but I have to rotate what goes on it," Christian says. "The current CD I'm loving is 'Begin to Hope', by Regina Spektor. She's wonderful."
"I've heard a little of her music," Derek says. "I've been listening to Ben Harper lately. Well, except for yesterday." He smiles, taking a bite of pizza.
Christian laughs. "Yes, well." He takes a bite of his own pizza.
"When it came back on today, all I could think was 'Thank God it wasn't Barry White'," Derek says. "I think I'd have probably died then and there."
"Once I took a boyfriend home, he turned on my stereo, but the last thing I'd left in there was a CD of a recording I was working on, so it comes on and the first thing you hear is me saying 'Oh, bollocks it all to hell!'" Christian grins. "That was interesting."
Derek's laughing too hard to respond and has to focus on setting his glass back down without spilling the wine. "You could have told me that last night," he says finally. "Could've saved me feeling like an idiot."
"But you're adorable when you're all flustered," Christian says. "I didn't really have an incentive."
"I am not adorable," Derek protests, hiding his face in his hands.
"I think you are," Christian says, grinning.
"The last time someone called me adorable, I was five," Derek says, shaking his head. "And even then, I really wasn't."
"How about incredibly cute?" Christian asks. "Is that better?"
Derek looks at him, smiling a little. "Keep trying. I doubt you looked at me yesterday in that suit and thought 'he's incredibly cute'."
Christian laughs and takes a sip of his wine. "No, I thought 'Now that is one seriously nice piece of eye candy'."
"Hey, I'm a brilliant profiler," Derek says. "You should notice that and not how good I make a suit look."
"I didn't know you were a profiler when I saw you in my mum's office, honey," Christian says. He grins. "Besides, can't you be hot and brilliant? I seem to remember you telling me it's not an either/or situation."
"Oh, I think I just proved I'm brilliant," Derek says. "I didn't know you were talented either, just that you had a great smile. You're proving my point for me."
"Do you profile everyone you meet?" Christian asks. "Is that some kind of occupational hazard?"
Derek laughs. "You have no idea," he says. "No, I don't profile everyone, just the ones I might want to keep around. As far as work goes, we have one rule in the team, we don't profile each other. That one gets broken a lot."
"I bet," Christian says. He tips his head to the side. "So have you attempted to profile me?"
"You wouldn't have asked if you didn't think I had," Derek points out. "You want to know what I think."
"I'm not sure I do," Christian says. "I'm curious, but on the other hand, I'm not sure I really want to know."
"Let's leave it at I liked you enough to want to see you again, even though neither of us slept much last night, and even though it's been a rough day," Derek says.
"All right then," Christian says, tracing a finger around the rim of his wineglass. "Maybe I'll ask you for a fuller explanation another time. Why was today so rough?"
"I met with the woman in the case Carol's handling," Derek says, leaning back in his chair. "Talked to her and her daughters. Then I had to go meet with her ex. This guy terrorized his partner for years, she left to try and keep her daughters safe, and he still got to them." He sighs, reaching for his glass. "I see a lot of scumbags, but the ones who would hurt a kid... It's hard to sit in the same room and have to be professional."
"It's always worse with kids," Christian says quietly. "I'm sorry."
Derek nods, swirling the wine in his glass. "It's rough with anybody. This one just dragged up things I didn't really want to deal with."
Christian reaches out, resting his hand on top of Derek's free one. "You don't have to tell me about it," he says. "But... I'm a good listener."
"Not tonight," Derek says, shaking his head. "No offense, but we've known each other for less than two days. Let's see if you even call me once you're home and then I'll cry on your shoulder."
"None taken," Christian says. "I get home tomorrow, when will you be back in DC?"
"I'm flying back Monday afternoon," Derek says. "It's not a guarantee I'll even get to visit my apartment before I have to leave again, though."
"Tell you what, then," Christian says. "You email me when you'll be around and I'll call you."
"Or you could just call me when you want to," Derek says, turning his hand to rub his thumb over Christian's palm. "I never really know when we're going to get a case or if it's going to in Arlington or Seattle. Either way, I think I wouldn't mind hearing from you."
"All right," Christian says. "I can do that. We'll be having a listening party in a couple weeks, for the CD. Do you want to come?"
"If I'm in town, yeah," Derek says. "If you want me there."
"I do," Christian says. "Bring your friend with the cool pens. I want her to meet Travis."
"Garcia," Derek says. "I think she has your ass as one of her desktop images now. She sent me a text this morning to make sure I was okay--we've both had some seriously bad dates--and I told her to Google you. You don't want to know what she said."
"Yes, yes I do," Christian says, laughing.
"Let's just say she called back and offered a couple dozen ways she wanted to see me redefine Google with you," Derek says with a little bit of a smirk.
"Wait. She has my clothed ass as her desktop image, right?" Christian asks. "Because--there were a couple pics that didn't make it on the site that--well--" He blushes.
"Are you telling me there are nude photos of you somewhere online?" Derek asks, raising one eyebrow. "As far I know she didn't find them or you'd have heard the shriek up here."
"I don't think they're online," Christian says. "I have them on my computer."
"That doesn't mean she wouldn't have found them," Derek says. "It just means she would have had to work to do it."
"Let's hope not," Christian says. "Ruth talked me into it after a pitcher of margaritas and didn't let me weasel out of it once we were sober."
"Maybe you'll let me see them sometime," Derek says, pushing his chair back and standing up. He walks around the table to stand beside Christian and leans down to kiss the side of his neck. "I've been thinking about doing that for a while. Couldn't wait anymore."
Christian smiles. "My throat is that tempting?" he asks.
"It is," Derek says, running his fingers over the spot he kissed. "This was the... most subtle of the things I was considering."
"What else were you considering?" Christian asks, tipping his head back.
Derek slides his fingers into Christian's hair and kisses his jaw. "Picking up where we left off before we were interrupted," he says. "Suggesting we leave the food and go to bed."
"I haven't performed today, so you're in luck," Christian says. "Otherwise I'd be telling you not to get between me and my food." He smiles and gets to his feet.
"You weren't really eating anyway," Derek says, moving closer and sliding his arm around Christian's waist. "You were in college at sixteen and you're a musician now. I'm sure you can deal with cold pizza."
"Absolutely," Christian says, kissing Derek's jaw. "Especially if it comes with Coke."
"I'm sure we can manage that," Derek says, turning to meet Christian's mouth with his. It's not exactly where they stopped before, a little softer and a little less needy, and he works his hands under Christian's sweater to rest on his back.
“Bedroom?” Christian murmurs against Derek’s mouth, his own hands running over Derek’s sweater.
“Yeah,” Derek says, kissing him again. It takes a moment before they separate enough to move, and Derek takes Christian’s hand as they walk to the bedroom, threading their fingers together.
They sink down on the bed, wrapping around each other. Christian closes his eyes and scratches over Derek’s scalp and the back of his neck, letting himself just be in the moment.
* * *
"Tell me about Garcia," Christian says, snuggled against Derek. "What's she like?" He idly runs his hand up and down Derek's arm.
"She's a goddess," Derek says, playing with Christian's hair and making the curls stand up more than they already do. "Brilliant and funny, and a walking contradiction on three inch pumps."
"Why's she such a contradiction?" Christian asks.
Derek shakes his slightly. "It's everything about her," he says. "She's one of those women who can find a designer outfit, splice it together with thrift store items and own it. She flirts shamelessly but can't tell when someone's being genuine with her and pulls away the second you realize she might not be playing. She's kind of like you, wants to be noticed but doesn't want to be seen."
"She sounds fascinating," Christian says. "I want to meet her. Is she a profiler like you?"
Derek laughs. "Oh, god no. She swears she hates us," he says. "She's our tech analyst, which means she's an agent, too, doesn't have a gun but can use her computer as a deadly weapon."
"She'd probably get along with Kevin," Christian says. "He builds computers for fun."
"I don't know," Derek says. "She bowls, with a group of nuns and another analyst from an agency you've probably never heard of."
Christian sits up. "She bowls with Abby?" he asks, trying not to laugh.
"I don't know her name," Derek says. "All I know is she's got a hell of a sexy voice and works at NCIS."
This time Christian does laugh. "That's Abby," he says. "She's Travis's best girl friend. The two of them met via Travis's partner's dungeon."
"Huh. Small world," Derek says, reaching up to run his fingers over Christian's back. "I guess we'd have met sooner or later, probably."
"Depends," Christian says, stretching. "Do you like dungeons?"
"The only times I've been in them have been in an official capacity," Derek says. "It's not really my thing."
"No?" Christian lies back down again. "It's not for everyone."
"I get that it can be... cathartic," Derek says, choosing his words carefully. "A lot of what comes across my desk, though, are scenes that have gone wrong because boundaries were crossed. Personally, I can appreciate a little rough stuff, but I'm not into intentionally causing pain or wanting someone to submit to me. I get paid for that already."
Christian laughs. "Fair enough," he says. "I'll try anything once, twice if I like it." He shrugs. "Then again, I've tried a few things that I haven't liked."
"Yeah, me, too," Derek says, shifting to lie against Christian. "I don't know. I like sex to be simple, bodies, lube, latex. Toys can be nice, but there's just a point where you're thinking too much and having to carry around an overnight bag the size of Utah, and it's too much work to get off."
"I have a few friends who'd disagree," Christian says. "I'm... not sure."
"Then maybe I'll have to try to convince you," Derek says.
Christian smiles. "Maybe," he says.
"You know," Derek says, resting his hand against Christian's chest, "I would like to see you when we're back home. Even if it's not... not like this, maybe we can still find time to hang out once in a while."
"I'd like that," Christian says, draping his arm around Derek. "I'd like that a lot."
Derek smiles, taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly. "I was afraid you'd say no," he admits softly.
"Well, that's just silly," Christian says. "Why would I do that?"
"Why wouldn't you is the better question," Derek says, tilting his head to look at Christian.
"You're cute, you're intelligent, you're--" Christian stops for a moment. "I like you," he says. "I want to see you again."
"I'm what?" Derek asks, smiling a little. "Feel free to keep going."
It's not what he is, it's what he isn't, Christian thinks. "You make me laugh," he says. "And I like that."
"So, now I know what I have to do to make sure you still like me after tomorrow," Derek says. "I think I can handle the cute part, and I don't see my IQ taking a downswing. Keeping you amused might be a little harder."
"I also accept bribes of good tea and cherries," Christian says, smiling.
"Cherries? Really?"
"I love them," Christian says. "I go through pounds in the summer."
"I'll try to remember that," Derek says. "One of the perks of traveling so much is what's in season changes. I might have to see what I can do."
Christian laughs. "Oh, you don't have to," he says. "What do you like?"
"For bribes or as fruit?" Derek asks.
"Either," Christian says.
"Oranges, strawberries, blueberries," Derek says. "That's the answer on fruit, not bribes. Home-cooked meals work pretty well for me. Massages are good, too. If you cook for me, then give me a back rub, I'll pretty much do anything you ask."
"They do say musicians have great hands," Christian says, running his fingers over Derek's back. "You'll have to try me out sometime."
"There are so many things I could say to that," Derek points out, grinning against Christian's shoulder. "So many things I could do with that kind of invitation."
"You're a smart man," Christian says. "What would you like to do with that invitation?"
"Right now, just this," Derek says, lifting his head to kiss Christian.
* * *
Part Three