FIC: Thunderbolts and Sparks - Part Two
Part One
Work, as usual, took over and Hotch had very little time to even spend with Reid when they got back to Virginia, let alone discuss this issue with him. The time that they did have together was too precious to spoil and so the Unfortunate Bondage Incident remained, like the elephant in the corner, unmentioned.
But Hotch was thinking about it. At first he had found it difficult to comprehend why Reid was so insistent on trying again when it had obviously distressed him to find himself alone in the dark, hands cuffed behind his back. But Reid’s explanation made sense and he thought he understood why it mattered. Unlike him, Reid had never agonised about his sexual preferences, never had to feel guilty about hurting those around him because he couldn’t admit to what he wanted or needed. Reid had taken his sexuality in his stride - he had enough peculiarities for this to be very far down the list. It was just one more thing that set him aside from his peers and it was nothing he could do anything about. And nor did he want to. Reid’s sexuality was probably the most uncomplicated aspect of his life and he appreciated that.
The whole team knew that Reid was not OK. His experience had traumatised him greatly and although he was back at work and doing his job, he had lost his sparkle. The post-Georgia Spencer Reid was nervous, defensive, haunted. Hotch knew some of what was hurting him but not all and sometimes it tested his patience to the limit to sit back and wait for Reid to talk to him. But he had no choice about that; he couldn’t force it.
He could, however, do this for him. If Reid needed to regain this part of himself, then Hotch could at least give it another try. But he had to think about it, prepare, leave nothing to chance this time.
There was another case. Another plane journey spent poring over the files. Another unfamiliar cop shop to set up in. Another hotel room with garish wallpaper and starchy clean sheets.
Another chance.
The team had a short time to check in and freshen up before heading out to start talking to witnesses. As usual, Hotch and Reid were rooming together. If the rest of the team had noticed something, there was no mention of it. Departmental budgets were tight and sharing rooms was encouraged. And with Hotch going through a somewhat messy divorce, it made sense for him to want some company.
As soon as they were in the room, Reid dumped his bag in the corner and flopped back onto the bed. Hotch busied himself hanging up his clothes in the closet and then starting on Reid’s bag, pulling out the hastily folded shirts and trying his best to smooth out the creases as he hung them up.
Reid had flung one arm across his face and Hotch smiled at how sexy he looked with his hair tousled and his body so open. Hotch reached into his bag and tossed a gift wrapped package onto the bed next to his lover.
“I need to speak with Gideon,” Hotch said. “I’ll see you in the lobby in five minutes.”
Reid propped himself up on his elbows and nodded. Then he looked at the package. “What’s this?” he asked, frowning.
Hotch smiled. “A gift,” he replied and then he left the room.
Reid pushed himself into a sitting position and picked up the package. His long fingers stroked down the shiny satin ribbon before pulling the bow undone. He really had no idea what would be inside and Hotch was not usually one for romantic gestures.
Pulling the metallic paper open, Reid stared for a moment at his gift. Then he lifted them out of their wrapping and examined them. He gave them a sniff - real leather and lined too. He wondered where on earth Hotch had bought them and decided that it was most likely online. Reid shook his head; leather handcuffs were so decadent and yet so Hotch.
A small card lay at the bottom of the packaging. Picking it up, Reid read the message written in Hotch’s careful script.
I thought leather might be more comfortable and less evocative. It’s your call. Love always, Aaron.
He was always so thoughtful, and so practical. Reid smiled to himself and stood up. Then he hurried to the small hotel bathroom to wash up and brush his hair. Returning to the bedroom, he grabbed his satchel and pulled the strap across his body. Reid folded the gift wrap and placed it neatly, along with the card, in his overnight bag. The he picked up the handcuffs and placed them prominently on the pillow. It would be his way of saying thank you to his lover and if it gave the maids something to talk about, then all the better.
---------------------------------------------------
It had been a long day, spent interviewing and debating theories in stuffy rooms. After a hurried dinner, Hotch was thankful to shut the hotel room door behind him and spend some time concentrating on the man he loved. Reid was cleaning his teeth in the bathroom and so Hotch began to undress. Catching sight of the cuffs laid out on the bed, he grinned to himself. There was still potential for it all to go horribly wrong, but at least he was prepared this time. Placing a packet of condoms, lube and both of their flashlights on the nightstand, Hotch stood in his boxers and undershirt, waiting for Reid to join him. He had considered candles, just in case, but decided against. Setting off the smoke alarms in the hotel would be quite the mood killer.
A moment later, Reid came out of the bathroom, wearing nothing but his boxer shorts. He wrapped his arms around Hotch’s waist and moved to kiss him. He tasted of peppermint toothpaste and Hotch soon pushed his tongue into his lover’s mouth, eager for more of his taste.
Turning Reid around, Hotch walked him to the bed. Then, taking hold of him by the waist, Hotch picked him up and dumped him gently on the bed. Reid lay sprawled and smirking, his arms flung up beside his head. The young man’s hands were palm upwards, his fingers lightly spread and curled, almost touching the leather cuffs. Hotch swallowed. He had to ask.
Straddling his lover, he bent to plant a gentle kiss on his forehead. “Are you sure about this?”
“Yes,” came the soft voice. Reid looked over at Hotch’s safety measures on the nightstand and his eyes twinkled with amusement. “Are you?” he asked.
“Cheeky,” whispered Hotch, pushing his groin against his lover’s hard cock.
Leaning over Reid, Hotch switched on both bedside lamps. He double checked that the cuff key was on the nightstand and then reached up for the cord to turn off the overhead light. Then he looked at Reid, flushed and wriggling below him. “Safe word, remember? Use it if you need to - please?”
He saw Reid about to give him a smartass response and then think better of it. He sucked back the words, lifting his head to kiss Hotch instead. Green means go.
As gently as he could, Hotch reached for the cuffs and snapped one around his lover’s wrist. Reid let out a sigh and stretched out his arm, helping Hotch as he threaded the cuff chain through the bars of the bedstead. Hotch paused, holding Reid’s free hand, suddenly nervous.
Green really means go.
Have a little faith.
And this was Reid, waiting and wanting him to do it. So Hotch fastened the cuff around his other hand, took a deep breath and began.
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A blanket of tender kisses, gentle and tantalising, covering his face, his neck, his shoulders. Working along one outstretched arm, pausing to nuzzle into the palm and then suck at eager fingers. Taking one long finger into his mouth he sucked hard, running his tongue around the finger tip and feeling the body beneath him jerk and gasp. He loved these hands - beautiful and expressive hands with an artist’s fingers.
Making his way back up the arm, he felt the taut muscle under the skin. He rubbed his cheek against the downy hair of his lover’s forearm, allowing himself a brief shudder at the sight of the leather cuff. Then he returned to the pale upper arm, caressing the bicep and kissing to the bare shoulder.
Reid turned his head, trying to reach Hotch’s mouth to kiss him, but Hotch refused to give him that yet. Instead, he wrapped an arm across Reid’s chest and moved down to his armpit.
Hotch rubbed his lips into the damp hair and then ran his tongue up the sensitive skin, relishing the whimper this drew from his lover. It wasn’t a part of Reid’s body that he usually paid a large amount of attention to and he made a mental note to involve Reid’s armpits more in their lovemaking at a future date. Hotch licked again, his tongue slicking the tuft of hair, tasting the salt of fresh sweat. He was rewarded with more whimpers. He kissed deep into the exposed armpit, swirling his tongue into the damp strands, hearing the whimpers develop into soft moans.
The trail of kisses continued down past Reid’s nipples, ignoring both them and the pointed way Reid raised his chest off the bed. The moans continued, deepening as Hotch nuzzled and licked at the flat stomach, nipping at the line of darker hair leading down . . . to where Hotch paused, wickedly, his mouth open.
Hips rising, Reid pushed his cock nearer to Hotch’s mouth, but his lover pulled away. The moans turned to groaning sounds at Hotch burrowing his head between parted thighs. Reid spread his legs wider and Hotch placed a hand on each thigh, licking and sucking at the soft warm skin. Gasps and groans followed.
Hotch listened to the noises his lover was making and remembered how hot it had been when he had gagged him. Hearing him mew and whimper from the back of his throat had been electric, turning them both on so much that the actual penetration had barely lasted a few thrusts. But now was not the time for games like that. Just cuffing him was enough - if not actually a step too far. Struck by self doubt, Hotch paused. Who, exactly, had the cuffs been a present for? Could he be gentle? The predator within him longed to bite and twist, pushing the climax rather than drawing it out.
Amber light - wait.
A jerk of Reid’s hips brought him out of his musings. Hotch stole a look at the young man, who was staring down his body at him. His breathing had become shallow and he was pulling lightly at his cuffed wrists. Returning to Reid’s crotch, Hotch sucked one of his balls into his mouth. He knew the pleading would soon follow.
And it did.
“God . . . please . . . . oh god . . . please . . . Aaron . . . please.”
There was urgency in Reid’s voice. He was babbling, words tumbling out with no real meaning to them. He didn’t really know what he was asking his lover for, but he kept on asking anyway.
Hotch loved this sound. He quickly dismissed the most recent memory of Reid pleading in a pitch dark hotel room and concentrated instead on the need in his voice now. Words were spilling out of his mouth; repeating please and oh God and Aaron in a senseless rhythm, over and over again. It was almost an incantation - transporting him, transforming him.
With the gentle chanting filling the room, Hotch kissed his way along the Reid’s pale torso until he could reach a condom and lube from the nightstand. He bent to suck at Reid’s nipple while he carefully rolled the condom down his cock, hearing the begging grow in intensity.
“Oh God . . . . more . . . . please . . . oh God . . . Aaron .. . . please more . . . please more . . . just . . . oh God.”
Hotch quickly lubricated his fingers and moved to lick and nuzzle at Reid’s neck, slipping his hand between his lover’s legs. As he circled and probed gently at the puckered skin, there was a sharp gasp from the young man. He struggled, pulling at the cuffs, planting his feet on the bed and grinding his hips. The entreaties had devolved to one word, chanting please, please, please.
Hotch paused and lifted his head, hearing the chain of the cuffs clang against the bedstead. That sound was so cold, the heavy chink of metal against metal, reminiscent of incarceration. He relaxed the finger inside his lover and waited, poised ready to grab the key and undo the cuffs.
But Reid kept on pleading, repeating the word, syllables running into each other in a seamless sound - pleasepleasepleasepleaseplease. He rolled his head from side to side, his body twisting with desire. He was lost in the moment, taken deep into the whirl of sensation, thinking of nothing but Hotch touching him and touching him and touching him.
Seeing him like this, Hotch allowed himself to relax a little. He kept on probing and pushing, turning and stretching, before taking his cock in his hand and gently but firmly pressing into his lover.
The pleading stopped, replaced by a sharp gasp and then silence. Hotch bit his lip and stilled his hips. Laying himself down, covering his lover with his body, he brought his mouth to Reid’s ear and began to whisper, “I love you.” He kept repeating over and over again as the body beneath him relaxed.
I love you.
There was a moan, low and raspy, drawn from the back of Reid’s throat. Go. And so Hotch knelt up and began to move gently.
Soon the room filled with little whimpers as Reid’s hips began to lift along with Hotch’s thrusts into him. Eyes closed, he turned his head to one side and then the other, damp locks of hair falling over his forehead. The pale skin was now red with arousal and he batted his fists, circling and pulling at the soft cuffs.
Hotch tried to keep his movements slow and gentle, grunting as he held himself in check. This wasn’t a fuck; this was making love and there was a difference. He curled one hand around Reid’s twitching cock and started to stroke, each hand movement counter to his own thrusts.
Reid’s whimpers turned to soft cries and he started to toss his head, exuding need. With both men breathless, Hotch started to move faster and deeper, his hand on Reid’s cock maintaining steady pressure. He was close - Reid was close. It was almost too much.
And then, Reid’s feet pushed down and his hips rose off the bed and he was coming. He yelled out, yanking the cuffs and throwing back his head as he came all over Hotch’s hand. Seeing him like this pushed Hotch to his own release and he moaned as his cock jerked inside his lover. Reid was still making calling sounds, his eyes tightly closed and his body trembling.
Panting hard, Hotch moved to cover Reid’s body with his own, a protective shield to protect, warm and soothe him. Reid’s eyes were still shut, but his eyelids were now smooth. Hotch moved slowly out of him, kissed the closed lids and reached for the cuff keys.
Once released, Reid’s hands flopped onto the bed. Hotch smoothed the sweaty hair away from his forehead and kissed him gently on the end of his nose. Reid still didn’t open his eyes, the breath coming audibly from his parted lips.
“Hey,” whispered Hotch. He shook Reid’s shoulder gently. “Spence?”
Eyelids fluttered and opened, then a smile. “Good. That was . . . good,” whispered Reid, his voice husky. Still smiling lazily, he lifted his arms and wrapped them around Hotch. “Mmmm,” he groaned softly, “Stay there.”
Hotch began to plant tender kisses all around the young man’s face. He stroked his thumb along Reid’s cheekbone and let out a sigh. “You OK, babe?” he said softly. There was a feeble nod.
He rolled off Reid to remove the condom and felt Reid’s arm snaking around his waist. Turning back, he pulled the sleepy body close to him. Feeling Reid respond, he stroked his hair back off his face and whispered, “I love you.”
“Love you too,” mumbled Reid, snuggling into Hotch’s embrace. Hotch held the warm body of his lover tightly, and listened as his breathing started to deepen.
Hotch stayed awake for a little while, his hand on Reid’s chest, feeling the soft and rhythmic rise and fall. Tonight’s sleep might not be disturbed, but without a doubt the nightmares would be back. Reid had a long way to go and sometimes Hotch wondered if he would make it.
Some mountains are just too hard to climb.
Reid was finding his way, trying to find a firm foothold in the treacherous moraine he had been thrown into and all Hotch could do was to stay close by, ready to catch him if he slipped and fell. He couldn’t find the answers for him, he couldn’t ease the path, he could only be there. Hotch knew the kind of strength it had taken to survive those days and nights in Georgia, but when the adrenaline and the exhilaration of still being alive have worn off, the burden of the experience weighs heavy.
And sometimes the struggle just becomes too much.
After kissing the top of his sleeping lover’s head, Hotch settled back onto the pillow and closed his eyes. He knew he was being pessimistic and he hoped sincerely that his fears would be unfounded. But he knew that whatever happened, whatever Reid decided to do, he wouldn’t have to do it alone.
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For the sea will swallow up the mountains
And the sky will throw thunderbolts and sparks
Straight at you
But I'll come a-running
Straight to you
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds "Straight to You"