Healthy Relationships
Healthy Relationships
Summary: Will and Henry have been in a relationship for 4 months before they go on their first date.
Author's Note: Written for tiwtin.
Healthy Relationships
Will closed the door to Helen's office and made his way through the halls to his own office. His personal discussions with Helen always unsettled him. She didn't have much of a personal life outside of the Sanctuary. However the few parts of her life that were completely personal were full of grief. She had lost so much to the Sanctuary and she had made decisions no human should ever have to make, yet she continued on as if she had no regrets or doubts.
Will admired Helen greatly, but he wondered how far he could go in his emulation of her and still remain sane.
XXXXXXXXXX
Will and Henry were sitting on opposite sides of the oversized sofa in Henry's room with their feet up. Henry was working on his laptop and Will had given up looking through patient files over 20 minutes ago. He was just relaxing, thinking, and watching his boyfriend work.
He had always spent a lot of time thinking, sometimes about his past, most of the time about his work at the Sanctuary, but lately, during the few quiet moments he had to himself he found himself thinking about Henry, his relationship with Henry - a relationship that was so new but felt...right.. They hadn't been together for long, but the relationship was more emotionally intimate than any other Will had been in.
They went from subtle flirting to coupledom to near-cohabitation within 4 months. And in that 4 months, they hadn't done any of the normal things new couples do. They didn't go to the movies or out to dinner, they didn't socialize with other couples, they didn't and would likely never do the whole meet-the-friends or meet-the-family thing. They spent all of their time in the Sanctuary. They were more likely to go out tracking an abnormal than go out on a date. Will loved his relationship with Henry, but sometimes he couldn't help but feel they were missing out on something.
Will shifted on the sofa until he was lying on top of his boyfriend with his weight supported by his hands on either side of Henry's head. He closed the laptop and placed it on the floor.
Henry used a hand on Will's cheek to bring the man's head down for a kiss, a brush of lips more than anything. "Hey there, doc."
Will smiled. "Hey."
Henry waited for Will to continue, but the man was obviously lost in his own head. "Not that I don't like the new position, but what's up?" He wrapped an arm around Will's waist, and rested his hand on the skin that was bared by his boyfriend's rucked up tee. "I thought we were going to spend two hours catching up on work before we got to the good stuff."
"Well, I've been thinking..."
Henry prodded when Will paused. "Yeah, go on."
"We should go out tomorrow night."
"Go out?"
"Yeah, you know, like a date. We've been together for over 4 months now and we've never been on a date."
Henry shifted their position on the sofa so they were lying on their sides, facing each other. "Aren't dates for people that don't see each other as much as we do, or for people that feel the need to impress each other, or for people that don't know anything about each other, or for people that--"
"You have a warped view of dating."
"Well, I'll take your word for it. This isn't about Valentine's Day is it? I know the watch was kind of a lame gift and we didn't do anything, but I never took you for the romantic type. If you want romance though, I'll--"
"This isn't about Valentine's Day. I love the watch and I don't care that we didn't do anything. I'm not the romantic type. And if you never did anything traditionally romantic, I would be completely fine."
Henry sighed and forced himself to relax. "So if this isn't about V-Day, what is it about?"
"Henry, everything we do is the Sanctuary. This place touches everything. Our lives are the Sanctuary. Our relationship is the Sanctuary. We need to get out of the Sanctuary every once in awhile for the health of our relationship." Will knew he was being a bit dramatic, but it suddenly seemed very important to him that they separate their relationship from what they do.
'...for the health of our relationship," Henry repeated his words. "So, Doc, is this your professional opinion?"
XXXXXXXXXX
Will checked his watch for the fifteenth time in the last twenty minutes. Just as he was about to give up on waiting, he saw Henry walking toward him. "What the hell took you so long?"
Henry walked right up to Will, placed his hands on the other man's hips, and gave Will a peck on the corner of his mouth. "It's nice to see you too, dear."
Will sighed and tried to relax. Seriously, what happened to the calm, rational, analytical guy that handled small disappointments with detached nonchalance? He began to care. "I'm sorry. I just don't want us to be late. Our reservation is for seven and the restaurant is halfway across town."
Henry stepped back, "Yeah....about that." Will knew he wouldn't like what he was about to hear. "Kate just got a call from one of her old contacts. Apparently there's a kid with wings flying around the city. Helen's thinking about going out to search for him. Children with that type of abnormality are usually taught to hide. If he's out flying around the city, his parents probably aren't around for some reason."
"Kate's old contacts are poachers. They're known to be unreliable."
"Dude..." He couldn't believe that his boyfriend would be so ready deny someone that may need their help.
"It's a fact, Henry. They're unreliable. They've given us bad information before."
That was very true. "Either way, Helen wants to go check it out. We should stay back and help." Henry's voice was firm.
"It will more than likely be a wild goose chase. If it isn't, Helen, Kate, and the Big Guy are more than capable of handling the situation. It's a child, a scared child with no dangerous abilities. I want to go out. I need to get out of here, and I'd like you with me."
They didn't have arguments. Henry was far too laid-back for that and Will was beyond low-maintenance. Sure, the guy asked a lot of questions. But that was usually to better understand, to quiet his questioning mind. Will never needed Henry. He didn't need anyone. Will would allow someone to save his life but he'd never ask for help with something personal. His childhood had forced him to become so self-sufficient and independent that it never occurred to him to depend on others. If this was his way of asking for help, Henry really couldn't deny him.
"Yeah, let me just..." Henry dug into the messenger bag at his hip for the GPS device he had stuck in there before finding Will. He walked over the intercom to call Kate to the front doors. By the time Kate made it to the doors, Henry had finished rigging the device to help them track the kid. He explained to Kate how to use it. The main panel would be able to track the expected heat signature of the kid once they got close to the location Kate's contact mentioned. The second panel was streaming a local Twitter search.
"Twitter? Seriously, that's your high-tech solution?"
"Dude, kid with wings flying around the city? That'll be on Twitter before it hits the news."
Will stood back and watched the two interact. Kate hadn't made any comment about the two of them leaving and Henry was being overly thorough in his explanation of the device. Will just wanted to leave and felt guilty for it.
XXXXXXXXXX
Will sat silently and listened to Henry ramble about the latest issue of some comic book. It was nice listening to his boyfriend excitedly speak about something that wasn't work-related. Will smiled and cut into his steak. He'd just set down his knife when he saw a flash of white from the corner of his eye.
"Fuck." He turned and there were wings dipping in between buildings. Will stood up. "Call Helen and tell her we found the kid." He left the table and made his way through the restaurant and out the front door. Henry pulled out his phone and called Helen. There was a third panel on the tracking device that he'd given Kate that they could use to track Will. Henry hung up the phone, took one last bite of his steak, finished off the rest of his beer and pulled up the GPS tracking app on his cell phone.
Will was always getting lost or taken - fight clubs, mobsters, helicopter crashes, bermuda triangles, and the list goes on. Dr. Will Zimmerman had a propensity for going missing and it made Henry uncomfortable. So Henry may have added a small tracking device to the watch he gave as a Valentine's Day gift. It was the thought that counted.
XXXXXXXXXX
When Henry arrived, Will was talking to the child and introducing him to Helen and Kate. Henry stood back and watched Will do his job. He gained the child's trust, calmed him down, comforted him. Henry wished he could do the same for Will.
Kate helped the boy into the van she and Helen had arrived in. Helen was already in the driver's seat and ready to go. Kate shut the side door and turned to Will and Henry, "so are you guys coming with us?"
"We might as--"
Henry cut his boyfriend off, "no, you guys go ahead. We're going to enjoy the rest of our night off."
XXXXXXXXXX
The car ride was silent as they made their way to the east end. Will wasn't paying attention to the roads or where Henry was taking them. He was thinking about the last few hours and how they couldn't do something as simple as go out to dinner without work interrupting. "There's no getting away from this job, is there?"
Henry didn't lie. "No. Not in the way you're used to at least."
Will tried to pull himself out of his funk. He took in his surroundings. "So where are we going anyway?"
"It's a surprise. And before you start asking questions, I'm not a doctor, but as your boyfriend, I'm gonna say this is necessary for the health of our relationship."
"If you say so." Will was silent for the rest of the car ride until Henry parked in front of a liquor store. "Getting drunk is necessary for the health of our relationship?"
Henry shook his head and chuckled. "Oh, ye of little faith. This is just a pit stop for supplies." Henry left the keys in the car so Will could continue listening to the radio and returned a few minutes later with a six pack of beer and pizza from the shop next to the liquor store.
Their final destination for the evening was only a few minutes away when Will began recognizing the neighborhoods they driving through. "How did you know I kept it?"
Henry shrugged. "I don't know. You seem like the type of guy to hold onto a place that's just yours."
"How did you know where it was?"
"Part of Helen's HR process?"
Will laughed. "Man just admit that you're a total stalker."
"Fine. I have a strong interest in everything about you."
Will smiled. "I like that you're interested."
Henry pulled in front of Will's old apartment building and parked.
"I haven't been here in a few months."
"I know."
XXXXXXXXXX
Will and Henry sat on the couch along with their half-empty pizza box and six-pack. They both had their feet up on the coffee table and watched as the Mythbusters blew up a room full of gasoline. "This is awesome." Will took a bite of his pizza and wiped the grease from his lips with the back of his hand, before taking a sip of his beer. "Just what I needed."
Henry chuckled. "You know, it's been so long - I forgot what it's like to date a normal person."
Will lifted an eyebrow. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"I don't know, it's just like--" Henry stopped himself and tried to organize his thoughts before continuing. "You chose this. This job. This life. Me...everyone else we work with, we never really had a say in the matter."
"Helen chose this."
Henry scoffed. "And she's had well over a century to become comfortable with her decision. Man, I know you're her protege or whatever, but no one's expecting you to be Helen Magnus. Hell, maybe when you're in charge we'll get vacation time and PDOs like normal people."
Will knew he'd been setting himself up for unrealistic expectations, but when he hears it that plainly from Henry's lips he can't help but feel a little foolish. "You're right." Will leaned over to give Henry a quick kiss that tasted like pizza and beer. "You know, not to change the subject, but there's one thing I can't figure out. How did you, Kate, and Helen find me so quickly when I caught up with that kid? I didn't have my cell phone, or my comm, but you found me almost right away."
"Well....we have had a little more experience at this than you have, you know."
Will smiled. "So we're still ignoring the fact that you put a tracking device in my Valentine's Day gift."
Henry swore under his breath and nodded. "Yeah, we're still ignoring that fact."
"Stalker."
"I've got way more insulting names up my sleeve than "stalker," Magnus-Wannabe."
"Yeah. Yeah."
XXXXXXXXXXX
Later in bed, Henry had to comment on what he thought about every time he saw Will work. "What you do for the people we help is amazing. You know that, right?"
"I just talk to them, Henry."
"You get them to trust you. The most damaged abnormals, the ones that won't talk to anyone or allow themselves to be touched, they'll open up to you. The boy I found you hugging in that alleyway tonight, shied away from Helen and Kate every time they reached for him. The work you do is amazing, babe." Henry kissed his boyfriend. "I wish I could do the same for you, get you to trust me like that."
Will sat up quickly, nearly bumping heads with Henry. "I trust you."
Henry pushed Will back down. "I know you trust me. You trust me with your life." Henry pressed a kiss below Will's left ear, an action that had always proven make Will relax. Henry could feel Will's muscles loosen underneath him. "You definitely trust me with your body." Henry made his way down Will's chest, pressing a kiss against the skin above his heart. "But you don't trust me with this. Not yet. Not completely."
Will looked down at his boyfriend, and ran his fingers through Henry's hair. He wouldn't deny it.
"You will though." Tonight was already a step toward that.
"Yeah, I will."
The End
Summary: Will and Henry have been in a relationship for 4 months before they go on their first date.
Author's Note: Written for tiwtin.
Healthy Relationships
Will closed the door to Helen's office and made his way through the halls to his own office. His personal discussions with Helen always unsettled him. She didn't have much of a personal life outside of the Sanctuary. However the few parts of her life that were completely personal were full of grief. She had lost so much to the Sanctuary and she had made decisions no human should ever have to make, yet she continued on as if she had no regrets or doubts.
Will admired Helen greatly, but he wondered how far he could go in his emulation of her and still remain sane.
XXXXXXXXXX
Will and Henry were sitting on opposite sides of the oversized sofa in Henry's room with their feet up. Henry was working on his laptop and Will had given up looking through patient files over 20 minutes ago. He was just relaxing, thinking, and watching his boyfriend work.
He had always spent a lot of time thinking, sometimes about his past, most of the time about his work at the Sanctuary, but lately, during the few quiet moments he had to himself he found himself thinking about Henry, his relationship with Henry - a relationship that was so new but felt...right.. They hadn't been together for long, but the relationship was more emotionally intimate than any other Will had been in.
They went from subtle flirting to coupledom to near-cohabitation within 4 months. And in that 4 months, they hadn't done any of the normal things new couples do. They didn't go to the movies or out to dinner, they didn't socialize with other couples, they didn't and would likely never do the whole meet-the-friends or meet-the-family thing. They spent all of their time in the Sanctuary. They were more likely to go out tracking an abnormal than go out on a date. Will loved his relationship with Henry, but sometimes he couldn't help but feel they were missing out on something.
Will shifted on the sofa until he was lying on top of his boyfriend with his weight supported by his hands on either side of Henry's head. He closed the laptop and placed it on the floor.
Henry used a hand on Will's cheek to bring the man's head down for a kiss, a brush of lips more than anything. "Hey there, doc."
Will smiled. "Hey."
Henry waited for Will to continue, but the man was obviously lost in his own head. "Not that I don't like the new position, but what's up?" He wrapped an arm around Will's waist, and rested his hand on the skin that was bared by his boyfriend's rucked up tee. "I thought we were going to spend two hours catching up on work before we got to the good stuff."
"Well, I've been thinking..."
Henry prodded when Will paused. "Yeah, go on."
"We should go out tomorrow night."
"Go out?"
"Yeah, you know, like a date. We've been together for over 4 months now and we've never been on a date."
Henry shifted their position on the sofa so they were lying on their sides, facing each other. "Aren't dates for people that don't see each other as much as we do, or for people that feel the need to impress each other, or for people that don't know anything about each other, or for people that--"
"You have a warped view of dating."
"Well, I'll take your word for it. This isn't about Valentine's Day is it? I know the watch was kind of a lame gift and we didn't do anything, but I never took you for the romantic type. If you want romance though, I'll--"
"This isn't about Valentine's Day. I love the watch and I don't care that we didn't do anything. I'm not the romantic type. And if you never did anything traditionally romantic, I would be completely fine."
Henry sighed and forced himself to relax. "So if this isn't about V-Day, what is it about?"
"Henry, everything we do is the Sanctuary. This place touches everything. Our lives are the Sanctuary. Our relationship is the Sanctuary. We need to get out of the Sanctuary every once in awhile for the health of our relationship." Will knew he was being a bit dramatic, but it suddenly seemed very important to him that they separate their relationship from what they do.
'...for the health of our relationship," Henry repeated his words. "So, Doc, is this your professional opinion?"
XXXXXXXXXX
Will checked his watch for the fifteenth time in the last twenty minutes. Just as he was about to give up on waiting, he saw Henry walking toward him. "What the hell took you so long?"
Henry walked right up to Will, placed his hands on the other man's hips, and gave Will a peck on the corner of his mouth. "It's nice to see you too, dear."
Will sighed and tried to relax. Seriously, what happened to the calm, rational, analytical guy that handled small disappointments with detached nonchalance? He began to care. "I'm sorry. I just don't want us to be late. Our reservation is for seven and the restaurant is halfway across town."
Henry stepped back, "Yeah....about that." Will knew he wouldn't like what he was about to hear. "Kate just got a call from one of her old contacts. Apparently there's a kid with wings flying around the city. Helen's thinking about going out to search for him. Children with that type of abnormality are usually taught to hide. If he's out flying around the city, his parents probably aren't around for some reason."
"Kate's old contacts are poachers. They're known to be unreliable."
"Dude..." He couldn't believe that his boyfriend would be so ready deny someone that may need their help.
"It's a fact, Henry. They're unreliable. They've given us bad information before."
That was very true. "Either way, Helen wants to go check it out. We should stay back and help." Henry's voice was firm.
"It will more than likely be a wild goose chase. If it isn't, Helen, Kate, and the Big Guy are more than capable of handling the situation. It's a child, a scared child with no dangerous abilities. I want to go out. I need to get out of here, and I'd like you with me."
They didn't have arguments. Henry was far too laid-back for that and Will was beyond low-maintenance. Sure, the guy asked a lot of questions. But that was usually to better understand, to quiet his questioning mind. Will never needed Henry. He didn't need anyone. Will would allow someone to save his life but he'd never ask for help with something personal. His childhood had forced him to become so self-sufficient and independent that it never occurred to him to depend on others. If this was his way of asking for help, Henry really couldn't deny him.
"Yeah, let me just..." Henry dug into the messenger bag at his hip for the GPS device he had stuck in there before finding Will. He walked over the intercom to call Kate to the front doors. By the time Kate made it to the doors, Henry had finished rigging the device to help them track the kid. He explained to Kate how to use it. The main panel would be able to track the expected heat signature of the kid once they got close to the location Kate's contact mentioned. The second panel was streaming a local Twitter search.
"Twitter? Seriously, that's your high-tech solution?"
"Dude, kid with wings flying around the city? That'll be on Twitter before it hits the news."
Will stood back and watched the two interact. Kate hadn't made any comment about the two of them leaving and Henry was being overly thorough in his explanation of the device. Will just wanted to leave and felt guilty for it.
XXXXXXXXXX
Will sat silently and listened to Henry ramble about the latest issue of some comic book. It was nice listening to his boyfriend excitedly speak about something that wasn't work-related. Will smiled and cut into his steak. He'd just set down his knife when he saw a flash of white from the corner of his eye.
"Fuck." He turned and there were wings dipping in between buildings. Will stood up. "Call Helen and tell her we found the kid." He left the table and made his way through the restaurant and out the front door. Henry pulled out his phone and called Helen. There was a third panel on the tracking device that he'd given Kate that they could use to track Will. Henry hung up the phone, took one last bite of his steak, finished off the rest of his beer and pulled up the GPS tracking app on his cell phone.
Will was always getting lost or taken - fight clubs, mobsters, helicopter crashes, bermuda triangles, and the list goes on. Dr. Will Zimmerman had a propensity for going missing and it made Henry uncomfortable. So Henry may have added a small tracking device to the watch he gave as a Valentine's Day gift. It was the thought that counted.
XXXXXXXXXX
When Henry arrived, Will was talking to the child and introducing him to Helen and Kate. Henry stood back and watched Will do his job. He gained the child's trust, calmed him down, comforted him. Henry wished he could do the same for Will.
Kate helped the boy into the van she and Helen had arrived in. Helen was already in the driver's seat and ready to go. Kate shut the side door and turned to Will and Henry, "so are you guys coming with us?"
"We might as--"
Henry cut his boyfriend off, "no, you guys go ahead. We're going to enjoy the rest of our night off."
XXXXXXXXXX
The car ride was silent as they made their way to the east end. Will wasn't paying attention to the roads or where Henry was taking them. He was thinking about the last few hours and how they couldn't do something as simple as go out to dinner without work interrupting. "There's no getting away from this job, is there?"
Henry didn't lie. "No. Not in the way you're used to at least."
Will tried to pull himself out of his funk. He took in his surroundings. "So where are we going anyway?"
"It's a surprise. And before you start asking questions, I'm not a doctor, but as your boyfriend, I'm gonna say this is necessary for the health of our relationship."
"If you say so." Will was silent for the rest of the car ride until Henry parked in front of a liquor store. "Getting drunk is necessary for the health of our relationship?"
Henry shook his head and chuckled. "Oh, ye of little faith. This is just a pit stop for supplies." Henry left the keys in the car so Will could continue listening to the radio and returned a few minutes later with a six pack of beer and pizza from the shop next to the liquor store.
Their final destination for the evening was only a few minutes away when Will began recognizing the neighborhoods they driving through. "How did you know I kept it?"
Henry shrugged. "I don't know. You seem like the type of guy to hold onto a place that's just yours."
"How did you know where it was?"
"Part of Helen's HR process?"
Will laughed. "Man just admit that you're a total stalker."
"Fine. I have a strong interest in everything about you."
Will smiled. "I like that you're interested."
Henry pulled in front of Will's old apartment building and parked.
"I haven't been here in a few months."
"I know."
XXXXXXXXXX
Will and Henry sat on the couch along with their half-empty pizza box and six-pack. They both had their feet up on the coffee table and watched as the Mythbusters blew up a room full of gasoline. "This is awesome." Will took a bite of his pizza and wiped the grease from his lips with the back of his hand, before taking a sip of his beer. "Just what I needed."
Henry chuckled. "You know, it's been so long - I forgot what it's like to date a normal person."
Will lifted an eyebrow. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"I don't know, it's just like--" Henry stopped himself and tried to organize his thoughts before continuing. "You chose this. This job. This life. Me...everyone else we work with, we never really had a say in the matter."
"Helen chose this."
Henry scoffed. "And she's had well over a century to become comfortable with her decision. Man, I know you're her protege or whatever, but no one's expecting you to be Helen Magnus. Hell, maybe when you're in charge we'll get vacation time and PDOs like normal people."
Will knew he'd been setting himself up for unrealistic expectations, but when he hears it that plainly from Henry's lips he can't help but feel a little foolish. "You're right." Will leaned over to give Henry a quick kiss that tasted like pizza and beer. "You know, not to change the subject, but there's one thing I can't figure out. How did you, Kate, and Helen find me so quickly when I caught up with that kid? I didn't have my cell phone, or my comm, but you found me almost right away."
"Well....we have had a little more experience at this than you have, you know."
Will smiled. "So we're still ignoring the fact that you put a tracking device in my Valentine's Day gift."
Henry swore under his breath and nodded. "Yeah, we're still ignoring that fact."
"Stalker."
"I've got way more insulting names up my sleeve than "stalker," Magnus-Wannabe."
"Yeah. Yeah."
XXXXXXXXXXX
Later in bed, Henry had to comment on what he thought about every time he saw Will work. "What you do for the people we help is amazing. You know that, right?"
"I just talk to them, Henry."
"You get them to trust you. The most damaged abnormals, the ones that won't talk to anyone or allow themselves to be touched, they'll open up to you. The boy I found you hugging in that alleyway tonight, shied away from Helen and Kate every time they reached for him. The work you do is amazing, babe." Henry kissed his boyfriend. "I wish I could do the same for you, get you to trust me like that."
Will sat up quickly, nearly bumping heads with Henry. "I trust you."
Henry pushed Will back down. "I know you trust me. You trust me with your life." Henry pressed a kiss below Will's left ear, an action that had always proven make Will relax. Henry could feel Will's muscles loosen underneath him. "You definitely trust me with your body." Henry made his way down Will's chest, pressing a kiss against the skin above his heart. "But you don't trust me with this. Not yet. Not completely."
Will looked down at his boyfriend, and ran his fingers through Henry's hair. He wouldn't deny it.
"You will though." Tonight was already a step toward that.
"Yeah, I will."
The End