102"Mr. Stark? I don't feel so good..."
"I don't... I don't know what's happening..."
kiLL mE
"You're completely hammered," Cole accused, observing with an overly-critical eye as Jay slumped uselessly to the floor. The detective crossed his arms over his chest as he impatiently tapped a foot against the carpeting, sighing as the ex-Deputy offered him a loopy grin.
"Nobody hit me with a hammer!" Jay protested, raising a hand in defiance. It fell back to the floor as the ex-Deputy yawned. Almost as an afterthought, Jay pounded a fist against Cole's foot. "Not even with a screwdriver."
The detective leapt back, eyeing his white sock with disdain. "I'm going to get changed," he announced, sparing Jay a brief, withering glance. "Don't go anywhere."
Jay gurgled something in response as Cole marched off.
The detective blindly groped around for the knob on his bedroom door as he made his way down a dimly lit hallway, blinking tiredly. He had just managed to close his fingers around the metal handle when the sound of Jay retching in the front room caused Cole to drop the knob like it was a hot knife.
"Shit!" the detective cursed, sprinting back to Jay's side.
His partner was foaming at the mouth, dry heaving as his shoulders shook under the strain.
Without hesitation, Cole hoisted Jay into his arms and hurried him into the nearest bathroom.
The ex-Deputy immediately began to hurl into a toilet, moaning in pain as he hacked.
Cole keeled rigidly beside his partner, resting a soothing hand on Jay's back as the ex-Deputy continued to throw up.
A small whimper left Jay's trembling mouth as he finished. Cole fetched a tissue and gently dabbed away the rest of the mess from his partner's face, tossing the Kleenex into the toilet bowl as he finished.
Jay turned and pressed his face into Cole's cotton undershirt, desperately whining as he dug his head in further.
The detective sighed, but reluctantly ran a comforting hand through Jay's auburn locks. He gasped as he felt how soft and velvety the hair was as it ran through his fingers. With a contented sigh, Cole scratched his nails against Jay's scalp as he combed out his partner's silky strands.
Jay purred as the detective stroked his hair, mumbling words of praise as Cole continued his ministrations.
The detective let out a breathy laugh as Jay leaned into his touch.
He's like a kitten, he noted fondly.
It was easy for Cole to let the built-up tension that was something akin to a permanent resident in his shoulders reluctantly drain away as he sat with Jay curled up in his arms.
The ex-Deputy lazily looped his arms around the detective's waist, and Cole forgot for just a few moments his many reasons for holding Jay at arms-length.
"Tired?" the detective asked softly.
Jay merely nodded against the fabric of his partner's shirt.
"Let's get you to bed," Cole murmured soothingly, carefully rising to his feet. He kept Jay locked in his strong grip as he rose, cradling the ex-Deputy against his chest.
Jay's head lolled back as Cole padded out of the tiled bathroom. "Your room?" he slurred.
The detective's heart gave an involuntary lurch at his partner's innocent words. "Yeah," he affirmed, moving into the darkened hallway.
"With you?" Jay prodded, blinking up at Cole with large, blue-black eyes.
The detective's heart pounded in his chest. "Of course not," Cole gasped out, shifting his grip on Jay's skinny form.
For some reason, it was becoming more and more difficult for the detective to breathe.
Jay pouted in response to Cole's strong words, glowering up at his partner. "You're no fun," he accused, poking Cole in the chest.
"You're drunk," Cole explained tiredly, rubbing at his temples with a palm before slipping his hand back under Jay's knees. "I have to let you rest."
"Why can't we rest together?" Jay demanded sourly.
"Because," Cole choked, furiously racking his brain for something to say. "You're drunk."
"That's not a good reason," the ex-Deputy retorted.
None of my reasons are, Cole thought sadly.
"I want to sleep with you," Jay stated abruptly, causing Cole to nearly drop his partner out of horror.
"What?!" he screeched, high-tailing it to his bedroom. As soon as he reached the smooth, wooden door, Cole kicked it open and practically launched Jay onto the unmade bed.
"Not like that," Jay reasoned sourly, struggling to sit up.
Cole nodded once. "I knew that," he intoned flatly.
"I want to cuddle with you," Jay continued, a dreamy smile weaving its way onto his face. "I want to go to sleep cosied up with you, and to wake up with you sleeping right next to me." the ex-Deputy rolled over in the crisp sheets as he spoke, giggling happily.
Please stop talking, the detective internally pleaded, wanting nothing more than to crawl into a small hole and die. Cole felt like his face was going to melt off of his bones at any second. His cheeks were on fire, and a flaming red blush was proudly present all the way down his neck.
Jay eyed said neck with a certain red-fox glint sparking in his azure eyes.
Cole cleared his throat once. "You're going to sleep on the floor," he commanded, strutting over to his closet. The small indentation in the faded walls that held the detective's scant collection of clothes presented a few extra blankets to Cole, who snatched up the silk-like sheets in a single fist.
"The floor?" Jay echoed incredulously, burying his face into the gaggle of pillows at the head of Cole's bed. He drew in a deep breath, savoring their softness as he burrowed under the askew covers.
"Yes, the floor," the detective growled impatiently, whipping the thin sheets off of the ex-Deputy's sprawled form.
Jay whined with disbelief as the warm blankets left him shivering on the mattress. "You're cruel," he accused, blinking blearily at Cole as he jabbed a finger in the detective's face.
"Quite," Cole bit back. In a single bound, he made his way onto the bed and set to work nudging Jay out of his designated spot. With one sharp tug, he snatched the pillows out from under the ex-Deputy's head.
Jay chirped in shock as the soft fabric seemingly vanished, and Cole took the opportunity to knock Jay to the floor. A brief yelp flew from between Jay's lips as he fell into an undignified heap amongst the blankets. In an instant, his discomfort disappeared as Jay snuggled into the mass of material that the detective had placed on the floor for him.
"Here," Cole grumbled, hurling an over-fluffed pillow at Jay's exposed face. The ex-Deputy caught the bundle of stuffing midair, unblinking as he dropped it into the swath of blankets. With a contented sigh, Jay allowed himself to collapse face first into the explosion of sheets, struggling to shift around as he glanced up at Cole. The detective glared back down at the ex-Deputy from his position atop the bed.
"Goodnight," Jay murmured sleepily, allowing his blue eyes to slide firmly shut.
Cole let out a breath of relief as his partner's body completely relaxed into the mess of pillows and blankets on the floor. With a groan, the detective stretched his overtaxed joints until he heard a series of satisfying cracks in his lower spine.
In mere minutes, Cole had fought himself into a pair of loose-fitting, silken pajama pants and was delightfully shirtless as he breathed in the cold air that was seeping into his apartment through the unsealed walls. He drove under the covers in his bed, nestling into the divot he had worn into the old mattress.
Blood roared in Cole's ears as his fist connected with someone's lower jaw. A brief shriek of pain accompanied the direct hit, and the detective allowed himself a small smirk of satisfaction as he relished the sound. His triumph was short-lived, however, as his opponent sprang back towards him, brandishing a standard handgun in his left fist.
Cole dove to the side as bullets rocketed out of the sleek, metal barrel, sharp cracks echoing into the temporary stillness as the narrow projectiles flung themselves into the plaster nearby. The detective spared the cartridges embedded into the wall one quick glance before making his move. He dug his heels into the debris littering the floor and launched himself forward, bellowing with rage as he ploughed headfirst into his attacker.
A fearsome fistfight ensued as Cole viciously kicked the handgun from his adversary's grasp. It spiraled out of reach, tantalizingly settling amidst the full wreckage of the stairwell.
An infuriated snarl spewed from his opponent's lips as Cole delivered a swift jab to his enemy's neck.
The attacker's growl died off into a gurgle of outrage as the detective latched his fingers around his jugular. A terrified screech echoed into the vacant stairway as Cole dug his nails into the purpling skin.
In one moment, the detective found himself lying flat on his back, white hot agony flooding his veins as he felt shards of glass dig into the fabric of his shirt. The discarded handgun lay mere meters away, and Cole desperately reached out to the firearm even as the action pulled incessantly at his burning muscles. A pained groan fell from the detective's mouth as he scrambled to pick up the weapon.
A heavy, steel-toed boot came down on his wrist, and Cole screamed.
"You weren't gonna try anything funny, now were you?" a voice sneered.
"Go to Hell," Cole spat, even as blood trickled mercilessly down his chin.
"Probably will," the same voice chuckled.
And then there was a knife.
Something warm and sticky splashed onto the ruined bits of wall spread across the cracked floor. Dimly in the back of Cole's mind, it registered that the viscous substance was blood.
His blood.
And so, he opened his mouth to scream again.
"It's alright."
What…?
"You're safe."
A new voice filtered into Cole's ears, breaking through the curtain of pain even as his attacker reared back to strike once more. The new voice was soothing. It was quiet, gentle, and held a hint of some type of underlying, strong emotion.
For some reason, the detective found himself turning towards the reassuring sound, seeking the source of the comforting words.
"There's no one here to hurt you."
Cole wanted to believe the decisive promises, but felt his eyes widen in terror as the twisted sneer of his opponent came back into view. A bloodied knife dripped in his clenched, scarred fist.
"I won't let anyone hurt you."
The evil smirk woven into Cole's attacker's expression melted away, to be replaced by a look of fear as the burly adversary splintered apart. Fragments of dark dust danced in the air. The detective watched, stupefied, as his deadly opponent vanished before his very eyes.
"Listen to me."
Shapes blurred in Cole's field of vision. The mangled stairwell warped into blobs of miscellaneous colors as something akin to the dull brown of drab bed sheets swam into view.
The stickiness of blood was replaced by the unforgiving viscid sheen of sweat that was plastered against Cole's bare chest. The rough mass of destroyed concrete morphed into the downy embrace of fleecy blankets.
The threatening bulk of Cole's attacker shifted into a pair of lean, lanky arms that were firmly engulfing the detective's torso in an unforgiving, but gentle, embrace.
A low whimper escaped Cole's chewed lips.
"You're safe with me." the voice whispered.
A pair of clement lips brushed lightly over the shell of the detective's ear. Cole involuntarily shivered at the tenderness of the action.
"Sleep," the voice commanded, dragging Cole back down into the mess of bedraggled sheets.
A disgruntled murmur of agreement jumped from Cole's mouth of its own accord as he turned into the secure hold that had him interwoven against a strong, sturdy form.
"I've got you," the voice reminded him solicitously, pressing a chaste kiss to the back of Cole's neck.
The detective arched into the touch and slipped effortlessly into a deep, dreamless sleep.