Authors: Mika Fox
"Yeah,
sure," Dominic says, a bit distractedly, as he eyes the photos. Annie
leans in and pecks his cheek, grabbing his attention.
"Good
luck with Mr. Grumpy Painter Guy," she says, far too cheerfully.
"Keep me posted."
Dominic
doesn't really get a chance to respond, just turns to catch a glimpse of Annie
practically skipping out of the room with a smile on her face. He scoffs to
himself, shaking his head and unable to stop a smile of his own. Annie may be
the personification of perky, but he must admit that he finds it refreshing.
The next day
when Dominic arrives at the art building, for the sole purpose of just sitting
there and hoping for a bolt of inspiration, or at least the chance to
surreptitiously stare at a certain artist, he swears something has shifted. He
can't quite put his finger on it, but when he enters the main room, he
immediately catches Killian's eye, and the guy actually nods at him in
greeting. Granted, they do acknowledge each other now, but it's still a little more
than Dominic has gotten used to, and he blinks in slight surprise, before
nodding back.
Killian
smiles. Well, not so much a smile, really. It's just a little tug at the corner
of his mouth, an amused, somehow self-satisfied kind of smirk, and he turns
back to his canvas while Dominic just frowns to himself. He lingers on the spot
for a moment before moving over to sit at his usual table in the corner.
The
room is empty apart from him, Killian, and some guy Dominic doesn't recognize,
who doesn't even look up from his sketchpad. Dominic sits down, making sure
Killian is in his line of sight and only half-hidden behind his easel. As
usual, this allows Dominic to watch him while being shielded from judgment and
embarrassment by the screen of his laptop, seeing as how Killian barely ever
catches him at it.
Today,
he does. He's not subtle about it, either. Instead of glancing over at Dominic
and then looking away in the most casual manner, he keeps looking back, keeps
flicking his gaze to meet Dominic's. What's more, he lingers, keeping his eyes
trained on him for at least a full second, before turning away and resuming his
work. It's not like their usual routine, not like the habit Dominic has gotten
used to over these past few days, and after a few minutes of this silent
exchange, he wonders what the hell has changed.
An
alert from his laptop pulls him back to the present, and Dominic looks down at
the screen. He frowns; it says the computer low on battery, and he sighs
heavily as he realizes that he forgot to charge it before he came here. Of
course, he did.
Killian
glances over at him as he starts digging through his bag, looking for the
charger―he can feel those dark green eyes on him―and Dominic
retrieves it, looking around for a power outlet. There's one behind him, but
both sockets are occupied, and he trails his gaze along the windows, only to
spot an outlet placed high on the wall between two of them, a few feet away.
Right
next to Killian and his easel.
Dominic
sighs, wondering what he has done to make the universe feel that he deserves
this, before he braces himself and gets up from his seat. He makes his way over
to Killian, who raises his eyebrows ever so slightly, no doubt wondering what
he wants. Dominic says nothing, just nods at the vacant outlet behind him, and
Killian steps aside, albeit slightly slower than might be considered necessary,
while Dominic brushes past him to plug in the charger.
He smells good.
The thought
hits Dominic out of nowhere, and being this close to the guy, after watching
him and checking him out from afar for the better part of two weeks, just makes
it too much to ignore.
He
plugs in the charger and moves away, heading back to his table without throwing
Killian so much as a glance. He silently sits down to keep working.
Killian
starts getting more obvious, then. Over the next forty minutes or so, the third
person in the room takes off, leaving the two of them alone, and Dominic swears
Killian is deliberately making a show of stretching his arms over his head,
making his loose-fitting tank top slide up just enough to reveal a slip of skin
above the hem of his jeans. Dominic may or may not swallow dryly as he sees it,
letting his eyes skim over the exposed flesh for as long as he can, before
Killian relaxes again, letting the tank fall back down. His gaze flicks to
Dominic, as though daring him to admit he was just looking, but Dominic does no
such thing. He just turns back to his laptop screen, chewing the inside of his
cheek while trying to mentally force his leg to stop jumping up and down. He
hears the sound of candy wrappers and silently hopes that that doesn't mean
what he thinks it means.
It
means exactly that. The next time he looks up, Killian has a lollipop in his
mouth, as if that makes this whole thing easier to handle, while he continues
to put on a very subtle, casual show.
Killian
arches his neck, tilting his head to the side as though to really reveal the
expanse of pale skin and collarbones and tendons, and Dominic, of course, is
helpless against it. He finds himself just staring, fiddling with his phone
against the surface of the table, shamelessly taking in the way the muscles
move beneath Killian's skin as he stretches, the way he bites his lip as he
gazes at his canvas in concentration. He rolls his shoulders and rubs the back
of his neck, closing his eyes while he actually
groans
around that stupid candy in his mouth, and Dominic has to
take a deep, deep breath.
It
occurs to him then what Killian is actually doing. He's flirting. That bastard
is flirting, showing off, downright
teasing
,
and any pretense of him not being aware of Dominic's gaze has been completely
dropped. Dominic feels like he should be embarrassed, or annoyed, but he isn't.
He's just intrigued―Killian likes Dominic watching him, and honestly, the
only thing missing right now to top it all off is a slow whirl on that
lollipop, using a lot of tongue. Dominic sincerely hopes Killian doesn't go for
that, because seeing it might make him spontaneously combust.
When
it starts nearing six o'clock, Dominic reluctantly starts packing up his
things. Regardless of how bittersweet this whole experience is, he has a shift
at the store in half-an-hour, and he has no choice but to cut this short.
Killian clearly notices, but says nothing. He just stays put, now enjoying his
lollipop as decently as he probably can, considering.
Dominic
somewhat dreads retrieving his laptop charger, and he feels oddly on edge as he
makes his way over to Killian's easel. Their eyes meet, Killian takes the candy
out of his mouth, and Dominic only lets his eyes flick to his lips for a split
second.
He
reaches past Killian, but unlike last time, the guy doesn't move. He just stays
still, blatantly keeping his eyes on Dominic as he leans past him, the
proximity causing their arms to brush against each other for a moment,
skin-on-skin. Dominic internally winces. The accidental touch reminds him of a
static shock, only much warmer, and much more pleasant, and he glances at
Killian, wondering if perhaps he felt it too. The artist's expression is just
as unreadable as always.
"Sorry,"
Dominic says, with more dryness than sincerity. Killian doesn't reply, and he
still doesn't move.
He really does smell good
. He smells like
sun-warmed skin and dusty pencils and processed sugar, all wrapped up in a
rough, natural scent that is just way too inviting. It makes Dominic want to
linger, makes him want to move in a little bit closer and breathe it in
properly, makes him want to touch and taste and see what that little static
shock might feel like on a larger scale. He wants to know if that skin is as
smooth as it looks, wants to know what those muscles would feel like underneath
his hands.
Killian
is watching him when he pulls back, dark eyes regarding him like he's some kind
of prey. Dominic isn't entirely sure whether that should make him calm or
unsettled, but regardless, it pulls him in. He straightens where he stands,
remaining closer than is probably appropriate, but any sense of that has
honestly just gone out the window, at this point. He keeps their gazes locked,
looks away only to eye Killian up and down, now unabashedly taking in the sight
in front of him.
Something
about Killian's posture changes then, minutely, and its new confidence is
enough to make Dominic pay a little more attention, enough to make his gaze
trail along Killian's arms and collarbones, finally getting a closer look.
There's a tattoo on the left side of Killian's ribcage―Dominic can see it
thanks to the loose-fitting style of the tank top, although he can't make it
out―and there are dark smudges of coal on his fingers, along with dried
paint.
Dominic
could keep staring for quite a while, but that's as far as he gets, before
Killian notices his change in demeanor as well.
"See
something you like?" he asks, and their eyes meet. The question doesn't
faze Dominic, doesn't throw him off; it eggs him on. The fact that it's the
first thing Killian has actually said to him since their conversation the other
night only makes his reaction more intense.
"Not
sure," he says, not missing a beat. "Might need a closer look."
Dominic
sees a flash of vague surprise cross Killian’s features, and it’s very
satisfying for some reason. So far, he has barely managed to either evoke or
notice any change whatsoever in his expression, after all.
Killian
eyes him up and down, something deliberately daring about his look now. He
pulls in his bottom lip between his teeth, and seeing it sends surges of heat
to all kinds of places in Dominic's body.
"So,"
Killian says, as the tension mounts to the point where it's an almost physical
sensation, crackling between them. He twirls the lollipop between his fingers.
"You gonna make a move, or what?"
It's
not what Dominic expects, but it’s exactly what he wants to hear, and it's
enough to make him take the leap.
Killian
doesn't seem the least bit surprised when Dominic kisses him. It's not hesitant
or tentative, instead determined and soft, and Dominic swears he can feel a
physical, burning spark when their lips meet, spreading through his body like
an injection. He closes his eyes, puts the charger in his hand down on the
window sill, wanting to give this his undivided attention. He sighs softly as
he feels Killian's mouth move and shape itself to his own, moves his hand up to
touch Killian's face, smoothing back and curling his fingers across his neck
and the back of his head―that buzzed, dark hair is like velvet against
his fingertips.
Killian's
tongue pushes against the seam of his lips, making Dominic part them and let
him slip inside, the sweet hint of candy tickling his senses as it blends
perfectly together with the taste of Killian's mouth. It's instantly addictive,
and Dominic leans into the kiss, inhaling deeply as he feels Killian's hands
settle on his hips. He is slightly shorter, just enough for Dominic to have to
tilt his head downward the tiniest bit, but it takes nothing away from the
experience. If anything, Dominic finds that he kind of likes it, and when
Killian moves one hand up to trail over his jaw with his fingers, he swears he
can even feel his knees go weak.
Dominic’s
free hand moves on its own, down along Killian’s back and to the edge of his
jeans, where he lingers for a moment before sliding down to his ass, pressing
their bodies closer together. He earns a pleased little sound from Killian in
return, and it makes his brain go haywire. He moves in closer, Killian firming
his grip by his face and twisting his fingers into his shirt, Dominic’s pulse
picking up by the second.
He
wants more. He wants to push Killian against a wall and move his mouth down
along his throat, his collarbones, wants to get underneath that tank top and
taste his skin and touch and feel and―
The
sound of footsteps snaps Dominic out of it, and he pulls back, taking a step
away from Killian and his sweet-tasting mouth. He doesn’t do it hurriedly,
instead lingers ever so slightly, slowly smoothing down over Killian’s neck and
hip as he removes his hands. They keep their gazes locked for a second or so,
and Dominic swallows hard. He doesn’t feel nervous or uncomfortable; he feels
hungry, playful, and he can see his own expression mirrored in Killian’s face.
His
skin is buzzing.
He
moves away a little further once the footsteps come closer, and he looks over
his shoulder to find Jemma stopping in the doorway with a surprised look on her
face.
"Oh,"
she says, making her way into the room. "I see you two have met."
She
doesn't say it suggestively, but Dominic still hears it. Perhaps it has
something to do with the fact that his mouth was just all over Killian's, but
he feels pleasantly on edge.
"Yeah,"
he says casually. "I gotta go, though. Work."
He
picks up the charger next to him and makes his way over to his table. He thinks
that maybe he should feel weird about almost being walked in on making out with
a guy he barely knows, by a friend he barely knows, in broad daylight, but he
doesn't. He just kind of feels like smiling, in an amused and childishly
triumphant kind of way.