Title: Self Indulgence

Rating: R.

Characters/Pairings: Topher, Claire, mentions Boyd, Topher/Claire

Spoilers: None. Just one that got waaay out of hand in my mind.

Summary: Oh it was so wrong, but for the moment, neither of them cared.

Disclaimer: I do not own anything. See the icon.

Warnings: Swearing, some pr0n-esque undertones.

"Topher!" Claire yelled as she stormed up the stairs to his office. "TOPHER!"

"What?!" Topher snapped as he came to the door. "What do you want Dr. Saunders? Let me guess, somehow I've screwed up on something again, am I right?" He glared at her and went back to his desk, leaving his door open.

"I…I…" Claire was flushed, and startled. Shit, did she really yell at him that much? "Well… yes, it is." She said, attempting to be snaky.

"So, what is it this time? Did I screw up on an imprint? Is one of our female actives Pregnant?" He didn't look up from his computer as he talked, still angry.

"No…I…there's….Victor…Sierra…" Claire was blushing now.

"I thought we solved that problem when Victor was scrubbed. What's wrong now?"

"Victor tried to fuck Sierra." Claire said bluntly. Topher looked up at her.

"What? When the hell did this happen?" Topher asked, looking seriously worried.

" Last night. No one told you?" Claire was confused. It was a pretty big deal. Why hadn't he been told?

"No. I wasn't here last night I…" Topher sighed and turned towards his computer again. "I had to go identify a body. My cousin was murdered two days ago." He said, as if it was no big deal, it happened every day.

"Oh my God, Topher I'm so sorry." Claire looked at him with genuine concern. "You should have…"

"Should have what? What Claire? Told someone? Who here really actually gives a fuck about me anyway? I'm just the nerdy programmer that stays up in his windowed office like the Phantom of the Opera." he seethed. "Laurence sure as hell could care less. I'm pretty sure he's tried to get me fired a couple of times. Boyd's alright but all he cares about is Echo, as it should be. And Adelle…Adelle is my boss, as long as I do my job, she won't throw my ass in the unemployment office." he sighed. "Ok, there is Ivy…she's…sort of my friend." He laughed bitterly and looked back at his computer. "Let's face it, if Alpha had murdered me instead of just knocking me out when he broke free, no one would really miss me." He got up and took an imprint chip out of the processor then walked into his lab. Claire wanted to tear up. Was this really what he thought? That no one cared? She cared. Ivy cared. Hell, even Boyd admitted once that he considered Topher as a sort of friend.

"Topher." Claire whispered. Why couldn't she make her voice louder? "Topher?" she said louder. Just as Topher turned around to look at her, the lights flickered, then went out.

"Oh that's just fucking perfect." Topher growled, feeling his way out of the lab and over to one of the cabinets in his office. He took out six candles, a matchstick book, and a couple of flashlights. "Dr. Saunders? Are you still in here?" he asked aloud.

"Yeah." Claire said, trying to find him through the extremely dim light coming from the sky window in the living area.

"Here." Topher found her first, and handed her a flashlight.

"Shit. What do you think happened?" Claire asked, helping him set up the candles and light them.

"I don't know. Maybe the neighborhood's just having a blackout." Topher murmured, lighting a few candles as he walked along the office. Claire sighed and plopped down on one of the chairs. "Wait… oh…shit…no..no…no."

"Topher, what's wrong?" Claire asked tiredly.

"The doors…they're automatic locks." Topher explained, walking over to the door to his office. "Shit!" he swore and walked back over by where Claire was sitting, and plopped down in a chair next to her. "We're trapped in here." Topher said. "Trapped."

"What?!" Claire looked at him, scowling.

"Yeah." Topher rubbed his temple and sighed. "Just what we need right now." He yawned and stretched his neck, rubbing it.

"Sore?" Claire asked, amused.

"Yeah, a bit." Topher replied, smiling. Claire smiled back. She looked around and noticed the quaintness of Topher's office. It was very…him. Computers everywhere, a chessboard on a table, a dvd player with a bunch of geeky shows and movies nearby. He really was a good person at heart, she saw that. She was the only one that did in the Dollhouse. He was cute too, charming. That's how he made the actives feel so calm in what should be a very scary situation every time they go in for their 'treatments'. Hell, she had to admit, she'd almost fallen for his charms quite a few times. Almost given in to that temptation to kiss him when he was acting just so childish but so adorable as well. Like when he made his comment about her and Boyd , and how they were going to get married and have scowling babies? Yeah, she almost jumped him. She's gotten pretty damn good at not showing it too in her opinion.

But, as fate would have it, here they are, locked in his office, candles everywhere, the lights out, and they had just been talking about… well sex. And it had been so long since she'd been on a date… for , in her opinion, obvious reasons. She tried dating after the incident, but all the guys she went out with only looked at one thing. Her scars.

Fuck them.

Claire silently screamed in frustration. Seriously? This was what it came down too? Either go out with guys that are freaked out by her scars or jump Topher? Jesus, what kind of system was this anyway? And what would happen later on if she slept with Topher? Oh God it'd be so awkward. Unless… no…he couldn't be looking for a relationship. It's not that she didn't think he was the type to be in a committed, long term relationship, oh no, she thought he could, but … with her? And how could she ask him so that it wouldn't be extremely awkward? 'Hey Topher, if you and me hooked up, would you be interested in a long term relationship?' Oh yeah, that didn't sound weird at all.

"You okay Claire?" Claire jumped slightly in her seat at the sound of Topher's voice piercing through to her when she was so deep in thought.

"Yeah, I'm alright." she replied, smiling.

"You looked like you were having an argument with yourself." Topher laughed.

"Yeah, about whether or not to jump you." she murmured under her breath.

"What's that?" Topher asked, looking at her.

"Nothing. Just talking to myself." she smiled sweetly.

"Ok then." He looked back out at the darkness. "You suppose anyone can see up here?" Topher asked.

"Hm?"

"Do you think the actives and their handlers can see into here? The office is pretty high up, and in the dark it's almost impossible to see in here from the living area."

"Oh, I suppose not." Claire replied, blushing. "S'pretty dark." Oh screw this. She was just going to ask him. This was getting ridiculous. "Hey, Topher?"

"Yeah?" he was spacing out again.

"Have you…ever thought about…" Claire felt her cheeks turn red. " about…us?" Ok, there. She got it out. She will either be extremely embarrassed and rejected, or , if God was smiling upon this hellish nightmare of a business, excepted. Topher was looking at her, shocked, and she was glad that the dimness of the candles made it so he couldn't tell how red her cheeks had gotten.

"How…how so? As friends or as… a couple?" He asked, calmly. Damn him.

"As…a couple." Claire said, looking at the chess board rather than him. This was getting more and more embarrassing by the second.

"Oh… well… I guess…" Topher paused to think "I've…thought about it once or twice, yeah." Claire looked right back at him. "Why? Have you?" Shit, she saw the amusement creeping into his features. Busted. Fuck, fuck, fuck….shit! Stop thinking about the word fuck! she scolded herself.

"Yes." she replied, suddenly immersed in fiddling with the hem of her lab coat. Claire suddenly felt very hot as she realized Topher had gotten up and walked in front of her chair. Putting a hand on either side of her chair's armrests, he leaned in closer to her.

"And how, pray tell , did you imagine that happening?" he whispered, leaning even closer. Claire blushed.

"Well…" she said with a slightly shaky voice "Something along the lines of what's happening right now. We're stuck together, in a room, alone…" she breathed as he got closer, just a couple inches away.

"Yes?" he said in a low, husky voice, by her ear. She shuddered at the feeling of his breath on her ear and neck.

"And…and…" she was trying to control herself, but he was making it hard. "Oh God…Topher…" she whimpered as he continued his onslaught. He wasn't even touching her and she was going crazy. "I…usually, I make the first move…oh GOD!" Shit, he found her weak point on her neck and was sucking on it. She squirmed in her seat, but couldn't move because he still had her trapped. She groaned as he moved along the rest of her neck , nipping and kissing away, like this was something they did every day. Finally, she could take it no longer . She grabbed his head and kissed him roughly. This wasn't how it was supposed to be, and oh it was so wrong, but for the moment, neither of them cared. She always imagined their first kiss to be gentle, reserved. But now, at this moment , the gentleness was gone, and two years of pent up sexual tension was rearing it's ugly head. She managed to move out of the chair and switch them around, pushing him roughly into the chair, and continuing on, straddling him and then continuing to kiss him so roughly she was sure that they were going to be asked questions later on. She whimpered again as he did something with his tongue she never thought he knew how to do, and oh … she felt the heat rise up her body. She pushed herself harder into him, trying to get as close as she could. She gasped in his mouth as his hands went under her shirt. Shit, this was so wrong, but she didn't want to stop, she couldn't stop. It was addictive, like a drug. After a few minutes, their lungs screamed at them for air, and they broke apart. Topher looked up at her with a wicked smile on his face.

"Wanna blow out the candles?"

The End.