Title: The Skin Job
Author: OpheliacAngel
Pairing: Reece/Wax
Genres: Horror/Romance/Hurt/Comfort
Rating: Explicit
Summary: Reece and Wax are the best at what they do, until a case gets too deep underneath Reece's skin.
A/N: Written as a fill on my h/c_bingo card for 'nervous breakdown.' I have adored this film for years and finally get to show it now.
Background: This is a Horror/Hunter AU. Reece and Wax work for an agency that hunts down all manner of monsters who prey on humans. They are both the investigators and the hunters, the only ones who have the skill-set to find out what they're hunting and then kill it. Reece, like in the film, is more by the books and doesn't fool around. While Wax, also like in the film, figures you might as well have a little fun while you're discovering all manner of nasty things.
Inspired by this awesome little fic: archive of our own dot org (slash) works (slash) 332132
Warnings: Body Horror, Sexual Content, Language, Autopsies, Bugs and Spiders
Soundtrack: Trapt's 'Wasteland'
~Get off my back, don't attack
So what if I fell off the tracks?
Your master plan, don't understand
I'd rather live in my own wasteland~
The victim was sprawled out across the metal table: naked and pale. Her skin was so white and untouched by the sun that she looked like porcelain. Her eyes were still open too, locked forever on the ceiling. She looked surreal, inhuman, something alien. She had been human before this. Reece gulped, wanted to close her eyes but didn't dare touch any part of her until they knew more, even with gloves on.
Especially skin.
He honed on to the most startling images: she was heavily bloated as if pregnant, with swollen ankles, dilated eyes and inhumanly wide hips. There was a look of terror that crossed her face just before she died, but there was sorrow in her eyes rather than mere fear. She hadn't been dead long either, even though her body had already long been cold. Despite that he hadn't touched her, Reece could feel the stinging chill of the room through his jacket. It was a freezer, this room, and who knew how long she had been in here?
"What've we got today, Reece? Another hooker?"
Reece scowled but didn't turn around to face his partner. "Have some respect."
He had only been working with Charlie Wax for a year; infuriating, know-it-all, brash and loving every second of it Charlie Wax. Did he mention hard to handle too? Or that Reece's new job would be attempting to reign him in? It was a sense of pride, as well as a testament to Reece's skill, however, that Wax was finally starting to grow on him. It had been a difficult adjustment after Reece's last partner died, killed as a result of the thing they were hunting.
They were all things. Horrible things no less, but Reece didn't even bother to call them monsters anymore. It was easier not to refer to them as anything, putting more distance between himself and what he had been trained since college to hunt. The agency he practically sold his soul to recruited him while in his junior year of college, throwing him into a world that he hadn't understood let alone knew existed until he was quite literally throwninto it. They probably saw that his father had been in the Marines, so Reece had some warrior blood in him. Maybe it was an added plus too that Reece had always been a do-gooder.
It had been Reece's choice to walk away. Not anymore, but he had had plenty of time then. Yet they knew he wouldn't walk away because he couldn't. How could anyone be able to function knowing this world existed until actively involving oneself in it?
Then it took his partner of five years. His partner… who had a hellish three weeks having god knows what done to him until Reece found him and mercy killed him.
A new partner had been assigned to him pretty much instantly. Reece had no say in the matter, not that he would have been able to give an unbiased opinion on the matter to begin with. That was when he met Wax. Back then, raw from the death of the only partner he had ever worked with, Wax was the last person in the world he wanted to be assigned to. Where Reece considered himself as someone who exuded respect and common sense, who was helpful, responsible and had distinct black and white areas, Wax was brash, had a brusque lack of respect, possessed questionable morality, thought everything was a joke and never knew when to shut up.
Why people always said opposites attract was sorely beyond Reece's power to understand.
"Whoo hee," Wax's loud voice brushed against Reece's fraying nerves. "Someone woke up on the wrong side of the floor this morning." A gripe about where Wax had found Reece that morning: curled up on the floor, still in his clothes from yesterday. Hell, it wasn't like he had been in the fetal position. He just couldn't always tolerate sharing the sole bed in the room with Wax, who wasn't exactly the most courteous or clean partner. Reece didn't need distractions like Wax in his life, but as he said, he was getting used to it.
This scene, however, he had never seen before. This would take a while getting used to.
Reece turned away from the victim and welcomed his partner as what he was: a distraction. He needed to clear his head for a minute.
Wax was oblivious to him unlike before. Reece watched intently as Wax slipped the police detective in the room some cash and whispered something in his ear, probably to go skedaddle and get him a coffee: black, two sugars. Reece knew because when you hunted for the agency you practically lived with your partner. If you were staying in one place for more than a few nights, then the agency would hook you up with an apartment, which meant two separate rooms and two separate beds. If the length of time was definite, which Wax could usually tell since he had been doing this practically twice as long as Reece, then there would be one hotel room and one bed.
Which wasn't usually a problem, unless you had a partner who hogged the sheets and was a platonic cuddler and was disgusting in bed. Still, Wax let him share when he was in a good mood.
Wax fiddled with his wallet for a moment and Reece turned back to the woman. Girl, actually, she couldn't have been more than twenty years old. He stepped closer, despite his better judgment. His job was finding out whatever the hell he was hunting and then kill it, simple as that. Yet it was never a one-man job. Even with two the fatalities were nearly as high as the number of new recruits every year.
Reece swallowed down the excess saliva in his throat, picked up the pair of tongs on the table. Metal was fine, through gloves, but skin was tricky.
The thing that most stood out was the movement under the surface of her skin, at the lower end of her belly, like dozens of clumps of ants under her skin. They were continuously shifting, but they never seemed to move higher than the curve of her belly, as if lodged there.
Reece breathed. They were trained to handle this. He was trained to handle this.
There was an incision already in her stomach, much higher than the area where there was perpetual movement. Even through his gloves the metal was ice cold, too real.
"Why don't you let me handle the big boy tools, wise guy?" Reece took a step back and nodded, glancing up at his partner for a small bit of reassurance that he wasn't alone on this case. He wordlessly handed the tongs to Wax, eyes lowered. "Hey!" Reece jumped, honing in on Wax's stern face. "I need you to keep it together, you got it?"
Reece nodded again, but knew he would have to talk before his partner would proceed. "Ye… yeah," he spit out, almost gasping, dizzy without being able to explain why. Apparently, that satisfied Wax, who crossed to the other side of the table. When Reece looked up at him again, he was relieved to find that Wax was no longer watching him.
"Stand at the base of her stomach," Wax said, resting a gloved hand on the girl's upper chest. Reece did as he was told, hand cupping the swell of her stomach but still far enough away from the movement should anything go wrong. The likelihood of things going wrong being unsurprisingly high in their line of work. "I'm gonna count to three, then I'll pull that incision open and pull back the skin on my side. Got it?" Reece nodded, ashamed that he couldn't keep it together, even if Wax would have taken over regardless of Reece's mental state. Wax had worked with him long enough to know it wasn't typical, having this reaction, but Reece couldn't help but feel the pit of uselessness in his gut. Wax could easily do this without him. "Alright then," Wax said. "One… two…."
The skin was pulled back and dozens of maggots tore their way free, swarming over the girl's bloated stomach, fat white bodies bloodied and feeding on fuck knew what. "Jesus fucking Christ," Reece swore, stumbling back and hitting the metal table, sending both it and him crashing to the floor. He hurriedly wiped his hands off on his jeans, the feel of maggots crawling all over his skin overwhelming him.
He tried to take himself somewhere else, somewhere that wasn't here. He told himself - ordered himself - to count off the multiplication tables on his fingers, to number all his cases and their details, or even to count sheep in his head.
None of it worked. Teeth nipped at his skin and drew blood, slimy little bodies slithering over his skin and worming their way underneath his clothes. Blood and skin and fear and disgust, so much revulsion he was going to throw up all over himself, drown in it.
Reece came to again with a hard smack to his cheek. He pulled in a dizzying breath of air and then promptly glared at Wax, but couldn't help but hold onto his arm, desperately trying to get back any semblance of balance. He looked down at himself in dread but there was nothing on him. The relief was like a sledgehammer pounding into his stomach one last time before retreating to find another victim. "Thought you said you were gonna count to three?" He shouted, twisting his hands into his shirt, sweaty palms reminding him too much of her skin.
Rather than give him some smart remark, Wax only shrugged. "Everyone knows that's not how you do it. It's better when you don't expect it." Not with what we do, Reece thought. I wasn't ready until another second. Son of a bitch could've fucking killed me.
"Reece! Reece, you okay?"
"I'm fine," Reece pushed Wax back and used the table, which was now laying on its side, to prop himself up. The possibility of remaining on his feet was shaky at best, but he had to get out of here. "Get the fuck off me, I'm fine."
"Sure thing, cowboy. Don't suppose you wanna say that word one more time, just in case it'll convince me this time 'round?" Reece scowled at that. What the fuck did he care? Wax was always so self-absorbed, hardly ever looked behind him to see if Reece was falling behind or even following at all. He was always so damn sure all the time too, so why didn't he just run this gig on his own?
As soon as Reece got to his feet again, he made a beeline for the door. "Reece!" Wax called after him, but Reece didn't slow down. He had to get as far away from that scene as possible. When the fresh air assaulted his senses, he keeled over and puked, trying to get most of it down into the gutter. He could see Wax's shoes after a point, but he was still too busy throwing up to care much about anything other than getting out literally everything inside him. He just wanted to erase it, erase it all. "Oh, fuck, kid," Wax whined. "Don't get it on my shoes. These are Vuitton's."
Reece didn't know what Wax had said, but his mouth opened again and the dry heaves wracked his body until he had no breath left in him.
Wax drove back to their hotel; that was the first sign something was wrong. Wax never drove, he always left it to Reece. Even if Wax's snoring had kept Reece up all night and he was damn tired and close to collapsing against the steering wheel. Even if Reece sustained more injuries than Wax and his foot was killing him but he was still pressing down on the damn gas, like he was a glutton for pain. Even if….
His head was killing him now. He laid it against the window, staring at the buildings and people and the city itself passing by but not really seeing anything. Wax kept shooting glances over at him. Reece wanted to escape his skin, somewhere, somehow. Just wanted to jump right out.
"You gonna talk to me or just sit there?"
There wasn't much to say, or even ask. Reece knew Wax's phone call outside of the SUV - while Reece waited inside, where Wax had ordered him to stay - involved calling in reinforcements from the agency and having the victim bagged and tagged and kept away somewhere safe, waiting for them until they were ready to get back to it. Wax would smooth over the ruffled feathers of their task leader, buy them another week.
Reece's fault. All Reece's fault.
He hadn't looked over at Wax when he had slid into the driver's seat, couldn't even enjoy the fact that this was his one time in a year inside a car and on the passenger side of it.
Now Wax kept sneaking glances at him rather than keep his eyes on the road. He probably expected an explanation, but Reece didn't have one. He felt sick and not just because there was no longer anything in his stomach.
Cold and hot at the same time, sore and achy all over, his insides a mass of knots in his chest. Every time he breathed he felt like he needed to gasp, like he wasn't getting enough air. His belly felt odd, like something was wrong and he didn't dare touch it. His insides felt soft and gooey at one moment, then hard and lumpy the next. He swore he still felt them on his skin too, burying underneath their chosen layer of flesh, nipping at his organs. Sharp, tiny teeth making him jump and hit his head against the top of the SUV.
Reece's sweaty fingers fumbled with the seat belt, tearing at the straps restraining him and slipping over the plastic button, but not able to exert enough force.
That was apparently it, his partner decided. Wax pulled over to the side of the road, shoved the stick up to park and unbuckled Reece's seatbelt with envying ease. Reece was about to bolt, he needed to escape the confines of the SUV, but Wax's grip on his wrist stilled him. Still, Reece's mind was racing, body panicking, losing control.
"Easy," Wax told him. "Slow down." His gaze was stony, hard, but his face was softened around the edges, as if Reece was a frightened animal that Wax needed to soothe rather than his capable, 'can handle anything, just throw it at me cause I'm trained for it' partner. "Take it easy, Reece," he repeated, a firmer tone startling Reece into no longer squirming. He had never heard Wax talk like this before, like he actually cared about a damn thing over than himself and hunting monsters. Reece had always known that he could trust Wax, but the instinct went deeper now. Wax wasn't making any of this into a joke, he wanted to know what was wrong and then fix it because that's what he did: fix whatever was wrong and then move on.
But Wax couldn't make him unsee it.
"Now," Wax continued. "We're gonna head back to the hotel for a little. Get cleaned up, get a few hours of shuteye, do some research, then we're gonna head out and find this thing. There's bound to be another body somewhere, and if not, then there will be soon. Each body we find is a step closer, baby." And now Wax was back to his usual self. Without waiting for a reply, Wax turned away and pulled back out onto the street. Even though the no seatbelt button kept flashing on the dash and emitting its grating buzz, Wax didn't tell Reece to put his seat belt back on or do it for him. It was a good thing too, because it would have been too tight against Reece's stomach and he definitely would have had to bolt.
Wax left him alone when they made it back to their room. Reece took a hot shower, but it was a short one because there was little hot water and he couldn't even think about cold water on his skin right then, let alone feel it. He stumbled out of the bathroom, barely aware of his surroundings but blearily saw Wax at the small table in their room, eyes glued to his laptop.
Feeling secure, Reece found the bed, collapsed onto it and promptly blacked out.
When he woke up he felt like the world was falling down around him.
It was dark outside, which was odd because that meant about twelve hours had passed. Upon straining Reece could hear the traffic outside the window, a reminder that the world was all as it should be. Well, maybe not. Not with that morning. Reece swallowed the bile rising up in his throat and shifted, careful not to accidentally brush his hands against his belly.
It was the first time in a long time that Wax hadn't woken him up.
Reece clung to the darkness for as long as he could. He didn't want to feel anything, didn't want to think about anything anymore. His entire life filtered down into one pinpoint of revulsion and agony. Wax would tell him he was overreacting if he kept this up; whereas, the agency might throw him in a mental institution.
Wax poked his head out from the bathroom, toothbrush pushed to one side of his mouth. "You up for some Chinese?" A reminder of their first case together, it was odd how that stood out. It was amazing that Reece could keep the tumbling in his stomach at bay, not having to swallow profusely again. He shook his head and then laid it back against the pillow, just for a minute….
"You're a little clammy," Wax admitted. Reece jumped at the too near sound of his voice more so than the feel of Wax's heated hand on his skin. His eyes opened again, nostrils flaring at the overpowering scent of peppermint from Wax's toothpaste. He didn't dare try to sit up without first gaging how his body would react, so he just laid back and let his partner palm his forehead and hold Reece's wrist in his hand, finger pressed to the skin. "Pulse is a little fast too. We'll take it easy tonight." Reece exhaled heavily, relieved. "Maybe watch some Rambo?" Wax grinned, "You're starting to get some color back into those cheeks, kid!" Reece didn't know what was so exciting about that, but he did feel moderately better. "Now that you mention it…," Wax pulled away then, shrugging on his leather jacket and slipping on his watch. Reece took that as his cue to slide out of bed and find a decent shirt to wear, preferably one that wouldn't cling. "I am in the mood for Italian," Wax finished. "We'll keep it light on your stomach though."
Reece would have rather stayed in, but something in him pulled him toward Wax and they left the room and fell out into the night.
Wax had apparently bought them more than just a few days from their supervisor because he didn't say a word about going back to the victim, not body, Reece could never say body; or doing a little hunting; or doing much of anything really but getting out for an hour or two every day, mostly just to eat dinner.
Reece didn't know what he liked better: not having to go back out there into the real world, which even though he didn't think he could physically do for a good while, would probably make him feel less guilty and anxious around Wax; or having to lay around in bed all day, Wax walking on eggshells around him. Sure, Wax was still brash and loud, but the leniency he gave Reece was odd, and the multitude of nicknames stranger. Reece tried to pay none of it any mind. He took about ten showers a day because he felt filthy and bloody and freezing all the damn time, felt like he had to scrub his skin viciously to prevent the sickness from sinking into him. Even though it already had.
Reece didn't feel right in his own skin; he doubted he ever would again.
The rest of the time Reece just curled up in bed, most of the time trying to sleep rather than actually sleep. He felt slow and weighted down, extremely lethargic and sweaty and achy. Like if he moved around too much he would burst. His limbs were sore and his belly full with god knew what; he didn't want to think about it. Reece alternated between cold and hot, shaking profusely one minute and burning with fervor the next. The heat that erupted across his skin would lead to blinding headaches and the cold caused shaking that made his limbs even sorer… he didn't know which was worse.
He didn't know why this job was bothering him so much. Maybe because he had never come across anything like it, not even when his partner had been literally chewed apart, still alive. All Reece knew was that this was no longer emotional but physical, clearly, and that was what terrified him.
Reece couldn't stand to be touched either. Wax once or twice - Reece couldn't tell if the second one was a dream because there were hallucinations too, sometimes - crawled into bed behind Reece and laid callused fingers on his back. The second time it was a huge and incredibly warm palm that seemed intent to rub warmth back into his skin. Reece had thrown up over the side of the bed in gratitude, and when he woke up again he was certain it had been a dream, since Wax was back to his usual annoying self.
But sometimes when Wax said one of those damn nicknames, his voice would tremble minutely. Barely there, almost as if Reece was imagining that too. But he wasn't imagining how much he wanted to hug Wax for trying to make things seem normal, even if they were anything but.
Reece turned over to find Wax watching him, even though his partner quickly turned away and back to his computer. Reece ignored him and dragged himself up and out of bed and into the shower. Wax was banging on the door what felt like seconds later.
"Hey, princess, I gotta take a wizz!"
Reece left the shower because he felt like he was getting cold again, but he didn't vacate the bathroom when he opened the door to let Wax in, who practically ran him over in his haste to get inside. Reece put a generous amount of toothpaste on his toothbrush and shoved the stick in his mouth, trying to get the taste of antiseptic out. He couldn't look at himself again in the mirror: pale, bloodshot eyes, thin. He knew he had lost a few pounds; he didn't have much of an appetite anymore after that morning. Reece couldn't look over at Wax either to see if he was watching him as he relieved himself. So Reece opted to look at the floor; it was better than nothing.
He stepped aside to let Wax reach the sink, leaning back against the cabinet mirror. Reece could feel Wax's eyes on him now, but he couldn't face them. Wax never made him look him in the eyes anymore anyway. Reece thought he might prefer Wax pushing him, shaking him, throttling him and demanding what was wrong other than his uncharacteristic quiet anxiety over the situation. Maybe he just felt bad that Reece was feeling like shit - which was a massive freaking understatement - and that he had been the cause of it.
Even though he hadn't been. Wax might have gone about the whole business of examining the girl a little too abruptly, but sooner or later Reece would have looked underneath the skin. In another situation, Wax might not have been with him. Still, Reece regretted the reality of just how fragile he was. It wasn't like he wanted to be like this, wasn't like he wanted to show his partner just how cut out for this he wasn't.
Wax took the toothbrush out of Reece's mouth, rinsed it off and put it away. Reece bent down over the sink to spit out the remaining toothpaste, taking extra care to not glance up at himself in the mirror. He straightened up again agonizingly slowly. Once he did, Wax's hand slid underneath his chin, pulling Reece ever so slightly closer in the process. "You cut yourself shaving?" It was a joke, Reece hadn't shaved in days, clearly.
Must have fallen in the shower, Reece figured, fingers skimming over the contusion on his chin, at the blood which seemed to have dried already.
They'd never fucked before. Reece had caught Wax looking at him ever so often before all this mess, like he wanted to fuck Reece against the wall until he couldn't breathe anymore. He couldn't imagine how his partner could find him appealing like this, but when he let his eyes roam he could see the slight bulge in Wax's jeans. Reece waited, waited for something to happen, but then he realized Wax was never going to make the first move, maybe before but not now. Not when the slightest thing could and probably would set Reece off.
Reece felt bad all over again, but he also wanted to feel Wax inside him. Riding the sickness out of Reece.
His hand stretched forward of its own volition. Wax's hand caught his before Reece's fingers could make contact with the denim, fingers curling securely around Reece's own. His lips were moving then and Reece watched them with interest, but there was blood rushing in his ears and his belly was deciding to switch from hot to ice cold again and Reece couldn't hear anything, or concentrate on a damn thing. He couldn't even feel Wax's own skin against his own anymore, what had seconds ago been normal skin, rough and calloused but gentle too, like Wax gave a damn about his partner.
"Reece!" He jumped, eyes pulling open - when had they closed? - and latching onto Wax's panicked face. "I need you to pull it together, man. You're freaking me the fuck out here." Reece nodded, but didn't really register anything until Wax's hand squeezed his own. "What do I gotta do to get you out of that head of yours, huh? We got a case to solve." Wax's voice wasn't stern or disappointed, but when Reece's mouth opened to respond he couldn't stop himself from gasping. He should have been able to pull in air but he couldn't, and his eyes widened when he realized that if he couldn't breathe, then he would die.
And Wax wouldn't be able to do a damn thing to stop it.
Sound came in and out then. Reece struggled against his body; he had felt too much like he hadn't been in control of his own body lately and he was sick to death of it. He sank to the floor, which pulled his hand out of Wax's. He didn't know what to do with his hands either, clenched them at his sides then grasped at the cold tile floor as he struggled to pull air inside his lungs, just one breath, one breath to clear his head. Reece felt liquid snaking down his fingers and Wax sank down to the floor in front of him as his vision was just starting to darken. Wax's hands found Reece's own again, pulling them into his lap. He bid them stay there, bringing them to him every time Reece pulled them back in panic. Wax then pulled Reece close, Reece's back against his broad chest.
It was surreal, but Reece could feel his partner's heartbeat thundering loudly against his back. And even though it was the only sound then in Reece's world, because even though he couldn't hear anything he could hear it, it was enough. Reece gathered every part of him that he could find - every part of his body that he couldn't control - and he pulled them all together, crushed them until they were all one entity and forced them to hear the heartbeat too, to follow it.
It was slow and agonizing work, but it worked. And he didn't die.
Reece could hear birds chirping outside their third floor window, but Wax didn't say anything as he helped Reece to bed, practically carrying him. He sat on the bed with Reece and played with Reece's fingers for a little while, putting something cold on them and then wrapping some fabric around them securely. Being unable to move his fingers freaked Reece out at first, but literally feeling Wax there calmed him down some. He could no longer hear his partner's heartbeat, but when he closed his eyes he knew that Wax was there. He wouldn't let anything get to Reece, or let anything else happen to him.
"You know we have to see the body again." Reece stared at the wall. He didn't know what the hell to do anymore; he was all so out of control. Everything was. Maybe he would hand what control he didn't have over to Wax for a little while. "It'll help things. Plus it's our job. And I don't think I can do it without you, wise guy," Wax cracked a grin, but it lacked the usual enthusiasm.
Reece nodded. Wax was right, it was inevitable. Besides, he was already infected, so it didn't matter much if he went back. He could feel the sickness curling up inside him, just because it was lying dormant didn't mean it wasn't there.
He let Wax strip down to his boxers and wrap himself around him. He let Wax's fingers knead out the knots in his back, let them run through his hair, massaging his scalp lightly.
He even let Wax's hand reach down underneath his boxers, let his hand wrap around Reece's cock and stroke him back to life. Wax took his time, seeming to enjoy it, breathing sharply into Reece's ear and the sound - just hearing something - was beautiful. It didn't take long; Reece had needed some type of release for days. When he came he breathed out loudly, total peace overtaking him for a few minutes, just a blip in time really. Reece's body melted into pleasure and then down into blissful numbness, and then he pushed himself back against Wax. He fit perfectly there, fit so well he didn't have to think much about anything. Reece was too tired to return the favor, but Wax's arm fell across his chest, restraining Reece's arms from moving anyway.
Reece let Wax snore against his back too.
~You tell me what you want from me
But you never ask me what I need
Just let me go, just set me free
And turn these nightmares into dreams~
The extra week of research seemed to have paid off.
Reece woke up to find Wax had undressed him completely sometime in the night. He thought at first that Wax had done something, put himself inside Reece after the blow job, mind reverting back to Wax's start of a hard-on just before Reece had a total freak out, a panic attack, Wax had called it. As if Wax had any experience with it. There was nothing hidden behind Wax's eyes though, and Reece felt sick for even thinking that his partner had violated him like that. Charlie Wax was a lot of things, but Reece knew without a doubt that he would never do anything without his consent, or hurt him.
"You feelin' up to going to the morgue? I know they're depressing places, but there's been another body. Last night."
Reece felt the pit in his stomach grow deeper, even though there was some sickness filling in those empty spaces now. Wax's hand landed on his shoulder as Reece struggled to pull up his jeans. He notched the belt which Wax had let him borrow with shaking fingers. His jeans were a bit too loose on him now, confirming the weight loss. Reece tried not to think about it. He had a job to do.
"Going off half-cocked last night wouldn't have helped anything," Wax told him firmly, leaving absolutely no wiggle room for protest or even discussion. "Besides, came across a new lead while you were down for the count."
He turned the laptop screen toward Reece and Reece read the page out loud.
"Yokai, otherwise known as mononoke, are a class of monsters or spirits that appear in Japanese folklore. There are two common type of spider yokai: Tsuchigumo and Jorōgumo. Tsuchigumo are warrior-like spiders who emit strings from their mouths and devour their prey. Jorōgumo are spiders that seduce their prey, for they are able to change into women and weave webs around their unsuspecting prey.
"Put two and two together," Wax explained to Reece's raised eyebrows. "Figured most monsters don't breed. It's not that they don't want to, just that they don't got the capability to. Otherwise this world would have went to hell in a hand-basket already. That got me thinking about animals that give birth to a multitude of offspring at once, not just a few, and animals that can breed pretty much anywhere. Animals that can breed inside human beings, or so the myths go. So, spiders and ants among the few."
Who knew it? Wax was a genius.
"While a huge maggot monster would be tempting, I think we shouldn't focus too heavily on that. Maggots could be drawn to decaying residual substances left in the body after these spider monsters lay eggs in their victims. And even though maggots are drawn to rotting bodies," Reece blinked the girl out of his head, "autopsy report shows that they were already in the victim before she died. The eggs died in the girl's body before she died."
"Attracting flies. Breeding the maggots."
Wax nodded, pointing at the vague picture of the Jorōgumo. "There's spider monsters in every country's folklore, but there's a source that claims these things breed inside their prey. They're often shown as pregnant, and usually drawn to pregnant women."
"So it wasn't just the eggs inside her that made her bloated. She was actually pregnant." Reece and Wax were supposed to have done the autopsy, but Wax must have pulled more strings. Wax handed him the folder that contained the autopsy report and Reece looked it over, swallowing hard at the familiar images but managing to keep breakfast down.
"Maggots don't have teeth either," Reece remembered, despite the certainty of teeth on his skin. He closed his eyes, fingering the pages, feeling the sharp nips at his skin. "I felt teeth."
"No, but they do have mouth hooks. Whatever you felt though, it could have been a memory of the victim. Your mother was a psychic, right?" Reece stared up at him in complete disbelief. "Read your file," Wax said. Reece's mother had died a few years after he had been born, leaving his absent father to raise him, only to be passed over to his aunt. Reece had always suspected the agency might have hired him for what he might have inherited from both of his parents. He had never known for sure whether his mother had been a psychic, but Reece couldn't deny that sometimes he saw things during cases.
One reason why he never touched bodies. Other than the almost surety of transmission.
He didn't want that gift, if he had it. But if the teeth hadn't been real, which he still wasn't sure about, then they had to have been a vision. A memory that wasn't his but could be mistaken to be through mere touch.
"What else do you know about me that I don't want you to know?"
Wax turned the laptop screen away from Reece. "Don't worry, Reece baby. I ain't gonna use any of it against ya." That wasn't what concerned Reece though; it was irritating to know that Wax knew this much about him. He hadn't willingly brought Wax into his life, Wax had been thrown into his life. While Reece may have appreciated Wax's experience from time to time, it didn't mean Reece didn't want his old partner back. "I also ain't gonna let this thing target anymore girls. We know what we're dealing with now, so we're gonna get it right." Reece nodded, but it was a far stretch to convince himself. Every time he thought about this case, the dread in his stomach was like a living thing, it morphed his belly until it was molten and caved easily under his touch. Shivers coursed through him as if intent to bring him down to his knees, and he didn't want his partner to carry him where he needed to be. Wax sauntered forward and looped his fingers into his belt, which was now securely wrapped around Reece's waist. He pulled Reece closer, hand dipping beneath Reece's jeans. Not that there was much wiggle room, but Reece started to breathe harder. "You enjoy last night?"
"Yeah," Reece breathed out. "Maybe I can return the favor tonight?"
The offer fell on deaf ears. Wax's lustful eyes bore into him like he wanted to tear Reece apart in that moment; more than anything Reece wanted him to. "I can make you feel a whole hell of a lot better than that."
He knew. Wax didn't play around. Well, sometimes he did. But when Wax wanted to be serious he was, and no one should make the mistake of underestimating him. "Thought you didn't…," Reece huffed and stopped. Showing vulnerability in front of Wax was never his intention, especially in this situation. He never suspected Wax wanted him for anything more than a quick fuck, and then his partner would move on as if nothing had happened at all. But if Reece was hearing this right and not dreaming it, then Wax had not only given him a blow job last night, one hell of a blow job that had managed to put Reece into a deep, dreamless sleep, one which Wax had seemed to enjoy, but he wanted to fuck Reece too. And not just a spur of the moment fuck.
What the hell?
Wax's sly grin pervaded every bit of Reece's reality. "Thought I didn't what? Think you're damn sexy? Wanna make sweet love to you in a warm bed, with you screaming my name?" The words were whispered in Reece's ear and suddenly a whole new type of shiver was surging through his veins. "You know my track record with partners, no doubt. How come I haven't traded you out yet?"
Reece swallowed heavily but the saliva only accumulated again. His head was heavy, foggy and hot, and there was heat creeping across his cheeks, but it had nothing to do with the sickness. He didn't even know how the fuck the thing was transmitted, at least skin-to-skin contact, and he could have infected Wax, but Wax seemed normal. Seemed just fine. Maybe it was just Reece. Maybe it was always him.
"Maybe you're just waiting for the right moment." Even as Reece said it, he knew it wasn't true. Wax had never kept a partner for over a month, and he had gone through dozens before Reece. He had to have known, considering that he was freaked out about how well he and Wax seemed to solve cases together. Sure, they didn't always click on everything, but enough of the time they did. Wax could be a dick and Reece admitted he was sometimes hard to handle too, but Wax seemed to handle Reece with ease and grace, and Reece could pride himself on the same.
"Reece Reece Reece." Wax shook his head and grabbed the denim at Reece's crotch, scrunching the material. He pulled his hand away just as quickly, smoothing out the creases in his leather jacket. "You gotta learn to have a little faith, man. I haven't sent you running for the hills yet 'cause I like you. If you decide you don't want what I'm offering, then it doesn't mean I'll like you any less. So just chill, buddy, okay? I figured we could try a few things. Just for starters." Like Reece was a meal. Like Reece thought that was the worst thing in the world at this point.
Then Reece realized the glaringly obvious. "So you're gay? Even though you're always with chicks."
"Huh, don't ever think I've heard you call women that before. Guess I am rubbing off on you, 'bout time too. And no, I ain't gay. Just gay for you."
It was like a punch to Reece's gut, just without the pain and all. "Really?"
"No, but I definitely got you there for a minute," Wax chuckled. Reece rolled his eyes and shook his head; it was too easy to fall for Wax's antics. "Don't worry, Reese cup. You're still special." Reece didn't know how to take that information, but he definitely knew he didn't like the nickname. Still, telling Wax not to use it would only create the opposite effect. "So, you ready to kill this motherfucking spider creature already?"
Reece ran a hand through his hair while he paced. He'd never handled any cases involving attempted breeding before and to be honest, it was just too surreal and not to mention way above his pay grade.
"So this thing's trying to breed more of itself in humans, but so far it's been unsuccessful."
"Haven't got the autopsy report on the second victim yet, to my knowledge no one's even peeked inside the body." Reece grimaced at his choice of words, but flipped through the autopsy report again while Wax drove. He didn't want to question why Wax thought he wasn't capable of driving yet, but he was grateful that he didn't have to put that much concentration into something. Even with the case itself, there was only so much he could consider and throw back and forth in his head before his brain was fried and he was forced to lay his head back against the seat. Reece tuned back into Wax, "…not much we can say as far as that's concerned."
Reece had to admit, he felt pretty good getting back on the case, clearing his head a little and getting out of their stuffy room. He still felt an incredible amount of nausea, still felt hot and achy one minute and freezing his ass off the next, but Wax led with certainty and Reece followed and tried not to think past the present moment if he didn't want to spew everywhere.
When Wax pulled the car into park, it all hit Reece full force again. The last time it hadn't been the body that set him off, but what was inside the poor girl. He couldn't even begin to imagine what she had gone through, except he did. He experienced it one way or another. Reece felt the dozens of maggots crawling across his skin, finding a entry point in his belly and devouring his insides. He could feel them still, buried underneath his skin, tiny bodies shifting as they devoured more flesh.
Wax's huge hand settled on his own. "Come on, body'll give you closure. I got your six."
Reece breathed out steadily and nodded. Wax could be a major asshole sometimes, but he did have a way with words.
The two victims were already pulled out for them when they entered the morgue. Surprisingly, Wax went over to the original victim, whom Reece tried not to stare at too closely. Wax hadn't been able to study her cause of death before Reece had interrupted him, yet Reece had figured all attention would now be placed on the second victim.
Reece walked over to the second victim: a girl much like the other. Dark hair, skin like porcelain, heavily bloated body that was actually pregnancy. A dark angel. She looked almost identical to the first victim except that she was smaller, her hips weren't stretched so wide by her killer. There was no expression in her eyes either, and that blank stare unnerved Reece.
The scalpel was in his hand before he could register what he was doing. He had to do this for himself, had to find this thing before it killed again. The incision was a small one on her lower stomach, one he was able to widen easily. The body had been refrigerated long enough to slow the decaying process, but she hadn't been dead long enough for her blood to fully coagulate. Some seeped out around the skin, coating the scalpel, but Reece pulled back the skin far enough with the tool to see what they were dealing with. There were no maggots anymore, they most likely had been removed before transferring her here. That's when he noticed: the half dozen eggs laying underneath her skin.
Wax was at his shoulder then, handing him a pair of latex gloves. "Let's get to work."
Reece took them, pulled them on and bent back over the victim.
They were at it for a good hour or two. It was easy to lose track of time when they were so concentrated on the task at hand. Reece was still busy cataloging the eggs when Wax snapped his gloves off and threw them in the trashcan, causing Reece to look up. "Definitely pregnant. Something caused the eggs to die, I just can't figure it the fuck out."
Reece motioned toward the girl beneath him. "She was pregnant too. The eggs look like they died inside her pretty early. Definitely before she died. Maybe the Jorōgumo has to find the right victim in order to keep her offspring alive. So far, she hasn't had any luck."
"You know, some of the folklore says that those things are only males. That's why they disguise themselves as pregnant woman, in order to make men vulnerable. We may be dealing with something completely different here."
"But you said that some accounts say that they are female," Reece said, wanting to give Wax the benefit of the doubt. He trusted him and not only because it was both their lives on the line, in addition to all the other people in Paris. "Honestly, I've never cared about the gender when it comes to these things. But those eggs mean she must be female and trying to breed. Which is why we need to stop her. More of those things out there… it makes me sick just thinking about it."
"I know, mon amour, that's why it's time to hunt." Wax pulled Mrs. Jones - his beloved gun - out of his back pocket and loaded it.
"What the fuck, Wax!" Reece hastily zipped back up the victim and pushed her back inside, then did the same with the first victim, slipping his gloves off afterward. "You're really bringing that thing out here, right now?"
Wax clicked the safety on and stroked the barrel. "Now don't go hurtin' her feelings. She's saved your ass a time or two."
"Yeah well, mine's still in the car, so let's go." Wax grinned and followed him, and not once did Reece question whether he was ready for any of this.
Wax was driving again.
It felt normal being out, just the kind of normal that Reece needed, but he couldn't ignore the pull to go back to the room. There, Reece could lay in bed and try to forget. But he couldn't sign this over to Wax. First of all, Wax would never let him, he'd literally kick his ass out of bed right after he yanked opened the drapes. Second, Reece was too invested in this now to let go. Sooner or later he would have to face it, and preferably when there were only two victims so far. That they knew of.
"So how are we supposed to find her?" Reece still wanted to bite his tongue at giving the thing a gender, but laying eggs clearly meant female and for some cases, gender was an important issue. It wouldn't be so bad if there were just one of these things, but she had already laid eggs in two victims that they knew of and with the third girl she might just be successful. There had been five eggs in the first victim and eight in the second, so clearly she was gaining strength, which most likely meant she was learning too, as if the her first two victims were experiments. It wouldn't take long for her to find her perfect victim and that's what he and Wax had to prevent.
Still, they had no idea how to kill this thing. No idea even where it was so they could then proceed to kill it. Wax was a big fan of trial and error. Put enough bullets in something, he figured, and it would either slow it down or put it where the sun don't shine. Reece was never eager to throw himself into the line of fire without knowing how to kill what he was hunting.
"First body was found in a chemical warehouse. Second in an alley. Pavement was soaked in the alleyway, apparently it rained pretty hard last night in that part of town. This yo yo thing seems to like dark and moist places. Probably perfect conditions for breeding, huh?" Typical, even though Wax had done the research for this case, which wasn't rare but wasn't exactly common either, he still couldn't remember the name of the thing he found. Then again, maybe it was his distancing technique. Reece had to admit, despite that this was the first time he had stepped aside and let his partner take on the research, Wax had done a pretty good job for someone Reece thought didn't have the attention span or tech know how to accomplish thorough research.
Reece could feel a headache coming on. "Except that doesn't really help any. There's plenty of dark and damp places. Near rivers, hell, even in bathtubs in dark bathrooms. Not to mention there's probably a couple dozen chemical factories in the city alone, not to mention the few on the outskirts."
Wax tsked. "Oh, sugar. I really wish you wouldn't worry so much."
Reece sighed. "And I wish you would stop adding to your obnoxious list of nicknames."
Wax laughed, though Reece sat up in his seat when he realized Wax was taking an exit which would lead them outside of the city. Reece had seemed to nailed it with the outskirts. "Little birdy gave me an idea." Reece stared at him. "Okay. Old friend. Said he's hunted something similar to this, few years back. Anyway, he told me the city water may be what's affecting this thing."
"So another city?"
"No. Whatever this thing has against Paris, it's gonna get a bullet in the ass for it, a bullet with my name on it." Reece rolled his eyes. Leave it to get Wax to get protective over a city he hadn't even been born in. "But it's gonna stay as close to the city as it can get, fresher meat that way. It ain't got no reason to leave. I'm talking about rural areas."
Something snapped into place. "They don't use city water."
Wax nodded. "It seems this thing needs a certain type of water to breed in. Even if the water doesn't vary much, it might just vary enough. Luckily, I got just the place to go looking for this thing. There's a mine a few clicks away from here. There's a river nearby to boot. It's toxic, sure, but I doubt something this filthy minds."
"You're a genius, Wax."
"That's what I keep telling ya, baby."
If Wax told him beforehand that they were going to split up then Reece would have told him fuck no. Not on this case. Not when Reece was holding it together by a fraying thread of sanity and consciousness. He was usually perfectly fine with splitting up on cases, even after his partner had been captured because they had split up. Going separate ways was often unavoidable, even necessary. If they were in a rush to find what they were hunting before it claimed another victim, if they had too much ground to cover in one night. But Wax… Wax fucking knew how this job had already messed up his head. It was a miracle Reece was here with him at all and not curled up in the SUV, trying to not have another panic attack.
"You'll be fine, g-man. If you find the thing, just shoot it until it stops coming at you."
"That's your plan, Wax?" Reece pretty much went ballistic, it was either do that or sink down into the dirt and completely lose what little was left of his mind. "You just want me to trudge off into the woods without any idea how to kill the thing?"
Wax shrugged him off and made like it was no big deal. He always claimed Reece was overreacting on one thing or another, but Reece had a reason to on this case.
"What else are we gonna do? Sit here and wait and see if it comes out?" Reece couldn't argue with that, except he could. They could stay together so one of them didn't get ripped apart, that sounded like a brilliant plan. But no, Wax had to go off and be an asshole about this.
Reece didn't know the size of the Jorōgumo, but if it was a big spider monster as the legends went then he really didn't want to be the one to face it alone. Or Wax for that matter. As much as he kept telling himself that this was typical Wax behavior which - even if stupid - did make sense in the way that they would cover more ground, he couldn't ignore the shivers of the sickness that coursed through him. He was infected, there was nothing else that could explain what had transpired the past week. The temperate fluctuations, the throwing up every few hours, the inability to sleep and the down-slide into vulnerability around Wax. Reece was always weak around Wax; he tended to walk on tiptoes around the guy. This was different. Wax knew that this was different.
He couldn't take Wax sending him mixed signals. One moment he was wrapping himself around Reece and giving him the best damn blow job of his life, and the next he was shoving Reece out on his own. Like Reece needed to face the thing they were hunting head-on, without backup at his - oh, let's just say - actual back.
Reece was infected… and Wax had been touching him, and not just a pat on the shoulder either. Wax was sending him out because Reece was the best chance at stopping this thing. They both knew it. If Reece was already infected then it didn't matter. Maybe the blow job was just a send off. See ya later, pardner.
But Reece could do this. He hadn't been alone since his partner had… he swallowed thickly. He had to prove himself. Wax had given him every chance to get his shit together, so he would.
Unfortunately, once he came back to the real world again, Wax had already turned his back and was walking away.
"Wax!"
Reece stuck the end of the flashlight in his mouth and loaded his gun, triple checking the ammo he had before satisfyingly putting the gun aside. The gloves were next because he really didn't want to touch this thing unless he had to. He snapped them on, checking every fingertip thoroughly, all while keeping a close eye on his surroundings in case this thing should come right out of the dark.
A cold wave washed over him then and he sunk back against the nearest tree, hugging his arms to his chest and concentrating solely on breathing in and out. He had half a mind to follow Wax, even though he probably wouldn't find him, but he didn't want to let his partner down. The flash of cold that formed goosebumps all over his skin could have been due to fear, but Reece knew it was more than that. Even during the ride out to the mine, Reece wasn't stupid enough not to survey every inch of his body and what he felt. Just because he was well enough to be out of bed and out of their room didn't mean that whatever was in him had just up and disappeared.
That morning was a sharp slice in Reece's mind, doing nothing to abate another panic attack, but somehow Reece held it together. He had had to hold it together in situations like this before, even though he had never been this compromised. Wax either didn't know just how fucked Reece was, or he didn't much care and just wanted to get this case done.
Reece didn't blame him, he wanted to get this case done too, and maybe if he killed the thing then all of this would go away. Maybe he could actually fuck Wax without having to worry about something inside him eating him from the inside out. Maybe then he wouldn't have to chalk any feelings or weaknesses up to one of their jobs.
It nagged at him too, the fact that Wax could want him like this. He was a mess. He'd been doing this for years yet he was a freaking amateur compared to the guy. Wax was like a god in his profession: he could pull any strings, get anything he wanted done even if it was technically illegal. Hell, even Reece looked up to him. Having a partner who wasn't his age wasn't just a nice change, it was a godsend. He could sit back and let Wax take the reigns sometimes, which he had to do anyway simply because Wax demanded it. Reece could trust Wax to have his back too; after a year he was still with the guy. Not that he couldn't trust his other partner, just that… after what happened… god, Reece ran a hand over his face. He had needed something to give.
Except Wax was more infuriating than helpful, a dick when Reece needed a time-out and some fucking perspective. He didn't make things better, he made things worse. As bad as they could get before there was some type of light at the end of the damn tunnel.
If Wax was playing him, Reece didn't have much time to figure it out. In fact, he didn't have any time at all.
Reece put one hand lightly on his queasy stomach. His other hand held his gun, sweaty finger trembling slightly on the trigger. He was feeling eight shades of worse now. Maybe it was the proximity to this thing, but it wasn't helping any.
"I'm gonna kill you for this, Wax. Mark my words. I am going to freaking…."
Something wrapped around his leg and the ground went out from under him, ripping the breath right out of his lungs. His surroundings were a whirlwind until he could no longer tell up from down, the ground from the sky. Reece could blame the darkness, making the night sky look like dirt and leaves and vice versa, but his belly was roiling now, head feeling like something was pressing down on it, trying to make his head burst, so he didn't much care. This was worse than blocked sinuses or a migraine, this was the whole world crushing in on him all than once, intent to tear him asunder.
"Look at this," something hissed against his ear. Reece cried out as a sharp pop resounded in his ear. Was he losing his hearing now too? "A midnight snack," the Jorōgumo continued. Reece didn't want to open his eyes but he did anyway, despite his better judgment. Six beady black eyes stared back at him, fangs clicking just near his ear. He could still hear, but the pain that came with it was unbearable. Come to think of it, his whole body was a mess of pain and cold and severe disorientation. Reece could barely keep up with what was going on, let alone think up a way to get the hell out of this mess. "You're coming with me, juicy one."
Whatever was wrapped around his leg tightened, but Reece no longer had the breath to scream. He scanned his surroundings frantically before the thing could move again, trying to find where he had lost his gun, trying to do something constructive rather than just hang there, trying and failing to think up another idea. He could feel the Jorōgumo shifting and every instinct in him panicked, red flashing lights blinding him. Reece had to get the upper ground somehow, he couldn't just hang there in its grasp and wait for god knew what to happen.
His hands moved of their own accord, skimming quickly over the ground until he came in contact with something thin and wooden. Reece didn't think, he wrapped his throbbing hand around the stick, holding it tighter than he had ever held anything in his life before, and swung.
The spider - if that's what the hell it was, which it probably was judging by the eyes - emitted a loud screech and dropped him. Reece's fingers barely brushed the dirt before he was swung back up again, up into the trees, up into the sky which seemed to have no moon and no stars. They were moving again, it hadn't bought him enough time, it hadn't….
"Hey, filth fuck!"
Reece craned his sore neck, unable to believe his ears. Shitty insult but still, the situation warranted that a little. Wax had probably heard the thing screech and come running. Reece still couldn't believe it though.
"Another tasty morsel. This one has more fat on him too."
"You get off on talking to yourself? Cause I gotta tell ya, your voice ain't exactly pleasing to my dainty ears."
"Enough!" Reece wished the whole world would just shut up already; his ears screamed in protest at the Jorōgumo's screeching. "We will eat you with or without your insults. And we will breed this one. He's already ripe for the taking." Reece swallowed, wishing more than anything that he could catch Wax's eyes in the darkness. Just one look, that's all he needed, his own form of courage, but he didn't fucking get it. A surge of anger rose up in him and he lashed out, blunt fingernails clawing at the Jorōgumo, at one of its furry legs, at its torso, at anything he could reach. He regretted now always biting down his fingernails so low, but the Jorōgumo still got annoyed since he had to dig in deeper.
"You okay up there, man?"
Reece snorted, but the last half of it was wet. One of the thing's legs had smashed against his nose and the liquid streaming down his chin had to be blood. "I'd be better if you'd hurry the fuck up already."
"Alright alright. Don't get your panties in a knot. You know how hard it is to untie them when they're like that."
Really? They had to do this now? "Yeah? You asked." Reece pressed a hand to his face, trying to stem the constant flow of blood. He could feel a sharp stinging in his leg too but he ignored it; there was only so much he could take right now. He cursed at the shredded gloves on his hands, but it was more about the fact that he had been foolish enough in the first place to put them on. Fat lot of good they did him. Reece wasn't dealing with the victims anymore, he was dealing with the Jorōgumo itself.
Once more Reece thought about what his dead partner must have felt like, to look into the eyes of a beast and realize that there was no way out, that it would taunt you and torture you until you were nothing left but a shell, nothing left but a body.
"Wax," he choked out, but it was a whisper. He spat out a mouthful of blood. Reece had always known that he would be put in his late partner's position; it was bound to happen sooner rather than later. He was already infected. It didn't matter that Wax had come just in time. Reece choked on his laugh… ha, just in time to watch him breed. The Jorōgumo had admitted it, said Reece was ripe, ripe for breeding.
He was already infected.
Reece sucked up every emotion he could grasp at, shoved them together into a massive lump, prevented it from trudging up his throat and put it down someplace deep and dark. "Don't worry about me, Wax! Just put it down before it hurts anyone else! It's too late for me, anyway," he added quietly, an afterthought, not wanting Wax to hear it but hoping he would anyway.
"What the hell ya getting on about up there? Don't check out on me yet, Reece. You're gonna miss that tantalizing smell of barbecue when I fry this motherfucking spider monkey."
They were moving again, but this time Reece was being lowered down, the brief glimpse of the dirt beneath him a miracle. What would the ground feel like under his feet again? Would he even be able to stand on his own two feet again? One of the Jorōgumo's legs that was holding Reece's own leg shifted and Reece bit back a whimper. It could be broken, but it felt much worse than that, crushed, like he would never move it again.
The spider didn't drop him but held him close. Reece could feel the thing's hairy leg brush against his belly, could feel something stirring underneath, coming to life. "Soon now," it hissed. Reece opened his mouth and vomit rushed out, hopefully not hitting Wax but he couldn't much care at the moment.
"Reece!"
He opened his mouth again, coughing this time, spluttering, trying to get in enough air. "Sorry," he croaked out, but the voice hadn't sounded outraged.
"Hold on, man! I'm coming up to get you." Reece didn't doubt that, but he hardly thought Wax would make it up to him in time. Wax wasn't exactly fit enough to be climbing trees, let alone swinging from branch to branch to get to Reece. Then again, Wax proved himself pretty fit when he wanted to be.
Reece felt pretty useless just hanging there so he scratched and bit where he could, trying to keep the Jorōgumo's legs away from his stomach, which they were currently caressing for reasons Reece didn't want to think about. It retaliated, its many legs tightening around his own arms and legs, but that didn't make Reece stop. He wouldn't go down without a fight, wouldn't let this thing breed him willingly.
Jesus, would Wax hurry it up already?
As if answering his prayer, there was the sound of something swiping through the air. The jagged cry in his ear had his hands flying up to his ears as soon as they were free, biting his lip to prevent from crying out. Another shrill sound and Reece was falling. He reached out for something to grab onto or at least something to defend himself with, but he tumbled face first onto the hard but blessed ground, the rest of his body slamming down with his head. Despite that his face - which meant his nose - took the brunt of the impact, he had never been so happy to feel dirt coating his face and plugging up his mouth in all his life. Reece recovered himself relatively quickly and glanced up, cursing when he couldn't make out a damn thing in the darkness.
Reece's fingers stretched and tore through the leaves and dirt for his gun. It was luck that he found it, luckier even that the moon chose that exact moment to pull out from behind a grouping of trees, shedding light on the struggle going on up in the trees. His partner had managed to cut off a few of the Jorōgumo's legs, but its fangs were snapping dangerously close to Wax's neck. Without first checking his aim, feeling time was of the essence, Reece fired. As soon as the bullet hit its mark he fired again and again and again. The thing went down reluctantly, but it still went down, tumbling to the ground below several feet away from Reece.
He caught Wax's gaze briefly before turning away. Reece coughed into his hand, walking toward the prone Jorōgumo. Wax beat him to it, jumping to the ground and emptying a clip into the spider's head, another in its multitude of unmoving eyes and a third in its torso. Reece recoiled as a gush of liquid spurted out from its torso, yet didn't step back. He pressed a hand to his own stomach, fingers bunching the thin linen of his shirt, breathing in through his nose and out through his mouth. He could still feel it inside him, fighting for its way out. Whatever it was.
This wasn't the first time the fact crossed his mind that a man couldn't get pregnant, it just wasn't possible. It didn't change the way Reece felt though, like he was giving his body to something else. Like he was no longer in control. Maybe the girls hadn't been fit enough to breed because they had been that… girls. He was a guy. Maybe for some fucked up, twisted reason, Reece was the prime breeder for this reason, for gender alone. They had killed it but they hadn't killed its legacy.
Not yet.
Wax reloaded his gun despite that the thing was dead. Despite that they could just go back to their room now and go back to their little lives. Except they couldn't. Even if what had happened hadn't, Reece wouldn't be able to pick up and dispose of his baggage so easily. This job hit too close to home. This job was a physical part of Reece now. Wax still seemed not to give a fuck about that morning.
His partner stretched and smoothed out his leather jacket, turning toward Reece. It was clear Wax was in a good mood; he always was after a case. Another five minutes and the job would be behind him; Reece inevitably would be too. "Well, that worked out better than expected. Thank the lucky fucking stars you kept it entertained 'till I got here."
Something cracked inside Reece then. He wondered why Wax had seemed so eager to part ways; who knew how far back that plan went. "You used me as bait!" Reece swore, fists clenching, ready to sucker punch Wax. It was the least Wax deserved. "I should have fucking known." Reece stumbled back the way he came - at least, he thought so, he couldn't much be blamed considering how much he had been slung around - and turned away. He couldn't look at Wax right now, not when there was this anger eating away at him. It wasn't just anger either, it was fury enough to burn down everything around him. He felt so sick to his stomach and he was fucking sick of it, and all Wax wanted to do was act like everything was fine, like this was all just a game.
It was time Reece expressed it. He whirled back around, surprised to see Wax flick his lighter absentmindedly, not so much as looking at Reece. "Is this all some big game to you, huh? Am I just someone you can use to get the job done? Does it even matter if one of these jobs you get there too late, that I don't make it out alive? But of course it wouldn't! You're just here temporarily, until you can sell me off for someone better. You're just here for a quick fuck. I'm sorry you were starting to grow on me, I'm sorry I was that stupid."
Wax jammed the lighter back in his jacket pocket, but what Reece didn't expect was Wax moving toward him, the hand that curled around his neck. It startled Reece, so did Wax's hard gaze. Despite the stare, Wax wasn't pissed off. He looked upset, furious, but yet not at Reece. It was a fury he was holding back at all costs. The hand was warm, but all Reece could think about was how much of a mess he looked like: dried blood coating his face and neck, favoring his right leg. His leg hurt like a son of a bitch and Reece knew it would crumple under him eventually, but he'd be damned if he let Wax know about it. No more.
Wax's hand pressed harder against his skin, fingernails grazing Reece's neck. "You think I was gonna use you if I wasn't a hundred percent sure I could keep you safe?" Reece didn't look at him. His head was spinning and there were so many unsaid words between him and Wax still, but that didn't mean Reece wanted to share them. Reece looked up at his partner on a whim then. There was something painful in Wax's eyes that he didn't want to see. Nonetheless, the raw emotion that he had never seen before in his partner made it impossible to look away. Wax's other hand came up, holding the other side of Reece's neck, successfully trapping him. "You honestly think I'm gonna lose you, just like that? Just to finish a goddamn job?"
"Wax…," Reece started, but Wax wasn't done yet.
"How many times do I have to show you, Reece?"
"Yeah well, you suck at words," Reece bit back. Wax's hands loosened until they were merely cupping the side of Reece's neck. Reece shrank back and stepped out from his hold, crossing his arms, which made him realize all the more how uncomfortable he was. He and Wax didn't have conversations like this. He and Wax didn't have conversations period. Wax's hands on him never meant a damn thing, even if those hands were gentle and careful.
Wax stared him down but Reece wouldn't break under his gaze. If Wax thought he could break him then fine, but he would be in for a rude awakening. "Well fuck me, you're even more delusional than I thought. How 'bout I spell it out for you, huh? How 'bout I scream it to the whole fuckin' world?"
"Why don't you?" Reece challenged, pacing but stopping when his leg protested. "How much you want us. How much you want me to want us." It was a lie and it would be easier if Wax would just admit it now, but Wax never did things the easy way. Reece hated that about him. Reece hated how harsh and confident Wax could be, sure that Reece was a thousand times stronger than he was.
"Hell," Wax's high-pitched voice cracked. "I already know how much you want us. I want you to know how much I want us. How scared to fucking death you made me these last few days. How I can hardly think straight when I think about losing you, waking up and you're not in the bed or on the floor, you're not goddamn anywhere. You're like a sickness in me, Reece."
Reece's fingernails drove into the bark of the tree behind him. "Join the club," he spit out, tears forming in his eyes. Reece wrapped his hands around his belly, trying to hold whatever was in him at bay. Wax never looked away from his face, he at least gave Reece that.
Wax cleared his throat but his voice still cracked. "Let me finish." Wax swallowed, wringing his hands at his sides. "How I can't even think about losing you like you lost your partner."
And he just had to bring up that. Like Reece hasn't lived through it enough, like he hasn't thought enough about it today alone. "Cause I'm weak."
"You're not fucking weak!" Reece flinched at Wax's voice. His hands rubbed at his face, trying to get the dried blood off because he could feel it there. He wanted to tear his stomach open too, get it all out of him, but his hands were shaking and he couldn't even keep a grip on his arms. "You're just more sensitive than me. You see the good in everything and everyone, and that might be what gets you killed. You're so strong, Reece, so fucking strong I don't know how you can't see it. You survived after your partner was literally eaten alive, you put up with my shit even though I knew I wasn't helping any. You find out what you're hunting and then hunt it down and come back rearing and ready for another case. Hell, your vision's what helped me out on this one. You were mumbling shit in your sleep and I paid attention." Reece just stared at him. So Wax thought it was just a vision? Good, let him think that. This all didn't feel like a fucking vision. "God, Reece," Wax just wouldn't quit. "You got a knack for almost giving me heart attacks, you know that?"
"Just like you have a knack for being a dick. And using me as bait."
Wax cracked a grin. "Just 'cause I knew you'd do a good job, g-man. You're the best damn partner anyone could have."
Reece smiled, pinching the bridge of his nose. As if this whole night couldn't get any worse, he could feel another migraine coming on. "You too," he said. "Haven't thanked you for how many times you've saved my ass, so thanks."
He made to leave then; Wax's voice pulled him back. "Hey, hold on! Gotta burn this bitch!" Reece stood in place, back turned, shivering in the cold. It wasn't long before he could feel Wax at his back. He took Reece's arm and slung it over his shoulder, taking about half of Reece's weight. "You okay like this?"
"Fine," Reece said. He was better than fine actually. Wax was making sure he didn't have to put any weight on his bad leg. Admitting to his weakness was slightly less worse than admitting he had it in the first place.
Wax stopped once or twice to shift Reece into a better position. Reece couldn't help it, but he was starting to drift in and out now that there was nothing left to do but get back to the hotel. His leg hurt and his arms hurt and his head and stomach hurt and even his damn eyelids hurt. Wax jostled him every so often to keep his eyes open, but Reece just kept on closing them. "Not too far now," Wax grunted in his ear. Reece knew Wax was taking more and more of his weight as each second passed; he couldn't find the energy to mind. "Jesus, cowboy, you weigh next to nothing, you know that?" Reece smiled. He knew he had lost weight recently, but not a considerable amount. Besides, Wax was still too old to be hauling his ass around.
Soon Reece could collapse in a bed and dream this whole nightmare away. Except it wasn't over… not by a long shot.
Wax settled Reece in the SUV and fastened Reece's seatbelt, taking an extra minute to loosen it around his belly before shutting the door and once again relegating himself as driver. Reece wasn't sure if Wax did it on purpose to keep him awake, which Reece was stubbornly refusing him on, but Wax kept hitting potholes and Reece didn't know how much more of the jostling of his stomach he could take. He moaned after about the third or fourth pothole and Wax's fingers found his waist, brushing against the clothed skin before sliding his hand in between the seatbelt and Reece's waist, trying to take some of the pressure off. Reece slurred something about watching the road, then the nausea slammed into him. He had the good sense enough to push himself forward and puke on the carpet.
When he sat back the seatbelt was pushing against his sore stomach again, doing nothing but increasing the agony. He whimpered and Wax gripped his shoulder before putting the car into park. It was a struggle to get out of the car. To keep things inconspicuous Reece had to stay on his own two feet while crossing the lobby, but as soon as they were in the elevator Wax swept Reece up into his arms, like he was his bride. Reece nearly choked on the thought.
The movement as Wax walked to their room made Reece's head feel like it was going to explode, but Wax was quick to get him to bed. Reece was awake long enough for Wax to strip him of his jeans, but after that he decided he had better check out.
So he blacked out, Wax's name on his lips.
Reece woke up, mouth dry and belly burning and head like a blender, every thought swirling around just to crash into another, the cycle starting all over again. He glanced around the room. He was in bed, stripped of his jeans and shirt. His leg was throbbing to the beat of his heart, but it was dull and in the background. It was whatever was pulsing inside him that held his attention.
Wax's hand found his in the darkness. "You gonna toss your cookies again? Tough guy?"
Reece shivered, fingers toying with the sheet. Even the thin sheet against his stomach irritated the skin.
"This what you're so concerned about?" Wax asked, one hand deftly lifting up the sheet before Reece could do anything about it. A warm palm rested on his belly, incredible heat soaking through his skin. Gentle, firm fingers palpitated the area.
It was always skin-to-skin contact, that's where things went wrong. It wouldn't matter that the Jorōgumo touched him. It was coming into contact with the thing's sperm, which the victims had. It had soaked through their very skin, caused it to glisten under the harsh fluorescent lights. One touch, that was all it took. Too many men in their line of work had died from not wearing gloves.
"Not supposed to touch the skin," Reece murmured. He felt feverish and sweaty even though he was naked under the lone sheet. He felt bloated too, sick, stomach hot to the touch. Reece gasped when Wax's fingers pressed down on his belly, a sharp chill coursing through him as Wax palpitated the skin. "Wax," he moaned, he couldn't help it. He was shaking now, visibly fucking shaking and Wax was hovering over him, hands on his skin, not supposed to touch the skin, cut in my glove, I touched the skin….
Apparently he said this out loud because Wax was in his face after that. "How many times did you check your gloves, James? How many fucking times?"
"Four," Reece responded with conviction. Four was routine. Once was obvious, two could be an illusion, three was never the charm. Four was certainty. Four couldn't be disputed with.
"Five," Wax corrected, stroking back Reece's hair with the side of his hand. Reece was surprised at how tender Wax could be. He was this big man who could crush you in two, hell, he could just look at you or say something and you would explode or your eardrums would shatter. Wax seemed infinitely soft now, like he had been molded down. Like he actually cared. "I checked them out myself while you were studying the victim. Can't trust you enough to keep your own shoes tied," Wax joked. His hand gave Reece's belly one final pat before retreating, replacing the sheet.
Reece's belly was still sore, tumbling, but it was like the clouds in Reece's mind had cleared. Enough so that he could see Wax so clearly, every wrinkle, the crinkle of his eyes as Reece reached up and put his hand on Wax's cheek. Wax's hand settled over his own, squeezing. "Wax…."
Wax moved in closer, as if making sure that he was the only thing Reece could see. It worked too. "It was just a vision, baby. Thought I lost you there for a second, but I never really doubted it." Reece shifted, trying to press himself closer to Wax. His partner's hands stilled him, but he moved closer until Reece's head rested against his chest. "You're okay." Wax massaged Reece's scalp, slow, small circles. "You just lost it for a while, but you're gonna be okay. It's all gonna be fine, babe."
Reece exhaled, watching Wax as he tucked the sheet around him. "Break."
"Yeah," Wax's head shot up. He didn't look mad or impatient or exasperated just… happy. Relieved. "We need a heck of a long break after this one. I'll put in a good word, get us some time off." Wax always had a way with words. He could get them a vacation if he wanted to; Reece kinda hoped he would too. He could do with a little 'me and Wax' time.
"Stay." One word answers. Reece didn't think he could honestly get out any more.
Wax wrapped his hand around his own, surprised when Reece squeezed. "Right here, Reece. Not going anywhere for a good long while."
"Morning, sunshine." Reece yawned and curled himself tighter around the warm body sharing the bed with him. The space next to him had been cold when he first slid out of sleep, but now there was a large warm body soaking up the heat of the room and making Reece sleepy again. Wax's face was buried against his neck, planting small kisses into Reece's skin. "You up for some pancakes?" Reece groaned. Even concerning pancakes, the prospect of getting out of bed was just to much to bear at the moment. He slung his arm around Wax's waist to prove his point and Wax chuckled. "Gonna have to fatten you up some," Wax murmured. "Round you out around the edges a little, sexy thing." Reece snorted at the nickname, one he actually liked. Heat spread across his cheeks and in response, soft lips kissed his skin before Wax rolled out of bed. "I'll keep 'em warm 'till you're ready, sleepy head."
Reece cracked one eye open, unable to resist a shirtless Wax, strutting to the sound of Tom Jones emanating from the stereo in the kitchen.
Maybe opposites attract after all.
FIN