[Cross-posted from AO3
Rating: NC-17
Warnings for future: Bondage, Breath-play, Gun play, and Knife play.]
Jim sees him for the first time while he's working on building himself a cover story. He doesn't need it yet, but it will do to have in the future. So when he first meets him, he's going by the name Richard Brook and hosting a children's television show as The Storyteller.
He's sitting off to one side, going over his lines for the day when someone coughs to get his attention. Jim looks up and for the very first time in his life, he actually finds himself speechless. The man is tall, well-built, with short, dark hair and he doesn't seem to notice the awkward stare that Jim is giving him as he extends his hand, introducing himself as Sebastian Moran. When Jim shakes his hand, he can see scars under the cuff of his shirt and feel calluses across his palm. His mind immediately starts to analyze. Military. Officer. High rank. Attended university. Ambidextrous. In any other situation, he could have come up with more instantly but this time his train of thought is derailed by the sight of a long thin scar creeping up from the collar of the man's shirt and all he can focus on is how much he'd like to run his tongue over it and find out how it tastes.
He snaps out of it long enough to give Sebastian his [fake] name and to find out that he has been hired as a handyman around the set. Jim points him in the right direction, where the crew leader for set building usually is. He almost offers to take Sebastian there himself but he doesn't understand why he'd even want to do that, so he keeps it to himself.
Sebastian thanks him politely and as he walks away Jim isn't quite able to keep himself from staring after him.
[*]
Jim doesn't approach Sebastian while they're working on the set together. He keeps his distance from the man because he can't figure out why he's reacting this way. He's been attracted to people, men and women alike, before and sex is nothing new to him; it's a great stress reliever and a good distraction when things get too boring but he's never wanted someone like this before. He's automatically suspicious of someone who's gotten under his skin and he may or may not be tailing Sebastian home at night (he is).
Sometime later, the crew of the show is celebrating wrapping an episode and they're insisting on going out to a pub and yes, Richard has to go; he's the star. He doesn't really want to go because they're all so ordinary, so boring but he hears Sebastian accepting and invitation and suddenly it doesn't seem like such a bad idea.
Preferring to keep to himself, he lets the others think he's just a shy, socially awkward young actor while they try to convince him to put down his mobile and have another drink. But he's got an empire to run and he waves them off with a feigned smile and an excuse about a sick aunt who needs checking up on.
He keeps glancing at Sebastian out of the corner of his eye and one of the puppeteers has had too many drinks and she keeps nudging his shoulder, telling him how bad he's got it. He doesn't know what he supposedly has and he tells her that but she just giggles into her vodka and sashays away.
Nothing interesting seems to be happening and Jim is debating the best way to make his escape when a fight breaks out at the bar. He doesn't know what started it, but from his seat, he can see Sebastian tangled up in the middle of it and damn, does he look good throwing a punch.
Jim stays far away at first, watching as the fight progresses. He shifts in his seat and tries to ignore the warmth growing in the pit of his stomach. But he can't ignore it any longer when he sees Sebastian catch a man's punch and, with a quick upward palm strike, break the man's arm at the elbow. There's a brief flash of guilt across Sebastian's face, as if he hadn't really meant to do that and instinct had just won out. Jim barely notices the look because he's too focused on the fact that he's fully hard now and his denims are pressing against him situation isn't helped much when another crew member grabs him by the crook of his arm and drags him into the fray. He doesn't fight; he has people who do that for him, but it doesn't take more than a second to realize he's actually been recruited to try and break the fight up. He manages to catch a hold of one of Sebastian's wrists and very nearly gets a fist to his jaw for his trouble; Sebastian stops himself barely an inch from Jim's face and blinks owlishly at him, as if not sure where he'd come from.
He tightens his grip on Sebastian's wrist and pulls him towards the back, where most of the crew are escaping out the rear door, hoping to avoid the police that are likely on the way.
The whole group is finally out in the back alleyway and everyone is panting for air, several bent over laughing at the ridiculousness of whatever just happened. Sebastian grins sheepishly and scratches back of his head, apologizing for almost cold-cocking him. Jim's mouth moves faster than his brain and he finds himself saying that it's perfectly alright and Sebastian can make it up to him by buying him a drink at the next pub.
Blue police lights start flashing and the entire crew takes off as one, running down the length of the alley, all angling for a new pub to hide in. They end up at some dingy hole in the wall and Sebastian buys Jim as shot of whiskey, as promised. They both drink far more than they should and Jim easily talks his way into Sebastian's bed. (He finds out later from his 'subtle seduction' mostly consisted of shoving his hand down the front of Sebastian's trousers and asking if he wanted to fuck.)
When he wakes up the next morning, naked in a bed he doesn't recognize, he can't actually remember anything from the night before, but the delightful ache in his body and the darkening hand shaped bruise on his neck say it was something that he wouldn't mind doing again.
