Personal Life I
It was a rare Friday night when all the paperwork was done the team wasn't the on-call team for the weekend. Even more rare was that Aaron didn't have to rush out of the office to pick up his son; Jack was at a friend's house for a sleepover before going to an amusement park the next day. All of this added together meant that Aaron and Spencer could finally have a date night without worrying about children or work interfering.
Despite the sudden freedom, neither Aaron nor Spencer really wanted to spend the evening away from home. After what seemed like weeks of non-stop travel, both of them were sick of eating out. Knowing how much he wanted to be back in his own home and relaxing, Aaron decided to take a chance and invite Spencer over for an at home date night. He offered to make dinner for the two of them so they could have a relaxing dinner and movie night without the crowds, driving, or anything along those at the prospect of curling up on a couch with his boyfriend, Spencer agreed almost before Aaron could finish laying out the plans.
The beginning of the evening was spent in peaceful companionship. Spencer, an accomplished cook in his own right, know Aaron was at least a competent cook. He was proven correct when Aaron made a tasty but uncomplicated meal for the two of them. When the meal was finished and they could no longer linger over the table without awkwardness, Spencer volunteered to wash the dishes over Aaron's protests.
"Shoo, you cooked, I'll take care of clean up," Spencer said as he pushed Aaron towards the living room. "I can handle a couple of dishes and you can get the movie started. I don't want to screw up your system settings."
Laughing, Aaron let himself be pushed from the kitchen and towards the entertainment system in the living soon lost himself in thought as he methodically washed the dishes and cookware. He got so lost in his own thoughts that he was shocked when he felt someone behind him, leaning against him. Hands appeared on the counter edge on either side of his body and provided leverage for the man behind him to lean forward. Enjoying the warmth of the body behind him, Spencer allowed himself to lean back into the older man and let the last of the water drain down the sink. Aaron capitalized on Spencer's body pressed flush against him and began placing small kisses along Spencer's neck. The feather light touches sparked small flames of desire in Spencer causing him to arch up into the kisses, his head falling back to expose more of his neck to the gentle touches. His hands, free of the dishes, gripped the counter alongside Aaron as the kisses turned to quick bites and soothing licks along the sore skin. He moaned and pushed back against his partner.
With Spencer now braced against the counter, Aaron allowed his hands to become as busy as his mouth. The kissing and biting along his neck had Spencer fully distracted from what Aaron's hands were now doing. The talented hands were working Spencer's belt with surprising dexterity. Spencer noticed his new state of dress when he felt the warm hands tracing patterns along the top of his boxers. He gasped at the trail of heat that the hands were leaving. Aaron's hands slowly started moving out towards his hips. As the fingertips brushed against Spencer's tattoo, still hidden from view, Spencer found himself involuntarily thrusting and crying out. Not realizing what had caused such a reaction, Aaron pressed more insistently into Spencer's hip right over the tattoo. The reaction was surprising to both of them, Spencer cried out again and pushed back into Aaron. They both carefully noted the somewhat surprising location of this highly erogenous zone.
"Stop teasing," Spencer growled as Aaron's hands kept moving across his hips and abdomen, dipping down below the open waistband of his pants but not going further.
"I'm not the tease here, just feel what you are doing to me." Aaron punctuated his words with several short, sharp thrusts into Spencer's back.
Caught between wanting Aaron to keep doing exactly what he was doing and finding a way to show Aaron what he was doing to him, Spencer stifled a moan and made a quick decision. "Bedroom, now!" Spencer said grabbing Aaron's hand and twirling them both around before pulling him towards the hall leading to the bedrooms. He hadn't given Aaron a chance to protest the relocation but based on the hands continuing to roam his body, Spencer didn't think that Aaron was protesting.
Reaching the bedroom, both men pulled to a stop as the enormity of the situation was starting to settle upon them. Spencer, having stopped directly in front of Aaron was treated to him plastered against his back as they looked towards the bedroom and what it represented for both of them. Sure, they had been exploring each other's bodies as the relationship deepened, but this was very different. All of their previous activity had involved remaining more or less fully clothed for multiple reasons. However, none of those reasons were a factor tonight which meant that clothing was quickly becoming purely optional and neither wanted that option for much longer. No matter what happened this evening, they were taking the next step in their relationship.
"Are you sure you are ready for this?" Aaron whispered, his voice low and rumbling in Spencer's ear.
"Mmm...very ready," Spencer managed to respond. His body was on fire from where he could feel Aaron pressed against him, his body shivering at feeling the warm breath against his ear when Aaron spoke. Spencer was barely holding on to the last of his control. "Are you? I don't want to rush you."
The rolling of Aaron's hips into Spencer was all the answer he received. Sufficiently answered, Spencer stepped closer to the bed and began to remove his shirt and finish the job of removing his pants that Aaron had started in the kitchen. Aaron caught on quickly to what Spencer was doing and followed suit, his shirt and pants quickly finding their own way to the floor to mingle with Spencer's. Standing together, fully naked, the two men took a minute to drink in the sight of each other.
Aaron's sudden laughter split through the lust filled room like a bucket of cold water over Spencer. He could feel embarrassment starting to bubble up in his chest as he was seized with the thought of his nightmares coming true. The memories of laughter at his naked body from his high school days had tears welling in his eyes. He never thought that Aaron would react this way but he was just standing there laughing! And just as quickly as the haze of passion had overtaken him, Spencer felt like nothing more than the bullied and miserable pre-pubescent that he had been in high school. He couldn't even look at Aaron any longer. He stared at the carpeted floor, failing miserably at willing his tears away. Instinctively he crossed his arms awkwardly over his chest and turned his body as far away from Aaron as possible, his former reaction to protect himself if it became physical.
The sudden change in Spencer's stance and entire demeanor had Aaron's own arousal tempered. "Spencer, what's wrong?"
"Nothing, just, let me get my shirt and pants and maybe we can just watch a movie like we had planned? Or maybe I should just go?" Spencer said, voice breaking. He attempted to reach for his shirt which had been discarded behind Aaron. He was flushed with embarrassment and shame, anxious to just get dressed and hopefully forget this debacle.
Aaron's strong hands to his shoulders stopped him from reaching his shirt. "No, something is wrong. What happened?"
His head, still hanging in shame and his hair covering his face, Spencer mumbled something too softly for Aaron to hear.
"What was that?"
Sighing, he spoke up just enough for Aaron to hear, "I said that I was sorry that I was not sexy when you saw me naked for the first time. I mean, I know you know that I don't have a body like you or Morgan. I've always been to skinny and awkward. I don't know why I thought that my lackluster workouts would make any kind of improvement. I don't know why I ever thought that you would find me attractive once you saw all of me. I'm sorry, Aaron. I can leave if you would like? I don't have to stay, we don't have to watch a movie like we had planned. I understand if you don't want to see me anymore, I don't blame you. I know I'm not exactly desirable, and I'm sorry..."He trailed off has he kept his eyes firmly on the floor.
Despite his rambling, Aaron could practically see him mentally calculating how quickly he could scoop up his clothes and flee once he was released from the firm but gentle grip. Understanding dawned on Aaron, "Oh, Spencer, I wasn't laughing at you! I was laughing because I never took you for a tattoo kind of person AND it explains why you were so sensitive when I was touching your hip earlier in the kitchen," he said with a bark of relieved laughter. He took his left hand off of Spencer's shoulder to raise his chin, forcing Spencer to meet his eyes. "You are beautiful and sexy, do not ever think otherwise. You do not know how turned on I was as you were stripping down; I could barely control myself. I was so surprised by the tattoo that I just reacted. I want to keep going in here, but if you would feel more comfortable going back to a movie, we can do that too."
Spencer might be excellent at hiding his real feelings in most situations, but here, naked and vulnerable in Aaron's arms, he could hide nothing. His eyes grew wide with relief and awe that this man, the man to whom he had been attracted for so long had found him physically attractive was mind blowing. The gentle tone Aaron was currently using was the same he used with victims in the field, but Spencer couldn't find it in himself to complain about that. In fact, he was rather grateful for its soothing familiarity as it helped to calm him down just as much as the words he was saying. Unfortunately, even though he was relaxing into Aaron's arms, once again secure in the mutual attraction, the laughter and embarrassment had completely killed his mood for the time being. "As much as I want to say let's pick things up where we left off I think maybe we should just go watch the movie." He looked hesitantly at Aaron, hoping he wasn't saying the wrong thing.
Pulling Spencer into a tight hug, "I would love to watch a movie with you, Spencer. Though, it will be on one condition."
"What condition?" Spencer asked warily. He pulled out of the hug and, keeping his eyes on Aaron, he reached for his clothes. He wasn't sure where Aaron was going with this and it was making him nervous. The instincts honed by years of bullying had him skittish and on edge now even though he knew he was safe with Aaron.
Aaron smiled gently even though his heart was breaking. Of course Spencer was upset in the wake of the misunderstanding, given his childhood it would be impossible to not succumb to painful flashbacks at times. It hurt to think that the beautiful man before him and suffered so much bullying that even now, with a man he had known for almost 7 years and who was his boyfriend, that he would think Aaron capable of similar tormenting. "It is simple, I want to cuddle with you while we watch the movie." Aaron picked up Spencer's pants and held them out while waiting for a response.
The declaration stopped Spencer in his tracks. He had envisioned a lot of potential conditions but cuddling with Aaron hadn't crossed his mind. It was obvious that Aaron was trying to get him to relax again and perhaps build back up to the passion of earlier. It was rather sweet and a welcome reminder of why he had fallen for Aaron in the first place. Spencer reached out and took his pants from the outstretched hand, "I think I can meet that condition."
Neither man spoke again while they dressed and made their way to the living room, the gentle touches and assistance in straightening and smoothing the clothing said more than any of their words could at the moment.
Since Aaron has previously staged the movie, they made their way directly to the couch. Aaron sat down first and pulled Spencer in to him, causing him to lose his balance and fall directly into the waiting lap of his boyfriend. A nervous giggle escaped Spencer's lips as he wiggled to get comfortable. Aaron, was trying desperately to ignore the reaction his body was having to his young partner wiggling around on top of him. Finally, Aaron couldn't take it anymore and circled his arms tightly around Spencer forcing him to stop adjusting position. "Spencer, I swear that if you do not stop what you are doing right now, we will be back in the bedroom before the opening credits finish," he whispered in his ear.
Spencer blushed furiously at the realization of what he had been doing. Noticing that Aaron's reaction was easily felt in this position, his own body started to respond. Despite the reaction, Spencer was content to spend the evening simply wrapped up with Aaron. Quickly kissing his cheek Spencer said "Let's get the movie started."
The movie was one both of them had seen before and neither felt bad about talking through the movie. Their conversation flowed comfortably between the two men, ebbing and flowing with the story. When the final credits started to roll across the screen, Spencer stretched languidly, ending up draped across Aaron's lap and looking into his face. Aaron brushed a curl tendril of hair back behind Spencer's ear before allowing his hand to trace down his jaw to his neck, chest and lower until it paused, hovering just over Spencer's right hip. With the feeling of Aaron's hands tracing down his body, Spencer had closed his eyes to fully immerse himself in the sensation only to open them in question when the hand stopped its movement. "Why did you stop?"
"I remember the reaction I got the last time I touched you here," Aaron started. "I was wondering if I would get the same reaction again. I was also wondering what the story is behind the tattoo."
Spencer groaned and curled up into a ball, forcing the hand away from the marked skin. "You don't want to know."
"Oh, I think that I do. What is it?"
"BEEP."
"Beep?"
"No, BEEP. Battalion Equipment Evaluation Program," seeing that his answer was met with a blank stare, Spencer was forced to continue. "It is a Navy program that is used during the hand off of CESE or civil engineer support equipment when one battalion is being relieved by another. CESE is really just a fancy way of saying all of the construction equipment that a battalion has, bulldozers, trucks, everything. Anyway, the decal that identifies which unit has control or owns a particular piece of equipment and during the turnover, the decals are changed from the outgoing to the incoming unit as they take control of the equipment. Each type of unit has a different shape, as in this case, a Naval Mobile Construction Battalion are a horizontal diamond. The color of the decal indicates if the piece of equipment belongs to the unit, red, or is on loan to augment the unit, white."
"That explains the what, but it also begs the question of why you have it tattooed on your hip," Aaron was trying hard to be serious but was finding it hard when he found out that his boyfriend was essentially branded an organic asset to his Navy unit.
"You don't want to know."
"Oh, I think I do."
Spencer curled even tighter, "You know how I've mentioned my friend, Adam Carlisle in Battalion? Well...it is his fault. I don't even remember it!"
The indignation that he was unable to keep from his voice broke Aaron's control and he started laughing heartily. 'You have an eidetic memory, Spencer, how do you not remember it?"
"Carlisle got me drunk at my wetting down when I promoted to Lieutenant Junior Grade. I was just going to go out for dinner and a single drink and the next thing I know I'm waking up in a hotel room with this, this THING on me."
Aaron let his laughter trail off before kissing Spencer on his head. "I'm just glad it wasn't worse."
"Worse!? What could be worse than waking up in a strange hotel room with a tattoo and no memory of how you got there?" he interrupted Aaron. "Sure, I didn't die or anything but I'm permanently marked like a freaking forklift."
"Well, my lovely forklift, I happen to think it is rather sexy, especially your reaction to me touching it." He paused to try to gauge Spencer's reaction, to see if he should continue his thought. "Why don't we go back to the bedroom and I will show you exactly which reactions I am talking about."
That got Spencer's attention. Despite their earlier missteps with each other, Spencer was more than ready to spend some quality time with Aaron. He was off the couch in a flash, once again pulling along a very willing Aaron to the bedroom.