Effect by InSilva
Disclaimer: just playing on the swings in the O11 playground.
Summary: Some things just do not need any help. Set immediately after the Banks job in O13. Rusty/…well…yeah… Rated for profanity.
A/N: not related to this fic, but please visit the discussion forum and read "Challenge". otherhawk is asking for words. No, I don't think she needs help in that area either but who are we to argue with genius? Seriously, please read and contribute. Should be fun!
Rusty would be the first to admit he was operating slightly on autopilot. The job was practically over. Reuben was on the road to recovery; Terry Benedict had been told just how generous he was; Willie Banks was learning that some things mattered more than money. All they had to do was wait for the Very Unimportant Person to take his flight home so that they could make amends and they were through.
The eleven of them were on downtime. The flat period after the high of a successful con. The limbo before the next project came along. And the best way to manage that feeling was to indulge in a little celebration just before they went their separate ways. They had all booked in to the Bellagio just for the hell of it. For old times' sake. They had a suite to meet up in and they had their own rooms to retire to after they had finished partying; if they made it that far.
The cards and the drinks and the food had gone on long into the night, brushing up against the dawn, in fact. There had been separate little knots of people as the eleven of them ebbed and flowed around the room, making and breaking groups. Somewhere around Saul's recreation of Kensington for Reuben's benefit, Livingston marvelling at Yen's one finger balancing act, Basher trying to teach Frank how to play "Hey, Jude" on the piano, and the Malloys taking it in turns, one to try on Linus's back-up false nose and one to be Abigail Sponder while Linus told it like it was, Rusty had met Danny's eyes across the room and they had smiled.
You think they're having fun?
If they're not, they're fooling me.
Saul and Reuben were the first to say goodnight. Surprisingly, the twins followed shortly after. The others drifted away slowly and then Danny, Rusty and Linus were left.
"You are going to get some sleep now, aren't you?" Danny asked mildly.
The memory of plans and blueprints and restless, wakeful nights and insane concentration hung in the air.
"You got a better offer?"
Linus made a small snort that he covered with a cough and Rusty and Danny smiled without showing the smile.
"I am not buying you pizza at this time of the," Danny checked his watch, "morning."
Rusty shrugged. "Could be breakfast."
"Could be. Won't be. Bed."
The three of them had rooms a couple of floors up and they travelled in the elevator together, Linus yawning and Rusty and Danny commenting without words on youth's lack of stamina.
"See you in the morning," Linus stretched and Rusty thought it was a definite sign of how tired Linus was that he went straight to his room without a backward glance and shut the door. Of course, he might just be keenly watching the corridor through the peephole in the door.
He glanced at Danny and saw the thought had crossed Danny's mind and was busy emerging in the grin on Danny's face. Rusty unlocked the door to his room and Danny padded in after him.
"You're just not a nice person," Rusty accused.
"He might not be watching."
"We're talking about Linus."
"Yeah," Danny agreed, grinning as he headed to the interlocking door which led to the room next door. "Sleep well."
Morning had arrived and the autopilot feeling had not left Rusty. He rose and showered and shaved, applying shower gel and deodorant and aftershave liberally. He dressed in an open-necked turquoise shirt and fawn suit and headed out the door.
Linus was just coming out of his room. Rusty smiled a Morning at a passing chambermaid who looked wide-eyed and a little giddy and it had happened enough times previously for Rusty to accept it with good grace: it wasn't even conceit to think it would happen again; it just was.
"Hey, Rusty," Linus yawned and stretched and Rusty was impressed by the almost imperceptible scan of Rusty's room. Rusty shut the door firmly behind him.
"Where's Danny?" Linus asked casually as they walked down the corridor.
Rusty stopped and banged on Danny's door. There was no answer.
"He's not there," Rusty suggested.
"…No..."
"Guess he's at breakfast."
"…Yeah…"
A vision of Danny sitting at a table where toast and croissants and bacon and pains au chocolat were piled high floated through Rusty's mind. He pressed the button to summon the elevator and the doors opened and they both stepped in to the empty car and looking back, Rusty could put the fact that he didn't see it coming till it was all too late down to a number of things. Certainly the thought of breakfast was one: Rusty was hungry. The fact he was running on autopilot was another. Plus there was the consideration that there was never anything wrong with silence; at least if he was in Danny's company.
Rusty stood at the back of the elevator and gripped the handrail running round it. His brain was still working on maple syrup and sausages when he was suddenly aware that Linus was standing close, closer than he normally would, in Rusty's personal space, and that was just not Linus Caldwell.
"Linus?" Concerned and uncomprehending.
Linus's lips were slightly parted and his pupils were dilated and Rusty frowned, imagining illness, sickness, some sort of virus, when it happened.
Very few things shifted Rusty's cool, calm exterior. But Linus launching himself at him and pressing his mouth against his definitely qualified.
Danny's phone rang as he stood waiting to be seated in the restaurant.
"Where are you?" Hissed and not like Rusty in the slightest.
Alarmed and not showing it anywhere people could see, Danny span round on his heel and started walking back through the lobby.
"Reception. Where are you?"
"Suite. Get here now."
The call ended and Danny stared stupidly at the phone in his hand. And then Danny ran.
Slightly out of breath, he opened the door to the suite to find Rusty pacing up and down like an expectant father in a maternity ward.
"Rus? What-"
Rusty strode over and pushed the door to behind Danny and turned round, standing hands on hips in front of him.
"Linus kissed me."
Danny blinked and waited for the punchline. There wasn't one.
"Where…?"
"In the elevator. On the way down to breakfast." Rusty's face said he was seriously unamused.
"No, where?"
"On the mouth! Full on!" Rusty's eyes were flashing and Danny did a double-take. Rusty's eyes seemed…brighter and bluer and more alive than ever…
"Full on!" Rusty repeated and started pacing up and down again in a small line in between the door and Danny.
"Maybe…" and Danny was surprised to find his throat a little dry and he was even more surprised to find himself thinking how Rusty's blond highlights were gleaming golden. "Maybe, he was just playing. I mean, it's possible…"
"No, no, no." Rusty was stood in front of Danny again. "He pushed himself up against me. I could feel how serious he was."
"Well…" His tongue was thick and he swallowed hard and tried to think about Linus kissing Rusty without thinking about Linus kissing Rusty. Because the problem with that was he kept thinking about Rusty's mouth…and Rusty's mouth was…
"What do we do, Danny? What the fuck do we do? It was as much as I could do to push him away and get out of there."
Rusty ran a hand through his hair. Linus had been tenacious.
"Who knew?" he demanded of Danny. "I mean we play in front of the kid all the time. Who knew?"
"Mmm."
"And Bobby! And Molly! Fuck, Danny, what do we tell them? Oh, fuck!"
"Yeah."
Rusty shook his head. "Danny, what do we-"
Danny's hands reached out and grabbed him by the shoulders and pushed him back and up against the door and Rusty looked at him in absolute shock as Danny leant in towards him.
"Danny?"
Danny stopped, his lips a breath away from Rusty's. His eyes screwed up and his mouth tightened into a line and his fingers dug into Rusty's arms.
"Rus," and Rusty frowned as he heard how heavily Danny was breathing, "Rus, just get away from me."
"What?"
"Rusty!" Sharp and beseeching.
Rusty pulled free from unresisting fingers and moved wordlessly over to the other side of the room, wondering when the world had gone mad. Danny's hands curled into fists up against the door and his shoulders hunched.
"Danny, what the fuck just happened?" And Rusty was pleased with how serene he sounded. Inside, turbulence reigned.
What the fuck had just happened? It was a pertinent question and Danny wasn't certain he had an answer. One second, Rusty had been Rusty and the next moment, Rusty had been pure sex. Part of Danny was busy arguing that sex appeal was part of what made up Rusty anyway. It was just that usually, Danny was able to acknowledge that, see the effect Rusty had on the unsuspecting and smile at his own immunity. Which left the question, what the fuck had just happened?
His head was clearing. He turned round and saw that Rusty was over by the window, arms wrapped round himself, his eyes deeply alarmed. Danny's brain started engaging itself. It wasn't Linus. It certainly wasn't him. Which meant… A scene of twins in a huddle came from nowhere. Twins who had been pumping Linus for information on his part in the con. Twins who would find this very funny indeed.
"Gilroy," he said with absolute certainty. "Turk and Virgil."
"Ohhh…" Rusty exhaled. "Oh, they are…"
"Yeah. Thought they disappeared a little too quickly."
"What do you think they-"
"-aftershave?"
"Yeah. Or shower gel-"
"-or both."
"Both," Rusty nodded. He looked at Danny. "That intense, huh?"
"Better believe it."
There was a long pause and then…
"So."
"So."
"How do you want to play this?" Danny asked.
Rusty's eyes lit up. "Unfairly?" he suggested.
Linus was in his room, sitting on the bed, arms wrapped round his knees, still in shock. What had possessed him? What on earth had possessed him? He had kissed Rusty. Rusty had smelt so good. Irresistible. Overwhelming. Impulse uncontrollable had led to action and he wasn't sure why and he wasn't clear on the wherefores and all he knew was that seeing Rusty again was impossible. He had kissed Rusty. How soon could he get on a plane home and how could he make sure he never, ever worked with Rusty again? Make that Danny as well. Make that...oh, good Lord. He was going to have to emigrate.
The phone rang. It was Reuben.
"Linus? Get yourself down to the suite."
The suite? With the others?
"Reuben...oh, Reuben, I really can't-"
"Get down to the goddamned suite now!"
Explanation had been given and he'd finished blushing. He'd finished apologising a hundredfold to Rusty and he could meet his gaze. Just about. And Danny had had a look of almost sympathy that really he didn't fully understand. Reuben seemed to be finding the whole thing immensely amusing and Linus guessed he would. Saul was sat with a worldweary look that said he had seen it all and nothing surprised him.
"Linus," Danny was saying once again, "it wasn't your fault."
No, it really hadn't been. Linus sat a little straighter on the couch and looked at Rusty over by the window, well out of reach, well out of temptation's way.
Basher appeared in the doorway. "They're coming."
As if someone had shouted "Action!", Saul produced a deck of cards and began laying out Solitaire. Danny leaned over his shoulder and started advising on what card should go where. Basher began explaining exactly where West Ham Football Club were going wrong with their team selection and Reuben was frowning at him. The other side of the room and away from all of them, Rusty picked up a paper and started studying yesterday's news. Or possibly yesterday's comic strip. Linus couldn't be sure.
The handle to the door turned and Linus just had presence of mind to become part of Basher's audience and adopt a suitably blank expression.
"Dude! You cannot compare the General Lee to the Torino! It's like...hamburgers and pretzels!" Turk was rolling his eyes at his brother.
"All I'm saying is-" Virgil took in the scene and stopped dead.
"Morning, fellas," Saul acknowledged. "You sleep well?"
"Yeah..." Turk's gaze had found Rusty by himself in the corner and then he nudged Virgil.
Surreptitiously, Linus watched a whole unspoken conversation going on that he could actually follow. It ended with a muttered "I told you it didn't work!" from Turk.
Danny stood up and stretched and headed casually in Rusty's direction.
"You got the time, Rus?"
There was frantic elbowing going on between the twins and then their jaws dropped. Linus turned and he nearly swallowed his gum. Danny and Rusty were kissing. Passionately. No holds barred. Hands entwined in hair, eyes closed, bodies up close to each other, mouths locked together as if they were never coming up for air. As one, they moved without looking towards the door and out and they left Turk and Virgil blinking in their wake.
"Whoa..." said Turk finally.
"Yeah," Virgil echoed.
"You guys see that?" Turk demanded.
"See what?" Reuben asked, looking round.
"Danny and Rusty. You guys see that?"
"See what?" Saul echoed, looking up from his cards.
"See..." Turk looked at him in disbelief. "You didn't see that?"
"I been playing cards," Saul shrugged. "What did I miss?"
Virgil looked at Basher. "You must have seen that."
"Mate, I'm busy explaining why the 1980 Cup Final was so good. What did I miss?"
"Reuben?" Turk asked.
Reuben shifted further round in his seat. "What?"
"Linus." Virgil sounded certain of support.
Linus thought about the elevator. "I didn't see a thing," he lied convincingly.
"But Danny and Rusty!" Turk sounded pained.
"What about them?" Saul said waspishly.
"They were kissing," Virgil announced.
Saul and Reuben and Basher looked at one another and on cue, they all burst out laughing. Linus joined in.
"You are having us on!" Basher grinned.
"You think we were born yesterday?" Saul snorted.
"Lay off the alcohol, boys. That's my advice," Reuben smiled.
"But-but-" Turk looked at Virgil and for once, the brothers were united. "They were!"
"Sure they were," Basher nodded in a way that said he didn't believe a word of it. "Sure they were."
There was a joint noise of inarticulate fury and the Malloys positively flounced from the room. The last thing the others heard as the door closed behind them was, "I told you it would work!" and an argument that looked set to rage probably all the way back to Utah.
"Job done," Basher smiled and Reuben grinned.
"C'mon," Reuben said. "Let's go and find Livingston and Yen and Frank in the restaurant and tell 'em."
The four of them made their way down through the hotel and Linus found himself by Saul's side as they walked down the corridor.
"You look troubled," Saul said softly.
"Well, it's just...I mean...Danny and Rusty...I didn't think they'd actually...that stuff's powerful, Saul...don't you think someone ought to...they shouldn't..."
"Danny and Rusty are more than capable of handling something like a Gilroy," Saul said firmly.
Linus nodded. He supposed so.
Danny and Rusty were stretched out on Rusty's bed, watching television and eating macadamia nuts.
"Mini-bar's better stocked," Rusty said with satisfaction.
"Benedict learns some lessons," Danny agreed.
"You think they'll realise?"
"That you showered again?"
"With your shower gel?"
Danny smiled. "I'm liking the idea that they will never know." There was a pause. "You think we should tell Linus?"
Rusty chuckled softly. "I'm liking the idea that he will never know."
Danny turned on his side and looked at him. "You're just not a nice person, you know that?"
"Someone must be a bad influence," Rusty grinned.
A/N: not in my head at all till a conversation last night which is completely to blame. And after that, just kept thinking about the Lynx effect that Rusty plus a Gilroy would yield. Hope you enjoyed.