Chapter Rating: PG-13
Chapter Warnings: Slight manipulation (not involving consent, more just Gabe toying with Jack like he's his plaything), flirting, stick-up-the-ass Jack Morrison, semi-predator-like Gabe wanting to bang the hot blond.
Summary:
There were few things in life that pleased Gabriel more than having control. He was a man of simple means; he called the shots, others listened. Simple and sufficient. Toying with Commander Jack Morrison, however, was a whole separate level of fun.
There were few things in life that pleased Gabriel more than having control. He was a man of simple means; he called the shots, others listened. Simple and sufficient. While he wasn't exactly the top dog of Overwatch, he was damn near at the top. To most, it seemed as though Captain Amari, Commander Morrison, and himself were the supposed Big Three. When a decision was needed, it was up to the three of them to work it out in almost all situations.
He huffed out a sigh, a frown tugging at his lips. Ana usually sided with Jack, at least nine times out of ten, but who was he to protest? It was a system that had worked since the beginning, and he couldn't change it even if he wanted to. Not without winning at least one of them over.
"Commander Reyes, Commander Morrison would like to speak to you in his office as soon as you're available." Athena's voice chimed in as the screen above him lit up, and Gabriel set the shotgun he was meticulously cleaning back onto the table.
"Tell him I'll be there right away."
"Understood."
The man stood and stretched, earning a few well-placed cricks and cracks from his joints. What could the boy scout want now? He left the room, turning down the corridors until he was outside the frosted glass door with the bold lettering of his fellow soldier.
A rap of his knuckles against the door earned a call of "Come in!" from inside, and Gabriel opened the door and stepped inside.
"You wanted to see me?"
Gabriel Reyes was, usually, a very patient man, but the long stretch of silence from one Commander Jack Morrison was beginning to tick away at his nerves.
"Don't tell me you had Athena call me here just to watch you go gray, Jack."
More silence. Gabriel huffed, striding across the room and leaning down onto the blond's desk, brow furrowed as he stared at Jack's face. Even with steepled hands covering a good portion of the other man's face, he could see that conflict was brewing in those bright baby blues. "Jack…?"
"I'm worried about Oxton." Finally, a response.
Gabriel pushed off the desk lightly, hiding a smirk at the dart of Jack's eyes to the slight disturbance to the layout of the pristine desk. The darker man dropped into one of the chairs in the office, crossing his arms. "What about her? Something going wrong with her time lockdown thing?"
A roll of the eyes on Jack's end, and another tug at the corner of Gabriel's mouth. "It's a chronal accelerator, and no, it's nothing like that," Jack huffed, finally dropping his hands to rest on his lap. "I'm just worried about how she's going to fit in as an agent. She's got spunk and a wonderful can-do attitude, but she's just so…" he trailed off, as though searching for the right word to describe the young British girl.
"Innocent? Naive? Inexperienced with actual conflict?" A nod on Jack's end made Gabriel sigh. "Look, she still seems like a kid if I've ever seen one, but like you said, she's got spunk. Lena knows what she's signed up for, but it doesn't even phase her. She wants to be a hero and help save people. Hell, save the world, to an extent." Gabriel leaned back in the chair, offering up the slightest smile. "On a side note, you sure do seem to worry about everyone a lot. Starting to think you're the dad of this darling little battalion, amigo."
The deadpan glare was more than enough to pull a legitimate laugh out of him. "Not funny, Reyes."
"It actually is, Morrison." He laid heavy implication on the surname, rolling his own chestnut eyes. It made no sense whatsoever to him as to why Jack was always so cringe-inducingly formal. Always with surnames and titles, sirs or ma'ams. The man was a giant knot of stress, good intentions, and perfection rolled into one good looking son of a bitch.
"So," Gabriel continued, "is there anything else you need to talk to me about, or was it just needing reassurance?" The hint of snarkiness in his tone, downright made Morrison glower, but the slightest hint of a flush in his cheeks gave Gabriel an incredibly deep satisfaction.
"No, that will be all." The curt response had Gabriel smoothly rising out of his chair, smirking as he leaned down damn near eye to eye with Jack's view.
"Anytime. I'm always up for sweet talking you into a blush, Jackie." Widened eyes and a slightly crooked jaw was all Gabriel needed for a signal, and the man quickly straightened his back and turned for the door. "See you later, Morrison."
And, just like that, Gabriel left the room, leaving a flustered and slightly confused Jack behind to ponder over the words. Oh yes, he would definitely check this one up to one of his best plays of the man yet. It was addicting, manipulating Jack's emotions like putty in his hands, but damn, did it feel good.