Title: Less than subtle
Pairing: Kent/Chandler
Rating: PG-13
Author: Claddagh
Summary: An incident at work causes an argument between Joe and Emerson
Disclaimer: Not mine…or are they? No. Really. They're not!
Note: This takes place after series 2 and Kent and Joe are sort of at the beginning of their relationship.
It was the first stake out the team had co-ordinated in quite a long time. The case was a tricky one: Gay bars and clubs around London had been the offenders primary target and currently the bodies of three young men had been found, dumped in the area's surrounding the bars, beaten, then stabbed, before their throat being cut. They had a suspect, a man slightly older than the victims, who frequented the gay bars and was said by witnesses to have spoken with at least two of the victims on the night they were killed, but in interviews claimed to be heterosexual, despite the undeniable CCTV evidence they had of him at the bars. However, they'd had no forensic evidence or any other solid, reliable evidence and were forced to release him.
In order to gain the necessary evidence they needed to place him as the murderer the team had decided to organise a stake out on and around the road outside one of the bars that their suspect went to (they'd been told by a reliable witness that he would be at a particular one that night). They aimed to watch and record his activities during that evening, but not alert him to their presence, as he was considered to be very dangerous.
"Ok then, I want Mansell here, near the entrance to the bar, while myself and Miles will be in an unmarked car across the road. If you need to go into the bar Mansell then do, we can't loose sight of our suspect." Chandler ordered pointing at the map of Whitechapel that was laid out across the table.
Mansell chuckled, then added sarcastically. "Great."
"What about me sir? Where will I be?" Kent asked, looking up from where he was leant over the table at Chandler.
The DI paused for a second, before replying. "I don't want you anywhere near the bar, you'll be here." He pointed to a street, close, but not in a place where Kent would even see the suspect. "You will observe the surrounding area, not the suspect themselves. You are to report anything suspicious back to Miles and I in the car."
The three other members of the team looked confused at this order.
"Sir? Surely I'd be best being closer to the bar. I'm unlikely to even see anything suspicious being posted there." Kent frowned lightly as he explained his point.
"I agree Sir." Miles butted in. "If we were to see the suspect doing anything we can arrest him for wouldn't Kent be best placed near Mansell, make it easier to actually catch him."
Chandler blinked, his team questioning his orders still able to irritate him after over three years of working here. He shook his head.
"No, I want you there. If too many of us are crowded around the bar we are more likely to be recognised. We don't want to blow our cover."
The entire team exchanged glances. Kent sighed. "But sir -"
"DC Kent, I'm your DI and you'll do exactly what I say! No questions!" Chandler snapped loudly, suddenly and very clearly angry.
The whole team went silent, the air emotional and thick with atmosphere. It was a few seconds before Chandler was able to look Kent in the face, and found that he immediately regretted his hasty words, as the young was now staring at him with a myriad of emotions on his face; confusion, a touch of anger, embarrassment, but most of all hurt.
Miles looked like he was going to say something, his face set in an infuriated frown at the DI's words, but before he could, Chandler straightened his tie, brushed down his jacket and then fled to his office, leaving two of his team staring after him, while Kent stared at the floor, a red blush blossoming on his cheeks and his bottom lip being worried by his front teeth.
The older man watched as Miles clapped a hand on the young DC's shoulder and mumbled something in his ear, to which Kent slowly nodded, before slowly sitting back down at his desk and resuming his work.
Chandler sighed and placed his head in his hands for a minute, then, quickly, his fingers fumbling, reached out and grabbed the small pot of tiger balm, hurriedly applying some to his temples to stave off the impending headache he could feel brewing behind his eyes.
The rest of the day had progressed extremely slowly, with Chandler having minimal contact with his team for the remainder of it. Miles had twice tried to bring up the subject of his earlier outburst, but both times Chandler had immediately shrugged him off and carried on with the day's work.
That evening, the stake out had played out without a hitch, with the team all at their appointed positions (much to Kent's disgust). Mansell had indeed had to enter the bar at one point in order to successfully follow the suspect but their investigation had not been furthered in any way from the stakeout, apart from confirming the fact that their suspect did frequent the gay bars the victims also went to. Despite this, the team were still happy with the evening's outcome and were all grateful that nothing more dramatic happened than Mansell being accosted and hit on while in the bar!
Later than evening, when Joe and Emerson went home, things happened much less smoothly.
The atmosphere in the car was charged at best, and at worse was nauseatingly awkward and tense. Chandler drove in silence, really wishing he could once again reach for the tiger balm in his pocket, while Kent sat, staring out the window at the passing streets, his forehead pressed against the glass, a small mist of condensation appearing on the window with each breath he took.
Suddenly Kent sighed loudly, before he vehemently turned to Chandler, his features set in a frown.
"Why did you speak to me like that today?" his voice was not the usual soft, forgiving one that Joe adored, but rather a confused, scornful and indignant whine that made Chandler's insides squirm at the thought that his actions had caused the young man to use that tone.
Chandler groaned.
"Emerson, I'm your boss. I can't treat you differently to any of the others in the team."
"But you did, you were harsh! And I wasn't saying anything that warranted being shouted at!"
"You were arguing with a superior offic-"
"No I wasn't! I was putting my opinion forward!" The young man cut in. "And the last time I checked, I am part of the team too, and the point of a team is that we work together and make decisions together." Kent insisted, his voice raising slightly. He then took a deep breath before continuing, now on a roll. "And WHY did you decide that I would be best posted that far away from the bar? I didn't even see anything, I was barely involved tonight, I may as well have gone home!"
Kent paused for a breath, then caught sight of Chandler's face. His jaw was tense and his eyes fixed determinedly on the road. Suddenly it dawned.
"That's what this is about, isn't it? You didn't want me near the bar, you didn't want me near the suspect. Why?"
At this point Chandler pulled the car into the car park of his building. He quickly turned the engine off once parked and turned to his DC in the passenger seat.
"Emerson, this man we're looking for is dangerous and when considering his choice of victims-"
"Joe! I am fully aware that he's dangerous, I am a detective. And do you really think that I'd be stupid enough to put myself in a position where I'd be vulnerable and likely to be attacked?"
"It happened once before!"
The silence stretched. Both men sat there, the younger glaring at Chandler, while the DI averted his eyes.
"That has nothing to do with this." Kent snapped, before violently opening the car door and climbing out. He didn't look back to see if the other man was following and instead hurriedly made his way up towards Joe's - well - their flat. Once the door was unlocked the young man took his jacket and shoes off, flinging the former over the back of the sofa in a petty display of rebellion before going into the kitchen and pouring himself a glass of water.
He lent heavily against the counter, his grip on the edge so tight his knuckles were white, as he took several calming breaths and a sip from the glass. He heard Chandler enter the flat behind him and close the door, but he didn't look, preferring to listen to the soft footfalls and rustle of clothing.
He felt, rather than heard the older man come to stand behind him, but not close enough to touch. The DI sighed, and Kent could clearly see in his minds eye the other man pinching the bridge of his nose with is thumb and index finger, his eyes scrunched closed, trying to ward off yet another headache. Kent's normal, automatic reaction when this happened would be to turn and embrace the other man, before handing him some painkillers or soothing the headache with his hands. But this time he had to forcefully stop himself from giving in and instead stubbornly continued to face away from Chandler.
"Emerson, look, I'm sorry about what I said earlier today and just now-"
"You should be." He hissed back. "do you have any idea how humiliating it was to just be shot down like that?" Kent let out a humourless chuckle. "No, of course you don't; you're the haughty and superior DI who shoot's other's down not the other way around!" The minute the hurtful words had come out of his mouth Kent regretted them and he mentally kicked himself, but his pride stopped him from turning to the other man and apologising.
Chandler bristled angrily behind him and he expected the reply to be personal and cutting, but all that was forthcoming was said in a tone that was a strange mixture of angry and upset.
"That's not fair."
"Neither was how you spoke to me." Kent then closed his eyes regretfully and lent forward on the kitchen counter, placing his face in both of his hands and sighing. "I'm sorry…"
There was silence for a few moments, when neither man would look at the other and both were not entirely sure who would speak next. Joe carefully loosened his tie and undid the buttons of his suit jacket and waistcoat, the material feeling rough and constricting at this particular moment.
"It's ok, but Emerson…I worry about you, that's why I acted the way I did and said what I did. The people we deal with are vicious and as we know, they're not afraid to target the police. You've already been attacked once, I don't want it to happen again." Joe admitted, his eyes fixed on the young man's back.
"You can't protect me from every bloody person in London Joe! And stopping me from doing my job won't help either."
"I know it won't, but the thought of you getting hurt again… I don't want you to be in a dangerous situation and putting you near the bar, where that…monster would be, it just…I couldn't do it." Chandler's voice was now quiet and unassuming, almost sad.
In the corner of his eye Kent saw Joe raise a hand, presumably to place it on the shorter man's shoulder, but before it made contact it was pulled back and resumed its place at Chandler's side. In response to this Kent's anger seemed to bleed out of his skin and seep away, he then turned around to face the other man, but still lent backwards against the countertop.
"I understand why did said what you did, but you're also the one who said that our…relationship shouldn't affect our work, and today it did." Kent took a step forward and took the blonde man's hand in his own. "Joe, you've got to treat me like you did before, like I'm just another DC."
Chandler looked down at their entwined hands, then gave a tiny smile.
"You were never 'just another DC'…" he said softly, his eyes not meeting the other man's.
Kent broke into a wide smile and let out a quiet laugh, the tension from their argument quickly dissipating.
"You know what I mean, and that was incredibly cheesy! Never thought I'd hear you say something like that Joe." The young man smiled up at Chandler and ran his hands over the soft lapels of the expensive suit jacket, chuckling at the slight blush that stained the other's cheeks.
"Well it's true." Chandler stated simply. "But you're right, we can't let our feelings…" He raised one hand and allowed the tips of his fingers to run through the curls on the side of Kent's head. "…affect our work, though it's very difficult at times."
"You've just got to stop worrying about me." the young man whispered, moving even closer to the other detective. "I'm a big boy now, I can look after myself Sir." He joked, giving Chandler a mock serious frown.
Joe laughed fleetingly, before his expression sobered and he enveloped the shorter man in his arms, glad that their argument had passed with nothing being thrown across the room and both of their dignities for the most part, intact. He buried his face in the crook of the other's neck and inhaled the comforting scent of his skin and hair.
When they pulled away he placed a small kiss on the pale forehead of the young man, which due to Kent's lesser height, was directly in front of Joe's lips. Kent responded by pulling Joe closer, resting his cheek and closing his eyes against the padded shoulder of Chandler's suit jacket.
They were both aware that their work was dangerous at times and that they couldn't always protect each other from the harshness of the city and those who inhabit it, but despite what Joe had said about trying to not treat Kent differently when at work, he was willing to suffer through a few more of these arguments to make sure his DC was safe and sound, protected from any harm. He would just have to be a little more subtle about his tactics in the future…