Originally authored on livejournal as Bingelybeep

Rating: T for a smidge of sexual content, kinda

Summary: Neela's having trouble sleeping... (Reela)

Disclaimer: I do not own ER or any the characters or recognisable situations. This story is written and published for personal enjoyment and the love of the characters. No profit is being made. Please also see author's notes.

Author's note: The original idea for this fic was inspired by a Wolverine/Rogue fanfic called 'Every Noisy Inch' by the fabulous Diebin which can be found in the Wolverine and Rogue Fanfiction Archive at The idea of faking sex noises through walls came from that story although the plot is different but I have not asked permission to post this and as such I will gladly remove this fic if Diebin or anyone speaking on her behalf feels that the resemblance is too strong. This is intended as tribute not theft and no offence is intended although I apologise profusely if any is given.

Bump In The Night

The moaning grew louder until it seemed to be all Neela could hear. Their rhythm was getting frantic now and the banging of the bedposts against the wall was coming frequently but in no particular pattern.

"Lisa!"

Neela moved further down the bed, trying to move away from the wall through which she was hearing all this.

"Lisa!"

'Yes', she thought, 'I know. Lisa is the best lay in the world, just announce it on the internet and stop yelling it at me every night.' It turned out the walls in her building were even thinner than she thought, she could hear their heavy breathing now. It just wasn't fair, not only did she not have a sex life of her own, she had to suffer through other people broadcasting theirs. So what if she was bitter and jealous, it was a life choice.

"Lisa! Oh, God! LISA!"

Neela pulled a pillow over her head and desperately tried to stop herself from banging on the wall and screaming at the couple to shut up. There was nothing more pathetic than having to ask other people to stop having sex because it was making you jealous.

"Lisa! Lisa!"

"Brad!"

"Oh good, stereo," muttered Neela. At least this meant that the sexual olympics should soon be over for the night. As soon as Lisa started telling Brad to 'hit it harder, right there' Neela knew she only had about a minute left to suffer through.

She pulled down another pillow and stuffed it over her head as well. It didn't matter that she couldn't breathe just as long as she could block out what was going on next door. Lisa's wails finally reached their crescendo and with their final howls the couple quietened down. Neela could still hear them talking through the walls but the murmuring was positively soothing after the screaming she'd just had to deal with. The way their thrusting made her wall shake wasn't great either.

Neela crawled back up the bed hoping to finally get some sleep. As she closed her eyes and settled down she heard something that made her blood run cold.

Again? How the hell did they have the stamina to be at it again? Neela wanted to cry. Instead she picked up her pillows and blanket and moved to the living room, resigned to a night on the sofa.

"Not fair, not fair, not fair," she repeated her new personal mantra as she trudged along and flung herself onto the couch.

"Pornstars at it again?" asked an annoyingly chipper voice from the kitchen.

"Yes. Twice. Twice in one night! I know it's not unheard of but how do they have the energy?" Neela had no idea why she was having this conversation with Ray. She really didn't want to be discussing sex and her lack of it with the star of her current fantasies after having to sit through half an hour of audio porn.

Ray did his trademark eyebrow raise at her as he appeared from the kitchen in a pair of boxers and a t-shirt. A shirt, how generous of him, Neela's tired cynical mind muttered.

"Clearly you haven't had great sex recently, or ever." He picked up her feet and then sat on the sofa, releasing them onto his lap. "Besides, they aren't so bad, I can sleep through them. I actually find the vibrations quite soothing." He grinned down at her as she glared. She was cocooned in her blankets with only her face showing and Ray couldn't help thinking how cute she looked.

"Yes well you're one room over. All I have separating me from them is a wall. From where I am it's like dolby surround sound and a jackhammer. And I have too had great sex, I just don't make other people listen." The look Ray gave her clearly said he didn't believe her.

Neela busied herself rearranging her pillows to hide her blush, when she looked back she could tell Ray was plotting something. His smirk was firmly back in place and he looked like a little boy who'd worked out how to steal cookies without getting caught. "Well you know there are really only two options here," he leered, "One, you move into my room," Neela snorted and tried not to show how much she liked the sound of that.

"I'll stick with the sofa thanks."

"Your loss. Or two, we get some payback." Ray was grinning like the Cheshire cat now.

Cautiously Neela asked, "What do you mean by that?"

"Nothing much, just give them a taste of their own medicine."

"What do you- oh no. No way Ray Barnett, I am not sleeping with you to piss off our neighbours. Once again, I'll take the sofa." Once again, trying desperately not to show how much she liked the sound of that. Sleeping with Ray for any reason sounded great, getting payback at the same time sounded brilliant.

Ray rolled his eyes, "Calm down, although that's a great idea," he smirked at her again, "That's not what I mean. All we have to do is make them think that's what's happening. Make a few noises, shake the bed, scream a little. They'll realise how thin the walls are, feel hideously embarrassed and keep it in the living room from now on."

Neela frowned, thinking it through. It did seem like a pretty good idea, although she wasn't sure whether she'd be able to simulate sex with Ray without getting herself a little hot and bothered.

"What's in it for you?" she suddenly wondered aloud.

Ray shrugged, "Helping out a friend. Plus you'd owe me one and I could tell everyone in the ER I was up all night making you scream my name," his grin widened and he added, "And there's always a chance I could persuade you to do it naked for authenticity's sake." While he was only kidding, the mental image that idea gave Ray was enough to make him gulp slightly. Neela naked. Neela on the same bed as him making loud sex noises. While it would definitely add authenticity to his fantasies he suddenly wasn't sure this was such a good idea. There was no way she wasn't going to notice if he forgot it was just a game and got a little too 'excited'.

Neela sat up and punched him in the leg, hard enough to make him wince. "Shut up. You do this and I'll pay for this week's groceries. On the condition that no one at work hears about it."

"And the naked part?"

Neela glared at him, "In your dreams Ray." Following that up mentally with 'I wish'. She stood up from the couch and headed for her bedroom, turning back when she realised Ray wasn't following. "Well?"

"Now?" Ray hadn't been counting on having so little time to prepare. The idea had sounded great when it popped into his head but now he wasn't so sure he'd be able to get through this without embarrassing himself.

Neela raised an eyebrow, "Well if you're not up to it…" she let the implication lie there. She was actually starting to enjoy this plan now. She was pretty sure she'd be able to manage as long as she didn't get too involved.

There was no way he was going to back down now, thought Ray. So he stood and headed for the bedroom. "Come on then roomie, let's rock this joint," he called over his shoulder as he opened the door. He looked around Neela's room briefly. He'd never really been in here before. It was how he'd expect it to be. Neat, uncluttered but with piles of textbooks in one corner. Pictures of her relatives and a few snapshots of people from the hospital stuck on the walls. A pile of clothes she hadn't put away yet sitting on her bureau. The bed was large and as he threw himself onto it he found it was very soft and bouncy too.

Oh God, Ray was bouncing on her bed. If she was finding that hard to deal with Neela wondered how in the hell she was going to manage the next few minutes. She hesitated, feeling slightly awkward.

Finally bored with playing bouncy castles on Neela's bed, although he was definitely going to come back and do it again the next time she was out, Ray leered over at her and patted the bed beside him. She sat on the edge still feeling decidedly uncomfortable. Ray seemed to be taking it all in his stride as he rolled onto his side, resting his head on his hand and grinning at her. Then he began.

"Mmmmm," he locked his eyes on hers, that infuriating grin still fixed on his face as he moaned at her. It was deep and throaty and just that had fire starting to pool in Neela's belly. Trying to distract herself she went on the offensive.

She gasped loudly then groaned, "Oh yeah, just there." She grinned back at Ray, challenging him.

"You like that?" growled Ray standing up on the bed and starting to bounce lightly as Neela tried not to laugh. "You want that?"

Neela stood up too, bouncing in time with him and throwing her head back to cry, "Yes! More. Please Ray, more!" She looked back to find Ray staring at her with a funny expression. After he was silent for a couple of seconds she gestured frantically at him to continue the charade.

Ray was having trouble concentrating after she'd actually moaned his name like that. The sound had shot straight to his groin and he started to worry because if she did that again then his thin boxers weren't going to hide his reaction at all. Suddenly realising that he'd stopped bouncing and Neela was giving him a worried look he began to move again, feet leaving the bed this time. He yelled the first thing that came into his head.

"Tell me I'm the best you've ever had!" That one earned him a punch in the arm, which Ray certainly wasn't going to let her get away with. "Want it like that do you?" he whispered as he thought up his next line. "Neela! Oh yeah! Tell me you want it, snugglebunny!" He had to dart across and catch Neela when she nearly fell off the bed laughing at that one.

'Snugglebunny?" she mouthed at him, shaking with silent laughter. All Ray could do was shrug. He had a girlfriend once who used to call him that, needless to say that relationship hadn't lasted long.

Trying to keep the laughter out of her voice Neela screeched at the top of her lungs, "I want it! Just like that! I want it, love muffin!"

Ray couldn't take it anymore. He was shaking so hard trying not to laugh that he collapsed down onto the bed, tears in his eyes. He rolled onto his back looking up at Neela who was continuing to bounce. She moved so that her feet were planted either side of Ray and started giving it her all, bouncing so hard the bed was shaking and banging against the wall. Ray was momentarily incapacitated by the glorious sight of Neela rebounding above him, hair flying, breasts bouncing, face flushed as she looked down at him, grinning.

Taking the initiative as Ray wasn't saying anything Neela kept up the tirade. "Ray! Ray! Oh, love muffin! Harder, love muffin, HARDER!"

Not sure how much more he could take Ray decided to wrap this little show up. Laying back with his legs crossed at the ankle, hands behind his head, the picture of innocence, he yelled, "Yeah! Like that! Oh YEAH! Oh Neela! Snugglebunny! SnuggleBUNNY!"

Catching the hint Neela started to bounce even quicker, letting out a constant wail as she did. Ray threw in a few more yells for good measure and then snared her by the ankle, pulling her down on top of him as they finished their performance and collapsed into silent laughter.

From the other side of the wall they could hear quiet hissing noises as though Brad and Lisa were whispering to each other. Lisa sounded pretty angry. Oh yeah, Neela had a feeling she was finally going to be able to get a good night's sleep again.

Looking down to tell Ray she thought their plan had worked she suddenly realised the position they were in. Ray was lying on her bed and she was on all fours above him, practically straddling him. He was giving her that funny look again and it was all she could do not to lean down and kiss the hell out of him.

Ray was trying really hard not to do something he'd regret. Not that he would regret just reaching up and kissing Neela but he still wasn't sure whether she'd make him regret it. She had a hard punch for such a little thing. But then she was looking down at him and he wasn't so sure anymore whether she would punch him if he kissed her. The look she was giving him made Ray think she might actually kiss him back. That thought was all it took to have him reaching up to grab the back of her head and pull her lips down to his.

The kiss was chaste at first, testing the waters to see her reaction. When Neela didn't pull away or punch him but actually started to move her lips against his, Ray knew he'd made the right decision. Rolling her underneath him as the kiss deepened Ray groaned when he felt her tongue rocking against his. For a moment he thought he could hear movement on the other side of the wall but then he stopped caring, because he was kissing Neela. He was pretty sure that wasn't all they'd be doing soon and he was damn sure that life didn't get much better than this.

Neela could hear Brad and Lisa moving about and she guessed they were probably going to wait it out in the living room. Ha! Payback was great. She made a mental note to send their neighbours some kind of 'thankyou' fruit basket in the morning. Then as Ray's hands moved to her hips and their kisses grew more frantic she decided that things really didn't get much better than this. Thank God for noisy neighbours.

FIN

I hate the ending but watcha gonna do? Reviews welcomed with open arms to be loved and cherished forever. Thanks for reading.