Chapter 7.
Jim's face was bright red, even in the dark. David smiled up at him and moved so that he was crouching over Jim on all fours in his bed. Jim slid down further into his pillow and looked around frantically. "Are you out of your fucking mind?! Somebody could wake up!"
"Who?" David shrugged. "Your bunkmate may be a fluff ball but he sleeps like a rock. And all the others have drunk themselves into a deep sleep." He leaned down and kissed Jim's collar bone. "Relax. You're going to sprain something."
"No, I'm going to have a heart attack!" Jim could feel his heart in his throat again, desperately trying to escape. He could feel himself getting turned on by the man in front of him; his best friend for crying out loud. His eyes were glued onto David. How long had Jim's heart reacted this way to David? He couldn't remember. It seemed only recently that his body gave off such a dramatic reaction; but they had been "together" for almost a year now. Shouldn't he be used to the man he kissed in this proximity? Jim couldn't be sure, but he thought he could see just as much want in David's eyes as he thought his own displayed. What was he saying? He just really cared about the guy that's all. They were best friends and had been through some tough shit together. The only thing that made David different from the other friend's he'd made at the academy was- a strange emotional attraction he felt toward the guy. The two of them had clicked from the start; bouncing off each other's jokes, working well in a team, and having each other's backs in a fight. These thoughts scrambled Jim's brains to mush until David finally stopped kissing his neck.
"Ok, seriously. Do you want me to prove it to you?" David sat up and knocked rather loudly on one of the wood bedposts. No one moved. Everyone continued to snore. When his point had been made, and he saw Jim's tension fade, he leaned over the young lieutenant's face. David brushed his lips gently against Jim's before kissing down his jaw and neck. He could hear Jim's heart pounding like a drum, and placed both his hands on Jim's hips. His mouth was trailing kisses back up to Jim's ear when he started slowly moving his thumbs in circles on the hip bones. "Babe, just relax. You're working yourself up over nothing." Jim's anxiety came to a halt. A silly smile stretched across his face.
"Did you just call me babe?" Jim laughed. His heart skipped a beat waiting for the response.
"I did." David bit down gently on the soft skin under Jim's ear. Massaging his hips a little harder now, David could feel Jim relaxing under him, even moving one hand up into his hair to pull him closer. Jim weaved his fingers through the dark mess, forcing David's nose to press against the side of Jim's neck. David smiled into the crook of Jim's neck before biting down and beginning to suck on the skin, hard. Jim clenched his fist into David's hair and arched his back; he didn't even realize he was gasping until David moved his head up to kiss him. "Shhh! They're drunk- not dead." David laughed before starting a hickey on the other side of Jim's neck.
Jim moved his other hand to unbutton David's shirt. Catching on- the bearded man sat up and pulled the fabric over his head, tossing it aside. Careful not to bump Jim's wound, David gently moved Jim's legs so he could sit between them, pulling Jim into his lap. Jim winced only for a moment before running his hands through David's hair and kissing his jaw line. This sent a low growl through David's throat; he pulled Jim closer, until Jim's hips and his stomach were pressed together.
Jim pulled back from kissing and bit his lip. David stared at him quizzically before he felt a hand go between his legs. "Don't start something we can't finish here." David looked up- almost asking Jim not to. In return, Jim leaned close to David's ear; he could feel Jim's breath tickle the skin as he whispered.
"Carry me to the storage room, then."
That was all he needed; David checked their surroundings to be sure everyone was still asleep. With a small grunt, David wrapped his arms under Jim's legs and stood up from under the bunk. Tip toeing- the two moved unseen in the dark down to the storage room. Panting- David sat Jim on top of a counter and began fiddling with his belt. Jim slipped his own shirt over his head and tossed it aside- running a hand through his hair out of anxious habit. After a frustrated moment of broken belt loops and many F-words, David just grabbed Jim's face and slammed their mouths together. Jim stifled a moan before scooting to the edge of the counter. He leaned down and made quick work of David's belt- sending his pants to the floor. David opened his eyes and looked down. He looked back up at Jim who wrapped his arms around David's neck. "Well I'll be damned." Jim shrugged. "Com'ere." David smirked and pulled Jim's hips against his. The two of them began kissing again, leaving hickeys here and there, scratch marks appeared down their skin when one of them did something particularly exciting. It was one of these moments, when David's teeth were scraping the skin around Jim's hip, that a throaty gasp came bursting out of Jim's mouth.
David smiled before standing up and pulling Jim off the counter. "What are you doing?" Jim pouted before he felt the cold floor press against his back. David just looked down at him with his crooked smile before placing his hands over Jim's thighs.
"Something I teased you with earlier." David gently brushed his fingers over Jim's abdomen. He moved his head down and started kissing below Jim's hips. In response, Jim closed his eyes and covered his face with his arms. He could feel the last defense between him and lying bare on the floor being pulled away; sending a shiver through him. He held his breath, his body twitching at the first contact. Before he could take another breath the cold air around his hips evaporated; replaced by a hot, wet sensation. Using a hand to stifle his gasps, Jim rolled his hips with David's movement; back and forth, up and down, slowly at first but then faster. Opening his eyes for a peek, he could see David looking up at him with those green eyes, his hands holding down Jim's hips for good measure. Blushing feverishly- Jim screwed his eyes shut and twitched under David's touch. He could feel pressure rising- sending his brain in a frenzied spin as his gasps grew faster and more frequent. "David!" he hissed. "F-fuck." The heat between his thighs shuffled and he could hear David panting. A hand replaced the heat and began working between his thighs instead. Jim squeaked at the sudden contact and felt kisses flutter down his chest.
"Hang on," David's voice whispered near Jim's ear. Jim bit his lip.
"I can'-mm!" A pair of lips crashed onto his and he could feel David's chest press against his smaller one. Jim pulled David down and turned his head for a better angle in their kiss. His lips were abandoned as David whispered in his ear again.
"Will you help me?" Jim nodded. Even with his arms covering his face, he knew what was coming. David moved his hand from Jim for just a moment before placing them on his hips and lifting them up. Jim could hear nothing but shuffling and the sound of his heartbeat before David breathed near his ear again. "If I hurt you, even a little, tell me to stop. You have new stitches and I wouldn't risk ripping them for anything." He instructed. "Not even this." Jim moved one of his arms to look up at David's face. "Promise?" Jim was getting impatient, his body twitching.
"Cross my heart and hope to cry? Or just mention it in passing after?" Jim smiled. David did not look amused.
"Jim-"
"Yeah I promise just, go-" He covered his face again as David lifted both his legs and held them together over one shoulder. His hips shifted forward and he could feel David's chest heaving. Jim waited- but the pause was longer than he expected. He peeked out from under his arm to see what was up- just to see David smiling. "What's wrong?" David shook his head.
"I just wanted to see your face." He pulled Jim's hips back toward him with a quick tug. Clenching his teeth- Jim shut his eyes again, grabbing for something-anything on the ground to hold on to. Finding nothing, he tried to push his back off the ground, but to no avail. In his head- they were back in bed- comfortably wrapped up in each other and hidden away from the world. The image took back seat to his immediate feelings- he was desperately happy but also in quite a bit of pain.
David could feel Jim tense up, and moved his hips in circles rather than back and forth. It seemed to do the trick, because Jim's abdominal muscles slowly started to unclench. Once David got a rhythm- Jim relaxed, even biting his lip near the end before the two of them were laying side by side on the ground, panting. After a few minutes of catching their breath- Jim snickered. "What?" David turned his head to look at his best friend. Jim turned his head so they were almost nose to nose- and smiled.
"You have to carry me back up the stairs."
David's smile faded and he ran his hands down his face. "Oh, fuck. I do." He looked back at the younger man and the two of them laughed until Jim's side started hurting. David sat up beside Jim before wobbling to his feet. He stretched out his hand for Jim to take. Struggling to stand as well, Jim fell into David's arms once he was vertical again. "There I go, catching your ass again." David chuckled. Jim held on to David's arm, attempting to take another step on his own. Before he could apply any pressure, a cramp shot through his thigh, sending a wave of pain through him. "Jim!" David wrapped his other arm around Jim's waist, pulling him close. "Are you alright? Is it your leg? Ugh- I knew I was going to hurt you- I'm such an idiot!" He growled and helped Jim walk over to the counter.
"Day- I'm fine." Jim insisted. "It's only been a day- this is natural." He winced as he stepped on his left leg. David picked him up like a doll and set him on the counter.
"So what?" David turned his back to Jim and bent his knees. "Here, get on." He reached his arms backward to give Jim a piggyback ride, but the young man just crossed his arms in denial.
"Are you serious? I'm a twenty-four-year-old man." David sighed. He knew he was acting the same as he was in the galley before, but sometimes he couldn't help it. A man has his pride no matter what- and Jim was particularly stubborn about his.
"Look, my arms are tired- can you please help me by getting on my back?"
Jim gave in and climbed onto David's back as best as he could. After some adjusting- the two made their way back up the stairs. When David set Jim down on the floor of the crew's quarters, and Jim had comfortably crawled back into bed, David smoothed down his blanket. "By the way you're not a twenty-four-year-old man." David gently kissed Jim's forehead. "You're a twenty-five year old man." Jim's eyes widened. How could he forget? He looked up at the clock at the front of the hall- it read 27:16. It was officially his birthday. David got up and climbed into his bunk. "Happy Birthday." He smiled before covering himself with his blanket and rolling over to get some sleep.
Sitting on the counter, forgotten, was Jim's night shirt- left to be found in the dark. The morning would bring more work, fresh breakfast, and new accusations.
