Title: Moment of Innocence
Author: Lisa M
Pairing: Hawkeye/BJ
Rating: G
Disclaimer: Nope, don't own anything. Don't sue … no money.
Archive: Anywhere, just let me know.
Feedback: Would be appreciated - good or bad.
Summary: Follow-up to the scene from Period of Adjustment - which means minor spoilers for the episode.
A/N: Answer to the 10-minute fic line 'It started so innocently'. I'm not real thrilled about this one, and I'll probably re-work it somehow. But here you go!
It all started so innocently.
He was hurting. His daughter had called another man, daddy. No, not a man. A boy. Someone who had been a good friend. His anger and hurt and jealousy had gotten the better of him and he'd made an attempt to disappear into the void of alcohol-induced numbness. Now, those emotions poured out of him on a flood of tears.
I was hurting too. My best friend, in his anguish, had lashed out at me with his fists and his words. Blackening my eye. Bruising my heart.
So we sat, together. His head on my shoulder. My palm pressed to his forehead, holding him tightly against my shoulder. I waited, patiently, as he wept himself dry. The wave passed and the room grew silent - save for the sound of our steady breathing.
"Thanks, Hawk" BJ said in a soft voice and tilted his face to meet my eyes. His cheeks glistened with freshly shed tears. I reached over to brush them off with my fingers, but paused … the tips hovering mere centimeters from his flushed skin.
There was something in his expression that caused me to stop. A hint of desire reflected behind the deep blue pools of his gaze. My hand dropped back to my lap. I leaned in and placed my lips to his skin - kissing his tears away. I moved slowly from one salty cheek to the other. I felt his eyelashes brush over my temple as he closed his eyes.
As I backed away, BJ's hand slid behind my head. He pulled me down to his mouth, our lips coming together softly. Tenderly. His lips parted and I slipped my tongue between them, deepening the kiss. Our mouths moved together with the familiarity of lovers - that we were not. My body began to respond. Heat swirled beneath my flesh. New. Alive. I felt BJ harden against my leg.
I inhaled deeply. Holding the air in my lungs, taking in the scent of the moment and tucking it safely inside my vault of memories.
Then, the kiss ended. Abruptly. BJ backed away, his eyes dropping to the floor. I watched as he ran the back of his fist across his mouth. A gesture that showed embarrassment.
It felt as if he'd punched me again.
It was a mistake. A big mistake. But how could I go back now? Something had been stirred awake within me. Something that I couldn't just ignore. Forget. Deny.
Something I knew I would have to force myself to ignore. To forget. To deny.
"Come on, Beej," I said, exhaling slowly, and stood. "Let's get you home."
I stretched out a hand to help him up. He grasped it and pulled himself to his feet. I turned to leave, but BJ didn't release me. His grip tightened as his other hand found its way to my shoulder. My eyes slipped shut when I felt his warm breath brush over my ear.
"It wasn't a mistake, Hawk."
"I don't …" I turned to face him, but my words were cut off by his mouth on mine.
"I'm not sure what it was, but it wasn't a mistake." BJ took my head in his hands and pulled me forward so our foreheads were pressed together. "We'll talk about it in the Swamp. Figure out where we go from here."
The End