"I most certainly do not. And do not think that you've distracted me from my original question. What do you mean, not to count our return so soon? What did you do?" Q asks Bond suspiciously as he looks over at him after his coughing fit is over, adjusting his glasses once again so they sit properly on his face.
James smirks a little. "You wound me, Q. You are falsely accusing me of being up to something." He says innocently as he looks at the other man. "It has been raining quite a bit, that combined with it being the rainy season in general, I've heard some of the roads here are easy to wash out." he says innocently as he looks at Q, still rubbing his back in soothing circles, before he slips out of bed to go get himself something to drink an something for Q as well.
Leaning back against the headboard, Q waits until Bond returns, watching the older man suspiciously. "You forget one simple thing, James." He says, taking the juice from the older man and taking a drink before he continues. "I have been in your ear on dozens of missions, I have heard you sweet talk marks, charm you way through any situation, I can tell when you're lying. And I can tell when you've got an idea that you're working on. And that is precisely what you sound like right now."
Realizing that he's not going to get anything past Q, even when he's as sick as he is, James smiles, settling back down beside him on the bed. "You're far too clever, even when sick." He notes before he adds, "I may have convinced Eve that we should have another week or two here. Afterall, you shouldn't be flying until you're well, and we need our Quartermaster in top-top shape." he says as he watches the younger man.
Closing his eyes for a moment, Q lets out a little sigh that speaks of suffering with 007 for quite some time, before he shakes his head for a few moments. "Well, I have been putting in 16 to 18 hour shifts ever since I was promoted to the position of Q." he says thoughtfully. "And that's been over a year now. I suppose I can take a little break, and they know where we are if they need me. I can check in to make sure everything is running smoothly." He says thoughtfully as he stares at the opposite wall, only not freaking out more because he still feels rather awful.
The easy acceptance throws the agent off-guard, and Bond looks at Q warily, waiting for the inevitable frustrated exasperation to come about. When it doesn't, he continues to watch the younger man for a moment. "Well. That was rather a bit easier than I expected." he says quietly, still a little unsettled by it, taking another drink of his juice
"I am simply not feeling up to giving you the proper verbal thrashing you deserve for your deviance in this matter." Q says calmly as he glances over at James for a moment, then he leans back against the headboard and snuggles down into the pillows he has propped up there. "Rest assured, when I am completely healthy once again, I will take you in hand for the liberties you are taking. You could be putting agents in danger as we speak because I am unable to come up with a truly brilliant contraption that will, naturally, save their life." He says dryly, looking over at James for a few moments, his face deadpanned, but there's a glimmer of amusement in his eyes, and his lips twitch a little as he suppresses a smile. Finally, he sits up and sighs, taking another drink of his juice before he slowly stands, wobbling a little before he steps to the bathroom and from the sounds of things, starts to run himself a bath.
Not really being able to help himself, Bond chuckles a little when Q reverts to his posh, dry tones, and so he just grins and gets up smoothly to follow him. "Be careful, you haven't had a lot to eat." He says before he adds, "Want me to join you for a bath again?" He asks, placing a kiss against the younger man's hairline along the back of his neck.
Giving a little shrug to perhaps dislodge Bond, though more likely just to express his ambivalence, Q glances over his shoulder at Bond. "Are you always this clingy?" he teases with definite amusement this time. "I'd prefer some alone time actually. Why don't you go and make us some breakfast, or whatever time of day it is. Bloody hard to tell when I sleep all day." he says with a little shake of his head, swatting Bond away with a little smile.
Highly amused, James chuckles a little. "I've heard that some people appreciate being looked after when they're sick." He teases, placing one more kiss on the younger man's shoulder. "But.. if you insist." He says, then adds, "Yell if you want me to wash your back." He says, raking a playfully lascivious gaze over Q for a moment before he exits the bathroom and goes out to the main room in order to make some breakfast.
After a long, hot bath, Q comes out, steam wafting out from the bathroom, before he wanders out in a comfortable pair of pants and a t-shirt that actually fits his body quite well. His hair is damp and curling around the edges, but he ignores it, looking around curiously until he spots Bond on the deck, walking toward him slowly. "I am feeling a bit better today." he says thoughtfully as he moves over, humming some tune or another to himself as he takes one of the seats at the table and then reaches out to take some fruit off of one of the plates Bond has put there. There's still a fine sheet of mist and drizzle coming down, giving everything a little haze to it.
"I noticed, you were far wittier this morning than you have been. I didn't realize how much I missed it." James says as he leans on the table toward the younger man, smiling quietly, since he's eating a bit off the plates as well. Of course he's been eating for a bit longer so he's mostly just picking at the moment. Gently, he reaches over and brushes some of Q's curls back from his face and tucks them behind an ear. "You need a haircut. Even for you, your hair is getting a bit long." he says playfully with a little smirk.
Q snorts a little, which he regrets since it makes him cough slightly. "You shouldn't complain, as I recall you rather like sinking your hands into my hair." He points out wryly with a slight smirk at Bond. While his mind may be mostly recovered, his body is not, making the younger man's movements slower than they usually are, and his fingers less dexterous. "You do seem to have a bit of an obsession with it, in any case."
Not being able to help himself, Bond chuckles lightly and then nods quietly. "Guilty." he notes as he looks at Q. "It's not my fault your hair is very soft, and touchable. And I have to admit, I've always been a sucker for brunette's." he note playfully as he runs his fingers through the soft strands of hair. "You don't exactly seem to hate it, either." He adds as he watches Q lean into his hand a little, especially when he rubs his fingertips gently against the other man's scalp.
"You've found my weakness, it seems, 007." Q says quietly, sighing a little as he tilts his head back into James' hand encouragingly. "I have a rather sensitive scalp. And that feels rather good, soothing actually. It's one reason I keep my hair a bit longer, besides that it rather suits me, don't you think?" He asks, turning his green eyes over toward Bond.
A small nod is given as James becomes somewhat entranced with running his hand through Q's hair. "Hmm. It does look good on you. I look forward to seeing it in many different stages of dishevelment." He says with a mischievous smirk as he continues to watch the younger man.
Q just smiles softly as he looks over at Bond for a few moments. "Do you, now?" He asks, continuing to eat slowly, and then waiting until he's swallowed before he continues. "Hm. Unfortunately your hair doesn't lend itself to dishevelment, does it? I suppose I'll just have to leave my mark in other ways.." he says as he reaches out, fingertips lightly trailing down Bond's neck and over his shoulder lightly since the agent was so kind as to go without a shirt.
A small shiver goes down Bond's spine, and goose bumps rise on his skin lightly from the touch, before he looks into the younger man's eyes, leaning closer so their faces are closer.
"Now, now, that wouldn't go over well on my missions, now would it?"
Yay, Q has recovered his wit! Guess he just had to start feeling a little better, Hehee.
I have given up on any plan as to when I update things. I will update one story, every day, I just have no clue which it will be, lol. I will try not to go more than two days between updates. Sorry to be so inconsistent, especially when you guys are so wonderful to be following this, but my muses are fighting recently. :)
Still, thank you all for your continued interest in this fic, I hope I will live up to expectations.
Please let me know what you think, reviews/comments welcome!