Title: Five Reasons
Author: sarcasticsra
Rating: PG
Pairing: Nick/David
A/N: Thanks for the beta, Kelly.
Summary: There are five very good reasons why David Hodges could not possibly love Nick Stokes.

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David Hodges could not possibly love Nick Stokes, and there were five very good reasons for that.

Number one: Nick's taste in music.

How could he be expected to like anyone who listened to country music on a regular basis and enjoyed it? That was obviously a sign of a diseased mind – maybe even a sign of insanity. No one sane would subject themselves to the twangy music almost always about trucks, cheating, or God.

David could simply not love anyone with such horrible taste. Just think! What if they had company, and someone looked through their CD collection? He'd have to die of embarrassment. As David obviously liked staying alive, this was clearly something that he could not deal with.

Number two: Nick's looks.

The man was too attractive for his own good. He always caught someone's eye wherever he went because he was Good Looking With Capital Letters. The sky was also blue and one plus one equaled two.

Since this was obvious and not a newsflash, everyone noticed. Nick had plenty of people to choose from. There was absolutely no logical reason for him to be interested or stay interested in a slightly embittered, sarcastic, mediocre-looking lab tech. David had no intention of waiting around for him to realize this.

Number three: Nick's smile.

David Hodges was an intelligent, quick-witted man. He was always ready with a smart-ass quip or barb that would mock and ridicule its target with practiced ease. Nothing could stop him. Nothing, except for Nick's smile.

Nick's smile, David decided, could probably stop traffic, bullets, and even his Aunt Gertrude from devouring the entire table at Thanksgiving. It also turned Hodges' brain into rather unhelpful mush. David simply couldn't put up with being made into a blundering, nearly-speechless buffoon every time Nick smiled at him, now could he? It would kill his reputation.

Number four: Nick's charm.

Nick was a very likable person. He was friendly and outgoing and, as such, he had a lot of friends. People liked hanging out with him; they liked his company. He was a good guy, easy to talk to – everything Hodges was not.

David liked solitude. He didn't have a sparkling personality, he was horrible at small talk, and he didn't like to be the center of attention. How on earth would it be possible for him to love someone whose personality not only sparkled, but shined, who had turned making small talk into an art form, and who was almost always the center of attention? It wouldn't. Clearly.

Number five: Nick's sneakiness.

Nick was stealthy. He snuck into David's life when he'd been least expecting it – flirting with him, smiling at him, talking to him, inviting him places, and genuinely being interested in him. He gradually slipped into David's life, easily avoiding David's hard built defenses, and never once tripping off one of his internal alarms. David hadn't noticed until it had been too late.

How was he expected to put up with a man so infuriatingly wonderful, someone whose kisses were heat and fire and made David's head spin, whose embrace made him feel safe? How was he expected to think it wasn't all too good to be true? It had all happened so subtly, so cunningly, Hodges should really be outraged. Where did Nick get off just integrating himself into David's life like he belonged there?

Yes, David Hodges could not possibly love Nick Stokes and there were some very good reasons for that: the music, the people fawning over him, the smile, the friends, and the sneakiness.

Too bad those reasons didn't make one bit of difference.

-End

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