Title: Like This
By: postnotice
Pairing: Nick/Greg
Rating: NC-17
A/N: This is something I've been working on for a while. Not sure how I feel about it, but figured I'd share.
Summary: Greg has a bad night; Nick attempts to better it.

The slam of a locker door jolts Greg from his thoughts harshly, and he loses his grip on his shoelaces. He lifts his head to see Nick staring into his locker with an odd expression on his face as he tugs his shirt over his head. Greg watches him for a moment, wanting to say something but not quite sure what, before he turns back to his shoelaces.

With a heavy sigh, he pulls tight on the laces and knots them as quickly as he can. Nick seems to notice he's there only when he stands, and immediately Nick sends him a light, apologetic smile.

"You all right?"

It's a simple question but thousands of answers run through his head. "I'm fine." "I'm great." "Could be better." "Outside of what happened tonight, yeah." But his voice seems to fail him as he stares back into Nick's eyes and isn't even aware he's crying until Nick wraps his arms around him and starts whispering soothing, quiet words in his ear. Greg thinks he hears the door to the locker room open but nobody comes in, and Nick's embrace is far too comforting.

The fact that Nick is hugging him, shirtless, in the locker room after shift makes Greg pull away when he remembers, smiling a teary smile when Nick doesn't let him pull away completely. The air is tense with Nick's unspoken questions, but Greg rubs his forearm with a reassuring touch and Nick drops it. "I'll drive home." Greg doesn't bother replying.

The ride home is quiet, and even though Nick never moves a car without making sure Greg's secure with a seat-belt, he decides not to enforce it this once and wraps his arm around Greg's shoulders as he drives home. Greg's shaking hands grab at his waist and get Nick in all the right places, and he tightens his hold.

Greg's not supposed to be this sad, this affected. He's supposed to be able to brush it off without a second thought, like what he sees in the field every night is fiction and nothing he should get worked up over. Still, everybody has their nights and clearly this is one of Greg's.

What bothers Nick most is the way Greg doesn't even hesitate when he climbs from Nick's car and walks towards the house and unlocks it. In his hurry to catch up, Nick almost forgets to lock his truck.

"Hey," he says as he catches up to Greg in time to see him drop his keys to the counter and run his hands over his face vigorously. Nick brushes against the back of Greg's elbow with his palm and Greg looks at him through his fingers. The tired look in his eyes tugs at Nick's heart and he steps forward, pressing his lips against Greg's in a slow, sensual kiss.

He pulls away softly, slowly, like they have all the time they need. A glance at the clock on the stove informs Nick that they do, this time. A small smile that doesn't quite reach Greg's eyes appears on his face and Nick jerks his head towards the bedroom. Greg nods, allows Nick to steer him into their room, his hands massaging Greg's shoulders as he does so.

Nick presses his boyfriend's body down onto the mattress, another kiss landing on Greg's lips when he opens his mouth, ready with a sentence Nick's sure is going to be about something he shouldn't focus on. "Shh, baby. Later."

Greg looks like he's going to protest, but instead of Nick diving for the zipper on his jeans like he'd half expected him to, he lowers himself to the floor and undoes Greg's shoelaces with an oddly tranquil pace. Nick looks up a second later, meeting Greg's gaze and smiling softly.

Setting Greg's shoes on the floor, Nick takes Greg's socks from his feet and drops them into the growing pile of clothing next to his shoes. He presses his lips to Greg's right ankle, soft and sweet. It brings a peaceful smile to Greg's face and his eyes drift shut briefly.

As Nick stands from his kneeling position on the floor he steps out of his own shoes and sits on the edge of the bed to pull off his socks as well. Greg licks his lips in anticipation as Nick leans back on one of his arms and pulls Greg into another kiss, fingers tangling in Greg's hair. It's just the same as the kiss they'd shared in the kitchen. The fingers tighten in his hair for a split second, just like they always do, before Nick breaks the away. He undoes the buttons on his shirt before untucking it from his jeans, reaching to pull Greg's over his head.

He drops another light kiss to Greg's chest as he presses him into the mattress with hands he knows Greg trusts, and removes the last articles of clothing still separating them until they're both naked. Nick helps Greg turn over onto his stomach, resting himself on Greg's thighs as he starts to work out the knots in Greg's back and shoulders, feeling Greg's muscles relax easily, the scars from the lab explosion turning from their overstretched white back into Greg's natural skin color, looking as though nothing had even happened. Nick's fingers dig tenderly into his back, gliding over the scars with a new level of respect and adoration he hadn't had until now.

Greg lets out a barely audible moan of appreciation and readjusts his head against his arms, lips lifting up at the corners again. Nick continues the massage until he hears Greg's breathing even out, back to the way it's supposed to be, and he raises himself from Greg's legs to help turn him back over.

The languid kiss Greg's drawn into before he can speak pushes the night's events to the back of his mind, the case a distant memory. His eyes are still closed when Nick pulls away and reaches down to stroke Greg's abdomen. "Nick, I don't think—,"

"Shh," Nick soothes as his hand dips lower. His fingers stroke lightly, Greg's penis hardening under his touch. A sigh escapes Greg's lips. "It's not about that right now,"

Reassured, Greg stops all thought when Nick fully encases Greg with his fingers. The movements of his hand reflect his kisses and Greg thrusts his hips up a little. Nick only stills his wrist, his free hand applying pressure to Greg's stomach to keep him in place. Greg feels the calming words that Nick doesn't say in his touch. Satisfied with the lack of movement on Greg's part, Nick resumes his strokes, just as measured as they were moments before.

Greg can think of a million things he wants Nick to do with his hands, but Nick obviously has other ideas. He opens his eyes and looks down just in time to see Nick lick his lips before he takes the head into his mouth, licking and swirling his tongue around the tip just as damned leisurely as he always is when he gets like this.

Greg lets out a choked whimper as Nick takes as much as he can into his mouth, and Greg's never been as turned on as he is now, watching as his dick slides into Nick's mouth. "Nicky," he whispers, just loud enough that Nick looks up at him with half-lidded eyes, increasing his speed slightly when he meets Greg's gaze. Nick's free hand roams along the inside of Greg's thighs, pressing at all the right places. Greg tries not to squirm, but the pleasant circles Nick's fingertips are drawing on his skin and the torturous strokes of Nick's tongue make him thrust up into the heat of Nick's mouth. The hand against Greg's stomach disappears, silently permitting Greg to move as much as he wants.

Nick deliberately strokes himself in rhythm with the licking and sucking on Greg's dick, closing his eyes when Greg throws his head back and lets out a low moan that sounds suspiciously close to a sob. Nick speeds up the hand on himself as Greg thrusts into Nick's mouth again, crying out Nick's name as his release empties in Nick's throat, hands tugging at the sheets as Nick removes his mouth and swallows as his own orgasm peaks and he comes over the hardwood floor. He presses his face against Greg's thigh as he rides waves of pleasure.

He allows himself a moment to recover before he stands. He ignores his better judgment to clean up the mess and crawls across the bed on shaky legs to join Greg. Nick gently pulls Greg to him, wiping the sheen of sweat on his forehead away with a smile that Greg can't see through closed eyes.

"They're not all like this, Greg," Nick says when a few moments have passed in silence, their breathing having returned to normal.

Greg closes his eyes, pressing closer to Nick and sighing with lazy satisfaction. "I know."