Numb3rs Writeoff - Team Schmoop - Abort
Title: Abort, Retry, Ignore, Fail
Author: CPWatcher
Pairing/Character: Ian Edgerton/Don Eppes
Rating/Category: FRAO/slash
Word Count: 2116
Spoilers: Season Three - Pandora's Box
Summary: Ian has a choice to make. Actually, four choices.
Notes/Warnings: Finally getting to post after the day from hell. Sorry if this is late in some areas.
This fic was written for the Angst vs Schmoop Challenge at numb3rswriteoff. After you’ve read the fic, please rate it by voting in the poll located here. (Your vote will be anonymous.) Rate the fic on a scale of 1 - 10 (10 being the best) using the following criteria: how well the fic fit the prompt, how angsty the fic was, and how well you enjoyed the fic. When you’re done, please check out the other challenge fic at numb3rswriteoff. Thank you!
You can vote on this fic here.
Abort, Retry, Ignore, Fail
Microsoft describes the following actions taken on Abort, Retry, Ignore, or Fail
Abort - The current application is terminated immediately. Unwritten disk buffers are NOT written to disk, the directory information is not updated, and modified interrupt vectors are not reset. Choosing this option can leave the system in a very unstable state.
Retry - The critical error handler signals MS-DOS to reissue the last function call made to the device that caused the critical error.
Ignore - The MS-DOS function call returns to the application program as if the function had completed successfully. For example, if the program is trying to read from the disk, MS-DOS tells the program that all is well. This can result in corrupted data in your disk file or in data returned to your application.
Fail - This causes MS-DOS to return to the application software with an error condition. In programming terms, the carry flag is set upon exit from the INT 21h DOS function call. This allows the application program to handle the error itself and take appropriate action, rather than letting MS-DOS do it.
Edgerton hadn’t expected Don to be happy to see him. Actually, he had. He knew the Crystal Hoyle case put Don through the ringer. So much so, that his now and again lover hadn’t asked him to stay over after all was said and done. Ian understood it, respected it even. Don had a lot to wrap his head around. Ian was willing to give him time.
But now it had been several months since the shooting, the first time he’d seen Don, and he had to admit he expected a warmer reception. Not that he thought Don would fall over, ass in the air, begging to be fucked. But hell, Baby Eppes gave him a bigger smile, was more excited about Ian being there.
Don hadn’t exactly been cold. But Ian clearly felt the temperature drop on the mountain. He saw and spoke more to Don’s back, getting short, if any, responses out of him. After a little while, Ian stopped trying to address Don, and spoke to the group at large.
By day two, Ian thought the situation between him and Don was almost actually laughable. Almost. It reminded him of the old computer options he was given when the system ran into a error. Abort, Retry, Ignore, or Fail. Sobering at that thought, Edgerton realized that those options were truly what he was faced with as far as dealing with Don was concerned. The question now was, which option should he choose, given that Don was giving up no middle ground.
Abort. He could just say ‘fuck it’, chalk up their previous encounters as good buddy fucks, and leave Agent Eppes the hell alone. Except, they weren’t just buddy fucks, or stress relief. Their times together meant something to him, and Ian was certain they meant something to Don as well. So that option was out.
Retry. Seemed like he kept pushing that button every time he spoke to Don. But just like with his computer, the result was another screen with the same four choices, or in Don’s case, starting back at square one.
Ignore. Ian scoffed at that. It was apparent Don had been choosing that option the moment he laid eyes on Ian back at the crash site. It wasn’t an option Ian was particularly fond of. Ignoring the issue never made it go away, just made it fester, it made things worse.
Fail. Ian had looked across the interrogation table at Don and knew failure wasn’t even an option. Don was hurting, deep. The kind of hurt that only another agent understood. Another agent who had killed to protect their own. No way was Ian ever going to leave Don out there to sway in the wind with that kind of drama.
So, Ian thought, where did that leave him. He thought again about all the times the computer gave him those options, those choices. All the times when he thought that none of those choices were enough. None of them were right.
Edgerton smiled to himself smugly. He actually had a fifth choice. One he used readily with his computer. One he was certain he could put to good use even where it concerned one stubborn son of a bitch agent named Don Eppes.
It was time for a reboot.
#~#~#~#~#~#
Don was tired by the time he’d pulled up to his apartment. He’d played cards with Dad, Millie and Charlie till late in the evening just to try and relax. To act as if everything was alright. But things weren’t alright. Seeing Ian, working with him again, just made things harder. It just made the jumbled mess inside his head that much more difficult to deal with.
Don was almost happy that Ian had given up on trying to talk with him. He knew he had been a bastard towards the other man. But he had to. Because Ian knew the truth. When Don first looked at Ian after shooting Crystal Hoyle, Don knew Ian knew the truth of why he shot first.
Yet Ian lied for him to the review board. Lied and said Don had the clearer shot. Bullshit. Both men knew it. And he couldn’t face Ian because of what he’d done. All the lines he’d crossed. All the lines he’d made Ian cross. It was too much. His wounds were still too raw.
So, in so many words, he told Ian to go fuck himself. And at the end of the case, when all the paperwork had been completed, it seemed Ian took him at his word. The sniper gave his goodbyes to the rest of the team when Don had gone to get a cup of coffee, and then Edgerton was gone. Don couldn’t even think about how much that hurt. He plastered on a smile that didn’t reach his eyes, congratulated the team for another good case, and spent time with the family. And now all he’d wanted to do was curl up in his bed and sleep, mourning the lost of someone he really cared about.
Don drank down a beer in less than three swallows and was about to have another when he heard a noise in his bedroom. He drew his gun, and silently walked to his closed bedroom door. Removing the safety, because he never closed his bedroom door, Don eased it slowly open.
Ian. Ian stretched out on his bed. Ian, naked, stretched out on his bed.
Don wanted to be pissed. Wanted to ask what the fuck Edgerton thought he was doing, breaking into his apartment. Wanted to ask who he thought he was. But Don was actually too relieved to see his sometimes lover, that he found he couldn’t say anything at all.
Ian rose gracefully from the bed, his muscles flexing sinuously, like one of the big cats in the wild. He crossed over to Don, placing his right hand around to the nape of Don’s neck, pulling him forward for a deep kiss, even as his left hand took away Don’s Glock.
Releasing Don, Ian reset the safety on the gun, placing it on the dresser. Returning to Don, Ian wordlessly began stripping the agent of his clothing. Don made no move to stop Ian, nor any sound at all. He merely moved his body in whatever position Ian urged him to go.
Ian was initially surprised that Don was yielding to him so quickly and completely. He figured he’d have to argue, or worse yet, manhandle Don into listening to him. The fact that the other agent fully complied to Ian’s direction signaled how far gone over the edge Don really was.
When Don was naked, Ian led him to the bed, directing him to lie down. Ian positioned Don on his side, facing away from him. Ian turned off the lights, and then scooted into the bed behind Don, spooning his body tight against his lover’s back.
Ian ran his hand up and down Don’s side in long, flowing caresses, and softly kissed the back of Don’s neck. Neither the touches nor the kisses were sexual. They weren’t meant to arouse. Instead, they were designed to ground Don, to center him.
No one spoke for almost twenty minutes, then Ian heard Don’s breath hitch. It was another five minutes before Don actually got any words past his tight throat.
“I’m sorry, for being such a bastard to you.”
Ian kissed his neck again. “Apology accepted.”
Don struggled to form the next sentences, but was silenced before he could speak with Ian’s fingers to his lips. “Shhh. Just listen. I know you’re going through hell right now. You crossed the line with Hoyle. I crossed it Buck. But it was necessary. A member of your team’s life was at stake. These animals killed for the sake of doing something. I don’t regret what I did to get Megan back. I’d do it again, in a heartbeat, under the same circumstances. Dogs like Buck and Crystal deserved to be hunted down and taken out before they hurt anyone else.”
Ian could feel Don shake and shudder against his body. He slipped his arms around Don, holding him tightly to his chest. “You’ve got to make peace with yourself about shooting Crystal. Whether or not you or I had the cleaner shot, it can’t ever be known. But what I do know is that Crystal wanted to die. Police assisted suicide. Whether it was your shot, mine or David’s, it doesn’t really matter. Hoyle was going to die on that stretch of blacktop. The only thing that really mattered was that she didn’t take anyone else with her.
“You are strong enough to get through this Don. And when you’re not, I’m right here with you to help, to talk, to make it better. There is no abort, ignore or failure with us Don. I care a whole hell of a lot about you. And I’m guessing you feel the same about me. Otherwise, I wouldn’t be here in bed with you, I’d probably be in the hospital with a gunshot wound to the leg.”
Don snorted at that and pulled Ian’s arms tighter around him. Ian kissed his shoulder. “Sleep, Eppes. Rest for a while. I’ve got your back.”
Don sighed and closed his eyes, finding that the elusive sleep he’d been plagued with since the shooting was nowhere to be found. In the comfort of Ian’s arms, Don found a measure of peace.
#~#~#~#
Epilogue
When Don awoke with a start, Ian ran his hand along Don’s arm to center him again. “Hey. It’s okay. I’m here. I’m right here. Not going anywhere,” Ian soothed.
“Shit, Ian. This is so fucked up. I’m so fucked up.”
“A little. But I’m here for you. Here with you. We’ll make it through this together.” Ian kissed Don’s shoulder again, this time nipping the skin lightly. Don moaned deep in his throat.
“I’ve missed you Ian. Missed being with you. I thought I’d lost you, lost this.”
Kissing Don’s neck, Ian replied “Not gonna get rid of me that easy Eppes.”
Don smiled. “Fuck me Ian. I need it, need you so damn bad.”
“No.”
Don tensed. Edgerton leaned up and over Don’s body. “I’m not gonna fuck you Don, but I will make love to you. So slow and tender your toes will curl and your brain will ooze out your ears.” Ian leaned in and kissed Don deeply, letting up only for gasps of air.
“Please.” Don rasped.
Lying down again behind his lover, Ian pushed Don’s leg forward with his own. He retrieved the tube of lube he’d placed under the pillow and slicked his fingers. Slowly and gently, Ian eased Don’s body open, kissing him on every inch of skin his mouth could reach. By the time Ian had three fingers inside, Don was panting breathlessly.
With slick cock, Edgerton slid unhurried into Don’s body. He rocked leisurely in and out. Shallow thrusts that skimmed Don’s prostate, setting his nerve endings ablaze.
Ian whispered softly in Don’s ear how good he felt, how right this was, how much he needed Don.
Before Don knew it his body was awash with sensations, his climax overloading his brain. As he started to drift away into the darkness that was beckoning him, Don heard Ian whisper “love you” and felt the heat of Ian’s essence flood his body.
Ian eased out of Don, pulled up the covers, and held his lover tight. They would get through this. There really were no other options.
#~#~# end #~#~#
Author: CPWatcher
Pairing/Character: Ian Edgerton/Don Eppes
Rating/Category: FRAO/slash
Word Count: 2116
Spoilers: Season Three - Pandora's Box
Summary: Ian has a choice to make. Actually, four choices.
Notes/Warnings: Finally getting to post after the day from hell. Sorry if this is late in some areas.
This fic was written for the Angst vs Schmoop Challenge at numb3rswriteoff. After you’ve read the fic, please rate it by voting in the poll located here. (Your vote will be anonymous.) Rate the fic on a scale of 1 - 10 (10 being the best) using the following criteria: how well the fic fit the prompt, how angsty the fic was, and how well you enjoyed the fic. When you’re done, please check out the other challenge fic at numb3rswriteoff. Thank you!
You can vote on this fic here.
Abort, Retry, Ignore, Fail
Microsoft describes the following actions taken on Abort, Retry, Ignore, or Fail
Abort - The current application is terminated immediately. Unwritten disk buffers are NOT written to disk, the directory information is not updated, and modified interrupt vectors are not reset. Choosing this option can leave the system in a very unstable state.
Retry - The critical error handler signals MS-DOS to reissue the last function call made to the device that caused the critical error.
Ignore - The MS-DOS function call returns to the application program as if the function had completed successfully. For example, if the program is trying to read from the disk, MS-DOS tells the program that all is well. This can result in corrupted data in your disk file or in data returned to your application.
Fail - This causes MS-DOS to return to the application software with an error condition. In programming terms, the carry flag is set upon exit from the INT 21h DOS function call. This allows the application program to handle the error itself and take appropriate action, rather than letting MS-DOS do it.
Edgerton hadn’t expected Don to be happy to see him. Actually, he had. He knew the Crystal Hoyle case put Don through the ringer. So much so, that his now and again lover hadn’t asked him to stay over after all was said and done. Ian understood it, respected it even. Don had a lot to wrap his head around. Ian was willing to give him time.
But now it had been several months since the shooting, the first time he’d seen Don, and he had to admit he expected a warmer reception. Not that he thought Don would fall over, ass in the air, begging to be fucked. But hell, Baby Eppes gave him a bigger smile, was more excited about Ian being there.
Don hadn’t exactly been cold. But Ian clearly felt the temperature drop on the mountain. He saw and spoke more to Don’s back, getting short, if any, responses out of him. After a little while, Ian stopped trying to address Don, and spoke to the group at large.
By day two, Ian thought the situation between him and Don was almost actually laughable. Almost. It reminded him of the old computer options he was given when the system ran into a error. Abort, Retry, Ignore, or Fail. Sobering at that thought, Edgerton realized that those options were truly what he was faced with as far as dealing with Don was concerned. The question now was, which option should he choose, given that Don was giving up no middle ground.
Abort. He could just say ‘fuck it’, chalk up their previous encounters as good buddy fucks, and leave Agent Eppes the hell alone. Except, they weren’t just buddy fucks, or stress relief. Their times together meant something to him, and Ian was certain they meant something to Don as well. So that option was out.
Retry. Seemed like he kept pushing that button every time he spoke to Don. But just like with his computer, the result was another screen with the same four choices, or in Don’s case, starting back at square one.
Ignore. Ian scoffed at that. It was apparent Don had been choosing that option the moment he laid eyes on Ian back at the crash site. It wasn’t an option Ian was particularly fond of. Ignoring the issue never made it go away, just made it fester, it made things worse.
Fail. Ian had looked across the interrogation table at Don and knew failure wasn’t even an option. Don was hurting, deep. The kind of hurt that only another agent understood. Another agent who had killed to protect their own. No way was Ian ever going to leave Don out there to sway in the wind with that kind of drama.
So, Ian thought, where did that leave him. He thought again about all the times the computer gave him those options, those choices. All the times when he thought that none of those choices were enough. None of them were right.
Edgerton smiled to himself smugly. He actually had a fifth choice. One he used readily with his computer. One he was certain he could put to good use even where it concerned one stubborn son of a bitch agent named Don Eppes.
It was time for a reboot.
#~#~#~#~#~#
Don was tired by the time he’d pulled up to his apartment. He’d played cards with Dad, Millie and Charlie till late in the evening just to try and relax. To act as if everything was alright. But things weren’t alright. Seeing Ian, working with him again, just made things harder. It just made the jumbled mess inside his head that much more difficult to deal with.
Don was almost happy that Ian had given up on trying to talk with him. He knew he had been a bastard towards the other man. But he had to. Because Ian knew the truth. When Don first looked at Ian after shooting Crystal Hoyle, Don knew Ian knew the truth of why he shot first.
Yet Ian lied for him to the review board. Lied and said Don had the clearer shot. Bullshit. Both men knew it. And he couldn’t face Ian because of what he’d done. All the lines he’d crossed. All the lines he’d made Ian cross. It was too much. His wounds were still too raw.
So, in so many words, he told Ian to go fuck himself. And at the end of the case, when all the paperwork had been completed, it seemed Ian took him at his word. The sniper gave his goodbyes to the rest of the team when Don had gone to get a cup of coffee, and then Edgerton was gone. Don couldn’t even think about how much that hurt. He plastered on a smile that didn’t reach his eyes, congratulated the team for another good case, and spent time with the family. And now all he’d wanted to do was curl up in his bed and sleep, mourning the lost of someone he really cared about.
Don drank down a beer in less than three swallows and was about to have another when he heard a noise in his bedroom. He drew his gun, and silently walked to his closed bedroom door. Removing the safety, because he never closed his bedroom door, Don eased it slowly open.
Ian. Ian stretched out on his bed. Ian, naked, stretched out on his bed.
Don wanted to be pissed. Wanted to ask what the fuck Edgerton thought he was doing, breaking into his apartment. Wanted to ask who he thought he was. But Don was actually too relieved to see his sometimes lover, that he found he couldn’t say anything at all.
Ian rose gracefully from the bed, his muscles flexing sinuously, like one of the big cats in the wild. He crossed over to Don, placing his right hand around to the nape of Don’s neck, pulling him forward for a deep kiss, even as his left hand took away Don’s Glock.
Releasing Don, Ian reset the safety on the gun, placing it on the dresser. Returning to Don, Ian wordlessly began stripping the agent of his clothing. Don made no move to stop Ian, nor any sound at all. He merely moved his body in whatever position Ian urged him to go.
Ian was initially surprised that Don was yielding to him so quickly and completely. He figured he’d have to argue, or worse yet, manhandle Don into listening to him. The fact that the other agent fully complied to Ian’s direction signaled how far gone over the edge Don really was.
When Don was naked, Ian led him to the bed, directing him to lie down. Ian positioned Don on his side, facing away from him. Ian turned off the lights, and then scooted into the bed behind Don, spooning his body tight against his lover’s back.
Ian ran his hand up and down Don’s side in long, flowing caresses, and softly kissed the back of Don’s neck. Neither the touches nor the kisses were sexual. They weren’t meant to arouse. Instead, they were designed to ground Don, to center him.
No one spoke for almost twenty minutes, then Ian heard Don’s breath hitch. It was another five minutes before Don actually got any words past his tight throat.
“I’m sorry, for being such a bastard to you.”
Ian kissed his neck again. “Apology accepted.”
Don struggled to form the next sentences, but was silenced before he could speak with Ian’s fingers to his lips. “Shhh. Just listen. I know you’re going through hell right now. You crossed the line with Hoyle. I crossed it Buck. But it was necessary. A member of your team’s life was at stake. These animals killed for the sake of doing something. I don’t regret what I did to get Megan back. I’d do it again, in a heartbeat, under the same circumstances. Dogs like Buck and Crystal deserved to be hunted down and taken out before they hurt anyone else.”
Ian could feel Don shake and shudder against his body. He slipped his arms around Don, holding him tightly to his chest. “You’ve got to make peace with yourself about shooting Crystal. Whether or not you or I had the cleaner shot, it can’t ever be known. But what I do know is that Crystal wanted to die. Police assisted suicide. Whether it was your shot, mine or David’s, it doesn’t really matter. Hoyle was going to die on that stretch of blacktop. The only thing that really mattered was that she didn’t take anyone else with her.
“You are strong enough to get through this Don. And when you’re not, I’m right here with you to help, to talk, to make it better. There is no abort, ignore or failure with us Don. I care a whole hell of a lot about you. And I’m guessing you feel the same about me. Otherwise, I wouldn’t be here in bed with you, I’d probably be in the hospital with a gunshot wound to the leg.”
Don snorted at that and pulled Ian’s arms tighter around him. Ian kissed his shoulder. “Sleep, Eppes. Rest for a while. I’ve got your back.”
Don sighed and closed his eyes, finding that the elusive sleep he’d been plagued with since the shooting was nowhere to be found. In the comfort of Ian’s arms, Don found a measure of peace.
#~#~#~#
Epilogue
When Don awoke with a start, Ian ran his hand along Don’s arm to center him again. “Hey. It’s okay. I’m here. I’m right here. Not going anywhere,” Ian soothed.
“Shit, Ian. This is so fucked up. I’m so fucked up.”
“A little. But I’m here for you. Here with you. We’ll make it through this together.” Ian kissed Don’s shoulder again, this time nipping the skin lightly. Don moaned deep in his throat.
“I’ve missed you Ian. Missed being with you. I thought I’d lost you, lost this.”
Kissing Don’s neck, Ian replied “Not gonna get rid of me that easy Eppes.”
Don smiled. “Fuck me Ian. I need it, need you so damn bad.”
“No.”
Don tensed. Edgerton leaned up and over Don’s body. “I’m not gonna fuck you Don, but I will make love to you. So slow and tender your toes will curl and your brain will ooze out your ears.” Ian leaned in and kissed Don deeply, letting up only for gasps of air.
“Please.” Don rasped.
Lying down again behind his lover, Ian pushed Don’s leg forward with his own. He retrieved the tube of lube he’d placed under the pillow and slicked his fingers. Slowly and gently, Ian eased Don’s body open, kissing him on every inch of skin his mouth could reach. By the time Ian had three fingers inside, Don was panting breathlessly.
With slick cock, Edgerton slid unhurried into Don’s body. He rocked leisurely in and out. Shallow thrusts that skimmed Don’s prostate, setting his nerve endings ablaze.
Ian whispered softly in Don’s ear how good he felt, how right this was, how much he needed Don.
Before Don knew it his body was awash with sensations, his climax overloading his brain. As he started to drift away into the darkness that was beckoning him, Don heard Ian whisper “love you” and felt the heat of Ian’s essence flood his body.
Ian eased out of Don, pulled up the covers, and held his lover tight. They would get through this. There really were no other options.
#~#~# end #~#~#