Fic: Coping Mechanisms, Chapter 1/2 (Numb3rs, Charlie Eppes / Colby Granger, Martin)
Title: Coping Mechanisms, Chapter 1/2
Fandom: Numb3rs
Pair: Charlie Eppes / Colby Granger,
Don Eppes / Martin Fridegord
Rating: PG
Disclaimer: Not mine, etc.
Feedback: Always Welcome
NUMB3RS Main List
Follows:
On the Edge, Chapter 1/2
On the Edge, Chapter 2/2
Break the News
“Anyone home?” Martin knocked on the door and walked in.
“How did you get in?” Colby wondered as he came from the kitchen.
“I got a key.”
“You got a key?”
“Yep, Don’s key. Where’s Charlie?”
“I finally got him to lay down and take a nap.”
“How’s he doing?”
“He’s…. dealing with it.” Colby turned bright red.
“Dealing with it…. how?”
Colby considered it for a minute. “Okay, I’ll tell you. You want coffee?”
“Sure.” Martin slumped down to the couch and Colby fetched two mugs of coffee.
“You know how he focuses on something when he wants to get something away from his mind?” Colby started.
“Yeah.”
“And when he gets going he keeps going and going….”
“I remember….” Martin chuckled.
“I don’t want to hear about that.”
“So, what exactly is he focusing on?”
“Two things. Math and me.”
“You mean….”
“Yeah. I’ve been on my back so often I’m going to get bedsores if he doesn’t come up with some other security blanket.”
“Did you call doctor Hayes?”
“He’s already had one session with him. That doctor said Charlie’s using sex to convince himself of his authority over his own body and his sexual encounters.”
“Sound understandable. I think that’s an Eppes family trait. Don does that too.”
“Seriously?”
“Yeah, every time he’s upset about something his libido goes into overdrive. “Except after that incident with Cooper. After that he couldn’t bare to be touched at all.”
“So…. What do you do when he has that…. recovery phase?”
“Usually I just tire him out so that he can’t hide behind it.”
“Tire him out? I’m not sure if that’s possible with Charlie….”
“I remember.” Martin grinned.
“I told you I don’t want to hear about it.”
“Sorry. But remember that you can always say no, no matter how much you want to help him. If you don’t want to do it, then say it.”
“I do want to do it, it’s not about that. But I’m currently running on two hours of sleep per night. I go to work to get some sex-free rest.”
“He’ll calm down, it’s been a week. Give him time.”
“I’ll give him time, but I’m not sure how long I can last. Even before this he was always like…. like….”
“Like what?”
“Like a bunny-eared vibrator with a never-ending supply of batteries.”
“I’ve never heard that description before.”
“Me neither, I was thinking about last night-” Colby’s brain seemed to catch his mouth and he turned red again. “Forget it. How’s Don?”
“Feeling guilty. He’s on his I’m-fine-let’s-talk-about-something else- phase.”
“He has nothing to feel guilty about. He didn’t have anything with it.”
“I know that and you know that, and Charlie knows that. Everyone knows that, but he doesn’t listen. I think it got worse after he heard that phone call Ian recorded.”
“That was pretty creepy. When I heard that I wanted to grab Cooper’s neck and twist until his nose was at his backside. Then I remembered the stairs already did that.”
“And he caused it himself. No matter how I think about it, I can’t help thinking it was karma.”
“You believe in that stuff?”
“Well, not karma. But my Granma always used to say “What goes around comes around”. Maybe that’s what happened here.” He paused. “She also kept saying that you can get haemorrhoids from drinking too much couch syrup, so we didn’t really listen too carefully.”
“Morning.” Charlie greeted them from the stairs. He had wrapped a bathrobe around himself, and he rubbed his eyes sleepily. “How long did I sleep?”
“It’s not morning, it’s almost six PM. And you slept for an hour.”
“Not enough.” Charlie sat down in Colby’s lap. “I’m still tired.”
“You could go back to sleep.”
“Or you could come back to bed with me and sing me a lullaby.”
“Charlie….”
“Yeah…..” He was too focused on nibbling his partners neck to notice the third man in the room.
“We’re not alone.”
Charlie detached his lips from Colby’s skin and turned to look at Martin.
“When did you get here?”
“About ten minutes ago.” Martin commented.
“Before or after I woke up?”
“Before.”
“Why didn’t you say anything?” Charlie got up and went to Martin. He sat down next to him and prodded his head on his shoulder. “You know I like to see nice people…. eople…. ople….. ple…..”
He sounded like a wind-up toy loosing it’s speed, and the last words were followed by a loud snore.
“I think his batteries are running low.” Martin grinned.
“Finally!” Colby sighed. “Maybe now I can get some sleep.”
“Are you gonna leave him here?”
“Have you ever slept on that couch?”
“No.”
“I have, and it wasn’t very nice.” Colby snaked his arm under Charlie’s legs and another one around his back, lifting him up.
“Need help?”
“I’ll handle it.” Colby headed to the stairs. “Did you want to talk about something else?”
“No, I just dropped by. Go tuck him in.” Martin emptied his coffee cup. “I’ll show myself out.”
“Good night.”
“Good night. Night? Well… whatever works for you.”
Chapter 2/2