No Time To Ring The Alarm - Kradam - R
Title: No Time To Ring The Alarm
Author: jeyhawk
Beta: letitrainblue
Disclaimer: This is a work of fiction. fic•tion noun 1. a literary work based on the imagination and not necessarily on fact, 2. a deliberately false or improbable account [syn: fabrication]
Pairing: Adam/Kris
Rating: R
Word Count: ~ 6,000
Summary: Kris and Adam are detectives working undercover in a night club to solve a series of crimes when Kris's first case as a detective comes back to haunt him.
Notes: Some time ago jerakeen requested that someone write a fic where Kris and Adam worked undercover in a night club and jealousy happened. This is probably not the fic she expected, but uhm... there's jealousy and Kris almost dies in a fire (except he really doesn't).
Kris still thinks they should have let him do it, putting Adam on a stage is really just asking for trouble. Adam gets lost in the performance, shedding his clothes with far too much ease, swiveling his hips and rubbing his crotch in the face of the other dancers. After the first night they figured out he could sing as well, so now he's juggling a mic from hand to hand while working the crowd into a frenzy with his out of this world high notes and soft seductive croons. How is Kris supposed to do his job in the midst of that kind of mayhem?
The venue he’s playing at is not exactly a high end place, but it draws a pretty good crowd. They offer an eclectic mix of cabaret and striptease that you just don't see in many other places. With their all male cast they pull crowds pretty evenly made up of gay men, straight women and straight men hoping to get with the straight women. Kris thinks it's a pretty cool place, right up Adam's alley, which is how they ended up here to begin with, he's sure.
On the week days the crowd is manageable, scattered around the tables, or standing by the bars, on the weekends though the place is veritably packed to the roof. Adam eats it up of course, thrusting his dick in all their faces while Kris curses every God he's ever known for being saddled with Adam Lambert as a partner. Seriously, even Gokey would be better than this even if he almost got Kris killed the last time they worked together, and he spilled coffee all over Kris's favorite plaid shirt just last week.
At least Gokey wouldn't be able to multiply the crowds with his sheer stage presence, which of course Adam does as soon as word starts to spread about him, turning the place into a security nightmare. Kris even has to request back up because there's just no way he'll be able to cover the place alone, freaky ninja skills of being at the right place at the right time (or the wrong place at the wrong time if you ask Adam) aside. Of course the department sends him Matt and Anoop, which is the equivalent of asking for back up and getting comic relief, but once the weekend rolls around, he's grateful for their support, he really is.
The game plan, as designed by Chief Fuller, is for Adam and Kris to scout The Krystal trying to find the guy who's been targeting the show staff with hateful mail and freaky accidents. Chief Fuller already has a suspect, a disgruntled former manager, but the guy has dropped off the map and they have nothing to tie him to the incidents. The incidents have been scattered over the last six months, but since the last one nearly ended with the target dead, they're finally launching a full operation.
Adam is supposed to scout from the inside, fully undercover as nothing but a singer, while Kris is supposed to be visible, hopefully keeping the guy from doing something rash in the actual club. Of course that means Kris is not supposed to even acknowledge Adam's existence, which Kris thinks is pretty ridiculous. How do you not notice the guys simulating oral sex on the stage? So Kris spends most nights watching Adam out of the corner of his eye, while pretending he doesn’t even know he's there. It's all very tiring.
"He's hot, huh?"
It's a testament to how not in the zone Kris is that he doesn’t even notice the guy approaching until he slings an arm around Kris's shoulders. Kris tenses up immediately, if the guy lets his hand slip down he'll feel Kris's holster and they really don't need that kind of panic. This being a week night Kris is wearing what Adam calls his outdated yuppie suit with an old fashioned shoulder holster underneath. He really regrets that decision now, Adam's right, ankle holsters is where it's at.
"I guess," Kris finally answers, trying to slip out from under the creepy guy's arm without being obvious about it. His eyes flitter about the room, trying to spot Matt or Anoop, but they're both noticeable only by their absence.
"He's way out of your league, honey," creepy guy says, tightening his hold on Kris's shoulder. Kris could of course break free in a heartbeat but he doesn't want to draw attention to himself by causing a scene.
"I could show you a good time though." Creepy guy moves closer so that his beer heavy breath fans over Kris's face. Kris tries really hard to not scrunch up his nose and smiles politely.
"I think I'll take a rain check on that," he says, hoping he doesn't sound half as hostile as he does in his head.
"Scared, huh?" Creepy guy says and his fingers are really digging in hard enough to hurt now. "You pretty little virgin types always are."
Kris doesn't know if he should be affronted or just repulsed. He's so not a virgin, he even sucked a guy off in a club bathroom once, and even if he's still so mortified about that he didn't even tell Adam, it still happened and he liked it.
"Not scared," Kris says, letting an edge slip into his voice. "I'm just not interested."
"Oh, you think that now," creepy guy retorts and Kris finds himself with an unfamiliar tongue in his mouth.
He stays frozen to the spot for a second and before he can even react the guy is ripped away from him. Kris looks up to find Adam standing there with a murderous look on his face and one hand holding creepy guy by the back of his neck.
"Making friends?" Adam asks, and he sounds so pissed Kris takes half a step back.
Then before he can even begin to formulate an answer Adam pushes the creepy guy away with enough force for him to stumble to his knees, and lifts the mike he's still clutching in his other hand, launching into the second verse of I will survive without missing a beat. Kris blinks as Adam pivots on his heels and makes his way back towards the stage as if nothing just happened.
"Wow, what was that all about?" Anoop suddenly asks from somewhere behind Kris. "Are you guys fucking now? Because if so I need a date, I got a lot of money riding on this."
Kris ignores him and wipes the back of his hand over his mouth, heading for the nearest exit. He needs air.
*
Adam never gives a satisfying explanation for his little display at the club, and the following morning they are summoned to the lion's den at butt fuck a m, which gives them more pressing things to think about. Chief Fuller basically tells them he expects results before the week is over or he's pulling the plug on the entire operation. Only he's not nearly as nice, or rational.
"I still think he's wrong about it being the manager," Adam says as soon as they're out of the department and heading towards the nearest coffee shop. "For all we know that guy is managing a strip joint in Boca by now."
Kris pretty much agrees, but he's still kind of pissed about Adam laughing it off when he asked about the club thing.
"Who is then, Detective Brilliant?" he asks, and gets socked in the arm for his trouble.
"I don't know," Adam says, clearly exasperated. "If I did know the guy, he would be in a holding cell right now, but what I do know is that there's a pattern. We're just too blind to see it. Think, Kris. You're the one that's good at this stuff."
Kris rolls his eyes, partly because he's pretty sure he's not actually the brains of this operation and partly because Adam has a tendency to ninja roll all over his carefully laid plans. While Adam orders their coffee, Kris steals them a booth and whips out his notebook. He goes through the list of victims (there are ten in total) and the list of incidents, trying to think of something he missed before.
The incidents follows a pattern of sorts, first the victim receives a threatening note delivered to their home asking them to quit their job or else. Next, when the victim fails to comply something bad happens. The problem is that the incidents keeps changing, making it hard to pinpoint the guy's (if it is a guy) MO.
Chief Fuller is sure the guy is working himself up to full blown murder, but Kris is not sure he agrees. The last accident aside, and that could very well be an accident, the guy seems to be out to hurt rather than harm. Kris blinks, scanning the list again while brief snatches of conversation flashes through his mind.
Adam comes up to the table with a tray in his hands. He got coffee for both of them and a piece of cheesecake for Kris that he didn't ask for but that Adam knows he won't be able to resist. Watching Kris eat calorific things seems to be almost as fulfilling to Adam as eating them himself.
"I know that look," Adam says, sliding into the booth. "You're onto something, aren't you?"
"I don't know," Kris says, frowning. "And I'm not sure if it actually means anything, but I think he's targeting their most valued possessions, which means…"
"This guy knows them," Adam says triumphantly.
"Which means it's definitely someone on the inside," Kris continues.
"And if we can just figure out the motive…"
"We got him," Kris finishes.
They grin at each other for a moment, before sighing and slumping down in their seats. As long as they don't have the motive they don't have shit and their time is running out.
"Eat your cheesecake," Adam says glumly.
Kris picks up the fork and digs in, there's really nothing else to do. He feels like they've been going over the victims a million times already and besides the fact that they all work at The Krystal they just can't find a link. He's certain those guys were targeted for a particular reason, but he just can't get the dots to connect.
He wonders if this would be a good time to bring up the incident last night again, but glancing up at Adam's face he thinks it's probably not. They've been partners ever since Kris made detective and best friends pretty much as long. They just work on every imaginable level, and Kris kind of think they would work out amazingly as more too. He just doesn't know if Adam would be interested in that, and he's too chicken to put it out there without at least a hint that Adam wants it.
He sighs and takes another mouthful of cheesecake. It's blueberry with whipped cream and it's really amazing. It's a lot like Adam, delicious but probably not good for you. He never meant to fall in love with Adam. In fact he's pretty sure it's a fundamentally stupid thing to do, but he's not really all that good at controlling his emotions and he's even worse at hiding them, so Adam ought to have figured it out by now.
"I'm thinking about adding a song to my set," Adam says, looking out the window. "I really think the show needs to be a little more… sexy."
Since Adam is already simulating sex with the entire world up on that stage Kris doesn't really think so, but he doesn't say that of course. He's getting really good at not saying what's on his mind.
"Yeah?" he asks instead, focusing very intently on the contents of his coffee cup.
"Yeah," Adam affirms, a smirk firmly in place. "Just you wait and see, I'm gonna blow your mind."
Kris kind of wishes that wouldn't be the only thing Adam would blow, but he doesn't say that either. He's got practice with these things.
"Is it good?" Adam asks suddenly, changing the subject and giving Kris's cheesecake a longing look.
"Umph," Kris manages around his forkful and Adam's laughs. It's just another day at the job, really.
*
Walking into the club that night, for what feels like the hundredth time, Kris is really starting to rethink his career. He loves being a cop, he really does, but most cops don't have to come face to face with their partner half naked up on a stage tonguing another guy, which is what happens to Kris the minute he walks in through the doors. Adam really looks like he's enjoying himself too and the jealousy that wells up is so white hot, Kris is actually fumbling for his gun before he even remembers where and who he is.
He clenches his hands into fists instead and stuffs them into his pants pockets. He knew something like this would happen. He fucking knew it. Up on the stage Adam lets the guy go, launching into the next verse of whatever song he's singing, but that doesn't stop Kris from glaring daggers at the guy Adam just mauled. He's practically glowing, and Kris can see his erection all the way from the other side of the room. Shooting him is still an option Kris decides, it would be justified.
Adam chooses that moment to spot Kris and the bastard actually winks before turning his back to the door and sashaying over the stage to simulate some oral sex with another guy. Kris hates him, he really, really does.
"If I were you, I'd keep really, really still," someone suddenly says very close to Kris's ear.
Kris starts but before he can shift to give the guy a good look, something very familiar presses into his ribcage from the side, the barrel of a gun. It's cold, even through Kris's shirt, and he really picked the wrong day to not be wearing a shoulder holster.
"Now if you just come with me. No one will get hurt… except for you of course." The guy chuckles like he just made a great joke and the gun vibrates against Kris's side. This is not good, it's not good at all, but Kris can't seem to make eye contact with anyone. In the end he has no other choice but to follow the guy outside.
*
Whoever this guy is, Kris has yet to get a good look at him and since he's now blindfolded he suspects he won't ever get one, he knows his shit. This is not consistent with any of their suspects and Kris is starting to get really worried, maybe they've been looking at this the wrong way from the start. In no time the guy had Kris cuffed, gagged, thrown into the trunk of a car, moved to a new location and trussed up on a concrete floor like a Christmas turkey. Kris's life officially sucks.
The guy doesn't talk while he works and once Kris is securely tied up he's left alone. His arms are already aching from the awkward position and the chill of the concrete is rapidly numbing his side. He wonders how long it will take for someone to miss him. He usually talks to Adam on his breaks, if Kris doesn't pick up his phone he'll probably get suspicious. If he's not busy making out with his background dancer that is. Even in his current predicament Kris can apparently work himself into a fit of jealousy.
He tries to wrap his mind about what just happened, but nothing makes sense. Why would a guy go from pretty harmless destruction to kidnapping under gun threat? He tries to scrub the blindfold off against the floor, but it won't budge and he scratches his cheek up in the process. There's no give in the rope around his legs, but he tries to work himself loose anyway, twisting his feet back and forth. His phone in his back pocket and he stretches his arms downwards trying to reach it when a sound alerts him to the fact that he's about to have company again.
A door opens and then the muffled squeak of rubber soles against concrete reaching his ears. Kris tenses up, not sure what to expect. He's been in shitty situations many times before and dumb luck has had him landing on his feet, but everyone's luck runs out sometimes. The blindfold is yanked away suddenly and Kris squints against the light, trying to make sense of the blurry shape crouching in front of him. Then his vision clears and his blood goes icy cold.
"Remember me, do you, Detective Allen?" The guy smirks. "I figured you would."
Kris does remember. He doesn't think he'll ever be able to forget. Kris's and Adam's first case as partners dealt with a series of fires in a suburban neighborhood. At first it was pretty harmless, cars, garages and sheds. Property destruction but no one really got hurt, but that all changed overnight. They already had a suspect, a former convict with a passion for fire, means, and motive, but initial hearing gave them nothing and the evidence was just too slim to book him.
Then in a blaze of glory four homes were burned down over night. Everyone made it out, except for one person, Alicia Smith. Due to chronic insomnia she was heavily sedated and her husband, Henry Smith who is now crouching before Kris with an ugly smile twisting his lips, was working that night. She never heard the fire alarm and smoke asphyxiation killed her in her sleep.
"She was my everything," Henry says, eyes narrowing as he looks down at Kris. "My everything. I thought that maybe I could move on, that I had moved on… Then I saw the two of you the other night…"
Kris squeezes his eyes shut, sucking a breath through his nose. He wants to defend himself, wants to say something to change the mind of someone who was once a decent man before sorrow ate away at his soul, but the tape over his mouth keeps him muted and he's not sure if there are enough words in the world anyway.
They live with their failure every day. They knew they had the right man, they even had him under surveillance, but somehow he slipped through their net and set off four firebombs in the same night. There's not a day that goes by that Kris doesn't remember Alicia, his first loss. He even keeps a picture of her in his desk and whenever he hesitates, whenever his gut instinct tells him he's right when everyone else thinks he's wrong, he takes it out and just remembers.
"You said you were sorry," Henry says, eyes burning from within. "But how could sorry ever be enough?"
Kris shakes his head, trying to message Henry with his eyes. He is sorry, he's so fucking sorry, but he has to follow the law and sometimes the law sucks.
"He'll know what it feels like now," Henry says, smiling. "To lose your life but still be alive."
Kris shakes his head. It's not like that, it's never been like that. Then he thinks about Adam being in this situation and him being the one the outside and maybe Henry is right. Kris's punishment will be swift, Adam's will last forever.
"I just couldn't take it," Henry says. "Seeing you in that bar, the way you looked at each other…" He makes a disgusted face. "Did you go home and fuck after you killed my wife?"
Kris shakes his head violently, trying to make words but his frustrated sounds die against the tape. He's been so stupid for so many years and now he'll never be able to tell Adam how he feels.
Henry smiles, the corner of his eyes crinkling. "You can trash all you want, no one's going to hear you."
In Kris's back pocket his phone starts to buzz. He tenses sure that the low sound must be enough to alert Henry, but he's just staring at Kris with that unnerving smile on his lips. He takes a risk, straining his arms backwards to reach his pocket, but Henry doesn't even seem to realize what he's doing. The cuffs eat into his wrists, pulling hard on his skin, but somehow he manages to find the right button with his knuckles answering the call. He thinks Adam's faint hello rings out in the room like a boom, but maybe it's just panic making his ears strain, because Henry just shakes his head, looking pleased with Kris's struggles.
"You'll die here," Henry says. "And he will have failed you like you both failed my wife. This house has been abandoned for a long time, even if someone spots the fire, they won't think to look in the basement for a trussed up cop." Henry laughs and Kris sees the madness shining through like black filth covering his eyes.
Please Adam, he thinks. Please, please, please.
He doesn't even know if Adam is still on the line, or if the microphone is good enough to pick up Henry's words. Maybe Adam hung up when Kris didn't answer.
"Well," Henry says, standing up suddenly. "I guess this is goodbye. I'm sorry, I guess. I wish both our lives would have turned out differently."
Kris screams, but the sounds only reverberates through his head. He follows Henry with his eyes for as long as he can see him, then he disappears through the door Kris can only just barely make out from his vantage point and he's alone.
*
The fire started sometime ago. Kris can hear it crackling above him and wisps of smoke are trailing in under the door. It's dark and dank in the basement and the air still smells more like mold than smoke, but he supposes it's only minutes before he's in real trouble. It's a lot warmer now than it was just moments ago and he can see the reddish hue of flames through the grimy windows along the roof.
His phone is silent, maybe he just imagined Adam answering. He doesn't know. It's really getting hot now and the air is acrid with the stench of fire, making it hard to breath. Tears sting his eyes and clog his nose, making every breath a struggle until he starts to get dizzy with it. When his vision starts to blur, spots dancing in front of his eyes, he's grateful, letting himself be pulled under. His last thought is of Adam.
He wakes up to hands on his face and opens his eyes to find a guy in a yellow jump suit crouching down beside him. The wheels in his head connect kind of slowly, but he figures the guy must be a smoke diver. It's hard to see the guy's face through the plastic sheet covering his face, but Kris thinks he's smiling.
The gloved fingers on his face find the edge of the tape and the smoke diver nods once, before pulling it off. It hurts like a bitch and Kris coughs and coughs and coughs, sucking in breaths and coughing some more. Things starts to move faster after that, another smoke diver joins the first one and they cut the tie keeping his legs pulled to his hands. It hurts to straighten his legs out, yet he can barely feel them and much less operate them.
Then an oxygen mask is placed over his face and he's lifted onto a gurney. The oxygen feels like heaven and he inhales until his head is spinning with it, coughing weakly when it almost gets to be too much. His shoulders ache and his fingers prickle, but he thinks he's in better shape than expected for a guy who almost died in a fire. The smoke divers carry him out through a door and then up a small stair and cool night air hits his flaming face.
He hears shouting and looks around until he spots Adam, who is being held back by three uniforms. The display is surreal, Adam's dressed in one of his stage outfits, skin-tight scaly blue-grey pants and a flowing green silk shirt. It looks like the cops captured them an alien and Kris smiles behind his mask, unable to tear his eyes away.
Adam spots the gurney and there's just no way they're going to be able to hold him back after that. He twist, dives and rolls out of their hands, scrambling to his feet and running across the grass towards Kris. Kris would reach out for him if his hands weren't still cuffed behind his back, and someone should really get on unlocking the cuffs.
Adam falls into step with the gurney, desperate look on his face. "I'm so sorry," he says and his voice sounds absolutely wrecked. "God, I'm so fucking sorry."
Kris doesn't think Adam has anything to be sorry for and he tries to say as much but his voice is muffled by the mask.
"Shhh," Adam says, touching his clammy fingers to Kris's face for a moment. "You shouldn't be speaking."
Kris makes a frustrated sound and shifts to indicate the cuffs. He wants to be speaking damnit, but it's obvious Adam isn't going to be lifting the mask for him.
"Shit, do you have the keys?" Adam asks, fingers touching Kris's arm just above the wrist. "Your hands look like… blue."
"Wallet," Kris tries. "They're in my wallet."
Either Adam managed to decipher that, or he actually knows Kris keeps the keys for his cuffs in his wallet, because Kris finds himself being groped for a glorious second and then Adam's going through his wallet for the keys. He finds them and quickly unlocks the cuffs. Kris groans when blood starts to flow back into his limbs, it hurts but in a good way. He flops over fully on his back and lets his eyes slip shut, it's been a very very long day.
He opens his eyes again and smiles when Adam takes one of his hands between both of his, gently rubbing some life back into it. He curls his fingers, hooking them around Adam's wrist and just holds on. He's not going to chicken out this time, Adam will be his, end of story.
He looks up at the house just in time to see the roof cave in on itself with a tremendous roar, sending a cloud of ashes and debris up in the air. His stomach hurts when he realizes how close he came to dying in there. If Henry hadn't left him in the cellar, they would never have found him in time. Beside him Adam seems to have the same thought, because his fingers turn to steel around Kris's hand and he makes a choked off noise that hits Kris like a blow to the chest. He turns his head to look at Adam, but Adam's looking at the house, his face the picture of agony.
*
Kris is let out of the hospital in the wee hours of the morning. It seems the smoke didn't do any permanent damage to his lungs and he's predicted to be as good as new in a couple of days. His shoulders and knees still creak when he moves and he's got gauze wrapped around both his wrists from where the cuffs ate into his skin, but mostly he's just tired.
Adam is hovering by his side, looking even more out of this world now that the sun is coming up, bouncing off the glitter on his face. They haven't talked much, but Adam just won't stop touching him, this weird intense look on his face.
"Come home with me," Kris says, looking up at the colorful sky. He sounds rough, as if he spent all night screaming, but it no longer hurts to talk.
"Yeah," Adam says, hand warm and strong against Kris's shoulder.
A car pulls up with Anoop behind the wheel and Kris gratefully slides into the back seat, pulling Adam along with him. Anoop looks at them in the rearview mirror and smiles when he catches Kris's eyes.
"Today would be a good day," he says, winking at Kris.
Kris snorts and Adam looks between them with a confused wrinkle between his brows. "A good day for what?" he asks.
"Nothing," Kris says, patting his knee and putting his head down on Adam's shoulder.
Adam doesn't ask again but he's staring at Anoop with narrowed eyes as if he wants to look into his head. Kris is almost asleep when the car pulls up outside his house, eyes heavy and dry.
"Last stop," Anoop says cheerfully, and Kris manages a mumbled thanks.
It's almost fully light by the time Kris gets the door open and he takes a moment to look up at the sky.
"Beautiful, isn't it?" Adam says, but when Kris looks up at him he's not looking at the sky at all.
"Yeah," Kris answers, taking in Adam's smudged make up and the glitter in his hair. "It is."
Looking at Adam like this is like getting a glimpse of the real Adam, the one hidden under the well cut suits and polite smiles he wears for work. Kris thinks he likes the real Adam even more.
"You should have a shower," Adam says, ushering Kris inside with a hand to his back. "You kinda stink."
Kris nods, wishing he was brave enough to invite Adam to come with him. He really wants to, but looking at Adam the words die on his tongue. Why does it have to be so difficult? He carefully empties his pockets out, leaving keys, phone and wallet in a jumbled mess on the hallway table. He's pretty sure there's no saving his clothes, which is a shame because he really likes these pants.
He touches his phone for a moment, looking up at Adam. "Did you hear?" he asks.
Adam clenches his jaw and nods, nostrils flared. "I did. Shit Kris if I hadn't… Fuck." He scrubs a hand over his face and pinches the bridge of his nose. "Just go shower… please."
Kris feels torn because Adam looks like he really needs a hug, but he's also holding himself as if sympathy right now will make him break into a million little pieces. In the end Kris decides to give him some space, he needs to sort through his own head as well.
The shower is like heaven on his aching joints and Kris shampoos his hair too many times while trying to make sense of what went down tonight. Adam told him they found Henry's body not far from the house, he'd shot himself in the head. Kris wishes it didn't have to end like that, Henry was a decent man once, and his life will be another stone weighing his conscience down.
According to the fire fighters Kris should consider himself lucky that Henry left him in the basement. Had he been in the upper levels when the fire started he wouldn't have had a chance. Luckily, the basement was sturdy and the room Kris was in wasn't even under the house proper. He likes to think Henry left him there to give him a chance, but maybe he didn't think that far in his crazed state.
The bathroom is clouded in fog when Kris steps out of the shower and he thinks he's kind of grateful he can't see himself in the mirror. He caught a glimpse in the hospital bathroom and that was more than enough. The skin around his mouth is rubbed raw from the tape and he's got tiny cuts all over his cheek from where it was pressed against the concrete.
He towels off quickly, making his hair stand up in odd tufts and ends, he's sure, and wraps the towel around his waist. He didn't think to bring anything to put on and he can smell the sickly scent of smoke wafting off the clothes he just took off. He gathers them up in his arms, intent on finding a bag to throw them in.
Adam's on the bed when he steps out of the bathroom, sitting gingerly on the very edge with his head in his hands.
"Shower's free now," Kris says, and even if his heart's aching to touch, he doesn't step closer. "I'm just gonna find something to throw these in."
Adam looks up. His makeup is smeared beyond recognition, streaked all over his face. Kris still thinks he's beautiful. Adam opens his mouth to say something then he shakes his head and gets up from the bed. He heads directly for the bathroom and closes the door carefully behind him.
Kris finds a plastic bag in the kitchen and stuffs his clothes into it, tying it closed. He still thinks he can smell them so he throws the bag out on the porch just to be sure. He feels weird, disconnected, and he really needs to figure out what to do about Adam.
He goes back to the bedroom, busying himself with turning the covers down, closing the blinds and pulling on a pair of sweatpants to not feel fully as naked. He turns on the bedside light and sits down on the edge of the bed to wait. Adam doesn't keep him waiting for long, coming out of the bathroom trailed by a cloud of fog. He has one towel around his hair and another one around his waist. Kris thinks it's a very good look for him trailing his eyes over Adam's tiny pink nipples.
Adam stops when he sees him, giving him a nervous smile. "Hey," he says.
"Hey."
Adam fidgets a little, straightening the towel around his hair. Kris reaches out, wanting to touch but Adam takes a step back. He still looks like Kris's touch might break him apart.
"Are you in love with me?" Kris asks, because he's done with being subtle.
Adam's shoulders slump and he looks down on his feet, balling his hands into fists at his sides, but he doesn't answer.
"Because it would be really nice if you are. One sided love affairs kind of suck, don't you think?"
Adam looks up so fast Kris fears for his neck. Adam getting whiplash would be a really sucky way to end the night.
"If I'd died tonight my only real regret would have been never telling you how I feel," Kris continues. "Because even if you don't feel the same way, I want you to know."
Adam looks stunned, confused and hopeful in an about even mix.
"I'm in love with you," Kris says, looking into Adam's eyes. "And don't you dare tell me I'm straight… I never said that. You said that and by the point I realized I should really have corrected you, it was already too late and bringing it up would have turned into a sleazy come on."
"But you only date women," Adam says, and Kris should have known this would turn into a discussion about his sexuality.
"I would totally date men if I could find one that's better than you."
Adam half smiles. "I imagine that being pretty tough."
"Very," Kris agrees. "I'm kinda ridiculous about you."
Adam licks his lips. "Dating your partner is a really bad idea," he says, but he takes a step closer.
Kris nods. "So is being in love with your partner, but I think it's a bit late for me to try and do something about that."
Adam bounces on his heels a couple of time then he smiles so widely his jaw seems unhinged. "Relationships built on near death experiences don't last," he says. "I learned that from Speed."
Kris sighs and stands up. "This is the part where you shut up and kiss me, and then tell me you've been in love with me forever. In case you missed that."
Adam closes the distance between them and takes Kris's face between his hands. He blinks a couple of times, smoothing his thumbs over Kris's cheekbones. "I've been in love with you forever," he says and then he bends down, locking their lips together.
Kris slips his arms around Adam's neck and kisses him back. In the grand scale of things he's pretty happy Adam changed the order of progression, it might be a while before he lets Adam use his lips for words again.
"Oh," Adam says, pulling away suddenly. "I solved our case."
Kris blinks a couple of times, because right now he doesn't even understand what Adam's talking about.
"Our case," Adam repeats, smiling now. "At the club…"
"What… When… How?" Kris frowns, winding his fingers into Adam's hair. He thinks they should get back to the kissing now.
"I got a bit upset when you were gone…" Kris grins and Adam actually flushes. "Just a bit, okay? But apparently it was enough to make our culprit confess out of fear for his life."
Kris laughs, nuzzling his face against Adam's neck. "Did you yell at him?"
"Maybe… I didn't know it was him, okay, but he was standing in the way."
"And he confessed just like that?"
"Uh… yeah."
Kris leans back to be able to look up at Adam, who's looking equal parts embarrassed and happy.
"You were right, by the way," Adam says. "He only wanted to scare them. He was really upset over that one guy nearly getting killed."
Kris should probably care a lot more about this, since he's a cop and catching bad guys is his job, but the only thing he finds himself able to care about at the moment is the erection digging into his stomach and Adam's hands on his skin. He uses his grip on Adam's hair to pull him down for another kiss making sure that Adam knows that the talking part of the evening is now over because his tongue will be otherwise engaged.
Of course Adam has to ruin everything again with more words, but that's just Adam for you. "I really have been in love with you forever," he says, looking into Kris's eyes.
Kris smiles and pulls Adam down again until their lips are touching. "I'm not going to believe that unless you. Stop. Talking. Now."
Adam laughs, but he kisses Kris again, so it's all good. There'll be plenty of time to talk later, but if they don't get to the naked part soon Kris will die and everyone will be sad. Adam wouldn't want that on his conscience, Kris is sure.
The End
Author: jeyhawk
Beta: letitrainblue
Disclaimer: This is a work of fiction. fic•tion noun 1. a literary work based on the imagination and not necessarily on fact, 2. a deliberately false or improbable account [syn: fabrication]
Pairing: Adam/Kris
Rating: R
Word Count: ~ 6,000
Summary: Kris and Adam are detectives working undercover in a night club to solve a series of crimes when Kris's first case as a detective comes back to haunt him.
Notes: Some time ago jerakeen requested that someone write a fic where Kris and Adam worked undercover in a night club and jealousy happened. This is probably not the fic she expected, but uhm... there's jealousy and Kris almost dies in a fire (except he really doesn't).
Kris still thinks they should have let him do it, putting Adam on a stage is really just asking for trouble. Adam gets lost in the performance, shedding his clothes with far too much ease, swiveling his hips and rubbing his crotch in the face of the other dancers. After the first night they figured out he could sing as well, so now he's juggling a mic from hand to hand while working the crowd into a frenzy with his out of this world high notes and soft seductive croons. How is Kris supposed to do his job in the midst of that kind of mayhem?
The venue he’s playing at is not exactly a high end place, but it draws a pretty good crowd. They offer an eclectic mix of cabaret and striptease that you just don't see in many other places. With their all male cast they pull crowds pretty evenly made up of gay men, straight women and straight men hoping to get with the straight women. Kris thinks it's a pretty cool place, right up Adam's alley, which is how they ended up here to begin with, he's sure.
On the week days the crowd is manageable, scattered around the tables, or standing by the bars, on the weekends though the place is veritably packed to the roof. Adam eats it up of course, thrusting his dick in all their faces while Kris curses every God he's ever known for being saddled with Adam Lambert as a partner. Seriously, even Gokey would be better than this even if he almost got Kris killed the last time they worked together, and he spilled coffee all over Kris's favorite plaid shirt just last week.
At least Gokey wouldn't be able to multiply the crowds with his sheer stage presence, which of course Adam does as soon as word starts to spread about him, turning the place into a security nightmare. Kris even has to request back up because there's just no way he'll be able to cover the place alone, freaky ninja skills of being at the right place at the right time (or the wrong place at the wrong time if you ask Adam) aside. Of course the department sends him Matt and Anoop, which is the equivalent of asking for back up and getting comic relief, but once the weekend rolls around, he's grateful for their support, he really is.
The game plan, as designed by Chief Fuller, is for Adam and Kris to scout The Krystal trying to find the guy who's been targeting the show staff with hateful mail and freaky accidents. Chief Fuller already has a suspect, a disgruntled former manager, but the guy has dropped off the map and they have nothing to tie him to the incidents. The incidents have been scattered over the last six months, but since the last one nearly ended with the target dead, they're finally launching a full operation.
Adam is supposed to scout from the inside, fully undercover as nothing but a singer, while Kris is supposed to be visible, hopefully keeping the guy from doing something rash in the actual club. Of course that means Kris is not supposed to even acknowledge Adam's existence, which Kris thinks is pretty ridiculous. How do you not notice the guys simulating oral sex on the stage? So Kris spends most nights watching Adam out of the corner of his eye, while pretending he doesn’t even know he's there. It's all very tiring.
"He's hot, huh?"
It's a testament to how not in the zone Kris is that he doesn’t even notice the guy approaching until he slings an arm around Kris's shoulders. Kris tenses up immediately, if the guy lets his hand slip down he'll feel Kris's holster and they really don't need that kind of panic. This being a week night Kris is wearing what Adam calls his outdated yuppie suit with an old fashioned shoulder holster underneath. He really regrets that decision now, Adam's right, ankle holsters is where it's at.
"I guess," Kris finally answers, trying to slip out from under the creepy guy's arm without being obvious about it. His eyes flitter about the room, trying to spot Matt or Anoop, but they're both noticeable only by their absence.
"He's way out of your league, honey," creepy guy says, tightening his hold on Kris's shoulder. Kris could of course break free in a heartbeat but he doesn't want to draw attention to himself by causing a scene.
"I could show you a good time though." Creepy guy moves closer so that his beer heavy breath fans over Kris's face. Kris tries really hard to not scrunch up his nose and smiles politely.
"I think I'll take a rain check on that," he says, hoping he doesn't sound half as hostile as he does in his head.
"Scared, huh?" Creepy guy says and his fingers are really digging in hard enough to hurt now. "You pretty little virgin types always are."
Kris doesn't know if he should be affronted or just repulsed. He's so not a virgin, he even sucked a guy off in a club bathroom once, and even if he's still so mortified about that he didn't even tell Adam, it still happened and he liked it.
"Not scared," Kris says, letting an edge slip into his voice. "I'm just not interested."
"Oh, you think that now," creepy guy retorts and Kris finds himself with an unfamiliar tongue in his mouth.
He stays frozen to the spot for a second and before he can even react the guy is ripped away from him. Kris looks up to find Adam standing there with a murderous look on his face and one hand holding creepy guy by the back of his neck.
"Making friends?" Adam asks, and he sounds so pissed Kris takes half a step back.
Then before he can even begin to formulate an answer Adam pushes the creepy guy away with enough force for him to stumble to his knees, and lifts the mike he's still clutching in his other hand, launching into the second verse of I will survive without missing a beat. Kris blinks as Adam pivots on his heels and makes his way back towards the stage as if nothing just happened.
"Wow, what was that all about?" Anoop suddenly asks from somewhere behind Kris. "Are you guys fucking now? Because if so I need a date, I got a lot of money riding on this."
Kris ignores him and wipes the back of his hand over his mouth, heading for the nearest exit. He needs air.
*
Adam never gives a satisfying explanation for his little display at the club, and the following morning they are summoned to the lion's den at butt fuck a m, which gives them more pressing things to think about. Chief Fuller basically tells them he expects results before the week is over or he's pulling the plug on the entire operation. Only he's not nearly as nice, or rational.
"I still think he's wrong about it being the manager," Adam says as soon as they're out of the department and heading towards the nearest coffee shop. "For all we know that guy is managing a strip joint in Boca by now."
Kris pretty much agrees, but he's still kind of pissed about Adam laughing it off when he asked about the club thing.
"Who is then, Detective Brilliant?" he asks, and gets socked in the arm for his trouble.
"I don't know," Adam says, clearly exasperated. "If I did know the guy, he would be in a holding cell right now, but what I do know is that there's a pattern. We're just too blind to see it. Think, Kris. You're the one that's good at this stuff."
Kris rolls his eyes, partly because he's pretty sure he's not actually the brains of this operation and partly because Adam has a tendency to ninja roll all over his carefully laid plans. While Adam orders their coffee, Kris steals them a booth and whips out his notebook. He goes through the list of victims (there are ten in total) and the list of incidents, trying to think of something he missed before.
The incidents follows a pattern of sorts, first the victim receives a threatening note delivered to their home asking them to quit their job or else. Next, when the victim fails to comply something bad happens. The problem is that the incidents keeps changing, making it hard to pinpoint the guy's (if it is a guy) MO.
Chief Fuller is sure the guy is working himself up to full blown murder, but Kris is not sure he agrees. The last accident aside, and that could very well be an accident, the guy seems to be out to hurt rather than harm. Kris blinks, scanning the list again while brief snatches of conversation flashes through his mind.
Adam comes up to the table with a tray in his hands. He got coffee for both of them and a piece of cheesecake for Kris that he didn't ask for but that Adam knows he won't be able to resist. Watching Kris eat calorific things seems to be almost as fulfilling to Adam as eating them himself.
"I know that look," Adam says, sliding into the booth. "You're onto something, aren't you?"
"I don't know," Kris says, frowning. "And I'm not sure if it actually means anything, but I think he's targeting their most valued possessions, which means…"
"This guy knows them," Adam says triumphantly.
"Which means it's definitely someone on the inside," Kris continues.
"And if we can just figure out the motive…"
"We got him," Kris finishes.
They grin at each other for a moment, before sighing and slumping down in their seats. As long as they don't have the motive they don't have shit and their time is running out.
"Eat your cheesecake," Adam says glumly.
Kris picks up the fork and digs in, there's really nothing else to do. He feels like they've been going over the victims a million times already and besides the fact that they all work at The Krystal they just can't find a link. He's certain those guys were targeted for a particular reason, but he just can't get the dots to connect.
He wonders if this would be a good time to bring up the incident last night again, but glancing up at Adam's face he thinks it's probably not. They've been partners ever since Kris made detective and best friends pretty much as long. They just work on every imaginable level, and Kris kind of think they would work out amazingly as more too. He just doesn't know if Adam would be interested in that, and he's too chicken to put it out there without at least a hint that Adam wants it.
He sighs and takes another mouthful of cheesecake. It's blueberry with whipped cream and it's really amazing. It's a lot like Adam, delicious but probably not good for you. He never meant to fall in love with Adam. In fact he's pretty sure it's a fundamentally stupid thing to do, but he's not really all that good at controlling his emotions and he's even worse at hiding them, so Adam ought to have figured it out by now.
"I'm thinking about adding a song to my set," Adam says, looking out the window. "I really think the show needs to be a little more… sexy."
Since Adam is already simulating sex with the entire world up on that stage Kris doesn't really think so, but he doesn't say that of course. He's getting really good at not saying what's on his mind.
"Yeah?" he asks instead, focusing very intently on the contents of his coffee cup.
"Yeah," Adam affirms, a smirk firmly in place. "Just you wait and see, I'm gonna blow your mind."
Kris kind of wishes that wouldn't be the only thing Adam would blow, but he doesn't say that either. He's got practice with these things.
"Is it good?" Adam asks suddenly, changing the subject and giving Kris's cheesecake a longing look.
"Umph," Kris manages around his forkful and Adam's laughs. It's just another day at the job, really.
*
Walking into the club that night, for what feels like the hundredth time, Kris is really starting to rethink his career. He loves being a cop, he really does, but most cops don't have to come face to face with their partner half naked up on a stage tonguing another guy, which is what happens to Kris the minute he walks in through the doors. Adam really looks like he's enjoying himself too and the jealousy that wells up is so white hot, Kris is actually fumbling for his gun before he even remembers where and who he is.
He clenches his hands into fists instead and stuffs them into his pants pockets. He knew something like this would happen. He fucking knew it. Up on the stage Adam lets the guy go, launching into the next verse of whatever song he's singing, but that doesn't stop Kris from glaring daggers at the guy Adam just mauled. He's practically glowing, and Kris can see his erection all the way from the other side of the room. Shooting him is still an option Kris decides, it would be justified.
Adam chooses that moment to spot Kris and the bastard actually winks before turning his back to the door and sashaying over the stage to simulate some oral sex with another guy. Kris hates him, he really, really does.
"If I were you, I'd keep really, really still," someone suddenly says very close to Kris's ear.
Kris starts but before he can shift to give the guy a good look, something very familiar presses into his ribcage from the side, the barrel of a gun. It's cold, even through Kris's shirt, and he really picked the wrong day to not be wearing a shoulder holster.
"Now if you just come with me. No one will get hurt… except for you of course." The guy chuckles like he just made a great joke and the gun vibrates against Kris's side. This is not good, it's not good at all, but Kris can't seem to make eye contact with anyone. In the end he has no other choice but to follow the guy outside.
*
Whoever this guy is, Kris has yet to get a good look at him and since he's now blindfolded he suspects he won't ever get one, he knows his shit. This is not consistent with any of their suspects and Kris is starting to get really worried, maybe they've been looking at this the wrong way from the start. In no time the guy had Kris cuffed, gagged, thrown into the trunk of a car, moved to a new location and trussed up on a concrete floor like a Christmas turkey. Kris's life officially sucks.
The guy doesn't talk while he works and once Kris is securely tied up he's left alone. His arms are already aching from the awkward position and the chill of the concrete is rapidly numbing his side. He wonders how long it will take for someone to miss him. He usually talks to Adam on his breaks, if Kris doesn't pick up his phone he'll probably get suspicious. If he's not busy making out with his background dancer that is. Even in his current predicament Kris can apparently work himself into a fit of jealousy.
He tries to wrap his mind about what just happened, but nothing makes sense. Why would a guy go from pretty harmless destruction to kidnapping under gun threat? He tries to scrub the blindfold off against the floor, but it won't budge and he scratches his cheek up in the process. There's no give in the rope around his legs, but he tries to work himself loose anyway, twisting his feet back and forth. His phone in his back pocket and he stretches his arms downwards trying to reach it when a sound alerts him to the fact that he's about to have company again.
A door opens and then the muffled squeak of rubber soles against concrete reaching his ears. Kris tenses up, not sure what to expect. He's been in shitty situations many times before and dumb luck has had him landing on his feet, but everyone's luck runs out sometimes. The blindfold is yanked away suddenly and Kris squints against the light, trying to make sense of the blurry shape crouching in front of him. Then his vision clears and his blood goes icy cold.
"Remember me, do you, Detective Allen?" The guy smirks. "I figured you would."
Kris does remember. He doesn't think he'll ever be able to forget. Kris's and Adam's first case as partners dealt with a series of fires in a suburban neighborhood. At first it was pretty harmless, cars, garages and sheds. Property destruction but no one really got hurt, but that all changed overnight. They already had a suspect, a former convict with a passion for fire, means, and motive, but initial hearing gave them nothing and the evidence was just too slim to book him.
Then in a blaze of glory four homes were burned down over night. Everyone made it out, except for one person, Alicia Smith. Due to chronic insomnia she was heavily sedated and her husband, Henry Smith who is now crouching before Kris with an ugly smile twisting his lips, was working that night. She never heard the fire alarm and smoke asphyxiation killed her in her sleep.
"She was my everything," Henry says, eyes narrowing as he looks down at Kris. "My everything. I thought that maybe I could move on, that I had moved on… Then I saw the two of you the other night…"
Kris squeezes his eyes shut, sucking a breath through his nose. He wants to defend himself, wants to say something to change the mind of someone who was once a decent man before sorrow ate away at his soul, but the tape over his mouth keeps him muted and he's not sure if there are enough words in the world anyway.
They live with their failure every day. They knew they had the right man, they even had him under surveillance, but somehow he slipped through their net and set off four firebombs in the same night. There's not a day that goes by that Kris doesn't remember Alicia, his first loss. He even keeps a picture of her in his desk and whenever he hesitates, whenever his gut instinct tells him he's right when everyone else thinks he's wrong, he takes it out and just remembers.
"You said you were sorry," Henry says, eyes burning from within. "But how could sorry ever be enough?"
Kris shakes his head, trying to message Henry with his eyes. He is sorry, he's so fucking sorry, but he has to follow the law and sometimes the law sucks.
"He'll know what it feels like now," Henry says, smiling. "To lose your life but still be alive."
Kris shakes his head. It's not like that, it's never been like that. Then he thinks about Adam being in this situation and him being the one the outside and maybe Henry is right. Kris's punishment will be swift, Adam's will last forever.
"I just couldn't take it," Henry says. "Seeing you in that bar, the way you looked at each other…" He makes a disgusted face. "Did you go home and fuck after you killed my wife?"
Kris shakes his head violently, trying to make words but his frustrated sounds die against the tape. He's been so stupid for so many years and now he'll never be able to tell Adam how he feels.
Henry smiles, the corner of his eyes crinkling. "You can trash all you want, no one's going to hear you."
In Kris's back pocket his phone starts to buzz. He tenses sure that the low sound must be enough to alert Henry, but he's just staring at Kris with that unnerving smile on his lips. He takes a risk, straining his arms backwards to reach his pocket, but Henry doesn't even seem to realize what he's doing. The cuffs eat into his wrists, pulling hard on his skin, but somehow he manages to find the right button with his knuckles answering the call. He thinks Adam's faint hello rings out in the room like a boom, but maybe it's just panic making his ears strain, because Henry just shakes his head, looking pleased with Kris's struggles.
"You'll die here," Henry says. "And he will have failed you like you both failed my wife. This house has been abandoned for a long time, even if someone spots the fire, they won't think to look in the basement for a trussed up cop." Henry laughs and Kris sees the madness shining through like black filth covering his eyes.
Please Adam, he thinks. Please, please, please.
He doesn't even know if Adam is still on the line, or if the microphone is good enough to pick up Henry's words. Maybe Adam hung up when Kris didn't answer.
"Well," Henry says, standing up suddenly. "I guess this is goodbye. I'm sorry, I guess. I wish both our lives would have turned out differently."
Kris screams, but the sounds only reverberates through his head. He follows Henry with his eyes for as long as he can see him, then he disappears through the door Kris can only just barely make out from his vantage point and he's alone.
*
The fire started sometime ago. Kris can hear it crackling above him and wisps of smoke are trailing in under the door. It's dark and dank in the basement and the air still smells more like mold than smoke, but he supposes it's only minutes before he's in real trouble. It's a lot warmer now than it was just moments ago and he can see the reddish hue of flames through the grimy windows along the roof.
His phone is silent, maybe he just imagined Adam answering. He doesn't know. It's really getting hot now and the air is acrid with the stench of fire, making it hard to breath. Tears sting his eyes and clog his nose, making every breath a struggle until he starts to get dizzy with it. When his vision starts to blur, spots dancing in front of his eyes, he's grateful, letting himself be pulled under. His last thought is of Adam.
He wakes up to hands on his face and opens his eyes to find a guy in a yellow jump suit crouching down beside him. The wheels in his head connect kind of slowly, but he figures the guy must be a smoke diver. It's hard to see the guy's face through the plastic sheet covering his face, but Kris thinks he's smiling.
The gloved fingers on his face find the edge of the tape and the smoke diver nods once, before pulling it off. It hurts like a bitch and Kris coughs and coughs and coughs, sucking in breaths and coughing some more. Things starts to move faster after that, another smoke diver joins the first one and they cut the tie keeping his legs pulled to his hands. It hurts to straighten his legs out, yet he can barely feel them and much less operate them.
Then an oxygen mask is placed over his face and he's lifted onto a gurney. The oxygen feels like heaven and he inhales until his head is spinning with it, coughing weakly when it almost gets to be too much. His shoulders ache and his fingers prickle, but he thinks he's in better shape than expected for a guy who almost died in a fire. The smoke divers carry him out through a door and then up a small stair and cool night air hits his flaming face.
He hears shouting and looks around until he spots Adam, who is being held back by three uniforms. The display is surreal, Adam's dressed in one of his stage outfits, skin-tight scaly blue-grey pants and a flowing green silk shirt. It looks like the cops captured them an alien and Kris smiles behind his mask, unable to tear his eyes away.
Adam spots the gurney and there's just no way they're going to be able to hold him back after that. He twist, dives and rolls out of their hands, scrambling to his feet and running across the grass towards Kris. Kris would reach out for him if his hands weren't still cuffed behind his back, and someone should really get on unlocking the cuffs.
Adam falls into step with the gurney, desperate look on his face. "I'm so sorry," he says and his voice sounds absolutely wrecked. "God, I'm so fucking sorry."
Kris doesn't think Adam has anything to be sorry for and he tries to say as much but his voice is muffled by the mask.
"Shhh," Adam says, touching his clammy fingers to Kris's face for a moment. "You shouldn't be speaking."
Kris makes a frustrated sound and shifts to indicate the cuffs. He wants to be speaking damnit, but it's obvious Adam isn't going to be lifting the mask for him.
"Shit, do you have the keys?" Adam asks, fingers touching Kris's arm just above the wrist. "Your hands look like… blue."
"Wallet," Kris tries. "They're in my wallet."
Either Adam managed to decipher that, or he actually knows Kris keeps the keys for his cuffs in his wallet, because Kris finds himself being groped for a glorious second and then Adam's going through his wallet for the keys. He finds them and quickly unlocks the cuffs. Kris groans when blood starts to flow back into his limbs, it hurts but in a good way. He flops over fully on his back and lets his eyes slip shut, it's been a very very long day.
He opens his eyes again and smiles when Adam takes one of his hands between both of his, gently rubbing some life back into it. He curls his fingers, hooking them around Adam's wrist and just holds on. He's not going to chicken out this time, Adam will be his, end of story.
He looks up at the house just in time to see the roof cave in on itself with a tremendous roar, sending a cloud of ashes and debris up in the air. His stomach hurts when he realizes how close he came to dying in there. If Henry hadn't left him in the cellar, they would never have found him in time. Beside him Adam seems to have the same thought, because his fingers turn to steel around Kris's hand and he makes a choked off noise that hits Kris like a blow to the chest. He turns his head to look at Adam, but Adam's looking at the house, his face the picture of agony.
*
Kris is let out of the hospital in the wee hours of the morning. It seems the smoke didn't do any permanent damage to his lungs and he's predicted to be as good as new in a couple of days. His shoulders and knees still creak when he moves and he's got gauze wrapped around both his wrists from where the cuffs ate into his skin, but mostly he's just tired.
Adam is hovering by his side, looking even more out of this world now that the sun is coming up, bouncing off the glitter on his face. They haven't talked much, but Adam just won't stop touching him, this weird intense look on his face.
"Come home with me," Kris says, looking up at the colorful sky. He sounds rough, as if he spent all night screaming, but it no longer hurts to talk.
"Yeah," Adam says, hand warm and strong against Kris's shoulder.
A car pulls up with Anoop behind the wheel and Kris gratefully slides into the back seat, pulling Adam along with him. Anoop looks at them in the rearview mirror and smiles when he catches Kris's eyes.
"Today would be a good day," he says, winking at Kris.
Kris snorts and Adam looks between them with a confused wrinkle between his brows. "A good day for what?" he asks.
"Nothing," Kris says, patting his knee and putting his head down on Adam's shoulder.
Adam doesn't ask again but he's staring at Anoop with narrowed eyes as if he wants to look into his head. Kris is almost asleep when the car pulls up outside his house, eyes heavy and dry.
"Last stop," Anoop says cheerfully, and Kris manages a mumbled thanks.
It's almost fully light by the time Kris gets the door open and he takes a moment to look up at the sky.
"Beautiful, isn't it?" Adam says, but when Kris looks up at him he's not looking at the sky at all.
"Yeah," Kris answers, taking in Adam's smudged make up and the glitter in his hair. "It is."
Looking at Adam like this is like getting a glimpse of the real Adam, the one hidden under the well cut suits and polite smiles he wears for work. Kris thinks he likes the real Adam even more.
"You should have a shower," Adam says, ushering Kris inside with a hand to his back. "You kinda stink."
Kris nods, wishing he was brave enough to invite Adam to come with him. He really wants to, but looking at Adam the words die on his tongue. Why does it have to be so difficult? He carefully empties his pockets out, leaving keys, phone and wallet in a jumbled mess on the hallway table. He's pretty sure there's no saving his clothes, which is a shame because he really likes these pants.
He touches his phone for a moment, looking up at Adam. "Did you hear?" he asks.
Adam clenches his jaw and nods, nostrils flared. "I did. Shit Kris if I hadn't… Fuck." He scrubs a hand over his face and pinches the bridge of his nose. "Just go shower… please."
Kris feels torn because Adam looks like he really needs a hug, but he's also holding himself as if sympathy right now will make him break into a million little pieces. In the end Kris decides to give him some space, he needs to sort through his own head as well.
The shower is like heaven on his aching joints and Kris shampoos his hair too many times while trying to make sense of what went down tonight. Adam told him they found Henry's body not far from the house, he'd shot himself in the head. Kris wishes it didn't have to end like that, Henry was a decent man once, and his life will be another stone weighing his conscience down.
According to the fire fighters Kris should consider himself lucky that Henry left him in the basement. Had he been in the upper levels when the fire started he wouldn't have had a chance. Luckily, the basement was sturdy and the room Kris was in wasn't even under the house proper. He likes to think Henry left him there to give him a chance, but maybe he didn't think that far in his crazed state.
The bathroom is clouded in fog when Kris steps out of the shower and he thinks he's kind of grateful he can't see himself in the mirror. He caught a glimpse in the hospital bathroom and that was more than enough. The skin around his mouth is rubbed raw from the tape and he's got tiny cuts all over his cheek from where it was pressed against the concrete.
He towels off quickly, making his hair stand up in odd tufts and ends, he's sure, and wraps the towel around his waist. He didn't think to bring anything to put on and he can smell the sickly scent of smoke wafting off the clothes he just took off. He gathers them up in his arms, intent on finding a bag to throw them in.
Adam's on the bed when he steps out of the bathroom, sitting gingerly on the very edge with his head in his hands.
"Shower's free now," Kris says, and even if his heart's aching to touch, he doesn't step closer. "I'm just gonna find something to throw these in."
Adam looks up. His makeup is smeared beyond recognition, streaked all over his face. Kris still thinks he's beautiful. Adam opens his mouth to say something then he shakes his head and gets up from the bed. He heads directly for the bathroom and closes the door carefully behind him.
Kris finds a plastic bag in the kitchen and stuffs his clothes into it, tying it closed. He still thinks he can smell them so he throws the bag out on the porch just to be sure. He feels weird, disconnected, and he really needs to figure out what to do about Adam.
He goes back to the bedroom, busying himself with turning the covers down, closing the blinds and pulling on a pair of sweatpants to not feel fully as naked. He turns on the bedside light and sits down on the edge of the bed to wait. Adam doesn't keep him waiting for long, coming out of the bathroom trailed by a cloud of fog. He has one towel around his hair and another one around his waist. Kris thinks it's a very good look for him trailing his eyes over Adam's tiny pink nipples.
Adam stops when he sees him, giving him a nervous smile. "Hey," he says.
"Hey."
Adam fidgets a little, straightening the towel around his hair. Kris reaches out, wanting to touch but Adam takes a step back. He still looks like Kris's touch might break him apart.
"Are you in love with me?" Kris asks, because he's done with being subtle.
Adam's shoulders slump and he looks down on his feet, balling his hands into fists at his sides, but he doesn't answer.
"Because it would be really nice if you are. One sided love affairs kind of suck, don't you think?"
Adam looks up so fast Kris fears for his neck. Adam getting whiplash would be a really sucky way to end the night.
"If I'd died tonight my only real regret would have been never telling you how I feel," Kris continues. "Because even if you don't feel the same way, I want you to know."
Adam looks stunned, confused and hopeful in an about even mix.
"I'm in love with you," Kris says, looking into Adam's eyes. "And don't you dare tell me I'm straight… I never said that. You said that and by the point I realized I should really have corrected you, it was already too late and bringing it up would have turned into a sleazy come on."
"But you only date women," Adam says, and Kris should have known this would turn into a discussion about his sexuality.
"I would totally date men if I could find one that's better than you."
Adam half smiles. "I imagine that being pretty tough."
"Very," Kris agrees. "I'm kinda ridiculous about you."
Adam licks his lips. "Dating your partner is a really bad idea," he says, but he takes a step closer.
Kris nods. "So is being in love with your partner, but I think it's a bit late for me to try and do something about that."
Adam bounces on his heels a couple of time then he smiles so widely his jaw seems unhinged. "Relationships built on near death experiences don't last," he says. "I learned that from Speed."
Kris sighs and stands up. "This is the part where you shut up and kiss me, and then tell me you've been in love with me forever. In case you missed that."
Adam closes the distance between them and takes Kris's face between his hands. He blinks a couple of times, smoothing his thumbs over Kris's cheekbones. "I've been in love with you forever," he says and then he bends down, locking their lips together.
Kris slips his arms around Adam's neck and kisses him back. In the grand scale of things he's pretty happy Adam changed the order of progression, it might be a while before he lets Adam use his lips for words again.
"Oh," Adam says, pulling away suddenly. "I solved our case."
Kris blinks a couple of times, because right now he doesn't even understand what Adam's talking about.
"Our case," Adam repeats, smiling now. "At the club…"
"What… When… How?" Kris frowns, winding his fingers into Adam's hair. He thinks they should get back to the kissing now.
"I got a bit upset when you were gone…" Kris grins and Adam actually flushes. "Just a bit, okay? But apparently it was enough to make our culprit confess out of fear for his life."
Kris laughs, nuzzling his face against Adam's neck. "Did you yell at him?"
"Maybe… I didn't know it was him, okay, but he was standing in the way."
"And he confessed just like that?"
"Uh… yeah."
Kris leans back to be able to look up at Adam, who's looking equal parts embarrassed and happy.
"You were right, by the way," Adam says. "He only wanted to scare them. He was really upset over that one guy nearly getting killed."
Kris should probably care a lot more about this, since he's a cop and catching bad guys is his job, but the only thing he finds himself able to care about at the moment is the erection digging into his stomach and Adam's hands on his skin. He uses his grip on Adam's hair to pull him down for another kiss making sure that Adam knows that the talking part of the evening is now over because his tongue will be otherwise engaged.
Of course Adam has to ruin everything again with more words, but that's just Adam for you. "I really have been in love with you forever," he says, looking into Kris's eyes.
Kris smiles and pulls Adam down again until their lips are touching. "I'm not going to believe that unless you. Stop. Talking. Now."
Adam laughs, but he kisses Kris again, so it's all good. There'll be plenty of time to talk later, but if they don't get to the naked part soon Kris will die and everyone will be sad. Adam wouldn't want that on his conscience, Kris is sure.
The End