Author's Note: Middleman does not belong to me. I just love it so!
Rating:PG-13 (For *Bleeps*, and slight "rough love")
Pairing: MM/WW, Hinting of Noser/Lacey
Summary: The Middleman learns two things on Thursday...
Author's Second Note: This has not been beta-ed, so I hope it reads okay! This is also my first MM fic, so I hope I did the show some justice, LOL! Enjoy!
"Dance Space" of the illegal sublets Wendy Watson, Lacey Thornfield, Noser, Joe 90, and Pip
(AKA: The basement/Laundry room)
Dance!Dance! Time
(Or: Midnight-ish)
She was ignoring his call. Which he acknowledged, wasn’t unusual for her. But he was beginning to get worried by the tenth alert he had sent to her communicator. So, he decided that he must pay Wendy Watson a visit. What he had not known was what happened on this certain day of the week. It was Thursday. And to those who were illegally subletting the apartment building, it was “Thursday Drunk”.
Music was blasting through the room, bottles of beer, wine, vodka, and other alcoholic beverages adorned the top of the washer and dryer. The basement was filled with people. Most of them The Middleman recognized from Art Crawl. He greeted Noser, who leaned against the wall by the doorway, people watching.
“Hello, Noser.” The Middleman said cheerfully.
“Hey, Wendy’s Boss.” Noser greeted him, “What are you doing here?”
“I’m looking for Dubbie…” His gaze traveled the room, “What’s going on here? Some sort of hootenanny?”
Noser simply smiled at his choice of words and answered his question like he was answering the question ‘Is the sky blue?’. “It’s Thursday Drunk.”
“Thursday Drunk?” The Middleman repeated, mildly intrigued, his eyebrows raised.
“Every first Thursday of the month, we all get together and get drunk, dance, and occasional get in a paint war.”
“Sounds…fun.”
“I assure you, it is.” Noser inclined his head toward the middle of the room, “Your Wendy Watson is dancing with Lacey.”
The Middleman followed Noser’s gaze and found Wendy dancing closely with Lacey. Her arms were over her head, her hips gyrating to the music, a happy smile upon her lips. He was momentarily mesmerized. He was a man, after all…and she, a very attractive woman…
He quickly snapped himself out of his thoughts. As her boss, he couldn’t allow himself to think of her like that…nothing but trouble would come of it…Wendy lifted her eyes and met his gaze. There was no surprise in her eyes. That was his girl; she could always roll with whatever came her way. He watched as she grabbed Lacey’s wrist and shimmied and shook her way through the crowd.
Wendy stopped in front of her boss and gave Lacey a little fling, sending her tumbling into Noser’s arms. Lacey, who was a little more than tipsy, wrapped her arms around his neck and promptly cuddled to his chest. Wendy grinned and shook her head. When intoxicated, Lacey was a cuddler. Noser drew her close and laughed into her hair.
“I take it you’re not here for Thursday Drunk.” Wendy addressed her boss, crossing her arms over her chest.
“Sadly, Dubbie, I’m here for a different matter.” The Middleman responded, “We have an emergency meeting to get to.”
She sighed deeply and headed up the stairs, stumbling slightly. He Middleman caught her around waist, steadying her.
“Are you intoxicated, Dubbie?” he asked.
“It is Thursday Drunk.” Was her only answer.
They got into the lift, standing side by side, and headed up to her floor. She slightly swayed as the elevator moved.
“You’re in no condition to fight crime, Dubbie.” He said, attempting to be stern, but failing as she smiled up at him her eyes lighting with enthusiasm.
“I’m in perfect condition!” she objected.
The elevator came to a jolting stop and Wendy fell down. The Middleman simply looked down at her.
“I can see that.” He answered with a small sigh.
He picked her up, ignoring her protest and threats of castration, and carried her into her loft. He maneuvered through the apartment and up to her room, placing her on the bed.
“[Bleep!]” Wendy blurted out a generic dirty word for no particular reason other than to see his reaction.
He gave her a look, a mix of exasperation and amusement, and hit a button on his Middlewatch. A tiny compressor appeared from the left side of the face. He removed it and knelt down in front of her. Inside the gadget was an elixir that neutralized the effects of alcohol. Now he just needed to distract her so he could use it. Even drunk, he was quiet sure she could still put up one heck of a fight, despite her lack of balance.
What could he do that would distract her thoroughly enough that he could give her the elixir and avoid grave bodily harm? Then an idea hit him. It wasn’t the best idea, given his aforementioned thought about being her boss and the boundaries that he shouldn’t cross. But it was the best plan he could think of.
The Middleman leaned in and kissed her on the lips…
Without hesitation, Wendy returned his kiss, her eye lids drifting shut. His kiss…it left her speechless. It was everything she had ever thought it could be; tender, passionate, and----
“[BLEEP] a duck! What the [BLEEP]! [BLEEP!]” Wendy cried as a stinging pain radiated through her neck.
“Sorry, Dubbie” The Middleman said softly, showing her the device.
Instantly, Wendy lost her buzz as the elixir kicked in and she groaned loudly, thoroughly unhappy.
“Oh man! You’re such an [BLEEP]!” she frowned deeply at him, “Was that really necessary?”
“The elixir or the kiss?” he asked, smiling somewhat, hoping that she wouldn’t cause him grave bodily harm over both incidents.
“The elixir! I was in tip-top shape to fight!”
His brows furrowed together. “Then you aren’t mad over the kiss?”
“Uh, why would I be?” She stood and looked down at him with a small smile, “Now will ya turn around so I can change?”
The Middleman obliged, he was a gentleman after all. He was relieved that things were still okay between them, even though he had kissed her. Though, he knew that he would kiss her again whenever the moment presented itself. He had crossed the line and found himself not wanting to go back.
He waited only moments before she tapped him on the shoulder. He turned and found her fully dressed in her Middlegear.
”Let’s go save the world.” She said, smiling that smile that she got right before she got to go kick ass.
They headed downstairs and he opened the door for her. She walked a head of him and paused just outside the door. He followed after, closing the door behind him. Without warning, her fist lashed out and cold clocked him in the stomach. The Middleman doubled over slightly with a grunt. Wendy bent down so she could look him in the eyes.
“The next time you kiss me like that or shoot me in the neck with some sort of concoction, you better make it worth my while.” She warned him, then straightened and smiled from ear to ear, “Whoo! Let’s go save the world!”
And that they did, for many times to come. And as fate would have it, the world never needed saving on a Thursday again.
The End