the double exposure job, Leverage, Rish
Fandom: Leverage
Title: the double exposure job
Characters/Pairings: Nate/Eliot, Sophie, mentions of Hardison and Parker
Rating: R
Word Count 1073
Summary: Sophie's untimely discovery of the relationship between Nate and Eliot, threatens to blow the entire con.
A/Ns & warnings: Written for jesco123, who won me in the latest dollars4dreams auction. I hope this serves.
They had always been discrete about it. Whatever it actually was. None of the team knew, though Hardison had asked Eliot where he and Nate had gotten off to more than once.
It wasn't really that they were hiding it…it was just…personal.
It wasn't like they were in love or anything as soppy sounding as that.
It was just sometimes, at night Nate needed something hard and fast and bruising…and sometimes Eliot needed to be touched and cared for and somewhere in there they had found this…thing.
It only ever happened on the job, or just as they finished with one.
This time it was Eliot who needed something, and a few minutes distraction turned into comms pulled out and shut off, doors locked and we'll shower it off in the morning.
Nate thought they'd been quiet, thought they had gotten away clean. Eliot slipped out of his room before dawn, and Nate had crawled back into bed to savor the ache in his hips and ribs, his fingers playing along the bruises Eliot's fingers had left behind.
He dragged himself to the shower when his alarm went off. They still had a con to run, and their mark was a dangerous man, capable of landing the lot of them in prison if even the slightest mistake was made.
They had been nearly home free when he'd learned he was wrong.
Sophie had seen them. In the hallway. She had heard them, through the thin walls of the hotel. She had asked Nate about it, and he'd brushed it off, said Eliot was just checking in before heading to deal with his end of the con…he didn't think she was suspicious and Eliot was already too far inside to call him back even if he thought Sophie was putting it all together.
She was meant to be Eliot's back up, the door holder so that he could get out if things went south. Only the distraction was all her own as she put together the clues and called him out. He wasn't even sure what he said that triggered it, or if something in the tone of his voice was different…there was just suddenly Sophie's voice in his ear, "Nate, are you sleeping with Eliot?"
Eliot had responded first, his single word filled with anger and doubt and loud enough to be the end of the entire game. The fight that followed was bloody, messy.
The con was blown and Eliot was exposed.
He fought like hell as Nate yelled at the others out, scrambling to get to Eliot, the gun in his hand heavy. He was too late, of course. The mark and his men were gone and Eliot lay still, unmoving in a smear of blood on concrete.
"Hardison, get an ambulance here now." Nate said quietly as he dropped to one knee.
Eliot groaned as Nate touched him. "Okay, easy."
"Fuck." Eliot grabbed at him and tried to pull himself up, but Nate pushed him back down.
"Stop, lay still. Help is coming."
"No." Eliot said through his teeth, hissing as Nate's hand brushed the knife sticking out of his shoulder.
"Yes." Nate insisted. "You're bleeding all over."
The knife had done far more damage than just the wound in his shoulder. There was a bloody gash across the stomach of his shirt as well and the bruises hadn't even really begun to develop, but were going to be deep and dark when they did.
He lifted the shirt to get a look at the wound. Eliot's hand met his, pushing it away. "It's not as bad as it looks."
Nate shook his head. "You can't even see it."
Eliot grinned, his teeth stained with blood. "I see your face. I've had worse."
There were sirens in the distance and when Nate looked up, Sophie was standing there, her face pale, her eyes wide. "I'm so sorry-"
Nate held up a hand to silence her. "Not now."
EMTs ran to them and brushed Nate aside. He rose from his kneeling position and went to stand beside Sophie, looking down at his bloody hands. They stood silently watching as the EMTs worked, then shifted to lift Eliot onto the gurney.
"He's going to be okay." Sophie said as they wheeled him toward the open door.
"He better be." Nate responded, pulling away from the comfort she tried to offer.
"Nate-"
He shook his head. "No. Not yet."
Her hand pulled on his arm. "I didn't mean to-"
"I know." He started to pry her hand loose, but realized he was bloody and settled for shrugging away from her. "But you put Eliot's life in danger." He turned to look back at her.
"It just all made sense. I don't know why I said it." She shook her head. "I mean, I saw you this morning and you were with Eliot…I just didn't…" She shook her head again and looked him in the eye. "I didn't realize you were…or he was…"
Nate sighed and turned to follow Eliot. "We can talk about this later."
He wanted to make sure Eliot was going to be all right, make sure Parker and Hardison had gotten a safe distance away. He wanted to get Eliot's blood off his hands and see what could be salvaged of the con.
He didn't have time to coddle Sophie through her insecurities.
"Is that why we…you and me…"
Nate got the ambulance just as they were closing the doors. "I'm going to ride with him, get back to the others."
He sat beside Eliot who turned his face toward Nate. "How did she…" He grimaced as the ambulance drove over potholes and speed bumps on its way to the main road.
Nate shook his head. "Sophie's smart. She figured us out."
Eliot's face was pinched. "Makes one of us." Eliot said after a long silence. His blue eyes were sharp as they met his. "I mean, seriously…what are we doing?"
Nate sighed and shrugged. "Whatever it is, we don't have to hide it anymore."
"Is that what we were doing?" Eliot asked. His eyes were closed when Nate looked back. "Hiding?"
"I don't know. Maybe." Nate responded. They were exposed now though. No point in denying whatever this was. "But you know Sophie. She won't let it go now."
Eliot snorted and opened one eye. "She'll have us registering for china patterns by this time next week."
Title: the double exposure job
Characters/Pairings: Nate/Eliot, Sophie, mentions of Hardison and Parker
Rating: R
Word Count 1073
Summary: Sophie's untimely discovery of the relationship between Nate and Eliot, threatens to blow the entire con.
A/Ns & warnings: Written for jesco123, who won me in the latest dollars4dreams auction. I hope this serves.
They had always been discrete about it. Whatever it actually was. None of the team knew, though Hardison had asked Eliot where he and Nate had gotten off to more than once.
It wasn't really that they were hiding it…it was just…personal.
It wasn't like they were in love or anything as soppy sounding as that.
It was just sometimes, at night Nate needed something hard and fast and bruising…and sometimes Eliot needed to be touched and cared for and somewhere in there they had found this…thing.
It only ever happened on the job, or just as they finished with one.
This time it was Eliot who needed something, and a few minutes distraction turned into comms pulled out and shut off, doors locked and we'll shower it off in the morning.
Nate thought they'd been quiet, thought they had gotten away clean. Eliot slipped out of his room before dawn, and Nate had crawled back into bed to savor the ache in his hips and ribs, his fingers playing along the bruises Eliot's fingers had left behind.
He dragged himself to the shower when his alarm went off. They still had a con to run, and their mark was a dangerous man, capable of landing the lot of them in prison if even the slightest mistake was made.
They had been nearly home free when he'd learned he was wrong.
Sophie had seen them. In the hallway. She had heard them, through the thin walls of the hotel. She had asked Nate about it, and he'd brushed it off, said Eliot was just checking in before heading to deal with his end of the con…he didn't think she was suspicious and Eliot was already too far inside to call him back even if he thought Sophie was putting it all together.
She was meant to be Eliot's back up, the door holder so that he could get out if things went south. Only the distraction was all her own as she put together the clues and called him out. He wasn't even sure what he said that triggered it, or if something in the tone of his voice was different…there was just suddenly Sophie's voice in his ear, "Nate, are you sleeping with Eliot?"
Eliot had responded first, his single word filled with anger and doubt and loud enough to be the end of the entire game. The fight that followed was bloody, messy.
The con was blown and Eliot was exposed.
He fought like hell as Nate yelled at the others out, scrambling to get to Eliot, the gun in his hand heavy. He was too late, of course. The mark and his men were gone and Eliot lay still, unmoving in a smear of blood on concrete.
"Hardison, get an ambulance here now." Nate said quietly as he dropped to one knee.
Eliot groaned as Nate touched him. "Okay, easy."
"Fuck." Eliot grabbed at him and tried to pull himself up, but Nate pushed him back down.
"Stop, lay still. Help is coming."
"No." Eliot said through his teeth, hissing as Nate's hand brushed the knife sticking out of his shoulder.
"Yes." Nate insisted. "You're bleeding all over."
The knife had done far more damage than just the wound in his shoulder. There was a bloody gash across the stomach of his shirt as well and the bruises hadn't even really begun to develop, but were going to be deep and dark when they did.
He lifted the shirt to get a look at the wound. Eliot's hand met his, pushing it away. "It's not as bad as it looks."
Nate shook his head. "You can't even see it."
Eliot grinned, his teeth stained with blood. "I see your face. I've had worse."
There were sirens in the distance and when Nate looked up, Sophie was standing there, her face pale, her eyes wide. "I'm so sorry-"
Nate held up a hand to silence her. "Not now."
EMTs ran to them and brushed Nate aside. He rose from his kneeling position and went to stand beside Sophie, looking down at his bloody hands. They stood silently watching as the EMTs worked, then shifted to lift Eliot onto the gurney.
"He's going to be okay." Sophie said as they wheeled him toward the open door.
"He better be." Nate responded, pulling away from the comfort she tried to offer.
"Nate-"
He shook his head. "No. Not yet."
Her hand pulled on his arm. "I didn't mean to-"
"I know." He started to pry her hand loose, but realized he was bloody and settled for shrugging away from her. "But you put Eliot's life in danger." He turned to look back at her.
"It just all made sense. I don't know why I said it." She shook her head. "I mean, I saw you this morning and you were with Eliot…I just didn't…" She shook her head again and looked him in the eye. "I didn't realize you were…or he was…"
Nate sighed and turned to follow Eliot. "We can talk about this later."
He wanted to make sure Eliot was going to be all right, make sure Parker and Hardison had gotten a safe distance away. He wanted to get Eliot's blood off his hands and see what could be salvaged of the con.
He didn't have time to coddle Sophie through her insecurities.
"Is that why we…you and me…"
Nate got the ambulance just as they were closing the doors. "I'm going to ride with him, get back to the others."
He sat beside Eliot who turned his face toward Nate. "How did she…" He grimaced as the ambulance drove over potholes and speed bumps on its way to the main road.
Nate shook his head. "Sophie's smart. She figured us out."
Eliot's face was pinched. "Makes one of us." Eliot said after a long silence. His blue eyes were sharp as they met his. "I mean, seriously…what are we doing?"
Nate sighed and shrugged. "Whatever it is, we don't have to hide it anymore."
"Is that what we were doing?" Eliot asked. His eyes were closed when Nate looked back. "Hiding?"
"I don't know. Maybe." Nate responded. They were exposed now though. No point in denying whatever this was. "But you know Sophie. She won't let it go now."
Eliot snorted and opened one eye. "She'll have us registering for china patterns by this time next week."