24 Fic: Staring Contest 1/1 (Tony/Michelle)
Hey! I know the challenge is technically over, but I had the idea for this fic as well, and so I wrote it anyway. :) I hope that was all right to do!
Title: Staring Contest
Fandom: 24
Characters: Michelle Dessler/Tony Almeida, George Mason
Word Count: 1,106
Rating: PG-13
Summary: From the moment he'd introduced his two subordinates, they had been doing that stupid little dance. They eyed each other, pretended that they weren't eyeing each other, and then eyed each other some more.
Author's Notes: This story was the second idea I had for the 2009 plotvariations challenge, but it also was something that had been brewing for a while. Slightly AUish.
He had never been one to get involved in the personal lives of his employees. He didn't particularly care for one thing, never had, and it wasn't in his job description to play relationship counselor when things didn't work out. He didn't go to work to socialize, but it was no skin off his nose if others did. As long as they got their work done and didn't expect him to stay past five to clean up any messes.
But these two… he liked watching these two. They amused the hell out of him. He'd never seen two adults make quite the circles that these two did. Since day one, from the moment he'd introduced his two subordinates, they had been doing that stupid little dance. They eyed each other, pretended that they weren't eyeing each other, and then eyed each other some more.
They probably had no idea that anyone noticed, but they weren't very subtle from his vantage point. He could see every time one of them lingered at the other's desk for a little longer than professional. If he was watching, he caught the body language that said they would just need an abandoned room and about a half hour to get everything out of their systems. Except for the fact that he knew Tony would never get his act together and do it, no matter how many clues Michelle threw his way.
So the guy'd gotten burned by Nina. Everyone had gotten burned by Nina. She'd done her best to screw everyone over as thoroughly as possible. Tony had gotten off easy, no pun intended, when it came to Nina's crimes. Besides, he should have known he needed to watch out; she'd been playing him and Jack Bauer against each other for months. The fact that she turned out to be a traitor was just another kick when he was down. It didn't mean he needed to make everyone miserable because he was afraid to get laid.
It was pretty pathetic, watching Tony make that face when he thought Michelle wasn't looking. Not that Michelle was much better; he saw the looks she sent Tony's way just as plainly. He saw her bringing Tony coffee in the morning when everyone else refused to poke the sleeping bear, smiling shyly and leaving Tony flustered in return. Those were the days when he laughed the hardest, when Michelle returned to her desk and she and Tony silently urged each other to just make the first move.
After four months, he joined them in their staring contest, in a manner of speaking. Tony was particularly ornery that day, and his patience was wearing thin. It was late and he was sick of pulling overtime because others weren't doing their work and were giving him attitude instead. They had a big operation coming; they couldn't afford to mess it up with stupid, amateur moves.
The staff meeting ended up being a complete clusterfuck, and when it was over he sent the entire department back to work, demanding that only Almeida stay. He was the one who should have been monitoring that system.
"Listen, George -"
"No, Tony, if you're too busy trying to get into Michelle's pants without actually having to talk to her, tell me and I'll get someone else to do your job. Because this is too important of an operation for you to blow it because you haven't had a lady friend in mon-"
That got a rise out of him. "Go to hell, George. I'm doin' my job as best I can with what we have. You don't need to be on my ass just because you think you're better than this place." He was talking fast, the vein in his forehead throbbing. Everyone knew the way to get to Tony was accuse him of not doing his job to the fullest. "Look, you want outta here, get us the resources we need to get this shit done faster. Then you can go back to your cushy job at District, and put your feet up."
Well, that sounded pretty good. If only Palmer would agree.
Tony turned to leave. "And stay outta my love life."
He scoffed, drawing him back. "What love life, Almeida? The only love life you've got is your right hand and those longing looks you keep shooting to our IP-Man."
Tony snarled. "You have no idea what you're talkin' about."
"Please, Tony. Nobody is that stupid that they don't notice. The good news is, she wants you too. Although, why is still beyond me."
Well, that got his attention. Tony's posture was still defensive, but at least the smoke wasn't coming out of his ears anymore.
"Would you please stop staring at each other when you're supposed to be working and just go out already? She's not gonna make the first move, Tony, she's too afraid you'll growl at her. And this is about as nice as I'm going to get; I'm not passing notes for you."
Tony's eyes flicked out toward the floor, widening when he apparently realized for the first time how easy it was to see Michelle's desk from the director's office.
"It's pretty damn funny to see you two going around in circles, Tony, but you're making me dizzy. And like it or not, you're making mistakes."
Tony said nothing, instead scratching his cheek quickly and crossing his arms. "Don't tell me how to do my job," he protested weakly. They both knew he hadn't been talking about the job.
"I'm not. I'm just offering some friendly advice. She's not gonna wait forever for you to get your act together, and then you're gonna be an even bigger jerk if she finds someone else. Do us all a favor and take some initiative, will ya?"
"I'm leaving now, George. I'll get everything taken care of, so you can knock off right now if you wanna."
George watched him stomp down the stairs and back to his desk, chuckling as Michelle's eyes tracked him the entire way. Tony scowled in his direction before giving Michelle a nod and going back to his work.
He was just getting ready to leave for the night when he saw Tony approach Michelle's desk, looking determined. He nodded to Tony on his way past them, waving to Michelle with a little smile. She called a goodbye to his back, and he bet her cheeks were a little pink. He chuckled. She was a sweet girl, and yet she still liked Almeida. Who knew?
The dance might be about to end, but he was ready to see what was next.
Title: Staring Contest
Fandom: 24
Characters: Michelle Dessler/Tony Almeida, George Mason
Word Count: 1,106
Rating: PG-13
Summary: From the moment he'd introduced his two subordinates, they had been doing that stupid little dance. They eyed each other, pretended that they weren't eyeing each other, and then eyed each other some more.
Author's Notes: This story was the second idea I had for the 2009 plotvariations challenge, but it also was something that had been brewing for a while. Slightly AUish.
He had never been one to get involved in the personal lives of his employees. He didn't particularly care for one thing, never had, and it wasn't in his job description to play relationship counselor when things didn't work out. He didn't go to work to socialize, but it was no skin off his nose if others did. As long as they got their work done and didn't expect him to stay past five to clean up any messes.
But these two… he liked watching these two. They amused the hell out of him. He'd never seen two adults make quite the circles that these two did. Since day one, from the moment he'd introduced his two subordinates, they had been doing that stupid little dance. They eyed each other, pretended that they weren't eyeing each other, and then eyed each other some more.
They probably had no idea that anyone noticed, but they weren't very subtle from his vantage point. He could see every time one of them lingered at the other's desk for a little longer than professional. If he was watching, he caught the body language that said they would just need an abandoned room and about a half hour to get everything out of their systems. Except for the fact that he knew Tony would never get his act together and do it, no matter how many clues Michelle threw his way.
So the guy'd gotten burned by Nina. Everyone had gotten burned by Nina. She'd done her best to screw everyone over as thoroughly as possible. Tony had gotten off easy, no pun intended, when it came to Nina's crimes. Besides, he should have known he needed to watch out; she'd been playing him and Jack Bauer against each other for months. The fact that she turned out to be a traitor was just another kick when he was down. It didn't mean he needed to make everyone miserable because he was afraid to get laid.
It was pretty pathetic, watching Tony make that face when he thought Michelle wasn't looking. Not that Michelle was much better; he saw the looks she sent Tony's way just as plainly. He saw her bringing Tony coffee in the morning when everyone else refused to poke the sleeping bear, smiling shyly and leaving Tony flustered in return. Those were the days when he laughed the hardest, when Michelle returned to her desk and she and Tony silently urged each other to just make the first move.
After four months, he joined them in their staring contest, in a manner of speaking. Tony was particularly ornery that day, and his patience was wearing thin. It was late and he was sick of pulling overtime because others weren't doing their work and were giving him attitude instead. They had a big operation coming; they couldn't afford to mess it up with stupid, amateur moves.
The staff meeting ended up being a complete clusterfuck, and when it was over he sent the entire department back to work, demanding that only Almeida stay. He was the one who should have been monitoring that system.
"Listen, George -"
"No, Tony, if you're too busy trying to get into Michelle's pants without actually having to talk to her, tell me and I'll get someone else to do your job. Because this is too important of an operation for you to blow it because you haven't had a lady friend in mon-"
That got a rise out of him. "Go to hell, George. I'm doin' my job as best I can with what we have. You don't need to be on my ass just because you think you're better than this place." He was talking fast, the vein in his forehead throbbing. Everyone knew the way to get to Tony was accuse him of not doing his job to the fullest. "Look, you want outta here, get us the resources we need to get this shit done faster. Then you can go back to your cushy job at District, and put your feet up."
Well, that sounded pretty good. If only Palmer would agree.
Tony turned to leave. "And stay outta my love life."
He scoffed, drawing him back. "What love life, Almeida? The only love life you've got is your right hand and those longing looks you keep shooting to our IP-Man."
Tony snarled. "You have no idea what you're talkin' about."
"Please, Tony. Nobody is that stupid that they don't notice. The good news is, she wants you too. Although, why is still beyond me."
Well, that got his attention. Tony's posture was still defensive, but at least the smoke wasn't coming out of his ears anymore.
"Would you please stop staring at each other when you're supposed to be working and just go out already? She's not gonna make the first move, Tony, she's too afraid you'll growl at her. And this is about as nice as I'm going to get; I'm not passing notes for you."
Tony's eyes flicked out toward the floor, widening when he apparently realized for the first time how easy it was to see Michelle's desk from the director's office.
"It's pretty damn funny to see you two going around in circles, Tony, but you're making me dizzy. And like it or not, you're making mistakes."
Tony said nothing, instead scratching his cheek quickly and crossing his arms. "Don't tell me how to do my job," he protested weakly. They both knew he hadn't been talking about the job.
"I'm not. I'm just offering some friendly advice. She's not gonna wait forever for you to get your act together, and then you're gonna be an even bigger jerk if she finds someone else. Do us all a favor and take some initiative, will ya?"
"I'm leaving now, George. I'll get everything taken care of, so you can knock off right now if you wanna."
George watched him stomp down the stairs and back to his desk, chuckling as Michelle's eyes tracked him the entire way. Tony scowled in his direction before giving Michelle a nod and going back to his work.
He was just getting ready to leave for the night when he saw Tony approach Michelle's desk, looking determined. He nodded to Tony on his way past them, waving to Michelle with a little smile. She called a goodbye to his back, and he bet her cheeks were a little pink. He chuckled. She was a sweet girl, and yet she still liked Almeida. Who knew?
The dance might be about to end, but he was ready to see what was next.