[advent 08] december fourteen
Tired. Only finished half of this. Part two tomorrow. Takes place in the AU from the first part of the senior project where Danny is a news anchor and Alan consults for the network and has a baby. This takes place about two months after they meet.
Part two tomorrow. Did I already say that? It's four am.
***
advent - day fourteen
original au - in which alan is continually freaked out by danny and there are almost christmas trees, or something.
***
Danny Stevens was sitting at Alan's desk when he got back to his office at the end of the day.
"Unless it's breaking news, I have to get home, Danny," Alan said, hovering nervously in the doorway, trying to project an aura of exasperation to hide his fluttering stomach. "Rose is going to spend the weekend with her parents."
Danny spun around in his chair, then said, "Do you have a Christmas tree?"
"I--" That hadn't been anywhere near what Alan had expected him to say. "No. Not yet. I haven't had time. I was going to go to the stand down the street from my apartment either this weekend or next."
"Aw, c'mon, Doc! You can't get a Christmas tree from some stand on the side of the road! That's no example to set for Keerthi. You need to go out into the wild and chop it down yourself!"
"The wild?" Alan said, blinking in confusion. "Danny, we live in Manhattan. There is no 'wild' here."
Danny was twirling the chair again. "You have to travel for quality, Doc. There's a good place out in Westchester."
"Westchester isn't the wild, Danny," Alan said. "I grew up in Westchester. My dad lives in Westchester."
Another twirl. "It might not be Westchester," he admitted. "It's... you know. Up there." He gestured futilely over his shoulder.
"New York state isn't divided into the city, Westchester, and upstate, you know," Alan pointed out. "It's kind of a huge place. I know you're a Johnny-come-lately, but you could due to learn a little--what are we talking about again?"
With one last twirl, Danny jumped off the chair and landed a few feed in front of Alan. Alan's heart jumped as well, and landed in his throat.
"Christmas trees," Danny said. "We should go this weekend. You and me and the baby. Hell, call your dad too, if you'd like."
They were standing only a few inches apart, which just meant that he had a chance to contemplate the absurd complexities of Danny Stevens from up close. It would have made more sense if he could work out Danny's motivations in the slightest, but the more time Alan spent with him, the more frustrated he was.
"You want to meet my dad?" Alan asked.
"I want to find a Christmas tree for the baby," Danny said. "But if your dad wants to come, that's okay, too." He smiled. "I'll come by and pick you up around nine tomorrow, okay?"
He was gone before Alan had a chance to reply, sliding through the small gap left in the doorway, humming "Deck the Halls" to himself as he disappeared down the hallway. Alan wasn't exactly sure how to react, other than to remind himself to breathe. It had been happening more and more, though he supposed it was his own fault. He probably shouldn't have kissed Danny and then went to Indonesia for a week. It wasn't his brightest idea, although he had hoped at the time that making the first move would spur Danny into action. Instead, Danny's flirtation had ratcheted up a notch, but he had yet to do anything but flirt. It seemed like they were still merely hovering over the precipice of something and it was starting to drive Alan just a little bit mad.
But the weekend promised another few hours around each other, another few hours of carefully dipping into each other's orbits, and that meant there was another chance to say something or do something to tip them over into the next step. And that was definitely better than nothing.
Part two tomorrow. Did I already say that? It's four am.
***
advent - day fourteen
original au - in which alan is continually freaked out by danny and there are almost christmas trees, or something.
***
Danny Stevens was sitting at Alan's desk when he got back to his office at the end of the day.
"Unless it's breaking news, I have to get home, Danny," Alan said, hovering nervously in the doorway, trying to project an aura of exasperation to hide his fluttering stomach. "Rose is going to spend the weekend with her parents."
Danny spun around in his chair, then said, "Do you have a Christmas tree?"
"I--" That hadn't been anywhere near what Alan had expected him to say. "No. Not yet. I haven't had time. I was going to go to the stand down the street from my apartment either this weekend or next."
"Aw, c'mon, Doc! You can't get a Christmas tree from some stand on the side of the road! That's no example to set for Keerthi. You need to go out into the wild and chop it down yourself!"
"The wild?" Alan said, blinking in confusion. "Danny, we live in Manhattan. There is no 'wild' here."
Danny was twirling the chair again. "You have to travel for quality, Doc. There's a good place out in Westchester."
"Westchester isn't the wild, Danny," Alan said. "I grew up in Westchester. My dad lives in Westchester."
Another twirl. "It might not be Westchester," he admitted. "It's... you know. Up there." He gestured futilely over his shoulder.
"New York state isn't divided into the city, Westchester, and upstate, you know," Alan pointed out. "It's kind of a huge place. I know you're a Johnny-come-lately, but you could due to learn a little--what are we talking about again?"
With one last twirl, Danny jumped off the chair and landed a few feed in front of Alan. Alan's heart jumped as well, and landed in his throat.
"Christmas trees," Danny said. "We should go this weekend. You and me and the baby. Hell, call your dad too, if you'd like."
They were standing only a few inches apart, which just meant that he had a chance to contemplate the absurd complexities of Danny Stevens from up close. It would have made more sense if he could work out Danny's motivations in the slightest, but the more time Alan spent with him, the more frustrated he was.
"You want to meet my dad?" Alan asked.
"I want to find a Christmas tree for the baby," Danny said. "But if your dad wants to come, that's okay, too." He smiled. "I'll come by and pick you up around nine tomorrow, okay?"
He was gone before Alan had a chance to reply, sliding through the small gap left in the doorway, humming "Deck the Halls" to himself as he disappeared down the hallway. Alan wasn't exactly sure how to react, other than to remind himself to breathe. It had been happening more and more, though he supposed it was his own fault. He probably shouldn't have kissed Danny and then went to Indonesia for a week. It wasn't his brightest idea, although he had hoped at the time that making the first move would spur Danny into action. Instead, Danny's flirtation had ratcheted up a notch, but he had yet to do anything but flirt. It seemed like they were still merely hovering over the precipice of something and it was starting to drive Alan just a little bit mad.
But the weekend promised another few hours around each other, another few hours of carefully dipping into each other's orbits, and that meant there was another chance to say something or do something to tip them over into the next step. And that was definitely better than nothing.