Chapter Text
“Whaaaaat is going on in here?”
Jack, who had just come in, closed the door to his apartment and looked around the kitchen: Mac was busying himself at the stove. And every other available surface. And things were ticking.
Mac glanced over his shoulder: “What's it look like?” he said, his tone the equivalent of an eye-roll.
Jack put down his overnight bag, walked over to Mac and wrapped his arms around him from behind, gently scratching the soft skin of his neck with his stubble in a way that made his partner shiver ever so delicately: “Hi,” he said, pressing a kiss just underneath Mac's ear. “It looks like you've finally gone mad and are planning on seizing world domination. I'mma say you're doing something slightly less risky, like cooking unsupervised, but it might be the jet lag...”
“Very funny,” Mac grumbled, leaning into the embrace a little but keeping his focus on what he was doing. “'I've got it all under control. I told Bozer what I had in mind, and he wrote down every single step and how to prepare the ingredients beforehand to avoid chaos. And I've brought a few timers, which is a great idea-”
Jack grinned: “A few?” There were timers everywhere, that's why the whole kitchen area was ticking.
“Well... 14,” Mac conceded. “One for the Ricotta melt, one for the zucchini blossoms, two for the roasted vegetables so I'll remember when to flip them over, one-”
Jack interrupted him: “You're cooking Italian for me?” he asked softly, his chin on Mac's shoulder: the sauce Mac was stirring in the pan was smelling heavenly, as was everything else. Jack was so touched that he could barely speak.
“When we were in Rome last week, you complained all the way back home because we didn't go and have dinner at that restaurant you kept talking about.” Mac shrugged: “So I thought... It's not comparable with genuine Italian five star cuisine, of course.”
Jack let go of him just enough so he could turn Mac around in his arms: “You kiddin' me?” he asked in a low voice, regarding the other. “I'll take this over any five star grub any time, darling.” Gently, he nuzzled Mac's nose with his own: “You're amazing. And I missed you.”
They kissed, slow and gentle, but then Mac pulled back: “I'm sorry,” he muttered against Jack's lips, “I missed you too, but I really don't want to burn this.”
Jack stole one more kiss: “Do you need any help?” he asked.
“No,” Mac looked a little sheepish. “It was actually supposed to be done by the time you got back, but I was held up and started too late.”
“It's still easily the best surprise I've ever gotten,” Jack said, beaming at him. A blush crept up Mac's neck as he turned back to the stove; sometimes, he was shy like that, but it was obvious that he was pleased.
By the time Jack had showered, changed into fresh clothes and unpacked, dinner was ready.
“So,” Mac said once he had put the last dish on the table and sat down himself while Jack was opening the bottle of wine he'd brought (Bozer's choice), “for my mental sanity- if you don't like it, just pretend it's the best you've ever eaten, okay?”
“I'll try,” Jack promised. “But if you've accidentally confused the salt with arsenic, I'll come back as a poltergeist and haunt you.”
“I'm not going to poison you,” Mac said in a long-suffering tone.
Jack took out his phone: “I'mma take a picture,” he said. “For evidence.”
“What's that worth if you're dead?”
“Sending it to Bozer now,” Jack smiled sunnily and put the phone down. “Seriously, hoss, this looks and smells fantastic.”
“Okay,” Mac still seemed sceptical. “Tuck in, then.”
Jack raised his wine glass: “In a sec. First: a toast.” His smile turned more serious: “Thank you for making such an effort for me, Mac,” he said quietly. “I can't even begin to tell you how much I appreciate it.”
Mac muttered something about not blowing it out of proportion and that nobody had died, after all, but he smiled back as they clinked their glasses: “I love doing things for you,” he replied softly. “It's... a good way to compensate for all the crazy that's going on in our lives.”
“Which we love,” Jack stated, but he regarded Mac carefully as he did so. He couldn't help it, he sometimes worried about the guy. The corners of Mac's mouth quirked up at that: “Yeah, we do,” he said, and it sounded honest, to Jack's relief. Because if Mac even had the slightest doubt, they'd both have to find new jobs, together.
Mac met Jack's gaze: “I wouldn't want to do anything else,” he said. “It's just a bit much, sometimes. So... I'm glad I've got you.” He paused, visibly considering what he'd just said: “I'm glad I've got a home with you, to be precise,” he then corrected himself.
Jack's eyes were getting a bit moist at that. He put his wine down, got up again, pulled Mac to his feet and hugged him tightly: “Ditto,” he said softly. “You got no idea, kiddo. And what you just said... it's basically what I meant earlier, but you put it better.”
“That's okay,” Mac murmured, his breath warm and moist on Jack's skin. “I understood.”
Jack didn't have to pretend at all: the food was really good, and they took their time enjoying it. Later, once they had put away the leftovers and cleaned the kitchen, Jack gathered all the kitchen timers: “Do you need these at home, or can we keep them here?”
Mac shrugged: “Keep them here, if you like. Why?”
“Well, now that I know what you are capable of without blowing anything up...” Jack grinned. “I could get used to this.”
“It won't be special if I do it all the time,” Mac said. “Also, it's been surprisingly nerve-wrecking. I think I'll need a while to recover.”
“Come here, professor.” Jack wrapped his arms around him once more and kissed him: “I love you, you know that, right?”
Instead of a verbal answer, Mac kissed him back.
“So, dinner was a success?” Bozer asked Jack a few days later, after making sure Mac was out of earshot.
“It. Was. Awesome!” Jack said. “Thank you for helping our boy with it, he was really proud that he pulled it off.”
Bozer waved his hand dismissively: “It's nothing,” he said. “I just nudged him into the right direction.”
“Riley said the nudging took three days and a test run on the zucchini blossoms,” Jack replied.
Bozer grinned: “Yeah, but that was actually for our mutual benefit, because I got to be chief taster.”
Jack shook his head: “We'll make a chef out of him yet.”
“I don't know about that,” Bozer said, “but I'll be happy as long as he stops burning stuff. Almost gives me a heart attack every time the fire detector goes off!”
Mac came in: “Matty wants us in the war room.” He paused, narrowing his eyes ever so slightly. “What are you talking about?”
Jack and Bozer answered simultaneously: “Football.” “Tsunamis.”
Mac frowned: “O-kay? You sure it wasn't something else? Like me managing not to burn down the kitchen last week?”
Bozer shook his head: “Man, you're obsessed with cooking lately,” he just said airily, taking off his lab coat. “You said Matty's waiting?” With that, he sauntered out of the room.
Jack grinned: “So what if we're proud of you? In fact, I'd give you all the stars, if I could.”
“I'll never cook again if everyone's making such a big deal out of it,” Mac muttered, turning towards the door. Jack caught him by his arm: “No, wait,” he said, pulling Mac close. “Please do. I promise we'll stop talking about it.”
“You better,” Mac replied, “because I'd actually really like to try my luck with Reese's gumbo one day.”
Jack mimicked zipping his mouth shut at that.
Mac flashed him a grin: “Sure that's wise?”
“Mmmh,” Jack made, shrugging, then kissing him. “Mmh?”
“Yeah, alright,” Mac laughed quietly. “Come on, Matty's waiting.”
“I am allowed to talk if it's not about your cooking, right?” Jack asked on their way up the stairs.
“Right.”
“What about ingredients?”
“What about them?”
“Am I allowed to ask about secrets?”
“I don't think I'm quite there yet.”
“You gonna tell me your secrets once you are?”
“Depends.”
“On what?”
“What did I just say about never cooking again?”
“Okay, I hear you. Shutting up now.”
“Good. And make sure to tell your friends.”
“Oh, they're my friends now, are they?”
They bantered all the way to the war room, where the rest of the team had already gathered.
During the briefing, Jack glanced at Mac a few times, unable to stop himself from smiling just so with his eyes.
Mac smiled back every time.