Work Text:
“Peggy, I’m fine, I promise. Would you please stop hovering?” Jack grumbled, attempting to pull his elbow out of Peggy’s firm grip. In response, she only held on tighter, and he sighed in resignation.
A few paces ahead of them, Daniel began to climb the porch steps as he dug around for his house key. At Jack’s grumbling, he turned around with a teasing glare. “Jack, you were held captive for over 48 hours, forgive us if we’re a little bit hover-y at the moment.”
In all honesty, though, Jack had caught a glimpse of just how panicked they’d been. Peggy was being much more touchy than she usually would ever be with anyone except maybe Daniel, and even those displays of physical affection were usually kept to outside of work hours. The hand holding, gentle hands on his arms and shoulders, resting her head on Daniel’s shoulder, those were something Jack only saw when they met up for drinks after hours or at Howard’s mansion.
Daniel, on the other hand, was unusually distant, something in his gaze more shuttered than usual as he unlocked the door and opened it, standing aside as Peggy led Jack inside and straight to the downstairs bedroom.
Peggy pushed him onto the bed and began to rifle through dresser drawers.
“I’ll find you something to wear. It’ll probably be too small, but better than those clothes you’ve got on,” she explained, glancing back at him in his rumpled, dirty, sweaty suit he’d been wearing when the kidnappers had jumped him on his way out of the LA office. Peggy hadn’t hesitated to yell at him for working such late hours and leaving when no one else was there to make sure he made it home safely. As if she didn’t do the exact same thing.
Well, maybe she didn’t anymore, he thought as he watched Daniel tidy things off of end tables and dresser tops around the room. At least half the items were clearly Peggy’s, lipsticks and hair curlers and other things scattered about.
Interesting. Unconventional, living together before they were married, but for as often as Daniel had stayed at Howard’s LA mansion when he was convalescing there just a few short months ago, he couldn’t say he was surprised.
“Here, hopefully these will fit well enough,” Peggy said as she handed him a pair of soft pants and a light brown sweater, “we’ll let you change - call if you need assistance,” she said, hand resting softly on his shoulder before patting it once. Daniel nodded in agreement, gaze raking over Jack one more time as if double checking he was physically intact.
Jack rolled his eyes internally. Honestly, what a pair of mother hens.
…..
He had just finished changing when a gentle knock sounded at the bedroom door, and Peggy’s voice asked, “Are you decent?”
He voiced an affirmative, and had to admit he was a little surprised when Peggy entered the room holding what looked like a bowl of oatmeal.
“Yikes, Peggy, you trying to finish me off with your cooking?” he joked, trying to lighten the mood.
“Oh hush, Jack, I am capable of heating up water and adding an oatmeal packet,” she frowned at him teasingly. “Ah yes, and here’s the tea.” She reached out a hand to take a steaming mug from Daniel as he too entered the bedroom.
“Stop hovering, both of you. The doctors at the hospital already told you I’m not hurt. Just exhausted and ready to sleep for a week. Clearly those people, whoever they were, were hoping that keeping me awake with strobe lights and obnoxious music for days would make me break, but it didn’t, so it’s fine.” It almost wouldn’t have been, he thought, if they hadn’t found him when they did. At some point, he certainly would’ve given up some information to get a break, but Peggy and Daniel didn’t need to know that, even if they probably already did on some level.
“I wouldn’t call any amount of captivity or torture ‘fine,’ Jack, but we can certainly arrange for some uninterrupted sleep. Just eat something first, all right?” That came from Daniel, who gently reached out to Peggy and tugged on her elbow ever so slightly, causing her to reluctantly take a step back from Jack.
As the two of them quietly eased out of the room, Jack paused bringing a spoonful of oatmeal to his mouth to softly call, “Hey guys? Thanks. You know, for getting me out.”
“Always, Jack. Always.”