Work Text:
You were dancing in your tube socks in our hotel room
Flashing those eyes like highway signs
It had been years, nearing a decade, since you had last seen Luke Alvez.
You had been close friends for the longest time, an unlikely friendship that lasted through his time in the Army. Letters had traversed the oceans, catching up with him and with you no matter where in the world he was sent. Deep conversations, private, things that you had never dreamed of sharing with someone like Luke. Not to say he was a terrible person or anything, but he wasn’t the kind of person that you would have thought would be sending you letters and photos from wherever he was, thinking those kinds of things to be more reserved for someone special. He never specified if he had someone waiting for him, or if he sent letters to anyone else, but something in the back of your mind told you that he wasn’t that kind of person.
When he was discharged from the Army though, the letters stopped. They were replaced by text messages and the occasional call, but then it altogether stopped.
You knew of his plan to join the FBI, but that was pretty much the end of the road, at least for seven years.
You hadn’t seen him in seven years. The last time the two of you had spent time together was before he left, spent staring up at the stars from the damp ground of a desolate spot outside of the city. The two of you had been joking with each other, laughing at the other’s expense until Luke just suddenly shut down. He went silent, gaze fixed on the sky above before he admitted his fear of what was coming aloud. The fear of heading into an unknown war zone that he could very well not come out of, a fear that plagued you as well.
You curled into him while he spilled his guts to you, not knowing if this was the last time or the only time you ever got to do this with him.
Seven years.Seven.
Now, in the present, you never really expected to run into him. Especially not when you’re on a mini-vacation, a few days just to clear your head from working too much and life in general. A friend of yours had been begging you to come stay with her for a few days on the East Coast, so you finally took her up on the offer.
Except, when you get there, a note on the counter tells you that she had an emergency and would be at work for at least the next day. Day one of three you had to spend with her was now gone, but that was all a part of being an adult. She left a small list of things on the counter as suggestions to get you out of the house, insisting them to be safe places considering there had apparently been a few murders in the city in the last month.
You immediately cross off two of the places, noting them to be bar-like joints, not wanting to go to one of those alone. You settle on the coffee shop three blocks from her apartment, in a well-traveled and populated area.
The shop is small, taking up half of the space it could, with a few comfy chairs scattered around the room. You settle into one by the window with your drink, thankful for the cold liquid as you watch a few people pass by just outside of the glass. When you look away for just a second then turn back, the door is opening and a group of three comes into the shop, moving to the counter.
“What do you think Rossi would want?” The blonde woman asks, turning and meeting your momentary gaze as you watch them.
“Knowing him, black coffee. The strongest they have.”
You don’t even have to see his face to recognize his voice, that same voice that confessed his fear to you seven years prior. When you do look over at him, though, it feels like stepping through a portal through time. He glances across the way at you, and he immediately forgets what he was going to say to the guy next to him, who turns to look at you as well out of curiosity.
The blonde woman and the other man get their drinks and tell Luke they’ll be waiting outside, turning to quickly exit the shop as Luke picks up his coffee from the counter.
You’re sitting in shock, still unsure whether or not you’re dreaming, confusion and amazement setting in that he’s walking toward you. He sets the coffee down on the table next to yours, his lips parting like he wants to say something. You’re sliding from the chair and into his arms before you can stop yourself, inhaling the scent of laundry detergent as you glance at his left hand.
No ring, to your amazement.
“I can’t believe-“
“What are you doing he-”
Both of you begin at once, stopping when the other realizes they’ve begun a sentence, followed by a burst of slightly nervous laughter.
“You go first.” Luke states, motioning for you to sit back down as he sits in the chair across from you.
“What are you doing here?”
“Working, what about you?”
“A few days off.”
“I wish I had that.” Luke sighs, glancing out the window, trying to locate his friends.
“I don’t want to keep you from your job.” You quietly state, but he looks back at you with a panicked look.
“I guess I do need to get going before they come back inside for me, but hey- I’ll be back at the hotel by 7 if you want to come by? We can catch up.”
Before you can stop yourself, you agree, double checking the number you had for him was still good before parting ways.
-
The afternoon came and went, the entire time spent debating on whether or not you should go catch up with Luke. He had already texted you the address, one of the more upscale hotels in the city, a place you would definitely have to drive to.
But then again, what if seven years had been too long? What if you were no longer as close as you used to be, couldn’t pick back up where you left off?
By seven, you’ve somehow talked yourself into it, making the ten minute drive across the city to the hotel, checking and double-checking the room number he gave you.
340.
Not surprisingly, the hotel is beach themed, shades of blue and coral adorning nearly everything as you pass through the lobby, avoiding eye contact with the desk clerk who gives you a glare, clearly not caring enough to attempt to stop you. Seashell patterns covered the surface of the carpet, making navigation a little difficult since it all ran together.
When the elevator, a creaky thing that smells of oil and chlorine, comes to a stop on the third floor, you send Luke a message. Within seconds he appears around the corner, beckoning you away from the elevator and toward his room. You can see the grin on his face as he produces his key card from his pocket, holding the door open for you as you step across the threshold.
There’s a button down shirt slung over the chair by the desk, shoes kicked off haphazardly yet still somehow seeming neatly stacked just under the edge of the bed. A half-empty water bottle sits on the nightstand, the cover on the bed thrown back as if Luke had hurriedly jumped out of it that morning, remaining untouched by housekeeping if they had shown up at all.
Luke moves a duffel bag from the bed, stashing it in the corner of the room nearest the door, gesturing to the desk chair, snatching the shirt from it and tossing it in the general direction of the duffel.
“Want a drink?” He asks, reaching down to pull the door of the mini fridge open, giving you a questioning glance when you don’t immediately respond.
“Sure..”
“Water? Wine? There’s also the remains of a milkshake I got late last night.”
“You just bring wine with you wherever you go?”
“Don’t be ridiculous– my coworker does.”
Luke pulls the bottle of wine from the fridge, unopened and ice cold, grabbing the two paper cups by the ice bucket. He sets it down on the table, digging his pocket knife out and trying to pop the cork out.
“You’re going to ruin it.” You protest, but he proves you wrong by removing the cork in a few swift movements.
“Huh.. well, we’ll just have to drink the bottle I guess.” He shrugs, handing you a cup and pouring some wine into it. You take a sip of it before you can think about it, but once the burning liquid finds its way down your throat, you pause.
“I’ve got to drive back to Jenna’s tonight.”
“Or you could stay.” Luke suggests, taking a large gulp of his own wine. Your eyes flicker to the door, then back to him.
“Luke..”
“No no, not that way. I just meant that you can stay, I’ll take the sofa or the floor. I just haven’t seen you in almost ten years and suddenly here you are.” He quickly backtracks, clarifying his intentions.
You glance across the room again, then back at him, this time picking up your cup and taking a larger sip of your wine.
–
White sheets, bright lights, crooked teeth, and the night life
You told me this is right where it begins
But your lips hang heavy underneath me
And I promised myself I wouldn’t let you complete me
You and Luke were halfway through with the bottle when he reaches over to look at his phone, then looks at you.
“Let’s go to the pool.”
“I don’t have a swimsuit with me?”
“Just dip our feet in?” He pleads, and you give a huff.
“I guess.” You laugh, allowing him to pull you to your feet and leading you by your hand back to the elevator.
The pool is indoors, large windows showing the outside patio but keeping it protected from the elements. Luke sits on the concrete right at the deep end and you join him, your feet dipping into the water and you find it to be pleasant. The room smells heavily of chlorine, permeating into every surface and you’re sure you both will smell like it the moment you leave the area. It’s quiet between you at first, the only noise coming from the pump hidden away behind locked doors at the other end of the room.
“What’s on your mind?” Luke suddenly questions, and it takes you off guard.
“I don’t really know how to answer that.”
“No?”
“You’re a profiler, you tell me.”
Luke takes this as a personal challenge, it seems, as he turns to face you.
“Hm. You… you’re harboring regret. And I can probably tell you why.”
“The fact that seven years has passed since we’ve seen each other?” You supply, gaze fixating on the way the water ripples when you move your foot.
“Shit.. I’m sorry— I should have—“
“I know.” Luke kicks his foot, the water rippling even more now and distorting your view of the bottom of the pool. The sudden silence is the proof of striking a nerve, slightly crossing a boundary though not knowing what it was exactly. He exhales a deep breath, finally turning his gaze back to you.
“I still have all of your letters.” Luke states, leaning back, weight resting on his palms.
“All of them?”
“Every single one, even the one sentence letter I got when you sent that picture of yourself standing next to that big ass tree.” You can’t help but laugh, recalling exactly that.
The tree was supposedly over 200 years old, the branches extending farther than your eyes would allow you to see in the glare of the sun. Jenna had actually been the one to tell you about it, insisting on a trip, and on impulse you had her snap a picture of you. When you received Luke’s letter from a few weeks prior, you noticed his small mention of missing the lush green in the United States. You immediately had the photograph printed, the photo just small enough to fit inside of the envelope you were going to send. The idea of including the short but sweet message came the second you saw the photo, instantly thinking of Luke.
I wish you were here. And you had no idea just how much that short, five word sentence meant to him.
“I still have all of yours, too.” You quietly admit, forcing yourself to look over at him when you do, his face rather stoic as he lets this sink in.
“We haven’t seen each other in seven years, yet here we are, picking right back up where we left off.”
There isn’t a moment of silence between you following this, as you discuss anything and everything from the years you missed. He tells you about some of the things he had fought, mentioning vaguely some of the fucked up situations he had found himself in, including the moment he almost got shot right before he joined the BAU from the Fugitive Task Force.
You find yourself slowly inching closer to him, moving in just a little whenever there’s a rough part of his story he seems to be struggling to tell. He’s moving in closer as well, both of you finally noticing as your arms brush. Luke brings his right hand up to trace down your left arm once, his hand dropping back to the concrete as if nothing had ever happened.
Except, it had.
You were sure you could physically see the sparks flying between you, hearts racing.
“You wanna head back upstairs?” Luke questions, and you don’t hesitate to give an automatic reply.
You both have damp feet, trying to ignore the tension building between you as Luke opens up his hotel room yet again. You decide to take the desk chair this time, leaving the sofa open for Luke to sit down, taking the bottle of wine from him when he passes it over.
“Come sit by me, there’s plenty of space.”
“It does kind of suck to pass the bottle that far…” You reason, coming to sit beside him on the sofa, sinking down into the comfortable cushions and taking another swig from the bottle after he does. Your shoulders are touching again, arms brushing, but neither of you move to adjust.
“Are you.. seeing anybody?” Luke hesitantly questions, carefully phrasing the question so as not to come off sounding pretentious.
“No. You?”
“No.”
Those simple words set something off in you, knowing that there was still nobody waiting for him. You shift on the couch to first face him, quickly adjusting again so that you could move onto his lap. His hands find their place on your hips, your own on his chest to steady you as you try to figure out your next move. Luke’s right hand moves up, tracing his thumb over your bottom lip slowly. Just as he starts to lean forward, his phone rings, startling both of you.
“You should get that.” You state, Luke giving a sigh before reluctantly leaning over to grab his phone, left hand still on your hip. Luke’s face immediately drops, clearly disappointed with whatever has just been said to him. He drops the phone onto the couch with a groan, running his hand up your side.
“I have to go.”
“What??”
“The guy escaped. We’re getting sent on a manhunt now.” Luke explains, helping you shift back onto the couch, seeing the look of conflict on your face. There was the promise of staying, yet now without him being there, it seemed odd.
“Don’t worry, you can stay. I’ll be back sometime tonight.”
“Oh— okay.”
“Steal one of my shirts if you want. There’s a few button ups in my bag.” Luke adds, gathering up everything he needed for the sudden manhunt.
Tac vest, pistol, ID badge.
“Wait, you’ve been drinking. You don’t need to—“ You protest, but he waves you off.
“It’s already passing through my system, I feel fine.” With a quick goodbye, he hurries from the room, leaving you to wonder what to do next.
-
I'm trying not to let it show, that I don't want to let this go
Is there somewhere you can meet me?
'Cause I clutched your arms like stairway railings
And you clutched my brain and eased my ailing
When you wake to an empty bed, you’re rather surprised. The sun peeks through the bottom of the curtain, giving just enough light to see that the room looked exactly as it had when Luke left. You had remained awake for three more hours, waiting for him to return.
Waiting for an update, a text, a call— something. But he never provided you with one.
When you’d reluctantly gone to bed, you were in one of his button up shirts, thrown on top of your own t-shirt to keep you warm. When you actually get up, turning on a lamp in the room to get some light, a knock on the door startles you. You hear the lock click, and Luke comes stumbling back into the hotel room, standing in front of you before the door even closes all the way. He’s trying to hide a wince as he slowly puts his things back down on the desk, but you see it.
“Luke?”
“I’m sorry I didn’t get to make it back last night.” He says, finally turning to you, and that’s when you see.
There’s a cut running along the left side of his face, blood dried in a trail down to his jaw. A bruise is beginning to form right under it, an ugly bluish purple that makes you worry more than anything. You take a step forward, your fingers coming up to brush along the spot of blue, and he gives you a smile. His smile doesn’t reach his eyes though, his eyes betraying his attempt to hide the pain, and the full extent of his exhaustion.
“Are you okay?”
“I will be.” Luke answers, his eyes flickering over your body quickly. It’s then that you realize that you’re still wearing the shirt you borrowed- his shirt. Specifically, his favorite dark blue button up with the buttons undone. His hands once again find your waist, and you once again put your hands on his chest.
“Hope you don’t mind.. I did actually borrow a shirt.” You state, running your fingers along what looks to be a bloodstain on his dark gray t-shirt.
“I wanted you to.” Luke slowly kicks out of his shoes, letting go of your waist only long enough to set them to the side. You accidentally bump his side with your hand, and he winces again. You lift the hem of his t-shirt up, finding another bruise on his right side that makes you gasp, this one bigger and a deeper purple than the one on his jaw.
“It’s not as bad as it looks.” He tries to convince you, but you just shake your head.
“My ass.”
He lets you lead him to the bathroom, sitting down on the edge of the tub at your insistence, watching as you run one of the wash cloths under water and open up the bar of soap. Before he can protest, you gently scrub at the dried blood on his cheek, careful to avoid the bruise and using no force, especially around the scabbed over cut. He reaches up to your hand, taking the cloth and setting it on the counter.
Luke pulls you down onto his lap again, your hands gripping the front of his shirt while he steadies you.
He goes to lean in, you repeating his actions, lips almost touching, only for your phone to ring and ruin the moment (again).
It’s Jenna, excitedly telling you she’s off work. As much as you are excited to see her, you’re also conflicted and frustrated with the universe’s timing. Especially when Luke helps you to your feet, giving a sigh of his own as he stands up.
“We’re leaving in an hour anyway.”
“I don’t want to just go back to before.”
“How about I text you when you’re back in the city?” Luke inquires, nodding and giving you a hesitant smile when you say yes.
-
I'm sorry but I fell in love tonight
I didn't mean to fall in love tonight
You're looking like you fell in love tonight
Could we pretend that we're in love?
Two weeks pass before you hear from Luke, a sudden text coming through at 2 AM on a Wednesday.
The text tone wakes you from a restless sleep, your fingers wrapping around your phone and dragging it up in front of your face.
I’m so sorry, we’ve been on a case.
You aren’t exactly sure what to reply with, still trying to pull yourself out of sleep. You let the message sit for a few minutes as you ponder a response, then finally send something back.
It’s okay. Meet at, say, your place later today?
Absolutely. He responds, the address for his place immediately behind it.
The late afternoon sun is shining through the trees as you pull up at his house, a two bedroom home nearing the outskirts of the city, rather small but very well kept. Luke is already there, which would have proven awkward for you if he wasn’t. You hear a bark come from inside, followed by the sound of Luke’s voice reassuring the source that it was okay. When he opens the door, there’s a Belgian shepherd laying on the ground beside him, panting slightly and giving a whine when Luke doesn’t say the magic word.
“Roxy is extremely happy I’m home. She’s friendly, just let her sniff.” Luke explains, and Roxy tilts her head as she looks at you. You extend your hand, letting her sniff all the way around your fingers and finally giving a satisfactory lick when she deems you worthy of coming into her and Luke’s space.
He lets her into the backyard, allowing you to come inside the house, finding it to be extraordinarily neat. The only thing out of place is a blanket that was thrown haphazardly over the back of the couch.
“So I was thinking.. we could order in? Watch a movie on Netflix?” Luke suggests, unscrewing the cap of a water bottle and taking a long sip as you walk into the kitchen. He realizes after a moment that he should offer you something to drink, opening the fridge and gesturing for you to get anything you wanted.
“That sounds nice.” You respond, looking through everything and taking a water bottle for yourself.
-
An hour and a half later, you and Luke are sitting on the floor, side by side in front of his coffee table while a movie drones in the background. You have a pizza box between you, taking slices as the characters on screen navigate some kind of wilderness.
You can’t help but notice every time Luke’s thigh brushes against yours, the accidental move sending sparks through your body. Both of you reach for the last slice at the same time, unrelenting in who is going to get it.
“Hmm.. Arm wrestle you for it?”
“What are we, twelve?” You laugh in response, but Luke shrugs.
You agree, putting your elbow on the table in preparation to arm wrestle him, only to have Luke push you over. He’s laughing as he lightly pins you against the rug, and you’re hoping he can’t feel your heart pounding in your chest.
“Always expect the unexpected.”
“Luke..”
Silence falls in the room, with him still pinning you to the rug. His eyes keep searching your face, your own searching his, looking for any sign that this isn’t what either of you want.
“Tell me this is a bad idea, or that you don’t want this, I’ll stop.” Luke states, the sentence barely audible.
“I can’t.” You respond, and there’s a moment of slight hesitation as he looks at you.
Slowly, he lowers himself to your lips, seeming to still be waiting for your direction. But you just lift yourself up just enough, your lips meeting his once, then twice. Then you lose count as you lose yourself in his kiss. It’s intoxicating, something you had long awaited, and now that you had it you didn’t think you could get enough. His hands tentatively roam, moving slowly over your sides and up to your hair. He bites down on your bottom lip lightly, drawing a quiet moan from you, but he doesn’t press it further. When he finally pulls away, his eyes once again searching yours, both of you are breathless.
“Do you know how long I’ve wanted- waited- to do that?” Luke asks, his breathing still trying to once again find its normal rhythm.
“Hmm, at least seven years?”
“Longer.”
“Really?” You tease, but he doesn’t tease back.
“You were my motivation over there, you know that? I looked forward to your letters- you were the only constant thing in my life.”
You’re taken aback by his statement, blinking at him in surprise as you attempt to formulate a response. He had never let on that it was such a serious matter, only now bringing that to the light of day.
“Really?”
“My thoughts kept going to darker and darker places, but you helped guide me through. You were my light.”
“I never knew that.”
“How could you? It wasn’t like we communicated every single day.”
“We’re here now.” You state, and a smile crosses his face.
“We’re here now.” Luke agrees, leaning down to kiss you again, and he doesn’t stop until the sun is well below the horizon.
-
A few months later, you wake just before dawn, light just beginning to stream through the bottom of the curtain. Luke rolls over when he feels the bed shift as you sit up.
“You okay?” He questions, propping up on his elbow, giving you a lazy smile.
“Yeah, just thinking.”
“About?”
“Us.”
And you were. Thinking about how 7 years had led you here, an unlikely friendship turning into something more. You had already shared so many memories by this point, and you couldn’t wait for the future. It was coming fast, but wow were you ready for it.