Work Text:
autumn came fast this year, too fast. the summer came like an ember, popping into existence hot and lively, just to fade into a dull flake of ash. the days were still warm, but the nights came quicker, colder too. it wouldn't be long until winter was right around the corner. the open window revealed the deepened sky, the sun had already given out. too dark to see anything, too bright for the stars to appear. every now and then the trees would rustle in the breeze, maybe from a squirrel scurrying in its leaves.
hancock sat back on a couch just under the window. his arms stretched around its sides, his head tilted back ever so slightly. he was tired, to put it simply. days and days of endless traveling and work wore him out. his muscles ached, and he could feel the soreness begin to build inside of them. he took long, deep breaths, inhaling the crisp mountain air. it felt cool and refreshing as it circulated through his lungs. healing, even. on the end table next to him, there was a glass of whiskey laying on an old book of his, the cover worn and warped.
he closed his eyes. he wanted to shut the world out, just for a moment, as much as he could grasp. now his head began to ache, the pain spiraling around the creases of his brain to the solidity of his skull. he sighed and took another sip of whiskey. maybe something harder would take the pain away, he thought. the liquor cabinet wasn't too far away, he could just get up and take whatever he wanted. that was until he heard the gentle creaking of footsteps on wooden planks, and his mind seemed to pause. then he felt some weight next to him, a hand on his shoulder.
"long day, huh? i don't think i've ever seen you this exhausted." there was a chuckle, then a peck on his cheek. the warmth radiated from his cheek to the rest of his body, a tinge of stress lifting from him.
he sighed, his eyes slowly lifting open. "i'll tell you about it later. i just wanna rest now."
"thought so. you wouldn't mind if i joined you, yeah? had a long day myself."
"no, no, not at all."
"mm, good."
he felt the weight slide closer to him, then a leg against his. next came a pair of hands on his shoulders, which began to carress gently at first, feeling the width and stiffness of them.
hancock let out a breath. "you don't have to do that, mick. i'm fine."
"yeah? you feel like a damn rock. just relax, alright? i'll take care of you..."
his fingers began to dig into hancock's shoulders, moving their way into different knots and aches. they were slow, methodic, healing. they seeped into his upper back, palms flat on it.
"feel any better yet?" mick asked, his voice warm and close to hancock's ear.
he swallowed. "sorta, keep going..." he answered.
mick resumed his massaging, still steady and firm. he could feel hancock's skin under his shirt, cool from the breeze of the open window. it was getting colder now, harder to ignore.
"look at me." mick said. his voice was lower now.
hancock turned to face him. mick was smiling. his eyes seemed to glimmer as they met hancock's, focused.
"yeah?" his voice grew lower too.
mick's hands slid up to hancock's neck, then his jaw, feeling its sharpness. he came closer, only a few inches away. hancock could feel something in his heart rushing through him as the moment began to unfold before him. it felt like years and seconds all at once when it crashed into him.
mick's lips pressed against his, the feeling sending shocks throughout his veins. he felt the longing behind it, the warmth. mick's hands were steady on hancock's jaw as they kissed. it was sweet, loving, everything they'd wanted after their long day.
it subsided after a while, both of them breathless. mick pressed his forehead against hancock's, relishing in the fact that he was alive and so close to him. eventually hancock whispered to him.
"i love you..." the words fell softly from his lips and onto mick. they swirled into his heart, filling him with a satisfying warmth he knew from no other. in return, he placed a kiss on hancock's forehead. it lasted for a moment, long and soft, before he pulled away and whispered back.
"i love you too..."
by then, hancock felt warm and safe next to mick. he'd completely forgotten about the aches growing within his body and mind.