Work Text:
If Danny had thought that he had distracted Steve with pizza, he was wrong. As soon as the food was eaten, Steve returned to the subject of just where Danny had been headed.
"So, you can't have been meeting someone this evening."
Danny looked at him: "In your words, I can neither confirm nor deny."
Steve ignored him and continued to think out loud, "Smart shiny shoes. Dress pants. Shirt and tie. It's gotta be a hotel bar, too early for a club. Why were you going out to socialise with tourists and conference delegates?"
Danny look at his shiny shoes again, unwilling to meet his partners eyes.
"You were looking to pull!"
"I am an adult, Steven. If I choose to go out, looking smart, to socialise with people who are not usually resident on this pineapple infested rock, that's my business."
"If you'd wanted a night out, you should have said. I can dress up smart!"
Danny hesitated. Just how could he explain to Steve that his sex life had reached rock bottom, that it was only desperation that had driven him to consider hitting that sort of bar, in search of someone, anyone.
Steve was looking at Danny with a different face to his usual workday faces. It had a certain level of glee, akin to the 'I'm about to blow something up face', mixed with concern from the 'I've just blown something up and I think Danno may have been caught in the explosion' face.
"I know, let's go out now. We can drive by mine, I'll grab a shirt and some jeans and we can hit a club."
"It's ok. I think the moment may have passed. I'm kind of tired now Steve. I was only going out because it felt sad and middle aged to sit in by myself watching TV on a Saturday. I haven't dated anyone for months, more than months. The only person I hang out with is you, and the last person I had sex with was Rachel. And we all know just how well that turned out." Slumped on the sofa, Danny looked almost glad to have shared the awful confession.
"So you were going to find some stranger in a hotel bar, just because you haven't had sex for a while?"
"Yes, Steven. Not all of us are lucky enough to have convenient arrangements with beautiful naval intelligence officers." Danny couldn't help the bitterness in his voice. He liked Cath, he really did, but he could never quite understand how Steve could ask her for favors, sleep with her and buy her the occasional dinner without wanting to take it further. Something clenched in his stomach every time he saw them heading off together, and he didn't really like to consider exactly why he was jealous.
Exuberant face was replaced by puzzled face: "Do you want to have sex with Cath?"
Danny sighed, "No, Steve, I am not secretly lusting after your girlfriend. I am simply somewhat depressed about my lack of sex life."
Steve continued to frown, "She's not my girlfriend. But look, is that why you were going out without me? Do you think I'm stopping you getting laid?"
Danny seemed to be fascinated by his shoes again, or maybe the swirls in the carpet. Instead of his usual stream of invective he simply said, "Maybe?"