Work Text:
Phil walks briskly through the empty halls towards the mess, most of the agents have headed home for the holidays, and Phil himself will be leaving at the asscrack of dawn, for the 20 hour drive to his parents house on the outskirts of New Orleans.
He gets to the mess, and it’s mostly empty save for the few agents staying behind incase gobal catastrophe does happen. He’s filling his mug of coffee, when he spots Clint in a back corner poking at a plate of mediocre (by Phil’s standards pasta) and reading something on a tablet.
He thought the man would have taken off by now, so he walks over and clears his throat sharp eyes moving up to him quickly. The blond sets the tablet aside and gives Phil a weak smile.
“Hey boss man, thought you’d be gone already.” Clint says poking at his pasta some more before sliding it away, thinking he’ll go pick up some takeout later.
“Finishing up some paperwork, going to grab some food then hit the road actually.” He nods, “Though you would have cut out already too.” He says giving a firm nod,
“I don’t really have anyplace to go when it comes to Christmas... or any holidays really.” He shrugs with the nonchalance of person who has grown far to used to being alone in his life.
“You could come with me.” He says quickly then takes a sip of his coffee, because what would his mom say, leaving someone alone for the holidays. Or at least thats why he tells himself he is inviting Clint.
Clint blinks and blinks again, “Um you sure about that boss, I mean it’s your family.” He asks rubbing the back of his neck a little.
“Yeah, my mom wouldn’t be too happy if I left someone behind for Christmas.” He laughs softly nodding.
“Alright.” Clint nods packing up his tablet. “I’ll come with you.”
“Good, be ready we hit the road at 4am.” He smiles a little, “I’ll pick up up at your place.”
Clint gives Phil a more honest grin, “Alright thanks boss.”
Phil is up outside Clint’s apartment and hunts down a spot to park briefly he moves up the stone steps and knocks lightly.
Clint pulls open the door, looking freshly showered and dressed, in a long sleeve gray shirt and black jeans. “Come on in, just gotta few more things to toss into the duffle bag.” He says yawning and stretching a little.
He lets Phil in and smiles, “Theres coffee in the kitchen.” He nods moving into the apartment leaving the door open for Phil to come in as he moves to the bathroom grabbing his toothbrush and other bathroom stuff tossing it into his toiletry bag and coming back out and tosses it into the duffle bag zipping it up.
He pulls on his chucks and sets his bow case next to the dufflebag, and pulls on his winter coat.
Phil comes out having filled his travel mug, and Clint’s, he’s been here enough for pizza and crap movies after an opp he knows his way around. Phil lets out a snort, “I know you live in those things, but you should bring your boots. It does snow in New Orleans”
“They’re in by bag boss man, these are more comfortable for a long drive.” He pauses and arches a brow at Phil, “Your file says you’re from in Boston.” He grins a little taking his mug of coffee from Phil and taking a long sip, moving around the apartment unplugging things before they hit the road.
“I was born in Boston, lived there until I was 7, my dad got a better job offer in New Orleans, and my mom had some family there.” He shrugs a little.
“So.... I am going to get to see the house you grew up in.” Clint smirks a little.
“Not if we don’t hit the road soon.” Phil quips back to the asset who had become his friend.
Clint grins and shoulders his bag, and picks up his bow case, Phil knowing the archer didn’t like going out of town without it.
They load up into Phil’s car get some music going and much at the doughnuts Phil had gotten for the first leg of the trip. It’s easy driving this early with Clint riding shotgun, they’ve done it so many times the only difference is they aren’t heading off on some opp. They are off to see Phil’s parents and family for Christmas.
“So um, what do your parents think you do? What are they gonna think I do?” Clint asks licking powdered sugar from his lips and taking a sip from his travel mug.
“They think I work for the FBI, for the branch that handles human trafficking, I told them you where my partner.” He nods
“That’s a good solid cover.” Clint nods, “Believable and you don’t have to lie to much to your mom.” He laughs grinning at Phil a little.
“Yeah, I don’t like lying to the woman, it feels like she knows when I am.” He admits with a shrug as they start to get out of the city, he tries not to think about the way Clint licks the powdered sugar from his lips, even if they are both level 7’s now, he feels like it would be an abuse of his position to even ask Clint out, so he’s used to pushing those feelings down whenever they pop up. Little did Phil know Clint was doing the same thing on a regular basis as well, thinking that he had nothing to offer the older agent he couldn’t get from someone better.
They drive in a peaceful silence Phil at times, batting Clint’s hand away from his iPod, telling him when he was behind the wheel he could pick the music.
They drive until just after lunch stopping at a fast food place for fries and burgers and a leg stretch.
Clint sits in the plastic booth and drags a french fry through his frosty before popping it into his mouth.
“That looks disgusting.” Phil laughs taking a bite of his burger.
“Looks disgusting, tastes delicious.” Clint smiles a little, it’s still a little surreal to see feel out of the suit, but it’s a look he could get used too.
“Doubtful.” Phil snorts
“Try it.” Clint grins.
Phil gives him a skeptical look and shakes his head, “I’ll pass Barton.”
“Ah come on, and if you're taking me home you might as well call me Clint. Boss man.” He grins and tilts the frosty cup toward Phil.
Phil rolls his eyes and picks up a fry and drags it through the frosty and takes a bite, “Alright that’s not bad he shrugs, a smile crinkling his eyes. “Then I suppose you should start calling me Phil.”
They get back on the road and Clint takes over driving for a bit and smirks at Phil and switches the music over to Queen’s greatest hits, and starts singing along to fat bottom girls hands picking up speed as they get back onto the highway.
Phil smiles a little and leans back in the seat, and really hopes that they don’t get a speeding ticket, but then he can’t say anything given how he drives.
They make it another five hours, and decide to stop for the night, they get a room, and the girl at the front desk hands over a couple of key cards. They get to the room and Phil drops his duffle bag and scrubs his hands over his face when he sees the single.
“Well then, someone was making assumptions.” Clint snorts dropping his duffle bag near the bathroom.
“I can go get it changed.” Phil nods
“Nah, we’ve slept in worse.” Clint shrugs a little. “I am going to go get a bucket of chicken from across the street what side do you want?”
“Get the mac and cheese.” He says pulling out a pair of sleep pants and his bag of toiletries. “And biscuits.” He nods.
“Sounds good.” Clint leaves heading across the road to a random chicken joint.
Phil goes to take a shower and get cleaned up after 15 hours in the car, and not think about sharing a sleep space with Clint outside of a life or death situation or an opp. His agent brain is telling him to go ask for a room with two beds, but his Phil brain, the brain that has been harboring a crush ( oh god what is he 13 ) on Clint is telling him this one bed thing is a great idea.
So he ignores both in favor of a shower and a pair of sweats and to see what’s on TV while he waits for Clint to get back from collecting dinner.
Clint keys himself into the room and sets the food on the small table by the window and looks over at the TV. “Really, Hoarders, I mean I knew your love of bad TV was a true, but I didn’t know it went this far boss.” Clint grins moving next to the bed and watching the screen for a moment. “I don’t like it when they find dead cats.” Clint shudders a little and then moves over to his duffle bag grabbing his tooth brush sweats and shampoo. “You can start eating, I won't be long.”
“It’s relaxing and nice to see that no matter what, someone always has it worse.” Phil shrugs moving over to the small rickety table and fixes himself up a plate of the chicken mac and cheese and a biscuit. He hears the shower turn on and lord help him he tries to focus on the chicken and not think about the man in shower as he eats.
Clint comes out in a loose pair of sleep paints and a long sleeve deep blue shirt thermal the three buttons unbuttoned and smiles at Coulson, no Phil he supposes if the man is dragging him home for the holidays like some Polly Shore movie. “That feels better after driving all day.” He says loading up his plate and moving over to the bed about to flop back and channel surf. Clint starts to flip through the channels and stops on Toddlers and Tiara’s and grins a little at Phil who comes over to the edge of the bed and sits with Clint.
“and you say I like trash TV.” Phil laughs softly.
“Hey man, I like seeing the crazy parents it’s like a train wreck.” Clint shrugs taking a bite of mac and cheese. “Better the a pile of dead kittens in a hoarders house.” He snorts side eyeing Phil.
Phil shakes his head and continues eating and the night continues like that for a bit until they can’t keep their eyes open. Phil rolls out of bed early and walks to a corner market and comes back with doughnuts and coffee for the two of them, finding clint dressed and zipping up his bag.
“OH god... You are a saint.” Clint groans taking the large cup of coffee from Phil and downing a large gulping sip.
Phil laughs and tries to ignore the warm feeling spreading through him, as he loads the bags into the car for the last five hours of the trip. They should make it to Phil’s parents house, they spend the ride listening to music talking about their cover and old missions, the time goes quicker than it really should.
Phil pulls up to a house with a large front yard that wraps around to a larger backyard, it looks homey to Clint, Red and white large two story home the front garden the balanced combination of neat and wild. He sees a room near the second floor balcony that has curtains with Steve’s shield on them and lets out a soft laugh. “That your room?”
Phil lets out a soft groan as he pulls the keys from the ignition, “Yes, and you are forbidden from laughing, or telling anyone anything about it.” He levels Clint with a serious gaze.
Clint does his best not to laugh but holds up one hand and puts the other over his heart. “Scouts honor.” He nods lips twitching up at the corners.
Phil gets out of the car shaking his head in that fond way he gets around Clint, “You where never a scout.”
“No but I bet you where.” Clint grins getting their bags out of the trunk trying not to be nervous about meeting his handlers parents.
Phil leads Clint up the walk and already the he can smell the smell of his dad’s french toast coming out of a partly cracked window. He smiles softly because damn he loved coming home most of the time. He knocks on the door, and before he can even finish knocking the door is being open by a woman with gray hair pulled back in a loose bun and they are being pulled inside.
“Honey, Phil and his boyfriend are here.” She calls out welcoming the boys and ushering them out of their coats before they can even protest the boyfriend comment.
“Go put the bags up stairs and come back down for breakfast.” She gives them a firm look, that Clint is positive Phil got from her that leaves no room for debate, and hell he doesn’t want to deny the boyfriend thing, not when the woman looks so pleased her son didn’t come home alone, and Phil isn’t saying anything. But Phil looks pale and maybe a little panicked as he leads Clint up the stairs.
Once Phil gets them to his room, and Clint doesn’t even have time to take in what Phil must have been like as a kid because Phil is apologizing. “I am sorry, I didn’t think she’d take partner that way.” He says scrubbing a hand over his face, “We can tell her, when we go back down, that it’s not like that.”
“Why are you sorry?” Clint asks because why would Phil be sorry? He should be apologizing because why would a guy like Phil be with him.
“Because I mean my mom is assuming you’re with me...” Phil says with a shrug matter of factly.
“Being with you wouldn’t be a bad thing.” Clint says scuffing his sneaker on the carpet.
“What...” Phil arches a brow. “Wait are you saying Clint.” He asks folding his arms across his chest interested in where this is going.
“I am saying that I like you, boss man.” Clint swallows because he’s never been nervous like this.
“YOu... you could have your pick and you want me.” Phil laughs.
“I could not have my pick... and why wouldn’t I want you.” He snorts a little.
Phil huffs because he hadn’t expected, “How long?” He asks because he has too.
“Years.”
“Me too.” Phil nods and it’s time to reassess the situation.
“Really? We are idiots.” Clint laughs and can’t help the smile breaking out across his face.
“It seems we are Agent, but it’s a thing that can be rectified.” Now Phil is smiling too.
“”It can and should be.” Clint nods moving into Phil’s space and giving him a light peck on the lips that goes a little longer and a little deeper then it should. Before he starts looking around the room a grin spreading on to his face.
“One problem.” Phil chuckles a little
“What’s that?” Clint asks arching a brow.
“How long do we tell my mom we’ve been dating.” He laughs
“Two weeks first date was totally the season finally of Dog Cops. Where you fell asleep with your head in my lap.” He grins.
“Maybe, you sure it wasn’t a month ago when you fell asleep on me after that movie night?” He chuckles softly.
“A month sounds good.” Clint nods. “Hell maybe it’s been longer and we just didn’t see it.” Clint shrugs.
“You not see something?” Phil teases.
Clint shoves him lightly and takes Phil’s hand pulling him toward the door. “Come on I smell bacon.” He chuckles softly.