OOM: Beckett's Room

[trigger_man]

 [After this.]

Jack makes a quick pit stop in his room to change into dry clothes, already feeling the burn on his skin as it warms up again.

Heading back out into the hall, he hesitates for a second outside Beckett's door.  After the awkwardness of him falling on top of her--and neither of them moving for a moment--this might not be the best idea.  But then he'd told her he'd be there in a moment, as as much as part of him has misgivings about it, there's part of him that wants to show that whatever that moment outside had been, it was just an aberration; nothing to see here, move along.

Taking a breath, he raps decisively on her door.

Comments

[trigger_man]

"Just let me know if I'm pressing too hard."

He has to admit to feeling a little nervous as he places his hands on her shoulders, starting to work slow circles over her upper spine and shoulder blades with his thumbs.

[fanofthegenre]

"Nope, it's - "

She draws in a breath, then releases it again, shoulders gradually yielding under his hands.

"Good," Beckett finally finishes. "It's good."

[trigger_man]

"Good," Jack says, softly.

There's a moment of silence in which he debates whether he wants to mention what he's thinking about. Then again, with everything he's opened up about already he might as well go for broke.

"I got pretty good at this, as my wife worked in graphic design and she'd be hunched over a drawing table or a computer all day."

[fanofthegenre]

She turns her head - not by much, just enough to be able to hear everything he's saying, her brow knitting in thought as she silently mulls over his words.

"You were married," Beckett murmurs, and it's less of a question so much as it is just a restating of the truth he's just told her.

[trigger_man]

"Yeah, for about sixteen years. She died almost ten years ago," he says, working on a knot in her right shoulder.

Ten years in three months from now, he realizes. It feels longer.

[fanofthegenre]

If Beckett tenses, it's only partly to do with the knot he's discovered.

She turns her head again, to speak.

"I'm sorry."

[trigger_man]

Jack shakes his head, then realizes she might not be able to see it.

"It's okay; it's been a long time. You know what it's like."

He still misses Teri, still wishes it could have been him instead of her. But it doesn't hurt as much; partly because he learned to cope with it and found love again. Partly because a hundred other hurts have come in between him and losing Teri.

Not that he's ever entirely stopped thinking that it's his fault Teri died. The first name in a long list of people that got hurt or killed because of him.

[fanofthegenre]

"I do."

Unconsciously, she reaches for the ring dangling on the chain around her neck, partly hidden beneath her shirt, fingers toying with the band.

"It gets easier, after a while. It hurts less."

[trigger_man]

"Yeah, it does. Feels a lot longer than ten years, anyway."

[fanofthegenre]

She drops the ring, letting it swing back down under her shirt, and tries to relax again, letting herself move with the kneading of his hands.

"I know how you feel."

[trigger_man]

"Yeah, I know you do. Kind of comes with the territory. With all the things we've seen, it seems like there's more packed into a year for us than for other people."

[fanofthegenre]

She cracks a smile, briefly.

"Don't I know it. If anything, we totally deserve the access to this bar, just to ensure time stops for us every now and then."

[trigger_man]

"Oh yeah. A place where nothing goes wrong and everything's peaceful so we have a chance to unwind."

Sarcasm much?

[fanofthegenre]

"Hey, I don't know about you, but this right here? Is a really good place to start."

She might be biased, seeing as how she's on the receiving end, but details.

[trigger_man]

"Remind me of that the next time there's some kind of weird flu going around, or Bar decides to dress everyone up in costumes."

[fanofthegenre]

"Flukes in an otherwise very enjoyable time," Beckett declares.

[trigger_man]

"Uh-huh. Flukes. Though I guess if you want to go off the grid, this is about as far off as you can go."

[fanofthegenre]

"That's for sure."

She leans forward, back arching, stretching until she can hear the slight crack, and then rolls her shoulders back again.

[trigger_man]

Jack's been working his thumbs down her spine and pulls back when she stretches. "Feeling better, or do you still have some tense spots?"

[fanofthegenre]

"I think I'm okay now. Thanks."

She's not even thinking about it when she adds: "Want to switch?"

[trigger_man]

Jack hesitates for a moment, not sure how well he'll handle someone touching him from behind. After a moment he nods. He can trust Beckett, and this can be...a test. An experiment, to see just how long he can take it.

Besides, he knows he could probably use it, and there's no fucking way he's letting a stranger--no matter how professional--get into his personal space.

"Would it be easier if I sat down?" Jack asks, taking a rather large sip of his drink to try and settle his nerves.

[fanofthegenre]

"Good thinking," she says, finishing off her own glass, though it's only to leave her hands free as she settles back on the couch again, leaving plenty of room for him to find his own seat.

"I might be rusty, too, all things considered. Keep an open mind."

[trigger_man]

Jack downs the rest of his glass, then takes a seat on the couch again, turning his back to her.

"Don't worry, I will."

[fanofthegenre]

"Okay."

She squares up behind him, flexing her fingers, and then settles her hands on him - gently, at first, not applying too much pressure so she doesn't overwhelm him, and then slowly, gradually starts to knead firmer on his shoulders.

[trigger_man]

Jack tenses for a moment, but slowly lets his shoulders relax as she starts to knead away the knots in his shoulders. The most noise he makes is a soft moan as she works out one particular tight spot or a slight hiss through his teeth as she hits the bad spot in his left shoulder that's still giving him trouble some days.

"That feels better than I remembered," Jack says after a minute or two.