thisismybar | Elijah

Elijah's eyes flickered darker just for a moment, under the heat of Ric's gaze, but he pulled it back under control admirably fast. That compulsion to press into him was back, but...not here. Here wasn't the right place. Here belonged to someone else.

"I think that's a good idea..." If there was a touch of huskiness in with the softness, so be it. Elijah slid his hand away slowly, not an abrupt pull back but a lingering touch that eventually separated as he slowly stepped back, then turned, shining the flashlight down to the path for Ric as he started back toward the entrance.

Ric really had no idea what this was. He probably could have figured it out, and he might bother to try at some point, but he wasn't going to now. Now he was going to quietly follow Elijah out of the caves and, once outside and blinking at daylight, move up to walk beside him to the car. Walked around to his side of the car, and waited for Elijah to unlock the door so he could slide in and fasten his seat-belt.

He didn't think about it, didn't question it, didn't justify or rationalize. He just waited for Elijah to get into the car, leaned his head back against the headrest and closed his eyes.

And offered Elijah his hand.

Elijah gave the hand a startled look, but once he had the car started and in gear, he took it. He had to let go a couple of times to shift gears, but he always returned back to the warmth of Ric's hand.

This wasn't anything he knew how to explain, either. Oh, the tension he understood, sexual and otherwise, but the softer intimacy, the hands and touches and soft kisses that held the promise of something more they weren't openly acknowledging...that he hadn't expected. Wasn't used to.

Or hadn't been used to for a very long time.

He let go to downshift and park the car, then reached to squeeze Ric's hand gently. "We're here."

It was probably a little surprising (or maybe not), then, that Ric understood the softness with Elijah. He didn't really expect it to be returned, but he was... really good at people and the more that fell into place with Elijah, the more he understood, the more he figured out the emotional dynamic and more comfortable with it he was.

Sexual tension? That was a little less common from him, particularly directed at Elijah. Who was Klaus' brother.

Then again, he'd found Elijah attractive from go, so.... Thrown off balance and some part of him recognizing that this might be a horrible idea or not, he shouldn't be too surprised.

He roused himself at the gentle pressure on his hand, as much as Elijah's voice. "Bourbon, here we come," he said, voice a little huskier even than usual. He came very close to leaning into Elijah, but ultimately slid out of the car instead, and led the way back into the house.

The husky tone sent a tiny shiver down Elijah's spine, though he didn't let it show on the outside, just gave Ric a calm look and followed him into the house. He waited quietly as Ric unlocked the door, stepped inside behind him.

Strongly considered grabbing him back to press against the door while Elijah kissed the hell out of him, but restrained himself.

"You have a good deal of it, yes?" he asked with a wry smile. "I might need a lot..."

If only to keep the urges in check.

"You've had a really rough day...." Ric was loathe to move away from Elijah and lingered there for a moment, but did eventually force himself to step away from him and the door, and move back toward the living room and the glasses they'd left. "If we start running too low, I'll make a run to the high school."

Because that made any sense.

Ric was hyper aware of Elijah's presence in the house, now. Hyper aware of Elijah, proximity, the sound of his voice, everything, in the best possible way. He just... needed to pour those drinks and okay maybe he was drawing things out a little, now.

"It's been that kind of year for everyone." His issues were hardly the most important.

Elijah followed him back to the living room, keeping the urge to practically prowl after him in check. Predatory was not his best move here. He was, however, too on edge to retake his comfortable seat on the sofa, so prowl he did--around the room like a restless jungle cat pacing a clearing.

A quizzical look rested on his face at the high school comment. "Is the school serving as the local liquor store now?" Gentle, amused a little, understanding underneath it. A stronger urge to reach out for that mutual comfort that...for all the signals Ric was giving now and then, he really didn't think would be welcome.

He distracted himself from going after Ric, touching him all over, by examining his things, touching them instead with gentle caresses from long, elegant fingers. The books got particular reverence and closer curiosity, fingertips over spines like they were treasures, learning more about the other man through the choices he made about what to surround himself with.

"It has been."

He didn't love admitting it, but there was no denying that this year had just... sucked. Not just for him, but for, as Elijah had said, everyone.

He poured two glasses full of bourbon, as he watched Elijah prowling around the confined space like a large, restless, cat, for just a moment. Prowling like a cat, and stroking his books, he realized. Nothing too exciting there, or at least not too overtly personal. Lots of history - general, very specific, some fairly ridiculous. He shook his head after a moment and carried both glasses to where Elijah was.

"More secondary storage, than store. It's usually bought, by the time it's there...." His, or what was confiscated. "Do you still want this?" This being the drink.

Elijah didn't care about personal, really--you could tell a lot about someone by what they read, what they enjoy. He had read several of them, could point out the mistakes in a few others, was intrigued by a couple.

But he looked away from the books and back to Ric when he brought the drinks over, and nodded. "Yes. Thank you..."

The drink. Whatever was crackling in the air. Either one. Or both.

Ric took a deep swallow from his glass, and set it aside and on the bookshelf. "Then stop thanking me, and take it."

The drink, the other thing, maybe both and maybe he was just being something of an overgrown brat, but if he got Elijah to focus and stop petting books.... Either way.

That darker flicker was back, the speculative look that said he was very much considering taking...something. But he just reached for the glass and took an equally long swallow.

A small smile curved his lips. "Better?"

That speculative look and darker flicker actually made Ric smile. "I don't know.... How strong's the urge to alphabetize my book collection?"

Elijah's gaze slips away back to the books, then back to him and he gives a self-mocking smile. "Truthfully? Fairly strong..."

What? Even if it wasn't a serious question...he really wouldn't mind.

He made a low, exasperated noise. "Finish your drink, Elijah."

...Because bossing the Original around made perfect sense.

"In a hurry for something?" Elijah asked with an arch of an eyebrow before taking another sip of his drink.

"Well, I'm certainly not in a hurry for you to reorganize my living room...." He stayed put, stayed watching Elijah, for another few seconds, then he wandered off around the room, in a restless way that wasn't at all predatory or prowl-y.

Elijah leaned against the bookshelf, watching him as he finished his drink, tracking him with his gaze.

"I could use a little more..."

Which hopefully would bring him back him over to Elijah.

Ric seriously, but briefly, considered telling Elijah to come get it but then decided he was too restless to play that game himself. He tossed his drink back, in a single, smooth swallow, picked up the bottle and took it back to Elijah.

"If you were someone else, I'd just be offering you the bottle...."

Instead, he reached to take Elijah's glass away from him. His apparent intention was to refill, but that wasn't exactly his real goal. His real goal was to use the excuse to lean in against Elijah and kiss him.

Liquid courage? No, not really.

Just a lack of obliviousness and the slowly dawning realization that Elijah wasn't going to make any kind of move, himself.

Didn't make it a good kiss, or Ric particularly confident about it, but it wasn't bad. Just... a little tentative.

Edited 2013-06-06 22:02 (UTC)

Making moves where he wasn't clear about if they were wanted had never been his strong point unless he really wanted someone for one night only. If there was any sort of emotional connection, Elijah wanted to be certain that any physical one was truly desired.

Intimidating people into bed wasn't his style, and he'd found people got intimidated just at the mention of his name, before he'd done anything at all. Yay for reputations?

But Ric's move, tentative as it was, freed him and he shifted closer, more into him, and slid his fingers to cradle the back of Ric's neck as he kissed him back--slow and gentle, but deepening it after a heartbeat or two, wanting to taste the bourbon on Ric's lips, his tongue.

Ric wasn't easily intimidated, at least outwardly. He would have had to admit (only to himself) that he'd been cautious with Elijah at least once or twice. Even the hand on his neck made him go a little still, flex his neck against Elijah's hand and take a slow breath through his nose.

That was without even factoring... other things in.

But there was no hesitation or pause before he opened to Elijah deepening the kiss, granted him access to his mouth and returned the kiss. Tentativeness fell away, though admittedly it was likely falling away to something that was at least a little bravado. He had no qualms about chasing the taste of bourbon in Elijah's mouth, or sliding his fingers up and through Elijah's hair. He didn't stop there, let his hand fall back to Elijah's shoulder and groaned softly.

Elijah let his fingers stroke slowly over Ric's neck, light and easy and willing the tension away. Yes, he was likely one of the most dangerous people Ric was likely to ever encounter--maybe even moreso than Klaus when you got down to it--but he wasn't going to hurt him.

A lot to say in a tangle of lips and tongues and fingers, but he gave it his best shot. Ric's engagement in the kiss pulled a soft moan out of him, in turn, as he let on hand slip to the small of Ric's back to tug him gently more snugly against him.

The tension didn't ease away so much as Ric gave it up, all at once.

He didn't just let himself be pulled in against Elijah; he stepped into him, and settled his free hand on Elijah's hip in a solid, warm grip. He met the kiss and contact between them with a very soft shudder and slightly increased heart-rate that was all about the press of bodies between them, and nipped lightly at Elijah's lower lip, before angling his head just right to be able to deepen the kiss properly on his end. Still a certain kind of tension there, but less about fear of having his neck broken and more about working his way through... this.

He got acquainted with the way Elijah's body felt pressed against him, the temperature, texture and taste of his mouth. There was a sort of whole hearted focus in it, that wasn't sloppy or lazy or distracted. Like once he'd committed, and realized that he was enjoying this, he was going to do it completely and right. And once he had that? It was all about his desire to make Elijah focus on him, and doing his best to drive anything else out of Elijah's head.

Elijah's head spun a little with the press of Ric closer, mainly because a large part of him couldn't quite believe that this was happening, and it had been...quite some time since he'd taken so much time with something. It was brilliant.

Ric's focus was noted, appreciated, and most certainly returned. Elijah pushed the cave and the day out of his mind and focused solely in on Ric--how he tasted, how he felt, the heat of his body, the places he was hard and softer hollows.

He was hot, so hot against him that Elijah had to moan softly as he reached out for that warmth. His tongue teased over Ric's, learning the taste of him, the things he reacted to. His fingers slipped over his body just as carefully, not groping or grabbing or rushing anything, just slowly stroking with long, broad strokes, learning the lines of his body.

Ric was pretty okay with the undeniable evidence that Elijah was definitely, definitely, a man. Not something he usually did, but not something that was really threatening to him, either, and certainly nothing that would throw a wrench in the works. He had found Elijah attractive from pretty much the first instant he'd laid eyes on him, after all.

Ric was a little less sure about the vampire thing, but it was less obvious (to him), in the press of Elijah's body. The strength was there, and Elijah could break his neck with one finger if he really wanted to, but it wasn't like Elijah was trying to tear his throat out. What Elijah was doing felt really, really good, and Ric apparently liked Elijah just fine, vampire or no. So, little bit cautious in fits and starts, but nothing major.

No, the only thing happening here that Ric really couldn't figure out what to do with was Elijah seducing him.

He was sincerely a little perplexed. He kissed Elijah, kept kissing Elijah, even pulled him in when Elijah pressed closer to him and the warmth of his body, stroked his hands over Elijah's back and returned the kiss, but there was this point where he just could not figure out what to do with himself, because he was being turned on and relaxed, at the same time. The sound he made into the kiss, accompanied by his tongue flicking lightly along the roof of Elijah's mouth, was just a little confused.

He'd been tense, wary before and Elijah didn't want that--thus the gentle, relaxing touches. He also didn't necessarily want to push too far too fast, even if he was tempted to somehow figure out quickly how to get Ric out of his clothes and stretched out on something comfortable.

The confused sound, though, had him pulling back almost immediately, though only so much that he could speak, lips moving against Ric's.

"Problems?"

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