Chapter Text
TK still isn’t really sure about Austin, but he’s gotta say the team seems pretty cool so far and he’s excited to be doing this with his dad. What he’s not so excited about though, is this bar they’re in. What is this music? Alright so it’s pretty entertaining to see his dad doing some ridiculous line dancing moves, but he wouldn’t be caught dead out there and usually he loves to dance. Just not like this.
He’s laughing at a particularly ridiculous spin that everyone on the floor seems to be having trouble with, when he feels someone come up behind his left shoulder.
“Do you wanna dance?”
He twists around, fully planning to turn down whoever thinks they’re gonna be able to drag him out to that floor, when he registers who it is. Oh god, not only is it that hot cop from the car crash scene earlier, but he’s no longer covered in rain-proof layers. Instead, his muscle-bound torso is positively bursting out of a tight t-shirt and as if that wasn’t enough, he absolutely exudes Dom energy from every pore. TK’s always been a sucker for Doms who don’t have to use any of the fashion norms to indicate their status because it’s so obvious just by looking at them. TK himself will sport the occasional earring to mark his Sub status and tonight he’s rocking the cuffed sleeves typical of his dynamic ‒ although at this point, he mostly just likes how it looks.
TK swallows down his original response because there’s no way he’s turning down this perfect specimen of a Dom for anything, even though he’s gonna have no idea what he’s doing out there. But he hasn’t gone down properly in months ‒ not since the incident-that-shall-not-be-named ‒ and while he’s definitely not ready for a collar or even a cuff anytime soon, he definitely wouldn’t be opposed to a little scening with a Dom as fine as this one.
“Yeah.”
Well that came out a little more emphatic than he was planning. Guess that’s his chance at seeming chill out the window. But hey, he really only wants one thing out of this guy, so what’s the harm in making that obvious up front? In the back of his mind, TK has a passing thought that maybe a colleague who he’s already run into during his first major call isn’t the best candidate for a one-night-scene, but he’s never been known for his great decision-making, so he sees no reason to start now.
“It’s TK, right?” The Dom asks him as they start moving towards the dance floor. TK notices an arm make an aborted gesture towards his lower back which is….interesting. Seems like a possessive guiding hand might be the Dom’s natural inclination, but he’s also polite enough not to take liberties with a Sub who he’s just met, which is promising on both counts. TK finally registers the question and the potential meaning behind it. Yeah it’s possible the guy caught his name from TK’s turnout coat, but most people see the initials and ask him what it stands for, not realizing it’s the sum total of his preferred name. So there’s a nonzero chance this guy has asked around about him ‒ interesting again.
“Yeah that’s right. Sorry, I didn’t catch your name at the scene earlier?”
“Nothing to be sorry about ‒ things were a little bit hectic out there.” Understatement. “I probably would’ve introduced myself as Officer Reyes on the job anyway, but cute dance partners can definitely call me Carlos.” The accompanying grin of that last statement threatens to make TK weak in the knees.
“So, TK, ever been line dancing before?”
“That would be a definite no.” He’s under no illusion that his general demeanor doesn’t scream city boy, so he’d rather just lean into it. “Guess you’ll just have to tell me what to do.” TK tries to put forth his best coy face, but it’s been awhile since he’s done this without even the slight buffer of alcohol, so he’s not sure how well it works out.
Judging by the heat in Carlos’ eyes at his words, he doesn’t think he’s doing too badly. Still got it. They’ve finally reached a fairly open spot on the floor, so Carlos immediately starts giving him directions.
“Start out facing me.”
“Copy what I do exactly, which means we’ll be moving towards opposite sides and not mirror images.”
“Take my hand and I’ll spin you back into the line so we’re all facing the same way.”
TK’s doing his best to follow the directions and not make a fool of himself ‒ and he’d like to think he’s doing a decent job of it ‒ so it takes him a while to notice. At first, he’s sure it’s something else. If he were drinking, he’d say that the alcohol was just going to his head a bit, making him feel a little warm and floaty, but he’s pretty sure mineral water doesn’t have that effect.
TK’s always gone into subspace easier than most Subs ‒ definitely both a blessing and a curse ‒ but he’s never started to descend based on something as tame as this. A couple of commands and a firm hand correcting his movements here and there should not be getting this reaction.
Then again it’s been awhile since he’s relied solely on his dad and their platonic scenes for maintenance, without either the drugs or a partner / regular hookup to supplement. But they’ve been so busy with the logistics of the move since his overdose and it’s not like he doesn’t have plenty of opportunities to kneel for his dad since they live together, so he thought he’d be fine.
Apparently not.
Ideally he’d go get his dad and they could go home and take care of it, then figure out a better long term plan. But his dad is having the most fun TK’s seen him have since TK ruined his life and made him move cross country, so the last thing he wants to do is drag him away from something else to make him take care of his wayward son. TK’s sure that he can control it, now that he knows what’s happening.
The song changes then and TK desperately hopes for a new distraction that will snap him out of it before he has to cut the night short.
“I’m guessing you’ve also never tried two-stepping?”
TK has not, but it sounds complicated and just the thing he needs to shift his focus from the commanding energy coming off of every word out of Carlos’ mouth, even innocent questions like that one. He doesn’t tell Carlos that exactly, but he must somehow indicate that he’s willing to give it a shot, because he gets another grin for his trouble. TK is just about to move to the left side of Carlos again ‒ and of course his subby brain had turned him fully towards Carlos in the break between songs ‒ when Carlos stops him. And then ‒ oh. oh no ‒ he’s being gathered up into Carlos’ arms almost as if they’re about to ballroom dance.
If TK were smart, he would make an excuse right now and run to the bathroom before this goes any further. But TK’s always been his own worst enemy, so of course he doesn’t do that, and instead he gets to feel Carlos directing every part of TK’s body using just changes in pressure where they’re connected at the hands and TK’s lower back. It feels absolutely divine and a small part of TK is glad he didn’t miss this, but a slightly larger part recognizes that the situation has just gone from ‘not ideal’ to ‘FUBAR’ in very short order. Unfortunately for him, neither of these parts represent the majority of his consciousness, which has gone from feeling two-beer-tipsy and floaty to something more like the source material for the artificial high that got him addicted to pills in the first place. He decides he’s way too deep to pull himself out of it now, so instead he just...surrenders.
~~~~~
The first thing he hears when he begins to resurface is someone murmuring to him in Spanish. The tone is deep and soothing, even if he can’t understand a word that’s being said. The next thing he realizes is that he’s currently cradled in someone’s lap and the surroundings are a lot quieter than he thinks they should be, but he’s not sure why his brain is telling him that. It’s also definitely telling him that he should be more concerned with figuring that out than he currently is, so he reluctantly starts to fight his way slowly towards the surface.
And immediately wishes he hadn’t, when he gains a little more awareness and realizes that he is currently in the lap of Carlos Reyes, a man who he literally just met today and who definitely didn’t sign up to take care of a sub who can’t even stay up through a couple of country dances. If he could separate the feelings from the rational thought that’s beginning to creep back in, he’d say that the sensation of being held by strong arms and clearly comforted (even if he can’t understand the words) is absolutely amazing, better than most full scenes he’s ever done, but unfortunately embarrassment is starting to cut through the haze and he begins to squirm a little.
“Hey, cariño, you starting to come back a bit?”
TK is definitely not ready to rejoin the real world entirely, but he manages a nod.
“Well, hey, don’t try to come up too fast. You’re doing so good for me and we don’t want to trigger a drop. Do you want to stay here like this? I realize this is a little more personal than you signed up for with that dance, but you were really out of it and it seemed to be keeping you steady. You can also move to the other end of the couch if you want, or you could even kneel if that will make you feel better? Whatever you’re comfortable with.”
Kneeling actually does sound good ‒ this lap-sitting is definitely getting more embarrassing by the second but he’s not sure he could stand to be all the way across the couch either. Plus kneeling has some non-romantic connotations like when he kneels for his dad while they watch TV, so it might remove the awkward intimacy from the situation a bit. TK goes to slide to the floor but of course Carlos stops him until he can throw a pillow down because apparently he’s a saint. TK doesn’t want to lose contact entirely, so he stays pressed against Carlos’ leg once he’s on the floor and finally starts to take in a little more of their surroundings. They seem to be in an office of some sort?
Carlos sees him looking around and seems to clue in to his confusion.
“Ahh yes ‒ you were under pretty deep so you probably don’t remember coming in here. Don’t worry, we’re still at the bar. Luckily the manager is a friend of mine and happened to be working tonight, so he let us use this room once I realized what was going on.”
Now that TK’s a little more aware, he realizes he can still hear the faint sound of music thrumming through the walls and floor. It’s good to realize he probably didn’t lose that much time if they’re still in the building, but also terrifying to think of what could’ve happened if he’d been with a less savory Dom. While once again his non-existent self-preservation skills got him into this mess, at least his trusty talent for not dying seems to have kicked in and kept him from becoming a serial killer’s latest victim.
“Not sure how much you remember, but not long after we started two-stepping, I realized you were fully in subspace. I’ve never had anyone go down for me like that.” Carlos sounds a mixture of awed and concerned. “I started to take you over to your father, but when I told you what I was doing, you weren’t a fan of the idea.”
Bits and pieces are starting to come back to TK and unfortunately he’s pretty sure Carlos is understating his reaction. If his hazy memories are correct, there was a lot of clinging involved and also some embarrassing mumbles to the effect of wanna stay with you. Well, looks like he’s gonna be testing the limits of that not-dying talent when he walks off the nearest bridge in shame.
“I know most of your team are Doms but I wasn’t sure who else you might prefer, so I figured the next best thing was getting you somewhere quiet. I spotted my friend helping out behind the bar, so was able to get us in here pretty quickly. You followed orders beautifully the whole time, which made it really easy once we got past the whole father roadbump.”
Carlos is gesticulating a bit with his hands as he talks and accidentally brushes against TK’s hair. TK is definitely blaming the residual subspace for why he arches into the touch. He sees Carlos’ hand pause for a minute, before hesitantly moving to stroke his head more firmly. TK can’t help the content smile that results from their new position, so Carlos rightfully determines it’s welcomed and starts up a small petting motion while he wraps up his recount.
“Once we got in here, you seemed to settle, like I said, and I just waited for you to come back to yourself. It didn’t actually take that long, so your group might not even realize you’ve been gone. Or they might just think that we‒ “
Carlos cuts himself off before he can finish, but TK unfortunately gets the gist. Well he guesses he’d rather have his brand new coworkers ‒ and his father but he’s ignoring that for his own sanity ‒ think he went off to hook up with a guy in the bathroom (not too far off from some of his past truths) rather than the embarrassing actual truth.
Carlos seems to decide that abandoning that sentence is the best course of action and instead he tugs a bit on TK’s hair to get him to look up.
“You feeling better, cariño? You back up with us now?”
“Well the hair-pulling and the pet names certainly aren’t helping, but yes.” TK’s voice is a little scratchy from his bout of silence, but he feels like he nailed the playfully sarcastic tone he was going for.
“He speaks!” Carlos is grinning down towards TK as he says it, clearly teasing a bit.
TK is reluctant to end the hair-petting and the warmth of contact all up along his side, but now that he has his full faculties back, he can’t keep preying on this poor Dom, who he basically tricked into giving him aftercare without even getting a scene out of it. He breaks away from the lovely hand in his hair and gets to his feet. Carlos clearly wasn’t expecting it, but he scrambles to his feet a few seconds later.
“Are you sure you’re alright? I’m happy to keep sitting here longer if you need me to.” TK doesn’t doubt he means it, because if anything, the last hour has shown him that this man is definitely too good to be true ‒ even more so than TK had thought upon seeing him in that tight t-shirt. However, he’s determined to reclaim any tiny tatters of his dignity that might be left and stop taking advantage of Carlos’ kindness.
“I’m good. Really. You were great ‒ thank you ‒ but I think I’m going to head back out there now.”
Carlos’ eyes widen a bit and he immediately sticks his arms out towards TK, but stops short of actually grabbing him.
“Are you sure? That seems kind of fast. At least let me go with you and get you some water? I think the bar has popcorn too so we could get some food in you.”
“I appreciate the offer, man, but I really should meet back up with my friends before they think I’ve ditched them.”
TK doesn’t give Carlos a chance to ask any of the many questions TK sees in his eyes, instead ducking out into a dark hallway that he recognizes as being the same one as where the bathroom is located. Great. His teammates are definitely gonna think he spent his time away in there, doing unspeakable things with a hot cop.
He wants to procrastinate that conversation for as long as possible and he’s also not a total idiot, so he beelines for the bar when he gets back to the main room and orders his customary mineral water, in hopes of staving off a drop.
While he waits to receive it, he thinks of how promising the night had been when he’d turned to see the hot cop asking him to dance and how utterly the tables have turned in just under an hour. He’s sure to have a perpetual blush whenever he lays eyes on Carlos Reyes in the future and he’s reminded of his humiliating actions. Hopefully today was a fluke and they’ll rarely respond to the same calls, and it’s not like Carlos will be seeking him out after that, so maybe it won’t happen too often.
Yeah that’s one thing for sure ‒ he’s never going to want to see me again.