Episode 8: FANthrax
Part 4
It was late when they decided to give up their speculation for the night and turn in. Brian left immediately, heading to his own room next door. Red stayed longer but eventually retired to her room on the other side of Nick’s. A door separated them; Nick eyed it briefly as it closed behind her, picturing himself slipping through it to go to her in the night. He hadn’t had Red in his bed in some time, what with the end to his hiatus and the copious amount of Diamonds at headquarters.
Julilly, who had also lingered, drifted towards the other door as Red left through the adjoining one. But when Red was gone, the door shut tight behind her, Julilly turned from the doorway and said, “You got a minute, Carter?”
“Sure?” He walked toward her as she stepped back into the room. The moment he was within her reach, her arms shot out. In a flash, she grabbed both of his shoulders, whipped him around, and thrust him up against the inside of his door, effectively slamming it shut.
Oh god, she’s a double agent! he thought as he stared down at her, wide-eyed and horrified at her strength. He felt the butt of the gun holstered at her hip pressing against his thigh as she pinned him to the door with her body, legs spread apart, palms splayed against the door on either side of his face. He shuddered, though he tried not to flinch, keeping his expression stiff and controlled. Completely unarmed, he found himself wishing he’d tried harder in Grasshopper’s martial arts training. Hand-to-hand combat wasn’t his forte, especially with a chick.
“I want you to know,” said Julilly, cocking one eyebrow, “that I have a policy against screwing around on the job. By that, I mean you keep your hands off me, I keep my hands off you, and we respect each other’s space. When I’m on a case with someone, we are colleagues, business partners, and nothing more. You got that?”
Caught off-guard, Nick nodded. Understanding was starting to sink in. She wasn’t an imposter; at least, he didn’t think she was. She was one of those feminists who was about to give him a sexual harassment lecture. He fought the urge to roll his eyes. “Look,” he started, “I’m sorry if I made you feel uncomfortable. I was just playing, trying to get to know you, but I’ll back off, I promise. Just don’t–” Don’t tell K was what he was about to say; the last thing he needed was another mandatory sexual harassment in-service.
But Julilly interrupted. “Hold on there, Carter; I wasn’t done. Hear me out: I said I don’t like to screw around while I’m on the job. Off the job, though?” Now she arched both brows, and for the first time, a seductive smile crept over her lips.
She’s not a dyke? thought Nick, reading her expression. His heart lifted. “You don’t mind a little screwing around?” he finished for her hopefully.
She grinned and returned the wink he’d offered her hours before. “Not one bit.”
She pressed herself against him, her hip bones colliding with his.
“Not one…”
Taking both his hands, she wound his arms around her until his hands met at the small of her arched back, holding her against him.
“…little…”
She raised her chin, bringing her face closer to his. He could feel his body start to react.
“…bit.”
As the word popped from her lips, he lowered his head and brought his mouth crashing down onto hers.
***
The evening had been an eventful one for Nick Carter and the new Jewel that had entered his life.
He smirked as he leaned against the doorway of his hotel room the next morning, his eyes retracing all the curves his hands had explored the night before. Julilly grinned as she leaned in, and he tasted the sweetness of her lips once more. He felt about ready for another round, but it was morning, and, much to Nick’s annoyance, they had to go back to their day jobs. She had hastily dressed, but he, after a fun shower with the sexy Canadian, still wore nothing but a towel wrapped securely around his waist.
“You know,” he said, once the two finally pulled apart, “you can always come back up for extra research… or something.” He smirked.
She chuckled as she ran a hand through her still-wet, tousled hair. “Oh, I bet I can, Carter, and I think I’ll take you up on that offer later.” Placing another short peck on his cheek, the CSIS officer made her way down the hallway of the hotel. His eyes traced her every step before the sound of the door from the room next to his caught his attention. A giggle caused his gaze to shift to the other jewel that had accompanied him on this mission. Red eyed him, her eyes shifting to a lower destination.
“Hiding a gun under that towel, or are you just happy to see me?”
Nick cocked a brow at her. “Now you know that’s all me, Jewel. Did you forget? I could remind you.” He smiled that charming grin that he knew Red Jewel loved, despite how big of a womanizer she thought he was.
“I don’t know, Nick; perhaps Julilly wore you out,” she teased.
“Hey now, I’m always ready for a go with you, Jewel.”
It was then that the door on the other side of Nick burst open forcefully. A pair of hands gripped a gun expertly, and out stepped Brian, wearing nothing but a set of boxers that were covered with dancing penguins and a pair of plush penguin slippers to match. Nick burst out laughing. Next to him, Red giggled and stared at the Southern CIA officer’s well-defined chest.
Once he saw them staring at him and no danger in sight, Brian breathed easier. He lowered his gun, reached behind the door frame, and set it on the nightstand just inside his room. “What’s so funny, Carter?” he asked, trying to maintain his dignity as Nick continued to laugh.
“Nice boxers, Country Boy; I’m sure you’ll scare all the bad guys away for us with those dancing penguin undies and fuzzy slippers.”
Brian’s eyes narrowed, his cheeks darkening slightly with color when he remembered just what he was wearing… or not wearing. “They were a gift from Opal. And what’s with the towel, Carter? You mock me, but there ain’t a soul who’ll wanna see what ya have under there, no matter how much ya wanna show it off.”
“Oh, you know you wanna see it. You want my body… but you know what?” Nick began to dance in his doorway, popping his booty to the beat in his head. “I don’t think you’re ready for this jelly… I don’t think you’re ready for this jelly… I don’t think you’re ready for this… My body’s too bootylicious for ya, hick!” He kept dancing, backing his way towards Brian just to pop his towel-covered behind almost in the other man’s face.
“Hick! Oh, you’re one to talk about stupid hicks and all that. Penguin boxers and all, I’m still able to drive on the right side of the road without wondering, ‘Hey, why is that car trying to meet me?’ like some simpleton.” Brian’s accent thickened as his agitation rose.
“Oh, and you’re so much smarter than me, ain’t that right, you incest-lovin’ Southern boy?”
Red blinked, watching the rising tensions rapidly growing between the two men. “Guys–”
“No, Red, let me handle this ‘good ol’ fashioned country boy.’ He claims to be so smart, but he can’t see the government is fucking him through the rear and won’t ‘til it costs him.” Nick glared at Brian. “Now, why don’t we settle this man to man?”
“Oh, and you call me backwards — yeah, ’cause me punching you out is gonna help find out whatever it is spreading the disease around here.”
“I’m not talking about beating your ass,” Nick replied shortly. No matter how tempting that is, K would kill my ass. Especially after that power outage I caused last week…
“Then what are you babbling about? Do you even know, Nick? Or do I need to help you spell it out again?”
“This.” Within seconds, Nick had Brian in a firm headlock, enjoying holding the other man’s head within inches of his armpit. Damn, I just showered, he thought, failing to notice that the door to his hotel room had just slammed shut. Oh well.
Brian resisted, struggled, and finally managed to grab Nick’s side and lift him. He slammed him down hard on the carpeted floor and smirked as he maneuvered his way out of Nick’s grip. There was a reason they called him The Rok.
Red watched as the two continued to wrestle fiercely. Then she did what any straight, young woman would do when faced with two attractive, well-built men wrestling half-naked in front of her: she took out her phone and snapped pictures.
“Give it up, Shrimp!”
“Not on your life. You starting to tire, Poster Boy?”
“Hell no! I can–” Suddenly, Nick stopped talking. The two men ceased wrestling. Brian stared at Nick for a moment. So did Red. Nick looked down and blanched. In the tussle, the towel had fallen from his waist, leaving him completely naked.
Brian snapped back to reality first and had an evil thought. With a sinister grin, he snatched the towel and ran into his own room, cackling.
Red started giggling again, too. She couldn’t stop laughing. She snapped pictures repeatedly as Nick turned red and immediately covered himself. “Hey, you wanna do that, we can do it in your room,” Nick said, leaning against the wall with one hand covering his more private area, in case someone happened to appear in the hall.
“Maybe later… We need to get ready to meet Julilly downstairs, remember?”
“Oh, right.” Damn! He watched her turn into her room, still giggling. A moment later, he heard music coming from her room. Nick turned to go into his room and grabbed the door handle…
He shook his head. Oh, hell no…
He tried the doorknob again. “SHITBALLS!” He felt around for his room key until he smacked himself in the head for being so stupid. Of course he didn’t have his key tucked away; he was naked! He knew where the key was; it was on the dresser, next to the door.
The door that was locked.
Nick still made sure to check the floor around the door, just in case. Maybe, by some miracle, he’d dropped the key by the door, or the key had fallen off. But of course, he saw nothing but hotel carpeting.
He looked around furtively. At least the halls were still empty. But he needed to get out of view, and fast.
First, he tried Red’s door. “Jewel?! Come on, open up!”
“A player hater to flip with, yeah
Gon’ head and fill it, yeah
I be slanging wood, yeah
Out the hood, yeah
Let it be understood, yeah
It’s all good, yeah…”
He blinked at the rap music he could hear blaring on the other side of the door. He banged on the door harder, hoping no one else could hear it but Red Jewel. He gave a silent plea for help from the Lord above in his desperate situation.
“You looks good, won’t you back that ass up?
You’s a fine motherfucker, won’t you back that ass up?
You got to steal, big ass, yeah
Make me laugh, yeah…”
Sometimes, he felt fate was against him. He ceased hitting her door, knowing she wouldn’t hear him. But that left only one other option, and it was the last thing he wanted to do: he had to ask Brian for help.
Each of the four steps he took to Brian’s room felt heavier than the last. By the time he reached Brian’s door, he was starting to get a chill. He banged quickly on the door. Any more noise and, soon, others would come out into the hall and see him in his grand, large, naked glory.
“Who is it?” he heard the familiar, Southern twang call out mockingly.
“Come on, Brian, it’s Nick; open the damn door!”
“Why?”
“’Cause I’m fucking naked, and I need my damn towel so I can go downstairs and get another fucking key, asshole! That’s why! I ain’t in the mood to be showing Big Nicky off to all the lucky ladies in the hotel! Now open up!”
“No.”
Nick saw red. “What do you mean, NO?! You can’t leave me out here locked out and fucking naked! Are you insane, or is it just inbreeding?!”
“Heh, betcha wish you had penguin boxers now, huh, Carter?”
He heard mocking laughter from the other side of the door and then footsteps fading away. Nick banged on the door again and again. “Brian! Brian!” He sighed and finally stopped. Brian was just ignoring him now and enjoying his agony.
“Shitballs. Uber-fucking-shitballs.” Nick glanced around desperately before finally grabbing a potted plant that sat beside Red Jewel’s door. With his back against the wall, he quickly slinked his way down the hall toward the elevator. Maybe, by some miracle, he could get to the lobby for his key before anyone saw him.
***
Meanwhile, down in the lobby, Julilly was on the phone with her supervisor, being briefed on a recent development in the investigation. Suddenly, her conversation was interrupted by a loud crash on the other side of the lobby, followed by a scream from a familiar voice.
“GODDAMN SHITBALLS!” Nick exclaimed as his arms finally gave way, and he dropped the potted plant he’d been covering himself with. Searching for anything nearby he could use to cover himself up with, he hastily grabbed a tourist brochure from a nearby table, unfolded it, and used his left hand to keep it in place over his lower half. He then backed himself as close to the wall as he could get and inched his way over to the check-in desk.
“Hello,” Nick said in a quiet, calm tone, hoping it would be enough to get everyone in the lobby to stop staring at him. “My name is Pat McRotch, and I seem to have found myself locked out of my hotel room. Can I get a new key? I’m in 3017.”
“Certainly, Mr. McRotch,” the young female behind the counter said, obviously trying to stifle her laughter. “You wouldn’t happen to have any ID on you, would you? To make sure you’re the person the room is registered to.”
“Do I look like I have any ID on me?!” Nick exclaimed.
“I’ll vouch for him,” Julilly said, flashing her badge to the clerk. “He is who he says he is.”
“Thanks,” Nick said as the clerk began to type feverishly for a few moments before rummaging through a nearby drawer. She pulled out a plastic card and swiped it through the machine while Nick stood anxiously.
“No problem,” Julilly replied. “But I meant what I said about screwing around on the job.”
“I got you loud and clear,” Nick replied, looking over his shoulder every five seconds to see what the clerk was doing that it was taking her so long to give him his damn room key. As Julilly moved closer to him, he hoped that he wouldn’t end up poking a hole through the thin paper he was holding. After all, it was all he had to shield himself from a crowded hotel lobby full of people.
“And I don’t know what it’s like down in America, but up here, we don’t look kindly on streakers. Don’t make me pull out my handcuffs again.” She winked at him as the clerk cleared her throat and leaned over to hand Nick his new room key.
“Here’s your new key, sir.” The clerk smiled.
“Thank you!” Nick exclaimed before turning back to Julilly. “I hope I’ll see you when I get back down here — in clothes, I promise.”
“Well, hopefully, we’ll both be in clothes the next time you walk into this lobby.” Julilly laughed. “Every time you walk into this lobby, actually. But since I just got a phone call from my supervisor about one of the victims, I think I’ll just come up with you so I can fill you all in.”
“Sure…” Nick trailed off, still silently praying that he didn’t poke a hole in the brochure, especially now that he would be stuck in an elevator with her. She was obviously amused by his attraction to her. “What’s the victim’s name?”
“Sophie Richards,” she replied as they stepped into the elevator.
Nick let out a sigh of relief as the door slowly closed in front of them.
***