Kylie Lee | Slash fan fiction

Reed waved his padd at Tucker. "I've been working on the new security protocol. Obviously the reactor must be secured immediately during a tactical alert."

"Tactical alert?" Tucker said, barely acknowledging Reed's presence. He had far more important things to consider. He was pretty sure he could tweak the captain's chair sensors to interface directly with the central computer. That would avoid a time lag. But then again, processing the raw data through T'Pol's grid would usefully parse it, at the cost of only a few seconds' delay.

"I considered your suggestion, 'Reed Alert,' but, you know, it seemed a bit narcissistic."

Tucker didn't look up. He didn't have time to listen to Reed ramble on about his stupid readiness protocols. He had to figure out how to install wireless components that wouldn't clash with Sato's communications array. "Hand me that hyperspanner, would you?"

Reed handed it over. "I've also been working on a new alert signal. Tell me what you think." Reed hit a button, and a horrible sound rent the air. It was impossible to concentrate with the racket. At this rate, Tucker would never be able to finish. He resisted the urge to leap up and throttle Reed. "Or this one." Reed switched the sound. It was equally awful. He was clearly being difficult on purpose. Tucker gave Reed a look as he rose to his feet and shut it off. "Well, which do you prefer?" Reed asked.

Apparently Tucker hadn't been paying attention, because he hadn't learned what the sound was for. At least it seemed that Reed thought it had a purpose other than merely irritating Tucker. "For what?"

"A tactical alert." Reed extended a padd.

Tucker stared at him. Typical, just typical…Reed was oblivious to Tucker's crucially important task. Well, Tucker had been charged by the captain to fix his chair, and he was determined to do it. "They both sound like a bag full of cats," he said levelly, because he knew a remark like that would annoy Reed, and he was in the mood to annoy him.

"Well, they were both designed to get your attention."

Clearly, the only thing that would make him go away was the promise of action. Tucker took Reed's padd. "I'll look this over and get back to you," he lied, and he slapped the padd down. Reed immediately picked it up again. Tucker should have known it wouldn't work. Usually he liked Reed's focus, but this was ridiculous. It was one thing when they were alone; it was another when they were at work, with people around.

"I also need your help on an emergency shutdown procedure for the EPS grid."

"I said, I'll get back to you."

"Fine. Let's hope we don't suffer a catastrophic reactor breach in the meantime."

Thank god, he was leaving at last. "Malcolm," Tucker said, already deep in the circuitry of the chair's arm. He didn't look around to see whether Reed was listening. "One of your boys borrowed my laser micrometer. If you're heading to the armory, will you get it back for me?" Tucker worked intently for another minute or so. "Malcolm?" he said, looking up, when he realized Reed hadn't responded. Reed was gone.

Reed.

Tucker pondered for a moment. He felt like he was missing something, like something was wrong, like something he needed had disappeared. Maybe it wasn't Reed. Maybe it was…it was the hyperspanner. Where had he put it? He'd just had it a second ago.

"Huh," he said, and then he pushed Reed out of his mind, found the hyperspanner, and went back to work.

***

"I've been trying to get your attention all day," Reed said. He put his hands on Tucker's chest and pushed him into the wall as the door to his quarters slid shut. It wasn't the first time today that Tucker had been slammed against a wall…Archer had done it earlier in the day, but it hadn't been followed by the press of a body, by lips against his.

"Is that a fact." Tucker leaned down as Reed leaned up. "Mmm," he said into Reed's mouth. "That would explain the klaxon, wouldn't it?"

"Yes, Trip, The klaxon was all about you."

"I thought so."

"And you were right. So very, very right."

Tucker watched Reed's eyes drop, so Reed was looking at Tucker's mouth, before his eyes flicked back up. Somehow, it was incredibly hot…Reed looking at his mouth like that. He returned the favor. He liked Reed's mouth, but he liked it better when Reed's mouth looked full and bruised from hard kisses. "I'm always right," he pointed out.

"Self-deluded, perhaps."

"No, right. Mostly just right." Tucker held Reed's eyes, enjoying the sensation of Reed tracing his lower lip with a fingertip, the light touch feathering along his mouth and straight to his groin.

"No, self-deluded," Reed reiterated. His tongue followed his finger. "Cupholders. I ask you."

"What's wrong with cupholders?"

"In comparison with tactical readiness, everything."

Tucker took in Reed's half-smile, the curve of eyelashes against his cheek. Reed was a damned fine-looking man. "If the captain ain't comfortable, ain't nobody comfortable." He lowered his head. "You wanted something?" he asked when they pulled apart for a breath.

"I did. Yes. I did." Reed slid his hands along Tucker's chest, then began to unfasten Tucker's uniform. "I wanted you to approve the protocols. I spent all day hoping you would…review and approve the battle readiness protocols." His voice hitched when his hand reached under Tucker's blues, touching Tucker's bare stomach.

"Battle readiness protocols?"

"Yes."

"Nothing else?"

"Well, we were under the influence of an alien force."

"Gravity?"

"Black hole?"

"Whatever." Tucker shrugged his shoulders out of his coverall and took off his undershirt. He couldn't stop looking at Reed's mouth, just as Reed couldn't stop looking at his. He was fixated on it: the lower lip, the way it changed shape when Reed spoke or smiled, the way it felt against his mouth. He very much liked that…the way Reed kissed him, the way their lips fit together. "Are we still under its influence?" He brushed Reed's lips with his own. "Because I'm kind of focusing on one thing to the exclusion of all else."

Reed put his hands on Tucker's hips and pulled him away from the wall. "The bed's this way," he said, gesturing with a nod of his head. "And Dr. Phlox cleared us. No alien influence. We're fit and healthy."

"Fit. Healthy." Tucker let Reed tug him toward the bed. "Isn't that just the thing. I feel like some physical exertion."

***

When the klaxons sounded, Tucker jumped. "What the hell is that!" he yelled, looking up from the disassembled captain's chair.

"The bridge, sir," an engineer said over the noise. "You're recalled to the bridge. It's a tactical emergency."

Tucker set down his hyperspanner. That sound…yes, it was familiar. It was one of the horrible noises Reed had played for him a couple hours earlier, part of his readiness protocol, his Reed Alert. Reed had naturally chosen the more irritating of the two sirens. "The bridge," he repeated. "Now." Now was not convenient. He was onto something.

"Yes, sir," the engineer said.

"Fine. Fine. I'm going." Tucker stood up wearily and slammed down the hyperspanner. On his way to the lift, he spent just a few seconds tweaking the chair's file and uploading the specs to the central computer.

The circuitry, Tucker thought in the lift. It was all keyed to the circuitry in the chair's right-hand arm. The problem was upgrading the display while simultaneously permitting data to be transmitted wirelessly, because the wireless components of various of the ship's systems would clash. The people who most actively used wireless were T'Pol, whose science station interfaced with the sensors, and Sato, who, as communications officer, naturally interfaced with most of the ship's systems as well as with the UT. Reed had disabled his wireless components because he didn't feel it was safe: someone could hack into the computer and manipulate the joined systems.

Reed.

Tucker drummed his fingers absently as he stared up at the ceiling, heartily wishing the klaxon would stop sounding. It was driving him nuts. The sound was incredibly annoying. And it was all Reed's fault.

Something scratched on the surface of his awareness. Reed. Something about Reed.

Yet really, Tucker thought, this whole wireless thing was something he'd gotten fixated on. If he really wanted the captain's convenience and comfort, he needed to prioritize a cupholder, not wireless access to raw data. Damn it, he'd just been getting really productive. He would have Reed's head for this. The man drove him crazy, absolutely crazy.

Reed…there had always been tension between them. That was how it had all started, in fact: they'd been arguing, as usual, about something stupid, also as usual, and Tucker had looked down at him and blinked, and suddenly, Reed was a man instead of a colleague. Tucker had shut him up by kissing him. It was really the only thing that worked. As he discovered later that night, it had been a very good decision.

The klaxons sounded louder as the lift's doors opened. Thoughts of Reed slipped away, and as Tucker exited the lift, he consoled himself with the thought that while he was on the bridge, he could get the captain's feedback about the headrest. He couldn't decide whether it should be the boring, dark color of the chair itself, whether it should match the colors associated with the captain's rank, or whether he should go with a color that would look good on the captain, so when he spoke with diplomats via the viewscreen, he would look as striking and captainly as possible.

***

Tucker swirled his tongue over Reed's nipple. He felt more than heard Reed moan, and Reed's fingers wove into his hair. "Keep going," Reed encouraged. "You could go lower if you liked."

"I'm getting there." His obsession had moved from Reed's mouth to his body, everything about his body: the way he smelled, the way he tasted. Reed's breath hitched when Tucker hit a sensitive spot. "Did I hurt you?"

"It's nothing…just where you grabbed me on the bridge today."

"You are such a liar." Tucker kissed Reed's chest. "I barely touched you."

"I'm not complaining. You know me. I enjoyed it."

"How about when the captain shoved you up against the bulkhead?"

"I'd rather it had been you, but I liked that, too."

Tucker pulled back and grinned. Reed grinned back. "Oh, ho, ho," Tucker said. "You and the captain? Now how about that."

"I prefer men who are obtainable," Reed informed him. "Why have you stopped? Please don't stop. I believe you were working your way down."

"Sorry. I got distracted." Tucker pushed himself back and knelt between Reed's legs. He gently cupped Reed's balls. "You know," he said, struck, "today, when I was thinking about the captain's chair, the only time I thought about anything else…the only thing that broke me out of it…was thinking about you."

"Really."

"Yes, really."

"How interesting."

"I thought so."

Reed curled his hand around his hard cock and began to stroke. Tucker responded by squeezing Reed's balls, and Reed brought his knees up. Reed said, "And yet the obsession about the captain's ridiculous cupholders held sway. I ought to be offended."

Tucker scooted back. He bent his head and licked the tender spot between Reed's balls and anus, holding Reed's testicles out of the way. "I was under the influence of an alien force," he reminded Reed.

"Gravity?"

"Black hole?"

"Whatever. Oh, yes. Do that again, please."

Tucker spread Reed's buttock cheeks apart and tongued Reed's opening. "Is this low enough?" he asked.

"Yes. Yes, I think it is."

***

"Captain!" He had to yell to be heard over the klaxon, which was louder on the bridge than it had been in the lift.

"One minute and forty-nine seconds, sir," Reed said snidely.

Tucker gave him a look. "You might want to see this, sir," He headed down some stairs, leading Archer to a panel so he could view the latest specs of the chair upgrades. "Interactive status displays, secondary helm control. It's even got inertial microdampers. The ship could be shaking apart, and you would hardly feel a thing."

Reed said, "You ignored a tactical alert for this?"

Tucker ignored him, because he had something important on his mind. He said to Archer, "I want to run some colors by you for the headrest."

"This is all a big joke to you," Reed said loudly.

Tucker finally turned to Reed. "Give it a rest!"

"This isn't a bloody pleasure cruise. Without proper discipline on this ship, this mission is doomed."

"Why don't you go play soldier somewhere else?"

"If this were a military situation, you'd be taken out and shot."

That tore it. Tucker was following orders, working on something crucial to the safety of the ship. The ship's readiness depended on its most crucial crew member: the captain. Headrests and cupholders were therefore of primary importance, not some stupid tactical ability that was just a variation on things already in place. Before he could stop himself, Tucker shoved Reed against a wall.

Reed…Tucker pushing him against a wall…

Tucker flashed to a sense memory of himself tearing at Reed's clothes, kneeling to take Reed in his mouth…they had done something just like this before. In the here and now, though, had forgotten something. He had to do something. But what? It was very important, and he just couldn't remember. It was just out of reach. It had to do with Reed. He was sure of it.

It slid away. He couldn't focus with the noise. There was Reed, looking pissed off, ready to spit and scratch. He remembered now: the captain's chair, Reed giving him grief. Before Tucker could really lay into Reed, Archer pushed them apart.

"Hey!" Archer yelled. He slammed into Tucker, hand fisted in his uniform. "I don't care what color the headrest is, or whether it can serve me iced tea. I just want a place to sit while I'm on duty!" He turned on Reed next. "And if I hear that alarm one more time, I may have you taken out and shot!"

Tucker gave Reed an "I told you so" look and left. He had things to do in Engineering…important things. "Taken out and shot," he muttered in the lift.

***

"Ahh," Reed said as he held himself deep inside Tucker, at the top of the stroke. His eyes were half-closed, and he looked gorgeous, lithe and strong and hard, god, hard inside him.

"Malcolm," Tucker managed, because it felt very, very good. "Don't stop."

"I need to stop or I'll come."

"I need you to not stop." Reed absolutely needed to not stop. Tucker was ready. He was really, really ready. "Jesus. Your mouth."

"Christ, Trip."

Reed bent so his mouth found Tucker's, and thank god, he started thrusting again, fucking him, and his mouth, his taste, the heavy push of Reed inside him, made Tucker remember: this is what he wanted, what he needed. He couldn't believe he had ever forgotten. Reed groaned, a low sound from the back of his throat, all need, and he sped up, so Tucker felt Reed's cock inside him almost as continuous pressure, building until it mutated into continuous pleasure. His cock jerked in his hand, his knuckles brushing Reed's taut belly, and just as he lost it, just as he dissolved into his climax, he felt Reed come, felt him tighten and then explode deep inside.

He put his arms and legs around Reed when he could think again, because Reed, judging by his groans, his sharp, shallow thrusts, wasn't quite finished. Reed's sweaty body slid against his when he collapsed atop Tucker a few seconds later. He looked rumpled and dazed and incredibly sexy.

"That was something," Tucker said, brushing strands of hair out of Reed's eyes. "That was really something."

"Oh, Christ," Reed gasped.

"Trip. You can call me Trip."

"Very funny. Should I…?"

"Mmm. If you want." Reed pulled out so Tucker could put his legs down, and Tucker rolled onto his side so they could lie together, face to face, on the narrow bed. Tucker wiped the sticky beads of come into his stomach, wiped a smear on Reed's lip, and then licked it off, tasting himself. Yes, he definitely liked Reed's mouth best, because of the way it smiled at him, intimate and seductive. "Did you get the feeling all day like there was something really important, but you couldn't remember what it was?"

"Mmm," Reed said, in that British way of his that meant "yes." "When I wasn't being annoyed at everyone for his inability to understand the importance of the Reed Alert. Particularly T'Pol."

"Ah, she drives everyone nuts," Tucker said. "Which somehow reminds me: that Reed Alert klaxon sound has got to go. It's just insanely irritating. Anyway, I just…I just wish I could have been strong enough to break out of it, you know? Not be affected. So much for rationality."

"Alien force."

"Gravity."

"Black hole."

"Whatever," they said together, and Reed touched Tucker's collarbone, tracing it to his shoulder, then back. Tucker watched Reed's eyelashes as his eyes flicked down to look at Tucker's chest, then up to look into his eyes. He might have to revise his favorite body part, he decided: Reed's mouth was great, but his eyes were equally fine.

"Rationality is overrated," Reed said, and Tucker knew he was talking about the two of them. "And I admire your ability to focus. Particularly when you focus on doing…what we just did."

"Yes, a two-track mind," Tucker said ironically. "Engineering, and you."

"I'm no different," Reed pointed out.

"I guess that's true." Tucker leaned in for a kiss. "I guess it makes sense: business, and pleasure."

"The latter is a most useful obsession."

"Obsession. That's a good word."

"Thank you." Reed curled his hand around Tucker's neck. "Stay the night?"

"You couldn't get rid of me."