Work Text:
Title: It's A Lonely Place
Author: Lopaka Tanu
Disclaimer: I do not own The Magnificent Seven or Without A Trace.
Characters: Chris, Buck.
Words: 1053
Fandom: The Magnificent Seven/Without A Trace
Pairing: Chris/Vin mentioned.
Rating: Teen
Warnings: Angst.
Summary: Chris is losing himself to age.
Author's Note: Spring - 2000.
______________________________________
He was warm wrapped up in the blankets. It was dark out, he could tell without having to open his eyes. That meant it was way too early to be awake. If he even thought about getting up, his lover would kill him.
Thinking about the other made him smile. Reaching over, he found warm skin tangled up in the blankets beside him. The rise and fall of a solid chest reassured him. They were both here together. Everything was going to be all right.
He still couldn't believe it. A year without him had felt like hell. Why had it gotten so bad between them? They were both to blame in equal parts, but it was nothing they hadn't been able to work out in the end.
Shifting in the covers, his lover moaned softly in his sleep.
The memory of those strong arms wrapped around his chest made him sigh. The guys liked to tease them, but that was okay. He was in love, and he didn't care who else knew.
The phone rang.
Shaking awake, Chris blindly reached out to grasp for the phone. As his hand landed on the receiver, he picked it up. He inhaled through his nose as he brought it to his ear. "Larabee."
There was only silence on the other end.
Grumbling to himself, he put the phone back in its cradle. God damned thing always had the worst timing. He had been having that dream again.
Chris didn't want to open his eyes. The feeling of emptiness that always took hold when he did was too much. If he just ignored it a little longer this time, he would be okay. This way, he wouldn't have to wake up and find the pillow beside him empty for a little while longer.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sitting at his desk, he checked the clock on the wall above his door. It had only been ten minutes since he last checked it. That meant it was still thirty minutes until his shift officially ended. He would most likely spend another hour afterwards in his office.
There was no point in leaving early. Vin had always chastised him about his work habits. Chris didn't know why. They had spent more time together than he and Sarah ever did. That was something that still pained him to think about.
He cast a glance over to the card on the edge of his desk. Thirty six, that was how old he would be tomorrow. God, he could hardly believe it. When the hell had he gotten so old?
Still, he felt every bit his age. He had buried two lovers and his only child. There were days when he felt that, had they offered, he would have accepted early retirement. As it was, Chris wasn't too certain he would wait until it was, or that he could.
"Hey, Chris." Knocking on the doorway as he entered, Buck smiled at his friend. The folder in his hand had nothing to do with why he was there. His eyes automatically went to the card. "What's the matter, the birthday blues got you down?"
"What do you want?" It came out almost a plaintive whisper. Chris was in no mood to deal with even good natured teasing.
Seeing this, Buck shook his head. "Come on, it's your birthday tomorrow. Let ole Buck treat you to something nice."
"I'm not interested in sex, Buck." This got a raised eyebrow from his friend. Chris didn't care. "I'm going to stay at home and drink myself in to a stupor."
"So, that's different from your norm how?" When he didn't get a response, Buck shook his head. "Chris, this has got to stop. You're killin yourself slowly."
"It's my death." While this earned him a scowl, it made Chris smile.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It wasn't as bad as he had thought. When he had woken that morning, Chris had expected the world to come crashing down. There had been no changes to his body in the night. Surprisingly, he still felt the same too.
Having picked up a burger on his way to work, he felt a little better by the time he reached the office. The trip up to the eleventh floor was uneventful, which made his stomach roil with dread. His team never let his birthday pass without doing something stupid.
Chris stepped off the elevator with a since of resignation. Much to his surprise, there was no one there. He was a little early, but that only made it the more suspicious. Under normal circumstances, he was always the first one in. This was not normal.
As he headed for his office, he passed by Josiah's desk. The big man had left his computer running again. No matter how many times he was told not to, he could be counted on to forget at least once a week.
By the time he made it inside his door, he was near paranoid. What were they up to? This had happened too many times for him to ever let his guard down. They were up to something!
Chris checked his chair for tacks and whoopi cushions. When nothing turned up, he searched in and around his desk. There was still nothing to indicate what they were planning. Obviously they had gotten sneakier over the years.
Holding his breath, he sank down in to his chair. Much to his relief, it held his weight. That done, he reached out and booted up his computer. Nothing happened to the screen and his sweaty fingers didn't turn the keys red. That had been a nasty surprise for the IT guys on the third floor last year.
By the time he heard the elevator ding, Chris was ready to just call it a day. Sitting back in his chair, he twirled to face the wall and forced himself to relax. He wasn't going to give them idiots the satisfaction of seeing him sweat. When he felt composed enough to face them down, he spun his chair to face the office.
His heart came to a stop.
Leaning against the door frame, his head cocked to the side, the ghost smiled at him. "Howdy, Cowboy. Did you miss me?"
A smile touched at Chris' lips. He drew a breath to speak.
The phone rang.
THE END........................