TITLE: All The Time

SERIES: Stand-Alone

AUTHOR: Firestorm17

All the Time
by Firestorm17

Jim Ellison held the door open for his lover as the younger man entered their apartment, babbling his excitement at solving a fifty year old murder. He avidly watched the roll of muscles under Blair's red flannel shirt as his partner punctuated his speech with sweeping gestures.

". . . I mean, I know Simon thinks you were tripping or something, but it's still got to be cool to see something like that."

The taller man beamed down at his Guide.

"You have no idea, Chief."

Jim still wondered whether it had been a mistake to tell his captain about his newfound ability. Simon had accepted many strange assertions since Jim's senses had come back, but this time, the big black man had looked at him like he was debating calling in the men in white coats. To tell the truth, the Sentinel was almost glad that Simon had blamed the whole thing on the allegedly controlled substances in the cold remedy. Straitjackets had never really suited him.

"I know, you lucky bastard. I mean, I can't even imagine what it like to see some hint of what there is after this life."

The Sentinel inwardly debated whether he should really be discussing this with his Guide. The entire situation cut far too close to the horrible incident of a few months before. Jim hated to be reminded of how he had nearly lost Blair forever.

"Well, for one thing, Darwin, it's definitely reassuring."

The topic hung in the air between them, but Blair let the words go unsaid, changing the subject instead.

"Well, we solved another case, put another bad guy in jail. Feel like celebrating, big guy?"

The young Guide's hands dropped down to fondle his Sentinel's cheeks.

"You go ahead, Chief. I'll be up in a minute."

With no further hesitation, Blair tore up the stairs into their shared bedroom. For a few moments, Jim stayed where he was, listening to the rustling of his Guide's myriad layers as the younger
man undressed. Blair had always been cold in the chilly Washington climate, even more so since the terrifying scene at the fountain. However, since then, he had had his Sentinel to keep him warm.

Leaving his spot in the living room, Jim gravitated to the little room where Blair had slept for so long. It had remained empty since Jim had decided that he wasn't going to waste one moment of his second chance to be with his Guide. The Sentinel eased open a drawer, his fingers closing around something inside. As Jim raised his hand to his eyes, the low light of the room illuminated the small gold hoop between his thumb and forefinger. His eyes misting lightly, the Sentinel of the Great City let the tiny piece of jewelry fall back into the darkness of the drawer. Then, Jim climbed up the stairs to join the man he would love for the rest of his life and beyond.

FIN


END NOTE: The plot of the preceding was based on "The Sixth Sense", which I don't own any more than I own Blair and Jim. The title comes from Cole Sear's answer to Malcolm Crowe about how often he sees dead people. I am very sorry if I upset anyone. Please do not flame me.