Title: Just Trying To Help

Author: Tina

Fandom: The Sentinel

Pairing: J/B

Rating: PG

Archive: yes

Summary: Jim tries to help Blair

Just Trying To Help
By Tina

"It was just one tiny little fib...Okay a lie...a big fat lie, but...."

"How could you do that Jim?" Blair yelled as he jumped out of the pickup before it had come to a complete stop. "You embarrassed me I can't show my face at Rainer again." Closing the trucks door a little forcefully Blair walked around the truck to Jim's side. "I have enough trouble with the dean and now this!"

"You are being a little over dramatic aren't you?" Jim said as he got out of the truck and locked it.

"Jim you lied to people I work with." They walked into the building arguing all the way up to the third floor and into the loft. "What the fuck is the matter with you? You have said some stupid things but this..."

"Sandburg calm dawn I was trying to help I thought we had been over all this on the ride home."

"You have yet to give me a decent answer."

Jim closed the loft's door behind himself having stood to the side to allow a very angry Blair to storm past him.

"Some how I thought you would appreciate the help." After all the guy was coming onto you and I heard you tell him you were not interested and he was not listening."

Blair balled his hands into fists. "What...OOOOOOH.....I don't know what to do I am so mad. I have never been so mad in my life Ellison I gotta get out of here."

Jim watched as Blair stomped out of the door slamming it behind him. Jim cringed at the sound of the door vibrating in its casing. Getting two beers from the fridge he sat down on the sofa, placing one beer on the table the other he opened and drank almost in one go. Why had he done what he did and why would Sandburg be so upset? So he lied. Somehow he thought Blair would have appreciated what he had done. He had not liked the guys' hands caressing Blair's arm as he spoke to him, yes there might have been a better way to handle it but at the moment none had come to mind. So he had said the first thing that had come to him. Jim finished his first beer and exchanged it for the full one on the table. He slouched back into the sofa. Sandburg being Sandburg he would be accepted no matter how long his hair or how many earrings he wore so what would be the problem.

*

Blair slammed the door as hard as he could, pretending it was Ellison. How could Jim have embarrassed him like that? He stopped in the wet street, what if Jim did feel like that towards him. "Shit." He started walking again. "No way," not Jim. He turned around and went back stomping up the stairs. Jim was holding the door open when he got to it.

Blair took off his wet jacket and hung it up when he turned around Jim handed him a towel to dry his hair with. When he took the towel off his head Jim handed him a beer. Then turned and headed back to sofa. Blair followed towel around his neck taking in the two empty beers on the table and the one in Jim's hand.

"Tell me why you would tell such a lie."

"I could not stand the guy trying to push you into going out with him when I heard you tell him you were not interested."

Blair took a swig of his beer moving the two empties out of his way he sat down on the coffee table so he could sit facing Jim. "Jim I can handle my life. I did for years before you came into it."

"I know Sandburg and I am sorry I will go Rainer tomorrow and talk to the guy what is his name anyway."

"No you won't."

"Excuse me, why won't I?"

"Well for one, just talking to Brodie won't help because he has the biggest mouth on campus by now everyone knows what happened."

Jim rubbed his hands over his face, he took the beer from between his thighs, soulful eyes looked up to catch Blair looking at him, he lifted the bottle to his lips his eyes staying on Blair's. "Blair I don't know what to say."

"We will figure something out. Jim you usually think of better ways to put someone in their place, why say I was sleeping with you?"

Jim brought the bottle to his lips and sipped. "Well actually I have wanted to ask you out for a while now and I can't seem to get up the nerve and jealousy is great motivation."

Blair was speechless. For the second time in one night his mouth hung open at words that had come out of his best friends' mouth.

They looked at each other, Jim's eye's seemed to say 'please don't hate me' Blair's 'why did you not tell me?'

"You were jealous of Brodie? Why?" Blair asked just above a whisper.

"He had the balls to ask you out and I live with you, see you every day, had a lot of opportunities to ask you and didn't, I care a lot about you and if you said yes to him I would not have a chance..."

"You are rambling Jim, why would you not have a chance?"

"Why would you want someone like me when you can have someone like Brodie?"

"Brodie is a self centered prick who only wanted to go out with me because he knew I was going to get to head the new museum display coming from Egypt."

"Oh." Jim said quietly.

"You Jim are so special and if I ever wanted to go out with a man you would be it but since I have never thought about it."

"What if we went slow?"

Blair smiled at his roommate placing his hand on his knee. "Are you asking me out?"

Jim turned red under Blair's scrutiny. "Yes I think I am if you did not slug someone like Brodie for asking you out, I figure I can try."

"Jim it's not me who would slug anyone."

A huge smile broke on Jim's face and he laughed. "Oh yea that's me and if I ever see Brodie again I will slug him."

"My hero." Blair said laughing along with his friend. "Don't you dare hit anyone because of me. Understood?"

"Understood." Jim agreed holding his beer up, Blair touched his bottle to Jim's and they emptied them.

END