triskehale | date night

Entry tags:

barry

date night

Derek has a lot more time on his hands now that he isn't working the food truck, and he's doing his best to find ways to fill it. He's made some improvements to the cabin, and now he looks at the place that was once a place for him to be alone and wonders if its too small. He wonders if maybe Barry might want to find a place of their own together. The thought scares him and exhilarates him all at once, and he pushes it aside to think about later. Things are so good between them, and he's a little worried to press his luck.

Since the truck has been closed, Derek's Friday nights are free again. Barry is at the station, no doubt cooped up in his lab, and Derek decides to see if he can go coax him out. It's a little strange to walk through the police station, even as often as he finds himself there now. He still has a bit of a reputation there, thanks to his history of showing up with bleeding criminals, and now he's also known as the boyfriend of the cute new forensic scientist.

He waves at a few people, avoids small talk with a few others, and finally breathes in relief once he finds Barry's lab. He's the only one inside, sitting in the moonlight pouring in through the window, and Derek knocks on the door frame. "Hey," he says quietly. "Must be a hell of a case."

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"Wouldn't want to scandalize the bread," Derek says solemnly. He never sets a timer when he cooks because he just goes by his nose, but he doesn't trust that Barry wouldn't distract him from the scent of burning bread so he lifts Barry up with one arm and uses his free hand to set a timer. Once they're over at the sofa, Derek sits down and pulls Barry down into his lap before leaning in for a kiss that's soft and greedy all at once.

"This doesn't count as jumping you," Derek murmurs against Barry's lips, even as his hands slide up under Barry's shirt to travel along his soft skin. "Because I said I wasn't gonna do that."

"Did you?" asks Barry. He has a vague memory of the promise, but it's difficult to think with Derek pinned comfortably between his thighs. He cups Derek's cheeks to kiss him again, thumbs dragging against his scruff. Has it grown longer? When's the last time they had a chance to just sit like this? Too long, that's certain. "A little jumping is okay before dinner."

"Just a mild jumping," Derek says, this time against Barry's jaw. He growls softly as Barry's fingers scratch through his beard and then lifts his head to kiss him again, this time licking slowly into his mouth. He tastes like the peanuts from the protein bar, and Derek pulls him closer, holds him a little tighter.

He had the vague urge to maybe go down on him before dinner, but this is so much better. Right now, he just wants to kiss Barry over and over, to hold onto him. He sucks lazily at Barry's tongue and then bites softly at his bottom lip, resolving to go back to his plan later. He'll lay Barry down and take him apart piece by piece, but right now there's nothing better than this.

"You look good in my shirt," Derek breathes out as he kisses his way down Barry's neck and noses under the loose collar. The shirt is way too big and hangs off of him, but Derek isn't lying. He thinks it looks incredible. "I'd wear your shirt but I might Hulk out of it."

"Leave my poor shirts alone," Barry laughs, pink cheeked and breathless in Derek's arms as that mouth of his makes its way down Barry's throat. His beard scrapes just right at Barry's skin, and he tries to remember they're going to eat soon. He exhales and thinks of his work shirt lying on top of Derek's dresser now. "You'll pop off all the buttons. I'm already down two this week from accidental friction fires."

"Hey, I always replace the ones that I destroy," Derek replies, leaving a line of kisses along the length of Barry's throat and gently pressing the tip of a claw to his chest before retracting it and resting his hand there instead. Because Derek has destroyed a few in his eagerness to get them off of Barry's body, and he's sheepishly left new replacements on top of Barry's dresser afterwards.

He drags the loose-hanging shirt up Barry's back, fingertips gliding along his spine as he urges him closer. His arousal is a slow burn that could easily turn into a roaring flame, and he lets out a slightly shaky breath before licking his lips and tipping his head up to kiss Barry's mouth once more.

"All I can smell is garlic," Derek murmurs rather pitifully, just before shoving his nose behind Barry's ear and inhaling. Now it's just Barry and garlic, which is a little better. He's just sucking Barry's earlobe into his mouth when the timer goes off, and he jumps a little before turning back to scowl at the oven. "Okay, okay, back to the plan. Stop being so tempting."

"Wha?" asks Barry, his eyes closed, and it isn't until Derek begins to pull away that he understands. "Couldn't we just - " he starts, but now that he's paying attention, the smell of fresh baked bread is nearly a physical presence bearing down on him, and Barry's stomach rumbles.

He begins to reluctantly disengage. "I can at least make it fast," he says and speeds into the kitchen, pulling out the bread and slicing it and arranging equal piles on both of their plates. Barry emerges from the speed force shaking out his fingers. "God, that's hot!"

In a blink, the comforting weight in Barry's lap is replaced by a rush of air and the scent of electricity. Derek looks over just in time to see the blur in his kitchen turn back into Barry, and he chuckles fondly as he gets up to follow him.

"Careful, hummingbird," Derek tells him, lifting Barry's hand to kiss his fingertips. They smell like garlic and butter, and Derek drags his tongue playfully across the pads of his fingers before stepping away. The meat smells perfect, and Derek turns off the stove before lifting the roast pan out of the oven. "Hey, grab some drinks? We're not eating in here."

The set up in the backyard is probably a little (or a lot) corny, but Derek had seen something like it while flipping through a home improvement magazine at the hardware store. He was making improvements anyway, and maybe there's a part of him that wants to make this place better for Barry. The wolf in him seems to think that if he keeps fixing up the den enough, Barry won't want to call anywhere else home.

"Follow me," Derek says after piling their plates high with meat and potatoes and heading for the back door. He's just a little nervous as he turns on the light switch with his elbow, and a few strands of soft fairy lights strung out across the area illuminate all the cushions and blankets below. There's a white sheet hung up against the back of the cabin, and his laptop is sitting hooked up to a small projector on the opposite side of the cushions. "I set this up today. The weather is sort of perfect for being outside at night and I just thought that it would be-- nice. To sit out here with you."

"Not in here?" asks Barry, but he dutifully fills his arms with a few sodas and water bottles from the fridge, standing in curious expectation until Derek has gathered their plates. He follows Derek to the door, eyebrows climbing to his hairline when the lights come on to reveal the elaborate set up in the yard.

"Wow," Barry exhales, nearly tripping down the few stairs as he gapes at it. "This is amazing. It's like something out of a movie." Barry's grin widens further at the sight of the projector. "Is that for movies?"

Derek watches for Barry's reaction, and lets out a relieved breath at the look on his face. Relaxing slightly, he follows Barry towards the cushions and looks around, setting the plates on a small, low table before taking the items from Barry's hands and setting them down too.

"Yeah, it is. I don't have a TV here, but I thought we could watch movies? I got the streaming thing," he says, awkwardly scratching the back of his head and wrinkling his nose before turning back to Barry. "Pretty cheesy, huh? Is it too much?"

"How is it cheesy?" asks Barry, already seating himself at the low table, long legs tucked up beneath him. "We can eat and watch movies and look at the stars all at the same time, it's amazing. You said it's got a streaming stick?"

Barry leans over, practically backwards in his efforts to get at the laptop without distancing himself from the food. "Does it have access to the original Star Trek eps? I've been working my way through them. Kind of an annual tradition."

Derek watches Barry settle and he doesn't even know why he was nervous. Sometimes he thinks he must still feel the echo of those words, you're too intense, but he needs to realize that he isn't going to scare Barry off. They're in love. People in love make romantic gestures.

God, he still can't believe it. They're in love.

"I think so," Derek says, slipping out of his boots and socks and then joining Barry at the table, legs curled up underneath it as he settles into the cushions. Once they're done eating, they can move the table and lay down, watch the projector or the stars. Maybe just each other.

"I used to watch it when I was a kid," Derek tells him, watching as Barry navigates the technology with ease. He bites into his bread as the picture lights up the back of the cabin, pleased at how well his plan came together. "Did you know Kirk is here? Not this Kirk. Reboot Kirk. Good guy."

"Me too," says Barry. "Me and my dad. My real dad, not Joe. He wasn't really into scifi." Barry quiets for a moment, navigating silently through the streaming menu until he finds the episode where he left off. City on the Edge of Forever. It's a fan favorite, but Barry's always found it terribly sad.

"They made a new one?" he asks. "Really? Is it one of those, everyone rides a motorcycle and wears leather and is super cool reboots?"

"My dad loved Star Trek. And werewolf movies," Derek says with a fond laugh. He digs into his food and huffs out another laugh, finishing his bite as he nods. "Pretty much, yeah. Laura took me to see it. I was still in New York then. I think they made a sequel, but I didn't see that one. I didn't really do things like that after her."

They both lose themselves in their food and the show for a bit, and Derek smirks as he bumps his shoulder against Barry's. "Did you have a boyhood crush on Kirk?"

"No," says Barry, smiling faintly as he begins to slow down on his mountain of food. "I liked Bones. I don't know why, he's such a grump, and he never got to do much doctoring on the show besides saying, 'He's dead, Jim,' but he was my favorite. And Uhura."

Barry whistles low. "What a knockout."

"Damnit, Jim," Derek quotes gruffly, smiling a little before finishing off the last of his bread. The moment goes a little bittersweet, and Derek assumes maybe they're both thinking about the families that they no longer have. They have each other and to Derek, Barry feels like family. But still, there's no replacing what they've lost.

"Uhura, huh? Should I be jealous?" Derek teases, bumping his shoulder against Barry's softly. "Bones is here too. Reboot Bones, anyway. This place is so bizarre. I'm friends with dwarves from Lord of the Rings."

"I'm pretty sure I've seen them," says Barry, smiling until his gaze it caught by the motion of the flickering screen. They're coming to the sad part of the time travel episode, where Jim realizes he can change history and save Edith, but that if she lives, her life will cause a spiral of effects that would worsen life for all of humanity. It's the first time he's seen it since he got his powers, and Barry realizes in a rush how close it hits to home.

Mouth dry, Barry lifts his last piece of bread and tries valiantly to eat it.

Barry's scent goes slightly brittle and sad all of a sudden, and Derek has no idea why. Admittedly, he's been paying more attention to Barry and his food than the screen, so it takes him a moment to piece it all together. It's been a really long time since he's seen the episode, but eventually it comes flooding back to him. Derek has a hard time watching anything involving house fires, just like Barry is particularly troubled by time travel and sacrifice.

"Hey," Derek says quietly, leaning in to wrap his arms around Barry and rest his chin on Barry's shoulder, nuzzling softly at his neck. "We can watch something else."

He bites his lip and presses a kiss behind Barry's ear, something soft and sweet just to remind Barry that Derek is there, that he cares. He still isn't the best at talking, but he's more than capable of listening. "Or-- do you want to talk about it?"

Barry huffs out a laugh, but it's a feeble one as he nods. "Right, you can smell me getting sad." He breathes in, finally shifting into Derek's side as guilt and embarrassment and grief roil through him.

"He left, actually," he said. "My dad, when he got out of prison. All that time apart and we were finally together, and he barely made a pit stop at the house before he left to go west. He said it was so I could be the hero I needed to be, but I think - " Barry hesitates. "I think it might have been because he knew I'd gone back in time, and I still didn't save her. I could have fixed everything right then - for him, for her, for our family, and I didn't do it."

"Yeah," Derek replies sheepishly. "That, and I know you pretty well."

Barry starts talking, and Derek listens to every word as he moves so that he's fully behind Barry, thighs on either side of his hips as he keeps his arms wrapped loosely around Barry's middle. Derek finds that sometimes it's easier to talk when he doesn't have to look anyone in the eyes, but he doesn't want to let go. His heart aches for Barry, and he furrows his brow a bit as he processes everything. It must have been so hard to get a parent back only to lose them again, that time of their own volition.

"Barry," he says quietly, gently pulling him back so that he's leaning against Derek's chest. "It's not like you did it without reason. I can't even imagine how hard that must have been, but I know that if given the choice? I really doubt I could have been as selfless. You never stopped believing in your father," Derek assures him, holding him a bit tighter. "And I really, really don't think that he would have stopped believing in you either."

"I hope so," says Barry softly, half burrowed back against Derek. Derek believes in the best of his dad, and Barry would like to, too, but he can't help wondering. "I just wish I could've said a proper goodbye to him before I came here," he says. "But I guess everybody wishes that when they wind up stuck here."

"I know what you mean," Derek says quietly. He never got to say goodbye to his parents, or any of the rest of his family. It was just a normal day, and his last words to his mother were a muffled and sarcastic yeah, yeah as he ran out of the house with a mouth full of toast.

"I feel bad," Derek admits quietly, suddenly feeling the need to be honest. "I really wish that you could be back there with your dad, and everyone else. But-- I'm so fucking glad that you're here."

"Don't feel bad," Barry murmurs. "I feel that way, too. I want to be there, but I want to be with you, too. This place wouldn't be bearable without you." Barry closes his eyes for a moment, just leaning back into Derek, soaking in his warmth. He thinks of Derek coming to get him on a really tough day at work. He thinks of the food he'd made for him, of the setup Derek's made in his yard with pillows and blankets and a projector.

"There are worse places to be stuck, you know?" he asks with a faint smile.

"I just want to make you as happy as I can," Derek admits, wrapping his arms more tightly around Barry and nuzzling the side of Barry's throat and pressing a kiss to each in the line of moles along his neck. "I know you didn't ask to be here, and I know-- I know that you'd rather be home and I don't blame you at all."

Derek doesn't quite feel the same pull to go home. There's nothing waiting for him in Beacon Hills except for more enemies, more death and pain. Darrow definitely has its downsides, and he hates that he's trapped anywhere, but he doesn't even really want to leave. He hasn't wanted to in awhile. "But we're definitely making the most of being stuck here, right?"

"We are," says Barry, twisting in his arms to face him. "And I don't want to be home if it means leaving you. I just - " Barry laughs a little. "I wish that somehow, you could come home with me. You could help the team. Everyone would love you, God, especially Cisco." He feels lighter for the thought, even if it's a wistful one. "Joe, my dad, Caitlin. Even Iris. Everyone."

Derek loosens his grip just enough to let Barry turn in his arms, and watches his face as he speaks. The emotion and honesty in Barry's voice makes Derek's throat go a little tight, and he nods. God, Barry really does love him. Not that Derek doubted him, but in this moment he really feels the whole depth and scope of that love and it's nearly enough to make his eyes sting. He's just so grateful, and he returns that love with a ferocity that he hopes Barry can feel to his bones.

"If I had the choice, I think I'd go with you," Derek admits. He has people that he cares for very deeply here, and a life that he's come to enjoy, but he would go with Barry if such a thing were possible. For Barry to have his family back-- for Derek to be a part of that family? He doesn't think that there's anything that he wouldn't do. "I'd love to meet them."

His voice is trembling slightly, eyes shining as he leans in to press their foreheads together. "I don't ever want to be anywhere that isn't where you are."

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