Who: John Crichton and Sharon Carter What: Celebratory Drinks Where: A nice bar When: After these text messages Rating/Warnings: Low/None (update if necessary) Status: Complete
Sharon liked John when they’d first met. They seemed to hit it off rather well. And even if they didn’t end up going out in earnest, at least they could be friends? Hopefully? Sharon was in low supply of those lately. It was a different and interesting thing trying to make friends after spending so long--nearly two years--being closed off and lying to people. She was going to try and do the opposite now. Tell the truth, be friendly, be open and honest.
Drinks to celebrate the new job was exciting. They’d arranged to meet at a bar--a nicer one in the area--and Sharon showed up a little early. She was wearing a dress with a cover, some heels, and a tiny touch of makeup. If this was a drink date, she wanted to make sure she did it right.
John was excited and nervous. Which in itself was un-nerving. He hadn’t been on a date for a while and he desperately hoped he didn’t screw this up. He liked Sharon. She was beautiful, smart, capable and kick-ass. Not necessarily qualities he had found in previous partners, but maybe that’s why those relationships hadn’t lasted, who knew.
Entering the bar, he nervously smoothed down his black shirt, the top two buttons left undone so it took on a casual air, and checked his jacket was straight and sitting correctly as he looked around the bar for Sharon. Spotting her over by the bar, he made his way over, placing a hand on her shoulder and leaning in to speak softly near her ear. “Good evening, m’lady. I must say you look beautiful,” he smiled charmingly, coming round to stand next to her at the bar.
Sharon was aware of his presence before the hand came to rest on her shoulder. She turned to give him a smile, not wanting to seem paranoid by jumping at the touch. “Hi,” she responded, then tinged a little pink. “Thank you. I’m flattered. You clean up pretty well yourself,” she added, then moved closer to the bar with him to order a round of drinks.
“You’re paying, right? What’s the most expensive thing they’ve got here?” She asked, absolutely teasing.
“What ever m’lady wants, m’lady gets,” John smiled at her, leaning an elbow on the bar to give his order to the bartender and, out of habit, placing a hand on the small of Sharon’s back as she moved to stand next to him. “A whiskey on the rocks for me and the lady would like…” he gestured for Sharon to give her order.
“I’ll have a vodka cran,” Sharon told the bartender. It wasn’t lost on her that there was a warm hand resting gently against the small of her back. She didn’t pull away, but she didn’t step any closer, either. John was a great guy. She liked the attention. She gave him a small smile. “I’m going to be working with my former partner at the new job.”
“That’s great, congratulations!” John enthused, fishing some money out of his inside jacket pocket to hand to the bartender when he returned with their drinks. “Shall we go get a table? Then you can tell me more about this new position,” John asked, referring to some empty tables at the edge of the dance floor as he picked up both of their drinks, ready to follow her to one of them.
“Sure.” Sharon said. She lifted the drink for a sip, then turned to follow him off in the direction of an empty tables. Once they were seated, she folded one leg over the other and leaned in to tell him a little bit about the job. So much of it was secret, she wasn’t sure how much she was allowed to tell. “D’Artagnan and Athos, Aramis and Porthos all work there already. I’ll be joining them.”
“They all sound so much cooler than me,” John smiled. “I have to admit, I feel more than a little insecure now,” he joked, putting a hand to his chest as he pretended to be wounded. “So is this more Secret Squirrel stuff? More like your Dreams?” he asked, sipping his drink.
“Don’t feel insecure.” They were all gay. They may have been awesome people, but it wasn’t as if Sharon was interested in any of them. Then she laughed. “Secret Squirrel?? Really?” She was grinning brightly, lifted her drink for a sip. “That’s hilarious. Yes, that’s exactly what it is. Complete with the trenchcoat and purple hat.”
“Now that’s an image I’m not getting out of my head for a while,” John teased with a grin, a glint in his eye as he started imagining her in little more than that trenchcoat and hat. “Give me a minute,” he said pretending to gaze off into the distance.
Sharon laughed again after sipping once more from her drink. She shook her head, still grinning brightly. “I’ll photoshop it for you.”
John’s eyebrows shot up and he gaped at her for a second, speechless, before grinning brightly and shaking his head in amazement. “You m’lady, are a tease,” he chuckled. “And a damned good one at that,” he winked at her. “Would you like to dance?” he asked, holding his hand out for her to take. “I’m worried that if I pry too much further into your new job that I wouldn’t be long for this world and so long as you’re in it I’d very much like to stick around,” he smiled at her genuinely. John wasn’t all that complicated a man. He enjoyed beer, sports, science and enjoying the company of beautiful, intelligent women. And this lady had very much caught his attention. She was smart, gorgeous, funny and utterly capable of kicking his ass.
Sharon tipped her head back and laughed. She may have felt a little of the alochol leaking into her system, or the elation of knowing what the job situation held for her... or the company. Or the time or the place, it was all very freeing. She felt good. And it felt like it'd been months since she'd felt the weight off of her shoulders.
"Yeah. Yeah, let's dance. I'd hate to have to take you out because you've got too much information." She grinned as she climbed up from her chair, downed the last of her drink, and let him lead her onto the dance floor.
John grinned at her, taking her hand in his and leading her up onto the dance floor. It was coming to the end of a fairly up tempo song and he twirled her under his arm before pulling her close, wrapping his arm around her waist and dipping her backwards. He enjoyed watching her smile, hearing her laugh, it had been far too long since he’d shared these sort of memories with someone.
Sharon let him twirl her around and dip her. One of the good things about being where she was from was that they still did ballroom dance in school. Sharon knew how to be led, knew how to dance properly. She took hold of one of his hands and let the other rest gently on his shoulder as they started to dance. It was fun. She was having a good time.
He pulled her close as she music morphed into a slower tempo and he started to sway them back and forth, his hand resting low on the small of her back, his thumb rubbing gently. He ran his gaze over her face and gave her a little smile before speaking. “So tell me some more about yourself, you from here I mean, not from your Dreams,” he asked softly.
Sharon shrugged her shoulders, gently, letting herself get swept up in the music and the slow swaying. “There’s not a whole lot to tell. I grew up in Virginia, became a police officer then a detective, worked a couple years undercover, and then ended up out here.”
“That is so hot,” John murmured before he could stop himself and shook his head in amazement as he looked at her. “Sorry,” he smiled bashfully with a little embarrassed laugh, red rising in his cheeks at the admission. “So uh...how about family? Mom? Dad? Are you an only child?” he asked, trying to divert attention from his slip up.
Sharon laughed. “Right, totally hot.” She said, shaking her head. Though her cheeks were pink now. “Only child. Mom and Dad are still in Virginia.” She said. “What about you?”
"Not so lucky," John joked, then shook his head. "Nah, that's not fair. Two sisters, Olivia's younger, Susan's older. I was born in Memphis but we moved around a lot. Dad was in the military so we lived on bases for a lot of our time growing up," he explained, leaving out his mom. That was still a sore topic, despite how much time had passed. "Once he went to work for NASA things kind of settled down but by then I was looking at escaping to college," he shrugged.
“Oh… that’s why you’re so smart. You have a NASA dad?” Sharon asked. She noted that he skipped over mentioning his mother, but didn’t pry. “I can imagine that would give any kid a promising start in the field of science. What do they call it? STEM?”
John chuckled at that, his hand tightening around hers and his thumb brushing over hers. “Yeah, I was pretty much destined to grow up in the sciences,” he admitted. “I had a shot of joining my dad at NASA when I graduated but...I don’t know why really, I felt drawn to teaching,” he shrugged. “In my Dreams I work for a group called IASA, the International Aeronautical Space Agency, it’s pretty cool,” he smiled at her. “What can I say, I’m a nerd at heart,” he joked.
Sharon chuckled softly. “That’s okay. There’s nothing wrong with being nerdy.” She said, then twirled out from under his arm and back in again.
He grinned as he watched her move, wrapping his arm around her when she returned to him and pressing her to his front. "What about you? Do you have policing in your blood?" He asked, twirling them around some while keeping her close. "Or did you break the mould?"
“Nah, I think I broke the mold.” Sharon said, raising her chin up. “My father never worked undercover. My mother never had weird dreams.” She explained. “Though, those didn’t start until I was here in Orange County.” She added.
“Same here, my friend Sam said the same. I reckon there must be something that draws us to this place,” John shrugged. “Honestly I don’t know, I wouldn’t even know where to start if I were looking at trying to figure it out,” he laughed, pressing his lips together before continuing. “So is there anything else you can tell me about this new job? Will you have an office? Lunch breaks?” he asked hopefully, thinking whether it would be possible to whisk her away for a lunch.
“Honestly? I have no idea. My cousin works for this company, and she’s been doing fairly well there. But I’m still new to everything. I don’t know if I’ll have time for lunch, or if I’ll pack and bring my lunch, or… I really don’t know.” She shrugged her shoulders. “Do you have an office? Or a lab?”
“I’ve got an office at the university and I know some guys up at the observatory so I head up there a couple of nights a month,” John told her, a naughty glint in his eye as he did. “I think you’d like it up there, I’ll have to show you around sometime. Make sure you get lunch. Or dinner,” he winked, smoothing his hand down her back to press her more tightly against him.
Sharon nodded once, giving him a warm smile. “I’d like to see it. We’ll have to do that next time.” She said, softly, still slowly swaying with him to the music. “Thanks for taking me out. It’s good to get some fresh air, and a drink to celebrate.”
“You’re most welcome,” John replied charmingly, running his gaze over her beautiful face. “Did I tell you that you look absolutely radiant tonight? It’s so good to see you happy after seeing you so sad the other week,” he told her genuinely. She was so gorgeous John was considering not ending the night in the most gentlemanly fashion. With her pressed close to him, her face so close to his, he could only imagine what it would be like to kiss her.
Sharon blushed a bit, smiling warmly at the compliment. “I’m doing a bit better now, that’s for sure. Things are certainly looking up.” She said, and lifted his arm so she could turn out underneath it, and then back in again.
John couldn't help himself, she looked so beautiful. When she twirled back to him, he pulled her close, leaned in and kissed her. Gently, but determinedly, drawing her in for more as his hand tightened against her back.
Sharon hadn’t really been expecting that. She wasn’t really sure where they stood, or how she felt, or… she supposed it probably should have been obvious what his intentions were. He seemed to like her a lot. And she liked him, too. She just wasn’t sure if she liked him in the kissing way. She pulled back gently, not rudely, and cleared her throat. “I uh…” She went rather pink, smiling shyly. Bashfully. They were in public. She wasn’t sure how to handle this. “...I could use another drink.”
John couldn't help the slightly hopeful expression he must have had on his face when she pulled back from the kiss. At seeing her turn pink however, he realised that being so impulsive may have just made her very uncomfortable. "I uh...sure," he quirked a little nervous smile at her and stepped back. He hooked her hand in his elbow and escorted them back to the table, pulling her seat back and waiting for her to sit. When she was sat down he came to stand beside her, brushing the palms of his hands against the backs of his trousers. "What uh...what would you like? Anything to eat?" Just stick to being a gentleman, he reminded himself.
“Nah, that’s all right,” Sharon thought John was being really sweet. She just wasn’t sure how she felt. “Something with a lot of alcohol in it. Long Island Iced Tea?” She asked, slipping into her chair. “We’ll really celebrate here for a bit, yeah?”
“Absolutely,” John smiled at her. “One Long Island Iced Tea coming right up,” he told her, heading for the bar. Once there, he leaned heavily on the counter, arms crossed as the barman came over. “Long Island Iced tea and a whiskey chaser,” he told the man before dropping his head and mentally berating himself. Too soon, John, too soon, he thought to himself bitterly. But John had always had a weakness for beautiful women, blondes in particular. Running his hand through his hair, he saw the bartender place the whiskey in front of him and stood up to knock it back in one. He gestured to the man to get him another and tilted his head back to feel the alcohol burning burning down his throat. The next whiskey appeared and he swigged it, pulling his wallet out of his jacket pocket to retrieve some bills. When the bartender came back with the cocktail and his pint, he handed over the money, thanked him and told him to keep the change. He sighed and finished his whiskey, resolving to stick to being a gentleman for the rest of the night. Taking hold of his pint and Sharon’s cocktail, he headed back to the table, a smile on his face as he sat opposite her. “Here you go, m’lady,” he placed the drink in front of her on the table. “So what sort of thing do you do in your free time? Water skiing? Sky diving? Spelunking?” he teased, trying to swiftly move past his earlier indiscretion.
Sharon gave him a bright smile as she took hold of the drink, and then downed about half of it in one go. She was right, it would go straight to her head. But better a little loopy than awkward. That’s what she thought, anyway. “Thank you,” she said, setting it down. Now it was time to slow down. She shifted her weight in the chair, unfolding then refolding her legs. “You must think I’m a thrill-chaser, when really, the opposite is true. I like reading. I like movies. I like jogging. Nothing too exciting.”
“Hey, you’re a secret agent, can’t blame me for thinking you’d be a thrill-seeker outside the office too,” John grinned as he lifted his pint for a sip. “What sort of stuff do you read and watch then? Comedies, dramas, sci-fi?”
“Hey, whatever happens in the office, stays in the office,” Sharon teased. “Oh, well, I go through phases. I was just on a classic Sci-Fi kick, actually. Read some really good stuff. Or, re-read, as I’ve read a lot of it before.”
“Oh, you really know how to test a guy’s resilience,” John teased and laughed, putting a hand to his heart like she’d hurt him bodily. Maybe laughing was the best way to dispel any awkwardness. “So you got some favourite authors? Any recommendations?” he asked before taking another sip.
Sharon chuckled. “I’m sure you’ve read it all before. Everything I’ve just revisited. I think my favorite might be Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep by Philip K Dick. I’ve just finished re-reading it.”
“Huh, not read that in while,” John raised his eyebrows appreciatively. “I’ve just started reading Robert Rankin’s Hollow Chocolate Bunnies of the Apocalypse. You tried that one?”
Sharon broke into a grin. “I thought you’d appreciate that.” She said. He seemed like a sci-fi geek. In a good way, obviously. “What? No, I’ve never even heard of that one. What’s it about?” She asked, and lifted the drink for a sip. Then she remembered she was trying to go slow.
“It’s about a boy who moves to Toy City, where all the characters from old nursery rhymes and stories live but they’re all being murdered by this serial killer and the guy investigating it disappears. So Jack teams up with his side kick and they start investigating,” John shrugged a little. “That’s as far as I’ve got so far. Admittedly it’s a little more fantasy than sci-fi, but it’s still a good read,” he told her. “It’s one of the reasons I love summer holidays, I can get caught up on some new books.”
“That sounds… pretty fun, actually. I like the idea of new spins on Fairy Tales. I got addicted to that show… Once Upon a Time? Back when I was between jobs. I watched the whole thing on Netflix,” Sharon said, then took another gulp from her glass and set it down.
“No way, what about uh...Sleepy Hollow? Have you seen that? That’s pretty good, contemporary twist on the old story,” John suggested, noting how quickly she was getting through her drink. “You want another one?” he asked, referring to the glass in front of her.
“Yeah, I’ve seen that one, too.” She said, grinning. And she glanced to the drink in front of her. It was nearly empty, and she was feeling it. “Yeah, maybe one more. What the hell, right? I’m celebrating.” She said, and gave him a grin.
This would likely get her into trouble, but for the moment, Sharon was having fun.
"Absolutely," John grinned, before heading off to the bar. He returned a couple of minutes later with another glass of the same cocktail and a half pint for himself. "So you're a bit of a film and TV nerd too," he observed, slipping into his seat. "What about music? What do you like to listen to? And if you say dubstep or something like that I may just have to pick my own self up and leave," he joked.
Sharon chuckled. “Nothing so… dubious?” She said after giving him a little thank you for the drink and sipping from it. “...I’m pretty boring in my tastes. I just listen to whatever’s on the radio. Top 40? Is that really terrible?”
“Nah, the radio’s good,” John shrugged. “I’m more of the eclectic type too. Bit of classical, bit of pop, a bit of rock, whatever piques my interest really,” he told her, drinking some more of his pint. “Did you go to college?”
“I went to community college,” Sharon responded. “And the Police Academy, and quite a bit of other training.” Not to mention the training in her Dreams. “I have a bachelor’s in criminal justice.”
"Oh Sharon, I don't think you quite understand what you do to a guy," John laughed and shook his head in amazement at her. "Gorgeous, intelligent and could kick my ass before I said "touchdown'," he grinned. "Congratulations, " he raised his glass in another toast.