First of Many - fic
Aug. 17th, 2022 06:38 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
deird1So I'm kind of fascinated by Expatriette and Setback's relationship. Especially because she's uber-competent, and awesome at everything, and has absolute no clue about how relationships are supposed to work; and he's clueless, and needs looking after, and is really good at dating.
Title: First of Many
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: 1060
Pairing: Expatriette/Setback
Summary: Amanda's just after sex. She's not used to dating.
First of Many
Amanda is seriously considering jumping Setback’s bones.
Which – yeah, she doesn’t usually (ever) do supers, but it’s been a while, and he’s got some serious muscles on him, and by the time he crashes through the wall of the warehouse and accidentally knocks out three henchmen with one fell swoop, Amanda’s got serious cravings.
No big deal. Typically resolved by taking the guy home, fucking him, and moving on. Repeat performances are for suckers.
So, after Rayzor Blayde is successfully taken down (two leg shots, plus one stun blast – tougher than she predicted), they walk back to her building. Pete offers to carry her gear, but there’s no way that’s happening, so instead he hops around awkwardly, like an overgrown puppy, not knowing what to do with his hands.
“Your costume got pretty ripped tonight.” It’s got gashes across his ribs (and yet somehow Rayzor’s diamond-sharp fingers just missed Setback’s skin), and the right sleeve is completely missing.
He surveys the damage, as if he’s only just noticing. “Oh yeah.” A shrug. “It’s okay. If I can’t repair it, I’ll just get some more from Freedom Tower. They’re pretty good about supplying that stuff.”
“True.” Her special-order ammo isn’t even ordered – it just shows up, special delivery. Tachyon’s good like that.
Pete likes the Freedom Five, so it keeps him talking for the rest of the walk back. Then Amanda turns to him, smiles the standard smile, and says quietly, “Here’s my place. Would you… like to come up?”
And he grins at her. And says, happily, “Sure! I’d love to hang out with you!”
It’s not possible for a grown man to be that clueless. Surely.
But they head upstairs, and, turns out, Pete is exactly that clueless. He glances around – “Nice place!” – and then heads straight for the kitchen unit. “I’m seriously starving after that fight. Oh, you have–” He pulls a pizza box out of the fridge. “Do you mind?”
“Sure.” There’s still half a pie left over, so they might as well. She starts packing her gear away. “Just throw it in the microwave.”
She’s just locking up the sniper rifle when she hears the microwave beep – followed by a crash. Amanda turns. Pete is standing next to a broken plate and half a pizza, upside down on the floor. “Shit. I’m sorry,” he says.
She comes over, and grabs the dustpan. “It’s okay.”
“Hey, you know what?” He switches from rueful to happy faster than anyone she’s ever seen. “I saw–” He opens the fridge again. “I thought so! I’ll make us hotdogs.”
He pulls out the packet, and Amanda stands up and says swiftly, “Pete, get the hell away from my stove.” She’s seen him in combat, and no way in hell is she letting him near an open flame. “I will make hotdogs. You… can sit on the sofa, and talk to me.”
“Okay. Hey, how about I tell you about my family?” And he does. Apparently he has a mom and a big sister. And apparently they’re nice. And any second now he’s going to ask about her family, because of course he is. Way to kill the mood before it’s even got going, Pete. Amanda can feel her entire body tensing up.
But instead – Amanda’s not even sure how it happens, but somehow he moves smoothly from telling her about his home back in Missouri to asking about her favourite guns (Pride and Prejudice, obviously), and soon they’re back on familiar turf and she’s chatting to him about different types of ammo while they both try not to get mustard on the sofa.
He did that on purpose, right? After all, he had to know, and Amanda’s had enough conversations with ‘normal’ people to hear the family question coming. Either he’s entirely clueless, or he’s not clueless, which is… even sexier than he was already.
God damn this man is hot.
And he even has a cute smile, so by the time he’s finished his hotdog, Amanda’s skin is practically tingling.
She touches his arm, smiles, and says “So… what would you like to do now?” Which should be absolutely clear to any grown man, but Pete is apparently not so much a grown man as he is an adorable house pet, so it goes right over his head.
Instead, he spots the TV. “Hey, how about we watch something?”
“I’m not sure what’s on.”
“Me neither. But you’ve got–” He squats down and starts looking through her videos. And shit shit shit, Pete is normal (or sort of), and he’s going to think she’s a psychopath. Suddenly Amanda feels how strange and impersonal her apartment looks. No photos, no plastic plants, no weird decorations – just a supply of weapons, some blackout curtains, and a collection of video tapes that–
“Hey, what are these?” Pete’s reading the labels, confused. “June 1995, Leg., ReVolt, Jitters, Fan. & Ra.” He looks up. “That’s…”
“They’re public footage.” She takes the video out of his hands, trying not to get on the defensive right off. “It’s my job, okay? Taking down supers is what I do, and I need to be as prepared as possible. Even with the heroic ones. So I have a contact that records all the video footage of them, and then I study it, and make notes about possible tactics.” And god, she does sound like a psychopath.
Pete is watching her quietly, and for a moment she’s expecting him to get awkward, but then he just raises an eyebrow and says “I’m so buying you Star Wars.”
“Star Wars?”
“And Forrest Gump. And Speed. And Jurassic Pa– no, not– um– actually, Spielberg’s totally over-rated, but– um–” …and there’s the awkward.
And she might not be very into pop culture, but of course Amanda knows what Jurassic Park’s about, because how could you not. And there’s no reason for Pete to get this stammery over it except because he knows where she’s from, and he’s trying to be nice, and he really is kinda lovely.
But he clearly can’t take a hint. So Amanda grabs his hand, looks him in the eye, and says, “I want to have sex with you. Right now. Coming?”
Pete blinks, startled. Then he says “Uh… okay,” and follows her into the bedroom.
And god damn are those abs worth the wait.
Title: First of Many
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: 1060
Pairing: Expatriette/Setback
Summary: Amanda's just after sex. She's not used to dating.
First of Many
Amanda is seriously considering jumping Setback’s bones.
Which – yeah, she doesn’t usually (ever) do supers, but it’s been a while, and he’s got some serious muscles on him, and by the time he crashes through the wall of the warehouse and accidentally knocks out three henchmen with one fell swoop, Amanda’s got serious cravings.
No big deal. Typically resolved by taking the guy home, fucking him, and moving on. Repeat performances are for suckers.
So, after Rayzor Blayde is successfully taken down (two leg shots, plus one stun blast – tougher than she predicted), they walk back to her building. Pete offers to carry her gear, but there’s no way that’s happening, so instead he hops around awkwardly, like an overgrown puppy, not knowing what to do with his hands.
“Your costume got pretty ripped tonight.” It’s got gashes across his ribs (and yet somehow Rayzor’s diamond-sharp fingers just missed Setback’s skin), and the right sleeve is completely missing.
He surveys the damage, as if he’s only just noticing. “Oh yeah.” A shrug. “It’s okay. If I can’t repair it, I’ll just get some more from Freedom Tower. They’re pretty good about supplying that stuff.”
“True.” Her special-order ammo isn’t even ordered – it just shows up, special delivery. Tachyon’s good like that.
Pete likes the Freedom Five, so it keeps him talking for the rest of the walk back. Then Amanda turns to him, smiles the standard smile, and says quietly, “Here’s my place. Would you… like to come up?”
And he grins at her. And says, happily, “Sure! I’d love to hang out with you!”
It’s not possible for a grown man to be that clueless. Surely.
But they head upstairs, and, turns out, Pete is exactly that clueless. He glances around – “Nice place!” – and then heads straight for the kitchen unit. “I’m seriously starving after that fight. Oh, you have–” He pulls a pizza box out of the fridge. “Do you mind?”
“Sure.” There’s still half a pie left over, so they might as well. She starts packing her gear away. “Just throw it in the microwave.”
She’s just locking up the sniper rifle when she hears the microwave beep – followed by a crash. Amanda turns. Pete is standing next to a broken plate and half a pizza, upside down on the floor. “Shit. I’m sorry,” he says.
She comes over, and grabs the dustpan. “It’s okay.”
“Hey, you know what?” He switches from rueful to happy faster than anyone she’s ever seen. “I saw–” He opens the fridge again. “I thought so! I’ll make us hotdogs.”
He pulls out the packet, and Amanda stands up and says swiftly, “Pete, get the hell away from my stove.” She’s seen him in combat, and no way in hell is she letting him near an open flame. “I will make hotdogs. You… can sit on the sofa, and talk to me.”
“Okay. Hey, how about I tell you about my family?” And he does. Apparently he has a mom and a big sister. And apparently they’re nice. And any second now he’s going to ask about her family, because of course he is. Way to kill the mood before it’s even got going, Pete. Amanda can feel her entire body tensing up.
But instead – Amanda’s not even sure how it happens, but somehow he moves smoothly from telling her about his home back in Missouri to asking about her favourite guns (Pride and Prejudice, obviously), and soon they’re back on familiar turf and she’s chatting to him about different types of ammo while they both try not to get mustard on the sofa.
He did that on purpose, right? After all, he had to know, and Amanda’s had enough conversations with ‘normal’ people to hear the family question coming. Either he’s entirely clueless, or he’s not clueless, which is… even sexier than he was already.
God damn this man is hot.
And he even has a cute smile, so by the time he’s finished his hotdog, Amanda’s skin is practically tingling.
She touches his arm, smiles, and says “So… what would you like to do now?” Which should be absolutely clear to any grown man, but Pete is apparently not so much a grown man as he is an adorable house pet, so it goes right over his head.
Instead, he spots the TV. “Hey, how about we watch something?”
“I’m not sure what’s on.”
“Me neither. But you’ve got–” He squats down and starts looking through her videos. And shit shit shit, Pete is normal (or sort of), and he’s going to think she’s a psychopath. Suddenly Amanda feels how strange and impersonal her apartment looks. No photos, no plastic plants, no weird decorations – just a supply of weapons, some blackout curtains, and a collection of video tapes that–
“Hey, what are these?” Pete’s reading the labels, confused. “June 1995, Leg., ReVolt, Jitters, Fan. & Ra.” He looks up. “That’s…”
“They’re public footage.” She takes the video out of his hands, trying not to get on the defensive right off. “It’s my job, okay? Taking down supers is what I do, and I need to be as prepared as possible. Even with the heroic ones. So I have a contact that records all the video footage of them, and then I study it, and make notes about possible tactics.” And god, she does sound like a psychopath.
Pete is watching her quietly, and for a moment she’s expecting him to get awkward, but then he just raises an eyebrow and says “I’m so buying you Star Wars.”
“Star Wars?”
“And Forrest Gump. And Speed. And Jurassic Pa– no, not– um– actually, Spielberg’s totally over-rated, but– um–” …and there’s the awkward.
And she might not be very into pop culture, but of course Amanda knows what Jurassic Park’s about, because how could you not. And there’s no reason for Pete to get this stammery over it except because he knows where she’s from, and he’s trying to be nice, and he really is kinda lovely.
But he clearly can’t take a hint. So Amanda grabs his hand, looks him in the eye, and says, “I want to have sex with you. Right now. Coming?”
Pete blinks, startled. Then he says “Uh… okay,” and follows her into the bedroom.
And god damn are those abs worth the wait.