Liquid Courage [Jake]

[Morgan Tonaya]

Morgan had, for a fleeting moment in the bar, also wondered what it would have been like if he’d taken the road Jake had taken. Travelling and working hard though, they weren’t Morgan’s bag. He was well suited for the life he had chosen. It was forgettable, and it was simple, but Morgan wouldn’t have changed it for the world. It kept him alive and surrounded by people he loved (and comic books), so he was good to go.

“Ever think that was the plan, skipper?” Morgan joked, lifting the lid off of the grill to a pair of sizzling, medium-rare steaks. Grinning widely, Morgan nodded to himself. Yet another culinary triumph thanks to his trusty grill. Usually considering himself a good cook, Morgan attributed everything he knew how to do in the kitchen to his mother. But the grill? No. He’d managed that one on his own, and he was rather proud of it. “I could use an assistant.”

Laughing when Jake put the plates on the table, Morgan shook his head and pulled the steaks off the grill, placing them on a clean plate and hauling them into the house. Steam still rose off of them slightly, and soon the dining area was filled with what Morgan felt was the smell of summer: cool wind and fresh steak! Setting the plate with the steaks at the center of the table, Morgan dug in the fridge for the potato salad he’d replace, as well as a dish of green salad. Balancing the two bowls, one in each hand, Morgan set the table and gestured to it much like a goofy Vanna White.

“Ta-da!” He chimed. “Sit. If you’re off switch doesn’t work, you need the fuel.” He offered, picking up the rum and coke he’d made earlier and taking a sip out of it despite the fact that the warmth of the Tequila still tingled in his fingers. Fortunately the mixed drink was a lot easier on the way down.

[Jacob Lawrence]

It was a difficult life, Jake's, being consistently away from hom, moving from place to place, and worst of all trying to impress Gabriel. It was a neverending challenge and Jacob had slipped up the last time around. Things hadn't gone well in China and he owed it to the man to show him what he was capable of, but instead of planning his next mission, he was here with Morgan. The truly awful thing was that this was where he'd rather be and if Gabe knew that, there'd be hell to pay.

Jake was absolutely hopeless in the kitchen, so therefore I am completely in agreeance that Morgan should teach him. "And my payment is food? I like this job." He could think of other forms of payment as well, but Morgan's too far in the closet to agree to those yet. "Count me in." He grinned toothily and gave Morgan a thumbs up, the scent of the steaks filling up the kitchen being enough to make Jake's stomach rumble once again.

He shook his head at Morgan's silly Vanna-like gesturing before settling down at the table with him. "Can't wait, looks and smells amazing." He laughed as the blond mentioned needing fuel, although I'm sure the booze and Morgan's face are more than enough fuel for Jake's wily behaviour. Jake was normally a cheap date, he didn't need dinner, but this couldn't really be considered a date, as much as Jacob would love it to be.

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[Morgan Tonaya]

“I’m not sure why you are waiting.” Morgan said, using the grill tongs to place a steak on Jake’s plate and one on his own before laying the plate in the sink and fetching utensils to serve the salad and potato salad. Sticking a large spoon in the potato salad, Morgan dished himself up some greens and then scurried to the fridge, blinking rapidly when he crouched down too fast and the blood rushed up behind his eyes.

“Woah.” He said softly, wobbling a little bit before reaching for some Italian salad dressing. When he stood, all traces of the tipsy moment were gone and he pointed the bottle at Jake. “Dressing?” he inquired, wanting to make sure that once he sat down and started nursing his drink that he wouldn’t have to get up again. It was the most selfish thought Morgan had had to date, but he wasn’t too concerned about it.

“Dig in. Tell me how it is. And don’t lie, because I’ll fix it if you don’t like it.” He instructed, offering to slap the steak back on the grill if need be. He hated to do it, since to him the slight, warm pink of the center of the steak gave it the perfect flavor, but Jake was a guest. And the guest always deserved to be taken care of. Momma taught him good.

[Jacob Lawrence]

"Careful over there." Jake sounded a little concerned, making sure Morgan wasn't about to topple over before he settled himself at the table. "I don't want you conking out on me this soon." He stuck his tongue out at the blonde jokingly, agreeing to the dressing and then started to load up his plate. His stomach gave another appreciative rumble as he looked down at the food. Taking his knife and fork, he cut himself a chunk of the steak and popped it in his mouth, only grunting his approval. "It's perfect!"

He waited until Morgan was comfortable at the table next to him before he started eating again, because like a certain other someone who enjoys food (Vincent) Jake actually had proper table manners. "So where'd you learn to cook? Pick it up yourself?" Jake had occasionally fancied the idea of learning the culinary arts, though he was far too impatient to dedicate time to cooking. He'd stick to phone dialing, ordering, then pacing in front of the door until the delivery boy arrived. That or he and Gabe would sometimes go out to restaurants together (on Gabe's dollar, of course) and it was usually after having such amazing meals that Jake wished he was capable of recreating them.

"Y'know, I didn't think you'd actually call me." Jake was honest, but grinning. "I figured I'd just run into you again somewhere and harass you." Of course, that would have been nowhere near as fun. Jacob hadn't known Morgan for very long at all, but he was already rather fond of the other man. He was just so easy to get along with, even if the brunette was trying to convince him into something that he didn't really want to do.

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[Morgan Tonaya]

Morgan shook his head. “Hey no, I’m not that much of a lightweight.” He defied, moving to sit back at the table after placing the Italian dressing atop it. “But I’m glad you like the steak.” He said, beaming with pride. “The best part of food is sharing it with someone else.” He added, his smile nearly inseparable from his face. Morgan truly believed that sharing food was what it made it taste so good…and of course it didn’t help to be complimented now and again. Boost his cooking ego? Yes please.

Taking a large serving of potato salad, then serving himself some of the greens, Morgan chewed his cheek thoughtfully. “Hm. Not really. I mean the grilling I did. But I learned just about everything from my mom.” He laughed, the adoration he had for his mother apparent on his face. “Everyone loves a man who can cook, she’d tell me. So I learned.” Cutting into his steak, he took a bite. Waiting until after he had swallowed, he continued. “Also,” he gestured around his home with a fork. “I needed to eat. And after so long eating Mom’s food, I couldn’t hack take out.” Morgan admitted. “So I learned! Do you cook?” He inquired, knowing full well most guys didn’t but instead relied on someone else to do their cooking for them, weither it be a significant other or a fry cook.

Looking at Jake quizzically, Morgan took another bite and shook his head. “Honestly…” he swallowed. “I didn’t think so either.” He added with a shy laugh. “But you’re a cool guy. Fun to talk to.” He shrugged. “Seemed like an okay idea at the time.” Morgan shook his head, putting down his fork and knife to take a sip from his drink. “I don’t know about the little heart next to your name though.” He teased, smiling playfully across the table. “Don’t really remember that.”

[Jacob Lawrence]

Jake was enjoying the meal completely, easily complimenting Morgan on the potato salad as well as the steak. Boost his cooking ego? You've got it. Boosting anything else? Jake's thinking about it. He was focused on the other man talking about his skills in the kitchen at the moment, though, so he can think his dirty thoughts later. He nodded in agreement when Morgan mentioned loving a man who could cook. Hell, he'd marry Morgan in a heartbeat if it meant having food this good every night.

"If by cook you mean burn things, then I'm a master." He answered lightheartedly. "In other words, I live off take out. My mom never clued me in on the whole cooking thing." Yeah, that wasn't the only thing she'd never clued him in on, but her role in his life had been pretty much microscopic. "You won't believe how fast I can dial a phone." Although I'm not sure why that particular skill is one to boast about, it just proves how unhealthy he is.

Jake nearly choked on his steak when Morgan brought up the heart in his phone, having almost forgotten that he'd added that, and had to cover his mouth while he laughed. Once he recovered, he fixed Morgan with a rather cocky smirk. "Well I had to make myself stand out somehow... and I figured it was better than a penis." He laughed again, shaking his head at his own stupidity. Granted, had Jake been slightly more buzzed, Morgan's phone would have had something much more inappropriate than a heart in it.

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[Morgan Tonaya]

Morgan nearly spat out the mouthful he’d taken of his drink (which had myseriously become more than half empty. Hm. He didn’t realize he was drinking it so fast). “You can’t cook?!” Morgan exclaimed, balking at the other man with a bit of awe and a bit of sympathy. He couldn’t believe Jake lived off of take out and still managed the form that he had. Sure he couldn’t see Jake under his clothes (Hm. Now there’s an idea), but it was rather obvious Jake was fit as a fiddle. Certainly not a fatty. Shaking his head with pity, Morgan took a few bites of salad. “I’ll teach you. That’s disgraceful. Nobody should have to live off of takeout.”

Surprised as Jake made choking noises, he blushed and sank sheepishly into his chair. “Well you pretty much took care of the standing out with the rest of the night. Plus I’m pretty sure you’re the only Jake in my phone.” He explained. Ass grab? Don’t think Morgan had forgotten that. Of course, he refused to bring it up, but he hadn’t forgotten it. He occasionally liked to pretend it hadn’t happened at all.

It was Morgan’s turn to choke when Jake said the word penis. He hadn’t been expecting that. Certainly it wasn’t something normal people spoke about was dinner. His face, already pink with a blush, quickly turned a beet red from a bit of a choke. “Ugh…” he cleared his throat and laughed nervously. “Well. I don’t know how you would even have put a penis on my phone, but I’m glad you didn’t.” He said, masking more embarrassment behind the rest of his drink. Setting the empty glass on the counter he regarded Jake was a slight smile. “…Subtlety isn’t your thing, is it?”

[Jacob Lawrence]

He hadn't expected Morgan's reaction to be so intense when he learned that Jacob was entirely useless when it came to preparing food. Really, he'd never thought it had been that bad. Besides, he worked out enough to burn off the useless calories that the food he loved was loaded with, even more when he and Gabe tried to challenge each other to see who was more in shape. (Gabe usually won.) "You'll teach me, really? Awesome!" He was more than up for learning, especially if it meant that he could spend more time with Morgan.

Jake might have tickled the blonde's ego earlier, but now it seemed that it was Morgan's turn, because Jake's head was going to start swelling. Okay, so maybe Morgan might have solely remembered him due to the fact that he'd grabbed his ass, but that was good enough for Jacob. Thankfully for both of us, he'll have a lot more to remember the brunette by before long, because I can't stop thinking about body shots, dammit.

"Hey, don't question my skills!" Jake was laughing even harder at Morgan's intensified blush at just the mention of the word "penis" and thankfully dropped the word from his statement. He was having a hard time remembering when he'd laughed so much in such a short period of time, but it was just so easy around Morgan. The man was so easy to tease and so adorable when he reacted and Jacob couldn't help but to laugh. "Subtlety is boring!" Because if he'd been the kind of guy to be subtle, Morgan would have absolutely no clue that Jake was flirting with him, instead of just denying it because it made him a little uncomfortable.

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[Morgan Tonaya]

Shaking his head, looking incredibly stoic as he discussed lessons with Jake. “You bet I will. Its an important life skill. Someday your metabolism will slow down and you won’t be able to work off all that nasty take out.” Morgan explained, figuring that ‘someday you won’t be as hot’ would be a little weird. Actually, now that I think about it? At this point saying something like that might have seemed perfectly in place.

“I totally question.” Morgan admitted, shaking his head as he looked down at his plate and speared some potato salad. “Its not boring if you do it right.” Morgan said with childish exasperation and a heavy, melodramatic sigh. It was true that Morgan would have passed Jake off as a fluke without his straight-forward approach and Morgan also didn’t think he’d have liked Jake as much anyway if he had been a bit more slick. There was something about his forwardness, his swaggering confidence that made Morgan laugh, and oddly made the blonde more comfortable around him.

Absentmindedly Morgan ran his index finger around the rim of his now-empty glass. The tips of his fingers and the back of his throat maintained a tingling warmth that top him he had plenty of alcohol in his system. He prayed the rather heavy meal he was ingesting would curb the tipsy process, mostly because he didn’t want to be a giggly mess for the remainder of the evening. “Have you ever even tried being subtle?” Morgan asked.

[Jacob Lawrence]

Honestly, it won't be long before everything is fair game between these two, but I'll place the blame entirely on Jake for that. He hates limitations, be they conversational, societal, or financial, or whatever else. He's the kind to constantly push his boundaries until they disappear and it's extremely difficult to make him uncomfortable. I mean they did just talk about penises (however briefly) at the dinner table, does it even get worse than that? "Hey, hey, you saying I'm gunna get fat?" Jake wasn't offended, not in the least, because he knew it was very likely to happen, but that didn't mean he couldn't act like he was.

With Jake, you always know where you stand. If he didn't like you, he'd make it very obvious and probably straight out tell you that you're worthless. If he likes you, he's very good at letting you know... and groping you, as Morgan has experienced first hand. "Right, so why don't you show me how to do it right." And here comes another challenge from the Jacob, a mischievous smirk crossing his face. "Since you brought it up." He focused on Morgan as he licked his fork much slower than necessary.

Morgan had already proved that he had a desire to maintain his man!pride, so Jake was going to challenge him again. "Nah, I'm no good at it. I prefer laying it all out there and, y'know, I like you, so why not say so?" He spun his fork between his fingers absently before turning back to his dinner, trying to hide the fact that he was grinning like a fool. "Flirt and be subtle about it." He didn't know if Morgan would actually do it, but damn he was hoping.

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[Morgan Tonaya]

“You will get fat if you don’t eat right.” Morgan said exasperatedly, laughing slightly as he finished his serving of potato salad and moved on to demolish his steak and salad. “I can tell you right now I’m sure as hell not taking care of your fat ass.” He teased, winking over the table at Jake. He wanted subtle? Sure. Morgan could manage that. Anything was subtle compared to Jake’s approach.

Raising his eyebrows, Morgan cleared his throat. He hated being challenged. Sure he was generally a humble sort of guy, but he did have his pride to consider. Morgan’s brain was foggy enough at this point to warrant a little flirting. What could be the harm? Oh Morgan…if only you knew.

“Show you? Okay.” He shrugged his shoulders. “But could you pass me the dressing first?” he asked, nodding to it. It was within his reach, if he’d lean, but it was closer to Jake’s elbow than anything else. Morgan wasn’t sure if Jake would catch that this was all part of the demonstration, but he didn’t particularly care at this point. Subtlety was generally Morgan’s bit (as Darryl tended to be like Jake, and put all his cards on the table) and he’d perfected some simple cues.

Now that he thought about it, Jake had employed some of them. An accidental bump of the hand, a gentle hand in the small of the back. Of course, he’d coupled them with some serious cheese, but Morgan had faith yet that Jake could manage to pull back on the reigns a bit. Shifting a bit under the table, Morgan’s bare foot sneakily snuck up against Jake’s calf. Still chewing thoughtfully behind a bite a steak, Morgan smiled slightly. “Sorry.” He said after he’d swallowed. “Not used to having to share leg space.” He added with a gentle grin.

How was that for subtlety?

[Jacob Lawrence]

"My ass isn't fat! It's nice." Jake said defensively, though still with a smile on his face. All I'm thinking is that at least he's not showing it off to prove his point, because if this were anyone other than Morgan, he more than likely would have tacked a 'wanna feel?' onto that. Morgan's safe for the time being. "So's yours." And now he was back to being the obnoxious flatterer that he is and thinks that the blonde needs reminding of the phantom assgrab. Morgan really has no idea what he's getting himself into.

When he was asked to pass the dressing, Jake just shrugged, said "Sure." and grabbed the bottle, holding it out towards Morgan. Bless his occasional bouts of cluelessness. Jake was quite curious to finding out how Morgan would flirt with him and studied the other man's body language in what he hoped was an unnoticeable manner. He pretended to be focused on his salad as he watched Morgan out of the corner of his eye.

He felt Morgan's foot slide up his leg and he had to hold back a laugh, not that he didn't enjoy it, but the fact that was what the blonde had chosen to do. But to be completely truthful, had this been Morgan's attempt to genuinely flirt with Jake (instead of a half-dare that the brunette had made) it would have been rather effective. Jake's an affectionate sort, he enjoys touching and being close with others. He'd cuddle with a complete stranger. "Bet that works on the girls all the time." He joked, leaning a little closer to the other man.

But now Jake wanted to play too. Hiding his smirk was difficult, but he managed, and he reached out towards Morgan's face. He ran his thumb just lightly over the other man's lower lip when a sort of cat-like smile popped up. "You had a little potato salad left over." He'd seen these moves in films before so it was easy enough to recreate, but holding in his laughter was not something Jake was ever good at. When he pulled his hand back, he was chuckling and looking just as smug as ever. Morgan's going to have his hands full with this one.

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[Morgan Tonaya]

“I didn’t say it was.” Morgan defended. “I said it would be.” He corrected, grinning widely. Now Morgan was aware that the leg thing had been a bit obvious, and so he kept his charm turned on. Shaking his head at Jake’s ass comment. “I thought we were shooting for subtlety here, Jake?” Morgan admonished half-heartedly, reaching out to take the dressing. When he did grab it, his fingers pulled along Jake’s, fleeting and soft. This time though, he said nothing, only uncapped the bottle and dressed his salad. In fact, he didn’t even look at Jake. He simply went back to eating.

He wanted to stand up and inform Jake he’d been schooled, but that would simply ruin everything. Half of the act of flirting, for Morgan, was leaving a bit of ‘did that really just happen?’ behind. Beaming up at Jake, Morgan shrugged. “Works on guys too!” he lied. Now that was untrue. He’d never tried it on guys, but he could say it’d worked on him…more than once. He cleared his throat. “I mean...I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Morgan joked, laughing easily.

Morgan resisted the urge to jump back when Jake reached for him. Not because he minded Jake touching him (proof that he was drunk) but because he wouldn’t put it past the shadow manipulator to simply seize him into a kiss. When he simply brushed his lip, Morgan was actually surprised. But not without retaliation. Almost before Jake’s finger was out of the way, he bit his lip in a coy smile. “Well gee, watch enough movies, Jake?” Morgan teased. “You couldn’t even keep yourself from laughing!” He accused, shaking his head and reaching into his lap for the napkin he’d placed there earlier. “Watch.” He demanded, leaning across the table in much the same way Jake had. Yet rather than his bare skin against Jake’s mouth, there was a paper napkin between them.

He brushed at the corner of Jake’s lips, his last three fingers brushing under Jake’s chin as he drew away. When Morgan sank back into his seat, his eyes were still focused on Jake’s mouth, and they only slowly drifted back up to look Jake in the eyes. “Better?” He asked innocently.

[Jacob Lawrence]

"You're the subtle one, not me. We've been over this." The chances of Jake actually using Morgan's subtle technique were slim to none, especially when his own worked so well. This was just play or Jake's way of getting Morgan to be a little more touchy-feely than normal. You can interpret it any way you wish.

Jake's eyes focused on Morgan's fingers against his, rather enjoying the gentle touch, though he knew it was obviously part of Morgan's game. He shook his head and laughed when the blonde declared it worked on men too and though he agreed (he found himself liking Morgan's subtlety a lot, but that may have been just because he liked Morgan) it didn't stop him teasing. "Yeah? You little minx." His face was starting to grow sore from the constant smiles that Morgan brought, but it was a pleasant sort of strain. It was just so easy with Morgan.

The man held up his hands at the blond's accusation. "Guilty as charged! This whole subtlety thing isn't my cup of tea!" But then, before Jake could say anything, Morgan was repeating the action on him. For a moment he just sat there, basking in the other man's touch, but as it was always the case, he cracked another grin. "Aren't you smooth?" It was obvious, even as he spoke, that a thought was forming behind Jacob's eyes. This was the sort of game that he could really get into and well... it was time for round two.

Underneath the table, Jake managed to hook his foot around one of the legs of Morgan's chair, and with a few little tugs, he brought Morgan around the table to be even closer. "But I still think forward is better." Lifting his hand to the blonde's face once again, he molded it to the shape of his cheek. That devious glint in his eyes was back as he proceeded to close the remaining distance between the two of them. When he was only fractions of an inch away from kissing Morgan, he whispered, "Leaves no room for speculation."

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[Morgan Tonaya]

“I’m very smooth, thanks.” Morgan said with a sniff. “Also slightly tipsy.” He added, laying his head in his hand for a moment and leaning his head on the table. “Tequila was not a good call.” He admitted, clearing his throat a bit and laying his fork on his plate. About a quarter of his steak was remaining, and only a few leaves of his salad, but at the risk of turning his stomach he decided to give up. Right on time, it seemed as well.

Clearly the odds of Jake taking a page out of Morgan’s book were far slimmer to none than Morgan realized. He was suddenly lurched away from his steak and salad, finding himself closer and closer to Jake, and laughing all along the way. He wobbled slightly with each scoot that Jake made, and marveled along the way at the strength in Jake’s legs to not only haul a grown man the few feet that it took, but the chair as well. “Yeah I see that. Not your cup of tea by any means.” Morgan repeated with a mock, defeated tone. Maybe some day Jake would see things Morgan’s way. Take that as you will.


Morgan instinctively leaned away from the look in Jake’s eyes, like a mouse will flee from a cat, but when Jake’s warm hand rested on his cheek, he was trapped. With a fluttering pulse, and a gulp of breath, Morgan listened carefully to Jake’s words. He was right, Morgan couldn’t speculate that Jake was flirting anymore. He was definitely doing it. “Or personal space.” He retorted with a silly grin, though it quickly faded into a softer, blanker expression. Just like he couldn’t speculate that Jake was flirting anymore, he couldn’t speculate that he hadn’t been flirting back.

This was weird. Extra weird. Morgan was getting that heavy thumping in his chest that he always got when he was about to kiss a particularly beautiful woman. Sometimes he also got it when he was nervous. But which was it this time? Anticipation? Or nerves? Or both? Morgan conceded, and met Jake’s eyes with a hesitant, dizzy, but managing flirtatious gaze. “Fine. We’ll try it your way.” He said defiantly. Dividing the fractions between them, Morgan closed the space and let his lips seek out the warmth of Jake’s mouth. When they met, get felt the same electric buzzing in his fingers that he felt kissing a woman.

It wasn’t quite as weird as he had originally thought.