And My Heart Leaped To The Rapture Of Living

Atlas smirked to himself, sliding his hand down to caress Jack's thigh. "Touchin'? Touchin' what, Jack? Whose hands are they, boyo?" Atlas could feel his heart rate increase with his excitement, though he shifted his position so that, if Jack were to wake up, he could easily pretend that he had just been leaning over him and trying to wake him up.

"Touching me.... Can't see their face..." Jack mumbled. He shifted and squirmed a little, as if he were trying to look behind him. "Biting..."

"Bitin'...?" he asked, curiously. "Ye like that, hmm?" He trailed soft kisses down the back of the younger man's neck, and along the curve of his shoulder; his lips parted slightly in a devilish, handsome smile before he bit down gently on Jack's shoulderblade. "Tell me who it is that's bitin' ye, boyo; who it is that's touchin' ye. Can ye see 'is face?"

Jack moaned. "C-can't see their face" he repeated. He wriggled under Atlas, stimulated by his dream.

Atlas continued to caress his thigh, slowly and gently, not wanting to do anything that would rouse Jack from his sleep sooner than necessary. "Sure ye can, boyo. Just look. Who is it?" He was smirking, kneeling there on the edge of the bed, his chin resting on Jack's shoulder. He knew who Jack was dreaming about; he'd practically commanded it to happen. And, with that knowledge, how he loved the was Jack was moaning and writhing and so obviously enjoying himself. He had to be careful, though, he knew; an erection wouldn't be an easy thing to explain away when Jack woke up.

"I'm trying," Jack whimpered softly. "I-I can't see them; they're biting my neck..." he broke off into a loud moan.

"But ye still know who 'tis, don't ye? Isn't there only one person ye'd like ta have touch ye like that? Who is it, boyo? Tell me."

Jack squirmed again and arched. "Its Ah! A-Atlas!" he cried out before biting his lip. He moaned loudly.

Atlas' heart skipped a beat at the passionate way the young man called his name, arching up from the bed and moaning. The arm that was still supporting his weight threatened to give out, and the last thing he wanted to do was spoil his little plot by falling on the poor boy. It took nearly all the self-control he had, but he managed to wrench himself away from Jack and stand up from the bed. He took a few deep breaths to calm himself, then leaned down and cupped Jack's face in his hands gently. "Would ye kindly wake up, boyo?" he asked.

Jack's eyes slowly flickered open with a small groan. "Atlas?" he mumbled. "How long did I sleep?" he asked, pushing himself up into a sitting position.

Atlas sat beside him on the bed, one hand still cupped around Jack's cheek. "Not too long, boyo. An hour, mebbe. Ye were callin' for me in yer sleep. I 'as worried ye were havin' a nightmare. Care ta tell me what ye were dreamin' about?" he asked, giving the man a concerned look.

Jack frowned. "I don't remember." he stated. "I'm sorry to worry you"

Atlas grinned widely. "Oi, ye don' hafta apologize. I'm jus' glad ye're okay."

Struck with a sudden, unconquerable urge, Atlas slid his hand from Jack's cheek around to the back of his neck and pulled him close; he gave the man an affectionate kiss on the forehead and tousled his hair before wrapping his arms around Jack's shoulders in a tight, almost protective, hug.

Jack couldn't help but flush darkly. "A-Atlas! Stop!" he protested, trying to push away.

Atlas chuckled, his shoulders shaking slightly, and leaned his cheek against the top of Jack's head. "Oh, settle down, boyo, I'm jus' glad ta have a real, sane person ta be around. Especially since it's ye, Jack. I dunno what I'd do without ye."

Jack grumbled lightly but stopped trying to push Atlas away. "You'd be stuck here with Tannenbaum." he stated. "That's what you'd be doing without me."

"I would, huh?" he replied, chuckling again. "Guess I'd best thank me lucky stars that an angel felt out o' the sky ta help me then, hadn't I?"

Jack facepalmed. "Please don't call me that. That's what the little sisters call the corpses that they harvest from." he grumbled. "And that's probably going to be what I think of every time I hear 'angel' from now on"

Atlas laughed, the corners of his eyes crinkling with his mirth. "Ahh, boyo, I 'aven't laughed like this in a long time. Yer good ta have around." He slid an arm around Jack's waist and pulled him into a hug, his other hand stroking Jack's hair. "It's good to know that there's somethin' out there sill worth laughin' about, doncha think?"

Jack gave a small chuckle despite himself. "Yeah I guess." He sighed and rubbed at the shoulder of his hurt arm. "You don't happen to have anything I can take fer the pain do you?"

"I got some Benzedrine," Atlas said, leaning over and rummaging through the small desk beside the bed. "Ah, here we go."

He pulled out a small tube, meant to go in an inhaler, and cracked it open, extracting a few small strips of paper. Two of them he handed to Jack, and one he rolled into a ball and popped into his mouth, washing it down with a swig of wine from a nearby bottle.

Jack popped them into his mouth. "Can I have a sip of that?" He asked after he swallowed. "These kinda leave you cotton-mouthed."

Atlas laughed and handed over the bottle. "Ye won' be feelin' much here in about five minutes 'cept loopy an' happy."

"I can deal with that" Jack replied, taking a large swig from the bottle. "Hell, at this point I'll probably welcome it. Arm's gotten to throbbing. How can you tell if its dislocated?"

"Lemme take a look at it before tha benny kicks in," he said, leaning close to peer at the appendage in question. He gently grabbed it and rotated it slightly in the socket, apologizing for the pain he knew it caused. "Well, 'tain't dislocated, but ye prolly damaged tha nerve. Should prolly rest here a few days 'fore ye try to use it any."