With many thanks to Molo for the beta, among other things…

The Toybox

by CC

Hutch snapped off the bedside lamp and settled back on his pillow, lifting his hips to remove the damp towel from around his waist as an afterthought. He wasn't really ready for sleep, but he didn't feel like reading either. Television was out, since Starsky had become engrossed in some documentary on pythons. Hutch had felt the beginnings of a headache from trying to watch through eyes squinted half-closed, so he'd given up and opted for a shower instead. Now, lying on his back, hands clasped behind his head, he stared up at the ceiling with its flickers of light from the other room and tried to empty his mind of the day's frustrations. It was getting harder and harder to do, even on the days that didn't end with snakes and their frozen mice entrees.

He must have drifted off, because suddenly the bed dipped, and the silence was replaced with the soft thunk of clothing hitting the floor and then the all-too-familiar muffled thumping of Starsky preparing his side of the bed for sleep.

"Could leave a light on for a guy sometime." The voice to his left sounded irritated, but Hutch knew it had nothing to do with the darkness and everything to do with their workload and the long hours they'd worked that day. In the past, he would've tried to get Starsky to talk about it. Now he knew just to let his partner work it out his own way, in his own time.

Starsky's attempts to punch his pillow into submission finally subsided and the bed was still.

"Comfortable now, Princess?" Hutch asked in a falsetto voice, figuring a little nudge couldn't hurt.

"Up yours."

"Not tonight, I have a – ow! Dammit, Starsky!" Hutch had been expecting a punch, not a pinch. He rubbed the inside of his upper arm, tempted to turn on the lamp to check for broken skin. How Starsky knew where to strike, even in a pitch black room, was a mystery Hutch knew he wasn't likely to solve, but he asked anyway. "You've got eyes like a cat. How do you do that?"

"Years of practice. Ask Nicky," Starsky answered smugly.

Hutch grunted. "No thanks. That would require that I actually talk to him."

"Yeah, well, there is that," Starsky said agreeably, as if they weren't talking about his own brother.

The room was quiet for less than a minute before Hutch felt the bed shake and heard the covers rustling. He smiled and stretched out his arm as Starsky abandoned his carefully arranged pillow in favor of Hutch's shoulder. They ended the day like this often, separating only in the depths of sleep.

Starsky sighed and shifted slightly. "I'm too tired to go to sleep."

"I know." Hutch stroked Starsky's arm. "You've been in bed about thirty seconds. Give it a few minutes."

"That's a few minutes I could be sleeping," Starsky grumbled. "You don't want me to wake up grouchy, do you?"

"As opposed to what? Your normal sunny disposition at seven a.m.?"

Starsky tried to squirm away, but Hutch tightened his grip. "Stay right where you are."

"I can't help it if I need a lot of sleep. I burn up a lot of energy during the day, you know."

Boy do I know. I'm the one who has to ride with you all day. Hutch kept his thoughts to himself. They'd never get to sleep if he got Starsky mad.

"It used to drive Ma crazy when I was a kid."

"Your energy?"

"Yeah, when I wouldn't go to sleep. I couldn't stand just lying in there in the dark when I wasn't sleepy. 'All the other children are in bed already,' she'd say." Starsky chuckled. "I think Pop finally got tired of going to bed by himself. One night he came home with a Space Ranger flashlight that we'd seen down at Murray's Toy Store. Told me to be sure not to fall asleep with it on and sent me to bed at nine o'clock."

"A Space Ranger flashlight, huh?" Hutch grinned. "Sounds like fun. Did it help?"

"Oh yeah. For a long time, I couldn't wait to go to bed every night. I'd even save some of my comic books just to read at night by my flashlight. Made 'em scarier." Starsky quieted for a moment. "You know, these parents who buy all these Atari games for their kids are missing the boat."

"How so?"

"I saw a guy shelling out big bucks for three games the other day, and his kid was crying for more. Could've saved a lot of money just buying the kid a flashlight, sticking him in a dark room and letting him make up his own fun. Kid would've been better off, too."

"I won't argue with you there," Hutch agreed, waiting a beat before adding, "Hey, Starsky? You realize that all the crusading you've been doing for me to get you that Atari thing for your birthday just bit the dust, don't you?"

Starsky laughed, his chest shaking against Hutch's side. "Oh man, I walked right into that, didn't I?"

"Sure did. I'm just gonna get you a flashlight instead. You'll be better off for it." Hutch squeezed his arm again. "But don't worry. I'll get a big flashlight, since you're such a big boy now. Shouldn't set me back more than ten bucks."

Starsky's chest rumbled again, then suddenly he shifted forward and his lips brushed Hutch's ear. "I don't need a flashlight now," he whispered in a voice so sexy it made Hutch shiver. His hand skimmed across Hutch's chest, palming first one nipple, then slowly sliding to the other. "I've got new toys to entertain me."

"You do?" Hutch's whole body quivered when his ear lobe was sucked into the wetness of Starsky's mouth. He'd thought Starsky was too tired for this sort of nightcap. Hell, he'd thought he was too tired for it, but his body was certainly saying otherwise. Starsky's, too, from the way he was grinding against Hutch's side.

"Sure do." Starsky wriggled a bit until he was able to slide his leg across Hutch's thighs. "If I wasn't so tired, this is what I'd do with 'em." He sucked gently on Hutch's ear lobe, then flicked his tongue rapidly back and forth across the flap of skin. Hutch had to fight for breath as he felt the sharp nip of teeth just as Starsky tweaked one nipple with his fingers.

"Mmm, I wish you weren't so tired." Hutch moved his free arm up to Starsky's chest only to have it batted away.

"Stop," Starsky murmured as he once again grazed his teeth across Hutch's ear. "I'm playin' in my toy box."

Hutch squirmed, seeking an outlet for the sensations now thrumming through his body, but with Starsky's weight pressed against him, he was effectively trapped. "I wanna play, too."

"Only when I say so." Starsky's hand made one last pass across Hutch's chest, then slowly slid downward. "What's this?" A warm wet tongue found the shell of Hutch's ear and mimicked the path of his thumb around Hutch's navel.

"Starsk, I need to—you're killing me."

"But what a way to go, right?" Starsky's tongue toyed with Hutch's ear as his thumb pulled and probed. Hutch shuddered, then tried once again to push up against Starsky's body. "Be still," Starsky scolded, his breath warm and moist against Hutch's neck now. "If you can't behave, you'll never get to play in the toy box."

"C'mon, nice guys share," Hutch groaned.

"Never said I was a nice guy, did I?" Starsky latched onto Hutch's neck, kissing, nipping, sucking, while his hand wandered lower, sliding flat against Hutch's skin. "Here's what I was looking for: my flashlight."

Wrapped firmly around the base of Hutch's cock, Starsky's hand squeezed gently, both teasing and threatening.

"Starsky, that's not a flashlight," Hutch gasped and felt the curve of Starsky's lips against his neck.

"Says you," Starsky said. "See? Here's the barrel." His hand slid lightly up Hutch's shaft, then back down. "Nice long barrel, perfect for playing in the dark."

A few long, slow strokes, and then Starsky's hand abandoned him. Hutch tried to use the absence to his advantage, managing to get his hand as far as Starsky's hip before he was pushed away, and Starsky's practiced hand, now warm and wet and slick, resumed its stroking, sliding up Hutch's length to palm his crown.

"And here's the globe, nice and wide." He thumbed the slit, coating the skin with the resulting emission. "Now, where's the damned switch?"

"Oh, it's on, it's on," Hutch panted. "But it's gonna go off if you don't slow down and let me—" Hutch reached up, feebly trying to grab Starsky's hand, only to be pushed away again.

"'S my flashlight, Hutch." A glint of teeth, the hint of silent laughter.

"Starrrsk…"

"In due time, in due time."

"I'm gonna do your time if you don't quit playing around."

Starsky laughed out loud then and in one smooth move, pushed himself up and over, laughing as Hutch instinctively tried to part his legs, only to find them trapped between Starsky's knees.

Leaning forward until his face hovered just above Hutch's, Starsky taunted, "Told you…'s my toybox."

"You bas—" Hutch's complaint was cut off when Starsky's mouth covered his, nipping the delicate skin, then probing with his tongue until Hutch let him in. Starsky wasted no time in sucking Hutch's tongue into his mouth, initiating a rhythm that mimicked the actions of his hand. Hutch's body grew taut with the need for movement. He once again tried to reach between them, but Starsky pulled his hand away.

"Don't need you there," Starsky whispered into his mouth. "Find something else to keep you busy."

Hutch obeyed, reaching one arm around Starsky's back to caress the rigid muscles there while he trailed the fingertips of the other hand up and down the length of Starsky's body. As his hands roamed his lover's broad back, he became aware of Starsky shifting subtly and then the heat of his swollen cock sliding downward, burning between his thighs.

Starsky began to slowly undulate, the teasing presence of his cock brushing the underside of Hutch's sac while his hand continued its torturous stroking. It was more than Hutch could bear. He pulled away from the kiss. "Faster," he whispered. "Finish it. Please."

As Starsky's mouth met his again, Hutch turned the tables and pulled Starsky's tongue into his mouth, sucking in rhythm with his lover's thrusts. Starsky moaned and shuddered, and Hutch knew release for both of them was imminent. He slid one hand to Starsky's chest, kneading, pinching, not worrying about pain, focused only on stimulation. Starsky's guttural response pushed Hutch over the edge, and his orgasm rocketed through his body. Nearly lost in his own pleasure as his body tensed in release, Hutch was only dimly aware of tightening his own thigh muscles, pulling Starsky to completion with him. A sudden cry, a moment of utter stillness, and then warm wetness spilling across his balls, trickling below, brought a tired smile to Hutch's face, and he pulled Starsky to rest on top of him.

Long moments passed before either man could speak. Hutch thought he heard 'I love you' and thought he said it back, but the hazy afterglow made it difficult to be sure. It's a good thing we both know, he thought sleepily.

"So whadda ya think of my toy box?" Starsky mumbled against his shoulder.

"I think you can play here anytime." Hutch shifted, slowly becoming aware of the weight on Starsky's body and the sticky residue on both of them. "Right now we need to play like Christopher Columbus."

Starsky raised his head. "Huh?"

"I need to find dry land."

"Oh." Starsky slowly rolled to the side and scooted backwards to his side of the bed. "C'mon, come over here if you don't like the little gift I left you." He pulled on Hutch's arm.

"You left me a lotta gift over here, Romeo," Hutch teased, sliding over and into Starsky's embrace.

"You complainin'?"

"Not one peep." Hutch snuggled into Starsky's shoulder. "I'll return the favor in the morning."

Starsky chuckled in mid-yawn. "'S that a promise?"

"You bet." Hutch closed his eyes, sleep rapidly closing in on him.

"Hutch?"

"Mmm?"

"This was fun, but you're still gettin' me the Atari."

"Dream on," Hutch murmured, lips curving up in a secretive smile as he drifted off to sleep.

The End.

Comments or critique welcome at [click on the email button.] I always respond to comments, so if you send a note and don't receive a response, please don't think ill of me. In all likelihood, either I didn't receive your note or my response is floating in cyberspace.

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