Topping and Tailing
Part Seven
By Clotho & Cathy
clothomoerae@hotmail.com and huntersglenn@yahoo.com

Rating: NC-17
Pairing: John Carter/Dave Malucci
Date: May 18, 2001
Archive: Not without permission. The story and its prequel, "Bottoms Up", can be found at Clotho's fanfic site http://home.talkcity.com/antennaav/fatespinner/) and at the Carterfics site (http://www.geocities.com/Paris/Boutique/7087/).
Disclaimer: "ER" and all its characters belong to Warner Bros. No infringement of their copyright is intended. This story was written for the enjoyment of "ER" fans everywhere, and may be downloaded for your own pleasure. We owe a huge "Thank you" to Alice and Melissa, our wonderful editors. We couldn't have done it without the two of you!



Previously:

John's back, which had already been acting up earlier
due to the extra physical exertions of sex with Dave,
was now screaming at him, partially due to the fact
that he had been up and down the stairs constantly,
getting more tea and chocolate for Dave. John had also
been in and out of the bathroom, making sure that only
warm to hot water stayed in the water bottles. He
wanted nothing more than to lie on his back and give it
a rest, but Dave still needed him. Dave was already
feeling warmer, but he was not yet back to having a
normal body temperature. It wouldn't be much longer
though, John thought. His eyes grew heavy and he
drifted off to sleep.


As the morning hours passed, John dozed. His waking
time was spent with him alternating between berating
himself for behaving childishly earlier and worrying
about Dave. He kept as still as possible, not wanting
to awaken Dave prematurely. As it neared noon, John's
stomach remembered that it hadn't gotten much of
anything for breakfast and it began to complain. But
John had no intention of leaving Dave's side. Not now
at least. This was still his pretend time. Reality
would intrude soon enough once Dave awoke.

Unable to go back to sleep or get anything to eat, John
reached for the television remote. He flipped on the
TV, muting it so Dave wouldn't be disturbed, and half
watched a movie. He must have dozed off again himself,
because when he next opened his eyes there seemed to be
some kind of sitcom on.



Dave felt himself sliding into consciousness. He clung
to the bland warmness he was drifting from, but slowly
became more and more aware that he ached. His ass
ached. His gut ached. His entire upper side ached.
His fingers and toes protested when he moved them.

His ass ached because of Carter, and most of the other
pains could be traced back there too.

He thought Carter was behind him, but didn't want to
turn to look. He didn't know if it was worse if Carter
was or wasn't there.

He could remember telling Carter that Carter owned
him. Owned every cell of him. Screaming out his
name. Dave found himself embarrassed at the memory.
And then having a frying pan flung at him. And Carter
walking away. And getting cold, very cold.

And even at the end of being very, very cold, Carter
was still there.



John could feel a slight movement from Dave. "You
awake?" John asked, his voice a near whisper as he
hoped that Dave couldn't hear him and wouldn't answer.



Dave heard Carter's voice talking to him. And he
remembered again the things he'd screamed this morning
in the pool-room. Begging Carter to take him, to
inscribe his name on each cell of Dave's body. He
blushed. He couldn't help it.



When Dave didn't answer, John began to think he was
wrong about Dave waking up. Good. That meant he still
had time to pretend that nothing ugly had happened.
Instead, he could remember all the good things -- the
way it felt when Dave was inside of him, claiming him
as his own. The way it felt when Dave was begging him
for more, telling him that he belonged to him forever.
If only that could be true, John thought. But it
couldn't happen. Not now. Maybe it had been the bit
with the frying pan and maybe it had been something
else. Or an accumulation of a lot of something
else's. John didn't know and right now didn't want to
know. Knowing that Dave was running from him was more
than enough.

About the only thing keeping his mind and body from
screaming out for drugs to dull the ache in his heart
and body was the fact that Dave needed his body warmth
right now. Needed him clean and sober. But John
couldn't ignore the ache in his back -- staying in one
position for so many hours had worsened it. But while
he couldn't ignore it, he could chose to not act on
it. Keeping Dave warm was more important than his own
discomfort. John glanced at the TV - there now seemed
to be a wildlife show of some kind on.



Dave rolled over onto his front. He didn't really want
to face Carter. Too much had happened today for him to
want to face Carter.

"Dave? Do you feel warm now?"

Dave nodded, then shook his head. He was warm, but
that seemed to be a minor thing compared to once again
being naked in Carter's bed. He didn't know why he was
here when Carter had been throwing things at him.
Carter could have left him out there or taken him home,
there was no reason for him to end up here of all
places.

It was beyond Dave to figure out at this stage. He
asked, his voice croaking, "What now?"

What now indeed? John thought. "I guess that staying
just like this is out of the question, right? Seeing
as how you were in such a hurry to leave me earlier."

"Huh?" Dave didn't understand - every time it'd been
Carter who left or who threw things.

"You were running away from me, Dave. I saw you
outside and when I called to you, you ran." John
couldn't keep the tremble from his voice. "I know I
did something wrong, but I didn't think it was so bad
that you'd risk your life to get away from me. I'm
sorry. I'm so very sorry. I'll do whatever you want,
Dave. I'll call you a cab, or drive you home, but
please....please tell me what I did wrong? Please?"

Dave rolled over to face Carter, the side that had been
underneath when he landed on the marble was now beneath
him again, and he grimaced in pain. When he opened his
eyes he looked at Carter in disbelief. "You were
holding another fucking great frying pan - I don't LIKE
being hit with fucking great frying pans. I avoid it."

"And I don't hit people with frying pans. I wasn't
aiming at you when I threw that pan, Dave. I was just
throwing it because I was frustrated over the fact that
you won't talk to me. You just say 'whatever' and I
have to live with it. I hate that. But I would never
hurt you. Never."

"Maybe, but the best way of making sure ya don't hit
people is not throwing fucking great frying pans in the
first place. And it's you who doesn't talk. I say
something you don't like and you just walk off an' say
you'll have a shower."

"I had been headed for the whirlpool, but you said
something about us going upstairs, so I changed it to
the shower. Then you pulled that 'whatever' crap
again. I didn't understand what you wanted from me. I
was headed here like you wanted and then you got all
cold on me again." John was trying hard to get his
emotions under control, but it was difficult to do with
the double task of trying to ignore his desire for a
narcotic and his ignoring the pain in his back and
leg. "And I already told you that I wasn't throwing
the pan at you. If I was, then I sure as Hell wouldn't
have been aiming at the counter, I would have been
aiming at you."

"Yeah, damn right you were headed out. Just decided to
walk out again. And even if you weren't aiming for me,
well ya still hit me." Okay it hadn't been that pan
that landed on his foot, but it was close enough. "
An' I'll give you a clue. If you want to throw
something or hit it, go to a gym. Ya don't do it in a
kitchen or a bathroom or a living room. Ya do it in a
gym."

"Dave, I am so sorry. I was only thinking about how
they told me in Atlanta to not hold in my feelings. I
wasn't walking out on you, Dave. I would never walk
out on you. My back was killing me and I wanted to get
some relief. I guess I just assumed that you would
come with me, and when you said 'whatever', well, you
made me feel.... I should have told you I was in pain
and asked you to come with me. Forgive me?" John
looked directly at Dave, waiting for his answer.

"Oh." Carter's explanation and apology stopped Dave's
wrath in its tracks. He thought for a second. "All
those showering things 'cause of your back?"

John nodded. "Yeah. The hot water helps." He
grinned. "Not as much as a massage helps, but it
helps. And a warm shower might help warm you up some
more. So...how about it? Would you like to come and
shower with me? You can stay out of the hot water and
then I'll turn it down a bit to make it comfortable for
you."

Dave wiggled over and kissed Carter on the lips. He
didn't really feel like getting out of bed yet, but his
fingers still felt and moved like sausages, he couldn't
really do anything with them yet. Carter's mouth was
warm and damp, and tasted sweet.

Taking that as a 'yes', John grinned and kissed Dave
back. "I'll start the shower and then come to get you,
okay?"

Giving in to the inevitable Dave nodded. "'kay." He
wrapped himself in the comforter and watched Carter as
he left the room.

John turned on the shower, feeling very grateful that
he had a room with a huge shower enclosure in the
bathroom. His even had a seat in the back, a perfect
place for Dave to sit. As the water quickly got hot,
John went to get Dave. "Ready?

Dave sat up a bit groggily, then waited for the world
to right itself before he stood. He clutched the
comforter around him - unwilling to forgo its warmth
even now. He dropped it once he got into the steamy
bathroom.

John helped Dave into the enclosure and to the seat,
then stepped in, standing under the pulsating spray.
Thank goodness for shower massagers, he thought. Then
he looked at Dave, trying to judge how recovered the
man was from being outside. Dave's skin was beginning
to look a healthy pink, and that was a good sign. "You
feeling okay? Any dizziness at all?" John asked.

Dave shrugged, and sat back. He couldn't say there
wasn't - but it wasn't too bad either. Sitting down in
a room full of steam seemed about right right then. He
half closed his eyes, and watched Carter maneuver the
spray nozzle.

As the pain in his back slowly began to ease, John
thought he could lower the temperature of the water.
Get Dave warmed up. He adjusted the water, then looked
back at Dave. He saw that Dave's eyes were half
closed, but he wasn't sure if Dave was awake or not.
John knew one sure way to warm Dave from the inside out
-- he adjusted the spray so that it would hit Dave in
the chest, then knelt between Dave's legs, not even
waiting to see or hear Dave's reactions to what he was
doing. John just leaned in and took Dave's cock into
his mouth, hoping that a good bit of sucking would make
Dave hard and hot.

Dave's eyes jerked open as the water hit him in the
chest. He'd been engaged in a strange daydream about
Carter and the nozzle and warm and wetness and heat.
Then he was engulfed in the warm and wetness and heat
itself. Only it was Carter not the nozzle doing it.
He wiggled forward on the seat to try and give Carter
access to whatever he wanted.

Without moving his mouth from Dave's cock, John reached
out and grabbed the bottle of shampoo, then poured some
into his hand to use as a lubricant. He idn't really
notice if the shampoo bottle made it back to the proper
spot or not, all he cared about was drawing shampoo
circles around Dave's opening, teasing him for a short
time before going any further. And the teasing
obviously worked because John could feel Dave's cock
swell inside of his mouth.

John began to slowly insert his finger while quickly
moving his head up and down the length of Dave's
wonderful cock. A cock that John knew he could never
get enough of in any way. If only everything between
them could be as simple as having sex in the shower,
then life would be great, John thought. Better than
great, he amended. Life would be perfect.

Dave didn't know what felt better. The mouth on his
cock, or the finger up his ass. They were going at
different speeds/different rhythms - he tried to move
so that both worked best, but couldn't. Finger -
aaaaaaaaaah, then mouth ooooh, and mouth ooooh again.
Dave squirmed, and then the finger won, there wasn't
even a contest anymore - the finger won.

Suddenly found Dave found himself in a wet slithery
heap on the floor. He must have squirmed a squirm too
far. The seat was a long way up. Dave turned around,
bracing his arms on the seat, and exposing his ass to
Carter. He knew this position - it worked - he'd done
it to a guy from a club once.

The minute Dave had started to slide out from the seat,
John had the good sense to move out of the way. He
wasn't sure what was going on until Dave braced himself
on the seat. Once John saw that, he was very curious
as to where the shampoo had gone. Luckily for him, it
was on the small shelf on the side of the enclosure.
He grabbed it, pouring out a very liberal amount, which
he then used to coat his own cock. And then John began
to very slowly enter Dave, savoring how tight Dave felt
-- how warm. How very, very hot the man was inside.
"Feeling warmer now, Dave? Your ass is so hot, so very
hot. I could stay here all day like this."

Dave pushed backwards, eager to have Carter entirely
inside him. The words seemed like the completion of a
fantasy to him. "Do. Do. Stay. Please." He
tightened his ass muscles around the redwood. "Stay."

But even as Dave spoke his body started to move - eager
for the stimulus - a scrape across the prostate or
around the anus or across the buttocks. Movement and
change. He gave a groan at all the feeling and the
impossibility of it all.

It took all of John's control to not come right there
and then with Dave's movements. But he didn't come.
Instead he reached out and caressed Dave's lower back
and his hips, letting Dave do all the work while he
just stood there. "Oh yeah, Dave. Do it."

Dave increased his movements, pushing back against
Carter's legs, then pulling forward, then back and the
slap of leg against buttock again. There were other
feelings too, an occasional finger on his hip or side
or back, and above all else the red-hot cock pressing
against his prostate. Back and forward and back and
forward and back....

He wanted more pressure - he wanted it everywhere.
Needed it everywhere. "Bite me. Please." But the
words were inarticulate, scarcely words at all.

Then the world contracted down to the redwood inside of
Dave. Expanding him, splitting him in two, and
remaking him in a new shape. "Please. God."

And with a mighty push back Dave came. The world
exploded, and he exploded, screaming, and splashing
semen over the walls and floor.

Dave's screams were echoing off the walls of the
shower, and yet John managed to keep from coming. He
waited until Dave was quiet and trembling in front of
him and then he said, "My turn." Moving carefully,
John began to thrust in and out, out and in, over and
over again, not too fast and not too slow -- just a
perfect tempo as he felt his own climax approaching.

Dave pushed backwards, matching Carter's rhythm, just
expanding the strokes - in a millimetre further, out a
smidgen more. He wanted Carter to come inside of him,
deep inside, so far inside he would never come out. He
whispered encouragement, "Come on. Come in. All the
way in." He desperately wanted to feel Carter playing
with his body - teasing his nipples, kissing his neck,
caressing his back, but Carter needed to possess him
first, own him. Own him again and again and again.

Dave's words of encouragement seemed to echo in John's
head and he found himself thrusting deeper and deeper.
He wanted so much to bend over Dave's back and play
with him, but his own back wasn't quite up to that
right now. Later. When they were both horizontal,
then John could totally have his way with Dave's body.
Do all the things that seemed to drive Dave wild. As
his climax peaked, John thrust in as far as he could,
his body tensing as his seed shot out of his body and
into Dave's. "Oh, God, Dave." John panted as he came
over and over. And then he was spent and aware of
nothing aside from his own ragged breathing and the
breathing of the man in front of him. And the pounding
of the warm water upon his lower back. The water that
was supposed to be warming Dave and not him.

John grabbed Dave around the waist and pulled him
upward, turning them around so that Dave was under the
spray of water. Somehow John managed to remain inside
of Dave, even though they had moved. John carefully
stepped backward until he could feel the smooth side of
the shower against his legs and he sat down in the
seat, keeping Dave in place. Keeping Dave's body
warm. And now...John grinned as he moved a hand up
Dave's belly and to his chest where he found two erect
nubs just waiting to be played with. The other hand
went downward, to caress Dave's erection. Only....John
grinned as he realized that Dave had come without him
having to touch him. He had come just from being
fucked. John had never done that; he knew it wasn't
something that happened often.

Dave followed Carter's movements, eager to not break
the contact between them before he had to. He was
surprised and pleased to find himself on Carter's lap.
This was what he'd wanted this morning by the spa, this
touching and cuddling after sex. With Carter still in
him, and still playing with him. He leant back against
Carter's chest, feeling the water pounding on his own
like an external heartbeat.

"I think you enjoyed that a lot, didn't you?" John
asked, his mouth right by Dave's ear. "I guess that
now I have to find a way to get you hard again so I can
have you. Not that I'm complaining any." John
grinned, then he began to nuzzle the side of Dave's
neck, letting his mouth and hands minister to Dave's
body and tell him with touches the things John couldn't
seem to find the right words to say.

Dave was content precisely where he was. The small
touches Carter was giving him were good. Very good -
especially as Carter was still inside him. Dave turned
his head to try and capture Carter's lips,

Happy in the moment, John returned the kiss eagerly,
but he wished that Dave could be as free with his
thoughts and words as he was with his body. He had a
gorgeous man on his lap, a man who was eager and hungry
for his touch. A man who didn't look at him with
revulsion when he saw the surgical and stabbing scars.
If only he could find a way to make this last forever,
John thought, then his world would be perfect.
Luckily, his grandparents had a huge hot water tank,
and it could last for quite a while, so John was
determined to pleasure Dave as much as he could. His
tongue sought entrance to Dave's mouth and found it.
Dave tasted of tea and chocolate and John loved it. He
broke off the kiss to lick the water from Dave's skin,
tasting it along with a musk that was so uniquely
Dave. And under his hand, John felt Dave begin to
harden again. An idea began to form in his mind --
that he could let Dave sit down again while he
straddled Dave's lap, only facing him. He so wanted to
watch Dave's face as he came. Once he had Dave hard
enough, he would ask him if he wanted to try that
position.

Dave kissed Carter back. "Ya could tell?" Carter was
making him hard again, already. He didn't understand
how Carter could be doing this to him - he was getting
hard while a man was up his ass, and he was loving it.
"How do you do this to me?" He ran a hand through
Carter's hair, and down his neck, then repeated,
"How?" His cock was sore from all the exertions of the
last day - and the unaccustomed tightness of Carter -
yet it was still getting hard again.

"I guess it's because you do it so easily to me,
Dave." John said. "There's a lot of me that's been
missing -- since way before the stabbing. But with
you...it's back. Thank you." John began to kiss
Dave's neck, leaving butterfly kisses in his wake. "I
need to feel you in me, Dave, but like this. With you
seated and me on your lap. Facing you. How does that
sound to you? I think we have some time before the
water starts to get cold."

"We have to move?" Dave didn't like that idea. He
liked sitting there, with the water pounding on him,
warming him from the front, and Carter behind him,
warming him from the back, and Carter up him too,
warming him inside. He kissed Carter, deeply - tasting
his mouth, feeling the hardness of his teeth. He had a
faint hope that if Carter was making him hard then he
could make Carter hard in turn - that would be much
better.

"No, we don't have to move," John said when his mouth
was free again. He hoped his disappointment didn't
show in his voice. Maybe he had been wrong about
Dave's feelings after all. It was obvious that he
didn't want to have to look at him. John continued to
kiss Dave's skin, this time moving to his shoulder. "We
can stay here as long as you like, Dave."

"Good." Dave leaned back against Carter, and picked up
one of his hands, he kissed the palm, and then started
sucking each finger in turn, rolling his tongue around
each long and shapely digit. He dropped the hand, and
smiled, then turned to kiss Carter again. "This is
good."

"Yeah, it is." John agreed. And it was good. It
just wasn't quite what John wanted at the moment. Not
what he desperately needed, which was to feel Dave
inside of him again. Feel himself being one with Dave,
although this was close to that feeling. Very close.
Maybe...maybe if he came again, but kept Dave from
coming, then he could get Dave to move? Hell, it
really didn't matter to John if they did it here or on
the bed, as long as Dave took him. Claimed him.
Feeling Dave's warm mouth upon his fingers started a
warmth that moved straight to John's groin, and he felt
himself begin to harden inside of Dave. Now that John
had a mission, he was determined to not disappoint and
yet still get what he needed and wanted.

Dave felt Carter move, "Your back gettin' sore?" He
very much hoped it wasn't so. He picked up the other
hand, and started licking and suckling it.

"No, I'm fine." John lifted his mouth from Dave's
shoulder long enough to reply. "I'm very fine. You
can just keep on with what you're doing." John flexed
his cock, hoping Dave would be able to feel something
from it.

"You sure, Hoss? Coz we could move?" Dave turned to
kiss Carter on the lips, and look him in the eye. "If
y'r hurtin'? Something's making ya wiggle."

John grinned. "Oh, yeah. But not because of my back.
I was thinking that maybe you could move up and down a
bit?"

Dave turned to Carter, his eyes lighting up with
pride. "Really? I made ya hard again, just like you
did me?" He pumped his arm in pride, and kissed Carter
hard.

"It's not that difficult for you to make me hard,
Dave." John said after the kiss ended. "Just looking
at you makes me that way."

"Want to try another position? Or stay like this."
Even as Dave spoke he realised that they hadn't done it
like this yet. They got like this after last time.

John grinned as his emotions yo-yoed in the other
direction. Dave did want to look at him. "I'd love to
have you in me, Dave."

"Oh. You don't want to stay in me?" Dave found
himself feeling absurdly disappointed.

"God, if I could find a way for us to both be in each
other, then I'd die a happy man, wouldn't you?" John
said as he waited for Dave to move. When that didn't
immediately happen, John's heart sank. Dave hadn't
wanted him after all, had he? He felt his erection
falter and then disappear altogether as he bit back a
moan of disappointment. When would he ever learn?

The moan pleased Dave, he squeezed himself around
Carter. "That good?" But then heard and felt a
rhythmic thumping noise, he half turned and saw Carter
banging his head against a wall. Shit - that wasn't any
good. "Y'r back is hurtin' isn't it?" Dave
regretfully pulled himself off Carter then stood up.
He looked down, and saw Carter's flaccid dick. "You
said you were hard."


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