I was really intrigued by this, so I'll admit I cheated and looked it up
(Which was harder than it sounds, it didn't show up in archive search!) And then I waited a day to see if anyone else would get it fairly, but since no one did and it's really an amazing story (I read it today) I figured I'd post the answer so other FoLCs could read it
Anyway, this is Hazel's
The Mirror Crack\'d . If you haven't read it, you should!
And for something else... How about this?
"Okay, I'll give you that one. It's not the most popular choice but it's technically correct." A gentle smile rewarded her before she leaned back to rest her hand on his shoulder again.
Her hands froze as she desperately wanted to give him a shoulder rub but didn't know how to begin. The big guy didn't seem very tense. As a matter of fact, the only time he'd ever seemed tense was when *she* was in danger or challenging him in regard to her safety. Clark seemed to thrive on their other disagreements. He would invariably end up with a silly smirk on his face no matter what the outcome of the argument. At first it had annoyed her -- she always ended up madder at him, particularly when he was right -- but lately, especially the past few days, she had given in a lot sooner than normal. It wasn't worth all the fuss to be at odds with Clark, not after the devastation she'd felt when she thought he had died.
Now as her hands lay on his shoulders, the warmth of his flesh beneath the smooth fabric seemed to be keeping them there like a magnet. Still, it was hard to take the next step. A neck massage was way more intimate than bringing someone coffee or leaning over their shoulder, yet he did that for her all the time and she never complained.
A tentative squeeze to start, then another and soon she was working her way along his shoulders up to his neck. His head dropped down in relaxation, exposing more of his well-groomed and heavily-muscled neck to her.
She worked her way lower down his back, until she could feel him tensing up once more. She must not be doing a good job... this was supposed to be relaxing. Now she could feel him sucking in his breath as she lightened her touch in response. Biting her lip in frustration, she couldn't believe that she was making him tight when he had already been relaxed, but she couldn't give up on showing she cared now.
She slowed her massage to just rubbing the back of his neck, then patted his shoulders before withdrawing her touch.
"All done," he said, smiling, after sending their story to Perry a couple of minutes later. He shut off his computer and twirled in his chair to look at her. His dark brown eyes softened at the sight of her and he regarded her curiously. She returned his gaze with a shy smile, then glanced downward, suddenly feeling very vulnerable.
