Moments in Time

Office Love

Steve sighed in annoyance as he glanced at his desk. Twelve red roses sat in an elegant vase, a small note tucked into the leaves like an irritating itch. Steve's lips flattened in a straight line as his arm swept them into the empty bin beside his desk.

He was still getting over his fiancè that he'd been dating for the past three years, and who had left him for another guy two months prior. As if that wasn't enough, his best friend, Sam Wilson, had lost his husband overseas, so Steve had to try and help him as best he could.

But the absolute worst thing, was the young kid who had turned out to be the new intern at the office. Steve worked at an advertisement company as a designer, and he loved his job. But the new kid, Barnes, was simply a nuisance. Sure, he was good at his job, charming, well liked among the other employees, and his looks were top notch...

But he couldn't take no for an answer. He just ignored Steve at every turn, giving him doe eyes, sweet smiles, and sassy winks at every opportunity. For the past week, he had left little notes and things on Steve's desk. Boxes of chocolate, paper hearts, a little bear that was holding a heart with the words Be Mine on it, and now a ridiculous bouquet of flowers...Steve had enough.

He marched over to Barnes' cubicle, ready to rip him a new one, but that desire disappeared as soon as he saw him. Brock, Barnes' supervisor, had his hands on Barnes' ass, cupping his cheeks in a very unprofessional way. Barnes was squirming, trying to get away, eyes flooded with panic and disgust, but his movements only seemed to be turning Brock on.

"Come on baby, just one kiss!" Brock crooned, a wicked smile crossing his face.

Barnes only spit in his face as he shoved at his chest. Steve admired the way Barnes fought the stronger man, refusing to cower or lose his dignity.

"I'm filing a complaint on you with HR," Barnes growled, glaring at Brock as he continued to feel him up.

"Then I'll file one about your harassment of that guy in the design department," Brock sneered, successfully shutting Barnes up.

"Well, that's the first time I've heard that my boyfriend was harassing me. After all, we are together. What I can't understand, is why you would dare to lay a hand on him, or why you would touch him like that when he obviously doesn't like it," Steve stepped in, grabbing Brock by his arm and pulling him off Barnes. "Especially when he's mine."

Brock glowered, but shuffled away after Steve dared him to try anything. Steve's attention went back to the smaller man who seemed quite shaken up.

Barnes was smaller than Steve, standing at about 5' 8", to his 6' 2" frame. He was slight and slim, but had an almost feline grace about him. His eyes were huge and expressive, flickering from gray to green in the light. His hair was curly and thick, and it looked so soft Steve wanted to reach out and touch it. His lips were perfectly shaped, and beautifully pink, and his teeth were white and straight as well.

"Hey, are you okay?" Steve asked, stepping a little closer to the younger man.

"Y-yeah," Barnes said, but his voice cracked, telling Steve that he really wasn't. "Thanks for stepping in...that was really nice of you."

"He can pick on somebody his own size for once," Steve frowned. "He had no right to do that."

"...I'm sorry for harassing you," Barnes choked out, staring at his hands. "I didn't realize how creepy that must've been...or..."

Steve felt his heart melt a little at Barnes' faltering words. Sure, he wasn't ready for a relationship yet, but that didn't mean that Barnes was creepy. Valentine's meant that secret admirers were going to pop out of the woodworks, and it was a time to declare stuff like that. If Steve had a problem with it, he'd have already made a complaint.