TLR Chapter 85

TLR Chapter 85

Written by Snarks, Rosemarie & PJ

It had been about a week since Ryan had seen Doc Mac and had his temporary crown placed on his front tooth. The phone rang and Ryan who had been asleep turned over grabbed it and answered sleepily. Castiel purred loudly and pawed at Ry. The young man petted his kitten as he realized it was the dentist's office calling. Coral was at work and Ryan told the receptionist thank you when the man told him the new crown was in and that they wanted to see him tomorrow afternoon at 2 p.m. Ryan ended the call and fell back asleep.  The phone next to him still displaying the number.  His little fluff ball cuddled up to him as usual.

Coral returned home a little after 2 p.m., having used his lunch hour to pick up some groceries and a couple of sandwiches from the deli for them. He put the groceries away and walked quietly to the master bedroom to find his brat. He looked at the sleeping young man, his breathing deep and even. Castiel peeked up at two legs, closed his eyes and snuggled closer to Ryan’s neck. The older man smiled at the sight.  It took all of his self-control not to slide into bed with his lover.

Ryan shifted a little in his sleep and his cell phone slipped off the bed and fell on the floor with a soft thud.

Coral frowned a little. Had Ryan been trying to call people in his sleep? He picked up the phone and looked at the caller ID, then grinned. It had been the dentist. He wondered if Ryan had even been awake enough to remember the call. He dialed the number and got the information from the receptionist.

Leaving Ryan to sleep, Castiel cuddled up to him, Coral called Duke to tell him that he and Ry would be headed to town the next day and asked if there was anything he needed while they were there.

Duke said, "No, but thanks for asking Coral. I'll make sure your and Ryan's shifts are covered tomorrow. Do you need coverage the next day and night as well?"

"I think we'll be alright. Doc Mac said it's not going to take long and there won't be any need for anesthetic, which I know Ryan will be happy about," Coral joked.

Duke chuckled. "I'm sure. So do you think you'll need coverage for the day after tomorrow or will Ryan and you be reportin' for duty as usual?"

"We should both be right as rain by then.  I think Ry will need some down time tomorrow night after stressing before we get to the appointment,” Coral explained.  “Thanks for giving us the night off.”

"You're welcome. Good luck with your little terror," the big man joked.

Coral laughed. "Thanks, I'll need it. Talk to you tomorrow."

"Okay, take care Coral and tell Ryan hi for me."

"Will do, as soon as he wakes up. Talk to you later," Coral said breaking the connection. He looked in on Ryan again and smiled down at the sleeping man, the little kitten cuddled up to him still. Terror was right. He wondered what he had to look forward to the next day. Deciding to let the young man sleep he finished his sandwich and headed back to the security office to finish his shift.

Coral finished up at 5 p.m. then returned home.  Seeing his boy still sleeping, his little fluff ball snuggled up to his neck, he yawned widely and laid down on the bed beside him, putting an arm over him.  Castiel pawed playfully at Coral for a moment.  The man grinned and scratched the kitten gently under his chin. He closed his eyes and was quickly asleep.

Ryan woke in time for him to get up and shower and get a bite to eat before he had to report for duty at 10 p.m.

Ryan showered and carefully stepped out of the shower looking for his kitten, not wanting a repeat of a week ago. His mouth was still a bit sore but not like it had been then. He remembered the call from the dentist but thought the tooth he had was good enough so didn't mention anything to Coral. He'd just wait to see if this one would come out at some point and then go have the other one put in.

"Cor?" he called softly, Castiel perched up on his shoulder.

"Five more minutes, ma," Coral mumbled.

Ryan laughed softly. "Better get up right now little boy before I have to put ice cubes down your neck," he said in as deep a voice as he could muster.

Coral cracked an eye open and grabbed Ryan around the shoulders to pull him back down onto the bed. The kitten protested with a loud meow. He chuckled at the kitten and nibbled on Ryan's neck and said, "This is better than ice cubes, don't you think?"

Ryan laughed and said, "Yep, any day. Your nibbles aren't that cold but I do have to get ready for work," he told Coral.

Coral yawned and stretched, using the motion to wrap Ryan in another hug before getting up. Castiel rubbed against the two men and then meowed loudly again. Coral chuckled and Ryan reached out and placed Castiel back on his shoulder.

"Oh, by the way, I saw that Doc Mac called earlier. I already called Duke to let him know we were heading into town tomorrow. He's given us the night off too.” Before Ryan could complain or object Coral said, "Remember, the doc said it's not a painful or a long procedure, so we'll have plenty of time to hang out in town. Maybe have a leisurely lunch. What do you say, kiddo?"

Ryan pouted. "Why? The tooth I have already is good enough. It's in tight," he objected. "We can leave Castiel with Shorty and just take the whole day and hang out and skip the dentist."  Then the young man added, "If this one falls out or gets loose or somethin' then we can go get the new one."

Coral gave Ryan a forbidding look. "We're going to town and we're going to have the doc put the permanent crown in while we're there. No nonsense, hear me?"

Ryan pouted harder. "I hear, but I don't see why it's necessary when the tooth I already have is good right now."

"That is called a temporary cap for a reason, little boy. The doctor and the people at the lab went through a lot of trouble to make that crown for you and to get it to us before the wedding. You don't want the temp to fall out in the middle of our vows, do you? Because it could happen," Coral said reasonably.

Ryan's green eyes widened. "It could? No I wouldn't want that to happen."

"Yes, it's possible. So you're going to behave yourself and have it done. Then we can spend the rest of the day goofing off. It was good of Duke to give us the whole day off, so I'm really looking forward to making the most of it," Coral smiled.

Ryan sighed. "All right...I don't want my tooth to come out when I'm sayin' my vows."

"That's my Angel," Coral praised. "Now let's go get a bite to eat."

Ryan placed his kitten in his carrier with food and water. After they had eaten at the lodge and had returned to their bungalow Ryan said, "I think I’ll play video games until it's time for me to report for my shift."

“Do you want me to walk you to work tonight?” Cor asked his boy knowing that some nights that is just what Ryan wanted.

Ryan thought for a minute then answered, “No, not tonight, Cor.  Maybe you should try and get some extra sleep.”

"Just set the alarm on your phone so that you don't lose track of the time."

Ryan gave Coral a look. "I won't lose track of the time, Coral."

Coral returned Ry’s look. "Set your alarm anyway."

Ryan stomped his foot. "Even when I was drunk I never missed a report time. Even you should know that!" he shouted at Coral, his temper flaring.

Coral's mouth drew into a straight line as he considered his next words. "No, you didn't. But I know how hard it is to get you away from your games once you get into them. It won't hurt anything to set your alarm, Ry. And keep that temper in check with me. You can speak to me rationally or not at all."

Ryan's green eyes flashed and he turned away from Coral.

Coral sighed deeply but let Ryan have some space.

Ryan stomped off to the living room, opening his kitten’s cage and releasing him on the way. He felt frustrated and turned on the video game system but then just sat there, tears running down his face. The little fluff ball cuddled on Ryan’s shoulder and purred loudly to try to comfort him.

Coral knew Ryan was upset and couldn't leave him like that so he followed him into the living room.

Ryan quickly wiped away his tears when he noticed Coral there and turned away, petting his kitten and starting up the video game.

"Ry, Angel. I'm sorry, hon. I didn't mean to hurt you. I just know how into these games you get. I trust your judgement," he said, sitting down on the couch beside Ryan and putting a comforting arm around him. The kitten played with Coral’s fingers until he scratched the fluff ball gently.

Ryan looked over at Coral and shut down the game. He then put his face in Coral's shoulder and began to cry again.

Coral put both arms around Ryan and drew him closer, planting a kiss on the top of his head. "Shhhh, Angel, there's no need to cry," he said gently.

"Y-you d-don't want m-me to t-talk to you no more!" Ryan sobbed.

"What?" Coral asked, surprised and confused. "Where did you get that idea?"

Ryan said, "You said so. That's why I came in here."

Coral sighed. Leave it to Ryan to only hear part of what he said. "Hon, I said speak to me rationally or not at all. Does this mean that you won't be able to speak to me in a rational manner?"

Ryan looked up his turn to look confused. "What?”

"I didn't tell you not to speak to me at all.  I just said that I expected you to speak to me in a rational tone, not yell at me."

Ryan bit his lip. "Oh...I didn't understand," he said quietly, blushing now and looking down. "That was pretty stupid," he said.

"No, you just have what my dad used to call selective hearing," Coral joked. "I admit that I'm guilty of it sometimes as well."

Ryan sighed. "I'm sorry Coral. I don't think I'll play any video games after all. Maybe if it's okay I'll just come to bed with you until my shift."

"I'd love to have your company, Ry. Are you sure that's what you want to do?"

Ryan nodded. "Yes, I just want to be close to you."

Coral hugged Ryan to him again and kissed him gently on the lips. "Then go get undressed."

Ryan smiled and kissed Coral back, glad that gentle kissing didn't hurt.  He slipped out of his clothes and said, “Ready." Castiel rubbed against Ry’s neck and he smiled at him.

Coral put his arm around Ryan's shoulders, careful of Castiel and they walked side by side into their bedroom.

<<<<>>>> 

All too soon Ryan’s alarm sounded and he gently slipped his kitten off him and eased away from Coral.  Cas used to his boy leaving most days at this time cuddled up to his larger man.  Ry smiled at the pair while he dressed and headed to the security office.

Duke looked up and smiled when he entered the office. "Good to have you here Ryan.”

Ryan grinned at the large man. "Thanks Duke.”

Duke laughed and squeezed Ryan's shoulder. “Have a good time at the dentist tomorrow, Ryan."

Ryan wrinkled his nose. "Well I don't want my tooth to fall out when I say my weddin' vows."

Duke laughed. "No, that would not be good at all." He smiled as he left the office for his lunch hour.

<<<<>>>> 

The following day, Duke had arranged for Greg and Marty to take Coral and Ryan's shifts. He wondered how the dentist visit would go. Ryan sure liked to get Coral's attention a lot.

Coral had had no trouble keeping Ryan's mind off of the visit to the dentist the night before and the young man was still smiling when thee stopped at Shorty’s to leave Castiel in his capable hands. They made plans for what they would do with their impromptu day off.

"Hey, maybe we can catch a matinee," Coral suggested.

Ryan smiled. "Sounds good Coral...will you be there for me again and squeeze my toes like last time?" he asked a slight edge of worry in his voice.

"I don't see why Doc Mac would have a problem with it." Coral smiled. "According to him this is going to be over quickly, so I won't have time to get in the way," he joked.

Ryan gave Coral a nervous little smile. Even though he knew it wasn't going to be that bad or that long, he still couldn't help feeling a bit nervous. After leaving Shorty’s they walked to Coral's truck.

When they arrived at the dentist office Ryan clung to Coral's hand, his smaller one cold and sweaty.

Coral covered Ryan's cold hand with his two warmer ones. "It's going to be alright, hon," he reassured the younger man. "I'll be close by, and you know Doc won't hurt you."

Ryan nodded. "Yes, I know. I'm just a little nervous. I can't seem to help it." He walked with Coral into the building and the reception area.

The receptionist smiled broadly when the two men walked in. "Right on time," he said. "Doc will be with you in just a few minutes."

"Thanks," Coral said, sitting on one of the comfortable chairs.

Ryan said, "Thank you, Don." He paced a little while he waited.

It wasn't long before a cheerful looking patient walked into the reception area. He grinned at the two men waiting, waved at the receptionist and walked out of the office with a spring in his step.

Doc Mac peered around the corner and smiled. "Ready, Ry?" he asked.

Ryan had watched the other man leave and hearing Mac's voice jumped slightly, but said, "Yes, Doc Mac...I'm ready."

"I see you brought your faithful body guard today," Mac quipped. "Hello, Coral. We have a chair set up for you in the room." He grinned. "Follow me, gentlemen."

He led them into one of the larger exam rooms. Mac showed Ryan the permanent crown. "We're just going to use a special bonding agent to make sure this stays on and you'll be all set."

Ryan nodded. "'Kay, no needles or anythin'?"

"Scout's honor. No needles," the dentist smiled. "Have a seat, Ry, and let's get started, ok?"

Ryan nodded. "'Kay, Doc Mac." He opened up his mouth for the doctor.

The temporary cap came off quickly and easily. The doctor made sure the exposed tooth was clean and dry before testing the fit of the crown. Smiling with satisfaction he put the crown in place and within minutes the procedure was done. He held up a mirror for Ryan to look at his teeth.

Coral whistled appreciatively. "Looks good, Ry! I can't even tell it's a crown."

Ryan smiled widely as the dentist placed the mirror in front of him and nodded at Coral's words. "It's as good as Jeff's. You'd never known it was ever broken!"

"You're all set," Mac said with a grin. He shook Ryan's and Coral's hands and gestured them toward the waiting area. "You've made your six-month checkup appointments, so barring any more incidents I'll see you then."

Ryan smiled. "Thanks Doc Mac...you're as good as Heath said."

"And then some," Coral agreed. He turned to Ryan and smiled. "And you and I have a date, so let's get going."

Ryan stopped at the reception desk and grimaced as he paid the bill. Fortunately, he didn't have a lot of living expenses and was able to pay off the bill. He turned to Coral as they went out. "Wow…even with insurance it was a lot, but worth it to have a brand new tooth. I'll have to be real careful from now on. I don't want to break anymore teeth and have to pay for another crown," he told Coral as they headed for Coral's truck.

"We'll both make sure this doesn't happen again. I plan to take my showers with you just to be sure you don't fall again," Coral smirked leaning down to nip at Ryan's ear.

Ryan giggled a bit at the nip and said, "I'll hold you to that. They'll be the most fun showers I'll ever take."

"I'll make sure of that," Coral growled. He gave Ryan a playful swat. "Now into the truck young man. We have a movie to catch."