Archive of Our Own ^beta

Four hours felt like forever when you were stuck in an airport with a bunch of strangers as you waited for your spy-partner to get his ass from England to America. Owens plane had been delayed by four hours, and when Curt got the information he was already there waiting, so it would just be a waste of time to go home since the drive was so long. To keep his mind off things, he walked through the stores with no intention on buying anything. A few items caught his eye but then he convinced himself that everything at the airport was overpriced and he shouldn’t fall for it.

Slowly, the hours started narrowing down. It went from two hours to one hour, then one hour to thirty minutes. He may have even fallen asleep a few times when he didn’t pay attention. Finally, after waiting around four hours, they announced that the plane would be landing. Curt stared out the window at the long lane that stretched across the land, trying to catch a glimpse of anything that would match with Owens flight. 

The arrival hall was filled with people as the doors started to open. Curt heard people crying and laughing, saw people frowning and smiling. He saw everything from large families to people traveling alone, even a few dogs. But yet, no Owen. Curt tried to climb onto the railing to try and find him, but the sea of people in front made it hard.

He stood and scanned the area, frowning when he didn’t see him. Was it the wrong flight. Eventually, the last person got off, and with a loud sigh, Curt jumped down and started walking to the exit. He probably just missed him, and it would be easier to locate him when they pulled back from all the people. His shoulders slumped together as he stood against a wall and looked down at the floor. The white stones that lined the ground were worn and dirty and should probably be replaced, Curt thought.

“Curt?” A voice in front of him said. He looked up from the floor and, well, there he was. Owens tall figure stood a few feet away from him. Curt’s face twisted into a smile as he walked over and gave him a light, friendly hug. 

“You aged terribly.” Curt commented sarcastically when he pulled away. Owen snickered and brought out a water bottle from his bag. He unscrewed the top and took a few sips before wiping his mouth on the sleeve of his arm.

“Yeah, I can say the same for you.” Owen winked and started moving to the exit. “So, how long have you been waiting here?” 

“Well, almost five hours.” He said, almost embarrassed. When he thought about it, why did he even wait for him? They were just… good friends, not lovers.

“Wow, thanks for waiting, love.” Outside was Curt’s car, so they spared no time on getting in. Curt noticed how late it was and bit back a sigh. 12:46 AM. He definitely did not have a lot of time to sleep, that’s for sure. 

“Do you have a hotel to stay at?” Curt looked back at the Brit. He shook his head and straightened his back.

“I um, I was hoping to stay at your place, at least for today. But I get it if that’s not alright-“ 

“You can totally stay at my place. Do you want to sleep on the sofa or have a mattress in my room?” Curt smiled happily.

Owen thought for a few moments. Maybe this was his chance to have an actual moment to talk to Curt about everything.

“The mattress sounds great.”

***

Eventually, they got to Curt’s rather shitty, but clean, apartment. Curt seemed quite awkward but welcomed him in and got him some popcorn.

“Make yourself at home. I gotta go make a call so you do whatever you like, just don’t look under my bed.” Was all Curt said before leaving. Since he didn’t have a phone in his house, he went to the nearest telephone booth. There he punched in Cynthia’s number.

“Hey! What the fuck Cynthia? You couldn’t even get him a hotel? I don’t mind but you know what that boy does to me!” Curt spat when she picked up.

Shocked, she snickered before going back to her usually salty demeanor. “Suck it up, agent, it’s not like you have to go wank every time you see his face. Now I need to get back to this super important meeting. Fuck you.” Then she hung up.

Curt was left at a loss for words in the small booth. He muttered something under his breath before he started walking back to the hotel. The sun was setting, tinting the streets with a beautiful yellow. He couldn’t believe that Owen would stay at his place. It was like his worst fear and his dream come true. 

Yeah. It would be a long week.