#FOR LIKE THINGS THAT USED TO BIG INSECURITIES OF MINE AND THEN TK FOND OUT THAT SOME PEOPLE ACTUALLY LIKE????? WHAT.

[etherealtauruss]

tk being insecure about his body hc? please make it mostly fluffy after the angst. i’m soft 🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺

so .. i may have turned this into 2k words worth of a fic? enjoy!!!

you need some lovin’ (tender lovin’ care)

read on ao3

The 126 and 130 were responding to an apartment complex fire just off of West 6th Street. The blazing inferno– to everyone’s knowledge– seemed to be purposefully started. Thus, APD, and in turn Carlos, were called to the scene as well. He had to take statements from witnesses about the potential arsonist.

One thing to note: TK isn’t fond of the 130. If we’re being technical, he isn’t fond of one member in particular; Jake Matthews. Honestly, loathe is a better word. TK loathes Jake Matthews.

Jake is Carlos’ ex-boyfriend; obsessive ex-boyfriend, to be exact. Ever since he and Carlos broke it off, he’s had a personal vendetta against TK.

But, it wasn’t TK’s fault they broke up. The split happened 6 months before he and his dad even stepped foot in Austin. And yet, he was still being held accountable.

Jake and TK were complete opposites in every way imaginable. Jake was a big guy. He was well over 6 feet, probably weighed a calm 200 pounds, pretty bulky, and was hung between the legs; if the bulge that graced the front of his pants at all times was anything to go by. So sure, Jake definitely had TK beat physically according to societal standards, but mentally and emotionally? TK came first in that race.

Carlos assured him of that plenty of times before. “Baby, you’re so much better than him. I don’t even know what I saw in that guy.” He nibbled on the shell of TK’s ear and continued, “The way you treat me. Love me. Make love to me. Not to mention that impressive package between those thighs, it’s heavenly...”

TK shivered at the thought of that conversation, mainly because of the events that took place afterward. Point is, TK wasn’t worried. Carlos only had eyes for him and visa versa. Nonetheless, anytime both crews were responding to a call, Jake always had something nasty to say to TK. And for TK to claim it didn’t get under his skin in the slightest? Yeah, that would be a lie.

The worst part about it all is Jake would play coy whenever Carlos came around. Luckily, Carlos didn’t believe the sorry act for a second.

After the conflagration was extinguished, all the first responders made sure everyone was accounted for. The crews started to settle down on the side of the road, catching their breath.

“Hey TK.” TK rolled his eyes, and begrudgingly looked up at the person who was speaking to him.

“What do you want Jake?”

“How’s ‘Los?”

TK glanced to where his boyfriend was standing, “He’s fine. We’re fine.” He paused for a beat, “And don’t call him ‘Los. You guys aren’t friends anymore.”

“What’s he still doing with a pretty boy like you anyways?”, Jake sneered.

“Pretty boy? Really?”

“Did I lie, Strand? You’re not very tall. Your build is mediocre, and I’m sure the situation between your legs doesn’t satisfy your man.”

TK swallowed thickly, trying to keep his emotions at bay. He wasn’t too upset. Jake was targeting physical aspects, and for the most part, he was pretty confident in his body. Or, so he thought.

TK could recognize parts of his piece-of-shit ex Alex in Jake. The confidence he held for his physical attributes had been whittled away to mere nubs during said relationship. Wounds he thought had healed were starting to open back up. Jake and Alex were one in the same. They deserved to be together if Alex ever made his way to Austin.

He felt the blood rushing in his ears. His heart was beating a mile a minute. He wished they’d get another call. He wished someone would rescue him. He wish–

“–I remember when he and I were together, he told me he loved being manhandled. Thrown onto the bed. Hands pinned above his head.”

“You can stop,” TK interrupted, in an attempt to get Jake to shut up.

“After rough shifts I’d make love to him, feeling him all around me, knowing he was all mine. But you wouldn’t know about that would you.”

“Jake, I get it.” TK pleaded. He didn’t need to hear about Carlos’ previous sex life; let alone his fantasies that TK couldn’t fulfill. Why hadn’t Carlos mentioned any of these desires to TK? Carlos wouldn’t leave TK. He knew this but he couldn’t help but wonder if he was ever good enough for his saint of a lover.

“If we’re being brutally honest, you’re not his type at all,” he snickered. “Or maybe you are. He helps people for a living. You’re nothing but a charity case to him.”

“That’s enough.”

Carlos. That was Carlos’ voice. Carlos was here.

TK let out a shaky breath he didn’t realize was stored away. Neither of the two firefighters had noticed that he approached them.

“Jake, you can go now. You’ll be hearing from your chief by the end of this week. Let’s hope you’re not without a job for verbally assaulting another first responder”.

TK silently thanked the angels above. The tears that had welled up in his eyes finally spilled over the threshold.

“C’mere Tiger,” Carlos cooed. He wrapped TK in his arms, running a reassuring hand along his boyfriend’s back.

“I shouldn’t be crying,” he let out a wet laugh. “Sorry.”

Carlos placed a finger beneath TK’s chin, causing his boyfriend to look him in the eyes. Rubbing calming circles on his cheekbones in order to get rid of the stray tears that lingered on his face.

“Never apologize for how you feel. From what I was able to catch, Jake said some pretty disgusting things to you. He belittled you, and targeted your insecurities. I’m so sorry you had to hear that, Ty.”

Carlos sighed, “And none of what he said was true by any means. You’re not a charity case. You’re the love of my life.”

TK shrugged, still not fully convinced. He knew what Carlos meant well, and that he’d never lie to TK, but he couldn’t help the feeling of doubt threatening to swallow him whole.

“How about we get you home?”

“Can’t.” TK mumbled into his boyfriend’s shirt. “Not done with my shift.”

“I talked to your dad before heading over to you, he said it’s fine.”

The couple made their way to Carlos’ patrol car, fingers intertwined. They settled themselves into the vehicle, Carlos placed a loving hand on TK’s knee.

“Are you hungry?”

TK simply shook his head. He couldn’t speak just yet; he knew it’d just result in him crying again.

Carlos stopped at Raising Cane’s on their way home anyways. Though TK claimed not to be hungry now, that doesn’t mean he wouldn’t be later once all his worries had been washed away by some good ol’ TLC. The fact that chicken fingers were TK’s favorite comfort food was an added bonus.

They entered Carlos’ apartment and TK immediately shed all of his gear at the door. Again, Carlos engulfed the younger in a hug.

“‘Los?” TK questioned, barely above a whisper.

His partner hummed in response.

“Can we shower together?”

“Of course, love.”

They started towards the bathroom, their food abandoned on the dining room table. TK flicked on the light and began removing all his clothing. Well, almost all of it. He kept his briefs on, thinking back to what Jake had said to him.

“Ty?” Carlos asked. “What’s the matter?”

“I-, well. I-,” TK sighed in frustration. “Is my dick too small for you?”

Carlos was taken back and had to bite his lip to hold in a chuckle at his boyfriend’s brash words.

“I’m being serious!”, TK whined. His bottom lip jutting out to display his infamous pout.

“Baby, you are perfect for me in every way.”

TK crossed his arms. “You’re just saying that because you’re my boyfriend.”

“No.” Carlos started, “I’m saying that because it’s true”.

The older man began to undress as well, “And why are you asking me that?”

TK stayed silent. He wanted to tell Carlos everything Jake said, but at the same breath, he’d much rather not relive the conversation.

Carlos waited a few moments for a reply, stark naked in front of his significant other. His tan body glistening under the glow of the luminous lighting. His muscles that looked like they were painted onto his body flexing. Not to mention the member that was the icing on the cake; perfectly hung between two burly thighs. TK’s cock twitched at the sight of his boyfriend. Had he not been upset, he would’ve jumped Carlos’ bones then and there.

He sighed, “Ty. Baby, you have to tell me what’s wrong so I can fix it.”

Before he knew it, TK words were spilling out of his mouth like vomit. “Jake said that I don’t satisfy your needs. He reminisced about how you guys used to make love. Told me that you like being manhandled. You never told me you liked to be manhandled. Why didn’t you tell me? I can do it. I’ve done it. Is that what you want? I can work out a bit more, start upping my weight–”

Carlos intercepted, “–Sweetheart, breathe.” They took deep breaths together. “Now, start over, and go slower.”

“Jake basically just reminded me how different he and I are from each other. Which isn’t a bad thing, except it is? Our body types are nothing alike. I like my body; trust me, I do. I work hard to keep it this way, but I had no idea me not being super ripped made you feel like I couldn’t top in the bedroom.”

For the third time that day, Carlos enveloped the younger in a bone-crushing hug. Deft fingers ran through TK’s hair, pausing at the nape of his neck to scratch lightly. TK melted under the touch, practically turning to putty in his lover’s arms.

“Baby, have I ever said anything to make you insecure? Be honest, please.”

TK huffed, “No.” He adjusted his hands so that he was tracing random patterns onto Carlos’ back.

“That’s the worst part about it. You do everything right, and I let your jerk of an ex-boyfriend get inside my head.”

“Well, I doubt I do everything right. But I certainly do make an effort to keep you happy.”

“Babe, it's not you, I swear. Just the shit Jake said was fucked up. It made me feel bad about what I can’t do for you.”

“Can I let you in on a secret?”

“No time like the present.”

“I like taking care of you in the bedroom. I take it Jake never told you why we broke up?”

“Nah, don’t think that’s ever going to be on his agenda.”

“We split because he was too controlling”, Carlos revealed. “You know better than anyone else, I love taking care of people. So, imagine my surprise when he didn’t let me take initiative in anything. Not the bedroom. Not where we went on our dates. Not even what was for dinner.”

“But you love cooking?”

“Exactly. He didn’t even let me do what I loved most. I couldn’t take the constant nagging, and the unnecessary controlling demeanor, so I broke it off. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg.”

“So you mean to tell me, he was deflecting? That whole time?”

“Yep.”

“I feel like an idiot” Tk replied, letting out a soft chuckle.

“No way you could’ve known. And Ty? You mean everything and more to me. What we have is irreplaceable. Every inch of you deserves tender loving care. From your alluring sea-green eyes to your incredible compassion.”

TK captured Carlos’ lips in a sloppy kiss. All the emotions of the day embedded in this act of affection. Between the intense licking into Carlos’ mouth, and their naked bodies pressed against each other; things were heating up, fast.

They pulled away from each other breathlessly, shallow pants exiting their lungs. 

“Our food is probably ice cold by now, Tiger” Carlos said, turning the faucet to the shower, allowing the water to heat up.

“It’s fine. We can just reheat it in the air fryer.” TK replied, going in for another searing kiss.

The two stumbled into the shower, relishing in each other’s presence. The food could wait.