12. Chapter 12

12

T hey stared at each other as they listened to David's and Cleo's retreating footsteps. The two prison officers said their goodbyes, then the door to the segregation unit opened before sealing shut. David hummed under his breath as he opened the door to the officers' box. It didn't click shut behind him; he'd left it open.

"Are you okay?" Quinn asked.

There was no missing the growing bruise high on Zane's cheekbone.

"Am I okay?" Zane asked with wide eyes. "Jesus, Quinn, you were the one being choked to death."

Quinn avoided Zane's eyes. "Thank you for getting him off me."

"What the hell was he even doing in there with you?"

Quinn fidgeted with the papers he was holding. "I…I asked him to continue the study."

Zane stiffened. "What?"

"He was an ideal participant—"

"Are you that stupid?" Zane snapped. "I told you he was dangerous."

"Yes, I know, but then you made some comment about being number one now—"

"It was a joke, a stupid joke that I never should've said."

Quinn hung his head. "I thought you'd…manipulated me, got one over on Mackie by using me, and I…"

"Was an idiot and invited Mackie back onto the study."

"Yeah. Something like that. He said no and asked for a debrief, but then…"

"He attacked you." Zane filled up on a deep breath, then let it out to the ceiling. "He was fucking on top of you, Quinn. Your eyes had rolled back, and your arms were limp by your sides." He shook his head. "I thought I was too late."

"I'm sorry," Quinn whispered, despite not knowing why he was apologising.

"You should be," Zane snapped. "You scared the hell out of me."

"I'm sorry he hurt you."

"This?" Zane pointed to his face. "This was the prison officers, not Mackie."

Quinn swallowed. "I'm sorry about that too."

Zane grunted, then pushed his chin out in Quinn's direction. "What's that you've got there?"

Quinn glanced down at the papers. "It's an IQ test, but if you're not feeling up for it…"

"Let's get it over with."

Zane sat down on the bed with a huff. Quinn glanced at the open cell door, then moved to join Zane. He held the test out, and Zane snatched it from his hand.

"Pencil?"

Quinn pulled it from his top pocket and handed it over with a wince. He was close enough to hear Zane grind his teeth.

Zane used his thigh to lean the paper on as he went through the test, muttering under his breath and shaking his head. Quinn bounced his leg on the floor, uncomfortable with Zane's lingering anger.

Zane paused when he got to the third page of the test. "You are okay, though, right?"

"I'm okay," Quinn promised. He touched his neck. He only noticed the ache when he turned his head, but the cuts from Mackie's fingernails continued to sting. "I couldn't get to the button."

Zane exhaled through his nose.

"And I couldn't get him off of me," Quinn said softly. He slumped. It was only hitting him now how close it had been, how absolutely helpless Mackie had rendered him. It had taken less than a minute and he was on the floor, and it had all happened so quickly he'd not had time to realise he'd been about to die.

But away from the situation, in the quiet of the cell, it dawned on him, and he dropped his head into his hands.

"Jesus," he breathed. "That could've been it."

"That could've been it," Zane repeated with no emotion to his words. "You're so stu—"

"Stop," Quinn pleaded, glancing in Zane's direction. "Stop calling me stupid. Please . I know, okay?"

Zane looked at Quinn for a long moment, then continued answering the questions to the test, no longer muttering or shaking his head. He shifted closer to Quinn on the bed until their thighs were touching, but Quinn didn't comment on the closeness.

He kept his gaze to the floor as Zane ticked boxes and answered questions. A coldness crept over him. His eyes itched, and his body sagged. He knew Zane kept pausing to glance at him, and he tensed at the heat of his angry gaze.

"This one here," Zane said, flicking the page. "I'm not sure how to answer."

Quinn snapped his head up. He leaned over, trying to locate the question that had stumped Zane Black. He couldn't help or even give clues, but he was curious as he whipped his eyes down the page.

Quinn stiffened at Zane's lips on his neck. He wasn't gentle. He sucked the cuts left by Mackie, and the sting turned into a throb. Quinn whimpered and placed his hand on Zane's thigh to push him away, but then Zane released his neck and gently kissed instead.

"Zane," Quinn breathed softly.

It was supposed to be a warning, a threat that this type of behaviour could not continue, but it came out needy, more an encouragement than an outright stop.

Zane kissed up the side of Quinn's throat, then licked a wet stripe beneath Quinn's jaw.

"What are you doing?" Quinn breathed.

"Reminding you how good it feels to be alive."

Quinn shivered, squeezing hard on Zane's thigh. "This is…this is inappro—"

"Shut up," Zane hissed in his ear. "You're going to let me be a little inappropriate right now, understand?"

Quinn shook his head but made no move to pull back when Zane cupped his cheek.

Zane leaned in, ghosting his lips over Quinn's before leaning away a few inches.

"I wanted to kill him," Zane said. "I didn't want to stop kicking him until he was dead, and even then"—he brushed his nose against Quinn's—"I might've kept going."

"I know."

"Fucking animal," Zane hissed, and Quinn didn't know whether he was talking about himself or Mackie, but he didn't get a chance to question him. Zane's mouth was on his, pushing and demanding, and a glowing warmth chased away the cold.

It started hesitantly. Zane had to coax, to guide, but it was a losing battle for Quinn.

He liked the hand that had slid to the back of his neck. He liked Zane's soft lips and his warm tongue and the taste of Zane taking over his mouth. Even the scratch of stubble made him shiver, and tingles rushed down to his toes. Then it was Quinn's hand on the back of Zane's head, and his lips eagerly moving and accepting, and then chasing when Zane pulled back with a soft laugh.

Zane placed the papers and the pencil on the bed, licked his lips and was about to continue where they'd left off, but Quinn shot to his feet and made for the door.

Zane followed, silent on bare feet, and snagged Quinn's hand.

"Shhh," he said, keeping his voice low. "It's alright—"

"It's not alright."

Zane's arms slipped around Quinn's waist. "It is. We can carry on with the session, we can stop this . I'm sorry, I just had to do that. I had to kiss you to reassure myself you're okay, you're alive, but we don't have to go any further."

Quinn was staring at Zane's mouth the whole time he spoke. He looked away.

"I can't." Quinn closed his eyes. "I can't sit on the bed with you and pretend we weren't just…pretend like I don't want to—" His eyes snapped open. "It's best I go."

Zane nodded, his eyebrows dipped in what looked like sympathy, then he leaned in again and caught the rest of Quinn's protests in a kiss. He pressed Quinn to the wall beside the open door, squeezing the air from his lungs. Temptation won Quinn's internal battle, and he kissed back.

The kiss was hot and hard, and Quinn ran his fingers into Zane's hair and pulled. Zane groaned around his tongue and jolted his body forward. They were both aroused, and the slow drag of their concealed cocks made them groan into another lock of mouths.

Zane pulled away with a wet gasp and pressed his forehead to Quinn's. "We have to be quieter than that."

Quinn pulled his head from the wall, taking Zane's mouth in another kiss. He nipped Zane's soft bottom lip. "No," Quinn murmured. "We have to stop."

"Your words and your body are saying different things, Doctor Quinn."

"There's a lot of that going around."

Zane smirked and nuzzled into Quinn's neck.

Quinn shivered when he felt Zane's hot tongue against his throat, then his teeth nipping the skin. Zane found the scratch marks again and used the flat of his tongue to lick over them. They tightened and tingled.

Quinn's knees weakened. He clutched Zane's back, unable to resist slipping his hands under the bottom of his T-shirt and stroking over his back muscles. Zane was huge and strong and had pulled Mackie off of him like he weighed nothing. Quinn's cock twitched.

"You're so fucking hard right now," Zane murmured before nipping Quinn's ear. "When was the last time you…"

"A few weeks ago," Quinn admitted. He glanced towards the open door, but Zane cupped his face and turned him back to be swallowed by dark eyes.

"When was the last time someone else did it for you?"

Quinn swallowed. It had been months. It would've been Damon, but he couldn't recall the last time he'd jerked Quinn off, or sucked his cock, or anything, not with Zane picking open the catch of his trousers. Zane leaned in close as he took down Quinn's zipper.

"We can't," Quinn said, rolling the back of his head against the wall.

Zane stopped. His eyes darted to the cell door, and he paused as if listening. Quinn held his breath but didn't hear anything from David in the officers' box.

Zane's lips stretched into a smile. "We can," he whispered.

He crouched as he lowered Quinn's trousers until they rested on top of his shoes, smiling the whole time, then he looked at Quinn's cock trapped in his boxers.

"That's a good look on you," Zane said, giving him a gentle squeeze.

Quinn shut his eyes and lifted his head towards the ceiling. It was all too much. He flushed with arousal and oversensitivity, and he needed a moment to get his head together.

"Trousers down, shirt still on, boxers…compromised, and are they…are those ankle socks you're wearing?"

Quinn frowned and opened his eyes. He looked down, which was exactly what Zane wanted him to do because he stroked the heel of his hand over Quinn's concealed cock, grounding down on the head and making it leak into the cotton. Quinn's stomach tightened, and he watched slack-mouthed as Zane teased him.

"We can't," Quinn gasped.

Zane rolled his eyes as he stood at full height again. "We can."

He proved they could by tugging down Quinn's boxers and taking his cock in hand.

"We are," he growled, stroking Quinn from base to tip. He wasn't harsh with his strokes nor was he slow; it was a brisk back-and-forth that Quinn knew he'd be unable to hold back from.

Quinn flexed his hips weakly. "I'm going to moan."

"You can't moan," Zane said in his ear. "You've got to be really quiet."

Zane ran his thumb over Quinn's wet slit.

Quinn gasped, lifting onto his tiptoes.

"Quieter than that." Zane smirked.

Quinn bit his tongue, but even that wasn't enough to control the growing groan that wanted to escape him. Zane seemed to sense it, though, and pressed his other hand over Quinn's mouth.

"You need my help to keep quiet?"

Quinn nodded unsteadily.

Zane jerked Quinn off while staring into his eyes, watching with an intensity that made Quinn blush down to his toes.

"I wish I could do this to you for hours," Zane murmured. "I'd be slower than this. I'd make you beg and plead."

Quinn whimpered beneath Zane's hand.

"I'd let you be as loud as you wanted to be."

Quinn's throat vibrated with a moan. Even muffled by Zane's hand, the sound escaped.

David was only metres away.

"But not today," Zane said. He sucked Quinn's throat, speaking into the skin. "One day, but not today." When Quinn moaned, he felt Zane's teeth nip his throat. His cock was wet enough that it made a noise too, a slick sound that made Zane curse beneath Quinn's ear.

"What if I just shut the door? What If I just barricade you in here with me and fuck you until we both can't stand?" He pulled back and touched his nose to Quinn's. "Do you like that idea of me fucking you?"

Quinn opened his eyes. Since he was seventeen, he'd liked the idea of Zane taking him. Fucking him.

He'd been jealous of the men and women from the kiss-and-tells because he wanted Zane's cock.

Quinn nodded, then tried to warn Zane he was about to come. He widened his eyes, whimpered against his palm, then groaned as his cock began spasming and shooting cum onto Zane's jeans.

Zane's gaze was locked on the door, his expression tense as he waited for Quinn to cease moaning against his palm.

David's footsteps didn't slap against the floor.

Zane exhaled and removed his hand, only to slap it over Quinn's mouth again when he began to pant.

"Quiet, remember?"

Quinn nodded.

Zane cautiously removed his hand, then backed up a step. He looked down at the added white stripes to his jeans and bit his lip as he smiled.

"That's hot," he said, rubbing his finger over his knee to collect some cum.

Quinn leaned against the wall and concentrated on getting his breathing under control. He clumsily put his cock back inside his boxers that had slipped down on his upper thighs, then reached for his trousers.

Zane pulled a few sheets of toilet paper off the roll on the wall. He sat down on the bed and began wiping up Quinn's mess. "Are you loud even when you're on your own?"

Quinn looked away.

"That's a yes." Zane sucked his bottom lip. "That's hot." He shifted. "Almost too hot." He rubbed his cock through his jeans. "I wish we had longer."

Zane turned to Quinn and glanced at his watch.

Quinn checked it. They only had a few minutes left.

"David is punctual," Zane said. "Which is a pity."

"That—" Quinn swallowed and found he didn't know what else to say.

Zane smirked. "Was inappropriate."

Quinn nodded. "Exactly."

"But even so, it wasn't the stupidest thing you did today." Zane raised an eyebrow. "Was it?"

Quinn didn't answer.

"You need to take better care of yourself because this prison, the people, sure as hell won't. You can't be reckless. You can't take risks."

Quinn took a step nearer. "Says you after you just…"

"I'm not a risk."

"Of course you are."

Zane huffed. "Promise me you won't talk to Mackie again."

"He still needs to be debriefed—"

"Quinn," Zane growled.

Quinn slumped. "I promise I won't talk to him again."

"Good." Zane gathered the papers and held them out. Quinn took them and then the pencil. Before Quinn could open his mouth to speak, David rapped his knuckles on the open door. "That's your time, doctor."

"Thank you for the session," Zane said. "It was most enjoyable."

Quinn could only nod in reply. He followed David out and watched as he locked Zane's cell.

"Get what you needed?" David asked.

"Yes," Quinn said softly, and he swore he could hear Zane chuckling behind the door.