sid | from January 2005, 'Tying Up Loose Ribbons', R (Reply)

The sequel to Ribbon-Cutting Ceremony.

5,055 words, R.

Jack just can't stop thinking about what happened, and that look in Daniel's eyes...

TYING UP LOOSE RIBBONS

Since the events on P3X547, Jack O’Neill had been seeing his friend Daniel Jackson in a new light. He couldn’t help it, although he had tried. During the ceremony that had celebrated their long friendship, Daniel’s eyes had held a look that Jack couldn’t forget. Although he had tried.

His initial reaction to that look, the one that he recognized as love, had been shock. By the end of the day he had come to accept what he had learned. They were still the same two men. So what if Daniel loved him? They were close, and he had some strong feelings for Daniel himself. It was certainly nothing to get freaked out about. It was Daniel, for cryin’ out loud.

As the days went by, he thought about it a lot. The ceremony, and what he had learned. He was inwardly pretty proud of himself for the way he was handling it all. The military might have more than its share of homophobes, but Colonel Jack O’Neill wasn’t one of them. No, sir. This had no impact on the way he felt about his friend and he was careful to treat Daniel no differently than usual.

Daniel obviously didn’t have a clue as to how much he had revealed during the ceremony. He wasn’t at all nervous, upset or wary around Jack. So that meant that Jack was doing an excellent job of acting perfectly normally around Daniel. He did feel a slight twinge of conscience, like he was keeping a secret from his friend. But after all, it was Daniel’s own secret, which he had been keeping from Jack for…..who knew how long? Revealing that the secret was out would only hurt Daniel, and Jack didn’t want to do that.

So everything was normal; everything was good.

Except that Jack couldn’t stop thinking about it.

The entire team met for lunch in the commissary. As Jack sat and listened to his kids talk and laugh, he found himself wondering if Daniel had ever had sex with another man.

During the briefing about SG-1’s upcoming mission, Jack found himself wondering how long Daniel had been in love with him.

In the locker room, where Daniel stood toweling himself off after his shower, Jack found himself watching, as though he had never seen a naked man before.

In the privacy of his home, in the middle of a hockey game, Jack thought about Daniel’s full lips and wondered if he was a good kisser.

Jack was still entirely comfortable with the idea that his best friend was in love with him. Really. However, he was growing less and less comfortable with the way he was reacting. Was this all some sort of mid-life crisis? Or was he really that lonely? Shouldn’t he have something better to do with his time than speculate about Daniel?

He wasn’t actually thinking about Daniel in a sexual way. No, nothing like that. But he was obsessing about Daniel’s possible sex life - past, present and future. He was perceiving his best friend as a sexual being, and he wanted to stop it, but he couldn’t. His own sexuality had nothing to do with it. Obviously. He was just seeing Daniel through new eyes. Eventually, things would go back to normal. He apparently just needed some more time to deal with it all.

Or maybe what he needed was to get laid.

Jack felt increasingly restless.

The last straw happened at the briefing room table. He had been seated next to Daniel. Both of them had been wearing uniform black T-shirts. Daniel’s arm had rested on the table next to Jack’s. Jack had turned to look at Daniel just as the other man leaned forward to slide a folder across the table. Their bare forearms touched and Jack froze in his chair, eyes riveted to where his flesh was in contact with Daniel’s. All that was missing was the white ribbons and it was P3X547 all over again.

Jack’s eyes flicked sideways and saw Daniel looking down at their arms, smiling reminiscently. Jack looked down at the documents on the table in front of him, held his breath, and didn’t move his arm away. When Daniel eventually sat back in his chair and the contact was broken, Jack felt strangely bereft.

Not to mention confused as hell.

That night at home, Jack decided to confront the issue. Whatever the issue was. Okay, identify the issue, then confront it.

Okay.

Well, certainly part of the issue, a large part of the issue, would have to be the fact that today, when Daniel’s arm was pressed against his….

Okay, come on. He could do this.

He had gotten excited. There. He had said it.

Aroused. Arousal had occurred. Right there in the friggin’ briefing room.

Which was not a good thing. No matter how you looked at it.

So. To summarize. Daniel loved Jack. It was a flattering thing, really. An honor, even. Daniel was a very special guy and he thought Jack O’Neill was worth loving.

And Jack thought that Daniel was worth loving, too. Of course he did, because it was so obviously true. Probably half the galaxy would agree with him.

So, did Jack love Daniel? Okay, all the evidence seemed to be pointing in that direction. As more than a friend? Again, evidence, pointing, yadda yadda.

Was Daniel in love with Jack? The look Jack had seen in his eyes on P3X547 said yes, definitely. On the other hand, nothing in their day to day dealings indicated anything of the kind. Jack could have been mistaken. Or Daniel might have just been swept up in the excitement of the ceremony and felt something extra towards Jack, just for a moment. Jack found himself frowning.

Did Jack want Daniel to be in love with him?

Okay. Wow, good question. He decided to assume, for the moment, that the answer to that one was yes.

Now. Was Jack in love with Daniel? At this point, Jack’s brain froze up.

Okay, we’ll come back to that one later, Jack thought. Did he want to be in love with Daniel? At that point, Jack’s feet led him to the kitchen. Where he filled a glass with ice and a good-sized slug of bourbon. He decided to take a short break from confronting the issue.

Two glasses of bourbon and one issue of National Geographic later, Jack had formulated a new plan. Since his brain was not fully cooperating with the whole “confronting” thing, he would give his body a chance to weigh in with an opinion.

He realized that he was jumping ahead quite a ways, leaving a lot of questions unanswered. But those glasses of bourbon had been pretty big and he hadn’t had any supper yet. So he was feeling fairly uninhibited. He would let his body decide whether he was attracted to Daniel.

He went into the bedroom, placing a third glass of bourbon on the nightstand before stripping off his clothes. He snagged a hand towel from the bathroom and some lube from the nightstand before stretching out on his bed, propped up by the pillows. He paused to drink some more bourbon.

Setting the glass down, he coated his hand with slippery lube, closed his eyes, and began to stroke himself. He pictured Daniel as he had looked in the locker room. Damp. Spiky hair. Smooth chest . Erect nipples. He frowned. He had seen Daniel that way hundreds of times. Not particularly arousing, apparently. He needed to use a little more imagination.

He imagined locker-room-Daniel looking at Jack and smiling at him. Touching himself. Licking his lips. Running one hand over his hairless chest, circling his nipple with one finger. Jack was breathing harder. He stopped stroking himself and ran his own hand over his chest, fingers sliding through the silvering hair that covered it. What would it feel like to stroke a chest that was very male, but completely smooth?

Jack shifted his hips and began to stroke himself again. He pictured himself standing closer to Daniel now. His hand reaching out and touching. Daniel smiling encouragement. Touching Daniel’s nipple. Oh, god! His heart was pounding.

And then Imaginary Daniel reached out and touched Jack’s chest and Jack climaxed with a shout. And then laid there panting. Stunned. Sobered.

He wiped himself off with the towel and wondered what the hell he was supposed to do now?

He didn’t get a lot of sleep that night.

Jack went to the Mountain the next day with some trepidation. Would he be able to act normally? Or would Daniel, and everybody else, be able to tell that the ground was quaking beneath his feet?

He decided to avoid Daniel as much as possible. Just for today. He would feel more like himself tomorrow, better able to cope. That was the plan, then.

So, of course, a problem arose with one of their allies and General Hammond assigned Jack and Daniel to work out a solution together. He was with Daniel all friggin’ day long. Twice, Daniel asked if he was all right. The second time he asked, Jack could honestly answer that he had a splitting headache.

When he went home that night Jack ate a healthy dinner, avoided alcohol, and did most of the housework that he had been saving for the weekend. Worn out, he went to bed early and slept soundly.

Dreaming of Daniel.

When he awoke the following morning Jack sat up on the side of the bed and put his head in his hands. Bits and pieces of his dreams came back to him. He’d had enough of this. He sat up straight, a determined look on his face. He would have to talk to Daniel. Today.

Jack sat down behind his desk and wiped his sweaty palms off on his trousers. He had just come from Daniel’s office. He had invited himself over to Daniel’s place that evening, and Daniel had offered dinner. He was making beef stew. Jack was already making plans to stop at a wine shop and ask for advice on a nice wine to have with stew. A really nice wine.

Jack sat up very straight as another idea occurred to him. The perfect touch. He would have to make one more stop. He thought he knew just the right store. He could feel a flush of excitement heating his face. He wiped his palms one more time and applied himself to the stack of paperwork in his IN basket.

He was smiling.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Friday evening

Jack rang Daniel’s doorbell at the appointed hour. He was freshly showered and shaved, wearing a subtle hint of cologne, but very casually dressed in jeans and a T-shirt. He cradled a bottle of red Bordeaux in the crook of his arm. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. The door opened to reveal a broadly smiling, similarly dressed Daniel.

“Hey, right on time!” he was greeted. As he shut the door behind Jack, Daniel’s eyes fell on the bottle of wine and widened. Jack thrust his offering into Daniel’s hands and surreptitiously wiped his palms on his jeans before stuffing his hands into his pockets..

Daniel held the bottle almost gingerly. He looked at Jack with a shy smile and touched the white ribbon that was wrapped around the neck of the bottle. “This is a nice touch,” he said with raised eyebrows. Jack shrugged and tried to look nonchalant. He had spent a lot of time on that bow. Daniel lowered his gaze to the bottle again and his smile disappeared.

“Jack!” Daniel stared in disbelief at the vintage, and the name of the Chateau.

“The guy at the wine store said it needed to be decanted,” Jack blurted out nervously.

Daniel nodded, stunned, still staring at the bottle. Then he raised shining eyes to meet Jack’s anxious gaze and smiled radiantly. “Thank you, Jack.”

Jack grinned back in happy relief, his own eyes gleaming. Daniel stared, mouth slightly open, then pulled himself together and led the way to the kitchen.

As Daniel got down the decanter, Jack wandered over to the stove to sniff at the stew. “Smells great,” he commented. Daniel smiled his thanks as he began to open the bottle of wine. Jack went to the cupboard and got out two wine glasses and placed them on the kitchen table, which Daniel had already set for their supper.

Daniel frowned. “Maybe we should move all this stuff into the dining room. The kitchen doesn’t seem right for a bottle of wine this good.”

Jack straightened the knife and spoon at the place setting in front of him, not looking at Daniel. “It’s just us, we don’t need to get fancy. I’m not exactly dressed for it, anyway.”

Daniel finished carefully decanting the wine and set the empty bottle on a display shelf. The neck of the bottle was still adorned with the white ribbon. He stood back to survey it with pleasure. “Well, not fancy, but this wine is very special, Jack.”

Jack looked at him sideways. “We can be special in the kitchen, can’t we?”

Daniel looked at him in surprise, flushed for no apparent reason, and walked over to the stove where he busied himself stirring the stew. “Okay, we’ll be special in the kitchen.”

“Good,” Jack said, and bit his lip. He hadn’t meant to say that out loud. He just felt that he would be a whole lot more comfortable in Daniel’s familiar kitchen than he would in the dining room. Maybe some other time, when he was better dressed. Maybe candlelight, even. He pictured Daniel in the glow of candlelight, the way it would reflect off his glasses. He hastily wiped a fond smile off his face. Okay, he was getting way ahead of himself, here. Let’s see how tonight went.

Daniel turned the burner down under the stew. “This is almost ready,” he told Jack, “but the wine should breathe for at least half an hour. The stew will keep.”

Half an hour?

Jack fought down panic. “So, thirty minutes to kill then,” he said as casually as possible.

“Right,” Daniel said with a smile.

Jack’s mind raced. Yes! “So, I think I’ll just go for a walk, then,” he said, nodding his head.

The smile left Daniel’s face. “Oh,” he said flatly, surprise and confusion evident in his eyes. He turned back to the stove and gave the stew another unnecessary stir. “That’s fine. Everything will be ready by the time you get back.”

Oh, hell! O’Neill, you idiot. Jack acted quickly to correct his mistake. “Can you leave the stew?” Daniel turned his head to look at him, frowning. Jack jerked his head in the direction of the front door. “Come with,” he invited. Daniel’s face relaxed, his frown replaced quickly by a happier expression.

“Oh, okay. I’ll just turn the burner off, it’ll keep warm. And I’ll just preheat the oven for the bread, and then it won’t take long once we get back.”

Jack nodded silently. This should be okay, outdoors, walking with Daniel. But spending half an hour alone in his house, with nothing particular to do, with all that Jack wanted to say...that would have been unbearable. When Daniel turned from the oven with a broad smile, Jack was able to return it easily. They headed out the front door, Daniel grabbing his keys on the way.

It was a very pleasant evening. Lots of other people were out; biking, walking, jogging. People in their yards, some cooking out. Lots to look at and to comment about. Jack relaxed more completely.

Suddenly Daniel gave a small laugh. Jack looked at him questioningly. “Something just occurred to me,” Daniel told him. “This may be the only walk we’ve ever taken where we didn’t have Teal’c on point. And no particular destination in mind.”

Jack grinned at him. “’S nice, isn’t it?” Daniel smiled his agreement. The two men walked on, chatting at times, silently companionable at others.

After about fifteen minutes, they turned around to head back, choosing a different street to walk down this time. A couple of blocks further on, they ran across a very small boy walking a very large dog. Of course, Jack asked the boy for an introduction, explaining that dogs were some of his favorite people. Jack crouched down, getting acquainted with the delighted dog and making the boy laugh with equal delight.

Jack glanced up at Daniel and felt his heart thud. Daniel had that look in his eyes again. Jack quickly turned his attention back to the dog, giving it a big hug, wishing it could be Daniel in his arms. He rose and shook hands with the child. Daniel added his goodbyes and the two men continued on their way home, silent now for the most part. Daniel seemed content with his own thoughts, whatever they might be. And Jack was busy making plans for after dinner.

Dinner was over. The stew, with its accompanying warm, crusty bread had been delicious, and the wine had lived up to its reputation and Daniel’s expectations. Daniel’s ecstatic expression upon taking his first sip had set Jack’s heart to thudding again, as he hoped and planned to see an expression like that on Daniel’s face later on. Not caused by the wine. Put there by Jack.

The warm glow that Jack felt lasted throughout the meal and had nothing to do with the wine at all. Jack’s plans called for him to drink sparingly. When Daniel tried to press more wine on him, Jack just responded, “Later,” with a secretive smile.

Dinner was over. Jack was the first to rise from the table, picking up the decanter as he did so. Daniel looked up at him, bemused. “I guess that means it’s later now, right?”

Jack just grinned and put the decanter in a safe place before returning to help clear away the dirty dishes and put away the leftovers.. When the dishwasher was loaded, Jack handed Daniel his almost empty wine glass and told him to drink up. Daniel crinkled his eyebrows and willingly took a sip, as he watched Jack go to the cupboard and get out a clean wine glass. “Jack?”

Jack picked up the decanter and drained the rest of the wine into the new glass. He headed out of the kitchen, pausing in the doorway to remark to Daniel, “You need to finish that up.” Daniel looked down at the glass in his hand and looked back up at Jack, who turned with a smile and walked into the living room. Daniel bit his bottom lip, frowning, then shrugged and swallowed the remaining wine, setting the empty glass near the sink. He followed his guest into the living room.

Jack was seated on the couch, the cushion to his left empty. He did not look up as Daniel came into the room. He had cleared a space on the coffee table in front of him, and laid three items there. Daniel came closer, curious.

The glass of wine. A small pair of scissors. And a white ribbon.

Daniel’s mouth dropped open. Jack cleared his throat nervously. “Come sit down,” he invited, with a hint of huskiness in his voice.

As Daniel hesitated, feeling bewildered, Jack added a fourth item to the table. His wristwatch, which he had been holding in his hand when Daniel came in. Daniel remembered vividly how he had struggled in front of a room full of people to remove his own watch. He slowly took a seat next to his friend.

Jack still didn’t, couldn’t look at Daniel. But he shifted a bit closer, so that their shoulders and knees were touching. He reached out and picked up the white ribbon, draping it over his left thigh. Then he slowly reached over and picked up Daniel’s right hand, carrying it over to lay the wrist down atop the ribbon. Daniel swallowed convulsively.

“I need you to help me tie this thing,” Jack said quietly as he laid his own left wrist next to Daniel’s.

Daniel picked up one end of the ribbon in his left hand, and Jack took the other end in his right. Together they endeavored to tie a bow. There were several false starts, and some nervous laughter from both men. “This is like trying to do something while you’re looking in the mirror,” Daniel remarked.

“More fun, though,” Jack replied. And it was fun, easing some of the tension that both men naturally felt. And Jack was thoroughly enjoying the feeling of Daniel’s fingers continually brushing against his own. But it was rather distracting. “Okay, this isn’t working,” Jack said finally. “Let’s just tie another knot. We’re going to cut it with scissors anyway, so it doesn’t really matter.”

They managed the second knot without too much difficulty, and Daniel’s left hand fell away, back to his own lap. But his right hand still lay on Jack’s thigh, bound by the ribbon to Jack’s left hand. Jack surveyed the situation with satisfaction, running his right index finger along the ribbon. He saw Daniel’s chest rise and fall out of the corner of his eye. “I’m glad I decided against the whole eight ribbons thing,” he commented slyly.

Daniel laughed out loud, turning his face towards Jack’s. Jack met his laughing eyes, a small smile dancing on his own lips. Daniel’s face grew more serious, although his smile still hovered. His eyes were searching Jack’s. And Jack could only hope that his eyes were conveying the message that he wanted Daniel to receive.

Jack tore his gaze away from Daniel and picked up the glass of wine from the table with his free hand. Daniel reached over to grasp the glass as well. This was not a big, heavy chalice like the one used in the ceremony on P3X547. It was an ordinary glass, and Daniel’s hand was wrapped around Jack’s. As Jack raised the glass to his lips, he savored the sight of Daniel’s fingers so warmly enfolding his own.

Jack took a large swallow of wine and slowly lowered the glass away from his mouth. He was suddenly very conscious of Daniel’s shoulder pressing against his own, Daniel’s forearm, snug against his own, lying on his thigh. Daniel’s left hand began to pull the wine glass towards his mouth. Jack turned his head to watch as the other man drank deeply, eyes closed.

As Daniel lowered the glass his eyes slowly opened, but he didn’t turn towards Jack. Shy? Jack wondered. They both knew what came next in the ritual. As he leaned forward to place the glass on the table Daniel leaned with him, retaining his hold on the glass and on Jack’s hand. Only letting go, with seeming reluctance, when Jack released the glass and pulled his hand away.

Seconds later, that hand was cupped around Daniel’s face. Jack was twisted around on the couch, his leg pressing hard against Daniel’s. He could feel Daniel leaning into him, could feel Daniel’s right hand gripping Jack’s knee tightly. Daniel’s lips were slightly parted, his eyes firmly fixed on Jack’s mouth.

Their lips met. The kiss on P3X547 had been brief. This kiss was different.

Jack’s hand slid around the back of Daniel’s neck, pulling him closer, kissing him harder. Daniel’s fingers squeezed Jack’s knee repeatedly. There was a moan, yes, a definite moan, but Jack couldn’t tell which man it came from. His heart was pounding. He couldn’t remember the last time he had felt this excited. Or this scared.

Jack broke the kiss, breathing fresh oxygen in deeply. Daniel’s eyes were closed. Jack looked down and saw Daniel’s left hand. It had not touched Jack. It was clenched in a fist and pressed hard against Daniel’s leg. Jack frowned and reached down to cover the fist, very gently. Daniel’s eyes shot open and he gasped loudly, jerking his hand away. “Are you okay, Daniel?” Jack asked, in a voice which, to his ears, sounded nothing like his own.

Bewildered blue eyes stared at him. Crap! Jack set his jaw and reached with trembling fingers for the pair of scissors laying on the table. He set the blades carefully against the ribbon that bound their wrists together and cut it in two. He dropped the scissors onto the table and moved further away from Daniel’s end of the couch. As Daniel’s hand fell off of his thigh, the ribbon was left behind. Jack threw it angrily to the floor. “I’m sorry, Daniel,” he said rawly.

He looked at Daniel, who was staring down at his wrist, rubbing it. What had he been thinking? What had he done?

Jack stood up abruptly. “I should probably go.”

Daniel’s dazed eyes stared up at him.

“Sorry,” Jack forced out again, as he turned towards the front door.

Daniel’s voice stopped him. “Don’t go.” There was a pause, and then, “Please, come back.”

Jack slowly turned to face the other man. Daniel smiled up at him shakily. Jack took his seat on the couch again. Neither man spoke for a few minutes. Then Daniel broke the silence.

“Jack? Did you just make a pass at me?”

Jack mumbled something.

“What?”

“I don’t know!” Jack said loudly. He rubbed suddenly sweaty palms up and down his legs. “Maybe,” he said more softly. He looked over at Daniel cautiously. A tender smile was beginning to curve Daniel’s lips, and a light was beginning to shine in his eyes. Jack’s heart thudded. “Probably,” he finished on a whisper. “I didn’t mean to upset you,” he added more strongly.

“I’m not upset, Jack,” Daniel hastened to assure him, “just a little confused.”

“Join the club,” Jack sighed.

“I liked it, you know.” Daniel said. “You kissing me, I mean. I liked it. A lot.”

“Oh.”

“I just wasn’t sure what it meant.” Daniel watched Jack for a moment. “Can you tell me?”

Jack made a face. “No, not really.”

“Was it the ceremony?” Jack looked at Daniel questioningly. “I mean, did kissing me during the ceremony make you, I don’t know, curious?”

“No,” Jack replied honestly, “it was just part of the ceremony.”

“Which you just re-created,” Daniel pointed out. “That must mean something.”

Jack flushed. “That was just an excuse to, you know, get closer.”

“Because you wanted to kiss me?” Daniel was trying hard to understand.

“Because I want us to, to be closer.” Jack’s eyes were pleading with Daniel. He didn’t know the words to say. How could he make Daniel understand, when he didn’t understand it himself?

“Closer than friends?” Daniel asked. Jack hesitated and then nodded. “Physically closer?” Jack cleared his throat and nodded again. Daniel reached out and took one of Jack’s hands in his own. “Lovers?” he whispered. Jack’s hand gripped Daniel’s more tightly. He wanted to answer, but he was frightened, and he wasn’t sure why. “Unless you say no, I’m going to take that as a yes,” Daniel said gently. Jack looked at him gratefully.

Daniel squeezed Jack’s hand and let it go. Then he took Jack in his arms and kissed him. It felt strange to Jack, being held like this in a man’s strong arms. But he guessed he must like it, because there was no doubt who was moaning this time. He felt Daniel’s tongue lick tentatively along his lips and he opened them wider, inviting Daniel in. Okay, that moan had definitely come from Daniel, and Jack felt a shiver of pleasure run through him at the sound. Daniel tightened his hold on Jack, and Jack relaxed into Daniel’s kiss, Daniel’s strength.

When the two men finally separated for air and Jack could see his friend’s face clearly, he saw that Daniel’s blue eyes were once again shining with that look of love and happiness that had been haunting Jack for weeks. And there was more this time. Desire. The last element, the one he couldn’t be sure about until this moment. Daniel wanted him. And Jack’s body and mind were finally, completely, in agreement with each other on what he wanted. He had no more doubts.

When Daniel leaned forward to take Jack’s mouth in another kiss, Jack pulled back. “Wait, Daniel.”

Daniel sat back, a puzzled look on his flushed face. Do I look like that?, Jack wondered.

It was Jack’s turn to take Daniel’s hand in his. He held on tightly. “I don’t know where all this is going to go, Daniel. And five minutes ago, I wasn’t even sure where I wanted it to go.” Daniel’s eyes were drawn downward, to where Jack’s thumb was rhythmically stroking the back of his hand. “But, I know now, Daniel.” Jack’s voice was strained as he continued, “I want this to be love. I want us to be in love.”

Now Jack’s eyes were downcast. He couldn’t look at Daniel.

“Jack,” Daniel began tenderly.

“I don’t know if you want to go there with me,” Jack interrupted nervously. “I’ll understand if you don’t. I mean, I’m no great catch. But if we could just try.” He swallowed, hard. “If you want to, I mean.”

Daniel’s finger pressed against Jack’s lip, signaling him to be silent.

“Jack. You had me at the bottle of wine.”

Jack’s head jerked up and his jaw dropped. Daniel grinned at him happily.

Sixty seconds later, Daniel was flat on his back on the couch, with an aroused Air Force colonel on top of him, mouth buried in the hollow at the base of Daniel’s neck. Daniel’s hands were stroking Jack’s head and back. Jack’s teeth scraped along Daniel’s neck, and he shivered with pleasure. His dreamy gaze looked up towards the ceiling, but all he could see was the look that had been in Jack’s shining brown eyes moments ago. Love and happiness. And desire. Everything that Daniel had been dreaming of for so long.

If Jack could have seen Daniel’s face at that moment, he would have seen exactly the ecstatic expression that he had wanted to put there. And this time it had nothing to do with the wine.

THE END