Title: How to Proceed
Fandom: Babylon 5
Rating: PG-13
Length: 700
Author notes: Pre-season 1 finale, Lennier/Garibaldi. Technically a sequel to "Shall We Date?", my entry to last weeks challenge, but all you really need to know is that these two are dating in this universe.
Summary: Garibaldi is busy enjoying his new relationship, Lennier would rather they enjoyed certain facets of it a little more quickly.



"You treat me like I'm going to snap," Lennier sighs, one evening about two months into their relationship.

They've been making out, as they often do these days. They've finally migrated to the bed, and he's quite been enjoying peppering wet kisses over Lennier's mouth and throat. To say that the interruption is a bit of a surprise is to say that Londo and G'Kar are slightly annoyed by each other, he almost falls off the bed with the shock.

"Michael?" Lennier asks, worried. And then smiles when he weakly lifts his hand to wave that he's alright. That smile hardly helps matters, it's one of the more distracting smiles that he's seen, "you're alright."

"Yeah," he huffs, a touch weakly, and drags himself back from the edge of the bed, "what-?"

"You treat me like I'm going to snap," Lennier repeats, once he's sure that everything is alright, but keeps smiling. He's starting to suspect that that smile is somewhat tactical, "and that, I promise you, is very unlikely."

"I-? You-?" He grinds to a halt, shakes his head, averts his eyes from Lennier's smile because really, "okay, just to make clear - you want to go a little faster?"

Lennier wrinkles his forehead thoughtfully. Adorably too, but he's trying not to focus too hard on that, "a little faster...?"

"Sex wise."

"Ah," Lennier's expression clears. And he knows that means trouble, but it still makes him feel oddly warm inside, "yes, exactly. We've been dating for two months now, and we still haven't got to the point of removing any clothes."

"Not for lack of trying," he mutters, still slightly taken aback.

"That, Michael, is largely my point," Lennier sighs, strokes his shoulders absently. His smile fades a little, into something small and thoughtful that he immediately wants to make better, "I keep trying to progress, but you keep halting me. Unless you aren't actually sexually attracted to me-"

"That," he interrupts hurriedly, "is not the problem."

"-the only reason for the delay seems to be that you're worried," Lennier smiles at him a little, but soon goes back to looking thoughtful. The expression suits him well, but he'd still rather it wasn't there, "Minbari are not fragile."

"Believe me," he says, carefully reaching up to trace the edge of Lennier's bone crest In that way that always makes him shudder, "I know that."

"And I am not fragile."

"I know that too."

"So why...?"

"Lennier," he interrupts gently, and runs his fingers down from the bone crest until he can tilt the Minbari's chin up, "have you ever actually done this before?"

A long pause.

"...Uh," Lennier mutters. And, oh, that's what a Minbari looks like when they blush. Fascinating, perhaps he should tell Franklin to write a paper on it, "not- not with a human, no."

"And with anybody else?" He presses.

"Uh," The blush only spreads. It's a good thing that he's a nice man, and also an incredibly private one, "not... as such."

"That means no, doesn't it?" He asks wryly, waiting for Lennier's embarrassed nod before leaning in and pressing a calming kiss to his forehead, "don't get me wrong, it's absolutely nothing to be ashamed of. It's just... Look, I don't want to rush you into anything."

"You're not," Lennier protests, butting his head up for a proper kiss "...I promise you, you're not. You're not pressuring me into anything. I want to."

"I know," he grins, and can't help laughing into Lennier's mouth as he arches up for another kiss, "it's just... mmmph. I wanted to be sure, beyond any doubt."

"And are you?" Lennier asks, lips wet and held just a few breaths away from him.

"Mm," he purrs, and absorbs Lennier's helpless little gasp with something incredibly like pleasure, "I think I'm certainly getting there, closer and closer by the moment..."

"Michael," Lennier huffs, and arches pleadingly up into him, "please."

He smiles. And, although it takes all his strength, pushes himself up on his elbows to get as much distance between them as he can manage, "Lennier. Are you absolutely sure?"

They stare at each other, blinking for a second.

"Of course," Lennier smiles. And, quite deliberately, drags him back down, "how could I be anything but?"