A Friend In Need

Richie & Libby

by Atonia & Layne

It was the middle of the day and Libby was surprised to see Richie's number on the caller id of her cell phone. Typically, they'd seen each other in the evening, unless you counted that first time they'd been together when things had seemed to happen in the morning.

She'd just finished editing a piece for the Times about the upcoming elections and was proofreading it one last time at her desk. Picking up the phone, she held it to her ear with one hand, as she made a correction with the other.

"Hey, you!" Libby greeted him enthusiastically. "What's up?"

“Hey Libby, are you real busy right now because I um, kinda need to see you.” She probably thought he was drunk. His words weren’t forming right in his mouth. He closed his eyes and lay his head back on the pillow.

Immediately, she sensed that this wasn't like the other times he'd asked to see her. His words didn't sound right, but neither did his tone of voice. He sounded subdued, almost depressed.

"Where are you? At your office?"

“No, I’m in my room at Millie’s. Do ya think, um, you could pick up some soup or something, I uh…can you come?”

Soup? That was different. "Sure." He must be sick. In his room in the middle of the day and asking for soup.

Libby had already hit 'send' on the file she'd just finished. She was shutting off her computer and picking up her things as they talked.

"I'll be right there. Anything else you need me to bring?" He was calling her for help. Libby's heart gave a leap at that thought. Did that mean he was finally accepting that there was more to their friendship than just the physical side of things.

“Something for a headache and you, bring you.” He replied.

"I'm on my way," she told him, wondering what was going on. After letting Cal know she was leaving, Libby stopped by Mr. Jessup's store for pain meds, for once paying no attention to his pointed questions about Mr. Roberts, Mr. Evans, and Mr. Nova. She left him with a frustrated expression on his face, having found out absolutely nothing about her current love life.

She stopped in at Andy's for soup. They had some wonderful-smelling chicken with vegetable and she picked up two containers of it to go, since she hadn't had lunch. Juggling her parcels up the stairs at Millie's, she opened Richie's door. He'd told her it would be unlocked.

His room was dim for the middle of the day, the curtains drawn and not even a lamp burning. "Hi," Libby said, as she put the things she was carrying down on the table just inside the door. It was when she turned around that she got a good look at him, lying on the bed with his eyes closed, holding a cloth to his lip and looking as though he'd just lost his best friend.

"Richie?" She was worried as she almost ran over to the side of his bed. She ran a hand over his forehead and pulled the cloth a little away from his mouth. "Are you okay? What happened?"

“I did one of the stupidest things I’ve ever done today. I got in a fight with McGee in my office and he’d come on a business matter. It wasn’t his fault, it was mine. Did you find something for pain?” He pushed himself up on the bed, while she got him a couple of pills and a glass of water. “So we bloodied each other.” Richie was thoroughly disgusted with himself. “I just lost control of myself.” He swallowed the pills and sipped the water.

He was taking this very differently from his usual attitude of 'push-it-away-and-don't-think-about-it', Libby could tell. This wasn't the Richie Roberts she'd known up to this point. She was seeing a new side of him.

As he swallowed the pills, Libby had taken the cloth he'd been using and rinsed it with fresh, cold water. Now, she brought it back to him, not sure where this feeling of enjoyment and satisfaction at taking care of him was coming from.

"People lose control sometimes, Richie," she told him, placing the cloth on his lip again. "Maybe it wasn't very professional, but it was very human."

“Yeah, well maybe I’ve been a little too human lately.” He looked up at her, “Miss Peeg told me off today--told me exactly what she thought of me. I don’t think I like the guy she was talking about.” He winced; his jaw was really aching. “Kyle said nothing was broken but damned if this doesn’t hurt. I’m sorry to pull you out in the middle of the day, I just didn’t know who else to call.”

"I'm glad you called. You can call me any time, Richie. Don't you get that by now?" She felt his jaw tenderly.

Sitting down on the side of the bed, she went on. "I'm not sure there's any such thing as too human."

Libby's look at him might have had more fondness in it than she knew. "If you don't like the guy Miss Peeg was talking about, then maybe you should do something about it."

“It’s too late for me to do anything about him, he’s already wrecked everything. I haven’t wrecked you yet, have I? Don’t let me do that Libby.” He caught her hand and held it.

"Of course you haven't wrecked me." She squeezed his hand tightly with her own, hating the way he was feeling about himself right now, wanting to make it better. "You've helped me. I wouldn't have made it through everything that's been going on lately without you, Richie."

Libby met his eyes, holding his hand with both her own now. "Really, I wouldn't have. With everything that's happened with- with Dan and March. And with Abby being held prisoner and how worried I was about her."

"And it's not too late, you know. It's never too late. Okay, maybe you've messed up some things. But you've got the rest of your life ahead of you. You've got your work. And your son." She mentioned Michael a hesitantly, because Richie had brought him up only once since they'd been seeing each other. She knew it was a sore point with him. "And there'll be another woman...sometime...when you're ready."

"Maybe- Maybe this would be a good time for you to invite Michael here. Spend some time with him." Again, she was hesitant about mentioning it but, after all, friends did give each other advice, didn't they?

Richie moistened his lips, “Michael, I’m not sure this is the time to bring him over.” He remembered what Michael Stanley had said about not leaving it too long. “I’ve only had him over once since I came here, I know that’s not good. I called his mother, Laurie, and told her about the coming divorce. She didn’t think this was the right atmosphere for him right now. I think maybe she’s right I need to get my shit straight before I see him.”

"Okay, then-" She gave him an encouraging smile. "So you get it straight. You work on it. Whatever it takes. I'm here if you need my help."

Richie looked into her eyes for a moment and then past her to the table where she’d set the soup containers down. “We should eat before it gets cold.” Looking back at her again, “thanks babe for coming,” His arms went around her a moment and then he pulled away. Already his body was betraying him, all the thoughts he had about ending the “benefit” part of their friendship went out of the window. He was a hopeless case. He pulled her to him again and hugged her.

Libby hugged him back. "You're welcome. Any time." She ignored the little leap her heart gave when he called her 'babe'.

After a moment, she pulled back a little. "You're right. We need to eat that soup before it gets cold." She grinned at him. "I don't think anything else we're hungry for is gonna get cold."

He wanted to kiss her but he couldn’t, “We’ll put it on simmer. I think I’m ready for that soup.” He swung his legs over the side of the bed and got up pulling her up too. “The pain meds are working so maybe I can eat this stuff,” he looked in the containers and pulled spoons out of the bag.

She leaned in close and kissed him very gently at the corner of his mouth, being careful not to hurt him. "I hope so. Andy's very proud of this stuff. Guaranteed me that it would cure whatever ailed you."

"Richie- I haven't brought this up before, but- Do you want me to move out of the apartment? I mean, you're staying here right now, when you could be living there. I feel kinda guilty about it."

“No, Libby I don’t. I’m fine here, I’m probably going to build or buy a place of my own. I haven’t started looking but it’s on my list of things to do. There’s a real estate company wants to post properties on the windows of my office. I told them they could so maybe something will catch my attention.”

"Hopefully." They talked more as they finished eating, Richie going slowly and carefully to keep from hurting his lip and jaw any more. Libby was enjoying it. She finished first and watched him as they talked. When he talked about his work, Richie's eyes practically lit up. It was easy to see his moods in his eyes.

"You know," she told him, when he'd swallowed the last bit of his soup. "I think this is the most we've talked since we've known each other. Sex isn't the only thing you're good at, Roberts!" Her voice was teasing now.

"You should let this side of you show more around women."

“Which side?” he teased moving his head left and right, “better be this side the other’s all bruised and swollen.” He gave her a lopsided grin.

"Doesn't matter," she told him, reaching across to lay a hand on his cheek. "Both sides look good. Bruised and swollen or not."

Then she gave him a serious look. "I think you might just be getting better at this friendship thing. Or at least more comfortable with it."

He looked down into his empty soup bowl, Is that what this is?, he wondered. He looked up, “I know I needed somebody today and you were the only one I knew I could call that might come. If that means you’re a friend then I guess I am getting better at it.”

Thinking he looked a little puzzled and lost, Libby smiled. Miss Peeg seemed to think her too young for Richie but, apparently, she had more experience than he at friendship at least. She went over and hugged him. "That's what it means."

Richie pulled her down on his lap, “well, friend, got any plans for the rest of the afternoon?”

"I think I just made some," she grinned. "Oh, and I should probably warn you- Friendship also means you come if I call. That means that next time I'm on the phone telling you I just punched somebody out and I've got a fat lip, you have to drop everything and come running!"

He tried to smile, “I would ya know…come if you called.” His hand was busy with the buttons on her blouse. He hadn’t planned on this, sex was the last thing on his mind when he called her. He stood up and carried her over to his bed. “Damned lip, I can’t kiss you.”

"That's okay," she whispered. "I can kiss you." Libby moved over and patted the bed beside her. "And I'm supposed to be taking care of you."

As he lay down beside her, her hand went to his waistband. "So lie down here and let me take care of you."

Richie’s eyes darkened as he lay down with her pulling her blouse over her shoulders, she shrugged out of it and lay her head on his stomach.

With her cheek pressed against him, Libby could feel his passion and desire. She always could with him. "Richie." It was a soft, husky whisper. "Tell me what you want me to do."

Richie’s cock was already straining against his pants, “get me out of these pants,” his voice was barely above a whisper.

Libby was more than ready to do that. She unfastened his belt and his buttons slowly, letting the anticipation build up between them. As her hands worked, she felt him squeezing and kneading her breasts--loved the feel of his hands against her skin.

Richie's need was always so strong, she thought to herself. She got swept up in it, swept away. Every time. Slowly, Libby slid his pants down over his hips, kissing gently.

Richie moaned and fisted her hair, the wet kisses were driving him crazy, “do it, take me,” he breathed and her mouth slid over his cock, “oh God, Libby.”

For some reason, she wanted everything slow today--slow and sweet--and that was how she took him. Talking was out of the question, but she hoped she was showing him how much she cared. She wouldn't do this if she didn't.

Libby heard and felt his pleasure, taking pleasure herself in his enjoyment. His hands in her hair, pulling so that they hurt just a little, made her enjoy it all the more. Her moans mixed with his.

He wanted to be inside her and he pulled her up on top of him so that she rode his hips, slowly. His fingers dug into her thighs as their passion built he wanted her to feel it too and he found her core and touched her, “come for me baby,” he whispered.

"God, Richie, yes...I will..." Libby didn't think she'd ever felt so good. The feel of him, both inside and out, was somehow different today. It was more urgent and more passionate than it had ever been before. SHE was more passionate than she'd ever been before.

She held onto his arms, steadying herself, feeling as though she needed something to anchor her in this whirlwind they had created.

Richie felt himself going he tried to hold back, “I’m going…come with me,” she rocked him and he exploded with an intensity he hadn’t felt in a long time. Milking it, not wanting it to end he rolled her over beneath him. He lay on top of her until he could breathe and looked at her, “where the hell did that come from? Damn, that was good.”

For the first time in all the times they'd done this, Libby felt almost shy with him. Her fingers in his soft hair, she buried her face in the curve of his neck, being careful to avoid the side where his jaw was hurt.

"I don't know," she breathed into his ear. "But it was definitely good."

Richie lay still for a moment and moved off of her rolling onto his back and closing his eyes. “You’re better than chicken soup, a cure for what ails ya.” He looked over at her and pulled her to him, wanting to cuddle for a little while.

Libby laughed softly. "That's the best compliment anyone's ever given me." She snuggled next to him and, the next thing she knew, she was waking up.

Being careful not to wake Richie, she slid off the bed and went to check her cell phone for messages. One from a guy she was interviewing tomorrow about what time to meet with him.

Clicking the phone shut, Libby walked quietly back to the bed. Richie was still asleep on his back, one arm flung over his head. His jaw would be black and blue tomorrow, she thought to herself, and his split lip was still slightly swollen, in spite of the ice and cold cloths he'd held on it. They'd made progress today in the friendship department, she thought. Maybe they'd ended up in bed, but at least he'd called her for something else. It was a step.

Richie looked sweet, downright boyish, when he slept. A boy who'd been in a fight! Libby grinned to herself at that thought, reaching out to brush his hair away from his face. Definitely not a boy in bed, though! All he had to do was look at her to make her want him.

Something about the intensity of his gaze and the way his need seemed to almost radiate out of him. It overwhelmed her. Made her realize that she had needs of her own. Made her pretty much lose her inhibitions when she was around him. With Richie, there just didn't seem to be any need to be inhibited. Yawning, she lay back down beside him. She wasn't ready to get up just yet.