Chapter Text
Varsity athletes had access to free massages.
Dex knew this, because his teammates never stopped gushing about them.
Shitty called them ‘the most motherfucking gloriously stimulating but completely non-sexual experience of my life,’ and Jack insisted that they were an important part of recovery, and Bitty made cookies for the sports medicine student who was responsible for them because, ‘really, that boys hands are magical.’
Despite the stellar reviews, Dex had never actually gotten a massage.
Growing up, they weren’t exactly financially accessible, and when he got to college he figured that, free or not, they were unnecessary. He’d spent a summer working on a lobster boat and he’d survived without any massages so, really, he could survive hockey season.
The fact that he really wasn’t keen on a stranger with supposedly magical hands touching him was completely beside the point.
Still, when he pulled a muscle in his back and had to sit out a practice and Jack forwarded him an email containing information on the massages and a message reading, ‘Take better care of yourself, Pointdexter,’ Dex resigned himself to his fate.
Of course, that didn’t mean that Dex was excited and it definitely didn’t mean that he was going to enjoy the massage, and maybe he was a bit too stubborn for his own good, but that was entirely beside the point.
He was more nervous than anything, but he definitely wasn’t admitting that.
Instead, he just called the number that Jack gave him and talked to a receptionist and made an appointment, and then he tried to forget about it until the next day.
Forgetting about it was made harder by the fact that his back ached whenever he moved and sometimes when he didn’t move, but that was also beside the point.
//
Dex didn’t know what he’d expected the sports medicine student to look like, but Derek Nurse blew all of those expectations away.
For starters, he was beautiful.
Like, ridiculously beautiful in a way that was surreal and absolutely impossible and completely and entirely not fair at all, and Dex kind of hated him because of it.
They were the same height, but Derek Nurse was definitely a bit broader than he was and he looked a lot more comfortable in his body. He had dark skin, a mess of curly hair, tattoos that Dex didn't even want to think about, and an easy smile that was currently being aimed at Dex and, really. Dex wanted to melt.
He wanted to disappear on the spot and he wanted to run away, but he couldn’t do that because his back was still killing him so all he ended up doing was stepping into the room he’d been directed towards and asking, “Hey, uh- you’re the massage guy?”
Derek Nurse’s smile only widened as he waved a hand casually through the air and said, “Hey, man, it’s Nursey,” and it took Dex a moment of confusion before understanding washed over him.
“They gave you a nickname?” he asked, mildly amused despite his nerves, and Nursey nodded.
“Yeah, man, Rans and Holster had a slideshow about how important it was,” he explained, and Dex had seen the slideshow in question so he smiled despite himself. Nursey smiled back for a few moments before he asked, “What was your name?” and Dex felt himself start to blush, like he always did when he talked to cute guys, which was just great.
He blurted out, “William J. Pointdexter,” before he could stop and think about how ridiculous it all sounded, and then he backtracked and added, “Uh- but the team goes with Dex,” and Nursey just took it all in stride.
“Nice,” he said, and then he asked, “Your back’s the problem, yeah?” and Dex nodded, struggling to compose himself.
“I pulled something in practice the other day and the captain thinks I need to take better care of myself, so.”
“So?”
“So here I am?” he tried, because it had seemed obvious to him, but Nursey just raised an eyebrow.
“Just ‘cause Jack sent you?” Nursey asked, and Dex really didn’t know why he was pushing it, but Dex also really didn’t like being pushed.
“Is there a problem with that?” he asked, and maybe it sounded a bit too harsh and maybe Nursey didn’t deserve that, but massages were stressful and cute boys were stressful and his back really did hurt, so who could blame him for being a bit testy?
Apparently Derek Nurse could, but he just held up his hands in surrender and said, “Nah man, it’s chill,” and then asked, “You coming in, though?” and Dex realized that their whole conversation had taken place while he’d been standing in the door.
He moved inside and dropped his bag, but he wasn’t quite sure what to do after that. There was a table set up in the middle of the room, and a desk that Nursey was sitting at off to the side, and there was a chair in the corner as well, and Dex was back to wanting to run away, but Nursey spoke up before he could do that.
“If we’re working on your back, it’ll be easiest if you take off your shirt,” he said, which only made Dex want to run even further because, really.
He was a varsity athlete and he worked out enough to know that he looked fine without a shirt on, but that wasn’t the problem.
The problem was, was that Dex had red hair and ridiculously pale skin and when he blushed, it never really stopped at his cheeks. It had a tendency to cover his neck and his shoulders and make its way down his back just slightly and, if he took off his shirt for the massage, Nursey would see that the entire time. He’d know how nervous Dex was, and that would only make Dex more nervous.
Still, there wasn’t exactly a way around it and he couldn’t say anything without being weird, so he just said, “Right,” and then cleared his throat and coughed slightly, before he pulled his shirt over his head and dropped it unceremoniously on top of his bag. “Uh,” he started when that was done, “Do I just lie down, or…?”
“Yeah, man, that’d be perfect,” Nursey said, and Dex swallowed and nodded and did just that.
He tried to move as smoothly as possible but, really, he felt like an idiot as he climbed onto the table and lined his face up with the hole in it, and then did his very best to relax, even as he heard Nursey moving around him.
“So this is your first massage?” Nursey asked, and Dex hummed his response, not really trusting his voice anymore. When warm hands started running over his shoulders, he was caught off guard and almost jumped off the table, and it got a small laugh out of Nursey, before Nursey said, “Chill, bro,” and, really, it was just about the least helpful thing that Dex had ever been told.
“A little warning would be nice,” he said through gritted teeth, and the next time Nursey’s hands landed on his back, he felt himself tense up again. “Or not,” he muttered, and this time he was pretty sure that Nursey let out a sigh.
“Bro,” he said, and it was in the same ridiculously low, ridiculously calm voice that he’d used before, but this time it also sounded a bit frustrated, “If you don’t loosen up a bit, this is gonna hurt.”
“Isn’t it your job to make sure that it doesn’t?” Dex chirped but it came out as more of a snap and, really. He knew that he was being a dick, but he also felt exposed and vulnerable and he knew his entire face was bright red which meant that his neck and back were too, and he hated everything about it.
Nursey let out a sharper sigh this time, and then he said, “Right,” before his hands were back on Dex, moving, and this time they were firm and purposeful and-
“Fucking hell,” Dex exclaimed, recoiling but only really pushing himself further into the table, before he turned his head to look at Nursey and said, “That’s not even where my back hurts, dude,” and Nursey actually rolled his eyes.
“I’ll get there eventually if you just let me do my job,” he said, and then added, “Seriously, bro, just chill like, a tiny bit,” and Dex clenched his jaw which, really, was probably the opposite of what Nursey wanted him to do.
“Fine,” he muttered, because there wasn’t much else he could do, and after another few seconds of staring Nursey down, he turned back around and tried to relax.
He tried to ignore how tense the room seemed, and how Nursey’s hands were warm and efficient but definitely not as gentle as they’d been before, and he tried to ignore the fact that all of that was his fault. He tried not to blame himself for how awkward it was, but it didn’t entirely work because, really. Dex was used to being that person. He got nervous and he panicked and he was an asshole; it happened all the time, and it had happened once again, and now Derek Nurse hated him.
Despite that realization and the impending sense of doom that accompanied it, the actual massage wasn’t terrible.
There was a chance that it actually felt nice- painful, but in a good way, and almost soothing- but Dex would never admit to that.
Instead, when he felt Nursey pull his hands away and then heard him step back and say, “That’s it,” he just clenched his jaw and moved to sit up.
Of course, when he did that, he was hit with even more pain than before and he let out the most embarrassing noise he’d ever made as he curled in on himself and said, “What the fuck, dude?”
Nursey almost looked sympathetic, but then he just smiled. It didn’t look genuine at all. “It’s gotta get worse before it can get better,” he said, like that made any sense in the world, and Dex scoffed.
“And you couldn’t have told me that before you went and made it worse?” he asked, and Nursey just shrugged.
“Seemed kind of obvious, bro,” he said, and Dex wanted to strangle him, he really, really did, but then Nursey added, “I’m here Tuesdays and Thursdays. If it’s not better by Tuesday, come back and I’ll give you some stretches to do,” and at least that was almost helpful but, well.
Dex was already holding a grudge, and he was good at holding grudges, so he just said, “Great,” with as much sarcasm as he could muster, and his anger probably would have been a whole lot more effective if he hadn’t bent down to pick up his shirt, and then accidentally let out another pained noise.
Nursey was by his side in a second, with one hand on his elbow and the other on his lower back, and he slowly guided Dex’s movements until he was standing up, and Dex really, really just felt like he wanted to die, because being face to face with Derek Nurse was definitely something.
But then Nursey’s brow was creased and his lips were tilting downwards and he said, “Dude, Jack’s right- you’ve gotta take better care of yourself,” and Dex pulled away.
“I’m fine,” he said, and his movements were a bit choppy and he winced when he pulled his shirt on and Nursey didn’t look convinced at all, so Dex just kept scowling. “Just leave it, would you?”
“Fine, bro,” Nursey said, and he took a step back and Dex kind of missed how close together they’d been but he definitely wasn’t thinking about that, and he was about to reach down and lift up his bag, when Nursey beat him to it. “Thanks,” he muttered, and Nursey really didn’t look impressed.
“Whatever,” he said, and then he was turning around and heading for his desk, and Dex knew a dismissal when he saw one.
He said, “Thanks,” again, and he got an, “It’s chill,” in response, and that was that, so Dex turned and left.
//
Except of course it couldn’t just be left there, because they played two games that weekend and Dex played in both and by the time Tuesday rolled around, his back was even worse than before.
He showed up at Nursey’s office with his head bowed, feeling ridiculously sheepish and, when he got there, he realized that Nursey wasn’t actually alone.
The door was propped open and Holster was on the table, with his shorts rolled up while Nursey massaged his thigh.
For half a second, Dex imagined being in Holsters place, and then he thanked every god in the world that he wasn’t because, really.
There was a chance that Derek Nurse was an actual god, and having an actual god that close to his dick would probably be just a bit too much for Dex to handle.
When he shook his head and cleared away that train of thought, he realized a moment too late that he’d been staring and that Nursey and Holster were both staring back at him, and that Nursey was definitely smirking, and Dex felt his face turn bright red.
Holster was the first to speak, saying, “Yo Dex, you finally gave in?” and Dex blinked, while Nursey’s eyebrows shot up.
“Gave in?” he asked, and Holster turned to him.
“Bro’s been complaining about how ‘massages are for rich people who’ve never actually done enough physical labour to need them’ for like, the past year and a half,” Holster explained, and Dex had definitely been known to rant about that, but he also definitely didn’t need somebody who actually gave massages to know that.
“Dude,” he groaned, while Holster only shrugged, and Nursey just raised his eyebrows even higher.
“What? I mean, you kind of have a point, bro, but these massages are free, so.”
Dex decided to roll his eyes and ignore that entirely, and then he turned his gaze onto Nursey and said, “You said to come back if it didn’t get better?”
“Yeah, bro,” he said, and he blinked a few times, like he was trying to wake himself up from something, before he shook his head slightly and nodded towards the chair in the corner. “Holtzy and I will be done soon, if you don’t mind waiting?”
Dex said, “It’s fine,” and then he headed for the corner and dropped into the chair, and Nursey turned back to Holster and Holster started back in on whatever story he’d been telling before Dex had interrupted.
Nursey listened and commented and occasionally Dex did too, but most of Nursey’s attention seemed to go into his work, and it meant that Dex got to focus most of his own attention on Nursey.
Frankly, he hated it.
Nursey was just as attractive as ever, and the way he moved was steady and sure and confident, and the way that him and Holster talked made it sound like they were actually friends, and Dex realized pretty quickly that they probably were.
Somehow, that made the fact that Nursey almost definitely hated Dex hurt even more, and Dex tried not to think about it but he couldn’t really help it and, by the time Holster said his goodbyes and left, Dex was even more stressed out than before and, of course, Nursey noticed.
“Chill, bro,” Nursey said, and then he turned away and started wiping down the massage table and, when he looked back towards Dex, his expression was nothing but wary.
“If you show me exactly what’s wrong, I can give you more specific stretches,” he said, and Dex couldn’t really argue with that and he didn’t want to, so he just climbed in the table and tried to straighten his back.
“It’s just a pulled muscle or something,” he said, and Nursey raised his eyebrows, clearly asking for more information, so Dex tried to lift an arm to point out the problem. “It’s there,” he said, gesturing towards his upper back, near his left shoulder as best as he could, “And kind of there,” he said, pointing lower.
Nursey nodded his head and hummed for a moment, before he asked, “Can I feel?” and Dex nodded, trying not to let his reluctance show.
He knew he was too stiff and he knew that his skin was bright red and probably too hot and he forced himself not to lean into Nursey’s touch and he knew he was being weird about it, so he wasn’t surprised at all when Nursey said, “Bro, chill,” but Dex did let out a sigh that was meant to be exasperated, and he was surprised when Nursey said, “Good.”
He figured that the deep breathing helped, so he focused on that for the rest of the time he was there, and he thanked Nursey for the stretches that he explained, and he held back every rude comment that he thought of, and he was more than relieved when it was finally over.
//
The next time Dex stopped by the Haus, his back was feeling significantly better. He could actually move again, and it was a huge relief, and Bitty noticed immediately.
“We all told you that Derek is a miracle worker,” he said, and Dex loved Bitty as much as everybody else on the team, but he also rolled his eyes when Bitty turned around because, really. ‘Miracle worker, ’ was laying it on a bit thick.
“He’s alright,” Dex conceded, and he was sure that Bitty would have left it that that, but Ransom came into the room with just enough time to hear, and Ransom definitely wouldn’t leave it.
“Who’s alright?” he asked, grabbing a pile of cookies and dropping into his seat at the table.
“Nursey,” Bitty said, and added, “And those’ll burn you,” but Ransom ignored the last bit and took a bite anyways, and smiled through it.
“Are we talking about Dexey’s crush?” he asked, and he sounded so excited that it took Dex a moment to actually process what those words meant, at which point he did a double take, because-
“What.”
“Holtzy said that you and Nurse were chirping each other like wild, and we all know that chirping is flirting, so.”
“… You and Holster chirp each other all the time.”
“… So?”
Dex looked to Bitty for help, but Bitty just shrugged. When it came to Ransom and Holsters relationship it was definitely best to not ask any more questions than necessary, so Dex sighed and just let it be as well.
“I don’t have a crush on Nursey,” is all he ended up saying, and Bitty definitely looked like he was hiding a smile and Ransom didn’t look convinced at all, but Dex decided to ignore them entirely, so that’s what he did.
//
Dex went to see Nursey a few more times about his back, but once he started doing the stretches on a daily basis it started getting better quickly.
Dex told himself that that was for the best because, really, whenever he was around Derek Nurse he ended up acting like a dick, and he hated himself for it and he hated Derek for bringing it out of him and he just hated everything about it, really.
He also told himself that, despite what Holster said, Dex did not have a crush on Nursey.
Dex barely even liked Nursey.
Nursey was calm and self-assured and too funny for his own good and a tiny bit sassy and just so fucking chill all the time that it was ridiculous, and Dex didn’t find any of it attractive or appealing at all.
Still, that didn’t change the fact that Dex blushed whenever Nursey touched him, or that his stomach rolled over in a good way when Nursey acted like maybe he didn’t hate Dex, or that he just couldn’t stop thinking about Nursey, and Dex knew that all of that was weird.
He knew it was weird but he didn’t want it to be, but stupid Holster had put stupid ideas about it into Dex’s stupid head, and it meant that Dex went out of his way to not make it weird, which meant that it always ended up weird.
It meant that Dex always acted like a dick, and it meant that Dex was ridiculously relieved when his back stopped hurting him altogether, and he didn’t have to go see Nursey anymore.
The fact that he was starting to miss Nursey was entirely beside the point.