Title: "At First Sight" Pairing: Harry Sinclair/Karl Urban Rating: PG-13 Summary: Karl knows fate when he feels it. Prequel to Temporary Monogamy. Disclaimer: Never happened. Notes: Written for the Comment_Fic Free For All post - my prompts were 'first' and Harry/Karl. Karl moved easily through the throngs of people gathered in Danielle's kitchen, intent on securing himself another beer before Lawrence drank it all. He'd brought extra beer with him to the party – he did know his friends, after all – but Lawrence was sort of that odd type of social drinker where the more alcohol one placed in his general direction, the more he tended to drink. And it was no use trying to hide the beer, either, as Lawrence had a pretty keen sense of sniffing it out, no matter where it was. Karl learned long ago the best thing to do was drink early and often, and to keep an extra bottle in the cargo pocket of his pants or jacket. He cracked open a bottle and gave a smiling nod of greeting to Lucy, who was pulling a very willing Marton out of the kitchen and down the hallway. Seemed the on-set gossip about the two of them was true. Then again, Lawrence was never wrong when it came to gossip. "Karl!" He turned at the sound of his name. Danielle was standing on the back patio with some guy Karl'd never seen before, waving him over with a jangle of her bracelets. "C'mere, love. Got someone I'd like you to meet." Danielle was forever introducing him to people. Karl swore she knew every single person on the country on both islands. Once Karl stepped out the sliding glass door and got close enough, he could see that the other man looked to be in his mid to late-30s. He was a shade taller than Karl, with broad shoulders and a rangy build to match, and shortly cropped salt-n-pepper hair. He also had the most beautiful eyes Karl had ever seen – not quite brown, not quite gold, and framed by ridiculously long lashes. Karl couldn't stop staring. He felt like he'd been sucker-punched and left wheezing on the floor. Danielle patted the other man's chest in a friendly gesture that spoke of easy intimacy, then smiled at Karl. "I'll leave you two to get to know each other," she said, and slipped away before either of them could say anything. Karl blinked. Even for Danielle, that was a blatant move. The other man shook his head and chuckled, the sound low and amused, rippling along Karl's spine in a slow wave. "Not at all subtle, is she?" He placed large, callused hand in front of Karl. "I'm Harry Sinclair, by the way." Karl took the offered hand in an automatic gesture. The shock that rocketed through him was immediate, slammed through his body. It felt like his skin was going to melt right off from the heat. "I'm...um...uh..." Jesus, why couldn't he think? It was his name, not long division. But then, Harry wasn't acting like Karl was behaving in any sort of odd way. In fact, he was just standing there, holding Karl's hand in a firm grip, and looking at him. Patiently. Smiling. Fuck, what a smile. Karl thought he could probably get lost in the uncomplicated brilliance of it. Like maybe if he stared at Harry long enough – at that smile – he could find all of the answers he'd ever sought in his life. Answers to questions he didn't even know yet, in fact. "I'm Karl," he finally finished, grateful he'd finally remembered the power of speech. "Nice to meet you, Karl." Harry didn't drop his hand. Didn't move away or move back. Didn't do anything except continue to stand there and smile at Karl like he knew what Karl was thinking. Like he knew and approved, because he was thinking the same thing. Like maybe he'd be cool with the two of them standing there, clasping hands and staring at each other, for the rest of the night. The invitation was out before Karl was aware he'd spoken. "Hey, you wanna duck out of here?" "Alright." No question on where they would go or how they'd get there or anything else. Just a simple affirmative that Harry would go with Karl, wherever that might be. The smile changed, became softer, more intimate, and Karl found himself smiling back. He relaxed his grip on Harry's hand and when Harry slid his fingers through Karl's in an easy gesture that felt like they'd been holding hands for years, Karl didn't even question why it felt so right. As they made their way out the back gate and to the narrow, overgrown path that led to the beach, Karl was pretty sure that he could get used to this feeling. It didn't matter that he'd just met Harry or that Karl hadn't even been with a man since those long ago days with Russell. Some things were fate. A smart man (and Karl considered himself to be a smart man) recognized that and adapted accordingly. Judging from the way that Harry was still willingly following Karl's lead, it seemed pretty obvious that Harry was also a smart man. Karl still had no idea where they were going or what they'd do once they got there, but he had a feeling the journey would be worth it. And he was pretty certain that Harry felt the same way. Onto Temporary Monogamy If you enjoyed this fic, please leave feedback here. Thanks!