not mine. blah blah blah.
onward.
She hadn't really wanted to tell anyone.
He had been adamant about not hiding it from the group, said keeping secrets would just end up fucking up team dynamics. Whatever that meant.
It's not like they had just suddenly realized their feelings for each other and fell into bed in a fiery passion. Not really. There had been the talking, which somewhere along the way turned to flirting. The Flirting slowly led to cuddling (or as cuddly as two people like them could get). The cuddling eventually turned to kissing, and up till then there had been no reason to really tell anyone. Right?
It was as they lay in his bed trying to catch their racing breath when he said they had to tell them. They deserved to know. She'd simply sighed softly in response. She knew they'd have to eventually... didn't exactly make it any easier, though.
It wasn't that she was afraid of what they'd think. She couldn't give a rat's ass if they approved or not. It was the change she was afraid of. She'd never been a big fan of change and something as big as sleeping with your boss usually brought along a significant amount of it. Fuck dynamics. They were going to get fucked up either way, he just assumed this way he'd have more control.
The silence that followed the announcement wasn't exactly the kind she'd been expecting. She'd spent the entire night (and most of the morning) preparing for the shock that would inevitably descend. They hardly looked up from their plates. In fact, Daisy and Roxy hadn't looked up at all, Mason, only long enough to shoot them a quick glance before shrugging and continuing with his meal. We're serious, she'd said, Do you not care, she'd asked, Say something, she'd demanded. 'Bout time, and I'd assumed you'd started doing that a long time ago, and Mmm were all the responses she got.
So maybe dynamics wouldn't change too much then. She'll never admit the sigh that left her lips as she started on her breakfast was one of relief.
She hadn't really wanted to tell anyone... but he had been right, this was their family, and they would be there for them whether they approved of the new relationship or not.
..
She hadn't really wanted to tell anyone.
The best thing about having limited friends was that there weren't a million people she suddenly had to explain the change in relationship to. In fact, after being forced to tell their little "family" she hadn't really planned on letting anyone else know. Who else was there to tell anyway?
When Delores retired from Happy Time, she'd made sure the woman got more than some crappy themed office party. It was the least she could do. The bar they'd rented out for the occasion was packed full of Happy Time workers and their friends and families. "Free beer" tended to bring in a lot of plus-ones.
He'd juggled her assignments for the day, he knew how special Delores was to her. She'd thought her only problem would be to not let Delores catch her drinking (damn that stupid AA excuse) but then some scumbag she didn't know decided to make her his goal of the evening. He'd been easy to shrug off the first couple times, but he became more persistent as he had more to drink. She remained as polite as humanly possible, she didn't want to ruin Delores's big night, she'd hate herself for it for the rest of her undead life.
The bastard was leaning against the bar, insisting he buy her another drink, Whattaya say you and me go somewhere a little more... private? As if his persistence wasn't enough, he had to be cliche and cheesy as hell too. She had been dangerously close to tossing her drink in his lap (best behavior be dammed) when she felt an arm slide around around her shoulders, a chest press into her side, breath puff past her ear, Can I help you, sir? The man looked confused a moment, she took the opportunity to turn and kiss the lips behind her.
She'd caught him off guard, but he recovered quickly. Public displays of affection were usually something she avoided like the plague. He'd understood, given her space, let her set the pace. He couldn't deny the happy thrill that raced through him at the sudden change of tactics, What was that about? She turned back to grin cheekily at the man who now stood gaping pathetically. The creep didn't stick around for much longer once she turned her head back to continue what she'd started.
They broke apart breathlessly, matching smiles on their faces. Her head cocked to the side, she studied him softly, Y'know, this isn't as weird as I thought it'd be. He smirked in response, tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear. Her next question echoed from behind him as it spilled from her lips, What are you doing here? They turned to face the second voice. Delores stood behind him with a big grin on her face, Did Millie tell you I was retiring? He smiled softly and turned again to the woman in his arms, She did. Delores took in their close proximity, their content smiles, their easy comfort. A smile of her own bloomed brightly across her face, she rested her hand lightly against his arm and with a knowing wink flounced away to greet whoever had just walked through the door.
She hadn't really wanted to tell anyone... but she couldn't really find it in her to be upset when he spent the rest of the evening with his arm around her shoulders, proudly proclaiming she was his.
..
She hadn't really wanted to tell anyone.
They'd started accompanying one another on their reaps if both of them happened to be free at the time. She found herself growing rather fond of this new habit. Especially if one of their reaps was scheduled after a long day at Happy Time.
They had been walking through the park. He was telling her some story about some old practice of some old culture, she was throwing in the occasional sarcastic remark, trying to rile him up. She hadn't really been paying attention to where they were going, too busy trying to keep him from gaining the upper hand in their banter. He'd pulled her to a stop, growling a playful warning about her smart mouth into her ear. A school bell rang from somewhere behind her, she brushed off his warning with a teasing whisper.
It had all happened rather quickly. Some kid, eager for the weekend, hadn't been paying attention as he flew out of the parking lot and straight into the girl who had hesitated in the middle of the crosswalk to check her phone. It hadn't been a very pretty sight.
The girl's soul moved on rather quickly, they stood for a moment longer observing the chaos. She eventually slipped her hand into his, tugging on it gently, encouraging him to start walking. He'd turned to her with a soft smile, like she'd pulled him out of some deeper thoughts that he'd been drowning in, his free hand coming to up to cup her cheek. Every so often he just needed to kiss her senseless. She never complained. They broke away with teasing grins on their faces when she noticed the girl across the street watching them through the sea of people bustling around the accident.
She'd always wondered if Reggie knew who she was. She'd caught her gazing thoughtfully a few times when their paths crossed accidentally (and not so accidentally).
He'd sensed her change in mood and turned to follow her gaze across the street. Reggie smiled hesitantly. His own smile tugged softly at his lips as he recaptured her hand and winked at Reggie. His voice was quiet against her ear, Come on. She found herself smiling as he started walking in the direction they'd come from. She waved a slow hand at Reggie.
She hadn't really wanted to tell anyone... but she suddenly realized maybe it wasn't so bad to share what she'd found with the people she loves.