Hola! Here is my (late) submission for MayaLala's 5 words prompt! Just a little something that popped into my head, not long at all. I am still working on "The Beginning!" The next chapter will be out sometime next week!
Enjoy!
It was 6pm when the lights went out.
Jess looked up from Nick's laptop and glared at the darkened room. True, it was still early evening, but the storm raging outside made it look closer to midnight. Jess looked back down at the screen, now the only light in the room, and squinted at the brightness. "No Network Connection" glared back at her, taunting her. She slammed the lid down. All she wanted to do was have a relaxing evening in, do some internet shopping for Nick's upcoming birthday, but the wind and the rain outside had different ideas.
Jess uncurled herself from the couch and got up carefully, but still managed to knock her leg against the coffee table. She winced in pain as she reached down to rub the sore spot on her shin. She grimaced as she reached back for the laptop, opening it, and using the light to guide her to her room, preventing further injury.
Once in her bedroom, Jess threw open her closet door with her free hand, and bent down, setting the laptop near her side. She reached out, grasping the handle of a drawer to her right and pulled it open. Inside she found her stash of candles and pulled out a red one, holding it to her nose and smelling the sweet raspberry scent that came off of it. Jess hardly ever lit her candles anymore, Nick hated them, calling them a "fire hazard waiting to happen," or exclaiming "Jess, are you trying to burn the whole damn loft to the ground?!" Jess had figured it was easier to put them away then to start an unnecessary fight.
Finding a lighter at the bottom of the drawer, Jess lit the candle she held, and closed Nick's laptop in the process. She pulled out a few more of the candles and stood up. She held the lit one in her hand, juggling the others as she made her way back to the living room. She lit the rest and placed them on the coffee table, the dinner table, and the kitchen. She hated when it was dark in the loft. Even when they were all asleep, Jess would leave a light on, creating a warm glow in the living room. Satisfied with her work she went back to her room and lit a few more for the bathroom and her bedroom.
Nobody was expected home until later, which meant Jess had the whole loft to herself. In a blackout. With the rain slashing against the window and constant flashes of light and rumbles of thunder. She was not a fan of thunderstorms, they freaked her out when she was little and she just never got over it. Jess debated grabbing her cell phone and calling Nick, but she didn't want to bother him, he was under enough stress at work having become the manager a few weeks ago, and didn't need a panicky girlfriend calling him crying about rain.
A hot shower was what Jess needed, a hot, relaxing shower in the candlelight. That was the perfect idea. Jess made her way to the bathroom, throwing off her dress, turning the knob to hot, and stepping under the spray.
The creaking started as soon as she turned the shower off. Jess peaked out from the curtain when she heard it, eyes wide and fearful. "Hello?" she called out. "Nick? Winston? Schmidt?" no one answered. Jess reached out and grabbed her rob, wrapping it around herself as she tiptoed to the bathroom door, peering around the corner. "Anyone home?" she called again to no response, only seeing the flickering of the candles waving back at her. When she had lit them earlier, they had felt comforting, but now they were ominous, leaving eery shadows dancing on the walls.
Jess ran to her room and slammed the door behind her, quickly changing into one of the many pajama outfits. She looked towards the door as the creaking started again. She clutched her upper arms, and bit her lip as she stared at the door again. "Stop being such a chicken and just go check it out. Come on Day, you can do this. Put on your big girl panties." she mumbled to herself for courage.
Jess opened her door slowly and peered out again. Nothing. She opened it all the way and cautiously tiptoed towards the living room. The candles had burned down a bit and she could see the wax starting to drip off of the side. Schmidt was going to have a field day with those stains, but she would worry about that later. Jess heard the crek again and swiveled toward the sound. Nothing. She hated this. She glared at the spot she thought she heard it coming from when she heard another creak from behind her. "Dammit! Cut it out!" She shouted at the empty room, immediately feeling foolish. Maybe she should just go to bed and forget the whole thing. It was early, but it wasn't like she was going to get much done. Plus, she was pretty tired. The kids had been restless and irritating at work, it being a Friday.
As Jess lay down in bed, throwing the comforter over her and closing her eyes, she heard it again. The small creek just as a flash of lightning gleamed through her window. This wasn't going to work. Not one damn bit. She cursed under her breath and threw the blanket right back off of her and rubbed her eyes with her palms. Creak. Jess looked up again. Dammit.
Jess didn't feel safe. That was the problem. She hopped out of bed and made her way to her closet again, riffling threw more drawers until she found an old windchime. She untangled the string and studied it. This would have to do, she thought. As Jess made her way back to the living room, a roll of yarn caught her eye and she snatched it, a pair of scissors, and some duct tape.
When she was finished, she came back into her room and threw the covers over he once more as thunder rumbled in the distance and rain slashed against the window. Jess felt her eyes get heavy and she drifted off…
At 2:30, Jess heard the windchimes and her eyes flew open. She reached out quickly for her phone, noticing it was still an hour an a half before she expected anyone home. Jess reached into her nightstand and pulled out the pepperspray that Nick had given her weeks earlier. "I don't want anything happening to you, ok?" "Nick, I'll be fine." "Just… humor me, ok." Jess had rolled her eyes, taking it out of his hands. "Fine."
She was suddenly grateful that Nick had given her the spray as she listened for footsteps, barely hearing any over the storm, which seemed to have intensified. She quietly got out of bed and pressed herself into the wall next to her door when she heard the sound of someone falling, followed by a familiar voice.
"OW! DAMMIT! WHAT THE HELL?!"
Oh crap, Nick.
Jess threw the door open and ran down the hallway to see Nick leaning against the wall, clutching his knee, a small bump forming on his head. "Oh my god, Nick! Are you alright?" She said as she dropped to her knees next to him, bringing her small hands up to examine the bump on his head. "I'm so sorry!" She whispered frantically as she ran her hands over the rest of his face checking for injuries.
Nick swatted her away. "I'm fine, I'm fine." He looked back, noticing the yarn. "What the hell is that doing there?" He asked.
Jess looked down at her hands as she twisted her fingers in her lap. "I umm… I kept hearing this noise and it freaked me out and… I booby trapped the apartment."
Nick looked at her, turtle face in place. "You booby trapped the apartment?" He asked, trying to make sense of what he was hearing. "So you used the yarn as…"
"Trip wire." She said looking back at the hallway entrance. She had strung the yarn from the iron door to the wall, taping it in place.
Nick looked at her, shaking his head. "And the wind chime?"
"Hung it on the door. Kind of like a security alarm."
"Jess. If you were freaked, why didn't you just call me?" He asked, rubbing his forehead and wincing as he felt the bump.
"I didn't want to bother you." She twisted her mouth. "You have so much going on right now and I didn't want to be the panicky girlfriend who freaks out over a little noise…" she trailed off looking at the ground once more.
Nick placed his index finger under her chin, forcing her to look at him. "Jess, you are never a bother. In fact, things like this definitely falls under the boyfriend category." He gave her a little smile. "No need to booby trap the loft." He laughed a little.
Jess smiled at him. "You're not mad?" She asked.
Nick shook his head. "Nah. But you are SO going to make this up to me." He said as he got off of the floor, helping Jess to her feet in the process.
"Oh I am?" She asked, smirking at Nick as they entered her bedroom.
Nick pulled her to him. "Yup. Shirt. Off. Now. Make it snappy." he said as he began to nibble down the side of her neck.
"So demanding, Mr. Miller." Jess tilted her head to the side to give him easier access arching her body into him. It was amazing how safe she felt in his presence. She forgot the creaking from earlier. Hell, she almost forgot how to breathe.
"Mmm… I…." Suddenly there was another shout from the living room.
"WHAT IS GOING ON HERE? THERE ARE WAX STAINS EVERYWHERE! JESSICA, WHAT HAVE I…. OW! MY LEG! MY PERFECTLY TONED LEG!"
Jess and Nick broke apart, grimacing at each other.
"Maybe we should go help Schmidt." Jess said, looking towards her door.
"Yeah, but we are not finished here!" Nick grabbed her hand as he opened the door.
"Not by a long shot."