Title: Fun with Feathers
Rating: PG-13 for some mild language and (somewhat) sexual content.
Summary: A rainy evening in Dharma leaves James and Juliet feeling bored and restless. How will they entertain themselves? Nothing beats the simple joy of a pillow fight.
Disclaimer: I do not own Lost or the song Walking on Sunshine by Aly and AJ.
A/N: I clearly shouldn't go anywhere near a computer when I have work to do. I always end up getting distracted and writing something pointless. Haha. Well anyways, gotta give some credit to Sturtles for helping me come up with the idea. I hope you like it. :)
I used to think maybe you love me, now baby I'm sure.
I'm walking on sunshine (whoa oh).
I'm walking on sunshine (whoa oh).
I'm walking on sunshine (whoa oh).
And don't it feel good?
Juliet had just finished her shift at the motor pool and was heading home. The sun had been shining brightly all afternoon but now it decided to hide behind the clouds. She sighed, hoping it would clear up before tonight. Horace and Amy had been planning a barbeque party for weeks now and, despite her best efforts, Juliet found herself beginning to anticipate the big event.
She'd decided to walk home, wanting to enjoy the nice weather. Besides, the Dharma garage wasn't that far away from the house she shared with James. But now a cool breeze was blowing right through her, ruffling the leaves on the trees. She shivered slightly, wishing she'd thought to bring a coat. Of course, the previous weather had given no indication of the unexpected drop in temperature.
The first drops of rain began to fall as she passed by the cafeteria. She wasn't that far away from shelter now and all around her, people were shrieking and diving for cover as the onslaught of falling water increased. She quickened her pace, reaching the porch just as the real downpour began. As she stood dripping at the door, a strong sense of disappointment coursed through her.
There's no way Horace is going to have the barbeque now, she thought sadly. Suddenly James came racing through the precipitation, sprinting to the shelter of the porch. "Howdy darlin'," he greeted her after shaking out his hair. "It's really comin' down now, ain't it?"
Juliet chuckled, taking in his drenched appearance and knowing she didn't look much better. "I'm going to dry off," she said, hinting he do the same. "And try not to drip on the floor," she called after him as she stepped inside.
Making her way to the bathroom, Juliet slipped out of her soaked jumpsuit. She was tempted to just dry off and find some clean clothes, but she realized she was shivering slightly so she took a warm shower instead.
When she emerged a few minutes later, a towel wrapped around her waist and her face flushed from the heat that was trapped in the bathroom, she was feeling much better. And after pulling on some dry clothes and yanking a brush through her hair, she headed to the kitchen where she found James sitting at the table.
He was sipping a cup of coffee and there was a fresh mug for Juliet placed on the counter. "Thanks," she said as she mixed in some milk and sugar. Taking a tentative sip, she smiled as the liquid warmed her insides. The shower had heated her skin and now she was thoroughly warm both inside and out.
"Guess we ain't goin' to no barbeque now, huh?" James muttered when she sat down beside him.
"Yeah," Juliet replied, surprised how much both of them had been looking forward to the simple get-together.
"Well damn, now what are we supposed to do tonight?" he wondered, glaring out the window. Not willing to let the gray skies put a damper on her previously cheery mood, Juliet quickly came up with an idea. "We have a party of her own," she stated simply. Abandoning the coffee, she rifled through the fridge, emerging triumphantly with a bottle of whiskey.
At the surprised expression James was wearing, she chuckled. "Amy gave this to me a while ago. I've been saving it for a special occasion."
"How the hell didja manage to hide it in the fridge?" he asked in amazement. "I'm lookin' for food in there every day."
"I'm a master at keeping things hidden if I want them to be," she muttered darkly, then winked to show she was joking. Mostly.
"Well don't just stand there, Blondie. Are we gonna get this party started or not?" James demanded, jumping up to grab some glasses from the cupboard.
Juliet poured some of the amber-coloured liquid into each cup and he raised his high. "Let's make a toast, whaddya say, Sweetheart?"
"What are we going to toast to on this lovely evening," Juliet asked sarcastically.
"How 'bout life?" James countered and she shook her head, surrendering to the absurdity of his suggestion.
"To life," she repeated, clinking her glass against his. They smiled at each other over the rim of their cups, then at the same time they both tilted their heads back and drank.
A while later and the bottle was half-empty. Juliet was feeling a bit tipsy and everything was surrounded in a warm glow, but she kept telling herself she was still fairly clearheaded.
The rain was still coming down hard outside, it echoed loudly off the roof, though the sound was a comfort now instead of an annoyance. Juliet lifted her glass slightly to toast the weather.
And as time wore on, the excuses she and James came up with to drink became more and more ridiculous. They ranged from cheers for Dharma to celebrating their "bein' from the future 'n knowin' more than the rest o' these poor bastards" as James had put it.
Finally Juliet decided she'd had enough and she got up to put the bottle back in the fridge, stumbling slightly. James laughed and she turned to glare at him. "Hey, it's not me who's off-balance," she defended. "The rest of the world is just tilted."
He puzzled over that for a moment, then he laughed. "Thank god for gravity then, huh?" he teased.
Juliet raised her hands in defeat. "I've had enough of this. I'm going to bed," she informed him, much to his surprise.
"It's eight o'clock, Shortcake. Are ya' really tired already?"
She shrugged. "Not much else to do." Then she began to make her way unsteadily down the hall. But when she reached the bedroom, she spied the pillows on the bed and a wicked smile crossed her face. "Come here James!" she called out to him sweetly. "Care to join me?"
He heard Juliet's voice drift into the kitchen, dripping with fake innocence. He wondered what she was up to. That's women for ya', always schemin' somethin', he thought but eventually curiosity got the best of him.
As he walked into the room he shared with Juliet, something soft connected with his face and the world went white. "What the hell?" he grumbled, pushing the object away.
When his vision cleared, he saw Juliet standing beside him, grinning hugely, a slightly dented pillow in her hands.
"What do ya' think you're doin', girlie?" he asked, confused.
She laughed happily. "Haven't you ever been to a slumber party before?"
"Oh yeah. Me 'n my friends used ta' have 'em all the time. Did I forget ta' mention that I'm secretly gay?" he replied scathingly. At Juliet's non-comprehending look, he sighed. "Hell no, I ain't ever been ta' any goddamn sleepover. What the hell kinda man do ya' think I am?"
"That is sad, James. Didn't you ever crash any of your girlfriend's parties when you were in high school?" She got a far-away expression on her face for a moment and James wondered what memories she was thinking of.
"Believe it or not, I wasn't exactly the type o' guy ta' have a girlfriend in high school," he informed her. "I had girls alright, but never just one at a time. 'N that meant I usually wasn't welcome as a party-crasher." He probably shouldn't be telling her this, but the alcohol was slowly taking affect and he was just spewing out words, not thinking about what they would mean to Juliet.
She frowned slightly, and James thought he saw her eyes fill with pity for a moment. But even as intoxicated as she was, she still knew better than to feel sorry for him. He'd made it clear many times how he felt about that.
But then Juliet shook her head and quickly skipped over to the bed. "Well then I'll show you how it's done," she said, tossing him a pillow.
James grimaced. "Hell, give Blondie a few drinks 'n she's as giddy as a goddamn girl scout." But he had to admit, he was enjoying this playful side of her. It was a part of her personality that he didn't get to see very often.
Suddenly she came racing towards him and, before he could defend himself, she wacked him in the head with her pillow. "And that's how it's done," she said smugly. As James stood there, making no move to retaliate, she pouted. "Now you're supposed to try and hit me," she instructed.
For a moment James debated with himself whether or not he should play along. "Ah, why not?" he mumbled to himself. The truth was, as a young boy he'd always wondered why girls found sleepovers and pillow fights so interesting. Now he was finally going to get the chance to find out.
His head wasn't the clearest either, but he couldn't see a reason not to. It's not like anyone would see them.
So he smirked slyly, then smacked her with his own pillow. She shrieked with delight and ran away before he could hit her again. Chasing her around the house, James began to see why this was such a popular event at slumber parties. It was actually kind of fun...
"Gotcha!" he shouted triumphantly, cornering her between the couch and the wall of the front room.
"No!" she screamed as he brought the pillow down against her head. She fell onto the couch, laughing hysterically. Briefly James worried that he'd been to rough, but then he saw the glint of revenge in her eye and he raised his hands to defend himself.
But it was too late. She hit him straight in the chest and, to the surprise of both of them, the pillow burst open on impact. It scattered feathers everywhere, many of them settling in James' hair or clinging to his shirt.
At that moment, the front door opened to reveal Horace, Amy, Miles and Jin standing in the doorway. They all looked equally amused and astonished.
"Hello Jim," Horace greeted him, fighting to hold back his laughter. "Sorry to barge in like this. But we thought that since we couldn't have the barbeque outside, we'd have it in the rec hall instead. When you two didn't show up, we realized you didn't get the message. So we thought we'd bring the party to you."
Then the entire situation became too much for him and he burst out laughing. That set everyone else off and soon they were all holding their sides, struggling to get their emotions under control.
"But it looks like you didn't need us after all," Miles commented wryly. "You guys were having a little party of your own..." he trailed off doubtfully, taking in James' feather clad-form once more. "Though I'm not even sure I want to know."
"Aw, shut up," James retorted. An awkward silence settled upon the house, broken only by Juliet's occasional giggles and James' sneezing. The feathers were irritating his nose and he wished he could just go and wash them off.
"So...what were you guys doing?" Horace asked tentatively.
James snorted. "We were bored," he said by way of an explanation.
Miles raised an eyebrow. "Well when I have nothing to do I sure don't dress up as a chicken for entertainment..."
Jin, who hadn't been paying much attention to the conversation, suddenly spoke up. Miles and Phil had been teaching him jokes earlier at the indoor barbeque and now seemed like the perfect time to try one out.
"Why did the chicken...cross the road?" he asked. Everyone turned to stare at him. "What? I...get joke wrong?"
Miles shook his head wryly. "You still have so much to learn, my friend. And tomorrow guess who will be teaching you about the wonders of a pillow fight?"
James groaned and stomped away, mumbling about "no goddamn privacy, just storm right on in why don'tcha." Horace and Amy looked at each other, trying to decide whether they should leave or stay.
Suddenly Juliet stared at them alertly, sniffing the air. "Is that steak I smell?" she asked curiously. When Amy nodded, Juliet stood up in excitement. "Well then come on in and join the party. I was just showing James what a slumber party is like."
Miles smirked. "Damn, I wish the sleepovers I'd gone to were like this..." Horace glanced at him, surprised. "Oh yeah, I was quite a popular man back in the day," he admitted, thinking to himself, Or I will be. Fifteen years from now.
Jin turned to him questioningly as they walked inside. "Pillow fight is...attacking chickens with pillows?"
"What? God no, where'd you get that from?" Miles wondered.
"James is...dressed like chicken. And Juliet hit him with pillow," he explained, still confused.
"No, don't pay attention to them," Miles told him. "This is just their own...weird and slightly disturbing version of foreplay."
"Ah," Jin nodded, smiling slightly. Miles wondered if he even knew what foreplay meant. If not, then his reaction was nearly as disturbing as Juliet and James' little game.
"Whatever," he said to himself, coming inside and accepting the towel Juliet offered him. Sometimes you just had to go with the flow, even if that meant helping to sweep pillow feathers off the floor and not asking any more questions about it. Just another day in Dharma... he thought ruefully. At least it was entertaining.
~*~*~*~*~
The answer to Jin's question is, for anyone who doesn't know: the chicken crossed the road to get to the alternate universe where zebras are white with black stripes, elephants are purple and the survivors of Lost were all killed by Old Smokey. Okay, never mind, it's too horrible. Let's just say the chicken crossed to road to get to the pizza restaurant on the other side. Haha, I've just throughly confused myself and now I'm hungry.
Anyway, I will try and update Remembering sometime this week too. In the meantime, I hope you enjoyed the thoughts from my exceptionally random brain. Feel free to leave a review, I love them like the writers of Lost love to sit around and laugh at how absolutley confusing but addicting their show is... Wow, I'm going to stop now, I promise.
Thanks again for reading. :)