A/N this is a sequel to It Started With a Text. If you haven't already read it, I recommend you do before reading this as events of this story may not make sense without it.
These characters sadly do not belong to me, I'm just enjoying borrowing them again for a while. I hope you enjoy this story.
Future Days
"Jess! Get off me!" Rory screamed, shoving his body away from her as she felt her own body connecting with the floor boards beneath her back. The room was just a swiftly filled by the sounds of Jess's laughter as the air rushed out of the now punctured air bed beneath them.
Jess continued to laugh as he watched Rory's face turn from startled to indignant then finally split into a grin of her own as they lay back together on the deflated mattress.
"So, I guess we should go and buy an actual bed today," Jess pulled her closer to him, cuddling her to his side.
"I can't believe I let you convince me this would do in the first place!" Rory jabbed at his chest with an accusatory finger.
Jess just smiled at her indignation and kissed the tip of her finger.
"Hey, it wasn't so bad. It's served us pretty well. Besides, there were practical reasons to our sleeping arrangement if I recall correctly," he reminded her. "We got everything else you wanted."
"We wanted," she corrected him.
"Yes, everything we wanted," he agreed.
"So riddle me this, how was our bed not at the top of the priority list? I mean, it gets more use than anything else in the apartment," Rory sat up, the hard floor beginning to make her back ache.
"You make a good point but at the time we could either get the bed or everything else, we couldn't afford both. Luckily that job of yours has been putting that fancy money stuff into your account and I just got my monthly check from Truncheon so I guess you could say the timing of this puncture was perfect. Well, almost perfect. Might have been nice to finish what we'd started first," Jess raised a hopeful eyebrow.
"I don't have to be in the office until after lunch today so let's go buy a bed now and finish what we started later," Rory bargained.
Jess was up and heading for the shower before Rory had even finished her sentence.
"You're too easy to bribe Mariano!" she called after him.
"Only because you're impossible to refuse," Jess agreed. "Come on. Showering's quicker when done together."
"Be bad, but at least don't be a liar, a deceiver!" Rory quoted Tolstoy to him, all the while following him into the bathroom, knowing full well there'd be nothing efficient about it at all.
"Whatever our fate is or may be, we have made it and do not complain of it," he quoted in response before pulling Rory under the water with him, wrapping his arms around her waist as he looked deep into her eyes before kissing her.
They stayed under the stream until the water ran cold then towelled themselves off and readied themselves for a morning of bed shopping.
"But I really liked the other one," Rory pleaded.
"But this one is just as nice and on sale," Jess reasoned.
"Don't you want us to have the perfect bed? This is not the perfect bed Jess. This bed wishes it was as pretty and supportive as the magical bed over there by the window. It aspires to be that bed when it grows up. We can not settle for second best here, this is the most important decision of our relationship! Can you really justify that based on a monetary value?" Rory continued, adding a never-fail pout for good measure.
"A magic bed huh? To be honest, I think the magic depends on the occupants not the bed itself. They're both comfortable, they look almost identical to me but this one has a more enticing price tag," he pointed out practically.
"But that one is pretty and blue and look at all the pillows! It'll be like sleeping on a cloud!" Rory countered.
"You do realise that is just for display right?" Jess asked, not quite convinced she did.
"Of course I do," Rory continued to pout.
Jess walked over to the other, more magical, bed and picked up a pillow, squishing it between his hands. He lay back on the bed, enjoying the way the springs supported his body in pretty much exactly the same way the other, cheaper bed's springs also did. After a few moments consideration he let out a sigh.
"Okay Rory, I have a compromise. What if we get the bed that's on sale and with the money we save we can buy the bedding and pillows from this bed?" Jess suggested.
"Really? We can really get all of this?" Rory flopped down onto the bed beside him, sending pillows flying as as she landed.
"If it's what you really want," Jess agreed.
"Well then, I think we've found our new bed!" Rory announced excitedly.
With opportunistic timing, the salesman they'd shooed away earlier suddenly reappeared by their side.
"So I see you've decided to go with this one?" he asked.
"Actually, no," Jess pointed to the sale section. "We're going to take this bedding but we're buying that bed. Also, we were wondering how early it could be delivered - we don't want to be sleeping on the floor tonight."
"I'm sure we can arrange something to prevent that," the salesman assured them.
Rory arrived home from work, kicked her shoes off in the hall and dropped her keys and briefcase off in the lounge before heading into the kitchen in search of the source of the aroma tickling her taste buds. Jess looked up from his laptop as she walked in and smiled.
"Perfect timing, dinner is just about ready," he nodded his head toward the oven and the lasagne bubbling away behind the glass door.
Rory crossed the small eat in kitchen and plonked herself in Jess's lap, wrapping her arms around him.
"Long day?" he asked as she slumped against him.
"Short but tedious," she sighed. "I'm really happy here, with you, even Providence is succeeding in charming me but I'm still having trouble settling into this job."
"Give it time, it's barely been a month, you're still settling in," Jess gently reminded her, rubbing her back.
"I know. I guess in the back of my mind I feel like I took a step backward by taking this job. Maybe I gave up on the campaign trail too easily," she spoke her thoughts aloud.
"Do you really feel that way?" Jess sat up straight in the chair, shifting Rory's weight on his legs, suddenly feeling uneasy.
"Yes, I mean no. I mean, honestly Jess? I don't know."
"I didn't make you choose this job Rory," Jess reminded her.
"Oh Jess, I know that. That isn't what this is about. I love you. I want to be with you. Is that part of the reason why I chose this job? Absolutely. But I was struggling in other ways too, not just being away from you. I think I've just spent so much time chasing a dream that I'm not so sure I even want anymore."
"You're allowed to change your mind Rory."
"I haven't changed my mind about you," she reassured him, kissing the top of his head.
"Good to know. How hungry are you?" Jess asked, changing the subject suddenly.
"I had a muffin with my coffee on the way home so I'm good to wait a while before dinner, although it does smell amazing in here," Rory answered.
Jess prompted Rory to stand then stood up beside her, stepping over to turn the oven temperature down to low before returning to her side.
"Follow me," he held out his hand for her to take and led the way down the short hallway to their bedroom.
"Oh wow! It's gorgeous!" Rory squealed as she took in their new bed, throw pillows and all. "I can't believe I forgot this was happening today! It looks beautiful Jess." She paused mid ramble to kiss him appreciatively before continuing to discover the other changes to their previously bland room. "Oh and the fairy lights! I love them! Oh Jess, how did you find the time to do all this?"
"Didn't take that long," Jess shrugged off her praise.
He was happy to see her smiling, her mood changed from the one she'd arrived home with. This was the way he always wanted her to be but he knew there were always going to be ups and downs and he would try his best to love and support her through both.
"Shall we christen it before or after dinner?" Rory smiled coyly at him from the opposite side of the bed.
"Both works for me."
They met in the middle and made a mess of the magical bed then after they'd fed their other appetite they returned to see what else it could withstand.
A/N quotes in italics are borrowed from 'Anna Karenina' by Leo Tolstoy