Xperiences
Disclaimer: I don't own anything.
Summary: Little stand-alone ThunderBlink one shots that became too long to fit into my other collection, "Variations on a Theme", but are too short to be considered a complete story.
Chapter 1
Clarice was fuming as she strode to John's office.
"Take down the decorations, he says," she mimicked the man's voice with an irritated expression. "That insensitive son of a bitch. Who does he think he is? The fucking Grinch?"
People were literally jumping out of her way but she was paying no attention. Her focus was solely concentrated on giving John a piece of her mind.
She'd just found little Tommy whimpering behind a couch, his older sister sitting next to him, looking disappointed.
It turned out that John had told the kids, who'd been preparing for Christmas for weeks, to stop fooling around with their silly diversion. There were other, more important things to concentrate on, he said. Taking the little boy into her arms, she looked around for Caitlin. They were both helping the children prepare for the holidays. She didn't have to look for too long. She found her in a busy conversation with some of the older kids, no doubt facing the same problem as Clarice was.
Suddenly hot anger filled her. How dare he trample on the children's enthusiasm? Had he even noticed how happy the kids were, for once not dwelling on all the turmoil around them.
Her momentum, however, slowly ebbed as she neared the hole that John called his office. Even from a distance the man looked exhausted, permanent worry-lines settling on his face.
Clarice felt a momentary pang of guilt – the last thing he needed was for someone to berate him for doing his job. It didn't change the fact, though, that what he'd done was just simply wrong… and irrational. Most probably due to the stress he'd been under lately, Clarice reasoned as she came to a stop by his door.
"Kids told me that Grinch stole Christmas," she started with considerably less bravado and more teasing than she had originally planned.
John sighed tiredly, apparently not in the mood. Too bad, Clarice shook her head slightly and walked up to his desk, perching herself on the edge of it, facing him. She was there on a mission and she would not back down: she had to get Christmas back for the kids. She would not let his grumpiness ruin the children's holiday.
"Want to tell me why's the sour mood?" She crossed her arms on her chest.
"I'm not in a sour mood," John denied, leaning back in his chair. Clarice raised an eyebrow. "I just don't think that the children – and anybody, really – should be running around like they have no care in the world and making the HQ look like it's the damned North Pole in the process. Just because it's Christmas, the treat is still out there. The kids should really act accordingly."
"On the contrary. What kind of joy do they have these days? Let them have this, John. They need it. And you need it, too."
"I certainly don't need this madness."
"Of course, you do." Clarice grinned at him, pushing away from the desk. "A little Christmas spirit would make you feel better. I promise."
"I really don't nee…" Whatever he had wanted to say died on his lips as Clarice sealed them with hers. It took the wind out of his sails all right.
For a moment he was frozen and Clarice feared that she'd crossed a line but then John's hands grabbed her waist and pulled her into his lap as he reciprocated the unexpected kiss.
"Whatever was that for?" John breathed still surprised when they parted. Clarice noticed, though, that his hands did not move from her behind.
"I saw a mistletoe in the doorway." She smiled nonchalantly.
"There's no mistletoe in the doorway."
"Maybe I saw it somewhere else," she shrugged before kissing him again. "Does it really matter?"
"Guess not."
"So are you feeling the Christmas spirit yet?" Clarice grinned at him.
"Maybe..." he looked contemplative for a second before he turned mischevious eyes on her. "I need a little more coaxing."
"Anything for the kids."