AN: Hello all! This is my first Daria story - I got the complete series for Christmas and it re-kindled my love for the show. This story was inspired by a picture from Deviant Art, the link to which can be found on my profile. Lastly, to Glenn Eichler I say: Yes, I was watching the show you were making, just from a different perspective.
Pair: Daria&Trent
Set: Post Series, possible AU.
Spoilers: El zilcho.
Disclaimer: I own nothing.
Enjoy xx
Contractually Obligated
by Tricki
"Meth addicted monkey moms – next on Sick Sad World!" Proclaimed the Morgendorffer's television loudly. Daria was so engrossed in the show that she failed to notice someone descending the stairs, entering the lounge room and sitting beside her on the couch.
"Mmm. Comfy." Trent stated as he flopped onto his side, rested his head on Daria's lap and nuzzled against her legs. He was facing the TV, but his eyes were already sliding closed – he'd only had fifteen hours of sleep that day, the last three of which had been spent in her room. Daria had gotten to the stage where she no longer felt annoyed when he abandoned her to sleep.
"Excuse me?" Daria demanded, bemused at suddenly being procured as a pillow.
"Hey, Daria." He said, ignoring her actual question.
"Um, hey." She replied a little uneasily.
Trent twisted his head slightly and kissed her knee, uttering the word "relax".
"Sorry." She mumbled, and threaded her fingers lightly through his hair. "I'm just... kinda still not used to this." Her words jumbled with their pace.
Trent rolled onto his back and bent his knees, his feet resting on the couch and his knees pointing to the ceiling. Daria gave momentary consideration to how her mother would react if she saw, but her attention was quickly won back by Trent's eyes boring into hers as she gazed down at him.
"Daria, this is a standard clause in my girlfriend agreement."
Daria frowned – it was that or laugh. "What?"
"I get to sleep on your lap. It's a rule." He said in the slow, gravelly way that was completely idiosyncratic of Trent Lane.
"I can probably live with that." Daria conceded eventually, an uncharacteristic smile sneaking onto her face and curling the corners of her lips; the sight of it made Trent's own mouth pull into a lopsided grin. He reached up and toyed with her thick chestnut hair, before dropping his hand back onto his chest.
"What?" She asked, uncomfortable with him scrutinising her so intently. One of the things she had discovered about Trent was his power of observation. It made their relationship interesting, but also made Daria a little wary of being so well known.
"You look kind of... happy." He said teasingly.
"I think I am." She murmured, the light smile still gracing her countenance. "But if you tell anyone that, especially my mother, I will be forced to kill you. Violently. Then feed you to some of those meth addicted monkeys." She cautioned.
"Understood." Said Trent with a little salute.
After a long moment's comfortable silence, Trent pointed to his lips – their silent but unsubtle code for 'kiss me'. Daria bent forward and obliged. She hoped one day kissing Trent would no longer make her blush bright red.
"We're pretty good at that, y'know, for a brain and a starving musician." Trent joked with a mischievous twinkle in his eye.
"Yeah. That and procrastinating." Daria quipped.
Trent cough-laughed, and Daria couldn't help but shake her head at the familiarity of it.
"Hey Daria?" Trent said, more to catch her attention than anything else, before pointing from his eye, then his heart, then his girlfriend.
"Me too." Daria mumbled, reaching her index finger out to meet his. Jane had described the action as a one fingered high five, or a nod to Daria's {non-existent} ET fetish.
When their fingers parted, Trent shut his eyes and rolled back onto his side and fell asleep, while Daria toyed with his hair and watched Sick Sad World. Spending time with Trent was, without question, the best part of coming home for semester breaks.