Original prompt: bit dot ly / 2guUxhM
"I don't know, Esme…" Carlisle whined just before he stumbled over a rock.
Esme stopped, sighed, and turned around. She was going to say something snarky, but the feeling faded as she watched him remove wet leaves off his knees. She decided it was time to bring out the big guns.
She slowly walked back to him, set her backpack down, and trailed her hands up his chest before finally landing behind his neck.
"What's wrong, baby?" she cooed, lightly kissing his neck.
He smiled a little, knowing he'd never say no to her but didn't want to remind her as her mouth traveled up to his ear.
"Is this really how you want to spend today? A haunted cabin?"
He pushed his glasses up before wrapping his arms around her waist.
"First," she began, planting a loud kiss on his lips, "we don't know it's haunted. It's deserted. If I'm lucky, it'll be haunted. Second, how would you rather spend Senior Skip Day?"
"I don't know." He shrugged. "We could've borrowed Lizzy's car and driven up to Seattle for the day."
"Baby, we go to Seattle all the time."
Esme froze and pulled back to look him in the eye.
"Wait. Are you really upset we didn't go to Seattle with Kate and Garrett? I thought you didn't really care where we went—"
"Whoa whoa whoa. I'm not mad. I'm not, okay?"
He smiled at her and kissed her forehead to make his point.
"Then why are you so hesitant to be out here?"
"Honestly?"
"Honestly."
"I'm…" He sighed and looked away before mumbling something.
"What…?"
"I'm afraid of ghosts. There. I'm afraid of ghosts, okay? They creep me out, Esme. They used to be alive, and now they're dead. Dead! I can't deal with that. Oh, God. My anxiety goes nuts just thinking about it."
"Okay…"
"And then there are the ones that can touch you. Have you seen that shit? They can scratch you and pull on your clothes and push you down the stairs. And don't even get me started on the whole possession thing, Esme."
"Carlisle…"
She stared at him with wide eyes, surprised at his outburst. He never said one word about his fear when she mentioned the cabin to him. She didn't realize he was scared, let alone that scared.
He crouched down and rubbed his face.
"I'm sorry. It's stupid, I know, but…"
"But nothing. I'm sorry, baby. I didn't know. I wish you would've said something."
"You were really excited, and I didn't wanna take that away from you."
Esme crouched down to his level and pulled his hands away from his face.
"Let's go home, okay? Mom and Dad are at work and then going out to dinner, so we'll be all by ourselves for hours. We'll order in pizza and watch Lord of the Rings."
Carlisle contemplated the idea. It was cold and drizzling, and nothing would've made him happier than to just be with Esme as they huddled under a sea of blankets on the couch while she tried to explain the plot to him. Again.
But he just couldn't do it. She'd been talking about this cabin for weeks. She'd made a map and packed snacks. She'd worn her lucky beanie.
"No."
"No?"
"No." He shook his head. "I can suck this up. I know this important to you, so… I can do this."
He blew out a heavy breath and stood up, bringing Esme with him.
"Baby, let's just go. You don't have to."
"I want to," he said, taking her face in his hands. "You're more important."
She leaned in and gave him one hell of a kiss. It knocked his glasses askew and took his breath away.
"Are you sure?" she asked after she pulled away.
When he didn't answer right away, Esme leaned in to give him another one of those kisses. She ran her hands through his hair and pulled just enough to make him moan into her mouth.
"Are you sure?" she repeated, panting a little.
"Yeah…" His eyes fluttered open, and he adjusted his glasses. "I'll need one of those later on, though. For motivation, I mean. Holy crap…"
Esme giggled a little before kissing him sweetly. He exhaled loudly, straightened his shoulders, and picked up her backpack. She put it on and took his hand, pulling him ever so gently.
"You can have all my kisses, baby."