A/N: So thankful to quesera1 for betaing this, and also for helping me figure out the title! You rock girl!
I hope you guys like this! It's inspired by a prompt I got into my ask.
Prompt: "This is probably a stupid af prompt but Jay and Erin at the grocery store. Who keeps putting junk food in the basket? Which one keeps riding the basket up and down the aisles? Do they each get a basket and race each other and then get in trouble? Who tries to be the more mature one and then ends up grabbing dino nuggets? I have lots of questions bc i can see them both doing all of those things"
His soft swear wakes her up from her pleasant daydream, in which the shirt he is presently wearing ends up on the floor. Curled up into a ball on the couch, she turns her head towards the kitchen. His expression warns her that it's not the best time for jokes.
"Need any help, babe?"
"No."
"Okay."
"You want to know why I don't need any help cooking?"
She ponders for a moment. "Because I'm a klutz and I'll probably break something?" She vividly remembers the last time she helped him cook, when she broke a bottle of oil, cut her foot on the shard of glass, and ended up distracting the cook—Jay—to the point where he burnt the chicken. But she remembers the distraction with much fondness, and the chicken tasted better than ever.
"Viable option. But no, it's because we actually have no food. None. Zero. There is an abandoned carrot in the fridge, three grains of rice and a suspicious takeout container that I just threw into the trash."
"It can't be that bad," she argues, uncurling from her position to join him in the kitchen. But it is that bad. Their cases have kept them so busy lately, they lived day to day, mostly on takeout. There was no time for regular activities, like laundry and grocery shopping, and since they spent most of the time in the bullpen, instead of their place, they hadn't realized just how bad it had gotten until their first day off, when Jay wanted a home-cooked meal, and she couldn't argue with that.
Now, she lets him drag her to the store, after changing into something more presentable, even though according to Erin, that's an old hoodie and leggings. To her defence, she has been working non-stop for three weeks, and she couldn't wait to throw her jeans away for the weekend.
They get their carts while laughing, because she keeps teasing him about being afraid to be seen with her in public. She is normally more bothered with her appearance, but she doesn't understand why she's supposed to put on makeup if all she's doing is buying milk and stuff.
But he doesn't seem to mind that she looks like a scarecrow; that her hair is pulled up in a messy thing that doesn't deserve the name bun; that her hoodie has a toothpaste fleck on it. He gazes at her with love, just like he always does.
They take two carts, because the list they made before coming is ridiculously extensive. But if anyone can make shopping fun, it's Jay, she thinks when he tells her he'll race her, and takes off with his cart. She wins, but he blames it on the broken wheel of his cart.
"Babe, really?" He holds up the four bags of potato chips she just threw in. "This is junk."
"And I love it," she says with a grin. "What? I work out. I eat vegetables when you make me. Besides, chips are potatoes, and potatoes are vegetables," she tries to reason, causing him to roll his eyes.
"Your funeral."
Absentmindedly, she puts almond milk into her cart. If it's possible, he falls in love with her even more that second, because he knows that she doesn't drink the stuff, but she always buys it for him. She puts it in the cart like it's the most obvious thing in the world.
"I love you," he tells her, because he does, and because he can. She snaps out of her thoughts, looking surprised for a second, before grinning.
"Me too," she says with a wink, before they move on to the frozen section.
"You know, you need to stop shopping like a five-year-old," he tells her, because of the boxes of Fruit Loops she threw into the cart. She bursts into laughter, tears almost running down her cheeks. He looks confused until he looks down and realizes he has accidentally put three boxes of dinosaur nuggets in, and what he said is essentially hypocritical.
He mutters something about it being an accident, but he can't even be mad at her for making fun of him when she's looking as happy as she does. So he decides to just enjoy the dimples, and let her have her junk food. But when she's not looking he replaces one of the boxes with healthy cereal that he'll make her eat once a week so she doesn't die prematurely.
"Erin? Hi, it's been a while! We missed you at the reunion."
Why is it that every time she runs into this woman, she looks like hell? It's some sort of universal law that she is always a mess, and Stephanie looks like she stepped out of a catalogue.
"Stephanie, hi." She can't even fake the enthusiasm for the sake of politeness, so she just gives her a tired smile.
"Mac and cheese, huh? Must get boring cooking for one." The patronizing tone does not escape Erin, no matter how tired she is. She's just about to make a quick escape, when she feels his cart hit hers, and then he's right next to her.
"I got the whipped cream, though I really don't know why you put it on the list, babe."
"I have my reasons," she says with a raised brow and a suggestive tone. He swallows, before turning his attention to Stephanie. As Erin makes the introductions, he recognizes the name immediately from all the stories she's told him.
"Nice to meet you," he says with a smile. "We're gonna need more boxes of that," he points to the mac and cheese. "You know how hungry you get after."
She rolls her eyes, but smiles gratefully, knowing that Jay overheard Stephanie's comment about cooking for one, and wanted to make very sure she knew that Erin wasn't alone. And if it's possible, she falls in love with him even more, because despite knowing that she is a badass grown-up woman who can take care of herself, Jay knows that the girls from her high school bring back her insecurities, and he wants to rub it in their faces for ever hurting her.
Throwing a few more boxes into her already full cart, she turns back to Stephanie.
"How have you been?"
"Same old, same old," she retorts evasively, and Erin honestly wonders what happened that made the usually-bragging Stephanie give her such a vague answer. She was expecting a 5-minute-long monologue about how great her life is, and instead she's now eyeing Jay, who has long abandoned the conversation and is checking out some products on the shelf.
Erin's eyes narrow at Stephanie, but then she lets it go. Sinking to the level of her high school nemesis isn't on her list today. "It was nice seeing you Stephanie." She moves her cart, following Jay, for the first time in her life not bothered by how she appears to other people.
Her life is better than ever. She is successful in her career, loves going to work every day, and she has a group of people she has chosen to be her family. And more importantly, she has him.
Jay.
The person who's currently pushing his cart extra hard, because he put all the heavy stuff in his, so she doesn't pull a muscle. The man she loves more than she imagined possible in her stupid fantasies about life and love. How silly they were. How unrealistic. But she never imagined loving him or anyone this much.
It only goes to show that life happens to you. You don't control it, and you definitely can't plan for how things are going to play out. But standing here, in front of the shelf with hygienic products, Erin knows she wouldn't change a thing.
Not even this one.
"Babe? You got what you needed?" The fact that he's beside her now, his masculinity at no risk by standing in the tampon aisle, is just one of the reasons she loves him so much. She smiles and nods, throwing the stuff into her cart.
"I think we've got everything," she tells him, checking the list for anything they might have missed. "Thank god we don't have to do this every day. I'm exhausted."
"Too exhausted to give that whipped cream a go?" He teases, grinning when her answer is a shake of her head.
"Let's get out of here," she murmurs, playfully slapping his ass as she passes him, claiming ultimate victory in their cart race.
"Babe? Is there something you want to tell me?" He asks, while she's carrying some stuff to the bathroom, quietly wondering which bag she put that thing in.
Damn. It ended up in one of his bags. "Maybe." Exhaling to prepare herself, she waits until he reaches her, holding a small box. "I'm just… late."
"Do you think?"
"I don't know. Hence the test."
His reaction—a grin—surprises her, but overwhelms her with happiness, because if this had happened in any other relationship she had, there would be freaking out (and to be completely fair, she has been freaking out since she realized she was late in the tampon aisle). But he's looking at her like this isn't the worst thing that could happen, which makes her believe it. It makes her picture it—all of it. The fairy tale.
"Let's do it."
Fifteen minutes and two peed-on sticks later, they are sitting on the couch in silence. His fingers reach hers, lacing them together. He wants her to know he's there, no matter how she's feeling.
"So…"
"I thought I'd feel relieved," she speaks in brutal honesty. "I don't."
"Me too."
"I think I wanted it to be positive." The sentence that comes out of her mouth surprises even her, but it's the truth. Maybe it's because their relationship is solid and stronger than ever, or because she's not exactly getting any younger. Or maybe it's Hank's words from the other day, echoing in her mind.
You're never truly ready. You just do your best.
"One day it will be," he assures her. His smile grows at the thought of their little boy or girl. "I can't wait."
"I think I'm ready for one day. As ready as I'll ever be."
"Are you saying what I think you're saying?"
She nods, smiling wide. "We're in a great place. We both have solid jobs, steady income." Her words make him believe she's been thinking about this for a while. "And there is no such thing as being ready to be a parent. But when I'm with you, I feel like I can do it."
"Let's have a baby."
At his words, a small tear escapes her eye, but he catches it with his fingers, just like he always catches her before she hits the ground.
"I love you."
"I love you too."
They take a minute, gazing into each other's eyes, contemplating the change they are about to experience before diving in for a passionate kiss.
"Let's start right now," he suggests, raising his brow, getting her eye roll in reply. But she doesn't protest when he picks her up and carries her to the bedroom.
After all, practice does make perfect. And with all the practice they've had, their kid has nothing to worry about.
A/N: If you liked it, don't forget to review so I can write more!