Disclaimer: LR does not belong to me.
Author's Note: Based on the prompt "trust" from the Tumblr Hoperai week. Please be aware that I know nothing about how parachuting actually works, so please ignore any inaccuracies! Also this is pretty roughly written but hey, I finally managed to write something cute…!
Jumping Out of Airplanes
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"Do you trust me?" The grin on Hope's face is equal amounts teasing and excitement as he adjusts the harness straps around her shoulders. Behind him, she can see Serah doing the same to Snow, stretching upwards as high as she can in order to reach her behemoth of a husband.
Claire scowls, barely wincing when Hope accidentally gets the harness too tight. "Trust isn't the issue," she mutters out, sending a hesitant look to the side of the plane they are about to jump out of. Hope rolls his eyes at her, the grin on his face turning slightly softer.
"Come on Claire," he says, quieter so that Serah and Snow would have no chance of overhearing their conversation. "You used to do this all the time back in the GC, remember? This isn't all that different."
"I'm pretty sure I never jumped out of an airship," she snipes back at him, her scowl widening as the plane begins to slow with Sazh's voice coming over the intercom that they are just about ready. "Besides, I had my Grav-Con Unit on me. Now all I have is…" she cranes her neck to glance at her backpack with distrust. "This flimsy piece of fabric."
"Claire," Hope tugs her closer, winding his arms around her waist. "You'll be fine. I promise. Also… I know that you've been itching for some sort of adrenaline rush lately, and what's better than parachuting?"
A moment passes, and she finally sighs. "Fine. But if something happens, I am fighting my way out of the Chaos again and coming back to haunt your ass." She momentarily glances behind him again. "Yours and Serah's. I swear, it's a freaking conspiracy…" Serah chooses this moment to look away from reassuring a shuddering Snow and sends her sister a knowing grin – Claire's eyebrow twitches with irritation, making Hope chuckle.
"I would love to be haunted by you," he leans down to whisper into her ear before pressing a quick kiss to her temple, lips quirking at the tell-tale pink that spreads to her cheeks. "Anyway, I'll be right there beside you, just like old times. You can even pretend that it's Eden down there."
"That is not funny," she replies back despite the small, amused curling of her lips. The next several minutes are spent in near silence as all four – despite the calm demeanours Serah and Hope are presenting – attempt to settle their nerves.
"Alright kids, you ready for this?" Sazh's voice crackles over the intercom as part of the wall slides open and a loud whoosh of air rushes by, making Claire tense. "The landing site is the entire field down below – don't worry much about where exactly you're headin', I'll swing right by and pick you up. Got any questions before we begin?" There's silence from the four and a chuckle floats to them a few moments later. "Alright, I'll take that as a no. You're good to go at any time—"
The rest of his sentence is interrupted by Snow's startled yell and Serah's following laughter, and Claire and Hope whip around to watch her lightly push her husband out into the open air, grinning from ear to ear before following after with a joyous scream. Claire stares at the spot they had just been in before sending a glare to the man beside her. "Don't even think about it," she warns in a low tone.
Hope grins widely at her. "I would never," he replies, hiding his hands behind his back. Claire stares hard at him for another second before making her way towards the opening, peeking out to see the vast expanse of green land below them. She can see the specks that are Snow and Serah quickly getting farther and farther away.
"Oh, to hell with it," she growls before jumping.
For a brief moment the panic sets in as she finds herself free falling through the air, but then her ears register the faint whoop Hope lets out before jumping after her and she opens her eyes, which had instinctively closed. She tries to glance to the side, registering Hope's silver hair in the corners of her vision before he disappears. Just gotta trust Hope on this, her mind rattles off to her as she gulps. Pretend it's Eden. Right. You weren't nearly as scared back then.
So she does – she lets the memory of Lightning take over her being and the tremors in her body settle, her breathing growing steadier. That's right, I've done this before, she thinks to herself – a grin finally stretches over her face and she lets herself scream out her excitement, easily imagining Odin flying at her side as faithfully as ever. The world looks absolutely breathtaking from this angle, all green and blue and radiant. The earth approaches and she pushes the button for her parachute.
It opens up and her harness jerks against her body before settling again, pinching through her clothes, but at this point she doesn't care – some ways off she spots Hope again and his bright orange parachute, waving to her wildly as they slowly descend.
"Claire!" He calls out to her over the distance, his large grin visible even from here. "I love you!"
Her own laughter bubbles up in her throat and escapes, the absurdity of the situation hitting her full force. "I can't hear you!" She yells teasingly back before navigating her parachute some ways away from Hope as they begin their landing. Her feet touch the ground and she stumbles to her knees, the green and white fabric of the parachute falling over her like a great big blanket. She sits under it for a few minutes, her heart wildly beating as she grins down to the earth, before unbuckling the harness and crawling out into the open air.
She just manages to stand on shaky legs when she looks up and suddenly Hope is bowling her over, grasping her body and swinging her around several times, all the while laughing with exhilaration. "I love you!" He yells out loudly into the air around them, eyes bright as they stare into hers. "I love you! I love you!"
Claire's face flushes red at his exclamation but she joins his laughter, coming off the adrenaline rush she had been going after for the past several weeks. "I heard you the first time," she says once he sets her down, her smile threatening to split her jaw in half. "You don't have to keep shouting it."
Hope shrugs, reaching up to fix her wayward ponytail with a breathtaking grin. "I just love you that much," he states, so focused on her hair that he misses the softening of her smile before she reaches over to properly embrace him.
She chuckles into his shirt, her fingers digging into the fabric over his back. "I know," she says gently. "I know."