A/N: Greetings, lovelies!
The following one-shots are based in my "I'd Have You Stay" Universe, due to popular demand. My attempt here is to put them in a chronological order (more or less) and show snapshots of the more important aspects of Jimmy and Cindy's relationship – think of the moments that stick in your memory due to some aspect of importance. Honestly, I didn't think it would take this long to publish, but this has been the craziest year of my life. Luckily, this gives me more material for inspiration!
Hope you enjoy!
It was really freaking cold outside.
Cindy stood on the sidewalk outside of her house, watching as her breath became white clouds in the air, and shivered slightly. The fuzzy cardigan she had on probably hadn't been the best choice to ward off the cold, but who thought clearly this early in the morning? The sun had only just started to cut through the lingering darkness on the earth and she watched the sky changing colors. If she wasn't so on edge she might actually be able to enjoy this.
It was kind of amazing how utterly quiet everything was while the world was still sleeping. She shivered again, wrapping her cardigan more tightly around her shoulders, and sighed softly. A moment later, the sound of quiet footsteps approaching brought a smile to her lips and she turned slowly, watching as his form became more distinct with each step. "Morning beautiful," he whispered, but the quiet made her hear him loud and clear.
"Morning," she smiled, holding her arms out for a hug. He indulged her, and placed a few kisses on the top of her head. "It's about time you showed up."
"It's just quarter to six now. Not my fault you're overly punctual."
"Not my fault you're always late." He pulled back and looked at her, the sight of his blue eyes shutting down her heart momentarily.
"If you don't watch it, I just might do something crazy like kiss you."
She raised her eyebrows. "Challenge accepted." His face broke into a smile and he laughed.
"Okay, come on. We'll save it for later. You wanna go to the lab?"
"Actually..." She found they were still embraced and did not want to release his steady flow of warmth. "I kind of wanted to walk into town. Grab a coffee. Just talk for a little." He made a humming sound in his throat, and the sound of it made her smile.
"That sounds great, but isn't it kind of...risky?" She looked at him again.
"Yeah, but...it's too early for me to care." She reached into her pocket and grabbed her debit card. "Plus, my treat. You'd be a fool to pass this up." He snorted and released her, but grabbed her other hand.
"Okay then. Onward, my lady." Hands entwined, they unknowingly both cast a quick glance at her house, then sped-walked down the street. She hated the fact that her life had become such a cliché – that she could have fallen into something as angst-ridden as forbidden love – yet relished it all the same. This boy, this crazy, brilliant, wonderful boy was the answer to every one of her prayers. Sometimes she couldn't believe she could hold his hand or surprise him with a kiss just because she could, or cry and have him hold her or just...talk with him, through the night, until sleep became far too tempting.
She just couldn't believe, sometimes, that he was actually hers.
She snapped out of her musings when his hand suddenly squeezed hers more tightly. She was struck once more when she noted his piercing gaze – God, his eyes were beautiful. "You okay?"
"I am now," she said. He smiled at her, but his eyes held an unknown emotion. She had a feeling it was reflected in her own gaze, and the sight of it was making her want to cry. She looked away, focusing instead on the sidewalk in front of her. Early mornings and late nights – these were the times their dates had to take place, in order to keep it hidden from her crazy-ass mother. Granted, they could spend time together at school but it was school. And every single time she was going out (even with someone like Libby) she had to report to her mother where she was going, who she was going with, and an estimated time of return. She was not permitted to be out past ten o'clock at night, and was required to send her mother text messages on what was going on throughout any social gathering. It was ridiculous and tiring, and a full-on demonstration on how little her mother trusted her.
Her father honestly didn't give two shits what she did, so it was an odd situation to be in, needless to say.
She and Jimmy had been dating for just under two months and she was so deeply grateful for his presence in her life that she often hated how sneaky they had to be. Her deepest desire was to scream from the rooftops how amazing he was, show him off to all her friends, proudly display the fact that he was hers.
But she couldn't.
Literally no one but the two of them knew what had actually happened here. Their closest friends were two steps away from figuring it out, but they had no other choice but to keep it as hidden as possible. If her mother ever caught wind of what was going on, she knew something awful would happen. She would be damned if she let Jimmy be caught in the crossfire of her family's rage.
She would protect what was hers.
And so this was her reality. Holding his hand, walking the near-empty streets in her pajamas on a Sunday morning. Operating on a limited time schedule, mentally counting down the seconds until her mother would get out of bed at 8:00 or so, like she did every day. Watching the frosted breath she pushed out of her lungs, listening to him absentmindedly humming to himself.
Out of context, this would seem like true bliss.
It didn't take long to arrive at the local coffee shop, and she gave her boyfriend a small smile as he opened the door for her. They were instantly met with the blast of freshly-ground coffee scents, and she allowed herself a moment of tranquility as they walked up to the counter.
"There is no way genomics are going to reduce treatment costs. That's a fantasy at best."
"Oh, come on. Are you honestly going to tell me that the shift from a broad based system to a more individualized one would increase costs?"
"Perfect example of 'it's one thing in theory and quite another in practice' concept." Jimmy shot her a smile. She stuck her tongue out at him and he nudged her playfully with his shoulder. She retaliated with a solid punch to his arm and he started laughing.
God, did she love that sound.
"There's no way to know unless we try it though," she muttered and he sighed.
"You're just going to keep pushing this, aren't you?"
"Only if you're going to keep insisting you're right." He stopped walking then and groaned, throwing his head back in dramatic flair.
"You should know by now how I operate." A smile was tugging at his perfect lips as he looked towards the heavens. She allowed herself a moment to appreciate this exact place in time, standing here with him in the early morning, arguing about something they shouldn't be.
And then she allowed her full anxiety to kick in, nervously glancing at her watch.
He noticed, of course. The two locked eyes and he made a face. "Time to sneak back in, huh?" She could only nod, feeling as if the words were lodged up in a tight ball in her throat. He tapped her lightly on the nose with his finger and smiled. "See you tonight?"
"Of course," she whispered. He sighed again, then pulled her in for a kiss. In those few seconds she tried to imagine what it would be like if she didn't have to hide someone so wonderful.
"Alright, get lost," he muttered, placing a final kiss on her cheek. "And don't be late."
"That's funny," she said, rolling her eyes. He clicked his tongue and winked at her, before turning and heading off towards his house. She watched his departing form for a moment, then began speed-walking back to her house.
She had only just laid her head back on her pillow when her door popped open and someone began shaking her none too gently.
"Get up, Cynthia. You cannot sleep all day. We've a busy day ahead of us." Cindy grimaced, faking a most convincing yawn.
"Okay," she muttered. When her mother pattered out of the room she flashed forward to tonight, sneaking out of her bedroom window to meet Jimmy at midnight in his lab.
Though her eyes shut once more in protest, she figured that sleep deprivation was the least of her worries anyway.