Marshall POV:
Marshall finds himself in an awkward silence. Marceline isn't crying anymore - And he is thankful for that. It was really odd seeing such a headstrong girl break down like that. Ash must have been a monster. Plus, she is his girlfriend now (What a great way to start a relationship), and it is his duty to keep her eyes dry.
After a long awkward silence, Marshall glances down at Marceline - Who is curled up in his arms
"Babe..." Marshall mumbles.
"Yeah?" Marceline replies, monotone.
"I'm sorry about tonight. If I would have known... I wouldn't have even..." He begins to apologize, but is cut off by Marceline.
"No, shut up. You couldn't have known. I am sorry for acting that way... What a great way to start a relationship, right?" She laughs dryly.
Marshall clears his throat.
"Marceline... You have nothing to apologize for, okay? I sort of rushed things, and wanted you to meet Flambo too fast. I'm sorry." Marshall sighs.
"No, shhh. I like Flambo, and the Vampire guys. They put that psychopath in his place. You have nothing to apologize for, silly." Marceline forces a laugh, beginning to trace shapes into Marshall's pants leg with her fingers.
"Yeah, Ash is clearly a psycho. If anything, I am sorry I couldn't have met you earlier, and saved you from getting in a relationship with that shithead." Marshall laughs, stroking her hair.
Marceline snorts, "Yeah, that would have been nice."
The room falls silent again. Marshall continues to stroke Marceline's long hair, and ponder his next move. 'How to ask her about Ash... Maybe it's too soon... Definitely too soon, Marshall...' Marshall thinks to himself, now twirling strands of Marceline's hair around his finger. 'Globbbb, but I want to know...'
Marshall is pulled away from his thoughts, when Marceline sits up. He stares at her, but doesn't say a word. He watches as a slight smile begins to form on her face - Not a normal smile, the kind of smile a person smiles when they really don't want to smile, but they feel like they have to smile.
Marceline takes a deep breath.
"So. I bet you want to know about Ash..." Marceline mumbles.
"Only if you feel comfortable talking about it. If you don't, I understand. I won't bother you about it." Marshall replies, shrugging his shoulders.
Marceline giggles, and pecks him on the lips.
"Marshall, you are just too good to me." Marceline smiles, taking Marshall's hand.
Marshall blushes slightly, and runs a hand through his hair.
"... Probably the best boyfriend I've ever had, and we've been together, what? Seven hours?" Marceline continues, still smiling at her boyfriend.
"Meh, I don't know, Marcy. I mean, I'm not that great... I mean, I'm pretty great, but I think you're giving me too much credit." Marshall smirks, winking at his girlfriend.
Marceline rolls her eyes, before lifting his hand to her lips and kissing it.
"So, about Ash... It's cool if I vent, right?" Marceline asks.
Marshall can hear the nervousness in her voice, and can see her eyes begin to shake. He squeezes her hand lightly, and nods his head.
"So..." Marceline begins, with a sigh.
"It all started when I lived in Ooo City - Roughly, you know, seven hours from here. I met Ash when I was out with Keila, before she moved here to be with Guy. Me and Keila were out seeing Guy and Bongo's old band preform, because they were getting pretty big - Until their bassist had a total meltdown, and everything fell apart - and we always support up-and-coming bands. I met Ash in the pits at his show." Marceline takes a deep breath.
"I was getting in a bit over my head, and he pulled me out. I was young, dumb, had family issues, and he was an attractive older guy - You know, pretty much the same story as every desperate sixteen year old girl who gets in a shit relationship - I was so close to finishing school, so I was looking for my calling in life. My purpose. I was scared of the real world. I was looking something - More specifically, someone. Someone to help me out in this world. A guide, of sorts. Instead of someone to help me... I found Ash. And he started off pretty cool. We talked for a few weeks before we started dating. He was even cool for a few months into our dating. But then things changed..." Marceline pauses to get a cigarette, and light it.
"... Anyway. It was about four months into our relationship that I figured out who he really was. He had issues with control. He wanted to control my every move. He forced me to stop talking to anyone who wasn't him. I was so naive, I did just that... I stopped talking to everyone, even Keila. I only hung out with him, and that's how he got me so dependent..." Marceline exhales, and shakes her head.
"Hey, if you want to stop, it's okay. I promise." Marshall smiles at Marceline.
"No, it's fine. I swear." Marceline forces a smile, "You told me about Ashley, I'll tell you about Ash."
Marshall gulps and begins rubbing his thumb on Marceline's thumb.
"So... Once he pretty much had me believing he was the only one that cared about me, the abuse started. He would drink a lot, and when he drank, he became a monster. He would insult me constantly to 'keep me in my place.' You know... "you're ugly. No one but me will ever love you. I should have got with Keila, she's prettier." Just stuff like that. It got to the point were I started to believe him, and that's when things got even worse..." Marceline begins to tear up, but she continues regardless.
"I was a virgin when I met Ash... But after the constant insults, and degrading remarks, eventually he talked me into sleeping with him to prove my 'love for him.'..." Marceline takes her gaze off of the floor when she feels Marshall's hand squeeze hers a little too tight.
"Marshall, are you okay?" Marceline asks, rubbing Marshall's hand with her free hand. No reply.
"Marshall? Hey, Marshy?" Marceline continues, raising her voice with each failed attempt to gather his attention.
"Marshall? Marshall? Marsha..." Marceline presses on, until Marshall speaks up, interrupting.
"I hate him, Marceline. I hate him." Marshall mumbles, breathing heavily.
"I hate him too, Marshy..." Marceline agrees, leaning against Marshall, resting her head on his shoulder.
Marshall begins stroking Marceline's hair. She smiles, and closes her eyes.
"So, what now?" Marceline mumbles.
Marshall nudges Marceline with his shoulder, prompting her to sit up. When she does, they lock eyes. Marshall keeps her hand in his, and brushes a lock of hair behind her left ear with his other hand.
"It's simple. We do the only thing we can do." Marshall smiles.
"What is that?" Marceline asks, raising an eyebrow.
Marshall leans in and kisses Marceline, forcing her to lean back onto the couch. Marshall keeps his lips sealed to to hears the entire transition from sitting beside her, to straddling her.
Minutes filled with nothing but passionate kissing pass, before Marshall trails away from her lips - Leaving a trail of kisses from her lips, to her collar bone.
Once Marshall is finished nibbling on Marceline's collar bone, he readjusts her shirt, and lifts his head to look at his girlfriend. Marceline is smiling.
"... We stay happy, while Ash stays miserable. It's as simple as that." Marshall returns her smile.
Marceline giggles, " I like this plan.
"I thought you might." Marshall says, proudly.
"And how, exactly, do you to carry out this plan?" Marceline asks, raising an eyebrow.
Marshall smirks, one of his signature smirks, and snorts.
"Easy..." He starts, "You're pretty easy, really. Keep you fed, give you instruments to play, and keep nicotine in your system." He laughs.
Marceline laughs, and playfully punches him in the shoulder.
"I'm not easy, jerk. You make me sound like a hussy!"
Marshall laughs.
"You are putting words in my mouth, little lady. I said it was going to be easy to keep you happy. You're the one taking it to that level. Jeeze." Marshall gives her a wink.
Marceline rolls her eyes at his comment, and smiles - Shortly followed by a long kiss.
Marceline's POV:
Marceline wakes up wrapped in Marshall Lee's arms - They passed out on the couch shortly after a wrestling match, which Marceline totally won.
"Hey... Marshy... Wake up." Marceline whispers, nudging Marshall slightly.
Marshall mumbles incoherently, and readjusts a himself. He gives smile when he gets comfortable.
Marceline giggles. "Seriously, Marshall. Wake up." She nudges him harder. "We have school to attend." She says, mockingly.
Marshall jerks a bit, and mumbles. "..uc...cool..."
Marceline smirks at her boyfriend, fading in and out of consciousness.
"What was that?" She giggles.
"I said... Fuck... School..." He grumbles, not opening his eyes.
Marshall pull Marceline closer to him and smiles.
"Can we just... Not go to school, again? Ever?" He suggests, through a long yawn.
Marceline gently pushes away from Marshall's gentle hold, and smiles.
"I don't think that's how it works, sorry Marshy." She giggles.
Marshall frowns, but doesn't reply.
Marceline stands up, and Marshall takes the newly open couch space to sprawl out - Which makes Marceline laugh at her incredibly lazy boyfriend. She quietly watches Marshall in the dimly lit room for a few brief minutes, before yawning and stumbling into his kitchen to get something to drink.
Marceline drags her feet across the tile kitchen floor, and shuffles over to Marshall's refrigerator. She slowly opens it, and scowls at the sudden burst of light.
"Son of a fuck..." She mumbles, rubbing her eyes profusely.
Once Marceline's eyes fully adjust to the artificial light produced by the fridge, she peeks inside to see what sort of beverages Marshall harbors.
She glances from top shelf to bottom shelf. '... Tea... Mountain Dew... Grape juice... Cherry Cream Soda...' She raises an eyebrow at the amount of Marshall's final drink choice.
'So. Much. Beer.' She thinks.
Marceline bites her lip, nervously. She stares at the bottled alcohol, as if she had just watched it commit a felony.
A minute passes by, and Marceline regains her bearing. 'He's not like Ash... I'm sure he handles his alcohol much better than Ash...' She assures herself.
The thought of Ash kick starts her brain, and the events of the last night come playing back in her head. Her breathing becomes heavy, and a fire begins to flow through her veins. 'Fuck that asshole. Who does he think he is? And fuck you brain, for constantly comparing Marshall to Ash. Marshall is nothing like him.'
Marceline stands tense, in front of Marshall's fridge for a few minutes before taking a deep breath and closing her eyes - Letting her arms go limp.
"I hate him..." She mumbles aloud, clenching her fists tight.
"Why? What'd I do?" Marshall asks, in a particularly cute morning voice.
Marshall's sudden appearance startles Marceline. She jolts - Letting out a small squeak - and pivots on the balls of her feet to face her boyfriend. He's smiling, still half asleep.
Marshall smirks, and stares her down through sleep filled eyes. "You squeaked again."
Marceline rolls her eyes at his comment.
"Dude. You're sneak level is like, at least 95." Marceline comments on her boyfriends swift and silent approach.
"Oh, please. I've been grinding, that shits is 100. Full skill tree filled out, and all that jazz." Marshall states, with a cocky smirk.
Marceline rolls her eyes, and giggles. "Nerd."
Marshall acts shocked. "Hey! I'll have you know-" he begins to rant, but Marceline sees fit to cut him short with a long kiss.
After a long kiss, the couple take a breather - smiling and staring into each others eyes, hand in hand. Marceline is taking in the moment, when Marshall decides to break the silence.
"Affection in the morning is pretty groovy." He smirks.
Marceline giggles.
"I would say it's... pretty stellar, actually." She says in a mocking tone, winking at him.
Marshall laughs, and sighs. He falls silent briefly before changing the subject.
"Say... Why are we up at five in the morning anyway? Like, the sun isn't even up yet." Marshall asks, giving her hands a slight squeeze.
"I don't really know," Marceline says, honestly. "I just woke up and couldn't get back to sleep. I mean, we did go to bed kind of early. I dunno." She shrugs.
"Yeahhh." Marshall sighs. "Yesterday was a long day." He trails off. "On the flip, Burnaby usually wakes up around now... Overachieving fucker... I can give him a call."
Marceline yawns.
"Sounds great. Are you sure you don't wanna smoke first?" She asks, gently squeezing his hands.
"Let me consult my lungs, momentarily..." Marshall says, releasing her hands to feel his chest.
Marceline rolls her eyes, and giggles.
"My lungs are giving me the 'good to go'. How about that cigarette?" Marshall smiles, offering Marceline his hand.
"Sounds lovely." She smiles, taking his hand.
Marshall leads Marceline into the living room, where they lounge on the couch, and enjoy sweet nicotine early in the morning.
Author's Note:
Alright, ladies and gentlemen. I am back. I went out and bought a laptop on base today (The clerk TOTALLY tried to jip me, asshole. Wanted me to pay 950 for a 500 dollar laptop. Needless to say, I got my laptop for the right price.) and I plan on continuing this story now! I know, I know, it's been forever, and you all probably forgot about this story, and since it never gets updated (That's fixing to change...), it probably got buried at the bottom of the AT fanfic pages, so few new comers are getting to read it. But! As I said, I plan on updating much more often now. So, keep this story on stand by, and be on the look for the updates to come! I plan on taking this story places - Unexpected places.
And I know this isn't really like, a real chapter update, seeing as half of it has been out for eight months, but I hated to leave it up the way it was - All half finished and shit. So I finished this chapter, and am currently working on the next one! Stay tuned!
If any of you care, I'll tell you how things have been the past eight months or so.
Well. I went to boot camp down in San Diego, and was part of the second hardest training company on depot - Killer Kilo Company. And graduated in January. Boot camp was a living hell, as you would imagine Marine Corps boot camp to be. I witnessed many things while there. Several kids commit suicide, while I was there, a kid right fucking next to me had a damn heart attack - That was awkward. And several other life changing events.
After I graduated, I got 24 days back home - Stroke of luck - And spent pretty much every day with this gal I was really into. Then I came back to Cali, in February, and did three more months of Infantry School, and graduated mid April, where I was assigned to my first permanent duty station, in Camp Pendleton California. Three weeks into training with my permanent unit, I broke my leg doing hand-to-hand combat training - First broken bone every, actually. It's a miracle as much as I used to skate that I had never broken anything until now. So, basically, I've spent the last little bit recovering from my injuries. I am set to return to full duty in three weeks - Unless the Naval Hospital tells me otherwise. And I ship out over seas in around ten months. I'm really looking forward to that one. I'm supposed to be deployed for a year, so probably wont be much writing in 2015 - If you guys are still following this story then. Or if I haven't finished it .
But for the time being, I plan on trying to add a new chapter every weekend, to the best of my abilities! So like I said, stand by. There is more to come!
ThatFanFicChick: First off, I must apologize. I couldn't really "Update soon"... But I'm here now, to make up for it! Counts for something, right? Haha. And I'm not going to spoil the plot I have thought out... But you could be onto something... Who knows. Guess you'll just have to keep reading to get confirmation of your accusations c;Nomby: Aww, thank you! I did try to put a lot of time, and effort, into tying everything together - Even the elements from the show and the comics - And it totes makes me happy that you noticed, and appreciated that. I'll try not to fail you, and keep pumping out stellar chapters! Thanks for the review!
FictionFiend259:
First off, I'm really glad you are enjoying this story so far! And, as far as Marceline and her inner monologue, I respect the point you make, but I am trying really hard to establish a key feature about her that will have an important role in the chapters to come. But, actually, she is pretty emotional in the show too... Though I am exaggerating her emotional side, I promise it will play out in the end! Just bear with me on this one! Haha. I think I may have stated this is a previous A/N, but I am basing a vast majority of the characters in this story off of people I know, girls i've dated, and so forth. A lot of the events I have described so far in the story, and the things I have planned for the future of the story, are basically real events, just with AT characters living them out, instead of me and the hooligans I grew up with. Maybe that means I'm uncreative, since I have to use my life story as a baseline to write, or maybe not. I'm not really sure. o.O Haha.
Guest:
Sorry, this is a straight Marcelee fic here... Best Fiolee you will find is Marshy and Fi's brief conversation in the hallways in the first chapter. Sorry, again!
Anonymouslee:
Hey, man. Thanks for stopping by. Here's that update you asked about. I know its not a whole lot, but I plan to keep more coming. Let me tell you something that might give you a good laugh. Fun fact, while I was in Boot Camp, I had my cousin mail me printed off copies of your fic, and I read them on Sundays, instead of going to church. Just thought you might get a kick out of that. Take it easy, man.
XoX-Sugar Quill and Ink-XoX:
Haha, completely understandable. I haven't updated in like, eight months :P But I will get on that right away! And yeah, it does sort of suck... But I mean, I'm a firm believer in that whole "everything happens for a reason" bullshit. So, I have faith something good will come of this busted leg... I hope. Haha.
prince of darkness and fire:
Can do! Continuing in process. And thanks! It was hell to pay, but so worth it! Haha. Hope you enjoyed what I added to this chapter.
Marcy fangirl:
Hey, thanks! Hope you enjoyed this update! I know its not much, but I have more coming. Promise. And I totally dig the alt reality gender benders too :P I saw a severe lack of them, so I decided I had to write one - Cause surely I wasn't the only one out there that wanted one, but couldn't find one they liked! And don't worry, the next chapter will have Peebles in it, I promise!
Guest:
Can do! I think you will like where I plan on taking this story, so be sure to keep reading!