Consequences
Disclaimer: I do not own Warm Bodies, The New Hunger or anything related.
A/N: Warning! Heavy suggestive content! It is recommended you listen to sexy music when appropriate! Which really, is right now!
R and Julie had spent most of the day at work and had just gotten back, a few hours before normal quitting hours. Fortunately they were both allowed to go home earlier than usual as their bosses were both worried about their 'state of minds'. Of course, R and Julie didn't say anything to argue, deciding to take advantage of the generosity and spend time together.
Julie had met R at his job, though Kevin had accompanied her this time, despite her protests. The three spent a few minutes at the Orchard before Kevin had to get back to the wall. After Kevin went back, R and Julie decided to head back to the apartment. Stepping inside, R set his tool belt down on the small table next to the door. R took as step back when Julie tried to hug him, making her look at him very oddly. "I'm sorry, it's just... I smell..." R said, ducking his head slightly, feeling self-conscious.
"Are you kidding? You smell great," Julie laughed.
"What?" R blinked in confusion.
"Well first of all, you smell very alive," she winked at him. "And also... you've been out all day doing heavy-lifting and constructing and using your hands..." Julie trailed off, biting her bottom lip. "It's not exactly anything that would turn a girl away..." she grinned at him. "But hey, if ya wanna take a shower, go ahead," she smirked.
"Um, okay?" R raised a brow. He blinked when she started going into the bathroom. "Wha-"
"Coming?" Julie cut him off, glancing over her shoulder and winking. Despite how tired R was from the hard day at work, his eyes lit up and he ran after her. Julie laughed when he caught her and turned in his arms, cupping his cheeks and pulling him down for kiss. They removed their clothes, grabbed several packets of protection, and stumbled into the shower, groping the wall for the faucet as they went. The spray of cold water made them jump and shiver.
"Ah! C-Cold!" R flinched.
"Here, let me help you..." Julie grinned playfully and dragged his hand down his chest, down his stomach, and further, reaching down his body.
R jumped and blushed deeply. "What are you-oooo... oh shi- Julie!" R's eyes popped open in shock.
Julie laughed and continued to diligently do what she was doing, watching him struggle to keep himself steady on his feet. "Just trying to warm you up," she winked at him. "Do you like it?" She asked with fake innocence.
"Nnng..." He groaned, his head dropping forward. She was pleasantly surprised when a little growl escaped him when she stopped. Looks like cute little puppy had a big bad wolf side to him too! Julie squeaked when R abruptly picked her up and pressed her against the wall.
"Warm enough yet?" she smirked, sliding her hands over his firm shoulders.
"Not yet," he smiled just as teasingly and buried his face in the crook of her neck, making Julie press harder against him in pleasure with the things he did to her with his mouth. "Now it's my turn..." he whispered against her ear, and then braced her harder against the wall. This time, it was him that reached down between them. R covered her mouth with his, kissing her lovingly and at the same time muffling her cries of approval. The water had just begun to start turning warm, but their bodies had already heated up by then. They barely felt the water hitting them as they lost themselves in each other.
A little over an hour later, they stepped out of the bathroom, dressed and even more tired than before, though at the same time, very sated... at least for the moment. Julie plopped down on the couch, wincing slightly at a pulled muscle in her leg and smirked at the pleasant memory of just how she got that. R went over to his record player and dug through it again, pulling out one that looked good and setting it in. After the music began to play, he went over to the couch and sat down next to Julie, who made herself comfortable. The gentle sound of pleasant music drifted into the room, surrounding the couple relaxing on an old couch. R smiled down at the beautiful woman resting her head over his lap. He thread his fingers through her hair, watching her play with his other hand.
Julie watched the fluffy clouds drift over the blue skies through one of the apartment's living-room windows. "Hey, R..?" she suddenly said, still watching the outside world from her very comfy spot on the couch.
"Yeah?"
There was a pause, then Julie flicked her eyes over to him. "Do you... think my dad will be back soon?" she asked in a soft voice.
R thought for a moment. He knew how tough Julie's dad was, knew he could handle pretty much anything... or maybe he thought that because of how much he respected the man and his own biased experiences he had with him, but he felt the older man was tough enough to take anything that was thrown at him. Then again, California was pretty far from where they were, and the 'living virus' as he had come to call it, might not have 'spread' down there... which meant they could have rode into a 'zombie-state' ...but then, John Grigio was an experienced tactician and soldier. There really was no way of telling if anything would or could go wrong. No way to tell why exactly he was taking so long either.
"R?" Julie muttered worriedly.
R took a breath and shook his head. "...I really don't know..." Julie nodded, accepting his answer.
Meanwhile, John sighed for the hundredth time that afternoon when Susan checked and then rechecked to see if he was in tip-top shape. "Really, Susan... I'm fine, I feel fine, we're all fine, it's fine!" He threw up his hands in exasperation. She had kept him there for over an hour, fussing over him when there were people who needed her help more than he did! The woman was nothing if not incredibly thorough. It didn't help that he was the leader of the city either.
"You'll be fine when I say you're fine," Martinez rose a challenging brow.
John's own brows furrowed. "...Well? How am I then?" He shot back.
Martinez checked her chart once again and then glanced over at him. "Why are you still here? ...You're fine," she smirked, watching him roll his eyes in a very similar manner as his daughter. "Go on, I need to get back to patients who really need my help," she teased and sent him on his way. "And don't pick at that!" She called with her back turned to John, just as John went to rub the bandage over the nasty scratch he had received during his mission. He shook his head in amused disbelief but put his hand down and walked on.
John walked around the city, eager to see his daughter again, at least to say hello before he took a much deserved nap, but she was not at work. He went back home but didn't find her there either. Narrowing his eyes, he stepped out and turned toward the direction of R's apartment. The boy should still be at work... right? But perhaps not, not after what he and his daughter went through. John wasn't a fool, he knew that after something like that, they would seek comfort with each other. Walking out toward R's apartment, he just hoped the two hadn't taken too much 'comfort' with each other, though a part of him told him that it was most likely precisely what they did... though he refused to listen to that part.
At the same time, R's hands were full, Julie had wormed her way onto his lap and they were gently kissing, far too tired to do anything more at the moment, though not for the lack of trying. They jumped slightly when there was a knock on the door. "Come in!" R said, figuring it was just Nora or M.
"R? Have you seen Jul-" John froze in his tracks when he went to enter the apartment, staring at the 'kids' sitting on the couch, or more accurately, R sitting on the couch and Julie sitting on him. They both had the typical deer-caught-in-headlights look. There was a standstill for a moment, neither party moving a muscle. Julie could see her father's jaw working, his eyes narrowing, and his trigger finger twitching. So she moved before he could. Julie jumped out of R's lap and ran over to her father. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she kissed his cheek and hugged him tight. Momentarily startled by Julie's abrupt reaction, John lost his building rage and wrapped his arms around his daughter to catch her.
"I missed you!" Julie whispered.
"...I missed you too," John relaxed and held his little girl closer. "You're both still in trouble though," he warned her, then shot R a menacing look. R ducked his head slightly and smiled sheepishly.
"It's good to have you back, John. Things would have gone a lot smoother around here with you to look out for us..." R said quietly.
"Hmph," John grunted, his eyes still dangerously narrow. "R, I..." John let his daughter go and walked over to the young man. "What you did to rescue my little girl..." he shook his head, letting his surprise and anger at having caught them all over each other go. "I can't tell you how much I'm grateful to you for putting yourself in danger like you did to get to her, to teach those bastards that hurt her a lesson," he said seriously, reaching forward and placing a hand on his shoulder. "Thank you."
"I've said it before and I'll say it again. I'll always do anything it takes to keep her safe, to keep her happy..."
"I know, and I respect that," John nodded. He stood back and turned to leave. "I'll tell you were I was later, I need to sleep a few hours first. I expect to see you both at dinner, alright?" he mentioned. "Oh and R? Don't think I forgot about you either, we have a lot to talk about..." he warned him, then left.
When R and Julie were once again alone, they glanced at each other worried. "So... so do you think he'll kill me?" R asked quietly.
"Why would he?" Julie's brow rose.
"I've been... what's the term I've heard people use? I've been shack... shacking up? With his daughter?" R blinked in confusion. "I can't remember how that makes any sense..."
Julie laughed, brushing tears of mirth out of the corners of her eyes. "Yeah, I don't think dad'll be too happy that you've thoroughly 'shacked' his daughter up..." Julie smirked. She knew she wasn't using the term right, but R didn't seem to notice, it just made him turn a darker shade of red. "R? R stop pacing..." Julie rolled her eyes and grabbed him, pulling him down to kiss her. After a few seconds, R relaxed and kissed her back. When she was sure he wouldn't suddenly have a conniption from stress, she let him go. "Feel better?"
"Slightly," he sighed.
"Don't worry, he likes you now, besides, I'll stop him from reaching for his gun, okay?" She smiled and rubbed his jaw soothingly.
"Okay..." R nodded.
Meanwhile, M had heard rumors that John had returned with some children. One of them was Nora's little brother. Out of curiosity he went to check on them and was rooted to the spot when he saw them together. A flash of memory shot through him then, memories of years before, when he had just been turned, when he had met a young girl and her baby brother... he had followed them, wanted to connect with them, but had trouble doing so and felt terribly confused. His... his... who was with him? Someone, a woman, a pre-Boney, who spoke to him without words. She, or it, told him what to eat, who and what the girl and the child were. M had taken the boy and...
"I killed her brother," M gawked in shock. "Me! It was me! That girl! Oh God, what have I done?" M felt sudden and terrible pain in his chest as his heart beat harder and faster than he had ever felt. The last thing he saw was the image of himself tearing into the shoulder of a little boy before everything went black.
When M next woke, he was in the hospital tent, Martinez standing over him and looking through a chart. "You had a heart-attack. Fortunately it's wasn't a very strong one but you gave us quite the scare!" Martinez explained. Nora was standing beside the doctor, checking the IV connected to M's arm.
"Doctor... can I speak to Nora alone for a moment?" M asked quietly. Martinez blinked in confusion but nodded and left them, drawing the curtains.
"Hey there, Marcus. How do you feel?" Nora asked on concern, leaning over to press her hand gently against his forehead... to check his temperature, of course.
"Nora, I..." M's face contorted in a mixed array of emotions. "I... heard that you found your brother..." he began softly.
"Yeah! Isn't it great! He had been around here all this time!"
"...Where is he now?"
"He's resting over there," Nora drew back the curtains a bit and pointed a few rows down. A small boy of around seven years old, with deathly gaunt features and loose clothes lay curled up under a blanket, completely tuckered out. "He... he was a zombie... I haven't seen him in years..."
"Nora..." M grimaced. "Nora do you... do you remember how you... lost your brother?" he asked, his heart racing. Would she remember him? Would she hate him? Would she never want to see him again? The thought of not seeing this sweet, pretty young woman again, never hearing her beautiful laugh or seeing her smile or relentlessly teasing R and Julie with her again... it just broke his already injured heart.
Nora frowned at the question, at the sudden and deep interest M seemed to have with Addis. "Why?"
"Please, what do you remember?"
"I... not much. To tell you the truth, I had put that awful memory off my mind for so long... why?" She asked again. She was alarmed by the tears in M's reddened eyes and how broken he looked.
"Please.. please forgive me... please..." M broke down, hiding his face in his hands. "I did something horrible to you Nora... so horrible... I'm so sorry... please..." he begged brokenly. "I couldn't... I had no control... oh God..." Nora's eyes were wide in shock and worry. Her eyes jerked over to the heart-monitor attached to M, seeing it suddenly spike. "Please..." M sobbed.
"Marcus? M, you really need to calm down. Okay? Just calm down!" Nora said, trying to sound as soothing and gentle as she could, sitting by him and rubbing his back. The action only seemed to make it worse though. What had he done? What could he have done... to her... that would make him react like- but then... there was something... a memory, something she had repressed for so long. She could see it now. Seven years ago, when all of this was just starting to get worse, when the world had finally had enough and given up. She and Addis were hiding out in a house... they had been followed for a long while by a tall young man... R? And... an older man... M? Oh! Nora's eyes widened and she froze. M must have noticed for he picked up his head and looked over at her cautiously, tears still streaming down his cheeks.
Nora remembered. She remembered getting attacked by Boneys. She remembered the tall young man hanging back but the older one grabbing her brother and... M bit her brother. He turned him into a zombie. But... she frowned. M hadn't done anything else, she remembered the odd sort of hunger in the older man's eyes, but he had just bitten her brother and held him close, he hadn't done anything else. Still, Nora felt a rush of anger and sadness within her. She had a mind to scream at M, to hit him and never speak to him again... but... she wasn't stupid, she knew, like he said, he hadn't had the will to stop himself completely. He had been led by those Boneys, they had taught him what to do... besides, he hadn't killed her brother, not really, they were both alive now, alive because he held back from eating the boy.
"Marcus..." Nora looked over at the forlorn man, seeing the deep grief and regret in him. Had this been the cause of his heart-attack? Had so many negative memories and emotions taken such a hold over him that nearly cost him his life? A life he had worked so hard already to get back? "I'm probably going to be angry at you for a while," she began, seeing him flinch. "But I forgive you..." she smiled weakly at him.
"Y-You... you... no, I don't deserve it," M shook his head.
"None of us deserve it," Nora countered. "But I still do," she said firmly. "I want you to rest and in the morning, I want you to meet him, okay?"
"Of course," M nodded eagerly.
"Good. Rest now, Marcus, I'll see you tomorrow," Nora said, pushing him gently until he lay back down on the bed. Nora reached over and brushed the tears from his eyes and smiled again. He had a lot of heart in him, despite how much he covered it up with brashness and lewd jokes, much like she did. How could she stay angry at him? No, everyone deserved a second chance. "Get some rest," Nora surprised M by leaning in and kissing his forehead, then slipped out quietly.
That evening, R and Julie arrived at John's house. Nora had been there too for a moment, only to say hello to them before she made an excuse to go catch up with Mrs. Grau's, claiming she missed the old gal, and left. The old woman collected and pampered orphans almost as though they were little kittens in need of shelter. She had taken Nora in when John first brought her in and had even looked over Perry for a while when his dad died. While it wasn't a surprise that Nora would want to visit Mrs. Grau, the three knew the real reason she left was because of the sudden tension in the room. And it wasn't the good kind.
As they sat down for dinner quietly, R squirmed a little in his seat, wondering how he'd bring up the rather large status change in his and Julie's relationship. Fortunately, or unfortunately depending on how you looked at it, John brought it up first... in his usual abrupt and to the point manner, "So tell me," he began casually. "Have you two had sex?" he asked, taking a sip of his water.
R dropped his fork in shock and Julie blanched. "Dad!" Julie gaped, staring incredulously at her father.
"Answer the question," John narrowed his eyes. Oh, he knew the answer, could see it plainly in their eyes and he had assumed they would anyway, especially with dad out of the way. He just wanted to see what they had to say for themselves. What sort of excuses or diversions they'd-
"...Yes sir," R responded, trying very hard not to avoid John's hard gaze.
John blinked in surprise. So the young man chose to tell the truth? Well played. "Is that so..." John moved his jaw to tighten threateningly, his brows furrowing so low it almost looked like his eyes were closed.
"Dad," Julie began as gently as she could. At least her tone caught his attention. He probably wouldn't have listened to her if she went she-devil on him. "We're both consenting adults," she reminded him. "We made the decision to be together because we love each other, alright?"
John studied them for a moment, his head aching from keeping from exploding on them, but if his daughter was being civil about this, he could too. He forced himself to calm down. "What are your intentions, boy?" John flicked his gaze back to R.
"I- what do you mean?" R frowned in confusion.
"Do you plan on marrying her?" John leaned forward, his stare hardening.
R blinked and glanced at Julie, who looked at him curiously. Their gaze met and she smiled reassuringly at him. "Eventually, Sir... I don't think right now is the best time to think about that..." he answered.
"I agree. So you also agree that she should still live here, right?" John gave him a challenging look.
"That's up to me, dad," Julie shot at him. "I decide what I will do with my life, not you. I love you, but I will do what my heart tells me, and my heart tells me to be with him," she told him.
John's habit was to blow up and yell at his daughter for being so willful, but she was right. She stopped being a little girl a long time ago. He thought for a long while, scrutinizing them, part of him enjoying seeing them fidget in their seats. "Alright," he shrugged, watching them begin to try to argue and then freeze when they realized a second later that he had given them their blessing.
"...Just like that?" Julie asked cautiously.
"He earned my respect long ago and I know the lengths he'd go to do right by me, and you... so yes, I accept," John nodded, leaning back in his seat and crossing his arms. "I don't like that you've had sex and are planning to move in before marriage-" Julie rolled her eyes at her dad's traditional views. "-But I understand why you did and I understand that in these times, such traditions would seem silly..." he gave his daughter a knowing look. "I only hope you've used protections."
"We have," Julie told him. She, of course, would never tell him the entire day they spent out on an unsanctioned scavenger hunt, just to get more condoms, but hey! At least they were dedicated to being careful!
"Good..." John said uneasily. The idea of his precious little girl giving herself to a man like that still bothered him, but she wasn't little anymore and clearly not his anymore either. They ate their meal in silence again, though this time it was a little more relaxed. After the meal it was clear that the two wanted to escape, wanted to rush off to R's apartment and again John took the twisted amusement in watching them squirm in their seats. He sighed and waved his hand in dismissal. The 'kids' looked shocked for a moment before shooting out of their seats. Julie stopped to give her father a kiss on the cheek before she and R rushed off.
John shook his head and sighed wearily. He let a tiny smile filter into his expression. So, he was finally going to get a son-in-law in the future, eh? He'd be a fool to think he could get a better one too, R was a lucky score for a son-in-law. Dedicated to everything he did, honest, selfless, cared for his daughter more than his own life, and a pretty decent soldier. Yeah, he could accept this. It also meant that John would now be able to make R's life a little harder, oh he'd have fun with this. Payback was a heartless bitch. John smirked.
TBC...
A/N: I updated in time! I guess I lied lol! Sexy timez with R and Julie at the start! Hope ya'll are happy lol. Tension with big daddy! Uh oh! John looks like he's going to be a typical annoying dad and father-in-law lol. I hope no one minds the creative license I'm using on him! Personally, I like my version of him better lol. Poor M, that must have been hard on him! Truth time! I actually cried when I wrote that bit, just a little, a few little tears... I'm a sap, so sue me.
For those of you that don't know, the prequel to Warm Bodies, The New Hunger, can be bought using "Zola Books" (go to the website, it'll explain), it's an exclusive ebook only thing... but you might be able to download it to your computer and find a program online to convert it it PDF.
Shout-Outs:
No One: I really wish you'd log in or get an account so I can answer you properly lol. Zola Books, that's where you should be able to find (...Italian version..? Wtf?) The New Hunger. R does do a good 180 eh? This chapter almost gave ME whiplash lol. I made him extra sexy in this chapter lol! I was in one of those moods, had to try hard not to go overboard! I missed a comma? WHERE?
coadhpgg: I'm happy you do! He's so much more fun to work with lol.
4MeJasper: Lol you missed a lot!
AnthonyC22: Jeez, needy much? LOL! J/K!
Rue Bladesinger: I hope this chapter didn't disappoint you? I don't think R would have remembered much, I don't remember (pun?) him being too much in that unfortunate scene.
Reader1352: Not a twist at all, like I said, in the prequel to Warm Bodies (The New Hunger) it is explained that Nora had a little brother and went through hell with him... I brought him back! :D
LoneTread: When I realized what I wrote and you pointed it out I laughed so hard no sound came out. I went back and changed it.
dontbecreepy: Go to Zola Books website and look it up, it's an ebook exclusive.
Ashely Marie: Let me know if it ever gets boring lol.
Sydney: It's unfortunate. I can't remember R being a big part of that last scene with Nora, Addis, and M... so I don't think he'd remember much, besides, unless it's a really big thing, zombies don't tend to remember much of anything. It just so happens that all of this being brought together triggered memories.
brigid1318: I AM good to ya'll :D thank ya! I hope Isaac Marion brings back Addis too! There's no reason not to! I think the movie made allusions to both R's "kids" from the book, and Nora's brother with that black boy. That's my theory anyway. I'm hesitant to give R any memories because I know so little about him... that might change when the sequel comes out.
Fuinn13: Are you serious?I read it in under 3 hours the day I bought it lol.