6/9
Domino paused from her work, leaning the rake against the trunk of a nearby tree and unzipping her jacket. It'd been cold when they'd started cleaning up the yard, but a combination of a break in the clouds and the activity had made the bulk of the jacket too warm. She slung it over a low-hanging branch and picked up her rake again. She'd gotten most of the side yard done, leaving only patches around the bushes by the house and the edge of the woods to be finished up. Nathan was working on the back--she could hear the swishing of his rake, and decided to go see how far he'd gotten.
"What've you been doing, piling them up by hand?" She asked as she rounded the back of the house. Only about half of the yard had been cleared.
"It's that damned cat," Nathan said, scowling absently. "Every time I start up again, he launches himself at the rake. *You* try working with a 13 pound animal affixed to the end of your rake." Dom stared at him for a moment in utter disbelief, then broke out laughing. "Well, I'm glad you're amused," he said sardonically as he watched her bent practically double with laughter.
She straightened up and wiped at her eyes with the back of her hand. "You must challenge his dominance or something," she joked. "I think I'd pay good money to see that... You, done in by a cat."
"Ha ha," he replied. "Don't tell me you're done already?"
"Almost," she replied smugly. "I haven't been duking it out with a feline." She paused, suddenly wary of the look Nate was fixing her with. "Nathan, I don't know what you're thinking but don't you eve--*oof.*" She crashed to the ground rather gracelessly as Nathan tackled her, landing in a pile of leaves. She shoved tangled hair out of her face and glared up at him. "Cute." He grinned down at her. "You do realize you are now in very big trouble."
"Oh, probably," he smirked, making no motion to get up. He reached out and plucked a leaf from her hair.
"Comfortable?"
"Actually," he grinned again and kissed her. "Quite."
She arched an eyebrow at him. "Oh, is that so?" Before he could react, she'd managed to shove a good fistful of leaves up the back of his sweater, dumping him over on his back in the same, fluid motion. "Take that," she cackled, and took off running before he could grab her. He watched her take off, and pushed himself to his feet, shaking the crushed leaves from his sweater as best he could before going after her.
In the end, the yard work was forgotten in the impromptu game of cat and mouse Dom lead him on, managing to always stay just out of his reach. He'd finally let her 'tag' him in the small clearing behind the garage.
"Well," she said, a bit breathlessly, "that was fun."
He propped himself on his elbows, looking up at her as she sat straddled across his waist, hair a tousled mane around her shoulders. "Yep," he replied simply, and found himself on his back again as she leaned in and kissed him roughly. He closed his eyes, a groan escaping as she shifted her weight. "Inside?" His voice sounded uneven to his own ears. "Dom--" He inhaled sharply as she moved again, the pressure of her body against his own a delicious sort of agony.
"Think we'll make it that far?" Her voice sounded as ragged as his own had.
He gave a strained laugh. "Garage?" She leaned in and kissed him again, and a surge of desire swept through him at the contact.
"Good idea," she replied huskily, and suddenly her weight was gone as she stood and tugged him impatiently to his feet. She latched onto him again as soon as he was vertical, and they made their fumbling way to the side door of the garage, and then inside.
Nathan yanked on the rear door to the SUV and cursed under his breath. "Locked..."
"Oh, the hell with that," Domino replied, already fumbling with his jeans.
He gave up on the car door and turned his attention back to his partner, leaning in for a bruising kiss as his hands slid beneath her sweater, pushing her bra out of the way to caress her breasts. She squirmed, sliding her jeans down her hips and pulled him closer insistently, arms wrapping around his neck. He pulled her up, pinning her back against the side of the car to help keep balance. His breath caught, the sheer amount of pleasure and desire flooding across the psilink almost blinding in its intensity.
He heard her cry out as they met, that intense, beautiful light expanding seemingly without limit as he lost track of himself as someone separate and apart from her, tangled hopelessly and without the desire to be free. He could still vaguely feel her mouth on his own, he hands grasping desperately at him, feel her body's reactions to his own as tension built to an almost unbearable level until the psilink exploded in brilliance, like a brand at the back of his mind, and he fell forward, gasping for air, body trembling ever so slightly as he leaned his forearms against the door of the car for support.
Dom's arms slipped from around his neck, head falling forward to rest against Nathan's chest. Her breathing began to slow as her heart rate returned to a reasonable rate. "Well--" she said, a bit shakily. "I guess we can cross the garage off the list." She took another deep breath. "Wanna go again?"
"Can we go inside?" He joked, straightening up finally.
"Sure. I'll even let you take your clothes off this time."
----
"Ha, easy for them to say." Domino rolled her eyes at the travel show currently on the television. "They're not getting shot at." She picked up the remote and started flipping through channels.
"I suppose that does detract from the scenery," he replied. Dom gave up on channel surfing, letting the TV rattle on where it'd stopped. She stretched, stifling a yawn, and settled in against Nate comfortably. "Tired?" He asked, slipping one arm loosely around her waist.
"Me? Nah. I could go five rounds with the Juggernaut," she joked. "We never did finish the yard work."
"We were distracted," he replied. "It can wait. You don't have any other pressing engagements, do you?"
"Nope," she yawned again. "You're stuck with me."
"Good." He wrapped his hand around her own, and chuckled quietly to himself as he realized she'd fallen asleep. After a few moments, he picked her up gently and carried her to bed.
----
"Shhh...don't..." A hand closed over her mouth and her eyes went wide. She choked on the sob that welled up inside her, thrashing uselessly until her chest was heaving, heart pounding frantically. She flinched as his free hand slid beneath her clothes, stomach knotting in grim anticipation. His hand moved from her mouth as he yanked her shirt upwards, leaving her arms trapped as he tugged down on her waistband.
He murmured under his breath as his hands ran over her body, down her torso and brushing her thigh. He shifted on top of her, fumbling with his jeans until he'd freed himself, slamming into her, hips crashing against her with such force she bit her tongue. Tears sprang to her eyes at the sudden, forceful violation and she tried to scream but no sound came out.
----
She bent double in bed, tears sliding down her cheeks without a sound. Nathan sat up beside her, quiet for a long moment before he placed a hand lightly on her shoulder. "Dom..."
"I just want it to go away," she hissed. "I dealt with it! It was all over." She fell against him, trembling more with rage than fear. "The son of a bitch is dead. It should be..."
"Did you kill him?" He smoothed back her hair.
"No, I--Logan did," she replied. "After I told him... he went back--fuck," she muttered. "I'm not going to let all these damned ghosts rule my life. not that perverted asshole, not this guy who's claiming to be my father... Goddamnit, they can't have me!"
"Good," he replied gruffly, and wrapped his arms around her tightly. The last traces of her fear and uncertainty seemed burned away by the flame of her anger.
"We need to end this stupid game. I don't care what the truth is... I just refuse to do this anymore."
----
She was wearing one of his old shirts, worn cotton clinging to her frame. She looked better than she had in months--relaxed, stress lines gone from her face, but beneath well-toned muscle bone still jutted too sharply, and he chastised himself for looking at her like something that would break in his hands. She was stronger than that, and she'd proven it.
Her nightmares still haunted him. He'd been spared the content but not the terror, and the magnitude of it staggered him. He balled up all of his focus-less anger and released it, knowing that holding onto it was pointless. It wouldn't do either of them any good now. She stirred, stretching cat-like as she sat up.
"Morning," she said, looking over at him.
"Morning." He reached out and pulled her toward him. Dom leaned over, slipping her hand into his own, her hair sliding over her shoulders to frame her face. Nate's free hand slid under the hem of her shirt, resting along her hip.
"You're horrible, you know that?" She said with a grin, leaning down to kiss him briefly.
"Making up for lost time," he replied with a playful grin, and let his hand slip lower.
"Ha! I think we've more than compensated. Face it, you're just a lecherous old man."
"Can you blame me?" He tugged her down gently. "I can't help it, waking up next to you every morning." He ran his hands along her back, and she shivered slightly at the contact.
"I'm not complaining." Her hands glided along his shoulders. She barely registered the difference between flesh and blood and the T-O anymore, both as familiar as the sunlight glowing weakly beyond the curtains.
They were becoming old hands at this, she mused inwardly as he kissed the hollow of her neck, trailing along the length of her collarbone. Fingers brushed along the inside of her thigh, and she drew her breath in sharply. She sat up, tugging off the shirt and tossing her hair back over her shoulder as she leaned forward, grinning at him. Nathan's arms slid around her waist, pulling her down gently to kiss her, his hands sliding over her skin causing her to shiver.
In an instant, he reversed their positions, hands on her shoulders as he leaned in to kiss her again, but stopped cold as he felt her go rigid beneath him.
The panic slammed into her like a tidal wave, unexpected and irrational, but no less unstoppable. She froze, eyes wide, unable to do anything but stare up at him, shame twisting her stomach in a knot. There was no pretending it hadn't happened--Nate was already pulling away from her, falling back on the pillows. With a strangled curse, she curled up on her side, back to him, knees drawn up to her chest. She took a deep, shaky breath.
"Dom?" Nathan's voice was low, all concern as she heard him sit up, leaning over to look at her.
"Sorry." Her heart rate was slowing to a normal rate, and she felt suddenly cold and jittery.
"Not your fault," he said quietly. "I shouldn't have done that."
"You didn't know," she replied, hugging her knees tightly. She couldn't quite stop the tremor that ran through her.
Nathan was silent for a long moment. "Come here?" He asked finally, undemanding.
She took another deep breath and uncurled, turning to face him as he pulled her into his arms. He rubbed her back and shoulders soothingly as she buried her face against his shoulder.
Some time later, she slipped free of his grip, and he watched as she pulled on an old sweatshirt and faded, too-big jeans, leaving the room without a word. When he exited the room a short time later, the door to the spare bedroom was closed. and he could hear the soft murmur of Domino talking on the telephone. He went into the kitchen and started up the coffee maker.
There was a light rain falling outside as he sat at the kitchen table, trying to convince himself the morning's incident was nothing more than a normal progression of events, given all that had been happening of late, and that it wasn't the crushing setback it felt like. He sighed and rubbed his eyes wearily, trying not to let himself be hurt by her reaction. He sipped his coffee, hoping that it would be an isolated incident; he wasn't sure how much more they could withstand. A door opened in the hall, and he broke free of his meditations as Domino walked into the room. "Hey."
"Hi," she replied distractedly, going to the counter and pouring herself a cup of coffee before sitting down across from him. Her expression was carefully neutral, but he could see tired apprehension in her eyes. "Nate..." She started, but trailed off, uncertain what to say.
"You don't have to discus it. I understand," he replied, carefully moderating his tone. He wasn't going to pry, but being overly sympathetic was just bound to irritate her. Dom hated being patronized.
"I don't want this to screw things up, alright? I'm not afraid of you, and I never have been. I just should have given myself a bit more time--or something. I dunno. But now you're bound to be understandably uneasy, and the *last* thing I want is for you to get all skittish on me." She reached out and took his hand in her own, lacing her fingers through his as she squeezed it tightly. "Okay?"
"If you're sure," he replied, trying to keep lingering skepticism from his voice.
She gave him a wry smile. "We've been doing this for the better part of two decades, Nate. I'll be damned if something as stupid as a nightmare changes that."
He gave her a slight smile. "Just checking."
----
"Why'd we come here again?" He side-stepped quickly as an unattended child ran past. "You hate shopping."
"I needed a distraction," she replied, eyeing the different stores on their side of the mall. "Too noisy for you?" She still occasionally forgot how trying crowds could be on telepaths.
"No, it's okay," he said. "Just wondering why you were feeling social all of the sudden."
"Like I said, I needed the distraction. Well, that, and it *is* amusing watching people try to stay out of your way."
"Cute," he replied sardonically.
Dom gave him an impish smile. "Just keeping you on your toes, Nate. Wouldn't want you to get soft on me."
#You're in trouble when we get home.#
'Good.' She reached out and grabbed his hand. "Let's go in there."
----
"So, what do you think of this one?" She swung open the fitting room door.
Nate blinked. "That's...low cut," he commented finally.
Dom grinned. "I take that as approval?"
He nodded mutely. Amazing how she could still manage to do that to him... particularly when he took into consideration that fact that he was used to seeing her walk around in what was, essentially, glorified spandex. Not that she hadn't gotten creative with her uniform over the years... He shook his head and sighed, wandering out to the front of the store while Dom waited to check out. Roped into a day of shopping... Dom definitely owed him one, he decided.
----
"You're getting that?" It was the third clothes store they'd hit in a row. He hadn't thought her resolve would last this long--Dom hated shopping on general principle. She certainly bitched about it enough.
"...why not?" She gave him a suspicious look.
"Well... it's...red..." He pointed out helpfully.
"Yeah, so?"
"So... it's not black. ...or purple." Dom shot him a dirty look. "I'm just saying. Besides, our closet is already full..."
"Half that stuff doesn't fit," she retorted, firmly reminding herself that he was probably being aggravating on purpose.
"It would if you stopped skipping dinner all the time." He gave her a none-too-subtle poke in the ribs.
"Cut it out, Nate," she sighed, swatting his hand away.
"So... we almost done in here?"
"Yeah, why? Got an urge to go to the cooking store or something?"
"Very funny. No, but I am hungry..."
"Nate, the food court? In a mall?"
"We've eaten worse..."
"And personally, I am very glad I haven't had to eat an MRE in almost ten years," she replied.
"I think there was a Chinese place. It wasn't all McDonalds and Taco Bell..."
She rolled her eyes. "I should know better than to argue with your stomach."
----
Waiting in line at the Chinese place, Dom cast a not-so-idle look around the large food court. Funny, she reflected, how years of training taught her to be on her toes even in a place as seemingly innocuous as a mall. But any number of situations could turn just about any place into a battleground, as she'd learned in the past. And she owed that in no small part to the man standing in front of her, trying to communicate with the lady behind the counter.
A few minutes later they finally stepped away to look for a table. Domino smirked at Nate as he realized the only open spot appeared to be between two families with very noisy children. "I probably don't have to remind you that eating here was your idea," she pointed out helpfully. He just shot her a dirty look and plonked down.
Thankfully, the families were on their way out. After several minutes of cacophony as all the children were rounded up and into jackets and hats, the area was finally comparatively quiet. A young couple took seats at one of the vacated tables, obviously not long married and with a baby that couldn't have been more than six months old. Luckily the child seemed content to watch all the adults around her, blue eyes wide as saucers. Nate sneaked a glance at Dom from over his plate, and caught her looking at them almost wistfully.
"Penny for your thoughts?"
She glanced at him, startled out of her reverie. "I was not staring, I'll have you know."
"Hey, I didn't say a word..."
"Hmp. Right."
"Talk to me, Dom. What're you thinking about?"
She shook her head. "It just--" she pushed her hair out of her face. "Sometimes I wonder if I was ever like that. Normal."
He shrugged. "Who decides what 'normal' is, anyway?"
"Well, general consensus says it's the house in the suburbs with 2.5 kids and a dog," she replied wryly.
"You don't want that anyway."
"Don't bring logic into this," she retorted. "Besides, it still should have been my choice."
"Of course." He paused. "None of us has exactly gotten what we somehow think we're owed. If we had, we wouldn't do what we do."
"That's the thing, though, isn't it? I didn't agree to help you with X-Force because I felt like I was fighting for something I deserved, and I sure as hell didn't do it to be a hero. You needed me, and that was enough. I don't think that would change if I suddenly had everything I'd ever wanted handed to me tomorrow."
"Well, that's good to know."
She gave him a cheerless smile. "I just wish I could remember, so I could say 'it wasn't always like this.' I had to let go of too many dreams over the years. I tried so hard to pretend I didn't have any at all, because it hurt so much to have to keep watching them die." She stood up. "Maybe that's what this is about. I look around at these people, and all I see are my own dead dreams."
"It's not too late, you know," he replied, pushing in his chair, metal grating harshly against the concrete tiles. "That's why you decided you wanted to do this in the first place, isn't it?"
"Yeah." She shoved her hands into the pockets of her coat and began wading through the sea of tables and chairs. "But it isn't that simple. We can't just give up who we are. I don't think either of us want to."
"Who says you have to?" He caught up to her, slipping his arm through the crook of her elbow. "Why does it have to be all or nothing, Dom?"
"How am I supposed to start building up this new life for me--for us--knowing there are a thousand ways it could be annihilated by morning?"
"It's called taking a risk, Dom." He shot her a serious look. "It's called having a little faith."
"Faith," she repeated bitterly. "It's not that simple, Nate."
"Didn't say it was simple. Or easy. It's not, but it doesn't mean it's not worth trying."
"I don't know where to start."
"That's okay. We'll figure it out eventually."
On their way out of the food court, they passed a group of loud, rowdy teenage boys, shoving each other and generally making a nuisance of themselves. Several cat-calls erupted and Domino shook her head, muttering something under her breath before blithely flipping them off. Nathan chuckled quietly and slid an arm around her waist.