Title: It's Just a Game
Author: Shelly
E-Mail: NurseZelda@aol.com
Rating: PG
Disclaimer: "Scarecrow & Mrs. King" is the property of Warner Brothers and Shoot the Moon Enterprises, LTD. Use of these characters is strictly for entertainment purposes. I can only dream about one day getting paid to do this. Do not redistribute without express permission from the author.
Summary: Amanda and Lee discover that there are some things couples really don't need to share.
First Posted: 1/2/03
Timeframe: The dating stage -- between "It's In the Water" and "Night Crawler"
Feedback: Expected, please!
Archive: Permission granted to post at smkfanfic.net and fanfiction.net -- any others, please ask permission before posting or linking. Thanks!
Author's Notes and Thanks: I'd like to thank everyone who helped to raise this from its sticky beginnings to its somewhat polished end. I'd like to especially thank Fling and Dix, both of whom flew all the way to Orlando to give me a one-on-one beta! Okay -- so there was another reason . . . we won't go there. :-)
It's Just a Game
**Friday**
Hand in hand, the couple walked from the seclusion of the restaurant into the cool night air. The temperature had dropped considerably while they were having dinner, but neither Lee nor Amanda noticed the change. This newest facet of their relationship -- the transition from working associates and good friends to something more -- had them swept up in a whirlwind of new experiences. They were too caught up in each other to notice such small things as the weather.
They rounded the corner and were headed for the small parking lot reserved for patrons of the restaurant when Lee broached the subject.
"What are you doing this Sunday?" he asked, squeezing Amanda's fingers slightly as he spoke.
"Nothing, I suppose," she replied. "I think Mother's going somewhere with Mrs. Ferguson, but that's all I know that's going on. I was thinking about tackling the laundry room." They had reached her car while she was talking, and she now turned to Lee and raised an eyebrow. "Why?"
"I was wondering if you might want to go to watch the 'Skins game with me." Standing directly in front of her, he took both of her hands in his and suppressed a chuckle when her other eyebrow shot up to meet its mate.
"Football?" she asked.
"There's a bar I go to when I don't have tickets, or when it's an away game," he explained. "They're away this weekend and I just thought you might like to come with me." He smiled at her and winked. "Consider this a part of us getting to know each other."
Amanda weighed her options. Clean the laundry room, or spend time with Lee in a smoky bar filled with crazed football fans. "I didn't know you were such an avid fan," she observed.
"See?" Placing a finger under her chin, he raised her head and leaned in for a kiss. "There are still a lot of things you don't know about me, Amanda King."
Savoring the sensation even a small peck on the lips could elicit, she nodded. "I suppose you're right. When will you pick me up?"
Beaming, Lee reached around and opened Amanda's car door. "I'll be there at noon -- any later and we won't get a good seat."
**Sunday**
"Amanda, what are you wearing?" Dotty West looked up from her magazine as her daughter buzzed past.
Pausing for a moment to tie her shoe, Amanda glanced down at her attire. She had pulled out an old, bright yellow turtleneck and had covered that with an unbuttoned, maroon colored long-sleeved shirt. As far as she was concerned, she was dressed appropriately. "What's wrong with it?" she asked, reaching for her purse.
"You look like one of those poison tree frogs from Madagascar that Jamie was reading about last week," she dryly commented. "You know, the bright coloring is supposed to scare off predators, not attract them."
"Lucky for me, Mother, I'm not trying to attract *or* scare off any predators." Amanda walked around the couch and kissed her mother on the head. "I'm going with some people from work to watch the Redskins game. I'm just showing some team spirit." She checked her watch and started for the front door. "I should be home by five."
Dotty nodded and continued her line of questioning, refusing to be dissuaded by Amanda's attempt at a hasty escape. "Since when do you like football?"
Amanda sighed and turned. "I *was* a cheerleader," she pointed out. "Just because I haven't been keeping up with the game since high school doesn't mean I don't enjoy watching it from time to time." She had been working her way closer to the door with each word and now had a hand on the doorknob. "Besides, it's only a little gathering with some friends from work -- it's not the Super Bowl."
"When do I get to meet some of these people from work?" Dotty called after her, but her question was left unanswered. Amanda had already stepped outside, closing the door behind her.
***
Five hours later, Amanda was pinching the bridge of her nose, trying to lessen the throbbing headache that threatened to consume her. Lee was driving in silence, upset that his team had lost, even after a considerable lead in the last half.
"We were up by seventeen points," he muttered once again, a mantra he'd been repeating since the final horn had sounded.
"It was a good game," she offered, reaching over to pat him on the leg. "It was certainly exciting."
"We lost," Lee pointed out.
"True." Amanda sat quietly for a moment before trying again. "It's very early in the season, though, right?"
Lee wrinkled his nose and glanced at his passenger. "Yeah, I suppose," he conceded. "Did you have fun?"
Looking at him, rather guiltily, Amanda tried to think of a way to soften the blow. "It was interesting." She saw him glance at her again, and she quickly amended, "I mean, there were an awful lot of . . . um, enthusiastic fans there." Her thoughts returned to the pitcher of beer she had nearly worn after a surprise interception in the third quarter. "Is it always that loud?"
"Loud?" Lee laughed. "That was tame!"
Amanda looked at him, mouthing a silent, "Oh."
"If you didn't have fun . . ." Lee started, but Amanda held up a hand.
"It's not that!" she interrupted. "I had a wonderful time." She took a deep breath and almost choked on the cigarette smoke that had infused itself into her hair and clothes. "It's just not something I would want to do on a weekly basis."
"Oh," Lee whispered, looking crestfallen, as he parked the car on the corner near her house.
Quickly searching for a way to salvage the situation, Amanda said, "It's like this, Lee. There are some things that you like to do that I might not and the other way around. It's okay for us to try out those things, to see if it's something we can enjoy together, but it's also okay for some of those things to remain as just yours or mine alone."
"Let's face it," she continued, "we see each other all day at work and sometimes that runs over into the night as well. Now that we're dating, we see each other even more." With a pat on his leg, she joked, "I don't want you to overdose on me!"
A smile was playing with the corner of his mouth. "I suppose you're right," he said. "But I don't know how I could possibly overdose on you."
"If I don't get in the shower soon, I'm going to overdose on second-hand smoke." Wrinkling her nose, Amanda smelled her sleeve. "I hope this smell comes out! Honestly, the way some of those guys were behaving in there -- it's just a game for heaven's sake."
"It'll come out," Lee assured her. "As for it being just a game -- some would disagree." He paused then added, "*I* would disagree." Looking down at the steering wheel, he muttered, "Seventeen points."
"Hmmm." She rolled her eyes, then looked out the window, allowing her mind to wander. "Lee," she said, an idea taking shape. "What are you doing next weekend?"
"Nothing comes to mind," he replied, "unless something comes up at work."
"I'm planning on starting my Christmas shopping. Why don't you come with me?" She turned her head in time to see the panicked look in his eyes. Enjoying this turn of events, she marched ahead. "I know it's not even Halloween yet, but one can never start shopping for that perfect gift too early."
"Christmas shopping? Before Halloween? Amanda," he sputtered, "there are some things that you like to do that I might not . . ."
Amanda's fingers on his lips silenced his recitation. "See?" she whispered. "I think I've proven my point." Her other hand unlatched the seat belt and she inched closer to Lee, spurred on by the smile forming under her fingertips.
Clasping her hand, he peppered it with tiny kisses before removing it from his lips. "Are you saying we don't have to be joined at the hip?"
Amanda winked, drawing herself within inches of his mischievous smile. "Definitely *not* the hip . . ." she sighed, as he released her hand and reached up to gently pull her closer.
The End