Red-Eye
Author: Knowhere
Rating: Pg-13
Disclaimer: Nothing
AN: It's not much, just something really straightforward.
Summary: A simple glance at Rory's twenty-fifth birthday. Literati/AU-esque/Future Fic/Stand Alone.
A pair of blue eyes struggle to open in the dim light of the coming sun. Tips of her fingertips graze the air—reaching, stretching, and grasping at nothing in particular. She gently tugs down the navy cotton sheet down so that her eyes may be exposed to the world. She glances around, not really concentrating on anything but the sleepiness that still coaxes her back to slumber. Taking her time, she lifts herself up into a sitting position and suddenly realizes with a shiver, that the room got increasingly colder throughout the night. She instantly squirms back into the bed with a slight shriek and throws the covers over her head. She giggles like a young child at her foolish actions, but she doesn't care. It's Saturday and she has all day to stay in bed if she wanted to.
The door creaks open and she can hear a light padding of feet coming closer to the bed. She swiftly sits up, bringing the comforter with her, and realizes that familiar aroma. He laughs at her and reaches over to pull down the blanket off her head. His eyebrows are raised and he questions, "Woke up and realized how cold it is, huh?"
She smoothes out her hair with her palms but stops for a second to give him a slight shrug and a smile in return. "Oh, is that for me?" Her eyes light up like a kid on Christmas and she reaches out with open arms.
"Nope." He nonchalantly replies and pulls back the covers on his side of the bed. He plops down next to her and continues to refuse her surprised stare.
"Jess…" She paws at his chest, whining for what he won't give. He still won't look at her, and by now, she's lying down pressed up next to him. Trying to make him forget, she trails her right hand down from his hair to his chest, just resting there with a slight teasing touch. She bends down and kisses him softly on his mouth. He reaches over and places the cup on the bedside table to grasp her face into his hands and to kiss her back properly.
In one swift movement, she rolls off of him and grabs the cup of coffee off of the table. She grins triumphantly and smiles broadly at his dazed expression. He leans over to her and teases her by whispering in her ear while gently nipping. "You're no fair, you know that?"
"Uh huh." She nods but doesn't say much more because she just can't concentrate.
He hops off the bed and saunters his way causally towards the closet. She glances over at him and can't help but notice the fact that he's only wearing a thin white cotton shirt with blue striped pajama bottoms. They hang low on his hips and it gives her a tantalizing view of his abs; she cocks her head to the left and notices his back side. She comes back to earth with a crashing halt as he suddenly says without turning around, "You like what you see, Rory?" Playing innocent she smiles with her doe-like eyes as he turns around. His eyebrow is arched and she just shakes her head and returns to her coffee.
Jess chuckles slightly and turns back to the closet. He grabs a duffel bag from the ground and opens it up. She flops on her stomach and just watches him as he crouches on the floor to make sure that the bag is empty. "When are you leaving?"
"My flight's a red-eye tonight. I'll be there by morning and back within the week." He stops his actions for a second to look at his girlfriend. He knows that he's staring, but he still continues to watch her. She glances down at the magazine on the bed and begins to flip through the pages. He can tell that she's disappointed. Rory gets frustrated with the pages and closes it back up again only to toss it on the floor—forgotten. She returns the coffee to the side table and rolls again so that she's on her back, looking up at the ceiling. Her hair hangs over the edge and she stares up above her. He sighs and walks back over to her, jumping on the bed and lying on his stomach—staring down at her, propped up by his elbows, devoid of any expression on his face. "I'm sorry I have you leave you."
Rory turns her head to get a good look at him and sympathetically replies, "Yeah I know. It's not your fault; it's not like you planed on leaving tonight."
"It still doesn't make you feel any better." He stretches out his left hand and grazes her stomach and leans down to place a gentle kiss on her belly button, eliciting a high giggle out of her.
"It's your job, Jess." She shrugs her shoulders and turns back to the ceiling.
"Maybe if I called the editor and told him that I couldn't go, he could find a replacement."
She shoots up and sits up on the bed and scolds, "No, Jess. You've been waiting too long for this assignment for you to just throw it away. It could be the straw that breaks the camel's back—you could receive that promotion that you've been waiting for. And we both know that you've worked your ass off for it."
He idly draws random patterns on the bedspread, reluctant to meet her eyes. He's stubborn about not leaving, but he also knows that she's right. He had been working extra hard just so he could cover the press conference in Liverpool; but still, it was hard for him to leave her tonight. "Okay."
She breathes out and returns to her position on her back. "I feel old, Jess. Is that what you felt like?" She tries contains a giggle but it escapes.
The mood is broken and is traded with a lighter one. He's grateful for the change. "You're only turning twenty-five, Ror. It's not like we're becoming senior citizens." Jess's sarcastic tone creeps back into his voice.
She smiles at that tone. It reminds her of his younger days. He has changed over the years, but it still makes her laugh when he turns monosyllabic and retreats back into his sardonic comments. "Well, it's another year closer to it anyways."
He leans down to kiss her and nods. Rory's hands come up to hold him in place and he hovers over her, trying not to lean his weight on her too much. Her hands travel through his hair and down his back where she sneaks her hands under his tee-shirt. Jess smiles against her lips; she seems playful in her actions and it turns him on just thinking about it. She can feel his smile and she also knows exactly what he's grinning about. She can feel the change too. He sinks down to his elbows, but is still careful not to crush her. His hands cradle her face as hers grab the hem of his shirt to pull it over his head. He kisses the side of her neck, tickling the sensitive area that lies in front of him. Rory unties the strings that hold up the pajama bottoms and hooks her feet around the fabric at his ankles, to tug down his pants. She breaks their kiss and laughs out loud at his boxers. He looks down too and joins her giggling. "You like that, don't you?" Jess whispers in her ear and she nods, returning to their kiss.
He rolls over, taking Rory with him and she momentarily breaks the kiss to ask, "Where did you find boxers that said 'Kiss My Ass' on it?" She's still amused at his child-like humor.
"I have my ways." Jess pulls her head back down and crashes his lips onto hers.
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Rory's bare shoulders peek up through the cotton sheet. She yawns and reaches over to Jess. She comes up empty handed and she pushes herself up further on her stomach to see that she's alone in bed. The clock next to her reads 1:00am and she falls back, knowing that he has already left. A small frown appears on her features but suddenly disappears as she lays her eyes on a small package on the table. Rory gets up, pulling the sheets with her to examine the gift at a closer range. She reaches over to shake the silver wrapping next to her ear. Hearing nothing, she begins to open it up. Pushing the tissue paper aside, it reveals a deep brown leather journal. A smile appears broadly on her face and the cover opens with a slight creak. A simple inscription adorns the front cover.
Rory—I love you. Happy Birthday.
—Jess.
She enjoys the simple yet expressive inscription and reaches over to the end table to grab a pen. Rory removes the cap and begins to scribble in the journal, making her first and lasting impression.
--End--