Title: Once Again
Author: Tasha
Rating: PG-13
Genre: This chapter is definitely Romance and Angst. The Action/Adventure will come in the next 2-3 chapters.
Summary: J/I Takes place after Endgame
Disclaimer: I do not own Alias and am not making any money from this fic.
Jack got out of bed, flexing his arms to release the tension. He hated waking up and feeling stiff, like an old man. It was the stiffness afterwards that gave away his age. Last night he had tricked himself into thinking his body was strong, as strong as it had been. Now, feeling the tenderness in his joints and the stiffness of his muscles that hadn't plagued him 10 years ago, he despised his body. He knew he wasn't an old man, with all of the connotations that expression had, and that his mind was still one of the best, but the slow weakening of his frame tweaked at his confidence.
That thought bothered him and as he walked into his bathroom, he pulled off his dark grey t-shirt. Jack stood in front of the mirror. He studied his torso, looking for even an ounce of spare flesh or weakening muscle. He hadn't expected to find any and he didn't. It wasn't that, he told himself. As a spy, he had to be confident. Confidence was what enabled the people in his world to perform almost superhuman feats and live. That was why thoughts of getting old unnerved him.
As Jack pulled off his loose black pants and boxers, he looked at himself in the mirror. Here he was, standing in the bathroom in his empty house, telling himself how good he looked. He almost laughed at the absurdity of it all and stepped into the shower. He showered leisurely and dressed carefully in a dark suit.
As he tied his tie, he could almost see Laura standing in front of him, asking if he needed help. Despite himself, he could see her, as she had been every morning during their marriage, dressed only in a white housecoat and with slightly mussed hair. Some days, they would spend 10 minutes while she attempted to tie his tie. Usually so dextrous, her hands would fumble as he whispered words of love in her ear and she would lean into him, plastering her lower half to his. If he was in a hurry, he would kiss her gently and put her away from him but sometimes he could get lost in the sensations of loving her. Her soft lips, her voice as she moaned and the smell of her skin had entranced him, had never stopped entrancing him.
Coming out of his reverie, he exhaled heavily. He focused his thoughts away but felt more longing than anger. Those people he had remembered didn't exist anymore. That man wasn't who he was now, no more than Laura Bristow was the same person as Irina Derevko. He had changed and so had she, he told himself as he went back to tying his tie.
Author's Note: I know this chapter wasn't very exciting and I promise the next couple will be a lot better, but I just felt that I had to get this stuff out there. It will make for a better story.
Thank you SO much, those people who reviewed. It was a huge confidence boost to me. If you like or hate what I'm doing, just REVIEW! Please! I do like constructive criticism but if you like it tell me. Tasha
